Satellite phones are becoming smaller and more versatile - and they are also becoming cheaper and cheaper to buy and operate. The ability to download data is becoming increasingly important; after all, it is not only possible to call up e-mails, but also weather information.
Sailors have the choice between the Inmarsat and Iridium systems. Johannes Erdmann, currently travelling on an extended Atlantic loop, has tried out two representative products and compared the systems with each other.
The report in YACHT 15 (on newsstands from 6 July)

Deputy Chief Editor YACHT