FreedomYachts.org

Or maybe not. My trawler based buddy says he'll never give his up. But with an Iridium 9575 around $1300 and variety of service providers offering plans around $1 a minute they are looking very attractive. I've never installed an SSB, but I've heard a full blown installation can run in the $4000 range. And then there is this:
http://www.gizmag.com/iridium-go-satell ... pot/30711/
That looks very interesting. An Iridium wifi hotspot. No pricing info yet but the very cool line is:

"The Go is also compatible with Iridium Next, the company's upcoming satellite network that can supposedly boost those speeds closer to modern 3G/4G levels."
Granted, the thing will probably cost at least as much as a phone and the service plan will be a killer, but 3G speeds in the middle of the ocean? That would be something.

Lance Smith
Soon-to-be-Freedom-38 owner
Baltimore, MD

A sat phone can't do what an SSB can. If you've ever done any extensive cruising outside of the US, you'd find that SSB nets are how people keep track of one another. I currently check into 1 net (the Pan Pacific net which covers from Nicaragua to Ecuador and out as far as they can go to cover the people heading to the Pacific. I also listen to 2 other nets and I used to be a network controller and the weather guy for the NW Caribbean net. You simply can't replace a SSB with a sat phone.

-- Geoff

Geoff (and others),
My F38 came with an ICOM SSB which is probably around 15 to 18 years old. I don't use it on the Great Lakes, but was planning on buying an antenna and putting it back into service when we retire and go cruising in a couple years. Do you know if there are any strongly compelling reason to consider replacing it with a newer model? I assume newer radios are probably more energy efficient - but outside of that (and assuming it is in good serviceable condition) - does does recommissioning it seem like a reasonable plan?
Thanks,
Bob

As long as the SSB is working properly, there's no reason to replace it. You may have to do a lot of cleaning of connections, etc to get it to work properly, but my 14 yo SEA radio works great.

-- Geoff