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Starlink Internet coming to Mexico


KevinR

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Is Starlink the newer service that offers about 1000 channels?    Just how expensive it is per month?

Does the receiver box cost extra?     What  English language  programming service do you recommend to provide for a rental unit?

Thanks in advance for your replies!

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21 hours ago, Tingting said:

It may be expensive, but if it works....

Meanwhile, we're stuck w/TELMEX until TotalPlay comes our way. I would gladly pay Starlink's price if they were up and running. Our internet service blows, but it's the only thing available att. 

Get on the website, make your down payment and get on the waiting list. If you change your mind you get your deposit back.

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On 3/24/2022 at 10:25 AM, Ezzie said:

My neighbor just got it.  No word yet on how it is working.  I will follow up.

It is up and working fine here east of VDL.  Initial comments are that my neighbor loves it!!  Finally decent internet.  Giving up on Telmex.

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31 minutes ago, RickS said:

... and VDL is where?

Vista del Lago - the community above the Chapala Golf Course near San Nicholas Ibarra ast of Chapala.

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19 hours ago, RickS said:

So no TelCel nor AT&T cellphone service/data plans are available to you at your casa? 

I have Telcel, but for our home, it's not cost effective. Since we cut cable and use a Firestick for TV, the internet speed matters. So, the providers that are available don't offer what we need. 

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  • 2 weeks later...
On 3/25/2022 at 5:51 AM, cedros said:

Starlink is expensive

Yes, it is. It's not priced as a consumer-grade choice, more for hobbyists or rural folks, and others with a special interest. I got on the waiting list March 20th with a deposit of $2,299 MXN, and paid a balance of $12.221 MXN yesterday to order my kit. So, about $750 USD just to get set up (though you do own the gear). Service will be around $100 USD/mo. Compared to TotalPlay at ~$31 USD/mo for ~100 Mbps down, it's crazy expensive, kind of a prosumer option.

I'll report back after I receive the kit and get it working. I'll also look into bonding my TotalPlay and Starlink connections with a load-balancing router that integrates VPN, but that'll be trickier.

LQ

 

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Connected to Starlink today. Location: Santa Cruz de la Soledad.  Download speeds:  160-250 mbps   Upload speeds:  25-30 mbps   Beyond giddy.   10 years of garbage internet options and $10,000 of thousands of Telcel data fees and FINALLY decent internet. Worth every penny and more... PICTURE: Screen shot of highest recorded speed of the day... 

WhatsApp Image 2022-04-12 at 3.29.03 PM.jpeg

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ThomasHellyer, the screen-grab photo almost brought a tear to my eye! 🥲 We live east of Vista del Lago and I've been kicking around the expense of Starlink. Why? My current TelMex - which can not be any faster - is ONLY 1.6 Mbps! True! 1.6 Mbps on average. TelMex technician came out couple weeks back and told us, "Debe pedir TelCel." (You should order TelCel).

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On 4/12/2022 at 9:48 PM, thomashellyer said:

 

Connected to Starlink today. Location: Santa Cruz de la Soledad.  Download speeds:  160-250 mbps   Upload speeds:  25-30 mbps   Beyond giddy.   10 years of garbage internet options and $10,000 of thousands of Telcel data fees and FINALLY decent internet. Worth every penny and more... PICTURE: Screen shot of highest recorded speed of the day... 

WhatsApp Image 2022-04-12 at 3.29.03 PM.jpeg

 This brought a tear to my eye! How long did it take from order to receipt?

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4 hours ago, Tingting said:

How long did it take from order to receipt?

  • Wait list sign up: March 20
  • Service offered and accepted: April 9
  • DHL kit delivery estimate: April 18
  • Monthly billing begins (+14 days): May 2

LQ

 

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3 minutes ago, Tingting said:

who does the installation?

You do it yourself, using the provided phone/tablet app. The current Gen 2 dish is 19" x 12". There are plenty of YouTube videos that show what's involved.

https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=starlink+unboxing+and+setup&sp=CAI%3D

A flat roof may be all you need. Only if there are obstructions should you need to set a post, get a bracket, or get creative with cabling/power. Power and data are delivered by ethernet, and the kit comes with 100'. I've heard you can extend this a bit if you really must. 100 meters should be technically possible for Power over Ethernet (PoE).

https://shop.starlink.com/

My kit's supposed to arrive today, via DHL. I'll try to take some photos and give impressions.

LQ

.

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Really appreciate the info! I'm going to go to the link you gave and check it out. Hope it all goes well since this sounds like it could be exactly what we want.

UPDATE:  we bit the bullet and ordered Starlink. The youtube links really helped. I'm so amazed at how basic it seems...although it won't be me trying to install it, lol. Will report back when we're up and running. Thanks again!

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Hanging in there! Still in 🥰

image.png

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DHL didn't show up with my Gen 2 Starlink kit today, though it's definitely in-transit. But I learned something else important today.

The Gen 1 kit came with a "router" device (imprecise term, but that semantic battle is lost) that had an auxiliary ethernet port. Since I use only my own network gear and treat whatever provider I use as a dumb pipe, I could hang my gateway device off of that port and be done. Nothing inside my network changes.

The Gen 2 kit doesn't have such a port, but Starlink will sell you an "ethernet adapter" for $25 that does the same thing. You need to use their adapter because the Gen 2 "router" device uses a proprietary port type. Unfortunately, their ethernet adapter is out of stock and doesn't appear in the Starlink store right now. I don't doubt it'll be back.

What's this mean for users?

  • If you'd be happy with only the wifi that the Gen 2 kit provides -- perhaps with some extenders or something consumer-ish like that -- you'd be good-to-go with the Gen 2 kit alone.
  • But if you'll want/need any kind of wired network setup -- either so you can drop Starlink into your bespoke network, or you want a mesh setup, or you need to pull some cable to penetrate thick Mexican walls. you'll need that $25 adapter. Go ahead and order it when signing up. I'll be getting one as soon as they're back in stock.

Note that the Gen 2 device does have a bypass mode that disables Starlink's wifi and network config and just passes the WAN IP through. This convinces me that Starlink's proprietary connector isn't a lock-in ploy, rather an ":()-proofing" or extreme simplicity measure to mitigate support costs. Makes sense to have the tinkerers jump through a small hoop or two, just to set support expectations.

The upshot is that anybody brave enough to go Starlink almost certainly wants the $25 ethernet adapter too, so just get it.

LQ

Edited by Lou Quillio
Clarity
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