Satellite IoT (SatIoT) enables asset tracking and monitoring anywhere, regardless of blind spots, without cellular coverage. Opening 85% of the planet to connectivity, SatIoT opens up the industrial IoT market. So, whether you need to keep track of livestock, crops, heavy machinery, or containers, to mention a few, how do you choose your SatIoT provider accordingly?  

Here are the top 5 things you need to know

Traditionally, SatIoT connectivity has come at a premium price, placing it out of reach for many cost-sensitive applications. But over the last 20 years, sending satellites to space got 90% cheaper. As pricing relates to volume, subscriptions often based on the size and number of transmitted data packets per month. Moreover, customers with thousands of assets must deploy the same number of modules, driving a need for cost-effective solutions. 

Low-energy need is crucial to your maintenance strategy when deploying your solution in remote areas. Low-energy global connectivity will increase the number of connected sensors and data points in many environmental, industrial, agricultural, and logistical applications, improving the accuracy of data-based forecasts. Low-energy consumption can reduce or eliminate the need for battery changes after deploying your devices. 

You need more than just seeing the status of your assets. Bidirectional​ communication lets your devices send and receive crucial information, such as asset commands. Thanks to message acknowledgements, you eliminate your messages being sent multiple times unnecessarily to ensure they reach their destination; this helps to dramatically lower total power consumption. 

Your SatIoT solution needs to retrieve data from your assets, while your application at the other end must be able to analyze and process it. In addition, installation and management must be easy, especially if your devices are deployed in remote locations. On top of their technology-oriented approach, satellite companies now focus on customer experience and offer comprehensive solutions. 

Finding the best compromise between small and efficient antennas is challenging, especially when tracking moving assets such as wild animals or livestock. The L-band frequency range, from 1 to 2 gigahertz, is the most efficient spectrum for SatIoT applications, allowing for the use of miniaturized antennas that reliably work in all weather conditions.  

With its bidirectional data protocol, Astrocast enables you to collect and manage new data through a state-of-the-art nanosatellite network designed, assembled, and operated in-house. These satellites will span the globe allowing for low-latency transmission. Astrocast provides a direct-to-satellite IoT connectivity service to scale up your remote operations around the globe. 

About three times cheaper than average monthly subscriptions, Astrocast is the only New Space IoT LEO (Low Earth Orbit) network with commercial access to the L-band spectrum. In addition, its Astronode Patch Antenna is small enough to be integrated into any asset or custom-built. Optimized for direct-to-satellite IoT applications, the Astronode S module offers the lowest peak power consumption on the market. And if you look for fast and painless integration, our Astronode S+ provides a fully certified satellite communication device. Last but not least, with the Astronode DevKit, you are set up in less than 20 minutes to test the service and send your first message through Astrocast’s network.  

Uncompromising about cybersecurity, 256-bit AES end-to-end encryption is included. In addition, Astrocast supports Space sustainability by adding propulsion and deorbiting capabilities to its Satellites to avoid debris in space. As part of the Clean Space Initiative, a mission to remove debris from Earth orbit, Astrocast is also committed to the UN’s and ESA’s Sustainable Development Goals.  

To take your IoT strategy further and unlock the power of your assets, discover Astrocast’s flexible SatIoT service by joining the Astropreneur Programs today.