Nouveau cuisine in kitchens across Britain

As the recession looms over Britain, households the country over are being forced to tighten their belts, with many cutting back on pricey luxuries and unnecessary expenditures, such as food.

Yes, you read correctly. New research has found families are forgoing food so they can afford more essential items, such as broadband.

According to the latest Digital Families report from broadband provider O2, which questioned 500 families on the items they are most reluctant to cut back on in the credit crunch, 67% would prioritise the internet, while 59% would choose school uniforms, and 30% family holidays. Slightly worryingly, only 24% said they would put the weekly food budget first.

Forgive me if I sound a bit naïve here, but surely food is more of a necessity than internet access at home?

The study also found that we’re getting more tech-savvy as a nation. The average family owns 2.4 televisions, 1.6 computers, 2.4 games consoles, 3 mobile phones (which I’m sure includes at least one unused-and-waiting-to-be-recycled one) and 2.2 MP3 players.

In addition, over half of the parents questioned said that they played computer games together each week, and around a fifth are (cleverly avoiding expensive home phone bills by) using social networking sites such as Facebook and MySpace to stay in touch with family.

So, what are you cutting back on during the recession? And what are you reluctant to give up? Have your say in our forum…

Complete guide to saving money (without giving up the things you love) >>>

 Broadband promise for all, except Hull?

It might not be much, but discontented Hullonians are finally taking a stand over their lack of options when it comes to choosing a company to provide their broadband and home phone services.

Hull, a city void of BT lines is often referred to as a broadband black hole. Residents have to rely on Kingston Communications, which controls Hull’s telecoms network and its only broadband provider, Karoo.

Demanding action from regulator Ofcom to “comply with its obligations in ensuring a competitive telecommunications market for Hull,” over 200 people have already signed an online petition calling for Kingston Communications to allow competitors to enter the market in Hull.

If you’re a Hullonian desperate for more broadbandchoices.co.uk (see what I did there?) have your say by signing the petition today!

 Faster, faster faster!!

Yes, new research has found world’s fastest home broadband service is being offered in Japan.

Japan’s largest cable supplier J:Com is using similar technology to that used by communications giant Virgin Media in the UK, to offer its lucky 2.5million customers impressive connection speeds of up to 160Mb.

Virgin Media currently offers the quickest broadband service in the UK, with its super-speedy 50Mb XL package, launched at the end of last year. A subscription to the 50Mb broadband-only package costs £50 a month, although consumers can combine this with a phone service for £35.

However J:Com is offering a service three times faster to its customers for just over £42 a month!

Fear not though British broadband speed demons, because even faster broadband is on the way, apparently.

BT Broadband has been given the green light for plans to roll out its own fibre cable network, similar to Virgin’s, which could offer speeds of up to 60Mb to 500,000 homes and businesses in areas of Belfast, Cardiff, Edinburgh, Glasgow, London and Greater Manchester by next year.

In response to BT’s threat to knock its rival Virgin Media off the high-speed broadband pedestal, Virgin has promised customers even faster speeds in 2010, of between 100Mb and 150Mb, before BT even completes its own fibre network plans.

But despite promises of faster broadband in Britain, it seems that with the current financial climate cash-strapped households are unwilling to pay extra for superfast broadband.

A survey carried out by BroadbandChoices.co.uk found that 66% of broadband users don’t want to have to pay extra for the benefits of a high speed connection. This is more than double the figure from the same survey in 2007, where only 30% of those asked said they were reluctant to pay extra for faster downloads.

Take note BT and Virgin Media, I feel there is some way to go yet…

It’s a dog day for catch-up TV

It looks like the loophole that allows people to watch catch-up TV – services like the BBC’s iPlayer and 4oD - online without having to pay the TV licence is going to be closed. The BBC Trust has said that there needs to be a change in the law to reflect the fact that half a million people are watching TV online everyday.

As a fully paid-up TV licence holder, I have mixed feelings about this.

- The law-abiding curmudgeon in me thinks it’s only right that we should all fund the BBC through the licence fee. Foolish maybe, but I believe in the principles of public service broadcasting and want it to be protected. It also means the BBC can continue to produce programmes of quality and distinction, such as EastEnders, Mistresses and Snog, Marry, Avoid.

- The social-liberal in me thinks it’s unfair that some of the least well-off in society will be unable to watch the odd programme online without it costing an arm and a leg. Or the £142.50 a year licence fee.

- The conspiracy theorist in me wonders if the BBC has ever been able to detect TV signals from people’s houses anyway? Don’t they just wander around with a list of addresses and a list of who’s a TV licence holder, then knock on the doors of those without a licence and demand to check in their alcoves and behind their aspidistras in search of a television set?

So, as you can see I’m conflicted on this.

My sister is a hard-working single parent with a three-month-old baby. She’s never had a TV as she can’t afford the licence. She does however have a hand-me-down laptop, and occasionally she’ll watch an instalment of Nature’s Great Events or Little Dorrit on catch-up.

It’s pretty much the only entertainment she gets in the depths of the Scottish countryside. If she needs to buy a TV licence to do her bit of viewing, that’ll be the end of it. She’ll be back to washing terry towelling nappies with a mangle for evening entertainment.

My mother’s a pensioner on a fixed-income who hasn’t got a TV, a computer or a home phone line. But I reckon she’d love to watch a spot of The Apprentice, if she could afford it.

The whole TV licence issue is fraught with inconsistencies. The BBC has many commercial streams of income these days; ITV is paid for by ads and there are now so many other channels to watch which don’t fall under a public service remit. Is it not time for access to TV to be free, paid for by an endless stream of commercials?

Furthermore, how is the BBC going to limit access to the iPlayer? Will we have to register and give our TV licence number to watch catch-up? How does the BBC distinguish between catch-up and live streaming at the moment anyway? (Currently, watching live streaming legally requires a TV licence; however internet catch-up services do not).

The licence fee is a strange throwback to an earlier era. With regret, I’m beginning to think perhaps it can’t really survive the digital age.

Ross didn’t want to miss an episode of Corrie!

Vodafone mobile broadband customers take note, in fact anyone who uses mobile broadband take note, because what I am about to tell you is a shocking true story.

It’s the tale of 42-year-old Will Pierce, who decided to download some TV shows using his mobile broadband dongle while on abroad on a five-day skiing holiday in the French Alps.

We know that skiing is hazardous at the best of times, but it seems Pierce found out the hard way just how costly the popular winter sport, and using your mobile broadband abroad, can be.

While his intention was to keep his son entertained in the evenings, the avid skier got more than he bargained for when he arrived home to receive a roaming data bill of £21,716!

“I nearly fell over when I saw the bill,” said Pierce to the Daily Mail. “It was just unbelievable. I never imagined it would cost so much to watch a few TV programmes.

“I’m amazed that Vodafone could allow an individual to run up such a huge bill without any warning or agreement of a credit limit. It’s utterly staggering.”

However this isn’t the first time a Vodafone mobile broadband customer has been hit with a mammoth bill.
You may remember the stories of Ian Simpson, a 29 year old factory worker from Darlington, who ran up a bill of £27,322 for using his dongle abroad, and the couple who were charged £11,000 for downloading four episodes of Friends while on holiday (why anyone would want to watch Friends whilst on holiday is beyond me – haven’t they heard of E4?).

The moral of the story is this:

Know your limits. To avoid any nasty surprises when you open your mobile broadband bill it’s important you know usage limits and your providers’ charges.

If you’re unsure, download our complete guide to mobile broadband, it’ll give you all the information you need.

Mobile sofa surfing

I used to go home at night and balance my dinner, my laptop and my remote control on my knees as I watched TV from the sofa.

My fixed-line broadband cable would be at full stretch from its wall socket and frequently yanked out as I reached down for my wine.

When I got up to get more wine I would put my laptop on the sofa and then trip over the cable as I headed for the kitchen. My laptop was in peril.

Enough was enough. And I decided a wireless hub wasn’t going to be enough for me. I’d heard a lot of fuss about it so this time last year I went mobile.

So far my T-Mobile dongle has travelled up and down the country, been borrowed by my boyfriend (on several occasions) and almost lost in some long grass in a park. But it’s never really let me down.

Except when it refused to work for a while and the T-Mobile lady in customer services told me I needed a new one. I just gave it a mini-break for a few days and it came right as rain…

I’ve never come close to hitting my 3GB monthly download limit and it appears equally as speedy as my fixed-line.

I can fire up the internet anywhere and my T-Mobile deal really is very good value at £7.50 a month. I appear to be on some sort of loyalty deal as I’ve had a T-Mobile (formerly One-to-One) phone since they resembled bricks and everyone, not just fashionistas, wore shoulder pads.

If you haven’t tried mobile broadband yet, it’s definitely worth a try. And I’ve got just the guide to help you - our new Complete Guide to Mobile Broadband.

The guide is completely free and will tell you everything you need to know about, yes, you’ve guessed it, mobile broadband.

From how download limits and speeds compare to fixed-line broadband, to checking whether you can get coverage in your area.

There’s even a part on the future of mobile broadband – and a whizz through fourth generation (4G) technology - mobile broadband promises to be even faster and more useful in the near future.

Have a read, then let me know if you decide to go for the freedom of mobile broadband and if so, how you get on.

Download the Complete Guide to Mobile Broadband >>>

 I love pink!

First I brought you the female-friendly credit crunch, and now ladies, I bring you female-friendly broadband.

Are you a girly on the go? Do you want to be able to check your emails on the bus, update your Facebook status on your lunch break, and check cinema times on the way home from the office? Maybe, just maybe, you’d like to subscribe to the ConsumerChoices.co.uk blog feed and read our posts wherever you are?

Well, look no further ladies (and men who want to get their ladies up to speed with all things broadband), because mobile broadband is here.

Ok, so mobile broadband is nothing new, it’s been around for a while now. But it’s never really been marketed specifically at women (or anyone that likes the colour pink). Until now that is…

Yes, those clever broadband giants Orange have filled the gap in the market with a cute little pink Huawei E160 mobile broadband dongle.

Aimed at girls on the go, the new modem stick will give you download speeds of up to 7.2Mb, and you can connect anywhere from just £9.79 a month on a 12-month contract.

Choose your contract length and the usage you need, plug your pink dongle into your laptop and you’ll be off. You can surf the net, shop online and Facebook to your heart’s content (just beware of download limits).

So, forget hunting around for a WiFi hotspot, or trying to figure out where you are on Google maps using a screen the size of a business card, because mobile broadband is now for everyone girls.

 Those black holes may just disappear

Even though its football team is sitting in a comfortable place in the Premier League, and regeneration cash is being poured into the city, all is not happy in Kingston-upon-Hull.

Sadly in the city, despite a population of more than 250,000, many Hullonians feel they are living in a broadband black hole.

BroadbandChoices.co.uk users hailing from the city agree:

“It would be nice if the people of Hull actually had a choice over their broadband provider,” says Clare South, while S Robinson moans: “I can’t even change providers as Karoo has the monopoly over Hull; there are no BT lines.”

Yes, S Robinson is right. In a city free of BT lines, residents must rely on the service of Kingston Communications, which controls Hull’s telecoms network and its only broadband provider, Karoo.

There is some light at the end of the tunnel however, and if you’re unfortunate enough to live in a broadband black hole in rural Britain, such as Powys and Ceredigion in Wales, you may welcome what I’m about to say with open arms.

Even if a bit on the expensive side, supplier of satellite, aerial and electronics equipment Eurosat has come up with a solution to fill in Britain’s rural broadband black holes, with a new satellite broadband option.

Unlike previous satellite broadband packages, Eurosat’s Astra2Connect package doesn’t require a landline for uplink, meaning the package could prove a godsend for those in truly isolated areas like the Welsh village of Gwytherin (and the not-so-isolated Hull).

However, it’s not a cheap option.

The hardware bundle needed to get up-and-running costs a whopping £300. For this you’ll get the satellite dish, modem and cabling. Installation is an extra £100, though the company says “anybody who can put up a set of shelves” will be able to set up and configure the satellite themselves (best get a Eurosat guy in then!).

Depressingly slow speeds, reminiscent of that old devil dial-up, begin at 256Kb for £19.99 a month, and peak at a measly 2Mb with 128Kb upload, for an eye-watering £75.99 a month.

All contracts are 12-month, and the above prices are for people who pay for the whole year in advance; so anybody who’d like the privilege of paying monthly, add on an extra £5 per month.

The service is also subject to a fair-usage policy which sees heavy-users’ speeds throttled “depending on the needs of the network”.

While the prices may seem unjustifiably high when compared to average broadband costs, the Eurosat service is aimed primarily at those for whom ADSL isn’t an option, such as those in Gwytherin.

So, to everyone living in a broadband black hole, and Hullonians who want the choice of a different provider (though frankly with these speeds I think I’d stick to Karoo!), there is now an answer, albeit an extremely expensive one, to your internet prayers.

 Join the speed revolution

In the 1380s the people of England rose up from their scattered villages and joined together to fight in the Peasants Revolt…

…in the 1950s the Cuban Revolution made Che Guevara a star…

…and now in 2009 we, the team at BroadbandChoices.co.uk, are ready to stage our own revolution.

Today we are revolting against slow broadband speeds!

Join us to take back the power and the right to get the fastest speeds you can!

After months of blood, sweat and tears, we have finally completed our Complete Guide to Speeding up your Broadband.

Packed full of tips and tricks, it is guaranteed to help you get the most from your existing connection, without having to switch providers.

While your maximum speed is ultimately limited by your chosen broadband package, it’s amazing what a little bit of DIY can do…

From repositioning your router and upgrading your antenna, to monitoring your microfilters and fixing up your faceplate, we’ve got it all covered.

Did I mention that this guide is completely free?

That’s right. We are giving you the beautiful gift of broadband speed for nothing. So what are you waiting for?

Download the guide today and enjoy full speed ahead!

Do let me know how you get on…

Download the Complete Guide to Speeding up your Broadband >>>

 Living life in the super-fast lane…

Are you tired of your broadband being slower than Thomas the Tank Engine chugging up a hill every time you fire up iTunes and try to download a few tracks? Well, if you’re up for switiching your provider or already with Virgin Media, the good times are here. Horray!

Branson’s chaps have just launched a new 50Mbps service, letting you snag files faster than Usain Bolt covers 100m.

Virgin says the service is already available to up to 1.5 million homes, thanks to their superfast fibre optic network, and plans are afoot to ensure that every single one of their 12.5 million punters can get involved come the middle of 2009.

The new 50Mbps service allows web surfers to download an entire music album in as little as 11 seconds; a TV show in around one minute, a high quality movie in as little as 3.5 minutes and a high definition movie in around 15 minutes. And with plans already in place for a super-fast 100Mbps service, it looks as if Virgin Media is going to be slapping down the competition in a major way over the next year.

Sadly though, the lightening speeds don’t come cheap – The 50Mbps broadband package will cost £51 a month to standalone customers or £35 a month to customers also taking Virgin Media’s home phone line for £11 a month. Customers taking other services may also be able to benefit from further bundled discounts.

Are you with Virgin Media? Tell us what you think in the comments section, or join in the hot debate on our forum…