dslreports logo
 story category
ViaSat Shows Off 40 Mbps Satellite Broadband
Enterprise Only, as Many Users Wait for Residential Version
Recently we noted how ViaSat's new 12 Mbps satellite service, well-hyped at CES, wasn't quite the revolution it was cracked up to be in the press. In addition to not being available to everyone and being offered belatedly to existing customers, the tier makes the one thing users hate about satellite broadband (caps) worse, with Exede's usage limits actually lower than existing services. ViaSat's service costs $50 for 7.5 GB of monthly usage (up & down combined), $80 for 15 GB of usage, and $130 for 25 GB of monthly usage. Engadget got an invite to ViaSat HQ to see a 40 Mbps version (enterprise) in action. Engadget was "so impressed" with Exede they forget to mention the usage caps or the fact nobody can really get it.
view:
topics flat nest 

treich
join:2006-12-12

treich

Member

Can I say LOL LOL

Can I say LOL LOL no business will take satellite broadband that saying it will do 40meg it still kill on lag time and other things. Plus it would probably cost 900 to 1k for the connection........ Also there still would be a cap plus a FAP time limit on the connection....
iansltx
join:2007-02-19
Austin, TX

iansltx

Member

Re: Can I say LOL LOL

Probably just a cap.

Also, enterprises may have no other choice but to get sat internet in some areas, particularly as you go beyond a few Mbps (bonded T1s get really expensive really quickly).
Skippy25
join:2000-09-13
Hazelwood, MO

Skippy25

Member

Re: Can I say LOL LOL

Yes, but at this cost point it may be better and cheaper for them in the long run to just pack up and move to a place that has muni provided "true" broadband.
iansltx
join:2007-02-19
Austin, TX

iansltx

Member

Re: Can I say LOL LOL

Really? Say they're paying $600 for a connection now, plus $1000 in lost productivity, for a connection that, counting in productivity gains, would cost only $200 per month. Yes, they're saving ~$250k (including productivity numbers) over 15 years, not not every business costs that little to move to another state, particularly when you realize that employees need to be moved/rehired as well

DataRiker
Premium Member
join:2002-05-19
00000

DataRiker

Premium Member

Re: Can I say LOL LOL

Given the pausing / nasty latency combined with low caps I don't see how "40 meg" gains much productivity.

I would rather pass on 40 meg satellite in favor of 1.5 or 3.0 T1.

No doubt about it.
prairiesky
join:2008-12-08
canada

prairiesky to treich

Member

to treich
actually, you are quite wrong. A perfect example are gas stations. Sat is highly reliable (minus the whole rotation thing last year) and available just about everywhere. A gas station company is able to deal with 1 sat company and can cover all of their stores across the nation instead of dealing with hundreds of smaller providers. They don't care about the speed or latency. So yeah, there are tons of businesses that will use sat net.

Another perfect example is the shipping industry. pretty tough to get a land line or cell connection 100 miles off the coast on a moving ship. but hey, guess what does work! sat!

DataRiker
Premium Member
join:2002-05-19
00000

1 edit

DataRiker

Premium Member

Re: Can I say LOL LOL

Gas stations don't require "broadband", and they are not provided that either with their sat access.

They pass trivial amounts of data and because of that they get extremely discounted rates ( as in free dish access if you use a certain merchant processing service for credit cards )

The article here is concerned with what most people would consider "broadband" access.

jchambers28
Premium Member
join:2007-05-12
Peculiar, MO

jchambers28

Premium Member

can you say show me the $$$$$$

Over priced BS as usual.
iansltx
join:2007-02-19
Austin, TX

iansltx

Member

Re: can you say show me the $$$$$$

Compared to?

jchambers28
Premium Member
join:2007-05-12
Peculiar, MO

jchambers28

Premium Member

Re: can you say show me the $$$$$$

satellite is way over priced for what you get.
iansltx
join:2007-02-19
Austin, TX

1 recommendation

iansltx

Member

Re: can you say show me the $$$$$$

"What you get" is broadband where otherwise there is none, not without paying through the nose for a bonded T1 bunch anyway, which may not have as much speed...
LucasLee
join:2010-11-26

LucasLee

Member

Re: can you say show me the $$$$$$

unsurprisingly, most of the negative comments fail to realize what a bitch geography can be.

Ultibeam
join:2008-05-27
USA

Ultibeam

Member

Captastic!

How can an enterprise run on this? The cap is jokingly bad. ViaSat was all hype and now shows the gotchas of the increased speeds. ViaSat is no game changer, they just played the game better.
AndyDufresne
Premium Member
join:2010-10-30
Chanhassen, MN
Ubiquiti EdgeRouter ERPro8
Netgear R7000

AndyDufresne

Premium Member

pay for play is everywhere

Seems that if you say anything negative about anybody/anything you lose access to that said company or person. You are going to tell me that no one at Engadget thought to ask about usage caps that have been around forever and is one of the most constant complaints about sat internet.

Noah Vail
Oh God please no.
Premium Member
join:2004-12-10
SouthAmerica

Noah Vail

Premium Member

Re: pay for play is everywhere

said by AndyDufresne:

You are going to tell me that no one at Engadget thought to ask about usage caps that have been around forever and is one of the most constant complaints about sat internet.

No one from Engadget, who worked on this story, thought to ask about the usage caps.

The alternative is that Engadget is being deceptively negligent, so as not to soil their chance at running future fluff pieces.

moddestmike
join:2009-01-26
Houston, TX

moddestmike

Member

While severely limited, could be of use for O&G sector.

While this seems highly unlikely for most enterprise needs, the Oil and Gas sector could eat this up.

We have over 100 land based rigs in very desolate, remote locations. Current VSAT terminals, while serving our needs somewhat, are very limited. This added bandwidth would assist us immensely. BUT you still have the limitations of operating within satellite bands, rain/cloud/fog fade etc....wouldn't mind testing one on for our PA rigs.
Chubbysumo
join:2009-12-01
Duluth, MN
Ubee E31U2V1
(Software) pfSense
Netgear WNR3500L

Chubbysumo

Member

Right, so I can download something at full speed

for about 3 minutes, and then i would hit the daily cap, and be limited to about dial up speeds. sounds like a great service.

Heres their next ad for them

Whats that? youtube? facebook? Now with our blazing fast satellite service, you can load them in a flash*, and you can stream youtube HD without buffering**, and download your favorite songs from Itunes in an instant*"

*subject to weather conditions, satellite load, available bandwidth, your sacrafice to the gods of a live goat, and your signing away any and all rights or future rights of you and your entire extended family

**This can only be done while the service is running at full speed, service and daily caps may restrict speed to a point that you want to rip your hair out and shoot someone, but that is your fault, we take no responsibility if you shoot someone.

compuguybna
join:2009-06-17
Nashville, TN

1 edit

compuguybna

Member

Re: Right, so I can download something at full speed

already covered at:

»[Exede] Satellite web surfing at 40Mbps with ViaSat SurfBeam 2 P
25139889 (banned)
join:2011-10-25
Toledo, OH

25139889 (banned)

Member

Sour Grapes

Sounds like someone has sour grapes due to he couldn't get to announce it first.


xmas2000
Premium Member
join:2012-01-02

xmas2000

Premium Member

Less even faster!!

Now you can reach the caps even faster than before... Nice!!!