Author: Coolsmartphone Staff

Samsung to overtake Nokia in total sales

Nokia has traditionally been on top when it comes to total phones shipped but it looks as though Samsung is about to overtake them for the first time this quarter. Lower end estimates are that Samsungs shipments stand at 85m and Nokia’s figures from earlier this week are …

WoodPad Review

If you’re anything like me, sometimes you want somewhere to put your iPad when it doesn’t need to be in your hand. I’m always concerned if I lay it down somewhere that the back will get scratched or it’ll get knocked over. Both of those problems are solved …

Instacast for iOS review

Recently I realised I had a problem. I listen to a lot of podcasts and the built in iOS way of handling these is problematic. They are downloaded from the iTunes app and listened to in the podcast section of the Music app which is confusing from the …

Mystery HTC device appears on HTC Sense website…

A mystery HTC device with an edge-to-edge screen has been discovered on the HTC Sense website, but sadly its not real.   Android Central have been told that it is just for showing off Sense without specific hardware…. shame as this is certainly a cool device and I’m …

ICS coming to the Vodafone branded Galaxy S2 very soon

Samsung Galaxy S2 users on Vodafone rejoice – you’ll soon be getting your hands on Android Ice Cream Sandwich. The latest version of Google’s Android platform will begin rolling out in the UK on April 12. Vodafone confirmed the news via its forum. Here is the official line: …

Sony Xperia S vs HTC One X camera shoot-out

Two recently released high-end smartphones from Sony and HTC, namely the Xperia S and One X are both touted as top-class camera phones. Imaging specs are pretty impressive – the Sony Xperia S sports 12-megapixel “Exmor R” sensor, while the HTC One X has 8-megapixel shooter backed by …

Facebook to buy Instagram

The Founder of Facebook, Mark Zuckerberg, has today announced his plans to buy the popular Photo taking/sharing website Instagram. The deal, which is still to be approved by the regulatory bodies, is said to be worth $1 billion, made up of cash and shares. I am new to …

Recommended App- Moto Deals

Many of you may be off on the motorways this Easter, so here’s a little app that might be useful. Available for Android and iOS, MotoDeals is from the Moto services chain and offers a different deal each day. Just open the app and you will be presented …

In app advertising impacting battery life

Recently I carried out a full reset of my lovely Samsung Galaxy Nexus as it couldn’t survive more than 4 hours away from a charging source, truly shocking! I went through all my settings and my apps and removed any that I thought could be causing the problem …

Why Android has won

After MWC and the release of lots of new phones, many people are talking about what their next phone will be. Myself and the rest of the team at Coolsmartphone.com are no different, and most of the debate has been around the new Sony’s and HTC’s. Personally I …

Why I think Windows Phone is the future

Before I start I must express now that this article contains mostly opinion. Right, now that’s said we can continue. 🙂 I have had a lot of phones…. Blackberrys, an iPhone, Androids and even the short lived HP Pre3 (another time) but the newest bit of tech to …

Instagram (finally) hits Android

18 months after its release on iOS, Instagram has finally come to Android. For those of you unfamiliar with the app, Instagram popularised the use of applying various filters to photos, making quick edits and then sharing them online.  Although the concept has been copied to death, Instagram …

Review: Sky Gamblers: Air Supremacy

I was always excited by the idea of the iPad as a gaming device; it’s that thought alone that prompted me to get the original iPad, and after seeing the delights of Apple’s App Store had to offer, I quickly upgraded to iPad 2.  I did the same …

Samsung Galaxy S2 – CM9

If you have been around the android community for a while, you most likely will have heard of CM or Cyanogen (Mod). CyanogenMod is an aftermarket firmware for a number of cell phones based on the open-source Android operating system. It offers features not found in the official …

Google Drive – Cloud Storage

Google have seemingly been a little slow on the uptake of cloud storage, especially as they currently hold 7339 terabytes of emails in the Gmail service, offering over 7gb per email account. At the moment, details are sketchy, with no firm launch date or pricing information. The screen …

The G-Tablet: Coming Soon?

Yes, you did read it correctly, Google are set to release their own branded tablet. It is rumoured that Google are preparing an on-line store, selling directly to consumers, much like they tried (and failed) to do with the original Nexus. The store will sell the Google branded …

Sony Ericsson Xperia Play – ICS beta released

Another day, another ICS Rom released. This time it is for the Sony Ericsson Xperia Play. The Xperia Play (or Zeus), has been out for about a year now, so it is nice to see Sony are still supporting the handset with the latest flavour of Android (Ice Cream …

Samsung Galaxy S – Value Pack

Do you own the original Samsung Galaxy S? It would appear that, despite not getting an official ICS (Ice Cream Sandwich) update, you may get a few of the new features in a future software release. The ‘Value Pack’ update will include such ICS features as ‘Face Unlock’, …

Sony Xperia S – Extended review

The Sony Xperia S is quite an important smartphone in Sony’s lineup following recent break-up with Ericsson. We have already covered Xperia S here at Coolsmartphone in a review by Dan a couple of weeks ago, but we have also decided to take another more detailed look at …

Three set to delay 4G

The mobile network 3 are announcing a plan to upgrade its network which will enable it to start legal action against Ofcom, undoubtedly this will have the knock on effect of delaying the 4G auction that is planned for 2013. Three was actually the first network to release …

Evernote Android App and Widget updates

Evernote have just released the latest version of their Android app and Android Widget app. The new version (3.6) now supports dictation, and uses Android’s Text transcription service. A couple of big caveats though – you must be online, and you need Ice Cream Sandwich. So maybe one …

Accessory Review: ZooGue Capacitive Stylus

Here at CoolSmartPhone we love peripherals and accessories for our devices. As Leigh’s recent videos on device stands have shown, we love those that are simple but effective even more! Enter the ZooGue Stylus. This device is primarily sold for iPad devices however can be used on any …

UK Trumps Europe For News On The Go

That’s right…the United Kingdom leads the way…..albeit this time in the use of mobile devices to visit News-based sites. This is the outcome of a new report from comScore, the digital marketing intelligence company. According to comScore, over 45% of UK Smartphone users have accessed a News site …

Is poor battery life a price worth paying for free apps?

Recently we published an article about how most of the power usage of free Android apps actually goes towards displaying the ads. Angry Birds, for example, apparently uses “70% of it’s power draw to upload information and download ads”. Presumably it’s an even higher percentage for other less …

GMail bug affecting Android handsets

  There appears to be a bug affecting GMail on Android handsets this morning. It seems to be affecting several different manufacturers, so the problem is most likely at Google’s end. It’s quite an odd bug, as it appears to only affect certain accounts, even on the same …

O2 leaks HTC One launch date

The rumoured April 5 launch of the HTC One is looking confirmed now following a leak of inventory information from O2. It also reveals a potential late April debut for the Sony Xperia P and Xperia U models. Earlier this month our roving team managed to get up …

Android App Review: WeatherFlow

Well we all know there is no shortage of Weather apps available for Android in the market….sorry, “Play store”. WeatherFlow however is different to some you may be used to.  Its a bit more simplistic and does exactly what it says on the tin….shows you the weather bases …

iPhone 5 to get 4.6″ display?

There are reports/rumours coming out of South Korea this morning that Apple has decided the next iPhone will have a 4.6″ display and has placed orders with its manufacturing partners. LG and Samsung have made displays for iPhones in the past, and they are keeping schtum, but this does fit …

HTC buys MOG? Spotify beware!

HTC clearly have a thing for audio at the moment, best shown buy their $300 million purchase of Dr Dre’s Beats Audio, and the subsequent highly rated integration into their new products. So that’s the sound taken care of, but what about content? Well looks like HTC have …

Sony Xperia S white available from Clove

Mobile retailers Clove.co.uk now have the white Xperia S in stock with a good package of extras. Along with the handset you get 4 NFC smart tags worth £20 and a £10 voucher for future Xperia accessories. The smart tags are being heavily promoted by Sony at the …

Hands on with the new iPad

So the new iPad is now out in the wild and in the hands of those either quick enough to order online or stand in line for hours on end.I’ve been having a play with one since yesterday and wanted to share my initial impressions. Packaging  The packaging …

Wanna be a ROM chef? The devs make it easy for you!

So to paint a picture.. I am an enthusiast of all things Android. I’ve been an enthusiast since the very first days of Android’s public release. So over time I’ve grown to know what I’m dealing with when it comes to modding my phone’s operating system. Zip flashing …

Sony LiveView bargain – today only

  Remember the Sony LiveView? It was like a watch, but a bluetooth accessory that connects to any Android phone, showing texts, emails and various other features through plug ins available from the Android Market (sorry, Google Play shop!). Original costing a fairly steep £70, Play.com have a …

HTC Ice Cream Sandwich updates begin!

HTC have posted on their blog that they have begun to roll out their Ice Cream Sandwich update to Sensation and Sensation XE devices. This is the start of the roll out to all HTC devices that are getting the update (see list below), and will happen country …

Data Security: Lock your smartphone

There’s a great article from Bloomsberg Business week that I wanted to share, involving a study with Symantec on what people do with your lost smartphone once they get their hands on it. As part of the study,  Symantec ‘lost’ a total of 50 phones in the US …

Orange push out WP update

Had notification this morning that my Lumia 800 phone has a o/s update which now takes it to 7.10.8107.79 this fixes the frustrationg dissapearing keyboard among other things as well. Full list of fixes below On-screen keyboard. Fixes an issue to prevent the keyboard from disappearing during typing. …

iOS 5.1 Available now

Today Apple announced (along with “The New iPad” and new Apple TV) that iOS 5.1 would be available for existing iOS devices. Well the time has come, you can grab out now and the changes are thus, • Japanese language support for Siri (availability may be limited during …

iPad 3 with Retina display and quad core A5X

  So the details have been revealed and all the rumours, speculation and leaks can end, at least for a few months. Apple have announced the iPad 3 at their special event this evening and to all intents and purposes it looks like  a solid update. The headlines …

Apple Event – Highlights so far…. Updated LIVE

Four things you need to know right now – 1.) Apple TV 3 – now supports 1080p playback 2.) iOS 5.1 available today 3.) iTunes now syncs Movies to iCloud 4.) New iPad with Retina Display – 2048 x 1536 resolution (that’s 1 million more pixels than HD displays!) The …