Telecoms Advice - telephone, mobile phone, VOIP and broadband Internet
Telecoms Advice is an independent website for UK phone and Internet users. Initially aimed at small UK businesses, SMEs and remote and Small Office Home Office (SOHO) workers, we now also cater for personal and residential consumers. It covers the practical applications, benefits and costs of using UK telecommunications (fixed telephone line, mobile phone services, broadband Internet and voip) and similar Information and Communication Technologies (ICTs).
Although it is written for UK business people, and concentrates on UK telecom, telephone, mobile phone and Internet products and services, the technical overviews and information you will find here will be relevant to UK personal, residential and international telecommunications consumers.
Quick Links to popular general information pages: (and, if you are looking for a supplier, use the relevant keyword linked sponsored advertisements around the pages - or go to a more specific page to find more specific links)
- home and small office, residential and personal telecommunication services
- personal mobile phone overview
- residential telephone services overview
- home broadband Internet overview
- business, sme and corporate telecommunications services
Telecoms Advice was initiated and seed funded by Oftel's Small Business Task Force - see the original Oftel foreword here. We were an official partner in the DTI ‘UK online for business’ initiative, now absorbed into the DTI Small Business Service, and authored their original ‘Broadband’ brochure, but we are independent of Government, can make reference to commercial products and services, and link freely to external sources of information.
The ‘advice’ or information we publish is intended to be practical, impartial and/or balanced, giving an overview of products and services on offer and drawing on the expertise of both the industry and the experiences of UK personal, residential and small business or SME telecommunications consumers. However, this is a fast moving market, our information cannot be comprehensive and neither inclusion nor exclusion should be taken as recommendation or otherwise. Information on external sites we may link to is outside of our control. Buyers should always beware! And see the usual disclaimer.
Is your business taking full advantage of the products and services on offer in the telecommunications market?
- our ‘features’ give an overview of telecoms, telephone, mobile phone and broadband technology in a business context
- our ‘information’ sheets focus on specific applications and technologies – and how much it costs
- our UK ICT Directory lists and links to suppliers
Are you baffled by all the jargon and technical terms?
- our index explains the technical terms with links to more detailed information on TelecomsAdvice and beyond.
Got a question?
- send it to us – but you might find the answer already in our Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) under the relevant categories in the menu on the left.
But where do you start?
- the toolkit section gives you a quick introduction to the world of telecoms and the Internet
- help tells you how to browse the index and use the search engine
How can you contribute?
The information you find here is only the start. We want to know what you want to know about telecoms, information and communications technologies (ICTs) and the Internet, and about your experiences – good and bad – of the products and telephone services on the market.
Who are we?
TelecomsAdvice is published by Crucible Multimedia Ltd based in Sheffield. Crucible was set-up specifically to publish telecomsadvice, initially financed by Oftel through its Small Business Task Force, with the support of the University of Sheffield under the EU funded Telerise project. You can contact us by email, or by completing our comments form.
Oftel's Small Business Task Force comprised UK small business organisations’ representatives and advisers, government agencies and telecoms and ICT companies including network operators, equipment manufacturers, software producers and maintenance contractors. From April 2000 to 2003 Oftel promoted this site to major telcos asking for sponsorship and subsidised any gaps in funding. Ofcom absorbed Oftel on 31st December 2003 and, although still linking to us along with Business Link, will not be supporting the site in the same way that Oftel did. TelecomsAdvice will continue with its impartial editorial policy while in future being funded by relevant non-invasive advertising sponsorship from UK telecom and ICT suppliers and the consultancy services of Crucible Multimedia Ltd .
The Crucible Multimedia Ltd ICT and web consultancy and telecoms brokerage services through telecomsadvice.co.uk for mobile, fixed line and Broadband Internet are available by enquiry using using the 'contact us' form or email .
Reviewed May 2010