Satellite Internet?

[RobertD]

Thanks everyone who is sharing their experience with Starlink. It just became available in my area and I'm squirreling away money to try it.

I have a unique conundrum in that I'm only three miles from a city of 2,000 people, but there's so little infrastructure in my poor county I have no viable internet options besides things like Hughesnet. I know better than to mess with them. I have a Straight talk phone and get excellent cell service and can use my hotpot to stream videos and even conduct Zoom meetings. But there is a serious cap on usage, meaning most of my data goes to Zoom meetings instead of laying out on the couch binging Fresh Tracks or cartoons on Hulu. Looking forward to Starlink.

 

[Otto Matic]

Years ago, I got one of those mailbox fliers about "Dish TV".
Price was great, we bit.
Over the next two years, we enjoyed a multitude of channels....EXCEPT...!
A heavy dew or a single, puffy white cloud and reception became nonexistent!*
Even a heavy wind (in Oklahoma?) would cause the picture to blink and break up.
THEN....!
The 2 years was up and our bill went from +/- $42/mo to $75/mo! !
I visited with them and got our "package" reduced to a much more palatable $45/mo.
No premium channels, no movie channels. Nearly every available channel was reruns or "B grade".
We dropped them and went back to local antenna TV.
Much happier.
Much cheaper!

* when the weather turned ugly and we needed to monitor the weather, our reception went to "cah-cah"!

Though the "live" content is pretty pathetic, we find that Roku has a lot of "entertainment" value, plus it's free for us. We still get news and weather via antenna. ....even in bad weather!

 

[Otto Matic]

SandyCreek wrote:

"... We use a verizon hotspot now ..."

That's where we are right now with Roku.
We're on Verizon "unlimited data" package.
They WILL throttle you back, but we have 2 phones. Use one until they throttle it, then switch to the other.

 

[Ben Lamb]

Rural internet providers are worse than used car salesmen.

There, I said it. F'in crooks.

 

[hank4elk]

Rural internet providers are worse than used car salesmen.

There, I said it. F'in crooks.

Total F'in Crooks
and the air waves are ours....LOL

 

[RobertD]

Years ago, I got one of those mailbox fliers about "Dish TV".
Price was great, we bit.
Over the next two years, we enjoyed a multitude of channels....EXCEPT...!
A heavy dew or a single, puffy white cloud and reception became nonexistent!*
Even a heavy wind (in Oklahoma?) would cause the picture to blink and break up.
THEN....!
The 2 years was up and our bill went from +/- $42/mo to $75/mo! !
I visited with them and got our "package" reduced to a much more palatable $45/mo.
No premium channels, no movie channels. Nearly every available channel was reruns or "B grade".
We dropped them and went back to local antenna TV.
Much happier.
Much cheaper!

* when the weather turned ugly and we needed to monitor the weather, our reception went to "cah-cah"!

Though the "live" content is pretty pathetic, we find that Roku has a lot of "entertainment" value, plus it's free for us. We still get news and weather via antenna. ....even in bad weather!

Back when I had DirecTV it was always that way with them, too.

Felt like every six months, my bill had crept up 40-50 percent. Sneaking in those packages that are free until they aren't anymore. I'd call and get them trimmed back. Finally got tired of it. When I quit they offered some primo package for a super cheap rate. Where was all that before? Lol. Been a few years and haven't missed it.

 

[Wallydeuce]

Our cell service is little to nil.

Our CenturyLink sucks the big one for service, 1.5mbps. 4 switches for our DSL and only two operational for our residential area. Techs frequently advise us CenturyLink refuses to allow them to repair the 2 switches as not enough of us live in the area of use to justify repair... and far from them running fiber if simply repairing is off the table.

It's left us with the option for Satellite and I've viewed ViaSat and HughesNet.

Viasat vs. HughesNet: Compare Satellite Internet Plans and Prices

Looking for satellite internet from Viasat or HughesNet? Read on to compare prices, download speeds, and data caps for each.

www.reviews.org

Unfortunately, it appears ViaSat isn't in our area unless someone knows different? NW Montana.

I spoke w/ HughesNet and she was basically saying every aspect of what they offer and what I sought is fantastic through them... Just agree to a two year contract with a $400 early termination fee and I'll rule the world!

Spell out red flag any better? Haha!

So here's my few questions for any with HughesNet, an installer/tech for HughesNet, any with experience with Pro/Con perspective:

1.) WiFi phone calling?
Rep said works great, reviews say she's FOS.
2.) If over the allotted Gigs per month, rep said it's "throttled back" to 1.5 - 3mbs until next billing moth and more than enough for wifi, Netflix, Amazon video streaming so no worries and no extra charge, reviews suggest she's mostly FOS.
3.) WiFi calling with cell phone is great yet she shared they offer a phone service as well... Hmmm.
3.a.) How does the phone service work? Good?
4.) How often do you go over allotted Gigs and your frequency of Netflix, Hulu, Amazon, etc do you use weekly? How to determine the $ vs gig usage per month?
5.) How does weather effect HughesNet? To what extent? If we have the phone service option, and sat service goes to short, will the phones still work? Other aspects to know for Satellite outages, etc?
6.) Promotions any know?

We're limited. I know I've milked CenturyLink for credits over the years for the problems we've dealt with due to our neighborhood frequent calling when they've begun referring us to their, "partner" HughesNet for internet service... Though ease keep us for your phone service... Ya right!

So a bit of frustration mixed within as our options are noosed. What are the overall pro's v con's of HughesNet?

My wife and I live in Las Vegas and also have a cabin in the mountains of southern Utah. My wife works from home for a large healthcare company. We got tired of sitting here in the blistering heat so we contracted with HughesNet for satalite internet. She's in IT so she has to have a good system. With HS, she does video conferencing while I view Netflix and Amazon prime. For $15 more a month, we have a "landline " with a designated number because cell service in non existent. We can also suspend service during the winter months when access to the cabin is impossible. The suspended service costs us about $9 a month so our 2 year contract is actually 4 years. My wife loves it because she can work from 8,500 feet in the cool air instead of being stuck inside all summer staying out of the 115 degree Vegas heat.
The service including phone runs around $105 a month.
CONS
Their satalite dish is huge and that's an eyesore.
Heavy cloud cover disrupts service.
SUMMARY
We've had this system 3 years now and love it. We live at our cabin during the hot summer months and suspend service during the winter. I'm no expert but my wife is and it works well for her job. Until something better comes along, we'll continue to use Hughesnet.
I hope this helps.

 

[Pahoundsman]

We had HughesNet for a very short time. It was the worst,the boys couldn’t game online because of to much lag and after the first week of the month it always became very slow.

 

[jt13]

I'm patiently awaiting Starlink to come to my area. At my house we are able to get a wired DSL connection which seems way better than Hughesnet at least from a reliability standpoint. Still slow as hell though....

Generally I can watch Netflix (average/low quality) or browse the internet on one device. If a second person is connected it grinds to a halt. The 4G cell service is great and a wireless hotspot works for when we need the extra bandwidth.

 

[MITCHMO]

We have hughes net and it’s terrible. Can’t watch a video of any sort. I’d take dialup over hughes.

 

[Rzrbk]

Starlink is becoming available in our area and I wonder about the future potential for this technology. Elon Musk might own the world soon!

So, Starlink requires equipment to be installed at your home to receive the signal. Can Starlink be used as a cell service provider for my phone?
I wonder if you could install Starlink equipment on your camper and have service wherever you travel?
Will Starlink come out with an Inreach or Spot type device.....? Seems they are positioned to accomplish some unique things. It would be awesome to have Starlink in my camper.

 

[Sytes]

From what I've learned, since our inquiry and receipt of the system:

Phone service:
They've submitted their FCC form for the future satellite cell phone use. Picture hunting some mountain top and your sat-phone is the same with your OnXHunt...

Here's the challenge... a person must have a clear view of the sky. It's based on multiple low orbit satellites flying overhead. For cities with buildings that would block the clear view of the sky, one article stated their intent is to send the satellite signal to cell towers in the area so a person's phone call is uninterrupted.

Starlink requires the satellite dish installed at the specific address. I don't know if the satellites are specified to send / receive within the select areas, thus the reason for specific areas made available and future areas later(?).

I have a tree service coming out to drop 6 large firs that show on our Starlink app as obstructing transmission. It's a bummer to see them go however they are full size and close enough to our house - it's worth dropping. We burn firewood so, in a sense it's a win all around. With those obstructions, I've noticed attempts to have video Skype, Zoom, and Microsoft video Meet, do not maintain a continuous signal. As one or more satellites move out of direct signal, another(s) have to already be in direct line of sight to continue the signal... or so I've been led to understand.

Same with phone calls. I've tried cell phone over our Starlink and it's crystal clear until... no satellite has a direct line of sight to continue the transmission and suddenly, "Can you hear me now?" begins. a few seconds later, the conversation is again, crystal clear.

 

[homers]

Thanks everyone who is sharing their experience with Starlink. It just became available in my area and I'm squirreling away money to try it.

I have a unique conundrum in that I'm only three miles from a city of 2,000 people, but there's so little infrastructure in my poor county I have no viable internet options besides things like Hughesnet. I know better than to mess with them. I have a Straight talk phone and get excellent cell service and can use my hotpot to stream videos and even conduct Zoom meetings. But there is a serious cap on usage, meaning most of my data goes to Zoom meetings instead of laying out on the couch binging Fresh Tracks or cartoons on Hulu. Looking forward to Starlink.

If you have excellent cell coverage, just change your plan or buy a mobile hotspot. Cheaper than satellite.

 

[MJE2083]

From what I've learned, since our inquiry and receipt of the system:

Phone service:
They've submitted their FCC form for the future satellite cell phone use. Picture hunting some mountain top and your sat-phone is the same with your OnXHunt...

Here's the challenge... a person must have a clear view of the sky. It's based on multiple low orbit satellites flying overhead. For cities with buildings that would block the clear view of the sky, one article stated their intent is to send the satellite signal to cell towers in the area so a person's phone call is uninterrupted.

Starlink requires the satellite dish installed at the specific address. I don't know if the satellites are specified to send / receive within the select areas, thus the reason for specific areas made available and future areas later(?).

I have a tree service coming out to drop 6 large firs that show on our Starlink app as obstructing transmission. It's a bummer to see them go however they are full size and close enough to our house - it's worth dropping. We burn firewood so, in a sense it's a win all around. With those obstructions, I've noticed attempts to have video Skype, Zoom, and Microsoft video Meet, do not maintain a continuous signal. As one or more satellites move out of direct signal, another(s) have to already be in direct line of sight to continue the signal... or so I've been led to understand.

Same with phone calls. I've tried cell phone over our Starlink and it's crystal clear until... no satellite has a direct line of sight to continue the transmission and suddenly, "Can you hear me now?" begins. a few seconds later, the conversation is again, crystal clear.

They're launching more and more satellites all of the time so hopefully this will improve with time. Starlink is still in it's infancy really.