What would be the best satellite phone plan for use in Iraq?

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http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&q=cell+phones+for+iraq+soliders&btnG=Google+Search&aq=f&oq=&aqi=

http://answers.yahoo.com/question/index?qid=20090322063936AAzKJGg

Hands down the cheapest satellite internet phone plan is through Thuraya…which has coverage all over the mideast and europe. it is substancially cheaper that immersat or the other guys. however…make no mistake….it is still expensive. back in 2005 i paid $650 for a refurbished phone and prepaid minutes ran right at 85 cents per minute. and yes…thats much cheaper than all the others. overall…the coverage was great….very satisfied. it may be cheaper now.

A word of advice….dont get a satellite phone. you dont need it in iraq. even back in 2005 as soon as i got to iraq i bought a cellphone. and guess what? cellular service has come ALONG way since then. im in iraq now on another deployment and i travel all over the country. theres cellular service almost at every major location. i bought a phone for $55 and the sim card for something like $25 or whatever, prepaid minutes are around 30 cents per minute. if you are stuck somewhere shitty….which is highly unlikely….you can always order the satphone when you get there and just wait a few weeks for it to catch up to you. no big deal. the sat phone is unnecessary and overpriced when iraq has nearly nation wide cellular coverage. there are currently 3 cell carriers in iraq…each with their pros and cons (price, coverage, cost of minutes). it is possible to bring some phones from the USA and just buy a sim card. it is also possible that some cell phones from the USA will work seamlessly over here in iraq. back in 2005, the only carrier was AT&T and it cost no less than $2.95 per minute. however, other soldiers tell me it is WAY cheaper now…in fact…i know one guy that uses it exclusively and there may be other carriers (IE verizon) that have service as well. youd have to research it. but anyway, if you have your heart set on a cellphone…just spend $55 bucks over here and buy prepaid minutes….thats what everyone does.

now…another word of advice, if your on a major installation (IE balad, taji, tallil, victory, al asad, etc)- dont buy a cellphone. you dont need it. Firstly…theres the MWR which has free phones. Second, if your calling back to the USA you can use the AT&T phone booths…which are still kinda pricey….but cheaper than the cellular minutes.

Anyway troop, all of this is irrelevant because you have VOIP at almost every major FOB. SKYPE is the way to go…i think its like freggin 3 cents a minute or something. And yes, most major FOBs have internet in your living accomadations (tent or trailer). Believe it or not, at this very moment i am sitting on top of an M1151 at a remote site within camp victory waiting for my convoy to SP. So i have wireless internet here! Youll be able to instant message, plus you can use yahoo voice…or just use VoIP/SKYPE. Now…if for some reaon you wanted to buy satellite internet…well thats a whole other subject.

long story short…dont do anything. wait until you get here and youll find that youve got internet, voip, free mwr phones, SKYPE, AT&T phones, and if you really are that lazy (which i am) then just shell out 100 bucks or so for the cellphone. even thats retarded though because since i have internet in my trailer on tallil i could just use SKYPE. but i wanted a cellphone….because i run convoys….never know where ill be or if ill have a computer with net access. i havent used the cellphone in…probably 5 months.

dont buy anything.youll be just fine….its a cake walk over here for real!
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