Interesting Facts

According to official police crime data 1.8 million people in the UK were victims of street crime. (As more and more people are carrying expensive gadgets like phones and iPads, criminals are now targeting victims in the street. Surprisingly one in five of all incidents occur early on a Saturday afternoon. London, Leeds and Nottingham are the street crime hotspots.)

Laws in the UK that make it illegal to rip (copy) content from CDs and DVDs onto computers, iPods, iPads and other devices are set to be scrapped. (Millions of people routinely transfer music and films they have bought on CD and DVD onto such devices for personal use, but under current copyright rules, this copying, or ‘format shifting’, is technically illegal. The music industry has accepted the proposals, but has suggested that some companies and artists should be compensated for any income lost as a result of copying through a levy applied to the price of iPods and similar devices, or CDs, DVDs and downloads. Show me the money! They cried. Well I would like to be compensated for my husband having to buy CDs of LPs and Tapes he had already bought.) Source

According to the Daily Mail, many gadgets cost about 37% more in Britain than in the US. (The official UK price for Nintendo's 3DS device is £179, but in New York it will set you back as little as £167.66, including VAT (sales tax). For iPad fans the news is just as depressing. The second generation of the pioneering tablet computer, which is thinner, lighter and faster than its predecessor, may cost £100 more in the UK than it does in the U.S. To be honest, ever since I moved to Germany and realised how cheap beer is here, I've called it "Rip off Britain". And it's not just beer and gadgets manufacturers that rip us off: a European Commission study from 2008 found we pay £12,900 for a VW Golf, compared with £10,986 in Denmark – almost 15% more – and £20,364 for a Vectra, which would cost £15,411 in Latvia.) Source: Daily Mail