Hasta La Gadget!

Sandra Douglass Morgan was also the first Black person to chair the Nevada Gaming Control Board.

Starlink has launched a ruggedized version of its dish for boats, ships and yachts, merely a few days after the FCC gave it permission to provide internet service to vehicles. The satellite internet provider says Starlink Maritime can deliver up to 350 Mbps download speeds while at sea, which isn’t bad at all for boats that didn’t have an internet connection to begin with. However, it doesn’t come cheap: The hardware alone will set customers back $10,000, which they have to pay for up front. 

The service itself costs $5,000 a month, though like Starlink for RVs, customers can pause it when it’s not in use. They can choose which billing cycle to begin their pause, but they’ll still have to pay for the full month whenever they switch the service on. In comparison, the residential Starlink setup’s hardware costs only $599, while the service costs $110 a month. 

SpaceX chief Elon Musk explained on Twitter that Starlink Maritime’s antennae differ from their residential counterpart. They’re “dual, high performance terminals,” he said, and have the power to maintain connection in choppy seas and heavy storms. The terminals were also designed to be able to withstand “relentless salt spray [and] extreme winds [and] storms.” Musk said SpaceX has been paying $150,000 a month for “a much worse connection” on its ships. 

The Starlink Maritime page also mentions that the service allows you to connect from the most remote waters across the world, but it’s worth noting that its coverage area is still limited. At the moment, it will only work in the coastal waters of the USA (not including Alaska), Europe (except most of Norway, Sweden and Finland), Australia, Brazil, Chile, most of the southern part of Australia and New Zealand. Starlink is expected to roll out connectivity to more locations in the fourth quarter of 2022 and next year.

SpaceX has long had plans to connect moving vehicles to the Starlink network and even previewed a ruggedized dish for boats and planes way back in 2021. It’s only just a few days ago, though, when the Federal Communications Commission authorized a new class of terminals for the satellite internet service “to meet the growing user demands that now require connectivity while on the move.”

The agency said its commissioner had asked the IRS inspector general to look into the randomness of the audits targeting two former FBI leaders.

Chinese electric vehicle maker Human Horizons unveiled its second EV model on Wednesday, dubbed the GT HiPhi Z. This four-door grand touring sedan comes packed with gadgets and intelligent systems including the world’s only “vehicle-grade” high-speed robotic arm, which HH claims “can move back and forth in place in less than a second and features control accuracy of up to 0.001mm.”

The HiPhi Z features a hybrid steel-aluminum construction as well as the “world’s first wrap-around Star-Ring ISD light curtain,” a series of over 4000 LEDs that “interact with passengers, drivers, and the world around it.” What’s more UWB sensors embedded in the doors will allow for “automatic detection of people, keys, and other vehicles, resulting in a smart adjusted door opening in terms of both speed and angle.”

It comes equipped with a 120 kWh high-performance battery pack that the company claims hits 100 kmh from a standstill in 3.8 seconds while offering a range of over 700 km on a full charge. An all-aluminum double wishbone front suspension and a five-link rear suspension keep the ride smooth and responsive. The rear wheels can turn as well, like the Hummer EV, drastically shortening the vehicle’s turning radius to nearly that of a much shorter Mini Cooper, per the company. 

Human Horizons

The interior is akin to stepping into a Jetsons episode, if the company’s PR is to be believed. Its “ultra-futuristic spaceship-like digital setup” centers around the HiPhi Bot, an on-board AI companion that can adjust virtually every aspect of the driving experience. You know, like HAL did. Still, you’ll go out in style if HiPhi Bot ever does go rogue — the racing bucket seats are covered in vegan Ultrasuede, the Meridian sound system boasts 23 speakers, and the occupants can dictate their preferences for not just lighting, touch, and sound, but even the vehicle’s fragrance too. 

But for as fantastical as this vehicle’s loadout appears, Human Horizons is very much intent of actually bringing them the to Chinese market. “The HiPhi Z is a testament to the company’s dedication to technological advancement, sparing no expense in testing the boundaries of creation,” Ding Lei, CEO and chairman of HiPhi, said in Wednesday’s release. “Through rigorous testing and development, the HiPhi Z has retained more than 95 percent of its production intents revealed previously.”

The company expects the HiPhi Z to retail for $89,000 – $129,000 US. It will announce official rollout dates at the Chengdu Auto Show in August. 

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