Show HN: I built a Iridium/LTE satellite GPS tracker and took it to the Arctic
1–10 of 60 posts
Re: Show HN: I built a Iridium/LTE satellite GPS tracker and took it to the Arctic
#2[flagged]
Re: Show HN: I built a Iridium/LTE satellite GPS tracker and took it to the Arctic
#3Fun project! Did you look into NTN (Non-Terrestrial Networks) capable modules as an alternative to Iridium? I haven't played with NTN myself, but it seems modules such as SIM7070G-HP-S support LTE-M/NB-IoT as well as NTN networks, and could in theory serve the purpose of your Iridium tranceiver as well as your LTE module. This technology hasn't matured yet, and I suspect the roaming tarriffs are expensive, but I don't know how it compares to Iridium.
Re: Show HN: I built a Iridium/LTE satellite GPS tracker and took it to the Arctic
#4This is so cool! Thanks for sharing and creating something like this :) BTW do you use Iridium handsets? Do you have recommendations?
Re: Show HN: I built a Iridium/LTE satellite GPS tracker and took it to the Arctic
#5For anyone else wondering, the satellite transceiver is a RockBoard, which charges:
- $302 for the hardware
- $17/month for a “line fee”
- $0.20/message (50 characters)
Would be nice if there was an actually affordable, programmable Iridium device.
Re: Show HN: I built a Iridium/LTE satellite GPS tracker and took it to the Arctic
#6For anyone else wondering, the satellite transceiver is a RockBoard, which charges: - $302 for the hardware - $17/month for a “line fee” - $0.20/message (50 characters) Would be nice if there was an actually affordable, programmable Iridium device.
I've been wondering how Iridium costs are tallied.
Recently had two calls with an Iridium phone, one sent and one received, about 1 minute each. T-Mobile charged me $50 for those.
I found it very odd - it seemed like Iridium was somehow passing the call fees onto me, but I can't be sure because the T-Mobile rep I chatted with was unable to comprehend the situation (I suspect I was talking to an LLM, but it ultimately gave me a $30 rebate at least).
Re: Show HN: I built a Iridium/LTE satellite GPS tracker and took it to the Arctic
#7For anyone else wondering, the satellite transceiver is a RockBoard, which charges: - $302 for the hardware - $17/month for a “line fee” - $0.20/message (50 characters) Would be nice if there was an actually affordable, programmable Iridium device.
Where did you buy Iridium access for $17/month?
Re: Show HN: I built a Iridium/LTE satellite GPS tracker and took it to the Arctic
#8For anyone else wondering, the satellite transceiver is a RockBoard, which charges: - $302 for the hardware - $17/month for a “line fee” - $0.20/message (50 characters) Would be nice if there was an actually affordable, programmable Iridium device.
I've been wondering how Iridium costs are tallied. Recently had two calls with an Iridium phone, one sent and one received, about 1 minute each. T-Mobile charged me $50 for those. I found it very odd - it seemed like Iridium was somehow passing the call fees onto me, but I can't be sure because the T-Mobile rep I chatted with was unable to comprehend the situation (I suspect I was talking to an LLM, but it ultimately…
I’ve had to make and pay for an unfortunate number of Iridium calls. They can be crazy expensive depending on carrier, who all bill them as a call to an international line in the country of “Satellite”. Usually you pay your carrier’s fee for outgoing and it’s cheaper/free to receive the calls.
It seems like cell carriers always charge more per minute for satellite calls than any satellite provider does, so I’m guessing they just set their rates conservatively to always make a profit on their end. And the demand for satellite calls seems like it would be pretty inelastic.
Re: Show HN: I built a Iridium/LTE satellite GPS tracker and took it to the Arctic
#9For anyone else wondering, the satellite transceiver is a RockBoard, which charges: - $302 for the hardware - $17/month for a “line fee” - $0.20/message (50 characters) Would be nice if there was an actually affordable, programmable Iridium device.
Indeed - a Garmin InReach is about US $500 and already ruggedized and tested. I understand the DIY aspect of this project is the fun part, but it definitely isn't a way to save money.
Re: Show HN: I built a Iridium/LTE satellite GPS tracker and took it to the Arctic
#10For anyone else wondering, the satellite transceiver is a RockBoard, which charges: - $302 for the hardware - $17/month for a “line fee” - $0.20/message (50 characters) Would be nice if there was an actually affordable, programmable Iridium device.
Where did you buy Iridium access for $17/month?