A list of essential Starlink Mini accessories

Flat white Starlink receivers are beginning to sprout like dandelions in RV parks and at rallies. After years of suffering through iffy campground WiFi, it's no wonder that frequent travelers prefer a more reliable solution.

I've written in the past about the pros and cons of Starlink (both the Standard and Mini variants), and in short, it's great if you need it. Starlink Mini is particularly well-suited for RV travelers. If you think it's for you, we've got a little advice to share.

Before we get into it, let me say that we are NOT Amazon affiliates and don't make a penny when we provide links to products on other websites. When I'm talking about products not sold by AIR GEAR, this is just friendly advice. 

There are three major challenges for RV & Starlink users:

1. How to get a clear view of the sky, so the Starlink can connect to satellites
2. How to provide power to the Starlink
3. How to store everything

As a result, hundreds of manufacturers have been selling accessories to solve those problems. In my experience, most of them are pretty bad. Here are a few that I think are decent and which make sense for RV travelers.

Clear view of the sky

Many times you can just drop your Starlink onto a picnic table and it will find satellites just fine. But when there's a tall RV next to you, or trees blocking the sky, a really tall pole can help a lot.

I tried a few pole options and found most of them to be disappointing—hard to assemble, not very tall, clunky, overly expensive.

Here's one that works well, for $59: Telescoping carbon fiber swimming pool pole. This pole telescopes from about 4.5 feet to 15 feet very easily.  At its highest, this pole will give your Starlink a good view even when parked next to the biggest Class A motorhome.

What I like about this pole:

• Very lightweight, just 1.5 pounds
• Comes with a neat neoprene protective sleeve
• Fits in my short bed pickup truck
• Quick & quiet setup (unlike some steel screw-together poles I tried)
• Super tough, rustproof, and elegant

To mount the pole, I use a simple $29 Flag pole holder for receiver hitches. We had a rear receiver put on our Airstream years ago, and it's perfect for the flag pole holder. Since most trailer owners don't have a receiver, I suggest a similar flag pole mount that attaches to the trailer frame. It does the same thing. 

One warning about carbon fiber poles: don't clamp them too tightly, or they can be crushed. It's OK if the pole sways a little in the mount—it won't affect the Starlink's ability to stay connected.

Providing power

The Starlink Mini comes with a 50-foot long cable, which is all I've ever needed. The best way for trailer owners to connect it to a reliable power source is to use AIR GEAR's MiniLink.

It's a simple device that allows you to plug a Starlink Mini into the trailer's 7-way cable. (The 7-way is connected to the trailer's batteries.) This way, your Starlink Mini stays powered even if the campground power is disconnected.

MiniLink includes a DC-DC converter that boosts the 12 volt power to 30 volts, which is better for Starlink Mini. This eliminates the possibility that the Starlink Mini will reset unexpectedly, as a result of low voltage.

If you have a motorhome, and it's plugged into campground power, you can connect your Starlink to an exterior AC power outlet.

You can also use a portable power station when you're boondocking, either with Starlink's AC adapter, or to a USB-C outlet on a power station. When you have a power station, it's more power-efficient to use a USB-C rather than the AC adapter. (You can read more about that here.)

Note that the USB-C outlet must be capable of 100 watts, like the ones on the Sorein Power Station. You'll need a USB-C adapter cable, which you can get from Starlink, or on Amazon.

Storage

Winding up 50 feet of cable is a nuisance. These cheap Christmas light wire winders are great for quickly wrapping up the cord without making a tangled mess.

And finally, where to put it all? I looked at many hard-sided cases with foam padding, and concluded that I didn't want a suitcase.

So I chose this padded carry bag for Starlink Mini and accessories. It neatly handles the Starlink Mini, the 50-foot cable on the Christmas light winder, AIR GEAR MiniLink, the Starlink AC adapter, and a few other small items. It's small enough to fit in an under-bed bin, a closet, or the backseat of the truck.