[Amel Yacht Owners] satellite service providers
|
Thanks again Steve and Mark. I've been very happy with my Iridium phone, even more so since I added a dedicated permanent antenna.
Kent S/V Kristy SM243 |
|
|
|
Kent, If you have the Iridium Extreme, it also has the dedicated SOS button that provides all of the additional information in my previous reply to Bill Kinney. Like the Go! you still have to activate the SOS button on the Extreme, but when in an emergency it is quite simple to simply press the button and hit the life raft. With both the Go! and the Extreme, an attempt will be made via a voice call to your device and text message as well. With the Go! a connected cell phone is required, but with the Extreme as soon as you hit SOS, the message is sent, then the phone also dials out. If for any reason the connection fails, the IERCC will immediately call the device back in an attempt to make contact, all while getting the responsible SAR agency heading to your location. Hope that helps! Mark SM105 S/V It's Good On Apr 11, 2018, at 01:27 PM, "Stephen Davis flyboyscd@... [amelyachtowners]" wrote:
|
|
|
|
Bill, Good additional information. You do have to register the IridiumGo for the SOS button to go to the group in Texas that monitors SEND devices, who then makes contact with the appropriate Rescue Coordination Center (RCC) or other official SAR agency no matter where you are in the world. That group has prosecuted well over 7,000 rescues in nearly 170 countries from a variety of Satellite Emergency Notification Devices (SEND) as defined by the Radio Technical Commission for Maritime Services (RTCM). The group participates with RCC's around the world and annually hosts a variety of RCC's and other agencies to their facilities in Texas, north of Houston. What is great is that the SOS monitoring service is FREE, the cost of SOS monitoring and SAR coordination is covered by Iridium who pays the group in Texas for the monitoring. Besides SOS, the company has a sister company that provides SAR memberships and MEDEVAC memberships, and many cruisers utilized the additional membership benefits, such as Rebecca on SV Brickhouse (not an AMEL lol). For instance, the SAR comes in various levels that reimburse the member for out of pocket SAR cots, up to $100k USD. The MEDEVAC is international and covers quite a bit for not a lot of money. As Bill indicated, the device does have a dedicated SOS button so you can activate it directly from the device itself and your coordinates and other information such as Emergency Contacts, Vessel Type, Vessel Manufacturer, Hull Color, Length, EPIRB registration number, etc. are transmitted immediately to the International Emergency Rescue Coordination Center (IERCC), who immediately contact the responsible search and rescue (SAR) authority, and attempt two-way communication with you if you have your tablet or phone connected to the IridiumGO! to collect additional information about the nature of your emergency. Lastly, not only is it great for both non-emergency communications and emergency communications, it pairs with my PredictWind Pro, gives me access to emails, other weather services, etc. In my mind it is a must have for a cruising boat, even if you only use the non-emergency features of the device. Mark S/V It's Good SM105 S/V It's Good Currently Gloucester, VA On Apr 11, 2018, at 03:26 PM, "greatketch@... [amelyachtowners]" wrote:
|
|
|
|
greatketch@...
And, there's more!
The IridiumGo also has a dedicated SOS function. Even if you did not have access to a phone or tablet the IridiumGo on its own can send a distress call. Without another device, you would not have two way communication, but you WOULD have a SOS message with location and with confirmation sent that would backup the EPIRB signal with the SAR authorities. Bill Kinney SM160, Harmonie Great Guana Cay, Abacos, Bahamas |
|
|
|
Completely agree Steve.
toggle quoted message
Show quoted text
We have exactly the same and now working great with a good external antenna connection. Porter On Apr 11, 2018, at 1:24 PM, Stephen Davis flyboyscd@... [amelyachtowners] <amelyachtowners@...> wrote:
|
|
|
|
Stephen Davis
Actually Kent, it’s not difficult at all. We keep our phones sitting on the nav station where our Go is on its mount, and right next to EPIRB #2 (#1 is already in ditch bag). We would just grab the EPIRB, GO, both phones, and toss them in the ditch bag on the way out. If you don’t have the 10 seconds it requires to do that, I’m guessing you are having such a bad day, it won’t matter anyway. We really like the unlimited data, texting, and 150 minutes of talk time a month we get at a very reasonable cost. On our recently completed 5000 mile passage to Hawaii, it worked flawlessly, as it has for the previous 3 years. It is really nice to collect lots of weather data twice a day, call Mom and Dad once in a while to reassure them we are fine, txt with friends to pass the time on watch, and not worry about how much data you are using. Hope you guys are doing well, and sailing in some beautiful part of the world. Aloha, Steve Aloha SM 72 KoOlina, Hawaii On Apr 11, 2018, at 03:06, Kent Robertson karkauai@... [amelyachtowners] <amelyachtowners@...> wrote:
|
|
|
|
Thanks Mark & Bill. I guess if I had to abandon ship and grabbed my Iridium phone, I could call for help. Harder if you have to have a phone too. Kent S/V Kristy SM 243 |
|
|
|
greatketch@...
Kent,
Iridium GO can most certainly do voice calls through the app on a phone or tablet... Bill Kinney Great Guana Cay, Abacos, Bahamas |
|
|
|
Kent,
It looks like your place in GA has minute for a little bit less than mine in FL.
As an FYI – we connect our Iridium phone directly to the ships computer and use it as a modem (not recommended with Windows 10 because of the auto-updates). Without the GO it is one less thing we have to worry about staying charged. Here’s a link if anyone is interested: http://www.outfittersatellite.com/blog/iridium-satellite-phone/windows-7-with-iridium-9555.html
Prior to us leaving port we will set up a schedule to receive emails of compressed weather files each morning of the trip. A sea/wind five day forecast for an area about half of the size of the Caribbean Sea will take about 5 minutes to download. This info is over-layed onto our NobelTec Time Zero navigation software which will then use the latest weather to calculate the fastest route to our destination – not always a straight line. Cost is about $8 for receiving this data. Since we are not frequently doing long overnight passages, this is the most cost effective way for us to receive forecast when in route.
With best regards,
Mark
Skipper Sailing Vessel - Cream Puff - SM2K - #275 Currently cruising - Guadeloupe www.creampuff.us
From:
amelyachtowners@... [mailto:amelyachtowners@...]
Hanspeter, I'm not sure what the "units" are that your plan quotes. The vendors who sell Iridium products are bound by their contracts to sell at very similar prices. I got 500 minutes of airtime for about $750 US. It's good for one year, and you can be extended for a significant price. If you sign up for the same plan before yours expires, the minutes you have left roll over to the new plan. You can always add more minutes if you run out.
With the Iridium Go you can't talk (maybe through your cell phone ?). I use a phone with an added Iridium wifi gadget called AxcessPoint. It sets up a wifi hot spot. The laptop connects via wifi for downloading email and weather. It works like the GO, only charging minutes when data is actually downloading. Doing it this way I can also do voice calls. S/V Kristy SM 243
|
|
|
|
Hanspeter, I'm not sure what the "units" are that your plan quotes. The vendors who sell Iridium products are bound by their contracts to sell at very similar prices. I got 500 minutes of airtime for about $750 US. It's good for one year, and you can be extended for a significant price. If you sign up for the same plan before yours expires, the minutes you have left roll over to the new plan. You can always add more minutes if you run out. With the Iridium Go you can't talk (maybe through your cell phone ?). I use a phone with an added Iridium wifi gadget called AxcessPoint. It sets up a wifi hot spot. The laptop connects via wifi for downloading email and weather. It works like the GO, only charging minutes when data is actually downloading. Doing it this way I can also do voice calls. Kent S/V Kristy SM 243 |
|
|
|
hanspeter baettig
Hello James I am in the process to buy an Iridium Go here in Las Palamas. What I do not understand about your message. I thougt that Iridium is the service provider. I get an offer of 12000 units (what ever that means) for 620 $ for 6 month. I can activate it via email. Any input about Iridium Go (pro/con) are welcom, because you guys in US are much more used about modern communication applications then we are here in Europe. Is that the price. Predict wind professionnel: 90 US $ per month ? Best regards Hanspeter SM 16, Tamango 2 Las Palmas ----Ursprüngliche Nachricht---- |
|
|