A report on
The Register discusses (A Times article) the CAA considering a ban on a all laptops as a result of new communications features which MAY become avaliable on laptops in the future, UWB (Ultra Wide Band) networking.
There is also a lively thread on this on
Slashdot .
After cutting through the obvious hype - there really is not a ban planned, just the observation that a danger would result in a ban, are aircraft systems really so sensitive that a very low power spark gap type transmitter would present a serious risk?
If that were the case then then by (ridiculous but logical) extrapolation ALL electrical devices will be banned, lest somone for example cuts the headphone cord and starts touching the bare wires together...
When can we expect aircraft designed with proper RFI immunity designed into the passenger cabin and a common set of rules from carriers that will help stop these stupid reports once and for all?