We have not been able to get over the idea of foldable smartphones, and it’s highly unlikely that we ever will. But with smartphone companies pushing out foldable smartphones very soon, it won’t be necessary. Royole, a California based startup, became the first company to push out a foldable smartphone. The FlexPai is a phone with a 7.8″ AMOLED panel with Full HD+ resolution when unfolded. But since it is the first foldable phone, there are some aspects it could improve on.
And another company, which is a screen manufacturer has unveiled its version of foldable displays. BOE, a Chinese company had the same idea. It has released a demo of its OLED panel that has a very minimal fold radius of 1 mm.
The demo shows a 7.65″ of AMOLED panel with a WQHD resolution of 2048 x 1536 pixels. Other features reveal that it has 380 nits of brightness, a really low response time of 1 millisecond and a color gamut of 118% on the NTSC scale. While these are not very impressive features for an OLED screen, the company has addressed the aesthetics part of the foldable display.
The bend/fold radius on this device is only 1mm, which is the smallest up to now. And that looks pretty neat while bent. It might not matter to everyone, but aesthetically, it is pretty satisfying to have.
The company also claims about 100,000 bends to give an idea of its durability. Yes, that is not a very big number for a smartphone, but for now, it is only in its demo stages, i.e. it is still in its Prototype Model. So, when it does come out commercially, we might see a more durable panel. For now, it seems like we’re getting somewhere with foldable displays.
And we’re not sure which smartphone company will be the first to integrate this panel. But yes, we’re expecting quite a few of those in 2019!
So, with the Huawei Mate 20 and Mate 20 Pro behind us, we are looking at another flagship from Huawei from the P-series. The Huawei P20 Pro is still the highest rated smartphone by DxOMark (at the time this article was written). But besides the camera, the phone in itself, was a great phone overall, although a bit on the expensive side. Nevertheless, it was a pretty well-received phone by the people.
And now, it is near about time for a new P-series flagship to hit the markets. So, if you hear more P30 rumors and such, don’t be surprised. There is also now a CAD-based render and a 360-degree video showing all sides of the phone. And to say the least, the phone does not look surprising at all.
Source: Onleaks
The Huawei P30 has the same glass body in dual-tone gradient colors, which Huawei seems to be very fond of. It’s a glass back has a similar texture to that of the Mate 20 Pro as well. Of course, you get the triple-camera setup at the back on a slight camera bump with the LED flash below it. There is no fingerprint sensor at the back, which can only mean we’ll get an in-display fingerprint sensor.
On the front, the screen measures around 6″, and features a water-drop notch on top housing the front camera. This is not surprising at all, as we’ve seen such many phones throughout 2018. And by the looks of it, we’ll see phones with similar designs throughout the year.
Source: Onleaks
The only surprise, here, is that the phone still seems to retain the 3.5 mm headphone jack! And since the Mate 20 Pro did away with it, the P30 Pro still having is a good thing, albeit a surprise.
In terms of specs, we might be expecting a 38 MP main lens as a part of the triple camera setup and a 24 MP selfie camera. The cameras should be one of the best, knowing the cameras on Huawei flagships. Underneath, we’ll surely find the Kirin 980 chipset. And in terms of software, the phone is sure to have Android 9.0 Pie with EMUI 9.0 on top.
So, the Huawei P30 might be a new flagship, but I, for one, have no excitement in it. There seems to be nothing different, at least on the outside. Let’s see what the phone will bring.
Xiaomi has been in the news a lot lately, a chunk of it thanks to their event scheduled for January 10. While we are expecting a lot of Xiaomi this year, let’s start off with the Xiaomi Redmi Pro 2. It’s expected to launch with a 48MP rear camera. Though this won’t be the first to come with such a huge pixel count camera, that achievement goes to Huawei.
This smartphone will feature a punch hole display to accompany the front-facing camera. Rumored specs include a Qualcomm Snapdragon 675 SoC and triple camera set-up at the back. Consequently one of the three sensors will sport a 48MP sensor.
The Xiaomi Redmi Pro 2 is expected to launch on January 10, 2019, in an event in China. Pricing is expected to be at around 20,000 Indian Rupees. In addition, it’s predecessor, the Redmi Note Pro was a high-end offering, though availability was limited to China.
Xiaomi Redmi Note 7
There are no solid hints that the Redmi Note 7 will also launch in the January 10 event. Although a lot of leaks and rumors for it have surfaced on the internet lately. Most of it thanks to the Chinese certification website TENAA.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bcpCPLmkwd8
According to the listing, the device will come with a 6.3″ display and may pack that 48MP sensor, although the listing specifies a 12MP sensor. This device will also get a 3,900mAh battery. The Redmi Note 7 will come with 4GB of RAM and 64GB storage, while the other two include 6GB + 64GB and a 6GB + 128GB version.
Redmi Note 7
Redmi 7
The smartphone’s leaked image also reveals a glossy gradient finish at the back. We also get an exact number for the dimensions of the phone at 159.2 x 75.2 x 8.1mm. Similarly, other smartphones on the Redmi 7 lineup include the Redmi 7, Redmi 7a and the Redmi 7 Pro, all expected to make their way to India.
For now, these are all leaks and speculations, with the full story to be revealed on January 10. The event will take place in Beijing at exactly 1400 local time. As always we will keep you updated with the event.
Also, watch our Xiaomi Redmi Note 6 Pro review in Nepali:
Xiaomi has officially launched the Mi8 Lite in Nepal. Priced at Rs. 31,999, it can be considered as a cheaper variant of its flagship phone, the Xiaomi Mi8. The phone will be available from Sunday, 6 January 2019 onwards on Xiaomi’s online store, Daraz, and offline stores.
The Xiaomi Mi8 Lite features a glass back unlike other metal-clad Xiaomi phones. In terms of specs, the Mi8 Lite is a mash-up of Mi A2 and Note 6 Pro. It borrows the display and rear camera of Note 6 Pro, and the performance of Mi A2. It has a 6.26-inch IPS LCD notched Display with Full HD+ resolution, a dual 12MP+5MP rear camera, and a Snapdragon 660 SoC.
What’s changed here is a selfie camera, which is a whopping 24MP Sony IMX576 sensor. There’s a 3350mAh battery, which is adequate, but not as big as 4000mAh of Note 6 Pro. It comes with a type C port and has support for fast charging, but you need to buy a fast charger separately since you don’t get a fast charger inside the box.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bcpCPLmkwd8
The Xioami Mi8 Lite lacks headphone jack just like the Mi A2. Is it a big of a deal? Let us know in the comments. Other specs include a dual 4G SIM, microSD card slot, dual-band ac WIFI, Bluetooth 5.0, and a rear-facing fingerprint sensor.
Back Camera: 12MP rear camera with LED flash, Sony IMX363 sensor, 1.4μm pixel size, f/1.9 aperture, 5MP secondary camera, Samsung S5K5E8, 1.12um pixel size
Front Camera: 24MP front-facing camera with Sony IMX576 sensor, 1.8um pixel size
Security: Fingerprint sensor
Dimensions: 156.4×75.8×7.5mm; Weight: 169g
Connectivity: Dual 4G VoLTE, Wi-Fi 802.11 ac (2.4GHz / 5GHz) 2×2 MIMO , Bluetooth 5 LE, GPS + GLONASS, USB Type-C
Battery: 3350mAh battery with Qualcomm Quick Charge 3.0
Xiaomi Mi 8 Lite Price in Nepal Analysis & Competition:
Xiaomi launched the Redmi Note 6 Pro in Nepal like a month ago for Rs. 29,000 and since the specs of Mi8 Lite is slightly superior than the Note 6 Pro, the pricing of Rs. 31,999 is somewhat justified. However, like the Redmi Note 6 Pro, the pricing of Mi8 Lite is still high when you consider the international pricing is US$200.
The Mi8 Lite also has a fair share of competition with Huawei Y9 2019 now priced at Rs. 31,490 and Honor 8X now available in Nepal for Rs. 32,490. And we still have the Mi A2 that comes with a superior camera and stock Android experience. So, is the Mi8 Lite really worth it? Do you think its better than the Y9 2019 or Honor 8X? Let us know in the comments.
Lately, the smartphone market seems to be populated with a number of handsets, especially mid-range and flagship phones. So it is really hard to find a decent phone at an entry-level segment. And to fill that void, Nepali smartphone brand Colors has brought a new smartphone. This time, the smartphone has brand presented the Colors Pride 5X, which seems to be targeted at the budget-conscious customers.
Colors Pride 5X Overview
The notable feature on the Colors Pride 5X is its camera. The smartphone comes with a dual camera set up at the back, which is a rare feature at its price. The camera duo at the back comprises of an 8MP primary camera backed by a 0.3MP secondary shooter for depth sensing. So with the dual camera on the board, the handset is also capable of capturing portrait images.
Similarly, on the front, users will be greeted with a 5MP selfie shooter. There is also a dedicated LED flash to lighten up the faces, especially while taking selfies on the low-light settings. This front camera also comes into action while unlocking the handset via Face Unlock feature. There is also an in-built beauty mode for the camera enthusiasts, who want instant beautification in the real time.
“We focus on providing the best smartphone experience from continuously evolving our approach to meet the global standard in a mid-level price range,” said Mr. Pratik Jalan, Managing Director. He further adds up, “The COLORS Pride 5X builds on the legacy of our Pride Series and we are known for innovation and bringing change is the society in various forms.”
On the display front, the smartphone comes with a 5.45-inch IPS display. In terms of resolution, the phone features HD+ (1440 x 720 pixels) in the trendy 18:9 aspect ratio. And for the protection, there is also the Dragontrail glass on the top of the display.
The handset also packs plenty of horsepower. The 3000 mAh battery on the phone can provide backup for nearly a day on the normal use.
Display: 5.45-inch Full View display with Dragontrail glass protection
Resolution: HD+ (1440 x 720 pixels); 18:9 aspect ratio
Chipset: MT6739WA
Processor: 1.3 GHz Quad Core processor
RAM: 2 GB
ROM: 16 GB; Expandable up to 128GB
Software: Android Oreo (v8.1)
SIM: Dual SIM (3G + 4G); Micro SIM
Rear Camera: 8MP + 0.3MP, LED flash
Front Camera: 5MP, LED Flash
Battery: 3,000mAh removable battery
Colors Pride 5X Price in Nepal
Apart from bringing in various features in a budget price, Colors Mobile Nepal had started with something new. The retailers who were willing to sell could pre-book the Colors Pride 5X between 10-15th of December via COLORS SMART app which is available on Google Play Store for free. Since the pre-booking period is now over, the phone is now available for sale at retail stores in Nepal.
The price of the handset is Rs. 11,999. The USP of Colors Pride 5X is the presence of Dual rear cameras at a budget price, Facial unlock feature and fingerprint sensor.
The Huawei Mate 20 Pro is probably one of the most talked about smartphones from this year. It has won the hearts of lots of reviewers, and it even won that blind smartphone camera test from MKBHD. And at a time where each smartphone has to win the innovation game to be in the race, the Mate 20 pro definitely stands out in the crowd.
The Huawei Mate 20 pro is an absolute beast of a device and if you are thinking of getting it, you should. To tell you why this article will give you not just 6 but 7 major aspects that make this device a worthy purchase.
Connectivity: Dual SIM (Nano SIM + Nano SIM/NM), Dual 4G VoLTE, Wi-Fi ac, Bluetooth 5, GPS + GLONASS, USB Type-C, No 3.5mm headphone jack
Battery: 4200mAh with Supercharge technology (40W fast charging), Supports Wireless Fast charging (15watts) and reverse wireless charging
Colors: Emerald Green, Midnight Blue, Twilight, Pink Gold, Black
Latest Price: Rs. 1,29,900
Design
The first aspect I will talk about is the design. Well, looking at the phone, at first sight, you definitely get some good reactions. The green version of the Mate 20 Pro has this pattern design on the back, that sets itself apart from the rest of the traditional glass backs. The new design looks great and once you run your nails through it, you kind of want to do it again and again. But, if asked, one should definitely go for the Green version because it looks way more appealing than the regular Black version. Plus you get textured back with the Green one.
But this back is somewhat a negative aspect of this device as well because the glass back is very slippery. And although it looks very premium, you will have to be extra careful whenever using it. One piece of advice, if you are using this device, cover it with a case at all times. Plus that will also help get rid of the fingerprints that cover up the back.
The power button here comes in a different color, so that’s a neat touch. And even with the large size, the buttons are placed in an ergonomic fashion. There is a metallic bracket on the middle, just like most of the glass-built phones.
Let’s talk about the display now. The Huawei Mate 20 Pro comes with a 6.4-inch display with a notch on the top. Even though the Mate 20 features the waterdrop notch, this one here has this wide notch which houses Face Recognition sensor. There is a little bit of a chin on the bottom, and the talking points about this display are the curves on the left and right which are not as immersive as other curved phones.
But it’s the same display that shines brightly here. This is probably the second best display on any Android smartphone right now, after the Galaxy Note 9. You should actually hold the phone on your hand to know its quality.
The AMOLED panel helps with the WQHD+ display to result in a crisp one that is well saturated and quite vibrant. It gets bright, without any obstruction under direct sunlight. Now in the previous years, one would probably say that phones other than Samsung’s had a lot to do in terms of display, but this time, it’s actually great. There is nothing to complain about. And the viewing angle is great too like you would want on a flagship phone. The device also lets you toggle its resolution. So, just like in some of the Samsung devices, the Mate 20 Pro has an option to change the resolution. This definitely helps with preserving battery. However, unlike Samsung, the display only shows the time, date and battery percentage with the Always-on-display toggled, there is no support for 3rd party app notifications with the feature.
Performance
Now let’s talk about the aspect which can actually make or break a smartphone, the performance! The Mate 20 Pro is among the couple of smartphones that features a 7nm chipset. The Kirin 980 is a direct competitor to the Snapdragon 845. And what a great work Huawei has done with this CPU. There are fast phones, and then there are the faster ones. Well, Huawei’s new device lies among the top ones on that list, as I have had absolutely no issues whatsoever with the phone. I am using the Galaxy Note 9 as my primary device, and reviewing the Mate 20 Pro, well I think they are neck-to-neck. Both the phones have served me well without lagging behind or stuttering.
While playing games too, the graphical side of things links well with the CPU to provide users with the best result possible. Games like PubG has been a great experience. Now there was this issue I faced at first. I could not play PubG on High Definition and HDR setting, which is weird for a phone that comes in a hefty price tag. But after a couple of updates, there have been no problems.
The A12 Bionic chipset from Apple is the fastest, but the Mate 20 Pro with its Kirin 980 is not so far behind. Check out the scores from some of the benchmark tests I conducted on the phone.
Software and UI
On to the software now, the Mate 20 Pro runs on Huawei’s very own EMUI on top of Android Pie. We have been praising Huawei for bettering their software over the years, but it’s high time Huawei starts thinking about the future of EMUI. There are still unwanted apps on the device that are forced on to the user. If a user really wants these apps, they will download it. Yes, there is ample RAM and the chipset is fast, but that doesn’t necessarily mean Huawei can push unwanted applications to its users.
Also, its UI is still reminiscent of iOS, and the settings app clearly tells the tale here. And even with the customizations in place, Huawei really needs to work on its software, if it really wants its phones to shine brighter than the rest. But there is still a silver lining, some of these customizations here, like the knuckle gesture to capture screenshots, come in really handy.
Camera
The Huawei P20 Pro was the first smartphones with triple lenses. Fast forward to the present, there are lots of smartphones with 3 cameras, and the Mate 20 Pro is an addition to that list. However, the cameras that are on this device serve a different purpose than the ones on the P20 Pro.
For starters, there is an ultra-wide camera instead of a monochrome sensor, and wow doesn’t this really work.
Even when the subject is closer, the camera can really work its way to bring out the widest view possible. You will definitely need a good DSLR camera with a wide lens just to capture something like this, and here is the mate 20 pro doing it with its Leica branded lenses. This feature comes in handy when you have a lot to capture in a small space. Check out some wide angle samples below:
Huawei-Mate-20-pro-wide-angle-camera-samples
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The wide-angle mode is displayed as 0.6x while the phone can get up to 5x hybrid zoom. And going through the 0.6x to 3x to 5x, there is no significant loss in quality. So, that’s a plus.
Huawei Mate 20 pro Normal vs Wide angle samples
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Normal
Ultra wide-angle
Normal
Ultra Wide-angle
Then there are normal samples with the best of image quality. The pictures come out having a mixture of a good amount of saturation and colors. They are sharp and are really pleasing to the eye.
Huawei Mate 20 pro normal camera samples
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Huawei smartphones are known for overexposing images at times, and while the Mate 20 Pro has really improved on this aspect, there are times where the pictures are slightly overexposed. The color tone is correctly done, though, as it is natural, and the dynamic range is great! The shadow details and highlight details are well pronounced on the pictures. HDR also helps to cut down on the exposure at times to help shoot a better “colored” photo.
Talking about the portraits, well, I think Huawei should be doing better work here. The pictures with the portrait mode, images came out with an unnatural cut. It, however, does a good job by identifying all the faces on the picture. But if the depth of field is taken into account, some pictures come out with a good surrounding depth even when you don’t tap on the pictures for focus.
Huawei Mate 20 pro camera samples Portrait images
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In terms of night time, the Mate 20 Pro does exceptional work in capturing the best of photos. There is ample saturation, details on the pictures, and the contrast and color tone are very natural. You will certainly love taking a stroll with the Mate 20 Pro during night time too.
Huawei-mate-20-pro-night-time-camera-samples
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There is also a Night Mode on this phone, and while that might sound impressive, the feature has some conditions applied. While the Pixel 3 actually changes night into day with its Nightscape, the Mate 20 Pro’s Night mode only works when there are slight hints of light on the subject. However, when there is no light focusing on the subject, the picture is just dark.
On the front lies a 24MP camera for taking selfies. One thing the Mate 20 Pro has in common with its Samsung compatriots is the selfie. Samsung still has a lot to do with the selfies on its flagships, and the Mate 20 Pro is no different. There are phones from Oppo and Vivo that take a better detailed and better-colored image. So, we can completely skip saying the tech jargons to conclude that the selfie camera is just okay on this phone.
Huawei-Mate-20-pro-selfie-samples
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The video quality is great though. Even with shaky hands, you can expect stabilized videos with this one! The stabilization was again seen in the videos captured during night time. However, there were lots of hints of noise on it.
The battery on this device is large, it’s the largest on 2018’s flagship measuring at 4200 mAh. In comparison, the iPhone XS Max has 3174 mAh battery, while the OnePlus 6T features a 3700 mAh battery. The Note 9 is the only one that comes close with its 4000 mAh one in place. The most amazing thing about this aspect except for the battery life itself is the fact that Huawei has included such a large battery inside this slim body.
Let’s talk about battery life now. While using the Mate 20 pro on the highest resolution, it battery provided me 6-7 hours of on-screen time. It might look a lot less for a phone with a large battery, but this is the figure that came up during heavy usage. I gamed a lot, went through a lot of applications, and made the phone really work its way! You can easily last for around 6-7 hours with this battery under normal usage. So, if you are looking for great battery life on a flagship smartphone, this is the one you should get.
However, there is this issue most of us have to deal with. Whenever the battery percent touches 2, the phone automatically shuts down, which is a bummer for someone who forgets to keep track of the battery life.
On the brighter side, this battery is backed up by Huawei’s Super Charge 40W technology that charged up from 0 to 100 % in just around an hour. So, apart from Oppo R17’s Super VOOC charge, this is the fastest you can get right now.
Extras
The final aspect to be covering here is the extras. Now, this might not sound like a major piece of a smartphone, but we have gotten to a point where they can actually make or break a smartphone.
The Huawei Mate 20 Pro has an under-display fingerprint scanner that’s fast. Now, there are times when it didn’t read my print 100% of the time, but over time, it can get faster. Huawei also has its dual user feature which can be triggered through two different fingerprints.
In front lies the 3D face unlock which Huawei claims is among the most accurate. To make it that accurate, Huawei has the infrared camera and a flood illuminator on the notch of the device. While it is definitely accurate, this sensor takes some time before unlocking the phone. The pause is minimum, but you do notice it.
The phone is IP68 just liked its competitors, so you can definitely use it for some underwater pictures.
The reverse charging on this device sounds quite impressive. No, it won’t come in use most of the times, but during emergencies, you will be able to offer help to your friends letting them charge their dying phones. It works 100% of the times, and kudos to Huawei for this innovation. But this charging is very, very slow then you expect. It’s even slower than any charger you pick up from a store. So, it will take a lot of time before Huawei actually gets this right.
The speaker on this phone is great as well. I have liked watching movies on this stereo setup. If you look closely, there are no speaker grills on the bottom of the phone. This is because Huawei has placed the speaker inside the USB C port. Yes, the audio actually plays from inside the port. But the sound isn’t as loud as I expected. And when you’re charging the phone there is a slight change in the sound level.
There are some areas where Huawei should have gone with something else. Like the storage. The Mate 20 Pro available in Nepal comes with 128 GB internal memory. For its expansion, it has Huawei’s nano SD card slot which isn’t as popular as the microSD card slot and will cost a lot more than a normal card. And apart from that, it is not available in the Nepali market as well. So, the 128GB variant is the only option you have right now.
Conclusion
The Huawei Mate 20 Pro is an expensive phone. It’s even more expensive than the Note 9 here in Nepal. But this device here packs in a lot more than all the other flagship smartphones offer. It is the innovator of 2018, and will really make a great couple with someone like a business person, or as GSM Arena said, travels a lot. Also, it is a great phone with good cameras. Huawei has done a lot of homework to bring out this beast of a phone and Kudos to Huawei for this!
Also Watch: My pick for the best flagship phones of 2018!
Leaks for the Galaxy M series just keep on surfacing. And today is all about the Samsung Galaxy M30. We already know the Galaxy M20 will come with a 5000mAh battery and seems like the Galaxy M30 is also getting blessed with the same feature.
Apart from the 5000mAh battery, we also get a 6.38-inch Infinity V display with Full-HD+ (1080 x 2280 pixels) resolution. Rumors also gave us an idea about the Galaxy M30’s camera setup. The back is expected to feature triple camera setup, 13MP + 5MP + 5MP, while the front gets a 16MP selfie shooter.
Dimensions of the smartphone will be of 159 x 75.1 x 8.4mm. The RAM and storage are hinted to be at 4GB and 64GB/128GB respectively. As for software, it will most probably boot with Android 8.1 Oreo.
The M-series line of smartphones is expected to launch somewhere at the end of January or early February. There are no words on pricing as of now. But seeing Samsung’s purpose of launching these devices, they should provide real value for money experience.
Consequently, the M-series lineup of smartphones is the answer to Samsung’s losing battle with the Chinese manufacturers in the budget and mid-range segment. This has been a major problem for the Korean based tech giant in terms of popularity and in its sheer shipment volumes.
Samsung Galaxy M10, M20 & M40
In other news, the Samsung M20 has also been spotted going through the FCC certifications. The published documents include a 6.13-inch Infinity V display, Exynos 7885 and a 5000mAh battery. Nothing new was revealed, but this does add a bit more credibility to our past leaks of the Galaxy M20.
The Galaxy M10, on the other hand, gets a 6-inch Infinity V display, 3400mAh battery and runs on the Exynos 7870 SoC. Finally, the Galaxy M40 remains to be the only smartphone form this lineup to still remain in the shadows. But considering the back to back leaks of the new Samsung Galaxy devices, it may not take us too long to know about the features and specs of the Galaxy M40 as well.
The Pocophone F1 was something unexpected that took the world by storm when it came out. Mostly, for its flagship prowess for a very aggressive price. And so, there were confusions whether this phone belonged to a mid-range device or a flagship. And honestly, there’s no answer to that. The Pocophone F1 features a flagship processor of 2018, which is the Snapdragon 845, and all other things were above average, maybe, except the design.
And despite all its efforts, it still failed to be the number one phone because Xiaomi achieved the price through exclusive deals for retailers, MIUI ads and losses for the startup glory. Nevertheless, it was a smart purchase all around the world. And there were so many queries about the phone before it came to Nepal.
And thanks to Daraz.com.np, the phone made its way here, albeit for a brief period of time. Making its debut in Nepal via Daraz 11.11 sales day, the phone was exclusively available in Nepal. And the price was also pretty close to international pricing, around Rs.35000.
And so, when it was here, people swept through the online marketplace for the phone. There were initially some problems for acquiring the phone, but it did get to buyer’s hands. And the phone sold pretty quickly. Pre-bookings went through the roof, and Teletalk, which was the body responsible for bringing the phone to Nepal had brought about 2000 pieces. And it appears, all of them have been sold out!
So, despite many of you enquiring about the Pocophone F1, it is now, no longer available in Nepal officially. The Pocophone F1 came and went away with the wind.
And Teletalk has no intentions to restock the Pocophone F1 again. Partly, because there are rumors surfacing about the Pocophone F2, so, they might be bringing that one here instead. Of course, that’s all rumors for now, so, let’s wait and see.
However, the Pocophone F1 is not entirely gone. Traces of it remain in the form of some products brought via Grey channels, and some stores around New Road still sell them. There might be some difference in pricing, but if you really want it, then, you’ll have to pay.
On paper, the Acer Predator Helios 300 2018 looks like the best laptop you can buy for the price, right now. Considering its features, hardware, display, and price, it looks like a great deal for a gaming laptop. That’s good and all, but the full story doesn’t end there.
The 2017 version of the Helios 300 offered similar value for money. Gamers were more than happy to shell out the money for it. The successor just improves on its predecessor even more, but is it worth upgrading?
Acer Predator Helios 300 2018 Specifications
Design and Build: Metal body, Plastic bottom panel, 15.35” x 10.62” x 1.06”, 2.56 kg
Display: 15.6″ Full HD (1920 x 1080), 92% sRGB, IPS, 144Hz, non-touch matte
Processor: Hexa-core 8th gen i7-8750H processor, Base-Clock @ 2.2 GHz, Turbo Boost Clock up to 4.1 GHz
RAM: DDR4 16 GB (2x slots, upgradeable up to 32 GB)
Graphics: 6 GB NVidia GeForce GTX 1060
Battery: 48Wh (Up-to 3 hours)
Adapter: 180 Watts
Storage: 256 GB PCIe NVMe M.2 SSD
Webcam: 720p Webcam
Connectivity: 802.11 ac Intel Wi-Fi, Bluetooth v4.1
Ports: 1x USB 3.0, 2x USB 2.0, 1x USB 3.1 gen 1, HDMI, mic/earphone, SD card reader, LAN, Kensington Lock
Price: Rs. 165,000
Design and Build
The build quality on this laptop leaves very little to complain about. A mix of aluminum and plastic, all around with very little screen or keyboard flex. It gets red accent all around aided mostly by black. A classic gaming laptop theme untouched by the RGB hype. Or maybe it was just a cost-cutting necessity.
Open the laptop and you are greeted by what looks like a terrible excuse of a palm rest. But, when you actually put your hands on it, it is actually pretty cool! I mean, you get the cool metallic-luster feel on it. The display follows the same trend with unnecessary huge bezels on all four sides. So, until the time you actually turn on the laptop, there is no excitement at all.
The bottom is made up of plastic, with four large rubber padding at the corners. A huge set of air vents to keep the laptop cool. Then, there are two easy access compartments. In the most traditional but a very convenient way, you can access the hard disk or the RAM slots with just one screw each. If you want the whole back panel off you will need to unscrew more screws.
The lid has a huge predator logo on the center with two red lines that run through the lid. At the back, there is a huge exhaust vent, although not all of it is functional; i.e. air flows only through some small openings in the vent. Finally, if we talk numbers, dimensions of the laptop comes in at 15.4″ x 10.5″ x 1.1″ and weights 2.7 Kilograms.
Display
This is where the magic happens, thanks to the 15.6-inch FHD IPS display with a 144Hz refresh rate. It’s really fast, and you will feel it right from the start. Just moving the cursor around is enough for you to notice the smoothness the super fast screen brings to the table. Once you use this display, any other panel with a traditional 60Hz refresh rate will feel slow.
The panel isn’t bad either. The FHD resolution is pretty much perfect for the GPU. The display also produces pretty accurate colors, covering over 90% of the sRGB color spectrum. It’s great for gaming, while at the same time should not disappoint part-time photo or video editors. I must say, it’s a really nice display, as compared to the competition.
Coming back to the 144Hz, which is pretty much the highlight of this laptop. Yes, the relatively fast panel does add up to the final cost of the laptop but trust me, it’s worth it. Gaming has never been this engaging, everything is just smooth. Especially when a game can utilize the full potential of the display, it’s just awesome.
Performance
As for performance, the Intel Core i7-8750H is a great performer. It’s fast, keeps the laptop running fluid and utilizes the GTX 1060 to it’s maximum. It gets six cores, twelve threads, with a base clock of 2.2GHz and 4.1GHz on boost. Since we’ve seen this processor a dozen times now, there’s nothing new to say. It’s the best processor for gaming on a laptop at this price range.
Gaming Performance
This is one of the aspects of this laptop that leaves a lot to be desired. The 144Hz panel discussed earlier demands fps! But the hardware inside cannot deliver. If it was a regular laptop with a 60Hz display, the performance could have been pretty great. But the 6 GB GTX 1060 cannot compliment the fast screen that well, and so, there is so much of displayable frames unused. And it just feels like there’s so much potential, but most of it is restricted.
While gaming, the rame rates were pretty high, above 60 on most games we threw at it, at high settings. But to reach that sweet 144Hz threshold, I found myself lowering the graphics quality a lot.
For instance, games like Fifa 19 did run at a healthy 110-120fps. But I still lowered the graphics to around medium to reach somewhere around 150fps. It was an absolute improvement, or maybe it was just me but I felt it was better. The bad graphics quality was really no match for the smooth gameplay.
One of the main factors that refrained the previous generation Helios 300 from greatness was its thermal performance. It wasn’t bad but it wasn’t par with some other laptops in its competition. This time it’s a bit different as the thermals have noticeably improved. It does heat up, but only after longer loads of time, and keeps the maximum temperature at a controllable rate.
Of course, you can throttle the fans to the maximum, which is around 6000 rpm. The laptop gets very noisy in this mode, but at least it stays cool. Yes, the laptop still throttles, but it’s not as bad as its predecessor. There were a few times when games actually stuttered for two or three seconds, but that was once every half hour or so and didn’t bother me much.
Storage and Battery
This laptop comes with only a 256 GB SSD with an empty slot to fit a 2.5″ hard drive. Read speeds maxed out at around 1575 MBPS and write speeds of around 597 MBPS. If you want more storage you can just add a hard drive, and the M.2 SSD itself is easily replaceable. At these speeds, you probably won’t be upgrading, but just for the record, you can.
As for battery life, this laptop get is a puny 48Wh battery, which by the numbers, isn’t enough. Paired with a six-core processor, a GTX 1060 and that 144Hz display, I barely got around 3 hours of light usage. If you wanna game on battery, don’t expect anything over an hour. We could call this a bad battery performance, but well, it’s just how gaming laptops are.
Keyboard and Trackpad
The keyboard isn’t actually bad, it’s just soft. Depending on your preference, some might like it, most will definitely hate it. The key travel was fine, but it just doesn’t give you that satisfying feedback. It’s a mushy keyboard, and there is no going around that. It has backlighting, but only RED. If the Red looks intrusive, you have no choice but to turn it off. But the keyboard is of high quality and should last you until the end of your laptop’s lifetime.
The other thing I have to complain about is the placement of the keys itself. The power button is just another key right beside the ‘End’ key and that, for some reason felt like a fake power button. MacBooks, despite the same keyboard layout, do these types of power buttons pretty well, but it is just poorly implemented on this one. The arrow keys were also a bit problematic, nothing you cannot get used to though.
The trackpad isn’t really good, however. It uses Windows Precision drivers and the gestures worked fine, but the tracking seemed so out of place. You would probably want to buy an external mouse for daily usage. Then again, you probably were going to anyway, since gaming with a trackpad is not normal.
Connectivity
Connectivity wise, the laptop has a lot in store. Starting off with the USB-C port that doesn’t support ThunderBolt 3, the only downside as long as connectivity is concerned. It’s not exactly a deal breaker but that could have been a great addition.
It gets the Intel 9560ac Wi-Fi, which is also replaceable while the Bluetooth 4.0 module is built in. There is a 720p webcam up top which up on par with other laptops, and by that, I mean very average. The laptop charges via a 180-watt charger, and finally the laptop houses two dual speakers which produce clear and loud audio but lacks bass.
As for port selection, you get a Kensington lock, Ethernet port, HDMI, USB-C, and an SD card reader on the left. On the right resides one USB Type A port, a headphone jack, and a charging port. So, you can clearly see there have been no compromises made on the selection of ports.
Conclusion
You now know almost everything you need to know about the laptop. It’s a good performer, has a fast display, not that heavy or thick, has good thermal performance, looks nice, and is built well. Also, it costs right between other laptops like Dell G7 or the HP Omen 15T, that are pretty priced in the same bracket, flaunts similar internals but don’t feature a 144Hz display.
You probably know by now that this laptop can impress you a lot. For Rs. 1,65,000, you are getting so much, to begin with. But if they could have improved the thermals just a little, this laptop would have been just perfect. For now, let’s just call this a real value for money, or a bang for your buck! And given that your budget fits the asking price of this laptop, you won’t regret buying the Acer Predator Helios 300 2018.
Vivo is mostly known for its range of good mid-range phones in Nepal. The Vivo V11 Pro was one of the best phones that made debut in 2018. And along with the Vivo V11, it was well-received. Vivo’s Y-series are also a popular range of lower mid-range phones in Nepal. And now, Vivo is on the verge of expanding its Y-series lineup with three new handsets in Nepal. The three phones are Vivo Y95, Vivo Y91 and the Vivo Y91i and these feature the typical 2018 looks with large displays and water-drop notches. And all three of these are similar in terms of many aspects.
Vivo Y95 Overview
The Vivo Y95 features a large 6.2″ IPS LCD display with 19:9 aspect ratio and HD+ resolution. With dual camera setup at the back, the primary lens is a 13 MP sensor, which is supported by a 2 MP depth sensor. The front camera is a 20 MP sensor for good selfies.
Under the hood, you get an octa-core Snapdragon 439 chipset with 4 GB of RAM. That is a typical low-end mid-range chipset. You also get 64 GB of storage on-board which is expandable via microSD. There is also a large 4030 mAh battery to power the device. In the software department, the Vivo Y95 runs on Android 8.1 Oreo with Vivo’s FunTouch OS 4.5 on top.
Vivo Y95 Specifications:
Display: 6.2-inch IPS LCD HD+ (1520 x 720), 19:9 aspect ratio
Chipset: Qualcomm Snapdragon 439
GPU: Adreno 505
Operating System: Android Oreo 8.1 with Funtouch OS 4.5
The Vivo Y91 is pretty much similar to the Y95. It just looks like a slightly toned down variant of the Y95. This phone, too, comes with a 6.2″ LCD display and HD+ resolution. Other things, too, are pretty much the same. It also has the Snapdragon 439 chipset, but the difference is it has 3 GB of RAM and 32 GB storage. However, this one also comes in a 2 GB RAM and 16 GB storage variant.
The other difference lies in the selfie camera as this one features an 8 MP selfie camera. Other things remain the same, with the dual rear camera comprising of a 13 MP regular camera and a 2 MP depth sensor as well. The battery size is the same 4030 mAh in this one as well.
vivo Y91 Specifications:
Display: 6.2-inch IPS LCD HD+(1520 x 720), 19:9 aspect ratio
Chipset: Qualcomm Snapdragon 439
GPU: Adreno 505
Operating System: Android Oreo 8.1 with Funtouch OS 4.5
The Vivo Y91i looks very different from the Y91. It has a large notch up top and only a single camera at the back. Also, it has 2 GB RAM and 16 GB storage. Other things remain the same, with this one, too, featuring a 6.2″ LCD display with HD+ resolution, and an 8 MP selfie camera. Also, it has the same Snapdragon 439, and the same 4030 mAh battery. Probably, Vivo will be launching the Y91’s 2GB/16 GB variant as the Y91i.
Vivo Y91i Specifications:
Display: 6.2-inch IPS LCD HD+ (1520 x 720), 19:9 aspect ratio
Chipset: Qualcomm Snapdragon 439
GPU: Adreno 505
Operating System: Android Oreo 8.1 with Funtouch OS 4.5
RAM: 2 GB
Storage: 16 GB expandable up to 256 GB
Rear Camera: Single, 13MP with f/2.2 aperture
Front Camera: 8 MP
SIM (s): Dual Nano SIM
Connectivity: Wi-Fi b/g/n, WiFi Direct, Bluetooth 4.2
So, these are the three phones from Vivo that are coming soon in Nepal. The pricing is yet unknown, but we are expecting all three phones to be under Rs.30000 in Nepal.
