Tag: smartphone

Honor 70 – Review

Do you want a phone with a great screen great processor high capacity storage and decent memory? Do you want this phone to have a cracking camera with more video modes than you can shake a stick at as well? How nice, would it be if you get …

New realme 8i – with bang for buck features

Say hello to the latest value offering from realme, the 8i Before I start, let us get the elephant out of the room – This phone is not a flagship killer, bleeding edge, top of the line or revolutionary, nor is it meant to be. What it does …

OnePlus Nord 2 5G – Review

OnePlus is a bit of a mystery as of late they seem to be trying to fight in both the upper-end flagship camp and in the Flagship killer mid-tier segment. The latest salvo in the mid-tier battle is the OnePlus Nord 2 5G and I have had the …

OnePlus 9 5G – Review

I have reviewed the OnePlus 9 Pro 5G and I was left feeling a little bit uneasy as I had a distinct impression that OnePlus had lost its direction slightly. I have now been able to spend a good amount of time with the OnePlus 9 5G. During …

Mounting losses force LG to stop smartphone production

LG Electronics said on Monday it would close down its loss-making smartphone business. Back in 2013 LG was the third largest smartphone manufacturer in the world, and now it appears phone manufacturer is going the same route as HTC. In January, the South Korean electronics giant said it …

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 …

Realme named in Fast Company’s 50 Most Innovative Companies in China

We’ve recently taken a look at the Realme 7 5G and have been mightily impressed with the build, camera and overall performance considering the price-tag. It’s a very good phone, and packs speedy 5G connectivity too.. Today Realme have been named 2020 China’s “50 Most Innovative Companies”. It’s …

Learn to be a skillful photographer

Taking a photo on your phone seems like a relatively simple thing now. Indeed, it’s got this way because phone manufacturers have added a whole heap of artificial intelligence into your smartphone to do the “heavy lifting” for you. As an example, taking an up-close photo will have …

A multi-view phone stand with magnetic ring holder – phonetag

I do like to be hustled some times. Today it’s an email from Barry, who wants us to take a look at his phonetag gadget. The UK inventor has managed to combine a secure ring holder with a portrait and landscape phone stand. It’s got a drink-can-style tag-shaped …

Don’t moan about 4G or 5G, you guys don’t know you’re born!

I do have to kick myself at times. Sitting in this hospital, I’ve got a gloriously fast 5G connection on Vodafone and unlimited data to enjoy. The speeds massively outclass the WiFi in here and it’s all just so straightforward and worry-free. Back in the late ’90s, phones …

A smartphone for around £45? What’s the X50 Plus?

Well, I spotted this one late last night and had to give my eyes a good old rub. We’ll go through the specs in a minute, but this is crazy cheap. The guys at Gearbest are selling it for £45.30 and the “interesting” people from Wish.com are selling …

ZEISS and Vivo to work together on upcoming smartphone camera tech

Coming complete with a Gimbal Camera System and a customised sensor to reduce exposure time, the Vivo X51 5G really impressed us with the impressive speed and precision of snaps and the crazy zoom capabilities. Now Vivo have announced that they’ll be pushing the camera tech even further …

Super-G Powerbank – Review

Some three years ago I took a tour to the far-reaches of the Mobile World Congress. Back in Hall 8 we stumbled across something called “graphene” and didn’t really know a great deal about it. Now, though, we have a high-quality portable charger with a graphene composite battery …

giffgaff reduce the price of refurbished phones

From now until Christmas, giffgaff have 50 different refurbished phones on offer at reduced prices. An iPhone 7 32GB can be purchased for £129, an iPhone 8 6GB is £219 and an iPhone X 64GB is £339. Prices alter depending on the condition of the handset, (Good, Very …

Switching and choosing – UK mobile networks explained.

Here in the UK it’s very rare for people to switch their bank. Likewise, people have in the past been quite loyal to their mobile network too. However, this has changed lately and it’s become much easier to switch. Not only that, but there’s also a great deal …

The making of a smartphone: Inside the manufacturing process

There was a time when the idea of walking around with a supercomputer in your pocket would have been ludicrous, straight out of a science fiction story. But these days smartphones are largely ubiquitous in our society, providing inexpensive, instantaneous interfacing with anyone in the world in real-time. …

Advantages of gambling on mobiles

In the modern world, technology keeps the first place in everyday life. Almost all the aspects of our living have become easier and quicker with technology. Especially now that mobile phones and smart phones are more than ever necessary tools for everybody. As the pandemic has affected public …

Buying a phone without a contract – making it easier.

It’s Christmas, and mobile phones are high on a lot of gift lists. However, unless you’re going to take on the monthly payments and enter into a contract for someone else, it’s definitely quite an expensive gift. So how do you afford a phone and pay for it …

The easiest ways to stream TV shows on your smartphone device

New technology has made it possible to develop smart devices that are faster and better in terms of performance. The idea of fast internet is also among the topmost influential factors in streaming TV shows and movies from anywhere and at any time you desire. YouTube is among …

Lockdown sees massive increase in Spotify subscribers

The lockdown has changed our behaviour. We’re using our smartphones more, downloading more and streaming more. Two recent news stories show this. First, the fact that mobile game installs in India have now topped 7 billion in just 9 months and second, the massive increase in Spotify subscribers. …

Honor Black Friday Deals are on!

If you’re looking for smartphones or wearables or Christmas, this is the place to be. Maybe you want to grab a well-priced gift or perhaps even treat yourself? Well, just a few short months ago we thought we’d got a proper bargain on the Honor MagicWatch2, which was …

Oppo A15 now available. Super-cheap entry-level smartphone.

Another phone to add to your list and it’s this entry-level Oppo device at just £119. Available from O2, Amazon or the Oppo e-shop, the Oppo A15 has a big 6.52″ 1600×720 screen (60Hz @ 269ppi) and it comes with 32GB storage (plus a microSD slot), 3GB RAM …

Vivo X51 5G – Review

This one has taken me by surprise. It’s a phone from – in the UK at least – a relatively unknown manufacturer and it’s £749. That’s a lot to spend on a brand you may not be familiar with, and you’ll need to be looking at places like …

VPN Options for smartphone users

For most people, one of the most treasured and private devices in the 21st century is the smartphone. Tech-savvy individuals know that your smartphone holds lots of personal information, which can be used to rob you of your money, identity, or even reputation. This is why it is …

Oppo pre-Black Friday deals

With Black Friday actually a little way off, a lot of companies are contacting us about their early deals. Oppo are on that list and have discounts on a range of smartphones. First up, the Oppo A5 2020 is now down to just £104, which is down from …

Nokia 3.4 now available in the UK

For just £129, this is the Nokia 3.4. It’s got a 6.39″ HD+ 19.5:9 screen (720 x 1560 pixels, 269 ppi) and three rear cameras – a 13 megapixel, 5 megapixel and 2 megapixel. Up front is an 8 megapixel selfie lens. Running Android 10, this has a …

Here’s how to make money playing games on your phone

If you like to spend your free time gaming or gambling online, you aren’t alone. Video gamers spent an average of 6.5 hours per week playing with others online, and 4.5 hours with others in person, during 2016, per NewZoo. Statista reports that the online gambling industry will …

A couple of great deals on the Samsung Galaxy S20 5G

OK, these are refurb handsets but they’re a really good deal. The boys at Mobiles.co.uk have these as an early Black Friday offer and you can save up to £150 for one day only. First up, with a massive 54GB of monthly data on Vodafone you can get …

Top iOS/Android cross platform games

Mutiplayer game downloads are on the rise. While multiplayer once meant that you were competing with other players on a game’s leader board, many mobile games now support both real time player versus player and cooperative gaming modes. Playing multiplayer games is a great way to blow off …

Samsung A42 5G. Now available on Vodafone

Unveiled just recently, the new Samsung A42 might be named after a road in the East Midlands, but it’s also a relatively cheap 5G handset. Packing a 6.6″ HD+ sAMOLED “Infinity-U” 1080×2400 (20:9, 399 ppi) display, it also has an in-screen fingerprint sensor, 4GB RAM, 128GB of on-board …

Xiaomi becomes the third largest smartphone manufacturer

After a decade in operation, Xiaomi (who are behind those “Mi” phones you’ve probably seen) is now number three globally. The latest Canalys reportshows that the company has shipped a massive 47.1 million devices globally, hitting a 45% growth in the previous quarter. Here in Europe, Xiaomi has …

The OnePlus Nord N Series. Come, get some.

Hands up if you fancy a OnePlus smartphone for just £179. Yeah, I can see you out there. These boys are all over the smartphone landscape right now. Have a look at our OnePlus coverage and you’ll see just how busy they’ve been. Two additional phones have now …

No more locked smartphones!

Those with longer memories may remember this being quite a problem, but now we’re seeing more and more networks selling phones which are unlocked out of the box. Wait. What’s a locked phone anyways? Well, back in the day – and as a way to keep you tied …

Realme 7 and Realme 7 Pro now on sale in the UK

The realme 7 (£179) and realme 7 pro (£279) are now available to buy on the realme website. The realme 7 is available in blue or white and has a 90Hz 6.5″ Full HD+ screen (2400 x 1080) at 405ppi. It also gets a quick capacious 5000mAh battery …

Imagine being on lockdown 20 years ago!

Although our lives are becoming distinctly less mobile right now, our mobile phones are playing an incredibly critical part of life. Imagine, if you will, the coronavirus pandemic hitting us 20 years ago. It’s a sunny morning in the year 2000. You’ve got yourself the classic Nokia 3310 …

Moving away from regular upgrades

There’s been a noticeable shift in recent years away from regular phone upgrades. Customers are becoming more savvy, and with smartphones no longer taking such big “leaps” in technology, many are looking for ways to prolong the life of their existing phone instead of upgrading. In the post-COVID …

Driving? Don’t touch that phone!

The UK government are to firm up the law on mobile phones in cars. Next year the loopholes which allowed drivers take photos or film will be changed and it’ll be illegal for anyone to pick up and use their mobile phone while driving. You’ll still be able …

Oppo A53 lands in the UK. Cheap as chips.

Smashing hard into the budget category, the Oppo A53 should be available on Carphone Warehouse (in a lovely Mint Cream and Black) or, in just Black, on Amazon, AO, Very and – a little later this month – on O2, EE and Virgin Media. The handset has a …