Satellite Internet, who's got it?

[Coytee]

Might go for it, know nothing about it. Who should I avoid or go after?

[Marvel]

I think that unless you are wealthy, you don't want to try that. Most use satellite for the down link and landline/cable/dsl for the outbound. Sat uplink would really up the cost unless things have really changed.

My wife and I are moving closer to Chattanooga later this month, so we can get on the EPB fiber network. They now have fiber to your house @ 1G speed. You can save about $10 a month and get 100 Megabit. This will get me off of Comcast internet.

Bruce

[Coytee]

I live about 15 miles out of town. No cable option, no DSL option....only dial up or ISDN. Dial up is about 20/40k speed and ISDN (128K) is about 56K, all because of my distance.

Im open to other options

[scallywagger77]

It is expensive and really is a last resort but sometimes it's your only alternative. As a satellite TV tech the thing I hear customers complain about most is the surprise cost at the time of installation. Hughes net has improved a lot but beware installers are sub contractors and are not restricted from charging to install the dish on a pole. For the installer to provide a two inch pole (electrical conduit) concrete and put it in the ground might add a little on the spot expense, (close to a hundred). If Directv does satellite internet in your area and the job is done by an in house tech the installation probably will come without hidden charges. I believe Wild Blue is the name of the internet provider that Directv is partnered with so you may save if you bundle the services. Also be aware of lease agreements which can be a long time if your unhappy with the service. I have talked to people that are very satisfied and like rural living so much that the lack of speed is a small price to pay.

[mustang guy]

I use to have your problem. Thankfully, the cable company digitized the line coming out my road. Chances are, broadband will reach out to you before long. 15 miles isn't that far, and I bet there are people within a few miles of you who are on it.

As a ratio, you download many times more data than you upload. It is the download bandwidth that matters. With satellite you will have more delay (lag) due to turnaround times. If you are a gamer, this can be frustrating since real time turnaround can get you killed.

You might check to see if there is an internet provider that has an antenna nearby. I have a setup like that at my lake house which is in the middle of nowhere. It's pretty quick, and it is inexpensive. Ask some of your neighbors what they do.

[angusruler]

my wife and i had "hughesnet" for a while before comcast became available on our street. i was dissatisfied with both the performance, price, and especially customer service.

they knew that they had us over a barrel and used it to their advantage, since our only other option at the time was "dial-up" service.

wasn't cheap either. i don't remember the exact price, but just for the internet we were paying almost as much then as we do now for phone, cable tv, and internet.

and our internet is waaaaaaaaaaaaay faster now.

[Marvel]

scallywagger,

Are you on EPB fiber where you are located? I can hardly wait.

If is wasn't so hilly where Richard is, he might have someone close by with a connection that he could set up a more line of sight with a couple of wireless routers. Some folks have easily been able to get over 15 miles making their own antennae.

Richard, you didn't mention mobile broadband wireless, either. How is your cell connection at the house? Maybe you spend too much time on line and the costs would add up if your data climbs too high.

Bruce

[Coytee]

I hadn't thought oh the cell version. I do find it interesting to hook my DVD player up so hardwire (to extent I can) is preferred

[Hutch1814]

It is expensive and really is a last resort but sometimes it's your only alternative. As a satellite TV tech the thing I hear customers complain about most is the surprise cost at the time of installation. Hughes net has improved a lot but beware installers are sub contractors and are not restricted from charging to install the dish on a pole. For the installer to provide a two inch pole (electrical conduit) concrete and put it in the ground might add a little on the spot expense, (close to a hundred). If Directv does satellite internet in your area and the job is done by an in house tech the installation probably will come without hidden charges. I believe Wild Blue is the name of the internet provider that Directv is partnered with so you may save if you bundle the services. Also be aware of lease agreements which can be a long time if your unhappy with the service. I have talked to people that are very satisfied and like rural living so much that the lack of speed is a small price to pay.

We install exede (formally wild blue). As a directv installer myself too I would recommend if you're forced to go with satellite internet to go with exede. It does come with a 24 month contract but the speeds are pretty insane from where they use to be but you're also limited to how much data you can use. It comes with unlimited between 12 AM and 6 AM so any downloads that need done can be set to download at those times. You can even game online with it but it is NOT recommended. We don't charge for poles or anything else except custom labor such as wall fishes or long buried runs from the dish. I would stay away from Hughes net. I've heard more and more people complain about how bad it is. I don't have either, I'm lucky I enough to have a broad band connection in town.

[sunnysal]

sat can be a great alternative when you have no coax or fiber coverage. you would need to use the sat for the downstream and the twisted pair (copper) for the upstream, you should get pretty good results that way, you may need help setting up the router, etc. for it. how much are they planning to charge you for the sat link? regards, tony

[billybob]

When I got out of the business there were 3 players, Starband(DishNet), DirecTV(DirectPC), and WildBlue(Excede per previous poster).

Customer service and contractual obligations is a consideration factor of course, as well as price per month within the package you prefer, dictated by price per amount of bandwidth usage/read speed/data requirement.

As previously stated, in house installation may be preferred per independent contractor versus inhouse installation for out of pocket expense if any. Pole mount may not come into it as line of sight is the dictating factor for building mounted/pole mount. Building mounted should be covered under a basic standard install.

As also previously stated, download speed is the main consideration, unless you have large uploads of files on a regular basis. However, phone lines need not come into it as these systems are 2 way systems nowadays versus the older satellite down, telephone modem up.

Reliability is another factor very worthy of consideration. Since I have been out of the loop recently, as I gave the satellite career up after 25 years, I am not up on this. Certainly WildBlue had some technical difficulties that needed serious attention shortly after their offerings rollout. By now for their sakes, I hope that is just a memory now. Best source is consumer research via the internet to see what the latest is in this regard.

By now, the price per month should be competitive as monopoly non-existent. Research is needed before the fact.

Take what I state as matter of fact with a grain of salt as not contemparanious with recent events.

Good Fortune

If money not a deciding factor, there are always commercial enterprise entities like ViaSat and others who would just love to do a professional install.