Advice on Best Type of Internet

wires wrote:

I RV fulltime and work remote spending an average of 4 hours every day on Teams meetings. I also frequently need to send and receive very large files. I currently use Starlink along with cellular data as a backup. I use a Pepwave Max Transit router and it can be programmed to use the cell data in tandem or as a fallback if Starlink is down.

I've been running this configuration since December and have travelled from Nevada to Indiana. So far it has been rock solid and works as well as the hard-wired DSL in my former home.

I'd rate my Starlink connectivity 99 out of 100. Based on data from its configuration app and also from my router logs I average less than one minute of down time per day. The only time I've seen the connection drop from rain has been if it's a torrential downpour and then usually only for a very brief time. For normal-to-heavy rain I haven't observed any interruptions.

For 'normal' use I run my cell connection in a backup configuration. If Starlink has an issue my router will almost instantly changeover so a Teams call might hang for a few seconds then it's back online.

For 'important' calls (i.e. presenting to a large audience) I can set the router to run Starlink and cell in tandem. The data is split across both connections and if one drops packets you don't notice because the other path was still intact.

The router I use is also configurable for traffic routing. I have mine set up so that the TVs and Directv receiver can only use the Starlink connection. That way video streaming can only utilize the unlimited Starlink data. My cell data is reserved and can only be used by my PCs.

Before I received my Starlink setup I had the Pepwave router, but the model I have only supports a single cell connection at a time (with another carrier as a backup). Over an average day I would typically run into a couple of disconnects/reconnects which caused brief interruptions in my Teams calls.

Based on my experiences, if you need 100% rock solid connectivity for work I suggest a system which supports two simultaneous connections. You'll either need a cell router which supports two active cell connections, or Starlink into a router with a cell backup.

If you'd like to discuss hardware or configuration in more detail please feel free to PM me.