There are five big mobile broadband operators in the UK and a lot of potential customers. The mobile broadband industry has been growing rapidly over the last few years and as consumers become more savvy they expect more for their money. Initially mobile broadband dongles were aimed at the business market and the main benefits focused upon were portability and ease of use. Now that mobile broadband has become a mainstream choice price is much more of an issue. People are much more conscious of monthly costs during a recession and all outgoing must justify themselves.
It has been reported that Orange and Vodafone are both interested in buying T-Mobile. If either are successful the resulting company will be the largest in the industry. Getting new customers signed up is more important than ever for the main providers. As new customers who have previously been offline choose to connect with mobile broadband there is a rush to provide the most eye-catching deal to tempt them into a contract. There is lots of debate about what is the best mobile broadband deal but the best deal for one person may not be the best deal for everyone.
Some companies have been offering free laptops in exchange for a monthly connection fee. Others are offering short term contracts aimed at those not keen on committing to 12 or 18 months of payments. Pay as you go mobile broadband is a popular choice as well. Costs are coming down and monthly download allocations are going up. Coverage continues to improve although ‘notspots‘ are still present (or should that be not present?). As far as I can see the consumer is benefiting from the increased competition. Those of us already in a long term contract wont be feeling the benefit just yet but at least it’s on its way!
Britain is on a national state of alert as the temperature soars past 20°C. Prime Minister Brown is urging the public not to panic despite the shocking conditions. Mr Brown has declared a yellow alert and warned about the dangers of exposing oneself to the sun unprotected. It has been three years since Britain last experienced a summer so the hot weather has lead to a lot of confusion and fear. The M.O.D have received hundreds of calls about a strange bright light hovering above various cities around the country.
Some areas of Scotland are thought to have thawed out almost completely with local residents having to take off their second coat for the first time in years. In London the public transport system has ground to a halt with tube trains melting on the tracks. Overland trains have not been in service since the big freeze over the winter.
Pale limbs are being exposed to the sun around the country and sales of socks and sandals are booming. England football shirts are being removed and Burberry caps loosened in job centre queues up and down this fair isle. The number of car crashes is rising steadily as men stare in disbelief at the shocking amount of female flesh on display.
Meteorologists have warned that this heatwave may last up to several days and there are fears that it will not rain until Thursday afternoon.
I almost spat out my coffee this morning, partly due to the taste but mostly because I had just seen a headline which read - ‘Swine Flu Parties Not A Good Idea’. Apparently having a party with people who already have a mild strain of Swine Flu in order to catch the disease is something people are actually doing. The theory is that you get the mild strain, get better and are thus immune to any stronger strains that may be floating about or may arrive this winter.
The fact that people would actually consider doing this amazed me. Perhaps seeing that a recent study showed that almost half of those asked could not locate their heart on a diagram I shouldn’t be so surprised by people’s lack of medical know-how.
My advice for those considering going to a Swine Flu party is to come to my recession party instead. For those of you who haven’t been to a recession party, don’t worry its quite simple. You just give me a months wages in order to be immune to the recession in case it gets any worse this winter. If any of you are feeling at all flu-ish please stay at home.
A recent study has shown that coffee can actually prevent bad breath rather than cause it as was previously thought. Professor Mel Rosenberg of Tel Aviv University set out to prove that drinking coffee on a regular basis can lead to an acid oral environment which can in turn lead to the growth of odorous bacteria. He expected to thus confirm previous studies linking a coffee habit with a stinky gob.
What Dr Rosenberg actually discovered was that some compounds found in the three different coffees tested (Elite coffee, Landwer Turkish coffee, and Taster’s Choice) seemed to combat bad breath. The exact compound has not been singled out but it appears to prevent the creation of odor rather than just covering it up as breath mints would. There has been some speculation that this will lead to new advancements in the fight against halitosis (the best comic book villain that never was).
Apparently sucking on a coffee bean is a centuries old cure for bad onion breath. I’d never heard of this but I don’t exactly need too much encouragement and any new excuse to have a cup of coffee is good thing as far as I’m concerned.
Volkswagen have launched a new site to celebrate their reputation as van makers of choice for those with an eye for adventure. The popularity of their camper vans with surfers and other outdoor types is clear to see, particularly in the summer time.
The site VWescape.co.uk is tied in with a series of summer events including the GoldCoast Oceanfest in Devon and the Blackheath Bike and Kite Festival in London. At the these events people will be able to have a look at some of the Volkswagen vans for sale the Caravelle and the California.
There will also be a chance to look around some split screen camper vans that will no doubt be out and about this summer. The used vans seem to all come out of the woodwork once the sun is shining!
Wonderbra have launched their latest strapless bra which is designed to work like a pair of hands. The Ultimate Strapless bra has four ‘fingers’ molded into each cup which are not visible from the outside. The bra is said to provide the same kind of support a woman experiences using her own hands. The new bra is available in sizes A-F and will be available at most lingerie retailers.
Wonderbra have spent two years working on their latest design testing materials and shapes. They have spent hundreds of hours testing prototypes:
“We conducted a comprehensive series of tests with real girls, which included dancing, bending, stretching and jumping, all designed to put the bra through its paces. This unique technology lifts the weight of the bust, supports and gives a trusted Wonderbra cleavage. We have created a groundbreaking garment giving women the perfect solution to the age old strapless bra problem.”
It’s hard to believe now but the NME was actually good once. Long before it turned into a hype infested tabloid it used to contain interesting reviews of interesting bands. I think it was actually good rather than being one of those things that seemed good at the time but in retrospect were actually rubbish like all those crappy cartoons people like to reminisce about.
You could always see Steven Wells’ (or Swells as hew was known) reviews coming because they were full of capitalized outbursts and lots of swearing. If you had to try and show an interest in dull 90’s indie bands you would feel the need to swear as well. Swells passed away after suffering from lymphatic cancer.
Swells worked at the NME because it gave him a voice — he had joined at a time when it featured articles about Right To Work Marches and CND and he expected it to stay like that forever. If he had any connection with music, it was as a medium to express political comment and also occasionally to give him an adrenalin rush.
A high speed ‘Javelin’ train that will speed up journey times for visitors to the 2012 Olympics has been tested in London. The train took 30 minutes to get from St Pancras station to Ashford in Kent, a journey that usually takes 80 minutes. The Javelin train will act as a shuttle taking spectators from St Pancras station to the Olympics site at Stratford in just seven minutes. It is part of a series of major investments in London’s transport system in order to prepare for the influx of visitors in 2012.
London aims to improve it’s public transport system and provide green alternatives for 2012. Walking and cycling routes are being created in order to encourage spectators to ’stride or ride’ to the events in order to reduce congestion.
Although the Olympic committee is focusing on green and low cost travel alternatives the influx of people into London will also benefit other areas of the transport industry. Taxi cabs and car hire companies are sure to benefit. Those who offer car hire at Heathrow airport or a taxi ride out to the east end will no doubt see a rise in customers.
Somebody at Habitat head office must have heard about this new thing called ‘Twitter’ that all the kids are going on about. They decided that what their company needed was to ‘engage’ with customers and ‘join the conversation’ in order to ’sell some over-priced furniture’. Unfortunately it doesn’t end there, unlike other companies who jump on the bandwagon Habitat went a bit too far.
“This was a mistake and it is important to us that we always listen, take on board observations and welcome constructive criticism. We will do our utmost to ensure any mistakes are never repeated.”
Whoever was doing the tweeting (whichever twit twated) got a bit spammy and decided to include completely irrelevant hashtags. If you have managed to avoid Twitter thus far hashtags are keywords included to signal the subject of the tweet so that you could search for #Wimbledon and see all the updates about the Tennis. The person operating Habitat’s Twitter account included hashtags including #iPhone and #Apple in tweets about their sale. Even worse than this they used #Mousavi and #Iranelection which are being used to get information out of Iran about the events unfolding there.
This shows either a complete lack of understanding on Habitats part or a complete disregard for Twitter users. It must have created a lot of negative publicity and it will take a while for this to be forgotten. I feel a little bit sorry for whoever was running the account as they clearly got a bit carried away and couldn’t have anticipated the reaction they recieved. Then I think about somebody in Iran searching for #Mousavi and reading about Habitat’s great offers and suddenly I don’t feel so sorry for them anymore!
Tennis star Maria Sharapova became a live mannequin recently in London in order to model creations by students from the London College of Fashion. She became a temporary window display at Liberty in Carnaby Street. The clothes on display were inspired by the intersection between fashion and high tech design.
The event was the result of a design competition sponsored by Sony Ericsson. The winning entry, created by Georgie Davies, was a cocktail dress which lights up when the wearers phone rings.
“The open and creative brief allowed our students free reign to develop design ideas that are forward thinking,”
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