O+ Venti LTE Review

I made sure that I will have the chance to review one of the country's first smartphones powered by a relatively new Speadtrum SoC with LTE connecitivity. Here's my O+ Venti LTE Review.

Win ISDB-T DTV Box Unboxing and Review

I am happy and priviledged to review so far the most affordable yet dependable DTV Box that you can find either offline or online, this is the Win ISDB-T DTV Box.

The one that I got was the white which is the latest model from Royal Antennacraft Industries. Last November 2015, they introduced a different design yet at a bit higher price at Php 1,799

You can see the top and bottom parts of Win ISDB-T DTV Box

At the front, you can see the LCD display, channel up and down buttons, power button and regular USB port which you can use for playing media files as well as to record your fave TV shows. The back part has much packed ports like Antenna In, Antenna Out (which is the one that you will need to insert together with the provided antenna), regular HDMI out, the 3 audio and video ports, coaxial port (you can use your present over-the-air antenna here) and DC port.

The top and bottom parts of the device which is made from glossy plastic yet still looks presentable. In return, the device is light which is quite comparable to some of the phablets that I previously reviewed. I love the size of the ventilation holes to lessen the heat inside. They are confident that you can use it 24/7.



The box also includes the stock antenna with 8 meter cable (that is 3 meters longer than this known competitior) with magnetic base, A/V cable and antenna



Of course the remote is important.













Booting in the first time is quick as you will be greeted by the simple WIN logo. Better to place your antenna outside at the highest point possible. Don't worry as the antenna can sustain the heavy rains and will not disrupt the signal. Auto scan the device to get the available DTV channels in your area. In my test area in Muntinlupa, I got ABS-CBN, Sports & Action, TV5, Aksyon TV, Catsup, UNTV, ADDTV and all of 8 channels under BEAM. I noticed that it can get both the full and 1 seg channels. Of course, the DTV channel availability will be dependent in your area. Safe to say that the entire NCR was a-ok and I also tested one spot in Sto.Tomas Batangas (only the first 2 channels mentioned were visible).

The menu consists of programs (which contains EPG), picture (which you can set the aspect ratio and resolution from 480p to 1080i, based on my test do not attempt to select 1080p 60hz), channel search, time, option, system and USB which will be your haven for recording the TV shows and accessing your media files. Overall, I got no problems in terms of video quality and signal using HDMI to HDMI cable.



On recording, the device can recognize so far the FAT32 file system (not sure on other formats). Do not worry on your USB as it will auto create a folder for your recording which has an .mts video format on 60fps either I recorded a channel on HD or FHD.



On this screenshot via MX Player on Android, it recorded at 873 x 480 on a Full HD channel wile it's 640 x 480 on HD. On average, it will accumulate 1 to 1.1 GB for an hour of recording.



I did a test on recording as you can record a channel while watching another channel by scheduling the recording process by putting in the corresponding channel, time and date. Pretty cool.



The Win ISDB-T DTV Box is now available thru Lazada Philippines for Php 1,399 (just look at the corresponding picture) and Royalantennacraft Industries FB page. If you are not caring about those exclusive DTV channels and want a clearer TV viewing plus to record your fave programs, this device is a good-to-go. I will gonna rate it at 4.5 out of 5.

Better if you will gonna buy this device thru this link

Alcatel Pixi 4 6 3G Review

I am done with my first ever 6 inch smartphone check and a first time too of an Alcatel handset. Here's my review of Alcatel Pixi 4 6 3G version.

Flash Plus 2 Review

From one Helio P10 powered smartphone to another. This time, I am done with my first ever review of a Flash smartphone - Flash Plus 2

Oppo F1 Plus Review

Oppo promised to us that the F1 Plus will be their selfie expert but not just for me as it was my first time to check out this pretty new SoC. Is it worth for the price. Here is my Oppo F1 Plus revuew

Mystic Brew Food Review

I am already seeing this coffee shop + more in South Snippets Twitter page since 2014. I tried to visit there but there is really less than time for me until our Secrets of the South food crawl was on our last stop for desserts at Mystic Brew in BF Resort Las Pinas

Siam Noodle House Food Review

Just less than a kilometer away after at Coolato Artisan Gelato, we went to something Asian. It was my 2nd time to go Thai food at Siam Noodle House inside BF Paranaque.

Coolato Artisan Gelato Food Review

Good thing that I had a second chance to be in one of new and interesting stores inside SM BF Paranaque and it is something cool.

Mati's Meat And Bread Food Review

A few days ago, I am delighted to be in the first Secrets of the South Food Crawl (big thanks to Ms. Kathy Kenny Ngo of lifeiskulayful.com and psst.ph) to highlight the best yet undiscovered restos in the South Metro.

MyPhone My86 DTV Review

After spending over a week for one of MyPhone's DTV phone offerings, I had the result. This is my review for the MyPhone My86 DTV.

Acer Liquid Z330 Review

It's my first taste to check out the entry-level Qualcomm Snapdragon 210 quad-core processor on a phone like Acer Liquid Z330. Did it satisfy me? Check out my review

Huawei GR5 Review

Done with my first ever smartphone review for Huawei with their Huawei GR5. Find out if I find the enjoymennt in their premium-looking midrange offering.

Ekophone Sage 2 LTE Review

Done with Ekotek's first LTE smartphone review - Ekophone Sage 2 LTE but how does it?

Torque Ego Tab S Unboxing and Review

The guys from Torque gave this blog a chance to check out the most affordable on the new Ego tablet series. I had this tablet for weeks now so I just gonna put the unboxing and my review in one.

This is the box and what's inside of the Torque Ego Tab S with screen guard, 2 ampere charger, user manual, warranty card and micro USB to USB chord

Front: VGA front camera, 7 inch WSVGA display
Back: Rear camera, Torque logo, single speaker
Internals: 1.0 GHz Rockchip RK2928 Cortex-A9 single core processor made in 55nm process, Android 4.4 Kitkat 512 MB RAM, 8 GB ROM, WiFi, no Bluetooth, 2,500 mAh battery

Nothing to check on the left and right sides

The whole top portion is pretty packed with power/unlock button, 3.5 mm. audio jack, micro USB port and volume rocker.

Compared to Torque Ego Phab tablet, I'll love this more only for the form factor with curved back and a bit rubbery back finish.

A bit skinned Android 4.4 Kitkat in this tablet has a weight obviously for it's single core processor as I really experienced lag mainly on unlocking it to the worst one, copying and pasting files on it's stock file manager. I didn't dare to put some gaming test on it as I used it mainly for surfing and as a mutimedia companion 

Screenshots from some benchmark apps. Not surprised that it only scored over 7,000 on Antutu. Good thing that I don't have any problems on it's 5 point multi touch display

The tablet has two partitions for storage, the nand flash which I recommend to to put in media files in case you don't have a micro SD at over 5 GB and internal storage (which will store the apps) at less than a GB. It's already 2016 and we want unified storage for all sorts of Android devices so this set-up is a no no.

On battery, it only surived at less than 4 hours as the heat issues on it's 55 nm SoC was the probable cause on this one. Almost the same goes when I used it on uninterrupted internet usage via WiFi. By the WiFi was a-ok in this tablet but no Bluetooth. The audio jack is CTIA compliant.

For the overall functionality of this device and for the price of Php 1,699, I'll gonna give it 3.5 out of 5 but I hope Torque will put a price drop on this one soon as for additional Php 300, you'll gonna get a tablet with better quad-core processor plus digital TV soon from a local brand.

Starmobile Knight Elite Review

I am finally done for my first review of a Starmobile device. Here's what I got on the Starmobile Knight Elite

Marshall Major 2 Headphones Review

I am happy that I got a chance to review a headphone from a well known audio brand like Marshall (yah, I knew that brand as I am seeing in a number of rock gigs via their amps). For my first dibs, I had the Marshall Major 2 Headphones

Lenovo A6000 Plus Review (in Android Lollipop)

We might be late compared to others but it was a perfect timing for the blog to be in it. Here's my review of Lenovo A6000 Plus in Android Lollipop.

Cubix Cube Lite review

After playing on this 3rd smartphone from this online brand, I already have the verdict on the quad-core powered Cubix Cube Lite

Acer Liquid Z630 Review

After a few months since I met this device last October, I spent a few days off from this one of the latest phablets from Acer. Here is my review of Acer Liquid Z630.

Motorola Moto E 2nd Gen Review

I'm happy that I was able to review one of the comeback devices of this global brand in the country. I chose this handset out of their 3 current offerings for various reasons. Is my decision good? Here's my assessment on Motorola Moto E 2nd Gen