Apple has surprised us today by offering a brand new generation of the iPad and it’s the 7th-generation iPad that comes with a bigger display and also a better performance. Not only that, the iPad 10.2 also comes with a smart connector so you can also connect an external keyboard similar to the iPad Air.
Since we’re getting the iOS 13, the iPad 10.2 will also support external flash drives and of course, get the features that we love on the iOS 13. This tablet will also support the Apple Pencil 1 which is used by the first iPad Pro and also the iPad Air & iPad Mini.
The tablet will still have a home button with a fingerprint scanner or Touch ID and unfortunately, the processor is still A10 Fusion Chip which is getting dated already.
Apple Arcade wants to change the game in the Apple ecosystem by offering subscription-based games on the App Store. Instead of buying games or even downloading in-app purchase heavy games, you’ll be having a game that is premium and it won’t be relying too much on in-app purchases and it will be a console-level experience.
Another attractive feature of Apple Arcade is that they’ll be arriving at the MacOS, iOS, iPadOS, and TvOS. Yep, once you subscribe to Apple Arcade, it will be downloaded to the device and you can play it anywhere you want.
Apple Arcade will be available this September 19 and it will have a monthly subscription of $4.99/month for the family subscription
The OPPO Reno comes in two variants – OPPO Reno 10x Zoom and the OPPO Reno which is a mid-range smartphone. And today, we’ll review the OPPO Reno, a mid-range smartphone that is focused for people who are on the creative side and who wants to have a more immersive experience on the smartphone. Check out what we think about the smartphone in our review.
OPPO Reno Review: Design and Construction
We already have a review of the OPPO Reno 10x Zoom here in case you’re curious about its bigger and better brother. Well, the OPPO Reno does have a lot of similarities to its bigger brother. First, the OPPO Reno is beautiful and it looks similar to the OPPO Reno 10x Zoom.
There’s the glass build on the back and front but this one has smaller dimensions since we have a smaller display. We also have one less camera on this smartphone and it loses the 60x zoom. But since the OPPO Reno is smaller, this one has a more ergonomic feel and it is handier compared to the Reno 10x Zoom.
But yeah, it’s still slippery so I suggest that you use the included plastic case on this smartphone. In case you’re not using the case, the smartphone doesn’t have a protruding camera so to avoid scratches on the glass of the camera, there’s a round dot at the back that protects the camera by stopping the smartphone to lie flat on a surface.
At the top is where you can find the “shark-fin” pop-up selfie camera and it does work well. You can also find the LED flash of the smartphone at the shark-fin pop-up camera of the smartphone. Below, you’ll be surprised to know that the 3.5mm audio jack exists on the smartphone alongside the USB-C that supports VOOC 3.0 Charging.
The smartphone also features an in-display fingerprint scanner and it was quite fast but there’s a face unlock too which will be just fine to use as this one doesn’t the slowest nor the fastest pop-up camera but it will do its job well.
OPPO Reno Review: Display
The OPPO Reno features a smaller 6.4-inch display but do not worry, we still have a Full HD+ resolution in here and there’s the AMOLED in-cell panel in here so the quality and the display quality of the smartphone is still the same. Yes, it’s immersive but since we got a smaller size and lighter body in here, this one is better to use in one hand compared to its bigger brother.
With regards to the quality, the colors are vivid and the smartphone is bright even at direct sunlight. Everything is fine on using the display of the smartphone.
OPPO Reno Review: Battery Life
The OPPO Reno features a 3765mAh battery inside. In our review, the smartphone can last a single workday of usage even with casual gaming on the side. I was able to get a score of 9 hours and 59 minutes in PC Mark which is just average but in my real-life usage, I didn’t ask for a powerbank on this smartphone.
But in case you’re worried about running out of battery life, there’s support for 20W VOOC 3.0 Fast Charging on the smartphone. However, I’m a little bit disappointed that I didn’t get to see the SuperVOOC Fast Charging in this smartphone.
OPPO Reno Review: Software
The smartphone also runs on ColorOS based on Android 9 Pie and inside, there’s spacious storage of 256GB too however, we got a lower RAM here at 6GB compared to the bigger brother’s 8GB RAM. So what can we expect on this one? Well, the UI is pretty snappy and there pretty useful included apps such as the Phone Manager for optimization and also ORoaming for your roaming needs. Overall, the ColorOS 6 on this smartphone is fast, snappy and I didn’t encounter any problems with its optimization and speed.
OPPO Reno Review: Performance
One of the biggest difference of the OPPO Reno compared to its bigger brother is its performance. Inside this smartphone is a Snapdragon 710 processor instead of the flagship Snapdragon 855 processor. Also, there’s a 6GB of RAM.
Don’t get me wrong here, the Snapdragon 710 processor inside this smartphone is still capable of playing a lot of games and I won’t have any problems working with this smartphone on my favorite apps and games. However, it won’t have the same experience as the Snapdragon 855 processor. Check out the benchmarks of the smartphone below:
In gaming, I can easily see that the settings can’t be maxed out unlike the Snapdragon 855 processor. But again, the Snapdragon 710 will still do just fine in both apps and games. Check out the Gamebench scores that I got on the smartphone:
OPPO Reno Review: Camera
Despite the lack of the third camera on the back of the smartphone that can be used for zooming, the OPPO Reno will do well as long as you don’t use your OPPO Reno for zooming. To give you an idea, the OPPO Reno still got a 48MP rear camera along with 5MP camera for depth sensing and then there’s the 16MP f/2.0 selfie camera on the “Shark-Fin” Pop-up camera.
If you’re worried about damaging the pop-up camera of the smartphone when you drop it, well, you don’t have to because the smartphone will automatically close the pop-up camera if the smartphone detects that the device is falling.
The camera features up to 4K@30fps video recording and of course, there’s the night mode that lets you capture night mode on the smartphone. If you’re curious about the camera, you can check out our shots using the OPPO Reno below:
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OPPO Reno Review: Verdict
The OPPO Reno is a decent mid-range smartphone when it comes to design. When it comes to performance, well, we do have a lot of smartphones that offers a more powerful processor. But if you’re looking for a stylish smartphone and you want to have an immersive feel or view on the smartphone then this one might be the right one for you.
And oh, the OPPO Reno does have a headphone jack which is a big plus for some people.
Realme C2 2020 has finally arrived in the Philippines and it’s the same Realme C2 that we’re getting before except that we’ll be having a bigger storage on the smartphones. This makes the Realme C2 still an attractive budget smartphone for everyone.
The Realme C2 2020 will still be getting the original specs and design that we’re seeing on the current Realme C2 but this time, we’ll see a double storage capacity on the two variants but still maintain the same original budget-friendly retail price of Php5,490 and also Php6,490.
Realme C2 2020 Specs
6.1-inch HD+ Dewdrop Full-Screen display
Helio P22 Octa-Core Processor
2GB/32GB, 3GB/64GB expandable via MicroSD
13MP f2.2 + 2MP rear camera
5MP front camera
Face Unlock
WiFi, GPS, A-GPS, Bluetooth
Face Unlock
ColorOS 6 based on Android 9 Pie
40000mAh battery
This upgrade in storage is a welcome upgrade for the smartphone as a lot of people find the 16GB storage inside smartphones these days really lacking for the needs of most users.
If you want to get the Realme C2 2020, you may get it right now and customers may also avail up to 9 months installment via Home Credit Easy Plan.
Huawei has just unveiled The Kirin 990 chipset and it’s the world’s first 5G SoC and it is capable of 5G connectivity so you can experience the fast 5G speeds on your smartphones in the future. The Kirin 5G will feature an upgraded performance, power efficiency, AI computing, and ISP.
What can we expect from the Kirin 990 chipset? Well, we do have a 7nm+ EUV manufacturing process and it comes with an integrated 5G modem with lower power consumption. Not only that, the chipset is also the first full-frequency 5G SoC to support both non-standalone (NSA) and standalone (SA) architectures as well as TDD/FDD full frequency bands. The chipset will also provide a downlink of 2.3Gbit/s and an uplink peak rate of 1.25 Gbit/s which will deliver an unmatched 5G experiences.
The Kirin 990 5G will also come with a dual-core NPU that is built on the Da Vinci architecture that is comprise of a large NPU cores and tiny NPU cores. If you’re into performance and heavy computing, the large cores will be able to compute that while the tiny core structures are made for the ultra-low poewr comsumption applications.
The Kirin 990 5G will also feature a 2.86GHz frequency and then there’s the 16-core Mali-G76 GPU inside and new system-level Smart Cache for intelligent flow distribution that can save bandwidth and have a better power consumption. The processor also supports Kirin Gaming+ 2.0 which will help you in terms of gaming.
The Kirin 990 (5G) will also provide a new ISP 5.0 that pioneers block-matching and 3D filtering for better hardware noise reduction. With these added features on the Kirin 990, you can have a better noise reduction and sharper images even at low light.
The Huawei Mate 30 series is expected to run on Kirin 990 series chips and it will be out this September.
The OPPO A9 2020 is expected to arrive here in the Philippines as the company has just posted a teaser of the OPPO A9 2020 which is expected to to arrive in the Philippines soon. The smartphone features a notched display and also a design similar to the F-series but this one will pack a quad-camera lens.
The smartphone will feature a 48MP main camera along with the 8MP ultra-wide angle lens and also a 2MP mono lens and 2MP portrait lens. The OPPO A9 2020 will also come with a Snapdragon 665 processor, 8GB RAM, 128GB storage, 6.5-inch display, and a 5000mAh battery.
The OPPO A9 2020 is expected to arrive in the Philippines this month.
The Brickyard by Lil’s Hobby Center has expanded to its doors in Ayala Malls Vertis North last July 29 and hobbyists, enthusiasts and fans from the north are really excited as they’ll now be able to create, connect, and compete with other people in the community.
The Brickyard by Lil’s Hobby Center at Ayala Malls Vertis North is the second branch to open after the Glorietta 2 branch and the community has continually brought the community by sustaining and expand the popularity of the hobbies as an enjoyable activity for everyone.
Along with the opening of the new branch is the Mini 4WD Philippine Cup in where the competition is composed of a series of races around the country and it started at the Circuit Makati last August 24 to 25. The winners of this tournament will be crowned as Philippines champions and also the representative for the 2020 Asia Challenge in Taiwan.
The Brickyard is planning to expand this coming year and they’re planning to expand outside of Metro Manila. If you want to check out the Brickyard at Ayala Vertis North, you can find it on the 2nd floor of Ayala Malls Vertis North Building 4.
Samsung Philippines Facebook page has just teased us the upgraded version of the Galaxy A50 — the Samsung Galaxy A50s. The Galaxy A50 is proved to be successful as the smartphone packs a pretty good midrange specifications that can really match against the Chinese brands and also some features that are really enticing to the consumers and now, the Korean company has added some cool features like a better camera and also a facelift at the back of the smartphone that features a geometric patterns at the back.
The Samsung Galaxy A50s got an upgraded camera that now features a 48MP main camera which is up from 25MP main camera and 32MP selfie camera which is now up from 25MP selfie camera.
At the back of the smartphone, it now comes in Prism Crush Black, Prism Crush White, Prism Crush Violet and Prism Crush Green which are totally new since we’re getting a geometric design at the back of the smartphone.
The Samsung Galaxy A50s is expected to be unveiled soon so be sure to stay tune.
The market is filled with Huawei Y series smartphones that are being offered in the its price range and if you’re looking for an affordable or an entry-level Android smartphone then you might want to take a look at this smartphone – the Huawei Y5 2019.
Huawei Y5 2019 Review: Design and hardware
One of the most notable features of the Huawei Y5 2019 is its design. We got here a faux leather design at the back which is a trend on previous flagship smartphones but doesn’t get me wrong, the Huawei Y5 2019’s faux leather design still looks good to me and I do love it especially for an entry-level smartphone.
The smartphone has a small body thanks to its 5.71-inch display and it’s very handy for single-hand usage. With its size, the Huawei Y5 2019’s power button and also the volume rocker can be easily reached in one hand.
The Huawei Y5 2019 is using a micro USB port and there’s no fast charging capability on this smartphone and then there’s the speaker beside it and the 3.5mm headphone jack at the top of the smartphone and then there’s also a sim card tray that houses the dual sim cards and a micro SD card.
With regards to the audio of the smartphone, it will do just fine for an entry-level smartphone.
Huawei Y5 2019 Review: Display
When it comes to display, the Huawei Y5 2019 features a 5.71-inch Dewdrop display with an HD+ resolution. First of all, I’ve considered that the smartphone packs an entry-level specifications but I was surprised to know that the display of the smartphone was quite good despite being an entry-level smartphone.
The brightness was fine even when I’m using the smartphone outside and the quality of the display was crisper than I expected despite having only an HD+ resolution. Maybe because of the screen size but overall, the display of the Huawei Y5 2019 was quite good for its price range.
Huawei Y5 2019 Review: Battery Life
There’s a 3020mAh battery inside the Huawei Y5 2019. For its size, that’s pretty large and in our PC Mark battery test, the Huawei Y5 2019 performed well in our benchmark tests. Actually, I wasn’t surprised that the smartphone got a respectable battery life with a score of 10 hours and 17 minutes which isn’t that bad.
Huawei Y5 2019 Review: Software
The smartphone runs on EMUI 9 with Android 9 Pie. Again, it’s an entry-level smartphone but the smartphone was pretty snappy and the smartphone was easy to navigate. Yes, it’s also user-friendly so you won’t have a problem with it. Of course, it comes with different apps such as optimizer, AppGalllery, Ride Mode and more.
Huawei Y5 2019 Review: Performance
The Y5 2019 runs on Helio A22 chipset paired with PowerVR GE8320 GPU and a 2GB RAM. Basic tasks will do just fine on the smartphone and if you’re planning on playing games on the smartphone. of course, it can still do some games including Mobile Legends and surprisingly, the smartphone was able to run NBA 2k19 but before we got down to gaming, let’s check out the benchmarks of the smartphone:
In gaming, the Helio A22 chipset of the Huawei Y5 2019 performed better than I expected. I was able to run games ranging from Mobile Legends, NBA 2k19, and PUBG Mobile on the smartphone. The games are playable as long as you set it down to the lowest settings possible on the smartphone
The smartphone packs a 13MP rear camera with a 5MP front camera. Well, my expectations on the smartphone are low since this is an entry-level spec’d smartphone and in our test, you can get what you pay for in this smartphone.
The Huawei Y5 2019 can capture nice colors as long as there’s a decent lighting condition but the shots are bad at lowlight and no, there’s no night mode on this smartphone. Some of the shots that I took are a little bit overexposed despite and it becomes really soft when there’s not much light. On selfies, the smartphone will give you paler colors and softer images but hey, this is an entry-level smartphone.
Check out the shots that we took using the smartphone.
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Huawei Y5 2019 Review: Verdict
The smartphone is surprisingly a decent one for its price range. It might not be a perfect smartphone but for an entry-level smartphone, it does its job well. Yes, there’s no fingerprint scanner in here and the camera of the smartphone wasn’t that good but the performance and the display of the Huawei Y5 2019 is something that you’ll love.
The Samsung Galaxy M series is known for being the online-only smartphone series of Samsung but they do have interesting hardware inside. The Samsung Galaxy M30 comes with a large battery life that can last up to 25 hours of video usage and then there’s the triple-lens rear camera and a large 6.4-inch Super AMOLED Full HD+ Infinity U display.
Samsung Galaxy M30 Specs
Exynos 7904 Octa-Core Processor
6.4-inch Super AMOLED Full HD+ Infinity-U Display
64GB Internal storage expandable via MicroSD
4GB RAM
13MP main camera + 5MP ultrawide + 5MP depth sensor
16MP selfie camera
LTE, Dual SIM
5000mAh battery
15W fast-charging
Android 9 Pie with One UI
The Samsung Galaxy M30 will be available this September 9 at Lazada and it will come with a free JBL Go 2 Bluetooth speaker worth Php2,299. The Samsung Galaxy M30 will be available in Gradation Blue and Gradation Black for Php12,490