Wayne.B wrote in
:

Globalstar has been getting poor reports from those who have used it,
frequent disconnections being the most common complaint. Most folks
seem to prefer Iridium. It's more expensive but apparently a lot more
reliable. I have no first hand experience with either.



Globalstar's satellite constellation is not yet complete....hence the cheap
prices. The drops are caused by gaps between the birds. There's also a
considerable difference in technology. Globalstar birds are simply
repeaters to the nearest ground station, hence the land-based-only coverage
footprint. Then their LEOs are over ocean, there's no ground station in
range. Iridium, on the other hand, has a full constellation of LEO
satellites that also act as relay stations, relaying your call from bird-
to-bird until it gets in range of the ground station nearest who you are
calling, even on the other side of the planet. This gives them true global
coverage with no gaps if you're standing outside with a view of the sky.

Too bad Iridium went belly up and had to be bailed out by the military.
It's a great concept, but was just too expensive to implement and operate.

Larry
--
Search youtube for "Depleted Uranium"
The ultimate dirty bomb......