Could it be perfect?

Following on from Wednesday’s blog post, the main discussion taking place amongst techies this month has been about all the new products to come out of CES – the technology industry’s biggest show of the year. There has been a lot of exciting tech touted, such as the 50″ OLED TV from LG, but the one thing that excites me the most is ultrabooks.

Okay, ultrabooks were actually launched last year so they are technically not a product of CES 2012, but the concept is still relatively new and promises to be big this year.

So what is it that excites me so much about this latest form of laptop?

Well, for a start you finally get a balance between performance and portability. Powered by the Intel Core i family of processors, you can’t really complain, and for a weed like me, to have the power in a device that weighs around the same as a bag of sugar…no more shoulder ache guaranteed!

Added to this is the thickness of the ultrabook. Take the Asus Zenbook. At its end point, it measures 3mm. Yes, 3mm! I had to actually get a ruler out and double check that measurement – it’s a pretty incredible statistic.

The design of the ultrabook – a unibodied chassis with integrated SSD and graphics – allows for such a slim design, and a larger battery.

And that’s not all. I want my PC to start up as soon as I press a key. I don’t want to have to wait for ages, make a cup of tea, send a couple of texts, oh and then we have start-up, or internet even. The Acer Aspire S3 ultrabook promises a start-up from sleep mode in less than 2 seconds and internet in 2.5. Now that’s quick!

Acer Aspire S3

If you’re a tablet convert like me, then you’ll love the thought that touchscreen technology could be reaching ultrabooks in the very near future. Imagine that, a tablet PC with a keyboard, that’s lighter than a laptop yet as powerful as a desktop PC – surely we’ve discovered the ultimate computing device?

Okay, maybe I’m slightly biased because I think they’re a great addition to the personal computer collection. But you can’t deny the final reason I think ultrabooks are great…they look good. This is an object of serious style, no matter which brand. With sleek lines and stylish colours you would just want to show this PC off wherever you go!

Ebuyer.com currently stocks the Asus Zenbook ultrabook and you can read the Ebuyer guide to ultrabooks here.

Skylanders

In a similar way to how Formula One racing leads to innovations for everyday cars, videogames often see new technology ideas before they hit more generic devices. Whether it is the touch screen on the original DS, the augmented reality of EyeToy and PlayStation Eye or the 3D screen of the 3DS, games are often sold on their ground breaking innovations.

However, there is another way to look at technology where the real ground breaking devices are those we don’t even realise we are using. The humble pen, door handle and tap fall into this category and, in my opinion, could teach us a thing or two about not over complicating things.

Skylanders: Spyro’s Adventure is a videogame where a portion of the interactions are made simple again. Like holding a pen, give a player a set of Skylanders figures (and the Portal peripheral) and they naturally know what to do – place the figures they want to play with on the Portal to access them instantly. Within minutes gamers of all ages are jumping in and out of different characters as they work through the action adventure world of Skylanders.

Like most simple technology (the pen included) there is more going on here than meets the eye. To make this work the game not only identifies which figure you have placed on the portal but is also constantly saving your progress back to the toy ready for the moment you decide to switch.

This means that Skylanders doesn’t need to ask you if you want to save your progress before you remove a character from the Portal. Instead, you can switch at will between any of the 32 (or so) characters you can have in your collection.

The simplicity is taken a step further by the fact that you can take your figure, regardless of whether it was originally bought for Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, Wii or even 3DS, and use it on any of those systems. In a world where consoles are often region coded, it’s great to see a videogame with toys that are not only region free but are also console free.

If videogames are setting the trends for tomorrow’s mass-market consumer devices, I hope it is this simplicity rather than their high tech aspects that is really taken into account.

Andy Robertson (@GeekDadGamer) runs the GeekDad blog for Wired.co.uk and writes videogame reviews for families.

Ebuyer.com... all you need to get by!

Now it’s usually around this time of year that we all start planning for our next holiday. Once you are all booked up with flights, accommodation and insurance, the mind starts wondering about what you can do while at the destination, and that’s where 24 hour guides come in extremely useful.

While we haven’t got any holidays planned as yet, this got us thinking about how you could use all the products on Ebuyer.com to get you through 24 hours…stay with me on this one!

So here’s a little itinerary for you…sit back and let Ebuyer.com help you through the day!

6.30am Logitech Squeezebox Radio
This compact internet radio will not only get you up 7 days a week but will get you up in style with a whole world of music. Tune into radio stations, listen to your own collection, or use friends’ recommendations on Facebook. Wake up, love a song and want to know who it’s by? Simply check the track information on the display. Who needs wind up alarm clocks these days?

7am Swan Teasmade
Once loved by the whole nation, this great little gadget could be making a come back and we say yes please! Perfect for the lazy in all of us, set your teasmade to make tea or coffee when your alarm goes off, when you get out of the shower, or at any time and enjoy a cuppa without lifting a finger.

7.30am F&H GPS35lS Sat Nav
Start the day off well and arrive early at the office – this sat nav will tell you where the traffic jams are and the most efficient way to get to work.

9am. BenQ MX613ST 2500 ANSI Lumens 3D Ready DLP XGA Projector
Your first meeting of the day and you have to present to the team. Use this 3D projector and really impress your colleagues – a sure fire way of bagging that promotion!

10.30am Elgento E19004 Cup Cake Maker
Your mid morning coffee and cake. Only problem is, you don’t know how many calories are in that cake. If only you’d baked your own at the weekend!

Bake and be in control

11.30am Asus Transformer Tablet PC
It’s almost lunch but you need to get through your next meeting – the boss is addressing the team. Make notes on this convenient attachable docking station keyboard, then swivel your tablet around and demonstrate his key points with a pie chart you created earlier!

1pm. Garmin Forerunner 405HR with Heart Rate Monitor and ANT
A lunch time jogging session is de rigeur for January, but use this fantastic gadget to ensure you’re progressing and keep motivated.

2pm. Microsoft LifeCam HD-3000 720p HD Webcam
America awakes. Rather than send emails to and from your counterpart in the US, set up the LifeCam. With HD video, widescreen, TrueColour Technology and a built-in microphone, your conversation will be clear and efficient.

3pm Ebuyer Keyboard Design Mug
We couldn’t put together a 24 hour itinerary without the Ebuyer mug! Time for your mid afternoon drink and what better way to sip in style?!

6pm. Apple iPod Touch
It’s been a tough day and now that you’ve put your car in for its MOT, your journey home on public transport could be even worse. Not with your trusted iPod Touch. Browse the internet, listen to tunes, message your mates on Facebook, and play the latest games in 3D – you’ll be home in no time.

7pm. ZyXEL NSA310 500GB (1x500GB) NAS Drive
You’re waiting for dinner to cook so why not take the time to share your pictures from the weekend with friends via your social networks, or add them to your home network. Simply plug your smartphone into the NSA310′s USB port and select copy to save them all. You’ll be ready in minutes, where’s that glass of wine?

8pm. Toshiba 40TL868B 3D Full-HD Smart TV Freeview HD
As long as it’s nothing to messy for dinner, turn on your 3D TV for maximum entertainment while you’re eating. Granted, you’ll need 3D glasses but with high definition in 2D or 3D, stunning colour, great visuals and fast moving image quality you’ll think you’ve gone to the cinema! Watch films, and even access the internet for the ultimate in home entertainment.

Immerse yourself

9pm EZCap 218 USB Cassette Converter
You’ll be hitting the sack soon but this is one job that you’ve wanted to do for ages and you can certainly fit it in before bedtime. Invest in this fantastic converter and recover all those golden oldies. Turn them into MP3s and you’ll be able to listen to them on the way to work in the morning!

How intelligent is your house?

Years ago, the ability to make your home smarter than a human was virtually unheard of, and today it is possible in almost every way. From thermostats that learn your family’s lifestyle and adapt to your cooling and heating habits, to controlling your lighting, and security from your smart phone, the future is here. Your home has the ability to almost run by itself for less money, and all while saving you time, and saving the Earth’s precious resources. Here are a few home innovations that are helping to save you money.

A thermostat that’s part of the family: The new Nest Learning Thermostat is as beautiful as an iPhone, and as innovative as a human. The Nest thermostat learns your family and their lifestyle. After a few short days the thermostat will sense the moisture, temperature, and light in your home to measure when it should turn on and off. This innovative technology helps you stop adjusting the thermostat, and in turn will help you save money on heating and cooling bills. To add icing to the cake, it will show you over time how much money you saved, and a history of your usage on the screen. Who said thermostats have to be ugly and utilitarian?

Security and home automation: There used to be a time when home security meant having to be home to arm or disarm the system in order to keep your home safe. Now, thanks to the innovation of home automation and integrating the internet and smart phones, we can have control in the palm of our hands. Whether you are away from your home on holiday and you need to turn the lights on for the house sitter, or your kids accidently forget how to turn off the security system, innovative automation gives you complete control and peace of mind. ADT Pulse offers security; home management with cameras/video screens and helps you save energy with lighting and temperature automation. Helping your family stay safe, and comfortable is one more way innovation is saving money and lending a hand.

Smart appliances to save the Earth: While energy efficient appliances aren’t new to homeowners, appliance manufacturers are finding new ways to bring innovation to your fingertips. Several clothes washer and dryer manufacturers are using a unique communicating system to troubleshoot problems when using their machines. The homeowner can hold their phone to the machine, and send the technician a coded sound to pinpoint the issue with the machine. In addition to saving time, water efficient kitchen and laundry appliances can save thousands of pounds a year for water consumption and can run on less electricity to operate than ever before. Appliances can now pay themselves off in energy and money savings, rather than just ignoring the fact that appliances are something you have to spend an arm and a leg on, they now are proving their worth.

Your innovative home is getting more technology savvy everyday, and helping homeowners too! From the temperature in your home, to the security of your family, the reality of innovation is no longer just hype.

Ronique Gibson is an Associate Architect and a LEED Accredited Professional, who has been in the architectural and interior design industry for over 13 years. Her architectural background has lent to years of hands on experience with homeowners, construction, and helping people love their homes. Always writing with the motto, “Home is the one place you can truly call yours, make it beautiful”. Find her at Freshome, where she is Executive Editor and helps readers daily with home tips to learn and get inspired.

December's Top Bloggers

Now that the festive season is upon us it’s been great to read what everyone would like or recommend for Christmas.  This month’s top technology blogs are a mixture of bloggers who have covered Christmas in their own, interesting way, and a gem of a development blog that we like so much we had to mention too!

Covering Christmas these Tech blogs have been worth a read in December and will be great to follow for surfacing technology posts in the New Year as well.

Ebuyer’s bloggers of the month for November are:

PC Advisor
www.pcadvisor.co.uk
We expect you will all be familiar with PC Advisor as a key technology magazine website and a well respected one at that. We are including them this month for their post detailing how many children want technology for Christmas based on a survey by uSwitch. It highlights that ’51% of 8 to 10-year-olds want a tech gift’ and that children under the age of 16 have preferred technology brands as do 15% of under 10s. This post really highlights the shift from traditional toys to tech as presents at Christmas.

Don’t Eat The Fruit
donteatthefruit.com
With the strapline ‘Technology is fast but redemption is slow’ this blog takes a completely different approach to discussing technology. Connecting it with his studies in theology, John Dyer explores whether ‘Today, we are told by our screens that everything new, fast, and shiny will make our lives better. I suggest that we need to think more deeply about the tools we use. In other words, “Don’t eat the fruit.” We are obviously pretty keen on eating the technology fruit here at Ebuyer, but we find John’s writing and his unique list of technology book recommendations for Christmas in this post refreshing and engaging.

The Tech Scoop
www.thetechscoop.net
‘Your World And The Technology That Goes With It’ is what you’ll find at The Tech Scoop. We like Lance’s post on avoiding unintended purchases on your iPod or iPhone which is one of the problems you might face if your device ends up in your children’s hands, or if they own a phone which you pay for! There is also a creative post on Christmas Gifts to give your website with a cracking infographic.

EmergingEdTech
www.emergingedtech.com
A blog dedicated to studying the disconnect of technology and the classroom, and working on the premise that ‘properly implemented and supported technology can help make classroom work and course assignments more engaging for students,’ EmergingEdTech is on our top blogs this month for their light-hearted 12 Days of Christmas technology educational resources post!

Web Appers
www.webappers.com/
Moving away from Christmas with this blog of the month, we’ve included Web Appers for the simple reason that this blog is extremely useful for anybody in tech or digital but particularly web developers. Writing excellent introductions to new tools and increasing awareness of what’s available for professionals in this field, (and where to find it) we think Web Appers do sterling work for the tech community! A good example of this is the post on Android Style Date-Picker Widget for jQuery Mobile.

Asus Transformer Prime - the tablet PC of 2012?

It’s a human thing to default to type. Although we can put up a façade of being something different for a while, eventually the effort of keeping this up gets the better of us and we return to just being ourselves — and no bad thing either.

That’s all very nice, but what’s this doing in a gadget blog you might well ask. Well, technology companies (it seems to me) often behave in a similar way. Microsoft excels at being a software company, Sony excels at being a hardware company and Nintendo excels at being a gaming company – as we see in their respective consoles.

Looking at the Asus Transformer Prime made me wonder where Asus fits into this identity equation. They have excelled with their Netbooks, but can this be extended into the tablet market? Their previous Asus Eee Pad Transformer worked hard to legitimate itself as a solid tablet entry, and with its novel keyboard dock it asked fresh questions about where the lines should be drawn between laptops and tablets.

The Asus Transformer Prime takes this enquiry and turbo-charges it with a super powerful quad-core Nvidia Tegra 3 processor and 1GB of RAM. To this it adds a high grade spun metallic finish, super slim form factor, 8MP camera with flash great sound and an impressive 18 hours of battery life.

Like their Netbook PC’s did a few years ago, Asus Transformer Prime takes aim at a market that is notoriously hard to penetrate and gets very close to a bulls-eye. Here it is the iPad rather than sub-notebooks that are in the firing range.

The hardware itself is very impressive, and although the slightly fussier finish won’t be to everyone’s taste it’s easily on a par with the iPad. Where it exceeds Apple’s device is in the inclusion of USB and SD ports, which aren’t available on the iPad without an accessory cable. Also, the provision of a full size QWERTY in the box makes for a more flexible set-up.

This flexibility is where the rubber hits the road. If you are after a more flexible experience then the combination of the Transformer Prime’s versatile hardware and open operating system (which can be easily upgraded to Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich) will make it worth the price of entry. If, however, you are after a simpler, less fussy and less complicated experience then the iPad is still hard to beat.

However you dress it up (with great quality and pitch perfect delivery) Asus, in my mind, does best at innovating and disrupting the technology market more than anything else. This isn’t really about beating Apple at its own game, but about providing a new way to look at the tablet-notebook divide. To that end get ahead of the curve this Christmas by jumping on a Transformer Prime, it really is a big step forward in all round flexible computing.

Andy Robertson @GeekDadGamer runs the GeekDad blog for Wired.co.uk and writes videogame reviews for families.

should we all learn IT at uni?

When I left University I was competent in the use of Microsoft word, I could generally find what I was looking for on the Internet and I was able to touch type. My degree was not IT or technology based so those were the main computer related skills required to succeed. Granted, this was the bare minimum, but there hadn’t really been a need to learn more than that.

It was challenging, then, to be thrown in the deep end in my first job which not only happened to be IT sales, but required knowing my way around PDA software and at least an understanding of Powerpoint and Excel Spreadsheets. While these are pretty easy to pick up as you go along, it did get me thinking that it would have been useful to have done some training prior to leaving Uni to give me a head start.

Now I’ve been working with technology for the last few years and become more involved with it in day to day life I find that much of my knowledge and skillset relating to it has been picked up as I go along. So is a few years of immersing yourself in the world of tech equal to studying it properly? Would I have fared better going from a technology degree into a tech related job?

If this was the experience of someone who took a non tech related course, I thought it would be interesting to ask a couple of people who had taken tech courses at University to see whether they felt well equipped for the working environment when they left.

Name: Ketan Job Role: Digital Account Manager

Did you take a Tech related course; what course did you take?
Yes, Information Systems (specialising in Networks). Although I dropped this specialisation in my final year as I wanted to do my dissertation on web usability – comparing flash sites to HTML and challenging the likes of Jacob Nielsen.

Is your job role now directly related to your degree; did your degree help you with your day to day work?
Not really, the detail I learnt at Uni provides a sound foundation for items such as Information Architecture, but I worked freelance as a designer/developer straight out of Uni and that was all self-taught.

Do you think the technology you used at Uni has aided you since leaving education?
Only the database side of things when I learnt about Oracle and Relational Databases.

How important do you think training in technology is to the working world today?
Important to a degree, but the “real” business world always has its own nuisances. The varying degree of this depends on the industry sector. I believe that technology progresses at such phenomenal rate these days that by the time it comes to fruition in the work place it is either out of date or on the flip side far ahead of what a normal business can accommodate. Again this is dependent on the sector.

Name: Ryan Job Role: Digital Marketing

Which University did you go to?
I was lucky enough to sample two great University’s in different parts of the world. While at LMU I was offered the chance to study overseas in California at CSUS, of course I jumped at the chance.

Did you take a Tech related course; what course did you take?
Yes, I studied software development. I wasn’t really sure what I wanted to do upon graduating but I always had an interest in technology since I got an IBM desktop for Christmas many years ago.

Is your job role now directly related to your degree; did your degree help you with your day to day work?
I now work in digital marketing so it is loosely related. While I don’t do any software development, my web development skills do come in handy from time to time.

Do you think the tech you used at Uni has aided you since leaving education?
I was already exposed to the vast majority of tech and software prior to starting university but being able to use the latest equipment in fantastic surroundings certainly buoyed my learning.

How important do you think training in technology is to the working world today?
We are living in a digital world where technology is continuously evolving unlike traditional industries such as textiles and machinery which are in decline. Having a solid understanding of common software packages such as Microsoft Excel is fundamentally important in the modern workplace.

We asked Mark Taylor, Senior Developer here at Ebuyer, how important industry experience is for students?

“At Ebuyer we have a student placement program and currently have two lucky students in IT development that benefit from the experience and knowledge of the Ebuyer development team and working in one of the largest online electronics retailers in the UK.

We feel that gaining industry experience is of great benefit for students, as we feel what is taught in lectures on a University course is somewhat different from the reality of a fast paced business where time is money. Students can see their projects making a difference, being seen by thousands of people and generating more revenue for the company.”

Did you study Computer Science, Software Development or a Technology Focussed Degree? We’d be interested to hear what your thoughts are on how prepared you felt for the world of work, and if your degree directly impacts your day to day role.

our favourite blogs this month

With Christmas approaching there are plenty of technology releases and gifts to discuss so we’ve been spoiled for choice this month for our top tech bloggers!

We’ve also had an enjoyable time reading what you’ve got to say about the latest and greatest technology so thank you for taking the time to blog about it.

Ebuyer’s bloggers of the month for November are:

3D TV Watcher
www.3dtvwatcher.co.uk
If having a 3D TV in your living room is what you want for Christmas then we highly recommend casting your eyes over the views from Hugo and the team at 3dtvwatcher.co.uk. This blog caught our attention recently with a post regarding the future of 3D TVS, and we also liked ‘the sweeter side of 3D‘, featuring a 3D gadget that prints in real chocolate!

Gajit
www.gaj-it.com
A great place for technology and gadget lovers to gather, this blog was set up to share news and reviews. The Gajit team’s passion for the subject comes across well in their writing, and there are some great ‘need to know’ posts that summarise the latest news. For example this post on Google Music, and the Gajit take on Samsung and Google TV.

Cherryleaf Technical
www.cherryleaf.com/blog
This blog differs a little from our usual choices, as the focus is on technical writing and related topics. Run by Cherryleaf, a Technical Writing Service Provider, it offers useful insights into it’s key service area. We like this post on Technical Writing in The Cloud’ and this post on ‘Ubuntu for the Technical Author?’ which explores the plus and minus points of using the Ubuntu operating system to, in the words of Cherryleaf, ‘turn tired old computers into sprightly young beasts’!

Gizmodo
www.gizmodo.co.uk
We like to feature all technology blogs great and small, so here is a great one for this month! You’ll probably be familiar with Gizmodo, a tech site with a presence in several countries including the USA, France, Poland, Italy, Germany, Spain and UK to name a few! Quirky and conversational in their writing style, Gizmodo UK ‘love technology and gadgets, but like any good nerdlinger, we’re also interested in science and smart design… it’s our goal to keep you on your toes about what’s coming next.’ And that’s exactly what you get when you visit Gizmodo.co.uk. This month we like this post on what Facebook thinks about the six degrees of separation, and Gizmodo’s test of 4G for a week which delivers a handy breakdown of what 4G is like to use.

Blogsdna.com
www.blogsdna.com
Blogsdna is a good place to go if you’re looking for some step by step guides on software fixes and updates. There are some useful posts this month on uploading desktop screenshots to Dropbox using CloudShot, and how to use Dev Eject when the Windows USB safe removal option fails. Another interesting post is this one on ‘How to Enable Download to Google Drive Option in Google Docs’.

Technology Education

We are living in a digital age where technology is changing the way we live and even think. Unlike traditional industries such as textile and machinery, digital, computing and technology industries have continued to grow and show no signs of slowing down.

There are countless paths which can lead you to a career within the technology and computing industries but this path usually starts with university. Deciding which university you attend can make a real difference to your future career aspirations, to help you better decide we’ve listed some of the best universities in the technology and computing related fields.

Best Universities for Software Development

Lancaster University
Home to world-class research and teaching in Computer Science and ICT, this is a university with a growing reputation. The course is attentive to creating engineering skills which are highly desired by the industry. The InfoLab21 facility also helps entrepreneurial students set up their own business.

Imperial College London
During the course you will be exposed to pioneering methods in software engineering practices from learning management protocols, technical innovations and software life cycles. The course is highly geared towards enabling the student to make the transition from university to the workplace.

University of Edinburgh
Once you complete this course you will have a solid understanding of modern software development principles including testing, evaluating, analysing and of course implementation. The software engineering skills you learning during the course are highly strengthened by real life practical situations. This practical approach has made the University of Edinburgh one of the top universities in the UK for Graduate Prospects.

University of York
Like all on this list the Software Engineering course is demanding with a basic knowledge of software development a prerequisite. But don’t be put off – with a lot of reading and of course hands on practice you can be ready in time for your arrival. It is a 1 year programme consisting of nine modules and an individual project carried out in the department.

University of Sheffield
At Sheffield University you will gain really valuable hands on experience due to the universities in-house software development company. The preparation for your future career does not end there; the university regularly consults with large employers to keep you at the forefront with highly sought after skills.

Best Universities for Computer Communications

University of Southampton
The University of Southampton ranked second in the UK for research quality in the 2008 research assessment. During the course you learn practical business applications of distributed systems and networks as well as embarking on your own individual research project.

Swansea University
The Tele Communications course at Swansea University offers future graduates a crucial role in the development of modern communication. The laboratories at Swansea University are equipped with the latest test measurement tools and technology allowing you to get real hands-on experience.

University of Kent
The school of Engineering and Digitals Arts came out top in the National Student Survey 2010 for overall student satisfaction. The teaching for the electronic and communications engineering course is very much research-led so students will get to learn about the latest pioneering technologies.

University of Essex
The school of Computer Science and Electronic Engineering at Essex University is one of the largest and best equipped schools in the UK. The Telecommunications Engineering course has a significant emphasis on radio frequency circuits, analogue and computer communications networks as well as traditional electronics theory and application.

Brunel University
The Computer Systems Engineering course at Brunel University is perfect for those looking for a challenging hands-on course. Brunel’s expertise in network communications is practically unrivalled in the UK; all MSc programmes at Brunel University have gained support from the Institution of Engineering and Technology and are provided worldwide.

Best Universities for E-Business

University of Dundee
The business computing course at the University of Dundee is very technically focused with software development, programming and database modules scattered throughout the programme. You will leave with a wide range of skills perfect for the technological demands of everyday business. Strong partnerships, hands-on experience, great facilities and passionate lecturers everything you’d expect from one of the UK’s leading universities.

University of Reading
The Information Technology course at The University of Reading covers a wide variety of subjects including software development, e-business as well as personal development led modules such as career management. You will be educated by lecturers with world-leading expertise in fields such as parallel computing and computer engineering. The wide scope of the course will equip you all the necessarily skills for a career within the IT industry.

University of Aberdeen
The University of Aberdeen has a long heritage since its conception in 1495, making it the fifth oldest university in the UK. The E-business programme at Aberdeen is combined with computing making it perfect for those who have a great business mind but also have a passion for technical aspects.

Lancaster University
The business computing programme at Lancaster University is academically challenging as well as practically stimulating. The programme is delivered by leading computer experts as well as staff from the business department which is acknowledged as one of the UK’s top business schools.

University of Liverpool
The e-Business programme developed by Liverpool University was this first of its kind in the UK. Unlike other universities which often combine modules from departments of computer science and business the e-Business programme at Liverpool University is uniquely developed by recognised business experts.

Best Universities for Artificial Intelligence

Imperial College London
The AI computing programme at Imperial College is a very demanding course with challenging theory as well as rewarding hands-on practical experience. During the course you will gain knowledge of artificial intelligence and engineering skills to develop complex models. In your final year you will spend around 8 months on an individual project allowing you to showcase all that you have learnt. The Imperial College London currently sits in third on The Times league for Computer Science so you can expect pioneering facilities, tools and world class lecturers.

University of Edinburgh
The informatics research group at The University of Edinburgh is the leading and longest established research group in informatics in the UK. The School of Informatics is three departments combined including the former Department of Artificial Intelligence, Centre for Cognitive Science and The Department of Computer Science. In the 2011 Guardian University Tables the school was ranked 1st in the UK due to its world leading research and quality of learning.

University of Leeds
The course at Leeds University is delivered from the research of the school’s world-class research institute of Artificial Intelligence and Biological Systems and covers the latest pioneering AI techniques as well as gaining an understanding of traditional methods. Graduate prospects are one of the best in the country with previous graduates going on to work at some of world’s leading organisations such as Accenture, Logica and HBOS.

University of Birmingham
The University of Birmingham is home to the Centre of Excellence for Research in Computational Intelligence and Applications and ranks extremely well for its quality research and of course teaching quality. Computing at the university goes as far back as the 1950s since then the department as gone on to become internationally recognised within the computer science field.

University of Nottingham
The Computer Science with Artificial Intelligence course at The University of Nottingham is great for gaining a solid understanding of computer science while attaining specialist knowledge of AI. The university’s research in Artificial Intelligence is recognised as world-leading enabling you to participate in many exciting group and individual projects.

This list is by no means comprehensive and there are many great universities to consider as well as the ones we have mentioned. While league tables and assessments provide a snapshot of how well institutions are performing these are best considered alongside other reasons when choosing a university.

There are many facets to university life that league tables and assessments simply cannot account for. These aspects may include locality, student life, support for learning, work opportunities, the credibility of the university and opportunities to develop and grow your social and personal skills.

Above all else choose a university where you will be happy to live, work study and enjoy for the next three or four years of your life!

TV Guide to the rescue

It’s official, I’m confused! This problem began the other day when I decided I wanted to buy a new TV. There are so many variations that I experienced a very dramatic wig melt, a phrase I have recently heard in reference to severe confusion!

Why are there so many terms involved in what should be the so simple process of buying a new TV? First there’s the high definition mindfield, that’s HD to those in the know. HD Ready or Full HD, that is the question and one I find all too painful to answer.

Then there’s LCD and LED. What’s the difference? And which would fit better in the corner of my living room? I think 32 inches is sufficient, the husband is desperate for 42 inches of screen. I want to watch the latest Hollywood blockbusters; he wants Sky Sports and fast paced gaming. Can we get a TV that meets both demands? So many questions and I’ve not even thought about 3D TV.

3D TV, the concept that makes cool people look uncool with clunky glasses on. I’m not bothered but him indoors can’t wait to watch next year’s Wimbledon in a completely new dimension. Will it work in our home or will we need to sit extremely cosily in order to see a proper 3D image?

And don’t get me started on Smart TVs, obviously not a label I could give myself. Why is it smart? What does it give me? Will it help me answer more questions during University Challenge than its predecessor? I doubt it.

Anyway, if you too are suffering from extreme wig melt take a look at Ebuyer’s TV Guide and perhaps we’ll both be able to relax with a new TV before the end of the year!