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Starlink Direct to Cell

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Re: Starlink Direct to Cell

#621

Post by [deleted] »

Nursie wrote: post #396
NoPicklez wrote: post #378

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I appreciate you have had a bad experience, but to then think that's the overall experience is myopic. There are many highly remote areas where people can't speak more highly of Starlink.

And not that remote. Internet provision not all that far out of major Australian cities can be abysmal. I'm only 30 minutes drive from the centre of Perth and my options are currently 5G (operating at about 4Mbit), Wireless Broadband (performance promise - the download speed will reach 25Mbit at least once in any given 24 hour period!) or Starlink, at a pretty stable 120/20. I'd love to not have to pay for it, to use…

[deleted]

Re: Starlink Direct to Cell

#622

Post by LightBug1 »

mmaunder wrote: post #283

Vertical integration by Starlink of the cheapest launch capability in the world (by far) is the reason there are no competitors, and there will be no competitors. The pace of innovation at SpaceX is not THE reason - it’s an additional reason that no one has a snowballs chance in hell of ever catching Starlink. I’ve seen talk of competitor satellite networks or a possible competitor emerging. Folks it’s game set and m…

Odd. You seem to be overjoyed at the possible birth of a monopoly situation?

I think your emotions and tribal instinct would be better served towards something more benign, like football or baseball ...

Lest your voting intentions become equally malignant.

Re: Starlink Direct to Cell

#623

Post by minetest2048 »

markps wrote: post #270
minetest2048 wrote: post #163

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Adding to this: I wish I can just buy a 4G modem for my cubesat and get 24/7 access through Starlink without waiting for my cubesats to be in view of my groundstation...

Have you looked into AWS Ground Station? I don’t know if it’s economical, or has enough locations for 24/7 access, but it might be better than once an orbit.

All ground station as a service are limited by radio licensing, you need to apply for transmit license to the country that the groundstation is located to legally transmit to your cubesat. Its not as easy as spinning up an EC2 instance

Some regulation horror: https://www.itu.int/en/ITU-R/space/Pages/API.aspx . Worst case you need to wait 7 years! to get your radio license

Compare this to a 4G modem / smartphone, its amazing that you don't need to file spectrum license to another country version of FCC everytime you travel. It. Just. Worked.

Re: Starlink Direct to Cell

#624

Post by perihelions »

mullingitover wrote: post #478
ryandrake wrote: post #419

Earlier quoted context omitted.

For obvious reasons I think it's pretty safe to say we can count on at least the next four years of zero regulation or government scrutiny of any company Musk is involved in, monopoly-related or otherwise.

Safe to say? You sure about that? I’d say it’s just as likely that six months from now there will be a falling out, Musk will be called a pathetic loser, government agencies will be turned against him, etc. If past behavior is any kind of indicator, it’s more likely than not. I would not be surprised if we see Musk doing a perp walk within 12 months.

For those who forgot, Musk joined Trump v1.0's advisory council in December 2016 [a], and resigned from it in June 2017 [b]. All of this played out once before.

[a] https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=13175928 ("Trump Names Elon Musk, Uber CEO to Advisory Team – TheHill (thehill.com)", 92 comments)

[b] https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=14465667 ("Elon Musk quits Trump advisory councils, saying, 'Climate change is real' (latimes.com)", 4 comments)

Re: Starlink Direct to Cell

#625

Post by lupusreal »

OutOfHere wrote: post #406
lupusreal wrote: post #227

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> "smart enough to appreciate theory" Bro you "learned" this theory from popsci media, evidenced by your surface level understanding of it. Any debris in these orbits clears out in a few years, it's a complete non issue with this constellation.

I am aware it's a low orbit that clears faster, but some debris can still fly upward. And even a few years is quite enough to destroy everything in the low orbit.

Any debris that gains energy doesn't get circularized so it's perigee is still low and for that reason it still deorbits quickly.

If this happens, then LEO becomes uneconomical for unimportant satellites for a few years. If you really need a really important satellite in LEO you can still put it there and just eat the increased attrition rate. Higher orbits will still be fine, particularly very high orbits like GEO where you can put most really important satellites if you really need them. Kessler syndrome in LEO wrecks commercial operation of LEO satellites for a few years, that's it. It doesn't stop humanity from launching weather satellites, military and communication satellites, space probes, etc. If a satellite really matters to society, a higher attrition rate increases costs but we have the means to launch many replacements for relatively small amounts of money. It's quite literally a non issue.

Furthermore, it's not even likely to happen anyway because ground tracking of debris is very good and these satellites can modify their orbits or even preemptively deorbit themselves if the situation becomes too dicy. The most likely circumstance that causes Kessler syndrome is a major war in which many LEO satellites are rapidly and violently knocked out without warning. But if there's a major war kicking off, the cost to humanity will be so great that crying about satellite casualties will probably get you punched in the face for being so insensitive about people dying.

Re: Starlink Direct to Cell

#626

Post by creatonez »

rafram wrote: post #37

I feel so, so mixed about this. It’s going to be unambiguously good for wilderness rescue and disaster response. But I like camping and hiking in remote areas in order to remove myself from the world. And I think the lack of connectivity discourages unprepared people from taking on more than they can handle in the wilderness. If the wilderness becomes fully connected, will it spoil that feeling? Will it lead to the l…

Satellite phones are not some special new thing anyways

Re: Starlink Direct to Cell

#627

Post by immibis »

Nursie wrote: post #396
NoPicklez wrote: post #378

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I appreciate you have had a bad experience, but to then think that's the overall experience is myopic. There are many highly remote areas where people can't speak more highly of Starlink.

And not that remote. Internet provision not all that far out of major Australian cities can be abysmal. I'm only 30 minutes drive from the centre of Perth and my options are currently 5G (operating at about 4Mbit), Wireless Broadband (performance promise - the download speed will reach 25Mbit at least once in any given 24 hour period!) or Starlink, at a pretty stable 120/20. I'd love to not have to pay for it, to use…

It may or may not be relevant to your case, but every time a story like this comes up I will remind people in general that fiber-optic cable is 50 cents per meter (probably $1 per meter Australian), wireless links cost equipment and a regulatory approval fee and are easier in less densely populated areas, and there are tons and tons of stories of people dissatisfied with their ISP creating a better competitor, your neighbours are likely as frustrated as you if they use the Internet, and there is no minimum size to an ISP.

Re: Starlink Direct to Cell

#628

Post by refurb »

openrisk wrote: post #531
scotty79 wrote: post #456

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I think this is a psychological thing. Humans during evolution were highly rewarded for seeking and keeping powerful allies. So by imagining that Elon is my friend (because I'm his friend) and Elon is really intrinsically powerful (instead of just a lucky, well positioned grifter that can fall from grace at any moment) I can feel better about my own safety. I can feel more powerful by extension and the indirection so…

You might be onto something but we need a proper "evolutionary theory of bootlicking" before we get carried away. Its pretty clear that the all-too-common in space and time hierarchies, oligarchies, command-and-control pyramids etc. rely on trickle-down privilege to sustain. But the feeligs of disgust and disbelief at how a person can diminish themselves in the hope of some crumbs falling their way must also have str…

I’m not sure I understand your viewpoint.

The OP said “the most successful businessman in the world”.

Sure one can argue about how OP came to that conclusion, by what measure, etc, but the man produced a highly successful car company, in a field nobody has really been able to do it, under terms where everyone was counting down the days until it went bankrupt.

That alone is an amazing feat.

Then he went on to create a rocket company that broke barriers of space travel no one has been able to do.

Then he started a satellite company that pushed the boundaries of communication for the average person.

I’d say all those feats are worthy of praise and make him a person who stands out significantly from any other businessman in recent history.

So saying he’s the “most successful businessman” doesn’t seem like an absurd or overly hyperbolic statement.

And how you got “stroking off” or the even more absurd “bootlicking” from that statement is just bizarre. I saw zero evidence of either.

I’d say your comments are the odd ones here and say more about you than the OP.

Re: Starlink Direct to Cell

#629

Post by minetest2048 »

verzali wrote: post #557
minetest2048 wrote: post #163

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Adding to this: I wish I can just buy a 4G modem for my cubesat and get 24/7 access through Starlink without waiting for my cubesats to be in view of my groundstation...

There's IDRS that does this for satellites.

At first I thought you misspelled TDRSS but then I found out that IDRS is a thing: https://www.idrsspace.com/

Its too big and power hungry to fit inside 10x20x30 cm cubesat though :( More reason to go bigger

Re: Starlink Direct to Cell

#630

Post by jonplackett »

rm445 wrote: post #614
jonplackett wrote: post #603

Earlier quoted context omitted.

You think it’s awesome that there’s a monopoly? And it’s owned by a single, politically derelict insane man? I agree the pace of change is amazing. I marvel at everything spacex does. The starship catch was ridiculous. But no competition always leads somewhere really bad eventually

A (temporary) monopoly is not as bad in something that wouldn't otherwise exist. If Elon Musk concentrated only on cars, or SpaceX had had another couple of launch failures and gone bust, this functionality might be 40 years away. Not to say you're wrong, we all benefit from competition in the long run. We get it from a level playing field and preventing natural monopolists from locking the gate behind them.

I agree a (temporary) monopoly is totally OK. Normal in fact.

But the parent comment was specifically celebrating a long term, unassailable monopoly.

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