Category: Android
HTC have already released two top-end handsets this year – HTC U Play and U Ultra (see the MWC hands-on here) – but neither were exactly a replacement for last year’s HTC 10. Rumours of this year’s iteration of their flagship have long abounded under the codename ‘Ocean’. …
If you’ve got yourself an iPhone or a Samsung Galaxy S7 you’ll find it relatively easy to find a case for it. However, if you’ve got a phone made by another manufacturer then it can sometimes be a little tricky to get hold of one. Take, as an …
Let’s be honest. If you’re buying an Android phone then, if you’re careful and don’t install much, you’re probably not going to be bothered by viruses or other nasties. However, looking at my son’s phone, he’s definitely not careful, and when I’m rushing to find an app to …
Two networks have just got in touch with us about the LG G6, the first is Three and the second is Sky Mobile, who operate using the O2 masts up and down the country. Three is has today started pre-orders and they have a contract with a £129 …
Say what you will about the Nokia 3310, it achieved one major goal in focusing interest back to the Nokia brand. Those memories of solid, durable, reliable Nokia handsets came flooding back and we all remembered a simpler time, when we didn’t feel the need to check our …
I’ll be brutally honest. I mean brutal. I wasn’t expecting much from this. If you go out and try and buy one then you might struggle a little. The 5″ version is available on Carphone Warehouse and at Tesco for less than £100. This, though, is the 6″ …
You may remember my trip down memory lane when Microsoft launched their classic Solitaire app for both iPhone and Android devices. It was true to the original Windows desktop version, and Microsoft took great pride in promoting the “classic” feel of it, with the same graphics and te …
Well, this is a nice surprise to see from the London-based company: they’re on track with the big guns to update their existing handsets to Nougat. Not only that, but they’re going to be the first company outside of Google to update to Android 7.1.1. Even though my …
So, you’ve had a look at our Huawei P10 First Impressions article. You like the phone, but you want a slightly bigger screen? Well, your luck is in. The P10 has a 5.1″ panel, but the P10 Plus has a 5.5″, and Vodafone have just made it live …
I’m a big gamer. Absolutely love it. There was a time when, if you wanted a “proper” game, you’d have to wait until you got home. An expensive console was needed. Some expensive games. It was a costly business. Still is. Now, though, if you have a look …
I’m going to start this piece by saying that I’ve never been greatly bothered by phone insurance. It’s not something I’ve considered getting because I’m generally pretty careful. However, thanks to our bank (and a regular monthly fee) we have a few “perks” which includes travel and mobile …
It’s been a year since I called it. Windows on a mobile phone? It’s long dead. Trouble is, people are still running those Windows Phone devices. A lot were waiting for the new Windows 10 Creators Update Release, but Mary Jo Foley has dug out a list of …
The price of smartphones seems to be going in two different directions at the moment. At the top end, the likes of the iPhone 7 and the Samsung Galaxy S8 will see you paying more and more for your flagship mobile. At the bottom end, something else is …
We had a play around with an Honor 8 Pro recently and were really impressed with the overall experience delivered by the device. We have a gallery here to feast your eyes on Honor’s latest flagship which starts shipping on April 20th. Full specs and thoughts about the …
Honor have just announced their new flagship device: the Honor 8 Pro. The Honor 8 Pro has a sleek all-metal body design with rounded edges, a dual-camera setup that doesn’t protrude and a selection of colours to choose from which includes Midnight Black, Navy Blue and Platinum Gold. …
This comes on loan from EE, where it’s available for £40.99 per month with 5GB of monthly data and unlimited texts and calls. Although I’ve perhaps not totally unleashed everything it can do – I’m properly impressed so far. Out of the box, it was the build quality …
I’ll be honest, I’ve been experiencing a bit of a lethargic phase recently. There’s been a degree of apathy in the last few weeks as the never-ending wave of phones from Mobile World Congress has almost deadened my mood. Why? Well, as much as I understand the reasons, …
We are used to hearing news that more people are accessing the web on a mobile device rather than a desktop. However, a new and somewhat significant milestone has been passed, this being that Android’s internet use has overtaken Windows PC’s. According to StatCounter the Android platform represented 37.93% …
We mentioned the various networks offering the all-new Samsung Galaxy S8 recently. EE, O2, Three and Vodafone will be ranging both the S8 and the larger-screened S8+. A number of MVNO’s will be offering the phones too, but it you want to go into one shop and compare …
Morning all, hope you are well. So, it’s all about the Samsung Galaxy S8 at the moment isn’t it? Well no, let’s not forget that the Huawei P10 is now available too. Vodafone have just made it live with and they still have their “Data Extravaganza” on, so …
Digital assistants are a thing. Think Siri, Alexa, Google Assistant, or (for a few windows die-hards) Cortana. Samsung also had a such a feature, the universally terrible S Voice. It seems Samsung is having another bite of that cherry. One of the announcements on Wednesdays Samsung Galaxy event …
What is this? I recently read that our Ian posted an article about a Google Maps update now including the ability to share your location, so of course I went to try it. It’s something I’ve used in WhatsApp before, and in Google Latitude back when that was …
This week a photography and art exhibition opened at Saatchi Gallery in London. Coolsmartphone was lucky enough to get early access and to spend some time there before the doors opened to the public. “From Selfie To Self-Expression” is an event partnership between Saatchi Gallery and Huawei, and …
The Samsung Galaxy S8 has been leaking all over the internet in the last few weeks but, finally, we now know all about it. There’s two handsets – the £689 S8 with a 5.8″ screen and the £779 S8+ with a 6.2″ display. Both of them have the …
In London it was cold. In New York it was cold too. However, despite our efforts Samsung wouldn’t let us attend the launch events. We have instead seen the very strange “live in London” TV advert featuring some extremely eager people watching the “unboxing”. So, what’s the big …
We’re back and in a bit more of a timely fashion compared to the last Coolsmartphone Podcast recorded Live on YouTube. Coolsmartphone Podcast 200 In My Right Pocket is now available to download via your client of choice or to listen to here on Coolsmartphone.com. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lWkRPZeDZSI This week …
There’s just over an hour to go until we see the actual, real, official shots of the new Samsung Galaxy S8. However, up and down the land there’s marketing material rolling out and, thanks to some lovely leakers, we can tell you a few things based on the …
Well, today is the day. It happens at some point every year. Not that day, the other one – the announcement of the next Samsung Galaxy S, probably named as the Galaxy S8 and Galaxy S8+. Notice that all indications are that the Edge moniker has been dropped? …
I am a mobile technology geek. Along with my Huawei P9 and my Lumia 640 phones, I carry round a Samsung Galaxy Note 8 tablet and an iPad 3. I don’t have specific use cases for each of these devices, but just like to have a range of …
According to a statement released by Samsung Mobile, some of the ill-fated Galaxy Note 7 devices will be sold as refurbished devices. Samsung also has plans to salvage each other components such as cameras and semiconductors. In addition, they intend on extracting the metal parts from the remaining …
We’ve previously seen Doro delivering easy-to-use-yet-clever smartphones for the elderly. I like them because it’s not just a matter of big buttons and a big screen – it’s the remote access that friendly and family can have to the phone. Now a company called amplicomms are getting in …
Have you ever picked up your Bluetooth headphones, then pocketed a pair of wired headphones in case they run out of juice when you’re out? Do you carry a spare pair of backup earphones as you’ve no real idea of the battery level of your Bluetooth earphones? BatON …
If the rumor mill is to be believed, and take it from me it’s in full swing, the reveal of the latest Samsung flagship the Galaxy S8 is less than a week away. And to be honest, it’s pretty hard not to have seen a leak of the …
OK, that might not be an official word as of yet, but if Oppo’s new F3 Plus takes off, it might just well be. Now wide-angle lenses aren’t a new thing. We’ve seen the likes LG and others do it before, but they’re usually for the rear camera. …
According to an email being sent out by Google, Hangouts SMS integration will stop working after May 22, 2017. The company will presumably roll out an update on the day that will disable the SMS integration functionality on the app. Google will start showing an in-app notification to …
Right back in 2008 I got my hands on my first Android device, the fantastic T-Mobile G1. One application stood out above all the rest – Google Maps. Back then it was just a very simple mapping tool giving users a fairly simple view of the world. Google …
Google defines a fanboy as ‘a male fan, especially one who is obsessive about comics, music, film, or science fiction’. To most of us, however, a fanboy is a passionate, perhaps an irrational, but most definitely a misguided fan of a rival mobile phone operating system (could be …
Well, how do I start this one exactly? Quite some time ago, the people at Cubot sent me a phone to review. It was the Cubot X17. Now you may not have heard of them, but they do a range of smartphones but this particular one is over …
The Samsung Galaxy S8 is quickly becoming the most leaked phone in history. As Mobile World Congress was drawing to a close, an official image leaked out and we’ve since had specs leaking out too. We’re expecting a Samsung Galaxy S8 and S8 Plus, and @evleaks has revealed …
Our coverage at Barcelona brought a raft of mobile phones, but no – Sony have another one for us. Available in black, white or pink, it’s the Xperia L1. This has 2GB of RAM and runs on a MediaTek Quad-core 64-bit CPU running at 1.45GHz. There’s also 16GB …
