Posts Tagged ‘reviews’
Saturday, July 17th, 2021
Huawei launched the FreeBuds 4 TWS (True Wireless Stereo) earbuds for APAC less than two weeks ago and I’ve been trying it out since then. Pre-orders for the earbuds are now open from today till 23 July, 2021 before it hits Singapore shelves on the 24 July.
Here’s my Silver Frost version of the new Huawei FreeBuds 4. Also available is Ceramic White.
I like the physical design for the FreeBuds 4, especially the chrome shiny metallic Silver Frost colourway.
The other colour available is the Ceramic White version, which looks similar to Apple AirPods.
In the box are the earbuds, the charging case, a USB-C cable and the regular documentation that includes a quick-start guide, safety information, warranty card and warranty certificate.
Latest Stories for Huawei FreeBuds 4
Currently only the wired charging version of the FreeBuds 4 has been launched.
There is a slightly more expensive wireless charging version that is not available yet.
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Tags:audio, audiovisual, AV, earbuds, earphones, FreeBuds, Huawei, launch, new arrivals, reviews
Posted in Accessories, Audio, audioVisual, Availability, earphones, Entertainment, Gadgets, gadgets, Huawei, Launch, Music, newArrivals, Prices, Promotions, Review, reviews, Specifications | 2 Comments »
Tuesday, June 1st, 2021
Want to improve the quality, speed and coverage of your home Wi-Fi for #WorkFromHome and #HomeBasedLearning? I’ve been using the E9450 WiFi6 EasyMesh Router from Linksys since its launch half a year ago and I’m very happy that it has delivered.
The Linksys E9450 Dual Band WiFi 6 Mesh router to expand Wi-Fi coverage and performance for #WorkFromHome and #HomeBasedLearning, as well as for gaming.
I’ve been using a telco-provided router for years – it has served me well although it could not reach the study, the bedrooms and the garden outside – so Internet access has always been confined to the kitchen, living and dining rooms.
Living in the Digital Age
In this digital age that we are living in, access to the Internet has become a basic necessity of any home – much like water and electricity is indispensable in any facility.
So one of the first things you’ll need to begin #WorkFromHome and #HomeBasedLearning – in this trying time of the COVID-19 pandemic – is a broadband subscription with enough bandwidth to support the data-access needs of the entire household.
Once you’ve subscribed to a broadband subscription from an Internet Service Provider (ISP), you’ll need to set up a robust Local Area Network (LAN) to channel the Internet access to devices around the household – just like you’ll need pipings and electrical wiring to distribute water and electricity to all parts of the home.
The fastest and most reliable LAN is one based on a wired Ethernet network – but most often than not, most apartments have not been wired up and you’ll need a good router to set up a wireless Wi-Fi network instead.
Beyond the reaches of the old router, we had to switch on the mobile data connections on our handphones and hotspot the data to devices (speakers and computers etc) without a mobile data connection.
You can imagine how frustrating and limiting (and expensive) that can be.
And as the number of Internet-lusting devices being used in the household began growing rapidly, connection quality began to deteriorate, with slow speeds and dropped connections occurring more frequently.
Which was why I decided to upgrade the old router with the Linksys E9450 WiFi6 EasyMesh Router.
To expand the coverage of my home Wi-Fi network, I deployed a 2-node (1 parent + 1 child node) mesh network.
This was because a single-node network provided roughly a similar spatial network as my old router, probably because it was a matter of physical topology due to the layout.
The optical network terminal (ONT) for Singtel’s fibre optic network is located at one end of my apartment near the main entrance – instead of the center of the entire apartment – hence the distance between the router (which is connected by wire to the ONT) and the bedrooms tend to render the Wi-Fi signals too weak for connection.
I have a Network Attached Storage (NAS) connected (by wire) to the E9450 so that devices can upload/download files/photos and stream music/videos wirelessly via the Wi-Fi network. Another reason why I need a good Wi-Fi network with reach and performance.
So with a second E9450 router placed at the far end of the living room, the coverage of the Wi-Fi network was successfully extended to every bedroom – because the second router was located at the center of the entire apartment.
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Tags:broadband, Linksys, Mesh, networking, new arrivals, reviews, routers, Singapore, tech4wfh, tech4WorkFromHome, Wi-Fi, Wi-Fi 6
Posted in Accessories, Gadgets, gadgets, Gaming, Gaming, Home, Internet, Linksys, Network, Opinion, Review, reviews, Router, Specifications, Tips, Wi-Fi | 5 Comments »
Wednesday, March 31st, 2021
With the growing demand for storage space at home, I’ve set up an NAS (Network Attached Storage) with three Seagate IronWolf Pro 14TB NAS HDD (Hard Disk Drive) in a Synology DS918+ DiskStation. Just in time for World Backup Day 2021 today.
The three Seagate IronWolf Pro 14TB HDD freshly unwrapped (lower photo) and just prior to installation into the Synology DS918+ DiskStation NAS.
With the exponentially increasing demand for storage space, businesses and home users constantly find themselves exhausting whatever storage they have – be it to store text documents, databases, photos or huge video files.
The NAS sitting pretty alongside the Linksys E9450 router, all set up with RAID5 in a Synology DS918+ DiskStation with three Seagate IronWolf Pro 14TB HDDs within.
And with the COVID-19 pandemic, employees are working from home and students are doing home-based learning – resulting in large increases in demand for storage needs at home eg. if you’re a creative pro who now have to do your video-editing at home instead of at the office.
The three Seagate IronWolf Pro 14TB HDDs and Synology DS918+ DiskStation NAS just prior to unboxing.
Having gotten by with a desktop expansion HDD connected to my work laptop, I’ve decided to set up an NAS at home – to not only increase storage capacity but also to share that storage with all members of the family.
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Tags:hard disks, HDD, IronWolf, NAS, network, reviews, Seagate, SME, SOHO, storage, Synology
Posted in Accessories, Appliances, Business IT, Gadgets, gadgets, Network, Opinion, Prices, Promotions, Review, reviews, Seagate, servers, Software, Specifications, storage drive, Synology | 7 Comments »
Monday, March 29th, 2021
Oppo’s Reno5 series boasts good video capabilities and performance, including Dual-view mode, AI Highlight video, 65W SuperVOOC 2.0 Flash Charge and 90Hz refresh rate.
The Oppo Reno5 Pro is available with 12GB of RAM and 256GB of storage in Galactic Silver and Starry Black at a retail price of S$899.
The Reno5 series is Oppo’s first 5G-ready Reno series to be released in Singapore.
Reno5 Pro features MediaTek’s latest flagship 5G-integrated SoC, the Dimensity 1000+, for top-of-class 5G capabilities.
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Tags:OPPO, Reno, reviews, smartphones
Posted in Android, Gadgets, gadgets, Opinion, OPPO, Phones, Prices, Review, reviews, smartphones, Specifications | No Comments »
Saturday, December 5th, 2020
The Rakuten Kobo Libra H2O is the Christmas present for my wife who is an avid reader. I chose it because it offers all the features that she needs and uses at a reasonable price. Looks good, works well and value-for-money.
The Rakuten Kobo Libra H2O e-reader (S$279.90) and the optional sleep cover (S$59) is available online as well as at key retailers such as Challenger, Courts, and Sprint-cass.
So the two flagship e-readers that I started out looking at were the Kindle Oasis 3 and the Kobo Forma.
Eventually, I decided on the Libra H2O because it offers almost the same set of features but at a much lower price.
Borrowing books from the public library and discovery of books from the Kobo eBookstore is easy and intuitive. I like the recommendations of similar books based on the books that I have read.
The Libra H2O has a seven-inch Carta E Ink HD touchscreen with 1690 x 1264 pixels at 300ppi.
The display is sharp and the content is clearly readable in dim light or in bright sunlight.
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Tags:e-books, e-readers, Kobo, Overdrive, Rakuten, reading, reviews, Singapore, trends
Posted in Accessories, audioVisual, cases/housings, e-readers, Education, Entertainment, gadgets, Kobo, Opinion, Prices, Review, reviews, Specifications, tablets | 2 Comments »
Wednesday, December 2nd, 2020
The S$398 smartwatch from Huawei offers itself as a fitness and health companion, packaged in a design that combines sports and style. Great Christmas gift for the sporty male.
Huawei Watch GT 2 Pro smartwatch (Night Black).
The Watch GT 2 Pro is the most advanced smartwatch from Huawei, offering a comprehensive range of features, with a number of upgrades from its predecessors.
With 100+ workout modes available – including the recently added golf driving range, skiing, snowboarding and cross country skiing – you’re highly likely to find your favourite workout whatever your sports of choice is.
Huawei Watch GT 2 Pro smartwatch in the box.
In addition, the GT 2 Pro offers attentive health features such as its proprietary TruSeen™ 4.0+ heart rate monitoring technology, TruSleep.
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Tags:fitness, Health Tech, Huawei, reviews, smartwatches, sports, tech4xmas, tech4xmas 2020, wearables
Posted in Gadgets, gadgets, Healthcare, Huawei, Opinion, Prices, Review, reviews, smartwatches, Specifications, Sports, Watches | No Comments »
Tuesday, December 1st, 2020
We’re now into December and the final stretch of 2020. Here are some gift ideas that I’ve curated for Christmas 2020.
* I’ll be adding to this list over the next few days, so check back daily for new gift ideas as I collate them.
The tech4xmas gift guide is meant to provide ideas to start you off, so do check out some of them online and in the shops if they are what you think would bring a smile to your loved ones this Christmas.
Around this time of year, I’m usually inundated with requests from readers and friends on Christmas gift ideas for their loved ones or themselves.
So here are some tech that I would use myself or get for MY loved ones, based mostly on those gadgets that I’ve tried or reviewed.
Not all are the latest and newest, but they are what I think some of the best-in-class in their category of products.
Happy Christmas Shopping!
tech4xmas Gift Guide below.
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Tags:accessories, Chistmas, Christmas 2020, gadgets, reviews, tech4xmas, tech4xmas 2020, Xmas
Posted in Accessories, Acronis, Appliances, Asus, Audio, audioVisual, cameras, Dell, Dyson, earphones, Gadgets, gadgets, Gaming, Hair Dryers, headphones, Healthcare, Home, Huawei, Lists, Monitors, Montblanc, Norton, Notebooks, notebooks, Opinion, ROG, Security, smartphones, smartwatches, Software, Sony, storage drive, Symantec, Utility, Video, Watches, Xiaomi | No Comments »
Saturday, October 24th, 2020
If you want to make a fashionable statement about your sporty lifestyle, the Suunto 7 offers you a Google Wear OS smartwatch along with sporty DNA from the Finnish watchmaker.
I have the All Black version – Suunto also offers the Black Lime, Graphite Copper, Sandstone Rosegold and White Burgundy colours. Here you can see the watches displaying various modes and screens.
Suunto is a Finnish adventure instrument maker known for its design and innovation in sports watches, compasses and dive computers since 1936.
The 84-year-old brand makes the rugged, adventure-proof Suunto 3, Suunto 5, Suunto 7 and Suunto 9 for casual, enthusiast and professional sportsmen and women.
Really love the beautiful heatmap watchface of the Suunto 7 sports smartwatch. Been using it since its debut in Singapore back in September.
These watches are design tested in Finland to be shock-proof, water-proof, and dirt-proof.
Its Suunto 3, 5 and 9 emphasizes autonomy and sports features that do not require connection to the Internet.
Powered by the Qualcomm Snapdragon WEar 3100 platform, the Suunto 7 offers connectivity to the Web via Google Wear OS to enable lifestyle smartwatch features that its brethren do not enjoy – namely Music, payments and an app platform.
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Tags:reviews, smartwatches, sports, Suunto, watches
Posted in Accessories, fitness watches, Gadgets, gadgets, newArrivals, Opinion, Prices, Review, reviews, smartwatches, Specifications, Sports, Watches | 2 Comments »
Monday, October 19th, 2020
The ViewSonic VX3276-2K-MHD is a great monitor for increasing the screen real estate of your computer, in this time of #WorkFromHome because of the COVID-19 pandemic. I use it to extend the display on my notebook computer to enlarge the total screen workspace in order to increase the efficiency and productivity of my daily work.
The latest addition to my #WorkFromHome setup (laptop not included): the ViewSonic VX3276-2K-MHD 32-inch WQHD IPS Monitor. Notice the frameless design. If your desktop has the space, I find the 32-inch monitor the optimal size to increase productivity without being too huge to become a strain on the neck when viewing the top of the monitor.
A large monitor is a “productivity-multiplier” and one of the best investments you can make to increase the efficiency of your work on a computer.
Connecting the monitor to a desktop or notebook computer, the monitor serves as a second monitor to extend the screen real estate of a small laptop screen or the first desktop monitor.
A large external monitor is a “productivity-multiplier” and one of the best investments you can make to increase the efficiency of your work on a computer. This is the ViewSonic VX3276-2K-MHD 32” WQHD IPS monitor.
The ViewSonic VX3276-2K-MHD IPS monitor has a viewable area of 31.5 inches with a WQHD (2560 x 1440) resolution.
WQHD (wide quad high definition) is also called QHD and is commonly known as “2K”.
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Tags:IPS, monitors, Office, productivity, reviews, ViewSonic, work-from-home
Posted in audioVisual, Business IT, Gadgets, gadgets, Monitors, newArrivals, Opinion, Prices, reviews, Specifications | 4 Comments »
Sunday, October 4th, 2020
The Hydragun is a percussive massage therapy device designed for sports recovery – to provide speedy and effective muscle pain relief for high-performance athletes and people working from home.
The Hydragun comes in a case for carrying it around to the gym or office.
Massage guns have become very popular lately with athletes engaging in sports and fitness activities; as well as people working from home, using home furniture not suited for extended hours of work – resulting in poor postures, back & shoulder aches and carpal tunnel syndrome in the hands.
Discount Code
If you decide to purchase the Hydragun, you can use my discount code “TECH4TEA50” to get S$50 off the S$399 price of the massage gun.
The code is valid for the next two weeks until 17 October for the first 20 redemptions.
* I don’t get any commissions from your purchases using my discount code.
So a good massage gun has become a must-have for working adults.
The Hydragun is a Singapore-designed, China-manufactured massage gun targeting sports enthusiasts from all walks of life.
Starting from the packaging and the design and build, you can tell the company is serious about making a tool that provides effective healing and recovery for sports injuries or work sores and aches – unlike many no-brand OEM products on the bandwagon that was hastily thrown into a box with minimal documentation and sold for a song.
The S$399 Hydragun alongside a S$50 OEM massage gun from a friend who bought it online. The latter was heavy and unbalanced, had no return policy or warranty and stopped working after two months even though it was hardly used. The Hydragun comes with a 30-day “No Questions Asked” Return Policy and an 18 month-warranty.
In the box, the Hydragun comprises the main vibrating therapy massager (the big gun), six head attachments (four regular, two with stainless steel heads), one charger, one manual, and a robust zippered case to easily carry it all to the gym.
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Tags:appliances, Health Tech, Hydragun, massage, reviews, sports, therapy
Posted in Accessories, Appliances, Gadgets, gadgets, Healthcare, Medical, Opinion, Prices, Review, reviews, Specifications, Sports | 3 Comments »
