Having a stable connection between your yacht and the Internet is critical for monitoring your yacht. Therefore, one of the first choices to make is which combination of technologies to use for connectivity to your yacht, and which providers of those services to select.

Cellular technology is at near broadband speeds, and has a much larger coverage area than WiFi. Anywhere your cellular phone works, there is a good chance there is cellular broadband available. Much of the East and West coast has cellular coverage up to ten miles offshore, so underway monitoring and remote access is quite feasible. If you travel internationally, or near the borders, you need to be aware of the cellular roaming fees that might apply or cellular roaming plans that might be available.

WiFi technology is by far the fastest and the most economical, but it has a limited range, typically near dockside, or limited to the immediate area in and around the marina (typically within one thousand feet of the WiFi transmitter). Once your yacht leaves the marina WiFi coverage area, the connection is lost, and only on board monitoring is possible. WiFi is typically provided by a local provider, not a national or international carrier. Your local WiFi provider usually provides various service plans and may provide roaming arrangements for use at other marinas in your cruising area. You may find several WiFi service providers in any given area. In the Pacific Northwest of the USA BroadbandXpress provides WiFi services. iDock provides WiFi services in California. Beacon provides WiFi services up and down the East Coast.

If you are interested in underway monitoring - when your yacht is away from the home marina, whether that is out on a day trip or away for months at a time, an Extended Range cellular package is likely the most suitable. By utilizing a cellular signal amplifier in the Extended Range cellular packages, the range of reception is greatly increased, allowing underway monitoring, remote camera usage, and remote access. By contrast, Metro Range cellular packages utilize only the built-in antenna on the cellular data card and have proven to work well only within a metropolitan setting. For WiFi, because it is a line-of-sight technology, it is a requirement to utilize an Extended Range package in order to have a stable connection. Only in rare circumstances is a Metro Range WiFi solution feasible for yacht monitoring. WiFi does not support underway monitoring because of its limited coverage area.

For offshore or remote locations, there are satellite services with global or near global coverage areas. One economical (text only, no Internet browsing or remote access) satellite service is provided by SkyMate. A satellite service offering near broadband speeds world wide is provided by Inmarsat Fleet systems.

An EyeOnBoard configuration can include any single connectivity service, or any combination of these connectivity services. You need to decide which connectivity service or services best suits your monitoring needs as well as your budget. EyeOnBoard does not have direct relationships with any connectivity service providers, you can choose the provider that suits your needs and locations best.