Author Topic: 75% off Starlink hardware (for rural Australia)  (Read 3464 times)

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Offline HalcyonTopic starter

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75% off Starlink hardware (for rural Australia)
« on: April 12, 2023, 01:15:59 pm »
Today Starlink announced their hardware for AUD$199 instead of the usual $599 (already reduced from $924) if you live in rural Australia. What constitutes "rural" is not known, but I'm 45 minutes from a major city and qualify for the discount.

I haven't read the full terms and conditions but it might be useful for those stuck on a crappy connection and have put off ordering Starlink due to the high initial cost of hardware.

Punch your address into starlink.com to see if you qualify.
« Last Edit: April 12, 2023, 01:20:57 pm by Halcyon »
 
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Offline TheSteve

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Re: 75% off Starlink hardware (for rural Australia)
« Reply #1 on: April 12, 2023, 03:46:29 pm »
The hardware was reduced to half price in Canada a while back - either they are clearing out the old hardware or a desperate for more customers. Or perhaps both.
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Offline tom66

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Re: 75% off Starlink hardware (for rural Australia)
« Reply #2 on: April 12, 2023, 05:39:59 pm »
The hardware is probably a loss leader at $200 and barely if at all profitable at $600... it looks expensive:
https://hackaday.com/2020/11/25/literally-tearing-apart-a-spacex-starlink-antenna/

But if they can get you subscribing on the monthly rate and fill in otherwise underutilised satellites, then it's a winner for SpaceX.
 

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Re: 75% off Starlink hardware (for rural Australia)
« Reply #3 on: April 12, 2023, 06:18:14 pm »
I've had starlink for quite a while now and I really like it.

I do not believe they are struggling for customers or money.  I live in what most would call the middle of nowhere and three years ago starlink put up a ground station on the property of a local (25 miles away) landline/DSL/cable provider next to their old phone line shack.  I think they are securing contracts to serve as links between other massive providers for either speed or redundancy purposes. I am sure they have government contracts as well, because this could be used to patch across a damaged fiber bundle that would otherwise keep millions offline for days or even weeks.

My bill recently went from $110 to $90USD (thats $164.23 to $134.47 AUD) because this is not a high-demand area.  A company hurting for money doesn't give discounts to happy customers that have never complained, but now I am curious...  My dish cost $600USD ($895.80 AUD), and thats the original round dish.  What do you guys pay per month in Australia?  If Elon is giving away free dishes over there, I can't imagine the deal you get on a monthly rate!  Maybe I don't need to know, I'd like to remain happy lol
« Last Edit: April 12, 2023, 06:21:16 pm by antenna »
 

Offline tom66

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Re: 75% off Starlink hardware (for rural Australia)
« Reply #4 on: April 12, 2023, 06:22:58 pm »
Looks like they've got 33% off for the UK too, I'd hardly call the country rural... but £75/mo is about 2x the cost of my 500Mbit/s FTTP so I won't be taking them up on their offer any time soon. (Still, could be really good if you live in Scottish Highlands or other rural areas where the fibre broadband fairy hasn't visited yet.)
 

Offline HalcyonTopic starter

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Re: 75% off Starlink hardware (for rural Australia)
« Reply #5 on: April 12, 2023, 11:21:29 pm »
What do you guys pay per month in Australia?

AUD$139/month for the service.

It's roughly around the price of a residential gigabit fibre service.
 

Offline tszaboo

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Re: 75% off Starlink hardware (for rural Australia)
« Reply #6 on: April 13, 2023, 06:49:58 pm »
The hardware is probably a loss leader at $200 and barely if at all profitable at $600... it looks expensive:
https://hackaday.com/2020/11/25/literally-tearing-apart-a-spacex-starlink-antenna/

But if they can get you subscribing on the monthly rate and fill in otherwise underutilised satellites, then it's a winner for SpaceX.
But then again, an ISP will bring an optical cable to my door, whether or not I'll subscribe or change to their service. And they give you a decent router no fee attached if subscribed.
 
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Online Monkeh

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Re: 75% off Starlink hardware (for rural Australia)
« Reply #7 on: April 13, 2023, 06:56:50 pm »
What constitutes "rural" is not known

"Australia" ;)
 
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Online wraper

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Re: 75% off Starlink hardware (for rural Australia)
« Reply #8 on: April 13, 2023, 07:08:14 pm »
Choosing between Starlink and optic fiber is quite pointless unless you need to pay for it trough the nose or it's optic fiber only in name but not actual performance. It's fiber-like alternative for those who cannot get one. Not to say it's performance drops in areas with many users where you usually get said fiber optic. I personally use 5G with  unlimited traffic and about 400-700 Mbit down and 60-110 Mbit up. And it costs me around $12/month, though I paid about $300 for 5G modem/router.
« Last Edit: April 13, 2023, 07:19:06 pm by wraper »
 
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Offline Someone

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Re: 75% off Starlink hardware (for rural Australia)
« Reply #9 on: April 13, 2023, 10:00:54 pm »
What constitutes "rural" is not known
"Australia" ;)
You joke, but the national monopoly telecommunications provider (ex government entity) was allowed to decide for themselves which areas were "metro", "regional", and "rural". As that set the pricing structures they picked the classifications to suit their business profit rather than geography or population.

End result: Australia's federal parliament building, in the middle of Canberra and surrounded by embassies/consulates/diplomatic residences was categorised "rural" (up until at least 2019).
 

Offline HalcyonTopic starter

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Re: 75% off Starlink hardware (for rural Australia)
« Reply #10 on: April 13, 2023, 11:16:28 pm »
What constitutes "rural" is not known
"Australia" ;)
You joke, but the national monopoly telecommunications provider (ex government entity) was allowed to decide for themselves which areas were "metro", "regional", and "rural". As that set the pricing structures they picked the classifications to suit their business profit rather than geography or population.

End result: Australia's federal parliament building, in the middle of Canberra and surrounded by embassies/consulates/diplomatic residences was categorised "rural" (up until at least 2019).

To be fair, Canberra is in the middle of nowhere, although it would be a bit like classing Las Vagas as rural.
 

Offline Psi

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Re: 75% off Starlink hardware (for rural Australia)
« Reply #11 on: April 13, 2023, 11:37:16 pm »
Probably more likely they have been working hard to push the BOM cost of the terminals down.
Custom silicon etc..
« Last Edit: April 14, 2023, 12:29:44 am by Psi »
Greek letter 'Psi' (not Pounds per Square Inch)
 

Offline Someone

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Re: 75% off Starlink hardware (for rural Australia)
« Reply #12 on: April 14, 2023, 12:21:48 am »
What constitutes "rural" is not known
"Australia" ;)
You joke, but the national monopoly telecommunications provider (ex government entity) was allowed to decide for themselves which areas were "metro", "regional", and "rural". As that set the pricing structures they picked the classifications to suit their business profit rather than geography or population.

End result: Australia's federal parliament building, in the middle of Canberra and surrounded by embassies/consulates/diplomatic residences was categorised "rural" (up until at least 2019).
To be fair, Canberra is in the middle of nowhere, although it would be a bit like classing Las Vagas as rural.
The middle region of Canberra with the most expensive realestate was categorised "rural" while adjacent/surrounding suburbs and further outlying suburban sprawl was "metro". But yes, the larger region is rural enough that it is one of the few (possibly only?) capital cities in the world where you get ads for agricultural products on the television broadcasts. The main joke was that a "regional" classification could have possibly been defensible, but Telstra was brazen enough to make a mockery of the ACCC's directions for fair competition and the stupid classifications persisted all the way through until the NBN replaced the commercial reasons for doing so.

Canberra was dense enough for a commercially operated residential fibre network in 2002: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/TransACT
Open access wholesale network, FTTN/FTTC VDSL, I wonder what that sounds like?
 

Offline Someone

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Re: 75% off Starlink hardware (for rural Australia)
« Reply #13 on: April 14, 2023, 12:23:27 am »
Custom silicone etc..
:-DD
silicone /= silicon
 

Offline Psi

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Re: 75% off Starlink hardware (for rural Australia)
« Reply #14 on: April 14, 2023, 12:28:51 am »
No custom silicone cover, instead of plastic.  To save cost.
Yes. that's what i meant...  ::)


« Last Edit: April 14, 2023, 12:30:43 am by Psi »
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Re: 75% off Starlink hardware (for rural Australia)
« Reply #15 on: April 14, 2023, 03:37:34 am »
Choosing between Starlink and optic fiber is quite pointless unless you need to pay for it trough the nose or it's optic fiber only in name but not actual performance. It's fiber-like alternative for those who cannot get one. Not to say it's performance drops in areas with many users where you usually get said fiber optic. I personally use 5G with  unlimited traffic and about 400-700 Mbit down and 60-110 Mbit up. And it costs me around $12/month, though I paid about $300 for 5G modem/router.

Unlimited 5G for $12/month? Consider yourself lucky. We have nothing like that over here. With the average cost of a fiber connection, the 5G modem would be paid for in about 1 year.
 

Offline HalcyonTopic starter

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Re: 75% off Starlink hardware (for rural Australia)
« Reply #16 on: April 14, 2023, 05:08:09 am »
Choosing between Starlink and optic fiber is quite pointless unless you need to pay for it trough the nose or it's optic fiber only in name but not actual performance. It's fiber-like alternative for those who cannot get one. Not to say it's performance drops in areas with many users where you usually get said fiber optic. I personally use 5G with  unlimited traffic and about 400-700 Mbit down and 60-110 Mbit up. And it costs me around $12/month, though I paid about $300 for 5G modem/router.

Unlimited 5G for $12/month? Consider yourself lucky. We have nothing like that over here. With the average cost of a fiber connection, the 5G modem would be paid for in about 1 year.

Likewise, a decent 5G service in Australia will cost you somewhere around $60 per month for a few hundred gigabytes (some are offering up to 500GB at these prices). Usually thereafter, you don't pay for excess data, but it is shaped.
 

Online Ed.Kloonk

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Re: 75% off Starlink hardware (for rural Australia)
« Reply #17 on: April 14, 2023, 05:10:11 am »
What constitutes "rural" is not known

"Australia" ;)

Yeah. It totally depends on who you ask.

Telcos: You are rural, enjoy your soup cans and bit 'o string.
Local council: You must pay sewage and town water levy. Cos we might run that out there to you someday. Maybe.

edit: typo
« Last Edit: April 14, 2023, 05:19:27 am by Ed.Kloonk »
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Online Ed.Kloonk

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Re: 75% off Starlink hardware (for rural Australia)
« Reply #18 on: April 14, 2023, 05:21:02 am »
Choosing between Starlink and optic fiber is quite pointless unless you need to pay for it trough the nose or it's optic fiber only in name but not actual performance. It's fiber-like alternative for those who cannot get one. Not to say it's performance drops in areas with many users where you usually get said fiber optic. I personally use 5G with  unlimited traffic and about 400-700 Mbit down and 60-110 Mbit up. And it costs me around $12/month, though I paid about $300 for 5G modem/router.

Unlimited 5G for $12/month? Consider yourself lucky. We have nothing like that over here. With the average cost of a fiber connection, the 5G modem would be paid for in about 1 year.

Likewise, a decent 5G service in Australia will cost you somewhere around $60 per month for a few hundred gigabytes (some are offering up to 500GB at these prices). Usually thereafter, you don't pay for excess data, but it is shaped.

Devil is in the detail. I bet you can't run a server.
iratus parum formica
 

Offline HalcyonTopic starter

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Re: 75% off Starlink hardware (for rural Australia)
« Reply #19 on: April 14, 2023, 05:36:26 am »
Choosing between Starlink and optic fiber is quite pointless unless you need to pay for it trough the nose or it's optic fiber only in name but not actual performance. It's fiber-like alternative for those who cannot get one. Not to say it's performance drops in areas with many users where you usually get said fiber optic. I personally use 5G with  unlimited traffic and about 400-700 Mbit down and 60-110 Mbit up. And it costs me around $12/month, though I paid about $300 for 5G modem/router.

Unlimited 5G for $12/month? Consider yourself lucky. We have nothing like that over here. With the average cost of a fiber connection, the 5G modem would be paid for in about 1 year.

Likewise, a decent 5G service in Australia will cost you somewhere around $60 per month for a few hundred gigabytes (some are offering up to 500GB at these prices). Usually thereafter, you don't pay for excess data, but it is shaped.

Devil is in the detail. I bet you can't run a server.

You could run a server on cellular, but why would you want to?
 

Online Ed.Kloonk

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Re: 75% off Starlink hardware (for rural Australia)
« Reply #20 on: April 14, 2023, 05:53:10 am »
Choosing between Starlink and optic fiber is quite pointless unless you need to pay for it trough the nose or it's optic fiber only in name but not actual performance. It's fiber-like alternative for those who cannot get one. Not to say it's performance drops in areas with many users where you usually get said fiber optic. I personally use 5G with  unlimited traffic and about 400-700 Mbit down and 60-110 Mbit up. And it costs me around $12/month, though I paid about $300 for 5G modem/router.

Unlimited 5G for $12/month? Consider yourself lucky. We have nothing like that over here. With the average cost of a fiber connection, the 5G modem would be paid for in about 1 year.

Likewise, a decent 5G service in Australia will cost you somewhere around $60 per month for a few hundred gigabytes (some are offering up to 500GB at these prices). Usually thereafter, you don't pay for excess data, but it is shaped.

Devil is in the detail. I bet you can't run a server.

You could run a server on cellular, but why would you want to?

Short answer: redundancy. 

The few times I've messed around with it, the incoming connections are blocked. No, I want an IP address.
iratus parum formica
 

Offline tom66

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Re: 75% off Starlink hardware (for rural Australia)
« Reply #21 on: April 14, 2023, 07:06:54 am »
Due to the number of cellular devices, a good number of cell phone providers practice CGNAT, which makes it usually impossible to run a server from a 4G/5G connection as there is no valid address you can request data from, only a 'session' that you can operate in.  Not sure what the IPv6 situation is, but there are still networks that cannot handle v6, so it may not be a solution.  |O
 

Online Ed.Kloonk

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Re: 75% off Starlink hardware (for rural Australia)
« Reply #22 on: April 14, 2023, 07:14:23 am »
Due to the number of cellular devices, a good number of cell phone providers practice CGNAT, which makes it usually impossible to run a server from a 4G/5G connection as there is no valid address you can request data from, only a 'session' that you can operate in.  Not sure what the IPv6 situation is, but there are still networks that cannot handle v6, so it may not be a solution.  |O

And that's my argument. They can afford to throw a NAT in there but deny full access for the stupid money they claim is needed to cover costs.

Bullshit.
iratus parum formica
 

Online wraper

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Re: 75% off Starlink hardware (for rural Australia)
« Reply #23 on: April 14, 2023, 10:49:44 am »
Choosing between Starlink and optic fiber is quite pointless unless you need to pay for it trough the nose or it's optic fiber only in name but not actual performance. It's fiber-like alternative for those who cannot get one. Not to say it's performance drops in areas with many users where you usually get said fiber optic. I personally use 5G with  unlimited traffic and about 400-700 Mbit down and 60-110 Mbit up. And it costs me around $12/month, though I paid about $300 for 5G modem/router.

Unlimited 5G for $12/month? Consider yourself lucky. We have nothing like that over here. With the average cost of a fiber connection, the 5G modem would be paid for in about 1 year.
Well, I have 70% discount from normal price. And it's actually a phone SIM, not internet only.
 

Offline HalcyonTopic starter

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Re: 75% off Starlink hardware (for rural Australia)
« Reply #24 on: April 14, 2023, 12:21:00 pm »
Choosing between Starlink and optic fiber is quite pointless unless you need to pay for it trough the nose or it's optic fiber only in name but not actual performance. It's fiber-like alternative for those who cannot get one. Not to say it's performance drops in areas with many users where you usually get said fiber optic. I personally use 5G with  unlimited traffic and about 400-700 Mbit down and 60-110 Mbit up. And it costs me around $12/month, though I paid about $300 for 5G modem/router.

Unlimited 5G for $12/month? Consider yourself lucky. We have nothing like that over here. With the average cost of a fiber connection, the 5G modem would be paid for in about 1 year.

Likewise, a decent 5G service in Australia will cost you somewhere around $60 per month for a few hundred gigabytes (some are offering up to 500GB at these prices). Usually thereafter, you don't pay for excess data, but it is shaped.

Devil is in the detail. I bet you can't run a server.

You could run a server on cellular, but why would you want to?

Short answer: redundancy. 

The few times I've messed around with it, the incoming connections are blocked. No, I want an IP address.

Not sure about all the other carriers, but you can get a public IPv6 address on Telstra
 


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