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RVing with Satellite Internet (Hughes)

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Satellite Internet is becoming more and more common amongst Rvers, especially for those who travel to Mexico for the winter. We looked at all the available options such asRVing - Internet Satellite Hughes Dish on a Tripod RV Parks free and paid WiFi service, WiFi hot-spots, cellular air-cards. None of them seemed to fit the bill.      
 
Our biggest complaint about WiFi in parks, is the very poor quality of signal strength but more importantly the broadband bandwidth purchased by the parks is usually the cheapest possible. When the smallest bandwidth packages are used by the parks and many people log on to use the Internet,  this causes the low (cheap) bandwidth packages to grind to a virtual halt. As so many Rvers now use WiFi in parks to access the Internet and their email, parks need to purchase the largest bandwidth packages. It is not enough for the RV parks listed in directories such as Trailer Life, Woodall's, etc to simple list that a park has WiFi. There should be a minimum standard for service required in order to show that WiFi exists. many parks have realized that it requires a lot of effort to maintain a WiFi system for their guests and many have coosen to use outside WiFi hotspot providers to supply their service. These are invariably problematic to setup accounts and usually require a telephone call or two to get hooked up. Not really what WiFi is all about, it is supposed to be easy.
 
Some people purchase a high power WiFi antenna for approximately $150 and then try to log onto unsecured networks that they find around parks. This is not a good idea. Unsecured networks offer no privacy of data transferred. Don't even think of doing banking on these unsecured connections. Another misconception is that if a password is required to make a connection that it is secure. This is not always the case as in addition to a password digital data encryption is required to ensure protection of data.
 
When it comes to Air-cards we constantly hear complaints of low speed and expensive data usage costs. Try roaming into Canada or Mexico and see how big your bill gets. The costs can be staggering. Some air-cards offered do not have large networks and coverage can be limited. When roaming onto partner networks speeds can also slow significantly.
       
RVing - Motosat Datastorm Direcway Hughes Automatic Dish   RVing - Motosat Datastorm Direcway Hughes Automatic Dish
 
The only solution we found that was acceptable for all of our travels in Canada, US and Mexico was a satellite dish. We opted for a roof mounted automatic Motosat Datastorm satellite dish with access through the Hughes network. Hughes is able to provide access to many different satellites with a broad array of footprints to cover your desired travel area. We travel through most of the US and Mexico on a primarily Mexican coverage satellite and then switch to a US and Canada footprint area satellite when traveling further north. A new automatic dish installed on the roof will run you about $5500US. You can purchase a new tripod system for around $1700US. Often refurbished equipment can be found for a lot less. Monthly costs are a flat fee of around $80 per month for service on a 2 year contract. there are many satellite internet service  providers that supply your service indirectly through Hughes.
RVing - Motosat Datastorm Direcway Hughes Automatic Dish and StarChoice TV Dish
 
Speeds are not rocket fast though. If you are used to a high speed connection at home, you are going to have to adjust your expectations. There is a delay as the signal travels from the ground up to the satellite (approximately 22,000 miles) and then down to the Hughes server on the ground again another 22,000 miles. Once on the Internet delays occur the same as you would see at home as data is sent and received. Once the data is received back at the Hughes terminal from your search, it once again makes the 22,000 mile hop up and 22,000 mile hop down to you again, for a round trip satellite link of around 88,000 miles. While not high speed Internet and email, it is very satisfactory service as a whole. Connections are secure and the installation of a WiFi router in your rig allows multiple computers access.
 
Realistically you can expect around 800k for download speeds and around 200k for upload speeds. This is really marginal for Skype. Skype really needs around 250k for upload speed to work well. Small delays in speech are to be expected.
 
For those who require reliable and mobile Internet access across a few countries satellite Internet is really the way to go. Ask anyone with a Internet dish if they would be without it and the answer is always: Not a Chance! We feel the same way. It makes staying in touch while Rving a pleasure. Pleasure aside I trade on-line most days and in addition, we manage websites through our satellite link as well.  

 
 
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