People have been asking for an update on how I like the Starlink system. It will probably take a year to get all the data to make an educated report, but I’ll talk about the pros and cons that I’ve noticed so far.
The biggest pro is the high speed unlimited data. I get speeds close to 100 Mbps whenever I do a test. That’s better than some home broadband connections. It’s pretty easy to setup and booting only takes a few minutes. If I turn it off at night it start back up in just a couple minutes. I like that all my devices can be connected at once. The hotspot on my phone seemed to be problematic to connect devices, but the Starlink works great with phone, tv, computer, and PlayStation all at once if I want. I like the idea I can stream HD video too, something my Visible cellular won’t allow.
The major con is the fact you have to have an open sky for it to work well. I’ve been camping up in the National Forest in northern AZ, and finding an open sky is almost impossible. I found that a few trees scattered around my campsite will still let me get a pretty good signal most of the time. When a satellite is blocked by a tall mountain or trees, I get skips in video where the picture will hang for a few seconds.
The second major con is the cost. Starlink started out charging $99/month, then they raised it to $110 as it cost more in fuel to launch satellites, then they added another $25 a month if you wanted the ability to roam around the country. With my cellular plan still in affect, I’m shelling out $160 every month to stay connected. It takes a big chunk of my fixed income. I still subscribe to two streaming services and I may have to decide if it’s worth keeping them.
Starlink won’t work while in motion but that’s not a big deal to me. It takes about 35 to 40 watts to power the router and dish but I have enough solar and battery that that’s not a problem for me either. Some people with small solar and battery might have a problem powering it.
As with all new data systems, the more people jump on board and the more the bandwidth gets shared, slowdowns in speed are sure to happen. Slowdown are most likely to happen in metro areas and near big cities. I’m usually in a rural area so I’m hoping I won’t get throttled much.
I should get good service this winter. I spend a lot of time in southern AZ where tall trees are fairly scarce. Before I purchased Starlink, I used the App to check a place in Quartzsite for obstructions. The App announced that this would be a good place to set up Starlink. I’ll let you know.
Glad it’s working well for you. Can’t wait to camp with you in areas we haven’t explored yet due to no cell coverage.
Good deal on it working well. Man, the money we old dudes pay to stay connected! If you had asked me if I would pay these prices to stay connected like this, 20 year ago … I am sure I would have just laugh at you! Dale, how did we get sucker into this??? LOL. Just think, we could still write letters and drop them off when we go to town … LOL. Can’t you just imagine whipping up a letter for tech-support, ROFL?
I know John! With what I’m paying for internet and the streaming services I subscribe too, I could buy some more toys. Oh well, can’t take it with us!