This article will help you build maritime packages using both Peplink and Starlink components. There are several things to consider; waterproofing, size of the boat, incorporating Starlink, how much cabling you need for different options, how to power the setup etc. All of those topics will be covered in this article.


Building a Maritime setup



Step 1: Start with The HD1 Dome 

The HD1 Dome is the perfect place to start when building a maritime mobile internet setup. It is an industrial-grade mobile router that integrates a single CAT20/5G modem with a 4x4 MIMO cellular antenna, now adding WIFI 6 to the package for a complete mobile Internet solution. By integrating the radio and antenna into a single dome enclosure, cellular reception is maximized with minimal loss due to antenna cables. The Dome is also waterproof and comes with cable connectors that will allow the customer to connect to a power source while preventing the elements from getting into the device 


*Marine grade stainless steel mount: ($99) Your customer will likely need to add this in order to mount it to their boat. They can add this on from the HD1 Dome listing page.


Peplink MAX HD1 Pro Dome 5G Marine Router – MobileMustHave.com


Step 2: Powering the Dome

The HD1 Pro Dome is powered by Power Over Ethernet (PoE) which can be provided by an ethernet switch or by the optional SIM injector, which has an integrated switch that supplies POE. There are several different options to power the HD1 Dome, all of which have their positives and negatives. We'll go over those in this section.

  • Sim Injector add on: Reg price: $1,500/ When purchased with Dome: $999

The SIM Injector includes an integrated four port switch and PoE along with providing 8 additional remote sim cards for total flexibility. Combine the HD1 Dome Pro with the optional SIM Injector, and the number of SIM cards increases to ten, allowing you to switch sim cards without having to access the dome, which may be mounted permanently up high. If you want to mount the dome (and/or other antennas) on a mast, then never have to climb the mast again, this is the best power option to go with.


  • Standard 2 port POE injector: $89
Low cost, but the downside is that it won't run on anything but 110v or 12v (many boats need 24v)
https://mobilemusthave.com/products/12v-dc-powered-poe-injector-mobile-power-over-ethernet?_pos=1&_psq=poe-injector&_ss=e&_v=1.0

  • 5 or 8 port switch: $149-$219
You can also power the dome with any of our switches including the 5 port and 8 port switches available on our website. The downside is that you probably wouldn't be able to use the other ports on the switch since they would be sitting on the WAN side of your network not the LAN side. 
https://mobilemusthave.com/products/5-port-gigabit-poe-network-switch-for-mobile-installations-dc12v-48v-input?_pos=1&_sid=8b929445b&_ss=r
https://mobilemusthave.com/products/8-port-gigabit-poe-network-switch-12v?_pos=3&_sid=8b929445b&_ss=r

  • Managed POE switch: $500
With this option you could trunk certain ports to be WAN and then use the remaining ports on the LAN side. This would potentially be nice in a marine application where you wanted one switch to provide power to your dome/wan, but also provide power on the lan (access points for example). Downside to a good managed poe switch like Peplinks 8 port switch is only cost, it's $500 but would give you the most options/flexibility to do whatever you want. 
https://mobilemusthave.com/products/peplink-8-port-sd-switch?_pos=2&_sid=8b929445b&_ss=r


The best way to integrate Starlink and Cellular is to use a router as a hub. This bundle includes the Flat High-Performance Starlink Kit with Wedge Mount and the Balance 20X. This bundle is the most cost effective way to do this as it discounts the cost of the Balance 20X down to $413.64. 


How to integrate: You would put the Balance 20x (or any router they want, but the Balance 20x would be cheapest for cellular/expandability) in the cabin and then put the dome in Synergy Mode so that the Balance 20x could control the Dome from a single management console. 

Then you would have: The Dome via the wan port, The CAT 7 modem in the Balance 20x, Starlink via the secondary wan port (using vWAN functions included in Primecare), optional USB to add second 5G or other cellular modem, optional expansion port to add another 5G modem. This would give the customer a total of up to 4 cellular connections, one Starlink and then 2x Wifi as Wan connections to marina wifi for a total of up to 7 simultanious wan connections. 


  • Starlink Full Timer Bundle: $2,913.64
https://mobilemusthave.com/products/starlink-5g-cellular-bundle?_pos=2&_psq=starlink&_ss=e&_v=1.0

Step 4: Extending the range of the wifi signal (AP)


Most of our maritime customers are putting these setups into long sailboats or yachts, meaning that they will need to add an access point if they want to have coverage throughout the entirety of their boat.


  • AP AX Lite: $299 (2x2 mimo)
https://mobilemusthave.com/products/pepwave-ap-one-ax-lite-dual-band-2x2-wifi-6?_pos=1&_psq=ap-ax-lite&_ss=e&_v=1.0
  • AP AX One: $399 (4x4 mimo)

https://mobilemusthave.com/products/ap-one-ax-wireless-access-point?_pos=1&_psq=ap-ax&_ss=e&_v=1.0


We will be adding a new Globetrotter Bundle for our maritime customers that includes the HD1 Dome, a SIM injector, and the Balance 20x. Be on the lookout for that to hit the website soon! 


Videos on the products we've covered in this article: 

MIRC Article to reference:

Starlink Satellite Internet for Mobile RV and Boat Use - Mobile Internet Resource Center (rvmobileinternet.com) 


Additional Things to consider:

  • The Dome only requires one cable (power) vs. our other router/ antenna combinations, which require 2-11 cables. This makes it a very attractive option for any maritime customers who want to mount their antenna(s) up high on a mast.
  • For any customer who wants to get a stable connection while out at sea they should strongly consider mounting their antenna(s) on the mast. Due to the curvature of the earth, the further you go out to sea the more difficult it is to have line of sight from the antenna to the cell towers on land. For this reason, the higher up the antenna is, the more likely they are to get a connection at further distances.
  • The Starlink Maritime kit uses the same hardware that we sell (High performance Starlink kit with wedge mount). As of right now (5/29/23), Starlink allows customers to switch between Starlink Roam and Starlink Maritime whenever they want, as long as they have this hardware. It's important to note that customers can use Roam in most coastal/docked areas, but they will not get service if they go out to sea. This could also change at any time, but as of right now Starlink's geofence includes coastal areas for Roam service.
  • Starlink's maritime service is generally only good for up to 10 miles off of US shores. Any distance beyond that is Geo locked because you would technically be crossing into international borders. Officially customers are supposed to be restricted to using Starlink in the country that they purchased it in, though there have been reports of people being able to use US purchased Starlink in Canada and Mexico.
  • The sim injector acts as both POE for The Dome (and other components, such as other routers or an access point), and as 8 additional sim slots. This allows you to switch out sim cards from your nav station inside your cabin, rather than having to climb the mast every time you need to switch out a sim card in The Dome.


Recommended Maritime Setup:
HD1 Dome +
Balance 20X +
Sim Injector (POE for the Dome + extra sim slots) +
Starlink

The Balance 20X will come with a free Virtual WAN port when you upgrade to Firmware 8.3 (free to upgrade). So, both Starlink and the Injector will have WAN ports to plug into on the Balance. The Balance and the Injector will both be powered by your boat. The Dome will be powered by the Injector. 

B20X --> SIM Injector --> HD Dome 
         --> Starlink

Once your hardware is connected like this, you can use Synergy Mode (new feature with 8.3 firmware) to manage all of your internet connections from the Dashboard of the Balance.