I still consider that Spotwalla is a bargain.....
Can see how it would be better in many ways to charge a flat rate per device per year, but then some would complain that they don't use it all year around, which entirely misses the point that whilst this is true, if you use a device such as Spot, then the main advantage is that you can summon help if you have had a misadventure...... tracking for me is great, but that was not the main reason I went the Spot route....
Spotwalla for IBA is a great advantage as are I am sure, the many other options for a device to connect to their system......
So a bit of a reality check may be required for some given the price of tyres and all the other "stuff" we fit to make the bike ours.... the cost of tracking using Spotwalla is not onerous, even if it was just for ONE IBA ride, I still think that if it makes my route clear and unambiguous, then it has achieved what I wanted it to do....
So, yes if you want to use it and often, stick $25-50 in there and as has been said, set an alert for when it gets down to $5 or so and put some more in......
Frankly if folks in the USA were paying what we pay for our fuel in Europe, maybe Spotwalla wouldn't be getting so much grief over what is, compared to other things, a very low cost solution.
/rant mode