Satellite phones

[cabinflyer]

I'm looking into satellite phones. I don't live out in the woods, but receive no coverage at the lake cabin. The local phone company wants a fortune for service. This phone would be mainly for emergency use such as the kids getting in touch or something. Plus I could carry it in the plane in case something really happens to me.

So what do the ones who really use them think?

Thanks!

Steve

 

[Christina Young]

I've been using my Iridium sat phone a lot here in Alaska, but I think you really need to estimate your usage per month -- it is not cheap! Since I less than 2 months up here this summer, I got the 150 minute prepaid that expires after 2 months.... for $2 per minute! You can also go the monthly plan route, but that only is worth it if you know you are going to use it every month.

 

[cpthazard]

I was yacking on my cell yesterday, actually cursing the folks [to the poor gal on the phone at the parts store] that own Slick Mag Corp, {1450 bucks for a set of 6 cyl mags} I heard the little beep that says there is an incoming call....I ignored it because I was on a roll....really straightening out the greedy buggers that are making it nearly impossible to maintain any airplane these days. I wish I had taken the call, it was from my buddy John. His words on the voice mail were, "hello db, I'm in Alaska I just cleared customs in Northway after three weeks along the Beaufort Sea Coast of Northern Canada, catching Arctic Char, Lake Trout and watching the sun 24 hours a day, we awoke one morning to the sight and sound of a Grizzly Bear poking his nose in the tent but I yelled at him in A&P lingo and he ran off" "oh I called to wish you happy birthday" there was more but a call from a buddy lost in the great North country on your 61st birthday is priceless........he has an Irridium Sat Phone and like has been written in this forum many times it's the greatest thing in personal communication that has ever happened. I can see no reason not to have one if you venture very far from home.

db

 

[Cubus Maximus]

Steve - Jim W has his Iridium plumbed into the airplane and calls me now and then from the middle of nowhere. Often times at 300 feet skimming along, describing the world going by. He set off this morning for Baffin Island.

Brad

(I've used it at Gary's island - works great)

 

[canadiancub]

I our area there are two options Iriduim and Global Star, We have both for a while the Iriduim was down or not working well. Global star worked better, however for the last year Iriduim significantly out performed Global Star (we are told global star is fixing the problem this summer). I still find Iriduim better. I had a friend this june who was not able to close a flight itinerary because his Global Star did not receive signal until the next day. They launched search and rescue before he could get a call out. I also have a Friend who's life was saved buy calling for help after a crash on a sat phone.

I would not be with out the Iriduim.

Two features I like, one already mentioned you can buy bulk time instead of a plan. If you don't use it you loose it, but you know going in what its will cost and no monthly fee. (I payed $1.47 per minute last time) Also we use the text mail. You can receive text messages that appear when you turn on the phone at no cost. Text messages are a great way to have contact with work and the kids a minimal cost.


Either phones are expensive phone but both are very cheap when you need them.

 

[hottshot]

We have both for a while the Iriduim was down or not working well. Global star worked better, however for the last year Iriduim significantly out performed Global Star (we are told global star is fixing the problem this summer). I still find Iriduim better.

Either phones are expensive phone but both are very cheap when you need them.

We have had the same experience

 

[jcrowles]

Satalite Phones

Steve ; If you are refering to your cabin north of GPZ, I have a suggestion. I have a Buddy who has a hunting camp up by Nett Lake and he couldn't get any cell phone signal at all. He solved his problem for very little money !! He bought a outside antenna and co-ax cable and mounted it on a 30 ft. pole, put it up by the cabin and it works like a charm. I think ,but not positive, he does the same thing in Souix Narrows at his cabin. If you want to talk to him , let me know !! John

 

[Cubus Maximus]

Dale did that with his Rainy Lake cabin as well. Works good.

 

[superchamp]

The sat phones are great, in the case of Globalstar were great. I've owned a Globalstar for the last 4 years. The first 3 years it was fabulous, signal great always, clear transmission, simple to use. Then in the last year due to satellites failing service has markedly declined. "Supposedly" all will be better by the end of August, since they have new satellites up and 4 more going up. But I would wait a month or two. The Iridium is more pricey, and a little different to use as far as dialing. Globalstar dials just like a cellphone. Globalstar now sells 600 minute 1 year packages for $600. But they're no good if you can't use them. If globalstar isn't better by the end of my 600 minute package in November, I will probably buy the Iridium. Globalstar has a lot of unhappy customers right now, and I suspect that if they don't get it together soon they will lose a lot to Iridium.

 

[mvivion]

Go with an Iridium. They work ANYwhere in the WORLD, reliably and consistently.

We started using them when they first became available, and we tried a couple of the Globalstar units as well. Globalstar has been saying for several years that they are going to improve their coverage dramatically at any moment. It hasn't happened.

In the meantime, the Iridium system has worked nearly perfectly, day in and day out. We never had signal problems with the Iridium phones, and their coverage is simply the best.

And, I don't get a kickback.

MTV

 

[superchamp]

I think Mike has it right. Iridium. After having one of the globalstar technicians tell me that I should consider Iridium yesterday-that about says it all. Globalstar had a great system for the part of the world I travel normally, and the phones are less than 1/2 the price of iridium, but they have let the system deteriorate and who knows how long and if they will get it back the way it was-and if they will have any customers left. As soon as I can get them to refund my 600 unused minutes, I will be applying the money to a new iridium.

 

[superchamp]

Update on my sat phone. In early August after lots of complaing to Globalstar, they agreed to credit me back all my unused minutes, and give me $200 on my Globalstar as a trade in on an Iridium. That's right- Globalstar sold me an Iridium phone and sim card. I have had the Iridium for a month and a half now and it is fabulous. Signal instantly, everywhere. No searching for satellites, no dropped calls. The voice quality is different, it can make you sound like you are drunk, or as my wife says I sound sexy. But no problem communicating. I highly recommend the Iridium. I had both phones for about 2 weeks, and compared head to head in same locations-Iridium always had good signal, with Globalstar I was able to place one call in 2 weeks, and it dropped after a minute. If anyone is considering sat phones, don't go anywhere near Globalstar. I got the feeling they will be out of business in less than a year at the rate they are loosing customers. All it will take is a real emergency where some emergency service organization can't use Globalstar, and a big lawsuit, and that will be it.

 

[StewartB]

What I learned about sat phones this summer?

1)If you take your phone overseas with you in your carry-on and you get separated from your bags and want to call the airlines, have the country codes with the phone so you can call the country you're standing in, because your phone will think it's still in the USA, and you'll use you battery up calling your provider in the states trying to get the code for where you are.

2)If you take a phone overseas in your carry-on, carry the charger with you, too. When your bags get lost and your charger is in them, the dead sat phone in your hand isn't very helpful for things like calling the airlines to search for your bags.

3)If you lose your extra battery and your chargers for your Iridium 9505 you'd better replace them quickly. The newer generation 9505A batteries and chargers are not compatible, and the dealers are phasing out 9505 accessories.

The rest of the story? Wait until the airlines declare your baggage hopelessly lost, bust your hump on the internet to find another battery and charger for your 9505, ship it Fedex so you can use your phone again, finally.......guess what shows up on the porch a few days later? Your lost luggage.

Stewart

 

[mvivion]

Great story, Stewart. If Reeve Aleutian wasn't out of business, I'd think you'd been visiting the Aleutians :lol: .

One thing to remember on the Iridium costs: As Christina notes, the Iridium costs are substantial, BUT....Once you buy the phone and sim card, and establish service, you pay only the service charge, which is $20 or $30 a month. The only other fees are a per minute charge, which varies by provider. Don't need to use the phone? Just pay the service charge. Finally, Stratos let us drop the service charge on some of our phones during the winter when we didn't need them, with no reactivation fee.

So, if you use the thing as an "Emergency, Get Out of the Woods" tool only, it's not as expensive as it might seem.

Yack away, though, and the bill will bring tears to your eyes.

MTV

 

[superchamp]

Actually, after the up front purchase of the 9505A phone ($1195), the cost isn't that bad. The sim card I purchased is good for 12 months and 500 minutes of airtime, for $625. There is no service charge. It's a prepaid minute plan. I will not get another bill for 12 months when my sim card expires, unless I use up all 500 minutes before that. I'm a seasonal user, so I want to use lots of minutes May-Oct, and may not even turn the phone on in some of the winter months. The 500 minute package lets me use as many minutes a month as I want, without 'going over" fees. The only downside is that after 12 months, any of the unused 500 minutes are gone, they don't roll over to the next year, and they don't buy them back from you. And the smallest minute package I could buy was 500 minutes. I could get by with 200 minutes a year, but they won't sell you that. I had a 600 minute 12 month package (that is their minimum) with Globalstar, and that cost $615. The Globalstar phone was about $650 4 years ago. So the "per minute" cost is about the same as the Globalstar with the prepaid minutes package, the phone is about twice the price. The service is not comparable. Globalstar no longer has service in my opinion. Globalstar actually released a statement required by the SEC (securities and exchange commission) last April called a 10-K document. In their own words, they said if they can't find a solution to the degradation of the antenna amplifiers in their satellites, it is quite possible that sometime in 2008 they will no longer be able to provide any service. To date, they have been unable to find a solution- pretty hard to send a repair guy into orbit. And the 4 new satellites they launched in June had no noticeable effect on service. I think they will have no customers left in 12 months, so all the promise of their new constellation in 2010 won't matter, they won't have any customers to pay for it. Just my take - I wouldn't buy Globalstar stock right now. And if I still had a Globalstar, I would get my $200 trade in for it now while the company is still in business. By the way, I mailed by phone into them three weeks ago, and haven't yet received by $200 rebate check, so maybe they will stick me one last time. I really don't care. Just glad to have a phone that works when I need it. And I don't own Iridium stock, though I am thinking I should.

 

[geoffreyameyer]

Here's a new product...MUCH cheaper. More features than a PLB, less than a SAT phone. It's supposedly coming out this November.

http://www.equipped.com/SPOT_ORSummer2007.htm

http://www.equipped.org/pp/pic2031.htm

Geoff

 

[superchamp]

I guess if it were my bacon on the line, the PLB still sounds like the way to go. I plan on having one on me before next float flying season. I am also VERY hesitant to do anything with Globalstar. My experience over the last 6 months with them is that they are not customer oriented. Here's a questions, if you can get a PLB for about $500, why is an impact activated one for the aircraft thousands more? How hard is it for them to mount one in an ELT case with a impact switch like an ELT? I gotta believe the aircraft ones will come down in price rapidly. I'd like to have a PLB hard mounted in the plane, and one on my person. After the husky crash in Montana, and Steve Fosset missing, I've realized these things could be priceless. I still carry the sat phone, but would like something that goes off if I'm immobilized.

 

[StewartB]

"Thousands more" is incorrect.

I wonder why a guy couldn't split the signal output and run one antenna on top and another on the bottom of the fuselage. Then it wouldn't matter if he landed upright or not.

The listed operating temperature range is a little suspect for northerners. The cold limit is -4* fahrenheit. I guess you'd better not have any winter accidents!

http://www.skygeek.com/455-6605.html

Stewart

 

[mvivion]

Yeah, that unit is less than a thousand. The simple answer is:

1) impact activated switch (no big deal).

2) FAA approval for aircraft installation (big deal).

MTV

 

[superchamp]

I happily stand corrected on the price. Guess the ones I was looking at were not what I needed. I'm going to plan to have this installed in my plane during the annual in December. Cheap insurance.

 

[Louis]

Don't forget about text messaging capability of these sat phone. They are great. Someone can send you a text message up to 160 characters if he have access to the internet. When you will turn on your phone, you will get the text message. Depending on your subscription plan, you can answer by text, or simply call them back.

Louis

 

[Jerry Gaston]

The big cost is the phone purchase. When I'm traveling I just rent a sims card and pay by the minute. When I first bought my phone I subscribed for a year and ended up giving back 375 minutes at the end of the year. Renting the sims seems to be the best and most cost effective.
Oh and make sure you get all the attachments for your phone : remote antenna, 12v charger, 110 v charger.ear piece etc. You will be able to use it while flying.

 

[superchamp]

The $1195 price for the Iridium 9505A includes remote antenna, wall charger (with international plug in adaptors), cig lighter charger, earpiece, and leather carry case. All that stuff costs extra $ with Globalstar. I really like the earpiece and the remote antenna. I set the antenna on the dash board of plane or car, plug in the earpiece, and talk on the fly (or drive). I considered renting the sim card, but I never know in advance more than a day or so when I'm going to need the phone-which isn't enough time to get a rental. So I just bought the sim card. I'll probably end up using 300-400 minutes, now that I have a phone that actually works, maybe I'll use all 500. I'll probably use it for long distance calls to Canada to use up the minutes near the end of the contract if it looks like I won't use them up otherwise. My hard line charges me big $ for Canada long distance, and its just charged as regular minutes on the Iridium.

 

[mvivion]

We subscribed to a plan which you paid $20 a month for "service", and $1.30 (I think) per minute of talk time. If you never used the phone, you just paid the $20 a month. That's a pretty cheap emergency communicator, and you don't have to worry about minutes expiring. Maybe they've changed the plans now.

We used Stratos.

MTV

 

[superchamp]

I think they still have the plan Mike mentioned, but if you use 300 minutes or more, the $625 for 500 minutes is cheaper. Monthly fee $20x12 months=$240. 300 minutes X $1.30/minute=$390. 240+390=$630. So it looks like 300 minutes per/year is the break point. Less than 300 minutes, go with the monthly and the per minute charge. Between 300-500, go with the prepaid sim. Either way, damn cheap for remote communication. Pay for one search and rescue because you are weathered in and can't close a flight plan, and you could buy a dozen Iridiums. And letting momma at home know that her husband and kids are going to be late because of weather and not a real emergency is as the commercial says "priceless".

 

[ag-pilot]

iridium

just returned from the Amazon Basin in Brazil. Sat phone worked perfectly every time even under the thatch roof of the local watering hole I could call every time. The locals used Globalstar and were amazed I could get signal under the thatch roof. Wouldn't be without it now that I have it. I used 80 min. in 10 days keeping up on things at home so I'll have to put it away now until coyote hunting season.
Dave

 

[mvivion]

agpilot: Wait, wait, wait.....they got coyotes in Brazil?? What were you doing in Brazil???

MTV

 

[180Marty]

I'm curious too---some kind of ag venture?
Marty

 

[ag-pilot]

brazil

you guys know the drill,,,I could tell ya..........

I was fishing and touring some farms and spraying operations. had a blast.
Dave

 

[180Marty]

ag-pilot wrote

touring some farms and spraying operations

Did you see any of those ethanol fueled spray planes?