Category: General
Well, this is awkward. We’ve been given some information about a new offering from Tesco Mobile but their PR team aren’t getting in touch. We’re not totally sure if we’re breaking an embargo or what-not, but here goes anyway. So, word on the street is that Tesco Mobile …
A journey for me to London usually falls into two categories. I either take a “cheap” train which takes a couple of hours, stops at places I’ve never heard of and has no on-board “booster” so the signal on your phone is totally pants. If, however, I pay …
UK network Three have now made their latest exclusive device the ‘dial’ from will.i.am. It’s available on Pay As You Go for anyone wanting to purchase – no need for a contract. The dial is an interesting idea – making a smartphone with voice assistant available on your …
Yeah. It’s a weird idea, but someone in the US decided to make some virtual reality glasses with crackers. Not just any crackers, but Graham Crackers. They’re a bit hard to get hold of here in the UK, which is particularly annoying as my wife finds them to …
The popular remote desktop app TeamViewer has apparently been hacked. However, TeamViewer claim the issue lies with its users reusing the same password across multiple sites which makes sense…. until reports started to surface users with 2FA were also affected. It appears hackers gained control of victims’ TeamViewer …
Well. There I go again. I’ve included the entire post within the title. Now I’ve got to that Daily Mail thing where I basically repeat the contents of that headline, but again and again throughout the article. Hey ho… Three have come up with a new referral scheme. …
Announced yesterday on the Ubuntu site – the Over The Air update 11 for Meizu Pro 5 Ubuntu Edition brings the much delayed full Ubuntu PC experience from a mobile phone handset. In addition to this feature, this update also brings overall performance improvements to the M10 tablet …
Some people call these things “MiFi” units. Basically they’re tiny gadgets that you can pop in your pocket which will fire out a WiFi hotspot for you to connect to. Share the hotspot or keep it secure, it’s up to you, but it can be a life saver …
I for one always have some sort of headphones stuck around my head, to be honest, I can’t even walk to the shop without popping a set on and listening to a podcast or two (the fantastic coolsmartphone podcast is one I happen to listen to). I have been …
Cables! Cables! Cables everywhere! At Coolsmartphone HQ we are starting to get quite a lot of requests to review cables, not the most exciting subject matter but it is nice to have good alternatives to the usual high priced branded versions. Typically if you purchase a cheaper cable, …
We all want better coverage. In a perfect world we’d stop building offices and houses that play havoc with mobile signals. We’d live in a completely flat country without hills or valleys. We’d have planning regulations that allow for networks to deploy masts easier. But we don’t live …
Global mega starlet Adele gets the same treatment that most musicians do on stage. As she looks out across the crowd there’s thousands of arms held aloft…. filming everything on their phone. Indeed, the same can be said for DJ’s, and a live set by Avicii or Fatboy …
How do you cover a phone which effectively comes apart? Well, it is possible. The boys from MobileFun.co.uk sent us a few to try and, with the aid of video and some lovely photos, we’re going to have a look at them. First, for those of you who …
My gym bag stinks. There’s no getting around that. Here it is above and yes, it does. As much as I try to separate the wet towel and smelly shoes from the other items, it quickly becomes very whiffy indeed. Then, if you try and stick your tablet …
Well, we knew it was coming and, on a day between June 13th and 20th, it’ll be happening. UK network Three will be blocking advertising. Three state that this is because they’re effectively having to pay for the ads to be displayed on your mobile device, and that …
There is a new Sony hitting the shelves today, it is the much awaited Xperia X that was announced at MWC 16. This is slightly scaled down version of what went before in the form of the Xperia Z5 range. It shares a lot of features of its …
I get a lot of these portable battery packs sent in. Reviewing them isn’t a big deal, but I do find it hard to write more than a couple sentences about it. What can you say really? It’s a device which is about as slim as your smartphone …
It’s a sad day for hard-working smartphone employees, especially in Finland. Microsoft has just announced that 1,850 jobs will go as they “restructure” their smartphone hardware business. 1,350 of the staff affected will be from the Microsoft Mobile division in Oy, Finland. The remaining 500 will be from …
Hello Coolsmartphoners. At home I’ve got that “FTTC” gubbins that most people either know as “BT Infinity” or, when it’s sold through other providers, “Fibre broadband” ..which it isn’t quite, not all the way. Anyhoo. I’m pretty lucky. However, if you’re not, you can try this. The idea …
We get a lot of review kit here at Coolsmartphone. What we try and do now is, after reviewing something, get a nice discount code for you guys to use. So, here’s another one. This is for the Lumsin 5-port wall charger that we reviewed just the other …
A new website has just launched which compares SIM-free and network-free phone deals. It should, according to the people behind it, ensure that you get the best deal on your next mobile and / or talk plan. They estimate that the average consumer will save £330 buying from …
If typing on your screen isn’t your “thing” and you’re not a fan of modern Bluetooth keyboards. Perhaps try this, the QWERKYWRITER. It’ll bring you all the fun and memories of using an old-school typewriter, plus it acts as a stand for your device. The keyboard connects via …
My experience of streaming TV at the weekend was, let me tell you, thoroughly disappointing. My son wanted to watch Iron Man 2 and so I set off trying to find a streaming service offering it. That bit alone was tricky. We couldn’t find a page detailing what …
Smartphone photography is increasing at a rapid speed. Just take a look at the number of smartphone apps available to help you capture the perfect shot. In order to utilise the features of your smartphone or app, you first need to start with a quality photograph. That’s where …
A few years back most people will have perhaps ignored USB ports. They weren’t for charging at one point. They were for peripherals – scanners, webcams and more. Sure, we still have mice, keyboards and other kit plugging into USB ports now but – more than ever – …
Drones. They’re a hot topic at the moment. You can go down to Aldi and get yourself a fairly cheap drone right now. Trouble is, they’re big, sometimes difficult to master and you’ll need to make sure you don’t fly it in the wrong places. Outside a neighbour’s …
Here at Coolsmartphone a number of writers use a Chromebook as their primary device. I’m one of them (I’m writing this very article on the fantastic Asus Chromebook Flip). Despite being cracking devices Chromebooks have never really hit the limelight… until now. It appears that the Google low-cost …
Paying for your apps in Google Play usually involves your credit or debit card of some sort. However, Vodafone have come up with a plan to make it a bit simpler and, for six months, you get a whacking 90% off some Google Play apps and games t’boot. …
“System and Security Info” has risen to being of the one of the top paid-for applications in the iTunes charts since its release last week (14th May 2016) however in that time frame Apple got upset about the application and decided to ban it. The reason Apple got …
Camera phones are great, they allow us to capture, digitise and preserve memories at will, and the quality of inbuilt cameras has reached the level where for most of us we don’t require a dedicated camera. However there is one limitation on most camera phones, the lens type …
The Moto G range has always been a stalwart in the budget Android device segment and with their latest release nothing changes on that front. As is expected from my new phone release the specs have taken a bit of a jump, as have the screen sizes. This …
Ever imagined a battle-royal to find the king of the cable, a USB with a killer USP? Well if such a position / device existed then Nonda, a manufacturer of smart hardware products based in Palo Alto California, believe they have it. It arrived in the post this morning and seems …
As a UK resident, it was certainly a flash from the past to receive an email from Orange. They are, of course, still going strong elsewhere in Europe and, if you’re heading across Europe for the EURO 2016 tournament. The Orange Holiday plan is available here (this is …
Being able to cycle around in these balmy sunny evenings is really refreshing, but when it does eventually get dark you’re going to need a bike light. These are plentiful, and you can even put an action camera on the handlebars to record your journey and log any …
Remember our review of the Titan cable? Well, there’s now an Indiegogo campaign for a new Zus Kevlar cable. It’s supposed to be all tough and rugged, so some guy figured that the best way to show it off would be to yank his car around with it. …
The Acer Predator 8 is a device we have seen a few times now, but up until now I have not really had a good chance to have a play with it. That all changes today as I am in Belfast with #acerliveblog2016 and they have let me …
Walking around with that low battery notice on your phone is always going to put you on edge. So, to charge on the move, your going to need something like this. This is the Lumsing Harmonica 10,400mAh dual-port power bank and yes, it really is designed to look …
As you can see in the review we are pretty big fans of the Huawei P9. It now seems that Huawei is going to be making a bigger push into the UK market than we first thought. Coming very soon to a network near you is the P9 …
I always have to apologise to the companies that send us headphones to look at. I’m always losing the things. They’re mostly tiny and either end up stuck in pockets (and then going through the washing machine) or stuffed in a drawer somewhere. So, Wraps Wearable earphones are …
A very quick mention for a couple of charity things. Firstly, Simon Allum (you know him, he’s written a few articles for us) is doing an insane thing – the Three Peaks Challenge. He’ll be part of a small team walking Ben Nevis, Scafell Pike and Snowdon in …
