Zimbabwe has power problems. It’s not unusual for electricity loadshedding to last several hours a day. Sometimes even up to 24 hours at a time.

Added to that, given the rapid expansion of residential construction, some new residential areas in the city outskirts, don’t have power infrastructure yet. There’s also the rural situation.

It goes without saying therefore that Solar is used by a lot of Zimbabweans to power their gadgets. So the question of how much power is needed for a Starlink kit arises.

The different type of kits consume different power.

Standard Kit power consumption

The average power consumption of Standard Actuated kit is 50-100W. So it’s best to budget for 100W. This includes both the antenna and the router.

100W is about the same power that a 40-inch LCD TV will consume.

Mini Kit power consumption

The average power consumption of Mini kit is Power Consumption: 25-40W.

40W is the same a DStv decoder uses. Also same amount a small laptop like a Chromebook would use.

Again this includes both the WiFi router and the dish.

Do I need a UPS?

A UPS (uninterruptible power supply) is an appliance used to bridge the time between switching from one power source (say ZESA when it suddenly goes) and another (Solar or generator).

It’s used to buy time to protect equipment from damage. It’s generally a good idea to have a UPS for your most prized gadgets.

However, if you already have a battery, it makes sense to just have the Starlink on the battery so that there’s no need to switch between ZESA and Battery.