Mobile Choice Blog

Cabinet minister fined for using mobile phone while driving

The introduction of a law to stop people gabbing on their phones while driving was definitely a good thing, although anecdotal evidence (i.e. what we've seen while out and about) indicates that some people continue to flout the law.

Among them is immigration minister Liam Byrne, who was fined £100 plus costs on Friday after being caught using his mobile at the wheel. He claimed in court that he was taking an important call about a deportation case, but the magistrate rightfully decided that if the call was that important, Byrne should have pulled over before taking it.

That's one politician who'll have hopefully gone out to buy a Bluetooth headset this weekend. By the way, in case you're wondering, he didn't do that graffiti in the photo. Honest.

(via IHT)

Mobile music shootout: Vodafone MusicStation v Nokia Music Store

It's a momentous day for mobile music in the UK, with the launch of two high-profile services letting you listen to tunes on the go. In the red corner, we have MusicStation, an unlimited subscription service being offered through Vodafone.

And in the blue corner, there's the Nokia Music Store, which works on phones and PCs, and is billed as an iTunes rival. We thought that, since they both launched today, we should compare and contrast the two, starting with...

MUSICSTATION

This is an unlimited subscription service, meaning you pay £1.99 a week on your mobile bill, and can then download as much music as you like from the million-plus tracks on offer. Omnifone, which runs the service for Vodafone, has signed deals with all four major labels as well as several indies, so chances are you'll find plenty of music you like.