Inmarsat Prepaid Vouchers Work Within the United States

Beginning September 1, 2012 Inmarsat will be offering global prepaid satellite service for both voice and data on Inmarsat terminals. This will apply to all new and existing Inmarsat prepaid SIM Cards for the IsatPhone Pro, BGAN, FleetBroadband and FleetPhone units. The Inmarsat prepaid service was originally only available outside of the US, but it will now be fully global.

Benefits for IsatPhone Pro users Prepaid services are popular with clients who work on short term or seasonal projects and prefer not to commit to a contract. Inmarsat offers a variety of prepaid vouchers for the IsatPhone Pro to fit any requirement Small and large vouchers are available, giving you airtime with an average cost of $1.10 per minute and $0.55 per SMS. A list of available vouchers for sale can be found here. One key benefit of Inmarsat prepaid is any unused minutes will roll over if the SIM is loaded with another voucher before the expiration date. If you allow your prepaid minutes to expire, the prepaid SIM will remain active, you can recharge it when you like and you keep the same sat phone number.

BGAN Prepaid benefits Inmarsat BGAN customers will also benefit from global prepaid voice and data services. Not only do the BGAN prepaid vouchers have the same airtime roll over benefit as the IsatPhone Pro, but the validity for use on the BGAN airtime is 730 days. This means that even the smallest prepaid BGAN voucher of 10.99 MB of standard IP or 100 voice minutes is valid for about 2 years. BGAN Prepaid service includes Standard IP, SMS and Voice service; streaming and ISDN services are available upon request on initial activation only. Fax service is not available e on BGAN prepaid. More information and Global prepaid options for BGAN are now available on this airtime page.

With the announcement of Inmarsat prepaid available for global use, airtime for the IsatPhone Pro and BGAN will be simple with no credit check, no annual contract or bills. For more information on the Inmarsat prepaid options visit GMPCS or contact a representative at 1-888-664-6727

Iridium Prepaid Packages and Regional Prepaid Packages Without Hassle

Are you looking for an affordable satellite phone airtime plan without hassle? Iridium prepaid airtime is your answer. Prepaid airtime on Iridium's truly global and reliable network is easy with no credit check, no annual contract or bills.

Iridium Prepaid gives you the option to pick the plan that is right for you. GMPCS offers a variety of low cost prepaid plans to fit all usage patterns from the standard 75 minute voucher with a validity of 30 days to the 5,000 minute voucher valid for 730 days. View our full range of the Iridium Standard Prepaid Vouchers here.

The best value in Iridium prepaid airtime comes in the form of regional vouchers.  These specialty vouchers cover specific areas of the world with discounted airtime.

If you are traveling to Alaska or Canada, your best value for Iridium prepaid is the Northern Lights Plan.  This regional voucher offers discounted airtime for calls originating in Alaska or Canada to Alaska, Canada or the Continental US. (Calls can be made to other areas at a higher rate).

If you are traveling to Africa, you should consider the Africa Prepaid Plan.  This voucher is valid for a full 365 days and includes 300 minutes (calls can only be generated from within the African footprint).  For more flexibility, consider the Middle East, North Africa Prepaid Plan also known as the MENA voucher. The MENA voucher offers 500 prepaid minutes for calls originating from any one of the approved MENA countries, and 200 minutes outside of this zone.

Between the standard global prepaid and the great value of these regional vouchers, Iridium Prepaid is affordable and easy.  Call our Sales Team today at 888-664-6727 to order or visit GMPCS for more information.

Battery Stations For The IsatPhone Pro And Iridium 9555 Satellite Phones

GMPCS is pleased to offer SatStation battery docking stations for the IsatPhone Pro and Iridium 9555 satellite phones. All of these new battery docking stations are capable of rapid charging a satellite phone battery in a single process without ever draining them. This accessory from GMPCS is available in single bay units as well as four bay units, for both the Inmarsat IsatPhone Pro and the Iridium 9555.

Whether you work in the public service sector or the private sector, your ability to be effective depends on the reliability of you communications system.  While the batteries for your satellite phone keep you connected when no one else can, we have all experienced the frustration of having them run “out of juice”. The SatStation Battery Charger is the only standalone charging station for the IsatPhone Pro and Iridium 9555. It is the perfect solution for those who need their handset ready at all times.

The SatStations have the ability to maintain a battery’s peak condition for as long as it is left on the unit. While the battery is on the SatStation, it will be managed so no overheating or overcharging will occur. The GMPCS satellite phone rental department uses these SatStations to make sure every rental satellite phone goes out with two fully charged batteries. “The SatStation Battery docks are extremely valuable. And when I have several rental satellite phones going out, I know the batteries will be fully charged for our customers.” Says Celia Gajewski, GMPCS rental manager.

If you are interested in more information on the SatStation for your satellite phone please see our product pages for the phones below. They are available and in stock now.

• IsatPhone Pro Single Bay SatStation Battery Charger
• IsatPhone Pro 4 Bay SatStation Battery Charger
• Iridium 9555 Single Bay SatStation Battery Charger
• Iridium 9555 4 Bay SatStation Battery Charger

Satellite Phone and Network Comparison: Thuraya, Inmarsat, Iridium

Choosing the correct satellite phone can be a big task for personal use or for your business. Now, there are more options for handheld satellite phones than ever before. The major players for handheld satellite phones are Iridium, Inmarsat and Thuraya.

We also understand there may be many questions you have when it comes to choosing a satellite phone. That is why we are offering a complete comparison chart at the end of this Blog.

First thing you should know is a satellite telephone connects you to an orbiting constellation of satellites instead of land based terrestrial cell sites. Satellite phones provide similar functionality to terrestrial mobile telephones including voice, short messaging service (SMS) and low-bandwidth internet access. Having this connectivity to voice and data via satellite makes a satellite phone extremely useful in times of need. The satellite phone system is not hindered by natural disasters where land services might be hindered by hurricanes, earthquakes or floods. The three major players of handheld satellite phones have their own unique satellite constellations.

The Thuraya satellite phones work on the Thuraya satellite system consisting of 2 geostationary satellites. These satellites are located over Africa, Europe, Asia and Australia. Currently Thuraya does not work in the Americas. If you are traveling to the regions Thuraya covers, be sure to check out the Thuraya XT satellite phone.

The Iridium 9575 Extreme satellite phone uses a 66 low Earth orbiting satellite system that covers the entire Earth including the Polar Regions. If you are looking for a satellite phone with true global capabilities Iridium is the way to go.

Inmarsat has an extremely reliable satellite constellation of 3 geostationary satellites. The IsatPhone Pro is Inmarsat’s handheld satellite phone. The IsatPhone Pro gets great coverage over the Earth but will not work in the Polar Regions. A benefit to the IsatPhone Pro is once the phone is connected to the satellite, it is highly unlikely to drop the call. It is important to note that registering on the Inmarsat network with the IsatPhone Pro takes just over a minute because the phone needs to obtain a GPS fix before placing a call.

With a basic understanding of the 3 major satellite networks, it will be easier to choose the right satellite phone. We have an excellent comparison chart on the handheld satellite phones that you can view by clicking here. As always if you have a question we can answer call us at +1-954-973-3100

Is Tracking Your Assets More Difficult Than It is Worth?

As a Divisional manager with large asset investments or as a CIO’s looking to help enable controls, asset tracking has been long on promises but high on complexity in terms of implementation and management. An article recently exposed how one government state within a decade lost more than 1,500 items valued at over $3M with only a small portion attributed to theft, yet they recognized the need to implement a solution but also lamented at the complexity of implementation. Perhaps you and your organization are experiencing a similar dilemma.

Typical problems associated with asset tracking are…
Whether tracking a fleet of ships utilizing FleetBroadband monitoring the speed of trucks using Iridium satellite phones and pinpointing the location of agents via their Blackberry or Apple device. Managing all of these assets can be a daunting task. Logging into each individual system separately can waste valuable time and money. Some tracking solutions can be too complex making the task even more time consuming.

What makes a good asset tracking solution?
A good tracking solution tackles the business problem that it was designed to address. You will also want to make sure that it can help in the most effective and efficient way possible. When talking with providers about tracking we found that we also wanted the most functional features such as: geo-fencing, alerts based on speed or time, distress alert and safety options as well as affordable basic tracking.

Here is a listing of some key items to look for:

1. The ability to manage all types of inventory. A complete tracking solution is what you need.  Write down the functions you require, weather tracking your product en route, being notified when a vehicle leaves an area or arrives and being able to contact a driver in a remote area. Then compare your list to the tracking solution making sure it covers all your needs.
 
2. Consider the cost (both initial and ongoing). Tracking solutions incur a monthly subscription fee. This initial fee is for activation and continued licensed use of the software. Most tracking solutions have a minimal initial fee with a one year subscription term. The ongoing fees may include advanced options for tracking or special features. Another fee to consider is the airtime usage for a third party device such as tracking with a satellite or GPS subscription. Make sure the tracking cost is lower or equivalent to sending an SMS with your service subscription.
 
3. Ease-of-use: Your solution needs to be easy to learn, easy to use and easy to get going. The best software and hardware will require little to no IT support. It is very important that the tracking solution be simple to manipulate and user friendly.

Our company, an independent solutions provider of communication tools recently undertook a review of a broad base of hardware and software providers of tracking solutions for industry.

Using the above as criteria we quickly began to eliminate many of the vendors. Upon finalization of the review it was clear only one vendor has truly been paying attention to the customer requirements and has developed a comprehensive package to address this persistent yet highly valuable problem.

GSatTrack.

GSatTrack is a web based integrated tracking system that works on a multilingual platform. It brings together all the positions of every manufactured product under one location allowing you to display and manage them in a single unified interface.

GSatTrack supports the largest amount of assets and now works on 70+ GPS enabled devices including iPhones, satellite phones, FleetBroadband and BGAN. With GSatTrack you are able to do more than just track one of these devices. You will be able to do a remote configuration and over the air firmware updates, receive alerts based on speed, overlay geo-fences and have direct access to critical safety information, anywhere, anytime. Also GSatTrack allows you to integrate a panic button for assistance in dangerous situations increasing personnel and fleet safety.

The GSatTrack service is based on a modular system making it extremely affordable. You start with the basic tracking service and add additional features as necessary. Therefore you only pay for what you need and nothing more.
 
Companies benefit from the easy to use software that GSatTrack offers. A GSatTrack application can be downloaded onto a Smartphone or tablet allowing for real time tracking information. This App is another feature that makes GSatTrack stand out above the rest. A CEO can tap on the App to view all company assets and their actions on one simple to use interface.
 
Defining Your Needs.
If asset tracking is on your list of corporate priorities consider contacting us so we can walk through your specific needs to determine if this is the right fit for you. If it is, we’d be happy to arrange a demo day and enable you with some devices. Contact a sales representative here to arrange your quote or demo. For more information on GSatTrack and other communication needs view our site at www.gmpcs-us.com