Starlink Best Efforts

[SwingOak]

I was in with a deposit on the first day of pre-order, and availability kept getting pushed back, and now again to "mid 2023" so when I got the "best offer" deal I took it. Speeds are all over the place, not consistent, and it drops out a lot. But, it is significantly better than the DSL service I have and mobile service is generally poor out here in the country too. If it's especially bad, I fall back on an AT&T hotspot but for the most part, Starlink has been OK, just not great, and not consistent.

To follow up on my earlier comment, I've dropped the DSL and hotspot service completely and am using Starlink only. Consistency has improved and speeds are significantly faster compared to what I had before.

Speedtest right now using Cloudflare - 111 Mbps download, 8.04 Mbps upload, with a latency of 51 ms. But again, it's usually all over the place, but this has more or less been the average lately.

It's fast enough I can stream TV shows, keep two Nest outdoor security cameras running 24/7 and be able to see live real-time HD video on the security cameras.

The built in self-heated dishy kept itself free of ice and snow during the Christmas weekend blizzard (and it's sitting on the ground outside the house because I haven't mounted it yet), a subsequent episode of freezing rain and ice, and we never lost internet either during heavy snow and 55 mph winds. It's on the north side of the house so it doesn't see the sun either. No problems so far with snow or ice.

 

[ernemats]

I originally put my deposit down in Feb. 9, 2021 and it said mid to late 2021, then it got moved to mid to late 2022 and then it got moved to 2023. So about a month ago I requested a refund and received it as about 7 months ago comcast said they were going to extend their service to our area and we signed a contract with them but as of now nothing. We currently have Verizon dsl getting about 1.5 mps down on a good day and also have A T T hotspot sometimes ok and other times nothing and my daughter is working from home (she is living with us) and needs it for her job. I know of about 6 people within a 2 mile radius that have gotten Starlink last summer but Starlink map does not show areas around us as having Starlink. One family that has it says they are getting good reception with few drops. I don't know what to think or do.

 

[ponytug]

I originally put my deposit down in Feb. 9, 2021 and it said mid to late 2021, then it got moved to mid to late 2022 and then it got moved to 2023. So about a month ago I requested a refund and received it as about 7 months ago comcast said they were going to extend their service to our area and we signed a contract with them but as of now nothing. We currently have Verizon dsl getting about 1.5 mps down on a good day and also have A T T hotspot sometimes ok and other times nothing and my daughter is working from home (she is living with us) and needs it for her job. I know of about 6 people within a 2 mile radius that have gotten Starlink last summer but Starlink map does not show areas around us as having Starlink. One family that has it says they are getting good reception with few drops. I don't know what to think or do.

When you enter your address, what options are you being offered today.

Personally, I don't understand why some cells aren't eligible for service; I don't see the pattern.

Good luck; I hope that somebody comes through for you.

All the best,

Peter

 

[ernemats]

When you enter your address, what options are you being offered today.

Personally, I don't understand why some cells aren't eligible for service; I don't see the pattern.

Good luck; I hope that somebody comes through for you.

All the best,

Peter

Available in your area 2023 (said available in 2021 and then in 2022 and now saying 2023) so who knows when. Rv available now no mention of best efforts.

 

[SwingOak]

Available in your area 2023 (said available in 2021 and then in 2022 and now saying 2023) so who knows when. Rv available now no mention of best efforts.

Seeing as you cancelled and had your deposit refunded, you probably won't get a "best effort" offer - that was only for people that had a pre-order in place to reserve a spot in line when service was available. Because you had your deposit refunded, you're now at the bottom of the list if you sign up again.

 

[TheMan419]

So someone just pulled fiber down my road. It is going from the main road down to the 8 houses on my road. It then stops at the over pass for the highway. So not likely it is for back haul on a cell tower unless they are building a cell tower on my neighbor's property.

I think it is AT&T who is building out fiber in the area. The guys installing said it was for TMobile. So I am signed up on both of those sites for updates when fiber becomes available in my area.

I have not yet cancelled my starlink order, but will not take advantage of the best efforts offer yet.

Hopefully we will get good fiber service here soon.

 

[MossRoad]

That would be nice.

It's one of the things that keeps us on the fence about building on our property while still being employed. Wife works from home. No good cell service. No cable.
No phone, no lights, no motor car,
Not a single luxury,
Like Robinson Crusoe,
It's primitive as can be.

 

[kf4uda]

As a follow up, I have had the "best effort" service for over 3 months now. I have no regrets. The only outages that we have experienced was during a couple of very hard rain storms and then only for no more than 5 minutes. I certainly look forward to the full residential service but for now this service is fulfilling our needs.

 

[3Ts]

As for rain storms: We have both Hughes net and Starlink. We had a rain storm through here last couple of days that would shut down Hughes net, but Starlink kept working. We'll be cancelling Hughes net shortly.

 

[ernemats]

Anyone else have any experience with best efforts in eastern USA, still waiting

 

[sd455dan]

Have been checking Starlink about every week for a year now.

Always shows our small area shaded out as not available at present.

Was reading the thread this morning and this time instead of checking the map, just tried to order instead.
Sure enough it all went through. The Mobley is pretty good when it works but can be out for extended periods.
No idea if they will actually come through in a timely matter.
Anyone know if SpaceX ships the dish does that guarantee that service will be allowed or can you get stuck holding a dish- but not internet service?

 

[IXLR8]

Have been checking Starlink about every week for a year now.

Always shows our small area shaded out as not available at present.

Was reading the thread this morning and this time instead of checking the map, just tried to order instead.
Sure enough it all went through. The Mobley is pretty good when it works but can be out for extended periods.
No idea if they will actually come through in a timely matter.
Anyone know if SpaceX ships the dish does that guarantee that service will be allowed or can you get stuck holding a dish- but not internet service?

If they are sending you the dish, you will have service. If your area is oversold, service might only be in the 30-50Mb/s download... but you will have service.

 

[Rebeldad1]

so what happened to starlinks support. I have sent them a request and followup. Its been 2 weeks now

 

[ponytug]

so what happened to starlinks support. I have sent them a request and followup. Its been 2 weeks now

They have a tendency to close tickets without notifying users. I would resubmit it.

All the best, Peter

 

[Alien]

Mine is still performing well with no real issues. I may have to get Mesh to get a stronger signal at the far end of the house. Still often get way over 200 mps download.
Today.

 

[SwingOak]

Got this email from Starlink today. So I signed up for "Best Effort" service, and now they are raising the rate because they can't deliver full service. I mean I get it, I assume they are raising costs to weed out people that don't really need the service, or to help fund improvements in ground based infrastructure where it's needed, but it's still kind of a kick to the face.

I saw a US Internet truck on the street earlier this week, hopefully they are planning on running fiber down my road soon. They charge $70/month for unlimited data and speeds in the Gigs, not Megs.

The Starlink monthly service for residential customers is changing as follows: $10 increase in areas with limited capacity. New price will be $120/month. $20 decrease in areas with excess capacity. New price will be $90/month. As a current customer in an area with limited capacity, your monthly service price will increase to $120/month beginning April 24, 2023. For new customers in your area, the price increase is effective immediately. If you do not wish to continue service, you can cancel at any time on your account page. Your Starlink hardware can be returned for a full refund within 30 days of purchase, or a partial refund of $250 within 12 months of purchase. As the SpaceX team launches more satellites to increase capacity, the Starlink team is making continuous network updates to improve performance over time. Thanks for being a customer and for your continued support of Starlink!