Smartphones

Snapdragon improves four chipsets for the midrange

Coming Q4 2021

Published

October 27, 2021

Luigi Leonardo

Last year, chipset makers focused on bringing 5G compatibility to their products. Now, with most chipsets already supporting the modern network right off the bat, the next objective is to improve performance with the new network compatibility in mind. Qualcomm is doing just that with a slew of new chipsets for the midrange market.

Snapdragon 695

Arguably the most important in the pack, the new Snapdragon 695 improves on the Snapdragon 690 released last year. At the time, the midrange processor brought 5G compatibility to the market.

This year’s Snapdragon 695 patches a missing puzzle piece in its predecessor’s features. Whereas the Snapdragon 690 only had compatibility for sub-6GHz networks, the Snapdragon 695 offers both sub-6GHz and mmWave frequencies.

Further, the upgraded chipset will also feature a 15 percent improvement in CPU speeds and up to 30 percent in GPU speeds.

Snapdragon 680

Though the entire industry is firmly in the 5G realm, the Snapdragon 680 offers an alternative to markets that are still hovering around 4G LTE speeds. The Snapdragon 680 does not offer 5G capabilities but has improved performance speeds.

Other improvements across the board

Next comes an upgraded version of the Snapdragon 778G. The new chipset doesn’t offer anything new when it comes to features. It does feature improved spends and faster AI capabilities with a 2.5GHz CPU, in lieu of the predecessor’s 2.4GHz CPU.

The Snapdragon 480 Plus upgrades the Snapdragon 480’s performance with an upgraded 2.2GHz CPU.

The new set of chipsets will debut in smartphones sometime this quarter. A few brands — HMD, Honor, Motorola, OPPO, vivo, and Xiaomi — are all set for smartphones with the new chips.

Philippines

realme 16 Pro 5G Harry Potter Edition: Price, availability in the Philippines

Hogwarts magic meets smartphone design

Published

October 29, 2026

GadgetMatch

The realme 16 Pro 5G Harry Potter Edition is now available in the Philippines for PHP 39,999. This limited-edition smartphone features a color-changing Hogwarts crest, an exclusive Harry Potter-themed interface, and a collection of Wizarding World memorabilia.

Limited to fewer than 200 units nationwide, the special edition is designed for fans and collectors of the beloved franchise.

Hogwarts magic in every detail

The realme 16 Pro 5G Harry Potter Edition comes in Magic Brown, featuring an Enchanted Texture Leather back with a three-dimensional diamond pattern inspired by wizard chessboards.

Its centerpiece is the Hogwarts Four-House Crest, which reveals the signature colors of Gryffindor, Slytherin, Ravenclaw, and Hufflepuff when exposed to direct sunlight or ultraviolet light. This effect uses realme’s Quadra Light-Sensing Color-changing Tech.

The phone also features a gold Hedwig-inspired camera design, matching gold accents along its edges, and a laser-engraved “Welcome to Hogwarts” inscription on the side.

A Hogwarts-inspired interface

The Harry Potter theme extends to the phone’s software. Exclusive wallpapers depict Hogwarts Castle at different times of the day, with Golden Dawn for daytime and Mystic Dusk for nighttime.

Other customizations include boot-up and fingerprint animations inspired by Hogwarts acceptance letters, more than 30 redesigned app icons, and camera watermarks inspired by the four Hogwarts houses.

A trunk full of collectibles

The limited-edition packaging takes the form of a Harry Potter-inspired trunk featuring the Hogwarts crest and the realme 16 Pro Harry Potter Edition branding.

Inside, fans will find a Hogwarts acceptance letter addressed to Mr. Potter, character postcards featuring Harry, Ron, and Hermione, and bookmarks representing all four Hogwarts houses.

The package also includes Hogwarts Crest pins and a Hogwarts Express-inspired ticket bearing the route from London to Hogwarts via Platform 9¾.

realme 16 Pro 5G Harry Potter Edition price and availability

The realme 16 Pro 5G Harry Potter Edition is priced at PHP 39,999 in the Philippines. Only fewer than 200 units will be available nationwide.

Hogwarts-inspired store displays will be available at the following locations:

SM Fairview
SM North EDSA
SM Calamba

The device will also be available at kiosks in SM Clark, SM Dasmariñas, and SM Megamall.

For further updates, visit realme’s official Facebook page.

Philippines

Samsung Galaxy A18, Galaxy A08 now in the Philippines

Everyday smartphone experience

Published

October 29, 2026

GadgetMatch

Samsung has unveiled the new Samsung Galaxy A18 and Samsung Galaxy A08 smartphones in the Philippines.

These affordable A series handsets bring more capable performance, long-term reliability, and core AI experiences to users.

The Galaxy A18 features a 6.7-inch FHD+ Super AMOLED display and is powered by a Helio G99+ processor.

It comes with an upgraded DDR5 memory and supports RAM Plus, which uses available storage as virtual memory.

At its back is a 50MP wide camera, 5MP ultra-wide camera, and 2MP macro camera.

Meanwhile, the Galaxy A08 comes with a 6,000mAh battery, Helio G99+ processor, and upgraded memory.

It also comes with a similar 50MP main camera, along with a 2MP depth camera, and 8MP front camera.

Core AI experiences, long-term reliability

Both the Galaxy A18 and Galaxy A08 come with core AI experiences, including Circle to Search.

Moreover, both phones come with multiple AI agents to help users move more seamlessly between supported Galaxy native apps, Google apps, and select third-party apps.

Both handsets also feature IP64 rating for protection against dust and water splashes.

Furthermore, the devices support up to six generations of OS upgrades and six years of security updates.

Price, availability

The Samsung Galaxy A08 comes in Dark Blue, Silver, and Green, for the following prices:

4GB+64GB: PhP 11,190
4GB+128GB: PhP 13,090

Samsung is offering up to PhP 1,200 in savings until November 30.

Meanwhile, the Galaxy A18 will be available by December in Black, Silver, and Light Blue.

Hands-On

Apple iPhone Duo Unboxing and Hands-on

Supported apps, crease, cameras, and MagSafe all tested

Published

October 22, 2026

GadgetMatch and Michael Josh Villanueva

Apple’s iPhone Duo is finally here!

Aside from unboxing the all-new iPhone-dable in Night Sky, we take a closer look at the display crease, check out the under-display camera quality, see which MagSafe accessories work with it.

Most of all, which apps support it (or not).

But how well does the dual-screen experience on an iPhone actually work? Watch our Apple iPhone Duo unboxing and hands-on to know more!