April 7, 2014

I’m on the Three “One Plan” SIM only 12 month contract. £20 per month with UNLIMITED TETHERING

I’ve been with three for years, and probably would’t entertain the idea of switching network due to years of excellent 3G service. Now that 4G is being rolled out, that experience is only going to get better. Three has always been great value for money too, and this new plan is no exception. I already own my handset (Google Nexus 5) so a SIM only plan seemed logical.

I have opted for the One Plan SIM only on a 12 month contract. This gives me more allowance that I could ever use, but the really strong point of this plan is the unlimited tethering. When we are away with the caravan we are often heavy data users, as we have tablets and other devices which we can use for streaming TV etc (Chromecast), and therefore using the phone as a modem is a must. Previously I only had 1GB of data for use in this way, but now I can tether and get unlimited data, not only on the phone, but on the other devices which connect through it.

For £20 the One Plan gives the following:

All-you-can-eat data
2,000 minutes
5,000 Three-to-Three minutes.
5,000 texts

March 17, 2014

I took the caravan for a spring “shake down” at the weekend

As the caravan has been sat in storage since October last year, I wanted to take it out for a “shake down” to check everything was healthy. I have purchased various bits over the winter, such as LED bulbs (specifically for trips when off EHU) satellite dish, sky receiver, etc… and I wanted to test them out!

I swapped the little spot light bulbs, the toilet / shower light bulbs, and the awning light bulbs for SMD LED models. The results are superb; the light output is far superior to the previous bulbs, and although I don’t have an ammeter to test, they should consume significantly less power (up to 90%).

I also tested my new Triax satellite dish with folding LNB arm. I tested this on the caravan jockey wheel with a bracket I have, and it was superb. It was very easy to set-up and locate the satellite. I also tried the little HD Sky multiroom box I bought, and that worked a treat for viewing Motors TV!

I used some Milton to disinfect the water pipes and hot water tank, and fitted a new water filter to the system. The site I was staying on for the night had a water supply and grey water drain directly on the pitch which was brilliant, as it made this task a breeze. It is so convenient having “mains water” and not having to fill a barrel, or empty the waste. I really must book more plots that have this “full service” option as it is so much better!

I tested some food gadgets too; I tested my mini chopper, which is a tiny food mixer, to make a beef Madras from scratch. I used the chopper to grind up the spices, and to blend the garlic, tomato and ginger. I used my new pan too! I also tried my milk frother to make myself and a friend a couple of decent cappuccinos!

The shake down was a success, and (pending a successful service today) I will be going away for two nights with the family this coming weekend! We cant wait!

March 4, 2014

RC Chinook Helicopter – What a great flying toy !

When away visiting friends last week, I was shown a little “SYMA S026G Chinook” R/C helicopter. My mate Adam has one, which was given to him as a gift. I’ve had an R/C helicopter previously, but it was one of the first generation polystyrene models which only really want up and down. This dual rotor Chinook is a world away!

The helicopter is 3Ch, and Infra red controlled. There is a reasonably study handheld remote included, as well as a USB charging cable (although it can also be charged via it’s own handset via a concealed cable)

The twin rotors of the Chinook makes this toy very stable in flight. It can hover very well, turn 360 degrees on the spot, move forward, backward, up and down. You can land and take-off without too much drama, and it is quite easy to get the hang of things.

I’m very pleased with this for £24. It is incredible to think that it is even possible to produce something like this for that price.

February 12, 2014

The migration from iOS is complete! My Tablet is now a Nexus 7

Since my last post about Nexus; which described my switch to an android mobile (the Nexus 5) from an iPhone 5, I have had plenty of time to get used to the new phone, and the KitKat OS. I have to say I love it. Mainly, I think, it is the speed. The transition from one app to another, multitasking and task switching, and the way applications interact with each other is impressive. Also the screen is ridiculously good. Not only is it far bigger than the iPhone screen I had previously, but the technology is a big leap forward.

Almost immediately after starting to use the Nexus 5 mobile, my iPad mini, which I had previously used constantly whilst at home, began to feel slow. I now notice, having a new benchmark, that it takes an age after pressing on an app icon for the app to finish loading / refreshing. Using each app feels very “insular” on iOS, whereas on KitKat, the way in which applications interact with each other, and share / transfer content is great. I can switch from one app to another in an instant.

Similarly to the Nexus 5, the screen on the 7 is stunning, and the device is super quick. I went for the 16GB model, which significantly outperforms the iPad mini that I have previously. Early impressions are… I like it !

February 3, 2014

I’ve switched from my iPhone 5 to a Google Nexus 5, at least for now…

To the shock of many of my friends I have bought a Google Nexus 5 device. I have made the switch from iPhone after over 4 years on the iOS platform. Astonishingly the Nexus 5, which is Google’s own phone (which runs pure vanilla android) is only £299 for the 16GB version. I actually bought mine on ebay from somebody in the local area, for £255. It was a week old, but I couldn’t tell it had ever been used. A bargain if ever there was one!

So first impressions? It’s a difficult one to summarise. The two platforms are really very similar. Android people will tell you the platform is much more open, and that you can do what you want. iOS people will tell you that Android is fragmented, and buggy, and that iOS is much more polished. There is truth in all of that.

I think, bottom line, Android is not superior to iOS. They are very similar, but comparing many dual platform apps reveals that they usually look better on iOS. The entire android OS is functional, but lacks the spit and polish of iOS for sure. Yes the Google services are great, and they are deeply integrated ,but all those services are available for iOS. Apple has some great iOS services such as facetime, iMessage, find my friends etc, and these are NOT available for Android. Android has a bit more freedom for sure, but there isn’t much in it. Like for like, both platforms share pretty much the same features. The big annoyance with iOS for me is the inability to change the default mail app, or browser. Sure you can install your own (Chrome, Gmail etc) but you can never really set it as the default for handling tasks such as sending photos or opening links. That is inexcusable.

I will miss iMessage, as all my friends and family use it, with few exceptions. Luckily many of those friends also use WhatsApp. One annoying early observation; once you remove your SIM from your iPhone, your number remains enrolled in “iMessage” on Apples severs, despite turning it off, so at the time of writing, which is day 4 of using the nexus, all my iOS friends are still seeing failed messages as their devices are trying (and failing) to deliver messages via iMessage rather than reverting to SMS. VERY annoying, and far from ideal.

In terms of hardware, this Nexus is impressive. The build quality is cheaper than an Apple device as you would expect. The speakers and camera are average, but it is suitable. It’s not cheap and nasty, but its not premium. That said, it is nearly half the price of the iPhone 5S, and twice the size. The screen is the most impressive feature, obviously, and that main reason I made the switch. Using the iPhone again, even after a few days, and it feels like a toy. This screen will be hard to go back from. Apple NEED to give the consumer a choice of screen size, currently they only produce phones in one (tiny) size. I suspect this will change come Autumn, but I also suspect the phone will be £600. Double the Nexus. I’d obviously strongly consider it, but it is a lot of cash.

For now, I am sat on a train to London, and plan to test out the Nexus over the next few days. Currently tethering, which works well, and I didn’t have to turn the feature on and off 5 times to make it visible to the laptop !

January 21, 2014

How to view the encrypted Motors TV channel for free in the UK (satellite)

Having purchased a little Sky HD “multiroom” box for £18 on ebay, to use in the caravan, I have been playing with the box and setting any Free-to-Air channels (FTA) as favourites, so that I can have a basic channel list to easily view those channels that will work without a card. After reading some info on-line, it appears that at least two channels are FTV on Sky (Free-to-View). These are LiverpoolFCTV and Motors TV. Free to View channels are channels which are encrypted by Sky’s software, so need a Sky box and card to decode, but they are free channels, and aren’t included in any of Skys channel packages.

Motors TV is actually a channel I would like to be able to receive, as they cover the World Endurance Championship, The Rolex series, and loads of other Motorsport. Why they are operating as an effectively “free” channel, but behind Sky’s encryption system, is beyond me. If they would broadcast encryption free, the channel could be viewed by anybody with any satellite receiver, such as Sky, Freesat, or generic hardware.

Oddly you can actually view MotorsTV with a Sky viewing card, even if the card is no longer linked to an active account. Some cards get deactivated, and these wont work, but most cards appear to remain as a “freesat” card after a customer cancels their contract, and in this state, the card will decode Motors TV. I bought a card on ebay for a few £££ to test this theory, and sure enough, the card works for Motors TV!

This is quite interesting, as I may well buy another of these HD boxes to stick under the living room TV, specifically to view this channel. The multi-room box will receive all the HD and SD channels that Freesat hardware would receive, but additionally, as it is a Sky box, it will decode Motors TV! It will be handy to have this as a backup too, I suppose, should my YouView box or aerial fail.

For anybody interested, older Sky digiboxes can be obtained for almost nothing, and if you can obtain a Sky viewing card (you can purchase a Sky “freesat card legitimately, in your own name, for £25 from Sky) you too can view Motors TV for free.

November 16, 2013

All the BBC channels are going HD, starting December 2013

As you may of heard, the BBC announced some months ago that all of their channels will be launching HD versions in December 2013 / January 2014. This means BBC Three HD, BBC Four HD, CBBC HD, CBEEBIES HD, BBC NEWS HD and BBC PARLIAMENT HD will appear in TV guides up and down the country. The new channels will launch on digital satellite (Sky and Freesat) as well as digital terrestrial (YouView and Freeview) and Virgin Media. On the terrestrial platform, new HD multiplexes have been enabled, utilising capacity freed up by the analogue shutdown. This new capacity is paving the way for up to 14 new HD services.

This is all great news, particularly so for viewers of subscription free TV, as this more than doubles the amount of HD channels available.

BBC Four HD and CBeebies HD have started testing on satellite, at the time of writing this, so their launch, and inclusion in the Freesat (and Sky) EPG’s must be imminent. Apparently this will be some time in December 2013. Presumably CBBC HD, BBC Three HD, etc, will follow in the new year.

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