The coming week will prove to be quite interesting for consumer tech in the UAE.
The fun starts on Sunday with the regional announcement of the highly-anticipated LG G6. On Monday, Sony will introduce us to the latest Xperia device rocking a camera that shoots 960fps.
And then there’s Tuesday. Ahh Tuesday. The day everyone’s waiting for, where Samsung announce their latest Galaxy S8.
Before that, Lenovo’s Motorola will unveil the new budget-friendly Moto G5 as well.
While everyone and their aunts will be bombarded with news about these devices in the coming week, a few other new gadgets might go unnoticed.
So before the madness ensues, let’s use this sleepy Friday to catch up on other cool new devices that you ought to know about as well.
The phone no one’s telling you about: The Oppo F3 Plus
It took a while for us to whole-heartedly accept a brand like Huawei as one of the big boys. And very soon, the world will induct these guys, Oppo, into the very same league. They’ve been crafting amazing devices over the past few years, and they just keep getting better.
Meet the F3 Plus. Yes, at first glance, you would notice it bears similarities to the iPhone Pluses. Which isn’t a bad thing at all. It looks great.
The F3 Plus is solid, well-crafted and sleek. It’s a big boy with a 6-inch display and a slim bezel measuring 1.78mm. The phone weighs 185gm. Its metal unibody is incredibly smooth and fits just right when you hold it. On the inside, we have an octa-core processor, 4GB of RAM and 64GB of ROM. The device also runs the latest Android 6.0.1 Marshmallow.
Two of its main features include in impressive camera and a wickedly-quick fingerprint sensor. Similar to LG’s V10 and V20, the F3 has dual front-facing cameras. One is a 16MP and the second is an 8MP camera, dubbed the ‘Dual Selfie Expert’.
The only difference with these dual front-facing snappers and LG’s is that I found this one to be way better. Snapchat addicts would love this, and its 4,000mAh battery will keep you snapping for longer. The rear camera is equally endowed. You have a 16MP on the rear which shoots in ultra-high definition.
Its fingerprint sensor unlocks the device in 0.2 seconds. Since I didn’t have my slow-motion-time-testing tech on me while I was reviewing it, we’ll all just have to take Oppo’s word for it.
The device is priced at Dh1,799, way below other flagships. And this is definitely a phone worth checking out.
One cable to rule them all: The Belkin Mixit DuraTek Range
It’s not easy reviewing a USB cable. Well, at least that’s what I thought when the Belkin Mixit DuraTek USB-C cable showed up to the office. After using it for a few days, I can see why these special cables exist. Or more importantly, why there is a need for these kinds of cables.
The Belkin range of Mixit Duratek cables are built to last. They feature Kevlar-reinforced wiring (yes, Kevlar – the stuff bullet-proof vests are made of) and an aluminium shield protecting the circuit board. The cable is 4-foot in length and is wrapped in double-braided nylon.
The one we had in the office was a Mixit Duratek USB-C, which is beneficial since the majority of new phones rock a Type-C port and several laptops nowadays ship with standard Type-C inputs. Their entire range of Duratek cables cater to every device, need and preference, for example, iPhone users would love their Lightning to USB cable, since we all know how sturdy the standard iPhone cables are.
The cable retails for approx. Dh110 and is currently available at all leading electronic retailers in the UAE.
