Category: Accessories

Inateck TPB-IM iPad mini Sleeve Case Review

Do you use your iPad naked (ooooo missus, the iPad, not you) or do hide all of the Apple design inside a case ? I recently took my iPad mini out of its case and instantly remembered how thin and light the device was. I decided that’s how …

Gift Guide – Quirky Converge. Dock and charge without the faff

Here is a pretty neat idea for keeping your devices tidily stored and charged at the same time. Available from Amazon and various other stores (including Maplin etc), this is the Quirky Converge dock. It’s around £45 (although if you can get the Amazon free delivery you can …

Inateck BR1001 Bluetooth receiver review.

Like most people nowadays I love listening to media from my phone. Be it either music, podcasts or audio books, I love it. I would say 90% of the time my listening is done through headphones. Now, I mainly use two sets of headphones. The first are my …

EE releases new version of their in-car WiFi solution

In May EE announced a new in-car WiFi solution called Buzzard. Plop it into your cigarette lighter and it’ll beam out a WiFi hotspot for the kids to connect their tablets / phones / iPods to in the back of the car on a long journey. Now EE …

I hope this is a joke. I hope this is a joke.

I’m really not sure where to start with this Kickstarter project. To be honest I’m glad that (at the time of writing) it’s only managed to achieve $1 of the $35,000 which is supposedly needed to put it into production. Now, we know that driving and texting is …

LG G Watch R – Review

The original Android Wear devices were about showing the world what Android Wear was about, the initial lineup included the LG G Watch which I reviewed here, it was just a black square on my wrist that basically showed some pictures of watch faces on my wrist to trick …

Encase Wallet review for Xperia Z3

A new phone means that it’s time for a new case. This time around I have moved away from the Roxfit cases that are abundant for Xperia phones and I’m instead trying a different maker – Encase. I have already tested one of their keyboard covers for small tablets and, …

Tactus Buckuva iPad Mini case review

I recently managed to pry my iPad Mini from my little boy’s hands, meaning I could finally use it for myself. I’ve been sent the Tactus Buckuva for review, so now was the perfect time to test it out. Good Points The case has a quality premium feel …

Swapping your phone? Got a SIM problem? Get an adaptor

Some clever sausage somewhere decided at some point that the standard SIM cards were just too big. Despite some phones still being massive (phablets etc), we’re seeing the teeny-tiny nano SIM slot on some phones, with the slightly-larger micro SIM now being an almost-standard. However, there’s still those …

Charge on the go, without a strange bulge

Sometimes, if I go to a restaurant and order a large steak, I’ll get the meat sweats. Likewise, when I need to make an important call or I’m waiting for an email and see my phone hitting 5% battery life, I get the battery sweats. We’ve seen various …

Doodle, scribble, colour in. It’s no problem on these new cases

There’s a wide range of cases out there but this one is definitely geared towards the kids, or perhaps those who want a canvas for quickly doodling ideas. The tablet cover, available in 7″ (£19.99) and 10″ (£24.99) sizes lets you or your children doodle all over the front of …

Encase Bluetooth keyboard folio review

What is the main sticking point when trying to use an Android device for productivity? Simple. The keyboard. Sure, an onscreen keyboard is great for short notes and maybe the odd email or two, but for me it’s not a replacement for a physical keyboard. Although we have …

Looking to get yourself and iPhone 6 case?

If you’re lucky enoguh to own one of those spanky new iPhone 6 handsets then there’s one particular accessory you absolutely NEED to have. A cover. As I’ve mentioned before, I have kept mine pretty naked, preferring to have the phone looking just as it should. In reality …

STK Cuboid 2 4000 mAh battery pack – Review

Mobile battery packs are a way of life these days, a kind of safety blanket that you keep in your rucksack, laptop bag, briefcase or handbag. It just sits there waiting to be pulled out and expected to charge your phone or tablet as fast as possible. Choosing …

Get yourself a pussy tracker

You know those loving, soft cats that come and sit on your lap, wanting some fuss? Yeah, our cat isn’t one of those. If she does see fit to come near you she’ll either just meow or she’ll suddenly pounce on you for no good reason and rip …

Sony Xperia Z3 Tablet Compact unboxing and initial impressions

It is here. The day I’ve been waiting for. My newly acquired Xperia Z3 Tablet Compact has arrived. Although I had to wait a little longer than I would’ve liked (due to issues with the shipping companies), it’s here now. So, let’s find out if it was worth …

A smart home hub with a twist

Being friendly goes a long way with me. There’s a lady called Justine Mrsich. She works for Lages & Associates and she emailed to tell us about this thing, the new link-U Hybrid Connection SmartCam. It’s one of those IndieGoGo campaigns, so initially I didn’t look at the …

The Shanda Geak 2 smartwatch boasts crazy battery life

Shanda are a well known Chinese company, who have a watch hardware division called Geak. So it makes sense that their 2nd smartwatch will be called the Shanda Geak 2. So far nothing of any huge interest to us UK residents, but there are two things of interest …

LG announce availability of the G Watch R

The original LG G Watch was a great “mark 1” device for Android Wear, it just showed the world how Android Wear works and didn’t get bogged down with the design or anything like fancy buttons. I liked the original, but I ditched mine for a Pebble Steel, …

Three show off the HTC RE Camera

The new viewfinder-less pipe-cam from HTC will be available soon and Three are already getting the marketing wheels turning with one of their hands-on videos. http://youtu.be/Xoa88v5JGGg The camera, which can display a preview of your footage onto your smartphone, is an easy to use click-and-go affair. We’ve got …

Hauppauge mySelfie review

Are you a selfie fan? Want more control? Well, this weird little gadget should suit you. Or should it? The mySelfie is a Bluetooth remote for your smartphone or tablet. Not only that but it’ll work as an anti-theft key ring to locate your phone or your keys. …

My new toy – The Pressy

Some months ago I ordered this cheap physical button for my phone. It plugs into the audio port and gives you an additional button which you can program to open certain apps or run certain tasks. The cheap button was just £1 but this, the “proper” Pressy button, …

Charge more than just your credit card with SEYVR

This is a pretty interesting idea for those of us suffering with LBW (low battery worries). Yes, you can buy a battery pack to charge your smartphone battery on the go, but remembering it and carrying it around is another thing. Even if it’s small it’s another item …

Google Nexus Player announced

Along with the Nexus 6 and Nexus 9 announced yesterday, Google also told us about a brand new device called the Nexus Player. The Nexus Player is an Android TV device that has a 1.8GHz quad-core Intel Atom processor at its heart, has onboard wi-fi and connects to …

bac<, tackling technology related aches and pains.

Back pain, neck pain and poor posture.  The majority of us have suffered at one time or another with some kind of aches and pains relating to not sitting at a computer correctly.  In the workplace there are the standard posters telling us how to sit correctly in …

Reviewed – Rock Jaw Hydra headphones

If I’m brutally honest with you, I’d never heard of Rock Jaw before I started writing this review. However, what I did know (after a few minutes of Googling) is that .. a) They have a very cool name b) They’re based up the road in Belper, Derbyshire, …

What’s on the end of the stick, Vic?

I’ll let you into a secret. Sometimes, just sometimes, PR agencies get in touch with us and try to promote their product by sending over some sort of survey that they did. It’s usually something like this… Bobs Accessories, makers of the epic Bluetooth Boom Box version 4 …

Selfy cases announced

First there was the selfie, then there was the selfie stick, then the super selfie phones (from Huawei, Nokia and Sony), now there is the Selfy case.   The cases combine a simple remote shutter button and with a holder that also serves to protect your phone and …

HTC RE Launched – An innovative handheld camera

Back in September we noticed this, and James guessed it to be an add-on camera. I thought it would be a selfie-camera of some kind but now we’ve got the full details – it’s called the RE. Instantly I’m taken back to Religious Education lessons from school, but …

Backbone iPhone 5s Wireless Charging Case Review

We see a lot of cases here at Coolsmartphone but we’ve been seeing an increasing profile from the people at Dog and Bone. This one is a bit special because it’s a case which makes your phone charge wirelessly and it comes with a clever charging base too. …

Google Cardboard. Get yourself one!

Fancy getting yourself some of those low-tech but still pretty cool virtual reality specs from Google? How does £2.34 sound? Google Cardboard is basically a headset containing your phone that you strap onto your bonce. Some assembly is required here, but once you’re done you can strut around …

Lightning Rabbit phone cable review

This might be a bit of a short review if I’m honest. What can you say about that cable that arrives in the box with your mobile? One ends connects to your phone whilst the other either plugs into your charger or your computer for transferring files. All …

RHA MA 750i Earphones Review

RHA have been producing quality products from their Glasgow headquarters for a number of years now.  From their entry level MA350‘s to the more expensive MA600i’s, every product has so far oozed excellence from start to finish. Prior to the recent launch of the brand new high end …

Gigaset Tablet 8″ Review

I have been sent a new tablet through for review, this being The Gigaset Tablet 8 QV830 ( black version ). Never heard  of Gigaset ? well neither had I prior to hearing from them regarding this review. Gigaset is a German company that is one of the …

Keyboard for likely Nexus 9 shows up online

Unless you were lost in a techless-like black hole for the last couple of weeks, you’ll already know how Apple’s annual release revealed the iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus. What we don’t have is confirmed knowledge of what happens when its Google’s turn… Although we have seen …

Inateck BP1002B Bluetooth speaker review.

Following on from my other Inateck speaker  review I have been sent a further bluetooth speaker to review, this one being the entry level BP1002B portable speaker. Features : Bluetooth v2.1 and EDRAux-inBuilt-in-mic for handsfree calling. Charge via micro-USBBuilt in Li-Ion battery1 x 3W speakerDimensions: 61.5 x 61.5 x 71.5 …

Check out the size of my SD card!

There was a time, not so long ago, that we thought 8GB SD cards were enough. Now a 32GB, 64GB or 128GB card could be considered normal and, despite the rise of cloud storage, many are still using their storage cards. Now SanDisk have produced this 512GB storage …

Flashy funky Bluetooth speaker available

Speakers. They’re great, sure, but not very interesting to look at. How about a Bluetooth one with a funky graphic equaliser on the front? Oh yeah! Oh yeah! Not only is the Helium T900 waterproof, but it can take calls, it’ll blast your tunes out and has these …