SpaceX has launched a new Portability add-on for Starlink, which allows subscribers to use the high-speed internet service away from their registered address — reports Tesla North.
“Starlink is excited to announce Portability as an add-on feature for all Starlink customers,” the company said in an email to Starlink customers in Canada, shared with iPhone in Canada by one of our readers.
“Portability enables customers to temporarily move their Starlink to new locations and receive high-speed internet anywhere where Starlink provides active coverage within the same continent.”
Previously, Starlink subscribers were technically only supposed to get an internet connection in and around the address they register with the service. Moving too far away from your registered location would leave your Starlink equipment unable to get a signal.
Some Starlink users have been able to get reliable service anywhere from 20 to 50 km (12 to 31 miles) away from their registered addresses in the past, but this particular use case has never been officially supported — until now.
For an additional $30 CAD per month (it’s $25 in the USA) on top of their monthly subscription fee ($140 after the recent price hike in March) users can “temporarily move their Starlink to new locations in order to receive service anywhere within the same continent Starlink provides active coverage,” says SpaceX.
The new Portability feature unlocks even more possibilities for Starlink customers and makes the service ideal for vacations, camping, and visiting friends and family. Coverage will depend on where service is best actively available.
To subscribe to Portability, simply login to your Starlink account page and enable the feature, which will activate right away. A $30 fee for Portability will be added to your next monthly invoice and cannot be pro-rated.
The Portability add-on will be auto-renewed every month until you decide to disable it, which you can do at any point during your billing cycle from your account page. If you have multiple Starlink connections, SpaceX says you need to purchase the Portability add-on separately for each one.
SpaceX warns that Portable users may get “degraded service” during times of peak usage and network congestion when they take their Starlink dish to a new location, given the company “prioritizes network resources for users at their registered service address.” Users shouldn’t take too big a hit, though, considering Starlink delivered faster median download speeds in Canada during Q4 2021 than any other provider.
Users who enable Portability will still only get service within the same continent as their registered address. SpaceX says if you use Starlink in a foreign country for over two months, you will be required to change your registered service address to your new location, or purchase an extra Starlink.
Even though SpaceX has been working on taking Starlink mobile for quite some time now, Portability does not support “in-motion use” at this time and customers who use their Starlink dishes in transit will void their warranty.
“While our teams are actively working to make it possible to use Starlink on moving vehicles (e.g., automobiles, RVs, boats), Starlink is not yet configured to be safely used in this way,” says SpaceX.
