The Nightmare of Tele2 and LMT: SpaceX Will Provide Internet from Space to Every Smartphone 0 11

The company plans to achieve speeds of 150 Mbps per user. In this case, the performance of Starlink satellite cellular communication will reach speeds comparable to traditional terrestrial 5G networks.

"We aim for a peak speed of 150 Mbps per user," said Udriwolf Pika, head of SpaceX's satellite communications policy department, at the Space Connect conference. "This is incredible, considering the budgets for the communication channel from space to mobile phone."

If SpaceX manages to reach the stated goal, Starlink will provide speeds close to those of traditional 5G networks on Earth. According to Speedtest data from Ookla, the average download speed in T-Mobile's 5G network currently reaches 309 Mbps, while AT&T's 5G network has a speed of 172 Mbps.

SpaceX offers a satellite cellular service. However, the current version of Starlink's cellular service has bandwidth limitations. While it supports low-resolution video calls, text messages, and some mobile applications, the download speed does not exceed 4 Mbps per user.

SpaceX plans to launch an upgraded Starlink cellular service by the end of 2027.

Last year, SpaceX CEO Elon Musk already mentioned the possibility of Starlink competing with traditional telecom operators. "To be clear, we are not going to bankrupt other operators. They will still exist because they own a large amount of spectrum," he stated. "But yes, you should have the ability to use Starlink just like services from AT&T, T-Mobile, Verizon, or any other company."