Amazon
will soon challenge
Starlink
with a satellite Internet connection service,
Kuiper , which will also use a constellation of
low-orbit
satellites
.
And although the name of the service and Amazon's plans were already known, the company has today shown for the first time what the antennas necessary to access the service will look like.
Like Starlink, Kuiper will need a special antenna to communicate with the satellites.
Amazon, however, will bet on
three different designs with different capacities
.
The
standard antenna
has various advances made by the company that have made it possible to reduce the size and weight that this type of accessory traditionally has.
It is a box that is only an inch thick and 12 inches on a side, smaller than the
equivalent Starlink model
.
Traditionally, these antennas have been too large, too complex, and too expensive for many customers, making it difficult for low-orbiting satellite constellations to help bridge the digital divide.
The antenna will be able to download data at a speed of 400 Mbps under ideal conditions and Amazon hopes to produce it for less than
$400
, although the final price will be different and may be subsidized through the monthly cost of access.
To this antenna, Amazon will add a smaller and more portable one, measuring 17 centimeters on a side and weighing just 500 grams that can be easily transported in a backpack or bag.
In exchange for this greater portability, you will have a lower connection speed of
100 Mbps.
Finally, the company will also have a large antenna (about 50 centimeters on each side and much thicker) designed for companies and governments and with the idea of installing it on the roof of a building.
With this antenna it will be possible to obtain an access speed of 1 Gbps.
Amazon, however, is still a long way from being able to offer a commercial service.
The first two prototypes of its satellites will be launched this year but there will not be a final satellite model until next year.
Internet access service will start at the end of 2024 or beginning of 2025.
Starlink, on the other hand, already offers Internet access in many regions of the world and has a fleet of more than
3,500 satellites in orbit
, although the number will continue to grow to 12,000 satellites to improve coverage and speed of access.
The
price in Spain is 70 euros per month
and the antenna to access, which is paid separately,
costs 390 euros
.
The access speed is also lower than what Amazon has promised, between 50 Mbps and 200 Mbps.
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