If you were in a place without internet streaming, consider whether you’d have the economic means to pay for Starlink. Not everyone is earning the median Hacker News contributor’s income.
Radio: $20 + $0/month
Pretty much everyone has a cell phone.
As opposed to 95% of US homes that have at least one radio receiver? https://www.insideradio.com/inside-story-radios-in-more-u-s-...
Usable digital cell service still doesn’t reach a good chunk of rural Americans.
I’m not sure why an expensive, technically-complicated solution would be an alternative to a free, simple, widely-deployed one.
What's the percent of that?
And what's the percent of people that leave their radio on 24/7?
Did he?
> As it turns out, the offer wasn’t as generous as it seemed, it’s really more of a new customer promotion.
> The Register pointed out that if anyone goes to sign up for the “free” service, there’re hit with a harsh reality: you have to pay for the equipment.
> But try to sign up for the ostensibly “free” service in an area Starlink has designated as a Helene disaster zone, and surprise: You still have to pay for the terminal (normally $350, but reportedly discounted to $299 for disaster relief, though that’s not reflected in Starlink’s signup page), plus shipping and tax, bringing the grand total to just shy of $400...
> According to the Starlink Helene page, new customers who qualify for free access will be automatically moved to a paid $120-a-month residential subscription tied to the location the terminal was set up for after 30 days.
> Even if you’re a victim that happens to be an existing Starlink customer, if you want those fees waived, you’ll have to file a waiver and then wait for it to be approved. [1]
Not sure why you're taking the world's richest sociopath at his word. And even if he were as charitable as you say, that would mean... what? We wait for another Hurricane Helene to hit every person without internet access? Then wait even longer for a billionaire to bail them out?
1. https://qz.com/elon-musk-free-spacex-starlink-hurricane-hele...
Oh, the horror! Do you know that to get government services, you also have to file a form and wait for it to be approved?
If people didn't like Musk, nobody made them do business with him.
Complaining that someone would have to fill out a form to get free money is not a compelling argument.
They can simply cancel.
> If Musk’s goal is to “help” hurricane victims, maybe he can offer them something better than a bait-and-switch.
Again, FEMA offered nothing. Musk came in with Starlink. I should look into Starlink. It's cheaper than my cell phone plan plus internet plan.
And how much is your cell phone bill?
But I set myself up to have to interact with cable providers, ISPs, and cellular carriers a bare minimum. Because they are just the worst.