- Vessel: Bali 4.0
- Crew: Connected
- Mission: Explore the bays of US & Spanish Virgin Islands
- Duration: 2 weeks
- Technology Officer: …Me, apparently
Day 1 – Departure & Digital Intentions
Cast off lines. Spirits high.
I had dreams of long, disconnected days under sail – digital detox, offline bliss, analog adventure.
The crew had other plans.
By lunchtime, I’d been promoted from co-skipper to CIO of our floating network. Out came the Starlink Mini, much to the joy of my bandwidth-hungry crew.
Day 2 – Starlink Deployment: The Not-So-Perfect Mount
No polished stainless mount. No pole at the stern.
Just a Starlink dish tucked under the forward hatch of the skipper’s cabin, shielded from salt and spray – but with no real tilt or proper satellite angle.
Was it optimal?
Not at all.
Did it work?
Surprisingly well.
Hidden under the hatch. Still online. Witchcraft?
Day 4 – First Contact: FaceTime at Anchor
Anchored in a quiet bay. Light breeze, cold drink, calm sea.
Suddenly: FaceTime call.
I braced for lag, pixel mush, dropouts.
Instead? Clear video, crisp sound, and smiles from home.
We’d officially entered the era of connected cruising.
Week 1 – The Network Grows
Before long, we had:
- Garmin DSP and chartplotter tied into the Starlink
- Weather updates in real time
- Over 20 connected devices, including from the catamaran next door
- Crew streaming music and syncing cloud photos
And yes, Wi-Fi at the beach bar.
Starlink Mini reached from the catamaran all the way to the shore.
Latency? 44–51ms. From a hatch. On a boat. Unreal.
Week 2 – The Resistance Fails
I was the only one still dreaming of “going dark.”
Of watching sunsets without uploading them.
Of reading a book instead of refreshing email.
Instead, I became the onboard IT support.
Resetting routers? Nope.
Troubleshooting? Didn’t need to.
It just worked. Even badly installed.
Mid-galley connectivity check. Signal strong. Mood mixed.
Final Log Entry – Starlink Verdict
Two weeks. Countless bays. One poorly placed dish.
And still: rock-solid internet, low latency, and a happier crew.
Conclusion?
Starlink Mini is a beast.
It doesn’t care where you mount it – it just wants to work.
And work, it did.
Captain’s Advice:
If you want peace and quiet, hide the power cord.
If you want to be everyone’s favorite crew member?
Bring a Starlink Mini.
Captain signing off.
Log closed – but signal’s still strong.
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