It’s quite unusual for an Apple product to be targeted at Android users. But the Beats Studio Buds that I have for review today is just that. It’s a pair of lightweight earbuds from a brand that Apple purchased back in 2014. I have been using the Beats Studio Beats for some weeks now, and I will be sharing my experience with you in this review.
Before we begin, let’s take a quick peek at its specifications:
Beats Studio Buds Specifications:
Weight: 5gm (each earbud), 48gm (case), 58gm (earbuds with case)
Let’s start with the design. Beats Studio Buds arrives in this elliptical charging case. My review unit has this flashy red color, but it is also available in white and black options if you are looking for something more subtle.
There is an LED indicator just below the beats logo on the front. Similarly, you’ll find a USB-C charging port on the bottom while the rear portion stays clean.
Design
1 of 2
Case, earbuds
In-ear fit
Inside, there’s a pairing button in between the earbuds. In terms of their fit, I found the Studio Buds to be light and comfortable despite their peculiar shape. That being said, the flat button doesn’t stick out as much I thought it would.
Likewise, I found the default ear tips to be a good fit for my ears, so I did not bother with trying on the two additional pairs included in the package.
Connectivity and Pairing
Bluetooth 5.2
Beats app for Android
As for connectivity, Beats Studio Buds supports the latest Bluetooth 5.2 protocol. Since it doesn’t have Apple’s W1 or H1 chip, the experience of these earbuds is quite identical irrespective of the mobile platform.
For first-time pairing, you need to press the pairing button until a pop-up appears on your phone. If you have trouble pairing your phone with the Studio Buds, then you can download the Beats companion app that’ll guide you through the pairing process instead.
It’s a basic app with limited functionality. Here, you can switch between three audio modes, customize the press and hold control, and rename the buds.
Controls
Physical button on either earbud
Single press to play/pause music
Double/triple press to control playback
At a time when even entry-level wireless earbuds are offering touch controls, Beats has gone with a physical mechanism on the Studio Buds.
Anyway, a single press on the said button lets you play/pause the music, whereas a double press skips tracks. Similarly, a triple tap brings you to the beginning of the ongoing track or jump back to the previous one. Finally, there is the press-and-hold trigger for ANC that you can even customize to launch the voice assistant via the Beats app.
Here, the buttons are hard to miss and quite accurate, too. That being said, physical buttons on pair of earbuds that cost USD 150 don’t sit well with me. Every time you press the button, you are forcing the earbuds deeper into your ears.
Audio Quality
8.2mm dual-element diaphragm
Spatial Audio support
Let’s talk about the sound quality. Putting it on, it’s pretty easy to realize that these earbuds are favoring the lows more than the mids and the highs—almost instantaneously. And why wouldn’t it, since Studio Buds has its roots deep in the hip hop scene.
That being said, I didn’t find the bass overpowering, which has been the biggest complaint about Beats products over these years. The mids and highs sound decent too. Still, they are not as clear and crisp as the Galaxy Buds 2 and Buds Pro.
Also, the soundstage on these earbuds is a tad restrictive. It is not downright awful but I couldn’t help but notice it when listening to songs like MMM by Seedhe Maut.
Call quality
Moving on, calls taken with the Beat Studio Buds under normal conditions were quite clear and I faced no complaints from people on the receiving end. However, it cannot really differentiate between voice and noise. So, using it under particularly noisy or windy environments is not recommended.
Noise Cancellation
Active Noise Cancellation (ANC)
Transparency Mode support
Moving on, the Beats Studio Buds supports Active Noise Cancellation as well. For the price, I find its noise cancellation to be just about average. It does filter out some low-frequency sounds, but not completely. On the other hand, the high-frequency audio like that of horns and human voices are almost entirely unaffected.
There is also the Transparency mode that lets you hear the outside world without having to take off the earbuds. However, the ambient noise including human voice sounds synthesized here.
Battery Life
40mAh battery (each earbud)
Up to 8 hours of music playback
In terms of battery, each earbud consists of a 40mAh cell that Beats claims can last for up to 8 hours of playback time. But during my usage, I could only get around 4.5 hours of battery life. I mostly used it at high volume at Normal mode, while also switching to ANC and Transparency Mode a few times.
Beats also claims that you can get an hour of playback with just 5 minutes of fast charging. However, It was close to 40 minutes during my testing.
On the charging front, there’s a Type-C to Type-C cable inside the box. It takes around 1.5 hours for the charging case to go from 0 to 100% with the earbuds inside.
Beats Studio Buds Review: Conclusion
So, do I recommend the Beats Studio Buds? Well, it’s a pair of lightweight earbuds with a peculiar design and decent bass reproduction. However, for a USD 150 product—or one that costs NPR 24,000 here in Nepal—it does miss out on some common features like touch control, automatic wear detection, and customizability.
Therefore, if you are looking for an all-around package at this price range, you should definitely be looking into the Galaxy Buds 2 or Galaxy Buds Pro instead. Yet, if you prefer good bass over everything else, you can’t go wrong with the Beats Studio Buds.
After the launch of F22 earlier this year, Samsung launched its second F-series smartphone in Nepal, the Galaxy F42 on 27th Sept. However, because of subpar specs and high prices, Samsung Nepal has slashed the price of Galaxy F42 5G by up to Rs. 4000. After the price cut, the Galaxy F42 5G somewhat makes sense.
Samsung Galaxy F42 5G Overview:
Before we begin, it’s important to note that the F42 5G is not a device that Samsung built from the ground up. It’s heavily based on the A22 5G that never made its way to the Nepali market. Nevertheless, Samsung has made some changes to the design and camera department.
Design and Display
Let’s start with the design first. Samsung Galaxy F42 5G sports a textured back finish that we have seen in M-series and F-series phones. It has a square camera module with a black pill shape on the inside which gives it a dual-tone finish.
Over on the front, Samsung has included a 6.6-inch display with an Infinity-V notch. It’s a TFT LCD panel with a 90Hz refresh rate and FHD+ resolution.
Performance and Memory
Powering the phone is MediaTek’s Dimensity 700 5G. This 7nm chip features two Cortex-A76 performance and six Cortex-A55 efficiency cores. The dedicated 5G modem on the Galaxy F42 supports a total of 12 bands.
You can choose between two RAM variants here: 6GB or 8GB. Still, both configurations feature 128GB of internal storage which can be expanded using a microSD card.
Samsung Galaxy F42 5G flaunts a triple camera setup at the back. Leading the lineup is a 64MP sensor that is paired with a 5MP ultra-wide and a 2MP depth sensor. You get an 8MP selfie camera inside the aforementioned Infinity-V notch for taking selfies and making video calls.
Rest of the specs
Fueling the phone is a massive 5,000mAh battery, which only supports 15W charging. There is a side-mounted fingerprint scanner on the right. You also get the usual connectivity options like dual-band Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, and USB Type-C with the F42 5G.
Samsung Galaxy F42 5G Price in Nepal and Availability
The official launch price of the Samsung Galaxy F42 5G in Nepal is NPR 34,999 for the 6/128GB and NPR 38,999 for the 8/128GB variant. However, it is now available at Rs. 31,999 and Rs. 34,999 for the 6GB and 8GB variants respectively.
Samsung Galaxy F42 5G
Price in Nepal
6/128GB
Rs. 34,999 Rs. 31,999
8/128GB
Rs. 38,999 Rs. 34,999
Meanwhile, check out our unboxing and review of Samsung Galaxy F42 5G.
The successor to last year’s Realme 7i, the Realme 8i has been launched in Nepal. It is a mid-range phone with a 120Hz refresh rate display. Anyways, let’s walk through the specs, features, availability, and official price of Realme 8i in Nepal.
Realme 8i Overview:
Design and Display
The Realme 8i sports a 6.6-inch IPS LCD panel with a 120Hz refresh rate and a 180Hz touch sampling rate. It supports 6 levels of refresh rate that dynamically changes depending on the content being displayed. In addition, this is the first Realme phone that can hit 1 nit of brightness. On the other hand, 8i boasts a peak brightness of 600 nits.
Moreover, in terms of design, it has a rectangular camera cutout at the back and a punch-hole cutout on the front. It weighs 195 grams and measures 8.5mm thick. The Realme 8i is available in two color options: Space Black and Space Purple.
On the performance side of things, the device is available with up to 6GB of RAM and up to 128GB of storage. Like the Realme 8s 5G, it also boasts the “DRE Technology” for virtual RAM expansion up to 5GB. Under the hood, the phone packs a MediaTek Helio G96 12nm chipset.
To note, Realme 8i is the world’s first phone to feature this SoC. Likewise, it boots on Realme UI 2.0 based on Android 11. Fueling the device is a 5000mAh battery that supports 18W fast charging.
Camera
In terms of optics, it has a triple-camera array at the back led by a 50MP primary lens. This is followed by a B&W portrait and a 4cm macro sensor. The left-aligned punch-hole cutout on the front houses a 16MP selfie camera.
Rest of the specs
Moving on, Realme 8i has a side-mounted fingerprint sensor for biometrics. For wireless connectivity, it supports dual-band WiFi and Bluetooth 5.1
Connectivity: Wi-Fi (2.4GHz + 5GHz), Bluetooth 5.1
Battery: 5000mAh with 18W charging
Color options: Space Black, Space Purple
Realme 8i Price in Nepal and Availability
The price of Realme 8i in Nepal starts at NPR 23,799 for the base 4/64GB variant. Similarly, the 6/128GB variant costs NPR 27,199. It is now available for purchase from your nearest mobile retail shop.
Pandemic-related production issues have resulted in price increase across the board in the TV industry. Nonetheless, the demand for TVs has not decreased. Instead, it’s kept on growing since people began spending more time at home. Hisense, a brand that has long served the business, also sells its TVs in Nepal. And in this article, we will go over all of the Hisense TV models available in Nepal, along with their official price.
Furthermore, as part of their Dashain deal, Hisense is providing a free Hitex Carpet with the purchase of any TV.
Hisense TV Price in Nepal:
Normal TV (Non-Smart):
Though non-smart TVs don’t have all the capabilities we’re used to seeing on a smart television, people still prefer them for their simplicity and a cheaper price tag. Hisense ships its normal TVs in Nepal in three screen sizes: 32, 39, and 43-inch.
These are LED-backlit TVs have Full HD resolution, 60Hz refresh rate, and a 4000:1 contrast ratio. Moreover, they have to skimp on connectivity options as well, as they feature 3x HDMI, 2x USB, 1x RF, and 1x headphone jack.
Hisense TV Model
Technology
Screen Size
Resolution
Price
HX32N2173H
LED TV
32-inch
1920 x 1080
Rs. 29,390
HX39N2176F
LED TV
39-inch
1920 x 1080
Rs. 42,850
HX43M2176F
LED TV
43-inch
1920 x 1080
Rs. 48,750
LED Smart TV:
Moving on, we have the Smart TVs from Hisense. These TVs offer the convenience of streaming your favorite shows via platforms such as YouTube or Netflix—thanks to built-in Wi-Fi connectivity. Hisense has been offering smart TVs in Nepal in three screen sizes, ranging between 32 and 43-inch. These are Google-certified Android TVs with a Full HD screen and bezel-less design. All of them have 1GB of RAM and 8GB of internal storage.
Here, the A6200F is the only model with a voice command remote. One thing to note here is that the 39-inch model comes with HomeOS pre-installed in it, while the rest boot on the Android 9. The port options on these TVs include 2x HDMI, 2x USB, and 1x Digital Audio Output port.
Hisense TV Model
Technology
Screen Size
Resolution
Price
32E5606EX
LED TV
32-inch
1920 x 1080
Rs. 36,690
32A6200F
LED TV
32-inch
1920 x 1080
Rs. 43,490
HX39N2170PW
LED TV
39-inch
1920 x 1080
Rs. 51,500
43A6200F
LED TV
43-inch
1920 x 1080
Rs. 73,390
4K UHD TV:
On top of this, Hisense sells 4K UHD TVs in Nepal as well. The firm offers 4K TVs in three sizes: 43, 50, and 65-inches. The 43-inch model, like the 39-inch FHD TV above, comes with HomeOS, while the remainder in the lineup runs on Android TV 9.
Moreover, the A7400F model here supports Dolby Vision HDR, while the 43-inch variant does not. On the audio front, the A7400F has 2x 13W speakers with Dolby Audio and DTS Virtual-X compatibility. The N3000UWT variant, on the other hand, includes a single 14W speaker with Dolby Digital support. There are 2x USB-A, 3x HDMI, 1x SPDIF, 1x headphone jack, and 1x AV input port.
Hisense TV Model
Technology
Screen Size
Resolution
Price
HX43N3000UWT
4K TV
43-inch
3840 x 2160
Rs. 78,570
50A7400F
4K TV
50-inch
3840 x 2160
Rs. 110,990
65A7400F
4K TV
65-inch
3840 x 2160
Rs. 179,990
ULED TV:
Let us now discuss the finest of the group, which are Hisense ULED TVs. ULED is an abbreviation for Ultra Light-Emitting Diode, which divides the backlight LEDs into 240 distinct zones. It has a large palette and can reproduce a wide range of colors, resulting in images that appear brighter and more detailed.
The Hisense ULED TVs run HomeOS and come in three screen sizes: 50, 55, and 65 inches. There are 3x HDMI and 2x USB-A in terms of connectivity. Despite being premium 4K ULED TVs, there is no Dolby Vision certification here.
Hisense TV Model
Technology
Screen Size
Resolution
Price
HA50U7A2WT
ULED TV
50-inch
3840 x 2160
Rs. 131,430
HA55U7A2WTG
ULED TV
55-inch
3840 x 2160
Rs. 162,860
HA65U7A2WTG
ULED TV
65-inch
3840 x 2160
Rs. 221,450
Hisense TV Price in Nepal [Summary]
Model Number
Screen Size
Price
Normal LED TV
HX32N2173H
32-inch (FHD, 1920 x 1080 px)
Rs. 29,390
HX39N2176F
39-inch (FHD, 1920 x 1080 px)
Rs. 42,850
HX43M2176F
43-inch (FHD, 1920 x 1080 px)
Rs. 48,750
LED Smart TV
32E5606EX
32-inch (FHD, 1920 x 1080 px)
Rs. 36,690
32A6200F
32-inch (FHD, 1920 x 1080 px)
Rs. 43,490
HX39N2170PW
39-inch (FHD, 1920 x 1080 px)
Rs. 51,500
43A6200F
43-inch(FHD, 1920 x 1080 px)
Rs. 73,390
4K UHD TV
HX43N3000UWT
43-inch (4K, 3840 x 2160 px)
Rs. 78,570
50A7400F
50-inch (4K, 3840 x 2160 px)
Rs. 110,990
65A7400F
65-inch (4K, 3840 x 2160 px)
Rs. 179,990
ULED TV
HX43N3000UWT
43-inch (4K, 3840 x 2160 px)
Rs. 131,430
50A7400F
50-inch (4K, 3840 x 2160 px)
Rs. 162,860
65A7400F
65-inch (4K, 3840 x 2160 px)
Rs. 221,450
Besides the price of Hisense TV in Nepal, you might also be interested in:
Back in June, Tecno announced “Phantom” as a separate sub-brand that will focus on relatively more premium devices compared to budget phones that the company is known for. Phantom X is the first product unveiled under the sub-brand, which is now available in Nepal. So, let’s get into the specs, features, availability, and official price in Nepal of Tecno Phantom X.
Tecno Phantom X Overview:
Design and Display
Phantom X has a 6.7” FHD+ SuperAMOLED display with curved edges and a 90Hz refresh rate. It has Gorilla Glass 5 protection on the front, as well as on the back.
In terms of design, the back has a refined rectangular camera cutout on the center while the body has stripes flowing from top to bottom. Likewise, it houses a dual camera on the front.
Moving on to the performance side of things, Phantom X comes with MediaTek’s Helio G95 chipset coupled with 8GB of RAM and 256GB of internal storage. This 12nm SoC features two Cortex-A76 (@2.05GHz) and six Cortex-A55 (@2.0GHz) CPU cores. Handling the graphics is Arm’s Mali-G76 MC4 GPU.
Furthermore, for better thermal management, it has a vapor chamber cooling attached to the chipset which keeps the handset up to 3-5ºC cooler. On the software front, it runs Android 11-based HiOS out of the box.
Camera
As for the optics, the phone features a triple-camera setup at the back led by a 50MP primary camera that has a large 1/1.3” sensor. The primary lens is accompanied by a 13MP telephoto lens with 2x optical zoom and an 8MP ultra-wide-angle sensor. These cameras are backed by a quad-LED flash.
Tecno Phantom X sports a pill-shaped camera cutout on the front for selfies and video calls. The main sensor here is a 48MP camera while there is also an 8MP ultrawide module with a 105º field of view. These two front-facing sensors are complemented by a dual-LED flash as well.
Rest of the specs
Fueling the device is a 4700mAh battery that supports 33W fast charging. Tecno claims that with a 30-minute charge, the device juices up to 70%. You get an in-display fingerprint scanner here that can unlock the device in 0.4 seconds. Phantom X comes in Starry Night Blue and Monet’s Summer color options.
The price of Tecno Phantom X in Nepal is NPR 64,990 for the sole 8/256GB variant. You can buy Phantom X in Nepal from any Tecno authorized retail store across the country.
Tecno Phantom X
Price in Nepal
8/256GB
NPR 64,990
Meanwhile, check out our review of the Realme Pad.
The demand for tablets has grown significantly in this pandemic-stricken market, and multiple companies are trying their luck in this segment. The latest company to be in the race is Nokia, which has launched its first tablet in Europe. Here, we will be discussing the specs, features, expected price, and availability of the Nokia T20 in Nepal.
Nokia T20 Overview:
Design and Display
Nokia T20 sports a 10.4-inch LCD panel with 2K resolution and a 15:9 aspect ratio. The display can get as bright as 400 nits in typical condition and Nokia has included a brightness boost mode as well. It is also certified for low blue light emission.
The tablet arrives in the Ocean Blue shade, typical of a Nokia smartphone. There is a left-aligned pill-shaped camera module at the back.
Performance and Memory
Inside, the Nokia T20 packs Unisoc Tiger T610 SoC. This octa-core chipset is based on a 12nm node and features two Cortex-A75 and six Cortex-A55 CPU cores.
There are two RAM variants to choose from, 3GB and 4GB. The two have 32GB and 64GB internal storage, respectively. You can even stick a microSD card to expand the storage.
Software
Nokia T20 boots on Android 11 out-of-the-box. The company is promising 2 years of OS and 3 years of monthly security updates here. The tablet even has a dedicated space for kids and parental control tools.
The aforementioned pill-shaped camera module houses an 8MP sensor which is accompanied by an LED flash. Over on the front, Nokia has included a 5MP shooter, which also doubles as Face Unlock biometrics. The tablet has a stereo speaker setup, dual-microphone, and even a headphone jack.
Rest of the specs
Fueling the tablet is a big 8,200mAh battery which the company claims can last up to 15 hours. It supports charging speeds of up to 15W, but Nokia is only including a 10W adapter in the box. As for connectivity, it supports Wi-Fi ac and Bluetooth 5.0. There is also a variant with 4G connectivity.
Nokia T20 Specifications:
Body: 157.5 x 247.6 x 157.5mm, Sandblasted aluminum
Nokia T20 tablet is up for pre-order in the UK where its price is GBP 179.99 for the Wi-Fi only and GBP 199.99 for the 4G model. Its sale starts on October 11. We expect the price of the Nokia T20 tablet in Nepal to start at NPR 30,000, if and when it is launched here.
Nokia T20
Price in the UK
Price in Nepal (Expected)
4/64GB, WiFi
GBP 179.99
NPR 30,000
4/64GB, Wi-Fi + 4G
GBP 199.99
NPR 33,500
Meanwhile, check out our review of the Realme Pad.
DJI launched the OM 5 handheld gimbal for smartphones about a month ago. It’s one-third smaller than its predecessor and features an extension rod to convert it into a selfie stick. And now the OM 5 has made its way to Nepal as well. So, let’s get into the specs, features, availability, and price of DJI OM 5 in Nepal.
DJI OM 5 Overview:
Body
The DJI OM 5 comes with a three-axis handheld stabilizer that physically moves to balance the camera movement, resulting in a naturally smooth motion. As mentioned in the beginning, this gimbal doubles as a selfie stick to help take photos at high and low angles.
Moreover, the OM 5 retains the same foldable design principle as its predecessor. However, it’s a tad bit smaller and lighter. It also includes an improved phone clip that stretches out even further to accommodate taller phones.
Furthermore, you get a physical button that lets you access the gimbal’s core features. There’s something called “ShotGuides” that recognizes the surroundings and recommends shooting tips. Similarly, with ActiveTrack 4.0, the OM 5 can help you keep moving subjects in focus better.
There’s also a gesture control feature that lets you click photos with simple hand gestures. Furthermore, after filming videos, it will auto-edit all the clips into a single finished film and sync it with DJI’s Mimo app.
Rest of the specs
In order to make this iteration more compact, the battery’s capacity has been reduced. While the OM 4 featured a 2450mAh battery, the OM 5 comes with a much smaller 1000mAh cell. Besides this, it retains other features available on OM 4 like DynamicZoom, timelapse, motion-lapse, hyper-lapse modes, panoramas, spin shot, story mode templates, and glamor effects.
DJI OM 5 Specifications:
Dimensions:
Unfolded: 264.5 × 111.1 × 92.3mm
Folded: 174.7 × 74.6 × 37mm
Weight: 292gm (gimbal) / 34gm (phone clamp)
Extension Rod: 8.4-inch
Phone Compatibility:
Weight: 230 ± 60gm
Thickness: 6.9-10mm
Width: 67-84mm
Mechanical Range:
Pan: -161.12º to 172.08º
Roll: -127.05º to 208.95º
Tilt: -101.46º to 229.54º
Max Control Speed: 120º/s
Battery: 1000mAh (6.4 hours operating time, ideally)
Charging time: 1.5 hrs (with 10W charger)
Charging port: USB Type-C
Connectivity: Bluetooth 5.0 (BLE)
Companion app: DJI Mimo (Android | iOS)
Color options: Athens Gray
Sunset White not available in Nepal right now
DJI OM 5 Price in Nepal and Availability
The price of DJI OM 5 in Nepal is NPR 25,500. You can buy DJI OM 5 handheld gimbal in Nepal from Oliz Store.
Product
Price in Nepal
Availability
DJI OM 5
NPR 25,500
Hukut Store
Meanwhile, check out our review of the Realme Pad.
It’s been quite some time since OnePlus launched its flagship phone for 2021, the OnePlus 9 Pro. And ever since the launch, it has been surrounded by a lot of criticism. Firstly, for the excessive marketing campaign that OnePlus employed to generate hype for its partnership with Hasselblad. And then there were a series of software bugs, Bluetooth connectivity, and overheating issues, out of which some have been fixed while a couple of them still await their turn. So what should you expect from the forthcoming long-term review of the OnePlus 9 Pro?
I have been using this phone for about a month now – 2 weeks as my secondary device while I was reviewing the Realme 8 Pro, and then it’s stayed in my pocket as my primary phone for about 2 weeks. So I think I am finally ready to share my long-term experience of the OnePlus 9 Pro in this review. Let’s get started!
OnePlus 9 Pro Specifications:
Body: 73.6 x 163.2 x 8.7mm, 197 gm, Corning Gorilla Glass 5, IP68 dust/water resistant
Battery: 4500mAh with 65W fast charge (50W wireless charging)
Color options: Morning Mist, Forest Green, Stellar Black
Price in Nepal: Rs. 1,29,999 (12/256GB)
OnePlus 9 Pro Long-Term Review:
Design and Build
Glass front, glass back, metal frame
IP68 dust/water resistant, Gorilla Glass 5
The first thing I’ve really, really liked about the OnePlus 9 Pro is its form factor. Compared to the Samsung Galaxy S21 Ultra or the iPhone 12 Pro Max, this one is extremely handy and lightweight as well. It is in fact, one of the most comfortable big, yet snuggly phones I have held this year.
Still, I do wish there were some more refreshing color options to choose from. Apart from the Forest Green variant, the other 2 alternatives are pretty meh! The Stellar Black variant that I have with me does not attract smudges as the Morning Mist option does, but I think OnePlus could have taken some inspiration from S21 Ultra’s Phantom Black finish because that looks pretty dope!
Other than that, its design is nothing exceptional or outstanding. Except for the revamped camera layout and the missing OnePlus branding at the bottom, it’s basically the same as last year’s OnePlus 8 Pro.
Gorilla Glass… 5?
Weirdly, the company also didn’t include the latest Gorilla Glass Victus or even the Gorilla Glass 6 for that matter. Instead, OnePlus decided to go with almost 5 years old Gorilla Glass 5 on both the front as well as the back.
Buttons, Ports
1 of 2
Alert Slider
Ports
Regardless, there are also slight curves on the edges that add to the premium experience. Although the curvature of the edge this time around is less aggressive and the palm rejection is quite good, I’ve witnessed multiple instances of accidental touches which is ever so slightly bothersome. Additionally, I found it difficult to slide to the start of a YouTube video in portrait mode because of the curves.
Display
6.7 inches QHD+ Fluid AMOLED screen
120Hz refresh rate, 360Hz touch sampling rate
10-bit color depth, 1300 nits peak brightness
The display quality is what you would expect from a flagship phone of 2021 though. OnePlus 9 Pro uses the same panel as the Oppo Find X3 Pro. You get a gorgeous 6.7- inch QHD AMOLED display with all the bells and whistles like HDR10+ compliance, a 120Hz refresh rate, and LTPO backplane technology.
Here, this display can dynamically switch its refresh rate to as low as 1Hz, which is technically better than the 10Hz cap on the S21 Ultra. Likewise, throughout the review period, I didn’t face any issue with the brightness level on OnePlus 9 Pro either; be it outdoors on a sunny day or while using in bed at night. The auto-brightness sensor also works like a charm and the panel produces close to natural colors.
Plus, features like dark mode are well optimized as well. To save battery, the ambient display option is not always ON by default but you can toggle it as so, or even schedule when you’d want to turn on AoD. And with a new feature called Canvas, OnePlus even lets you use your photo as a background for the always ON display.
Not a perfect display
However, it’s by no means a perfect screen. For example, while streaming Netflix, videos look a bit darker here in comparison to the S21 Ultra. And before the latest update, while viewing certain HDR contents, the blacks were not pitch black but rather had a grayish shade. Thankfully, this particular issue has been resolved.
On the software side of things, OnePlus has tweaked OxygenOS 11 well to be comfortable to use with one hand, just like Samsung’s One UI. Plus, this Android skin has always been known for subtle yet useful customizations like the systemwide accent color or the easy use of an icon pack.
However, it would be great if OnePlus takes the inspiration from Samsung by guaranteeing 3 years of major OS upgrade as well. Likewise, OnePlus should have implemented the position of the fingerprint sensor a little higher like on the S21 Ultra. For someone like me with small hands, the relatively lowered placement took some time to get used to.
Fast in-display fingerprint sensor
Anyway, the sensor itself is wickedly fast and doesn’t miss a mark. But because of its optical heritage, you cannot use it when the display is turned OFF. On the contrary, this is possible with the S21 Ultra which comes with an ultrasonic sensor instead. So, you will require a bit of a trick on the OnePlus 9 Pro, which is turning ON the always-on Ambient display.
That being said, I have really liked how with every iteration, OnePlus is improving its haptic feedback as well as the speakers. If you remember, OnePlus used to be very far off with the likes of Samsung and iPhone in these aspects.
But now, these kinds of nitty-gritty details have been taken care of. After all, OnePlus is no longer a brand that makes flagship killer phones. And yeah, this one also has an IP68 rating, which reminds me of their tweet from back in 2019.
Since the start of the OnePlus’s journey, the company has always used the latest and greatest Qualcomm chipset, so much so that I remember the time when the company went with the Snapdragon 810 on the OnePlus 2 despite wide publications of the chip’s massive overheating issues.
And this year’s no different for OnePlus either. Under the hood, you get Qualcomm’s latest Snapdragon 888 chipset, LPDDR5 RAM, and UFS 3.1 storage. Pair that with a 120Hz refresh rate and the ever so optimized OxygenOS, the phone feels fast, really fast! To compare, the Exynos 2100-powered S21 Ultra feels slightly slower than the 9 Pro.
Keeping apps in memory has been piece of cake on the 12GB RAM variant that I have with me. So, from memory management to practically every aspect of performance, the phone works like a champ. And I’m pretty sure that will be the case even after say, 2 or 3 years down the road.
Heating issue
But, I’ve got to talk about the heating issue on this thing. Before the latest April update, even updating heavy apps or games, or using the phone while charging would make the phone heat up. Although the problem has been reduced by a lot after the few update, it still gets warm and that’s kind of frustrating.
For instance, playing graphic-intensive games like PUBG and Genshin Impact continuously for just half an hour takes the phone’s temperature to 42-degree C, which isn’t normal if you ask me.
Likewise, even when you’re shooting videos for a longer time, you will feel the phone getting warm mostly near the camera module. But especially while gaming for a long time, I’ve encountered multiple instances where the phone would become extremely uncomfortable to hold, because of which, I had to let it cool down for a bit.
Not cool, OnePlus
Ironically, OnePlus addressed this very same issue with other phones and bragged how the OnePlus 9 Pro’s “Cool Play” cooling system with 5 layers of copper graphite and other materials would keep the phone comparatively cooler than other flagship phones. Yet, the company has failed to keep its promise despite multiple updates.
Don’t get me wrong. The gaming performance itself is quite good—even going beyond the default settings in games like PUBG can result in really stable and smooth gameplay. Demanding games like Genshin Impact can run on the OnePlus 9 Pro without a sweat in its default settings while I only noticed slight lags in the 60 fps mode throughout the review period.
Given all the hype OnePlus had created about its partnership with popular camera company Hasselblad, everyone was super pumped up to see what the OnePlus 9 series had in store, me included. But soon after the reviews followed, it wasn’t what everyone expected.
And disclaimer, my verdict regarding the OnePlus 9 Pro’s cameras is the same. Its cameras are good. The primary 48MP lens with the new Sony IMX789 sensor, the telephoto lens, the ultra-wide sensor—all delivers top-notch performance. It’s just that OnePlus marketed its Hasselblad collaboration to seemingly yield an otherworldly camera experience, while that couldn’t be farther from the truth.
Normal Images
After clicking over 100s of photos from the OnePlus 9 Pro alongside the S21 Ultra for this review, I found that the primary and ultra-wide images from the OnePlus 9 Pro are slightly heavier in contrast.
Normal
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OnePlus 9 Pro
S21 Ultra
OnePlus 9 Pro
S21 Ultra
OnePlus 9 Pro
S21 Ultra
OnePlus 9 Pro
S21 Ultra
OnePlus 9 Pro
S21 Ultra
And although the Hasselblad partnership has mostly worked on fixing the color science or producing “natural color calibration” in the images, the photos tend to overdo the Red, Green, and Blue hues. Both cameras have a good focus, but I like how the S21 Ultra produces more true-to-life colors.
Wideangle Images
The color reproduction in ultra-wide mode is similar to the primary images too. I found both cameras doing a similar job except for the slightly higher contrast in OnePlus’ images.
Wideangle
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OnePlus 9 Pro
S21 Ultra
OnePlus 9 Pro
S21 Ultra
OnePlus 9 Pro
S21 Ultra
OnePlus 9 Pro
S21 Ultra
OnePlus 9 Pro
S21 Ultra
Also, its ultra-wide shots are a little distorted in the edges while S21 Ultra manages to maintain details in such areas better. This one especially comes as a surprise seeing how OnePlus promised the exact opposite result from its 50MP ultra-wide camera with a freeform lens.
Nighttime Images
And during low light and nighttime conditions, OnePlus tries to saturate the pictures a bit more in most cases. But the end result looks nice, so no complaints here. On the other hand, S21 Ultra has a very subtle & natural color reproduction both in normal and night mode shots.
Nighttime
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OnePlus 9 Pro - Nighttime
S21 Ultra - Nighttime
OnePlus 9 Pro - Nighttime
S21 Ultra - Nighttime
OnePlus 9 Pro - Nighttime
S21 Ultra - Nighttime
OnePlus 9 Pro - Night Mode
S21 Ultra - Night Mode
OnePlus’ images are slightly noisier than the S21 Ultra but it also reduces distortion in the edges better, hence retaining better sharpness in the corners.
Ultrawide Nigttime
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OnePlus 9 Pro - Wideangle Nighttime
S21 Ultra - Wideangle Nighttime
OnePlus 9 Pro - Wideangle Night Mode
S21 Ultra - Wideangle Night Mode
Both phones let you shoot ultra-wide nighttime and night mode images and apart from the slightly boosted colors on the OnePlus 9 pro, they do quite a similar job actually!
Portrait Images
About the portraits, photos from the OnePlus 9 Pro portray a smoother and brightened subject. The background has a natural enough bokeh and edge detection is pretty good too. In fact, in some cases, edge detection is better here than the S21 Ultra.
Portrait
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OnePlus 9 Pro
S21 Ultra
OnePlus 9 Pro
S21 Ultra
OnePlus 9 Pro
S21 Ultra
OnePlus 9 Pro
S21 Ultra
OnePlus 9 Pro
S21 Ultra
Even so, OnePlus has this really unnatural color tone in its portraits, which I thought would improve with an update but here I am.
Telephoto Images
OnePlus 9 Pro’s cameras are capable of optically zooming up to 3.3x via its telephoto camera and up to 30x digitally. The output is sharp but it tends to have a color shift from the primary images.
OnePlus 9 Pro - Telephoto
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Normal
3.3x Zoom
Normal
3.3x Zoom
But, note that it tries to maintain color details and sometimes outshines S21 Ultra like in this picture here.
Color shift
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OnePlus 9 Pro - Normal
OnePlus 9 Pro - 3.3x
S21 Ultra - Normal
S21 Ultra - 3.3x Zoom
On the other hand, S21 Ultra’s telephoto pictures, do not suffer from color shift compared to its primary images at all and look more consistent.
OnePlus - Telephoto
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1x
10x
30x
1x
10x
30x
Given its flagship price tag, I also think OnePlus should have given an additional 10x periscope lens as the S21 Ultra.
10x, 30x Zoom
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OnePlus 9 Pro - 10x Zoom
S21 Ultra - 10x Zoom
OnePlus 9 Pro - 30x Zoom
S21 Ultra - 30x Zoom
So, zooming further to 10x or 30x on the OnePlus 9 Pro isn’t going to give you good images.
Same ol’ IMX471 upfront
While the company is using the latest sensors for its primary and ultra-wide lens with every iteration, for some weird reason, they are still using the same old IMX471 for the front-facing camera.
If you didn’t know, this sensor made its official debut with the OnePlus 7 series and is even found on budget phones like the Realme 6.
The caveat with this sensor is you can only shoot selfie videos at 1080p 30 or 60 fps and nothing more. Although the quality is good and the videos are stable enough, I feel like, being a flagship phone, OnePlus should have gone with a newer lens that can shoot at higher resolutions, which the competitors like Samsung and iPhone have been providing for years.
Likewise, the Field of view on this thing isn’t great either. So, you’ll always need to stretch your arms a bit when you’re shooting videos. The audio from the microphone is quite good but still, for vlogging, it’s not the best option.
Selfie Images
As for the selfie photos, I found it shares similar color reproduction as the portraits where the S21 Ultra delivers relatively natural-looking images while OnePlus whitens and brightens the subject. OnePlus’ selfies are also softer while Samsung sharpens the pictures a bit more.
Selfie
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OnePlus 9 Pro - Selfie
S21 Ultra - Selfie
OnePlus 9 Pro - Selfie
S21 Ultra - Selfie
OnePlus 9 Pro - Selfie
S21 Ultra - Selfie
OnePlus 9 Pro - Portrait Selfie
S21 Ultra - Portrait Selfie
I had also conducted a blind camera test between the OnePlus 9 Pro and S21 Ultra on our Instagram page and well, the results were 63% against the 9 Pro and 37% for it.
Videography
Unlike the selfie video, the OnePlus 9 pro bears good videography prowess from the rear camera. You have the option to shoot at up to 8k 30 fps. The 8k videos are actually better stabilized here compared to the S21 Ultra so, good job there!
Impressively, the phone can shoot 8k 30fp videos even with its ultra-wide camera, but it does not let you switch in the same video. I hope that option comes out with an update. 4K 60 fps videos are nice and stable, thanks to OIS, and the video looks superb with great detail. Plus, you can shoot at 4k 120 fps too that you can edit in post to make really cool slo-mo videos.
Macro Images
Also, the macro images from the phone are quite good. Again, Samsung’s Focus Enhancer lets you go way closer and maintains good colors too. However, macro shots from the OnePlus 9 Pro are, as you can see, sharper and better.
Macro
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OnePlus 9 Pro
S21 Ultra
OnePlus 9 Pro
S21 Ultra
OnePlus 9 Pro
S21 Ultra
Hence, my conclusion on the OnePlus 9 Pro’s cameras is that they’re not bad as some of the reviews I have stumbled upon have painted it out to be. But, if you put it against the best camera phones out there, it will definitely lag behind, albeit by a small margin.
The things OnePlus needs to improve are mainly, the color, shadow processing, and consistency across lenses. With its 3 year partnership with Hasselblad, I hope the company will be able to achieve that eventually. Right now though, their collaboration is no doubt in the initial stage leaving a lot of room for improvement.
Battery
4500mAh battery, 65W wired charging
50W fast wireless charging
Like with the camera, the battery life on the OnePlus 9 Pro could see an improvement as well. With its 4500mAh cell, I was expecting similar endurance as last year’s OnePlus 8 Pro. In fact, it must have been doing better because of the aforementioned LTPO screen that can dynamically adjust the refresh rate up to 1Hz depending on the content on the screen.
This average battery life is maybe because of the slight heating issue, I don’t know. But it most certainly hasn’t gotten better with the updates. Yet, what I like about OnePlus devices is they provide a 65W Power delivery charger inside the box; which isn’t just super fast to charge the phone, but it can charge my laptop too.
So, I don’t need to carry both the laptop and the phone charger with me. Sweet! It also supports 50W wireless charging that juices up the device in under 45 mins, but I haven’t bought it yet.
Conclusion
So, to sum up this long-term review of the OnePlus 9 Pro, it is evident by now that the company made two critical mistakes when launching this phone. First, they hiked its price compared to its predecessor at a time when prices of other flagship phones are decreasing. And second is the pre-launch hype of the Hasselblad collaboration, which for me, was just too much.
Still, don’t get any wrong idea, it’s a very good phone. The thing is, after the launch of the OnePlus 8 and 8 Pro, it seems like they have exponentially shifted their focus in expanding the portfolio of the company—which is not at all a bad development. Yet, it’s just that in doing so, OnePlus has failed to live up to its own standard or build on it.
They launched the OnePlus Nord which was a great midrange phone, to begin with. But after that, they launched some Oppo rebranded phones, and jumped into the TV and accessories market (TWS, band, watch).
And when a company that used to launch just two flagship phones a year puts its foot in such a larger market by coming out with so many products in a bid to be a household name, it is bound for a bumpy ride. And that’s pretty much reflected with the OnePlus 9 Pro’s pricing and how different issues like heating still haven’t been taken care of after more than a month of the phone’s launch.
Earlier this year, DishHome ignited the Nepali internet market with its 25Mbps package for just Rs. 233 per month to existing subscribers of its TV package. Plus, the company has already been offering up to 100Mbps internet in the country. Yet, it is now offering the 100Mbps bandwidth internet at a much more lucrative price as a part of the DishHome “Dimaaaaag Halline Offer”.
DishHome 100Mbps Dimaaaaag Halline Offer:
As the festive season is just around the corner, DishHome has launched the “Dimaaaaag Halline Offer”. Under this campaign, users can grab the 100Mbps internet package for just Rs. 899 per month.
To repeat, DishHome already had the 100Mbps plan in its arsenal. But it has now been priced quite aggressively, making it a much more appealing offer. To compare, it is significantly cheaper than the company’s prior price for the same plan, which was Rs. 2,200 per month. To note, this is cheaper than CG Net‘s 120Mbps plan that costs Rs. 999 per month.
DishHome is promoting the Dimaaaaag Halline Offer on its social media handles as Rs. 899 per month package. We reached out to the company’s representative for further information and learned that this offer is only valid on a yearly subscription.
You can still select between an internet-only package and a combo plan that includes both internet and television.
Dimaaaaag Halline Offer
Price (12 Months)
100Mbps
Rs. 16,144
100Mbps + TV (1)
Rs. 20,944
In addition, the spokesperson also clarified that the aforementioned charges are the final price for the plans. That means they are inclusive of 13% VAT on top of other installation/setup costs. However, we would like to draw attention to the fact that DishHome should diligently update its offer on its official website to ensure a clear flow of information.
The DishHome 100Mbps Dimaaaaag Halline Offer is available across Nepal’s major cities where the company offers its internet services. For more info, you can visit the nearest DishHome dealer shop or contact the following hotline number:
Hotline Number: 9801-544000
Meanwhile, check out our review of the Realme 8s 5G.
OnePlus unveiled its latest flagship smartphones back in March. The OnePlus 9 series is home to three devices (9R, 9, and the 9 Pro) of which the 9 Pro happens to be the most premium. And it’s now available in Nepal. So, let’s learn more about the OnePlus 9 Pro including its specs, features, and official price in Nepal.
OnePlus 9 Pro Overview:
Design and Display
Starting with the display, the OnePlus 9 Pro features a 6.7-inch AMOLED panel with a QHD+ resolution. It’s a curved screen with a left-aligned circular punch-hole cutout for the selfie camera. OnePlus claims that the curve has been optimized to reduce accidental touches while retaining the premium feel of the display.
As expected, the Fluid Display 2.0 has support for a 120Hz refresh rate and a 240Hz touch sampling rate. This time around, the company has opted for an LTPO panel for variable refresh rates. According to OnePlus, this display can dynamically adjust between 1Hz and 120Hz based on the contents on the screen. Dialing down the refresh rate to just 1Hz will allow the phone to save battery while it is on Always-On Display.
The display also has support for native 10-bit color depth. Thus, it is capable of displaying over 1 billion colors like the recently announced Oppo Find X3/X3 Pro. It can automatically switch between 8,132 brightness levels. Not to forget that the display has been granted A+ certification by DisplayMate too, just like on OnePlus 8 Pro last year.
There have been changes done to the back of the phone. Instead of the elongated pill-shaped module, we now have a rectangular camera module with rounded corners. Compared to the vanilla model, this one has an additional sensor.
Performance and Memory
Powering the OnePlus 9 pro is the Snapdragon 888 chipset. It is the most advanced chipset that Qualcomm has to offer right now. It features a tri-cluster CPU design with a Cortex X1 “Prime Core” core clocked at 2.84GHz. Similarly, there are 3 Cortex A78 “performance cores” and four Cortex A55 “efficiency cores.” It is based on Samsung’s 5nm process and features an integrated 5G modem.
OnePlus is relying on its new “Cool Play” technology to keep the temperature of the device in check. According to the company, the five-layered cooling mechanism can keep the device up to a couple of degrees cooler than Samsung’s Galaxy S21 Ultra after 20 minutes of gameplay.
Games like the PUBG Mobile, COD Mobile, League of Legends: Wild Rift, and Brawl Stars are optimized to support the 360Hz touch sampling rate of the phone. OnePlus calls it the “Hyper Touch”.
Even before the launch, OnePlus’ decision to use Oppo’s ColorOS 11 for the Chinese market caused a lot of discussions. However, it will only affect the devices in China, which comes as a replacement to HydrogenOS. The global variant will still ship with the good-ol’ OxygenOS based on Android 11.
Camera
While OnePlus has been delivering in the performance aspect, its cameras were notorious for their sub-par quality. The company is looking to change that with the recently announced partnership with Hasselblad. The partnership will run for 3 years with OnePlus promising to invest around $150 million in the time frame.
Talking about the cameras, the OnePlus 9 Pro has four at the back and one on the front. The primary camera here is the 48MP Sony IMX789 sensor which OnePlus claims to be 64 times more colorful than its predecessor. Users will be able to record videos at 4K/120 fps and 8K/30 fps. It will also allow users to record in 12-bit RAW format. Other features of the main sensor include Digital Overlap HDR and full-pixel omnidirectional autofocus.
The ultrawide sensor, on the other hand, is much similar to that on the Find X3 Pro. Both use the 50MP Sony IMX766 sensor along with a freeform lens. The latter is said to reduce distortion that traditional smartphone lenses have a hard time dealing with. There is also a telephoto lens with 3.3x magnification. The fourth sensor is a 2MP monochrome sensor.
On the software side, the phone comes with technologies like Focus Peaking, Natural Color Calibration with Hasselblad, Hasselblad Pro Mode, and a brand new camera app UI. Also, users can play with different shooting modes like Tilt-shift, Nightscape Video 2.0, Hyperlapse, and so on.
Rest of the specs
Fueling the device is a 4,500mAh battery with support for 65W wired charging. It can fill the device from 0 to 100% in just 29 minutes. Also, the phone supports 50W wireless charging that can completely refill the device in just 43 minutes. You can even charge your device wirelessly in horizontal orientation.
As of now, 50W wireless charging is available in a handful of devices like the Mi 10 Ultra, Mi 11, Huawei Mate 40 Pro, etc. Both Xiaomi and Oppo have demonstrated even faster wireless charging solutions but they are yet to be used on a commercial smartphone yet.
Rear Camera:
– 48MP, f/1.8 Sony IMX789 primary shooter, OIS
– 50MP, f/2.2 Sony IMX766 ultra-wide sensor
– 8MP, f/2.4 telephoto lens with 3.3X magnification
– 2MP, f/2.4 monochrome lens
Front Camera: 16MP lens (punch-hole)
Security: In-display Fingerprint Scanner, Face Unlock
Connectivity: 5G connectivity, Wi-Fi 6, Bluetooth 5.2, Type-C port
Battery: 4500mAh with WarpCharge 65T, WarpCharge 50 Wireless
Colors: Pine Green, Stellar Black
Morning Mist (Not available in Nepal)
OnePlus 9 Pro Price in Nepal & Availability
OnePlus 9 Pro is now available in Nepal where its price is NPR 119,990 for the 8/256GB and NPR 129,990 for the 12/256GB variant. You will also get one year of breakage insurance on the phone when buying it from official sources.
OnePlus 9 Pro
Price in Nepal
Availability
8/256GB
NPR 119,990
Out of Stock
12/256GB
NPR 129,990
Out of Stock
Check out our long-term review of the OnePlus 9 Pro.
That being said, I didn’t find the bass overpowering, which has been the biggest complaint about Beats products over these years. The mids and highs sound decent too. Still, they are not as clear and crisp as the Galaxy Buds 2 and Buds Pro.
![Hisense TV Price in Nepal [Updated]](https://cdn.gadgetbytenepal.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/10/Hisense-TV-Price-in-Nepal.jpg "Hisense TV Price in Nepal [Updated]")
