Ok in order:

 Ah but all 3 races have a differntly named upgrade (axilary government for TEC) that allows your starbase to prevent takeover untill the base is destroyed and I think bombing as well (it said and bombing but I havent tested it) so the enemy can't just send 5 bombers to your planet.

The advent starbase does have a culture spread upgrade I can only assume the other 2 have the same culture slowing effect as the capital ships.

But if you put it in a gas gaint/asteroidbelt/uncolisizable place it can act as a trade port and as a frigate factory and as a hangar defence and a beefed up turret it place to protect the asteriods you captured there

An un-upgraded starbase is weak yes, but I had a TEC starbase with 2 wepons upgrades 2 defence upgrades and the axilary government upgrade it was attacked by a sizeable fleet of a lvl 6 progmentor a lvl 2 rapture 5 or more area drone hosts and sever missle and light frigates and since I could not send backup the starbase was on it's own it managed to take out several or their light/missle frigates and both capitalships before scumbing to the inevitable carrier rush. Which makes it more of a bitter vicory for the advent, if I had added 2 hangerbays and the self destruct to the last 3 upgrade slots it would have taken almost the whole fleet with it. After all 9000 hp and 3000 shields goes a long way

That's all sorry for the long winded post

I disagree, all of the factions starbases are currently very powerful when used in synergy with structures, units and particularly mines. One is powerful, two smartly placed in neighbouring systems at a choke are devastating and have no trouble in stopping fleets of greater cost (wrt the starbases) progressing further into your systems. Sending a load of ships to pillage behind enemy lines is now, thankfully, very difficult to achieve against an opponent with a superior economy and infrastructure. This rewards careful positioning by the player. Just throwing down a unit that slaughters everything that enters anywhere in your system might sound like fun to some people, but I'd prefer some strategy in my strategy game. The unique upgrades for each faction are also very much in character with the three factions, fulfil necessary roles (though needs some balancing) and I think are very well judged.

Their current very fast build time makes them too powerful used in attacking enemy systems in my opinion. I'm sure build times, upgarde costs and ability costs will be balanced in time.

ALL star-bases shold be able to move in order to change strategy if necesery.

While granted I've yet to play against REAL HUMANS, in my test games I've actually found that there's little reason to build a starbase. A network of defense platforms supported by hangars costs about the same as upgrading a starbase and has the added advantage of providing a wider area of coverage - in particular the Advent seem well off, what with the shield-granting hangars and Synergy ability.

The only base I find useful is, indeed, the Vasari one, and that's because it can putter around a gravity well to reposition itself.

So yeah, starbases are a neat idea that need a bigger incentive to build them.

Oh my god. I thought I'd heard the end of the phase-jumping starbases.

Dear lord I can only pray the devs won't read this thread at all.

Someone gives you a hammer and you are mad because you cant use it as a screwdriver.  If only this hammer was a philips-head, then you could use it how you want right?