Hasta La Gadget!

A surprising number of people live out in rural areas — places where the high-speed broadband sun don’t shine. Dish is looking to change that up a bit by launching a new nation-wide satellite broadband service aimed for rural areas. The company plans to unleash this new service starting on October 1.

The new service is called DishNet and it will offer two main packages. The cheapest plan will cost $39.99 per month and it will offer 5Mbps down and 1Mbps up internet access with a 10GB data cap. You can bump the speeds up to 10Mbps with a 20GB data cap for $49.99 per month. However, in order to get these prices, you’ll have to sign a two-year contract and bundle the internet plan with at least Dish’s “America’s top 120″ TV package or any other TV plan that’s more expensive.

You’ll have to pay equipment fees, but installation can be free for both new and existing Dish customers if they bundle up with a TV package. Otherwise, installation will cost $99. That’s not a bad price to pay anyway, seeing how installation fees for other companies can cost upwards of $200 to $300.

DishNet will be available nation-wide, but its aimed and focused on rural areas that don’t have access to high-speed broadband internet. The data caps are definitely a bummer, seeing as other internet service providers usually provide a more generous cap (especially in the city) or no cap at all even. However, if you’re not one to download and stream a bunch of video content, we think you’ll be fine with the small data caps.

[via The Verge]

Dish to launch satellite broadband service for rural areas on October 1 is written by Craig Lloyd & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.

The European Commission is planning to fine Microsoft for its failure to adhere to a 2009 ruling that required the software giant to offer customers a choice of default web browser. The EU Competition Commissioner, Joaquin Almuni, advised the press that a formal proceeding into the breach — which Microsoft itself acknowledges — has begun. Reuters reports that should Microsoft be found on the wrong side of the law, that the resulting fine could be as much as 10 percent of its global turnover. Whether the end sum would be as high as this remains to be seen, but given recent events, you can expected some hurried shuffling of paper in Redmond’s accounts department.

Filed under: Internet, Software

European Commission set to fine Microsoft over 2009 browser compliance breach originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 27 Sep 2012 06:45:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink TechCrunch  |  Reuters  | Email this | Comments

Foursquare is on an update tear. Aside from the “Always On” feature it introduced recently, the company just rolled out a new iPhone update that lets users create more personalized maps. Compatible with iOS 6, the update improves upon the existing Explore map with a more tailored search experience — you can map out places you haven’t been, top destinations, favorite spots, or where your friends have checked in. The app also promises to be faster and to have an improved design that takes advantage of the iPhone 5‘s larger screen. The new update certainly goes along with the company’s philosophy that Foursquare is a discovery and recommendations engine rather than just another social service. Let’s just hope the new Apple Maps doesn’t hamper that experience.

Filed under: Internet, Software, Mobile

Foursquare rolls out iPhone 5 / iOS 6 update, Explore gains more personalization options originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 27 Sep 2012 04:32:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink   |  Foursquare  | Email this | Comments

Google has made a point of relying on renewable resources for its data centers whenever possible, even down to the cooling. It hasn’t had quite as unique an arrangement as what it’s planning for its data center in Oklahoma, though. The search firm wants to supply its Mayes County location with 48MW of wind energy from Apex’s Canadian Hills Wind Project, but it isn’t buying power directly from the source. Instead, it’s making a deal with the Grand River Dam Authority, a utility, to purchase the clean power on top of what’s already supplied from the GRDA at present. The deal should keep the data center on the environmentally friendly side while giving it room to grow. Wind power will come online at Google’s facility once the Canadian Hills effort is up and running later in 2012; hopefully, that gives us enough time to better understand why there’s a Canadian River and Canadian Hills to be found in the southern United States.

Filed under: Internet

Google data center in Oklahoma to get 48MW of wind power, boost renewable energy in the Sooner state originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 27 Sep 2012 01:33:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink   |  Google Official Blog  | Email this | Comments

TweetDeck is Twitter’s professional desktop client, though you might not always know it given that the app is sometimes out of step with its more pedestrian siblings. Today, Twitter is presenting a unified front in a more timely fashion. The web versions of TweetDeck now show the expanded tweets and header photos that reached the iPad and mobile apps a week ago. No major surprises are waiting in the wings save for the absence of a matching update to the native Mac and Windows apps — hopefully, that’s a gap that closes soon.

Filed under: Internet

TweetDeck for the web slips in expanded tweets and header photos originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 26 Sep 2012 17:03:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink VentureBeat  |  TweetDeck  | Email this | Comments