Home » Gadget Reviews » Gadget Reviews Roundup: July 2017

Gadget Reviews Roundup: July 2017

We’re back with another batch of gadgets we reviewed in the past month. For the month of July, we reviewed the Sony Xperia XZ Premium, HTC U Ultra, OnePlus 5, Nokia 3310 (2017), and an Acer Aspire V3 Hello Kitty Edition, to name a few. Check out all the gadgets we reviewed for July 2017 below.

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Sony Xperia XZ Premium

If you value performance, great camera, and attractive design, it could be the one for you. Sony stuck to the basics of a smartphone and focused on camera features to keep it on top. While the bezels are not exactly 2017 standards, the display makes up for everything.

Motorola Moto C

Motorola’s comeback isn’t fully throttled without an affordable device in their portfolio, and the Moto C fits the mold with capable performance comparable to devices of its price range, not to mention the introduction of a pure Google Android mobile operating system that has been void since the Android One series.

Canon EOS M10

The Canon EOS M10 delivers a light and compact body which can be easily stored inside a small bag. Although plastic, the shell doesn’t feel cheap and is quite solid when you hold the device. Operating and changing its settings are simple and even casual users won’t have a hard time figuring it out.

Globe GoWiFi Auto

The GoWiFi Auto service is very useful for those who are looking for a fast, stable internet connection when roaming around the city (it has over 1,000 hotspots nationwide). It’s basically available in most malls, parks and tourist spots. It’s convenient to subscribe and pay for.

Xiaomi Mi Max 2

While phablets are still too big for constant everyday use due to their large pocket footprint and degree of difficulty to hold, they are still perfect for leisurely use. The Mi Max 2 was an outstanding device to use for web browsing, social media, watching videos, and light gaming. Knowing that it will last a very long time on heavy use with its large battery makes it perfect for just that.

Honor V9

All in all, the Honor V9 is a strong offering from the Huawei sub-brand. It packs a high-resolution display, powerful processor, large RAM, a pair of good cameras, Android Nougat, and a large battery. If ever you get the chance to acquire one, the Honor V9 won’t disappoint.

LG Stylus 3

To sum it all up, the LG Stylus 3 is your everyday phone. It’s sleek, lightweight, and easy to hold. With its large screen, you can enjoy watching videos, playing games, and browsing the internet. The stylus that comes with the device is convenient when you need to take down notes on a whim.

OnePlus 5

The OnePlus 5 ticks off a number of characteristics that we’re looking for in a smartphone. It has a thin and sexy body with a premium build, vibrant display, has a speaker that delivers loud audio, shoots detailed photos, runs UFS 2.1 for faster read and write speeds, has an impressive battery life, LTE with support for Cat. 12, and is a very capable performer thanks to its beefy internals.

HTC U Play

All in all the HTC U Play is one attractive device that performs well in its class. It’s not as powerful as its other siblings but it’s got a capable hardware like the Helio P10 CPU, 4GB RAM, and 64GB storage. For those who like taking photos, the 16MP rear and front camera can do its job well.

Canon EOS 77D

The Canon EOS 77D, despite its new strange placement in the lineup, is a great little camera. It has its similarities to both entry-level and mid-range DSLR’s that it looks like it wants to sit in between those two categories. We couldn’t help but think that it was an improved version of the 800D, which is already a good camera.

2017 Chevrolet Trailblazer Z71

The 2017 Chevrolet Trailblazer is an easily-likeable refresh vehicle as far as facelifts go. It ditches the conservative look for a more aggressive front fascia, has a redesigned cabin with a neater layout and a touch of premium elements, enjoys a roomy and quieter interior, handles really well for its size, and is packed with safety features both for emergency instances.

Doogee Mix

The Doogee Mix is the kind of device that you will love and hate. You’ll love the great screen-to-body ratio and design, capable processor, the large RAM and starting storage, fingerprint scanner, above average battery, and Android Nougat. What can disappoint you though is the low-resolution screen, the mediocre cameras, and the ugly UI. What could be its most redeeming quality is the low asking price of Php9,995USD 170INR 14,439EUR 162CNY 1,240.

Nokia 3310 (2017)

What’s really good with this one is the long-lasting battery life, and we did enjoy a phone with a long life though we wouldn’t really see this lasting for up to one month due to its dual-SIM capability. It also has a solid construction you don’t see in bar phones nowadays, and the good features that it brings to the table despite being a feature phone.

ASUSPRO B9440UA

Overall, the ASUSPRO B9440UA is both a powerful and portable device. It has a sleek design, tough-built exterior, backlit keyboard, superb audio quality, and remarkable internals. Its responsiveness is also one of its major advantages.

Blackview BV7000

The low price point $143.99PHP 8,450INR 12,203EUR 137CNY 1,048 (roughly Php7319.30USD 125INR 10,573EUR 119CNY 908 before taxes and other fees), the mid-range hardware, lack of updates, and security features are a small compromise for what is an almost indestructible build. If you’re looking for a low-cost, hard-wearing phone that is suitable for travel and an active lifestyle, then the BV7000 might be worth looking into.

Motorola Moto Z2 Play

Lenovo has managed to make the Motorola brand stand out from the rest in the industry by pursuing a direction and sticking to it. Motorola stands by the modular approach and we commend the bravery. The Moto Z2 Play is a testament to that. It’s a beautifully crafted phone, well balanced, can proudly stand on its own or conveniently maximize itself with the Moto Mods collection.

Sony Xperia XA1 Ultra

It’s hard not to consider the Xperia XA1 Ultra when looking for a smartphone with a big screen real estate. You would be hard pressed not to be impressed by its slim design, capable shooters, stellar battery life, large RAM and storage, and having Android Nougat out of the box.

Acer Aspire V3 Hello Kitty Limited Edition

The aesthetics speak for themselves and this laptop is a must have for Hello Kitty fans. As a functional laptop, it has a decent build quality, good audio, and a fairly decent upgrade path. It’s good for everyday tasks such as web browsing, office work, media consumption, and even some light gaming.

Huawei Y5(2017)

The Huawei Y5 2017 overall is a decent budget smartphone that sells for Php5,890USD 100INR 8,509EUR 96CNY 731. Let us not forget that it has a big 3000mAH battery life which is already comparable to other mid-ranged smartphones out there on the market. You can really see the improvement of the Y5 2017 if we compare it to its predecessors. 2GB RAM, Android 6 (Marshmallow), 3000mAH battery, 8MP rear and 5MP front cameras are the strong suits for this smartphone.

Cherry Mobile Taiji

The Cherry Mobile Taiji is an epitome of a you-can’t-have-it-all smartphone. While it falls short on one aspect, the other is there to compensate for the lack thereof. It’s got a Full HD screen for you to enjoy viewing your favorite videos, browsing the interweb, and playing games. However, you may need to carry a power bank with you due to its average battery capacity.

Cherry Mobile Desire R8

The Cherry Mobile Desire R8 is a decent mid-range smartphone aimed at those who are looking for a smartphone with a premium build, sleek design, Full HD display, good performance, Android Nougat, and dual rear cameras. In addition, it doesn’t ask much for Php9,999USD 170INR 14,445EUR 162CNY 1,241. The only thing we didn’t like about it is the in UI ads and below-average battery.

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HTC A9s

The HTC One A9s is the mid-range offering from the company. It doesn’t have the extra features of its higher cousins but it has all the necessities to for a quality everyday phone. The main feat we like here is the solid build of the phone although its design is not original. We do hope HTC could consider releasing dual SIM variants for our market. No local pricing as of writing, so our final judgment is still reserved.

Canon EF-M 28mm Macro Lens

First-time users will find the EF-M 28mm a pretty useful part of their lens arsenal. It’s light and compact, good performance and image quality and although it’s far from being the perfect macro lens, it can do the job really well especially for its price. It’s a specialized lens so if you’re really into macro photography, this should be part of your lens collection.

Seagate Backup Plus 5TB Portable Hard Drive

This drive is a content creator and gamer’s dream, it has enough storage to keep at least most, if not all, of your videos, games, and files. But even if you are the average consumer this is still a portable drive to consider — despite its size, it is still portable enough to carry around and it makes backing up and restoring files easy and convenient via the Seagate Dashboard App.

ASUS Cerberus RGB Mechanical Keyboard

You are missing a lot of premium features and creature comforts that exist on higher tier mechanical gaming keyboards. As a functional keyboard, the ASUS Cerberus RGB Mechanical Gaming Keyboard is a solid performer for gaming with FPS games, or even for daily use if you’re fond of Red switches.

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