January in broadband: Google, Apple and BT fail to impress with Nexus, Infinity and iPad

January was an up and down month for the main stories in the world of broadband: just as each new hype-filled gadget or news item got us excited, they were cruelly brought back to earth with a bump.

First up was the 'Google phone', the Nexus One. The HTC handset was predictably dubbed as the latest 'iPhone killer' (yawn), but while the similarities were obvious (right down to he size) its unique selling points were less so. And, frankly, still are. And if you haven't got a very obviously better product, going up against Apple on branding alone isn't wise - even when you're Google.

So if you're brave enough to go head-to-head with the iBehemoth, you'd better get your customer service right, right? Oops. It seems dealing with customer queries was a hot potato that T-Mobile, HTC and Google were happy to pass between each other rather than getting a good system in place beforehand. If you're one of the unlucky ones, let us know.

Next off of the production line was BT's new 40Mb fibre broadband product, Infinity - perhaps named after the amount of time it has taken the lumbering incumbent to get up to speed with its cable rival Virgin Media. But joking aside, we're all for it - a half decent top end speed over fibre -optic cables will be great, as long as they can roll it out fast enough.

The £19.99 per month price tag makes it even more appealing, but Virgin has already been putting the boot in. A spokesperson gave an exhaustive list of why its product was better, many of which were valid, but the proof will be in the pudding. Both services can clearly go faster, probably sooner rather than later, so we'll see who wins the next round later in the year.

The third and final mega launch was from the king of hype, Apple. Slathering iNerds had been wetting themselves for weeks, but for once the over-hyped offering was received as just that - over-hyped. Leaks had called it the iSlate: it turned out to be named the  iPad, but this didn't stop it getting slated (ho ho). 

It seems that for once the mighty Jobs has misjudged the public's desires - it seems that despite every man jack of us wanting an iPhone, we don't also want a really, really big iPhone to go with it. however, this news may upset the score of copyists frantically releasing their own similar products as we speak. If Apple aren't going to sell many, how are the cheap imitations going to fair? Back to the iDrawingboards, lads.

Elsewhere, there was actually some good news: GP appointments and prescriptions going online is great, although it should've happened years ago. And what isn't to like about giving free laptops to less wealthy English kids? Although people elsewhere in the UK may have something to say about it. 

Innovation-wise, we also had Skype announcing its intention to bring cheap HD video calling to everyone's television as early as the summer, while MusicDNA will bring lyrics and all sorts to our MP3s and Sky has brought us 3D football. 

And finally, we should congratulate the BBC's iPlayer for hitting 100 million views per month - it's the kind of service that truly makes the internet great. Good job!