Garmin ALPHA 300i Handheld Only

Review Summary

4.9

21 Reviews

86% (18)

14% (3)

0% (0)

100% Recommend this product (21 of 21 responses)

By Randal

Shreveport, La

Highly Suggest

July 17, 2024

I use the 300 with my two GSPs. Works perfectly so far for training and tracking. Durable, nice weight when hooked to you, great battery life, quick connect time with satellites and TT25 collars. Would buy again if ever needed another and have suggested to others that have now changed over to the Garman 300.

Pros

Quick access time. Great battery life. Well made.

Cons

None.

By Chris

Central California

Great system but be aware….

July 23, 2023

I have lost dogs for many days (without usage of a gps collar) and am very aware and appreciative of the longer battery life of this new collar to allow for long search times if needed. This system has a mode called 'sleep mode' that allows you to put the collar to 'sleep' and consume far less battery power. It is meant to be used when you are not actively tracking your dog. When you want to begin tracking your dog again you enter the 'awake mode'. The issue that I confirmed with GARMIN helpline is that you must be in RF antenna sight line to wake the collar up. It is not commanded to wake via GPS. If you hunt in hilly country as I do it is likely that the dog will be out of RF range and therefore the collar will be stuck in sleep mode and useless to track your dog. The GARMIN product manual does not make it clear whether this mode is commanded via RF or GPS antenna. If it were via GPS then there would be very little limitation putting the collar into awake mode. As it stands I will not be using 'sleep/wake' mode. I want others to know this limitation as well.

Pros

This system is working very well

Cons

Sleep/Wake mode limitations as described in my comments

By Danny

Plainview, Texas

Awesome dog training tool

July 21, 2024

This is a must have for your bird dog. I had a new puppie when I bought this unit and I use it everyday. Never have to worry about where my dog is because I can track her always.

Pros

Training collar with tone and stimulation, gps with compass works great

Cons

Seems to be a little slow to give dog update when she is on point

By Evan

New Hampshire

Good performance, user interface could be better

July 18, 2024

First off, I bought this for use around my yard/neighborhood for when my dog runs off chasing deer, etc. Cell signal in my neighborhood is spotty and weak, so most of the GPS collars designed for pets rather than sporting dogs work poorly for my situation.
As such, I know I'm not exactly the target audience for this product so I have to forgive some design aspects that are optimized for sporting use and not for my use case.

Overall this device works great at its primary function of keeping track of where my dog is and has been, over as long a range as I'll ever need in my neighborhood, with consistent and frequent updates. Battery life has been great, and it charges via USB-C - which IMO is practically a requirement at this point in 2024.

The one major functional complaint I have with it is that it won't let me send corrections to my dog's collar until it has achieved GPS lock. Since GPS lock can take a few minutes depending on circumstances, this has on more than one occasion been an issue when my dog sees a deer the moment he goes out the door (collar just turned off, GPS not yet locked) and bolting, and then I stand there waiting and yelling for several minutes until my dog finally appears on the map (halfway across the neighborhood) and only then can I send corrections. It has radio comms with the collar immediately, so I don't see a logical reason why it wouldn't let me control the collar without GPS - this just seems like a bad design decision.

The user interface is kind of clunky, I haven't found it very intuitive, and is very prone to accidental interactions with the touchscreen while it's on my hip. The buttons are less prone to accidental presses, but it still happens while doing yard work, etc. Often when I need to use it urgently, like when my dog just took off after a deer, I pull it off the belt clip and it's on the wrong screen, or the map is panned halfway across town, and in the worst case the top row buttons are on the wrong tab so I can't even send corrections to my dog's collar without fiddling around to get back to the right state first. Maybe there's a way to lock the touchscreen and/or the top row to prevent this - but if so, it's not obvious and I haven't found it.
As a specific example of the UI being flaky, I'm unable to turn off the track for myself (this device) on the map. I set it to "hide all", but it won't go away. The same options for my dog's track work as expected, but the handheld track doesn't respond to any of the settings.
Basically, the UI/UX is at a level that I'd expect from cheap no-brand chinese electronics but quite disappointing for an $800 product from a US company.

Anyway, this probably seemed like a lot of complaining - but overall, I'm giving it 4 stars because it does its main job which is the most important thing. I'm only dinging it one star for the above complaints; honestly, if Garmin had any real competition in this market I'd judge it more harshly, but I just don't see a better option so I'm being easier on it.

By Mimi

Texas

Love this handheld

July 18, 2024

I upgraded to a 300i after having used an older model Garmin for several years. The battery life is great, there's tons of functionality, and everything about it has been improved from the older model. The color screen is cool, too. This probably does 10x more than I'll ever use it for, but I discover new things every day and am really pleased with the purchase.

By Trish

Shawano, WI

Great unit for multiple dogs and GPS tracking

July 17, 2024

We upgraded from the Pro Plus 550 to the Alpha 300 for a couple of reasons and it has lived up to all our expectations and hopes.

Pros

When running or training multiple dogs especially in cold weather that requires gloves. No dials, or toggle switches to worry about.
Incredibly easy to identify and move between three different settings of your choosing. I use Tone, High 1 and Vibrate on my three buttons. Should you need to accelerate your commands to more intensity this is also accomplished very quickly in seconds.
So much easier to switch between two dogs on the fly and easy to know where both are at in one screen.
GPS uploading is significantly faster on the Alpha 300 than the 550 for us in our area. Incredibly important for us in dense woods and tall grass and corn habitats. Ability to share information with other hunters in your group, tracking and marking locations invaluable.

Cons

Requires committment to learning the new system. Comes with very basic written instructions. There are great you tube videos of different aspects of the system that are very helpful. I am tech challenged and with some committment the system makes sense and is easy to navigate. All the options at first can seem overwhelming.
Overall I love this system, the screen is extremely responsive [which is why I love it] but in responsiveness you also experience if on a lanyard the screen can be bumped easily as you move through the field and change. I have learned to expect and accept that and the "back" button is easy to find and use to get back on track. I also am exploring perhaps a holster instead of relying on a lanyard and pocket.

By Brad

Kansas

Works great

July 17, 2024

I really like the Alpha 300. I don't use all of the new features since I'm only running one bird dog on it, but it really is easy to set up and use. Battery life is excellent and it's no problem for me to get a weekend worth of hunts without charging. One reason it was purchased is for the inReach messaging capability. I work by myself in some locations that don't have a cell signal so it provides peace of mind that I can call for help if needed.

Pros

Capability for dog tracking and inReach messaging

Cons

For the price they should include multiple ways to attach the device to yourself. It really should include at least two different clip setups and a holster type.

By Blake

Steamboat Springs, CO

Great for our two pups!

July 17, 2024

We have a wirehair pointing griffon and a doberman who we take out on trails all around the Rocky Mountains. We got this system to both track them when they roam and correct their recall, heel and other commands. We don't take advantage of all of the features but the ability to manage and track both dogs at once, and at long distances, has been great. We are very satisfied and would recommend this top notch system. The dogs get so excited whenever the collars come out!

Pros

Ability to manage multiple dogs.
Tracking them at long distances.
Beep, vibrate and stimulation corrections (we've gotten to where the beep is all it takes for long distance recall).
Excellent battery life.

Cons

It takes a few seconds to get the unit out, wake it up, and make sure you're on the right dog to send a correction, which sometimes is too long for it to be effective.

By John

Michigans U P

Garmin 300i

July 17, 2024

I purchased the bundle (Garmin 300i /T25collar) this past spring 2024. I am a first time buyer of this kind of unit so bear with me a bit.
I have 1 dog on it, a 65 pound 10 month old female Silver Lab. Who likes to explore on her own. All and all once I learned the in's and out of the hand held it works pretty good but it was a learning experience for me having never used something like this. About the only issue I have with it is there is no way to tell how much charge is in the collar itself. It's the off season for us so we are not hunting, this Time of year the collar go on when she gets up in the morning and comes off when she gos to bed at night she spends a lot of time out side when we are at camp, I can alway tell where she's at at a glance. The hand held would get 5 stars if it would show how much charge the collar had.

Pros

Works as advertised

Cons

Can be a bit confusing until u learn the ins and outs if your not use to using a unit like this.
Doesn

By Troy

The 300 is awesome

July 17, 2024

Charge lasts a long time and it never loses the pups!

By John W.

Owings, MD

Garmin Alpha 300 Handheld Only

July 17, 2024

After watching a few videos I was able to set up my handheld to collar. I did not find it intuitively obvious how to set things up, and the system allows for way more functionality than I will ever use. The problem is, there really is no middle of the road solution, especially when I wanted to be able to evenutually connect to 3 dogs. I use it daily and it works very well. I use it to see where my dog is on the GPS as my farm is rolling with wood. I use 3 modes of vibrate, momentary, and continuous but rarely need more than vibrate. I really like being able to turn a blinking light on the collar so I can see the dogs in the dark. Like I said, there's so much more functionality that I will never use.

By P P

Alpha Handheld

July 17, 2024

Compact
Some components are clear but some are not as the directions are not simple especially for a person not familiar with a handheld
A simple and clear manual would be good
I get help from my son because he has one for his dog

Pros

Compact
Well made
Charge time excellent

By Chip G.

Maine

Better than advertised.

July 17, 2024

Worth every penny, this unit has performed flawlessly for 2 years being used every day.

Pros

It's a Garmin

Cons

None really

By Curtis

Spokane WA

Great Hunting Tool

July 16, 2024

This has proven to be s great tool for both training and hunting. With the three types of correction it offers a great range of options.

Pros

Unit is waterproof. It is durable and has fantastic range, It offers tone, vibrate, and stim. Two antennas for different applications. Very accurate and quick GPS tracking. Works great for multiple dogs

Cons

There are so many features I have to keep on top of remembering the best way to toggle through them all. Not a difficult unit to use though, just takes some time to learn it

By Henry M.

Chagrin Falls, Ohio

Peace of Mind

July 16, 2024

Alpha 300 is a great system for anybody who hunts with their best friend. Never have to worry about where my dog is or what he's doing. This is also the only e collar I've used where I'm not questioning whether or not my dog is actually receiving a correction when necessary. Have had multiple other systems and this one takes the cake. I run labs on waterfowl and upland game 50+ days a season.

By Scott

Salt Lake City, Utah

Alpha 300 Handheld

July 16, 2024

The Alpha 300 Handheld is the best unit for training and also tracking my dog Stella. I never leave home without this important tool. I also subscribe to Garmin for GPS and also emergency services in the back country. A1 Rating.

By Calvin

Florida

Game Changer

July 16, 2024

The ALPHA 300 was a major upgrade from the ALPHA 100. I hunt with multiple people that track each others packs individually and the 300 makes that easy. Screen clarity is great also. Highly recommend it.

Pros

Nice screen that's visible in direct light.
Battery life is way better than older models.
Group options that allow you to switch between dogs being tracked.
Train features are more easily accessible.

Cons

None so far.

By Brian

Upper Michigan

Easy to set up and operate.

July 16, 2024

I haven't had much of a chance to put the collar through a lot of testing yet. But if you are familiar with other Garmin products it was amazingly easy to add the collar and customize the buttons. This unit is going to be a real asset for dog training and give me that piece of mind that I can always locate my dog.

Pros

Easy to get the whole package up and running.

Cons

Expensive

By Stephen

Tampa, Florida

Top of the line training/tracking unit

July 16, 2024

I bought the Alpha with the intent to use it for training my Brittany but also for use when we go hunting out west and it has done nothing but impress me over and over again. I've used the Alpha 300 for a week straight without recharging (using it for a few hours of hunting each day) and it never died. It's always comforting being able to know exactly where my dog is and the 9 mile range is impressive. It's also built for the outdoors, I've had it in rain, snow and have fallen in a river with it and just simply rinsed it off and kept going. When you want something you can rely on for your dogs go with the Alpha. We spend a lot of money on our dogs and though the Alpha is not cheap it's a good insurance to ensure you are always able to find your dog and potentially save them if they end up in a bad situation while out hunting (encounter with a coyote, porcupine, snake, bear, traps, etc).

Pros

Reliable, long ranging, extremely long battery life, very customizable, durable.

Cons

Pricey, but it's top of the line and worth it as a bit of extra

By Cayden

Ohio

Garmin Alpha 300

July 16, 2024

Not a single regret from buying my garmin alpha 300. This device is very trustworthy when it comes to knowing where my dogs are at all times when I'm out hunting. All the little accessories within the device help out with any situation whether you're training or hunting and with a long last battery life, that just makes it even better.

Pros

Being able to connect to other garmin devices

Cons

NONE

By JRRJr

Pace, Florida

Using for my peace of mind

June 29, 2024

We purchased some acreage that borders a state forest. I was having to chain my young Boykin while we were there since she kept wandering into the woods. With this I am able to let her roam and keep track of where she is and know if she is returning when I whistle. The first night we camped there, one of the horses decided to leave the temporary corral and go on a walkabout. Now they wear the collars at night. Also when the wife goes for a solo ride, I can keep track of her so I can find her if necessary.

Pros

Good range in the pine forest. Accuracy is excellent. Extended battery packs work well.

Cons

The training feature of the collar is more difficult to use than a dedicated training collar due to the locations of the controls on the receiver.

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Garmin ALPHA 300i Handheld Only w/ inReach Technology

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Garmin ALPHA 300i Handheld Only

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