Ethernet Port on planes
Jan 20, 2015, 5:32 am
#2
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Back in the 2006-2007 time frame when Delta on Demand was initially installed DL probably thought there was some possibility that wired connections would be the standard for onboard connectivity.
Jan 20, 2015, 8:28 am
#3
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Jan 20, 2015, 9:36 am
#4
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In 2007 Wi-Fi wasn't even approved for use in flight, and many of these power ports are installed based on older, approved ($$) designs (that include Ethernet). If I'm building out a plane in 2006, I'm not going to bank on approval of a 1999 technology for use in-flight. Satellite-based in-flight Internet has been around since 2001 (without Wi-Fi). The ports are now essentially obsolete via approval of wireless technologies.
The purpose is the same as in-flight WiFi--on demand content, Internet access, etc.
The purpose is the same as in-flight WiFi--on demand content, Internet access, etc.
Jan 20, 2015, 1:15 pm
#5
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Virgin America installed ethernet ports at all of their seats on their planes, too, and they haven't actually done anything with them/won't ever.
Jan 20, 2015, 3:04 pm
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Oct 2, 2015, 6:56 pm
#9
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Oct 2, 2015, 8:30 pm
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Oct 2, 2015, 8:36 pm
#11
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No. Power doesn't ordinarily run over Ethernet, although it's possible to do so in some situations with special power-over-Ethernet injectors that are much bulkier.
The adapters you have a picture of here are simply a way to use alternate cabling or to connect to proprietary routers for management - they do not cause power to be supplied in any way.
The ports on the aircraft are used for administration purposes. Each IFE unit at every seat has its own control board and is effectively an individual computer. The IFE usually boots using information loaded from a server elsewhere on the plane (you can see the Linux boot process sometimes on older aircraft when the power is reset)... but the ethernet port gives TechOps a way to change settings if necessary or load new software at each individual seat.
(It may also have originally been intended as a way to provide Internet connectivity, but that alternate reality certainly won't come to pass in the age of wi-fi
)
The adapters you have a picture of here are simply a way to use alternate cabling or to connect to proprietary routers for management - they do not cause power to be supplied in any way.
The ports on the aircraft are used for administration purposes. Each IFE unit at every seat has its own control board and is effectively an individual computer. The IFE usually boots using information loaded from a server elsewhere on the plane (you can see the Linux boot process sometimes on older aircraft when the power is reset)... but the ethernet port gives TechOps a way to change settings if necessary or load new software at each individual seat.
(It may also have originally been intended as a way to provide Internet connectivity, but that alternate reality certainly won't come to pass in the age of wi-fi
)
Oct 2, 2015, 10:40 pm
#12
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Slightly OT but the USB port is more than just power -- when I plug my Android phone in I get a "connected to a computer" type message and my Kindle goes into "connected to a computer mode" and I can't use it for reading. I'm assuming at one point they were thinking of letting you play your own content on the setback screens...
Oct 2, 2015, 10:55 pm
#13
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Slightly OT but the USB port is more than just power -- when I plug my Android phone in I get a "connected to a computer" type message and my Kindle goes into "connected to a computer mode" and I can't use it for reading. I'm assuming at one point they were thinking of letting you play your own content on the setback screens...
Oct 3, 2015, 2:13 am
#15
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Slightly OT but the USB port is more than just power -- when I plug my Android phone in I get a "connected to a computer" type message and my Kindle goes into "connected to a computer mode" and I can't use it for reading. I'm assuming at one point they were thinking of letting you play your own content on the setback screens...