Starlink RV is now Starlink Roam

[Statistical]

It is a real page. I saw it on the Starlink website today. I spent some time looking through the various pages on their website. I believe I understand it now.

Good to know. Weird SpaceX took it back down.

Starlink is confusing the issues. They are trying to mark out two different activities in their pricing. One is availability of Starlink while in motion. The other is ocean coverage. Both are covered in the $250 version.

The $150 version no longer provides for use while in motion or on the ocean. To them, Mobility means moving the Starlink from one fixed position to another. In each fixed position, Starlink access will be available. That access will be best available, not priority. The travel in between the two fixed positions is not covered under their terms of service. I look for the ability folks have to receive internet under 10 mile per hour to go away soon with the $150 plan. I also think we will see a tightening down in the larger bays and lakes.

To complicate it further they are offering a 50 gig service that is high priority for that amount of data. So, they have at least three moving parts which they appear to be getting ready to enforce to some degree.

Clear as mud, but I look for it becoming more clear in the next month or two.

To be clear while the $150/$200 plan doesn't suport EITHER in motion or ocean coverage you don't need to upgrade to the $250 plan. You can alternatively just pay as you go $2/GB for Priority Data while staying on the Regional Mobile or Global Mobile plans (formerly called Regional Roam & Global Roam) as needed.

You should see this option in your app below the name of your plan. For most boaters who are mostly coastal this is likely going to be the better option than the $250 50GB Priority Mobile plan. YMMV.

 

[SteveK]

It is a real page. I saw it on the Starlink website today.

Wonder if we all see the same online webpages.

I got this in an email from SL
Good news! Your Starlink subscription will remain unlimited and will no longer be deprioritized after 1 TB of data use.

 

[Simi 60]

To be clear while the $150/$200 plan doesn't suport EITHER in motion or ocean coverage you don't need to upgrade to the $250 plan. You can alternatively just pay as you go $2/GB for Priority Data while staying on the Regional Mobile or Global Mobile plans (formerly called Regional Roam & Global Roam).

You should see this option in your app below the name of the plan. For most boaters who are mostly coastal and the occasional offshore run that likely is going to be the better option than the $250 50GB Priority Mobile plan. YMMV.

I really do hope this is the case.
More than happy to sit for a month or more out wide in a lagoon with only a GB or 3 so as to get weather and check emails.

Big downloads can be done coastal.

 

[Insequent]

It isn't consistent around the world. In Australia the Mobile Priority option (for the standard dishy, Ocean use) is monthly only, for 50GB and at A$399. No choice per GB here.

 

[Simi 60]

It isn't consistent around the world. In Australia the Mobile Priority option (for the standard dishy, Ocean use) is monthly only, for 50GB and at A$399. No choice per GB here.

Damn it

The GB option was there this morning @ $3.75 or thereabouts, but not there now.

 

[Helmsman]

https://support.starlink.com/?topic=f495d8c6-adb6-970d-e9fa-34fd21d32a5a

This lays out the differences in data. Note the last point:
Snip
“Mobile Priority Data” is new. It’s the sweetest data yet. It has the same network precedence as “Priority Data,” but is the only data available on land, at sea, and for in motion use.

https://support.starlink.com/?topic=50e933eb-54f5-1a77-cc85-c6c8325564cf
Snip
“Mobile Priority (available on "Maritime") service plans are designated for in-motion use with Flat High Performance Starlink.

In motion use in not permitted for all other service plans, as described in Starlink's Fair Use Policy.

Mobile Regional and Global service plan (available on "Roam") users will have the ability to opt in to Mobile Priority data as you need it on a per GB basis in order to use designated Starlink hardware in motion.”

 

[BruceK]

So I went through the Dismal Swamp canal yesterday afternoon and this morning. Amazingly, I remained connected 90% of the time. Speed was way down which I guess is to be expected in such a narrow aperture for the antenna to see the satellites.

View attachment 138304

Ted

Off topic, but is the name Dismal Swamp ironic? Or is that just the pretty part pictured?

 

[Simi 60]

Surely with all this shite being as smart as it is it could simply.....
* Work normally in the blue hex
* Stop working in the blue hex when in motion - unless you have the fancy dish
* Automatically switch to GB for $x when outside the blue hex if the user activated that in settings
* And send a notification via email that it has done so.

 

[mvweebles]

We pretty much get paid the same $number value as the US


How much is it in Mexico?

At current exchange rate, $72 USD per month for Mobile Plan (ex Roam/RV)

 

[mvweebles]

Starlink Mexico Pricing (May 2023 changes to SL Pricing)

Simi 60 - although my Starlink is paused, I could see the pricing when I re-start. Here is what I see converted to USD and AUD. Note the 1TB plan is I believe different than the 50GB plan others are seeing. The two lower tiers are heavily discounted for Mexico but the higher tiers more closely resemble the US pricing. I have attached a screenshot of the Plan descriptions - perhaps these descriptions would be more robust if my service were active. Right now, I do not see anything about "Oceans" or $2/GB equivilency.

Peter

 

[O C Diver]

From 05/02/23:

Of additional interest, I'm still being billed at $135 per month (as of April 10th). Do I have to switch to Roam to be billed $150 for the same service?

Ted

Apparently SL has been reading TF. Received a notice this morning that my service was increasing to $150 per month with my next scheduled payment.

Ted

 

[Don L]

From 05/02/23:



Apparently SL has been reading TF. Received a notice this morning that my service was increasing to $150 per month with my next scheduled payment.

Ted

I got that note months ago, but still am paying $135

 

[psneeld]

They upped mine automatically and charged the $150 when their deadline rolled around for the increase.

 

[Statistical]

Right now, I do not see anything about "Oceans" or $2/GB equivilency.

To avoid confusion the $2/GB for Priority Data is NOT a new plan. It will NOT show up in the lists of plans. It is something you turn on and off as needed in your EXISTING Regional Mobile or Global Mobile Plan.

It also isn't called Oceans just Mobile Priority Data. Anyone with a Mobile plan can use it even someone not on a boat because when "on" it provides priority access, in motion access, and ocean access. It is premium data although they don't use the word premium. Someone who has an important video conference might turn it on to ensure they have best performance during the call even if stationary on land and then turn it off afterwards. Someone in an RV might turn it on while driving to gain access while in motion. A boater might temporarily turn it on to gain access in the "ocean" and turn it back off when getting back to an anchorage.

Switching back and forth doesn't change the plan it just switches between basic (unlimited best effort) data and priority (pay as you go $2/GB) data .

From Starlink website this "should" be available in every country that Mobile is available but they have been screwing up a lot lately so maybe that is why you don't see it however you won't see it in the list of plans you will see it on your existing plan management page. You don't need to have an In Motion dish for this to be available although it isn't clear if they will block in motion usage going forward without the right dish.

https://api.starlink.com/public-files/FairUsePolicy.pdf

Per that doc looks like it should be 45.71 MXN/GB which is ~$2.5.

 

[Statistical]

I got that note months ago, but still am paying $135

It is impressive how literally nothing is consistent at least in terms of plans, billing, what people see on the website/app, etc. The service is great but it seems like a clown show for the rest of the operation.

 

[Helmsman]

To avoid confusion the $2/GB for Priority Data is NOT a new plan. It will NOT show up in the lists of plans. It is something you turn on and off as needed in your EXISTING Regional Mobile or Global Mobile Plan.

It also isn't called Oceans just Mobile Priority Data. Anyone with a Mobile plan can use it even someone not on a boat because when "on" it provides priority access, in motion access, and ocean access. It is premium data although they don't use the word premium. Someone who has an important video conference might turn it on to ensure they have best performance during the call even if stationary on land and then turn it off afterwards. Someone in an RV might turn it on while driving to gain access while in motion. A boater might temporarily turn it on to gain access in the "ocean" and turn it back off when getting back to an anchorage.

Switching back and forth doesn't change the plan it just switches between basic (unlimited best effort) data and priority (pay as you go $2/GB) data .

From Starlink website this "should" be available in every country that Mobile is available but they have been screwing up a lot lately so maybe that is why you don't see it however you won't see it in the list of plans you will see it on your existing plan management page. You don't need to have an In Motion dish for this to be available although it isn't clear if they will block in motion usage going forward without the right dish.

https://api.starlink.com/public-files/FairUsePolicy.pdf

Per that doc looks like it should be 45.71 MXN/GB which is ~$2.5.

Good explanation. Thanks!

 

[O C Diver]

To avoid confusion the $2/GB for Priority Data is NOT a new plan. It will NOT show up in the lists of plans. It is something you turn on and off as needed in your EXISTING Regional Mobile or Global Mobile Plan.

It also isn't called Oceans just Mobile Priority Data. Anyone with a Mobile plan can use it even someone not on a boat because when "on" it provides priority access, in motion access, and ocean access. It is premium data although they don't use the word premium. Someone who has an important video conference might turn it on to ensure they have best performance during the call even if stationary on land and then turn it off afterwards. Someone in an RV might turn it on while driving to gain access while in motion. A boater might temporarily turn it on to gain access in the "ocean" and turn it back off when getting back to an anchorage.

Switching back and forth doesn't change the plan it just switches between basic (unlimited best effort) data and priority (pay as you go $2/GB) data .

From Starlink website this "should" be available in every country that Mobile is available but they have been screwing up a lot lately so maybe that is why you don't see it however you won't see it in the list of plans you will see it on your existing plan management page. You don't need to have an In Motion dish for this to be available although it isn't clear if they will block in motion usage going forward without the right dish.

https://api.starlink.com/public-files/FairUsePolicy.pdf

Per that doc looks like it should be 45.71 MXN/GB which is ~$2.5.

In your opinion, do you read this as switching to priority can be done for hours or days as opposed to once on, being billed to the end of that billing cycle?

I would buy in for those days when they interpret me to be in the ocean, just don't want to have the entire month billed at $2 per GB.

Ted

 

[Delfin]

In your opinion, do you read this as switching to priority can be done for hours or days as opposed to once on, being billed to the end of that billing cycle?

I would buy in for those days when they interpret me to be in the ocean, just don't want to have the entire month billed at $2 per GB.

Ted

Ted, I read it as an additional charge for data when the switch for priority data is "On". Turn it off and you are back to your current plan. I'm leaving for Hawaii in a month, so this is a very welcome change in plan for me and I'll find out how well it works when out in the deep blue.

 

[Statistical]

In your opinion, do you read this as switching to priority can be done for hours or days as opposed to once on, being billed to the end of that billing cycle?

I would buy in for those days when they interpret me to be in the ocean, just don't want to have the entire month billed at $2 per GB.

Ted

SpaceX is changing things five times an hour so don't take this as gospel however I did a test yesterday and it appeared to work that way.

My plan didn't change it remained Regional Mobile ($150) the entire time. I swiped right to turned on priority data. The priority data took effect immediately. I did some tests on it. It wasn't significantly faster as far as I could tell but maybe congestion wasn't high enough to make a difference. The app recorded the data I used separately so I presume whatever I used will eventually be billed to me at $2/GB. I don't see a charge for the priority data I used yet so I assume they just total it up for the month and charge it on billing date (i.e. instead of getting billed $150 I get billed $153.18 or whatever). A couple hours later I swiped to the left to turn off priority data. It took effect immediately and I was back to unlimited best effort. I confirmed the data usage was not being recorded under the priority data total (so not racking up $2/GB).

Now will it work like that next month, next week, or even this evening? I don't know because it is a clown show over their at SpaceX right now with changes happening multiple times a day.

 

[O C Diver]

SpaceX is changing things five times an hour so don't take this as gospel however I did a test yesterday and it appeared to work that way.

My plan didn't change it remained Regional Mobile ($150) the entire time. I swiped right to turned on priority data. The priority data took effect immediately. I did some tests on it. It wasn't significantly faster as far as I could tell but maybe congestion wasn't high enough to make a difference. The app recorded the data I used separately so I presume whatever I used will eventually be billed to me at $2/GB. I don't see a charge for the priority data I used yet so I assume they just total it up for the month and charge it on billing date (i.e. instead of getting billed $150 I get billed $153.18 or whatever). A couple hours later I swiped to the left to turn off priority data. It took effect immediately and I was back to unlimited best effort. I confirmed the data usage was not being recorded under the priority data total (so not racking up $2/GB).

Now will it work like that next month, next week, or even this evening? I don't know because it is a clown show over their at SpaceX right now with changes happening multiple times a day.

Thanks!

I can live with that, till they change it.

Ted

 

[heysteve]

I'm thinking the reason some people don't see the Mobile Priority switch (like me) is because their service plan is a grandfathered in plan like Standard+Portability. My guess is that if you switch to a new style plan like Mobile-Regional the switch will magically appear.

 

[Helmsman]

I'm thinking the reason some people don't see the Mobile Priority switch (like me) is because their service plan is a grandfathered in plan like Standard+Portability. My guess is that if you switch to a new style plan like Mobile-Regional the switch will magically appear.

It might have to do with having the flat panel versus the RV receiver. I do see it in my account and have the flat panel.

 

[Statistical]

It might have to do with having the flat panel versus the RV receiver. I do see it in my account and have the flat panel.

I have standard (aka "RV") dish and I see it too. So I think we have our bases covered. The above post could be the issue. Maybe SpaceX didn't include the "Priority Data" option on grandfathered "Residential + Portability" plans. Knowing SpaceX that could either be intention or just an oversight.

It would be a bit shady but doing that would slowly move people off the grandfathered plans onto Regional/Global Mobile.

 

[Statistical]

The land vs ocean definitions are back on the Starlink website. A bit pointless they stuck with calling it "land" (which includes some ocean) and "ocean" (which includes some land).

Land: All areas labeled as "Available", "Waitlist", or "Coming Soon" on the Starlink Availability Map are considered land regions. Regional Mobile plans can be used on land within your continent (see continent map), while Global Mobile plans can be used on land anywhere Starlink has service around the world.

Ocean: All areas colored as black on the Starlink Availability Map are considered ocean regions, including islands unless they are labeled "Available", "Waitlist", or "Coming Soon". Only Mobile Priority Data can be used on the ocean, including on these unlabeled islands. Use in local territorial waters, is contingent on government approval.

Simple version is "black hexes require priority data". Not sure why they didn't just say that.

No direct link but you can go here and search for ocean
https://support.starlink.com/

 

[Simi 60]

I'm thinking the reason some people don't see the Mobile Priority switch (like me) is because their service plan is a grandfathered in plan like Standard+Portability. My guess is that if you switch to a new style plan like Mobile-Regional the switch will magically appear.

I'm one of the ones who had it - lost it - but today, have it back again

 

[Simi 60]

The land vs ocean definitions are back on the Starlink website. A bit pointless they stuck with calling it "land" (which includes some ocean) and "ocean" (which includes some land).



Simple version is "black hexes require priority data". Not sure why they didn't just say that.

No direct link but you can go here and search for ocean
https://support.starlink.com/

And here's a picture

Today is a happy day

 

[Sababa]

And here's a picture

Today is a happy day

Maybe it’s just the lawyer in me but while they say that all the coverage areas on the map are “land regions,” they still say that regional mobility can only be used “on land.” So they could still be leaving themselves some wiggle room to say that you are violating your terms of service by using your terminal on the water within a land region. Of course, those areas don’t meet their definition of “ocean” either, so there remains a hole in their terms of service right where most of us on this forum want to use it!

 

[dannc]

...

We got StarLink 2nd Gen dish (square), and our location is set up as our slip location.
...

I will also mention that it used to face about 340 degrees and now it faces 240.
...

I think we have the second generation dish which is rectangular. The first generation was round and it seems like there is now a square dish which I assume is the mobile dish.

There was a StarLink outage about a month ago for 15-30 minutes. I checked the dish and it was now pointing east instead of north. I ASSUME that the dish reoriented during the outage but I don't really know since I have not looked at it in months.

I heard that the Starlink pointed the east coast dishes to the east to use satellites over the ocean for better utilization. Speeds seem faster when I do speed tests, but we did not have a speed problem when the dish was looking north, so who knows. Interesting to hear that west coast dishes are now looking west....

Later,
Dan

 

[dannc]

Agree for the most part; things are dynamic but that is how Musk operates for all of his business including Twitter, SpaceX, and Tesla so it's not surprising. The guy is a genius, but mercurial. ...

Musk is using Agile development practices. Plan, Develop, Ship, See What Happens, and Repeat. It is a dynamic process to get things shipped fast with the understanding that perfection is not the desired but continuous improvement is the goal.

Which in the StarLink situation, is driving these changes, and causing confusion. It Is What It Is....

In spite of the churn, StarLink is the best Internet Service Provide we have ever subscribed.

Later,
Dan

 

[portager]

As a Systems Engineer, I'm not sure everyone fully appreciates the difference and value of the “Flat High Performance” (AKA Flat HP) dish i.e. the $2,500 hardware system. The Flat HP is larger, 22.6" (575 mm) x 20.1" (511 mm) vs the older 15.7" (400 mm) x 11.8" (300 mm). The Flat HP also has a wider field of view – 140 degrees vs 100 degrees and a better GPS chip that allows more precise satellite tracking. The most overlooked feature is that the Flat HP actively tracks satellites even in motion, allowing the dish to compensate for platform pitch and roll motion, which is the primary reason for the wider field of view (to compensate for pitch and roll). For the SL antenna to actively track satellites, each antenna element in the phased array must determine the phase difference between the received signal to determine the difference between the line of sight (LOS) to the satellite and the mathematical LOS to the Satellite's spatial location assuming a horizontal platform. This allows the SL system to determine the real-time platform pitch and roll angles and to correct the pointing angle of the transmit (Tx) beam. The difference in the complexity of the Flat HP and the older non-mobile antenna can not be overstated. The difference in processing requirements and software complexity accounts for the difference in cost.

So, what is the value of the Flat HP antenna? When tied to the dock in a calm harbor, or anchored in a protected area I would expect a moderately higher data rate, but at sea in rough conditions when you're rolling the old fixed antenna will be "obstructed" beyond some roll angle because the satellite won't be where the antenna thinks it should be. You'll still get some data when you're close to horizontal, so I think it won't drop to zero. The Flat HP system is supposed to maintain the service (I'm guessing it would have a small performance degradation because perfection is unaffordable).

If you only want or need data in calm conditions while stationary (although you might get service while moving slowly, that isn't guaranteed to continue indefinitely), then the older smaller antenna should suffice. If you want data while underway regardless of conditions, then you should get the Flat HP antenna.