# Hughes Net ?



## PTFarmer (Dec 11, 2005)

Anyone using Hughes net satelite internet service ? It's my only option other than dial up. Had any good or bad experiences with it ?

Thanks in advance,
PT


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## millipede (May 28, 2006)

I've seen commercials on tv for that. I looked it up online and it sure isn't cheap.
I'd be interested to hear what it is like though.


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## Kung (Jan 19, 2004)

Depends upon what you're comparing it to. I would recommend it ONLY if

a) you can't get regular broadband and
b) you either need it (and I mean NEED) or don't mind the cost.

I have Wildblue, and it costs $300 for the installation/equipment, and $49/69/79 per month for service. HughesNet is essentially DirecWay, and it's more expensive.

As far as the actual service itself, it's a LOT better than dialup, but not comparable to DSL or cable, not due to speed, but due to latency. DSL or cable is instantaneous; if you type in a website on satellite, it has to send the request to the satellite, which sends it back to the receiving station, then goes to the Internet, etc. Download speed is fast, but due to latency it's not worth it for VoIP, gaming, etc.


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## hillsidedigger (Sep 19, 2006)

HughesNet user here.


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## Teresa S. (Mar 2, 2006)

Hugesnet is what we have at the school I work at. It is very fast yet pricey.


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## Kung (Jan 19, 2004)

Oh, satellite is fast. If you download something or stream video, you'll be fine. But just TRY VoIP over it once (even Skype) and then let me know what you think. LOL


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## Boss Cooker (Nov 26, 2005)

This may be a bit off topic. I have a complete TV and Starband internet systam that no one wants. Whats the difference between them? I had pretty good service at $49.00 a month. I'm paying the same price now for Centurytel 1.5 dsl.


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## mysticokra (Feb 5, 2003)

We have been using the Hughes system for 3 years. We pay about 100/month because we wanted higher speed and a private IP address.

They advertise over 1mps. You won't get it. Most of the time our download speed is 700 to 900K and the uplink speed is about 70.

This works well for my purposes, but my wife's VPN doesn't play well with it.
It would if her company IT people would put a box on their end that would deal with the satellite latency issue.

Rarely, we get weather related outages. More often, the electrical power goes off and you can't blame the satellite for that.

It beats dial-up by about 30 times.


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## momanto (Jan 14, 2005)

Dd Has Hughes And Hates It. It Is $80.00 A Month And Rarely Works Well. She Kept Her Original Isp Just In Case.........is Just Waiting For That Contract To Expire With Hughes.

S.w. Florida


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## Teresa S. (Mar 2, 2006)

Kung said:


> Oh, satellite is fast. If you download something or stream video, you'll be fine. But just TRY VoIP over it once (even Skype) and then let me know what you think. LOL


Someone would have to pay me before i would use VoIP or Skype...I'll stick with my cell phone for now


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## Kung (Jan 19, 2004)

mysticokra said:


> This works well for my purposes, but my wife's VPN doesn't play well with it.
> It would if her company IT people would put a box on their end that would deal with the satellite latency issue.


Well, if it's IPSec VPN, there's not much that the company IT people can do. I know because I AM the company IT people on the other end of my connection.  It's all the overhead that IPSec requires that slows it down so much; but the alternative is the possible release of PHI (protected health information), and that's a no-go, so I'll deal with slow connections, sometimes.


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## FalconDance (Feb 4, 2007)

Had Hughes. HATE Hughes. Tried to have it uninstalled and taken away THE FIRST DAY but no one would come and get it. Stopped payment on the check in the effort (after properly notifying the installers and waiting for them to come get the dish). They responded that they couldn't resell a "used" dish (which is a lie) and threatened to prosecute -- until I reminded them that I had followed absolutely the law they were quoting back to me and that THEY had refused to accept the merchandise back, therefore they had voided their claim for prosecution. Apparently they consulted with their lawyer and realized that I was indeed versed in who was in the right legally (companies hate it when you comply with the legal notification they send you and then expect them to do the same. Throws them for a loop )

Hughes is still trying to get the disconnect fee from us even though phone logs document how many times we had to call INDIA for tech support, including two calls within an hour of installation!

The service was slower than dial-up, extremely susceptible to any and all weathers anomalies including common fluffy white clouds drifting by. It would shut itself down for no apparent reason at times. When it did work, reception was substandard to horrid (and we're not exactly out in the middle of a vast tundra or deep within a forrest. We live in a small town with a clear southern exposure for the satellite.) 

Tech support was often impossible to communicate with even if their names were "Michelle" and "Jason" (uh-huh)  . 

I'd go without internet altogether before going back to them.

~Falcon


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