StarLink?

[Wandering Sagebrush]

Is anyone using StarLink for both home and travel internet service? I’m curious if that makes sense and is worth the effort/expense. Have you converted it to 12VDC?

 

[rubberlegs]

We ran into a guy deep into the Death Valley backcountry last month who was bogged down in mud. He had Starlink and used it to contact a tow service. $3000! Ouch. We gave him the Facebook group who will help out in these situations and a guy was able to help the next day. The next morning he called using WiFi another tow service who quoted $1000. We helped the afternoon and next morning and fortunately got him out with just our two parties.

Anyway he had a solar panel and battery in his SUV to power his starlink which I assume was 12V. He let us use it during the evening and it worked really well. He said it cost $150/month and he could start and stop service any time.

 

[goinoregon]

check out Unique Componentry. they convert the std starlink into 12v, as well as put the router into the casing.

 

[Vic Harder]

I did the 12 v conversion and am responding to you via Starlink. really easy with now with YaoSheng products. Before that, I ran it on AC. You save a small amount of power by going to DC. More importantly, I can now use my Peplink router instead of the lousy one Starlink kits come with.

Let me know if you want more info...

 

[Taku]

Hey Vick, since Starlink can now be turned on and off monthly, it is more reasonable to think about the cost. shoot me the info you have if you can. And if you are coming heading back to CA through western MT give me a shout if you need place to stay and you could help install it!! Just kidding, but do let me know if you come through the Bitterroot Valley. thanks.

 

[Vic Harder]

Hey Vick, since Starlink can now be turned on and off monthly, it is more reasonable to think about the cost. shoot me the info you have if you can. And if you are coming heading back to CA through western MT give me a shout if you need place to stay and you could help install it!! Just kidding, but do let me know if you come through the Bitterroot Valley. thanks.

Gladly help if we were passing through! I can do a write up... Later. Visiting grandkids until next week

 

[Taku]

no problem thanks!

 

[Vic Harder]

I used these two widgets from Yaosheng
Amazon.com: YAOSHENG Rectangular Dishy Cable Adapter to RJ45. Connect Your Dishy V2 to PoE Injector Quickly and Easily. : Electronics

and

Amazon.com: 150W GigE Passive PoE Injector with Surge Protection, Developed for Starlink pinout. : Electronics

And I got cable adapters from these guys: Starlink SPX to RJ45 Adapters (pair) - SpaceTek in Australia

and this cable gland
Caravan RV - RJ45 Data Bulkhead Plate and Recessed Socket for Starlink (spacetek.com.au)

I then purchased 150' of Cat 6e outdoor ethernet cable and split that to make my own 75' cables so I can customize the length I need. A single 150' hunk of cable is also a big item, and two 75' cables are easier to find spaces for.

I see Yaosheng has a new device out that offers a different way of doing this:
Amazon.com: 120W 3-in-1 Step Up PoE Injector with Comprehensive Protection for Standard Actuated Starlink : Electronics

 

[Jack]

I wish I had found the RJ45 adapters that Vic found. I have both the 75' (easy to store and deploy) and the 150' cable (more cumbersome - have to swap connection to the router). I find that the 150' foot cable makes for better camping spots while still having good Starlink service about 1 out of 4 or 5 times.

 

[AWG_Pics]

Being free of the internet is, for me, usually one of the best things about backcountry camping.

 

[ski3pin]

Being free of the internet is, for me, usually one of the best things about backcountry camping.

 

[Vic Harder]

Being free of the internet is, for me, usually one of the best things about backcountry camping.

True, and it gets me out in nature even if I still have some work to do.

 

[Vic Harder]

Update: The setup was working fine until it didn't. Failure mode was bandwidth dropping from 200+mbps to less than 1.0. My cable tester claimed that the PoE unit had failed. Got another (different vendor) and it also tested bad BUT Starlink is working again. Conclusion at this point is that something else was wrong, and my tester is giving bogus results.

More detail: I was still able to get about 30mpbs if I used just my short 6' long ethernet cable. With another 75' on there it dropped to unusable amounts of bandwidth. This led me to believe I had either damaged a cable/connector or that the PoE injector or power supply had failed. Everything tested good except the injector.

I'd have just gotten another Yaosheng unit, but one post I saw online said that the powersupply I was using (288W) was causing issues for people and was no longer recommended for Starlink use.

New gear I got:

Amazon.ca

 

[ri-f]

Have you converted it to 12VDC?

 

[Vic Harder]

thanks for the Video.... note that he's working on a Gen3. I have a Gen2. Many advantages to Gen3, not including the price!

 

[ri-f]

yes, the monthly subsciption cost is more with gen 3 but you can switch plans back and forth to non roaming and reduce the monthly cost at any time if you don't need roaming, The gen 2 and gen 3 harware kits are the same cost ($599). they are phasing out gen 2 production. however, I think gen 3 is only available in the US at this time. possible disadvantage of the gen 3 is that it is a stationary unit and needs to be moved manually for the best signal, which may or may not be an issue, depending upon your specific setup. at least that's my understanding at this point in time. the only thing i know for sure is that with starlink or microsoft or google, etc., you can pay me now or you can pay me later - nothing comes free, especially upgrades.