Once and Future
2013-04-19 23:00:32
Anybody had any experience with the Globalstar sat phone system?
Thorne Isl.
2013-04-20 04:02:29
I used a Globalstar handheld sat phone, and was not happy. Now I own a older Iridium 9500? sat phone and love it!!
Use the phone from POW island to the Brooks Range every year, and never had a problem getting through to who I was calling. Even in fairly narrow mountain valleys of the Brooks Range. Check out Surveyor's Exchange in Anchorage. They have a Alaskan plan. 200 min for $200. plus a one time hookup fee, I think $64.00, plus 6 months to use the 200 minutes.
salmon4u
2013-04-20 06:40:06
Globalstar works ok, they were only 40 bucks a month, but now they've sent more sat's up and are charging more
Once and Future
2013-04-21 01:00:17
Thanks for the answers. Salmon4u, what model phone are you using? Do you use a remote antenna while inside the pilot house? You seem to be the only one satisfied with the service, and I wonder how you make it work.
Kelper
2013-04-21 01:26:16
For me, Globalstar was an exercise in frustration. We initially used them in SE AK on several wilderness trips and some days they worked, but others we couldnt' get a signal. Lots of dropped calls. Didn't take long before we switched to Iridium for flawless service. I've used Iridium from Kodiak to the Koyokuk to SE here in Alaska. Always good. Seems that most I know don't mess with Globalstar either. Seems the company is on shaky ground too, so it might not be the best long term investment.
Once and Future
2013-04-21 04:15:49
Well the consensus seems to be Iridium is the best system, but here is my sad tale: I bought an Iridium 9555 last year, had poor results with it, and then LOST the damn thing in transit before I could get the issues resolved. :oops:
I hope somebody stole it, because I really hate being incompetent. Anyway, the 9555 would sit in its cradle and constantly lose its signal. A friend told me his older model Iridium didn't do that. Many times I would try to dial an outgoing call and it would say "Make sure the antenna is deployed and pointing at the sky".
So now I have a marine docking kit that I think I paid $500 for, and $500 worth of unused minutes. And now do I buy another 9555 so I can use that stuff at the risk that they are crappy phones and I will have frustrating service again?
Thorne Isl.
2013-04-22 01:50:38
Using the remote antenna should resolve the problems you had with the iridium.
Since you have the antenna and the minutes, have you thought about leasing a iridium phone, or would it be cost effective to buy another?
Once and Future
2013-04-23 05:02:57
Yes, I thought about renting one to see if it performed better. But at $80 a week plus shipping, by the time it gets to and from Alaska, that's not a cheap test either. I've got a line on a used Iridium phone. I will let everyone know what I learn, if the new 9555 models have poor reception. (I don't know why customer reviews on that are so hard to find online.)
I was hoping someone else was using a 9555, so I could get the short dope on whether they are adequate or not.