Let’s face it, part of the enjoyment of owning a good mobile phone is using it to play games. You can grab a quick fun session while waiting for your boyfriend/girlfriend to finish shopping, while attending a boring lecture or the famous “checking email” maneuver when sitting in a lomg company meeting. Oh, you can play any other time too!

Our list will cover the most popular ones plus a few that you may or may not have heard of before, but as far as fun factor, they rank right up there with the biggies.

Any Rovio game
For newbies, the game developer Rovio doesn’t mean much, but to half a billion people around the globe, it means one thing: Angry Birds! These games are simple physics-based action puzzles featuring various birds with special powers.

They are launched from a slingshot and barrel into various obstacles in order to eliminate dastardly green piggies, free other birds or perform acrobatics in space. Various iterations of Angry Birds include the original title, Seasons, Rio, Space, Angry Birds Star Wars, and Angry Birds Friends.

Other fun titles from Rovio include Amazing Alex and Bad Piggies More...

Whether you own a tablet, mobile phone or media player the first accessory that you’ll consider purchasing for your electronic gadget is probably a screen protector. They come in all shapes, sizes, and price ranges. But are the cheap ones any good, when compared to products that cost much more?

What are they?
Most screen protectors are made from thin sheets of urethane-based plastic that are cut to size to fit different devices. These sheets are applied with or without an adhesive and attach directly to the display. The original purpose for this tough film was for military use, but was adapted for consumer applications later.

Screen protectors help to minimize the effects from daily wear and tear, and also act as a shield to prevent accidental scratching from sharp or hard objects such as keys or coins.

Smartphones
Screen protectors for mobile phones are numerous and tracking down a good one is no small feat. Mainline accessory producers such as Belkin sell these items for $12 and up, while less expensive alternatives can be found on eBay or Amazon.com, for a fraction of the cost, from third party sellers. More...

For all Android lovers, Google Play, formerly known as the Android Market Place, is the lifeline for downloading music, videos, games, and apps. The number of Android apps has grown tremendously over the past few years and now numbers over 700,000. That’s a lot of apps!

But with so many to choose from and many of them duplicating each other, which apps should you install on your Android devices to improve them? We’ve made a short list of five of our favorites and checked it twice.

The following apps were selected for their ability to perform their tasks well, ease of use, features, style, and overall ease of getting things done. More...

For mobile phone aficionados, information on which models are the best can be used as a reference point for making intelligent decisions regarding the sort of features they would want in selecting a new smartphone.

In part 1 of “Flagship Phones,” we covered the devices from Apple, BlackBerry, and Motorola. In part 2, we’ll go over the cream of the crop from Samsung, Nokia, and HTC.

HTC One
The long awaited flagship phone from HTC has arrived and T-Mobile is the first wireless carrier, as of the time of this writing, to carry it.

The HTC One is a thing of beauty and sports an all-aluminum case, super thin profile, a Snapdragon 1.7 GHz quad-core processor, 32 or 64GB of internal storage, 2GB of RAM, 4.7-inch full HD display with 468 pixels per square inch, Android OS with HTC Sense, and the new UltraPixel camera with super-sensitive light sensors. More...

Usually, this type of hype and excitement about the launch of a new smartphone is usually reserved for iPhones, but “the times are a-changin’” and HTC’s One has created a buzz that even Apple would be envious of.

It’s here!
T-Mobile announced today on its website that “the one you’ve been waiting for” is finally here. And that “one” is HTC’s One flagship smartphone. Preliminary reviews of this device have been very high, and users have been anxiously waiting for its arrival.

Even some who would never even consider purchasing an HTC phone are looking forward to getting their hands on one, and there are good reasons for this; the HTC One is a stunning looking smartphone that has features that will make any gadget fan happy. More...

Although it may seem odd to those who live and breathe cell phones, some people want simple mobile phones. Some scenarios include those who only need them to call for help in case of emergency, individuals who are baffled by high tech but like the idea of having a mobile phone, and for those who just want something simple and low cost.

But with current phones that sport quad and even eight core processors, it is increasingly difficult to find plain vanilla devices. But they are out there and we’ll list a few of them for those who want to get one for their mom, dad, aunt or uncle.

Flip phones
The flip phone (“Beam me up Scotty”) was the prevalent style only a few years ago, but has almost been totally replaced by iPhone-styled devices from virtually all cell phone manufacturers. Interestingly enough, many of the simple mobile phones available today incorporate the flip phone design—go figure. More...

As a company expands, its needs for cutting edge technology also grow, and the eventual phasing out of old electronics will eventually happen.

BuyMyTronics, part of the GameStop network, understands this and has just launched its Enterprise Buyback Program to address the issue of recycling old devices, which will help to cut down the e-stream, and also benefit businesses, both large and small, by recouping part of the purchase price of their decommissioned electronics.

The way it works
The lifeblood of any successful corporation is effective business communication. Employees use mobile phones, tablets, and laptops to process orders, contact clients, generate marketing campaigns, and a host of other essential functions important to the growth of a company. More...

Since the iPhone first launched in 2007, the device has taken the world by storm and has been a consistent top seller in the smartphone industry. But in spite of the popularity of the iPhone throughout the years, Apple’s competitors have been constantly challenging the iPhone for market share.

We’ll go over some of these alternatives to the iPhone and give a quick overview of each one, their advantages, and who may want to purchase them.

Samsung Galaxy S4
Of all of Apple’s rivals, Samsung is the one company that gives Apple the most worries because of the South Korean smartphone manufacturer’s constant drive to overtake Apple as the world’s number one phone company.

For anyone looking for a solid performer in smartphones, the new upcoming Galaxy S4 is something to definitely look at, literally, because it sports a huge Super AMOLED 5-inch HD screen. The display has 16 million colors available at its beck and call, and a resolution of 1080 x 1920 pixels for super sharp detail, color, and contrast.

If you are someone who wants to use a smartphone as a primary way to view video content, for playing video games or surfing the Internet, the Galaxy S4 fits the bill nicely. More...

In October 2011 Samsung released the largest smartphone display of any phone manufacturer; it was called the Galaxy Note and had a screen size of 5.3-inches. Detractors of the new device called it a “phablet” because it was in a no-man’s land that placed its functionality somewhere between a phone and a tablet.

Critics were quick to dismiss this gargantuan phone and predicted its early demise. However, Samsung had the last laugh and has sold over 10 million units.

The latest one from Samsung, the Galaxy Note 2, has an even bigger screen measuring 5.5-inches. We’ll go over the latest specs of this phone and also pick up on recent rumors regarding the next iteration: the Galaxy Note 3.

Size matters
The Galaxy Note II was released in September 2012 and is the newest model, at the time of this writing, in the Galaxy Note line of smartphones from Samsung. Since its release there have been over 5 million units sold.

While a small segment of industry pundits have voiced their disapproval on such a gangly device, the Note has garnered a loyal customer base and has proven that there is a market for oversized smartphones. The Galaxy Note sports a 5.5-inch display. More...

Every year the electronics industry comes together to show off all of the advancements made, and to share in the celebration of innovation, technology, and cutting edge inventions. They call it CES. For the second year in a row, BuyMyTronics made the trek to Las Vegas to see what the future of electronics will have to offer, as well as learn more about what great eco-friendly products will be entering the market very shortly. Here are some of our highlights from our visit.

More...

By Frank Ling

The last two months have turned out to be really exciting for electronics fans not only because of the debut of Apple’s iPhone 5, but also because of the enormous amount of new hardware that has been unveiled to the public.

We’ll go over the highlights regarding all the new devices and show that there was news outside of the launch of the iPhone 5!

Nokia Lumia 920 and 820
Up first are two of Nokia’s newest Windows 8 powered smartphones—its flagship Lumia 920 and its little brother, the Lumia 820.

The Lumia 920 has a good deal of features that include a 4.5-inch PureMotion HD+ display with a resolution of 3264 x 2448 pixels, a 1.5GHz dual-core Snapdragon processor, an 8.7-megapixel rear-facing camera, wireless charging pad, and Nokia’s signature colorful polycarbonate case bodies.

The Lumia 820 has many of the features of the 920 with the exception of a smaller display of 4.3-inches, a smaller battery capacity, and smaller overall case dimensions. More...

By Frank Ling

Getting a cool new smartphone is great, but there are additional charges that aren’t always apparent, especially for individuals who have never owned one of these devices before--wireless carriers require a mandatory data plan with the purchase of a smartphone, and these fees can range anywhere from $30 a month or substantially more.

There are “unlimited data plans” offered but as we’ll see, many of them aren’t really unlimited at all, but have serious restrictions. We’ll try to lift the fog on these plans and see which ones are really unlimited.

What’s a data plan?
A data plan is a service you buy from the wireless carrier that enables you to connect to the Internet with your smartphone. You can surf the web, watch videos, listen to music, shop on the Internet, view content, and just about anything else you’d be able to do on an Internet connected computer – just on a smaller scale.

Data plan prices
Data plan prices vary according to the amount of bandwidth or data you want to use per month. A basic 2GB per month plan will allow you to watch 2 HD movies, 5 hours of TV shows or download 41 music albums. These plans start at around $30 per month from most carriers. More...

By Frank Ling

As new models for smartphones come out every few months, the costs of owning one of these cool devices may seem out of some people’s price range and budgets. But not all is lost because you can buy a good one for just under $50, believe it or not.

iPhone 4

If you don’t mind last year’s tech but still want to own one of Apple’s most successful products, you can pick up an iPhone 4 for the price of $49.99 with a two-year contract, and applicable data plan through Best Buy stores.

The iPhone 4 has an abundant supply of features for any potential smartphone customer. It has a great easy to use interface, is relatively speedy, fun to use, and has access to the iTunes store where tens of thousands of apps are available for downloading.

Some of the tech specs for the 8GB iPhone 4 model are its super-sharp Retina display, 3.5-inch touchscreen, 960x640 resolution, 7-14 hours of talk time, up to 300 hours of standby time, Bluetooth, GPS, Wi-Fi, 8GB storage, 5-megapixel camera, LED flash, HD video, and 1 GHz Cortex-A8 processor. More...

By Frank Ling

At one time or another you’ve probably heard about devices called unlocked phones. If you’ve wondered what they are, what unlocked phones do, and where to get one, you’ve come to the right place.

We’ll give you information about how much they cost, who may need one, and what the benefits of owning one are. So if you want the key to finding out what unlocked phones are all about, keep on reading!

Two standards
Mobile phones that can be connected to different wireless carriers are called unlocked phones. These phones accept SIM cards from any mobile phone company as long as they operate on compatible mobile networks. About 99% of the world operates on the GSM network standard.

In the U.S. the major wireless carriers that operate on GSM are AT&T and T-Mobile, while Verizon and Sprint run on the CDMA network. All unlockable phones are GSM phones and use SIM cards, while CDMA phones do not.

On the flip-side locked phones are devices that are "locked" to only one wireless carrier and cannot be switched to another company. So if you own an AT&T locked phone, it cannot operate on T-Mobile, Verizon, or any other network except AT&T. Virtually all mobile phones sold by wireless carriers are locked. More...

By Frank Ling

Many of us don’t give a second thought to how we carry around our mobile phones. They’re usually tucked away in a pocket where they’re susceptible to all types of damage from loose change, house keys, and other objects. Purses also contain their own little shop of horrors to mar and scratch cell phones.

Tablets fare a little better because most users buy an aftermarket case or screen protector. But after a while, the care for a new device starts to get more casual and the dings and dents start to accumulate.

Keep your machine clean and pristine
The thought of keeping our electronics neat and clean isn’t the highest priority for a lot of us, but the benefits of doing so can mean extra cash in your pocket when you trade them in. All it takes is a little care, a few dollars of investment, and a little foresight on what these preventive measures can do for you.

Buy an outer shell
Whether you have a tablet or a mobile phone, a small investment in the purchase of a protective case covering can not only help you to preserve the new look of your device, it can also save it from minor damage related to slippery fingers syndrome or the occasional accidental drop. More...