News

OnePlus 8T launches, is ‘Ultra Fast and Ultra Smooth’

Speedy charging and buttery-smooth screen

Published

October 14, 2020

Rodneil Quiteles

OnePlus has this almost cult-like following (in the best way possible). That community came together because they’re into devices that offer premium performance for less. The OnePlus 8T is a flagship through and through and while it’s certainly pricier than from when OnePlus started, it does feel more like “OnePlus” versus their recent flagship offerings.

Made official today after appearing in numerous leaks, the OnePlus 8T’s focus is a speedy and smooth experience.

Ultra Fast

How fast can your phone juice up? Probably pretty fast, but it’s not “a day’s power in 15 minutes” fast. That’s the promise of the Warp Charge 65. The 65W is promising lasting power for less than the duration of an anime episode.

It also uses twin-charging tech so you can completely fill-up the 4500mAh battery in only 39 minutes. Astonishing.

Ultra Smooth

Our time together with our smartphones is mostly spent interacting with the display. So it’s only right that it feels smooth, fast, and responsive. Apart, of course, from being absolutely a joy to behold — all 6.55-inches of it.

That display is 120Hz Fluid AMOLED. If you’ve been keeping up with the tech trends you’d know what this entails — smooth, fast, and responsive. It also earned an A+ rating from DisplayMate.

Ultra Power

They didn’t really call it Ultra in the keynote but we’re trying to stay consistent here. Inside the OnePlus 8T is the Qualcomm Snapdragon 865 5G SoC.

That’s the best that Qualcomm has to offer at the moment. It’s also present in all the major Android flagships that have come out of the 2nd half of 2020… if you’re still able to keep track of the dates, that is.

That means you’re getting the same chip that promises a superior gaming experience, an intuitive AI, and dual-mode NSA + SA 5G and Wi-Fi 6 support for faster, more reliable data speeds.

Ul… Okay Cameras

The quad-camera system that sits on the upper-left back side of the device has a lot more in common with midrangers than flagships today.

The main camera is 48MP and is flanked by a 16MP Ultra Wide Angle camera, a 5MP macro lens, and a 2MP monochrome camera. Up front is a 16MP selfie shooter.

It’s a tad uninspiring on paper but of course we’ll have to take our own samples to judge for ourselves.

Steady Design

OnePlus phones look stylish and understated. The same is true for the OnePlus 8T. It’s available in two colors: Aquamarine Green and Lunar Silver.

The Aquamarine Green evokes the look of a glossy glass back without being an extreme fingerprint magnet. The Lunar Silver, meanwhile, has a matte-frosted finish.

A new UI

ONE UI… err… OxygenOS 11 is the biggest redesign yet and it’s been divisive. The changes might feel jarring to long-time fans of the vanilla flavor infused in the overall breathability of the OxygenOS.

It now more closely resembles ONE UI, which isn’t exactly a bad thing now with the strides that Samsung has made on its own Android skin.

The important things to take note of are that this is the first non-pixel phone to get Android 11 straight out of the box, and the overall smooth and free-flowing feeling of the OxygenOS of old will be retained.

OnePlus Buds Z

Also launched during the event is the OnePlus Buds Z — another TWS offering from OnePlus. They’re equipped with 10mm dynamic drivers all to deliver a more than satisfactory sound.

It claims to provide up to 20 hours of playback time with a 10-minute top-up lending you three hours of untethered listening.

The OnePlus Buds Z comes on white and has a polished seashell pattern. There are three silicone sizes for the eartips so you can find the right fit. It’s also IP55 rated which means it can withstand sweat so you can use it for your workout sessions.

Pricing and availability

OnePlus 8T

Aquamarine Green with 8GB RAM and 128GB ROM is priced at SG$ 899.

Lunar Silver with 12GB RAM and 256GB ROM, and is priced at SG$ 1,099.

The phone will be available for exclusive pre-order on Lazada from October 17 to 23. 2020. Customers will receive a OnePlus 8T Bumper case (worth SG$ 39.90) through the pre-order.

The phone will be available across Singapore starting October 24 2020, at OnePlus Lazada and Shopee online flagship store.

OnePlus Buds Z

The OnePlus Buds Z comes in White and is priced at S$99. It will be available starting November 2020.

News

Smart showcases cloud gaming platform in partnership with Blacknut

Play over 1,000 titles straight on your smartphones

Published

August 14, 2026

GadgetMatch

Philippines mobile service provider Smart showcased the country’s first cloud gaming platform in partnership with Blacknut at the recent Philippine GameDev Expo (PGDX) 2026.

As the event’s main presenter, Smart highlighted its collaboration with the cloud gaming subscription service. Together with its value-packed Power All offers, the network provider is highlighting what the future of gaming can look like.

Smart and TNT subscribers can conveniently access Blacknut Cloud Gaming through a dedicated site. Here, they can play more than 1,000 premium console and PC-quality games on their smartphones.

That’s without the need for expensive gaming hardware or lengthy downloads. Weekly subscriptions start at just PhP 145 and can be conveniently charged to prepaid load following a simple OTP verification process.

To make the experience better, Smart also has Power All offers, which provide generous open-access data for today’s digital lifestyles. There’s a package for cloud and mobile gaming, streaming, content sharing, and productivity.

Gaming

Ghost of Yotei gets a story expansion in October

The Complete Edition comes with the expansion and a roguelike mode.

Published

August 13, 2026

Luigi Leonardo

Ghost of Yotei is a classic RPG experience set in the same universe as its predecessor, Ghost of Tsushima. In my opinion, Atsu’s journey of revenge feels a lot more fun than Jin’s battle to save his homeland. If you’re in the same boat, Ghost of Yotei is coming back on October 1 with brand-new content.

Without delving too much into spoiler territory, Ghost of Yotei has a conclusive ending. Rather than shoehorning a forced epilogue, Echoes of Sekigahara, the title of the upcoming story expansion, explores Atsu’s past.

As with Tsushima’s expansion, Echoes of Sekigahara features a new map with new enemies, weapons, and collectibles. It will be set in two different time periods.

Besides the story expansion, the upcoming update also has a new mode called Most Wanted, which Sucker Punch Production describes as their “spin on a roguelike.” The mode explores Atsu’s experience as a headhunter, feeding her with bounties and earnable perks.

The two new content expansions will come with in the upcoming Ghost of Yotei Complete Edition. The new edition, coming on October 1, will also come with the co-op Legends mode. It also has a few perks and customization options. The edition will sell for US$ 70.

If you already have the base edition, you can grab an upgrade for only US$ 15. If you don’t want to pay for the upgrade, the game is still getting a few minor tweaks.

News

HONOR isn’t taking the Robot Phone global — yet

The hardware is ready. The AI isn’t.

Published

August 13, 2026

Rodneil Quiteles

The HONOR Robot Phone may have officially launched, but don’t expect this version to immediately make its way to global markets.

HONOR told media in Shenzhen that it currently has no plans to bring the current Robot Phone outside China. The main hurdle isn’t the hardware. It’s the phone’s AI experience, which is currently optimized for the Chinese market.

HONOR believes a future generation of the Robot Phone would be better positioned for a true global rollout once its AI experience is ready for markets outside China.

That doesn’t mean HONOR is abandoning the idea. Quite the opposite.

More than a phone with a moving camera

The Robot Phone is HONOR’s attempt to introduce a new idea to the smartphone market. It combines a smartphone with a 4DoF mechanical gimbal, allowing its camera to physically move.

Its AI features take that concept further. YOYO Robot Mode can use voice commands, gestures, and AI tracking to control the camera. It can also automatically pan and tilt to keep a person in frame during vlogs, livestreams, and video calls.

The phone also brings selected elements of ARRI Image Science and professional cinema workflows to its camera system. Its 200MP gimbal main camera supports 10-bit ARRI LogC3 recording, while ARRI Wide Gamut 3 and ARRI Looks give creators more control over their footage.

But HONOR isn’t treating the Robot Phone primarily as a volume-driving product.

The company says its bigger goal is to introduce a new concept to the smartphone market and see what kind of effect it can have.

That makes the Robot Phone an interesting experiment for HONOR. The hardware is already here. The company now wants to learn what happens when a smartphone can physically move, respond to its surroundings, and use AI to help operate itself.

For now, though, China is where that experiment begins.