UK telecommunications regulator, Ofcom has kicked off a rather impressive exploration of "white space" frequencies. Google joins Microsoft, Spectrum Bridge, BT and many other organisations to test a variety of white space applications over the next six months. These include rural broadband delivery, HDTV broadcasting, traffic management, early flood assessments and more.
So what exactly are white spaces? They're parts of the frequency band that aren't actively being used by digital TV or wireless systems. Creating a centralised database of white space usage will enable Ofcom and other agencies to approve devices that connect to said database, select and available frequency and regulate power levels to avoid interference.
"Over the next six months, around 20 public and private organisations will be participating in Ofcom’s pilot by running trials to test a variety of innovative applications – ranging from sensors that monitor the behaviour of cities, to dynamic information for road users and rural broadband in hard to reach places."
Making use of airwaves that are currently unused would open up new possibilities for a number of applications, which participating organisations are collaborating to work towards perfecting. What roles are Google and Microsoft playing in the spectrum exploration? The former is a database provider, while Redmond will look to help provide free broadband access in Glasgow Scotland, an area where broadband is particularly poor.
As well as helping out the Glaswegians, Microsoft will also set up a network of sensors for detecting atmospheric conditions and relay them to a live map. It's possible to solve issues mentioned already and more due to the low frequency, which makes itself attractive due to the range, speed and ability to overcome obstacles (hills, walls, trees, etc).
The white spaces will also be utilised to meet the UK's growing demand that's currently being placed on wireless infrastructure. Ofcom states that we could be looking at a solution to connect up to 50 billion devices that are forecast to be wirelessly connected to the internet by 2020. Cool stuff, we'll look forward to seeing some of the results.
Head on over to the Ofcom website for more details.
Source: Ofcom, via: SlashGear
Is the RTX 3080 or the RX 6800 a better GPU for your next PC build?
Can't decide whether you should go with the NVIDIA RTX 3080 or the AMD RX 6800 for your next PC? We compare them to help you make the right choice.
Surface Laptop 4 specs leak online ahead of its announcement
Leaks recently emerged with specs for the Surface Laptop 4. The leaks include the processors that it will run, the sizes it will come in, and other aspects of the device.
Review: Acer's Predator X38 is the ultimate monitor for work and gaming
Acer's Predator X38 is a massive ultrawide monitor fast enough for high-end gaming and accurate enough for color-sensitive work. It's the ultimate package, but it doesn't come cheap.
These are all the best AMD Ryzen-powered laptops
Looking for a new laptop but you'd prefer to have something powered by AMD Ryzen rather than Intel? The choice isn't as wide, but fortunately, there are some excellent notebooks out there to choose from.