Deep in FUBAR territory, color me unsurprised, and in the “I know just how he feels” department…
So, as it happens, Starlink has just come up with a half-assed reasonable plan called Personal Maritime, and while it costs more than some would like, it’s sorta/kinda affordable.
That said, being Starlink there’s a catch… and only open to boats forty feet or less. I expect they’ll sort it out sooner or later but I’ll enjoy listening to the condomaran folks whining about the cost in the meantime.
Living in the future… so it goes
For basic safety information like weather info, piracy alerts, with just texting it STILL doesn’t seem to make sense. What happened to the old way of just sending messages in a bottle?
Is NAVTEX still functioning? I got called out for saying people have crossed oceans for millenia without starlink; I suppose some people cant do without Faceache and Netprix while ocean crossing. Grib files to a Garmin In-reach seems a better deal. I just wouldnt bother, there is always some one in an anchorage with all the kit, willing to share weather data.
Of course you don’t need internet to cross oceans. That said, For a lot of us a link to the internet is how some folks earn money to be able to pay the bills. For me at least being able to do business when needful has very little to do with sailing but everything to do with being able to afford to cruise.
That is a fair enough comment, and one i tried to get across, without success on another platform. A subscription package for buisness users and content creators with high data use, and a low cost package for those with basic weather and contact needs. I do not know if the system is capped for use, or “some” people have been abusing the service at the cost to others.
Im going to crawl back into my cave now, where there is no signal……