LEO Sat FAQ
See the LEO Sat FAQ below. Contact Concord to help get your yacht up to speed with LEO Sat satellite internet.
Latest LEO Sat Info
Why Opt for Concord Marine Electronics for Your LEO Sat System?
When considering the acquisition of a high-performance internet system such as LEO Sat for your vessel, Concord Marine Electronics emerges as the optimal choice for maritime satellite internet. Here's why you should exclusively consider purchasing your LEO Sat High-Performance Yacht and Maritime system from us:- No Additional Fees:
Avoid paying the extra costs imposed by authorized LEO Sat resellers. With Marine Data Solutions, you contract directly with LEO Sat for your monthly airtime, ensuring no additional fees are added to your monthly charges for maritime satellite broadband.
- Expert Installation:
Concord Marine Electronics not only sells LEO Sat High Performance equipment but also provides expert installation tailored for the Yacht and Maritime environment, delivering top-notch maritime internet solutions. Our experienced team ensures proper setup, addressing unique challenges, and optimizing the onboard network for the best high-speed internet for yachts.
- Equipment is In-Stock and Ready for Immediate Install:
We maintain a ready stock of LEO Sat High-Performance Systems, offering immediate solutions for yacht broadband connectivity. Skip the waiting time for equipment or installation services and get your system up and running promptly.
- 24/7 Tech Support:
AMaritime life operates on its own schedule, and with Concord Marine Electronics, you get fast technical support for your internet access. We understand that internet issues can arise at any time, and we are available 24/7, ensuring we can assist you with troubleshooting any challenges with your LEO Sat system promptly.
In summary, when you choose to procure a LEO Sat High-Performance System from Marine Data Solutions, you're investing in a high-quality system, expertly installed, with no additional monthly fees, and backed by 24/7 tech support for high-speed internet in the maritime environment.
Feel free to reach out if you have any questions or if you're ready to equip your yacht with a LEO Sat system today. +1 954 779 1100
Purpose of this LEO Sat FAQ:
Click here to request a price list.
For optimal performance on your yacht, we recommend the Mobile High-Performance antenna, currently priced at $2500 in the USA. This antenna provides access to all available LEO Sat plans, ranging from $150 to $6000 per month, and is designed to work seamlessly in motion and internationally with the correct priority plan for nautical satellite internet. No other LEO Sat antenna is recommended for yacht or ship use.
Your selected LEO Sat airtime plan provides a specific amount of priority data, after which you continue to receive unlimited "standard" (non-priority, "best effort") service.
Click here to request a price list.
Click here to request a LEO Sat airtime price list.
While LEO Sat provides great internet performance, there are significant LEO Sat internet interruptions during heavy rain, leading to no internet service until the rain stops (even with the LEO Sat High -Performance antenna). In Fort Lauderdale, we have observed frequent LEO Sat internet service interruptions, even without heavy rain, causing big onboard user frustration, especially when users are trying to use a remote desktop, video conferencing, and Gaming.
LEO Sat Maritime, Verizon 5G & AT&T Blender
Marine Data Solutions has developed the MDS Blender, which bonds and mixes multiple 5G and LEO Sat systems to reduce internet dropouts common on a standalone LEO Sat installation. The hardware instantly switches to the vessel's 5G connection during LEO Sat interruptions, providing a seamless, uninterrupted internet session for high-performance yacht broadband.
Learn more about the MDS Blender.
The LEO Sat Mobile High-Performance Flat Panel ($2500) version is approved for use with vessels in motion and internationally, making it a perfect choice for nautical broadband solutions. Other versions are not approved for motion or extended international use.
LEO Sat does not provide phone tech support, only email support.
Onboard labor for warranty issues is not covered, and there are no certified repair centers.
Service saturation in geographic areas can affect speed, especially on the "best effort" plan for maritime offshore broadband.
Our techs have extensive experience installing LEO Sat systems, and we maintain an inventory of required installation parts. Contact us today to schedule your LEO Sat installation at +1 954 779 1100 and enjoy our Five Star Yacht and Maritime communication solutions.
The recommended antenna for yachts is the Mobile High-Performance Flat Panel antenna, priced at $2500. Service plans range from $150 to $6000 per month for maritime connectivity systems. This antenna works in motion, internationally, and with all available LEO Sat Service Plans, allowing turning LEO Sat service on/off as needed in 30-day increments.
Yes, you can install multiple LEO Sat systems on the same yacht or ship. However, you will need an MDS Blender to connect up to 4 LEO Sat systems, creating a single network for maritime networking technologies.
More MDS Blender info here.
LEO Sat coverage continually improves with new satellite launches by SpaceX, ensuring internet for offshore locations. Currently, LEO Sat works reliably worldwide, except for the Poles.
Unfortunately, there is no LEO Sat tech support by phone for yacht wireless internet. Direct tech support is available through email on the LEO Sat website or the LEO Sat app.
After email communication with LEO Sat tech support, refurbished parts are shipped for "Do it Yourself" repairs and replacements. LEO Sat parts are shipped to the account billing address for maritime satellite installation. There is no "onboard/onsite" labor coverage by LEO Sat for warranty issues.
Click here to request a LEO Sat airtime price list.
If the LEO Sat antenna is on the same horizontal plane as the vessel radar beam, the LEO Sat system will not work during radar transmission. Satellite obstructions like rain, cloud cover, mast, boom, radar, tuna tower, tall buildings, or mountains can negatively affect LEO Sat system performance, causing intermittent internet loss or significant speed loss for tech-enabled yachting.
Click here to request a LEO Sat airtime price list.
The main difference between LEO Sat and Viasat is the latency. Viasat latency is generally 500-650ms, while LEO Sat latency is generally 60-80ms. The additional system latency with Viasat can create a frustrating user experience in online forms, remote desktops, and video conferencing.
However, LEO Sat also has limitations with remote desktops, video conferencing, and gaming due to multiple service dropouts per hour.
Viasat offers enterprise-grade, superyacht quality satellite internet service with 24/7 phone tech support and worldwide local technical support.
Click here to request a price list.
The MDS Blender will allow you to connect up to 4 high speed "sources" (LEO Sat and/or 5G) in any combination. The MDS Blender will Speed Bond up to 4 internet sources, to a maximum speed of 1Gbps, and provide your network with enterprise-grade connectivity, with true instant failover, automatically shifting network traffic to the rest of your working internet sources. This hybrid enterprise-grade connectivity is the secret sauce that allows high-bandwidth applications to work properly. For example, remote desktops, like AnyDesk and TeamViewer work properly, without constant interruptions, as do video conferencing applications like Teams, Zoom, and WhatsApp.
Check out the MDS Blender here: https://marinedatasolutions.com/mds-blender/
The LEO Sat constellation of Satellites is projected to have 30,000-40,000 satellites for full high-speed internet coverage of our entire planet. The current number of LEO Sat satellites in orbit, and use is less than 4,000. So we are only at about 10% coverage at this time, for this reason, there are usually multiple times per hour when the LEO Sat internet stops working. When there is no LEO Sat satellite in view, you will not have internet service. When the internet stops working, even for a split second, the remote desktops and Video conferencing apps stop working. Those are the LEO Sat "network issues" that can only be resolved by launching thousands more satellites. (Currently, SpaceX is launching satellites about once a week, with 22 satellites on board for each launch. Those satellites only have a working life of about 5 years before they must be replaced…. Based on those factors, the math appears to tell us that it will be many years before we have full coverage from LEO Sat)
Check out the MDS Blender here: https://marinedatasolutions.com/mds-blender/
The LEO Sat constellation of Satellites is projected to have 30,000-40,000 satellites for full high-speed internet coverage of our entire planet. The current number of LEO Sat satellites in orbit, and use is less than 4,000. So we are only at about 10% coverage at this time, for this reason, there are usually multiple times per hour when the LEO Sat internet stops working. When there is no LEO Sat satellite in view, you will not have internet service. When the internet stops working, even for a split second, the remote desktops and Video conferencing apps stop working. Those are the LEO Sat "network issues" that can only be resolved by launching thousands more satellites. (Currently, SpaceX is launching satellites about once a week, with 22 satellites on board for each launch. Those satellites only have a working life of about 5 years before they must be replaced…. Based on those factors, the math appears to tell us that it will be many years before we have full coverage from LEO Sat)
Check out the MDS Blender here: https://marinedatasolutions.com/mds-blender/
LEO Sat performance can be hindered if the antenna is on the same level as the vessel's radar beam, or by obstacles like rain, clouds, masts, booms, and tall structures. These can lead to intermittent internet loss or decreased speed.
Click here to request a price list.
The primary distinction between LEO Sat and Viasat lies in latency. Viasat generally experiences 500-650ms latency, whereas LEO Sat's is around 60-80ms. This difference can notably impact user experience in online applications. However, LEO Sat also faces its own challenges with service continuity.
Viasat offers high-grade, superyacht-level satellite internet with 24/7 phone support and global technical assistance.
The MDS Blender facilitates the connection of up to 4 high-speed internet sources, including LEO Sat and 5G. This device provides enterprise-grade network connectivity with instant failover, ensuring efficient operation of high-bandwidth applications like remote desktops and video conferencing.
Find out more about the MDS Blender here: https://marinedatasolutions.com/mds-blender/
LEO Sat's current satellite constellation covers only a fraction of its planned capacity, resulting in frequent service interruptions. This limited coverage leads to regular disruptions in internet service, affecting remote desktop and video conferencing applications.
Links:
LEO Sat News
4G/5G Yacht Internet
Viasat Satellite Interent
Marine Data Solutions Provider
LEO Sat Info
See Updated Text Below
Tech Talk video dialog with Captain Douglas Meier from “The Bottom Line – Yacht Industry News” and Michael Robilio from Marine Data Solutions.
Filmed December 2022, some details have been updated in this text version.Captain Douglas Meier:
This week on Tech Talk, we’re going to be talking about LEO Sat, what it can do, what it can’t do and where it’s going. We’re going to utilize Mike Robilio’s knowledge. He’s from Marine Data Solutions, and he’s going to give us an update on what’s going on with LEO Sat. Hi Mike, so LEO Sat constellation of low Earth orbit satellites, they’re all spinning simultaneously. They All look like Teslas.Michael Robilio from Marine Data Solutions:
Right, exactly…. Laughing……The LEO Sat satellites send Internet to a terminal that’s on your boat. There are two terminals that will work on the boat. Once called an RV, the other one is called Maritime.LEO Sat Internet
Captain Douglas Meier:
How much is the RV one?Michael Robilio from Marine Data Solutions:
RV is $600.00 for the hardware, and $135 a month for the airtime. Do you want me to explain to the differences right now? Yes. OK, so the RV system has been moved to “best effort” service, which means it does not have any priority service. So when you’re with your RV unit, whether you’re on land or whether you’re somewhere on the water in the Bahamas all the other dishes around you have priority over you. (Residential, business, and Maritime systems)Captain Douglas Meier:
I heard that a lot of guys were on the RV and a cruise ship pulled into the port like a vacuum and sucked all the Internet out and they were kind of like left with no service.Michael Robilio from Marine Data Solutions:
That’s exactly what happened. The cruise ships have the Maritime version, which has priority service.Captain Douglas Meier:
Can yachts get the Maritime versions?Michael Robilio from Marine Data Solutions:
Yes, they can. It’s $5,000 for the hardware and $5,000 a month for the airtime, which in the big picture is actually affordable as compared to the cost of traditional marine Vsat.Captain Douglas Meier:
Now, Marine Data Solutions, your company, you guys put this out. (holds up MDS 242 5G unit) This is a cellular based yes system, yes, this is good for about 20 miles offshore.Michael Robilio from Marine Data Solutions:
Yes, with the correct antennas, yes, 20 mile range.Captain Douglas Meier:
OK. So if you had this and then you want to go really offshore and you get LEO Sat, you have those two options, yes. And is the internet service the same? Is LEO Sat unlimited data like your sim cards?Michael Robilio from Marine Data Solutions:
The Maritime LEO Sat version is capped at 5 terabytes a month for $5000. When you go over that 5 terabytes, you have to pay $2.00 per GB.Captain Douglas Meier:
Per Gig? My son uses 5 Terabytes on Xbox every week !!Michael Robilio from Marine Data Solutions:
Yeah, understandable. The RV version is capped at 1 terabyte, but because you’re not priority service, the speed for RV system is limited to a maximum of 50 megs down. So they’re saying the speed on the LEO Sat Maritime is between 50 and 260 megs, and on the LEO Sat RV it’s between 5 and 50 megs is what you can expect for speeds.Captain Douglas Meier:
There’s talk online about LEO Sat RV geofencing offshore, and there’s talk online about if you have the RV version and you’re moving, it shuts down. Is there any truth to that?Michael Robilio from Marine Data Solutions:
Yes. What I hear is that when you’re over 10 knots, the LEO Sat RV does stop working, but it doesn’t do that everywhere. We hear reports that off of Baja, Mexico, it’s working great at 20 knots, and then there’s people in the Bahamas and it stops working at 10 knots. So some are having LEO Sat RV shutting down underway, and others are not having that issue. We can’t tell if it’s geographically a problem or if it’s just that the LEO Sat equipment got a different software update, we can’t tell yet. It’s so new, but there are definitely people with LEO Sat RV having problems receiving internet with vessel in motion.Captain Douglas Meier:
For sure. OK. And where do you see LEO Sat and yachts going, say in the next 12 months? Where do you see everybody? Where are we going to end up? Because it’s like nobody knows, right?Michael Robilio from Marine Data Solutions:
It’s all it’s the Wild, Wild, West right now with LEO Sat. They’re changing the rules as they go every day. But my expectation is going to be that the RV units will become less and less usable because they are not a priority system. And the more boats, ships and cruise ships that are out there with the maritime version, they will consume the high priority bandwidth. They’re gonna take the bandwidth that’s available in that location, and it’s not just a maritime version. So if you have a home or a business version in the Bahamas, those people with a home and a business version get their priority service and the RV gets whatever’s left over. So the RV is going to become less and less of a solid option. But there are other things coming that will help.Captain Douglas Meier:
OK last question, where’s the coverage for this system? You have this wonderful map. (Points at TV screen) This is yours? This is your network? Yes, this is really cool.Michael Robilio from Marine Data Solutions:
Yeah, this is our system.Captain Douglas Meier:
OK, but we’re talking LEO Sat. Where is LEO Sat available?Michael Robilio from Marine Data Solutions:
On the LEO Sat website, they’ve got a coverage map and it changes constantly as they launch more satellites.Captain Douglas Meier:
In Europe?Michael Robilio from Marine Data Solutions:
Yes, yes, the Med is completely covered. Some of South America is covered now. I think Australia’s completely covered. There’s a lot of coverage.Captain Douglas Meier:
Definitely the Caribbean, the Bahamas, yes, New England, Florida, Gulf of Mexico, all that.Michael Robilio from Marine Data Solutions:
Yeah, that’s all covered really well now.Captain Douglas Meier:
So basically, I guess what I’m gathering from this is it’s work in progress, yes, but with the cost involved. And let’s say you’re a Florida, Bahamas, Caribbean?Michael Robilio from Marine Data Solutions:
Yes, the LEO Sat system actually covers a lot of that ground too. It does. It covers all of it.Captain Douglas Meier:
OK, so maybe a hybrid of both systems?Michael Robilio from Marine Data Solutions:
So what’s coming is the problem with LEO Sat is that there’s not enough satellites up there yet. There’s less than 4000 and the constellation is scheduled to be 30,000. So we’re at 10% of coverage right now or a little more. So there’s a lot of times when there’s just not a satellite up there and so you have a 2 minute gap of no service or maybe you have a 30 second gap, which lots of people are currently experiencing.Captain Douglas Meier:
Right. And that’s what a lot of people are having happened right now. So between losing priority status and being throttled on the RV and you don’t have that quite as many satellites as we need, there’s dropouts in the service.Michael Robilio from Marine Data Solutions:
So what we’ve got coming is equipment that will blend the LEO Sat with the 4G and 5G systems. So the blended internet systems will eliminate those LEO Sat service dropouts and the user internet experience will be uninterrupted. Will also be faster than both of those systems singly. And when one or the other drops out, the other is going to give you what’s available. So what we’re trying to do is eliminate the internet service dropouts.Captain Douglas Meier:
OK, so and it’s coming, and over time it’ll be fixed with LEO Sat, but they’ve got to launch another thousand satellites. Is that what you’re doing?Michael Robilio from Marine Data Solutions:
Launching satellites? No…. (laughing)Captain Douglas Meier:
Well, I know you put one up the other day. No, I mean, Marine Data is going to kind of build a hybrid system.Michael Robilio from Marine Data Solutions:
Yes, yes. So we’re working with several manufacturers and we’re testing now to get that equipment ready to go where you’re going to be able to blend LEO Sat and 5G to have a seamless service. No matter where you go.Captain Douglas Meier:
Thank you!! All right, gang. That’s Tech Talk. It’s work in progress. There’s no cut and dry answer on what’s going on, but there’s a lot of stuff on the horizon. Thanks, Mike.Contact Concord for more LEO Sat info.