Sony has unveiled its latest pair of TWS buds, the WF-1000XM4. It has a new processing chip which the company claims increases noise cancellation levels “at all frequencies”. So, let’s delve in to know more about the specifications, features, availability, and expected price in Nepal of the Sony WF-1000XM4 TWS earbuds.
Sony WF-1000XM4 Overview:
Design
WF-1000XM4 has a completely new design and is 10% smaller than the previous WF-1000XM3. Despite this, what has remained unchanged here is the lengthy naming convention (imagine asking to buy a Sony WF-1000XM4 at a store). Anyway, these buds are rounder in shape and the first in the WF-1000M family to boast IPX4 water resistance.
The charging case also has a smaller form factor than its predecessor and now includes wireless charging. WF-1000XM4 is available in two color options: black and silver.
The buds are driven by Sony’s new V1 processor. Like I mentioned earlier, Sony claims that it improves ANC efficacy while requiring less power. It also has a new Adaptive Sound Control process, which allows the earbuds to analyze your surroundings and tune the sound for optimal performance.
WF-1000XM4 borrows the Speak-to-Chat feature from the WH-1000XM4 over-ear headphones. This automatically pauses music and activates ambient sound so you can clearly hear the person talking to you.
Audio
Moving on, Sony says that these are the world’s first TWS earbuds that enable Hi-Res audio through the LDAC codec. When compared to standard Bluetooth audio codecs like AAC and SBC, LDAC can carry up to three times as much data. WF-1000XM4 also includes 360 Reality Audio, which turns a live concert recording into an immersive experience.
Similarly, the buds feature a 6mm driver unit with 20% larger magnets, setting them on a better diaphragm. It not only supports ANC but also provides better passive noise isolation. Each bud contains a pair of beam-forming mics as well as a bone-conducting sensor for voice calls. Even in loud surroundings, the latter can clearly pick up your speech.
Rest of the specs
Aside from that, WF-1000XM4 offers a continuous playback time of up to 8 hours with ANC enabled and up to 12 hours without ANC. The charging case can charge the buds twice to their full capacity. Similarly, a 5-minute charge provides an hour of music playback.
Sony WF-1000XM4 Specifications:
Weight: 41 grams (w/charging case)
Sound driver: 6mm
Audio codecs: SBC, AAC, LDAC
Active noise cancellation: Yes
Chip: Sony V1
Connectivity: Bluetooth v5.2
Water resistance: Yes, IPX4 waterproof
Battery life:
Earbuds: Up to 8 hours playback (ANC on)
With case: Up to 36 hours (ANC off)
Charging: Qi wireless charging, USB-C
Color options: Silver, Black
Sony WF-1000XM4 Price in Nepal and Availability
Sony WF-1000XM4 is now available for USD 280 (or GPB 249 in the UK) in the international market. We expect the price of the Sony WF-1000XM4 in Nepal to be around NPR 35,000 when it launches here shortly.
Earbuds
Price in the US
Price in Nepal (Expected)
Sony WF-1000XM4
USD 280
NPR 35,000
Meanwhile, check out our review of Bose QuietComfort Earbuds.
CG Net recently entered the Nepali market, breaking the long-standing costly slumber of Nepali ISPs. This was soon followed by DishHome, which launched a 25 Mbps internet subscription at an astounding price. But, have you wondered about the reasons how CG and DishHome have managed to provide internet at such a cheap price in Nepal?
Cheap internet in Nepal:
CG has been attempting to join the Nepali telecom industry for some time but has not found success since it couldn’t obtain a unified license. Regardless, CG Communications (one of the subsidiary companies under Chaudhary Group) introduced CG Net in Nepal at a disruptively competitive price. DishHome, on the other hand, came up with some cost-effective internet solutions for its existing customers.
Today we’re going to discuss how these ISPs are actually offering affordable internet in Nepal. However, our speculation might be incomplete in the sense that these companies have different market strategies to turn Nepal’s internet space upside-down.
Market Trend / Customer Demand
Before we go any further, let’s discuss why businesses are turning their attention to the internet.
Nepalese consumers have always been demanding low-cost internet subscriptions. The new players in the country’s ISP market have clearly understood this outcry and therefore entered the industry.
Furthermore, the market trend has captured the attention of the youth. While our neighboring country India enjoys some of the cheapest data rates in the world, things are far too expensive here. This leaves an indelible imprint on our minds, and we are eager to experience such revolutionary developments when it arrives in Nepal.
Reasons for cheap internet from CG and DishHome
Low operation and Infrastructure cost
Considering CG Net and DishHome are still in their infancy in the ISP industry, their spending is lower than that of the established service providers. According to CG Net’s managing director, Mr. Niravana Chaudary, the business started its service with FTTH, therefore it doesn’t have to rely on any legacy infrastructures like its competitors.
Furthermore, they have several additional cost-cutting opportunities, such as their relatively small size, minimal operating and maintenance expenses, and so on. Such cost-cutting gains might be directly shared with users by offering low-cost internet access.
Price is the actual promotion
Looking at the current trend, most ISPs spend thousands only to promote and increase brand reach by appointing a brand ambassador. Users are the primary source of income for such activities, whether directly or indirectly; which of course, raises the cost of bandwidth internet for users.
However, in the case of CG and DishHome, they are offering their services at an extremely low rate. As a result, their pricing becomes an indirect advertising component, and consumers happily share the available information about it. Now, clients are no longer just service takers; they are also promoters. That is, the corporation does not require any branding or large holding on the streets because its advertising is already in the public’s house.
This is a globally established strategy, and businesses like CG and DishHome can really save a lot with it. And, as they are able to reduce some of their expenditure, users get the benefit with low-cost internet.
Loss Leading Strategy
Companies use this approach to provide their service at an extremely low price in order to win clients in a saturated market—especially in the early days of their establishment. This allows them to easily break into the market and garner widespread customer trust.
Now, when a business introduces a service at a lower price than its competitors, people are ecstatic to use it. This drives away the customers from the competition to the newcomers. As a result, this is the stage when the company starts penetrating the market in a disruptive manner.
While this is true, new competitors in ISP areas should have offered their services at modest profit margins. However, it has a long-term positive impact on their business.
For instance, we do not change service providers until we are displeased with them; and if these newcomers can give customer-satisfactory service, why would anyone switch? So, clients stay in the same domain for a longer period of time. And, even if the businesses reserve low profit in the first year, they start maximizing profits in the following years.
Verdict
It’s encouraging to see that, despite the high tariffs levied by the Nepalese government, companies are attempting to provide low-cost internet access. However, how long it’s gonna remain is still to be seen.
Besides revolutionary introductory pricing, the next big thing that will influence customer perception is consistency in service. We’ll get to witness it as time goes on. Regardless, we hope that CG and DishHome continue to follow their current trend.
Meanwhile, check out our video of gaming PC build under $1,000.
Here, we will compare three of the best wireless game controllers that you can buy in Nepal right now. In this list, we have Fantech WGP12 Revolver, MSI Force GC30, and Logitech Wireless Gamepad F710 fighting for the bragging right.
Why wireless though?
A wireless controller has multiple advantages over its wired counterpart, that is, keeping aside the input latency. Even so, modern wireless controllers have gotten so good that you won’t notice the latency unless you are into competitive e-sports.
Cordless controllers don’t restrict your movement and make your setup look clean too. In addition, you won’t have to worry about the wire getting damaged either. However, you will have to make sure the charge does not run out during your gaming sessions.
Best Wireless Game Controllers in Nepal:
Design and Build
It is quite apparent that the Logitech Wireless Gamepad F710 is the heaviest of the bunch. It is also the most premium-looking. The F710 has a glossy silver finish on the front, while the rear has a matte finish. There are rubber grips on the side. Users can attach the dongle to the battery compartment on the back, avoiding misplacements.
1 of 3
MSI Force GC30
Fantech WGP12 Revolver
Logitech Wireless Gamepad F710
MSI GC30 takes its inspiration from the Xbox controller. The Red and Black color scheme come from the MSI Dragon logo. It weighs around 240 grams. MSI has also included rubber padding on the side.
Weighing around 182 grams, the Fantech WGP12 is the lightest here. Nothing in the design stands out. It also lacks padding on the side. Fantech WGP12 looks cheap, but it is not discomforting while playing games.
Wireless connectivity
All three controllers arrive with a 2.4GHz dongle. Thus, you have all the freedom to move as conveniently as you’d want. They are plug-and-play devices of course and thus, you won’t have to go through the hassle of installing additional drivers.
You can even use the MSI Force GC30 with a MicroUSB cable without using the dongle. I had no problem using any of the three with my PC, but when I tried them on my old PlayStation 3, the Fantech WGP12 kept disconnecting time and again.
Control and Feedback
Moving on, MSI GC30 has a button layout like that of an Xbox controller. Thus, users with PlayStation controllers may find it strange to use initially.
Buttons on the MSI GC30 and Fantech WGP12 are smaller compared to those on the Logitech. These buttons are on the mushy side, too. Compared to them, buttons on Logitech F710 are softer.
D-Pad
I’m impressed by the D-Pad on the MSI GC30. Not only does it work better, but you also get an extra D-Pad cover in the box.
Logitech F710 has the worst D-Pad of the three. Users have to press the button hard to register a press. The Fantech WGP12 is not error-free, but it is the middle ground between the two.
1 of 3
MSI Force GC30
Fantech WGP12 Revolver
Logitech Wireless Gamepad F710
Analog Stick
The analog stick on the Logitech F710 offers a better grip among the three. It also feels more premium. Thus, your thumb won’t hurt even after a prolonged gaming session. Fantech WGP12 also has a decent grip and feel.
It is disappointing that MSI did not try to differentiate the stick from the rest of the body. They’ve used the same material. Thus, it doesn’t offer much grip like the other two. Other than that, I didn’t encounter any problem with any of the controllers.
Shoulder/Trigger Buttons
Logitech probably has the hardest shoulder button on the three, and I like it. Button-press has a pleasing click sound to them. Trigger buttons on the MSI GC30 have good grips. They also have the largest travel. The shoulder buttons on Fantech’s controller are soft and work well too. I have no complaints here.
Vibration
Logitech F710 features a dedicated button to turn on/off the vibration. Vibration on the other two is automatic. The feedback by the three controllers is almost indistinguishable.
Additional Functions/Features
Logitech F710 has additional switches for X-input and Direct input. Using the Direct input on my PlayStation, I noticed that the vibration and home button were not functional.
1 of 3
MSI Force GC30
Fantech WGP12 Revolver
Logitech Wireless Gamepad F710
On the other hand, you have to switch between the two using the Home key on the other two. Fantech WGP12 and MSI GC30 are compatible with PC, consoles, and Android. Except for the disconnection issue with the WGP12, both worked pretty well on my PlayStation 3. MSI even offers a 0.3m micro USB OTG cable to play games on the phone.
Battery and Charging
Logitech F710 runs on two AA batteries, which are readily available in the market. You can swap them on your own. The other two features have built-in batteries of 600mAh each. They last anywhere between 7 to 9 hours on a single charge. Similarly, it takes around 3 to 4 hours to charge them.
Accessories in the box
Logitech G710 comes with a range-extending receiver and a nano-receiver. MSI includes a charging cable, an extra D-Pad cover, and a USB dongle in the box. On the other hand, there is nothing except a charging cable and a USB dongle inside Fantech WGP12’s box.
Best Wireless Controllers in Nepal: Conclusion
Of the three, the Fantech WGP12 offers the best value-for-money. It has a decent build quality, connectivity, and buttons. Logitech F710 could be a good option if you play tons of games and want a sturdy controller that will last you for years. Lastly, I would recommend the MSI GC30 to people who are familiar with the Xbox controller.
S. No.
Best wireless controllers in Nepal
Price
1
Fantech GP12 Revolver
Rs. 2,499
2
MSI Force GC30
Rs. 5,000
3
Logitech F710
Rs. 6,500
Check out our midrange gaming PC build for under $1,000.
Google had its I/O conference last month, during which the company announced Android 12 and a raft of other features. And now, feature drop for the month of June for Google Pixel phones has gone live that delivers plenty of new features.
Google Pixel phones June feature drop:
Photos and Camera gets updated
At I/O 2021, Google revealed the “Locked Folder” for your photos. It’s a local space on your device that you don’t want to automatically sync with your Google Photos account. It is also password-protected, so anyone who knows your sign-in information cannot directly access it.
Now, on the Camera app, one can take photos/videos directly into the Locked Folder for storage. You can also move your existing images to the folder.
Next, the Camera app will get a Night Sight video feature for astrophotography lovers. You can now record or photograph starry skies—but of course, you must be patient and have a tripod or really steady hands for such long exposure shots. This feature will be accessible on Pixel 4 and newer models.
Furthermore, Ashton Attzs has created new Pixel-exclusive Pride wallpapers. Likewise, LGBTQ+ artists and YouTube Creators have teamed up for Pride-themed ringtones and alerts.
Pixel is now smarter
Google Assistant can now help you with incoming phone calls. Simply saying “Hey Google, answer call” or “Hey Google, reject call” can wake up the assistant that lets you answer/reject the incoming call.
GBoard’s clipboard has become more context-aware too. That is, when you copy text containing phone numbers, email addresses, or URLs, key snippets of text will be suggested in the clipboard. When you send it to the recipient and he/she clicks on them, they will be led to the relevant applications, such as Gmail for email.
Rest of the updates in June feature drop for Google Pixel phones
Other than this, the June feature drop for Google Pixel phones brings the Call Screen application to Japan. It helps to avoid spam calls by answering unknown numbers to find out the identity of the caller. Similarly, in Spain, Ireland, and Singapore, car crash detection will be offered in their Personal safety app.
Last but not least, the transcriber app Recorder will be accessible in more English dialects. It includes Singaporean, Australian, Irish, and British English. By the end of July, the app will be accessible for Pixel 3 and newer phones.
Here at Gadgetbyte, we are planning to come with a new PC build every month. We are starting this new series with a midrange gaming PC build with a budget of around $1000. This PC will cost you around a thousand bucks in the US, NPR 180,000 in Nepal, or INR 100,000 in India.
Midrange gaming PC build around $1,000
Motherboard
For this build, we went for MSI’s B560M Mortar Wi-Fi. Though not as good as the expensive Z-series, it is a decent budget motherboard with few significant upgrades over the last-gen B460M.
The Voltage Regulator Module on the MSI B560M Mortar Wi-Fi can deal with the Intel Core i5-11400, which we chose for this build. In addition, it has an extended heat sink design and is Wi-Fi 6E-ready. The motherboard has four RAM slots, and it even supports RAM overclocking. You can also opt for the cheaper B560M Bazooka or the slightly more expensive B560M Tomahawk variant if the price difference in your region is not that much.
Processor and Cooling
As for the CPU, we were confused between the Intel Core i5-11400 and the Ryzen 5 3600. Both have similar specs and pricing. We ultimately decided to go with the i5-11400, as it is slightly better in gaming.
The stock coolers that Intel provides you with its CPUs aren’t that good. Thus, we got ourselves an aftermarket air cooler from Cooler Master, the Hyper H410R. It costs around $30 and comes with a thermal paste as well.
RAM and Storage
As for the memory, we bought two 8GB sticks of XPG Spectrix D60G DDR4 RAM with 3600 MHz speed and CL14 timing. But, you should be fine with 3200 MHz RAM sticks as well.
We have been a little conservative when it comes to storage. Although our motherboard supports the newer PCI Gen 4 standards, we avoided compatible SSDs on account of them being expensive. Instead, we installed a 256GB PCIe Gen 3 NVMe SSD from PNY. To store all the games on our PC, we also installed 1TB of HDD from Seagate.
GPU
You are probably already familiar with the market situation for graphics cards these days. GPUs are scarce, and as a result, their prices have skyrocketed. This is all due to the ongoing global chip shortage, scalpers, and crypto-miners.
Luckily, we were able to get our hands on the NVIDIA GTX 1660 SUPER from MSI, which we paid $400 for. The pricing is crazy given that it is not an RTX card with dedicated Ray Tracing cores. It is still a decent mid-range card, though. However, we should have been able to buy RTX 3060 for the same price, if not for the GPU shortage.
Case and PSU
Here, we were able to secure a good deal for the Asus TUF GT301. We got this for around NPR 12,000 in Nepal. At the time of the build, it was on sale at MDComputers in India too. Asus TUF GT301 is an ATX Mid-Tower case, which comes with four 120mm fans pre-installed, has bold aesthetics, tempered glass, and all.
We went with a 600W power supply from Cooler Master. It is a non-modular PSU with an 80 Plus White certification.
Cost breakdown:
Model
Price in Nepal
CPU
Intel Core i5-11400
NPR 32,000
Cooler
Cooler Master Hyper H410R
NPR 3,500
Motherboard
MSI MAG B560M Mortar WiFi
NPR 25,000
RAM
XPG Spectrix D60G 16GB RGB
NPR 16,000
SSD
PNY CS1031 256GB NVMe SSD
NPR 5,000
HDD
Seagate Barracuda 1TB
NPR 5,000
GPU
Gigabyte GeForce GTX 1660 SUPER OC
NPR 65,000
PSU
Cooler Master MasterWatt Lite 600W
NPR 10,000
Case
Asus TUF Gaming GT301 ATX Mid-Tower
NPR 12,000
Total
NPR 173,500
Midrange Gaming PC Build Around $1000: Gaming Performance
Game
Graphics Setting
Very High
High
Medium
Cyberpunk 2077
33 fps
40 fps
48 fps
CS: GO
–
200 fps
230 fps
Shadow of the Tomb Raider
73 fps
78 fps
86 fps
Assasin Creed: Syndicate
61fps
98fps
115 fps
Valorant
–
250 fps
290 fps
League of Legends
183 fps
190 fps
235 fps
Midrange Gaming PC Build Around $1000: Synthetic Benchmarks
Solid State Drives (SSDs) are among the best storage options available since they use less energy and deliver faster read/write performance. However, hard disk drives (HDDs) continue to have a place in the storage industry because of their cost-efficiency. And to make this less expensive storage device more appealing, researchers at Cambridge University have introduced a graphene hard drive that outperforms current technology by up to tenfold.
Graphene hard drive:
Although hard drives were first introduced in the 1950s, their usage as storage devices in personal computers did not take off until three decades later.
Inside HDDs
Traditional hard drives are constructed of rotating platters and magnetic heads. The top layer is comprised of a carbon-based overcoat (COC) that protects the platter. Manufacturers are constantly reducing the gap between the two in order to develop higher density drives. Since the 1990s, COC thickness has dropped from 12.5nm to roughly 3nm, corresponding to one terabyte per square inch.
The Cambridge University research team replaced the COC layers with graphene to save space and used a novel technology called Heat-Assisted Magnetic Recording (HAMR) to boost data density. With this, drives can now carry much more data when heated. On the contrary, COC-based HDDs are incapable of doing so.
Thus, graphene combined with HAMR can give storage density ranging from four to ten terabytes per square inch.
The graphene utilized in drives not only increases storage capacity by up to tenfold but also increases corrosion resistance by 2.5 times. It also allows for a two-fold decrease in friction and wears better than other available alternatives.
Graphene hard drive: Conclusion
The use of graphene in hard drives can be a win-win situation for the environment too since it can be made from household wastes. But as many advances and breakthroughs become obsolete over time, we don’t want this one to be one of them. As a result, storage manufacturers should incorporate such innovations into their products as soon as possible.
Meanwhile, check out our video of gaming PC build under $1,000.
On the first day of the WWDC 2021 virtual event, Apple announced watchOS 8 for its smartwatches. It is the follow-up to last year’s watchOS 7 and adds “mindfulness features” to the Apple Watch lineup.
Apple watchOS 8 Overview:
This operating system will include improved messaging and photo sharing, new HomeKit integrations, and minor changes to health and fitness functions.
Breathe and Mindfulness
Apple is updating the animations in the Breathe app and adding a “reflect” mode that prompts users to think about something specific in order to improve mindfulness. These functions are available in the new Mindfulness app.
Fitness
The Fitness app is getting two additional workouts: Tai Chi and Pilates. To offer users reliable measurements, these new modes are powered by custom-developed heart rate and motion algorithms. Fitness+ is getting a new HIIT (high-intensity interval training)-focused feature that recommends music for workout sessions as well.
Furthermore, watchOS 8 will now track your respiratory rate as you sleep and notify you if it deviates from regular patterns. However, this function is not available during workouts.
With every new iteration, smartwatch makers release new watch faces. And Apple is no exception. watchOS 8 has new dial faces that will allow you to set a photo captured with your iPhone’s portrait mode and overlay text and other information behind it. According to the company, you can customize the text and how it appears on the image.
Similarly, the Photos app on the smartwatch can now send photos straight through Messages or Apple’s Mail app. Text selection and a cursor have also been included. Now, you can alter the text by moving the cursor with the crown and tapping and selecting with your finger.
Rest of the features
Moving on, watchOS 8 also includes several features released in iOS 15, such as the focus mode. Apple Watch Series 6 will also utilize UWB technology for car key support. Likewise, new HomeKit integrations allow you to operate smart home equipment directly from the watch, as well as check the security cameras.
Apple watchOS 8 Availability
watchOS 8’s developer beta is already available, and the public beta will start rolling out in July. Apple has scheduled its final release later this fall. The company says Watch Series 3 or newer versions will be getting this update.
Meanwhile, check out our top picks for smartwatches.
Apple has officially announced iOS 15, the latest iteration of the iPhone operating system on the first day of WWDC 2021. iOS 15 brings multiple quality of life changes and is built on three design principles: focus, connect and explore.
Apple iOS 15 announced:
Immersive FaceTime changes
FaceTime is Apple’s alternative to Zoom and Google Meet—and the go-to video calling platform for most iOS users. The company announced at WWDC 2021 that it is bringing a natural, intuitive, and life-like experience to the app.
The video-calling app now supports Spatial Audio, which makes discussions feel more realistic by making participant’s audio come from the appropriate location on the screen.
Apple has also introduced Voice Isolation, a setting that prioritizes human voice by reducing ambient noise using machine learning to improve audio clarity. Nonetheless, you may enable Wide Spectrum audio to intentionally retain background noise.
The app gets a fresh new look as well. A grid view may now be used to observe each participant in a tile-like block, or a portrait mode may be used to focus on the speaker rather than the background.
FaceTime for Android and Windows
But the biggest update to FaceTime has to be its availability on Android and Windows. Yet, it won’t available as a standalone app. Android, Windows users will be able to join in on a FaceTime call via a web browser through a shareable link.
SharePlay
Next up, FaceTime has new SharePlay support, allowing you and everyone else on the conversion to enjoy songs, shows, and videos together. You can now go to the Music app (without leaving the chat), select a song, and play it with everyone.
Likewise, this also works with streaming platforms such as HBO Max, Disney+, Hulu, Twitch, and TikTok. SharePlay can share your screen on the app too. Apple is also providing SharePlay API, so we’ll have to wait and see what modifications third-party app developers bring with it.
Notification Summary
Moving on, Notification Summary will give the seemingly unending list of notifications a fresh look. This feature will transform alerts from a jumbled mess into a tailored bundle of notifications that look organized and take up less space.
Meanwhile, it will not include important notifications in the summary, so you will not miss them. Furthermore, the app icons, avatars of contacts have been enlarged for better readability.
Focus
Assisting the notification summary is the new feature called “Focus”. It allows you to customize your notification preferences and restrict your exposure to them and applications based on your choices.
For instance, if you enable the “Do Not Disturb” mode, your contacts will see that status on the Messages app. However, if the sender requires something critical from you, he or she can overrule the DND request.
Photos takes cues from Google
Although Android users have long enjoyed OCR (Optical Character Recognition) through Google Lens, Apple is now introducing it to the Photos app with the Live Text feature. It allows you to select text from your gallery’s photographs, screenshots, and other images.
At its debut, an Apple spokesperson stated that the Live Text can recognize seven languages. The isolated text is saved on the device itself, which is beneficial for privacy.
Wallet
Apple Wallet is the next best thing to have your house, workplace, and hotel keys in one place. That is, you can use your phone to open compatible door locks. This autumn, Wallet users will be able to get digital keys for certain businesses and hotels. Furthermore, you may now keep an encrypted replica of your identity card, which will be accepted at airports too.
Apple Maps
Likewise, Apple Maps has undergone a 3D design makeover that looks fantastic. The app can now utilize the camera to scan nearby buildings to precisely orient the phone and assist you in determining the direction.
AirPods update
Last but not least, iOS 15 introduces new functionality for AirPods known as “Conversation Boost”. It assists individuals in hearing who they are speaking to better in real-time, in a relatively crowded environment. To optimize the audio experience, users may also alter the volume of ambient noise too.
Apple iOS 15 compatibility
The new iOS 15 upgrade is available for all iPhones that support iOS 14. This includes:
Xiaomi Nepal is on a roll. The company has been bringing bang-on smartphones in the country recently, including the POCO X3 Pro, POCO F3, and Mi 11. And now, Mi 11X Pro (rebranded Redmi K40 Pro+) has been launched in Nepal as well. Let’s learn more about the Xiaomi Mi 11X Pro including its features, specs, official price in Nepal, and availability.
Xiaomi Mi 11X Pro Overview:
Here, Mi 11X Pro brings highlighting features like Snapdragon 888, a 108MP camera, and more at a sub-flagship price. Compared to its price in India (INR 39,999), Xiaomi Nepal has priced the phone pretty aggressively.
Design and Display
Mi 11X Pro has a 6.67-inch FHD+ AMOLED display with support for a 120Hz refresh rate. Similarly, the touch sampling rate is listed at 360Hz. This is an E4 panel manufactured by Samsung and boasts a peak brightness level of up to 1300 nits. Similarly, it delivers a 100% DCI-P3 color gamut and can play HDR10+ content.
Both the front and the back of the device are protected by Corning Gorilla Glass 5. The phone is 7.8mm thick and weighs around 196 grams. It also has an IP53 rating against dust and spraying water.
Performance and Memory
Powering the device is the Snapdragon 888. It is the latest flagship chipset from Qualcomm that is based on Samsung’s 5nm process. The graphics are rendered by Adreno 650 GPU.
The device features 8GB LPDDR5 RAM that is faster (6400Mbps > 5500Mbps) than the ones used in its cheaper sibling Mi 11X. Xiaomi has used UFS 3.1 technology for the phone’s 128/256GB of internal storage. Mi 11X Pro also has liquid cooling technology to keep the temperature down.
Camera
The highlight of the triple camera setup at the back is the 108MP primary lens. It’s the third generation of the Samsung ISOCELL HM2 sensor with 9-in-1 pixel binning that results in 2.1µm individual pixels.
Similarly, the sensor has a dual-native ISO to click good photos under-lit conditions. Accompanying the primary camera is an 8MP ultrawide lens with 119˚ Field of View. You also get a 5MP telephoto-macro lens with a 50mm equivalent focal length.
The rear camera setup can shoot 8K videos at 30fps. Similarly, it supports slow-motion videos at up to 1080p/960 fps. On the front, there is a 20MP selfie camera within the punch-hole that supports 1080p/30fps videos and 720p/120fps slow-motion videos.
Rest of the specs
Fueling the whole setup is a 4,520mAh Li-Po battery. Xiaomi includes a 33W fast charger in the box. The phone has support for Quick Charge 3+ and Power Delivery 3.0 protocol. There is a side-mounted fingerprint scanner for biometrics.
In terms of connectivity, the phone has support for 5G, Wi-Fi 6E, Bluetooth 5.2, NFC, and an IR blaster. Mi 11X Pro also features a stereo speaker with Hi-Res Audio, Dolby Atmos, and an X-linear haptics motor.
Xiaomi Mi 11X Pro Specifications:
Body: 76.4 x 163.7 x 7.8mm, 196 gm, Gorilla Glass 5, IP53 rated
Battery: 4520mAh with 33W fast charging (33W adapter provided)
Color options: Celestial Silver, Lunar White, Cosmic Black
Xiaomi Mi 11X Pro Price in Nepal & Availability
The price of the Xiaomi Mi 11X Pro in Nepal is NPR 64,999 for the 8/128GB variant while the 8/256GB model costs NPR 67,999. Xiaomi Nepal is also providing one-year breakage insurance if you purchase it before June 30. You will be able to buy Mi 11X Pro from different Xiaomi authorized retail stores across Nepal pretty soon.
Xiaomi Mi 11X Pro
Price Nepal
8/128GB
NPR 64,999
8/256GB
NPR 67,999
Meanwhile, check out our review of the Xiaomi Mi 11X.
Xiaomi’s Mi Band lineup of fitness trackers is undoubtedly the most successful of its kind. Packing in plenty of features at an affordable price, it has been the go-to budget wearable for many people. However, its past couple of iterations have been uninspiring—which is to say just how little upgrades Xiaomi introduced with each new version. Thankfully, the new Mi Smart Band 6 (or Mi Band 6) brings literally the biggest touch up in the history of the lineup. And this is our review of the Xiaomi Mi Band 6.
Xiaomi Mi Band 6 Specifications:
Body: 47.4 x 18.6 x 12.7 mm, 12.8gm (without strap)
Strap: Removable TPU straps
Display: 1.56″ AMOLED panel, 450 nits
Resolution: 152 x 486 pixels resolution, 326 PPI
Control: Touch, swipe
Connection: Bluetooth 5.0
Compatible with: Android 5.0, iOS 10.0 and above
IP Rating: 5 ATM water-resistance
Functions: Alarm, Camera Shutter, DND, Heart Rate Monitor, Notifications, Sleep Tracking, Step Counter, Sports Mode (30), Blood Oxygen, Women’s Health
Here, the said big upgrade is the screen itself. Compared to the measly 1.1” display on its predecessor, the company has elongated it vertically to fit a taller 1.56” AMOLED screen on the new Mi Band 6. With this comes a sharper console for you to work with—and one that is more pleasing to look at as well.
Packing in 152 by 486 resolution and a pixel density, everything from texts to animations looks crisp here. Even the smallest fonts aren’t haunted by pixelation issues. Still and all, my biggest gripe with this display is Xiaomi’s choice of design principle to deliver a larger footprint. Sure the stretched screen doesn’t look half bad but I’m doubtful about what more it brings to the table—or better yet, what it should’ve brought to the table instead.
You see, besides a more attractive watch face and more breathing space for a few apps like Weather, this 1.56” screen doesn’t solve the prime issues that Mi Band 5’s smaller 1.1” display had. The narrow horizontal space means texts and other contents are still squeezed between this unnatural form factor. Compared to this, I’ll take the squarish resolution of the Honor Band 6 any day.
The larger font spread across a wider screen here means I don’t have to squint my eyes to make out the content on the screen, unlike on the Mi Band 6. This is especially true when you’re out on a stroll or exercise, and the natural distance between the band and your eyes when you raise your wrist isn’t close enough so that you can easily read what’s on the display.
Not how you do a large screen fitness tracker
But hey, if you do prefer the elongated layout, then my complaints won’t apply to you. Featuring 450 nits of brightness (like the Mi Band 5), this screen gets bright enough for a walk in the sun. There’s no auto-brightness option here though. You can choose from 5 illumination levels and most of the time, I set mine at 3 or 4—while bringing it down to 1 at night.
And I like how dim this screen gets as well. I can’t complain about the vibrancy of this AMOLED panel either. The colors look punchy with excellent contrast levels. Here, it can hold up to 7 widgets (including the homescreen) for easy access to your favorite apps. To configure this, you’ll need to refer to the companion app as Mi Band 6’s customization options are pretty limited on the fitness tracker itself.
Watch Faces
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Moving on, you can choose from over 130 watch faces to customize their look. But unfortunately, most of them are pretty cartoonish—with some bordering in the childish category as well. Yet, anime fanatics will certainly appreciate this selection. And I’ll be lying when I say the Evangelion-inspired ones don’t look cool. Plus, you can configure the exact info to display on some dial faces too.
Moreover, you can also personalize it with a custom photo on top of the 5 available templates. But if none of the options work for you, there’s always the alternative to look for third-party watch faces that are abundantly available for the Mi Band 6. However, if you’d like to frequently juggle between multiple dial faces, disappointment awaits as the band can only store up to 6 watch faces at once.
Emoji support
This includes the 3 that are pre-installed and can’t be deleted. To compare, the Honor Band 6 can hoard up to 32 watch faces on the band itself. Regardless, unlike the competition, Mi Band 6 supports a handful of emojis too—smileys, mostly. Nevertheless, I was bummed to find out that Nepali Unicode font appears as unreadable blocks instead.
Getting to the UI, since there’s no dedicated physical or capacitive button, touch and swipe are all you have here. The subtle curves around the edges of the screen make swipe gestures simpler while raise/tap to wake functions work perfectly fine. Contrary to Honor’s latest fitness tracker, this one doesn’t have a dedicated tab for the control center, and the swipe up or down gestures trigger the same list of menus from opposing ends.
Like I mentioned earlier, you can set up to 6 widgets here that can be accessed by swiping to the left/right. Be sure to set notifications as one of them otherwise you’ll have a hard time keeping track of the incoming alerts. As expected from a budget fitness tracker, they are non-actionable.
Design
Elongated squarish body, lightweight
Removable TPU strap, 5 ATM certified
The stretched display means Xiaomi has made little to zero changes on the design front here. As a result, the Mi Band 6 is visually indistinguishable from its predecessor in terms of how it looks and how much it weighs. Also, if you already own Mi Band 5, then you’ll be able to swap its strap onto the new one.
The default Black-colored strap doesn’t particularly inspire an attractive look but you can choose from Blue, Orange, Yellow, Olive, and Ivory options as well. Additionally, third-party alternative straps for the Mi Band 6 are readily available in the market too. Anyway, the classic pin-hole design of Xiaomi’s budget wearables has never really been my cup of tea but that’s just me.
Comfortable fit
It fits perfectly fine on my wrist and the strap is soft enough to dismiss any issues concerning comfort either. Throughout my usage, the band hasn’t caused skin irritation/allergy problems to me either. Having said all that, the only reason I favor a traditional look/buckle design over this is how the pin here can accidentally come off when running it over something or someone. Happened to me a couple of times.
The indentation at the back is still prone to dust accumulation over time. So, you’ll have to wipe it off every now and then. Anyhow, I am a fan of how the Mi Band 6 lacks any Xiaomi branding, thereby offering a clean, uncluttered visual aesthetics.
It is also 5 ATM waterproof meaning this fitness tracker can survive under up to 50 meters of water for up to 10 minutes. So, having it on your wrist when it’s raining or when you’re swimming isn’t going to be an issue. All in all, the Mi Band 6 adheres to the classic design we’ve seen over the years in this lineup. It is lightweight and comfortable to wear—although I believe this pin-hole design is long due for an overhaul.
Companion App
Mi Fit (Android/iOS)
Moving on, the Mi Band 6 syncs with the Mi Fit app. For this, you’ll need to sign up for a Xiaomi account (if you don’t already have one) or sign in using a third-party account. The app’s UI/UX has pretty much remained the same from the days of Mi Band 4. The dashboard displays your latest health stats including steps taken, stress, SpO2 levels, and more.
Mi Fit
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Dashboard
Device
Health Dashboard
Health Monitoring
All the data are presented in a fairly easy-to-read layout, which is complemented by helpful tips or FAQs under certain sections. But it’s 2021 and seeing how the app doesn’t have a dark mode is a little frustrating. This sounds like such a petty protest but if you think about it, lacking such a basic feature is quite disappointing in the first place.
Weirdly enough, only the workout overview UI implements the dark more for some reason. Here, you can view your workout trail, pace, heart rate, and other details in well-documented graphs. The Mi Fit app is also where you’ll be able to play with the band’s settings—from switching watch faces to customizing notifications, display settings, and more.
Interestingly, Mi Band 6 also doubles as your phone’s camera shutter button although it can’t give a preview of the frame. This feature isn’t enabled by default and you’ll have to manually activate it under the “Lab” menu.
Health, Fitness Tracking
30 workout modes, SpO2 monitoring
Auto workout detection, PAI index
Time to talk about the health tracking features of this fitness tracker. Xiaomi has bumped the total number of sports modes from 11 in the Mi Band 5 to 30 on its successor. More importantly, the Mi Band 6 finally adds blood oxygen saturation monitoring to the company’s lineup of budget wearables.
Unfortunately, it doesn’t support all-day SpO2 tracking like on the slightly more expensive Huawei Band 6. I compared its SpO2 data against the Huawei and Honor Band 6 and found that all three deliver a similar result with a 1-2% deviation between them. Throughout the review, I noticed the Xiaomi Mi Band 6 to be a little faster at recording your blood oxygen level on most occasions as well.
Half-baked overnight blood oxygen monitoring
Even though the on-request nature of its SpO2 monitoring is quite impressive, Xiaomi has further tried to add to the appeal by adding the sleep breathing quality feature. Under this, the band monitors your blood oxygen saturation level overnight and then rates your breathing quality between 0 and 100. Mind you, this is different from sleep score.
Sad to say, this feature is still in the beta stage for now and doesn’t offer deeper insights into your SpO2 levels throughout the night. All you get is last night’s breathing quality score and that’s it. Xiaomi should improve it over time, but in the immortal words of MKBHD, “Never. Ever. Buy a tech product based on the promise of future software updates.”
Sleep Breathing Quality
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Anyway, let’s now get into the sports tracking side of things. As I mentioned earlier, the Mi Band 6 can now track up to 30 workout modes including automatic detection of 6 of them. The auto workout detection is turned off by default as well. And you can specify which exercises you want the Mi Band 6 to recognize by itself.
Auto workout detection
For me, I turned on auto-detection for walking and outdoor running modes while the remaining options include treadmill, cycling, elliptical, and rowing machine. I must say that Mi Band 6 managed to detect my walking exercises fairly well. There’s also the “auto-pause” feature that halts your workout once it notices that you’ve taken a break.
Because it’s a budget fitness tracker, there’s no built-in GPS here so you’re gonna have to take your phone along the ride in case you want to trail your route. Here, I compared it against the Huawei Band 6 to find out the difference between the two wearables’ fitness tracking ability.
Workout data difference
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Mi Band 6 - Workout Overview
Huawei Band 6 - Workout Overview
Mi Band 6 - Average Pace
Huawei Band 6 - Average Pace
Mi Band 6 - Heart Rate
Huawei Band 6 - Heart Rate
Mi Band 6 - Pace, Cadence
Huawei Band 6 - Pace, Cadence
And what I found is that the Mi Band 6 tends to over-record almost every facet of the exercise by a small margin. As you can see from these screenshots, both bands accounted for my heart levels pretty much the same. However, the Huawei Band 6 managed to accurately detect the pace of my walk.
I was simply walking to the pharmacy at a constant speed which is reflected well by this fitness band. On the contrary, the Mi Band 6 shows big spikes throughout the session. This is visualized by the cadence graph as well which is a measure of steps/minute.
11 professional workout modes
Moving on, the Mi Band 6 lets you set different alerts during your workouts like heart rate levels, distance, and speed. It also supports pool swimming tracking where you can specify the pool length as well. Here, besides the 11 professional exercise modes, it can also record other workouts like pilates, HIIT, basketball, Zumba, etc.
But like on the Huawei Band 6’s miscellaneous exercise, the 19 workout modes record your heart rate levels and nothing more. Besides this, the Mi Band 6 can monitor your sleep, heart rate, stress levels, and more. I found that it was pretty spot on when it comes to recording my time to sleep and the time I got up.
Health Monitoring
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Heart Rate
Resting Heart Rate
Stress Level
Daily Sleep
Weekly Sleep
You also get a deeper insight in terms of deep, light, and REM sleep as well. Based on all these factors, it also generates a score between 0 and 100 to give you a brief overview of your sleep quality. In terms of heart rate monitoring, this fitness tracker supports all-day heart and stress monitoring. Xiaomi lets you customize the frequency of all-day monitoring between different intervals and all through my usage, I set it to “every 1 minute” for the best insight.
Heart rate alert works fine
On the other hand, stress monitoring defaults to every 5 minutes with no option to customize it. Mi Band 6 can also send alerts if it detects your heart rate level go over the pre-defined value. The vibration motor is strong enough so that you don’t miss the alert too. Moreover, it brings PAI (Personal Activity Intelligence) index as well which generates a score, based on your heart-rate intensive workouts throughout the day.
It embeds breathing exercises and menstruation cycle tracking features as well. Other assorted features of the Mi Band 6 include incoming call alerts, music playback control, weather forecasts, and even bypassing your phone’s unlock mechanism. However, the latter is restricted to devices running on Xiaomi’s MIUI only.
Battery Life
125mAh, Up to 14 days battery life
With that out of the way, allow me to talk about its battery life. By adding more health tracking features on the identical form-factor as its predecessor, Xiaomi couldn’t upgrade the battery size on its newest fitness tracker. As a result, this 125mAh cell still promises up to 14 days of battery life on regular use.
With all-day stress monitoring, sleep breathing quality, and continuous heart rate monitoring (every 1 minute) turned on, the Mi Band 6 lasted me for 7 days exactly. This usage also consisted of an all-day connection to my phone with a couple of dozens of incoming notifications. And like I mentioned in the beginning, I’d set its brightness to level 3.
All things considered, it delivers a pretty impressive battery endurance. But to squeeze out even more, you can bring down the frequency of heart-rate monitoring to 30 minutes. And maybe even disable sleep breathing quality altogether; since it isn’t all that helpful in its current state. In terms of juicing it up, the Mi Band 6 goes from 0 to 100% in about 1 hour and 43 minutes.
Conclusion
All in all, as I’ve discussed throughout the review, despite the big upgrades, I’m not quite impressed with the Xiaomi Mi Band 6. Its taller display sounds impressive but pales in comparison to similarly priced alternatives like the Honor Band 6.
The half-baked overnight SpO2 monitoring isn’t exciting either although its on-demand blood oxygen saturation tracking pretty impressive. Still, if the elongated screen isn’t bothersome and you want to upgrade from Mi Band 5, this is more than a handsome fitness tracker on a budget.
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