Connectivity, Communications & Cloud News - Page 1

The latest and most important Connectivity, Communications & Cloud news.

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Antarctic research team pumps out real-time 8K video from Antarctica using Starlink

Anthony Garreffa | Mar 7, 2024 6:30 PM CST

The world's first real-time 8K video has been broadcast from Antarctica using SpaceX's Starlink satellite internet connectivity. Check it out:

Antarctic research team pumps out real-time 8K video from Antarctica using Starlink

KDDI Corporation and KDDI Research, along with the Inter-university Research Institute Corporation Research Organization of Information and Systems and the National Institute of Polar Research (NIPR), successfully conducted a verification experiment in which 8K video was transmitted in real-time using Starlink. This test was completed between Syowa Station in Antarctica and KDDI Research's head office in Japan.

KDDI and KDDI Research will use Starlink to help out with the operational environment for expedition members in Antarctica, with KDDI explaining: "NIPR's research and observation work, and the building of a communication environment in Antarctica as well as the advancement of its educational services in order to play a part in solving worldwide issues such as global warming."

Continue reading: Antarctic research team pumps out real-time 8K video from Antarctica using Starlink (full post)

Intel to debut Thunderbolt 5 with Arrow Lake CPUs, enables PCIe Gen4 x4 for external GPUs

Anthony Garreffa | Jan 23, 2024 11:33 PM CST

Intel announced its next-gen Thunderbolt 5 standard last year, codenamed Barlow Bridge, with some monster specifications that we'll see introduced later this year inside of its next-gen Arrow Lake CPUs.

Intel to debut Thunderbolt 5 with Arrow Lake CPUs, enables PCIe Gen4 x4 for external GPUs

Now we've got some more information on Intel's plans with Thunderbolt 5 from hardware leaker "YuuKi_AnS" on X, who shared some new slides for the Barlow Bridge controller for Intel's next-gen Arrow Lake-S platform, so now we know Thunderbolt 5 connectivity will be featured on at least some next-gen Intel 800 series motherboards.

Intel will have support for the PCIe Gen4 x4 interface, offering up to 64Gbps of bandwidth... that's double the 32Gbps of bandwidth that is maxed out with Thunderbolt 3 and 4 while enabling users to use their Thunderbolt 5 connector for external GPUs of the future.

Continue reading: Intel to debut Thunderbolt 5 with Arrow Lake CPUs, enables PCIe Gen4 x4 for external GPUs (full post)

Starlink's new 10Gbps satellite internet costs $1.25M upfront, then $750,000 per month after

Anthony Garreffa | Jan 18, 2024 6:23 PM CST

SpaceX has something truly incredible for those with deep pockets: its new Starlink service now has a gigabit speed option for its satellite internet service, with $1.25 million required up front and $75,000 per month, per Gbps per month (so 10Gbps would cost $750,000 per month) for the service once the installation -- yes, installation -- ifs installed.

Starlink's new 10Gbps satellite internet costs $1.25M upfront, then $750,000 per month after

The Elon Musk-led SpaceX will send out a team to build an entire facility that is dedicated to receiving 10Gbps of broadband speeds from Starlink's orbiting satellites. Regular Starlink users get sent a satellite dish, but 10Gbps isn't normal... it's a monumental amount of speed from a satellite internet service. This isn't some off-the-grid government black-level facility, it will be on someone's land feeding 10Gbps of speed for $750K a month... not bad.

How is SpaceX doing this? Well, Starlink has introduced its new "Community Gateways" option, acting as a business program to attract internet service producers (ISPs) to have new ways of bringing ultra-fast satellite broadband to remote areas.

Continue reading: Starlink's new 10Gbps satellite internet costs $1.25M upfront, then $750,000 per month after (full post)

USB4 2.0 spec with 80Gbps of bandwidth tested in latest Windows 11 Insider Preview build

Anthony Garreffa | Jan 15, 2024 5:35 PM CST

USB4 2.0 is kinda here thanks to Microsoft testing the new 80Gbps standard with its latest Windows 11 Insider Preview build, offering next-gen 80Gbps transfer speeds for future devices.

USB4 2.0 spec with 80Gbps of bandwidth tested in latest Windows 11 Insider Preview build

The new USB4 2.0 standard with 80Gbps of bandwidth was teased in September 2022, but it's only in the first few weeks of 2024 that the new specification is stretching its wings. Microsoft testing the new USB4 2.0 standard with 80Gbps speeds in Windows 11 is great to see, with the new USB4 2.0 standard offering double the 40Gbps of bandwidth delivered by USB Type-C Thunderbolt 4. We're seeing Thunderbolt 4 more and more, and now it's time for USB4 2.0 to shine.

USB4 2.0 is backward compatible with previous USB4 cables offering 40Gbps passive, but it will support up to the huge 80Gbps of bandwidth with new 80Gbps Type-C active cables. If you want huge speeds in the 8GB/sec vicinity, USB4 2.0 is here to deliver.

Continue reading: USB4 2.0 spec with 80Gbps of bandwidth tested in latest Windows 11 Insider Preview build (full post)

Acer worked with Qualcomm on its new router: world's first with 5G and Wi-Fi 7

Anthony Garreffa | Jan 7, 2024 6:31 PM CST

Acer has just announced not one but two new gaming routers, teaming with Qualcomm and its Immersive Home Platform and tri-band Wi-Fi 7 for stable connections and enhanced wireless gameplay with the introduction of the new Acer Predator Connect X7 5G CPE. Check it out:

Acer worked with Qualcomm on its new router: world's first with 5G and Wi-Fi 7

The new Acer Predator Connect X7 5G CPE will provide blazing-fast internet speeds with both 5G and Wi-Fi 7, as well as dual WAN connectivity. Acer says we can expect fast, reliable, and vast network coverage provided by the Predator Connect T7 Wi-Fi 7 Mesh Router, with the capabilities expanded through its multi-link Wi-Fi mesh system, making wired-level latency possible through the use of a mesh setup.

Qualcomm Technologies' advanced quad-core processor is inside of both the X7 and T7 routers, which provide gamers and streamers with boosted online experiences, improved Spectrum Utilization and Wi-Fi 7, as well as enhanced MU-MIMO and OFDMA across connected devices.

Continue reading: Acer worked with Qualcomm on its new router: world's first with 5G and Wi-Fi 7 (full post)

Sabrent's new USB-C Universal Docking Station is the ultimate docking station

Anthony Garreffa | Jan 4, 2024 5:25 PM CST

Sabrent's new USB-C Universal Docking Station has been announced, with the new do-everything USB-C dock ready to provide you with every port imaginable for about every device imaginable. Check it out:

Sabrent's new USB-C Universal Docking Station is the ultimate docking station

The new dock truly has it all, offering dual HDMI ports, dual DisplayPort ports, a 1GbE ethernet port, dual USB-C 10Gbps ports, dual USB 2.0 ports, and a headphone jack... and that's just on the back. On the front of the Sabrent USB-C Universal Docking Station, we've got two USB-A 5Gbps ports, USH-I SD and microSD card slots, another headphone/mic jack, and a single USB-C 10Gbps port. Sheesh, that's a LOT of connectivity, folks.

The external power adapter lets you power with device charging of up to 80W, while there are some front-facing LEDs for extra clarity, adds Sabrent.

Continue reading: Sabrent's new USB-C Universal Docking Station is the ultimate docking station (full post)

Have loads of your Google Drive files vanished? There's a fix for that

Darren Allan | Dec 7, 2023 7:54 AM CST

Some of those using Google Drive's desktop app experienced a very worrying issue recently - namely a chunk of files disappearing from their cloud storage locker - but the good news is that there's now a fix.

Have loads of your Google Drive files vanished? There's a fix for that

As flagged up by The Verge, Google outlined the steps you need to take in a support post, giving affected people (some of whom lost six months of files, or more) several options for recovering their files.

By the way, we're told that only a small number of Drive for desktop users were affected (those running version 84 of the app).

Continue reading: Have loads of your Google Drive files vanished? There's a fix for that (full post)

PCI-SIG announces new naming scheme for PCIe cables: CopprLink

Anthony Garreffa | Nov 14, 2023 7:07 PM CST

PCI-SIG has just announced a brand new naming scheme for PCIe internal and external cables, which will be called CopprLink, while the company has also announced new PCIe 5.0 and PCIe 6.0 cables coming in 2024.

PCI-SIG announces new naming scheme for PCIe cables: CopprLink

In a press release in my inbox, the PCI-SIG PR representative said that PCIe 5.0 and PCIe 6.0 internal and external cable specifications are currently in development and are "targeted for release" in 2024. PCI-SIG is attending SC23, the international conference for high-performance computing (HPC), networking, storage, and analysis. At the show, PCI-SIG announced its new CopprLink naming scheme.

PCI-SIG is the body behind the troublesome 12VHPWR power connector on NVIDIA's fleet of GeForce RTX 40 series graphics cards, and while it provides up to 600W of power over a thinner cable, it has had its downsides. PCI-SIG went back to the drawing board and re-worked the cable, and now we're seeing a new naming scheme for PCIe 5.0 and PCIe 6.0 internal (and external) cables to CopprLink. I wonder how many people are going to use an "e" in that over the years, hah.

Continue reading: PCI-SIG announces new naming scheme for PCIe cables: CopprLink (full post)

Second largest telco in Australia goes down, grinds half the country to a halt

Anthony Garreffa | Nov 7, 2023 8:33 PM CST

Australia's second-largest telecommunications provider -- Optus -- has gone down and has been down since the early morning hours in the country. Optus CEO Kelly Bayer Rosmarin has said that the company is on a "path to restoration" right now.

Second largest telco in Australia goes down, grinds half the country to a halt

It's now past 12 p.m. in Sydney, Australia, and millions of Australians are without a working phone or internet connection, unable to call emergency services or the police. The Optus CEO said: "Unfortunately, it was a nationwide outage ... [we are] very, very sorry that this occurred; we know how important it is for all our customers to be connected, and we have been working tirelessly since the outage started to restore services for our customers".

Personally, I'm with Optus and woke up to these issues. I couldn't make any phone calls and had no data service out of the house, so all of my financial services were pretty much useless (I don't use physical cards, tap-and-go is so relevant here in Australia), and worst of all, no one could call my number. This means I'm completely unreachable, and I can't reach anyone... including my daughter at school today, as her phone is with Optus as well.

Continue reading: Second largest telco in Australia goes down, grinds half the country to a halt (full post)

Fury at unpopular OneDrive change causes Microsoft to backtrack on photo storage rules

Darren Allan | Oct 10, 2023 8:19 AM CDT

After receiving a whole load of negative feedback around an incoming change to OneDrive, Microsoft has reversed direction on the move.

Fury at unpopular OneDrive change causes Microsoft to backtrack on photo storage rules

The idea was a simple one, but it could have had a major impact on the available storage for photos in the case of some users.

As Neowin spotted (via TechRadar), Microsoft had contacted OneDrive users and told them in an email that: "Soon, data from photos saved in your Gallery and in your albums will each count separately against your total Microsoft storage quota."

Continue reading: Fury at unpopular OneDrive change causes Microsoft to backtrack on photo storage rules (full post)