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Well I bought Starlink
- Thread starter Jim SoG
- Start date
Contributor II
Hello JIm, I’m just curious do you need connectivity for work purposes when out on the trail? For me part of the joy of being out is I am not connected and I can avoid my personal problem of being a political junkie.
Rich
Influencer II
Welcome aboard! It has been a game changer for us in so many ways. Really came through a couple of weeks back as we negotiated tow truck rescue and lodging after breaking down on Kavanaugh Ridge. Dozens of phone calls and web lookups while on the mountain. Allowed us to negotiate what would have been a $3500 rescue from a dedicated off-road hauler into less than $1000 after including food and lodging while we waited for AAA to find an intrepid driver willing to take the job.
What are the monthly fees for that?
Trail Blazer III
Welcome to the club, Starlink is a game changer.
Influencer II
Unsure of current rates for others - I am paying $150/mo., but can turn it off at the end of any billing cycle, then restart when needed again (partial month charge). We typically keep it on except the winter holidays, as we hunker down then with family, etc. We've been with them for several years now and the service has only gotten better over time. We used to have to point the dish to the north, but haven't had to do that for over a year. And service above the 60th parallel was intermittent, but the number of satellites has grown to where that is no longer an issue. Speeds range from 20 down/4 up in really congested areas (think Ouray, CO with lots of RVs and small ranchettes), to greater than 200 down/40 up in remote areas (e.g. Eastern Sierras). Anything above 20 down/4 up is good for anything we want to do (video calls, streaming shows, surfing the web, etc.). Latency is usually tolerable for us, but gamers might have issues. Jitter/packet loss goes up as the overhead sky gets blocked, so we pay attention when picking sites.
Thank you
Trail Blazer III
I do video calls, work from home, all day, and game/stream to decompress afterwards. I have not had any issues, other than that one random tree barely obstructing a satellite. most places are perfectly fine. Im averaging 200/30+ pretty much everywhere. lowest ive gotten was near a city and was down to 80/10 in peak hours.
HighVoltOverland
Rank IX
Builder III
I recently got the mini and it had made the whole process so much simpler.
Native 12v support for a single device is so much nicer than having to fiddle with multiple devices and buck converters.
At 30/ a month on top of my residential it has left me feeling more comfortable taking an extra day or two to head back home and just take my work session from the road.
The power consumption is also much more off grid friendly
Native 12v support for a single device is so much nicer than having to fiddle with multiple devices and buck converters.
At 30/ a month on top of my residential it has left me feeling more comfortable taking an extra day or two to head back home and just take my work session from the road.
The power consumption is also much more off grid friendly
Influencer I
I see a mini in our future as well. I'm assuming you got an aftermarket 12v cord?
HighVoltOverland
Rank IX
Builder III
Yep!
I got two, one is snail mailing, but has the integrated grommet for weather sealing like the the OEM cables do.
The cord needed is a DC 5221 to -- , in my case I got it to usb-c and it works flawlessly with the usb-c outlet on my bluetti power station
Influencer I
Very cool, glad to hear how well it works.
Trail Blazer III
We are on the verge of going with the mini for its small size and simplicity, already have limited space in the Wrangler. $50 per month does not seem a bad price, but the 50 GB data cap seems a bit low especially since we are hoping to do some working while out on trips so that we can extend the time we can spend away from home exploring, however at least for now the primary use will be for emergency comms and access to fire maps etc. The unlimited plan for $150 is too costly at the moment. Hopefully they will bring the price per GB of overage down in the future.
Influencer I
I am thinking along these same lines. I don't really want to be connected except for emergencies, etc. but if it means I can get out more and work a little from the road, I'm in. I like the ability to pause the monthly as well. It's good backup at home too when the weather takes out the internet!
Influencer I
Well its official, we now have a Starlink Mini. Setup was very easy, up in running in 15 minutes and that includes a software update download.
It was a no brainer after our vacation at the end of August got cut short due to a family emergency when we were 2 days driving time to home. Huge stretches of paved road with no cell service sealed the deal.
I will likely be flat mounting it to the roof of our Four Wheel Camper, still deciding where and how I want to go through the roof. Unfortunately, we have a 37K acre wildfire out our front door and we have been in "set" evacuation mode since Saturday so it's going to be a bit before I can do the mounting.
It was a no brainer after our vacation at the end of August got cut short due to a family emergency when we were 2 days driving time to home. Huge stretches of paved road with no cell service sealed the deal.
I will likely be flat mounting it to the roof of our Four Wheel Camper, still deciding where and how I want to go through the roof. Unfortunately, we have a 37K acre wildfire out our front door and we have been in "set" evacuation mode since Saturday so it's going to be a bit before I can do the mounting.
Influencer I
For what it's worth, this particular USB C to 5221 adapter DOES NOT work with Starlink Mini:
Amazon.com: Refyras High-Power PD DC5521 5.5mm x 2.1mm to USB Type C Power Charging Cable, 100W, Ideal for Laptops, Phones, Tablets Blue : Electronics
I went ahead and purchased the Starlink USB C to DC 5221 from the Starlink Store.
Amazon.com: Refyras High-Power PD DC5521 5.5mm x 2.1mm to USB Type C Power Charging Cable, 100W, Ideal for Laptops, Phones, Tablets Blue : Electronics
I went ahead and purchased the Starlink USB C to DC 5221 from the Starlink Store.
Care_Under_Fire
Rank I
Enthusiast I
Hurricane Heleen kicked my overland setup into high gear. I just bought the Standard kit. Waiting on it to arrive now.
Antique Overlander
Rank III
Off-Road Ranger I
I'm still in the camp of no signal is nice, for now, with ham backup. But once I retire I'll be on the road, a lot so that's when I'll venture into this
Enthusiast III
The mini is really enticing now that the $50 roam package is around. The only thing keeping me back is that I just can’t figure a solid mount for my rig.
