It didn’t happen overnight, but ViaSat’s finally on its way to transforming the satellite internet space, be it through speedy in-flight WiFi on JetBlue and United or the Exede residential service . That latter product, while the fastest internet option for customers without access to cable or fiber, isn’t without its critics, due in no small part to some rather prohibitive monthly data caps. Well, no more. The company’s new Freedom plan, available beginning August 18th for $70 per month (or $60 when bundled with phone service), delivers “virtually unlimited” access for streaming, web browsing and anything else you might plan to do. Officially, there’s a monthly cap of 150 GB, but ViaSat likely won’t enforce that limit. Of course, Exede still won’t be a fit for downloading terabytes of video or linking up your remote server farm, but if you plan to do some work during the day and stream an HD movie each night, you should be good to go. Filed under: Wireless Comments Source: ViaSat (MarketWatch)

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ViaSat adds ‘virtually unlimited’ Freedom satellite internet plan for $70 per month

When PC gaming juggernaut Valve announced its Steam Machines initiative in Fall 2013, it was unveiled as such: “Entertainment is not a one-size-fits-all world. We want you to be able to choose the hardware that makes sense for you, so we are working with multiple partners to bring a variety of Steam gaming machines to market during 2014, all of them running SteamOS.” Not long after, at CES 2014, Valve revealed a full line of Steam Machines from 14 different companies . Chief among them was Alienware, Dell’s gaming PC arm, which showed a teensy $550 box called the “Alpha.” Alienware was a standout not just due to name recognition, but because the company proposed a launch window for its “game console”. The Alpha won’t ship with any of the promises of the Steam Machines initiative: no Steam OS and no Steam Controller. Valve’s delayed both , but Alienware’s pushing on nonetheless with a fall launch. That’s all to say one thing: While the Alpha is still a “Steam Machine” in size and horsepower, it isn’t a Steam Machine . The Alienware Alpha is a weird gaming PC. Alienware held an event last week in New York City to show off the Alpha. We were given time to play games on the system, sure, but the focus of the event was on the custom operating system that Alienware’s built to get around the fact that Valve’s initiative isn’t ready . According to Alienware, Valve president Gabe Newell sees the Alpha as the “ideal Steam Machine.” It’s hard to see how, at least at the moment: It runs Windows 8.1, it ships with an Xbox 360 wireless gamepad, and it requires a USB-based wireless dongle to make that gamepad function. Alpha is $550 — $50 more than the most expensive new game console — and it’s lacking in the horsepower department. Which GPU is inside? A “custom” NVIDIA Maxwell GTX. How about processing? Handled by an Intel i3. In so many words, the Alpha is roughly as powerful as the Xbox One and PlayStation 4, only it costs more and is nowhere near as accessible. THE ALPHA UI In place of Steam OS, Alienware’s got a custom user interface that allows you to skip the Windows 8 desktop. It’s non-ironically called the “Alpha UI, ” which is fitting given how vacuous it feels. We weren’t actually able to use it; instead, Alienware guided media through a slideshow of its features. Those features are sparse: play games, adjust a small handful of settings, and a button combination that helps players escape the pitfalls of playing PC games. Ever go to play a Ubisoft game, only to have the UPlay dialog box pop up? Not such a big deal if you’re sitting right in front of your computer, keyboard and mouse in-hand, but quite a frustration if you’re playing a PC game using a gamepad from your couch. The Alpha gets around this issue by offering a kill command for offending software. Ever play a Steam game that advertises “partial controller support?” Alienware reps say they’re working with Valve to test every single game and update all those listings. For now, however, workarounds like the kill prompt will have to do. Let’s be clear: the Alpha is a system of workarounds. No Steam OS? Alienware built a bare bones OS to shepherd consumers from a Windows 8 experience to Steam’s living room-friendly Big Picture Mode. No Steam Controller? Alienware’s straight up buying Xbox 360 wireless gamepads and dongles to ship a controller with each Alpha. Unfortunately for Alienware and folks excited for the Alpha, another word for “workaround” is compromise . Alienware says you’ll be able to upgrade to Steam OS and the Steam Controller whenever Valve’s got those ready. For now, though, the Alpha feels undercooked — a rushed product which serves Alienware’s bottom line and little else. We’re reserving full judgement until we’ve got a final unit this November when it ships to customers, but color us worried as of late Summer. Edgar Alvarez contributed to this report. Filed under: Desktops , Gaming , Software , HD , Dell Comments

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Alienware’s ‘Alpha’ is a half-step toward Steam Machines

Verizon has largely finished rolling out its LTE network, but that only raises a new question: when is it going to phase out its long-running CDMA phone service? As it turns out, the transition may start sooner than you think. The carrier’s Fran Shammo has revealed at an investor conference that the first phones to rely solely on LTE for calls will be available in the first half of 2016, or just under two years after the launch of LTE voice service in late 2014. He didn’t say when Big Red would turn the lights out on CDMA, but it’s safe to presume that this won’t happen until the majority of devices in use can handle the newer technology. In short, you shouldn’t worry about buying a Verizon phone today — just don’t expect to keep it for several years. [Image credit: AP Photo/John Minchillo] Filed under: Cellphones , Wireless , Mobile , Verizon Comments

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Verizon’s first phones with LTE-only calling will arrive in 2016

Twitter’s said its active user base is growing , but not every account that’s active is necessary a flesh-and-blood human. Alongside those verified accounts of the stars , there’s all kinds of bots that use the service to deliver completely stupid nonsense , sudden (urgent!) sale news and even earthquake reports — well, some have their uses. Twitter’s now updated its filing, noting that bot accounts total up to 8.5 percent of its active user count at the end of June. That’s roughly 23 million tweeters that aren’t human – and probably aren’t going to be clicking on that ad for Innovative Cloud Storage Solutions any time soon. Filed under: Internet Comments

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Up to 23 million active Twitter accounts are bots

Chances are that if you don’t play Minecraft yourself, you’ve probably at least heard of it or know someone who does. The charming indie game has invaded nearly every facet of pop culture, casting its blocky spell on everything from Legos to feature films and has even been used for tourism . With over 54 million copies sold , Sweden-based developer Mojang made $128 million last year largely thanks to Minecraft and has become one of the most successful game studios in the world. But what actually is Minecraft ? We’re glad you asked! WHAT IS IT? At its core, Minecraft is a massive, open-ended, first-person game with a focus on exploration and crafting. Every time you load a new game, the environment is randomly assembled so no two plays will be exactly alike. Unlike most games, Minecraft offers little in the way of directions, or a campaign/story mode to work through for that matter: It’s a free-form, easygoing affair with the player figuring out what they can and can’t do through trial and error (or by scouring a wiki ). Think something like Grand Theft Auto ‘ s gigantic environment , but instead of attempting a hyper-realistic world, everything is pixelated blocks. Objects in the world are made of gravity-defying, 1 x 1 blocks that can be stacked and manipulated to form just about anything one could imagine, from intricate recreations of Game of Thrones ‘ Westeros , to movie posters, and even Game Boy emulators capable of playing the first level from Super Mario Land . Hell, the Danish government has servers running so would-be tourists can check out a 1:1 recreation of the happiest country replete with highways, houses and landmarks. Minecraft’s official trailer, which now has over 98 million views on YouTube That’s just the tip of the iceberg, though, and we’re sure there are at least a few crazy projects going right now that we don’t even know about. There’s no score, and no real “end” (though that’s up for debate, and we’d be spoiling bits if we got into the argument too deeply here). In the game’s main mode, you start in a world full of resources (rock, wood, etc.) and are “tasked” with making a life for your character (who’s named Steve). A day/night cycle provides constraints: Use the daylight to gather resources and build, with the intent of surviving the night. The Creeper in his natural environment Zombie-like creatures roam the land at night, and the only way to survive is by building housing to keep them out. Should that not provide challenge enough, a green enemy lovingly named the “creeper” lives primarily underground, where you mine for resources. Enter the wrong mining cavern and you may end up suddenly exploded. Any resources you’ve got on your person remain where you died until you can go retrieve them. It’s a delight! The game is available on just about every platform: Android, iOS, Mac, PC, PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360, with updated versions coming to the PS Vita, PlayStation 4 and Xbox One this year. Minecraft was initially released for free as a work-in-progress back in May 2009 and developed by one person, Markus “Notch” Persson . Since then, numerous updates have been released, with the full release coming about two-and-a-half years later in November 2011. Essentially, the public was playing along as the game was being developed under its very fingertips. WHY SHOULD I CARE? For starters, single-developer games are pretty rare, and ones that are this successful are even more unique. As a result, Notch has become a bit of a celebrity in the gaming community and now has some 1.7 million followers on Twitter. Minecraft ‘s success, however, has had a price. After filing for a trademark for Mojang’s follow-up, Scrolls , publisher Bethesda Softworks (known for the role-playing series The Elder Scrolls, among others), filed a trademark lawsuit over the Swedish developer using the word “scrolls.” It all worked out in the end, but Mojang had to agree to not use the word in in subsequent releases. The city of King’s Landing, from Game of Thrones, recreated entirely in Minecraft Minecraft is also the progenitor of releasing a game to players before it’s done. The concept of PC-gaming platform Steam’s Early Access program practically owes its existence to this, and it isn’t going to stop there either. Sony has admitted that it’s flirting with the idea of releasing unfinished, alpha versions of games on the PS4, too. Notch’s baby has also had a tremendous impact on video games as a whole, creating an entire genre and style of play. Titles like Rust (which also happens to be a Steam Early Access title), Terraria , and the upcoming PS4 stunner No Man’s Sky likely wouldn’t exist had Minecraft not popularized the idea of virtual free-form exploration and building. Even established franchises like Everquest have taken notice, with the next game, Everquest Landmark , taking a few pages out of Minecraft ‘s customization and crafting book. The game is also a blank canvas that can be used for just about anything. Sure, recreations of Great Britain are impressive, but even more so is that it’s been used in the classroom as a teaching tool for proper online behavior and collaborative problem-solving. It’s even been implemented to get kids interested in architecture and civics. A group of kids playing Minecraft Edu at school WHAT’S THE ARGUMENT? Getting access to a game before it’s fully finalized might sound like a great idea on paper, but in practice that’s not always the case. There are numerous games on Steam right now under the Early Access banner that are simply unplayable. Whereas Minecraft was free to start, people are paying for these test-builds (which will convert into the full version if completed) in the hopes that eventually the full release will fix the gamut of glitches they’re encountering. The thing is, that’s placing an awful lot of faith in oftentimes unproven developers to finish a game; there have already been notable disasters delisted from Steam, and there will assuredly be more. WANT EVEN MORE? If you can put the pick-axe down long enough, check out Rolling Stone ‘s recent profile of Notch that chronicles the effects his youth and father’s suicide had on both the way he designs games and him as a person. Should you want even deeper inside the man’s head, Persson also maintains a personal blog . Still not satisfied? How about booking travel to Europe for this year’s Minecon convention ? Better gear up with a Creeper mask and foam diamond-sword ahead of time, though. Or, maybe you haven’t played the game just yet and all of this has gotten you curious to try it out. Well, there’s a super-limited free demo that should give you an idea of what it’s all about before you buy the real deal . [Image credits: Fortunatemend / Imgur ; KJarrett / Flickr ] Filed under: Cellphones , Desktops , Gaming , Handhelds , Home Entertainment , Tablets , Software , HD , Sony , Microsoft Comments

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The only thing that’s better than using Steam is digging through its source code to see what’s coming in the future. On a recent trawl through the digital store’s inner workings, Twitter’s @SteamDB found the words film, tvseries and music as app types that people could, theoretically, buy. If so, then Valve might be ready to get serious about Steam’s ability to rival other digital storefronts from Google and Apple, which is logical, since Valve’s platform has around 75 million registered users . Of course, these options might be just be tweaks to existing functionality, since game soundtracks and one movie are already available on the service. Hell, it could even be an amendment to the Steam Music Beta, enabling people to binge on locally-stored content while playing — but we’d give props to the person who could enjoy DOTA 2 and Breaking Bad at the same time. [Image credit: @SteamDB] Filed under: Gaming , Internet Comments Via: IGN Source: SteamDB (Twitter)

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Will Steam challenge iTunes and Google Play for your media-buying cash?

Until now, if you wanted a Chromebook with a full HD display, you only had one option: the 13-inch Samsung Chromebook 2 . Want epic battery life? Yep, all roads lead to Samsung there, too. Well, not anymore, anyway. Acer just announced the Chromebook 13, and it matches Samsung nearly spec for spec with an optional 1080p display and NVIDIA’s quad-core Tegra K1 chip, promising up to 13 hours of runtime (details on that after the break). This is interesting for two reasons. First off, although this is essentially the same class of product as what Samsung is selling, it costs $100 less: $299, versus $400 for the Chromebook 2. Sounds good, right? What’s more, this is the first-ever Chrome OS device with an NVIDIA processor inside. This is potentially good news even if you’re not a self-described chip geek: Tegra K1 offers long battery life, just like Samsung’s own Exynos chip, but the graphics should be better for things like gaming and interactive websites — the sorts of rich web apps frequently used in classrooms. And if you’ve ever used a Samsung Chromebook, you know there’s room for improvement there: For all of Samsung’s plus points (a crisp display, comfortable keyboard), the Chromebook 2 is relatively sluggish. But will this be more robust than those new Core i3 models we’re seeing? That remains to be seen. On a superficial note, the Chromebook 13 is definitely more basic-looking than the Chromebook 2. Whereas Samsung’s model comes kitted out with a fake-leather lid, the Chromebook 13 is made of plain white plastic. It’s clear that if Acer made any sacrifices to reach that lower price point, this is it. Then again, this is a perfectly serviceable, if unexciting, design, and the full-sized keyboard is naturally more spacious than what you’ll find on Acer’s older 11-inch Chromebooks . The Chromebook 13 is up for pre-order today, starting at $279 with a 1, 366 x 768 display, and $299 for the full HD model. Of note: The full HD machine is rated for 11 hours of battery life, compared with 13 for the 1, 366 x 767 version. In addition to the US, it will be sold in various European countries, including the UK, Netherlands, Belgium, Denmark, Sweden, Finland, Norway, France, Germany, Russia, Italy, Spain, South Africa and Switzerland. As a heads-up, the Chromebook 13 doesn’t have a touchscreen for now, though that could change: When we asked an NVIDIA rep if a touch edition was in the works, he winked and said “That’s an interesting idea.” Consider it confirmed, folks. Almost. Filed under: Laptops , Google , Acer , NVIDIA Comments

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Acer’s Chromebook 13 lasts a stunning 13 hours on a charge

If you’ve been wondering just when a company would take advantage of the US’ relaxed rules for accurate satellite imaging, you now have a date to mark on your calendar: Lockheed Martin has set the launch of DigitalGlobe’s high-resolution WorldView-3 satellite for August 13th. You won’t see results from it right away, but its creators can start selling extra-sharp pictures (with detail down to the 10-inch level) six months after the craft is up and running. The data should lead to much nicer imagery in online mapping services from companies like Google and Microsoft (both of which are DigitalGlobe customers), although it’s not just cosmetic. Higher-res photos will help track large farms, spot mineral deposits and otherwise deliver a clearer view of our planet that has previously been limited to the government — don’t be surprised if it’s easier to spot landmarks on a map without using markers. Filed under: Science , Internet , Microsoft , Google Comments Source: DigitalGlobe

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First satellite with high-resolution public imaging launches on August 13th

You’ve had the option of texting 911 in a handful of US cities for a couple of months, thanks in part to voluntary efforts from bigger cellphone carriers. However, the FCC doesn’t want you to be left out solely because you’re on a smaller network. The agency has just adopted rules requiring that all American wireless providers have the capability for text-to-911 by the end of the year. You won’t necessarily get emergency messaging by that point, but carriers will have six months to implement it in a given region if a local call center makes a request. Right now, the new regulation won’t make a big difference. Only Maine and Vermont are fully prepared to handle SMS in a crisis, and you’ll only find some form of coverage in 16 states. However, the FCC’s move means that adoption could grow very quickly — now that carriers can’t say no, 911 facilities are more likely to push for the technology. Don’t be surprised if you can soon send a text-based cry for help at any moment when a voice call would be difficult or dangerous. Filed under: Cellphones , Wireless , Mobile Comments Via: GigaOM Source: FCC

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Carriers have to let you text 911 by the end of the year

Thanks to the efforts of a North Carolina-based company, solar panels are about to get a lot more efficient. Semprius produces the collection devices by stacking materials on top of each other in order to catch more frequencies of light. In the process, cell stacking boosted efficiency to around 45 percent during tests. The new tech can be produced quickly using cells that are one millimeter across to reduce cooling needs while combining semiconductor materials and reusing the components cells are grown on. All of that will help Semprius achieve 50 percent efficiency in the next three to five years — up from the current 25 percent range. Unfortunately, the new method will be quite expensive until demand warrants mass production. However, more efficient collection will lead to lower overall cost in the long run, and make solar power as cheap as that produced by natural gas facilities. Filed under: Science Comments Source: MIT Technology Review

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Stacking solar cells leads to more efficient energy collection, lower bills