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After initially introducing its cheaper, "residential lite" Starlink plan in 15 states earlier this year, SpaceX has quietly expanded it to over 30 US states, including Alaska, parts of California and Texas, and more of New England.
The company is highlighting the expansion on a Starlink.com support page.
(Credit: Starlink.com)Residential lite costs $80 per month, which is significantly cheaper than the regular residential plan, which is $120 per month in the US. There are no data caps, but download speeds are restricted to 50 to 100Mbps. Subscribers can also face lower speeds during peak usage hours.
The company appears to have expanded the lite program after it removed the waitlist for Starlink’s residential tier across the country. The news highlights SpaceX’s ongoing push to promote the satellite internet service, which has received rave reviews for its ability to deliver high-speed broadband to rural and remote areas.
One factor holding Starlink back is its relatively high costs, which previously included paying as much as $599 for the satellite dish. However, SpaceX has been aggressively cutting costs amid signs that Starlink’s US growth slowed last year.
Efforts include offering the standard Starlink dish for free across parts of the US to customers who commit to signing up for a year of access. In certain states, the company is packaging the free dish offer with the regular and residential lite plans. But in other areas of the US where network capacity has been stretched, SpaceX can charge an additional $250 "demand surcharge" for buyers.
(Credit: Starlink.com)