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I'm curious about a satellite connection. I spend a lot of time in southern Spain where we don't have landlines. We do have GSM so we get _slow_ internet. Can

by pclark 18y ago

I'm curious about a satellite connection. I spend a lot of time in southern Spain where we don't have landlines. We do have GSM so we get _slow_ internet. Can you shed some light on satellite internet? Who are you hosted with? Hows the speed & reliability?

robg 18y ago
We're with HughesNet. It's bad (200 kbps) at peak times, better at moderate volume (500 kbps), and pretty good at off-hours - 5am (1.5 mbps). We pay about $80 month but it's our only choice besides dial-up. It seems they now have faster connections if you're willing to pay more (http://go.gethughesnet.com/plans.cfm http://go.gethughesnet.com/plans.cfm) Reliability is really good. It's hardly ever down, even during major snowstorms (just have to clean off the dish). I'd say we lose connectivity maybe a few hours a month. The worst part is the low daily bandwidth limits (425 MB in 24 hour periods) and then they throttle the service (<20 kbps) until you're into the next 24 hour period. They don't tell you when you're getting close. Since we started using a bandwidth tracker to monitor ourselves we haven't had any problems but the first few months were painful and frustrating. They do have three non-monitored hours (4am to 7am local time) so you can schedule downloads accordingly. Not sure if they're international though. Be careful of on-line reviews. They're almost all negative because I don't think folks realize the technology is always going to seem more limited than DSL or cable. Coming from either of those (or a T1 etc.), you just have to reset your expectations.
- pclark 18y ago
  thanks a lot - really handy information. I'll look for some global providers. Doesn't seem unreasonably priced, either. Good luck with your venture/startup by the way - sounds fascinating.
  - robg 18y ago
    Glad to help. Thanks!
  - jwilliams 18y ago
    There are few providers of Satellite Internet here in Australia - in fact if you're in an area that doesn't get DSL coverage the government subsidies it. Probably work keeping in mind there are two main varieties - one where the uplink is over a standard modem connection and one where the uplink is over the sat link. The former tends to be a lot cheaper for obvious reasons, but means you need a landline.
  - gdee 18y ago
    Telefonica does satellite inet access in Spain. I remember prices to be quite high some years ago. You could check their site and see how they fare now.
    - pclark 18y ago
      great lead, will check it out now - thanks!

by pclark 18y ago

robg 18y ago

We're with HughesNet. It's bad (200 kbps) at peak times, better at moderate volume (500 kbps), and pretty good at off-hours - 5am (1.5 mbps). We pay about $80 month but it's our only choice besides dial-up. It seems they now have faster connections if you're willing to pay more (http://go.gethughesnet.com/plans.cfm http://go.gethughesnet.com/plans.cfm) Reliability is really good. It's hardly ever down, even during major snowstorms (just have to clean off the dish). I'd say we lose connectivity maybe a few hours a month. The worst part is the low daily bandwidth limits (425 MB in 24 hour periods) and then they throttle the service (<20 kbps) until you're into the next 24 hour period. They don't tell you when you're getting close. Since we started using a bandwidth tracker to monitor ourselves we haven't had any problems but the first few months were painful and frustrating. They do have three non-monitored hours (4am to 7am local time) so you can schedule downloads accordingly. Not sure if they're international though. Be careful of on-line reviews. They're almost all negative because I don't think folks realize the technology is always going to seem more limited than DSL or cable. Coming from either of those (or a T1 etc.), you just have to reset your expectations.

pclark 18y ago
thanks a lot - really handy information. I'll look for some global providers. Doesn't seem unreasonably priced, either. Good luck with your venture/startup by the way - sounds fascinating.
- robg 18y ago
  Glad to help. Thanks!
- jwilliams 18y ago
  There are few providers of Satellite Internet here in Australia - in fact if you're in an area that doesn't get DSL coverage the government subsidies it. Probably work keeping in mind there are two main varieties - one where the uplink is over a standard modem connection and one where the uplink is over the sat link. The former tends to be a lot cheaper for obvious reasons, but means you need a landline.
- gdee 18y ago
  Telefonica does satellite inet access in Spain. I remember prices to be quite high some years ago. You could check their site and see how they fare now.
  - pclark 18y ago
    great lead, will check it out now - thanks!