Category: General

EE January sales offers kick off

Free gifts and savings of up to £120 are available in the EE sales. Deals are available on the iPhone 6s, Huawei P30 and Sony XPERIA 10. In addition, there’s offers on tablets and smartwatches. The Apple iPhone 6s will get reduced by £72. There’s no upfront cost …

Let the sales commence! Sky Mobile kicks things off

After spending a stack of money in the Black Friday sales and then a stack more money in the run-up to Christmas, what better than another round of sales? Traditionally these would kick off on Boxing Day, but the internet has enabled things to start earlier and run …

Unboxing the Asus ROG Phone 2

So I have been doing this for a while now and in that time I have seen some very cool and very powerful phone’s come across my desk. However, today is a big day as this is the day that I get the chance to unbox one of …

5G – Not quite ready yet

Back in August I parked up near Wembley Stadium to do some “real world” tests with a 5G phone. I did this because I’d seen testers competing to get the highest speeds possible. Usually this involved someone waiting for a quiet day – like a Sunday morning – …

Unlocked handsets could soon be the ONLY type you can buy

Regulator Ofcom is looking into a ban on the sale of phones which are locked to particular networks. Networks that currently don’t lock their phones include Sky Mobile, Three UK, iD Mobile, BT Mobile and giffgaff; but other networks do. The origins of this came from the fact that handsets …

Kippy Evo (V-Pet Tracker) now down in price

Down to just £49.50 (instead of £99), the V-Pet Tracker also includes 12 months of free tracking service so that you can see exactly where your furry friend is, even when they’re out of sight. Not only that, but the WiFi, Bluetooth and GPS-capable tracker will keep up …

Chromebooks – Now showing Bluetooth device battery level

Here at Coolsmartphone towers, a number of writers use Chromebooks as our primary devices. But one thing thing I find annoying when using my Chromebook is guessing at the battery level of my headphones, keyboard and mouse, but a few months back, it was discovered that Google was …

Go, vote. NOW.

Here’s how the different age ranges voted in the Brexit referendum… But here, by age, is how many actually voted.. If more of the “smartphone generation” had gone to the polls, things would have been so much different. But wait – the older generation will change your future …

Asus announce new ROG Phone 2 Ultimate and Strix editions!

Asus have been quietly working on their gaming phone concept for a few years and have released two version of the ROG Phone to date. These have come in the form of the ROG Phone and then more recently the ROG Phone 2 These were pitched as being …

I bought a car that I’d never even sat in

In the last year we’ve continued to see changes in our shopping habits. However, based on the recent Black Friday sales and a range of recent surveys, we’ve seen thing change far more than ever.. Payment Methods The traditional high-street has seen a huge amount of transformation of …

Vodafone shrink SIM card packaging

In an “effort to reduce plastic waste”, Vodafone will be supplying your SIM cards in a more eco-friendly way soon. They’ve (literally) cut the size in half, meaning that your SIM will be delivered in a smaller card. The guys at Voda are keen to point out how …

Register to vote. Do it now.

During the last few years I’ve seen an erosion in trust of traditional media. I’ve seen politicians happy to see this happen and they’ve pushed hard with their “fake news” accusations, spreading their own “version” of what’s real. Now – with general election campaigning well underway, we’re being …

General election 2019 – Liars continue to lie, but make sure you vote

You may remember how I detailed just how much fake news we’re now reading. Printed newspapers are dying and, with smaller budgets, resort to padding out 5-line tweets. Pinch a tweet, add a few random paragraphs, don’t bother with any fact-checking and watch the click-bait money coming in. …

5 Common blogging mistakes

If you’re old enough, you’ll have seen me writing on this site for some 17 years now. Back then there was no social media, no iPhones and no Android phones either. A lot has happened in that time and blogging has become more mainstream. I sometimes get asked …

How about sticking a floppy drive in your smartphone?

Over the years I’ve put some interesting things into my Android phone. Wow, that’s an opening line isn’t it? It all started when I stuck a mouse into the USB port, just to prove that Android does indeed support a number of peripherals. Things moved on with the …

Huawei Freebuds 3 earphones – Review

I have always been a bit of a luddite when it comes.to earphones staying true to using the classic Apple EarPods since way back when I had the OG iPhone. I even used to solder the Earpods onto the headphone cable that came with my new phone to …

Driving the evolution of mobile phones

As we approach 5G, an entirely new realm of speed and efficiency is opening up to us. As much as this leap promises to offer, however, it also illustrates more of an expansion of what already exists than a complete reshaping of how our mobile lives operate. Despite …

Doogee introduce the S68 Rugged Pro

Doogee have a history of making some really hardcore phones for those who lead a more active lifestyle and they ha e just released a new phone that is going to appeal to those after a alightly.orw affordable alternative. This is the new S68 Pro to give it …

Vodafone – Loadsa new customers

The Vodafone crew have added a lot more customers in the last quarter. In the three months ending September 2019, they saw nearly double the number of mobile contract customers joining compared with the previous quarter. It seems to be a pretty positive time for the network, who …

Microsoft’s anti-trust case was the reason it lost the OS race.

According to Bill Gates that is…. The Microsoft founder today stated he believed Microsoft’s antitrust issues in the early 2000s was the reason for Windows Mobile not being the OS that people use today. When asked about the impact of the Justice Department’s antitrust case. He came out …

Excessive battery drain on your OnePlus – WhatsApp might be the culprit.

Some OnePlus smartphone users are reporting excessive battery drain on their devices, and investigation has revealed that WhatsApp is killing more than 40% of the battery, even with limited use, in the following conditions: OnePlus devices running both Android 9 and 10 are being affected by the high …

VOXI goes big on data

The MVNO from Vodafone has today brought back their chunky data deal. For those wanting a big more for their money, this could be just for you … – 8GB for £10 a month (was 6GB for £10) – 20GB for £15 per month (was 15GB for £15) …

Startup? How to stay ahead of the curve and manage your business.

As you’ll have no doubt seen recently, I’m chronicling my quest to convert a spare room into a gaming / work den. As part of this I’ve asked a few local tradesmen to do work – plastering, electrics and so on.  Getting the right people, and trustworthy ones …

Curve now integrates with Google Pay

I’ve used the Curve card for quite a while now. It’s one card that, with the aid of an app, acts as many different cards. Use the app to add your credit, debit or businss cards, then use the app to switch between them and simply use the …

BritBox now launched in the UK

Here in the UK there’s a multitude of streaming services. We’re at the stage now where, if you join several paid-for services, quite a bit of money will be leaving your bank account per month so that you can watch shows from competing companies. The BBC iPlayer is …

Redmi Note 8T announced. Available on Three UK too.

The Redmi Note 8T announcement has just finished and we’ve had word that Three UK wuill be picking it up. First though, let’s take a look at the thing. First up, it features a 6.3″ 19.5:9 Full HD+ “Dot Drop” display. That’s 1080 x 2340 pixels and a …

Virgin Mobile says goodbye to EE, switches to Vodafone masts

There’s a number of “virtual” operators to choose from when you’re looking to get a new mobile or a SIM. You really shouldn’t shy away from them either, because they’re as good as the “big four” for the most part. Under the hood though, they’ll use the masts …

New ultra-warm touchscreen gloves now available

Was it really a year ago that I reviewed the Mujjo Touchscreen gloves? Well, time has certainly flown by, but the cold weather is back again and – in all honesty – you’ve probably lost whatever gloves you had last year in the back of the cupboard somewhere. …

Christmas freebies with EE

Yesterday I received an email entitled “Last minute Christmas Gifts”. I’ve not even started Christmas shopping yet – my head is still firmly stuck in mid-September. The clock is ticking though, so if you want to get a new phone and want to get a free present for …

Tribit Flybuds Wireless Earbuds – Review

Good Points: Bluetooth 5.0. Noise Cancelling. IPX 5 Waterproof rating. Up to 36hrs of listening time. USB Type C charging. Simple Pairing. Stylish carrying case. Lightweight. Ability to sync with 2 devices. Bad Points : Profile a bit large for some people. Bass quality lacking. What’s In The …

Vodafone to dish out two cinema tickets for £7

Anyone remember Orange Wednesdays? It was a hugely successful benefit that Orange ran back in the day. From memory you got a code which you showed to the guy in the cinema and then – boom – you’d get two tickets for the price of one. Nowadays we’re …

5G Planning consultation ends. Will less red tape mean more masts?

We could very soon see more masts and much higher ones too. It comes as the government ends a consultation into 5G planning restrictions, with proposals including the deployment of radio equipment and strengthening existing masts without approval. It also looks at adding more masts nearer to highways …

Autumn in the garden. Warm and cosy with LED lights.

OK, bit different this but if you’re looking to make use of the garden even in these darker and colder autumnal days, these Bramblecrest firepits could be just the thing. Getting a firepit it usually a fairly messy affair where you either try to cannibalize an old washing …

Best phones for gaming?

If you love to game, gamble and blast baddies away, then you’ll want a phone that can keep up with your demands. You’ll be needing a device that can do more than just update social media. You’ll need more horsepower, a better screen, excellent performance and a long-lasting …

Survey reveals that games continue to increase in popularity

We do talk about it quite a bit here but mobile gaming shows no sign of slowing down. A recent survey by App Annie has revealed that games now account for 40% of all mobile downloads, and over 70% of all consumer spend across both iOS and Google …

Better coverage in the country. The Shared Rural Network.

A figure you may not see in many headlines is the fact that just 66% of the UK landmass has 4G coverage from all four mobile operators. With all this talk about 5G, it’s surprising that we’ve not got a higher 4G coverage. Of course, the operative term …

Go mobile with your PS4 and Xbox. The Buddah Tek Rover 1.

OK, check this out. Sure, we’ve got phones that can play high-end games now, but if you want to walk around with your PS4 or Xbox and literally play your favourite console on the go, this new Rover 1 Personal Gaming Station is the thing. It fits inside …