# Starlink 547 Hacker News commenters recommended Starlink and 353 criticized it, November 2025 to November 2026. It was recommended in 13 of 13 months; owners who said how long report a median of 2 years (12 owners). **Verdict:** Recommended for fast internet in rural, remote and developing areas, on flights and as backup, though critics cite space debris, astronomy interference and Musk's control. ## Why people recommend it - Internet where nothing else reaches (10 comments): "Starlink short circuits that process. It means newly minted middle income people my dad's village in Bangladesh can get broadband now instead of in 2050." ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48872357)) "Go somewhere truly remote and see how it’s changing the world very quickly. I’ve seen it first hand in Arctic Canada, Australia and North Africa." ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=49888600)) "This methodology is what provides high speed, low latency internet to the South Pole and every other spot on earth allowed by regulatory." ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=46430203)) - Fast, reliable in-flight wifi (4 comments): "It's a great service. Also it's powering a lot of airlines now, it's fast and reliable to the point I can watch youtube and tiktok on my flights." ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48863307)) "watching a World Cup game in real-time whilst soaring at 1000kmh/35,000ft over the Arabian desert sounds like science fiction decades ago." ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=49352274)) "There was connectivity from takeoff to landing with no interruption in between. This was the best airline experience I've had yet." ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48863321)) - Affordable in developing countries (4 comments): "There is genuine demand for orbital ISP from people, including people in poorer countries whom a better connectivity may help improve their incomes and lives" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48871305)) "Starlink is space broadband, and their cheap launch costs and other technological advancements mean the service is profitable at a competitive price point." ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=46167268)) "Starlink residential 100 Mbps is cheaper ($69/mo AUD) (ignoring hardware and setup costs) than 50 Mbps fixed line internet ($80/mo AUD)" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=47433295)) - Good backup or failover connection (3 comments): "So Starlink is definitely still relevant. I've seen several small/medium businesses here in Austria that have a starlink terminal as a backup." ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48866861)) "I've had it since 2024 and between the Google Fiber at home and Starlink on the move, I think this has been overall A+ experience." ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=46624459)) "Used it off my balcony in SF when Google Fiber had a 1 hr outage, take it on road trips, and stuff like that. Totally worth it." ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=46618981)) ## What people warn about - Space junk and astronomy interference (6 comments): "Ultimately there should be somewhat less space junk in LEO's but sadly that's a problen that is only going to get worse now multiple parties want oversized SpaceTwitter type constellations." ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=46546761)) "interferes with astronomy, pollutes the atmosphere with metallic re-entry debris, and has pushed Low Earth Orbit to the brink of the Kessler Syndrome" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=49849814)) "The Starlink constellation is leaking radio interference in bands it pinky promised it wouldn't and the issue got worse with successive generations" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48791378)) - Musk can cut off access (4 comments): "Elon previously personally intervened and neutered Ukraine's Starlink after a Russian government official told him Russia was going to nuke someone" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=50091950)) "recent decision to limit the service to working at less than 100mph which makes it harder to use it for intercepting incoming drones and missiles" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=50197161)) "shutting off your access to the technology is their option and it will likely happen at the moment it is a greatest problem to you" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=50303371)) - No substitute for fiber (3 comments): "Starlink, which is a solid product but has growth limited by competitors from conventional ISPs with far-superior fiber networks" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48407824)) "Starlink is already over-congested and physics says that it is not possible to scale it up to serve 100000000 subscribers" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48788651)) "Starlink is not a substitute for fixed broadband. It might be adequate for most use cases, but it's not equivalent and it never will be." ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=46024665)) - Latency too high for some uses (2 comments): "Starlink latency, while better than most satellite data latency, is still far too long to be usable for remote control of a vehicle." ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=49577314)) "Starlink satellites would be pointless for doing computation because they are spread across the Earth resulting in horrible latency" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=46092525)) ## Alternatives hackers recommend - [Comcast internet](https://hackerapproved.com/p/comcast.md): 19 recommend - [Google Fiber](https://hackerapproved.com/p/google-fiber.md): 18 recommend - [Andrews & Arnold](https://hackerapproved.com/p/andrews-arnold.md): 10 recommend - [AOL](https://hackerapproved.com/p/aol.md): 9 recommend - [AT&T Fiber](https://hackerapproved.com/p/at-t-fiber.md): 9 recommend ## Where to get it - [Visit the official site](https://starlink.com/) ## Cite as Hacker Approved, "Starlink", https://hackerapproved.com/p/starlink/ (counts from 1,795,640 Hacker News comments, November 2025 to November 2026).