Starlink increases coverage

Submitted: Wednesday, Oct 05, 2022 at 14:03
ThreadID: 144916 Views:5670 Replies:11 FollowUps:18
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It appears, on Starlink's rollout map, that their coverage has increased, now covering up to line drawn from just below Cairns on the east coast to around Carnarvon on the west coast, & that coverage of the rest of Australia has been brought forward (from 3rd quarter 2023 think) & is now expected in the first quarter of 2023



https://www.starlink.com/map
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Reply By: Rod N - Wednesday, Oct 05, 2022 at 14:19

Wednesday, Oct 05, 2022 at 14:19
Updated a couple of weeks ago. Probably as a result of laser equipped satellites coming online. No need for as many ground stations.
New satellites are being launched regularly. Probably won't be long before all of Aus is covered officially. Some reports suggest that coverage extends quite away 'above' the line.
BTW quite a distance north of Carnarvon, almost to Coral Bay.
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Reply By: Frank P (NSW) - Wednesday, Oct 05, 2022 at 14:20

Wednesday, Oct 05, 2022 at 14:20
What is the hole in WA?
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Follow Up By: GarryR - Wednesday, Oct 05, 2022 at 14:25

Wednesday, Oct 05, 2022 at 14:25
Trying to be funny, it is a sink hole where everything disappears. haha
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Follow Up By: Rod N - Wednesday, Oct 05, 2022 at 14:29

Wednesday, Oct 05, 2022 at 14:29
The hole is the The Square Kilometre Array, or SKA, project, it is an international effort to build the world’s largest radio astronomy observatory
Square Kilometer Array
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Follow Up By: GarryR - Wednesday, Oct 05, 2022 at 14:33

Wednesday, Oct 05, 2022 at 14:33
Thanks for that info Rod N, as I did not know that. I have heard of the array, but that's about all. I learnt something new today, and will look it up on Mr Google.
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Follow Up By: Frank P (NSW) - Wednesday, Oct 05, 2022 at 14:38

Wednesday, Oct 05, 2022 at 14:38
Thanks Rod. I was just about to post along those lines after looking at the link and expanding the map. Murchison, where the SKA is, is on the edge of the hole.

EDIT: Some info on the SKA here.
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Follow Up By: GarryR - Wednesday, Oct 05, 2022 at 14:48

Wednesday, Oct 05, 2022 at 14:48
Viewed the link and what an exercise that must have been to erect and complete.
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Reply By: Member - nickb boab - Friday, Oct 07, 2022 at 07:32

Friday, Oct 07, 2022 at 07:32
Ok I'll be the one to ask the dumb question what is this all about ? starlink
I know when we relied on satellite for internet the ping time was always the problem compared with more faster internet systems and there was always more promises than a politician could give about their upcoming speeds ..
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Follow Up By: Member - Cuppa - Friday, Oct 07, 2022 at 08:21

Friday, Oct 07, 2022 at 08:21
Nick -Starlink is Elon Musk’s Space X project. Multiple satellites orbiting much closer to Earth than others, providing much faster service than ‘conventional’ satellites, & at present much faster service than any non satellite services too. The relevance for travellers is that there is a mobile service available offering the promise of very fast internet *anywhere* in Australia once the roll out of satellites is complete. This rollout process is happening quite quickly with full Australia coverage expected by early 2023. As well as providing internet it will make Satphones redundant for subscribers. What remains unknown is how fast the service will remain once it is subscribed to in large numbers. As I understand it it will slow down from it’s current high speeds, but will remain a far more useable option than current services like Skymuster. Faster & less affected by weather. On the possible downside our skies are being filled with thousands of new low level satellites. This is my understanding but others may provide more detail. https://www.starlink.com/rv
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Reply By: Michael ( Moss Vale NSW) - Friday, Oct 07, 2022 at 08:51

Friday, Oct 07, 2022 at 08:51
Residential cost for StarLink is A$174/mo with a one-time hardware cost of A$924.
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Follow Up By: Member - Cuppa - Friday, Oct 07, 2022 at 09:08

Friday, Oct 07, 2022 at 09:08
Michael, $174 is the monthly cost for the mobile ‘RV’ service (which can be turned on/off from month to month). Residential (which does not have the flexibility of turning on/off from month to month) is priced at $139.

Either way it is not a cheap option but for folk living or travelling in remote areas is a potential game changer.

The pricing is for unlimited data. Expensive just to get the odd email or browse Facebook, but the ability to get internet at all, let alone fast internet from your RV in the middle of the Simpson desert (for example) is unprecedented.
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Follow Up By: Michael ( Moss Vale NSW) - Friday, Oct 07, 2022 at 09:35

Friday, Oct 07, 2022 at 09:35
Thanks Cuppa, I think it's not too bad. Telstra is around $90 to $99 at present for home internet. Agreed, travelling remotely is the real winner for an extra $40 a month. Regards Michael
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Reply By: Member - Core420 - Friday, Oct 07, 2022 at 09:45

Friday, Oct 07, 2022 at 09:45
I can only speak for myself, but as a recreational traveller I relish the isolation of the outback and enjoy the absence of the internet and mobile phone coverage. I do carry a satellite communicator for emergencies, but that's all. Ofcourse it's a different story if you're a content creator.
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Follow Up By: Member - Cuppa - Friday, Oct 07, 2022 at 10:13

Friday, Oct 07, 2022 at 10:13
‘Tis indeed a horses for courses thing. For us for our extended stays in remote areas internet is a must. Here it is our online stuff, our phone , our radio & our Tv. All things we are quite happy to be without for shorter periods but currently it’s our lifeline to the outside world. Even much of our grocery order is via a Coles online order from the nearest Coles supermarket 800kms away! Without internet a stinging tree incident here would have been far worse than it was. We have had Skymuster satellite at most of the places we’ve looked after. Better than nothing, but sadly lacking in comparison to city & town based services.
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Reply By: ExplorOz - David & Michelle - Tuesday, Nov 01, 2022 at 18:39

Tuesday, Nov 01, 2022 at 18:39
Our new Starlink arrives this week! Yippee, it will make a huge difference to our ability to work on the road - because I will no longer feel the pressure to leave the good offline bush camp just to pick up service to upload all the work/check messages/manage customer service issues etc. I can keep doing that work anywhere enjoy the bush camp instead of having to be in a township with service.

Also, where we live, we have heard locals confirm its faster than their existing NBN.
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Reply By: Briste - Wednesday, Nov 02, 2022 at 09:24

Wednesday, Nov 02, 2022 at 09:24
At the risk of annoying those who've already purchased, it appears that Starlink has halved the price of the hardware, to $450. Not sure whether that's a temporary or permanent reduction. At that price I could be tempted, the downside being that it appears that you have to purchase a month's mobile usage with it, whether you're about to start using it immediately or not. Perhaps that stays as a credit on your account until to turn it on. Anyone know?
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Follow Up By: Rod N - Wednesday, Nov 02, 2022 at 11:30

Wednesday, Nov 02, 2022 at 11:30
When you buy an RV package you have 7 days after dispatch to pause the service. Un-pause can be done whenever you want it. I paused mine within the 7 days and did not pay for usage. ie It was dispatched on 10 Oct, received 12 Oct, paused 15 Oct and service stopped and invoice received 24 Oct.
I think the current draw was about 3 amps.
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Follow Up By: ExplorOz - David & Michelle - Wednesday, Nov 02, 2022 at 12:42

Wednesday, Nov 02, 2022 at 12:42
I think the $450 you are seeing is the US price - make sure you change the region to Australia and it will confirm the $AU price. Also as Rod mentioned you have now actually have 14 days to pause the service after purchase so when ours arrives today I will have a about 10 days to play with it for free and pause before the first billing (if I so choose).

We will report on it usage, setup and power requirements once I have it up and running.

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Follow Up By: Briste - Wednesday, Nov 02, 2022 at 13:00

Wednesday, Nov 02, 2022 at 13:00
I had put in my home address as the delivery address for the order and it was showing "A$139/mo for service and A$450 for hardware". I assumed that the "A" was AUD. I changed the region to Australia, and all that changed was that it took away the "A". Price was the same.

I haven't been following Starlink prices closely, but on another forum I read that the hardware cost had halved and when I looked that seemed to be the case.

I've only done the first step of the order, so it's not clear to me how this works. It appears that you have to pay the first $139 as part of the order. Is that right? If so, that means that you have a $139 credit for one month waiting to be activated if you choose to suspend within those first 7/14 days?
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Follow Up By: ExplorOz - David & Michelle - Wednesday, Nov 02, 2022 at 13:21

Wednesday, Nov 02, 2022 at 13:21
Ah I can see the $450 but this is for the residential hardware NOT the RV hardware which is still showing $924. If you want to take it with you from your home you need the RV option. If you want the residential then yes $450 till end of year.

As for the pricing you pay for the hardware with the order. When the hardware is shipped they activate the plan on a free 14 day trial and your first bill for service becomes due 14 days after shipment. So you can play for a few days (if it arrives quickly, sent via DHL) before the billing falls due. However the plan pause/resume options only exist in the RV option the residential is deemed to be running unless you cancel the service (I believe).

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Follow Up By: Rod N - Wednesday, Nov 02, 2022 at 13:22

Wednesday, Nov 02, 2022 at 13:22
It may depend on whether you get RV or residential. I only had to pay the hardware cost for my RV service, which can be paused. Residential can't be paused.
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Follow Up By: Briste - Wednesday, Nov 02, 2022 at 14:25

Wednesday, Nov 02, 2022 at 14:25
I thought I had selected the RV option, in that I clicked on the RV link on the home page and then something like "Order Now".

So I went back and did the same thing again, and now one of the numbers has changed. Now it says "$174/mo for service and $450 for hardware". I visited the home page and changed the country from there, and I can now see the 50% AU hardware discount until the end of the year.

I thought the monthly charge was too low for mobile Starlink. Not sure whether they had a glitch or I did something wrong. But the hardware is definitely $450, i.e. half price. Doesn't seem to be any different for RVs.

It's an expensive option, but I'm more inclined to invest $450 in something that I rarely use than $900.
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Follow Up By: ExplorOz - David & Michelle - Wednesday, Nov 02, 2022 at 14:53

Wednesday, Nov 02, 2022 at 14:53
The site is a little weird as now I cannot order an RV unit for some reason (says no coverage) - suspect it is updating from the CDN networks. Bugga if the hardware is half as I just paid last week but it is meant to be in motion supported. I will know more when it arrives!
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Follow Up By: Steve in Kakadu - Saturday, Nov 05, 2022 at 14:45

Saturday, Nov 05, 2022 at 14:45
The $450 is AU that’s why I have ordered both. 2 for the price of 1, if you bought yours recently they are giving a credit on your service. Check out the Starlink FBook page.
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Reply By: equinox - Wednesday, Nov 02, 2022 at 16:57

Wednesday, Nov 02, 2022 at 16:57
What's upload speed like?

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Reply By: Rod N - Friday, Nov 04, 2022 at 12:07

Friday, Nov 04, 2022 at 12:07
New map out. Starlink Coverage
Includes Weipa, Lake Woods on the Stuart Highway and not far south of Broome. However there are reports it can be used up to Darwin
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Follow Up By: Rod N - Monday, Nov 07, 2022 at 10:11

Monday, Nov 07, 2022 at 10:11
Starlink now officially covers all of Australia.
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Reply By: Member - Warren H - Friday, Nov 04, 2022 at 15:19

Friday, Nov 04, 2022 at 15:19
Interesting coverage hole around Murchison in WA. I presume this is the CSIRO Square Kilometre Array site. I was friends with one of the research engineers designing and building the SKA Pathfinder radio telescope. On site, they have a complete radio frequency blackout, have NBN fibre and only operate equipment in Faraday cages. When I left CSIRO, I shipped my portable Codan radio to them for emergency comms. It was setup for use in hired 4wds for our remote travel in the days before satphones and had a tapped antenna set at rfds frequencies. Despite being at the very hi-tech end of radio comms science, my friend was of the opinion that HF was still valuable for last resort comms. Might have thrown a few gremlins into what the telescope antenna was picking up.
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Reply By: Member - Cuppa - Monday, Nov 07, 2022 at 14:30

Monday, Nov 07, 2022 at 14:30
Just a few days ago Starlink updated their coverage map - Weipa across to just below Broome & below.
Today they have updated again!

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