Satellite Phone Service

Guys, Has anyone had a good experience with a rental satellite phone service. My wife and I have used one for a couple of years to keep in touch with the kids, but have not been real satisfied. Reception has not been very good, perhaps that is the nature of the beast?

Appreciate any suggestions.

I've used these guys a few times and will continue to do so
http://www.explorersatellite.com/

"Whatever you are, be a good one."
- Abraham Lincoln

+1 for explorer sat.

So what's the difference between explorer sat and others that rent the same phone for $30-$40? I'm thinking of renting one as well, but a quick google search has the same phone for a wide range of prices.

Same satellite phone models + same service provider (only 2 different satellite systems in, use-Globalstar and Iridium)+ same region you are trying to place a call from = same results, all are exactly the same less the rental fee! Now I have only rented Iridium phones as I borrowed a Globalstar phone from a friend on my sheep hunt and it was horrible, it would have a signal and you would talk without movement and 1 minute later it would drop the call. I was so frustrated after 4 days of that I quit using it. I would not recommend a Globalstar sat phone until they make improvements on the service/number of or quality of their satellite network.
I have rented Iridium sat phones for some deep (4-7mi) solo pack in hunts. I have had mixed results on service with those as well, in a canyon where there was limited access to the satellites, I would have to climb up out of the canyon some and the service was not too bad but did drop some calls after 3-5 minutes. If you have full view of the sky you may still have some trouble maintaining signal strength. I just recently followed Wade's advice and bought the SPOT II and will use that this year on a few hunts and next year on another pack in trip. I hope it works as well as Wade said it does if used properly. I just want the piece of mind of letting someone know if I cannot get myself out what they should do with my stuff
BB

Thanks Bruin. The ol' lady is pregnant and getting big. I need to be able to check on her once a day.

I recently bought the Spot II with the Delorme PN60 but have had some significant issues with the Delorme so I've not been able to test it yet. They just sent a new PN60 and this one looks like it will work and I'll try it out soon.
A new product recently announced by Delorme is the "Inreach" which is now makes my Spot outdated as it has 2 way texting via a joint effort with Irridium. It's suppose to be out in October. Just my luck as I wanted 2 way texting but gave in and bought the Spot just before they announced the new product! Because you don't need a continuous signal to send a text, it should be more reliable than a satelite phone although obviously no voice capability.

Coloelkman,

What kind of price are we talking for the two way text model? IS it a monthly plan or pay by the minute/text ?

The unit was going to sell for something like $129. Then they have various options on service plans. Per their website (link below), it notes plans start @ $9.95/mo. I've not read all the details on it but for my Spot, they had limited texting starting around $100/yr (prepaid 1 yr service) or you could upgrade with more messaging for another $30. I mainly bought it for hunting so I think you can get limited plans but like most things, it will cost more to only get the service for a limited amount of time. I have the Delorme GPS that allows me to send custom texts otherwise you need to setup preset text messages if you don't have their GPS. So you can use it alone or with their GPS it gives you more usefulness. I've had some tech issues with my GPS and just received a replacement which I think will now work. I'm backpacking in next weekend so I hope I can get it figured out before that. From my limited experience so far, it is not real easy for a low to moderate tech person like myself to figure it out which I'm concurrering with what I've read about it. I'll eventually get there!!

http://blog.delorme.com/2011/06/03/delorme-inreach-two-way-satellite-communication/