Starlink is coming to India, it is different from iPhone satellite texting and jio plus airtel airfiber
Starlink is finally coming to India. But it is also coming with the collaboration of Airtel and Jio, both have their own wireless broadband service called Airfor. So, how is Starlinks different from Internet Airtel and Jio Airfor? And how about iPhone satellite texting feature? They are all very different, we say.
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Starlink satellite internet service is coming to India. Elon Musk’s aerospace company, SpaceX, has collaborated with Indian telecommunications providers Jio and Airtel, and will soon offer satellite connectivity in India. After the deal, while Airtel plans to use Starlink services to complement its existing offerings, Jio is targeting for the intensive integration of Starlink in its ecosystem. However, both customers will sell starlink equipment, making the service accessible through its installed retail network across the country.
This idea and therefore seems that Airtel and Jio have announced that two telecom will use Starlink’s advanced satellite technology to expand internet connectivity in rural and remote areas. However, you must be thinking: Both telcos already provide airfiber connectivity, which they have launched to provide internet services in areas where the fiber broadband is unavailable, especially in rural areas. So, how is the existing Airfor Seva Elon Musk’s Starlink Satellite different from internet service?
It is difficult to establish traditional internet connectivity in both airfibers and starlink target areas. However, the major differences between these two services are inherent in their underlying technologies, performances and use cases. Here is a wide eye on how Starlinks differ from the Internet Airfor and how Indian users will benefit from each service.
What is the Airfor?
Existing airfiber services in India are wireless broadband services that use 5G networks and advanced Wi-Fi 6 technology to provide high-speed wireless internet to homes and businesses.
In Airforber Service, both Jio and Airtel rely on their 5G network towers on an antenna or indoor device on a roof on the internet signal on the internet signal. The idea is to direct 5G in a particular area, with special equipment installed, and then use the bandwidth available to provide constant connections and speeds. It is similar to the cellular network, but unlike cellular, which is immersed, the airfiber uses signal focused signal power to give better connectivity.
The home installed device connects to the nearest tower, then provides internet speed up to 100200 Mbps with low delay. This service is particularly useful in areas where it is challenging to lay fiber cables. Airfiber connectivity from both Jio and Airtel is an alternative to the fiber broadband, but it is not satellite-based. Instead, it uses wireless 5G connectivity, in turn based on a spine of optical fiber connectivity.
What is Starlink?
On the other hand, Starlink is completely different. It is a satellite internet service that is transported to Earth by SpaceX satellites. It uses low meaning orbit (Leo) satellites, designed to distribute high -speed broadband from 25200 Mbps with low delay globally. As of 27 February 2025, there are about 7,086 Starlink satellites in the class, out of which 7,052 are operational. The purpose of Starlink is to add users to the most different areas, whether in the mountains, the middle of the sea, deep forests, or other remote places.
The way it works is simple. You install an antenna on the roof of your house with a wide possible view of the sky. The view of the sky is the key here and that is why the Starlink antenna, which looks like a dish TV antenna, cannot be placed at the location where visuals are interrupted by trees or tall buildings.
Starlink satellites add this antenna to the ground, and once connected beam internet connectivity. For final users, and their equipment such as laptops and phones, the entire connection works just like a regular WiFi connection. Regardless of cloud or weather conditions, Starlink connectivity is stable and uninterrupted.
Can Starlink provide direct connectivity for a phone?
Simple Answer: Not yet.
In the last one year, either we have started looking at some phones with a feature most particularly with a feature that uses satellites that provide the ability to text or call from remote areas.
Now, that service is different. An iPhone 16 supporting satellite is similar to the good old satellite phone to send or make and receive calls. A satellite phone does not use cellular connection or wifi. Instead, it uses a special network introduced by some companies that manage and operate some satellites for direct connectivity.
In theory, satellite phones and starlinks are similar. But the way they have been implemented are different. While satellite phones are extremely specific equipment, and often used with limited and low speed connectivity, the starlink is similar to regular wifi connections. Therefore, it can be used by any device that can be connected to WiFi including phone and laptop. This is just contrary to regular WiFi, which depends on the wired internet, the starlinks depend on the satellite connectivity.
So, will Starlink never be available directly on the phone?
never say Never. A network is a network and can be used in different ways. Currently, Starlink is mostly used as a backbone behind a local WiFi network. But it has started changing. Recently, in the US, Apple, T-Mobile and Starlink joined a partnership, where the latest iPhone iPhone 16 series will get limited satellite connectivity using the T-Mobile Network. It will be operated by the Starlink, behind the curtain.
Now, it is possible that similar service in India can be offered in collaboration with Jio, Airtel and Starlink. But till now neither live nor Airtel has talked about it. Instead, he has talked about how he will sell Starlink equipment studying Starlink antenna in India. It feels like a regular starlink service and not the one who beams the Internet directly on the phone.
But this can happen. And if this happens, there is a possibility that most high-end phones will be supported, including iPhone, latest pixels and latest galaxies. This is just that the entire satellite connectivity on the phone is still in the early days and it is not good to be a good estimate when it will be available in India to a large extent due to regulatory concerns. For example, emergency satellite texting available on the iPhone 16 series can be enabled in India due to regulatory concerns. But whenever this happens, we will come here to tell you more about it.
