Starlink? maybe not

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Mandaid

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So I full-time and put in an order for the starlink kit. I came across this gem in the terms of service agreement.

"Agreement to Purchase Starlink Kit and Services.
Residential Use. Services and the Starlink Kit are for use exclusively at the address you provided in your Order, and only for personal, family, household or residential use."

anyone have one yet? or has anyone been able to feel out how to reach out to SpaceX about this?

2015 Silverado 2500
2014 Nash 25C.
 
It will be part of the near future, for sure.  My biggest concern is "line of sight" to the satelite(s).  I think trees, especially with foilage, will be a big concern - It is with sat TV.
 
Remember, what's available now is a bare bones Beta test with a limited number of ground stations and relatively few satellites in orbit.  There are a couple of problems with straying away a fixed address.  The first is the satellites are in Low Earth Orbit and only have Line of Sight to a limited area, not half the globe like a geosynchronous satellite.  As they pass overhead they have to be within range both to a ground station and to your location to relay data back and forth.

Right now mobile users could roam out of range of a ground station and complain about no service  even though they can see the satellites passing overhead.  Mobile users also need to be handed off from one ground station to another as they change locations and this may not yet be available in the beta software.

As far as needing a view of the sky, that too will lessen as the constellation is built out.  Remember, the satellites are in constant motion and the constellation will eventually be distributed throughout the entire sky, so all you'll need is a clear path to a patch of sky in any direction, not to a single point over the equator.
 
Thought the ground station thing was for communication from the sat to landbased services, end points only need a sat connection?  So, enduser ---> Sat--->--->ground service-, return to--->Sat--->enduser?
 
The way it appears to be working now is each unit is assigned a geographic cell perhaps 50-100 miles wide, which relays to a specific nearby ground station, ie if you are in central North Dakota, your system is set to relay through the ground stations within a couple of hundred mile radius of where you are, say perhaps with a ground station in Fargo and another in Rapid City, SD.    If you roam outside of range of these ground stations then the system would not have you scheduled to talk to certain satellites while they are overhead, and it would not work.  I am sure in time they will get this all sorted out to allow roaming and dynamic assignment of satellites and ground stations to communicate through.
 
phil-t said:
Thought the ground station thing was for communication from the sat to landbased services, end points only need a sat connection?  So, enduser ---> Sat--->--->ground service-, return to--->Sat--->enduser?

All data has to pass through a ground station to connect to the Internet.  There are no user-to-user communications, if you're talking to another Starlink user it's via the ground based Net.  So yes, it's up to a satellite, down to a ground station with Net access, then via the Net to the destination, either ground based or back up to the satellites.

Musk has talked about linking one satellite directly to another but this is to get more range away from a ground station, not going directly user-to-user via the satellites.  It's also not implemented yet.
 
Lou, actually the first 10 of the satellites with satellite to satellite laser link launched last month into polar orbit, to allow coverage or the remote polar regions, though Elon Musk as said it will be next year before all new satellites being launched have this feature.
 
Lou Schneider said:
All data has to pass through a ground station to connect to the Internet.  There are no user-to-user communications, if you're talking to another Starlink user it's via the ground based Net.  So yes, it's up to a satellite, down to a ground station with Net access, then via the Net to the destination, either ground based or back up to the satellites.

Musk has talked about linking one satellite directly to another but this is to get more range away from a ground station, not going directly user-to-user via the satellites.  It's also not implemented yet.
Well, if the end user has end user to satellite and back. If an end user has ground based connectivity why would they want the satellite service?  Just my way of thinking.  I don't care how they deal with the traffic to the ground stations from the satelites, those ground stations could be almost anywhere, in view of the satellite(s).
Definitely not an end all, do all solution to remote internet service.
I just got 5G in my location and it is an awesome service - provides a great, robust data connection.
 
Elon Musk tweeted some time ago that mobile Starlink use would be forthcoming, but it requires hardware and software changes. No timeline was given...
 
I would like to remind everyone that Starlink is in Beta. If you don't understand the ramifications of using something in Beta then don't use the product now.
 
I would like to remind everyone that Starlink is in Beta. If you don't understand the ramifications of using something in Beta then don't use the product now.
I was interested in the beta test till they wanted the large amount of cash for the equipment and monthly fees. You want me to test your equipment and software but you want me to pay you to do so? No.
 
I have a long history of participating in Alpha and Beta testing of hardware and software so I signed up for the Starlink Beta. I received the email last week but won't be pursuing it. If they want to ship me the hardware and waive the monthly fee, as is the usual practice, I'd be happy to use it and provide feedback.

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So I full-time and put in an order for the starlink kit. I came across this gem in the terms of service agreement.

"Agreement to Purchase Starlink Kit and Services.
Residential Use. Services and the Starlink Kit are for use exclusively at the address you provided in your Order, and only for personal, family, household or residential use."

anyone have one yet? or has anyone been able to feel out how to reach out to SpaceX about this?

2015 Silverado 2500
2014 Nash 25C.
Starlink is planning to migrate to a mobile platform most likely late after Beta, 2021 or maybe 2022. I recommend that you connect to the /r Starlink in Reddit.com, and there is also a number of Facebook Starlink sites with information.
 
I remain hopeful.
We'll see.
I was annoyed in the early days of DirecTV when they were entirely uncooperative about the idea of being mobile. They were even difficult to deal with when you relocated, for a while, and we were moving a lot, then.
Musk and company appear to be wanting to get ahead of that curve.
I can't wait to see what they come up with for a mobile SAT rig.
 

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