What is White Space TV or Super WiFi

Few weeks ago we published an article on how to do it Microsoft intends to use files white TV space In Africa and India to provide Internet connectivity in remote areas. In areas where even installing a mobile phone tower is impossible, White Space TV technology will help people connect to the Internet using fixed devices at home or school. The article explains what white space for television is and mentions some interesting things you should know about the upcoming white space revolution in television. This is also referred to as digital disruption Which can affect the major internet service providers, increasing competition and thus lowering the average cost of internet access.

What is TV White Space & Super WiFi

You know that TV channels use a different frequency band to deliver content to your TVs. It maintains a gap between contiguous bandwidths so that content from one channel does not overlap with content from another. This space is called the buffer space. There is plenty of space between two adjacent TV channels. And if you take into account all the TV channels that you have, it becomes a huge amount of unused space – albeit distributed in parallel across different frequency bands.

The exact frequencies used to broadcast on TV channels vary from country to country, so I can’t give an estimate of how much white space is available in TV. You can check it right away using the tools that already exist for this.

Super Wi-Fi or TV White Space Features

White Space TV is also called Super WiFi because its range is much larger than regular WiFi. According to Carlson Technologies, while WiFi covers a few feet, super WiFi can cover a range of up to 10 kilometers. It’s nearly 10 times the length a regular WiFi can go.

The main problems with regular WiFi networks are that they weaken as space travels and cannot get past obstacles, so they cannot be used in mountainous terrain or forests. Super WiFi has no such problems. It can bend and bounce over obstacles to move forward.

Carlson Technologies has created a 2-minute video to show how their “Rural Connect” software works. Microsoft and other companies may use other technology. If you’re interested, click the video below to see Carlson’s answer on how TV White Space works.

Determine and purchase the available white space for TV in your area

The Google Spectrum database helps you determine how much free space is available in your area. Another tool, from Spectrum Bridge, is the Show my white spaces. You can also use it to check the white TV space available for purchase or use.

Besides these two automated tools, you can also contact Carlson Technologies that are helping to revolutionize white space television. If you are interested in providing internet or cable service using the white space of your TV, you can buy some unused spectrum through these guys.

Microsoft is now leading the way in the use of white space on TV

Microsoft, with some partners, has tested the technology several times in the United States and now intends to provide low-cost Internet access to developing countries. Although its main focus is on Africa, it is also building infrastructure in India after the Prime Minister pushed for a digital India scheme. Along the same lines, Facebook and Google also provide free internet access, but they are not tied to Super WiFi.

Microsoft intends to reserve different unused spectra and build base stations that will connect even the most remote regions in Africa. The continent has the lowest percentage of Internet users via TV and mobile phones everywhere. People use GPRS to connect to the Internet, but this option is expensive. And in many areas, cell phone signals cannot reach due to the terrain. In order to connect these regions and provide affordable internet to Africans, Microsoft is partnering with different companies. They are setting up ground stations where possible so that there is uninterrupted internet.

Infrastructure required to use the TV white spaces of the Internet

I want to reiterate that the ground station can cover an area of ​​10 km (imagine a radius of 10 km), so Microsoft will have to use some technology to maintain super Wi-Fi – every 10 km. It could be something like horoscopes.

There are no Super WiFi mobile devices available at the time of writing, so the ISP and users will need to use an external device to use White Space Internet TV.

At the moment, there is no computer with built-in hardware to directly use TV White Space Internet. It is a fixed device that connects to the router and from there to the computer or computers to provide access to the Internet.

Microsoft has not specified the costs and how it intends to reach remote areas in Africa or India with the technology, but it says that by the end of 2016, Super Wi-Fi will take significant range and will cost businesses, cost to users, user devices and repeaters/towers, etc. . It will be clearer.

Since TV White Space is related to the Internet, it also applies to the Internet of Things. Devices can communicate with each other using Super WiFi frequencies.