SpaceX Starlink internet service will exit its open beta phase next month, nearly a year after the company began testing its satellite internet service with users in 14 countries. SpaceX CEO Elon Musk recently tweeted that the satellite internet network would come out of the beta testing phase, which has been restricted to North America, Europe, Australia, Chile, New Zealand, even though the company has plans to expand in countries like South Africa, Mexico, Japan, and the Philippines.
According to SpaceX, the company has already shipped 1,00,000 terminals (with satellite dish and router in tow) but as October comes, users might see a lot of more access arrive as the service expands to more countries, as Engadget reports. However, even at this point, it isn’t clear whether the service will be widely available in October — the company has already missed Musk’s previous promised date of August 2021 for the Starlink satellite internet service to exit the open beta phase.
At the moment, SpaceX is servicing over 1,00,000 users with the help of 1,700 satellites, according to Ars Technica. Once the Starlink satellite internet service exits the open beta phase, users in other countries can expect the service to arrive a little faster than the beta period which was limited to the aforementioned countries. The report also reveals that the company had received over half a million orders for Starlink satellite internet connectivity that would arrive after the open beta ended.
Users who are interested in gaining access to a Starlink satellite internet connection can visit the company’s website and place a pre-order for the service. However, they will need to pay $99 as a deposit, which is refundable. The service is not available in all regions, and in some areas could take more than six months to be set up, according to the report. Unless you have extremely poor internet connectivity where you live, most existing internet providers should be enough for most users who need to get internet connectivity in the near future.
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