Huawei Eyes Connectivity Similar To SpaceX’s Starlink After Maiden Satellite Test
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Chinese personal computing and technology firm Huawei has become one of the few companies of its kind in the world to test out a low Earth orbit (LEO) satellite internet network similar to SpaceX's Starlink satellite internet service. Starlink is the world's largest LEO constellation, and it owes its size to SpaceX's workhorse Falcon 9 rocket, which has made rocket launches a regular occurrence of daily life in the 21st century. Details of Huawei's test were shared on the Chinese social media platform Weibo, with slides from a presentation showing that the LEO satellite test delivered download speeds of as much as 660 Mbps.
The details of Huawei's LEO satellite internet test were shared by Wang Jun, the chief scientist of Huawei's 6G wireless technology laboratory, at the Aerospace Information Industry International Ecosystem Event that took place in Chongqing, China, earlier this month. Huawei has been interested in pursuing satellite connectivity for its smartphone, and the firm's Mate 60 Pro smartphone comes with the capability to connect with geostationary satellites.
These satellites are much higher than their LEO counterparts, and the traditional size and design constraints on a smartphone make designing device to connect with the GEO satellites tedious. This higher altitude of the GEO satellites also limits their connection speeds, which is a key reason that SpaceX and others are building out LEO constellations.
LEO satellites are also significantly smaller than the GEO satellites, which reduces their manufacturing lead time and complexity. It also leads to higher network speeds
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