From a veritable unknown to a force to reckon with, LeEco has come a long way in a startlingly short amount of time. Close on the heels of their big phone launches, the Chinese brand is now gunning for a place in your living room with their Super3 TV series. Can the LeEco juggernaut disrupt the big screen market, much like they have with phones?
Straight out of the massive box, the 55-inch Super 3 X55 is a striking piece of kit, with the thin aluminium bezel and profile and a rather unique asymmetric curved metal stand that looks straight out of a modern art exhibit. There’s no shortage of connectivity options, with 3 HDMI ports and 3 USB ports along with a full complement of wired and wireless connectivity options.
Setup is quick and easy, and I’d recommend signing up for LeEco membership, since much like their smartphones, the TV comes with two years of access to tons of live TV channels and movies complimentary with the purchase. There’s no 4K content though, and the content curation could do with some work. In use, you’d almost immediately notice how fluid and snappy the Android 5.0-based EUI 5.8 interface is, and everything from changing inputs to downloading additional Android apps is a breeze with the included remote.
At under 60 grand for a 55-in 4K Smart TV, you’d wonder where the catch is — by any estimate, this TV is significantly (Rs 15,000-20,000) cheaper than any other similarly specced option, and about a third or a fourth if you choose a Samsung or a Sony! Fortunately, colour reproduction and picture quality are great, more so if you have plenty of full HD content which can be upscaled to 4K, since native 4K content is fairly rare to come by.
In all, the X55 is a great 4K smart TV without any peers at its price point, and earns a solid recco.
♦ Rating: 9/10
♦ Price: Rs 59,790 (55-inch) onwards
♦ URL: bit.ly/TT-LeSuper3X55
Smarter at the price
Xiaomi seems to be making a habit of redefining expectations at each price point, and so it is with the Redmi 3S Prime. At Rs 8,999, you get a phone with a metal body, 13-megapixel camera, fingerprint sensor, 3GB of RAM and 32GB of internal storage, all of which till recently was the domain of the 12-grand segment. There’s more than a passing resemblance to the hugely popular Redmi Note 3, and the Prime could be thought of as a spiritual sibling, albeit with a slightly more budget oriented processor and a lower resolution 720p display.
In use, the smaller 5-inch display ensures a form factor that sits well in the hand (which is itself a rarity these days), making the 3S Prime one of the most premium smartphones south of 10 grand. The Snapdragon 430 chip is a capable performer for everyday tasks, and the 3GB of RAM with the 720p display works well for productivity and gaming needs. The camera takes sharp images with a decent amount of detail, but it isn’t a truly standout performer.
Where the 3S Prime blows the competition out of the water is its phenomenal battery life courtesy its 4,100mAh battery. It easily lasts almost two full days of heavy usage and is the perfect phone to take along if you’re unsure of where and when the next charge will be.
♦ Rating: 8/10
♦ Price: Rs 8,999
♦ URL: bit.ly/TT-Redmi3SPrime
All charged up
It may look like a standard issue laptop backpack, but HP’s Powerup Backpack can recharge a laptop, or a smartphone eight to 10 times, thanks to its massive 22,400mAh battery. It even has ventilated pockets and heat sensors which monitor the battery to keep it from getting too hot, and charging can be prioritised, say if you want your phone to be charged fully before your laptop starts charging, or vice versa. The bag weighs a shade under two kilos, but it’s a worthwhile compromise when you know that you’ve got some extra power with you when you’re on the road.
♦ Price: $199.99
♦ URL: bit.ly/TT-PowerupBackpack
technocool@kanwar.net; follow me on twitter @2shar
