Category: General

CES – Nokia 215 announced. Welcome back, Microsoft smartphone

Anyone remember Microsoft Smartphone 2002? How about the Orange SPV? It was a honest-to-goodness phone, with a numeric keypad and a colour screen running a Microsoft mobile OS. Now, just 13 years later, Microsoft have announced their most affordable internet-ready smartphone which runs… err.. the Nokia Series 30+ …

About our Podcast

You may have noticed that over the past two and a half years we’ve been publishing a podcast every week. We’re a bunch of the writers get together online and have a chat. A chat about the current weeks mobile news, what we’ve bought, what we’ve acquired, what …

Welcome back, here’s what you’ve missed

This week is going to be pretty busy, that’s for sure. International CES, the Consumer Electronics Show, kicked off yesterday. Over the years it’s been the launch-pad for devices like the HD TV, DVD, OLED TV and driverless car tech. As usual we’ll be bringing you all the …

Phones 4u stock getting auctioned off again online

If you’re after a PlayStation 3 console or some Beats headphones then the stock of the now-defunct Phones 4u is a good place to start. Starting tomorrow with viewings at 10AM, the bidding starts now on the auctioneers website. There’s also Bluetooth headsets, smartwatches and tablets with pretty …

Welcome to 2015

With a lot of you no doubt nursing a very sore head I’ll try and keep this fairly brief. A lot of sites are already mentioning what’s “Next” and what to look out for in the new year, but I wanted to check with the important people who …

Anker 25W 5-Port USB charger on offer

You may remember us reviewing the 40 watt version of this earlier this year. Now the 25 watt version is discounted. Both basically present 5 USB ports for charging. You can then plug your phone, tablet, iPad, Bluetooth speaker and anything else that charges from USB into it. …

64GB microSD card deal

Earlier I spotted a 32GB storage card. However, you guys said I should be looking on MyMemory instead. So I did and, hey presto, this class 10 microSD popped up. It’s a 64GB this time and you can bag one for a mere £17.99 delivered. Oh, and a …

Nexus 6 availability update

The Nexus 6 has been plagued with availability issues both in the UK and on the other side of the pond. However upon checking the Play store today I saw that this is about to change. If you are wanting to get the Nexus 6 from Google direct …

First all stainless-steel smartwatch from Burg to launch at CES

  Dutch lifestyle designer and trendsetter, Hermen van den Burg announced yesterday that as part of the BURG Smatwatch Collection 2015 they are launching the worlds first all stainless steel smartwatch, the BURG® 27, at CES in January. Available in Stainless Steel, Rose Gold Stainless Steel IP, and Black Stainless Steel IP, …

It’s Christmas. Grab a bargain!

It’s Christmas Eve. Can you believe it? At this festive time of year we should stop and give thanks. Thanks to all the dedicated writers for keeping this site going, thanks to you guys for coming every day and thanks to all the press agencies, mobile makers and …

EE WiFi calling delayed?

Ever been stuck in an area with little to no signal at all but needed to make that all important phone call? Lets face it, we have all had this one time or another, and with WiFI being more widely available with even faster speeds than before wouldn’t …

Creating a low-level smartphone strap-on for your car

We’ve featured the READYACTION mount a number of times here. It’s basically a low-cost system for strapping your smartphone to your bike, yourself, your windscreen or anything else you fancy. Initially I showed how it could hold onto a digital camera via a chest-harness mount to film some …

Mobile phones are the most lost items on TfL

A revealing BBC article shows some of the weird and wonderful items lost on the transport network in London. The TfL Baker Street lost property office has been open for 80 years and houses breast implants, wedding dresses and huge amounts of umbrellas and keys. The top three …

Google pushes Android 5.0.2 factory images for 2012 Nexus 7

If you’re a listener to our fantastic podcast (if not you should be) this week you will hear me stating that the Android 5.0 lollipop update had ruined my 2012 Nexus 7. Performance-wise the device became really laggy. Well, it appears that Google has acknowledged the issues as …

iOS apps potentially to increase in the New Year

Some good news to cheer you up on these pre-Christmas days. As a recent adopter of iOS I’m surprised by how many ‘free’ apps there are, only to discover the numerous in-app purchases.  For those apps that you have to purchase from the outset, from 1 January 2015 …

Nexus 9 Keyboard Folio now available in the UK

The wait is over the Nexus 9 Keyboard Folio. It is now on the Play store along with the Magic Cover. They are available for £110 and £35 respectively. I have not had hands on with the keyboard but it does sound like it could genuinely make the …

Nexus 9 LTE available in the UK

Finally we are able to purchase a Nexus 9 LTE in the UK, but not from where you think. Amazon are currently showing that they have some Nexus 9 LTE variants in Black in stock.. Unfortunately since this screenshot was taken the price has gone back up to …

Moto G 4G, now on Three

Fancy a go on the Moto G 4G? How about getting your 4G fix from Three for no extra cost per month? The new Motorola handset is now available from the network with prices starting at just £16 a month, and there’s no up-front cost on that. If you …

Inateck card reader and hub review.

I have been sent through the Inateck card reader and hub with USB on the go support, for review. Lets start with the good and bad points. Good Points Small lightweight form factor. Soft plastic feel. loads of ports giving versatility. Powered/None Powered option. Bad Points Attached USB …

MiPow PlayBulb Candle review

In keeping with the theme of Christmas gifts, some more presents have arrived from the elves workshop. This time around it’s a candle that should bring some festive cheer to the cold dark days of winter. We recently reviewed the MiPow Playbulb Rainbow and we liked what we saw. …

Deal reached on UK “not-spots”.

It’s 2014 people. Granted, it won’t be for much longer, but let’s stay in the moment. I take a regular route to and from work. On my drive there’s always a section of the motorway that simply has no signal, so I have to tell callers, “I’m going …

Useless Christmas present ideas or a stroke of genius?

Like a great many tech fans, I’m always on the look out for interesting, innovative new gadgets.  I just spotted the following two products on the Expansys website but cannot decide if they’re totally pointless or the workings of a crazy genius. I believe we’ve covered then some …

Google maps getting two slick updates

We gotta hand it to them Mountain View folk, and the way both the ecosystem and the apps keep evolving. Google Maps never used to be my go-to application for turn-by-turn directions (telmap M8 was my personal favourite), but the way they have been iterating has been phenomenal. …

Huawei reveal the Honor 6 Plus

Stuffed with three, yes three, 8 Megapixel cameras, Huawei today unveiled its latest smartphone under the new Honor branding. Following on from the reasonably priced Honor 6, meet the new imaginatively named Honor 6 Plus. The new device’s unique selling point is it’s three 8 megapixel cameras. There’s two in …

Never Fall Behind with Smartphones

At the train station today I noticed a stack of people just staring at their phones. I was one of them, and if I’m honest I’ve become a phone zombie too. However, despite how mainstream mobile phones have become in society, many people don’t use them to their …

Now talk to your boiler

I know. We’ve now got to the point where we’re having to have a discussion with our own central heating. Thanks to Google Now working with those Nest thermostats, you can simply pick up your phone and say, “tweak my temperature to 22”. You’ll then hear your boiler …

MFX Glass Screen protector for Nexus 6

You’re sitting there on Christmas morning and you’ve just received a new smartphone. It looks brilliant in that pristine just-out-of-the-box way. You are concerned though, as you’re worried about taking it into the great outdoors without wrapping it up in cotton wool or perhaps oversized bubble wrap. Just …

BT in talks to purchase EE

The fight, we thought, was between O2 and EE for the pot of money being waved around by BT. There was also some discussion that Three were possibly going to make a surprise outside purchase of either one to consolidate their holdings. It seemed to make sense to …

That’s it, I’m jacking it in

Seriously? I’ve spent about 12 years writing about smartphones. It all started off with the Microsoft Smartphone, then Windows Mobile, then Windows Phone and now it’s all seemingly going around in a big fat circle with Windows 10 Mobile. That’s not my beef though. I’m not even in …

WhatsApp on top of your lap – or just on your laptop?

Heck its been a long time coming – and it’s been wanted for a very long time. Who knows why it has taken so long, but we’re finally starting to see indications that WhatsApp may be coming to our desktops. So these hardcore guys over in the WhatsAPI-Official …

Why I have (hopefully temporarily) ditched Windows Phone for iOS…

Reader’s beware: this is very much a first world problem!  Nonetheless, for those interested in tech matters it is a real issue.  So, without further ado, here’s my story. Much has been written lately about long-time Windows Phone users switching to other platforms.  This article blames the update …

I can see a MIPOW RAINBOW

Remember out MIPOW PLAYBULB Review? Put simply, it’s a light bulb with a Bluetooth speaker inside. Not only that, but you can also control the brightness of the bulb with your phone. Now MIPOW have gone one further, releasing a new product called PLAYBULB Rainbow. This is another …

Olixar BabyBoom Wireless Mini Speaker

It’s that time of year where you start to panic about what to get for the slightly tech savvy people in your inner circle of family or friends. You have trawelled through all the usual shops. You’ve already emptied your wallet/purse and your credit card has melted from …

Galaxy Note Edge lands on Vodafone UK

Samsung recently announced the new Galaxy Note 4 smartphone which we all expected to see and had a rough idea what was coming. What we were not expecting though was the introduction of another Note handset, this time the Note Edge. AFter our up-close look we were then told …

Drivers fined for snapping photos whilst driving

Picture the scene. You’ve been held up in traffic for ages. You’ve got sunburn from the brake lights of the car in front. Eventually, after shuffling along on the motorway for what seems like hours, you see the cause of your misery. A truck, on it’s side and …

Orange Wednesdays – It’s all over

A lot of people chose EE and, previously, Orange, because of the Orange Wednesdays offer. It gave you two seats in your local cinema for the price of one and, if you got enough codes, you could take the entire family for half the price. EE continued the …

Production of the Nexus 5 finished

Google has confirmed that the Nexus 5 production has stopped, and… once they are gone, they’re gone, so we’d suggest people get them while they can. It was only yesterday that Google removed the listing of the the Red and White variants of the Nexus 5 from Google Play. The …

Vodafone extends 4G roaming destinations

This morning I walked through driving rain, freezing winds and complete darkness at 6.30AM. It was a delightful walk and just made me smile inside and out. However, if you want to swap this beautiful wind, snow, rain and hail for some horrible sunshine and irritating sandy beaches …