A new leak has shed light on what could be the biggest upgrade yet for SpaceX’s portable satellite internet terminal. According to leakster Oleg Kutkov, the Starlink Mini 2 has officially entered production, bringing with it a built-in battery – a feature many users have been requesting since the original Mini debuted.
While SpaceX has yet to officially announce the device, Kutkov shared several hardware details on X. According to him, the upcoming terminal carries the current hardware revision “mini2_prod1” and introduces a number of notable changes over its predecessor.
Built-In Battery Finally Arrives (Allegedly)
The more notable addition is undoubtedly the integrated battery. Unlike the original Starlink Mini, which requires an external power source, the Mini 2 reportedly features a built-in 4-cell (4S) lithium battery managed by a BQ40Z-series battery management system (BMS). Its battery capacity, however, remains unknown.
Charging is said to be handled through a USB-C Power Delivery port capable of accepting 11V to 24V input, potentially making the Mini 2 much more convenient for travellers, campers and users who require portable internet connectivity without carrying an external battery pack.GPS support is also present and is explicitly configured for in-motion use.
Smaller But With Lower Transmission Power
According to the leak, the Mini 2 is slightly more compact than the existing model. Its internal panel PCB reportedly measures 225 × 273 mm, compared to 236 × 276 mm on the original Mini. Despite the smaller footprint, the terminal continues to use the same Catapult system-on-chip (SoC) found in its predecessor.
There are, however, a few trade-offs. Kutkov says the Mini 2’s average Equivalent Isotropically Radiated Power (EIRP) has been reduced slightly from 27.57 dBW to 27.4 dBW. More significantly, its transmit duty cycle has reportedly been cut from 75% to just 11%. This would likely reduce uplink performance compared to the current Mini, with the limitation believed to be necessary to stay within the power budget of the built-in battery.
The leak also points to improved thermal tolerance. The Mini 2 reportedly raises its MAC thermal thresholds to 95°C and 99°C, compared to 79°C and 83°C on the original Starlink Mini. Meanwhile, the integrated battery is configured to shut down at 80°C as a safety precaution.
No Details On Pricing Or Availability Yet
At this point, there is no word on when the Starlink Mini 2 will be officially unveiled or how much it will cost. For reference, the original Starlink Mini is currently available in Malaysia for RM930.
Those looking to use the portable satellite terminal locally can pair it with one of Starlink’s Roaming plans. The entry-level Roaming 100GB plan costs RM235 per month, offering up to 300 Mbps download speeds with 100GB of high-speed data before falling back to unlimited lower-speed connectivity. Meanwhile, users who require unrestricted access can opt for the Roaming Unlimited plan at RM455 per month, which provides unlimited high-speed data and supports international roaming across more than 160 countries and territories.
(Source: Oleg Kutkov, via X)
