Category: General

PhatPad is now available for Windows 8 / RT

PhatPad has been around for a while on Android and iOS and it let’s you use a stylus or your finger to write on your tablet screen and it will convert your scribble into real words. This will really add a useful and practical use for Windows tablets …

Exclusive – O2 Pricing on BlackBerry Z10. Buy tomorrow

Tomorrow you’ll all hear about the new BlackBerry Z10. It’s a hotly anticipated phone but it’ll be appearing in shops straight away. We’re already hearing that Vodafone will be selling the device tomorrow here in the UK, but we’ve also got some exclusive information about O2. I’ve received …

Vodafone extend free WiFi on London Underground

Virgin Media’s free London Underground WiFi service ends today but those using Virgin, EE, Orange and T-Mobile can stay connected due to wholesale agreements announced in November. As we mentioned earlier, Vodafone have also struck a deal with Virgin Media too. They’ve jumped on the fact that free-to-all …

Snugg iPad Headrest Holder – Review

Picture the scene, you’re on a long car journey with one or two kids they’re sitting in the back, asking “Are we there yet?” You’re not. You’re no-where near. You’ve not even got off your drive yet and they’re already bored or fighting each other. How do you …

Flat battery? Nowhere near a charging point? Have a looksie at this

Have a look around you next time you’re at an airport. You’re bound to see someone in a suit hunting around for a power socket. Why? Well, sadly our modern gadgets don’t quite have that one-month battery life we’d all like. Whilst prepping for our yearly trip to …

RHA Announce the new MA150 earphones

It is nearly always advised if you are a music aficionado that you should replace the earphones supplied with your mobile phone with another more sonically pleasing pair. We have reviewed many here on Coolsmartphone, from brands such as Klipsch, House of Marley and RHA. It is from …

WhatsApp keeping address book details illegally?

WhatsApp is a wonderfully simple to use and hugely popular messaging app for pretty much any mobile phone platform. How many people who use it know that they maybe giving out other people’s private data, only for it to be stored on WhatsApp’s servers in a potential breach …

EE switch on visual voicemail for some customers

Do you have an iPhone 5 on the rather expensive 4GEE? Well, if you do, you can now benefit from the Visual Voicemail service. This might not seem like much but it has been a long awaited service for some and EE now have flicked the switch to …

Apple and the art of innovation [Opinion]

I’m going to start with a sentence that makes me wonder where time had gone. Was it really only three years ago yesterday that Steve Jobs announced a product that would ultimately change the way we communicate? The answer is, of course, yes. Like the iPhone, there were …

My Windows Phone experiment

I’ve been a Windows Phone user for a good few years now, It all started off with a Dell Venue Pro, then a Nokia Lumia 800, then an HTC Titan, then my current favourite the HTC 8X, then briefly an HTC 8S and then most recently a Nokia …

Free EE 4G SIM with one month free – Give it a try while you can

You’ve heard all the kerfuffle about the new 4G network from EE. You’ve seen Kevin Bacon walking around with his phone and you’ve checked the EE coverage maps. Now is your very last chance to give the network a spin for nothing. Right now, provided you’ve got a …

Liquid Glass Protection. That stuff really does work.

Come close my smartphone friends. If you’re one of those handsome, sexy, fantastic people who check this wonderful website every day you may remember this review of the Crystalusion Liquid Glass Protection thing. It protects your phone and adds a resistive layer of .. err.. “magic liquid” (that’s …

Is an iPad the right thing for your baby?

Perhaps I’m getting a little old or a bit “fuddy duddy”, but this seems a bit wrong to me. Sure, my four-year-old son plays with an iPad. We restrict his time with it because, along with a Nintendo, he can quickly get addicted. However, this Fisher Price product …

Lumia 620 price on Three revealed

Are you a fan of Windows Phone and are wanting to get the new mid range Lumia 620 made by Nokia? If Three are your preference then you’re in luck. Argos now have the Lumia 620 on PAYG for the price of £199.99 + £10 Topup and will …

VAVO Universal Kickstand – Video Review

I love Kickstarter, it’s a great website. Since I backed Pebble almost a year ago I have been backing other projects all over the place, I just can’t control myself. Someone in the same position as me described the Pebble as a gateway drug that fueled their addiction …

Power Jacket Case for iPhone 5 – Review

Regular listeners (and now viewers) of our podcast will know that I recently moved from a Galaxy Note 2 back to the iPhone 5.  I won’t go into the reasons why here, as it’s worth a good article on it’s own. On the whole, I’m happy with that …

Nokia Drive+ Beta now available on all Windows 8 phones

Nokia have announced their turn-by-turn navigation software, Drive+, is no longer a Lumia exclusive, and is available on all Windows 8 handsets in the US, UK, and Canada. It is specifically noted that the software is in Beta, so don’t expect perfection just yet (*cough* Apple maps *cough*). …

Get our very latest reviews

So, you’re already following us on Twitter, you watch our YouTube videos, read our feed and perhaps listen to our excellent weekly podcast too. Just what else could you want? Well, from now on you can see our latest reviews in the side-bar of the site. We’ve thrown …

Advertising now the most popular revenue model for apps – Report

Based on the answers of 3,400 developers across Europe, North America and Asia, the “Developer Economics” report offers some insights into what developers are after and what’s proving successful. Android and iOS are still the big hitters, with 72% of respondents developing for Android (up 4% from the …

Lookout Updated with new features

Mobile security specialists Lookout have today announced some new features for their award winning mobile security suite. The new features bring additional functionality to an already feature packed app. First on the list is a feature added to the free version, Lockcam. Lockcam offers the user the facility …

EE Launch 20GB Tariff – Contract and SIM-only

There’s been lots and lots of commotion around EE’s inclusive data on their newly launched 4G network. Complaints have come in thick and fast stating that there is not enough data or that the price is too high. Today EE have announced that they are launching a new …

O2 gets an exclusive on the Xperia Z

You like the Xperia Z, but somehow.. you want a little more. Well, if you’re prepared to switch to O2, you can get the new Sony handset from February. O2 have an exclusive here too – the only way to get a purple one in your pocket is …

Phones 4u to join the MVNO party

Hosted on the EE network, the new offering from Phones 4u will actually carry the name “LIFE Mobile” and will be sold in stores from March. Initially it’ll be a 3G service but a 4G offering will be made available “by the end of the year”. It’ll be …

RIM hints licensing switch and more

The RIM CEO, Thorsten Heins, has spoken in an interview to the German site De Welt (The World, for those of you less versed in the German language), revealing some rather interesting proposals for the future of Research in Motion. Having finally found a use for the German …

DC-HSDPA – Just how much better is it?

This year we’re seeing a huge roll-out of the fastest version of 3G yet on many networks. Started by Three, who have already rolled this new standard out to 50% of the population and will get to 80% by the end of March, the other networks are now …

A mobile phone that gets you drunk

This one is definitely for the weekend. If you’re looking to.. err.. sneak a little alcohol into somewhere, try this. It’s a hip flask, which you can fill with your booze of choice, but it’s got a trick up its sleeve. It’s shaped like a retro mobile phone! …

Android App Review – Simple Dialer Widget

I never thought that I wouldn’t be using the stock Google dialer. But, I am now using the Simple Dialer Widget instead. Simple Dialer Widget (or SDW since I hate typing the whole name!) is a very straight forward widget and is surprisingly convenient. It has the dialer …

Notification Weather app

The notification bar is one of the key strengths of Android. It is the main place where we keep track of what is going on in the foreground and it is also where we are notified of, you guessed it, notifications. We are able to put information in …

Samsung Galaxy S4 to offer wireless charging, leak suggests

Wireless charging could be front and centre on the Samsung Galaxy S4, reports suggest, as details about the next Galaxy S-branded kit continue to circulate ahead of its expected launch later this year. According to Korean site D Daily, S4 owners will be able to charge their handset’s …

Samsung are to announce the Galaxy X Cover 2 at MWC

MWC is coming and as usual in the lead up to it various devices get leaked. Yesterday we heard about the Samsung Galaxy Note 8.0 via Samsung fansite SamMobile and today they have information about the tough Galaxy X Cover 2. It’s the next in line for Samsung …

EE to close 78 shops nationwide

Everything Everywhere has announced that it is to close 78 of its stores throughout the country. This will be where there is more than one store within close proximity to another. This happened here in Stockport for the launch of EE, we had three stores but they soon …

Are you protected? Mobile Phone crime is on the rise….

Statistics released by the Metropolitan Police show that once again mobile phone crime is on the rise. The fact that 158 iPhones are stolen in London every day (total of 56,680 mobiles stolen between April & September) has led the force to launch an awareness campaign around personal …

Sony Xperia Z hands on

Interested in the forthcoming Sony Xperia Z? It’s water resistant and comes with a 13 megapixel camera and 5″ 1080p screen. It’s all looking like a rather attractive package. Below is a hands on video, which Clove have put together, the device is expected to be on sale in the …

Beemo 4G USB Modem Review

Back in the early days of the 3G dongle, I bought a USB device from the 3 store.  It came with 1Gb data and a few text messages all for £49 and £15 per month.  To be honest it was terrible.  Connectivity was poor and it the signal …

XYFI Personal Hotspot – Review

I know what most of you guys are thinking. “Why do I need a MiFi?” or perhaps even, “What is a MiFi?” Put simply, it’s a gadget you stick your SIM card in. It’ll connect to the internet through the mobile network and then beam out a WiFi …

HTC One SV LTE – Buy it on EE right now.

Hi, I’m Kevin Bacon. Superfast 4G now comes with a new HTC device – the HTC One SV LTE. Of course, you knew it was coming when we first mentioned the handset back in December, but now we have the prices. It’s free on £36 per month plans …

Text payments service to launch in UK in Spring 2014

UK mobile users will be able to send and receive money by sharing only their phone number by Spring 2014, the Payments Council has said. Account owners will be asked by their banks if they want to opt-in to a database that will allow the sending of money …