PCMag study ranks Telus as Canada's fastest major ISP for 2020

A recent study released by PCMag revealed Telus as Canada's fastest internet service provider (ISP) for 2020, unseating Bell Canada, who reigned for the last couple of years. The top spot was usually a battle between Rogers and Bell Canada, with Rogers taking the title for years. But for this year, Telus gets the title of "speed master" when it comes to Canadian ISPs. 

The study focuses on "major" Canadian ISPs. PCMag considers an ISP a major provider if it has at least 500,000 subscribers and typically reaches across multiple provinces. It got it results from 33,782 tests the publication ran between June 1, 2019, and June 2, 2020, using their Speed Test.

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Telus offers PureFibre 1.5 Gigabit internet plan in British Columbia and Alberta

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Telus is bringing its high-speed PureFibre 1.5 Gigabit internet service to British Columbia and Alberta. The plan introduces up to 1,500Mbps download and up to 940Mbps upload speeds. According to the Vancouver-based national carrier, its upload speed is over 37 times faster than the upload speeds of other plans available in Western Canada. And this plan offers unlimited home internet data for $165 a month on a two-year contract.

With many working or studying from home right now because of COVID-19, this type of offering could be seen as an attractive one. The service reaches the speeds it does because of the carrier's PureFibre network, which it says is the largest 100% pure fibre-to-the-premise (FTTP) network in Western Canada. It allows for higher download and upload speeds and improved reliability, promising that you won't be affected by lags during peak hours. You can learn more about the plan in this link. 

Bell MTS will bring fibre internet to Morden, Manitoba

Photo by Christin Hume on Unsplash

Bell MTS announces plans to bring fibre internet connections to residents and businesses in Morden, Manitoba. It's part of a broader plan made with a $1 billion to launch fibre network speeds across Manitoba. Once these connections are installed, the promised download speeds can go up to 1.5Gbps.

Construction of the networks is scheduled to start sometime this summer, with first customers getting access in the fall. There are 3,300 homes and businesses in the city, with around 9,000 residents, making it an excellent place to start rolling out fibre connections. Bell also plans to bring these fast speeds to La Salle, Flin Flon, and Churchill in Manitoba this year.

Facebook’s Aquila drone successfully completes second test flight

The first test flight of Facebook’s Aquila drone went a bit awry after a 20-foot section off the massive 113-foot wingspan broke off during landing. A gust of wind knocked the drone off its flight path and the autopilot attempt to correct its course had Aquila flying faster than intended. Facebook’s engineers seem to have learned from that mistake and was able to fly the Aquila for an hour and 46 minutes. More sensors were added to the drone to gather additional data. Its auto-pilot software was modified. Spoilers were to the wings to increase drag and reduce lift during landing approach. And a horizontal propeller stopping mechanism was installed to support the successful landing.

Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg conceptualized Aquila back in 2014 with the idea of using this large solar-powered, high-altitude drone to connect areas in the world where it’s hard to get reliable internet access. The eventual plan is to have the drone fly up for 90 days at a time and provide internet access to an area 60 miles wide.

Source: The Verge + Tech Crunch