Page 484 – GadgetByte Nepal

Samsung Galaxy M52 5G Review: Less Is More

Nikhil Shrestha

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October 17, 2021

Samsung Galaxy M52 5G Review: Less Is More

Samsung’s current offering in the upper mid-range segment consists of two interesting phones—the Galaxy M52 5G and the Galaxy A52s 5G. Between the two, the M52 is more affordable and intends to deliver a similar smartphone experience as the A52s 5G. Allow me to discuss more about the Samsung Galaxy M52 5G in this review.

Samsung Galaxy M52 5G Specifications:

Body: 76.4 x 164.2 x 7.4mm, 173 gm, Polycarbonate build
Display: 6.7-inches “Infinity-O” Super AMOLED Plus panel, 120Hz refresh rate, 240Hz touch sampling rate, Gorilla Glass 5
Resolution: FHD+ (2400 x 1080 pixels), 20:9 aspect ratio
Chipset: Qualcomm Snapdragon 778G 5G (6nm Mobile Platform)
Memory: 6/8GB LPDDR4X RAM, 128/256GB storage (expandable)
Software & UI: Android 11 with Samsung’s One UI 3.1 on top
Rear Camera: Triple (with LED flash);
– 64MP f/1.8 primary lens, AF
– 12MP f/2.2 ultra-wide lens, 123º FOV
– 5MP f/2.4 macro sensor
Front Camera: 32MP f/2.2 sensor (punch-hole cutout)
Audio: Mono speaker with Dolby Atmos audio, No headphone jack
Security: Side-mounted fingerprint sensor, Face unlock
Sensors: Accelerometer, Gyro, Geomagnetic, Light, Proximity
Connectivity: Dual-SIM (Nano), WiFi 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac/ax (Dual-band), Bluetooth 5.0, GPS / AGPS / Glonass / Galileo / Beidou / QZSS, NFC, USB Type-C
Battery: 5000mAh with 25W fast charging (15W adapter provided)
Color Options: Icy Blue, Blazing Black, White
Price in Nepal: Rs. 48,999 (6/128GB) | Rs. 50,999 (8/128GB)

Samsung Galaxy M52 5G Review:

Design & Build

75.1 x 159.9 x 8.4mm, 189 grams
Glass front, polycarbonate back/frame

The Galaxy M52 brings a slim and lightweight design—contrary to other phones in this lineup so far. So yeah, your hands and your pocket will definitely be thankful for this. The lightweight build quality comes from the all-plastic material that covers the back of the phone and its frames.

While I do understand the appeal of feathery phones, when implemented poorly, it ends up ruining the charm to some extent. Here, M52’s weight is distributed over this large chassis which means there’s no substantial heft to it. As a result, the phone ends up feeling a little too hollow for my taste.

To compare, the Xiaomi 11 Lite NE 5G is even lighter (158 gm < 173 gm), but its hands-on feel is much better. Moreover, I’m not thrilled about its wide form factor either. Using the phone with one hand becomes a struggle here, albeit One UI helps a lot.

But I do wish Samsung would move the settings and other options in the quick settings menu below the brightness slider in the upcoming One UI 4 update since reaching them with one hand is an unnecessary tussle at this point.

Side-mounted fingerprint sensor

On the other hand, you’ll find a side-mounted fingerprint sensor on this phone, even though it sports an AMOLED display. It’s fairly quick and responsive but expectedly underdelivers when your fingers are sweaty. Plus, the plasticky feedback of this power button–fingerprint reader hybrid goes against my taste as well.

Finally, Galaxy M52 also lacks a headphone jack and I’m sure Samsung will cite the phone’s lightweight design for this omission. It’s a pretty major miss if you ask me. And unlike the more expensive A52s that this phone draws its inspiration from, there’s no ingress protection of any sort on the M52 either.

Display

6.7-inches FHD+ Super AMOLED display
120/240Hz refresh/touch sampling rate
Corning’s Gorilla Glass 5 protection

Getting to the display, the Galaxy M52 has a big 6.7” Super AMOLED Plus panel with a Full HD resolution, a 120Hz refresh rate, and Gorilla Glass 5 protection. As expected from a Samsung-made screen, it delivers pitch-black contrast and the colors on this display look pretty vibrant and punchy.

And neither did I face any issue in terms of visibility here—be it indoors or even outdoors. The ambient sensor kicks in fairly fast enough to adjust brightness levels too, so that’s great! Still and all, this display is far from Samsung’s best. Compared to the A52s, the difference between these two screens is pretty easily noticeable.

While the A52s produces even more vibrant colors with quite an accurate white balance, the M52’s display looks relatively washed out and with a worse white balance. I also noticed that its viewing angles is a tad bit narrow.

Smooth 120Hz experience

Regardless, the 120Hz refresh rate here means everything just… flows. Thankfully, it also stays clear of the weird micro-stutter issue that we usually associate with mid-range phones from Xiaomi and POCO.

But this is not an intelligent 120Hz implementation—meaning the screen can’t automatically switch between 60 – 120Hz depending on the content. Seeing how the competition is providing adaptive refresh rate on much cheaper phones, it really makes you question Samsung’s incompetence—or rather its hesitation to stay competent.

Additionally, M52 doesn’t support HDR playback on Netflix either. It’s Widevine L1 certified for HD streaming, sure, but the lack of HDR support means the phone can’t reproduce true blacks when I’m watching Marvel’s Daredevil on the M52—especially the hallway fight scenes, for instance.

Performance

Octa-core Qualcomm Snapdragon 778G 5G SoC (6nm)
6/8GB LPDDR4X RAM, 128/256GB UFS 2.1 storage (expandable)
Android 11 with Samsung’s One UI 3.1 on top (upgradeable)

Okay, let’s now talk performance. Powering the Galaxy M52 is Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 778G 5G—the same chipset found on the more expensive A52s. This is quite a capable SoC, and a massive upgrade coming from the 730G on last year’s Galaxy M51. Complementing this is 6/8GB of LPDDR4X RAM and 128GB of UFS 2.1 storage.

The phone has a shared SIM slot that can accept a micro SD card to expand the storage. And even though M52 is void of any degree of IP rating, the SIM tray does get a rubber gasket to prevent damage from water/moisture. Nevertheless, I’m fairly content with how this phone has handled my everyday workloads.

Granted you can get even more powerful smartphones in this price bracket, the M52 is as good as it gets when it comes to a value-oriented Samsung phone. Heavy multitasking does take a toll on this thing and I was pretty disappointed with Samsung’s choice of animation scale as well.

I know I can easily disable it from the Developer Options but someone who’s not as tech-savvy as you and I will write this off as sluggish performance instead—without giving it much of a second thought. Fortunately, the latest OTA update which also brought September’s security patch dialed down the animation levels to some degree.

6GB vs 8GB RAM?

Anyway, if you’re planning on buying this phone, I’d strongly advise you against the 6GB variant. Though the 6GB model can handle lightweight usage just fine, I noticed a bit of a lag when kicking things up a notch—while it can’t keep apps in memory effectively for a smooth multitasking experience either.

		Samsung Galaxy M52 5G
Androbench	Sequential Read	955.83 MB/s
Androbench	Sequential Write	494.71 MB/s
AnTuTu v8.5	Total	437289
	CPU	147957
	GPU	143604
	Memory	67536
	UX	78192
Geekbench 5	CPU (Single Core)	771
	CPU (Multi-Core)	2745
	Compute (OpenCL)	2222
PCMark (Work 3.0 Performance)		11533
3DMark (Wild Life)		2462

Under my regular speed test, the M52 clocked in way worse numbers than I’d expected, failing to hold any app in memory except for a couple of light ones. So yeah, get the 8GB configuration of this phone if you’re shopping for it.

App list:
Phone	Genshin Impact
Chrome	PUBG Mobile
Messenger	Netflix
Instagram	YouTube
Facebook	Adobe Premiere Rush
Speed test:
1st lap (app opening)	2 minutes 22 seconds
Full lap (multitasking)	4 minutes 31 seconds

Moving on, I don’t have any major complaint with Samsung’s software optimization, and the fact that it runs on One UI 3.1 instead of One UI Core 3.1 is a welcome—and necessary bonus. To recall, the Galaxy M51 shipped with the Core version of the company’s custom Android skin, which is void of a couple of features like Secure Folder, Windows Link, Knox Security, Good Lock compatibility, etc.

Gaming experience

Likewise, the M52 isn’t specifically geared towards gaming, but you can get decent results here. I got a stable 40 – 41fps in PUBG Mobile under HDR graphics and Ultra frame rates, whereas sacrificing visual details for smoother gameplay gets you a fluid 60fps at Smooth graphics and Extreme frame rates.

However, the phone gets warm rather quickly, especially near the camera module, with CPU and battery temperatures measuring 43ºC and 38ºC, respectively—after mere 10 minutes. On the other hand, I enjoyed Call of Duty: Mobile at a steady 60fps under Very High graphics and Very High frame rates or High graphics and Max frame rates.

Likewise, Mobile Legends Bang Bang also delivers an easy 60fps under High graphics with HD, HFR mode turned on. I’m happy to report that Samsung has even optimized high fps titles to work well on its high refresh rate screen. You can play Critical Ops at Ultra graphics and get a smooth 120fps too.

Yet, when playing Injustice 2, the M52 beings to break a sweat. It rarely hits the 120fps mark and hovers around the 90-95fps boundary instead. Plus, I even noticed the fps drop to as low as 73fps sometimes.

Similarly, Genshin Impact is practically unplayable under High settings at 60fps mode with motion blur turned off since the gameplay is way too stuttery, only managing about 33fps on a couple of occasions. On the contrary, bringing it down to Medium settings gets you about 41fps with comparatively fewer stutters.

Cameras

Triple camera setup at the back
(64MP primary, 12MP ultrawide, 5MP macro)
32MP selfie camera inside the punch-hole cutout

Cameras

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Okay, let’s talk cameras now. Here, the Galaxy M52 has a 64MP triple camera array, whereas the A52s brings an additional depth camera on top of OIS support on its primary lens. Upfront, there’s a 32MP selfie shooter on either phone. For this review, I compared the cameras on the Samsung Galaxy M52 against the A52s 5G.

Normal Images

Under normal daytime conditions, photos look relatively more vibrant on the A52s. To compare, M52’s shots are nominally low on contrast—while also coming off a little warm sometimes.

Normal

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Then again, the difference between the two is almost negligible at times and I found that neither of them struggles with locking focus on close-up subjects.

Wideangle Images

On the other hand, ultrawide photos from M52 are subject to a noticeable color shift.

Ultrawide

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As you can see, they have comparatively low contrast, and worse exposure and white balance as well. Still, the A52s occasionally delivers oversharpened images, while its field of view is also narrower.

Portrait Images

Edge detection in portrait photos is also similar from both phones. But upon closer inspection, you can see that subjects look a bit smoothened on the M52.

Portrait

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Whereas, there’s a hint of reddish/pinkish tint in portrait shots from the A52s alongside low black levels.

Selfie Images

Similarly, M52’s selfie looks a tad bit warm, to the pinkish hue from the A52s.

Selfie

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The latter manages low black levels in this department as well which continues in terms of portrait selfies too.

Portrait Selfie

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I also find edge detection and black levels to be better on the M52. However, their output would turn out almost identical in some instances.

Nighttime Images

Thanks to OIS, low-light photos are uncontestedly superior from the A52s. They’re sharper, retain more details, and have brighter exposure.

Nighttime

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The images also look cooler here as compared to the greenish hue on M52’s shots.

Night Mode

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However, the A52s is far from perfect when it comes to nighttime photography as it delivers worse shadow details when its brighter exposure goes out of hand.

Ultrawide Nighttime

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Turning night mode on, the M52 compensates for its performance a bit—even though images are still sharper and brighter from the A52s.

Ultrawide Night Mode

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The same trend continues with the ultrawide nighttime and night mode shots too.

Videography

Getting to videos, even though the OIS support on A52s indicated stable recordings, the reality couldn’t be farther from those implications. Under both 4k/30fps and 1080p/60fps, compared to M52, while videos look relatively more stable here, its stabilization is still far from the level of steadiness I’ve come to expect.

Not to mention, A52s also uses image cropping to achieve this. Shifting to the 1080p/30fps mode, videos look much better on the A52s—whereas the M52 fails to maintain stabilization, giving off jittery recordings with low contrast instead. Moreover, both phones can shoot up to 4K/30fps videos from the ultrawide camera, while they’re void of a 60fps option across all resolutions.

Under this, footage from neither phone is stable and the M52’s videos look relatively warmer. Dialing it down to 1080p/30fps, the results are much more stable from both of them, although the M52’s result still looks warmer and with worse exposure control.

Likewise, 1080p/60fps selfie videos have comparable stabilization on both phones. The ones from A52s have low black levels while one can notice a mild greenish hue on M52’s footage. You can even shoot 4k/30fps selfie videos here, that achieve similar results.

Audio & Haptics

Mono speaker, No headphone jack

On the audio front, the Galaxy M52 brings a mono down-firing speaker, and as I mentioned earlier, it also lacks a 3.5mm headphone jack. Pretty disappointing stuff, I know. While this speaker doesn’t get as loud as other midrange phones I’ve tested so far, the good news is that there is no audio distortion even at the highest volume.

Yet, I have no problem with its call quality and the proximity sensor works as expected as well. But I’m not too crazy about the vibration motor on this thing. The haptic feedback is simply too weak and all over the place for my taste.

Battery

5000mAh with 25W fast charging support

Finally, let’s talk battery life. Unlike its predecessor that featured a monstrous 7000mAh cell, Samsung has fitted in a relatively small 5000mAh battery on the M52. It’s still a sizable unit by 2021 standard but it obviously can’t match the legacy of the Galaxy M51.

Nevertheless, I could rely on it for a day’s worth of endurance all the time as it managed about 6.5 – 7 hours of screen-on time on average. My usage mostly consisted of surfing the web, streaming Netflix, occasional gaming, and clicking a few photos every now and then—all with 120Hz refresh rate turned on and brightness set to auto.

Its overnight battery drain is also almost next-to-nothing! Fueling this battery is a little upsetting since Samsung only ships a 15W power brick inside the box even though the phone supports 25W fast charging. Using a compatible 25W charger, the M52 goes from 0 to 100% in a little over 1.5 hours.

Samsung Galaxy M52 5G Review: Conclusion

That brings me to the end of this review of the Samsung Galaxy M52 5G. As I discussed earlier, it is the closest thing to a value-for-money Samsung phone. Moreover, it’s a pretty big step-up from the Galaxy M51—especially in terms of performance. And for a cheaper price, the phone delivers practically the same smartphone experience as the A52s.

From their display, performance, to the battery, these two phones deliver comparable results. Admittedly, it is a tad bit overpriced here in Nepal compared to markets like India. But if you don’t want to pay a premium price for the A52s and are set on getting a Samsung-made mid-range smartphone, the Galaxy M52 is totally worth it.

Watch our video review of the Samsung Galaxy M52 5G.

Samsung Galaxy M52 5G Review: Pros & Cons

Pros:

Decent value for money
Lightweight build quality
Smooth 120Hz display
Fairly reliable performance
One UI is well-optimized
Pretty decent cameras
Decent battery endurance

Cons:

Wide, bulky form factor
Sub-par videography
Lacks a headphone jack
No stereo speaker setup
Weak haptic feedback

Microsoft Xbox Series X Mini Fridge is up for pre-order at a fantastic price

GadgetByte

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October 16, 2021

0

When the Xbox Series X was first announced in 2019, people instantly noticed how its boxy and rectangular design mimicked a refrigerator. This is when people began making memes about it on the internet. Surprisingly, Microsoft embraced the concept and created an actual Xbox Series X fridge for a giveaway in 2020. Following this, the company officially announced the Xbox Series X Mini Fridge in June this year, which is now up for pre-order.

Microsoft Xbox Series X Mini Fridge:

At the end of the E3 2021 showcase, Microsoft made the announcement stating that it will offer “the world’s most powerful mini-fridge”. It looks identical to the Xbox Series X in the product’s promotional trailer. The fridge will include an Xbox logo on the back and a green lighting effect when opened.

This mini fridge is powered by “Xbox Velocity Cooling Architecture”. Microsoft appears to be making a play on Xbox’s Velocity Architecture with this naming convention. It can hold up to 10 cans of beverages (or 12 thinner energy drink-style cans) and features two shelves in the door. Moreover, there’s a USB connection on the front while Microsoft also ships a DC power adapter inside the box.

Also Read:

The story behind

Without any context, all of this may sound like a spoof. But, Microsoft vowed to create the fridge after defeating Skittles in a Twitter poll. Earlier this year, Twitter held a contest called the “Best of Tweets Brand Bracket” to choose the best brand on the social media network.

Xbox and Skittles were in the finals, and the nature of the contest required the highest amount of votes to win. For this, Aaron Greenberg, Microsoft’s general manager of Xbox Games Marketing stated that if users helped Xbox win, the company will put Xbox Series X Mini Fridge into production this year.

Ok…here goes. Help @Xbox win this and we’ll put into production this year REAL XBOX SERIES X MINI FRIDGES! Yep, you read that right. Not an April Fools joke. Not clickbait. #Xbox #BestofTweets https://t.co/vm5B0kZht1 pic.twitter.com/A28hWBP3Db

— Aaron Greenberg ??‍♂️?U (@aarongreenberg) April 2, 2021

So, as you could’ve guessed by now, Xbox won the tight contest. Out of 341,731 votes cast, it secured 50.5% of them while 49.5% of votes went to Skittles. Likewise, Microsoft fulfilled its pledge to develop its mini fridge project. In a true Xbox fashion, Aaron also said, “The first one off the line will be filled with games & headed to our friends Skittles of course”.

Xbox Series X Mini Fridge Price and Availability

The Xbox Series X Mini Fridge will be available for pre-order in the United States from October 19 for USD 99.99 via Target.com or its retail stores. Similarly, the shipping will start in December. Microsoft says it will be available in Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Ireland, Spain, Netherlands, and Poland as well.

Product	Price in the US
Xbox Series X Mini Fridge	USD 99.99

Meanwhile, check out our comparison of Galaxy M52 vs OnePlus Nord 2.

HTC Vive Flow is a compact VR headset that you can wear like sunglasses

GadgetByte

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October 15, 2021

0

HTC Vive Flow is a compact VR headset that you can wear like sunglasses

HTC has just released its newest consumer-focused VR headset. The HTC Vive Flow is a compact and lightweight VR headset that you can wear like sunglasses. Here, we will be looking at the specs, features, expected price, and availability of the HTC Vive Flow in Nepal.

HTC Vive Flow Overview:

HTC is not new to the VR headset industry. The company has launched a bunch of enterprise-level products previously, including the Vive Focus 3. However, the Vive Flow is the first entry-level VR headset from the company for the mainstream audience, and it will be competing against the likes of Facebook’s Oculus Quest 2.

Design

Unlike the majority of the mainstream VR headsets that require you to put a strap around your head, the Vive Flow can be worn as pair of sunglasses. Plus, it only weighs around 189 grams. That being said, it looks bulky and is nothing like the recently launched Ray-Ban Stories.

You can fold HTC Vive Flow like regular sunglasses thanks to the dual-hinge system. The arms are fitted with stereo speakers that support spatial audio.

Specifications and Features

As for specs, HTC Vive Flow features two displays of 1600 x 1600 pixels each. They run at 75Hz and have a 100º field of view. Since HTC has used diopter lenses here, users do not need to wear glasses while using the headset. Moreover, there are two cameras on the front for “passthrough videos”. Also in the future, they will be able to track users’ hand movements.

Also Read:

Vive Flow also features an active fan that pulls in cold air from around the face and pushes warm air out of the top vent. It doesn’t come with a dedicated controller though. Thus, you will have to rely on your Android phone that you can use as a pointer after the pair up.

HTC Vive Flow Price in Nepal and Availability

HTC Vive Flow is currently available for pre-order in the US for USD 499. Users who pre-order will receive a carrying case and some VR content for free. We expect the price of HTC Vive Flow in Nepal to be around NPR 65,000, if and when it launches here.

VR Headset	Price in the US	Price in Nepal (Expected)
HTC Vive Flow	USD 499	NPR 65,000

Meanwhile, check out our comparison between Galaxy M52 and OnePlus Nord 2.

Realme GT Master Edition Review: Masterfully Crafted

Yural Maskey

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October 15, 2021

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Realme GT Master Edition Review: Masterfully Crafted

In this full review, I’ll be discussing the Realme GT Master Edition at length, which is the most affordable phone in the company’s GT series right now. If you are not aware, the Realme GT series features three devices: the Realme GT, the GT Master Explorer Edition, and the GT Master Edition.

Sadly, the GT Master Explorer Edition isn’t launching in Nepal, India, and other South Asian markets. Anyway, the Realme GT Master Edition, or GT ME in short, delivers an excellent value for money. For me, it is almost a perfect mid-range phone in 2021, although there are some caveats which I will talk about later in this review.

Realme GT Master Edition Specifications:

Body: 73.5 x 159.2 x 8.0mm, 174 gm, 3D Glass Body/Vegan Leather
Display: 6.43-inches Super AMOLED, 120Hz refresh rate, 360Hz touch sampling rate, 91.7% screen-to-body ratio, HDR10+, 1000 nits peak brightness
Resolution: FHD+ (2400 x 1080 pixels), 20:9 aspect ratio, 409 PPI
Chipset: Qualcomm Snapdragon 778G 5G (6nm Mobile Platform)
CPU: Octa-core (4×2.4 GHz Kryo 670 & 4×1.9 GHz Kryo 670)
GPU: Adredno 642L
Memory: 6/8GB LPDDR4X RAM, 128/256GB UFS 2.2 storage (fixed)
Software & UI: Android 11 with Realme UI 2.0 on top
Rear Camera: Triple (with LED flash);
– 64MP f/1.8 primary sensor
– 8MP f/2.3 ultra-wide camera, 119º FOV
– 2MP f/2.4 macro camera
Front Camera: 32MP f/2.5 camera (punch-hole)
Audio: Mono speaker, Hi-Res Audio, 3.5mm headphone jack
Security: In-display fingerprint sensor (optical), Face unlock
Sensors: Accelerometer, Proximity, Gyro, Light, Magnetic Induction, Linear Motor
Connectivity: Dual-SIM (Nano), WiFi 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac/ax (Dual-band), Bluetooth 5.2, GPS / AGPS / Glonass / Galileo / Beidou / QZSS, USB Type-C, 4G LTE, 5G (dual SIM)
Battery: 4300mAh with 65W SuperDart Charge (65W adapter inside the box)
Color Options: Voyager Green, Luna White, Cosmos Black
Price in Nepal: N/A (launching soon)

Realme GT Master Edition Review:

Design & Build

73.5 x 159.2 x 8.0mm, 174 grams
Glass front, Vegan leather option

Here, the first thing that Realme has learned from its previous mistakes can be seen on the design front. The company’s recent couple of launches like the X7 Max and X7 Pro had this bizarre design choice, which naturally received a lot of valid criticism.

Design

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However, that complaint is gone for good with the GT ME since this phone adopts a new, unique-looking design that feels refreshing and definitely something I like. For this, Realme collaborated with Japanese designer Naoto Fukasawa to make something they call a “suitcase” design.

Looks aside, I’m quite fond of the feel of this vegan leather as well, while the horizontal grid pattern provides me with a nice grip. It doesn’t gather any dust or smudges either, so I’ve used it without a case so far. But sadly, it did catch some scribbles that don’t go away easily.

Textured casing

So yeah, it’s always safer to use a case and Realme has provided one inside the box. Even the case embodies the aforementioned suitcase design so that the phone’s texture isn’t quite lost when putting it on. And of course, it is much better than the generic transparent case that we usually get on phones these days.

If the suitcase approach isn’t quite up to your taste, there’s also a Luna White version of the GT ME with a standard glossy glass-like finish.

I also admire Realme’s signature form factor which is lighter and compact than most mid-range phones you could find right now. Not to mention, they have also retained the 3.5mm headphone jack, which I think is a perfect example of companies taking feedback seriously from their community. In this case, the Realme Community.

Display

6.43-inches FHD+ Super AMOLED display
120/360Hz refresh/touch sampling rate
HDR10+ compliant, 1000 nits brightness

Moving on to the display, in 2021, it has pretty much become a norm for premium mid-range phones to feature quite a stellar display. And the GT ME is no exception. I found its screen quality to be almost identical to the one from the Realme X7 Max—maybe even better.

You’re getting a familiar 6.43-inch 1080p AMOLED display with a smooth 120Hz refresh rate and up to 360Hz touch sampling rate. During my usage, I’ve been quite pleased with the overall quality of the panel.

Although it’s not as color-accurate as the ones on significantly more expensive flagship phones, this one still offers punchy colors with excellent contrast and brightness levels. And thanks to the 360Hz touch sampling rate, the touch response is excellent as well. During my usage, I’ve thoroughly enjoyed the fluidity while typing or playing games on this thing.

Plus, the onboard in-display fingerprint sensor is quite responsive too. Because of the phone’s compact form factor, the position of the sensor is also spot-on for my hand. Still and all, the vibration feedback isn’t that great and is strictly okay-ish for the price. So yes, this is definitely one area where Realme can improve upon.

Performance

Octa-core Qualcomm Snapdragon 778 5G SoC (6nm)
6/8GB LPDDR4X RAM, 128/256GB UFS 2.2 storage (fixed)

As for the performance, with the combination of Snapdragon 778G and a 120Hz refresh rate, everything is smooth on the GT ME: from UI transitions to using any apps like Chrome or Instagram. Furthermore, Realme has optimized this chipset and its UI ridiculously well.

So much so that you don’t feel that big of a difference between say, this phone and a Snapdragon 888-powered device like the Realme GT. Just goes on to show how much Qualcomm’s midrange Snapdragon 700-series chipsets have evolved and are impressively closing the gap over the flagship Snapdragon 800 lineup.

So, if you are a light-to-moderate user who mostly uses Instagram, WhatsApp, Chrome, such kinds of apps, practically, you should have the same user experience on the GT ME as the more expensive phones.

Additionally, GT ME doesn’t tend to get warm or overheat when using light apps either—while that’s not the case with Snapdragon 800-series or MediaTek’s Dimensity 1200-powered smartphones.

Gaming experience

However, the one key area where the GT ME lags behind is when playing extremely demanding games. Here, pushing Genshin Impact to the highest of settings results in frequent stutters and overheating after just 5 minutes into the game. On the contrary, you will get comparatively better performance from Dimensity 1200 or Snapdragon 870 powered phones.

Other games like PUBG Mobile and COD run fairly smoothly though, and the phone doesn’t heat up that bad either. You can achieve 40fps in PUBG mobile under HDR Graphics and Ultra frame rates, with 100% stability. Setting the graphics to Smooth and frame rates to Extreme gets you smoother 60fps gameplay as well.

COD, which is another graphics-intensive yet optimized game, can hit 60fps under High graphics and Max frame rates as well. Sadly, 120fps titles like Critical Ops, Oddmar, and Mortal Kombat cap out at 60fps. But according to Realme, they’ve vouched to bring 120fps mode on these games pretty soon including a high refresh rate option in PUBG Mobile.

Cameras

Triple camera setup at the back
(64MP primary, 8MP ultrawide, 2MP macro)
32MP selfie camera in the punch-hole cutout

Cameras

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One of the reasons why I said the Realme GT ME might just be a perfect midrange phone is because of its impressive camera performance.

Normal Images

Here, I like the images from its primary camera during daylight. Compared to the OnePlus Nord 2, it has better details and pleasing punchy colors. So most of the time, you will find Realme GT ME doing a better job here.

Normal

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Still, being a mid-range phone, it does struggle to take close-up shots better as it doesn’t have a shallow depth of field. At times, you will notice the camera struggling to lock in focus as well.

Portrait Images

Nonetheless, portraits are much, much better on the Realme GT ME. Maybe even the best in its class. As you can see, it has superior highlight control and shadow processing alongside better skin tone.

Portraits

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It also maintains the exposure and the background color better. Hence, the GT ME is a clear winner on this front.

Selfie Images

Selfies are equally good from this phone too. I like the warm skin tone it produces, whereas the details and colors look equally nice too.

Selfie

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Portrait selfies also have a good natural background and look pleasing.

Wideangle Images

Here, its 8MP ultra-wide-angle sensor isn’t extraordinary, although decent for the price. Its images have a slight color shift with a warmer tone and subpar details.

Wideangle

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But if there is ample light, the photos come up usable.

Nighttime Images

Now, what’s average about the GT ME is its nighttime shots and videography capabilities. As you can see, the nighttime images from the GT ME introduce a lot of noise and have a soft, not-so-pleasing output.

Nighttime

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On the contrary, the OnePlus Nord 2 shoots photos with better low-light performance in the normal mode.

Night Mode

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Turning on night mode, once again, the Nord 2 maintains better exposure and details most of the time, while the Realme GT ME is not that far behind—while being slightly inconsistent.

Videography

In terms of videography, you can record upto 4K 30fps footage with gyro-EIS from this phone. However, the stabilization isn’t great in 4K 30fps and 1080p 60fps mode, while there’s a noticeable wobble if your hands aren’t that still. To compare, Nord 2’s videos come out much steadier. So, I had to dial down the setting to 1080p 30fps to get better stabilization.

You can also shoot videos from the ultra-wide-angle lens at 1080p resolution with fairly decent stabilization. Selfie videos cap out at 1080p 30fps and you can get pretty steady results with “Super Steady Mode” turned on—although it does come at an expense of a narrower field of view.

Battery

4,300mAh battery with 65W charging

Another aspect where the Realme GT Master Edition does a pretty good job is the battery endurance. Realme is one of those brands that does not usually include a big battery in favor of a lighter and slim form factor. To no one’s surprise, Realme has opted for a relatively smaller 4500mAh cell here.

Its battery life isn’t spectacular but if you are a moderate user, it should last you through the day. But since I am a relatively heavy user, I had to charge the battery as soon as I’d get home by night. Nevertheless, it’s not that big a-deal since Realme’s proprietary 65W Type-A to Type-C charger only takes about 30 minutes to go from 0 to 100%.

Software

Android 11 with Realme UI 2.0 on top (upgradeable)

With that out of the way, allow me to talk about the things I didn’t like about this phone. First, it has to be the number of bloatware apps that come pre-installed. This has to be some sort of record for the number of bloatware among any other smartphone brand right now.

Although someone like us with the technical know-how will be able to uninstall such apps or block their notification pretty easily, such notifications could be incredibly frustrating to someone like your grandparents or anyone with little to zero idea about the cause of such nuisances.

Audio

Mono speaker, 3.5mm headphone jack

Another aspect where the Realme GT ME sees an unnecessary compromise is in the speaker front. You only get a single speaker here while smartphones from practically every other company at this price range come with dual speakers.

Even though this audio setup is decently loud with good clarity, I’ve dearly missed the immersive audio experience that we get from phones with dual speakers

Realme GT Master Edition Review: Conclusion

Regardless, despite some of its obvious flaws, if you look at what the Realme GT Master Edition offers for the price, overall, it is without a doubt an incredibly promising and well-balanced offering.

Still, one crucial thing you might wanna consider is that the Realme X7 Max, which is quite similar to the GT ME, actually delivers better raw performance, is usually available for INR 25,000 every now and then.

So you might want to get that instead and save some cash. However, if you prefer a unique-looking design, you should definitely cash in extra for the GT ME. Plus, with Realme axing the “X” series, the X7 Max might not be in stock for very long either.

Watch our video review of the Realme GT Master Edition.

Realme GT Master Edition Review: Pros & Cons

Pros:

Unique suitcase-inspired design
Vibrant 120Hz SAMOLED display
Fairly powerful performance
Reliable cameras for photos
Decent battery endurance

Cons:

No stereo speaker setup
Pretty weak haptic feedback
Pre-loaded with bloatware apps

Infinix Note 11 series unveiled with 120Hz screens and telephoto cameras

Infinix

GadgetByte

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October 15, 2021

0

Infinix Note 11 series unveiled with 120Hz screens and telephoto cameras

Infinix recently announced the successor to its Note 10 series that was launched a while ago. The new Note 11 series, which includes the Note 11 and Note 11 Pro, promises significant improvements in terms of display, performance, and cameras. So, let’s get into the specs, features, availability, and expected price of Infinix Note 11 and Note 11 Pro in Nepal.

Infinix Note 11, 11 Pro Overview:

To be clear, Infinix has withheld some details on the vanilla Note 11. Thus, we’ll update the article as soon as the information becomes available.

Design and Display

To begin with, both phones in the Note 11 series sport a big 6.95-inch display with FHD+ resolution. The refresh rate has been upped to 120Hz while the touch sampling rate remains at 180Hz.

Moreover, there is a rectangular camera cutout on the rear, as well as an Infinix logo on the bottom. The Note 11 comes in Graphite Black, Celestial Snow, and Glacier Green color options, while the Note 11 Pro comes in Mithril Grey, Haze Green, and Mist Blue.

Also Read:

Performance

Powering both smartphones is an octa-core Mediatek Helio G96 processor. On Note 11 Pro, it is coupled with 8GB of LPDDR4X RAM and 128GB of UFS 2.2 internal storage. The latter is expandable up to 2TB via a microSD card, whereas you can virtually expand the RAM up to 11GB too.

However, the memory configuration for the Note 11 is yet to be announced. Similarly, there is a 9-layer graphene cooling system to keep the chipset cool. Fueling the devices is a 5000mAh battery that supports 33W fast charging.

Camera

In terms of optics, the Pro variant has a triple-camera system at the back, led by a 64MP primary sensor. This is accompanied by a 13MP telephoto lens with 30x digital, 2x optical zoom, and a 2MP depth sensor.

On the other hand, the standard Infinix Note 11 has a 50MP main camera and a 2MP telephoto lens. Both devices include a 16MP camera on the punch-hole cutout for selfies.

Rest of the specs

Besides the cameras, the Pro model also stands out with its stereo speakers setup. Furthermore, for biometrics, there is a side-mounted fingerprint sensor. You also get a 3.5mm headphone jack with support for FM radio.

Infinix Note 11, 11 Pro Specifications:

Display: 6.95-inches IPS LCD panel, 120Hz refresh rate, 180Hz touch sampling rate
Resolution: FHD+ (1080 x 2460 pixels)
Chipset: MediaTek Helio G96 4G (12nm)
GPU: Arm Mali-G76 MC4
Memory:
- Note 11 Pro: 8GB LPDDR4X RAM, 128GB UFS2.2 storage (expandable up to 2TB)
Software & UI: XOS on top of Android 11
Rear Camera:
- Note 11 Pro: Triple (64MP main, 13MP telephoto, 2MP depth)
- Note 11: Dual (50MP main, 2MP telephoto)
Front Camera: 16MP sensor (punch-hole)
Audio:
- Note 11 Pro: Dual-speaker
Security: Side-mounted fingerprint sensor, Face Unlock
Connectivity: Dual-SIM (Nano), WiFi 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac (dual-band), Bluetooth, USB Type-C
Battery: 5,000mAh with 33W fast charging

Infinix Note 11, 11 Pro Price in Nepal and Availability

Infinix has neither revealed the availability of these devices, nor their prices. We’ll keep you updated with all those details once they’re available.

Meanwhile, check out our review of the Realme GT Master Explorer Edition.

Mobvoi TicWatch Pro 3 Ultra GPS launched with dual display, Snapdragon 4100

GadgetByte

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October 14, 2021

0

Mobvoi TicWatch Pro 3 Ultra GPS launched with dual display, Snapdragon 4100

Mobvoi has launched a new smartwatch called the TicWatch Pro 3 Ultra GPS. It’s the successor to TicWatch Pro 3 and features a secondary display that produces a splash of colors using the backlight like the Pro 3. So, let’s get into specs, features, expected price, and availability of Mobvoi TicWatch Pro 3 Ultra GPS in Nepal.

Mobvoi TicWatch Pro 3 Ultra GPS Overview:

Design and Display

The TicWatch Pro 3 Ultra flaunts a 1.4-inch AMOLED primary display with 454 x 454-pixel resolution and a pixel density of 326 PPI. There is a secondary FTSN display that consumes less power. It’s always-on and has an improved backlight setup.

The FTSN panel shows the time, date, step count, or current exercise metrics without waking up the main screen. What distinguishes the Ultra from the standard Pro 3 is that it allows you to adjust the color of the backlight, with a choice of 18 distinct hues. However, this display is still monochrome.

Furthermore, the watch is MIL-STD-810G certified and features stainless steel, nylon, or fiberglass chassis. It has a 22mm replaceable strap and Corning Gorilla Anti-fingerprint Cover Glass. Similarly, it is IP68 rated for water and dust resistance.

Also Read:

Features

Under the hood, the Pro 3 Ultra is powered by Qualcomm’s Snapdragon Wear 4100 and a Mobvoi dual-processor chipset. This has been paired with 1GB of RAM and 8GB of storage. On the software front, it comes pre-installed with Wear OS 2 and will get the new Wear OS 3 update in the second half of 2022.

In terms of battery, the TicWatch Pro 3 Ultra GPS has a 577mAh cell that can last up to 45 days in Essential Mode and 72 hours in the Smart Mode. Furthermore, there are more than 20 workout modes to choose from. Likewise, the health monitoring feature includes 24-hour heart rate and stress monitoring, SpO2 tracking, step counting, and others.

Rest of the specs

For connectivity, it uses Bluetooth 5.0, Wi-Fi, built-in GPS, and NFC. Also, it comes with a set of microphones and speakers to take/make phone calls or play music.

Mobvoi TicWatch Pro 3 Ultra GPS Specifications:

Weight: 41 grams (without strap)
Dimension: 47 x 48 x 12.3 mm
Display: 1.4-inch AMOLED, 454 x 454 pixels, 326 PPI, FSTN screen, Corning Gorilla Anti-fingerprint Cover Glass
Strap: Fluoro-rubber, 22mm (interchangeable)
Chipset: Qualcomm Snapdragon Wear 4100 (12nm) + Mobvoi dual-processor
Software: Wear OS by Google
Memory: 1GB RAM, 8GB storage
Connectivity: Bluetooth 5.0, Wi-Fi 802.11b/g/n, NFC
Audio: Speaker, Microphone
Certification: IP68, MIL-STD-810G
Sensors: Accelerometer, Gyro, HD PPG Heart Rate, SpO2, Low Latency Off-Body, Barometer, Compass
Navigation: GPS / Beidou / Glonass / Galileo / QZSS
Functions: 24-hour heart rate and stress monitoring, SpO2 tracking, Step counting
Battery: 577mAh (Up to 72 hours under Smart Mode)
Companion App: Mobvoi (Android | iOS)

Mobvoi TicWatch Pro 3 Ultra GPS Price in Nepal and Availability

Mobvoi TicWatch Pro 3 Ultra GPS is now available for USD 299.99 and comes in a single Shadow Black color option. We expect the price of the Mobvoi TicWatch Pro 3 Ultra GPS in Nepal to be around NPR 40,000 if and when it launches here.

Smartwatch Model	Price in the US	Price in Nepal (Expected)
Mobvoi TicWatch Pro 3 Ultra GPS	USD 299.99	NPR 40,000

Meanwhile, check out our review of the Mobvoi TicWatch E3.

OnePlus 9RT brings Snapdragon 888, 600Hz touch sampling rate under $600

OnePlus

GadgetByte

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October 13, 2021

0

OnePlus 9RT brings Snapdragon 888, 600Hz touch sampling rate under $600

Earlier this year, OnePlus introduced the third member in its main flagship lineup in the form of the OnePlus 9R. The company has followed it with a “T” variant. Here, we will be discussing all the specs, features, expected price, and availability of the OnePlus 9RT in Nepal.

OnePlus 9RT Overview:

Design and Display

The design of the OnePlus 9RT is very similar to the vanilla 9R. It sports a larger 6.62-inch E4 AMOLED panel with a 120Hz refresh rate. The talking point has been its touch sampling rate which has now been bumped from 240Hz to 600Hz. Additionally, the phone has 100% DCI-P3 coverage and support for HDR10+. It also boasts a maximum brightness of up to 1300 nits.

Flagship level performance and cooling

The phone is powered by Snapdragon 888 chipset. It’s a step up from the Snapdragon 870 on the original 9R. OnePlus has also worked on the cooling apparatus. The Penta-layer cooling system on 9RT covers 19067.44 mm2 results in a 20% improvement in heat dissipation.

The phone will be available in two RAM variants (LPDDR5): 8GB and 12GB. Similarly, users can add 7GB of virtual RAM. Moreover, you can pick between 128 or 256GB of UFS 3.1 internal storage.

Also Read:

No Hasselblad camera

OnePlus 9RT has a rectangular camera island with rounded edges. It doesn’t have the Hasselblad branding but comes with Sony’s 50MP IMX766 sensor. It’s the same sensor used in the ultrawide camera of the OnePlus 9 and 9 Pro.

It even supports Digital Overlap HDR. This means that it can take two photos at different exposure and combine them for a clearer image. This feature is already available on OnePlus 9, 9 Pro, and Nord 2. Accompanying the main sensor is a 16MP ultrawide, and a 2MP macro sensor.

Rest of the specs

The battery department sees no upgrade though. Fueling the phone is the same 4,500mAh battery with support of 65W fast charging. There is no wireless charging either. In China, the phone ships with ColorOS 12 based on Android 12 of the box.

However, it is expected to be replaced with OxygenOS, if the phone launches elsewhere. Another highlight of the device is its new three-antenna Wi-Fi system, which the company claims can limit average latency to up to 38ms.

OnePlus 9RT Specifications:

Display: 6.62-inch E4 AMOLED panel, 100% DCI-P3, HDR10+, 1300 nits peak brightness, 120Hz refresh rate, 600Hz touch sampling rate
Chipset: Qualcomm Snapdragon 888 5G (5nm)
Memory: 8/12GB LPDDR5 RAM, 128/256GB UFS 3.1 storage
Rear Camera: Triple (with LED flash);
– 50MP Sony IMX766 primary sensor
– 16MP ultra-wide-angle lens
– 2MP macro sensor
Front Camera: 16MP sensor
Security: Fingerprint scanner
Battery: 4500mAh with 65W charging

OnePlus 9RT Price in Nepal and Availability

OnePlus 9RT is already available for pre-order in China, while the actual sale starts on October 19. Its price is CNY 3,299 for the 8/128GB, CNY 3,499 for the 8/256GB, and CNY 3,799 for the 12/256GB variant. We expect the price of the OnePlus 9RT in Nepal to start at NPR 70,000 if and when it launches here.

OnePlus 9RT	Price in China	Price in Nepal (Expected)
8/128GB	CNY 3,299	NPR 70,000
8/256GB	CNY 3,499	NPR 75,000
12/256GB	CNY 3,799	NPR 80,000

Meanwhile, check out our review of the OnePlus 9 Pro.

Amazfit Powerbuds Pro earbuds launched with various health monitoring features

Amazfit

GadgetByte

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October 13, 2021

0

Amazfit Powerbuds Pro earbuds launched with various health monitoring features

Alongside the new smartwatches in the GT lineup, Amazfit has also launched the PowerBuds Pro earbuds. What makes these buds stand out is that they come with a variety of health tracking features. So, let’s get through the specs, features, availability, and expected price of Amazfit PowerBuds Pro in Nepal.

Amazfit PowerBuds Pro Overview:

Body

Starting with the design, the Amazfit PowerBuds Pro looks like a standard set of TWS earbuds. They have a long stem design and weigh just 6.7 grams each. Similarly, the charging case weighs 42 grams.

The earbuds are IP55 rated against dust and water resistance. The PowerBuds Pro is available in a sole “Frost White” color option.

Also Read:

Audio and Controls

In terms of audio, Amazfit promises an incredible level of ANC in the Powerbuds Pro. The buds features three noise cancellation modes: Indoor, Travel, Sports, and Adaptive—and can filter up to 40dB of noise. It also has three sets of mics on each bud for crystal clear phone calls.

For controls, a long press on either earbud will turn ANC mode on/off, a single press will play/pause music or accept calls, a double press will skip the currently playing track or reject calls, and three taps will activate voice assistant.

Health features

As aforementioned, the PowerBuds Pro packs health-related features as well. It has an in-ear PPG heart rate sensor that tracks your heart rate during workouts. It can also measure your spine angle using the built-in accelerometer and alert you if your posture needs to be improved.

Furthermore, it can track your listening patterns and recommend lowering the volume in accordance with WHO’s hearing protection standards. Other features include steps and calories burnt count.

Rest of the specs

Besides this, the case has a 510mAh battery while each bud is powered by a 68mAh battery. Amazfit claims up to 5 hours and 45 minutes of music playback on these earbuds with ANC on, and 9 hours without it.

Amazfit PowerBuds Pro Specifications:

Weight: 6.7 gm (ear earbud), 42 gm (case)
Connectivity: Bluetooth v5.0
Audio: Active Noise Cancellation (up to 40dB), 3 mics
Control: Touch gestures
Charging Interface: USB Type-C
Battery:
- Case: 510mAh
- Buds: 68mAh, 5 hours and 45 minutes (with ANC on), 9 hours (ANC off)
Sensors: PPG optical heart rate (right ear only), Proximity, Accelerometer, Pressure
Health Features: Heart rate, posture detection, steps count, calories burnt
Companion App: Zepp (Android | iOS)

Amazfit PowerBuds Pro Price in Nepal and Availability

Amazfit PowerBuds Pro is available at an introductory price of CNY 899 in China. To be clear, the buds were released globally in July and are available for USD 150. We expect the price of the Amazfit PowerBuds Pro in Nepal to be around NPR 20,000, if and when it launches here.

Earbuds Model	Price in the US	Price in Nepal (Expected)
Amazfit PowerBuds Pro	USD 150	NPR 20,000

Meanwhile, check out our review of the Samsung Galaxy Buds 2.

Samsung Galaxy A52s 5G Long-Term Review: (Almost) Nailed It!

Yural Maskey

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October 11, 2021

0

Samsung Galaxy A52s 5G Long-Term Review: (Almost) Nailed It!

I posted my early impressions video of the A52s a little over a month ago and since then, I have been using this phone as my daily driver. It’s been a little over a month now, and I’ll finally be sharing my long-term review of the Samsung Galaxy A52s 5G here.

Now, the phone is about 10-15% more expensive than your typical midrange phones like the Xiaomi 11 Lite NE, and the Realme GT Master Edition. So in this review, I am going to answer if the Samsung Galaxy A52s 5G is worth the extra cash.

Samsung Galaxy A52s 5G Specifications:

Body: 75.1 x 159.9 x 8.4mm, 189 gm, IP67 dust/water resistant
Display: 6.5-inches “Infinity-O” Super AMOLED panel, 120Hz refresh rate, 240Hz touch sampling rate, Gorilla Glass 5
Resolution: FHD+ (2400 x 1080 pixels), 20:9 aspect ratio
Chipset: Qualcomm Snapdragon 778G 5G (6nm Mobile Platform)
Memory: 6/8GB LPDDR4X RAM, 128/256GB storage (expandable)
Software & UI: Android 11 with Samsung’s One UI 3.1 on top
Rear Camera: Quad (with LED flash);
– 64MP f/1.8 primary lens, AF, OIS
– 12MP f/2.2 ultra-wide lens, 123º FOV
– 5MP f/2.4 macro sensor
– 5MP f/2.4 depth sensor
Front Camera: 32MP f/2.2 sensor (punch-hole cutout)
Audio: Stereo speakers with Dolby Atmos audio, 3.5mm headphone jack
Security: Optical in-display fingerprint sensor, Face unlock
Sensors: Accelerometer, Gyro, Geomagnetic, Hall, Light, Virtual Proximity
Connectivity: Dual-SIM (Nano), WiFi 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac (Dual-band), Bluetooth 5.0, GPS / AGPS / Glonass / Galileo / Beidou, NFC, USB Type-C
Battery: 4500mAh with 25W fast charging (15W adapter provided)
Color Options: Awesome – Black, Green, Violet
- Awesome White not available in Nepal
Price in Nepal: Rs. ~~53,999~~ 49,999 (6/128GB) | Rs. ~~55,999~~ 51,999 (8/128GB)

Samsung Galaxy A52s 5G Review:

Cameras

Quad camera setup at the back
(64MP primary, 12MP ultrawide, 5MP depth, 5MP macro)
32MP selfie camera inside the punch-hole cutout

Cameras

1 of 2

Ok, let me start with the aspect where the A52s outclasses the competition. And I strongly believe it’s the cameras. While I was using this phone, I also reviewed the OnePlus Nord 2, Realme GT Master Edition, and the GT Master Explorer Edition, whereas I’m currently testing the Xiaomi 11 Lite NE 5G. And none of them can beat the reliability of the A52s.

Normal Images

The photos from its primary 64MP lens have a pleasing color reproduction, are well-detailed, and their dynamic range & contrast levels on most occasions are also fair enough.

Normal

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With Optical Image Stabilisation (OIS) on board, it’s really helped me capture detailed photos of my pets, which is something you simply can’t achieve from phones without OIS.

Nighttime Images

Low-light

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Plus, it helps deliver sharp and well-detailed pictures during low light conditions too.

Portrait Images

Likewise, I also found the portraits from the A52s to be incredibly consistent. As you can see, it has a nice background blur and skin tone.

Portrait

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And if you zoom in, the image looks sharp enough and the edge detection is also quite good.

Wideangle Images

Similarly, unlike an 8MP ultra-wide-angle lens which is common on phones at this price range, Samsung is offering a 12MP lens that not only offers better details but a wider field of view too.

Normal v Ultrawide

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I found this lens to have an almost identical color processing as the primary camera as well, so I am quite happy in this department.

Selfie Images

Selfie

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And if you are someone who takes a lot of selfies, A52s is unarguably one of the best options at this price. You get a warm and likable skin tone with great exposure.

Videography

The one aspect in the cameras where Samsung could have done better, despite its good hardware, is in the videos. Here, the 1080p 60fps and 4K 30fps recordings don’t have the best stabilization, so I had to dial it down to 1080p 30fps, which again doesn’t deliver good details like 4K.

And besides the primary camera which has OIS, this lack of stabilization at higher resolutions holds true for the ultra-wide and the selfie camera as well. So, I think Samsung is deliberately disabling OIS and EIS in 1080p 60fps and 4K 30fps mode on this phone.

Display

6.5-inches FHD+ Super AMOLED display
120/240Hz refresh/touch sampling rate
Corning’s Gorilla Glass 5 protection

Now, another thing I’ve liked about the A52s is that it’s a great phone if you watch a lot of movies. Although its display doesn’t sound at all spectacular when looking at the spec-sheet, with a Samsung-made AMOLED panel, you are usually getting better contrast and colors.

Hence, I really enjoyed watching underlit scenes of Kota Factory 2 and the beautiful color palettes in Squid Game. Its stereo speaker setup gets decently loud and sounds balanced as well. So, for binging movies and occasionally listening to some tunes, this phone does more than an okay job.

Still, the one complaint that I have with this display is that it’s restricted to just a 240Hz touch sampling rate. And since I have used phones with 360Hz and even 480Hz touch response rates, trust me, the A52s doesn’t hold up that well.

Plus, Samsung really should have included a better vibration motor as the haptics on this thing isn’t as premium as its price tag would suggest. I have no issue with the phone’s 120Hz refresh rate though—as it feels plenty smooth and free from any weird micro lags.

Performance

Octa-core Qualcomm Snapdragon 778G 5G SoC (6nm)
6/8GB LPDDR4X RAM, 128/256GB UFS 2.1 storage (expandable)
Android 11 with Samsung’s One UI 3.1 on top (upgradeable)

Now, I am quite happy with its performance actually—even though I have one crucial suggestion to make. Initially, I used the 6GB RAM variant of the Galaxy A52s and found it to be slightly sluggish. So, I got myself the 8GB variant instead which is unsurprisingly better. Therefore, try to avoid the 6GB RAM variant if you are buying this phone.

Also, given the price tag, Samsung should have provided a more powerful chipset like the Dimensity 1200 or Snapdragon 870, instead of the Snapdragon 778G, which is available on much cheaper devices. Regardless, compared to the Snapdragon 720G on its predecessor the Galaxy A52, everything is faster here, be it opening apps, multitasking, or gaming.

Yet, I don’t know if it’s only me, but I found the Realme GT Master Edition with the same Snapdragon 778G chip to be more fluid and faster.

Gaming experience

That being said, when it comes to gaming, I found A52s to score similar fps results as the Realme GT ME. Popular titles like PUBG and COD Mobile run smoothly at 60fps by tweaking the settings, and Samsung has optimized most of the high refresh rate games to run at 120fps as well.

I played Critical Ops, Oddmar, Bomb Squad, Grimvalor, and all of them can hit 120fps without any hiccups. In terms of thermals, the Galaxy A52s delivers excellent results as well. I’m yet to face any issues like overheating or the phone getting warm here. Even when gaming continuously for 30 minutes and more, the phone’s surface temperature never reached above 40 degrees.

Design

75.1 x 159.9 x 8.4mm, 189 grams
Glass front, polycarbonate back/frame
IP67 dust-and-water resistance

And one of the reasons for that is how Samsung hasn’t gone overboard to deliver an incredibly slim form factor on the A52s. For instance, the Xiaomi 11 Lite NE and the Galaxy M52 are quite thin, and I found that these phones get warm relatively easily.

Design

1 of 2

Still and all, I do have one complaint on the design front. Although it looks quite appealing with all the refreshing colors, good heft, and the IP67 dust & waterproofing on board, Samsung has used a cheaper plastic material at the back. Having used the phone without a case for a month, there are already some visible scratches and discoloration on my unit.

And with the plastic frames, this thing is not going to look the same after a year or so. So in this regard, Samsung should have at least offered a glass back like on its other premium A-series phones.

Battery

4500mAh with 25W fast charging support

Anyway, getting to the battery life, I got similar results from the A52s like its predecessor despite the smoother 120Hz refresh rate. So, this is a solid B+ phone in terms of battery backup. On my typical usage, I got around 5 to 6 hours of screen on time and had to rush back to charge the phone as I reached home by 8 PM.

Samsung has also cheaped out by offering a 15W charger inside the box while the phone supports 25W input. Plus, its competitors are offering up to 67W charging speed at this price range. As a result, juicing up the phone with its default 15W charger is pretty slow and takes around 1 hour and 45 minutes to get fully charged. So, you’ll need to buy a separate 25W PD charger that fills up the battery relatively faster at 1 hour 10 minutes.

Samsung Galaxy A52s 5G Long-Term Review: Conclusion

Overall, as I mentioned at the start of this review, Samsung is asking a bit of a premium price for the Galaxy A52s 5G than what the phone actually delivers. But this doesn’t come as a surprise since Samsung has always done that with its A-series… having you pay a bit more than the competition.

All in all, if you want the absolute best value-for-money smartphone, the Galaxy A52s isn’t the best option. I think Samsung’s own Galaxy M52 that was launched recently is cheaper than the A52s and offers a very similar experience.

But again, if your priorities are superior cameras, a better-looking design, a water-resistant phone, it is worth paying extra for the A52s. Also, the phone is priced amazingly here in Nepal compared to markets like India and the UK. I even think Galaxy A52s costs the cheapest here—making it a great value proposition.

Watch our video review of the Samsung Galaxy A52s 5G.

Samsung Galaxy A52s 5G Long-Term Review: Pros & Cons

Pros:

Attractive design, color options
IP67 dust-and-water resistant
Reliable cameras for photos
120Hz Super AMOLED display
Pretty competent performance
Decent battery endurance

Cons:

Videos aren’t well-stabilized
Doesn’t have a glass back
No 25W charger inside the box

Realme C25Y Review: The Bottom Of The Barrel

GadgetByte

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October 11, 2021

1

Realme C25Y Review: The Bottom Of The Barrel

Realme has been on a roll of launching new smartphones. The company recently unveiled the GT Neo 2 in the Realme GT series, as well as new additions to its midrange 8 series. Moreover, for the entry-level market, Realme has launched the C25Y. I’ve been using the phone for a few weeks now and in this review, I will be sharing my experiences on how the Realme C25Y performs in day-to-day life.

Realme C25Y Specifications:

Body: 164.5 x 76 x 9.1mm, 200gm
Display: 6.5-inches IPS LCD panel, 420 nits brightness
Resolution: HD+ (1600 x 720 pixels)
Chipset: Unisoc T610 (12nm)
CPU: Octa-core (2×1.8GHz Cortex-A75 & 6×1.8 GHz Cortex-A55)
GPU: Arm Mali-G52
Memory: 4GB LPDDR4X RAM, 128GB eMMC 5.1 storage (expandable)
Software & UI: Realme R edition on top of Android 11
Rear Camera: Triple (with LED flash)
– 50MP f/1.8 primary lens, PDAF
– 2MP f/2.4 macro lens, 4cm
– 2MP f/2.4 B&W sensor
Front Camera: 8MP f/2.0 (notch)
Security: Physical fingerprint sensor (rear-mounted)
Audio: 3.5mm headphone jack
Connectivity: Dual SIM (Nano-SIM), WiFi 802.11 b/g/n, Bluetooth 5.0, GPS / A-GPS / Beidou / GLONASS, micro USB
Battery: 5000mAh, 18W fast charging
Sensors: Accelerometer, Proximity, Light, Magnetic induction
Color Options: Glacier Blue, Metal Grey
Price in Nepal: NPR 18,749

Realme C25Y Review:

Design

164.5 x 76 x 9.1mm, 200gm
Glass front, plastic back/frames

Starting off this review with the design, the Realme C25Y sports a textured surface on the back. To be honest, visually, it looks a little off-putting to me. Its textured pattern does feel pleasant in the hand though. I have the Glacier Blue color option, which has a bright blue hue on the bottom that fades into light blue as you move upwards.

Furthermore, the rear includes a fingerprint scanner and a camera cutout. The fingerprint sensor works correctly, although Realme could have made things better by adding a different texture or a slight groove to it. Most of the time, I couldn’t tell where the sensor is since its texture is so similar to the phone’s frame.

Now, although the back doesn’t attract any fingerprints or smudges, Realme should have provided a case to wrap the phone around. Still and all, at 200 grams, the C25Y will definitely make its presence felt in your pocket.

Display

6.5-inches HD+ IPS LCD panel
420 nits brightness, Widevine L3

On to the display, it’s pretty basic stuff here. You get a 6.5-inch IPS LCD panel with HD+ resolution and a water-drop notch for the selfie camera. The “HD” of it is a deal-breaker here as brands have started providing FHD resolution in this price bracket.

As a result, when streaming videos over YouTube or Netflix, the subjects look soft with slightly subdued colors. Force-enabling 1080p mode on YouTube doesn’t help much either. However, the screen appears to have a fair degree of clarity—but remember this is strictly limited to typical usages like browsing through the UI and surfing over social media handles.

Too many compromises

Furthermore, on top of an HD panel, the Realme C25Y also skips a higher refresh rate. In comparison, the Redmi 10 Prime, which costs just INR 500 more in India, has an FHD display with a 90Hz refresh rate.

That’s not it! The final nail on this hopeless coffin is that the phone doesn’t even support Widevine L1 certification. That means you are capped out at SD videos on Netflix and other OTT platforms. On the other hand, this display can get fairly bright enough indoors, although it does struggle with visibility when you’re outside—even on a fairly cloudy day.

Performance

Octa-core Unisoc T610 4G SoC (12nm)
4GB LPDDR4X RAM, 128GB eMMC 5.1 storage
Android 11 with Realme UI R Edition on top

In terms of performance, the C25Y is driven by a Unisoc T610 chipset. But hey, don’t dismiss this “Unisoc” SoC just yet since it’s a rather capable chipset for everyday use. It is fabricated under a 12nm process and features two Cortex-A75 and six Cortex-A55 cores, all clocked at 1.8GHz.

Moreover, it has been paired with 4GB of LPDDR4X RAM and 128GB eMMC 5.1 storage (expandable). So, going over my everyday chores like web-browsing, YouTube streaming, and surfing over Twitter feeds is nothing of a hassle here.

Gaming

Gaming, on the other hand, is where the phone struggles the most. I played demanding titles like PUBG and Call of Duty Mobile where my experience was nothing to write home about.

Here, PUBG Mobile is playable at HD graphics and High frame rate but stutters greet you every now and then. Similarly, the relatively well-optimized games like Call of Duty Mobile is playable at Medium graphics and High frame rate, but I did notice occasional stutters here as well.

So, dialing down to the lowest graphics setting helps for better stability. Also, after 30 minutes of gaming, the phone gets noticeably warm near the camera module.

Software

Leaving those considerations aside, the software is where the Realme C25Y really gets tricky. It runs the new Realme UI R Edition on top of Android 11. This is the first time I’ve been using this UI, and it didn’t appeal to me too much.

It forgoes several basic actions, including quick uninstall, sidebar, and split-screen. Furthermore, this Android skin lacks a dedicated game mode, customization levels on dark mode, and worst of all, you can’t even snap a screenshot using 3-finger gestures. These are simple yet highly useful actions I use on Realme devices that boot on standard Realme UI.

Overall, there are a number of compromises Realme has made with its new R Edition skin, and having the fundamental choices missing is a tad frustrating.

Cameras

Triple camera setup at the back
(50MP primary, 2MP macro, 2MP B&W)
8MP selfie camera in the teardrop notch

Let’s talk about the cameras now. Realme C25Y sports a triple-camera setup at the back. This consists of a 50MP primary, and a couple of 2MP sensors for portrait and macro shots. On the front, there’s an 8MP selfie shooter.

Cameras

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With those specs listed above, you may have figured that it lacks an ultrawide lens. On top of this, the front camera can’t even click portrait shots. Realme, you messed this up!

Normal Images

Normal

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Under ample lighting, photos from the primary camera turn out to be fairly good. They have a high dynamic range, and the colors are also quite natural. Yet, the pictures appear to be sharpened here.

Portrait Images

Portraits

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Moving on, the portraits from the C25Y are often hazy and sharpened. And, as one would expect from a budget phone, the edge detection is poor while the subject has a reddish tint to it as well. Also, you can clearly see how it struggles to maintain exposures and dynamic range.

Macro Images

Macro

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Close-up shots from the onboard macro camera aren’t that great either. The photos have fairly subdued colors yet have a decent level of detail.

Nighttime Images

Nighttime

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Likewise, the nighttime shots come off grainy and with little detail, while it shoots soft-looking photos sometimes.

Night Mode

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However, turning on the night mode helps the matter a little. It sharpens the image and tries to maintain the exposure. The dynamic range is also a bit improved in the night mode.

Selfie Images

Selfies

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Now, when it comes to selfies, subjects look extremely over-sharpened, while the backdrop is muted in color. There is also a reddish/pale hue to the face.

Videography

In terms of videos, the phone maxes out at 1080p/30fps recording and does not feature any stabilization option either. So, as expected, the footage comes off quite wobbly. Furthermore, videos from the C25Y have a warm tone to them and are over-sharpened.

Battery

5,000mAh, 18W charging
Micro USB port

Aside from the under-par cameras, the Realme C25Y delivers a fairly impressive battery life. It comes with a 5000mAh cell that supports 18W fast charging. Under medium to heavy usage, the phone provides a net 7-8 hours of screen on time.

Charging it up, on the other hand, is quite a drag. Using the power adapter provided inside the box, the device juices up from 0 to 100% in around 2 hours 41 minutes. However, what’s yet another letdown here is that it comes with a classic Micro USB port.

Audio

Single mono speaker
3.5mm headphone jack

Finally, the audio quality from the mono speaker at the back is strictly adequate. The sound output is basic and sufficient for watching videos, but listening to music is a questionable joy. As a result, most of the time, I preferred listening to music over headphones or a portable speaker instead.

Realme C25Y Review: Conclusion

To sum up this Realme C25Y review, it’s a rather unimpressive phone. While its appearance and battery life are somewhat appealing, the phone ultimately falls short of the competition in terms of performance, camera, and display. What’s more aggravating is that Realme is even scrimping on its software.

Thus, as I mentioned earlier, spending just INR 500 extra in India would bring you a far superior device in the form of Redmi 10 Prime. So, at this price, the Realme C25Y is a definite no-go.

Realme C25Y Review: Pros and Cons

Pros:

Textured design feels good
Decent battery endurance
Acceptable performance

Cons:

HD resolution display
Realme UI R Edition isn’t that good
Incompetent cameras
Can’t click selfie portraits
Micro USB port
Not a great value for money