Category: Software and apps
Some good news to cheer you up on these pre-Christmas days. As a recent adopter of iOS I’m surprised by how many ‘free’ apps there are, only to discover the numerous in-app purchases. For those apps that you have to purchase from the outset, from 1 January 2015 …
We gotta hand it to them Mountain View folk, and the way both the ecosystem and the apps keep evolving. Google Maps never used to be my go-to application for turn-by-turn directions (telmap M8 was my personal favourite), but the way they have been iterating has been phenomenal. …
At the train station today I noticed a stack of people just staring at their phones. I was one of them, and if I’m honest I’ve become a phone zombie too. However, despite how mainstream mobile phones have become in society, many people don’t use them to their …
Heck its been a long time coming – and it’s been wanted for a very long time. Who knows why it has taken so long, but we’re finally starting to see indications that WhatsApp may be coming to our desktops. So these hardcore guys over in the WhatsAPI-Official …
Today Google revealed the latest update to their own messaging app, Hangouts. The update sees the addition of 16 sticker packs, new video filters for calls, the ability to add contacts with their phone number, smart location suggestions and a “last seen” timestamp that shows you when your contact …
It looks like Google are pushing out a point release to the latest version of their operating system Android 5 Lollipop, up to 5.0.1. Google has also released the factory images for the Nexus 7 (2013, Wi-Fi), Nexus 9 and the Nexus 10. Google has not provided any …
In an unusually speedy move for Samsung, it has been reported that they’ve started rolling out the Android 5.0 Lollipop update for the G900F variant of the Galaxy S5 in Poland. Although not confirmed by Samsung itself, the rumour has been released by the folks over at Sam-mobile. …
Right. Must focus. Must maintain composure throughout this news post. Got an iPhone? Wanna play with Lara Croft? DOAH! Well, that lasted seconds. DOAH! Yesterday Tomb Raider II launched on iOS devices. It’s $1.99 (£1.49 / €1.79). The lovely press people have sent me information about this, including …
Well OK then, I’ll give these guys some airtime as they’ve been bugging me to heck about their app. Kabbee is a licensed minicab price comparison and booking website for Londoners. There’s an app for iPhone, Android, Blackberry and Windows Phone too. You just whack in your pick-up …
Our National Heath Service (NHS), love it hate it, it’s still the envy of the world. As we move ever closer to the digital edge, it appears that the NHS is following too (abeit slowly). The NHS today outlined a number of new digital improvements that include making …
Wondering how the makers of mobile apps can afford TV advertising when they’re free to download? Well, we seem to quite like a model named “Freemium”. The word itself, which is a mash-up of “free” and “premium”, means that you get the entire game or app for absolutely …
With the recent release of the iPhone 6, 6 + and the long-awaited iOS 8, more and more apps and app upgrades are becoming available as we get to the end of the year. Many of us might think we look quite cool with the latest bendy iPhone, …
You’ve seen those clever “OK Google” adverts on TV. There’s plenty of them and here in Old Blighty but one I spotted last night doesn’t actually work. It’s this one.. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UbKK-ia0wKY We’ve tested this particular scenario on iOS, Android and even the Chrome browser on a PC. The …
I absolutely love the PocketCasts app, I must use everyday and I have installed it on every device I own both iOS and Android, to be honest it’s one of the few app’s I can’t do without. If you don’t know what PocketCasts is, it’s a podcast aggregator …
Software developers are, by definition, geeks, so it should come as no surprise that many of the apps they’ve come up with are tailor-made for people who share their interests. After all, “geekiness” has become something of a badge of honour. Smartphones and tablets offering the full Android …
For the life of me, I can’t remember when I first used Shazam. I know it was so far back that I used to have to either call or dial a number to let it do its magic. Even when music recognition became built in to smartphones and …
Back in the day, the Microsoft cloud used to be called SkyDrive. Trouble is, Sky TV got a bit annoyed about that, what with all their Sky products ‘n all (Sky Go, Sky +, Sky Movies, Sky Sports etc). So now we have the newly renamed OneDrive and, …
Its just a normal run of the mill day. Get up, make the kids breakfast, have a shower, check if that pesky direct debit was actually paid, drop the kids off at school, book that private jet to Paris, head off to work. What, you don’t book a …
I don’t normally review games for smart phones as I don’t normally play them but this one caught my attention in a big way so I figured what the hell. The premise of the game is very simple it is a top down rolling shooter that as …
Qcktag is the solution to a problem you probably didn’t realise you had. Once used it becomes a bit addictive and can be damn handy as well. What is it about and what does it do? Read on… Contact lists on mobile phones. They grow and grow as …
Ever since owning a Nexus 5 my launcher of choice is the Google Now Launcher. But up until recently the Launcher was only compatible with Nexus devices, meaning only way to get it on a none specified device was to download the apk file and side load it. …
Here in the UK it’s the big summer holidays. The kids are off school and the teachers are taking a well-earned break from their 200 days at work. With the sun actually appearing in the sky and kids wanting to play out, it’s a tough time for parents, …
Google is rolling out a new feature in Google Maps with “Explore”. Once updated you’ll notice a small location pin button in the bottom right next to the location button — tap it, and you’ll be taken into the new Explore interface with information tailored to your location. …
Are you the owner of the universally liked Moto G handset ? If so it looks like this your lucky day. The latest update to the Android OS – KitKat 4.4.4 – is rolling out to devices. The KitKat update has mainly been patches and bug fixes, but …
We all know about the ongoing issues with getting Google services on your Windows mobile, and that includes Google Maps for your satnav needs. Luckily Nokia Drive/Here Maps is available now, but there’s another entrant in the ring. Copilot was one of the original people who developed Satnav …
Tesco have sent me something. I think it’s because I’ve started shopping in Aldi more. Who knows, but they are trying to grab my attention. They own blinkbox music, which is another offering alongside their blinkbox TV and movie streaming service. Considering they’ve not sent the Coolsmartphone team …
Getting yourself a good deal, it’s always a bit of a minefield. You’ll no doubt have seen people in supermarkets, clothes and electronics stores using their phones to get a better deal on items they’re looking at in store. What apps are they using? How are they comparing …
HTC recently announced that they would bring One M7 and M8 owners an update to Android L very soon after Google have finished it. Today OnePlus havevalso announced a similar timeframe for their elusive One handset. In their official forum, Mike — one of the official staff member …
Pressy, the Almighty Android Button, is a great example of a successful Kickstarter campaign. It was one of those simple ideas that really caught peoples imagination and the aimed for project goal of $40,000 was obliterated! On the close date of 14th October 2013 the total raised was …
In the opening keynote speech of Google I/O, Sundar Pichai was gracious enough to drop a few breadcrumbs about the next release of Android (Lemon Meringue? Liquorice?) before it has actually been launched. Apparently this hasn’t been done since the first time they launched an open version of …
Thought that might get your attention 😉 Imagine the scene, you are on a bus /train/aeroplane/horse drawn cart or other mode of transport. You are minding your own business and get off without a care in the world. A while later you go to get your phone and …
Have you got one of the current Nexus devices ? Now is the time to start hitting the “check for updates” button. On Thursday, Google started rolling out Android 4.4.4 to the Nexus 4, Nexus 5, Nexus 7 and the Nexus 10. The factory images for the new …
A recent survey by Localytics has found that 20% of apps are only used once. This may seem quite high but it is an improvement compared to the last few years with the number steadily decreasing, from 26% in 2011. The graph shows the amount of apps used …
One of the main factors that frequently draws me back to Android after using Windows Phone is the endless customisation available. Nowhere is this more apparent than in the launcher. With fond memories of using SPB Shell, a 3D launcher on the old Windows Mobile phones, I had high …
In case you had somehow failed to notice, the World Cup kicks off in Brazil later tonight, with the start of 64 games over a month in 12 different cities across the country. World Cup Scheduler is an app that keeps you up to date with who is …
There is something incalculably exciting about OS updates. Often they will fix as many things as they subsequently break. Sometimes, like the previous WP 8.1 update, massive changes are effected, as the battery drain issue that many people had suffered from (myself included) since upgrading to 8.1 was fixed. Within the …
Google Now keeps growing for strength to strength with yet another ingenious feature added, it can now alert you when it’s time to get off your bus or train. If you are using public transport and you open Google Now you may find that it offers you an …
If there’s one thing that you can be certain of in the mobile world, it is rumours. Almost as exciting as watching the final few minutes of transfer deadline day and hearing about whispers of players being spotted in local kebab shops, rumours of mobile phone updates, releases …
Are you like Ronnie and I? We are owners of Chromebooks. Back in May, we were promised the ability to view offline any movies or television shows that had been rented or purchased from Google Play. On Thursday there was an update to ChromeOS that now allows this feature, along with …
ITV have added a free streaming app for Windows Phone. The ITV Player version 1.0.0.0 is available now and has live TV from ITV1, ITV2 ITV3 ITV4 and CITV. You can watch previously aired programmes too, and these are available for up to 30 days. The app also includes …
