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Starlink has started offering a “Global Roaming Service” to customers in countries where its satellite broadband connectivity has received regulatory approval but is not yet available.
Starlink wrote an email inviting customers with pre-orders in some locations where Starlink is not yet live to try out the service.
Starlink said that the roaming would work “from almost anywhere on land in the world”.
While the company previously launched a roaming add-on and dedicated roaming service for Recreational Vehicles, these are limited to the user’s home continent.
The Global Roaming Service uses inter-satellite links, often referred to as “space lasers”, that allow for relaying connectivity to and from locations without ground stations.
Starlink’s earliest satellites did not feature this capability, which meant it first had to build ground stations to offer coverage.
However, Starlink said that because it was a new technology, customers could expect its “typical high-speed, low-latency” service to be intermixed with “brief” periods of poor or no connectivity.
The Starlink Global Roaming Service comes with a monthly price tag of US$200, regardless of country, while customers also have to pay US$599 for the equipment.
In addition, those outside the US will be responsible for paying any applicable taxes or customs duties on the hardware.
The standard price for a residential Starlink service in the US is $110, but the company adjusts this for other territories.
In Nigeria, the first African country to get Starlink connectivity, the service costs $43.
Customers who are not fully satisfied with the roaming service can get a full refund for their hardware if they cancel within 30 days of activation.
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