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Huawei P30 Pro – My first week

Intro So it’s been just over a week now since I got back from Paris, and more importantly the Huawei P30 Pro launch I was invited along too with Huawei and some other journalists/bloggers. Having been using a Mate 20 Pro since the launch event at the end …

Smartphone safety and security. It’s still a big deal.

As we saw just yesterday, your phone can open you up to scams and other dangers. This is even true if you’ve got a “dumb” mobile without all the clever smartphone extras. Out there, on the other end of your phone, are endless people who want to extract …

Huawei announce P30 Series in Paris

Huawei have today announced the brand new P30 Series here in Paris and both devices come with a very impressive set of specifications. The headline of the two is of course the Huawei P30 Pro which takes mobile photogrophy to another level thanks to the improved four camera …

New rural EE masts in North Yorkshire

Getting a mast put up is relatively easy if you’re in a major town or city. The biggest problem, as always, is planning consent and getting the land to build on. However, once you’ve done that it’s just a matter of getting some power, some clever kit and …

Coolsmartphone Podcast 241 – I need a Hero!

This week I broke my lengthy two-week tradition of recording the podcast in the car. Somehow I found myself with something called “free time”, so I’ve picked up on an earlier story about how the site started. Now you can listen to the second part of that story, …

Get yourself a virtual personal trainer

Wanna get fit? Well, you could join a gym, but that can be pricey (I’m looking at you David Lloyd Leisure.. £100 a month!? Waahh??). So today marks the launch of, according to Kaia Health the “world’s first virtual personal trainer”. It uses unique motion tracking technology to …

Skoda testing deliveries direct to your boot

OK, this one sounds a little weird, but let’s have a look anyway. Getting deliveries can always be a bit of a hit-and-miss affair, especially if you’re at work or on the toilet. Despite you waiting around, you’ll probably find that the delivery driver turns up just when …

Coolsmartphone Podcast 240 – Look at my teeth!

This week, in Podcast 240, I experiment with cross-fading. Yes, cross-fading. To be honest I had to Google it to see what it was. It’s where the audio fades nicely between two tracks. It’s because I record the podcast in various chunks, during trips to work, to the …

My gaming history

I remember, when I was a kid, a time before a “console” was even a thing. At Christmas I remember playing records. Proper records. Big vinyl double-albums with pictures of all the bands and singers. It was great. I even had my own record player. Then, one day, …

More time with the Mate X and 5G news

I have been very fortunate to have had the opportunity to get a little bit more hands-on time with the Huawei Mate X. I thought I would take some time to give you my initial thoughts. Before I dive into that first thoughts I must remind you that …

Why aren’t more Swiss watchmakers embracing smartwatches?

On a daily basis you’ll find that, like many people, I’m wearing a fitness band. It doubles as a watch / notification device and the battery lasts for quite some time. You’ll no doubt be familiar with devices like this – they’ll keep track of your step count, …

6 months of Amazon Prime Video on EE… for FREE!

It’s OK, I’ve just popped into the local pub. There’s a guy in there who started drinking at 7AM and he’s pretty far gone, but he said he’ll run the country for a bit and, in all honesty, I’ve got more confidence in him that any MP right …

Android Q Beta has landed

With Google I/O not far away now, it’s the time of year where Android fans get to try out the latest update. It’s also the time to start the naming guessing game! Today the first version of Android Q has been made available for Pixel owners to download …

Coolsmartphone Podcast 239 – 1.21 gigawatts!

In this episode we’re going to turn the clock back. We’re going to do a full Back to the Future show for you this week and, although we don’t have any plutonium and we don’t have a flux capacitor, we do have a car. So, a quick update …

You’re being lied to.

It’s true. With Tim Berners-Lee recently stating that the world-wide web is in a “downward plunge to a dysfunctional future”, there’s doubts about how much we can trust what we read. Data can be manipulated, misinformation can spread easily and it’s skewing the results of elections and referendums. …

Mobile Bingo – Where To Play?

I was sitting down this morning, straight from the school run, being subjected to the car-crash TV that is the “Jeremy Kyle” show. It’s sponsored by a Bingo website and it got me pondering, because it’s making bingo a more approachable and acceptable pastime due to it being …

Mixcder E9 active noise cancelling headphones

We have covered Mixcder’s excellent headphones before, especially for their noise cancelling features. Today, they have launched the E9 headphones in their range. The next generation headphones feature the latest advancement in ANC technology. The Mixcder E9 headphones are available now for £59.99/$69.99 from Amazon UK and Amazon.com. Mixcder has increased …

MWC – Doogee S90 shown off

Just before I left MWC I was able to see one last phone and this was one that I was particularly interested in. It is from a company called Doogee, which is a Chinese brand that has been specialising in making ruggedised phones. They have been doing this for a while …

The Momo Challenge. Yep, here we go again.

I’ll jump into this once more, but in reality I’m fighting a losing battle. As we’ve seen in recent years, people have started to believe any old crap. Facebook and other social media sites now seem to be the font of all knowledge, despite them usually being a …

MWC -3MK have new cases to show us

So we know that 3MK make some awesome screen protectors that we saw last year whilst we were here. Since then I have been using their screen protection for my various phones since then. They have not let me down and survived the various trails and tribulations that …

MWC – More flexible screens from TCL

So while having a wander of the booths we came across the TCL booth and on the inside of this booth, we saw some very cool looking folding screens. It turns out that TCL has been working with sister company CSOT in the development of flexible screen tech …

MWC – Sony launch Xperia 10 and Xperia 10+

As we have mentioned in our article about the Xperia 1, Sony where also announcing two other devices today at MWC19. These came in the form of the Xperia 10 and Xperia 10 Plus. These devices are lower tier devices than the flagship Xperia 1  The key feature that …

MWC – Sony Xperia 1 launched

Sony, remember them? Yeah. We love their kit but they don’t seem to get the exposure or success that manufacturers such as Huawei and Samsung enjoy. Just now, just minutes ago, they announced the Xperia 1, their new flagship. Two mid-range handsets were also shown off in the …

MWC – LG brings us a foldable too.

Yesterday we brought you news of the LG V50, which is a new 5G phone being picked up by EE in the UK and Sprint in the USA. It’s got a 6.4″ QHD+ OLED FullVision Display with 19.5:9 aspect ratio and DTS:X sound technology. It’s powered by a …

MWC – The LG G8 and LG G8s

Last year things got a bit “weird” with the LG G7 here in Barcelona. It appeared, but apparently wasn’t mean to appear, and then things got a bit strange. This year it seems a little better. There’s not one G8, but two. Both have the Thin Q name …

MWC – EE confirmed to range LG V50

In a busy day for the mobile industry, EE have just confirmed the LG V50 that was just announced in Barcelona will be coming to their 5G network. In the USA you’ll be seeing it on Sprint. With a 6.4″ display, the V50 will be a great phone …

MWC – Huawei launch new Matebook Lines

Along with launching a new device in the form of the Mate X, Huawei was also announcing an expansion to their laptop product range. These came in the form of one new laptop and two new revisions of existing designs. First up we have the Updated MateBook X …

MWC – Huawei launch the Mate X Folding phone

So today at their press conference in sunny Barcelona Huawei have taken the wraps of their newest smartphone the Huawei Mate X. This phone is a little bit different as it is showcasing not on but two of the latest bits of tech that will make phone and tablet …

MWC – NOA bring a pop-up camera doo-hickey to Barcelona

Here in Barcelona NOA is showing off some new rugged smartphones alongside their newly announced F series smartphone. The new F series models come with something called a “U notch” and AI intergration. The first smartphone is NOA F5, which has a double rear camera setup said to …

Huawei StorySign investment continues

Kids are the future and we need to keep developing technology that will allow them to develop. This case is even more poignant if children have a disability that will impede their learning. Examples of this include deafness, and this is an area where technology can be particularly …

Vodafone complete first 5G smartphone tests

Yes, that little 5G symbol is a sign of things to come. Vodafone have just completed 5G trials in Madrid and Barcelona ahead of Mobile World Congress. Their European network is ready to be upgraded to 5G and you’ll soon see 1.5 Gigabits per second download speeds on …

The Samsung Galaxy S10 range. All you need to know.

So, it’s official. There’s three Samsung Galaxy S10 smartphones.. well, actually there’s four. You’ll probably see three in most stores over the next few months though, and they are the S10e, the S10 and the S10+. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Tol9KBJBZt8 You’ll be getting a new dynamic AMOLED display and a “next-generation …

Manchester becomes the UK’s first 5G-connected airport

If you’re heading to Manchester Airport soon, check out the new Vodafone 5G trial area. You can test the new lightning speeds by grabbing a film or TV box set using the 5G technology. Further locations are coming soon, but if you’re at the airport you can now …

EasyJet launch hand luggage augmented reality app

Ensuring that your luggage meets the varying requirements of airlines can be a bit of a gamble. There’s different weights and dimensions to consider before you even set off, and there’s always the possible embarrassment of having to unpack your stuff at the check-in desk when it all …

Passing IT Certification exams in less time with Prepaway

I work in IT. You may have guessed 🙂 One thing you always have to do in IT is learn. You can never sit still. The industry is continually growing, with new technologies appearing on a regular basis which you have to understand. If you don’t look at …

Children, tablet and phones. Here’s my advice.

A lot has been said in recent days about children and mobile phone use. A number of recommendations have come out, ranging from banning mobile phone use in schools, limiting screen time and banning phones at the table. In all honesty, it can be tricky. Parents secretly like …

The Micro Drone 4.0 – Now fully funded

Carrying a drone around is a bit of a faff, however – if its small then you can slip it in your pocket and it makes it a much easier proposition. The guys behind Micro Drone have now had Micro Drone V4.0 fully funded on Indiegogo but wait… …

Huawei are playing with the power of AI again…

Last year we reported that Huawei was using the AI technology that they had developed for the Kirin 970. That time around they were using the AI to help a car recognise and then take action to avoid the objects. We were able to actually see this in the …

Meizu to launch a phone with no orifices!

I must admit, I’ve never been that averse to holes. Quite like them. However, Meizu are determined to “push the boundaries of future flagship smartphones” by bringing us a handset that doesn’t have any of them… Meizu launches the world’s first holeless mobile phone, a true holeless design combined …