JOIN USGadgets Weekly: Samsung AI washing machines, Sony TWS earbuds and more
Technology majors such as Samsung, Microsoft, Nokia, Sharp, Sony, Dell, Garmin, Poco and Realme among others launched new smartphones, smart display, smart washing machine, and related accessories such as a smart plug, smartwatches, earphones, and more this week (September 20-26)
DH's Gadgets Weekly edition lists the latest prominent personal technology products to keep you abreast of everything that's happening in the world of consumer electronics.
Samsung AI washing machines and dryers
The new washing machines boast Samsung’s Q-Rator technology. It is an Artificial Intelligence (AI)-powered Laundry Assistant to manage and perform laundry process efficiently; Q-Rator sports three unique features – Laundry Planner, Laundry Recipe and HomeCare Wizard.
The Laundry Planner enables users to schedule end time of their laundry while the Laundry Recipe gives automatic recommendations for optimal wash cycles based on the information such as colour, fabric type, and degree of soiling inputted by the user, eliminating the need to guess which cycle is best. On the other hand, HomeCare Wizard proactively alerts users about potential problems and provides quick troubleshooting. To make full use of the Q-Raptor feature, users are advised to install the SmartThings app. It is compatible with almost all Android and Apple iPhones.
The new range of Samsung washing machines and dryers also come with top-notch features such as Eco Bubble and Ceramic heater, among others to offer an enhanced experience in managing laundry sessions. Eco Bubble ensures removal of stubborn stains easily, while Ceramic Heater prevents calcium build-up and provides quick heating that helps avoid scaling which takes place due to hard water, making it more energy-efficient.
Furthermore, Samsung's front load washing machines also come with the AddWash feature that gives users the ability to add items at any time during the cycle (without having to drain out water). "From a forgotten sock to a delicate item that needs to go in later in the cycle, AddWash even allows users to add detergent or fabric softener at a later time. The combination of Q-Rator and AddWash creates a synergistic effect that further enhances user convenience, simplifying the laundry process," Samsung said.
All the new models of Samsung's Q-Raptor and fully automatic front load washing machines come with Hygiene Steam technology that is capable of removing engrained dirt and 99.9% of bacteria along with inactive allergens.
Samsung is offering 10 kg fully automatic front load model for Rs 67, 000 while the 10 kg Washer Dryer model will be available at Rs 93000. Both these models come with Samsung’s AI-powered Q-Rator technology.
There is also a 7 Kg Washer Dryer in White & Silver colours for Rs 45, 590.
Sony WF-H800
Sony WF-H800 sports an ergonomic tri-hold structure, designed to contact on three different points on the ear for a secure, comfortable fit. Inside, it features Digital Sound Enhancement Engine HX (DSEE HX), which promises output digital music files with rich, natural sound and helps in restoring the details of the high-range sound lost in compression.
Also, users can customise the WF-H800's sound through the Sony Headphones Connect app for Android iPhone. It offers eight pre-set EQ, one manual, and two custom settings. It supports Google Assistant, Alexa, and Siri.
Furthermore, on a full charge, the headphones offer up to eight hours of battery life and additional eight hours through the case. Also, it has fast charging, where in just 10 minutes of charging ensures up to 70 minutes of music playback. It costs Rs 14,990 and will be available in black colour from September 24 onwards.
Garmin Infinix 6 Pro Solar, Instinct Solar
Garmin launched new line on Instinct Solar, Infinix 6 Pro Solar smart watches in India on September 25.
As the name suggests, new Garmin smartwatches utilise solar energy output to function and if the company is to be believed, the solar conversion rate is up to five times higher than the industry standard.
It is said to have one-of-a-kind solar panel - Power GlassTM , made up of an ultra-thin multilayer structure which allows for continuous solar charging even when the panel is partially covered, extending the battery life of the smartwatch in all modes in the Power Manager feature.
They come with sensors to track heart rate, SpO2 blood-oxygen level, Body Battery, advanced sleep monitoring, stress tracking, giving health insights to users. Additionally, they can track indoor climbing, fishing, MTB (Mountain Bike) Dynamics to break convention.
Dell G7 15 7500 series
Dell launched the company's new gaming laptop G7 15 7500 series. It comes with 15-inch full HD anti-glare display with 300Hz refresh rate, brightness up 300 nits.
Inside, it comes with options 2.4 GHz with Turbo Boost Upto 5.3 GHz, 10th gen Intel (Core i7/Core i9) backed by GDDR6 8GB graphics memory, NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2070 GPU promising faster boot-ups, Max-Q design, a dual-fan cooling system to keep the system cool and responsive for intense gameplay, 1TB PCIe NVME SSD, 64-bit Windows 10, 16GB RAM, 6 cell 86 WHr battery, mic, 1 x Thunderbolt 3, 2 x USB 3.1 (1st Gen) and HDMI Port: 1 x HDMI Port (v2.0).
It promises superior sound with stereo speakers and Nahimic 3D Audio for gamers, with intuitive audio and voice controls, as well as Audio Recon visual soundtracking, the company said.
Dell G7 15 7500 is available at select Dell Exclusive Stores, Multi-brand outlets and Flipkart (Dell G7 Core i9 10th Gen variant/ Dell G7 Core i7 10th Gen variant) at a starting price of Rs 1,61,990.
Sharp Windows collaboration display
Sharp Windows collaboration display (PN-CD701) sports a 4K Ultra HD 70-inch class interactive display, 12+12W built-in speakers, a high-quality camera and an IoT sensor hub that works seamlessly with the best Microsoft 365 collaboration tools. The device comes with a built-in microphone and a wireless casting that works with Windows and Android devices. It provides clear, visual information to enable more efficient workstation utilization and creates a comfortable meeting and training environments for more productive collaboration and learning, while also improving overall facilities management. Besides, the 10-point Projected Capacitive [PCAP] touch technology and Direct Optical Bonding provides a more accurate touch precision and natural Pen-on-Paper experience.
The new 4K Ultra HD Windows collaboration display is available for purchase across India directly from the company or through authorized SHARP dealers and is priced at Rs 11, 29,000.
Samsung SSD 980 PRO
The new 980 PRO is tailor-made SSD for people who work with 4K and 8K contents, and play graphics-heavy games.
"All the key components, including the custom Elpis controller, V-NAND and DRAM, are completely designed in-house to deliver the full potential of PCIe 4.0. This allows the 980 PRO to provide sequential read and write speeds of up to 7,000 MB/s and 5,000 MB/s respectively, as well as random read and write speeds of up to 1,000K IOPS [2], making it up to two times faster than PCIe 3.0 SSDs and up to 12.7 times faster than SATA SSDs," Samsung said.
Samsung SSD 980 PRO comes in 250GB, 500GB, 1TB, and 2TB with prices starting at $89.99.
Qualcomm Snapdragon 750
The new Snapdragon 750G houses Kryo 570 CPU cores and up to 4.0 Trillion Operations Per Second (TOPS), the Qualcomm AI Engine delivers up to 20% improvement over the predecessor Snapdragon 730G.
Snapdragon 750G offers select Qualcomm Snapdragon Elite Gaming features to allow for smooth, low-latency gameplay for richer entertainment quality. Equipped with the Qualcomm Adreno 619 GPU, Snapdragon 750G enables up to 10% better graphics rendering compared to Snapdragon 730G for stunning, life-like imagery
It supports mmWave and sub-6 GHz, SA and NSA modes, TDD, FDD and Dynamic Spectrum Sharing (DSS), and global roaming and global multi-SIM. This comprehensive modem-to-antenna solution allows devices powered by Snapdragon 750G to support multi-gigabit connections with lightning-fast upload and download speeds.
Commercial devices based on Snapdragon 750G are expected to be commercially available by the end of 2020.
Lloyd refrigerators
The new Lloyd refrigerators come equipped with Bactshield technology that promises to eliminate bacteria and provides longer-lasting freshness to perishables- a much-needed feature in a tropical country like India. The refrigerators range will feature the unique Decacool technology that will ensure cooling in every corner. It also consists of flexi max design which caters to the underlying need for more storage for the discerning Indian consumer. The above range is rated as per the 2020 energy rating norms coupled with advantages of the Inverter technology. "In conjunction with invertor technology, the new refrigerator range will come with dual safety compressor with OLP and OHR that enhances compressor’s life and makes Lloyd refrigerators highly energy-efficient," the company said.
The new Lloyd refrigerators will be available in capacities ranging from 190 litres to 587 litres, and at an introductory offer price range from Rs 10,000 to Rs 84,990.
Nokia 3.4, 2.4 series
The top-end Nokia 3.4 comes with a 6.39-inch HD+ (720 x 1560p) with 2.5D curved glass, peak brightness up to 400 nits and 19.5:9 aspect ratio, 11nm class Snapdragon 460 octa-core CPU, 600MHz Adreno 610 GPU, 3GB/4GB RAM with 32GB / 64GB storage(expandable up to 512GB via microSD), Android 10 (upgradable to Android 11 in 2021, Android 12 in 2022, a triple-camera module with-- main 13MP + 5MP ultra-wide camera+ 2MP depth sensor with LED flash, an 8MP selfie camera and a 4000mAh battery.
The new Nokia 3.4 will be available globally from early October and comes in Fjord, Dusk and Charcoal colour options with 3GB RAM+ 32GB storage, 3GB RAM + 64GB storage and 4GB RAM+ 64GB storage--configurations starting at an average global retail price of €159 EUR.
The new Nokia 2.4 comes with 6.5-inch HD+ (720 x 1600 p) 2.5D curved glass display with 20:9 aspect ratio, 12nm class 2GHz MediaTek Helio P22 (MT6762) octa-core CPU with 650MHz IMG PowerVR GE8320 GPU, 2GB/3GB RAM , 32GB/64GB storage (expandable up to 512GB via microSD card), Android 10 (upgradble to Android 11 in 2021, Android 12 in 2022, a dual-camera module with -- 13MP main sensor (f/2.2 aperture) + 2MP sensor, a 5MP selfie shooter (f/2.4 aperture) and a 4,500mAh battery.
The Nokia 2.4 will available globally from the end of September and comes in Dusk, Fjord and Charcoal colour options with 2GB RAM + 32GB storage and 3GB RAM + 64GB storage--configurations starting at an average global retail price of €119.
The company also launched the Nokia Power Earbuds Lite, which offers close to 35 hours of playtime and comfortable design with intuitive touch control giving you easy navigation whether it’s taking calls or skipping tracks. The IPX7 certification will make them waterproof up to 1m for 30 minutes, meaning you can break a sweat in the gym or run in the rain worry-free, whilst the 6mm graphene speaker drivers promise clear-cut sound. It will go on sale globally from October for an average global retail price of €59.9 and come in Charcoal, Fjord and Snow.
The new Nokia Portable Wireless Speaker offers up to 4h of playtime, while the integrated microphone will make group calls on the go easier than ever. Users can also pair two speakers for high-quality stereo audio output. It comes with universal Bluetooth 5.0 compatibility, so users can connect to all the types of devices, whatever the brand. It will be available globally starting November for an average global retail price of €34.9.
Poco X3
It features 6.67-inch full HD+ (2340 × 1080) display, 8nm class Qualcomm Snapdragon 732G octa-core (2.3GHz Kryo 470 x 2 + 1.8GHz Kryo 470 CPUs x 6) backed by Adreno 618 graphics engine, a quad-camera module-- main 64MP (with Sony IMX682 sensor, f/1.89 aperture)+ 13MP 119-degree ultra-wide sensor (with 1.12μm, f/2.2 aperture) + 2MP depth and 2MP 4cm macro sensor (with 1.75μm, f/2.4 aperture) backed by an LED flash, 20MP selfie camera with f/2.2 aperture, and a 6000mAh battery with 33W fast charging. Its price starts at Rs 16,999.
Must read | Poco X3: Everything you need to know
Samsung Galaxy S20 Fan Edition
Samsung Galaxy S20 Fan Edition (FE) comes with 6.5-inch Full HD+ (2400 × 1080p) super AMOLED, Android 10-based One UI 2.5 OS, LPDDRS 6GB/8GB RAM, 128GB/256GB storage (+ expandable up to 1TB via microSD card), and a 4500mAh, which is sufficient enough to keep the phone running for more than a full day. It also supports 25W fast charging.
Depending on the market, Samsung will offer the Galaxy S20 FE in either 7nm class 2.8GHz Qualcomm Snapdragon 865 octa-core CPU (+ Adreno 650 GPU) with 5G modem or 7nm class 2.7GHz Exynos 990 EUV octa-core processor (+ ARM Mali-G77MP11 GPU) with the 4G modem.
It boasts a triple camera module-- main 12MP (with f/1.8 aperture, PDAF: Phase detection Auto Focus, 1.12μm Pixel Size, 79-degree FOV: Field-Of-View, OIS: Optical Image Stabilisation), backed by 8MP Telephoto lens (with 32-degree FoV, f/2.4 aperture, Dual Pixel AF, 1.8μm Pixel Size, PDAF, OIS) and a 12MP 123-degree ultra-wide sensor (with 1.0μm Pixel Size, f/2.2 aperture) with Tracking AF, 3X Optical Zoom, up to 30x Super-Resolution Zoom and LED flash. On the front, it features a 32MP camera with an 80-degree wide-angle lens and f/2.0 aperture. Its price starts at Rs €649
Read more | Samsung Galaxy S20 FE: Everything you need to know
Amazon's new Fire TV Stick and Echo smart speakers
The new Fire TV Stick features a faster 1.7 GHz quad-core processor and is said to be 50% more powerful than the predecessor. Also, it consumes 50% less power. It supports faster streaming in 1080p at 60fps (frames per second) with HDR compatibility. It has dual-band, dual-antenna WiFi with support for 5 GHz network, which promises stable streaming and fewer dropped connections.
For the first time ever, the Fire TV Stick supports Dolby Atmos for immersive sound with compatible content and speakers. Like the previous generation, the retail package will come with the Alexa Voice-enabled Remote with dedicated power, volume, and mute buttons to control the TV, soundbars, and A/V receivers.
The company also unveiled affordable but capable Fire TV Stick Lite. It is 50% more powerful than the previous-generation Fire TV Stick. It features HDR support and comes with Alexa Voice Remote Lite with support for voice commands to find, launch, and control content.
The new Fire TV Stick and the Lite version are available for pre-order on Amazon India website for Rs 3,999 and Rs 2,999 respectively.
The Amazon Echo speakers flaunt gorgeous curvacious spherical designs with a fabric finish. Even the new structure, all the three Echo, Echo Dot and Echo Dot with clock promise to offer crisp sound output.
The new Echo speaker houses a powerful 1.6-inch, front-firing speaker, producing clear vocals and balanced bass for a full sound, the company said.
On the other hand, the new Echo Dot with clock comes with the same hardware as the new Echo Dot. Additionally, it has LED display for users to view time, outdoor temperature, timers, and alarms.
For the first time, the popular tap-to-snooze feature of the Echo Dot with the clock will also be available on Echo Dot and Echo, Amazon added. New Echo speakers prices start at Rs 4,499.
Read more | Echo speakers and Fire TV Sticks available for pre-order on Amazon India
Realme Narzo 20 series
The high-end Realme Narzo 20 Pro features 6.5-inch full HD+ (2400 ×1080p) display with punch-hole camera design, Corning Gorilla Glass 3+ shield, 12nm class MediaTek Helio G95 octa-core processor900MHz Mali-G76 3EEMC4 GPU, Android 10-based Realme UI, LPDDR4x 6GB RAM, USF 2.1 based 64GB / 128GB storage (expandable up to 256GB via microSD), quad-camera module-- main 48MP ( f/1.8 aperture) + 8MP 119-degree ultra-wide sensor (with f/2.3) +2MP B&W portrait camera + 2MP 4cm macro sensor (with f/2.4) with PDAF, 1080p 30fps video recordingLED flash, an 16MP selfie camera with Sony IMX471 sensor, f/2.1 aperture, side-mounted fingerprint sensor, three slots-for two SIMs and dedicated for microSD card and a a 4,500mAh cell with 65W SuperDart Charge technology. Its price starts at Rs 14,999 .
The generic Realme Narzo 20 comes with a 6.5-inch HD+ (1600x720p) display with mini drop design, 20:9 aspect ratio, Corning Gorilla Glass 3 shield, 12nm class MediaTek Helio G85 octa-core chipset, 1000MHz ARM Mali-G52 2EEMC2 GPU, Android 10-based Realme UI, LPDDR4x 4GB RAM, eMMC 5.1-based 64GB / 128GB storage (expandable up to 256GB via microSD), triple-camera module-- main 48MP ( f/1.8 aperture) + 8MP 119-degree ultra-wide sensor (with f/2.3) + 2MP 4cm macro sensor (with f/2.4) with PDAF, 1080p 30fps video recordingLED flash, an 8MP selfie camera, fingerprint sensor, three slots-for two SIMs and dedicated for microSD card and a 6,000mAh battery with 18W charging. Its price starts at Rs 10,499.
The Realme Narzo 20A comes with a 6.5-inch HD+ (1600 x 720p) display with mini drop design, Corning Gorilla Glass shield, 11nm class Qualcomm Snapdragon 665 octa-core, Adreno 610 GPU, Android 10-based Realme UI, 3GB/4GB RAM, 64GB / 128GB storage (expandable up to 256GB via microSD), triple-camera module-- main 12MP sensor (f/1.8 aperture) + 2MP B&W sensor and 2MP retro camera with f/2.4 aperture, PDAF, EIS, LED flash, an 8MP selfie camera with f/2.0, fingerprint sensor, three slots-for two SIMs and dedicated for microSD card) and a 5000mAh battery with 10W charging. Its price starts at Rs 8,499.
Must read | Realme Narzo 20 series: All you need to know
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