News

Huawei launches GENTLE MONSTER Eyewear II

With updated smart functions

Published

October 20, 2020

Kenrick Buduan

Last year, Huawei showcased a one-of-a-kind smart eyeglasses designed for fashion-conscious consumers, the GENTLE MONSTER Eyewear. Now, the company is back at it again with a second-gen version of the eyeglasses, now featuring a much-streamlined design and smarter functions.

A more comfortable and immersive wearing experience

The temples of GENTLE MONSTER Eyewear II is made of plastic titanium for lower density and lighter weight. This should guarantee a more comfortable wearing experience for the user. Meanwhile, Huawei constructed the temple hinges out of titanium elastic to increase the eyewear’s holding strength.

The eyewear also comes with a 20-degree curved earpiece angle, which is a huge improvement from its predecessor’s 12-degree angle.

: Myma Model

: Havana Model

Users will also feel a noticeable difference in the sound quality of the eyewear. The large-amplitude loudspeaker inside is bigger and slimmer. Such improvements translate to a much-wider soundstage, allowing for an immersive experience than ever before.

Like before, the smart eyewear still includes a unique acoustic design that adapts to the user and their environment. Two semi-open speakers on both sides of the temples transmit sound directly through a directional chamber, reducing leakage and providing a stereo-like listening experience. To further reduce sound leakage, the temple features a leakage hole design that offset sound waves.

The eyewear also has an adaptive volume technology that can lower or raise the speaker volume accordingly depending on the surrounding noise.

Smarter eyewear features

The Gentle Monster Eyewear II also features updated gesture controls. Pairing the eyewear is much simpler now, with users only needing to pinch the left temple to start the process. Meanwhile, double-tapping on the left temple activates the eyewear’s voice assistant.

Swipe gestures are also included in the eyewear. A few swipes on the temples either play the next/previous song or raises/lower the eyewear’s volume.

The eyewear also intelligently detects its wear status. For instance, it automatically pauses any playing music when a user takes it off. It also displays a battery status window on the companion smartphone if a user puts it on after a long period of inactivity. Tapping on the window opens the eyewear’s settings so users can check and tweak it further. Furthermore, the eyewear also greets the user when they put it on the first time each day.

Huawei rates the GENTLE MONSTER Eyewear II for five hours of continuous music playback. The eyewear improved upon its predecessor by bundling a new NFC wireless charging technology allowing quick and hassle-free charging anytime, anywhere.

Pricing and availability

The eyewear now retails in Singapore for SG$ 638 in select Huawei concept stores. This price applies to both the Myma and Havana model. Buyers can also purchase the eyewear at authorized resellers like Best Denki, Challenger & Hachi.tech, COURTS, Harvey Norman, as well as online stores such as Lazada and Shopee.

News

TCL CSOT Unveils ‘APEX Pixel’ innovations at SID Display Week 2026

Breakthroughs in display technologies

Published

May 7, 2026

GadgetMatch

Graphics by Vincenz Lee | GadgetMatch

Pushing the boundaries of display physics, TCL CSOT has officially launched its APEX Pixel framework at SID Display Week 2026.

This unified innovation path targets the microscopic architecture of pixels across FMM OLED, Inkjet-printed (IJP) OLED, and LCD panels to redefine clarity, power efficiency, and color volume.

The Super Pixel revolution

The highlight of the showcase is the Super Pixel technology for mobile FMM OLEDs.

By increasing sub-pixel density by roughly 1.8%, TCL CSOT has achieved sharpness comparable to WQHD standards while slashing power consumption by 25%.

Key mobile prototypes on display include:

6.9-inch Ultra-Clarity Display: Features a 2608×1200 resolution with a 0.5mm top bezel
165Hz High-Refresh Panel: Utilizes a Real RGB layout to boost motion smoothness by 40% over standard 120Hz screens
Ultra-Low Power 8T LTPO: A 420PPI powerhouse that reduces SoC power draw by a quarter.

IJP OLED and the Tri-Fold Future

TCL CSOT continues to lead the transition toward Inkjet-printed (IJP) OLED.

By utilizing the world’s first 8.6-generation IJP line, the company has debuted a 28-inch Foldable and Portable IJP OLED Monitor.

This “Real Stripe” RGB display features a tri-fold design that expands from a 16-inch footprint to a 28-inch workspace.

IJP OLED allows for larger light-emitting areas, occupying 50% to 60% of the pixel. This leads to a significantly enhanced luminous efficiency compared to traditional evaporation methods.

RGBC: The New Standard for LCD

For large-scale cinema experiences, TCL CSOT introduced RGBC Four-Color Technology.

By adding a Cyan sub-pixel to the traditional RGB matrix, the 85-inch WHVA Ultra LCD TV achieves a staggering 131% of the BT.2020 color gamut.

This hardware-level shift allows for more saturated hues and finer resolution rendering that traditional three-color pixels cannot replicate.

Through APEX Pixel, TCL CSOT is no longer just chasing size, but perfecting the very atoms of the digital image.

News

iPhone 17 is the best-selling phone of 2026 so far

Meanwhile, the Galaxy S26 series didn’t make the top ten list.

Published

May 7, 2026

Luigi Leonardo

With more than a quarter of the year done and dusted, it’s time to figure out which smartphone has taken the early lead in the charts. According to the numbers, it can’t get any clearer. The iPhone 17 is currently dominating the charts.

According to Counterpoint Research, the bestselling smartphone in the world as of the first quarter is the base iPhone 17. The model took 6 percent of the global share in unit sales. Meanwhile, the iPhone 17 Pro Max and Pro took the second and third spots, respectively. Only a bit surprisingly, Apple rounded out its quarter with the iPhone 16 taking the number 6 slot.

The stranger thing is Samsung’s presence on this list. The South Korean brand took five spots on the top 10 list. However, none of them are of the Galaxy S26 series. All of them are from the Galaxy A series: in order, Galaxy A07 4G, A17 5G, A56, A36, and A17 4G. (The Galaxy S26 series narrowly missed the top 10.)

That makes nine. The final spot was taken by the Xiaomi Redmi A5.

Going only by the last two paragraphs, you’ll likely assume that the midrange market is rightfully dominating the charts in the months following the Christmas season. However, the iPhone 17’s dominance confirms that Apple has not lost its stride.

Plus, with the iPhone 17e only just having launched, Apple might continue its run well into 2026.

Apps

Google, on Android adopting Liquid Glass: “Not happening!”

Just in case you were wondering.

Published

May 7, 2026

Luigi Leonardo

Google is slightly moving away from Material Design. Last week, a set of icon changes saw Android adding splashes of gradients to its formerly flat app icons. To poke fun at Android’s move away from flat designs, a user on X created a mockup of Android running Apple’s Liquid Design. Google, however, had a response ready in the chamber.

On X, @Micetor made a mockup of Android, specifically on the upcoming Pixel 11, using Apple’s latest Liquid Design aesthetics. It looked much like what an iPhone does except with Google’s icons and fonts.

Clearly, Google does not need to reply to any unsubstantiated mockups about its ecosystem. But they still did.

Sameer Samat, Google’s head for the Android ecosystem, personally replied to the mockup with a simple rebuttal: “Not happening!”

Not happening! Y'all are wild. 😂

— Sameer Samat (@ssamat) May 5, 2026

Despite using the design language for over a decade, Google does not want to drop Material Design altogether. Though the new gradients have revitalized the design language somewhat, the essence of flat design is still there.

Apple, on the other hand, wants a return to 3D. Liquid Design mimics the transparent aesthetics of Windows Vista. Though a bunch of users have found the design polarizing, other brands have started copying the design for themselves, incorporating elements on Liquid Design on their interfaces.

Whatever Google is doing, it’s coming in due time. The company is hosting its annual Google I/O on May 12 to showcase new developments coming to the Android ecosystem, including its design.