Network coverage
Before equipping a herd, check that it works where you are.
You have no operator to choose
Our devices carry our own Swisscom SIM cards, with roaming. Abroad, the device connects automatically to the best network available locally, and switches if it needs to. You have no subscription to take out and no operator to compare. The maps below serve one purpose only: knowing whether there is network where you are, not which one to pick.
Which networks our devices run on
Our devices use LTE-M, also called 4G Cat-M1, and NB-IoT. These are low-power flavours of 4G, designed for connected objects and not for smartphones.
They reach further, get through obstacles better and draw infinitely less power than ordinary 4G. That is what lets a collar last a whole season, sometimes two, on a single battery.
LTE-M, 4G Cat-M1 and NB-IoT
1
Look for the 4G layer, not LTE-M
Operator maps rarely show LTE-M as such. Look at the 4G or LTE layer. Where there is 4G, there is almost always LTE-M, and it reaches further than the map shows.
2
A few hundred bytes, not video
A collar sends one message every five minutes. Where a smartphone struggles to load a page, our device gets through without trouble.
3
The simplest test in the world
Can you send a text message from your pasture? Then there is enough network for our devices. It really is that simple.
4
Coverage gaps are not a problem
All our devices have internal memory. If part of your holding has no coverage, the data is stored there and delivered in full as soon as the animal moves back into an area with signal. You lose nothing, you simply receive it later.
How to read a coverage map
Nearly every map shows three quality levels. The natural reflex is to want green everywhere. That is not necessary.
Good
Nothing to think about. Tracking will be continuous.
Medium
Plenty for our devices. This is the level at which you can decide with confidence.
Weak
It can still work, internal memory takes care of the rest. This is where a field test makes the most sense.
A map is a prediction, not a guarantee. It knows nothing of fine relief, vegetation or the way a hollow faces. From one slope to the next, everything can change.
The official maps, country by country
One reference map per country, chosen for reliability. Where the national regulator publishes a multi-operator map, that is the one we point to: it is neutral and covers every network at once.
Italy
Luxembourg
Netherlands
In doubt, test it
Terrestrial coverage remains something indeterministic. Two neighbouring pastures at the same altitude can give opposite results depending on how they face and the relief around them.
If you hesitate, rent a single device for one season. You will know exactly what the coverage gives at your place, on your ground and not on a map, and what the tracking really consumes. It is the only answer that counts.
And if your pasture really is out of reach of any terrestrial network, the Kraftleben SatCom goes through the Globalstar satellite constellation. It works anywhere on the planet, with no ground infrastructure at all.
