antenna

Your residential antenna is large and expensive. The new generation arrives to correct it

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For years, connecting to Internet via satellite has meant accepting a fairly clear trade-off: getting where fiber doesn’t, but doing so with larger, heavier, and more energy-demanding equipment. It is something that we have seen both in isolated homes and in temporary installations, where each kilo and each watt counts for more than it seems. starlink He has been fine-tuning that formula generation after generation. Now, his next step is not to promise dazzling speed, but to correct just those physical limitations. The new residential kit. Starlink V5 It is the next generation of equipment that SpaceX offers to connect homes to its satellite constellation. The package retains the configuration intended for fixed installations, with an outdoor antenna and an independent router included to distribute the connection within the home. The redesign also does not seek to increase the peak speed announced for the previous generation. The renovation focuses, above all, on transforming the size, weight and efficiency of a fundamental part of the system. A more manageable antenna. The change is first seen in the figures. The Starlink V5 weighs 1.1 kg, compared to 2.9 kg for the Standard 4, an approximate reduction of 62% that leaves it at the same nominal weight as the Starlink Mini. It also goes from dimensions of 594 × 383 × 39.7 mm to 384 × 306 × 34 mm, although it retains a field of view of 110 degrees. For those who are going to install it on their own, transporting it, placing it on a stand or changing its location should be easier. Almost half of consumption. According to specifications published by Starlinkthe V5 operates with an average of between 35 and 50 W, compared to the 75-100 W of the Standard 4. The reduction becomes especially important in installations powered by batteries, generators or portable stations, where each hour of autonomy depends on the accumulated expenditure. It can also allow a backup source to maintain connection for longer when the mains fails. Less speed, but just barely. Starlink puts the V5’s advertised peak download at 375+ Mbps, compared to 400+ Mbps for the Standard 4 and 300+ Mbps for the Mini. There is a 25 Mbps difference between the baseline figures of the two residential devices, not a guaranteed loss on all connections. Although actual performance will also depend on the contracted plan, time of day, available capacity and local congestion. Prepared for the outdoors. Despite being much lighter, the Starlink V5 increases the supported operating wind speed when mounted from the 96 km/h of the Standard 4 to 265 km/h. It also maintains the IP67 Type 4 environmental classification and can operate in temperatures between -30 and 50 degrees Celsius. Its deicing system reaches 40 millimeters of snow per hour, the same figure as the previous generation. Two teams for different uses: Although the V5 is close to the Starlink Mini in weight, SpaceX orients them to different needs. The new terminal is part of a residential kit for permanent installations and works with a separate router that is included. The Mini, on the other hand, integrates its own Wi-Fi connection and can work without that additional device, an advantage when the user needs to move the equipment between locations. The V5 does not directly replace the portable model, but rather renews the alternative designed to remain installed in a home. A still limited release. The new Starlink residential antenna is not officially available in Spain. Its marketing has begun among residential customers in the United States and the company has only announced that it will reach other markets as production increases, without publishing a specific calendar. What the V5 does make clear is the direction chosen by SpaceX: a more compact antenna and much lower consumption, although it is not faster. Images | starlink In Xataka | “The idea of ​​making a cell phone makes me want to die,” said Musk. Two years later, it is very deep with its prototype of a mobile phone with AI

NASA wanted to keep a key antenna active. A culture of “personal heroism” ended up achieving the opposite

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There are infrastructures that seem made to escape the problems of the Earth. The Deep Space Network from NASA is one of them: a network of giant antennas designed to communicate with probes and ships that travel far beyond our immediate environment. But even a system designed to talk to deep space depends on something much closer: trained people, clear procedures and decisions made under pressure. What a space agency investigation has just pointed out is not only a costly breakdown, but a weakness that is difficult to ignore in a network that we take for granted. The Goldstone Incident. The episode occurred on the DSS-14 antenna, a 70 meter facility located in the Goldstone complexin California. NASA published a version with redacted parts of the final report on the incident recorded on September 16, 2025, which left the antenna out of service since then. The damage occurred when the structure rotated beyond its limits and stressed cables and hoses, including those for the fire suppression system. The consequence was a flooding of the base with more than 750,000 liters of water containing glycol and estimated damages between 4.1 and 4.6 million dollars. The incident chain. The report does not allow each step to be reconstructed with complete clarity, because the public version hides almost all the details of the six critical events identified by NASA. The failure did not appear suddenly. First there was a hydraulic limit system that stopped working at an unspecified time, then an anomaly on September 15 during a communication with Juno and then maintenance and diagnostic tasks. In this process, the antenna was taken several times to its rotation limits, until the safety margin ended up disappearing. The weak point. If this story is surprising, it is because it takes place in a place where we tend to imagine everything measured, written and reviewed down to the last detail. But the NASA investigation describes something much more earthly: insufficient training, procedures that were not up to par, and too much reliance on undocumented routines within the facility. In a network like the DSN, designed to maintain communications with very distant missions, this changes the reading of the incident. It was not just an antenna that turned too much, but an organization that, at that particular point, had left too much room for the informal. Misunderstood heroism. The report also points out a work culture based on what he calls “personal heroism,” an expression to describe teams willing to do what is necessary to keep the antenna going. On paper it sounds like a compromise, but research presents it as part of the problem. That drive led some people to take on tasks outside their qualifications, work long hours until they accumulated fatigue, and skip tests that could delay their return to operations. The conclusion is harsh: having agreed to leave the antenna in a failed state would probably have prevented the outcome. Specific duties. The report includes 20 recommendations, with one especially clear idea: NASA needs to encourage technical rigor over “personal heroism.” From there, internal correction measures come in, such as reinforcing training and reviewing procedures. Additionally, the agency is looking for similar scenarios beyond the Deep Space Network itself. Deep Space Network. DSS-14 is not just any antenna within the Deep Space Network. It is one of the three 70-meter antennas in the network, the largest category within a system made up of 14 antennas distributed between California, Australia and Spain. In early 2026, it looked like the antenna would return to service in May, before being taken out of operation in August for a major upgrade scheduled until October 2028. NASA, however, now maintains that it will remain out of service, although the DSN will remain operational thanks to the other antennas in the network. Images | POT In Xataka | Voyager 1 will reach a light-day distance in November, but this will be its last major record

How to create a pocket TV antenna using an old Chromecast to watch DTT on any TV

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Let’s explain to you how to turn a Chromecast into an antenna for DTTso you can watch it on any television. So, if you have one of these devices around the house, you can use it for this purpose and always take it with you for your trips, especially if you go to places where there are slightly older TVs. The Chromecast is no longer sold, Google killed it in 2024, but you may still have one at home. We won’t really turn it into an antenna, what we are going to do is install the necessary applications so you can use it to connect to a television and watch DTT. Therefore, the only requirement is that it be a Chromecast with Android TV or Google TV to be able to install applications. Your Chromecast converted into a DTT player The first thing you have to do is install an application where you can load and play a list IPTV on your Chromecast. Some of the most important and recommended are kodi either VLCand other more specific ones such as wiseplay. There are also other specialized ones such as DTT Channelsalthough Wiseplay’s should be sufficient and easy to use. Once you have the application installed, you will have to add an IPTV list. These lists are a delicate issue, because without being strictly illegal, some are persecuted for broadcasting paid content. However, you can use free IPTV lists that are limited to offering you DTT channels. Some of the main IPTV lists that you can download are, as explained on Xataka Android: IPTV.org, available on the project’s GitHub and Free TV, which you can also get on your GitHub. These are lists where the addresses are stored with which you can access the broadcasts of IPTV channels using remote IP addresses. The format they usually have to reproduce is m3u, in addition to others such as m3u8 or w3u, and hence they are also known as “m3u Lists”. Image by Eva R. de Luis What you have to do is enter the application you have chosen, such as Wiseplay, and go to the section to add a new list. This will take you to a screen where you have to type the URL to this list. Here, you have to paste address from list that you have chosen or the m3u or w3u file, and then it will be added to the application. From now on, using this application you will be able to watch any DTT channel on this list through your Chromecast. You will need to have access to the Internetalthough you can do this by sharing your mobile data network. And that’s it. With these steps you have converted your Chromecast into a device to watch DTT. Now you can always take it with you, and this way if you go to a place with a television where you want to watch a local channel, even regional, you will be able to do so. In Xataka Basics | Free football on DTT: all the channels that offer the First Division of LaLiga EA Sports this season

Digi has installed its first 5G antenna in Palencia. It is a giant step to become a third operator in Spain

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Digi is not just a Giant in quality-quality. He is an aspiring to third operator from Spain and Your first 5G antennalocated in Palencia is the best proof of how it is heating the way to achieve its goal. Digi was born like A little OMV Romanian and has ended up being The fourth operator in Spain. The installation of This first antenna It is a milestone that goes beyond the technical. It is the sample of how it is becoming a giant capable of looking at the operators that, to date, seemed untouchable. The agreement with Telefónica. One of the keys to Digi finishes killing the perception of virtual mobile operator (OMV) that you could have about it has to do with its according to Telefónicaone that covers both national roaming services and Ran Sharing (radio access network). DIGI will continue to use coverage and infrastucure Shared with Movistar For another 16 years, although one of the keys is what this operator allows to access one of the fastest and most efficient 5G networks in the market. Mutualization of the spectrum. This strange term is understood so simple, based on the fact that the key to win in 5G is to have the best possible connectivity to networks 5G SA (The “real” 5g, the fastest and most latency). This 5G Eral works in the spectrum of 3.6 GHz. Digi had 20 MHz in this bandinsufficient to offer a competitive 5G, and Movistar with 100 MHz. Thanks to the mutualization of the spectrum, both Ópedoras have access to a total of 120 MHz shared, something that allows theoretical speeds of 2.2 Gbps and a reduced latency of 8 and 12 ms. Shared heart, own soul. Digi shares part of Movistar’s physical network, and has access to both its spectrum and its antennas. But the company completely manages its traffic, has its own infrastructure, and its first 5G antenna in Palencia is proof of this: there are areas in which it is capable of offering connectivity without intermediaries. The use of its own antennas allows Digi to release part of the traffic that depended on Movistar antennas, giving preference to its customers with their own antenna, and releasing Telefónica. Sweeping in Spain. Digi’s figures are applause. In 2022 he managed to with 60% of total portability In Spain, and at the end of 2024 it ended up winning almost one million lines. It is currently the fourth operator (CNMC itself catalogs it as such, outside the OMV), with a market share that touches 10%. It is still far from 19% of Vodafone, 26% of Movistar and 41% of Masorange, but the figure is spectacular for an operator who, until just a few days ago, did not have a single antenna of his own. The price strategy. Digi works what we like most in Spain: the quality-quality. Its product portfolio Fight for the most adjusted pricewith especially aggressive offers in unlimited lines. Do not neglect, despite this, additional services such as television centered on the LaLiga footballor cloud storage. Where does Digi look. Digi wants to enter the top 3 of operators in Spain. As you collect Xataka mobileif it maintains the current growth rate, it is an objective that will achieve in the short term: in 2026 it will become the third operator in terms of fiber lines. It is not such a simple challenge in regards to mobile lines, where distances regarding large operators remain broad. On the other hand, both Masorange and Vodafone are in loss of lines, with an especially unavailable situation for this last operator. Image | Digi In Xataka | Avoid surprises when hiring digi: advantages and disadvantages that should be known

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