Wet-n-wild speaker
Megaboom provides the biggest blast in the Ultimate Ears speaker range
The California (US)-based Ultimate Ears is a respected name for Bluetooth speakers and their products are a special favourite for outdoor parties that might get a wee wet-n-wild. That is because their speakers come covered in water proof material with all the ports covered with rubber seals. The new model that has just reached India, is the biggest so far in the UE range and unlike the familiar discus-shaped UE Roll, the MegaBoom is a 9-inch tall cylinder and not exactly portable.
Perhaps for this reason, it belts out louder music ( some 90 dbA) through its twin 2 inch drivers and twin passive radiators. At just under 900 grams, it can sit sturdily, poolside -- and even if dunked in one metre of water for half an hour , it continues playing. Charging is via a micro USB cable and mains plug provided --and as usual for this brand, it comes with a mobile app for Android and iOS device. What is new, is that you can harness the Siri or Google voice assistant and speak to the speaker, mouthing your music selection. Volume controls are very easy -- large plus and minus signs on the body and a cool new feature, is that you can tap the top of the speaker to play or pause the music. The larger body means a bigger battery that lasts for a promised 20 hours. It can be daisy-chained, via Bluetooth, to multiple UE speaker units.... creating a wide audio network across large spaces. The MegaBoom costs Rs 19,995 and fans of the brand will not grudge the asking price for its sturdy build and solid sound.
Fit for 2018!
Year-end fitness goals made easy, with this stylish smart watch from Samsung
Waiting for January 1 to start workout routine or weight loss programmes is passe. To look dashing at that New Year's Eve party, we need to get in shape and if the gym or swimming pool is too much of a bother, Samsung's latest wearable smart watch, the Gear Sport, is stylish -- and gives you all the numbers that matter!
It tracks your activity, sleep and exercise, three key parameters for health and lifestyle. Additionally, the device offers water resistance and swim pattern tracking and is synced to the swimming tracking app called 'Speedo On' that measures lap time, lap count, stroke type and more. Heart rate monitoring is more accurate and faster than previous Gear variants and Samsung's in-built algorithms ensure that your daily activities are auto-detected and tracked accordingly.
With the Gear Sport, Samsung takes smart watches to a level that goes beyond fitness. Besides the regular options of choosing watch faces and personalizing it according to like Under Armour Record, MyFitnessPal, MapMyRun, Endomodo etc. And substantial Indian R&D has gone into it: the cricket mode on the Samsung Gear Sport records your bowling behaviour and tracks calories burnt. Also included are sports like badminton and tennis.
Design-wise, the Gear sports is snazzy and sleek, with the rotating bezel, the most impressive element. The device is responsive and syncs up effectively with your existing smart phone via the Gear app. Watch straps and faces can be changed depending on your taste; we recommend that you choose a comfortable strap since you might end up wearing it for 24 hours or more at a stretch. At Rs. 22,990 it is a stylish and functional device which can double as watch -- and real-time fitness monitor. We're guessing you may plan to gift it -- and end up keeping it!
Carry on reading!
The new edition of Kindle Oasis brings the largest screen yet.
It is 10 years this month since Amazon disrupted the e-book market with the Kindle reader. Since then the leader among dedicated e-book readers has held on to its fans in the face of challenges from tablet PCs. The 9th iteration of Amazon's reader is the "all-new" Kindle Oasis, a misleading name since there was a Kindle with the same name last year. So what's new? For starters, there is the size. At 7 inches this is the largest Kindle reader where the earlier Oasis was 6 inches. and comes with an enhanced 300 dpi resolution. That makes this is best reading experience to date. The adaptive light sense technology is not new and was first debuted with the 2014 Kindle Voyage. It ensures that you can be read even in bright ambient light.
The bevel on one edge makes it very easy to hold -- but I am very disappointed that Kindle has done away with the soft cover which doubled as charger and was a feature of the first Oasis. Now, you have to pay extra for the cover -- and it is currently unavailable in India. However the basic reader is for the first time, waterproof, so users who like to read poolside or on the beach, can relax. The asking price of Rs 21,999 for the 8 GB storage model ( the 32 GB costs Rs 28,999) is in fact lower than last year's Oasis model. And if you are a bit surprised by the cost, remember, Amazon throws in a life time-free 3G data connection .. that alone can add up to a nice chunk of change saved, over the years!
Affordable style
Indian phone maker Micromax, creates a truly paisa vasool product
You don't have to spend a lot of money these days to buy a mobile handset that is both stylish and more than adequately powered. We have to hand it to Indian brands like Micromax for making this happen. We have been trying out the Bharat 5 -- the latest in the Bharat series of aggressively priced smart phones. This one measures up to the latest 4G VoLTE cellular standard that will work with services like Reliance Jio and provide an all - data, free voice service.
The 1 GB RAM and 16 GB ( expandable to 64 GB) storage is quite enough. The '5' in the name is there with reason: The phone has 5 MP front and 5 MP rear cameras; a 5.2 inch HD display and a jumbo 5000 mAh battery that, at a pinch, can double up as a power bank for other device. The apps include some nice tools to cut down on memory usage, but the default screen is classic and clean Android ( Nougat). They actually slashed the initial price to go with the all-fives theme --it costs Rs 5555 and is great value at that.
