Redmi Note 12 Pro 5G. Pro and cons.

I have been using the Redmi Note 12 Pro 5G for about 7 months now.  

I normally change my phones regularly - at least 2 - 3 phones every year, but since my son grew older and stopped breaking/ drowning them, they last longer now. That was the reason I used Redmi phones in the first place and I am really happy that they still offer the best value for money in the market. 

So let me go through the Pro and Cons of the Redmi Note 12 Pro 5G.

PROS:

1. Camera: I bought this phone along with the Redmi Note 12 Pro ( 4G version) for my wife and I am not sure why but her phone is equipped with a 108 megapixel main rear camera, while my 5 G version comes with 50 MP wide camera +8MP ultra-wide camera +2MP macro camera. The results of my camera is slightly better which shows that megapixels do not mean better results. Plus it has optical image stabilization and slow-motion recording at 960FPS,.

The rear camera reords video: 4K at 30fps1080p at 30/60fps720p at 30fpsSlow motion: 1080p at 120fps | 720p at 120/240/960fps

It has a 16MP front camera. You can also record videos: 1080p at 30/60fps and 720p at 30fps. The front camera can also take slow motion vids: 720p at 120fps. Also does well in video conferencing sessions over Zoom or Teams. 

2. Battery Life: The Battery capacity is quite decent: 5000 mAh and comes with  67W Hypercharge charger included in the box. This is great because a lot of the more expensive brands don't come with chargers now. The charging speed is amazing.

 3. Audio: Has Dual speakers, supports Dolby Atmos and best of all supports 3.5mm headphone jacks. I also received the Redmi Buds 4 Lite as free gifts when I bought the phones. 

4. Display: It is much better than the Redmi Note 12 Pro 4G. Here are the specs:

6.67" FHD+ Flow AMOLED display with a refresh rate of up to 120Hz.

5. CPU: The phone is powered by a Dimensity 1080 Oct-core CPU with max. 2.6GHz. So performance is quite smooth. 

Others: 

It is currently running the Xiaomi Hyper OS.  version 1.0.1.0 (Android 1.4).

The screen is Corning® Gorilla® Glass 5.

Can accommodate 2 SIM cards. 

The phone is IP53-certified against dust or splashes so ok if it gets caught in the occasional; rain but do not take it swimming or even in the shower. 

CONS:

Just some minor issues. 

Camera: The camera has issues in low light conditions. Also, in the 4K video mode, there is no EIS. So videos are quite shaky.

When I recently visited the official Xiaomi page, I noticed that they have come out with the Xiaomi Redmi Note 10 Pro + 5G which has a 200MP wide camera. This phone was not available when I bought the phone. I also noticed that they are no longer selling the Redmi Note 10 Pro 4G, which is slightly cheaper and with a similar performance. 

Overheating: After prolonged usage, especially when playing games, I can feel that the phone is quite warm and it is a warning for me to put down the phone for a while. I read this complaint from other users as well. 

Battery life over time: The battery used to last about 1 and a half days with normal usage but I now need to recharge every day. This is quite normal but other friends with more expensive phones don't seem to have to problem even after more than a year. 

Speaker Quality: The speaker quality has also gone down over time and I have to push the volume to maximum when I am using it in the car in handsfree mode. 

Summary: 

I can confidently say that the phone is the best in the price range. 

Disclaimer: I was not sponsored by Xiaomi. 

Watch my short comparison between the 4G and 5 G models on YouTube.

Unboxing the Armaggeddon Ironsight Nuke 7 budget gaming headphones

It was time to get another budget headphones to replace my old Logitech headphones. While scrolling through the internet, I came across these budget gaming headphones from Armaggeddon - the Ironsight Nuke 7 2019 Edition 7.1 surround sound gaming headset. 

The main reason I bought the headphones was because I had good a experience in the past with their Molotov-5 headset. That pair of headsets lasted me a long time. 

I bought them from the All IT Hypermarket for only RM89 + RM6.50 (delivery charge). A real deal.

The headphones have 7-colour lighting with pulsating EFX. The colours change automatically. They connect to my PC or laptop via USB. 

 

The earpads are comfortable and cover my ears completely. As for the sound, I can't complain. The bass is good and clear. I watched several movies and it was fine. Though it looks big, it is not heavy (258g). 

The cables (2.2 m long) are durable kevlar reinforced which means that they will last longer. I have realised that the first things to go on headphones are normally the cables and the earpads. 

I will review these headphones again in the future to let you know how they performed in the long run. 

Here are the specifications: 

Drivers: 50mm, with Neodymium magnets.

Frequency range 20 - 20Khz

Impedance 32Ω ± 5Ω

Sensitivity 112 dB ± 3 dB

Mic impedance <2.2KΩ

Mic Sensitivity - 43 ± 3db

Mic Frequency range 20 - 16KHz

Directivity Omnidirectional

The HP GK100F Mechanical Gaming Keyboard review

I finally bought a mechanical keyboard - the affordable HP GK100F mechanical gaming keyboard 

It cost me only RM 65.70 with a shipping fee of RM4.90 from the HP official shop on Lazada. 

I have been using it for over 3 months now and despite some negative reviews I read on the net, I have no complaints whatsoever. It has performed magnificently. 

This is the GK100F Blue Switch variation with 104 Keys and has backlights, which look great at night with the lights off. 

It took a while to get used to the clickityclack sound of typing. I choose one with a plastic base and not the GK100F Plus  which has an Alluminiunm base, which I suspect would be much noisier.

The only negative would be that the keys are not swappable (neither hot swappable) but that is not a concern for me as I am not into that. 

I will give this keyboard 5 stars. 

Review of HP km100 Budget gaming keyboard

My son recently spilt a glass of water over my old Logitech keyboard and after a few days, the keyboard started having issues. The old Logitech MK120 keyboard was really good and lasted me a long time. I bought it in 2019 and cost me just RM 38.90 and came with a mouse as well.

I needed the replacement keyboard urgently and drove down to the IT Mall in Petaling Jaya near my house. I was tempted to buy one of the mechanical keyboards. However, they were way overpriced (in my personal opinion). Also, I am not a big fan of blinking led lights which can be quite distracting. I have been a Logitech fan for a long time and all my replacement keyboards have been Logitech but decided to try out the HP km100. One of the main reasons was that it was mentioned that the keyboard was "waterproof design". It also came with a free mouse. It cost me RM59 (about USD14). I have been using it for a while now. Very comfortable and responsive. If you are looking for an affordable yet good quality keyboard, I recommend the HP km100.

Watch the unboxing video here:

The Xiaomi Redmi Note 10 Pro - best budget phone in the World

 I bought the Xiaomi Redmi Note 10 Pro phone from Malaysian online store Lazada. I didn't buy it from the official Xiaomi store but from another Malaysian seller as it was cheaper and they were giving away free gifts. It cost me RM1,086.91 (about USD260 as of 12/7/21) + a shipping fee: RM 3.80. 

I am a big Xiaomi fan and this is the 6th Xiaomi phone I have bought so far, for myself and family members. In fact, we are all using Xiaomi phones in my family. They offer so much value for money. 

This is one of the most feature-packed and yet affordable phones out there in the market. Check out the unbelievable specifications. 

The phone has a bright 6.67" AMOLED display. Comes with 8GB RAM and 128GB ROM. The battery is fast charging 5020mAh - which lasts me more than a whole day on normal usage. The phone chipset is the Qualcomm SM7150 Snapdragon 732G (8 nm), which is quite responsive and fast enough for most mobile phone games.

It has a glass front (Gorilla Glass 5) with a plastic frame and is dust and splash-proof (IPS53) - meaning that it will probably survive getting wet in a heavy downpour or accidental drop in a puddle. 

I guess the most impressive thing about the phone is the rear quad camera setup with: 

1. 108 MP, f/1.9, 26mm (wide), 1/1.52", 0.7µm, dual pixel PDAF. That's crazy. 
2. 8 MP, f/2.2, 118˚ (ultrawide), 1/4.0", 1.12µm
3. 5 MP, f/2.4, (macro), AF
4. 2 MP, f/2.4, (depth)

Take a look at a close-up shot of a Mooncake. What do you think?

One of the common complaints about Redmi phones are the poor quality of their night or low light conditions but looks like Xiaomi has looked into the complaints as the night shots came out really well.

It has LED flash and HDR capability. The videos came out very good, either 4K at 30fps or 1080p at 30/60fps.

The front camera is not that impressive but it is good enough for selfies: 16 MP, f/2.5, (wide), 1/3.06", 1.0µm

Other extras that you will not find in other more expensive phones are: Infrared port, FM radio and wait for it - a headphone port. That was the reason I bought the Redmi rather than the Xiaomi Mi 10 Pro. 

Sensors include fingerprint (side-mounted as opposed to the rear in older models), accelerometer, gyro, proximity and compass.

The phone comes in three colours Onyx Gray, Glacier Blue and Gradient Bronze. I choose Gradient Bronze because it is quite unique. 

And all of this for just RM1,086.91.

See the unboxing video here:

Review of the HP Gaming Headset H360G

 

This is my new budget gaming headset from HP - the H360G.

It is made in China and costs only RM59 on Lazada Malaysia.

I was a bit worried about the quality but was pleasantly surprised. It is light and comfortable and fits over my ears fully. The sound quality is not bad as well.  The headset also has volume control. The headsets connect to my PC or laptop via a USB2.0 port. 

I am not a big fan of RGB lights but the blue LEDs are cool, even more so when the lights are off.

The only negative is that the cables are not removable however, the nylon braided cables look stronger than other headsets I have bought in the past including my old Edifer headsets. 

Great value for money headsets - definitely recommended.

My unboxing video:

Edifer G4 gaming headphones

My wife just bought herself new headphones for her online classes - the Edifer G4 gaming headphones. 

Really comfy and great sound, with retractable mics and virtual surround soundcard vibration. Great for gaming but not sure about online lectures.

Reminds me that I need a replacement for my old worn out Armaggeddon Molotov 5 budget gaming headset, which has seen better days. Any suggestions?

Power Button for my Lenovo PC

A few guys came across my old post (or rant) about spare parts for my Lenovo PC. Yes, I did ultimately find an external power button for the PC on Lazada. I have not updated this blog for a long time so I thought that now would be a good time to start posting up stuff on this old neglected blog again. 

The external button came all the way from China. It was big and red with blue LED lights. 

Installing the new external power button to my old Lenovo PC was not as easy as I thought it would be as Lenovo does not follow industry standards.

With help from Google, I ultimately found some diagrams and was able to finally get the power button working.

Review Redmi Note 8

I have not updated this blog for a while. I will be updating it more often in the future.

As most of my friends are aware, I am a huge fan of Xiaomi because they offer excellent value for money. In fact, this is my 6th Xiaomi phone. My last one was the Redmi Note 6 pro. I also bought a Redmi Note 7 pro for my mum.

 

I will never buy a phone costing over RM 1000. (Approx. USD243 at the current exchange rate) and this phone is way below that budget on Lazada

My priority was battery life and this one is powered by a 4000mAh Li-Po battery. 

Other amazing specs: 

6.3" IPS LCD screen 1080 x 2340px resolution

Quad rear cameras: Primary rear camera: 48MP, Ultra wide: 8MP, Macro: 2MP and 2MP depth sensor.

Front camera: 13MP

Corning Gorilla Glass 5 protection - front and back.

RAM: 4GB, ROM128GB

MIUI 11 OS 

Qualcomm SDM665 Snapdragon 665 octa-core 

I am really happy that this phone has 2 SIM card slots plus an extra slot for a micro SD card.

Really enjoying this phone.

Why is it so hard to find spare parts for Lenovo PCs

In late 2016, my old Dell PC decided to suddenly die on my in the middle of a project. I rushed out and totally unlike myself, I bought a cheap Lenovo PC. The Lenovo Ideacentre 300S 11ISH. It came with INTEL I5-6400 processor, 4GB DDR4 RAM which I upgraded to 8GB, 1TB SATA HDD (Not enough I know, but I have a huge backup storage), Intel HD GRAPHICS, Windows 10 HOME SL OS.

As compared to my old Dell PC, the PC had many disadvantages - only two RAM slot and so limited my ability to upgrade the memory and also only one monitor port. Of course, I could always buy new bigger RAM and use a VGA splitter cable but why should I have to go to all the trouble. On the bright side, the profile is quite small as compared to my old huge Dell PC.

To be fair, it was the best value for money based on the specs as compared to the Acer and HP PCs. It was not the fastest PC but it got my work done and was even able to run some of the memory heavy statistical software.

Middle of last year, the power button started to give me problems. In order to turn the pC, I would need to push the power button on the top right a couple of times before it would decide to start. After doing a bit of research on the net, I realised that this was a common issue with Lenovo PC. Maybe part of a planned planned obsolescence where their PCs start breaking down after a year or two. Eventually I ended breaking the button and I would need to use a pencil to press the tiny button inside. I realised that the external button was used to press the internal button but the contact had got worn out over time. I totally forgot that I had bought 1 year Lenovo On-site Warranty. Just realised it yesterday and that was money wasted.

Yesterday, my son took a screwdriver and pushed it inside the hole and broke the button. Now I cannot start the PC.

Did a search on the net and I could not find a replacement - not even on the Lenovo support site.

Today I went to the Digital Mall in Petaling Jaya, near my house to get a replacement cable. There are hundreds of shops selling all kind of electronic stuff and I thought I would be able to find the replacement cable. I thought wrong.

None of the shops could help me. A repair shop could not even find the cable online as well and they are professionals. I was even willing to get any compatible cable as I do not mind sticking it outside the PC case with superglue but No!

The Lenovo shop from where I had bought the PC was not helpful at all - though one guy did pull up my information in their database and gave me the name of the PC model.

One guy advised me to go to Imbi Plaza in KL.

Really frustrating - why is it so hard to buy a simple power button cable.

Thermomix - the future of cooking

A few days back, my wife's family had a family get-together. We stayed at Sarang by the Brook at Kuala Kubu Bahru - all 40 of us. To feed the whole lot, all the cooking was done on Thermomix. I was so impressed, that I invited Aunty Adrina to write a post on this amazing hi-tech cooking tool
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Guest post by Adrina Awaludin.

Thermomix is what the future of cooking looks like. If you can imagine how a smart phone has changed our lives in the past 10 years... that’s what Thermomix is.

My name is Adrina Awaludin. I am a Thermomix Advisor. I was introduced to this wonderful machine in 2014. I have a full-time job, 3 growing up children, a busy working husband. I didn’t cook. I have a lived in maid to assist me at home with cooking and cleaning. Since I was introduced to Thermomix, I not only cook but I bake my own bread and cookies. I even make my own jams and mayonnaise, as well as chicken, meat and vegetable stocks... and people ask me why I bother when it is readily available at the grocery? Well, those items in the shops have a shelf-life, which means that chemicals are added to ensure that they can last longer on the shelves. The other reason why I make them is because it is so easy and convenient now.

One gadget in your kitchen to replace 12 functions! So, imagine going on holiday with just your smart phone without having to bring your camera, video recorder, and laptop as we would have probably done over 10 years ago. Well, this gadget replaces all your other standalone kitchen appliances that does your chopping, grinding, kneading, whisking, controlled heating, steaming, stirring, cooking, weighing, blending, mixing and emulsifying and also replaces your saucepan.

What else can you expect from a German product with probably the best technology in the market? There are no other similar products in the world today, I believe, that can match its superiority and functions. And when we say it’s the future of cooking.... there’s a reason for it. It considers all the expectations we want from our food - home-cooking is healthier and safer (no added preservatives and unknown contents), faster meals as one can manage entire meals under an hour with time-saving multi-layer cooking. It is also your Reliable Cooking Assistant - no need to take a day off. This “German maid” helps with auto cooking, stirring and even self-washing. Thermomix keeps your kitchen grease-free, taking over the cooking to free you up to do other things. It is hassle-free to cook at home.

Other than its superior safety features, it also has a Recipe chip attached to it for step-by-step guided cooking instruction.... Now, this I don’t think you will understand just by reading this article, so that is a real good reason for a person to experience the Thermomix Cooking first hand. With thousands of recipes and the guided cooking feature, enjoy endless fun cooking with your loves ones together.

Now everyone can cook!

And on the question "who would want a Thermomix?". Well the answer - literally anyone who can manage a smartphone. And why not, did you check the Master Chef Jr contestants cooking with their Thermomix? A 7 year old who can read, would be able to cook with the Thermomix.

Imagine those people who are on special diets: gluten free, paleo, vegan, etc. Home cooked food, managed and monitored easily from ingredients to the process. In our group, we have cancer survivors, including those who are still undergoing chemo and other treatments, those who need special diets and Thermomix helps these people everyday.

Actually, anyone would love this gadget and how it can save them time and money. All it takes, is a Thermomix cooking experience.

Contact me at 019 235 8733 to fix a date.