Iridium GO Frequently Asked Questions
Before you depart
To use the Iridium Go device you need to connect it to your mobile phone but first you need to install the Apps required to control the device. There are 2 apps the Iridium Go Voice app and the Iridium Mail app. These need to be downloaded and installed on the device before you can do anything. To use the Iridium Go mail and web app you need to first register a login with Iridium. This can be done at https://www.iridium.com/mailandweb/ You will need to enter your satellite phone details, if you have a local number service you will need to change the subscriber type to Pivotel subscriber and when entering the phone number drop the 0 from the front of your number and replace it with 61, so the number 0412345678 will need to be entered as 61412345678. Store these login details for later use.
Connecting to the Iridium go
Flick the antenna up to switch on the device and wait for it to load. Once loaded on your mobile go into the Wi-Fi settings and connect to the iridium Wi-Fi connection (it will be something like Iridium-6252). Your phone may say that there is no internet connection. This is fine as you are not accessing the internet from the device, you are just connecting to the iridium go at this stage. Once connected load the Iridium Go voice app and use the login details: Default user name: guest Password: guest
Satellite connection
You can check your satellite signal from the iridium Go device yourself with the signal displayed in the top left of the screen. Alternatively in the mobile app the graphic in the top left shows your connection from the mobile to the iridium go and then the connection from the iridium go to the satellite
How to make a call
Once you are connected to the Iridium Go and the Iridium go is connected to the satellite you can just select call from within the iridium Go app. Most Rent A Satellite Phone services are on local number services so to call a mobile you just dial the number as normal. For landlines you just need to enter the state code and then the number. Please Note: If you have been setup on an unlimited data setup you will be on an international voice service so to make a call you will need to use full international format. So to call the Australian mobile 0412345678 you will need to dial +61412345678.
Sending a text message
To Send a text message Load the Iridium Go Voice app and go to message and tap the icon in the top right to create a new message. Select the recipient by either taping the icon to choose from your phone book or type the number in. Please Note: when entering the phone number please use full international format for the number so for the mobile 0412 345 678 you would enter the number as +61412345678. Type your message then press the green icon to send. Please note that the Iridium go stress all text messages and shares them with any mobile device connected. So if you receive a private sms, and delete it off your mobile the next mobile that connects to the device will receive that same message. Rental devices are factory reset before sending out with the next customer however other users from your party will see the message.
Sending your location
From the Iridium Go Voice App press the Track icon. Press the quick GPS button to send your location as a text message.
How to use the Iridium Go
Using the Mail and Web app
When you load the Iridium Go Mail and Web app go into settings and enter your login credentials you setup before you departed. Although there are a few options available photo sharing and twitter access no longer are supported by the iridium go. The basic weather app is a great way to check basic weather information, by going into setting you can choose from a list of options that you would like to download, remember the more you select the longer the data connection will need to be and hence the more expensive the call will be. Once setup press refresh and the iridium Go will initialise a connection to download the data and display it on the screen when downloaded. The Mail icon will load the text email client. This option is available however it is not recommended for general rental customers. This is because it’s a text only service only accessible through the iridium Go so once the device is returned the emails are no longer accessible. It is also a dial up service so each time you press send and receive just to check if you have any emails it will need to dial into the system costing you at least a minutes worth of talk time. Text messaging is a better option for people to keep you updated. .
Using Predict Winds
Predict Winds is an advanced weather service offering full graphical weather details. A restricted version is available to all iridium go users however for some of the advanced features you will need to subscribe. Please note: the additional functionality also comes with additional data requirements so it is only recommended for users using the unlimited data setup
Using the Internet
The iridium Go mail and web app also has integration to XWeb, this is a separate download however it is a web browser designed for compressed usage. You can stop images loading and limit quality to increase performance. It is still not recommended to access the web through the Iridium Go as the speed of 2.4kbps is generally too slow to connect to most current systems.
Additional Tips
If you are struggling to get a signal try quickly turning the phone off and on again as the registration process can go into a power saving mode if there's no signal for a little while, restarting the phone can just speed things up. Make sure you are in a clear location to get the best signal possible. The iridium satellites do move quite fast so you may start the call with the satellite in front of you but after a couple of minutes the satellite could be behind you and possibly be blocked by something else causing a drop out. Iridium Go batteries only last for 15 hours on standby so if it’s staying on you will want to charge it regularly. Please note that when charging the device is susceptible to water.