SpaceX this week began accepting broadband orders for Starlink, asking for $ 99 deposits for the service that would be available in the second half of this year.
To start the process, you can go to the Starlink website and enter your email and service address. The general cost is $ 499 for hardware, $ 50 for shipping and handling and $ 99 for monthly service, plus tax. These are the same prices charged in the ongoing beta, which is limited to parts of the northern United States and southern Canada.
“Starlink aims to cover its area in mid-2021,” says the pre-order system. “Availability is limited. Orders will be fulfilled on a first-come, first-served basis. You will receive a notification once your Starlink is ready for shipping.”
We obtained the same “mid to late 2021” period for addresses in the state of Arizona, California, Illinois, Massachusetts, North Carolina, Texas, Virginia and Washington. A CNBC report said that orders for some areas are showing availability in 2022.
The $ 99 owed on the pre-order is fully refundable and “you can initiate a refund of your deposit by logging into the Customer Account Portal and requesting a refund,” says the website. Unfortunately, placing an order does not guarantee that you will receive Starlink.
“Depending on the location, some orders may take 6 months or more to be fulfilled. Making a deposit does not guarantee the service,” said the website.
You will receive a message like this if you place a successful order:
Customer limits
SpaceX is setting limits on how many people can apply in each geographic area, probably to ensure that there is sufficient capacity for each customer. “Starlink is currently available to a limited number of users per coverage area,” says the ordering website.
While pre-orders appear to be for the general availability of Starlink later this year, the company also appears to be expanding the number of slots in the beta.
“Starlink’s additional capacity is now available to a limited number of users per coverage area,” SpaceX said yesterday in an email sent to people who had previously registered interest in the site. “If the service is not available in your area, you can make a deposit to keep your place in line for future service.”
The email echoed SpaceX’s earlier beta guidance, “users can expect to see data speeds vary from 50 Mbps to 150 Mbps and 20 ms to 40 ms latency in most locations in the coming months, as that we improve the Starlink system. There will also be brief periods without connectivity. “
Presumably, the service will be faster and more reliable when it is made available to people who submit pre-orders. “Starlink is now delivering the initial beta service both nationally and internationally, and will continue to expand until almost global coverage of the populous world in 2021,” says the website.
Elon Musk, CEO of SpaceX said on Twitter this week, SpaceX will make an IPO of Starlink “as soon as we can predict the cash flow reasonably well”.