Huawei Mate 10

After months of teasing, The Huawei Mate 10 series is finally unveiled. This is Huawei’s flagship phablet lineup and this year, they are upping the ante with local-based AI capabilities. As usual, there will be two models, a standard Mate 10 and a more premium Mate 10 Pro version that is also available as a limited edition Porsche Design.

Huawei Mate 10

The Mate 10 is their standard variant of the two. Maintaining the same screen size as its predecessor, it gets a 5.9″ display that now pushes a higher resolution Quad HD display. However, it runs on FullHD+ by default for optimal power usage. It still has a traditional 16:9 display aspect ratio which provides enough space for a fingerprint sensor at the bottom of the screen. According to Huawei, the Mate 10’s display is brighter than its predecessor at 730 nits and it also supports HDR10.

In terms of appearance, Huawei has gone with a premium looking glass back with a multi-axis curved design. It looks like an HTC U11 but there’s an added signature stripe for a more unique appearance.

Under the hood, it runs on Huawei’s in-house developed 10nm Octa-Core Kirin 970 processor that comes with its dedicated NPU (Neural Processing Unit). Mated to the processor is 4GB of RAM and 64GB of storage which is expandable via microSD using its hybrid 2nd SIM slot.

In terms of connectivity, supports 4.5G with Cat18 LTE. With a supported network, it could achieve 1.2Gbps downloads with 4X4 MIMO, 256QAM and 3CCA. It is also a dual SIM device with Dual 4G connectivity. This means you can have both SIMs on 4G with VoLTE (Voice over LTE) at the same time.

Huawei also continues its collaboration with Leica for its photography department. It still retains a Dual-Camera lens with Optical Image Stabilisation but they now come fitted with a f/1.6 Leica SUMMILUX-H lens for both cameras. As a comparison, the P10 Plus uses f/1.8 aperture while the Mate 9 came with f/2.2 SUMMARIT-H lens. It also features a 4-in-1 hybrid focus system which uses depth, laser, contrast and Phase Detection AutoFocus. Like its predecessor, it also promises near lossless zoom with its Hybrid Zoom feature that uses both 20MP + 12MP cameras.

For taking selfies, the Mate 10 comes with an 8MP f/2.0 front-facing camera with a fixed focus lens. As a comparison, the previous Mate 9 had an 8MP f/1.9 shooter with autofocus. With Huawei’s focused on AI, the Mate 10 promises to be a more intelligent camera. With AI integration, the camera app is now improved with real-time object recognition which will speed up scene detection. Depending on what you’re focusing, the camera app would apply the best settings instantly whether it is portrait, scenery, food or pets.

Powering the Huawei Mate 10 is a 4,000mAh battery which supports Huawei’s SuperCharge charging technology via USB Type-C. For greater safety assurance, Huawei’s charging technology is claimed to be the world’s first end-to-end fast charging feature with TUV Rheinland certification.

Huawei Mate 10 Pro

For something more premium, the Huawei Mate 10 Pro comes with a 6.0” 18:9 display using an AMOLED panel. As a result, it looks taller than the Mate 10.

However, unlike the standard Mate 10, the 10 Pro also pushes a more conservative FullHD+ resolution instead of QuadHD. Because of this FullView display, the fingerprint sensor is placed at the rear underneath its dual camera setup.

Under the hood, it shares the same internals as the Mate 10 but it gets 6GB RAM and 128GB of storage which isn’t expandable.

Despite the same internals, the Mate 10 Pro is slightly thinner at 7.9mm vs 8.2mm on the Mate 10. It still packs a 4,000mAh battery which supports Huawei’s SuperCharge fast Charging.

For the first time on a Huawei flagship, Huawei is ditching the 3.5mm headphone jack on the Mate 10 Pro but they will provide a High-res audio USB Type-C headphones in the box. On the plus side, the Mate 10 Pro comes with IP67 dust and water resistance.

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Microsoft’s Surface Laptop is gorgeous and very powerful

Microsoft just unveiled its latest laptop — aptly named the Surface Laptop — and it sits somewhere between the tablet-like Surface Pro and the 2-in-1 convertible Surface Book. And that’s a sweet spot most will be very happy with because that means it’s just a laptop without the complications of any detachable bits.
In fact, being “without complications” seems to be a recurring theme with this new Windows device.

First up, we have the specs. The Surface Laptop comes in two different processor configurations with up to four memory variants. The base model, which sports an Intel Core i5 Kaby Lake processor (in the demo video there’s a variant with an i5-7200U) mated to 4GB of RAM and 128GB of SSD storage, will be priced at USD999 (around RM4,323). If you want more power, you can also spec it up to a Kaby Lake Intel Core i7 processor with 16GB of RAM, 512GB of SSD storage and Intel Iris Plus Graphics 640.

Despite Microsoft marketing it towards students, this new Surface Laptop is a high-end device. It’s made from really sexy materials that include an alcantara keyboard (like the one on the premium Surface Pro 4 keyboard) that has been precisely cut to fit the full set of backlit keys which have 1.5mm of travel.

In front, there’s a 13.5-inch Full HD PixelSense display with a 3:2 aspect ratio pushing a total of 3.4 million pixels. Since its a Surface device, it will also support Surface accessories like the Surface Pen and Surface Dial.
Since the laptop runs on Intel’s latest Kaby Lake chips, Microsoft also boasts incredible battery life — up to 14.5 hours on a single charge, in fact. They also claim that the Surface Book is faster than the i7 MacBook Pro and can last longer.

What’s more, Microsoft has done some interesting things to the laptop which includes adding vapour chambers to the back of the aluminium finish of the device to help with cooling. Conventional speakers with speaker grilles have also been replaced with ones that have been integrated underneath the keyboard so the sound comes from under your fingers.
It’s also an incredibly sexy-looking device that comes in four tasteful colours (platinum, burgundy, cobalt blue, and graphite gold). However, the sexy design does look like it brings compromises as the Surface Laptop is really conservative on the ports. You get a Surface charging port, a USB Type-A port and a mini DisplayPort…and that’s it.

But, that doesn’t seem to be the biggest question mark surrounding this laptop. Instead, that question mark seems to stem from the new operating system that the Surface Laptop will be shipped with — Windows 10 S.
Right now, this super streamlined version of Windows 10 looks mighty tempting. Not only is Microsoft boasting more efficient performance, they’re also talking about the longevity of performance claiming that a Windows 10 S system will feel as smooth on Day 1 as it will on Day 1,000.

For me, I’m just curious about developer and app support. If Microsoft can get enough people on board to develop useful applications (Chrome, for example) for the Windows Store to be used on Windows 10 S, then I can really see this platform taking off.
Security, long-lasting performance, and a streamlined OS in a laptop as gorgeous and powerful as the Surface Book? What more do you want?
Well, a USB Type-C port wouldn’t hurt, Microsoft.

The Redmi 4X is now officially in Malaysia

The Xiaomi Redmi 4X was launched in February this year and is said to be big on battery. Well, it’s finally here in Malaysia to be put to the test.

The phone comes with a 4100mAh battery and is claimed by Xiaomi to be able to run up to 2 days with heavy duty usage. Retailing at just RM679, the phone will be available nationwide from the 22nd of April at all authorised Xiaomi retailers.

The large battery comes with a rather small 5″ touchscreen display with a 2.5D curved glass, and a resolution of 1280 x 720 pixels. The Xiaomi Redmi 4X is powered by an octa-core Qualcomm Snapdragon 435 processor and comes with 3GB of RAM and 32GB of internal storage that can be expanded.

As far as the cameras are concerned, the Redmi 4X packs a 13-megapixel f/2.0 primary camera and a 5-megapixel f/2.2 front shooter for selfies. The phone runs on Android 6.0 Marshmallow, with a MIUI 8 skin.

The Xiaomi Redmi 4X is a dual SIM smartphone that accepts Nano-SIM and Micro-SIM. Connectivity options include Wi-Fi, GPS, Bluetooth, USB OTG, 3G and 4G. Sensors on the phone include a a rear-mounted fingerprint sensor, proximity sensor, accelerometer, ambient light sensor and gyroscope.

As of now, only the black and gold variants have been made available. There is word that there will be a pink version, just not now. For more information, head on to Mi Malaysia’s website.

OPPO F3 Plus now official with two selfie cameras

OPPO has announced a new “Selfie Expert” with the new F3 Plus. OPPO is doubling up its selfie game by fitting a pair of front facing cameras on their latest smartphone.


Unlike other dual-selfie cameras like the vivo V5 Plus or the Lenovo Vibe S1, the secondary camera isn’t used for taking bokehlicious selfies. Instead, it has a 16MP front camera with 80-degree angle for normal selfies and a secondary 8MP camera with 120-degree wide angle lens for group shots.
The OPPO F3 Plus camera app will automatically switch to the wide-angle front camera if it detects more than 3 faces in the frame. As you would expect, it will also come with Beautify 4.0 to enhance your selfie pictures.

Over at the back, the camera is similar to its current R9s series. It has a 16MP f/1.7 shooter with dual PDAF technology which utilises Sony’s IMX398 sensor. The overall exterior of the F3 Plus is quite identical with the R9s Plus as it gets a metal unibody design with its “6-string” antenna band.

In front, it has a 6.0″ IPS Full HD display that’s protected with Gorilla Glass 5. Under the hood, it runs on a Snapdragon 653 Octa-Core processor that’s mated with 4GB RAM and 64GB of expandable storage. It has a 4,000mAh battery that charges quickly using OPPO’s VOOC Flash Charge technology and it runs on Android 6.0 with its custom ColorOS 3.0 skin on top.
The OPPO F3 Plus is going for INR 30,990 in India which is about RM2,095. A smaller OPPO F3 with a 5.5″ screen will be announced later in May. So far there’s no word on its availability for Malaysia

OnePlus 3T is now available for pre-order in Malaysia

As expected, the OnePlus 3T is finally available officially Malaysia. These are official Malaysian units (International A3003 model) that are distributed by Brightstar Malaysia and it comes with a full 1-year local warranty.


The OnePlus 3T is officially priced at RM2,229 which is higher than the original OnePlus 3 that carried a RM1,888 price tag. To secure your unit, DirectD is letting you pre-order starting today with stocks expected to arrive on 21 March, which is next Tuesday.
While it looks similar to the former OnePlus 3, the new 3T gets a couple of new upgrades plus a new Gunmetal colour option. To refresh your memory, the OnePlus 3T has a 5.5″ Full HD optical OLED display and under the hood it runs on a more powerful Snapdragon 821 quad-core processor with 6GB of RAM. It also gets 64GB of storage like before with a larger 3,400mAh battery.
For imaging, it gets 16MP f/2.0 camera for the rear while the front camera is now upgraded with a larger 16MP sensor with f/2.0 aperture. The main camera still gets OIS but it gets an upgraded EIS for steadier videos. Charging for the OnePlus 3T is done via USB Type-C and it supports DASH fast charging (5V4A) that’s rated to push a full day of usage with a quick 30 minute charge.
This is a dual-SIM 4G LTE device and it supports FDD-LTE bands 1,3,5,7 as well as TDD-LTE bands 38 and 40. It also supports 802.11ac WiFi, Bluetooth 4.2, NFC and VoLTE.
If you’re interested, you can place your pre-order here.

Redmi Note 4 is now official in Malaysia

The Redmi Note 4 has finally arrived in Malaysia with the retail price tag of RM799. For our market, we are getting the international model which runs on a Qualcomm Snapdragon 625 processor instead of MediaTek’s Helio X20 unit.


To recap, the Redmi Note 4 gets a 5.5″ Full HD display like its predecessor and it comes with a metal unibody design. For Malaysia, we are only getting a single 3GB RAM + 32GB storage option which is expandable via microSD on a hybrid dual-SIM slot. In terms of camera, the rear gets a 13MP f/2.0 shooter with PDAF along with a front facing 5MP f/2.0 unit. It also gets a fingerprint sensor, an infrared blaster and a large 4,100mAh battery which charges via microUSB.
The Redmi Note 4 will be available for pre-order starting on 10 March at 12AM. After that, it will be on open sale at Xiaomi’s Mi Store on Lazada as well as participating retail outlets nationwide starting 16 March 2017. Xiaomi will be sharing more details of the pre-order sale shortly. For RM799, the Redmi Note 4 does offer a lot of phone for your money.

Xiaomi’s Android TV powered Mi Box goes on sale in Malaysia this Friday

Xiaomi is finally bringing its Mi Box to Malaysia and you can place your orders starting this Friday. This is the international version that is powered by Android TV 6.0.


The Mi Box is an affordable set-top box capable of pushing 4K UHD content at 60fps. There will be support for HDR10 once it receives Android 7.0 update. It uses a HDMI2.0a port that connects up to 18Gbps, which is ideal for high definition content. The box also supports both Dolby Digital Plus and DTS multichannel HD audio encoding.
Under the shell, it gets a 2.0GHz quad-core processor (Cortex-A53) and a Mali 450 750MHz GPU, along with 2GB of RAM and 8GB of storage. If you need more space, you can always expand further with its USB 2.0 port. There’s also SPDIF Out / 3.5mm audio output at the back.

Connectivity wise, it supports dual-band WiFi up to 802.11ac and Bluetooth 4.0. A simple designed bluetooth remote is included and it comes with a mic for voice control. Since it runs on Android TV, you can tell the Mi Box what to play simply with your voice.

The Mi Box also supports Google Cast, allowing you to throw your content to be big screen directly from your smartphone. The Mi Box will retail for RM349 in Malaysia and you can place your orders this Friday, 3 March. Xiaomi will drop more details about the sale soon and it is likely to be happening on their Lazada online store.

Xiaomi announces the Mi 5c with their in-house developed processor

Despite not having any presence at MWC 2017, Xiaomi has made a new breakthrough by announcing a new smartphone that’s powered by their very own. Instead of relying on Qualcomm and Mediatek, the Chinese company has introduced its very own mobile SoC that’s called the Surge S1.


The new processor is an octa-core 64-bit unit that consists of 4x A53 cores running at 2.2GHz and 4x A53 cores running at 1.4GHz. While it’s still based on a 28nm process, the new chip claims to outperform other mid-range processors like the Snapdragon 625 and Helio P10 in GeekBench 4.0 and Antutu benchmarks.
The Surge S1 also gets a Mali-T860 quad-core GPU and a 14-bit dual ISP for better light sensitivity and noise reduction in photos. There’s also a 32-bit high performance DSP for better noise cancellation with two mics and it also supports HD calls with VoLTE.

To put the new processor to the test, Xiaomi has launched the Mi 5c. This looks like a budget-friendly alternative to its Mi 5s smartphone.
The Mi 5c gets a compact 5.15″ Full HD display that boasts 550-nits brightness with 2,048 levels of adjustments. The Surge S1 processor is mated to 3GB of LP-DDR3 RAM and there’s 64GB of eMMC 5.0 non-expandable storage.

For imaging, it gets a 12MP f/2.2 camera with PDAF while the front gets an 8MP f/2.0 camera. Keeping the lights on is a 2,860mAh battery which is rated to last a full day and it supports fast charging via a 9V/2A power adapter. Since the processor is developed in-house, Xiaomi promises faster software updates. Because of this, Xiaomi says the Mi 5c will get Android 7.1 as early as next month.

Connectivity wise, it supports 802.11a/b/g/b/ac dual-band WiFi and Bluetooth 4.1. However, it appears to be a very China-centric device as it supports 3G in TD-SCDMA bands and 4G in TDD-LTE bands. Available in Rose Gold, Gold and Black colours, the new smartphone is priced at 1,499CNY which is about RM968.

Redmi 4X

Xiaomi has also updated its entry-level line-up by introducing the Redmi 4X. Like the original Redmi 4, it gets a full metal body and a 5″ HD 720p display. It comes in two variants – a standard version with 2GB RAM + 16GB storage and a higher spec model wth 3GB RAM + 32GB storage. Both are rocking Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 435 processor that comes with Adreno 505 GPU.

The Redmi 4X gets a 13MP f/2.0 main camera with PDAF while the front gets a 5MP f/2.2 shooter with their 2nd gen beautification mode features. It’s also a dual-SIM device with microSD expansion using a hybrid SIM slot design. It also gets a 4,100mAh high-density battery which claims to last up to 2 days with average use.
Unlike the Mi 5c, the Redmi 4X supports a wider range of 3G/4G bands including FDD LTE Band 3, 5, 7 and TD-LTE on Band 38 and 40. The base model is priced at 699CNY (about RM452) while the high-spec variant is going for 899CNY (about RM582).

Huawei P10 press renders leaked.

The Huawei P10 and P10 Plus will be announced this coming Sunday at Barcelona. Ahead of the big event, leakster @evleaks has given an even better view with a leaked press render.

As seen previously, the Huawei P10 design is a minor update of its current P9. It still gets a full metal unibody design but with rounded corners. Also seen is its antenna band lines that look similar to the current iPhone 7. At the back, it retains a glass visor panel that houses its dual-camera lens along with a prominent LEICA branding. The biggest change is the fingerprint sensor with Huawei going for a front facing unit which could double up as a home button.

The side profile is quite similar to the existing P9 and they have maintained the same position for its volume rocker and power button. As seen above, the power/wake button gets a red colour outline which is also found on the current Huawei P9 Plus.

In terms of specs, the new Huawei P10 and P10 Plus will be running on their current Kirin 960 processor which currently powers their Mate 9 flagship phablet. Both are expected to retain their original 5.2″ and 5.5″ display sizes and there’s a possibility that both might be pushing Quad HD resolution for VR. In the imaging department, Huawei is still continuing its partnership with Leica for its dual-camera setup using two 12MP sensors.

As teased earlier, Huawei will be experimenting with more colours such as green and blue options. It will definitely run on Android 7.0 Nougat out of the box and Huawei might also introduce a newer version of their custom interface with EMUI 5.1.

We will find out more in 3 days time. Stay tuned to us as we will be covering MWC 2017 throughout next week.

The 6-inch OPPO R9s Plus could be coming to Malaysia soon

Samsung isn’t the only brand launching a huge phablet in Malaysia. Chinese smartphone maker OPPO has teased a new smartphone is coming our way and it’s going to be huge.

The new device is likely to be the OPPO R9s Plus, its bigger follow-up to the current R9s. It is already on sale in Singapore with a retail price tag of S$779 which is about RM2,456 if converted directly. Of course, it is likely to be cheaper here considering the R9s is priced at S$679 (about RM2,143) in Singapore versus our Malaysian pricing at RM1,798.

Design wise, it looks identical to the R9s that’s currently available here. Instead of a 5.5″ Full HD display, the R9s Plus is a bigger device with a 6.0″ screen that also pushes Full HD resolution. On the inside, OPPO has made some significant upgrades with a 1.95GHz Snapdragon 653 Octa-Core processor that’s mated to 6GB of RAM. You also get 64GB of internal storage that’s expandable via microSD.

Since the R9s is focused on photography, it still gets a pair of 16MP cameras for both front and back. However, the R9s Plus has a steadier advantage with OIS+ Image Stabiliser assist. It also packs a 4,000mAh battery which charges quickly with its proprietary VOOC fast charger. Looking at the overall specs, the R9s Plus is quite similar to the Samsung Galaxy C9 Pro.

The new device will be officially unveiled on 1 March 2017. Assuming the new smartphone is the R9s Plus and it’s priced the same as the Galaxy C9 Pro, which would you pick? 

ASUS Malaysia is giving away new smartphones for 38 days

It’s raining phones with ASUS’ 38 Days of Storm giveaway. If you need a phone that doesn’t require frequent charging, here’s your chance to win yourself a brand new ZenFone 3 Max.


The ASUS ZenFone 3 Max is a smartphone with endurance in mind. The phone which they are giving away is the larger 5.5″ Full HD screen version (ZC553KL) that’s priced at RM999. Under the hood, it runs on a Qualcomm Snapdragon 430 processor with 3GB RAM and 32GB of storage.
It also gets a 16MP f/2.0 main camera assisted by PDAF and LaserAF while the front gets an 8MP f/2.2 selfie camera. Keeping the ZenFone 3 Max running is a 4,100mAh battery which claims to last up to 38 days on standby. If you need to help a friend out, it also doubles up as a power bank with its support for reverse charging.
To join the giveaway, just post a storm-themed picture of yourself on either Facebook or Instagram with a caption of not more than 25 words excluding the #TakHabisHabis #ZenFone3MaxMY hashtags. You can check out the example shown above. The daily entries are open between 9:00AM until 9:00PM and the winner will be announced at 9:00AM the next day. The campaign had started yesterday, so there are 37 ZenFone 3 Max remaining.
For more info, head on over to ASUS Malaysia’s Facebook page and don’t forget to read their terms and conditions.

Get the Snapdragon 625 powered Redmi Note 4 in Malaysia

If you’re looking for an affordable phablet under RM1,000, you can now get the newer Redmi Note 4 in Malaysia. This isn’t the earlier version that came with a 10-core MediaTek Helio X20 processor. Instead, it runs a Snapdragon 625 processor that’s based on a smaller 14nm process.


Marketed as the Redmi Note 4X (in China) or simply the Redmi Note 4 for global markets, it comes with a 5.5″ Full HD display encased in a metal unibody exterior. Xiaomi Malaysia has yet to bring this model into our market but you can now get it via grey importer DirectD for RM849.
At the moment, DirectD is only offering the 3GB RAM + 32GB storage model with a single gold colour option. In India, the Redmi Note 4 is also available in 2GB RAM + 32GB storage and 4GB RAM + 64GB storage options.
Continuing on the specs, it gets a 13MP f/2.0 main camera and a secondary 5MP f/2.0 unit for selfies. The Redmi Note 4 is powered by a 4,100mAh battery which should last longer thanks to its power-efficient processor. It’s also dual-SIM device supporting 4G LTE-A and VoLTE. Like the Redmi Note 3, it also gets a rear-mounted fingerprint sensor. Out of the box, it runs on MIUI 8 that’s based on Android 6.0.
Take note that this is an import set and it comes with DirectD’s own 1-year warranty. For more info, head over to their Redmi Note 4 page.