Wow, I seem to have been posting a lot about phones and broadband a lot recently. Sorry about that. I seem to have neglected that the summer is here and that you guys want to know about summery things. I doubt that you’re interested in me rambling on about getting broadband in the flat.

So, without further ado, let’s get on with writing about things that you want to read about.

I’ve been wanting a monopod for a while now and it seemed like a goot time to get one, what with the weather being good I thought. I decided on the Velbon UP-400 Monopod, because a friend of mine, who’s an avid photographer, recommended the brand to me.

I’m not disappointed with it at all. The Velbon UP-400 Monopod is lightweight, but sturdy enough to handle most SLR and Digital SLR cameras easily.

The thing about tripods is, whilst they are an extremely essential part of any photographers’ lit, they are bulky to carry around every where. I’ve found that the Velbon UP-400 Monopod gets much more outings with me than the tripod ever did and I’ve only had it a short while.

Using the Velbon UP-400 Monopod, or any monopod, is a bit weird to begin with, but once you get the hang of it taking pictures becomes a breeze. There will always be a situation where you need a solid surface for your camera but you find that a normal tripod won’t fit in the space, the Velbon UP-400 Monopod sorts that problem out for you. A monopod is much more manoverable too obviously.

I’ve also found with the Velbon UP-400 Monopod is that you can use it as a makeshift walking stick too if you’re out on long journeys. Excellent for the terrain we have around here. In the part of Wales where I live, there are many mountains, which is great if you like walking and photography (as I do) because you can combine two hobbies. It does however mean that the old legs get a great workout and sometimes the aid of a walking stick is advantageous. There have been a few occasions recently when the Velbon UP-400 Monopod has come in handy.

So, if you’re a budding photographer I would recommend you get a monopod as soon as you can. You won’t regret the purchase and will wonder how you did without it all these years.

This is a great addition to any day trip that you might be planning on going on soon (if the weather holds up that is). The Moontent is a two person tent that’s as easy as pie to set up. There’s no need for clumsy poles and fly sheets. The Moontent is an all in one tent. You do however have to peg it down.

Measuring just 50cm when folded, the Moontent is definitely one of the smallest tents on the market right now. Ideal for putting in the boot of the car for when you go to the beach or park. The Moontent can literally be pitched in seconds. And let’s face it, with the weather we’ve been having recently, every second counts.

The Moontent is great for providing protection from the sun too because the fabric has been treated to give you a sun protection rating of UPF50 (Ultraviolet Protection Factor 50), which is the highest rating that you can get. Which is another great reason to get this tent.

Weighing just 2.5Kg it’s not that heavy to carry around either. The Moontent is quite possibly one of the best buys you can make if you plan on being in the great outdoors this summer. As always PriceGrabber has done all the searching for you and found the cheapest prices available. So, grab one today for about £30 - you can’t really go wrong.

I made the decision this morning to do some work away from my nice and fast WiFi connection that I have at home and use my O2 Mobile Broadband dongle. Some of you may recall that I blogged about it on this blog a fair while back now.

As I am writing this blog post, the dongle is trying to upload a picture to a blog. Now, the file size of that image isn’t very big to be honest; it’s about 48Kb or so. The trouble is that here in Wales, where I live at least, we don’t have 3G coverage. There are only a few places in Wales that actually have a good 3G coverage.

I’m not placing all the blame on O2 here because it seems that all the networks are the same with only the larger cities having some sort of coverage. This is all well and good, but I live in a rural environment. The 2G network coverage here is excellent though.

I really want to be able to use my O2 Mobile Broadband Dongle to it’s full potential, but having such restrictive connection speeds is hampering me from doing so. There’s an opportunity for O2 (and the other networks) to make some money from upgrading their network too. Obviously I understand that It’ll cost the providers money to get the 2G network updated to 3G, but in this age where information, and the speed at which we get that information, is so important to people, the providers should really be able to provide the service that is required.

I feel that once again the majority of Wales is missing out on the high speed links that most of the UK are enjoying at the moment. I currently have 8Mb broadband at home, which is great. It’s nice and fast and seems to be able to cope with the majority of things I throw at it. But, having said that, 24Mb broadband is being rolled out in other parts of the UK. Yes, you’ve guessed it, in the larger cities of the country.

Come on O2 (and the other networks), let us in Wales have the same service as other parts of the UK. Don’t leave us behind. Thanks

It seems like it is that time of year again when all the festivals are upon us and whilst the festivals I usually go to are not running because of financial problems there are others going on.

What better way to improve your festival experience than by getting The Ultimate Festival Kit? It is a great piece of kit that will help you on your way. It’s packed with 18 goodies that are essential for a great festival experience.

There are apparently over 360 festivals happening this year so some of you will definitely be attending one or more. Maybe the most famous of these festivals is happening this weekend: Glastonbury. It looks like it’s going to be a great weekend for those of you who will be attending.

So what do you get inside The Ultimate Festival Kit bag of goodies then? Well, there are some really useful stuff to be honest?

• 1x PVC poncho (green or blue), reusable and durable
• 1x Banana Boat® SPF30 Suncreen, 29ml
• 1x Kiss My Face® Whenever Shampoo, 29 ml
• 1x Kiss My Face® Anti-Stress Shower and Bath Gel, 29ml
• 1x Travel size Kiss My Face® Liquid Rock Fragrance Free Deodorant
• 1x Pack of Pocket-size Tissues
• 2x Pairs of Moldex® Spark Ear Plugs in Pocket Pack
• 1x Moose Smooch® SPF15 Natural Lip Balm
• 1x Tube of 8 Magic Towels
• 1x LED keychain torch
• 1x Glow in the Dark Whistle
• 1x Travel Toothbrush with Paste
• 1x Extra® Chewing Gum
• 2x Condoms
• 1x Asseptgel Anti-bacterial Hand Gel, 59ml
• 1x Pack of 10 Toilet Seat Covers
• 1x Emergency Blanket
• 1x Mini First-Aid Kit

The Ultimate Festival Kit is one piece of kit you don’t want to leave home without. It’s available for £24.95 through PriceGrabber now.

Recently I’ve been doing a lot of filming as part of my degree course and needed to get a small camcorder high into the corner of a room. Having tried using all sorts of methods to get the camera in the right position someone suggested the Gorillapod.

The Gorillapod has been designed for use with compact cameras. But they have an SLR version too. That is the version I went for because I needed that little bit extra strength.

So what is a Gorillapod I hear you ask. I’m going to tell you now what a Gorillapod is.

The Gorillapod is a tripod, but a tripod with a difference. It still has three “legs”, but those legs are flexible. You can position a Gorillapod practically anywhere. Even those awkward positions that you thought you could never get to can now become possible.

The Gorillapod is truly a magnificent invention. I don’t know how we managed for so long without it to be honest. Sure, you could carry a conventional tripod around with you, but you wouldn’t get the flexibility that a Gorillapod offers you. With pricing ranging from £16.99 up to £39 there’s a Gorillapod out there for everyone (OK, maybe not absolutely everyone, but pretty much any amateur photographer).

It really got me out of a sticky situation when I was doing my work because the shot could never have been gotten. I highly recommend this one. It’s probably going to be the last compact tripod that you will ever buy. Ideal for taking on holiday with you too.

Oh, and don’t forget, it’s Fathers Day soon!!

The Squishtie is essentially a small bean bag that you use as a pillow. But it’s much more than a pillow. The soft outer skin contains thousands of tiny little polystyrene balls that mould to the shape of whatever you place on the Squishtie. That could be your head, body, hands or feet; it really doesn’t matter.

You’re guaranteed to get a comfortable night of sleep on a Squishtie. They also come in a range of three colours:

• Pink
• Black
• Blue

It’s also important to note that the Squishties measure just 350mm (Length) by 160mm (Diameter). That’s an excellent size for a pillow.

There’s not much more you can say about the Squishties really is there. As I said in the beginning, it’s a pillow but different. What I think about the Squishties is that they are excellent value for money and are comfortable indeed. I go camping a lot and having Squishties is much better that those silly blow up pillows you can get; they don’t really cut it do they. Placing a Squishtie on top of the airbed is the perfect solution. If only the weather would behave as well.

So that’s what I think and I know that I always say it, but you really should get a Squishtie if you’re serious about you comfort when you sleep. Actually, not only when you’re sleeping but when you’re awake too.

The Balanzza Ergo Digital Luggage Scale will be great for anyone who is thinking of going on a holiday abroad this year. It will help you take the guess work out of weighing your luggage correctly before you arrive at the airport.

You can kiss goodbye to balancing your luggage on the bathroom scales when you have the Balanzza Ergo Digital Luggage Scale. You’ll not have to pay that excess baggage charge at the airport anymore which is great for saving you even more pennies.

What’s more, the Balanzza Ergo Digital Luggage Scale is the easiest gadget to use if you want to weigh your luggage quickly and effortlessly. All you have to do is hang your suitcase on the supplied strap and the Balanzza Ergo Digital Luggage Scale does the rest. You can even choose to see the weight in kilograms or pounds. There’s even a hold feature on the Balanzza Ergo Digital Luggage Scale for even easier reading of the weight.

You do require 2 AAA batteries but don’t worry, they’re supplied. The Balanzza Ergo Digital Luggage Scale will weight luggage up to 44Kg or 100Lbs. Costing just under £14, the Balanzza Ergo Digital Luggage Scale will pay for itself the first time you use it. Get yours today.

Isn’t that the cutest thing you’ve seen recently? So what is it I hear you ask? Well, it’s a Yondi. A Yondi is a travel pillow for small children. It’s a great little thing for when you’re travelling giving you peace of mind. You know how it is; your child is falling asleep in their chair in the back but you can’t concentrate fully because their head is lolling from side to side and slumping forward all the time.

Well the Yondi will stop all that happening because of its unique design. It’s not only useful on car journeys either. You can use the Yondi on any journey whether it is a plane, boat or train.

The Yondi is the ideal solution for any child between the ages of 1 and 8. It has special magnets in its “paws” that attach together securely underneath the child’s chin to hold it in place. It’s even double sided for use in both summer and winter.

The Yondi is available in a range of colours and two sizes; small and medium. The Yondi is also available through PriceGrabber now for under £12. What are you waiting for; you know you want to enjoy that journey in peace and quiet so go grab one.

To be honest, I don’t know much about creating music from scratch. But I saw this nifty little gadget and thought about sharing it with you guys. So what is the Korg Kaossilator? Well, it is an exciting piece of kit to start with, but its main uses are to create music on the move.

The Korg Kaossilator, or to give it it’s full title, the Korg KAOSS KAOSSILATOR Dynamic Phrase Synthesizer, allows you to create music by simply tapping or sliding your finger across the Korg Kaossilator’s built in touch pad.

From what I have read anyone from a 5 year old to an 80 year old can use this gadget to create some fantastic music, and that’s a pretty big statement. We’ll have to wait and see about that won’t we. But, it does seem that the Korg Kaossilator is highly addictive. Once you start playing with it you’ll have trouble putting it down and doing anything else.

The Korg Kaossilator is battery operated which makes it even more desirable to people who really, really feel they need to be away from the home or studio to create their masterpiece. For those who don’t want to be out and about, it can also be plugged into a mains socket. It also has 2 phono outputs on the back so that you can hook it up to your amplifier or HiFi. Also included is a headphones socket, which is great for your neighbours.

The Korg Kaossilator is definitely a gadget to keep your eye on because there is a big buzz about it in the music industry at the moment. At a price that’s just shy of £140 you could be the next superstar DJ making it big.

Now here’s a device that every iPhone, iPod touch and iPod owner should seriously consider buying. The BluePack iPhone/iPod Back-up Battery is the perfect solution to your power needs on long trips or for when you’ve left your charging cable at home. The BluePack iPhone/iPod Back-up Battery can give up to 250 hours extra standby time, up to 3.5 hours talktime or up to 36 hours audio play back time.

That’s a pretty impressive bunch of figures if you ask me. The BluePack iPhone/iPod Back-up Battery has a rechargeable Li-ion polymer battery at its heart and is recharged by simply plugging the supplied USB cable into a spare USB port on your computer.

Connecting the BluePack iPhone/iPod Back-up Battery to your device is as simple as connecting an ordinary USB cable or charger up to it because the BluePack iPhone/iPod Back-up Battery has the same connector. What could be simpler?

Costing under £30, the BluePack iPhone/iPod Back-up Battery is a serious piece of kit that you can’t really do without if you’re an iPhone or iPod owner. You’ve just got to have one in your arsenal of gadgets. I’ll be getting one soon enough to add to my collection.

I can see the BluePack iPhone/iPod Back-up Battery becoming very popular indeed amongst the Apple fans out there.