Satellite Texting in the Mountains

[Sccritterkiller]

I wouldn't be selling Zoleos and In Reaches just yet.

I got a brand new phone specifically for sat texting after my Zoleo shit the bed in October. The sat texting works great, as long as it's not an overcast day, snowing, or cloudy. I realized now I should have just bought an inreach.

The manager at the Verizon store did tell me that it was going to only get better and better though. Pictures and group messaging within a year. Voice calls within 2 years.

Sent from my SM-S931U using Tapatalk

Sold my inreach a year ago when I got tsat added to my phone. Half the price of inreach per month and starlink has 10x the sats up as garmin.

You are correct it will get better Ast mobile, att/vzw NTN partner, finally got a couple sats up after the Blue Origin disaster last year...they used SpaceX Falcon 9 to launch the sats this time...

Non Terrestrial networks are being deployed. The issue is you need a phone that's designed and built to look for sats not towers. The 1500 or so V2sats Starlink has launched this year all have voice/text/and photo capability...just got to get the handsets deployed.

 

[Phaseolus]

I spent 4 days in the bottom of Black Canyon of the Gunnison NP a few days ago. I was shocked that my TMobil phone service with $10 a month additional satellite was able to connect. It's a deep (2400') narrow rock canyon.

 

[PathFinder]

Using a Pixel 10 on Verizon, it has been hit and miss. Sometimes it's pretty quick, sometimes it takes forever.
Getting it to switch over to satellite can take a minute too, it doesn't always bring satellite up as an option immediately. Even when the phone has been out of service for an hour or more.

 

[Customweld]

I have TMobile and it works very well in my area of Idaho. My daughter has Verizon and it isn't anywhere close in comparison with TMobile. Which is kind of funny because Verizon trumps TMobile hands down in regular phone coverage.

 

[Sccritterkiller]

I have TMobile and it works very well in my area of Idaho. My daughter has Verizon and it isn't anywhere close in comparison with TMobile. Which is kind of funny because Verizon trumps TMobile hands down in regular phone coverage.

In 12-18months we are gonna be comparing "regular" cell coverage to dial up internet.

 

[Customweld]

In 12-18months we are gonna be comparing "regular" cell coverage to dial up internet.

It's pretty crazy how fast tech is moving right now!

 

[Seeknelk]

I won't be switching to Iphone anytime soon so i'll continue with my 1 month subscriptions to InReach

It works pretty well on my pixel phones I'm slumming...it's not just i phones

 

[CB4]

For those "crunchy" people. An EMF blocking sticker on the back of your phone will limit satellite texting. My wife bought me one and would sit right next to my buddy on the mountain. I would struggle to get connection and he would send texts in seconds. Just good to know those stickers do work.

 

[bsowinski103]

It's pretty spotty depending on where I'm at and clear line of sight to the sky.. it disconnects a lot so I have to wait for the satellites to come back around and try to connect and send. I always keep my inreach on me and prefer that.