IRIDIUM

[webcraft]

I'm doing some research for an article on the Iridium system for use offshore, and would appreciate any information from anyone on the subject.

Is there anyone out there actually using the system in earnest right now?

What experiences have people had of using Iridium for fax, e-mail and data?

What equipment is the best? Who is offering the best tarrifs?

Someone on one of these forums claims to have bought an Iridium handset at the boatshow for £175, when the cheapest I have found is £500. Who did they get it from?

And finally - are any of the alternatives - eg Inmarsat - better, and if so why?

 

[Guest]

Know information but let me know when you get the article published because I want to know the answers!

Roly, Voya Con Dios, Glasson, Lancaster

 

[zefender]

The model on sale for £175(ish) was an end-of-line, soon-to-be-replaced Motorola model. It looked a bit like a brick but then it doesn't need to fit in a suit pocket. The price was dependent upon signing a line rental for 12 months at about £15. I was sorely tempted though I suspect prices will fall for the other models this year. 2400kbs data speed is a real pain though for anything other than very short text only e-mail messages.

 

[Dave_Snelson]

There were some posts on this ages ago on MBM, here is a web link for you.

http://www.iridium.com

Cheers

 

[simonjinks]

Marconi Marine

Hi
The set that was up for £175 + VAT was for sale by Marconi Marine, Yes, it was brick like but it does not need to be small for it's purpose on board. A search on the web will bring up contact details.

 

[Giles]

Yeah that was me. Indeed phones were going for under 200 quid at the boat show.

They were over 500GPB until recently. These handsets are in short supply. From what I gather, Iridium are trying to get rid of the last few so that they start selling the new smaller model. (At well over a grand!)

I ended up buying a handset but have had connection deferred until March (When I set sail) so I can't comment on functionality/performance.

The phone is HUGE and would make an effective club, but hey I'm not concerned with the cosmetics of the phone.

I got my unit from TMI 2000 Limited 02380641144 (It came with 12v charger that Marconi did not supply)

I would be very interested in your article once you publish it as there is very little infomation on Sat-phones around.

Regards

 

[Guest]

We bought our phone at the Boat Show for £175.00, we are doing ARC this year and want to keep in touch with the children. It is very expensive for anyone to call from UK to the phone, BT are charging £3.00 a minute but you can text the phone for free from Iridium's web site. They told us that the phone wouldn't work except outside but we have used in inside our house, so we hope that it will also work inside the boat but we have yet to try that one out.