Value for money: Fairy lights and tins of biscuits
Biscuits
Fox's Creations €11.99 for 800g, €14.99 per kg
Highs:The excellent chocolate thickly spread on to most of the biscuits in this tin - not to mention the regal (and trendy) purple box - creates the impression that these really are special-occasion biscuits and exactly what you want from your Christmas treats. There are 10 varieties of dark, white and milk chocolate biscuits and no real horrors to be found lurking alongside the nicer options.
Lows:While it doesn't make any difference to the quality, Fox's has lost the run of itself entirely with the names it has given its creations. Is there any need for such labels as "indulgent millionaire shortcake" or "tangy Jaffa Viennese" (it's just a Jaffa cake, for the love of Jesus, and not a particularly nice one at that)? It, and the chunky white chocolate ring, were the most disappointing biscuits Pricewatch sampled.
Verdict:A real treat
Star rating: ****
Jacob's USA Biscuit Assortment €10.99 for 1kg
Highs:For many people, Christmas would just not be the same without a tin of these making an appearance at some stage. The box looks old-fashioned, but pleasingly so, and is filled with familiar biscuits, including chocolate digestives and jammy rings (which, incidentally, don't seem to have nearly as much jam in them as they did in the halcyon days of the 1970s). The chocolate-chip cookies were excellent though, and we would have liked more of them. We were also impressed by the price.
Lows:The contents have hardly changed in the last 30 years, but our expectations have - and this tin falls far short of them. Jacob's promises us a selection of its "delicious" biscuits and then tries to sneak in far too many not-at-all-delicious bourbon and custard creams for our liking. While quite a few of the biscuits are grand, there is an absence of anything that could be classed as a real treat and we fear that far too many of them will remain uneaten.
Verdict:Cheap but tired
Star rating: ***
Lambertz Unsere Besten € 6.49 for 500g, €12.98
Highs:These are quite cheap and contain enough decent chocolate-covered ginger biscuits to make them worth considering if you find yourself in Aldi in the run-up to Christmas. If the USA biscuits are overly familiar, then these are wonderfully exotic - and quite mysterious given that the text on the box is almost entirely in German. The Mandal Lebkuchen (no, we've no idea what it means either) was particularly pleasing. Along with the biscuits were some decidedly odd chocolates that will be a real treat for marzipan-lovers everywhere.
Lows:Pricewatch is not, however, a marzipan-lover and found the gelatinous mass objectionable. Also of concern was the texture - while we expected at least some crunchy biscuits, what we got was ginger sponge cake covered in chocolate.
Verdict:Unpredictable
Star rating: ***
McVitie's Victoria
€10.99 for 800g, €13.74 per kg
Highs:The tin promised that this would be filled with "luxurious chocolate biscuits to make every occasion special" and while that claim is nonsense, there are loads of pretty good chocolate-covered chunky biscuits to be found here. None of them were remotely special but nor were any of them particularly bad.
Lows:There isn't as much variety on offer as you might expect and some of the biscuit formations are repeated with just the shade of chocolate being altered. The chocolate, be it white, milk or dark, was very ordinary and a long way from luxurious. While these are grand, we certainly wouldn't go out of our way to pick up a tin.
Verdict:A bit dull
Star rating: ***
Marks & Spencer Belgian Collection €15.49 for 1kg
Highs:With 14 different biscuit varieties to choose from, this has the broadest appeal of any of the options reviewed. It is also very upmarket and a fine option for grown-ups (kids, however, might not appreciate all the daintiness going on). The biscuits are first-rate and the dark chocolate used to coat many of them is excellent - sharp and filled with complex flavours. The biscuits are quite petite, which means you can eat more than a couple in a single sitting without feeling like a complete pig. The two layers are individually wrapped in plastic, which will keep the second layer fresher and act as a deterrent for unscrupulous family members who might dip into tray two before the first tray is finished.
Lows:We can't fault the biscuits, but these are the most expensive option tested. They are confined to a single chain, so may be harder to track down than the competition.
Verdict:Lovely
Star rating:****
Lights
Habitat Bijou lighting Chain €45
Highs:With red bulbs gently glowing amid a cluster of red plastic spikes, these are the most unusual Christmas lights we came across. They are also the easiest to untangle and we had them up and running in under a minute. As befits a Habitat product, they are cool-looking and would go some way to sprucing up a tired tree, although given the high price you might be as well off draping a single set elegantly from the fireplace and buying some cheaper lights for the tree.
Lows:While they are undeniably funky, they are very pricey - your 45 only gets you 60 bulbs extending over approximately six metres, so we estimate that at least three sets would be needed to make much of an impression on an average tree. And spending in excess of €120 on tree lights seems wantonly excessive.
Verdict:Funky and pricey
Star rating: ***
Penneys LED lights € 25
Highs:Penneys really is the place to go for low-priced Christmas tat - there are vast quantities of stuffed Santas and snowmen and cheap (but not cheap-looking) decorations to suit every tree. While coloured lights and lights hidden in garlands are available for a lot less than this, we splashed out on the store's top-of-the-range lights. They have eight sequences, from the static to the hilariously frenetic. Made using LED bulbs, they are more eco-friendly than the competition and easier to put up. They are also very, very bright.
Lows:In fact, they are too dazzling and lack the warm tones that make Christmas lights festive. They are also unsuitable for outdoor use and no spare bulbs are included.
Verdict:Too dazzling
Star rating: ***
Tesco coloured Christmas lights € 29.99
Highs:These are the option most like traditional Christmas lights and the only one to come with a plastic tray with slots for individual lights - so if you are careful when putting them away this year, you won't be confronted by a tangled nightmare next year. The 200 tiny bulbs extend over 25 metres and offer pretty good tree illumination. The green cabling means these lights blend in better with their intended background, while the bulbs are low-energy, using 48 per cent less electricity than normal lights.
Lows:Sadly, the energy efficiency has led to a dimming of the lights. While the Penneys LED lights are too bright, these are way too dull and the gentle flicker all but disappears into the tree when the house lights are on. They might be ideal for an outdoor tree that otherwise be shrouded in darkness.
Verdict:Dim but multifunctional
Star rating: ****
Aldi icicle lights € 16.99
Highs:With 300 bulbs packed into a small box, these represent the best value for money. They also come with 14 nattily-hooked suction cups if you fancy draping them somewhere other than your tree. They cast a nice warm glow, and while they look nothing like icicles, they are quite seasonal. These also have a three-year warranty, although you'd have to go to the bother of completing a form and posting it off to take advantage of it. Pricewatch can't help wondering how many people will go to that effort for something so cheap.
Lows:The cabling is very white and stands out too much if draped on a tree. Storage is bound to be a problem, as we could see no way to tidy the lights away without tying them in hideous knots.
Verdict:Cheap and cheerful
Star rating: ****
Noma pear micro bulbs € 35
Highs:Found in Brown Thomas, these are definitely an upmarket option, marrying the funkiness of the Habitat lights with the more traditional Christmas tree lights to be found elsewhere. The 120 bulbs have a nice warm red glow and look sturdy enough to last. They can be used both inside and out, and are surprisingly easy to disentangle. The "eight stunning effects" are controlled by an easy-to-read dial which makes it simpler to set to the desired programme.
Lows:The "stunning effects" are exactly the same as the other lights and not at all stunning. While the red light is nice, it is a little too red and might get wearisome. Unless you want your neighbours to think you've set up a brothel, you might want to offset the redness with a couple of sets of different-coloured lights, adding to the cost.
Verdict:A bit too red
Star rating: ***
