The Misadventures of Roni G!

Alvedon Shake

2023-08-15T23:49:00.002+08:00

Kayod at todo sikap sa trabaho? Sabayan pa ng mga pananakit sa katawan. You deserve to have an ally for pain management. Watch our video on how we overcome pain and shake shake with Alvedon. A friendly reminder from Paracetamol, Alvedon PH. We from Multicare Pharmaceuticals, we bring value to family healthcare. #shakewithalvedon2023

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Realme GT Master Edition Unboxing and First Impressions

2021-10-12T14:26:00.004+08:00

Out of the three globally available Realme GT models, only the Master Edition is officially available in the Philippines. It was released last September 24 and in this video we will unbox the Realme GT Master Edition.

The initial stocks of the Realme GT Master Edition sold out quickly last September 24 but luckily Realme had another round of their early bird offer last September 30. The stocks were fulfilled by Lazada and was already in Lazada's warehouse hence I got the package the next day.

The Realme GT comes in a bigger than usual box and inside the box you have some user guides, a USB cable, a Sim Card ejector pin, a silicon case that mimics the lines on the phone's back, and lastly you have a 65W Superdart charger.

One of the Realme Master Edition's selling point is it's unique design particularly Voyager Grey variant which was designed by Naoto Fukasawa, known for his work with MUJI and other international brands. The design of the phone is inspired by travel replicating the lines found in a travel suitcase.

The phone's leather back has a nice feel to it and is a fresh approach compared to the glassy fingerprint magnets found on most phones today.

The volume rockers are located on the left hand side together with the sim card tray while the power button is located on the right. At the bottom you have the the audio jack port, the mic, the usb type c port, and the lone speaker grills.

Screen display is a 6.43 inch AMOLED display with a refresh rate of up to 120Hz. The selfie camera is located at the top left hand corner of the screen and is where you'll also notice the built-in screen protector.

The phone has a 4,300mAh battery and is capable of superdart charge with a published time of 33minutes charging from 0 to 100%.

The Realme GT Master Edition has 3 cameras. The main camera is 64MP, there's an 8MP ultra-wide angle camera, and finally you have a seldom used 2MP macro lens. The front facing camera is 32MP.

The phone is powered by the Snapdragon 778G 5G Processor which should handle your daily tasks easily. I tried playing Genshin Impact on the highest settings and surprisingly it performed really well.

The Realme GT Master Edition is capable of 5G connections and should be a nice feature to have if you're in a 5G covered location and the signal quality is good.

So far in the 2 days that I had this phone, I can't help but compare it to my Realme GT. Perfromance wise I dont feel that much of a difference. If the few differences such as having mono speakers instead of stereo is not a big deal for you then you can save a few thousand pesos and go for the GT Master Edition versus the Realme GT.

2K Youtube Subs Giveaway!

2021-10-03T20:30:00.005+08:00

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Realme GT After 1 Month

2021-10-03T20:28:00.003+08:00

Every now and then you'll hear the term flagship killer labeled on mid-range phones sporting flagship level specs for mid-range prices. But more often than not, most would also sacrifice a few things just to lower the price. And after more than a month of using the global version of the Realme GT, let's look at how this flagship killer lives up to the name and if the sacrifices made are insignificant.

Unboxing the Realme GT, you'll get the standard combination of a sim card ejector pin, user guides, a clear jelly case, a type c cable, and a 65W Super Dart charging brick. Some versions have a headset included but none for the unit that I got.

The Realme GT comes in 2 storage options, 128Gb and 256Gb. There's no slot for an SD card so you'll be stuck with the storage that you choose. You have 3 colors to choose from and I got the dashing blue version which really looks nice and not the usual plain glassy back on cheaper phones.

The phone's display is 6.43" Super AMOLED screen with a 120Hz refresh rate. In the same screen is the under display fingerprint scanner which is fast and accurate.

One good thing about the Realme GT is the presence of a 3.5mm jack port which in recent times have been removed in higher end phones. With this port, you wont be needing a usb typ-c adaptor just to use your existing headphones.

Battery capacity is at 4,500mAh which should be enough for 1 whole day but for a heavy user like me, the 65watt superdart charger really helps charging my phone to 100% in less than 40mins.

As for the phone's performance, the Realme GT is powered by the flagship Snapdragon 888 chipset and its 12Gb RAM + 256Gb ROM currently sits at 2nd place on the Antutu benchmark scores.

In terms of connectivity, the phone is capable of 5G connections and is a really useful feature if you are in a 5G covered area. In my experience I surpassed 500Mbps when I tested 5G in Makati.

In the camera department The Realme GT 5G features a triple-camera setup with a 64MP primary camera, an 8MP ultrawide shooter, and a 2MP macro camera. The 16MP selfie camera is located on the tope left-hand corder of the screen.

Photo and video quality is really nice and here are some sample photos:

As I've mentioned in my unboxing video, the Global version of the Realme GT is not officially available yet in the Philippines but you can buy online from some trustworthy sellers. You can also buy the chinese version of the phone which, based on feedback from other users, doesn't vary as much with the Global version in terms of user experience once language is set to English.

Comparing it to flagship phones, the processor is definitely non-inferior, which is one of the selling points of the Realme GT. Other flagship killer phones would have a slightly slower shipset like the Snapdragon 870 or maybe the Mediatek Dimensity 1200. Another thing missing would be an IP rating which would have been a nice feature to have. Other than that I can't really think of anything more that I need from a phone than what the Realme GT has to offer. This phone screams flaship all through-out except for the price which is less than Php30,000.

Samsung Galaxy A52 5G - The Good and the Bad

2021-10-03T20:22:00.001+08:00

The Samsung Galaxy A52 5G is the proverbial mid-range phone situated perfectly between Samsung's Entry Level Phones and their Flagship Phones. After 3 months with my Samsung Galaxy A52 5G, Let's look at what's good and what's bad about this phone.

Let's start with the good.

Design and Build
The Samsung Galaxy A52 5G sports a 6.5-inch super Amoled display with a 120Hz refresh rate and it's protected by Gorilla Glass 5. I like the design of the back panel of the phone as the matte finish contours nicely with the camera bump compared to usual glossy back of other phones with a protruding camera bump.

Audio Jack
Another good thing about the Samsung Galaxy A52 is that it retained the 3.5mm audio jack, which is usually not present on other mid to high end phone. This way you woth need a usb type c adapter just to use your headphones.

IP67 Rating
In terms of protection, aside from the screen being protected by Gorilla Glass 5, it also comes with a plastic screen protector out of the box. The phone also has an IP67 rating which means it is dust proof and can withstand being dropped in water 1 meter deep for as long as 30 mins.

5G
For connectivity, the phone supports 5G and should be useful if you are in an area with 5G coverage. If not then maybe the A52 4G is a better option for you.

Camera

On the camera department you have a quad camera set-up highlighted by a 64MP main camera together with an 8MP ultrawide camera, a 5MP macro camera and a 5MP depth sensor. And then at the front you have a 32MP selfie camera.

Photo and video quality is really good and here are sample photos I got using this phone.

Now let's go through some things that I don't like about this phone. starting with the limited options on storage.

Storage
The only available variant in the Philippines is 256Gb and the 128Gb option is not officially available. I had to buy online just to get a 128Gb version of this phone. One good thing about the A52 5G is that the simcard tray is a hybrid tray and can accommodate sd cards for memory expansion.

15W charger
This phone supports 25-watt fast charging but only a 15-watt charger comes with the box and with that charger it would take you more than 1 and a half hours to fully charge the phone.

Fingerprint scanner
Compared to my POCO F3 and other Realme and Xiaomi phones, the fingerprint sensor of the Samsung A52 5G is in-display. However the sensor is not that accurate compared to to other phones. There are a few tricks to improve the fingerprint sensor but I would still experience misreadings from time to time.

Price
Lastly the price. With Samsung phones you are also paying for the brand hence for Php24,000 you could get other phones with much better specs. The POCO F3 for one can be seen being sold for less than Php20,000 with a much better set of features. And for a few thousand more you can even have the Realme GT with a flagship Snapdragon 888 processor. The only thing I like better with the A52 compared to these phones is the camera plus the very rare software bugs.

PLDT / Smart Home Prepaid Wifi - Green Packet D2K in 2021

2021-10-03T20:19:00.000+08:00

A year after PLDT/Smart released 3 CAT 6 Prepaid WiFi modems, only the Greenpacket D2K remains available and is currently at 65% off. This modem has been the most overlooked out of the three since the Boosteven and the Evoluzn modems are dual band compared to the single band D2K with the Boosteven CAT6 even having antenna ports. Despite having the least features, is the D2K modem still worth buying?

One thing unique about the D2K modem is it's design. Some might mistake it as a bluetooth speaker or maybe a humidifier. Other than that it offers no advantage over the other CAT6 modems of PLDT/Smart. It has no 5Ghz band, has less LAN ports compared to the evoluzn model, and it doesn't have external antenna ports like the boost even modem. This is most probably the reason why the other modems are sold out and this one is the only CAT6 modem available.

In terms of speed, given the same playing field it basically performs as well as the other two modems. But please do take note that your internet speed would ultimately depend on the signal quality in your location. I've encountered at least 2 viewers who shared that they can't connect to the internet with this modem due to signal problems.

One common question asked with these modems is if other sim cards would work. As long as it uses the smart network, it should work. The sim card slot is located at the bottom of the modem covered by a warranty seal. I tried using a Rocket Sim with this modem and now I have unlimited data for one whole month for only Php499. My initial speedtest gave me 12Mbps download speed and around 6Mbps upload speed. Moving it on the other side of our house, the download speed was faster at 42Mbps with 16Mbps upload speed. That's why it's important to check the best possible location for your modem to get the most out of it.

In terms of admin access to control the frequency bands, I already saw a preview of the full admin access and openline of this modem so we'll just have to wait for tutorials or maybe a paid service. On the other hand, there are several tutorials for the Boosteven CAT6 modems and you can even buy an openline unit online and with admin access.

Finally, at Php699 the Smart Prepaid Wifi D2K modem is already a good deal considering that the original price of this modem before was Php2,000. I would still recommend the Boosteven CAT6 if you chanced upon its availability but if you need an instant Wifi right now, this is currently the only one officialy available and can be a good option for online class and working from home.

Realme 8 5G - Unboxing and First Impressions

2021-06-30T01:39:00.003+08:00

The Philippines number 1 Smartphone brand, Realme, has entered the affordable 5G scene with the latest addition to the Realme 8 series, the Realme 8 5G. While not the first and definitely not the cheapest, the Realme 8 5G has features that might convince you to be future proof with this phone.

The Realme 8 5G was launched last June 25 exclusively online on Shoppe with an early bird price of Php10,490 from a retail price of almost Ph12,000. It's also available in physical stores but instead of a discount, customers will get a free Realme Buds Q. I got my unit from Shopee and it arrived only after 3 days.

Inside the yellow box you have sim card ejector pin, uset guides in different languages, a clear jelly case, an 18Watt power adapter and a usb type a to type c cable. The sim card tray has a dedicated SD card slot which should come in handy if 128GB is not enough for you.

The Realme 8 5G's screen is 6.5inch with a punch hole 16MP selfie camera located at the top left hand side. There's no mention of a gorilla glass protection but the phone already has a plastic screen protector out of the box. The back has a shiny finish that resembles glass but is actually made of plastic. Here you'll also find the camera island with three cameras, the main 48MP camera, a 2MP macro camera, and a depth sensor.

The battery of the phone is 5,000 mAh with support for 18W fast charging. The battery size should be enough to last you the whole day for casual use.

For it's main selling point, the Realme 8 5G is capable of 5G connections which should give you better speeds compared to 4G if you are in an area already with 5G. And on a side note although it's not yet officially part of DITO's compatible devices, I got a VoLTE signal right off the bat.

The Realme 8 5G is powered by the MediaTek Dimensity 700 Software which can handle your daily tasks easily and based on my experiemce with the POCO M3 Pro 5G, it should perform decently when it comes to heavy games such as PUBG and Genshin Impact.

For the software, the phone comes with Android 12 with Realme UI 2.0. The UI is easy to navigate and although full with bloatware, you could always uninstall and personalize the look of the interface based on your liking.

I had this phone for barely a day and I'll upload another video for a full review. But so far, the Realme 8 5G seems like a worthy competitor to recent releases the POCO M3 Pro and the Redmi Note 10 5G and choosing between these affordable 5G phones is more difficult than I originally thought.

POCO M3 Pro - Cheapest 5G Phone! [Full Review]

2021-06-22T00:30:00.004+08:00

The POCO M3 Pro 5g is the cheapest 5G smartphone right now in the Philippines and with POCO's promise of more speed, more everything, let's review if there really is more to this phone than just 5G.

For this review I purchased the cheapest variant, the 4GB ROM with 64GB storage to check if the ROM is enough for casual users. I got this phone for just Php6,990 and even got a free Mi Band 5 smartwatch. Inside the box you have the POCO stickers, user guides, a silicone case, the phone of course, a 22.5Watt charger and a usb type a to type c cable. The phone already has a built-in screen protector out of the box.

The design of the phone looks premium with a glassy back which is actually plastic, highlighted by the POCO logo. At the front you have a 6.5 inch Dot Display with a punch hole camera at the center. At right hand side you have the volume rockers and the power button which also serves as the fingerprint scanner. On the left you have the sim card tray which a hybrid sim card tray and can accommodate microSD card for expandable memory.

The bottom of the phone has the primary mic, the USB type-c port, and the speaker grills. A 3.5mm audio jack is found at the top together with the secondary mic and an infrared blaster.

Now let's look at the display. The POCO M3 Pro 5G features a 6.5-inch IPS LCD Display protected by Gorilla Glass 3. The Poco M3 Pro 5G display supports a dynamic 90Hz refresh rate which means it should auto-switch between 30Hz, 50Hz, 60Hz and 90Hz depending on the shown content. The display is actually impressive and still has good visibility even in very bright conditions.

The POCO M3 Pro 5G is powered by 5,000mah battery which should definitely last you the whole day or even more depending on your use. Charging wise, it takes around 2 hours for a full charge using the charger that comes with the box.

For the software the POCO M3 Pro 5G comes with Android 11 with MIUI 12 for POCO. The POCO launcher is a bit different from it's Redmi siblings but you could always customize how it looks.

The phone however doesn't have an always on display option and no under display fingerprint scanner. The side fingerprint scanner though is pretty accurate and is really fast.

The POCO M3 Pro 5G is powered by the MediaTek Dimensity 700 chipset which is enough for casual use and though not designed for gaming, it can perform decently with popular games such as PUBG and Genshin Impact.

And while more RAM would be better, the 4GB RAM on my phone seems to hold up well.

For connectivity, the phone supports 5G and should be useful if you are in an area with 5G coverage.

On the camera department you have a triple camera set-up at the back featuring a 48MP main camera bundled with a 2MP macro camera and a 2MP depth sensor while the selfie camera at the punch hole display is an 8MP camera.

Photo and video quality is good and here are sample photos I got using this phone.

To conclude, if you haven't experienced 5G yet and don't want to shell out more than Php10,000 then this phone is for you. If you're in a 5G covered area, you can enjoy fast 5G speeds compared to the fluctuating speeds of 4G. And even if you're not in an area with 5G you should still consider this phone as all the network companies are ramping up their 5G coverage.

Now the POCO M3 Pro 5G can really give you more than 5G. With a nice design, an adequate display, and a capable chip, I don't regret buying this phone especially for the price I got it. If you're looking for more premium features then you might as well spend at least double the price of the POCO M3 Pro. It's really commendable how POCO was able to include as much features as possible for under Php9,000 and if your're familiar with how POCO sells it's phones, you should expect discounts from time to time. So time your purchase right and you might get this phone for just above Php7,000.

POCO F3 Screen Dimming and Touch Issues [MIUI 12.5 Update]

2021-06-21T01:30:00.008+08:00

Two of the most talked about issues of the POCO F3 are the touch issues and the screen dimming during heavy gameplay and users were hopeful that a software update would resolve these issues. I recently updated to MIUI 12.5 and I'm happy to report that both are resolved.

I played Genshin Impact for more than 30 mins and never experience any screen dimming. This may also be because the highest temperature I recorded was 42.7 degrees celcius compared to the 45.8 degrees celcius I recorded before the update.

As for the touch issues, I've updated last June 12 and have yet to experience the same touch issues before the update.

Hybrid MIMO Antenna for your Globe At Home LTE-Advanced Prepaid WiFi [Speedest]

2021-06-21T00:30:00.001+08:00

The Globe At Home LTE Advanced Prepaid Wifi has been available for months but there's still no admin access which would have been helpful to change bands or install antennas to hopefully improve your internet speeds. I even saw a tutorial on setting the antenna to external but it would always fail to save and would only work on the postpaid version of the modem.

Based on the comments on my previous videos it seems like outdoor antennas are automatically detected by the Globe At Home LTE Advanced Prepaid Wifi and we will try a Hybrid MIMO Antenna that I got from Shopee.

Plugging in the MIMO antenna at the 2 SMA ports of the modem, the log-in page of the Globe At Home LTE Advanced modem would show the antenna status quickly change from internal to external. You would also see that the signal strength indicator on the modem become full bars.

Now that we know that the Hybrid MIMO antenna is detected, let's now look if it would help boost my internet speed. But first, just a disclaimer, I'm not an expert on antennas but what I suggest is you bring your phone when installing the antenna to see which direction is best to position the antenna. Here's a table of what constitute a good signal: Moving the antenna to face different directions would result in varying signal strengths and the modem would connect to different cell towers depending on your location.

Compared to using the internal antenna, my download speed improved significantly from 1Mbps to 15mbps with the same cell tower. Connecting to other towers by moving the hybrid antenna also improved my speed so it would be best to do a 360 degree test to check which direction the antenna should face to get the fastest speed as the best signal might now always be the fastest due to network congestion.

So that concludes our test of the hybrid MIMO antenna on your Globe At Home LTE Advanced Prepaid Wifi. Of course this would also work with the postpaid version of the B535 modem plus you would also have the option to select bands that's best in your area but please do take note that this antenna would not work well on Band 28.

POCO M3 Pro 5G [Unboxing and First Impressions]

2021-06-13T23:20:00.001+08:00

If you think that 5G phones are expensive then the POCO M3 Pro 5G will definitely change your mind! Selling for an early bird price of just above Php7,000 this phone can give you blazing 5G speeds and more so in this video we will unbox the POCO M3 Pro 5G and see if there really is more to this phone than just 5G.

Inside the box you have the POCO stickers, user guides, a silicone case, the phone of course, a 22.5Watt charging brick and a usb type a to type c cable.

The POCO M3 Pro's display is a 6.5inch IPS LCD Dot Display with a 90hz refresh rate.

It had a 5,000mAh battery and charging from 0 to 100 would take around 2 hours.

The phone has a triple camera set-up at the back with a 48MP camera as its main shooter complimented by a 2MP macro camera and a 2MP depth sensor.

At the front, you have an 8MP selfie camera which I am using right now to record this video.

As it's main selling point, the POCO M3 Pro is capable of 5G connections which is a rarity for phones below Php10,000.

The POCO M3 Pro is powered by the MediaTek Dimensity 700 Software which can handle your daily tasks easily and surprisingly performs decently when it comes to heavy games such as PUBG and Genshin Impact.

First thing to remember with this phone is that you are basically buying an entry level 5G phone and with that in mind, the POCO M3 Pro 5G can give you more for it's price. Of course it wont give you MORE if you compare it mid-range phones but compared to its brother the POCO M3, it will give you more speed in terms of internet connection as well as more speed in terms of perfomance.

I only had this phone for a few hours and so far, I really like how POCO, or Xiaomi for that matter, was able to squeeze in as much features as possible for a mere Php7,000.

POCO F3 Hits and Misses [2 Months After]

2021-06-08T01:00:00.004+08:00

After a month of using the POCO F3 I would say that the phone I'm very much satisfied with the phone but of course it's not perfect and there are a couple of things that I would've wished the phone has but still the POCO F3 can give you a flagship experience without spending too much. So in this video I'll share with you what I believe are the hits and misses of the POCO F3.

Let's begin with the things I dont like with my POCO F3 starting with:

5. Missing slots

I would have preferred a 3.5mm jack port on the POCO F3 but that's workable with the jack to USB type C adaptor that comes with the box or just use a bluetooth headset. But what's critical is the choice between 128 or 256 Gb because the POCO F3 doesnt have a microSD slot compared to other phones with either a dedicated microSD slot or at least a hybrid sim card microsd slot.

4. Fingerprint scanner

With an Amoled display I was expecting an under display fingerprint scanner but the POCO F3 has a side fingerprint scanner, embedded on the power button. This maybe a non-issue to some but coming from the much cheaper Redmi 10x 5G which has an under displqy fingerprint scanner, It took me a while to get used to the new scanner location. What annoys me most with the side fingerprint scanner is the accidental scans. When the screen is off, you'll be surprised to feel a vibration and see the screen light up because you accidentaly touched the power button.

3. POCO MIUI

I am a fan of MIUI integrating what I like with android and iOS. It's my first experience with the POCO MIUI and all I can say is I'm not a fan of this version. Aside from the better experience I had with my Redmi 10x 5G, the POCO MIUI has advertisments on it. Initially I didn't notice the ads and you can actually disable some recommended apps that pop up on folders. You'll see these ads everytime you install an app or everytime you optimize your device using the Security app. Not that its a deal breaker you'll kinda wish that it wasnt there to begin with.

2. Screen dimming

The POCO F3 can handle heavy games easily but one thing that bothers its users is the sudden dimming of the screen when playing games. Despite turning off automatic brightness and putting brightness at max, somehow the screen still dims which I did not experience with the Dimensity powered Redmi 10x 5G.

1. Touch issues

One of the main issues raised by POCO F3 users is touch delay. I initially didn't notice this since the delay is experienced when you move your finger ever so slightly. For casual use this wont be an issue but for gamers who want an accurate movements this can be bothersome. What did bother me is the scrolling issue wherein the screen doesn't seem to respond when scrolling. I experienced this when scrolling slowly but not always which makes me think that this is a software issue rather than a hardware issue.

So these are the 5 misses for me personally and for those curious if the POCO F3's camera is a hit or miss, I'd say it's just right for the price. It takes good pictures but dont expect flagship quality.

Now let's move on with what I really liked with the POCO F3 starting with:

5. Display

Out of the box, the POCO F3's E4 Amoled display is set to 60hz refresh rate. Change it to 120hz and you might not go back to 60hz phones again.

4. Fast charging

The battery on the POCO F3 is 4520mah which can last you the whole day if not more for casual use. For heavy users, the 33W charger included in the box can charge the phone from 0 to 100 percent in less than an hour.

3. Performance

Another great thing about the POCO F3 is its Snapdragon 870 chipset, one of the fastest chipsets on the market today. Handling easily your daily tasks, the Snapdragon 870 is also a great gaming phone. Heavy games such as Genshin Impact can be played on maximum settings with no lag or stutter.

2. Connectivity

With the Snapdragon 870 chipset, the POCO F3 is capable of connecting to 5G networks. With the expanding coverage of 5G both by Globe and Smart plus the recently launched DITO telecommunications, it's best to have a 5g phone to enjoy blazing internet speeds rather than get stucked with 4g.

1. Price

The best thing about the POCO F3 is it's price. At around Php18,000 for the 128Gb version and Php21,000 for the 256Gb version, you get a flagship experience for half the price. And from time to time POCO would offer flash sales of the F3 and you can get it for Php2,000 less. And if you timed it right, you can even apply a few more vouchers in Lazada as I got mine for just above Php14,000.

With this price you tend to forget all what's missing in this phone. It somehow negates the very few issues you might have with the POCO F3. Start browsing for competitors at this price range and you wont see anything that comes close. Most competitors either have LCD displays, or lacks 5G connectivity, or has a chipset that cannot keep up with the snapdragon 870. For such features you really have to pay more but not with the POCO F3.

How To Activate 5G In The Philippines For Samsung Snapdragon Phones Bought Overseas

2021-06-06T14:53:00.004+08:00

I recently bought a Samsung Galaxy A52 5G online and during the first few days of using it, I didn't get any 5G signal. I thought that the 5G signal in our area was just weak but then I went to our office in Makati and still didn't get any 5G signal. I inserted the same simcard on my POCO F3 and it had no problem getting 5G. Initially I thought that I got a defective phone but with a little bit of research, I finally got 5G working on my phone and in this video I'll guide you step by step on how to activate 5G for Samsung Snapdragon phones bought outside the Philippines.

Thanks to the contributors on XDA, I was able to figure out how to activate 5G on my Samsung A52 5G. The thread was intended for Samsung Galaxy Note 20 Ultra 5G with a Snapdragon chip and would either have a China, Taiwan, or Hong Kong Rom. The contributors has the same problem as me and upon checking the details of my phone, I have a Taiwan ROM, based on the "BRI" found on the Service Provider Software Version. You would find TGY for Hong Kong and then CHC for China software. For some reason, 5G is blocked on these softwares if used outside of their intended location.

To activate 5G, first step is to download Google's Phone Dialer since the codes won't work on Samsung's native dialer.

Once installed dial this number:

*#*#276633683782#*#*

The service mode screen would come up and would show only show 1 option, the RF TEST. To show the other options, what you do is press the RF TEST and then pres [2] PRES MODE SET then click the three buttons on top right hand corner, then click Back.

This would now bring you back to the first screen but will now show other options aside from the RF TEST.

Nest step is to select UE SETTING & INFO, then SETTING, PROTOCOL, NR5G, then NR5G PRUNE STATUS, and then REMOVE NR5G PRUNE.

This should now activate the 5G bands of the phone.

Next step now is to activate 5G by removing the 5G network whitelisting. So we go back to the main service mode menu, choose UE SETTING & INFO, then SETTING, PROTOCOL, GCF, then REMOVE ONLY NR WHITELISTING.

And that's it. You should now have 5G connections as long as 5G is available in your location.

Samsung Galaxy A52 5G for less than Php19K! Unboxing and First Impressions

2021-06-03T19:19:00.002+08:00

With product launches from different phone manufacturers almost every month, it's hard to pick the best phone that would satisfy your needs as well as your budget. I recently bought the POCO F3 and while I'm really happy with this phone, it's still not perfect and there were things that I wished it had as shown in my earlier video. Realme and Oppo recently released their mid-rangers but the phones would either be lacking 5G or have an inferior chipset. Samsung on the other hand have 5G offerings but most are always above Php20,000. That is until I discovered a 128Gb variant of the Samsung Galaxy A52 5G selling for just over Php18,000 so let's unbox the Samsung Galaxy A52 5G and check out its features.

The Galaxy A series has been around for a while and offers both 4G and 5G phones with the A32 5G as their most affordable offering at Php 15,990. However this model doesn't have an Amoled screen and also differs in chipset as well as the camera compared to the A52 5G. In the Philippines the only available variant of the A52 is 256Gb selling for almost Php24,000. Luckily, I stumbled upon a seller in Lazada, offering the 128Gb variant for less than Php19,000. Delivery took around 8 days with the item coming from Hong Kong, I ordered May 17 and the phone arrived May 25.

Packaging was simple with a single bubble wrap protecting the box but showed no damage or dents whatsoever.

Aside from the phone, inside the box you have the sim card ejector pin, a transparent jelly case, a usb type c cord, and a 15W charger.

The phone has a 6.5-inch super Amoled display with a 120Hz refresh rate protected by Gorilla Glass 5. The frame and back is built with plastic with the back sporting a matte finish, a departure from the glassy back panels you see on most phones at this price range.

The back features a quad camera set-up highlighted by a 64MP main camera together with an 12MP ultrawide camera, a 5MP macro camera and a 5MP depth sensor. And then at the front you have a 32MP selfie camera.

On the right hand side of the phone you have the volume rockers and the power button. At the top you have the sim card tray which is a hybrid dual sim microsd slot. At the bottom you have the 3.5mm jack port, the usb type c charging port and the stereo speaker grills.

The Samsung Galaxy A52 5G has an in-display fingerprint sensor which is decent but certainly not the fastest.

The phone also has an IP67 waterproof rating and the unit already comes with a plastic screen protector.

The battery is 4,500 mAh which should last you the whole day for casual use if not more. The phones supports 25watt fast charging although as mentioned earlier only a 15Watt charger comes with the box.

The A52 5G is powered by the Snapdragon 750G 5G mobile platform which should handle daily tasks easily. Though not designed for gaming, the phone can handle games such as PUBG on high setting and Genshin Impact on medium setting.

The phone already ships with Android 11 and uses Samsung's One UI 3.1.

For connectivity, the phone is capable of 5G connections which is one of the main reasons I tried this phone. The 256Gb 4G version of the A52 sells for around the same price as this 128Gb 5G version. This specific unit however will not give you 5G out of the box and instead you'll need to configure some hidden settings for your 5G to work in the Philippines or in other countries since this has a Taiwan ROM.

As far as my first impressions, the Samsung Galaxy A52 5G is a solid phone offering 5G at a decent price. This phone is a good option for those still not comfortable with other brands such as Xiaomi or Realme which can offer more features for the price. Still with this 128Gb variant, it costs almost the same as the POCO F3 with almost the same features with the F3s main advantage is of course its flagship chipset the snapdragon 870 while the A52 main advantage is its brand.

NanDITO Na Sa Metro Manila!

2021-05-19T21:06:00.005+08:00

DITO is now officially available in NCR! DITO cell towers have been active for a couple of months now but before May 17, you can't buy DITO sim cards on official channels. Now that DITO is available in Metro Manila through different channels, I purchased a sim card from Lazada and in this video we will explore what DITO has to offer and if there's any difference between now and before their official launch.

Purchasing a DITO sim card is easy and was delivered immediately in just 1 day. The package includes the sim card and a sim ejector pin which comes in handy. Curiously, DITO let's you choose a simcard specific for your cellphone brand. I purchased one for samsung and inserted it to my POCO F3, which as of today is not yet officially part of the DITO compatible list of devices.

Surprisingly, I had no issues with the sim card compared to my earlier purchase wherein I had to set-up the APN settings just to get an LTE signal. The voLTE icon appeared on my phone which is a clear indication that I dont need to change any setting for LTE.

Upon inserting the sim card an obtaining a signal, you'll receive a welcome message and a DITO app download link and the initial password to register your phone number on the app.

The app is pretty simple, it's easy to navigate and shows you your current remaining data and call minutes. You can also purchase load and subscribe to promos within the app. Current payments methods are credit or debit cards, grabpay, gcash, and wechat pay.

In terms of speed, the fastest download speed I got was 10.7mbps and upload speed at 12.4mbps. I performed the test in the 3rd floor of our house as well as outside. Unfortunately there was no DITO signal inside our house if I'm on the ground floor.

Based on the app there's no 5G yet in Metro Manila so it would be useless to compare DITO to Globe or Smart in a 5G covered area but interestingly, the LTE upload speed of DITO is faster than 5G of Globe.

Comparing to my test a few weeks ago on the same spot, the speed seems to have slowed down probably due to the increasing number of DITO subscribers which might congest their network.

Would I recommend DITO? As a secondary number yes, especially if your area already has 5G or at least have a good LTE signal and your primary purpose is for the internet connection. With their current promo, you'll only spend below Php8 per Gigabyte and its valid for 1 month. But if your main purpose is for calls and texts, might as well stick to your current number because aside from good call and text promos from Globe and Smart, I find texting all your contacts updating them of your new number a very tiring process.

POCO F3 In-depth Review From A Casual User

2021-04-11T23:57:00.004+08:00

After 5 days with the POCO F3, I can now say that it's indeed a Beast and can be considered as a flagship killer. Of course at its price point there are some sacrifices made but still the POCO F3 will give you the best value for your money.

Let's start with the design. I got the black version and it has a glass front and back protected by Corning Gorilla Glass 5. I was suprised to see the Gorilla Glass 5 instead of the 6 on this phone given that the POCO X3 pro launched an hour earlier had the 6. But if you look closely the Gorilla Glass 6 is actually equivalent to Gorilla Glass 5 in scratch resistance but is designed to survive multiple drops from even greater heights. So if you're not planning to drop your phone multiple times from high places then the Glass 5 should be ok.

On the right side you have the volume rockers and the power button which also is the fingerprint sensor. This is one of the features of the phone that still bothers me even after almost a week of using it. I still get accidental touches so it's still something I need to get used to coming from more than 2 years of under display fingerprint scanner.

At the top of the phone you have the stereo speaker grills and at the bottom you have the other stereo speaker, the mic, the usb type c port, and the dual sim slot. Sadly there's no stereo jack port but POCO included an adaptor for your audio equipment needing a 3.5mm jack port. However, the stereo speakers are loud and powerful enhancing your multimedia and gaming experience. The dual sim slot is not a hybrid microSD slot so deciding whether to get the 128GB or 256GB variant is critical because the phone's memory is not expandable.

The display of the phone is a 6.64 inch E4 Amoled display with 120hz refresh rate which really makes the phone stand out. Coming from 60hz, you'll really feel the difference when you are scrolling through different apps and playing games. At full sunlight display is still visible and only hampered by the reflection from your screen. By the way the display already has a screen protector out of the box.

For connectivity, the phone functions well. I had no issues using the phone on phone calls or even in online meetings using zoom or microsoft teams. The phone is already 5G which really is one of the major selling points for me. Whether or not your area is covered by 5G, it's still better to have a 5G phone since network companies are ramping up coverage in the Philippines. Although I noticed that there seems to be a bug on the F3 where the signal would show 4G when it's actually 5G.

In terms of software the phone runs on Android 11 with MIUI for POCO. It's a bit different from the MIUI from other Xiaomi phones but you could always customize it to your liking. I've been reading everywhere about ads on POCO phones but havent really noticed much. One update on the MIUI is the notification and control area where you have the option of making it look like the one on the iPhone.

The POCO F3 is a rebranded Xiaomi K40 but unlike the K40, the POCO F3 runs on a Global ROM which is more convenient for casual users. I am coming from the Redmi 10X 5G using a China ROM and it's a bit tedious finding solutions for app compatibilities on China ROMs. One example was Netflix wherein you cant watch in HD and have to download a different version of the app elsewhere just to watch HD and another was my Linkedin app automatically updates to the Chinese version of the app.

Battery life is good, it will last you 1 day easy for normal use and of course battery life becomes shorter for gaming. But either way good news is that it has a 33 watt charger which will take you less than an hour to fully charge your battery.

The POCO F3 has a triple camera set-up. First is a 48MP main camera, an 8MP ultrawide camera, and, a 5MP Telemacro lens. On the default MIUI Camera app, you can easily switch between the main camera and the ultrawide camera while the macro camera is activated on the app's control panel.

On its own the pictures are really good and you'll only notice the room for improvement if you compare to flagship cameras such as those in Samsung and on the Mi 11.

For videos, the camera has different modes ranging from 720P to 4k with 60fps available on the 1080P mode.

The selfie camera is a 20MP camera and for the video, I used the POCO F3's selfie cam to record myself on my unboxing video. The selfie camera has a punch-hole design and POCO F2 users that are used to full screen having a pop-up selfie cam previously might need some time to get used to the punch-hole selfie cam.

In terms of performance the POCO F3 is powered by the Snapdragon 870 5G and my unit scored more than 653k on the latest verison of the antutu app but more than the numbers I believe what's more important is the user experience. With a very powerful chip, daily tasks are quite easy, no lags whatsoever and the question really is how well it can handle heavy games.

I played PUBG for more than 30 minutes all on the highest possible settings and I must say I am very much impressed with how smooth gameplay was. I also played Genshin Impact all on high settings and never experienced any frame drops compared to my 10x 5G. In terms of the always controversial heating issue, with playing PUBG, it never really went over 42 degrees celcius. Also with Genshin Impact, highest temp I recorded was 45.8 degrees celsius.

As far as the dimming issue raised by some users. It seems that the issue exists as I cant find any setting to keep the phone at maximum brightness. Comparing it to my 10x 5G, the POCO F3's screen is notably dimmer and sometimes you can see actual dimming if you go in and out of the game. Not really a deal breaker for me but it would be nice for later updates to address thia issue.

Now lastly let's look at the price. The price in itself is the main reason why the POCO F3 is labeled as a flagship killer. This phone is only around Php20,000 or less depending on the storage capacity and even less if you caught the eqrly bird price. It really makes you think if you should buy flagship phones above Php50,000 when you can get almost the same experience with less than half the cost. Until last December I was still using my Samsung Galaxy Note 10 and the only thing I'm missing from that phone is the camera and the under display fingerprint scanner. Other than that my overall experience with the POCO F3 is actually better.

So for how much I got the POCO F3, I really cant complain. It's a really good phone, it has everything I need without breaking the bank. There are many other aternatives on the same price range but overall I cant see any better deal than the POCO F3.

So that concludes a casual user's review of the POCO F3. If I missed anything or If you want to see some more tests please feel free to drop a comment on this post.

Unboxing the Beast! The New POCO F3!

2021-04-10T22:30:00.002+08:00

In the middle of March 2021, POCO started teasing a new phone and eventually labeling it The Real Beast. Teasers were made on different platforms such as Facebook, Shopee, and Lazada and on March 22 they released the beast, the Poco F3. Leaks revealed that the Poco F3 is a rebranded Xiaomi Redmi K40 which was released barely a month before. With an early bird price of Php15,990 for the 128GB model, the deal was hard to resist so in this video we'll unbox the Poco F3 and find out if it truly deserves the title of being a flagship killer.

Inside the box you have the pin of course, some POCO stickers, a usb type c to headphone jack adapter, a clear case, and a 33 watt charger.

In terms of look and feel, it's a bit thinner than my 10x 5G and has a similar glassy back cover which is also a fingerprint magnet. Fingerprints aside, the build looks premium and is protected by Corning Gorilla Glass 5.

What stood out for me was the 120hz refresh rate of the display. You can really feel the smoothness of scrolling and navigating through your phone.

The phone has a triple camera setup and takes decent pictures. It's no Mi11 but in my opinion it takes better photos and videos compared to my 10x 5G.

Sound quality is good and the hybrid stereo speakers are quite loud and is great in enhancing your experience watching movies or playing games.

Performance wise, I have yet to fully push the boundaries of the phone but with a snapdragon 870 chipset, it should handle your daily tasks.

Here's a summary of what I like and don't like so far about this phone:

What I really like:

- 5G, I dont really see myself buying another non-5G phone

- 120hz refresh rate together with the E4 Amoled display

- Loud and powerful speakers

- Global ROM. The china rom has its advantages but being a google reliant person, the Global ROM suits me best

- PRICE. Most of the features of this phone is actually close to most flagship phones hence having the title of a flagship killer

What I wish the phone would have:

- Under display fingerprint scanner.

I could actually site more features that I feel is lacking like better camera or an IP rating, but for the price I got this phone I really can't complain. The only reason I would've wanted the under display fingerprint scanner is because I have that on my Xiaomi 10x 5g which costs significantly less that the Poco F3. Maybe I'm just used to under display scanner but I also get a lot of accidental touches because of how I carry the phone sometimes.

Stream Movies and TV Shows Online For FREE!

2021-04-10T20:00:00.003+08:00

With quarantine still in place and vaccines still on limited supply, we are still stuck in our homes for months to come. And one way to entertain ourselves during this time is by watching movies and tv shows. One of the most popular streaming app is Netflix and I actually subscribed to the premium plan at Php549 per month. Though it may seem expensive, you can share with family and friends and that monthly fee becomes less per person. These days some people are even selling premium accounts for as low as Php50! But browsing through Google Play store I stumbled on 3 streaming apps that offers a huge collection of movies and tv shows some not even on netfix but most importantly these apps are FREE.

Movzy is a fairly new app which was released January 2021 but with already more than 100 thousand donwloads. The description is misleading as it states that the app is for movie trailers and music. Opening the app you'll be welcomed by trending movies which are usually the latest releases. Beyond Netflix, the app offers other titles from HBO, Amazon Prime, and even Disney+. Aside from movies the app also offers a lot of tv shows to choose from as well as music. It even has radio stations to listen to.

This seems to good to be true and it usually is. For an app that is FREE we expect ads to pop up from time to time and upon clicking on a movie or tv show, a 15 to 30 second ad will before the video plays and while watching you should expect banner ads to show at the top of the screen or have another 15 to 30 second ad pop-up every 10 minutes or so. It's quite annoying to cut to an ad in the middle of an intense scene but you have to remember that you are getting the service for FREE. The longest uninterrupted watch that I experienced was 30 minutes. To remove the ads you just have to invite 5 of your friends to download the app by sending them a link generated from the app.

Next app is Yizzu which was released a month earlier than Movzy. Movzy seems to be a clone of Yizzu as it has the same user interface with the same exact titles available. Similar to Movzy, Yizzu also has ads popping up everywhere and will also disrupt your movie watching every 10 minutes or so. Yizzu also sends notications with messages that seems like the app wants to be your friend. The main difference between Yizzu and Movzy is on how to remove the ads. Aside from the option of inviting friends, you can subscribe for as low as 120-245 pesos per month.

Last app I tried is Movemax. Also a fairly new app released only last December 2020. Now unlike the first 2 apps, Movemax only offers movies and you wont find any tv shows or music on the app. As far as the selection goes, available movies are up to date and has movies from Netflix and HBO to name a few. What I like about Movemax is that the ads on the app only pop up at the start of the movie. During the movie I didn't experience any disruption from ads. Movemax also doesnt have the option of removing ads but for a mere 15-30 second one time ad, it's not as annoying as Movzy and Yizzu.

All 3 apps are available on Google Play Store on smartphones but they are not available on the smart tv app store. Even if you figured out how to install the apps on your smart tv, all 3 apps are not designed for TVs hence is quite useless. To watch movies on larger screens, the workaround is screen mirroring or casting to your Smart TV.

Converge 99 Pesos Speed Boost

2021-03-25T20:00:00.002+08:00

Since last year, Converge has been offering a 99 peso upgrade for Plan 1500 subscribers increasing speed from 25mbps to 35mbps. Before the year ended, Converge further bumped up the speed to 45mbps for the additional Php99. I figured that for an additional Php1,200 a year, it's worth a try and in this video I'll share my experience with the Converge FiberX 1500 Xtra Plan.

Upgrading was very easy, with simple easy to navigate steps on their website.

Even before I upgraded, I already saw a lot of customers having mixed experiences with upgrading. Some were disconnected for more than 24 hours while some didn't have issues at all. This is why I was not surprised to receive Converge's advise not to turn off the modem during upgrade.

And lo and behold by 2pm the following day, we lost connection. As back-up, I used my Globe CAT7 modem with the GOMO sim and it helped me monitor updates from other customers on the Converge facebook group with some suggesting to reset or restart the modem.

While the message clearly said that I should not turn off the modem, it also said not to do it while they were doing the upgrade. I already received a message that they're done with the upgrade but still our internet is still down. I felt like a restart is worth the risk and so I did. Thankfully our internet was restored and surprisingly the speeds were beyond the 45mbos published. Still, some users weren't as lucky as some even had to pay additional charges for resetting their modems.

There were times when I still experience slow internet with Converge, sometimes as low as 2mbps but most of the time, speed is always beyond the promised 45mbps.

So would I recommend the upgrade? It depends on your needs. Last December, Converge automatically upgraded all 25mbps speeds to 35mbps so if you're already happy with that speed then there's really no need for you to upgrade. Maybe if there's a lot of people sharing the internet and you're starting to feel your connection slowing down then maybe this upgrade can give you the boost you need.

As always, please dont forget to like this video and subscribe to my channel, the misadventures of roni g, thank you for watching and stay safe.

The Child Car Seat Law At A Glance & Our Chosen Car Seat [The Joie Every Stage]

2021-02-02T01:30:00.004+08:00

Starting February 2, 2021, the Child Safety in Motor Vehicles Act will be implemented meaning children aged 12 and below must be properly secured in appropriate car seats while traveling. As a parent you might be scrambling to find which car seat is best to buy so in this video we'll look at different car seat categories and why we chose the JOIE every stage car seat for our baby.

There are still a lot of questions regarding this new law and one such question has become viral because of the response of the LTO official to a valid question regarding height. But upon checking RA 11229, mandatory use of child restraints is based on height and not on age. The confusion may have been brought about by the definitions of child in this republic act which refers to any person age 12 and below. In such cases that the child is above 150 centimeters, regular seatbelt may be used.

With that out of the way, let's look at the different Car seat categories. The new law follows the UN regulations which has 5 categories depending on the child's weight:

This would mean that if you buy a car seat only for a specific category, you should expect to buy again everytime your child outgrows it. A vast variety of car seats ara available in department stores and online with some priced at less than Php2,000, but these are mostly catering only to one or two categories. This is why we chose a car seat that would cover all categories and we found the Joie every stage, which caters to newborns as well as kids up to 12 years old.

Original price of this car seat is at Php16,000 but we got it on sale for only Php8,500! This car seat is installed using your car's seatbelt instead of the more convenient isofix. But with the discount that we got, we're not complaining. Installing by seatbelt is easy with instructions on the user manual as well as on youtube videos.

Shifting the car seat to different categories is also easy. From rearward-facing group 0, to forward facing groups 1, 2, and 3.

Although implementation of the new car seat law has already started, apprehension of violators will only begin 3 to 6 months which should give you ample time to have a look at different car seats at different price points and decide which is best for your child.

Globe LTE Advanced Speedtest [2.4 GHz vs 5 GHz vs LAN Cable]

2021-01-29T21:00:00.003+08:00

Our office internet went down today and good thing I brought with me the Globe LTE advanced prepaid wifi as back-up. I took this opportunity to compare speeds of the 2.4Ghz 5Ghz wifi bands as well as using the LAN cable that came with the device.

I did 2 test runs with varying results and is due to the LTE nature of the wifi compared to fiber internet. On the first run, the 2.4Ghz was the fastest in terms of download speed but expectedly using the lan cable would give you a much faster ping.

The same case was observed on my second test run with the lan cable having the fastest ping and this time also having the fastest download and upload speed.

Overall if you are using a desktop or a laptop which is in a fixed position then you should go ahead and opt for a lan cable but if you connect to your wifi using your phone and move around alot, I suggest you use the band steering feature of this device to automatically switch from 5Ghz and 2.4Ghz depending on signal strength.

How To Set-up Your Globe At Home LTE-Advanced For The First Time

2021-01-24T14:04:00.004+08:00

Setting up your Globe At Home LTE-Advanced for the first time is easy!

You just need to open your browser and go to 192.168.254.254 which is written at the back of your modem where you can also find the username and password.

Sometimes you'll be prompted by a warning. Just click on advanced, and the click proceed at the bottom.

This will now lead you the the modem overview page where you can see information such as your signal type, and here we can see that it's LTE+.

Here you can also see the antenna status which is currently internal. The device has 2 external antenna ports but since the modem doesn't currently have admin access, you cannot set the antenna to external and the default is the internal antenna.

So to log-in just click the log-in button at the top right hand corner of your screen and enter the details at the back of your modem.

Just click next, click agree. then you'll proceed to setting up your wifi name and password. Here you have the option of band steering where in when active, you'll only have one SSID or Wi-Fi name, and connection will automatically switch from 5Ghz to 2.4Ghz depending on the signal strength with preference to the 5Ghz band. If band steering is not active, you'll have 2 SSIDs and have to transfer from 5Ghz to 2.4Ghz if needed.

Next would be setting your password for the device log-in.

And your done! you can now access the device control panel. on the home page you can see the signal strength and connection status.

On the wifi-basic setting is where you can toggle band steering and is where you can change the wifi name or ssid of your device and your password to connect to the wifi.

On the devices tab you can see the devices that are currently connected. Here you can check if there are devices that you dont recognize.

On the tools tab, you can check SMS messages sent to your modem such as the code to activate your Globe At Home app account. here you also have parental controls where you can manage website access and time limits for devices.

On the advanced settings, you'll have different settings on your wifi such as number of devices that can connect, some advanced router and security settings which for a regular user doesn't really matter as much. on the device information screen you can see details of your modem such as your number and even the cell id of the tower you're connected to. Hopefully the experts can figure out admin access soon so that we can do band locking and setting up external antennas.

The New (2021) Globe At Home LTE Advanced Prepaid WiFi [Unboxing, Speedtest, and Review]

2021-01-22T13:32:00.003+08:00

Globe recently released officially their new LTE-Advanced Prepaid WiFi modem to compete with the LTE-Advanced modems of PLDT. The unit is quite familiar because it is the same as what has been available through online sellers as the Globe CAT7 modem. Upon checking the unit it is indeed the same Huawei B535-932 modem and in this video we'll see if there's any difference between the old Globe CAT7 and this new Globe Prepaid WiFi LTE-Advanced modem.

I got the unit from lazada at Php1,999 with a free tote bag worth Php400. Feature-wise it is the same as my old CAT7 since it's the same Huawei model but comparing it to other available Globe prepaid WiFi's it features carrier aggregation which should give you faster speeds and it is also dual band.

Speaking of dual band the 5Ghz band is theoretically faster than the 2.4Ghz band since there is less interference from other devices but it has a smaller range and is not advisable if your router is separated by walls from where you connect. Near the device there is not much of a difference between the 2 bands but when I went to the opposite room upstairs, the signal of the 5Ghz band significantly dropped. This is where the band steering feature of this device comes handy so that it will automatically switch from 5GHz to 2.4Ghz depending on signal strength.

In terms of speed, the LTE+ signal should give you faster speeds but it will ultimately depend on your location and router position. Moving it around the house gave me different speedtest results from less than 5mbps to more than 20mbps download speeds.

The widely available Globe CAT7 clearly has a Postpaid label written on the box and the reason for that is explained in my previous video. In that video I also mentioned that I had admin access to the Globe CAT7 and locked the band to band28 from 3 available LTE bands 3, 28, and 41. In this new version of the modem it supports 5 bands adding Band 1 and Band 40. However, Admin Access is currently not yet available and you cannot fix the best band in your area and have to rely on finding the best position in your house where you get the fastest speeds.

An additional note, both the old CAT7 version and the new Globe LTE Advanced prepaid Wifi cannot connected to Huawei AI Life and Huawei Hi-link so you have to rely on the router admin page for controls. One advantage though of the new LTE Advanced modem is that you can read sms which is a feature missing from the old CAT7 modem.

As a conclusion if you're looking to upgrade from your old Globe modem and already have a good signal in your area then this device is highly recommended. Now between this device and the old CAT7, it's basically the same with the main advantage of the old CAT7 is the price. I've noticed that prices have dropped to as low a Php1,000 for the old so if you chanced upon this deal I suggest you buy it. Another advantage is being able to have admin access to control which LTE band to connect to but if you're not in a hurry, you can buy the new Globe LTE Advance WiFi and just wait for admin access to be available.

Converting To Converge [From Prepaid WiFis to Unlimited Fiber Internet]

2021-01-21T20:27:00.000+08:00

I have tried almost all of the prepaid wifis available on the market today. What I love about these wifis is the instant connectivity, just plug it in, find a good signal and you're good to go! What I dont like about these prepaid wifis is the inconsistency of the speeds, you may get 20mbps now and get less than 2mbps the next minute. Being LTE based, the connection is also prone to disruptions as what i'ved experienced and what others are also experiencing regardless of the modem.

This prompted me to apply for a fiber internet and after more than 2 months of waiting, I finally got connected with Converge. So I'll share with you my experience with converge, from application to installation, and it's pros and cons comparing it to prepaid WiFis.

I am somewhat ok with my prepaid wifi but what triggered my shift was when I ran out of data and had to reload again immediately just to resume a meeting. The final straw was when I experienced disconnection every 5 to 10 minutes or so with my CAT 6 PLDT prepaid wifi.

There are currently 4 options for fiber internet in Manila: Globe, PLDT, Sky fibr, and Converge. If you look at their plans, Converge and Sky provides the best value, offering higher speeds compared to Globe and PLDT for the same price.

I tried applying to all but from the outset, both Globe and Sky are not available in our location and only left me with pldt and converge as options.

Pldt fiber has a no cashout application while converge has an initial fee of Php1,500. With pldt i tried applying through an agent but got turned off when the agent asked for my mother's maiden name on top of other personal details. Later I found a link to an authorized company and submitted my application there. And after almost 2 months I received a text message telling me that only DSL is available in my location. Php1,299 for 5mbps? No thanks.

With Converge, I applied through their website, convergeict.com, last August 17. Filling up the form is easy and after submitting the forms I received instantly a confirmation email and proceeded to pay the initial cash-out of Php1,500 using BDO Online.

After a couple of weeks I received regular status updates both on texts and email. These messages are basically automated messages telling me that my application is still on queue. Surprisingly, I received a call before October ended telling me that a technician will call me to schedule a visit. A week passed and then on November 8, our doorbell rang and it was Converge ready to install.

Installation was quick, it took 3 guys only around 30mins to install cables from the main street to our house and connect the modem. What you get is a huawei dual-band wifi router. I immediately took a speedtest and it was at 25mbps on both DL and UL speed. Speeds are also consistent throughout the day regardless of peak or off-peak hours. Plus I can watch tv series or movies all day without worrying about my data consumption.

I've now been a converge convert for a month and so far I experienced 2 interruptions that's why I'm glad I still have prepaid wifis as back-up. The interruptions were disappointing but It wont change my perception of Converge as a reliable internet service provider. After all, PLDT internet infamously went down recently that online classes had to be cancelled. Converge is also known to have poor customer service but let's face it, who does? Facebook and twitter are filled with similar complaints on Globe and PLDT.

To conclude, applying for a unlimited fibr plan is the way to go if you are a heavy user or if you're just looking for a fast and stable internet. If you can shell out Php1,500 a month then I would recommend the 25mbps plan of Converge. I also noticed from the forums that the company has significantly improved the waiting time for installation, with some agents promising next day installation. Lastly, it is still advisable to keep a prepaid wifi available just in case your internet is down which happens from time to time to all internet service providers. If Globe's signal is ok in your area, I suggest for you to buy a Globe prepaid wifi and change the sim card to a GOMO sim so that your data wont expire and you dont need to load everytime you need to use it.

Xiaomi Redmi 10X 5G [My Experience Coming From a Samsung Flagship To A Xiaomi Mid-Range Phone]

2021-01-19T20:46:00.005+08:00

The combination of the Lazada 12.12 sale and my wife's Samsung Galaxy Note 8's screen going crazy was perfect timing for me to upgrade to a 5G phone. I've been using my Galaxy Note 10 for about a year so I'll give that to the wife and now I'll be using the Xiaomi Redmi 10x 5G.

I'm quite content with my Galaxy Note 10 but I feel like I'm missing out on 5G technology. My Globe plan will not renew until the end of next year but I just can't wait for another year to experience 5G. Plus, since my Samsung Note 10 is Globe locked, my second sim which is Sun cellular, is stuck in 2G.

I've been looking around the internet for an affordable 5G phone that can also fill my everyday needs. You'll be surprised at how many there are to choose from! There's Huawei, Vivo, LG, Realme, Xiaomi, and many others. I've always been a Xiaomi fan and have tried a few devices since 2015 with my favorite being the first Redmi Note which gave me 2 years of solid service. Xiaomi alone will give you a handful of 5G choices, each one with its pros and cons. And after flip-flopping on which model to add to cart, I finally decided on buying the Xiaomi Redmi 10x 5G.

My decision was largely based on 2 things. First would be the price. I got this unit for Php12,300 during the 12.12 sale and regular price is at Php12,800. Second factor was that I want a phone that would closely resemble my experience with my Samsung Note 10, less the S-pen. So with an Amoled screen and an under display fingerprint scanner, this was the phone for me. Plus, the store on lazada had the unit locally and is fulfilled by lazada hence I got the unit December 13, only a day after I ordered it.

Inside the box you'll get the phone, a clear plastic case, a usb type c cable, and a 22.5 watt charger. Pretty basic stuff. The online store provided 2 free tempered glasses and even with a tempered glass the under display fingerprint sensor still works well. And by the way this unit has a chinese rom and not a global rom but setting the phone up, installing google play is relatively easy.

This phone is equipped with the Mediatek Dimensity 820. Now I've been far away from the chipset game too long to know which one is the best but for me it all comes down to your experience. So far I dont feel any lag in my everyday use and does not really feel much of a difference compared to my Samsung Note 10. In terms of gaming, i tried PUBG and NBA live and both run smoothly, although on PUBG only HD is supported and not HDR or UHD.

Main camera has a triple camera set-up with 48MP shooter while the selfie cam is 16MP. The main camera takes good pictures specially if you are on 48MP mode . And for the selfie camera I'm actually recording this video using the 10x 5G's front camera. For me, in this pandemic, there would be less chances of us going to different places anyway so a high-end camera is not my priority.

At the same pricepoint, Xiaomi have other 5G offerings, you have the K30 and the 10T lite. Specs are almost the same and you should decide on what you really need whether a better camera, a bigger battery, or a better chipset. You can check-out gsmarena and compare the specs of the phones.

Overall after almost a week of using the unit and after removing all chinese apps and settings, I'm very satisfied with the unit and the only couple of things I miss with my old Samsung Note 10 is the wireless charging and the s-pen which I rarely use anyway. Plus the 10x 5G only costs only around 20% of the original price of the Galaxy Note 10!