Category: General

Apple admit the Jet Black iPhone 7 prone to scratching. 

Let’s be honest, the Jet Black iPhone 7 looks …. absolutely gorgeous. Ooooo! Shiny shiny! Who in there right mind would want to shove that beautiful design and that polished finish in a case eh!? Well it appears that’s exactly what Apple want you to do after the …

Upgrade your iPhone 6s to an iPhone 7 for a LOT LESS

The iPhone 7 pricing is quite high. We all know that. Some have tried to blame Brexit for the £599 price-tag (that’s the 32GB one, the 128GB version is £699 and the 256GB handset is £799). So how can you upgrade for a lot less? Well, my friends, …

VQ Retro MKII DAB Radio – Review

Are you in the market for a stylish designed retro looking DAB radio with some added features? Well come on in and have a read of my review of the VQ MKII Retro DAB radio. Good Points: Fantastic sound quality. Well built retro design. Available in 11 colours. …

EE update “Add to Plan” accessory offering

If, for example, a phone was to be released that would make it slightly more difficult to use wired headphones, you might want to consider Bluetooth ones. Trouble is, some of these can be a bit pricey. Also, even if you want a good set of wired ones, …

EU finds nothing wrong with pre installing software

Eight years ago, the PC market was a completely different place than it is now. Windows Vista was the hot OS and customers where upgrading then regretting it en masse. However, one French user decided he just didn’t agree with Microsoft’s terms and conditions and started a fight …

LockSmart and LockSmart Mini – Review

Back in March at Gadget Show live, I met up with the guys from Dog & Bone, who had an array of convenient accessories for those who like adventure and technology. Well, the lovely people at Dog & Bone sent us two of their Bluetooth locks, namely LockSmart …

Obi MV1 Worldphone – Review

Meet the OBi MV1 Worldphone “Obi who?” Good question. They are a Silicon Valley smartphone manufacturer founded in 2014 by former Apple Inc and Pepsi CEO John Sculley. Obi Worldphone manufactures smartphones aimed at the emerging markets, rather than very competitive developed markets. Obi Worldphone launched two of their …

aLLreLi USB Voice Recorder – Review

Out of the box this looks no different to any other USB stick. It’s got a little cap on to cover the USB port itself and there’s a very tiny switch on the other end. Turn it on and it’ll start recording. Turn it off and it’ll stop, …

iKlips DUO+ helps expand your iPhone storage

We’ve got something similar on test at the moment, but this is the new iKlips DUO+. Coming soon, it’s basically a flash drive for your iPhone. On one end, a Lightning connector, and at the other a USB. You plug it into the bottom of your phone, transfer …

TETDED Opulent Lifestyle – Mockodile!

We know the majority of Coolsmartphone readers have excellent taste and are fashion trend setters. One of the things that guarantees you will get invited to a press conference to give a 20 minute presentation on how to take selfies is also having the best cases for your …

VPN made simpler – Hide My Ass

I won’t beat around the bush. If you’re doing anything that you’d like to be kept a bit secret from your ISP then you need a VPN. Whether it be streaming, torrents or something in-between, online privacy is something you need to be looking at. However, it’s always …

IFA Berlin 2016 – A Chat With Stil – Mockodile FTW!

Today at IFA in Berlin I had a chat with Stil, makers of premium fashion cases for smartphones. There is  event Stil Mockodile cases. Here at Coolsmartphone.com we look after our devices, and where possible want a premium case to remind everyone that we are masters of fashion …

T505 LED Headlamp – Review

Strap yourself in people, because we’re going to be reviewing a headlamp. Nope, not a headlight on your car – but one that you strap to your head for seeing in the dark. This is a pretty big one – it has a 8cm diameter on the lamp …

Yet more smartphone security warnings

The smartphones of today have come a long, long way from the “bricks” of the 1980s and are capable of doing far more than anyone could have imagined when mobiles were first introduced. You’ll know that already of course. I bumped into someone fairly recently who wanted us …

iClever BoostRun BTH06 Bluetooth Headphones – Review

Perhaps it’s just me. I’m not sure, but I’ve reviewed quite a number of Bluetooth headphones over my time and they usually fall into two distinct categories. Category one is usually the sort that go flat after just an hour, but the sound and the bass response is …

Don’t want your WhatsApp sharing with Facebook? Here’s what you need to do..

Since Facebook’s huge purchase of the WhatsApp platform in 2014 and getting rid of the 99p annual fee, they’ve introduced a voice call facility, a desktop application and end-to-end encryption since. However, they never capitalised on any new revenue streams. Well, as you saw yesterday, Facebook-owned WhatsApp announced upcoming …

EE to deliver 6 months of Apple Music for free

OK, a little warning before I start. This article features Kevin Bacon in tight fitting Lycra. Sorry in advance if you’re eating your breakfast. It’s all because EE are giving new and upgrading pay monthly iOS and Android customers a whole six months of access to  in Apple …

Sengled Boost LED WiFi repeater bulb review

Good Points: Easy Setup. Control from Android/iOS app. Dim-able. Used alone or in a group of bulbs. Innovative hidden way to increase WiFi coverage. Bad Points:  Large Unit Size No ability to program on/off times Need to connected to same WiFi nerwork for app control. In today’s wireless …

Like Pokémon Go? How about a Pokémon holiday?

Personally I thought that the buzz surrounding this have would’ve died down, but it shows no signs of abating. People at the park, in the queue at the local bus stop, walking to work and even at the pub. Yes the pub, they’re all doing it. Now, amongst …

Samsung Galaxy Note7 – Pre-order from Three

The boys at Three have been in touch to tell us about their pre-order offers on the new Samsung Galaxy Note7. If you’re after one, listen up.. The network will be offering the handset in both blue coral and black onyx. They’ll also be giving away a free …

EE Launch “Roam like home”

Hmmm… A roaming service that lets you use your phone abroad for no additional fee? Just as if you were in the UK? We’ve totally never heard of that before, and it’s in no way similar to anything any other network is doing… Today EE, who got the …

Urbanista – Video review

Over the past month, Swedish outfit launched two new products called Seattle and San Francisco. The Seattle series are a range of headphones in different colours whilst the San Francisco range are earbuds in a unique mosaic pattern. Well, we (the wife and I) have been testing both …

2016 Google Nexus Phone Rumours

It’s coming to that time of the year when the rumour mills start spinning for this year’s Nexus phone lineup. After having gone through the emotional roller-coaster for the Samsung Galaxy Note 7, and still going through it for the next iPhone, it’s the chance for the Nexus …

Samsung Galaxy Note7 – Pre-order now

It’s £739. That’s £739. Just one more time for you… SEVEN HUNDRED AND THIRTY NINE POUNDS. That’s a lot of pounds. Either way, if you want to part with a stack of money and get your S-Pen action going, it looks like the pre-order party on the Samsung …

Google Duo coming soon, maybe…

Google have just announced that their new video calling app, Google Duo, will start a phased release globally as of today. Google Duo is a video calling app which the Mountain View headquartered company teased at their Google IO developer conference in May. Until now Google Duo still …

Thinkware F770 Dashcam review

A few weeks ago I was filling my car at the local petrol station and noticed that if you purchased a certain amount of fuel you could buy a dash cam for £20, which I promptly did. However, this camera can only be described as awful. It was …

Bored? Like Doctor Who? Wanna be an artist?

Yes? well, you are in luck! Scary Beasties have launched an application aimed at adults who are wanting to colour in everything from Daleks to Cybermen. Out now for Android devices and iOS devices. The application has 45 images ready to be coloured in regardless of your sense …

Eve “crowd sourced” computer close to being launched. UPDATED

Since the initial publication of this article, I have been given some new information that is relevant. All the updates are in Italics Some of you may have come across a company called Eve (not the game!). Last year they launched a tablet that was designed to be …

Three Feel At Home – Speeds abroad on test

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 …

Cheotech USB Type C Keyring adapters – Review

So, you’ve got yourself one of the newest phones on the market with all the fancy pants features that you want. It is all going swimmingly. You’re downloading apps, getting it all just so. Then, without warning, up pops the all too familiar sign on the screen saying …

New Virgin Media TiVo box teased

Virgin Media, the UK cable TV/phone/broadband provider, has just teased us with a new TiVo powered set top box which will be made available to its cable TV customers later this year. Current details of the Virgin Media TiVo V6 are scarce, but we do have a pretty …

Three increase Feel at Home to 42 locations

Three were caused shockwaves in the industry when they originally announced “Feel at Home”. The roaming offer let’s you use your calls, texts and data in selected foreign countries, just as if you were home. Over time more and more locations have been added so customers can enjoy …

Google Maps update brings WiFi only mode and save to SD card function.

I’ve been an Android user since my first T-Mobile G1 way back in 2008, and as such watched and used Google Maps through its iterations and updates: the introduction of free navigation, the ability to download certain area’s for offline use, etc etc, with each iteration making improvements …

Want to look like you’ve just stepped off the USS Enterprise?

On Sunday I mentioned a particular YouTube channel that I like to follow (in addition to our rather fantastic channel, which you absolutely must follow too). It’s from a guy called Mat, who is known on YouTube as Techmoan. He also has a website, called Techmoan.com, and you …

Fancy playing your MP3’s in an 8-track player from the 1960’s?

Well no. Not many people have thought about doing this, I’m sure, but I’ve got in the rather geeky habit of following the Techmoan YouTube channel and his most recent video features a rather old piece of technology from the 1960’s called the “8-track”. The 8-track cartridge or …

KnowRoaming now offering unlimited data in over 90 countries

Remember that clever KnowRoaming sticker that we tried out? It sticks onto your existing SIM card but, when you go abroad, it’ll let you roam without that bill-shock problem. Now, for $7.99 (which is £6.09) per day, you can get completely unlimited data in places like Canada and …