Anyone has any experience on SpaceX Starlink Internet Service ?

The hardware is around $500 (before tax and shipping) I think it's kinda pricey and the monthly commitment is fairly high (around 20-30% more than the something of equivalent speed) compared to local internet service here, and you don't get public IP unless you subs to the Priority plan (Residential plan being the cheapest) which is even more expensive. So it's kinda a big no for now logically but still keeping my option open plus I'm just curious about few things.

- stability, it's a wireless connection and clearly mentioned needed "clear sky view" for it to operate at its full potential. So that means weather will play a big factor for its connection right ?
- what is its advantage, satellite based internet connection compared to the usual broadband/fibre cable/wired internet service which IMO is pretty hard to beat especially when I've been living with under 5ms ping for a really long time.
- security, should we trust the self-proclaimed leader of the free speech Elon Musk ? he is shady and all but damn he's not half as evil as our local authorities here.
- there's a residential and mobile plan but both is using the same hardware, is it possible to travel with the damn antenna when you go fishing/camping in the jungle or something ? I believe in the plan the difference mentioned only the mobile plan supports connection while you are moving on RVs or something but still it's the same hardware used for it.
- do you have any plan to switch to it in the future ?
- or this service is not for us mere mortals but more suitable for the rich mfs with boats and stuff that has money to burn ? even when it was advertised as being the solution for rural areas or remote location that internet services doesn't exist.
- idk, anything cool or bad about it ?

 

Last edited: Apr 14, 2024

have starlink at my cabin. had many snowy days and nights this winter, never lost signal. it is better for more remote type of places. also have family friends who used it on their sail boat while crossing the pacific. they had internet the entire time. it will only get better with more of their satellites being launched.

 

I think "clear sky view" only means that the router's view of the sky needs to be unobstructed, i.e. it shouldn't be placed indoors, directly underneath trees, etc.

 

I've read review of people traveling through Europe with starlink, the only problem was Alpes and especially mountain valleys with trees, other than that they got their daily jobs done with video conferences and other social media acts with really decent speeds

 

Starlink is pricey, requires clear skies for best connection, and weather can affect stability. It’s great for rural or remote areas without good internet but less competitive where fiber or cable is available. The same hardware works for residential and mobile plans, but only the mobile plan supports use while moving. Security is generally fine but always take precautions. It’s mostly suited for those in areas with limited options or with higher budgets.

 

it needs to be placed so it can "see" moving satellites,
satellites keep moving so it's constantly reconnecting, not ideal for any kinds of streaming usage,
residential plan may not be available in some countries, and it won't let you travel abroad for long time,
mobile plan may not work in some countries and has lower priority/qos compared to residential plan,

I think it's very useful for ships, planes, trains especially when 4G/5G infrastructure is limited/unavailable,
for residents, I think 2-10Gbit fiber is (close) future, in all ways better than any wireless internet solution

 

I didnt try starlink which satellites are on lower orbits, but I did have 2 Internet satellite connections with 2 different satellites and there was a several seconds (7 maybe) latency for everything. IP phone was totally unusable. Latency should be a lot better with starlink but I think you shouldnt expect something remotely approaching to fiber or broadband rates.

 

If there's a blackout or brownout, meaning a power outage, you can still make phone calls, of course only with people who have satellite phones. If you ever win the lottery and live in the desert for a while, Space X is really great; you can certainly continue to comment on a few posts on AudioSexPro in Antarctica at minus 50 degrees.

Space travel with rockets is very expensive and will remain very expensive in the future. I'm betting on fiber optic cables. Keep in mind that the only things that have gotten cheaper are technical devices and phone calls. In 1998—just to remind you—an hour of AOL cost €6. We live in great times today, digitally speaking—24-hour internet and outages are rare.

Ask Elon Musk if he has an internship for you; Elon sees emigration into space as a possibility. He also believes that colonizing the moon and other planets is realistic.

 

1. it's satellite wan, which == crap. the next step up is wireless wan == slightly better crap (which I was stuck with for many years on a vzw unlimited gf account). For SAT-WAN it's expensive, connect speeds vary with the whether, sun spots and whatever other local/global interference you can think of. Looked into SAT-WAN before going all into wireless, and found all SAT stuff to be severely lacking with fair-use caps being the MOST deterring factor. With SAT there's only so much data a single transponder can handle at any given time so there WILL be caps even with Starlink (you must look at all the fine print before you sign anything). Latency is not going to be much better than wireless, if that's factor. Latencies with satellite and wireless are built in - there's no escape. The signals have a long path to travel by design, period. BUT, if it's the only thing available all bets == off.

2. It's owned by the shit-heel MUSKrat which is once again a HUGE minus. Personally, I wouldn't bother with it due to this one aspect alone, but to each is own.

 

Last edited: Aug 12, 2025

I would prefer broadband landlines, those have way lower latencies. Your ping is total garbage on satellites.
If it's the only option there ain't much to say about it. It's better than dailup.
But before I'd give Musk a single cent I deal with the internet withdrawal, so that's that.

 

I have a couple of friends in remote areas with no earthly internet available (one of them had a shitty dsl one but no fiber) and they both have installed Starlink and it is the most respectable satellite connection i have ever seen. The dish just needs a clear view of the sky, that is it. Speeds are consistent at 350 - 400mbps. Ping is ~80ms and consistent too. In two years they had a couple of 4 hours downtime, like once a year. It doesn't resemble the satellite connections of the past at all, where ping was around half a second and speeds would greatly vary.
There are times when Starlink offers the basic equipment for free if you subscribe for two years. Their basic package though, is contract free meaning, you pay, you have internet. You can pay as long as you use it which is user freedom and this how all internet providers should be really.
You can even skip Starlink 's own dish and use your own (if you know what you 're doing). If you don't have access to fiber, Starlink seems the only solution currently that will give you decent internet speeds.
Cheers