Starlink Mini on a boat

We’ve had a Gen 2 Starlink for over a year now, the hardware has been great, the ever changing contract less so!
We are now testing a Starlink Mini which only draws half the power of the standard unit, which is great on a boat, but sadly it’s not just the straightforward plug into your 12v boat you might have hoped for.
But the question is, how will it work at sea, is it a viable alternative to the standard model ( the marine models use far too much power for an average yacht ) so should you buy one?

UPDATE 28Nov 2024
The video has just gone out to the public, but we had it up for the Patrons a couple of weeks ago and have tested the Mini on and off shore during that time.
The Unit is now fitted on the rear arch on the other side to the Standard dish we have. It’s mounted Flat, the app complains that it’s not aligned correctly but it doesn’t seem to matter at all. We’ve had good solid uninterrupted connection all the time, just some very slight buffering during one or two of the very heavy rainstorms we have here to the San Blas.
The Wifi hotspot from the router in the antenna give excellent connection throughout the boat. I used the long lead supplied running from the arch down through where all the other cables go through a gland at the stern of Fair Isle, then it runs through the boat to the Nav Station midships. There was only just enough cable!
I’m powering from the small Victron Phoenix inverter I bought for the Standard Starlink. Not as efficient as staying DC and just ramping up the voltage but the Phoenix inverters are very efficient and I’m using half the power of the Standard, so very impressed with the set up.
We did go off shore sailing from Colombia to Panama and I realised the toggle for Priority service is still there, I had been told it had disappeared ( apparently it’s about to) But I toggled on to Priority data for the two day crossing to Panama and the system worked fine. Just charging $2 /Gb for the data used while on Priority, we switched straight back to Standard (unlimited) data on the Roam package as soon as we reached the San Blas Islands and that works fine too.
We have now left our registered country (Colombia) so in theory the clock is ticking and I will be cut off in 60 days time. I will report back if that happens.

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PATREON:
We couldn’t make these videos without the support of you, our patrons. You are our first line of feedback, our team, our support and our friends. We are really grateful and it means we can keep the videos coming! If you would like to join us you get to see (and comment on, which really helps us) the current videos with no ads at all before they get released to the public. There are also lots of extra videos available on Patreon and you can contact us directly on board. Ask us anything! We have regular ZOOM sessions and a WhatsApp group where we talk about boats, passages and life onboard. Join us!

https://www.patreon.com/sailingfairisle

We've had a Gen 2 Starlink for over a year now, the hardware has been great, the ever changing contract less so!
We are now testing a Starlink Mini which only draws half the power of the standard unit, which is great on a boat, but sadly it's not just the straightforward plug into your 12v boat you might have hoped for.
But the question is, how will it work at sea, is it a viable alternative to the standard model ( the marine models use far too much power for an average yacht ) so should you buy one?

UPDATE 28Nov 2024
The video has just gone out to the public, but we had it up for the Patrons a couple of weeks ago and have tested the Mini on and off shore during that time.
The Unit is now fitted on the rear arch on the other side to the Standard dish we have. It's mounted Flat, the app complains that it's not aligned correctly but it doesn't seem to matter at all. We've had good solid uninterrupted connection all the time, just some very slight buffering during one or two of the very heavy rainstorms we have here to the San Blas.
The Wifi hotspot from the router in the antenna give excellent connection throughout the boat. I used the long lead supplied running from the arch down through where all the other cables go through a gland at the stern of Fair Isle, then it runs through the boat to the Nav Station midships. There was only just enough cable!
I'm powering from the small Victron Phoenix inverter I bought for the Standard Starlink. Not as efficient as staying DC and just ramping up the voltage but the Phoenix inverters are very efficient and I'm using half the power of the Standard, so very impressed with the set up.
We did go off shore sailing from Colombia to Panama and I realised the toggle for Priority service is still there, I had been told it had disappeared ( apparently it's about to) But I toggled on to Priority data for the two day crossing to Panama and the system worked fine. Just charging $2 /Gb for the data used while on Priority, we switched straight back to Standard (unlimited) data on the Roam package as soon as we reached the San Blas Islands and that works fine too.
We have now left our registered country (Colombia) so in theory the clock is ticking and I will be cut off in 60 days time. I will report back if that happens.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
PLEASE DO SUBSCRIBE - IT COSTS YOU NOTHING AND HELPS US OUT WITH THE YOUTUBE ALGORITHM
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

PATREON:
We couldn't make these videos without the support of you, our patrons. You are our first line of feedback, our team, our support and our friends. We are really grateful and it means we can keep the videos coming! If you would like to join us you get to see (and comment on, which really helps us) the current videos with no ads at all before they get released to the public. There are also lots of extra videos available on Patreon and you can contact us directly on board. Ask us anything! We have regular ZOOM sessions and a WhatsApp group where we talk about boats, passages and life onboard. Join us!

https://www.patreon.com/sailingfairisle

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Sailing Fair Isle Lastest Videos

Showing 1-24 of 273 results
We’re struggling to leave the Azores!   |   Ep151
Sailing Fair Isle
We’re struggling to leave the Azores! | Ep151
Sao Miguel is the last Azorian island we will sail to before completing the Atlantic crossing and sailing on to the European Mainland. It's the largest island in the chain and the most popular for visitors. It's the island that has everything .Lakes, mount...
In how many ways can you explore the Azores?!   |   Ep150
Sailing Fair Isle
In how many ways can you explore the Azores?! | Ep150
We continue on sailing through the wonderful Azorian islands in this episode, starting in Sao Jorge anchored off the lovely town of Velas we find some amazing hikes before sailing on to the lovely to the island of Terciera where they have a very different ...
Wine, beer and an old sea dog  :  The islands EVERY sailor needs to visit  |  Ep149
Sailing Fair Isle
Wine, beer and an old sea dog : The islands EVERY sailor needs to visit | Ep149
✅ Support our channel by getting Fishing Clash on your phone for free https://fishingclash.link/SailingFairIsle! Use our gift code FAIRISLE to get a $20 reward The Azores are definitely one of the must go places for any sailor, in fact we think they ar...
Interview with Barry ‘the old sea dog’  He’s about to finish his circumnavigation!
Sailing Fair Isle
Interview with Barry ‘the old sea dog’ He’s about to finish his circumnavigation!
When we arrived in Horta a few weeks ago we were met at the dock by our friend Barry 'the old sea dog'. This was a surprise because although we knew he was a bit behind with his videos (he's in South Africa in his current videos) but we didn't know quite h...
The best Atlantic crossing ever! until…   |    Ep148
Sailing Fair Isle
The best Atlantic crossing ever! until… | Ep148
This is our second Atlantic crossing but the first going from West to East which can be a much more challenging route. Thanks to constant up to date and detailed weather modelling we managed to have over a week of perfect sailing positioning ourselves just...
Atlantic crossing; 1,700 nm Bermuda to the Azores (with some very strange dolphins!)   |   Ep148
Sailing Fair Isle
Atlantic crossing; 1,700 nm Bermuda to the Azores (with some very strange dolphins!) | Ep148
We have a last tour of Bermuda before setting off on our second Atlantic crossing, this one looks like it could be tricky! If you are looking for new Mainsail cars then we can't recommend Ronstan enough. Check them out at http://www.ronstan.com/ -------...
Building a J-Pole AIS Antenna
Sailing Fair Isle
Building a J-Pole AIS Antenna
I had been meaning to build a J-Pole Antenna for oue AIS for years. I had heard they perform very well and do away with the complexity of having a splitter in line which can compromise the VHF and the AIS if things go wrong. Well of course with the constan...
Is Bermuda better than the Bahamas for cruising?   Ep 147
Sailing Fair Isle
Is Bermuda better than the Bahamas for cruising? Ep 147
Many people just use Bermuda as a quick staging post on a West East Atlantic crossing. We think that is a massive mistake as Bermuda is one of our favourite places. Now that The Bahamas have hiked their cruising costs to thousands of pounds per vessel, Ber...
What’s it like sailing 800 miles offshore?  |  Ep146
Sailing Fair Isle
What’s it like sailing 800 miles offshore? | Ep146
The first leg of an Atlantic crossing is often the most tricky. Coming West the trade winds from the Canaries to the Caribbean are pretty reliable but getting down the the Canaries from Portugal can be a challenge. It was for us as you can see in Ep104 whe...
Is the eWincher a good buy?
Sailing Fair Isle
Is the eWincher a good buy?
Having sailing Fair Isle full time for 8 years and 25,000 miles we know we can cope without electric winches so we had the eWincher down as a 'nice to have' item rather than a 'must have' But there were certainly occasions when we would have loved to have ...
Sweating over a dangerous fault   |   Ep145
Sailing Fair Isle
Sweating over a dangerous fault | Ep145
We are now in the really nice bits of the Bahamas, we did have to spend a day fixing a potentially boat destroying fault, but we are enjoying the prettiest spot so far this side of the Atlantic. Eleuthera is a lovely region and the jewel in the crown is ...
Anchor Test Mantus M2
Sailing Fair Isle
Anchor Test Mantus M2
We keep hearing good things about the Mantus anchors and we told you in last week's episode we've had major problems with the Ultra swivel so it was definitely time to test out a Mantus anchor while we are in the crystal clear waters of the Bahamas.This fi...
A Testing Time in the Bahamas   |   Ep144
Sailing Fair Isle
A Testing Time in the Bahamas | Ep144
With packages delivered and the major boat jobs done, we are finally getting to see the best parts of the Bahamas. We are not just sitting around drinking cocktails though! We have some serious anchor testing to do, and what better place with the crystal c...
Tropical storms, blue holes and the other side of the Bahamas   |  Ep143
Sailing Fair Isle
Tropical storms, blue holes and the other side of the Bahamas | Ep143
Andros is not a well travelled cruising ground, but it has a lot to offer. It's the largest island in the Bahamas, in fact it could fit every other island in it's space with room to spare. It's known as the 'family island' and is very friendly it also has ...
Heidi and Franny, follow up interview – 3 years into cruising
Sailing Fair Isle
Heidi and Franny, follow up interview – 3 years into cruising
Regular viewers will be familiar with Heidi and Franny as we interviewed them 3 years ago at the Annapolis boat show when they were first looking for a catamaran and we have stayed with them on board in Annapolis for the last two boat shows. Since then th...
Can you afford to come to the Bahamas?!!!  |   Ep142
Sailing Fair Isle
Can you afford to come to the Bahamas?!!! | Ep142
Everyone tells us we can't afford not to come to the Bahamas. It has the clearest waters at the perfect temperature. Strings of fabulous islands and perfect trade wind sailing in protected waters. However, there's a way to come to the Bahamas and that's we...
Epic Sail in the clearest water with the largest fish yet!  |  Ep141
Sailing Fair Isle
Epic Sail in the clearest water with the largest fish yet! | Ep141
It's the last of the Cuba series, but it all happens in this episode. We sail the whole Northern coast of Cuba, hide from a storm, dock in over 30 knots of wind (without the bow thruster), run out of food and then see the other side of Cuba (it's a shock!)...
FIX IT! No help – off grid cruising   |   Ep140
Sailing Fair Isle
FIX IT! No help – off grid cruising | Ep140
A big part of cruising is fixing things as you go along and you can bet things will go wrong at the most inopportune moments. We've had more things break in the last month than ever before and we are in the one place in the Caribbean that you can get no he...
BROKEN!   You’re on your own in Cuba  |  Ep139
Sailing Fair Isle
BROKEN! You’re on your own in Cuba | Ep139
After running aground in the last episode sailing through Southern Cuba, our luck doesn't really get any better this week. Cuba is not the place to have things fail as there is no way of getting anything here directly and importing spares is very difficult...
Run Aground #sailing #travel #boating#boatlife #cuba#sailing cuba
Sailing Fair Isle
The worst place to run aground  |  Ep138
Sailing Fair Isle
The worst place to run aground | Ep138
The Cuban coastguard doesn't have a boat. One sailor we spoke to here was told that if he wanted his boat pulled off the rocks they would have to hire a boat from Jamaica. So, this is not the place to find yourself hard aground! Added to that, we can 't ...
Sailing CUBA!  |  Ep137
Sailing Fair Isle
Sailing CUBA! | Ep137
Cuba is without doubt the friendliest and most fascinating place we've been in the Caribbean - but somewhat surprisingly, there are hardly any tourists here (and they could really use more!). Cruising here on a boat is not like other countries. Officially...
Scuppering a 2000 tonne ship then sailing to Cuba!   |   Ep136
Sailing Fair Isle
Scuppering a 2000 tonne ship then sailing to Cuba! | Ep136
We have been in the Cayman Islands longer than expected. It's a hard place to leave! But we were equally excited to be sailing to Cuba. Somewhere we have never been before. We couldn't leave without diving on the Kittiwake, an ex navy submarine rescue vess...
Do we have STRAY CURRENTS?   |   Ep135
Sailing Fair Isle
Do we have STRAY CURRENTS? | Ep135
On the list of jobs for this week was to properly test for stray currents. This can be a very serious problem which if you follow the Wynns you will be very much aware of. We have no corrosion that we can see, but we did have some haloing ( loss of paint a...

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