Gadgets Weekly: Asus Chromebook Plus and more

Technology companies Asus, Lava, Realime, Goldmedal Electricals, and more launched new laptop, smartphones, and more this week (December 11-17).

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.

Asus Chromebook Plus CX3402

It comes in a slim design language and comes with a sturdy enclosure. It has undergone MIL-STD 810H military-grade testing and the company performed stringent in-house testing — such as up to 30k times of open and close hinge cycle tests, panel-pressure tests, and shock and drop tests — to ensure maximal toughness.

It features a 14-inch Full HD screen with a three-sided NanoEdge display design to offer an immersive view and maximise the use of display real estate.

It has a well-designed backlit and spill-resistant full-size chiclet keyboard with a 1.5mm key travel distance and also houses a spaceous 5.7-inch touchpad.

It also boasts 1080p webcam with temporal noise reduction and built-in video call controls. It is capable of automatically enhancing clarity and lighting, cancel noise, and blurring backgrounds during voice and video calls.

Asus Chromebook Plus CX34.

The new Chromebook is powered by a 12th-generation Intel chipset (up to Core i7 series) processor and is backed by up to 16GB LPDDR5 RAM, supporting up to 512 GB M.2 PCIe 4.0 SSD. It also supports seamless connectivity with Wi-Fi 6, and Bluetooth 5.3. It has a fan-less vapour-chamber cooling system, enabling ultra-quiet and battery-preserving operation. With a full charge, it can last up to 10 hours.

It runs on the latest ChromeOS software and supports the Google Play store, which houses millions plus Android Apps, AI-based Web Apps, Google Workspace apps, Linux apps. This helps in seamless sync between the Android devices and compatible devices along with storage expansion of up to 2TB of storage via MicroSD card. It comes in rock grey colour with prices starting at Rs 39,990 (base model: Intel Core i3, 8GB/128 GB EMMC storage).

Goldmedal Electricals Thor fan

As the name suggests, it is a decorative norse god-inspired fan. It has a visually appealing unique design with an electroplated body.

Goldmedal Electricals Thor fan

The four-bladed fan promises to deliver powerful and efficient air circulation, contributing to a refreshing and comfortable atmosphere in any room of the house. Inside, the company has incorporated high-grade copper for motor winding, which ensures longer life. It comes with two years of warranty and costs Rs 3,500.

Realme C67 5G

It sports a 6.72-inch full HD+ (2400 × 1080p) screen, support 45-120Hz dynamic refresh rate, up to 680nits peak brightness. It also features triple slots (two for nano SIMs and a microSD card), a side-mounted fingerprint sensor, and a 3.5mm audio jack.

It houses a 6nm class MediaTek Dimensity 6100 octa-core processor with Arm Mali-G57 MC2 GPU, Android 13-based realme UI 4.0, 4GB/6GB LPDDR4x RAM, 128GB (UFS 2.2) storage (expandable up to 2TB) and a 5,000mAh battery with SuperVOOC 33W fast charger.

Realme C67 5G

It also comes dual-camera module-- 50MP(f/1.8) + 2MP (f/2.4) with LED flash on the back. It also features an 8MP (f/2.05) front camera. It comes in two colours -- Sunny oasis and dark purple. It will be available in two configurations--4GB RAM + 128GB storage and 6GB RAM + 128GB storage-- for Rs 13,999 and Rs 14,999, respectively.

Lava Yuva 3 Pro

It features a 6.5-inch HD+ (1600 × 720p) display, supports a 90Hz refresh rate, and comes with a side-mounted fingerprint sensor, a 3.5mm audio jack, and a triple-slot tray (for two nano SIMs and a microSD card).

Lava Yuva 3 Pro.

It comes packed with 12nm class 2GHz UNISOC T616 octa-core with Mali-G57 GPU, Android 13 OS, 8GB RAM, 128GB UFS 2.2 internal storage (expandable up to 512GB), dual-camera module-- 50MP + AI camera with a LED flash on the back, an 8MP camera on the front, and a 5,000mAh battery with 18W charger.

It comes in three colours- forest viridian, desert gold, and meadow purple-- for Rs 8,999.

Panasonic to bring Matter-enabled Miraie app

With the new upcoming app slated for launch in early 2024, users will be able to control and manage Panasonic's wide range of smart home appliances such as air conditioners, refrigerators, washing machines, and more.

Not just Panasonic devices, users will be able to control other branded gadgets made by Apple, Amazon, Samsung, and more.

For the uninitiated, Matter is an open-sourced connectivity standard created and supported by over 200 global consumer electronics companies including those mentioned above. The Matter platform's main intention is to offer seamless cross-connectivity between multiple branded smart home gadgets without any hassle.

Panasonic

“At Panasonic, we have been launching products and technology in line with consumer insights. We find that our consumers use products of different brands, and each brand has a platform or an app to manage a particular appliance. Hence to make lives more convenient and comfortable for our consumers, we have integrated Matter, an open, universal standard, with our Miraie platform and introduced India’s first Matter-enabled Room Air Conditioners as the first product under this new range. So now a Panasonic Air Conditioner equipped with Matter technology can be managed using the Miraie platform or any other platform that is Matter compatible. Similarly, any other Room Air Conditioner brand that is compatible with Matter can also be controlled through the Miraie platform. This is indeed a big breakthrough in consumer tech space,” said Manish Sharma, Chairman, Panasonic Life Solutions India and South Asia.

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