Future of Hughesnet.

[Millwater]

   Been on Hughesnet for about a year and a half now. Believe it or not, I'm not here to complain.  I did my due dilligence. Knew the shortcomings of satellite internet before I got it.  But we're way back in the woods, so options were the dish or smoke-signals. 

   With the end of the 2 year contract on the horizon, and other forms of access becoming a possibility, I was wondering if anyone had any inside intel, rumors, scuttlebutt, or whatever about what Hughesnet will be doing to stay relevant.  I hate changing ISPs, but there might be something with a lot more bang for the buck then we're getting now available by next summer. 

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[GabeU]

@Millwater 

The only thing as of right now that I know of is the launch of the Echostar 24 satellite, which is scheduled to go up sometime in early 2021.  With the pandemic, however, the scheduled launch might be pushed later.  You know how that goes.  

There's not a ton of info on it, nor what will be offered, but you can see the info available so far here...

https://www.hughes.com/technologies/hughes-high-throughput-satellite-constellation/echostar-xxiv

[kedurila]

As more people switch to the starlink system, I would assume that some of the bandwith issues associated with hughesnet and viasat should subside...hopefully we can finally get at least close to the advertised speeds. I can't speak for viasat customers, but as a hughesnet subscriber any relief would be much appreciated. 

[Millwater]

Starlink and a few other options seem to be rising to beat not only the speeds, but latency issues of geostationary satellite systems.  Of course, Hughesnet can't easily expand their capacity, or counter latency unless someone figures-out Star Trek 'subspace' tech a bit early. 

Will be interesting to see if they have any retention plans. At least dropping the gear rental after 2 years or whatever.

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[MarkJFine]

I'd be happy with my own Stargate and a MALP.

[maratsade]

A TARDIS for me. 

[GabeU]

I'll take an ansible.  

[C0RR0SIVE]

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@MarkJFine wrote:

I'd be happy with my own Stargate and a MALP.

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Just, what ever you do, please, never open your gate to a planet near a black hole... We don't need a repeat of that in real life. 🙂

[MarkJFine]

[CaptHank]

Has anyone tried dedicated hot spot...apart from your telephone....to connect via 4G LTE ?

[maratsade]

No 4G LTE where I live.  EDIT: Nope, that wasn't accurate. There IS 4G LTE, only it doesn't work well at all due to very few towers. Most of the time it is just unavailable. 

[Millwater]

Same here... Weak and spotty 4G signal.  But that's for a cellphone.  A cell modem/router doesn't have the limitation on antenna size and amplification power.  Plus, they're putting in new towers all the time.

HughesNet still has the edge on price compared to other non-wired options.  But, if the others actually provide real broadband that enables streaming, etc., that advantage may not be suficcient.

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[maratsade]

I've been in the area for a long time and so far, no new towers. I guess in my area people like living the paleolithic way. 🙂  But in a pinch I can drive 20 minutes and get Verizon 4G, which I know a lot of people who live in remote areas can't do at all, as they're much more isolated.