Starlink, SpaceX's satellite internet company, unveiled its new antenna this week. Unlike the circular design offered so far, the plate needed to contact satellites in orbit is now smaller , lighter, and has a rectangular shape .
The new antenna is part of SpaceX's efforts to reduce Starlink's costs. According to the president of the aerospace company, Gwynne Shotwell, the new hardware costs about half that of the original, but over time they plan to reduce it even more.
Starlink has always offered its user terminals at $ 499 , but the manufacturing costs for the antenna have been higher. Originally it was $ 3,000 per unit, but even before introducing its new hardware it had dropped to $ 1,300. In other words, the firm still lost money.
The new antenna measures 30 cm wide by 50 cm long and weighs just over 4 kg. Not only is it smaller than its predecessor of 58 cm in diameter, but it is almost half lightweight and comes with new brackets to install on walls. Curiously, its dimensions coincide with the models presented by Project Kuiper, the Amazon service.
Credit: Starlink
New Starlink antenna, for now only in the United States
For now, the new Starlink antenna will be offered only in the United States. This will come with a new user kit that includes a Wi-Fi 5 router resistant to water and extreme temperatures. Of course, the device loses the original Ethernet port , so now a separate adapter is offered.
These terminals are used to connect to the growing constellation Starlink, which currently has more than 1,400 geostationary satellites in orbit. Most of these are about 550 km from Earth and offer coverage almost everywhere on the planet.
Starlink is ideal for areas where fiber or cellular connectivity is not good. However, the service is still in beta. The company claims that users can enjoy speeds between 100 Mbps and 200 Mbps and a latency of 20ms in most places.
The company has registered subsidiaries in Spain, Mexico, Italy, Argentina, Chile and other countries. In the case of Spain, it is possible to reserve a place for 499 euros. The service should have arrived this year, but Starlink now claims it will do so in 2022.
Credit: Starlink
