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Beta users of Starlink get downloads of 11 to 60 Mbps

arstechnica.com

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Re: Beta users of Starlink get downloads of 11 to 60 Mbps

#91

Post by cma »

bargl wrote: post #79
alwaysdoit wrote: post #64

Earlier quoted context omitted.

It also raises the baseline across the board by injecting a new competitor to every ISP and wireless service in the world

This is 1000% my point. There is now a baseline amount of signal per KM. That signal is now the same everywhere. It will be (about) the same speed everywhere. This is really great for more rural areas and over the ocean.

We already had a baseline amount from geosynchronous and Iridium. This is increasing bandwidth and reducing latency, but is not establishing the first baseline.

Re: Beta users of Starlink get downloads of 11 to 60 Mbps

#92

Post by jedberg »

bargl wrote: post #85
jedberg wrote: post #78

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> If you're in Silicon Valley then you probably get GREAT cell service You'd think so, but we have the same problems as everyone else. In fact, I get much better reception in Sacramento and Las Vegas than in the Bay Area.

No, you don't have the same problems as everywhere else. You said it took 10 years to get fiber, there are rural places where that's not an option. There are places where there is no sewer and houses must have septic. There are places where there is no water and houses must have wells / rain capture. Those are the target audience for this technology. Not people who are waiting to go from 60 -> 100 -> 1000 Mbps. This…

I was specifically addressing your claim that one could just use an LTE hotspot. I'm aware that there are rural communities that have worse infrastructure than the bay area.

Re: Beta users of Starlink get downloads of 11 to 60 Mbps

#93

Post by bryanlarsen »

xenadu02 wrote: post #25
jasonpeacock wrote: post #12

Honestly, this is just awesome. It's a working demonstration of high-speed satellite internet, showing this approach is a viable solution for "anywhere on Earth" internet. For all those people who don't have broadband available, this will be life-changing. It'll only get better from here, welcome to the future :) (and remember that perfect is the enemy of good)

Having this kind of network is a good thing but the idea that any kind of satellite or wireless can replace wires is just fantasy. Delivering just 10Mbps to 100 million customers is over 900 Tbps. There is absolutely no way a satellite network can clear that kind of downlink bandwidth. And that's just a tiny fraction of the market. Physical cables/fiber represent several orders of magnitude more capacity and always w…

> Delivering just 10Mbps to 100 million customers is over 900 Tbps.

50 Gbps * 12000 satellites is 600 Tbps.

Most of those satellites will be over the middle of nowhere at any given time. But those customers don't use 10Mbps 24/7 either.

Re: Beta users of Starlink get downloads of 11 to 60 Mbps

#94

Post by Alupis »

gamblor956 wrote: post #86
jedberg wrote: post #73

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I think they serve different purposes. Satellites serve areas where they can't run wires or it's insanely expensive for too few people. Think very rural areas and war torn areas. Imagine being able to get unblocked internet in China by using satellites? Or in Belarus. Or the middle of Amazon (rainforest)?

People keep bringing that up as a common use case, but how do you propose that people in China or wartorn countries will get their hands on the modems they would need to use Starlink?

Or even afford it?

People earning an equivalent of a couple USD a day, or nothing at all, aren't going to be able to afford to pay some US corporation for fast internet.

Fast internet probably isn't even a concern in wartorn countries, honestly.

Let's be honest - Starlink is almost exclusively going to be used by people living in rural areas within developed nations.

Re: Beta users of Starlink get downloads of 11 to 60 Mbps

#95

Post by ShakataGaNai »

aSockPuppeteer wrote: post #38
loktarogar wrote: post #5

What i'm more interested in is longer term (well, longer than a speedtest) consistency. 11mbps is fine if it's never less than 11mbps. Aiming for "20ms latency for gaming" etc is useless if the thing drops out even once in a game.

It should be fine unless a helicopter hovers over your dish, wind makes your dish unstable, the satellite reaches end of life, weather affects your frequency(rain/fog/snow), or predicted sun spots occur. The price may be concerning if we compare to the current offers of competition. There are caps and bandwidth limitations. Satellite time is expensive.

If a helicopter is hovering over your dish, close enough to be noticeable amounts of wind (more wind than you say get normally)... you have bigger problems... Like a military group is fast-roping into your home.

Re: Beta users of Starlink get downloads of 11 to 60 Mbps

#96

Post by jedberg »

gamblor956 wrote: post #86
jedberg wrote: post #73

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I think they serve different purposes. Satellites serve areas where they can't run wires or it's insanely expensive for too few people. Think very rural areas and war torn areas. Imagine being able to get unblocked internet in China by using satellites? Or in Belarus. Or the middle of Amazon (rainforest)?

People keep bringing that up as a common use case, but how do you propose that people in China or wartorn countries will get their hands on the modems they would need to use Starlink?

US government airdrops?

Re: Beta users of Starlink get downloads of 11 to 60 Mbps

#97

Post by puranjay »

hesdeadjim wrote: post #53

Anyone complaining about this has never experienced the frustration of rural living when it comes to internet. This is absolutely amazing, and it will just get better. Even a reliable 10mbps would be a godsend in many places.

If I can get those kinds of speeds in rural areas, I would legitimately uproot my life and move. I can work from anywhere, and I reckon, there will be more and more people like me in the post-Covid world. This has the potential to reshape our world and turn the tide away from mass urban migration.

Re: Beta users of Starlink get downloads of 11 to 60 Mbps

#98

Post by Reason077 »

gamblor956 wrote: post #82

For comparison, DSL is 1.5 Mbps. 4g is between 5Mbps and 12 Mbps (up to 50Mbps in burst mode), while 5g generally starts at 50Mbps. Cable internet is usually 25 Mbps, and up to 1 Gbps if you're willing to pay, and fiber is up to 10 Gbps if you're lucky enough to live in an area with fiber built out to your home. So in other words, Starlink is useful if you live too far away from a major residential center to have acc…

> "4g is between 5Mbps and 12 Mbps (up to 50Mbps in burst mode), while 5g generally starts at 50Mbps."

Yup. I actually regularly get sustained speeds well over 50 Mbps on 4G with carrier aggregation (which some phones call "4G+"). And anything less than 200 Mbps is a bad day on 5G. (Vodafone UK network)

https://www.speedtest.net/result/9898742367

Re: Beta users of Starlink get downloads of 11 to 60 Mbps

#100

Post by jedberg »

Alupis wrote: post #83
jedberg wrote: post #73

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I think they serve different purposes. Satellites serve areas where they can't run wires or it's insanely expensive for too few people. Think very rural areas and war torn areas. Imagine being able to get unblocked internet in China by using satellites? Or in Belarus. Or the middle of Amazon (rainforest)?

Will Starlink even be able to legally sell internet services in China? Would they not have to comply with CCP's censorship policies and disconnect people at their will? I strongly disagree with CCP's policies here, but that's not for us to decide.

I was thinking of the opposite use case -- an American traveling to China for work and getting uncensored internet.

But I mean once a Chinese citizen gets their hands on the equipment, I'm not sure how China would stop them. I suppose they could have roving bands of listening posts looking for the uplink signals.

I'm sure someone could figure out a way to take payments for them. Many rich Chinese citizens already have bank accounts outside of China.

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