A few months ago I had “a few beers” after taking the kids to the pub (always good in the sunshine – they can go in the pub garden on the swings and you can have a refreshing pint). On the way back I decided to use my …

I don’t get this. Sorry. I know it’s good and that, but if I’m writing for this particular website and want to come up with a word meaning “fantastic” but, different, I could just go to thesaurus.com and get words like “awesome”, “superb”, “unreal” or “marvelous”. However, if …

I use a Chromebook. It’s a Samsung Chromebook which is quite highly spec’d but, when it went on sale, it was priced too highly and didn’t sell that well. I gave it a few years, and after swearing at my Windows laptop for the six millionth time, I …

We get a lot of these. Basically, when you’re walking around or away from a mains socket or far away from that cigarette lighter in you car, you can get a boost with a portable battery like this. Yes, it’s a bit heavy and a bit clunky but …

The achillies heel of the modern smartphone is battery life, hence the multitude of battery packs and third-party battery boosting cases flooding onto the market. It’s solved a problem, but you’ve had to get that solution from elsewhere. Now Apple has finally decided to step into the battery …

Dude. Let me set your expectations right now. This is £11.95. No. It’s not going to be challenging your XBox or your PS3. In fact, it won’t challenge your Nintendo Wii U, or Nintendo DS… or Game Boy. Think back to those arcade games from the ’80s. This …

It’s that time of year again when we start looking to buy Christmas gifts for our loved ones, and I’m sure for some of you, technology and gadgets will feature heavily. There’s the small chance that some of you haven’t managed to get Christmas presents yet, but over …

Fancy one of these? The Microsoft Lumia 950, which is powered by a hexa-core Qualcomm Snapdragom 808 CPU and capable of achieving a 50% charge in just 30 minutes, is available for just £35 with a £9 upfront cost. That will provide 1GB of data, unlimited texts and 1000 minutes …

Being able to judge where the mobile market is going to be in 4 years time is just not possible in my book. This is an industry that moves quickly and sees manufacturers rise and fall with speed. Take HTC as an example, or Motorola, or Nokia. If …

Time for something a little different. The other week I had the pleasure of attending one of the ongoing Westminister e-Forums. These are a series of events in London where the various regulatory bodies that keep things working properly in the UK convene to discuss a wide variety …

During my time with Vodafone I got to speak to Dr Rob. This guy is a man after my own heart. He hates acronyms and over-complifications, prefering instead to break down the technology into easily understandable and enjoyable information. Dr Robert Matthews, to give him his full name, …

Part 1 – Setting the Scene Come around the winter fire kids! Let me tell you a story, this particular story is about my search for a work device without breaking the bank. I am an unashamed tech geek, I love things all bright and shiny. I love …

It probably hasn’t escaped your attention that there have been multiple events in the last few months. Apple started the rollercoaster unveiling the new iPhones & iPads. This was closely followed by a Google event unveiling its new Nexus phones (Nexii?) Chromecasts etc. There was also an LG …

The most annoying thing about trying to get a phone from OnePlus has been their insistence on using an invite system in order to allow you to buy one of their phones. It seems like there is some good news on that front as for the next few …

Now, I’m a bit of a sucker for beta software. I like it when I find an issue, or see a new feature. It makes the new shiny feel that bit newer, so Google betaing (yes, it’s not a word, but you get the idea) a new version …

Welcome to Episode 160 of the CoolSmartPhone Podcast. In this episode John is joined by Matteo (with a guest appearance by Gary) for tech filled chat as they discuss a number of topics including: Matteo’s awesome appearance on All About Android Xiaomi Redmi Note 2 Nexus 6P One Plus X The …

The rumour train has once again stopped by at Coolsmartphone Towers. It dropped off the usual detritus, however, whilst sifting through the rubbish we found this thread of info about the recently discussed Pixel C Android tablet. Dutch website tweakers.net are stating that Google plans to open the …

Have you been thinking to yourself, “It would nice to have a handset that didn’t require a backpack or a monolithic battery”? I had the thought occur to me the other day but then instantly dismissed it as nonsense and told my brain to behave itself. Of course bigger …

The latest craze to hit Britain is the Hoverboard/Self Balancing scooter (well it’s not really a Marty McFly Back To The Future-styled device. Think more along the lines of a skateboard with a buggy wheel at either end). Companies are trying to get cheaper and sleeker versions in …

This is the ZTE Axon Elite. It’s a big phone, with a 5.5” inch screen, and it doesn’t feel small in the hand. It shouldn’t either – there’s a lot packed under the hood of this ‘Ion Gold’ coloured beast. I’ve never had serious hands-on time with a …