T3 India

Sujith Gopinath

Personal Audio: Sony Witnesses Surge in Demand

by

Sony has been at the forefront of personal audio space and the Covid-induced lockdown has certainly pushed this segment forward in over a year. T3 caught up with Gyanendra Singh, Head of Audio Business, Sony India, on the sidelines of World Music Day.

The extended lockdown has largely confined everyone to their homes. Apart from OTT platforms and gaming, music is something that keeps people engaged and helps maintain their sanity. What are the major trends experienced by Sony’s audio division during this lockdown period?

During this lockdown as well, we are witnessing a surge in both Personal Audio products like earphones and headphones and the home entertainment products like the Soundbars. We are experiencing that consumers are moving towards products with features that are helpful for their work from home, learn from home activities and products that enhance their consumption of entertainment at home. The demand upsurge is like what we experienced during the last year unlock.

Could you elaborate on some of the products that drove the maximum business during this time? What are the buying trends that emerged during this lockdown phase?

While there continues to be an overall good traction for both personal audio and home entertainment products, for personal audio products, in terms of form factor, the truly wireless segment and the headphones with Active Noise Cancellation are showing very strong demand. We continue to have very good traction for our flagship 1000X series in headphones and truly wireless earbuds form factor, followed by affordable Bluetooth headphones WI-C200, WI-XB400 & WH-CH510. On the home entertainment front, the consumer is displaying the desire to upgrade his home audio-video environment. Consequently, there is demand for soundbars to enjoy cinematic audio experience at home for flagship products with Dolby Atmos like HT-Z9F and HT-G700, followed by affordable range models like HT-RT3 and HT-RT40.

With service centres and other points of service shut, how did you manage to connect with customers?

Since the beginning of lockdown, Sony has been actively supporting consumers via e-mails and live chat to ensure uninterrupted entertainment. 24×7 assistance is being offered to customers through AI-assisted Chat Bot. Our Call Center (1800 103 7799) was operational and our customer service executives were available for resolving customer queries by offering Remote assistance through DIY videos and video calls. We also offered special Warranty extension for customers whose product warranty lapsed during the lockdown period.

What were the major learnings from the extended lockdown period for Sony in the audio space? How has it changed the way you did business? How do you look forward to the post-Covid and post-lockdown scenario?

There are multiple factors that have evolved due to this extended lockdown phenomenon. Firstly, the usage of audio products has increased whether it is for work from home (WFH), learn from home (LFH) or home entertainment. It has given consumer a greater opportunity to experience the product and enjoy its features. Secondly, for many consumers this has led to a situation of higher disposable income and hence consumer spending on premium audio products has increased and we expect this to continue in the post-lockdown scenario as well. Lastly, it has increased the use of online as a medium of communication for both our consumers and for us as well. Consumer traffic has significantly increased to Sony India’s website and to our products on other e-commerce portals. Consequently, our modes of reaching out to the consumer has also seen a greater shift towards the online medium and we expect this to continue.

Review: BlueStacks 5 Android Emulator

by

With a year under lockdown and work from home, you would have equipped yourselves with a decent laptop or a desktop. And if you are a gaming enthusiast, you might be lamenting the high cost of games for your device. The best solution would be an Android emulator that can be installed on your Windows or Mac. BlueStacks has unveiled the 5th iteration of their popular emulator that supports multi-instance feature along with other advanced features. Though this emulator is mostly used for gaming, it can also be used to install and run any Android app that is supported by up to Android Nougat. It supports both Windows and Mac OS.

The final rollout of this edition (GA) uses significantly less RAM and processing power. In fact, BlueStacks claims that the latest version uses up to 50 percent less RAM than the previous version. You can download BlueStacks 5 exe file from the BlueStacks website. Installation was quite smooth and took only a few minutes in our case. The software can run smoothly on a medium level PC with as low as 2GB RAM. However, we would recommend 8GB RAM, SSD and at least a mid-level graphics capability (onboard or discrete). We used both a dedicated gaming laptop and a Ryzen 5 laptop with Vega 8 graphics to try out the platform.

The emulator features Eco Mode that lets you reduce CPU usage by 87 percent and GPU usage by up to 97 percent. It also supports multi-instance, which allows you to create more than one instance of BlueStacks to play or access multiple apps. It supports gamepads and popular game controllers for a console-like experience. Macros can be recorded and played right from the sidebar. Smart Controls allow you to focus on the game without bothering too much with the controls. Game controls can be customised and keys mapped to touch points.

If you are using an Android emulator for the first time, you might find the controls somewhat difficult in the beginning, but only till you get used to it. We tried Call of Duty and Modern Warships along with racers like Asphalt 9, and the gameplay was quite smooth in every instance without any drop in fps observed. The sheer number of games to choose from the Play Store makes it worth the time and effort.

RATING

★★★★★

WE’RE IMPRESSED Smooth gameplay, Works on mid-level machines

WE’D IMPROVE Support for latest Android versions

THE LAST WORD If you are looking for an Android emulator that allows you to customise game controls and consumes less system resources, BlueStacks 5 certainly deserves a look. However, it supports only up to Android Nougat and this could make some later games incompatible.  

Review: Oppo Reno 5 Pro 5G

by

Rarely do we see phone manufacturers battling out to flood the market with devices with features that are yet to be rolled out, yet 5G seems to be the buzzword in the smartphone market today. We don’t remember witnessing the same frenzy during 3G and 4G rollouts, but certainly, the smartphone landscape has changed considerably between then and now. Oppo Reno 5 Pro joins the crowd, promising powerful performance and power efficiency.

The Reno 5 Pro 5G has a beautiful design with what Oppo calls Reno Glow technique, which provides a textured glow to the phone’s back surface with better fingerprint resistance. The device is available in Starry Black and Astral Blue colours. The camera bump has a glossy finish. The volume rocker is on the left-hand side, with the power button on the right. The bottom accommodates the SIM tray, a microphone hole and the single speaker array. The device accepts two nano SIMs. Though the gradient and 3D curved glass design provide the device with a clean and beautiful appearance, it does not break any new ground in design. The device is light and comfortable to use, measuring 159.7 x 73.2 x 7.6mm and weighing 173g.

The phone uses a 3D borderless sense screen with curved corners and a punch-hole camera. The 16.6 cm Super AMOLED screen offers a 90Hz refresh rate and 180Hz touch sampling rate, which appears dated in a phone that competes with the latest devices optimised for gaming. However, the Color OS 11.1 OS and the interface felt smooth and responsive. Face unlock was quite fast, but fingerprint took a little longer to unlock the phone. The screen reproduces DCI-P3 colour gamut and the device carries HD and HDR certifications from Netflix and Amazon Prime Video.       

The Reno 5 Pro uses a MediaTek Dimensity 1000+, a high-end 7nm SoC for mid-priced devices supporting the latest features like 5G, Wi-Fi 6 and advanced AI performance. The chip uses four powerful ARM Cortex-A77 clocked at 2.6GHz and four high-efficiency 2GHz Cortex-A55 cores. The graphics is handled by a 9-core ARM Mali-G77 MP9 GPU, providing an above-average gaming performance. While gaming was smooth with great response, the position of the speaker disappointed in horizontal orientation. Most of the time, my right index finger obstructed the speaker grille and completely cut off the sound in the middle of the game, forcing me into an uncomfortable grip to let the sound out. The Game Centre offers a customisation option in the middle of a game if required.

One area where the Reno 5 Pro clearly excels is the 65W SuperVOOC 2.0 charging, which tops up the 4300mAh battery in just over half an hour. The device is available in a single configuration of 8GB RAM and 128GB ROM, which is not expandable.

The phone features a 64MP main, 8MP ultra-wide-angle and 2MP Macro cameras along with a 2MP monochrome camera. In most cases, the colours appeared natural. However, turning on AI scene enhancement rendered the images with too much saturation and sharpening. The wide-angle camera appeared less detailed than the main camera. 4K videos were largely fine, but the lack of optical zoom proved a spoiler. Night mode certainly lets you capture an image even in near-zero illumination, but the images cannot be compared with those captured under proper lighting. Dual view video employs both front and back camera simultaneously and is a welcome addition with various layout options to choose from.

The Oppo Reno 5 Pro is a fairly competitive device with a neat design and powerful hardware. The cameras do not disappoint either. We wish the device had stereo speakers and a bit of fine-tuning in image quality.

RATING

★★★★

WE’RE IMPRESSED Clean design, Responsive interface, Sure-fast charging

WE’D IMPROVE Speaker, Image quality

THE LAST WORD Oppo Reno 5 Pro 5G is a powerful device at the mid-price segment, supporting the latest network standards. However, there is no unique feature in this device that we can point out to potential buyers.

Colorful Launches GeForce RTX 3080 Ti and RTX 3070 Ti Graphics Cards

by

Colorful Technology has unveiled the Colorful iGame GeForce RTX 3080 Ti and RTX 3070 Ti graphics cards. The line-up consists of the Vulcan, Advanced OC, and NB models. The all-new GeForce

RTX 3070 Ti NB takes a new look with its improved cooling and mightier design. The Colorful iGame GeForce RTX 3080 Ti and RTX 3070 Ti comes packed with premium features including the One-Key Overclock, customisable RGB lighting, and more to cater to different types of power users, gamers, and PC enthusiasts.

Powered by the NVIDIA Ampere architecture, the GeForce RTX 3080 Ti delivers an incredible leap in performance and fidelity with acclaimed features such as ray tracing, NVIDIA DLSS performance-boosting AI, NVIDIA Reflex latency-reduction, NVIDIA Broadcast streaming features and additional memory that allows it to speed through the most popular creator applications as well.

Colorful iGame GeForce RTX 3080 Ti Vulcan OC-V

Unique to the Vulcan models, the Colorful iGame GeForce RTX 3080 Ti Vulcan gets the same set of premium features including the signature LCD screen. The LCD screen can be used for status monitoring and personal customization, it can display GPU temperature, GPU load, core clocks, and others. The LCD screen can be flipped 90°, allowing it to remain visible even in vertical graphics card mounting orientation.

Colorful iGame GeForce RTX 3080 Ti Vulcan

The iGame GeForce RTX 3080 Ti Vulcan packs a triple-fan cooler with a 13-blade cooling fan design and the iGame Vacuum Copper Plated Technics, delivering superb cooling to achieve high and stable overclocks. The graphics card also features Colorful’s One-Key Overclock button at the rear I/O – a straightforward overclocking feature for instant performance boost to 1710MHz in just one push of a button.

Colorful iGame GeForce RTX 3070 Ti Advanced OC-V

The Colorful iGame GeForce RTX 3070 Ti Advanced graphics card is the top-of-the-line model. It also packs a triple-fan cooler in a premium metallic shroud with an “Energy Core” central fan with a sophisticated “Lighting Frozen” lighting effect.

Colorful iGame GeForce RTX 3070 Ti Advanced

The Advanced OC model features five 8mm-diameter high-performance heat pipes for aggressive heat dissipation. The graphics card also features Colorful’s One-Key Overclock button at the rear I/O, pushing performance to 1830MHz in just a push of the button.

Colorful GeForce RTX 3070 Ti NB 8G-V

The Colorful GeForce RTX 3070 Ti NB graphics card features a new look with its improved thermal cooling design and RGB lighting while retaining the eye-catching Black+Red Design. The improved cooler packs a triple-fan configuration and sports an aesthetic metallic matte shroud and gaming red accents. The three 90mm cooling fans quickly dissipate heat from the high-performance heat sink with six 6mm-diameter heat pipes with direct touch to the GPU.

The GeForce RTX 3070 Ti NB features an RGB Colorful logo on the side, perfect for RGB lighting enthusiasts. The GeForce RTX 3070 Ti NB is a compact triple-fan graphics card measuring 300mm x 104mm x 52.5mm.

Ambrane Launches Grooming Products

by

Ambrane has expanded its range of products in the personal care segment by launching portable multi-purpose grooming kits on Amazon and Flipkart. Bringing a one-stop solution for all grooming needs, the products come with 365-days warranty.

Ambrane Cruiser Mini

The new Ambrane Cruiser Miniis multi-purpose grooming kit is priced at Rs. 1,699. It is designed with a rubber finish for a firm grip and usability. It comes with two detachable heads and 10 different settings to style beard, moustache, and hair with precision. With a runtime of over 60 minutes and a 600 mAh lithium battery, the trimmer can be operated with or without a cord. Keeping the kit travel-friendly, the cruiser mini comes with a portable and stylish storage tray.

Ambrane Aura-S

Bringing the finest precision to your home, the Aura-S trimmer is a convenient solution to your grooming needs. It comes with 20 different length settings and two detachable combs. With a powerful battery, it offers you 90 minutes of hassle-free cordless shave or trim. Equipped with an IPX7-rated waterproofing, the trimmer is priced at Rs.1,499. The other addition to the grooming range is Aura-X trimmer that comes with 17 different length settings and adjustable rotating combs of 0.5mm to 10mm for short and long hair adjustments. The blades are uniquely designed to bring accurate trim or shave with ease, barring any cuts and nicks. This trimmer comes with smart led light and rapid charging that can last for 2 hours on a single charge.

Priced at Rs. 1,299, the Aura-X trimmer gives the ultimate salon experience at home. With the launch of innovative grooming products under personal care range, Ambrane is expanding its portfolio to meet the needs and desires of its growing customer base, and the burgeoning male grooming category.