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With latency as low as 25ms, SpaceX to launch broadband satellites in 2019

arstechnica.com

71–80 of 179 posts

Re: With latency as low as 25ms, SpaceX to launch broadband satellites in 2019

#71

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Why would they do this? EDIT: Data customers would pay for access on an individual basis. Helicopter-parent countries might cry foul, but what leverage do they have? It's not like they were going to launch things with SpaceX and they can threaten to stop.

> Data customers would pay for access on an individual basis. At a subscriber level, monthly billing to 'SpaceX Broadband, Redmond' might be cause for inquisitive State Police to visit. At a state level, the legality of jamming / interfering with satellites over national territory has never been definitively established. So SpaceX might find it easier to just turn-off over hostile nations than have them upset the net…

You'd set up a system where you pay the black market dealer and they in turn pay SpaceX from an account outside the country.

Re: With latency as low as 25ms, SpaceX to launch broadband satellites in 2019

#72

This is good news for the USA, but it's GREAT news for countries where the government regularly cuts off and controls the Internet for political purposes. If receivers can be as small as a personal laptop, expect a thriving black market in them in places like Iran and Egypt. Such receivers can also act as backhaul for mesh networks, providing access to un-censored information in times of turmoil and peace alike.

I'd say it's more of problematic than great news for places with state controlled study. But it has potential.

Where it's Great news is places which already can use only satellite internet, but have very poor experience. Rural Australia for example. Having low local (or even global) latency would be amazing.

Re: With latency as low as 25ms, SpaceX to launch broadband satellites in 2019

#73
post #30

Do this means that it'll be possible to play with folks from another continent with a good latency?

Not really, you still are limited to speed of light – so > ~100 ms roundtrips for half of the globe.

Honestly, 100ms is bearable if there isn't too much jitter. I play Overwatch with ~140ms ping and it's not too bad.

Re: With latency as low as 25ms, SpaceX to launch broadband satellites in 2019

#74

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Well, they are cutting options. The price for 50/50mbps is staying the same in my area, however they have dropped the 75/75, 100/100, 150/150, and 300/300 options entirely and now offer 50/50 or 1000/1000 (which is actually 940/880 which is around the limits of "normal" ethernet). And while they advertise $69.99 on the site, clicking through to "more info" shows it as $79.99 and calling in to ask about it they are te…

Isn't this bait and switch?

I don't know, but I know it's taught me to literally never believe a word of anything they say in terms of price, and to literally never sign a contract of any kind with them ever because they can't guarantee what the first bill will be (they can only give estimates), and by the time it actually comes you are already locked in for the 2 years.

Re: With latency as low as 25ms, SpaceX to launch broadband satellites in 2019

#76
post #34

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Not really, you still are limited to speed of light – so > ~100 ms roundtrips for half of the globe.

Sad.. Let's hope for breakthroughs on quantum entanglement research then

Quantum entanglement cannot be used for classical communications:

https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=12548175#12548733

"Basic principle is that while measurements between both sides will be correlated, it's not possible to tell how they are correlated until both sides compare measurements."

https://physics.stackexchange.com/questions/203831/ftl-commu...

Re: With latency as low as 25ms, SpaceX to launch broadband satellites in 2019

#78

Seven years. US Broadband providers have seven years to take us over the coals, practice full bore capitalism with our data and generally run oligilistic practices until their time even begins to run out

I'm afraid I don't understand what you're trying to insinuate here. Capitalism is part and parcel to disruptive services such as this one entering a space where established players have created price fixing opportunities for themselves. The oligopoly you're deriding is what enables innovations like this in the first place.

Re: With latency as low as 25ms, SpaceX to launch broadband satellites in 2019

#79
post #15

Do we have space in orbit for this? This is a lot of satellites and I also don't get how the latency can be so much lower than current satellite ISPs?

Yes, until some of the thousands of small satellites about to be launched (not just by SpaceX) star breaking down and creating space junk that will become a serious problem to the launch of new satellites and spacecraft http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2017/04/20/mega-constellatio...

My understanding is that all new satellites have plans for deorbiting when they reach the end of their lifespan.

Re: With latency as low as 25ms, SpaceX to launch broadband satellites in 2019

#80
post #58

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Why would they do this? EDIT: Data customers would pay for access on an individual basis. Helicopter-parent countries might cry foul, but what leverage do they have? It's not like they were going to launch things with SpaceX and they can threaten to stop.

It would be a way to address problem of the National Radio Quiet Zone? https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_National_Radio_Q...

Current satellites don't do anything special over the National Radio Quiet zone. Why should the SpaceX ones?
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