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+x+xMel Starlink say that you have to use the device in the continent in which it was bought though I do know of a few that have had success both in Europe and the Americas. I guess it depends on whether they are enforcing the rules they have in place. Simon +x+xSonia At the moment range is limited to the proximity of a ground station and I believe this is about 300 miles. Satellite to satellite laser communication by laser is not yet switched on but is said to be imminent. When that happens it will work mid ocean but no date has been announced. Coverage is more widespread than the Starlink map suggests as they only add an area to the map when the service can be guaranteed. Plenty of folk are reporting good coverage in ‘uncovered’ areas. At the moment it should be regarded as a good alternative for remote coastal cruising where cellphone data is patchy or non existent. For trans-Ocean, narrowband data then iIridium or SSB will be best. One less known complication is that a unit must be used in the continent in which it was bought and the service address must be updated if spending more than 2 months in a different country. This is done simply on the website or App. There is no contract for Service provision you just buy airtime by the month so it’s easy to pause. The cost varies considerably according to which county the service address is. There is a Marine version designed for ocean crossing cruise liners but the cost is massive (us$5,000/month). I have the RV version for use in the USA and coastal regions of Central America and it’s US$135/month (about the same as IridiumGO. Simon +x+xA thumbs up for Starlink RV which we have just installed. Mounted in a modified fishing rod holder in a winch socket it was up and running in minutes with 100 mbs download speeds. Cost effective too. Simon Thanks Simon, Not being satellite saavy, I have a silly question… I understand Starlink will work out at sea, but I’m not sure 🤔 For example, having just checked the Starlink web pages, their map only shows land as coverage…. I want to use it for a circumnavigation, but need help to understand its capabilities, especially with the speeds you quoted! Would you be able to clarify or provide a Uk contact? I’m based on the Isle of Wight. Best wishes, Sonia SY Salacia Simon, We have Starlink RV that we use in the US when we are actually in our RV! But we are contemplating bringing it with us when we return to the Med. Just mainly so we can have internet access wherever we are. We have a SSB for crossing oceans. Do you know if its possible to use in other countries besides your own? Thanks - Mel s/v Talaria Thank you! May give it a try. Hi all, George Day of Blue Water Sailing and Cruising Compass posted this recently: Dick Stevenson, s/v Alchemy The Starlink Future is Here I wouldn’t have believed it if I hadn’t seen it with my own eyes during a Salty Dawg Caribbean Rally weather briefing Zoom meeting in early November. One of the skippers in the Bahamas-bound fleet of 30 boats, which had left a couple of days earlier, joined the meeting while still 150 miles north east of the Abacoes. The video image came through clearly, the sound was perfect and in the background was the boat’s stern surfing nicely along in fairly big seas, all live and via the internet supplied by the skipper’s Starlink satellite connection. Using Starlink while securely moored or anchored has become more and more common but actual active and practical use at sea is quite a revolution in offshore communications. Starlink Maritime is a commercial service that costs $5,000 a month and $10,000 to install. But crafty cruisers have discovered that Starlink Mobile, designed for the RV crowd, works on boats, too, and costs $135 a month and requires the in-motion antenna which is about $2,500. There were approximately 10 boats in this fall’s Salty Dawg fleet with Starlink units. As more satellites are deployed and software for antenna-satellite-connections improve, I’ll bet we will see Starlink units replacing sat-phones and keeping our cruising community linked to the internet all the time. If you have experience using Starlink on a boat, please share your knowledge and experiences by emailing me: george@bwsailing.com
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