HTC recently launched their new flagship the HTC 10 and for now at least it will be exclusive to Three Ireland with a price of €679 off contract or from €129 on contract. The new phone keeps the all metal body and carries over many design elements from the previous HTC One models which is not a bad thing at all.
The new phone is very powerful with a Qualcomm Snapdragon 820 Quad-core chipset and features 32GB of storage and 4GB of RAM, there is also the option to add external SD cards up to 2TB.
However with the HTC 10 being so similar to past models and with it only really being an upgrade in terms of processing power and optics, is that enough to make people want to shell out that kind of money, find out in my full video review below.
The HTC 10 has a 5.2 inch, Quad HD (2560 x 1440 pixels, 564 pixels per inch) Super LCD 5 with curvededge Gorilla Glass which looks beautiful. The rear camera is a 12MP HTC UltraPixel 2 (1.55µm pixel size) with Laser autofocus, BSI sensor and Optical Image Stabilization (OIS). It also has an f/1.8 aperture, a 26mm focal length and a Dual tone LED flash with 4K video recording.
Despite the specifications looking great on paper the HTC 10 was sometimes hit and miss when it came to the main camera, during the day it was great and at night it could be too but more often not despite the larger pixels and OIS. Check out a gallery of shots below:
To sum up the HTC 10, it’s a really nice phone with a good camera and good battery life, it’s expensive so what it is a worthy purchase do try and get it on an upgrade if you
Impressive specs and build, even more impressive pricing
Eve-Tech have a been around now for a couple of years producing Windows products and you will even have seen them on ITB before, previously with the Eve T1 tablet. Their latest endeavour however is the Eve V, a 2-in-1 hybrid laptop and tablet, running a range of specifications that puts Microsoft’s Surface Pro to shame when it comes to pricing.
Have they succeed, yeah I think so, the V is a fantastically made piece of hardware that is solid, has some great I/O and performs brilliantly. Let’s get some of the important stuff out of the way first, pricing. The base model is an m3 with 8GB of RAM and 128GB of storage and this will cost €799. There will then be two Core i5 models running 8 and 16GB and 256 and 512GB of RAM and storage respectively, and these cost €1199 and €1549. Finally there will then be two Core i7 models both with 16GB of RAM and one with 512GB and the other with 1TB of storage and these will cost €1649 and €1999 respectively. It is these two Core i7 models that you gamers will want. All versions come with the Windows Ink Certified stylus with 1024 pressure levels.
When V launched for preorders on Indiegogo on the 21st November 2016, the available units sold out in less than 3 hours. They also broke the world-record for the quickest ever $200,000 raised by anyone online.
Eve-Tech say that because they crowd-sourced the ideas behind the V that they were able to pack in everything that a tech community could want and cut out all the bloat that often comes with computing devices. Our review device which is the Core i5 model with 8GB of RAM has the below specifications:
Intel Core i5
8GB LPDDR3 RAM
256GB PCIe SSD
2 USB-A 3.0
1 USB-C 3.0
1 Thunderbolt 3 USB-C
3.5mm headphone jack with built in amp
12.3" IGZO LCD
2880x1920 resolution
48 Wh battery
These are just some of the specifications which are impressive enough, but then you through in a biometric finger print sensor built into the power button for Windows Hello, two noise cancelling and ‘far-field’ microphones, the Stylus, Quad speakers and a detachable Bluetooth keyboard with 7 colour RGB lighting and it becomes even more impressive.
eGPU support for great gain in performance with Thunderbolt 3 port
One neat trick up the V’s sleeve is the ability to hook up an eGPU via the Thunderbolt 3 port to help with gaming.
According to Eve-Tech devices of their category (ultrabooks/2-in-1s) GPU is a main bottleneck when it comes to heavy load performance. They are not designed for gaming.
An Eve-Tech spokesperson said:
The V comes with a Thunderbolt 3 port which allows you to connect an eGPU and dramatically increase the V’s performance. Even lower end graphics cards like AMD RX550 will have substantially higher performance than Iris graphics by intel. Our CEO Konstantinos personally uses his V with Nvidia 1060 graphics card when he is at his desk needing extra GPU performance
I can honestly say that I have been very impressed by the V, while their original Eve T1 tablet was nice and performed okay the V is something entirely different. You can tell that they are now maturing as a company and clearly have a very good setup to produce not only nice looking hardware but hardware that is quality.
Given the choice between a Surface Pro and the Eve V, I can say that I would pick the V any day, specs and pricing just blow the Surface Pro away, both machines will of course have pros and cons but overall the V is the better, smarter package.
Check out my hand-on review of the Eve V in the video above and drop me some comments below or in the video with any questions you might have.
To learn more about the Eve V visit the Eve-Tech website below:
A fast affordable Android box that doesn’t disappoint
Design & Performance
The Ugoos UT3S is designed really well, while it might look like other such boxes the UT3S has 3 USB ports, an OTG port, HDMI out, optical audio port and a TF port.
Further more it has a built in fan to keep the box cool, and thus avoiding the internals over heating and slowing performance. It has 2GB of RAM and 16GB of onboard storage.
Performance wise it has a Quad-Core Mali-T764 and Bluetooth 4.0 and unlike many other Android boxes I never experienced any slow down.
For an idea on Audio and Video formats see below:
Audio Container Support:
MP1、MP2、MP3、WMA、WAV、OGG、OGA、APE、FLAC、AAC、M4A、3GPP. Muliti -EQ mode, Support Synchronized lyrics and full-page lyric display.
Audio Out:
HDMI Data Output
Video Decoder:
MPEG-1, MPEG-2, MPEG-4,H.263, H.264, AVS, VC-1,Full video format decoding support. Support H.265 hardware decoding. Support format MPEG-1, MPEG-2, MPEG-4,H.263, H.264, AVS, VC-1, RV, VP6/VP8, Sorenson Spark, MVC
Video Encoder
H.264, H.265, VP8, MVC(1080P)
Resolution
HDMI output: Support 4Kx2K ( 3840*2160)
The Remote
The remote of the UT3S is on first appearance very similar to the Roku remote that comes with a Roku, in fact it is almost identical. However despite the looks, it is just okay, it will get you around menus but I did find that I had to be really close to the box for it to register the signal.
Moving around the menu system however works perfectly fine, but don’t try to surf the web as again despite having an air mouse built in it is slow and unresponsive .
For apps like Koda I strongly recommend you just use the Android app on your phone.
I have really enjoyed using the Ugoos UT3S, and I have tried many Android boxes, many good but many terrible and this certain falls within the good section.
Ugoos have a range of boxes available, this UT3S is the middle of the road box, but if you want something even faster and newer then they also have you covered.
Since I have become a father in recent years my eyes have been opened to the various child friendly devices, particularly tracking devices. Following on from last year’s Liberty Watch comes Watchover’s Assure Slim SOS GPS Location Mobile Watch-Phone. This watch is suitable for children and the elderly and puts your mind at ease when they are out and about.
The Assure Watch-Phone Box & Set-
The watch is a good fit, it’s slim and would not look too bulky on the wearers arm. It comes in three colours pink, blue and black. The packaging is quite attractive and definitely makes the product stand out.
Contained within the box are:
1 x Assure Watch phone 1 x USB Cable 1 x User’s Manual
The Watch Phone also comes with a mobile SIM card fitted. The SIM card needs to be activated and your subscription set up for the watch to work. The set-up process is quite straightforward and a quick run through of the quick set-up guide will have you up and running:
Step 1 — Activate the Sim Card and Warranty
Step 2 — Charge the Watch & Power On
Step 3 — Download the WatchOvers App. This can be done through scanning the QR code on the box, going to www.watchovers.com or search for the app in either the Android or iOS App Stores depending on what device you are using.
Step 4 — Register your Administrator Account. Follow the instructions to set up a new user account.
Step 5 — Pair the Watch with the App. This can be done through the app or by scanning the QR code on the box or in your manual.
Step 6 — Add Contact Numbers. You can add up to 16 contact numbers including the administrator in the contact list. Note: Always use the international dialing code when adding contact numbers.
AssureFeatures
The Watch Phone comes with an impressive number of features:
Two Way Voice Communication with no roaming charges in 31 countries — Call the watch or the watch can call you (Pre-paid monthly, No Contract, Opt Out Anytime, Or use your own sim option*).
SOS Emergency Alarm — One button press to call your contacts list and simultaneously send SOS alert messages automatically through the App to your contacts who have added the watch to the app.
GPS Location -Real-time tracking — See the watch location on your smartphone in real time. Location updated every 60 seconds.
Geo-Zones — create virtual outdoor boundaries and receive boundary breach alerts. Location updated every 60 seconds for enhanced Geo-Zone accuracy. Route Recording & Playback — Playback the location history of the watch today, last week or last month.
Listen Safety Monitoring — Listen in silent mode in the event of an accident.
Motion Monitor — The Motion Monitor lets you check that the wearer is active or moving, helpful when caring for an elderly person or someone living alone.
Caller Approval — You control who can call the watch and who the watch can call.
Pre-set Numbers — Add up to 16 Pre-set numbers that can call or be called by the watch directly.
Record Messages — send recorded messages to and from the watch.
Shake‐Shake to make friends — Shake 2 watches at the same time to share contact details for voice messaging each other with up to 10 contacts.
Alert Messaging — receive SOS, Low Battery and Geo-Zone alerts directly to the App.
Multi User — Add up to 16 users, for all the family and or several carers.
Watch Function — Time, Day & Date.
Built in Sim Card — Open the box and get started straight away. WatchOvers Sim card uses the strongest network available, every important in an emergency. Option to use your own sim card.
Multi Alarms — set alarms or reminders which will ring on the watch at the set times, very useful for appointments, medical & other reminders.
Low-power consumption, up to 2 hours call use and up to 48 hours general use or up to 72 hours in manual location mode.
Location — Supports GPS/LBS/WiFi/Cell ID for quick and accurate outdoor location positioning and improved indoor location.
Support — Back Up support in English from the WatchOvers Team.
Conclusion
Functioning as a watch, a tracker device and a two-way phone, the benefits of the Assure Watch-Phone are clear to see. You will have an extra layer of security that enables you to keep a watchful eye over your children or a loved one that you might be worried about.
The watch also provides a level of freedom for the wearer that might not have been afforded previously. In the event of an emergency the SOS alarm, call features, silent listening and tracking features are a great way to locate a loved one quickly. The Alert Messaging also sends alerts to the app in the event of an SOS, when Geo-Zones are breached or when the watch has a low battery.
The Assure Watch-Phone retails at €79.99, which is a reduction on the cost of last years Liberty Watch Phone, which will set you back €119.99. On the downside, there is an on-going subscription cost which may put some users off; this comes in at £7.95/€9.95 per month. This includes 30 minutes talk and all location data. Note : A subscription is required for Mobile Calls and Data, Pre-paid monthly, No Contract, Opt Out Anytime. You may also use your own sim card.
The watch comes with European sim card with a Spanish mobile number, with no roaming charges in 31 European countries and unlike a standard sim card, they use the strongest mobile network, enabling the watch to get mobile coverage even in weak signal locations, vital in times of emergency. You can learn more about and purchase the Assure Smart-Watch from the WatchOvers website.
……………………………………………………………………………………… Thank you for reading! Get in touch if you would like me to write content for your website or publication!
If you have any questions, please feel free to leave a comment
