How Do I Know I’ve Got The Best And Most Transparent Satellite Phone Airtime Contract?

Hi. My name is John Whitley and I’m the founder of IridiumDirect.com.au,  Australia’s number one online satellite communications store.

In this article I want to answer one of the most common questions I get from anyone looking into satellite phones in Australia, “How do I know I’ve got the best and most transparent satellite phone airtime contract?”

It’s no wonder you, the consumer, can get confused.

With so many airtime contracts available through the five or six satellite phone airtime providers it’s a complete maze out there when it comes to traffic agreements and satellite phone airtime agreements.

And that’s just the way the big guns like it.

So they offer you this plan or that plan, which has this amount per month, oh but don’t forget you get five minutes or ten minutes free airtime with this plan, oh but then you have to pay a flagfall… the list of baffling options goes on and on.

With most satellite phone airtime contracts requiring you to sign up for 24 months, getting the wrong plan can be a very costly mistake to make.

You will also find it difficult to get all the answers you need to make an informed choice. That’s because they either don’t want you to know or they simply don’t understand it themselves. So don’t be surprised when you get only half the answers you were expecting backed by a very expensive invoice each month.

And don’t forget: that’s going be the same for another 23 months.

It took SatellitePhoneSales.com.au, Australia’s number one online satellite phones store, to break the mould of the more commonly known names in satellite airtime.

So much so that we have the simplest and easiest to understand airtime contracts in the business.

It starts with a monthly access fee and a 30sec billing time. That’s it.

Yes, I know. You’re shocked! There’s no flagfall of 60c every time you make a call, no incoming call costs - and no waffle.

Just a simple, transparent satellite phone airtime plan that you can easily understand and, more importantly, one that’s completely flexible.

As your needs and requirements change we will grow with you and can simply change your plan whenever you need to.

And with only a 12 month rather than 24 month contract it means that if your circumstances change there’s no huge get-out fee.

So benefit from the most transparent contracts by going to www.SatellitePhoneSales.com.au.

I trust you found this information useful. If you’d like to know anything more about satellite phones and how to find the best plan for you, please contact us.

We’ll be happy to help you.

See our website for more free advice and to learn all you need to know about satellite phones.

Visit www.IridiumDirect.com.au or call us on 1300 197 600

How Can I Avoid Paying A Flagfall Cost On My Satellite Phone?

Hi. My name is John Whitley and I’m the founder of IridiumDirect.com.au,  Australia’s number one online satellite communications store.

In this article I want to answer one of the most common questions I get from anyone looking into satellite phones in Australia, “How can I avoid paying a flagfall cost on my satellite phone?”

At the time of writing, the two networks available in Australia are Thuraya and Iridium.

With both these dealers, if you dig deeper into their airtime contracts you will see they include a cost for flagfall.

‘Flagfall’ is the industry term for the connection fee charged for making a call from your satellite phone to anyone: landline, mobile or even another satellite phone. These vary from 40c to 60c per call.

The Thuraya network can only be purchased through an Optus authorised satellite phone dealer. Optus charge 40cents for their flagfall.

The Iridium network can be purchased from a number or dealers, including Telstra, who charge 50c on their standard plan. Pivotel is 90c each time you make a connection.

“That’s not much,” I hear you say and you’re right. It’s not much for one call. But depending on how often you use your satellite phone, this can really add up.

What happens is you think you are paying one price for each 30secs of your call, but the truth is you will pay a higher charge for the first 30secs because of the flagfall.

My advice regarding this? Buyer beware.

Look for a satellite dealership that doesn’t charge a flagfall. That way you know what you’re in for and won’t be getting bills higher than you expected.

Some online satellite phone stores - www.SatellitePhoneSales.com.au or www.Iridiumdirect.com.au to name two - do not charge a flagfall at all.

The next question I often get asked is, “What if the connection breaks and I have to redial. Do I get charged the flagfall again?” The answer is ‘yes’.

To summarise, a flagfall is a connection fee charged every time you make a call.

Does every satellite provider and dealer charge a flagfall? The answer is ‘no’.

Many do but you tend to find the online stores do not. This may be down to lower overheads or a different corporate mentality, so shop around.

I trust you found this information useful. If you’d like to know anything more about satellite phones and how you can save money on yours, please contact us.

We’ll be happy to help you.

See our website for more free advice and to learn all you need to know about satellite phones.

Visit www.IridiumDirect.com.au or call us on 1300 197 600.

Can I Send and Recieve SMS With My Satellite Phone?

Hi. My name is John Whitley and I’m the founder of IridiumDirect.com one online satellite communications store.

In this article I want to answer one of the most common questions I get from anyone looking into satellite phones in Australia, “Can I send and receive SMS with my satellite phone”?

Great question. And the answer is, “Yes, you can.”

But let’s dig a little deeper and find out how to make it a bit cheaper for you.

Both of the current networks within Australia (Thuraya and Iridium) allow you to receive and send SMS from any of their satellite phones.

In our experience, however, it’s common for SMS, or text messages as they are sometimes known, to get lost in space. If the SMS you’re sending is urgent or you’re relying on it to get through it’s imperative that you request confirmation from the recipient that they have received it.

Also, if your satellite phone isn’t on when you are sent an SMS, you may not always receive it.

So, a tip if you are sending or receiving an SMS on a satellite phone: ask for confirmation that yours was received and send confirmation letting them know you got theirs.

Another point to keep in mind is that each SMS or text from a satellite phone can vary in cost from $1.00 to $2.00 so please shop around if texting is an important part of your usage.

Also check if it costs for you to receive an SMS or text, you’ll be surprised by the answers from each dealer or network.

There is a way for you to receive SMS or text messages from both current satellite phone networks within Australia without it costing you or the person who is sending the message.

To give you the greatest opportunity to find the deal that’s best for you, we’ve found three online satellite phone stores that offer a free SMS or text messaging service to any satellite phone or network - free of charge. Yes, free.

This means rather than your office or home calling you on your satellite phone and you having to pay huge costs from your home or office plan your callers can simply go to a website, put in your satellite phone number and send you a message - completely free.

Just go to these websites and look for the SMS button in their main menu bar. I have asked their permission and they are more than happy for you to utilise their services, whether you purchased from them or not:

www.satellitephonesales.com.au

www.rentasatphone.com.au

www.iridiumdirect.com.au

I trust you found this information useful. If you’d like to know anything more about satellite phones and internet equipment, please contact us.

We’ll be happy to help you.

See our website for more free advice and to learn all you need to know about satellite phones.

Visit www.IridiumDirect.com.au or call us on 1300 153 802.

Can I Get A Prepaid Card For My Satellite Phone?

Hi. My name is John Whitley and I’m the founder of IridiumDirect.com.au, Australia’s number one online satellite communications store.

In this article I want to answer one of the most common questions I get from anyone looking into satellite phones in Australia, “Can I get a prepaid card for my satellite phone rather than entering into a contract?”

I will do my best to steer you in the right direction with this question but please be aware things change in this ever-changing world.

At the time of writing the two satellite networks available in Australia are Thuraya and Iridium.

Up until July 2009 it was possible within Australia to buy a Thuraya handset and also purchase a prepaid time-limited card. Thuraya have since signed an exclusive deal with Optus which means you can only buy a Thuraya handset through an Optus authorised satellite dealer.

We consider this a great shame as Thuraya had carved themselves a growing market by providing a great value for money handset. For those people who simply wanted something for emergencies or for the occasional home conversation this was easily the best solution.

At the moment Optus do not offer a prepaid option with their Thuraya handsets.

For consumers who have purchased them in Australia prior to July 2009, however, purchasing top-up to their already existing prepaid cards is no problem.

This leaves the Iridium network. Well, the answer is, “Yes, you can buy prepaid with an Iridium phone.” But this comes with many limitations.

First, currently in Australia the only prepaid options Iridium offer are a two-month 80mins prepaid on a “use it or lose it” basis. So if you don’t use your credits in that two months you will lose them.

Iridium then give you just one month’s grace to top up  that card. If you don’t, you will lose your card and phone number and have to start again.

The second option is a twelve-month time card with 500mins on it on the same “use it or lose it” basis.

The reality is that it costs so much to put each satellite into orbit and to run them that it’s not really financial viable for these companies to sell prepaid for their services.

Until we can negotiate to change this, at the time of writing these were the only options available.

But watch this space.

I trust you found this information useful. If you’d like to know anything more about satellite phones and how to find the plan that’s best for you, please contact us.

We’ll be happy to help you.

I trust you found this information useful. See our website for more free advice and to learn all you need to know about satellite phones.

Visit www.IridiumDirect.com.au or call us on 1300 153 802.

Am I Eligible For A Government Satellite Phone Subsidy?

Hi. My name is John Whitley and I’m the founder of IridiumDirect.com.au, Australia’s number one online satellite communications store.

I  want to answer one of the most common questions I get from Australian satellite phone customers, “Am I eligible for a Government Satellite Phone Subsidy?”

The following information will steer you in the right direction with this question but please be aware there are no hard and fast rules and the Government looks at each application on its individual merits.

Firstly, let’s look at why the subsidy exists in the first place.

The Australian Federal Government has an obligation to provide reasonable communication to anyone who resides within Australia. Australia, however, is a huge country and the cost of putting up infrastructure for just one or two people in a specific area may not be the best use of government funding. To give as many people as possible in Australia the opportunity to have everyday communications via the telephone, in 2003 the Government created the Satellite Phone Subsidy Scheme.

Since then it has gone through many variations, the latest one in July 2009 giving it a new lease of life for another couple of years.

The purpose of the subsidy is to assist those people who live or work at least three months of the year in remote parts of Australia.

You may be eligible for the subsidy if:

You live in an area which does not have mobile phone coverage, or

You work at least three months of the year (this does not have to be in one continuous period) in an area that does not have mobile phone coverage.

Recently we have seen the subsidy guidelines relaxed so that even if you intend to be away for six months throughout the next two years you may also be eligible.

Another great thing about this subsidy is that, provided you are eligible, it is very easy and quick to obtain.

The subsidy can be for a new or used satellite phone as long as it is purchased from one of the Government’s approved subsidy partners.

The amount of the grant changes frequently but currently ranges from $700-$1,000 or up to 50% of the purchase price, whichever is higher and dependant on circumstances. It is paid directly to the dealer and you pay the balance of the purchase price.

WORDS OF WARNING:

They will not give the grant out for a satellite phone that has already been purchased. It is only for new sales.

If the satellite phone is to be used mainly overseas you will not be eligible for the grant.

This scheme is a credit to the Government and the employees who administer it. The application takes just five minutes to complete and it’s not unusual for us to see them approved within seven days.

If you’d like to know anything more about satellite phones and the Satellite Phone Subsidy Scheme  or would like an application please contact us.

We will be happy to help you.

I trust you found this information useful. See our website for more free advice and to learn all you need to know about satellite phones.

Visit www.IridiumDirect.com.au or call us on 1300 153 802.