Can someone please tell me something about Datastorm? What does one have to do to subscribe? What are the pros and cons of subscribing to it? tx ck
NorCal Dan said
11:02 PM Dec 9, 2010
H&L have the datastorm and here is what they had to say about it:
http://www.rv-dreams.com/faq.html#Q19
We decided to go with an aircard. Some RV parks have wifi, sometimes free and sometimes fee based. Our experience has been disappointing, when it works, we use it, but when it doesn't we use our aircard. Some parks wifi doesn't cover the entire park and you need to take your computer to the office or similar to use the park wifi. Best bet is to carry your own internet, be it aircard, phone, satellite, etc.
Also, the datastorm system is not cheap. The Sprint aircard we use was free with a 2 yr contract at $59.99/mo. for 5GB total data (up/down).
Howard said
08:24 AM Dec 10, 2010
I'll add just a bit to the link Bill provided.
Datastorm is an automatic rooftop satellite dish brand name from the manufacturer Motosat. Typically, the satellite internet service is through Hughes.net.
Once the installation of the Datastorm equipment is done, the "subscription" is for Hughes.net satellite internet service.
Pros:
1. Internet anywhere in the continental United States as long as you have a clear view of the southern sky - this is by far the main reason to have satellite internet, to be as rural as you want to be and still have internet where there are no other options
2. Push a button and the Datastorm controller puts the satellite dish in motion where it finds the satellite automatically
3. Can use the same dish for satellite TV with inexpensive "bird on a wire" attachment (However, single LNB and Standard Definition only and still must have clear view of southern sky)
Cons:
1. Upfront cost of the equipment - Datastorm dish, Hughes.net modem, Datastorm controller and installation - $5,000 range for new or $3,500 range for refurbished
2. Must have clear view of southern sky - restricts campsite selection options in wooded campgrounds
3. Slower speeds than a solid cellular or Wi-Fi connection (Although faster than a 2g cellular connection or poor Wi-Fi)
4. Monthly cost is $10 - $20 more than cellular broadband
5. Hughes.net does not support mobile users, so you must have a good VAR (value added reseller) to do installation and provide troubleshooting support
6. Technology isn't even close to keeping up with new developments in cellular broadband
7. Must be parked with the dish raised to get internet
We love our Datastorm when we're out in the middle of nowhere and there is no cell service or only 2g cell service. However, when in 3g service areas which are ever-expanding, cellular broadband is faster and easier.
If you have to absolutely have internet connection anywhere you might go and you like remote places, consider satellite internet. But probably 90% of the time (more if you rarely get outside cellular coverage areas), cellular internet will get the job done especially if you have additional cellular signal boosting equipment.
I'm not sure satellite internet for RVers will remain a cost-effective option for much longer unless there are radical improvements in technology and price reductions in equipment and service.
Just my opinion.
P.S. If you do go with satellite internet, your VAR is extremeley important and we can suggest a couple of installers that provide excellent service.
Luvglass said
09:40 AM Dec 10, 2010
We have Datastorm also, but no way would we make that investment if we were starting out now, unless we knew we were going to spend most of our time in the middle of nowhere.
And cellular technology is just going to get better and better. It's horse and buggy technology and cars have just been invented.
bjoyce said
10:10 AM Dec 10, 2010
This is a letter Motosat just sent to their VAR Datastorm customers as posted to the forum on datastormusers.com: Dear MotoSAT Customer, We are in the process of evaluating the HughesNet services we provide and are seeking input from a cross section of our customer base. We would like to ask your opinion. HughesNet has changes coming that will substantially improve their service. To benefit from these improvements customers will be required to upgrade their systems to be compatible with the new Hughes delivery system. The benefits of this upgrade include: A. Increased system stability B. Plans that deliver faster speeds C. Improvements in the FAP (Fair Access Policy) that enable reset to avoid hitting maximum levels While moving to the new HughesNet platform would be optional today, there is likely to be a point in the future where continued access to the Hughes service will require a move to the new system. As a customer, you would have several options going forward and we are interested in your reaction to the options, which include: 1. Select the new service from Hughes and proceed with a system upgrade now that will cost approximately $600 2. Stay on the current service, knowing that there is a better service available and that at some point you may be required to move to the new service. 3. Move now to a service offered by another provider such as i-Direct, which would require an equipment change at the cost of $2,395 (oval feed) to $2,795 (rectangle feed) and an increased monthly charge (approximately $170). 4. Continue your current service, but cancel the service at the time you were required to upgrade. Which of these would most interest you or are you likely to choose? What factors would have the greatest impact on your decision? Thank you for your input. We appreciate your business and look forward to speaking with you in the future.
Here is a followup: Here are some additional questions answered by MotoSAT.
Thanks for the opportunity to comment and ask some questions. There really is not enough information included in your email to make decisions or intelligent comments. If you could provide several additional informational items, I would try to answer from my personal standpoint.
1- What specific new equipment would be required? (A) HX-50 MODEM
2- What would the new, faster speed be? (A) 1024 KBPS DOWNLOAD / 128 KBPS UPLOAD (BUT WITH LOWER CONTENTION RATIO THAN CURRENT SERVICE, ALLOWING MORE CONSISTENT SPEEDS)
3- Would the new Hughes service be the same price we are now paying? (A)OUR GOAL IS TO KEEP THE PRICING AS CLOSE TO CURRENT PRICING AS POSSIBLE
4- Would I be able to install the new equipment, or would a professional be required, and at what cost, if so? (A)YOU COULD DO THE MODEM CHANGE AND CONTROLLER CONFIGURATION
5- Assuming that costs for the new service plans is not an increase in price, I might be interested sometime in the future. My internet service is working pretty good now.
6- What time line would you estimate as the transition to the upgrade, that is when would you guess we would have to have it to use the internet? (A)ESTIMATED SIX MONTHS IF WE DECIDE TO OFFER SERVICE
7- Would the same satellites be used, or would additional birds be available, and where would they be located? (A)G16 99W AND HORIZONS1 127W TO BEGIN WITH
In other words, things are changing.
Trabuco said
10:18 AM Dec 10, 2010
Although not fulltiming yet expect to be next year. We have been researching satellite as well and at the beginning of the search I was going to go with datastorm.
After reading several forums on this site and comments from Howard, Fred and others over the months we have decided to go with an aircard.
It's the cheapest way to start and if it doesn't work for us we can always go satellite latter.
3Gstore_Matt said
04:47 PM Dec 10, 2010
Trabuco wrote:
Although not fulltiming yet expect to be next year. We have been researching satellite as well and at the beginning of the search I was going to go with datastorm.
After reading several forums on this site and comments from Howard, Fred and others over the months we have decided to go with an aircard.
It's the cheapest way to start and if it doesn't work for us we can always go satellite latter.
Hello,
If you need any help getting setup with the service or equipment feel free to give 3Gstore a call at 866-347-8673. We'd be happy to go over the various providers options with you. We are a authorized Sprint, CLEAR, Verizon and AT&T dealer.
PD CFK said
07:44 PM Dec 10, 2010
Firstly, thanks all for all the info. So if I read it right, Datastorm is a system whereby you can get internet access from Hughes net when in a remote area. Of course that always leads to another question. Would I not be able to get internet access from my newly installed "Winegard Trav'ler antennae, or is it something different altogether. I can now get all the direct TV channels in HD and would think I could get internet over the same antennae. Again Help. tx ck
bjoyce said
07:48 PM Dec 10, 2010
You need a special dish to get internet from any provider. You can sometimes add TV to your internet dish as Howard said, but not the other way around.
PD CFK said
07:57 PM Dec 10, 2010
Bill, thanks for the quick response. I think I'm still confused since Direct TV offers satellite internet as one of their services. You think that would mean getting a different Direct TV antennae than the one I currently have that gets all five direct TV satellites? We currently use ATT 3G on all our computers supplied by a stick and a tethered phone. In your travels how often have you found yourself in an area where the satellite was the only means of internet? tx ck
bjoyce said
08:06 PM Dec 10, 2010
To further add to the confusion, you can also get satellite internet with a manually pointed dish normally called a tripod dish. For this I would recommend getting service from Starband instead of Hughes.net since they will support you and Starband is more commited to the current technology. My friends Barb and Joe sell Starband systems these days as http://www.mobileinternetsatellite.com/ and have a budget system for just under $850 with the cheapest monthly service plan about $50 a month.
We have a Hughes.net tripod and have been using it since 2003. We go places where Verizon's internet service sucks and we can't stay in the 5GB limit, but we also have a Verizon aircard in a router with an external antenna and amplifier. We use about 8 to 12GB per month between the two of us. We are trying a Virgin Mobile aircard right now to cover some of the Verizon holes since it uses Sprints network and because it is unlimited. But Sprint coverage is worse than Verizon's overall. I have an antenna adapter coming from 3GStore.com that I hope will give us Virgin Mobile/Sprint service where we are camped now in Morgan Hill, CA. Verizon is working fine here, but we are using 300MB per day and can't keep it up. If we can't get Virgin Mobile here after getting the cable Monday I will set up the Hughes.net dish.
People who say "we get Verizon or Sprint everywhere we go" don't go places we do. Sprint is useless in much of New Mexico for example and only lets you use 300MB per month of "roaming". Verizon is useless in Long Beach, WA (family), Kingman/Lake Havasu City/Bullhead City, AZ (sometimes you can get a CA or NV Verizon tower, but not always), Forest City, IA (Winnebago) and Hagerstown, MD plus some other places we have camped.
PD CFK said
08:17 PM Dec 10, 2010
Bill, again thanks. ck
bjoyce said
08:47 PM Dec 10, 2010
PD CFK wrote:
I think I'm still confused since Direct TV offers satellite internet as one of their services. You think that would mean getting a different Direct TV antennae than the one I currently have that gets all five direct TV satellites?
bjoyce wrote:People who say "we get Verizon or Sprint everywhere we go" don't go places we do. Sprint is useless in much of New Mexico for example and only lets you use 300MB per month of "roaming". Verizon is useless in Long Beach, WA (family), Kingman/Lake Havasu City/Bullhead City, AZ (sometimes you can get a CA or NV Verizon tower, but not always), Forest City, IA (Winnebago) and Hagerstown, MD plus some other places we have camped.
We have the Sprint aircard...bought it in Bullhead City AZ...worked great there and in Mohave City. It worked in Deming and Albuquerque NM. but at the slower 1xrtt speed. I hooked it up to see if it would work here in Long Beach WA. but I can't remember if it went to roaming or not, but I did get a connection. Wifi at the park works great so haven't had to use it.
We tend to rely on the RV Park wifi most of the time and only use our aircard as a backup plan. If I cut back on my weather website updates I can stay under the Sprint 5GB limit.
bjoyce said
11:21 PM Dec 10, 2010
NorCal Dan wrote:
bjoyce wrote:People who say "we get Verizon or Sprint everywhere we go" don't go places we do. Sprint is useless in much of New Mexico for example and only lets you use 300MB per month of "roaming". Verizon is useless in Long Beach, WA (family), Kingman/Lake Havasu City/Bullhead City, AZ (sometimes you can get a CA or NV Verizon tower, but not always), Forest City, IA (Winnebago) and Hagerstown, MD plus some other places we have camped.
We have the Sprint aircard...bought it in Bullhead City AZ...worked great there and in Mohave City. It worked in Deming and Albuquerque NM. but at the slower 1xrtt speed. I hooked it up to see if it would work here in Long Beach WA. but I can't remember if it went to roaming or not, but I did get a connection. Wifi at the park works great so haven't had to use it.
We tend to rely on the RV Park wifi most of the time and only use our aircard as a backup plan. If I cut back on my weather website updates I can stay under the Sprint 5GB limit. If you would have used more than 300MB in Deming and Albuquerque Sprint would have told you you exceeded the roaming limit, but maybe not the first month. Sprint cut a friend off because of this and a long stay in Deming was part of the reason. (He now uses Pda-net with a Verizon Droid, which works for him.)
I said Verizon had trouble in Long Beach and Bullhead City, that is why we are trying Virgin Mobile which is on Sprint, so we can get online with 3G in those areas. For Verizon Bullhead City is 1X and very flaky, Long Beach is 1X and kind of works.
mailman01 said
07:43 AM Dec 11, 2010
Does anyone have any experience with Virgin Mobile Broadband? Air Card is not free, somewhere between $80 & $100 and a variety of "pay as you go" cards that can be purchased at Best buy and several other locations. I think these additional cards come in varieties of $20 or $40 denominations and the $40 one is unlimited and must be used within a month of activation.
Just curious if anyone had tried this route.
bjoyce said
10:21 AM Dec 11, 2010
I guess my posts are too wordy or full of details that cause eyes to glaze over since I have mentioned Virgin Mobile multiple times on this thread. Virgin Mobile uses the Sprint network.
Anyway we set up the card, which cost $75 + tax at Wal-Mart, in Bakersfield, CA and it worked great paying for a month of service at $40. We had good speeds on Virgin Mobile and it worked fine in a Cradlepoint MBR-1000 router, which was running fairly current firmware.
Then we moved to TT Morgan Hill in Morgan Hill, CA and did not have service. I am waiting for an external antenna adapter cable to hook the aircard up to our external Wilson amp and antenna. Looking at the coverage map, http://www.virginmobileusa.com/check-cell-phone-coverage, the 3G coverage area is quite close by so we do hope the external antenna gets us service. Verizon has solid internet and voice service here without an external antenna, but a bit better with the external antenna. Sprint it second to Verizon on 3G service area and most people say AT&T is a distant 3rd since much of their network is 2.5G, called Edge.
-- Edited by bjoyce on Saturday 11th of December 2010 10:25:19 AM
I'll add just a bit to the link Bill provided.
Datastorm is an automatic rooftop satellite dish brand name from the manufacturer Motosat. Typically, the satellite internet service is through Hughes.net.
Once the installation of the Datastorm equipment is done, the "subscription" is for Hughes.net satellite internet service.
Pros:
1. Internet anywhere in the continental United States as long as you have a clear view of the southern sky - this is by far the main reason to have satellite internet, to be as rural as you want to be and still have internet where there are no other options
2. Push a button and the Datastorm controller puts the satellite dish in motion where it finds the satellite automatically
3. Can use the same dish for satellite TV with inexpensive "bird on a wire" attachment (However, single LNB and Standard Definition only and still must have clear view of southern sky)
Cons:
1. Upfront cost of the equipment - Datastorm dish, Hughes.net modem, Datastorm controller and installation - $5,000 range for new or $3,500 range for refurbished
2. Must have clear view of southern sky - restricts campsite selection options in wooded campgrounds
3. Slower speeds than a solid cellular or Wi-Fi connection (Although faster than a 2g cellular connection or poor Wi-Fi)
4. Monthly cost is $10 - $20 more than cellular broadband
5. Hughes.net does not support mobile users, so you must have a good VAR (value added reseller) to do installation and provide troubleshooting support
6. Technology isn't even close to keeping up with new developments in cellular broadband
7. Must be parked with the dish raised to get internet
We love our Datastorm when we're out in the middle of nowhere and there is no cell service or only 2g cell service. However, when in 3g service areas which are ever-expanding, cellular broadband is faster and easier.
If you have to absolutely have internet connection anywhere you might go and you like remote places, consider satellite internet. But probably 90% of the time (more if you rarely get outside cellular coverage areas), cellular internet will get the job done especially if you have additional cellular signal boosting equipment.
I'm not sure satellite internet for RVers will remain a cost-effective option for much longer unless there are radical improvements in technology and price reductions in equipment and service.
Just my opinion.
P.S. If you do go with satellite internet, your VAR is extremeley important and we can suggest a couple of installers that provide excellent service.
Dear MotoSAT Customer,
We are in the process of evaluating the HughesNet services we provide and
are seeking input from a cross section of our customer base. We would like
to ask your opinion.
HughesNet has changes coming that will substantially improve their service.
To benefit from these improvements customers will be required to upgrade
their systems to be compatible with the new Hughes delivery system. The
benefits of this upgrade include:
A. Increased system stability
B. Plans that deliver faster speeds
C. Improvements in the FAP (Fair Access Policy) that enable reset to avoid
hitting maximum levels
While moving to the new HughesNet platform would be optional today, there is
likely to be a point in the future where continued access to the Hughes
service will require a move to the new system.
As a customer, you would have several options going forward and we are
interested in your reaction to the options, which include:
1. Select the new service from Hughes and proceed with a system upgrade now
that will cost approximately $600
2. Stay on the current service, knowing that there is a better service
available and that at some point you may be required to move to the new
service.
3. Move now to a service offered by another provider such as i-Direct, which
would require an equipment change at the cost of $2,395 (oval feed) to
$2,795 (rectangle feed) and an increased monthly charge (approximately
$170).
4. Continue your current service, but cancel the service at the time you
were required to upgrade.
Which of these would most interest you or are you likely to choose?
What factors would have the greatest impact on your decision?
Thank you for your input. We appreciate your business and look forward to
speaking with you in the future.
Here is a followup:
Here are some additional questions answered by MotoSAT.
Thanks for the opportunity to comment and ask some questions. There really is not enough information included in your email to make decisions or intelligent comments. If you could provide several additional informational items, I would try to answer from my personal standpoint.
1- What specific new equipment would be required?
(A) HX-50 MODEM
2- What would the new, faster speed be?
(A) 1024 KBPS DOWNLOAD / 128 KBPS UPLOAD (BUT WITH LOWER CONTENTION RATIO THAN CURRENT SERVICE, ALLOWING MORE CONSISTENT SPEEDS)
3- Would the new Hughes service be the same price we are now paying?
(A)OUR GOAL IS TO KEEP THE PRICING AS CLOSE TO CURRENT PRICING AS POSSIBLE
4- Would I be able to install the new equipment, or would a professional be required, and at what cost, if so?
(A)YOU COULD DO THE MODEM CHANGE AND CONTROLLER CONFIGURATION
5- Assuming that costs for the new service plans is not an increase in price, I might be interested sometime in the future. My internet service is working pretty good now.
6- What time line would you estimate as the transition to the upgrade, that is when would you guess we would have to have it to use the internet?
(A)ESTIMATED SIX MONTHS IF WE DECIDE TO OFFER SERVICE
7- Would the same satellites be used, or would additional birds be available, and where would they be located?
(A)G16 99W AND HORIZONS1 127W TO BEGIN WITH
In other words, things are changing.
If you need any help getting setup with the service or equipment feel free to give 3Gstore a call at 866-347-8673. We'd be happy to go over the various providers options with you. We are a authorized Sprint, CLEAR, Verizon and AT&T dealer.
We have the Sprint aircard...bought it in Bullhead City AZ...worked great there and in Mohave City. It worked in Deming and Albuquerque NM. but at the slower 1xrtt speed. I hooked it up to see if it would work here in Long Beach WA. but I can't remember if it went to roaming or not, but I did get a connection. Wifi at the park works great so haven't had to use it.
We tend to rely on the RV Park wifi most of the time and only use our aircard as a backup plan. If I cut back on my weather website updates I can stay under the Sprint 5GB limit.
Anyway we set up the card, which cost $75 + tax at Wal-Mart, in Bakersfield, CA and it worked great paying for a month of service at $40. We had good speeds on Virgin Mobile and it worked fine in a Cradlepoint MBR-1000 router, which was running fairly current firmware.
Then we moved to TT Morgan Hill in Morgan Hill, CA and did not have service. I am waiting for an external antenna adapter cable to hook the aircard up to our external Wilson amp and antenna. Looking at the coverage map, http://www.virginmobileusa.com/check-cell-phone-coverage, the 3G coverage area is quite close by so we do hope the external antenna gets us service. Verizon has solid internet and voice service here without an external antenna, but a bit better with the external antenna. Sprint it second to Verizon on 3G service area and most people say AT&T is a distant 3rd since much of their network is 2.5G, called Edge.
-- Edited by bjoyce on Saturday 11th of December 2010 10:25:19 AM