AnalieNYC.com - Part 2

Huawei Mate 10 Pro Review

Huawei came into the game bringing key features at low prices. Gaining popularity with the success of the Nexus 6P, the Mate 9 from Huawei was a reliable screen device. This year they came back with the Mate 10 and Mate 10 Pro. I have been messing with the Mate10 Pro for several weeks now.

Huawei Mate 10 Pro Specs

Display: 6 inch (1080x 2160) AMOLED | 402 ppi
Cameras: 12 mp rear camera | 20 mp monochrome rear camera / 8 megapixel front-facing camera
Processor / RAM: Kirin 970 / 4GB RAM / 6GB RAM
Memory: 64GB / 128 GB Internal Memory (no expansion slot)
Battery: 4,000 mah nonremovable
Connectivity: Bluetooth 4.2 / Wi-Fi / Nano SIM / USB-C
OS: Android Oreo 8.0 with EMUI 8.0
Features: Water-resistant IP67 rating | no headphone jack | IR Blaster

Design and Build

The Mate 10 Pro looks like the latest flagships. A long screen with no home button. The volume rocker and power button are on the right side of the screen
You wont find a headphone jack on this phone. You have the USB-C charging port at the bottom. On the top you have an IR blaster. The back of the Mate10 Pro houses the fingerprint scanner and the dual cameras. The glass back makes for a slippery but solid build. There is no expandable memory, but you do get 128GB of internal storage.

The blue is beautiful. The phone is stunning and you can feel the quality build. Not cheap or flimsy feeling at all.

Experience

The Mate10 Pro is pretty large. It’s similar to the size of the Galaxy S9+ (slightly shorter). It comes with a clear case and a screen protector which is great. Huawei anticipates you’ll want a case, and having it come with the phone lets you setup and play quickly. There’s no expansion slot on the Mate 10 Pro, so you have to decide which model you want. The phone is also one of the last few phones to have an IR blaster. The Kirin 970 helps this phone put on a great performance for everyday use and app switching. You won’t get much use of the single speaker on the bottom of phone, if that’s your thing. The single speaker won’t be enough for

Features

Like all flagship devices, the Mate10 Pro has features that they find worth paying more for.

Camera

The Mate10 is on board with the dual lens in the back. One is RGB and the other is monochrome. Like with most smartphone cameras in 2018, you can take a lot of great pictures with decent lighting and auto settings. If you are more of a professional, you will enjoy the Pro mode it offers. The Mate10 Pro is no different. Take a look at the slideshow of pictures to see how the pics turned out with Auto Mode and Portrait Mode. The Portrait Mode wasn’t always as clear as one would like them to be. At times the bokeh effect was barely noticeable. I did take a picture of three friends, and it did a great job of keeping their faces clear, while blurring the background. There were a few times the camera just missed. The pic was muddy and disappointing.

Huawei Mate 10 Pro Review - Camera Samples — Huawei Mate 10 Pro Review – Camera Samples

Huawei Mate 10 Pro Review - Monochrome Camera Samples — Huawei Mate 10 Pro Review – Monochrome Camera Samples

When taking selfies, I found that in an effort to “clean up” my face (even with Beauty Mode off) the Mate 10 Pro, made me look very pale. I was a few shades too light in my selfies. If I had makeup on, the only thing you’d be able to see is my lipstick. My face was mostly one shade.

Fingerprint Scanner

Huawei makes the fastest fingerprint scanner ever. It’s insane how quick the phone unlocks. It was quick on their midrange View 10 phone also.

EMUI 8.0

Huawei “cleaned up” their EMUI 5.1 and gave us EMUI 8.0. I think they can stand to clean it up a bit more. The text just looks weird and the curved edges don’t scream “premium look” to me. Going longterm, I’d definitely go Nova Launcher for this. EMUI 8.0 brings It’s a bit too colorful for my tastes, especially for a premium flagship device.
I do enjoy the “tap twice with your knuckle to take a screenshot. It’s easier than trying to press two buttons at the same time. And while I never used the “Navigation Dock” others, with smaller hands or who preferred one-handed use may find Navigation Dock useful.

Battery Life

The Mate10 Pro comes with a huge battery, at 4,000 mAh. While the phone feels a little heavy, it doesn’t seem too big, considering the battery size. Out of the many phones I’ve tested in the last few months, the Mate10 Pro has one of the best, if not the best battery life out there. It can last through an entire day easily. I do wish it had wireless charging. It’s a feature that I see becoming a staple in flagship devices, and of course a “future proof” feature many would enjoy.

Pricing and Availability

Now here is where we run into a bit of an issue. If you’re shopping at your carrier store or even Best Buy, you’re not likely to see Huawei devices, including the Mate10 Pro. You can get it from Amazon.com at varying prices. Unless you want a stronger or thicker case, you won’t have to shell out extra for a case or screen protector. Huawei took care of that, and even though it’s not the most expensive thing to take care of, it’s nice that you can use the phone out of the box with no worries.

Overall

Huawei has come hard in 2018 with their devices. The Mate10 Pro has incredible battery life and fun cameras to mess around with. Even after weeks of use, the experience seems fluid. No lag no matter what or how many apps are open. The original price of $800 was a little much for a phone without a 4K display. At the current price of $650, it’s a great buy. I look forward to Huawei’s other flagships.

THIS REVIEW IS MADE POSSIBLE BY MY AFFILIATION WITH TECHWELIKE. YOU WILL SEE MANY OF MY REVIEWS THERE AS WELL.

UAG Plasma Series Case for LG V30 – Review

Urban Armor Gear UAG Plasma Series Case LG V30

Cases are as important as the phones themselves (to me at least). You can always count on Urban Armor Gear to have cases for the latest flagships. I’ve been rocking their Plasma Case for the LG V30 for a few weeks now. Check out my experience with the case.

UAG Plasma Case Design

If you’ve seen the Plasma series case from UAG, nothing has really changed. The slim rugged look is there. It has a thick, black outline (made of plastic and thick rubber) that goes around the phone and is thicker on the corners. It also outlines the fingerprint sensor / power button and camera in the back. The case has a way of being rugged yet somewhat slim. It meets the military military drop-test standards (MIL STD 810G 516.6)

Experience

The LG V30 is a slippery phone to begin with, so even if you’re not looking for protection, the UAG case helps with grip. With the latest flagships, it has been difficult for me to find screen protectors to fit their slightly of fully curved screens. Having a case that can take a good amount of shock is even more important now. The raised edges on the corner of the UAG plasma case has saved the V30 a couple of times. I’ve tried my best not to drop it, but ish happens. So far nothing has happened to my screen, and I definitely credit the Plasma case for that. You can access all the ports easily, even the headphone jack with thick 3.5mm connectors. The case doesn’t get in the way.

Urban Armor Gear Plasma Series Case Verdict

As expected, you have a winner with the UAG Plasma series case. It’s not the prettiest case in town, but it will definitely get the job done when it comes to protection and grip on the LG V30. The Plasma series case is available in 2 colors, Ice or Ash. It basically means clear or greyish-clear. It’s available for other flagships. It’s $39.95 on Urbanarmorgear.com. It’s definitely worth the money. After the V30 survived a fall on the New York City subway, I was inspired to take show the phone (clean from cracks and scratches) with the UAG Plasma series case. You can check out the case from all angles in the pictures below.

Urban Armor Gear UAG Plasma Series Case LG V30 – Review – Analie Cruz

Urban Armor Gear UAG Plasma Series Case LG V30 - Review -

JBL Pulse 3 Speaker Review – A Fun Speaker

Another day, another bluetooth wireless speaker. JBL has had the Pulse bluetooth speakers line for a few years now. I have been checking out the JBL Pulse 3 bluetooth speaker for a couple of months now. I tested out the original Pulse speaker about 4 years ago. So how is the Pulse 3 speaker pans out after a few weeks of use.

JBL Pulse 3 Speaker

Pulse 3 Design and Build

JBL Pulse 3 Speaker Review - Ports

The Pulse 3 has a modern lava lamp look. It’s available in two colors, black or white. I had the chance to check out the white model.. As with bluetooth speakers you have your normal functions. It different from the original Pulse and the Pulse 2 speakers, in which the base is under the light show.

The bottom backside of the speaker is where you find all of the controls. In the center of this mini control area, you have the power button with a 5 LED battery indicator right above it. Under the power button, you have the charging and auxiliary in ports. It has a rubber cover (remember the speaker is waterproof). To the right of the ports you have your volume up and down buttons. To the left of ports, you have the Bluetooth pair, JBL Connect+, and Light show control buttons.
Inside you have a 6,000 mAh rechargeable battery. For sound, you have three 40mm drivers. JBL says you can get up to 12 hours of playback time.

Experience

JBL Pulse 3 Speaker Review - Buttons

Setting up is pretty easy. Press the bluetooth button on the speaker, and go to the Bluetooth connection settings on your device. The speaker will light up blue when in pairing mode. The Pulse 3 plays in all directions. So you can pretty much stand it up anywhere and get a decent amount of sound. As gimmicky as the Pulse 3’s light show sounds, you can really get into it. Whether it’s just a couple of people, or an entire party, the Light Show becomes the center of attention quickly.

Sound

The Pulse 3 has great (small) room-filling sound. Since the speaker fires in all directions, it works well for a quick dance party with kids or to blast while cleaning. . The Pulse 3 cuts on the highs a little, but it will work well for you if you love bass-heavy music. It goes to loud volume with little to no distortion, which is always a plus for me. The light show goes with the music, so that is always pretty fun to watch.

Features

Obviously, the main feature of the Pulse 3 is the light show. With the JBL Connect+ app you can control your JBL speakers. When it comes to the Pulse 3, you can pick a light show. There are 7 choices and the option to customize your own light show. You can control the type of pattern and the brightness of the light show It’s not my favorite app to use, so I change the light show with the button on the speaker itself.

The Pulse 3 is IPX7 waterproof. You can use it poolside or tub-side. It has a microphone so you can handle calls while using it (even though it’s not my thing, the situation my come up). The Pulse 3 had an update via the JBL Connect app. After updating the speaker (which took about 20 minutes), you can use Google Assistant on the speaker. That is pretty cool. You can activate it by saying OK, Google or by pressing the multi-function button (formerly play “triangle” button). It works from your phone, but it works well.

Battery

The Pulse 3 charges via micro USB. The speaker lasts a decent amount of time with the light show on. It will vary with volume, and the light show frequency. I got from a little over 8 hours to 10 hours of use. Not bad at all.

Overall

This speaker is for those who would enjoy the light show. It’s a conversation starter at get togethers. Right now you can get it for around $160 which is pretty good. It’s easy to setup and navigate, so I’d suggest the Pulse 3 for rookies in the bluetooth speaker game. If the light show isn’t important to you, you can get the JBL Charge 3. It has great battery life and can even charge your phone too.

JBL Pulse 3 Bluetooth Speaker - Ports — JBL Pulse 3 Bluetooth Speaker – Ports

THIS REVIEW IS MADE POSSIBLE BY MY AFFILIATION WITH TECHWELIKE. YOU WILL SEE MANY OF MY REVIEWS THERE AS WELL.

NETGEAR Orbi Wifi System Review – Does It Have You Covered?

Netgear is a trusted name when it comes to routers. With homes having lots of devices connecting to networks both wireless and via ethernet, Netgear has come through with solutions for optimized connection. They introduced the NETGEAR Orbi Wifi system.

What is the NETGEAR Orbi?

The Orbi is a wifi system, that connects to your router and extends the signal without you having to do too much to your existing internet setup. The main Orbi router connects to your modem router and the Orbi Satellite can be placed in another part of your home. With the Orbi Wifi system properly in place, your entire home should be covered.

Setting up the Orbi Wifi System

Setting up the Orbi System is pretty self-explanatory and easy task if you’re familiar with routers. In the box you get the Orbi Router and Orbi Satellite. They each have a wall adapter and an ethernet cable is provided also. They look exactly the same. The router and satellite are individually labeled for distinction. The router has the wifi network name and password. You can use the Orbi app for easier setup. I set up the Orbi through the browser. Just go to orbilogin.com. You can use the Orbi app for easier setup.It will search for the NETGEAR wifi systems and ease in through the setup. After the Orbi Router and Satellite connect with each other it will light up.

You place the Orbi router next to your modem and the Orbi Satellite where you know there is a dead zone, or in the middle of the home. In my case, since I live in an apartment, I placed it in my bedroom where the Wifi signal definitely cuts off.

The Orbi has rings a the top of both the router and the satellite which indicate the current status. During the setup, the light ring on the Orbi router will turn white and then pulse white. During the setup, the Satellite will blink Magenta for a bit until it connects. Once it connects you will see either of the following for 10 seconds before turning off (according to the NETGEAR site):

– Solid blue: The connection between the Orbi router and Orbi satellite is good.
– Solid magenta: The Orbi satellite cannot connect to the Orbi router. Move the Orbi satellite closer to the Orbi router.
– Solid amber: The connection between the Orbi router and Orbi satellite is fair. Consider moving the Orbi satellite closer to the Orbi router.

Experience
The Orbi is pretty easy to setup and use as you can see. Logging in online versus the app gives you a bit more options on what you can access. For the most part I haven’t had drops in service. This is due to the Orbi creating its own band that can’t I cannot say for sure, but that may be due to the small size of my apartment. For larger homes, you may have to spend a bit more time finding the right place to place the Satellite unit of the Orbi. We have a lot of devices connected to the internet in my house. This includes but is not limited to: 4 smartphones, 3 tablets, Xbox One X, Playstation 4 Pro, 2 smart TVs, 2 Alexa powered speakers, 2 Google Assistant-powered speakers, and 3 Sonos speakers. Most of the mobile devices (tablets and phones) are connected to the wifi at once. I experienced consistent connection along with everyone else sharing it with me. There’s now an Amazon Alexa skill that works with the Orbi system. Of course you will need an Alexa device (Echo, Echo Dot) and an account with NETGEAR. With Alexa, you can reboot the router and turn the Guest Network on/off. If you ask Alexa before you set up, she will send a card to your Alexa app to assist in setting up the NETGEAR skill.

Price and Availability
If you go on the Netgear site, you can answer a couple of questions to see which Orbi System is the right system for you. You can also add more Orbi Satellites to a system if you already have one and need more coverage. Pricing is as low as $299 and goes up to $349.99. You can check out your options for full Orbi systems and add-ons on Amazon.com

Overall

You really can’t go wrong with the NETGEAR Orbi Wifi System. While it may be a little expensive, it will save you lots of frustration, especially if your home is 2 floors or more and you have a lot of devices connected. I trust NETGEAR as a brand overall, so I the Orbi system performed exactly as I expected. Hopefully the price keeps dropping to make it a more justifiable purchase.