Accessories

The TeamGroup X2 Max helped organize my files

Fast and plenty of storage

Published

July 29, 2025

As someone who reviews multiple devices for weeks and months at a time, it can be hard to keep track of all my files. That’s especially true for the laptop reviews I handle. Part of the tests include actually using the SSD equipped on those machines. That means storing my actual work files on them. But that also means my files are scattered.

I’m not the most organized person in the world. I just happen to recall where most of my files are. Either that or I just have a system that works for me where I happen to know where the files I need are at. It’s not perfect and I am in the process of streamlining everything. That’s where the TeamGroup X2 Max portable SSD comes in.

There are a couple of key ‘events’ that transpired during my testing of what we’ll from here on out call the X2 Max – for brevity. First is when I used the X2 Max to facilitate my switching of the Legion Go S from Windows to Steam OS. Second is an ongoing matter where I use it to consolidate my work files.

Let’s start with the first one.

Overqualified host for switching OS on gaming handheld

I returned from our Computex coverage with the X2 Max and just as I arrived, we locked in a collaboration with Lenovo to feature the Legion Go S. At first I thought it was going to be the Steam OS version but instead it was still the Windows one.

I asked permission from Lenovo to switch it to SteamOS and they were okay with it. So, the next task was actually doing it.

I’ve done my fair share of changing OS and flashing devices before. However, it’s been a while since I did anything of the sort so I may have taken some missteps. One of them involves the X2 Max.

Part of the process includes using a thumb drive to boot the SteamOS from. The X2 Max was the only one in my immediate vicinity so I grabbed that and proceeded with the process.

By the way, I’m using some words very loosely here. If this is something you ever find yourself doing, just carefully follow the steps outlined by Valve. I digress.

So, I did the things successfully. But the process also meant that the X2 Max was reformatted. And since my expertise in this area is limited, it took me a while to get the X2 Max back to full capacity. In fact, as of now, I still don’t have access to about 200GB of the available storage. But that’s a problem for Future Me.

Transferring games

Naturally, it didn’t stop there. I used the X2 Max to transfer some of the games from my gaming laptop to the Legion Go S. That’s around 500GB worth of gaming data and it took me about 37 minutes to complete the transfer.

That transfer rate is:

512,000 MB ÷ 2220 s ≈ 230.63 MB/s

That’s fairly realistic for real-world transfers of game files, which tend to include:

Thousands of small-to-medium files
Mixed file sizes (textures, assets, audio, etc.)
Higher filesystem overhead

Not accounting for things like:

Thermal throttling
File type/fragmentation (games are often made up of thousands of small files)
SSD buffer/cache filling up
OS overhead
Your source drive’s speed (if reading from a slow internal drive, that’ll bottleneck things)

Based on that data, here are estimates of the same transfer speed for different file sizes.

File Size	Total MB	Time @ 230 MB/s
50 GB	51,200 MB	≈ 223 s → 3 min 43 sec
100 GB	102,400 MB	≈ 445 s → 7 min 25 sec
250 GB	256,000 MB	≈ 1113 s → 18 min 33 sec
500 GB	512,000 MB	≈ 2226 s → ~37 min (baseline)
1 TB	1,048,576 MB	≈ 4550 s → 1 hr 15 min 50 sec

Consolidating my work files

My ongoing challenge right now is consolidating all of my work files. As of writing I have them scattered across a few laptops, a couple of hard drives, and another portable SSD.

If you’ve done any sort of file migration yourself, you know that it can take a while, especially when you’re dealing with terabytes of data. With the X2 Max in tow, I have been slowly but surely tidying up my work files.

What’s great is that the X2 Max’s transfer speed has been key in helping me accomplish this endeavour faster.

I did a single massive transfer of 1TB in one sitting. It took about 50 minutes and 36 seconds for the transfer to be completed.

That transfer rate is:

1,048,576 MB ÷ 3046 s ≈ 344 MB/s

Since these are straight up files: images, videos, some documents here and there. Here’s the estimated transfer speeds based on that rate.

File Size	Total MB	Time at 344 MB/s
50 GB	51,200 MB	≈ 149 s → 2 min 29 sec
100 GB	102,400 MB	≈ 298 s → 4 min 58 sec
250 GB	256,000 MB	≈ 744 s → 12 min 24 sec
500 GB	512,000 MB	≈ 1488 s → 24 min 48 sec
1 TB	1,048,576 MB	≈ 3046 s → 50 min 46 sec (baseline)

I forgot to actually time it. But overall, it took me about two and a half to three hours to move around about two to three terabytes of files. That’s already a lot of time saved.

Previously, it would take me half a day if not all day to handle these file migration tasks. With the X2 Max, the task was successfully hastened.

Travel-friendly portable SSD

I have since made the X2 Max my go-to portable SSD for travel. I’ve gone on a couple of work trips with it in tow. That means I have access to all my important work files at my convenience.

Whether I’m working off of a review laptop, my own laptop, a review tablet, or my own tablet, I don’t have to worry about not getting to some of the stuff I may need to complete my work.

For someone who has to change devices constantly, this is a godsend.

As mentioned earlier, I still have some more organization to do. But I feel a little more at ease about completing them soonest because I have the X2 Max with me.

Is the TeamGroup X2 Max your GadgetMatch?

Yes. It doesn’t matter who you are or what you do. I firmly believe that everyone could use a portable SSD and the TeamGroup X2 Max is one of the best that you can get a hold of right now.

It’s a portable and fast storage device and can be used in a multitude of ways. It’s one of our easiest recommendations to date.

Price and availability

The TeamGroup X2 Max currently retails for $69.99 USD for the 1TB option and $124.99 USD for the 2TB version that we have.

It’s available for purchase on Amazon. That’s an overall good deal considering other similar products breach the $200 USD mark.

Related Topics:TEAMGROUP TEAMGROUP X2 MAX X2 Max

Accessories

Homture Magic Frame: Reliving wedding moments you didn’t get to see

Bring memories back to life, even the ones you weren’t present for

Published

April 3, 2026

Chay Lazaro

Brides say it all the time: savor every moment, because your wedding day quickly becomes a blur. Months go into planning every detail, only for it to fly by in what feels like minutes.

Between the ceremony, conversations with friends, and the after party, there are moments you will miss — no matter how big or intimate the celebration is.

The Homture Magic Frame came to my life at a perfect time. It offers a way for me to experience those in-between moments that didn’t fully register in real time, while also bringing back the ones worth holding onto.

Understated design

Before even turning it on, Magic Frame already feels like something special. The packaging leans premium; it feels like a gift right out of the box.

Setup is simple. The companion app is intuitive and easy to navigate, so going from unboxing to seeing photos on the frame only takes a few minutes.

The 10.1″ screen is fast and responsive, which made setup feel smooth. It’s bright but not blinding, and its anti-glare coating is a nice add-on especially as we get more daylight this spring. It ticks everything you’d want from a digital frame.

The design is clean and modern: a white mat paired with a thin black frame in a basic rectangular shape. The mat makes it look more like a real frame than a generic Android tablet.

While the modern look fits easily into most spaces, I would have loved customization options. As someone who has artwork all over her home in different shapes, sizes, textures, and colors, what’s missing in the digital frame market is fun. There are many options that look exactly like it.

Curved, rounded edges, irregular shapes and textures, or matching frame colors and mats — brighter tones or an all-chrome look are both trending right now. A quirky design could have helped it stand out more.

One subtle detail that I really liked is the back design. It resembles a turntable: the kickstand looks like a tonearm, the internal layout is circular like where a record would sit, and even the power button looks like that of a typical record player. It’s a thoughtful touch, even if it’s not something you’ll ever look at.

Bringing memories to life

What makes Homture Magic Frame different from most other digital frames, is it uses AI photo-to-video technology to animate still images. Within minutes, a photo becomes something more alive.

Right now, the options are very limited. During testing, I tried “Duo” which creates a short clip of two people waving at the camera.

Magic Frame comes with 200 credits out of the box, with each animation costing 100. It’s a fun feature, though a bit early for me to consider paying for more. I’m not sure I want to see more videos of people waving hello or converting ourselves into claymation-looking cake toppers.

Before the wedding, I asked my friends to capture emotion and motion — more candid moments, less posing, even if the results are blurry. The goal was to remember how the day actually felt.

My friends more than delivered, and Magic Frame has allowed me and my husband replay those memories. It reveals moments that we weren’t present for that day. Different friend groups meeting for the first time, a parent getting emotional over a letter, small interactions happening across the room while our attention was elsewhere.

A frame that feels aware

An unexpected highlight is how interactive the frame feels. With a built-in motion sensor, Magic Frame responds when someone walks by, almost like it’s acknowledging their presence.

As I’m still on cloud 9, there’s something special about passing by and catching a moment from the wedding that subtly comes to life, without needing to reach for my phone. It turns a passive activity into something more immersive.

While it’s great as it is, I do wish that photos did not shuffle as quickly, or that the transition was more subtle — things that can be updated later via software.

Keeping every memory in one place, not just the highlights

After the wedding, photos start coming in from everywhere — friends, family, group chats.

Magic Frame makes it easy to bring everything together. With unlimited cloud storage and 64GB of local memory, it holds more than just my favorite photos of me and my husband. The candid moments, shiny dresses, high heels, the toasts, the bubbles and the people who made the day special — all of it lives in one place.

Through the app, friends and family can also upload their own photos directly. It’s an easy way to involve everyone, and sometimes new memories pop up unexpectedly on a random day. Instead of a perfectly curated album, I love that it has become a shared collection of perspectives from everyone who was there.

A more meaningful way to look back

There’s still that post-wedding feeling — wanting to hold onto every memory before it fades. Instead of doom scrolling through my camera roll, Magic Frame has given me a reason to pause.

It retails for under US$180, but you can get it today for just US$139. I wouldn’t buy it solely for its AI features, but for something as momentous as a wedding, having the Homture Magic Frame quietly bringing those memories back to life while I sip my coffee in the morning? The experience is priceless.

Accessories

Fujifilm Philippines introduces instax Mini Evo Cinema, Mini Link+

It’s time to enter your film+ era and hold onto your favorite moments

Published

March 30, 2026

MJ Jucutan

The digital scroll is fine, but Fujifilm Philippines is making a strong case for the tangible.

For a weekend, the Open House World in Makati transformed into a nostalgic playground for the “In Our Film+ Era” pop-up.

The mission was simple: proving that memories feel better when you can actually hold them.

The stars of the show were the new instax Mini Evo Cinema and the instax Mini Link+, two gadgets designed for the artsy geek who wants their life to look as good on paper as it does on a Pinterest board.

Retro meets technology

The instax Mini Evo Cinema, priced at PhP 22,599, is a total vibe-shifter. With its 10 Eras Dial effects, you can toggle through a hundred different creative combinations.

Then there is the instax Mini Link+ for PhP 8,999, built for the maximalists who refuse to let their best shots die in the camera roll.

This smartphone printer adds AR effects and custom designs, turning digital snapshots into high-aesthetic physical keepsakes.

As Masahiro Uehara, President of FUJIFILM Philippines, put it, the goal is to reimagine how people connect with their memories by blending innovation with raw emotion.

More than just a photo op

The weekend functioned as a masterclass in creativity rather than just a product demo.

On the first day, filmmaker Elyandre Dagli showed the crowd how the Mini Evo works as a powerhouse for documentation and storytelling.

The energy continued the next day with Nica Cosio, who led a session on rubber stamp carving and journaling. Cosio showed how the Mini Link+ bridges the gap between digital tech and old-school scrapbooking.

Artists like Soleil Ignacio, Bryan Sochayseng, and Jill Arteche also dropped by to share how these tools fit into their professional creative workflows, proving that “instant” doesn’t have to mean disposable.

Ready to enter your Film+ era?

If you missed the pop-up, you haven’t missed the tech. The instax Mini Evo Cinema and instax Mini Link+ are officially hitting authorized FUJIFILM dealers nationwide right now.

It’s time to stop scrolling and start collecting.

For the latest updates, you can follow Team Instax on Facebook and Instagram.

Accessories

Razer sharpens its competitive edge with Viper V4 Pro and Gigantus V2 Pro

Ultra-light. Ultra-tuned.

Published

March 26, 2026

GadgetMatch

Razer expands its pro-grade lineup with a lightweight mouse and a highly customizable mouse mat built for different playstyles. The Razer Viper V4 Pro focuses on speed, precision, and responsiveness, while the Razer Gigantus V2 Pro brings tailored surface options that adapt to how players move.

Lighter, faster, and built for control

The Viper V4 Pro weighs approximately 49g in Black and 50g in White, making it around nine percent lighter than its predecessor. Razer achieves this through mechanical refinements like a thinner shell and a more compact PCB, without compromising durability. The structure still feels solid in hand, even with the aggressive weight reduction.

This balance matters in competitive play. A lighter mouse reduces fatigue and allows quicker adjustments, but stability keeps movements consistent. The Viper V4 Pro aims to deliver both.

Plug in, tweak, and play instantly

Razer also streamlines setup and tuning. The optimized hemispherical dongle maintains stable connectivity while providing quick status updates through LED indicators.

Players can adjust settings without installing software using Razer Synapse Web, enabling browser-based customization. Onboard controls allow quick DPI and polling rate changes mid-match, so adjustments happen without breaking focus.

A mouse mat that adapts to your play style

The Gigantus V2 Pro evolves Razer’s mouse mat lineup by introducing five distinct speed ratings paired with corresponding foam firmness. Instead of a one-size-fits-all surface, players can now choose based on how they aim and move.

Developed with esports pros like Nikola “NiKo” Kovač, Faker, and Zellsis, each variant reflects real competitive needs across different roles and playstyles.

The five surface options include:

Max Control for ultra-high friction and precise flicks
Control for consistent micro-adjustments
Balance for a mix of speed and stopping power
Speed for quicker swipes
Max Speed for the fastest possible movements

Each surface is paired with Razer’s GlideCore foam, tuned to match the friction profile. Softer variants provide more stopping power, while firmer ones prioritize speed and responsiveness.

Built for consistency across every match

Razer ensures the Gigantus V2 Pro works seamlessly with modern optical sensors. Lab testing guarantees consistent tracking, whether for fine adjustments or wide flicks.

The mat is also designed for competitive environments. It features stitched edges to prevent fraying, an anti-slip base for stability, and a rollable build that makes it easy to bring to tournaments.

A complete competitive setup

Together, the Viper V4 Pro and Gigantus V2 Pro form a cohesive setup that covers both input and surface. The mouse emphasizes low latency, precision tracking, and a shape validated by pros. The mouse mat complements it with clear, playstyle-based options.

Rather than focusing on a single standout feature, Razer builds a system. One that supports consistent performance, adapts to player preference, and helps turn practice into results when it matters most.