This article was updated in June 2025 (first published 31‑05‑2018 by Christian Cawley). Key Takeaways: Analogue switch-off delayed: BT’s copper-based PSTN will now close on 31 January 2027, giving tele-care services extra time to migrate....

Insights | By Christian Cawley | 31-05-2018

The global telecommunication industry is rapidly being transformed by the development and rollout of ‘free space optics (FSO)’. FSO is a line-of-sight technology that uses invisible beams of light to provide optical bandwidth connections. These enhanced connec...

By Nnamdi Anyadike | 29-05-2018

The heat your computer generates could help increase battery life by a fifth with a nanostructured thin film technology that turns that waste warmth into electricity. The thin film converts heat into electricity using what is called pyroelectrics and it cou...

By Rob Coppinger | 24-05-2018

If I suggested to a cycling-mad pal of mine that he should switch to electrically powered bicycles his verbal response would most definitely not be printable here. Why is that? Well in his case, even as a gentleman of mature age, he has sufficient pedal-pow...

By Paul Whytock | 23-05-2018

High-power electronics could work at higher temperatures for longer with water flowing over a heat exchanger’s surface that is designed to repel the liquid, the exact opposite of what is used today. Water is typically boiled off hydrophilic heat exchanger...

By Rob Coppinger | 21-05-2018

Rapidly falling component and installation costs are encouraging the growth of solar power in key locations across the globe. And solar inverters, which play an important role in the operation of solar photovoltaic (PV) systems, are expected to witness a solid...

By Nnamdi Anyadike | 18-05-2018

Originally published 16-05-2018 | Revised June 2025 Key Takeaways: AR market surge: IDC values AR at US $83.6 bn (2024) and forecasts 38 % CAGR through 2030. Mainstream hardware: LiDAR-equipped phones plus Vision Pro, Quest 3 and s...

Insights | By Mark Patrick | 16-05-2018

If there is anyone in the developed world for whom the word ‘building’ still conjures up an image of a structure comprising just four walls, a roof, a couple of doors and a few windows then the latest ‘smart building’ developments are likely to come as quite a...

By Nnamdi Anyadike | 11-05-2018

Iceberg monitoring robot marine vessels that work together to overcome extreme weather and damage are one vision of scientists developing biologically inspired swarming machines. The behaviour of ants and bees and other swarming animals and how they adapt t...

By Rob Coppinger | 10-05-2018

Originally published 08-05-2018 · Revised June 2025 Key Takeaways: Market boom: AR software & services soared from US $471 million (2017) to US $83.6 billion (2024), with IDC forecasting 38 % CAGR through 2030. Every–device acc...

Insights | By Mark Patrick | 08-05-2018

Originally published 16-05-2018 | Revised June 2025 Key Takeaways: Data explosion fuels innovation: Big data growth from telemetry, distributed file systems, and generative AI training sets is reshaping how storage systems are architected...

Insights | By Nnamdi Anyadike | 04-05-2018

Optical computing where circuits are replaced by light beams is a step closer with nanoantennaes that can be tuned to emit and receive particular wavelengths and manufactured without complex methods. Optical computing could be faster than today’s computers,...

By Rob Coppinger | 02-05-2018