My Starlink is finally ready …

[Axkiker]

What kind of wiring do these things take ?

[jb882]

Its basically ethernet from the router to the dish but they use a special connector on each end. They include a 75' cable ad offer a 150' one as well.

[Axkiker]

Its basically ethernet from the router to the dish but they use a special connector on each end. They include a 75' cable ad offer a 150' one as well.

Do you have to orientate dish thingy to a pre determined satellite? With them launching all the satellites I kinda thought it was just a point in a clear direction then setup the box. Im just curious

[jb882]

Just turn it on and the dish will figure itself out and find the best orientation. It has a motor in there where it can adjust the angle and rotate on its own.

Setup is literally as easy as run the cable, plug it in and connect to the wifi.

[Axkiker]

Just turn it on and the dish will figure itself out and find the best orientation. It has a motor in there where it can adjust the angle and rotate on its own.

Setup is literally as easy as run the cable, plug it in and connect to the wifi.

Thats cool as heck. I didnt realize it had its own motor

[Old Syko]

Do you have to orientate dish thingy to a pre determined satellite? With them launching all the satellites I kinda thought it was just a point in a clear direction then setup the box. Im just curious

There is no single satellite since the satellites actually fly in alternating patterns so it will constantly shift among available sources. In my area the group of satellites available are more often than not to the north.

[Axkiker]

There is no single satellite since the satellites actually fly in alternating patterns so it will constantly shift among available sources. In my area the group of satellites available are more often than not to the north.

Thats pretty cool. I hope I never need it because I have a couple HUGE trees that would once again screw me over.

[Stratos81]

Thats pretty cool. I hope I never need it because I have a couple HUGE trees that would once again screw me over.

I live in the woods, mines shooting right through a huge maple tree top…. Regularly seeing 150-160mpbs….

[kmanbear]

We have had starlink about 4 months now. Needed to install on roof to get good view of satellites. It was relatively easy to get it up and running. Connecting to our Wi-Fi network required my wife’s expertise. Starlink service is not perfect, but it is, by far, the best (and least expensive) internet that we have had at our house. we consistently see speeds 30-60mps, Sometime much faster, rarely much slower. Loss of connection is rare, and usually only for a few minutes.
We would recommend 100%.

[mactlman]

Do you have to orientate dish thingy to a pre determined satellite? With them launching all the satellites I kinda thought it was just a point in a clear direction then setup the box. Im just curious

https://satellitemap.space/?norad=48119

https://satellitemap.space/?constellation=starlink

[bassin_man]

Really want to try starlink. However the $600 startup fee and $110 a month service charge has held me back.

[BassinPaPaw]

Really want to try starlink. However the $600 startup fee and $110 a month service charge has held me back.

It does sting, but in our area there is no other option.

[okhawg]

Really want to try starlink. However the $600 startup fee and $110 a month service charge has held me back.

We spent that much chasing good internet. The only real alternative for us was a $3k tower and $70 a month. It would take a while before they equaled out, plus the tower was 24 Mbps vs (on avg) 20-160 Mbps.

[PowerFish]

How does it compare to Viasat and Hewes Net?

NO COMPARISON! Starlink is far superior in throughput and service quality.

[Old Syko]

https://satellitemap.space/?norad=48119

Thanks to mactiman this link explains a lot to those who have questions about variable connection speeds.

[mactlman]

https://satellitemap.space/?constellation=starlink

[jb882]

I live in the woods, mines shooting right through a huge maple tree top…. Regularly seeing 150-160mpbs….

And how frequently are you experiencing interruptions for 2 seconds or more? To me that is a way more important focus vs download speeds when you feel like testing it. Some apps like streaming tv and general web surfing are fine with interruptions but its hell with apps like Zoom or MS teams which are not at all tolerant of packet loss. Even with my small amount of obstructions its not workable for my job which is why im glad i have done all the testing i have done on it. For me to have a rock solid connection that i can actually use two make my living when we are on the road i need to combine it with cellular. I have mine hooked to a router with two cell modems in it and i have the 3 connections bonded together for load balancing and high availability. Problem solved for me but its not the cheap way out for sure.

[BassinPaPaw]

And how frequently are you experiencing interruptions for 2 seconds or more? To me that is a way more important focus vs download speeds when you feel like testing it. Some apps like streaming tv and general web surfing are fine with interruptions but its hell with apps like Zoom or MS teams which are not at all tolerant of packet loss. Even with my small amount of obstructions its not workable for my job which is why im glad i have done all the testing i have done on it. For me to have a rock solid connection that i can actually use two make my living when we are on the road i need to combine it with cellular. I have mine hooked to a router with two cell modems in it and i have the 3 connections bonded together for load balancing and high availability. Problem solved for me but its not the cheap way out for sure.

My son stays with us quite a bit, because we’re so close to the lake and he can work remotely. I hear him cussing out Zoom all the time. Lol. He absolutely hates it and while his laptop will be running flawlessly, zoom is a pain in the ass. Not sure why though.

[jb882]

My son stays with us quite a bit, because we’re so close to the lake and he can work remotely. I hear him cussing out Zoom all the time. Lol. He absolutely hates it and while his laptop will be running flawlessly, zoom is a pain in the ass. Not sure why though.

In my experience Zoom does not do well with internet connections that experience packet loss or have high latency. Microsoft Teams is the same way. They are improving these apps and have to given the shift to more remote work and the fact that these two apps are really critical to remote collaboration. With a fast and stable connection like what i have in my fiber optic internet connection Zoom has been a non problem for me.

When it comes to Starlink it's the packet loss that is the crux of the issue with apps like Zoom. As it sits today people even with zero obstructions still experience disruptions due to no satellite available to service the dish and obstructions from trees also cause disconnects. These interruptions will cause packet loss and lots of it. If you look at your outages in statistics on the Starlink app, all of those little 2+ second outages are the issue, some apps can easily recover from it others like Zoom cannot. What happens with apps like Zoom is the audio or video can freeze and never recover, data that is being presented may just disappear, or they can even go as far as dropping you out of your call completely which is what i would experience 3-4 times an hour running on just Starlink alone. Other applications like SSH shell sessions don't do well with it either and for my work being kicked out of your servers you are trying to manage 30+ times a day becomes a real issue for productivity.

In my opinion, Starlink is great for general web stuff and streaming. Where it falls short is for people like me who are working from home and need rock solid connectivity for apps like audio/video conferencing in real time. The good news is this should get better over time as Space X adds more satellites and gets them into service but will still vary depending on the obstruction level of your specific dish. That is why i spent the money to back it up with cellular.

[PowerFish]

In my experience Zoom does not do well with internet connections that experience packet loss or have high latency. Microsoft Teams is the same way. They are improving these apps and have to given the shift to more remote work and the fact that these two apps are really critical to remote collaboration. With a fast and stable connection like what i have in my fiber optic internet connection Zoom has been a non problem for me.

When it comes to Starlink it's the packet loss that is the crux of the issue with apps like Zoom. As it sits today people even with zero obstructions still experience disruptions due to no satellite available to service the dish and obstructions from trees also cause disconnects. These interruptions will cause packet loss and lots of it. If you look at your outages in statistics on the Starlink app, all of those little 2+ second outages are the issue, some apps can easily recover from it others like Zoom cannot. What happens with apps like Zoom is the audio or video can freeze and never recover, data that is being presented may just disappear, or they can even go as far as dropping you out of your call completely which is what i would experience 3-4 times an hour running on just Starlink alone. Other applications like SSH shell sessions don't do well with it either and for my work being kicked out of your servers you are trying to manage 30+ times a day becomes a real issue for productivity.

In my opinion, Starlink is great for general web stuff and streaming. Where it falls short is for people like me who are working from home and need rock solid connectivity for apps like audio/video conferencing in real time. The good news is this should get better over time as Space X adds more satellites and gets them into service but will still vary depending on the obstruction level of your specific dish. That is why i spent the money to back it up with cellular.

Which is exactly why I am happy to be able to stay with T-Mobile Home Internet, even though I have to double NAT and my kid gets pissed at his online gaming lag, I don't have those issues. My neighbors and family love Starlink, but we chose to stay with T-Mobile Home Internet with speeds over 150mbps down and about 10-12 up.