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Samsung Nepal introduces an online token system for its service centers

Samsung

GadgetByte

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August 16, 2020

Samsung Nepal introduces an online token system for its service centers

The nation-wide lockdown may have been eased at some places but the risk of infection is still there. That is why we need to take extra precautions while being away from home. Many sectors are now adapting to the pandemic and the smartphone world is no different. Recently, Samsung Nepal has announced an online appointment based on a token system that the users can use to get their Samsung devices serviced and repaired from an official service center. Let’s take a look at the new online token system adopted by Samsung Nepal for appointments.

Samsung Nepal Online Token System

I’m sure many of us have had our smartphone broken during the lockdown. For the devices under warranty, Samsung Nepal had announced the extension of the warranty period. The Government of Nepal has now eased the lockdown allowing companies and offices to operate with required precautionary measures. Samsung has resumed its service centers using an online token system.

How to use the online ticketing system?

First of all, users need to visit this link. In the demo video released by Samsung, it will take you directly to the appointment booking platform. However, in my case, I was directed to Samsung India’s support instead. In case you landed on the support page, scroll down to the bottom of the page. There you will see the Service Online Appointment. Click on that link.
On the appointment booking page, select your location. As of now, it is only available for users inside the Kathmandu Valley.
You will be shown a list of available Samsung service centers. Click on the one that is convenient for you to book an appointment,
In the next screen, you will be asked to fill in your personal details. Make sure to submit your name, model number, and email correctly. Then you will have to agree to Samsung’s Privacy Policy. Make sure to read that carefully before you tick on the box.
Once you go through the privacy policy and captcha, you will receive a One Time Password (OTP) on your smartphone for verification. After it’s verified, you can select the date and time slot of your choosing. For your help, the left side of the screen will be showing details about the operational hour. It will also be providing details about the person in charge.
Once you have completed everything, click on the “Take Appointment” button. You can then visit the service center with your token number.

For more help, you can contact on the given toll-free customer care numbers:

+977-166-0017-2667 (NTC users)
+977-9801-57-2667

Benefits

The new token system allows the service center to implement social distancing properly. People will only arrive at the time allocated for them, hence avoiding huge gatherings. They can also manage their time better. Similarly, users can now browse through official service centers at their fingertips.

Also, check out our review of Samsung Galaxy A21s!

Asus TUF A15 Review: Great Budget gaming laptop, but with one compromise

GadgetByte

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August 15, 2020

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Asus TUF A15 Review: Great Budget gaming laptop, but with one compromise

With the price of Intel chips going higher and higher, it was only a matter of time before many laptop manufacturers switched to AMD processors. It saves costs by almost $200 and the processors are somewhat on par with their Intel counterparts. Asus has always been at the forefront when it comes to AMD powered gaming laptops. The company’s G14 was the first one to come equipped with AMD’s mobile gaming processor. And they haven’t looked back since then. And today we bring to you the review of one such AMD powered laptop, the Asus TUF A15 FA506II.

The laptop which comes with a Ryzen 5 4000-series processor and dedicated NVIDIA graphics. The TUF series focuses on delivering the perfect balance between processing power and gaming performance. The A-series within the TUFs sort of lies between a budget gaming laptop and a high-end expensive on. So, hopefully, you’ve got some idea of what sort of device the A15 is. It does not boast the latest cooling techs and so. But it does not compromise on performance either.

I’ve used the TUF A15 for my work and gaming for quite some time, and to be honest, it impressed me in bits and parts. So, let’s dive into our review of the Asus TUF A15 FA506II and find out what I believe works for this laptop and what does not.

Overview

The variant that I used comes equipped 8GB of RAM, 512GB storage, AMD Ryzen 5 4600 and NVIDIA GTX 1650 Ti. These are some sweet specs considering the price range. Obviously, there are other configurations of the A15 available in the market. The one with me is sort of the base variant and is called the TUF FA506II. For higher prices, you can get a system equipped with Ryzen 9 and RTX graphics. Oh, and you get an Asus M5 gaming mouse that supports Aura sync with the purchase of this laptop.

So, with that out of the way let’s get into some of the gritty details of the device.

Asus TUF A15 FA506II Specifications:

Processor: AMD® Ryzen™ 5 4600H Processor
Display: 15.6″ (16:9) LED-Backlit FHD (1920×1080) 144Hz Anti-Glare IPS-level Panel
GPU: Nvidia GeForce GTX 1650Ti , with 4GB GDDR6 VRAM
RAM: 8GB DDR4 3200MHz SDRAM
Storage: 512GB NVME m.2 SSD
Ports: 1 x COMBO audio jack, 2 x Type-A USB 3.2 (Gen 1) ,1 x Type-C USB 3.2 (Gen 2) with display supports DP1.4, 1 x Type-A USB2.0, 1 x RJ45 LAN jack for LAN, 1 x HDMI, HDMI support 2.0, 1 x AC adapter plug
Connectivity: Integrated Wi-Fi 5 (802.11 ac (2×2)) + Bluetooth 5
Keyboard: Full-Size Chiclet Keyboard; Single Zone Lighting
Webcam: High Definition 720p Camera
Battery: 48 WH Lithium-Polymer Battery
Price: Rs 133,000

Design & Build

There are two design variants of the A15. One of them is all-plastic bonfire black and the other one is the fortress gray with aluminum and plastic. Mine was the fortress gray. It has a clean design with a big TUF logo in the middle. And there are four screw-like toppings in all four corners. I liked this clean design over the accented lines of the bonfire black variant. It can blend in well in any environment and yet retain its gaming vibes. The plastic one kind of feels cheap too. So, the aluminum design one would be my preference any day of the week.

The lid extends a bit in the portion of the bezel where the 720p webcam is located. It helps you to open the lid easily and I found this feature to be handy too. As a matter of fact, with its help, you can open the laptop with a single finger and you’ll not find yourself scouring for openings in order to open your laptop screen.

The left side of the device contains most of the ports that you’ll be using. It has a power input, an Ethernet port, an HDMI port, 2 USB3.2 Gen-1 type A ports, USB3.2 Gen-2 type C port with display port 1.4 support, and a 3.5mm headphone jack. On the right side, there’s a single USB 2.0 Type-A port. On the higher-end models, you’ll get the air exhausts on the right side too. However, mine did not have one.

ASUS TUF A15 FA506 Ports

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The back does have air exhaust vents on the left and right sides. And there’s a cutout above which contains the LED status lights. There are some air vents underneath too in order to maintain the airflow. However, they are not above the fans.

On the inside, you get a black-brushed plastic design. And thanks to the brushed aluminum finish, it does not stain so often. Also, it contains a full-sized chiclet keyboard and just above it is an air vent.

Overall, the laptop feels sturdy, rigid, and robust. After all, a device does not receive military-grade certification randomly. Though I’ve not tested to what extent the A15 can withstand bruises, the build quality does not make me doubt about its robustness. The lid does flex a bit, it is not something to worry about.

The laptop is not the thinnest one in the market, but it is not thick either. It kinda falls in between and that should be fine for many. It weighs around 2.3Kgs without the charging brick. And about 2.5Kgs with it. So, it will fit perfectly inside your backpack, but carrying it daily to work is bound to give your shoulders some workout.

Keyboard and Trackpad

As mentioned previously, the Asus TUF A15 has a full-sized chiclet keyboard with num pads. The keyboard deck is rigid and can withstand pressure considerably. Though try not to smash it if you ever find yourself losing a game.

Anyway, the keyboard has a single zone lighting and supports aura modes such as static, color cycle, and more. The WASD keyboards are further highlighted because of them being transparent. You can change the mode by pressing the function button and the left and right arrow keys. Furthermore, you can customize it by going to the armory crate. Unfortunately, the keyboard does not have a dedicated button for the armory crate and you have to access it by clicking on the application itself.

The keyboard does come with a dedicated button to toggle between the 3 performance modes. I found it great that they were able to squeeze in a Numpad in this setup, but it does come at a cost. In order to incorporate the numpads, Asus has reduced the size of the arrow keys and it does not sit well with me at all. However, the rest of the keys are fine. They produce a satisfying click thereby it makes typing quite enjoyable too.

Just below the keyboard is a big trackpad with buttons for the left and right-click. It is in the middle of the deck and for those who have a big hand, you might find yourself accidentally brushing off against it while typing or playing games. The buttons on the trackpad are great, but I was not at all satisfied by the accuracy of the pointer. Maybe its an issue with my review unit, but there were times when I was literally frustrated with the trackpads as it did not move in the direction that I wanted it to go.

Display

The display surrounded by very thin bezels with the top portion housing a 720p webcam. It is not something that will wow you, but hey something is better than nothing right?

Anyway, in the middle is a 144Hz 1080p IPS LCD display that supports adaptive sync. It is a 15.6” panel. Sounds good on paper, right? but the reality is very different. It has good brightness levels. However, you’ll feel that the color vibrancy does not hit the right mark.

It has an average gray to gray response time of around 19ms and that is not good at all. Especially considering its competitors such as the MSI GL65, which has an average G2G response time of 5.3ms. The A15’s response time comes nowhere near the required response time of 6.94ms. That means the 144Hz panel does meet the standards. Thus, you are bound to witness some smearing and ghosting.

I would not recommend this laptop to content creators either. The panel covers just 66% of the sRGB color gamut. Most gaming laptops in this price segment have an sRGB coverage in and around the 100% mark. So, the A15 in this regard is well below the average. Thus, the colors seem saturated and washed out and thereby causing the color vibrancy issue that I was talking about.

Performance and thermals

Under the hood, the device is powered by the AMD Ryzen 5 4600H CPU. It is based on Renoir architecture and has 6 cores. This coupled with the Nvidia GTX 1650Ti spells for a powerful combination. It’s just sad that the monitor does not quite live up to the task.

There are three different performance modes in which you can use this laptop. And they are silent mode, performance mode, and turbo mode. But be wary, the fan noise will get louder as per your selected mode. The turbo mode will apply 100MHz GPU core overclock and 120MHz GPU memory overclock. Thus, you are bound to get the best gaming performance in the turbo mode. However, you can only use the turbo mode when plugged in.

Let’s talk a bit about how cooling is handled in the Asus TUF A15, then we will get into its gaming performance.

There are 4 air intake vents underneath the laptop. However, none of them are above the fans. There is another additional air intake vent just above the keyboard too. The two exhaust vents are located on the backside. Lower-end variants do not have a side exhaust. Under the hood, you’ll find a single heat pipe that is shared between the CPU and GPU. This too depends upon your model. This model has lower tier specs, therefor cooling system is minimal on this one. However, with the Ryzen 9 models, you’ll find more heat pipes and a much better cooling system.

Exhausts and Air Vents

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While the idle temperature of the device was around 46 degrees. I tested the thermals while playing Battlefield V and the results were impressive. I tested the game in low, medium, and ultra-settings with and also toggled between the performance modes.

CPU & GPU Temperature Readings

Video Setting/Performance Mode	GPU Temperature (°C)	CPU Temperature (°C)
Low/silent	70	80
Low/turbo	78	89
Medium/silent	74	93
Medium/turbo	80	95
Ultra/silent	76	93
Ultra/turbo	80	96

We can see that the CPU and the GPU run highest in the turbo mode and that is expected as it enhances the performance significantly. The fans run nosily too. Also, I did not find the keyboard deck getting hot while dedicating hours to my games on this laptop. The air vent area above the keyboard did get warm, but it is not the place where you’ll be focusing on while playing games. Thankfully, the WASD keys and the palm rest areas don’t get that heated. And that’s really great as you won’t be bothered about the heating while you are deep into enemy territories in your game.

However, I did not find the fans obstructing my in-game sound. Still, I feel that for a more immersive game experience you might want to use a headphone while playing.

Now, let’s get into the actual performance while playing various games. The display as mentioned previously felt underwhelming considering the specs. It did not feel as vibrant as I would have wanted it to be but nonetheless, you won’t feel any lags while playing so that’s a very good thing.

I tested the games in Turbo mode as I wanted to test out the best possible result in the games. While playing Battlefield V I got 105fps in the low setting, 81ps in medium settings, and 67-73fps in the ultra-settings. Similarly, in Apex legends I got around 125fps in the lowest settings, 95-100fps in medium and around 70 in the ultra-setting. Likewise, in Witcher 3: Wild Hunt, the results were as follows: around 87 in the lowest setting, 80 in medium, and 45-50fps in ultras.

So, basically, you will be able to enjoy most of the games in medium settings quite easily. Triple-A title may become laggy if played in Ultra or maximum settings. And as the display panel is not that great for the price range, I would suggest you play in medium settings for the best result. After all, you wouldn’t want to trade fps with higher details in a lackluster panel.

Well, that was about gaming, and it would handle those tasks pretty well. So, you probably won’t have to worry about getting through with your day to day tasks like web surfing and all on this laptop. I had about 20 tabs on in Google Chrome at one point and I did not notice it affecting the performance.

It has 512GB NVME m.2 SSD and it is fast. You can see for yourself the read-write speed of this laptop. The results clearly show how fast this SSD is.

Battery Life

My review unit had a 49WH battery and it lasts for a long time. This has to be one of the best laptops that I’ve tested so far in terms of battery life. With about 70% brightness and volume at 100% with the RGB on the Keyboard, I managed about 1 and a half hours of gaming and around 4 and a half hours of web surfing.

Most people will use this laptop for gaming, Afterall it is a gaming laptop, and thus will have it plugged in most of the time. However, even if that isn’t the case, it has a battery that you can depend upon.

Verdict & Conclusion

Well, as I said in the beginning of the review, some things work brilliantly for this laptop and some things don’t work. It has great internals and a good cooling system that helps it to achieve brilliant performance level. But one can’t help to wonder what Asus could have achieved with a better display.

The underwhelming display does not mean that it is of no use, I mean it is a 144Hz panel. So, you’ll be able to enjoy much more than your average budget gaming laptop. However, I didn’t quite feel the punch that I had expected in terms of the display. Barring that the device is pure gold. Thus, if you can manage within this display then this device is great. Else, you might want to look elsewhere.

Asus TUF A15 FA506II Pros & Cons

Pros	Cons
Great battery life Good thermals Good price to performance ratio	Okayish display Trackpad

RedmiBook Air announced with 10th-gen Intel CPU & up to 11.5 hours battery backup

GadgetByte

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August 14, 2020

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RedmiBook Air announced with 10th-gen Intel CPU & up to 11.5 hours battery backup

Redmi has quietly expanded its lineup of ultrabooks. The new RedmiBook Air 13 is the latest addition to the RedmiBook series. Let’s take a look at the specs, features, expected price, and availability of the new RedmiBook Air 13 in Nepal.

RedmiBook Air 13 Overview

Design and Display

As the name implies, the new RedmiBook Air 13 features a resolution of 2560 x 1600 pixels. It has an aspect ratio of 16:10. The display covers 100% of sRGB colors and boasts a brightness of up to 300nits. It supports DC dimming and has a viewing angle of 178-degree.

The body of the ultrabook is made entirely of metal. The device has a thickness of 12.99mm and weighs around 1.05kg. Redmi claims that the lid of the laptop can be opened using a single hand.

Performance and Memory

RedmiBook Air is powered by 10th gen Intel Core i5 – 10210Y. It’s a quad-core processor based on Intel’s 14nm process. It supports Intel Hyper-Threading technology and reaches the clock speed of up to 4.2 GHz. There is no discrete graphics card. It is available in two RAM variants – 8GB and 16GB. Both of them feature 512GB of SSD storage.

The laptop comes with three performance modes – Quiet, Balanced, and Performance. Users can switch between them using the “Fn + K” combination. Its cooling solution consists of a single fan with dual outlets, which the company claims can increase airflow by up to 65%. Similarly, the copper heat dissipation system is said to increase thermal conductivity by up to 87%.

Also Read: RedmiBook 13 (2020) with Ryzen 4000 CPU launched

Rest of the specs

RedmiBook Air relies on a 41Wh battery for its juice. The company is claiming up to 11.5 hours of battery backup. Redmi has included a Type-C mini adapter in the box that can charge the 0 to 50% in 35 minutes. Similarly, this laptop supports WiFi 6 that is claimed to offer 2.7 times faster speed. It offers two USB Type-C port and a 3.5m headphone jack.

RedmiBook Air 13 Key Specifications:

Design and Build: All-metal body with a textured finish
Dimension: 297.5 x 212 x 12.99mm
Weight: 1.05kg
Display: 13.3-inch LCD; 100% sRGB, 89% screen to body ratio; 178-degree viewing angle
Resolution: 2560 x 1600 pixels; 19:10 aspect ratio
CPU: 10th Gen Intel Core i5 – 10210Y
GPU: Integrated Intel Graphics Card
RAM: 8 GB / 16 GB
Storage: 512 GB SSD
Battery: 4-celled 41 Watt-hour
Webcam: No
Power Adapter: 65W Type-C adapter; 100gm
Connectivity: Wi-Fi 6, Bluetooth 5.0
Ports: 2 x USB Type-C, 1 x 3.5mm jack

RedmiBook Air 13 Price in Nepal and Availability

RedmiBook Air 13 is available for pre-order in China via JD.com, where its price is ¥4,899 for 8/512GB variant and ¥5,199 for 16/512GB variant. We can expect the price of RedmiBook Air 13 to start at NPR 90,000 when it comes to Nepal through unofficial means.

Redmi Ultrabook Variant	Price in Nepal (Converted)
RedmiBook Air 13 (8/512GB)	~ Rs. 84,340
RedmiBook Air 13 (16/512GB)	~ Rs. 89,500

Check out our review of the Asus TUF A15 gaming laptop!

DJI Mavic Air 2 with 8K video & increased flight time Launched in Nepal

GadgetByte

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August 14, 2020

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DJI Mavic Air 2 with 8K video & increased flight time Launched in Nepal

When we talk about drones, DJI is one name we can’t miss. The brand is famous not just for its lineup of drones but other aerial photography systems as well. Recently DJI updated its portfolio of drones with the new DJI Mavic Air 2 and its finally available for purchase in Nepal.

DJI Mavic Air 2 Overview

DJI sells drones and components to almost anyone, including consumers, professionals, and enterprises. However, the Mavic series is all about consumer electronics. The Mavic series of drones are the ones that you will likely stumble upon if you go out in the Nepalese market looking for a drone. The original Mavic Air provides tons of features to people looking for an ultraportable drone that they can take anywhere with them.

DJI Mavic Air 2 is the successor to the original Mavic Air that was launched back in 2018. Though it retains the overall characteristics of the Mavic lineup, DJI has designed and developed the new Mavic Air 2 from the ground up. It isn’t just an upgrade to the Mavic Air, as the company is advertising it as the smartest and safest consumer drone of all time. Compared to its predecessor, it comes with upgrades in terms of camera performance, flight duration, transmission system, and the Fly app.

Design

Though it retains the all-familiar folding design as the Mavic Air, the Mavic Air 2 is both bigger and heavier. It has a dimension of 183 x 253 x 77mm, which reduces to 180 x 97 x 84mm when folded. Design-wise, it shares a lot of elements with the more premium Mavic Pro.

DJI has also re-designed the controller this time around. The phone mount has been shifted from the bottom to the top of the controller. And in doing so, the company has got rid of the visible antennas.

Camera Performance

DJI Mavic Air 2 comes with a Quad Bayer 1/2-inch sensor. Users can choose to shoot in either of 12MP or 48MP camera mode. The lens has a FOV of 84-degree and an aperture of f/2.8. It is the first in its series to offer 4K video recording at 60fps and 180fps. The drone supports HDR for photos, videos, and panorama. For stability, it has a 3-axis gimbal (mechanical). It is also capable of taking 8K Hyperlapse shots.

Check out the price of DJI drones in Nepal

Flight performance

Though it is heavier than its predecessor, the Mavic Air 2 offers longer flight duration, largely due to the 3500mAh battery. DJI claims a maximum flight duration of about 34 minutes. Mavic Air 2 also features new motors and new Electronic Speed Controllers. The drone uses OcuSync 2.0 technology that can transmit videos from a distance of up to 10km.

Safety features

The drone features obstacle sensors on both front and back to give signals about nearby objects. Users can even set the sensors in a way that they will prevent the drone from moving close to avoid any accident. The Advanced Pilot Assistance System 3.0 can even create a path over, under, or around the object to avoid the collision. The drone also features ADS-B technology that can warn users about nearby aircraft along with their location.

Other features

DJI Mavic Air 2 comes with Focus Track, which consists of three different intelligent features. The Spotlight 2.0 locks the camera on the subject so that no matter the way you fly the drone, the chosen subject will always focus. ActiveTrack 3.0 keeps the subject in the center of the frame while also avoiding any kind of obstacle. POI 3.0 is an upgrade to POQ2.0 that helps keep better track of the subject dynamically.

Check out the price of DJI Mavic 2 Pro in Nepal

DJI Mavic Air 2 Specifications:

Dimension: 183 x 253 x 77mm (unfolded); 183 x 97 x 84mm (folded)
Weight: 570 grams
Battery Capacity: 3,500 mAh with 38W Max Charging Power
Camera: 12MP 1/2-inch CMOS, f/2.8 aperture, 84° field-of-view
Resolution: 12MP / 48MP (Pixel Binning)
Flight Time: 34 minutes (without wind)
Ascent Spee (Maximum): 4 m/s
Descent Speed (Maximum): 3 m/s
Maximum Flight Distance: 18.5km
Safety Features: Obstacle Avoidance System, Advanced Pilot Assistance System 3.0
Video Transmission: OccuSync 2.0 (up to 10km)

DJI Mavic Air 2 Price in Nepal & Availability

DJI Mavic Air 2 is now available for purchase from Hukut Store for a price of Rs.1,16,000 for Standard Package and Rs. 1,45,000 for Fly More Package. The Fly More package includes a Shoulder bag, charging hub, ND filters, and 3 extra batteries.

DJI Mavic Air 2 Model	International Price	Price in Nepal
Standard Package	$799	Rs. 116,000
Fly More Package	$988	Rs. 145,000

Redmi Earbuds S arrives in Nepal at a budget-friendly price

GadgetByte

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August 14, 2020

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Redmi Earbuds S arrives in Nepal at a budget-friendly price

About a month ago, OPPO launched the new Enco W11 in Nepal, which is a decent wireless earphone under Rs. 4000. And today, Xiaomi Nepal has launched a pair of new budget earbuds in the country dubbed the “Redmi Earbuds S” at a budget-friendly price.

Redmi Earbuds S Overview

The new Redmi Earbuds isn’t a new product in itself. It’s just a rebranded Redmi AirDots S, that was launched about a few months ago in China. Given the price, it will go head to head to with the OPPO Enco W11.

Meanwhile, check out all the latest prices and specs of Xiaomi earbuds here

Design and Display

Redmi EarBuds S looks quite similar to last year’s Redmi AirDots. It is small, compact, and goes right into your ears. You don’t get any stem hanging outside of your ear. There’s one color option – Black. Both Earbuds S and Realme Buds Air Neo are light at 4.1 grams per earbud.

Driver and Connectivity

Redmi Earbuds S features a 7.2 mm sound driver with DS intelligent technology for ambient noise cancellation. It is based on Bluetooth 5.0 technology and can connect to the device within the 10-meter radius. Xiaomi claims that the chip allows up to 2x data transfer compared to its Redmi Airdots.

Features

Redmi has included a mono mode which wasn’t there in the original Airdots. With this, you can connect to a single earbud at a time. The company has also made switching between mono and stereo mode smooth and hassle-free.

It has a low latency mode for gamers, that can be activated with a double click. Upon activation, it will limit the latency to 122ms by reducing transmission and with better sync between audio and video.

Battery and Durability

Each earbud equips a 43mAh battery. On a single charge, the earbud will last up to 4 hours which can be extended to 12 hours using the charging case. The charging case has a capacity of 300mAh and can be charged using a micro-USB port. It also has an IPX4 rating against splash damage.

Redmi Earbuds S Specifications:

Sound Driver: 7.2 mm driver
Weight: 4.1g (each earphone)
Connectivity: Wireless (Bluetooth v5.0)
Music Time: 4 hours (12 hours with charging case)
Bluetooth Profiles: HSP / HFP / A2DP /AVRCP
Wireless Range: 10m
Control: Physical Button
Extra features: Low Latency Mode, Mono / Stereo switching
Standby Time: 150 hours
Charging Interface: Micro USB port
Water Resistant: IPX4 rating
Battery capacity: 43mAh (each earbud); 300mAh (charging case)
Charging Time: 2 hours (earbuds); 2 hours (charging case)

Redmi Earbuds S Price in Nepal & Availability

Redmi Earbuds S is now official in Nepal for a price of NPR 3,199. It will be available soon across the 1800+ Mi offline stores and Xiaomi’s online partners like Daraz and Sastodeal.

Wireless Earbuds	Price in Nepal	Availability
Redmi Earbuds S	NPR 3,199	August 2020

Check out our review of OPPO Enco W11, W31, M31 Bluetooth earphones!

Samsung Galaxy Watch 3 with a rotating dial now available in Nepal

Pratima Adhikari

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August 14, 2020

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Samsung Galaxy Watch 3 with a rotating dial now available in Nepal

Samsung announced its latest flagship smartwatch in its unpacked event. It is the successor of the Galaxy Watch that was announced back in 2018. While in 2019, we just saw the more affordable Galaxy Watch Active 2, this year Samsung has brought to us the Galaxy Watch 3. Let us take a look at the specs, features, official price, and availability of the Samsung Galaxy Watch 3 in Nepal here.

Samsung Galaxy Watch 3 Overview

Design

Keeping the quick history check aside, the Galaxy Watch 3 will be available in 41mm and 45mm options. With it, we witness the return of the rotating bezel which was one of the many reasons that set the company’s Watch series unique. The size of the bezel is reduced as well.

According to Samsung, the Watch 3 is 14% thinner and 15% lighter than its predecessor, weighing 49.2 grams for the 41mm and 53.8 grams for the 45mm version. The watch is made of stainless steel. It is also IP68 Water and Dust resistant and has the MIL-STD-810G certification as well.

Display

As mentioned earlier, the Galaxy Watch 3 is available in 2 sizes, a smaller one with a 1.2-inches screen (360x360 pixels) and a slightly larger one with a 1.4-inches display with the same resolution a Super AMOLED panel. Moreover, the screen is protected by Corning’s Gorilla Glass DX. Compared to other GG standards, it offers better visibility through reduced surface reflection and is tougher against scratches too.

Functionality

The Samsung Galaxy Watch 3 is better at supporting workouts too. Now you can track 40 different types of exercise while it can auto-detect seven of them. Sleep tracking features have been enhanced with better algorithms and more precision. Samsung revealed that later this year, it will gain a blood Oxygen monitoring (SpO2) feature.

Also Read:
- Samsung Galaxy Note 20 now up for pre-order in Nepal
- Samsung Galaxy Note 20 Ultra goes up for pre-order with exciting offers

And in South Korea, it will be able to monitor Blood pressure and Electrocardiography (ECG/EKG) as they have already acquired a license from the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety in the country. In the unpacked event, Samsung assured that they have been working to provide those features in other countries very soon. The company also took it to the stage to announce that the Watch 3 has been cleared by the US FDA (Food and Drug Administration) for the Samsung ECG Monitor app. However, the exact date of when the app will be widely available hasn’t been disclosed yet.

Besides, the Galaxy Watch 3 comes bearing features like fall detection that will notify the users if a fall is detected. Likewise, you also get watch functions including notifications from apps, customizable watch faces (with which you can match the style and color of your outfit), hands-free Bixby assistant, Samsung Pay, and a speaker.

And yes, all of this is running on Samsung’s own Tizen OS 5.5.

Battery

In terms of battery, the smaller 41mm variant has a 247mAh battery while the bigger 45mm one has a 340 mAh battery. Samsung claims that the battery life has been extended to two days between charges.

Samsung Galaxy Watch 3 Specifications:

Display: 45mm: 1.4-inch AMOLED; 41mm 1.2-inch AMOLED, Corning Gorilla Glass DX
Dimensions: 45mm (45x46.2×11.1mm); 41mm (41×42.5×11.3mm)
Battery: 340 mAh (45mm); 247 mAh (41mm)
Processor: Samsung Exynos 9110, Dual-core, 1.15GHz
RAM: 1GB
Storage: 8GB
Connectivity: LTE (available in selected models); Bluetooth 5.0; WiFi g/b/n; NFC; A-GPS/GLONASS/Beidou 7
Sensors: Accelerometer, Gyroscope, Barometer, Optical Heart Sensor, ECG, Ambient Light Sensor
Durability: 5ATM+IP68; MIL-STD-810G
Software: Tizen OS 5.5
Companion app: Android – Galaxy Wearable | iOS – Galaxy Watch
Colors: 45mm: Mystic Black (stainless steel or titanium), Mystic Silver (stainless steel); 41mm: Mystic Bronze (stainless steel), Mystic Silver (stainless steel)

Samsung Galaxy Watch 3 Price in Nepal and Availability

Both the 41mm and 45mm variants of the Samsung Galaxy Watch 3 are now available in Nepal for the price of NPR 53,999 and NPR 55,999 respectively. You can purchase the Galaxy Watch 3 from various Samsung retail outlets throughout Nepal.

Smartwatch Model	Price in Nepal (Official)
Samsung Galaxy Watch 3 (41mm)	Rs. 53,999
Samsung Galaxy Watch 3 (45mm)	Rs. 55,999

Check out our long-term review of the Samsung Galaxy Watch Active 2!

OPPO Enco W11 TWS Earbuds Review: Season Of The Sleek

Nikhil Shrestha

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August 13, 2020

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OPPO Enco W11 TWS Earbuds Review: Season Of The Sleek

With the wearable market blooming in Nepal, more and more OEMs are now bringing a variety of devices in the country. Recently, OPPO launched a bunch of new Bluetooth earbuds in Nepal, one of which is the Enco W11. It is the entry-level TWS earbuds from the company which has a distinctive look compared to other AirPods copycats. Let’s find out more about the OPPO Enco W11 TWS earbuds in this review

OPPO Enco W11 Specifications:

Weight: 4.4 grams (each earbud); 35.5 grams (charging case)
Driver: 8mm dynamic
Connectivity: Wireless (Bluetooth v5.0)
Frequency response: 20Hz – 20kHz
Music time: 5 hours (with 50% volume), 20 hours (with charging case)
Audio codec: AAC, SBC
Battery capacity: 40mAh (each earbud); 400mAh (power case)
Charging time: 120 minutes (earbuds); 120 minutes (case)
IP rating: Yes, IP55 dust and water resistance
Noise-canceling: No
Power case charger: Type-C
Color: White
Price in Nepal: Rs. 3,990

OPPO Enco W11 Review:

Design

Minimal design with a plastic build and a glossy front
In-ear fit with silicone ear tips (extra tips inside the box)

Starting with the design, the OPPO Enco W11, fortunately, doesn’t follow Apple’s AirPods bandwagon. While basically every other inexpensive Bluetooth earbuds look the same, the W11 is a breath of fresh air. It is an in-ear TWS earbuds with silicone ear tips at the end. As expected, the build material is plastic while the outer surface of the earbuds has a glossy finish. For a tighter fit, OPPO also ships a couple of different sizes of ear tips which is great.

Usually, the medium size fits my ears but I had to switch to a large size on the Enco W11. With this, passive noise isolation was quite good. The earbuds are fairly lightweight as well since they weigh just 4.4 grams each. Having said that, I found Enco W11’s fit to be a little less than satisfactory. Even with the lightweight build, I experienced discomfort when using it for a long time. And trying to adjust the buds for a tighter fit would end up hurting the ears. At the end of the day, what I mean is the Enco W11 is a little loose in the ears and feels uncomfortable after wearing it for a while. Furthermore, they’re also IP55 dust and water-resistant so you can take the Enco W11 in jogs or under slight drizzles of rain with no worry.

Charging case

Moving to the charging case, it is heavily inspired by Samsung’s Galaxy Buds and Buds+. It is oval-shaped and has a glossy finish like the earbuds. You can notice the OPPO branding up top while the notification LED lies near the opening window of the case. Likewise, the USB Type-C charging port resides at the back. The buds fit magnetically inside the charging case via the POGO pins. While the strength of their magnetism isn’t that strong compared to other costlier TWS earbuds, I don’t mind that at all. Attaching the buds in the case also charges them – as expected.

Pairing

Bluetooth 5.0 wireless connection

These earbuds support Bluetooth 5.0 connectivity. When it comes to pairing the Enco W11 with your phone, it becomes visible to Bluetooth capable smartphones, tablets, or PCs once you open the charging case; and all you gotta do is select the Enco W11 from your device’s Bluetooth settings. And after pairing it for the first time, W11 automatically recognizes the previously-paired devices for a quick connection.

OPPO says the Enco W11 has 10 meters of Bluetooth range but my review unit started losing connection with my phone when moving just 4 meters away. That may be troublesome for those who are planning to use it indoors with the connected device far from you. However, most of us will probably be putting them on our ears alongside our phone/laptop by our side so the small range isn’t a problem at all.

Control

A touch-based capacitive sensor on each earbud

Getting to the controls, Enco W11 has capacitive touch control on each earbud. And they’re quite intuitive as you can control practically every audio settings using those sensors. Yet, you won’t be able to customize them to your liking and will be stuck with what OPPO has shipped by default. Here, a single tap on either earbud lets you play or pause the audio. To skip or going back to a track is done by double-tapping the right & left earbuds respectively. You can also accept or hang up calls by double-tapping the earbuds.

Furthermore, there’s also a volume control option on the Enco W11. Pressing & holding the right earbud increases the volume while lowering the audio level is fortified via the left. Lastly, triple tapping either of them summons the digital assistant like Google Assistant. See what I said about the intuitive controls? Additionally, they work almost flawlessly even with the gentlest touch so you won’t need to hit yourself in the earbuds like how you would on other TWS earphones with the AirPods-like stemmy design.

Even though that’s very impressive, the touch latency was quite distracting and at times annoying. There’s about 400ms of latency on each click/tap. Similarly, the earbuds fail to correctly recognize multiple touch input sometimes. For instance, when double tapping the capacitive sensor with a little speed to skip or go back to the previous audio, the Enco W11 only registers a single click and then proceeds to play/pause the music instead.

Audio

8mm dynamic drivers
20Hz – 20 kHz frequency response
Binaural simultaneous Bluetooth transmission

Now let’s get to the most important of any TWS earbuds – the audio. Here, the Enco W11 has 8mm drivers and features binaural simultaneous Bluetooth transmission. What the latter means is that the audio signals are simultaneously delivered to the left & right earbud, thus resulting in a synchronized listening experience. Its frequency response range covers the entirety of the human hearing range i.e. 20Hz – 20 kHz. In terms of audio codecs, the Enco W11 only supports the most basic SBC and AAC formats only.

And the audio output… yeah, it’s not that great. But keeping the price in mind, I reckon that’s acceptable. In low to mid-volume, the sound quality is fine though the same cannot be said when sliding the volume to max. When listening to music with various instruments playing at a time like those under the orchestral rock genre, the vocals get subdued and is overpowered by the instruments instead. The Enco W11 just couldn’t seem to properly process audio with different ranges of audio frequencies playing simultaneously.

Don’t listen at full volume

I would also advise against going full volume since the audio gets quite shrieky which is harmful to the ears. I listened to some hard rock and classic metal songs like Led Zeppelin’s “Whole Lotta Love” and Tool’s “Fear Inoculum” and they sounded pretty unbearable at max volume.

When it comes to bass, OPPO is advertising the Enco W11 with an “enhanced bass” feature, but I didn’t hear it. I don’t mean to say it’s audio reproduction is entirely flat as there is a hint of bass here and there. However, they feel unnatural and are really muddy. I played “Sunflowers” by saib. and “Tadow” by Masego & FKJ. Even with the tightest fit possible, I couldn’t enjoy a pleasant level of bass on these songs. Despite this, Enco W11 is more than fine for listening to podcasts, different kinds of YouTube videos, or non-orchestral & non-bass-heavy audio.

Call quality on these earbuds isn’t that great either. Albeit there is a dedicated noise reduction feature, people on the receiving end of my call complained about how my voice sounded like something coming out of a large, empty room. Likewise, at times, the sound output would also get really unclear. It has a single microphone, so that may have contributed to the apparent poor call quality.

Battery

40 mAh (each earbud), 400 mAh (charging case)
USB Type-C connection for charging

Finally, let’s talk about battery life. Each earbud has a 40 mAh battery while the charging case holds 400 mAh of charge. Enco W11’s advertised battery life is 5 hours from the earbuds and up to 20 hours with the charging case when listening in 50% volume. And that more-or-less matched with my usage.

I got around 3.5 to 4 hours under 70 – 80% volume. Similarly, you can get 1 hour of playback time with just 15 minutes of charge. Fully charging the earbuds takes about 2 hours via the Type-C connector.

Conclusion

All in all, the OPPO Enco W11 is a decent pair of TWS earbuds in the sub-3K market in Nepal. It has a sleek design and looks very intimate in the ears. You also get a couple of extra silicone tips inside the box itself which is really nice. Its capacitive sensor has really intuitive control letting to tweak around with every possible setting you could ask for. The audio output is decent as well, especially in low and mid-volume.

As expected, its bass reproduction isn’t that great and definitely won’t be the first choice of those who primarily listen to EDM, dubstep, lo-fi, tropical house, and other similar genres of music. Call quality is acceptable but time and again, the audio on the receiver’s end would get unclear. So, if you’re looking for cheap TWS earbuds with a sleek design and a reasonable sound quality, the OPPO Enco W11 could be a good option.

Songs referenced in the OPPO Enco W11 review:

OPPO Enco W11 Review: Pros & Cons

Pros:

Sleek design and a lightweight build
IP55 certification & free silicone tips inside the box
Intuitive touch control through the capacitive sensor
Decent audio quality, especially non-bass-heavy music
Good battery life for the price & Type-C charging

Cons:

Bass reproduction isn’t good despite the bass enhancing feature
Could get a little uncomfortable to wear after a couple of hours
Call quality isn’t great although it has AI noise-cancellation during calls

Accurate launches AT-01 TWS earbuds at an affordable price

GadgetByte

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August 13, 2020

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Accurate launches AT-01 TWS earbuds at an affordable price

Accurate aims to provide affordable yet quality gadgets in the Nepalese market. They might be a relatively new player, nonetheless, they are making a name for themselves in the market. Last year’s Accurate HX03 was lauded by many as one of the best affordable TWS earphones. And now, they have launched a follow-up to that product. Today the company launched the new Accurate AT-01 TWS earbuds. The Accurate AT-01 brings certain improvements over its predecessor and will be available for almost a similar price in Nepal.

Accurate AT-01 Overview

On first glance, these new earbuds look similar to its predecessor, however, certain improvements have been made in the design. This new design helps to increase comfort and also allows for a better audio experience. Accurate claims that the device offers 4.5 hours of playback time in one go. This is similar to that of the HX03. However, the claimed total hours of playback time is 14 hours.

The device does not have active noise cancellation. However, it does offer ambient noise reduction. That means cancels out background noise during calls so that the receiver hears your voice clearly. As for connectivity, it uses Bluetooth 5.0. Furthermore, the earbuds support voice assistants on both Android and iOS devices. Also, it comes with a single and dual earbud feature. That means you can seamlessly switch to either mono or stereo mode.

Key Features:

Noise reduction
Bluetooth 5.0
400mAh charging box
4.5 hours battery life
colors: White, Pink & Black
Six months warranty

Accurate AT-01 Price and Availability

The Accurate AT-01 is available in Nepal at an introductory price of Rs. 3,499. Customers can purchase the device from Accurate DarazMall, offline stores, or even opt to order it from their Facebook page.

TWS wireless earphone model	Price in Nepal
Accurate AT-01	NPR 3,499

Helio G70 powered Infinix Note 7 launched in Nepal

GadgetByte

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August 13, 2020

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Helio G70 powered Infinix Note 7 launched in Nepal

Ola Electronics Pvt. Ltd., the authorized distributor of Infinix mobiles in Nepal, has officially unveiled a new smartphone — the Infinix Note 7. It’s a mid-range smartphone priced at Rs. 21,990 and will go head to head against the Redmi Note 9 and the Galaxy A21s.

Talking at the launch, Senior Management of Ola Electronics said, “With the objective to bring international standards of aftersales and service, Ola wants to continue to delight its customers and channel partners with the launch of the new Infinix Note 7.” The company also promises to bring new Infinix products in Nepal at an aggressive price.

Infinix Note 7 Overview

Design and Display

Infinix Note 7 features a 6.95-inch screen with a tall 20:5:9 aspect ratio. There is a tiny circular cut-out on the top left part of the screen, where resides a selfie camera. The device boasts an impressive screen to body ratio of 91.5%.

It also looks gorgeous with the Gem Cut finish on the rear panel and side frames which reveal subtle patterns and highlight from different angles. On the back, there is a circular camera bump for the quad-camera setup. Other than that, the rear panel looks clean thanks to the side-mounted fingerprint sensor.

Performance and Memory

MediaTek’s gaming-focused Helio G70 powers the device. Helio G70 is a decent performer in the budget segment as we saw in Realme C3. Inifnix claims 90% single CPU frequency upgrade, 43% multi-CPU frequency boost, and 100% GPU image rendering frequency boost in this one compared to its predecessor Infinix Note 6. The chipset is backed by 4GB of RAM and 128GB of internal storage.

Cameras

Infinix Note 7 flaunts a 48MP quad-camera setup on the back. The camera lenses are protected by a layer of Corning Gorilla Glass. The primary 48MP camera comes with 1.6-micron Pixel size and f/1.79 aperture. It is accompanied by a 2MP depth sensor, a 2MP macro sensor, and a dedicated low light video camera. The camera bump encloses the quad-LED flash arrangement, which looks similar to the Oneplus 7T. There is a 16MP selfie camera on the front.

Battery and others

The device gets its juice from a 5,000mAh battery which comes with support for 18W SuperCharge 3.0. For security, Infinix has included a capacitive fingerprint sensor on the side and face unlock feature. The device ships with XOS 6.0 based on Android 10. Other features include smart gesture, Live Transcribe, and Wi-Fi sharing.

Infinix Note 7 Specifications:

Dimensions: 173.4×79×8.75mm
Design: Gem Cut Finish
Display: 6.95″ IPS LCD panel
Resolution: HD+ (720 x 1640 pixels)
Rear Camera: Quad,
– 48MP primary lens with f/1.79 aperture
– 2MP macro lens with f/2.4 aperture
– 2MP depth sensor with 25mm focal length
– Super low light video camera with f/1.8 aperture
– Quad-LED flash
Front Camera: 16MP
Chipset: MediaTek Helio G70; 12nm Mobile Platform
Processor: Octa-core (2×2.0 GHz Cortex-A75 & 6×1.7 GHz Cortex-A55)
RAM: 4GB
Storage: 128 GB, expandable
Battery: 5000 mAh, 18W SuperCharge 3.0
Sensors: Fingerprint (side-mounted), accelerometer, g-sensor, proximity, e-compass

Infinix Note 7 Price in Nepal & Availability

The official price of Infinix Note 7 in Nepal is Rs. 21,990. This price is for the 4GB RAM and 128GB storage variants. It goes on sale starting the 14th of August through various mobile retail shops all over Nepal.

Smartphone Model	Price in Nepal
Infinix Note 7 (4+128GB)	NPR 21,990

Samsung Galaxy Watch Active 2 Long-Term Review

Pratima Adhikari

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August 13, 2020

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Samsung Galaxy Watch Active 2 Long-Term Review

This one was a long time coming. I’ve been using the Samsung Galaxy Watch Active 2 for well over 6 months now and well, it is as good a time as any to come up with a long-term review, isn’t it? Practically contributing to my good health, the Watch Active 2 hasn’t managed to get off my wrists for this long. This is also my first smartwatch, by the way. I went for the 44mm version since it offers a slightly bigger battery on top of a larger display. With that out of the way, let’s get on with the long-term review of the Galaxy Watch Active 2.

Galaxy Watch Active 2 Specifications:

Body: Two variants;
- 44mm: 44 x 44 x 10.9mm; 30gm
- 40mm: 40 x 40 x 10.9mm; 26gm
Display: (44mm – 1.4″ / 40mm – 1.2″); Super AMOLED; Corning Gorilla Glass DX+; 360 x 360 pixels
Strap: 20mm interchangeable
Chipset: Dual-core Exynos 9110 @ 1.15GHz
RAM: 768MB (WiFi-only); 1.5GB (LTE)
Storage: 4GB
Battery: (44mm – 340mAh / 40mm – 247mAh); WPC-bases wireless charging
Connectivity: Bluetooth 5.0, Wi-fi b/g/n, NFC, A-GPS/Glonass/Beidou
Software: Tizen OS
Companion App: Samsung Health (Android | iOS)
Compatibility: Android: 5.0 or higher, RAM 1.5GB and above, iPhone: iPhone 5 and above, iOS 9.0 or above
Colors: Aluminum: Cloud Silver, Aqua Black, Pink Gold with FKM material
Price in Nepal: Rs. 38,999

Galaxy Watch Active 2 Long-Term Review:

Getting even a step backward, the reason I opted for the Watch Active 2 above others is.. well, there are a couple of reasons for that. First, I am using a Samsung smartphone as my daily driver, and that helps with the whole Samsung ecosystem and all. Next, it also looks way better than other smartwatches that we’ve reviewed like the Honor MagicWatch 2. While the latter looks a little too sporty to my liking, the Watch Active 2 has a more unisex aesthetics to it, which I’m a big fan of.

Design

Classic circular watch face with premium straps
Light and comfortable on the hands

Let’s start with the design. It has a really comfortable synthetic rubber strap. Besides ease of usage, this strap is really durable too. In all of my time with it, the Watch Active 2 has survived through some pretty gnarly bumps or so. Even though customization is limited in a market like Nepal, I’m quite happy with this regular aqua black color option that I have with me. Having said that, because it follows the universal 20mm watch band standard, you can always customize the look by slapping in a new pair of bands if you feel like it.

Or hey, if something more premium than silicone straps and aluminum body is what you’re aiming for, Samsung also offers an option with leather straps and a stainless steel frame. Obviously, it’s going to be a little heavier and a little expensive too. But if you don’t want to cash in a few extra bucks for a more personal look and feel, I’m happy to report that the one that you get inside the box itself is of excellent quality, and will last you just fine. It sits by you comfortably even with sweats and all and I’m yet to experience any kind of skin irritation from wearing this watch.

Comfortably Lightweight

At just 30gm, the Watch Active 2 doesn’t feel heavy on the hand either. If you’re coming from a fitness band, like me, it sure takes a day or two in getting used to. But after that, it’s smooth sailing forever. Getting to the back of the watch, you can see the heart-rate monitor, while the right frame houses a “back” and a “home” button. All in all, although Samsung hasn’t bothered to make a whole lot of changes in this sequel product (except for the minimized bezels), maybe that’s for the better and I’m happy with this uniformity.

Display

1.2 or 1.4-inches Super AMOLED panel
Corning Gorilla Glass DX+ protection for better scratch resistance
Digital bezels for easy navigation

Moving to the display side of things, the Watch Active 2 comes in either 1.2 or 1.4-inches options depending on whether it’s the 40 or 44mm variant. And like I said earlier, the company has managed to narrow the bezels to pack in a larger display in a smaller form factor. Anyway, for me, the most important upgrade of them all here was the Gorilla Glass DX+ certification for the display. If you recall, the original Watch Active had the regular Gorilla Glass 3 protection which is not quite as durable.

Durable at the core!

Here, the DX+ from Corning has scratch-resistance and anti-reflective properties. As a result, the Watch Active 2 can survive far worse fumbles, drops, or bumps. And that it did! During my time with the device, it has managed to overcome some nasty collisions without any significant scratch whatsoever. Living in a city like Kathmandu which is full of dust, I was worried if the surrounding would be too harsh on the watch. However, the Gorilla Glass DX+ has firmly proven its worth.

Keeping the durability aside, its circular AMOLED display is equally amazing. The 360 x 360-pixel density has remained the same from the original Watch Active, though the panel itself is still just as vibrant. Brightness has been of no concern as the Watch Active 2 gets plenty bright even when I’m outdoors. It is sufficiently sharp to the eyes and has an excellent contrast ratio too. In a typical AMOLED fashion, the blacks are deep, the whites are bright, and the viewing angle is just great. The native apps and practically every Samsung app have been well optimized to fit & function in the screen, though the same cannot be said for a few selections of third-party applications.

Easy navigation

It also retains the Always-on Display feature if you’re into that. But in my case, I’d had it turned off since it takes a significant toll on the battery, and raising the wrist to wake the screen works just fine. Navigating around the screen is easy and the touch-response is fluid as well. The thin bezels around the edge of the screen are actually touch-sensitive and mimic the more traditional rotary controller, similar to a physical rotating bezel found in Samsung’s own Gear S3 and other smartwatches.

Scrolling through the menus via the touch bezel also gifts you with a subtle haptic feedback every time, which is a nice touch. Apart from using the dial, you can also swipe or scroll through the display to navigate through the watch. To sum up, the Watch Active 2 has an excellent display all-around and Samsung’s pivot towards a digital dial, while definitely not making up for its physical counterpart, is still a welcome addition in my opinion.

Performance & UI

Dual-core Exynos 9110 SoC (10nm)
Up to 1.5GB of RAM and 4GB of internal storage
Runs on Tizen Wearable OS 4.0

Now, the performance on the Watch Active 2 is, satisfactory to say the least. It is powered by Samsung’s own Exynos 9110 chipset manufactured under 10nm process node. It is a dual-core processor with Cortex-A53 cores clocked at 1.15GHz. This has been complemented by up to 1.5GB of RAM and 4GB of internal storage.

While the base storage remains constant for every configuration, you’ll have to get by with only 768MB of RAM if you have the non-LTE variant. The thing is, unlike its predecessor, the Watch Active 2 is also eSIM compatible and that’s where you’d enjoy 1.5GB of RAM. This would obviously translate to a smoother transition between the apps though my non-LTE watch served me fine as well.

Tizen OS

And running the whole show is once again Samsung’s proprietary Tizen Wearable OS 4.0. The user interface feels very well designed, snappy, and I noticeably felt it got better with consequent updates. With heavy splashes of One UI throughout the UI, the Watch Active 2 is quite easy to get around and the native Samsung apps run without any trouble. However, the confinement into the company’s own ecosystem definitely feels limiting when it comes to app choices.

I mean, while the onboard and downloadable Samsung apps may be enough to some, many would argue for a larger selection of apps which is just not there on Tizen OS. As a result, Google’s Wear OS and Apple’s watchOS are still streets ahead of Samsung’s wearable ecosystem. One more unfortunate thing is that the Spotify app doesn’t work here in Nepal. I wonder why? Thus, I had to manually add songs into the on-board 4GB of internal storage in case I wanted to listen to music through my Bluetooth headphones when I didn’t have my phone around me. This was especially frustrating since Samsung wearables and select Garmin smartwatches support offline play on Spotify, provided you have a premium subscription. Yeah, not even Wear OS or watchOS supports offline play on Spotify.

Notifications

Here, you can directly connect your headphone to the watch and play music or listen to notification alerts. Furthermore, Watch Active 2 also lets you receive calls directly from the watch itself and the call quality is fantastic. Notifications work fine, and every app you’ve installed into the watch like Gmail, Messenger get constantly synced and you can also reply to messages or perform different actions to the received notification. With this, you won’t have to get distracted to your phone itself and can just subtly replace this with swift action on the watch.

Strong Haptic Feedback

The haptic feedback on receiving any notification is quite strong too and you’ll rarely miss out any of them. In terms of watch faces, there are a lot of options to choose from via the Galaxy Store. Yet, I’m happy with this default one which shows all the details I generally lookout for like time, date, battery life, weather, steps taken, calories burnt, etc. Earlier, I’d also mentioned the back and home button. Well, double-tapping the home button also calls up Samsung’s digital assistant Bixby. Disappointingly, it is not quite responsive as I’d like and is equally slow too.

Tracking & Fitness

More than 40 workout modes
Built-in GPS, Heart Rate Sensor, ECG

When it comes to fitness tracking, Watch Active 2 has a massive arsenal of them. You can track over 40 workouts and see each of their detailed breakdown inside the Samsung Health app, or the watch itself. It also has an updated running coach that gives you audio & visual cues under seven different running workouts from light jogging to endurance running.

I have set up a daily goal of 6500 steps and the watch consistently pushes me towards achieving the daily target. Say, I’m already home from the office and have only walked through 80% of the aim, I am motivated towards reaching the full 6500 steps. Also, I’m someone who is basically glued to a desk throughout the day when I’m at the office. Time and again, the Watch Active 2 would prompt a notification saying “How about a walk?” and I’d make time for a quick jog. These are such little things, but end up making a huge impact on the overall user experience.

Built-in GPS

It also has an in-built GPS which would easily lock-in to your position after a few seconds of calibration. Using this, you can go on a hike or something similar without having to go through the hassle of carrying a phone. The watch can also track your sleep and I found it to be quite accurate. You can also review the detailed report of your sleep cycle including factors like asleep time, different stages of sleep like REM, light, deep, burned calories, etc.

Moreover, it is also 5 ATM water-resistant. What this means is that you can take the Watch Active 2 to up to 50 meters deep in water for up to 10 minutes. It can also be your swim partner as it is swim-proof and one of the many workout-tracking modes also includes swimming. There’s also this cool “water lock mode” which prevents any touch input when you’re enjoying a swim. When you’re done, you can simply press and hold the home key to turn it off, and the watch will then play a sound then eject water through vibration.

Other health-oriented features

Likewise, it can also track the menstruation cycle. While this feature was not available early on, Samsung finally provided a menstrual cycle tracking feature in its Health app a while ago. Here, the Watch Active 2 also ships with a dedicated ECG (Electrocardiogram) sensor. Basically, it can record electrical activities of your heart and can check for different heart conditions. We’ve already seen such a sensor inside a smartwatch from other companies like Apple, in its Watch Series 5. Using this, you’ll be able to get a better reading of blood pressure compared to optical sensors found in common smartwatches in the market.

However, the disappointing thing here is the fact that this hardware hasn’t been complemented with software that makes its use. But turns out, Samsung has faced some big hurdles in rolling out this feature. And months after the launch of the watch itself, the company finally pushed an update to its South Korean customers in June 2020. This was only possible after receiving clearance from the country’s Ministry of Food and Drug Safety. For users elsewhere, Samsung says the feature will be available from Q3 2020. So… fingers crossed!

Battery

Either 247 or 340mAh battery
Wireless charging

Finally, let’s talk about battery life. Watch Active 2’s 40mm option has a smaller 247mAh battery while the 44mm one that I have with me comes with a bigger 340mAh cell. And during my review period, the Galaxy Watch Active 2 lasted me somewhere between 3 and 3 and a half days. With the power-saving feature turned on, that number would easily jump up to a week. My usage mostly revolved around light workouts and jogs now and then, a few minutes of listening to Spotify, frequently working through calls, notifications, and so on. With all this, I’m pretty satisfied with the battery endurance.

For charging, you get a wireless charging dock inside the box. And because smartwatches are a long-term investment, Samsung has been clever enough to implement a rather slow charging speed so as to preserve the battery health for years to come. With this, the comparatively tiny 340mAh battery takes about 2 hours to fully charge.

Conclusion

Time to wrap it all up. Samsung’s Galaxy Watch Active 2 is a solid smartwatch with a great design that you can be comfortable with, in almost every occasion. It has an excellent display panel while the UI/UX itself is decent too. Yeah, I agree that the Tizen Wearable OS is nowhere near its nearest competitors but I believe most of us can get by with what’s available inside the Samsung ecosystem itself. This watch is loaded with fitness tracking features as well, though the whole ECG delay feels annoyingly half-baked.

Its battery life isn’t that bad either, considering it’s a full-fledged smartwatch. With all this, the Watch Active 2 is definitely something you should check out if you’re in the market for a premium smartwatch and can’t quite break the bank for Apple’s best. But hey, if the money’s tight and all you want is a good enough fitness tracker, there are a bunch of other options in the market from brands like Xiaomi, Realme, etc.

Watch our video review of the Samsung Galaxy Watch Active 2!

Galaxy Watch Active 2 Review: Pros & Cons

Pros:

A classic circular design with sleek looks
Navigating around the watch is easy thanks to the digital bezel
Bunch of health tracking features like sleep tracking & heart rate monitoring
Decent battery life compared to other more expensive smartwatches
The watch’s UI is pretty well designed

Cons:

Tizen OS still doesn’t stack up to Google’s Wear OS or Apple’s watchOS
Samsung’s digital assistant Bixby isn’t that responsive
The built-in ECG hasn’t been complemented with a software support