Starlink, SpaceX’s satellite internet subsidiary, has become one of the most important companies in the sector in just four years. Before the year ends, alongside the launch of new satellites, SpaceX has introduced the third generation of the Starlink installation kit, which includes the equipment provided to customers when they sign up for the service.
The main component of the Starlink kit is the antenna, and this generation brings some interesting changes. The parabolic antenna is now thinner but larger in size. According to the official website, it maintains the previous generation’s width of 30.3 cm, but its height increases from 51.3 cm to 59.4 cm. The thickness of the antenna is reduced to 3.97 cm as the motorized automatic orientation mechanism has been removed.
Unlike the second-generation parabolic antenna, users will need to manually orient the antenna. However, the Starlink mobile application provides step-by-step instructions with precise parameters for alignment.
The third-generation antenna comes with a simple support stand and the option to attach it to an external mast. Starlink claims that this has been made possible, in part, due to the antenna now having a 10% better field of view than the previous generation.
The antenna’s protection level has been upgraded from IP54 to IP67 Type 4, and it is designed to function within a temperature range of -30°C to 60°C. It is also built to remain operational in winds up to 96 km/h.
The power consumption is worth noting as well. While the second generation had a range of 50 to 75 W, the current generation consumes between 75 to 100 W. This represents an increase in power consumption between generations, although not a drastic one.
The kit also includes a WiFi 6 router (previously WiFi 5) with tri-band capability (previously dual-band) and two LAN Ethernet ports with removable covers. The equipment is compatible with Starlink Gen 2 and Gen 3 Mesh nodes, but it is not compatible with third-party Mesh systems.
The other items included in the kit are the Starlink Gen 3 cable, a power cable, and the power supply. It is worth noting that the previous generation kit is still available, but no details have been provided regarding the criteria for sending one or the other.