fiber

Sony said to be developing online TV service

Word on the street is that Sony is creating a Net-connected multichannel television service that could roll out as soon as this year, according to Variety. Purportedly, the company is in talks with at least two big content companies about channel licensing.

Such a service would put Sony in direct competition with both satellite and cable TV, as well as other tech companies that are branching out into the television market, such as Intel; Google, with Google Fiber; and Dish.

This isn't the first time rumors have floated that Sony has been looking to develop a TV service. In … Read more

Behold the $30,000 high-tech Scrabble board

Prepare to witness one of the most expensive board games ever made.

When the Prague Mind Sports Festival kicks off December 1, gamers can play on a high-tech Scrabble setup unlike any other. The festival -- which hosts tournaments for the popular word game plus bridge, backgammon, poker, League of Legends, and Counter Strike: Global Offensive -- introduced to the world this week a carbon fiber Scrabble system with LED lighting that cost more than 20,000 pounds ($31,732) to create. … Read more

Google inaugurates its super-high-speed Internet service

After years in the making, Google announced today that it has started connecting people in Kansas City, Kan., to its ultra high-speed fiber-to-the-home Internet service. Acting as guinea pigs of sorts, these locals will be the first people in the world who get to test out Google's new service and decide whether it lives up to the hype.

When Google first announced its nationwide Google Fiber project in 2010, around 1,100 U.S. towns and cities applied to get in on the deal. When Kansas City won out, Google Access General Manager Kevin Lo said, "new high-speed … Read more

Ford seeks to lighten cars, improve mpg, with carbon fiber

Exotic cars, such as the McLaren MP4-12C, boast lightweight bodies made entirely of carbon fiber-reinforced panels, yet a demonstration by Ford of a carbon fiber hood suggests that mass commercialization of this advanced material will trickle out on a piece-by-piece basis.

Carbon fiber-reinforced components can weigh less than half of their steel equivalents, while exhibiting similar strength. However, carbon fiber is currently too time-consuming and expensive to produce for use in affordable, mass market cars. BMW currently builds a carbon fiber roof over the cabin of its M3 performance vehicle, and is working with Daimler on developing a practical production … Read more

Time Warner Cable, AT&T want Google's Kansas City deals, report says

Google's special treatment in Kansas City has caught the attention of its competitors.

According to The Wall Street Journal, which obtained a copy of agreements on file with the city government, Google was offered everything from free office space to a team of government employees "dedicated" to the development of its Gigabit Internet service. In addition, the company is able to use all city "assets and infrastructure -- including fiber, buildings, land, and computer tools" for free, the Journal has learned.

Although the deal was great for Google, it has become an issue for competitors … Read more

Apple once again rumored to be eyeing carbon fiber

Apple is once again rumored to be looking into carbon fiber as a material for use in a future product. Citing a source within a Japanese company that produces carbon fiber, Japanese Apple blog Macotakara today says Apple has ordered up "large" samples of the product.

The outlet didn't into specifics about where that carbon fiber might be headed, short of noting that Apple has filed for patents that make mention of carbon fiber, and is on the lookout for a senior engineer to work on carbon in Japan.

Rumors about Apple and carbon fiber have been … Read more

Google Fiber casts wide net in Kansas City

In just six weeks, nearly 90 percent of eligible neighborhoods around Kansas City have signed up for Google Fiber.

The company wrote in a blog post yesterday that at least 180 out of 202 "fiberhoods" have already qualified for the super-high-speed Internet service. Google says that it's still processing verification requests, and should be able to hand over the final list later this week.

Google opened up its pre-registration for Fiber six weeks ago. The 1-gigabit-per-second service will cost customers $70 per month. The fast speeds are available for both uploads and downloads, and come with 1 … Read more

Time Warner Cable invests $25M to build 1Gbps fiber network

Time Warner Cable announced Tuesday a $25 million investment to expand its fiber broadband network to businesses in New York City.

The new fiber network will be built in Brooklyn as well as to parts of Manhattan such as the Financial and Flatiron districts. Last year, Time Warner and the city of New York reached a franchise agreement in which Time Warner said it would expand its fiber network to areas that don't currently have access.

The new service will offer speeds up to 1 gigabit per second, the company said in a press release (not yet available online). … Read more

Google Fiber gets a fast start in Kansas City

After just one week on the market, Google Fiber is taking off in Kansas City (in both Kansas and Missouri), where 46 of the designated neighborhoods -- or "fiberhoods" -- have qualified for the service, the company reports on its Google Fiber site.

Google announced its fiber-to-the-home network last week, which offers speeds of up to one gigabit per second and a new TV service. Google said it would prioritize construction of the network in neighborhoods -- so-called "fiberhoods" -- in which residents show the most interest. It set up a website where residents interested in … Read more