SpaceX Starlink satellite Internet might be out of beta very soon

Elon Musk features many ambitious plans, and most of these have proven to be controversial to some extent. However, one among the foremost debated could be his vision of covering the world with Internet-beaming satellites under SpaceX’s Starlink program. Although the present state of that service is way from its best, the tech luminary has made it known that it could finally be hospitable to the general public as early as next month.

There are currently quite 1,700 Starlink satellites orbiting the earth, serving around 100,000 Starlink beta testers worldwide. That’s a far cry from Musk’s initial plan of 12,000 satellites, but it seems that the service has matured enough to go away the beta testing phase soon. How soon? consistent with Musk, “next month.”

Next month

— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) September 17, 2021

When Starlink finally does shed off that beta label, the number of its users is predicted to balloon before the year ends. That said, there’ll be a tough limit to what percentage of subscribers it could accommodate, imposed by both the laws of physics and, therefore, the laws of the land. For example, SpaceX has only been approved to deploy 1 million terminals in the US but is already getting a license for up to five million.

Despite promises of reliable and fast Internet service, Starlink’s performance hasn’t exactly been consistent, its throughput determined by even more factors than regular broadband. For example, satellite internet favors those in rural areas without many buildings, but trees also can pose a drag. The strength of the signal is additionally largely hooked into the terminal’s proximity to the satellites.

Those problems could become moot because the satellite constellation gets larger. SpaceX is already posing for permission to launch 30,000 more on top of the 12,000 it’s been allowed to, something that’s already earning tons of criticism both from rivals like Amazon and interest groups. In addition, a Starlink subscription currently goes for a flat $99 per month fee and requires an upfront $499 payment for the terminal, mounting tripod, and router.