Gadgets Weekly: Sony NW-A306 Walkman, Canon EOS R50 and more
Technology companies such as OnePlus, Sony, Canon, Nikon, and Noise launched new cameras, smartphones, smart TV and more this week (February 6-12).
DH's Gadgets Weekly edition lists the latest personal technology products to keep you abreast of everything that's happening in the world of consumer electronics.
Sony NW-A306 Walkman
It comes in compact music player form factor and weighs around 199 grams. It features both a 3.6-inch touch screen and tactile physical music controls. It flaunts premium aluminum milled frame, which promises superior rigidity for low impedance and clear, stable sound and solid bass.
It boasts proprietary S-Master HX digital amp technology developed exclusively for Walkman. It reduces distortion and noise across a wide range of frequencies, for rich and full-bodied sound, further enhanced by new high-quality sound lead-free solder. It uses Edge-AI (Artificial Intelligence), and DSEE Ultimate (Digital Sound Enhancement Engine) which upscales compressed digital music files in real-time. It can even restore acoustic subtleties and dynamic range providing a deep and rich listening experience.
To deliver true sounds, a dual clock, film capacitor and fine sound register, have been precisely placed within the Walkman. With a full charge, it can offer 36 hours of 44.1kHz FLAC playback, up to 32 hours of 96kHz FLAC high-resolution audio playback, or even up to 26 hours with streaming service apps. It costs 25,990.
Canon EOS R50 and R8 series
The new EOS R50 comes with an APS-C format image sensor, which is three times larger than the 1-inch sensor on the latest smartphones. It will be able to deliver sharper, more detailed images and videos, and less noise (graininess) even in low light.
It features a 24.2MP sensor and is capable of producing high-quality Uncrop 4K 30p video oversampled from 6K worth of data. It also supports the Dual Pixel CMOS AF II system, which enables the camera to automatically detect and track people, animals (dogs, cats, and birds), and vehicles (motorsports cars, and motorcycles) based on their characteristics. For close-up demos, the Movie for Close-up Demo mode quickly and automatically switches focus to the subject closest to the camera, says the company.
The company offers the Camera Connect smartphone app, which lets users easily transfer videos and JPEG photos from the Canon camera to a smartphone either through a wireless Wi-Fi or wired USB-C connection. As the camera supports transcoding, which makes 4K and Full HD video files lighter, even high-quality video files can be transferred and uploaded to social media with less hassle.
On the other hand, the EOS R8 comes equipped with Movie Digital IS, which can digitally perform tilt correction as well as 5-axis image stabilization during video shooting. This will help in delivering stable handheld videos can be ensured even when using lenses with no optical image stabilization (Optical IS).
With the 24.2-megapixel CMOS image sensor, it enables the camera to capture 6K data to be obtained from its entire width, producing high-quality cropless oversampled 4K UHD footage at up to 60p.
The new EOS R8 comes with heat suppression measures that allow users to shoot up to 4K 30p with no recording time restriction, and up to 30 minutes at 4K 60p. It also supports Full HD at as high as 180p and is able to produce 30p output with action slowed down to 1/6 the speed.
As seen in the EOS R6 Mark II, the new EOS R8 comes with Dual PixelCMOS AF II technology to deliver better still and video quality. Besides normal 8-bit recording, the EOS R8 offers two options for recording 10-bit 4:2:2 high dynamic range video. HDR PQ provides amazing dynamic range and beautiful colours straight out of the camera when viewed on an HDR display.
It also boasts the EOS iTR AF X system. It not only detects and tracks people, animals, and vehicles by deep learning, it also identifies other subjects and locks onto them using characteristics like shape, colour, and brightness.
Realme 10 Pro Coca-Cola Edition
It features a custom design language and color scheme that matches the Coca-Cola branding. It sports the trademark red-and-black colourway not only in terms of exterior appearance but also inside as well. It features a beverage-inspired crimson-hued user interface and app icons, fizzing liquid bubble-like notification graphics, dynamic charging effect, 80s Cola Filters for the camera comes with with a special edition shutter sound. When taking a photo, it sounds like opening a real Coke bottle.
The company is also offering fancy retail box with a lot of goodies including realmeow Coca-Cola figure, DIY stickers, customized SIM card needle in the sape of a bottle cap, and limited number card.
The rest of the features including the internal specifications remain the same as the original Realme 10 Pro. It comes with a 6.72-inch full HD+ LCD screen (2,400x1080p) with variable (30Hz-120Hz) refresh rate and supports peak brightness up to 680 nits. Also, it comes with a side-mounted fingerprint sensor, hybrid dual SIM slots (nano SIM + nano SIM or microSD card), and a 3.5mm audio jack.
It comes with Qualcomm Snapdragon 695 octa-core processor with 8GB LPDDR4X RAM, 128GB UFS 2.2 storage (expandable up to 1TB), Android 13-based Realme UI 4.0 OS, dual-camera module-- main 108MP (with 1/1.67-inch Samsung HM6 sensor, f/1.75) + 2MP portrait camera with Geco Micro GC02M1 sensor (f/2.4) with LED flash on the back, a 16MP (with Samsung S5K3P9 sensor, f/2.45) on the front, and a 5,000mAh battery with 33W charger. 16MP front-facing camera with Samsung S5K3P9 sensor, f/2.45 aperture
It costs Rs 20,999 and will be available on Realme online stores, Flipkart, and selected stores from February 14 onwards.
Nikon Nikkor Z 26mm f/2.8 lens
NIKKOR Z 26mm f /2.8 is Nikon’s slimmest lens for mirrorless full-frame/FX-format cameras to date. With 70mm (D) x 23.5mm (L) dimension, it is not even bigger than an average credit card
The slim design comes with an all-element focusing system and an effective arrangement of three aspherical lens elements. This helped the company to minimise aberrations, and yet the lens will be able to deliver excellent optical performance in a small body.
With its 26mm focal length, the lens provides a versatile angle of view to capture dynamic images of various everyday perspectives such as streets, cityscapes, landscapes, architecture, and portraits.
It allows the camera to capture dynamic images that can be edited to change the background blur. The lens’ minimum focus distance is 0.2m and this allows users to get closer to the subject for good macro close-up shots. It costs Rs 46,495 in India.
HP OMEN playground stores
The OMEN playground stores house several gaming facilities and allow walk-ins to enable an interactive and immersive gaming experience.
It also offers free entry to help budding Indian gamers explore the latest technological innovations. Professional gamers and sqauds can also play using their steam IDs to game on-ground and remotely.
HP has opened eight OMEN Playgrounds in Delhi, Mumbai, Pune, Bangalore, Trivandrum, Ludhiana, and Hubli. It has plans to open more such zones in Lucknow, Hyderabad, Nashik, Bhuvaneshwar, and Chandigarh in the coming year.
Noise Buds VS404
The new Noise earphones flaunt a compact design and come with an IPX5 sweat and water-resistant rating. It supports Quad Mic ENC (Environmental Noise Cancellation) to ensure an uninterrupted calling experience at the callers’ end.
The Buds VS404 comes with 10mm drivers that provide deep and rich bass, and also feature built-in EQ modes - Bass, Gaming, and Normal. It supports Bluetooth 5.3 with HyperSync technology allowing these buds to pair easily with the devices.
With a full charge, it can last for 50 hours. It also supports fast charging. With just 10 minutes of charging, it can deliver up to 200 minutes of audio playback. It costs Rs 1,299.
Portronics Hydra 10- Compact Wireless RGB Keyboard
It comes with user-replaceable maintenance-free RED mechanical switches for a responsive clicking experience. It features backlit 68 keys with RGB LEDs that produce 16.8 million colours with 20 different customization options.
The Portronics Hydra 10 can connect using 2 different modes — Bluetooth V5.0 and 2.4GHz Wireless receiver. Users can pair and connect the keyboard with four different devices at the same time, three using Bluetooth and one using the wireless 2.4GHz nano receiver on a laptop or desktop.
The keyboard is powered using a 1,000mAh in-built rechargeable battery that charges over a USB-C port. When you run out of charge, you can connect this as a wired keyboard and enjoy the ultimate lag-free gaming experience using the USB-C cable. The USB-C Port offers fast charging that can give you 5 days of wireless use with just one hour of charging. It costs 2,999.
OnePlus 11, 11R series
OnePlus earlier this week unveiled two new premium phones-- OnePlus 11 along with 11R series.
The flagship OnePlus 11 features a 6.7-inch Quad HD+ (3216 x 1440p) 2.75D flexible curved LPTO (v3.0)AMOLED screen with Corning Gorilla Glass Victus shield.
It boasts Hasselblad system-based triple-camera module-- main 50MP (with Sony IMX890 sensor, f/1.8, OIS: Optical Image Stabilisation) + 48MP ultra-wide camera (Sony IMX581 sensor, f/2.2, 3.5cm macro) + 32MP RGBW telephoto lens (with 2x optical zoom, Sony IMX709 sensor) with LED flash on the back. On the front, it houses 16MP(f/2.4) with full HD video recording capability.
Inside, it houses Qualcomm’s 4nm class Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 with Adreno 740 GPU, 12GB/16GB LPDDR5X RAM with 256GB/512GB storage (UFS 4.0), and comes integrated with a 5G modem and a 5,000mAh battery with 100W SuperVOOC charger. Its price starts at Rs 56,999.
Whereas the OnePlus 11R comes with a 6.74-inch full HD+(2772×1240p) AMOLED display (with adaptive refresh rate 40Hz-120Hz) AMOLED display with up to 1450 nits peak brightness, supports in-display fingerprint sensor and dual SIM option.
It is powered by a 4nm class Snapdragon 8+ Gen 1 processor with Adreno 730 GPU,8GB/12GB LPDDR5 RAM with 128GB/256GB (UFS 3.1) storage, Android 13 with OxygenOS 13, triple camera module— main 50MP (with 1/1.56-inch Sony IMX890 sensor, f/1.8, OIS: Optical Image Stabilisation) + 8MP 120-degree ultra-wide camera (with Omnivision OV08D10 sensor, f/2.2) + 2MP macro camera (with Omnivision OV02B10 sensor, f/2.4) with LED flash on the back, a 16MP camera (f/2.4) on the front, a 5,000mAh battery with 100W SuperVOOC fast charging support. Its price starts at Rs 39,999.
Must read | OnePlus 11, 11R series unveiled in India
OnePlus Pad
It sports an 11.6-inch 2.8K LCD display with 2800 x 2000p resolution, 7:5 aspect ratio, 2.5D curved glass screen with Dolby Vision, adaptive refresh rate (60-144Hz), and is powered by a 4nm class 3.05GHz MediaTek Dimensity 9000 processor with Mali-G710 10-core GPU, Android 13-based OxygenOS 13.1, 8GB / 12GB LPDDR5 RAM with 128GB / 256GB UFS 3.1 storage, 13MP primary camera on the back, an 8MP front camera for video chatting and 9,510mAh battery with 67W charger inbox. It will be coming in April.
OnePlus TV 65 Q2 Pro
It features 65-inch QLED 4K display panel and supports a refresh rate of 120 Hz. It boasts quantum dot layer technology, offers peak brightness of 1,200 nits and DCI-P3 coverage of 97%.
The display is optimised with Gamma Engine Ultra, and comes with a full array of 120 local dimming zones that promise to boost visuals with deep contrasts and rich colours in the motion picture played on the TV.
To deliver an immersive audio experience, OnePlus has incorporated a powerful 70-watt speaker at the base. It supports 2.1 channel with seven speakers. They are tuned by Dynaudio and promise a clear and rich sound experience. It also features a 30W subwoofer too.
It runs Android 11 Google TV-based OxygenOS 2.0 interface and supports Google Assistant, Alexa and also users can install thousands of OTT apps including Netflix, Amazon Prime Video, and more.
As far as the connectivity is concerned, it supports Bluetooth 5.0, dual-band Wi-Fi (2.4GHz + 5GHz), three HDMI 2.1 ( one eARC), two USB 2.0 ports. one RF port, and one RJ45 ethernet port.
It comes with 3GB RAM, 32GB storage, support NFC Cast, MultiCast 2.0, Chromecast built-in, DLNA, and Miracast. It costs Rs 99,999.
The company also showcased OnePlus Keyboard 81 Pro. It is a fully-customizable mechanical keyboard. It is touted to be the first in its class to feature Marble-mallow keycaps. The latter uses a patented thermoplastic elastomer to produce a springy bounce with each press, to deliver optimal comfort and functionality. It will be available in April.
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