While the coronavirus pandemic continues to rage across the world, England entered its second nationwide lockdown on the 5th November 2020. The lockdown is planned to end on Wednesday 2nd December. Remembrance celebrations across the country were unable to go ahead in their normal form. Here are some photos I took of the war memorial in my village, which was beautifully decorated, to remember those who gave their lives. To view all the photos, visit: Remembrance Sunday in Spaldwick Gallery […] . Click here to read the full article.
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FTTP Guide For Rural Communities Across the UK
To help communities across the UK to upgrade their broadband capabilities to Fibre-to-the-Premises (FTTP), I have written a new guide on my Increase Broadband Speed site. It can be viewed here: Guide for Rural Communities: How to Get Fibre-to-the-Premises (FTTP) Now! With the recent improvements in the Government’s Gigabit Broadband Voucher Scheme and the introduction of ‘top ups’ by local authorities, there’s never been a better time for communities to take proactive action to bring FTTP to their areas. There is […] . Click here to read the full article.
Trip to the Fitzwilliam Museum in Cambridge with the Sony 24mm f1.4 GM Lens
With all the restrictions associated with coronavirus, our trips out have definitely been curtailed over the last few months. While I don’t particularly like wearing a mask for long periods of time, we decided to visit the Fitzwilliam Museum in Cambridge. I took along the Sony A7R IV camera with the Sony 24mm f1.4 GM lens. This is a very special lens, combining surprising-attractive bokeh for a wide-angle lens and small size. Although I have been before, I was impressed […] . Click here to read the full article.
Nearly There with Fibre-to-the-Premises (FTTP) in Spaldwick, Cambridgeshire
It’s been an exciting time with the third (and hopefully) final campaign to bring leading-edge broadband capabilities to the rural village of Spaldwick in Cambridgeshire. Historically, urban areas have always been favoured when it comes to the latest broadband technology, which means that rural communities have to be proactive to make sure they don’t fall behind. Following a successful local broadband campaign, Spaldwick was one of the first rural villages in the UK to get standard ADSL broadband in July […] . Click here to read the full article.
Celebrating VJ Day with the Sony 135mm GM f1.8 lens
On Saturday 15th August 2020, my daughters shouted that I should look out the window as a convoy of military vehicles were passing – clearly on the way to some VJ Day celebration. I grabbed the Sony A7 III camera (with the Sony 135mm f1.8 GM lens attached) and took some photos of the vehicles going past. The Sony 135mm f1.8 lens is one of my very favourites as it combines spectacular sharpness with silky soft background blur. It really […] . Click here to read the full article.
An Exciting New Musical Theatre Adventure With Spotlight Productions
The last few months have been very frustrating for Graham and Sarah Wilkinson and all the team at Spotlight Productions. They have had to cancel their annual show – ‘Oliver!’ – and income from their costume and scenery hiring ‘business’ used to fund their annual show has been decimated. Being the positive people they are, the unexpected lull has provided an opportunity to plan ahead and reshape Spotlight for the future. I’ve been really enjoying our regular Zoom and Skype […] . Click here to read the full article.
Helping to Improve the UK’s Wi-Fi Speeds One Step at a Time
I cannot think of another area to Wi-Fi where performance claims exceed the reality experienced by broadband users by such an extent. With so many people connecting every device to Wi-Fi, inadequate Wi-Fi performance often masks the underlying (often excellent) performance of a broadband connection. I’ve just written a new Wi-Fi speed enhancement post on my Increase Broadband Speed site, which tackles one of the most popular questions asked on online forums: What is a Good Signal Level or Signal-to-Noise […] . Click here to read the full article.
How to Disable Wi-Fi with Sky Q to Use Ethernet Instead
One of my bugbears is the widespread overuse of Wi-Fi. While Wi-Fi is convenient, there’s generally a price to be paid in terms of performance. Wi-Fi is responsible for a substantial proportion of broadband problems. I strongly recommend that, when you have devices that do not move (such as a set-top box or TV), connect them with an Ethernet cable rather than via Wi-Fi. As well as improving performance, you will potentially free up Wi-Fi spectrum and capacity that can […] . Click here to read the full article.
Average Monthly Broadband Usage to Triple by 2025
Over the next five years, average home monthly Internet usage in the UK will triple from its 2019 level, surpassing 1 TB per month by 2025, as shown in my forecast shown above. This growth, which is in line with usage growth predicted for the USA, will be primarily driven by TV and video services delivered via superfast and ultrafast broadband networks. This traffic growth will have profound implications for many broadband users, which include: the need to upgrade to […] . Click here to read the full article.
BBC Resumes its iPlayer Ultra HD Trial
In an attempt to alleviate strain on broadband networks during the coronavirus pandemic, the BBC ceased its iPlayer Ultra HD trial. I’m delighted to report that the BBC has now recommenced the trial. The following series are currently offered: ‘His Dark Materials’, ‘Dracula’ and ‘Seven Worlds, One Planet’. Image quality looks fantastic. The images here are photographs I took directly of a Sony OLED screen. Compared with the overly-compressed images delivered on BBC One HD and BBC Two HD through […] . Click here to read the full article.
Disney Plus Increases UK Bit Rates to Match the USA
The great news is that Disney has substantially improved its bit rates to match its US streaming service and Disney Plus now looks and sounds much better in the UK. The images shown are photographs taken of a Sony 77-inch OLED TV. In general, the higher the bit rate used, the better the picture and sound quality achieved. You can read my full review on my Increase Broadband Speed site here: Disney Plus in the UK Finally Matches Bit Rates […] . Click here to read the full article.
Best Broadband Routers and Wi-Fi Access Points for 2020
I’ve been steaming ahead producing new content for my Increase Broadband Speed site. I’ve now revised my Which Broadband Modem Router Guide, which covers the key capabilities you need to maximise broadband speed. As I’m always asked to recommend equipment to buy, I’ve also produced two new ‘best buy’ guides: – Best Routers For 2020 – Best Wi-Fi Access Points For 2020. From my experience as a Broadband Champion, helping people with their broadband problems online and face-to-face, apart from […] . Click here to read the full article.
Reviewing Sky’s New Ultra HD HDR Service
It’s finally here – High Dynamic Range (HDR) on Sky’s Ultra HD (4k) service – and it looks amazing. HDR makes pictures more vivid and realistic, with more intense colours and, for many viewers, HDR makes more difference than the extra resolution provided by Ultra HD. It’s not good news for everyone though as some Sky Q boxes are not compatible with HDR. You can read my review on my Increase Broadband Speed site here: Review: Sky Finally Launches HDR […] . Click here to read the full article.