Starlink raised their price to $150.00

[magna 6882]

Just got a notice starlink is raising there portable price from $135 to $150 per month effective April.I paused my service until summer.

 

[Comodave]

Maybe since you paused your service they had to raise the rates to make up for it…

 

[magna 6882]

Maybe since you paused your service they had to raise the rates to make up for it…

I paused the service once i got the letter.
I have been keeping the service active over the winter even though i wasn't using it but once i saw the price increase i paused the service and will re-activate if needed this summer. I have a cell data hotspot i have been using also so no big deal.$150 might be to big a spread unless we go to canada or some location with minimal cell service then will have to activate.

 

[artfulltune]

See "alluring arctic sailing" YouTube video regarding starlink equipment & service failure.

 

[ksanders]

at $150 it's still by and far better than any other option.

 

[MYTraveler]

Is there a "penalty" for pausing? Put differently, how long does the period of no-use have to be so that reactivation fees and the like are less than the avoided subscription payments? Are there rules about how often service can be paused?

 

[mvweebles]

Is there a "penalty" for pausing? Put differently, how long does the period of no-use have to be so that reactivation fees and the like are less than the avoided subscription payments? Are there rules about how often service can be paused?

I have Starlink with Mexico address. I just went from 'residential' service at 1100-pesos/mo ($60 USD at current conversion rates) to "RV" service at 1350-pesos/mo ($75/mo). There are a couple gotchas

1. Once you switch from Residential to RV, you can never go back to Residential.
2. RV can be paused, Residential cannot be paused. Pause is in 1-month increments so takes effect on the next billing cycle. I have not seen anything that says there are limits but I'd guess there is something deep in the ToS.
3. "Mobility" option. Not really applicable, but you can add "Mobility" to Residential. This allows you to move the antenna from one location to another for an extra $25/mo, so you pay the same as RV. The Mobility uplift can be paused, but the Residential core service cannot be.

Also, I just got my Peplink router up and going yesterday. With a very modest Peplink 42G antenna (low profile combined WiFi/Cell), it makes the Marina WiFi usable - no kidding, was totally unusable before and I can now stream Netflix. Go figure. So I may pause Starlink because I simply don't need it the way I did.

Importantly, Starlink is feeling its way through the market. Given the rather public issuances at Twitter by Elon Musk, you can expect radical changes along the way. I can easily foresee a time where it's just not worth it.

Peter

 

[harleydude777]

mvweebles: could you please share the exact set up for your wifi/router/antenna system you mentioned, i went and searched and there are many to choose from......makes and models for all items.......thanks for your time and info.

 

[slowgoesit]

What really sucks, is that in areas of "limited capacity" the customers pay more.

So in effect, since we are in a populated area, with many users, which greatly, and negatively impacts our up/down speeds, we pay MORE!

Whereas people who live in areas with "excess capacity", and so have lightening fast upload and download speeds, they pay LESS!

I guess when you're the only game in town, you can charge whatever the market will bear . . .

Note: The email I received today says since I have residential, I will pay $10.00 more beginning April 24. It doesn't say anything about raising the "portability" rate above $25.00, so as far as I know, residential will go from $110.00 to $120.00, but if portability remains the same my total monthly service will now cost $145.00.

 

[mvweebles]

mvweebles: could you please share the exact set up for your wifi/router/antenna system you mentioned, i went and searched and there are many to choose from......makes and models for all items.......thanks for your time and info.

Over a year ago I pinged the forum for a dumbed-down explanation. I received a lot of responses, none of which were comprehensible to me (says more about me than the posts). I read the Seabits article a dozen times and while it made sense, it just seemed like a list of ingredients, not a recipe if that makes sense.

So here's exactly where I landed. Router is over-done for my needs in that it has 2 SIM card slots. I've indicated what the future connections will be which will fill all available LAN/WAN ports (2-LAN/1-WAN) so a router with extra would be nice just in case I have something else. For example, a larger boat would want more Access Points (AP - this is a small device that broadcasts WiFi throughout the boat). I originally had two larger antenna - one for WiFi (two cables) and one for Cellular (4 cables). When I decided to go with Starlink, I decided I could downsize the antennae and went with a single combined antenna that is low profile to replace the two big protrusions. I'm sure it's much less powerful, but as I mentioned, serves me well as of 1-day of usage. Point being, here's my basic setup - you can adjust as far as you want. The SeaBits guy has a ton of antennae.

I hope this helps you. Feel free to ask any questions - was frustrating learning curve for me. Even getting the damn thing configured yesterday was frustrating. All the documentation I found assumed you already had access to the router. Took 45-minutes to find something that said "Password is on the back of the router" which meant I had to unscrew it. Not a big deal once I knew what to look for and where it was.

Peter

 

[danderer]

3. "Mobility" option. Not really applicable, but you can add "Mobility" to Residential. This allows you to move the antenna from one location to another for an extra $25/mo, so you pay the same as RV.

I believe this option has been removed in these latest set of changes.

Portability is not available for Residential service in the US. You may change your service address or change your service plan to RV through your Starlink account.

 

[harleydude777]

well that is awesome....THANKS Peter.....i am very wifi/internet/cell phone "dumb" (if that fits)......don't own a cell , never have & really never want to. The wife has one so i'm good.

 

[mvweebles]

well that is awesome....THANKS Peter.....i am very wifi/internet/cell phone "dumb" (if that fits)......don't own a cell , never have & really never want to. The wife has one so i'm good.

I used this as a springboard to post a new thread with more specific information.

https://www.trawlerforum.com/forums...g-weebles-simple-sorta-67084.html#post1156403

Good luck -

Peter

 

[Snapdragon III]

I guess when you're the only game in town, you can charge whatever the market will bear . . .

They are not the only game in town. There are other options they just cost like $5000/month, the dish is super expensive, and they have way less bandwidth than Starlink. Even at the new higher price they make Starlink look like a very, very good deal.

 

[Snapdragon III]

After suffering from internet withdrawal this summer in Alaska, I resolved to get Starlink for the boat. I was too cheap to actually do it until two days ago, when I finally ordered the fancy high performance mobile dish. I got the price increase email the next day. I will still get it, but may turn it off in the winters when we are not using the boat as much. I am looking forward to it. There are a lot of nice places in our home waters of the San Juan's that we avoid anchoring in due to crappy or no cell service.

 

[tpbrady]

Since I have Starlink at home and my cell is one that is over subscribed, I saw a price increase for my residential account and now can’t take it to the boat unless I change to an RV account which puts me at the back of the line when I’m at home. So Elon has given me a Hobson’s choice, buy another system for RV service only, or pay more year round for worse service. He’s starting to be like other subscription services, they always have their hand in your pocket. I wish I had another choice at home but all the available options are a big step backwards.

Tom

 

[psneeld]

How much are the other providers helping out in other parts of the world with uncertain compensation?

If the $15 a month helps...I will cough it up.

Plus how many residential with portability or RV users were using their dishes underway against the rules?

Maybe start blaming them partly for the price and billing changes.

 

[Group9]

Just got a notice starlink is raising there portable price from $135 to $150 per month effective April.I paused my service until summer.

That still, seems pretty reasonable, all things considered.

 

[slowgoesit]

Quote:
Portability is not available for Residential service in the US. You may change your service address or change your service plan to RV through your Starlink account.

The above was posted earlier, but is not correct, at least not for our account. We have Residential with Portability. The Residential is now $120, and the Portability is an addition $25, for a total of $145.00, not $150 total as stated in the original post. We may be grandfathered or something though, as we got the system before the RV package was offered.

 

[hollywood8118]

What really sucks, is that in areas of "limited capacity" the customers pay more.

So in effect, since we are in a populated area, with many users, which greatly, and negatively impacts our up/down speeds, we pay MORE!

Whereas people who live in areas with "excess capacity", and so have lightening fast upload and download speeds, they pay LESS!

I guess when you're the only game in town, you can charge whatever the market will bear . . .

Note: The email I received today says since I have residential, I will pay $10.00 more beginning April 24. It doesn't say anything about raising the "portability" rate above $25.00, so as far as I know, residential will go from $110.00 to $120.00, but if portability remains the same my total monthly service will now cost $145.00.

As I understand it it doesnt make a difference if your in a populated area vs. sparse population.. its all about the downlink capability of your area.
More than likely sparse areas have less users AND property for the earth stations is easier and cheaper to procure than dense suburban areas in the U.S. As I also understand over ocean sats bounce the signals to other sats until they can relay to the ground.
Hopefully the dense areas speed addition of new ground stations at least from an economic sense.

Hollywood

 

[tpbrady]

Slowgoesit,

I used to be able to turn on portability by accessing Starlink.com from within the app. When I do it now, there is no option for turning on portability, only the option for changing the account from residential to RV. If you still see the option please let me know where it is.

Tom

 

[Airnet]

Booo. I just finished the install. Oh well. The wife still wants it.

 

[O C Diver]

This thread makes me laugh. I remember dial-up internet. I remember cellphone service with limited minutes. I remember internet access on cellphones with limited gigs of data and slow down and upload speeds. I remember being in areas where there wasn't any cell service (that was last summer). I remember when everything cost 15% less (that was a year ago).

In the relative cost of cruising, a <15% increase is a deal. Wished the price of diesel had only gone up 15% in the last 12 months.

Ted

 

[Iggy]

This morning on was on the Starlink site. What I saw and maybe the price is geared to location. RV service was $150 but home service was $90 down from $110.

For me its not worth getting Starlink. Love the idea, but not the cost. In the Boston or I should say New England there are too many other options.

Like Peter I too have Pepwave router on my boat. That past owner put 2 Cell antennas on the mast that I connect to the Pepwave router. Using the Pepwave router's cell capabilities for fringe areas, I pay $10 for each 10 gig of usage from Verizion. Service charge is $10 but that includes the first 10gigs. Winter time $10 per month, summer its on the usage.

In a good cell areas, we use our phones as hotspots. With T-Mobil we get the first 60 gigs free. What's good about the Pepwave router is that I can plug the USB port of the phone into the routers ethernet port. Than using the Pepwaves WIFI we have internet service though out the boat.

Right now we just go between Maine and New York. Later I hope to do the great loop and maybe the Bahamas. Then I might just need Starlink!

 

[bowball]

Over a year ago I pinged the forum for a dumbed-down explanation. I received a lot of responses, none of which were comprehensible to me (says more about me than the posts). I read the Seabits article a dozen times and while it made sense, it just seemed like a list of ingredients, not a recipe if that makes sense.

So here's exactly where I landed. Router is over-done for my needs in that it has 2 SIM card slots. I've indicated what the future connections will be which will fill all available LAN/WAN ports (2-LAN/1-WAN) so a router with extra would be nice just in case I have something else. For example, a larger boat would want more Access Points (AP - this is a small device that broadcasts WiFi throughout the boat). I originally had two larger antenna - one for WiFi (two cables) and one for Cellular (4 cables). When I decided to go with Starlink, I decided I could downsize the antennae and went with a single combined antenna that is low profile to replace the two big protrusions. I'm sure it's much less powerful, but as I mentioned, serves me well as of 1-day of usage. Point being, here's my basic setup - you can adjust as far as you want. The SeaBits guy has a ton of antennae.

I hope this helps you. Feel free to ask any questions - was frustrating learning curve for me. Even getting the damn thing configured yesterday was frustrating. All the documentation I found assumed you already had access to the router. Took 45-minutes to find something that said "Password is on the back of the router" which meant I had to unscrew it. Not a big deal once I knew what to look for and where it was.

Peter

View attachment 136425

Nice design Peter, and similar to mine (since we both probably relied on Seabit’s great reviews).

I added an extra antenna though since a single 40g or 42g can only support one 5g cellular radio at a time, so if you ever want to combine two for bonding you’ll need two. (4x4).

I did add two remote access points for better coverage of my boat, which is a bit bigger.

I agree with Starlink I probably would have gone simpler. Things have changed quickly in a year!

 

[mvweebles]

Nice design Peter, and similar to mine (since we both probably relied on Seabit’s great reviews).

I added an extra antenna though since a single 40g or 42g can only support one 5g cellular radio at a time, so if you ever want to combine two for bonding you’ll need two. (4x4).

I did add two remote access points for better coverage of my boat, which is a bit bigger.

I agree with Starlink I probably would have gone simpler. Things have changed quickly in a year!

In all candor, I tried to digest SeaBits. What I really wanted was a design template, something like I shared in this thread. I'll have to re-read the old TF thread from a year or two ago - could be I was just too far behind the curve, but it felt like the advice I was getting was "There are too many variables. One size doesn't fit all: one size fits one."

I should probably amend the opening post in this thread to offer a simple and description of what the Pepwave router does -

• (1) it will take a WAN input such as an internet source like Starlink or from any other internet source such as a Cox/XFinity etc. provided it is presented via an Ethernet connection (RJ45;
• (2) accepts WiFi signals via either its two 8-inch blade antennae that screw into the back of the router. For more powerful reception, these can blade antennae can be replaced with an external antenna such as the 20g that has two cables that replace the blade antennae.
• (3) accepts Cellular signals for its two onboard SIM card slots via four 8-inch blade antennae. Similar to the WiFi portion, these blade antennae can be replaced with an external antenna such as the 40G that has four cable connectors that screw-in where the blade antennae were. There is also a separate GPS that connects to the router, often used for fleet tracking.

It seems so intuitive to me know that I've seen the stuff, but beforehand, I had a very difficult time comprehending how it all came together. Was pretty frustrating - probably says more about me than anything.

Peter

 

[dannc]

As I understand it it doesnt make a difference if your in a populated area vs. sparse population.. its all about the downlink capability of your area.
More than likely sparse areas have less users AND property for the earth stations is easier and cheaper to procure than dense suburban areas in the U.S. As I also understand over ocean sats bounce the signals to other sats until they can relay to the ground.
Hopefully the dense areas speed addition of new ground stations at least from an economic sense.

Hollywood

I don't think the ground stations are the problem. Best I can tell, there are almost 100 ground stations PLANNED, or in use, but I don't think that is the problem, at least yet.

If this link, https://satellitemap.space/, and similar ones are correct, there are many times when only on Starlink satellite is in range of our dish. The satellite has to have a finite number of connections it can handle, and if it is flying over an area densely populated with dishes, there is only so much traffic can handle.

The satellites are supposed to be able to transmit up to 400 miles to a ground station, which for us, would put 8-10 ground stations within range and we just got hit with the price increase because we are in an area of "limited capacity."

Starlink does say,

As the SpaceX team launches more satellitesto increase capacity, the Starlink team is making continuous network updates to improve performance over time.

That would seem to indicate the number satellites is the problem.

I don't like the price increase but the satellites are supposed to cost between $200,000 and $500,000 a pop. The user's got a pay for the service and Starlink is the best internet service provide available to us.

Later,
Dan

 

[bowball]

Peter, I think what you laid out is a great system for 99% of the boats and usage on here. I’m also spent a huge amount of time trying to figure out the articles etc., even contacting the author so you aren’t alone in that regard! I also went for the same two SIM card solution so I could switch between US and Canadian cellular providers as I went between borders m

One additional note, which you did as did I, was to keep the antenna connections to the router very short. That’s where a lot of signal loss occurs. Form the router you can go by Ethernet cable which is loss free and far easier to run than a grouping of 4 cellular cables. In my case, that meant mounting the router in a small antenna dome which does make getting access to the cellular SIM card slots harder. I was envious of your placement!

 

[marcs]

Slowgoesit,

I used to be able to turn on portability by accessing Starlink.com from within the app. When I do it now, there is no option for turning on portability, only the option for changing the account from residential to RV. If you still see the option please let me know where it is.

Tom

My experience agrees with you, no way to turn portability on again if you had it off but if you had it on you can keep it ... for now at least.

I have a support ticket in asking if they can re-enable my portability on a one time basis, but am doubtful they will go for it.

So unless that works, I'll switch to RV and have it suspended unless I'm out and about cruising and use cheaper options at home port. That will end up with me spending much less on starlink and also less overall, but more hassle. Not going to switch to RV until I need it though to hold on to hope of being able to get portability enabled, you currently can't switch back.

I'm sure this will all change again in the future.

 

[Capt Ray]

Very interesting. In 2020 I invested in a dual modem Pepwave router and some really good cell vertical MiMo antennas, and good coax, total in was just shy of $2000. 250 GB total from VZW + T-Mobile costs me $130 /month.

With all the good news, I'm wondering when I cut over to Elon's system. "When do I start to trust Elon Musk?!" I also figure I'll let a generation of marine-robust antennas advance before I make my move. I won't be keeping the old network up... so it'll be one or the other.

Because the existing stuff is still very reliable, I have no immediate plans to cut over yet! But eventually, it'll be time to be sure!


For the curious: Here are the details of my pre-Starlink network afloat: https://shellerina.com/network/

In 2023, I'd simply recommend Starlink. But, it was fun to have a very reliable set up "the old fashioned way."