Technology companies such as Amazon, Sony, Vivo, Tecno and Philips, among others launched a new line of smartphones, e-book reader, speakers, projector and more this week (December 5-11).
DH's Gadgets Weekly edition lists the latest personal technology products to keep you abreast of everything that's happening in the world of consumer electronics.
Amazon's all-new Kindle
Amazon earlier in the week unveiled a new generation Kindle. It features a 6-inch glare-free display with a high pixel density of 300 ppi (pixels per inch), three times more pixels than the previous generation.
It promises to deliver laser-quality text and sharp images and the viewing experience will be like reading a paper.
It also supports Dark mode and adjustable front light to offer a comfortable reading experience in all conditions, including bright sunlight or no light at all.
The device comes packed with customer favourites such as X-Ray, which provides important details about people or places mentioned in a book, and a built-in dictionary to quickly look up any word. It comes with a simplified setup on the Kindle app for iOS and Android, offering an option to register your device in fewer steps and to jump into a book even faster.
With a full charge, it can offer up to six weeks of battery life and comes with USB-C port makes charging less cumbersome. It also comes with 16GB of storage, twice the size of the predecessor. It costs Rs 9,999. Amazon offers a Kindle e-book subscription service and with Kindle Unlimited, users get access to more than 20 lakh e-books. It is available for one-month, six-month and annual 12-months plans-- for Rs 199, Rs 999 and Rs 1,799, respectively.
Sony SRS-XV900
The new big premium wireless speaker from Sony features a non-circular diaphragm of the X-Balanced speaker unit to offer more sound pressure and less distorted sound by maximizing the area of the speaker and the jet bass booster delivers deep, punchy powerful bass. The midrange drivers provide excellent vocals while the 6 tweeters on the front, side and back spread high-frequency sound all around.
It also boasts the Mega Bass feature that can dial up the bass on the speaker, delivering deep and punchy bass.
It supports the TV Sound booster which promises enhanced sound when watching TV. Deep bass and realistic high-frequency sound and fill the room and boosts TV sound to provide a rich audio-visual experience, whether the user is watching live performance videos or movies.
With a full charge, it can last for close to 25 hours and it also supports quick charging. It can deliver three hours of playing time with just 10 minutes of charging. With the Battery Care Mode feature, users don't have to worry about overcharging the speaker, making it more dependable for longer.
It also comes with a convenient handle and wheels to move it around with less hassle. It costs Rs 79,990.
Vivo Y02
Vivo has launched a budget phone Y02 in India. It comes in two colours- cosmic grey and orchid blue.
The new phone features a 6.51-inch HD+ (1600 x 720p) LCD screen and comes with triple slots-- two for nano SIMs, a microSD card and a 3.5mm audio jack.
Inside, it is powered by MediaTek octa-core processor backed by 3GB RAM, 32GB storage (expandable up to 1TB), Android 12 Go edition-based Funtouch OS, 8MP (f/2.0) primary camera with LED flash on the back, 5MP front camera (f/2.2) and a 5,000mAh battery with 10W charger. It costs Rs 8,999.
Philips TAB8947 3.1.2 and TAB7807 3.1 CH Dolby Atmos Soundbars
The new Philips TAB8947 soundbar features 3.1.2 Channel, promising multidimensional audio experience with 660W output.
It comes with eight integrated drivers and an 8-inch subwoofer that can fill the room with thunderous effects, and crystal-clear vocals in music. Users can stream hi-res playlists from mobile devices via Chromecast, Apple AirPlay 2 or Bluetooth.
With AI voice assistance, users can play music easily through the soundbar completely hands-free. The highlight and the most unique feature of the Philips TAB8947 are the additional upward-firing speakers that add height channels, resulting in a true 360-degree surround effect, especially with the integration of Dolby Atmos.
Whereas the Philips TAB7807 3.1 CH soundbar boasts Dolby Atmos technology to deliver virtual 3D sound and can provide an output of 620W.
It comes equipped with six integrated drivers and 8-inch powerful subwoofers for a seamless audio experience. It supports Stadium EQ mode for sport event. Users can easily adjust the EQ modes, bass, treble, and volume settings on their soundbar with the remote control through Philips Easylink technology.
The new Philips TAB8947 and TAB7807 will be available at a price of Rs 35,990 and Rs 28,990, respectively.
Tecno Pova 4
It sports a 6.82-inch HD+ (1640 x 720p) Dot-in LCD screen with 90Hz refresh rate and comes with a side-mounted fingerprint sensor, triple slots (for two nano SIMs and a microSD card) and a 3.5mm audio jack.
Inside, it comes with a 6nm class MediaTek Helio G99 octa-core processor with Arm Mali-G57 MC2, 8GB LPDDR4x RAM, 128GB internal storage (expandable) Android 12-based HiOS 8.6 OS, dual-camera module-- main 50MP(f/1.6) + secondary camera with dual LED flash on the back, an 8MP camera with LED flash on the front and a 6,000mAh battery with 18W charger.
It comes in two colours-- cryolite blue and uranolith grey-- for Rs 11,999.
Environment-friendly Optoma projectors
Optoma earlier this week unveiled a new line of environment-friendly projectors-- ZX350e, ZW350e, ZH350, AZX360ST, AZW360ST & AZH360ST-- series.
They come with the latest laser technology and higher power conversion efficiency, promising to save nearly half the power consumption as compared with the lamp-based projectors and help in reducing the carbon footprint for long-term usage than the lamp-based projectors.
Also, they come in a compact design language. They are almost 34 per cent smaller in size as compared to the previous generation of projectors. As a result, the packaging and waste have been reduced, and transportation of the products can be more efficient by containing more products in one shipment.
Also, compared to traditional lamp-based projectors, Optoma laser projectors have a longer lifespan. The maintenance is less too and complies with regulations for less hazardous materials. With no need for constant lamp replacement, the laser projectors help save energy and extra cost, meanwhile avoiding mercury pollution.
The price of the new range of Optoma projectors starts at Rs 72,000.
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