Weekly recap

Weekly Tech Recap - № 356 - Windows Dev Kit 2023, iPhone+USB-C, Starlink Aviation, Google profits, and the Commodordion

By Laurent Gloaguen,

October 28, 2022.

Windows Dev Kit 2023

Windows Dev Kit 2023. © Microsoft.

Revealed under the name Project Volterra during the Build conference last May, the mini ARM PC for developers is now available in several countries, including Canada. Priced at 800 CAD (600 USD) in the Microsoft Store, the device that brings to mind a Mac Mini is now officially called Windows Dev Kit 2023. Developed in partnership with Qualcomm, it features a Snapdragon 8cx Gen 3 SoC, a neural processing unit (NPU), 32GB of RAM and 512GB of NVMe storage. On the port side, there are two USB-C 3.2 Gen 2, three USB-A 3.2 Gen 2, an Ethernet and a Mini DisplayPort. On the software side, the PC comes with the ARM version of Visual Studio 2022, .NET 7, which offers improved performance on ARM, as well as “previews” of the ARM versions of Visual C++ and the Windows App SDK.

Microsoft goes on to say that other applications, tools, frameworks and packages are being ported to natively target Windows on ARM. The company is betting on this powerful but affordable Dev Kit to prompt the development of a fair number of applications that would run natively on ARM-powered laptops.

⇨ The Verge, Tom Warren, “Microsoft’s new $599 Mac Mini-like PC is designed to improve Windows on Arm.”

⇨ Ars Technica, Andrew Cunningham, “Microsoft’s ‘Project Volterra’ becomes an Arm-powered mini PC with 32GB of RAM.”

2022-10-24

Apple will leave Lightning behind

Adieu ? © iStock.

Greg Joswiak, Apple’s senior vice president of Worldwide Marketing, said that though Apple deeply disagrees with the European Union’s requirement that certain electronic devices come equipped with USB-C ports, the company will comply with the new regulation. While Mac laptops and iPad tablets had already adopted USB-C, iPhones have stuck with the Lightning connection invented by Apple just ten years ago. The recently enacted European legislation mandates that new iPhones come with a USB-C charging port as of 2024. This will only affect new releases, of course. Joswiak didn’t specify whether the company will only introduce the USB-C iPhones in Europe while keeping Lightning on phones everywhere else, or whether USB-C will appear on all phones worldwide.

⇨ Ars Technica, Andrew Cunningham, “Apple confirms it will leave Lightning behind in future iPhones.”

2022-10-26

Starlink skies

Aero Terminal. © Starlink.

SpaceX announced Starlink Aviation, an in-flight satellite Internet service that offers 350Mbps broadband with unlimited data. The company explains that with latency as low as 20 ms, “passengers can engage in activities previously not functional in flight, including video calls, online gaming, virtual private networks and other high data rate activities.” For airlines, the initial investment amounts to 150,000 USD per aircraft, not including the installation, which can be performed by an airline’s maintenance team or by certified installers. Thereafter, the monthly service fee runs between 12,500 and 25,000 USD.

Several companies have already signed on to the in-flight satellite system, including Hawaiian Airlines, which will offer passengers the Starlink service at no extra charge, starting next year. The regional US airline JSX Air, whose fleet includes the Embraer ERJ 135 and 145, also promises to install this service aboard its flights very shortly. “Internet in airplanes will feel [sic] same as if you were accessing Internet at home,” tweeted SpaceX CEO Elon Musk on the social media platform he just purchased.

⇨ Ars Technica, Jon Brodkin, “Starlink unveils airplane service—Musk says it’s like using Internet at home.”

2022-10-19

Google hits a rough patch

Quarterly results for Alphabet, Google’s mothership, are in, and the news is bad: Q3 2022 earnings show a 27% decrease in profits year over year, which translates to a 5 billion USD drop. The main reason being that most of Alphabet’s profits are derived from advertising sales, mainly on Google Search, while the unstable economy is causing many Google clients to press pause on advertising expenditures. What’s more, the Google Cloud project, which lags behind competitors Amazon and Microsoft, is still bleeding cash, with a loss of 699 million USD this quarter compared to 644 million USD in Q3 2021.

In response, Alphabet CEO Sundar Pichai slowed hiring in August and instated cuts in R&D. The Google Hardware laptop division was canned, the experimental Area 120 saw half its projects axed, the Loon remote-area Internet access project was spun out into a separate company, and the plug was abruptly pulled on Google’s Stadia game service. YouTube, Google’s other flagship, is struggling to monetize its Premium feature and is still living off advertising, not to mention TikTok’s looming presence. Over the past year, Alphabet stock has dropped 39.4%, from 151.5 to 91.8 USD.

⇨ Ars Technica, Ron Amadeo, “Google profits plummet 27 percent in Q3 2022 earnings report.”

2022-10-26

C64x2=Commodordion

The Commodore 64 (RIP 1982-1994) will long be remembered for its graphic and sound capabilities, thanks to its MOS 6581 chip, and as a platform for some of the best games from the 8-bit era. Engineer Linus Åkesson leveraged its audio properties to build a ground-breaking (or ear-splitting) accordion, built out of two C64 computers flanking bellows made of floppy disks and gaffer’s tape. The right hand plays the melody and the left hand plays the chords, while varying the pressure on the bellows controls the volume. Because it’s not ergonomically designed, playing it is exhausting. Despite this wonder of engineering, Linus feels that the Commodordion’s awkward bulk deters from its viability as a serious musical instrument.

⇨ YouTube, “The Commodordion.”

⇨ Linus Åkesson, “The Commodordion.”

2022-10-21