Starlink satellites and monthly are going up

As Starlink expands its coverage with more and more satellite launches, one other thing is going up: it's subscription cost.

Starlink launched with a $99/month cost. The company recently announced that the monthly cost is going up to $110, an increase of over 10%, according to reports.

SpaceX sent notices on Tuesday to Starlink users and deposit holders noting the higher prices, according to a copy of the email obtained by CNBC.

“The sole purpose of these adjustments is to keep pace with rising inflation,” the Starlink email said.

Starlink’s baseline monthly service price will increase by 11%, to $110 from $99 per month, effective May 21. The price of the baseline Starlink hardware will jump by 10%, to $549 from $499, for users who placed a deposit but are on SpaceX’s waiting list for service.

For new orders, the company increased the base hardware price by 20%, to $599 from $499.

My sister has the service, and while she's not happy with the price increase, she's not exactly grabbing her pitchfork either.

She was in a bad situation regarding Internet service. Two separate Internet Service Providers served houses in her neighborhood, but neither would serve her house. The house next door to hers has Internet service from a major provider, but they won't extend the service to her house. She had to get traditional satellite Internet, and satellite TV service, but now she has Starlink and streams everything. And she's taking the price increase in stride.

Yeah, but it’s still a great price based on what we were paying and for the coverage we have. Stormed all night and day and have not lost service.

I'm fortunate that I have at least one option with Comcast/Xfinity, and I'm paying less than half of what she was paying. I suppose I am fortunate in that respect. And while she's not happy her new Streaming Life is costing more, she knows it could still be a lot worse.

Roku 11.0 is coming, sooner or later

I got a surprise a couple of days ago. On Tuesday, Roku announced that Roku OS 11.0 had been released. I had actually communicated with someone on Monday who had received the update, so I knew it was coming. Neither I nor he had participated in the beta release of OS 11, so when he got it, I knew it was out, and the next day, Roku announced it.

Normally, it takes a while for me to get it. But late Tuesday night, I got it. One one device. I checked four devices, and only one of them had the update, but that's normal. Some people expect to get the update the day it's released. I've never got it that early. Once, I got an update within a week or two after release, but this is the first time I got it the day they announced it.

And, of course, it's only on one of my devices. That's another thing some people don't understand. You probably won't get the update to all of your devices at the same time. At least, I've never received updates to all my devices at the same time. There's no pattern to when it will arrive. It's not by Roku account, it's not by geographical region. It's not by model number. It's not by anything we can tell. It just is, whenever it is.

So, let's recap.

If you get the Roku OS 11 on one or more of your devices, then that's normal.

If you don't get Roku OS 11 on one or more of your devices, that's normal too.

If you get Roku OS 11 on one but not other devices, that's normal.

If you don't get it for a month, that's normal.

If you don't get it for two months, that's normal.

If you don't get it for three months, that's normal.

So, when will you get it? When you get it. You might not like that answer, but that's the truth. Your not liking doesn't matter.

Roku updates don't have any discernable rhyme or reason to when it happens, and if you have more than one Roku device, you may not get them all at once, or even close together. It's how it is. If you have Roku, that random update rollout process is now a part of your Streaming Life.

Roku 11.0

The new Roku 11.0 operating system was released this week. I don't have it yet. They never send it to me in the first few days. Sometimes, I'll get Roku OS updates in the first month, sometimes in the second, and if not by the third month, it will come some time then.

The new OS is focusing a lot on sound. I listened to a lot of loud music in the 1970s, and was attached to an artillery unit for a brief time during my time in the Army. My hearing isn't the best, so I'm not sure how these new features will benefit me. But if it benefits you, that's a good thing.

They're adding some new Live TV features to the Home Screen of the main menu. Yeah, I don't care. But you might, so yay?

They have some new photo screensaver sharing feature. I can see some people liking that. Not me. But yay for those who do.

There will be a What To Watch section on the Home Screen. The other devices that offer things they suggest for me to watch usually get it wrong, so I expect Roku to get it wrong as well. However, a lot of people like features like this, so another ho-hum yay.

Additional language support for voice-enabled keyboard functionality is added.

Voice-enabled keyboard – Roku Voice simplifies device setup and channel login for supported apps by allowing you to enter email, password, and PIN information with your Roku voice remote. Voice-enabled keyboards are now available in Spanish, German, and Portuguese in OS 11.

While that brings nothing for me, it's good that they're expanding support in countries they support. Or half-ass support. This is better for those. So, actual yay.

Mobile app search improvements are included.

When you search for TV shows or movies, new visual elements with OS 11 highlights which channels are streaming the TV for free or where it can be streamed with your existing subscriptions. The new content details on the mobile app also show visual images of the cast and crew to assist with choosing what to watch. All of these updates are the perfect match to the recently added Save List, which allows you to save movies and TV shows while on the go so you can stream them when you’re back home and ready to watch.

I don't use mobile app very much at all, so nothing I care about. But yeah, I understand that many like to use the app. So yay for them.

All in all, Roku OS 11 brings nothing for me. But, it will improve the Streaming Life of others. So, yay.

Getting an antenna? Maybe an indoor will work. Maybe.

When it comes to cutting the cord, many believe it's a good idea to have an antenna for over the air channels. I'm one of those that believe that. However, I'm also aware that it may not always be easy to put up an antenna. Power lines are dangerous, running cable can be difficult, and paying someone to do it can be expensive. But does that rule out the possibility of having an antenna? No it doesn't.

Some people have good success with an indoor antenna. They're small, and are easy to install. Well, mostly.

Part of the installation process is to install it where it picks up the most channels. If the location of the antenna doesn't pick up channels, then it's not good location. Sometimes, it's trial and error. But there's a step you should try before you get an antenna.

There are Websites that can assist in determining where the nearest stations are, and how far away the stations are located. An indoor antenna doesn't have the range of an outdoor antenna, so if the towers are very far away, an indoor antenna won't do the job. But how do you know for sure?

The only way to be absolutely certain is to try one. But, that can be a lot of work that you can avoid. Those Websites I mentioned? Go to one, or more, and search based on your location. One good one is actually the FCC Website: https://www.fcc.gov/media/engineering/dtvmaps

This example shows what someone at Fort Stewart would find if they searched the FCC Website for nearby stations. In this example, the closest station is 20 miles away. There is actually a tower that's closer, but it's a different direction. It's the public TV tower in Pembroke. The image is showing the major broadcast networks. They're 20 miles or more from Fort Stewart.

Will an indoor antenna work in this example? Maybe. But maybe not. You may find an indoor antenna claiming it will work for a large number of miles. I'm not saying the claims are false, but I am saying don't be surprised if it doesn't work. 20 miles may be close enough, and a good indoor antenna may indeed cover that distance. Environmental factors may interfere, but there's one other factor to consider.

Not all channels operate on the frequency you might think. In this example, notice the Band entry. That's important.

In this example, the stations are in the UHF or High VHF bands. So what are they?

Low VHF is the range of channels 2-6. High VHF is the range of channels 7-13. UHF is the band of channels 14 and above.

Notice, however, that WSAV, channel 3, is listed as UHF. But we just said that channel 3 is Low VHF. What's up with that?

As it turns out, not every channel is on the actual channel for which they identify. WSAV, for example, was indeed channel 3 and a Low VHF station for years. However, the channel repacking had stations moving to different actual channels. WSAV moved to channel 16, but kept the channel 3 identifier.

What that means is if you scan for the channels, you'll find WSAV channel 3. But it's actually channel 16. But on your TV, you'll go to channel 3. Because that's how it works.

So, when you go to get an antenna, it's a good idea to know what frequency bands you'll need. Not all antennae pick up all bands. If the antenna doesn't say on the box or in the description, it's probably UHF only. And that may or may not pick up the channels you want.

So, to recap, if you want to use and indoor antenna, you need to first find what stations are in range. You need to be skeptical of any range claims by an antenna manufacturer. (Some are reliable, but many make BS claims.) You need to know what bands you need, and the antenna needs to support those bands.

You know, all this should be easy. But then, a lot of things should be easy. Instead, things are sometimes complicated. But if you can sort through it all, an antenna may be a great addition to your Streaming Life.