Tech2 Touch

Author: Aniruddh

  • Xiaomi Redmi 3s Prime Review- Pros and Cons

    Xiaomi Redmi 3s Prime is a budget Android smartphone which offers great specification at affordable price.  Within two years of launching its first smartphone in India, the kind of success it achieved is remarkable. So with all these expectations, let’s begin our Xiaomi Redmi 3s Prime Review to know whether it really able to fulfil the expectations.

    Xiaomi Redmi 3s Prime Review

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    There are two variants of Redmi 3s are available. One is Redmi 3s and another one is Redmi 3s Prime. Redmi 3s prime has the advantage of Fingerprint scanner, more RAM and more storage space.

    Xiaomi Redmi 3s Prime looks a lot like smaller Redmi Note 3 except the placement of the sensors. With all metal body, it is one of the best smartphones in terms of design and build quality in the price segment.

    Redmi 3s prime sports 5 inch IPS display with 720p HD resolution. The screen is vibrant and offers good viewing angles and sunlight legibility. The brightness level also decent on this device.

    Xiaomi Redmi 3s Prime is powered by all new Snapdragon 430 Soc with 3GB of RAM and Adreno 505 GPU. It has 32GB of internal storage and support for microSD card(It has hybrid sim slot and there is no dedicated microSD card slot). Out of the box, it runs on MIUI 7.5 which is based on the Android 6.0.1 Marshmallow.

    Coming to performance, we have not faced any lagging in the general usage. Multi tasking and gaming experience also very good considering the price. The call quality and signal reception was  decent. This variant comes with fingerprint scanner which is fast and accurate.  The connectivity features of the device includes 4G with VoLTE, Wi-Fi 802.11 b/g/n, Bluetooth, GPS/A-GPS, Glonass, and Micro-USB. It is compatible with all LTE bands in India including the FDD LTE Band 3 and Band 5, as well as TDD LTE Band 40.

    Xiaomi Redmi 3s Prime sports 13MP primary camera with PDAF (phase detection autofocus), f/2.0 aperture, HDR mode, 1080p video recording, and an LED flash. There is also a 5MP front facing camera. In good lighting and in indoor lighting conditions, the camera was able to take sharp images with good amount of details. The low light performance also decent.

    One of the biggest USP of Redmi 3s prime is its battery. It comes with non-removable 4100mAh battery which managed to cover entire day with even heavy usage. The bundled 5V/2A charger managed to charge the battery full in around 2 hours.

    Xiaomi Redmi 3s Prime Review Summary: It is one of the best sub Rs.10,000 smartphone we have tested till date. Performance, battery life, display quality, availability of all basic sensors and decent camera performance are the key advantage of the device. Coming to disadvantages of Redmi 3s prime, it lacks a dedicated microSD card slot and sound amplification is bit low.

    Xiaomi Redmi 3s Prime Review-Advantages and Disadvantages

    Pros of Redmi 3s Prime

    • Great battery life
    • Compact to use in single hand.
    • Decent performance.
    • Fast and accurate fingerprint scanner.
    • Good build quality.

    Cons of Redmi 3s Prime

    • No dedicated microSD card slot.
    • Non user removable battery.
    • Sound output via headphone and speaker is bit low.
    • Available through only flash sales.

  • Notion Ink Able 2-in-1 Review- Pros and Cons

    Notion Ink Able 2-in-1 is the latest offering from the Indian Startup Notion Ink. 3G sim slot, 10.1inch touch screen display with detachable keyboard, full sized USB 3.0 port and 8100mAh battery  are some of the key features of this device. Notion Ink Able 2-in-1 price in India is Rs.24,990.  The device is available exclusively on Snapdeal. At the time of writing this, Snapdeal is offering 10% discount on this product. Let’s have a quick Notion Ink Able 2-in-1 Review based on the pros and cons.

    Notion Ink Able 2-in-1

    Notion Ink Able 2-in-1 or Able 10 chassis and keyboard are made out of metal which gives a sturdy feeling. Though metal construction is good for durability, it adds a weight to the device. The Able 10 weighs around 655 grams which feels bit heavy.  Edges feels little sharp wheres there is a cut-outs for the ports. There is a labelling for each ports which is good. We felt Notion Ink could have done that with little more finess. Overall, the design and build quality of Able 10 is decent.

    Notion Ink Able 2-in-1 a

    Notion Ink Able 2-in-1 sports 10.1 inch IPS display panel with a 1280×800 pixel resolution. It supports 10 finger touch inputs. The viewing angles and brightness are pretty good on this device. The touch response is fairly accurate. Only thing which we didn’t like with the screen is its reflectiveness.

    Notion Ink Able 10 is powered by passively cooled 1.4GHz Intel Atom x5-Z8300 quad-core SoC with 4GB of RAM and 64GB of internal storage. In our review unit, the available user storage was around 40GB. The CPU cores have the ability to turbo upto 1.8GHz.  The performance of the Able 10 is pretty decent when it comes to media consumption. It was able to  play even 4K videos without any issues. In general usage like browsing, we have not faced any issue except opening heavy websites which consists of lot of graphics.

    Coming to the detachable keyboard dock, it is decent. Keys does have decent travel and provides good feedback. The trackpad does supports multi touch gestures for Windows 10. However, at times system failed to differentiate single finger swipe and three finger swipe. This resulted in minimising of all open apps.

    The connectivity options on the device includes Wi-Fi b/g/n, and Bluetooth 4.0 and 3G. For using the 3G on this, you need to manually feed the APN details. If you insert sim card while device is on, then you need to restart to get it recognised. Notion Ink able 10 comes with 8100mAh battery which in our tests lasted for more than 6 hours which is pretty good.

    Notion Ink Able 2-in-1 Review summary:  In comparison with other windows 2-in-1s in this price segment, Notion Ink Able 10 excels in most of the segments. Sturdy build quality, ample RAM and internal storage, 3G sim support, solid keyboard, decent display panel, good set of connectors makes this one of the best windows 2-in-1 in the price range.

    Apart from this, Notion Ink also provides SWAP warranty. If anything goes wrong with the device, the company will send you new 2-in-1 and later it will collect the non functional one.

    Having said all advantages, there is a room for improvements as well. Some of the cons of Notion Ink Able 2-in-1 are given in the pros and cons section.

    Advantages and Disadvantages of Notion Ink Able 2-in-1

    Pros of Notion Ink Able 2-in-1

    • Good build quality.
    • Decent display panel.
    • Solid keyboard.
    • 3G sim card support.
    • Decent performance.

    Cons of Notion Ink Able 2-in-1

    • Poor camera performance.
    • Feels bit heavy when using as tablet.
    • Minor glitches in Trackpad.

  • Asus Zenfone 3 FAQ Tips Tricks Cons

    Asus has finally launched  much anticipated Zenfone 3 range of  smartphones in India during Zenvolution press event last week.  Zenfone 3, Zenfone 3 Deluxe, Zenfone Ultra and Zenfone 3 Laser are the newly launched smartphones. The event also witnessed the launch of Zenbook 3 and Asus Transformer 3 Pro notebooks. In this post, let’s have a quick look into the  Asus Zenfone 3 FAQ Tips and Tricks with cons.

    Asus Zenfone 3

    Asus Zenfone 3 FAQ Tips and Tricks with cons

    What are the different variants of of Zenfone 3 are available in India?

    At the time of writing this, there are two variants of Asus Zenfone 3 are available in India. The one with 5.2 inch screen and the other one is having 5.5 inch screen. Zenfone 3(ZE520KL) with 5.2 inch screen model has 3GB of RAM and 32GB of internal storage. This variant comes with 2650 mAh battery. Zenfone 3(ZE552KL) with 5.5 inch screen model has 4GB of RAM and 64GB of internal storage. This variant comes with 3000mAh battery. Rest of the specifications such as Octa core Qualcomm Snapdragon 625  Soc with Adreno 506 GPU, 16MP primary camera and 8MP front facing camera, fingerprint scanner and connectivity features are identical.

    What are the different colour variants available?

    These smartphones will be available in Shimmer Gold, Sapphire Black, Moonlight White colour variants.

    What is Zenfone 3 price in India?

    Asus Zenfone 3 price in India is given below.

    • Zenfone 3(ZE520KL) with 5.2 inch display screen price in India is Rs.21,999.
    • Zenfone 3(ZE520KL) with 5.5 inch display screen price in India is Rs.27,999.

    Both the variants can be purchased from Amazon.in as well as from Flipkart.

    What is the size of the sim cards Zenfone 3 accepts? Does it has dedicated microSD card slot? What is the maximum capacity of the microSD card it supports?

    Newly launched Asus Zenfone 3 comes with hybrid sim card slot. It accepts 1 micro SIM card and 1 nano SIM card. There is no dedicated microSD card slot. Instead of 2nd sim card, you can use microSD card.  It supports upto 2TB of microSD card.

    How is the Zenfone 3 camera performance? What are the camera specification?

    Zenfone 3 comes equipped with 16MP primary camera with Sony IMX298 sensor, six-element Largan lens with a large f/2.0 aperture, and subject-tracking TriTech auto-focus. It has Sapphire-glass lens protection. The camera on Zenfone 3 has both optical and electronic image stabilization for blur-free shots and video along with a color-correction sensor for true-color photography. It also supports true 4K UHD video recording. The exclusive TriTech auto-focus technology combines three focusing technologies — laser, phase detection and continuous contrast-detection autofocus.  We will not be able to tell on the real life camera performance as of now as we have spent very time with the device. We will cover it in the detailed review.

    Below is the sample video recorded using Zenfone 3 ZE520KL variant in full HD.

    What are the connectivity options of Zenfone 3? Does it supports VoLTE?

    The connectivity options of the device includes 4G with support for Reliance Jio VoLTE, Bluetooth 4.2, Type-C USB 2.0, WIFI 802.11ac Up to Cat 7 LTE, 5G/2.4G MiMO Wi-Fi. As per the press release, it does supports Reliance Jio VoLTE.

    What are the box content of Zenfone 3?

    In the box we get USB Cable Type C, ZenEar, Adaptor, User Manual & Warranty Card.

    Does the display screen has Corning Gorilla Glass protection? What is the screen to body ratio?

    Yes. It does comes with Corning Gorilla Glass 3 protection. The screen to body ratio on these device is around 76%.

    What are Zenfone 3 Cons?

    This is the not the review. The detailed cons of the device will be known only after we perform the complete review.  As of now, we felt these are the cons of Zenfone 3.

    • No backlit navigation keys.
    • Hybrid sim card slot.
    • Lot of bloatware out of the box.

    How to take screenshot on Zenfone 3?

    There are several methods through which you can capture screenshot on Zenfone 3. Most of them are identical to Zenfone 2. You can refer to my previous post on how to take screenshot on Zenfone.

    Is it possible to use Zenfone 3 as modem?

    You can share mobile internet from Zenfone 3 to PC through WiFi hotspot, USB tethering and Bluetooth tethering.

    How is the fingerprint scanner in Zenfone 3?

    Zenfone 3 comes with fingerprint scanner which is placed in the rear side of the device. We felt it was fast and accurate. It supports upto 5 finger registration. It also has 360 degree recognition.

  • LeEco Le 2 Vs Lenovo Vibe K5 Note Which one is better

    LeEco Le 2 and Lenovo Vibe K5 Note are the two popular budget Android smartphones in India. Aggressive  pricing combined with good hardware and good aesthetic is the key attraction of these smartphones.  It is very difficult to choose the right smartphone. This post might help you to take the decision on which phone to choose from. So let’s begin the LeEco Le 2 Vs Lenovo Vibe K5 Note comparison.

    LeEco Le 2 Vs Lenovo Vibe K5 Note

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    Comparison of LeEco Le 2 Vs Lenovo Vibe K5 Note

    Design and Build Quality

    • LeEco Le 2: 74.2×151.1×7.7mm and weighs 153 grams.
    • Vibe K5 Note:  It measures 75.7x152x8.49 mm and weighs 165 grams.

    Both smartphones features good design and build quality. LeEco Le 2 with thin bezels feels comparatively compact and more premium. Having said that, Vibe K5 has decent build quality. But comparing LeEco Le 2 vs Lenovo Vibe K5 Note,  we felt Le 2 is better.

    Winner: LeEco Le 2

    Display

    • LeEco Le 2: 5.5inch full HD display screen with 401 ppi pixel density.
    • Vibe K5 Note: 5.5 inch full HD display screen.

    Display panel on both devices offers good viewing angles, colour saturation and brightness.  There is no clear winner in this segment. However, we have  bit concerns on the quality control issue on the display quality of Le 2.

    Winner: Draw

    SoC, RAM and OS

    • LeEco Le 2: Octa core Qualcomm Snapdragon 652 with 3GB of RAM, Adreno 510 and runs on Android 6.0.1 Marshmallow.
    • Vibe K5 Note: 1.8GHz Octa Core 64 Bit Helio P10 SoC with 3GB/4GB of RAM, Android 6.0 Marshmallow.

    In our review, both device performance was good. However, we felt multitasking ability of 4GB variant of Lenovo Vibe K5 Note is slightly better.  Also, custom skin on Le 2 is bit heavier and has lot of bloatware. In Vibe K5 Note bloatware is present but we have the option to remove some of them.

    Winner: Lenovo Vibe K5 Note

    Storage

    • LeEco Le 2: 32GB of internal storage with no option to add microSD card.
    • Vibe K5 Note: 32 GB with optional microSD card.

    Lenovo Vibe K5 note has hybrid sim card slot which allows you to add microSD card if you are ready to compromise on the second sim card. Whereas in Le 2, we don’t have option to add microSD card. Considering both smartphone comes with 32GB of internal storage, Vibe K5 Note is a better in this segment.

    Winner: Lenovo Vibe K5 Note

    Camera

    • LeEco Le 2: 16MP primary camera with  f/2.0, phase detection autofocus, dual-LED (dual tone) and 8MP front facing camera
    • Vibe K5 Note: 13MP primary camera and 8MP front facing camera.

    Camera performance of Le 2 is marginally better in good lighting conditions. In Low light and artificial light conditions, K5 Note performs better. Option to record videos in 4K resolution is the advantage of Le 2 in this segment.

    Winner: LeEco Le 2.

    Battery

    • LeEco Le 2: 3000 mAh battery with fast charging.
    • Vibe K5 Note: Li-Ion Polymer, 3500mAh battery.

    As seen on the specification, Vibe K5 Note has better battery life than Le2 though it is not with huge margin.

    Winner: Lenovo Vibe K5 Note

    Price

    • LeEco Le 2: Rs.11,999. It is available in flipkart and LeMall via flash sales.
    • Lenovo Vibe K5 Note: Rs.11,999 for the 3GB RAM variant and Rs.13,499 for the 4GB RAM variant. Both variants has 32GB internal storage.

    For the 3GB RAM variant, both the smartphones has same price.

    Winner: Draw

    Miscellaneous

    Here are some of the features which one device has and the other doesn’t.

    LeEco Le 2: IR Blaster, VoLTE support out of the box, bundled media subscription, USB-C type port.

    Lenovo Vibe K5 Note: Thetermax, Dolby Atmos. VoLTE is not supported out of the box. This features according to company will be added via OTA update.

    Winner: LeEco Le 2.

    Verdict on  LeEco Le 2 Vs Lenovo Vibe K5 Note: As you can see in the comparison, the the difference between the two phones are very marginal. It is upto each individual to choose based on their requirement.

  • Huawei P9 Top 5 Features Price Specification

    Huawei smartphones, world’s 3rd largest smartphone manufacturer, launched its much anticipated Huawei P9 in India. It is priced at Rs.39,999 and will be available via Flipkart.  The biggest USP of this smartphone is its 12MP dual rear camera. Let’s have quick look into the top 5 features of Huawei P9 according to us.

    Huawei P9

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    Top 5 Features of Huawei P9

    Camera

    Huawei P9 signature feature is its camera. It comes with 12MP dual camera which is co engineered by Leica, the globally renowned manufacturer of cameras and sport optics. The two 12MP camera sensors are placed side by side. One of them being a normal RGB sensor and the other being a monochrome one. The colour sensor captures the colours information of the scene, and the monochrome sensor captures more light and details. Software then takes the information from both the sensors and creates a single colour image.

    The two lenses also gives better depth of field perception which allows you to refocus on different part of the picture after the shot is taken. The camera on Huawei P9 has hybrid auto focus system. What it means is that, it uses laser and phase detection auto focus methods together. Apart from this, P9 also supports RAW format pictures, long exposure night shots and pro-shooting modes.

    Power and Performance

    Huawei P9 is powered by all new Kirin 955 chipset with flagship FinFET Plus 16nm chip technology which is said to offer much better performance compared to previous generation 28nm chipsets.  This octa core processor has 4 Cortex A72 cores clocked at 2.5GHz and 4 Cortex A53 cores clocked at 1.8GHz.

    The powerful Mali-T880 GPU ensures seamless gaming experience with 100% increase in GPU performance with the inclusion of an additional arithmetic pipeline allowing for greater computation. It also has rapid eMMC 5.1 based flash memory chip. Running on latest EMUI 4.1 OS on top of Android 6.0, it offers smooth user experience.

    Triple Antennas for seamless connectivity

    Huawei P9 comes with a virtual triple antenna technology. It provides better signal reception irrespective of the position you hold your phone. Better RF performance system automatically switches to the antenna with the best signal to prevent dropped calls.

    Fingerprint identification 2.0

    Huawei P9 has 2nd generation Swedish designed FPC fingerprint sensor which is promised to unlock the screen in just 0.5 seconds. This fingerprint scanner is designed such away that, it learns more about your fingerprint as you use it and prevents failed identification caused by wet hands or partial fingerprints.

    Fingerprint scanner on Huawei P9 has Replay Protected Memory Block(RPMB) technology which encrypts and stores fingerprint data in a separate secure storage area. This ensures, fingerprint data cannot be accessed even if the phone is rooted.

    Display

    Huawei P9 sports 5.2 inch full HD(1920×1080 pixel) display screen with 423 ppi pixel density. It has 10 point multi touch support with manual colour temperature controls. The screen has 2.5D Corning Gorilla glass protection. It has screen to body ratio of 72.9%. The fully laminated LTPS GFF screen has less reflection.

    Huawei P9 Specification

    • 5.2 inch full HD(1920×1080 pixel) display screen with 423 ppi pixel density.
    • Kirin 955 chipset with flagship FinFET Plus 16nm chip technology.
    • 3GB of RAM and 32GB of internal storage(Around 24GB user available storage).
    • Dual 12MP rear camera with f/2.2mm, Leica optics lens.
    • 8MP front facing camera.
    • Android 6.0 Marshmallow with EMUI 4.1.
    • 3000 mAh battery.
    • Fingerprint identification 2.0.

    This is not a complete review on Huawei P9. We will be doing an indepth review on the actual real performance in the coming days.