Category: Features
As more and more Chromebooks are being granted access to the Google Play Store and the millions of apps within, people are trying to activate their copy of Microsoft Office for Android. Unfortunately, they’re finding out that a subscription to Microsoft Office 365 is required, especially if your …
I’ve only got myself to blame for getting into this and I’ve only got myself to blame for not quitting. In the world of social media marketing, companies are taking all sorts of novel steps to grasp our attention. It seemed like an interesting idea at the time, …
If you’re wanting to keep an eye on your child and want a no-frills way of finding out where they are, here’s a way I recently stumbled across. What you’ll need, in this particular setup, is a cheap Android phone for your son or daughter. These are everywhere …
We all like a spot of gaming and you would have thought that the wide availability of mobile devices would have provided a solid base for real main stream mobile gaming evolution but the potential, in my opinion anyway, has yet to be tapped. It was starting to …
For the first time in a while, the Apple event gave us a genuine surprise. We knew something was coming, and roughly knew that it was going to be called AirPods, but the rest was up in the air. What Apple announced was (not the best looking but…) …
If you have a look at today’s modern media suppliers – the likes of Amazon’s Prime Video, Sky Go, BBC iPlayer and the all 4 app all offer the ability to download programs and watch them later offline. When quizzed earlier this year, one of the biggest online …
As the explosion of online shopping continues, more and more of us are having deliveries to our homes (I am now on first name terms with my local Amazon delivery driver, we have so many deliveries). Here lies one of our first world problems, i.e. making sure somebody’s …
Welcome to the first in a series of articles celebrating apps which are an example to others on how things should be done. I’m probably preaching to the converted, but I wanted to talk about the BBC iPlayer Radio app. It’s available for iPhone,, Android and Kindle. For …
Paying for things has taken a massive leap forward in recent years. Money seems to be getting used less and less, and instead I’m tapping my bank card on terminals in supermarkets, on vending machines and through toll booths. It’s simple, it’s quick and it’s really easy. Now, …
You’ll have seen these things advertised by Jeremy Clarkson. After punching a BBC TV producer, Top Gear returned with a change of presenters and some new ideas, but Jeremy Clarkson, James May and Richard Hammond joined Amazon. Their new show – called “The Grand Tour” – will no …
Gaming is having to push new boundaries to find untapped potential, the latest consoles give us incredible visuals, the Wii gave us physical interaction, Pokemon Go took gaming our into the wild, and VR brought the wild to us. The latest gaming technology brought to my attention is Emotionally …
Well, they took their time, but it’s happened – Android Pay now works for NatWest customers. We heard reports from a couple of our readers that they received an email from NatWest to announce that Android users can finally use Google Pay at tills and checkouts across the …
Recently I switched network. I moved to Vodafone after spotting this deal that got me a SIM-only plan with 10GB of data for just £11.59 per month. I’m a bit of a mobile geek, as you’ll know, and like many of you I become aware of the “not …
Honestly. I’m no good at the Search Engine Optimisation business. I’m writing this during the last few days of August. It’s when most of you guys are returning from holiday but here, here I am writing an article on how to prepare for a holiday. That’s a bit …
“If it’s too good to be true, it often is.” “Learn from others mistakes and take heed.” “Be wary of the unbranded Chinese gadget.” “Be careful on eBay!” These are maxims to live by…. and that I have regularly ….ignored. My latest crowning glory on this front has …
This has been a hotly debated topic. It’s understandable because, when you’re in the UK using Three on a brisk 4G connection, you get certain expectations about download speeds. It’s these expectations that you might take with you when you go abroad and, with the Three Feel At …
Laptop PC sales are falling, Tablet sales are dropping, and even the mighty smartphone might be plateau-ing. Wearables have been a bit of a damp squib, and VR is just starting out. In the midst of all this, one area does seem to be (anecdotally at least) doing …
My final bit of coverage from MWC Shanghai is a walk around the show halls. The venue itself is nearly purpose built for hosting large scale events, of which MWC Shanghai has ambitions to become one of the bigger events that the Shanghai International New Expo Centre (SINEC) …
It’s been 14 years now. Can you believe it? It all started on my CupOfCoffee personal blog and then, just a few months after, I registered this domain in February 2003. It’s been a wild ride. I’ve seen mobile companies come and go, networks merge and operating systems …
So, I have been quiet over the past few days. This has been because I have been off living the life of the jet set again. About this time every year the Chinese Mobile community all gather in the city of Shanghai to attend MWC Shanghai. This year …
If you carry more than one payment card, you need Curve. Curve combines all your cards into a single card controlled with an app on your smartphone. The London based team behind Curve wanted to transform the way we manage and spend our money and set up at …
The Bluetooth speaker market is flooded with different devices – if you don’t believe me, just do a quick search on either Amazon or eBay and it will take about a week to trawl though all the offerings. Prices range from just a couple of pounds, through to …
How do you cover a phone which effectively comes apart? Well, it is possible. The boys from MobileFun.co.uk sent us a few to try and, with the aid of video and some lovely photos, we’re going to have a look at them. First, for those of you who …
After all the years of writing this site I’ve realised that I’ve not really mentioned how I got into phones. Sure, I can tell you that the phone which kick-started this site was the original Orange SPV, but what was before that? Well, get set for some time-travelling …
Here at Coolsmartphone a number of writers use a Chromebook as their primary device. I’m one of them (I’m writing this very article on the fantastic Asus Chromebook Flip). Despite being cracking devices Chromebooks have never really hit the limelight… until now. It appears that the Google low-cost …
Following on from a reported 15% rise in annual profits to £3.03bn, BT has announced plans to invest £6bn in faster broadband and mobile services over the next three years. The company plans to offer their “ultrafast” broadband to 12 million premises by 2020. With speeds of 300 …
Podcasts have exploded in popularity since they first came onto the scene in the early 2000’s. The move to smartphones and busy lifestyles with commuting, has only increased this popularity to the extent that phones seem to have become the main medium for consuming them. In such an environment, a good …
UK carrier O2 has announced they are going to exclusively carry the new LG Stylus 2, which is the first smartphone with DAB radio support*, meaning you’ll be able to enjoy your favorite radio stations without using your data allowance. The device is available right now on O2 …
The response to this post will be predictable, but I’ve delayed this long enough and it’s time to put my feelings into words. This site was created off the back of my first Microsoft Smartphone some 14 years ago. That phone was the Orange SPV and it was …
That’s a rather blunt and shocking headline, but it’s sadly true. Well done to the BBC for blowing the lid on this. As I’ve mentioned time and time and time again, big social websites couldn’t give a flying fig about you or your kids. They don’t. I’m sorry, …
To be honest, Google Now just sits in the background of my phone, and it’s one of those features I forget is even there sometimes. Until I get a notification that is, and realise what a really useful app it is. Well, Google has announced that the company has …
Canary is more than a simple surveillance camera for your home. From the very moment you purchase your Canary for £159, you’ll instantly notice the quality. Canary was launched back in July 2013 on crowdfunding site Indiegogo. There was clearly a market demand, as within a month over …
Get in a BMW, a Mercedes or an Audi and you’ll expect a certain level of tech. However, brand snobbery and perhaps because we’re buying a car that costs less, we sometimes don’t expect the latest gadgetry in … a Ford. They probably won’t thank me for saying …
I’ve got an Android handset that is gathering dust and, despite the fact that the camera is cracked and the screen only works when it feels like it, I wanted to make some use of it. So, after a little bit of fiddling, I’ve turned it into a …
It’s Christmas, and you’ll all have probably witnessed the traffic, parking problems and busy stores that are always connected with the festive period. Many of us, for many very valid reasons, have decided to shift a lot of this shopping online. It’s simple, it’s quick and it’s a …
Welcome to the Coolsmartphone Award Ceremony and Podcast, coming to you, prerecorded from Coolsmartphone Towers. Our team of experts got together yesterday and decided on the best and worst bits of 2015 in order to entertain you and reward/shame those responsible. As with all good awards ceremonies we’re …
This is George Hotz. He’s a bit of a character. He’s 26 and lives in San Francisco. At the age of 17, under the name “geohot”, he became the first person to unlock the iPhone. Shortly after he started working on the Sony Playstation 3 and became the …
Time for something a little different. The other week I had the pleasure of attending one of the ongoing Westminister e-Forums. These are a series of events in London where the various regulatory bodies that keep things working properly in the UK convene to discuss a wide variety …
During my time with Vodafone I got to speak to Dr Rob. This guy is a man after my own heart. He hates acronyms and over-complifications, prefering instead to break down the technology into easily understandable and enjoyable information. Dr Robert Matthews, to give him his full name, …
Part 1 – Setting the Scene Come around the winter fire kids! Let me tell you a story, this particular story is about my search for a work device without breaking the bank. I am an unashamed tech geek, I love things all bright and shiny. I love …
