Category Archives: Android

Spigen Essential Fast Wireless Charger Review – The safe low cost option! Why pay more?

accessories, Android, Apple, Reviews, Tech News, ,

Welcome to my review of the Spigen Essential Fast Wireless Charger.

I wanted an additional Qi Fast Wireless charger. The issue with many cheap Qi wireless charger is safety. Some make your phone get too hot. Some just don’t work properly. Then there are different speeds of charging wirelessly.

Fortunately, I came across the Spigen Essential Fast Wireless Charger. It cost me £15.99 on Amazon UK . Today it is on sale at £14.99.

The Key Features

– Spigen is an Associate Memeber of Qi Membership (Qi Registration ID: 2093)
– Advanced Safety Features
– Improved Wireless Charing Usability
– Dual Coils for Portrait & Landscape
– Anti-slip mat, portable design and overcharging protection technology all combined
– Compatible with All Qi-Enabled Smartphones incl new iPhones, iPhone 8 / 8 Plus / X, as well as the Samsung Galaxy S8, S8 Plus, S7, S7 Edge, Note 9 etc.
– Angle works with FACE ID

What’s In The Box:
1 x Spigen Essential Fast Wireless Charger (Model: F303W)
1 x USB to Micro USB Cable
1 x User Guide

There are several things I like about this charger. First is the angle. It is great to see the screen and is angled so it works with FACE ID. The charger surface is an anti slip mat. It has safety features to prevent overheating. This is covered off more in my video review below.

Conclusion

I had a number of cheaper wireless chargers which I have no thrown in the bin. The Spigen design is so much better and safer. Highly recommeded.

Buy one from Amazon UK.

Samsung Galaxy Note 9 – Real User Review + Camera Showcase + Exynos Edition

Android, Reviews, Tech News

Welcome to my review of the Samsung Galaxy Note 9, the exynos version.

Key Specifications

– Android Oreo 8.1.
– 6.4in 2960×1440 Super AMOLED, 516ppi.
– Qualcomm Snapdragon 845 or Samsung Exynos 9810.
– Adreno 630 or Mali-G72 MP18.
– 128GB/512GB storage.
– 6/8GB RAM.
– 12Mp dual cameras, f/1.5-2.4 and OIS, f/2.4.
– 8Mp f/1.7 front facing camera.

Coming from the Samsung Galaxy S9, surely the Note 9 can’t be that different. On paper it might look similar, even the software looks like home from home, but this phone is like no other.

Samsung this time around bumped the battery up to 4,000 mAh, made the S-Pen bluetooth capable with controls from taking a photo by pressing the S-Pen button to tons more. Increased storage options from 128gb to 512gb. Plus support for micro SD cards. 6gb ram comes with the 128gb whereas the 512gb storage option has 8gb ram.

Out of the box comes android 8.1 and new software features with the camera.

Put bluntly, the Samsung Galaxy Note 9 is a dream machine from including everything in such a sleek form factor. Samsung stills manages to retain the headphone jack and IP68.

So sit back and enjoy my review, camera showcase, tips and tricks, comparisons and final conclusion.

Buy cases on Amazon UK – Click HERE.
Buy the Note 9 on Amazon Uk – Click HERE.

Nokia 5 – Check out the Camera Samples from the 13mp camera

Android, Photography, Reviews, Tech News

The Nokia 5 is made from a solid piece of 6000 series alumimium. It runs on a near stock version of android, called android one and it is a joy to use. My full review will be up this weekend, along with some tips and tricks. This is sat squarely in the budget category too, with 2gb ram and 16gb storage which is expandable with a micro SD card. You can buy this from Amazon UK for just over £110.

So what can the 13mp rear camera achieve when it comes to taking photos?

Let’s take a look.

The Dominos sign is looking crispy. Nothing wrong with this shot.

Again, another good shot. Maybe could do with a little brightening up, but overall pretty reasonable.

Above is the front facing 8mp camera, taken indoors. My face is a little pale as it hasn’t exposed perfectly for the light that is streaming through the glass window.

A couple of sheep on Dartmoor that were moving fairly quickly. Again, quite a fairly reasonable shot.

Before the storm. My village. Quite like this shot.

So what happens when we take the above shot, edit it in Snapseed using the HDRscape filter. A more dramatic shot!

Above, post box. This is the snapseed edit. Camera was aimed towards the sun, so the original shot was a little too dark, but snapseed helped make the shot a little bit more interesting.

I will talk more about my conclusion on the Nokia 5 camera and the rest of the phone in my main review. So stay tuned.

If you fancy buying one of the budget gems, you can pick one up from Amazon now.

UAG Monarch case for Samsung Galaxy Note 9 – Lightweight yet Tough!

accessories, Android, Apple, Reviews, Tech News,

The UAG Monarch Series case for the Samsung Galaxy Note 9 Case is designed & precisely engineered to provide a case that meets double the Military Standard for drop & shock protection. The UAG Monarch case is available for other phone models too.

Key Features include –

– Handcrafted, feather-light construction with 5 layers of protection
– Top grain leather and alloy metal hardware
– Soft impact-resistant core & honeycomb traction grip
– Oversized tactile buttons & protective screen surround
– Compatible with Samsung Pay and Samsung Fast Wireless Charging
– Meets 2X Military drop-test standards (MIL STD 810G 516.6)
– 10-Year Limited Warranty

Buy the UAG Monarch case at Amazon UK

Samsung Galaxy Note 9 – What’s in the box? Details of everything included

Android, Tech News

In case you’re wondering what’s in the box of the Samsung Galaxy Note 9, I can confirm it includes an awful lot of goodies. So what does Samsung include?

Below is the full list of what is included –

– The Note 9

– S Pen

– USB cable

– Earphones

– Ejection pin

– USB power adapter

– USB connector

– S Pen nibs

– Tweezer for S Pen nibs

– Clear Cover case (carrier and region dependant)

– Quick start guide

– USB connector leaflet

As you can see, Samsung have you covered completely in the included stuff in the box.

Samsung Galaxy S9 Duos – The Two Week Experiment

Android, Reviews, Tech News

The Samsung Galaxy S9 was released back in March this year. I had the larger S9+ which was good to use. Battery life was poor though. So 4 months later, has all the firmwares made the S9 a formiddable device.

Well, one thing that hasn’t changed, the battery life is still shockingly poor.

The S9 Duos is the official dual sim version of the S9. Either 2 nano sims or one nano sim and a micro SD card. So whats my verdict after obtaining a S9 again, and using it for 2 weeks. Well, its a complex device. First of all, setting it up from scratch took a lifetime, as its on Android 8.0 instead of 8.1, and instead of using Google’s Smart unlock, Samsung insists on using its own system, Samsung Pass, that uses your eyes to reveal the passwords. And that is a pattern repeated in many apps, duplication galore. The good news, some of Samsung’s own apps are better than Google’s default ones, so you just need to pick and choose whcih app you want to do what with. At the end of the day, I ended up with a phone that can do more.

And more is a feature of the S9. It has more hardware and software features than any other phone on the market, as well as the best screen on a phone. The size of the S9 versus the S9+ is far easier to hold and use one handed too. It is just let down by a battery that is too small and means you will need to charge it during the day. I have managed 4.5 to 5 hours screen on time regularly, which sounds great, and it is, except standby time is dreadful.

The camera on the whole is fast, fluid and reliable. See shot above. Looks good enough. Video recording is very good and one of the best phones on the market for video. Audio from the video is excellent too. It is not the best phone for photos though, but its good enough.

A headphone jack. Its included and its useful from time to time. Quality is excellent too, just needs some efficient headphones. And then there is the bluetooth setup, which is superb.

There’s more to the S9 with the DeX system, enabling the S9 to be used as a processor/computer with a screen and keyboard attached. I really like how it handles USB drives and such like, moving data quickly across. Having a micro SD card slot has been handy too, switching cards when needed.

All in all, its been a good phone to use, albeit nothing super exciting. Let’s hope the Note 9 with its 4,000mAh battery can last a whole day between charges!

Below are my original reviews of the S9+.

Useful Links

Samsung Galaxy S9 & S9+ deals & accessories on Amazon UK

Sunset on Dartmoor National Park in 4K 60FPS – Filmed with a Samsung Galaxy S9

Android, Photography, Tech News,

Out of all of the phones I have used in 2017 and 2018, the Samsung Galaxy S9 is still the king when it comes to video recording. The video quality is excellent and the microphones record top notch audio. The phone itself still has a headphone jack and the best display of any phone. The Samsung Galaxy S9 (not plus) is a great sized phone too. Fits nicely in the hand with a superb body to screen ratio.

I went out last night and ended up with a short video capturing some of the scenes around sunset on Dartmoor National Park, along with a short time-lapse.

Apart from the Samsung Galaxy S9 I also used a DJI Osmo Mobile 2 . If you are into video, you should not be without this stabiliser. It’s cheap yet brilliant at the same time.

It just so happens that Amazon are selling the Samsung Galaxy S9 in the dual sim version at a discounted price of £619, and including a Samsung LEVEL Bluetooth speaker and a pair of AKG Y50BT Bluetooth Headphonesat no extra charge (all products must be added to basket, discount applied at checkout). – Learn more, click HERE.

When you watch the video below, make sure to change the video quality to 4K.

Useful Links

Samsung Galaxy S9 Dual Sim + Promotion on Amazon UK
DJI Osmo Mobile 2 on Amazon UK
Samsung HyperKnit case for the S9 – lovely case

Sony Xperia XZ2 First Impressions, Review, Camera & Audio – The Best Camera Ever on a Sony Phone!

Android, Reviews, Tech News, ,

Welcome to my all in one review of the Sony Xperia XZ2 phone.

The Key Specifications

– Snapdragon 845, 64gb storage, 4gb ram
– 1080p IPS screen, HDR compliant
– Battery 3,180mAh with QC3
– Ip65/68, Gorilla Glass 5
– Rear camera – 19MP Motion Eye™ camera 1/ 2.3” Exmor RS™ for mobile memory-stacked sensor
Pixel Pitch 1.22μm, HDR video, 960fps super slow motion in 1080p
– Front camera 5mp f/2.0, video 1080p
– EIS on front and rear camera
– Bluetooth 5, LDAC, APT-X HD
– High-Resolution Audio (LPCM, FLAC, ALAC, DSD)10, DSEE HX™,Clear Audio+, Stereo speaker with S-Force Front Surround
– PS4 Remote Play

The Sony Xperia XZ2 is the first Sony phone where the Auto mode is the best mode to use and actually takes good shots in daylight. The predictive focus option is amazing too. More of that in the review.

The phone is extremely slippery, so you will need a case. I found a cheap case on Amazon BoseWek TPU case that did the trick nicely.

Video Review

Useful Links

XZ2 BoseWek Silicone TPU Case on Amazon
Sony Xperia XZ2 deals & accessories on Amazon UK

BlackBerry Key2 – Camera Showcase – Vote now on the camera quality!

Android, Photography, Reviews, Tech News,

In my BlackBerry Key2 review I was extremely critical of the phone’s cameras. So I decided to create a camera showcase of over 50 photos.

The BlackBerry Key2 features a dual rear camera setup, with 2 x 12mp lenses, dual tone LED flash. The rear camera can record 4K video at 30fps. The main 12mp lens has a field of view of 79.3 degrees, with a pixel size of 1.28um, F/1.8 and with dual phase detection auto focus. The second 12mp lens is for 2 x optical zoom, has a field of view of 50 degrees, a pixel size of 1.0um, F/2.6 and phase detect auto focus.

The front camera is 8MP and fixed focus, with a selfie flash using LCD. 1080p video recording at 30 fps is possible too.

So just as some context, the photos were shot in auto and portrait mode. The low light indoor church shot was in manual. 90% of the photos have been edited on the device to bring the best out of each shot.

But what do you honestly think? Vote “thumbs up” for its a good camera, or “thumbs down” for its sub par. Also feel free to add a comment as well. Now for even more clarity, I have a Key2 Flickr Album where you can browse

So sit back and look carefully at the photos and then vote afterwards or leave a comment.

Useful Links

BlackBerry on Amazon UK

BlackBerry Key2 Review – It’s so BAD yet I still love it!

Android, Reviews, Tech News,

Welcome to my review of the BlackBerry Key2.

Who says keyboards on a phone are dead! In fact, the BlackBerry Key2 is the fastest machine available to get things done, and I mean fastest. So its a badass phone but it’s also so bad too.

Key Specifications

– Size – Height 151.4mm, Width 71.8mm, Depth 8.5mm
– Keyboard – Touch enabled 35 key backlit Physical Keyboard (QWERTY) with integrated fingerprint sensor
– Weight 168g
– Navigation – Touch screen, with touch sensitive keyboard
– Dedicated keys Volume Up/Down, Power Key (for Power On/Off), Customisable BlackBerry Convenience Key (usable as Mute Key when on an active call )
– Snapdragon 660 with 6gb ram, 64gb storage, USB C, USB 3.0, USB OTG
– 3,450 battery with QC3
– Rear Camera – Dual Camera 12M+12M with Dual Tone LED Flash, HDR, 4K video recording at 30 fps, Scan, Private Capture, 12MP Fov 79.3°, Large Pixel – 1.28um, F1.8, Dual Phase Detect Auto Focus (Dual PDAF)
12MP Fov 50°, Pixel-1.0um, F2.6, Phase Detect Auto Focus (PDAF)
– Front camera, 8MP Fixed Focus, Selfie Flash using LCD, 1080p video recording at 30 fps
– Bluetooth 5, GPS, NFC

So what makes the phone so badass and bad at the same time. Watch my review to find out.

Useful Links

BlackBerry Key2 & accessories on Amazon UK