Starlink Outages

[ab_hunter]

Hi AO members,

I was just curious if anyone else on this forum is experiencing a large amount of outages from Starlink? They are short outages, but very frequent. Quite frustrating. I am located in central Alberta.

Thanks in advance.

[tirebob]

I work from home pretty much 8 to 14 hours a day online and I haven't had a single outage in a couple months, and even then the very few I have had have been super short and probably just system updates etc.

Has anything changed on your end? Maybe you need to relocate your dish? The way the system works is it grabs from all the different satellites so unless you are experiencing something that is not allowing the signal to penetrate you might be having hardware issues?

[harv3589]

I was thinking of changing over to starlink. Xplornet is absolute garbage. Can’t stream in the evenings without poor quality pic or it stopping. Have to unplug the modem at least once week and reset it.

Hoping starlink isn’t having issues too…

[Stinky Buffalo]

I have a friend in a rural area who is running StarLink and is quite happy with it - no outages reported.

Way better than the Telus hub he had initially.

[tirebob]

Originally Posted by harv3589

I was thinking of changing over to starlink. Xplornet is absolute garbage. Can’t stream in the evenings without poor quality pic or it stopping. Have to unplug the modem at least once week and reset it.

Hoping starlink isn’t having issues too…

Honestly this is the very first time I have ever heard anyone having any kinds of complaints I have come across. Almost all the people in my area have switched over since we had gotten it very early in the year and every single person I talk to about it raves as much as I do!

It is why I think there has to be some mitigating circumstance with the OP's issue because it certainly is not common from my anecdotal experience. The question is what is causing his issue.

Edit - Silly question maybe, but for the OP... Do you have it hard mounted on the roof or do you have it maybe on the ground stand or a fence post and it is getting buffeted more than it should from wind and lack of stability? I just ask because one of my neighbours said in the beginning when he has his on the fence post it was being a bit weird but when he hard mounted it on the roof all his issues went away instantly. Just a possible thought?

[Phil McCracken]

Originally Posted by harv3589

I was thinking of changing over to starlink. Xplornet is absolute garbage. Can’t stream in the evenings without poor quality pic or it stopping. Have to unplug the modem at least once week and reset it.

Hoping starlink isn’t having issues too…

Where are you at?

I'm in Rocky Mtn House and have the Xplornet LTE system since about 10 months ago.. been excellent...

I had to install a 20 foot tower on my roof to clear the trees for an extra $300.00ish. Even with NW winds...no issues...

But all good...

[harv3589]

Originally Posted by Phil McCracken

Where are you at?

I'm in Rocky Mtn House and have the Xplornet LTE system since about 10 months ago.. been excellent...

I had to install a 20 foot tower on my roof to clear the trees for an extra $300.00ish. Even with NW winds...no issues...

But all good...

I’m south of Calgary near Okotoks.

I pay for 50 mbps but rarely get that. Usually around 20 or under and as low as 2.

[TBark]

We had Xplornet installed in late Aug up at our cabin, $95 for setup and $240 for the 8’ pole.
They recommend the shorter pole for stability since a taller one was of no benefit for reception.
All has been great, even working from home from the cabin at times, ha.
Heading for the tree stand at 4:30 daily.
It’s $120/ mo for 200 gig and I’ll suspend the plan in Dec til Apr, a $30/ mo option.

TBark

[brazeau]

From the reviews I've read here and elsewhere, I've decided to go with Starlink. Sounds like they are as stable or more so than other (rural) providers. Only problem I have now is that there are no new hookups available in my area until late 2022. Oh well, deposit paid. Need dependable, stable internet regardless of price. Even so, at $129 a month it's not outrageous compared to what else is being offered.

[Stinky Buffalo]

Yes, I think StarLink is just about done with the beta program.

There are rumors of a price reduction when the production rollout happens. I guess we'll see!

[Howard Hutchinson]

Same boat out here (Muir lake area) Have Xplornet and and looking forward to Starlink whenever we can get it. As mentioned, late 2022? Deposit is in so we'll see.

[TBark]

Hookup technician for Xplornet was explaining the diff / comparing Starlink.
Any issues with Xplornet, he comes out to make it right,
Any issues with Starlink, it’s gotta be boxed up and sent back to the US and wait on replacements.
Just what I was told.

TBark

[Glion]

I put a deposit for Starlink in the spring. It said early to late fall should get it... hasn't shown up yet.

[LEGZ]

Put my deposit down in Feb and got mine in early Aug. works great and almost no outages at all anymore. Very fast and quite happy with it.

[colt45]

Originally Posted by LEGZ

Put my deposit down in Feb and got mine in early Aug. works great and almost no outages at all anymore. Very fast and quite happy with it.

Took me Aprox 3 and 1/2 months to get mine
Definite upgrade from Telus hub

[Immigrant]

I was really lucky. Placed my order August 16, and it was delivered August 23! Scanned the sky with their app to look for obstructions, and used my Xplornet bracket to mount it. 20min later I had high speed internet.
It’s been great so far. I haven’t experienced any downtime….yet. Average 80Mbps and sometimes as much as 180Mbps.
We will have to see how it performs when the dish is covered in snow.

[tirebob]

Originally Posted by Immigrant

I was really lucky. Placed my order August 16, and it was delivered August 23! Scanned the sky with their app to look for obstructions, and used my Xplornet bracket to mount it. 20min later I had high speed internet.
It’s been great so far. I haven’t experienced any downtime….yet. Average 80Mbps and sometimes as much as 180Mbps.
We will have to see how it performs when the dish is covered in snow.

I have been up and running since bare into the new year and have been through snow storms, minus 40's and all kinds of crap and had no issues at all. Don't know if you are aware but the dish actually self warms and melts the snow. Kinda cool. I had soooooo many more issues from the Xplornet dish!

[Howard Hutchinson]

Originally Posted by Immigrant

I was really lucky. Placed my order August 16, and it was delivered August 23! Scanned the sky with their app to look for obstructions, and used my Xplornet bracket to mount it. 20min later I had high speed internet.
It’s been great so far. I haven’t experienced any downtime….yet. Average 80Mbps and sometimes as much as 180Mbps.
We will have to see how it performs when the dish is covered in snow.

>>
Holy crow! Are you and Elon on a first name basis? Man, that's quick. Enjoy the heck out of it

[SamSteele]

Originally Posted by Glion

I put a deposit for Starlink in the spring. It said early to late fall should get it... hasn't shown up yet.

Same here.

[Anomaly85]

Originally Posted by ab_hunter

Hi AO members,

I was just curious if anyone else on this forum is experiencing a large amount of outages from Starlink? They are short outages, but very frequent. Quite frustrating. I am located in central Alberta.

Thanks in advance.

I've been using Starlink since Febuary, and I'm out by Okotoks. I work from home and I'm in the networking field so it was a great upgrade over 25mbps Telus smart hub service. I had the same issue as you, short somewhat frequent outages. For me it ended up being the starlink router\access point itself, not the satellite connectivity itself. The included router is pretty poor in terms of functionality and wireless coverage. I disabled the Starlink wireless and ran a Asus RT-AC86u connected to the Starlink router and my connectivity issues stopped. I've since swapped the Asus out for some Ubiquiti products, and again no issues. So I would start by trying a better router\access point rather than the included Starlink unit.

[ab_hunter]

Originally Posted by Anomaly85

I've been using Starlink since Febuary, and I'm out by Okotoks. I work from home and I'm in the networking field so it was a great upgrade over 25mbps Telus smart hub service. I had the same issue as you, short somewhat frequent outages. For me it ended up being the starlink router\access point itself, not the satellite connectivity itself. The included router is pretty poor in terms of functionality and wireless coverage. I disabled the Starlink wireless and ran a Asus RT-AC86u connected to the Starlink router and my connectivity issues stopped. I've since swapped the Asus out for some Ubiquiti products, and again no issues. So I would start by trying a better router\access point rather than the included Starlink unit.

Thanks for this, I actually thought the included router was pretty good, but I have a another one that I could try. I have noticed the issues with Starlink via the "stats" option within their app so I didn't consider it would be router related.

I am west of Edmonton and I have tried mounting the dish in a different areas and there are no obstructions so I am sure that is not the issue.

When I first signed up for Starlink, my dish didn't arrive for 8 months. Helpful information for those who are still waiting.

[NayNay]

Can't remember when I placed my order, think last winter sometime. Still waiting....

[tirebob]

Originally Posted by NayNay

Can't remember when I placed my order, think last winter sometime. Still waiting....

For the guys that said they placed their order... Did you all get the approval and paid for the gear and are still waiting for delivery or are you meaning you simply made an application for getting Starlink?

I originally applied using Water Valley and my postal code as a location as I live rural and never heard back for. Eventually I reapplied and used my properties "Plus Code" from google as a location and I had a reply almost immediately. I paid for the gear and had everything in my hands maybe just over a week later.

Might be worth looking into.

[Immigrant]

I used the plus code, but it just put me on the waiting list. Then I typed in my town and it kicked out a few “options” to choose from. Like “My Town. Highway X”. Highway X does pass my house 3 miles away, but it is also 150km long!?
As soon as I chose that option I could place the order and they shipped the next day.

[SamSteele]

Originally Posted by Immigrant

I used the plus code, but it just put me on the waiting list. Then I typed in my town and it kicked out a few “options” to choose from. Like “My Town. Highway X”. Highway X does pass my house 3 miles away, but it is also 150km long!?
As soon as I chose that option I could place the order and they shipped the next day.

Thanks for this. I’ve been waiting since April with the plus code. I changed it to a physical address and it shipped immediately. Arrived today.

[Immigrant]

Originally Posted by SamSteele

Thanks for this. I’ve been waiting since April with the plus code. I changed it to a physical address and it shipped immediately. Arrived today.

LOL. That’s awesome! Enjoy high speed. I can’t believe I put up with bad internet for so long.

[Au revoir, Gopher]

Anybody experiencing this problem?

The dish's Snow Melt Mode prevents snow build-up from interfering with the signal—and apparently provides a toasty outdoor lounge space for critters.

ARG