No, Pokemon Sword and Shield Is Not Flawed

Ever since Pokemon Sword and Shield was announced for the Nintendo Switch, conversations surrounding the game have not been particularly positive. From irate fans not loving the idea of a limited Pokedex (only certain Pokemon can be migrated into the game), to criticisms on the game’s animations.

Basically, there’s no shortage of negative comments about the new Pokemon game, and it’s
not even out yet
. While I do see how some of these negative comments can be justified, I personally don’t think Pokemon Sword and Shield is flawed.

In fact, I’m excited to see what it has to offer. After all, it’s the first “proper” Pokemon game for the Switch.

Now, the biggest issue the fan base has with Pokemon Sword and Shield is the absence of the National Pokedex. Basically, only Pokemons native to the Galar region – that’s the locale of the upcoming game – will be available in Sword and Shield.

This doesn’t sit well with fans simply because it would render their collection of Pokemon…well, useless. Most fans of the franchise have been collecting Pokemon from various games to complete their collection, and not being able to see their hard work reflected in Sword and Shield is (understandably) frustrating.

However, Game Freak’s reasoning for the absence of the National Pokedex is understandable too. According to the producer of the game, Junichi Masuda, it’s a tough task to rebuild the model of every single Pokemon in Sword and Shield.

Yes, Game Freak mentioned that assets from previous Pokemon games will not be reused in Sword and Shield; every Pokemon model in the game will be built from scratch specifically for the improved visual fidelity of the Nintendo Switch. Needless to say, this is a very, very tall order.

Given the ever growing number of Pokemon every time a new game is announced, it’s inevitable for Game Freak to start limiting the Pokedex. On top of that, to balance the abilities of so many Pokemon will be a very tough task too.

On a more personal note, a smaller Pokedex is just fine with me: it would be easier to “finish” the game if I only need to catch every single Pokemon in Sword and Shield. Granted, I would still need to trade some version-exclusive Pokemon to truly complete the collection, but that is still a far easier task than having to somehow acquire Pokemon not found in the game itself.

But this is my personal opinion. I don’t have a huge collection of Pokemon waiting to be migrated into new Pokemon games, and I don’t consider myself to be a hardcore Pokemon player either.

Another issue that’s been a topic of hot discussion is the seemingly lazy animation of Pokemon Sword and Shield. Take the Japanese trailer of the game above: in the 48-second mark, you can see that the Charizard…isn’t spewing fire from its mouth. Obviously, that animation could’ve been done better.

That being said, it remains to be seen if this kind of “lazy” animation will be present in the final version of Sword and Shield. Plus, the game isn’t even expected to be out until later this year on 15 November; Game Freak still has plenty of time to iron out any bugs the game might have.

Despite the negativity surrounding Pokemon Sword and Shield, I honestly believe it will be the best Pokemon game yet. The Dynamax and Gigantamax mechanisms look interesting, the animations (despite the Charizard thing) are rendered well, and there are still
a lot of details
 not revealed yet.

Of course, there are aspects of Sword and Shield that could be better, especially in regard to the National Pokedex. But in order to rebuild the many assets of the game, balancing it, and to ensure that the game itself isn’t rushed, Game Freak had to make a decision.

And limiting the Pokedex seems to be the best course of action.


Redmi 7A Officially Lands in Malaysia; Retails from RM399

It wasn’t that long ago when the
Redmi 7A
 was registered with SIRIM, and now, the budget-centric smartphone is officially available in Malaysia. Two variants of the phone are available here, and it retails from only RM399 – that’s quite an attractive price tag.

Of course, that’s for the base model of the Redmi 7A, which comes with 16GB of storage and 2GB of RAM. The 32GB model (also with 2GB RAM), on the other hand, retails for slightly more at RM439.

This definitely make the Redmi 7A one of the most affordable smartphones in the market now, and it should be in your list if you’re looking for a budget-friendly smartphone. Given the small price difference between the two variants, it’s definitely worth it to go for the 32GB model instead.

However, only the 16GB variant of the Redmi 7A is sold online: it will be available for purchase on Shopee this 22 July, and 26 July for Lazada. If you want the 32GB model, you’ll have to visit your nearest Authorised Mi Store. Both variants of the Redmi 7A are now available from these retail outlets.

Alternatively, you can always get the 32GB Redmi 7A from Xiaomi global’s official store on Shopee. It still comes with local warranty support (albeit only for six months instead of a year), and the best part is, it’s
slightly more affordable at RM419
.

However, if you want longer warranty period for the extra peace of mind, it would be better to get the Redmi 7A from an Authorised Mi Store. It’s only RM20 more to get a year’s warranty instead of only six months.

For its asking price, the Redmi 7A is decently equipped. It comes with a Qualcomm Snapdragon 439 chipset, a microSD card slot for easy storage expansion, as well as a generous 4,000mAh battery. In the camera department, it features a single 12MP f/2.2 rear camera, and a 5MP f/2.2 front-facing shooter.

As far as looks are concerned, the Redmi 7A is…decidedly average-looking. There are thick bezels surrounding the 5.45-inch 720p IPS display, it looks plasticky, and it still uses a microUSB connection. But hey, this
is
 a RM399 smartphone – there’s only so much you can ask for.

Now that the Redmi 7A is officially available here, the Mi Band 4 may follow suit in the near future. After all, it’s
already been registered with SIRIM last week
.


Deal: Get the Xiaomi Mi 9 with Over RM200 Discount

When it comes to value for money, not many flagship smartphones can go against the excellent
Xiaomi Mi 9
. To sweeten the deal, you can get the 128GB variant of the Mi 9
for only RM1,789
 now.

To put this deal into context, the 128GB model used to retail at RM1,999; you’re saving exactly RM210 with this offer. On top of that, this deal is offered by reputable retailer Wow Phone on Lazada. Rest assured, this is a legitimate deal by a legitimate seller.

Wow Phone has the Ocean Blue and Piano Black colourways of the Mi 9 in stock, and the former only has five units left at the time of writing. Naturally, the retailer is offering original Malaysian units of the Mi 9 with official warranty by Xiaomi Malaysia.

For RM1,789
, the Xiaomi Mi 9 offers really,
really
 good value for money. If you’d like to learn more about this phone, check out our
comprehensive review of the Mi 9
.


Xiaomi Mi A3 Official – Android One Device with 720p Display & Snapdragon 665

The Xiaomi Mi A3 is now official, and
as expected
, it is basically the Android One version of the Xiaomi Mi CC9e. That means it has a Qualcomm Snapdragon 665 chipset, an in-screen fingerprint sensor, and yes, even a 720p display.

Considering the fact that the Xiaomi Mi A2 had a higher resolution 1080p display, it’s pretty odd for Xiaomi to “downgrade” the screen to a 720p panel with the Mi A3. Nonetheless, the new Android One device does improve upon one crucial shortcoming of its predecessor.

While the Mi A2 was a really good Android One device in general, it was sorely lacking in one area: battery life. After all, it only had a 3,010mAh battery, which was barely enough for a day’s worth of usage. Well, that shouldn’t be a problem with the Mi A3 – it has a much more generous 4,030mAh cell.

Given the fact that the Mi A3 only has a 6.088-inch 720p AMOLED display (not to mention a power-efficient 11nm Snapdragon 665 chip), you can expect it to return above average battery life. On top of that, this phone also supports 18W fast charging, but only a 10W charger is bundled with the phone.

In the camera department, the Mi A3, like most smartphones in the market now, features a 48MP f/1.79 primary shooter. The triple camera system also has an 8MP f/2.2 wide angle sensor complemented by a 2MP f/2.2 depth sensor. Essentially, it’s a much more versatile and sophisticated camera system than the Mi A2’s dual camera configuration.

Other specifications of the Mi A3 include a 32MP f/2.0 front-facing camera, 4GB of RAM, 64GB or 128GB of expandable storage (up to 256GB), as well as a USB-C port. Surprisingly, it even comes with a 3.5mm headphone jack – a feature that was missing on the Mi A2.

At the time of writing, the Xiaomi Mi A3 is only available in Europe. The 64GB model retails at 249 euro (about RM1,150), while the 128GB variant goes for 279 euro (approximately RM1,290). Do note that these prices include VAT, so expect the Mi A3 to be slightly more affordable when it is introduced in other markets.

Speaking of which, Mi A3 will be launched in Malaysia on 31 July. It’ll be interesting to see if Xiaomi Malaysia will bring in both variants of the Android One device, and just how much it will be priced locally.

Update, 18 July
: This article has been updated with details on the Malaysian availability of the Xiaomi Mi A3.


Nintendo Switch Updated with Better Battery Life – Now up to 9 Hours

Amid rumours of the Nintendo Switch Pro after the
Switch Lite
 was announced, the Japanese company quietly updated the standard Switch console. There are no big changes here: the only thing that has been improved is battery life, which is now dramatically longer.

With this update to the Switch, it’s unlikely we’ll see a Pro version of the console anytime soon. If you’ve been holding out from getting a Switch in hopes of an update, this is as good as it gets – for this year, anyway.

Even though the new Switch revision only impacts battery life, it’s quite a big improvement. According to Nintendo, the updated console can return up to 4.5 to 9 hours of battery life. Compared to the original Switch’s estimated battery life between 2.5 and 6.5 hours, the new Switch can outlast its predecessor by up to 2.5 hours.

To put this into context, Nintendo says that the updated Switch can run The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild for up to 5.5 hours. In comparison, the original console can only last about 3 hours. Needless to say, this makes the new Switch a lot more compelling than the original.

It’s unclear just what Nintendo did to increase the battery life of the new Switch, but many suspect that it’s a change to the internal of the console; more specifically, the SoC. In fact, some even believe that this is the same SoC found in the new Switch Lite.

With a more power-efficient SoC, it only makes sense for the battery life to improve. Other specifications of the new Switch, on the other hand, are identical to the original console. It still weighs the same, its dimensions are unchanged, and it has the familiar 6.2-inch 1280 x 720 LCD display.

The original Switch’s packaging
The updated Switch’s box design

Given how similar the updated Switch is to the original one, it will be a bit tough to differentiate the two consoles. To make sure you’re getting the newer version, take a look at the box’s design: it has a red background instead of white.

On top of that, the serial number is not the same either. The new Switch’s serial number will begin with “XKW,” while the older model starts with “XAW.” You can even look at the model number – the updated Switch is dubbed HAC-001(-01).

The new Nintendo Switch will be available from the middle of August 2019 onwards, and it will retail at the same price point as the older version. Chances are, the original Switch will be discounted before the new one arrives on our shores.


Asus ROG Phone 2 Key Hardware Revealed – Sports Huge 5,800mAh Battery

The Asus ROG Phone 2 is set to be unveiled next week on 23 July, but surprise surprise, the gaming smartphone just appeared in TENAA’s database. Naturally, several key specifications of the upcoming phone are also revealed in the certification.

Among them is the battery capacity of the ROG Phone 2, which is stated to be a whopping 5,800mAh cell. Needless to say, that is a very,
very
 generous battery size – fitting for a gaming smartphone.

Despite the huge battery capacity, the ROG Phone 2 isn’t all that thick. Sure, with a 9.78mm chassis, it’s not particularly slim either. But looking at the side profile of the phone in TENAA’s listing, it should be thin enough to not feel cumbersome to use.

Besides that, the TENAA listing also states that the ROG Phone 2 is 170.99mm tall and 77.6mm wide. Without a doubt, it is quite a large smartphone. For comparison’s sake, the
original ROG Phone
 measures 158.8 x 76.2 x 8.3 mm.

But the ROG Phone 2 does seem to utilise the space relatively well. Based on leaked images of the phone, the top and bottom bezels of the 6.59-inch display are quite minimal. While the TENAA listing does not mention the exact resolution of the screen, we do know it features a fast 120Hz refresh rate.

Looking at the back panel of the ROG Phone 2, it looks…similar to the first iteration of the device. There’s still a dual camera system, the ROG logo looks to be illuminated still, but there is one thing missing here: a fingerprint sensor. Chances are, the ROG Phone 2 will come with an in-screen fingerprint sensor.

Given the similar design of the ROG Phone 2 with its predecessor, we reckon the “AirTriggers” are retained on the upcoming phone. Basically, the AirTriggers act as shoulder buttons (via the use of ultrasonic touch sensors) when you’re gaming in landscape mode. If this feature is actually present on the ROG Phone 2, we reckon it will work very well
based on our time
 with the first ROG Phone.

Even though the TENAA listing did not reveal the chipset that will power the ROG Phone 2, we already know it will be one of the first smartphones to feature
Qualcomm’s latest Snapdragon 855+
 chipset. With an overclocked CPU and GPU, gaming on this smartphone should be very enjoyable.

The Asus ROG Phone 2 is shaping up to be a really interesting gaming smartphone; the most exciting one yet, perhaps. We’ll learn more about the device once it is made official on 23 July next week.


Xiaomi Mi A3 Hands-On: It’s Not a Downgrade

When Xiaomi unveiled its latest Android One device, the
Xiaomi Mi A3
, many folks were not thrilled by one key hardware: the 720p display. This choice of resolution is odd, considering the fact that its predecessors (the Mi A2 and Mi A2 Lite) had 1080p displays.

However, after spending some time with the Mi A3, the 720p display really isn’t that big of a problem. In fact, if priced right, this phone could be the one to beat, especially for those who are looking to get an affordable Android One smartphone.

Since it’s the hardware that’s getting the most attention, let’s talk about the Mi A3’s 720p notched display first. It’s a 6.088-inch 1560 x 720 AMOLED screen, and to top it off, it’s also using pentile matrix subpixel arrangement. Basically, it would look more pixelated than a conventional 720p display with a true RGB subpixel arrangement.

Yes, if I look closely, I can definitely see the pixelation of the Mi A3’s display.
But
, when viewed at a normal distance, the display looks
totally fine
. On top of that, because this is an AMOLED panel, you get good, vibrant colours with excellent black levels.

Would it be better if the Mi A3 had a 1080p display instead? Definitely, but it is what it is. Plus, the lower resolution display does have one big benefit: power consumption.

When viewed up close, you can see the pixelation (especially on the Play Books icon)
But when viewed at a normal distance, it’s just fine

Theoretically, a 720p display would consume less power than a 1080p screen. Paired with the Mi A3’s generous 4,030mAh battery, this phone should be able to deliver above average battery life. Besides, the Mi A3’s Qualcomm Snapdragon 665 is also an 11nm chipset, which is more power-efficient than the 14nm Snapdragon 660 SoC found in its predecessor.

When it comes to performance, the Mi A3 feels very fast and responsive. The Snapdragon 665 may only be a slight improvement over the Snapdragon 660, but it can still provide a good level of performance. I didn’t notice any stutter or lag in my brief time with the phone.

Of course, this smooth experience can also be attributed to the clean, stock version of Android running on the Mi A3. If you’re familiar with Google’s Pixel smartphones, you’ll be right at home here. It’s minimalist, there’s virtually no bloatware, and it feels really lightweight – key features of Android One devices.

Rounding out the specifications of the Mi A3 are 4GB of RAM, 64GB or 128GB of expandable storage (it supports microSD cards up to 256GB), a USB-C port, and get this: a 3.5mm headphone jack. Yes, it’s finally back after its absence from the Mi A2.

In terms of design, I quite like how the Mi A3 looks. While I’m not crazy about the notched display or chunky bottom bezel, I appreciate the look and feel of the glass back. Even the metal frame is nice to the touch, giving the phone a premium touch. All in all, it’s a step up in build quality over its predecessor.

Another nice upgrade the Mi A3 got is an in-screen fingerprint sensor, which is…well, decent. It’s an optical sensor, and it can accurately recognise my fingerprint relatively well. It’s not particularly quick, but it can certainly get the job done.

And then we have the camera performance of the Mi A3. The triple camera system is made up of a 48MP f/1.79 primary shooter, an 8MP f/2.2 wide angle shooter, and a 2MP f/2.2 depth camera. There’s no telephoto sensor here, but the camera interface does have a 2x zoom option – digital zoom, of course. The selfie camera, on the other hand, is a 32MP f/2.0 sensor.

While I’ve only spent a brief time shooting with the Mi A3, I’m generally pleased with the camera performance. The camera isn’t particularly responsive, but the end results look good with proper exposure and detail preservation. Even the autofocus speed is fast too.

That being said, I have not tested the Mi A3’s camera in less than ideal lighting condition – that’s the real test of a smartphone’s camera performance. Rest assured, I’ll put it through its paces once I have the device in for review.

The Xiaomi Mi A3 is not a downgrade in any sense of the word. Yes, the display resolution is lower compared to its predecessor, but it is now an AMOLED panel instead of an IPS screen. Personally, I’ll take the deep blacks and vibrant colours of an AMOLED display over a slightly higher resolution screen any day.

However, just how compelling the Mi A3 would be in the Malaysian market will highly depend on its asking price. For comparison, the 64GB variant of the phone retails at 249 euro in Europe, which comes up to about RM1,150. The 128GB model, on the other hand, goes for 279 euro (approximately RM1,290).

Do note that these prices are on the higher side of things because of the inclusion of VAT – it’s likely that the Mi A3 will be slightly more affordable when it is introduced in other markets, such as Malaysia. In fact, the Android One device will be launched here on 31 July 2019.

It’s not known yet if Xiaomi Malaysia will bring in both variants of the Mi A3 to our market, and we have no estimated local pricing for the device yet either. Nonetheless, if the Mi A3 is priced below the RM1,000 mark – and this is very possible – it would be a very attractive smartphone.

Even more so for Android purists who want a clean, stock Android experience without breaking the bank.


Never Get a Laptop Without an SSD

Shopping for a new laptop? Well, whether you’re looking to get an affordable productivity laptop, or even an entry-level gaming machine, keep this in mind: always,
always
 look for a laptop with a solid-state drive (SSD) instead of a hard disk drive (HDD), even if the former is more costly.

In this day and age, it is almost inexcusable for modern-day laptops to
not
 come with SSD storage – except maybe for the most affordable of notebooks. Even then, paying a couple hundred more for a laptop with an SSD is well worth it, and I’m going to tell you why.

For starters, your user experience will be a lot more pleasant with an SSD. You will see a dramatic improvement in boot time, and games will load a lot faster. Just imagine how much more convenient it is to press the power button and get to the desktop within seconds instead of minutes.

Besides that, you will also see drastic improvement in speed when launching applications. Heck, even a simple operation like opening a file is faster with an SSD. Again, this relates back to the user experience – not having to wait more than a couple of seconds for files to open or applications to load is something you would really miss when you’re using a machine with only an HDD.

Okay, confession time: I am actually in the midst of reviewing a laptop with only an HDD drive. Using this laptop as my daily driver really made me realise just how much I take the speed of SSD for granted. In fact, waiting for more than a minute for the laptop to boot into the desktop alone felt…well, wrong. It’s as if the laptop was defective in some manner.

Now, long boot time was only the beginning of my “adventure.” It was jarring to have to wait for Chrome to slowly load my tabs after launching it, and I can forget about alt-tab back to the desktop while I am gaming; it takes
way too long
. It’s as if I’m using a machine from the early 2000s, and those were not pleasant times.

Since we’re on the topic of gaming, it is absolutely important to get a gaming laptop with an SSD. Granted, some folks may be fine with longer load times, but it can get really bothersome if you’re playing games like Fortnite or Apex Legends.

So here’s what happened: I was in a queue for a Fortnite match, and once I was matched to a game, I was brought to the loading screen…for a very long time. So long, in fact, that by the time the game loaded up, the Battle Bus was already halfway through the map. What if my teammates wanted to jump earlier? I would’ve been left alone at the other side of the map.

Now, I’m not saying that you should totally avoid HDD: there are scenarios where it is more practical than an SSD. If you need a lot of storage space to store a huge number of movies and music, a 2TB HDD is more cost-effective than a 1TB SSD. Plus, access speed doesn’t matter all that much to store your media files.

That’s the reason why some laptops come with both HDD and SSD. The SSD can be used as the boot drive to speed up boot time, while the HDD can be used to store huge amount of data that doesn’t benefit as much from faster access speed.

But whichever laptop you’re getting, please: opt for one that comes with an SSD; even laptops below the RM2,000 mark now come with a 128GB SSD. If you’re looking to get a laptop that costs more than that, don’t even bother looking at ones that don’t offer any SSD storage. It’s ridiculous for more expensive laptops to not have one.

If you already own a laptop that doesn’t come with an SSD, check to see if you can add one yourself. Trust me, you will appreciate the faster performance, and it’s worth noting that SSDs have gotten a lot more affordable – gone are the days where HDDs are vastly cheaper than SSDs.


Asus ROG Phone II Unveiled with 6,000mAh Battery, Snapdragon 855+, 120Hz AMOLED Display

The Asus ROG Phone II is finally here, and it is the most powerful Android smartphone yet; until more devices ship with Qualcomm’s latest Snapdragon 855+ chipset, of course. That’s right, the ROG Phone II is the first smartphone to come with the new “
built for gaming
” SoC.

Beyond that, other specifications of the new gaming smartphone are very impressive too, including an absolutely monstrous 6,000mAh battery and a fast 120Hz AMOLED display.

The Asus ROG Phone II (left) next to the first ROG Phone

Turns out, the
earlier TENAA listing
 of the ROG Phone II wasn’t particularly accurate, citing “only” a 5,800mAh battery. Thanks to the extremely generous 6,000mAh cell, you can expect to do
a lot
 of gaming on this smartphone without needing to charge it in between gaming sessions.

In fact, Asus claims that the phone can run PUBG Mobile at 60Hz for over seven hours. Needless to say, battery life of the ROG Phone II outside of gaming should be phenomenal too. We reckon it can comfortably provide up to two days of usage, unless you’re doing a ton of gaming. If you need to quickly charge the phone, you’ll be happy to know that it comes with Asus’ HyperCharge 30W fast charging technology.

However, the large battery capacity does make this a heavy device: it weighs a whopping 240g. It’s also thicker than most smartphones in the market now, measuring 9.5mm thick.

As expected, the ROG Phone II features a 120Hz display: it’s a 6.59-inch 2340 x 1080 AMOLED HDR-capable panel, so it should be a high quality screen. This being an AMOLED panel, you will get deep blacks, vibrant colours, and excellent viewing angles.

Of course, this wouldn’t be a display worthy of a gaming smartphone if it doesn’t have more underneath the surface. Not only does it have a 120Hz refresh rate, the touch sampling rate is increased to 240Hz – this lowers the touch latency down to only 49ms. According to Asus, this is the lowest latency of any phone in the market now.

Oh, there is also a fingerprint sensor under the display. Naturally, it’s an optical unit, similar to other sensors in most smartphones now.

When it comes to performance, the ROG Phone II’s Snapdragon 855+ chipset really makes it the fastest Android phone yet; it’s the first device to ship with that SoC, after all. With an overclocked CPU and GPU, you can expect up to 15% increase in gaming performance.

Cooling is equally important to help the Snapdragon 855+ sustain its peak performance, and Asus has a number of hardware to let the SoC run at its full potential. The ROG Phone II’s cooling system of a vapour chamber and vents can supposedly prevent throttling of the 855+, and if that’s not enough, there’s also the new AeroActive Cooler II fan that clips on to the phone for extra cooling.

There are a couple of other accessories for the gaming smartphone too. The TwinView Dock II, for one, gives you an extra 120Hz screen at the top and an additional 5,000mAh battery for even longer gaming sessions. There’s also the ROG Kunai Gamepad, which looks to be heavily inspired by the
Nintendo Switch
.

Other specifications of the ROG Phone II include 12GB of RAM, up to 512GB of internal storage (non-expandable, unfortunately), AirTriggers, like the ones found on the original model – they’re basically ultrasonic shoulder buttons – and of course, a 3.5mm headphone jack.

In the camera department, the ROG Phone II isn’t particularly impressive. Considering the fact that it’s a gaming-centric smartphone, this is not all that surprising. On the back, it has a dual camera system made up of a 48MP f/1.8 primary sensor and a 13MP f/2.4 wide angle shooter. The front-facing camera, on the other hand, has a 24MP f/2.2 sensor.

The ROG Kunai Gamepad

In the software side of things, Asus is actually offering the option to
choose
 which version of Android you’d like to run on the ROG Phone II in the setup process. You can either go with the Taiwanese company’s ROG UI, or a stock version of Android 9.0 Pie.

In a market where most phone makers want users to use their take on Android, Asus’ decision to let its users choose the software experience based on their personal preferences is a breath of fresh air. This is an especially attractive feature for those who prefer the clean, no-nonsense nature of stock Android.

The original ROG Phone

The Asus ROG Phone II does not have an official price tag yet, but it will supposedly be priced similarly to its predecessor. To put this into context, the
original ROG Phone
 retailed at RM3,499 and RM3,999 for the 128GB and 512GB models respectively. As for availability, the new phone is expected to be launched worldwide in the first week of September 2019, and we were told beforehand that the gaming phone will be coming to Malaysia.

Interestingly, there will be two versions of the ROG Phone II: the China-only model will have a glossy back, while the global version will come with a sleeker matte finish. It’s not known yet if there are any other differences beyond aesthetics.

(Image credit:
Amanz
)


Samsung Galaxy Fit (2019) Quick Review: Made for Fitness

Samsung’s range of wearable devices have improved quite a bit over the years. While the company’s smartwatches are usually the ones making headlines, the Galaxy Fit 2019 is a pretty good wearable too – especially for those who want a more affordable fitness band.

In a vacuum, the Galaxy Fit is an attractive wearable made for those with an active lifestyle. But when compared to other fitness bands in the market, the Fit simply doesn’t offer the same value for money. And value for money is a very important point for most consumers.

What It Is

As far as fitness bands go, the Galaxy Fit has an eye-catching, minimalist design. The 0.95-inch 240 x 120 AMOLED display further accentuates the wearable’s sleek aesthetic, and it is also rated for 5 ATM; it can be submerged up to 50m for 10 minutes without any issue.

For notifications, the Galaxy Fit relies exclusively on vibration, and it’s strong enough to catch my attention. Besides that, it also has a 120mAh battery, which can supposedly provide up to a week’s worth of usage. The weight of the Fit is worth pointing out too: weighing only 23g, you wouldn’t really feel it on your wrist. I certainly didn’t.

The Good Stuff

As with most Samsung products, the Galaxy Fit has a fantastic, vibrant display, and that is easily one of the most impressive aspects of the wearable. It’s an AMOLED screen, so you’re getting deep, true blacks, and punchy colours. There’s no denying just how good the display looks here.

If you’re big on fitness, you will love the amount of workouts the Galaxy Fit can track. Either it’s running, cycling, swimming, or even badminton, this wearable can track it all. Once you start a workout, the Fit will constantly track your heart rate and the amount of calories you’ve burnt.

Another thing worth pointing out is the Galaxy Fit’s automatic workout detection. While it doesn’t trigger when I am doing weight training, it does manage to track a light jogging session. I was also surprised that it can accurately measure how long I’ve been jogging.

Of course, if you want the most accurate result, it’s best to select a specific workout manually for the Fit to track.

Battery life is also really good on the Galaxy Fit. Samsung estimates that the Fit can provide up to a week’s worth of usage, and I was getting close to that level of battery life. I didn’t need to charge it at all for a whole week, though I do take it off once I am home at night.

It’s worth pointing out that I’m not the most active individual; I only workout on a couple of days a week. Chances are, if you’re more active than I am, you will get shorter battery life.

The Bad Stuff

While the Galaxy Fit works great as a fitness tracker, its other features leave much to be desired, especially the notification system. Whenever I receive a new notification, the Fit will only show me the latest message. If I want to look at the previous messages, I would have to whip out my phone.

One of the best reasons to invest in a wearable is to get notifications pushed to your wrist, so to only be able to read the latest notification doesn’t cut it. In addition to that, I set the Galaxy Fit to switch on the display whenever I get a new notification, but it only seems to work half the time.

Granted, the Galaxy Fit is geared towards fitness, but it still would’ve been nice for it to have a more robust notification system. That would’ve made it an even more complete wearable.

You may have noticed by now that most of my complaints with the Galaxy Fit concerns the notification system, but this next one isn’t so much a complain as it is…well, wishful thinking. When you get a message, you can only respond with a set of pre-written replies; there’s no option to write your own message.

But, as I’ve mentioned, this is wishful thinking. Realistically, there’s no way to easily compose my own message with the Galaxy Fit’s small display anyway. But it
is
 possible to add my own pre-written message to respond to texts, and I think this is a nice compromise.

Beyond its notification system, I’m not a fan of the Galaxy Fit’s strap design either. Once I’ve adjusted the strap to my desired size, I would have to push in the excess length
under
 the strap. It’s not the easiest strap to put on, and it’s made even harder when I’m in a rush.

On the flip side, it does secure the Galaxy Fit to my wrist very well. In my book, that’s a plus point.

Oh, and one more small thing: I wish there was more watchface options. Unlike the
Galaxy Watch Active
, the Fit only comes with pre-loaded watchfaces with no way to add more. Then again, the Active is a different category of wearable altogether, not to mention the fact that it also sits in a higher price bracket.

Is It Worth It?

Well, it’s a tough question to answer. If you like how the Galaxy Fit looks, and you absolutely want the fitness band’s ability to track a wide range of workouts, it will serve you very well. But you would have to pay quite a sum of money for it.

Retailing at RM369, this fitness band is considerably more costly than its competition. More specifically, the new
Xiaomi Mi Band 4
, which can be purchased
for as low as RM149
 now. That’s
more than half
 of the Galaxy Fit’s asking price.

That, in turn, makes the Samsung Galaxy Fit look less appealing. It’s still a very good fitness band, of course, but it doesn’t offer particularly good value for money. Nonetheless, if you need a wearable that complements your active lifestyle, the Galaxy Fit is a good fit.

Excuse the pun, but I had to.


Vivo S1 Arriving in Malaysia Tomorrow – Retails at RM1,099

Vivo is set to introduce its latest smartphone, the Vivo S1, in Malaysia tomorrow. In fact, the smartphone is actually available for pre-order right now, which offers RM100 discount and a complimentary Vshare K1 Bluetooth speaker worth RM99.

If you’re looking for a budget-friendly smartphone with long battery life, the Vivo S1 is right up your alley. Now, let’s see what this phone has to offer.

One of the biggest selling points of the S1 is its large 4,500mAh battery. Paired with a 6.38-inch 1080p Super AMOLED display and a MediaTek Helio P65 chipset, this phone should have really good battery life. At the very least, we reckon it can offer a day’s worth of usage, even for heavy smartphone users.

Yes, this phone has a MediaTek chipset, which may not be everyone’s cup of tea. While MediaTek chips are not quite as popular or as desirable in comparison to Qualcomm’s offerings, the Helio P65 is still a 12nm SoC, making it a power-efficient chipset. On top of that, it’s also a 2GHz octa-core processor; it should be able to offer reasonably good processing power.

That being said, until we actually got our hands on the device, we’ll reserve judgment on the performance of the Helio P65.

Chipset aside, the S1 also comes with an in-screen fingerprint sensor, 6GB of RAM, and 128GB of internal storage. If that amount of space is not quite enough for you, you can easily add more storage with a microSD card slot. The S1 supports cards up to 256GB.

In the camera department, the S1 has a triple camera system on the back. The primary sensor is a 16MP f/1.78 shooter, which is complemented by an 8MP f/2.2 wide angle camera and a 5MP f/2.4 depth sensor. As for the front-facing camera, it’s a 32MP f/2.0 shooter.

Those who are keen to pre-order the Vivo S1 can do so at all Vivo retail stores nationwide. Of course, a RM50 deposit is required to secure your order, but a RM100 instant rebate will be given for the phone, along with a Vshare K1 Bluetooth speaker worth RM99.

Want the convenience of online pre-order instead? Well, you can place your order on a number of e-commerce platforms, including
Shopee
 and
Lazada
. While you will only receive a RM50 discount on these platforms instead of the RM100 rebate, RM150 worth of “mystery gifts” will be included with the pre-order.

The Vivo S1 will be officially introduced in Malaysia tomorrow on 24 July. Stay tuned for our hands-on of the smartphone then!


MSI Launches GT76 Titan & GE65 Raider Gaming Laptops in Malaysia

MSI just released two new gaming laptops for the Malaysian market. There’s the big and powerful GT76 Titan, as well as the more subdued (but still very capable) GE65 Raider. Impressively, both laptops can be bought with very fast 240Hz displays.

Looking at the hardware under the hood of these two laptops, it’s no surprise that they cost quite a bit of money too. But if you want a high-end gaming laptop, these two machines fit the bill, especially if you want the fast 240Hz screen.

Let’s start with the more powerful laptop, the GT76 Titan. It comes with an overclockable Intel Core i9-9900K or i7-9700K processor paired with up to 64GB of RAM, an Nvidia GeForce RTX 2080 or RTX 2070 GPU, two 512GB NVMe PCIe SSDs in Super Raid 4, and a 1TB 7200rpm HDD. Very generous storage options there.

In the display department, the GT76 has two different screen options, depending on which variant you get. The Core i9 model has a sharp 17.3-inch 4K panel, while the Core i7 variant features a 1080p screen with a fast 240Hz refresh rate. According to MSI, you’ll get “close to 100% SRGB” colour coverage with both displays. Despite the thin bezels, the webcam is still placed at the top of the screen.

Two variants of the GT76 Titan are available in Malaysia. The Core i9 variant with a 4K display, an RTX 2080 GPU, and 64GB RAM retails at RM20,999. The Core i7 model with a 1080p 240Hz screen, an RTX 2070 GPU, and 32GB of RAM, on the other hand, goes for RM14,999.

And then we have the more affordable GE65 Raider. It’s equipped with a 15.6-inch 1080p 240Hz display (yes there’s only a single option here), a Core i7-9750H processor paired with 16GB of RAM, an RTX 2070 or RTX 2060 GPU, as well as a 1TB NVMe PCIe SSD. It’s a decidedly more modest offering next to the GT76, but in turn, it doesn’t cost quite as much either.

Just like the GT76, two variants of the GE65 Raider are offered in Malaysia. The RTX 2070 model is priced at RM9,899, while the RTX 2060 variant can be yours for RM8,099. Note that it is only the choice of GPU that differentiates the two models.

As mentioned, both of these laptops are not particularly affordable, but they do have very capable hardware. On top of that, the 240Hz display and 1TB SSD do not come cheap either. Besides, not many laptops come with 240Hz screens now too.

If you’re interested to get either one of these two gaming laptops, they are now available for purchase in Malaysia.


Vivo S1 Hands-On: Mediocre

Even though we
already know
 almost every aspect of the Vivo S1 – including its retail price – the mid-range smartphone has just been launched in Malaysia. Made for the “young and stylish” consumers, the new S series does have a slightly different design language than other Vivo smartphones.

However, retailing at RM1,099, the S1 doesn’t exactly offer the best value for money. Nonetheless, it is a solid mid-ranger, even if it is not particularly outstanding.

Since it’s meant to appeal to the younger crowd, the S1 does look pretty sleek. I dig the gradient finish on the back of the phone, and the bottom screen bezel is minimal enough to give it a modern-looking design.

That being said, I’m not really thrilled with the display notch. While it’s not a wide notch, it is more intrusive than, say,
a hole-punch design
. On top of that, this phone is still using a microUSB port. In a market where more and more smartphones come with USB-C connections, the S1 is lacking behind.

And then we have the S1’s build quality, which isn’t all that great. The plastic, painted frame doesn’t look or feel particularly premium, and the equally plasticky back panel gives the impression of a…cheaper smartphone. At this price point, you’d expect the phone to feel more solid.

But the S1 does have some redeeming qualities. The in-screen fingerprint sensor, for one, is
surprisingly
 quick. I was legitimately taken aback by how fast and accurate it is. A quick, single tap is enough to unlock the device, and it really reminds me of the
OnePlus 7 Pro
‘s excellent in-screen sensor. That’s high praise for the S1’s fingerprint sensor.

Display quality of this phone is really good too. It has a 6.38-inch 1080p Super AMOLED screen, and it looks great. Colours are vibrant, blacks are very deep, and the screen doesn’t wash out when you look at it off-angle. It’s a good display, no doubt.

Performance wise, the S1 feels relatively speedy. The MediaTek Helio P65 chipset under the hood can provide a zippy user experience, and it doesn’t feel sluggish at all in my brief time with the phone. Yes, MediaTek chipsets aren’t quite on par with Qualcomm’s offerings, but as far as I can tell, the P65 isn’t a “bad” SoC by any means.

It’s also worth noting that the Helio P65 is built on a 12nm process, so it’s quite a power-efficient chip. This, combined with the S1’s very generous 4,500mAh battery and Super AMOLED display, it should have above average battery life.

Rounding out the specifications of the S1 are 6GB of RAM, 128GB of internal storage, a microSD card slot (with support for cards up to 256GB), a 32MP f/2.0 front-facing shooter, and Funtouch OS 9 based on Android 9.0 Pie out of the box.

When it comes to camera performance, the S1…doesn’t feel super great, even for a mid-range smartphone. The triple camera system on the back is made up of a 16MP f/1.78 primary shooter, an 8MP f/2.2 wide angle camera, and a 5MP f/2.4 depth sensor. All in all, there’s room for improvement.

For one, the camera interface doesn’t feel very responsive. That would’ve been fine (for me, anyway) if the end results actually look good. In relatively good lighting, images come out looking soft, and the detail preservation isn’t fantastic either.

Granted, I’ve only spent a short time photographing with the S1, so I can’t say with certainty yet whether or not the camera performance is bad. Personally, I’m curious to see exactly how the camera would perform in low light conditions.

Retailing at RM1,099, the Vivo S1 has some tough competition. You’ve got the
Xiaomi Mi 9T
, the upcoming
Xiaomi Mi A3
 (it’s launching in Malaysia on 31 July next week), and even the
Realme 3 Pro
. These devices are either sleeker, more powerful, or more affordable than the S1, which makes it tough to consider Vivo’s offering over them – it’s a decidedly average smartphone.

However, if there is any area where the S1 can excel over these alternatives, it would either be in the battery life department or the accuracy of its in-screen fingerprint sensor. Alas, only a full review of this phone can shed some light on these two aspects, especially the former.

The Vivo S1 is currently available for pre-order in Malaysia until 26 July. If you place your pre-order at a Vivo retail store, you can get a RM100 rebate for the phone. A RM50 deposit is required, of course, but you’ll also get a Vshare K1 Bluetooth speaker worth RM99 with your pre-order.

Alternatively, you can pre-order the S1 online from
Shopee
 and
Lazada
. You won’t get to enjoy the RM100 rebate (though you will receive a RM50 discount instead), you will get RM150 worth of “mystery gifts.” Those who want to purchase the phone outright, on the other hand, can do so on 27 July.


This 4K Gaming Monitor with Nvidia G-Sync & AMD FreeSync Costs Only RM1,199

Gaming monitors, especially ones with 4K resolution, are not particularly affordable. Well, not this 4K gaming monitor from Armaggeddon. Dubbed Pixxel+ Elite EFX 27UHD SWITX – yes, it’s a mouthful – this is one impressive 4K gaming monitor that offers incredible value for money.

Oh, that’s right: Armaggeddon is now venturing into the monitor market with its Pixxel+ range, and the EFX 27UHD is the most premium offering in the current lineup.

So what’s so impressive with this gaming monitor? Well, for starters, it only costs
RM1,199
. That’s right, only RM1,199 for a 27-inch 3840 x 2160 Ultra HD AHVA gaming monitor
with support
 for
Nvidia’s G-Sync and AMD’s FreeSync
 technologies. As far as we can tell, there are no other monitors that offer the same feature set at this low price point.

That being said, there is one important thing to note: the EFX 27UHD is only a “G-Sync Compatible” gaming monitor. It doesn’t have the specific “scaler” module from Nvidia for it to be a full-fledged G-Sync monitor. While you can still eliminate screen tearing with an Nvidia GPU on this monitor, there are some limitations.

For example, you may encounter some display issues when gaming on a G-Sync Compatible gaming monitor. These include flickering, artifacting, and a more limited frame rate range for G-Sync to work its magic. Of course, these issues may not be present at all on the EFX 27UHD, but we can only confirm this in a full review of the gaming monitor.

Besides that, if you have an AMD GPU, FreeSync should work as it should on the EFX 27UHD. However, Armaggeddon did not specify the effective frame rate range for FreeSync to operate on this monitor. Nonetheless, the adaptive sync technology is definitely available here.

While the 4K resolution of the EFX 27UHD is nice, the refresh rate is only limited to 60Hz. But if you turn it down to 1440p, you can set the monitor’s refresh rate to 144Hz. For the majority of gamers, a 144Hz refresh rate at this resolution is more than enough. After all, there are only a handful of GPUs that can push that many frames at 1440p.

In terms of connectivity, you won’t be disappointed with the EFX 27UHD. See, it doesn’t have one, or two, but
three
 HDMI ports. On top of that, it also has a DisplayPort connection, which can provide enough bandwidth to drive the display at 144Hz.

The Armaggeddon Pixxel+ Elite EFX 27UHD SWITX gaming monitor is now available for purchase in Malaysia
from Shopee
. For RM1,199, it’s definitely worth considering for those who are looking to get an affordable 4K gaming monitor.


You Can Buy Armaggeddon Gaming Laptops & Desktops in Malaysia Soon

Chances are, you’ve heard about Armaggeddon before. Mostly known for its range of peripherals, the company is expanding its product portfolio quite a bit. Not only is it offering
gaming monitors
 now, it is also planning to introduce its own range of gaming laptops and desktops in the near future.

Of course, as Armaggeddon is known for its affordable price points, the company’s upcoming gaming laptops and desktops will be priced competitively too. In fact, Armaggeddon is confident it can offer a lower price point for its pre-built desktops than building one yourself – that’s a really good selling point.

Armaggeddon is doing a couple of things to lower the prices of its desktop machines. For one, the PSU and case will be provided by the company itself, so it can definitely give some discount here and there. If you want a different PSU or case, you’re out of luck: only Armaggeddon-branded options are available.

On top of that, Armaggeddon will also be partnering with MSI for its pre-built desktops, so the GPU and motherboard options will be provided solely by the Taiwanese company. Given the prestige of MSI’s hardware products, this is definitely a plus point.

Needless to say, this partnership would allow Armaggeddon to further lower the prices of its desktop offerings.

One of the best reasons to buy a pre-built gaming rig from Armaggeddon would have to be its warranty coverage. If any part of the PC malfunction, you can just bring it back to the company for warranty claim. It’s definitely a lot easier (and convenient) to just refer back to Armaggeddon for any issue.

Several Armaggeddon desktops were shown to us at a press briefing earlier today, and looking at the internals of the gaming rigs, they seem to be put together quite well. The cable management is relatively good, there’s no use of custom extensions, and it looks to be easy to swap out the individual parts.

Unfortunately, Armaggeddon will only offer its pre-built gaming rigs in Malaysia later this year; we were told they will only be rolled out towards the end of 2019. In addition, these desktops will be pre-configured by the company, so consumers won’t have the flexibility of customising their own machines. The good news? Armaggeddon has plans to allow for customisation in the future.

As for its upcoming gaming laptops, they will be based on Clevo’s designs, as expected. It’s a similar practice employed by a number of companies that offer custom gaming laptops, including Illegear and Level 51 – both of these companies use Clevo-based machines.

But for Armaggeddon, there is one clear difference: it wouldn’t offer the same level of customisation. The laptop’s hardware configuration would be determined by the company itself, and it won’t be offering super high-end gaming laptops either.

Speaking with a representative of Armaggeddon, we were told to expect gaming laptops from the company to cost below RM6,000, with GPU options that top out at RTX 2070 or (more likely) RTX 2060. Not the most powerful GPU options, but still plenty respectable.

Just like the pre-built desktops, Armaggeddon will only start offering its own gaming laptops towards the end of the year. While that’s still quite some time away, the value for money of these upcoming machines may be well worth waiting for.

On a side note, Armaggeddon will also expand into the gaming chair and table market; the company will share more details on both of these product categories sometime next month. Evidently, Armaggeddon is aggressively venturing into different markets.


Lenovo Offering Lifetime Access to Microsoft Office for IdeaPad & IdeaCentre Products

When you buy a new Windows machine, there’s a good chance it doesn’t come with Microsoft Office’s range of applications. Even if it does, you’d still have to activate it one way or another. Well, that’s not the case with Lenovo’s latest range of consumer laptops and AIO.

Thanks to Lenovo’s partnership with Microsoft, new IdeaPad and IdeaCentre products will come with Microsoft Office Home & Student 2019 pre-installed. Of course, these machines will have lifetime access to the
full version
 of Office applications like Word, Excel, and PowerPoint. However, only purchases made through Lenovo’s retail store will come with the software.

Nonetheless, considering the fact that Office Home & Student 2019 costs RM529 when purchased on its own, you’re getting good value for your money here. According to Lenovo, the 15-inch models of the IdeaPad C340, S340, S540, and L340 are confirmed to have the software bundled. If you want an AIO instead, the IdeaCentre A340 AIO is also included.

Out of all the products mentioned, the IdeaPad C340 is the most interesting one; it’s the only convertible in the list. It can be configured with a 15.6-inch 1080p IPS touch display, an Intel Core i5-8265U or i7-8565U processor paired with 8GB of RAM, an Nvidia GeForce MX230 GPU, a 128GB PCIe-based SSD, and a 1TB 5400rpm HDD.

Don’t fancy a convertible? Then you can consider the IdeaPad S340 or S540. Both laptops have a 15.6-inch 1080p display, a Core i5-8265U or i7-8565U processor with 8GB of RAM, as well as a 128GB SSD + 1TB 5400rpm HDD combo.

What differentiates these two laptops are the display and GPU options. The S540 comes with an IPS screen and an MX250 GPU, while the S340 is equipped with a non-IPS display and a slightly slower MX230 GPU.

And then we have the most affordable laptop, the IdeaPad L340. It can be equipped with a 15.6-inch 1366 x 768 or 1920 x 1080 TN display, a Core i3-8145U, i5-8265U, or i7-8565U processor paired with 8GB of RAM, a sole 128GB SSD storage (you can add an HDD or a bigger SSD), as well as two GPU options: an MX110 or MX230 GPU. Alternatively, you can just go with integrated graphics to lower the price.

Last but definitely not least is the IdeaCentre A340 AIO; it’s quite a sleek-looking machine. It features a 21.5-inch 1080p display, a Pentium Gold 5405U or Core i3-8145U processor paired with 4GB of RAM, and a 1TB 5400rpm HDD. Unfortunately, it can only be configured with Intel’s UHD Graphics 620; there’s no option for a dedicated GPU.

If you’re looking to get an affordable laptop that comes with Microsoft Office, you can’t go wrong with either one of these options – just
make sure you add an SSD
 (if possible) for a more pleasant user experience. Here’s the price breakdown for all of the products above:

Lenovo IdeaPad C340 – from RM2,799
 Lenovo IdeaPad S340 – from RM2,599
 Lenovo IdeaPad S540 – from RM3,499
 Lenovo IdeaPad L340 – from RM1,799
 Lenovo IdeaCentre A340 AIO – from RM2,199

You can now purchase all of these Lenovo products at the company’s exclusive stores nationwide. Alternatively, they are also available online on
Lenovo’s online store
.


Huawei Nova 5i Pro Introduced with Kirin 810 & 2,199 Yuan Price Tag

Meet the fourth member of the
Huawei Nova 5 series
, the Nova 5i Pro. Believed to be marketed as the Huawei Mate 30 Lite in certain markets (the camera design certainly reflects that), the 5i Pro is…sort of like a combination of the standard Nova 5 and Nova 5i.

Powered by Huawei’s newly released Kirin 810 chipset, the Nova 5i Pro is quite the interesting mid-ranger. More importantly, it is priced competitively too – let’s see what it has to offer, shall we?

Much like the Nova 5, the Nova 5i Pro comes with a Kirin 810 chipset. What makes this SoC particularly impressive is the fact that it’s built on a 7nm process, just like the
higher-end Kirin 980
 chip. Not only is this the only 7nm chip in the mid-range segment, the smaller size also means better power efficiency, which translates to better battery life.

Even when compared to its closest competition, the Qualcomm Snapdragon 730 chipset, early benchmarks have shown that the Kirin 810 is superior. Needless to say, this is a very respectable mid-range SoC. Did we mention it’s also the only 7nm chip in this segment? Yeah, it’s
that
big – or rather, small – of a deal.

Chipset aside, the Nova 5i Pro also takes cue from the Nova 5i’s hole-punch design. In our opinion, it looks a lot sleeker and modern than the notched displays of the higher-end Nova 5 and Nova 5 Pro. The hole-punch cutout just doesn’t take up as much space.

But similar to the Nova 5i, there is no fingerprint sensor under the 6.26-inch 1080p LTPS display of the Nova 5i Pro. Instead, there’s a sensor on the back of the phone. Depending on your personal preference, this could be a plus point: conventional capacitive fingerprint sensors are usually a lot more accurate and quicker than in-screen sensors.

On the back of the Nova 5i Pro is a square camera module that looks a lot like the
Mate 20
‘s camera arrangement. It’s made up of a 48MP f/1.8 primary shooter, an 8MP wide angle sensor, a 2MP macro lens, and a 2MP depth sensor. Just like the Nova 5 and Nova 5 Pro, there is no telephoto camera here.

Other specifications of the Nova 5i Pro include a 32MP f/2.0 front-facing shooter, a very generous 4,000mAh battery, 6GB or 8GB of RAM, two storage options (128GB or 256GB), a USB-C port, and a 3.5mm headphone jack. Unfortunately, this phone does not have a microSD card slot, but it does support the company’s ow proprietary NM cards for storage expansion.

The Huawei Nova 5i Pro is currently available only in China. There are three variants of the phone in the country: the 128GB model with 6GB RAM retails at 2,199 Chinese yuan (about RM1,315), while the 128GB + 8GB and 256GB + 8GB variants go for 2,499 yuan (approximately RM1,495) and 2,799 yuan (around RM1,675) respectively.

These are competitive price tags for a mid-range smartphone like the Nova 5i Pro. Given the fact that Huawei is
bringing in the Nova 5 series to Malaysia
, there is a chance the Nova 5i Pro will officially make it here. Rest assured, we will keep a close eye on the local availability of the Huawei Nova 5 series.


Samsung Galaxy A80 Review: Priced Out of the Market

Smartphones with all-screen designs are becoming increasingly common, and to achieve that kind of aesthetic, phone makers have come up with some creative solutions. One of the most popular implementations is the pop-up camera mechanism, which is found on this smartphone right here: the Samsung Galaxy A80.

Samsung even added a twist (quite literally) with the A80. Instead of a conventional motorised camera mechanism, this phone’s camera module…rotates. It’s an interesting design, but all in all, it’s not the best solution. That, coupled with the Galaxy A80’s steep asking price, make it a tough smartphone to recommend.

Specifications

Display
6.7-inch FHD+ Super AMOLED (2400 x 1080)
Chipset
Qualcomm Snapdragon 730 2.2GHz octa-core
GPU
Adreno 618
RAM
8GB
Storage
128GB, non-expandable
Camera (rear)
48MP f/2.0 (primary)
8MP f/2.2 (wide angle)
3D Depth Sensor
Camera (front)
None
Battery
3,700mAh
Dimensions
165.2 x 76.5 x 9.3 mm
Weight
220g
OS
One UI 1.1 based on Android 9 Pie
Connectivity
LTE
NFC
Bluetooth 5.0
WiFi 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac (2.4/5GHz)
USB Type-C

Looking at these specifications, the Galaxy A80 is comfortably an upper mid-range smartphone, thanks to the Qualcomm Snapdragon 730 chipset. Now, just because it’s not a Snapdragon 8 series SoC doesn’t mean it’s not good; it can actually offer a good level of performance.

Other specifications of the Galaxy A80 are pretty good too. It has 8GB of RAM, 128GB of internal storage, and a reasonably big 3,700mAh battery. Unfortunately, this phone has no microSD card slot, and it doesn’t have a 3.5mm headphone jack either.

Design

Naturally, the all-screen design of the Galaxy A80 is the highlight here. Simply dubbed “New Infinity Display,” there is no notch or hole-punch cutout on the screen; only a bit of a chin at the bottom of the display. Overall, it’s a sleek, aesthetically pleasing smartphone.

In order to realise that all-screen design, the Galaxy A80 has a rotating, motorised camera module. Once the “front-facing camera” is activated in the camera interface, the camera would pop-up and rotate to the front. Basically, you have one camera system for your selfie and photography needs.

While this rotating camera module is unique, it’s not exactly very…practical. Not only is it noticeably slower than, say, the
OnePlus 7 Pro
‘s pop-up camera module, it has more moving parts too. With more moving parts, there’s a higher chance of it malfunctioning over the years.

Then again, it’s entirely possible the camera module would outlast the Galaxy A80 itself. Throughout my time with the phone, never did the rotating camera fail to activate properly too.

Beyond the motorised camera module, the Galaxy A80 has solid build quality. The glass back and metal frame feel great to the touch, every part is put together well, and I like the heft of the phone. However, it may be a tad too heavy for some folks – it tips the scales at 220g.

When it comes to ergonomics, the Galaxy A80 could use some work. For one, the 6.7-inch display makes it a sizeable smartphone; using it with only one hand can prove to be quite a challenge. Besides that, I wish the sides were thicker, so that I can get a better grip of the phone.

As a whole, the Galaxy A80 is a sleek-looking smartphone with a big, notch-free display. Even if it has some ergonomic issues, there’s no denying the aesthetic appeal of the phone.

User Experience

Like most Samsung smartphones, the Galaxy A80 runs on the phone maker’s One UI software based on Android 9 Pie, which is as polished as ever. It is lightweight, responsive, and intuitive to use. Throughout my time with the phone, I didn’t encounter any serious bug with One UI either.

When it comes to performance, the Snapdragon 730 can definitely provide more than enough processing power. I can switch between different apps quickly without issue, apps open relatively fast, and gaming is really enjoyable too. In fact, this chipset’s Adreno 618 GPU can run PUBG Mobile very well.

Of course, it’s not in the same league as a flagship-tier processor, but the Snapdragon 730 really is a fast, capable chipset. After all, it’s the most powerful chipset outside of the Snapdragon 8 series.

Also, it’s worth mentioning that the Snapdragon 730 is an 8nm chip, making it quite power-efficient. Combined with the Galaxy A80’s 3,700mAh battery, I managed to get about five hours of screen on time consistently throughout the review period. That’s not fantastic battery life, but it’s not too bad either.

As for the A80’s charging rate, it’s decent. Within 30 minutes of charging, the phone got up to about 55% from completely empty.

And then we have the Galaxy A80’s large 6.7-inch 1080p Super AMOLED display, and as expected, it’s a high quality display. Deep blacks, vibrant colours, great viewing angles, you name it: all of that describes the A80’s display. It can get blindingly bright too, so screen legibility under harsh sunlight is really good.

Now then, on to the…not so good stuff. Since we’re still on the topic of display, let’s talk about the Galaxy A80’s in-screen fingerprint sensor. On average, I would say that the sensor can only recognise my fingerprint quickly and accurately…half the time?

Okay, maybe it’s not quite that bad, but it certainly felt like it. More often than not, I would have to repeatedly place my finger on the sensor to unlock the phone. On top of that, it’s not particularly quick either, often requiring me to tap and hold on the sensor for quite a bit before it can read my fingerprint.

Most of the time, I find myself just keying in my passcode to unlock the phone. It saves me a lot of time (and frustration).

Another pain point with the Galaxy A80 is the in-screen speaker. See, this phone does not have a conventional earpiece at the top of the display. Instead, the top part of the screen vibrates to transmit sound. It’s a neat hardware trick – even though it’s not entirely new – but it doesn’t work very well.

Even with the volume maximised, I was still having trouble hearing the person on the other side of the call. It sounds…muddled, and it got to a point where I was using the loudspeaker instead to carry out the conversation.

Yeah, it’s awkward to do that in a public area, but I was desperate.

Despite these small annoyances, I do enjoy using the Galaxy A80 as my daily driver over the past couple of weeks. One UI provides a good software experience, the big, bright display is pleasant to look at, and the Snapdragon 730 can really keep up with my gaming needs.

Camera

Sporting a triple camera system made up of a 48MP f/2.0 primary shooter, an 8MP f/2.2 wide angle camera, and a 3D Depth Sensor, the Galaxy A80 has reasonably good camera performance. The camera does get more sluggish in less than ideal lighting, but the end results look great regardless of lighting condition. Not quite on the same level as a flagship smartphone, but still good nonetheless.

However, as good as the camera performance is, I was expecting…well, a more sophisticated camera system,
especially
 at this price point. Given the steep asking price of the Galaxy A80, I was hoping to see a telephoto sensor, which would’ve made it a more complete camera system.

Sure, some folks may find more use out of the A80’s wide angle shooter than a telephoto lens, but even that isn’t particularly great. While it handles distortion well (image don’t have very noticeable fisheye-like effect), noise is an issue in low light conditions. Detail preservation suffers as well.

48MP primary
8MP wide angle
48MP primary
8MP wide angle

That is not to say the Galaxy A80 has a bad camera system; it just doesn’t match the asking price of the smartphone. On the flip side, you do get a very good “front-facing camera,” considering the fact that selfies are taken with the same camera module.

Competition

Carrying a RM2,499 price tag, the Galaxy A80 is a costly mid-range smartphone. On top of that, it’s also approaching the price territory of flagship devices, which are faster, sleeker, and more feature-packed. With that in mind, let’s look at the A80’s main competition with a similar all-screen design.

OnePlus 7 Pro

Yes, the
OnePlus 7 Pro
 is even more costly than the Galaxy A80 at RM2,999 for the 128GB variant with 6GB of RAM (2GB less than the A80), but it has so much more to offer. It has a sleeker design, a far more impressive 6.67-inch 1440p Fluid AMOLED 90Hz display, and better performance courtesy of the Snapdragon 855 chipset.

So why would you get the Galaxy A80 over the OnePlus 7 Pro? Well, only if you want the rotating camera of the former, which offers a better selfie camera in return. Of course, there’s also the fact that the A80 costs RM500 less than the 7 Pro, though you will get a lot more value for your money with OnePlus’ offering.

Xiaomi Mi 9T

If you want something
far more affordable
, there’s the
Xiaomi Mi 9T
. Despite retailing at only RM1,399 for the 128GB variant with 6GB of RAM, it offers the same Snapdragon 730 chipset, an all-screen design, a more versatile triple camera system with three different focal lengths, and a bigger 4,000mAh battery.

That being said, the Galaxy A80 does have a couple of plus points. Although the Mi 9T has a more versatile camera system, the A80 has superior camera performance. Personally, I find One UI to be a lot more pleasant to use than Xiaomi’s MIUI software too. But whether or not these are worth paying RM1,100 more is a different question.

Conclusion

The Samsung Galaxy A80 is a unique, curious smartphone with a rotating camera module and all-screen design. It’s a sleek, premium smartphone, but its high asking price and lack of value for money really work against it. Would you pay RM2,499 for a mid-range smartphone?

Granted, you do get a really good mid-range smartphone for that kind of money. It has a sleek design, a good level of performance, as well as a capable triple camera system with a unique rotating mechanism, even if it’s not the most practical implementation.

If you are intrigued by the Galaxy A80, it’s worth a consideration. Just know that you have a lot of other options at this price point.


Xiaomi Mi A3 & Mi Band 4 Arrive in Malaysia; Priced Below RM1,000

A couple of weeks after its global unveiling, the
Xiaomi Mi A3
 is now in Malaysia. As expected, the Android One device is priced very competitively for our market, retailing below the RM1,000 price point; even for the 128GB variant.

On top of that, the
Xiaomi Mi Band 4
 was also launched at the same time, carrying a RM149 price tag. For folks who are looking to get an affordable smartphone or fitness band, these two products are worth considering.

Let’s start with the Mi A3, Xiaomi’s latest Android One device. Two variants are available in Malaysia: the 64GB model retails at RM899, while the 128GB variant goes for RM999. Without a doubt these are competitive prices for a device of this calibre.

Compared to its predecessor, the Mi A3 brings quite a number of improvements. It has a much more generous 4,030mAh battery with support for 18W fast charging, an in-screen fingerprint sensor, a power-efficient Qualcomm Snapdragon 655 chipset (built on an 11nm process), and a more sophisticated triple camera system, among other things.

However, there is one hardware that draws criticism: the 6.088-inch 720p AMOLED display. That’s right, a 720p display, which is
technically
 a downgrade from its predecessor’s 1080p IPS screen. Granted, the shift to an AMOLED panel can be seen as an upgrade, but many (including us) are puzzled at the 720p resolution.

That being said, in our
hands-on of the Mi A3
, we mentioned that it’s not
that
 big of a deal. Of course, it’s possible to see the pixelation of the display close-up, but when viewed at a normal distance, it doesn’t look particularly blurry or anything. Plus, it’s an AMOLED screen, so you get deep blacks, vibrant colours, and great viewing angles.

Besides the display, other specifications of the Mi A3 are relatively good. It comes with 4GB of RAM, a microSD card slot (a feature that wasn’t available on the Mi A2), a 3.5mm headphone jack (also unavailable on the Mi A2), and a USB-C port.

In the camera department, the Mi A3’s triple camera system is made up of a 48MP f/1.79 primary sensor, an 8MP f/2.2 wide angle shooter, and a 2MP f/2.2 depth camera. The front-facing shooter, on the other hand, has a 32MP f/2.0 sensor.

And then we have the Mi Band 4, Xiaomi’s most complete wearable yet. It features a 0.95-inch 240 x 120 AMOLED display, a 135mAh battery, which can deliver up to 20 days of battery life, and a 5 ATM rating; it can be submerged up to 50m underwater for 10 minutes without problem.

The Xiaomi Mi A3 will be available in Malaysia from Shopee, Lazada, as well as Authorised Mi Stores from 3 August onwards. The Xiaomi Mi Band 4, on the other hand, can be purchased right now from the same channels.


MediaTek Unveils New Helio G90 Series Chipsets – Focused on Gaming

MediaTek just introduced two chipsets under the company’s new Helio G series: the Helio G90 and G90T. Essentially, these two SoCs are focused on delivering the best gaming performance…at an affordable price point.

While it remains to be seen which device will come with either one of these two chipsets, at least one phone maker is on board: Xiaomi. Given the specifications of the Helio G90 series, it could very well offer reasonably good gaming performance for budget-centric smartphones.

What differentiates the Helio G90 and G90T is merely the clock speed of both the CPU and GPU. The G90’s CPU cores max out at 2.0GHz, while the G90T is clocked ever so slightly higher at 2.05GHz. As for the GPU – which is a Mali G76 MP4 – it is clocked at 720MHz and 800MHz for the G90 and G90T respectively.

Much like the Qualcomm Snapdragon 730 and Huawei’s own
Kirin 810
 chipsets, the Helio G90 series also uses ARM’s Cortex-A76 and Cortex-A55 CPU cores. Basically, you can expect similar performance from the G90 chipsets compared to its competition here, though we’ll have to wait until more benchmark results of the chips are available to be sure.

If we were to take MediaTek’s word for it, however, the Helio G90 series is supposedly up to 26% faster than the Snapdragon 730. Considering the fact that the Snapdragon 730 is one of the most popular upper mid-range chipsets in the market now, that’s certainly a bold claim. We’ll definitely put this claim to the test once we have the opportunity to do so.

But there is one area where the Helio G90 SoCs fall behind: they are still built on a 12nm process. Compared to the Snapdragon 730 (8nm) and Kirin 810 (7nm), the G90 chips won’t be quite as power-efficient. This, in turn, could result in worse battery life – in theory, anyway.

As the Helio G90 series is focused on gaming, it comes with MediaTek’s “HyperEngine” technology. It’s a suite of software optimisations to improve gaming performance, which isn’t unlike Huawei’s GPU Turbo tech. On top of that, MediaTek also says that the G90 chips can identify if the WiFi signal is weakening, in which case it will automatically switch to an LTE connection as backup.

MediaTek chipsets have always been found in more budget-friendly smartphones, so if the new Helio G90 series can provide good gaming performance for the money, the chipmaker could have a winner here.

The first smartphone to ship with MediaTek’s new Helio G90 chip will likely come from Xiaomi. The Chinese phone maker recently confirmed that a Redmi-branded smartphone will feature either one of the two new chips. Given Xiaomi’s competitive pricing – and the affordability of MediaTek’s chips – it should make for an interesting smartphone.


Black Shark 2 Pro Unveiled with Snapdragon 855+ & Similar Design; Coming to Malaysia Soon

Black Shark just unveiled an update to the
original Black Shark 2
. Dubbed simply the Black Shark 2 Pro, the new gaming smartphone comes with a faster
Qualcomm Snapdragon 855+
 chipset, as well as UFS 3.0 storage; the previous model only had UFS 2.1 storage instead.

Beyond the updated chipset, other specifications of the Black Shark 2 Pro are very similar to its predecessor, including the overall design. There are, however, a few small changes here and there, and it is expected to be coming to Malaysia very soon.

Aesthetically, the Black Shark 2 Pro has a new rear panel design. Compared to the regular Black Shark 2’s more bulky-looking design, the Pro model has a more streamlined look with a strip of metal going down the middle of the phone. This isn’t only done for looks, apparently: it supposedly improves grip comfort in long gaming sessions.

Thanks to the faster Snapdragon 855+ chipset, the Black Shark 2 Pro will have better gaming performance than its predecessor. Even though it still uses the same Adreno 640 GPU, it has been overclocked to return up to 15% better performance. That’s really quite a noteworthy performance gain.

Besides the GPU, the CPU of the Snapdragon 855+ is clocked higher too: it runs at up to 2.96GHz instead of 2.84GHz with the standard Snapdragon 855.

Response time of the Black Shark 2 Pro’s display has also been further improved. Its predecessor already had an impressive 43.5ms input lag, but the Pro model lowered it down to
only 34.7ms
. For comparison, the
Asus ROG Phone II
‘s input lag is 49ms. On top of that, the 240Hz polling rate of the Pro’s screen is retained too.

Unfortunately, the Black Shark 2 Pro
still
 comes with a 60Hz display. Given the fact that its competition has 90Hz, or even 120Hz screens, the 60Hz refresh rate of the Pro’s display definitely isn’t impressive. Especially so for a gaming-centric smartphone.

Regardless, at least the 6.39-inch display is still a 2340 x 1080 AMOLED panel, so it should have deep blacks and vibrant colours. Other specifications of the Black Shark 2 Pro include 12GB of RAM, 128GB or 256GB of non-expandable storage, a 4,000mAh battery, a dual camera system (48MP f/1.75 primary sensor + 12MP f/2.2 telephoto lens), as well as a 20MP f/2.0 front-facing shooter.

Two variants of the gaming smartphone are available: the 128GB model retails at 2,999 Chinese yuan (about RM1,800), while the 256GB variant goes for 3,499 yuan (approximately RM2,100).

Currently, the Black Shark 2 Pro is only sold in China, but that will change in the coming months. In fact, we were told that the gaming smartphone will be coming to Malaysia soon. Rest assured, we will keep a close eye on the local availability of the Black Shark 2 Pro.


Fortnite Season X Introduces a Giant Mech Controlled By Two Players

Fortnite’s 10th season – stylised as “Season X” – is now live, and it is jam-packed with a number of new cosmetic items, features, and get this: a giant mech suit. That’s right, a giant mech that requires
two players
 to control effectively.

If you haven’t been playing Fortnite for a while now (like myself), you may be interested to jump back into the game for Season X – I certainly will.

Okay, so let’s start with the new giant mech suit. B.R.U.T.E., as Epic Games calls it, can be operated by two players: one to control the movement, and another to control the various weaponry. Alternatively, you can even use the mech suit alone by switching between moving and shooting.

The maneuverability of B.R.U.T.E. seems to be quite good too. You can dash, super jump, and even “stomp enemies and structures into the ground.” As for weapons, you’ve got two at your disposal: a shotgun and a missile launcher.

Out of the two weapons, the missile launcher is the most interesting one here. Up to 10 missiles can be loaded, and you’ll have to hold down on the Trigger button to start loading them. Once you let go of the Trigger button (or 10 missiles have already been loaded), all missiles will fire automatically.

Naturally, there is a way to protect yourself inside the B.R.U.T.E.. By consuming 200 Materials of any type, you will create an “overshield,” which will protect you in the mech for five seconds. Not particularly long, but hey, it’s part of balancing.

That being said, we’re sure the giant mech suit will be tweaked again once players start putting it through its paces.

Another thing that’s new in Season X are Battle Pass-exclusive Missions, which are thematic objectives that grant various rewards. These range from Battle Stars, experience points, and cosmetic items exclusive to these Missions. Aside from that, Season X also allows you to gift Battle Pass to your friends now. If you want to do so, be quick: it will not be possible to gift Battle Pass after 15 August.

Besides that, the Season X Battle Pass include your usual rewards as you go up in tiers. You can get emotes, cosmetic items, experience points, and so on. The full list of rewards can be found
here
.

Season X of Fortnite is live right now, and it will conclude on 6 October. If you’d like to purchase the Battle Pass, it still costs the same at 950 V-Bucks. For context, you can purchase 1,000 V-Bucks
for RM30 on the PlayStation Store
. The full patch note for Season X can be found on
Fortnite’s official website
.


Acer Launches Affordable Aspire 3, Aspire 5 Laptops & RM599 Portable Monitor in Malaysia

In conjunction with Acer Day 2019, the Taiwanese company just launched two new affordable laptops and a portable monitor in Malaysia. The two laptops are the Aspire 3 and Aspire 5, which are ideal for folks who are looking for a relatively budget-friendly laptop that can also do some gaming on the side.

As for the portable monitor, it is the Acer PM161Q. Featuring a 15.6-inch 1080p IPS display, this lightweight, compact monitor is targeted at those who want a second screen on the go.

Out of the two laptops launched today, the Aspire 5 is arguably the more interesting one. It comes with an Intel Core i5-8265U or i7-8565U processor paired with 4GB of on-board DDR4 RAM, a 14-inch 1080p IPS display, a 256GB PCIe SSD, and an Nvidia GeForce MX250 GPU.

Thanks to the MX250 GPU, the Aspire 5 would be able to run certain games at a playable frame rate. Dota 2,
Diablo III
, and even Fortnite (with some tweaking in the graphics settings) should run just fine on this laptop.

Pricing wise, the Core i5 variant of the Aspire 5 retails at only RM2,499. The higher-end Core i7 model, on the other hand, goes for RM3,099. In terms of warranty, this laptop come with a three-year warranty; the first year is also covered under Acer’s International Travelers Warranty.

And then we have the slightly more affordable Aspire 3. Its hardware is pretty similar to the Aspire 5, but it comes with a lower-end GeForce MX230 GPU, a 1TB HDD or 256GB PCIe SSD (depending on which model you get), and a larger 15.6-inch 1080p display.

How much does the Aspire 3 cost? Well, the Core i5 model with a 1TB HDD storage is priced at RM2,399, while the Core i7 variant – with a faster 256GB SSD – retails at RM3,099. Much like the Aspire 5, the Aspire 3 is also covered with a three-year warranty.

Last but definitely not least is the PM161Q portable monitor. As mentioned, it comes with a 15.6-inch 1920 x 1080 IPS display that covers 45% of the NTSC colour gamut, a 170° viewing angle, 200 nits of brightness, and a USB Type-C port.

That’s right, this portable monitor connects to devices with a USB-C connection, which supports laptops, tablets, and even smartphones. It’s also quite lightweight and compact, weighing 0.97kg with a 2cm side profile. Retailing at RM599, the PM161Q comes with three years of on-site pickup and return warranty.

Currently, only the Core i7 variant of the Acer Aspire 5 is available for purchase in Malaysia; the more affordable Core i5 and i3 models will arrive here by the end of August 2019. As for the Aspire 3, it can be purchased right now, while the PM161Q portable monitor will be on store shelves from September 2019 onwards.


Acer Aspire 5 Hands-On: An Attractive Laptop for the Money

Affordable laptops may not be the most exciting products, but they certainly have an appeal of their own. It’s interesting to see how PC makers can keep the prices low without sacrificing too much of what makes a laptop…well, actually good.

And that is why I was quite interested with the Acer Aspire 5, which has just been launched in Malaysia today. Retailing from RM2,499, is this productivity-focused, budget-centric laptop any good? Let’s find out.

Usually, affordable laptops are not built particularly well; not the case with the Aspire 5. Most of the laptop is made out of metal, lending to a premium look and feel. It’s really quite amazing how much better the build quality of budget-friendly laptops have gotten.

But if I were to nitpick, I’m not crazy about the Aspire 5’s screen bezel. No, I’m not talking about the bezel size, but the plastic material of the frame. Granted, this is not a premium product; it’s meant to be an affordable laptop. With that in mind, the use of plastic to lower the production cost of the laptop makes sense.

Speaking of which, the display of the Aspire 5 is surprisingly good. It’s a 14-inch 1920 x 1080 IPS screen, so it is a bright panel with vibrant colours. Of course, even the viewing angles are good, though it does look dimmer when viewed at an angle. All in all, it is still a very usable screen that is pleasant to look at.

When it comes to connectivity, the Aspire 5 has a bunch of them. There are three full-size USB ports – two of which are USB 3.1 – a single USB-C connection, an HDMI 2.0 output, and even an ethernet port.

Productivity laptops have to be portable enough to be brought along easily, and in this regard, the Aspire 5 is reasonably good. Measuring 17.95mm thin and weighing 1.5kg, it’s thin and light enough to lug it around in your backpack without much trouble.

When it comes to performance, the Aspire 5 is powerful enough to be an effective productivity laptop. It comes with either an Intel Core i5-8265U or i7-8565U processor paired with 4GB of on-board DDR4 RAM, which should be sufficient for most productivity-related tasks. Thanks to the 256GB PCIe SSD storage, you will also enjoy fast boot time and shorter loading times,
among other things
.

Oh, it’s also worth noting that Acer promises up to 12.5 hours of battery life with the Aspire 5. However, this is only for the Core i5 model; the Core i7 variant has a much shorter quoted battery life of up to seven hours.

If you want to do some gaming on the Aspire 5, good news: it comes with a dedicated GPU in the form of the Nvidia GeForce MX250. It’s not an awfully powerful graphics card, but it will be capable enough to run less demanding games like Dota 2 and
Diablo III
 well.

Let’s say you want to run more demanding games on the Aspire 5; how well would it fare? Now, while I have yet to get my hands on a laptop with an MX250 GPU to really put this to the test, I reckon it can deliver playable frame rate in
Fortnite
, Overwatch, and even
Apex Legends
.

Of course, you’ll definitely have to lower down the graphics settings to get good frame rate on these graphically demanding games.

Another important hardware of any productivity laptop is the keyboard, which…has room for improvement on the Aspire 5. For starters, the key travel is quite short, lending to a shallow typing experience. On top of that, having the power button at the top right of the keyboard is just begging for it to be pressed accidentally. Thankfully, it doesn’t put the laptop to sleep with a single tap.

Despite the short key travel, I do think the keyboard is still very serviceable. I can still type as quickly as I do on a full-size keyboard, and the tactility of the keys do improve the typing experience. It’s not the most enjoyable keyboard to type on, but it’s certainly not the worst either.

As for the trackpad, I’m pleasantly surprised with its accuracy. It can track my fingers well, it can recognise gestures well, and the trackpad itself has a very smooth surface. I’m confident I won’t need to use a physical mouse with this laptop to work efficiently.

At a glance, the Acer Aspire 5 is a compelling productivity-focused laptop. It has solid build quality, a good level of performance, and a relatively portable form factor. More importantly, it offers quite good value for money too.

The Malaysian market will receive two variants of the Aspire 5: the Core i5 model retails at RM2,499 (though it will only be available by the end of August 2019), while the Core i7 variant goes for RM3,099. While these price tags are not super affordable, the laptop’s feature set does seem to justify the asking price here.

Based on my brief time with the Aspire 5, I honestly don’t think you can go wrong with it, especially if you need a good productivity laptop for work or studies. The only thing that may make it less compelling is the actual battery life, which can only be put to the test in a full review of the Aspire 5.


Acer Nitro 7 Review: Slim, Value for Money Gaming Laptop

Acer’s range of gaming laptops have gotten better over the years. The
Predator Triton 500
, for one, is my personal favourite with its sleek profile and good gaming performance for the money. And now, we have something more affordable, but almost equally as good: the Acer Nitro 7.

Sporting a slim chassis, high performance, fast display, and good value for money, the Nitro 7 should be in your list if these are what you look for in a gaming laptop.

Specifications

Display
15.6-inch 144Hz FHD IPS (1920 x 1080)
Processor
Intel Core i7-9750H (2.6GHz with Turbo Boost up to 4.5GHz, 12MB cache)
GPU
Nvidia GeForce GTX 1660 Ti 6GB GDDR6 VRAM
RAM
8GB DDR4
Storage
256GB PCIe SSD
Camera
HD resolution
Battery
55WHr
Dimensions
363.4 x 259.5 x 19.9 – 23.14 mm
Weight
2.5kg
Audio
Bottom-firing stereo speakers
Ports
1x USB Type-C
2x USB 3.1 Type-A
1x USB 2.0 Type-A
1x HDMI
1x RJ45

Design

One of the biggest selling points of the Nitro 7 is its slim profile, which is touted to be only 19.9mm thin. However, that’s only the front part of the chassis; the back is slightly thicker at 23.14mm. While that doesn’t sound quite as impressive, the Nitro 7 is still slimmer than most gaming laptops in the market now.

Aesthetically, this laptop looks quite understated on the outside. The Acer logo blends seamlessly with the black lid, there are subtle red highlights on the vents, and the brushed metal finish looks and feels really nice. But once you lift the lid, there’s no mistaking it for anything other than a gaming laptop.

Not surprisingly, black and red colour scheme – typical of gaming laptops – are found throughout the Nitro 7. The keyboard has red backlighting (no RGB here), and even the trackpad has red accents surrounding it. Personally, I quite like how the laptop looks overall: it still has a rather minimalist design despite the “gamer” colour scheme.

Build quality of the Nitro 7 is quite good too. Metal is used extensively – except for the plastic screen bezel – it doesn’t creak with added pressure, and it just feels really well put together. However, some of the laptop’s edges are a bit sharp to the touch, especially the bottom lid area.

As for the Nitro 7’s connections, it’s pretty complete. It has three full-size USB-A ports (two of which are USB 3.1), a USB-C connection, an HDMI output, and an RJ45 port. Chances are, these ports will meet most consumers’ demands.

All in all, the Nitro 7 is a well-designed, understated gaming laptop with a relatively slim body. As mentioned, it has solid build quality too, though I do wish the chassis was a bit more polished to get rid of the sharp edges.

User Experience

Gaming laptops don’t typically have the best battery life, but the Nitro 7 proved to be an exception. Well, for the most part. With the power plan set to power saver and the display dimmed to a comfortable level, I managed to get five hours of use consistently with this laptop. Not the best battery life, but certainly not the worst either.

As for the Nitro 7’s keyboard, it’s reasonably good. It has ample amount of key travel, good tactility, and a relatively standard layout. Whether I’m using the keyboard to game or to write lengthy articles, I never find it to be subpar or lacking in any meaningful way.

That being said, much like the Predator Triton 500’s keyboard layout, I find it
really odd
 for Acer to place the NitroSense software key right next to the backspace button. While I accidentally hit that key less often than I do on the Triton 500, it still happened more often that I would’ve liked. I dread seeing the NitroSense logo pop up every time I hit the key by mistake when I’m writing articles.

On a brighter note, I love the Nitro 7’s trackpad, which is surprisingly good for a gaming laptop. It can track my inputs accurately, my fingers glide effortlessly on the smooth surface, and using only the trackpad for my productivity tasks proved to be a non-issue. Overall, it’s a really good trackpad, especially for a Windows-based machine.

You know what else that is good? The Nitro 7’s 144Hz 15.6-inch 1080p IPS display. Thanks to the high refresh rate, everything – and I mean
everything
 – looks extra smooth on this screen. Even the simplest action like moving the cursor or scrolling looks
that
 much more fluid on this display.

Of course, games that can take full advantage of the 144Hz refresh rate also look incredibly smooth, making for an enjoyable gaming experience. It’s made even better with the display’s excellent viewing angles, dynamic range, and vibrant colours.

Thermals of the Nitro 7, on the other hand, could be better. In prolonged gaming sessions, the CPU and GPU got up to 95°C and 83°C respectively with the fan profile set to Auto. Not particularly great numbers, especially with the CPU. Even in this setting, the fans were already spinning quite audibly. Setting the fan profile to Max make them
even
louder, though it should improve the temperatures.

Will you feel the heat on the laptop itself? You bet. While the palm rest area stayed relatively cool, the keyboard does get a bit too warm for my liking. On top of that, you
really
 wouldn’t want this laptop on your lap in long gaming sessions; the bottom chassis gets quite toasty.

Despite its average cooling performance, I thoroughly enjoyed using the Nitro 7 as my gaming machine and daily driver. Now, let’s get to the exciting stuff: performance.

Performance

Powered by an Intel Core i7-9750H processor and an Nvidia GeForce GTX 1660 Ti GPU, the Nitro 7 is a capable gaming laptop. Sure, the
GTX 1660 Ti
 is not a gaming powerhouse, but it is powerful enough to run most modern games at maxed out graphics settings above the desired 60fps mark.

I’ve tested a number of games with the Nitro 7, and most of them – with the exception of Witcher 3, as the game is locked at 60fps – run well above the 60fps mark. See for yourself with the results below.

Games (Maxed Out Settings @ 1080p)
Average FPS
Witcher 3 (HairWorks disabled)
58.70
Fortnite
83.37
Apex Legends
81.59
PlayerUnknown’s Battlegrounds
64.39

Pretty good results, right? In fact, as I’ve mentioned before in my review of the
Asus TUF Gaming FX505
, this level of performance is very close to the RTX 2060’s numbers. While you don’t get RTX-exclusive features like ray tracing and Deep Learning Super Sampling (DLSS), you won’t be spending as much money either.

While these games are not really making full use of the Nitro 7’s 144Hz display, you can easily achieve higher frame rate by tweaking the graphics settings. It may even give you a competitive edge in the battle royale titles I’ve tested above.

Competition

Two variants of the Nitro 7 are available in Malaysia. The one I’m reviewing here is the GTX 1660 Ti model, which retails at RM5,199. The more affordable GTX 1650 variant, on the other hand, costs RM4,899. Given the small price difference, I would definitely recommend going for the higher-end GTX 1660 Ti model – it offers much better value for money.

For RM5,199, the Nitro 7 has a number of noteworthy competition; some of which are even more affordable.

Asus ROG Zephyrus G

Just like the Nitro 7, the Zephyrus G is quite a slim gaming laptop. It has a 19.9mm thin chassis, 8GB of RAM, and a slightly slower 15.6-inch 1080p display with 120Hz refresh rate. Even with the slower display, the Zephyrus G features a much more generous 512GB SSD, a sleeker, almost bezel-less display, and a lower RM4,999 price tag.

But on the flip side, the Nitro 7 has a faster Core i7-9750H than the Zephyrus G’s AMD Ryzen 7-3750H processor, not to mention the fact that Acer’s offering has a more powerful GPU. See, the Zephyrus G comes with a Max-Q version of the GTX 1660 Ti, which is slower than the Nitro 7’s standard GTX 1660 Ti.

Lenovo Legion Y540

While it’s not quite as thin as the Nitro 7 with a 25.9mm thick chassis, the
Lenovo Legion Y540
 is a good alternative to the former. Its customisable nature makes it a lot more versatile when it comes to the choice of hardware, and in terms of looks, I’d argue the Y540 is the sleeker option with its almost bezel-less design.

Then again, you’ll have to pay slightly more for the Legion Y540. The GTX 1660 Ti model with a Core i7-9750H processor, a 144Hz 15.6-inch 1080p IPS display, 8GB of RAM, and a 128GB PCIe SSD with a 1TB 7200rpm HDD storage retails at RM5,299.

Conclusion

The Acer Nitro 7 is a great option for gamers who want a slim gaming laptop with a good level of performance. Even if there are more affordable options in the market with the same GPU, you’d be hard-pressed to find a different gaming laptop in the same price range with the Nitro 7’s CPU and GPU combo in a slim chassis.

If there’s anything that is lacking with the Nitro 7, it would be the laptop’s thermal performance and SSD capacity. Even then, you can still game effectively with the average cooling performance, and the storage capacity can be upgraded relatively easily.

Those who are looking for a slim, capable gaming laptop should definitely consider the Nitro 7. It may not be perfect, but it offers good value for money and performance in a slim package.


Samsung Galaxy Watch Active 2 Official; Brings Back Bezel Control

After only six months since the
original Galaxy Watch Active
 was introduced, the new Samsung Galaxy Watch Active 2 is here. On the surface, it looks a lot like its predecessor, but it brings back one vital feature: bezel control.

However, unlike the bigger Galaxy Watch, the Watch Active 2 doesn’t have a physically rotating bezel. Instead, it’s a “touch” bezel; the whole bezel of the smartwatch is touch sensitive, so you can scroll through the user interface by running your finger over it.

This addition alone makes the Galaxy Watch Active 2 a better smartwatch than the previous model. After all, the Tizen-based operating system was designed with the bezel control in mind, so it would feel a lot more natural to navigate the user interface with the touch bezel.

Then again, it remains to be seen just how refined the Galaxy Watch Active 2’s touch bezel is. Given the fact that it’s not a physically rotating bezel, it may not feel as natural to use. Nonetheless, we’ll give it the benefit of the doubt until we’ve tried out the new smartwatch for ourselves.

Aside from the touch bezel, the Galaxy Watch Active 2 also comes with improved heart rate sensor and accelerometer, which should make for more accurate workout tracking. On top of that, the wearable now supports ECG too: it will be able to track your heart rate and rhythm more accurately than a conventional heart rate sensor.

That being said, the ECG feature will not be available at launch. Instead, it will only be enabled sometime in the future, but Samsung did not give any specific time frame. Chances are, it needs some form of clearance from relevant regulatory bodies before the ECG feature can be enabled.

Other specifications of the Galaxy Watch Active 2 are relatively similar to its predecessor, though it does have a larger 1.2-inch or 1.4-inch 360 x 360 Super AMOLED display for the 40mm and 44mm models respectively. Besides that, it also supports GPS, Bluetooth 5.0, NFC, and 5 ATM rating, which allows for it to be submerged up to 50m for 10 minutes without problem.

Interestingly, the Galaxy Watch Active 2 is not replacing the first Watch Active; both products will co-exist in the market. Of course, this also means the Active 2 is more costly: it retails at $279, which comes up to about RM1,170. There’s also an LTE model, but its retail price has not been revealed yet.

The Samsung Galaxy Watch Active 2 will hit the market on 27 September in the US. Malaysian availability of the new smartwatch, on the other hand, is not known yet at the moment. Rest assured, we’re confident Samsung Malaysia will bring in the Active 2 to our market.