Starlink antennas made headlines at the end of last week. After announcing the arrival of the latest generation of fixed antenna in France, SpaceX unveiled a new nomadic model across the Atlantic.
Named Starlink Mini, this device unsurprisingly plays the compact card. This is an antenna measuring just 298.5 x 259 x 38.5 mm and weighing 1.1 kg (1.53 kg with its cable and kickstand). Operating on a 20 V/5 A mains supply, the antenna enhances its portable aspect by being able to operate using an external battery of at least 100 W. Added to this is an IP67 certification offering protection against dust and rain, and even allowing immersion in water for short periods.
Performance-wise, users can enjoy a download speed of up to 100 Mbit/s and upload speed of 11 Mbit/s. Note, only wifi 5 (802.11ac) is included. Wifi 6 thus remains the prerogative of the manufacturer’s latest fixed antenna.
Reserved for the moment in the United States, this new antenna costs a whopping $599, or $100 more than Starlink’s previous portable speaker. In addition to this, you will need to have a residential subscription to Elon Musk’s satellite Internet ($120 per month minimum) and pay an additional $30 per month to have 50 GB of data with the Starlink Mini (+$1 per additional GB).
The Verge points out that a Starlink support page mentions the availability of the antenna in the following four countries: Colombia, Salvador, Guatemala and Panama. The latter also benefit from an unlimited data envelope. We can also read that the Mini will expand to new countries “over time”.