Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Hunter's Campfire Satellite internet??

Is anyone using satellite internet access?

DSL or cable modem is not an option where I live.

Any info would be appreciated.

i'd like some info on it also. my parents live way out in the country where dsl or cable is not an option. i would love to get them a computer, but i will not even think about giving them a computer with dial up access only.

I think the brother Bill and Dave use it in paradise. Hopefully they'll pipe in.

My cousin had internet with Direct TV. Transfer speed was quite variable with weather conditions.

But the only ones complaining were the kids with three computers networked on one modem playing "World of Warcraft".

I have Dish Network for TV service. And I also am out of reach for any cable or DSL providers. Heck we only got telephone service fifteen years ago.

I recently checked with Dish Network's website for internet service. Six hundred bucks a year plus modem. That is next years new rifle!

I guess I am stuck with my 19.6 Kbps dial up service.


Verizon Wireless also advertises an ISP service, but I have no idea what the costs are.

Yep at "camp".

HughesNet. Last year it sucked being somewhat faster early in the AM than dialup but many "outages" - fustrating. Thought i was burned.

This year they did some upgrades and instituted a "fair access policy" act to limit constant downloaders (what do you think they are constantly downloading :))....and it made a world of difference. Good speed, much closer to DSL. The online software I use for business now works.

Worth it to me. Just make sure your package matches your download requirements if your provider is similar.

HughsnNet will let you turn it off once you are past your buy-in period and that was an issue for me as it is seasonal access at the camp.

I live in the sticks and had Direcway Satelite Internet (Hughes). It started out good, but got so overloaded that I gave up and went back to dialup. Recently two companies started offering Wireless with a small square antenna (Zeta Broadband). The service is awesome and I get no slow downs during peak times like I did with Direcway.

You might check into Wireless Broadband providers in your area before committing to Hughes/Direcway as the wireless providers are really taking off and spreading out.

Cost is $49.95 for 768k up and down. (512k is 39.95 mo.)

I was on dial up for several years. Hated it. Got dropped constantly. I bought Earthlink w/satellite and like it very well. I stay on 24/7. Got rid of a phone line but it's a little pricey. I paid $700+ for the satellite and about $70/month. Since I am in business I figure it's a 'business expense'.

My company offers Wild Blue....
Pricey and top speed is 768K down and 384K up....

We use Starband. I think it's a 4-5ft dish, cost about $1500 for installation, and around $70/month for whatever package we have. I'm not sure the dl speed, but it's pretty good. Comparable to the DSL I used to have.

It doesn't seem to be affected by the weather a whole lot.

The two minor drawbacks other than the installation cost are the Fair Use Policy which throttles back your connection speed if you download too much porn too fast, and the upload speed which is significantly slower than download. That isn't much of a problem, really.

We also have a similar dish for Dish Network, but haven't subscribed yet....

We had Hughes/DirecWay for several years. It didn't seem to be affected by the weather quite as bad as DirecTV satellite TV is.

You may want to look into any wireless broadband options you may have. They may not be overtly advertised. Your local internet provider (not satellite one, but DSL/dialup one) may offer it. It is very fast, and is unaffected by the weather. It runs around 50.00 per month (plus installation), which is quite a bit lower than satellite was.

As far as satellite is concerned, we were not happy at all with Hughes/Directway's customer service. I have been told that Wild Blue is faster and has better customer service, but I have not verified that myself.

IMO, the broadband wireless option is the way to go if it is an option for you.

Good luck!

Thanks to all!

Wild Blue is the one I was kind of considering. It's a few bucks cheaper a month and a shorter contract than with Hughes.

I'll check into the wireless thing.

We have Direct TV. It works really well except for the occasional thunderstorm.

My parent's have the wireless internet, it's usually broadcast off of a grain elevator in town and is line of sight. It has good speed and they are not at the highest level. I'm not sure of the exact cost but it is cheaper than cable internet.

Remember, most internet accounts from cable providers (comcast, road runner/Time Warner, etc) cost $50+/month anyways.

If you have decent cellular coverage, you can use a wireless air card. I use one in my laptop when I'm traveling...its not as fast as satellite, like using dial up, but you don't have to buy any hardware and I think the Sprint card runs about 50 bucks a month. You can use it anywhere you can use a Sprint phone. When we look at country houses in Mass and Vermont, the first thing I do is try to boot up the laptop with the aircard....no service, not interested.

I have used Wild Blue, Great service and speeds. I have DSL now and I am looking to sell the Wild Blue hard wear. I can not say a bad word about the service 1.5 MBPS down and 256 up, every now and again the weather will shut it off the longest was about 30 min.