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# Do satellite phones work everywhere?
In the aftermath of a disaster such as a hurricane, voice communication is the essential need and a natural way to communicate.
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Voice calls are efficient in providing information reliably, quickly, and efficiently. Satellite phones are the primary voice solution, they are portable, easy to operate, rapid to deploy, and some have additional emergency functions.
Satellite phones are classified as regional, quasi-global, or global. All varieties provide voice and SMS services, as well as basic data capabilities (not sufficient for actual Internet access). One critical aspect is that they DO NOT WORK INDOORS; you must be outside with a clear view of the sky and the satellite to make a connection.
Iridium, a US-based corporation, manufactures the only truly worldwide satellite phone. They have 75 satellites in low earth orbit (66 active plus nine spares) and six spares on the ground. These phones provide voice, SMS, Push-To-Talk (Iridium 9575), and rudimentary data. Iridium now sells the IridumGO, a small gadget that connects to your smartphone and allows it to make calls and deliver low-volume data over the Internet. Furthermore, the rugged model 9575 and IridiumGO! contain an emergency beacon capable of transmitting someone's location to a designated emergency service.
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The iCom satellite radio and the ASE Cross band solution for connecting an Iridium Push-to-Talk satellite phone to any LMR Radio network are two more Iridium-based voice solutions. The iCom portable terminals work similarly to a push-to-talk radio. These satellite radios operate in the same way as a regular VHF handheld radio. Still, instead of connecting to land-based towers or repeaters, they connect to Iridium satellites and provide pole-to-pole coverage in locations where other geostationary satellites cannot operate. Those who already own VHF, UHF, or HF radios can use interoperable communications options to link them to the ICOM IC-SAT100 or use the ASE Cross band solution.
Inmarsat's iSatPhone 2 phone is a viable alternative to Iridium. A network of three geosynchronous satellites supports this phone. The phone must have a clear view of the satellite in order to function properly. Except for the extreme southern and northern hemispheres, most of the earth has service; for instance, they cannot be utilized in Alaska.
### Coverage
Thuraya is the third alternative to consider. A regional system that is implemented in portions of Europe, Africa, the Middle East, Asia, and Australia. It utilizes two satellites that are in geosynchronous orbit.. This system DOES NOT work in the Americas at all.
As previously noted, satphones cannot operate indoors. These phones can be docked in an outdoor antenna-equipped docking station to resolve this issue. Once docked, they can link to a PBX, a radio network, and serve as a backup phone line in the event of a power loss, as well as enable over-the-horizon radio conversations.
To sum it up, only Iridium, out of the three major brands, offers truly global coverage for satellite phones. However, this does not discount the value of the other two systems. The ISatPhone 2 can be used in a wide variety of countries and is significantly less expensive than other global satellite phones. The Thuraya family of phones also has advantages over competing brands, such as GSM compatibility. These systems combine voice telephony with other features like push-to-talk, texting, gps, emergency beacons, and slow data transfer rates (depending on the manufacturer). There are even small terminals that sync with your smartphone to provide extra features like email and weather reports. For the benefit of emergency personnel, satphones and satellite radios can be wired into emergency vehicles and linked to radio networks to allow for long-distance radio communication. Therefore, it is important to consider not only coverage but also the features you may need in various settings when deciding on a satphone.
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