New Florence. New Renaissance.

5G C-Band and aviation concerns

Many of my followers are frequent flyers and most are addicted to their mobile devices, so should be interested in an issue the WSJ summarizes which has pitched the airlines and telcos into a screaming contest, especially when it comes to US airports

“At issue is whether the new 5G signals affect aircraft equipment that helps planes land in difficult weather conditions and avoid crashes. The equipment, called radar or radio altimeters, uses radio frequencies to measure the distance between aircraft and the ground.

Aviation officials worry the cellular frequencies that telecom companies plan to activate could interfere with altimeters, potentially throwing off readings the devices take and endangering planes. The 5G service will operate in a frequency known as the C-band, which is close to the airwaves the altimeters use.”

The article also goes into compromises Verizon and AT&T have made including buffer zones around cell towers near airports. 

New Scientist explains why the issue is especially applicable to the US

"There is no single part of the electromagnetic spectrum that 5G occupies. Some countries are using 600 megahertz to 900 megahertz, which isn’t dissimilar to 4G. Some are placing it between 2.3 gigahertz and 4.7 gigahertz, which boosts data speed somewhat. And others are using 24 gigahertz to 47 gigahertz, which requires more towers but offers even higher data speeds. In many cases a network will use a mix of these. In the US, the frequencies allocated for 5G are closer to those used by aircraft than those allocated by the EU. Radio altimeters operate in the 4.2 gigahertz to 4.4 gigahertz band, and the US has set aside a portion of the spectrum right up to the lower band of that for 5G. In the UK, the comparable band ends at 4 gigahertz and in the EU, it ends at 3.8 gigahertz."

Pilot Juan Browne explains the concerns in 30 minutes of geeky detail. Bear in mind he is presenting the aviation pov. 

Rural broadband options evolve

To augment coverage, Aristotle is turning increasingly to Citizens Broadband Radio Service (CBRS), a wireless spectrum historically used by U.S. Navy aircraft carriers for radar transmissions. In recent years the Federal Communications Commission has opened a slice of this spectrum for commercial use, enabling Aristotle to beam broadband as far as 6 miles to distant Arkansans over signal stations—installed atop cell towers, barns, even a prison—that are sort of like massive Wi-Fi routers. The network is fast enough to stream movies and costs a fraction of what fiber costs to build. “We are one of the poorest states in the country, and the Delta is the poorest area of the state,” Bowles says. “If we can solve the problem here, we can solve it anywhere.”

BusinessWeek (sub required)

 

Apple iPhone 12 teardown

No chance I am tearing down my new 12 Pro. It has Belkin Ultraglass to shield the screen and a clear case to protect the body. However, I am glad there are others who have torn theirs down.  

The teardown from Fomalhaut Techno Solutions shows a bill of materials of around $406. It shows the most expensive components of this iPhones models are undoubtedly the Qualcomm X55 5G modem which cost around $90 (estimated). After this, it’s the OLED display from Samsung. The estimated price for this Samsung OLED display is around $70. around $90. Deep in the report, we got the production cost for the A14 Bionic chipset is said to be around $40. 

The iFixit video shows the teardown of the phone with an updated 3 camera system that includes Lidar, a new flat-edged design, an updated processor and 5G network support.