Category: Reviews

The latest phones and gadgets tested and reviewed in our labs

HMD Fusion 5G Review: Style Meets Repairability in the Budget Segment

HMD Global has introduced the Fusion 5G, a budget-friendly smartphone that promises a unique blend of style, customization, and practicality. Positioned at ₹17,999, the Fusion 5G comes with a bold design philosophy, a focus on repairability, and standout features like complimentary Smart Outfits. Aimed at casual users and those seeking a reliable yet customizable device, this smartphone enters a competitive segment where rivals often boast more advanced specifications. The Fusion 5G’s combination of easy repairability, decent performance, and excellent camera capabilities offers a refreshing take on what a budget phone can deliver. While it excels in some areas, it does make compromises in display quality and raw processing power. Let’s delve into the details to see how it stacks up against its competitors.

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Samsung Galaxy A16 5G Review: Casual, Comfortable and Classic

Samsung has quietly launched the Galaxy A16 5G, aiming to bridge the gap between affordability and practicality in the highly competitive budget smartphone segment. This device is targeted at users who need a dependable 5G smartphone for everyday tasks without paying a premium. It’s a strategic move from Samsung, which continues to solidify its presence across all price tiers. With an official price of ₹18,999, often discounted to ₹15,984 online, the Galaxy A16 5G competes with budget offerings from Xiaomi, Realme, and Motorola. This smartphone promises a balanced package of features that cater to casual users, emphasizing long-term software support and battery life. By combining Samsung’s signature build quality and ecosystem benefits, the A16 5G attempts to carve out its niche in a crowded market. Let’s explore its strengths and limitations in detail.

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vivo X200 Pro Review: Solid upgrade to vivo X100 Pro

vivo launched the X200 series in India today as the successor to last year’s X100 series. Here we have the X200 Pro, the top-end model in the series. This gets a brighter LTPO screen, faster processor, 200MP APO telephoto sensor which was first introduced in the X100 Ultra, ZEISS optics, and a huge 6000mAh battery. Is this the best camera phone to get in India right now? Let us dive into the review to find out. Continue reading “vivo X200 Pro Review: Solid upgrade to vivo X100 Pro”

iQOO 13 Review: The all-round flagship gets better

iQOO today launched the iQOO 13 smartphone in India as the second phone to be powered by Snapdragon 8 Elite SoC. This has several upgrades from the iQOO 12 in terms of display, performance, battery life and lots more while there is not much hike the price. Is this the best flagship phone in the market in the 50K price range? Let use dive into the review to find out. Continue reading “iQOO 13 Review: The all-round flagship gets better”

OPPO Find X8 Review: A solid flagship

OPPO launched the Find X8 series smartphones for the global markets and in India earlier last week, and here we have the review of the Find X8, the smaller model in the series. The company is launching the Find series phone in India after 4 years since the Find X2 series launch in 2020. Continue reading “OPPO Find X8 Review: A solid flagship”

OPPO Find X8 Pro Review: Back with a Bang

OPPO launched the Find X8 series smartphones for the global markets and in India earlier today, and here we have the review of the Find X8 Pro, the top-end model in the series. The company is launching a Find series phone in India after 4 years since the Find X2 series launch in 2020. Continue reading “OPPO Find X8 Pro Review: Back with a Bang”

Google Pixel 9 Pro Review: Compact camera flagship

Google launched the Pixel 9 Pro, the company’s latest flagship Pixel phone, back in August. Howver, the phone went on sale only in October after the Pixel 9 and the Pixel 9 Pro XL.

The Pixel 9 Pro sits in between these as a compact flagship, but with better screen and cameras, while retaining the same Tensor G4 SoC and the battery from the Pixel 9. Is it worth the price? Let us dive into the review to find out. Continue reading “Google Pixel 9 Pro Review: Compact camera flagship”

Google Pixel Buds Pro 2 Review: Comfort Max Ultra

In 2017, Google introduced the first-generation Pixel Buds, signaling its foray into personal audio devices. These earbuds featured real-time language translation and seamless integration with Google Assistant. The subsequent release of the Pixel Buds Pro series further solidified Google’s presence in the competitive true wireless earbuds market, offering features such as Active Noise Cancellation and spatial audio. To enhance its audio technology capabilities, Google acquired several audio-related startups, including Dysonics and Tempow, in 2020 and 2021, respectively. Also, in late 2020, Google acquired certain assets from Synaptics’ audio hardware division for $35 million. This transaction included patents related to audio hardware and active noise-canceling earbuds, as well as the integration of Synaptics’ staff into Google’s team. A combination of all these factors have now led to the creation of one of the most comfortable true wireless earbuds ever made, and that is the Google Pixel Buds Pro 2. Let’s dive in and find out what the latest audio product from Google means for us.

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ASUS TUF A14 (2024) review: Redefining thin-and-light gaming laptops

 

In the past, gaming laptops were known to be big, heavy devices that were difficult to carry around and got very hot during use. With the latest generations of CPUs and GPUs, it has become a lot easier for manufacturers to design a reasonably powerful gaming laptop while not sacrificing portability. The ASUS TUF A14 is one such example, powered by AMD’s latest Ryzen AI 9 HX series and NVIDIA’s GeForce 40-series GPUs, all packaged in a thin-and-light chassis. The TUF series of laptop’s aren’t as premium as the more expensive ROG laptops, so what compromises did they make for the latest TUF A14 and is it worth the price? Read on in my review to find out. Continue reading “ASUS TUF A14 (2024) review: Redefining thin-and-light gaming laptops”

Sony MDR-M1 Review: Professional Closed Monitor Headphones

Sony launched the MDR-MV1 Reference Monitor Headphones, designed for music creators, audiophiles, and sound engineers, a few weeks back as the successor to MDR-7506. It has a lightweight design, and comfortable fit, reducing ear fatigue during extended use and utilize a specially developed driver unit that achieves ultra-wideband playback from 5Hz to 80kHz. Here we have the review of the headphones. Continue reading “Sony MDR-M1 Review: Professional Closed Monitor Headphones”

Lenovo Legion Go Review — Chunky Powerplay

Gaming hardware is undergoing a radical miniaturization process, accelerated by the release of Valve’s Steam deck, which opened the gates for a form factor that has long been the favorite of nomadic PC gamers. “Handheld Gaming” machines got a boost with the release of the Nintendo Switch way back in 2017. Then Steamdeck happened in 2022. Since then, the market has expanded to include the PC manufacturers who have their own gaming brands. Companies like Lenovo are now able to expand into new territory, getting a boost beyond laptops, custom PCs and gaming accessories. Lenovo’s Legion is analogous to ASUS’ ROG Ally series and MSI Claw series. Lenovo has chosen to go for some interesting design decisions and are now firmly in the scene. Technically, this category of devices is still in the early adopter phase, so let’s dive in to the review, assuming we know this category is in its alpha stage and that battery life is the biggest hurdle to a seamless experience.

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vivo V40e Review: Subtle enhancements

vivo launched its V40e smartphone in India last month, as the successor to V30e which was launched a few months back. This retains the curved AMOLED screen with a 50MP eye AF camera inside the punch-hole, and a 5500mAh battery, but replaces the Snapdragon 6 Gen 1 SoC with Dimensity 7300 SoC. Is this the worthy upgrade to the V30e? Let use dive into the review to find out. Continue reading “vivo V40e Review: Subtle enhancements”

Apple iPhone 16 Plus Review: Upgraded performance, stellar battery

Apple launched the iPhone 16 series last month as the successor to iPhone 15 series. Here we have the iPhone 16 Plus, the bigger model in the series. This gets upgraded ultra-wide camera with macro option, Camera Control button, Action button, faster A18 chip with support for Apple Intelligence features, and a bigger battery, while retaining the same price. Continue reading “Apple iPhone 16 Plus Review: Upgraded performance, stellar battery”

ACEFAST 218W Desktop Charging Station Z4 Review

ACEFAST, popular for its chargers, cables and audio products, recently launched its 218W Desktop Power Station Z4 with 3 x USB-C Ports a USB Type-A port so that you can charge a MacBooks and other laptops or Ultrabooks, iPhones, and other smartphones at the same time. Let us check out the review to find out what this has to offer. Continue reading “ACEFAST 218W Desktop Charging Station Z4 Review”

Google Pixel 9 Pro XL Review — Creator Favorite

It’s 2024 Pixel time! Google has 3 variants of their flagship series now (9, 9 Pro, 9 Pro XL), unlike last year’s 2 (8, 8Pro). It kind of mirrors the Apple iPhone line up like 16, 16 Pro and 16 Pro Max and Samsung with their S25, S25 Plus and S25 Ultra series. Google is definitely playing the big game here. In fact, it is their biggest game and bet on the symbiosis between leading edge hardware and a custom “Gemini-powered, Pixel-heavy” user experience. The Pixel 9 Pro XL is their best effort at producing a flagship that is worthy of our hard-earned money. What’s Google’s play this time? Can they join the big league of blockbuster flagships this year? Will this be your phone-to-get this holiday season? Or is it another phone-to-forget? Let’s find out. Continue reading “Google Pixel 9 Pro XL Review — Creator Favorite”