Features

Our sweetest Black Friday gadget finds [Updated!]

Published

November 22, 2016

Marvin Velasco

Black Friday is almost here, and we all know what that means: incredible holiday discounts!

That’s right; once November 25 arrives, we’ll all be rolling in some of the best gadget deals witnessed this year.

There’s a lot to take in, and not much time before the big day, so we’ve come up with a list of the coolest products we’ve come across so far. Bookmark this page because we’ll keep it fresh with all the latest deals as they come in. Keep your eyes peeled and your fingers fast – the best deals are the first to go, we know we’ve got our thumbs and wallets ready.

New Nintendo 3DS – $99.99

With Pokemon Sun & Moon just out, here’s something that’s immediately caught our attention! Nintendo is releasing a new special edition of the 3DS beginning this Friday, November 25 all for a super low $99.99 price tag. It’s quite awesome, really, with artwork of Mario characters embossed all over it. This special edition Nintendo 3DS will be available at all US retailers and come in black or white. We’ll post links as soon as we get them.

Kindle E-reader – $49.99

When in doubt about what to buy for yourself or a loved one this holiday season, you can never go wrong with a Kindle E-reader. Amazon is in a giving mood, and has slashed $30 off its 6-inch model, bringing the slate down to only $49.99. It has a glare-free touchscreen, Wi-Fi connectivity, and can store thousands of books in its sleek body. What’s not to love?

Amazon Echo – $139.99

Your home isn’t truly smart until you have an Echo at its center. Like the Kindle above, Amazon is bringing the price of its voice-controlled speaker down to $139.99 from the original price of $179.99. It’s highly intelligent, able to play your online music, answer questions about everyday things like the weather or traffic situation, and help get you an Uber in a snap.

Google Home – $99

This is a tech deal we absolutely love (and one we wish we waited for). Best Buy is going to offer Google’s recently launched Home for only $99. That’s a total steal for such as new product! As a voice-activated speaker, it’s a lot like Amazon’s Echo, but relies on the search giant’s knowledge graph to assist you in everyday tasks and control smart devices around your home.

Xiaomi Mi 5s Plus – $439.99

Online retailer GearBest is currently offering a fantastic price for the international version of Xiaomi’s Mi 5s Plus. If you’re not familiar with this model, you better listen up. At $439.99, you’re looking at a smartphone with specs and features that rival the very best flagship handsets in the world. We’re not kidding; it has the best processor currently available, a pair of high-resolution cameras on its back, and enough storage and memory to handle any workload.

EasyAcc 15000mAh Solar Power Bank – $28.99

This EasyAcc powerbank can be topped up using solar energy, and costs only $28.99 if you buy it from GearBest. On top of its environmentally friendly recharging method, it has a hefty capacity of 15000mAh — enough to charge a typical smartphone to full up to five times! You can even plug two devices to it at the same time, and there’s an LED flashlight built in for emergencies.

Meizu EP-51 – $23.99

With manufacturers killing off traditional headphone jacks bit by bit, it’s up to wireless technology to serve our tunes. The Meizu EP-51 is a perfect example of sporty Bluetooth earphones on the cheap. For only $23.99 after a 49 percent discount, it’s a great deal considering the features you get: water resistance with an anti-sweat layer, built-in volume controls and mic, and up to six hours of straight playtime.

Nomu S10 – $119.99

Nomu may not be a familiar name to most, but the brand has some cool gadgets in its portfolio. Take the $119.99 S10 smartphone, for instance. It’s rugged to the core, owning the highest ratings for water, dust, and freeze proofing, as well as military-grade shock resistance for long drops. It’s no slouch in performance, either, thanks to a large 5000mAh fast-charging battery, 4G LTE connectivity, and pure Android Marshmallow on board.

Xiaomi Notebook Air 13.3″ – $809.99

Xiaomi’s MacBook Air clone is experiencing a sweet 64 percent discount on GearBest.com right now. This means the 13.3-inch Notebook Air can be had for only $809.99, and we aren’t even talking about some low-end model. You get Intel’s well-balanced Intel Core i5 processor, a generous helping of 8GB for memory and 256GB for SSD storage, and a dedicated NVIDIA graphics card. Excuse us as we place our own order.

[irp posts=”7615″ name=”Best of 2016: Budget phones under $300″]

Buyer's Guide

2024 Samsung TV: Buyer’s Guide

Which 2024 Samsung TV is your GadgetMatch?

Published

April 21, 2024

GadgetMatch

With all the options available in the market, shopping for TVs can get overwhelming.

One brand Michael Josh recommends whenever someone asks? It’s none other than Samsung.

They have TVs for every price point and every feature a user might prioritize.

But which one is right for you?

Keep watching our 2024 Buyer’s Guide to find out the latest Samsung TV that best matches your needs.

Features

Why choose the MSI Claw?

Is it the gaming handheld for you?

Published

April 18, 2024

GadgetMatch

The MSI Claw is the latest gaming handheld from a major PC and laptop brand. The competition in this emerging gadget segment is tighter than ever. So, what is it about the MSI Claw that can scratch your gaming itch? Here’s a quick list.

Best grip in the game

One quick glance and it’s hard not to compare the claw with another popular gaming handheld. But a closer look and actually holding the thing will reveal that its grip easily feels better.

It has a slightly deeper groove that makes it easier to hold. So, MSI’s “Grip and Game” tagline isn’t all talk. Its design truly does provide one of the better feeling handles among its competition.

The overall design makes sure it’s made for extended gameplay sessions. The buttons are where you expect them to be. That includes the four mini buttons on the upper edges of the screen. These are the View, MSI Center M, Menu, and Quick Settings buttons.

In addition, the face buttons and d-pad all feel great. The face buttons, in particular, feel comparable to those of regular console controllers.

The rest of the buttons and triggers have a very satisfying tactile feel. It also uses Hall Effect technology to get rid of any stick drift issues.

Up top, you’ll find the power button, MicroSD Card slot, Thunderbolt 4 USB-C port, audio jack, and the volume buttons. These are intuitively placed and just makes sense given the overall design approach.

As cliché as it sounds, you’ll really think you got your money’s worth once you hold, touch, press, and grip the MSI Claw.

Dragon Vision

Now, MSI isn’t really calling it that but I thought it sounds pretty cool. A big part of the whole gaming experience is the display. Balancing resolution and frame rates is always tricky but the MSI Claw does it convincingly.

With this gaming handheld, you get a 7-inch display with a 120Hz refresh rate. Looks great on paper and it’s even better in real life. It’s the sweet spot in terms of both size and performance. There’s enough here to immerse you all while delivering a satisfying level of crisp and smoothness.

It’s comfortable to view whether you’re on the couch, on a desk table, or lying down getting a quick game in before you get some shut-eye.

Battery Life

At 53Whr, the MSI Claw has a 36% larger battery capacity than its contemporaries and promises 50% more play time.

MSI claims “elevated performance with extended endurance” using the Claw with faster charging capabilities.

These percentages are hard to measure in real life usage. What we can say for certain is that you get the expected performance and playtime typical of a handheld. That’s a little under two hours for graphically demanding titles, and close to four hours on less demanding ones.

The charging claim is legitimate. The MSI Claw juices up faster than most other handhelds, going from 20% to 100% in about a little over a K-Drama episode (roughly a little over an hour).

MSI Center M

Any self-respecting gaming handheld has its own software to make navigating the thing more manageable. While its direct competitors have an armoury crate and a space, MSI went with Center M.

The best part about MSI Center M is it puts your installed games front and center. Right when it launches, you get immediate access to the titles you have available on your machine.

MSI Afterburner is already the most commonly used app for taking a look at how your machine is performing while you play. That functionality is built-in to the MSI Claw. You can access it view the Quick Settings buttons.

Layout and functionality-wise, the MSI Center M is certainly one of the better Gaming Handheld softwares available right now.

Competitive Performance

A defining trait of the MSI Claw is that It’s the first gaming handheld to be powered by Intel Core Ultra. With it comes Intel XeSS tech. What it does is leverage AI upscaling to boost the fps of select titles.

As of launch, 50 notable games are supported. That number will certainly grow throughout the device’s lifespan. Some of the titles include Hi-Fi Rush, Dying Light 2, Forza Horizon 5, Call of Duty Warzone 2.0, Returnal, and many, many more.

Naturally, results will vary depending on the game mode you’re using. But in general, AAA games get anywhere between 10% to 45% better frame rate performance with Intel XeSS.

For our part we played TEKKEN 8 and the recently launched Horizon Forbidden West. Both graphically demanding games played relatively well on the MSI Claw. Frame rate performance on TEKKEN 8 is crucial and we got a relatively consistent fps, never dropping below 40.

Horizon Forbidden West is a much more graphically demanding game. We were able to run it in Medium Settings and while it doesn’t look as incredible, it still played relatively well with a frame rate surprising for a gaming handheld.

Extras

MSI made sure that if you wanted to, you could get some extra stuff with the MSI Claw. Its separately sold accessory set includes the Claw Travel Case, Nest Docking Station, Claw Lanyard, and Claw Keychain.

On paper, the MSI Claw lists its ergonomic design, AI Engine, and App Player as distinct advantages over its competition.

Whether it’s the Gaming Handheld that matches your needs is still ultimately up to you. If you have the opportunity to test drive the device, we suggest you do so. That might just solidify your purchase decision.