Starlink has now launched in Zimbabwe. The satellite internet company’s global availability map was updated on Friday night to show that its service is now live in Zimbabwe.
Zimbabweans can now buy the service directly from Starlink on its website, or from local authorised resellers in the country.
The internet service’s availability in Zimbabwe was awaited for months owing to the expensive internet prices in the country by established providers. Zimbabwe’s launch follows hard on the heels of the Botswana launch earlier in the week.
The Starlink website shows that the standard kit can be bought for US $350. The Starlink Mini kit can be bought for $200.
The monthly subscription for the service is $50 for the basic residential unlimited data package. For the Starlink mini package, the monthly subscription is US $30 a month.
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The local Authorised partner that has been announced so far in Zimbabwe is a company called Frampol.
How Starlink works
Starlink uses a satellite system to provide internet. When you buy the kit, you install it by pointing its dish to the sky the same way a DStv dish is installed. Because it uses satellites, like DStv it can be installed at any location where there is a clear view of the sky.
The monthly internet subscriptions for Starlink can be made online using a prepaid Visa or Mastercard debit card in Zimbabwe. Payment can also be made to local Starlink authorised resellers.
The service has unlimited data, which means that once the subscription of $50 has been paid, one can use as much internet as they want. This makes it ideal for families, small businesses, schools, mines, farms, and tourism destinations in remote places where network coverage has traditionally been a challenge.
Competing Services from other internet providers
Established internet providers in Zimbabwe have in recent months revised their prices and packages in anticipation of the Starlink launch.
Econet, the largest mobile internet provider in the country, now has an LTE unlimited data service for $45 a month. Utande, Liquid, TelOne, Powertel, and Telco have also introduced promotional packages to prepare for the touch competition.
It is however ultimately difficult for established providers to compete due to Starlink’s satellite infrastructure giving it global network coverage anywhere a customer may be.
Liquid and TelOne have announced that they are working on offering their own satellite powered internet services in the future.