T-Cellular’s Starlink-powered direct-to-cell satellite tv for pc messaging service is now open for anybody within the US to strive without cost — together with individuals who aren’t T-Cellular prospects. The service can be restricted to textual content messaging at first however the firm hopes to have some apps and even restricted multimedia assist prepared by the point it goes reside this summer season.
It should price T-Cellular customers $15 per thirty days as soon as the free testing interval ends in July, or $10 for purchasers who participated within the beta trial. Verizon and AT&T prospects can even strive the service without cost in line with T-Cellular’s press launch, and pays $20 a month per line. T-Cellular prospects paying for the service’s priciest Go5G Subsequent plan (which begins at $105 per thirty days) can have the Starlink function baked in at no further price.
If you happen to watched final night time’s Tremendous Bowl, then you definitely might need been misled by T-Cellular’s advert. Whereas it showcased satellite-supported voice and multimedia messaging capabilities, the general public beta take a look at solely consists of texting in useless zones for now. Assist for image messages, information, and voice calls is “coming later.”
Mike Katz, T-Cellular’s president of selling, technique, and merchandise advised The Washington Submit that messages with pictures or video clips can be added by the tip of the beta interval in July. Katz additionally expects the satellite tv for pc service to work with apps that “don’t require super-fast information connections,” resembling sure path/mapping providers and WhatsApp.
“We’ll be working with a bunch of app producers to create options of their apps that may optimize to the accessible bandwidth of the satellite tv for pc community,” Katz stated.
Registrations for the free beta opened in December, after T-Cellular and Starlink examined direct-to-cell emergency alerts and texts in catastrophe zones final yr. T-Cellular says it’s accepting customers who register on a “rolling first-come, first-served foundation,” however quietly discloses that there are “restricted spots accessible” within the wonderful print. The Starlink-enabled service works on “most smartphones from the final 4 years” in line with T-Cellular, which lists at the moment appropriate units from Apple, Google, Motorola, Samsung, and REVVL on its web site.
