I'm curious if anyone has used satellite internet access. I used to work in a call center that did technical support for satellite television, and they were just starting to market internet service.
I have Wild Blue satellite internet service. It is great for browsing the internet, but not very helpful when it comes to downloading and doing things like video calls. There is a latency created from when the beam bounces back and forth. There is also a thing called the Fair Access Policy. All satellite companies monitor internet usage and have a set amount that is allowed to be used, so if you download a lot this amount might run out very quickly. It's nice to have a high speed option, but I wish that I could fiber optic internet instead. Too bad I live in the country.
Do you find that your service is hampered by the weather? I know with satellite television service disruption was common during heavy rain and snow storms.
Satellite is marked as being "fast and reliable!" but in reality it's not any better than fiber-optic internet and can actually fail. Weather can absolutely interrupt it. High winds and storms are usually the culprits. If your receiver has lost signal, you can bet your internet will also drop. Additionally, until you can get TV again, you have to wait for your internet. The best option is honestly to get a fiber-optic solution. Century Link is the best internet I've ever used and I think they're more and more widespread. DSL or Broadband from your phone company can be pretty good, but it's not top notch. Cable internet is also pretty quick and can be a bit more reliable than phone or satellite based systems. Overall I'd suggest going fiber-optic or going through a cable company. Cable companies can give you as much as a dish company for a cheaper cost as well. They have digital receivers, DVRs, channel guides, etc. and are much more cost-effective. They don't drop signal due to the weather either. I've also found that digital cable is much easier to git if you're outside city limits than fiber-optic is.
I've heard very mixed things in regard to Satellite Internet. On one hand, I've heard about it being so fast and dependable. But that's the same thing we used to hear about DSL and Cable modems right? And on the other hand, as with ANY other device in history that has ever used a satellite, it's probably prone to interruption and weather disruption.
I have satellite and it's pretty good. You get to watch TV shows earlier than you would if you had cable. I like the pausing live TV and resuming when you get your food. The only thing I don't like about satellite is it's really sensitive. When I say that I mean if it's raining in your area, it's a good chance the satellite will go out. If it's snowing, the satellite it will go out. Basically if you even look at the satellite box the wrong way, it's going out. This can be extremely annoying when you're trying to watch TV. Other than that it's worth the money, because nothing is perfect.
Satellite Internet seems to be pretty handy. Has anyone ever used it on the go? My family own a caravan and we could attach a dish to that. Obviously we would have to align the dish every time it moved but I'm curious if it would work when on holiday.
I never had it but I have talked with a lot of people who have it when I was doing tech support for a cell phone company. No one seemed to like it at all and were switching companies to use only mobile broadband cards.
My wife and I got D-Way in 2005. Maybe the problem was our location, but it was absolutely awful. Despite the problems we have with Comcast now, when Comcast works, it is a lot faster. However, technology has advanced a lot in seven years.
