Category: General

Apple officially acknowledges iOS ‘1970 date’ bug

It’s been a bad few weeks for Apple with numerous bugs and issues being identified. Last week we highlighted another issue with the iOS platform developed by Apple. The 1970 bug we highlighted has now been acknowledged by on the official Apple Support website with an update posted …

Tech Armor Premium Micro USB cable – Review

Cables. To be honest you’ve probably got a quite a few. However, after a bit you may have a frayed, bent or broken cable. Tech Armor, who I will probably spell correctly at some point in this review (it should be Tech Armour of course) have taken the …

Wait, we have to even make this a thing?

When my local police force retweeted it, I honestly thought this was a joke. Do people actually do this? Would anybody be so stupid? Sadly it seems that yes, there are people who do this. It’s not just watching movies or TV shows – something I see truck-drivers …

Centriphone – The olloclip gets dizzy

The boys at olloclip have been trying to get our attention for a while now. First they sent a video showing how “Chelsea Bell” promotes her swimwear line using the clip-on lens, but we said, “No, that’s just gratuitous, our readers won’t be interested in that, even if …

Smartphone app now used to check Ford car quality

Manually checking cars at a highly advanced car factory in Valencia might sound old-fashioned, but this is how Ford maintains quality at the plant. Until fairly recently, these checks were recorded on a bit of paper, and then workers had to walk to a central point to record …

Breaking News – iOS date change bug renders devices unusable

Information is still extremely limited due to the nature of this bug, but it would appear a simple date change on your iOS device will render the device useless. Any iOS device powered by A7, A8, A8X, A9 or an A9X chip is affected. Those with a 32-bit …

Hey. We need you.

I absolutely hate doing this, but we’re left with pretty much no choice. You may remember the problems we had getting to Mobile World Congress. Our advertising revenue will pay for the flights and it would’ve paid for accommodation, but due to this being pulled at the last …

What is your dog saying? Find out with WhatsYapp

First up, that’s an obvious click-bait headline, but sadly – that’s the way the internet works. I could’ve made it a bit better by adding, “Listen to your dog, you will be shocked!” Anyways, let me give you an insight into running a website like this. See, we …

New EE SIM only plans go official

Remember those all new SIM only EE plans we leaked last week? Well, we said they’d launch on February 10th, and guess what, here they are. The big sell here is that the new 4G SIM-only plans now have inclusive calls and texts when you’re in the EU, …

Ubuntu on a tablet? Yes please, I will have some of that!

You may remember I tested a few Ubuntu phones last year and I was a little underwhelmed with it. I felt that the software needed a bit more work to give it enough pizazz to take on the likes of Android and iOS in what is already a very …

LG G5 rumour roundup

It’s been apparent for a while that you don’t really have a product to release if there aren’t leaks of it before you’re ready to announce. This time it was LG’s turn with the up and coming LG G5, due to be announced on Feb 21 (the same …

The Connected Sleeve – Charge your phone in the case!

De Rigueur have launched a new product on Kickstarter called the Connected Sleeve, which is a wireless charger embedded inside a handmade leather case for your phone. The cases have been designed specifically by the French designer De Rigueur. The Connected Sleeve received a CES Innovation Award at Las …

Get 2GB extra Google Drive space for absolutely nothing

Sure, it’s not exactly a huge amount of storage, but it’s a whole lot better than not having any extra and it takes just seconds to grab. All you need to do is head here and review your Google Account settings. It’ll run through the apps and devices …

Android Turing Phone now with less Android

I have a thing for the weird and occasionally wonderful. The Turing Phone sits in the first category, and I am sincerely hoping that it will fall into the second category. Google, and by extension, its Android partner ecosystem weren’t afraid to try new things in the early …

Kingston Digital announces two new versions of MobileLite Wireless

When you think memory card solutions, Kingston Digital will no doubt be on your list. Today, Kingston Digital announce two additions to its Wireless family with MobileLite Wireless G3 and MobileLite Wireless Pro. The MobileLite Wireless G3 provides users an extra power boost whilst out and about with its …

Zentree – Fixing your cabling nightmare

Yeah. This is me. This is my problem in a nutshell. We have a “place” in our kitchen where we charge the gadgets during the day. In this “place” you’ll find a USB charging station and random cables dangling all over the shop. Then, just to add to …

Three gives 200MB free data to mobile broadband customers

Fancy getting yourself some free data? Who wouldn’t eh? Three are now offering up a whizzy new mobile broadband deal which will give you 200MB of free data every month. The Data Reward plan give you that “always on” vibe without the need to be tied into a …

A Review of the Kitsound Trail Wireless Earbuds 

Here’s a neat option of those who like to listen their music whilst they exercise; the Trail Sports Wireless Earbuds from KitSound. The Age Old Problem I was cautious when approaching this review as I generally don’t get on well with earbuds, but in for a penny, in for a …

O2 and Three customers could have their bills frozen for years

The O2 and Three merger has been going through a bit of a rough patch recently, with both Ofcom the European Commission raising concerns over the potential deal. They’re basically worried that a new amalgamated network would mean a worse deal for the customer, with less choice, higher …

Google Play Music + Podcasts

A long time ago (in a galaxy far far away… no, not really) in the early days of Android, there was an app called Google Listen. This was one of the earliest podcasts apps. It was really popular and I used to really like it. Why? Because it …

PK K1 USB 3.0 drive review

Here at Coolsmartphone towers, a number of us use Chromebooks. I’m writing this from my Asus Chromebook Flip, which is a gorgeous device with its flip screen and brushed aluminium body. But the main problem with Chromebook is their lack of internal storage. It’s generally limited to a paltry …

Microsoft swipes SwiftKey. We have the exclusive boardroom transcript *

Well. I guess there’s some sort of logic to this. Perhaps there was a meeting at Microsoft that went something like this… “Hey guys, you bought Swype didn’t you?” “No, not yet. We bought Skype…” “Ohh bugger. I thought we’d bought that software keyboard company…” “No, we were …

ORSTO Smartwatch with 7 month’s battery life revealed.

I have always worn a watch. I have a weakness where watches are concerned. Tie that in with my love of technology and the smartwatch is my perfect device. However, I love the classic watches. There’s just just something about a mechanical time piece.. watch lovers will understand… …

WhatsApp grabs one billion users

Well, personal experience already led me to think that WhatsApp was becoming pretty commonplace, but now we’ve got the figures to back it up. The messaging app now has one billion users sharing 42 billion messages per day, 1.6 billion photos and 250 million videos.   To get an …

Mobile World Congress 2016 from Coolsmartphone

Followed us for a while? You’ll probably be aware of Mobile World Congress. Each year in Barcelona the latest and greatest mobile kit gets shown off to the masses for the first time. It’s a frenzy of hastily-built stands, canapes, demonstrations and thousands of people from the mobile …

Mobile Phone sales compared for 2015/6

In the last week or so we’ve seen a number of different companies release their 2015 sales figures.  Any guesses who was the highest selling manufacturer of 2015??  Read on and all shall be revealed… Perhaps the biggest, or at least most cited, story last week was the …

Sky reveals its pricing for new Q platform

Last November Sky took the wraps off its new TV platform and box – the evocatively named ‘Q’.  The main selling point, aside from the new 4k-ready box with increased storage, was the way in which content could be streamed to a variety of devices, including the ability …

Leak – EE SIM Only plans get an overhaul

Three have caused a right old ruckus by tweaking their plans recently and now EE are at it too. However, it looks like this change will actually be quite beneficial for some and perhaps not so much for others. We’ve got a naughty picture from an EE shop …

Three cut off any remaining unlimited tethering customers

You’ve probably read about this one already, but it’s a sign that even Three – that once great data leader – has had to trim back on a few data-hogs. It’s a problem all networks have had – a few customers just tearing through data and causing a …

Microsoft Lumia 650 incoming but later than we thought

Microsoft is pushing out a new mid-tier device that is going to be aimed at the business sector, however, we are hearing stories that the expected launch date has been moved from the beginning of February to the middle of the month. The phone sports some fairly basic …

iClever FM Transmitter IC-F40 – Review

Imagine the scene. You’re driving along and you put the radio on. You tune around, but every station is either pumping out the same tune or there’s a never-ending barrage of adverts for local window companies and the like. You dig around your CD’s but they’re either scratched …

Charge your phone and automatically back it up. MEEM Reviewed.

I’m terrible at backing things up. I mean, really terrible. I like technology because it makes my life easier, but sometimes it does make you a tad lazy. Backing up the photos, videos and messages isn’t too difficult if you’re technically aware. You can hook up your Google …

We want to pimp something. Could you vote for us?

The other night I had a sudden realisation. Since 2003 this lovely website has been on the t’interwebs. We’ve been around the world. We’ve seen smartphones grow from clunky devices with tiny screens and terrible battery life to bigger devices with terrible battery life. I’ve actually been writing …

devolo dLAN 1200+ WiFi ac Powerline Adaptor – review

Powerline adaptors that allow you to extend your network have been around for a while, and potentially provide the perfect way to extend your network range. When these first launched on the consumer market, I purchased a pair to extend my extremely poor WiFi coverage. My home WiFi …

Google updates its Now Weather app

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 …