Well,here we are. Satellite Internet.
First impressions …
The latency (time it takes to act on anything) is slow –over a second or two. Takes a bit of getting used to! It isn’t a problem as I don’t play shoot-em-up games on the internet. And I understand why this is (speed –not gaming!). It takes a 50,000 mile round trip to reach my Internet Provider (who just happens to reside in Turin) before it gets out into the Wide World. Light can only move so fast. (see A. Einstein for details). Then it has to get from Italy to wherever.
Download speed (rough check) exceeds 4Mbps (about 20 times the speed I got from my creaking old BT aluminium line to the telephone exchange a few miles down the road). So top marks for that. Upload speed 500kbps (about 1.5 times faster). OK on that. Possibly,if I do a better job of aligning the dish,it might get even better. Play safe. I’ll leave it for now.
As for the company that supplied the kit. Bentley Walker.
Their installation write up is terrible. A sadly familiar story of experts writing instructions on something that they know all about,while completely forgetting that the do-it-yourself home installer has never put up a satellite dish in their lives. (it ain’t like a Sky dish –it has to be set up very precisely,and it is a bit like bolting a Reliant Robin to the wall of your house). Heavy,awkward,and the instructions are inside the house on your PC while you are halfway up a ladder twiddling bolts. I have the scars to prove it!
To counterbalance the poor installation instructions,I have to say that Bentley Walker rate in the Top 3 of friendly,knowledgeable,informative,and helpful companies that I have ever dealt with. In anything. Forget BT and the dark legions of Overseas Call Centres. Goodby Orange Support. I sent an anguished email,asking for assistance,and they phoned –repeat,phoned –me back within 10 minutes to sort things out. I’ve waited much,much longer before BT (We are terribly busy) bothered to even pick up the (terribly important to them) phone.
Early days yet. But so far,I’m impressed. Bentley Walker,go to the top of the class.
Mesklin
A quick update.
Have tried out the satellite link in all weathers (except snow!). Works OK.
Download speed normally 7 to 8 Mbps. Upload speed (to my amazement) 8 to 9 Mbps.
Not a lot wrong with that.
Only snag is the router. I had to dump my ADSL phone router and buy a cable router. Essential. Works fine,with the exception that my WiFi HP printer just does not agree with it. After a phenomenal amount of mucking around,said ‘Enough!’,and plugged in a USB cable. I’ll fix it some other time.
Mesklin