Satellite Phones

Satellite phones have become very popular since their introduction in 1979.They was originally used on ships and in large corporations. These phones utilize satellites that provide global coverage even in remote areas of the world. Also known as "Satphones," they can be as big as a cordless phone or as small as a regular cell phone, but they are quite expensive ranging from $300 to $2000.
One of the major advantages of having a Satphone is because they aid you in emergency situations. During emergencies, most cell phones fail to operate because of the systems overload caused by high volumes of calls. This is where Satphones are at their best as they have a larger capacity of coverage areas.
They are excellent to take on field trips and outdoor expeditions but are not recommended for indoor use as receptions are very poor. There are two major networks that operate Satphones—Globalstar and Iridium. Globalstar uses 44 active satellites but these do not provide coverage in all areas. Iridium has 66 satellites which provide coverage to almost all parts of world.
Satphones locations are also easy to track using different methods, but they are usually off by a couple hundred feet. Calls from satellite phones to landlines are really expensive and even to cell phones so most people only call these phones if it's absolutely necessary. These calls range from $0.80 a minute to $15.00 a minute and even calling a satellite phone operated on a different network could cost about the same.
There are four major companies that provide service—Aces, (which provides voice and data services in East Asia), Inmarsat (the oldest satellite phone provider and operates 11 satellites), Thuraya(only has 3 satellites but serves most of Australia, Eurasia and Africa) and MSAT which is based in America and is an up and coming provider covering the Americas.
Satphones are real handy to have in any situation and with the advent of internet and broadband services on these phones, the possibilities and potential are limitless.

Satellite Phones