Difference between FleetBroadband and BGAN

[s57ra]

I have possibility to get SAILOR 250 FleetBroadband hardware, but paying 400$+ for subscription monthly would be too much.

Does anyone know the difference between the BGAN and FleetBroadband? Is it possible to use the same SIM card intended for BGAN terminal in the FleetBroatband hardware and vice-versa?

The user manual for FleetBroadband 250 says:
SAILOR 500 FleetBroadband and SAILOR 250 FleetBroadband are maritime broadband systems, providing simultaneous high-speed data and voice communication via satellite through the BGAN (Broadband Global Area Network).

I have successfully used Hughes 9201 BGAN terminal on a 40ft Sailboat on Pacific crossing and if i compare my experience with FleetBroadband docs, i cannot find any technological differences between the two commercial products except different subscription plans and the fact that BGAN is a unit that is intended to sit on stable ground, where for the FleetBroadband you get Antenna with automatic pointing and desined for marine environment.

Well, there is important financial difference, it is not possible to get prepaid plan for the FleetBroadband terminals any more and the cheapest subscription is at about 400$, where with BGAN there are several options. A 7 day's GRIB forecast is about 0.1MB, so 50UNITS (5M) card is enough for 2 months. I suspect, this is all about market segmentation (different prices for same product), few years ago it was even not allowed to use BGAN at the sea, but this changed.

From Inmarsat FAQ: "Can I use BGAN service on a boat or vessel?
Yes... even on the open ocean. There may have been a time when Inmarsat had a suspension policy on such use, but it has not been enforced. We recommend the auto-pointing BGAN MCD-4800 case as an excellent global Wi-Fi hotspot. If ocean travel is stable, even fixed terminals such as the Hughes 9202 or Explorer 510 would work. These BGAN terminals have a fairly wide angle signal locks, where a terminal may be off by more than 10 degrees and still maintain connectivity. Please note that Inmarsat has created FleetBroadband which uses the same BGAN network using well designed sea worthy antennas."

Thanks, s57ra

[swampbush]

Originally Posted by s57ra

I have possibility to get SAILOR 250 FleetBroadband hardware, but paying 400$+ for subscription monthly would be too much.

Does anyone know the difference between the BGAN and FleetBroadband? Is it possible to use the same SIM card intended for BGAN terminal in the FleetBroatband hardware and vice-versa?

The user manual for FleetBroadband 250 says:
SAILOR 500 FleetBroadband and SAILOR 250 FleetBroadband are maritime broadband systems, providing simultaneous high-speed data and voice communication via satellite through the BGAN (Broadband Global Area Network).

I have successfully used Hughes 9201 BGAN terminal on a 40ft Sailboat on Pacific crossing and if i compare my experience with FleetBroadband docs, i cannot find any technological differences between the two commercial products except different subscription plans and the fact that BGAN is a unit that is intended to sit on stable ground, where for the FleetBroadband you get Antenna with automatic pointing and desined for marine environment.

Well, there is important financial difference, it is not possible to get prepaid plan for the FleetBroadband terminals any more and the cheapest subscription is at about 400$, where with BGAN there are several options. A 7 day's GRIB forecast is about 0.1MB, so 50UNITS (5M) card is enough for 2 months. I suspect, this is all about market segmentation (different prices for same product), few years ago it was even not allowed to use BGAN at the sea, but this changed.

From Inmarsat FAQ: "Can I use BGAN service on a boat or vessel?
Yes... even on the open ocean. There may have been a time when Inmarsat had a suspension policy on such use, but it has not been enforced. We recommend the auto-pointing BGAN MCD-4800 case as an excellent global Wi-Fi hotspot. If ocean travel is stable, even fixed terminals such as the Hughes 9202 or Explorer 510 would work. These BGAN terminals have a fairly wide angle signal locks, where a terminal may be off by more than 10 degrees and still maintain connectivity. Please note that Inmarsat has created FleetBroadband which uses the same BGAN network using well designed sea worthy antennas."

Thanks, s57ra

I just tried a bgan sim in a fleet broadband and it comes up as invalid sim. After many phone calls it appears there is no cheap or prepaid sim available for fleet broadband, only postpaid and expensive.

[mickt243]

It seems, from the following link that the hardware can have the sim lock removed- all you need is the appropriate login details (which I don’t have, and presume the example in the link is only an example not a live password...)

http://www.pacificrim.com.au/media/c...1390711854.pdf

[Outlaw7]

Much of it has to do with the actual satellites used and their signal concentration area and bandwidth. The ground terminals are located in areas where the signal is concentrated and bandwidth is shared with multiple users and costs are shared. The sea terminals are generally used in areas with lower customer concentrations so the bandwidth has fewer users, so fewer customers to share the cost of bandwidth. Thus it cost more to handle the marine customers.

[s57ra]

Originally Posted by Outlaw7

Much of it has to do with the actual satellites used and their signal concentration area and bandwidth. The ground terminals are located in areas where the signal is concentrated and bandwidth is shared with multiple users and costs are shared. The sea terminals are generally used in areas with lower customer concentrations so the bandwidth has fewer users, so fewer customers to share the cost of bandwidth. Thus it cost more to handle the marine customers.

A cell-phone subscription for the farmer in a remote nowhere should be double compared to that of the employee on Manhattan?

[LoudMusic]

Originally Posted by s57ra

A cell-phone subscription for the farmer in a remote nowhere should be double compared to that of the employee on Manhattan?

Yes - the same support hardware and personnel are required for both locations, but the service in Manhattan has more customers to provide revenue.

The same is true for terrestrial services. If you were a wired service provider and had to run a cable to a neighborhood of 500 homes, or to a farming community of 100 homes, where would you service first?