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If you live in a rural area of the UK, you may soon be able to use your phone for satellite calls, messages and other standard data use. On Tuesday, the nation's telecom regulator, Ofcom, proposed using direct-to-device satellite tech to connect people in the UK's "most rural and hard-to-reach places," like mountains and remote villages. Ofcom sees the tech complementing traditional networks, aiming to provide 100 percent mobile coverage in the UK. The regulator said the tech could also provide backup coverage during outages, offer service to ships and passengers in coastal waters without a connection and provide emergency 999 services (the UK's version of 911) in remote areas. In January, British telecom Vodafone made the world's first satellite video call using a standard mobile phone on a remote mountain in west Wales. Regarding the regulatory details, Ofcom suggests amending existing mobile spectrum licenses for frequencies already used by cellular providers (below 3 GHz). However, the regulator also offered alternative approaches, including introducing a new license for satellite services or allowing license-exempt use if certain conditions are met. Regardless of its specific policy approach, Ofcom said strict conditions would be attached to avoid interference with existing spectrum users in the UK and overseas. Ofcom is opening a consultation period with stakeholders from now to May 20. Depending on the feedback it receives, it could begin authorizing direct-to-device calls later this year. The iPhone 14 series was the first standard handset to offer direct-to-satellite emergency messaging. In iOS 18, Apple expanded the functionality beyond crises to any situation where you're off the grid. The Samsung Galaxy S25 series and Google Pixel 9 recently added similar functionality.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/mobile/smartphones/the-uk-could-greenlight-direct-to-phone-satellite-services-this-year-183504094.html?src=rss
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Sunderfolk, a game that borrows elements from tabletop games like Dungeons & Dragons and couch party games like Jackbox, has a launch date. The fantasy RPG from Dreamhaven (the stomping ground of Blizzard co-founder and former CEO Mike Morhaime) arrives on April 23. You can play a demo today through April 7. While virtual tabletops like Wizards of the Coast's Sigil act as video game-like extensions of a traditional tabletop experience, Sunderfolk's premise is in using modern technology to simulate something like D&D but with more accessibility to casual players. Here, your phone becomes the deck of cards (and controller), while your TV or monitor is the game board. Although it supports remote play, this one sounds tailor-made for couch co-op. The game's story retreads familiar fantasy tropes, like a town of peaceful inhabitants invaded by dark and creepy monsters. Here, the heroes are a clan of anthropomorphic animals who each fit a familiar class like arcanist, bard, berserker, pyromancer, ranger or rogue. You can customize each with weapons, armor, items and skills as they level up. (When in doubt, play the classics!) Dreamhaven "We were, with Sunderfolk, really trying to create something that would inspire people to get together in person," Game Director Erin Marek said in a preview trailer. "We wanted it to feel similar to a game night, getting together to play a board game or getting together to play D&D with a group of friends or family or loved ones that you really care about. And to share that experience together side-by-side." You can gather your cohorts to try the game for free on GeForce Now from now to April 7. The preview gives you access to all playable characters and an early part of the game. Fortunately, you don't need a paid GeForce membership; a free account will do. Sunderfolk will cost $50 and be playable Steam, PS5, Xbox Series X and Switch. But only the party member running the big-screen device needs to own the game; the phone app (iOS and Android) for your pals will be a free download when the game launches on April 23.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/gaming/dreamhavens-tabletop-rpg-party-game-sunderfolk-arrives-on-april-23-183006473.html?src=rss
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Google has the pedal to the metal on its AI development. Just a few months after the debut of Gemini 2.0, the tech giant has unveiled another upgrade in Gemini 2.5. As with any new AI launch, Google is touting a strong performance on LMArena for Gemini 2.5, particularly its capabilities in coding, mathematics and science. The first model in this series is Gemini 2.5 Pro Experimental. Google said this is a thinking model that's intended to provide responses grounded in more reasoning, analysis and context than the answers offered by classification- and prediction-driven models. It's a different approach than Google took with the Gemini 2.0 series, which started off with the more efficient and less expensive Flash version. "With Gemini 2.5, we've achieved a new level of performance by combining a significantly enhanced base model with improved post-training," the company said in a blog post attributed to Koray Kavukcuoglu, CTO of Google DeepMind. "Going forward, were building these thinking capabilities directly into all of our models, so they can handle more complex problems and support even more capable, context-aware agents." Google had only just started rolling out Gemini 2.0 to its services, using it to power the newly added AI Mode in search and Deep Research for handling more complex queries. With today's launch, expect to hear more updates from the company about getting this latest version. Gemini 2.5 Pro Experimental is available now in Google AI Studio, and Gemini Advanced members can use it directly in the Gemini app.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/ai/google-releases-gemini-25-ai-model-for-complex-thinking-182352224.html?src=rss
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