- 4 Posts
- 1 Reply Like
- Glad I'm outta here!
Posted 12 months ago
Diana, Viasat Employee
- 2409 Posts
- 474 Reply Likes
VeteranSatUser, Champion
- 5133 Posts
- 3177 Reply Likes
- 46 Posts
- 21 Reply Likes
- 418 Posts
- 113 Reply Likes
- 46 Posts
- 21 Reply Likes
- 418 Posts
- 113 Reply Likes
- 46 Posts
- 21 Reply Likes
and at the same time, it is getting a lot of Rave Reviews...
You just can't Please Everyone, All of the time.
The lack of baggage space is probably the #1 complaint.
The new DCT automatic transmission would for me, IF, money was no object, would be of interest.
I just purchased recently a little Piaggio MP3 250cc scooter with Automatic transmission.
I have to say, that I am really enjoying that little scooter for around town locally.
It is NOT, though a good touring bike at all, at speeds over 40 mph, there is just too much wind noise in my ears and pushing against my helmet.
But, for longer trips of over 10 miles, I will stick with my big bike, the GL1800 which has Cruise Control,
and "Air Conditioning" tee hee...... I do love to "lie" to folks who see my bike and ask if the air vents are for Air Conditioner cold air..... I just say "yup" it works a charm. and go on. :)

- 418 Posts
- 113 Reply Likes
I like to impress folks with the one button center stand deployment. Their eyes get really big, particularly Wing and Harley riders. LOL.
- 46 Posts
- 21 Reply Likes
I have learned a lot since that trip last June, heh heh. bought the scooter, leave the 1800 home. Mounted the Spare Tire on the hitch behind the propane tanks, a neighbor gave me a set of dumb bell weights, total of 100# and I hung them off the RV's frame about 1' behind the hitch ball.... now it will tow at 60 mph and nary a wiggle.
My son lives in Dawsonville, GA and we will stop over there for a few days, friends in Valdosta, GA said to "come on down" so we get another over night stop there, and then the motorcycle Meet 'n Greet being held in Homosassa, Florida will entertain us for a week... From there, we will just toss a coin and see where we want to go.... This will be her last chance to make a tour like this, she has a job that needs her back in April....
I am lucky to have her with me, her mom passed two years ago, and it would be very lonesome here without my daughter here with me.

- 4 Posts
- 1 Reply Like
xode0000, Champion
- 497 Posts
- 167 Reply Likes
Steve Frederick-VS1/Beam314, Champion
- 3152 Posts
- 2030 Reply Likes
Stephen Rice, Champion
- 2787 Posts
- 1451 Reply Likes
- 893 Posts
- 536 Reply Likes
- 69 Posts
- 10 Reply Likes
- 425 Posts
- 115 Reply Likes
GabeU, Champion
- 2088 Posts
- 1261 Reply Likes
Unbelievably, my folks still had dialup until August 2016, but it got to the point that my stepfather could barely even get on Facebook, so they took the satellite internet plunge. They had no idea what they were missing. The coffee break coinciding with waiting for a web page to fully load ended.
xode0000, Champion
- 497 Posts
- 167 Reply Likes
- 1281 Posts
- 417 Reply Likes
xode0000, Champion
- 497 Posts
- 167 Reply Likes
Bev, Champion
- 3287 Posts
- 1463 Reply Likes
I know that isn't usually the case. Yes, I've had just about every possible problem happen to me in the last 15 years as a Viasat customer but, many I was able to resolve without a service call, with the help of the Customer Care team. Three occasions (4 if you count having to have the dish replaced after my step son felled a tree on the dish.) have required a service call. Two of those were for a modem upgrade but, I also requested an inspection and, peak and tune at the same time. Only one was strictly due to degraded service.
In my experience, Viasat deliver what I pay for, no not top speed 24/7 but, well withing what is spelled out in my contract and, other information provided on the Viasat websites.
- 472 Posts
- 142 Reply Likes
I tried to get Spectrum cable service, but they said that my property was unserviceable without construction that I would have to bear the cost of. The cost was considerable at $8,600. I planned to just suffer along with DSL, but then a week after Spectrum told me they had cancelled my service order, my DSL quit working. When I called Frontier, they told me it was ported out to Spectrum at their request. I am still not sure I know what all transpired, but apparently Spectrum forgot to cancel the “port out” request when they cancelled my work order. After 7 days without DSL or landline phone service, and half a dozen or more phone calls, Frontier told me it would take another 10 days to get service restored. At that point, I took it as a sign to try satellite. I had always heard that satellite was terrible so I had never wanted to risk it given the 24 month contracts. I spent a good part of the 7 days with no DSL comparing Hughesnet and Viasat. I can get very slow internet via my Verizon data plan, but I live on the fringe of cell coverage so the internet is maddeningly slow using the cell phone. Based on the plan details and reviews I read and customer feedback I saw, Viasat narrowly edged out Hughesnet. I liked that they had a local retailer where Hughesnet seems to work only through their 800 number. I have no idea how they select a local installer, but I found no listing as is provided by Viasat.
So far (I have yet to hit my first data cap, but that is only a day or two away), I have been very impressed. The local retailer who did my installation was fantastic to work with. I have a Leviton structured wiring panel and a fairly sophisticated in-home phone, TV and internet system (I have fiber to every room in my house, though not yet terminated and in use). Frontier seemed to always blame issues on my in-home network and I always had to unplug the modem from my network and plug a laptop directly into it when a tech came. No such issues with the Viasat installer. He actually complimented me on my system. I had a spare RG-11 cable from my workshop (which has my TV antenna mount) to my home and I really wanted to use that as I did not want the dish on my log house. The installer said that Viasat requires copper core cable, but my RG-11 was purchased from a CATV company and was thus CCS core. However, the tech said the only real issue was that the installation tests had to be passed and he was more than willing to give my cable a try. He was skeptical since the cable length was also long at about 130’. However, we mounted the dish to a platform made from som scrap lumber I had and I terminated the spare RG-11 and he plugged in the dish and modem. It worked just fine with the modem reporting only 1.5 - 2 ohms resistance in the line. I don’t know what the maximum allowable DC resistance is, but it passed all of the installation tests with flying colors. So, the tech mounted the dish to my workshop and in less than two hours my system was up and running. Other than an IP address conflict with my wifi router, everything came up and worked instantly.
I have only had the dish for 8 days, but so far I am pleased. Speed tests show 10-18 Mbps, often above the 12 Mbps advertised speed. I have had only one loss of signal during a recent heavy thunderstorm, which is rare in northern PA in December, and had no issue with the snowstorm we had which left an inch of snow and ice on the dish. I may change my tune in a couple more days when we exceed 25 Gig cap and go into liberty pass mode, but so far I am a pretty happy customer. Even the latency hasn’t been as big as issue as I had expected. Since I really have no other good options, I will stay with satellite for now. The good news is that my electric cooperative has started a fiber broadband installation and sometime within the next few years I will have FTTH. I will then almost certainly switch to fiber even though it will mean digging up my yard and having a mess for a few months.
- 472 Posts
- 142 Reply Likes

Stephen Rice, Champion
- 2815 Posts
- 1468 Reply Likes
- 472 Posts
- 142 Reply Likes
VeteranSatUser, Champion
- 5133 Posts
- 3177 Reply Likes
- 472 Posts
- 142 Reply Likes
Stephen Rice, Champion
- 2815 Posts
- 1468 Reply Likes
- 46 Posts
- 21 Reply Likes
No wonder that a lot of complaints were heard.
I am on ViaSat-2 which can provide over 100Mbps if you want to shell out $200/month for it.
I decided to go with the basic package and learn to not watch videos... ugh!
but at least I now have solid internet 24/7 without the disconnects.
Bev, Champion
- 3287 Posts
- 1463 Reply Likes
I'm just glad I am grandfathered on an older VS1 plan - the new plans in my area are rotten by comparison. I feel for newer customers that can't get plans like mine.
xode0000, Champion
- 497 Posts
- 167 Reply Likes
"closer to dial-up (0.56 Mbps)"Dialup is 0.056 Mbps at best and 0.04 Mbps is typical dialup speeds. 0.56 Mbps is 10X dialup.
xode0000, Champion
- 497 Posts
- 167 Reply Likes
"closer to dial-up (0.56 Mbps)"Dialup is 0.056 Mbps at best and 0.04 Mbps is typical dialup speeds. 0.56 Mbps is 10X dialup.
- 472 Posts
- 142 Reply Likes
- 10 Posts
- 2 Reply Likes
- 472 Posts
- 142 Reply Likes
So, thus far, it has performed pretty much as they promised. Maybe it will get worse after a few months. Time will tell.
xode0000, Champion
- 497 Posts
- 167 Reply Likes
So, thus far, it has performed pretty much as they promised. Maybe it will get worse after a few months. Time will tell.I'm now just past the end of my 2 year contract and the service has never wavered nor gotten worse. It's been steady throughout.
- 320 Posts
- 205 Reply Likes
Many subscribers are quite pleased with their service and have no complaints, while a handful ... like me, happen to be stuck on HIGHLY congested beams. Yes, there are times I see over my "up to" speed of 12 Mbps, but they get fewer and fewer, while my restricted speeds are now below 1 Mbps. Restricted, during peak usage, I pretty much HAVE NO INTERNET!
I have been told, and been shown a map indicating there is no "beam" on VS1 directed at my region. I am on the outer edge of a very crowded beam. Now I am to understand after all the hype and promises that VS2 would "fix everything," IT also has no beam dedicated to my region.
My argument is not with any contract, I havent been under contract in years, or any sales pitch, or shattered expectations of "satellite internet." My "PROBLEM" is that despite all the issues associated with Viasat and satellite, I have to deal with the over crowding and "part time" internet access in my area, while being charged the same as those who are enjoying "trouble free" service!
VeteranSatUser, Champion
- 5133 Posts
- 3177 Reply Likes
Unfortunately, the failure of the Viasat-2 antennas to fully deploy resulted in no relief for some of the most congested areas Viasat has.
- 320 Posts
- 205 Reply Likes
VeteranSatUser, Champion
- 5133 Posts
- 3177 Reply Likes
Like tonight where I am struggling to get 300kbps.
It is what it is.
- 1161 Posts
- 164 Reply Likes
Looking at Tx/Rx values is most relevant...ideally, being in the "boresight" is nice, but if on the fringe, having a shorter cable run might assist. Needless to say, evaluate with a computer hooked direct to Viasat's modem, and if using a router, turn off Quality of Service (QoS). Also, did installer user correct cable.
Living on fringe would be in NE corner of Ohio.
VeteranSatUser, Champion
- 5133 Posts
- 3177 Reply Likes
- 46 Posts
- 21 Reply Likes
Real world tests like Speedtest.net's browser link gives a real birds eye view of how things are.
as does, Googles "speed test" link.... it nearly always reports 15-17Mbps on my laptop's 2.4g WiFi at the best of times.
I have just received a 5g USB stick but the drivers didn't work right out of the box, need to tweak them a bit...
my Plan+overload tonight is horrible, 0.24 dn and 0.21 up.
http://www.speedtest.net/result/7971646879.png
We have with care, been able to do a 10 day vacation with our Verizon MiFi JetPack and 8gB allowance...
using local WiFi when available at the KOAs... which is generally very poor from 5pm to 10pm
I have uBlock Origin on Firefox, and never look at videos when using the JetPack...
if you stick to just forums, I can get by with using only 500-750 Kb for month.
Facebook is another story though, it slobbers all over small data plans and spits them out like useless garbage.
- 46 Posts
- 21 Reply Likes
- 3912 Posts
- 2318 Reply Likes
=====================================
tonight I am suffering with 0.24 down, the modem looks like this with 11.77 s/nr

- 320 Posts
- 205 Reply Likes
The gas station in town still has analog pumps with the little wheel rolling the numbers around. Its a far cry from the rat race in Connecticut I escaped. Its truly a love/hate relationship. The "bad" is gone, but I still miss so much of the "good"
VeteranSatUser, Champion
- 5133 Posts
- 3177 Reply Likes
However, a low RxSNR will lead to more frequent disconnects and packet loss (creating more retries) because the signal is lower to start with.
Their are two main beams in Ohio Ron. We are on the same beam that basically covers eastern Ohio, over to WV and western PA. The other beam starts approximately west of Zanesville and runs north and south from there. This is approximately of course. I did see a more detailed beam map one time. The beams split my county in two.
What Jab is speaking of is in extreme NE Ohio, extreme NW PA, and extreme western New York, there is no Viasat-1 beam at all. I believe Viasat-2 was going to resolve this, but with the antenna issue, I am not sure if it does or doesn't. We are all aware that after almost a year, no publically released beam map of Viasat-2 has been shared.
- 1161 Posts
- 164 Reply Likes
I believe your packets are sent to Winnipeg...from there, I have no idea where they are sent...back to US, or sent out from there. I'd look for a speedtest site located in that city, and see if a difference is seen.
As noted, if using a router, turn off QOS
- 1161 Posts
- 164 Reply Likes
There are good/bad speedtests, but using a site far away from your POP will never give relevant results.
The POP I use is out of Denver. So, at testmy.net I use their Colorado Springs server.
This is after midnight....Sunday AM hour
- 320 Posts
- 205 Reply Likes
It is a VERY rural area and most have satellite internet locally. Some villages and towns are lucky enough to have land based internet, yet out here it is rare. As I said DSL from the nearest "village" stops about 4 - 4 1/2 miles from me. Ironically the same "village" my mail comes out of a.k.a "my address" but my deed says "an unincorporated portion of the township."
The FCC dictates to DirecTV my "local" channels are Columbus, 75 miles away, while Parkersburg is only 15 - 20 miles, but their "parent stations" are out of Charleston/Huntington, 78 miles away. The WV stations give more "news" from my area but worst of all is the weather! I watched CBS out of Columbus track a tornado headed straight for me with live coverage, yet as soon as it was out of the "greater Columbus area" they went back to regularly scheduled programming!
Oh well I guess sacrifices must be made. Coming from "the city" in the outskirts of NYC I love the fact I know all my neighbors, in fact EVERYONE on my road! And I havent locked my door in years. I think it was 5 years ago I changed the latch/lock on my front door and still dont have the key on my ring. ALL my neighbors are armed, the one next door has 2 cannons, and strangers GET NOTICED! Hell, back when I still had landline phone Centurylink repair came out and 30 seconds after I got a call from the repairman I got a call informing me there was a "van" in front of my house, and my neighbor out back was "cruising" on his 4 wheeler "keeping an eye on the guy" LOL
GabeU, Champion
- 2248 Posts
- 1374 Reply Likes
What Jab is speaking of is in extreme NE Ohio, extreme NW PA, and extreme western New York, there is no Viasat-1 beam at all.This would explain why I couldn't get Exede where I live (Western NY). Nothing was available until VS2 went live.
VeteranSatUser, Champion
- 5133 Posts
- 3177 Reply Likes
- 2453 Posts
- 2183 Reply Likes
I vote for Stephen. He does his feats of strength without throwing his money away on attorneys!
- 472 Posts
- 142 Reply Likes
- 1161 Posts
- 164 Reply Likes
FCC mandates time interval required, or forfeit spectrum. Business model is for broadband and connected vehicles (if a cheaper rooftop antenna comes). Musk and others are proceeding forward, and launch means are available today, or in near future.
Connected vehicles, and autonomous vehicles, with a cheaper antenna, would compete with wireless carriers. It could bring about a paradigm shift, just like the 8088 chip did for the original IBM PC.
- 472 Posts
- 142 Reply Likes
- 1161 Posts
- 164 Reply Likes
These are ambitious projects, and as years have rolled on since earlier thinking, better how to do insights have come along. Musk may pull out, on the road ahead. Cheaper vehicle antennas, and OEM integration into vehicles, would be a big factor for a fully operational system.
Two articles below:
- 12/18/2018 SpaceX raising $500 million to help build satellite broadband network -
...
...
The funding round would pay for initial costs but not the entire project, which the Journal report said could cost as much as $10 billion.
...
...
...
The slow progress led Musk to fire some of the project's senior managers. Still, the schedule hasn't changed much since November 2016, when SpaceX's FCC license application mentioned 2019 as a possible time for launching satellites into orbit. A Reuters report in October this year said SpaceX is planning to launch satellites in mid-2019 and offer broadband service in 2020.
=======================
Bugs on Wheels: The New Generation of Autonomous Vehicles
The new generation of connected cars — especially autonomous vehicles — will be a boom market for satellite, says the satellite industry. Not so fast, says the mobile industry. 5G is the future. Signals from space will have nothing to do with it. But, who is right? One? Both? Neither?
- 472 Posts
- 142 Reply Likes
VeteranSatUser, Champion
- 5133 Posts
- 3177 Reply Likes
- 1161 Posts
- 164 Reply Likes
Paradigm shifts, from one method/tech to another, do happen. Flashback, from horses to vehicles:
1897: Sold an average of 900 horses weekly.
...horse company Fiss, Doerr, and Carroll.
The outfit, which proclaimed itself the “largest dealers of horses in the world,” occupied an entire block of Manhattan and in 1897 sold an average of 900 horses weekly.....“They were a huge company,” says Mode, “and this was the peak of their power. Ten years later, they were selling vehicles, and 20 years later, they were out of business.”
=================
5G has limitations...yes, in metro areas it will come about...but US coverage, not in our lifetimes. Satellite can cover US within a decade or less, if investors perceive a demand, and if cheaper antennas exist.
Autonomous vehicles will require massive amounts of transmitted data. So, cheaper antennas are required to drive this transformation, along with government blessings. European OEMs are focused upon this 'brave new world,' and US OEMs are paying attention and evaluating their systems. Maybe much ado about nothing, but if economics favor a paradigm shift, these OEMs will jump on this bandwagon.
If oil prices climbed in next five years, I would expect petro drivelines to be transformed into electric means. The winds of change can happen overnight, or take years.
VeteranSatUser, Champion
- 5133 Posts
- 3177 Reply Likes
Stephen Rice, Champion
- 2815 Posts
- 1468 Reply Likes
- 320 Posts
- 205 Reply Likes
Comments, especially from "Champions" with the attitude "I dont have a problem, so nobody else should," and as the OP states ... NO help from customer service what so ever, it must be weather, something must be blocking your dish, there must be a problem with your equipment, IT OBVIOUSLY HAS TO BE ON YOUR END!
Tech, after tech, after tech came out, 5 or 6 "dish alignments," I cut more trees down, I cut ALL my trees down, new dish, new modem, all new wiring before a tech finally sat down and explained the congestion issue in detail, and how Viasat1 is simply way too overcrowded in my area. That was 3 years ago. My service has continued to get worse since, sometimes by the month, and the long anticipated Viasat2 has done NOTHING to help my beam.
So yes, I applaud all you subscribers who enjoy 25+ Mbps and watching your video content and have no issues when your speed gets "throttled." I REMEMBER WHAT THAT IS LIKE! I did have that years ago! So brag on about how YOUR service has improved and throw your stones at me because mine continues to deteriorate.
Am I a disgruntled customer? I pay the same you do, and was made the same promises you were, yet you are getting "high speed internet" and I dont ... WHAT DO YOU THINK?
Bev, Champion
- 3287 Posts
- 1463 Reply Likes
I also know VS2 has issues and, the fix probably will need to wait for either VS3 or, land based providers to make more options available in those areas.
I said form the first time I saw the TV commercial that I didn't like it pushing Viasat as an alternative to DSL - if DSL is available, or any other land based service, take that. In my opinion, Viasat should deny installs if a land based option is available at the address.
I get that in many areas Viasat is indeed faster than DSL but, that doesn't account for latency and, there are a lot of people that don't realize for some applications speed means little and latency means everything.
Gaming for example, 3 Mbps up and down is fine, I'd rather have that with latency under 100 ms, but I don't have that option. I don't have enough cell signal with any of the four providers that offer service here to get online via cellular data at all at home and, there is no DSL, Cable, Fiber, wireless or even dial up here.
I have to make the best of satellite internet and, that means, when there is a problem, going after a solution and never letting it go until it's fixed. If you look though my posts here, most are positive, in favor of Viasat but, there have been a few times, I've gone off on them over problems, here on the forums.
I call it as I see it and, I do want people to know that even though some beams are pretty lousy right now, it can be better and, maybe future satellites, that are coming as fast as possible will make a difference. A good dose of determined troubleshooting can help in many cases as well and, there are those that simply should have done more research before signing that contract.
- 470 Posts
- 142 Reply Likes
@Bev - I don’t think Viasat should take it upon themselves to deny service to anyone if they are able to provide the service. The choice of what service to use is mine, not the service providers. There only obligation is to be honest as to what they can provide. I had DSL for 20 years. It was terrible that entire time. I tried many times to get cable, but they won’t run up my driveway unless I pay the full installation cost. So far, satellite is working better than DSL by a long shot. As I wrote earlier, I may change my tune once the cap kicks in. We shall see.
Stephen Rice, Champion
- 2815 Posts
- 1468 Reply Likes
- 470 Posts
- 142 Reply Likes
- 4 Posts
- 1 Reply Like
- 893 Posts
- 537 Reply Likes
- 470 Posts
- 142 Reply Likes
- 229 Posts
- 108 Reply Likes
- 320 Posts
- 205 Reply Likes
I have a free zone from midnight to 5AM so I wait and watch facebook video posts and various Youtube videos at night, now even that is becoming more and more difficult, or should I say frustrating. Wait for the page to load, wait for the video to load, then endure varying amounts of buffering.
Bev, I just checked about 4 days ago and yes, once again the Viasat site says "We are not accepting new subscribers in your area at this time" and the only plans offered to me for upgrade are still limited to 12 Mbps.
- 46 Posts
- 21 Reply Likes
we do not watch TV via the internet, we only use it for browsing, forums, and Facebook..... it has been consistent for us nearly all the time.
I have had the occasional page not want to load, I drop the Tab and then request it again, and it comes right up usually.
My daughter watches NetFlix on her Kindle every night, 2 or 3 movies, at 360p....
I watch the Facebook videos at 240p
Neither of us have noticed any slow down, ( throttling ) at all.
we are on ViaSat-2 for what that is worth. have no experience with any other Satellite except for my aunt who had Hughesnet and hated it the day it was installed.
She abandoned it and went to Verizon with a MiFi JetPack and never looked back.
:
We are night owls, most of our OnlineTime is between 10 PM and 6 a.m. except for myself, I just browse the motorcycle forums and my Linux forum thru the daylight hours. that does not impose any hard download issues.... I am happy, I get what I want, reliable browsing all the time.
:
I had AT&T DSL and lived only 5,000 feet from the Central Office.... six weeks ago, we had 27 outages in 14 hours. that was the day that I called the ViaSat rep here in our town.
- 470 Posts
- 142 Reply Likes
I do watch a lot of YouTube videos as it is a great way to learn new skills. I just installed a boiler in my workshop and almost all of my learning was from YouTube. I am planning to start a home built airplane project this year so I am educating myself in that direction and that generally means an hour or so a day of video watching. It all adds up data wise.
xode0000, Champion
- 497 Posts
- 167 Reply Likes
"How’s this for service my power supply to the modem failed I called Viasat for service. Their reply was a service appointment is not available yet we’ve been kinda busy we’ll get back to you within 48 hours. Finally after 3 weeks a service rep showed up to replace the power supply."For everyone's information since Jack Tors has cancelled his Viasat service: Viasat installers are 3rd party companies separate from Viasat and they don't work for Viasat. The problem Jack Tors is describing is due to the 3rd party installer he had. A Viasat customer who has such a problem with their installer can request that Viasat do a sales channel change to an installer for their area who will give them proper service.
xode0000, Champion
- 497 Posts
- 167 Reply Likes
"How’s this for service my power supply to the modem failed I called Viasat for service. Their reply was a service appointment is not available yet we’ve been kinda busy we’ll get back to you within 48 hours. Finally after 3 weeks a service rep showed up to replace the power supply."For everyone's information since Jack Tors has cancelled his Viasat service: Viasat installers are 3rd party companies separate from Viasat and they don't work for Viasat. The problem Jack Tors is describing is due to the 3rd party installer he had. A Viasat customer who has such a problem with their installer can request that Viasat do a sales channel change to an installer for their area who will give them proper service.
- 7 Posts
- 1 Reply Like
Ehhhh. Perhaps if they have more than one option of land based option that is wired. Cause the only land based choice I have is AT&T dsl and it sucks 24/7
Viasat is good for me. Only seems to be really bad on school breaks so far. So I’d rather deal with bad internet for only a temporary time, rather than 24/7
- 46 Posts
- 21 Reply Likes
Stephen Rice, Champion
- 2351 Posts
- 1184 Reply Likes
AZgl1800 is a Viasat shill.
you sir, are a piece of crap. I live in Oologah, OK and have been with ViaSat-2 since Nov 24..... I am anything but a shill, I have been an IT Comm Tech since 1958. I knew in advance what to expect when I went to ViaSat.... you can't beat the Speed of Light..... and I also was aware that in the evenings network congestion is going to be bad.... but the sat has always been there for me, with a single exception every 24 hours it drops off for a few minutes. I use NetUptimeMonitor to record the outages. here is the most recent log.
12/25/2018 6:22:07 PM 0:02:17
12/27/2018 8:57:32 AM 0:04:15
12/27/2018 8:51:45 PM 0:01:00
I am friends with Matt Phillips who is the ViaSat agent here in our town, he sells under the name of Okie-Fi
I have only been on this blog/forum once, and just now came back to see how this thread is doing.
I have SpeedTests ranging from 4-5Mbps at the worst times, to 63Mbps at the best of times in the middle of the night. on Average, Google Speed Test reports 17-27 Mbps.... their Latency reports are NOT to the satellite and back down, that is for sure. I always see 12mS to houston, tx.... that is NOT from my PC to them.... no way,
GabeU, Champion
- 1829 Posts
- 1142 Reply Likes
You misunderstood. Stephen Rice was joking when he said that, and he did so because practically anyone who says anything decent or accepting about ViaSat, or satellite internet in general, is considered and called shill by a select group of people.
If anyone could be considered a ViaSat shill it would be Stephen Rice, even though he's not. He often gets that because his ViaSat service, and his plan, work very well for him, and he often says so. So he was just kidding, calling you that before a specific person in this thread had a chance to. You're not familiar with him, so it's understandable that you didn't get that.
Heck, I've been called a ViaSat shill and I don't even have ViaSat. Explaining congestion as a cause of slow speeds first earned me that moniker because I chose to explain the actual cause rather than just jumping on the "hate ViaSat" bandwagon.
Stephen Rice, Champion
- 2667 Posts
- 1395 Reply Likes
Bev, Champion
- 3287 Posts
- 1462 Reply Likes
I guess we should explain a bit here. Among us Campions, we hear the "You're a Schill" thing so often that we take it as a compliment - we usually give the same answers a Viasat employee would, more or less and, because we have read, learned and, dealt with nearly every possible reason for poor, degraded or non working service ourselves, or seen it here many times over the years, we tend to have good service.
We don't complain about problems, we go digging and, find the reason ad, the solution, we manage our priority data carefully and so forth so, we often have top speeds for our beam, even when others don't due to some issue that could be addressed with a little patience.
Because of that, some posters here think we are paid or compensated in some way and, they call us "schills" We make light of it because we are NOT paid or compensated at all.
@Stephen Rice - ya fergot to clean that dang outhouse seat an' got the darned thing stuck to yer backside again - that's what's makin' you stink like crap. xD
VeteranSatUser, Champion
- 5133 Posts
- 3175 Reply Likes
Steve Frederick-VS1/Beam314, Champion
- 3092 Posts
- 1983 Reply Likes
- 46 Posts
- 21 Reply Likes
- 188 Posts
- 65 Reply Likes
- 46 Posts
- 21 Reply Likes
That is very irritating..... copied from LibreOffice and pasted to the forum.....
Trying this from Xed instead....
EDIT: well, Xed worked, but I don't see anyway to back up 1 post and fix that formatting?
GabeU, Champion
- 1829 Posts
- 1142 Reply Likes
VeteranSatUser, Champion
- 5133 Posts
- 3175 Reply Likes
Stephen Rice, Champion
- 2667 Posts
- 1395 Reply Likes
- 4281 Posts
- 4366 Reply Likes
- 46 Posts
- 21 Reply Likes
moderators can unlock it if needed....
Threads stay open for 2 years from last posting date, then that thread is locked.
( again, if needed, a moderator can open it )
- 46 Posts
- 21 Reply Likes
I just received an email ref: a post made weeks ago, way up at the top of this thread...
I would never have seen it had it not been for the link to that exact comment.
I guess I am going to test the Throttling back to Zero Internet this month.
We are burning thru the data:
16.8 GB 24 days remaining in the current billing period
at this rate, we are predicted to hit 80+gB for the month, that is just "slightly" over our 35gB Priority Data limit. :)
AT&T DSL was so poor for us, that we never could watch videos. Now I can.... but, I better wean myself off of that stuff.... and stick to forums like I used to.
The Bronze Plan so far, this being our 6th week of use, has been good to us on VS2 beaming into the N.E. part of Oklahoma.
- 451 Posts
- 135 Reply Likes
Steve Frederick-VS1/Beam314, Champion
- 3163 Posts
- 2034 Reply Likes
If you have the triangular modem, you are on VS2. Otherwise you are on VS1.
- 451 Posts
- 135 Reply Likes
- 46 Posts
- 21 Reply Likes
The ability to do that, generates a lot of heat, so they had to make it tall enough to encompass the antennas and the Triangular design allows the heat to flow up and out of the modem. I have it on a shelf above my PC.
You can also mount it vertically attached to a wall with the Blue circles at the lowest point. lets the cables exit up and out of the way....
- 451 Posts
- 135 Reply Likes
I wish these suppliers would offer an option for a modem only. I much prefer separate wifi routers that I can locate where I want them and not have them tied to the location where the DSL or satellite cable enters my house.
- 46 Posts
- 21 Reply Likes
you can dial into the VS2 modem turn the Broadcast ID off so it won't interfere with your router.
or, just force the channel to one a long ways from where your channel(s) is.

- 229 Posts
- 109 Reply Likes
- 893 Posts
- 537 Reply Likes
- 46 Posts
- 21 Reply Likes
This month is going to be a real test of the cap limit, as I am on Day 6 and already hit:
12/31/2018 15:28 16.8 GB 24 days remaining
if I extrapolate that out to 30 days, that is 80gB plus....
I think I will quit watching videos for a while. I get along very well with just newspaper online, my forums, and Facebook.
Stephen Rice, Champion
- 2815 Posts
- 1468 Reply Likes
Stephen Rice, Champion
- 2815 Posts
- 1468 Reply Likes
Considering you only need 1 mbps for SD video and 5 mbps for HD, I am a very happy camper.
For those of you that are considering canceling your Viasat service, please do. It will only help increase my speeds. Thanks in advance.

- 1356 Posts
- 443 Reply Likes

- 46 Posts
- 21 Reply Likes
I have to back that up also, with 'ditto'.... VS2 is doing 5 times faster at all times, and during the quiet hours, it hits up in the 60Mbps range.... whereas DSL was from 0.2Mbps down in the evening, and maybe 10Mbps during the midnight hours.
Just ran a Google Speed Test on 2.4g WiFi, time was 2020 hrs CST New Years Eve....

Bev, Champion
- 3287 Posts
- 1463 Reply Likes
- 470 Posts
- 142 Reply Likes

- 470 Posts
- 142 Reply Likes

- 470 Posts
- 142 Reply Likes
- 1356 Posts
- 443 Reply Likes
Google speed test always displays an erroneous latency for satellite connections. I believe the up and down speeds are usually accurate. Not sure why everyone always gets in a tizzy.
Bev, Champion
- 3287 Posts
- 1463 Reply Likes
Now seeing that via satellite, well, that's a rural geek's dream - not in my lifetime but, maybe someday.
- 1356 Posts
- 443 Reply Likes
- 178 Posts
- 40 Reply Likes
- 46 Posts
- 21 Reply Likes
I have found that it tracks the actual download speeds of files much closer than other speed tests.
This is from my cellphone on 5g, and I can't get a download tonight anywhere near that speed.

- 46 Posts
- 21 Reply Likes
and I don't believe this either on ViaSat-2 for Tulsa, Oklahoma area.

GabeU, Champion
- 2245 Posts
- 1367 Reply Likes
My posts against VIACRAP are getting erased.Of the threads you have replied to that I am following, not a single one of your replies since Dec 16th has been deleted. That's as far back as my email delete folder has ViaSat community notifications.
If your posts are deleted they are being deleted for good reason, and you know those reasons. Don't violate the rules and your posts won't get deleted. It's quite simple. ViaSat does not delete posts that speak against them UNLESS they violate one or more of those rules.
GabeU, Champion
- 2245 Posts
- 1367 Reply Likes
Nice, though since the latency is far too low to be accurate, that test may not be any more accurate than the latency.
I agree with Bev. Those latency numbers are obviously bogus and that draws into question the other numbers.Though I'm not sure of this, I think Google's speed test may measure the latency between your gateway and their server rather than your modem and their server, like most other speed tests. That's the only way I can imagine it consistently giving these erroneous results. It does the same for me on HughesNet. I wish it showed the tester's "home" location, as I have a feeling it would show the location of the gateway your beam is assigned to.
Edit: I missed AZgl1800's post already alluding to this.
- 470 Posts
- 142 Reply Likes
Watch file manager sometime when downloading a large file like a GPS map update. Often you will see that the disk is running at 100% utilization, while the network card is loaging along. Many of my computers have the hard drive as the weak link for large file transfers.
- 1161 Posts
- 164 Reply Likes
Moderator has the ability to trim posts, so a casual looker does not see all posts. But, to expand and see all posts, you have to click on one of the box's below, which is located below OP's original post. Moderator is sorting the "chaff from the wheat" here, so a causal looker sees "relevant" postings.
Steve Frederick-VS1/Beam314, Champion
- 3178 Posts
- 2046 Reply Likes
Al, you should understand that many of us satellite internet users have but two choices for out internet, and for me, Viasat is the better provider. Many of us have terrible or no cell service at out homes, so cell internet is not an option.
Bev, Champion
- 3287 Posts
- 1463 Reply Likes
Of my tow options, I much prefer Viasat. When Wildblue was offered here, the competition was unheard of around here. Now, one house in my area has Hughes but, the data allowance and speed they get is inferior to what I get with Viasat so, that makes Viasat my best option.
A lot of customers are in the same situation, or have only dial up as an alternative to satellite internet. Were it ONLY such customers, we'd all see blazing fast speeds and, plans that offered more priority data so, I'm happy to see those with viable alternatives go to other providers.
Stephen Rice, Champion
- 2815 Posts
- 1468 Reply Likes
It isn't Viasat's fault we choose to live in areas with limited infrastructure.
- 1161 Posts
- 164 Reply Likes
Currently, I have four total options (2 Wireless Cell and 2 Satellite), but still using Viasat. I installed a "broadband" cellphone signal booster, with a Yagi antenna, and luckily, two cell-towers are located in same direction.
One wireless carrier offers 160gig bucket, 6 Mbps DL, at $80/month, and throttling at 1Mbps. I know their tower can deliver 11Mbps via fast.com, but they do "cap" speeds, for various plans. Prepaid gets 3Mbps promised, but actually get 4Mbps.
Viasat works fine, and I don't have the need/want now for more cowbell (video), so, I'll save about $30.00/month. I may change my mind...really don't like waiting for LNFZ to watch video
- 470 Posts
- 142 Reply Likes
I do have landline available from Frontier, but the phone was feeble and noisy in voice quality and they DSL was dismal. 3 MB was the best on a good day, and 1-1.5 was fairly typical with frequent disconnects as in 2-3 per hour in prime time.
Yes, the Viasat data cap is a major PITA, but other than that I am pretty happy thus far with the service. The cost is high, but DSL was $45 a month for very poor service.
Anyone with any decent landline connection would be crazy to use satellite. I see satellite as the service of last resort for those of us who have no other viable options.
Stephen Rice, Champion
- 2815 Posts
- 1468 Reply Likes
Another thing I like about satellite internet is I don't have to rely on local infrastructure when a natural disaster happens. When hurricane Katrina hit, most phones in my area didn't work for a month. With Viasat, at least I know my service should continue to work after a disaster providing the dish doesn't get blown off the roof.
- 46 Posts
- 21 Reply Likes
the week before I signed on with ViaSat-2 in mid-November, I called up and talked to a supervisor at Verizon Wireless... I have owned the MiFi JetPacks for almost 10 years... my new one is 5g:
they are a Life Saver for me as I go to my motorcycle rallies and vacation points.
I spent most of an hour trying to figure out a way to just switch over to VZW wireless totally as my only source of the Internet...... the result of that discussion came down to:
I can't afford it. To get near unlimited on VZW costs $700/month, and at that, they were going to have to "create a special plan" just for me..... no one had ever asked for that kind of JetPack Internet Service ( so they said )
Obviously that wasn't going to happen. I asked them why can't I have more Data on the MiFi, the limit is 15gB/month at the most affordable costs... still too high for me. Their answer? your cellphone plans are all Unlimited Data/month, just use those..... uh huh..... when I use that "unlimited data" on my cellphone, it docks my Family Share Plan of 4gB/month immediately, so they lie between their teeth. it is not unlimited at all. Talk and SMS yes, but not for the Internet.
My AT&T DSL was just driving our household crazy, drop outs all the time, bandwidth kept changing from 11Mbps at the best of times, to 0.200Mbps during normal hours of use ( 5pm to 10pm )
I investigated going to Atlas Broadband. They ballyhoo totally unlimited 50Mbps service..... I called to get it installed, and they never called me back.... after 3 days, I called again and the bench technician answers the phone, he creates an order for a "Stop by" to see what it will entail to hook up their RF Radios "line of sight" service.... the salesman calls me 2 days later.... 2 days after that they come by, tell me it will cost $500 to install because the nearest "line of sight" is 200 feet west of my house.... I own 6 acres...... that killed that thought.... plus more reading the mail on Facebook I noted that Atlas Broadband is infamous for being out of service for days at a time, and when you call in, they won't call you back.
ergo, ViaSat stepped into my picture window..... I talked to the local rep, got friendly with him, told him I will not sign up unless I have a Test setup at my disposal for 7 days..... barf! gulp! but he does it.... mounts it on a wood pallet...
7 days of ViaSat-2 proved to me that it is going to my "best choice" for good service. Not the cheapest by far, but the best for my rural area....
Most of the time, we have better than 5Mbps, during working hours, we have 25-30Mbps, after 11pm to 6am, we get speeds up to 45Mbps... as my daughter and I are night owls, it works out great.... as of today, we are at 20gB used and 23 days to go.... so the catch-22 might give us a slowdown.... last month we ran over by 9.8gB and did not notice a slowdown..... but we have our video set at 240p....
That's my 2 cents, FWIW...
- 178 Posts
- 40 Reply Likes
Like I've said before, not everyone can get it with no signal, and some areas will have slower service. Makes a good backup if nothing else.
VeteranSatUser, Champion
- 5133 Posts
- 3177 Reply Likes
- 46 Posts
- 21 Reply Likes
They sent me an Email saying that my 4g MiFi was going to be compromised as 3g is going to be dropped when 5g is in place.... that pissed me off, I have had that thing for 10+ years.... I told them to send me the new 5g "free" as a replacement for what I have, or I will go to Consumer Cellular..... I got it.
I took it with me to Colorado Springs, CO to a Family Reunion.... without it, we would have been up a creek w/o that paddle....
@barg_
it must have been late October when I called and queried VZW Wireless Supervisors about getting more Data for my MiFi.... I was on the phone for an hour, and went thru 3 people, before someone actually knew what I was talking about. Will revisit that option again, as a backup for when we are on our tours away from home.
I asked my rep if I could take his "Test ViaSat" with me on my vacation... he spluttered quite a bit, but I'm not thru ragging him about it. We will be gone 4 to 5 weeks, and uh, feeling a definite withdrawal of good internet :) :)
- 178 Posts
- 40 Reply Likes
Nov. I used just under 100gb. This past month I didn't kept track, rough estimation around at least ...200gb. Consistent speed. The smarthub stopped keeping track of data use after the first monthly renewal. And Verizon doesn't have a meter for these unlimited plans. I got a fancy router connected now too, but haven't set up data tracking yet.
About your Atlas comment, the regional cell carrier here has new line of sight service too. $50 for 10 Meg down, no caps, but possible deprioritization after 15GB per day. No line of sight here either. Best location bypassing several trees was maybe 150' from the house (shed there) then roughly 1/4 mile from that on my property take out probably 20 trees, and a few more farther out. ... I was considering it. Their install is cheap, I'd have done everything else. But this VZ plan came out as I was talking to them, cheaper as a second line, almost twice as fast, none of the hassle.
- 46 Posts
- 21 Reply Likes
info at https://my.jetpack
but I can't get that site to come up right now.
will definitely look into the prepaid sims....
it is registered to me right now on my Shared Data Plan.
download speeds depend on how close to a tower I am....
have seen speeds north of 40Mbps but rare, here at home, about 18 miles to a tower,
seems to be 10-12 Mbps
EDIT:
got back before someone saw this:
found this https://www.howardforums.com/showthread.php/1865680-Prepaid-Jetpack-Ellipsis-MHS800LPP-on-postpaid
The Ellipsis is not the best device: only Band 4 and 13 LTE support and no 3G EVDO fallback (and no GSM HSPA+ capabilities).
===============================
so, it might not work, they go on to mention some problems if I try that.
I am disappointed that it does not have GSM, it is CDMA only, just like my phones.
and, it won't support 3g, which the supervisor told me in advance.
- 178 Posts
- 40 Reply Likes
I got the cheapest Ellipsis jetpack to activate this plan, wanted it for a backup anyway. Band 13 is what's here. It works fine here. Some areas benefit from other bands.
Some devices have connectors for roof antennas. I have a cell booster so I didn't need that.
Many report good results, but as with satellite, some areas are slow, especially primetime. I'm lucky to live where few people do. If you know anyone with prepaid service on VZ, even TracFone or straight talk, speed tests with those might give you a ballpark idea (was pretty close here).
- 46 Posts
- 21 Reply Likes
ViaSat is teaching me "new things" ha ha
Tnx
VeteranSatUser, Champion
- 5133 Posts
- 3177 Reply Likes
Still question if your device is 5G compatible. I want to get a new mifi device but read the latest 5G capable model wint be out until March.
But I am sure Jab will come on here, quote me, and provide a technical dissertation to explain everything.
I miss some features of the old forum!
- 1161 Posts
- 164 Reply Likes
AT&T and Verizon's New 5G Hotspots are Chunky Monkeys
We go hands on (sort of) with the new 5G hotspots from AT&T and Verizon. They're fast, but man, they're big.
...
...
Initially, the hotspot will be exclusive to Verizon in the US, although it will roam on LTE networks abroad. Inseego is building another, similar model to support foreign 5G networks on the sub-6GHz bands.
GabeU, Champion
- 2245 Posts
- 1367 Reply Likes
His total replies, not to any particular thread. His claim is that they were deleting them. None have been deleted since the 16th, or at least the ones in threads that I am subscribed to. I can't speak for threads replied to and/or created himself that I am not subscribed to.
But, yes, they do alter replies/posts if they need to, deleting or replacing foul language and sensitive personal information.
GabeU, Champion
- 2245 Posts
- 1367 Reply Likes
I've had the 5g Verizon MiFi since before June of 2018...How did that happen?
GabeU, Champion
- 2245 Posts
- 1367 Reply Likes
I've had the 5g Verizon MiFi since before June of 2018...How did that happen?
- 320 Posts
- 205 Reply Likes
Ive been with Wildblue/Exede/Viasat for 6+ years, They didnt "sucker" me into a 2 year contract. They didnt lie to me. I understood the inherent problems with satellite. I KNOW they have the technology to back up their advertising claims. I HAD IT! I have literally watched this congestion issue manifest the past few years as they have signed up more, and more, and more subscribers as my service gets worse and worse..
I was told Viasat2 would solve everything. I was told Viasat2 would have a beam pointed at my heavily congested region. WRONG ON BOTH COUNTS!
Viasat is not responsible for where I choose to live. Viasat is not responsible for the latency issues associated with satellite. Viasat is not responsible for weather related outages. BUT THE CONGESTION/OVERCROWDING ISSUE IS 100% A PROBLEM OF THEIR OWN MAKING AND THEY NEED TO DO SOMETHING!!!
VeteranSatUser, Champion
- 5133 Posts
- 3177 Reply Likes
The other shoe that dropped was when they went to the "unlimited" plans offering 150GB of priority data. That was way, way too much priority data to offer in certain areas of the country.
So by offering too much data, and then not getting the anticipated relief from Viasat-2, we are where we are.
VeteranSatUser, Champion
- 5133 Posts
- 3177 Reply Likes
- 46 Posts
- 21 Reply Likes
Network Name
Verizon Wireless USA
Technology 4G LTEDid not ever look into the internals of this Ellipsis JetPack until today....
I got it for 'Free' so no skin off my nose....
What it does do though, it is much more sensitive to receiving weak LTE signals than my old one which is 12-15 years old?
- 7 Posts
- 1 Reply Like
But during normal time I get 25-30 mbps so I can’t complain.
- 46 Posts
- 21 Reply Likes
getting 27+ right now,

- 1161 Posts
- 164 Reply Likes
Walt Whitman (1819 - 1892) is primarily known for a collection of poems called Leaves of Grass, which he completely revised at least five times during the course of his life and which appeared in print in at least three different editions. Though his formal education ended with elementary school, Whitman was an educator at several points in his life. More often, he worked as a printer, a clerk, or a nurse; he was chronically poor, but managed to interject culture (he loved opera) and travel into his life. He achieved international acclaim during the course of his career, but probably had as many detractors as he did fans
- 46 Posts
- 21 Reply Likes
01/17/2019 08:36 SpeedTEST 18.2Mbps download 3.37 and in the early hours of the day, I was getting 25-35Mbps almost all the time.
My daughter downloaded a few Starz movies to her cellphone last night, and the night before....
Immediately, I noticed that my browsing speeds hit the toilet.
Facebook just refused to load period...... so much for "unlimited internet"
I am calling up OliveIP today and having a little discussion with them, and see what cellphone carriers they work with in my area..... their website only shows AT&T and T-Mobile ( not worth a damn in rural areas )
www.OliveIP.com here I come.
GabeU, Champion
- 2040 Posts
- 1235 Reply Likes
Well, guess my Wedding Reception with ViaSat is done and over with. for the last two nights, we have been restricted to less than 1gB down..... just last night 0.38gB at 9:30pm ...... and just a few minutes ago
01/17/2019 08:36 SpeedTEST 18.2Mbps download 3.37 and in the early hours of the day, I was getting 25-35Mbps almost all the time.Perhaps I'm misinterpreting your post, but isn't 38Mbps and 18.2Mbps fairly decent download speeds?
Or, with the first sentence, are you meaning "restricted to less than 1Mbps down" and "just last night 0.38Mbps at 9:30PM"?
- 4281 Posts
- 4366 Reply Likes
So I'll ask only 1/2 of Stephen Rice's question - how much of your data usage threshold have you used?
- 46 Posts
- 21 Reply Likes
as I mentioned, I am calling Nathan at OliveIP in a bit.... just got home from the dentist...
- 4281 Posts
- 4366 Reply Likes
- 38 Posts
- 22 Reply Likes
GabeU, Champion
- 2040 Posts
- 1235 Reply Likes
Regarding throttling vs Prioritization, in the context of ViaSat....
Throttling is the intentional slowing of a sub's speed when they have exceeded their set plan data, and slowing to a set "up to" level.
Prioritization means that a sub's service speed may be reduced, depending on the level of activity on the system, which also means it may not be reduced at all.
Throttling is the deliberate slowing of the speed regardless of the level of system activity. Prioritization is dynamic, happening when there are a lot of people on, and the amount of that slowing is, I'm sure, dynamic, as well. The more people on, the slower it goes. Conversely, for those who are subject to Prioritization, there may be no slowing at all. It all depends on the level of system activity.
Lastly, congestion can affect everyone as it increases, regardless of throttling or Prioritization, and no matter how much data someone might have left for the month.
Hardly a cover up.
Technically, any deliberate slowing is throttling, whether it be hard throttling or soft/dynamic throttling, like with Prioritization. But, in the context of ViaSat and their plans, throttling and Prioritization mean two different things. One is definite, while the other is dependent on the level of activity on the system.
Then again, I'm sure none of this matters to you. You'll still be convinced that ViaSat is awful, regardless.
- 46 Posts
- 21 Reply Likes
Whatever, called OliveIP and my RF modem will be shipped Monday next, 1/21.... I have 7 days to try it out from day received..... if I like it, it stays, and ViaSat goes away..... I filed a complaint with ViaSat last night, and will do so at least 3 times more to establish a trend.... I am keeping meticulous records and Images of my speedtest results to prove my point.... if I continue to be throttled down into the basement, I will not stay with ViaSat.
.
- 4281 Posts
- 4366 Reply Likes
However, if not willing to accept Gabe's explanation, see:
https://www.whistleout.com/CellPhones/Guides/whats-the-difference-between-throttling-and-deprioritiz...
You'll find other independent sources of information on the subject here:
http://lmgtfy.com/?q=network+throttling+vs+priortization
You'll get better search results on conjestion by changing the 'j' to a 'g', but Google and others will offer to clean up the results on your behalf. Qualify it with network to eliminate the Mucinex results.
Reading is fundamental, reading comprehension more so... you'll find entire volumes on Network Management on Amazon (they still sell books apparently and if not there are things called Libraries). I've got a dozen or so volumes on my bookshelf dealing with it, network performance and fine tuning web enabled applications. Admittedly, my grasp of the topics may be flawed since my primary responsibilities were programming but required some understanding of networking to ensure peak application performance since I was often charged with squeezing blood out of the stone.
The distinction is important because you can't get around throttling but can get around (de)prioritization by avoiding congestion. Some plans are throttled, while some plans are not.Some plans are simply prioritized, while some plans are both throttled and prioritized. On unlimited plans some traffic, detected video streams are always throttled. Knowing how to minimize the effects of either starts with knowing what type of plan you have.
AZgl1800's plan is Unlimited Bronze 12 - detected video streams are always throttled while everything including detected video streams is subject to (de)prioritization on going over the plan's data usage threshold. FWIW, you can get around video strram throttling, but the cure will probably be even worse during congested times. He's found an option and I wish him luck - at least he has a trial period since it's a self-install.
So in closing I'll leave you with the following:
What's your plan and how much data have you used? - Stephen Rice
- 46 Posts
- 21 Reply Likes
Speeds of 0.20, 0.33, 0.36, 0.10, at various times from 6:30pm to now at 10pm. I have written a letter to my local rep, and he has forwarded it to the ViaSat CEOs.... the letter included meticulous details on our experiences, and lack of care from ViaSat's Customer Care center..... they are just Script Kiddies, reading canned responses.... " you were told, that you must be careful to plan your use of the data..... " uh huh, the only way we can make it thru a month of 35gB is to forbid any use of Video at all... and if that is the rule, why bother with the Internet period?
Might as well go back to the Kindle eReader and forget life..... uh, no, I will find better access to the internet.
I told them the contract is null and void, because of total lack of service......
we burned thru 4 gB on my Verizon JetPack tonight.... zeroed out our Shared Data Plan in one fell swoop.... my daughter was playing a game ( won't run with ViaSat's Latency ) ... finished that up, and forgot to turn off the VZW MiFi JetPack, and then started surfing the 'net... oops...
the OliveIP modem will be here Thursday and the 7 day trial will let me analyze its' performance..... billing date is 24th of month..... probably won't be able to stop that, will have to get a refund, as I plan to turn off the ViaSat modem on the 23rd if the OliveIP will perform adequately. IMO, it should do just fine, the VZW JetPack screams all night long.... happily burns up our data plan :(
- 4281 Posts
- 4366 Reply Likes
However and once again congrats and good luck especially with the cancel fees. Was that unavailable when you signed up for Viasat?
Some of those are a better fit for many - unfortunately I'm in somewhat of a dead zone, would probably need to invest in weBoost at $500+, the nearest cell towers to me are heavily utilized and I'd probably get nailed by their prioritization fine print.
I'll probably give a Verizon prepaid one a try in the spring (when the forest canopy is full) to evaluate over the course of 24 hour periods and determine whether the weBoost investment is required or workable down here in Hog Hollar.
With return policies I'd only be out a month of prepaid service cost ($65) and restock fees (if any).
- 418 Posts
- 113 Reply Likes
VeteranSatUser, Champion
- 5133 Posts
- 3175 Reply Likes
- 1160 Posts
- 164 Reply Likes
I bought a wideband unit, SureCall Fusion4Home, with Yagi. If more than one cell carrier around, I'd suggest buying a wideband unit.
Sidenote - SureCall founder Hongtao Zhan (Cellphone Signal Boosters)
Hong arrived in the US with $400 in his pocket and the hope that this
new home would foster his dreams. When asked what the biggest
challenge was coming to America, he said, "Compared to China,
everything was a piece of cake. When you start from the bottom of the
bottom, you can only go up."
VeteranSatUser, Champion
- 5133 Posts
- 3175 Reply Likes
- 178 Posts
- 40 Reply Likes
Hopefully that works out. I see they use ATT/Tmobile, I have no service at all from them, none possible by any means, Verizon only, so I don't often pay much attention to what is offered through them. I see a lot of people buy the ATT tablet plan for cheap and move the sim, I guess that works, even if it's not supposed to.
I think the Verizon prepaid jetpack plan I mentioned before is number "28366" (if i didn't mention the number before, I didn't reread what I posted). I see a lot of people stating that if they ask Verizon reps about an "unlimited" plan, they don't know about it, don't mention it, point to the wrong postpaid plans, etc., so that number should help them look it up, if it's correct, if Oliveip doesn't work out. I didn't verify the number personally, but it's posted in a few places as being correct. That plan should work in your existing Vz. jetpack.
Not primetime, but again, bit more than 100GB used this month.
http://www.speedtest.net/result/7970835171.png
Other areas near bigger towns report much faster speed, but some have more congestion (some still fast during congestion, some slow). I see very minimal variance all day, despite the tower not being as fast to begin with.
Less latency helps a lot when using the internet. My old 2.5 meg down home cell connection worked well, going to the neighbors' sat systems was annoying with basic web browsing, I preferred my "slower" connection.
- 4281 Posts
- 4366 Reply Likes
Thanks
- 38 Posts
- 22 Reply Likes
And old labs i don’t really know who the hell who you’re talking about. Those two guys haven’t posted in months. I didn’t really see how I act like the yourguytim. And I didn’t see anything that Bill Ross did bad.
I just don’t like Viasat. And if your service is better than fair enough. There could be multiple reasons why your service is better and mine isn’t. I’d expect you see that but all you shills do is call us ignorant and say we’re someone else. Jesus. Destroy anyone who says anything negative at all. You parade around the forums all day and act like you know everything.
Viasat is not good internet- expensive, low data caps, most half way decent plans are unavailable, bugger community, poor customer service, same technology for like 10 years, never upgrade anything even after being funded by government.
- 38 Posts
- 22 Reply Likes
And old labs i don’t really know who the hell who you’re talking about. Those two guys haven’t posted in months. I didn’t really see how I act like the yourguytim. And I didn’t see anything that Bill Ross did bad.
I just don’t like Viasat. And if your service is better than fair enough. There could be multiple reasons why your service is better and mine isn’t. I’d expect you see that but all you shills do is call us ignorant and say we’re someone else. Jesus. Destroy anyone who says anything negative at all. You parade around the forums all day and act like you know everything.
Viasat is not good internet- expensive, low data caps, most half way decent plans are unavailable, bugger community, poor customer service, same technology for like 10 years, never upgrade anything even after being funded by government.
- 893 Posts
- 536 Reply Likes
- 46 Posts
- 21 Reply Likes
Thanks for your comments on Surecall, and the VZW MiFi plan number "28366"
When I called VZW Customer Tech service, I specially asked them about an Unlimited plan for the JetPack...
after reading your comments, I think that I need to call them back and refer to that model JetPack.... maybe the one I have is suitable? dunno, but I get speeds on it similar to what you linked to.. it of course depends on how close the cell tower is.... I just brought up my "Open Signal" Android app and there is only 1 cell tower close to me on VZW..... and it won't show up on the map.... I don't know if that is because VZW is restricting the locations to be known, or if it just isn't in the database for my area?
I just reviewed all of the SureCall antennas, and the one that I am going to get is the
SureCall CM230-800 Bi-Directional 806-960 MHz External Yagi Antenna 14 element, 14 dBi gain model.
I have a couple of Painters push up poles that I use for all kinds of stuff, like pushing up the 120VAC entrance jumper cable to my RV across from my shop at home.... Don't like laying it on the ground, as we have a lot of rolling stock that will ruin the SO cord with abuse. ( Golf cart, lawn tractor, GL1800 m/c )
I will get with VZW before the OliveIP modem arrives, so I have known info to consider before I jump into their plans. Initially will only sign up for the Month-to-Month no contract plan until I get some data on how good it is for me.
Wish I had had that 14 element Yagi with me last summer when we parked for 9 days up in a canyon south of Colorado Springs.... the VZW signal was only about 1 bar inside the plastic sided Toy Hauler we have... and mostly gone as we walked around the Campgrounds... a push up pole and 14 dBi gain might have been very beneficial at the time.
We will be spending 9 days in Homosassa Springs , Fl at a RV park next March.... looked at the T-Mobile data there and it seems to be Solid Red, with a lot of Customer Verified signal reports as being "excellent"...
I am also looking at buying one of the SureCall Signal Boosters to help out our cellphones in weak areas... not sure on that yet, as WiFi calling could negate the need for that with the OliveIP modem WiFi package...
I already own a VZW Mini-cell device that only needs to see the Internet, and my cellphones lock onto it like a bandit.... when we first moved to Oologah, OK there wasn't any VZW towers near us... so I had to buy the Mini-cell to get VZW service... Roaming did not work worth a damn inside our home. I can't recall if it supports 4g or not?
Lots to think on, and need to research it all before laying out the big bucks. Thanks to all who have helped me think this through.
AZgl1800
- 1160 Posts
- 164 Reply Likes
Discontinued by manufacture...SureCall SC-230W Wide-band Directional is its replacement.
VZW uses different bands, as other wireless carriers do. If using a wireless carrier locally, there might be a cheap signal boosters for most carriers. If traveling, getting a wideband signal booster is prudent.
Here's some basic info on bands used, and a person needs to know what bands are being used when a cheaper signal booster is used.
I have a Sprint-like-carrier and VZW, so it was a no brainer to get a wideband. At around seven to nine miles to these towers, and with excellent line of sight to them, reception/transmission are excellent. These are rural towers with low traffic...when cell traffic increases, a tower ranges decreases.
I've been with Wildblue/Viasat since beginning year, 2005, but now, I have two broadband cellular options available. Both cell providers can deliver the speed, but at this time, I'll stay with Viasat.
GabeU, Champion
- 2040 Posts
- 1235 Reply Likes
My only beef right now with viasat is they act like there’s nothing they can do about it.Sure, there's something they can do about it. Dump a bunch of subs. Seeing that this is not legal, nor financially viable, nor smart in any way, that's not happening.
You continue to disregard the realities of a system with a finite capacity. You continue to disregard the info given to you by those who know more about it than you. You continue to be convinced that it's just ViaSat throttling you, and nothing and no one is going to convince you otherwise. The sad thing is that you aren't misinformed, as you've been given the actual reasons numerous times. It's just that you refuse to believe or accept what's factual, instead relying on your mistaken belief.
Are slow speeds fun? No. Is it disheartening to deal with them on a continual basis. Of course. Is it frustrating to not have the up to speeds advertised, or even anything near them? Absolutely. That still doesn't make an imagined cause any more real.
- 4281 Posts
- 4366 Reply Likes
- 188 Posts
- 65 Reply Likes
- 4281 Posts
- 4367 Reply Likes
Seriously though I'm seeing much the same on Liberty 12 for whatever reason.
- 1161 Posts
- 164 Reply Likes
If aircrafts were using your beam, and if VS-2 shines in your location, then they may have re-shifted these "aircraft" frequencies for consumer usage.
- 4281 Posts
- 4367 Reply Likes
- 320 Posts
- 205 Reply Likes
I couldnt do a search fast enough on the OliveIP being discussed, sadly as another stated its on AT&T or T-mobile. We ONLY have Verizon out here. Upstairs in the south facing window we can make a call now (conditions permitting), but 8 years ago when we moved in there was NO SERVICE AT ALL!
When I say satellite is my ONLY option I MEAN IT! I was very happy with my Wildblue/Exede/Viasat when I got it, BEFORE THE "CONGESTION" ISSUE. Then I waited for VS2, and was really let down, that has pretty much destroyed any faith I had for VS3. I was hoping for Elon Musk to get his idea for satellite internet up and running, but I could be dead and gone before that comes to fruition.
It appears my greatest hope for internet at this juncture is for somebody to construct a cell tower nearer to me so I get a viable signal. In the past 8 years they have constructed at least 3 I know of "in the area" that have brought me the limited signal I have now, but I am only on the fringe of their coverage.
I was told 5 - 7 years ago Verizon bought an abandoned microwave tower I can almost see from my house for conversion to a cell tower, but every time I inquire about it all I hear is its still tied up with the FCC over permits, licensing, etc.
Life goes on. Until something better comes along I am stuck paying what I consider a ridiculous price for my "up to" high speed internet, depending "up to" how many others are on, and do "up to" what my data allows.... and one must not forget. "up to" rain, snow, and cloud cover.
- 46 Posts
- 21 Reply Likes
Have you considered using a SureCall 14 element Yagi and one of their Signal Boosters for your home?
Put up a tall piece of pipe on the house, guy it so it won't fall over, put the Yagi at the top, and swivel it to the Tower's direction ( follow the signal for a peak )
this is the antenna https://www.amazon.com/SureCall-CM230-800-Bi-Directional-806-960-External/dp/B00KQSFWFO/ref=sr_1_46?...
This link shows quite a few of them https://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_noss?url=search-alias%3Daps&field-keywords=surecall+signal+bo...
This is what I am going to do.
- 320 Posts
- 205 Reply Likes
Yes an antenna has been a thought for years, both cell phone and TV, but although I live on a "ridge" I am in a hole. My house is 119 years old, and the builder owned everything here back then, and he chose this spot for the house. I can only imagine for a wind break? My roof is road level. The property across the road is now owned by someone else, the "milk house" across the road sits higher than my house, and beyond that is a good hill with a huge level spot on top where the cattle barn stood before it burned YEARS ago, but his "house" he put down in a hole.
Since I need to get above my roof AND out of this hole I have been eyeing up a few old antenna (CB) towers people are selling. My problem there is being on top of this ridge, lightning becomes an issue. Ive only been here 8 years now, and seen the lightning rods atop the old milk house get struck a couple times already.
GabeU, Champion
- 2239 Posts
- 1367 Reply Likes
Im following all this talk about these cell phone internet "thingies"Me too, but until they upgrade my nearest cell tower I don't really have a prayer. And it will be years, I'm sure, before 5G becomes available here. :(
It's still interesting to read about peoples' experiences with them, though.
- 893 Posts
- 537 Reply Likes
GabeU, Champion
- 2239 Posts
- 1367 Reply Likes
The other day I had to update a couple of apps on my phone and I was too tired to go through the process of enabling the WiFi in my modem (I normally keep it off), which I had also just unplugged. That was a mistake. It took nearly a half hour to update two apps. SMH. Granted, I was doing other things while it was updating, but sheesh.
- 893 Posts
- 537 Reply Likes
- 229 Posts
- 109 Reply Likes
This conversation is no longer open for comments or replies.
This conversation is no longer open for comments or replies.
Jim16
Stephen Rice, Champion
Mick Dietze
Voyager
Shawn Barker Davenport
Voyager
I joined the board of my electric cooperative partly with the objective of seeing if the co-op could bring broadband to our rural area. It took a couple years to convince the board and CEO that we should look at this again (they had looked at it a decade or so earlier and decided they could not do it), but we are now launching a new division to install fiber broadband. The only problem is it will take 5-6 years for full deployment and I am in one of the most rural parts of our rural territory so I am probably at the end of the 6 year project.
As they say, you can choose to curse the darkness or you can light a candle.
VeteranSatUser, Champion
Voyager
Jim16
If you are running a "real" business, then you need to change your plan to a Viasat Business plan.
VeteranSatUser, Champion
Voyager
http://www.tri-countyrec.com/content/...
AZgl1800
our area has lousy internet sources, but there are 2 Radio RF Line of Sight in the area, so they think that is enough I suppose.... but, get out of town about 3 miles and kiss Line of Sight goodbye. We have 6,000 square miles in our county alone.... 99% of it does not have any internet. So, it is look at the sky, or a cellular solution.
I recently learned of www.OliveIP.com and honestly, I wish I had known of it before I went to ViaSat, as it is just as fast, and even faster in the evening hours... I compare ViaSat at 6:30 PM to my Verizon MiFi JetPack and Verizon is 5 to 10 times faster than ViaSat... it is a shame, that Verizon will NOT let me have Unlimited internet on the JetPack, when OliveIP provides the same exact device and will provide me Unlimited internet for $90/month at speeds up to, 50Mbps ( if the cell tower is close enough )....
Right now, I can get 25Mbps on my JetPack as I type this.... just can't afford the Shared Data Plan that we currently are signed up for and they will NOT let me have more than 15gB/month... period...
I'm thinking of cutting Shared Data back to 2gB and and getting the OliveIP service and maybe drop ViaSat...
right now, wishful thinking, my duaghter abhors changes... she gripped and gripped when we had to reprogram our WiFi devices, 2 printers, 3 cellphones, TVs, etc....
Voyager
TheCatWillStrike
xode0000, Champion