Hughes Net Equipment Options

[JWC]

Most of the posts here tend to favor WB over HN. I guess that this is because it is a bit less expensive and more heavily advertised. Anyway I am going with HN. I seem to recall that there were some modem issues with HN. Is the 7000S modem the present modem that is installed on the Home plans and is this a good choice (assuming one has a choice). Second, can one pay extra for the larger .98 dish/2w setup if one chooses one of the Home Plans? I know that I will be questioned as to why I would want to do this, but I just want the greater probability of a solid signal "pipe" in and out of the satellite. I assume (correct me if I am wrong please) that the small business installations and the home installations "point" to the same satellite and transponder. I am just trying to get smart before I contact a dealer or try to order on-line where I will not be given any choices. I'm in this for the long haul because I live in rural, rural, rural, never to have cable or DSL, so I do not mind paying "extra" up-front for some better equipment.

Thanks

 

[damjr]

Good choice with going with HN.

The 7000s is still being used.

In order to get the .98 you will have to go with one of the small business packages. The way that the system is set up and the dealers have to buy the systems, there is no way to substitute dish's. Sorry.

If you can afford it go with one of those packages anyways. You will be much happier with the performance.

 

[HCI]

You do not have to go with the Small Business package to get the .98 dish. You did at one time but now you can pay 299 extra and get the upgraded equipment ".98 dish with a 2 watt radio unit". This will include a pole mount if one is needed also. If you are ordering over the phone ask for the Power Package.


]]Plans
6. PowerPak includes .98 m antenna; 2 W radio; tri-mast, non-penetrating, or pole mount; and professional installation. The PowerPak is designed to provide better performance in areas with severe weather.

 

[Stargazer]

Does HughesNet still offer one way service where you use a landline to transmit the data back for a cheaper price? I know that they used to offer this and I was looking at another service that was offering this but after hearing complaints of them being down and being treated wrongfully and no local isp I decided against going with it.

Also does the larger HughesNet packages still have FAP or is FAP still in place but a bit less restrictive for the higher priced packages? Is the larger upgraded equipment required for getting the faster - higher priced packages?

 

[JWC]

Thanks guys...I think the extra $300 will be worth it (for me)in the long run. I believe the extra power and the extra sensitivity of the commercial equipment will give me a "reduced" chance of being dropped when the link becomes saturated. Certainly it will have less drop out in rain/clouds. It probably won't increase the downlink stream, but it will probably give me a greater probability that I will get the "speeds up to" rates that I will be paying for. I'm not sure how they control or regulate the download stream, but my friends that are lucky enough to have DSL and cable (at the cheaper plans...e.g. DSL light or 250KB cable plans) have reported to me that they usually get three to four times the promised bandwidth most of the time. This leads me to believe that perhaps they only restrict the bandwidth when demand exceeds capacity.

I also think that I will get a more solid mount and equipment and this is important to me because I have strong prevailing winds and wind gusts that play Havocc on my DSS dishes.

BTW, WB is "over-booked" in this area so it is not available and most of my local neighbors with WB have seen reduced bandwidth and service availability. They are not unhappy with WB, because they remember the dial up days. Also, Wall Mart now has indicated that they will act as a retail dealer and suposedly give you an additional $100 store credit for signing up with them. This helps offset the slightly higher install cost of HN over WB.

 

[dirkleearm]

If I were you I would look to a local dealer who has a good reputation. The Walmart deal as far as I know is instead of a 100 rebate from hughes you get 100 worth of coupons for WalMart.

 

[HCI]

Does HughesNet still offer one way service where you use a landline to transmit the data back for a cheaper price? I know that they used to offer this and I was looking at another service that was offering this but after hearing complaints of them being down and being treated wrongfully and no local isp I decided against going with it.

Also does the larger HughesNet packages still have FAP or is FAP still in place but a bit less restrictive for the higher priced packages? Is the larger upgraded equipment required for getting the faster - higher priced packages?

Hughes does not support any of the old 4000 equipment. The system you are referring to is basically a 4000 minus the transmit unit. I think Hughes called the a 3000 system but not 100%. If a customer has one of these units they are godfathered in as far as being able to use them, but they will not activate or change any equipment out if a part goes bad. A customer is forced to upgrade at this point.

Hughes FAP thresholds are as followed for a 24 hour period
Home 200 MB

Pro 375 MB

ProPlus 425 MB

Small Office 500 MB

Business Internet 1250 MB

If a customer chooses to upgrade to the Power pak or Commercial equipment they are able to choose any of the above service plans. If a customer chooses to go with just standard equipment they can only get the Home, Pro, or ProPlus plans.

 

[HCI]

JWC what do you plan on using the system for primarily?

 

[JWC]

I plan on using it mostly for web browsing and for software updates to my utilities and OS. No Video, or very limited. The 200M FAP should be acceptable most of the time (except when I do a new system build...which I do about once a month) on the least expensive plan. Anyway, I just like heavy duty hardware and the ability to upgrade to a business plan should I get addicted to broadband. I guess you have noticed that when you buy a utility such as NAV, there is usually 40M of stuff you have to download upon activation. The folks that sell all of this software don't appreciate folks with dial up. Likewise for my most begruging software updates such as Internet Explorer where a "routine" security update has you going back to a full re-load since the last service pack. I usually haul all of my hardware to my sons' houses every few months just to do this routine web updates and any serious browsing. I usually keep a "to look up" list with me for my broadband opportunities. Boy, am I going to get spoiled.

BTW, I agree with the Walmart critique. The closest one is 70 miles from here and I was merely stating that "if" I interpet the news release, they would simply serve as a "ordering" house to some other dealer/distributor and offer an "additional" $100 to the usual 100/150 rebates that many dealers offer. So I would still get the same installer regardless of who I order from.

Anyway, thanks guys for the information.

 

[Cold Irons]

FYI - Hughesnet FAP does not apply between 3am & 6am. You can schedule updates/virus definitions/etc. for that time period to keep it out of your XXX Mb per day limit.

No cable/no DSL for me - waited for a long time, but couldn't stand dialup any more.I went with the Pro (375Mb limit per day) and have been happy so far. Even with one teenager still at home, have not approached the FAP limit (yet ).