AD C <graphi47uk@y.a.h.o.o.co.uk> wrote:
> abuse@dopiaza.cabal.org.uk wrote:
[...]
>> Only if the satellite is in geostationary orbit. Iridium uses a
>> large number of near-earth satellites some 450 miles above the
>> Earth. The back of a fagpacket calculation suggests that this
>> contributes a delay of just 4ms.
> About price? I know someone who have satellite broadband and it
> costs a fortune, they are getting rid of it soon, because Bt have
> now decided that they will put ADSL into the village.
Iridium is a propietary mobile phone system, not a broadband system.
Similar technology *could* be used to provide broadband, but Iridium
concentrate more on voice.
[...]
>> My main objection to Skype is that it *does* require hardware - a
>> PC. Leaving that running 24/7 so you can receive calls will cost
>> you 60 quid a year or so just in electricity. So much for it being
>> free.
> My computer is on 24/7 and it don't cost me £60 a year, in fact I
> got 2 computers on 24/7 and it don't cost me £60 a year.
Are you sure of that?
I've put a power meter on various of my machines. The power
consumption varies on all sorts of factors, but the readings varied
between 90-180W at idle. The newer the machine, the more power it
tends to draw.
Let's take 120W as a reasonable average. So over an hour, it will
consume 0.12kWh of energy. Multiply by 24 and 365.25 and you discover
that it will consume 1052kWh over a year.
The cost per kWh varies depending on your supplier and tariff, but it
averages around 6p/kWh. 1052kWh * 0.05p/kWh = 6312p, or slightly over
60 quid.
[...]
>> My SPA-2000 doesn't use anything like that much juice, allows me to
>> leave my desk (with the handy addition of a cheap DECT phone) and
>> isn't a magnet for every worm and virus out there.
> But not everyone wants to go to that trouble just to have cheaper
> calls to other countries, which is what people will use Skype for
> most of the time.
Strange. I took one look at X-Lite and found it lacking, and a pain to
use. The Sipura mostly just works.
> TBH, I have been looking at some of the call costs on these VOIP
> services and most of them are more expensive than what my landline
> phone is. Apart from maybe Vonage, because you pay a fixed cost, but
> that would not pay people who uses a BT line.
Well, yes, you don't actually save any money on the VoIP services
offered to consumers. That end of the market seems to be mostly
chancers preying on customers who have heard that "VoIP is cheap" and
don't look too closely at the prices.
Check out Gradwell's price list for a WTF? moment. Remember that you
need to add VAT on top. (Quoting ex-VAT prices to consumers? Naughty,
naughty...)
--
Just last week, someone called every morning to speak to President Gore. By
Friday, the operator was flustered, and finally snapped, "You call every day
asking that, and every day I tell you that Mr. Gore lost the election. Why?"
"I just like hearing that. It's a great start for the day!"