One of the most anticipated tablets is finally here in the Philippines and it’s the Xiaomi Pad 5. The tablet is one of the most anticipated to arrive in the country as this one comes with a powerful Snapdragon 860 processor inside and there’s the large display too which is perfect for consumption of multimedia and games.
Another interesting feature of the Xiaomi Pad 5 is the WQHD+ 120Hz display which brings a clear and crisp display on the tablet which is perfect for watching movies along with the Dolby Atmos audio of the tablet.
As for gaming, there’s the Snapdragon 860 processor which will definitely perform well when it comes to apps and games on the tablet.
The Mi Pad 5 will come in 6GB+128GB and 6GB+256GB variants and they are priced at Php17,990 and Php19,990. There’s an early bird price of Php14,990 too and it comes with a free Xiaomi Smart Pen for the 6GB+128GB variant of the tablet.
The first Windows notebook from realme has finally arrived in the Philippines and it’s the realme Book! The notebook is powered by the latest 11th generation Intel Core processor and the notebook also comes with a large and crisp 14” 2K display but the best part about the notebook is its premium design as we got here an aluminum alloy body with a simple, minimalistic but a premium build quality.
The processor of the notebook comes in two variants – an Intel Core i3-1115G4 processor and Intel Core i5-135G7 Processor. It might not have a Core i7 variant but I’m pretty sure that these two processors can handle most tasks that you need on a notebook and even play some games with it.
As for the graphics, it comes with an Intel UHD graphics for the Core i3 variant and an Intel Iris Xe on the Core i5 but both variants will come with an 8GB LPDDR4X RAM with the Core i3 variant rocking a 3733MHz clock speed while the Core i5 variant comes with 4266Mhz variant. As for the storage, both comes with SSD with 256GB and 512GB storage for the Core i3 and Core i5 respectively.
The realme Book also comes with a loud and crisp HARMAN Speaker on the notebook and it also comes with a fingerprint power button for better security. Despite the thin bezels on the 14” 2K display of the notebook, the realme Book comes with a 720p HD camera.
For the Core i5 version, we can also get here a Thunderbolt 4 port which means that you can plug in your external GPUs or other devices that supports Thunderbolt 4 and then we also got here a WiFi 6 which means that you can get better speeds and latency with this variant of the realme Book
With all these features on the realme Book, this will surely attract people who are looking for a decent and premium PC for their everyday work or school.
The realme Book will come in two variants – The Intel Core i3 with 8GB RAM+512GB SSD while the Intel Core i5 will come with 8GB RAM+512GB SSD. As for the colors, both notebooks will come in real silver and real blue. For the pricing, they’re priced pretty good too.
The realme book has an SRP of
realme Book i3 – Php37,990
realme Book i5 – Php47,990
But you can get MORE DISCOUNTS with the Lazada Exclusive Pre-order promo! You can pre-order the notebook at Lazada from September 24 to 29 and you can get discounts on both notebooks! You can get the realme Book at the discounted price of:
realme Book i3 – Php29,990 from Php37,990 (Php8,000 discount)
realme Book i5 – Php41,990 from Php47,990 (Php6,000 discount)
The realme Book will also be available in Silicon Valley and you can get these freebies from the store starting October 1 and onwards.
realme Book i3 – Php37,990
realme Book i5 – Php47,990
Freebies: 1 year Microsoft Office 365 subscription, realme laptop bag and mouse.
The latest smartphone from realme is here and it’s the realme GT Master Edition. It’s a premium smartphone from the brand and it features a powerful Snapdragon 778G 5G processor inside and it also comes with a unique and premium suitcase design by Naoto Fukasawa.
The realme GT Master Edition will also come with a 6.43-inch Samsung Super AMOLED display with a 120Hz refresh rate so you can play and navigate on the smartphone smoother than ever and then there’s the 64MP triple lens rear camera which will make sure that you can capture really good shots on the smartphone.
As for the battery, we got here a 4300mAh battery and also a 65W SuperDart Charge, a feature that we definitely love on realme smartphones. Since we got here a Snapdragon 778G processor inside, the smartphone comes 5G so yes, you can download and play games without problems on the realme GT Master Edition.
The realme GT Master Edition will come in two variants — 8GB+128GB and 8GB+256GB. The 128GB variant will be Lazada exclusive while the 256GB will be available on both online and offline.
For the pricing, the realme GT Master Edition’s price is pretty good:
realme GT Master Edition 8GB+128GB – Php18,990
realme GT Master Edition 8GB+256GB – Php21,990
There will also be a whole day flash sale of the smartphone tomorrow and you can get it at a discount at Lazada:
realme GT Master Edition 8GB+128GB – Php17,490 from Php18,990
realme GT Master Edition 8GB+256GB – Php19,990 from Php21,990
You can also pre-order the smartphone offline from September 24 to October 1 and it will come with a free realme Smart Scale. You can claim the device this October 2 & 3.
The Samsung Galaxy Z Fold3 5G is the latest flagship smartphone of Samsung and it’s replaced the popular Note series which was introduced back in 2011. Samsung might have replaced the Galaxy Note series with their new foldable smartphones but they’ve brought the popular features of the Galaxy Note series to the Fold including the S Pen
It’s tougher and better
One of the things that they’ve improved on the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold3 5G is the build quality of the smartphone. They’re now using armor aluminum for its body so you know it’s tough and also solid and compared to the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold2 5G, this one is a lot better and more premium to hold.
Having armor aluminum for its body doesn’t mean that the smartphone would have a bulkier and heavier body. Actually, the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold3 5G is even lighter and even slimmer which makes it less bulky than the predecessor but if you’re used to using the normal monobloc phones then you might find the Galaxy Z Fold3 5G a little bulky when using in one hand.
As for the hinge, the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold3 5G’s hinge looks the same as before but the gap between the two displays when folded is narrower compared to the previous generation which makes the smartphone look better when folded and of course, less bulky.
On the right side, we still got here the fingerprint scanner of the smartphone which is pretty much the same as the previous generation of the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold and below, there’s the USB-C port of the smartphone and unfortunately, the smartphone can only support up to 25W of charging versus most smartphones in the market that has a faster charging now.
A better display
The Samsung Galaxy Z Fold3 5G comes with a 6.2-inch Dynamic AMOLED 2X display which is the same size as before and then there’s the 7.6-inch display inside. These might be the same sizes from the previous generation but these displays are an upgrade from the previous generation. First, there’s the 6.2-inch cover display that now features a smoother 120Hz refresh rate and inside, we now have a better foldable AMOLED Flex display with an under-display camera that hides the selfie camera of the smartphone.
But here’s the thing, I really appreciate the 120Hz display on the cover display of the smartphone but I barely use it for gaming so I still use the foldable display for that one but you can really appreciate the 120Hz cover display when you’re browsing the web or when you’re navigating thru the apps on your smartphone.
Thankfully, the cover display still packs a punch-hole selfie camera so we have a choice of using the under-display camera on the flex display of the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold3 5G or the punch hole camera on the cover display but we’re gonna talk about the quality of the cameras of the smartphone later on. As for the quality of the cover display of the smartphone well, I do like it and it’s very usable outside and again, the colors are vivid and nice since this one is an AMOLED display.
For the flex display of the Galaxy Fold3 5G, as expected, it’s nice and it’s way better than the previous generation when it comes to quality as I can have brighter and more accurate colors on this one. But for first time foldable smartphone users, you would still appreciate the beauty and the saturation of the AMOLED display from Samsung and yes, the creases are still here which isn’t a surprise for me as the crease is not new to me, and if you’re curious if it does affect my usage, well, no. I’m not so sure yet when it comes to using S Pen on the Galaxy Z Fold3 5G but overall, it’s still a good and accurate display when I’m using it.
As for the under-display camera, yes, the under-display camera of the smartphone is very noticeable as it tends to have slightly different colors. Despite not being a perfect under-display camera on the smartphone, I still love to have this feature because when I’m playing games like Genshin Impact on the smartphone, I tend to not notice the UDC of the smartphone but instead appreciate the full screen goodness of the foldable display of the smartphone that I’ve been using for gaming.
Overall, the foldable display and the cover display of the smartphone are an upgrade from the previous generation despite the same size. The 120Hz refresh rate is a nice addition to the cover display and whether I’m looking at photos or playing games, both displays are excellent in that matter.
Decent Battery Life
For the battery of this foldable smartphone, the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold3 5G comes with a 4400mAH battery which is a little bit smaller than the previous generation but that doesn’t mean that the smartphone doesn’t have a long battery life because I actually got the same battery life that I’m getting on my Samsung Galaxy Z Fold2 5G.
For this smartphone, I’m getting around 14-15 hours of battery life on normal usage and that’s a combination of using the cover display and also the foldable display of the smartphone. Basically, the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold3 5G will give you a whole day of battery life without problems on the smartphone.
A better software optimization
For the software, the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold3 5G comes with OneUI 3.1.1 based on Android 11 and yes, it was flawless for the smartphone and it’s an improvement over the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold2 5G. Most of the features that are now available on this smartphone are now available for the Galaxy Z Fold2 5G including better multi-tasking on the smartphone and pinning of the apps on the homescreen so you can have better multitasking on the smartphone.
One of the new features that I love on the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold3 5G is I can set an aspect ratio for individual apps which I find very useful as some of the applications that we’ve ran on the previous generation weren’t really that good because of the aspect ratio of the foldable display. And of course, since we got here a larger display on the smartphone, I could have more space for productivity as I can open apps side by side on the smartphone. With the labs in the settings, I can customize a lot more on the smartphone.
When it comes to gaming, I really appreciate that the smartphone doesn’t stretch out the apps anymore when I open games on the cover display then switch to the foldable display of the smartphone by unfolding it. So yeah, you don’t need to restart the app anymore in case you want to use the foldable display of the smartphone from the cover display.
As for the performance, we got here a Qualcomm Snapdragon 888 processor inside which is powerful enough and Samsung has managed to tone down the temperatures of the smartphone when playing games for a longer time. Basically, the smartphone can decimate most games that are available on the Play store without a problem.
We tried Genshin Impact on 60fps at the highest settings and as expected, I was able to get of up to 60fps on the smartphone but it wasn’t consistent as the game gets even heavier. Nonetheless, the game was enjoyable to play on the large screen. Not just that because we were also able to play PS2 games using DamonPS2 on the smartphone and it was flawless. We were also able to play Nintendo Switch games on the smartphone which is really taxing on most smartphones and even the flagship ones.
Not the best, but still a flagship camera
For the camera, the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold3 5G comes with triple-lens rear camera. There’s the 12MP wide-angle camera, 12MP ultra wide-angle camera, and then there’s the 12MP telephoto camera and it’s capable of up to 10x zoom on the smartphone. For the selfie camera, there’s the 10MP selfie camera on the cover display and then there’s the 4MP selfie camera on the foldable display of the smartphone.
And yes, they are on a flagship level and it’s way better than the one on the Samsung Galaxy Z Flip3 5G. The ones that we got on the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold3 5G are comparable to the ones on the Samsung Galaxy S21 series. In our shots, we got the nice colors on the camera and it was sharp at well-lit conditions but it’s a hit and miss for a flagship level on lowlight conditions.
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For zooming, I felt that the 10x zoom on the smartphone isn’t enough but at least, the 10x shots that we got on the smartphone gives enough details for the smartphone.
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As for the selfies, the 10MP selfie camera on the cover display of the smartphone was good and it’s a little bit better than the previous generation. Most of the time, we can shoot pretty good selfies on the smartphone in both well-lit conditions and at lowlight. Check out the shots that we took using the 10MP selfie camera of the smartphone.
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As for the under-display camera of the smartphone, there’s the 4MP selfie camera on the foldable display and it does offer a far inferior quality compared to the 10MP selfie camera of the smartphone. Shooting at decent lighting conditions will still give you an inferior quality and at lowlight, the quality drops drastically as it produces soft selfies on the smartphone.
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Samsung Galaxy Z Fold3 5G Review: Verdict
The Samsung Galaxy Z Fold3 5G is a more refined version of the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold2 5G but it comes with a lot of new features including a stronger build, an under-display camera, S Pen support, better display, and IP6X water resistance but the best part about the smartphone is the price. The Samsung Galaxy Z Fold3 5G’s starting price is Php87,990 which is way lower compared to the previous Galaxy Fold smartphones.
The hardware and features definitely mean that the smartphone is made for those people who want the best flagship smartphones in where they can be productive as we got here a large display and also powerful hardware and features inside.
You might not be a fan of the camera as this one is still far from the one on the ultra version but this one still got the chops to perform like a flagship smartphone. As for the build, well, the bulky and thick body of the smartphone might not be for everyone but I’m pretty sure that you’ll appreciate the foldable form factor of this one when you use the smartphone for browsing content and for work.
The Samsung Galaxy Z Fold3 5G is definitely for those people who are always on the go and wants to have a powerhouse in their pocket whether they want it for gaming or for work. I’m pretty sure that you’ll appreciate the S Pen support and the large foldable display of the smartphone. These things makes the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold3 5G the king of foldable smartphones.
If you want something more portable but still a foldable and a more affordable one, you can go for the Samsung Galaxy Z Flip3 5G.
The Samsung Galaxy Z Fold3 5G is now available in the Philippines and you can get it for Php87,990 for the 12GB+256GB variant.
Microsoft has finally announced the successor of the Surface Duo and this time, we now have a lot of improved features. The Surface Duo 2 comes with a dual 5.8-inch display with 1892×1344 resolution AMOLED displays. Not only that, the smartphone also comes with a triple-lens rear camera which is missing from the previous generation.
Compared to the previous generation, the Surface Duo 2 comes with a 90hz display and also a curved display on the sides so you can use one side of the smartphone for checking notifications when it’s closed.
For the processor, the Surface Duo 2 comes with a Qualcomm Snapdragon 888 processor along with an up to 512GB internal storage and 8GB of LPDDR5 RAM. For the camera, the smartphone comes with a 12MP main camera, 12MP telephoto camera, and a 16MP ultra-wide camera.
The Surface Duo 2 will also support the Surface Slim Pen 2 so you can be more productive on the smartphone and you can magnetically connect it to the Surface Duo 2 to charge it. The smartphone comes with 4449mAh battery along with 23W fast charging.
The Surface Duo 2 starts at an expensive price of USD$1,500.
Smart Communications, Inc. (Smart) has once again teamed up with esports event organizer, Eplayment Entertainment, to power up Liga Adarna Season 4.
Known as the country’s biggest and only all-female esports league, the fourth installment of Liga Adarna is entitled Race to the Top. The tournament is graced by the country’s top female esports players, battling themselves out in four different games.
The players will fight over the prize pool of Php220,000 and will go head-to-head in:
Mobile Legends: Bang Bang
Valorant
Call of Duty: Mobile
League of Legends: Wild Rift
Mobile Legends and Call of Duty Mobile will be contested in three rounds, such as open qualifier, elimination rounds, and playoffs. Valorant will have two rounds (group stage and playoffs), while there will be a single tournament for WildRift.
The tournament will run from September 17 until December 19.
Fans can catch the livestream of the games on the Liga Adarna’s Facebook page at www.facebook.com/ligaadarna.
Lenovo is bringing its gaming devices to a higher level with Intel, as it introduced its latest Legion X60 Intel gaming laptop lineup, including the IdeaPad Gaming 3i, Lenovo Legion 5i, Lenovo Legion 5i Pro, and Lenovo Legion 7i.
LENOVO IDEAPAD GAMING 3i
Powered by up to 11th Gen Intel Core i7 processor and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 30 series graphics, the new IdeaPad Gaming 3i laptop provides users with ultra-smooth performance even when playing games with high graphics demand.
It comes with up to 165Hz FHD IPS display, too, complemented with a Nahimic surround sound audio for an improved gaming experience. Meanwhile, its keyboard is designed with a 1.5mm key travel, white backlit, and an optional four-zone RGB.
The IdeaPad Gaming 3i laptop is available in Shadow Black with a starting price of Php59,995.
LENOVO LEGION 5i
Dressed in a clean minimalistic chassis, the Legion 5i is packed with the 11th Gen Intel Core processor, allowing users to enjoy 45W of dedicated power. It is also equipped with Legion AI Engine that supports Legion Coldfront 3.0 and Q control. This allows the device to shift power between the CPU and GPU. In addition, the machine is also geared with up to NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3060 graphics.
The Legion 5i gaming laptop flashes a 15-inch QHD display with a 165Hz refresh rate, and sports Nahimic 3D audio and the new Legion TrueStrike keyboard.
The new Lenovo Legion 5is comes in Phantom Blue and Stingray White color variants and will be available starting at Php72,995.
LENOVO LEGION 5i PRO
Meanwhile, the Legion 5i Pro is loaded with the latest 11th Gen Intel Core H-series processor paired with NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3070 graphics. It has a 16-inch QHD display that supports a 165Hz refresh rate, too. just like the 5i variant, it also comes with Nahimic 3D audio to provide an immersive gaming experience.
The Legion 5i Pro with Intel Core i7 and RTX 3070 is priced at Php124,995.
LENOVO LEGION 7i
The Lenovo Legion 7i, on the other hand, comes with the most powerful offerings.
It is powered by the latest-gen Intel Core processor and up to 165W NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3080 graphics. It is geared with the Legion AI Engine, supporting the next-gen Legion Coldfront 3.0 thermals and a high-performance vapor chamber.
Other notable features also include its WQXGA display, 165Hz refresh rate, and 3D Nahimic audio.
Consumers can get the Lenovo Legion 7i in Storm Grey variant for the price of Php169,995.
So, are you buying one?
Let us know what you think in the comment section below!
Cherry Cares by MSN Foundation spearheaded a donation drive for 38 hospitals across the National Capital Region.
The donation includes medical supplies, such as HazMats, KN95 face masks, and thermal guns—which are all helpful for the health sector in fighting the spread of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Some of the recipients include the following:
Ospital ng Maynila
Tondo Medical Center
Santa Ana Hospital
Gat Andres Bonifacio Memorial Medical Center
San Lazaro Hospital
Ospital ng Tondo
Justice Jose Abad Santos General Hospital
Dr. Jose Fabella Memorial Hospital
National Center for Mental Health
San Lorenzo Ruiz General Hospital
Ospital ng Malabon
Valenzuela Medical Center
Pasig City General Hospital
Quirino Memorial Medical Center
Pasay City General Hospital
Southern Tagalog Medical Regional Hospital
National Kidney and Transplant Institute
Navotas City Hospital
Meanwhile, it has to be noted that Cherry Cares has been donating medical supplies to hospitals and frontliners since the start of the pandemic last year.
Lenovo has officially launched the new ThinkSmart Core, providing consumers with a collaborative solution for hybrid work.
Lenovo was thrilled to announce that the ThinkSmart Core could deliver high performance and comprehensive hardware-based security features. This makes the device a modular room kit for meeting spaces that can provide users with impressive flexibility, scalability, and security.
The ThinkSmart Core is powered by an 11th Gen Intel Core vPro processor, paired with a whopping 256GB SSD. With this, users can expect that it can support any meeting room. In addition, it is thoughtfully designed, allowing users to place it discreetly in a room with a cleverly integrated cable management and VESA mount compatibility.
Meanwhile, the ThinkSmart Controller is a 10.1-inch point-to-point touchscreen that features a USB-C and a 10-meter cable. It can detect whenever participants enter the room with its integrated infrared sensors.
On the other hand, its integrated stand provides users with both 30-degree or 60-degree viewing angles, while a 3.5mm headphone jack delivers a direct audio connection.
Here are the two kit configurations of ThinkSmart Core:
ThinkSmart Core + Controller – designed for workspaces that are equipped with Teams-certified audio and visual devices
ThinkSmart Core Full Room Kit – comes with additional ThinkSmart Cam and ThinkSmart Bar to offer high-quality video and immersive audio. It supports huddle rooms, boardrooms, and home offices
ThinkSmart Core Kit comes with a year of Lenovo’s value-added software and services, including a license for ThinkSmart Manager Premium, Lenovo’s collaboration management software suite and ThinkSmart Professional Services: Deploy and Maintain.
The official date of availability and pricing of the Lenovo ThinkSmart Core in the Philippines is yet to be announced. You can also head to www.lenovo.com/ThinkSmart to contact your local representative for more details.
realme Philippines has announced that they are now the top 6 smartphone brand worldwide. realme has become the Top 6 smartphone vendor in the global rankings according to Counterpoint research and they are looking at 15 million shipments with 135.1% YoY growth in Q2 2021.
realme has surpassed the expectations of both the industry and also the customers as they expand to over 61 markets nationwide and ranking as a top 5 brand in over 18 markets and in the Philippines, they’re currently the #1 smartphone brand for Q1 and Q2 2021.
The smartphone brand is also expected to launch the realme GT Master Edition and the realme Book this September 23, 6PM which will even boost their lineup in the country.
