"5G vs Starlink: The Internet Race" and "Starlink Moves Closer to Matching or Even Beating Fixed Broadband Speeds"

[RV_]

Two great articles about Starlink:

Excerpt:

"Is Starlink Internet Better Than 5G Internet? Can we compare Starlink and 5G internet? 

Satellite internet cannot be replaced by 5G. Only major cities will profit greatly from 5G. Furthermore, updating today's cellular infrastructure to 5G is expensive. To improve the present cellular infrastructure in the United States, more than $200 billion is required. However, just ten billion dollars are required to deploy and maintain the Starlink constellation. In comparison to 5G, a 5% investment can provide high-speed broadband internet to the entire planet.

 

66Furthermore, 5G isn't all that groundbreaking. Yes, it can give high-speed internet, but you'll need a line of sight to the cell tower to reach that speed, which isn't practical. Your internet connection will diminish if there is no line of sight, negating all of the benefits of 5G.

 

It's common known that phone companies aren't interested in bringing 5G to small towns, villages, and rural areas. These businesses will be unable to recuperate their costs. It applies to both developed and underdeveloped countries. So, no matter how much buzz there is, 5G is not likely to take off quickly. Furthermore, it will not be inexpensive. However, Starlink is a global service. This low-cost high-speed internet service is available to everyone, everywhere.

Conclusion

 

Starlink is superior to regular satellite internet, 5G and DSL, as well as Google Internet. It may also be better than cable internet, depending on your location."

Source article with much more: https://chimniii.com/Author/null/null-5G-vs-Starlink-The-Internet-Race.html

 

Second article excerpt:

Starlink Moves Closer to Matching or Even Beating Fixed Broadband Speeds

"According to Ookla, the median download speeds for Starlink are exceeding those of fixed broadband in countries including Canada, France, Germany, New Zealand, and the UK.

The median download speeds for Starlink—SpaceX’s satellite internet network—are starting to rival the speeds you'd get from land-based broadband providers, according to Ookla, the company behind Speedtest. 

On Wednesday, Ookla published a report looking at Starlink internet speeds in Q2 by analyzing Speedtest scores from its users. In the US, Starlink’s median download speeds reached 97.2Mbps, up from 65.7Mbps in Q1. 

 

The Starlink download rate is not far from the 115.2Mbps median download speeds Ookla logged for US-based fixed broadband providers during Q2. (The upload rate is also not far behind either.)

 

Depending on where you’re based in the US, a user’s Starlink speed could already be exceeding 115Mbps. For example, the highest Starlink median download speed, at 168Mbps, was found in Morgan County, Alabama. The slowest speed, at 64.5Mbps, was in Madison County, Indiana.

 

In PCMag's annual Fastest ISPs rankings, published in June, we got enough responses to assign Starlink a 70.8 PCMag Speed Index rating (which combines 80% of the download number and 20% of the upload). That's 4.3 times faster than the next satellite internet provider, Viasat. And it’s not far below a major cable company—Spectrum earned a 101.1 nationwide.

Much more data/charts/hotlinks in the original article here:

https://www.pcmag.com/news/starlink-moves-closer-to-matching-or-even-beating-fixed-broadband-speeds?utm_campaign=trueAnthem%3A+Manual&utm_medium=trueAnthem&utm_source=facebook

Speedy Internet, Safe Travels!

 

 

[durangodon]

2 hours ago, RV_ said:

However, just ten billion dollars are required to deploy and maintain the Starlink constellation. In comparison to 5G, a 5% investment can provide high-speed broadband internet to the entire planet.

 

2 hours ago, RV_ said:

5G isn't all that groundbreaking. Yes, it can give high-speed internet, but you'll need a line of sight to the cell tower to reach that speed, which isn't practical. Your internet connection will diminish if there is no line of sight, negating all of the benefits of 5G.

 

2 hours ago, RV_ said:

Starlink is a global service. This low-cost high-speed internet service is available to everyone, everywhere.

I'm a Musk and Starlink fan, hopefully it will fulfill my needs someday soon.  However, I don't totally agree with a couple of comments in the first article.

Yes, Starlink will be available to most places on the planet.  No, it will not be available to everyone.  By Starlink's own estimates, it will not have enough bandwidth to furnish broadband to highly populated areas.  As long as those who have little alternative (rural) are using it, there will be enough to go around, but it will not be sufficient to replace urban alternatives.

I also don't think that an investment of $500 plus $100 per month qualifies as "low cost", compared to cable or dsl.  It is competitive with cellular and satellite service, however.

Also, Starlink requires line of sight.

[RV_]

I think that is low cost compared to Data plans from cell providers that can hot spot, and the equipment to do that with.  Let's remember that it is in Beta and where there is no alternative it is not bad.

Line of Sight (LOS) vertical for sats would seem easier to position for than horizontal line of sight in cities. On the road with a truck/RV version would have more vertical clear sky than in cities. We know as of now major markets/cities are the only place we can use 5G now, and likely in the future.

Like any tech, version 1.0 never resembles version 10.0. Just look at PCs from DOS to Windows 95 to 98/98SE/ME/XP/SP1/SP2/SP3/Windows7/8/8.1/10/ and now Windows 11.

The fact that Starlink needs LOS too is brought up often, and is covered in the article thus:

"Many say that in order to connect to the internet, Starlink, too, requires a line of sight to the sky. As a result, it will not be very popular in cities. Because cities have high-rise buildings, the line of sight will be obstructed. Unfortunately, this is not a viable argument.

First, with the exception of New York and Los Angeles, most cities are not overcrowded. Starlink is mostly for residential consumers. So, with the exception of downtown, the residential area has a clean sky. Furthermore, any high-rise apartment building with a DishTV or DirecTV satellite receiver will be visible. It demonstrates that even in congested cities, setting up a Starlink receiver is simple.

You have a few options for residential internet service: cable, DSL, satellite internet, or 5G. (5G modem).

Cellular and satellite internet, in our experience, is much more expensive than cable and DSL. In most cities and towns, 5G service is not available. Outside of cellular service, it does not work. As a result, 5G is not a viable option for ships, boats, airplanes, camping, or rural locations. In addition, DSL and satellite internet are quite slow."

I just didn't excerpt that part. 😉

 

Edited August 9, 2021 by RV_