(Credit: Starlink.com)
The Starlink Mini dish is now widely available to customers in the US via Starlink's website after an initial invite-only period last month.
The Starlink Mini costs $599 and comes with a 30-day trial. Users aren't required to sign up for any long-term contracts and can choose from two plans: Regional and Mini Roam. Once purchased, Starlink Mini dishes will arrive within one to two weeks with a flat $20 shipping fee.
The Starlink Mini comes with a dish featuring integrated Wi-Fi and one Ethernet port as well as a kickstand, pipe adapter, 49-foot DC power cable, a plug-in power supply bank, and a Starlink plug, according to Starlink's website. The Mini dish itself is 10.2 by 11.75 inches, with a maximum depth of 1.45 inches.
The Regional data plan for the Starlink Mini is $150 per month and comes with unlimited mobile data. However, users must pay extra per GB for any "ocean or in-motion use."
By comparison, the Mini Roam is a special plan just for the new hardware. It costs $50 a month but has a monthly data cap of 50GB. This plan includes in-motion use, however. Users with the Mini Roam plan can also buy extra data by the GB as needed via Starlink's app.
Starlink's Mini Roam plan promises "typical" download speeds, from 5 to 50Mbps, and upload speeds ranging from 2 to 10Mbps. In the continental US, Mini Roam users with the Mini dish can expect latency speeds of 30 to 40ms. Those outside the continental US using their Mini Roam plan abroad may experience higher latency of about 60 to 90ms.
Some early Starlink Mini testers were impressed by how quickly the device was able to boot up and connect, but noted that the build didn't feel as "premium" as something like an Apple product. While the smaller dish can easily fit in a backpack for activities like hiking or traveling to remote locales, the 49-foot power cable isn't as convenient to lug around. One tester noted that he could get download speeds of 90Mbps and upload speeds of 18Mbps with the Mini dish.
It's possible to connect up to 128 devices to the Starlink Mini dish, according to the hardware's specs page, but doing so would likely result in slower internet speeds. Starlink plans to release other types of mounts for the Mini dish besides the existing kickstand option "soon," and will release the accessories on its online shop.
Last month, SpaceX CEO Elon Musk wrote on X that the Starlink Mini would cost "half the price" of a standard dish. Considering the standard dish costs $499 in the US compared with the Mini's $599, that isn't the case, but the Mini does offer the cheaper $50-per-month plan option compared with the standard dish, whose plans can cost $120 or $150 a month.
Outside the US, the Starlink Mini hasn't rolled out to all countries with Starlink connectivity yet. However, in Colombia, El Salvador, Guatemala, and Panama, it's possible to buy the Mini for just $200 with a $35-a-month service plan.