This device, Grand Adventurers, is going to change the way that people camp in the years to come.
Welcome back to Grand Adventure! I'm your host Marc Guido, and this week we are going
to share with you our initial experiences with Starlink satellite internet, so stay tuned!
So what is Starlink? Starlink is a satellite-based broadband internet system that will eventually be
available across the entire globe. Back in November of 2020 SpaceX began launching up
to 60 satellites a time aboard its Falcon 9 rocket. Here you see 60 Starlink satellites
stacked together awaiting deployment. Public beta testing began in the U.S. in November 2020.
Only recently has the program left the beta stage, and it's now available in much of the
United States. There is still, however, a waiting list as Starlink increases capacity by putting
more satellites in the sky, and also by producing more of the router antenna kits for consumers to
be able to connect to Starlink services. We were actually on the waiting list for nearly two years.
So how is this different from existing satellite internet service provided by
companies like HughesNet and ViaSat? For one thing, those latter two companies use
several satellites to cover the entire globe from a high altitude geosynchronous orbit that's about
35,000 kilometers above the earth's surface. By contrast, Starlink is using a constellation of
thousands of satellites in a Low Earth Orbit. Phase 1 is around 550 kilometers above the earth,
whereas phase 2 (which is about to begin) is going to be even lower at about 340 kilometers above
earth. The blue dots on this map represent over 1,200 active Starlink satellites zipping across
North America lower altitude means lower latency and therefore much faster internet speeds. Think
about this for a second: if you are transmitting data over 35,000 kilometers it takes a lot longer
than transferring data over 550 kilometers. By reducing the amount of time that it takes from
that data packet to get from you to the satellite (that is known as latency) it's
going to make the internet experience a much faster experience on something like Starlink.
Also Starlink is significantly less expensive. They charge $99 per month flat rate for unlimited
data transfer, whereas HughesNet charges a similar amount for a very limited amount of data transfer.
Finally it's a lot easier to set up Starlink. Both HughesNet and ViaSat require very careful
aiming of their satellite dishes to be able to effectively lock onto the satellite,
whereas Starlink uses a motorized phase array antenna that automatically positions itself
to track and lock onto its satellites. Just plug it in and it's ready to go.
Now it's awfully fascinating how Starlink actually works, so let's actually take a look at that for
a moment. The phase array antenna on our roof connects us to the Starlink satellite flying
overhead. The satellite then relays data to a base station connected to the internet backbone.
On this map the base stations are denoted by the orange dots. Our location is the green dot. The
solid green line to the blue dot, which is we already mentioned is the satellite, that
denotes our primary connection, whereas the dotted green lines represent our secondary connection.
Now we're actually going to repurpose a 16-foot telescoping aluminum flagpole for our
antenna mount. Let me show you how we're going to do that, because we've had an
awful lot of interest in this. The dish is not made to withstand the wind speeds generated
during travel, so we're actually going to have to set it up and take it down each time we move.
The flagpole, we're using Starlink's pole adapter mount to attach the antenna dish to the flagpole.
Now, using a telescoping flagpole means that we can keep it lower for greater stability,
or extend it higher to clear nearby obstructions. We're mounting the flagpole to our RV using
Flagpole Buddy's two-inch flagpole mounts. Now this actually comes with several advantages.
For one, we can set it up and take it down without having to climb the ladder. Our Grand Adventurers
know that we hate drilling holes in our RV, and no drilling is required using this method because the
mounts simply clamp onto the RV ladder. We're then passing the cable into our RV through the weather
stripping on our slide. Again, no holes. And from here we've passed the cable behind our fireplace
and up to the Starlink router behind the TV. Now we eventually plan to bypass the Starlink router
and plug the data signal coming from the antenna directly into our Pepwave MAX Transit Duo router
that we shared with you on a recent episode. If you'd like to know more about that
we'll put a link right here on the screen so you can go back and check it out. However,
not only will that reduce power consumption, but also reduce the complication in the
number of hops in the system, so I'm expecting slightly better performance that way as well.
Unfortunately the ethernet adapter from Starlink is currently on backorder so we
actually have to await its arrival. We've ordered it, we're just waiting for it to be delivered.
Now if you would like more information on how to replicate this mount for yourself, we're going
to put links right down in the video description below to everything you need to be able to do so.
So if it's supposed to be fast, what kind of speeds are we getting?
We've been consistently seeing in the neighborhood of 135 Mbps down and approximately 25 Mbps upload.
That's nowhere near the speeds that our friends down in Texas are getting. They've been seeing
close to 300 Mbps data transfer; however, even our speeds here in Salt Lake City
are the equivalent of the best 5G speeds that we've seen anywhere!
You may have heard of Starlink referred to as a game changer for RV travelers,
so what makes this a game changer? So many times in 2021 we spent hours looking for a boondocking
spot where we had adequate cell service to be able to work from from our RV, and so many
times we'd find a great boondocking location, take out the cell phone, check signal strength,
check data transfer rates and realize this really isn't going to work.
And after hours of looking for a spot we would reluctantly head to an RV park.
This is really changing the game for us! Now we're going to be able to boondock almost anywhere
if we can connect to Starlink, even in areas that don't have any cell service whatsoever.
Note that I said "if" we can connect to Starlink. Take a look again at this map. See those hexagonal
shapes? Those are what Starlink refers to as "cells". In some parts of the U.S. Starlink has
yet to enable certain cells, for example across a large swath of central and eastern Kentucky.
In other areas the cells are already full with existing customers. So as to not degrade the
experience, new customers aren't allowed in unless an existing customer leaves the cell.
For example we're heading down to Quartzite, Arizona next week and we've already heard through
the grapevine that the cell in Quartzsite is already full and people are having a
difficult time getting in. Now that situation is expected to improve in the very near future
as Starlink increases capacity by putting more satellites up into orbit to help that situation.
Starlink is moving away from its Falcon 9 launch vehicle, and is instead transitioning to launching
phase 2 of its satellites with the new Starship launch vehicle which has a much greater capacity.
In addition to that, Starlink will be launching with the starship, phase two of its satellite
constellation and the phase two satellites are actually able to transmit data from satellite to
satellite via laser, thereby minimizing the need for as many ground stations to handle an increased
customer base. So over time, and actually in the fairly near future this issue of finding
an available cell and an open cell is expected to dissipate as more customers are allowed to
come online. Now Starlink's timeline has been very, very quick to date, and it's expected
that that pace will continue with the launch of the phase 2 satellites to increase capacity.
Now, people are often commenting that they thought Starlink wasn't available for mobile use,
and that's because of how Starlink defines "mobile". Starlink defines "mobile" as being
used while in motion, whereas a lot of RVers, they don't need the satellite internet service
while they're driving down the road. They just need it when they get to their next destination,
and that's simply a matter of changing service address. Now Starlink does have pending with
the FCC an application for a mobile version of their phased array antenna, so that is coming
down the road. And think about it for a second, that's a huge business opportunity for Starlink.
Think over-the-road truckers. Think ships out at sea. It's a huge business opportunity, and that is
coming, expected to be in the mid-term. However, for now for our viewers, as long as you only want
service at your next destination, yes you can use Starlink that way now simply by changing your
service address. And the way that you do that is just by pinpointing your next location on a map.
When we first activated our Starlink we activated it down in Texas, then we moved
our service location to here outside of Salt Lake City. As long as you have an open cell,
we were able to change that service address in about 15 seconds. Super, super easy. Just pick
a location on the map where you're going to be, and as long as that location on the map is in an
open cell and it's approximately 10 miles from your physical location, you'll be good to go.
You have to have an open cell, as we explained a moment ago, and if in fact the cell is not open
at the location you tried, your request to change your service address will be rejected
and you revert back to your previous service address that you presently have.
At that point it becomes a matter of clicking around the map to try to find
a service location within approximately a 10-mile radius that will accept you.
Now we'll be sharing our experiences with moving our location for Starlink from campsite
to campsite throughout our 2022 travel season, so if you're not yet a Grand Adventurer this is the
time! Go smash that little red "subscribe" button down there in the lower right-hand corner of your
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So until next Wednesday please remember, life is nothing but a Grand Adventure! We'll see you then.
Look, even Zoe's excited about Starlink!
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