Feel limited by your laptop’s screen size? The Portable Monitor Flex 14 in offers a quick and easy way to expand your desktop real estate.

The Portable Monitor Flex 14in stands out with a premium build and versatile triple-monitor setup, accommodating 11″ to 18″ laptops. Quick to install and compatible with various systems, it offers solid 1080p performance, good colour rendition, and excellent image quality.

Pros

• +Simple to use
• +Solid build and high-quality materials

Cons

1. -Limited to 1080p resolution
2. -sRGB Colour space
3. -Heavy

THE PORTABLE MONITOR FLEX 14IN: ONE-MINUTE REVIEW

One of the biggest issues with working on a laptop is the relatively small screen size. Even with a larger 16″ screen, the actual real estate quickly disappears as soon as you open more than one window or app. The solution is The Portable Monitor Flex 14in, which is quite unlike any other compact portable monitor.

Firstly, the build quality is designed to partly match the space grey and metal casing of the best MacBook Pro laptops, a design also reflected in many PC laptops. However, while it tries to blend in colour and material with Apple’s design ethos, it doesn’t quite match the quality of Apple’s product design. That’s not to say it’s not well-made; it’s just not as refined as you’d expect from an Apple product

However, it is ingenious. It has dual monitors that fold out on either side of your MacBook 14in or any other laptop, as long as the laptop has a USB Type-C port to connect the display. The power and monitor cable are combined, and if you need extra power, a second USB Type-C port on the monitor allows you to connect it directly to a portable power source or a wall socket.

On the first run with the monitor, a few drivers are needed to ensure the smooth operation of the monitors. Thankfully, The Portable Monitor includes a USB key with all the drivers needed for Mac, PC, and Android, as well as cables.

Once installed, you can connect the monitor and run both monitors from that single cable. This setup does increase the drain on your battery, but you can plug in an external power source if needed.

The OSD menu offers many adjustments over brightness, contrast, sharpness, and other settings. You can also adjust directly through your normal computer settings.

We’ve tested plenty of the best monitors for MacBook Pro, and we can say the quality of the display is excellent in use. On the other hand, this needs to be considered a secondary and tertiary display, especially for MacBooks with their P3 color space and high resolutions. However, the display quality is great and ideal for positioning palettes, browsers, Word documents, and music players that usually get hidden away.

The other major benefit is the articulation of the screens, allowing you to position them in a triangle, so if you’re in a meeting, you can flip the screens around so that people on your left and right can see what you’re discussing.

Overall, it’s a great product, not quite as refined in design as some of the best portable monitors we’ve tried, and the displays should be seen as secondary if you work in the creative sector due to the 1080p resolution and maximum sRGB colour space. However, when it comes to functionality, especially for expanding your workspace and whenever you need to show what you’re doing to others, the flexibility in the positioning of the monitors and the increased workspace is a huge benefit.

THE PORTABLE MONITOR FLEX 14IN: PRICING AND AVAILABILITY

How much does it cost?

$599 / £476

When is it available?

Now

Where can you get it?

It is available for sale in the US, UK and Australia

The Portable Monitor Flex 14in is widely available and can be brought directly from the official website.

Designed as a fold-out monitor system to complement your laptop, the Portable Monitor Flex 14in consists of three sections that fold out, with two monitors attached to a central stand.

The whole unit is made from decent-quality metal that reflects that of the Space Grey MacBook Pros. The build is solid enough, with thick hinges on the monitors that enable the screens to adapt to laptops from 13″ to 16″ without issue, even though the monitor is designed for 14″ screened laptops.

While the overall build is good, there’s a lack of precision, and the finesse of good product design seems to be missing. The component parts are all there, and it does work well, but when folded, there’s space and flex between each of the folded sections where you really feel it should all lay flat. Likewise, the metal stand that folds out is good and solid, but again, there’s some flex when it’s packed away rather than sitting flush in its recess.

In use, the stand folds out, and then the two monitors fold out so that a laptop can be slipped in between the two monitors. The large hinges can then be adjusted to accommodate the size of the monitor that your laptop has. Once all is in position, the USB cable can be attached directly to power and connect the laptop to the monitor.

While these days we’re used to plug and play, it should be noted that before this monitor system can be used, you’ll need to install the drivers. Thankfully, these come in the box with the monitor and take only a few moments to install. Once in place, you can then plug in the monitor and start to configure the screens as needed. On a Mac, this involves delving into the screen options and arranging the monitors so that one sits on the left and the other on the right of the laptop screen, all nice and easy.

Using the Portable Monitor Flex as a triple monitor system is just one use for this device. An equally useful use is in meetings where others need to view your screen. Rather than crowding around, you can fold the Portable Monitor Flex 14in into a triangle of monitors behind your laptop screen, meaning that if you and your colleagues are sitting around a table, you can all view what’s going on. Effectively, then, it’s one of the best monitors for a dual set-up (or even a triple set-up).

Finally, if you just need one monitor rather than two, a quick tap of the mode button allows you to switch one of the screens off or position it in portrait orientation, which can be useful for reviewing documents and content online.

THE PORTABLE MONITOR FLEX 14IN: PERFORMANCE

The initial setup is quite straightforward, with the dual monitor folding out and supported by the stand at the back. The design allows for several usage configurations: as an extension of your laptop’s screen with one on either side, as a triangle of screens behind your laptop screen for others to view your work, or as a single vertical or horizontal screen.

Each configuration can be quickly switched between, with the metal build and large solid hinges providing plenty of flexibility for easy adjustment and positioning. Before you plug in for the first time, the monitor’s software driver needs to be installed. This one-time procedure takes just a couple of minutes and is extremely straightforward, although it is unusual in today’s plug-and-play environment.

As you switch between the different configurations, the screen modes can be selected using the on-screen displays, with = and + symbols on each monitor, allowing you to adjust and change the settings as needed. Likewise, all the usual options and settings are available through the laptop’s OS. By default, the monitors are set to a low resolution, so increasing this to the maximum 1080p is one of the first adjustments that should be made.

Once set up, the screens perform well with a clear, crisp image and plenty of adjustment over the colour and tone. Although the monitor can only display sRGB, it can be adjusted to match well with the MacBook Pro’s monitor. However, the quality of the output means they are great for office documents, browsing the internet, and displaying palettes. Still, they should be avoided for tasks requiring precise colour or tone adjustments.

Overall, the monitors are easy to use, and the additional workspace is definitely a huge advantage. However, if you’re considering this as a screen extension for use on a train, the size—both packed away and when folded out and in use—is a bit obstructive. This solution is more suited for hot desking, moving between offices, or having meetings where flexibility is needed. They’re a great idea and work well in the right environments. The screen quality is good but should not be seen as on par with a P3 high-resolution MacBook screen. These are fine for document review and screen expansion but not for tasks that require absolute colour accuracy.

SHOULD I BUY THE THE PORTABLE MONITOR FLEX 14IN?

The initial idea of this dual-screen system, which sandwiches your laptop screen between two 14″ monitors, sounds and looks great, and in practice, it does work well. However, while the quality of the materials and manufacturing is good, the precision of the product design is somewhat lacking, and this is something that carries through in its use.

Unlike many devices that are simply plug and play, this monitor requires drivers to be installed for use, an unusual step in today’s world. However, once the drivers are installed, everything else is straightforward with an easy setup and connection.

In use, these monitors really come into their own, and through the test, I’ve used them to display emails, music, palettes, and 3D slicer applications, while I’ve used the main laptop screen for tasks that require color accuracy and higher resolutions.

The fact that these have a color space of sRGB and a maximum resolution of 1080p isn’t an issue in practice, and the extra screen space they provide is a huge benefit for all sorts of situations. However, the size and design of the Flex 14″ portable monitor mean that these are not something I would use on a day-to-day basis if I was traveling around or to be used on a train or similar. However, if I was going to a meeting where I knew others would need to see the screen or was hot-desking, then these would be a huge benefit. Overall, it’s a great product, with the feeling that a little more finesse in the product design would elevate this to an absolute essential for many.

Buy it if…

You’re a frequent traveller and multitasker – If you often work remotely and juggle multiple applications, the Portable Monitor Flex 14″ enhances productivity by expanding your digital workspace with its dual-screen setup.

You’re a meeting maestro – Perfect for professionals who present or collaborate in meetings. The monitor’s ability to configure into a triangle view makes sharing your screen with colleagues seamless and effective.

Don’t buy it if…

You’re an aesthetics aficionado – If design precision and a high-end look are paramount to you, the Flex 14’s lack of design refinement compared to premium products like Apple’s may be disappointing.

You’re a resolution and color critic – If your work requires ultra-high resolution and precise colour accuracy, the 1080p sRGB screen of the Flex 14″ may not meet your professional standards.

The post The Portable Monitor Flex 14-inch Review appeared first on Review Products.

Sorry, Apple fans, but the iPhone 13 Pro Max is no longer the best iPhone on the market – you’re going to want to upgrade to the newer iPhone 14 Pro Max for that. The new device has an always-on display, 48MP main camera, no notch and newer chipset, making for an all-around better package.

That’s not to say the 14 Pro Max’s predecessor is bad, though. It’s got incredible battery life, cameras that can do pretty much anything you’d need on a smartphone, and is available in a range of muted, but classy, colors. Simply put, this is one of the leading contenders for the best smartphone in the world right now.

It now also appears with a 1TB storage option (not available on the iPhone 12), so if you’re a budding (or professional) film maker, you can fill this handset with content to your heart’s content.

It’s also got a ‘Pro’ price, starting at $1,099 / £1,049 / AU$1,849 and going all the way up to $1,599 / £1,549 / AU$2,719.

Yes, it’s a bit of a tired trope to moan about how expensive the iPhone can get at the top end, but Apple has charged top dollar for its best iPhone year on year, and yet they still remain among the most popular models, meaning ‘too expensive’ is starting to become rather subjective when it comes to reviewing.

That said, if you’re considering the iPhone 13 Pro Max then you’re probably after the best iPhone, and in that case you might want to wait a little longer, as we’re expecting to see the iPhone 14 Pro Max along with the rest of the iPhone 14 line on September 7. That’s sure to be an upgrade in a number of ways, and even if it doesn’t appeal it’s likely to mean price drops for this model.

In any case, ‘best’ is heavily subjective here, but if you can handle the gargantuan proportions of a phone with a 6.7-inch screen, then this is easily the best iPhone Apple has ever made… until the aforementioned iPhone 14 makes an appearance.

The design is almost identical to that of the 12 Pro Max that appeared in 2020, with the flat, industrial-looking stainless steel frame surrounding the massive OLED screen.

The large camera protrusion at the rear is noticeable (and it now sticks out even further to enable greater photography prowess). The new Pro comes in a fetching Sierra Blue too this year, which is a nice-looking, powdery color to enjoy.

The screen has been improved to not only include a 120Hz refresh rate, called ProMotion (which iPhone users have been asking for for years, but which to our eyes adds very little) but also higher maximum brightness and a smaller notch.

The shrinking of the notch is good, but it’s not game-changing – Apple needs to shrink it out of existence. However, the overall screen quality is stunning, whatever you’re looking at.

The key thing you’d buy the iPhone 13 Pro Max for, in our opinion, is its battery life. Apple has improved this again over the 12 Pro Max, which offered pretty good longevity, to the point where it’s no longer an issue.

Most of the time we’d make it into a second day before needing a charger, and even on a day of high-intensity use it was around 9pm before the phone totally died.

It remains a shame that Apple doesn’t bundle its higher-power iPhone charger in the box, though, so you’ll need to pay $19 / £19 / AU$29 for that speedy juicing.

The cameras, as we’ve alluded to, enable you to take a huge variety of snaps in a wider range of scenarios than ever. Apple has made a big deal about adding improved low-light capability and Night Mode to all of the three 12MP sensors on the rear, and the iPhone 13 Pro Max also comes with a nifty macrophotography mode.

This means the handset will automatically shift to the ultrawide camera when you get close to objects, and the effects are stellar.

Apple has balanced an impressive amount of power with ease of use, so you can take great snaps in auto mode, but you’re also easily able to play around with various settings for a more hands-on experience.

However, we’re not taken with the new Cinematic mode, which will automatically shift focus depending on where people are looking – it’s cool, but it doesn’t really add much.

Finally, another reason to save up and buy the iPhone 13 Pro Max is its performance – it’s ridiculously powerful, and is able to play games to a high graphical standard and perform intensive tasks like encoding video at a pretty nifty rate.

Most people buying this phone will never scratch the surface of what it can truly do, but videographers will really appreciate the increased storage, the number of shooting options and speed at which it can process edits.

Want more than a two-minute review? Read on to find out how the iPhone 13 Pro Max performed in our in-depth testing – the results of our battery life and camera tests in particular are pretty impressive.

The iPhone 13 Pro Max was unveiled on September 14, and you’ve been able to buy the handset from September 24.  The 13 Pro Max is the most expensive iPhone you can buy right now, with the cheapest model (128GB of storage) costing $1,099 / £1,049 / AU$1,849.

The 256GB model costs $1,199 / £1,149 / AU$2,019, the 512GB variant costs $1,399 / £1,349 / AU$2,369, and the 1TB model costs $1,599 / £1,549 / AU$2,719.

This isn’t the first time we’ve seen a 1TB smartphone, but it is the first time Apple has offered that much storage – and it’s going to cost you, so think carefully about whether you really need that much space.

Really, 1TB is only for those who are going to be using the iPhone 13 Pro Max for movie making and generating reams of 4K video at 60 frames per second, or thousands of maximum-resolution photos; most people won’t need more than 512GB.

Compare the best iPhone 13 Pro Max deals available

Design – more of the same

We’ll get this out of the way now: if you’re looking at the iPhone 13 Pro Max as your next phone, you surely have to know you’re getting a massive handset. And it is massive. This is not a phone for those wanting something that you can wrap a hand around or even reach a thumb the whole way across – you want screen, you want battery, and you’re ready to sacrifice the feel in the hand for it.

Let’s start by looking at how it’s put together. The stainless steel outer band, first seen on the iPhone 12 range last year, is back again, aping the design of the iPad Pro range for the last few years.

Even after a year, we’re still missing the curved back of the previous iPhone models, first seen on the iPhone 6. Yes, there’s a nice grippiness to the sharper, more industrial-looking edges of the new iPhone 13 Pro Max, and change is always welcome in the world of smartphone design, but it just feels less comfortable to hold.

Speaking of comfort, while we assume that you’re okay with the idea of the larger handset if you’re plumping for the iPhone 13 Pro Max, unless you’ve got very large hands it can be a bit of a challenge to wield.

We’ve noticed that using the phone for extended periods can stretch the fingers a little further than normal, and that can lead to some slight aches; our digits adapted over time, but it’s worth being aware of if you’ve decided you just want ‘that iPhone with the really long-lasting battery’.

The Lightning connector remains at the base of the phone, flanked by the speaker (well, one of them – the other is in the earpiece, and does a thoroughly good job of dispensing sound when you’re watching movies or listening to music).

While there would be numerous advantages to Apple switching the iPhone to USB-C at the bottom (faster charging and data transmission for one) it would clearly incur the wrath of a lot of people with iPhone chargers kicking around, so the miss isn’t really that strongly felt at this time.

We were sent the Sierra Blue version of the iPhone 13 Pro Max and, like the other colors in the range (graphite, gold and silver), it’s on the muted side to allow those who need to do more ‘professional’ things (like carry briefcases and have a weekly lunch with Tomi from Accounts) to have the phone in meetings and the like.

The blue is a strong addition to the line-up in the iPhone Pro range, but despite the phone having Apple’s super-tough Ceramic Shield on the front, we would still suggest you pop this thing in a case.

We still managed to dull the edges off the iPhone 12 Pro Max, as well as scratching the front screen, over the course of a few months’ use – so while the 13 Pro Max is a more robust phone than iPhones from years ago, we still think it’s worth protecting your investment.

MagSafe, the magnetic connection on the back of the new iPhone range that allows you to wirelessly connect chargers and other accessories, also returns – and it’s becoming more of a selling point.

We’re still not seeing swathes of MagSafe accessories on the market just yet, but that makes sense given that, other than the new iPhones, only the iPhone 12 range supports it.

Now there are four more phones that use MagSafe, expect more cases, stands, controllers and gimbals to appear – and it’s really cool to just slip on the round metal disc and see your phone start charging instantly.

iPhone 13 Pro Max Display – Brighter, But 120Hz Misses

There are three key changes to the 6.7-inch display on the iPhone 13 Pro Max that are worth discussing: the smaller notch, a screen that refreshes at up to 120Hz (meaning smoother scrolling and transitions throughout) and improved brightness when frolicking outdoors in the sunny sunshine.

The reduced size of the notch is the most obvious of the three, and while it’s welcome it doesn’t really change a lot in terms of the iPhone design – there’s still a notch encroaching on your movies and games, where other brands are playing with smaller punch-holes and even completely invisible cameras.

That said, we’re not saying the notch is without its merits – when you find that you’re able to unlock your phone with your face from a surprising angle (where you think ‘surely it can’t pick my face up from here’), you can forgive the need for multiple sensors to be wedged in at the top of the screen.

We’d like to see Apple miniaturize this a little more though, and get the cameras and sensors into the rim of the phone – or at least let us see the battery percentage shown constantly, rather than having to swipe down. When we heard word of a smaller notch coming, we had hoped that the little beacon of battery life would be a constant option, but sadly no.

Apple’s 120Hz display technology is called ProMotion, and has been used on the iPad Pro range for years. It’s surprising that it’s taken this long to appear on an iPhone, simply because the technology clearly exists within Apple, and because most rivals have had it on flagship and even some mid-range phones for a while now.

However, we can also see why Apple has eschewed its presence until now – it comes at the cost of battery life, and, to our eyes, doesn’t always add a lot to the browsing experience.

A quick explainer if you need it: the refresh rate is the amount of time your screen will show a new image per second – 120Hz means you’ll see 120 images per second, which means that scrolling a web page or flipping through Twitter will be smoother.

However, often you don’t need that high refresh rate if you’re just looking at a static image, so Apple has made the feature dynamic, with the phone intelligently deciding the refresh rate, and dropping down to 10Hz when needed to save battery life.

A 120Hz display is definitely a luxury extra rather than a must-have feature, and in our scrolling tests we noticed that things didn’t always look that much smoother compared to the screen on the 11 Pro Max – when you peer closely you can see the difference, but in reality it isn’t a huge change.

What was noticeable was that the screen scrolled in a far more ‘stable’ way, meaning that our finger flicks were far more accurate, and we didn’t send the rows of text flying around with the merest quiver of a digit. Text was also clearer as it flew by, showing that there is a benefit here, even if it’s a modest one.

While we have called this a luxury feature, the iPhone 13 Pro Max is presented as one of the most luxurious phones on the market, so a 120Hz screen is something that Apple really should have added by now, and its presence feels more like a box-tick than an impressive new feature.

Another purported advantage of a 120Hz screen is for gaming – the increased frame rate is supposed to yield superior play thanks to smoother motion and the ability to react that much quicker in games – but quite honestly, we couldn’t see a difference compared to older screens.

We chose Aldo’s Odyssey and Grid Autosport to test the feature out, and both looked – and played – identically to on the 11 Pro Max, with the smoothness and graphical performance appearing to be exactly the same.

Do 120Hz Refresh Rates Matter?

Don’t get us wrong, it looks good, but it’s hard to see what 120Hz is adding here other than a touch more fluidity. Developers will likely need to optimize some games to make full use of the slickness of 120Hz, so perhaps that’s what we’re seeing here – we’ve asked for more clarification.

Apple is also touting greater outdoor brightness on the iPhone 13 Pro Max, with higher peak levels of 1200 nits (read: brighter than a lot of other smartphones out there). Compared to the 11 Pro Max, it was easier to see what was on the screen in brighter conditions, although it’s still something of a squint-fest when you’re trying to watch a movie in direct sunlight.

However, that screen brightness increase makes the 13 Pro Max more usable than any iPhone before it and a good example of Apple focusing on the changes that really will make a difference in day-to-day use.

Underpinning all these changes is the fact the iPhone 13 Pro Max has a stunning OLED display, with incredibly rich color reproduction and great use of things like Dolby Vision playback for when you want to watch movies with that extra level of detail and clarity.

The effect is pretty stunning – even though it’s not that new, as the iPhone and many other smartphones have had great screens for many years – and it’s worth remembering that you’re getting a phone that’s a genuine alternative to watching on the big screen when it comes to quality.

We noticed that Apple’s changes to the brightness of the screen are minor, but noticeable when you place the iPhone 13 Pro Max alongside an older phone. Interestingly Apple has wandered more towards more saturated colors with the latest display – particularly when showing off red elements of the image.

This is something that Samsung has always been famed for, so it’s intriguing to see Apple decide to add a little more artificial ‘pop’ to its displays with the iPhone 13 Pro range.

Battery Life – Finally Good

Let’s not beat around the bush here – you’ve already seen us say it, but the battery life of the iPhone 13 Pro Max is the biggest reason why you’d buy this phone.

Sure, you like the larger display to watch all your fancy movies and TikTok clips on, but in reality the notion of owning an iPhone with actually decent battery life is going to attract hordes of people to this model.

Why is everyone proclaiming that the iPhone 13 Pro Max battery life is so good? Well, it just feels robust. On a day of ‘middling’ use – mostly consisting of web browsing and music streaming over Wi-Fi, with three trips out for running and picking up kids from school – we took the phone off charge at 7:30am, and only managed to kill it by 4am the next day by downloading two huge games… that’s 35 hours of battery life.

We performed a side-by-side test with the iPhone 11 Pro Max, starting with both phones at 100% battery, streaming two hours and 20 minutes of YouTube on full brightness. The older model (which, we must stress, has been used for over a year, so there will be some battery degradation) fell to 81% in that time, where the new Pro Max only dropped to 91%.

Even if you were feeling generous to the older iPhone, that’s a massive gulf in battery management.

We’re not claiming that the iPhone 13 Pro Max has bulletproof battery life – on a super-hard day of testing, which saw us using the camera for hours, running around with Spotify playing in the background, and going in and out of signal, making phone calls, running a YouTube test and generally fiddling about with the phone, we only managed to get 14 hours of use before reaching for the charger.

But don’t get us wrong: in day-to-day use, you’ll regularly find that you’ve got a good third of the battery left by the time you go to bed, even with a few heavier tasks like music streaming or navigating using Google Maps for a few hours, so you’re less likely to need a power bank with this new phone.

In our lab testing we saw a score of 12 hours and 16 minutes for continuously browsing the web over a 5G connection until the battery was flat, which is pretty impressive, and the best we’ve seen from a flagship phone – the handsets that have performed better are usually cheaper phones that don’t have things like fast-charging capability.

Oh, while we’re on that subject… we’re still strongly of the opinion that Apple is being unfair by not including a charging block in the box with the iPhone 13 Pro Max. Yes, it definitely does save on waste from people having unnecessary chargers when many iPhone users likely have a few Lightning leads kicking around.

We also get why there’s a USB-C to Lightning cable in the box – so that users can connect easily to one of the new MacBooks or other laptops on the market. But that lead also facilitates the faster charging this phone is capable of, meaning you’ll want to buy the 20W charging block to get that sweet juice into your phone quickly.

It would be better if Apple gave you the option of whether or not to have a charger at purchase – either giving you a small discount for not having one, or just a general sense of being a good person and helping the planet. (Although, in fairness, keeping the cost of the phone the same as last year is a pretty good move when there are some decent hardware upgrades in the mix).

Why would you want that faster charger? Well, if you suddenly remember that you’re useless at life and have let your phone run out of battery, we found that in 15 minutes we could replenish the phone to a third full – enough for up to 10 hours of use, based on our testing.

Another 15 minutes on the charger got the phone up to 53%, showing that the fast charger is definitely worth it. However, the rate of charging slows down after that, with the phone getting to around 80% after an hour, and then requiring another 80 minutes to get to 100%.

The larger iPhones have always been the longest-lasting in each range, obviously, but this battery performance is a level above for a phone made by Apple.

It finally removes ‘Yes, but it hasn’t got very good battery life’ from the equation if you’re deciding between Apple and Android devices, as it’ll be more than serviceable for anyone who regularly charges nightly, and will save the bacon of those ‘forgetful chargers’ who don’t top up each night and then constantly pester you for a charger.

Camera – Making Tiny Things Amazing

While we think the battery life is the real selling point of the iPhone 13 Pro Max, a close second is the camera offering – while the improvements here are only tweaks from the iPhone 12 Pro Max, those tweaks are useful and impressive in a number of ways and make it one of the best camera phones around.

Let’s run through the changes quickly: the main camera (which Apple calls the Wide camera, confusingly) has a 12MP sensor, with larger 1.9μm pixels placed on the largest sensor Apple’s ever put in a smartphone in order to absorb even more light, which combined with an f/1.5 aperture enables you to capture some seriously impressive low-light images, as you’ll see in the samples below.

The Ultra Wide sensor (which zooms out from the main image) has also been upgraded – the megapixel count here is also 12MP which is the same as last year, but it now packs Apple’s Night Mode functionality, with the phone able to take some breathtaking photos in near-pitch black situations, as long as you’re able to hold the handset perfectly still for the necessary amount of time.

The Telephoto lens, the one that can zoom in on distant objects, has been upgraded to be able to zoom in three times optically – meaning that it’s physically magnifying the image, rather than doing so digitally and creating a grainier shot. That’s a useful addition, but it’s a shame you can’t also do 2x zoom optically – as sometimes that would be preferable.

Sadly, the zoom distance is fixed, so you’ll need to make do – although the iPhone’s chipset does a pretty good job of cleaning up the digital zoom.

When it comes to the quality of the photos the iPhone 13 Pro Max is capable of producing day to day, there’s a clear and obvious improvement over last year’s model.

What’s interesting is that it appears to be in the processing of images that the improvements have been made – in some shots the subject was clearer and brighter where a strong backlight was present (which is tricky to manage on a smartphone camera), while in others it was clear that the 13 Pro Max had decided to darken the photo in order to preserve more detail.

This is useful to prevent overexposure, and leads to more attractive shots overall – although the improvements aren’t huge over the 12 Pro Max, or even the 11 Pro Max, they’re noticeable and welcome.

Macrophotography

One of the key changes to the iPhone 13 Pro Max camera setup comes in the shape of the new macrophotography mode, which activates instantly when you move the phone closer to a subject. It’s quite a jarring jump, but suddenly a world of blur becomes clear, and you can take some fantastic pictures.

In fact, it’s only the shadow of the phone falling on some subjects, due to the camera being so close, that causes any issue with the photos – we took some stunning snaps, and we can see the macro mode being something we play with for hours, as all kinds of subjects can look fascinatingly different when viewed ultra-close.

Low-light and Night Mode

Apple has improved all three rear camera sensors for the iPhone 13 Pro Max to make them more effective in low light, and the results are pretty spectacular in a number of ways.

The first is that, generally, low-light shots (not using the long-exposure, hold-still method of Night Mode) look far brighter. Everything we shot looked clear, sharp and bright, and while there was a fair amount of grain in images we definitely got the best low-light photos we’ve seen from any iPhone.

This is partly to do with the new sensor, but also the use of the LiDAR function (which uses lasers to spot where surfaces are) as well as excellent stabilization on board – these mean that the autofocus was superb and sometimes yielded photos that looked brighter than the subject did in real life without losing definition to keep the shutter open for longer.

a night scene of a garden, with trees at the top and sweeping lawn

One interesting quirk of the multi-lens setup of the new phone: in low light, the iPhone 13 Pro Max once again, when using the telephoto lens and instead of using the optical sensor, defaults to the main wide camera and crops in digitally.

It’s not a huge issue, as the picture quality still gets processed to a decent level, but it’s annoying that it’s not highlighted in the process, and Apple has been doing this for years now.

The other enhancement the new, more sensitive sensor has brought with it is that Night Mode doesn’t activate as often. While the results from Night Mode can be incredible (see the samples below) it’s annoying to have to hold the phone steady for a second or two when you just want to take a quick snap in the evening, and the new sensor often negates the need for that.

Photographic Styles

We were surprised when Apple came out with Photographic Styles as a Big New Feature () on the iPhone 13 range – while there are five pre-programmed settings (standard, rich contrast, vibrant, warm and cool) to make the image more vibrant or alter the color temperature, we didn’t see how this was really different from a filter.

But what’s actually happening here is that the color and contrast of the photo are being altered when you take it, rather than an effect being applied post-capture, and which you can undo.

This means you can choose to shoot in richer contrast every time if that’s your style, or take a set of photos that are a little less warm if that’s what the project calls for.

It’s more akin to the photo style options on DSLRs and mirrorless cameras than an Instagram filter, and, while we didn’t really use it that much, it does add another interesting new layer of functionality.

Cinematic Mode

Apple’s other new feature is Cinematic Mode, where the ‘rack focus’ (as in, which part of the shot in a movie is in focus) will change automatically depending on where the focus of the viewer should be.

This means that if the protagonist in your movie looks at someone else and stops speaking, the focus will shift to them and blur out the original speaker- it certainly looks dynamic and more movie-like. You can even alter the focus after the movie has been taken in the on-phone editing suite, if someone speaking doesn’t quite look as sharp as you want.

You might assume that this is a mode designed for professionals so that they don’t have to worry about rack focus when shooting movies, but given that it’s also appearing on the regular iPhone 13 and 13 mini, as well as the 13 Pro, it’s clear that this isn’t exclusively a pro feature, and something the everyday user can play with.

While it’s a fun tool, it seems odd that Apple’s made such a big deal of this. Yes, we can see that it will yield some cool videos if you want to film your friends talking about something or everyone having fun at a party, but that’s quite rare for home footage.

It feels more like you’d need to remember to use Cinematic Mode when the conditions are just right, where the focus of your movie is constantly shifting – and we’re not sure how often most people will make ‘proper’ movies’ at home, rather than just capturing a video of their dog doing a backflip for a treat or similar.

Portrait Mode

Another enhancement Apple has made is, once again, refining the background-blurring Portrait mode on both the front and back cameras.

The forward-facing TrueDepth camera can take some truly stunning selfies (well, subject dependent, of course…) and the blurred-background pictures you can get with the rear-facing camera was something we enjoyed playing with, getting some impressive shots.

It’s the foundational elements of the Portrait-mode shots that have been upgraded: the lighting is more natural, the lighting is more natural, and the depth-of-field or ‘bokeh’ effects have been improved so that the things that should be in focus are in focus – the edges of someone’s head for example (and even their stray hairs).

You can even use Portrait mode to capture stationary objects that aren’t human or animal – being able to a heavy depth of field to a trail or forest leads to some lovely pictures when you’re out and about.

We’re a bit sad that Portrait mode only works in 1x or 3x zoom though – on the 11 Pro Max, 2x zoom was the perfect length to capture a subject, and we found that we constantly had to move the camera forward and back to get the right image with the 13 Pro Max. The 12 Pro Max increased this to 2.5x zoom, but now we’ve gone even further.ProRAW

ProRAW is back again on the iPhone 13 Pro Max (and it’s now available on the iPhone 13 Pro too) – and it’s a bit of a gateway drug to ‘proper’ photography.

A quick overview: most phones shoot in the JPEG format, with images processed in-camera to tweak things like color and contrast, and do a jolly good job of it; however, the images are also compressed, and much of the image data discarded, which leaves you with less latitude to edit your shots later.

Most modern cameras also enable you to shoot in raw mode, which captures unprocessed and uncompressed (but very large) image files, giving you plenty of leeway to fine-tune the exposure, color, contrast and more in post-processing.

ProRAW gives you the best of both formats, allowing the user to get an enhanced and ready-to-go snap using the smarts of Apple’s A15 image processor, but retaining all the information to allow you to edit the photo afterwards if you want – this is easily doable in a program such as LightRoom, and we really enjoyed playing with the ability to raise or drop shadows and get some really cool extra effects by altering the exposure and sharpness, thanks to having more image data to play with..

iPhone 13 Pro Max photo showing a long forest trail

A ProRAW photo taken and edited on the iPhone itself from the inbuilt editing app (Image credit: TechRadar)

Now this really is the kind of thing that we’d expect from a ‘Pro’ handset, and it’s a feature that’s really fun to explore and play with.

Speaking of pro modes that videographers will want to use, there’s also ProRes support here, which is a high-quality, lossy video compression format that Apple created to let creative types manage video up to 8K, and which is used regularly throughout the industry now.

The inclusion of support for this format on an iPhone is going to be useful to those who want to shoot commercials or high-end video and send off the edited results from the field – that’s not something that most of us will do regularly, but such additions show that Apple wants to make it clear that the iPhone 13 Pro range is a step above the ‘basic’ models.

iOS 15 and Supreme Power

Apple is making some bold claims about the iPhone 13 Pro Max, selling it as one of the most powerful smartphones out there right now – and the claims seem pretty justified based on our testing.

While the numbers that we saw in our benchmarking absolutely back Apple up (and we’ll get onto that in a minute), the real-world performance is what matters. The ‘issue’ is that smartphones are already more than powerful enough to handle most things you want to throw at them, and the fact the 13 Pro Max is lightning-fast at switching between apps is no surprising thing.

When it comes to raw figures the results speak for themselves: this phone is twice as fast (nearly) at transcoding Adobe video from 4K to 1080p) as the 11 Pro Max, and a second faster than the 12 Pro Max from last year. Apple’s claims that the new A15 chipset is powering things along more efficiently than ever before really do stack up.

But we were surprised to see that some high-power games, like Grid Autosport, didn’t load that much faster – the game’s high levels of detail and graphical fidelity mean it’s going to take a few seconds to load on any device, but we expected it to be a lot quicker on the iPhone 13 Pro Max compared to a phone from two years ago.

That’s splitting hairs somewhat though, as there’s no doubt that when it comes to things like editing photos, saving video and performing the heavy tasks the iPhone 13 Pro Max is more than adept. In fact, it’s only bettered by the iPad Pro range in our testing – which is a far more expensive device, and arguably more likely to be picked up by those looking for a high-power device.

Let’s quickly look at those benchmarks: the iPhone 13 Pro Max scored far better in terms of framerate, multi-core capability and speed of video transcoding when compared to the Samsung Galaxy S21 Ultra – almost twice as fast in some cases.

However, keeping in mind what we said above about real-world use, we wouldn’t read too much into that performance, as both phones operate sublimely well; but if you’re a creative looking for a phone that can help you record high-quality video or work on high-power tasks, this is your phone.

The upgraded iOS 15 is coming to most iPhones, so the new capabilities aren’t too much to get excited about on the new iPhone 13 Pro Max, as you can get the same tricks on older models.

That said, there are a few improvements that you can look forward to: the new Weather app is hugely enhanced, with more accurate location tracking, improved animations and things that are genuinely useful, like radar maps to show heat and rainfall patterns.

Apple is making a big deal about Focus Mode, which allows you to turn off certain distractions when you need them. This feels like a powerful tool, but in our testing we didn’t really get much from it. Perhaps it’s something that needs to be perfected over a few months, allowing you to work out who you want to hear from and in what scenarios, but we found we kept cancelling the settings.

Perhaps we just need more discipline here – but it would be nice to see a few more default modes, or more in-depth tutorials to see how useful this can be.

Another change that’s worth noting is to notifications – it’s great to be able to lump together non-time-sensitive updates, and only see them each morning and afternoon. We instantly found we didn’t care about most of them, and just switched them off in the menu, and having a moment to perform that cleaning was handy.

We do like the new ‘Cards’ used to show images in Messages too – it’s a small change, but they were fun to scroll through.

The post iPhone 13 Pro Max Review appeared first on Review Products.

A fiery design and surprising gaming chops.

Even for Motorola, the champion of cheap Android phones, the Moto G84 is an above-average handset. It excels above its weight class for gaming power, its battery lasts ages, it has some surprisingly top-end features and, if those traits weren’t all enough, it comes in an eye-catching and vibrant red tone that we can’t get enough of.

Pros

• +Lively red color
• +Impressive performance for price
• +Snappy fingerprint scanner

Cons

• -Two other colorways are dull
• -Unimpressive cameras
• -Very similar to cheaper G73

MOTO G84 TWO-MINUTE REVIEW

Another day, another Moto G phone…

…and as usual, the Moto G84 is a surprisingly adept and reliable Android handset from one of the world’s most dedicated phone manufacturers, with Motorola continuing its forcible takeover of our round-up of the best cheap phones.

The latest entry in Motorola’s ever-growing G-line of low-cost mobiles, the G84 brings a few clear and concise arguments as to why it should be your next purchase, as well as a few wardrobes that it hopes you won’t be checking for skeletons.

First up, the Moto G84 is the company’s latest collaboration between Motorola and paint company Pantone, with one of its three colors designed by color experts. This is the Viva Magenta one that you can see pictured above, adorned in the shade that Pantone decided was its Color Of The Year 2023.

It’s a distinctive shade (which may put some people off), and we’re big enough fans to add the vibrant and striking look to the ‘Pros’ list above. But for some reason, Moto decided to release two other color options, silver and black, which look pretty boring by comparison.

We go from one of the phone’s touted selling points to something Motorola is barely mentioning: the G84 is a powerhouse for gaming. While I’ve been disappointed by other mobiles brandishing the same Snapdragon 695 chipset used here, the Moto chews through gaming and other intensive tasks. If you’re a gamer on a budget, this is definitely a solid pick.

It’s at this point in the review (less than a minute into the ‘two-minute review’, so pretty early on) that I should mention the Moto G73. This mobile, released in early 2023 and still ranged by most retailers including Moto itself, has lots of specs in common with the G84.

It has a lower price and the same camera array, same rough design, same software, same battery size, same charging speed and same screen size. Admittedly it’s screen quality is worse, it doesn’t have an under-display fingerprint scanner, it’s less powerful and it doesn’t catch the eye quite like this Viva Magenta-clad beast. But if you want to save some cash and don’t mind these tweaked features, it’s a very real competitor that may sway your attention.

‘Close competition’ is nothing new for Moto phones, given how many similar-looking budget mobiles it releases each year. Neither is my other major gripe with the handset: its cameras are anything but impressive, with photos that look a little dull and unexciting.

Picking up a Motorola phone and being surprised that its cameras aren’t amazing, is like picking up a dumbbell and being surprised it’s heavy – that trait is just par for the course. The cameras aren’t terrible either, they just won’t suit passionate smartphone-centric photographers.

And overall, the Moto G84 is a terribly impressive phone, when you consider its feisty look, gaming power and low price; it’ll just fit some users better than others.

MOTO G84 REVIEW: PRICE AND AVAILABILITY

• Released in September 2023
• Costs £249.99 (roughly $315, AU$475)
• Not for sale in US or Australia

The Moto G84 was released in the UK in mid-September 2023, after coming out in India and Europe in the weeks prior. It was joined by the low-end Moto G54 and premium-leaning Moto Edge 40 Neo.

You can pick up the phone for £249.99 (roughly $315, AU$475), which lodges it firmly in the category of ‘cheap Android phone’, perfect for people on a budget who want a reliable mobile. That’s Moto’s whole schtick, after all. There’s no information on a US or Australian launch, but they seem unlikely even several months after the phone’s release.

Rivals at that price include Samsung’s Galaxy A23 5G, Redmi’s Note 12 5G, OnePlus’ Nord CE 3 Lite and several of Motorola’s own mobiles, like the Moto G73 5G and Edge 40 Neo, which are all at roughly the same price point. But for its price and the performance it offers, the G84 is solidly good value.

Value score: 4 / 5

MOTO G84 REVIEW: SPECS

The Moto G84 has many traits in common with other budget phones, but it exceeds its class in a few areas too.

Moto G84 Specs:

• Dimensions: 160 x 74.4 x 7.6mm
• Weight: 166.8g
• Screen :6.5-inch 20:9 FHD+ (2400×1080) 120Hz p-OLED
• Chipset: Qualcomm Snapdragon 695
• RAM: 12GB
• Storage: 256GB
• OS: Android 13
• Primary camera: 50MP, f/1.9
• Ultra-wide camera: 8MP f/2.2
• Front camera: 16MP f/2.5
• Audio: Stereo speakers, 3.5mm headphone jack
• Battery: 5,000mAh
• Charging: 30W wired
• Colors: Viva Magenta, Marshmallow Blue, Midnight Blue

MOTO G84 REVIEW:DESIGN

• Vibrant Pantone-designed red shell
• Repositioned under-display fingerprint scanner
• 3.5mm headphone jack and USB-C port

Motorola isn’t exactly in the business of revolutionizing smartphone design (well, at least for its budget mobiles, though you can say what you like about the Moto Razr). So if you’ve seen a Moto G in the last few years you’ve seen the G84.

It’s a standard Android mobile measuring 160 x 74.4 x 7.6 mm – a few years ago we could’ve called it “a little on the big side” though you could probably consider it average now. It’s surprisingly light at 166.8g, which means the phone sits a little comfier in the hand than most phones with a flat edge.

You’ve got the usual accouterments of a Moto: a USB-C port and 3.5mm headphone jack underneath, a power button and volume rocker on the right edge. But Motorola has made one big adjustment in its budget phones of late, and that’s in replacing the side-mounted fingerprint scanner with a more premium under-display one. And it’s a great change too, as unlocking the phone is much easier than in previous Motos. The scanner is a bit lower down the phone than on most others, but it’s something I got used to.

There are three different color options for the Moto G84: a silver and a black option, and also an eye-catching red version called Viva Magenta. This latter was created by paint company Pantone, and it’d make the phone very attractive if it wasn’t for the big Pantone-logo color swatch on the bottom. You can’t remove this, it’s part of the phone.

Still, if the G84 was in a line-up of 10 random other phones, it’d be the most attractive one the vast majority of the time – its red is a little richer than Apple’s Product Red and the glossy alternatives some Chinese phones offer.

In terms of protection, you’re looking at IP54: it’s partly dust proofed but not against all solids, and is splash-proof but can’t be dunked in water. That’s all to be expected at this price.

Design score: 3.5 / 5

MOTO G84 REVIEW: DISPLAY

• Big 6.5-inch screen
• FHD+ resolution and 120Hz refresh
• Automatic brightness issues

The Moto G84 has a 6.5-inch display, which is pretty average for a smartphone these days, but the Moto’s specs are anything but average.

The phone packs an FHD+ display (that’s 1080 x 2400) and a 120Hz refresh rate, which means the display updates its image 120 times per second, over the old standard of 60Hz. Lots of budget mobiles tout this spec now but certainly not all of them, and it brings a marked improvement when you’re scrolling around the menus.

Another unusual trait is the use of the DCI-P3 color gamut with over 1 billion colors – this was designed for use in movies and it makes videos look that little bit better than on another budget phone.

One other display feature worth flagging is that the punch-hole that houses the front-facing camera is very small, reducing the amount of screen space you’re losing from it.

A small issue I had with the phone was with its display and the automatic brightness features. Often, the phone would default to a screen brightness that was just too low, and I frequently had to manually adjust it to be able to make out the display.

Display score: 3.5 / 5

MOTO G84 REVIEW: SOFTWARE

• Stock Android 13 is clean
• Useful Moto Actions return
• Plenty of customization options

When you boot up the Moto G84, it’ll come running stock Android 13 – that was the current OS when the mobile launched, though Android 14 started rolling out just weeks later. The G84 is only confirmed for one software update too, so Android 14 is all you’ll definitely get, though you’ll be able to enjoy at least three years’ security updates.

Stock Android is always fairly clean, at least compared to some other Android forks, but some bloatware has snuck into the Moto. There’s TikTok, LinkedIn and three simple games – it’s nothing too offensive, and if you’ve used one of the budget phones from another brand you might have used something a lot worse, but it’s still not ideal.

Moto phones have always been great for software customization, even before Google made it an official Android feature, and there’s no difference here. You have plenty of choice in terms of font, color scheme, icon shape, animations and more – if you like diving into the settings and then tweaking the nitty-gritty of how your phone looks, you’ll love this phone.

A returning feature exclusive to Moto phones are Moto Actions, which are easy navigation tricks that I find myself using a lot. Examples include a double karate-chop motion to quickly turn on the torch and a twisting shake to open the camera app. They take a little getting used to, but once you’ve got the knack for them, they’re incredibly handy.

Software score: 4 / 5

MOTO G84: CAMERAS

• 50MP main and 8MP ultra-wide cameras
• Some extra features like Spot Color
• 16MP front-facing camera for selfies

The camera department is an area that Motorola phones rarely excel in, and there’s no exception here. The phone uses up its ‘color’ budget on its exterior shell and there’s none left for its photos…

The main snapper is a 50MP f/1.9 unit and it’s joined by a single 8MP f/2.2 ultra-wide companion. On the front, you’re looking at a 16MP f/2.5 selfie camera. That’s not exactly a revolutionary combo for Moto, which used the exact same line-up in the Moto G73 from earlier in the year.

Pictures taken on the main camera looked fine – that nondescript word is the best way to describe them – with fair sharpness but a lack of vibrancy or color that made me miss Samsung’s or Xiaomi’s handsets.

Flip onto the ultra-wide camera and you’re getting pretty grainy pictures – it’s an 8MP sensor, what did you expect – though not straight away. No, the secondary snapper was surprisingly slow to focus when I pressed the icon in the camera app, and I often found myself waiting a few moments for it to sharpen the image.

You can also use the ultra-wide camera for macro (close-up) shots, but this suffers from the issue that all wide-angle-macro phone photos do: it’s rounded and distorted thanks to the lens type. No thanks!

There’s no zoom lens on the Moto G84, so you have to use its 8x digital zoom to get closer to a subject. But I’d really recommend you don’t, unless you want your photo to be as grainy as spot art.

Grainy is also the word to use for pictures captured on the front camera, which is a surprising twist as some Motos redeem themselves on their selfie abilities. They’ll be fine for sending between phones, especially with bokeh working well in Portrait mode, but if you look at selfies on any bigger screen you’ll see the pixels clearly.

When capturing video, you can shoot at 1080p, with no 4K option. There’s also a slow-mo option as well as dual capture (front and back cameras at once) and Spot Color, which lets you isolate a single color in your recording. These latter two options are also available for photography.

MOTO G84: PERFORMANCE AND AUDIO

• Snapdragon 695 chip exceeds expectations
• 12GB RAM and 256GB storage
• 3.5mm headphone jack and Bluetooth 5.1

The Moto G84 packs the Snapdragon 695, and anyone who’s used a phone using this chipset knows what to expect: fine everyday performance, but a lackluster showing when used for gaming or intensive processes. That’s how this exact same chip worked in the recent OnePlus Nord CE 3 Lite, and gaming was a slog.

In a pleasantly surprising plot twist, the G84 bucks expectations: it runs a lot faster than you’d think. In fact, through our rigorous gaming tests, it proved itself as one of the most reliable low-budget phones for gaming.

When playing titles like Call of Duty: Mobile and PUBG Mobile, the phone could be relied on to get through a match without lags, stutters or freezes – in fact, the G84 beat many gaming phones in that it didn’t even overheat!

This may be thanks to the 12GB RAM you’re getting, a surprising amount for a phone at this price. The 256GB storage is also laudable – this is a phone that’ll last you a long time, and even if you do manage to fill the device’s onboard storage, the microSD card slot will keep you going for even longer.

If you’re into your facts and figures, a benchmark test through Geekbench 6 returned a multi-core average score of 2,037. That middling score shows that this phone is no supercomputer that’ll land a spaceship on the sun or predict the future, but for the price, I was very surprised.

Onto audio – this is par for the course for a Moto phone. There’s a 3.5mm headphone jack for wired music and Bluetooth 5.1 for wireless. The onboard stereo speaker is nothing to write home about, but it’s not so tinny that voice calls or memos are affected.

Performance Score: 4 / 5

MOTO G84 REVIEW: BATTERY LIFE

• Large 5,000mAh battery
• Over a day’s use from a single charge
• 30W charging isn’t particularly fast

If there’s one thing a Motorola phone can be relied on to have, even more than a confusing name, great customization or that distinctive sound when you first boot it up, it’s a long-lasting battery life.

No surprise, then, that the Moto G84’s 5,000mAh battery lasts a long time. You can use it to get through a day of use with no issue, and in our tests it lasted well into a second day before the charging cable needed to come out.

That charging cable gets you powering at 30W, so it’s not particularly fast, not when rival budget mobiles hit 50W, 67W or higher. You’re looking at charging times just shy of an hour, or more if you’re using the thing as you power it.

There’s no wireless charging here, but at that price, no-one should be surprised.

Battery Score: 3.5 / 5

HOW I TESTED THE MOTO G84

Review test period = 2 week

Testing included = Everyday usage, including web browsing, social media, photography, video calling, gaming, streaming video, music playback

Tools used = Geekbench 5, Geekbench 6, Geekbench ML, GFXBench, native Android stats

As you can tell from my review and the images, I tested the Moto G84 in its Pantone-endorsed Viva Magenta colorway. It felt fitting to test this festive-looking mobile during winter, hence the Christmas baking images!

Before true testing commenced I set up the phone to let the battery use settle, then used it as a standard mobile for two weeks. This included all the tasks you’d use your mobile for: social media, photography and streaming.

I also used it for gaming a lot. In fact, it was so snappy and fast for this task, alongside its lovely display, that I was loathe to move onto the next handset I’m testing for TechRadar!

My tech review history spans five years for TechRadar, and more for other brands. I used to work as an editor and writer for the site, covering phones, tablets and wearables (as well as a wide range of other gadgets), and continue to write freelance reviews across many types of gadget.

The post Motorola Moto G84 Review appeared first on Review Products.

Realme has only released two tablet computers since its 2018 debut. The Realme Pad 2, the company’s second tablet, has some performance and aesthetic upgrades over its predecessor. It also includes cellular connectivity, distinguishing it as a unique product in the sub-Rs—20,000 tablet market, dominated by inexpensive tablets deficient in this capability. Faster charging and a display with a 120Hz refresh rate are also included. More significantly, the software has been optimized for a wide-screen experience, and the base model also includes 6GB of RAM. But to produce a tablet at such a low cost, did Realme make any compromises? Can it genuinely outperform the recently released Redmi Pad in terms of value? Let’s investigate.

Indian Realme Pad 2 cost

The Realme Pad 2’s base model costs Rs. 19,999 in India and comes with 6GB of RAM and 128GB of storage. The most expensive model costs Rs. 22,999 and has 8GB of RAM and 256GB of storage. Since LTE connectivity is an essential feature on both models, the older model’s more excellent price is more than justified, especially considering the additional improvements it provides.

Realme Pad 2’s look

There are two finishes for the tablet: Inspiration Green and Imagination Grey. As one can see, Realme is aiming both of these products at young consumers. The unit we received for evaluation in a brilliant green color looks pretty appealing, even though I found its design and material selection somewhat reminiscent of Oppo’s Pad Air.

The Realme Pad 2 has a chassis with a polycarbonate insert that occupies about a quarter of the back surface and a metal frame with flat sides. The considerable camera module is attached to one end of the plastic band, which spans the whole top half of the gadget (when held horizontally) and includes the frame.

All antennas required for radio transmission are conveniently concealed beneath the insert. Although noticeable, the camera bump does not protrude very far and does not cause the tablet to wiggle when placed on a flat surface.

Due to the basic design approach, there are no joints or antenna gaps. Thus, it feels rather premium and relatively compact (7.2mm). The four-speaker grilles’ perforations, which likewise seem understated and understated, are another feature I appreciated. Realme’s software interface blends beautifully with the enormous 11.5-inch LCD screen’s thin bezel all around and rounded corner cuts.

The Realme Pad 2 lacks additional accessories, just like the previous version. It’s still being determined why the Pad doesn’t even sell a simple kickstand folio cover, but this does suggest that the company only intends for its tablet to be used as a media consumption tool. I always had to hold the tablet at an angle to watch the content or navigate via its interface because there wasn’t an available case or stand. With a weight of 518g, holding this tablet at the necessary angle gets tiresome, especially when viewing movies or television.

Software and specifications for the Realme Pad 2

For some time, various low-cost devices have been using the 6nm MediaTek Helio G99 SoC, which powers the Realme Pad 2. The Redmi Pad, which is this device’s main rival, is also on the list of gadgets. Wi-Fi AC, Bluetooth 5.2, support for several LTE bands, and the typical satellite global positioning systems are among the communication technologies.

To plug in headphones, there is no headphone jack available. However, you receive a SIM card tray with slots for a SIM and a microSD card that can hold up to 1TB of data. The tablet’s 8,360mAh battery may be topped with the included 33W charger.

I was also taken aback that there was no secure biometric authentication on a tablet priced less than Rs. 20,000. Like the previous version, the Realme Pad 2 lacks a fingerprint reader, making 2D face unlock the only way to access the tablet without entering a passcode. While this isn’t a safe way to open a personal device, it did function well in all but complete darkness.

Three apps can be displayed at once on the Realme Pad 2.

The software interface of the Realme Pad is an enhancement over the earlier model. It is not a ‘light’ or simplified version of the conventional Realme UI interface that can be found on its entry-level devices, including the prior design.

The brand-new Realme Pad 2 receives the complete treatment with all the customization options one would anticipate from its smartphones and a few more. This features a bottom dock that displays recently launched and pinned apps running in the background. Although this dock isn’t available anywhere in the interface or can be called up over third-party programs, its utility is restricted to the home screen.

The Realme Pad 2 included just one preinstalled third-party program (Facebook), which can be removed, in contrast to most other Realme devices and tablets in this price range.

This tablet-optimized version of Realme UI has full touchpad functionality (under Additional Settings) with full support for gestures one would do on a standard trackpad despite no officially authorized peripherals. There are also the standard features, such as the ability to run two apps in split-screen mode while another app is launched in a pop-up window, allowing for the simultaneous display of three apps.

Realme Pad 2 functionality

This tablet allows for effective multitasking. I ran five Chrome tabs concurrently while the YouTube app was split-screening clips side by side. The system handles opening a floating window while executing all of this fine, with some slowness when drawing lengthy web pages.

I liked the aspect ratio of this large display regardless of the tablet’s software performance, which was suitable for a cheap tablet. It is excellent for content consumption and has enough space to run two split-screen apps simultaneously.

Because Realme includes Widevine L1 support, I could stream and watch full-HD video content on this tablet. Although the display loses contrast at an angle, outdoor visibility is decent. Given its size and quality, the show isn’t the clearest on the market, and its MEMC high-refresh-rate system occasionally exhibits noticeable choppiness when scrolling or switching between videos and apps.

When it came to benchmarks, the tablet delivered results that were comparable to low-cost smartphones at this price point. The Realme Pad 2 got 726 and 1,975 issues in the single-core and multi-core tests of Geekbench, respectively, and 4,29,907 points in AnTuTu. In the Manhattan 3.1, T-Rex, and Car Chase test suites of GFXBench, the tablet achieved graphical frame rates of 25, 55, and 15 frames per second, respectively.

Among its rivals, the Realme Pad 2’s display is the largest but could be better.

Although the MediaTek Helio G99 is not a performance powerhouse, it is adequate for daily tasks. Despite boasting a 120Hz refresh rate display, this tablet is better suited for casual gaming than graphics-intensive games. I tried Asphalt 9: Legends, and it played perfectly well, with some little frame skipping and stuttering on the basic settings.

The sound was better than the previous model’s more straightforward dual speaker configuration, which was what I liked about the gaming and video viewing experience. The sound is unquestionably louder and more immersive than the previous generation. Additionally, the tablet supports Dolby Atmos.

A 5-megapixel back camera and an 8-megapixel front camera are both featured on the Realme Pad 2. As predicted, the primary shooter provides essential image quality with below-average detail but closer to natural colors. Even in full daylight, the textures were mainly flat. Thus, you are better off using any smartphone camera offered at this price bracket.

The front-facing camera’s selfies have bland surfaces and trim detail. This camera is better suited for video calling because it handles backdrop exposure well when recording video, which is helpful when making video calls.

A 5-megapixel primary camera is featured on the Realme Pad 2.

For a low-cost tablet, the battery life is quite good. The Realme Pad 2 completed the typical battery loop video test at 26 hours and 13 minutes. It can easily last two days with intensive use and three days with light use, which is suitable for a compact tablet, with or without a SIM card inside.

Because it now has LTE coverage, it is also a dependable road warrior that can offer continuous entertainment (for OTT apps) or connectivity (for video conversations, etc.) while moving. Its larger battery will also last significantly longer than any smartphone in your pocket.

Regarding charging, the tablet received a 33 percent charge in 30 minutes, a 62 percent charge in an hour, and a full charge in 1 hour and 36 minutes, which is decent for a tablet.

Verdict

Overall, the form and functionality of the Realme Pad 2 are identical to those of the first version. It works best when used only as a media consumption tool. Realme should have released a keyboard adapter with the tablet to use it as a portable workstation. It also cannot be used to scribble on because it does not support styluses.

The Realme Pad 2 improves upon the shortcomings of its predecessor and achieves something of an all-rounder status by adding a high-refresh-rate display, an upgraded processor, and cellular connectivity to its feature list. Finding something comparable on the market at Rs. 19,999 can be challenging. Its nearest rivals are the Redmi Pad (Review) and the Oppo Pad Air (Review), which are slightly less expensive but feature smaller displays, batteries, and no cellular connectivity.

The post Realme Pad 2 Review: A Stylish Upgrade That Covers the Basics appeared first on Review Products.

Projectors are frequently the first option in large rooms designed specifically for home theater because they can be enormous, detailed, and optimized for an actual home theatre experience. However, they can also be compact, portable, adaptable, and a way to increase your productivity or enjoyment while on the road. In the home entertainment and productivity area, the latter use case is particularly intriguing, and companies like ViewSonic have significantly impacted promoting a market that is frequently undervalued and ignored.

The ViewSonic M1 Pro, which has an Indian retail price of Rs. 68,999, is one of the projector and monitor specialist’s most recent offerings in the portable projector market. The M1 Pro promises much for the money with a projection resolution of 1280×720 pixels. This novel design allows the projector to stand freely and project in various directions and an integrated sound system. Is this the top portable projector on the market at the moment? Learn more from this review.

The ViewSonic M1 Pro can project images up to 150 inches with a resolution of 1280×720 pixels.

The features and design of the ViewSonic M1 Pro

The ViewSonic M1 Pro is the spiritual and physical successor to the ViewSonic M1, and it maintains the exact positioning by providing entirely wireless use due to its integrated battery. The Pro version also receives a boost in resolution, a more robust speaker system, and an overall improved form factor, albeit all of this also comes at a hefty price rise.

Review of the ViewSonic M2e portable LED projector

On the other hand, because it has a built-in battery and weighs 0.95kg, it is considerably more portable than the ViewSonic M2e. The M2e is less mobile and adaptable than the M1 Pro, while it is more appropriately categorized as a home theater projector with some versatility in how and where you may use it. Because of this, the M1 Pro fills a somewhat intriguing niche and promises to do an excellent job of fulfilling its rather specific function.

The ViewSonic M1 Pro is more petite and thick compared to other projectors, but it doesn’t make it a little thing. It is also far more attractive to look at and hold than the M1, thanks to the exterior’s fabric wrapping and other subtle design features. On the projector itself, there are three controls for volume and playback control for approved sources. The Harman Kardon branding is located at the back, directly over the cleverly installed rear-facing two-driver 6W speaker system.

When the M1 Pro is turned off, the swiveling stand, which also serves as the lens shield, may be opened or closed to reveal the battery’s status. When turned on, a small light shines through the fabric covering to indicate that the ViewSonic M1 Pro is operational. Additional lights also indicate the battery life of the device. On either side of the projector are vents for exhaust and a dial for lens focus.

The ViewSonic M1 Review

On the left side of the projector, under a magnetic flap, are all the ports and sockets for the ViewSonic M1 Pro; more on that in the following section. When the M1 Pro is upright, you can adjust the projection to any reasonable angle, and the device will automatically adjust it to the optimal screen ratio and angles. The ViewSonic M1 Pro can project images up to 150 inches across at a resolution of 1280 x 720 pixels.

The projection lamp’s brightness is up to 600 lumens, and its lifespan is up to 30,000 hours. The size of the projection is determined by how far away from the wall or screen you place the ViewSonic M1 projector because its focal length is fixed. Digital zoom can be adjusted between 0.8X and 1.0X for minor modifications, although this is solely for optimization and not for altering the screen size.

The focus adjusting dial is located on the side of the ViewSonic M1 Pro, while controls for volume and playback control are located at the top.

ViewSonic advises a throw distance of at least 0.94m, which provides a projection size of 40 inches, going up to a height of 150 inches from a throw distance of 3.52m. Still, anything over 100 inches will likely result in a sharp drop in projection quality and sharpness. Despite this, you can get a strong projection even from up close.

Along with the ViewSonic M1 Pro, the sales package also includes:

• A sizable charging brick that plugs into the DC 19V socket.
• A USB Type-C to Type-C cable for connectivity to source devices.
• Remote control for using the built-in Android UI and controlling essential functions like volume and source.
• A hard-shell carrying case for the whole thing.

Features and connectivity for the ViewSonic M1 Pro

For a gadget of its size, the ViewSonic M1 Pro’s connectivity features are unique. There are two USB Type-C connectors, one USB Type-A port, an HDMI port, and sockets for power and wired headphone and speaker connectivity. Additionally, there are wireless connectivity possibilities, such as screen mirroring via WiFi and audio communication via Bluetooth 4.2 to compatible headphones and speakers.

The ViewSonic M1 Pro has a projection resolution of 1280×720 pixels, but the system can accept input resolutions up to 1920×1080 pixels; these resolutions will then be upscaled or downscaled as required. USB Type-C is the most practical connecting choice, which can handle audio and video via a single cable. However, many people will undoubtedly find HDMI connectivity to be helpful.

The ViewSonic M1 Pro boasts a 12,000mAh battery that can power the projector directly but functions like a power bank. This was a little annoying in my instance as the projector’s battery was quickly depleted while it was also charging my laptop with a USB Type-C cable. This problem could only be resolved by connecting it to DC power, which naturally never occurs when using an HDMI cable with a compatible source device like the Apple TV 4K (3rd Gen).

The ViewSonic M1 Pro has many connectivity options, including USB Type-C, HDMI, and WiFi.

The M1 Pro offers a simple Android-based user interface, like some of the other ViewSonic projectors I’ve reviewed. This is used for simple tasks, including connecting to some source devices, like USB drives, to access media content through the file explorer and to access and change system settings and preferences.

The ViewSonic M1 Pro has 16GB of internal storage, 12GB of which are available for apps and data. Since remote control is used for navigation and control, apps could be more detailed and functional. For instance, the pre-installed Netflix software is challenging to use and understand.

Using an app for Android or iOS directly supporting AirPlay screen mirroring, you can also use screen mirroring from compatible devices. Some programs, such as YouTube and Disney+ Hotstar, as well as fundamental productivity features, worked fine on my iPhone. With the curtains pulled, the projector was sufficiently bright throughout the day, making project images or data convenient. The ViewSonic M1 Pro can also be used entirely wirelessly due to wireless source connectivity and battery power.

The casting options on apps like Netflix and Prime Video didn’t function for me and thus couldn’t be used to project directly. A small streaming box like the Apple TV 4K (3rd Gen) or a laptop or desktop computer like the Mac Mini can be used as the source device to handle the actual UI, apps, or content.

Battery life and performance of the ViewSonic M1 Pro

The placement and feature set of the ViewSonic M1 Pro make it a distinctive product with little immediate competition. Due to the superior projection resolution, it is significantly more suitable for entertainment than the ViewSonic M1 in terms of functionality. It may be utilized with various source devices because of the numerous connectivity choices.

However, given the size of the projection itself, the ViewSonic M1 Pro is still constrained by its 1280×720-pixel resolution. Smaller projection sizes generally looked good, even with material playing, and you tend to overlook some defects simply because this is a projection. Larger projection sizes, however, make the resolution’s inherent flaws more noticeable. This didn’t matter if I was projecting my laptop screen, but it affected how well movies and TV shows looked.

A Harman Kardon-tuned 6W speaker system is included with the ViewSonic M1 Pro.

It’s helpful that the ViewSonic M1 Pro boots up quickly and is ready to use after a few seconds of turning the cover stand and positioning it. Additionally, connectivity is fast and dependable, especially with USB Type-C, which starts working immediately after being plugged in. Even HDMI is very immediate, and using AirPlay to connect wirelessly with compatible iOS devices proved easy and quick. Thanks to fast and accurate keystone correction, you may set it up at any angle for convenience. However, the projector performs best when directed horizontally at the projection screen or wall.

The ViewSonic M1 Pro’s exhaust fan mechanism continuously expels hot air on either side of the projector when it is in regular use, and closeup listeners can hear the fan humming. However, it isn’t deafening, and if you stand about a meter away from it, the sound will completely disappear. Despite not sounding like much, the 6W speaker system is loud enough and well-tuned to be heard clearly from a similar distance.

At home, I used a white wall and a white ViewSonic M1 Pro projector to create a projection roughly the size of a 55-inch television at a distance of 1.4 meters. Even though I was seated directly behind the projector and near the wall, I liked the view and the size of the projection. To have the most excellent viewing experience, however, the light level had to be decreased, and the focus had to be manually adjusted.

Watching cricket matches and Star Wars: Visions episodes on Disney+ Hotstar was primarily enjoyable, and the darker the room, the better it appeared. The projector is bright enough to block out glimmering daylight, and the image is clear enough to see once the focus is set just right.

A remote is provided with the ViewSonic M1 Pro, which is required to operate the gadget.

The animated episodes of Visions’ helped a little with this because of their softer edges, but the projector is still somewhat capable in this area. There were sporadic visual problems, but they are tolerable when compared to the significantly smaller screen of your smartphone or laptop.

It’s essential to keep in mind that this kind of projector isn’t intended to be used regularly; instead, think of it as something you can bring along on vacation to use as entertainment in your hotel room or for productivity, like quickly projecting presentations and spreadsheets from your laptop onto a conference room screen. Given that the latter will more closely resemble the resolution and display ratio of a standard laptop or tablet screen, it is undeniably much superior to the latter.

Although the ViewSonic M1 Pro’s 12,000mAh battery seems large, the projection uses much energy. As a result, I could only use the M1 Pro for around an hour under usual use; however, if you choose “Eco” mode, your usage time may increase slightly. This might be useful in some circumstances, but the projector will need to be connected for all practical purposes.

Verdict

The commitment of ViewSonic to the projector market is rather outstanding, and the firm is one of the few to provide specialized projectors like the ViewSonic M1 Pro and the M1 and M2e projectors that came before it. The M1 Pro is unrivaled in variety and usability – if this is what you’re looking for. However, it fits a pretty specialized use case and is likely pricey, given that you can purchase a great 65-inch TV for the same amount.

The ViewSonic M1 Pro is worthwhile even for the occasional movie or TV show on the fly, even though it is better suited for productivity use cases. Additionally, the built-in battery gives you more flexibility when using it, and a broad range of networking choices let you link it to virtually any contemporary source device wirelessly or with cords. I recommend the ViewSonic M1 Pro if you’re searching for anything like this and have the money for it.

Rs. 68,999 was the cost (at the time of this review).

Ratings:

• Nine designs
• 7 for performance

VFM: 6

General: 7

Pros:

• Lens stand and cover that is portable and practical
• good choices for connectivity
• reasonable performance
• Exceptional audio for a portable projector.
• Battery-powered use is possible.

Cons:

• Expensive
• constant optical zoom
• Basic internal UI
• shows with low-quality and large projection sizes

The post ViewSonic M1 Pro Portable Projector Review: Multipurpose Champ appeared first on Review Products.

TVs can be expensive or affordable, and if you’re shopping in the latter category, you’ll likely give Xiaomi a look. Of course, it might sound a bit strange to call a television that costs over Rs. 60,000 ‘affordable’, but everything is relative, and there’s a huge market for big-screen, feature-rich televisions that don’t cost too much. The latest in that list is the Xiaomi X Series (2023) television range, which now comes in a 65-inch size option, which is priced at Rs. 61,999 in India.

With a 65-inch Ultra-HD (3840×2160-pixel) screen, support for Dolby Vision HDR, 30W speakers, and the Google TV user interface alongside Xiaomi’s Patchwall on top of Android TV OS, this is a well-equipped big screen television that costs less that Rs. 1,000 per diagonal inch of screen size. Is this the best reasonably-priced 65-inch TV you can buy right now? Find out in this review.

Xiaomi X Series (2023) 65-inch Ultra-HD Smart TV design and specifications

Xiaomi’s older X series televisions have been available in sizes ranging from 43 inches to 55 inches, all of which are Ultra-HD (3840×2160-pixel) televisions. The 2023 series adds a 65-inch option as well, although it’s worth pointing out here that this isn’t the first 65-inch TV from the company, but it’s new for this series. The TV I’ve received for review is the 65-inch option, which is priced at Rs. 61,999 in India.

Expectedly, the design is largely along the lines of earlier X series models, and is available in a single black colour option. The borders around the screen are slim and largely out of sight much of the time when the TV is in operation, while the bottom has a slightly thicker and more prominent border. The Xiaomi logo is at the centre, just above the module which has the indicator light and power button.

It isn’t a very slim TV, but it isn’t too thick either, and will look reasonably good when wall-mounted using a low-profile mounting kit. Unlike the X Pro series which was launched earlier this year, there is no hands-free voice assistant functionality, and so no microphone built into the TV itself. You can, of course, access Google Assistant through the remote, which has a microphone to accept voice commands.

You get three HDMI 2.1 ports (one supports eARC), two USB type-A ports, an Ethernet port, an Optical audio port, and sockets for AV, 3.5mm audio, and antenna on the Xiaomi X Series (2023) TV – all fairly standard for a TV in this price segment. The fact that this is a large television with the ports close to the centre at the back makes access to them a bit difficult when the TV is wall-mounted, so you’ll need to ensure you set everything up before putting it on the wall.

Stands for the TV are included in the sales package, but not a wall-mount kit. Xiaomi’s installation team can take care of assembly and installation regardless of which mode of installation you opt for, but you’ll need to confirm with the technician about which wall-mount kit is used and whether there will be an additional cost for it.

The Xiaomi X Series (2023) is available in various size options, going up to the 65-inch version that I had for review

Other specifications worth mentioning are 2GB of RAM, 8GB of internal storage for apps and app data, a quad-core A55 processor to run the smart functionality and Android TV operating system, and a standard refresh rate of 60Hz. The TV supports the Dolby Vision and HDR10 formats, and relies on Bluetooth 5 and dual-band Wi-Fi for wireless connectivity. For sound, the Xiaomi X Series (2023) TV has a 30W speaker system with support for Dolby Audio, DTS:X, and DTS: Virtual X, as well as Dolby Atmos passthrough support on the eARC enabled HDMI port.

Xiaomi X Series (2023) 65-inch Ultra-HD Smart TV remote and features

The remote and feature set on Xiaomi’s larger televisions doesn’t really change much, and the 65-inch X Series (2023) television sticks to this formula. The lightweight remote is compatible with various Xiaomi and Redmi TVs in the range, easily replaceable, and largely uncomplicated. Software fixes have made up for the lack of buttons for some time now, and AAA batteries for the remote are included in the sales package.

The remote has hotkeys for Netflix, Prime Video, Disney+ Hotstar, and YouTube, apart from the customary navigation pad and Android TV buttons, Google Assistant button, and volume button. Connectivity is only through Bluetooth, and the remote needs to be paired (through a quick and convenient pairing process) when the TV is first booted up.

Other features on the Xiaomi X Series (2023) TV include Chromecast built-in and auto low-latency mode (ALLM). The X Series (2023) is not quite as well-equipped as the X Pro launched earlier this year, but it’s a fair bit more affordable than the X Pro for models of the same size, and largely gets the core experience on point.

Xiaomi X Series (2023) 65-inch Ultra-HD Smart TV software and interface

Xiaomi has a pretty stable formula for its televisions which is arguably a bit too predictable, but I see it as a big benefit if you go by the ‘if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it’ philosophy. Much of that comes down to the software experience, and the X Series (2023) television range comes with the expected combination of Android TV with the Google TV user interface, apart from the ability to switch to Xiaomi’s own PatchWall UI.

The television runs Android TV 11 under the hood, but seems to struggle a bit with performance, when it comes to the UIs and smart TV functionality. Even with just a few basic apps loaded, I found the TV quite sluggish when navigating around the Google TV and PatchWall user interfaces. Rebooting the TV completely would improve things for a few hours (or maybe a day), but it would go back to being sluggish eventually.

Apart from the Google TV user interface, you can also use PatchWall on the Xiaomi X Series (2023) TV

This seems to apply only to the user interface itself; on platforms such as Netflix, Prime Video, and YouTube (all known for their performance reliability), there were no performance issues with anything playing. Some apps such as JioCinema did have occasional issues of lag and stutter, but at no point was the TV troublesome, once content was actually streaming.

Wall Mount or on a Stand? What You Need to Know Before Setting Up Your New TV

The Google TV user interface was introduced on the Xiaomi X Pro series earlier in 2023, and makes its way to the X Series (2023) as well. As mentioned in numerous earlier reviews, it’s a considerable upgrade over the earlier stock Android TV UI. PatchWall, on the other hand, remains largely familiar, with many of its classic features such as curated categories and recommendations present on the X Series (2023) as well.

Xiaomi X Series (2023) 65-inch Ultra-HD Smart TV performance

Xiaomi’s brand image, coupled with the fact that it’s a well-established and leading player in the smartphone segment, has made it naturally interesting to buyers of TVs in this price segment. At Rs. 61,999 for the 65-inch variant, it’s also quite competitively priced as compared to much of the competition in the segment, especially when you consider the features and specifications on offer, such as support for Dolby Vision, 30W of sound output, and the Google TV user interface.

The X Series (2023) has some minor performance-affecting differences as compared to the X Pro, but you’re unlikely to really notice these in practical use. Key features and specifications are all in place, and the performance more than matched up to most of the televisions I’ve used in this price segment. I’ve usually reviewed 55-inch TVs at this price, so getting a 65-inch option at under Rs. 65,000 is somewhat of a novelty for me.

With plenty of Ultra-HD and high dynamic range content available to stream from various platforms, there’s lots to work with on the Xiaomi X Series (2023) television if you buy one of the larger screen sizes. I watched a range of content from various streaming platforms, including episodes of Star Wars Visions and Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 on Disney+ Hotstar, Strange Planet (Review) on Apple TV+, episodes of Barry on JioCinema, and assorted sports and YouTube content.

Ultra-HD Dolby Vision content looks best on the TV, although the bump in brightness with HDR isn’t significant

The 65-inch screen size comes with its own impact, but this can also potentially create challenges in the picture quality for lower-resolution content. While the differences between Ultra-HD and even full-HD content are a bit more pronounced on larger screens, the actual drawbacks are handled to a reasonable extent by the Xiaomi X Series (2023) TV thanks to acceptable upscaling. Of course, you’ll want to stick to Ultra-HD content as much as possible for the optimal level of performance, and the Xiaomi X Series (2023) manages to do decently for the price when it comes to that.

Dolby Vision: What Is It, and How Does It Make Your Movies and TV Shows Better?

Support for Dolby Vision high dynamic range (but not the HDR10+ format) means that you’ll get slightly better performance with compatible content from platforms such as Netflix and Apple TV+. That said, the actual Dolby Vision effect isn’t quite as pronounced on the Xiaomi X Series (2023) as on high-end quantum-dot and OLED televisions, but you’ll still see a decent increase in the brightness and colour vibrance.

Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 looked good on the TV, thanks to support for the Dolby Vision format for the title. The colourful and over-the-top set pieces of Knowhere (the Guardians’ city-spaceship headquarters) looked punchy and sharp for the most part. That said, very bright colours and certain skin tones appeared a bit oversaturated.

Peak brightness was also somewhat of a concern on the Xiaomi X Series (2023) television, with HDR content not really offering much of a bump over standard dynamic range content. Fortunately, I didn’t need to do too much to darken the room for the picture to be visible; if you’re in front of the TV or just off by a small angle, you won’t have any trouble watching even with bright daylight in the room.

That said, you do need to be in front of the TV for the ideal viewing experience, and the further away from the centre you are, the more reflective the screen of the Xiaomi X Series (2023) television gets. Additionally, darkening the room as much as you can will definitely help in making the picture and colours appear as good as they can.

Ultra-HD content obviously appeared the sharpest and nicest to watch, including the deliberately hazy They Cloned Tyrone which still looked sharp despite the tone of the film itself. However, low-light scenes were sometimes difficult to watch, thanks to the fairly average black levels and noticeable grey tinge of the TV. Lower resolution content – such as episodes of Barry – looked alright, and I definitely didn’t have any trouble watching these.

That said, don’t expect it to look stunning; there were points where details seemed washed out, and the show effectively appeared a bit older than it actually is. You probably won’t mind this once in a while, but if most of your viewing is full-HD or lower resolution content such as this, you shouldn’t really be considering a 65-inch Ultra-HD TV in the first place.

Xiaomi tends to be very good with sound quality on its TVs, and that is the case on the X Series (2023) as well. Although not quite as loud as the X Pro TV series, the X Series comes with a box speaker system providing 30W of sound output. There is no support for Dolby Atmos from the speaker system, but in most cases, this isn’t something you’ll miss either.

The TV is loud, clear, and audible even at moderate volumes with plenty of room to go higher if you like. The uniformity in volume increments is excellent, and I didn’t experience too many unpleasant volume spikes. Usefully, there is Dolby Atmos passthrough, so you’ll be able to connect to a compatible soundbar or speaker system and get the benefit of Atmos, if you want.

Verdict

Although the frequent releases and somewhat overlapping product range might seem confusing for many, Xiaomi’s diversity in the sensibly-priced big screen segment is perhaps its biggest strength. The Xiaomi X Series (2023) adds to the company’s capable portfolio, this time adding a 65-inch option while sticking to the current-generation and no-frills approach of the X series.

The issues with this TV aren’t significant, save for a somewhat sluggish user interface and hassles with black levels which make dark content a bit difficult to watch. In all other ways, you get a TV that more than matches up to its price, providing a value-for-money experience that lets you enjoy the benefits of a massive TV without breaking the bank. Consider the X Pro TV series if you want a few more features and HDR10+ compatibility, but otherwise the X Series (2023) is a solid option, especially if you want the 65-inch screen size.

The post Xiaomi X Series (2023) 65-inch Ultra-HD Smart TV (L65M8-A2IN) Review: Big Size, Not So Big Price appeared first on Review Products.

A couple of months ago, Motorola showcased its latest foldable, the Razr 40 Ultra. It had a radical-looking, futuristic design with floating cameras embedded into its near-bezelless cover display. The premium foldable instantly reinstated Motorola as a serious contender and became the challenger to Samsung’s year-old Galaxy Z Flip 4.

Despite years of having an upper hand in India, it appears that Samsung is now playing catch up this year by launching the Galaxy Z Flip 5 with a bigger outer display, which the company now calls ‘Flex Window’. But sporting a bigger cover display is only half the war won unless it’s backed up by a rock-solid software experience, which Motorola’s foldable did deliver.

So, does the Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 5 have what it takes to retain its supremacy in the vertically folding smartphone segment in India? Let’s find out.

Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 5 price in India

Samsung’s Galaxy Z Flip 5 has received a noticeable price hike over the Galaxy Z Flip 4, which was launched at Rs. 89,999. However, all of this seems justifiable given that it has the latest processor and starts with a base 256GB storage variant which is priced at Rs. 99,999. There’s a 512GB storage variant as well and it’s priced at Rs. 1,09,999.

The phone is available in four main colours – Mint, Graphite, Cream and Lavender. It is also available in three special edition finishes – gray, blue and green – which sport a matte-black frame. I received the 256GB variant in the Mint finish for review.

Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 5 design

As pointed out in our first impressions article, not much has changed in terms of visual appeal between the new Galaxy Z Flip 5 and the previous Galaxy Z Flip 4 models. The new device feels slimmer and more compact when folded thanks to its new hinge. The gap closer to the hinge which used to let in dust on the Galaxy Z Flip 4 no longer exists and it also makes the phone appear aesthetically pleasing, with both halves folding flat against one another.

A major visual change is on the front half of the clamshell. The smaller window which hid the cover display of the previous model has now been expanded to accommodate a much bigger cover display. When folded and with the display powered down, it makes the phone appear like a short, chunky slab of black glass with a flattened metal border around it.

But power on the Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 5 and the cool-looking aesthetics disappear as you are greeted by some abnormally chunky borders on all sides with a weird folder-like cutout at the bottom to avoid the cameras and the accompanying LED flash unit. Indeed, this is quite the contrast compared to the radical cover display design of the Motorola Razr 40 Ultra.

The placement of the rest of the components on the Galaxy Z Flip 5 hasn’t changed and remain the same as on the Galaxy Z Flip 4. Thankfully, Samsung’s new hinge does not deprive it of its IPX8 rating which gives the phone credible water resistance against splashes of water, and is far better than the Razr’s IP53 rating that’s better with dust but offers basic protection against water.

So, does this new hinge in the Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 5 reduce the crease on the main folding display? Not really. According to Samsung, the new hinge is supposed to be less prone to damage from drops and that it allows the device to appear slimmer when folded. The crease seems to be as intrusive as on the Galaxy Z Flip 4 and the resulting groove still feels out of place.

Motorola and Oppo have done a better job with their hinge designs reducing the groove on their respective folding displays, but this comes at the cost of a lesser IP rating. As for the sturdiness of the inner display, it remains as robust and damage resistant as the previous one, which is best in class. Samsung’s display aspect ratio also remains as narrow as its recent models, so typing still feels a bit cramped when compared to the broader display of the Oppo Find N2 Flip.

Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 5 specifications and software

The Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 5 follows a formula which is very similar to its Galaxy S23 and Galaxy S23+ models launched earlier this year. This means that its core hardware changes are limited to a new processor which is expected to bring qualitative improvements in performance, battery life, and imaging. This year, that processor would be the top-of-the-line Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 Mobile Platform for Galaxy (a tweaked version of the standard processor), which fortunately for Samsung, has not been utilised in any of the clamshell foldable devices launched in India this year.

Communication standards include Wi-Fi 6e, Bluetooth version 5.3, NFC, support for the usual global positioning systems and a Type-C USB port with USB 3.2 (Gen 1) support. The device is powered by a 3,700mAh battery with 25W wired charging support, but Samsung does not include a charger in the box. The device also offers wireless charging at 15W.

The new Clear Gadget Case accessory has a smartly designed pop-up ring which can be removed if not needed

The Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 5 ships with One UI 5.1.1 which is based on Android 13. At the time of writing this review, the phone was running the slightly outdated May 1 2023 security patch. The software is typically Samsung and One UI, with plenty of customisation options on the main screen and the new Flex Window as well.

Samsung has a number of card-like cover screen layouts (like a watchface on a smartwatch) that are quite customisable. You just have to remember that none of these cover screen designs (and respective buttons or indicators in them), save for the camera button, are interactive. For example, tapping on the pending notifications icon or a battery icon will not take you to the notifications area or the battery section. I found most of these designs to be purely cosmetic and not practical, requiring you to swipe through the long list of native widgets or just open up the main display to get what you seek.

The core idea behind the Motorola Razr 40 Ultra’s practical cover display is not the fact that it can run full apps on it, but because it has a full-blown phone on the outside as well. Upon receiving a notification, you can simply swipe to expand it. This shows additional content and a set of action buttons (delete, reply, archive etc. for email apps) which lets you deal with a notification without getting into the app itself.

Notifications from messaging apps can either be dismissed or replied to using the new cover display keyboard

Samsung’s Flex Window misses out on this really important aspect. Swiping downwards or long-pressing a notification does absolutely nothing. Your only means of dealing with a notification is to either swipe it to dismiss it or tap to open it, which opens up a small card with truncated information depending on the app and whether it’s supported by Samsung.

Just like the Galaxy Z Flip 4, if you receive a notification from a messaging app, tapping on it reveals the whole message in a small card with a ‘reply’ and a ‘clear’ button at the bottom, followed by a list of predefined quick replies. However, you now have a pop-up keyboard on the cover display to type out custom replies if you tap on the ‘reply’ button on the Galaxy Z Flip 5.

If you receive a notification from any other app category, tapping on the notification will expand to show a card with truncated information (part of the email in plain text), below which will be a ‘clear’ button to dismiss the notification. This is basically a dead end and all you can do next is open the phone to read or glance through what’s actually present in that notification, which can get very annoying.

Now there is a third category of notifications which are to do with supported third-party apps. These would include the ones available in the Labs feature (which is still in beta) and lets you launch and view a handful of apps on the cover display itself. The problem with this is that tapping on a notification from this supported app will directly open the app.

Unsupported apps like Slack do not scale well and need to be restarted from the main display

WhatsApp for example will bypass the standard ‘reply’ and ‘clear’ buttons treatment and directly open the chat window of the related conversation on the cover display itself. While this sounds exciting and fun, it does get quite tiring, because you have to keep jumping in and out of apps from the notifications area when dealing with such notifications.

To a casual user, these three categories of notifications can get extremely irritating because you have to keep in mind which app can reveal usable information (card with a reply button) and which cannot (a simple card). After dealing with this for a few days, I decided to just open up the main display to handle notifications from the drop-down tray like on a regular candybar smartphone.

Currently, the cover display only lets you launch a handful of apps. It isn’t enabled by default and has to be enabled in the Labs section. This includes Google Maps, Messages, Netflix, WhatsApp and YouTube. According to Samsung, these apps have been optimised to run on the outer display, claiming that more apps will be added in the future.

The cutout to the left of primary camera is solely used by the media player and opens the wrong widget (stock market) when tapped

The implementation works just fine for these supported apps and can help with getting things done without opening the main display. The cover display also supports app transitions from cover display to the main display, letting apps adapt on the fly to the tall aspect ratio of the main display.

However, unlike the Razr, this cannot work the other way around as apps can only transition from the cover display to the main one and not vice versa (or when you fold the phone).

Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 5 performance

While the cover display’s interface is disappointing in its current state, the main display’s software interface of the Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 5 performs quite well. There is no sign of stuttering or lag with One UI running flawlessly despite packing in some bloatware and third-party apps. Thankfully all of these third-party apps can be uninstalled, but it is a bit disappointing that a phone this expensive comes with them out of the box.

As for benchmarks, the Galaxy Z Flip 5 performed as expected. The phone managed a score of 12,87,359 points in AnTuTu and 1,998 and 5,176 points in Geekbench’s single and multi-core tests respectively. These scores are easily the highest figures we have seen coming from a clamshell foldable smartphone till date.

Gaming performance was quite good and better than expected. While I wasn’t satisfied by the Galaxy Z Flip 4’s touch sampling rate when playing games like Call of Duty Mobile, the Galaxy Z Flip 5 does a lot better in this area. Yes, the phone does heat up a bit when running it at ‘Very High’ graphics and ‘Max’ framerate, but performance did not take a hit even after 30 minutes of competitive gaming.

The clock face widgets offer plenty of customisation but aren’t practical

The Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 5’s 3.4-inch outer Super AMOLED display has a standard 60Hz refresh rate but feels smooth in terms of operation. There’s a 6.7-inch full-HD+ AMOLED folding panel inside with a 120Hz refresh rate and its of the LTPO variety, so it can drop its refresh rate down to 1Hz when required to save battery life. Both displays produced saturated colours at default settings, but showed excellent sunlight legibility when viewed outdoors. The main display also supports HDR10+ playback and the dual speakers make for an immersive multimedia experience when watching movies or playing games.

The Galaxy Z Flip 5 lasted a good 16 hours and 45 minutes when put through our video loop battery test, but daily usage figures are a bit concerning. With regular use which involved scrolling through several social media apps, two email accounts on sync, about 30 minutes of camera usage, 30 minutes of gaming and an hour of video streaming and a few calls, the Galaxy Z Flip 5 was down to nine percent at six in the evening after being unplugged from the charger at 7am, which isn’t great even for a foldable.

The main reason could be down to my reduced cover screen usage (mentioned in the software section), which would have been a great way to save on battery life, if done right.

When plugged into a 61W USB PD charger, the phone managed a 26 percent charge in 30 minutes and took a good 2 hours and 14 minutes to complete the charge, which is very slow compared to the competition. Thankfully, the Galaxy Z Flip 5 still retains its wireless charging capability, which is good for trickle charging when the phone is not being used.

Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 5 cameras

With the Galaxy Z Flip 5, Samsung has for the third year in a row, maintained a similar camera system as its predecessor, bringing no new upgrades save for what the latest Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 SoC’s ISP can deliver. The camera hardware remains unchanged over last year’s Galaxy Z Flip 4, which was not too bad to begin with.

There’s a 12-megapixel primary camera with OIS, a 12-megapixel ultra-wide camera, and a 10-megapixel selfie camera which is embedded into the main folding display. The camera interface is similar to what one can find on any Samsung smartphone, save for the fact that the Galaxy Z Flip 5’s primary camera can also be used as a selfie camera. While this is possible on the Galaxy Z Flip 4, the Galaxy Z Flip 5’s larger cover display makes using this mode and framing photos a lot easier. The bigger cover display also makes it possible to snap photos using the rear cameras in tent mode.

The cover display can be used as a viewfinder for framing the perfect shot (using the main cameras) when used as a stand in tent mode

Overall image quality remains very similar when compared to the previous model. The primary camera captures sharp-looking photos in daylight with the typically saturated colours we are used to from Samsung’s smartphones. Details, although sufficient, are still on the lower side and far from the superior imaging capability of the similarly priced Galaxy S23.

Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 5 daylight camera samples from its primary camera

Samsung’s Scene Optimiser is switched on by default and I kept it on for most of this review as the images weren’t drastically enhanced (slightly saturated colours and warmer tones) when compared to the standard photos. Portrait photos captured using the same camera also came out just fine with decent edge detection, but the subjects often came out a bit overexposed and at times with clipped highlights.

The ultra-wide camera captures average photos in daylight but these images are low on resolved detail, especially in the shadows.

Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 5 selfie camera samples

Selfies captured in daylight come out sharp and clear with good edge detection in Portrait mode. However, the primary camera does a far better job at this with much better details and definition, which is why I would strongly recommend using it instead of the selfie camera.

Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 5 low-light camera sample from the primary camera

In low light, the primary camera manages good details when using the auto-night mode (enabled by Scene Optimiser) or the dedicated Night mode. Just like the daylight photos, dynamic range comes up a bit short especially in the shadows. Street-lit scenes have average details and appear a bit oversharpened with crushed blacks in the shadows. The primary camera also has trouble locking focus in dimly-lit scenes, so the resulting photos come out soft, especially when using the Night mode.

Unlike the Motorola Razr 40 Ultra, the Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 5’s camera setup does not include a macro mode. However, the primary camera can focus on objects as close as 10-15cm and the results look just fine.

4K 30fps recorded videos appears average in terms of details, with decent colour saturation but underexposed shadows. Stabilisation is not a problem when shooting at these settings either. 4K 60fps videos showcase a steady framerate but come out shaky. HDR10+ videos recorded at 4K 30fps did not look great even though it managed better detail in the shadows. Low-light video lacked noise, but this led to flattened or blotched textures.

Verdict

Overall, the Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 5 manages better image and video capability than the Motorola Razr 40 Ultra. But neither should be purchased for this reason alone as both are quite average compared to the competition. If you seek good camera and video quality, the Samsung Galaxy S23 is a much better choice, minus the folding tricks.

Between the Motorola Razr 40 Ultra and the Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 5, I would pick the Razr because of its well-optimised cover display experience, which is currently second to none. Motorola’s MyUX software experience also remains unmatched in terms of minimal bloatware and additional apps, and is also closer to a Google Pixel-like software user experience. Then, there’s the fact that the Razr 40 Ultra also looks so much better with its slick design and that radical-looking cover display.

Where Samsung does stand out is when it comes to overall performance, optimisation and image quality. We’ve compared the Oppo Find N2 Flip with the Galaxy Z Flip 4 previously and Samsung did come out on top back then as well. However, its main standout feature isn’t as useful as I expected it to be. If you own a Galaxy Z Flip 4, I’d recommend sticking with it for now.

The post Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 5 Review: Covering the Basics appeared first on Review Products.

Acer introduced the Swift Go laptop series at CES 2023, powered by both Intel and AMD CPUs. The AMD Ryzen-powered laptop was launched in March of this year in India, and today we’ll be reviewing the base model of the Swift Go 14. It is aimed at the urban youth who would want a stylish and premium looking laptop which is portable and powerful. Let’s find out if the Swift Go 14 checks all the boxes.

Acer Swift Go 14 price in India

The Acer Swift Go 14 is available in Prodigy Pink and Pure Silver colours. On the Acer India online store, the laptop starts at Rs. 59,999 and is the variant we’ll be testing. This comes with an AMD Ryzen 5 CPU, 8GB of RAM, and a 512GB SSD. For about Rs. 5,000 more, you can get the same configuration but with 16GB of RAM.

Acer Swift Go 14 design and features

The Acer Swift Go 14 features a metal chassis which is what gives it a premium look and feel. It’s also quite compact and lightweight measuring just 15.9mm in thickness and 1.25kg in weight. The pink variant actually looks nice and grows on you after a while. You get a good variety of ports for a 14-inch laptop and these include two USB 3.2 (Gen1) Type-C ports for charging, HDMI, USB 3.2 (Gen1) Type-A port, USB 2.0 Type-A port, headphone jack, and a Kensington lock. There’s no SD card reader of any kind, which I don’t think is a total loss. The right side of the laptop also has two LEDs for the power and activity status.

The Acer Swift Go 14 features an all-metal chassis and is fairly light

The backlit keyboard on the Acer Swift Go 14 is nicely laid out, and the keys themselves are responsive and not noisy. There’s a fingerprint sensor in the power button which wobbles when pressed, unlike the rest of the keys, but it works fine when it comes to authentication. The trackpad does a good job of tracking and you get a decent amount of room to rest your palms.

The 14-inch display has a 16:9 aspect ratio, making it ideal for watching most video content. The Acer Swift Go 14 uses an IPS display panel with a full-HD (1920×1080) resolution and comes with a matte, anti-glare finish. The display has a rated maximum brightness of 300 nits which I found to be more than adequate. The 1080p webcam is quite inconspicuous and is located just above the display. The Acer Swift Go 14 ships with just a 65W USB Type-C charger in the box.

Acer Swift Go 14 specifications and software

The Acer Swift Go 14 features an AMD Ryzen 5 7530U CPU featuring six CPU cores. It’s part of AMD’s mobile CPU refresh which was announced during CES this year. However, this model is based on a refreshed Zen 3 architecture, unlike the 7040 series which uses the latest Zen 4 architecture. This is currently the only CPU configuration that Acer offers in India for the Swift Go 14 series. Storage is taken care of by a 512GB NVMe PCIe Gen3 SSD, and there’s 8GB of RAM. The laptop also features Wi-Fi 6E, Bluetooth 5.1, and a 3-cell 50WHr battery.

The Acer Swift Go 14 features a good number of ports for a 14-inch laptop

The Acer Swift Go 14 ships with Windows 11 Home, along with the usual preinstalled programs such as Microsoft Office Home and Student, McAfee antivirus, and bunch of softwares by Acer for system diagnostics and keeping drivers up to date.

Acer Swift Go 14 performance and battery life

General performance of the Acer Swift Go 14 is very good. It runs cool and the fans are not audible when performing simple tasks, but you can hear them faintly during gaming. I found the typing angle to be quite ergonomic as the base is propped up a bit when the lid is open. The keyboard backlighting is also soothing and the display gets sufficiently bright even for daytime outdoor use. Applications are quick to load and I never really felt any lack of power.

The stereo speakers get loud but don’t sound all that great. Games run decently well with the onboard Radeon graphics. I was able to get smooth framerates in Fortnite with medium graphics and running at the display’s native resolution. In synthetic gaming tests such as 3DMark, the Acer Swift Go 14 returned a score of 1,268 in the Time Spy test suite, and 13,570 in Night Raid. CPU and SSD performance was also very good. The laptop scored 566 and 3,664 points in Cinebench R20, and returned an average read speed of over 1.5GB/s for both sequential and random tests in SiSoft Sandra. Write speeds were lower coming in under 900MB/s.

Video rendering and encoding performance was also quite good. The Acer Swift Go 14 took 45 seconds to encode a 1.3GB AVI file to H.265 MKV, while the BMW test scene in Blender took 6 minutes, 18 seconds to render. These were lower (better) times compared to something like the Intel Core i5-1335U CPU which we recently tested in the Dell Inspiron 16 2-in-1.

The keyboard on the Acer Swift Go 14 is comfortable to type on

Battery life is another highlight of the Acer Swift Go 14. Considering its size, it ran for an impressive 3 hours, 26 minutes in the Battery Eater Pro benchmark. With my daily workflow, I was able to get roughly 7-8 hours of non-stop use before the battery went below 10 percent. By these estimates, it should be possible to get even up to 10 hours of use on one charge (or more), if you don’t use it non-stop. The laptop can be charged fairly quickly using the bundled charger. You get roughly a 70 percent charge in an hour.

Verdict

It’s really hard to find fault with the Acer Swift Go 14 as it does everything you’d expect from a thin and light laptop, and this is before you even consider the price. At Rs. 59,999 (less during sales), you get a well-designed compact laptop with good performance and long battery life. The speakers are possibly the only thing that’s a little underwhelming, and the wobbly power button feels a little out of place in an otherwise well put-together laptop (or it could just be our unit). The Swift Go 14 is definitely worth recommending if you’re looking for a compact Windows laptop under Rs. 60,000 that doesn’t compromise on battery life.

The post Acer Swift Go 14 Review: Striking the Right Balance appeared first on Review Products.