http://www.lightstalkers.org/posts/satellite-phone An entire Lightstalkers thread via RSS/XML. en-us Looking to buy a used satellite phone for outside USA coverage- Thuraya etc .I am leaving on assignment on Feb 1st so would prefer to buy from someone in the USA. Tue, 01 Feb 2011 15:35:41 +0000 http://www.lightstalkers.org/posts/satellite-phone Jason - where are you going? Thuraya's coverage isn't world wide, and as far as I can tell from recent experience, their service and hardware has taken a nose-dive. Try Satellite Outfitters - Eros has used them and had good experiences - I've only spoken to them on the phone, but they sounded solid. Mon, 24 Jan 2011 08:48:13 +0000 http://www.lightstalkers.org/posts/satellite-phone#170026 Thanks Teru .. much appreciated. I'll be in Karen State, Burma and then onto Somali. I'll be in Kabul in mid March... maybe we can hook up if you are in town. Warm regards . Jason Tue, 25 Jan 2011 00:43:06 +0000 http://www.lightstalkers.org/posts/satellite-phone#170036 Thuraya provides coverage where you go, but if you need hispeed data consider Inmarsat BGan instead. Wed, 26 Jan 2011 20:23:17 +0000 http://www.lightstalkers.org/posts/satellite-phone#170062 Inmarsat BGAN is a much better choice than Thuraya. Thuraya is good only for voice not data. Thu, 27 Jan 2011 09:15:27 +0000 http://www.lightstalkers.org/posts/satellite-phone#170070 Thanks Cedric and Anamitra ... good advice . Much appreciated. Jason Thu, 27 Jan 2011 16:04:16 +0000 http://www.lightstalkers.org/posts/satellite-phone#170077 to second Anamitra, I dropped $4K on the Thuraya IP data unit, and found it to be pretty much unusable...Thuraya advertises 444kbps, but doesn't go out their way to mention that only 16kbps is guaranteed - and their "technical support" is a joke - the most constructive support they were able to offer was to ask if I could switch to using a PC, because they didn't know much about Macs... Fri, 28 Jan 2011 05:04:54 +0000 http://www.lightstalkers.org/posts/satellite-phone#170091 Thanks Teru ! One of the guys I am traveling with has an older Motorola Iridium phone so we are going to share that ..we don't need to send data at this point..just emergency use. Thanks for all the info. Much appreciated. Fri, 28 Jan 2011 14:56:06 +0000 http://www.lightstalkers.org/posts/satellite-phone#170099 Anybody have suggestions for low-cost service plans (i.e. using the Iridium phone for emergency use only)? Mon, 31 Jan 2011 02:38:08 +0000 http://www.lightstalkers.org/posts/satellite-phone#170138 Hi Flo, Good luck and great photography. Have a wonderful time Dev Tue, 01 Feb 2011 14:31:07 +0000 http://www.lightstalkers.org/posts/satellite-phone#170161 PJ, there is a service names "Calling Crew" (pre-paid card) but of course you need to keep your SIM card active which cost most likely around 30-40 USD/month. Check with your preferred dealer for details ;-) p.s I guess this service exists with both Iridium and Thuraya Tue, 01 Feb 2011 14:41:59 +0000 http://www.lightstalkers.org/posts/satellite-phone#170163 Jason, assume you saw that Adam Dean is selling a BGAN here in LS for a pretty good price. Should you be prepared for your next occasion when your friend isn't along? Tue, 01 Feb 2011 15:32:56 +0000 http://www.lightstalkers.org/posts/satellite-phone#170166 Thanks for the tips Neal and Cedric ! Much a appreciated .. Tue, 01 Feb 2011 15:35:41 +0000 http://www.lightstalkers.org/posts/satellite-phone#170167