There have been few pieces of new gear, electronic or otherwise, that have created more buzz in the offshore cruising community than the Iridium GO!—a combination of satellite phone (sort of) and internet hot spot (well, not really).
And there have also been few pieces of gear that have been surrounded with as many myths about its capabilities as the GO!.
In this chapter I will bust the myths and analyze the benefits of buying an Iridium GO!. And in Part II I will share some tips to make using both the GO! and Iridium handsets easier and more cost effective.
Nice article!
I would like also a comparison of pricing using Iridium handset.
Let’s say, for occasional use while doing 14-20 day offshore voyage, to get a weather data in GRIB, what would be a cost comparison?
Hi Taras,
That would depend on your email volume. But generally for a single passage of that length it would probably come about the same. More in the next post.
Hi John,
According to a press release from Iridium, the Iridium go is “Iridium NEXT” ready and should be capable of higher data rates on the new Iridium satellites. If that has changed then there are quite a few people out there who are going to be very annoyed.
Regards
Patrick
Hi Patrick,
Hum, that’s not the way I read it. What they say is:
Yes, they are saying Go! will work with Next satellites (as will all Iridium Phones as I understand it) but there is no commitment to higher speed.
And yes, I think a lot of people may be very upset, just like so many where when they bought the GO! thinking that they were going to get online.
I’ve been meaning to make a comment regarding the Ssb/Iridium post but have been slammed at work. After reading Johns post on the GO i’d like to make a few comments.
I agree with a lot John has to say.
After using the Go extensively it is NOT a replacement for a portable handheld sat phone. That became very clear to me on our IO transit.
Using it as phone; it really isn’t a phone, it is a proprietary VIOP connection and IMO isn’t a good as using a dedicated hand set. Does it work? Yup, and we used it, but saying that I am looking for a used Iridium handset to have on-board. Adding an extra piece of gear (smartphone) puts too many variable sin place for me to relies on it as a critical piece of communications gear. When things go pear shaped and your headed to raft I don’t want o be asking my self if the smart phone fully charged, is it in a waterproof case?
I did find I found the battery life on the GO was sub-par. I always kept a spare battery charged.
Maybe the marketing is bad, maybe people don’t read the spec sheet but they dont claim it to be satellite internet and Iridium is pretty clear about that.
What it is does provide IMO is good email and weather data connection in remote environments. Just on a cost basis. It is so much cheaper than using your Iridium phone to access and download weather/ emails. This would epically hold true for people on long passages. We auctally had a long discussion on this one evening on passage. There is no doubt in my mind if it is used often the numbers work out on the data packages. If your use is 4 weeks in the summer and a few weekend trips, stick to the satphone and prepaid minutes.
The big plus I noticed using the GO was morale. Morale you ask?
In todays day and age people expect communication, we’ve become wired for it. The GO lets people send receive texts for free. Friends can text for free. Iridium mail let s you have several individual accounts with one iridium number. Everyone on the boat can have their own email ( and everyone has an ipad these days ). Having spent a good deal of my life working austere environments I have noticed that when people can connect outside the environment they are in they tend to be happier and more productive. I have witnessed the same on long passages with crew having access to the outside using the GO. It may sound simple but the psychology behind it is sound.
Ive turned my GO subscription off for the moment. With the boat in Se Asia there as all ways a cell signal for weather and you are never really that far from shore.
Will I keep my GO? Yes. I feel it has a real use in pasagemaking and in operating in remote places with the need for data and weather communications.
I do think that the GO is just the beginning for “Sat-fi” centric devices and over the next 3-5 years we as offshore and expedition sailors will see mindbogglingly advances in the technology, price and user-ability of this technology. There is no doubt IMO this is the future for communications and weather.
BK
HI Barry,
Good overview, thanks.
I have to say that I find it rather sad that people need to remain tethered to their phones to be happy at sea.
Your comment “just $125 per month” didn’t look like tongue in cheek… Wow! That’s 10% of the annual costs of running Mick and Bee’s boat – subject of your last article!
I’m pleased to be going the SSB route with DSC capability…
(Sorry John, I probably shouldn’t have posted this here – and I wont be surprised if you move this comment off to the round file…)
Bill
Hi Bill,
Not at all, but I stand by the “just” since it’s a heck of a deal for what you are getting. Also, if you installed a full SSB/ PACTOR system from scratch you spent way more than a GO! and several years of unlimited data. And I would argue that you got way less functionality for more money.
In addition, not only is your comparison to Mick and Bee’s annual budget not, in my opinion, relevant to this post, it also misses they point that most users will not need to pay for unlimited data on an annual basis. Rather they will only need it when making an ocean passage. With this usage pattern the additional capital costs for a really good SSB/PACTOR installation will pay for at least 5-10 years of GO! unlimited data!
As I always say, if you want SSB as a hobby, fine, but a little basic arithmetic clearly shows that Irdium is in almost every case way more cost effective and is also easier to install and operate.
See this chapter for the analysis: https://www.morganscloud.com/2014/07/04/ssb-or-iridium/
Hi John and all,
It has been amply discussed on the AAC site in the past and people have marked their turf, but I would wish to remind people, in this discussion of pros & cons and limitations and expense of satcom, of SSB radio linked with Pactor. Of the three functions you flagged as essential, two (email and weather) can be fulfilled easily with SSB radio: ham (free after initial set up and licensing) and Sailmail ($250/year last I looked). There is definitely a learning curve, but in 14 years I have almost never been without email and weather products when in remote areas or anywhere offshore. And for ham, at least, there are few limits on the amount of email and weather products able to be accessed, either in quantity or variety. I have also used the SSB’s emergency capabilities for other vessels effectively, although strictly for emergency communication satphones trump SSB handily.
And these are merely the functional/mission supportive capacities of SSB radio. Much further discussion elsewhere on AAC’s site.
My best, Dick Stevenson, s/v Alchemy