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SpaceX wants to launch 100k more Starlink satellites for 100x the bandwidth

zdnet.com

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Re: SpaceX wants to launch 100k more Starlink satellites for 100x the bandwidth

#641

Post by dtagames »

askvictor wrote: post #382
dtagames wrote: post #302

I just finished a long RV trip and I can tell you it's hard to underestimate the importance of internet access (which also means Wi-Fi calling and access to maps and weather) across our entire, enormous nation. It's important not only for individuals but even more for businesses. Despite cell phone company ads with handsome celebrities in the desert, cell phones actually do not work in many places. But people do need…

Once upon a time, people did long RV trips without internet access. Or even (cellular) phone access.

Definitely! I was doing the observing during an RV trip, but my comment was about how it impacts business even more.

Re: SpaceX wants to launch 100k more Starlink satellites for 100x the bandwidth

#642

Post by the_gastropod »

IMTDb wrote: post #569
digitaltrees wrote: post #379

I have started to see what I think are star link satellites at night on walks with my kids. It actually makes me sad to see that on person owns the night sky and is changing the literal stars my kids will grow up with. It feels different when it’s the government that theoretically represents people but when it’s one person that feels truly depressing.

Which government ? And based on the past few month, if your are thinking of the US governemnt; I can assure you that it is actively being harmful to me. I have no love for SpaceX but at least I can take a subscription or invest and the stock and pretend that those satellites are beneficial to me. There isn’t a single US government owned satellite that is not actively harmful to me at the moment.

You use GPS?

Re: SpaceX wants to launch 100k more Starlink satellites for 100x the bandwidth

#643

Post by benjiro29 »

fragmede wrote: post #623
digitaltrees wrote: post #379

I have started to see what I think are star link satellites at night on walks with my kids. It actually makes me sad to see that on person owns the night sky and is changing the literal stars my kids will grow up with. It feels different when it’s the government that theoretically represents people but when it’s one person that feels truly depressing.

It's not one person though. If zero people were using Starlink, then it would be that one person's vanity up there, but since it seems people do find it useful, those satellite lines represent humans being able to connect with modern technology out in the Sahara or in the ocean. For sailors to keep in touch with loved ones and to have a less dreary existence on long ocean voyages. And not to fret, China's managed to…

> those satellite lines represent humans being able to connect with modern technology out in the Sahara or in the ocean

Or basic locations in Europe, that can be as close to 20km from a big city. There are a ton of spots where you have at best spotty 4G coverage or no coverage at all.

Used to live where we had 1Mbit ADSL, and no cell ... Trust me, you feel the limitations of that. Keeping your PC running 24/7 to download/buffer, so you can use your day traffic for more important stuff.

Starlink is a insane deal in my eyes. Sure, it uses a lot of power but your paying the same as typical vDSL in Germany. And ironically, ... Starlink is faster then the fixed lines we have here in the "3th" biggest city in Germany.

People really underestimate how much underinvestment there has been in Internet connectivity even in rich countries.

Re: SpaceX wants to launch 100k more Starlink satellites for 100x the bandwidth

#644

Post by Ray20 »

darth_avocado wrote: post #289
kevinkeller wrote: post #155

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> I don't understand the huge upside for Starlink outside of Africa or India, where they have India is rapidly expanding fiber internet connectivity, even in rural areas: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bharat_Broadband_Network In addition, 4G/5G coverage is extensive: https://www.ookla.com/articles/india-mobile-connectivity-1h2... See India in this 5G global coverage map: https://www.ookla.com/articles/5g-map-2026 The…

> The number of people who are not covered by above-mentioned fiber/cell network, and can afford Starlink as it is priced now, will be extremely small People vastly overestimate the purchasing power in places like India. Most of the purchasing power is concentrated in the top 1% of the population and most of that 1% lives in urban areas with fiber connectivity. The bottom 90% don’t even make $1K/person/year. Even a $…

> would be 10% of the total income, which at those income levels, would never be a priority.

People vastly underestimate the subjective importance of the Internet for people. 10-20% of the total income seems like a very realistic figure, even if it means spending some days hungry.

Re: SpaceX wants to launch 100k more Starlink satellites for 100x the bandwidth

#645

Post by kamov »

maipen wrote: post #361
baranul wrote: post #347

At what point are people going to have a conversation about all the pollution and the consequences of so many satellites burning up (metals and other toxic stuff) in the atmosphere and fragments falling wherever. 100k... how much can we keep putting up and let keep falling around the world? Multiple other companies and countries want to do the same as SpaceX.

[flagged]

100k satellites is kind of insane, why not a smaller number of satellites which are more powerful, like the satellites from AST Spacemobile? It should be possible to launch smaller number of satellites without sacrificing progress

Re: SpaceX wants to launch 100k more Starlink satellites for 100x the bandwidth

#646

Post by 0x59 »

NetMageSCW wrote: post #128
0x59 wrote: post #99

How could this not end poorly? I cant think of one realistic scenario where there world benefits.

You can’t imagine the number of lives saved with cellular access everywhere and Internet broadband where it has never been?

Arguing that broadband internet saves lives reminds me of the argument that Jesus saves lives and the love of Jesus must be spread around the world.

Re: SpaceX wants to launch 100k more Starlink satellites for 100x the bandwidth

#647

Post by gordonhart »

esperent wrote: post #525
sidcool wrote: post #284

I understand no one here likes Elon. But does it mean we find justifications for our collective bias in everything his companies do?

It's an American company polluting the night sky for the entire world, for a service that will ultimately be access gated by the US government/private industry. That's where the negative sentiment is coming from. Who cares which of the many equally shitty US billionaires/oligarchs is funding it?

Do you feel the same way about Guowang and Qianfan, two very real very large constellations notably not funded by US billionaires?

Re: SpaceX wants to launch 100k more Starlink satellites for 100x the bandwidth

#648

Post by bell-cot »

advael wrote: post #558
Razengan wrote: post #555

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Why didn't governments try making it? The US has tons of spy satellites, why not make some for the folks paying taxes? Why do we have to sell our firstborns (data) to Google for maps etc?

Can't speak to the world as a whole but the US has we spent 50 years gutting most government functions that aren't part of the police/military/surveillance apparatus (and many of those as well). SpaceX itself is an example of the primary mechanism of this: Diverting funding to private, no-bid contracts that remove both market forces and democratic oversight from those services while also ballooning their costs

While there's a lot of truth to your "gutting most gov't functions" claim, you might want to compare SpaceX's subsidies and launch costs with those of the gov't's traditional providers. And look at myriad $billions that have been squandered on the Senate Launch System.

There are plenty of solid reasons to despise Elon - no need for counterfactuals.

Re: SpaceX wants to launch 100k more Starlink satellites for 100x the bandwidth

#650

Post by JumpinJack_Cash »

stevep98 wrote: post #444
kevinkeller wrote: post #155

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> I don't understand the huge upside for Starlink outside of Africa or India, where they have India is rapidly expanding fiber internet connectivity, even in rural areas: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bharat_Broadband_Network In addition, 4G/5G coverage is extensive: https://www.ookla.com/articles/india-mobile-connectivity-1h2... See India in this 5G global coverage map: https://www.ookla.com/articles/5g-map-2026 The…

Global cellular operator revenue is approx $1T. They have put their toe in the water with direct-to-cellular support for starlink, and have bought spectrum to improve this. I'm sure they basically want to offer cellular to everyone in the world and get a good chunk of that $1T. Maybe they want 20% of it? Sounds crazy, but China Mobile, Verizon, and Deutsche Telecom each have 10%. Sounds it's not so wild that they can…

How would people be able to use internet when they are inside? Perhaps under layers and layers of concrete, think a 50 stories building
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