(Credit: Amazon)
Amazon’s Starlink rival, Project Kuiper, is going to start testing hundreds of prototype dishes to connect to the company’s satellite internet network.
The FCC today granted Amazon subsidiary Kuiper Systems special temporary authority to operate “up to 1,000” dish prototypes in various locations across the US.
The company filed for the license last month “to validate the over-the-air performance” of the prototype dishes “prior to commencing product manufacturing,” Kuiper Systems said in its application to the FCC. Kuiper System plans conduct the tests over a six-month period, starting in April. “Amazon will operate no more than 200 of the CTs [customer terminals] at the same time,” the company added.
Hence, it looks like the company is close to finalizing the satellite dish designs for Project Kuiper, which will beam high-speed internet to users on the ground. The company plans on beta testing Project Kuiper with early commercial customers sometime in the second half of 2024.
Pricing for the service has not been revealed. But a year ago, Amazon said it would offer three kinds of satellite dishes for Project Kuiper. The largest, an enterprise-grade receiver, promises to offer 1Gbps download speeds, while the “standard” Project Kuiper dish will support maximum speeds of up to 400Mbps and cost less than $400 to manufacture. The company also plans on releasing a third model designed for portable use that’ll offer speeds up to 100Mbps.
So far, Amazon has only launched two prototype satellites for Project Kuiper. But the company plans on sending up the first production satellites for the internet system in the first half of the year. The fact that Amazon plans on testing the prototype dishes starting in April suggests the production satellites will go up soon.