It’s finally here!

We’ve all been waiting for it, and it’s finally arrived! Starlink is now available to order and use at local rates here in Zimbabwe. Starlink’s site went live for Zimbabwean orders last night and so far, the available packages and conditions look great.

From the jump, Starlink is offering the option to order either the standard kit for $350 or the mini kit for $200(we’ll get into the differences between those soon), with a $50 monthly subscription for unlimited internet. We also recently put up an article on reserving places on Starlink’s waitlist, which doesn’t seem to be full, hence people can just order a kit right now. However considering ordering online is overall cheaper than all local players, with only a $20-25 shipping fee, the slots for the first wave of kits might get filled up, and those on wait lists may be given first preference again. If you also joined the wait list you should note Starlink is giving people a week to confirm and pay for their orders, otherwise your kit and initial deposit will be canceled and refunded.

Let’s talk more about that cheaper price.

To order a standard kit, Starlink costs $364 all in all, especially if you were on the waitlist. It seems to cost slightly more if ordering from scratch, but even still this is immensely cheaper than the $600+ you see the average Zimbabwean dealer selling Starlink for. There are also companies signing up to resell Starlink like Frampol, and it’s unlikely they will be cheaper, though there is a whole story about some offering ZiG pricing. And yes, there is still a little uncertainty on whether ZIMRA will try to financially murder the average Zimbabwean for going this route, but unless they want to completely lose their minds with their commissions and charges, ordering online should still be cheaper, especially if one springs for a Starlink mini kit. And of course, this is all combined with the aforementioned $50 a month unlimited internet plan, which until recently, had nothing in Zimbabwe that could compete with it.

The difference between Standard and Mini

Starlink’s new mini kit recently made wavers in tech news for technically being something a user can even put in their bag or car and move around with all day getting the internet wherever they need it, and like the standard kit, it is also available to purchase here in Zim. And technically, it makes Starlink have three available options to purchase: the new standard kit, the old standard kit(now called standard actuated, and the mini kit.

Now right off the bat let’s differentiate the two standard kits: The old standard kit, which most people recognize as the typical Starlink kit is now called the standard actuated kit, as it is the one with a dish that can adjust itself to find the best point of signal. It is being phased out mainly due to being more expensive to make than the new kit and depending on your order you may be able to get it for a little cheaper, otherwise it and the new kit should be virtually identical when it comes to speed and latency with the same up to 220mbps download speeds. The new kit uses a simpler, rectangular design which you lay down once in the optimum position and that is it. Otherwise as mentioned before, it is essentially the same as the old design. The mini, however, is a genuinely different scenario, having slower upload and download speeds than the standard kits and being designed for use on the go. A common misconception is confusing the mini kit with the new standard kit as it is essentially a smaller version of that kit, but the two are significantly different. The spec rundown will be written below, but basically if you don’t mind the significantly slower speeds, the mini might be for you, or, ironically, a local provider might scratch that itch.

Local players are starting to bring compelling alternatives.

I keep saying that the best thing about the Starlink situation is how it is making local players get their act together. We’ve already covered Liquid Home/ZOL’s new reduced bundles, but now Econet’s Smart Biz lines offer a $45 unlimited data plan as well, while TelOne is gearing up for something soon as well. Simply put , we’re about to get a whole lot of cheaper alternatives from local suppliers, and I for one am here for it. More importantly, though, it means if Starlink isn’t your cup of tea, chances are one of these local providers might be, and that’s the best position to be in as a customer. Simply put, if you’re asking yourself whether or not you SHOULD buy Starlink, subscription doesn’t have to be the biggest factor anymore. You can now consider things like whether you want to pay a hefty install when ZOL or Econet may be cheaper. Or if the likes of TelOne truly enter the fray as well, you may get the benefit of using the infrastructure you’ve already been using, albeit hopefully with some improvements.

Either way, Starlink is definitely here and we hope quite a bit of you can buy it so it sees Zimbabwe as a worthwhile investment. Because again, rarely do you see a technology come in and shake up the market in Zimbabwe. And even more rarely, does the shaking up benefit. the average customer like this. Now , here’s to hoping we get more miracles like this.

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