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SpaceX's Satellite Internet Teases Sending Out Invites for Public Beta Tests

The company’s website for Starlink has been updated with a new email newsletter that'll notify applicable users about the coming public beta trial.

Michael Kan
 & Michael Kan Principal Reporter

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Want to try out SpaceX’s satellite internet service? The company is gearing up to send email updates to interested customers, recruiting them to test it out. 

The company’s website for Starlink has been updated with a new email newsletter, which promises to send out news and promotions regarding the satellite broadband network. After you sign up with an email address and zip code, SpaceX says it may send you future messages about the upcoming beta tests. 

“Private beta testing is expected to begin later this summer, followed by public beta testing, starting with higher latitudes,” the message says. “If you provided us with your zip code, you will be notified via email if beta testing opportunities become available in your area.”

SpaceX updated the company’s website as it launched another 58 Starlink satellites into orbit this past weekend for a total of about 540. 

A visualization of current Starlink satellites in orbit (Credit: Celestrak)

Starlink's ultimate goal is to send up thousands of low-orbiting satellites, which can provide high-speed internet across the planet. But for now, the first wave of satellites will only serve geographic regions located in “higher latitudes” such as Seattle and Germany, according to past tweets from SpaceX CEO Elon Musk, who expects the public beta tests to start around October.

Although Starlink is set to launch commercially in the Northern US and Canada later this year, the company is promising a huge rollout in 2021 that will bring coverage to most of the planet. According to SpaceX, the download speeds will reach up to 1Gbps with a latency ranging between 25 to 35 milliseconds, on par with ground-based broadband services. (The FCC, however, is demanding the company prove the latency is actually that low in order to receive federal funding.)

How much the service will cost remains unknown at this point. But the company plans to supply customers with a Starlink terminal that can be easily set up in their homes.


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About Our Expert

Michael Kan

Michael Kan

Principal Reporter

My Experience

I've been a journalist for over 15 years. I got my start as a schools and cities reporter in Kansas City and joined PCMag in 2017, where I cover satellite internet services, cybersecurity, PC hardware, and more. I'm currently based in San Francisco, but previously spent over five years in China, covering the country's technology sector.

Since 2020, I've covered the launch and explosive growth of SpaceX's Starlink satellite internet service, writing 600+ stories on availability and feature launches, but also the regulatory battles over the expansion of satellite constellations, fights with rival providers like AST SpaceMobile and Amazon, and the effort to expand into satellite-based mobile service. I've combed through FCC filings for the latest news and driven to remote corners of California to test Starlink's cellular service.

I also cover cyber threats, from ransomware gangs to the emergence of AI-based malware. In 2024 and 2025, the FTC forced Avast to pay consumers $16.5 million for secretly harvesting and selling their personal information to third-party clients, as revealed in my joint investigation with Motherboard.

I also cover the PC graphics card market. Pandemic-era shortages led me to camp out in front of a Best Buy to get an RTX 3000. I'm now following how the AI-driven memory shortage is impacting the entire consumer electronics market. I'm always eager to learn more, so please jump in the comments with feedback and send me tips.

The Best Tech I've Had:

  • My first video game console: a Nintendo Famicom
  • I loved my Sega Saturn despite PlayStation's popularity.
  • The iPod Video I received as a gift in college
  • Xbox 360 FTW
  • The Galaxy Nexus was the first smartphone I was proud to own.
  • The PC desktop I built in 2013, which still works to this day.

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