Selecting the Right High Seas Communications (including e-mail)
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Going out of sight of land?

VHF radio communication is only possible up to about 20 miles offshore and cell phone range is less. So what do we do when we are out of range of these services? Single Sideband (SSB) and Ham radio has been the standard for high seas communications for many years, but recently, technological advances have given us some exciting new alternatives to these old standbys.

Selection questions for offshore communications

What kind of communications do you want?

High-seas communication can be categorized as follows: voice, email, fax, Internet browsing, and emergency. Speed of the connection with fax, email, and browsing varies dramatically.

With whom do you want to communicate?

The answer to this question will greatly impact what device and service you select. While a phone is great for calling home, it is of lesser use if you want to chat with fellow cruisers about local knowledge. Family, office, Coast Guard (or other rescue agencies), marine businesses, the Internet, weather routers, marine nets (whether Ham or High Seas Marine), medical services, etc. require different methods of communications, so you have to weigh importance, preference, reliability, speed and cost.

How often will you use it?

The frequency and length of your messages impacts the cost of operation, depending on the type of communications system you choose. While some services are free once you own the equipment (SSB and Ham radio), others charge by the length of the message, some have a monthly or annual service charges and some have both.

How important is transmission speed?

E-mail is asynchronous, meaning that a message may not get a quick response while a phone call is harder to ignore. This does not change when you leave terra firma. What does change is the reliability and speed of transmission. If you choose to send e-mail via modem and SSB radio, you opt for a budget-conscious solution but you might have to wait for favorable conditions (propagation) depending on your location. If your communication is essential (e.g. with your office) and you need to be in touch at certain times, you will have to use a satellite-based system such as Inmarsat that operates with the same reliability and speed around the clock, albeit at a higher cost.

How much skill is reasonable to expect for the operator?

Ham, in particular, is difficult for non-Hams to operate (and illegal). SSBs have a lesser, but still challenging, operating "system". The success of sending e-mail via SSB hinges on a good modem and proper installation of the radio (see below). Inmarsat Mini-M, on the other hand, is almost as easy to operate as an ordinary telephone.


So what are your choices?

Single Sideband (SSB)

Single Sideband (SSB) radios, such as the ICOM 802, offer relatively reliable ship-to-ship and ship-to-Coast Guard communications for cruisers and racers. Because SSB is a "party line" system, and everyone can hear your communications, it's ideal for coordinating rescues at sea and for marine "nets" where cruisers gather on a schedule to discuss topics of interest. It's also the choice for offshore ocean race position rollcalls, since all participants can listen in on other vessels' communications. SSB radios are moderately expensive, and require sophisticated installation which may equal or even eclipse the cost of the hardware. They also require some training for use, although no exam is required to operate one.

SailMail and other SSB and Ham e-mail programs

The most affordable way to send e-mail from a boat has also become more convenient in recent years. SSB radio, a laptop computer and a system like SailMail or a Ham station will do the trick. While slow, this method has the advantage of using two expensive items that you are likely to have on board already (SSB and computer), and requires only the addition of a Terminal Node Controller (or TNC, a glorified modem for your SSB), and a relationship with a communications site on land. For more information visit www.sailmail.com.

Inmarsat C and Mini-M Satellite Systems

These are the Big Dogs in the marine satellite communications world. Using four big geostationary satellites, Inmarsat provides extremely reliable text, fax, data, and voice communications virtually worldwide. Not surprisingly, you pay dearly for equipment and use, but it's still the best on the market and our customers are loyal to it.


Inmarsat C (or Standard C)

This is a text service for sending and receiving e-mail. Cost is 25¢ per 32 characters of a message. Note that this West Advisor is approximately 9,000 characters (including spaces) and would cost $70 to send to your friends (not to imply for a moment that it wouldn't be worth it!) So brevity is not only the soul of wit, but also critical to extending your cruising kitty. Inmarsat C also has the ability to send a distress e-mail to rescue agencies around the world, since it often comes with built-in GPS, and can store pre-formatted emergency messages. This is an excellent companion product to a 406 MHz EPIRB. Cruisers we know are 100% sold on this service, despite its high cost. They rely on it to keep in touch and to run their businesses when offshore.

eTrac mini-C/GPS

Provides mariners with affordable access to e-mail and real-time vessel position reporting at 1 penny per character and no monthly charge. It includes transceiver and GPS, supports all Inmarsat mini-C satellite network features and connects to onboard computers or laptops via built-in interface. Compact and light with minimal power requirements it is a good choice for small cruising vessels.

Inmarsat Mini-M

Mini-M provides voice, 2400 bps G-III fax and data capability and utilizes "spot beams" of the Inmarsat satellites. These spot beams generate more downlinking power allowing the equipment to have smaller antennas. Our experience is limited, but very positive. While sailing trans-Atlantic on the racing catamaran PlayStation, we elected to call home from an angry ocean filled with icebergs. Within seconds of dialing the U.S. phone number, the connection was made and it was like talking from one home to another across town. Excellent voice quality, and robust, reliable service. West Marine offers an extremely competitive rate of $1.59 per minute, worldwide, with no monthly charges.

Skymate

The SkyMate 100 is a new system that has caught the attention of cruisers who want to consolidate and simplify their high-seas satellite communications, using a laptop and patented satellite technology. The specs sound very good so we are eager to try it ourselves. SkyMate offers several services, including voice, fax, e-mail weather and vessel monitoring. Service plans start at $15.99 per month. Text-to-speech technology automatically translates e-mail into voice messages for delivery to any phone or fax number. E-mail features include: Auto send and receive of e-mail messages, spam filter, land-side storage of large e-mails (and attachments) for later use and broadcasting emails with your daily position fix on a four-color map to a defined mailing list. Weather services include: Real-time forecasts with NEWRAD weather radar, detailed daily and five-day forecasts via e-mail, and all NOAA text forecasts including coastal, offshore, high seas-even buoy reports. The optional SentryMate monitoring service provides up-to-date information via e-mail on your boat's condition e.g. bilge water level, battery charge or shore side AC power. You can set it up so these reports can be sent to your office, home, or to the harbor master.

Globalstar

Globalstar is a regional satellite voice and data system which is great for coastal cruising up to 200 miles off North, Central and South America and deep into the Caribbean. Utilizing CDMA technology, Globalstar is known for superior voice quality and great data throughput (solid 9600bps.) Globalstar has a variety of marine kit options some of which can be coupled with the portable phone. In other words, you can use the Globalstar satellites and technology, but plug in a standard wired or portable telephone inside the boat.

Cost of the phones is only $500 with $20 monthly service fee and $0.99/minute charge. Special plans bring service down to as low as $0.17/minute! For more information on the service area and technical details, try www.gmpcs-us.com.


Conclusion

These days it seems that everyone has a need to be connected at all times. With these new technologies it is possible for the mariner to stay connected on the high seas as well as on land. With the addition of a TNC to your SSB or Ham receiver you can now receive e-mail at sea on your laptop computer. With a satellite system you can communicate by voice, fax or email virtually anywhere on earth. These systems add convenience, more pleasure and increased safety to the offshore experience


Other items related to Single Side Band (SSB) communications:

Follow link for more about the ICOM AT-140 HF Automatic antenna tuner
Matches the transceiver to a long wire antenna with little insertion loss.

More about the ICOM 802 single Side Band Tranceiver (SSB)

More about the Gam / McKim Split Lead Single Side Band Antenna

More about the STS Pactor modem

More information about the Super Dynaplate by Guest



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