Connect with us

Technology

WP HVAC Company alters tactics to provide rural customers with high-speed internet

Published

on

Speakers at a conference conducted on Tuesday night at Great Rivers Distributing in Pomona discussed the past of the Heritage Business Park, where Great Rivers and many other companies are housed, as well as the prospects for high-speed internet in the region.

Owner of Current Inc. Danny Thomas discussed the second of those subjects and introduced employee Alan Stocki as the team’s subject matter expert for its online services.

The company was once a provider of heating and cooling systems, but it has subsequently expanded to include fibre optic internet installation. When Stocki inquired about installing equipment on five towers approximately six years ago, a reputable service provider in California informed her that it was a lofty objective. He proceeded by saying that since then, 262 towers across five counties have had equipment installed by Current Inc.

Stocki said that during the coronavirus shutdown in spring 2020, he painfully realised that his family’s requirement for an improvement in internet speed and availability wasn’t being satisfied because children were home from school and sharing the bandwidth.

He added that it was a major issue for businesses like Air Evac whose staff members were finding it challenging to work from home due to sluggish internet speeds.

By doing their research and taking a risk, he and Thomas set out on a mission to find a solution to that problem. In certain cases, they collaborated with Howell Oregon Electric Cooperative to put fibre optic cable on cooperative poles in order to serve rural clients.

With its internet service, Current Inc. started providing public utilities roughly two years ago, according to Stocki.

According to Stocki, a customer might pay to have their own wireless internet tower installed and then receive a discount on their internet service bill by sharing the service with neighbours who are within the tower’s broadcast range. In some cases, this would give access to an extra five to ten users.

That was OK, he added, but fibre optic, with a transmission speed of 1,000 megabytes per second, is superior.

In March, the company was given approximately $9.46 million to help bring high speed internet to more than 1,600 single family homes, 80 businesses, and 33 anchor institutions in Oregon County. Anchor institutions are defined as public entities such as schools, hospitals, and government offices. The company participated in a competitive bidding process to receive federal funds for internet expansion.

The goal of the expansion, according to Stocki, is to specifically reach the underserved in small towns and rural areas like the Ozarks, who are frequently ignored because it is less cost-effective for many companies to build the infrastructure to provide service to a population where there may only be a few customers per mile than in a more densely populated city.

“At a cost of about $14,000 per mile, you’re never going to see a payback,” said Stocki. It was crucial for the government to step in and make this possible for the inhabitants since “no company in their right mind is going to come in and lay out that infrastructure.”

He stated that the company’s policy of being good neighbours and assisting in the solutions to the problems caused by a lack of high speed internet connection included investing the money made back into the community.

He stated that Current Inc. has installed fibre optic cable on “thousands” of HOEC poles with a 10 year plan to keep extending its fibre optic internet accessibility into inaccessible regions of  Ozark County.

Continue Reading
Advertisement

Technology

OPPO Reno 13 series will debut in China shortly, with India following in 2025

Published

on

According to reports, OPPO, a Chinese firm, is getting ready to introduce its Reno 13 series smartphones in its native nation this month. As per 91Mobiles, the OPPO Reno 13 and Reno 13 Pro models are anticipated to debut in China on November 25. The Indian launch is probably set for January 2025. The smartphone series that debuted in July of this year, the Reno 12 series, will be replaced by the Reno 13 series.

Information regarding the specifications of the new Reno 13 and Reno 13 Pro smartphones has leaked online, although the business has not yet confirmed the launch date. These are the specifics:

OPPO Reno 13 Series: Anticipations

It is anticipated that the OPPO Reno 13 Pro would have a 6.78-inch, quad-curved OLED screen with 1.5K resolution. In contrast, the slightly smaller 6.7-inch display with FHD+ resolution is found on the OPPO Reno 12 Pro. In China, the Pro model is probably going to be powered by the MediaTek Dimensity 8350 chipset, while in India, it might have a different processor. A 50MP primary camera, an 8MP ultrawide sensor, and a 50MP telephoto sensor with 3x optical zoom are anticipated to be included in the OPPO Reno 13 Pro’s photographic setup. Most likely, the front camera will include a 50MP sensor.

With a 5,900mAh battery as opposed to the 5,000mAh battery on the Reno 12 Pro, the Reno 13 Pro is anticipated to significantly increase battery capacity. Additionally, it is anticipated that the smartphone would support both 50W wireless and 80W wired charging. Additionally, an IP68/IP69 designation for water and dust protection could increase its durability.

Although the price of the smartphones in the Reno 13 series is not well known, it is anticipated to be similar to that of its predecessor. For comparison, the 12GB RAM + 256GB storage version of the OPPO Reno 12 Pro launched at Rs 36,999, while the 8GB RAM + 256GB storage version of the vanilla model cost Rs 32,999.

OPPO Reno 13 Pro: Anticipated features

  • Display: 6.78-inch OLED, quad-curved, with a refresh rate of 120 Hz and a resolution of 1.5K
  • processor: MediaTek Dimensity 8350
  • rear camera: 50MP primary, 8MP ultra-wide, and 50MP telephoto (3x zoom)
  • front camera: 50MP
  • Battery: 5,900mAh
  •  Charging: 50W wireless and 80W wired
  • IP rating: IP68/IP69; operating system: ColorOS 15 based on Android 15

Continue Reading

Technology

Apple has released Final Cut Pro 11, an AI-powered program

Published

on

Apple introduced Final Cut X thirteen years ago. Considering that the video-editing program marked its 25th birthday this April, that represents just over half of its lifetime. Some have questioned whether the corporation has discreetly withdrawn the offering due to its multiple lifetimes in the consumer software industry.

Final Cut Pro finally reaches level 11, after 13 years of waiting, and Apple is no longer playing around. On Wednesday, the program will be accessible for download. After a 90-day trial period, new users will need to pay $300 to buy Final Cut Pro 11 from the Mac App Store, while current users will receive it as a free update.

What specifically justified the much anticipated move to 11? AI is two letters. The business is using AI to power new features just weeks after releasing Apple Intelligence for iOS, iPadOS, and MacOS.

Magnetic Mask is at the top of the list because it makes it simple to crop objects and people out of videos without using a green screen.

According to Apple, “This powerful and precise automatic analysis provides additional flexibility to customize backgrounds and environments,” “Editors can also combine Magnetic Mask with color correction and video effects, allowing them to precisely control and stylize each project.”

Transcribe to Captions, which basically adds text to Final Cut’s timeline, is the second standout AI-based tool here. The company claims that its in-house large language model (LLM) powers that feature.

Apple’s problematic mixed-reality headset is the subject of this article’s other major headline. The most recent iPhones now have the capability to record Spatial Video, and Final Cut may be used to edit that footage. It is possible to add effects, color correct the video, and change the titles’ depth placement.

Apple is reportedly working on a more inexpensive variant, even though CEO Tim Cook has acknowledged that the $3,500 headgear isn’t the mainstream consumer product the company wanted. Along with the iPhone 15 Pro and all iPhone 16 models, the Vision Pro itself can record spatial video. Additionally, Canon just unveiled a new twin lens that works with R7 cameras.

Additionally, there are various time-saving features in the new Final Cut. For example, Magnetic Timeline allows you to swiftly rearrange clips while maintaining audio and video synchronization.

According to Apple, Final Cut Pro 11 was developed especially for the M-series of CPUs, which are its first-party silicon. This includes having more simultaneous 4K and 8K playback capabilities.

Apple claims that the M-series of chips, their first-party silicon, were the reason behind the creation of Final Cut Pro 11. This includes the capacity to play back several 4K and 8K ProRes video streams at once.

Final Cut Pro for iPad 2.1 is being released by Apple concurrently with the eagerly anticipated release of Pro 11. The brightness and color of the touched-based interface will be increased, and the workflow will be enhanced as well. Starting on Wednesday, current users can also obtain that for free.

Continue Reading

Technology

Apple has revealed a revamped Mac Mini with an M4 chip

Published

on

A smaller but no less powerful Mac Mini was recently unveiled by Apple as part of the company’s week of Mac-focused announcements. It now has Apple’s most recent M4 silicon, enables ray tracing for the first time, and comes pre-installed with 16GB of RAM, which seems to be the new standard in the age of Apple Intelligence. While the more potent M4 Pro model starts at $1,399, the machine still starts at $599 with the standard M4 CPU. The Mac Mini is available for preorder right now and will be in stores on November 8th, just like the updated iMac that was revealed yesterday.

The new design will be the first thing you notice. The Mini has reportedly been significantly reduced in size, although it was already a comparatively small desktop computer. It is now incredibly small, with dimensions of five inches for both length and width. Apple claims that “an innovative thermal architecture, which guides air to different levels of the system, while all venting is done through the foot” and the M4’s efficiency are the reasons it keeps things cool.

Nevertheless, Apple has packed this device with a ton of input/output, including a 3.5mm audio jack and two USB-C connections on the front. Three USB-C/Thunderbolt ports, Ethernet, and HDMI are located around the back. Although the USB-A ports are outdated, it’s important to remember that the base M2 Mini only featured two USB-A connectors and two Thunderbolt 4 ports. You get a total of five ports with the M4. You get an additional Thunderbolt port but lose native USB-A.

Depending on the M4 processor you select, those Thunderbolt connectors will have varying speeds. While the M4 Pro offers the most recent Thunderbolt 5 throughput, the standard M4 processor comes with Thunderbolt 4.

With its 14 CPU and 20 GPU cores, the M4 Pro Mac Mini also offers better overall performance. The standard M4 can have up to 32GB of RAM, while the M4 Pro can have up to 64GB. The maximum storage capacity is an astounding 8TB. Therefore, even though the Mini is rather little, if you have the money, you can make it really powerful. For those who desire it, 10 gigabit Ethernet is still an optional upgrade.

Apple has a big week ahead of it. On Monday, the company released the M4 iMac and its first Apple Intelligence software features for iOS, iPadOS, and macOS. (More AI functionality will be available in December, such as ChatGPT integration and image production.) As Apple completes its new hardware, those updated MacBook Pros might make their appearance tomorrow. The business will undoubtedly highlight its newest fleet of Macs when it releases its quarterly profits on Thursday.

Continue Reading

Trending

error: Content is protected !!