IFA 2016: Lenovo introduces new Moto Z phone, Moto Mods, and more 2-in-1s

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There is some very interesting stuff coming from Lenovo’s side at this year’s IFA, with the show stealer being a Wacom-powered tablet. Besides that, Lenovo has also introduced new entries into the Yoga and Miix lines of 2-in-1s, as well as a new edition in the Moto Z line.

Let’s begin with the Motorola side of things. Lenovo has two announcements that are related to the Moto Z line of smartphones. The first is the Moto Z Play, the newest entry in Lenovo’s Moto Z line of modular smartphones. Unlike the
Moto Z and the Moto Z Force
 that was announced at Lenovo Tech World, the Moto Z Play is aimed at the mid-range market, sporting a Qualcomm Snapdragon 625 with 3GB of RAM. The phone itself will come with a 3,510mAh battery, with Lenovo saying that the Moto Z Play can last up to two days with constant usage. Also, The Moto Z Play will re-introduce the headphone jack, something that was noticably absent on both the Moto Z and the Moto Z Force. As the phone is part of the Moto Z series, the Moto Z Play will support MotoMods. The Moto Z Play is expected to have an asking price of USD408.

Speaking of MotoMods, Lenovo has finally revealed the camera MotoMod that was teased at back when the Moto Z was first reveal. Said MotoMod is the True Zoom, a camera mod that is created in partnership with Hasselblad. This MotoMod is a 12MP camera that features a 5.5″ lens and a 1/2.3″ BSI CMOS sensor and a 10x optical zoom. The True Zoom MotoMod is expected to retail for USD250.

With that, we now move into 2-in-1 territory, starting with the Miix 510. Essentially a Surface Pro clone, the Miix 510 can potentially be powered by a 6th-gen Intel Core i7 processor, 8GB of RAM, and a 1TB SSD. The Miix 510 is stated to have an expected battery life of around 7.5 hours, and some models will sport LTE support. The Miix 510 will have a starting price of USD600, and is expect to be available in October.

Next, we have the Yoga Tab 3 Plus. This 10.1″ Android tablet sits between the basic Yoga Tab 3 and the higher-specced Yoga Tab 3 Pro, being a middle-range Android tablet as it is powered by the Snapdragon 652 processor. That being said, the Yoga Tab 3 Plus will come with the Pro’s 2560×1600 display, as well as 3GB of RAM instead of the 2GB found on the Pro. The tablet will sport a 13MP rear camera, a 5MP front camera, 32GB of expandable storage, and a 9300mAh battery that translates into 18 hours of battery life. The Yoga Tab 3 Plus will be available in October for USD300.

Finally, we come to the main event, the Yoga Book. From the outside, it looks like a fairly standard Lenovo 2-in-1, what with its watch hinge-style spine and the thin, metal chassis. Open it up however, and you’re greeted with 10.1″ 1920×1200 display, as well as a touchpad keyboard.

This keyboard is the biggest selling point of the Yoga Book as with a simple press of a button, the keyboard fades away in order for it to function as a digitizer tablet. If you’re familiar with Wacom’s products, you’ll be pleased to know that the Yoga Book’s digitizer function was created with assistance from Wacom itself. Of course, the Yoga Book comes with its own stylus that Lenovo calls the “Real Pen”.

Much like the Yoga Book itself, the “Real Pen” is more than what it seems. While the Real Pen itself can be used like a pretty typical stylus, the Real Pen comes with an ink cartridge that allows you to turn the stylus into a…well…real pen! When you start writing on an actual sheet of paper placed on top of the digitizer with the Real Pen, anything you wrote on the paper will show up on the screen as well, allowing you to do twice the work with half the effort. The Yoga Book will be powered by an Intel Atom x5 processor and will sport a 8500mAh battery. The Windows version of the Yoga Book will be available for USD549, while the Android version goes for USD499. Both versions of the Yoga Book will be available in October.

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IFA 2016: LG unveils a 34-inch curved gaming monitor with AMD FreeSync

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IFA in Berlin is happening in just a few days away and here’s the first bit of news from LG, the Korean firm will be showing off a 34-inch curved ultrawide gaming monitor (34UC79G) at the show floor, not only it looks gorgeously big but it also packs a bunch of specs that will make you drool. For instance, LG has fitted an IPS panel that produces a UltraWide QHD+ resolution (3840×1600) and a smooth 144Hz refresh rate that’s managed by AMD FreeSync, that means you can actually game on a big screen without getting dizzy after a while.

As the world’s first 144Hz IPS 21:9 Curved UltraWide gaming monitor, the 34UC79G combines a blindingly fast refresh rate with advanced one millisecond Motion Blur Reduction. The monitor boasts seamless image transitions without annoying afterimages and the IPS display delivers accurate color expression from any angle without distortion. With features such as Black Stabilizer and Dynamic Action Sync, the 34UC79G is specifically designed to meet the needs of today’s gamers. Black Stabilizer provides extra clear contrast, allowing viewers to detect darker objects hidden in hard to see areas. Dynamic Action Sync reduces input lag so that users can enjoy fast-paced gameplay without any delays.

On the other hand, LG has also announced a 38-inch ultrawide curved monitor for professionals, the 38UC99 features the same resolution as its gaming sibling and has a wide color gamut that covers 99% of the sRGB color space, it is also the world’s first curved monitor to feature a USB Type-C port, which allows data transfers and charging of many recent smartphones and hard drives, the monitor has two powerful built-in 10W Bluetooth compatible speakers that will offer rich bass frequency on the 85Hz range.

LG has not announced any pricing or release dates for its new monitors, but we are assuming that they should be here by end of Q4 this year and they won’t be priced cheap.

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IFA 2016: Samsung Gear S3 goes official with significantly bigger battery

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Samsung has finally unveiled its latest addition to the smartwatch lineup, the Gear S3. While it seems like the Korean manufacturer has shown no signs of interest to compete with the rest of the Android Wear operated smartwatch, the Samsung Gear S3 is impressive in its own stride too. The newly launched Tizen powered smartwatch retains the addictive rotating bezel from its predecessor, while adding a slew of innovations and improvements to it.

For starters, Samsung has drawn a line between fashion and function, hence the Classic version and the Frontier version. The Classic version features a more sophisticated and classy look to it while the Frontier is the more rugged of the two, boasting a sporty look as well. The difference? Apart from design, the Frontier Gear S3 has the extra LTE connectivity missing on the Classic version.

As far as display and hardware go, the Gear S3 sports Super AMOLED 1.3-inch circular display covered with Gorilla Glass SR+ to prevent scratches. What’s also new is the smartwatch features Samsung’s Always On Display technology which supports a whopping 16 million colors. The rotating bezel, apart from the usual functions seen on the Gear S2, can now be turned to accept or reject calls, a very nifty new feature by Samsung.

Probably the biggest issue with current smartwatches is their battery life, with most wearables only lasting an average of 2-3 days at maximum. Samsung has seemingly addressed the concern by upgrading the battery by quite a bit when comparing the Gear S2 and Gear S3. The battery capacity sees around a 50% increase from 250mAh to 380mAh in the latter, an improvement in battery life as well, with the Gear S3 boasting 3-4 days of battery life even with LTE enabled. The smartwatch does have a couple of battery saving modes if you intend to squeeze in some extra battery life.

The Samsung Gear S3 is equipped with a microphone and speaker, which means users could go full-on spy mode when making phone calls if they intend to do so, with the option to pair a set of bluetooth earphones/headphones for the same purpose, and also to listen to music. Samsung has also packed a slew of sensors in the Gear S3, including an altimeter, barometer, heart rate sensor, GPS and a speedometer. Other details include the IP68 rating on both the Classic and Frontier Gear S3’s, alongside a military level testing to ensure that the watch can withstand extreme shocks and temperatures if you happen to encounter those situations. And last but not least, the Samsung Gear S3 features the standard 22mm watch strap which means that users can customize its look to their heart’s content with any 22mm band they find out there.

Samsung has yet to announce the pricing and the availability of the Gear S3 just yet, but the company won’t be staying silent for long. What are your thoughts on the Samsung Gear S3 so far? Stay tuned with us as we bring you more live updates from IFA 2016!

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IFA 2016: Sony's new XPERIA XZ sports a triple image sensing 23MP camera

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Sony isn’t giving up yet on smartphones, as the company has announced the new XPERIA XZ flagship on the stage in IFA 2016 today, it is a 5.2-inch smartphone that sports the most recent performance hardware, most importantly it comes with a ground breaking 23-megapixel camera wiht a “triple iamge sensing technology, a 4.6-inch Xperia X Compact is also announced as well for those who prefer smaller displays.

The XPERIA XZ’s camera sensing technology comprises of Predictive Hybrid Autofocus found on its predecessor, there’s a new laser autofocus hardware and an RGB infrared sensor for better colour accuracy, more impressively the camera’s stabilization is done in 5-axis, which stabilizes the X and Y axes, yaw, pitch and roll, which gives it one of the best stabilization tech you can find on a smartphone and you can pretty much expect a DJI Osmo stabilized 4K video on the phone. On the other hand, the selfie shooter takes an impressive 13-megapixel resolution with a Sony Exmor R lens that could go up to a whooping ISO 6400.

Performance wise, we are looking at a Snpadragon 820 chipset mated to 3GB RAM and 32GB flash memory, while the RAM department might seem a little underwhelming, it should still work fine considering Sony’s software is very close to stock, we are also looking at a 1080p display this round which is still fine, the phone is water-resistant instead of waterproof like the Z series predecessor, which is better than the Xperia X Performance, it however has Qnovo adaptive charging and USB-C.

The smaller Xperia X Compact gets a specs downgrade but thankfully still isn’t too shabby, it comes with a Snapdragon 650 chipset, a lower 720p display resolution and a 5-megapixel selfie shooter, thankfully the phone shares the same amount of RAM, memory and main camera hardware as its flagship sibiling, you won’t be able to take 4K videos though, which is kind of weird of Sony to remove that since the hardware is still rather capable of achieving that.

Sony is set to launch the XPERIA XZ early October in Mineral Black, Forest Blue and Platinum, while the XPERIA X Compact will start selling in the UK next week, so let’s hope Sony give these two devices a reasonable price tag.

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IFA 2016: TP-Link gets aggressive in the competition with the Neffos X series smartphones

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TP-Link is generally late to join the party when it released its Neffos C5 smartphones here, the company seriously wants you to know that it can make great looking smartphones too, which is why the company has shown up on the floors of IFA 2016 and announced the new Neffos X series smartphones. The Neffos X1 and X1 Max are currently the most premium and powerful smartphones ever made in the company’s smartphone line up, the phones sport a metal unibody chassis that is inspired by rocks found in streams and they are relatively slim smartphones, the X1 Max measures 7.75mm and the X1 measures 7.95mm, the X1 Max and X1 has a 5.5-inch and 5-inch display respectively. For the bigger X1 Max smartphone, TP-Link has also added a 2.5D curved glass and uses a full in-cell technology with “touch and display driver integration”, which offers a higher precision touch control.

In terms of processing power, the Neffos X1 and X1 Max has a MediaTek Helio P10 chip and has up to 4GB RAM and 64GB of flash storage with MicroSD expansion, it has a 13-megapixel main and 5-megapixel front camera, dual band WiFi and multiple LTE band support, the Neffos X1 Max in particular has a 3000mAh battery onboard and supports fast charging that will give the phone 50 percent of power in 30 minutes. Other hardware includes a mute button on the side, a pretty good hardware addition learnt from the OnePlus 3, and a super fast rear mounted fingerprint scanner that unlocks the phone as fast as 0.2 seconds.

TP-Link is targeting the Neffos X series for a Q4 2016 release, the Neffos X1 Max is expected to retail at €249 (RM1132) and the X1 at €199 (RM905), the phones will be available in Cloudy Grey and Sunrise Gold colors, looking at its price tag, they are considerably pricey for a MediaTek Helio P10 powered smartphone.

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IFA 2016: ZTE announces mid range Axon 7 Mini

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ZTE has just announced the Axon 7 for the Malaysian market this morning, with the handset being added into the list of budget smartphones such as the Xiaomi Mi 5 and the OnePlus 3. The Chinese manufacturer has also been busy at IFA 2016, though the Berlin tech showcase event only begins officially tomorrow. Now that ZTE has captured some attention with the Axon 7, the company has unveiled a Mini variant of the handset, with toned down specs.

The more compact version of the Axon 7, the ZTE Axon 7 Mini looks almost exactly like its older brother, only smaller. If you’ve seen the Axon 7, the Axon 7 Mini won’t look stranger to you at all. On the front, the display is reduced to 5.2-inches and its resolution to 1080p, which is nothing to be fussy about since Full HD is pretty much sufficient for a display of that size. Like its older sibling, the Axon 7 Mini’s display is being flanked by two front facing speaker, which should provide some immersive audio goodness for media consumption. Probably the only difference on the front, is the Axon 7 Mini has on-screen buttons instead of the non-lighted capacitive ones on the Axon 7.

Under the hood, you shouldn’t be expecting the exact same flagship specs like on the Axon 7. Aimed to sit within the mid range spectrum, the Axon 7 Mini features an octa-core Snapdragon 617 processor and an Adreno 405 GPU. We’re also looking at 3GB RAM instead of 4GB of RAM and half the internal storage at 32GB, which is nevertheless expandable via the hybrid SIM/micro SD slot. Though the ZTE Axon 7 Mini sports the same 8MP selfie camera as its flagship counterpart, the former has its rear camera at 16MP without OIS instead of the 20MP one on the latter.

The Axon 7 Mini features a USB Type-C port, a step ahead from micro USB ports, and packs a smaller 2,705mAh battery. A slight drawback is that the phone is only capable of Quick Charge 2.0 instead of 3.0, but then again it is a mid range device for a reason. The ZTE Axon Mini carries a price tag of €299 (RM1,368.36), which is nearly a third less than the Malaysian pricing of the ZTE Axon 7 (RM 1,999). What do you think?

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IFA 2016: ZTE unveils the nubia Z11 smartphone that has a bezel-less display

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ZTE has finally unveiled the nubia Z11 smartphone globally in IFA 2016, a powerful 5.5-inch smartphone that the company claims to be the slimmest in its class. At 7.5mm thin, it has Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 820 processor paired to either 4GB or 6GB of RAM with storage options of 64GB or 128GB respectively. Despite of its already huge built-in storage, the nubia Z11 offers micro SD expansion and dual SIM support, which makes it a rather great phone for power users. On top of that, the phone sports a gorgeous bezel-less 2.5D curved 5.5-inch display that produces a 1080p resolution and is protected by Gorilla Glass 3, a 3000mAh battery is included with Qualcomm’s Quick Charge 3.0 support, and there’s a rear mounted fingerprint scanner that unlocks the phone as fast as 0.1 seconds.

While the phone’s hardware isn’t something new in devices this year, ZTE has taken the opportunity to focus its presentation a lot more on the phone’s software and camera features. The nubia UI 4.0 comes preloaded on the nubia Z11 and is based on Android Marshmallow, two main features were highlighted in the presentation, Super Screenshot allows the user to capture long web articles, record the screen in video and reframe screenshots in different shapes and sizes, while Split Screen will let you open multiple apps without closing them.

With the phone’s bezel-less design, ZTE has included a feature called FiT (frame interaction technology) 2.0 that allows users to interact the phone with gestures on both sides of the phone’s frame, the company has demonstrated in video that you can use it to switch between apps, adjust screen brightness, measure your heart rate and taking pictures, it may look like a cool gimmick but it is really ingenious of ZTE to have thought of such design.

The nubia Z11 is fitted with an optical stabilized 16-megapixel Sony IMX298 sensor, it has phase detection autofocus, a f/2.0 aperture and protected by sapphire glass, while the front facing camera is a 8-megapixel camera with 1.4 micron pixels, a f/2.4 apertutre and 80-degree wide-angle field of view. The camera software and algorithm is powered by its NeoVision 6.0 photography system, it introduces Hand-held Electronic Aperture, powered by nubia’s Hand-held image stabilization feature and allows a long exposure time of up to 72 seconds, ZTE claims that you will no longer need a tripod for taking light trails with this feature and have also showed off an impressive image taken with the phone’s camera.

A few months back, the nubia Z11 was in fact already announced in China and retails from RMB2,499 (RM1530), while ZTE has never made plans to bring in its nubia smartphones to Malaysia, let’s hope the company’s launch in IFA 2016 might actually change that fact.

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IFA 2017: Acer shows off a huge line of products from new and refreshed laptops to impressive gaming products

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Acer had a lot to show us during their IFA live conference in Berlin. They were prepared to show us products from their PC, gaming, VR and big data devices and we are here to bring you all the goodies that they will be offering to us in the new few months.

Acer Aspire S 24

The first device that they showed off is the Aspire S 24 all-in-one computer that looks gorgeous. The Monitor is only 5.97mm thick and has a borderless display for the best viewing experience. The Screen is connected to a base that houses all the hardware powering this computer.

It will be powered by the latest 8th Gen Intel i5 or i7, making it the first all-in-one computer that is running on the latest generation of the Intel Processor. For audio, they have included TrueHarmony coupled with Dolby audio and there is a subwoofer in the base of the computer so there is no compromise on sound and for the highest convenience, there is a wireless charging on the base so your phone is never out of your sight when working.

Acer Switch 7 Black Edition

Next is the Switch 7 Black Edition which is an extremely enhanced version of the Switch 7. This new variation will come with Acer’s liquid cooling which they doubled and are calling it Dual Liquid Loop which eliminates fans. Specs wise it will come with the latest 8th Gen Core i7 processor and a decent Nvidia GeForce MX150 graphics card. One more feature they made better is the kick stand where now, all that is needed to do is just push the device on a surface the and stand will auto deploy.

Acer Spin 5

The Spin 5 is also getting a new design and upgrade, there is now a front facing speaker that will blast sound directly at you no matter the configuration the laptop is placed in. The audio will also be adjusted depending on the screen orientation to match the stereo output of the sound and is powered by Dolby Audio for a great sound experience.
Internally, it has an 8th Gen Core i7 processor and comes with a Nvidia GeForce GTX 1050 graphics card, the battery will last up to 13 hours before needing a charge.

Acer Swift 5 and Swift 7

Something even more impressive is the Swift 5 which comes with an FHD IPS touchscreen display, 8th Gen Core i7 processor and weighs less than 1Kg.

 If that is not impressive enough the Swift 7 will blow you away because it is an 8th Gen Core i7 laptop that comes with an unbelievable thickness of 0.9cm and will support 4G LTE connectivity.

Acer Predator X35

Now we move into the gaming section of the conference and starting off is the Predator X35 Curved monitor. This gorgeous looking monitor comes with Nvidia G-Sync that supports HDR technology, 200hz refresh rate and 4ms of response time. To compliment these features is a QHD resolution display which has almost no bezels. Acer has made this monitor mainly for simulator games which need clear and high precision when playing.

Predator Orion 9000

The best computer to pair it up with is the Predator Orion 9000 gaming PC which on paper is a beast. It comes with 8th Gen Core i9 Extream Edition processor with 18-core, supports up to 128GB of RAM, 4-way Radeon RX Vega graphics card and IceTunnle 2.0 heat management technology which was co-designed with Cooler Master to ensure that the PC is running at optimal temperatures.

The casing can have up to 5 fans and has sections to manage the heat better so no components are getting heat when the air is moving around in the case. For RGB fans, it comes with a lighting system that you are able to control and set to your own preference. The Orion 9000 will ship during the holidays at the end of the year.

Finally, is something that I am really considering to get which is the Predator Galea 500 Gaming headset. This headset supports 7.1 virtual surround sound and has a retractable uni-directional mic for the best voice clarity. What is making me want to get it is the 3D Sound Scape Technology that they have included. This new technology makes the headset understand and redirect sound depending on your head orientation so if you are looking to your left sound from in front of you will come out on your right ear and sounds behind you will come out through your left, making for a great immersive experience.

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IFA 2017: DJI announces Mavic Pro Platinum and Phantom 4 Pro Obsidian

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At the IFA show floor, DJI has announced an update to its popular Mavic Pro drone, which was announced back a year ago, the Mavic Pro Platinum will now fly quieter with a flight time of 30 minutes, and DJI claims that it is 60% quieter with its redesigned electronic speed controllers and propellers, current Mavic Pro users can also purchase the new propellers to use with their bird, and presumably the battery as well since it should be just a larger capacity one, other than that the Mavic Pro Platinum still has the same 12-megapixel camera that takes 4K videos and sensors from its predecessor.
In addition, DJI has also introduced the Phantom 4 Pro Obsidian, which isn’t too much of an upgrade but it comes with a new dark “obsidian” paint (somehow inspired by Apple’s iMac Pro), but what’s pretty obvious here is the chassis of the camera gimbal, which now uses magnesium instead of plastic, complete with an anti-fingerprint coating and electroplated. Lastly, the DJI Spark is also getting a firmware update soon to include a new “sphere” shooting mode that creates a panorama with a fisheye lens effect.

The DJI Mavic Pro Platinum and Phantom 4 Pro Obsidian will be available September onwards, customers can pre-order the drones on DJI’s Online Store starting today, the Mavic Pro Platinum will retail for US$1,099 (RM4,693) and the Phantom 4 Obsidian will retail for US$1,499 (RM6,401).

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IFA 2017: Huawei expected to announce Kirin 970 SoC tomorrow

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We are still two weeks away from the unveiling of the Huawei Mate 10, and Huawei is expected to unveil one important feature of its new smartphone in its IFA press conference tomorrow – the Kirin 970 SoC. As the media invite teases with a tagline ‘Expect The Unexpected’ with a #HUAWEIMOBILEAI, the company seems to be serious about integrating artificial intelligence learning into its new mobile processor, it will feature a 10nm manufacturing process and sports 5.5 billion transistors, 8 CPU cores, 12 GPU cores and a dual ISP, reports have also claimed that the chip will be 25 times faster than a normal CPU core and 50 times more efficient.

The Kirin SoC has always been one of our favorite chips due to its great performance and power efficiency, while the current Kirin 960 hasn’t really been impressive with power efficiency, it performs better than the Snapdragon 821 processor in our tests. In the case of the Kirin 970, Huawei’s AI learning is definitely an exciting feature, as we can expect the hardware to optimize performance automatically based on user behavior, such as preloading frequently used apps, it is a technology similar AMD’s SenseMI. Huawei has already built machine learning on its EMUI software for such purpose, and moving on to a hardware optimization level is certainly a way to go.

While we might not expect any new smartphones from Huawei’s IFA event tomorrow, we do however assume that Huawei might bring some new tablets to the table.

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IFA 2017: Lenovo announces Moto X4 with dual cameras

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At Lenovo’s IFA 2017 show floor, the company has announced the Moto X4, a mid-range smartphone that comes with dual cameras and Amazon Alexa built-in. Unlike previous Moto devices we have seen, the Moto X4 uses a contoured glass back and a metal frame, which is rather refreshing to look at. In terms of specs, the Moto X4 comes with a Snapdragon 630 processor, up to 4GB of RAM, 32GB of built-in storage, a 5.2-inch Full HD display with Corning Gorilla Glass, and a 3000mAh battery with Moto’s 15W TurboPower quick charging solution.

Image Credit: Android Authority

What’s great on the Moto X4 is that it is the first Moto device to have IP68 water and dust resistance, the front camera will take 16-megapixel stills with a f/2.0 lens and sports a 4-megapixel adaptive low light mode to take brighter selfies, a technique similar to HTC’s Ultrapixel camera, Lenovo is also allowing you to add a layer of animations to your selfies with the help of Augmented Reality. The dual cameras on the back is a standard and ultra wide angle setup, the standard angle lens is a 12-megapixel dual autofocus pixel sensor, and the ultra wide angle lens is an 8-megapixel f/2.2 sensor with a 120-degree field of view. Lastly, the Moto X4 has Bluetooth 5.0 support thanks to the Snapdragon 630 SoC, which can connect up to 4 Bluetooth devices at the same time.

Expect Lenovo to bring the Moto X4 to our shores very soon, as this is a pretty decent mid-range device that is well-suited for local folks, but let’s hope Lenovo manage to nail the right price when it goes on sale.

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IFA 2017: Lenovo introduces Yoga 920 and Yoga 720 convertible laptops

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Lenovo’s Yoga line up has continued to expand with two new members announced in IFA 2017, the Yoga 920 is the first convertible laptop to be equipped with Intel’s 8th generation Core processors and sports a 13.9-inch display with 4K resolution, while the Yoga 720 is a 12-inch convertible laptop that weighs merely 1.15kg and comes with an active pen stylus,

As the new flagship of the Yoga lineup, the Yoga 920 is packed with a lot of great stuff, it weighs merely 1.39kg and all thanks to the slim bezels, it is a rather compact and lightweight device, the display supports a 4096 levels of pressure and with the help of the Lenovo Active Pen 2 stylus, users can experience a paper like writing and drawing experience on Windows Ink. The Yoga 920 also has far-field microphones built-in so that you can use voice command on Cortana with up to 4 meters away.

In terms of specs, the Lenovo Yoga 920 will be offered with up to a 8th Gen Core i7 processor, either a Full HD or 4K display, up to 16GB DDR4 RAM and 1TB of SATA SSD storage, the laptop will also sport two Thunderbolt 3 ports and one USB 3.0 Type-A port, it also has a fingerprint scanner that enables a faster and secure login with Windows Hello, Lenovo claims a battery life of up to 10.8 hours on the 4K display model and 15.5 hours on the Full HD display model.

Even though the Yoga 720 doesn’t have the latest internals, it is going to be a much affordable option compared to the Yoga 920, Lenovo is still offering configuration of up to a 7th Gen Core i7 processor, up to 12GB of DDR4 RAM and 512GB SATA SSD storage, the Yoga 720 also has a fingerprint scanner for Windows Hello, a USB-C port, and supports the Lenovo Active Pen 2 stylus. The Yoga 720 has a rated battery life of up to 8 hours, which is rather decent.

Lenovo Malaysia hasn’t announced local availability and pricing for these new convertible laptops, however we should expect them to arrive by fall this year.

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IFA 2017: The LG V30 is worthy enough to be a great flagship

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LG’s G6 hasn’t exactly been the best device it has this year, however in IFA 2017, the company has finally showed off the LG V30 smartphone, sporting a gorgeous 6-inch 18:9 OLED FullVision display, weighing merely 158g and having a thickness of 7.3mm, which the company claims that it is “the lightest among smartphones in the 6-inch and over category.” The LG V30 also happens to be the first smartphone to be equipped with an f/1.6 camera on its 16-megapixel standard angle lens, it still has a 13-megapixel wide angle lens like the LG G6 which takes pictures with a f/1.9 aperture.

What’s missing in the LG V30 this time, is the secondary display that has been present in the V20 and V10, and LG is replacing that feature with an always-on-display like how Samsung did with its devices, the always-on-display feature will provide shortcuts to apps with a floating bar, while showing music playback controls and some quick tools. In terms of performance, the LG V30 is powered by a Snapdragon 835 processor mated to 4GB of RAM and up to 128GB of storage, while we are rather surprised with LG’s decision to include a questionably small 3300mAh battery similar to the Galaxy Note 8. On top of that, the LG V30 is IP68 water and dust resistant and complies to MIL-STD 810G standards, it also sports a 32-bit Hi-Fi Quad DAC, wireless charging, voice and facial recognition.

It certainly looks like LG is finally picking up pace with the LG V30, it has almost everything that Samsung’s flagship has and beats the Galaxy Note 8 in certain hardware aspects and design, though the only question we would still always look forward to is the price and local availability, and how it stacks up with Apple’s new iPhone in the coming weeks.

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IFA 2017: Samsung announces Gear Sport, Gear Fit2 Pro and Gear Icon X wearables

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tBack in the Galaxy Note 8 launch event, Samsung has teased that it is releasing new wearables in IFA 2017. This time, Samsung is really betting hard on fitness by introducing three new wearables, namely the Gear Sport, a fitness focused water resistant smart watch; the Gear Fit2 Pro, the successor to the previous Gear Fit; and the second generation cord free Gear IconX earbuds.

The Gear Sport looks a lot like the Gear S3, although it sports a smaller a 1.2-inch Super AMOLED display with a round frame, the watch can be used for swimming with a 5 ATM water resistance rating, it also has more advanced real-time heart rate monitoring which the Gear S3 doesn’t have, it also knows the type of activity you are doing without user intervention, from the typical walk and run stuffs to dynamic activities such as basketball and dancing. Other than that, the Gear Sport have adapted certain features from the Gear S3, such as controlling Samsung IoT-enabled devices, remote controlling your PowerPoint presentation slides and Samsung Pay.

If you prefer a fitness band form factor, the Gear Fit2 Pro has all the fitness tracking features of the Gear Sport with a built-in GPS, which can be used to track activities more accurately. Like the previous Gear Fit2, the Gear Fit2 Pro has the same 1.5-inch curved Super AMOLED display, it also shares the same 5 ATM water resistance rating as the Gear Sport, making it suitable to wear it for swimming activities. The Gear Fit2 Pro will be available in colors of Black and Red.

Even though Samsung isn’t giving a new name for its new cord free earbuds, the second generation Gear IconX has been improved with better ergonomics and more lightweight than its predecessor, battery life has also been improved with up to five hours of wireless music streaming and seven hours of standalone music playback, Samsung is also integrating Bixby into the new Gear IconX as well, which can be used to control your music or your phone.

In terms of local availability, the Gear Fit2 Pro will be available in Malaysia end of September onwards, the Gear Sport and Gear IconX will however arrive at November. What do you think of Samsung’s new wearables?

fitness tracker
ifa
ifa 2017
samsung
Samsung Gear Fit2 Pro
Samsung Gear IconX
Samsung Gear Sport
wearables


IFA 2017: Sony’s Google Assistant smart speaker is splashproof

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Sony has announced a slew of products over at IFA 2017, and probably the most interesting product from the company is the LF-S50G smart speaker (can’t they have a better name?) that supports Google Assistant, it somehow resembles a little like Apple’s Homepod speaker, and is better than the Google Home in some aspects.

The Sony LF-S50G aims to deliver better sound with things such as a two-way facing speaker, two-stage diffuser and a bass reflex duct, you can speak to it by saying the usual ‘OK Google’ command using its far-field microphone or through supported BRAVIA TV remotes, there’s a LED display on the front showing the time and speaker volume, and you can easily change the volume by just waving gestures. Best of all, the LF-S50G can serve as a Bluetooth speaker for your devices with NFC One-Touch pairing, and you can be less worried of it getting water damage as the speaker is IPX3-rated splashproof, don’t go swimming with it though.

Sony is offering the LF-S50G in color options of Blue, White and Black, though we are not sure if the company would be selling the cover as optional accessories to the speaker, the LF-S50G will cost US$200 (RM854) when it hits shelves, and let’s hope Sony Malaysia decides to bring this in.

google assistant
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BgxXJuonKJM
ifa 2017
lf-s50g
smart home
smart speaker
sony


IFA 2017: The Sony RX0 is a dream action camera for professionals

315

When it comes to professional action cameras, there aren’t a lot of choices in the market, and Sony is filling that gap with the new RX0 action camera, which packs a 1-inch Exmor sensor 15.3-megapixel sensor into a GoPro-sized body, most action cameras have only managed to squeeze in a 1/2.3-inch sensor, so that’s a pretty huge step forward for an action camera, the RX0 will be able to capture better details and potentially have decent performance in low light.

Like the other RX siblings, the RX0 has a ZEISS lens which is a ZEISS Tessar T* 24mm f/4 lens, it has a maximum shutter speed of 1/32000 and can capture burst shots up to 16 fps. The RX0 has a maximum ISO of 12,800 and can produce RAW still photos, unlike other action cameras it doesn’t support recording 4K videos internally, but it does offer a clean 4K output to external devices to do that, hence you are very much limited to recording up to 1080p60. The real killer feature here however, is that it supports 960 fps super slow motion recording, and Sony is also letting users to link up to 15 RX0 cameras at the same time with the Sony FA-WRC1M wireless radio commander.

The Sony RX0’s price tag is pretty reasonable at $700 for what it is capable of, and it will be available in the US at October 2017, so get ready your wallets.

ifa2017
rx0
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sony rx0 price


IFA 2017: Sony’s new noise cancellation headphones are getting smarter and better

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What more can you do to noise cancellation headphones? Sony has the answer by announcing three new models to its 1000X noise cancellation headphones at IFA 2017, these new headphones are the first to have a companion app that supports an activity-recognition feature called the “Adaptive Sound Control, which switches to your preferred noise cancellation settings automatically when it detects a specific activity. In addition, Sony has also included the world’s first ‘Atmospheric Pressure Optimising’ feature onto these new headphones, which is particularly useful on flights and used to analyse atmospheric pressure of your surroundings to optimise noise cancelling performance.

Customers will have three form factors to choose from, the cord free WF-1000X, the behind-the-neck WI-1000X, and the over-ear WH-1000XM2. The WF-1000X is made for those who doesn’t want tangling cables and fits snugly into ears, which is great for workouts. The WI-1000X and WH-1000MX2 have great battery life and supports Hi-Res audio streaming codec such as aptX HD and LDAC, both headphones have wired listening options, with the WI-1000X can achieve up to 14 hours with noise cancellation enabled and the WH-1000MX2 up to 40 hours with noise cancellation enabled.

Sony Malaysia has announced that the WF-1000X, WI-1000X, WH-1000XM2 will be available in October 2017, no pricing has been mentioned as of now.

1000x
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IFA 2017: Wiko shows off its first 18:9 display smartphone

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Wiko has a great smartphone to show at IFA 2017, the Wiko View is the company’s first smartphone with a 18:9 aspect ratio display, it is also the largest display that the French phone maker has ever installed on its smartphones. Rather than targeting the high end smartphone market, the Wiko View sports entry-level hardware, including a Snapdragon 425 octa-core processor, 3GB of RAM and 16GB of storage capacity, a 5.7-inch 1440×720 HD+ display, a 13-megapixel main and 16-megapixel front camera with a selfie flash, and a 2900mAh battery.

The Wiko View will run Android Nougat 7.1 out of the box, and should receive an update to Android Oreo at a later date. The View seems to take on the design cues of the U Pulse, which has an all metal design and has the same hardware placement for the fingerprint scanner, we can also assume the same removable backcover design, which allows you to swap between colors of Black, Gold, Deep Bleen and Cherry Red.

Although the Wiko View feels just like another bezel-less smartphone, we are definitely glad that the company has decided to use a Snapdragon processor, a refreshing change from the usual Mediatek Cortex-A7 chip, the phone’s entry-level hardware also lead us to assume that this is going to be an affordable smartphone for the masses, let’s hope Wiko Malaysia brings in the device this fall.

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iFlix and Telekom Malaysia partners up

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Media streaming service iFlix has officially partnered up with Telekom Malaysia. To mark this landmark partnership, iFlix will be providing UniFi and Streamyx home subscribers access to iFlix’s video-on-demand service for free for a duration of a year.

Starting mid-December, subscribers to TM’s UniFi service, Streamyx 4Mbps package and Streamyx 8Mbps package will receive a 12-month iFlix subscription worth RM 96. All you need to do is to either go to
iflix.com
 or download the iFlix app onto your smart device of choice. iFlix’s own proprietary technology would be able to recognise connections coming for a device connected to a TM service, meaning that you don’t have to sign up or sign in to the service.

“We are thrilled to partner with TM, Malaysia’s leading telecommunications provider. With our new seamless sign-up process and TM’s extensive nationwide coverage, subscribers can now enjoy uninterrupted and unlimited access to thousands of their favourite TV shows and movies. Our partnership with TM once again demonstrates our commitment to bring the best in entertainment content to Malaysian audiences across the country,” says Azran Osman-Rani, iflix Group COO and CEO of iflix Malaysia.

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iflix celebrates its one-year anniversary; promises more things to come

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It’s been one year since Southeast Asia’s Internet TV service, iflix, has gone online, and since then, the company has grown at a tremendous rate. To celebrate their one-year anniversary, iflix has revealed some very interesting details regarding the viewership trends in the region as well as the future plans for the company.

First off, the viewership trends. iflix has provided us with some rather interesting details about the viewing habits of iflix subscribers. For one, iflix’s peak hours is recorded at 9pm to 12am, which is a time where most people have already gotten home from work and before they head to bed. Another interesting thing to note is that Malaysian iflix subscribers clock in an average of 115 minutes of viewing time per day, with a majority of that viewing time being focused on dramas.

Moving forward, iflix has plans to both improve, as well as expand their services to other regions in Southeast Asia. Besides that, iflix will be improving their library with a slew of high-demand content. These contents include House MD, Avatar, The Office UK and US, as well as exclusive content like season 2 of Mr Robot and Hunters. Iflix has also mentioned that the company is working together with Maya Karin to produce original content that will be available exclusively on the service as well.

Rounding things up, iflix has also announced that they will be hosting the ‘Go Binge or Go Home’ contest. Available to all iflix subscribers, all you have to do is to watch as many shows on iflix as possible from the 26th of May until the 1st of June. Those who do so will stand a chance to win prizes such as a full HD television, a Samsung Galaxy S7 Edge, or even a one-year free subscription to iflix.

“We are so thankful for the overwhelming support we have received from our studio, marketing and telco partners and most especially our amazing members this past year! We can’t wait to share our exciting new content line up, including many exclusive titles which we are making available to consumers for the first time in Malaysia. Bring on Year 2!” says Azran Osman-Rani, CEO of iflix Malaysia.

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iflix now has HD content

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iflix subscribers rejoice as one of the most commonly requested content has finally made its way onto the video streaming service: HD content.

From this point forwards, all newly introduced content to iflix will be available in 720p resolution. As for pre-existing iflix content, content that was introduced since the 24th of January already comes with 720p support, while older shows will receive the HD treatment over time. For those who are curious, some of the shows that will be available in HD format includes The Magicians, Emerald City, The Flash, Avatar, Titanic, and many more. On top of HD support, iflix will also be upgrading its audio quality to support Stereo 5.1. All these updates will be coming to iflix with no extra charge, so the monthly subscription to iflix will still remain at RM10.

For those who are wondering if 1080p content will be coming to iflix, iflix Global Director of Labs, Data Intelligence and Content Technology Ash Crick mentions that 1080p content will eventually be coming to the service. Unfortunately, no solid date was given as to when that will happen.

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IINVICTOR Soturi Review: The military-inspired headphones built for gamers

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Today, we’re taking on a pair of gaming headphones that you might, or might not have heard of — the IINVICTOR Soturi. For some context, IINVICTOR is a brand launched by Intricon Pte Ltd, a Singaporean company that has been making professional audio and military headsets for over three decades. So, how will the IINVICTOR Soturi perform as a gaming headphone? Let’s find out.

Design

Compared to your typical gaming headphones that sport red, green or blue accents, the IINVICTOR Soturi comes in white and has an orange tinge from the IINVICTOR logo on each side of the cups. These headphones don’t feel too light nor too heavy at 295g and I felt no fatigue whatsoever wearing them for my long hours of gaming.

The wires are protected by a braided cable so if you do have a pet that likes to chew on your cables, you have nothing to worry about. Also, it comes with its own stand out of the box which is something you don’t commonly see when buying other headsets.

Comfort

Personally, I’m not a huge fan of the design, but I can’t deny that these headphones fit comfortably. The ear cushions are made out of ergonomic PU leather and they never felt warm on my ears even after long hours of usage so I didn’t have to keep taking them off.

The headphone has a clamping force of 350g and fit on my small head snugly and comfortably without feeling suffocating. If you’re thinking about bringing these headphones to travel, do take note that they can’t be folded into a compact form but it does come with its own bag for you to put it in.

Features

I really like that the IINVICTOR Soturi offers two ways of connectivity, that is via the 3.5mm headphone plug or the USB sound card — meaning you can even use it for your smartphones! Since I mostly do my gaming on the PC, I found myself using the USB sound card rather than the plug because you get to choose between three modes to better suit your listening experience:

Blue – Balanced Audio

Green – Enhanced Clarity

Red – Enhanced Bass

You can also adjust your output and input volumes here along with an On/Off toggle for your mic if you ever want to mute it for a quick phone call. The only thing that felt weird to me is that the controls are flipped after you plug it in with the volume down buttons located above the volume up buttons.

Audio Performance

Now, I have played games and listened to music with the three different modes so here’s what I think: The Red mode is best for listening to music especially if you want some
oomph
from the bass but it does get a bit overwhelming at times, gameplay-wise the gunshots are too amplified. Green is the go-to if you want a nice balance of everything and works well for listening to music, podcasts, or playing games. As for the Blue, it feels flat when listening to music and lacks lows and mids so I didn’t use it as often as the other modes.

On top of that, the passive spatial awareness offered by the headphones helped me a lot when trying to pinpoint where the enemy’s footsteps and bullets were coming from. Also, these headphones lack in terms of noise isolation and noise leakage.

Mic Performance

If you don’t want to fork out additional money for a separate mic, the Soturi’s V-Command detachable mic serves its purpose well. The mic utilises an omni-directional pick-up pattern and it barely picks up on fan noises. I’ve tested the mic with my friends on Discord and they did say I sound like a “typical e-girl with headphones” but hey — I’ll let you guys be the judge of that.

https://klgadgetguy.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/12/IINVICTOR-Soturi-Talking.mp3

Here’s another recording of me typing with my keyboard (Kailh Box white switches) about 12 inches away from the mic.

https://klgadgetguy.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/12/IINVICTOR-Soturi-Typing.mp3

Verdict

At a price of RM329, the IINVICTOR Soturi is a good choice for PC gamers looking to improve their audio quality in games and not spend extra money on a separate mic. It might not be the best in terms of isolation and music-listening, but its lightweight build and comfort makes it a great device to have.

Feel free to visit IINVICTOR’s website
here

to check the headphones out.

IINVICTOR Soturi

Price:
 RM329

For RM329, the IINVICTOR Soturi is a good option for those looking to improve their audio experience in games. It comes with passive spatial awareness, sound card with three different modes, and a reliable mic.

KLGadgetGuy

Design

7

Comfort

8

Audio Quality

7

Mic Quality

7

Value

7

The Goods

Lightweight build

Comfortable fit

Clear mic quality

Plug and Play

Handy controls

The Bads

Quality for music-listening lacking

No Bluetooth option

 7.2

Average Score

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IINVICTOR Soturi
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ILLEGEAR APEX 24 and APEX 27 gaming monitors launched

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ILLEGEAR has just launched the APEX 24 and APEX 27 gaming monitors, priced at RM739 and RM1,199 respectively.

The APEX 24 packs a 23.8-inch FHD premium TN panel that offers a 98% sRGB colour gamut, and 75% Adobe RGB colour output. The APEX 27 comes with a 27-inch 1440p IPS panel that is HDR compatible, and offers 100% sRGB and 92% Adobe RGB colour output. Both panels offer a refresh rate of 165Hz.

The APEX 24 sports a thin body with a glass back cover, plus an ‘airtight’ backlight system that the brand promises a more uniformly-lit image quality. The APEX 27 comes with a versatile stand that lets you tilt, rotate, swivel, and adjust the height of your panel. It also comes with a set of speakers.

In terms of ports, the APEX 24 comes with 2x HDMI 1.4, 1x DP1.2, 1x VGA, 1x headphone jack; meanwhile, the APEX 27 comes with 2x HDMI 2.0, 2x DP1.2, and 1x headphone jack.

To make your purchase, you can visit ILLEGEAR’s website
here

– and do note that the APEX 27 is available for pre-order for now, and you’ll get RM100 off the device upon securing your order.

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ILLEGEAR upgrades their Z-line of gaming notebooks with Skylake

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Customisable gaming laptop maker ILLEGEAR has refreshed the Z5, giving it a boost in performance by way of a Skylake processor.

Alongside the Skylake processor, the Z5 is capable of supporting DDR4 RAM.

The Z5 comes with two configurations. Both models contain an Intel Core i7-6700HQ, 8GB of DDR4 2133MHz RAM, a 1TB 7200rpm Hitachi Hard Drive, and 2 M.2 SSD Slots. Graphics card is the only variable in the configurations, with the lower end model receiving a Nvidia GeForce GTX 960M, while the higher specced machine gets a Nvidia GeForce GTX 970M instead.

The 960M version of the Z5 retails for RM 4,599, while the 970M version retails for RM 5,598. Both machines can be customised further for better performance.

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ILMxLab reveals Star Wars: Trials on Tatooine VR experience for Vive

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The dream matchup of virtual reality and Star Wars is coming true as ILMxLab has officially revealed Star Wars: Trials on Tatooine.

Developed by the same studio responsible for the Star Wars franchise’s special effects, Trials on Tatooine is a “room scale experiment in the Star Wars Universe.” Not much else is known about what exactly Trials on Tatooine is but going by the trailer that has been released, it’s looking to be a lot like what Star Wars Kinect was meant to be.

Trails on Tatooine isn’t the only video that ILMxLab has published as they have also released a recruitment video. Aside from asking for those interested to “join the force”, the three minute video also showcased what ILMxLab has in store for VR in the near future.As for Trials on Tatooine, this experience will be coming to the Vive VR Headset.

No release date has been given just yet but seeing as the Game Developers Conference is still ongoing, there is a chance that ILMxLab will announce a concrete release date sometime this week.

Source:
Road to VR

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The iMac Pro is for professionals, comes at a price

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Apple has officially put the iMac Pro up for sale now in Malaysia. Dubbed the most powerful iMac ever, the iMac Pro produces workstation class performance, and packs quite the punch with its high end specs. Built for professionals who require heavy duty workloads on their computers, the iMac Pro comes with a extremely premium price tag, but shouldn’t disappoint its users at all.

Just to recap, the iMac Pro comes in the same body as Apple’s current regular iMac’s. It does however come in a sleeker space gray finish as compared to the aging silver paint job on the non-pro models. The display is said to be the brightest Mac display ever at 500 nits, including a P3 wide color gamut. It measures at 27-inches and puts out a whopping 5K resolution in which Apple calls the Retina 5K display. Above the display is a new 1080p FaceTime camera, and Apple has packed new speakers which are 50% louder.

As far as its internals go, Apple isn’t holding back as the iMac Pro is powered by Intel Xeon W processor, with up to 18 cores depending on your preferred configuration. It can also be fitted with up to a staggering 128GB of DDR4 ECC memory and up to 4TB of SSD, all of which will translate to lightning fast performance. It also comes with an AMD Vega GPU which can deliver up to 11 Teraflops of single precision compute power, made for real time 3D rendering and high framerate VR. For half precision computing, an insane 22 Teraflops.

This powerhouse is made only for professionals who require serious firepower for their work. And here’s why according to Apple:

3-D designers can visualise huge 3-D models and render scenes up to 3.4 times faster.

Developers can run multiple virtual machines and test environments, and compile code up to 2.4 times faster.

Scientists and researchers can manipulate massive data sets and complex simulations, visualising data up to 5 times faster.

Photographers can work with enormous files and perform image processing up to 4.1 times faster.

Music producers can bounce (export) massive multi-track projects up to 4.6 times faster and use up to 12.4 times as many real-time plug-ins.

Video editors can edit up to eight streams of 4K video, or edit 4.5K RED RAW video and 8K ProRes 4444 at full resolution in real time without rendering. The iMac Pro can also export HEVC video 3 times faster.

The iMac Pro is now available on the Malaysian Apple online store. With prices starting at a premium RM 20,999, it makes most think twice. But it certainly sounds like a good investment if you’re a professional who needs this amount of computing power. Max out its configured specs, throw in the optional Magic Trackpad 2 or Magic Mouse 2 on top of either one, and it will cost just well under RM 60,000. What do you think?

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The iMac Pro will not replace the Mac Pro

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Earlier this week, Apple kicked off its annual WWDC event at San Jose California. The event, as usual began with a keynote in which Apple announces the company’s updates from its hardware and software offerings. Upon refreshing the entire Macbook and iMac lineup, the company has also unveiled the iMac Pro, which was assumed by many to be the replacement for the aging Mac Pro. But it turns out that the iMac Pro will not be replacing Apple’s trash can designed Mac Pro, and that it will launch a new Mac Pro in 2018 instead.

According to popular tech YouTube sensation Jonathan Morrison from TLD, Apple has confirmed that it will finally make a new Mac Pro next year. The iMac Pro, which is scheduled to go on sale in December, isn’t made to be a Mac Pro replacement. The 2018 Mac Pro is claimed to be user upgradable and “modular” when it releases next year, unlike the iMac Pro.

Regardless, the iMac Pro is high spec-ed and catered towards professional. It will feature up to an 18 core Xeon processor, up to 4TB of SSD storage, plus a brand new AMD Radeon Vega GPU with up to 16GB of VRAM. As much as it sounds like a Mac Pro in the body of an iMac, the iMac Pro will definitely not replace the 2013 Mac Pro.

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Image leaks of a Meizu Pro 6 mini and m3 note lurking around

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We’ve recently came across a slew of rumors and leaks regarding the Meizu Pro 6 over the worldwide web. Considering that rumors are leaks are getting more accurate every year, we have more leaks for you of Meizu handsets. But this time around, we’ll be turning the spotlight over to a mini-me variant of the Meizu Pro 6 mini. No surpise yet again, the leaked image comes from mainland China.

The image shows not only the alleged Meizu Pro 6 mini, but also an m3 note by the OEM. Aside from the image of both devices, a leaked roadmap full of Meizu’s devices were leaked just last week, and it seems to be a whole lot of leaked details for one image. Based on the roadmap, the Meizu Pro 6 mini will be sporting a 4.7-inch display at 1080p, a MediaTek Helio X25 processor and a smaller 2,800mAh battery compared to the 3,500mAh battery of its bigger sibling. Don’t look down on its specs just yet, as this mini variant will come in 4GB and 6GB RAM options, just like the Meizu Pro 6. According to the roadmap, the mini variant will be available in 32GB, 64GB and 128GB options.

On the other hand, the Meizu m3 note, which will cater to the mid range consumer market based on previous iterations of the alleged handset, will be featuring a 5.5-inch 1080p LCD display, a MediaTek Helio P10 SoC alongside 2GB of RAM. It will be powered by a 3,200mAh battery and will come in 16GB and 32GB versions. Lastly, rumor has it that these handsets will be launched some time this month so keep your eyes peeled!

Source:
GizChina

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Image of low end Samsung tablet leaked

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Rumors of flagship devices have been circulating around as we welcome MWC towards the end of this month. But that doesn’t mean we won’t be hearing from lower end devices, namely tablets.

Although it has been harder to predict upcoming tablets since they aren’t under the spotlight, a recent render of what seems to be a low end Samsung tablet has been leaked. The model number of the alleged tablet is SM-T280. The name of this device could either be Galaxy Tab A 7.0 or Tab E 7.0.

Being a low end model, the tablet will most likely be budget friendly, support by the fact that it will be housed by a full plastic body and an unsurprising 1280×800 resolution display. The Galaxy Tab is tipped to sport a standard low end 5MP rear facing camera and 2MP front facing camera. Underneath the hood, the tablet is said to run on a Exynos 3475 processor, like the ones in last year’s Asia market-centric Galaxy On5 and On7 smartphones. Other than that, coupled with 1.5GB of RAM, 8GB of internal storage which is expandable and powered by a 4,000mAH processor.

While it definitely won’t steal the show at MWC, it’s good to know that Samsung still produces lower end budget devices for the consumer market. Let us know your thoughts below.

Source:
Pocket Now

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budget
e
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Image of the Samsung Galaxy S9 wireless charger leaks, comes with a similar design as the DeX

286

A manual for the upcoming wireless charger set to release with the Galaxy S9 and S9 Plus has been leaked, offering in-depth information on how the charging dock will work. Sadly, it did not give any information on upcoming S9 phones.

Just like how the S9 looks similar to the S8, the charging dock looks very similar to the Samsung DeX, it is powered by a USB Type-C cable which powers the dock and there is an indicator light on the front which indicates the phone’s charging status. The dock design allows you to position the phone vertically or horizontally but you will have to make sure that the phone is position roughly in the centre of the dock in order to get the phone charging.

We have heard the disappointments when trusted sources announced that the S9 will have a very similar design to the S8 and it looks like the disappointments will continue, due to the new wireless charging dock having the same design as the DeX. For what its worth, the new dock will be thinner and flatter than the previous model.

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Promo image of the Vivo V17 Pro reveals dual pop-up camera

331

If the Vivo V15 Pro was impressive to you, then it’s time to prepare yourself for the V17 Pro. The promo image of the phone has revealed to us how the V17 Pro will look like, confirming the rumours that it will come with two front cameras.

Just like the V15 Pro, the V17 Pro is also sporting an under-display fingerprint sensor. The promo image also shows the phone with really thin bezels and a slightly larger chin, but that’s all that we can infer from that one image.

Previously, the Vivo V17 Pro is also reported to come with a quad-camera setup. This quad-camera setup will offer enhanced zooming capabilities, perhaps like the Oppo Reno 10X Zoom or the HUAWEI P30 Pro. We’re also expecting at least a 48MP main camera, but who knows, Vivo might take the chance to be one of the first few to feature a 64MP camera on their phone.

The Vivo V17 Pro is said to launch sometime before Diwali, but in the meantime, the NEX 3 5G will be launching on September 16 and it’s expected to come with a huge 6.89-inch Full HD+ display and the latest Snapdragon 855+ chipset.

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Images of the Huawei P20 surfaces, comes with 18:9 display and a notch

1.7K

Looks like we finally have a physical image of what the Huawei P20 will look like. Prior to this, we only saw digital renders from @OnLeaks which shows some really impressive design choices Huawei has gone with, but thanks to a Spanish tech site, there are now images of what the phone will look like from a person who has the physical device.

The source has indicated that the P20 will come with a notch on the top, it is smaller than the iPhone X’s notch but will still be able to do facial recognition. It also houses the earpiece and another sensor and signal bar, time, battery and notifications will be on either side. The Spanish tech site also mentions that it comes with a 5.8-inch screen with an 18:9 aspect ratio with dimensions of 148 x 71 x 7.2mm.

The back will be covered with glass and a verticle dual-camera setup will be present alongside the fingerprint sensor. On the bottom, you will find a Type-C connector, 3.5mm headphone jack and the speaker. On the right side sits the power button, volume rocker and the left is the SIM tray which can hold two SIMs or one SIM and a microSD card.

Based on previous rumours, it comes with a Kirin 970 chip, 4GB of RAM, 32GB of storage and comes with Android 8.0 out of the box. Huawei will hold a dedicated launch event on March 27, where they will reveal their next generation flagship devices.

design
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Images of a fully operational Galaxy S8 leaked online

394

Those who are looking forward to Samsung’s Galaxy S8 smartphone are in luck today as it appears that images of the smartphone is making its way around the internet thanks to a China-based protective film manufacturer.

China protective film manufacturers exposure Galaxy S8
pic.twitter.com/8VOXpikUsc

— Ice universe (@UniverseIce)
February 21, 2017

For the most part, the leaked images shows that the S8 will sport a look that would be familiar to those who’ve ever seen a modern day Samsung phone before. While the presence of the near bezel-less curved screen is expected, the leaked pictures also gives us a first look at the on-screen navigation keys that replaces the old Home button.

On top of the image leaks, Android Police has also managed to get their hands on the system dump of the Galaxy Tab S3. This document confirms that Samsung has indeed relocated the fingerprint sensor to the side of the rear camera. Additionally, the system dump also shows off the DeX dock, which is presumably Samsung’s own take on Microsoft’s Continuum feature.

Source:
Android Police
,
Android Authority

dex
galaxy
leaked
photos
s8
samsung


Images of HTC Desire 830 spilled, no fingerprint sensor

323

With all eyes on the recently launched HTC 10, most people have probably left the HTC Desire 825 behind. The handset was announced at MWC in February this year. New images have emerged with the possibility of HTC adding another member to its Desire family some time later this year. Nowhereelse.fr has leaked out a couple of pictures of an alleged HTC Desire 830, which looks like it sports a plastic build.

An image with CPU-Z results is also shown, which tells us that the Desire 830 features a 5.5-inch 1080 Full HD display. The processor powering the handset happens to be a MediaTek MT6753 octa-core processor clocked at 1.3GHz, alongside 3GB of RAM and 32GB of internal storage. Details on the camera optics of the Desire 830 has yet to be revealed, but we’re guessing that it will be packing a standard 13MP/5MP pair of shooters, since it’s a mid-range device.

Based on the images, the HTC Desire 830 seems to be lacking a fingerprint sensor, which is odd for a 2016 device. Also, the handset seems to equip what looks like a USB Type-C port, but we can’t be entirely sure. What do you think of the Desire 830’s specs so far?

Source:
Nowhereelse.fr

10
825
830
desire
htc
leak
mediatek
midrange
plastic


Images of the MacBook Pro's OLED touch panel found in macOS Sierra 10.12.1

468

Apple’s new MacBook Pros have been the subject of numerous speculations, with the key new feature being an OLED touch panel that will be replacing the function keys. While images of this particular panel have mostly been artist renditions up until now, Apple has accidentally leaked images of this touch panel in macOS Sierra 10.12.1.

The images found in Sierra pretty much confirms everything that has been said about the OLED touch panel. The panel will indeed be replacing the function keys, and it appears that the touch panel is contextual, with the panel changing according to what’s showing on the screen. Rumours of the touch panel supporting Touch ID has also been confirmed, as the image shows someone authenticating an Apple Pay transaction by touching on the panel.

Besides the inclusion of the touch panel, the overall design of the new MacBook Pro doesn’t seem all that different. Due to the angle of the pictures found in Sierra, other rumours, such as the removal of certain ports, cannot be verified. Seeing as the Apple event is scheduled for Friday morning local time, we won’t need to wait long for Apple to officially announce the laptop.

Source:
MacRumors

apple
applepay
macbook
macos
oled
pro
sierra
touchpanel


Images of the PlayStation 4 Slim may have been leaked online

348

On the 7th of September, Sony will be hosting a PlayStation Meeting event where the company is expected to reveal the PlayStation 4 Neo. However, that may not be the only PS4 console that will be presented at the event as images of the PlayStation 4 Slim has appeared online.

Images of the PlayStation 4 Slim first appeared on
Neogaf
 as well as an online auction listing that has since been removed. From the images itself, the PS4 Slim appears to be a refinement of the standard PS4, sporting rounded edges instead of the sharp angles of its bigger sibling. While the design may be tweaked, the storage space on the PS4 Slim looks to be the same, with the supposed box of the PS4 Slim revealing that the console would have a 500GB variant.

As always, do take these images with a pinch of salt as it could very well be a fake, much like the Nintendo NX controller leaks. Should this be real though, you can expect an announcement about the PS4 Slim on the PlayStation Meeting event, where more details about the console would be given.

Source:
Neogaf

leak
playstation4
playstation4slim
sony


Improved biometrics technology and 3D Touch may be making its way into the 2017 iPhone

323

Those who are looking forward to Apple’s 2017 iteration of the iPhone may be in for a treat as KGI Securties analyst Ming-Chi Kuo has come up with more rumours surrounding the new iPhone.

With the new iPhone, Kuo believes that Apple is busy at work designing a new Touch ID fingerprint reader that will be used on future iPhones and iPads. Unlike the current Touch ID reader, the new version of Touch ID will be placed under the screen. Should this turn out to be true, it would mean that Touch ID would be located underneath the new iPhone’s OLED display, allowing Apple to get rid of the Home button.

Apple may also be looking at a future beyond fingerprints as well as Kuo claims that Apple is also looking into facial or iris recognition technology as part of the next iPhone’s features. While this particular feature would most likely not be implemented in the next iPhone, Kuo believes that Apple may decide to implement either facial or iris recognition technology into both its hardware and its mobile transaction authentication services.

3D Touch technology is also expected to be improved upon as Apple’s current 3D Touch tech is stated to be incompatible with the new iPhone’s curved OLED screen. Apple will be looking to solve this problem by way of switching to a “film sensor” that is said to have greater sensitivity and more pressure levels.

As always, all of the information above are rumours. Until Apple offcially announces the new iPhone sometime later this year, do take all the information above with a grain of salt.

Source:
9to5Mac
,
Apple Insider

3dtouch
apple
biometrics
ipad
iphone
touchid


In case you missed it: Samsung introduces The Freestyle, a portable 100-inch screen

1.7K

During
CES 2022
,
Samsung

unveiled what the company has in store for 2022 such as
monitors
, TVs, and the next big thing — a projector. Introducing The Freestyle, the all-in-one portable device that can act as a Smart TV, a speaker, and even a mood light.

Let’s start with the basics, how portable is it exactly? Well, it weighs only 830g, it sports a cylindrical-shape rather than a boxy one, it comes with its own detachable stand that allows rotations of up to 180 degrees, and oh did I already mention it’s built-in with a speaker so you don’t have to separately bring one?

Despite its small and space-saving design, if the device is ever stuck in an awkward position, you don’t have to worry because it makes use of an auto keystone and leveling feature — meaning you still get a perfectly proportional image no matter the angle. Other than that, the
Smart Calibration
feature combats colour inaccuracy when the image is projected on a non-white wall.

The Freestyle can project FHD resolution up to 100-inches in size onto any surface and paired with that is a 360-degree sound speakers. The device also comes with a translucent lens cap you can use for ambient light and a standard E26 light socket.

Translucent lens cap

The Samsung Freestyle retails for USD899.99 (~RM3765) and pre-orders for it has already begun in the US, with no news of when it’ll actually arrive in Malaysia. Hopefully we won’t have to wait too long for it as it’ll certainly be exciting to catch the action in person.

For more information, visit The Freestyle’s product page
here
.

CES 2022
Freestyle
samsung
Samsung Freestyle
The Freestyle


In-screen selfie cameras could be a bad solution for notchless displays

509

At this point in humanity’s quest for
bezeless
 and
notchless
 smartphones – we’ve tried pretty
much
 everything. The closest we’ve gotten so far is with the help of pop-up selfie cameras – it leaves the display hole and notch-free, but we sacrifice phone size and reliability in return.

The next stage of the Hole era is the Mosaic era, and in 2020 you will know what I am talking about.

— Ice universe (@UniverseIce)
December 31, 2019

The latest innovation to come out late last year that contributes to this endeavor is the in-display selfie camera design – basically you have a piece of imaging sensor placed right behind a part of the main display panel – when the camera is turned on, the section of the display shuts off, allowing for the selfie camera to “see” through the glass; and the camera is off, pixels flood the emptied out portion again, display.
 The likes of OPPO and Xiaomi were the first to show off their own renditions of this tech.

Image credit: Ice Universe

It’s a cool and potentially permanent solution to our cause – but reliable
leakster
 Ice Universe has taken to Twitter, showing the downside of using this upcoming tech. As pixels re-appear on the display when the selfie lens is turned off, the portion that covers the camera won’t look quite like the rest of the display. Ice Universe mentions “mosaic” most likely referring to the lower pixel density of that portion.

Image credit: Ice Universe

However, comments from people who’ve supposedly seen these devices hands on have noted that the lower resolution areas are not that noticeable during regular usage – you’d have to get up close to really see the differences. This is a relief to hear, and if phone makers could iron out the issue when retail units hit the shelves, then we truly have
the
solution for
notchless
 and
bezeless
 screens.

display
in-screen selfie camera
mosaic
oppo
selfie
xiaomi


In Win Released the 805 ATX PC Chassis

301

In Win Development is one of the leading innovator in PC design and multi-winner of the internationally renowned red-dot Design Award, has today announced its new 805 ATX PC chassis. The new 805 chassis features a see-through skeleton structure aluminium that can place anywhere to give 270 degrees of spectacular views thanks to its tempered glass sides and front panel. In win has tracked the spirit of exquisite craftsmanship and innovative design that blends the best of visual aesthetics and high-end PC gaming build performance. The casing features a mini-ITX, micro ATX or ATX builds that includes up to eight expansion cards.

The 805 is available all-black, or with accents of red or gold and it came with pre-fitted with a white (black/gold versions) or red (red version) LED backlit logo to match modern build aesthetics. Besides that, the casing features an extensive air and water cooling options with support for 280mm radiators up to 60mm thick in the front, and a 120mm radiator in the rear with 35mm thick at the rear. Good thing that the company include a removable fan bracket plus magnetic dust filters on all intake fans which allow for easy building and maintenance, furthermore you can
mount

two fans in the base for additional cooling.

The casing offers the latest USB 3.1 Type-C connector supporting ultra-fast 10 Gbps data transfer, in addition to USB 3.0 (1x), USB 2.0 (2x) and 3.5mm HD audio jacks. The availability and pricing of the casing haven’t been announced at the moment, we will update as soon we got the details.

805
atx
inwin
pchassis
pcmasterrace


Inappropriate bootleg emojis surfaces on Twitter, the creator unknown

1.2K

Recently, Twitter users has been reported seeing inappropriate bootleg emojis which has been circulating on the site and until today, it is still unknown of where and how these emojis has found its way into Twitter’s timeline. It is also unknown who are the creators behind the bootleg emojis that is specifically designed with human private parts.

Apple just added these new emojis 😍🔥
pic.twitter.com/1JJHl0Wgud

— Angel Hidalgo (@Angelhs_27)
December 21, 2018

According to Papermag, it isn’t the first time for inappropriate or NSFW emojis to surfaced online. It is said that back in the year of 2014, Flirtmoji was created and the media went crazy about these inappropriate emojis as it was created to make sexting more interesting. With its sext-friendly icons, Flirtmoji included emojis such as blow-up dolls, butt plugs, and ball gags galore. However, the latest “dickmojis” that surfaced on Twitter are even more graphic compared to flirtmojis which are much more subtle and not so detailed in terms on human genitalia.

Its unsure if Twitter will do anything about it or take it down from the site’s timeline as there is no official announcement or statement given by Twitter regarding the inappropriate bootleg emojis. It is advised for anyone who surfs on Twitter to be more aware and cautious of their surrounding while scrolling through the site’s timeline as they might come across the “dickmojis” and it would most definitely be an embarrassing encounter, especially if the person’s surrounded by older people while celebrating the festive season.

bootleg emojis
dickmojis
twitter


India now prefers Xiaomi handsets over Apple and Samsung

303

The Indian market has a ton of potential when it comes to selling smartphones, considering its population and the diversity in consumers’ needs in the country. The spectrum is mainly dominated by entry level to mid range smartphones, allowing for Chinese smartphone manufacturers to thrive in the nation’s market. According to a report, Xiaomi has overtaken the likes of Apple and Samsung as the most preferred smartphone brand in India.

A recent survey conducted by Strategy Analytics show that 26 percent of Indian consumers prefer a Xiaomi handset to be their next smartphone, accounting for more than a fourth of the share. Both Apple and Samsung only account for 24 percent, with 12 percent each as the next preferred smartphone among Indian users. Apple and majority of Samsung handsets appear to be premiumly priced, which explains why Indian users prefer the more affordable Xiaomi phones.

Motorola takes third place with 7 percent of respondents voting for the brand, and 4th place is tied between Lenovo and OnePlus, with Lenovo slated to be out of the game since it will only be launching smartphones under Motorola in the future. Local Indian pride Micromax accounts for 2 percent, still being a favorable brand in its home land. The report suggests that Indian customers aren’t drawn by huge resolution screens and camera quality of smartphones, as a huge number of them are still in the transition of switching from a feature phone.

Source:
Strategy Analytics

apple
brand
india
preferred
samsung
smartphone
xiaomi


India's USD 4 smartphone hits the market this Thursday

324

How affordable can you make a smartphone? Well, India-based startup Ringing Bells has an answer by way of the Freedom 251, and it is coming this Thursday.

Widely touted as the world’s cheapest smartphone, the Freedom 251 will be sold at Rs 251. When converted to the Ringgit, the Freedom 251 will have an asking pricce of around RM 16. Ringing Bells’ CEO Mohit Goel has admitted that the Freedom 251 will be sold at a loss, but he is hoping that this would be offset through seer volume.

Specifications of the Freedom 251 makes the smartphone the textbook definition of the word ‘entry-level.’ For starters, it sports a 4″ 960×540 screen, a 1.3GHz quad-core processor, 1GB of memory, 8GB of expandable storage, an 8MP rear camera, a 3.2MP front camera, and runs on Android 5.1 Lollipop.

While the Freedom 251 may be unappealing to many despite its price tag, do keep in mind that the target market for the Freedom 251 is the folks living in the rural areas of India. “Our humble beginning to provide a high-tech gadget that will benefit all in the hinterland and bridge the huge gap that clearly exists between the metros and semi-urban/rural areas is in keeping with the (Indian) government’s initiatives,” says Ashok Chadha, President of Ringing Bells.

Source:
The Indian Express
,
Engadget

freedom251
india
ringingbells
smartphone


Indiegogo updates terms of use; will now use third-party collection agencies to go after fraud campaigns

295

Crowdfunding campaigns that don’t deliver are part of the risk that comes with the platform. Indiegogo is looking to tackle that particular problem as it has updated its Terms of Use today which includes some…rather drastic consequences for people that do so.

In a
blogpost
 publlished by the company itself, Indiegogo has outlined what the company will require from people who are looking to start their campaign on the website. For starters, aspiring campaign starters will now need to provide information about their residence that matches their project’s address upon ID verification in order to prove that they’re not impostors.

In addition to that, campaign owners will now be required to provide frequent updates about the project’s development. Indiegogo will not allow a campaign owner to launch another crowdfunding project if the owner has a project that is currently active.

As for campaign owners who couldn’t deliver despite having a successful crowdfunding campaign, Indiegogo has stated that it will “do everything in its power to recover funds for our backers, including contacting third-party collection agencies.” Curiously enough, no changes were made to the requirements needed for someone to launch their crowdfunding campaign, so launching a project on its own will remain comparitively easy when compared to the likes of Kickstarter.

Source:
Indiegogo
,
Engadget

crowdfunding
indiegogo
termsofservice


Indonesia unblocks Tumblr following its ban on adult content

339

It is reported that Indonesia has finally lifted its ban on Tumblr after the company has globally announced to get rid of pornographic content on its platform.

On March 2018, the Indonesia Ministry of Communication and Information Technology (Kominfo) has banned Tumblr in the country as it has failed to comply with its strict anti-pornography rules.

According to Acting Head of the Ministry of Communication and Informatics, Bureau Ferdinandus Setu, said in a press release, “Tumblr sent an official statement regarding the commitment to clean the platform from pornographic content”.

The Directorate of Informatics Application Control at Kominfo has verified Tumblr’s letter and confirmed that Tumblr has changed its policy on pornographic content on its platform.

Indonesia is well known for their tough anti-pornography laws and it was reported that before blocking Tumblr officially, the ministry had sent a warning letter to the company on 25 February 2018, but as Tumblr has failed to respond during that time, they decided to proceed with blocking the site in March.

Video sharing site such as Vimeo and content aggregator and forum, Reddit, is also banned in Indonesia due to having adult content in its platform.

Now, Tumblr has blocked all types of adult content that are explicitly displayed, including photos, videos and GIF images, and it hosts 447 million personal blogs from around the globe.

Anti-pornography
indonesia
tumblr


inDriver e-hailing service now in Malaysia: Riders get to negotiate ride fares

2K

There’s a new e-hailing service in town – inDriver made its debut in Malaysia recently and it differentiates itself from its peers by allowing both the drivers and passengers to negotiate a ride fare.

The company calls the feature Real Time Deals (RTD) and it lets passengers request for a ride while offering what they think is a reasonable fare – nearby drivers that agree with the number can accept the fare, or choose to negotiate with the passenger for a different price.

Furthermore, the passengers will be presented with a list of counter offers from nearby drivers – this list will also include the drivers’ ratings, ETA, and vehicle used.

According to
Paultan.org
, inDriver currently only accepts cash payments. The new service is available in several states including Penang, Alor Setar, Melaka, Johor, Kuching, Kota Kinabalu, and more.

Visit inDriver’s website
here

to learn more.

ehailing
indriver
ride hailing


inDriver ride-sharing service now available in Klang Valley. Allows users to negotiate fares

1.2K

inDriver – a newly-launched ride-sharing service that lets users negotiate fares – is now available to use in Kuala Lumpur and Selangor.

The service was
initially launched
 earlier this month in selected states in the country such as Penang, Alor Setar, Melaka, Johor, and more.

inDriver’s offerings include a Real-Time-Deal (RTD) feature that lets users set a fare that they think is reasonable. Drivers and riders can negotiate an acceptable price – and both parties can still choose from a list of willing offers that suit them.

According to the company, RTD frees passengers from inflated rates due to peak hours, traffic congestion, and request history.

When it comes to safety, there is an emergency button to connect passengers and drivers with enforcement agencies, and a live-location sharing feature as well.

For a limited time, drivers who sign up with the service can operate with zero service payment.

Visit inDriver’s website
here

to learn more about them.

e-hailing
indriver
ride-sharing
taxi


Infected QR reader has been downloaded 500,000 times from the Play Store

311

Some of you that have downloaded QR code apps might be infected with an Android-based virus. In a recent report by SophosLabs’ Naked Security, it states that the infected apps have been downloaded more than 500,000 times before being removed from the Play Store.

They have detected the apps have the Andr/HiddnAd-AJ malware in several of these apps. Out of the apps, six of which are QR code scanners and another is a Smart Compass app, these apps were reported to Google and have now been pulled from the Play Store. The apps did function as promised but after a few hours, the virus will activate and bombard users with advertisements like full-screen ads, push notification with ad links and automatically opening web pages.

A closer look shows that one of the apps is a Verified by Play Protect app which indicates that Google has checked the app and ensured that it will cause no harm to the user’s phone. If you have downloaded any of the apps in the image above, it’s best that you immediately delete the app and perform a hard reset before the virus takes action.

apps
google
qr
scanner
virus


Infinity Tranz 700 Review: Affordable and uninspired headphones

2.3K

Infinity by Harman is a new brand that launched in Malaysia two months ago and we’ve managed to get our hands on one of the new products — the
Infinity Tranz 700
. At an affordable price of RM159, is this wireless on-ear headphones worth the buy?

Design and build

Design-wise, the Tranz 700 isn’t exactly an eye-catching pair of headphones; the one we have is in red and has the branding all over the headphones — on its ear cups and also the headband. It’s very light and can be folded for convenience when not in use, but it doesn’t feel flimsy when worn.
Despite looking like a basic pair of headphones, it has an expandable headband and comfortable ear cushions that don’t put extra pressure on my ears.

Pairing and controls

Pairing the headphones with my laptop or phone is easy — I just need to switch them on using the power button and my device will automatically detect them in the Bluetooth settings. The power button also has several other functions. Pressing once will play/pause your music, pressing twice will activate your voice assistants and long-pressing will turn the headphones on/off.

Apart from setting your music volume, the volume buttons can also be used to switch between the two EQ modes that are offered by the Tranz 700 — toggle between Deep Bass and Normal mode by long-pressing the volume up and volume down buttons.

Audio performance

Now, let’s talk audio. On Deep Bass mode, the bass is deep and boomy — as advertised — but it overpowers the mids and leads to an unbalanced sound performance. Switching it to Normal mode makes it better — vocals are clear in certain songs, but there are times where the highs sound slightly muffled. The sound separation isn’t too bad, but it could be improved so that the audio has more details.

Mic quality

One disappointing feature of this wireless headphones is when it comes to phone calls. Although the mic works well and the other party can hear me well, the audio turns soft once I’m on a call. It’s difficult to hear the other party, so I’d rather depend on my phone instead of these headphones when it comes to calls.

Battery life

Charging these headphones will take about two hours and a MicroUSB cable, but it’s acceptable since they offer up to 20 hours of music playback and I’ve had no problem using them throughout my working hours.

Verdict

For its price of RM159, the Tranz 700 is a worthy pair of on-ear headphones, but if you’re willing to spend an extra RM40, you could also get the
Elysium Signature HyperBass 2
 — a pair of over-ear headphones that have better audio quality and last longer.

The Good

Lightweight

Affordable

Powerful bass

Good battery life

The Not So Good

Muddy mids

Plain design

Low volume during phone calls

Infinity by HARMAN
Infinity Tranz 700
on-ear headphones


Infinix confirms launch of GT 10 Pro in Malaysia

3.6K

Infinix is set to launch the much-anticipated GT 10 Pro smartphone in Malaysia soon, as the company has teased a 12th September launch date on its Facebook page.

The GT 10 Pro is Infinix’s most ambitious take on a budget friendly gaming phone, as it not only features a striking mecha design with Mini LED notification lights on the back, it is powered by very capable Mediatek Dimensity 8050 chipset mated to 8GB RAM and 256GB of storage, the phone also features a 5000mAh battery that supports 45W fast charging and bypass charging.

On top of that, the phone features a 6.67-inch FHD+ 10-bit color AMOLED display that refreshes at 120Hz, dual stereo speakers, a 108MP triple camera setup on the rear, 32MP front facing camera, which overall makes it a very attractive device and it is set to retail for under US$250, we have no doubt that Infinix Malaysia will be offering the phone at a competitive price tag.

We have performed a review on the Infinix GT 10 Pro and were highly impressed with the phone, do watch the review if you haven’t.

infinix
infinix gt 10 pro
infinix gt 10 pro malaysia
infinix malaysia


Infinix debuts in Malaysia with the Zero 4, the Zero 4 Plus, and the HOT 4 Plus

376

Yet another smartphone maker has entered the Malaysian smartphone scene today as the Hong Kong-based Infinix Mobile introduced three new smartphones to the local market: the Infinix Zero 4, the Infinix Zero 4 Plus, and the Infinix HOT 4 Pro.

The first of the three phones launched today by Infinix is the Zero 4. Sporting a 5.5″ Full HD display, the Zero 4 comes equipped with a MediaTek MT6753 processor, 3GB of RAM, 32GB of internal storage, and a 3,200mAh battery. For imaging, the Zero packs a 16MP rear camera and a 8MP front camera. This particular smartphone will retail for RM999.

Sitting above the Zero 4 is the Zero 4 Pro, which is the flagship model of the three smartphones introduced today. This smartphone comes with a 5.98″ Full HD display and is powered by MediaTek’s Helio X20 processor, 4GB of RAM, 64GB of internal storage, and a meaty 4,000mAh battery. Imaging on this device is handled by a 21MP rear camera with optical image stabilization (OIS) technology, as well as a 13MP front camera. Pricing for the Zero 4 Pro will be announced in April

Rounding up the launch, we have the HOT 4 Pro, the most affordable smartphone out of the three launched today. This smartphone comes with a 5.5″ 720p display and is powered by a 1.3GHz quad-core processor, 2GB of RAM, 16GB of internal storage, and a 4,000mAh battery. The HOT 4 Pro is outfitted with a 13MP rear camera and a 5MP front camera for your imaging needs. The HOT 4 Pro will retail for RM599.

hot4plus
infinix
launch
smartphone
zero4
zero4plus


Infinix is having a flash sale for the S2 Pro and Zero 4 smartphones on 11street

396

Infinix Mobile will be part of 11street’s Flash Sale that is happening on 20 and 22 November 2017 and they are offering a one-time discount on the S2 Pro and Zero 4 smartphones. Customers who purchase the phone during the flash sale will be able to redeem a free Infinix 10,000mAh Powerbank.

The Infinix Zero 4 has an attractive all-metal unibody smartphone and spots of 5.5-inch FHD IPS display with 2.5D and Gorilla Glass. Powering it is an Octa Core 1.3GHz processor, 3GB of RAM and 32GB storage. It is also the only smartphone within the class to come with optical stabilized 16MP main camera with Laser AutoFocus and true tone flash to ensure low light photos are not overexposed. On the front is an 8MP camera with LED flash and keeping all of this running is a 3200mAh battery that offers 10 days of standby time and has support for XCharge 3A fast charging

The Infinix S2 Pro, on the other hand, is the world’s first wefie smartphone that comes with dual-front cameras with 13MP standard and 8MP wide angle lenses. This enabled you to capture a 135-degrees wefie so you will be sure to capture all your friends or family during a party. Under the hood is an Octa Core 1.3GHz processor, 3GB of RAM and 32GB storage, 5.2-inch HD IPS display and 3000mAh battery.

If you are interested in getting these phones, the
S2 Pro
 will retail for RM729, which is an RM50 discount off its original price and the
Zero 4
 will retail for RM799 from its original retail price of RM999. Both phones will come with Infinix’s standard 1-year warranty, 6-months screen crack warranty and a 1-to-1 exchange program within 15 days of purchase.

11street
flash
infinix
s2 pro
sale
zero 4


Infinix INBook X1 Review: a killer affordable mid-range laptop

3.7K

Infinix may be well known for its great value smartphones, but like many other smartphone brands, it isn’t sitting on its laurels and has expanded its product portfolio to laptops, which I happen to be using their very first laptop for the past month, the Infinix INBook X1 is a 14-inch laptop that not only looks good but also offer things that major laptop brands can’t for the same price point.

My review unit is a real head turner with its striking red color paint job, the laptop is also available in other two color options of black and green which will tone down the gaudiness if you prefer.

Weighing a mere 1.48kg, the INBook X1 is extremely lightweight to transport around and features an impressive aluminum build that I find no flexes and squeaks at all, the top chassis features a dual texture design that comprises a brushed texture on top and matte texture at the bottom, on the inside you find the same paint job as the exterior and I’m glad that they do the same for the trackpad, the keyboard, speaker grille and display bezels are black which gives it a really nice overall contrast.

While most brands would have just equipped similar class laptops with an Intel Pentium or AMD Athlon processor, the INBook X1 comes with an Intel Core i5 1035G1 processor, 8GB of DDR4 RAM running at 3200MHz and a Phison 512GB PCIe SSD, which is considerably decent and better than many laptops of the same class despite using a last gen Intel processor, even the equipped SSD is pretty fast as I measured 2.5GB/s of read and 1.7GB/s of write on CrystalDiskMark.

However, you don’t want to push this laptop too hard either on opening heaps of browser tabs and leaving too many unused programs open in the background, the RAM isn’t upgradable so you are stuck with 8GB of it for the rest of the ownership.

Ports selection of the INBook X1 is excellent, you get two full sized USB 3.0 ports and one USB 2.0 port, two USB-C with one of them supporting USB PD charging and display output, a HDMI port and MicroSD card slot. For those who cares about privacy, it also comes with a physical webcam kill switch on the left, a feature that’s usually only available on more expensive laptops.

Using the INBook X1 as my main work laptop has been a very enjoyable experience, the 14-inch Full HD display delivered an excellent viewing experience with adequate indoor brightness and reasonably accurate color reproduction, the loudspeakers produced serviceable sound for conference calls and movies, the keyboard is one of the best I have experienced that offers a really nice tactile and good layouts, and the trackpad works well enough for selection and scrolling.

This is an experience that’s really hard to come by on many mid-entry level laptops, and I’m glad that Infinix managed to nailed it.

While most Intel Ice Lake powered laptops I’ve tested before are generally bad on battery life, I could manage a remarkable 7 hours on the INBook X1 on a single charge. Although the laptop can be charged over the provided AC adapter, I have never took out the charging brick since I started using it as USB PD charging is so much more convenient, it charges over a 60W input and I easily get additional three hours of juice with just a 30 minute charge.

Retailing at RM2,399, the Infinix INBook X1 is a remarkable mid-range laptop that delivers almost everything you have come to expect on a more expensive laptop, there’s nothing I can nitpick about and I absolutely recommend this over any other sub RM2000 laptops if you are willing to top up extra cash, unless you are brand biased, there’s absolutely no reason not to give Infinix a chance.

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Infinix INBook X1

Retailing at RM2,399, the Infinix INBook X1 is a remarkable mid-range laptop that delivers almost everything you have come to expect on a more expensive laptop, there's nothing I can nitpick about and I absolutely recommend this over any other sub RM2000 laptops if you are willing to top up extra cash, unless you are brand biased, there's absolutely no reason not to give Infinix a chance.

KLGadgetGuy

Design

9

Performance

8

Features

9

Battery Life

9

Value

9

The Goods

Excellent performance

Great ports selection and USB-C charging

Battery life

Affordable

The Bads

No extended warranty option

Soldered RAM

 8.8

Average Score

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