Accessory

MINISFORUM's first mini PC of the month has a Ryzen 5 4500U inside, can be pre-ordered with 16/256 GB or 16/512 GB of memory/storage, and shipments should begin at the end of the month. The prices start at US$699 for the first configuration and go up to US$739 for the second one.

The Xiaomi Mi Smart Band 6 has been officially launched, bringing with it a full-screen 1.56-inch AMOLED touch display and an SpO2 sensor for tracking blood oxygen levels. Mi Smart Band 5 owners considering an upgrade to the Mi Band 6 can check out this handy specs comparison to see if it’s worth the expense.

If the data found in the latest version of the Galaxy Wearable app turns out to be accurate, Samsung's next-gen smartwatches will only run Google's Wear OS. The Galaxy Watch 4 and its Active sibling are expected to arrive later this year, more precisely before the end of its second quarter.

ZTE has launched its new S30 series of Android phones today (March 30, 2021). Its flagship is the Snapdragon 768G-powered Pro variant, which debuts with a 6.67-inch FHD+ AMOLED display that boasts HDR10+ support, 800 nits of brightness and a high-end 144Hz refresh rate. It is joined by the S30 and S30E, which also come with 5G processors.

Asus touts its new ROG Flow X13 as a Swiss army knife for consumers who are into content-creation as well as gaming, thanks to Ryzen 5000-series processors and NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1650 graphics. Initial European pricing and availability for this interesting 2-in-1 has now been announced; however, the OEM has yet to mention a release for its optional, RTX 3080-toting ROG XG Mobile eGPU in this market.

Xiaomi's bumper launch of today (March 29, 2021) mainly focused on its new Mi 11-series Android phones. However, it also introduced a number of new products that could be used alongside them, one of which is the new Mi AX9000 router. Its new, gamer-geared design gives it 12 antennae in total, and integrates a top-end Qualcomm chipset for tri-band Wi-Fi 6 speeds and specs.

Xiaomi has unveiled a new generation of its wireless charging stand, with a ground-breaking top speed of 80 watts. This new accessory has also been designed to better blend into a user's home through its new design. As if that wasn't enough, the OEM has also cheekily debuted an AirPower-esque, multi-device wireless charging mat.

Alleged live images of the Xiaomi Mi Band 6 and some supposed domestic price tags for the upcoming smart bracelet have appeared on Chinese social media. The Mi Band 6 fitness tracker will soon be launched as part of Xiaomi’s Mega Launch event. It has been rumored that the latest Mi Smart Band will have built-in GPS and SpO2 sensor.

According to some recent leaks, Huawei is about to launch a new series of TVs. The OEM is also now said to have partnered with the sound specialist Devialet for these putative 2021 smart screens' audio solutions. This collaboration has, apparently, results in inbuilt speakers that might make the user forget about an external set-up.

The Ricoh Theta Z1 is this brand's latest miniature camera for 360-degree, spherical captures. It can achieve these in a single shot at a resolution of 6720x3360, and can also be used for all-around 4K/30fps video. Furthermore, it is the first of its series with an internal storage spec of 51GB, which may overcome the limitations of previous Theta models.

Amazfit has finally launched the Pro version of its T-Rex outdoors-style smartwatch. Accordingly, it comes loaded with somewhat extreme resistance to heat and cold, not to mention 10ATM water-resistance. It is also now available on platforms that include Amazon for US$179.99.

Xiaomi has now confirmed that the Mi Band 6, which will be known as the Mi Smart Band 6 for the international market, will be launched on March 29. The Xiaomi Mi Band 6 fitness tracker has been teased in an official promo image that reveals the display type that was once expected for the popular Mi Band 5 predecessor.

Xiaomi is slated to launch the Ultra version of the Mi 11, not to mention the latest generation of the Mi Mix line, on March 29, 2021. It now seems that another kind of product might take the stage alongside them: a new Surge SoC. This in-house chipset might be intended to power the next generation of the OEM's connected ecosystem devices.

Razer has launched a new retractable stainless steel staw, complete with a carrying case and a cleaner. It is packaged as the Razer Reusable Straw and costs US$20 on Razer's official website. The company says that straw is s part of its "go green with Razer" initiative.

LG has announced that the release of its latest A1-, C1- and G1-series of 4K OLED TVs to the US market has begun. They start at US$1,299 for a 48-inch model, although the highest-end 83-inch C1 variant is $6,000. Most models are available from now, although the OEM is holding back on some until April to June 2021.

MINISFORUM's latest creation comes with a Ryzen 5 3450U that features Radeon Vega 8 graphics, at least 8/256 GB of memory/storage, and shipments should begin at the end of next month. The prices start at US$539 for the aforementioned configuration and can go up to US$599 for the 16/512 GB variant.

FreeSync, 4 ms response times, HDMI, integrated speakers, and even VGA — the Lenovo Q24i offers tremendous value at its new sale price that gamers and graphics editors on tight budgets may want to consider.

Not long after dropping my own Mi 10T Pro in deep snow and fearing that might have led to water ingress, I discovered a series of tests that prove how resilient it is. Although not advertised as waterproof, it looks like the Xiaomi Mi 10T Pro can even handle short immersions in shallow water alongside the usual splashes.

Apple was the OEM to kick off the square-faced wearable trend back in 2015. However, many consumers might still prefer it went with a circular display for the various generations of Watch instead. According to a new US patent, the Cupertino giant may have finally designed one - more or less. It seems this round smartwatch screen also extends along the band on both sides thanks to flexible-panel technology.

Mechanical engineer Pim de Groot (@mifune) created a USB-C that seemingly brings back the bad old days of USB adapters that don't fit into ports the first (or second!) time.

The Honor Band 6 is available to buy from some online platforms, albeit as the Chinese variant with or without NFC. However, the new fitness tracker's global SKU is now slated to become available. This release will start with a listing on AliExpress from March 28, 2021, with those on the OEM's own regional stores to follow.

The Lenovo ThinkVision T24t-20 is a FHD touch monitor primarily aimed at the education market. The ThinkVision T24t-20 offers a 60 Hz refresh rate, covers 99% of the sRGB color gamut, and comes with an ergonomic tilt stand. The monitor offers a decent port selection including a USB Type-C port for data transfer and charging connected devices.

After the Mi Watch Lite, we reviewed the Mi Watch. Its higher-quality features are likely to appeal to athletes in particular.

OnePlus has formally introduced its inaugural smartwatch alongside its new 9-series flagships. The wearable has a round case made of "surgical-grade" stainless steel, or a special alloy in its limited-edition Cobalt version. The OEM claims its 402mAh battery can last for up to 2 weeks, and charges using its in-house Warp technology.

With the same looks, the Thor 380, 400, and 401 RGB mechanical keyboards by Genesis are set apart by the switches inside. The first one uses Otemu Blue, the second employs Kailh RED, and the Genesis 401 RGB sports Kailh Brown switches. The prices are 59,80 EUR (~US$71) for the 380 and 69,80 EUR (~US$83) for the 400 and 401.

HP has introduced the 930 Creator Wireless Mouse today aimed at content creators working on multiple platforms. The 930 Creator Wireless offers seven programmable buttons that can be customized via the HP Accessory Center. The mouse can connect up to three devices at once via dongle or Bluetooth and can offer a 12-week long battery life when fully charged.

OnePlus is due to launch its first-gen smartwatch along with its new flagship phones on March 23, 2021. The OEM's CEO, Pete Lau, has just confirmed that it has "more than 110 work-out modes", which, apparently, range from walking to weight-lifting. The wearable is also projected to have heart-rate and blood-oxygen sensors.

Xiaomi has once again teased its upcoming Mi Notebook Pro with the Chinese firm promoting its slender profile. A published patent has also shown that Xiaomi might be planning on giving the potential Mi Pad 5 its very own stylus. Unsurprisingly, there seem to be not-so-subtle nods given to the MacBook Air and Apple Pencil for inspiration.

A first real image of the upcoming Xiaomi Mi Band 6 has been spotted in EU Declaration of Conformity documents filed by Huami. Although the product is simply listed as a “Smart Band”, the file name, model name, and live image reveal the wearable as the Mi Band 6. Unfortunately, the photograph included in the filing only shows the band from the side.

SoftBank has announced that it has set up a new 5G service in Japan. It is based on mmWave technology as opposed to sub-6GHz, which, according to its owner, brings the potential for higher speeds at reduced costs for carriers. The new system is made using Qualcomm hardware, and will support phones with the same OEM's SoCs.

A US patent filing strongly hints at Apple's plans for the future of Touch ID. Cupertino's alleged "off-axis angular light" based fingerprint scanning tech has the potential to work faster while being more secure than existing under-display scanners on Android devices.

ENACFIRE has announced A9 TWS earbuds with active noise cancellation (ANC). This spec is delivered via "smart noise-detect mics" rated to cut out up to 80% of ambient noise while also providing a 'Transparency' mode. The buds also feature IPX7 ingress-protection, a quad-mic system for call quality and a launch price of US$40.

Leaker Ishan Agarwal has managed to get his hands on the specifications of the eagerly anticipated OnePlus Watch. The device looks set to compete with devices like the Samsung Galaxy Watch range with features including blood oxygen level monitoring and sleep monitoring.

Contrary to an earlier leak, analyst Ming Chi-Kuo's report indicates that Apple only plans on ramping up AirPods 3 production by Q3 2021. This could potentially mean a holiday 2021 or 2022 time frame for the wireless buds.

OnePlus’ upcoming top-end smartphone is now known to have new rear cameras tuned by Hasselblad. A new tip asserts the OEM has not forgotten the rest of its premium aspects either: its wireless charging is allegedly boosted all the way to 50 watts (W). This would be a considerable improvement over the 30W spec in the 8 Pro.

Wear OS might be a no-brainer for consumers choosing a smartwatch to go with their Android phone - or rather, it should be. The wearables platform still has many potentially frustrating limitations, one of which is the inability to set tiles for non-Google or OEM apps. However, the Mountain View giant has announced a solution for this issue is now in alpha.

The latest mini PC by MINISFORUM features a Ryzen 7 PRO 2700U processor, Radeon Vega 10 graphics, and shipments should begin at the end of the month. In addition to this quad-core processor, the first two hardware configurations announced feature 16/256 GB (US$499) and 16/512 GB (US$539) of DDR4 memory/SSD storage.

Russian PhD student Ildar Rakhmatulin devised a terrifying mosquito-killing solution that pairs a Raspberry Pi, a 1W laser, and an AI neural network capable of identifying and eliminating mosquitos.

Insta360's freshly-debuted GO 2 miniature camera is a considerable upgrade over its first generation, not the least in its design and function. Its case still doubles as a battery-pack, but can now also act as a remote control and a tripod. It also has more field-of-view options and storage, as well as a new FlowState stabilization clip mode.

When the screen on your smartphone proves too small for productivity tasks, you can just use the new Beelink Expand X dock to hook your mobile device to a PC monitor and a keyboard / mouse setup. You can also watch movies from the phone or even play handheld console games on a big 4K TV through the included HDMI connector.

Carl Pei asserts that his new Nothing brand can disrupt the consumer tech space with innovative, unique products. The company has just given the world the first hint of their design in its new Concept 1 TWS earbuds. However, they are also what they say on the tin, and apparently won't actually resemble Nothing's actual inaugural buds.

Apple has scheduled its next hardware event for March 23, according to a new report. The event would be set to clash with the OnePlus 9 series launch event, the date of which OnePlus has already confirmed. Apparently, new AirPods, iPad Pros and AirTags are ready for release, as is a new Apple TV. Only the 12.9-inch iPad Pro will have a mini LED display this year, though.