Televisions usually don’t have much to do with the internet, unless you’re streaming content to it. But in a strange situation in Wales, an old TV was intermittently cutting broadband to an entire village. And this happened for 18 whole months before the TV was identified as a culprit.
The amusing report came via BBC Wales, which reported on the situation that took place in Aberhosan, Powys. Just about every morning, at 7AM, the broadband connection to the entire village would be cut. Not even a cable replacement solved the issue. To pinpoint the source of the problem, engineers then used a spectrum analyser to find any electrical noise from around the village.
As it turns out, the source of the problem was an old, second-hand TV. The old thing which caused “a large burst of electrical interference in the village whenever it was turned on. More specifically, the TV emitted what’s known as a single high-level impulse noise (SHINE). This causes electrical interference in other devices. And in this case, it knocked out the broadband internet connection for the entire village.
The owner of the TV promised to turn it off and never use it again. And sure enough, the village’s broadband problem has not returned since.
While it’s a bizarre situation, it may not be as rare as it sounds. Anything with electrical components can potentially have an impact on broadband connections. Because of this, it’s important that your electrical appliances are properly certified.
(Source: BBC)
