R_Lefebvre
Expedition Leader
You might want to check into a www.wilsonantenna.com. They work with any cell phone and improve reception, dramatically. I looked into a sat phone, and was rudely awakened to the hidden costs. Just a thought, good luck.
Thanks, I'll look into that. Though, part of my desire would be to have a phone that works while on my enduro or hiking/canoeing, this thing might be "good enough".
You didn't say "who" your cell phone provider was...
but you may find different levels of coverage depending on which network you are using...
I'm with Bell currently.
I've had my Globalstar phone for about 5 years now. The service definitely went down hill a few years ago, but in my opinion the service has been restored noticeably in the last year. I am using a GSP-1600 with a GPK-1400 car kit. The cradle is next to me in the truck so I can see how often and how long I can maintain signal.
That's the one I was looking at. $400 for the phone with the car kit. I was playing with their satelite reception thing, to see when it might have signal, looks like it is at least 50% of the time?
How well do these phones work, generally, under tree cover?
And the GSP-1600 is supposed to be some kind of dual mode with GSM? How does that work?