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 100 MB/S Satellite Internet Service in 2021

Launching a New Satellite

HughesNet already offers the fastest consumer satellite internet service in the United States. The ISP isn’t finished upgrading its system, though. On August 11, it announced plans to launch a new satellite to enable download speeds of 100 megabits per second (100 MB/S).

The company said its new satellite will be operating in early 2021, and will be dubbed Echostar XXIV.  HughesNet says the new bird will serve “key markets” in the U.S., Mexico, Brazil, and several other countries in South America, doubling the company’s Ka-band capacity in the Americas. The 100 MB/S service tier will be  available where HughesNet currently offers Gen5 service.

Following Gen5

In March, HughesNet inaugurated what it called the Gen5 service platform. Since, then, it’s been moving subscribers into Gen5, which offers download speeds of 25 MB/S.

This is the the fastest speed available with any satellite internet service.

Peter Gulla, HughesNet’s SVP of marketing, spoke to Multichannel News last week. Gulla said, “Right now, it (25 MB/S) seems to be meeting the needs of our customers. But that doesn’t mean that’s the end of the line.”

Hughes has offered its internet services primarily in rural areas. It plans, though, to move into some suburban and urban markets where DSL service is weak.

About HughesNet:

HughesNet has provided satellite-based communication services for more than forty years. It serves government residential, and commercial clients, chiefly in the U.S.

In March 2017, HughesNet became the first satellite internet system to offer FCC-defined broadband service from coast to coast. Its Gen 5 tier operates at download speeds of 25 MB/S and upload speeds of 3 MB/S. With Gen5, the company offers integrated modems with built in WiFi. All Gen5 plans include 50 gigabytes of Bonus Zone capacity for use between 2 a.m. and 8 a.m.

The FCC has ranked HughesNet first among all major ISPs for consistency in reaching advertised speeds. This ranking is for all ISPs, not just satellite.

About Satellite Country:

Satellite Country is one of America’s largest retailers of TV, internet, home security, and home automation services. It has been in business since 1999. Satellite Country offers a full range of home services, and can find the best deals available where you live.

 

(For the internet service that’s best for you, talk to us. We can help.)

 

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SATELLITE INTERNET: HOW IT WORKS

To understand the advantage in HughesNet service, it may help you to know how satellite internet works. It differs from other sources of internet service.

In rural- and some suburban- areas, the dominant internet services are either dial-up or DSL. Each requires a phone line. Dial-up service ties up the phone, so you can’t place or receive a call while connected to the web.  Dial-up is also extremely slow- too slow to be practical for any but the lightest web-surfing or e-mail.

DSL (digital subscriber line) service won’t tie up your phone, but it brings other disadvantages of a community phone line: your download speed will be affected by your distance from the central office, and by the number of your neighbors connected at the same time. If you’re close enough to the central transmission facility, you could see download speeds in excess of 6 megabits per second. If you live farther away, or if your community DSL system is under heavy usage, your download speed could drop to a small fraction of this.

With satellite internet service, you won’t face these problems. Your HughesNet system will not require a home phone line. Because it receives its signal directly from a satellite high in the stratosphere, it is independent of any neighborhood phone or fiber system, so your service will not be affected by the number of your neighbors connected at the same time.

HughesNet is faster than typical DSL service. and many times faster than the fastest dial-up service. HughesNet offers four levels of residential internet service. With the basic plan, you get download speeds of up to 5 megabits per second (MB/S), and with the best plan, up to to 15 MB/S.

HughesNet’s Echostar XVII satellite network features the highest download capacity of any satellite internet service.

Your HughesNet service will be suitable for web-surfing, e-mail, word-processing, social media, and downloading music or video. The only function we don’t recommend it for is interactive gaming. The signal from your computer has to travel 22,500 miles to the satellite, then travel the same distance back. The round trip takes about a quarter of a second. For most uses, this is not a critical lag, but it can ruin an interactive game that depends on quick reflexes.

Apart from that one limitation, satellite internet service works. Is HughesNet right for you? Call us, or fill out a contact form, to find out.