SnapperTalk

I wrote previously about the next generation of BGAN satphones, and now Nera has announced the availability of their unit – the Nera WorldPro 1000 – and it looks like a good one with detachable antenna, detachable cellphone-style handset for voice calls, and small size and weight.

The final date for switching over R-BGAN satphones to use the new I-4 satellite has been brought forward. This means that you have just one week from July 9th -16th 2005 to upgrade the RBGAN software on your unit and change the settings. Instructions are here and the new software/firmware upgrade package is here.

! Warning: Do not upgrade your unit before July 9 !

The date for the start of Regional BGAN transition to the Inmarsat-4 (I-4) satellite has been set for Saturday, July 9, 2005. What does this mean for end-users?

There will be a much greater coverage area including almost all of Africa (not just above the equator as now) and most of Asia too. It also means that some users may have to upgrade the software in their R-BGAN terminals in order to continue using the service.
Note the warning – “Do not complete the upgrade before the specified date otherwise you will lose service”.

Extended coverage map
Extended coverage map – more detailed [PDF, 429kb]
Instructions on how to make the transition and upgrade terminals

Inmarsat is currently conducting in-orbit tests of its recently-launched “Inmarsat-4 F1 satellite” located above the Indian Ocean (see a flash video of the launch). The Inmarsat-4 satellites herald in a new era of advanced satellite communications, with new satphone units and service availability expected in late 2005.

The new units will have capabilities far beyond today’s current offerings and would seem to combine the advantages (such as voice capability) of today’s GAN units such as the Thrane & Thrane M4, with those of R-BGANs, and offer speeds up to 432 kbps – 3 times that of existing R-BGANs.

The satellites themselves offer advanced features such as:

• IP packet-switched data services:

Up to 432 kbps data speeds
Background class – with variable data rates depending on demand
Streaming class – with guaranteed data rates

• Circuit-switched services:

Basic telephony (4kbit/s toll quality)
Data (64kbit/s ISDN)
Multimedia (64kbit/s, H.324/m)
Supplementary services (e.g. call forwarding)
Short Messaging Services (SMS)
Voicemail
Pre-pay

Satphone retailer GMPCS has lots of information on the new satphone hardware – with units being designed by Hughes, Thrane & Thrane, Addvalue and Nera. The satphones look well-designed and offer (depending on model) Ethernet, USB, 802.11 WiFi, ISDN and Bluetooth interfaces, SIM card security, data and voice capability including ISDN voice and data, and data speeds up to 432 kbps. Capabilities – and detailed specs via PDF downloads – for the new satphones are here:

Hughes HNS 9201 BGAN Satellite IP Modem Unit
Addvalue Wideye Sabre I Satellite Modem
Thrane & Thrane Explorer™ 500
Nera WorldPro 1000

Coverage will be provided by two satellites – the F1 over the Indian Ocean covering Europe, Africa and the Middle-East, and the F2 providing coverage of the Americas. Coverage in the Americas is due to commence in Q1 2006 after the launch of the second satellite. Details can be seen on this coverage map.

NOTE TO EXISTING SATPHONE USERS: The F-1 satellite goes live on May 28 2005 – This will entail a brief service outage in the IOR across all Inmarsat services (excluding RBGAN) and all Land Earth Stations of between 30 minutes and 2 hours starting at 20:00 GMT, after which service should seamlessly and automatically be restored.

I’ve been hearing vague rumours about a new BGAN satphone in the pipeline that supposedly would have 384kbps bandwidth… Other than that I’ve no information, so if anyone knows anything about this, please let me know. I’m hoping it might have some sort of built-in Voice-over-IP (VOIP) functionality, to counter the current unit’s lack of voice capability, but that’s just guessing.