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UK pilot union wants laser pens classified as offensive weapons
Following an incident on Sunday in which a New York-bound Virgin Atlantic flight out of Heathrow had to be diverted when the first officer was blinded by a laser beam, the British Airline Pilots Association has called for the devices to be reclassified as offensive weapons. "This is not an isolated incident," British Airline Pilots Association's general secretary Jim McAuslan told BBC News. "Aircraft are attacked with lasers at an alarming rate and with lasers with ever-increasing strength."
ICYMI: Self-cleaning fish tank, satellite launcher and more
#fivemin-widget-blogsmith-image-455867{display:none;} .cke_show_borders #fivemin-widget-blogsmith-image-455867, #postcontentcontainer #fivemin-widget-blogsmith-image-455867{width:570px;display:block;}try{document.getElementById("fivemin-widget-blogsmith-image-455867").style.display="none";}catch(e){}Today on In Case You Missed It: Anyone with goldfish is going to be into this fish tank that claims to clean itself. Virgin Galactic is testing mid-flight satellite launches with a converted 747. And a teenager built a flamethrowing UAV and how could that go wrong?
Virgin Media's new WiFi network uses customer routers
Virgin Media customers already have access to several free WiFi networks, but come September, they'll have even more options. On top of the company's own WiFi hotspots on the London Underground, and its agreement with The Cloud that mobile subscribers benefit from, Virgin Media's turning its own broadband customers into WiFi providers. In the same way that BT uses its customers' routers to bulk out its public WiFi network, Virgin will open up its Super Hub routers to share connectivity. Using an as-yet unreleased app, Virgin broadband and mobile customers will be seamlessly connected to this new WiFi network whenever a hotspot is in range.
Virgin's new in-flight WiFi is strong enough to stream video
Virgin America has announced that it's teaming up with satellite internet company ViaSat to provide the fastest in-flight WiFi of any commercial carrier. The new system uses a hybrid Ku-/Ka-band receiver to deliver an internet pipeline eight to 10 times faster than anything else on the market. The Ka-band alone offers a whopping 140 gigabits-per-second throughput. It's being installed on the company's new fleet of A320 airliners and will be put into service on Hawaii-bound routes starting next year. That alone is a big accomplishment as the rest of the airline's fleet have to rely on ground-based WiFi connections, which don't work over the ocean's expanse. Virgin touts that this in-flight connection will be equivalent to an average home broadband link and users are expected to use it as such, streaming videos, watching the carrier's 18 channels of DishNetwork and surfing the internet with abandon -- just at 35,000 feet.
Airbus to build the world's biggest satellite constellation
The OneWeb startup founded by Richard Branson's Virgin and Qualcomm, has announced that it has awarded European aerospace giant Airbus a multi-billion dollar production contract for internet-beaming satellites. The company aims provide connectivity to underserved communities around the world through an enormous constellation of small satellites -- each one only weighing about 150kg and costing under $500,000 to produce. Of the 900 units that Airbus is contracted to create, 700 of them will be launched by 2018. Once in orbit they'll create a constellation 10 times larger than any other satellite set currently in orbit. The other 200 will be held on-planet as replacements and backups. Airbus will reportedly produce 10 initial satellites at its Toulouse manufacturing facility before moving the operation to an undisclosed American facility for the remainder of the program.
Virgin America's in-flight entertainment will run on Android
To call most in-flight entertainment systems old and crusty would be generous when even the more advanced systems typically pale in comparison to your laptop or tablet. Virgin America might just narrow that gap, though. It's rolling out a beta version of its Red seatback platform that runs Android on a multi-touch screen, much like many mobile devices. The modern input gives you more sophisticated flight maps and games than you're used to seeing in mid-air -- you can play Pac-Man while you're waiting for your meal, if you like. The devices also have three times as much storage as before, which will let you watch 720p videos including Netflix staples like House of Cards and Orange is the New Black.
Cox is bringing VOD to select TiVo boxes in July
Cox and TiVo have been making noise about joining forces and making the cable provider's extensive Video-On-Demand catalog available on retail TiVo set-tops for nearly five years now. Following a recent post by ZatzNotFunny, however, Cox confirmed earlier today that the integration will finally be taking place in "early July." But don't get excited just yet -- the initial rollout will only be available to specific IP-connected customers in Orange County, California.
Virgin TiVo boxes can now access media stored in the cloud
Virgin Media customers might be at least vaguely familiar with "Cloud," the company's thoughtfully named cloud storage service. Anyone on Branson's books gets 5GB free, with up to nine other members of the household getting the same amount of space to upload files and back-up mobile devices to. It's just one of those handy customer perks, with paid tiers for those who want more storage. Today, however, it becomes that much more useful with the launch of the Cloud app for Virgin Media TiVo boxes. Using the set-top box app, you can access all the pictures, videos and music you have stored in the ether on your living room TV, with just a few clicks of the remote. Might be time to take them up on that 5GB of free space, eh?
Virgin Media claims its new wireless hub is the fastest in the land
Even if your home is in the best area for fibre broadband, and you're paying for the fastest speeds, a cheap router can let you down. Slow and patchy wireless connectivity is commonplace in the UK, in part because internet service providers (ISPs) give their subscribers ropey hardware to plug into the wall. Virgin Media claims its new Super Hub 2ac will make a difference though. The combined modem and router offers both 2.4GHz and 5GHz wireless channels, with the latter supporting speeds of up to 1300Mbps. It leverages the 802.11ac wireless standard, though should you prefer some good old-fashioned cables there are also four Gigabit Ethernet ports waiting in reserve.
Richard Branson hints at Virgin electric cars to rival Tesla
The Virgin giganto-brand already encompasses a media empire, a few airlines, wireless phone service, some hotels and an honest-to-goodness space program -- why wouldn't it churn out some electric cars for us, too? CEO Richard Branson hinted as much during a chat with Bloomberg, noting that Virgin's already got a team plugging away on high-speed electric car that'll participate in the Formula E racing circuit, but here's the bit that everyone's seized on: "We have teams of people working on electric cars," Branson said. "So you never know-you may find Virgin competing with the Tesla in the car business as we do in the space business. We will see what happens."
Virgin's small-cell networks to improve 4G coverage in the UK's biggest cities
The UK government has been pretty vocal about carriers needing to improve network coverage in rural areas, but that's not to say everything's hunky-dory in some of the UK's biggest cities. That's why Virgin Media Business -- the part of Branson's empire that deals with broadband infrastructure and the like -- is combining its fibre network with wireless expert Arqiva's knowhow to improve 4G coverage in cities including London, Birmingham, Manchester, Leeds, Bradford and Southampton. To do this, the pair will install small-cell technology (which, incidentally, EE is using to bring coverage to underserved rural regions) in "street assets" such as lampposts and CCTV cameras. These mini-masts will increase network capacity and improve 4G coverage in areas where buildings can get in the way of the signal. When the small-cell systems are up and running, the idea is carriers will pay Virgin and Arqiva to access them. That should be an easy sell, however, since they can immediately improve 4G services for their customers, no new infrastructure investment required.
A night in Richard Branson's state-of-the-art Virgin Hotel
Richard Branson knows how to make a first impression. The first thing I saw when I arrived at Virgin's debut hotel was a statuesque blonde in a bright-red trench coat stepping out of a matching-hued Tesla, with a photographer documenting the whole ordeal. The photographer was there for glamour shots, naturally, and the Model S serves as the hotel's house car that'll drop guests off anywhere within a 2-mile radius. However, it wasn't in service just yet. Virgin bills the hotel as "brilliant," and to see just how smart it actually was, I spent a night in the premiere Chicago location. Given that the inn is run by the same company that wants to make us all space tourists with Virgin Galactic, I suppose I shouldn't have been surprised by anything during my stay -- least of all, an electric sports sedan waiting out front.
Sky and Virgin Media have a lot to say about how much sport should be on TV
There's never been more sport for Brits to watch on TV. That should be cause for celebration, but there's a problem: broadcasters are fighting for the rights to show different leagues and tournaments, which is locking sports away behind different satellite and internet TV services. Want to watch every Premier League fixture? You'll have to fork out for both BT Sport and Sky Sports, or make do with the highlights on Match of the Day. There's even talk of the rugby Six Nations competition going pay TV only.
Virgin Mobile first prepaid US carrier with LTE data sharing plans
If your family can't agree on anything, a mobile data sharing plan on a two-year contract may not be the best idea. Virgin Mobile USA will now let you part company quickly if need be with its latest offering: prepaid 4G family data sharing plans, now available at Walmart. You can go month-to-month for $65 with two lines sharing 4GB or up to $115 with four lines and 12GB total of LTE data. The latter plan works out to a tempting $28.75 per month per person, with each member getting a 3GB share per month, provided nobody pigs out on data. T-Mobile, AT&T and others offer no-contract plans already, though all are post-paid, month-by-month services. The possible negative to Virgin's prepaid plan is that you'll be on Sprint's mobile network, which is far and away the slowest in the US. Update: As pointed out by a reader, Virgin is far from the first no-contract carrier, as AT&T, T-Mobile and others have shared no-contract plans. However, Virgin claims it's the first prepaid carrier with such an offering, so we've updated the post with that info. Thanks Seth! [Image credit: AFP/Getty Images]
Virgin Media now offers all Sky Sports channels in HD
If you have Virgin TV hooked up in your home and you're equally obsessed with sport and pixels, you might find a couple of surprises the next time you reach for the remote. To celebrate the New Year, Virgin has just added Sky News HD and Sky Sports News HQ HD to its channel lineup, giving viewers higher clarity headlines, highlights and, of course, make-up smeared newsreaders and pundits to ogle at. The new additions also mean that, for the first time, Virgin is able to offer all Sky Sports channels in high-definition. While the two news channels are available as part of Virgin's regular TV packs, you'll still have to pay extra for Sky Sports 1, 2, 3, 4, 5 and Sky Sports F1. They're available for £17 per month, or as a collection for £27.25 per month, should you be craving some extra live kick-offs on your tellybox.
Virgin Oceanic pauses its deep sea exploration plans
If you were hoping to see Virgin Oceanic visit the deepest parts of Earth's oceans, you'll have to put those dreams on hold. The company has confirmed that it's at least temporarily dropping plans to make five dives using its DeepFlight Challenger craft. Virgin isn't saying just what prompted the decision, but founder Sir Richard Branson alluded to a cancellation in August. He stressed the importance of "knowing when to change tack" and that Virgin Oceanic was "widening its focus" to work on more accessible ocean exploration. In short, DeepFlight wasn't panning out.
Virgin Galactic's ready to resume test flights to space
We've been waiting for Virgin Galactic to begin ferrying passengers to the edge of space for what seems like forever, but now it looks as if we might be getting close. CEO George Whitesides has announced that test-flights of the SpaceShipTwo are about to recommence, after spending almost all of 2014 rooted firmly to the ground. The hold-up was caused by the company's decision to switch to a different brand of rocket fuel that, while improving the vehicle's performance, forced the team to begin engine testing from scratch. Now that the necessary certifications have been granted, we can expect to hear much more from the company as it tries to make Sir Richard Branson's promise of flights in 2015 a reality.
Virgin Mobile updates plans, including $20 a month with no mobile data
Virgin Mobile has built its user base by offering no-contract smartphone plans for people who don't want to buy a subsidized device. Now they're slashing prices with the assumption that some people don't need data unless they're on a Wi-Fi network. Say hello to the $20 a month mobile plan that includes 300 minutes of talk time, unlimited texting, and no data unless you're on Wi-Fi. The plan changes don't stop there. The $35 tier now gets to choose between unlimited talk and text, coupled with 250MB of high-speed 3G/4G data or 300 minutes of talk time, unlimited texting, and 2.5GB of data. Virgin's $45 and $55 plans seem best suited for users who often travel between countries. Each plan offers unlimited text and talk, with unlimited international texting and 100 international minutes thrown in on top. At $45 users get 1GB of mobile data, while $55 nets them 3GB of data each month. What do you think? Does the spread of Wi-Fi in public life negate the need for a data plan for some users? It is, after all, still possible to use GPS and mapping services without a data plan, but it requires you to download the maps you'll be using in advance and noticeably slows down service. We look forward to seeing how many users pick up the new budget plan from Virgin. Perhaps we'll all be surprised.
Virgin Media's TiVo design makeover begins with an updated iOS app
For the first time in four years, Virgin Media is going to give its TiVo user interface a much-needed facelift. Gone is the rich red that previously adorned menus, replaced with a new "plum" colour (purple to the untrained eye), that's expected to reach set-top boxes in October. As we noted last week, Virgin is bringing its TV Anywhere apps in line with the new UI, and luckily for iOS users, that rollout begins today. While you'll first notice the colour change when you update, Virgin Media has also made a couple of tweaks to the interface to fall in line with the iOS 7/iOS 8 aesthetic. Those aging rounded buttons have have swapped gradients for a flat white design and the updated menus help give the app a more modern feel. Unfortunately for Android users, Virgin says the revamped app is still a few months from completion, but the company has released a small update to include support for more Android 4.4 (KitKat) devices.
Samsung teases the US by bringing the Galaxy Alpha to Canada
Samsung is being a bit cruel to Americans jonesing for the Galaxy Alpha. The company has announced that its upscale Android smartphone will launch just north of the border (that is, Canada) on September 26th through Bell and Virgin Mobile. There's no mention of Virgin's pricing, but Bell is already taking orders at either $150 CAD on a two-year contract or a pricey $700 if you go contract-free. This isn't an exclusive, though, so you should expect the Alpha to make its way to other Canuck providers in the "coming months." As for the US? Sorry, there's still no official word on that yet -- barring success with an importer, you'll just have to sit tight.
