Tag: gadgets

Christmas 2020. Oh, what a year that was!

Each year I tend to sign off for a couple of days over Christmas to unwind. This year, for all of us, has been one to remember – and perhaps not for the right reasons. Things started off quite well at Coolsmartphone HQ. We’d put the final touches …

Commonly overlooked supplies and equipment you need for a home office

If you’ve been working from home amid the pandemic over the past few months, you’ve probably come to realise the importance of having a designated workspace. There’s only so much you can take of the kids running around and shouting in the background while you’re trying to make …

Xiaomi shuts up UK shop

Opened just over a year ago, the UK Mi Store in London’s Westfield Shopping Centre is now closed. That alone shouldn’t be taken as an indicator of anything more that a “strategy change” according to Xiaomi, who tell us.. Our adjustment to our local retail strategy is a …

How the home of 2020 looked in 1989

This has been doing the rounds on social media and I think it’s worth a mention here. Back in 1989 (yes, 31 years ago), some predictions were made by BBC technology show, “Tomorrow’s World”. The video is below, so have a look and we’ll go through each point …

Black Friday! Let’s bash those cards!

This year we’re going to stick all the deals into this one article and update it as new ones pop up. If you see one that’s great and hasn’t been featured here, get in touch or hit us up on Twitter. “But wait!”, I hear you cry, “Black …

Mobile Industry – Poised for a revolution in FPS Gaming

Wait, what? FPS Gaming might be a confusing phrase for some, but it basically means “First Person Shooter”. Not (as I initially thought) “Frames Per Second”. Think about the biggest games on mobile though and the likes of PUBG and Fortnite are right up there. Recent developments in …

Just a few Boxing Day deals

It’s Boxing Day, so – for almost the fifth day running – I’m about to get stuck into yet another massive meal. Luckily, I have my sneaky stretchy jeans. If you’re one of those nut-jobs who’ve been up since 5AM to get to a Boxing Day sale in …

IFA 2018 – Follow our updates on Twitter

If you’re trying to find out what’s coming next in the world of connected gadgets, tech and smart technology, IFA is a good place to start. IFA (Internationale Funkausstellung Berlin) is Europe’s biggest consumer electronics show and runs from August 31st until September 5th. It’s held in Berlin and you …

Airtame. Give monitor cables the boot.

On Friday I spent a good ten minutes running around to try and find a VGA cable. The reason? A client informed me, just before I headed out of the door, that their projector only had a VGA input. This, in 2018, seemed a little strange. In my …

Yes, you can now buy yourself a camera for your fridge.

Before I started writing this, I headed to my own fridge for a healthy snack. This is what I found inside. Cadbury seems to have exploded in there. It’s mad. The problem is, I think, that when we head to the local supermarket, it’s when we’re hungry. So …

The Internet of Things arrives with Vodafone

We’ve seen quite a few devices from Vodafone lately which aren’t phones. Whilst some of these gadgets are definitely aimed at businesses (automotive tracking, smart cameras and the like), we’ve felt a definite push for gadgets that you could use at home too. Three years ago we took …

Gemini from Planet Computers – Review

A few months ago I got a little bit excited about a device that I had seen on Indiegogo. It wasn’t because it was the fastest or the most powerful device. It didn’t have the best camera either. It also wasn’t designed to be a gaming monolith. So, …

Is our life better with new technology or without?

Our life has changed significantly thanks to modern technology. But what’s your opinion? Has it made things better? Let’s compare life with technology and without, and try to define what’s better! Nowadays, we live in a world full of new technologies, and it’s hard to imagine how people …

Boston Dynamics notch up the freakiness

Alright, this is just plain scary now. We saw the oh-my-god dog robot things just a week ago, but Boston Dynamics have decided to go and attack one as it’s doing the clever door-opening trick. What freaks me out is the natural movements of this thing. The way …

Stuck for gift ideas? Try these out for size!

The guys at Prezzybox have got your back if you’re struggling to come up with gift ideas this festive season. They’ve got a stack of gadgets for almost every taste. They’ve got stocking fillers like this personalised headphone holder plus these gloves which let you use your smartphone …

Smartphones and kids. Perfect for sexual harassment and grooming

If you’ve been around the website for a while you’ll probably be aware that I tend to talk about how we should protect kids from potential dangers online. As I’ve said before, there’s no magical group of people looking after your kids. YouTube, Facebook, Musical.ly, Instagram, Snapchat, Periscope, …

Using mobile device management in your business

I remember a time when the Pocket PC was king. It was the device of choice in businesses up and down the land. You could connect it to your Exchange server and, with a small stylus or an on-board slide-out keyboard, you could work anywhere. It was a …

Citroën C3 – Review

As someone who has Bluetooth speakers, portable chargers and cables thrown across the desk to review, this came as a bit of a surprise. “Would you like to review our car”, came the email. Ermm.. well.. OK then. The video You’ll need to get comfortable for this one. …

Do you actually need that TV subscription any more?

Got a Sky or Virgin TV contract? Let me ask you a serious question. If you’re not into sports, are you really using it fully? Enough to warrant the monthly cost? Statistics announced today by Ofcom show that 90% of people still watch live TV every week. Some …

Gaming with Android and Windows, Mobile? PGS has an update.

Yes people, I’m learning the Daily Mail-style of click-bait again, in the vein hope that we’ll have enough advertising revenue to pay for the servers this month (sadly, ad-blocking is killing our revenue). OK, long story short. Imagine you want to create a Portable Gaming System. Something running …

Hermes testing robot deliveries

So, I’ll let you into a secret here. Getting hold of your eye balls and selling you something is a tricky job. So press teams up and down the land are always dreaming up ways of getting their client on pages like this. Here it’s delivery firm Hermes, …

My phone is now held together with sticky tape

I like to think that I’m quite careful with my phone. I have an LG G5 at the moment and, although it’s perhaps not as nice to look at as some smartphones, I still prefer it to be case-free. Until yesterday I was quite proud of the fact …

A remote controller actuator. What could be greater?

So, I’m pretty geeky guy with the home automation gadgets. I started off with a Nest thermostat, which a lot of even my non-geeky friends are getting into. It’s a simple and clever way to save cash on your heating bills. Put simply, it knows when you’re not …

Seriously Boston Dynamics. Stop now, you’re scaring us.

Those rather clever robot makers are getting a little too good at their job now. This latest robot is called “Handle” but look a little bit too “alive” for me.. What next? Will it start watching TV and reading books really quick like Johnny Five in Short Circuit? …

Tech Gadgets for Christmas!

So, we were going to do a really big feature about the top tech toys for this festive season. We ended up adding lots of festive features for you over the last few weeks instead. Anyhow, the guys from Mobile Phones Direct have put together a Top 50 …

Festive Feature #8 – SanDisk Extreme 64GB microSD going cheap

Whether it’s for a friend, relative or perhaps a cheeky little gift to yourself, the Amazon Black Friday deal on this 64GB SanDisk microSD card is really rather good. For £18.99 (down from £23.99) you get a branded microSD card which should give you more than enough space …

A smart suitcase. Yes, a smart suitcase.

No, I didn’t know there was such a thing either, but apparently it is a “thing”. To be honest though, after a bit of reading, I became quite interested. A carry-on suitcase that is water resistant, scratch resistant and has GPS and 3G technology built in? Remote and …

Eve “crowd sourced” computer close to being launched. UPDATED

Since the initial publication of this article, I have been given some new information that is relevant. All the updates are in Italics Some of you may have come across a company called Eve (not the game!). Last year they launched a tablet that was designed to be …

SEAT turns to VR

When I received this press release I honestly thought SEAT had launched a new way of selling their cars. Perhaps, after strapping your phone to your face via Google Cardboard or similar, you could experience a SEAT before you bought one? Well, it’s not quite that – not …

MWC – What’s in my bag – Gears

Short version. I’ve been doing this for a good amount of years now and I’ve developed my own way of covering live events. Also, after cycling over the pennines and from London to Paris with nothing more than a backpack, you learn to “go light”. So, here’s my …

What is your dog saying? Find out with WhatsYapp

First up, that’s an obvious click-bait headline, but sadly – that’s the way the internet works. I could’ve made it a bit better by adding, “Listen to your dog, you will be shocked!” Anyways, let me give you an insight into running a website like this. See, we …

Fancy a fun and intelligent hybrid scooter?

A few months ago I had “a few beers” after taking the kids to the pub (always good in the sunshine – they can go in the pub garden on the swings and you can have a refreshing pint). On the way back I decided to use my …

15000 unsafe hoverboards seized

The latest craze to hit Britain is the Hoverboard/Self Balancing scooter (well it’s not really a Marty McFly Back To The Future-styled device. Think more along the lines of a skateboard with a buggy wheel at either end). Companies are trying to get cheaper and sleeker versions in …

Online, offline, iMend now does a walk-in service too

This weekend, apart from getting stupidly drunk in my local (I’d like to apologise right now to everyone), I went to several local shops. During my walk around it kinda hit me just how lucky we are to have all these businesses on our doorstep. I got me …

Embarrassed using a selfie stick? Here’s the solution.

Us Brits aren’t always good with self confidence. Taking a photo of yourself can, for some, be a bit embarrassing. Using a selfie stick, well, that’s another matter. So, Japanese Twitter user @Mansooon, who doesn’t really reveal a lot about himself, has come up with a solution. He …

WowWee Reveal MiPosaur and REV robots with apps

This is just plain cool and for that reason and no other (well I kinda want to play with one) I am going to post something about it. Anyway moving on. WowWee have just announced that they are going to be making and selling some “next robotic innovations”. …

March Markdown – A gadget-lovers paradise.

As you’ll know, I have a weakness for looking at the handsets and gadgets that you can’t get on the high street. A perfect example is the Atongm W008 watch that I reviewed this morning. At the moment Gearbest are knocking down prices even further with their “March …