Tag: smartphone

Unlocked handsets could soon be the ONLY type you can buy

Regulator Ofcom is looking into a ban on the sale of phones which are locked to particular networks. Networks that currently don’t lock their phones include Sky Mobile, Three UK, iD Mobile, BT Mobile and giffgaff; but other networks do. The origins of this came from the fact that handsets …

OnePlus 7T Review – Part 3

It’s fair to say that I got a little distracted doing this review. It’s now three parts long (part one is here and part two is here), but I started writing this a month ago now. The truth? It’s become my daily driver. This is a stand-out phone, …

National Lottery celebrates 25 years, and people still queue!

Unbelievably, despite me being just 3 years old (cough), I remember buying a National Lottery ticket on the first ever draw. In 1994 I paid a whole one pound to have a go, and everyone I knew just assumed they’d win. They didn’t, I didn’t. The 45-million to …

Popularity of smartphone casinos is exploding in Japan

Been to Japan recently? No, me either, but a lot is changing. The number of smartphone users has grown from 52.83 million in 2015 to around 66 million now. Despite the proliferation of phones, it’s set to rise still further to around 70 million in a couple of …

I bought a car that I’d never even sat in

In the last year we’ve continued to see changes in our shopping habits. However, based on the recent Black Friday sales and a range of recent surveys, we’ve seen thing change far more than ever.. Payment Methods The traditional high-street has seen a huge amount of transformation of …

Driving the evolution of mobile phones

As we approach 5G, an entirely new realm of speed and efficiency is opening up to us. As much as this leap promises to offer, however, it also illustrates more of an expansion of what already exists than a complete reshaping of how our mobile lives operate. Despite …

Honor 9X now available in the UK

This phone is another one from the Huawei stable that has been announced already in China. Like the Huawei Nova 5T that we covered last week, this nips under the radar – just before the outright ban that Donald Tump imposed on Huawei and it’s subsidiaries. This ban …

Get the new X2 Pro right now!

We were at the launch of this, the X2 Pro and the X2 some weeks back and now the Pro is about to hit the streets. This morning it went on sale, and you can now buy the phone at realme.com in either white or blue for… 6GB+64GB …

The DOOGEE S68 Pro – Rugged with a triple rear camera

Want a smartphone with some muscle? DOOGEE have just launched this, the S68 Pro. It’s their latest device in the S range and has a Sony AI triple camera setup plus a super long-lasting 6300mAh battery. This is on sale today for $199.99 (approx £156) via the DOOGEE …

Got the original ASUS ROG Phone? You’ll be getting some lovely Pie soon.

The people at ASUS have just got in touch to confirm that their ROG Phone (the ZS600KL) will be receiving the Android Pie update very soon indeed. New features such as advanced user experience, fully customised themes, a redesigned on-screen navigation bar and adaptive battery power management are …

Best phones for gaming?

If you love to game, gamble and blast baddies away, then you’ll want a phone that can keep up with your demands. You’ll be needing a device that can do more than just update social media. You’ll need more horsepower, a better screen, excellent performance and a long-lasting …

Shadow comes out of the .. shadows. Smartphone gaming in the cloud.

With “cloud gaming” now becoming a hot topic in the Coolsmartphone office, we’re all waiting for Google Stadia. For £119 you’ll get a Chromecast Ultra and three months of Stadia Pro. It’s due to arrive on November 26th here in the UK, which really isn’t that far away …

A new slick smartphone for seniors. Meet the Doro 8080.

This is a new phone from the mobile phone company that is dedicated to helping seniors live a better life. Most modern phones are confusing and fiddly, so Doro is determined to deliver the same tech to the elderly but in a more approachable and simpler package. With …

How times change!

Those who visit here regularly might know that we’ve been online for quite some time now. We’ve seem the rise and fall of many mobile phone manufacturers over the years, even a few operating systems too. In all honesty, it looks like the next few months will be …

Using your smartphone for log management

I work in IT and I have a definite love / hate relationship with the infamous “Windows Event Viewer”. Log management has come a long way though, and you don’t just need to rely on the built-in tools as there’s now a variety of alternatives. That means that …

Hot trending apps to ease the boredom away

Got nothing to do? Got some time free? Waiting for a bus? Are you perhaps on a train, in a lift, on your lunch, in the coffee queue or waiting for a lift? Chances are, you’ll be looking down at your phone to soak up some free time. …

Realme X2 Pro – Up close and personal

OK, stop everything. Let’s talk pricing before we go any further. This has just been launched here in Madrid with a starting price of €399. €399! That’ll get you 6GB RAM and 64GB storage. Cheap. Really cheap. There’s an 8GB + 128GB version for €449 and a 12GB …

Live – Realme lands in Europe

We were in London just days ago at the OnePlus 7T launch and now we’re in Madrid. Arriving yesterday it was raining heavily, but the view this morning from our breakfast table is absolutely stunning. Today it’s the turn of Realme, who are hoping for an equally bright …

Preserving battery life on your smartphone

As you’ll have no doubt seen here at Coolsmartphone, there’s a definite increase in powerful gaming phones of late. They’re brilliant. There’s enhanced graphics capabilities, a number of faster processors and bigger, faster-charging batteries. However, if you’re trying to play a game on your phone which is both graphic and …

Stick a very small camera in your ear. Apparently.

You should see my inbox. It’s absolutely nuts at the minute. Outside, the world is going to hell in a handbasket. Inside, I’m getting emails asking me to publish stuff like this. Well, OK. I’ve cracked. I’ll pimp your utterly random and totally weird thing, because with the …

Realme X2 Pro on the horizon, looking good

Despite what people may say, here in the UK we’ll still be part of Europe no matter what happens. That, bear with me, matters because companies like Realme are heading to Europe and they’ve got some serious kit in tow. This, the Realme X2 Pro, is on the …

Microsoft are back in the phone game

A phone? From Microsoft? And it’s running Android? Are you having a laugh? Well yes, possibly, the release date on this is over a year away – Christmas 2020 – so whether the Microsoft Surface Duo and slightly larger Surface Neo will ever actually appear is up for debate, …

EarFun Go Bluetooth Speaker – Review

Priced at £35.99 on Amazon you might be thinking, “Oooh, that’s a bit much for a speaker”. Indeed, you can pay less for your next Bluetooth speaker, but – when you’re shopping on the internet – a lot of speakers do look the same. The sound and build …

Xiaomi go utterly bananas. Meet the Mi MIX Alpha!

It’s a concept phone, surely? You won’t be able to buy it.. will you? Oh wait. No, Xiaomi tell me that they’re going to start small-scale production of this one at the end of September! The Xiaomi Mi Mix Alpha is pretty much all screen. A 180% screen-to-body …

Mobile Phones: Is free really free?

The economy is tough all over the world and everyone is looking to save money. Whether you are buying food, filling your car up with fuel or grabbing clothes everyone is looking for bargains, discounts, and deals. The same is true for your mobile phone, with handset manufacturers …

Vodafone 5G expands further across Europe

Thanks to the many benefits of being in the EU, you can go abroad right now and benefit from inclusive roaming on your phone. If you’re on Vodafone, you get 5G roaming, and this has just expanded so that 62 towns and cities deliver the super-speedy system. Vodafone …

Retro-fitting wireless charging on your smartphone

You may have seen these floating around on Amazon (here) or eBay (here). For those of you, like me, who have a smartphone without the clever wireless charging, you can retro-fit this by slipping one of these between your phone and the case. It comes with a near-flat …

IFA – TCL brings us a Dotch-packing PLEX

Wait, who? Well, TCL were behind the re-emergence of the mighty BlackBerry. We had a look at their KEYone handset a couple of years ago and this year they showed off the new red BlackBerry Key2 and some very nice flexible screens this year. But what else have …

Trump knocks Huawei off the table in China trade talks

Whilst being “fully engaged” monitoring Hurricane Dorian at his Golf course in Potomac Falls, President Trump has somehow also found time in his busy schedule to talk about the continual teasing of Huawei. The President, who called a previous hurricane “one of the wettest we’ve ever seen from …

Did you relax on holiday? Many are still glued to their phones

Here in England we’re starting to see the onset of Autumn, with leaves only clinging on and the weather turning a bit cooler.  Our suitcases are still cluttering up the house though, because many of us will only just be returning from our summer holidays. But, is it …

Honor 20 Pro – First Impressions

Now, normally this is where I would be talking about the unboxing of a new phone and would introduce you to video where I do just that. However, in the case of this phone, I’ll be doing something more. The reason is quite simple. It has been done …

ByteDance getting into the smartphone business

Given the difficulties currently being experienced by Huawei when it comes to the American and European markets, it’s likely that we’ll soon be one major smartphone developer down. Huawei will be able to continue trading within their home country of China, but without access to Android’s operating software …

Smartphones – Changing learning and teaching

Geez I’m old now. I mean, proper old. When I was at school, if our class was given an essay to write or a book to review, there was no easy way. No simple research option. No, you had to read the book, you had to go to …

Nubia – Dual-screen smartphone? Look over here!

With LG teasing a dual-screen V60 ThinQ at IFA, the guys at Nubia want you to remember the fact that they’ve already shown one off. The Nubia X appeared at CES, but now they’re bringing that same dual-screen technology to the new Nubia Z20, and it’ll be available …

Parental Control apps to monitor usage

The internet can be a dark place. As we have now transitioned into our digital world, we’ve also had to wrestle with its complexities. The number of children using the internet grows each day, and the younger children are, the more likely they are to use the internet. …

Honor juggle their marketing messages

There has always been a perceived notion amongst the older generation that young people use their phones too much. On the flip-side, the younger generation seem to think that the older generation don’t use them enough due to lack of understanding. This, as with most perceived notions, is …

VRJAM to launch a Virtual Reality Revolution

From what I can see, this looks to be bringing the world of “Ready Player One” to the masses. Whack your VR headset on and jump into a live, streamed virtual experience. Called VRJAM, it a real-time augmented reality streamed performance, with you being able to take part …

OPPO Reno 5G arrives on EE

As expected, the rather cool OPPO Reno 5G has now made it’s way to the EE website in both ocean green and jet black. You get 256GB of on-board RAM, a healthy 4065mAh battery to keep things ticking along and, of course, that 5G capability. Other specs include …