Could Starlink Reshape your Domestic Travel Plans?By Angelica Malin
As much as we love camping, there’s no denying that the classic formula can be a little outdated. Being disconnected from the world can help us connect with nature, but for many, a best of both worlds approach is king. Understanding this, the idea of modernised outside travel, or glamping, has taken hold. Though unusual, this combination of rustic nature and advanced technology can be a positive one, though it’s not without its limits.
The most profound of these limits to modern campers is that of internet connectivity. Whether for staying connected to family, being available for work updates, or just to help us relax after a long day, a fast connection is something we all crave. Yet, even with the best modern mobile hotspots, coverage isn’t where we want it to be. This is where Starlink comes in, as a possible solution that could make or break an experience for those who love the glamping life.
What is Starlink?
Another of Elon Musk’s famous investments, Starlink is a breakthrough technology in satellite internet access. Though this technology has existed in some form for decades, Starlink is looking to raise the bar, ironically, by bringing satellites closer. In doing so, the travel time of a signal, also called latency, is much lower than with older systems.
Traditional satellite internet only operates from fixed dishes, and incurs a minimum latency of around 600 milliseconds, according to Satellite Internet. The connections proposed from new Starlink systems could operate from anywhere, even moving objects, with a latency that measured in the sub-50 millisecond range. The combination of these two factors means a much more reliable and broadly available internet connection than mobile hotspots or older satellites would allow, provided you have a line of sight to the sky.
Finding a Use
As for whether Starlink will be worth the investment for you, that depends on what type of glamping experience you enjoy. For many users, the speed and latency advantages of Starlink might be overkill, as could be seen with Kalevala Kasino, a popular online casino. As a less demanding service, everything from the collection of bonuses to browsing and playing games would work fine on older and slower connections. Even the more demanding titles, such as live casino blackjack, don’t require much data, so internet users along similar low-data-use lines wouldn’t need an upgrade.
On the other side are users who might enjoy capping their day in the wild off with a high-definition movie, or those for whom unexpected highly-demanding work call-ins are natural. In these instances, Starlink is the only viable option right now. It might seem like a small and insignificant thing, but this extra level of security or additional options that Starlink brings to the table could be a game-changer to travellers with more specific demands.
At this point, Starlink’s relevant Earth Stations in Motion plan is still in the licensing stage, so the real implementation could be some time off. When it does arrive, as noted by The Verge, it could be a gamechanger to the way modern individuals enjoy travel. It might not pass the purity test as led by camping gatekeepers, but for those of us who need to balance travel with real-world concerns, Starlink could be just what the doctor ordered.
