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Scientists want to blast space debris with frickin' lasers
To combat the increasingly dense layer of dead satellites and miscellaneous space debris that are enshrouding our planet, no idea -- nets, lassos, even ballistic gas clouds -- seems too far-fetched to avoid. Now, an international team of researchers led by Japan's Riken research institute has put forward what may be the most ambitious plan to date. They propose blasting an estimated 3,000 tons of space junk out of orbit with a fiber optic laser mounted on the International Space Station.
Scientists eye secure communications by slowing down light
We've already seen what fiber optics can do for internet speeds, and it looks like the medium could be used for quantum communications too. See, as EurekAlert tells it, scientists from the Vienna University of Technology have figured out a way to modify the material so it can be used to control the speed of light. The researchers successfully grafted cesium atoms to the fibers, allowing them to slow light down from its typical 671 million MPH pace to around 112 MPH (180 KPH). The researchers were able to bring the light to a complete stop and then restart it later, too -- something EurekAlert says in a pretty major step toward quantum internet. It'd be much more secure than what we have currently as well, given that professor Arno Rauschenbeutel says that quantum physics at its very core allows for a connection between sender and receiver and anyone tapping in won't go unnoticed. [Image credit: Shutterstock]
AT&T's gigabit internet arrives in Apple's backyard
It's official: AT&T is offering full-fledged gigabit internet service in Silicon Valley before Google. After months of teasing, the telecom has launched its U-verse GigaPower service in Cupertino, Apple's home turf -- and a quick drive away from Google's headquarters, we'd add. Get ready to pony up if you're in the area, though. Gigabit access costs $110 per month by itself, and that's if you agree to AT&T's Internet Preferences (read: targeted ads). In other cities, it costs as little as $70. Still, this may hit the sweet spot if you're a local tech worker who just can't wait to download the latest test releases. [Image credit: Franco Folini, Flickr]
Google Fiber is launching in Salt Lake City
You no longer have to head to Provo if you want Google Fiber in Utah -- Google has revealed that it's bringing its gigabit internet access to the state's capital, Salt Lake City. The company is short on details, but it won't have a ready-made fiber network to use this time around. SLC's fiber network is still in the design phase, much like those in Atlanta, Nashville and North Carolina, so you could be waiting a while before you have a chance to sign up. Nonetheless, this is a good sign. Even if you don't live in the area, it suggests that Google is picking up the pace on its once-cautious Fiber rollouts and is more likely to bring extra-fast data to your city.
AT&T's gigabit internet service arrives in Google Fiber's original city
Need further proof that AT&T's GigaPower internet service is meant chiefly as a response to Google Fiber? You're looking at it. AT&T has launched its gigabit fiber option in the Kansas City area (both in Kansas state and Missouri), the original Google Fiber city. The monthly rate is the same as in other GigaPower regions (a Google-like $70 if you don't mind targeted ads, $99 if you do), but AT&T is counting on availability as its ace in the hole. It's using established networks and regulatory advantages to roll out in places that its competitor can't easily reach -- you can get GigaPower in Leawood, for example, while Google isn't allowed to hang its fiber on local poles. While AT&T doesn't shadow its rival all the time (it's offering access in cities Google hasn't even considered yet), it's clear that the telecom giant wants to avoid conceding ground. [Image credit: AP Photo/Orlin Wagner]
Google Fiber is growing slowly, by design
"Keep Austin Weird." It's the proud slogan of the Texas capital, and it wears it well, especially with its eclectic mix of culture, history and technology. Pretty soon, Austin will have one more reason to be proud: it'll be one of a few cities in America to carry Google Fiber, the search giant's experimental foray as a broadband provider. "It is, as always, step by step," Google Fiber head of project management Adam Smith tells me. Smith is sitting across from me in Austin's new Google Fiber space, hesitantly explaining how Google isn't very experienced at this whole "internet provider" thing it's been doing. On paper, Austin is the third city to support Google's internet service, but reality is less black and white. "Provo was an acquisition," Smith reminds me. "This is really the second organic city... ...it's sort of also saying that this is also new for us."
Google Fiber's new gear lets you watch more shows on more TVs
If gigabit internet isn't reason enough to tempt Austinites to sign up for Google Fiber, they can chew on this: Austin Texas will be the first Fiber city to enjoy the benefits of Google's latest in-home hardware devices. Today Google officially revealed its new Fiber router, a single unit that consolidates the existing network and storage boxes into one device. This is the same router that rolled out to Kansas City residents in Google's beta program earlier this year -- but there's a little more going on here than mere device consolidation.
Google Fiber sign-ups go live in Austin
If you've been champing at the bit waiting for Google Fiber's Austin launch, today is your big day. Google is now taking sign-ups for gigabit internet access in the southern and southeastern parts of town. As in Kansas City, it'll cost $70 for data alone and $130 if you want TV on top. Other Austinites will get their chance in the future, Google says. Just be ready to act quickly if you're eligible -- there's a sign-up deadline for each qualifying neighborhood, so you risk missing out on Google's super-quick service if you're not careful.
Researchers twist lasers to beam data across Vienna
Twisted laser beams have been used to send up to 2.5 terabits per second of data over fiber-optic cables, but the technique has never been worked very well over the air. Researchers in Vienna managed to use those bizarro quantum laser properties, also known as orbital angular momentum (OAM), to beam wireless data. Using a special lens, they twisted a green laser beam into 16 patterns, and transmitted it to a receiver about 2 miles away. The pulses corresponded to pixels from grey-scale images, which were reassembled using a special camera at the other end. Though it took awhile for the pixelated images to arrive (see the video below), the researchers think it could one day be used to send unhackable data all the way to space.
A single fiber strand could carry the world's internet traffic
Researchers in the US and Netherlands have managed to transmit data at 255Tbps across a single strand of fiber cable over a kilometer (0.6 miles), about 2,500 times faster than any commercial fiber. They used a so-called multicore cable with seven separate channels, but the hardware alone didn't account for the speed. They also squeezed 50 carriers down the seven cores, cranking each up to 5.1 Tbps using "spatial multiplexing." None of that tech alone is new, but the net result of that was 255Tbps (31.8 Terabytes per second), enough to handle the world's peak internet traffic, according to ExtremeTech. Don't expect a speed boost at home anytime soon -- there's no way to mass produce the cables yet, and current infrastructure wouldn't support it anyway. But at least you can look forward to a day when you could download all 317,060 movies in the IMDB in two and half hours.
Google Fiber proves it's serious about fast internet with a new leader
Worried that Google Fiber would just be a momentary fascination for the folks in Mountain View? Don't be. Google has confirmed to the Wall Street Journal that it recently hired Dennis Kish, one of Qualcomm's bigger senior vice presidents, to lead its gigabit internet efforts. While it's not clear why Kish came onboard beyond his "operational expertise," he's no stranger to managing big tech projects. Among other work, he played key roles in both Qualcomm's Mirasol display efforts and ST-Ericsson's connectivity business. That kind of know-how could be crucial given Google's expansion plans, especially if rumors of mobile phone service pan out. It's too soon to gauge Kish's influence, but a high-profile hire like this suggests that Fiber's super-fast data service is only going to get bigger -- and that your local telecom giant may well get some genuine competition. [Image credit: Neerav Bhatt, Flickr]
Google backs an undersea cable that will give the internet a big speed boost
The internet is quickest when you have a direct connection to the sites you're trying to reach, but that's a daunting challenge in the Pacific -- undersea network cables can cost hundreds of millions of dollars. It's therefore good to hear that Google and a host of telecom giants (China Mobile, China Telecom, Global Transit, KDDI and SingTel) are backing FASTER, a $300 million fiber optic cable that runs between Japan and the US. As the name implies, it's all about speeding up data transfers between Asia and the Americas; the cable should offer a whopping 60 terabits per second of bandwidth between the two regions, which makes even Google's gigabit home internet service look puny by comparison. You won't see the difference until FASTER is finished in the second quarter of 2016, but it promises to improve the internet as a whole when it's ready. Don't be surprised if foreign multiplayer games and video streams get noticeably smoother within a couple of years. [Image credit: US Pacific Fleet, Flickr]
Danish researchers achieve fastest single-laser data transfer speeds ever
Looking for wicked fast internet? You may want to move to Denmark: researchers in DTU Photonics' High-Speed Optical Communications Group (HSOC) have set a new world record for single-transmitter data transfer. Using a new kind of optical fiber, the team was able to achieve transfer speeds of 43 terabits per second. Not familiar with bit-based statistics? Try this: that's more than five 1TB HDDs worth of data moved in less than one second. So, fast. The record was set using only a single laser transmitter, but faster speeds can (and have) been obtained using setups with hundreds of lasers. You can see the group's official announcement at the source link below, assuming you can read North Germanic languages. [Shutterstock / Kubais]
Google's not bringing its super-fast fiber internet to the UK anytime soon
Google's only really dipping its toe in the fiber infrastucture racket at the moment, but plans are afoot to slowly expand its Fiber gigabit internet service elsewhere. According to a report from The Telegraph, the search giant is even looking as far afield as the UK, and was discussing the possibility with local network provider CityFibre. Its sources claim CityFibre has since gotten cold feet on the basis it could jeopardize a deal it has with Sky and TalkTalk to bring gigabit internet to parts of York and beyond. While that all sounds plausible and we hate to crush the dreams of speed freaks, Google has told us it's never had any such plans.
AT&T hopes to fight Google Fiber with gigabit internet in more cities
AT&T isn't letting Google Fiber's expansion plans go unanswered. The telecom giant has announced that it's looking at bringing its GigaPower internet service to as many as 21 additional big cities and their nearby municipalities. There's some potential for direct competition with Google, as both companies are looking into gigabit access for key urban areas like Atlanta, San Antonio and San Jose. However, it's clear that AT&T is taking some initiative here -- it's also exploring rollouts in Chicago, Los Angeles and other hubs that aren't currently on its rival's roadmap.
San Antonio clears Google Fiber's legal hurdles ahead of a possible deal
San Antonio really wants Google Fiber. Really badly. So badly, in fact, that its City Council has approved leases for Google's networking nodes despite the absence of official rollout plans. The Texas town hopes that removing this legal obstacle in advance will make it a prime candidate for Fiber's next big launch. Google still has some evaluation to do before it can even consider a San Antonio deployment, so locals shouldn't dream of what they'll do with gigabit internet access just yet. However, it's not hard to see why the city is so optimistic -- even the hint of a Fiber launch tends to spur competition and improve speeds for everyone. [Image credit: Nan Palmero, Flickr]
Google Fiber explores bringing gigabit internet to 34 new cities
Google has only made plans to roll out gigabit internet access in three US cities so far, but it's not content with stopping there. The company is now exploring the feasibility of deploying Google Fiber in 34 cities located around the major urban hubs of Atlanta, Charlotte, Nashville, Phoenix, Portland (Oregon), Raleigh-Durham, Salt Lake City, San Antonio and San Jose. In each case, Google will work with local officials to both map out its potential network and create a checklist of requirements. The search giant would like to bring Fiber to every one of the cities if possible. Be careful not to get your hopes up, though -- Google warns that it might not be practical to offer service in every territory. Even so, the potential for expansion should prove comforting to Americans worried that they're running out of choices for broadband providers.
Seattle kills Gigabit Squared's fiber internet rollout before it even starts
We knew that Gigabit Squared's fiber-to-the-home rollout was facing money troubles, but it's now clear that those problems were just too much to bear. Seattle's newly elected Mayor Ed Murray tells the Puget Sound Business Journal that his city's agreement to launch public internet through Gigabit has fallen apart before it could even take on its first customers. The official isn't ruling out a future deal, but he doesn't have any alternative providers lined up. Meanwhile, hope springs eternal at Gigabit Squared -- the company "look[s] forward" to speaking with Murray about future plans. Before it does, it may want to look into paying its bills.
AT&T's 300 Mbps internet launches in Austin, starting at $70 with targeted ads
Right on time, AT&T has launched its 300 Mbps GigaPower internet service in Austin. The fast U-Verse tier is available now to residents in "eligible" neighborhoods, while others can vote fiberhood-style for a deployment in their area. A free upgrade to 1 Gbps is still due sometime in 2014. Just don't expect a traditional approach to pricing. To get GigaPower service at a Google Fiber-rivaling $70 per month, you'll have to let AT&T target its web ads based on your browsing and search histories; Austinites uncomfortable with such tracking will have to shell out $99 per month for otherwise identical speeds. We imagine that some won't like the ad-subsidized business model, but it may be a small price to pay for locals who aren't willing to wait for Google's take on high-speed fiber.
C Spire kicks off pre-registration for its Mississippi gigabit fiber service
C Spire, the regional wireless carrier with gigabit-sized dreams, has just announced that residents in nine Mississippi cities can now pre-register for its home fiber program. The southern US-based company recently revealed its plans to join Google, AT&T and others by taking a similar tack to Mountain View: making municipalities convince them they needed it. Candidates will need to put down a $10 deposit for the service, which C Spire says will run $80 for internet only and up to $160 for internet, home phone and cable TV services. During the ramp up, denizens of the candidate "fiberhoods" will be able to view progress maps, which will turn green when pre-registration rates hit 35-45 percent. Once a critical number of the 80 neighborhoods are on board, construction will begin. If you're in one of the finalist cities you can check your eligibility and sign up if you feel the need for speed -- otherwise, count on some neighborly peer-pressure.
