SpaceX successfully tested video calls through satellite communications

SpaceX posted a video on Twitter showing two company employees making a video call to each other on a native phone connected to the Direct to Cell satellite. This makes it the first video call on this satellite service.

Previously, SpaceX sent a notification to the FCC (Federal Communications Commission in the United States) about its service 'meeting or exceeding testing goals'. During testing, video calls on phones connected to Direct to Cell could be seen to have slightly blurry image quality, but the service was still considered to work well.

SpaceX is expected to launch its Direct to Cell satellite communications service later this year for T-Mobile customers. First, this service will support SMS messaging. As for satellite call and data transmission services, the company is expected to launch next year.

In previous tests, SpaceX satellites provided file download speeds of up to 17 Mbps when connected to smartphones.

David Pac

Update 24 May 2024