So it’s rare that I’ll review another site, but as the rumors have been spreading about the possible return of a full-force TechZi (and completley new Zi Media whilst we’re on the topic), I’ve had a crack team of ninja monkeys, suited up in the finest gadgetry money can buy, running around the interwebz and hunting out new sources for information. Beyond the usual, boring, “one stop shop” gadget websites which seem to cover everything mundane and absolutely nothing of interest, or (shock horror) anything AMUSING, you’re hard pushed to find anywhere which offers anything to cheer you up, but one such site (besides the-ever-so-hilarious TechZi itself) is Gadget Advisor, a site I’ve really taken a liking to. Seemingly in my absence, they’ve taken over in being the blogosphere’s number one kickass center of all things spiffy, and have covered everything from the trusty Universal Remote (an absolutely awesome innovation from Logitech) to the uber-wicked networked media player, which until it’s feature on the site, I hadn’t even heard of, proves that you have to go “beyond” the usual gadget blogs to find the best in the business.

Rather like TechZi, they don’t just stick to the gadgets or the hardcore hardware technology, but have numerous tutorials, comparissons and reviews, again, covering everything from backup online solutions to 101 (actually, 21) trusty firefox plugins that no self-respecting geek should be without. Rather unlike us, the good people at Gadget Advisor can actually be bothered categorizing things in alphabetical order.

Our ninja monkeys are still working on that. Afterall, y’all don’t mind complete and utter mis-spellings, total anarchy and absloute chaos, so long as the content is coming, right?

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EDITOR NOTE: Seriously y’all, come 2009 Zi Media is getting a facelift AND some new facepaint. More importantly, the content will be flowing thick and fast, and to be honest with ya’, we’re really quite excited. We’re looking forward to it as a sort of “final show down” with some of the biggest gadget blogs in the game. Afterall, we’ve got the connections and sources to get the scoops that only “anonymous tipsters” can offer the big boys. We, on the other hand, have solid reliable data. I mean, you don’t hear anyone talking about the heavy Feedburner integration with Twitter which is due just around…

Um… I said nothing. Watch this space, geeks and gadgeteers!

So I’m kinda fedup with Virgin Media. We switched to Sky TV several months back and it’s far surpassed anything I could have hoped for. It’s not that we were disappointed with Virgin’s TV package, just when Sky One got dropped, it meant an end to Battlestar Galactica, and that just wasn’t gonna happen. That and the fact that Virgin have started capping net surfing speeds at specific times of day (downloading files from sites will be capped at exactly 100kb or 200kb depending on the hour of day) which in my mind, is flagrantly proposterous, and downright unacceptable. That and the fact they’re breaking their own Terms Of Service. We PAY for 1mb download speeds, so to deliberately restrict it below that is a breach of the consumer agreement.

So we (that is to say, myself and my dad) were shopping for a brand new spiffy broadband package and we wanted to know your thoughts.

What sort of connection would we be looking for? Preferably one with unlimited bandwidth for my downloading needs, and a really fast speed so I can do so faster, and not have to leave my Mac on overnight when usage is less heavy.

(If you’re in the UK by the way, I highly recommend you use the site a comparisson site for searching, I’ve taken a liking to Broadband Expert but there are numerous ones out there).

Unless we wanna go super-high-end, it is looking like Sky offer the best package, especially when bundled with the TV we already have.

The only downside I can see is that we’d need to move our phoneline over to BT. Crazy, but that’s life I guess. *rolls eyes*

Even with the line switch, then monthly line rental, and the broadband and phone charges from Sky though, it still works out cheaper than Virgin, and the net would be 24 times faster. *rolls eyes sardonically… AGAIN*

Sorry for the informal style of this message. Y’all will have to hold on for another few months I suspect until blogging becomes the norm again at TechZi. Got some exciting stuff planned to inject some life back into the site, though.

But in the meantime - comment and send over your thoughts on the matter. And help us plot ways to get our own back on Virgin. Muhahahahaha! (That was a joke by the way, Mr Branson, please don’t axe my net connection since I…. *ack*)

- David

P.S. On a side note… Has anyone tried mobile broadband? I’d also be interested in hearing your thoughts on that given the fact that I’m on the move now more than ever with my MacBook, traveling and such.

P.P.S. How could I forget? As a marketer I love seeing the bonuses and offers they run to incentivise people to sign up, and right now, the current trend seems to be that of giving everyone free laptops.

Don’t even ask. That’s what happens when technology gets cheap. The perceived value goes up whilst production costs go down. And I daresay the smart companies are buying the netbooks at wholesale prices too. Sheesh-kebab. They must be making a tidy profit.