Review on 🌍 Nooelec Weather Satellite RTL-SDR Bundle - NESDR SMArTee XTR Included for Receiving LRIT, HRIT & HRPT Satellite Weather Images from Space! by Matt Mix

I've wanted to copy a geosynchronous GOES satellite for a long time. The assembly of the receiver, amplifier and cable components seemed easy. Finding a dish and changing the channel to work at a frequency of 1700 MHz did not help. I wanted something ready for it. Call me lazy, although antennas usually don't bother me. This kit has everything you need except one part (more on that in a moment) and is quick and easy to put together. You want a stable base that doesn't move and a pole that's relatively straight up and down. level will be helpful. At my location, the satellite is at a 45 degree angle in the sky and in a clear direction, and I felt pretty good. I first built a Raspberry PI 4 and installed the GOES-Tools software, which takes the signal from the SDR connected to the antenna, demodulates the data and converts that data into files (images, text, etc.). I was able to get this working in a very short amount of time and this image is one of my first "false color" images which are sent every 30 minutes and are quite beautiful. Everything was fine until a rainstorm caused some water to seep into my SAWbird amp from the outside (remember I said it's missing? It's sort of a waterproof case for this unit, as it's attached to the antenna must be installed). After drying it, it turned out to be no worse than worn out, but I could not return the signal even when I saw the signal from the satellite on other devices. After 3 days of troubleshooting, it turned out that the problem was not in this kit, but in the GOESTools program, which apparently decided to stop working after the rebuild. After trying USA Satcom's software (which isn't free, but worth it for peace of mind and utility I think) I realized I still have strong signals from the Nooelec dish and I'm excited that I get pictures again. During this time I worked with Danielle from Nooelec Support who was very responsive and patient. This is a good customer centric company. The moral of the story is that it's great value for money, comes with everything you need (except a small waterproof case for the Sawbird amp/filter) and is very reliable. Combined with (running) software, it provides a fun way to view all types of weather and non-weather imagery from the GOES satellites. Worth the price.