With an estimated billion people staying home, remote working or just watching shows online all day, telecom infrastructure is coming under great strain. Experts and companies are mostly saying that the risk is far from critical yet, but the EU has taken the possibility of the internet crashing very seriously. Netflix, Google, Apple, and Amazon have begun to restrict HD video streaming to reduce data usage in Europe.

Also Read: Encryption Standards Threatened Under Pretext of Battling Coronavirus

Coronavirus Crisis Hurts European Internet Infrastructure

The epicenter of the coronavirus crisis has squarely migrated from China to Europe these days. Italy bore most of the brunt, with the highest number of casualties so far, but Spain, France and other countries are also suffering the strong effects of the pandemic growing quickly. Governments have reacted by imposing curfews on citizens, closing borders, shutting down businesses and generally putting in place various restrictions on normal life in order to slow the spread of the virus and “flatten the curve”.

The main measure that everyday people were asked to take in response is to stay home and avoid any unnecessary trips outside the house. As such, it is no surprise that internet usage in Europe has spiked, with employees working remotely, students learning online and everybody streaming videos. This caused European telecommunication companies, such as Vodafone and Deutsche Telekom, to raise the alarm and the European Union soon reacted.

Important phone conversation with @ReedHastings, CEO of @Netflix

Samsung Galaxy S10 Lite Launch, Vivo S1 Pro Price in India Reveal, CES 2020 Preview, and More Tech News This Week

Samsung Galaxy S10 Lite and Galaxy Note 10 Lite launch was the highlight of the first week of 2020 as the tech companies prepare to show their wares at the next week’s CES 2020 tech fair. We already have some announcements of the products being showcased at CES and we will be talking about some of those as well as what we can expect next week in this wrap. Additionally, Vivo S1 Pro made its India debut and Jiomart was introduced on a pilot basis. Read on for more on the happenings that dominated the tech news space this week.

Samsung Galaxy S10 Lite, Samsung Galaxy Note 10 Lite launch

In a surprise announcement ahead of CES 2020, Samsung introduced the Galaxy S10 Lite and Galaxy Note 10 Lite smartphones. Both smartphones will be going on sale in the coming weeks around the world, but we don’t have India-specific information right now. However, it shouldn’t take very long. As their names suggest, both Galaxy S10 Lite and Galaxy Note 10 Lite phones are the budget variants of the Galaxy S10 and Galaxy Note 10 phones, respectively.

Samsung Galaxy S10 Lite and Galaxy Note 10 Lite share a couple of specifications, but there are some differences between the two phones as well. Both phones feature 6.7-inch full-HD+ screen with a hole-punch design, however the Galaxy S10 Lite, which is more premium out of the two, uses Super AMOLED Plus display, whereas Galaxy Note 10 Lite has a Super AMOLED display. According to Samsung, “Super AMOLED Plus display creates ergonomic design with thin and light display panel by adopting flexible OLED technology” – whatever that means.

Google has officially launched its virtual maps alias street view feature on maps for some Kenyan parks and conservancies. The move will, therefore, enable tourists all over the world take virtual tours around Kenya.

Some of the parks which have been scheduled for the service are Amboseli, Nairobi National Park, Maasai Mara National Reserve, Ol Pejeta Conservancy, Lake Nakuru, Hell’s Gate, Mt Kenya and Samburu National Reserve.

The virtual maps will improve KWS’s brand identity, develop a ready and accessible information hub for customers, better target audience reach, and thus build a virtual shop for KWS products.

With 82% of travellers undecided on a destination and 74% of them starting their research or inspiration online, it’s critical that we have Kenya online.

Google Kenya country director Charles Murito 

The virtual map captures 360-degree ground-level imagery, enabling users remotely explore landmarks and park features.

The capture of images was done through a collaboration between Google, the Ministry of Tourism, Kenya Wildlife Services, the county governments of Narok and Samburu and also Ol Pejeta Conservancy. Street View, by Google Maps, is a virtual representation of our surroundings on Google Maps. It consists of millions of panoramic images. Street View’s content comes from two s – Google and contributors.

Cell phones are really hurting people badly as researchers have found that head and neck injuries incurred while driving or walking with a cellphone are on the rise – and correlates with the launch of the iPhone in 2007 and release of Pokemon Go in 2016.

“Injuries from cellphone use have mainly been reported from incidences during driving, but other types of injuries have gone largely underreported,” said study author Boris Paskhover from Rutgers University in the US.

“We hypothesise that distractions caused by cellphones were the biggest reason for injury and mainly affected people aged 13 to 29,” Paskhover said.

The study, published in JAMA Otolaryngology-Head & Neck Surgery, reviewed 2,501 emergency department patients who sustained head and neck injuries resulting from cellphone use between 1998 and 2017.

They found a steady increase in injuries over that time, along with the notable spikes. Pok�mon Go is an augmented reality-based game that requires players to track animated characters on their phones in real locations.

87 per cent of the children exceed the recommended screen time. Pixabay

The injuries included cuts, bruises, abrasions and internal injuries, especially around the eye and nose.

More than 41 per cent occurred at home and were minor, requiring little or no treatment. About 50 per cent resulted from distracted driving and one-third from distracted walking, the study said.