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Vastking Kingpad M10 Review: A Budget Tablet Done Right

GadgetByte
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Vastking Kingpad M10 Review: A Budget Tablet Done Right

While Android is the most popular mobile operating system in the world, Android tablets haven’t quite hit the home run for a lot of users—one of the primary reasons being the lack of proper software optimization for the larger form-factor. On that note, I’ve got the new Vastking Kingpad M10 tablet in for review which I have been using for about a month now.

Manufacturers such as Samsung, Lenovo, Xiaomi, and others have been trying to keep the Android tablet market at a good pace. So, does Vastking’s new tablet provide this space a strong push? Let’s find out in this review.

Vastking Kingpad M10 Specifications:

  • Dimensions: 246.38 x 154.94 x 7.62mm, 450 grams
  • Display: 10.36″ IPS, 2K resolution (2000 x 1200), 60Hz
  • Software: Android 11
  • Processor: Unisoc T618 (12nm)
  • CPU: Octa-core (2×2 GHz Cortex-A75 & 6×1.8 GHz Cortex-A55)
  • GPU: ARM Mali-G52 MP2
  • Memory: 4GB RAM, 128GB internal storage (expandable up to 2TB)
  • Rear Camera: 13MP
  • Front Camera: 8MP
  • Connectivity: Bluetooth 5.0, Dual-band WiFi, 4G LTE, USB-C, SIM/microSD (Hybrid)
  • Audio: Quad-speakers, 3.5mm headphone jack
  • Security: Face unlock
  • Battery: 6000 mAh, 10W charging
  • Extras: Compatible keyboard
  • Price in Nepal: N/A (USD 229)

Vastking Kingpad M10 Review:

Performance

  • Octa-core Unisoc T618 4G (12nm)
  • 4GB RAM, 128GB storage (expandable)
  • Android 11

The M10 is available in a sole configuration with 4GB RAM and 128GB of internal storage. Thankfully, if 128 gigs of storage aren’t sufficient, you can upgrade it to 2TB with a microSD card. That reminds me, this tablet has a hybrid SIM slot, meaning you get to use either two nano-SIMs or configure it with a SIM and a microSD card.

Buttons and ports

Despite this, the Kingpad M10 is certainly not looking to be a laptop replacement. It is powered by the entry-level Unisoc T618 octa-core chipset—which is pretty much the same as MediaTek’s Helio G88. And it delivers respectable performance for everyday use.

Now, getting into its real-time performance, as I mentioned earlier, it can handle everyday lightweight tasks with ease and is well-optimized for multitasking as well—despite the minor hiccups every now and then.

Moreover, Vastking ships the M10 with stock Android 11 out of the box, which means no custom skin or bloatware apps on top. And the entire UI/UX seems quite streamlined as well. Also, I am delighted to report that the app load time on this thing is never unbearably slow like other budget tablets while its RAM management is excellent too. So, good job Vastking!

Gaming

With decent typical usage, I also tried playing a few games such as PUBG, Call of Duty Mobile, and Pokémon Unite here to test its gaming capability. Here, Pokémon Unite managed to provide consistent performance in Medium graphics, whereas PUBG Mobile yielded better results at Smooth graphics and High frame rates.

Likewise, the Call of Duty Mobile renders stable gameplay under Medium graphics and Low frame rate settings. To note, continuous gaming for about an hour or so gets it warm around the camera module at the back.

Overall, this tablet is a safe bet for folks whose primary requirements consist of watching videos, browsing the web, attending Zoom meetings, taking notes, and performing other basic everyday tasks. Still, I feel like its performance could’ve been noticeably better—especially in multitasking scenarios—if Vastking also had a 6GB RAM variant to offer. Unfortunately, you’ll have to make do with just 4GB.

Design

  • 246.38 x 154.94 x 7.62mm, 450 grams
  • Metal-plastic hybrid build material
  • Compatible with keyboard, case accessory

Anyway, let’s now focus on the design. The Kingpad M10 is a sleek device with squared-off edges and 7.62mm of thickness that weighs 450 grams. While the company claims to have a full metal body design, the back panel does have a plastic-made portion that catches fingerprints rather easily.

Vastking Kingpad M10 Design

That might be to conceal the antenna line since you can’t spot them at any other place in the tablet. Moreover, you can change this thing into a portable workstation by adding a keyboard deck which is obviously going to cost you extra pennies.

For further durability, you may also buy a screen protector, case, and other stuff directly from their site. In my case—pun intended—I have the case and keyboard, which really adds up to the overall experience.

The M10, when closed with a case and a keyboard resembles a small clamshell laptop. The outer top and bottom lids have a grey matte texture to them, while the interior holds and connects the tablet and the keyboard via a 5-pin magnetic connector.

Easy-to-do

Despite its compact body, this keyboard pretty much fits all the essential keys, including a row of specialized Function keys at the very top. As a result, I can alter the brightness and volume levels here the same way I would on a Windows PC.

Keybaord and Case

The buttons on this keyboard are obviously smaller than those on a laptop or a standalone keyboard, but they aren’t necessarily that difficult to get used to. Personally, it took me a few hours of office work to adjust to this layout. The keys aren’t backlit either, although they have excellent feedback and a good keystroke.

The touchpad, on the other hand, is rather small and is tough to get accustomed to—especially for someone like me who rarely uses one even on a laptop. Nevertheless, you can use it to scroll through web pages or over your social media feeds.

Display

  • 10.36-inches IPS, 60Hz refresh rate
  • 2K resolution (2000 x 1200 pixels)

Over on the display, you get a big 10.36-inch IPS panel with 2K resolution here. This touchscreen delivers clear and easy-to-read text and graphics although it isn’t as vibrant as an OLED panel.

Vastking Kingpad M10 Display

Plus, it does not support a higher refresh rate either, so if you’re coming from a 90Hz or a 120Hz panel, you’ll feel the difference right away. There’s also a noticeable delay in the app load time or when scrolling through the UI. Similarly, the screen’s brightness is adequate for indoor usage or on an overcast day, although the colors appear somewhat subdued under direct sunlight.

Moreover, like with other Android tablets, there are minimal options for customizing the home screen. But things are bound to change with the launch of Android 12L—a new operating system designed exclusively for tablets, foldable, and ChromeOS devices.

Anyway, this display has good viewing angles, so there’s no drop in image quality when looking at it from the sides. Unfortunately, because it is just Widevine L3 certified, you can only stream videos at SD resolution on OTT platforms like Netflix.

Audio

  • Quad-speakers, 3.5mm headphone jack

Headphone Jack

On the audio front, the Kingpad M10 has a quad-speaker configuration. While the specification seems appealing enough, the audio doesn’t get particularly loud, and neither can you enjoy deep bass here.

Despite this, the mids and vocals sound pretty clear—although it gets slightly murky when turning up the volume to the max. Similarly, it has a 3.5mm headphone socket on the rounded corner whose audio output is adequate too.

Camera

  • Single 13MP rear camera
  • 8MP selfie camera (landscape layout)

Now, let’s talk about the cameras, which certainly aren’t the best aspect of this tablet—or any other budget tablet for that matter. To be clear, you won’t be getting Insta-worthy photos but the M10 is capable enough to capture a few moments here and there.

Here, the images from the 13MP camera at the back have a reddish tint. And when zoomed in, their lack of detail doesn’t come as a surprise either. Similarly, it also struggles with exposure control, whereas its dynamic range is also among the worst on a budget tablet.

It’s the same with the selfie camera as well. The images from this 8MP sensor come off quite hazy along with an uneven contrast level. However, for indoor usages like online classes and meetings, it works just fine and the videos have boosted black levels.

This front-facing camera also supports face unlocks. For the most part, it works wonderfully during the day. Nevertheless, in a dimly lit environment, the camera expectedly has difficulty identifying your face.

Battery

  • 6000mAh battery with 10W charging

Moving on to the battery, the Kingpad M10 is fueled by a 6,000mAh cell, which is just about modest considering you can find Android tablets with a massive 10,000mAh unit as well.

With a full charge, I got about 6-7 hours of screen-on time here—where my usage consisted of attending 2-3 hours of online meetings, a few gaming sessions, browsing through social media, and other regular tasks.

Keyboard

On the contrary, its 10W charging is quite a disappointment as it takes almost three and a half hours to fully juice up the battery to 100%. Given the tablet’s big size, Vastking should have managed to fit in a 7,000mAh or bigger battery—or at the very least offered 15/25W fast charging capability. However, it falls short in both these areas.

Vastking Kingpad M10 Review: Conclusion

So wrapping up this review, the Vastking Kingpad M10 ticks most of the boxes for a decent budget Android tablet. True, it would have been even better if the company had included a larger battery and better cameras.

But for the most part, it’s a good go-to tablet—while the detachable keyboard accessory is sure to assist students or business owners to turn it into a portable workstation as well.

Vastking Kingpad M10 Review: Pros and Cons

Pros:

  • Metal body design
  • Decent 2K display
  • Keyboard works perfectly
  • Stock Android UI
  • Good for media consumption
  • Decent performance
  • Supports face unlock

Cons:

  • No high-refresh-rate display
  • Not so good cameras
  • Sub-par speaker setup
  • Comparatively smaller battery
  • Slow charging speed

MSI GP66 Leopard 11UG Review: Pure Performance

Pratima Adhikari
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MSI GP66 Leopard 11UG Review: Pure Performance

MSI sells all kinds of gaming laptops; from the lightweight ones under the “GF” lineup to the might powerful devices in the high-end “GP” and “GE” series. I have been using the new GP66 Leopard for almost a month now. And in this review, I’ll be sharing all my experiences with the MSI GP66 Leopard (11UG).

MSI GP66 Leopard (11UG) Specifications:

  • Design & Build: Plastic-aluminum hybrid build, 14.13W x 10.51D x 0.92H-inches, 2.38 kg
  • Color Options: Core Black (Matte cover lid with MSI Dragon logo)
  • Display: 15.6″ anti-glare IPS panel, 240Hz refresh rate, 72% DCI-P3, close-to 100% sRGB, 300 nits brightness, 3.5ms response time
  • Resolution: FHD (1920×1080) resolution, 16:9 aspect ratio
  • Keyboard: Full-size backlit per-key RGB SteelSeries keyboard
  • Trackpad: Glass multi-touch trackpad, Windows Precision drivers
  • Security: TPM 2.0 chip, No fingerprint sensor
  • Processor: Intel Core i7-11800H CPU (Tiger Lake), 8C/16T, 4.6GHz Max Turbo Frequency, 24MB Intel Smart Cache, 10nm process, 45W TDP
  • RAM: 16GB DDR4-3200MHz (2x 8GB), Up to 64GB
  • Storage: 512GB M.2 PCIe 4.0 NVMe SSD (2x M.2 slots total)
  • Graphics: NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3070 (140W), 8GB GDDR6 VRAM
  • Audio: 2x 2W speakers, Hi-Res Audio
  • Battery: 65 Watt-hours 4-cell Li-Ion battery
  • Power Supply: 280W Smart AC power adapter
  • Webcam: 720p HD camera, No physical shutter, Dual-array microphones
  • Connectivity: Killer WiFi 6E (802.11 ax), Bluetooth 5.2
  • I/O Ports: 3x USB 3.2 Gen 1 Type-A, 1x RJ45 (LAN), 1x HDMI 2.1, 1x Mini DisplayPort 1.4, 1x 3.5mm combo audio jack
  • Price in Nepal: Rs. 299,000 (i7-11800H, RTX 3070, 16GB RAM, 512GB SSD)
  • What’s inside the box: Laptop, power adapter, quick start guide

MSI GP66 Leopard 11UG Review:

Design

  • 14.13W x 10.51D x 0.92H-inches, 2.38 kg
  • Plastic-aluminum hybrid build quality

Starting with the design, as you can see, it’s quite a chonky unit. But thankfully, MSI has used a plastic-aluminum hybrid material to keep the weight to a minimum. At 2.38 kg—despite its aggressive look—the GP66 is actually lighter than the Omen 15 that I reviewed recently.

Still, coming from the M1 MacBook Pro, this is a far cry from an easily portable laptop for me. Regardless of its bold design, the GP66 doesn’t get the RGB encasement as the more expensive MSI GE76 Raider, but that’s fine by me. I’m a bigger fan of the subtlety anyway.

Its hinge is fairly sturdy for the most part but I did notice a considerable flex near the middle of the chassis. Also, while the company embraced a modern-looking 16:10 aspect ratio in its 2021 lineup of Creator laptops, this one still hosts a traditional 16:9 display. The side bezels don’t bother me as much but this chin is certainly distracting.

Oh, and before I forget—this hinge can’t lay 180º flat either. Thankfully, its beveled edges all around—complemented by a fairly blunt edge at the bottom of the keyboard deck means I’ve had zero discomforts when typing on this laptop for hours. Moving on to ports, MSI certainly could’ve done better though.

Not the best port selection

First off, there’s no USB-C connection at all—and all three Type-A connections are of the USB 3.2 Gen 1 protocol. And considering the content creation possibility of this machine, I would’ve liked to see a full-sized SD card reader as well.

Nevertheless, there’s a 3.5mm headphone jack and a Kensington lock slot over on the left while the back of the GP66 houses a Mini-DisplayPort 1.4, HDMI 2.1, an RJ45, and a power-in port.

Display

  • 15.6″ anti-glare non-touch FHD IPS panel
  • 240Hz refresh rate, close to 100% sRGB gamut

Getting to the display, MSI sells this laptop in three configurations: a 165Hz QHD panel, a 144Hz FHD panel, or a 240Hz FHD option, which is the one I have. And let me just tell you, I don’t know how I’m going to adjust to the MacBook Pro’s 60Hz refresh rate when I eventually get back to it.

MSI GP66 Leopard 11UG - Display 1

Everything is just so smooth on this thing that you’ll feel spoiled in a matter of hours. But if you’d rather have a sharper screen, I doubt the 165Hz refresh rate is going to feel significantly sluggish.

As expected, the sharper variant also boasts a better color coverage with 100% DCI-P3 gamut—while MSI promises 72% DCI-P3 and “close-to 100% sRGB” color space on the FHD models. And throughout my usage, this screen has fared me just fine. The colors look fairly saturated whereas thanks to its 291 nits of peak brightness, the laptop doesn’t struggle with maintaining visibility either.

However, the GP66 does suffer from a mild dip in color saturation levels when looking at it from extreme angles. I also noticed minimal screen bleeding on the bottom left edge of the display but it’s absolutely nothing to worry about.

More importantly, MSI has used an anti-glare coating to make sure the ambient light reflections don’t get too distracting. And because this is a gaming laptop, it boasts a minimal response time of 3.5ms only—which is something eSports players will certainly appreciate.

Keyboard

  • Full-size keys (by SteelSeries)
  • Per-key RGB lighting

Moving on, MSI has partnered up with SteelSeries to bring a per-key RGB keyboard on the GP66 Leopard. Customizing the lighting is also super easy—you can select from a bunch of pre-loaded RGB presets or tweak the individual keys the way you want.

Yet, the backlighting isn’t as well-implemented as I’d hoped for. You can clearly see that the secondary shortcut engravings aren’t as illuminating.

Ineffective backlighting

Plus, when setting its lighting to steady “White”, the keys look noticeably pinkish instead. But I feel like this could be solved with an update to the SteelSeries GG app. Anyway, I have nothing to complain about the keyboard feedback.

MSI GP66 Leopard 11UG - Keyboard

The keys are full-sized, well spaced-out, offer a decent travel distance, and there’s minimal flex on the keyboard deck. I also like the soft and silent sound profile upon their press which is a crucial thing to consider when using the laptop in a professional setting.

But as you can see, despite being housed inside a 15.6” chassis, there’s a dedicated Numpad missing here. On the contrary, MSI’s design language involves a wide flank on either side—on top of a subtle trough to prevent key-presses onto the display.

The Function and Control keys fused together has been a bit of a challenge to get used to—although I am thankful for these large arrow keys. All in all, I’m pretty fond of this keyboard in spite of a couple of dismissable flaws.

Trackpad

  • Glass trackpad with integrated left/right keys

The trackpad, on the other hand, could’ve been better. Feels like MSI should’ve pushed the keyboard deck a little higher to make space for a larger trackpad, but here we are. Also, while I’ve faced no trouble with palm rejection, I wished it was centrally aligned.

MSI GP66 Leopard 11UG - Trackpad

As a result, this glass-made trackpad has further strengthened my habit of sticking to a dedicated mouse. In addition, I find its feedback quite noisy. And it’s especially audible when I’m using multi-finger gestures. But that’s not to say there’s any issue with the gestures’ responses themselves.

Audio

  • 2x 2W side-firing speakers
  • Hi-Res Audio, Nahimic app

For audio, the GP66 Leopard brings dual stereo speakers with the driver units located on the lowermost portion on the sides. Therefore, the audio output doesn’t get as muffled here. But disregarding the supposed clarity, these stereo speakers still disappoint. Bass reproduction is completely absent while I find its instrument separation lackluster too.

After playing around with equalizers inside the Nahimic app, I did manage to get a slightly better sound quality from these speakers. But at the end of the day, it’s pretty clear that MSI has installed a mediocre sound setup here. Even its loudness doesn’t get up to the mark.

Webcam

  • 720p HD camera
  • No privacy shutter

And of course—this gaming laptop’s webcam isn’t that great. To note, the onboard 720p camera isn’t complemented by an IR sensor for Windows Hello login. But more importantly, the video quality from this webcam is below average. Subjects look way too grainy and it doesn’t handle exposure or dynamic range very well.

MSI GP66 Leopard 11UG - Display 2

I guess it’s fine for casual video calls. But I would suggest getting a decent external camera if you frequently attend Zoom meetings or online classes. Additionally, the audio pickup from its array microphones didn’t wow me as well.

Performance

  • Intel Core i7-11800H CPU (45W TDP)
  • NVIDIA RTX 3070 140W (discrete GPU)
  • 16GB DDR4 RAM, 512GB PCIe NVMe SSD

Okay, allow me to talk about the performance side of things now. I’ve been reviewing a bunch of gaming laptops recently—most of which were powered by an AMD processor. So the MSI GP66 Leopard with Intel’s 11th gen CPU has been a nice change of pace.

Here, my review unit has the Core i7-11800H CPU and RTX 3070 GPU with 140W TGP and 8GB GDDR6 VRAM. In terms of memory, it features 16GB DDR4 RAM in dual channel and 512GB M.2 SSD. This particular configuration goes for NPR 299,000 here in Nepal, some INR 180,000 in India, or some USD 1,700 in the US.

Different GPU configurations

While i7-11800H is the most powerful processor you can find for this laptop, MSI also sells it with RTX 3080 and RTX 3060 GPU. Luckily, both RAM and storage are easily upgradeable here. It hosts two SO-DIMM slots that can take up to 64GB DDR4 RAM, alongside two M.2 NVMe slots—one PCIe Gen 3 and one Gen 4. As for wireless connectivity, there’s Killer ax Wi-Fi 6E and Bluetooth 5.2.

MSIGP66Leopard11UG - Killer WiFi 6E

Before moving forward, I’d like to discuss the new “MSI Center”—which is a redesigned MSI Dragon Center that we’ve been familiar with over the years. From the looks of it, its UI/UX is inspired by the company’s own “MSI Center for Business & Productivity” app found in the Prestige and Summit lineup. And to be honest, I fail to understand this whole redesign shenanigan.

I mean, why would MSI want to strip away the gaming aesthetics of the app for a gaming laptop? Adding insult to injury is its ineffective and sometimes redundant layout as well. So I can only hope MSI pushes an update fixing all the issues at once.

Smooth sailing

Anyway, thanks to such powerful hardware underneath, it’s fair to say that the GP66 has simply sailed through my everyday chores. Even when using it under Silent profile that dials down CPU performance in favor of quiet fan profile, this beast has managed to keep up with all my office workloads.

This includes running a bunch of tabs on Chrome, attending a couple of Zoom meetings every now and then, typing up documents on LibreOffice, and light photo editing on Adobe Photoshop.

CrystalDiskMark
Read (MB/s) Write (MB/s)
SEQ1M Q8T1 1964.69 704.06
SEQ1M Q1T1 1275.59 166.46
RND4K Q32T1 299.73 184.16
RNK4K Q1T1 52.23 179.70
Cinebench R23
MSI GP66 Leopard (11UG) HP Omen 15 (2021)
CPU: Multi-Core 10811 11255
CPU: Single Core 1457 1343
MP Ratio 7.42x 8.38x
Geekbench 5
MSI GP66 Leopard (11UG) HP Omen 15 (2021)
CPU: Single Core 1515 1257
CPU: Multi-Core 8901 6971
Compute (OpenCL) 125139 108059

Unigine Heaven

(FPS: 169.1, Score: 4259, Min FPS: 9.8, Max FPS: 350.6)

API: OpenGL Multi-monitor: Disabled
Quality: High Anti-aliasing: x2
Tessellation: Extreme Fullscreen: Yes
Stereo 3D: Disabled Resolution: System
3DMark
Overall Graphics Physics Combined
Fire Strike Extreme v1.1 13156 13804 24816 6398
Fire Strike Ultra v1.1 6916 6798 24638 3549
Total Graphics CPU
Time Spy v1.2 10585 10724 9864
Blender (CPU)
MSI GP66 Leopard (11UG) HP Omen 15 (2021)
bmw27 3m38s 3m42s
classroom 10m4s 9m39s
fishy_cat 4m56s 4m50s
koro 7m12s 7m22s
pavillon_barcelona 10m20s 10m1s
victor 17m25s 16m14s

Intel processors have always been known for their superior single-core performance and the 11th gen H-series CPUs seem to have kept up this legacy. For this review of the MSI GP66 Leopard 11UG, I tried comparing its benchmark results with the closest AMD counterpart—the Ryzen 7 5800H. Here, we can see the i7-11800H posting better single-core numbers.

MSI GP66 Leopard 11UG - Design

However, the AMD CPU boasts better multi-core performance in most instances including Cinebench R23 and synthetic benchmarks like Blender.

Gaming experience

The MSI GP66 also keeps up its reputation when it comes to gaming—and it’s quite a capable 1080p gaming machine. Playing Cyberpunk 2077 at the highest settings with ray tracing set to Ultra, I graphed about 38-42 fps on average here.

Dialing ray tracing down to Medium gets you 46-51 fps instead. Likewise, Control is playable at its max graphics settings at around 60 fps on average while you can expect a stable 90 fps on GTA V.

1080p Gaming Benchmarks
Extreme Performance mode, Cooler Boost thermal control
Game Settings Average FPS
Cyberpunk 2077 Texture quality: High 38-42fps
Ray Tracing: Ultra
Texture quality: High 46-51fps
Ray Tracing: Medium
Control Texture resolution: Ultra 60fps
Ray Tracing: High
GTA V Texture Quality: Very High 90fps
Reflection Quality: Ultra
CS: GO Texture Detail: High 257-270fps
Anti-Aliasing: 8X MSAA
Valorant Texture Quality: High 180fps
Anti-Aliasing: 4X MSAA

Comparatively less taxing games like CS: GO fully utilize this 240Hz display since I got somewhere between 257 to 270 fps on average even at the highest settings. But it’s important to note that the frame rate would drop to as low as 203 sometimes. Similarly, Valorant manages roughly 180 fps on average at the highest graphics settings.

Impressive thermals

Apart from the stellar gaming performance, I’m thoroughly impressed with its cooling mechanism as well. Granted this laptop gets quite loud when tweaking its power drive to “Extreme Performance” and fan speed to “Cooler Boost”, that’s more than worth it considering the GP66’s comfortable gaming experience.

I mean, you’re likely to put on a pair of headsets when gaming anyway—that’ll ultimately drown out the fan noise. Throughout my experience, I noticed that the area above the keyboard deck gets the hottest while the keyboard itself doesn’t get that hot. To be fair, the middle portion is relatively warmer than the rest but I’d still label it under the “comfortable” category.

To achieve this, the GP66 Leopard has large air intake vents on the bottom. Complementing this are the exhausts are located on the sides and the back of the laptop. There are also 6 heatpipes in total drawing heat away from the CPU and GPU to make sure you have the most comfortable gaming experience.

Battery

  • 65 Watt-hour 4-cell battery
  • 280W AC power adapter

On the battery front, the GP66 delivers a pretty average result. Fueled by a modest 65Wh battery, I managed to get about 4-4.5 hours of screen-on time during my regular office chores, when using this laptop under Silent performance profile with brightness set to about 50-60%.

MSIGP66Leopard11UG - Charger

For running all the benchmarks and games, I had to set it to Extreme Performance mode which dramatically reduces the battery endurance. Besides, the GP66 Leopard fuels up via a massive 280W power adapter that takes about 2 hours to fill up the battery from 0 to 100%.

MSI GP66 Leopard 11UG Review: Conclusion

Summing up this review, the MSI GP66 Leopard 11UG pretty much nails all the primary aspects of an incredible 1080p gaming laptop. It quite literally has the most powerful mobile RTX 3070 GPU with 140W graphics power. Plus, the 11th gen Intel H-series CPU still slaps in terms of its gaming results.

Moreover, I’m quite amazed by the thermal solution on this thing as well since even prolonged gaming sessions aren’t thermally uncomfortable here. Having said that, there’s a definite bit of compromise on the tier-two features like audio, trackpad, and webcam quality on this laptop.

  • Watch our review video of the MSI GP66 Leopard 11UG.

MSI GP66 Leopard 11UG Review: Pros & Cons

Pros:

  • Fairly subtle design
  • Smooth 240Hz refresh rate
  • Excellent per-key RGB keys
  • Decent display quality
  • Powerful gaming performance
  • Efficient cooling solution
  • Average battery endurance

Cons:

  • Sub-par port selection
  • The hinge can’t lay 180º flat
  • Pretty crammed trackpad
  • Mediocre stereo speakers
  • Lackluster webcam quality

iQOO Z5 Review: No OLED, No Party

Nikhil Shrestha
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iQOO Z5 Review: No OLED, No Party

iQOO’s phones have mostly been known for their terrific performance and excellent value-for-money. And the new iQOO Z5 that I have with me is currently the most affordable Snapdragon 778G-powered phone available right now. Apart from the chipset upgrade, the company hasn’t really brought any other significant improvement compared to the iQOO Z3 from earlier this year. Allow me to discuss more on this review of the iQOO Z5.

iQOO Z5 Specifications:

  • Body: 77 x 165 x 8mm, 193 gm, Polycarbonate build
  • Display: 6.67-inches IPS LCD panel, 120Hz refresh rate, 240Hz touch sampling rate, Panda Glass protection, 100% DCI-P3, HDR10
  • Resolution: FHD+ (2400 x 1080 pixels), 20:9 aspect ratio
  • Chipset: Qualcomm Snapdragon 778G 5G (6nm Mobile Platform)
  • Memory: 8/12GB LPDDR5 RAM, 128/256GB UFS 3.1 storage (fixed)
  • Software & UI: Android 11 with Vivo’s Funtouch OS 12
  • Rear Camera: Triple (with LED flash);
    – 64MP, f/1.79 primary sensor, PDAF
    – 8MP, f/2.2 ultra-wide camera, 120º FOV
    – 2MP, f/2.4 macro lens (4cm focus)
  • Front Camera: 16MP f/2.0 sensor (punch-hole cutout)
  • Audio: Stereo speaker setup, 3.5mm headphone jack
  • Security: Side-mounted fingerprint sensor, Face unlock
  • Sensors: Accelerometer, Ambient Light, E-compass, Gyroscope, Proximity
  • Connectivity: Dual-SIM (Nano), WiFi 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac (Dual-band), Bluetooth 5.2, GPS / AGPS / Glonass / Galileo, USB Type-C, 4G LTE, 5G
  • Battery: 5000mAh with 44W FlashCharge (44W adapter provided)
  • Color Options: Mystic Space, Arctic Dawn
  • Price in Nepal: N/A (not launched yet)
    • INR 23,990 (8/128GB) | INR 26,990 (12/256GB)

iQOO Z5 Review:

Design & Build

  • 76.7 x 164.7 x 8.5mm, 193 grams
  • Glass front, polycarbonate back/frame

Starting this review with the design, the iQOO Z5 is a little beefier—which is primarily because of the bigger battery beneath. At 193 grams, it’s certainly not the bulkiest phone to have in your pockets but I wish it had a more even weight distribution to even things out. Anyway, there are some subtle visual glow-ups that I gotta talk about.

While iQOO went with a Vivo X60-inspired camera module for the Z3, its successor brings one inspired by the new Vivo X70. I’m not particularly thrilled about this design—but to each their own, I guess.

iQOO Z5 - Design

Besides the Arctic Dawn colorway that I have with me, iQOO also ships the Z5 in the Mystic Space option that infused black and blue hues. On the contrary, this one appears to have a plain white finish at a glance but upon a closer look, you’ll notice subtle prismatic reflections—complemented by tiny starry patterns across the board.

More importantly, it’s got a matte finish, thereby keeping fingerprints and smudges at bay. I just wish it weren’t this slippery because I would’ve loved to rock it without a case. Overall, the phone’s hands-on feel is further eased up by the 3D curved sides. Still and all, I’m not a fan of how the grooves on the side house the power and the volume buttons.

Buttons could’ve been placed better

This shallow indentation means my finger struggles to naturally find its way to the power button. The tactile feedback of the button itself is fine for a mid-range phone, but this is certainly an area where iQOO could’ve done better.

Yet, this fingerprint scanner-infused button unlocks the phone ridiculously fast—whereas I’m impressed with the face unlock’s response time too. Besides the buttons on the right, you’ll find a 3.5mm headphone jack and a microphone at the top while the left frame stays entirely clean.

The SIM tray that now can’t take a microSD card is located at the bottom alongside the USB-C port, a speaker grille, and an additional mic. And while the phone expectedly skips an IP rating, iQOO has accompanied the SIM tray with a rubber gasket.

Moving on, expecting a compact mid-range phone in 2021 is pretty much pointless so I can’t single out iQOO for delivering a rather wide device. However, the Z5 is an all-plastic phone—so it definitely lags behind in terms of a premium feel compared to similarly-priced phones with a glass back.

Display

  • 6.67-inches FHD+ IPS LCD screen
  • 120/240Hz refresh/touch sampling rate
  • Panda Glass protection, HDR10

Now, getting to the display section of the review, iQOO Z5 does bring some upgrades on this front—but it isn’t entirely what I was looking forward to. The teardrop notch is gone for good this time but the company is still sticking with an IPS LCD panel here. As a result, this is definitely where most of the criticisms surrounding the phone revolve—and rightfully so.

The competition is readily offering a vibrant AMOLED screen on phones that cost almost half as much as the Z5, while iQOO’s stance against AMOLED on its mid-range devices is questionable. In all fairness, this IPS panel is of decent quality. Measuring 6.67” tall, the colors on this display look well-saturated—with a hint of a pinkish tint all-around.

iQOO Z5 - Display 1

This is noticeable in practically every color profile available, and shifting through the temperature settings didn’t do the trick either. On the other hand, iQOO has retained Widevine L1 certification here—whereas its HDR10 compatibility is still half-baked. You can play HDR videos off of YouTube but not on OTT platforms like Netflix.

Not the most competitive display

Pair it with the IPS nature of this screen, I’ve sorely missed the saturation, contrast levels of an OLED display here. This is especially true when watching something bright like the Cowboy Bebop anime that I’ve been rewatching before jumping to its live-action Netflix series.

At 480 nits, the iQOO Z5 gets plenty bright although it does struggle under direct sunlight. Considering the overall fluid performance of the phone, the ambient sensor takes a while to kick in, but it’s nothing to worry about. There was even an update addressing this issue but to no avail.

I’m not a big fan of its viewing angles either as there’s an observable dip in saturation levels when looking at it from the sides. Nevertheless, the 120Hz refresh rate here is quite well-optimized. I did notice micro-stutters when scrolling through the app drawer or triggering the global search on a couple of occasions, but it’s not frequent enough to warrant any immediate concern.

This 120Hz implementation is also a smart one—meaning the display can automatically switch between refresh rates to save battery. Like on the iQOO Z3, this one toggles between 60 and 120Hz only. Complementing this is a 240Hz touch sampling rate. For the most part, it’s handled my gaming sessions admirably fine, while I also can’t complain about the typing accuracy.

Performance

  • Octa-core Qualcomm Snapdragon 778G 5G SoC (6nm)
  • 8/12GB LPDDR5 RAM, 128/256GB UFS 3.1 storage (fixed)
  • Android 11 with Vivo’s Funtouch OS 12 on top (upgradeable)

Allow me to get to the performance side of things now. Powering the Z5 is the hottest mid-range Qualcomm chip in town—the Snapdragon 778G 5G. Not literally the “hottest”, but the most preferred sub-flagship mobile silicon; you know what I mean.

While I initially thought that iterative upgrade from the 768G on the iQOO Z3 wouldn’t be that big a-deal, I was pleasantly surprised to find out the opposite. And most of this has to do with the faster memory protocols as well.

iQOO Z5 - UI

To note, the Z3 featured LPDDR4X RAM and UFS 2.2 storage. On the contrary, iQOO has packed the respective fastest memory solutions here, which means you’re getting 8/12GB of LPDDR5 RAM and 128/256GB of UFS 3.1 storage on the Z5. If I had to boil down its performance into one word, it’d be “snappy”.

I mean, everything feels so quick and responsive here. There’s also iQOO’s “Extended RAM 2.0” feature that can swap in 4GB of storage as RAM whenever necessary.

When I say snappy, I mean snappy!

As usual, I ran my app opening and multitasking test on this phone and I’m amazed by its results. The 8GB variant that I have was able to keep all 10 apps in memory—completing the test in 2 minutes and 35 seconds. To note, the iQOO Z5 managed to outpace the Dimensity 1200-powered OnePlus Nord 2 in this regard. Most impressive!

App list:
Phone Genshin Impact
Chrome PUBG Mobile
Messenger Netflix
Instagram YouTube
Facebook Adobe Premiere Rush
Speed Test: iQOO Z5 OnePlus Nord 2
1st lap (app opening) 2 minutes 8 seconds 2 minutes 17 seconds
Full lap (multitasking) 2 minutes 35 seconds 2 minutes 45 seconds

Unfortunately, the memory management issue with small background processes that I mentioned in my review of the iQOO Z3 is still persistent with Funtouch OS 12.

iQOO Z5 - Launcher

Talking about Funtouch OS 12, its stock Android-inspired design sits right by me, and iQOO has listened to the criticism of Funtouch OS 11 as I didn’t find as many terms & conditions prompts here. It has gotten rid of the Jovi Home feed on the homescreen as well—leaving you with only the Google Discover card. However, the phone still comes with a bunch of bloatware apps pre-installed—all of which are thankfully uninstallable.

How’s the gaming experience?

Moving to gaming, the phone has fared significantly better compared to other Snapdragon 778G-powered phones I’ve tested so far. Genshin Impact is well inside the playable boundary under High graphics, 60fps mode, and with motion blur turned off.

iQOO Z3 iQOO Z5
(Snapdragon 768G) (Snapdragon 778G)
Androbench Sequential Read 998.96 MB/s 1500.04 MB/s
Sequential Write 463.49 MB/s 939.79 MB/s
AnTuTu v8.5 Total 375542 492724
CPU 120274 160310
GPU 106404 150960
Memory 71474 97169
UX 77390 84285
Geekbench 5 CPU (Single Core) 708 797
CPU (Multi-Core) 2014 2981
Compute (OpenCL) 1504 2318
PCMark (Work 3.0 Performance) 8361 11538
3DMark (Wild Life) 1949 2529

But I know most of us would rather have an even smoother gameplay, so dialing the graphics down to medium does the trick. There are still some minor frame drops every now and then, but I can’t complain much. After 30-35 minutes into the game, I graphed the CPU and GPU temperatures climb to 42ºC and 38ºC, respectively.

iQOO Z5 - Gaming

Under this, you’ll find the phone getting the hottest near the camera module although I didn’t notice any significant discomfort. iQOO Z5’s vapor chamber cooling seems to have done its job just fine. Likewise, PUBG Mobile can hit up to HDR graphics and Ultra frame rates where I noticed minimal frame drops on a couple of occasions. So I had to switch to Smooth graphics and Extreme frame rates for a stable 60fps gameplay.

Besides these, the Z5 sails past COD Mobile at its highest of settings with minimal lag/stutters. Even after a little over 40 minutes into the game, the phone doesn’t get that hot. A relatively less-demanding title like MLBB is well playable with HD and HFR turned on.

High fps gaming is absent 

Despite all this, you won’t be able to enjoy high-fps games at their best on this phone. Critical Ops is restricted to 60fps where it plays smoothly at Ultra graphics, but the missing 120fps mode makes a big difference.

Similarly, playing Injustice 2 capped out at 60fps was a fairly enjoyable experience although I did notice infrequent frame drops here and there. Amidst this review, I also ran a CPU throttle test on the iQOO Z5 to verify its impressive enduring performance. And as you can see from this chart, the 778G on the iQOO Z5 throttled to just 89% after an hour.

So, if you’re looking for a reliable performer in the mid-range category, the iQOO Z5 is definitely a top contender. Further sweetening the pot is the fact that this phone is also guaranteed to get 2 years of platform and 3 years of security updates.

Cameras

  • Triple-camera setup at the back
  • (64MP main, 8MP ultrawide, 2MP macro)
  • 16MP selfie camera (punch-hole cutout)

On to the cameras, there’s not much to be excited by since the company has borrowed the same camera array from the iQOO Z3. In fact, there’s a downgrade in the video department since it can’t shoot 4K/60fps videos, unlike its predecessor. Anyway, this setup includes a 64MP Samsung GW3 primary sensor followed by an 8MP ultrawide and a hopeless 2MP macro lens.

For this review, I compared the cameras on iQOO Z5 against the Samsung Galaxy M52, and here are the results.

Normal Images

Normal daytime images from both phones are well-detailed but I noticed that images from the M52 retain greater contrast. Therefore, Z5’s photos look relatively flatter and the colors don’t pop as much either.

But as you can see from these samples, there’s a noticeable reddish tint from M52’s photos too. And in some cases, I found iQOO to be doing a better job in terms of dynamic range as well.

Wideangle Images

There’s a similar progression on ultrawide shots too. Low contrast and therefore brighter shadow details from the Z5, but I like M52’s images more as it manages to retain the punchy contrast that I expect from an image.

Compared to the primary camera, the color shift in the ultrawide lens is more pronounced on the M52 though.

Portrait Images

Getting to the portrait images, neither of them has a dedicated depth sensor.

I find images from iQOO better in terms of dynamic range although its detail level isn’t up to the mark most of the time. Both phones are similar when it comes to edge detection though.

Macro Images

Macro shots, on the other hand, are pretty useless from either of them while Z5’s close-up photos are relatively softer.

Nighttime Images

Under low-light conditions, even though Galaxy M52 struggles with maintaining exposure sometimes, its sharper, brighter photos are ultimately superior to the softer results from the iQOO Z5.

There’s not much to expect in the ultrawide nighttime shots of either phone where Z5 produces rabidly greenish tint in extremely low-light conditions.

Turning on night mode, the results are still muddy and with a greenish hue on the iQOO Z5 whereas M52’s shots have a more natural white balance and are sharper with finer details. Shifting to the ultrawide camera, iQOO softens the details while M52 shoots relatively sharper but often times grainier photos.

Selfie Images

Although M52’s selfies have better contrast, they tend to look a little dark and sometimes even oversharpened. On the contrary, the iQOO Z5 shoots warm and a bit greenish selfies.

Moreover, the Z5 also oversharpens the selfie portraits but pretty much matches the M52 in terms of edge detection.

Videography

Moving to videos, 4k/30fps footages are jittery from both phones although I like the contrast and color balance from the M52 more. Unlike Samsung, iQOO has enabled stabilization at 1080p/60fps mode too—but it crops way too much to achieve a steady result. As you can tell, even the videos from the iQOO Z5 have the aforementioned greenish tint.

Weirdly enough, the level of stabilization on this phone is downgraded when shooting at 1080p/30fps. Here, the steadiness is comparable from both phones but Samsung wins out in terms of contrast levels—despite its warm hue. I also like the 1080p/30fps ultrawide videos more from the M52 for its wider field of view, balanced black levels, and contrast.

Samsung wins in the selfie video department as well, since it can shoot up to 4k/30fps resolution compared to the 1080p/30fps cap on the Z5. Under this, videos from both phones have a similar level of stabilization but M52’s recordings are richer in contrast.

Battery

  • 5000mAh battery with 44W FlashCharge

iQOO Z5 gets its juice from a larger 5000mAh battery—compared to the 4400mAh cell on its predecessor. Under my regular usage with hours of streaming Netflix, browsing through my social media feeds, and playing a couple of games every now and then, I got about 5.5 hours of screen-on time. To note, I’d set the brightness to auto while setting the refresh rate to a steady 120Hz.

There’s no overnight battery drain issue either, so that’s great. With the bigger battery at the helm, iQOO has had to reduce the charging speed. Using the 44W power brick that comes inside the box, it takes about one hour and 12 minutes to fully juice it up.

Audio

  • Stereo speaker setup
  • 3.5mm headphone jack

Moving to the audio portion of this review, the iQOO Z5 brings a stereo speaker setup contrary to the mono speaker on its predecessor. These are not dedicated dual speakers since the earpiece serves as the secondary unit to deliver stereo audio instead. Regardless, the audio output is quite loud and is suitable for watching shows/movies.

But listening to dynamic music—especially one that favors high frequencies like Radiohead’s “You and Whose Army?”—I noticed that vocals and other instruments are overpowered by treble.

iQOO Z5 - Display 2

Call quality is more than satisfactory though. I got no complaint from people on the receiving end about the loudness or clarity of my voice. There’s no trouble with the proximity sensor either. Additionally, the haptic feedback of the iQOO Z5 is pretty nice. It’s not as weak on the Galaxy M52 but I would’ve liked it more if it had a quieter noise profile.

iQOO Z5 Review: Conclusion

Wrapping up this review, the iQOO Z5 is a decent mid-range phone with snappy performance. But the fact that it still hosts an IPS display is kind of a major letdown, especially considering how other brands are offering a superior AMOLED screen at a similar price range. And compared to the competition, its cameras aren’t exactly on par either.

So, instead of driving up costs with advertisements on IPL, iQOO, a brand that launched the iQOO 7, which is still the best phone under INR 35,000 in India, could’ve definitely done a better job by bringing more competitive phones.

As of now, I’m sorry to say that the iQOO Z5 simply doesn’t strike the right note. I would rather recommend you the Galaxy M52 or the Xiaomi 11 Lite NE or the Mi 11X that are currently on sale at under INR 25,000 on Flipkart.

  • Watch our video review of the iQOO Z5.

iQOO Z5 Review: Pros & Cons

Pros:

  • Snappy performance
  • DDR5 RAM, UFS 3.1 storage
  • Doesn’t heat up that much
  • Decent battery endurance
  • 44W fast charging
  • Nice haptic feedback

Cons:

  • Still no AMOLED display
  • Skips a glass back design
  • Photos are lacking in contrast
  • Mediocre videography ability

Nepal Telecom brings unlimited data packs under the latest Autumn offer

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Nepal Telecom brings unlimited data packs under the latest Autumn offer

A couple of months ago, the Managing Director of Nepal Telecom teased that the company was working on cheap unlimited data packs. The said packs are here, but they are not exactly what we made them out to be. So, let’s walk through the pricing and availability of the new Sajilo Unlimited Packs from Nepal Telecom.

Nepal Telecom Sajilo Unlimited Packs

The Sajilo Unlimited Packs from Nepal Telecom bring unlimited monthly mobile/voice data, along with the option to buy add-on packs in the future. It’s a part of the company’s latest Autumn offer.

To note, these unlimited packs have their limitations. Based on your subscription, you can only enjoy full-speed internet for a pre-determined volume (1GB/2GB/4GB). After the consumption of the target bandwidth, the speed will be reduced to 64Kbps.

In addition, they are mainly for postpaid customers, with only the basic pack available for prepaid users. These packs can be activated by dialing *1415# or via the Nepal Telecom mobile app.

Sajilo Unlimited Pack – Rs. 599

At Rs. 599, this is the cheapest of the Sajilo Unlimited data packs. Here, users can choose between unlimited data or unlimited voice calls for 30 days.

If you choose the former, you will get 1GB of data per day for the total validity period. You can also buy an add-on voice pack for Rs. 299.

If you go with the voice option, you will get unlimited voice calls within the Nepal Telecom network. You can also buy an add-on data pack for Rs. 299. This offer is valid for both prepaid and post-paid users.

Plan Voice Data SMS Validity Period Beneficiary Price
Unlimited Data – 1GB per Day (fallback speed of 64Kbps) –
  • 30 days (postpaid)
  • 28 days (prepaid)
  • Prepaid users
  • Postpaid users
  • Rs. 599
  • Rs. 299 for data/voice add-on
Unlimited Voice Unlimited calls within NT network – –

Sajilo Unlimited Pack – Rs. 799

Under this, you will get unlimited voice calls (NT-NT) and 200 free SMS (NT-NT) in addition to 30GB of data. It includes 50 minutes of voice calls and 50 SMS valid outside of NT’s network as well. This pack is valid only for post-paid users.

Plan Voice Data SMS Validity Period Beneficiary Price
Unlimited Data + Voice + SMS
  • Unlimited calls within NT network
  • 50 minutes talk time (NT-Others)
 1GB per Day (fallback speed of 64Kbps)
  • 200 SMS (NT-NT)
  • 50 SMS (NT-Others)
 30 days Postpaid users Rs. 799

Sajilo Unlimited Pack – Rs. 999

If you subscribe to this pack, you will get 2GB of mobile data per day. It is bundled with unlimited voice calls and 400 SMS within the NT network. Then there are 100 minutes of voice calls and 100 SMS for other networks.

Plan Voice Data SMS Validity Period Beneficiary Price
Unlimited Data + Voice + SMS
  • Unlimited calls within NT network
  • 100 minutes talk time (NT-Others)
 2GB per day (fallback speed of 64Kbps)
  • 400 SMS (NT-NT)
  • 100 SMS (NT-Others)
 30 days Postpaid users Rs. 999

Sajilo Pack – Rs. 1,499

As you could tell, this is the most expensive pack of all. With this, you get 4GB of mobile data per day, unlimited voice calls, and 1000 SMS within the NT network. You also get additional 200 minutes of talk-time and 200 SMS valid outside of the company’s network.

Plan Voice Data SMS Validity Period Beneficiary Price
Unlimited Data + Voice + SMS
  • Unlimited calls within NT network
  • 200 minutes talk time (NT-Others)
 4GB per day (fallback speed of 64Kbps)
  • 1000 SMS (NT-NT)
  • 200 SMS (NT-Others)
 30 days Postpaid users Rs. 1,499

Nepal Telecom Sajilo Unlimited Packs: Add-on Packages

In case, you have exhausted the daily data limit, you can buy the following add-on packs to avoid the fallback speed.

Add-on Data Price Validity
1GB Rs. 30 1 Day
2GB Rs. 40
4GB Rs. 50

Nepal Telecom Sajilo Unlimited Packs: Initial Thoughts

Honestly, I was quite excited when the initial news broke about Nepal Telecom working on a monthly unlimited pack. Starting at Rs. 599, it is not as cheap as we expected it to be. Similarly, the throttled speed of just 64Kbps reduces the appeal as well. Moving on, most of these packs are not even available for prepaid customers that form the majority of users.

  • Meanwhile, check out our review of Worldlink’s 300Mbps Mesh WiFi.

Acer Swift X Pro with Ryzen 5800U, RTX 3050 Ti now available in Nepal

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Acer Swift X Pro with Ryzen 5800U, RTX 3050 Ti now available in Nepal

Acer’s Swift lineup is famous for the thin and light Ultrabooks suitable for homes and offices. However, the company has lately added some devices targeting content creators as well. One of them is the new Swift X Pro, which has just hit the Nepali market. In this post, we will be discussing the Acer Swift X Pro in more detail, including its specs, features, price, and availability in Nepal.

Acer Swift X Pro Overview:

Design and Display

Acer Swift X Pro follows the thin and lightweight design of previous Swift laptops. It sports a metal chassis with options for Gold, Pink, and Black color variants for the lid. This laptop weighs around 1.39 kg and is 17.9mm thick.

Opening the lid, you are greeted with a 14″ IPS panel with FHD resolution. Its thin bezels contribute to an 85.73% screen-to-body ratio. The panel has 99% sRGB coverage and can get as bright as 300 nits.

Acer Swift X Pro 2021 Design

Performance and Memory

Although the Swift X Pro is available with processors from both Intel and AMD, only the latter is available in Nepal as of now. In particular, it has the Ryzen 7 5800U. This CPU is based on the latest Zen 3 architecture and features 8 cores and 16 threads, with a maximum clock speed listed at 4.4GHz.

This has been paired with NVIDIA’s RTX 3050 Ti GPU, which should get you through tasks like light video editing and even casual gaming. It features 4GB of GDDR6 VRAM and has a maximum wattage of 40W. As for memory, you get 16GB of LPDDR4 RAM and 512GB of SSD storage.

Acer Swift X Pro 2021 Performance

Keyboard, Webcam, Audio

Acer Swift X Pro has a full-size backlit keyboard. Interestingly, this keyboard also allows cool air to pass through to help with heat dissipation. It is accompanied by a Windows Precision trackpad. There is also a physical fingerprint scanner for biometrics.

Over on the audio, there are stereo speakers with DTS Audio. Acer has even included its proprietary AI Noise reduction technology that helps suppress ambient noise at both ends of a video call.

Rest of the specs

Fueling the laptop is a 3815mAh battery that Acer claims can provide up to 7 hours of endurance. The laptop ships with a 90W power brick for charging.

The ports selection is also decent here. You’re getting two USB 3.2 Gen 1 Type-A, one USB 3.2 Gen 2 Type-C (with DisplayPort and USB charging), one HDMI, and a DC-in port. It misses out on a microSD card slot but features a Kensington lock.

Acer Swift X Pro 2021 Ports

Acer Swift X Pro Specifications:

  • Design & Build: Metal body, 12.7W x 8.4D x 0.71H-inches, 1.39 kg
  • Color Options: Gold, Pink, Black
  • Display: 14″ matte IPS LCD panel, 300 nits brightness, 60Hz refresh rate, 100% sRGB color gamut
  • Resolution: FHD (1920×1080) resolution, 16:9 aspect ratio
  • Keyboard: Backlit chiclet keys (white)
  • Trackpad: Windows Precision trackpad
  • Security: Windows Hello-certified fingerprint reader
  • Processor: AMD Ryzen 7 5800U (Zen 3), 8C/16T, 4.4GHz Max Boost Frequency, 16MB L3 Cache
  • RAM: 16GB LPDDR4
  • Storage: 512GB M.2 NVMe PCIe SSD
  • Graphics: NVIDIA RTX 3050 Ti (4GB GDDR6 VRAM, 40W)
  • Audio: Stereo speaker with DTS: Audio
  • Battery: 3815mAh 4-cell Li-Ion battery
  • Power Supply: 65W barrel-pin power connector
  • Webcam: 720p HD camera, No privacy shutter
  • Connectivity: Wi-Fi 6 (802.11 ax), Bluetooth 5.0
  • I/O Ports: 1x 3.5mm jack, 1x Thunderbolt 4 (with DisplayPort and USB charging), 2x USB 3.2 Gen 1 Type-A (one with power-off charging), 1x HDMI 2.0

Acer Swift X Pro Price in Nepal and Availability

The price of Acer Swift X Pro in Nepal is Rs. 168,000. It is for the Ryzen 7 5800U variant with RTX 3050 Ti GPU, 16GB RAM, and 512GB SSD. You can buy Acer Swift X Pro in Nepal from ITTI and other authorized stores.

Acer Swift X Pro Price in Nepal Availability
Ryzen 7 5800U, RTX 3050 Ti, 16GB RAM, 512GB SSD Rs. 168,000
  • Authorized Stores
  • Meanwhile, check out our review of Acer Aspire 5 2021.

Tecno Camon 18i launched with a 90Hz HD display, Helio G85, 48MP camera

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Tecno Camon 18i launched with a 90Hz HD display, Helio G85, 48MP camera

Tecno has just launched Camon 18i in select African markets. It is the latest addition to the company’s Camon 18 series, which consists of Camon 18 Premier. Here, we will be discussing the key specs, features, expected price, and availability of Tecno Camon 18i in Nepal.

Tecno Camon 18i Overview:

The Camon 18i is the smaller and cheaper option in the Camon 18 series. Still, it’s not that difficult to see that it’s heavily based on Tecno Camon 17. The phone is yet to be listed on the company’s official site but it is already available in select markets like Kenya and Nigeria.

Design and Display

Like the Camon 17, the 18i sports a 6.6-inch LCD panel with an HD+ resolution of 1600 x 720 pixels. The display supports a 90Hz refresh rate and features a punch-hole cutout for the 8MP selfie camera.

All the buttons are on the right side of the phone. At the back, there is a left-aligned rectangular camera bump and a physical fingerprint scanner.

Tecno Camon 18i Design

Performance and Memory

Under the hood, Tecno Camon 18i packs MediaTek Helio G85 chipset. The chip is fabricated using TSMC’s 12nm FinFET process and features two Cortex-A75 (@2GHz) and six Cortex-A55 (@1.8GHz) cores.

As for memory, you get 4GB of RAM and 128GB of internal storage. Its SIM tray can also hold a microSD card for storage expansion.

Rest of the specs

Over on the back, Tecno Camon 18i flaunts a triple camera setup. The primary camera uses a 48MP sensor. It is accompanied by an 8MP ultrawide and a 2MP macro sensor.

Tecno Camon 18i Camera

Fueling the phone is a 5,000mAh battery with support for 18W charging. The phone ships with Android 11-based HiOS 8.0.

Tecno Camon 18i Specifications:

  • Display: 6.6-inches “Dot-in” LCD panel, 90Hz refresh rate
  • Resolution: HD+, 1600 × 720 pixels
  • Chipset: MediaTek Helio G85 4G (12nm)
  • Memory: 4GB RAM, 128 storage storage
  • Software: Android 11 with HiOS 8.0 on top
  • Rear Camera: Triple (48MP primary, 8MP ultra-wide, 2MP macro)
  • Front Camera: 8MP (punch-hole)
  • Security: Rear-mounted fingerprint sensor
  • Battery: 5000mAh, 18W fast charging

Tecno Camon 18i Price in Nepal and Availability

Tecno Camon 18i is already available in Kenya, where its price is KES 18,999 for the 4/128GB variant. We expect the price of Tecno Camon 18i in Nepal to be NPR 22,500 if and when it launches here.

Tecno Camon 18i Price in Kenya Price in Nepal (Expected)
4/128GB KES 18,999 NPR 22,500
  • Meanwhile, check out our review of the Xiaomi 11 Lite NE 5G.

HiFuture Sound Mini Review: Loud Speaker With Great Battery

GadgetByte
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HiFuture Sound Mini Review: Loud Speaker With Great Battery

HiFuture has launched some cool products ever since it burst into the Nepali market last year. The company’s latest product here is the Sound Mini portable Bluetooth speaker. I have been testing the HiFuture Sound Mini portable Bluetooth speaker for quite some time now, and I’ll be sharing my experience in this review.

HiFuture Sound Mini Specifications:

  • Body (L x W x H): 98 x 98 x 47.5mm, 170 grams
  • Color Options: Black
  • Battery: 1800mAh Li-Ion Polymer
  • Music Playback: Up to 12 hours
  • Charging: Around 3.5 hours (5V/1A)
  • IP Rating: IPX4 water resistant
  • Connectivity: Bluetooth 5.0
  • Bluetooth Profiles: A2DP 1.3, AVRCP 1.6, HFP 1.7
  • Audio Codec: SBC, CVSD
  • Driver: 40mm Full Range
  • Output Power: 5W
  • Frequency Response: 100Hz – 20kHz (6dB)
  • Signal-to-noise Ratio: > 75dB
  • Microphone: Yes, Omni-directional
  • Price in Nepal: Rs. 3,800

HiFuture Sound Mini Review:

Design

  • Circular design, LED stripe
  • IPX4 splash resistance

Let’s talk about the design first. The Sound Mini is well-built for a budget speaker. However, nothing about it screams premium. It has a circular design with a curved top and flat bottom. The top has a speaker grille covered with fabrics.

Below the grille lies a thin LED stripe that glows green, blue, and red on different occasions. I have to be honest—this LED does very little to add to the aesthetic of the speaker.

The majority of this speaker is made from plastic which catches smudges pretty easily.  There is also a lanyard to easily carry the speaker around. To its opposite lies a Type-C charging port, which doesn’t have any covering. The speaker is still IPX4 water-resistant. This doesn’t make the speaker fully waterproof, but it should survive some minor water splashes.

Connectivity and Pairing

  • Bluetooth 5.0
  • Two speakers for stereo output

HiFuture Sound Mini comes with Bluetooth 5.0 connectivity. First-time pairing is quite easy. Just turn on the speaker and look for HiFuture Sound Mini on your phone, PC, or other devices. If you want to quit the current connection, you’ll need to press the pairing button for around 10 seconds until the green light flashes twice.

HiFuture Stereo Pairing

You can even pair two Sound Mini speakers for stereo effect. In my case, the two speakers connected automatically when brought together. However, if the process is not automatic, you need to press the pairing button for around 3 seconds on both speakers. You can exit the stereo mode by following the same process.

Controls

As for the controls, they are placed awkwardly at the bottom of the speaker. Thus, you will end up covering the speaker every time you need to use it while the speaker is playing. That being said, the buttons are clicky and responsive.

HiFuture has included buttons for power, volume up/down, pairing, and activating voice assistant. A circular rubber padding offers little ground clearance so as to avoid accidental presses.

HiFuture Sound Mini Controls

Audio

  • 40mm full-range driver

HiFuture Sound Mini features a massive 40mm full-range audio driver. And it’s plenty loud given the price and size of the speaker. It’s so loud that I found myself using it at volumes lower than 50% most of the time. At full volume, the Sound Mini can fill up a moderate-sized room.

That being said, the sound quality is not that impressive. The vocals sound subdued. They also distort as you go higher up in the volume. The bass is passable. However, it does get muddy, while listening to songs like Hammer by nothing, nowhere.

HiFutureSoundMini Music Playback

That being said, it is pretty much what you get with most of the budget speakers. At a lower volume, the experience is decent for casual listening. HiFuture Sound Mini outputs mono audio by default. But if you want, you can pair two of them for stereo output.

Built-in microphone

Moving on, the HiFuture Sound Mini features a built-in omnidirectional microphone. You can use it to take calls or summon your phone’s voice assistant. For the latter, HiFuture has included a voice assistant button at the bottom. I tested it with my phone’s Google Assistant and it seems to work fine.

As for the call quality, it is just average. While I didn’t face much problem with it, there were times where the person on the other end could not hear me clearly enough.

HiFutureSoundMini Mic

Battery

  • 1800mAh battery
  • Type-C charging port

HiFuture rates the 1800mAh battery on the Sound Mini for 12 hours of playback. I generally got closer to 10.5 hours of listening time on average usage. I used the speaker at variable volumes but mostly below the 50% range.

HiFutureSoundMini Charger

Given how loud it is, I don’t think anyone will ever need to crank it past 60%. There is a Type-C port that accepts 5W DC input. In my test, the speaker took 3 hours 45 minutes to go from 0 to 100%.

HiFuture Sound Mini Review: Conclusion

All in all, HiFuture Sound Mini doesn’t stand out much from other budget speakers in the market. It is loud and can come in handy during picnics and small gatherings. It also has long-battery life to back it up while you can even pair two of them for stereo effect. That being said, everything else about it is just average, from its design to actual sound quality.

HiFuture Sound Mini Review: Pros and Cons

Pros

  • Lightweight, portable design
  • IPX4 splash resistance
  • LED stripe to spice things up
  • Loud enough to fill up a room
  • Mic for taking calls
  • Great battery life

Cons

  • Awkwardly placed controls
  • Average sound quality
  • Calls are not always clear
  • Slow charging

The best midrange phone, Galaxy A52 is now available in Nepal in limited stocks

Nikhil Shrestha
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The best midrange phone, Galaxy A52 is now available in Nepal in limited stocks

Samsung officially launched the Galaxy A52 in Nepal back in March at a fairly competitive price. It is one of the best-selling midrange phones of 2021 from Samsung, thanks to its superb specs at an exceptional price.

Because of the ongoing pandemic, Samsung Nepal hasn’t been able to keep up with the demand, and buyers were felt frustrated for months. However, the phone is now available for purchase in limited quantities from select retail outlets all over Nepal. So, make sure you grab one before the stock runs out.

Buy Galaxy A52 here (Limited Stocks)

Samsung Galaxy A52 Overview:

Before moving forward, it’s pertinent to understand that there are two variants of this phone. One with 4G connectivity, and the other with 5G, whose name goes by Galaxy A52s. This article is dedicated to the standard Galaxy A52 which is void of a 5G connection. Having said that, these two phones are basically one and the same except for the difference in the chipset, refresh rates( 90Hz vs 120Hz), and the said cellular connectivity.

While Galaxy A52s 5G is powered by Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 778G, its 4G counterpart comes with the Snapdragon 720G instead. On top of being 5G-ready, the 778G is also comparatively more powerful silicon.

Design

With that out of the way, let’s start with the design. This time around, Samsung has stirred up a completely new look for the A52. The glossy prismatic back of the Galaxy A51 has been substituted with something much more subtle. Featuring a smooth matte finish, this phone is a breath of fresh air. The camera module sees a rework as well.

Galaxy A52 - Design

Samsung is already retiring the L-shaped layout that prevailed in the company’s 2020 lineup of midrange phones. Instead, the camera arrangement on the A52 is inspired heavily by the Galaxy S21 series with its beady and pronounced sensor design. The camera bump is pretty minimal although the lenses themselves don’t protrude as much. Another upgrade in the design front is the inclusion of IP67 dust/water resistance.

This is something of a rarity in Samsung’s non-flagship phones and for now, we can only hope that the company keeps this tradition alive in future devices as well. Galaxy A52 is available in four color options: Awesome Black, Blue, White, and Violet—all of which maintain a pastel finish.

Display

In terms of the display, we’re looking at a 6.5″ FHD+ Super AMOLED “Infinity-O” screen. It is protected by Corning’s Gorilla Glass 5. But more importantly, the company has bumped the refresh rate from 60Hz to 90Hz. To note, the recently launched Galaxy A32 4G was the first non-flagship phone from Samsung to feature a high refresh rate screen.

However, it doesn’t employ a variable refresh rate (VRR) mechanism meaning the display won’t dynamically adjust the refresh rate according to the content on the screen. On top of this, Samsung has also nabbed SGS eye comfort certification for reduced blue light emission. You can even schedule the time period to automatically turn this on.

On the illumination front, the Galaxy A52 boasts up to 800 nits of brightness under HBM (High Brightness Mode). It also gets AMOLED-exclusive features like Always-on Display and an in-display fingerprint sensor. Unlike the ultrasonic reader in Samsung’s flagship phones, the A52 hosts the regular optical in-display fingerprint sensor.

Performance

Moving on to the performance side of things, Samsung has gone with Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 720G here. This is a healthy upgrade over the notoriously overused Exynos 9611 in the Galaxy A51, but considering the competition, it’s far from the ideal chipset on a phone of this premium. It’s an 8nm chipset and is found in mid-range phones like the Redmi Note 9 Pro Max.

Qualcomm Snapdragon 720G SoC

Anyway, you can choose between 4, 6, or 8GB of LPDDR4X RAM and either 128 or 256GB of internal storage. You can also expand the storage up to 1TB using a micro SD card.

Running the show is Samsung’s One UI 3.1 based on Android 11. The company recently announced its revised software update policy. Under this, Samsung promises 3 years of OS and 4 years of security updates on its smartphones. With this, the Galaxy A52 is set to receive up to Android 14 (or whatever Google ends up naming it) update.

Camera

Like I mentioned earlier, this phone has a quad-camera setup at the back. The 48MP primary camera on the A51 has been substituted with a 64MP sensor whereas the rest of the setup remains pretty much the same. You get a 12MP ultrawide camera with a 123º Field Of View (FOV), a 5MP macro, and a 5MP depth sensor.

Unlike the new Galaxy A72 which has a telephoto lens as well, the A52 is only capable of digital zooms of up to 10x. Additionally, Samsung has also brought in OIS on the rear camera. Consequently, you can shoot stable videos even at 4K/30fps by turning on the “Super Steady” mode.

Talking about videos, there’s no 60fps option in any resolution, while you can shoot 4K videos from the ultrawide lens, this does come at a sacrifice of OIS. The 32MP selfie shooter upfront can record 4K/30fps footages too but it’s void of stabilization. Other interesting camera features on the Galaxy A52 include Single Take, Fun mode (developed in partnership with Snapchat and currently exclusive to Samsung phones), Super Slo Mode, Night Mode, etc.

Rest of the specs

Fueling the device is a decent 4500mAh battery that supports 25W fast charging. Thankfully, you will get the power adapter inside the box—but only a 15W unit.

Galaxy A52 - Display

Samsung is claiming up to two days of battery life on this thing but our tests revealed far less endurance. A52 also has Dolby Atmos-certified stereo speakers making it a confident device for content consumption. As expected, it features Samsung’s Knox security as well.

Samsung Galaxy A52 Specifications:

  • Body: 75.1 x 159.9 x 8.4mm, 189 gm, IP67 dust/water resistant
  • Display: 6.5-inches “Infinity-O” Super AMOLED panel, 90Hz refresh rate, 407 PPI
  • Resolution: Full-HD+ (2400 x 1080 pixels), 20:9 aspect ratio
  • Chipset: Qualcomm Snapdragon 720G (8nm)
  • CPU: Octa-core (2×2.3 GHz Kryo 465 Gold & 6×1.8 GHz Kryo 465 Silver)
  • GPU: Adreno 618
  • Memory: 4/6/8GB LPDDR4X RAM, 128/256GB storage (expandable)
  • Software & UI: Android 11 with Samsung’s One UI 3.1 on top
  • Rear Camera: Quad (with LED flash);
    – 64MP f/1.8 primary lens, AF, OIS
    – 12MP f/2.2 ultra-wide lens, 123º FOV
    – 5MP f/2.4 macro sensor
    – 5MP f/2.4 depth sensor
  • Front Camera: 32MP f/2.2 sensor (punch-hole cutout)
  • Audio: Stereo speakers with Dolby Atmos audio, 3.5mm headphone jack
  • Security: Optical in-display fingerprint scanner, Face unlock
  • Connectivity: Dual-SIM (Nano), WiFi 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac (Dual-band), Bluetooth 5.0, GPS / AGPS / Glonass / Galileo / Beidou, NFC, USB Type-C, 4G LTE
  • Battery: 4500mAh with 25W fast charging (15W adapter provided)
  • Color options: Awesome – Black, Blue, White, Violet (No white color in Nepal)
Buy Galaxy A52 here (Limited Stocks)

Samsung Galaxy A52 Price in Nepal & Availability

Samsung Galaxy A52 is now available in Nepal for a price of Rs. 41,999. This price is for the 8GB RAM, 128GB storage variant. You can purchase Galaxy A52 from different Samsung retail shops located all over Nepal.

Samsung Galaxy A52 Price in Nepal (Official)
8/128GB NPR 41,999
  • Check out our long-term review of the Samsung Galaxy A52.

Samsung Nepal is giving away gold coins to 3 lucky winners every day

GadgetByte
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0
Samsung Nepal is giving away gold coins to 3 lucky winners every day

Samsung Nepal has just announced another promotional campaign amidst the ongoing festive season. Under this, the company is giving away 5 grams of gold coin to 3 lucky customers every day. Let’s learn more about this gold coin offer from Samsung Nepal, including its terms and condition and validity period.

Samsung Nepal Gold Coin Offer

This offer is live starting today, i.e. Kartik 15 (November 1), and will be valid till Mangsir 14 (November 30). Samsung will be offering 5 grams of gold coin to 3 lucky winners every day. The winners will be chosen via lucky draws among the pool of candidates.

How to participate?

If you have bought a new Samsung smartphone or a tablet during the campaign, you can participate in the lucky draw by registering the serial number of your product.

For this, you can find the serial number of your Galaxy device in the “About My Phone” section under the Settings menu. Alternately, you can dial *#06# on your phone/tablet’s dialer app to get the serial number.

Once you have the serial number, type “SAMSUNG <space> Serial Number” and send an SMS to 31003. You should then get an SMS confirming your participation.

Samsung Nepal Gold Coin Offer: Winner announcement

As mentioned earlier, Samsung will be choosing winners through a lucky draw, and it will be held once every week. The first lucky draw will be held on Kartik 23 (November 9). It will be followed by luck draws on Kartik 30 (November 16), Mangsir 7 (November 23), Mangsir 14 (November 30), and Mangsir 21 (December 7).

You can follow Samsung Nepal on their social media handles (Facebook, Instagram) for any offers on this gold coin offer.

Samsung Dasain Tiharma Umanga

In case you missed it, Samsung is also running another festive campaign under which it is offering discounts of up to 35% discount on its TVs, washing machines, and other home appliances. This offer will end on Kartik 29 (November 15).

  • Meanwhile, check out our comparison between Galaxy A52s and Galaxy M52.

Redmi Watch 2 goes official with an AMOLED panel, up to 117 sports modes

GadgetByte
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0
Redmi Watch 2 goes official with an AMOLED panel, up to 117 sports modes

Redmi hosted an online event yesterday to announce the Note 11 series. The company also announced its second-gen smartwatch at the same event. Here, we will be discussing the key specs, features, expected price, and availability of the Redmi Watch 2 in Nepal.

Redmi Watch 2 Overview:

Design and Display

Redmi has made some significant changes in the display department. The Watch 2 weighs 31 grams and sports a bigger 1.6-inch square display than its predecessor. Not only is the display larger here, but it also uses an AMOLED panel instead of LCD, thus resulting in better colors.

Also, the bezels around the display have been trimmed for a better screen-to-body ratio. In terms of watch faces, Redmi says you can choose from over 100+ options.

Redmi Watch 2 Design and Display

Health and Fitness Tracking

Redmi Watch 2 comes with all the health and fitness tracking features that we expect on a budget smartwatch. It supports 24-hour heart rate, blood oxygen saturation level (SpO2), and sleep monitoring. It also comes with menstrual cycle tracking, stress monitoring, step counter, and more.

Redmi Watch 2 GPS Tracking

On top of this, the Watch 2 has a total of 117 sports modes. And since it is 5ATM rated, you can wear it when swimming as well. It even has a built-in GPS (dual) to track your workout trails. This smartwatch can also automatically detect a few workouts.

Battery and Charging

Getting to the battery, Redmi Watch 2 packs a 225mAh cell and the company is claiming up to 12 days of endurance on normal usage. The being said, it can only last up to 7 days on heavy usage and a mere 18 hours with GPS turned on. It juices up via a proprietary 2-pin charger.

Redmi Watch 2 Charging

Redmi Watch 2 Specifications:

  • Body: 39.1 x 34.4 x 9.98mm, 31 grams
  • Display: 1.6″ AMOLED panel, 320 x 360  pixels, automatic brightness
  • Water Resistance: 5 ATM waterproof
  • Sports Mode: 117 sports modes in total
  • Battery: 225mAh battery, Up to 12 days of endurance
  • Compatibility: Android 5.0+, iOS 10.0+
  • Companion App: Xiaomi Wear (Android | iOS)

Redmi Watch 2 Price in Nepal and Availability

The price of the Redmi Watch 2 is CNY 399. However, it will be available for just CNY 349 during the first sale on November 1. We expect the price of the Redmi Watch 2 in Nepal to be NPR 8,500 if and when it launches here.

Smartwatch Model Price in China Price in Nepal (Expected)
Redmi Watch 2 CNY 399 NPR 8,500
  • Meanwhile, check out our review of Xiaomi Mi Watch Lite (Redmi Watch).
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