Most distinctively the appeal of Satellite technology is its available absolutely everywhere. It also removes the need of phone lines, cell towers and other terrestrial infrastructure. It’s an ideal alternative for use with locations where fixed line or mobile broadband is not available. In order to take advantage of this technology all you’ll need to do is mount a satellite dish aimed at the sky and a transmitter attached to your home.
The idea of setting up the transmitter is that it would adjust according to the earth’s rotation without the need of repositioning the satellite. Unfortunately, unless you live in a country where you’re lucky enough to be blessed with clear skies and sunshine every day, you’ll most likely experience loss of signal due to bad weather and potential interruptions to your experience.
So… how fast is Satellite Broadband?
Consumer based satellite broadband can reach top speeds between 30-50Mbps. Although easily outpaced by Fibre Optic Broadband reaching gigabit connections, it’s still faster than your average ADSL connection of 10-11Mbps. A welcome improvement on the alternative from the dial-up days maxing at around 6Mbps.
Is satellite broadband right for me?
As touched upon briefly, satellite broadband is available everywhere. The only factor affecting this would be the location of the satellite and whether it’s orbiting the country. An appealing factor of this technology is it doesn’t require a fixed-line connection, saving you money on line rentals or installing a phone line. The running cost is low despite the impression given using a ‘satellite’ as means of broadband.
The main downfall of satellite broadband comes down to high latency or lag factors. On standard fixed line connections, latency is not something usually worth worrying over. Satellite however, inherently has a very high latency due to the time it takes to send/receive the signals. Despite this latency, your average day to day actives like surfing the web or checking your email won’t be affected. You’ll only notice the issue when trying to use things that rely on real-time communication like remote desktops or online gaming. Streaming, something that’s become second nature in 2021 could go revert to the annoying times of ‘buffering’.
Unfortunately, most packages are data capped. Nowadays it’s easy to find a cheaper fibre optic solution with unlimited data. If you’re looking for unlimited data anytime then you may be looking to pay a hefty price.
Who needs satellite Broadband?
Satellite is best suited for those individuals who live in remote areas where no other options are available. Areas that offer no support for mobile signals or broadband via telephone lines should be seeking this alternative.
