Satellite internet [Archive]

tcusta00

12-16-08, 11:07 AM

I believe Hughesnet (formerly DirecWay) is the only satellite internet provider around. Even if you could find another, I doubt you'll be able to find one with very high bandwidth.

Your other option if traditional terrestrial options aren't available in his area is a wireless carrier's internet, but there again you won't find the bandwidth to be higher than 2mbps down.

http://www.wireless.att.com/cell-phone-service/cell-phones/pc-cards.jsp

Shawnn

12-16-08, 11:27 AM

Thanks for the information, just wanted to make sure I was not missing another provider. How do you find the speed of your Satellite internet?

tcusta00

12-16-08, 12:02 PM

You mean once you have satellite internet? You could go to a bandwidth testing website like www.speedtest.net.

dpfaunts

12-16-08, 12:08 PM

FYI, the latency with satellite internet access can cause issues. VPN will react slower than dial-up and voip probably won't work

RobertE

12-16-08, 01:47 PM

Wildblue offers up to 1.5Mbps down. Not sure if they serve Canada or not.
HughesNet offers up to 5.0Mbps down. I think they also serve Canada. However that 5 down will set you back $349.99 (not a typo) PER MONTH.

BattleZone

12-16-08, 02:41 PM

Satellite Internet is neither fast nor cheap, and it's a high-latency connection, so most VPN doesn't work, and neither does on-line gaming, VOIP, or anything else that's time-sensitive.

It's faster than dial-up, but that's about the only advantage. It is for folks who don't have any other options, but it'll never compete with wired (or WiFi) connections.

Shawnn

12-16-08, 07:00 PM

Thanks for the information, just wanted to make sure I was not missing another provider. How do you find the speed of your Satellite internet?

No, how do you find the speed as in using it. Is it fast for basic browsing and Email.

jclewter79

12-16-08, 10:33 PM

I looked in to satellite internet for my home but, for the speed and the 60 bucks a month, I decided to go with verizion cellular broadband. Of course, I only use my laptop and have not looked into running a home network with it. If it could be done my guess is that cut my speed down alot.

tcusta00

12-17-08, 09:27 AM

No, how do you find the speed as in using it. Is it fast for basic browsing and Email.

Sorry, I don't use it.

kaszeta

12-17-08, 10:29 AM

Satellite internet user weighing in here.

I have Wildblue, since I live in "the sticks" in New Hampshire, and satellite and modem are the only options here unless I want to spend the $$$ for a T1.

The key thing is that the metric here is "better than dialup". I find my satellite connection is decent for email and basic browsing, although the latency issue is sometimes an issue.

Things that don't work:
(a) VPNs and VOIP are painfully slow due to the latency
(b) Online gaming is mostly not doable
(c) Uplink bandwidth is low, making uploading a pain.
(d) Bandwidth limits (aka Fair Access Policy) make it difficult to do a lot of high-bandwidth stuff. I'm usually pretty close to triggering the bandwidth limits on my wildblue account, and I'm not exactly a heavy web user. I'll download basic software upgrades, the occasional PS3 update, and some light music downloading, and that's about it.

It *is* waaaaaaay better than dialup (I do usually get 1 mbps downlink, about the same uplink rate as my modem, but with the latency issues). I'm not a fan, but unless Comcast or Fairpoint are willing to pull the sticks out of their %%$#$s, it's what I'm stuck with.

Shawnn

01-02-09, 09:05 PM

paulman182

08-05-09, 05:40 AM

I'd like to resurrect this thread from the dead as I am now considering Hughesnet or some satellite ISP. My only other option is mobile broadband from AT&T--I can see their tower from my house, but they don't have 3G in this area and it may be a long time until they get it on all their towers around here.

Given that my options are the older-technology AT&T broadband (with a 5 gig/month cap) or Hughesnet, what do you guys think? I'm only concerned with general web surfing and email, not downloading music or game play, although we may stay connected for a few hours per day.

fineware

08-05-09, 05:57 AM

Satellite internet user weighing in here...

I have HughesNet, and I'll second everything added here, with some additions:

1. Bandwidth limitations are a pain to track, especially when your kid comes home from college expecting she can YouTube all day.

2. The speeds advertised are generally correct for the period between 2 and 7am on HughesNet (which is also the FAP-free period). Hughes has loaded almost every transponder to the limit and your speed degrades with each account using it. I have a plan that tops out at approx. 192MB, but goes to about 20Mb during peak hours, such as 8pm - extremely annoying.

The next best alternative is using G3 WiFi via your wireless, if coverage is available. I'm really in the sticks (no cell, no cable, no FiOS, and poor phone lines) so I'm stuck. Others might have alternatives.

paulman182

08-05-09, 06:06 AM

I have HughesNet, and I'll second everything added here, with some additions:

1. Bandwidth limitations are a pain to track, especially when your kid comes home from college expecting she can YouTube all day.

2. The speeds advertised are generally correct for the period between 2 and 7am on HughesNet (which is also the FAP-free period). Hughes has loaded almost every transponder to the limit and your speed degrades with each account using it. I have a plan that tops out at approx. 192MB, but goes to about 20Mb during peak hours, such as 8pm - extremely annoying.

The next best alternative is using G3 WiFi via your wireless, if coverage is available. I'm really in the sticks (no cell, no cable, no FiOS, and poor phone lines) so I'm stuck. Others might have alternatives.

Thanks for the info. 20Mb would not annoy me when compared with 28.8kb that I get on dial-up.

As I said, AT&T 3G is not available here yet, it is "Edge" I think--does anyone know what kind of speed you get from that?

SayWhat?

08-05-09, 07:10 AM

Look at Starband. They got a bad rap for a while, but they've been stable for me. They're in the process of moving most subscribers to a new satellite to address traffic and speed concerns. BW cap is a rolling 7 day window of 1Gb, so if you go over, you can clear it without waiting a whole month. BW is not metered between 12M and 6AM is you have any big files to download or programs to update.

Prices aren't great, but not as bad as some.

Plus, if it won't get me slapped around too much on this board, I could use the referral bonus.

Mertzen

08-05-09, 07:13 AM

I would also look into Wildblue. I recently got certified and from what I can see they do run a tight ship technically.

txtommy

08-05-09, 07:20 AM

I have HughesNet, and I'll second everything added here, with some additions:

1. Bandwidth limitations are a pain to track, especially when your kid comes home from college expecting she can YouTube all day.

2. The speeds advertised are generally correct for the period between 2 and 7am on HughesNet (which is also the FAP-free period). Hughes has loaded almost every transponder to the limit and your speed degrades with each account using it. I have a plan that tops out at approx. 192MB, but goes to about 20Mb during peak hours, such as 8pm - extremely annoying.

The next best alternative is using G3 WiFi via your wireless, if coverage is available. I'm really in the sticks (no cell, no cable, no FiOS, and poor phone lines) so I'm stuck. Others might have alternatives.

+1

As long as you just do email and basic surfing there should be sufficient BW and speed to keep you happy. With two teenagers on our home network who insist on downloading videos, photos and music, I am in a constant battle to avoid the FAP and ultra slow download rates. They do manage to go over about once a week which results in a 24 painfully slow penalty from Hughesnet.

But it is better than dial-up which is our only other option.

kfcrosby

08-05-09, 07:52 AM

I recently got introduced to Skycasters (http://www.skycasters.com/). Primarily targeted to commercial applications, but they do have VoIP, VPN and Fax applications working with their service.

Expensive, but if it is your only option....

Kevin

kaszeta

08-05-09, 08:01 AM

I would also look into Wildblue. I recently got certified and from what I can see they do run a tight ship technically.

Technically the Wildblue guys seemed good, but boy, they had a lot of hardware problems in the years I had them. Several TRIA replacements, and coming to accept that the TRIAS doen't really work well in cold weather or in the rain (I'm not talking rain fade, the TRIA getting wet would cause problems, so I ended up building a little roof extension over my dish)

A few weeks ago I finally (for several $K) managed to get Comcast to pull cable to my property, and ditching Wildblue was a happy, happy moment.

RobertE

08-05-09, 11:50 AM

It's been a little over a year since I stopped installing Hughesnet. I stopped shortly after they went live with Spaceway 3 (at 95w I think). Thats what/where all new customers were pointed. It has/had a considerably larger amount of bandwith than the other sats scattered across the sky. So in that regard, speeds should be fairly consistant.

brant

08-05-09, 12:57 PM

wildblue is opening new beams next week on AMC 15 and is launching a new satellite next year i believe.

they have a new modem design and are starting to ship a new design tria. even the current tria resolved the problems the original tria had.

the most common causes now for a bad tria are poor l-o-s and a mispointed dish.

wildblue is a good service; better than dialup.

not as good as a wireless card from the cell phone company.

the download speeds are as advertised, but the latency can make general browsing painfully slow (when you're used to dsl/cable).

paulman182

08-05-09, 01:02 PM

brant

08-05-09, 04:19 PM

My wife is wanting the AT&T wireless.

Remember, we don't have 3G wireless in this area--our system is what AT&T calls "Edge."

From what I can see on the web, Hughesnet at its slowest is faster than Edge.

Comments?

i googled for data about edge.

according to at&t's website (http://www.wireless.att.com/learn/why/technology/edge.jsp), 'edge' runs at 75-135Kbps.

At those speeds, I would definitely go w/ satellite internet. wild blue's 'value pack' is around $55/mo, and that gives you 512Kbps downstream.

The only benefit of you going w/ the at&t network is that you can take it w/ you if you have a laptop.

BNUMM

08-05-09, 09:36 PM

I tell people to avoid satellite internet unless it is the only option (other than dialup). I have installed it and used it. I give HughesNet a slight edge over the other services.

paulman182

08-06-09, 05:19 AM

Yesterday on the way home from work I stopped at the AT&T store and signed up for mobile broadband with a PC card. I know that satellite would be faster but my wife decided we didn't want another dish and another cable coming into the house.

Since she will be the primary user, I gave in to her wishes, especially since I can back out within three days and pay nothing, or back out within 30 days and not pay much.

The good news is, the AT&T mobile broadband is plenty fast enough. At work we have seven DSL lines, but since they are split between 30 or so devices, it's not as fast as it could be--the AT&T wireless broadband loads web pages almost as fast as the broadband I'm used to.

So far, so good.

Steve Mehs

08-06-09, 04:16 PM

Thanks for the info. 20Mb would not annoy me when compared with 28.8kb that I get on dial-up.

As I said, AT&T 3G is not available here yet, it is "Edge" I think--does anyone know what kind of speed you get from that?

I'm shocked right now, I was curious myself, so I turned off wifi on my iPhone and went outside, as soon as I walked out my door I had a full bar 3G connection, as I walked down the driveway the service started deteriorating, down by the mail box I had a full bar Edge connection. Now, inside my house I get nothing, I'm stuck at No Service most of the time. Here's my speed test results on the iPhone on AT&T's Data Network using the NYC speed test server from the speedtest.net app.

AT&T Edge
http://www.speedtest.net/iphone/10631025.png

AT&T 3G
http://www.speedtest.net/iphone/10631279.png

Road Runner Turbo w/Power Boost
http://www.speedtest.net/result/534138823.png (http://www.speedtest.net)

SayWhat?

08-06-09, 05:11 PM

Now, inside my house I get nothing, I'm stuck at No Service most of the time.

Have you considered a cell phone repeater?

harsh

08-06-09, 05:25 PM

I have considerable experience with Starband and limited experience with Wildblue. Wildblue is far and away the cheapest but often quite slow. Starband has become relatively reliable but their e-mail server is often blacklisted. Needing a computer on all of the time to route the satellite connection sucks.

Wireless may be expensive but the absence of lag can be quite attractive.

SayWhat?

08-06-09, 05:31 PM

I have considerable experience with Starband

Needing a computer on all of the time to route the satellite connection sucks.

Not necessary with the new modems that came out about 2 years ago.

Steve Mehs

08-09-09, 03:56 PM

Have you considered a cell phone repeater?

Yes, but once I saw the cost I said screw it. If someone wants to contact me bad enough they can leave me a voice mail or call the home phone.

Zellio

08-09-09, 07:43 PM

I'm shocked right now, I was curious myself, so I turned off wifi on my iPhone and went outside, as soon as I walked out my door I had a full bar 3G connection, as I walked down the driveway the service started deteriorating, down by the mail box I had a full bar Edge connection. Now, inside my house I get nothing, I'm stuck at No Service most of the time. Here's my speed test results on the iPhone on AT&T's Data Network using the NYC speed test server from the speedtest.net app.

AT&T Edge
http://www.speedtest.net/iphone/10631025.png

AT&T 3G
http://www.speedtest.net/iphone/10631279.png

Road Runner Turbo w/Power Boost
http://www.speedtest.net/result/534138823.png (http://www.speedtest.net)

at&t's 3g service is at it's WORST in NY. People I know have it drop with FULL BARS while walking in manhattan.

At&ts 3g service is alot better in the west and southeast. I usually get close to 3 megs on hsdpa.

Hopefully they will upgrade your area some more soon....

Steve Mehs

08-10-09, 02:33 AM

Personally I'd rather have more consistent 3G coverage then faster speeds. I mean there's only so much you can do on an iPhone as opposed to a real computer, but having Edge speeds is just painful. Prior to the iPhone you'd see almost no one with AT&T Wireless service here in Upstate NY. When I get a laptop, I'll more then likely sign up for Sprint Mobile Broadband service. With that, I will have three ways to access the internet, one short of my goal.

SayWhat?

08-10-09, 05:36 AM

Yes, but once I saw the cost I said screw it. If someone wants to contact me bad enough they can leave me a voice mail or call the home phone.

I was referring to using it for internet if possible. I got one from SolidSignal for about $150 or so that boosts my in house signal to at least 3 bars instead of none.

hokie-dk

08-10-09, 06:10 AM

I have both Hughesnet (HN7000S modem - Professional Plus Service) and Verizon Wireless (UM175 USB modem). I'm cancelling the Hughesnet service in two weeks when my commitment is up. I don't care what the advertised speeds are, all I know is that Verizon blows Hughesnet away. It's also cheaper. Hughesnet is better than dial-up, but not by much. As stated by others, anything time sensitive will not work - gaming, VPN, VOIP, etc. From their web site:

There are activities that are not recommended for use with a Satellite Connection.

1.VPNs. VPNs do not work well over satellite. You may use a VPN with HughesNet® plans, but you will likely experience reduced speeds by as much as 50–75%. You can restore your connection to full speed by simply disabling your VPN client when your session is over. Note: HughesNet Technical Support does not provide help with configuring or troubleshooting problems associated with VPN clients.
2.Twitch Games. Time-sensitive applications that require fractions-of-a-second user inputs (such as multi-player “twitch” games or real-time equities trading) are not recommended with HughesNet due to latency issues. Latency refers to the amount of time it takes a packet of data to travel across a network. With satellite service, that data must travel up to the satellite and back (about 45,000 miles). This round trip adds about a half-second delay to the total time your computer takes to communicate with a Website or host server.
3.Heavy downloading. The HughesNet Home Service plan is not recommended for heavy downloading. The Elite Service Plans are faster and can handle heavier downloads. Note however that the Fair Access Policy (FAP) applies.
4.VoIP. Voice over IP doesn’t work well with satellite due to the latency issues mentioned above.
5.Video Streaming. Video streaming does not work well with satellite due to the latency issues mentioned above.

tedb3rd

08-10-09, 08:22 AM

Regarding 3G... I just made the switch from Wildblue to AT&T a few months ago. WHAT A DIFFERENCE! You have to do some research though re: AT&T (or any carrier's) 3G coverage. If you look at AT&T's coverage map, we are not in a service area for 3G but we still get it. It's a weak signal so I had to install an external antenna. ...Just because it's a tower, doesn't mean that your carrier is on it--nor does it mean that they have 3G on that antenna. (Our closest AT&T tower is line-of-site, but it does not have 3G)... The speed is much better, more reliable in rainy weather, and the latency is essentially null.

I got a cradlepoint 3G router and we run two computers at the same time (surfing internet) and the connection is more than adequate. If using just one computer, I get download speeds comparable to DSL.

It's awesome. Highly recommended over satellite if you can get 3G.

Steve Mehs

08-10-09, 01:28 PM

I was referring to using it for internet if possible. I got one from SolidSignal for about $150 or so that boosts my in house signal to at least 3 bars instead of none.

Gotchya, but I have no real use for 3G access in my house. I have my 15Mb Road Runner connection that I share with my computers and wirelessly on the iPhone. When I got my first cell phone, I priced out repeaters and they were in the $300-$400 range, but these were for Nextel which operates on the 850MHz frequency, so that might have had some impact on the price.

jclewter79

08-11-09, 07:12 PM

I have verizon mobile broadband and it works great.

ndole

09-26-09, 02:43 PM

You should only ever consider Satellite internet if you have access to NOTHING else.
That said, it's much better than dial up. With regard to tracking the FAP, WildBlue recently added a sort of "customer portal" where a subscriber can see and track their usage. When I have a customer considering satellite internet, I suggest they consider dropping their home phone (if it's only there for the dial up anyhow) to justify the cost. In most cases that scenario will save the customer money every month, and they are taking advantage of a faster connection.