Since the cancellation of the Mobile World Congress, smartphones brand are now launching their devices through online-only events. Xiaomi unveiled the Mi 10 series through an online event in China. Realme too did it for the X50 Pro 5G. And now, Sony has unveiled Sony Xperia 1 II (pronounced Sony Xperia One Mark Two) through an online event, and also announced Xperia PRO targeted at professional level photography. So, let’s find out how it differs from flagship phones from other brands.
Sony Xperia 1 II Overview
With the Sony Xperia 1 II, Sony too has joined the 5G bandwagon. The successor to last year’s Xperia 1, comes with the latest flagship processor from Qualcomm – Snapdragon 865. There are 8GB of RAM and 256GB storage onboard.
The Sony Xperia 1 II comes with a 6.5-inch 4K HDR OLED panel with a 21:9 aspect ratio. Sony doesn’t look keen on joining the high-refresh-rate-bandwagon. Instead, Sony has gone with Motion Blur Reduction technology. However, the company claims it is on par with 90Hz display as it can reduce lag by adjustment of frames based on the content on the screen. Both the front and the back of the phone is protected by Corning Gorilla Glass 6.
The Xperia 1 II comes with a 12MP ZEISS’s triple camera setup on the back. The 24mm primary camera comes with f/1.7 aperture with a larger 1/1.7-inch Exmor sensor. It is accompanied by a 16mm f/2.2 ultrawide sensor and a 70mm f/2.4 telephoto lens. All the lens come with ZEISS’s anti-reflective coating. There is an 8MP sensor on the front for selfies.
It is not the strongest setup at least on the paper, but there is more than what meets the eye. Sony claims this to the first phone to support up to 20fps in burst mode. Sony also claims that it can calculate AF/AE at up to 60 times/second. The Eye autofocus from Xperia 1 now works both with humans and animals. The phone can record 4K videos at 60fps and 2K videos at 120fps.
The Sony Xperia 1 II comes with IP65 and IP68 ratings against water and dust. it comes with a decent 4,000mAh battery with support for wireless charging. Unlike the recent trends in flagship phones, this one comes with a 3.5mm headphone jack which was dropped in its predecessor. A fingerprint sensor is placed on the right side of the device.
Sony Xperia 1 II Specifications
Body: 6.5 x 2.8 x 0.30 inches; 182 gm
Display: 6.5-inches OLED panel with Corning Glass 6 Protection.
Storage: 128GB (expandable up to 512GB via a dedicated SD card slot)
Software: Android 10
Rear Camera: Triple-camera;
– 12MP the primary shooter
– 16mm, 12MP, ultra-wide-angle lens
– 3X telephoto lens
– LED flash
Front Camera: 8MP
Fingerprint sensor: Side-Mounted
3.5mm Headphone Jack: Yes
Battery: 4000 mAh battery with 21W USB-PD charging & 15W wireless charging
Sony Xperia PRO Overview
Sony Xperia Pro
Alongside Xperia 1 II, Sony also unveiled Sony Xperia PRO which looks to be designed for professionals. The specs of the device aren’t official yet. However, it will come with an HDMI port which will help it double as a camera monitor and will be compatible with Sony’s Alpha cameras. The device will likely be used as a broadcasting device as it will also be coming with 5G connectivity.
In practice, the phone could be used as a monitor, a capture device, or a broadcast terminal since it has an incredibly color-accurate 6.5-inches 4K HDR OLED display. It also has a 4-way 5G mmWave antenna arrangement and “low permittivity materials” that facilitate 360º connectivity at speeds of up to 5Gbps or more.
Besides these, the phone is powered by Snapdragon 865 and comes with 8/512GB of memory configuration. Though not every spec about the phone has been revealed, let’s take a look at the confirmed spec-sheet of the Sony Xperia PRO.
Sony Xperia PRO Specifications (confirmed)
Body: Corning Gorilla Glass 6 front/back; IP65/68 Water Resistance
One name that springs up in most Nepalese’s mind when talking about e-commerce is Daraz. It is the brand that most people lean on for online shopping and thus in its year-end review, we found out how big the rise of Daraz has been in Nepal. Still, it has a lot of market share left to capture. No wonder, it keeps coming up with exciting campaigns such as the 11.11 and so on. And the latest campaign, as a matter of fact, the first one for the year 2020, is Daraz Appy Shopping campaign.
In 2017, what formerly was known as Kaymu, got rebranded as Daraz. And since then it has been acquired by the Alibaba group. The dramatic rise of Daraz over these years is out there for all of us to see. And a big part of their dominance in the market is played by the campaigns that they launch. The Daraz Appy Shopping campaign is also something with which they plan on keeping their current customers happy. Similarly, it will also help attract new customers.
Daraz Appy Shopping offerings
This campaign is going to be a week-long bonanza starting from February 25 and going up to March 2. Basically, this festival of sort is being held in order to make shopping on the Daraz Mobile App more exciting and fun.
Daraz App users (both Android and iOS) will be able to play a variety of games in the In-App Game Zone via which they will be able to win a ton of prizes. Games such as the One Rupee Game, Mission Game, and more, customers have a chance to win exciting gift hampers.
Similarly, in this campaign the Shake Shake game, previously seen during the 11.11 campaign makes a return. All these interactive games help users get discount coupons and vouchers.
Moreover, during the course of the event, Mega Deals of up to 60% discount are offered on a variety of products. Additionally, Crazy Flash Sales provide a chance for customers to cash in on huge discounts on clothes, phones, electronic appliances, and more.
A great news for anyone looking to buy a smartphone during this campaign is that there will be heavy discounts on mobiles too. There will be Rs. 1000 off in Realme phones and up to 40% off on other smartphones. Similarly, something has been planned for the K20 Pro too. However, it has not been declared yet. Furthermore, huge discounts on TVs, and exciting offers on home appliances are there too.
Besides all these, one can enjoy free delivery, free gifts and bundle offers. Likewise, customers can get further discounts by making pre-payment through Daraz’s banking partners. The banking partners include Nabil Bank, Standard Chartered Bank, Siddhartha Bank and NIC ASIA Bank. However, each bank offers discounts only on specific days until the campaign lasts.
Planning to buy K20 Pro during Daraz Appy Shopping? Well, do have a look at our video-review of the device before splashing the cash!
New day, new phone – ain’t that the story these days? Well, this is the harvest time of smartphones, to be honest. So expect your newsfeed to be swarmed with news of smartphone launches this time around. And adding an entry to that list is the new Realme X50 Pro 5G. After having gone China-exclusive with the original X50, the new Realme X50 Pro 5G has been launched in India. Let’s find out more about the phone specifications, features, price, and expected availability in Nepal.
Realme X50 Pro 5G Overview
Design & Display
There’s not much to be wowed about by the Realme X50 Pro’s design, to be honest. It is heavily inspired by the regular X50 in terms of its looks; there a dual-punch hole cutout for the two front-facing cameras and even the rear cameras are arranged in a similar fashion. The X50 Pro 5G comes with Corning Gorilla Glass 5 protection both on the front & the back. There are two “interesting” color options this time around – Moss Green & Rust Red. It has a matte finish and looks kinda undersaturated, which is growing on me every time I look at it.
Moving to the displays, it’s got a 6.44-inches FHD+ Super AMOLED panel with a 92% screen-to-body ratio. But that’s not the most impressive thing about this display. It’s got a 90Hz refresh rate, which is pretty common for a 2020 phone. But what’s even more exciting here is that the Realme X50 Pro 5G’s display has got 1000+ nits of peak brightness with 105% NTSC & 100% DCI-P3 coverage on top of HDR10+ compatibility. Woo! Such a tremendous display in an upper mid-range phone is really exciting!
Performance & Memory
Being the “Pro” model that it is, the phone comes boasting the latest Snapdragon 865 chipset. And we all know that this is a 5G-ready SoC. Pair that with its India-launch, that makes the Realme X50 Pro the country’s first 5G smartphone. That’s quite an important title to have in one’s name, so kudos to Realme! But only a faster chipset doesn’t make a faster phone.
Apart from 5G, there’s a 360º surround antenna, WiFi 6, NFC, dual-channel GPS in terms of faster network connectivity. In terms of memory as well, the Realme X50 Pro comes with either 6, 8, or 12GB of LPDDR5 RAM, though the storage isn’t the latest UFS 3.1. You can choose between either 128 or 256GB of UFS 3.0 storage. Realme also claims that the phone has scored over 600K in AnTuTu Benchmark, making the X50 Pro the first phone to cross that landmark. But we’ll have to look out for real-life tests to verify the legitimacy of that claim. The phone runs on realme UI 1.0 based on Android 10 & ColorOS 7.
Cameras
Getting to the cameras, there’s a dual-camera setup on the front placed inside a punch-hole cutout. The primary lens is a 32MP Sony IMX616 sensor while there’s an 8MP ultra-wide-angle lens with 105º field-of-view as well. Now, the rear cameras are where it gets interesting, and a little disappointing as well, not gonna lie.
You are getting a quad-camera setup like the X50, but the lenses are a little different on this one. The primary lens is a 64MP Samsung ISOCELL GW1 sensor, which can take 16MP pixel-binned images. It’s not a bad lens, but it’s old news and the Sony IMX686 would’ve been a much safer choice. Apart from that, there’s also a 12MP telephoto lens (with up to 20X digital zoom), an 8MP ultra-wide lens which also doubles as a macro lens, and a 2MP B&W portrait sensor.
Battery
The battery is another thing to get excited about on this phone. You’re getting a decently large 4200mAh battery with 65W SuperDart Charge. As a result, the Realme X50 Pro shares the fastest smartphone charging capability with its parent company OPPO’s Reno Ace, which came with a similar 65W SuperVOOC Flash Charge 2.0.
Realme claims that you can fully charge this battery from 0 to 100 within 35 minutes. Furthermore, a 20-minutes charge fills the juice up to 60%, and with a mere 3-minutes charge, the phone can endure up to 4 hours of call time.
Front Camera: Dual-camera;
– 32MP, f/2.5 Sony IMX616 sensor
– 8MP, f/2.2 ultra-wide lens with 105º FOV
Security: In-display fingerprint scanner
Audio: Stereo speakers with Dolby Atmos
Connectivity: Dual-SIM (Nano), WiFi 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac/ax, Bluetooth 5.1, GPS/AGPS/GLONASS/BDS, USB Type-C
Battery: 4200 mAh with 65W SuperDart charging
Colors: Moss Green, Rust Red
Realme X50 Pro 5G Price & Availability
The Realme X50 Pro went on sale in India at the price of INR. 37,999 for the base 6/128GB variant. Similarly, the 8/128GB version costs INR. 38,999 and the high-end 12/256GB variant is priced at INR. 44,999. In Nepal, the Realme X50 is expected to have a price of Rs. 60,000. This price is for the base 6/128GB variant.
Realme X50 Pro Variant
Price in India
Price in Nepal [Converted]
6GB RAM, 128GB storage
INR. 37,999
Rs. 60,800
8GB RAM, 128GB storage
INR. 38,999
Rs. 62,400
8GB RAM, 256GB storage
INR. 44,999
Rs. 72,000
With all the spec-sheet that it’s packing, that’s damn competitive pricing, don’t you agree? As a result, the Realme X50 Pro falls right under the premium mid-range territory of OnePlus. So, it’ll be interesting to see how OnePlus & Xiaomi too will retaliate the Realme aggression.
Today, smartphone companies aren’t just smartphone companies. Besides smartphones, they offer arrays of products including anything from accessories to IoT devices and whatnot. One such brand which has excelled in doing so is the Chinese giant Xiaomi. However, competition is getting intense on this side of the business too. Brands are now expanding their portfolios beyond smartphones and accessories. One such brand is Realme which is trying really hard to beat Xiaomi in its own game. After battling out in the smartphone and accessories segment, Realme is now planning to overshadow Xiaomi with its own line of TVs. And what excites us the most is the fact that we might see Realme debut its TV within this year.
Realme’s Mission 2020
The company may say otherwise but we firmly believe that Realme was introduced to counter the growth of Xiaomi in South Asian Market especially in India. And we must admit- it is doing well. Realme has settled well in the Indian market and now looks to grow. As per the company’s CEO Madhav Sheth, Realme is now eyeing for the title of “Largest Tech-lifestyle” brand in India. With the slogan of “Realme for Every Indian” Realme will also focus on software and IoT devices this year. We expect the company to launch its first fitness band in the first quarter of this year which will be followed by an announcement of their own lineup of smart TVs.
Realme CMO Francis Wang first teased the Realme TV when asked about it by a fan in one of which tweets. Realme’s official page on Twitter has also teased a product to launch on the 24th of February. We don’t have concrete information but by the looks of it, we believe Realme will be announcing its own TV in the event. What else can you make of Real Sound, Real Design, Real Clarity?
Realme Link
As of now, we don’t know anything about the specifications and features of the device. However, the TV will be compatible with Realme Link. In case you are hearing it for the first time, it is an app designed by Realme to act as a universal remote for upcoming Realme IoT devices.
Though we don’t have a date, we know for sure we will be seeing a TV from Relame within this year. In an online Interview, Madhav Seth has confirmed the TV will launch in India in Q2. If nothing goes wrong, it will land in April. While it’s obvious that it will compete against Xiaomi’s TV, there are other brands to look out for such as OnePlus and Nokia. That’s not all, Honor is also gearing up for the launch of its Vision TV.
If it wasn’t for the outbreak of COVID-19 and its fear, right now we would have been talking about the products in the MWC 2020 event. However, since the event has already been canceled, brands have to deal with it with their own. Realme X50 Pro 5G, which was originally scheduled for launch in the WMC, will now be announced in an online event. Moreover, we expect to hear more about upcoming IoT devices such as the Realme fitness band in the same event.
Don’t forget to check our review of Asus Zenbook Pro Duo!
Quick, what’s the first thing that comes to your mind when hearing the word “laptop”? Let me guess, a screen, underneath a keyboard and a trackpad, a couple of I/Os on the side, that you open to browser your favorite subreddits, or give a one-star rating to that restaurant where they served you milk coffee when you vividly remembering ordering a black coffee. Ah, I may have gone a little off-track there. Anyhoo, the point is, they’re boring to look at since there hasn’t really been an impressive change in the design language of laptops in the past couple of years.
Don’t get me wrong, they do their job just fine. Manufacturers obviously have tried to bring something new with each of their offerings. New processors are always a given, but apart from that, we’ve been blessed with other innovations as well. Displays are getting sharper and more vivid, while their bezels are getting smaller. Moreover, laptops are shrinking in terms of thickness as well, making them more portable than ever. Having said all that, the core template of a laptop as a computing device has remained the same, the one I described before. And thus, the extent of functionality has not taken any leap. Don’t tell me you haven’t suffered from the lack of adequate screen real-estate on your device.
Arranging multiple apps in congestion with each other is always a headache. Not to mention, they’re a pain to navigate as well. But what if you could have an entirely new laptop experience with a large secondary display that complements the main one. A separate USB-C monitor sounds awesome, but that defeats the portability of a laptop. Well, how about a full-on secondary display embedded into the device itself? Does that knock you off of your seat? It certainly should, because multiple display laptops look to be where the industry is headed, as a lot of manufacturers showcased their vision of a dual-display laptop at CES 2020. But today, I have the ASUS ZenBook Pro Duo with me, which can arguably be credited for the multi-display revolution in the laptop industry. That’s enough for the intro, let’s finally get into our review of the ASUS ZenBook Pro Duo.
ASUS ZenBook Pro Duo Specifications:
Design & Build: All-aluminum body with spun-metal cover; 14.13W x 9.68D x 0.94H-inches; 2.5kg (5.51 pounds)
Connectivity: WiFi 802.11 ax (WiFi 6), Bluetooth 5.0
Ports: 1x Thunderbolt 3 USB-C, 2x USB 3.1 Gen 2 Type-A, 1x Standard HDMI 2.0, 1x Audio combo jack, 1x DC-in
Price in Nepal: Rs. 359,000 (i7 model) / Rs. 435,000 (i9 model) [both with 32GB RAM & 1TB SSD storage]
Design & Build
Let me start with the design of this glorious feat of engineering. The ASUS ZenBook Pro Duo comes in an all-aluminum body, and yeah, it’s as premium as “premium” can get. Also, heavy. If you were used to carrying around lightweight laptops, this one will give you a tough time, as the ZenBook Pro Duo weighs a hefty 2.5 kilograms.
Besides that, ASUS really went all-in in designing this laptop and I have all the praise for the company. The device is really sturdy and well-built with no flex at all on the lid and the keyboard thanks to the military-grade MIL-STD 810G certification. However, the same cannot be said for the secondary display. It ever-so-slightly flexes, but only with an intentionally strong nudge. Therefore, that’s not an alarming issue at all, even when you’re sketching on it.
The lid borrows the classic spun-metal finish from the company’s ZenBook lineup of laptops, with a subtle reflection going on all around the layer, while the ASUS logo sits atop the center-right side of the lid. ZenBook Pro Duo is a powerful machine with top-end specs, which I’ll delve into in more detail later on, and thus requires an efficient cooling mechanism.
With this in mind, the base of the laptop which features the keyboard, secondary display, and the multi-purpose trackpad don’t lay flat as the traditional laptops do. The “Ergolift” screen hinge we’ve seen in ASUS’ ZenBook laptops makes its presence here as well.
It lifts the entire chassis, thus giving it an inclined layout when opening the device to a normal layout for better heat dissipation, while the rubberized padding runs along the bottom of the laptop.
Thermals
Talking about thermals, the ZenBook Pro Duo has five copper heat pipes that are connected to the two fans. Complementing the thermal performance are the big air vents on the sides and the hidden ones on the hinge of the laptop, which make for better airflow. And if you think that’s now enough to efficiently cool down this beast of a machine, ASUS has included a dedicated “Turbo” button which pushes the fans to the max for their ability.
The ZenBook Pro Duo did heat up mildly in my time of usage when I’d be working on a video editing project, or multitasking with multiple tabs of Chrome opened alongside Photoshop and other programs. But it’s during intense gaming when you’d want to utilize the niceties of the Turbo mode because the laptop gets loud and hot.
Interface & Networking
For a device targeted so heavily to the content creators, the port selection on the ZenBook Pro Duo is kinda abysmal and that’s disappointing. On the left, you get the power adapter (not USB-C), a standard HDMI 2.0, and a USB 3.1 Gen 2 port, while there’s one Thunderbolt 3 USB-C, an audio jack, and another USB 3.1 Gen 2 port on the other side.
No LAN connection, and more importantly no dedicated SD card reader.
Ports & Connectivity
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You’d think the majority of the potential customers of such a laptop would be video editors, photographers who deal with SD cards all the time. Of course, you can always use an external card reader, but that means one less port for something else. Moving on, in terms of wireless connectivity, the ZenBook Pro Duo comes with Wi-Fi 6 and Bluetooth 5.0.
Display
You’re in for a treat right here.
That right there is the display. Now let’s talk about the display; can we talk about the display, please? I’ve been dying to talk about the display with you guys all day, okay? “Dual-display”, this name keeps coming up over and over and over again. Every day dual-display keeps getting talked about. Dual-display, dual-display, I look in the mail, and the whole box is full of questions about dual-display. So I say to myself I gotta talk about it.
First, the primary display. It is a majestic glossy 15.6-inches 4K UHD OLED panel from Samsung and I’m sure this is the best screen I’ve ever laid my eyes on. The contrast and colors, my God; I can praise them all day. Additionally, it is also HDR & touch compatible with 100% DCI-P3 coverage, making it one of the most color-accurate display on any laptop on the market right now.
Well, this thing costs a fortune so anything less wouldn’t be justified either.
Minimal bezels further add to the beauty of the display. You get a clean viewing experience with the 89% screen-to-body ratio it’s got going on. The top also houses the array microphones and the IR webcam which supports Windows Hello login and let me tell you, it works almost every single time (provided that the laptop is inclined optimally of course).
Getting to the secondary display, it’s a 14-inches 4K-ish matte IPS display with touch support. I say 4K-ish because it’s not tall enough to be considered as a true 4K panel. ASUS calls it “ScreenPad Plus” and there are some clever design choices. The matte not only makes for a non-reflective panel, but it’s also simultaneously the better surface of the two to use the pressure-sensitive stylus that comes with the laptop.
With that out of the way, let me answer the burning question about this device –
just how productive is the wide second display?
Short answer: it gets pretty close to perfection, not gonna lie. But to my dismay, the potentials of this magnificent piece of hardware doesn’t feel accompanied by solid software. No, it’s not downright wasted, don’t get your eyes rolling. Nonetheless, I firmly believe ASUS should’ve worked to a greater extent with Microsoft to make the ScreenPad Plus more refined than it is.
First and foremost, there should’ve been some built-in presets for certain software packages like the Adobe suite to work effortlessly on the dual-screen. This thing is designed with such users after all. Secondly, God forbid you put the machine to sleep with multiple apps running simultaneously on both screens! ‘Cause logging back in would mean the ones previously running on the ScreenPad Plus magically shift to the top, making you frantically drag them around again.
Now let me give you a quick rundown of how to get around making use of it, which is pretty easy, to be honest. Dragging around an app would trigger three options to either switch them to the opposing screen, pin it to the launcher on the ScreenPad Plus, or extend an app throughout both displays.
Utilizing the ScreenPad Plus
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Minimizing app to the ScreenPad Plus
Extending an app across both screens
Pinning app to the launcher
The ability to extend across the screens comes in handy the most when you’re using certain apps that require a rather large screen-space. For example: in Adobe Premiere Pro, you can have the second display dedicated to the video’s timeline for a better workflow. But there’s a distinct lag when dragging through the timeline, and that’s the aforementioned janky software at work. Similarly, you can sketch on the ScreenPad Plus for finer editing on the Adobe Photoshop. The web-browsing experience on the ZenBook Pro Duo is also elevated when extended among the two screens.
Obviously, it’s not meant to be used as an extension of one app only. You can concurrently organize up to three apps on the secondary screen. And if there’s a set of them you frequently use, you can group them together and launch ‘em all with one simple click. This too isn’t as fluid and fast as you’d want. Similarly, you can also easily interchange the apps’ position between the screen using the “task swap” option on the launcher below, or a dedicated button. Navigating across the apps opened on the ScreenPad Plus is also made easy through the App Navigator, using which you can view the running apps and then decide to close or open them.
Furthermore, ASUS has implemented features like Quick Key which lets you program macros to run certain apps or actions, Handwriting with text recognition ability, and Number Key, which… launches a number key.
Multitasking
So yeah, an additional screen sure does enhance the scope of productivity on the ZenBook Pro Duo. You can have multiple apps running at a time, without having to bother with congested screen space, or frequently switching between them. But I can’t help but wish ASUS had collaborated with Microsoft to optimize the software end of the machine. At times, the broken software makes you feel like you’re on a low-spec machine, which is simply not the case here.
Performance & Gaming
The top-end Intel processor shouldn’t have, at least in theory, resulted in such performance. At least I was not expecting that. You can choose between Intel’s twoCoffee Lakeprocessors – the Core i7-9750H or the i9-9980HK, and the latter’s the one on my unit.
On to the graphics, you get the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2060 with 6GB of GDDR6 VRAM. That’s a pretty powerful combo, but for its price, I was hoping for at least RTX 2070. Plus, the fact that the primary screen is 4K and to play triple-A titles on their max settings, 2060 is not the best of choices. But regardless, I put the ZenBook Pro Duo to test.
But before going in, the dual-display presents another possibility for gaming as well. With the primary display occupied by gameplay, you can fill the secondary display with your preferred streaming platform, and Discord or other apps you prefer. Sounds great but you’re greeted with a problem here as well.
Trying to access other apps on ScreenPad Plus when playing games on fullscreen automatically minimized the game.
Yeah, the software to complement the dual-screen really isn’t that great. That’s like the zillionth time I’ve brought that up in this video.
Gaming on the main screen, while simultaneously using Twitch & Discord on the ScreenPad Plus
Don’t lose hope just yet, because we found a workaround. Interacting with apps on the second display is possible when setting the game’s screen mode to either Windowed or Borderless. Phew! Now talking about the gameplay itself, I tried Battlefield V, Apex Legends, and Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice.
Here, let’s talk about Battlefield V first. It ran at around 35 to 40fps under 4K resolution at Ultra settings, while that jumped to 60fps on average when lowering the resolution to 1080p. Now since the game can make the use of RTX 2060’s ray-tracing cores, I turned that on as well. With this, the frame rate dropped to an average of 50fps on 1080p. The laptop also got quite loud and hot too, with the temperature rising to around 45ºC even with the Turbo cooling turned on.
Moreover, Apex Legends gave around 30 to 35fps in Ultra settings at 4K resolution and about 90 to 100 fps at 1080p. Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice, on the other hand, stayed between 30 and 40fps in Ultra settings at 4K and remained at around 60fps in 1080p.
Apart from gaming, the ASUS ZenBook Pro Duo handles every other task you throw at it with ease. Editing videos in Adobe Premiere Pro, while simultaneously playing music, opening Photoshop and Google Chrome with multiple tabs didn’t break a sweat either. The laptop does get mildly hot in such scenarios as well.
Memory & Storage
This spectacular multitasking is supplemented by an equally grand memory arrangement as well. This unit has 32GB of DDR4 RAM clocked at 2666MHz, which is the highest one available, while options for 8 and 16GB are also available. But I do have to warn you that the RAM isn’t user upgradeable since the one coming with the laptop is soldered.
In terms of storage, the laptop comes with either 256, 512, or 1TB of PCIe Gen3 SSD, which thankfully is user-upgradeable, unlike RAM. With such great read/write speeds, installing heavy apps or games was completed within just a couple of minutes.
You might have seen this raw strength only once before.
Keyboard & Trackpad
The keyboard’s really nice as well with the minimal 1.4mm key travel. It is backlit with three levels of brightness but not RGB, though that’s not an issue for me as I’m really not into the RGB cult. The typing experience here is terrific and it’s easy to get to the keys without any trouble.
However, since the top portion of the laptop’s base is consumed by the additional screen, there is no wrist-rest. Well, ASUS has compensated that by including a separate wrist-rest, which also reflects the notification LED that’s located beneath the keyboard. Another sacrifice to portability.
A separate wrist-rest on the ZenBook Pro Duo
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Wrist-rest
Wrist-rest attached
The trackpad on the right side of the keyboard is just as difficult to get used to as you can imagine. I am not a fan of requiring a shift in hand position to access it in the middle of typing. Keeping that aside, this glass trackpad is really well built and uses Windows Precision drivers.
The left/right buttons are clicky and responsive too. What’s interesting is that this trackpad also doubles as Numpad, and you can also set its brightness level. Don’t worry, scrolling is still possible with Numpad turned on.
Audio
Audio on the ZenBook Pro Duo is another thing that impressed me. It features a bottom-firing stereo audio system, which is certified by Harman Kardon. Though it’s definitely not the loudest I’ve heard in a laptop, the audio is crisp and clear with rich bass and nice surround-sound feel.
Battery
Finally, let’s get into the battery. Despite a big 8-cell 71Wh battery, its endurance didn’t sit well with me no matter how much I tried to convince myself about the fact that laptop’s got dual 4K display. The battery life would range between 3 to 5 hours during normal usage, which consisted of a lot of web browsing, photo editing, and running a couple of other small apps on the side. I usually kept the brightness of the primary and the secondary display at about 50%. You can also minimize the resolution of the ScreenPad Plus to save battery, or disable it all together via the dedicated button.
On the charging front, the 230W power adapter is big and heavy too, which takes about 2 hours to go from 0 to 100. More disappointingly, it doesn’t support USB-C charging.
Conclusion
I don’t quite know how to feel about the ASUS ZenBook Pro Duo. It’s exciting, innovating, bold, and expensive, let’s not forget that. Its dual display really brings something new to the laptop industry, while amplifying the level of productivity as well. The performance and the fantabulous primary display are so darn stellar, that it hurts me to shift back to my old laptop. Having said all that, I’d once again like to beat a dead horse and complain about the lack of polished software.
The dual-display experience and productivity could’ve been so much better, but we’re left unattended, wanting for more. Cramming in a secondary display has hurt the laptop’s portability too. An uncomfortable trackpad, a separate wrist-rest, and a massive power-adapter for a laptop that already weighs about 2 and a half kilograms (or 5.5 pounds) mean that you’ll have a hard time carrying them around.
In the end, I believe it depends on who you ask. This definitely is not for a value-oriented buyer, no sir. But the innovation that it brings with it, I’m sure many will fall in love with it right away. So will the amused crowd buy this thing? Well, I have my doubts but you can quote me when I say the ASUS ZenBook Pro Duo will remain in the hearts of many for ages.
ASUS ZenBook Pro Duo – Pros & Cons
Pros:
A new laptop experience with enhanced productivity
Eased multitasking with swift switching among the apps
Powerful hardware resulting in a powerful performance
Amazingly color-accurate display with a great viewing experience
Great typing experience with minimum key-travel keyboard
Cons:
Very poor battery life despite a high-capacity cell
Software complementing the dual-display should’ve been a lot better
Price doesn’t justify the performance, not in Nepal
Reduced portability because of the need for extra accessories
JBL is among the best options if you are looking for a Bluetooth speaker in Nepal since there is hardly anyone better in the game. And the best part about it is that it has something to offer at almost every price range. You can buy its products through the official channel in Nepal and don’t worry – the official stores keep updating their inventory so that you won’t have to wait for too long to get your hands on the latest products. The latest JBL product to hit the Nepalese market is the JBL Pulse 4. Let’s look at what the speaker has to offer.
JBL Pulse 4
The speakers under the JBL Pulse series not only promise astonishing sound quality but put on a colorful show with its dazzling LED light. And JBL Pulse 4 is no exception. The LEDs cover a greater section of JBL Pulse 4 in comparison to its predecessor. So you may say that the 360-degree light show got better with Pulse 4. You can control the lights using JBL Connect App & choose between the available light themes or customize them based on your preference. You can also enjoy the light show even when it isn’t playing any music.
Though the light show is promising, it is there to complement the sound that the speaker produces. JBL Pulse 4 comes with a 360-degree speaker arrangement. So no matter where you are from the speaker, you can enjoy the JBL signature 360-degree sound. You can pair it with other JBL PartyBoost compatible speakers to enhance the experience. It comes with a battery of 7,260mAh capacity which the company claims will provide up to 12hours of music playback time. And if you ever run out of juice you can charge it using the USB Type-C charger provided in the box. You can get it fully charged in about 4 hours.
You won’t have to worry about taking it outdoors with you as it comes with an IPX7 waterproof rating. What that means is that it can theoretically withstand water up to the depth of 1m. Unlike Pulse 3, Pulse 4 doesn’t come with any speakerphone. While the former came with noise and echo-canceling speakerphone, it has been dropped in the latter. So you won’t be able to receive calls or call your voice assistant. There’s no place for 3.5mm headphone jack too.
JBL Pulse 4 is priced at NPR. 29,000 and you can buy it from Evo Store. Considering the fact that it goes for about $250 in the international market, that’s a damn good price if you ask me.
So is it worth the price? We will let you know once we are done with the review. Until then, share what you think of the speaker.
Don’t forget to check out our review of ASUS Zenbook Pro Duo!
The competition among smartphones in the entry-level segment is the crunch. And the likes of Xiaomi and Realme rule it. However, where there’s a ruler there’s gonna be a contender who’ll try to overthrow the leader. Sony is trying that with the launch of the new Sony Xperia L4.
Sony’s smartphones might be unheard of these days, however, it hasn’t stopped Sony from launching new smartphones in the market. For instance, both Xperia 1 and Xperia 5 are on course for a refresh. Similarly, Xperia 1.1 and Xperia 5 Plus too will launch very soon. And for the entry-level segment, Sony has got its Xperia L series.
The Sony Xperia L4 too is Sony’s latest offering in the entry-level market. This device comes as a successor to the Xperia L3 that released last year.
Sony Xperia L4 overview
This device offers a 6.2-inch HD+ IPS LCD display with a resolution of 1680 x 720 pixels. Furthermore, the screen is long and narrow, giving it an aspect ratio of 21:9.
Under the hood, the Xperia L4 runs on MediaTek Helio P22 chipset. Now, a similar chipset was there in last year’s model too. So, I cannot really comprehend why they have decided to go with the same processor. I mean you’ll not receive any upgrade in performance. For comparison, the Helio P22 was used in Xiaomi Redmi 6 and that phone released a long time ago.
Similarly, in terms of storage, you get a 3GB/64GB configuration. And that’s the least they have to provide in an entry-level smartphone.
As for the camera, on the back, there’s a triple camera setup with a 13MP primary sensor. The setup is completed by a 5MP ultra-wide-angle lens and a 2MP depth sensor. And upfront, you get an 8MP selfie shooter. Similarly, the device is powered by a 3,580mAh battery that supports fast charging.
Specifications
Display: 6.2″ IPS LCD display with HD+ resolution (1680 x 720 pixels)
Rear Camera: Triple, 13 MP with f/2.0 aperture + 5MP ultra-wide lens with f/2.2 aperture + 2MP depth sensor with f/2.4 aperture
The speculation is that the Sony Xperia L4 will be available only in selected markets from Spring 2020. And as for the pricing, it’s still not known how much the device will cost. However, as the day for the launch nears, we’re bound to hear more about it.
With iffy chipset and mediocre overall specs, the Xperia L4 will fall behind its competitors like the Redmi 8A Dual or the Realme C3. Hence, Xperia L4 might not launch here in south asia.
Fed-up of your old Samsung smartphone? Most probably you will go out and get a new one. But what about your old device then, pass it down to a younger sibling? That’s one way to utilize it. However, what if your old device could be somehow used to purchase the fancy-new Samsung mobile that you’re craving for. You might have already guessed but allow me to explicitly mention it. I am talking about exchanging your current device for a new one. And the IMS group has introduced an exciting Exchange Facility for Samsung smartphones.
IMS group is a huge conglomerate focused on improving the technological and economic aspects of the nation. They have over three decades of experience in providing quality service and in fact, are the first company in Nepal that officially began importing mobile phones.
Coming back to the topic, from Jan 2020, the IMS group commenced its Exchange Facility program. It is actually quite difficult to get the best valuation for a smartphone from a random XYZ shop. Most often than not, you’ll walk away with what might be the worst deal.
Now, I know there are some e-commerce sites that claim to provide good value for older devices. However, it has not really taken off and thus, no one can guarantee its pricing. Thus, it really seems like a great opportunity to be able to get your old smartphones exchanged for a new one directly from the official source itself.
Currently, this Exchange Facility, by the IMS group claims to give the best valuation for your old Samsung devices and also guarantees spot exchange. For now, you can visit IMS smart showrooms, inside Kathmandu to take the benefit of this program.
Every year we wait eagerly for smartphone brands to drop their latest smartphones. Most of the time its the hardware part that grabs the headline. Besides that, we also expect phones to come with the latest software available. If software excites you as munch hardware excites most of the people, we have a piece of good news for you. Google has already launched the first developer preview of the upcoming Android 11. So, let’s have a look at what can be expected of the forthcoming iteration of the beloved mobile OS.
Android 11 Developer Preview: What we know so far
Better 5G experiences
It’s 2020, and this year belongs to 5G smartphones. While several 5G-capable devices have already hit the market, many are yet to come. Google has decided to enhance its APIs to suit the 5G consumer. The Dynamic Meteredness API offers higher quality content if an unmetered connection is recognized. This time around, it will also include cellular networks to identify unmetered 5G connection. Google has also enhanced the bandwidth estimator API. The API can now estimate the downstream/upstream bandwidth on its own without having to depend on the network.
Smartphone screens have been the subject of interest as of late. Brands are coming up with newer and never-before-seen screens types. Android 11 comes with a new API for better interaction with the waterfall screen that was first teased by Oppo last year.
Messages to be a lot more fun
Messaging in Android 11 will be easier and more exciting than ever. Google is introducing a conversation section in the notification shade to help you keep better track of the conversation you are having. That’s not all, Bubble API will make it easier to text while muli-tasking. It reminds me of the Chat head feature of Messenger. However, with the Bubble API, other apps will also be able to use it.
With Android 11, Google claims users will have more control over their privacy. We loved the while-app-is-in-use permission option in the Android 10. This year, Google has gone a step ahead with one-time permission. The permission granted this way will be applicable only until the user shifts away from the app. If the user decides to come back again to the same app, they will have to grant permission once again. Furthermore, apps won’t be able to irritate you with permission requests for particular permission if you have denied the request twice already.
Image & Graphics
The phones running Android 11 will now be able to decode and render HEIF files. HEIF files offer greater file-size reductions for image sequence than the animated GIFs. This change is supposed to keep both network data and app size small. Thanks to NDK APIs, apps will no longer rely on external libraries for graphics.
Android 11 to debut Screen Recording?
Google ditched the screen recording feature in Android 10 though it was included in the betas. However, it could now debut in Android 11 with an overhauled user interface.
Control Dark Theme Timing
Dark Theme is on trends and that is why it was officially included in Android 10. Now you can schedule it based on your preferences. The settings, for now, looks identical to that of Night Light.
Getting started with Android 11 Developer Preview
As of now, you can get started with Android 11 if you have a Pixel 2/XL or newer Pixel device. However, this preview release is strictly for the developers. Developers can have their hands on Android 11 by manually flashing the Android 11 device system image to their Pixel device. Further information is provided in the Android 11 developer site.
Google will frequently be updating the preview system images and SDK. Google will announce invitations for Android Beta for consumers during the final stage of the development.
So tell us about the feature that excited you the most as seen in the developer preview of the Android 11. What more would you add to this list of features?
Don’t forget to check our comparison between Oneplus 7t and Samsung Note 10 Lite!
Samsung’s take on a big notch-less & hole-less display with the Samsung Galaxy A80, was a bit different, to say the least. Although it looks flawless in terms of screen and quite innovative on the flip-up module, the phone was quite overpriced, especially, considering its caliber. Yeah, futuristic and expensive! But now, the Samsung Galaxy A80 is available for so much less than the original price, that we can’t help but be impressed by it.
Galaxy A80 Overview:
Samsung Galaxy A80 is, truly, bezel-less, has no notches, no punch holes. It’s just a big clean screen. Certainly, the type of phone that almost every smartphone lover wants to have in their pocket. To achieve the bezel-less characteristic, Samsung Galaxy A80 uses a camera that flips around, so basically, we’re looking at a rear camera, that’s also your front camera.
The triple rear cameras are a 48MP primary lens, an 8MP ultra-wide lens, and a TOF sensor. The wide-angle lens and the TOF sensor works while taking selfies as well as portraits. The cameras are great for the price and on par with Samsung’s flagship like the S10. It’s not quite there when it comes to video recording as the A80 lacks OIS and 4K@60fps feature. Having said that, the camera performance definitely better than the Redmi K20 Pro (Rs.49,000) and Oneplus 7 (Rs.66,999).
The Galaxy A80’s weak link has to be its chipset. It is powered by a Snapdragon 730, which isn’t the fastest chipset you can find. You can get the K20 Pro and Oneplus 7 that comes with the Snapdragon 855 which performs 30-40% better than the 730.
The Galaxy A80 also houses an optical in-display fingerprint sensor, which is not as fast as K20 Pro and Oneplus 7 but does a satisfactory job. It is backed by a 3700mAh battery with 25W fast charging.
The Samsung Galaxy A80 is now available in Nepal for the price of Rs. 49,999. With this price cut, it is an excellent choice for someone looking to buy a mid-range flagship under Rs. 50,000.
Model Name
Price in Nepal
Availability
Samsung Galaxy A80 (8/128GB)
NPR. 49,999
Mobile Retail Shops
Mind you, the Galaxy A80 was originally launched in Nepal for a whopping price of Rs. 79,990 and now it is available for Rs. 49,999. See how they fall! If you don’t have the budget to get the Oneplus 7 Pro or the Galaxy S10, the A80 would serve well for the price. The Galaxy A80 lacks the top of the line performance but it does come with an excellent AMOLED display, unique rotating cameras, and a great design.
Apart from 5G, there’s a 360º surround antenna, WiFi 6, NFC, dual-channel GPS in terms of faster network connectivity. In terms of memory as well, the Realme X50 Pro comes with either 6, 8, or 12GB of LPDDR5 RAM, though the storage isn’t the latest 
