T-Mobile's Starlink satellite messaging service is free for everyone to try — even AT&T and Verizon customers.
During the Super Bowl on Sunday, T-Mobile announced the public beta launch of its direct-to-cell program with Starlink. Customers can sign up, free of charge, until it moves out of beta in July. And you don't have to be a T-Mobile subscriber to try it out.
"When your service is amazing and different, you want as many people to try it as possible," reads the announcement. "T-Mobile is giving AT&T and Verizon customers the opportunity to try out T-Mobile Starlink satellite service on their existing phones."
When T-Mobile Starlink is released from beta, it will be included in the Go5G plan at no extra charge. T-Mobile customers on other plans can opt for the Starlink add-on for $15 a month per line. AT&T and Verizon customers can also add T-Mobile Starlink's satellite text messaging for $20 a month per line. All they need is a compatible smartphone.
While anyone with a compatible phone can sign up for T-Mobile Starlink, this does not mean it's automatically "installed" on iPhones, contrary to a rumor on TikTok. There's no direct partnership between Apple and Starlink, and Elon Musk, who owns Starlink, cannot access iPhone user data.
All this means is that the iPhones have the Starlink connectivity option through T-Mobile since the iPhone has 1900MHz (band 25) spectrum support. This is not automatically included as part of the iPhone's iOS 18.3 update; users must opt to add Starlink coverage as part of their plan.
For the record, Apple has had satellite messaging support since the iPhone 14 via its Globalstar partnership. You can opt out of any satellite messaging by going to Settings > Cellular > your carrier > then turn off Satellite.
