Publication date: October 12, 2023 1
Published by SpaceX New web page To promote its upcoming Direct to Cell service for its Starlink satellite Internet service, which plans to provide cellular connectivity to existing 4G LTE phones via satellite.
The website indicates that the service will initially be limited to text messaging services in 2024, then it will support voice calls and Internet connectivity in 2025, in addition to supporting Internet of Things devices.
The website also says: “Direct to Cell works with LTE phones anywhere you can see the sky. No changes to hardware, firmware or proprietary applications are required, providing seamless access to text messages, voice calls and data.”
The space company (Starlink), owned by billionaire Elon Musk, announced its plans for the service last year with the American telecommunications company (T-Mobile).
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The service is likely to be relatively slow compared to communications speeds on the ground, with speeds estimated at between 2 and 4 megabits per second, but its benefit will be that it provides very wide coverage.
And he came Press release T-Mobile issued a statement last year that the service would be available “practically everywhere in the continental United States, Hawaii, parts of Alaska and Puerto Rico, and territorial waters, even outside of where a T-Mobile network signal is available.”
Satellite communication has become a growing trend for smartphones in recent years.
Apple added the Emergency SOS feature to its phones last year, which allows iPhone 14 and later to send limited messages and location information via satellite in emergency situations.
Meanwhile, satellite communications company AST SpaceMobile, which is backed by US carrier AT&T, announced that it made the first 5G satellite call from an unmodified smartphone last month.
