We could use objective reporting of internet speeds in finer detail. Any ideas?
Original comment:
--HughesNet's average latency is now 62ms, 58 ms jitter,--
https://broadbandnow.com/HughesNet-speed-test
--That's quite reasonable.--
And that's assuming perfect conditions and ignoring the rest of the normal latency encountered online. It's physically impossible to have a latency lower than ~480ms with geostationary satellites.
We need to do both, as Seattle has proven with its sporadic availability of gigabit fiber and the shutdown of third parties attempting to bring it here.
In fact, doing the latter IS doing the former.
I'll throw stones as much as I like, thanks.
Due to the mandatory client base skew, the city is causing them to redline middle and high income areas of the city. Fiber is in Georgetown and Rainer Valley, but your SoL in Fremont's built up areas and in Sand Point.
Universal coverage should have been mandated, but its easy to end up like Kenmore (which required total Fios coverage from Verizon, now Frontier) and has seen Finn Hill go unserviced for years. Enforcement of the franchise contract is just as critical as initial negotiation.
Outside of a few select areas, most of Seattle only ever saw ADSL (or no DSL in parts of the north end) as we didn't allow large VDSL2 cabinets in the public ROW. I think this has caused Centurylink to build fiber in the city, as they've rarely overbuilt VDSL2 areas like Bellevue, Kent & Auburn.
Nope. I live square in the middle of it, can't get double digit mbps download speeds from them.
I've noticed they seem to offer ADSL (6mbps) after 6pm or so at addresses that already have fiber, presumably their prequal database for fiber goes offline for a few hours a day.
They say it's available just a few blocks over. That's been the case for a long time and they can't seem to get it about 0.25 miles further. Been that way for years.
I'm afraid you are drastically underestimating how much it actually costs to install fiber.
Regarding the 3rd world, Facebook offered India free internet with strings attached, and IIRC they rejected it. That idea wasn't too popular there or here.
Would Musk be given a pass for offering discounted or free internet to 3rd world countries, and what strings would investors suggest he attach?
Why would he want to do that? Facebook wanted to do that, because that would drive more users to their platform. SpaceX wants to use Starlink in order to bankroll BFR[0], so what they want is to simply sell the service at a price point that generates them enough money. It's not beneficial to them to discount it, make it free, or play other shenanigans.
--
[0] - Or whatever it's called now; it'll always be the BFR in my heart.
Because granting internet fast lanes to certain content providers is a way to generate revenue.
Zero-rating is already happening [1].
If money is your only goal, that's completely rational. However, that's not how I've typically heard people champion Musk. He's been lauded as a progressive person whose aims are meant to serve humanity, not merely his wallet. Supposedly.
That said, internet already tends to be the infrastructure demand best satisfied in developing countries. Building cell phone towers is much easier than building roads, and with cheap labor and no purchasing power comes cheap internet.
Let's see whether it is net-neutral internet or not, then judge. My guess is it will have exclusive offers to content distributors in order to lower cost.
Some would make the argument that if everyone worked with only their wallet in mind, we'd be better off. I wouldn't.
> Elon seems to be more idealist than most
Elon is not an idealistic engineer, he is a businessman. He actively misleads about products he must have been told will not meet the timelines he promotes.
> about the fate of humanity
Not sure where you get this idea. The way he talks about AGI taking over the world is creepy. He thinks it's inevitable, nevermind that we have no idea how to design anything close to AGI.
I think your parent also meant the developed world.
In devloping countries it's sometimes much easier to get fibre. No or very little infrastructure means no old copper wires lying around. You can go fibre instantly this way.
Every satellite internet offering targets rural settings, ships and planes. StarLink is no different, just that they will be competitive in a wider range of such settings.
t=0 You send out ICMP request
t=120ms it hits the satelite
t=240ms it arrives at the ground station, ICMP reply occurs
t=360ms hits satelite
t=480ms arrives back at the originating machine
1) You're pinging a device on satellite in GEO (one you don't have LOS to)
2) You're pinging a device that's also connected via a different GEO 120 degrees away from the first
in this case you'll
t=0 You send out ICMP request
t=120ms it hits the satelite
t=240ms it arrives at the ground station 1
t=280ms arrives at ground station 2
t=400ms hits satelite #2
t=520ms arrives back at the destination
t=640ms response arrives at sat #2
t=800ms response arrives at ground station 2
t=840ms response arrives at GS#1
t=960ms response arrives at sat #1
t=1080ms response arrives back at originating machine
t=0 You send out ICMP request
t=120ms it hits the satelite
t=355ms hits satelite #2
t=475ms arrives at destination
t=595ms response arrives at sat #2
t=830ms response arrives at sat #1
t=950ms response arrives back at originating machine