Category: Gadgets & Tech

EE TV – On test

The boys from BT.. sorry, EE.. sent me one of their clever TV boxes recently. You can’t just go out and buy one of these things, you have to have an EE Broadband package too. There’s full details here. You basically plug this into your rooftop aerial and …

Controlling my home from my phone

We’ve seen a number of companies approaching us lately who want us to promote their smart gadgets. A lot of these gadgets now relate to the “Internet of Things” or a “Smart Home”. Whilst they’re all great, you can find that they’re a little disjointed – using their …

Lumsing Quick Charge 2.0 USB Desktop Charger offer ending soon

Today, as you’ll know from our earlier news item, is Amazon Prime Day. There’s deals a-plenty over there and we’ve already detailed a number of them. In addition, we’ve got to let you know that our deal on the Lumsing 5-port desktop charger that we reviewed last month …

Get on your back. Let me put this on your face.

Where do I start with this one? The picture alone is enough to give you an idea of the madness. It’s a “Cardboard Home Cinema” and, because it’s not the actual size of a real cinema, you basically lie on the floor and stare at your phone. Yeah. …

Amazon Prime Day is today

Amazon Prime Day, the day of deals exclusively for members of Amazon Prime, is today. Amazon Prime already gives you great benefits, like Amazon Prime Music streaming service, Amazon Instant Video with quite a selection of movies and TV shows as well as free next day delivery on …

Curve, One Card To Rule Them All – Review

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 …

Tesla self-drive car involved in fatal accident

Whilst the likes of Google are testing out fully automated vehicles, there’s a selection of cars out on the road now that’ll add a certain degree of “self driving” tech. Normally, the system works on major highways / motorways and, by taking note of the lane markers and …

666 is the Legacy of the Beast!

For those lucky few who caught our live broadcast last week, you will know we have had a copy of Legacy of the Beast. This is a game dedicated to the British music legends, Iron Maiden. The game celebrates every single album by taking you through worlds based on …

Note 7 Iris scanner rumour looks more promising

According to the inter-web rumours, the next iteration of the Note series the Note 6…sorry the Note 7 (I don’t know either), is rumoured to have an iris scanner.  Now it appears that this latest rumour may have a bit more substance,m and good old leaker @onleaks (who has a …

Cash machine skimmer found on video

Bit weird this. It’s perhaps not something I’d film, but Benjamin Tedesco managed to find something a bit weird on a cash machine whilst on holiday in Vienna. He was filming, in portrait for some reason, and then decided to film himself going to the ATM. I know. …

HP 11 Chromebook – now with Touch

Those of you that are regular readers of this fantastic site, know that a number of the staff use Chromebooks, including my own self. I am currently using the Asus Chromebook Flip, which now allows me to use Play Store Apps natively, which I can only describe as …

Puridea Bluetooth Speaker, Power Bank and Bike light – Review

Yes, I agree with you. That is a weird combination of features. This is indeed a bike light which is also a Bluetooth speaker and … a portable charger for your phone. All those things in one unit isn’t normally something you’ll see wrapped up in one unit, …

Urbanista new earbuds to appeal to young urban folk

Last week, Swedish designers Urbanista launched a new design of earbud with a new mosaic pastel colour design from a very cheap £19. Perfect for music lovers that want a patterned earphone that complements their summer style, the Urbanista San Francisco’s graphic print is reminiscent of the beautiful …

Good Morning World. This is Great Britain calling.

Is this thing on? Are we still here? Europe? Are you still there? Are our European servers still on? Are we all still friends? Sorry about all that guys. Everything went a bit mad there for a moment. Our money is worth less now, the markets are in …

Reolink HD IP Security Camera – Video overview

Remember the all-weather fixed security camera I reviewed the other day? The Reolink IP camera will fix to your wall or roof and points at your driveway, your garden, your warehouse or inside your property and you can view the images and video anywhere in the world via …

Doosl FM Transmitter – Review

I’ve been sent an FM transmitter again. It’s one of those ones you’ll find on Amazon with a rather long and confusing name. The full description for this £13 gadget is (wait for it)… “FM Transmitter, Doosl® 3.5mm FM Transmitter Radio Adapter Hands-free Calling Wireless Radio Car Kit, …

Wraps Headphones – Review

Remember the Wraps Wearable Headphones we mentioned recently? OK, so it was a bitdaft to call them “wearable” because of course, all headphone sare. However, these wrap around your wrist when they’re not in use, so you effectively turn them into a bracelet / bangle when they’re not …

Reolink HD IP Security Camera – Review

We’ve had security cameras in the past but this one will work outside and you can’t move it around automatically. Yes, it’s a “proper” security camera. Now, many of you will probably think that you need some sort of recording hardware and other bits to make this work, …

Seek announce a new cheap version of their thermal camera

In August last year we took a look at the Seek Thermal camera. It basically slots onto the bottom of your phone and, in real time, shows you what’s hot and what’s not. Now you can get an affordable model in the shape of the Seek CompactPRO. It’s …

Apple hit further problems in China

After the recent ban on the iTunes Movies and iBooks store in China, Apple seem to be heading for some further trouble there. This time around, it is relating to it’s current flagships – the iPhone 6 & 6s. Apple’s been suing Samsung endlessly on patents & design …

Jide Announce its next Remix, the Remix Pro

It has been a bit of time since we last heard any news from Jide (the makers of Remix Ultra Tablet and the Remix Mini). They have been working very hard on a few different projects and building their portfolio up. So, what have they been working on so …

Fancy a Bluetooth baseball cap?

A random Chinese company got in touch with us today. To be honest this happens every day. Companies seem to think that we’re a shop of some kind and we want to buy their things. We’re not, but sometimes they do tell us about some pretty weird and …

Make your own popstar video with this selfie accessory

You’ve probably seen those music videos where a pop starlet has a close-up with the camera and is lit beautifully by a circular set of lights attached to the camera. It makes the singer look fresh, clear and they’ll stand out in the resulting video. Now you can …

Talk to the animals with a KYON Pet Tracker

Watching your pet from work or anywhere else is pretty simple. Just get a camera or perhaps use a spare smartphone to act as an IP camera. It’s a good way to have a quick look at your dog or cat from afar, but… wouldn’t it be good …

Gadget Review for an International Trip

This is video is long overdue, regardless I took a business trip to Malaysia for work reasons and decided to take a road test of a number of gadgets to play with. First up was the BagsByBlack BUDDI bag, then Pump Audio V2, Anker Power Bank 20100, cables from …

MEEM is now out!

Back in January, Leigh looked at the MEEM cable which was in the Kickstarter stage. What is MEEM I hear you ask? Well it is a phone charger cable that automatically backs up personal data on a smartphone to the cable, every time the phone is charged. MEEM is …

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 …

XQISIT XQ S20 Bluetooth Speaker – Review

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 …

Ubuntu OTA brings Wireless Display to Meizu Pro 5

Announced yesterday on the Ubuntu site – the Over The Air update 11 for Meizu Pro 5 Ubuntu Edition brings the much delayed full Ubuntu PC experience from a mobile phone handset. In addition to this feature, this update also brings overall performance improvements to the M10 tablet …

XQISIT iE 200 Bluetooth headset – review.

I for one always have some sort of headphones stuck around my head, to be honest, I can’t even walk to the shop without popping a set on and listening to a podcast or two (the fantastic coolsmartphone podcast is one I happen to listen to). I have been …

LG G5 Case Special

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 …

KitBrix CityBrix Bag Review – The gym and the office in one

My gym bag stinks. There’s no getting around that. Here it is above and yes, it does. As much as I try to separate the wet towel and smelly shoes from the other items, it quickly becomes very whiffy indeed. Then, if you try and stick your tablet …

Parkman H1 4000mAh Portable Charger – Review

I get a lot of these portable battery packs sent in. Reviewing them isn’t a big deal, but I do find it hard to write more than a couple sentences about it. What can you say really? It’s a device which is about as slim as your smartphone …

Boosty on test – When your broadband just isn’t enough

Hello Coolsmartphoners. At home I’ve got that “FTTC” gubbins that most people either know as “BT Infinity” or, when it’s sold through other providers, “Fibre broadband” ..which it isn’t quite, not all the way. Anyhoo. I’m pretty lucky. However, if you’re not, you can try this. The idea …

Use a typewriter on your iPad

If typing on your screen isn’t your “thing” and you’re not a fan of modern Bluetooth keyboards. Perhaps try this, the QWERKYWRITER. It’ll bring you all the fun and memories of using an old-school typewriter, plus it acts as a stand for your device. The keyboard connects via …

Amazon Fire TV stick reduced

My experience of streaming TV at the weekend was, let me tell you, thoroughly disappointing. My son wanted to watch Iron Man 2 and so I set off trying to find a streaming service offering it. That bit alone was tricky. We couldn’t find a page detailing what …

olloclip Studio Review

Smartphone photography is increasing at a rapid speed. Just take a look at the number of smartphone apps available to help you capture the perfect shot. In order to utilise the features of your smartphone or app, you first need to start with a quality photograph. That’s where …

Lumsing 40W 8A 5-Port USB wall charger – Review

A few years back most people will have perhaps ignored USB ports. They weren’t for charging at one point. They were for peripherals – scanners, webcams and more. Sure, we still have mice, keyboards and other kit plugging into USB ports now but – more than ever – …