You are right- my standard line basically is "Don't waste your money on this junk."

That is because that is my honest opinion based on six decades of experience in the outdoors doing archaeological field work, rock climbing, backpacking, and SAR volunteering. I have participated in more than 470 search and rescue operations, lasting from less than ten minutes to more than two weeks.

Venturing into the outdoors, you need dependable, workable gear with which you are familiar. If the situation gets out of hand, there is no time to read the instruction book and fumble with the gadgets. You need familiar items, whose capabilities are known to you.

Different situations require different items. Doing SAR in Southern Arizona, we responded to situations with very hot temps in the summer, sub zero temps in the winter in the mountains, swift water during floods, and all kinds of weird circumstances (cave rescue, stranded horses, etc). What is very good in one setting is irrelevant in another. As one of my comrades observed, "In the summer, your rescue pack essentially becomes a giant water bottle." Months later, you are contending with deep snow and hypothermia.

A dinky, generalized 'survival' pack is rather useless when the going gets tough. It may be better than nothing at all, but purchasing these very generalized kits is not the best way to use your resources.

Don't waste your money on junk.