Christmas is approaching which means I’ll be heading to the UK for my Turkey dinner soon. It also means that I’ll be checking out mobile broadband and 3G netbook availability just in case I feel the need while I’m there. Here’s a few news items I found as I was checking out offers today.

Virgin Mobile is introducing a  pre and post-pay option to their mobile phone tariff which gives you a full day of web access (We assume that it’s a port-80 proxy service here) for just 30p. OK, it’s only 25MB and you can’t officially tether your phone to a PC but for using something like Opera Mini on the occasional day away from home, it’s more than enough. If you’re looking to use the service on a more permanent basis though, the per-week and per-month option from 3UK are probably going to work out better as they have less restrictive limits. More info here. Via Informatics Online

The ASUS 901 is now available with built-in 3G from Orange UK on a 24-month contract. This must be the same as the 901 GO that’s available in other countries. The device is free but the monthly charge is 25 pounds. I highly recommended this item a few months ago and I stick by it. If you want one of the more mobile netbook options, this is the one to go for. It comes with XP and 16GB SSD. More info at Orange. Note: The same device is available, contract free, in Germany for 449 Euros.

Clove Technology has the Blue Samsung NC10 marked up at 343 pounds and due on Dec 12th. I can’t find any info about a 3G-enabled one though. This is the product I’m hoping will launch soon but it looks like I may have to wait until after Christmas.

Update: There’s a Samsung NC10 HSPA available in Poland now.

The Advent 4213 (ECS G10L) is available for 322 pounds. It has the 3G module built in but comes with a relatively small battery. Its not the device i’m looking for.

Got any UK mobile internet product tips? If so, let everyone know in the comments below.

As Joanna mentions in her article at Laptop Magazine, it takes a lot to stand out in the netbook market right now. Yesterday I went through my own thoughts on the top netbook devices and had to leave out the Dell E, Gigabyte M912X and ECS G10L. In the last 24-hours we’ve had the final specs and EU pricing for the M912X and see that its differentiating itself with the addition of a hi-res touchscreen, ExpressCard slot and large HDD. Today, we have the information that the ECS G10L will try and differentiate itself by having two screen sizes and 3G options. On first glance, it looks like a copy of the Dell and Acer strategy. Even MSI will have a second screen-size soon but there’s something else that’s significant here.

ECS are a contract manufacturer and can offer mobile data carriers their own branded editions. With Linpus Lite as the OS (their second OS win along with the Acer Aspire) carriers can put their brand on the OS and even get some control of the application build. The big differentiator with the G10L is probably not in the specifications but in the final-product package. Expect it to be subsidised heavily to get people into their second 2-year carrier contract and expect it to be marketed heavily too.

Laptop magazine have interviewed ECS and provide some new information about pricing, availability and territorial builds. Its an interesting read.

Laptop Magazine. Interview with ECS vice president of sales, Henry Kwan.

More details and links for the ECS G10L.