First Look

realme 9 Pro Unboxing and First Impressions

A real pro?

Published

March 9, 2022

Apple Gamboa

realme redefines the midranger again this year with their release of their camera-focused powerful duo — realme 9 Pro and realme 9 Pro+.

Now, let’s take the realme 9 Pro out of the box and check out what they have in store for us.

The phone comes in realme’s signature minimalist yellow box with just their branding.

Lifting the lid, you’ll be greeted with a slim yellow box welcoming you to the realme family.

This contains the jelly case that comes with it, SIM ejector tool and manuals.

Removing those from the box, you’ll be greeted by the phone.

And underneath it, you’ll see the rest of the accessories such as the 33W Dart Charger and USB-C Cable.

Out of the box, you’ll see the unit that we got came in the Aurora Green varian. It looks pretty dazzling.

At its left side, you’ll find the volume rockers.

While on the right, you can find the power button that also doubles as a fingerprint scanner.

Then at the bottom, you’ll find the 3.5mm audio jack even if there weren’t any earphones that came with the phone. You’ll also find the USB-C port and speaker grille beside it.

The realme 9 Pro is powered up with a 5000mAh battery and a Qualcomm Snapdragon 695 processor with 8GB of RAM + 5GB Dynamic RAM along with 128GB of internal storage.

With this chipset, the realme 9 Pro is a 5G capable smartphone that delivers an ultra-fast all around performance.

First Impressions

Out of the box, the first thing you’ll notice is its pretty design. Especially the back part where you can see a sparkling streak of light that resembles photos of how outer space looks like. Without touching it, it looks like it’s made of glass but it’s actually made of plastic.

Bezels are pretty thin for this phone’s 6.6-inch FHD+ LCD Display except for the bottom bezels that’s a bit thicker.

I tried browsing through webpages for a quick test run and I quickly noticed how ultra smooth the experience is thanks to its 120Hz refresh rate. With its adaptive technology, every swipe and scroll feels more instant and responsive.

Now onto its cameras. The phone packs a 64MP Nightscape Camera, an 8MP 119° Super-wide Lens, a 2MP Macro Lens and a 16MP Selfie Camera.

Camera samples

I took the phone out for a photowalk and enjoyed it thoroughly. The realme 9 Pro produced really amazing shots, especially with its Street Photography Mode and its filters. I’m actually thrilled at how I can maximize the camera’s capabilities for my content creation.

With its early indications, I can say that this is a pretty badass midranger. To know more about the features of the realme 9 Pro and realme 9 Pro+, watch out for our review. Find out whether these power duo can really #CaptureTheLight.

Also, don’t forget to tune in to the realme livestream launch on March 15, 2022 at 6PM on realme’s official Facebook page.

Accessories

Apple Vision Pro First Impressions

Plus a dedicated YouTubers’ React segment!

Published

June 7, 2023

GadgetMatch

The WWDC 2023 Keynote was packed with incredible new updates to iOS, iPadOS, tvOS, watchOS, and macOS.

Apple announced new hardware including a 15-inch MacBook Air and M2 Max/Ultra-powered Mac Studio and Mac Pro.

But the most ambitious product they’ve ever created? The Apple Vision Pro.

Apple is clear that this isn’t just an AR Glasses. The Vision Pro is the company’s “first spatial computer”.

But how does it even look and feel IRL?

This is our first impressions of the new Apple Vision Pro — plus our YouTuber friends’ reactions.

First Look

Vibe Check: realme 10 Pro 5G Coca-Cola Edition

Refreshing special edition smartphone!

Published

April 12, 2023

MJ Jucutan

When realme announced its partnership with Coca-Cola® for a special edition smartphone, it was quite amusing but not surprising.

As a brand, realme has always showcased youthful energy, promoting fun and spontaneity through its campaigns and experiences. Coca-Cola®shares the same virtue of fun — celebrating friendship and happiness through a carbonated drink.

When we got our hands on the realme 10 Pro 5G Coca-Cola® edition, we were ecstatic at the sight of a possible special edition smartphone done right.

Unboxing

Opening the box, there’s a Coca-Cola® bottle outline that you can peel to get the papers you’ll need…

…or you can just open it from the top side.

Inside, you can find cool, branded DIY stickers.

There are also a limited number card and a custom-made SIM ejector tool resembling a bottle cap.

Underneath, you can find the smartphone’s essentials.

There’s the 33W SuperVOOC adapter…

…and a USB-C to USB-A cable.

It comes with a transparent case so you can see the Coca-Cola® design clearly.

P.S. You can plaster the jelly case with the DIY stickers included in the box.

In true Coca-Cola® fashion

Everything from the box up to the smartphone, the Coca-Cola® branding stood out as a refreshing take on special edition smartphones. The collaboration is somewhat reminiscent of partnerships between tech brands and high fashion.

For most people, the design can be a bit tacky. But I know all too well that there are people who are true Coca-Cola® fans, willing to parade their special edition smartphone. (My best friend is one!)

Moreover, the units got sold out upon launching on realme’s official channels. For that to happen, I knew right away they did something right.

Coca-Cola® inside and out

Most special edition smartphones don’t care about the user interface and experience after plastering their designs on the phone’s back panel and the box.

The realme 10 Pro 5G Coca-Cola® Edition is a different breed. Its lock screen comes with a dynamic soda fizz bubble effect, and the skin for realme UI follows a retro red and black palette, sticking to the Coca-Cola® branding.

It also comes with exclusive 80s cola filters, and to make it even more refreshing, the camera shutter mimics the popping sound of a freshly-opened bottle of Coke® when taking photos.

Furthermore, you can customize the ringtone and notification sounds using nostalgic Coca-Cola® jingles.

Just like the realme 10 Pro 5G

It isn’t just bells and whistles for this smartphone. After all, it’s still the realme 10 Pro 5G housing a Snapdragon 695 5G chipset, a 5000mAh battery, and 256GB of internal storage.

If you haven’t read our review (which I suggest you should), take the time to peruse it and see why this smartphone is an ultra-reliable phone with numerous enhancements.

READ: realme 10 Pro 5G review: Putting ‘boundless’ in mid-range phones

But if you don’t have the luxury of time… in a nutshell, the realme 10 Pro 5G is a worthy midrange pickup. It’s got a display worth looking at, next-level specs that let you play and multitask, magical cameras for a smartphone with an affordable price point, and a smooth AF performance.

Price and availability

The realme 10 Pro 5G Coca-Cola® Edition retails for PhP 18,499 via Shopee.

On the other hand, the realme 10 Pro 5G (8GB+256GB) retails for PhP 16,999. Meanwhile, the realme 10 Pro+ 5G starts at PhP 19,999 for the 8GB+128GB variant and PhP 24,999 for the 12GB+256GB variant.

The smartphones are available in stores and in realme’s official online channels.

First Look

Vibe Check: Huawei P60 Pro

Another smartphone photography champ?

Published

April 12, 2023

Rodneil Quiteles

The Huawei P60 Series launched in China some time late March 2023. The company flew GadgetMatch along with other members of the media to Shenzen, China and to experience the P60 Pro. Here’s our initial impressions after spending roughly around 24 hours with it.

That camera module is distinct

Whether you like how it looks or not, one thing you can say for sure about the camera module on the Huawei P60 Pro is that it’s unique. There’s literally nothing else in the market that looks like it.

Housed in that module is the crowning feature of the P60 Pro — its full set of cameras. Here are the numbers:

48MP main (wide) camera with a Dual Variable aperture system
13MP f/2.2 ultra-wide camera
48MP f/2.1 telephoto lens with 3.5x optical zoom

The Dual Variable aperture system lets users switch between f/1.4-4.0. Different focal lengths for different shooting scenarios. Huawei is confident that this, along with their robust AI, will produce the smartphone images to date.

Sample photos

So, what kind of images does the P60 Pro produce? Here are a few shots we took over the past 24 hours.

Day time, through hotel window

Day time, outdoors

Portrait and faces

Day time indoors, cafe

Ddalgi

Food

10x Zoom

1x and 10x Zoom

Late afternoon, outdoors

Night time, through hotel window

Bonus: Black Swan

Per usual, the photos above were taken in auto mode and were only resized for faster loading. The colors are consistent with what you see in real life with just the right amount of oomph. There’s a fair amount of detail retained whether you’re shooting with the main wide camera or up to 10x Zoom.

We’ll have more chances to discuss the image outputs and overall photography experience in future articles. For now, enjoy the quick snaps above.

Black and white

The Huawei P60 Pro comes in two colors: Black and white. The black one has a feathered glass texture while the white one is made with Rococo Pearl. Fun fact: Huawei says there are no two Rococo Pearl variants that will look exactly alike because of how it’s made.

The phone also has what the company is calling a quad-curve design. This means edges of the phone from both front and back curves to the side. In our experience, this helps make the phone easier to hold.

Watch this quick video.

The curved display is 6.67″ and has a Full HD+ resolution and based on the LTPO OLED technology. Refresh rate is a dynamic 1~120Hz with support for DCI-P3 wide color gamut plus 1.07 Billion Colors. It’s also TÜV Rheinland certified. It’s also protected by the tough Kunlun Glass. The punch-hole cutout houses a 13MP f/2.4 ultra-wide angle (UWA) front camera.

More specs

Inside the P60 Pro are a flagship-grade Snapdragon 8+ Gen 1 chipset and Adreno 730. Storage goes up to 1TB.

It has a Silicon-Carbon battery with a capacity of 5100mAh. Still, it has the 88W Huawei SuperCharge capability of its Pro sibling. The power brick also has a cool dual-port design. This means whether you have a USB-A to USB-C or USB-C to USB-C cable, you’ll be able to use it. Just not at the same time.