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Realme Narzo 30A Review: Underachieving

Nikhil Shrestha
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Realme Narzo 30A Review: Underachieving

Realme found great success by capitalizing on the needs of the young audience. Its “Narzo” lineup of smartphones caters to the very same demographics. Complemented by a plethora of hip marketing campaigns while the products themselves share a significant bit of similarity with the company’s number series, Narzo-branded smartphones are quite the standout. Adding to the lineup, Realme recently unveiled the Narzo 30 series which includes a budget and a 5G-ready mid-range phone. And today, I bring you our full review of the Realme Narzo 30A.

Realme Narzo 30A Specifications:

  • Body: 6.48 x 2.99 x 0.39 inches, 207 gm
  • Display: 6.5-inches “Mini-drop” IPS LCD panel, 269 PPI, 570 nits (Sunlight Mode), 88.7% screen-to-body ratio
  • Resolution: HD+ (1600 x 720 pixels), 20:9 aspect ratio
  • Chipset: MediaTek Helio G85 (12nm Mobile Platform)
  • CPU: Octa-core (2×2.0 GHz Cortex-A75 & 6×1.8 GHz Cortex-A55)
  • GPU: Arm Mali-G52
  • Memory: 3/4GB LPDDR4X RAM, 32/64GB storage (expandable)
  • Software & UI: Realme UI 1.0 on top of Android 10
  • Rear Camera: Dual-camera;
    – 13MP f/2.2 primary lens, PDAF
    – 2MP f/2.4 depth sensor
    – LED flash
  • Front Camera: 8MP f/2.0 lens (notch)
  • Audio: 3.5mm headphone jack, Loudspeaker
  • Security: Rear-mounted fingerprint sensor
  • Connectivity: Dual-SIM (Nano), WiFi 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac (dual-band), Bluetooth 5.0, GPS / AGPS / Glonass / Beidou, USB Type-C, 4G LTE
  • Sensors: Accelerometer, Proximity, Light, Magnetic Induction
  • Battery: 6000mAh with 18W charging (reverse charging)
  • Color options: Laser Black, Laser Blue
  • Price in Nepal: N/A (not launched yet)

Realme Narzo 30A Review:

Here, the Narzo 30A that I have with me is the affordable one of the two. Retailing at just INR 9,000, it packs a pretty capable gaming chipset and an exciting design. But with Xiaomi’s latest Redmi Note 10 series into the mix, one might be wondering if it makes sense to invest a little more for a far superior smartphone. Well, let’s discover more in this review of the Realme Narzo 30A.

Design & Build

  • Glass front, plastic back/frame
  • A striking diagonal stripe design

To set itself apart from the competition, Realme has historically leaned on offering a distinct design, and that tradition follows suit with the Narzo 30A. Looking at the phone’s promotional materials, its striped layout at the back almost had me fooled for a grippy cover. That would’ve been pretty dope, actually. However, it’s nothing more than a painted texture that still looks quite unique.

Additionally, while the phone is fairly immune to fingerprints and smudges, this design choice is prone to moisture from your hand. As a result, I often found myself having to wipe the sweat off the back of Narzo 30A. Although the phone sits quite well in the hand, it is a considerably heavy phone. Weighing 207 grams, it is definitely not for those who prefer something lightweight.

For biometrics, there’s a traditional fingerprint scanner at the back. It is pretty fast and therefore never had me going for the face unlock alternative. Unfortunately, Realme doesn’t let you access the notification tray by swiping down the scanner. All things considered, the Narzo 30A gets a point in terms of its design. The buttons click nice and even though it’s by no means a compact phone, I find it sitting snuggly in my hand.

Display

  • 6.5-inches HD+ IPS LCD screen
  • 570 nits brightness (Sunlight mode)

While I am at peace with the phone’s design, the display is where it has let me down. At a time when its arch-enemy Xiaomi is stepping up the game by providing a Full HD screen at a similar price-point, Realme’s dumbfounded ignorance is only hurting itself. Consequently, watching videos on the Narzo 30A is an underwhelming experience.

Narzo 30A - Display 1

Now, Realme would’ve easily gotten a pass on this regard about a year ago but things have changed. And I simply can’t recommend this phone to those with content consumption in mind. That’s further backed up by the fact that Narzo 30A is just Widevine L3 certified, restricting you to sub-HD (540p) content streaming only.

Furthermore, even though YouTube force-enables 1080p resolution on this 720p screen, there’s little improvement in the picture quality itself—with the content looking slightly over-sharpened.

I also noticed its color science leaning on the cool side of things. Thankfully, you can adjust the screen color temperature, yet Realme’s implementation isn’t as extensive as Xiaomi. Moving on, the phone has a minimal teardrop notch and rounded edges on all four sides, with no visible discoloration. Barring Narzo 30A’s significant chin, the bezels on the remaining edges are fairly minimal. Similarly, this 6.5” IPS screen can get plenty bright although it will struggle outdoors.

Likewise, I find its viewing angles to be a tad bit sub-par as well. Looking at this display from the side, you’ll likely notice a drop in saturation level. Apart from this, for casual web browsing and similar use cases, Narzo 30A’s screen won’t disappoint.

Performance

  • Octa-core MediaTek Helio G85 SoC (12nm)
  • 3/4GB LPDDR4X RAM, 32/64GB storage (expandable)

Now, jumping into the performance, Realme has paired this phone with MediaTek’s Helio G85. This is a pretty competent gaming-first chipset that was used in the company’s Narzo 20 from last year as well. We’re naturally led to believe that G85 brings some significant upgrades over the Helio G80, but the reality couldn’t be farther from the truth. Apart from a mere 50MHz boost in GPU frequency, both silicons are one and the same.

Narzo 30A - Design

What I’m trying to say here is that we, as consumers, shouldn’t be playing into the manufacturer’s number game. And this is not exclusive to Realme, by the way. Companies use this (sadly) effective technique to gain bragging rights to highlight their product’s superiority.

But I digress. Here, Narzo 30A gets either 3/4GB of LPDDR4X RAM and 32/64GB of internal storage. Our review unit is of 3/32GB configuration and with this, I got to relive something I’d moved away from a long time ago. Because it’s a budget gaming phone, I wanted to test out a couple of titles to reach a verdict. However, the puny 32GB memory couldn’t hold as many games as I’d want to—thereby making me uninstall a game or two every now and then.

Insufficient internal storage

And the cherry on top is the fact that the system itself occupies an unacceptable 13.7GB, resulting in the effective available storage to just 18.3GB. Like I mentioned earlier, there is a 64GB variant as well but I guess we can all agree that 32GB shouldn’t be the default storage space in a 2021 smartphone. Let’s now take a look at some benchmark scores.

Realme Narzo 30A Redmi 9 Power
Androbench Seq. Read 307.58 MB/s 513.27 MB/s
Seq. Write 84.57 MB/s 202.95 MB/s
AnTuTu V8 Total 186914 183351
CPU 72238 70713
GPU 33912 34880
Memory 36628 41178
UX 44136 36580
Geekbench 5 CPU (Single Core) 312 315
CPU (Multi-Core) 1263 1362
Compute (OpenCL) 1174 373
PCMark (Work 2.0 Performance) 8599 6097
3DMark (Wild Life) 700 371

Moving on to gaming, I played a few games and got a respectable performance.

Gaming experience

You can crank the settings to HD graphics and High frame rate in PUBG Mobile, and this results in fairly smooth gameplay. The rare instances of slight stutters under these settings are absolutely excusable.

Narzo 30A - Gaming

But if you want the best PUBG Mobile experience, you’d want to set the graphics to Smooth and frame rate to Ultra. After about 20 minutes of gaming, the phone got to 42C (CPU) and 38C (battery) which feels warm to touch, but not scorchingly hot.

Additionally, COD Mobile maxes out at Medium graphics and High frame rate and it’s smooth sailing here. Zero stutters or lags. Similarly, Mobile Legends: Bang Bang is equally playable at High graphics with shadow, damage text, and other visual enhancements turned on. After around 30 minutes of gameplay, Narzo 30A delivered a comparable thermal performance too.

Lackluster state of software update

While the gaming side of things is commendable, Realme has “dared to leap” in the exact opposite direction by shipping this phone with the now-outdated Android 10-based Realme UI 1.0.

Realme UI 2.0 Roadmap

What’s worse is that the company’s recent blog post revealed that Narzo 30A will get Realme UI 2.0 (Android 11) only in Q3, 2021. By that time, we may already see Google unveil Android 12. Once again, this is simply not an admissible offense and Realme deserves harsh criticism for this behavior.

Anyway, Realme UI 1.0 isn’t half bad, to be honest. It is quite well optimized and is pretty responsive too. By default, swiping down on the home screen triggers the search menu but you can customize it to launch the notification drawer instead. I also like the “Game Space” that optimizes the system resources, blocks notifications, and such automatically on compatible games.

Cameras

  • Dual-camera setup at the back
  • (13MP primary, 2MP portrait sensor)
  • 8MP selfie camera inside the notch

Let’s get into the cameras now. Realme has gone with a classic camera layout on the Narzo 30A. While you may mistake it for a triple-camera arrangement, the phone only has two lenses at the back—a 13MP primary, and a 2MP portrait sensor. I tried comparing it with the Redmi 9 Power and here are the results.

Normal Images

Compared to the 48MP primary camera on the competition, the normal daytime images from the Narzo 30A lag behind in terms of details.

While I personally don’t prefer the high saturation on Redmi 9 Power’s photos, it does generate more popping colors. You can turn on “Chroma Boost” for the same on Narzo 30A though. In some instances, the phone also over-sharpens the images.

Portrait Images

Portrait images share a similar story in terms of color reproduction as well. But, the ones from Redmi 9 Power underexposes the subjects by a bit, making them look a little dark.

On the other hand, Narzo 30A has a relatively cool color temperature and a more digestible result. In terms of edge detection, both phones are on par with each other.

Nighttime Images

Here, the Redmi 9 Power wins out in terms of regular nighttime and night mode shots.

Its photos retain better details, dynamic range while Narzo 30A’s pictures tend to look soft and hazy.

More importantly, if you’re shooting in an environment with direct light sources, the images from the 30A will fall victim to rabid lens flare.

Selfie, Portrait Selfie Images

Likewise, the selfie images share a similar story.

Redmi 9 Power’s 8MP selfie shooter manages to deliver better dynamic range and details compared to the 8MP sensor on the Narzo 30A. While the former has a yellowish hue, Realme’s alternative has this soft pinkish tint.

Redmi 9 Power overpowers the portrait selfie shots with high contrast as well.

Videography

In terms of videos, both phones max out at 1080p/30fps recordings from front/back cameras. I found that Narzo 30A can capture relatively superior footage. In both instances, the Redmi 9 Power has worse dynamic range and exposure control.

Battery

  • 6000mAh battery with 18W fast charging

When it comes to battery life, Narzo 30A is a champ. Thanks to a big 6000mAh cell, I was consistently able to get 7-7.5 hours of screen-on-time on this phone. And that’s including multiple sessions of continuous gaming as well. Realme even says you can achieve up to 10 hours of gaming but that claim seems questionable. And if you’re someone who doesn’t game a lot, it will easily last you a couple of days.

Narzo 30A - Charging

Charging the phone is quite slow though. The 18W fast charger included inside the box takes almost 3 hours and 10 minutes to take Narzo 30A from 2% to 100%. It also supports reverse charging, so you can transfer power from the phone to other devices including smartphones, wearables, etc.

Audio

  • Single bottom-firing speaker

Likewise, its audio quality isn’t that bad either. Now, you don’t get a stereo speaker setup like on the Redmi 9 Power but the sound output is pretty good. It gets loud enough and is most suitable for listening to podcasts or similar acoustic content. Just don’t expect it to fare well under dynamic audio/video files.

Conclusion

To finish up this review, I feel like the Realme Narzo 30A is an underachieving phone on many fronts. It has a compromised 720p screen, a dual-camera setup, and an under-powerful 3/32GB starting model. At a time when most other manufacturers are starting to standardize the 4/64GB base variant, it’s a direct step backward.

Narzo 30A - Display 2

Plus, the phone still runs on last-gen Android 10, with the Android 11 update scheduled so late. Yet, it does have a few redeeming qualities like its gaming capabilities and battery life. But at the end of the day, you get so much more by cashing in a couple of thousand rupees more for the Redmi Note 10.

  • Watch our video review of the Realme Narzo 30A.

Realme Narzo 30A Review: Pros & Cons

Pros:

  • A good-looking design
  • Good gaming performance
  • Excellent battery life
  • Decent audio quality

Cons:

  • No Full HD display
  • 3/32GB variant is limiting
  • Still runs on Android 10
  • Subpar nighttime photos

Samsung Galaxy A52 Impressions: An All-Rounder Top Dog!

Nikhil Shrestha
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Samsung Galaxy A52 Impressions: An All-Rounder Top Dog!

Last year, Samsung found immense success with the Galaxy A51. Featuring a new design choice and a compelling set of cameras, the phone managed to rank among the best-selling Android phones for all of 2020. Now that’s a tough act to follow through. And here with me is its successor, the Galaxy A52. Just like the Galaxy A32 that Samsung launched recently, this phone gets a separate 4G/5G treatment as well. Allow me to discuss my early impressions of the Samsung Galaxy A52.

Samsung Galaxy A52 Specifications:

  • Body: 75.1 x 159.9 x 8.4mm, 189 gm, IP67 dust/water resistant
  • Display: 6.5-inches “Infinity-O” Super AMOLED panel, 90Hz refresh rate, 407 PPI
  • Resolution: Full-HD+ (2400 x 1080 pixels), 20:9 aspect ratio
  • Chipset: Qualcomm Snapdragon 720G (8nm)
  • CPU: Octa-core (2×2.3 GHz Kryo 465 Gold & 6×1.8 GHz Kryo 465 Silver)
  • GPU: Adreno 618
  • Memory: 4/6/8GB LPDDR4X RAM, 128/256GB storage (expandable)
  • Software & UI: Android 11 with Samsung’s One UI 3.1 on top
  • Rear Camera: Quad-camera;
    – 64MP f/1.8 primary lens, AF, OIS
    – 12MP f/2.2 ultra-wide lens, 123º FOV
    – 5MP f/2.4 macro sensor
    – 5MP f/2.4 depth sensor
  • Front Camera: 32MP f/2.2 sensor (punch-hole cutout)
  • Audio: Stereo speakers with Dolby Atmos audio, 3.5mm headphone jack
  • Security: Optical in-display fingerprint scanner, Face unlock
  • Connectivity: Dual-SIM (Nano), WiFi 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac (Dual-band), Bluetooth 5.0, GPS / AGPS / Glonass / Galileo / Beidou, NFC, USB Type-C, 4G LTE
  • Battery: 4500mAh with 25W fast charging (15W adapter provided)
  • Color options: Awesome – Black, Blue, White, Violet (No white color in Nepal)
  • Price in Nepal: Rs. 41,999 (6/128GB)
  • Buy here (Samsung Plaza)

Samsung Galaxy A52 Impressions:

Here, its 5G model powered by Snapdragon 750G is reserved for the western market whereas our unit is the standard Galaxy A52 with Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 720G inside. Apart from their network capability, these phones are basically the same. I’ve been using the Samsung Galaxy A52 for the past day and here are my early impressions of the device.

Galaxy A52 - Display 1

Coming from A51, the biggest change that the company’s made can be seen in the design language itself. Instead of a prismatic back with an L-shaped camera layout, Samsung has gone with a smooth matte finish and a reworked camera module. In its bid to offer a premium look, A52’s camera layout screams inspiration from the Galaxy S21 series. So it’s fair to say that the phone makes a unique statement for itself in terms of visual flair.

Loving the pastel color choices so far

Add the gorgeous pastel color options into the mix, then you’re looking at one attractive phone. I’m also digging the lightweight build quality of this device. But, the bigger design win of the Galaxy A52 has to be its IP67 dust/water resistance, which is something of a rarity on similarly priced smartphones. Overall, Samsung has really nailed the design side of things here—especially considering the phone’s target demographics.

The display sees a healthy upgrade as well. A52’s 6.47” FHD Super AMOLED panel now hosts a 90Hz refresh rate. As a result, browsing the web or scrolling through the UI has been a treat so far. Still and all, while Samsung has been hoarding the praise for its AMOLED screen even on mid-range phones for some time now, the competition has caught up.

Galaxy A52 - Design

Xiaomi’s latest Redmi Note 10 series boasts a similar setup including options for an even higher 120Hz refresh rate which shrouds Samsung’s jump to the smooth display technology. All of this at a fraction of what the South Korean company is asking for A52. Also, unlike the variable refresh rate found in its flagship phones, this phone can’t dynamically adjust the screen refresh rate based on the content.

Great display, as always

Anyway, from what I can tell, this is an excellent display to look at. With up to 800 nits of brightness, outdoor visibility is no issue for the Galaxy A52. On the contrary, its SGS-certified eye comfort feature makes looking at the phone at night a non-fatiguing experience.

Additionally, it’s a content consumption juggernaut too. Thanks to the Widevine L1 certification, I can enjoy HD content from different streaming sites like Netflix and Amazon Prime Video. On top of this, A52’s stereo speaker setup makes watching shows and movies all the more enjoyable. Moreover, because of the phone’s AMOLED heritage, you also get features like Always On Display and an optical in-display fingerprint sensor.

Galaxy A52 - Display 2

Like always, Samsung’s implementation of the latter leaves things to be desired. It’s quite slow and requires a rather firm pressure to work. Instead of this historically mediocre biometric option, I would’ve preferred a side-mounted fingerprint scanner instead, like on the Galaxy M12. On a related note, the face-unlock alternative is equally unimpressive too.

How does A52 hold up in terms of performance?

Moving on. As I mentioned earlier, the Galaxy A52 4G comes with Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 720G SoC. Compared to the notorious Exynos 9611 in its predecessor, this chipset offers a major jump in performance. Having said that, Samsung isn’t really known for including best-in-class silicons in its non-flagship phones, and this one’s no exception. The same silicon can be found in much cheaper phones like the new Redmi Note 10 Pro series. But I digress.

Benchmarks:

  • AnTuTu v8: 261198
  • Geekbench 5:
    • (CPU) Single Core: 532, Multi-Core: 1544
    • (Compute) OpenCL: 1196

In terms of memory, you can choose from either 4, 6, or 8 GB of RAM while all of them share 128GB of internal storage. The phone runs on One UI 3.1 based on Android 11 out-of-the-box and you might already know how much I adore this Android skin.

From its dark mode implementation, customization options, to the Google-feed embedded home screen, it’s good to see Samsung do so well in the software department. Besides, the company’s commitment to providing 3 generations of OS and up to 4 years of security upgrades is an incredibly welcome move.

Galaxy A52 - Cameras

Like I said in the beginning, it’s only been a day since I’ve started using the Galaxy A52. So, keeping in mind that I’ll be reserving my final thought regarding its performance for the full review, what I can say for now is that things look pretty promising here. Juggling through a couple of apps like Facebook, Chrome, Spotify, and camera, the multitasking experience hasn’t let me down.

What about gaming?

I also tried playing a couple of demanding games and the results were pretty satisfactory. Keep in mind, a price-deserving chipset would’ve made the gameplay even better. Regardless, Call of Duty Mobile plays smoothly at High graphics and Max frame rate.

With my limited time with the phone, I haven’t gotten to extensively test out its gaming capabilities, so there’s that. On the other hand, PUBG Mobile is also playable at Smooth graphics and Ultra frame rate.

Do the cameras see any improvement?

With that out of the way, let’s talk cameras. Galaxy A52 features a similar quad-camera setup but with an upgraded 64MP sensor. Apart from this, Samsung has been generous enough to include OIS on the rear camera this time around. You can shoot up to 4K/30fps videos from both front and back camera but as aforementioned, the former lacks any sort of stabilization.

Images from the primary camera are classic Samsung stuff. They are punchy with plenty of details. The photos from 12MP ultrawide cameras share the same story.

Here, the portrait shots from its 5MP depth sensor are similar to the ones from Galaxy A72 that doesn’t have a dedicated portrait lens.

Completing the setup is a 5MP macro lens. On the front, the 32MP selfie shooter remains unchanged.

And what about the battery life?

Getting to the battery, Galaxy A52 comes with a bigger 4500mAh cell with support for 25W fast charging. Now, I haven’t been able to complete a full charge cycle so stay tuned for our full review to know about the battery endurance and basically everything else about this phone at length. But with a day’s worth of heavy usage, the phone has kept up fine.

Conclusion

So that was it for my early impressions of the new Samsung Galaxy A52. With its revamped design and upgraded internals, the phone is a healthy upgrade over the A51 and definitely a phone to consider if you are thinking of getting a premium midrange phone this summer.

Watch our video impressions of the Samsung Galaxy A52.

Samsung Galaxy A72 Impressions: Premium (Almost) Everything

Pratima Adhikari
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Samsung Galaxy A72 Impressions: Premium (Almost) Everything

Hey what’s up guys, hope you’re doing well. So, Samsung recently announced its latest Galaxy A-series phones – the Galaxy A52 and A72. And here, I am going to talk about my early impressions of the Samsung Galaxy A72, which is a premium mid-range phone. The phone price starts at Rs. 51,999 in Nepal and is currently available for sale.

Samsung Galaxy A72 Specifications:

  • Body: 77.4 x 165.0 x 8.4mm, 203 gm, IP67 dust/water resistant
  • Display: 6.7-inches “Infinity-O” Super AMOLED panel, 90Hz refresh rate, 394 PPI
  • Resolution: Full-HD+ (2400 x 1080 pixels), 20:9 aspect ratio
  • Chipset: Qualcomm Snapdragon 720G (8nm)
  • CPU: Octa-core (2×2.3 GHz Kryo 465 Gold & 6×1.8 GHz Kryo 465 Silver)
  • GPU: Adreno 618
  • Memory: 6/8GB LPDDR4X RAM, 128/256GB storage (expandable)
  • Software & UI: Android 11 with Samsung’s One UI 3.1 on top
  • Rear Camera: Quad-camera;
    – 64MP f/1.8 primary lens, AF, OIS
    – 12MP f/2.2 ultra-wide lens, 123º FOV
    – 8MP f/2.4 telephoto lens, OIS, 3x optical zoom
    – 5MP f/2.4 macro sensor
  • Front Camera: 32MP f/2.2 sensor (punch-hole cutout)
  • Audio: Stereo speakers with Dolby Atmos audio, 3.5mm headphone jack
  • Security: Optical in-display fingerprint scanner, Face unlock
  • Connectivity: Dual-SIM (Nano), WiFi 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac (Dual-band), Bluetooth 5.0, GPS / AGPS / Glonass / Galileo / Beidou, NFC, USB Type-C, 4G LTE
  • Battery: 5000mAh with 25W fast charging (25W adapter provided)
  • Color options: Awesome – Black, Blue, White, Violet
  • Price in Nepal: Rs. 51,999 (8/128GB) | Rs. 56,999 (8/256GB)
  • Buy here (Samsung Plaza)

Samsung Galaxy A72 Impressions:

The first thing I like about this device is the design and color choices. I have this Blue variant with me that looks quite refreshing. While the Galaxy A32 had a glossy back, the A72 gets a matte finish. The camera module here merges with the rear panel and has this seamless finish that looks unique and I quite like it honestly!

Galaxy A72 - Display 1

Traditionally, Samsung’s A-series smartphones have never disappointed in terms of design, and the legacy continues with the Galaxy A72. The phone, despite carrying a big 5000mAh battery inside, looks and feels pretty sleek. And even though it occupies a large area in your hand, Samsung has managed to make the phone lightweight too.

IP67 dust/water resistance

Not to forget, it also comes with premium features like IP67 dust-and-water resistance. I even tried submerging it in water for about half an hour and the phone returned unharmed. and dual speakers. From my preliminary test, I like the audio quality from its stereo speakers too. Sounds really good.

Moving on, the display size remains the same as last time. However, its 6.67-inches Super AMOLED Plus screen now comes with a higher 90Hz refresh rate, replacing the 60Hz panel in its predecessor. Although this is definitely a significant upgrade, I was hoping Samsung would use a 120Hz screen here.

About the native display quality, well, as expected, it is an excellent panel with great colors and contrast levels. The screen responds to touch very well as well. Likewise, you get an optical in-display fingerprint sensor here which is not the fastest but gets the job done. Apart from that, you get the usual stuff like dark mode and Always on Display on the A72.

Performance could’ve been better

Galaxy A72 - Design

While the design and display are pretty impressive, one upgrade I was really looking forward to was in the performance department. For some reason, Samsung has decided to go with the Snapdragon 700 series chipset. More specifically, the Snapdragon 720G, which is not much of an upgrade to the 730 used on the Galaxy A71.

I admit that the 720G is a somewhat acceptable choice for the A52. But considering A72’s premium mid-range stature and how competing phones like the Realme X7 Pro has a superior Dimensity 1000+ chipset, and the Poco F3 equip Snapdragon 870, the 720G is definitely underpowered.

Still, it’s a decent chipset for handling everyday hustle and Samsung is well known for optimizing its hardware. Having said that, this chipset is particularly not an ideal choice from a gaming perspective. So, I think this is the one aspect where Samsung should have done better. Even going with a last-gen flagship silicon strategy like on the Galaxy F62 would’ve been more preferable. The Snapdragon 720G has been complemented by 8GB of RAM and either 128/256GB of storage.

Other than that, the A72 ships with Android 11 out of the box with the latest One UI 3.1 on top. As usual, Samsung’s UI is well optimized and feels great to use.

How are the cameras so far?

Finally, let’s talk about the cameras. Galaxy A72 has a quad-camera setup at the back with a 64MP primary camera, a 12MP ultra-wide lens, an 8MP telephoto lens capable of 3x optical zoom, and finally a 5MP macro lens. Furthermore, the A72 can also zoom up to 30x digitally.

Galaxy A72 - Back Cameras

I haven’t been able to click a lot of pictures from the phone yet, but looking at the few shots I managed to capture, I can say that its cameras look promising.

The primary images have really good colors and ample details. The ultra-wide images are equally pleasing with a wide field of view and even macro photos are not half bad either.

Although it doesn’t have a dedicated depth sensor, the portrait images look pretty good. Moving on, A72 features a 32MP selfie camera inside the tiny punch-hole cutout upfront. As far as the images are concerned, they look pleasing too.

In terms of videos, we have options for 4k and 1080p but only in 30 fps. So yeah, no 60-fps option still. Yet, Samsung has included OIS here and the videos come out quite stable. On top of the primary camera, even the telephoto lens can shoot Super Steady videos. You can also click nice stable videos from the selfie camera up to 4k 30 fps.

Is battery life going to be an issue?

Lastly, as I mentioned earlier, the phone has a 5,000mAh battery that supports 25-watt fast charging. Unlike Samsung’s eco-friendly choice to exclude a power adapter inside the box of its flagship phones, you do get one for the Galaxy A72.

Galaxy A72 - Display 2

Having used the phone for less than a day, I haven’t been able to judge its battery life yet. Therefore, stay tuned for the full review where I’ll be discussing it in detail.

So, those were my initial impressions of the Samsung Galaxy A72. I will come up with its full review after using it for some more time, so watch out for this space when that drops.

  • Watch our video impressions of the Samsung Galaxy A72.

Google Pixel 6 could debut with a custom chipset codenamed “Whitechapel”

GadgetByte
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Google Pixel 6 could debut with a custom chipset codenamed “Whitechapel”

Google’s “Pixel” lineup is popular among smartphone enthusiasts, especially with those who prefer a clean Android experience and enjoy taking photos with their phone’s cameras. Since the first-gen Pixel debuted in 2016, this series has been entirely based on Qualcomm chipsets. The use of Qualcomm silicon could be coming to an end with the upcoming Google Pixel 6. According to reports, the company is designing an in-house custom chipset, codenamed “Whitechapel.”

Google Pixel 6 with custom “Whitechapel” chipset

Google’s own SoCs, which first made headlines in early 2020, can likely make their debut in new Pixel phones and Chromebooks. In addition, the company recently recruited Intel’s CPU designer as VP of engineering for server chip design. According to them, they would concentrate more on system design to minimize power and cost.

According to 9to5Google, Google’s new phone for this fall (most likely the Pixel 6) will be among the first to use the Google custom “GS101” Whitechapel chipset. Whitechapel is used in conjunction with the codename “Slider” in the document viewed by 9to5Google; a reference that has also been used in the Google Camera app.

“Slider” appears to be the shared platform for Google’s first custom SoC. The company has internally referred to the chip as “GS101”, where the initial characters stand for Google Silicon.

Interestingly, 9to5Google claims that “Whitechapel” is in connection with Samsung. It is very likely that Google-made silicon is a refined version of Samsung’s Exynos branded SoC. It implies that the Google chip can share certain functionalities with Exynos, such as software components. 

Samsung Exynos 990 chipset

Following the report, the chipset will likely use Samsung 5nm process technology. It will feature an octa-core ARM CPU with two Cortex-A78, two Cortex-A76, and four Cortex-A55 cores. The upcoming Google Pixel 6 and 6XL, codename “Raven and “Oriole” can be the first smartphone to use the “Slider” platform.

Google’s custom silicon can be a great advantage

Since Google has been depending on Qualcomm’s platform, an in-house chip would give it greater control over its hardware. A separate part of the SoC can be dedicated to Google Assistant. The patented chip would assist in the optimization of the operating system and give its smartphones a performance edge over competitors’ devices.

Because the Pixel devices are not yet officially available in Nepal, their prices are exorbitant when available from unofficial sources. However, the use of self-designed SoCs can minimize costs altogether. But this doesn’t mean we’ll be seeing Google officially enter the Nepalese market anytime soon.

Moreover, the company may extend its software support for the Pixel series of smartphones once it starts making its own chip. The major reason Android devices only receive updates for about two or three years is that the chipsets age out. It becomes difficult to roll out an Android update without Qualcomm’s assistance. It can be resolved on the new Made by Google device if it uses a chip built in-house by Google.

  • Meanwhile, check out our review of the Redmi Note 10.

Facebook’s latest data breach leaks personal info of 500+ million users

GadgetByte
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Facebook’s latest data breach leaks personal info of 500+ million users

Facebook has always struggled to keep track of its users’ data, as well as to protect these sensitive assets. Time and again, the events of the Facebook data leak are in the major headlines in worldwide media. Recently, the personal details of over 500 million Facebook users have leaked, which are freely available online.

Facebook Data Leak Scenario

A user on a low-level hacker forum posted personal information of over half a billion Facebook users. These data include names, account creation date, relationship status, location, and even emails for some of them. This leak consists of personal data of users from at least 100 countries (106 to be precise), including 32 million users in the United States and 11 million users in the United Kingdom.

In total, 533 million users’ data is available online, with India ranking third with over six million data leaks.

Alon Gal (Chief Technology Officer of cybercrime intelligence firm Hudson Rock) first shed some light on the data breach on Saturday. Thankfully, Nepal isn’t on the list of affected countries. Still, to see whether your email address has suffered any data leak, you can refer to sites like Have I Been Pwned. 

A Facebook spokesperson reported that “This is old data that was previously reported in 2019 and the issue was already fixed in August 2019”. However, if such information has leaked from Facebook’s network, the company seems to have no ability to prevent it from circulating online.

Not the first rodeo

As I previously said, this isn’t the first time Facebook’s user data has been exposed online.  Facebook was caught in a contentious privacy situation in 2020 after it announced that thousands of developers had access to data from inactive actions. Back in 2016, Cambridge Analytica scraped the data of 80 million Facebook users to target voters with campaign advertising.

The data can be accessed for free, and there are chances that hackers can use it to perform illegal activities. He also said that a user-developed Telegram bot allows users to query the database for a small charge; allowing them to locate phone numbers associated with a vast number of Facebook accounts.

Conclusion

All of this points to the fact that any information you share on Facebook will inevitably become public; even though you want to keep it confidential. These significant data leaks aim to disrupt Facebook’s corporate model of collecting a vast volume of personal information and selling targeted advertising.

  • Meanwhile, check out our review of the Redmi Note 10.

Xiaomi launches the Redmi 9T in Nepal for some reason

Nikhil Shrestha
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1
Xiaomi launches the Redmi 9T in Nepal for some reason

Xiaomi Nepal has a bunch of amazing budget phones in its portfolio. But a couple of the entries are quite similar to each other, and that’s discounting the POCO phones. And now, the company has launched the Redmi 9T, which is the exact same phone as the existing Redmi 9 Power. Let’s learn more about the “new” Redmi 9T including its features, specs, official price, and availability in Nepal.

Redmi 9T Overview:

Like I said earlier, Redmi 9T is a rebranded device. It is the European variant of the Redmi 9 Power that was launched a couple of months earlier. The phone has a 6.53-inch FHD+ IPS LCD panel with FHD+ resolution. Since it’s a budget phone, you’ll have to settle with a 60Hz refresh rate screen.

Plus, the display is protected by Corning’s Gorilla Glass 3. Redmi 9T incorporates Xiaomi’s “Aura Power” design at the back, which has an anti-fingerprint texture. The phone is splash-proof as well although there’s not an official IP certification. You can choose from 4 colorful options: Sunset Orange, Twilight Blue, Carbon Gray, and Ocean Green.

Redmi 9T - Display

Under the hood, powering the Redmi 9T is Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 662 (11nm). This is complemented by 4/6GB of LPDDR4X RAM up to 128GB internal storage. Interestingly, the 64GB storage option uses UFS 2.1 protocol while the more lavish 128GB variant boasts a relatively faster UFS 2.2 storage.

Big battery, 48MP cameras

Redmi 9T gets its juice from a beefy 6000mAh battery that supports 18W fast charging via the Type-C connection. Thankfully, you get a 22.5W fast charger inside the box itself. Getting to the cameras, it has a quad-lens setup at the back. It’s led by a 48MP primary sensor, an 8MP ultrawide, a 2MP macro, and a 2MP depth sensor.

Upfront, you get an 8MP front camera inside the teardrop notch. In terms of security, Redmi 9T has a side-mounted fingerprint sensor. The software side of things is handled by MIUI 12 based on Android 10. Other amenities of the phone include Hi-Res certified stereo speakers, IR blaster, etc.

Specifications:

  • Body: 6.39 x 3.04 x 0.38 inches, 198 gm
  • Display: 6.53-inches IPS LCD, 395PPI, Corning Gorilla Glass 3, TÜV Rheinland Low Blue Light certification
  • Resolution: FHD+ (2340 x 1080 pixels), 19.5:9 aspect ratio
  • Chipset: Qualcomm Snapdragon 662 (11nm Mobile Platform)
  • CPU: Octa-core (4×2.0 GHz Kryo 260 Gold & 4×1.8 GHz Kryo 260 Silver)
  • Memory: 4GB RAM, 64GB UFS 2.1/128GB UFS 2.2 storage (expandable)
  • Software & UI: MIUI 12 on top of Android 10
  • Rear Camera: Quad-camera;
    – 48MP, f/1.79 primary lens
    – 8MP, f/2.2 wideangle lens
    – 2MP, f/2.4 depth sensor
    – 2MP, f/2.4 macro sensor
    – LED flash
  • Front Camera: 8MP, f/2.0 lens (notch)
  • Audio: 3.5mm headphone jack, stereo speaker, Hi-Res audio
  • Connectivity: Dual-SIM (Nano), WiFi 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac (Dual-band), Bluetooth 5.0, GPS / AGPS / Glonass / Galileo / Beidou, USB Type-C, 4G LTE
  • Sensors: Accelerometer, Ambient Light, Proximity, Vibration Motor, IR Blaster, Proximity
  • Battery: 6000mAh with 18W charging (22.5W brick inside the box)
  • Color options: Carbon Gray, Sunset Orange, Twilight Blue, Ocean Green

Redmi 9T Price in Nepal & Availability

Redmi 9T is now official in Nepal where its price is NPR 18,999 for the 4/64GB variant. Likewise, the 4/128GB configuration costs NPR 20,999. By the way, these prices are similar to that of Redmi 9 Power. You can buy Redmi 9T in Nepal from Daraz, Sastodeal, or Mi authorized retail stores across Nepal.

Redmi 9T  Price in Nepal (Official) 
4/64GB NPR 18,999
4/128GB NPR 20,999

  • Watch our review of the Redmi 9 Power (Nepali).

Redmi Note 10 Review: The Ultimate Budget Phone

Nikhil Shrestha
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0
Redmi Note 10 Review: The Ultimate Budget Phone

It’s like clockwork. Xiaomi has been delivering excellent budget phones under the Redmi Note series throughout the years. The company recently announced that it has shipped over 200 million smartphones under this lineup. And the new Redmi Note 10 series looks to take things next level, with the standard Note 10 leading the charge. Starting at just NPR 22,000, this phone offers a vibrant AMOLED display and Snapdragon 678, to name a few. Let’s discover more about the Redmi Note 10 in this review.

Redmi Note 10 Specifications:

  • Body: 6.32 x 2.93 x 0.33 inches, 178.8 gm, IP53 dust/water resistant
  • Display: 6.43 Super AMOLED panel, Corning Gorilla Glass 3, 1100 nits (peak), 4500000:1 NTSC contrast, 60Hz refresh rate
  • Resolution: FHD+ (2400 x 1080 pixels), 20:9 aspect ratio
  • Chipset: Qualcomm Snapdragon 678 (11nm Mobile Platform)
  • CPU: Octa-core (2×2.2 GHz Kryo 460 Gold & 6×1.7 GHz Kryo 460 Silver)
  • GPU: Adreno 612
  • Memory: 4/6GB LPDDR4X RAM, 64/128GB UFS 2.2 storage (expandable)
  • Software & UI: MIUI 12 on top of Android 11
  • Rear Camera: Quad-camera;
    – 48MP Sony IMX582, f/1.79 primary lens
    – 8MP Sony IMX355, f/2.2 wideangle lens
    – 2MP, f/2.4 depth sensor
    – 2MP, f/2.4 macro sensor, 4CM
    – LED flash
  • Front Camera: 13MP, f/2.5 lens (punch-hole)
  • Audio: 3.5mm headphone jack, stereo speaker, Hi-Res audio
  • Security: Side-mounted fingerprint sensor
  • Connectivity: Dual-SIM (Nano), WiFi 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac, Bluetooth 5.0, GPS / AGPS / Glonass / Beidou, USB Type-C, 4G LTE
  • Sensors: 360 Ambient Light, Proximity, E-compass, Accelerometer, Gyro
  • Battery: 5000mAh with 33W charging (33W charger inside the box)
  • Color options: Frost White, Shadow Black, Aqua Green
  • Price in Nepal: Rs. 21,999 (4/64GB) | Rs. 22,999 (4/128GB) | Rs. 24,999 (6/128GB)

Redmi Note 10 Review:

Design & Build

  • Glass front, plastic frame/back
  • Lightweight build, “Evol.” design

When I said this phone take things to the next level, there aren’t just one or two factors at play here. While the AMOLED screen steals the spotlight, I am more thankful for the relatively compact design of the Redmi Note 10, to be honest. Coming from the Note 9, it is 20 grams lighter (179 gm < 199 gm) and a lot more ergonomically pleasing to hold.

The phone also has a 3D curved design making it all the more comfortable on the hand. Plus, the buttons are easy to reach and give nice tactile feedback. Yet, the side frames bulge out by quite a bit which does end up feeling a little weird on an otherwise excellent design.

Mind you, this is an all-plastic phone and Xiaomi has parted ways with Gorilla Glass protection on the camera module this time around—while its predecessor had Corning’s Gorilla Glass 5 on the rear camera setup. Moreover, the camera layout has also seen a fresh overhaul. The bulky layout on the Note 9 that elongated to the fingerprint sensor has been replaced with one that somewhat resembles the camera module on the Redmi K40 series.

Side-mounted fingerprint sensor

The camera bump is pretty minimal and doesn’t wobble much when placed on a flat surface either. Similarly, even though the phone has an AMOLED display, Xiaomi has chosen a side-mounted fingerprint sensor instead of one inside the display as a cost-cutting measure. This sits almost flat on the right frame of the phone contrary to the one that’s indented on the Redmi 9 Power. Anyway, it is pretty responsive and unless your palms are sweaty/wet, it won’t give up on you.

Redmi Note 10 also gets an upgrade in terms of ingress protection. The company has replaced the P2i hydrophobic coating with an IP53 rating.

This means that the Note 10 is safe from dust or water sprays—but not a full-on immersion.

Regardless, the Shadow Black variant that I have with me looks quite nice although it attracts fingerprints and smudges by a ton. If you’re a fan of gradient design, the phone is also available in an Aqua Green finish. All of this—from the slim-lightweight design, reworked camera module, to the color choices falls under Xiaomi’s new design language called “Evol.” And I’m all here for it.

Display

  • 6.43-inches FHD+ Super AMOLED screen
  • 60Hz refresh rate, Corning Gorilla Glass 3
  • 1100 nits peak brightness (Sunlight mode)

If you’ve watched our review of the Redmi Note 9, one of the major complaints that we had with the phone was its display. Compared to its competition at the time, the phone came with a rather mediocre screen. Well, no more. One of the most requested features in the Redmi Note series—an AMOLED display has finally debuted.

As a result, Redmi Note 10 is also the cheapest phone to boast an OLED panel. On the contrary, Samsung’s newer releases under this price segment, namely the Galaxy A12 and M12 feature an LCD screen. Well, well, well… how the turn tables.

Redmi Note 10 - Display 1

In its default color profile, I didn’t find the phone’s color reproduction to be as vibrant as I’d expect from an AMOLED display. But switching to the “Saturated” option did the trick for me. Here, the contents on this 6.43” FHD screen look quite sharp, vibrant, and with excellent black levels. It has good viewing angles as well and I can’t help but praise Xiaomi for raising the bar in terms of display quality on budget smartphones.

How does this AMOLED screen compare?

For the sake of this review, I even compared it against a couple of other phones with AMOLED screens that are way more expensive than the Redmi Note 10 and found that it holds its ground. Keeping it side-by-side against Samsung’s Galaxy M51, the difference is quite indiscernible. From sharpness to vibrancy, things are neck-and-neck here. Bringing Xiaomi’s own Mi Note 10 Lite into the mix, one can notice how it looks slightly brighter whereas Redmi Note 10 tends to look a bit underexposed.

Moving on, this display is protected by Gorilla Glass 3, which is yet another downgrade coming from the Redmi Note 9. And honestly, I think Xiaomi should get a pass in this regard considering everything else. While the Pro entries in the lineup opt for a smooth 120Hz refresh rate, this one settles for the standard 60Hz panel.

So, gamers might want to spend a little more for a smoother screen. Nonetheless, its minimal punch-hole cutout with 3.54mm diameter isn’t that obtrusive either and complements the overall aesthetics of the phone. Additionally, you also get the Always-on Display (AoD) feature on the Redmi Note 10. There are multiple presets to choose from or you can even customize the AoD screen.

Always-on Display needs work

Yet, AoD is half-baked here and works for like 10 seconds after you’ve locked the phone. I’m hopeful Xiaomi will bring a full-fledged Always on Display with the upcoming MIUI 12.5 update pretty soon. Anyway, another highlighting feature of this screen is its peak brightness. According to the company, Redmi Note 10 can hit a peak brightness of 1100 nits under the Sunlight mode.

Redmi Note 10 - UI

Now, we don’t have a photometer lying around to validate this claim but throughout my usage, outdoor visibility hasn’t been an issue so far. It can also get pretty dim so you won’t have a problem looking at it under the bedsheet. Its Widevine L1 certification means you can enjoy HD content from your favorite streaming services too. All in all, the Redmi Note 10 is fantastic to look at for regular usage for content consumption purposes.

Performance

  • Octa-core Qualcomm Snapdragon 678 SoC (11nm)
  • 4/6GB LPDDR4X RAM, 64/128GB UFS 2.2 storage (expandable)

Jumping to the performance side of things, the phone is powered by Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 678. While it is a fairly new chipset, it is but a small upgrade over the Snapdragon 675 found in Xiaomi’s Redmi Note 7 Pro from back in 2019. This has been paired with 4/6GB of LPDDR4X RAM and up to 128GB of UFS 2.2 internal storage. Thanks to its three-card slot, you can retain dual-SIM functionality even when inserting an external SD card on the Redmi Note 10.

Our 6/128GB unit has fared well so far. Apps open up quickly and multitasking is handled well too. The phone is able to keep multiple apps in the background to facilitate swiftly switching between them as well. For such a famously heavy Android skin, I’m happy with the memory management.

But don’t go overboard by having numerous games and other heavy apps in the background for long because it will have you relaunch the said app from scratch. MIUI’s aggressive resource management kicks in especially after you’ve locked the screen.

Redmi Note 10 - Design

Talking about MIUI, Redmi Note 10 runs on Android 11-based MIUI 12.0.1 out-of-the-box. As you’d expect, the visual overhauls Google introduced in the newest version of Android are almost non-existent here. Even the revamped power menu with easy access to your AIoT devices is nowhere to be found. And of course, there are ads. There’s no “one-click” option to disable system-wide ads but with a couple of clicks and a couple of clicks there, you can disable ads in MIUI.

Google-heavy MIUI

By default, apps on the home screen are arranged iOS-style. But if you’re like me who prefers the traditional app drawer implementation, you can change it from the settings. I also like how swiping to the left launches Google Discover card.

Talking about Google, Xiaomi also ships a couple of Google-made apps like Phone, Messages, and Chrome by default. Typing on this thing has been bliss so far too, which is thanks to its z-axis vibration motor. Let’s take a look at some benchmark scores:

Redmi Note 10 Redmi 9 Power
Androbench Seq. Read 503.1 MB/s 513.27 MB/s
Seq. Write 266.26 MB/s 202.95 MB/s
AnTuTu v8 Total 237386 183351
CPU 94596 70713
GPU 41655 34880
Memory 50848 41178
UX 50287 36580
Geekbench 5 CPU (Single Core) 537 315
CPU (Multi-Core) 1538 1362
Compute (OpenCL) 416 373
PCMark (Work 2.0 Performance) 7887 6097
3DMark (Wild Life) 480 371

Can I game on this phone?

Besides regular usage, I tested out a couple of demanding games too. You can tweak the graphics up to Balanced graphics and Ultra frame rate in PUBG Mobile. In these settings, the gameplay was perfectly fine with no lags or stutters. After around 16 minutes, the CPU temperature rose to 39-degree which is not that bad.

Redmi Note 10 - Gaming

On the other hand, Call of Duty Mobile reaches up to High graphics and Max frame rates. With anti-aliasing and ragdoll turned on, I noticed a few stutters every now and then. So I switched down the graphics to Medium and turned off other graphics enhancements while keeping the frame rate to Max. And I found that this is the best setting to play COD on the Redmi Note 10.

Similarly, I also played Genshin Impact at Low graphics quality and 30 fps. The game ran smoothly at first but after about 30 minutes or so, once the phone starts heating up, there is a noticeable drop in frame rate. Relatively less demanding games like Injustice 2 and Clash Royale are playable without any stutters or choppy frame rate.

Cameras

  • Quad-camera setup at the back
  • (48MP main, 8MP ultra-wide, 2MP macro, 2MP depth)
  • 13MP selfie camera inside the punch-hole cutout

Time to talk about the cameras. Unlike the 108MP sensor on the Note 10 Pro Max, the standard Note 10 makes do with a 48MP Sony IMX582 primary camera. Then there’s an 8MP ultra-wide, a 2MP macro, and a 2MP depth sensor. For this review, I compared the cameras of the Redmi Note 10 against that of the Redmi 9 Power which has a similar setup as well.

Normal Images

Starting with the normal images, the two phones differ mostly in terms of color science.

While the Note 10 shoots quite warm photos, Redmi 9 Power settles for comparatively more natural-looking images.

Besides this, the former churns out more details and sharper images while photos from 9 Power look hazy and lacking in contrast. In certain instances, Redmi Note 10’s photos are overexposed. Similarly, we also noticed how it attains over-sharpening to compensate for noise reduction.

Wideangle Images

Moving to the ultra-wide shots, the Note 10 brings down the warmer hue to a more digestible level.

In comparison, its images have better details and dynamic range on most occasions and are less grainy too. But in certain instances, the Redmi 9 Power can deliver better highlights and exposure.

Portrait Images

Getting to the portrait images, here too the photos from Redmi Note 10 look warm whereas Redmi 9 Power has a relatively cooler hue.

The ones from 9 Power have a little high saturation too although they’re equal in terms of edge detection.

Macro Images

The macro shots, as you’d imagine, are nothing to write home about.

Both phones are unable to shoot instagrammable photos although the ones from Note 10 are relatively sharper. They differ significantly in terms of color science as well.

Nighttime Images

Regular nighttime images are way better on the Redmi Note 10 too.

It wins in terms of sharpness, exposure control, and maintaining highlights. Turning on Night Mode, the 9 Power excessively minimizes the exposure making the photos look quite dark.

On the contrary, night mode shots from Note 10 retain better sharpness.

Selfie Images

Coming to the front, Redmi Note 10’s 13MP selfie camera gives out better details compared to the 8MP sensor on Redmi 9 Power.

While the latter’s photos look more vibrant, they have soft details and a slightly reddish tint.

Portrait selfies are similar as well and these phones are almost identical in terms of edge detection.

Videography

Here, the Redmi Note 10 is a clear winner on the video front. Comparing both phones’ 1080p/30fps footages, the one from Redmi 9 Power is over-saturated, over-exposed, and unstable. But, videos from Note 10 look way better and stable too, thanks to EIS. The phone can also record 1080p/60fps and 4K/30fps videos but only the former lives up to the “good-enough” category.

vs Realme 8

While writing this review of the Redmi Note 10, I also received our unit of the new Realme 8 and clicked a few samples to see they compare.

From my preliminary test, I found that normal images from the Realme 8 have high contrast with boosted black levels which makes the photos look more vibrant. When it comes to details, things look quite similar though.

Battery

  • 5000mAh battery with 33W fast charging

Getting to the battery side of things, Redmi Note 10 gets its juice from a big 5000mAh battery. In a busy day where I’d kept the screen brightness to 80-90% with half an hour or so of GPS usage, photo/video shoot, and heavy gaming, I was able to net out an impressive 7 hours and 17 minutes of screen-on-time.

Likewise, under relatively lax usage, I managed to get up to 8.5 hours of battery endurance. So, if you’re looking for a phone that will power through your day, the Redmi Note 10 is an excellent bet. Charging up the device is equally impressive—albeit falling short of Xiaomi’s official claims.

Redmi Note 10 - Charger

With its 33W fast charging support, the company says that the phone can achieve 67% juice in 30 minutes while filling up completely in just 74 minutes.

Testing the charging speed

Oh, the 33W charger is provided in the box, by the way. Thank you, Xiaomi. Regardless, in two charge cycles during the review, I noticed that Redmi Note 10 was charging at a speed slower than what Xiaomi states. So, I used the Satechi USB-C Power Meter Tester (capable of measuring up to 65W) to check if the phone is actually getting 33W of power at any given instance.

I plugged in the charger at 1% and at no point during the process did I record the charger deliver 33W power—with the highest level settling to around 28.94W (8.85V, 3.27A). As expected, this was in the early stage of charging the phone and we know that it can’t hit the 33W mark later on. After 30 minutes, Redmi Note 10 climbed to 54% while reaching 67% after 39 minutes. Under our test, the phone hit 100% only after 1 hour and 22 minutes.

On the contrary, GSMArena reports that their unit managed to verify Xiaomi’s charging speed claims so we’re a little confused as to what’s going on here. It can’t be because of the difference in our Indian retail unit vs their global retail unit, can it? On a side note, the decimal charging animation in the lock screen looks really cool.

Audio

  • Stereo speakers, Hi-Res Audio certified

Redmi Note 10’s audio quality is pretty impressive too. You’re getting a stereo speaker setup with Hi-Res audio which gets plenty loud. Compared to Redmi 9 Power’s dual speakers, the sound quality is almost the same. I did notice that Note 10 was able to deliver more composed audio at full volume while the other sounds a bit muffled.

Redmi Note 10 - Display 2

But dialing down the loudness to 70-80%, I couldn’t notice a difference between the two phones’ speakers. In terms of details in dynamic content, there’s obviously not much to expect here. Still and all, Redmi Note 10 is a great content consumption device because of its AMOLED display and respectable audio setup. Phone calls sound clear too, but I must say that even without turning on the speaker, the audio is loud enough to be audible by people around you. So, I kept the volume level at 40-50% for the best result.

Conclusion

To conclude this review, the Redmi Note 10 elevates the budget smartphone industry by offering something the competition simply hasn’t been able to. It’s got an ergonomic, lightweight design, a vibrant AMOLED display, decent cameras, and a stellar battery life. Plus, Snapdragon 678’s performance isn’t half bad either. With all this, I would definitely recommend the Redmi Note 10 to anyone looking for a smartphone under the NPR 22K price bracket.

  • Watch our video review of the Redmi Note 10.

Redmi Note 10 Review: Pros & Cons

Pros:

  • Excellent value—an easy recommendation
  • Ergonomic, lightweight design
  • Fast side-mounted fingerprint reader
  • Vibrant Super AMOLED display
  • Good-enough stereo speakers
  • Decent performance level
  • Terrific battery endurance
  • Fast charger provided inside the box

Cons:

  • Frequent ads inside MIUI
  • Cameras require further optimization
  • Relatively lax memory management
  • Slight build quality downgrade

Asus ROG Zephyrus Duo 15 SE dual-display laptop launched in Nepal

GadgetByte
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2
Asus ROG Zephyrus Duo 15 SE dual-display laptop launched in Nepal

Nagmani International, the official distributor for Asus products in Nepal, has launched a couple of new high-end laptops in Nepal. Among the two is the ROG Zephyrus Duo 15 SE. The latest dual-screen laptop in the series comes with Ryzen 5000 series mobile CPU and GeForce RTX 30 series mobile GPU. In this post, we will be diving deeper into the specs and features of the Asus ROG Zephyrus Duo 15 SE (2021), along with its official price and availability in Nepal.

Asus ROG Zephyrus Duo 15 SE Overview:

Display

As with its predecessor, the standout feature of the Zephyrus Duo 15 SE (2021) is the secondary screen. Asus has taken the ScreenPad Plus from the ZenBook Pro Duo and placed it on a tilting surface onto the Zephyrus Duo 15 SE. The screen can tilt up to an angle of 13˚ for better interaction and improved airflow. Asus has also improved the hinge structure so that there is a considerable delay between the opening of the main and secondary screen.

ASUS ROG Zephyrus 15 SE 2021 Dual Display

Asus has collaborated with XSplit Gamecaster and Adobe to use the ScreePad Plus for streaming and content creation.

Talking about the main display, we get a 15.6-inch 4K UHD anti-glare panel. This one comes with a 120Hz refresh rate which is quite rare for a 4K UHD display. The panel covers 100% and 132.7% of Adobe RGB and sRGB color gamut.

Both the main and secondary displays support Adaptive-Sync technology that matches the refresh rate of the screen with the frame rate of GPU. They also fulfil the requirement of stringent Pantone validation.

Design and Keyboard

Zephyrus Duo 15 SE has an all-metal chassis made from magnesium-aluminium alloy. We can see the Dot matrix design and ROG logo on the lid. The laptop is just 20.9mm thick and weighs only 2.4kg.

ASUS ROG Zephyrus 15 SE 2021 Dot Matrix Design

Because of the secondary screen, the keyboard is pushed to the edge of the laptop. Thus, Asus ships a detachable palm-rest with the laptop. The virtual Numpad is on the right of the keyboard and it glows red to go along with the gaming aesthetics.

ASUS ROG Zephyrus 15 SE 2021 Keyboard

The keyboard comes with per-key RGB lighting that is compatible with other Aura Sync devices. The keys have a key travel distance of 1.4mm. It also supports N-key rollover.

Performance and Memory

ROG Zephyrus Duo 15 SE comes in two processor options – Ryzen 9 5900HX and Ryzen 7 5800H but only the former is available in Nepal. It is based on the new Zen 3 architecture and is built on TSMC’s 7nm process. The processor can run on 90W but falls down to 50W when the GPU is active.

ASUS ROG Zephyrus 15 SE 2021 Cooling System

Handling the graphics is the GeForce RTX 3080. Asus has optimized its ROG Boost to run the GPU at 1645MHz and 115W. Similarly, the Dynamic Boost provides an additional 15W of power.

The laptop comes with 32GB of RAM of which the 16GB is soldered into the motherboard whereas the other 16GB stick can be upgraded for a total of 48GB RAM. Similarly, the laptop comes with 1TB of PCIe 3.0 SSD.

Rest of the specs

Zephyrus Duo 15 gets its juice from the 90Wh battery with 100W fast charging that can refill the device to up to 50% in just 30 minutes. With the laptop, you get four USB 3.2 Gen 2 ports (1x Type-C + 3x Type-A), one 3.5mm audio combo jack, one HDMI port, one Ethernet port, and a microSD card reader. In terms of wireless connectivity, it supports Wi-Fi 6 and Bluetooth 5.1.

Asus ROG Zephyrus Duo 15 SE 2021 Ports Selection

The speaker setup on the Zephyrus Duo 15 SE (2021) consists of two tweeters and two woofers. The setup supports Dolby Atmos 5.1.2-channel virtual surround sound. There is a two-way AI Noise cancellation system for gamers that runs entirely on the CPU.

Asus ROG Zephyrus Duo 15 SE Specifications:

  • Display:
    • Primary: 15.6-inches 4K UHD (3840 x 2160) IPS, 100% Adobe RGB, 120Hz,  FreeSync
    • Secondary: 14.1-inches 4K Touch
  • Keyboard: Chiclet style with Per-Key RGB; 1.4mm key travel
  • Processor: AMD Ryzen 9 5900HX
  • Graphics: NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3080 (16GB GDDR6)
  • RAM: 16GB onboard + 16GB DDR4-3200 SO-DIMM (upgradeable to 48GB)
  • Storage: 1TB M.2 PCIe 3.0 SSD (upgradeable)
  • Battery: 4-cell 90 Watt-hours Li-ion
  • Audio: 2x 4W Speaker
  • Connectivity: WiFi 802.11 ax (WiFi 6), Bluetooth 5.1
  • Ports: 1x USB 3.2 Gen 2 USB-C, 3x USB 3.2 Gen 2 Type-A, 1x HDMI 2.0b, 1x Audio combo jack, 1x RJ45. 1x MicroSD card reader

Asus ROG Zephyrus Duo 15 SE Price in Nepal

Asus ROG Zephyrus Duo 15 SE (GX551) is now available in Nepal for NPR 411,111. You can buy it from authorised Asus laptop sellers all over Nepal.

Asus ROG Zephyrus Duo 15 SE (GX551) Price in Nepal Availability
Ryzen 9 5900HX, RTX 3080, 32GB RAM, 1TB SSD NPR 494,444 Authorized sellers
  • Meanwhile, check out our review of the Asus ZenBook Pro Duo.

Asus ROG Strix Scar 15 (2021) with Ryzen 9 5900HX, RTX 3080 now available in Nepal

GadgetByte
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Asus ROG Strix Scar 15 (2021) with Ryzen 9 5900HX, RTX 3080 now available in Nepal

Back in CES 2021, Asus unveiled the latest iteration of its ROG Strix Scar lineup with a new design, Ryzen 5000 mobile processors, and RTX 30 mobile GPUs. Of the new devices, the Scar 15 is now officially available in Nepal. In this post, we will take a look at the specs, features, official price, and availability of the Asus ROG Strix Scar 15 (2021) in Nepal.

Asus ROG Strix Scar 15 (2021) Overview:

Design and Display

The ASUS ROG Strix Scar 15 2021 comes in a more compact package than its predecessor. We get to see the dot matrix design on the aluminum lid of the laptop. For a more personal touch, you can change the “Armor” Cap which is customizable. Similarly, the new design consists of a higher-density RGB light bar around the front edge of the chassis. There is another one under the display as well.

ASUS ROG Strix SCAR 15 2021 Design

The variant that is available in Nepal comes with a 15.6-inch IPS panel with a WHD resolution of 2560 x 1440. The display has 100% coverage of the DCI-P3 color gamut and supports a higher refresh rate of up to 165Hz. Similarly, the response time is listed at 3ms. The display even supports Adaptive sync.

ASUS ROG Strix SCAR 15 2021 Display

Keyboard

Asus ROG Strix Scar 15 (2021) comes with an optical keyboard that uses infrared lasers for faster response and to avoid debounce delay. The keys have a travel distance of 1.9mm and the caps have a gentle curve to them. Similarly, Asus has also included CoolZone technology near the WASD keys to keep your fingers cool.

ASUS ROG Strix SCAR 15 2021 Optical Mesh Keyboard

Performance and Memory

Talking about the performance, the Scar 15 comes with Ryzen 9 5900HX processor with a clock speed of up to 4.6GHz. The processor is based on the new Zen 3 architecture and features eight cores and double the thread.

Similarly, you get NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3080 mobile graphics card. With ROG Boost, the GPU can run at 1645MHz and 115W. Dynamic Boost offers an additional 15W to the GPU. In terms of memory, this gaming laptop comes with 16GB of DDR4 RAM and 1TB of PCIe SSD.

The new cooling system makes use of liquid metal that offers increased thermal headroom. It comes with six heat pipes, four heat sinks, 0.1mm copper fins, and four fan outlets.

Rest of the specs

Scar 15 (2021) comes with a 90Wh battery that promises 12.2 hours of web browsing on a single charge. A compatible 100W adapter can charge the device from 0 to 50% in just 33 minutes. Talking about ports, you get four USB 3.2 Gen 2 ports (1x Type-C + 3x Type-A), one HDMI 2.0b port, one Ethernet port, and one audio combo jack. In terms of wireless connectivity, it supports Wi-Fi 6 and Bluetooth 5.1.

ASUS ROG Strix SCAR 15 2021 Ports

Asus ROG Strix Scar 15 (2021) Specifications:

  • Body: 35.4 x 25.9 x 2.72cm, 2.3 kg
  • Display: 15.6″ anti-glare IPS display, 100% DCI-P3, 300 nits, 165Hz refresh rate, 3ms response time, Adaptive-Sync
  • Resolution: WQHD (2560 x 1440 pixels)
  • Processor: AMD Ryzen 9 5900HX
  • Graphics: NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3080
  • RAM: 16GB DDR4-3200 SO-DIMM
  • Storage: 1TB M.2 NVMe PCIe 3.0 SSD
  • Ports: 1x 3.5mm combo audoio jack, 1x USB 3.2 Gen 2 Type-C (DP/PD), 3x USB 3.2 Gen 1 Type-A, 1x HDMI 2.0b
  • Keyboard: Optical Mech Keyboard Per-Key RGB, 1.9mm key travel
  • Audio: 2x 4W Speaker
  • Connectivity: Wi-Fi 6 and Bluetooth 5.1
  • Battery: 90 Watt-hours Lithium-ions, four cells

ASUS ROG Strix Scar 15 (2021) Price in Nepal & Availability

ASUS ROG Strix Scar 15 2021 (G533) is now available in Nepal for NPR 411,111. You can buy it from authorised Asus laptop sellers all over Nepal.

Asus ROG Strix Scar 15 Price in Nepal Availability
Ryzen 9 5900HX, RTX 3080, 16GB RAM, 1TB SSD NPR 411,111 Authorised sellers
  • Meanwhile, check out our review of the Asus ROG Strix Scar 15 (2020).

Galaxy S21 series buyers will now get a Buds Plus for free

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Galaxy S21 series buyers will now get a Buds Plus for free

In Nepal, the Samsung Galaxy S21 series has been available for more than two months. These flagship smartphones come with impressive specs that will entice any user looking to purchase a new handset. And now, Samsung Nepal is sweetening the offer by providing Galaxy Buds+ for free with the purchase of any phone in the S21 series.

Galaxy S21 series Buds+ Offer:

Initially, the company provided the newer Galaxy Buds Pro for free on S21 Ultra while buyers had to add a little cash to avail of this on the standard S21 and S21 Plus. But now, it is offering the year-old Buds+ on every S21 series purchase.

Galaxy S21 Overview:

Here, Galaxy S21 is a handy phone which packs plenty of power in a small stature. You get a 6.2-inches Infinity-O display with the selfie shooter housed in the centrally aligned punch hole. The panel has Gorilla Glass Victus protection on the front, while the back is plastic-built.

Galaxy S21+ S21 Plus - Design

The aluminum frame slides seamlessly into the raised camera cluster in the top left corner, offering the phone a distinct rear camera bump. The device is powered by Samsung’s newest Exynos 2100 chipset, which is a 5nm silicon with tri-cluster architecture. In terms of battery, you get a 4000mAh cell with support for 15W fast wireless charging.

Samsung Galaxy S21 is available for purchase for NPR 109,999. For more info, you can read our full review here. 

Galaxy S21+ Overview:

In Samsung’s latest premium range of smartphones, the S21+ sits in the center. This device shares a number of design elements with other members of the S21 band, such as the camera bump and the chipset it runs on.

Galaxy S21 Plus - Display [1]

Galaxy S21+ debuts with a 6.7-inches Infinity-O Dynamic AMOLED 2X panel with a 120Hz variable refresh rate. The device has a dual-tone design with a matte finish on the back, which is shielded by Gorilla Glass Victus. This ensures that the fingerprint smudges aren’t as visible. S21+ has a marginally larger battery than the S21, at 4,800mAh, which is sufficient for a full day of use. The 8/256GB variant of S21+ is priced at NPR 129,999.

Galaxy S21 Ultra Overview:

Moving on, the Galaxy S21 Ultra is the top-of-the-line flagship model in the S21 series. It has a larger camera sensor, a bigger battery, beefier specs, and even S pen compatibility, which was only exclusive to the Galaxy Note series of smartphones until now.

Samsung Galaxy S21 Ultra Camera

S21 Ultra features a big 6.82-inch 1440p AMOLED display with a 120Hz refresh rate and Quad HD resolution. It has a 108-megapixel primary lens, a 12-megapixel ultra-wide lens, and two 10-megapixel telephoto lenses of different optical zoom ranges. For security, it debuted with the second-gen Qualcomm ultrasonic fingerprint sensor. This is true for other phones in the S21 series too, by the way.

The official price of the S21 Ultra in Nepal is NPR 154,999 for the 12/256GB variant. Learn more about the phone in our detailed review.

Galaxy Buds+ Overview:

On to the freebies at hand, the Galaxy Buds+ was Samsung’s premium set of TWS earbuds back in early 2020. It has twice as many speakers as first-gen Galaxy Buds. Instead of a single driver setup in each bud, Samsung has used a tweeter and woofer arrangement in the Buds+, resulting in excellent audio quality.

Samsung Galaxy Buds Plus - Design

Its Spotify integration is a great feature for any die-hard music lover, as it helps users to create a more customized playlist. Furthermore, the Buds+ comes with three microphones, which can do best in cramped environments. AKG has tuned this system to reproduce spectacular sounds with low distortions and minor bass elevations.

In Nepal, the Samsung Galaxy Buds Plus costs NPR 16,999. To learn more about the Buds+, click here. It is a fine pair of TWS and if you’re considering purchasing either of the S21 series smartphones, now’s the best time.

Free Galaxy Buds+ on purchase of Galaxy S21 Series

Right now, Samsung Nepal is providing free Galaxy Buds+ worth NPR 16,999 on the purchase of any phone in the S21 series. But this offer is available for a limited time only.

Smartphone Model Price in Nepal Offer
Galaxy S21 NPR 109,999 (256GB) Galaxy Buds+ free (worth NPR 16,999)
Galaxy S21+ NPR 129,999 (256GB)
Galaxy S21 Ultra NPR 154,999 (256GB)
  • Meanwhile, check out our review of the Samsung Galaxy S21 Ultra.
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