Just got notified that my Starlink wait list has been approved to the "Next Best Thing" option. Or whatever its called.

Anyone know how Starlink compares with say an LTE router? I use the LTE option at work all over the country- It's ok for most things.

No other internet option where we live and the Mrs is wanting cameras to check on her horses/cows/barn/dogs/chickens/cats/pigs/goats/other animals I'm sure I'm forgetting.

Anyone have a recommendation for cameras as well?

I did this for sister in law's property (office, three barns, gate, back to house) and friend's restaurant as well.

I would check our Nellys Security for cameras and network video recorder. They are outta Oklahoma and easy to deal with.

You will probably need access points to shoot from house to barn as well. Check out ubiquity or mikrotik. Mikrotik is powerful, cheap, and difficult to use if not an IT guy. Ubiquity a little bit more expensive, but definitely easier to setup.

Also may need a network switch to plug all the cameras in to. If going outdoors, look for an extended temperature range unit or be prepared to replace every two or so years if in a hot texas barn.

SiL been running 4-5 years, restaurant about 2 years.

FunnyFarm14 said:

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Just got notified that my Starlink wait list has been approved to the "Next Best Thing" option. Or whatever its called.

Anyone know how Starlink compares with say an LTE router? I use the LTE option at work all over the country- It's ok for most things.

No other internet option where we live and the Mrs is wanting cameras to check on her horses/cows/barn/dogs/chickens/cats/pigs/goats/other animals I'm sure I'm forgetting.

Anyone have a recommendation for cameras as well?

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I have both LTE and Starlink. I've run the gamut on LTE providers using TMO, ATT, Verizon, and Visible. The biggest issue you're going to have with SL is the slow upload speeds. It makes viewing cameras difficult at times. I just ran a SL speed test and pulled 115/3. "Best effort" service will be slower.

Starting around 5p, Starlink really starts to slow down. From ~8p-10p, download speeds are single digits for me on residential service. Since you're being offered "best effort", I'd assume you're in a congested cell so your peak speeds will be similar or slower than mine. Also, for me, any rain will cause SL to lose signal. I've had to keep LTE service so I have a fail over during the day while working.

On ATT, I rarely saw uploads below ~6mbps. Verizon 4g I usually see 100/10 at my house.

For cameras, it's best to get something that can punch a hole in the CGNAT Starlink uses if you aren't super technical. Eufy, Arlo, Ring, etc should all work. I have Eufy cameras since there's no monthly fee and they don't store your footage in the cloud. It's all local.

It really depends on how good cell service is where you are.

I have one house getting about 60 down and 60 up on AT&T. Another house on Lake Livingston getting about 120 down and 20 up on AT&T. I have a neighbor who couldn't get good stand alone service due to trees so has a hotspot by his old cell booster. He now gets 30 down and 8 up on Verizon.

Some people cannot get any signal at all with cell. This site is not 100% accurate all the time, but is a good resource for finding the closest tower to you for each service. https://www.cellmapper.net/

We use a hotspot that was "hacked" to look like a cell phone in all of our setups. We use a regular unlimited cell plan. Mine is also setup with a roof top quad antenna with a direct view of a few towers from the roof.

I also have StarLink. The hotspot is better for any communications and the StarLink is better for 4K video. StarLink has been getting better for us and we average about 75 down and 10 up.

Have you tried NextLink? They're the first ISP that's been worth a darn out here, and they seem to have decent coverage.

Get a Dream Machine Pro from UI.com, get a couple bullet cameras - profit.

The Dream Machine Pro router does everything, including has a build in DVR. Yes, the cell phone app will let you talk to it and view live streams, alerts, etc.

satexas said:

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Get a Dream Machine Pro from UI.com, get a couple bullet cameras - profit.

The Dream Machine Pro router does everything, including has a build in DVR. Yes, the cell phone app will let you talk to it and view live streams, alerts, etc.

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Might as well step up to the UDM-SE instead so they get 8 POE ports. They wouldn't be able to run an AP w/o extra hardware only buying a UDM. Also, the G4 cameras have been backordered for months unless you're lucky enough to be up for a 6am restock and can snag one. A separate NVR and decent, non UI cameras, would be a much better investment.

I've run a UDM-SE with Starlink and their LTE failover system for a few months. It's missing decent QoS but works decently otherwise

txyaloo said:

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satexas said:

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Get a Dream Machine Pro from UI.com, get a couple bullet cameras - profit.

The Dream Machine Pro router does everything, including has a build in DVR. Yes, the cell phone app will let you talk to it and view live streams, alerts, etc.

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Might as well step up to the UDM-SE instead so they get 8 POE ports. They wouldn't be able to run an AP w/o extra hardware only buying a UDM. Also, the G4 cameras have been backordered for months unless you're lucky enough to be up for a 6am restock and can snag one. A separate NVR and decent, non UI cameras, would be a much better investment.

I've run a UDM-SE with Starlink and their LTE failover system for a few months. It's missing decent QoS but works decently otherwise

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First off, the G4 cameras have not been backordered for months... I've been buying them left-and-right from ui.com. I would suggest you check daily or every 2 days, they come back fast... same with switches and all other kinds of things that get wiped out and poof, new inventory a day or three later. It was that way 6-months or so ago, but it's not now.

Secondly, POE isn't THAT big of an issue... if your router doesn't have it.. you can either :

1. Add an in-line POE adapter for like 10 bucks a line.
2. Add a cheap $50 switch with POE to handle all cameras

In other words, your router ports don't HAVE to have POE. The cameras just need the power injected into the cat5e/6 at some point... that's all.

txyaloo said:

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A separate NVR and decent, non UI cameras, would be a much better investment.

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Why? Because you don't want to wait and get the better quality, better-supported hardware because you think it will be back ordered for months?

I'm a believer in doing it right the first time.

I'm not a fan of Anker and all these Chinese brands that are dwarfing the camera market because their apps are wonky, equipment typically unstable and long term suooort and brand is suspect. Also, not a big fan of putting up foreign products as security items like cameras.

FunnyFarm14 said:

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Just got notified that my Starlink wait list has been approved to the "Next Best Thing" option. Or whatever its called.

Anyone know how Starlink compares with say an LTE router? I use the LTE option at work all over the country- It's ok for most things.

No other internet option where we live and the Mrs is wanting cameras to check on her horses/cows/barn/dogs/chickens/cats/pigs/goats/other animals I'm sure I'm forgetting.

Anyone have a recommendation for cameras as well?

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Get Starlink and Arlo cams. Very simple and easy.

satexas said:

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txyaloo said:

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A separate NVR and decent, non UI cameras, would be a much better investment.

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Why? Because you don't want to wait and get the better quality, better-supported hardware because you think it will be back ordered for months?

I'm a believer in doing it right the first time.

I'm not a fan of Anker and all these Chinese brands that are dwarfing the camera market because their apps are wonky, equipment typically unstable and long term suooort and brand is suspect. Also, not a big fan of putting up foreign products as security items like cameras.

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1) Ubiquiti cameras aren't great quality. They're expensive for what you get, never in stock, and frequently fail right after warranty ends

2) The NVR built into the UDMs isn't great. One drive for storage so no backup/redundancy. They run super hot with a drive installed and they're loud since adding a HDD enables the fan. It's also locked to UI cams unless you run a PI and some software to integrate 3rd party devices.

3) I generally don't use Anker cameras though I do have some Eufy cams. My hardwire POE cams are from Empire Tech Andy. At $150, they're significantly cheaper than UI cams and more feature rich. With Blue Iris, I can have them on their own vlan so cameras have no direct connection to internet, my data isn't stored in the cloud, and I have full control over it.