Believe it or not, the last time I held a Windows laptop was back in 2022. It wasn’t even a conventional one. Rather, it was a gaming hybrid — or a laptop and tablet rolled into one. That was a short escape though.

After being a religious Mac user since 2016, it’s high time to re-experience Windows four years after that very limiting ROG review.

Here’s my 16-day stint with the TECNO MEGABOOK K16s 13th – Intel Edition.

All-metal clad that’s far from being bad

Gone are the days of Windows laptops that are icky plasticky.

If it is not evident enough, the TECNO MEGABOOK K16s 13th uses real metal. It looks and feels solid. And by that, it has characteristics of being decently hefty and light at the same time.

The only problem with this finish is how much of a smear magnet it is. But hey, at least it’s on par with my 2023 MacBook Pro for this smudge madness (or smudge-ness in my vocabulary).

With a laptop this size, port selection should be the least of its concerns.

It has twice the USB-C and USB-A 3.1 ports, as well as inclusions of HDMI 1.4, Ethernet / RJ45, and 3.5mm audio jack. Kensington lock is still present as well — not that it’s badly-needed.

If I were to nitpick, two things that ick me are the arrangement of ports. Look at how inconsistent they are, much like seeing your disorganized spoons, forks, and knives in a single tray.

Another would be the inclusion of a microSD card slot instead of a regular SD one. I don’t get how the latter was not chosen especially with its sheer size.

Now Playing: Can This Love Be Translated 🗣️🔥⁉️

Just like waiting to re-experience a Windows device, the same can be said when I waited for the premiere of the K-Drama “Can This Love Be Translated.”

The title was already compelling to begin with. That curiosity sparked twofold upon knowing that my two favorite stars (Kim Seonho and Go Younjung) will steer drive the whole series.

Speaking of star, the biggest star of this laptop has got to be its massive 16-inch display.

Not only I was able to reinvigorate my heart with the rom-com scene of Joo Hojin and Cha Muhee in front of that dreamy Mt. Fuji scenery.

Their Aurora Borealis scene was also breathtaking. Although not as vivid as other displays, its max brightness felt just right to make the visuals pop against that harsh sunlight.

And while we’re already at it, the matte coating of the K16s 13th has been a real savior. It’s more useful for users (like me) who work at cafés with large windows every once in a while. My MacBook Pro definitely loses this fight with its awfully reflective panel.

While it is not, in any way, greater than any other OLED display nor some panel with a 120Hz refresh rate, it still feels justified considering where the K16s 13th is positioned in this vast laptop market.

On Queue: EXO’s REVERXE, ZB1’s Running To Future,

My idol anticipation doesn’t stop there. EXO’s much-awaited comeback as a full group is another one. Then, there’s ZEROBASEONE’s release.

These comeback promotions should sound good, right? Well, not really.

EXO is coming back with three missing members, all because of a justifiable lawsuit against their agency.

On the other hand, ZB1 is coming back — but, for the last time as they will disband real soon after completing their 2.5-year contract as a project group. A real disadvantage of a group being formed during a survival show.

Much like all that bittersweet aftertaste, I can relate the same feeling with the MEGABOOK K16’s speaker setup.

On paper, TECNO says it’s a master-level 2.5W 4013 quad-speaker setup that delivers 300% louder volume. I am not sure how it was tested nor compared.

Without much comparison, it’s adequately loud. However, it lacks the fullness and all the necessary thump and oomph to make the sound fuller than ever.

This just means a big laptop isn’t directly synonymous to having a greater audio system.

Unparalleled performance for its price

NGL, I have been spoiled by power-packed laptops especially for the creative work that I do.

That said, the MEGABOOK K16s 13th is far from being a slouch with the Intel Core i9 (specifically the 13900HK) at its core. That’s then paired by Intel’s Iris Xe graphics, alongside 32GB of memory, plus 512GB of SSD storage.

Without a hitch, I immediately installed all the essential creativity apps I use.

Lightroom is less demanding so post-processing the photos I took for the MEGABOOK K16s 13th was easy-peasy.

I then managed to make static graphics using Adobe Photoshop for another review article.

As for Premiere Pro and After Effects, you can still scrub through heaps of layers with tolerable amount of hiccup considering how packed my timeline was.

This laptop boasts a cooling fan system that kicked in heavily when the laptop was in dire need of releasing all the heat within — which went out through its four air vents.

Work-life balance achieved

My test doesn’t end just yet. I have installed both the Forza Horizon 5 and Euro Truck Simulator 2 for greater measure.

As expected, having integrated graphics (and the lack of a dedicated graphics) mean lower graphics support.

Surprisingly, both titles were playable enough. I enjoyed playing Forza Horizon 5 even in the lowest playable setting for more than 30 minutes — just with some stutters in between.

ETS2 felt smoother though. Driving the bus with the custom livery I made on Photoshop last 2019 was still working — and my pre-pandemic nostalgia kicked in.

Using the keyboard for playing isn’t the best thing in the world but it does the job — much like how I was able to write this review piece using the laptop itself.

As for the feel, the keys are more on the mushier side that felt like typing on a mashed potato. Not that I’m expecting a mechanical nor MacBook-level type of clickiness.

Good thing is, its trackpad supports gestures I’ve been heavily using since transitioning to a Mac.

Security-wise, the TECNO MEGABOOK K16s 13th can be unlocked with your fingerprint button using the power button as the reader.

That 1MP webcam also has a sliding cover for that extra level of protection against privy hackers.

Enduring that endurance

For the most part, the 70Wh battery of the MEGABOOK K16s 13th delivers a satisfactory endurance.

You will not feel its gradual decrease for the most basic of tasks — writing notes, being in a call meeting, even juggling through tens and hundreds of webpages for your write-ups.

Even between consuming several hours of entertainment, the MEGABOOK K16s 13th can still manage just like any other modern-day laptop would.

With the excellency and efficiency of hardware components in this digital age, it’s hard to kill a laptop with these day-to-day habits.

That said, the MEGABOOK K16s 13th isn’t totally meant for anything graphics-heavy.

As one would (and should) expect, the battery level instantly descends the moment you enter the start screen of a game or export a 10-second motion graphic in After Effects.

For instance, after running Forza Horizon 5 for 20 minutes, it depleted significantly from 51% all the way down to 27%.

Fortunately, the MEGABOOK K16s 13th packs a 65W GaN charger out of the box.

Charging speeds isn’t all that great, though, as it will take a long time filling the battery from zero to the brim.

I have honestly given up my GadgetMatch Charge Test upon realizing that in the 45-minute mark, it was only able to fill it at 27%.

This just means that in order to enjoy your me time, you have to sit very near a plug outlet. Moreover, expect severe battery health degradation in the long run if you intend to use it for casual gaming.

“Win”dows is far from winning

Before being a Mac user last 2016, I have been a long-time Windows user. My youthful years made me experience Windows 98, XP, Vista, 7, and even as far as Windows 8.1. My university years until 2015? Relying on Windows 10.

Now that we’re in the era of Windows 11, it’s still far from being flawless.

Even before Fruitiger Aero aesthetics of Windows Vista, Apple was already way ahead of its time with the first iteration of the OS X dubbed “Cheetah” and its translucent UI elements along a cleaner overall look.

2.5 decades after, Windows is as cluttered as it was in its prime days. Settings are for one, file system for another.

Task Manager, Explorer, and even Recycle Bin still crash like crazy — even if the MEGABOOK K16s 13th is already equipped with a pro-grade processor in its core.

The lack of fluidity is also for another. It will really make any Mac user justify the “once you g0 Mac, you can never go back” saying. Reality speaking, Windows is far from winning over.

This isn’t a TECNO problem per se. It’s always been about Microsoft not fully immersing and polishing their software for the longest of time.

If you happen to own other TECNO devices, TECNO’s PC Manager saves the day.

That so-called “OneLeap Collaboration” not only enables seamless data sharing and file transfers between all your TECNO devices, it also has support for Multi-Screen or Remote PC.

PC cloning, laptop optimizations, even troubleshooting, can also be done in this one-stop app.

Is the TECNO MEGABOOK K16s 13th your GadgetMatch?

The TECNO MEGABOOK K16s 13th in the Philippines retails for PhP 46,999 — and I am not even surprised by this.

I have known TECNO as a brand for quite a while now. The MEGABOOK K16s 13th is another testament to the brand’s vision of bringing devices within the reach of consumers at the middle to the lower-end of the working class.

For those who need better performance, especially those who need intensive graphics power (emphasis on intensive), this is obviously a Swipe Left.

However, it’s a no-brainer Swipe Right for buyers who want a shiny new all-rounder laptop without spending a fortune.

Even with the similar price as the ASUS Vivobook S16, the TECNO MEGABOOK K16s 13th has the upper-hand with its more powerful 13th-Gen Intel Core i9 chipset plus Iris Xe graphics (versus the Core 5 + UHD Graphics pairing).

Being “basic” is neither a bad thing

The TECNO MEGABOOK K16s 13th is as “basic” as a Windows laptop can get — at least compared to a swarm of 2-in-1s, ultrabooks, creative powerhouses, and gaming machineries.

I am not saying this is a letdown. In fact, I have to commend the K16s 13th for being a simple yet straightforward laptop that delivers all the necessities without frills.

Although it’s the core definition of a “basic” Windows laptop, it’s still a powerful one — way beyond its price point. It should serve as an example of how “basic” Windows laptops should be in the first place.

The TECNO MEGABOOK K16s 13th is simply an all-around laptop that delivers without messing around.

As someone who travels and is outdoors a lot, THE Michael Josh will be the first to admit that he is NOT gentle with his phones.

They live in his pockets, bags, hands. They get dropped, they get wet, and they get dusty.

So when REDMI asked him to test something they call “REDMI Titan Durability,” he figured the only fair way to do it was to put the REDMI Note 15 Pro+ 5G to the ultimate durability test.

Looking back at my first few months with GadgetMatch back in 2018 nostalgically evoked my Pocophone F1 core memory. It was touted as THE “flagship killer for less.”

Pre-pandemic, that “Pocophone” simply became “POCO” and became an “independent” kiddo who moved out of its parent’s house.

Almost eight years after that very first iteration, I’ve finally had my first (and long overdue) POCO-perience with the latest POCO M8 Pro.

Design: Repurposed with a purpose

While I have not held a POCO phone until very recently, I am still aware of the brand’s offerings over the years.

Seeing the POCO M8 Pro for the first time instantly reminded me of last year’s Redmi Note 14 Pro series. That’s not me saying POCO blatantly ripped the aesthetics as the POCO X7 also had the same design language.

Like a full circle moment, the aforementioned phones were launched back a year ago.

In all honesty, it still confuses me which direction Xiaomi is heading, especially with the non-stop rebadging of existing POCO and REDMI phones — just with scrambled internals and CMF (color, materials, finish).

Having said that, I still consider the M8 Pro a level up from the last M7 Pro. The former’s design felt like it was not given much importance.

The centered camera island with a squircle cutout seemed like a signature design element of Xiaomi’s newer midrange line moving forward.

I also love how the phone felt in my hands. Even with that plastic back, it felt grippy enough when held.

You have to be wary of fingerprint smudges though — especially if you rock the black colorway. Luckily, the green shade I have still looks clean despite those unwanted smears.

And, if you’re brave enough to clean it in running water, the POCO M8 Pro boasts not just one, not two, but quadruple IP ratings: IP66, IP68, IP69, and even IP69K. These used to be exclusive only among 2025 flagships.

Now Playing: IDOL I

Much like my fanaticism to anything tech, the same can be said with Korean Pop Stars. More known as “K-Pop Idols”, I have been a huge geek of K-Pop for 16 long years (and still counting).

Interestingly, after finishing a series that just ended in Netflix, IDOL I swiftly came by. Even if I am the type of viewer who values the drama’s synopsis more than the cast involved, this K-Drama instantly hit two birds in one.

For one, its starred by a true iconic idol herself: Choi Sooyoung — or one of the nine members of SNSD / Girls’ Generation a.k.a the ultimate 2nd generation K-Pop girl group I’ve been stanning since my youth.

Although Maeng Se-na here is a heartless and “selfish” lawyer, she is the opposite for being a huge (yet silent) fan of “Gold Boys” with Do Ra-ik as his “Ult” (or Ultimate Bias).

 

In a wild turn of events, the idol became a “murderer” overnight — blaming him for the sudden death of his co-member after waking up from their drinking session.

But, no matter how the general public looks at him as the prime suspect, finding faults against Ra-ik is difficult. That’s pointing out the fact that he was just sleeping in his bed while his former bandmate slash loyal friend got stabbed without clear answers.

I can pretty much say the same thing with the 6.83-inch screen of the POCO M8 Pro: I cannot see any fault at all.

For one, it’s an AMOLED display that made me enjoy binging the first four episodes non-stop. But, being able to display 68.7 billion Colors and 12-bit color depth aside from the usual HDR10+ and Dolby Vision support? That’s likely unusual for a phone in such price point.

And, with a 1.5K display resolution plus a pixel density of 447 ppi, it’s as crisp as it could get. Watching it outdoors is neither a problem with its mighty 3200 nits peak brightness.

While my eyes aren’t very sensitive to light and flicker, its 3840Hz PWM dimming and TÜV Rheinland Flicker-Free and Low Blue Light certifications are still worth mentioning — especially if you stay up all night binge-watching hours worth of titles like yours truly.

On Queue: Apink’s RE:LOVE + Chuu’s XO, My Cyberlove

Pumping up the volume by 60%, it’s expected that the POCO M8 Pro possesses a louder than ever sound output. However, my audio assessment doesn’t end just there.

Just like POCO starting the year with a bang, the K-Pop scene in January 2026 has already exploded with real hit bangers.

First and foremost, Apink finally gathered again to released their 11th Mini Album (their previous Mini Album dates back to 2020). As per usual, I used Apple Music to take full advantage of that Lossless format.

Their title track “Love Me More” not only brought a lot of the group’s nostalgic intro and dance break instrumental during their early days in the industry, it also reminded me of the pre-millennium K-Pop era back in the early 90s.

Pair that with b-sides such as “Sunshine” that sounded pure and soulful, this latest mini album will truly make Pink Pandas’ hearts flutter.

In addition, Chuu (LOONA) finally releases her 1st Full Album titled “XO, My Cyberlove.” It is a complete opposite of her first ever solo song “Heart Attack” almost a decade ago which highlighted her cutesy, innocent charms.

The comeback track of the same title is as quirky and whimsical as it gets. Not only does it highlight Chuu’s light yet ethereal vocals, but it shows her newer, more mature side.

Furthermore, lyrics that evoke unexpected budding love in this digital era where everyone enjoys making connections through the cyber world.

With POCO M8 Pro’s speakers, I fully enjoyed playing the entirety of her freshly-baked album while I was writing this piece. Teeny Tiny Heart and Love Potion are currently my fave b-sides from this release.

Such music fulfillment was possible with the Dolby Atmos stereo speaker setup and Hi-Res Audio support of the M8 Pro. Not only its proudly loud, the audio produced is full and immaculate with clear line between its highs, mids, and lows.

Performance: Adequate for most

On paper, the POCO M8 Pro runs Qualcomm’s latest Snapdragon 7s Gen 4 SoC based on a 4nm process. As confusing as it seems, this is different from the more powerful Snapdragon 7 Gen 4.

That being told, game settings will vary depending on how demanding one is.

For instance, CoDM (Call of Duty: Mobile) runs in Very High and Max settings upon first set-up.

Meanwhile, Racing Master (based on NVIDIA’s PhysX engine) can run Ultra settings at 60fps.

However, it throttles during the first two ranked races.

Fortunately, the game detects if it gets sluggish — suggesting lowering down the settings altogether.

Lastly, playing Zenless Zone Zero is doable but, at the lowest graphics by default.

You wouldn’t dare to go past it as Combat Mode will literally feel like combatting the phone itself due to how heavy the game is.

The only “remedy” for these hardware limitations? It’s none other than the Game Turbo mode that boosts graphics performance and input through Xiaomi’s software advancements. And it sort of helped make the gameplay smoother, but not fully.

For the rest of apps that are not graphics-intensive, the M8 Pro can breeze through various apps without hiccups, do split-screens, or multitasking along floating windows with ease.

I can truthfully say that the only thing dragging the POCO M8 Pro down is the software as a whole.

After experiencing the beauty of vivo’s OriginOS 6 and HONOR’s MagicOS 10, Xiaomi’s HyperOS still feels like an after-thought. While it can keep up with the modern-day Android features, its stability and optimizations simply don’t make the cut.

Besides, its built-in AI tools, device ecosystem, as well as cross-compatibility functionality aren’t as polished as what you get on other Chinese brands. Let alone, a rip-off from everyone’s fruit rival without much feature improvements.

Worst thing? Maybe the ad slash bloatware infestation found not just on the lock screen. Even transferring personal files through Xiaomi’s native File Manager app plays an unskippable ad.

Battery: Eat it up! Eat it, eat it up! 🍝🎶

At 8.31mm, the POCO M8 Pro is as slender as it can get. How they were able to fit a 6500mAh battery inside its chassis is a true feat of engineering.

For the record, this is the first POCO M-series smartphone to have such a ginormous battery. It joins the same league as the POCO F8 Ultra, F7, and the X7 Pro (in India).

For added context, the M7 Pro, as well as the X7 with a similar form factor, only had a 5110mAh battery. But, numbers are just part of the story.

In day-to-day scenarios with light to moderate usage, the POCO M8 Pro can last you a full day — even more when you hit the bed with around 30% to spare.

As one would expect though, the biggest hogging can be felt when playing games.

During my gameplay stress test, downloading resources in Racing Master for about 30 minutes already consumed 5% charge (92% down to 87%). An hour of racing ate up 11 percent — from 87% down to 76%.

Letting it rest on my desk for 18 hours, the phone depleted to 51%.

At around 9 in the evening, I then started playing HoYoverse’s Zenless Zone Zero for exactly an hour. Battery charge went down further to 36%. Then, a 1.5-hour game in CoDM resulted to a 28% battery percentage. And, as of writing, the POCO M8 Pro still had a 3 percent charge left in its massive tank.

That said, the POCO M8 Pro comes with Xiaomi’s 100W wired HyperCharge speeds — adapter still bundled in the box.

By default, the battery charging speed is set in regular with the prompt / option to enable boosting.

In my GadgetMatch Charge Test results, it can be seen that the difference isn’t too far off.

	Boosted HyperCharge	Regular HyperCharge	PPS Charging (UGREEN 100W Nexode)
START TIME From 0%	1:11AM	3:10PM	4:06PM
3 minutes	10%	8%	1%
5 minutes	17%	11%	4%
10 minutes	25%	18%	13%
15 minutes	40%	23%	21%
20 minutes	46%	32%	28%
30 minutes	70%	50%	46%
45 minutes	88%	71%	67%
1 hour	99%	91%	84%
1 hour 15 minutes	–	99%	96%
END TIME 100%	2:14AM 1 hour 3 minutes	4:27PM 1 hour 17 minutes	5:30PM 1 hour 24 minutes

PPS Charging is also possible. Although the device only showed “Quick Charge” while being filled up, it’s safe to say that it performs as fast as Xiaomi’s regular HyperCharge with a super close margin of only seven minutes.

Cameras: Surprisingly Satisfying

Prospective buyers of the M8 Pro wouldn’t have a hard time dealing with its conventional camera configuration: a 50MP f/1.6 main (wide) camera based on Light Fusion 800’s 1/1.55-inch sensor. That’s paired with a less outstanding 8MP f/2.2 UWA (ultra-wide angle) camera.

For the most part, the main camera does its job very well considering this type of device.

With the satisfactory 1x image sensor, 2x zoom is also possible, thanks to in-sensor cropping.

I honestly used the 2x mode more than I thought — especially when capturing my cats and food I devour.

You can go beyond the bounds. But, with obvious hardware limitations, the camera processing can only do so much.

Once that natural light disappears, it will be tricky to take low-light shots as this has NO dedicated Night Mode feature. No luck if you are using them indoors with artificial light around.

Instead, regular Photo Mode automatically detects a low-light subject and toggles Night Mode processing by itself.

While most results are satisfying, it’s also a testament that its cameras are far from being flawless.

Good thing, the flash exists for a funkier look in subjects that suit it — food specifically.

Portraits weren’t missed. Although it only relies on some software-based processing, it still gets the job done of separating the subject away from the background — humans and pets alike.

Personally, the aperture function was a bit of a nuisance.

For context, these shots were set to a low “f/1.8 aperture.” But, the M8 Pro rendered DoF (Depth of Field) that isn’t as shallow as what it’s supposed to show.

My frustration continues as the setting defaults back to f/4.5 after quitting and re-opening the camera app. That’s not even the standard lens opening when taking portrait photos.

And while we’re already here, selfies taken with its front-facing shooter.

Is the POCO M8 Pro your GadgetMatch?

While this isn’t the “flagship killer” most expect from a POCO phone, it’s hard not to go loco over how well-rounded yet wallet-friendly this POCO phone is — especially in the year 2026 where inflation is still unstoppable alongside the almost instantaneous and ridiculous RAM price hike.

ICYMI, the POCO M8 Pro has a starting price of GBP 299 / SG$ 389 / RM 1199 / PhP 16,999 (around US$ 279) for the 8+256GB configuration.

Meanwhile, the 12+512GB variant that I handle is priced at GBP 349 / SG$ 449 / RM 1499 / PhP 19,999 (approx. US$ 359).

Its closest rival is none other than the HONOR X9d. Coincidental or not, it was launched just a day after the unveiling of the M8 Pro.

Frankly, the only thing you’ll let go from HONOR’s sweet treat are its monstrous 8300mAh battery and more polished OS. This POCO-ffering blows it out of the water with a greater chipset, faster wired charging, bigger and better display, capable cameras, durability never forgotten.

Although it wasn’t totally highlighted, the POCO M8 Pro is undoubtedly a rebadged REDMI Note 15 Pro+ — Xiaomi’s midranger that heavily markets its “Titan Durability” capabilities.

The POCO M8 Pro has them all: from its sturdy aluminum frame, four IP ratings, even the fully-shielded front glass care of Corning’s Gorilla Glass Victus 2. The biggest disparity? REDMI has a 200MP main camera over POCO’s 50MP shooter.

Despite some inconsistencies, the POCO M8 Pro is still an all-around midranger that will satisfy most users who want to purchase a shiny new smartphone without burning holes in your pockets.

It is a Swipe Right, Super Swipe, and a worthy recipient of the GadgetMatch Seal of Approval.