Messaging App Signal Experiencing Issues

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Messaging App Signal Experiencing Issues

Popular messaging app Signal is experiencing issues, with messages either not being delivered, or taking a long time to arrive.

Signal is a popular messaging app that is widely considered to be one of the most secure communication platforms in the world. It is used by governments and military units, as a result of its strong security and encryption.

Signal experienced meteoric growth in recent months, thanks to Facebook’s decision to share WhatsApp data with other Facebook-owned companies. The social media giant faced immediate backlash, with many users switching to Signal.

The growth hasn’t been without challenges, however, as Signal has sometimes struggled to keep up with demand. It appears the service is experiencing another outage, with users on Twitter reporting problems with severely delayed messages.

@signalapp messages are not delivering to the other side (too much late double ticks) though I and my counterpart have good internet connection. Can you please help me?

— Dhruv (@onceusername) May 4, 2021

Downdetector is also showing a spike in issues with Signal, although the company has not yet issued a statement on the problem.

Messaging App Signal Experiencing Issues
Matt Milano

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Qualcomm Demonstrates mmWave 5G 16x Faster Than Sub-6 GHz

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Qualcomm Demonstrates mmWave 5G 16x Faster Than Sub-6 GHz

Qualcomm has announced a major milestone for 5G, demonstrating how fast mmWave 5G is compared with slower varieties.

There are several flavors of 5G being rolled out. All three major carriers in the US have rolled out nationwide 5G networks, using low-band spectrum. Low-band provides the best range, coverage and building penetration, but is only marginally faster than 4G LTE. Mid-band spectrum provides a good mix of speed, range and coverage, and can deliver speed in excess of 1 Gbps.

The fastest flavor of 5G is mmWave. Unlike low and mid-band, mmWave uses spectrum in the 6 GHz and above range. It is also the fastest flavor of 5G, clocking in at several gigabits per second. Unfortunately, because mmWave uses high-band spectrum, its range and penetration are extremely limited. Nonetheless, its speed makes it ideal for a wide range of applications, such as secure private networks, and carriers are racing to roll out it.

Qualcomm has announced real-world tests showing mmWave 5G is up to 16 times faster than 5G in the sub-6 GHz frequencies, such as low and mid-band. The data was based on user-initiated Ookla Speedtests on commercial devices.

“Our end-to-end modem to antenna solution brings together all the key 5G breakthroughs to optimize 5G connectivity using the massive bandwidth of mmWave,” said Durga Malladi, senior vice president and general manager, 4G/5G, Qualcomm Technologies, Inc. “With almost every major OEM offering 5G commercial devices globally, we’re playing a critical role in enabling 5G to live up to its promise of speed and power. This not only redefines the smartphone experience, but also paves the road for endless possibilities, including the further expansion of 5G into fixed wireless access, 5G private networks, compute, XR, and Industrial IoT.”

Qualcomm Demonstrates mmWave 5G 16x Faster Than Sub-6 GHz
Matt Milano

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Sony PlayStation and Discord Announce Partnership

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Sony PlayStation and Discord Announce Partnership

Sony PlayStation has announced a partnership with Discord, to integrate Discord with PlayStation’s social experience.

Discord is a popular platform for gamers to communicate and message each other. The company was recently in talks with Microsoft, with the latter looking to purchase Discord for $12 billion. Discord ultimately ended the talks, opting to go public instead.

Sony Interactive Entertainment (SIE) CEO Jim Ryan announced on the company blog that SIE had made a minority investment in Discord, and the two companies will work to integrate their services.

At PlayStation, we’re constantly looking for new ways to enable players around the world to connect with one another, form new friendships and communities, and share fun experiences and lasting memories. It’s in this spirit that we’re excited to announce a new partnership with Discord, the communication service popularized by gamers and used by more than 140 million people every month around the world.

Together, our teams are already hard at work connecting Discord with your social and gaming experience on PlayStation Network. Our goal is to bring the Discord and PlayStation experiences closer together on console and mobile starting early next year, allowing friends, groups, and communities to hang out, have fun, and communicate more easily while playing games together.

With Discord planning to go public, rather than be bought out, it’s a safe bet this won’t be the first such partnership for the company.

Sony PlayStation and Discord Announce Partnership
Matt Milano

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Google Cloud and Vodofone Partner to Create ‘Industry-First Global Data Platform’

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Google Cloud and Vodofone Partner to Create ‘Industry-First Global Data Platform’

Google Cloud and Vodofone have partnered to create an “industry-first global data platform.”

Vodofone is one of the leading telecom companies in Europe and Africa. The company is also a leading IoT connectivity provider. Vodofone wants to leverage Google Cloud to deliver “reliable and secure data analytics, insights, and learnings to support the introduction of new digital products and services for Vodafone customers simultaneously worldwide.”

The two companies will be working together to build a data platform, called ‘Nucleus,’ which will house the ‘Dynamo’ system. The new system will be able to process roughly 50 TB of data per day. Vodofone has identified 700 use-cases for delivering new products and services, as well as using data to provide better insights and intelligence.

In particular, Vodofone sees benefits for its TV content and connectivity services; using AI to make a digital replica of its internal support functions; helping data scientists collaborating on environmental and health issues, including COVID-19; and increasing the number of smart network services to better meet customers’ needs.

“Vodafone is building a powerful foundation for a digital future,” said Johan Wibergh, Chief Technology Officer for Vodafone. “We have vast amounts of data which, when securely processed and made available across our footprint using the collective power of Vodafone and Google Cloud’s engineering expertise, will transform our services, to our customers and governments, and the societies where they live and serve.”

“Telecommunications firms are increasingly differentiating their customer experiences through the use of data and analytics, and this has never been more important than during the current pandemic,” said Thomas Kurian, CEO at Google Cloud. “We are thrilled to be selected as Vodafone’s global strategic cloud partner for analytics and SAP, and to co-innovate on new products that will accelerate the industry’s digital transformation.”

Google Cloud and Vodofone Partner to Create ‘Industry-First Global Data Platform’
Matt Milano

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Kuo: Apple’s First Foldable iPhone Expected in 2023

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Kuo: Apple’s First Foldable iPhone Expected in 2023

Apple analyst Ming-Chi Kuo has weighed in on Apple’s foldable iPhone plans, saying the company will introduce one in 2023.

Foldable phones are the next big evolution of modern smartphone design. Foldable designs promise to deliver current screen sizes in smaller packages, or much larger, tablet-size screens in phones that are comparable to current phones when folded.

Several companies, such as Samsung, have tried to make foldable phones, but have had issues with them being as durable as necessary. Others, like Microsoft, have opted for a dual-screen design, joined with a hinge. It’s unclear what approach Apple will take, although the company is well-known for arriving late to the party with designs that improve on the existing offerings of other companies. Many believe the iPhone maker may be able to leverage its hardware design expertise to deliver an unrivaled foldable experience.

According to Kuo, via 9to5Mac, Apple is expected to sell 15 to 20 million foldable iPhones in 2023. Kuo believes the phone will have an 8-inch screen.

At present, the product position of foldable smartphones is mainly to integrate the smartphone and tablet. But we believe that the foldable smartphone is only one of the applications of the foldable design. We predict that foldable devices will blur the product segmentations between smartphones, tablets, and laptops in the future. With its cross-product ecosystems and hardware design advantages, Apple will be the biggest winner in the new foldable device trend.

Kuo: Apple’s First Foldable iPhone Expected in 2023
Matt Milano

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T-Mobile Joins FCC Emergency Broadband Benefit Program

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T-Mobile Joins FCC Emergency Broadband Benefit Program

T-Mobile has announced it is joining the FCC’s Emergency Broadband Benefit Program, to provide low-cost service.

The FCC announced its Emergency Broadband Benefit program will start on May 12. The program is designed to provide a discount of up to $50 ($75 on tribal lands) to help low-income families have access to broadband internet. High-speed internet access is more important than ever, as countless individuals work from home and engage in remote learning.

T-Mobile has joined the FCC’s program, making its services available under its main brand, as well as subsidiaries.

When enrollment opens on May 12, qualified T-Mobile, Metro by T-Mobile, Assurance Wireless and Sprint brand consumer and government customers in the U.S., Puerto Rico and U.S. Virgin Islands may be eligible for an up to $50 discount (up to $75 on tribal lands) per household on service each month on qualified plans for the duration of the program.

T-Mobile Joins FCC Emergency Broadband Benefit Program
Matt Milano

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Kroger and Drone Express Testing Autonomous Drone Grocery Deliveries

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Kroger and Drone Express Testing Autonomous Drone Grocery Deliveries

Kroger is working with Drone Express, a division of TELEGRID Technologies, to test autonomous drones for grocery deliveries.

Multiple companies are working to deploy drones, with plans to use them for autonomous deliveries. Late last year, the Federal Aviation Administration cleared unmanned drones for night flights and flights over people, a critical next step in widespread adoption.

Kroger is now the next major company looking to deploy autonomous drones for deliveries, and is turning to Drone Express to help it. Kroger will test its pilot program around the Kroger Marketplace in Centerville, Ohio.

“Kroger’s new drone delivery pilot is part of the evolution of our rapidly growing and innovative e-commerce business – which includes pickup, delivery, and ship and reached more than $10 billion in sales in 2020,” said Kroger’s Jody Kalmbach, group vice president of product experience. “The pilot reinforces the importance of flexibility and immediacy to customers, powered by modern, cost-effective, and efficient last-mile solutions. We’re excited to test drone delivery and gain insights that will inform expansion plans as well as future customer solutions.”

“Autonomous drones have unlimited potential to improve everyday life, and our technology opens the way to safe, secure, environmentally friendly deliveries for Kroger customers,” said Beth Flippo, Chief Technology Officer, TELEGRID. “The possibilities for customers are endless – we can enable Kroger customers to send chicken soup to a sick friend or get fast delivery of olive oil if they run out while cooking dinner.”

Kroger and Drone Express Testing Autonomous Drone Grocery Deliveries
Matt Milano

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