I can't believe how far OPPO has come in the few short years its been marketing phones in New Zealand.
The first devices I experienced had amazing cameras for the money, but were limited in other areas.
These days, it's getting hard to find any limits at all. In fact, now OPPO's innovation isn't even limited to phones...
Let's start with a phone though; the OPPO A9 2020.
What would you expect from a $499 handset? Smallish screen? Bad battery? Probably still charges via microUSB. Definitely no NFC. Terrible storage. Substandard speakers. Average cameras.
Right?
Usually, a five-hundred dollar phone is the one you look at then use its limitations to justify buying the six or seven-hundred dollar phone.
The A9 2020 might make you take a second look.
First, it's massive. The screen is a full 6.5 inches which means plenty of room for video viewing, with just the smallest of notches for the front-facing camera. Unfortunately, the display does sit up above the sides of the phone slightly, adding thickness and a slightly clumsy feel to the edges. But that bulkiness might be worth it if you're after screen real estate.
The stereo speaker setup took me completely by surprise. Firstly, the fact that it has one is crazy in this price bracket - there are plenty of so-called "flagships" out there that don't play out of both the downward-firing and ear-piece speakers. What's more, it sounds fantastic. Loud, clear and powerful, great for YouTubing or listening to podcasts. There's also still a headphone jack, which I know some of you care passionately about, so that's nice for you wired-up weirdos.
Battery life has been pretty standout on the last several OPPO handsets I've tried out and the A9 2020 is no exception. It sports a huge 5000mAh battery, which again, doesn't help with that weighty, bulky feel of the phone but it does mean a full charge will probably get you through two whole days. Sadly, there's no fast charging option here though - that's the compromise.
Not much compromise in terms of camera quality. In fact, there are four sensors on the back, including a 119 degree wide angle lens. Remember, this phone is only $499. You even have the option of Night Mode, which is not particularly quick but does produce some amazingly bright shots in dark conditions. Selfies are great - but that pretty much goes without saying on any OPPO phone these days. Any photographic limitations I've run into with the A9 2020 are mostly due to a lack of processing power and nothing to do with the camera functionality available. You can't argue with five cameras!
The other big surprise was being able to tap and pay with the A9 2020. NFC is often the first feature to be left out of an entry level device but not this time, yay. Now, if I could just get my local dairy to accept PayWave!
I almost forgot to mention the storage situation; 128GB internal, with a microSD slot - and that's additional to a slot for a second sim. The high-end features just keep coming.
The A9 2020 isn't perfect and it may not be the most elegant-looking phone around, but it definitely packs a punch for the price.
The OPPO Reno2 Z isn't perfect either. But it comes pretty close.
Whether you choose Sky White or Luminous Black, the Reno2 Z is pretty in all the places the A9 2020 sticks out - it's lightness and air and curves and smoothness and sleek and... and that's a lot of "ands."
The original Reno hit the kiwi market earlier in the year and promptly sold out. Great phones will do that. The Reno2 Z is just a little bit greater, now also featuring a quad-cam rear sensor but here incorporating telephoto and mono lenses into the mix to provide more photo options than you'll know what to do with. Well, more than I knew what to do with, anyway.
Like the last few premium OPPO devices, the Reno2 Z features a pop-up selfie cam to maximise the screen-to-body ratio. Unlike the original "shark fin" pop-up on the Reno 10x Zoom, this one is quite small and emerges from the centre of the top edge when required. I've reviewed quite a few handsets with pop-up cameras now, but this is the first one I feel truly confident about, build-wise. There's a solidity to the mechanism I haven't seen till now and the coloured LEDs on each side are a nice touch too. Just remember, like all pop-ups, there's still a mechanical noise when it goes up or down, so I'd avoid the face-unlock in the middle of the night if you're not the only one in the room!
There's an in-display fingerprint sensor too. OPPO was one of the first manufacturers to introduce this technology so it's no surprise this is the best one I've used yet - for the first time we've got an in-screen sensor that seems to be as fast and as reliable as the physical ones we used to have on the back.
Not only is the Reno2 Z so much lighter and sexier than the A9 2020, it has a much gruntier processor, again placing it squarely among the ranks of other flagship devices in terms of performance. Although on paper the MediaTek Helio P90 doesn't quite match up with its rival Snapdragon 855, in practical use I haven't noticed much of a downside.
That's before you get to OPPO's VOOC 3.0 flash charging, making the Reno2 Z one of the fastest charging handsets around.
Neither of these phones charge wirelessly and neither carry an IP water/dust proof rating. Also, I still have serious issues with OPPO's ColorOS 6.1 operating system, probably one of my least favourite Android-based O.S.'s but in terms of bang for buck, both devices represent incredible value for money.
But as I said at the top, OPPO is no longer just about phones and cameras.
The OPPO Enco Q1 was a first for me. I'd seen this form factor was around but I'd never used one till now. Similar to earbuds that connect behind the neck, the Enco Q1 goes a step further, with a more solid yoke containing microphone, controls and rechargeable power supply. The buds themselves are connected by very thin cables. At first, it seems like a pretty cumbersome setup - especially compared to the total freedom of other "True-Wireless" earbuds.
However, I soon learned there are many advantages, the first and most obvious being superior battery life. Stand-alone true-wireless buds have to carry their charge around in a very small package so typically if you get 4 hours or so out of them you're doing pretty well. The Enco Q1 has plenty of room for a larger battery and that means more playback time - a lot more; around 15 hours with Active Noise Cancelling on.
Oh yeah, that's the other thing... the Enco Q1 includes ANC, something offered by only a handful of in-ear headsets at the present time. Admittedly, it's nowhere near as effective as the noise reduction you'll find on those premium brand, over-ear headphones but you'll be paying several hundreds more for those and I certainly wouldn't want to go running in them.
On the other hand, going running was one of the first things I did with the Enco Q1 and it ended up being quite a test. Firstly, it was windy. This is usually fairly challenging for earbuds connected by any kind of cable as they tend to get blown out of place pretty easily. However, due to the main guts of this device being housed in the neck ring, the buds themselves are very light and fit snugly and comfortably. I was very impressed with the tight seal and to be honest, could hardly feel them at all once in place.
Then it rained.
Then it hailed.
I'm not even joking. Although this made the rest of my run far from enjoyable, the Enco Q1 never missed a beat. It's IPX4 rated which means "splash resistant" - another feature not always found on other, pricier earbuds. I wish I was IPX4 rated. I was wet through by the time I got home.
Of course, sound quality has to be a major consideration when choosing any headset and I'm not going to try and claim the Enco Q1 is setting any new standards in high fidelity. They do get nice and loud though and there's plenty of bass punch to keep most punters happy. A double press of the multifunction button toggles between Music, Movie and Gaming modes, but that's about the extent of your EQ options.
The neck ring obviously takes some getting used to - but not as much as I would have thought. Yes, it bounces around a little while running but it quickly seems to recentre itself and the sweat-proof material it's made from is very comfy against the skin.
Because it rests securely over your neck, there's no chance of your earbuds falling to the ground, even if they come out of your ears. What's more, the buds clasp together magnetically when not in use, so there's not much chance of getting them tangled up and zero chance of losing them.
Another big advantage of this form factor is having the controls easily accessible on the left end of the neck ring. This makes adjusting volume, playing, pausing, skipping and swapping between the three preset playback modes super easy - even on the move.
I have to admit, I would never have considered this form factor for a second, if I hadn't been reviewing the Enco Q1. Now I've tried it though, I can appreciate its many good points and I honestly recommend you give it a go next time you're choosing some new ear wear.
Click here for more information on the OPPO Reno2 Z.
Click here for more information on the OPPO A9 2020.
Click here for more information on the OPPO Enco Q1.
Premium phones keep being launched.
The price keeps going up.
$1000.
$1500.
$2000.
And people keep buying them.
After all, you don't want to miss out on the latest tech right? But what if you could have all the bells and whistles for a lot, lot less?...
$699. There, I said it. No point in beating around the bush. The Huawei nova 5T is only $699. If you're considering spending $1500 or more on a phone, don't. Well, at least read this first.
Whatever you've heard about the future of Huawei devices given the current trade impasse between China and the U.S,, none of that applies to the nova 5T as it was already ready for market before any bans or embargoes came into effect. This is great news, because it's a great phone.
I mean, just look at it. Sure you can get it in black, but the limited edition Midsummer Purple is not just eye-catching, it's stunning. The picture above doesn't do it justice - the clever nova logo you can see in silver (it looks a bit like two stick figures hugging) is in fact replicated in purple in a repeating pattern right across the rear casing. Hard to describe, easy on the eye.
Flip the nova 5T over and the flagship hits keep coming. Although the device feels relatively small in the hand and slides very easily into my pocket, the screen itself is surprisingly large, measuring up at a very respectable 6.26 inches, stretching from top to bottom, side to side with virtually no bezels whatsoever.
There's no notch either. The 32MP selfie cam peeps out through a punch-hole in the top left corner of the display, which is undoubtedly the best position for a hole in your screen, as it's basically unnoticeable, down in the bottom left-hand corner when you watch video holding the phone in landscape. In saying that, most apps will just blank out a whole strip along the left side by default unless you tell them not to in the display settings.
The screen looks great, by the way. It's only LCD, not OLED like those much pricier phones, but I still found image quality to be sharp as. Of course, there's also the option to tweak the colour temperature to your preference too. Unfortunately, there's no dark mode on the nova 5T, although you can download a selection of dark themes that'll just about do the same thing. There's a "colour inversion" setting, but while it turns the annoying white settings menu to a nice, comfortable black, it also changes every other colour in every app to its opposite, so it's not really very useful.
Let's talk cameras. The Huawei P30 Pro really set the standard for smart phone photography when it came out early this year, with it's unprecedented rear-facing quad-camera. Well guess what? This $699 phone also has four sensors on the back, although it's swapped out the Time-Of-Flight lens for a macro camera, which let's you take shots at just 4cm away or less. In good light, these pictures are incredibly clear close-ups.
Speaking of light, there's a night setting that admittedly, can take several seconds to take a single shot, but the results are definitely worth the wait - extremely bright and clear. Obviously the camera is not the world-changing setup we saw on the P30 Pro, but it's not far off. I've been especially impressed with the wide angle shots that definitely stack up against the ones I've taken with some of those so-called "premium" phones. There are AI options everywhere, front and back, selfies look crisp and accurate and if you want to replace your head with that of an AR robot to create hilarious GIFs, more power to you.
The 3750mAh battery is by no means large by 2019 standards, but thanks to Huawei's combination of software-based power optimisation and the relatively low energy demands of the Kirin 980 octa-core processor, I usually coast through a long work day without falling below 33%. You read right, by the way - the nova 5T uses the Kirin 980, the same CPU as the P30 Pro. And also like the P30 Pro, there's 8GB of RAM to play with so this phone absolutely flies. You simply will not find another device in this price range with the same amount of processing power.
There's no IP water/dust-proof rating, nor is there wireless charging, but then, that's not unusual for a sub-$1000 phone. The USB Type-C SuperCharger is fast enough, without offering some of the insanely quick charging speeds we've come to see from other devices recently.
Interestingly, there's still a notification light at the top of the device - somewhat of a rarity these days. Some people like these, but I hate stupid lights and always turn them off. Unfortunately, this light also doubles as a charging indicator which can't be deactivated. Just something else I have to drape a black cloth over on my bedside table so it doesn't keep me awake at night.
Like many other late model phones, there's no headphone jack on the nova 5T, but this doesn't bother me at all because I've found the connection with both my bluetooth earbuds and headphones to be strong, stable and clear. There's also a USB Type-C headphone adapter included in the box, so don't let the no-jack thing put you off giving this fantastic phone a go.
I almost forgot to mention my favourite feature; the side-mounted fingerprint sensor on the power button. This is, without a word of a lie, the fastest, most reliable sensor I've ever used, in the most practical position it could be. Yes, in-screen fingerprint sensors are more in vogue and yes, they're gradually getting quicker and more consistent but the sensor on the nova 5T is so good, I don't ever want to go back to another type of fingerprint scanner. There's also the option to face unlock and I've found this to be fast and effective too - in either portrait or landscape.
This is absolutely an A-grade smart phone experience for $699. The nova 5T looks stunning, offers an impressive range of multi-lens, AI-assisted camera options and it has processing power to burn, resulting in a super-fast and silky-smooth user experience. Unless you've decided you can't live without wireless charging, or you definitely need your phone to be waterproof, you must at least pick up a nova 5T and give it a try.
Click here for more information and pricing on the Huawei nova 5T.
Peak phone.
Not a thing. Never will be.
Oh sure, there may have been a time some people thought phones couldn't get any better... but they did. I'm convinced they always will - until they're just a chip in our brain.
Even then, there's always a better chip.
The Samsung Galaxy Note 9, which came out about this time last year, was a phone of unprecedented power and functionality and if someone gave you one today, I'm confident most people would still think it was the best phone they'd ever used.
Now there's a new one...
The Galaxy Note 10+ has more grunt under the hood than an American muscle car and it's better looking too.
It comes in 256GB and 512GB versions - yes, the base storage size is 256GB, which you can expand out by a whopping 1TB via microSD. The Note 10+ also packs a huge 4300mAh battery and an insane 12GB of RAM.
Those would be impressive stats for a laptop, let alone a phone. So it's no surprise you can use this phone as a laptop. Samsung's desktop option, or DeX mode has come a long way in a short time. You can now plug the Note 10+ into just about anything with a screen and start using the phone via DeX's Windows-like interface. This is more useful than ever, due to Samsung strengthening its partnership with Microsoft. Integration of Office365 apps is seamless, fast and efficient. More and more apps have been optimised for the DeX experience and even if they haven't, most function well enough when you force them to via the DeX Labs option.
But of course, adding a keyboard and a mouse isn't the only alternative method of controlling the Note 10+. A Note isn't a Note without its stylus. To be honest, there aren't exactly a host of new stylus-based operations, after all, it already did a hell of a lot. As before, not only can you make notes, edit and overwrite pictures and documents, capture, copy and send text and images, you can also just use the thing as a bluetooth remote, controlling the camera, media playback and presentations. What is new, is the stylus now supports air gestures, allowing you to flick through slides or raise and lower the volume just by waving it in the air like a magic wand. If Harry Potter had a phone, it'd be a Note 10+. You can also translate text just by hovering the stylus over the word or phrase in question. There's even the option to convert your handwriting to text, although, because I have the handwriting of a dyslexic chimp with no fingers, this didn't work particularly well for me.
All of this witchcraft happens in real time, due to the Note 10+'s aforementioned suped-up processing power.
This also comes to the fore when filming. The Note 10+ now offers a Live Focus (or Bokeh) video option. This means the same blurred-background effect we've come to love for our portraits, selfies and food shots can also be applied to our vids. It works brilliantly and can still be used in conjunction with filters and other effects. One such effect that's another new edition is the AR Doodle. Using either the stylus or your finger, you can highlight or sketch over faces or objects and your artistic additions (monocles, false moustaches, buck teeth etc) will stay in place while you shoot your clip. This is thanks to the new time-of-flight sensor, which means the phone can tell how far away something is and apply 3D effects accordingly.
Other than that, the rear-facing camera configuration is similar to what we saw on the Galaxy S10+ earlier in the year - with a fantastic wide-angled lens for impressive outdoor shooting and vastly improved night-time performance. Interestingly, Samsung has stuck with a single lens selfie camera on the Note and they've moved the punch-hole to the centre, as opposed to the right-hand corner position on the GS10. I actually can't remember what that second front-facing lens was supposed to do, as the pictures and video I've shot with the Note definitely stack up. If the photo quality on this phone isn't the best on the market, it's definitely right up there. Some handsets may be able to out-perform it in terms of zoom-power and shooting in the dark, but not by much and the fast, smooth performance of the software just about makes up for any of those shortfalls.
As I just mentioned, the 6.8inch Infinity-O display has relocated the punch-hole to the middle, which is a great move as it turns out there's often something important in the top right-hand corner. This is because the top right-hand corner becomes the top left-hand corner when you hold the device in landscape for watching video content. If that content happens to be sport, the score is often shown in that corner, so on the Note 10+, you'll actually be able to see it. If you think watching sport on a phone seems ridiculous, remember, this is a Samsung screen and it's huge. Don't knock it till you've tried it.
Cosmetically, this is the most edge-to-edge, bezel-less Note we've ever seen - and the fact Samsung has released a big Note and a little Note this year obviously means they've conceded the traditionally more square, more bulky device has never been as appealing to certain portions of the flagship market and 2019 has meant a makeover of sorts.
Certainly the curved edges and the prism effect of the Aura Glow colour option pictured here make this Note the prettiest ever, no contest. Don't worry, faithful Note nerds - just because they've made it beautiful, doesn't mean they've compromised with any other features. It's still IP68 water and dust resistant and it still charges wirelessly, in fact faster than ever in conjunction with the new Wireless Charging 2.0 stands now available. There are some pretty clever covers to choose from too, featuring stands, notification displays and even programmable LED options.
Okay, one thing is missing - Samsung has finally made that most controversial of decisions and removed the headphone jack. I still don't really understand why this matters so much, I'm a bluetooth guy and have been for years, but I guess some people will never let go... of their cords.
As you can tell, I'm an unashamed Note 10+ fanboy and I truly find this device almost faultless. Almost. There's one thing about it that doesn't just bother me, I actually hate it. For some inexplicable reason, a small notification appears at the bottom of the screen when you put the Note 10+ on to charge. It simply tells you it's charging and how long till 100%. Then when it gets to 100%, it tells you it's reached 100%. And keeps telling you. All night long. This is all with the screen off. And with the screen-off-display off. In my dark bedroom. Which is no longer as dark as it was, because of this stupid notification I didn't ask for and can't turn off. It's such a small thing. But man I hate it. Fix it now, Samsung. I'm begging you. Fix it and you might just have a perfect phone, worth every cent of its premium price tag.
It's too easy to criticise the Note 10+ for being "not that much better" than the 2018 version, but when that phone was amazing, even incremental improvements mean this year's is amazinger.
Click here for more information and pricing on the Samsung Galaxy Note 10+.
Don't believe everything you see in the news.
Huawei is not dead. Not even close.
With its ground-breaking four-sensor camera and sizzling processing power, the P30 Pro is still one of the best performing phones of the year.
Last week's Huawei Developer Conference saw the official announcement of its new HarmonyOS, Huawei's backup plan if the Trump-led Android impasse ever really comes into effect.
There's a lot going on. And not just in the high-end, flagship range...
A quick look at this image and you could easily be convinced the Huawei Y9 Prime is at the prime end of the smartphone price zone. In fact, this is only a $399 device, but it out-delivers most other phones in that market.
For starters, it looks pretty cool. In New Zealand, the Y9 Prime is available in black and blue, both featuring a unique and eye-catching split finish on the rear panel, just below the fingerprint sensor. Yes - ironically, there's still a physical fingerprint sensor on the back of the Y9 Prime - which works very well by the way - I still have mixed feelings about the in-display sensors popping up elsewhere. The reason I find this ironic is I found this phone to be far less of a fingerprint magnet than most other glossy handsets. Great news if you're not into using a cover, although there is a clear one included in the box.
Of course, the other notable feature on that rear panel is the tri-lens camera, something we're not even seeing on all the high-priced phones yet, let alone in the sub-$500 category.
The good news here is one of those lenses provides wide-angle capability, again, something pretty unique for the money. The camera story isn't all good news, although it does have a surprise ending. Usually I enjoy the camera experience on a Huawei phone. The software is generally set up to let you point and shoot without too much tweaking and you'll get decent results most of the time. For some reason Huawei has really dumbed things down for the Y9 Prime's camera app. Unless you go into the Pro settings, which can only be accessed via a secondary screen, you simply don't have the option to change resolution or aspect ratio, which drives me nuts. Not all of us want square, 4:3 Insta-ready snaps - some of us want the option of a rectangular shot that will fill a larger screen. Even accessing the wide-angle option provided by that third lens only happens sort of accidentally, when you zoom out past 1X. Also, HDR is manually activated and not available for portrait shots for some reason. The whole operation feels very restrictive, which is unfortunate, because the majority of photos I took looked great. Sharp, clear but annoyingly, usually square.
There is a bright side... and it's inside. The Y9 Prime's 16MP front facing camera pops up - a feature we've seen working surprisingly well on some, but not many, other phones. The camera comes out quickly enough for any emergency selfie and it retracts instantly if it's knocked or if the phone's A.I. senses the device has been dropped.
Again, you're out of luck if you want to use HDR on your selfie, although at least you can choose different aspects in Photo mode. Portrait mode is where all the fun stuff is - not just adjustable beauty settings but a bokeh effect button and several nifty lighting filters. You can also do some pretty crazy stuff with stickers and there's an AR mode that lets you apply real-time silly glasses, hats and special effects.
This is where the Y9 Prime's surprising processing power comes to the fore. While I don't love the camera app, I do appreciate the A.I. at work, identifying scenes and objects - even text - and photographing them accordingly.
This is made possible by Huawei's magical Kirin chip technology - it's only got 4GB of RAM, but somehow they manage to squeeze every nanometre of performance out of it. Operation is silky smooth and quick, once again belying this phone's more-than-reasonable price tag.
Obviously, the reason for the pop-up front camera in the first place is all about maximizing screen space. If a reasonably priced priced device with a massive display is what you're after, the Y9 Prime might well be the phone for you. The 6.59" display really does stretch right out to every edge, with just the narrowest of ear speakers at the top. It's only LCD, not OLED, but that's to be expected from a mid-tier phone - I've had no issues in terms of clarity or brightness though, indoors or out.
And you don't just get a big screen, there's a respectable 128GB of on-board storage and the Y9 Prime sports a nice, big 4000mAh battery too. This'll easily get most users through a long day if not a day and half. Sadly no wireless charging option though. In fact, no fast charging either. I guess something had to be left out to keep the price down.
I also found WiFi speeds to be a bit sub-par, although I had no issues with bluetooth connectivity at all. Really, other than no IP water/dust resistance rating and the lack of a face unlock, I'm scratching around to think of premium capabilities the Y9 Prime doesn't offer.
It honestly hums along. While some of the camera options are frustratingly difficult to access, at least there are a lot of options (not to mention a lot of lenses.) And there aren't too many phones around with a screen this big - especially with a price tag this small.
Click here for more information and pricing on the Huawei Y9 Prime.
There are some real jerks out there.
Whole organisations set up to take advantage of people like my mum.
She'll be eighty next year and while I wouldn't describe her as a technical genius, she doesn't do too badly when it comes to modern gadgetry.
She has a laptop for example. Okay, she leaves it plugged in and never takes it anywhere, but she knows how to use it.
She has a smart phone. Not sure if she's ever used any actual apps, but she can check her emails and I think she even printed some photos off from it once.
I've given her several lectures about ignoring suspicious emails, being careful about volunteering personal details and obviously I try to keep her computer secure and updated.
So who would have guessed one of her biggest cyber-risks would be the trusty old landline?
Every week we hear another story of someone being conned out of their savings, just by answering the phone. And that's before you get to the raft of unsolicited calls you're forced to deal with from marketing and survey companies. Well, Spark has decided to do something about it, with the Call Screen cordless phone.
The idea, like all good ideas, is simple but effective. Any unsolicited call from an unrecognised number is diverted to the Call Screen's answer service, before it even has a chance to make the phone ring.
The caller is told they're being screened and asked to identify themselves before being put on hold.
Only then will the phone ring. Pick it up and you'll be told who's calling, with a recording of the caller leaving their name. Then you can decide to accept the call or block it. Block it and you'll never be bothered by that person again.
If you're thinking that sounds like a complicated process to set up, the complete opposite is true. The Spark Call Screen is merely a twin set of phones that look, feel and operate pretty much like any other cordless phone and best of all, the call screening function is all set up and ready to go, from the moment you plug the phones in.
You don't even have to record a message - there's an automated one built in to play by default, keeping you nice and anonymous to any prospective con artists on the other end of the line.
Conversely, any caller you allow through won't be screened next time round, or you can add trusted numbers in advance.
The great thing about the Spark Call Screen is any of those annoying automated calls will never get through because robots don't know how to leave their name... yet. Score one for the humans.
The other great thing is this is not some kind of subscription answer service, everything's built into the handsets themselves, so you're only paying a one-off price of $139.99. I think that's pretty reasonable for a couple of high-spec handsets even before you include the call-screening functionality.
The phones feature large, clear colour screens and big, backlit buttons. The ringtones go up pretty loud if you want them to and the phones can be paired with bluetooth devices including some hearing aids. Most operations are easily accessed within a few presses - things like recording your answerphone message and programming speed dials. You can even sync the contacts from your mobile phone.
Best of all - the "Block" button - right in the middle of each handset. Push it and that caller is gone for good... well, almost.
Obviously you can access a list of the numbers you've banned and un-ban them if you have a change of heart. (Or if you blocked them by mistake)
Strangely, while the large, clear keypads on the handsets themselves are brilliant, the controls on the main base - mostly to operated the answer machine - are far more fiddly; much harder to read and positioned right next to each other introducing the possibility of mispresses. I didn't actually have any trouble, but then, I'm not nearly eighty.
There's just one minor flaw in this otherwise robust wall of landline security. Obviously there's no way for the Call Screen to magically recognise withheld numbers. That's not the end of the world of course, because it just means those callers will be screened every time they ring, as they can't be blocked or allowed by default.
The point is, you'd have to be a pretty determined scam artist to work your way around this system and I imagine the vast majority of would-be wrongdoers would give up pretty quickly and move onto easier prey.
So if you don't want to be that easier prey, but you still need a landline in your life, (or your mum does) Spark Call Screen seems like a pretty good investment.
Click here for more information and pricing on the Spark Call Screen cordless phone.
This year, like several other manufacturers, Samsung has gone line-extension crazy.
Why offer only premium devices, or budget devices, when you can come up with a phone to fit every single price point in between?
Samsung's mid-range A-series certainly provides some serious bang for buck.
The Galaxy A50 looks every bit as classy and sophisticated as its S-series counterparts, despite the fact it's more than $1000 dollars cheaper than some of them. It's available in black or a mysterious white colour that reflects light with a pleasing rainbow effect.
At first glance the A50 seems to be just as curvy as the flagship models but it's not quite the case. Yes the rear cover curves into the rounded edges but the screen is actually flat. Another subtle difference is the back isn't covered with glass - it's plastic. I don't actually mind these two compromises at all - in fact they probably save money not just at the manufacturing end, but should you need to replace the screen due to breakage, I imagine a flat one will be considerably cheaper and hopefully the plastic rear casing is less inclined to shatter at all.
Another eye-catching feature is the tri-lens rear camera configuration, another sign premium photo functionality is becoming more commonplace on mid-range devices. Flip over and you'll see the selfie-cam in a small, water-drop notch, rather than in a corner cutout as you would find on the S10's O-Infinity display, but the screen still stretches far and wide, thanks to the in-display fingerprint sensor.
As usual on almost any Samsung device, the screen quality leaves nothing to be desired. The A50's Super AMOLED display is bright and clear in all light conditions.
Even the user experience once you power the A50 up is strikingly similar to that of the S10. Samsung's One UI is still one of the most user-friendly Android-based interfaces around. Changing to the A50 from another phone is very straightforward; The Smart-Switch app is more comprehensive than ever, especially if you're upgrading from another Samsung device. It's not just contacts and photos you're transferring these days, but homescreen layouts, backgrounds - even WiFi and bluetooth profiles.
What is a major step down is speed. While most software features on the A50 mirror those of the S10, the engine room doesn't come close. The octa-core processor is fast enough for most actions but there's only 4GB of RAM so while operation remains smooth, many things only happen after a bit of a pause. Face unlock, fingerprint sensor, camera app - none of these tasks happen instantly, there's generally a second or two's delay while the phone gets itself together. In saying that, it always works, it just takes longer.
The camera setup is certainly very full-functioned, especially with the inclusion of the ultra-wide lens on the back. There's plenty of AI thrown in - including a scene optimisation setting that'll recognise everything from greenery to scenery, dogs to sunsets, beaches to waterfalls. Picture quality is pretty damn good - as long as there's plenty of light and you don't zoom in too much. That's when you'll start noticing the difference between a $500 phone and a $1500 phone. I really like Samsung's Live Focus (bokeh) setting though and it works well on the A50 - from both front and rear-facing cameras.
For those of you who insist on a dedicated headphone jack, the A50 doesn't disappoint. It also charges via USB Type-C - hopefully an indication microUSB is on the way out, even on lower cost devices.
There's no wireless charging though, which is certainly a shame. It's always one of the first features to be left off to shave the price of a device. No expense spared in terms of battery life though - it's a generous 4000mAh cell which is plenty big enough to get most users through the day - even a long day.
Another optional extra that usually gets sliced to chop the price is water resistance and sure enough, there's no IP rating for the A50, so do try and keep it out of the toilet.
Sound quality also takes a bit of a hit. These days, many high-end handsets have managed to squeeze a pretty decent stereo listening experience out of two fairly small speakers - not so with the A50. You're back to a fairly tinny sound from the single downward firing grille, even if it is reasonably loud.
No worries running accessories like the Galaxy Watch or Galaxy Buds though - again, the software experience controlling these devices through the Wear app is pretty much identical to doing it with the S10.
In fact, so much about the way this phone operates is S10-like, you'd have to wonder why most people would ever consider shelling out for the much more expensive option. The A50 looks first class, it runs the same software and takes perfectly good photos. Yes, it's somewhat limited under the bonnet, with just 4GB of RAM and only 64GB of internal storage, but unless you're using an A50 side-by-side with an S10, you'll probably never know the difference.
Click here for more information and pricing on the Samsung Galaxy A50.
First it was a phone you could take anywhere.
Then you could load all your music onto it too.
In no time, the internet was built in as well.
In their ongoing quest to be everything to everyone, smartphones have been gobbling up one form of technology after another.
GPS? No problem.
Gaming? Easy.
Video? Have you seen these screens?
But one thing has never been perfect. although they've tried. Oh, how they've tried.
The camera.
Phone makers have included photo-taking-tech since before mobile phones were even smart, but let's be honest, they've always been a compromise.
Till now...
I've never owned a camera, let alone a phone camera with a 10x zoom, until this year - now two phones have stepped up to the plate and I'm sure there'll be more to come. The OPPO Reno 10x Zoom is the latest cab off the rank.
This is of course the phone most famous for its unique, pop-up, "shark fin" camera - but that's nothing to do with how zoomy it is. The periscope-based zoom functionality is part of the rear-facing tri-lens camera configuration; a 48MP + 8MP + 13MP setup that actually offers up to 60x digital zoom - the most powerful currently available. Of course, at that level of magnification, you'll definitely need a tripod (or at least something to rest the phone on) to keep the image still enough to shoot - and to be honest, because it's digital, you won't be reading the headlines on the newspaper your neighbour is holding in the building across the street.
The really useful stuff happens up to 10x zoom - hence the name of the device. Although not strictly optical at 10x (AI kicks in around 6x to help out) the images remain crisp and clear, meaning there's no longer any loss of quality when you take those all-important long shots at school assemblies, of kids in the surf while you're on the beach, or triumphant tries scored on the other side of the field. Historically, OPPO has been obsessed with camera innovation and the raw power of this new setup has to be seen to believed... so let's look at it...
This is obviously an impressive, wide angle shot taken on an extremely bright, sunshiney day. Okay, sure there are some minor contrast issues with some of the dark areas, but when you've got midday sun reflecting off water, it's hard for any camera to compensate.
I'm really impressed by how true the colours turned out though and the clarity of foreground objects balanced against distant boats and even the clouds.
Now let's zoom in...
I mean, come on. This shot was taken from exactly the same spot. I challenge you to pick out that boat from the previous picture... pretty hard to spot right?
This is genuine telephotography. With a phone. What a golden age we're living in.
Not such a stellar performance once we head inside though. Generally I found low-light shooting to be good, but not perfect.
This shot is both impressive and disappointing - impressive because the hand I zoomed in on is actually pretty clear but disappointing because the other hand was moving a bit and that's why it's blurry.
There is an Ultra Night Mode, which produces good results in the dark - but I'm not likely to select that option just because I'm inside.
I found indoor video to be a bit dim too, although I loved the fact you can shoot Super Slow-Mo for as long as you want - not just for a few seconds as is the case on other phones with this feature.
Now, about that fin.
Like last year's Find X, which was a fantastic phone by the way, OPPO have again thought outside the box to maximise the Reno's screen-to-body ratio. In fact, they've thought inside the box, with the selfie-cam popping out of the top edge of the phone when required. Unlike the Find X, the Reno's camera only swings up from the right-hand corner, creating the aforementioned, "shark fin" effect.
This isn't just a gimmick, it works brilliantly, most of the time popping up without you even noticing it. In fact, you can still use facial recognition to unlock the Reno, with the shark fin rising to the occasion every time. Although the OPPO team claims their engineers have spent a lot of time making the pop-up mechanism quieter than the one on the Find X, it's definitely still audible in a quiet room. On the bright side, it seems to attract a lot less dust than the much larger Find X version.
In terms of picture quality, OPPO's had some of the best selfie cameras on the market for years now, and this one's no exception.
But the Reno 10x Zoom offers even more than exceptional photography, this is a genuine flagship device, fully deserving comparison with the best from Samsung, Huawei and Apple.
Like last year's R17 Pro, there's also an in-screen fingerprint sensor but this one is way more reliable and much faster too.
It's not a small phone by any means, after all, this is a 6.6" display we're dealing with. It's actually pretty heavy and quite thick too. In spite of this, the Reno is still comfortable to hold, due to its rounded edges and elegantly curved back. Adding to this elegance is the fact the three lens rear-facing camera is completely flush with the body, very unusual as the cameras on most other phones stick out a mile, just asking to be scratched or bashed around.
Ingeniously, OPPO goes a step further to protect the lenses by positioning a little bump just below them, meaning the phone can never actually rest directly on the lenses themselves. Simple but brilliant. The bump sits at the top of a kind of contrasting racing stripe, featuring some OPPO branding which all looks very styley, in either Jet Black or Ocean Green.
What is less stylish is the case included in the box. It's the biggest, thickest, ugliest thing I've ever seen. Although have to admit, despite all that, it's very practical - providing the maximum amount of protection possible, especially around the corners. If you decide to use the case, it certainly gives good peace of mind given the top of the phone has to remain exposed for the camera to pop up. Good luck fitting it in your pocket though.
Battery life is fantastic, as is fast charging via the included VOOC 3.0 charger - but we've come to expect that from OPPO phones recently. What's more significant is the dramatic upgrade to the ColorOS user interface, based on Android 9.0. At long last there's the option for an app drawer so you're not stuck with home page after home page of apps you hardly ever use. There are several options for virtual buttons or gesture controls, whichever you prefer and there's also a quick access bar you can tailor to suit you needs for commonly used actions like Do-Not-Disturb or apps you need to get to in a hurry.
Yes, at last the OPPO software experience matches up to the Reno 10x Zoom's first-class hardware; 8GB of Ram, 256GB of storage, the very latest in cooling technology... a flagship that legitimately matches up with other frontline devices in almost every department - although no IP water-resistance rating and still no wireless charging option, which may have been a niche requirement a year or so ago, but now a lot more people expect their high-end devices to charge wirelessly.
And make no mistake, this is definitely a high-end device, despite the fact it's priced under $1300. The design, the power and of course, the outstanding photographic capabilities make the Reno 10x Zoom worth every penny.
Click here for more information on the OPPO Reno 10x Zoom.
