Tag: .uk
Virgin Media 50Mbps broadband: it's official
Virgin Media has finally announced the official rollout of its super-fast 50Mbps broadband service to over 12 million homes in the UK.
By the end of the year, around 40% of its network will have been upgraded to the new DOCSIS 3.0 network, with all 12.6 million subscribers expected to be able to access the new service by Summer 2009. The new service could eventually see maximum speeds of up to 200Mbps.
Existing Virgin Media customers can subscribe to the 50Mbps broadband service for £35 per month (assuming they already have an £11pm Virgin Media phone line). Alternatively, broadband on its own will cost £51 per month…
O2 announces UK release for BlackBerry Curve 8900
O2 has announced that the curiously non-3G BlackBerry Curve 8900 (formerly known as the ‘Javelin’) will be released on January 5th 2009. It’s going to be available for pre-registration from tomorrow (Dec 10th), and for pre-order from Dec 22nd on the O2 website.
Maybe I’m missing something here, but is this phone eagerly awaited? I haven’t heard anyone getting excited about the release, but with all this pre-reg and pre-order shenanigans, it seems like people are dying to get their hands on the device.
End of an era: grab a tech bargain at Woolworths this weekend
Even if you’ve been trying to ignore the bleak economic news of recent months, instead choosing to count the £10.54 worth of pennies you have hidden in a large jar under your bed, you’ll likely be aware that retail institution Woolworths is about to die.
To go out with a bang, the administrator has announced that Woolworths will begin an up-to-50% sale this weekend in all its UK stores.
The biggest discounts will be on toys and greetings cards, but apparently entertainment goods will also be discounted, so perhaps Woolies is the place to go if you’ve got any cash and want to buy a cheaper telly or games console…
Shiny Video Review: Advent 4213 Netbook
Zara got her hands on the Advent 4213 netbook the other day, and she liked it a lot. For me though, it seems to be trying to be a full-size laptop, rather than a diminutive netbook. It’s got a 10.2″ screen, a massive hard drive, 1GB of RAM, and it runs Windows XP – three things which I avoided when buying my Aspire One netbook a couple of months ago.
Still, if you’re not the sort of person who wants the full-on Linux-and-SSD netbook experience, then perhaps it’s for you. Check out the video above to see.
Advent UK
Related posts: PC World launches low-energy Advent Eco PC with decent specs | Advent Netbook 4211: PC World launch home brand MSI Wind
Amazon MP3 goes live in the UK
Rejoice, DRM-haters. Amazon MP3 has quietly gone live in the UK this morning. You can find it here. It’s got some big big discounts on popular albums, with Take That’s new ‘Circus’ going for just £3, as is Elbow’s ‘The Seldom Seen Kid’ and Seasick Steve’s ‘I Started Out With Nothin And I Still Got Most Of It Left’. Recent albums by Kings Of Leon, Coldplay and Girls Aloud are similarly cheaptastic.
Although the catalogue isn’t as ridiculously extensive as more established download services – yet – the user experience is great. I just downloaded Joni Mitchell’s ‘Blue’ in just four clicks, plus a small one-off Amazon Downloader install, which downloads tracks in the background and adds them to your favourite media player.
Sony UK sort of cuts price of PlayStation3 – starts offering £40 discount on 40GB model
If you really, really must have a PlayStation3 right now, you might want to buy yourself one via Sony’s online shop SonyStyle.co.uk – as it’s currently offering a £40 discount on its cheapest model.
The deal takes the RRP of the Blu-ray-playing “entry level” 40GB machine down to an almost reasonable £249 including free delivery, with a nearly tempting…
Get your crayons out: Nokia Build comes to the UK
Fancy yourself as a bit of an artist, do you? Well, if you love the Nokia 7310 Supernova (find out if you might like it by taking a look at Dan’s video review) and would like to customise its colourfulness even more, then Nokia has a treat for you.
The Nokia Build service has arrived in the UK and allows users to use standard drawing and colouring tools, personal photos or graphics to create their own casing. Complementary wallpapers, games, and other personalised options are also available…
Pioneer launches its 400W LX01BD integrated Blu-ray Home Cinema System
Pioneer’s all-in-one Blu-ray and surround sound option for the common man has launched in Europe, with shoppers able to experience its “3D” sound charms from today. Here’s what all the bits look like when photographed under laboratory conditions and without any messy cables in shot.
As well as a Profile 1.1 Blu-ray player, the LX01BD comes with “compact dodecahedron technology derived satellite speakers that generate sound fields in all directions,” with that sound being sprayed around by an integrated 5.1 channel amplifier capable of managing both DTS-HD and Dolby TrueHD soundtracks…
BUT STILL THEY COME: Trials of ID cards starting next year at two UK airports
The government’s amazing idea of making us all pay loads of money for a laminated bit of plastic with our name on it continues to unfold, with officials announcing the date for a trial run of the national ID card system.
Around 200,000 staff at Manchester and London City airports and associated suppliers will be issued with the ever-so-slightly controversial cards from Autumn of 2009, according to the Home Secretary Jacqui Smith, with the plan being to roll this out to all UK airport staff – and maybe even us lot – 18 months or so later…
Video games set to outsell video and music in the UK this year, thanks to FIFA, GTA and your mum
Huge launches like FIFA 09, GTA IV and Mario Kart Wii have already made 2008 a landmark year for video game sales – and the total cash blown on gaming could out-do music and video for the first time this year.
Projecting a total spend of £4.64bn on video games software and hardware by the end of 2008, Verdict Research says this figure will, for the first time, overtake traditional fun purchases of music and video, which will come in at £4.46bn…
