Skywayusa versus Wildblue real life comparison

[Stargazer]

Another good thing about SkyWay is that it is easier to setup and you can move the dish if you learn how to tune in the signal. They even allow self installs. With WildBlue, it has to transmit back to the satellite, therefore has to be aligned more precisely, which is why they usually require professional installation.

[apsc]

I am really a Hughesnet techniciian to the bone but skyway amazed me with how well it worked for a one way system they appear to have gotten the program together and does'nt seem so bad now the only downside to all that i see was posted is that if you had good credit you could of got Hughesnet for 69.99
a month and 99.00 down with approved credit and a service plan.
with a much higher elevation than Wild Blue you could have overcame the tree obstacle most likely. Just my 2 cents for what its worth.

[Cori]

I didn't know about Hughes satellite being at a higher elevation than Wildblue. If I'd known, I might have given them a try. It is good information for their company to get out there, especially in rural areas with trees and ridges to contend with.

In the meantime, I have been pleasantly surprised by how well the Skyway connection is working. It would have been nice to not have to sacrifice a phone line to get on line. Cori

[grohgreg]

I didn't know about Hughes satellite being at a higher elevation than Wildblue.

Yup. It's a simple exercise in plane geometry. Think of the isosceles triangle. Wildblue has service from only two satellites, both orbiting over the equator above 111W. Skyway sells service from only one satellite, orbiting over 105W. Hughes on the other hand sells service from over a dozen satellites orbiting between 72W and 127W.

I don't know where in FL you live, so I'll pick Tallahassee as an example. From there your dish elevation for Wildblue service is ~44 degrees. Skyway is a bit closer to Tallahassee, so dish elevation is ~48 degrees. But HughesNet service can be had from several satellites requiring dish elevation of over 54 degrees. Whereas tree trimming can be required to prune back line of sight issues with Wildblue and SkyWay, with HughesNet all you have to do is get your account moved to a satellite that your dish can "see" better.

//greg//

[Cori]

Thanks, Greg, that's good to know. I have neighbors that have been waiting to see how our experience goes, and I can pass that info on to them. But I live in Northern California, not Florida. I don't know if that makes much of a difference.

I've retired my Wildblue account. Now they offer me a free service call. I do wonder how much of the change for the better in my connection (from Wildblue to Skyway) is due to the dish being at a higher elevation and how much is due to the combo of dial up for uploading and satellite for downloading. Any guesses out there?

I signed on to Wildblue when you had to buy the equipment. They are willing to buy back the modem for $50, but not the dish. Since they have gone to lease only on their equipment, I don't imagine there is much of a market for a used Wildblue dish? Is that right? Does anyone recycle them? Any info on this appreciated. I would have started a new thread, but couldn't find the link to do it.

Cori

[Stargazer]

I wonder if they want you to sign another commitment if they come out to do the free service call. Maybe they should notate the account, if they will do so, that you shut the service off and switched to SkyWay due to them not wanting to fix their problem. You could give it a shot if they don't try to make you sign a commitment and compare the two services side by side and see which one works better but I'm sure SkyWay has you under a one year contract now.

[grohgreg]

I live in Northern California, not Florida. I don't know if that makes much of a difference.

Actually it does. I obviously looked at APSCs geoloco, and mistook it for yours. sorry. From northern CA, it's more likely a function of azimuth (east/west orientation of the dish). Again not knowing your specific location, let's use Redding. From there to Wildblue service takes an Az/El of roughly 163/42. To Skyway it's about 154/40. And of course Redding folkscan be assigned to any of 14 HughesNet satellites. Note the Skyway elevation is actually two degrees lower than Wildblue from Redding. So looking OVER the trees wasn't the issue. But the azimuth difference is 9 degrees, meaning the Skyway dish might be "seeing" around the trees.

I realize this is all academic now that you're jumped ship. But perhaps the object lesson in azimuth and elevation may come in handy when your neighbors decide which way to jump.

Oh, and without the modem - the outdoor unit is pretty useless. But there is a market for used TRIAs on eBay (that's the electronic stuff on the feedarm). And shipping a TRIA is a heckuva lot less hassle than shipping the whole ODU.

//greg//