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Cherry Mobile Life Review

Jam Ancheta
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Cherry Mobile Life Review

Before, affordable Android devices didn’t performed that well and most of those devices can’t play some games but today, being an affordable device doesn’t mean that it doesn’t have the power to run demanding apps and games. I’ve been using this device for weeks now and I can say that the Cherry Mobile Life is one of those devices that perform really well despite having an affordable price. Why don’t you check out my review after the break?


The Cherry Mobile feels like any other affordable android phones around. The build quality of Cherry Mobile phones have improve over the years and I believe that the Cherry Mobile Life is quite solid for its price but this phone definitely doesn’t have the same build quality of its bigger and meaner Android smartphone brothers. The design of this phone is very simple and common but that makes the phone feel less flawed and solid.

The curvy back of the Cherry Mobile Life is very noticeable and thanks to the large power buttons and the very curvy back, the Cherry Mobile Life feels very comfortable to hold and use. The Cherry Mobile Life feels solid and there’s no hollow feeling at the back despite having a plastic build. The one that I got is the white one and the back looks like it is made up of pearl. The dimensions of the phone feels just right and the weight of the phone is not that heavy too.

The display size is just right for its price. 4” might be too small for many and playing games on the phone isn’t really ideal especially if that’s a game like Grand Theft Auto. Nonetheless, the WVGA display looks good and the colors were just right. The bezels wasn’t thick nor thin, holding the phone feels just right. The viewing angles were good too. However, the sunlight legibility didn’t fared well.

Inside the Cherry Mobile Life is a dual-core MTK6582 processor with a 512 MB RAM. Despite having a Dual-core processor, the smartphone performs really well although I experienced some lags and slowdowns sometimes. The 512 MB RAM is quite small for some but remember, this phone is priced below P4,000 so don’t expect too much from it. There’s a 4GB Internal storage too so

The battery is only rated at 1500mAh but it performed above my expectations, the Cherry Mobile Life was able to rake in a day of average use. Mostly use for calling and texting and a little bit of browsing and gaming. If you love playing games and you always turn on your 3G all the time, I doubt that the phone would last half a day. Better get a Powerbank or always bring your charger if you’re that type of person. The sound quality of the Cherry Mobile Life was already acceptable. Not the greatest that I’ve heard on a smartphone but it isn’t bad for its price.

The Cherry Mobile is running on Android 4.2.2 . It isn’t the latest version but if you’re the type of person who just want to play casual games, text and call then you probably won’t care about the latest update of Android. There are not that much apps that are pre-installed on the phone which is quite good. I strongly suggest that you put your media files on the MicroSD card because the 4 GB internal storage with only a few left for consumption. You can root the phone to maximize it more but remember, THAT WOULD VOID THE WARRANTY OF THE PHONE.

There’s a 512 MB RAM and a Dual-Core MTK6582 processor inside which was really amazing. And no, don’t get me wrong here guys. The performance wasn’t able to beat the MTK6592 which is the current quad-core offering of Mediatek which can be found on most local branded smartphones of 2013. On games, I was shocked that it performed really well. On Real Boxing, the Cherry Mobile Life was ab;e to play it smoothly however, there were some lags and slowdowns on transitions on menu. I still have no idea why that happened.

When playing games, the phone didn’t really had a heat issue. Yes, the phone was getting warmer but it didn’t get to the point in where the phone was really hot. Just like what I’ve said, the processor inside it perform really well and I wasn’t surprised that the Cherry Mobile Life got an Antutu score of 10847.

The camera of the Cherry Mobile Life didn’t fared well on my review. The camera of the Cherry Mobile Life was able to shot images fast but the 5 Megapixel shooter produces a lot of noise and the colors of the images that I took wasn’t really that accurate. Overall, the camera of the phone wasn’t that good. Why don’t you judge the photos for yourselves?

The Cherry Mobile Life isn’t really the best smartphone that you could get in the market but the price of the phone is really attractive and affordable. If you are near this price range or below P4,000, this is one of the best phones that you could have. But if you have more than that, you opt for a Cherry Mobile Flare 2x or Flare S which are better.

Sony sells VAIO PC business

Jam Ancheta
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Sony sells VAIO PC business

Sony VAIO

It’s time to say goodbye to the Sony VAIO PC line because Sony has decided to sell off their computer division to Japan Industrial partners which means that Sony will cease all planning, design and development of PC products. They’re planning on focusing on mobile devices and they blamed the “Drastic changes in the global PC industry”. I think Sony wants to ramp up their smartphone and tablet line by selling off their PC business which is getting weak and just focus on their mobile devices. I’m not really sure about the fate of their current VAIO laptops but I think it will still be supported by Sony. I’m pretty sure that Microsoft isn’t happy with this news.

Cherry Mobile Cosmos Z2 Unveiled: Their first Octa-Core smartphone

Jam Ancheta
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Cherry Mobile Cosmos Z2 Unveiled: Their first Octa-Core smartphone

Cherry Mobile unveiled 2 new phones including the Cherry Mobile Titan Pro which was recently previewed at their Facebook Page. Along with the Cherry Mobile Titan Pro was the Cherry Mobile Cosmos Z2, their next flagship phone. Cherry Mobile also announced new accessories for their Titan 2.0 series. Check it out after the break.

Cherry Mobile Titan 2.0 will now have 2 new battery pack which will give you more power and juices that’ll last all day.

We also had a chance to get a hands-on of the Cherry Mobile Titan Pro and we were able to see its features like the one hand easy which will let you use the smartphone in one hand by just tilting it and the screen will adjust for you. The Cherry Mobile Titan Pro also have Assistive touch and Gesture Shortcuts which are very useful features. There’s G pen alarm that’ll alarm you if your G Pen is missing and Suspension Preview which will give you previews of pictures in gallery and messages in the messaging app. The SRP of the Cherry Mobile Titan Pro is PHP10,999.

But the main attraction during the event was the Cherry Mobile Cosmos Z2 which is powered by the latest Octa-Core processor made my MediaTek. It was the first time that I’ve tried an octa-core phone. The phone was very solid and it was thin. Aside from the Octa-Core processor, the Cherry Mobile Cosmos Z2 would pack a 2 GB RAM, a 5.0” FHD IPS OGS display and there’s an 18 MP BSI camera with 8 Megapixel front camera.

I’ve tried the predecessor, Cherry Mobile Cosmos Z and I noticed that the first Cosmos Z wasn’t that buttery smooth compared to the Cherry Mobile Cosmos Z2. Maybe because, the Cherry Mobile Cosmos Z2 now packs a Mali GPU which was better than the PowerVR counterparts and 2 GB of RAM. I believe the Cherry Mobile Cosmos Z2 could now run most games smoothly even at FHD resolution

Cherry Mobile Cosmos Z2 Specifications

  • 1.7 GHz MediaTek 6592 Octa-core processor with Mali450-MP GPU
  • 5 “ FHD IPS OGS display with Dragon trail glass
  • 2 GB RAM
  • 16 GB Internal Storage
  • 18 MP BSI AF Camera with Flash
  • 8 MP FF front Camera
  • Dual Sim
  • 2000mAh
  • Clear Motion and Blur Free technology
  • Android 4.2 (Upgradeable to Android 4.4 Kitkat on March 2013)

One of the disappointments on this device was the small battery however, we can’t really say how it will perform because we haven’t tested the unit yet. Sometimes, even when the phone has a low battery rating, it performs really well. The Cherry Mobile Z2 is now available for P12,999, just the right price for a local flagship for the Filipino consumers.

JAM Online TV 001 – Starmobile Engage 9i, Cloudpad 800w and Lenovo-Motorola Deal

Jam Ancheta
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JAM Online TV 001 – Starmobile Engage 9i, Cloudpad 800w and Lenovo-Motorola Deal

This week two local Intel Atom-powered tablets were announced, the Cloudpad 800W and Starmobile Engage 9i. Those two tablets has the same 2.0 GHz Dual-Core Intel Atom Z2580 processor but they have a different specifications. Nonetheless, both of these tablets are priced below P10,000!. Another big news that I tackled this week was the Lenovo-Motorola Deal, so what do I think about it? Check it out after the break!

Be sure to subscribe to my Youtube channel to get the latest news!

Grand Theft Auto V is the best selling game of 2013

Jam Ancheta
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Grand Theft Auto V is the best selling game of 2013

No doubt that the GTA V was one of the best games that we’ve seen last year. Unlike the older Grand Theft Auto games, GTA V features 3 players that you can switch during missions and free mode. Yep, there’s Trevor, Michael and Franklin who has different personalities and specialties. Despite the lack of PC and next-gen consoles version, Grand Theft Auto V managed to shipped 32.5 million copies and it bagged the best selling game of 2013 title. Yep, I bought a Playstation 3 just to play this game. A lot of fans have been clamouring for the PC version but it seems Rockstar has no launch date yet.

Source: Take2Games

Starmobile Engage 9i: Intel Atom powered Android tablet with Full HD Display

Jam Ancheta
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0
Starmobile Engage 9i: Intel Atom powered Android tablet with Full HD Display

Starmobile recently announced their newest tablet offering — Starmobile Engage 9i. This is not your ordinary local branded tablet because the Starmobile Engage 9i will house a 2.0 GHz Dual-Core Intel Atom Z2580 processor inside just like the Cloudpad 800w. The Starmobile Engage 9i also sports an 8.9″ Full HD display. AFAIK, this is the first tablet to sport a Full HD display. Starmobile is also proud in its battery life that can last up to 18 hours of standby which is rated at 6500mAh. Like what I’ve said before, despite having a dual-core processor, it acts like a quad-core processor because of the hyper-threading technology. Why don’t you check out the full specifications after the break.
Starmobile Engage 9i Specifications

  • 8.9″ 1920×1200 display
  • 2.0 GHz Dual-Core Intel Atom Z2580 processor
  • 2 GB RAM
  • 16 GB Internal Storage
  • 5 MP Rear Camera + 2 MP Front Camera
  • OTG 
  • 6500mAh battery (18 days of standby or 8 hours of video)
  • Android 4.2.2
The Starmobile Engage 9i will be available this first week of February for PHP9,990. Not bad, right?

AKG Valentines Sale Promo

Jam Ancheta
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AKG Valentines Sale Promo

Beyond innovations is having a Valentines sale promo entitled “Listen to your heart”. Basically, when you buy a earphones/headphones of selected AKG earphones/headphones, you will get 50% off on the next one. For example, you buy two AKG K619, you can have it for P8,985.00 only instead of P11,980. This promo is only valid to these models: AKG K318, AKG K328, AKG K350, AKG K404 and AKG K619. The promo started last January 31, 2014 and will last up to Feb. 28, 2014.  So better hurry!

Design Beyond the Box’s Paper bag and win P60,000 worth of Gadgets!

Jam Ancheta
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0
Design Beyond the Box’s Paper bag and win P60,000 worth of Gadgets!

Are you a professional designer or just an Apple fan who loves Photoshop or Illustrator? Here’s your time to shine and win P60,000 worth of gadgets from Beyond the Box. What do you need to do? well, all you need is to make a design of Beyond the Box’s paper bag with the theme “We provide amazing gadgets, you create amazing things”. I’m interested on creating one but I’m not really that good when it comes to Photoshop and Illustrator hehe but I’ll give it a shot and maybe, I could win the top prize. If you are interested, check out Beyond The Bag contest page.

Flappy Bird: Addicting, frustrating and fun game

Jam Ancheta
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0
Flappy Bird: Addicting, frustrating and fun game

I barely got addicted to any mobile games except the Grand Theft Auto series but it looks like I just found a lightweight game from the Play store that made me forgot all the things that I need to do. Flappy bird is just 800++KB game and all you need to do is to tap your device to propel and avoid the pipes that looked like from Mario. It may sound easy but playing the game was frustrating and difficult. Yes, all you need is patience and perseverance. Why don’t you give it a try by downloading at the App Store and Play Store

Samsung Galaxy Note 10.1 2014 Review

Jam Ancheta
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Samsung Galaxy Note 10.1 2014 Review

When the Samsung Galaxy Note 3 was announced last year, its bigger brother, the Samsung Galaxy Note 10.1 2014 was announced along with it but it was released later than the Samsung Galaxy Note 3. The Samsung Galaxy Note 10.1 2014 was the third generation of the Samsung Galaxy Note 10.1 and it is the current flagship tablet of Samsung. That flagship title will soon be placed on its much larger tablet, the Samsung Galaxy Note Pro 12.2. I applaud Samsung for giving us more screen sizes but it also gives confusion on their products. Anyway, why don’t you check out my review of the Samsung Galaxy Note 10.1 2014 after the break.

The construction of the Samsung Galaxy Note 10.1 2014 was pretty much the same with the Samsung Galaxy Note 3 except that the Samsung Galaxy Note 10.1 2014 was larger. The Faux-leather back is still present at the back and there’s the plastic lined chrome sides which prevents it from slipping from your hand. I really love the looks and feel of the faux-leather back because it adds the feel of a notebook thanks to that textured back and the stitches on the sides. The faux-leather back also adds more grip to the tablet. Again, the Samsung Galaxy Note 10.1 2014 feels like a giant Samsung Galaxy Note 3.

The 10.1” display of the Samsung Galaxy Note 10.1 2014 looks really great thanks to that high pixel density and wide viewing angles. Because of the high resolution display of the tablet, paintings on the tablet were more accurate and sharp. After using many Android tablets, I think the perfect size for an Android tablet is still between 7”-8” but don’t worry, there are already a lot of Android apps that are already optimized for the 10” displays like Twitter. Just like the Samsung Galaxy Note 3, the sunlight legibility of the Samsung Galaxy Note 10.1 2014 was great too.

The bezel of the tablet wasn’t that big too and the size of it was just right. Holding it in one hand feels just right too but sometimes I accidentally press the capacitive buttons. Those capacitive buttons were made to bring a unified design to their smartphone line but these buttons were kinda awkward for a 10.1” tablet because of accidental press at portrait mode. The button was placed in the middle which is a little bit hard to reach when you’re holding the tablet using two hands.

Only the WiFi variant is available in the Philippines. Yep, there’s No LTE version here unless you buy a Samsung Galaxy Note 10.1 2014 from other countries. Unlike the Samsung Galaxy Note 3, the Samsung Galaxy Note 10.1 2014 uses a MicroUSB 2.0 instead of 3.0. That’s why you’ll have a slower transfer rates from your PC to your tablet. Samsung explained it to me before that they’ve used 2.0 instead of 3.0 because this tablet isn’t really made to rely on PCs/Macs.

The Samsung Galaxy Note 10.1 2014 also sports a larger 32 GB of internal storage with expandable storage via MicroSD card slot. I guess, the 32 GB storage is already enough unless you want to store all your HD movies and games on your Samsung Galaxy Note 10.1 2014. Anyway, there’s OTG if you want to use your external hard disk or USB. I barely used my OTG on the tablet though.

The variant that we’ll be getting is the one that has an Exynos Octa-core processor and it was the first time that I’ve used a device with Octa-Core Exynos processor. Don’t worry, the Exynos was powerful too just like the LTE variant’s Quad-core Qualcomm Snapdragon processor. There’s a 3 GB of RAM inside which is already enough for multi-tasking and Multi-window. The Samsung Galaxy Note 10.1 2014 is definitely one of the most powerful Android tablet around.

The Samsung Galaxy Note 10.1 2014 shines on the battery side. No, not literally. This tablet is rated at 8220mAh and it was able to last up to 10 hours of mid-heavy use. It was quite impressive for me. The speaker were placed on the upper side of the tablet which is nice because probably, your hand won’t block the speaker grill. The audio quality of the tablet was great too.

A Galaxy Note device wouldn’t be complete without the stylus included in it. The S-Pen included in the tablet feels better than the previous S-pens that I’ve tried but I guess they haven’t perfected it yet. The S-Pen was placed at the upper back of the tablet but I prefer it to be placed at the lower back instead of the upper back of the tablet. Sketching on the tablet was far better than the previous Note devices that I’ve used thanks to that better S-Pen and crisp display.

The Samsung Galaxy Note 10.1 2014 runs on Android 4.3 instead of Android 4.4 Kitkat. It is heavily skinned by Samsung’s Touchwiz UI which causes unwanted lags on the device. Again, if you’re already a user of the Samsung Galaxy smartphones, you won’t have a problem with it since the interface is very similar to the smartphone. I really liked how they did that because it brings less confusion and more familiarity to users. But of course, you would only be familiar to the interface because it is Samsung’s Touchwiz UI.

Just like the Samsung Galaxy Note 3, there were a lot of premium apps that are included on the tablet. To take advantage of the features of some apps, you have to use the S-pen but I barely used those premium apps included on the tablet. I love the WatchOn app on the Samsung Galaxy Note 3 but I wasn’t able to open it on the Samsung Galaxy Note 10.1 2014. I don’t know why it keeps on crashing. Basically, most of the apps that you can see on the Samsung Galaxy note 10.1 2014 is very similar to the one in the Samsung Galaxy Note 3. The S-Note app is similar to the one in the Galaxy Note 3 but this one is more optimized for the tablet and we all know that drawing on a larger screen is much better than the smaller one.

The Octa-Core processor inside the tablet is so powerful, all games that I’ve tried didn’t lag a bit. I’ve downloaded Modern Combat 4 and it was seamless and smooth. Remember, this tablet has a resolution of 2560×1600 which means that it needs more power than those flagship phones that we have right now. I also tried Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas which is probably one of the most demanding titles on Android right now but this game keeps on crashing after the loading screen but it suddenly worked and I was able to play it for a few minutes. I was very impressed with its gaming performance. However, I believe that Samsung needs to do something and fix their Touchwiz UI which keeps on lagging despite having a very powerful processor. The Samsung Galaxy Note 10.1 2014 got an amazing score of 33862 at Antutu.

The camera of the Samsung Galaxy Note 10.1 2014 is one the best that I’ve seen on a tablet. The camera isn’t the same or better with the one on the Samsung Galaxy Note 3 but the Samsung Galaxy Note 10.1 2014 has a better camera than the Nexus 7 2013. The colors were just right and the images that I took was sharp but still, the lowlight shots that I took are too noisy but the camera flash is already powerful for such environment.

Unlike the Samsung Galaxy Note 3, the Samsung Galaxy Note 10.1 2014 can’t record 4k videos. As far as I know, only the Snapdragon 800 powered Samsung Galaxy device and not the Exynos powered devices could only record 4k videos. But don’t worry, 4k displays are still too expensive and I believe that you won’t need those 4k resolution videos. Check out the video sample below:

The Samsung Galaxy Note 10.1 2014 is one of the most powerful Android tablets that you could avail right now. It might have a very powerful processor that is great for games but you might be disappointed with the Touchwiz UI in where I experienced some lags. The S-Pen and its new features might not be needed by everybody but it’s a nice addition especially if you are into the S-Note, Engineers and Architects would surely love this tablet.

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