April is finally here folks, it’s the perfect month to hit the beach and enjoy your summer vacation. But before you do that let’s have a recap of all the gadgets we’ve reviewed last month. This includes the Starmobile Diamond X1 and the Cherry Mobile Cosmos Z2. Read our Gadget Reviews Roundup for the month of March below.
DECK by SOL REPUBLIC and Motorola
DECK by SOL REPUBLIC and Motorola is truly a feature-packed speaker, no doubt about that. Some of the features, like the increased Bluetooth range and speakerphone are nice to have, but I’ve proven that they don’t work as flawless and as important — at least for me. Having two of these at home just so you can use its daisy-chain function isn’t totally wise, in my honest opinion.
For the price of Php3,999, the Cherry Mobile Sonic 2.0 is a hard buy. I may have just been spoiled by other mobile displays, but I really had a hard time looking at the display during this review. The design felt uninspiring and the fast heating of the device caught my attention in a bad way. However, for the performance that it delivers along with the software and this price, it’s good. If those aren’t the only things that you’re looking for, then may we suggest saving up more.
The t-JAYS One delivers what is expected of it – great bass performance. However, since it has put most of its weight at the lower end of the spectrum the Highs may sometimes feel that it could use a little more punch. But if you’re a bass lover with a playlist dominated by Hip hop and Party music, the t-JAYS One certainly won’t disappoint.
With its relatively affordable price, yet impressive hardware, this may indeed be the best locally-branded phablet. But the X1 is not for everyone. The display size may be too big for some; but for those who love 6-inchers and bigger yet are afraid of spending too much, this phablet is perfect. Well, almost perfect.
By and large, the Cherry Mobile Cosmos Z2 is a pretty respectable handset despite some of the shortcomings we pointed out in this review. It’s got most of the things you’d typically look for in a high-end smartphone, but it doesn’t cost an arm and a leg to own one.
There’s no denial that Vaio Pro is Sony’s best ultrabook yet with its sexy design, very light weight and great performance. However, that comes with a hefty price as well. With a price tag of Php79,999, it’s one of the most expensive ultrabooks in the market today.
The Z1 Compact has all the goodies packed in one small package. It certainly has its target market — those who yearn for a powerful handset in a not-so-huge form factor. However, this phone is not for everyone. Its size may be too small for some. We know a few people who had difficulty using the phone, probably because they were now used to 5 – 6 inch phablets.
For the price of Php1,799, I’d buy one mainly because I no longer want to stay with earphones that tangle like a puzzle, wear off easily through time and produce mediocre music. It’s not perfect as the cost can’t justify it for everyone and it has the stethoscope effect, but it’s just one of those days when I can correctly say “once you go black, you can never go back.”
The Me Mobile Fuel 5 is a really good offering coming from a new locally-based mobile brand. It’s got a good design, build, and display, and is capable of producing thumbs-up performance for its class. In addition, it has a good dose of internal storage at 8GB, whereas its competitors would normally have 4GB. On the downside, it is marred with a relatively old Jellybean OS and poor battery life. On the bright side, the Fuel 5 wouldn’t cost an arm and a leg at Php8,995.
Despite of the minor missteps we pointed out earlier, like the lack of built-in flash and its uninspiring design, we think that the ASUS FonePad Note FHD 6 is still a good buy at Php19,990. Its gorgeous 6-inch, 1080p display panel alone is worth more than half of the price of admission, not to mention it has other great features on the side like respectable battery life, a pair of front-mounted speakers and a Wacom Digitizer that should make it easier to forgive some of its shortcomings.
The Iconia W4 is the first low-cost Windows 8 tablet we’ve seen that’s positioned as an ideal netbook replacement. It’s portable yet powerful enough to do basic to moderate workload; comes with Windows 8.1 and MS Office Home/Student for free; bundled with a decent keyboard and case stand; and great battery life — all under a price tag that’s very competitive.
The Me Mobile Phab 7 is a nice tablet hybrid that comes with a solid body, responsive UI, and dual-SIM capabilities. Although light in specs, it can handle basic tasks and light gaming quite well. The downsides though are the short battery life, low-resolution camera, and its tendency to heat up when playing videos. On the bright side, it only costs, Php4,995.
The post March Gadget Reviews Roundup 2014 appeared first on YugaTech | Philippines, Tech News & Reviews.
Metrobank President Fabian Dee (left) recieves the Cesar E.A. Virata Award for the Best Securities House – Bank Category 2013 from the Philippines Dealing System Holdings Corporation (PDEX) during 9th PDS Awards. Also in photo is FMIC President Roberto Juanchito Dispo (right) who recieved same top award for First Metro Investment Corp under Investment House Category.
Metropolitan Bank & Trust Company (Metrobank) receives the prestigious Cesar E.A. Virata Award for being the Best Securities House under the Bank Category for 2013 from the Philippine Dealing System Holdings Corporation (PDEX). This award recognizes outstanding financial institutions which have exhibited performance, leadership, and innovation that contribute to a robust domestic capital market in the country.
Metrobank also received top awards including Top Dealing Participant for Corporate Securities, Top Brokering Participant for Retail Transactions, Citation for Best Execution through Active Use of Fixed-Income Broker Internet Order System, Top 5 PDDTS/PvP Participant, and Top 5 Fixed Income Dealing Participant. The highest recognition of the PDS Award is named in honor of former Prime Minister Cesar Virata, a veteran banker and an influential personality in the Philippine Finance industry who was responsible in the establishment of fixed-income trading platform in the country.
“It is with great honor and humility that we accept the Cesar E. A. Virata Award for Best Securities House 2013 – Bank Category.,” said Metrobank President Fabian Dee. “Metrobank acknowledges the hard work that the Philippine Government, through the Bureau of Treasury and the BSP, has put in, to create a more robust Philippine domestic capital market. The award we receive tonight signifies Metrobank’s continuing commitment to help in this effort,” adds Mr. Dee.
Speedo believes that all women should be able to look and feel great in and out of the water. That’s why we’ve created Speedo Sculpture, a swimwear collection made to give women confidence by smoothing and shaping the body to enhance and control feminine curves.
We spoke to 1,200 women globally to develop our Sculpture collection. The in depth research revealed that 52% of women didn’t feel their best in their current swimwear. A further 76% said they would like to be able to find swimwear that flatters their body shape, while 63% said that feeling more confident in their swimsuit would encourage them to swim more often.
Speedo knows that women want flattering swimwear that is also functional. By analysing the body scans of 5,400 women, we were able to see how swimwear could complement and enhance women’s bodies both in and out of the water as well as being practical for comfortable swimming.
The Speedo Sculpture swimwear collection focuses on all-over body shaping, tummy control and bust support as well as visual shaping and flattering styling to help create a flattering ‘hourglass’ silhouette.
The new collection also features secure adjustable straps for a great fit so you always feel that your swimwear is as comfortable as a second skin, giving you ultimate freedom of movement in the water.
Speedo know women want swimwear to last, which is why the Speedo Sculpture collection is made using Xtra Life LYCRA, a high stretch and high power fibre that lasts up to 10 times longer than conventional swimwear fabrics, for swimwear that fits and shapes like new for longer. Each new style is trialled in the pool for up to 40 hours guaranteeing the correct shaping, fit and freedom of movement for comfort and confidence.
We know that all women are different shapes and sizes and that confidence in and out of the water comes from great fitting swimwear which is why every style in the Speedo Sculpture collection has been fitted on real women.
Don’t just take our word for it, Lola, a UK customer shares her opinion on the Speedo Sculpture range: “The best costume I have ever bought. This costume is beautifully designed. It is extremely flattering, giving an hour glass shape to my figure and at the same time is very comfortable to swim in.”
Smart’s unlimited LTE service expired last March 31, 2014 but in an official tweet posted by @SmartCares, the telco has one again extended the promo to September 30, 2014.
Smart’s official Twitter channel has been responding to subscribers regarding the unli-LTE promo since yesterday.
@whereswalle Hi. Yes, free unlimited #SmartLTE service is extended until September 30, 2014. Thank you. :)
— Smart Communications (@SMARTCares) April 1, 2014
Smart has been extending this deadline repeatedly for about two years now, a smart move to provide added value to subscribers without really committing to the “unlimited” offer.
The post Smart extends free unlimited LTE until September 30 appeared first on YugaTech | Philippines, Tech News & Reviews.
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