BajaNomad

Satellite Internet Questions & ANSWERS!

bajabound2005 - 5-27-2006 at 10:19 AM

We are just starting our research on satellite internet and would love to know what other Nomads are using, how it's working for you, where you got your equipment and how you got it installed. Thanks for your help. Oh, we are located between Ensenada and La Bufadora.

[Edited on 6-10-2006 by bajabound2005]

We have been using DirecWay here now for 4 years...

CasaManzana - 5-27-2006 at 11:10 AM

....now called Hughes Net, with great success in Mulege. There is a store in Chula Vista where you pick up all the goodies (dish- modem and wires). Fabian actually lives in TJ so I picked it up at his house in TJ to avoid the border tax. He assigns you a satellite and establishes your DirecWay account with a credit card. I installed the whole thing myself and found it easy to do in about 3 hours. Fabian is at 01-664-368-8717 and email at falr@starband.net and falr@direcway.com

turtleandtoad - 5-27-2006 at 12:11 PM

Hughes Net, with a portable dish and 7000 modem. The only way to go. Got mine from a couple of fellow RV'ers that have started their own business selling the equipment and internet access from their sons garage.

Pescador - 5-27-2006 at 06:41 PM

I am using the DWS6000 because these can be bought for 100-200 dollars and then you hook up in Mexico. Try talking to Wayne Davy at
LosFrailes@hughes.net . He lives in San Lucas (South of Santa Rosalia) and is an installer. He can give you great information about using the system in Baja.

Bajabus - 5-27-2006 at 06:53 PM

I've set up hundreds of customers in Baja,,,some from this board.

Starband 481 modem, $399 for all the equipment, 3 year contract, full complete warranty on all the equipment as long as you are a customer. $49 per month for the service. you can install it yourself no problem.

shipped directly to you in the States

you can e-mail me at bajadudes at starband.net or check out my web site below

New Player in the Game ?

MrBillM - 5-27-2006 at 07:30 PM

I happened across a new player in the Satellite Internet business when I stopped at Radio Shack. They might be worth checking out, although I don't know if their service would work outside the U.S. It could be worth the research, though, since their rates look good and they (supposedly) guarantee their Upload AND DownLoad speeds, unlike Direcway which I am now using.

Choice is ALWAYS good.

http://www.wildbluesatellite.net/

[Edited on 5-28-2006 by BajaNomad]

Bajabus - 5-28-2006 at 05:11 AM

WB is a great service but unfortunatly works only in the USA. They use Ka band as opposed to Ku band but unlike all the Ku band sats which deploy a broad footprint WB uses 31 highly focused spot beams for their service. Move out of your assigned spot beam and service stops.

In bajas case they only bleed over into TJ for 50 or so miles. the dishes are smaller, the price is right and at least for now service is consistent. I't the primary system I now install in the states. Starbands new SE modem with service on AMC-6 for $299 equipment is due out soon and that will give baja users a comercial grade service at a good price.
St

[Edited on 28-5-2006 by Bajabus]

Roberto - 5-28-2006 at 07:52 AM

BB, have you seen this? http://www.raysat.com/Shopping/CategoryInfo.aspx?CategoryID=... .

turtleandtoad - 5-28-2006 at 08:38 AM

Quote:
Originally posted by Roberto
BB, have you seen this? http://www.raysat.com/Shopping/CategoryInfo.aspx?CategoryID=... .


If the price of this unit is in line with the rest of their products, it looks like an expensive solution for a limited problem.

I mean, how many people need to check their e-mail while driving an RV? :?:

For that matter, how many of us want the driver of that RV coming at us reading his e-mail at the same time. :wow::wow:

Bajabus - 5-28-2006 at 08:46 AM

yep....the guys working on it were former starband engineers that left the company to form Raysat. So far though it's still vaporware since it is not available.

Moshie is top notch and if anyone can make it work it's him. He came to Starband from Gilat in Israel.....the guy knows his stuff.

problem they are trying to over come is the movement of the small flat panel arrays inside. think venetian blinds on a lazy Suzann.

I personally think the future for in motion 2 way satellite INTERNET is stationary phased array dipoles where the received and transmitted signal is steered electronically and there are no moving parts. The military is already using these but power levels are too high for consumer FCC approved use.

Roberto BTW how is your starband system working?

Roberto - 5-28-2006 at 09:13 AM

Dipoles, huh? Interesting idea - I would have thought that a more directional antenna, like a yagi, would work better due to the high gain and directional characteristics of the signal, both in and out. Not sure how you would steer a yagi electrically, though. I think the array works better from that standpoint. We'll see where this all leads interesting times in this field.

System is working fine, thanks.

bajaguy - 5-28-2006 at 10:15 AM

Bus, you say the footprint for WB bleeds over into Baja about 50 miles....would this reach Ensenada (near the Punta Banda turnoff), or would you recommend the Starband 481??

Bajabus - 5-28-2006 at 01:20 PM

bajaguy, I wish I could tell you for sure. I just have anecdotal rumors from others that it works in TJ. you would be a pioneer taking it down that far and trying. Maybe contact some Wild blue dealers in SD and check with them. If it did work then that would be the way to go.

I know the 481 will work fine with the standard antenna all the way down to about GN for sure and maybe a bit more if you did not mind the occasional daytime outages for a few weeks at a time around the spring and fall equinoxes. Below Mulege I would go with a .98mt.

Please report your efforts with WB if you try it.

Good luck!!

bajaguy - 5-28-2006 at 05:25 PM

Bus....check your U2U

Bajabus - 5-29-2006 at 05:57 AM

got it

bajabound2005 - 5-29-2006 at 01:14 PM

Thanks one and all for the info! This will be very helpful.

bajabound2005 - 6-9-2006 at 04:33 PM

ANSWERS!
Well fellow Nomads, we write this using our just installed Starband system. It's fantastic. And we can highly recommend the fellow who set us up. His name is Chris Reading out of San Diego. We contacted him earlier this week. He said he'd be here today at noon, and he was. He installed a Starband dish and set up the modem. He set up the Starband account ahead of time to be sure it was working before he got here. He would not take one cent from us until he had it up and working. The whole shooting match cost us about $650 plus the monthly service charge of $59. He travels over most of Baja Norte and knows someone somewhere who can help you out if he can't. We give him a five star ***** recommendation!

His website is www.satbaja.com
email: info@satbaha.com
phone 619 428 8224

And he's delightfully bi-lingual!

[Edited on 6-9-2006 by bajabound2005]

Bob and Susan - 6-9-2006 at 05:35 PM

los frailes...don't read this!!!

your prices are half:yes:

losfrailes - 6-10-2006 at 09:12 AM

Too late! I read it. Wow!!!

DanO - 6-10-2006 at 10:36 AM

Anyone using Starband or HughesNet for VOIP apps like Skype?

flyfishinPam - 6-10-2006 at 02:22 PM

Quote:
Originally posted by DanO
Anyone using Starband or HughesNet for VOIP apps like Skype?


Yes but only for certain applications and folks. The upload speeds are very slow so you get a long delay. Used Crystal Voice and Skype on the DW4000 system.

Roberto - 6-10-2006 at 04:31 PM

Slow upload speeds can affect quality - the delay is caused by the distance the signal has to travel - all the way to the satellite and back to the network center on earth.

Basically, it works, and the quality is good. But, it's not like a standard phone call due to the delay. For example, conducting business over such a link would not be acceptable. Calls to family and friends are another story.

Crystal Voice vs Skype

MrBillM - 6-11-2006 at 11:47 AM

My experience with both (Direcway DW6000) has been that Crystal Voice has consistently better Voice Quality. I signed up for both on the same computer and made numerous test calls to friends and my own voicemails. Listening to my end of the conversation on the voicemail, there was often a background hum on Skype which never appears on Crystal Voice. I find the delay intolerable for usage in normal conversations. This will, no doubt, be contridicted by others who talk far more and are willing to tolerate the quality in the interest of saving money. Since I NEVER conduct phone conversations for other than necessary business, I have no problem with paying the rate on my Telcel Mex Phone.

Speaking of CRAPPY upload speeds, that IS the reason that the Vonage type services won't work with Direcway. I went that route. Extensive testing showed great INCOMING Voice, but constant OUTGOING dropouts due to the Slow Uploads. The most irritating aspect of that experience were the calls to Direcway Support. They NEVER indicated that the Upload Speed might be the cause and suggested all sorts of troubleshooting courses of action which were useless. It was only after I read about the uploads on some discussion boards that I got on the right track. To add insult to injury, once I mentioned it to Direcway, they acknowledged the problem and said I could correct it by purchasing a Business Class Service at $129.99 Monthly. Double the price to save a few bucks on LD charges. No Way.

Al G - 6-11-2006 at 12:06 PM

Quote:
Originally posted by MrBillM
My experience with both (Direcway DW6000) has been that Crystal Voice has consistently better Voice Quality. I signed up for both on the same computer and made numerous test calls to friends and my own voicemails. Listening to my end of the conversation on the voicemail, there was often a background hum on Skype which never appears on Crystal Voice. I find the delay intolerable for usage in normal conversations. This will, no doubt, be contridicted by others who talk far more and are willing to tolerate the quality in the interest of saving money. Since I NEVER conduct phone conversations for other than necessary business, I have no problem with paying the rate on my Telcel Mex Phone

Speaking of CRAPPY upload speeds, that IS the reason that the Vonage type services won't work with Direcway. I went that route. Extensive testing showed great INCOMING Voice, but constant OUTGOING dropouts due to the Slow Uploads. The most irritating aspect of that experience were the calls to Direcway Support. They NEVER indicated that the Upload Speed might be the cause and suggested all sorts of troubleshooting courses of action which were useless. It was only after I read about the uploads on some discussion boards that I got on the right track. To add insult to injury, once I mentioned it to Direcway, they acknowledged the problem and said I could correct it by purchasing a Business Class Service at $129.99 Monthly. Double the price to save a few bucks on LD charges. No Way.

Every time I read something like this it again reminds me how valuable being a Nomad is. Thanks MrBillM for your experience.

Pescador - 6-13-2006 at 07:09 PM

I sure wish you guys would quit posting the prices. Los Frailes is doing a great job installing these things and charges a whole lot less. Now he is going to be getting ideas. It was better when we kept him in the dark. I have used both Skype and Crystal Voice and I agree that I am having a definite preference for Crystal Voice. For those who are hooked up to the landline in mexico (prodigy), there is no lag time and it works very well.