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by tw04 3535 days ago
I'm guessing it has far more to do with network connectivity than the tablet itself. The problems he describes to me sound like exactly what I would expect in a stadium filled with 100,000 cellphones emitting wifi and cellular interference.

I'm guessing the NFL didn't get clearance from the FCC to use a dedicated wavelength within the stadium to isolate their systems from noise.
5 comments
mikey_p 3535 days ago
There is actually an immense amount of coordination that goes into an NFL game, even more so for the Super Bowl:

* http://blog.rfvenue.com/karl-voss/

"... at the Super Bowl we manage ... basically anything D/C to light that is allowed inside the NFL venues.

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erobbins 3535 days ago
Yep. I had a friend who worked the Super Bowl, his only job was to detect and locate (and handle) rogue sources of RF energy.
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gdulli 3535 days ago
> I'm guessing it has far more to do with network connectivity than the tablet itself

That view is reinforced here: http://arstechnica.com/gadgets/2016/10/patriots-bill-belichi...

"Microsoft's hardware isn't necessarily the culprit here, merely the victim. The NFL uses a lot of wireless hardware—communications headsets, public Wi-Fi networks, private networks for the tablets, networks for the press, and more."

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notatoad 3535 days ago
>I'm guessing the NFL didn't get clearance from the FCC to use a dedicated wavelength within the stadium to isolate their systems from noise.

if they had, would the surface tablets have been able to use it? I'm not aware of any licensed spectrum that standard wifi cards are capable of communicating on.

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frisco 3535 days ago
Channel 14 is used in some Asian markets but illegal in the US, there's consumer hardware that can use it out there.
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huac 3535 days ago
Tell that to the Patriots' opponents: http://profootballtalk.nbcsports.com/2015/09/11/at-least-fiv...
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edroche 3535 days ago
This has been a ongoing problem in the entire NFL, not just in New England.

http://profootballtalk.nbcsports.com/2015/09/12/coaches-say-...

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criddell 3535 days ago
You might be right. I haven't heard of similar problems with iPads in baseball, but I think they aren't allowed to use the wifi.
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