| Your Broadband Speeds Are About to Quadruple, But Not If Carriers Can Help It Posted: 29 Jan 2015 06:51 PM PST The FCC has a dream, but it needs to dream bigger. In the February issue of Maximum PC magazine, I wrote about the lack of true broadband speeds in Silicon Valley. This didn't even come close to addressing the entire U.S. It was literally a rant about Silicon Valley, of all places, that lacked broadband speeds competitive with the rest of the world. Well, it looks like this situation is going to change for the better according to a report on The Verge. According to FCC Chairman Tom Wheeler, "we are never satisfied with the status quo. We want better. We continue to push the limit, and that is notable when it comes to technology." 
FCC Chairman Tom Wheeler. (Andrew Harrer / Bloomberg)
In the 2015 Broadband Progress Report, the FCC passed a vote that changes the minimum download speeds on broadband connections from 4Mbps to 25Mbps, and uploads from 1Mbps to 3Mbps. While this doesn't seem like a lot--and it isn't--it's still a huge improvement for a large percentage of the population. In fact, if the upgrade seems too paltry to you still, FCC Commissioner Jessica Rosenworcel says 100Mbps should be the bare minimum. 100Mbps! "We invented the internet. We can do audacious things if we set big goals, and I think our new threshold, frankly, should be 100Mbps. I think anything short of that shortchanges our children, our future, and our new digital economy," Commissioner Rosenworcel said. But things aren't all rosy. The National Cable & Telecommunications Association (NCTA) sent its objections to the FCC indicating that the FCC "dramatically exaggerate the amount of bandwidth needed by the typical broadband user." I'm going to say it right now: this is shit. For the country that played the leading role in developing the infrastructure of our modern internet, these political and lobbying bodies don't really give two-cents about your requirements as a user. What's important to them are the interests of the broadband providers. Naturally, Verizon was unhappy with the FCC's changes. A Verizon spokesperson who spoke to Ars Technica, said "we currently do not have any plans to enhance that." Meanwhile, the NCTA told the FCC that 25Mbps isn't required for good 4K streaming--something Netflix is pushing for. The issue around broadband runs deep. Local municipalities are often sectioned out, dominated by only one or two major providers. Living communities are even worse. The community where I live only provides Verizon services. Then there are the government and political wrangling that goes on. Last but not least, infrastructure is a problem too. Companies deter from investing heavily in infrastructure improvements because they're costly. The cost often comes from very old legacy infrastructure that requires tearing up. Alan Frisbie, who subscribes to the magazine, wrote in to let me know that the area he resides in, is already fortunate to get 768Kbps downstram and an abysmal 385Kbps upstream--for $50 per month. And because AT&T has an iron hold on Alan's area, he's unable to get other services. For users like Alan, who are essentially jailed to their providers, the FCC's vote couldn't come sooner. "The fastest U-verse service they offer in my area is 768K downstream and 384K up, for $50 a month. The only alternative is a T-1 (1.5 megabits) line for $432 a month. DSL is not offered here," said Alan. The only way this kind of situation changes for the better of everyone, is to stand up, and speak out. The gorilla in the room are the very providers that bring broadband to you, and they are against delivering improvements. Lining shareholder pockets seem more like the priority. If we reviewed U.S. broadband speeds at Maximum PC, we would give it a score of -10 and an ass-kicking. |
| FCC Changes Definition of Broadband, Increases Download Speed to 25Mbps Posted: 29 Jan 2015 06:25 PM PST  New benchmark means 55 million people do not have access to broadband
Back in 2010, the Federal Communications Commission ruled that broadband would be defined by having a download speed of 4Mbps and an upload speed of 1Mbps minimum. However, the internet has experienced an exponential growth and an increase in media consumption. As a result, the FCC has voted to change the definition of broadband by increasing the minimum download speed to 25Mbps and the minimum upload speed to 3Mbps. The change in definition was announced alongside the publishing of the FCC's 2015 Broadband Progress Report which reveals, under the new benchmark, that 17 percent (55 million people) of all Americans do not have access to 25Mbps/3Mbps speeds. In addition, the report states that around 35 percent of schools lack access to fiber and, in turn, would likely lack access to broadband speeds of 100Mbps per 1,000 users. "While significant progress in broadband deployment has been made, due in part to the Commission's action to support broadband through its Universal Service programs, these advances are not occurring broadly enough or quickly enough, the report finds," reads a statement on the FCC's website. "The report concludes that more work needs to be done by the private and public sectors to expand robust broadband to all Americans in a timely way, and the accompanying Notice of Inquiry seeks comment on what additional steps the FCC can take to accelerate broadband deployment." Do you think the new 25Mbps/3Mbps minimum is adequate for today's internet consumption or should it be higher? Sound off in the comments below! Follow Sean on Google+, Twitter, and Facebook |
| Rig of the Month: Parvum Warfare Posted: 29 Jan 2015 11:27 AM PST  It's battle-ready and beautiful at the same time
James Walter is back with yet another stellar PC for this month's Rig of the Month. It's a lot like his last build, Parvum Titanfall, but that's not a bad thing. James's obvious attention to detail makes a triumphant return in a case that's based on the design of the offical Call of Duty: Advanced Warfare Xbox One controller. Just like last time, James worked with Parvum Systems to create a one-off rig that's both professional and exceptional. Parvum Warfare combines a custom, acrylic case with an absolutely faithful application of design elements common to the Xbox One and the Advanced Warfare-themed controller. James admires and assembles the custom-made case. Inside the glorious mITX exterior is an Intel 4790k, an EVGA Z97 Stinger motherboard, 16GB of GSkill memory, an Nvidia Titan Black, a 500GB Samsung EVO SSD, and a Corsair RM650 power supply. Throw in the watercooling components from Swiftech, Darkside, and Bitspower, and Parvum Warfare is ready for battle. James's reveal videos always ooze quality. Have a case mod of your own that you would like to submit to our monthly feature? Make sure to read the rules/tips here and email us at mpcrigofthemonth@gmail.com with your submissions. |
| Newegg Daily Deals: Crucial MX100 256GB SSD, Gigabyte GA-990FXA-UD3 Motherboard, and More! Posted: 29 Jan 2015 11:12 AM PST |
| Sapphire Adds Triple Fan Cooler to 8GB Radeon R9 290X, Tweaks Clocks and Lowers Cost Posted: 29 Jan 2015 10:45 AM PST  More than just a big frame buffer
Sapphire was the first company to release an 8GB version of AMD's Radeon R9 290X graphics card, though it's no longer the only one -- a handful of other graphics card players jumped on board after AMD gave them a reference design to play with. Be that as it may, Sapphire is intent on standing out from the crowd, so it went and retooled its 8GB R9 290X with a triple fan cooler and some other changes. According to Sapphire, its Tri-X triple fan cooler is the first in the industry to use a central 10mm heatpipe in addition to four subsidiary heatpipes for even heat distribution throughout the heatsink. The fans themselves have dust repelling bearings with dual ball races and are equipped with aerofoil section blades. Topping it off is a fan cowling designed to guide the airflow for maximum cooling efficiency, Sapphire says. The company also points out that it builds its own PCB rather than outsourcing production. In this instance, its using a 6-phase VDDC power design. You'll find 8GB of GDDR5 memory on the new card, along with a 512-bit interface. The memory is "now clocked at 1375MHz (5.5GHz effective) delivering higher bandwidth than earlier models." Other features include a dual BIOS design, two 8-pin power connectors, and engine clock of up to 1020MHz. As for pricing? Good question -- Sapphire said the card comes it at a "slightly lower cost" but didn't specifiy an exact price. It's also not showing up in retail yet, though we'll update this article when/if we hear back from them. In the meantime, you can see more of the card on its product page. Follow Paul on Google+, Twitter, and Facebook |
| Leaked Roadmap Details AMD's Unreleased 'Godavari' APU Line Posted: 29 Jan 2015 09:44 AM PST  A dozen APUs are planned for this summer
A Chinese-language website has posted what it claims is a legitimate roadmap of AMD's forthcoming "Godavari" APUs. You can think of Godavari as a Kaveri refresh, as the new parts will feature the same Steamroller architecture for both the CPU and GPU portions. If the leaked roadmap proves accurate, AMD is planning to release a dozen Godavari APUs this summer, culminating in the A10-8850K. That unlocked part will feature four cores (and a four thread design) clocked at 3.7GHz base and 4.1GHz boost. It will also have a Radeon R7 graphics core based on AMD's Sea Islands GCN architecture with 512 streaming scores and 856Mhz clockspeed. Other bits include 4MB of L2 cache, DDR3 memory support up to 2,133MHz, and a 95W TDP. According to wccftech, pricing will close to the current generation A10-7850K APU at about $149. Most of the 12 new chips will be branded as AMD's A-8000 series and will remain compatible with current boards based on the FM2+ platform via BIOS updates. It's not yet known what internal optimizations AMD might be making with Godavari, though from the roadmap, the new chips will feature faster clockspeeds without bumping up TDPs. Performance should improve anywhere from 5 percent to 15 percent. Two of the new chips will be branded as Athlon parts. They include the Athlon X4 870K, a quad-core part clocked at 3.5GHz base and 3.7GHz boost with 4MB of L2 cache and a 95W TDP, and the Athlon X4 850K, also a quad-core chip but clocked at 2.9GHz base and 3.2GHz boost and with a 65W TDP. You can view the full roadmap here. Follow Paul on Google+, Twitter, and Facebook |
| Qantas Teams with Samsung to Test Virtual Reality on Airplane Flights Posted: 29 Jan 2015 08:50 AM PST  Join the mile high VR club
Imagine that you're 40,000 feet above the ground, but instead of peering out a small oval window and looking at clouds (or darkness), you turn your head and see a dingo wandering about. Don't worry, it's not on the plane's wing feasting on wires and electronics, he's in your Gear VR headset. This is what Australian airline Qantas is working towards. Along with Samsung, Qantas has launched a new trial entertainment service that gives fliers a Gear VR headset during their flight. At the outset, the initiative is being tested in Sydney and Melbourne International First Lounges, along with first class cabins on select A380 services. The trial will last for three months, after which Qantas will assess customer feedback, presumably so it can decide whether to expand the program or nix it. Qantas sees multiple possibilities here. From a marketing standpoint, the company can partner with third-parties to provide 3D content that might inspire tourism to a particular attraction or region. In fact, Qantas is already working with Tourism NT, which will provide a special 3D experience from Kakadu National Park. Whether or not they'll include dingoes in that experience isn't known, but there's plenty to experiment with there. For live-action content, Qantas has partnered with Jaunt -- it's not clear exactly what the company has in store, though it will include "destination footage." 
"From an inflight entertainment perspective, it's an industry first," said Olivia Wirth, Qantas Group Executive, Brand, Marketing & Corporate Affairs. "Qantas is committed to being at the forefront of innovation to give our passengers the very best and latest in-flight experiences, like accessing the virtual worlds of their favorite Hollywood blockbusters from the comfort of their seat 40,000 feet above the ground." The initiative will kick off in mid-February in the First Class Lounge in Sydney and Melbourne, and in mid-March on select A380 flights between Australia and Los Angeles for first class fliers. Follow Paul on Google+, Twitter, and Facebook |
| Bill Gates Talks HoloLens, Drinking Water Made From Human Waste in Third Reddit AMA Posted: 29 Jan 2015 08:18 AM PST  Microsoft co-founder talks a little of everything in his third Reddit AMA appearance
Guilty as charged -- we used the bit about drinking water made from human waste as a hook, and we'll do you a solid by not wasting any time getting right down to it. According to Bill Gates, the short answer is that it's "just like drinking any other kind of water, except that people get a little freaked out about it." He also has a sense of humor about it, which he proved by posting a photo in Reddit's Photoshop Battles sections. Moving on, there's quite a bit more to digest from Bill Gates third Reddit AMA session, including his thoughts on HoloLens, life regrets, and more. As for regrets, even billionaire philanthropists have them, and one that Bill Gates laments is not having learned any foreign languages. "I feel pretty stupid that I don't know any foreign languages. I took Latin and Greek in High School and got A's and I guess it helps my vocabulary but I wish I knew French or Arabic or Chinese," Gates said. "I keep hoping to get time to study one of these - probably French because it is the easiest. I did Duolingo for awhile but didn't keep it up. Mark Zuckerberg amazingly learned Mandarin and did a Q&A with Chinese students - incredible." Regarding HoloLens, Gates think its "pretty amazing" and calls it the "start of virtual reality." At the same time, VR technology has to address the issue of nausea. "Making the device so you don't get dizzy or nauseous is really hard -- the speed of the alignment has to be super, super fast. It will take a few years of software applications being built to realize the full promise of this," Gates said. He also shared some thoughts on Microsoft under the direction of CEO Satya Nadella, though not in great detail. He noted that Nadella gets to take a fresh view of the company, both its strengths and weaknesses, adding that "a new person gets to step back and change the focus in some ways. He is off to a great start." It's an interesting read, as he answers a ton of questions. You can check it out here, or filter just his replies by clicking here. Follow Paul on Google+, Twitter, and Facebook |
