Blogs - Orange

Monday, August 16th 2010

It's not often that we get to hear about consumers in the UK getting great value for money.

Train fares, petrol prices and the cost of a pint seem to be increasing all the time, so it was reassuring to learn last week that at least our mobile broadband is competitive.

ABI Research rates Britain as offering some of the cheapest mobile broadband deals in the world, alongside Indonesia and France, and it's easy to see why when you look at some of the packages that are currently available.

For instance, you can get your hands on mobile broadband from Orange for as little as £10 per month, giving you download speeds of up to 3.6Mb/s and a monthly allowance of 1.5GB.

Monday, August 2nd 2010

Mobile broadband has seen huge growth since it first launched, with consumers drawn by the ease of being able to connect to the internet without the need for a landline.

Experts think there's little chance of this popularity coming to an end any time soon - last week, Ovum claimed global mobile broadband will be over 300 per cent more prevalent than fixed-line connections by the end of 2015.

With that in mind, we thought we'd cast our eyes over a selection of the best deals currently on the market from the likes of 3 Mobile, O2, Orange, Vodafone, T-Mobile and Virgin Media.

As far as we're concerned, the tariff which currently provides the most value for money is 3 Mobile's 15GB of usage per month package.

Monday, May 10th 2010

Ask any person on the street to name a digital TV provider and nine times out of ten they will probably respond with either Sky or Virgin Media. However, Orange is looking to challenge the dominance of those two by developing its own web-based broadcast platform.

According to the Times, the home and mobile broadband provider is once again looking to enter the market, as the firm looks to take advantage of its access to BT's advanced UK-wide network.

The move could have a major impact on the market, as it would mean that Orange would join Virgin Media in offering packages that combine the four areas of mobile, home phone, digital TV and broadband.

Wednesday, March 3rd 2010

When it comes to broadband speeds, no one could deny that Virgin Media has had a major hand in upping the UK average. The company has a long history of topping speed tests and has continued the trend this month in the latest Cable.co.uk figures for February.

With an average speed of 8.4Mbps, Virgin Media is comfortably setting the pace when it comes to connections, with rival bundle provider Sky lagging behind by a whole 1Mbps.

Orange came third with an average connection speed of 6Mbps, while O2 and Be's shared infrastructure generated a figure of 5.6Mbps.

BT completed the top five with an average of 4.1Mbps, but there is little doubt where the power lies when it comes to speed in the UK.

Tuesday, December 8th 2009

While it has not been uncommon to see broadband providers at each other's throats this year – usually over advertising – every so often they nobly decide to come together for the greater good.

It is unclear whether the upcoming festive period has inspired BT, Virgin Media and Orange, but it is a fact that their latest project could provide a boost to us all in the near future.

BT Wholesale is working with Orange and Virgin Media on a new network called Content Connect. The concept is based on the idea that media companies should pay for video content to be stored on a broadband provider's network as opposed to the internet, the Guardian reports.

Wednesday, November 11th 2009

For a while now it has seemed that the likes of BT, Virgin Media and Sky have a monopoly on arguments over advertising claims, what with their recent quarrels over marketing.

However, another two broadband providers have now decided to square up to each other in relation to the issue.

This time it is 3 and Orange, with the former choosing to complain to the Advertising Standards Authority over the latter's suggestion that it owns the UK's biggest mobile broadband network.

According to the Times, 3 believes it has the largest and has stated the claims in Orange's promotions could potentially mislead customers.

Wednesday, September 9th 2009

The announcement of Orange and T-Mobile's imminent merger caused a stir when announced yesterday. Indeed, in a week which has seen the UK's interest in the Beatles rise once again, it seems rather apt that we also get to see two major firms come together.

However, what impact will the deal have on those currently looking to buy either a home or mobile broadband package?

Well, the answer at the moment appears to be none. In a column for Reuters, Which? telecoms expert Ceri Stanaway has claimed that no "big changes" to services are likely to appear in the short-term.

Thursday, August 27th 2009

One part of the government's Digital Britain report may have come under fire recently, but research has highlighted how another part of the proposals could actually be a benefit to the UK.

The plans to rollout universal broadband by 2012 may have divided some people, particularly over the issue of its 2Mbps speed, but Orange and YouGov have revealed that businesses could thrive thanks to the plans.

According to their study, UK firms could save up to £31.7 billion thanks to the service as more workers will be able to work flexibly, meaning the traditional commute to the office full of energy-sapping PCs could be a thing of the past.

Monday, August 24th 2009

At the end of last month, figures from Consumer Direct suggested that broadband providers have finally turned a corner in terms of customer satisfaction.

While it was found that the number of complaints received by the body concerning broadband had dropped, a new poll has suggested that we should not take the findings as a sign that providers have upped their game.

The survey by Which? signaled great news for the likes of O2 and Be, which both scored over 80 per cent in terms of customer satisfaction, according to the Daily Telegraph's report.

Friday, August 7th 2009

The leading players in the UK broadband market are all jostling for position, which has resulted in three of them unveiling new tariffs to entice consumers.

Orange was first out of the blocks this week, launching a new mobile broadband tariff which allows users to surf the web using a dongle for under a fiver a month.

Although a limited 500 Mb per month data usage comes with the tariff, could this be seen as a perfect budget choice for people who just want to browse the web and don't intend to download vast amounts of music or movies?

Industry rival BT has unveiled a new offer to win over new customers either looking to take out a broadband deal or switch provider.

Thursday, June 11th 2009

Do the UK's mobile broadband providers need to up their game in terms of connection speed? New research has suggested that could well be the case.

The study by Epitiro saw services from leading operators including 3, O2, Orange and T-Mobile tested on a range of activities that web users get up to, including downloading music, general surfing and internet gaming.

It found that consumers with dongles only receive 24 per cent of the advertised download speed from many providers, with the average rate not even reaching 1Mbps.

The research also revealed that web browsing was 34 per cent slower than on equivalent fixed line services.

Thursday, May 28th 2009

Mobile broadband connections are becoming increasingly popular with consumers in the UK, but new research has attempted to highlight the best connections available to those who are regularly on the move.

In the test, Broadband Genie used USB dongles from six of the leading mobile web providers and travelled on trains between Cambridge and Bournemouth to see how connections held up.

The providers that offered both the best coverage and were top for downloading content were Virgin Media and Vodafone, while the latter was also one of the most suited to uploading alongside O2.

Tuesday, May 19th 2009

We probably all have an opinion on which broadband provider is the best, but a major awards ceremony taking place later this year is hoping to end all arguments.

The UK Internet Service Providers Association has announced the shortlist for its 11th UK Internet Industry Awards for 2009 and a number of the leading players in the market have been given nods.

Orange dominated with four nominations, in the Best Consumer Fixed Broadband, Best Consumer Mobile Broadband, Best Business Mobile Broadband and Corporate Social Responsibility categories respectively.

Following closely behind is Virgin Media, which is up for three gongs including Best Consumer Customer Service, while O2 also gets a mention in two sections.