Tag Archives: wireless

Accessories, News

Sony’s WH-1000XM4 Gets an Elegant Silent White Edition

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Sony’s WH-series headphones are no stranger to the market. In fact, if you’ve been looking for a formidable wireless headphone to add to your arsenal, you’ve probably been recommended the WH-1000XM3 or WH-1000XM4. The headphones have created a paradigm shift in audio experiences since their introduction back in 2019. The headphones continue to be one of the most in demand headphones even with the introduction of the WH-1000XM4.

The WH-1000XM4 is getting a little bit more special with a limited, special edition. The new Silent White edition up-classes the already elegant design of the WH-1000XM4 with a new pearlescent white. Sony’s choice of pearlescent white permeates the whole package from the headphones themselves to the accessories that come with it. The new finish also comes with an additional coating of paint which makes it even more stain resistant. The additional layer also preserves the high quality white finish.

Beauty isn’t just skin deep with the new Silent White WH-1000XM4. The headphones come with the same technology that makes the line up a must have for audiophiles. It comes with Sony’s most advanced noise cancelling technology powered by the QN1 noise cancelling processor. This is, of course, augmented by Sony’s dual noise sensor technology which brings an improved algorithm for better noise cancelling. The audio experience is further enhanced by a Bluetooth audio system on chip which dynamically adapts to noise, music and acoustics. Edge-AI and DSEE Extreme ensures that users get the full fidelity of sound by accurately rebuilding loss audio data lost during digital compression.

Pricing & Availability

If you’re itching to get the Silent White WH-1000XM4, you’ll have to wait a few more weeks until May 2021 in Malaysia. They will be available at the Sony Stores in Suria KLCC and The Curve as well as the Sony Store Online. You’ll need to be quick though, as they will only be available in limited quantities at a recommended retail price of MYR1,799.

They will also be available in Europe starting May, 20201 for €430 (MYR2,126.75)/£400 (MYR2,295.02). Availability in the the U.S. will start in summer with a recommended retail price of $399.99 (MYR1,646.90).

Accessories, Consumer Electronics, News

SONOS Roam Launches in Malaysia, Available 21 April Onward for MYR 1,099!

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SONOS is one of the most recognisable audio brands in the world currently. Considering that they launched this first speaker product in 2005, they are not exactly one of the most history-rich brands in the audio world. They do have a specialisation though, that is home audio systems. In other words, they do smart speakers, and they do it well.

Today they launched their smallest speaker set-up available from their line-up. Today they launched the SONOS Roam.

The SONOS Roam is quite a unique product from SONOS. To be fair, it is not the first time that SONOS launched a portable wireless speaker. They launched the Move back in 2019. This is the first time though that the SONOS speaker was truly portable in the sense that it can actually fit in your backpack with no fuss. You can carry other things besides the speaker as well in your backpack.

The SONOS Roam is a unique product though. It is, if I am not wrong, the first SONOS product that could tune itself to any environment via its own mic. They call the feature TruePlay, which is not necessarily a new technology. On the SONOS Roam though, TruePlay is constantly adjusting itself especially when you introduce it to a new environment. You just need to have SONOS S2 app to get it to work. So, it is clever.

Source: SONOS

It is also SONOS’ first speaker to feature wireless charging. It is Qi compatible as well, so you do not technically need to charge it via SONOS’ own wireless charger. You can buy the magnetic Qi wireless charger separately though for MYR 239 (US$ 49*). If not, you can charge it via a USB Type-C cable. A single charge lasts up to 10 hours according to SONOS.

Like any other SONOS speakers, the Roam features both WiFi connectivity and all-important Bluetooth 5.0 connectivity. The clever part about the SONOS Roam is that it switches seamlessly between WiFi and Bluetooth connection with your smartphone depending on WiFi availability. The only issue with that is pairing with other SONOS speakers can only occur over WiFi. Then again, speaker pairing over WiFi is a lot more stable than over Bluetooth.

The SONOS Roam is also a water-resistant speaker, which also means that you can bring it absolutely anywhere, rain or shine. You can take it to a pool party for example and you should be okay with normal splashes or even a dunk in the water with IP67 rating. IP67 dust resistance also means that you can take it to a beach party and not worry about messing up the speaker with sand.

  • Source: SONOS
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The SONOS Roam portable speaker will be available in Malaysia 21st April onward. You can head to any SONOS authorised retailers in Malaysia to get the SONOS Roam speaker. It will set you back MYR 1,099 (US$ 169) at launch. You can choose between either Lunar White or Shadow Black colour options. For more information on the SONOS Roam, you can head to their website.

*Official price in US$

Accessories, Mobile, News

OPPO Enco X Launching in Malaysia Soon!

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Update (11/03/21): The OPPO Enco X has launched globally with immediate availability. Official global pricing is EU€ 179 (MYR 879***). We are expecting the TWS earphone to arrive in Malaysia toward the end of March 2021 or early April 2021 alongside the OPPO Find X3 Pro.

Meet the OPPO Enco X, OPPO’s new True Wireless (TWS) earphones that is supposed to feature Active Noise Cancelling and all the premium things you can find on a TWS earphone. They created it with Dynaudio as well, a well known Danish HiFi audio solutions provider. This should be a good one.

Technically, it is a good one. There has been reviews out and about already and the product has been available in India since January 2021. Of course, it is available in China as well. You technically can buy the OPPO Enco X from Shopee as well, albeit not from official sources and unofficial price tags attached to them.

That is all about to change soon, according to OPPO. They have not given us a tentative date at this time, but they also say that they will announce the launch date soon. Yes, they are very vague. At least they confirmed that the new OPPO Enco X will be available in Malaysia officially.

The OPPO Enco X, if you have not known yet, is OPPO’s latest TWS earphones to enter the market after the OPPO Enco Free, Enco W31, Enco W11, and Enco W51. Most of these options can be considered budget options with prices less than MYR 300 (US$ 73*). The most expensive of these Enco earphones currently available in Malaysia is the OPPO Enco Free at MYR 499 (US$ 121*).

Source: OPPO

The OPPO Enco X though is going to be a slightly more premium product. Its official pricing in China is RMB 999 (US$ 153**) which converts to about MYR 634. But there is a good reason for the more premium pricing.

For one, it is created with Dynaudio. As per mentioned, Dynaudio is a world famous Danish HiFi gear maker. They are one of the go-to brands when it comes to high-end audio gear and even studio monitoring gear. Them lending their expertise to OPPO will really elevate the listening experience.

OPPO is not exactly new to high-end audio either. Remember they launched the OPPO PM-1 headphone, one of the highest acclaimed high-end audio gears any audiophile could get with their money. They also released something called DBEE Dynamic Audio technology back in 2007. The technology is now in its third generation available on the OPPO Enco X. The technology supposedly features new materials and new construction layout and methods to deliver better aural experiences.  

Secondly, the OPPO Enco X is an Active Noice Cancelling (ANC) enabled earphone. ANC usually means premium with a price tag to match. The Sony WF-SP800N earphones for example retails at MYR 849. The Apple Airpods Pro retails at MYR 1,099.

Source: OPPO

Thirdly, OPPO’s Enco X also comes with OPPO’s brilliant Binaural Low-Latency Bluetooth Transmission technology. This should mean lower transmission latency from your connected device to the earphones. That is important for gaming and even phone calls.

Lastly, its battery life. OPPO’s Enco X is said to have up to 25 hours of music playback in total. With noise cancelling fully on though, the earphones itself can last up to 4 hours with music on a single charge. The case gives the Enco X three additional charges. While 4 hours may not sound like much, most TWS earphones have a battery life of less than 3 hours on a single charge.

The OPPO Enco X will be available in White and Black colour options. There are no solid information on its availability dates in Malaysia yet. There are no solid leads on its pricing too at this time. As per its official pricing in China of RMB 999 though, we are expecting prices to be somewhere between MYR 649, to MYR 699 in Malaysia.

* Approximate conversion based on exchange rate US$ 1 = MYR 4.13 on xe.com as of 10/03/2021

** Approximate conversion based on exchange rate US$ 1 = RMB 6.50 on xe.com as of 10/03/2021

*** Approximate value based on conversion rate EU€ 1.00 = MYR 4.91 on xe.com as of 11/03/2021

Accessories, News

Redmi Brings SonicBass to India for Rs.999

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Xiaomi subsidiary, Redmi just launched the new wireless earphones in India. The new offering was initially launched in Nepal last month. Since its initial launch, the Redmi SonicBass wireless earphones have become known as the affordable true wireless earbuds.

Source: Xiaomi India

The Redmi SonicBass Wireless Earphones come with a neckband designed to give extra grip around the shoulders. The neckband is a relatively flat cable whicht you can double-tap to trigger your assistant of choice (Google Assistant, Alexa or Siri). It comes with Bluetooth 5.0 support for connectivity and is compatible with iOS, Android and Windows devices.

It has dual microphones along with ENC (Environmental Noise Cancellation). ENC technology allows better call quality by suppressing any ambient noise. It is equipped with IPX4 splash and sweat resistance – an important feature for those looking to use it while exercising. In addition, it has a multifunction button to quickly access various multimedia controls. It also comes with antiwax silicone tips with magnetic earbuds.

The Redmi SonicBass Wireless Earphones are touted to last for up to 12 hours on a single charge, thanks to its 120mAh battery. The standby time is listed to be about 200 hours and it weighs only 21.2 grams. Bluetooth connectivity on the earphones ranges to about 10 metres of operating distance.

The Redmi SonicBass wireless earphones are now available in India for Rs.999 (MYR56.49/USD$13.65).

Accessories, Consumer Electronics, First Look, Lifestyle, Video

First Look at the Ruark Audio R3 – High-End, Pretty, At Home

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Ruark Audio just launched in Malaysia. Malaysia is also the first market to the Ruark Audio R3. The new Bluetooth enabled speakers is so much more than just a table top speaker though.

It packs a very powerful class A-B amplifier for superior sound quality even if you compare it to the likes of Senheiser or even Bose. It is just as pricey too at MYR 3,999. It is also a piece of furniture though.

The wood finish is actual wood, instead of laminated MDF boards. It is a piece of decoration in your living room, or your study, or even your bedroom. It can even fit your antique furniture if you really like.

It is not an antique museum piece though. It is Bluetooth enabled, WiFi enabled, Internet enabled, and you can even put a CD into it. It is as modern as the National Art Gallery of Singapore.

The Ruark Audio R3 will be available in Malaysia at the end of August at retail partners accross Malaysia. There are no available colour options available, just that every piece of Ruark Audio’s loudspeakers come from actual wood, so you get different grains. As mentioned, it will be priced at MYR 3,999. More information can be found on their website.

Accessories, News

Ultimate Boom with Ultimate Ears HYPERBOOM!

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Never heard of Ultimate Ears? We can forgive you for that. To be fair, the brand has been a long standing audio brand that has been building products for a very niche market; the audiophiles. If you are one of them, you should know that they make custom earphones that fits in your ear, and only your ear. You would also know that they are priced quite a bit more than just the average earphones you get out there.

Source: Ultimate Ears

If you know the brand, you would also know they make excellent Bluetooth speakers for the party people. The last time we tested the speakers – the BOOM, and the MEGABOOM, we fell in love with the crisp, natural sounds and its powerful bass. We loved the fact that they float in water too, and that its optimal shape means that you can place it in any orientation standing up and everyone around gets its effect.

We thought that the MEGABOOM was as big and as expensive a Bluetooth speaker can get from Ultimate Ears. We are proven wrong though with the new HYPERBOOM they just announced. You can see it in the website already and it is on pre-order form US$ 399, which is approximately MYR 1,688. That is around the same price of Sony’s Extra Bass XB90 party speaker.

Source: Ultimate Ears

The only difference is that the Ultimate Ears HYPERBOOM is smaller, more svelte. It looks more like a regular trash can than anything else. That is not to say that it is bad looking from the photos though. It looks properly sleek and functional. It is supposed to have the low frequency power of three MEGABOOM 3s.

It is still water resistant at IPX4 rating, means cleaning is easy; especially when your friends starts to get a little crazy. It will also go on for 24 hours on a single charge to keep your party going all night long. If one HYPERBOOM is not enough, you can always pair it to another Ultimate Ears speaker to make your party even more powerful.

  • Source: Ultimate Ears
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In all fairness though, we do not actually know when the Ultimate Ears HYPERBOOM will be coming to Malaysia at all. Still, you can pre-order your UE HYPERBOOM and find out more on their international website. It looks like it only comes in one colour, classy black.

Accessories, Mobile, News

Samsung Unpacks the Samsung Galaxy Buds+ (Plus) – The Samsung TWS Reloaded

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There were two very big things that was launched in the Samsung Unpacked 2020 that just happened a few hours ago. Both of them very interesting devices to grace the market as well. The Samsung Galaxy S20 flagship has just refreshed the Samsung Galaxy S line-up. The Samsung Z Flip is certainly a new direction for Samsung and the smartphone industry.

There is another smaller star that was launched in the Unpacked event just now too. It is also literally smaller in size. The Samsung Galaxy Buds+ (Plus) they call it. The name is not new though, there is just an additional ‘+’ (plus) there. So this is kind of a revolution of an existing product more than anything else.

Source: Samsung

Previous rumours mentions that the Samsung Galaxy Buds+ will come with Active Noise Cancelling. In the reveal though, this is not the case. There are some new things packed within the earphones though.

Within the same package is a bigger battery that should allow it to last a few more hours per charge. That gives it a total of 11 hours of use. With a single extra charge from the case, you get up to 22 hours of listening time, about 4 hours more than the old Samsung Galaxy Buds. We suspect that the Buds+ might work with the old case as well. They look similar.

There are more drivers within the earphones as well. There is two dedicated drivers now; one for treble or mid to high frequencies, one for bass or low frequencies. This should address some of the low frequency weakness we find on the old Samsung Galaxy Buds.

There are 2 more mics to find on the Galaxy Buds+ too. One of them is placed inside your ear to ensure better sounding calls from your end at least. We suspect that the mic inside is more to capture the sound vibrations from your jaw to reproduce clearer sounding voices for calls.

Samsung has also worked with Spotify to make the Galaxy Buds more app friendly. A long press on the right side of the Samsung Galaxy Buds while on Spotify will give you recommended playlist based on Spotify’s profile of you. Quite brilliant for discovering new songs without looking at the app itself.

The Samsung Galaxy Buds should be available in two colours as usual. The one we saw was the white colour variant. There is a black variant with that too. If you saw our previous article on the Samsung Z Flip already, you should also know that there is a Thom Browne edition to the Samsung Galaxy Buds+ too. We suspect that the Thom Browne edition only comes bundled with the Samsung Galaxy Z Flip Thom Browne edition. The Galaxy Buds+ will retail for US$ 149 (MYR 616*) when it is available. You can find more information on their website.

* Approximate conversion based on US$ 1 = MYR 4,13 on 12/02/2020

UPDATE: Samsung Galaxy Buds+ will be available in Malaysia for MYR 599. You can expect the earphones in stores on the 4th of March 2020 onward, same as the Samsung Galaxy S20 series. You can also get it as a bundle when you purchase the Samsung Galaxy S20+ and Samsung Galaxy S20 Ultra through the pre-order program. Of course, pre-order units are quite limited too.

Accessories, Mobile

Unboxing The OPPO Enco Free

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We unboxed the OPPO Enco Free True Wireless Earbuds. The OPPO Enco Free is another True Wireless earbuds that carries that Apple Airpods-esque design. There is a few small difference between the Enco Free and the Airpods though.

The OPPO Enco Free, while carrying the same design, has a silicon tip to ensure a better fit on the ears. In the box comes three extra silicon tips with different size to ensure that the OPPO Enco Free will properly fit any ear. The stems from the Enco Free are also touch panels for you to control your music and volume with.

The OPPO Enco Free is now available via OPPO’s authorised retailers and official stores across the nation. The new Enco Free True Wireless earbuds is available in two colours, Black or White. There is a pink colour variant on the way, but there is yet to be available information on that yet. The OPPO Enco Free could be yours today for MYR 499.

News

Realme 5i and Buds Air Launched For MYR 599 and MYR 299!

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The Realme brand has always been a brand that has dedicated itself to releasing great devices at even greater prices. The Realme 5 series is their latest line-up that continues this philosophy of great devices at great prices. The stables has two already great value devices with the Realme 5 and Realme 5 Pro.

Then there is the Realme 5S, a small update for the Realme 5 device. Now, there is the Realme 5i to add to the Realme 5 series family. The Realme 5i continues with the wallet friendly scheme at MYR 599. For that kind of money you will get the innovative Quad Camera set-up with an Ultra-Wide lens equipped with Nightscape 2.0 mode and smart video stabilisation. It packs Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 665 System on a Chip (SoC) for maximum attack as well. With 5,000mAh, you will not be wanting to find a charging point anytime during the day. Oh yes, you can reverse charge your other devices with the Realme 5i if you need to. All these goodness pushes the Android 9.0 with ColorOS 6.1 on to a 6.5-inch display with a Mini-Drop notch for its front-facing camera.

The Realme 5i did not come to Malaysia alone though. It came with a product that has been the rage since 2019. It is a True Wireless earphone. It is the Realme Buds Air. It comes in three colours; white, black, and yellow. It sets you back MYR 299.

The Realme Buds Air is a Apple AirPods-esque looking earbuds that comes with a slightly more compact battery pack/charging case. The earbuds themselves boasts three hours in playback time. The case charges about four times to give the earbuds a total of 17-hours in playback time. It packs touch controls for convenient music and volume controls. Its custom designed R1 chip inside not only powers and boosts bass for the 12mm drivers, but also improves Bluetooth latency and stability.

The Realme 5i will be available in stores across the nation from the 18th on January 2020 onward. Online sales starts ont he 28th of January 2020 onward. If you do get yours from Lazada on that day, you are entitled to an exclusive Chinese New Year gift box.

The Realme Buds Air will be available 21st January 2020 onward exclusively on Shopee. For now, it will be only available in white colour. The yellow and black variant will come at a later date. If you do get it on the 21st of January 2020, you can get your hands on one for MYR 100 less than its actual price at MYR 199.