Kalakshar US

Evan Feinman, who directed the $42.5 billion Broadband Equity, Access, and Deployment (BEAD) Program meant to bring high-speed internet access to rural areas, exited the role on Friday after he was not reappointed for a new term, according to ProPublica’s Craig Silverman. In an email sent to staffers, which Silverman shared screenshots of on Bluesky, Feinman warned against changes proposed by the new administration that could “benefit technology that delivers slower speeds at higher costs to the household paying the bill” in order to line Elon Musk’s pockets.

BEAD was established in 2021, and the new Secretary of Commerce Howard Lutnick recently announced that the Commerce Department would be overhauling the program, which he said has “not connected a single person to the internet” due to the previous administration’s handling of it. In a statement, Lutnick called for a “tech-neutral stance,” which would do away with the preference for faster fiber connections and open the door for a shift toward satellite internet like that offered by Elon Musk’s Starlink. Lutnick also slammed “woke mandates, favoritism towards certain technologies, and burdensome regulations.”

In the email shared on Sunday, Feinman urged colleagues to speak up in favor of removing “needless requirements,” but warned against a shift away from fiber. The bottom line is, he wrote:

The new administration seems to want to make changes that ignore the clear direction laid out by Congress, reduce the number of American homes and businesses that get fiber connections, and increase the number that get satellite connections. The degree of that shift remains unknown, but regardless of size, it will be a disservice to rural and small-town America. Stranding all or part of rural America with worse internet so that we can make the world’s richest man even richer is yet another in a long line of betrayals by Washington.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/big-tech/director-of-rural-broadband-program-exits-with-a-warning-about-shift-to-worse-satellite-internet-223204374.html?src=rss 

If ever a game presents me with an opportunity to perform completely absurd aerial tricks, you best believe I will be flipping as much as possible. In Jump Truck, a 3D solo racing game for Playdate by Tabortop Games, flips can work either to your benefit or detriment as you try to score the fastest finish time for each of a series of race tracks. Throwing in some flips may help to shave several seconds off your final time, but it could also send your truck hurtling into the abyss. It’s a delicate balance that I’ve been having a real hoot pushing to its limit.

Jump Truck features seven levels made up of straightaways, tight turns, long winding roads, ramps and short platforms with abrupt dropoffs to navigate at high speeds on your way to the floating vortex that serves as the finish line. You need to find the shortcuts to get the gold, and successfully making use of those often requires clearing huge gaps. That’s where flipping really comes in handy. Frontflips will give you more speed and help you cross greater distances in the air, while backflips will slow you down so you don’t overshoot your landing. You can flip using either the D-pad or the crank, but the latter can be pretty hard to coordinate if you want to seamlessly resume driving and steering.

There are a bunch of silly achievements to unlock as you progress (or die over and over), like the “Soar Like an Eagle” award for spending a quarter of your time flying through the air on any given level. Jump Truck seems like it’d be the type of game that only holds your attention for a little while at a time, but I keep getting sucked into it for much longer than I expect to, thanks to the challenge of trying to hit certain shortcuts. It’s unexpectedly addicting.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/gaming/the-playdate-game-jump-truck-is-a-flippin-good-time-203140598.html?src=rss 

The so-called iPhone 17 Air, which is rumored to be coming this fall, is said to be Apple’s thinnest iPhone ever. But, if the company had gone through some of its earlier plans for the device, slimness may not have been the most talked-about element. In the Power On newsletter, Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman writes that Apple at one time planned to ditch the USB-C port “to make the Air device Apple’s first completely port-free iPhone.”

The company reportedly shelved the idea to avoid sparking fresh problems with EU regulators. According to Gurman, however, Apple is still holding onto it for future slim iPhones depending on the success of the iPhone 17 Air. Apple is expected to release four iPhones this year, in line with its strategy of the last few years, with the one currently nicknamed the iPhone 17 Air being roughly 2 millimeters thinner than the rest. Leaker Sonny Dickson this weekend shared a series of photos said to be of iPhone 17 dummies, showing just how slim the Air could look alongside the rest of the family.

Gurman reports that the iPhone 17 Air will be priced at around $900, sitting between the entry-level iPhone 17 and the two higher-end models with similar battery life to what we’re already used to, a roughly 6.6-inch screen, Dynamic Island and the Camera Control button. Of course, nothing’s been confirmed officially yet, but the iPhone 17 rumors and leaks are sure to keep coming over the next few months.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/mobile/smartphones/apple-considered-making-the-rumored-iphone-17-air-completely-port-free-according-to-report-165334942.html?src=rss 

We’ve recently heard rumors that Apple is working on the next generation of its Studio Display, and Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman now reports that there may actually be two new models in the works. Building on his previous reporting about a potential update to the 2022 Studio Display that could be released next year, Gurman writes this weekend in the Power On newsletter that sources have told him “Apple is working on a second new monitor.” The first is code-named J427, while the second is reportedly being referred to as J527.

It’s been three years since Apple introduced the $1,599 27-inch Studio Display and twice that since the release of the $5,000 Pro Display XDR. Considering the age of both monitors, Gurman says one of two scenarios may play out, either that “Apple is developing both and will choose one to launch, or it’s a second model with a different screen size or set of specifications.”

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/computing/apple-is-reportedly-working-on-two-new-versions-of-the-studio-display-145521711.html?src=rss 

According to Deadline, Humans writers Jonathan Brackley and Sam Vincent are working on an adaptation of Philip K. Dick’s 1953 novella, The Variable Man. The show is being produced by Motive Pictures in a partnership with Electric Shepherd Productions, which is run by the late author’s daughter, Isa Dick Hackett. The Variable Man follows a tinkerer turned accidental time traveler named Thomas Cole, who is transported from 1913 into the future and suddenly finds himself a reluctant player in an interplanetary conflict.

It’s being written for a UK broadcaster, according to Deadline, but there may be hope for a US release. “When you’ve got Sam and John doing what they did so brilliantly with Humans and exploring the modern world through a genre lens, it is something that can absolutely attract broadcasters in the US,” Motive CEO Simon Maxwell told the publication. I really enjoyed The Variable Man back when I read it and I’ll give any PKD adaptation a chance, so here’s hoping we get another good one in this series.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/entertainment/a-show-based-on-philip-k-dicks-the-variable-man-is-in-the-works-221301434.html?src=rss