NVIDIA Releases Hotfix Drivers to Correct High CPU Usage Issues

The bug previously caused persistent CPU usage once a game is closed.
The problematic driver in question. (We have yet to receive the hotfix driver at this writing.)
NVIDIA recently released version 531.18 of their drivers, which included their new RTX Video Super Resolution feature. However, some PC gamers have been experiencing high CPU usage from the NVIDIA Container app. If you’re one of those people, fret not – a hotfix driver is now released to correct the issue.
The hotfix drivers (531.26) solves the issue, ensuring that NVIDIA Container no longer causes CPU usage spikes when logging in or closing games. This isn’t the first time this year that NVIDIA has had to quickly fix issues with their GeForce drivers. Just last month, an update to Discord caused minor clockspeed issues on some of the company’s graphics cards, requiring an app profile update to solve the problem.

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Minor driver shenanigans aside, the RTX Video Super Resolution which comes with this driver can be a useful feature if you’re looking to upscale videos on YouTube or elsewhere. This new feature is now available for RTX 30 and RTX 40 series GPUs, and Microsoft has jumped on the bandwagon to release a version of upscaler of their own for their Edge browser.
Source: The Verge
Pokdepinion: Didn’t take long – get the update installed, people.
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Apple App Store Top Apps and Mobile Games of 2021 Unveiled

Ever wondered what are the most popular apps and mobile games on the Apple App Store in 2021. We have the list right here, and some of them might surprise. Here’s what you need to know.
Apple App Store Top Apps and Mobile Games of 2021

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Every year, Apple recaps their best mobile games and apps on the App Store. Now we have the list for 2021, and keep in mind that this includes iPhone (iOS), iPad (iPadOS), Mac (MacOS) and Apple Watch (watchOS).
The iPhone app of the year belongs to Toca Life World, a group of apps by Toca Boca to encourage children’s creativity. Next up, we have video editing app LumaFusion for iPad app of the year. Then for Mac app of the year, we have Craft for office application use such as word processing. Lastly, we have CARROT Weather for Apple Watch app of the year.
As for top games of the year, we have League of Legends: Wild Rift for iPhone, MARVEL Future Revolution for iPad, and Myst for Mac. There are honorable mentions as well, including dating app Bumble, EatOkra, TikTok, and traitor game Among Us which was a huge hit for the gaming community.
For the full list of best mobile games and apps on the Apple App Store for 2021, check it out right below here:
Top Free iPhone Apps

TikTok
YouTube
Instagram
Snapchat
Facebook
Messenger
Google Maps
Gmail – Email by Google
ZOOM Cloud Meetings
Amazon Shopping

Top Paid iPhone Apps

Procreate Pocket
HotSchedules
The Wonder Weeks
TouchRetouch
Facetune
Shadowrocket
75 Hard
Dark Sky Weather
Autosleep Track Sleep on Watch
SkyView®

Top Free iPhone Games

Among Us!
Roblox
Project Makeover
Call of Duty®: Mobile
Subway Surfers
High Heels!
Magic Tiles 3: Piano Game
Water Sort Puzzle
Shortcut Run
Bridge Race

Top Paid iPhone Games

Minecraft
Heads Up!
Bloons TD 6
Monopoly
Geometry Dash
My Child Lebensborn
Plague Inc.
True Skate
Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas
Incredibox

Top Free iPad Apps

YouTube
ZOOM
Disney+
Netflix
TikTok
Google Chrome
HBO Max
Hulu
Amazon Prime Video
 Gmail

Top Paid iPad Apps

Procreate
GoodNotes 5
Notability
Duet Display
Toca Kitchen 2
Toca Life: Hospital
LumaFusion
Shadowrocket
Affinity Designer
Toca Life: Vacation

Despite all the changes and challenges, it seems that mobile games are still doing well on the Apple App Store. It’s worth noting that this year’s best award winners will receive a 100% recycled aluminum App Store logo with their respective names engraves on the side.
Source
Pokdepinion: I’m personally surprised because a lot of these apps I don’t use as I’ve never heard of them. Of course, I won’t count the ones that might not be supported here in Malaysia for obvious reasons. Now to try more new apps and games.
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Silicon Motion new PCIe 4.0 controllers offer up to 7.4GB/s speeds

Silicon Motion controllers are found in quite a number of SSDs, across a wide price range. The new SM2264, SM2267 and SM2267XT take advantage of the newer PCIe 4.0 interface to offer higher performance levels than their predecessors, and given that we are looking at three controllers, we will be seeing them appear in SSDs targeted at at various price points.
The high-end SM2264 promises up to 7.4GB/s read and 6.8GB/s write speeds. Random performance is also pretty interesting, with 1000K IOPS for both read and write. With support for a total of 8 NAND channels and 8 CEs per channel, SSDs based on the SM2264 can arrive with really impressive capacities.
There’s also support for LPDDR4 and DDR4 DRAM, which should offer for improved efficiency over the previous generation of SSDs. The SM2264 is manufactured on the 12nm FinFET process too, which is a pretty big leap forward from Silicon Motion’s last high-end controller, the SM2262EN.

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One of the many SSDs with the SM2262EN controller.
For more affordable “mainstream” PCIe 4.0 SSDs, Silicon Motion offers the SM2267 and SM2267XT controllers. Both of these controllers offer up to 3900MB/s read and 3500MB/s write speeds, making them just a bit faster than what high-end PCIe 3.0 x4 SSDs are capable of.
The main difference between these two controllers would be the DRAM support and the CEs per channel. The The SM2267 supports both LPDDR4 and DDR4 DRAM, while the SM2267XT does not support DRAM. It also halves the CEs per channel to 4, versus the SM2267’s 8 CEs per channel.
Silicon Motion PCIe 4.0 controller specs

SM2264
SM2267
SM2267XT

Arm CPU Cores
4 x Cortex-R8
2 x Cortex-R5

DRAM Support
LPDDR4, DDR4
No

NAND channels
8
4

CEs per channel
8
4

Sequential Read / Write (GB/s)
7.4 / 6.8
3.9 / 3.5

4K Random Read / Write (IOPS)
1000K / 1000K
500K / 500K

Hopefully we will see more affordable PCIe 4.0 SSDs crop up in the near future, which will allow OEMs to integrate them into the upcoming Tiger Lake laptops which do support PCIe 4.0.
Enthusiasts who don’t want to spend too much on their storage can probably also opt for the more affordable PCIe 4.0 SSDs, which still offer a significant performance boost over current premium PCIe 3.0 SSDs. Or maybe some would like to get these to drop into their PS5?
Pokdepinion: I do look forward to seeing the SM2267 in more SSDs in these coming months.
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ASUS Zenfone 10: Leaked Press Renders Showcase Design and Colour Options

The highly anticipated ASUS Zenfone 10 is set to launch on June 29, and excitement is building as official-looking press renders have surfaced, providing us with our best glimpse yet of the flagship device. Renowned leakster Evan Blass has leaked these renders, showcasing the ASUS Zenfone 10 in five different colours, with the company already confirming the availability of a vibrant green variant. Let’s dive into the details revealed by these leaks and explore what we can expect from this upcoming flagship.
ASUS Zenfone 10 Leaked Renders

The leaked press renders give us a comprehensive view of the ASUS Zenfone 10’s design and colour choices. The smartphone features a punch-hole display, a detail confirmed by ASUS, which is expected to measure 5.9 inches diagonally, although the exact resolution is yet to be confirmed. The device’s frame incorporates antenna lines, indicating a metal construction for a sleek and premium look. On the right side of the frame, we can see a volume rocker, accompanied by a power button that may also double as a fingerprint reader for convenient unlocking. Moving to the bottom, we find a USB-C port, flanked by a microphone and a speaker grille.

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While the press renders provide a clear view of the ASUS Zenfone 10’s design, details regarding the camera setup and specifications remain undisclosed. The device sports two rear cameras, but their resolutions are yet to be confirmed. ASUS has not yet released the complete specifications for the Zenfone 10, but some key features have been officially announced. The smartphone will be powered by the Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 SoC, ensuring powerful performance, and will offer wireless charging capabilities. Additionally, it will incorporate a second-generation six-axis gimbal stabilization, enhancing the device’s photography and videography capabilities.

With the official unveiling just ten days away, ASUS is expected to gradually unveil more features of the Zenfone 10 to generate excitement among tech enthusiasts and potential buyers. As the launch date approaches, we can anticipate the company revealing further specifications, camera details, and unique functionalities that will make the ASUS Zenfone 10 stand out in the competitive smartphone market.
Source
Pokdepinion: With an eye-catching punch-hole display and a metal frame featuring antenna lines, the smartphone exudes a premium appeal. While specific camera details and specifications are still under wraps, the confirmed Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 SoC, wireless charging capability, and second-generation gimbal stabilization highlight the device’s promising performance and advanced photography features. As the official unveiling date approaches, tech enthusiasts can eagerly anticipate ASUS unveiling more exciting features and functionalities to build anticipation for the ASUS Zenfone 10’s arrival in the market.
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RTX 2080 SUPER On Par with TITAN V in Leaked Benchmark

We’ve been seeing some interesting details on the GPU side and today, it’s going to continue. Some leaked benchmarks on the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2080 SUPER have surfaced and it appears that its performance is on par with the NVIDIA TITAN V GPU.
The data is from the Final Fantasy XV benchmark tool, with the score being listed in the public benchmark database. The RTX 2080 SUPER is shown to have a score of 8663 in the benchmark test running at 1440p resolution. The TITAN Xp has a lower score at 8484 while the TITAN V scored 8841. It’s also 7.4% much better than the regular RTX 2080 and 10.6% better than a GTX 1080 Ti. Yes, something much more affordable is able to perform just as good. Of course, this is data from just one benchmark, and it could still differ in other benchmarks.

NVIDIA has revealed the card’s specifications and it edges out 2080 in most areas; ~7% increase in base and boost clock speeds, a 10.7% increase to memory bandwidth, and 4.3% more cores.  While the specifications are pretty solid, it still falls behind the 2080 Ti, which surpasses it by 15% in Final Fantasy XV.
NVIDIA’s site declares the RTX 2080 SUPER exceeds the GTX 1080 Ti by roughly 35%. But it is worth noting that they did pick a couple of games with ray-tracing, something the GTX cards aren’t designed / optimized for.

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The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2080 SUPER is said to be releasing on 23rd July 2019 for USD $699. It’s also expected to come bundled with Wolfenstein: Young Blood and Control for purchases made until 18th August 2019. For now, we shall wait and see.
Check out the full benchmark scores by clicking right here.
Pokdepinion: Not exactly something very exciting if you ask me. I’d probably get something worthwhile with current offerings already but it’s still not a bad card.
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5G in Malaysia to rollout by Q4 2021 with infrastructure handled by a single special entity

Previously, the Minister of Communications and Multimedia, Saifuddin Abdullah, assigned the 700MHz spectrum bands to a handful of local telcos, before deciding to withdraw it for transparency’s sake. He then announced that the 5G deployment in Malaysia will be happening much later, towards the end of 2022 or early 2023. Now, it seems that it will be happening as soon as the end of the year.
Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin announced that the commercial rollout of 5G will happen as early as Q4 2021. The rollout will be a part of the new MyDIGITAL initiative. However instead of allocating blocks of the 5G spectrum to telcos, there will be a single special purpose vehicle (SPV) owned by the government.
The SPV will have MCMC overseeing it, and all telcos will reportedly have equal access to the 5G infrastructure. Telcos will reportedly be able to save on having to deploy their own 5G infrastructure, which will in turn allow them to offer 5G services at more affordable prices to the people. The government will be looking at a total investment of RM15 billion over a 10-year period to deploy the 5G infrastructure, bringing an estimated 105 000 job opportunities.

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Via this single special entity, local telcos can continue focusing on achieving the goals set by JENDELA, which will see 4G coverage expand to 96.9% in populated areas. As 3G networks are set to be shut down in stages, this improved 4G coverage is necessary to ensure that everyone still remain connected.
Source
Pokdepinion: I sure hope the SPV is competent enough…
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Donald Trump’s Twitch Account Banned For Being Hateful

I think most people would know about Twitch as well as who Donald Trump is. Well it seems that the streaming platform has decided to ban the US president’s account due to hate speech.
Trump’s Twitch account banned
Given how big of a case this is, Twitch has let out the reasoning behind the ban, where they pointed out that Trump had violated their policy on hateful conduct and given specific violations that he did in the past (previous streams).
Though a ban was given, there was no details on how long it will last as it isn’t a permanent one. Here’s what Twitch had said about the matter in an interview:

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Hateful conduct is not allowed on Twitch. In line with our policies, President Trump’s channel has been issued a temporary suspension from Twitch for comments made on streams, and the offending content has been removed.
The examples given by Twitch include Trump’s 2016 campaign rally where he took a dig out of Mexico as well as the Tulsa Rally.
Source
Pokdepinion: I’m shocked to be honest with their decision. I didn’t think anyone was brave enough to do so. It’s good to see that no matter who you are, you still need to follow the rules.
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Tower of Fantasy 1.5 Update to Bring Artificial Island

Tower of Fantasy 1.5 Update

The Tower of Fantasy 1.5 update is expected to launch soon and with a recent teaser trailer, we now know what to expect from it. In case you’re worried, the update is expected to be large with a good number of new things for gamers to enjoy.
For starters, there will be a new housing system which will allow gamers to construct a variety of buildings for different goals such as farming. It’s not meant to be for creative expression so do expect limitations here and there. Then, we have a Frostfire Dragon, which will serve as a new Interdimensional boss fight.

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Next, we have the biggest part of the update, which is the Artificial Island which is said to be on the larger side with multiple new areas to explore, including the Ring Arena, Puddled Lake, and Rusty Iron Camp. We are also expected to see a number of new enemies in this area as well, along with a bunch of Black and Gold Nucleus to collect.
The Tower of Fantasy 1.5 update will launch on 15th September 2022 for PC, Android, and iOS. No ports of the game for other platforms have been confirmed at the moment.
Source
Pokdepinion: Hopefully, this will be enough to tide us over until update 2.0 since the main story ended with a teaser of a new planet. If they aren’t fast enough, competing MMORPGs will surely thrive instead.
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Get high on glass with the BitFenix Aurora [Malaysian pricing update!]

The latest chassis by BitFenix, the BitFenix Aurora is a simple yet elegant chassis. It features tempered black glass windows on both sides of the case, allowing you to showcase your hardware without the obscene fear of scratches that acrylic side panels will instill in you.

The BitFenix Aurora will be available in two colors, midnight black and artic white. The left glass window is tinted, offering a premium look while you are showing off the the expensive hardware you have installed inside the case. The right side is opaque black, allowing you to do some cable management by hiding the wires behind the motherboard tray. Given the full glass side panel, good cable management is vital for a presentable build.

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The BitFenix Aurora supports up to EATX motherboards while also having plenty of room for water-cooling builds. The modular drive cages allow you to configure the internal space to suit your needs. The case has room for up to two 280mm radiators mounted on the front and top, and a 120mm radiator at the rear vent, all while having enough space to mount the other water-cooling components.

As usual for all recent hardware, the BitFenix Aurora also offers RGB illumination. The RGB Chroma Control and SSD Chroma allow you to change the SSD illumination color via the hardware button to cycle through the included presets. If you own an ASUS motherboard with ASUS AURA technology, you can connect the controller to the motherboard for more customization with ASUS AURA, as the RGB Chroma Control are co-developed with ASUS ROG.
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[UPDATE] The BitFenix Aurora will have a SRP of RM439 in Malaysia.
Pokdepinion: The EATX support is interesting for gamers with high end motherboards, and the glass panels are even more suitable for them to show off their heavy investments.
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Rocket Lake promises up to 14% faster gaming performance than Comet Lake from $182

The 11th Gen Intel Core processors are finally official. As previously revealed, the 11th Gen Rocket Lake processors are based on the Cypress Cove core architecture, which is Ice Lake’s Sunny Cove core architecture backported for the 14nm node. This affords for a nice improvement in IPC to the tune of 19%, but more importantly, a notable gaming performance uplift.
New CPU and GPU cores for Rocket Lake

The top of the line 11th Gen Intel Core processor, the Intel Core i9-11900K, is somewhat of a step backwards when it comes to core count, topping out at just 8 cores and 16 threads. However when paired with the IPC improvements brought by the newer core architecture, it still promises an upgrade for gamers who will benefit more from the enhanced single-core performance on tap.

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Intel boasts 14% better FPS in Microsoft Flight Simulator with the 11th Gen Intel Core i9-11900K vs the Core i9-10900K, while the i5-11600K promises up to 7% better FPS vs its predecessor. Even when pitted against the Ryzen 9 5900X, the i9-11900K boasts of 11% better FPS in the same game, despite the AMD CPU coming with 4 additional cores.
On top of the new CPU architecture, Intel also used the latest Intel Xe graphics architecture here to offer up to 50% better integrated graphics performance. The newer integrated graphics brings with it improved Intel Quick Sync capabilities and hardware 10-bit AV1 and 12-bit HEVC decode.
Improved memory overclocking

Intel has also updated the memory overclocking on the 11th Gen Intel Core processors. With an all-new integrated memory controller, the 11th Gen Intel Core processors can now run in two gearing modes, Gear 1 and Gear 2, which allows the IMC to decouple from the memory frequency to allow for greater memory overclocking potential. The officially supported memory frequency has also been bumped up to 3200MHz, from 2933MHz in the previous generation.
An interesting thing to note is that only the Intel Core i9-11900K and i9-11900KF officially support DDR4-3200 in Gear 1, while the rest of the product stack supports DDR4-3200 in Gear 2, which will see the IMC run at a half the speed and thus incur higher latencies than the 1:1 ratio of the Gear 1 mode.
Upgraded Intel 500 Series Chipset
Another main highlight of course has to be the PCIe 4.0 support. Intel has finally embraced PCIe 4.0 in their desktop platform with the 11th Gen Intel Core processors offering 20 PCIe 4.0 lanes. The processors still communicates with the Intel Z590 chipset over PCIe 3.0 lanes, but this time the interconnect has been widened to 8 lanes for double the bandwidth of previous generations.
Intel added support for discrete WiFi 6E, Thunderbolt 4 to the chipset, with integrated Wireless-AX CNVi across the Intel 500 series chipsets. There’s also support for USB 3.2 Gen 2×2 20Gbps baked into the chipset. Also new is the support for memory overclocking on Intel H570 and Intel B560 motherboards, which allows gamers to opt for more affordable motherboards and not sacrifice on faster memory speeds.
11th Gen Intel Core “Rocket Lake” Processors Specs and Pricing

Base Clock (GHz)
Max Boost (GHz)
Max All Core Boost (GHz)
Cores/Threads
Cache
TDP
Graphics
Price

Core i9-11900K
3.5
5.3
4.8
8C/16T
16MB
125W
Intel UHD Graphic 750 (32 EU)
$539 (~RM2218)

Core i9-11900KF
3.5
5.3
4.8
8C/16T
16MB
125W
N/A
$513 (~RM2111)

Core i9-11900
2.5
5.2
4.7
8C/16T
16MB
65W
Intel UHD Graphic 750 (32 EU)
$439 (~RM1807)

Core i9-11900F
2.5
5.2
4.7
8C/16T
16MB
65W
N/A
$422 (~RM1737)

Core i9-11900T
1.5
4.9
3.7
8C/16T
16MB
35W
Intel UHD Graphic 750 (32 EU)
$439 (~RM1807)

Core i7-11700K
3.6
5.0
4.6
8C/16T
16MB
125W
Intel UHD Graphic 750 (32 EU)
$399 (~RM1642)

Core i7-11700KF
3.6
5.0
4.6
8C/16T
16MB
125W
N/A
$374 (~RM1539)

Core i7-11700
2.5
4.9
4.4
8C/16T
16MB
65W
Intel UHD Graphic 750 (32 EU)
$323 (~RM1329)

Core i7-11700F
2.5
4.9
4.4
8C/16T
16MB
65W
N/A
$298 (~RM1226_

Core i7-11700T
1.4
4.6
3.6
8C/16T
16MB
35W
Intel UHD Graphic 750 (32 EU)
$323 (~RM1329)

Core i5-11600K
3.9
4.9
4.6
6C/12T
12MB
125W
Intel UHD Graphic 750 (32 EU)
$262 (~RM1078)

Core i5-11600KF
3.9
4.9
4.6
6C/12T
12MB
125W
N/A
$237 (~RM975)

Core i5-11600
2.8
4.8
4.3
6C/12T
12MB
65W
Intel UHD Graphic 750 (32 EU)
$213 (~RM877)

Core i5-11600T
1.7
4.1
3.5
6C/12T
12MB
35W
N/A
$213 (~RM877)

Core i5-11500
2.7
4.6
4.2
6C/12T
12MB
65W
Intel UHD Graphic 750 (32 EU)
$192 (~RM790)

Core i5-11500T
1.5
3.9
3.4
6C/12T
12MB
35W
Intel UHD Graphic 750 (32 EU)
$192 (~RM790)

Core i5-11400
2.6
4.4
4.2
6C/12T
12MB
65W
Intel UHD Graphic 730 (24 EU)
$182 (~RM749)

Core i5-11400F
2.6
4.4
4.2
6C/12T
12MB
65W
N/A
$157 (~RM646)

Core i5-11400T
1.3
3.7
3.3
6C/12T
12MB
35W
Intel UHD Graphic 730 (24 EU)
$182 (~RM749)

The 11th Gen Intel Core processors should be available starting 30th March.
Pokdepinion: I do think that six to eight cores is the sweet spot for gaming PCs, but I wonder how much it will affect workloads that prefer more cores.
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Hideo Kojima’s Ambitious Dreams: A Game to Play in Space

Renowned game developer Hideo Kojima is known for his innovative and boundary-pushing creations, and it seems that his ambitions have reached new heights. In a recent appearance at the premiere of the documentary “Connecting Worlds,” which revolves around his life and work, Kojima expressed his desire to not only create a game to be played in space but to personally venture into outer space. This bold statement highlights Kojima’s relentless pursuit of unique and extraordinary experiences. While it may seem far-fetched, Kojima’s track record of embracing unconventional game mechanics makes his aspirations all the more intriguing. Let’s delve into his vision and the potential implications for the gaming industry.
Hideo Kojima: An Ambitious Man with an Equally Ambitious Goal
Image source: The New Yorker
During the premiere event, Kojima engaged in a conversation with Geoff Keighley, a close friend and producer of Summer Game Fest. When asked about his future plans, Kojima replied, “I want to go to outer space and create a game you can play in space… So please someone send me up to space.” This statement goes beyond the notion of playing existing games in space and hints at his desire to design an entirely new gaming experience exclusively for outer space. While the practicality of such a venture raises questions, Kojima’s relentless pursuit of innovation is evident.
Hideo Kojima has a reputation for integrating unconventional mechanics into his games, adding unique layers of immersion and interactivity. Examples range from Psycho Mantis breaking the fourth wall by reading players’ memory cards to the time-sensitive food spoilage mechanic in Metal Gear Solid 3. His Boktai series even incorporated light sensors that influenced gameplay. These inventive approaches demonstrate Kojima’s inclination towards pushing boundaries and exploring uncharted territories within the gaming medium.

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Sending Kojima to space may sound like a fantastical notion, but it aligns with his ambition to deliver unparalleled gaming experiences. However, practical considerations such as cost, logistics, and the feasibility of designing a game exclusively for the extraterrestrial environment pose significant challenges. While Kojima’s enthusiasm is commendable, the realization of his vision may require collaboration with space agencies, technological advancements, and substantial financial support.
While Kojima’s space-related aspirations captivate the imagination, it’s important to remember his ongoing projects within our earthly realm. Officially confirmed to be in development, Death Stranding 2 awaits its release date announcement. As fans eagerly anticipate this highly anticipated sequel, Kojima’s grand ambitions demonstrate his unrelenting pursuit of innovation and willingness to push boundaries.
Source
Pokdepinion: Hideo Kojima’s recent declaration of his desire to create a game to be played in space and his aspiration to journey into outer space himself epitomize his boundless imagination and innovative spirit. While the realization of his dreams may present significant challenges, it underscores Kojima’s relentless pursuit of groundbreaking gaming experiences. As we await further updates on Death Stranding 2, Hideo Kojima’s ambitious vision reminds us that the future of gaming holds endless possibilities, both within the realms of our world and beyond.
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ASUS ZenFone 4 (ZE554KL) available in Malaysia for RM2099; Wide angle camera for a new look at things!

ASUS launched their ASUS ZenFone 4 lineup sometime back, but they have only released the ASUS ZenFone 4 Selfie and the ZenFone 4 Max Pro, before following up with the ZenFone 4 Max. Those were pretty much niche devices, satisfying a certain crowd of consumers who really enjoy selfies or ultra-long battery life. The ASUS ZenFone 4 (ZE554KL) which is available starting today is priced at RM2099 and is a pretty balanced device compared to those announced earlier here in Malaysia.

The ASUS ZenFone 4 goes for a dual camera setup like the ZenFone 4 Max Pro but instead of a 16MP + 5MP setup, we have a 12MP main camera with a wide f/1.8 aperture and equally big pixels coming in at 1.4 µm. There is also Dual Pixel autofocus to deliver stunningly fast autofocus in just 0.03 seconds. The wide angle camera is of a higher resolution at 8MP and sports a wide 120° field of view to take more in, or just to get a different perspective.

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Performance will be courtesy of the Snapdragon 630 which sports eight Cortex A53 clocked at up to 2.2 GHz. There will be 6GB of LPDDR4 and 64GB of eMCP storage. eMCP storage is combining eMMC with mobile DRAM to save space in compact smartphones. The ASUS ZenFone 4 runs ASUS ZenUI 4.0 based on Android 7.1.1 Nougat, but an update to Android 8.0 Oreo has been promised for the whole ZenFone 4 line up.
With the decently sized 5.5″ 1080p display and the 3300 mAh battery, the ASUS ZenFone 4 should be able to last more than the average working day. There is also fast charging support so rejuicing the ASUS ZenFone 4 shouldn’t be take too long at all.
You can get the ASUS ZenFone 4 at all of ASUS’ authorized resellers, or at ASUS’ official Lazada store, when it is listed there.
Pokdepinion: The ASUS ZenFone 4 looks like a decent upgrade over the ASUS ZenFone 3 that came before it, and we can’t wait to put it through its paces!
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MoE explains why Yes 4G and Frog VLE was dropped

When we saw YTL Communication’s press release, they were alleging that they were unfairly shuttered out of the negotiations to hire an interim ISP for schools by the Ministry of Education (MoE). Of course, those were pretty serious allegations, considering that the transparency of the MoE was at stake. Here is the MoE’s explanation by the MoE’s chief secretary, Datuk Dr Mohd Gazali Abas.
YTL defaulted on nearly RM42 million of electricity charges
YTL installed 2715 telecommunication towers at schools and government premises, but has reportedly never paid for the electricity charges since the start of 1 BestariNet Phase 2. These towers were not only used by the government, but YTL was using them for commercial purposes as well. The government paid RM41.881 million in electricity charges for these towers. Charging consumers for Yes 4G and not paying the due electricity charges? Not cool, YTL.
Potential loss of nearly RM200 million in rental income for the government
As the telecommunication towers are used for commercial purposes, the government can charge a rental for them if they are constructed on government premises. The government stands to lose RM195.480 million of commercial rental income within the six months of YTL’s “free internet service” for schools. I guess this answers this question on our Facebook page:

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“Weaknesses in 1BestariNet Phase 2 will recur”
We asked, and you guys told us. Yes 4G’s service wasn’t that great, and Frog VLE is apparently a horrible nightmare that parents and teachers both want to avoid. Evidently the MoE thinks the same thing, and wants to “explore the latest most suitable technology”. Which is probably why they made the jump to Google Classroom, instead of stay with Frog VLE.
“The quality of internet connectivity provided is unsatisfactory”
Yep, he said it. Datuk Dr Mohd Gazali Abas bluntly called out YTL Communications’ ineptitude in delivering great internet service and digital education. Of course, you guys already shared with us your experience, so I guess this move is a very welcome one for you guys?

He went on to say say that YTL isn’t barred from taking part in future tenders, and strongly reiterates that the MoE did not violate its contract with YTL, as the contract ended on 30th June.
Pokdepinion: Hopefully our education system will be able to make better use of Google Classroom as well as TM, Celcom and Maxis’ internet services.
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LazMall By Lazada Officially Launched

You may have heard LazMall before (you can click here  to read on our previous post), well they are now officially launched, featuring a curated selection of international and local brands.
LazMall Officially Launched
LazMall, which is under Lazada, is where you can get your products delivered to your doorstep in 24 hours or less, albeit only in the Klang Valley area.They also promise 100% authentic products as well as a 15-day easy return policy for their items.
About their next day delivery promise, they have a warehouse where they keep all the products, that’s how they are able to promise that they can deliver your items the following day from your order.

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As for the 15-day return policy, you can change your mind withing 15 days of purchase if you are not completely satisfied with your items from LazMall at no cost at all. To do so, you can drop off the items at one of over 2000 return points that Lazada has provided.
Of course, when you purchase something, you need to be sure that it is authentic. Well every Flagship Store and Certified on LazMall is set to provide you with assurance. Every store that is in LazMall had to meet guidelines such as brand trademark documentations, seller rating, and good fulfilment scores to be in LazMall. If in any case that you receive non-authentic products, the company has promised to give shoppers twice your money.
Lazada 9.9 Online Sale
Well that’s not all. Lazada will be soon hosting their 9.9 Online Sale where you can get access to a bunch of deals and promos. You can head over to the Lazada website to check that out.
Pokdepinion: With all the sales that’s going on, I’m just scared for my wallet.. Well about the next-day delivery thing, I’m sure there are some people out there will be unhappy with the news, considering the fact that it is only for those who live in the Klang Valley region.
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Over 400 Gaming Companies Signed Anti-Addiction Agreement In China

In case you didn’t know, China takes gaming as a serious health issue. It seems that the Gaming Working Committee of the China Audio-Video and Digital Publishing Association as well as 213 member companies including Tencent, has jointly release the Convention on Anti-Addiction and Self-discipline of the Online Game Industry.
China gaming companies sign anti-addiction agreement

It appears that a total of 411 Chinese game companies located in Beijing, Shanghai and Guangdong has signed the agreement. Wang Biao, the director of the Digital Publishing Institute of the Chinese Academy of Press and Publication has said that the country’s national anti-addiction, real-name authentication platform has been realized.

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As the name of the agreement suggest, they aim to keep gaming addiction at bay amongst the people, or in this case, gamers.
It is reported that Tang Jiajun, the Secretary-General of the Game Working Committee has ordered the game companies to actively adhere to the relevant requirements of the states and authorities. They (the companies) are also required to carry out training for proper age-rating notices in order to protect the physical and mental health of young gamers.
For more on the latest tech and gaming news plus reviews, stay tuned to Pokde.net.
Source
Pokdepinion: Addiction to anything is definitely not healthy but then again, how do you exactly determine one? I for one game (when I can) simply to relax after a long day of hard work.
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NVIDIA’s Next Generation Gaming GPU Is Launching In 2025, Leaks Claim

German outlet HardwareLuxx has obtained an internal GPU roadmap from NVIDIA with launch projections of the company’s upcoming GPU generations. The roadmap includes four categories: Superchip (datacenter CPU+GPU hybrid), GPU (split into datacenter and consumer lineup), ARM-powered CPU and finally DPUs.
Under the GPU section, one can see the two GPU architectures, Hopper and Ada Lovelace, which is respectively a datacenter architecture and consumer GPU architecture. The roadmap indicates that Hopper Next is launching somewhere in early 2024, whereas consumer GPUs (including gaming ones, such as RTX 50 series) is set for early 2025 launch.

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However, as for the official name for the next-gen consumer graphics, it’s still officially unknown so far. Rumors do claim that Blackwell will be the name for the next-gen gaming GPU, though it’s unclear if Blackwell may cover both sides of the GPU coin as some leaks may have reported. While 2025 seems far, keep in mind that NVIDIA’s previous track record of GPU releases has remained consistent with roughly 2 years between each new generation.
Source: Videocardz
Pokdepinion: NVIDIA will need to give gamers a very compelling reason to upgrade this time around, but it’s probably not of their utmost concern at the moment given AI’s sheer market potential which the company is enjoying right now, with virtually no competition to speak of.
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EZVIZ C3X With Dual Lens Security Camera Lands In Malaysia

EZVIZ has introduced their most advanced outdoor Wi-Fi camera, the EZVIZ C3X, the world’s first dual-lens security camera.
EZVIZ C3X now available in Malaysia

What’s special about the EZVIZ C3X is that it is able to produce color videos in extremely dark environments. This means that users can see authentic details in nighttime images such as the color of clothes and cars, which is commonly lacking in traditional security cameras.

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It appears that the C3X motion detection feature is powered by AI deep learning algorithms, which allows it to recognize moving persons and vehicles and to distinguish them from animals, foliage or other objects.
The security camera also comes with a built-in strobe light and a siren that can be activated when unwanted motion is detected. You can also customize the siren to a pre-recorded audio track to be used as a warning alarm.
Other than that, the EZVIZ C3X offers a 1080p Full HD video resolution, H.265 video compression, Wi-Fi 2.4 GHz connectivity, IP67 dust and waterproof, as well as on-board microSD storage up to 256GB. The EZVIZ app also allows you to easily control and manage the camera.
You can now purchase the EZVIZ C3X for the retail price of RM539 at physical distributor stores in the country or via online through their official Shopee and Lazada stores.
Pokdepinion: If you’re looking to buy the security camera, you should check out their Lazada store where it’s on a special price of RM436.50 (at the time of writing).
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Samsung Galaxy A7 (2017) review — It’s time to get wet

Samsung is never going to stop flooding the market with smartphones at every price range. Starting from the top, we have the Galaxy S series, then the A series and finally the J series. The A series has been around for quite some time, with the first Samsung Galaxy A7 in 2015, and probably the forefather of the A series, the Samsung Galaxy Alpha, in 2014. Well, enough about the past, today we have here the latest Samsung Galaxy A7 (2017) which was just recently launched here in January. It brings an IP68 rating, glass sandwich design, octa-core processor, 3GB of RAM and 16MP cameras on both ends of the device. Well, that’s just the general specifications, let’s get down to our full review of the Samsung Galaxy A7 (2017).
Unboxing

We got a sealed unit of the Samsung Galaxy A7 (2017) so we are gonna have to slice the seal open (yay!). The first thing that I noted when I received the Samsung Galaxy A7 (2017) was how small the packaging was.

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Upon opening the package, I was greeted by the Samsung Galaxy A7 (2017) itself, with some warranty stickers on top. The Samsung Galaxy A7 (2017) is protected by thick plastic protectors on its front and back, which needs to be removed.

Under the device are the accessories. Despite the small package, Samsung has included pretty much everything, except a case. You get the usual documentation including a start up guide in Chinese. Fun fact: literally translated, it means Fast Enter Door Point South. Whatever that means. You also get a Samsung Adaptive Fast Charging charger, a USB Type-C cable, earphones and even a microUSB-to-Type-C adapter. Nifty.

The Samsung Adaptive Fast Charging charger can deliver up to 16.83W, just short of the 18W that most fast charging technologies can supply. I really like the microUSB-to-Type-C adapter, as it allows me to use my iCable i10 Power Series microUSB cable, or any third-party microUSB cable for that matter, with the Samsung Galaxy A7 (2017). This will greatly benefit users who already have a collection of microUSB cables from their previous devices.
Ooh lala~
Appearance

The front of the Samsung Galaxy A7 (2017) reminds me of my old Galaxy Note 2. Speaking of which, Samsung has been using the same straight edge with rounded corners design for ages, even resulting in the Korean company being sued by Apple for apparently copying their design. Previous iterations of the Galaxy A7 had less rounded corners, which I do prefer, actually.

The rear of the Samsung Galaxy A7 (2017) is made of curved glass, or what Samsung calls 3D Glass. Samsung has used a similar glass-back design in the Galaxy Note 5, and more recently, the Galaxy S7. It looks pretty good, but the view here can look a little bare without any other embellishments here aside from the primary camera and its single LED flash which sit flushly with the glass. The Gold variant we have here collects fingerprints like a boss too, but the color prevents them from being noticed.

Moving over to the sides, we find the loudspeaker and the power button on the right, and the volume controls and primary SIM tray on the left. I use the phrase volume control here because they are two separate buttons here instead of the rocker we find on most devices. I was quite surprised to see the loudspeaker grille here as they are usually located on the lower edge or the back of most device.

The top features the secondary SIM tray which shares its home with the microSD. The secondary microphone also sits at the top. The 3.5mm jack, primary microphone and USB Type-C port are over on the bottom edge.
Overall, the design of the Samsung Galaxy A7 (2017) is good, if a tad unimaginative, as it features designs that Samsung has already used for previous devices. The combination does result in a smartphone that looks pretty enough to be a flagship device though.
Specifications

CPU:
Exynos 7880 Octa (8 x A53 @ 1.9 GHz), Mali-T830MP3 @ 950 MHz

RAM
3GB LPDDR4

Display:
5.7″, FHD (1080p) SuperAMOLED display

Storage:
32GB internal (expandable with microSD up to 256GB)

Camera:
16MP f/1.9, single LED flash
16MP f/1.9

OS:
Android 6.0.1 Marshmallow with Grace UX

Connectivity:
WiFi 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac (2.4+5 GHz)
Bluetooth 4.2

SIM:
nanoSIM (dual SIM support)

Battery:
3600 mAh (non-removable)

Performance
The Samsung Galaxy A7 (2017) features the Exynos 7880 Octa SoC, which packs eight A53 cores running at 1.9 GHz and a Mali-T830MP3 GPU. Manufactured on Samsung’s 14nm FinFET process, the Samsung Galaxy A7 (2017) should prove to be pretty power efficient as well. Samsung has proven their mettle with their line of Exynos processors which have been competitive against Qualcomm’s Snapdragon series of SoCs. The Exynos 7880 Octa here looks comparable on paper with the Qualcomm Snapdragon 625, which is also manufactured on the 14nm FinFET process, so let’s take a look at how it fares in our usual benchmark suite.

Starting off with the most popular benchmarking app on the Play Store, the Samsung Galaxy A7 (2017) makes a so-so showing here. It trails the devices with the Snapdragon 625, but places itself a fair bit away from the lower end Snapdragon 430. It does not shine in the CPU section of the Antutu benchmark, which gives us a rough idea of what to expect from the benchmarks that follow.

PCMark’s Work 2.0 benchmark prefers devices with more fast cores. The Exynos 7880 Octa brings eight cores clocked at 1.9 GHz to the table, but the Samsung Galaxy A7 (2017) fails to give itself a sizeable lead ahead of the ASUS ZenFone 3 Laser which packs the Snapdragon 430. Despite being on paper similar to the Snapdragon 625, it doesn’t do nearly as well here.

The trend continues with it trailing the Snapdragon 625 devices in the single-core test, and ekes out a victory over the OPPO R9s in the multi-core test. The Exynos 7880 Octa should give the Samsung Galaxy A7 (2017) pretty good performance in apps that can make use of multi-core processing, but unoptimized apps will suffer from the mediocre single-core performance.

Our staple graphics benchmark, 3DMark, sees the Samsung Galaxy A7 (2017) finally being on top of the Snapdragon 625 devices, and by quite a large margin as well in the Sling Shot Extreme (ES 3.1) benchmark. This seems to point towards Samsung optimizing the Exynos 7880 Octa for the newer OpenGL ES 3.1, which should translate to better performance in Vulkan too. It makes a good showing here, and only loses out by a slight bit in the Ice Storm Unlimited benchmark.
Worth noting is that throughout the benchmarks, the device didn’t even get warm, which is very nice. Even if you do manage to get it to heat up, you can always dip in water for some real water-cooling ;)

In exchange for the lesser performance scores above, the Samsung Galaxy A7 (2017) delivers a lot of battery. I managed to get more than a full day away from the plug with 5 hours of screen on time. This was with me using WiFi for most of the time, and a mobile data connection for a few hours here and there in between. Facebook, Whatsapp, Instagram and Messenger are checked really frequently within this duration, with some surfing here and there too. I believe this is a great trade off, losing a little performance for more battery life.
User Experience

Right off the bat, the Samsung Galaxy A7 (2017) scores points for true dual SIM functionality. I only consider devices that can accept two SIM cards and a microSD card (if it supports expandable memory) to offer a real dual SIM feature. The funny thing is that the Samsung Galaxy A7 (2017) features two separate SIM trays for the two nanoSIMs it accepts, but this is probably due to space constraints more than anything.

Holding the device, it feels quite hefty in the hand. It gives the Samsung Galaxy A7 (2017) a solid feel as I find phones that are too light to not really convince me of their build quality. It feels rather secure in my grasp, thanks to the curved rear glass panel, ergonomically curving to fit into my palm. The thickness also helped here, being just thick enough for me to get a good hold of it. The device is also rather cool, even after the series of benchmarks we ran in the performance section of this review. A comfortable shape and also cool temperatures make it a very nice device to hold on to.

If, you decide that you want to give the Samsung Galaxy A7 (2017) a bath, feel free to do so as it is also rated IP68 for dust and water resistance, just like the Galaxy S7, which means that you can use it pretty much anywhere without any problem. There is an issue if you want to use it underwater, as the screen will fail to respond to taps. This is a common issue with capacitive touch displays though. Wipe it dry and it will be as good as new.
Well, at least they are backlit.
It is Samsung’s tradition to have a physical home button which doubles as a fingerprint scanner. It is flanked by the back key on the right and multitasking key on the left. I deplore this arrangement, but longtime Samsung fans will be right at home using the Samsung Galaxy A7 (2017). The fingerprint scanner works pretty well, once you get the hang of it. It can take some time getting used to the smallish fingerprint scanner. When it works, it is actually quite fast and accurate. Also worth noting is that the button here is still a physical tactile key, not those newfangled solid-state ones.
Speaking of haptic feedback, the Samsung Galaxy A7 (2017) surprisingly lacks it. The capacitive keys and built-in keyboard do not feature haptic feedback. It feels jarring at first, tapping on the capacitive keys and not feeling a vibration, but actually I got used to it after some time. Still, I do not see why Samsung did not include the option to enable haptic feedback for the capacitive keys and built-in keyboard. You can use a third-party keyboard app and enable haptic feedback there, but the navigation keys can not have the feedback added to them via third-party software. Not without modifying some system files, at least.

Samsung has come a long way from the despised TouchWiz to the immensely improved Grace UX. This new user interface looks a lot cleaner, doing away with all the childishness of TouchWiz’s old UI. I offer credit where it’s due, and the Samsung team deserves a pat on the back for maturing TouchWiz into Grace UX. The abundance of animation gives the device a very smooth user experience, but can make the device feel less snappy than it can be. Nothing that you can’t fix by going into Developer options and reducing the animation scales though.

The Samsung Galaxy A7 (2017) comes with a whole suite of built-in apps with a very consistent theme for the UIs. They generally follow the Material Design guidelines, which gives them a modern and clean look similar to the rest of the UI on the device. But there are absolutely redundant apps like the Internet and Email apps which have their functions served by Google’s Chrome and Gmail, respectively. I don’t see why do you even need two apps that serve the very same function, of which neither can be deleted from the device.

There are quite a few gestures that you might want to check out,but the most interesting has to be the very nifty multitasking gesture. The Samsung Galaxy A7 (2017) supports more than just the usual multiwindow mode, but also allows you to move your current app into a smaller window, or Pop-up view as Samsung calls it, by swiping diagonally from the upper corners. You can then multi task with another app running behind. When you are done, you can either close it, or minimize into something that looks like a Messenger chat head. You can have up to 5 of these little blobs on your screen at one time, or even 5 of these mini-windows running on your screen, with a sixth app running fullscreen in the background, which is about as good as multitasking gets on a smartphone. Mobile gamers would also be able to enjoy the Game Tools which offers several functions to optimize your gaming experience, among which is a screen recorder for you to record and share your gameplay videos with everyone.

Moving on, the camera on the back is a 16MP one with a f/1.9 aperture. However there is no information regarding the availability of phase detection autofocus or OIS, but the focusing seems characteristic of PDAF (albeit rather slow). I have no way of testing of OIS, but it seems to have no stabilization technology at work, as images can easily get blurry when the shutter speed drops. The single LED flash looks bigger than what most other smartphones pack but seems to provide just as much light as the dual LED setups found on the competition. The light looks warm, which should give a more natural look to shots taken with the flash on.

The user interface of the camera is pretty simple. You get shutter and video recording buttons on the left, with the rest of the options on the left. Samsung did not offer an auto-HDR mode on the Samsung Galaxy A7 (2017), and it will take a swipe to the right, and a tap to activate HDR (Rich tone) mode. HDR is a specific mode that you must switch over to, and even in the mode, the viewfinder does not show you the results of HDR. The Pro mode on the Samsung Galaxy A7 (2017) is also decidedly limited, with no manual controls over the shutter speed or focus. Swiping over to the left gives you an array of filters to apply to your shot.

The Samsung Galaxy A7 (2017) has pretty good image quality. Despite rather sluggish autofocusing speed especially when going for close ups, the focusing is quite accurate. So you might have to take some extra time to line up your shots, but when you tap the shutter, the resulting image will look good. If you want to get faster focusing speeds, you can also download the Sports camera mode. In that mode, focusing is faster, but it loses the ability to meter the image according to the area you tapped on. You can check out the full images on our Flickr page here.

The display is quite faultless, as it is a fullHD (1080p) SuperAMOLED panel. Colors are vivid, but are no longer as insanely over-saturated as its predecessors. Sharpness is top notch too as 1080p offers a high enough pixel density on the 5.7″ display here. Brightness is high enough for decent sunlight legibility. You can also tune the white balance of the display in case you don’t like Samsung’s idea of whites.

As it packs a AMOLED display, the Samsung Galaxy A7 (2017) features the Always On Display, being able to even display a full month’s calendar. This feature will consume a little extra battery, but the benefits of having the time and notifications available at a glance outweighs any power it consumes. The notification icons can be double tapped to bring you to the app immediately, which I find quite convenient. It even has support for Spotify, showing you the title and artiste of the song that is playing.

The Samsung Galaxy A7 (2017) even allows you to customize the background of your Always On Display to have a unique look, but only if you do not want to see the calendar when the screen is off. Selecting Image in the Content to show menu gives you a useless fullscreen pattern. I do not know why Samsung decided to include it, but hey, it’s there if you want it.

Despite the rather unusual location of the loudspeaker, the Samsung Galaxy A7 (2017) actually has a pretty decent sounding one. The sound signature can even be tuned, which is not something you see everyday. The waterproofing also didn’t seem to affect the loudness of it. Plugging in headphones to the 3.5mm jack unlocks every one of the audio effect available, while using Bluetooth headphones will mean you can’t take advantage of the UHQ upscaler feature. You can even tune the audio output to suit your hearing and headphones with the Adapt Sound feature, which is available for both Bluetooth and headphones. The Adapt Sound feature doesn’t save presets for several different headphones, which is a pity since it is pretty common for people to own multiple headsets nowadays.
Conclusion
The Samsung Galaxy A7 (2017) is a pretty decent device. Sure, it could have come with better CPU performance, a quicker autofocusing system and also haptic feedback, but perhaps Samsung decided to give it better audio features, a great display, build quality, a strong battery life and also the IP68 rating. This does not mean I am giving Samsung a pass for not including haptic feedback though, as it literally costs nothing to integrate it into the software. If third party apps can use it, why can’t Samsung make use of it for the capacitive navigation keys? Aside from these shortcomings, I really appreciate Samsung giving the Samsung Galaxy A7 (2017) the latest Grace UX which immensely improves the user experience as well as the general look of the UI. If you want to bring your phone to a dip or two in the pool without splurging on a Galaxy S7, then the Samsung Galaxy A7 (2017) makes for a pretty good choice at RM1899. The Samsung Galaxy A7 (2017) deserves our Silver Pokdeward.

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GIGABYTE silently releases GIGABYTE 990FX Gaming with USB 3.1 and M.2 slot

It seems that not only AMD has silently introduced new AMD FX 6330 processor; GIGABYTE has taken a step forward too and silently spawned a new motherboard for AMD AM3+ processor. The main highlights of the GIGABYTE 990FX Gaming motherboard is USB 3.1 and M.2 support that will bring AMD platforms up to speed in terms of storage options and connectivity.

The GIGABYTE 990FX Gaming motherboard is offering some new features that can be said to be non-existent in any other AMD FX motherboard currently in the market. As I said above, this board comes with USB 3.1 with Type-C connector that offers 10Gbs transfer speeds while the M.2 is using PCIe 2.0 lanes to offer up to 20Gbs transfer speed unlike their counterpart Intel’s Skylake Z170 platform that uses PCIe 3.0 lanes. Even with only PCIe 2.0 lanes it will still offer faster speeds compared to SATA 3.0 SSDs.

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The GIGABYTE 990FX Gaming motherboard also received heavy audio upgrade with a TI Burr Brown OPA2134 operational amplifier and Rivet Networks Killer E2201 LAN chip. It also supports both AMD Crossfire and NVIDIA SLI technology on two PCIe X 16 slots which run at full X16 speed.

More information on specification can be found here: GIGABYTE

Pokdepinion: From my perspective it seems like GIGABYTE still sees a market in high-end AM3+ boards. But I believe the main purpose of this new motherboard is is to give us some insight on what we could expect in the upcoming AMD AM4 platform in 2016.
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ASUS ZenFone ZenUI Walk-through.

Recently ASUS launched (ZenFone launched in Jakarta) new smartphone lineup which is ASUS ZenFone, it came with three version from ASUS ZenFone 4, ASUS ZenFone 5 and the high-end segment ASUS ZenFone 6. This three devices came with decent hardware specification powered by Intel Atom Bay Trail microprocessor. Not only the hardware specification, ASUS also introduced new platform called ZenUI, a platform created to understanding, assisting, and help to expressing yourself.
What interesting me about ZenUI is the one hand mode, as you know it is hard to maneuver the device with only one hand, but with hand mode it will be more easier to navigate to screen with your desire size.
Today ASUS Youtube channel upload new walk-through on the new ASUS ZenUI. For new ASUS ZenFone user, make sure you watch the video, I bet it will help you to know and navigate the phone efficiently and in this video it will explain ZenUI features like “What’s Next”, “Do It Later”, “Easy Mode” and many more.

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So, how much does ZenUI will help you in daily task after this?
Lets go briefly each features to understanding you on how ZenUI work. Choose each tab for each feature on ZenUI platform.

Do It LaterWhat's NextShare LinkOpen CloudOmlet ChatSimply put "Do It Later" is like your personal assistant in digital, sort all thing to do later while you occupied doing other thing. There are a lot thing you can do with "Do It Later" like postpone a phone call and much more. This short video teach how to use "Do It Later".

"What's Next" function is to manage you daily schedules, by simply integrates information from other app, "What's Next" will manage and create a schedule content that really matter you, displayed in chronological order as note card. This short video showing you how to configure "What's Next".

"Share Link" work as peer-to-peer using Wi-Fi signal that result faster file transfer. Easy setup and transferring file, but if you want to send files to many people at once, using the same technology as "Share Link" which is "Party Link", multiple user can join in to the group party for file transfers, this features very neat. Disadvantages of this feature is capable only on ASUS ZenFone devices. This short video showing about the "Share Link" and "Party Link".

Integrate your gallery, music, file manager and camera application from ASUS Webstorage, ASUS HomeCloud and other third party cloud services. Its make you easier to manage all the file from cloud services with just one platform. It also let you know where the file come from cloud storage either from dropbox, onelive and others. One more amazing trick is its allow you to copy and paste across the cloud storages. This short video is show you how to integrate account for "OpenCloud".

You can create a group send and received information to and from my friends through app, SMS or email. Your friend also can respond the SMS, email or right through the app and all the communication stored in one place. This short video show you how to add friend in "Omlet Chat".

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Hyperdimension Neptunia Re;Birth1+ Announced; Exclusive for PlayStation 4

The folks over at Compile Heart has announced Hyperdimension Neptunia Re;Birth1+, the PS4 remaster of the game from PS Vita and PC.
Hyperdimension Neptunia Re;Birth1+ Announced

Compile Heart has announced via Dengeki Online the development of Hyperdimension Neptunia Re;Birth1+. The game is a PlayStation 4 remaster of Hyperdimension Neptunia Re;Birth1 for PS Vita and PC, which was in turn a remaster of the first Hyperdimension Neptunia game that was released for PS3 in 2010.

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The game will be fully unveiled in issue 656 of Dengeki PlayStation, which will release in Japan on Thursday (It’s Wednesday today so yeah, just keep the day in mind). At the top of this post, you can check out the key art of the game, which incidentally is the same as Hyperdimension Neptunia Re;Birth1.
If you’re unfamiliar with Hyperdimension Neptunia, the story takes place after years of fruitless war between the 4 realms of Gamindustri (Planeptune, Lastation, Lowee and Leanbox) over Share energy, the source of their strength based on how much their people have faith in their goddesses, the 4 CPUs that rule over them have finally signed a friendship treaty.
The treaty bans any attempt at claiming Share energy through military force, in hopes of bringing peace and prosperity to their worlds. Yet, a month after the treaty, Neptune, the CPU Goddess of Planeptune, spends her time goofing off and playing games rather than doing her job, leaving her land’s Shares plummeting. From that moment on, Neptune and her friends’ attempt to raise Shares, while dealing with an external threat that could spell the end of both the Goddesses and Gamindustri itself.
Check out the synopsis of the original game, as provided by Steam, right below here:
Packed with fast-paced, turn-based RPG action, fourth-wall-breaking, trope-demolishing dialogue, and more item, weapon, and costume customization than you can shake a Lvl. 1 Stick at, Gamindustri is a world set on turning the concept of the JRPG on its head!
Source: Dengeki Online
Pokdepinion: Judging by appearance, I shouldn’t be excited for the game but my inner weab is giggling like a schoolgirl for it.
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Here are the GeForce RTX 3050 cards and their prices in Malaysia

NVIDIA announced that the GeForce RTX 3050 cards were to start in RM1200 in Malaysia. And it seems to have caught many of us in disbelief. Considering the current market pricing of the GeForce RTX 30 series cards, RM1200 seems like too good a deal, right? Well, here are the GeForce RTX 3050 cards announced in Malaysia, and their pricing.
ASUS – from RM1690

ASUS is offering a trio of GeForce RTX 3050 cards here in Malaysia, with the ASUS Phoenix GeForce RTX 3050, DUAL GeForce RTX 3050 OC Edition and ROG Strix GeForce RTX 3050 OC Edition. You get a choice of one, two or three-fan coolers, respectively.

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I do believe a triple-fan cooling solution is pretty overkill for a graphics card like the GeForce RTX 3050, even if it was heavily overclocked, but hey, can you really say no to the appeal of the ROG Strix GeForce RTX 30 series design language? The price, is another matter altogether though, with it priced at RM2350, where it would make a lot more sense to just look for a cheaper GeForce RTX 3060 card.
ASUS GeForce RTX 3050 Series Specs and Price in Malaysia

ASUS Phoenix GeForce RTX 3050
ASUS DUAL GeForce RTX 3050 OC Edition
ASUS ROG Strix GeForce RTX 3050 OC Edition

GPU
NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3050 (GA106)
Samsung 8N

Clocks
Base clock: 1552MHz
Boost clock: 1777MHz
Base clock: 1552MHz
Boost clock: 1822MHz (+45MHz over ref.)
Base clock: 1552MHz
Boost clock: 1860MHz (+83MHz over ref.)

Cores
2560 CUDA Cores
80 Tensor Cores
20 RT Cores

Memory
8GB GDDR6

Memory speed
14Gbps

Memory bus
128-bit

Display outputs
1 x HDMI 2.1
3 x DisplayPort 1.4a
1 x HDMI 2.1
3 x DisplayPort 1.4a
2 x HDMI 2.1
3 x DisplayPort 1.4a

Power connector(s)
1 x 8-pin
1 x 8-pin
1 x 8-pin

Dimensions
17.7 x 12.8 x 5.1 cm
20.0 x 12.3 x 3.8 cm
30.0 x 13.36 x 5.35 cm

Warranty
3 + 1 Year Extended Warranty

Price
RM1690
RM1910
RM2350

GIGABYTE – from RM1389
          GIGABYTE GeForce RTX 3050 Gaming OC            GIGABYTE GeForce RTX 3050 EAGLE
There’s also a trio of cards from GIGABYTE, although they are doing it slightly differently with the GIGABYTE GeForce RTX 3050 EAGLE OC and non-OC options, and the more premium triple-fan GIGABYTE GeForce RTX 3050 Gaming OC. We reviewed the GeForce RTX 3050 EAGLE, and we found the cooling to be up to the task of keeping the GeForce RTX 3050 GPU cool, but if you want a more beefy looking card, you can definitely look towards the triple-fan Gaming OC option.
GIGABYTE GeForce RTX 3050 Series Specs and Price in Malaysia

GIGABYTE GeForce RTX 3050 EAGLE
GIGABYTE GeForce RTX 3050 EAGLE OC
GIGABYTE GeForce RTX 3050 Gaming OC

GPU
NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3050 (GA106)
Samsung 8N

Clocks
Base clock: 1552MHz
Boost clock: 1777MHz
Base clock: 1552MHz
Boost clock: 1792MHz (+15MHz over ref.)
Base clock: 1552MHz
Boost clock: 1822MHz (+45MHz over ref.)

Cores
2560 CUDA Cores
80 Tensor Cores
20 RT Cores

Memory
8GB GDDR6

Memory speed
14Gbps

Memory bus
128-bit

Display outputs
2 x HDMI 2.1
2 x DisplayPort 1.4a
2 x HDMI 2.1
2 x DisplayPort 1.4a
2 x HDMI 2.1
2 x DisplayPort 1.4a

Power connector(s)
1 x 8-pin
1 x 8-pin
1 x 8-pin

Dimensions
21.3 x 12.0 x 4.1 cm
21.3 x 12.0 x 4.1 cm
28.2 x 11.7 x 4.1 cm

Warranty
3 year Warranty
4-year warranty

Price
RM1389
RM1719
RM1829

PALIT – from RM1200
PALIT GeForce RTX 3050 Dual (OC)
Finally, we are getting to the cards offered at NVIDIA’s MSRP! The PALIT GeForce RTX 3050 series comprise of the PALIT GeForce RTX 3050 StormX, GeForce RTX 3050 Dual and GeForce RTX 3050 Dual OC. As the name implies, the Dual models feature a dual-fan cooler, while the StormX gets a single fan.
Palit GeForce RTX 3050 StormX
The PALIT GeForce RTX 3050 StormX is probably the most compact GeForce RTX 3050 out there right now, with a simple dual-slot design. While diminutive, It still doesn’t miss out on a tiny RGB accent piece on the side, something which is quite unique since most of the “budget” offerings from the other brands do not feature any lighting whatsoever.
PALIT GeForce RTX 3050 Series Specs and Price in Malaysia

PALIT GeForce RTX 3050 StormX
PALIT GeForce RTX 3050 Dual
PALIT GeForce RTX 3050 Dual OC

GPU
NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3050 (GA106)
Samsung 8N

Clocks
Base clock: 1552MHz
Boost clock: 1777MHz
Base clock: 1552MHz
Boost clock: 1777MHz
Base clock: 1552MHz
Boost clock: 1822MHz (+45MHz over ref.)

Cores
2560 CUDA Cores
80 Tensor Cores
20 RT Cores

Memory
8GB GDDR6

Memory speed
14Gbps

Memory bus
128-bit

Display outputs
1 x HDMI 2.1
3 x DisplayPort 1.4a
1 x HDMI 2.1
3 x DisplayPort 1.4a
1 x HDMI 2.1
3 x DisplayPort 1.4a

Power connector(s)
1 x 8-pin
1 x 8-pin
1 x 8-pin

Dimensions
17.0 x 12.5 x 4.0 cm
24.5 x 11.9 x 4.0 cm
24.5 x 11.9 x 4.0 cm

Warranty
3 year Warranty

Price
RM1200
RM1659
RM1749

ZOTAC – from RM1200

Another contender at the RM1200 price point comes from ZOTAC. Interestingly enough, they are offering the dual-fan ZOTAC GeForce RTX 3050 Twin Edge at this price point. Another rather intriguing thing is that the OC version costs a whopping RM579 more. If, and this is a pretty big if, you can get the non-OC version, it would definitely be the better option since the OC version actually offers a very miniscule 25MHz bump to its boost clocks anyway.
ZOTAC GeForce RTX 3050 Series Specs and Price in Malaysia

ZOTAC GeForce RTX 3050 Twin Edge
ZOTAC GeForce RTX 3050 Twin Edge OC

GPU
NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3050 (GA106)
Samsung 8N

Clocks
Base clock: 1552MHz
Boost clock: 1777MHz
Base clock: 1552MHz
Boost clock: 1802MHz (+25MHz over ref.)

Cores
2560 CUDA Cores
80 Tensor Cores
20 RT Cores

Memory
8GB GDDR6

Memory speed
14Gbps

Memory bus
128-bit

Display outputs
1 x HDMI 2.1
3 x DisplayPort 1.4a

Power connector(s)
1 x 8-pin

Dimensions
22.41 x 11.63 x 3.92 cm

Warranty
3+2 Year Extended Warranty

Price
RM1200
RM1779

[UPDATE 7.00pm 28/1/22: Added MSI and Inno3D]

MSI – from RM1200
          MSI GeForce RTX 3050 VENTUS 2X OC          MSI GeForce RTX 3050 Gaming X            MSI GeForce RTX 3050 AERO ITX OC
MSI comes in strong with a trio of cards, with the MSI GeForce RTX 3050 AERO ITX OC, GeForce RTX 3050 VENTUS 2X OC and the GeForce RTX 3050 Gaming X. Interestingly, MSI is the only brand that managed to bring us an overclocked card at NVIDIA’s MSRP. The MSI GeForce RTX 3050 Gaming X also gets the honors of being the second fastest GeForce RTX 3050 we have seen yet, while being significantly cheaper than the ROG Strix card, which is the fastest.
MSI GeForce RTX 3050 Series Specs and Price in Malaysia

MSI GeForce RTX 3050 AERO ITX OC
MSI GeForce RTX 3050 VENTUS 2X OC
MSI GeForce RTX 3050 Gaming X

GPU
NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3050 (GA106)
Samsung 8N

Clocks
Base clock: 1552MHz
Boost clock: 1807MHz (+30MHz over ref.)
Base clock: 1552MHz
Boost clock: 1807MHz (+30MHz over ref.)
Base clock: 1552MHz
Boost clock: 1845MHz (+68MHz over ref.)

Cores
2560 CUDA Cores
80 Tensor Cores
20 RT Cores

Memory
8GB GDDR6

Memory speed
14Gbps

Memory bus
128-bit

Display outputs
1 x HDMI 2.1
3 x DisplayPort 1.4a
1 x HDMI 2.1
3 x DisplayPort 1.4a
1 x HDMI 2.1
3 x DisplayPort 1.4a

Power connector(s)
1 x 8-pin
1 x 8-pin
1 x 8-pin

Dimensions
17.2 x 12.5 x 4.3 cm
23.5 x 12.4 x 4.2 cm
27.8 x 13.0 x 4.9 cm

Warranty
3 year Warranty

Price
RM1200
RM1699
RM1829

Inno3D – RM1499

Inno3D is bringing in the Inno3D GeForce RTX 3050 Twin X2 OC, a simple, dual-fan graphics card with a rather generous overclock, especially considering its relatively low price. The only bummer is that it doesn’t seem to come with any RGB, but the overall focus on cooling should be quite appealing to most people.
Inno3D GeForce RTX 3050 Series Specs and Price in Malaysia

Inno3D GeForce RTX 3050 Twin X2 OC

GPU
NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3050 (GA106)
Samsung 8N

Clocks
Base clock: 1552MHz
Boost clock: 1822MHz (+45MHz over ref.)

Cores
2560 CUDA Cores
80 Tensor Cores
20 RT Cores

Memory
8GB GDDR6

Memory speed
14Gbps

Memory bus
128-bit

Display outputs
1 x HDMI 2.1
3 x DisplayPort 1.4a

Power connector(s)
1 x 8-pin

Dimensions
24.0 x 12.0 x 4.0 cm

Warranty
3-year warranty

Price
RM1499

COLORFUL – from RM1799

Bringing us the only white GeForce RTX 3050 cards is COLORFUL, with a dynamic duo comprising of the COLORFUL iGame GeForce RTX 3050 Ultra Duo W OC and the iGame GeForce RTX 3050 Ultra W OC. The shorter, dual-fan GeForce RTX 3050 Ultra Duo W OC is the slightly more affordable of the duo, and might be the more popular one as well, considering that it is more compact and can fit in more creative builds than its larger brethren.

The iGame GeForce RTX 3050 Ultra W OC has the added advantage of coming with higher One-Key OC clocks, presumably enabled by its beefier cooler. It is priced RM100 higher though, which makes the small difference look quite insignificant when it comes to the value proposition.
COLORFUL GeForce RTX 3050 Series Specs and Price in Malaysia

COLORFUL iGame GeForce RTX 3050 Ultra Duo W OC
COLORFUL iGame GeForce RTX 3050 Ultra W OC

GPU
NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3050 (GA106)
Samsung 8N

Clocks
Base clock: 1552MHz
Boost clock: 1822MHz (with One-Key OC) (+45MHz over ref.)
Base clock: 1552MHz
Boost clock: 1860MHz (with One-Key OC) (+83MHz over ref.)

Cores
2560 CUDA Cores
80 Tensor Cores
20 RT Cores

Memory
8GB GDDR6

Memory speed
14Gbps

Memory bus
128-bit

Display outputs
1 x HDMI 2.1
3 x DisplayPort 1.4a

Power connector(s)
1 x 8-pin

Dimensions
25.3 x 12.92 x 4.56 cm
31.0 x 13.15 x 5.6 cm

Warranty
3 year warranty

Price
RM1799
RM1899

All prices are the MSRP provided by the brands at the time of launch, which may or may not be valid when you try to get it. We will be updating this article as and when we get more information about the other cards that were announced in Malaysia, so stay tuned!
If you want to check out the launch MSRP of the other cards in Malaysia, you can head on to the links below:

Here are the GeForce RTX 3090 cards and their prices in Malaysia
Here are the GeForce RTX 3080 cards and their prices in Malaysia
Here are the GeForce RTX 3070 cards and their prices in Malaysia
Here are the GeForce RTX 3060 Ti cards and their prices in Malaysia
Here are the GeForce RTX 3060 cards and their prices in Malaysia

Pokdepinion: RM1200 ~ RM1400 is a pretty reasonable price for this card… Here’s hoping that they will be in good supply!
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Xiaomi Mi4i reviewed

The Xiaomi Mi4i is actually nothing like the Xiaomi Mi4 that it shares its name with. Aside from the similar name, the Mi4i is actually a lesser device compared to the Mi4i, except for LTE support over here in Malaysia. The pricing reflects the Mi4i’s status as a mid-range device too, costing only RM749. Since I have used the phone for around a week already, let’s get into the details of the phone.

Unboxing

Xiaomi doesn’t waste unnecessary budget on making a pretty box since they are only sold online and will be shipped to the buyer directly, without having to be displayed to attract buyers. The box is very plain on all sides except the top which has the MI logo on the top right and the bottom which has the specifications. The other sides are completely bare. Xiaomi has decided to omit a pair of earphones for God knows what reasons. Xiaomi makes some good earphones which we have tested ourselves too. I don’t think a pair of earphones is too much to ask for when I am paying RM749 for a new smartphone, right? Putting that aside, Xiaomi does sell bundles that include the earphones as well as a powerbank, but that just increases the overall cost of ownership of this phone to the consumer.

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Appearance
This is one good looking phone, I will give it that especially considering the price. I actually regretted that I mistakenly chose the grey one after I checked out, but upon arrival, I think the dark grey variant looks better than the white one. At least I don’t have to worry if my hands are clean before touching it. Sadly Malaysians only get a choice of two colors when there are so many other color options manufactured by Xiaomi.

Overall, the design is very nice for a mid-range phone. It’s a rather low profile look but I like it. I like the slim bezels on all sides of the screen. All the buttons are clustered on the right side and the left side is bare except for the tray for the micero. Backlit capacitive keys are used instead of the increasingly popular softkeys, and they aren’t in the standard arrangement, but I still like them because I have found on-screen softkeys to eat into my display area. Their backlighting is also worthy of mention as I notice an increasing number of manufacturers who still use capacitive keys to forget to shine a little light under them.

Specifications

Qualcomm Snapdragon 615 64-bit octa-core (4x A53 @ 1.7 GHz and 4x A53 @ 1.11 GHz)
2GB RAM
5.0″ 1080p Full HD IPS display
16GB internal (non-expandable)
Camera: 13MP f/2.0 main, 5MP f/1.8 front
MIUI 6 (Android 5.0 Lollipop)
Dual-SIM capability (dual microSIM)
3120 mAh battery

Performance
The Snapdragon 615 inside the Mi4i is quite similar to the one inside the vivo X5Pro we reviewed previously except for faster clocks. And it does perform accordingly. The Snapdragon 615 in the Mi4i doesn’t get nearly as warm as in the X5Pro, possibly due to the fact that the Mi4i is thicker than the X5Pro thus allowing the internals more breathing space than in the case of the X5Pro. We cannot rule out software optimizations either as from the MIUI forum I see a lot of posts regarding updates to solve the phone’s heating issues. The polycarbonate body also does not conduct heat like the metal frame of the X5Pro, so the user is left more comfortable using the phone.
Quadrant Balanced ModeQuadrant Performance ModeAntutu 32-bit Performance modeAntutu 64-bit Balanced ModeAntutu 64-bit Performance ModeGeekbench 3 Balanced ModeGeekbench 3 Performance Mode
We have now added Geekbench 3 to our suite of benchmarks as well, alongside Antutu and Quadrant. As you can see from the benchmarks, in performance mode, the difference in performance is noticeable. In normal usage, Performance mode also reduce the sluggishness of the overall phone, at the cost of shorter battery life and a slightly warmer phone.
Speaking of battery life, the 3120 mAh battery is enough to keep it alive for more than 3 hours of on screen time on LTE / HSDPA. However this test was done on Balanced mode.

User Experience
While you may not notice it, this phone is really light. After using it for a week, I picked my Padfone S off the table, and I was shocked at the difference in weight. The difference is around 20g with the Mi4i weighing in at 130g and the Padfone S at 150g. But it is a really noticeable difference. The slim bezels also allow you to grip it easily and use it in one hand, and it’s light weight helps in that aspect as well. The location of the buttons are also very intuitive for one handed use. If you think that the 5″ display is still too big, rest assured Xiaomi has equipped the phone with a convenient but a little unnecessary one-handed mode which can be activated easily by swiping from the home button to either your left or right. You even get the option of it simulating a 3.5″ or 4.0″ display.
I also love the fact that they managed to squeeze in an RGB notification LED at this price point, as it is a lot easier to identify which app the notification is from just by looking at the color of the LED, before unlocking the device. The LED is bright and is easily visible in any lighting condition.
MIUI is quite an old Android overlay, and is offered as a custom ROM to non-Xiaomi devices besides coming stock on Xiaomi devices. It looks rather similar to iOS’s interface, with the lack of an app drawer and icons with square backgrounds. It is also quite a resource hog from my usage, leaving less than 500MB of RAM to go around even after I kill all the apps in the recent apps page, despite being equipped with 2GB of RAM.
MIUI lockscreenMIUI homescreenMIUI alarmsMIUI music playerMIUI calculatorMIUI compassMi4i dialer

The entire phone also has minor stutters everywhere, but I believe this is a result of the Snapdragon 615 processor used, as I have asked several other reviewers of smartphones powered by Snapdragon 615s, and all mentioned that their experience with said devices were a little laggy here and there. There was also a delay when opening even light apps like Whatsapp. This is solved via Performance mode though, at the price of a warmer phone.
In terms of camera, it’s pretty good. A manual mode is also available but I have not found a need to use it since the automatic exposure does such a good job.
Mi4i camera filtersMi4i camera HDR modesMi4i camera modesMi4i manual controlsMi4i beautify mode
The wide-angle front camera also affords for some nice selfies. Tip: HDR Live does wonders to boost the dynamic range slightly while keeping colors natural. It is also a lot faster with almost no processing delay compared to HDR Pro or what I think is conventional HDR like in other phones. I done most of my shooting in HDR Live mode except when taking photos in darker environments, as it seems to affect the quality of images produced when there isn’t sufficient light. Most of the time, colors are punchy yet natural, and details are also captured very well with the 13 megapixel rear camera.A slight issue with the manual mode is the lack of a preview of how your settings will affect your photo. However the great imaging performance is marred by a slow start-up time.

I have used it for a little more than two weeks, and as you can see in the random images above, the camera in the Mi4i is not bad at all, and in fact I believe it could be one of the best cameras in its price range. Besides the slow start-up speed I think you will be hard pressed to get a better camera at this price. For full resolution images, go to my Flickr page here. Those files with AO_HDR are HDR Live versions, while those with HDR only taken in HDR Pro mode. You can see I rarely use HDR Pro as I do not like the slower processing times and less realistic effect.

The 5.0″ 1080p IPS display is good, with vibrant colors but not over-saturated like older SuperAMOLED displays. The viewing angles are nice, with little to no color shifting even when approaching extreme angles, characteristic of an IPS display.However it was a little cold out of the box, but Xiaomi offers a sort of color tuning where you get to pick from Warm, Standard and Cool. I prefer the display in Warm mode. A feature Xiaomi touted with the Mi4i was Sunlight Display which automatically increasing of contrast under direct sunlight to improve visibility. It does work, but I found the default contrast setting to be enough for me already. A small issue is that the display is not protected by Gorilla Glass but by Corning OGS, which isn’t as scratch resistant. In fact I already have several scratches on my Mi4i as we speak, and it isn’t even a month old yet.

Conclusion
The Xiaomi Mi4i is quite an affordable phone at RM749 only, but is it worth the money? I would actually recommend getting one of the many smartphones equipped with the older Snapdragon 801, which is actually faster than the Snapdragon 615 processor in the Xiaomi Mi4i. The overall lagginess and stuttering of the device mars what could have been the perfect budget device. The lagginess can be fixed by using it in Performance mode though. The non-expandable memory is not fixable though, and Xiaomi should have offered a 32GB option, as 16GB is not really enough in this age of high resolution media. Still, I believe you may find this phone to be quite a good deal with the compelling package of an excellent camera, vibrant display and top-notch build quality.

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AMD Ryzen 7000X3D Series Launch Beginning Feb 28, 7950X3D $699

The flagship X3D chip will launch at the same MSRP as its standard non-X3D counterpart; while lower SKUs are priced above their equivalents.

Previously on CES 2023 – AMD has announced three Ryzen 7000X3D CPUs: the Ryzen 9 7950X3D, 7900X3D and the Ryzen 7 7800X3D. Through video recently published on AMD’s YouTube channel, we know have information on the product launch dates and their pricing.
Ryzen 7000X3D pricing. Image: AMD (YouTube)

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The pricing for the flagship Ryzen 9 7950X3D is $699 – same launch price as the 7950X from a few months ago (the CPU has since dropped its price to $589 on Amazon). The 12-core Ryzen 9 7900X3D is priced $599; both SKUs are launching at the end of February.

The Ryzen 7 part however, will launch later on April 6th, with pricing set at $449. All three 3D V-Cache enhanced models share the same 120W TDP rating – lower compared to standard Ryzen 9 and slightly higher than the Ryzen 7 7700X.
No pricing information available for Malaysian markets just yet – so stay tuned for updates.
Pokdepinion: This seems like the lowest pricing of recent AMD flagships so far. Competition, isn’t it? (Remember when 5950X launched at $799?)

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vivo Hosts My Football Dream Contest In Malaysia

vivo has been active recently in conjunction with the UEFA EURO 2020 tournament that’s going on. Now, vivo Malaysia is hosting their “My Football Dream” contest that offers customers with an opportunity to share their football dream and stand a chance to win a mystery gift from the company themselves.
vivo My Football Dream contest
The contest makes up phase two of the vivo Dream Field campaign, whereby the first phase known as ‘vivo Dream Field’ saw Malaysians sharing their football dreams with the world and celebrating their passion for football together, including fundraising for the nation’s disability football athletes.
You can support the local disability football community when you purchase the latest vivo X60 series and V21 series smartphones through vivo’s official e-store. Under the vivo Care programme initiative, they will be donating RM35 to the Pan-Disability Football Club to support them in building a dedicated training centre and facilities for disabled footballers in Malaysia. The campaign will run from now till the 11th of July 2021.

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Back to the My Football Dream contest, it is open to all customers who purchase the vivo X60 series or V21 series from now till the 11th of July. You can read the following for the full steps:

Purchase a vivo X60 series or V21 series smartphone at participating vivo Concept Store or official authorized store during the contest period
Scan the provided QR code and complete the form
Like and Share vivo Malaysia’s My Football Dream Facebook post with the hashtag #vivoDreamFieldMY_(Your State) E.g: #vivoDreamField_Selangor

The winners will be revealed on the 15th of July 2021 on vivo Malaysia’s official Facebook page, where a total of 13 lucky winners will be selected from each state to receive the mystery gift from vivo Malaysia.
For more details, you can read the terms and conditions here. Stay tuned to Pokde.net for the latest tech and gaming news plus reviews.
Pokdepinion: If you don’t know what they are all about, do check out our reviews at their respective links. I do wonder on what those mystery gifts are though…
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Digi Juara Internet 2022 brings more quota, more savings and great deals all around!

Digi has just announced their new Juara Internet 2022 sale starting today, with something for everyone. Yes, they were quite literal with that, serving up deals for Digi Prepaid, Digi Postpaid, Digi Fibre and Digi Broadband subscribers.
Digi Juara Internet 2022 has something for everyone!
Digi Prepaid – extra free internet and e-vouchers worth RM69!

Digi Prepaid customers can commit upfront to 3 months of NEXT35 at RM105 to enjoy 90 days of high-speed connectivity, unlimited calls and get a return value worth up to RM189. You will be getting 15GB of Internet for free, RM20 petrol voucher as well as a RM49 Shopee Voucher to save on the Aukey TWS Earbuds (EP-M1). New customers who sign up for the NEXT35 or NEXT45 30-day plans will also get the RM49 Shopee voucher for the Aukey TWS Earbuds!

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Digi Postpaid – extra internet, Pakej PowerJimat, PhoneFreedom 365 and GadgetFreedom Plus

New Digi Postpaid 60 customers will receive an extra 10GB of internet quota every month, for a total of 45GB per month, if you sign up for the 12-month Internet contract add-on. This offer will also be available to new Digi Postpaid 90 and 120 as well as Digi Family 30 and 45 customers.

Given the rolling retirement of 3G networks, Digi is also helping everyone upgrade to a 4G-capable smartphone from as low as RM1, with device savings of up to RM500 with Pakej PowerJimat, which also comes with 30GB of high-speed, all-access Internet for a limited time. The Pakej PowerJimat is bundled with Digi Pospaid 60 plan and a 12-month contract. New customers porting in to Pakej PowerJimat will also get to enjoy a zero advance payment plan.

If you plan on upgrading to an even better device, there’s also the PhoneFreedom 365 plans for you. Upgrading to the latest flagship 4G and 5G smartphones can be pretty painless with zero-interest and zero-upfront payment plans with PhoneFreedom 365. The Samsung Galaxy A32 5G and Redmi Note 10 5G can be gotten for just RM1/month. If you have higher ambitions, the iPhone 12 Pro 128GB can be gotten for just RM137/month, and the HUAWEI P40 Pro for just RM90/month on a 2-year contract.

Digi is also giving postpaid customers the opportunity to purchase their devices without any contract or monthly commitments with GadgetFreedom Plus. Get up to 20% off the regular prices for the latest gadgets by downloading the GadgetFreedom Plus discount vouchers from the MyDigi app monthly!
Digi Fibre – 300Mbps for just RM100/month!

Enjoy greater savings on their Digi Fibre subscription when you pair it with a qualifying Digi Postpaid plan! The Digi Fibre 300Mbps plan will be available for just RM100/month for eligible customers, saving you up to RM50 per month as compared to the usual price of RM150/month!
Mobile Broadband – extra 10GB/month and free 50GB/month or a 4G LTE Mobifi router

Customers who subscribe to Digi Broadband 65 and 105 will be enjoying an extra 10GB per month for 12 months on top of the allocated Internet quota. In addition to that, customers who opt for a 12-month contract can choose from two freebies:

Free extra 50GB per month
Free 4G LTE Mobifi router

To enjoy these Juara Internet 2022 deals, customers can go to the nearest Digi Store or check it out online via the Digi Store Online. Alternatively, you can head on over to the following locations to check out the offers at the Juara Internet 2022 roadshows at these locations:

Queensbay Mall, Penang (2 to 5 December 2021)
IMAGO Shopping Mall, Sabah (16 to 19 December 2021)
Vivacity Megamall, Sarawak (24 to 26 December 2021)

You can find out more about Digi’s Juara Internet 2022 here.
Pokdepinion: More data is always welcome. I do look forward to Digi’s 5G plans though!
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Google Mandates Android Apps To Allow Users Deleting Their Accounts

With the new rule, apps are required to provide an easy way for users to remove their accounts, even when the app is uninstalled from the device.
Image: Google
Google is introducing a new rule for Play Store apps which requires them to provide an option which is “readily discoverable” to delete account data, both in-app and on the website. The company says this is to provide users “greater clarity and control over their in-app data.” This rule will apply to any apps that contains sign-in or account creation elements – and Google is set to provide a link (from developers) inside the store page that links to webpages for account deletion purposes.
The new rule has seemingly covered potential loopholes as well. Developers who only allows user to temporarily disable or freeze their accounts will not meet Google’s new requirements, which mandates that all data associated with the account must go, unless they have ‘legitimate reasons’ to need them (such as regulatory compliance, for which must be disclosed to the user). The new rule will only be in effect starting December 7th this year, with end users seeing the change in early next year – though developers can apply for extensions until May 31st next year.

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Similar policies has been implemented in Apple’s App Store back in 2021 (which went into effect in June 2022), but Apple’s implementation do not require developers to provide ways to delete account data from the web as well.
Source: The Verge | 9to5Google
Pokdepinion: Good move. Account deletion is still a cumbersome process for some services as of today, so let’s hope this changes that.
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GAME24: World’s Largest 4K Display Guinness World Record at Churchill Downs with the Nvidia Maxwell

Join two diehard gamers as they take their love for PC gaming to the BIG screen—and attempt a world-record 4K gaming feat. .  Lets checkout how the do it.

Do you excited with the new Nvidia lineup? Follow the evolution of the NVIDIA Maxwell architecture, from concept and design, to testing and production, to its unveiling in the powerful new GeForce GTX 980 and 970 graphics cards.
Learn more about Maxwell here

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