What is the range of the system?

From the base stations, the basic subscriber module has a range of 2 or more miles.  A reflector is available to increase the range to 10 miles.  This means that if you can see one of our service towers we can provide the service (provided you are not blocked by trees or buildings). This technology works with LOS (Line of sight) if you are blocked by a tree or a building we can't provide the service.

How does the system work?

The Subscriber Module (SM) is the subscriber termination unit (like a modem is with dialup). It consists of a single transceiver that operates with a 60-degree antenna. SM synchronization and control is accomplished via the received Access Point (AP) signal transmitted from the base station. SM's may be located either in- or outdoors as long as they can see the base station. The Subscriber Module is connected to your machine via a single Cat 5 (or Ethernet) cable powered via an AC power adaptor.

Isn't this just like Satellite?

Not at all. Wireless Internet is bi-directional unlike satellite, where you download via the dish antenna and may be connected to a phone line to upload information. Wireless Internet eliminates the need for any dedicated phone lines, reducing costs. It also provides a much faster service than satellite which is rather slow, especially when uploading.

Also there is a big latency problem with satellite (the delay caused while your computer talks to the server). With Satellite Internet, the signal has to travel more than 46,000 miles resulting in long delays when downloading, because of this satellite can have slower overall download speeds than dialup. With our Wireless Internet system the signal only travels from 0 to 10 miles which means that websites load instantly.

What is the difference between Ayustar Wireless Broadband and DSL?

Our service is up to eight times faster than DSL. Also, like Satellite, DSL upload speeds are much slower than the download speeds.  With our service download and upload speeds are the same. For example, if you subscribe to our 512Kbps service you get a symmetrical, 512Kbps service - download and upload, bursting to 1mbps.

What is the difference between Ayustar Wireless Broadband and Cable?

Cable offers up to 3mbps of shared bandwidth, this means that cable customers share their bandwidth with all their neighbors, this can slow down their connections down to a dialup speed. Ayustar Wireless Broadband is just yours.

What is the difference between this and 802.11 technology?

Ayustar Wireless Broadband is built using the brand new Motorola® Canopy equipment. 802.11 technology vastly under uses the available bandwidth and has trouble coping under load - the more subscribers it has, the slower the system becomes. Ayustar Wireless Broadband Motorola Canopy system gives you the same consistent, burstable bandwidth.

To us 802.11 based systems are somewhat obsolete.  802.11 based systems also have decidedly poorer performance as the distance between the access point and the subscriber module grows - the further you live away from the base station, the slower your access will be. Ayustar Wireless Broadband delivers the same full bandwidth over our entire service area.

What will interfere with the signal?

Anything in the path between you and the base station can block the signal.  Especially trees and buildings.  If you have a clear, optical, line of sight it will almost certainly work.

What is needed at the computer?

Your computer must have an Ethernet card or connection.  Sometimes called a NIC card.  Many computers come with this connection built into the system now-a-days.

We also recommend that you have a personal firewall installed on your machine. Several are available online and some are free for personal use. We do not recommend a specific one but we strongly advise you to get one. The same goes for anti-virus software. We also strongly recommend that all Windows updates are installed on a regular basis.

Ayustar Wireless does not provide you with a firewall and you are directly connected to the Internet so protecting your own personal computers is your responsibility.

Will this work with Macs as well as PCs?

Yes, the system is simply a wireless Ethernet system.  You do not need any special software to interface with the subscriber module.  If your computer can work with a LAN it will work with our system.

Can multiple computers use a single connection?

Yes, you can install any type of internet sharing systems. We do restrict this type of activity to be contained within a single residential home or office.  If we discover that internet sharing is being used to allow other homes or businesses to have service, your service will be discontinued as outlined in the contract.

What do I need to do to the computer?

Our antennas have basic routers with DHCP, this means that you won't need to do any configuration on your PC. Just connect the cat 5 cable to your ethernet card and you should be up and running.

How long will it take to get service?

We might not install the system as quick as you may wish.   Our installers do a site survey and install the reflector (if needed) run the wire and configure your PC the same day. First if your urbanization is not listed on the coverage list, we have to visit your area to do determine if we have signal, after we check the availability of service we coordinate the installation date.  This whole process takes 1 week (as of this writing) sometimes less, but we will always try to install as fast a we can.

Why don't you offer a Service Level Agreement or other assurance of service?

We offer Monday thru Saturday technical support.  All of our employees are on this system at home and we monitor it constantly.  If the system is down, we are down too.  So, we have a vested interest in keeping things ticking smoothly.  System wide troubles are detected and resolved in what we believe to be a timely manner.  However, some things are out of our control. If a backhoe digs up one of our fiber cables, the system will be down.  And it will not be up until the fiber cable is spliced. We cannot control those types of failures.  We do have automatic rerouting of traffic through our system, but we cannot guarantee 100% uptime.  We only guarantee that we will give you the best service possible.