Why I Love Starlink and Think You Will Too
I rely on Starlink as my primary form of internet access as a small business entrepreneur. Over the years, I have tried it all, and even though I live in a remote area of Tennessee in the wilderness, I can still run my internet based business, including holding weekly live Zoom trainings and live streaming concerts with ease.
I recommend getting a Starlink for yourself here using my referral code, and if you still need more convincing, read on.
"I am more pleased than I thought possible having my own little satellite that fits into my backpack and works in the back dash of my car."
BACKGROUND
As a child, I remember the glorious day the technicians arrived to install our home satellite dish. It was as big as a car and sat on the hill across the driveway.
Living in rural areas usually means you are limited for options in television and internet service. In East Tennessee, we were always denied cable because we lived across a stream.
Same in Nashville and also denied fiberoptic lines for no specific reason.
That left dial up, which was not possible after a few years, and then satellite dishes.
By now, they were far smaller and perched atop the roof.
But thanks to my woodsy location, none of the services I tried ever worked - Dish, Direct TV, and Wildblue over the years.
For a while I made due with a Verizon hot spot which worked for emails, but not much else.
I tried to get a range extender, but the service technician said, "You have to have signal before you can amplify it," which made sense to me.
"Let me ask you, are you like, on protected land or something?"
I laughed. "Probably," I said. "Why?"
"Well, I don't know how to say this, but there's signal all around you, but nothing on your land. It's weird. You're not like, on an Indian Reservation or somethin'?"
"No."
"Well a range extender won't do you any good," he told me.
For a while I used my cell phone hot spot on AT&T, which works ok for watching shows if you don't mind long lag times and not being able to work on the internet while talking on the phone.
We ended up renting a venue down the road as a site for my office, because I knew they would run cable down that main road.
$300+ per month service, lots of equipment to purchase, tons of down time and stuff I didn't need - and then along came Starlink.
Starlink Solution
Sweet little beautiful Starlink.
A couple of the neighbors got one, and immediately shut up about having issues with internet access - my first positive indication.
I stubbornly stuck it out with my crippled hot spot no work from home zone, but finally earlier this year, I broke down and ordered a Starlink Mini.
The plan was to try out the Mini and go from there.
I took advantage of a promotion on my equipment and ordered my little Mini satellite.
It arrived, with much fanfare of shipping notification updates, in my driveway beautifully and expertly packaged in its own form fitting cardboard shipping box, completely recyclable.
Its extraordinary connectors were tipped with ringed plunger-like connections that ensured water stayed out of the satellite, which is light as a feather (actually 1.1 kg / 2.43 lbs) and about the size of a notebook.
Ladies and gentlemen, my sci fi loving daddy would be so proud. I now have a tiny Mini Starlink satellite that fits in my backpack with room enough for my laptop, notebook, Franklin Covey planner and all the needed cords and adaptors a girl could ever need.
Set up was a breeze. I plugged it in, used the same app I used to order the device to avoid obstructions and align my satellite toward the sky, and within minutes, I was surfing the web, uploading my original music, hosting class and even downloading movies to watch offline on Prime, a hitherto impossible feat.
Why the Mini? I wanted the option to take my Mini on the go, because I have to travel a lot.
In fact, right after my Mini arrived, I got the opportunity to test it out on a high speed adventure.
The Starlink FAQ will humbly tell you that a Mini or Standard satellite will enable users to keep a signal while traveling, as long as the device is externally mounted on an RV moving at low speeds.
I am here to tell you that my Mini held signal well enough to maintain an hour long Zoom class with 15 songwriters listening to audio, interacting with screen share, while the device was perched in the back dashboard of the Honda moving at 70 miles per hour down the interstate. (I was passenger, of course.)
I had assumed we would have to pull over to hold class, but not so. The Mini delivered and kept us moving toward home.
I have since made it a side mission to put Mini (that's her name) through a lot of intense conditions like we solo entrepreneurs require out here in the woods.
Rain - no problem. Rolls right off Mini and she keeps signal as long as there's electricity.
Confession - my Mini sits on the ground in the yard, not mounted on a pole.
She likes it, being a country girl now.
Animals, yes, they are curious about Mini, but the only animal I have ever seen on her are a few ants that are easily brushed away, and cannot get inside the device because she's sealed up. Mini just looks like a white chunk of plastic with the only holes being the one plugged up by the fancy, no doubt patented, plug-plunger that keeps the water out.
Squirrels dance by Mini, but none have tried to chew her or the cord. Same for bobcats, skunks, owls, turkeys, humming birds, snakes and lizards. No thing has yet to bother Mini in her natural habitat.
What about service? I use the full throttle give me all you got $175 per month service that includes Roaming.
It's great for me because I do a lot of internetting, but if you don't, you might be ok with less data.
Why not the slightly larger Standard model?
I almost traded Mini for a Standard upgrade right at the beginning, but the drive test convinced me otherwise.
My plan is to one day have a stationary office location somewhere nearby, and get another Starlink satellite, a Standard (15 lb / 6.8kg) one to be named "Stacy."
Starlink is telling me lately that I can get another device and use it as a range extender for my home to help the signal stretch further.
I am just ecstatic to finally have signal to extend.
If you're looking to replace your current internet provider or need internet for the first time as a wilderness or rural dweller, you will not go wrong with a Starlink.
I am more pleased than I thought possible having my own little satellite that fits into my backpack and works in the back dash of my car.
I will be honest - there are sometimes when it is easier than other times to get signal.
Cloudy days are not the fastest.
Anywhere with dense tree cover is a challenge.
And yet, here I am for the first time in the 20+ years of living in this remote location, able to work from home and even hold my classes and concerts.
It's a dream come true and a blessing to have found something that works. If you're an entrepreneur, a musician, or a homeschooler like we were, Starlink is a Godsend.
Get your Starlink today using my referral code here -
Feel free to ask me any questions about my experience so far and I'll tell you what I have learned.
When you use my referral link, you will get one month free applied to your second month of service and I'll get a commission for your activated service.
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