1274 replies to this topic

[Matt R.]

I just renewed my Rogers business internet after the five year contract ended. Internet up $10 and phone lines up $2. All else the same.

I had expected much more of an increase.

Great service too. No pressure no bs and all done over email.

[Blair M.]

Just a heads up for anybody who might be interested, after a long wait, the Starlink Mini is now available in Canada.

It's on a killer introductory sale for a few weeks only, at $399.00 Canadian.

To get some idea of how good this Canadian "sale" is, the Mini is currently $699.00 U.S. down in the States.

 

If you camp, fish, travel, etc - the Mini is a perfect fit if you're looking to maintain connectivity while you're out and about, as it runs on both 12 volt and 120 volt.

It's a real miser in terms of power consumption as well, so a medium sized power bank, which is pretty commonplace for campers/overlanders these days, will power the Mini no problem. There are even users powering their Mini's for short period of time with drill batteries from Ryobi, Black and Decker, etc.

 

Two plans currently available in Canada are the 50 gig plan, which is $70.00, and the unlimited plan which is $179.00.

The 50 gig plan is too light if you're planning on streaming Netflix, but it's perfect for emails and occasional Web use.

A cool new feature of all the Starlink Roam plans, is that high speed internet will now work at up to 100 clicks per hour while driving. This means if you have your Starlink Mini attached to your camper/vehicle, you will have that high speed internet connectivity while you're underway.

 

Typical amazing service from Starlink, with delivery of the Mini promised in 4 or 5 days, painless (almost automatic) Starlink account set-up just though the act of ordering the Mini, and super simple order process.

With the Mini at $699.00 U.S. currently, I would imagine once this introductory sale is over in Canada, it will likely rise to at least $699.00 Canadian, and much more than that if Starlink decides to factor in the exchange rate to the Canadian pricing.

[Mike K.]

Can you order it without having to lock into a plan?

[Blair M.]

There's no plan Mike, you're only obliged to pay for the first month of use in order to get your Starlink online, and set up on your account.

 

But once you've set it up, you pay month to month, and can pause the service anytime you like, and pause it for as long as you like.

There's no fee to pause, and no fee to un-pause.

 

Basically you turn your Starlink Mini on and off as you see fit, and as it suits your travel (or home use) plans - and you only pay for those times you've chosen to activate your Starlink.

It doesn't get any better IMO, a far cry from the cell phone like set-ups that try to get you hooked into some sort of year long contract and financial commitment.

 

Starlink is roughly on par price wise with a typical Shaw or Telus wired internet service (albeit at the top end of the cost ladder), but with the ability above to pause service, and not pay a cent during the pause.

It's also much more on point than Shaw or Telus when your street power goes out, as you simply hook-up your camping power station, and you're back online. No dependance on B.C. Hydro in times of emergency.

Edited by Blair M., 12 December 2024 - 08:27 AM.

[Mike K.]

Excellent.

 

Thank you.

[lanforod]

There's no plan Mike, you're only obliged to pay for the first month of use in order to get your Starlink online, and set up on your account.

 

But once you've set it up, you pay month to month, and can pause the service anytime you like, and pause it for as long as you like.

There's no fee to pause, and no fee to un-pause.

 

Basically you turn your Starlink Mini on and off as you see fit, and as it suits your travel (or home use) plans - and you only pay for those times you've chosen to activate your Starlink.

It doesn't get any better IMO, a far cry from the cell phone like set-ups that try to get you hooked into some sort of year long contract and financial commitment.

 

Starlink is roughly on par price wise with a typical Shaw or Telus wired internet service (albeit at the top end of the cost ladder), but with the ability above to pause service, and not pay a cent during the pause.

It's also much more on point than Shaw or Telus when your street power goes out, as you simply hook-up your camping power station, and you're back online. No dependance on B.C. Hydro in times of emergency.

 

It's about double actually, and slower. There are benefits, to be sure, but cost is not one of them.

[Blair M.]

It's about double actually, and slower. There are benefits, to be sure, but cost is not one of them.

The benefits far outweigh the cost for the non-sedentary among us (and those who wish to maintain constant connectivity).

The cost is much more than acceptable (IMO) for the product and service you receive.

As always, YMMV.

[lanforod]

That I agree with. But there is no real practical argument for replacing your fibre Telus or Rogers connection. The power outage thing is the only possible argument, perhaps (and you'll need to power whatever you actually need Internet for too). Supplementing, if you're mobile, sure, maybe.

[LJ]

The benefits far outweigh the cost for the non-sedentary among us (and those who wish to maintain constant connectivity).

The cost is much more than acceptable (IMO) for the product and service you receive.

As always, YMMV.

So, do you have one?

[Blair M.]

Yes, I put my order in as soon as they were available on Starlinks Canadian web site.

I thought I made that pretty clear in my original post?

 

They've only been available in Canada for the past couple of days, so unless you purchased one earlier from the U.S. - no Canadian's have a Mini in their possession yet.

[Victoria Watcher]

[Victoria Watcher]

December 23, 2024 – GATINEAU, QC – Competition Bureau

 

The Competition Bureau is taking legal action against Rogers Communications Inc., alleging they are falsely advertising their Infinite wireless phone plans as offering unlimited data.

 

The Bureau claims that Rogers’ advertisements create the false or misleading impression that the plans provide consumers with limitless data, allowing them to use as much data as they want. In reality, the plans have data caps and once reached, the data speed is reduced, or throttled, by over 99%.

 

As a result, the Bureau has filed an application with the Competition Tribunal seeking, among other things, for Rogers to stop the misleading advertising, pay a penalty, and issue restitution to Infinite wireless phone plan customers. 

 

https://www.canada.c...mited-data.html

Edited by Victoria Watcher, 24 December 2024 - 04:32 AM.

[Mike K.]

Some serious wireless infrastructure woes out on the West Shore. Connectivity is impossible at some times of the day, in various areas. Phone connectivity or data, it just doesn’t work, because of overload. It’s been an issue brought up at restaurants etc, as patrons ask for wifi because they can’t do a cursory thing in their phone, and in some cases can’t even send texts.

[Victoria Watcher]

Starlink has 4.6M customers today, double the year-end 2023 amount.

[Blair M.]

I've had my Starlink Mini for some 10 days now, and it's quite a game changer for those who venture out for camping, fishing, overlanding, etc. It also functions as a great back-up to wired internet at home, should there be a power outage.

I can power the Mini from either 120V, 12V, or USB-C.

I've had it working in my truck while driving at speeds well up over 100K per hour, while I was well out of any cell service areas. it has a technical maximum speed of something like 120K, but I don't know how that is enforced, or if it is enforced.

The Mini is literally plug-n-play at home, in my truck while driving, or stationary from campsite to campsite.

 

Because Victoria and Southern Vancouver Island are relatively low use areas for Starlink, the speeds (so far) are lightning fast at all times.

Rumour has it that as you travel down further south, towards Seattle, speeds drop substantially (but temporarily), as the Seattle area is one of the most overloaded in the country for some reason.

I'll be doing some camping in the Oregon high desert in March, in the eastern area of the State, it'll be interesting to see what kind of speeds I get in an area that is basically devoid of people.

 

Still on at $399.00 in Canada until January 6th, some of the Canadian mobile device websites are "guessing" that retail pricing after January 6th could go as high as $899.00.

Edited by Blair M., 01 January 2025 - 06:17 AM.

[Victoria Watcher]

What will you use for power when it’s needed as a backup at home?

I wonder if one of those like $150 basically a battery in a plastic shell is a good investment.

[Victoria Watcher]

This one has good reviews.

[Victoria Watcher]

$129 direct.

https://rocksolar.ca...ASAAEgIFOfD_BwE

It’s quite small 14cm largest dimension.

[Blair M.]

The Lithium Ion power banks are a great investment for back-up power.

Personally, I've gone a bit overboard purchasing a few different Bluetti products, as they're available from Bluetti Canada with free shipping and no other costs associated. 

They also have some great pricing, with some sort of sale on almost all the time (such that I begin to wonder if they're "sales" at all, or just their regular low pricing).

 

As power banks are all generally the same sort of construction, the reason I went with Bluetti is their support and warranty, which are both extremely good.

 

I've changed my camping set-up such that I no longer use propane for anything at all, so I have some fairly large Bluetti power banks to power my electric camp-cooking, heating, lighting, etc.

I've got enough Lithium Ion power to (I think) go for around 3 or 4 days with absolutely no power at home, and probably a week or more while camping, after which I'd have to put out my portable solar panels to re-charge the power banks. Easily done during the summer, and taking a bit (to a lot) longer during the shorter days of winter.

 

I'm not a "prepper" at all, but the idea of being able to manage for a relatively long period of time in the event of a power outage at home, and to get completely away from propane while camping seemed to strike a chord with me.

Edited by Blair M., 01 January 2025 - 07:01 AM.

[Victoria Watcher]

When we get the earthquake it’s not unreasonable to expect days-long disruptions to some areas, for sure.