Africans Are Turning to Starlink • Hacker News Board

Re: Africans Are Turning to Starlink

#11

Post by whateverboat » Fri, Jul 03, 2026, 10:15 PM UTC

fragmede wrote: post #7

Exoristos wrote: post #3

> Starlink ... is much pricier than mobile internet, and often costs more than even fibre broadband. The service ... halted new subscriptions for seven months to maintain connection quality. ... [T]he weather can mess up the signal: "You need a backup in those heavy months of rain." There are really no shortcuts to the immense goal of covering the African continent with reliable internet.

I mean, it's not a shortcut to send tens of thousands of satellites into space instead of running copper wires across vast stretches of desert where they're going to get stolen, but it has certain advantages.

You mean to say there are no shortcuts to improving lives of poor people without actually improving their lives. Only yesterday, there was video of people stealing concrete mix from road construction sites in India for their own homes.

EDIT: In order to improve their lives, they need internet, but they also need everything else. Not providing everything in lockstep fails hugely. (And this includes providing good governance and non-corrupt leader, a problem we have no idea how to solve.)

Re: Africans Are Turning to Starlink

#12

Post by whateverboat » Fri, Jul 03, 2026, 10:16 PM UTC

asteroidburger wrote: post #9

fragmede wrote: post #7

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I mean, it's not a shortcut to send tens of thousands of satellites into space instead of running copper wires across vast stretches of desert where they're going to get stolen, but it has certain advantages.

Is anyone actually running new telecom copper these days? I’d be surprised if so.

Thieves are not educated enough to understand the difference and will steal the fiber and try to sell it (with no success) and in the anger, destroy huge swathes of the remaining fibre.

Re: Africans Are Turning to Starlink

#13

Post by mbreese » Fri, Jul 03, 2026, 10:17 PM UTC

Isn’t this a similar argument to how Africa adopted mobile phones significantly faster than other regions? When you don’t have an established wired infrastructure, it becomes significantly easier to jump technology generations. Especially if there’s no infrastructure needed to install.

As others mentioned, It’s a very similar situation for rural America. My dad lives in a rural setting, and for years could only get slow geostationary satellite Internet. As soon as he got Starlink, his connectivity improved dramatically. Only now that there was an established market for rural internet users in his area, are cable and fiber lines starting to get run.

Re: Africans Are Turning to Starlink

#14

Post by TMWNN » Fri, Jul 03, 2026, 10:19 PM UTC

mbreese wrote: post #13

Isn’t this a similar argument to how Africa adopted mobile phones significantly faster than other regions? When you don’t have an established wired infrastructure, it becomes significantly easier to jump technology generations. Especially if there’s no infrastructure needed to install. As others mentioned, It’s a very similar situation for rural America. My dad lives in a rural setting, and for years could only get s…

> Isn’t this a similar argument to how Africa adopted mobile phones significantly faster than other regions?

You didn't read the article:

>Africa’s internet infrastructure is not fit for purpose. During a communications boom in the early 2000s, the continent eschewed fixed-line internet for cheaper mobile broadband; today more than 400m Africans, the bulk of the continent’s users, gain access to the internet this way.

>But the technology has not kept pace with the rapid increase in data demand from streaming and AI-powered applications.

Re: Africans Are Turning to Starlink

#15

Post by mothballed » Fri, Jul 03, 2026, 10:24 PM UTC

whateverboat wrote: post #11

fragmede wrote: post #7

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I mean, it's not a shortcut to send tens of thousands of satellites into space instead of running copper wires across vast stretches of desert where they're going to get stolen, but it has certain advantages.

You mean to say there are no shortcuts to improving lives of poor people without actually improving their lives. Only yesterday, there was video of people stealing concrete mix from road construction sites in India for their own homes. EDIT: In order to improve their lives, they need internet, but they also need everything else. Not providing everything in lockstep fails hugely. (And this includes providing good gove…

I've spent a little time in Northern Iraq and war torn Northeast Syria (Kurdish areas). You can, and I have seen people leave thousands of USD in the street and no one will touch it. That's a ~year wages in the area. Crime exists but you can hand almost anyone a year's wages worth of stuff and be sure they won't steal it, even if they badly need it.

You can call it religion, you can call it culture, you can call it fear of choppy choppy of the hand, or maybe the fact everyone and their brother has a full auto AK, but there's something on a whole other level happening with poor (and also rich thieves) people in much of Africa.

Re: Africans Are Turning to Starlink

#16

Post by gonzalohm » Fri, Jul 03, 2026, 10:26 PM UTC

LorenDB wrote: post #4

I live in rural America. The story is quite similar here. My options were (a) cellular hotspot, which is slow and expensive, or (b) satellite internet, which is also slow and expensive. Despite government programs, there are no cable/fiber/DSL options in my area. Starlink fills the gap nicely; it's not blazingly fast, but pretty much meets FCC broadband definitions for $55/mo.

Is it really $55 a month?

Re: Africans Are Turning to Starlink

#17

Post by pgt » Fri, Jul 03, 2026, 10:27 PM UTC

Previously: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=40248231

tldr; Starlink doesn't work in South Africa, Elon's home country, because the ANC and its lawfare arm ICASA demands they hand over 30% to the State because of BEE laws.

Re: Africans Are Turning to Starlink

#18

Post by whycombinetor » Fri, Jul 03, 2026, 10:28 PM UTC

LorenDB wrote: post #4

I live in rural America. The story is quite similar here. My options were (a) cellular hotspot, which is slow and expensive, or (b) satellite internet, which is also slow and expensive. Despite government programs, there are no cable/fiber/DSL options in my area. Starlink fills the gap nicely; it's not blazingly fast, but pretty much meets FCC broadband definitions for $55/mo.

Starlink is also satellite internet, right?

Re: Africans Are Turning to Starlink

#19

Post by quantummagic » Fri, Jul 03, 2026, 10:29 PM UTC

gonzalohm wrote: post #16

LorenDB wrote: post #4

I live in rural America. The story is quite similar here. My options were (a) cellular hotspot, which is slow and expensive, or (b) satellite internet, which is also slow and expensive. Despite government programs, there are no cable/fiber/DSL options in my area. Starlink fills the gap nicely; it's not blazingly fast, but pretty much meets FCC broadband definitions for $55/mo.

Is it really $55 a month?

Why would he give an incorrect figure?

Re: Africans Are Turning to Starlink

#20

Post by cwillu » Fri, Jul 03, 2026, 10:31 PM UTC

whycombinetor wrote: post #18

LorenDB wrote: post #4

I live in rural America. The story is quite similar here. My options were (a) cellular hotspot, which is slow and expensive, or (b) satellite internet, which is also slow and expensive. Despite government programs, there are no cable/fiber/DSL options in my area. Starlink fills the gap nicely; it's not blazingly fast, but pretty much meets FCC broadband definitions for $55/mo.

Starlink is also satellite internet, right?

Yes, but the low altitude of the satellites makes a big difference.