Author: Leigh Geary

HTC Desire 500 – Photo Special

Take yourself a quad-core 1.2GHz CPU, 4GB of on-board storage (plus a microSD card slot for more space) and a 4.3″ WVGA screen. Sounds good so far. Add a dash of GPS, a 3.5mm audio port, Bluetooth 4.0, DLNA, WiFi and the Beats Audio technology. All this stuff, …

I’ve got the horn, and it’s double-ended

I think we’re getting to the point here at Coolsmartphone where nothing really surprises us any more. The HTC One is a beautiful thing and comes with the potent BoomSound tech. You know that, we know that. It gives those tunes a much-needed “whoomph”. So, your slender and …

I might look crazy, but I’ve got warm hands

Yes, that lady is talking right into her pinky. Yes, she has her thumb wedged firmly into her orifice. Oooo yeah, just think how waxy that thumb is going to be right now. So, unless you’ve not guessed already, these are the Bluetooth Gloves from Firebox.com and, as …

Vodafone want you to feature in the movies

Well, almost. Orange / EE customers have long enjoyed the “Orange Wednesdays” promotion, which gives their customers 2 for 1 entry to films. Now Vodafone are getting in on the act too, giving their Pay as you go customers £10 to spend at the cinema every month for …

Tesco Finest tablet cases going cheap

The supermarket chain have slashed prices on their range of posh “Finest” tablet cases. There’s a fairly sizable range to choose from and they make rather nice presents too. Whilst looking for my “special cream” I found these. Firstly, this canvas iPad Mini car is down from £15 …

iKettle – Making you that extra bit lazy

Come on, get off the sofa. Let’s go for a run. Yeah, sure, it’s cold and raining, but we can do this. We’re gonna feel the burn. We’re gonna flex those muscles! YEAHHHHHH Oh, OK. Let’s not, let’s just stay in and have a nice cup of tea …

New hassle-free data SIM providers rock up

Data. You want it. You want it right now. You want big, fat, sweaty piles of data and as quick as possible. You filthy, filthy monkey. You disgust me. How’s 99p per GB sound? That sound good? Huh? Got yourself a cheap enough deal there? How about a …

Three pull out of Carphone Warehouse.

Those Carphone Warehouse people will have one less network to offer soon. Three are pulling out and have chosen instead to focus on their own Three stores as a sales channel. The network has already stopped offering their plans to Phones 4u, and they’ve revealed that 89% of …

Update to Android 4.3 with the HTC One on Three

Three have announced that their HTC One handsets will be getting Android 4.3 today, so go check for updates if you’re still waiting. If you have problems, check this Three support page for help and guidance through the update process. It’s also probably best to use WiFi to …

Could Tweakker make your next smartphone cheaper?

If you’ve bought an unlocked phone and popped in a SIM from an MVNO then you may have experienced that moment when it struggles to find the internet and messaging settings. Some manufacturers have started adding some intelligence into their phones to help with this, and they’ll use …

The Brick – Hands on

Remember when all mobile handsets were huge? Do you remember the big hairstyles from the 1980’s? Leggings? Yo-Yo’s? Wham? Aha? A short while ago we spotted this, which is suitably named “The Brick”. It’s designed to look like those early mobile handsets, but with a couple of key …

Analyst – Microsoft rake in $2 billion a year from Android

We’re never overly keen on “analysts” who “estimate” figures, but we’ve known for quite some time that Microsoft have been making a good return from patent royalties. Put simply, Google have to pay Microsoft a fee for every Android handset because of Microsoft patents used in the OS. …

Official HPI Check available for iPhone and Android

Buying a second-hand car is always a bit of a minefield. Finding the right one is tricky enough, but even after going to have a look there’s still the chance that the car could have outstanding finance or mileage issues on it. How are you supposed to know …

Giffgaff phone range announced – Buy yours this month

The network famed for hassle-free SIM-only plans has now announced their very own range of handsets and you can buy them later this month. The initial list includes the following handsets, and there’s a good mix of Android, iPhone and Windows Phone devices.. Samsung Galaxy Young Samsung Galaxy …

Get yourself a HUD, bud

I live in the UK and, right now, it’s pretty dark. I leave for work, it’s dark. I drive home… dark. Those daylight hours are pretty short at this time of year and, as I learned today to my cost, it’s probably not wise to remind those solar-panel …

LG G Flex coming to the rest of the world too

If you’re looking forward to getting something hard and curvy jabbing you in the thigh, then the LG G Flex is your thing. A launch in South Korea appears to have already happened and now there’s rumours that a gobal launch will occur “soon”. Vice chairman, Koo Bon-joon, …

Kazam bring the Thunder (and Trooper)

Back in June we first heard about Kazam, a new company headed up by a couple of ex-HTC staffers. They’ve today announced their new handsets – the Trooper and Thunder range. Let’s dive in and see what you can expect. Trooper Range There’s a number of models, including …

Oppo R819 goes dark

The Oppo R819. Let’s talk about it shall we? It’s got a quad-core 1.2GHz CPU and a 4.7″ 720p HD display (1280×720) at 312 PPI. There’s 1GB of RAM and a 2000 mAh battery, plus f/2.0 aperture 8 megapixel camera, FM radio, dual-SIM support, WiFi, DLNA and Android …

BlackBerry abandon sell-off plan, continue to limp on

A planned sell-off to the largest Blackberry shareholder, Fairfax Financial Holdings, has today been dropped after failing to reach an agreement. The company are instead looking to raise $1 billion (some £627 million) in financing in order to continue operating. The company has a Q2 loss of almost …

Moto G – Motorola are still kicking

As we head into the festive period Motorola look to have a little surprise for us. They’re not telling us a great deal at the moment, other than the fact that we should stand by for further details on Wednesday 13th November. However, a leak has possibly already …

Ascend W2 Gets colourful

Meet the Huawei Ascend W2, a new Windows Phone 8 device available in China right now in a new UMTS version. The W2 will also be available in Russia and the Netherlands this month and in “other markets” after. It’s got a 4.3″ IPS WVGA LCD screen, 7GB …

Gadgets in flight. Now they can go all the way.

Flying with a smartphone or tablet is always a confusing affair. In some parts of the world you can use gadgets during certain parts of the flight, but in others you can’t. It’s a slightly confusing mish-mash of rules, but now US aviation regulator – the FAA – …

EE iPad Air pricing announced

We’ve already seen both Three and Vodafone announce their pricing. Now it’s time for the network with all the 4G masts – EE. They’ve announced that the new iPad Air with WiFi + Cellular will be available from today and you can get it for £36 per month …

Londoners see big speed improvements thanks to 4G, but EE still leads

RootMetrics have been busy testing the performance of EE, Vodafone, O2 and Three. They’ve done 86,000 speed tests and London has shown some great speeds from EE. EE customers in the London area received speeds which were around 10MBps faster than any other operator. The average download speeds …

Vodafone announce iPad Air pricing and availability

Voda have stepped up with their pricing for the newly-announced iPad Air. Here in the UK the “iPad Air with WiFi + Cellular” will be on offer from £28 a month, with a £129 upfront cost. Although the iPad Air is available now, you’ll have to wait a …

Opis 60s Classic Mobile Review

It’s kinda hard to start with this one. This is a classic 1960’s-style phone. If you’re old enough you may remember seeing one of these on a special table at home. A few decades ago people would rent these from the telephone company. I know, it seems strange …

Want KitKat on your Samsung Galaxy Nexus? Oh look, a rainbow

Google Support seem to have revealed something that may upset many. The Samsung Galaxy Nexus won’t be getting an update to Android 4.4 (aka KitKat). Why? Well, Google tell us that because the device was launched two years ago (how time flies eh?) it falls outside the 18 …

Hands on with the Nexus 5

Available to buy right now, this is the Nexus 5 running the all-new version of Android, KitKat 4.4. It has a 5 inch screen, Snapdragon 800 quad-core 2.3GHz processor and a camera that adds a bit of DSLR fun. The camera also has a new lens to capture …

Get your Galaxy Note 3 in pink. Yes, pink.

Phones 4u will have the pink version of the Galaxy Note 3 available in November so, if you fancy a slightly more feminine shade, you can pick one up for nothing on a £47-per-month contract. Head to their website to order one today or pick one up tomorrow …

Samsung Galaxy Tab 3 Kids – A safe tablet for the rug rats

I love my son, he’s great. But when he picks up the iPad I have a number of concerns… 1 – Chocolate, like, everywhere. 2 – At least six thousand games will be installed. All have something to do with jewels. 3 – The battery will be flat. …

Get Moving for Movember

Hey. Today is Halloween. I’m dressing up as Dracula this year. Last year I tried to be Cher but it really didn’t go well at all, and certain bits were colder than they’ve ever been before. Strangely she now looks exactly like the plastic mask I wore, so …

Cash4Phones – Have you experienced a reduced offer?

It was pretty interesting to see Cash4Phones appear on the BBC consumer show “Watchdog” last night. Like those “We Buy Any Car” operations, they seem to be providing online quotations which are attractive but, when you send off your handset, they suddenly find “issues” with your handset and …

Sky+ prepped to receive on-demand downloads

It’s not ready quite yet, but your Sky+ app has just received an update that’ll make it possible to select and download on-demand content before you even get home. An accompanying update will need to be sent to your Sky+HD box soon, but when that happens you’ll also …

iPad Air available on Three tomorrow – All the details

Hey dear reader. It’s cold, it’s Autumn and it’s a minute past midnight. What are you doing up at this time? 😉 Well, don’t worry, tomorrow is Friday and it’s November 1st. Pop down to your local Three store and you can buy yourself an iPad Air. There’s …

Vodafone to extend their 4G bonus until the end of January

We’ve already tested the Voda 4G network and you may already be aware of their 4G Bonus. This will give you additional data when you sign up to one of their Red 4G plans but, as of today, it’s now extended until the end of January. An extra …

Who needs a bullet-proof vest? Try a HTC instead

If you’re walking around the US and don’t want to get shot, try sticking your phone in your chest pocket. A member of staff in a petrol station has got his HTC handset to thank for being alive after getting shot in an attempted robbery. A man entered …