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Huawei P20 Review

Overview

Stunning looks, great performance and a superb camera: The Huawei P20 presents itself in the test as a true high-end smartphone without serious weaknesses. Although it clearly misses the top 10 at the time of testing, it is an alternative within the premium class to the significantly more expensive P20 Pro at a reasonable price.

Pros

Butter-soft operability
Very good camera quality
Strong display quality
Pretty fancy impression

Cons

Memory card slot missing
3.5 mm jack socket missing
No memory variants

Performance & Display

The Huawei P20 is the little brother of the P20 Pro, costs about 250 Euro less at the time of the test (for price comparison) and is one corner smaller in terms of the case. In terms of performance, however, Huawai’s high-end newcomers from 2018 take little notice. Inside the P20, the Kirin 970 chipset from HiSilicon is in service. The eight CPU cores, four of which are designed for performance and four for power-saving efficiency, clock at 2.4 GHz and are accompanied by a full 4 GB RAM and a Mali-G72-GPU with twelve processor cores. The high performance potential, together with the slim EMUI interface based on Android 8.1, ensures a butter-soft operation without any jerks or annoyances.

The mass memory is quite lavish at 128 GByte, but cannot be expanded using a memory card. Furthermore, Huawei does not offer any memory variants. So if you need more space, for example for videos, photo archives or offline music, you’ll have to retrofit awkwardly via external storage media or cloud service. Since the Huawei P20 has a USB Type C connector instead of micro-USB, the now relatively inexpensive sticks are not a suitable option.

The 5.8-inch display covers almost the entire front. Only the “Notch”, already known from the iPhone X, breaks through the display design and leaves room for the front camera, speakers and sensors. Normally, information about the mobile network, WLAN and other notifications are displayed to the left and right of it. If you want, you can also have black bars loaded into it to create a kind of artificial frame.

The technical data and measured values of the IPS-LCD are strong. With a resolution of 1,080 x 2,244 pixels, the device achieves a pixel density of 429 ppi (pixels per inch). The display brightness (without ambient light) of 445 candelas per square metre is good, but remains visible below the top values achieved by the iPhone X and the iPhone 8 Plus, for example. Furthermore, the Huawei P20 has no discernible weaknesses in our measurement results, which is why we give the display a very good average rating at the time of testing.

Camera & Mobility

Apart from more or less big differences in equipment or display, the smartphone camera on the back has become one of the most important differentiating criteria in the smooth Android world – especially if you look at the high-end faction. The P20 features a dual camera on the back, consisting of a combination of a 12-megapixel RGB sensor and a 20-megapixel monochrome sensor. Theoretically, images with 20 megapixels at the top are possible, but very good lighting conditions are necessary for good image quality. Huawei therefore sets the default setting to 12 megapixels. Our test recordings are always made with the manufacturer’s default settings and not with the maximum possible resolution. A double LED flash provides sufficient artificial light if necessary. In camcorder mode, the P20 records videos at a maximum 4K resolution. The setup is rounded off by a front camera with a full 24 megapixel maximum resolution. Our experts from the CHIP test laboratory give the photos they took a very good rating.

At the time of this test report, the P20 “only” received a good overall rating in the battery rating, but in relation to the other models tested in the smartphone leader list. The results obtained are very practical in themselves. At 3,500 mAh, the capacity of the battery, which cannot easily be replaced, is on average that of the direct Android competition. Our measurements yield a very respectable 10 hours running time in an online scenario, whereby we reload a specially developed test page including integrated video every 90 seconds. This allows us to create a realistic and up-to-date websurf scenario on a smartphone. It is also good that Huawei delivers the P20 with a quick charging power supply and the complete charging time of the battery is therefore a tolerable 2 hours. Since the P20 weighs only 163 grams and is laudably slim at 9.1 millimeters, the mobility of this model is generally at a high level.

Samsung / Smartphones

Samsung Galaxy S9 Review

The Galaxy S9 cuts an excellent figure in this review, but it is not without weaknesses. Like its predecessor, it looks great, and despite its large display, it fits neatly in the hand. The image quality is beyond any doubt, the performance is strong and the photo quality is also excellent. But we would have liked a better detailed display in twilight and above all a longer battery life.

Overview

Pros

Class display & top performance
Very good camera
Great equipment

Cons

Battery life is a bit disappointing
Twilight photos are too soft

Samsung Galaxy S9: What’s new?

With the Galaxy S8, Samsung has heralded a small revolution. The huge but handy 18:9 display, the cool looking curved design, the side-to-side screen, the top performance and features – all these strengths convinced many fans. And Samsung is building on all these strengths with the new Galaxy S9 and the Galaxy S9 Plus, as our test shows. Or to put it another way: The Galaxy S9 looks like its predecessor. Only the fingerprint scanner moves under the camera, where it is easier to reach than the one placed next to the camera of the previous year’s model. In addition, the S9 is just under one millimeter shorter with the same image area.

Great display

The screen is a feast for the eyes again. With a diagonal of 5.8 inches and a resolution of up to 2,960 x 1,440 pixels, it is not only large and sharp, AMOLED-typical colors and contrasts also look strong. If you prefer a more subtle color display, you can change this in the display settings of Galaxy S9. By the way, the resolution can also be switched there, because by default the screen displays 2,220 x 1,080 pixels. Differences apart from VR-glasses can hardly be seen with the naked eye.

The maximum brightness is excellent: When very bright light falls on the light sensor, the screen in our test pattern shines around 743 candelas per square meter bright – so it can also be easily read outdoors. Anyone who turns up the volume manually indoors to make videos and photos look better will still get a very good 418 cd/m².

High performance, satisfactory battery life

The processor performance is also strong, as Samsung uses its latest and strongest Exynos 9810 chip. Its integrated modem achieves data rates of up to 1.2 gigabits per second in the LTE network, for example, as soon as the English networks support this speed. In the test, the Galaxy S9 always reacted very quickly, but it didn’t feel significantly faster than the S8 or another top device from 2017, as a very large PDF opened the Galaxy S9 a few seconds faster than its predecessor. Android 8 runs on the device under Samsung’s user interface. Regular updates are planned for two to three years.

But we are a little disappointed with the battery life of the Galaxy S9: In our test it was “only” 8:42 hours – that’s okay, but not really good. The Galaxy S8 runs one hour longer, the Huawei Mate 10 Pro even comes up to almost 12 hours. For our online runtime test, we dim the brightness to a pleasant 200 cd/m² for indoor use and let the smartphone load videos and websites from the LTE network; a script also simulates scrolling and typing inputs. We think this is a practical test.

We repeated the test three times, the runtime variations were small. Even in a direct comparison between the Galaxy S9 and the S8, the predecessor ran almost an hour longer. Although most users will get through the day without any problems, we would have liked to have seen more in view of the fact that batteries effectively lose capacity over time. Loading time is good. It took 2:08 hours to fully charge the 3,000 mAh battery. Thanks to quick charging technology, a particularly large amount of power flows into the battery in the first thirty minutes.

Very good photo quality, but…

The Galaxy S9 has a very good camera and takes great photos with 12 megapixel resolution. In good lighting conditions we like the pictures very much. The detail display is great, colors tend to be warm, but not unnatural. Even in daylight, however, it is noticeable that some of the light sources in the image produce overradiation effects: the image area around a lamp or the sun is then too brightly lit. Pixel 2 (XL) solves this better in comparison.

Currently unique is the variable aperture size, which promises the best possible results in both bright and dim light. When it is bright, the Galaxy S9 (and the Galaxy S9 Plus) selects a rather small f/2.4 aperture that allows a good depth of field. In twilight (less than 100 lux), the system enlarges the aperture to f/1.5 to absorb more light. The latter promises better detail, lower noise and more beautiful photos in these situations.

In our twilight test, however, both the HTC U11 and Pixel 2 (XL) perform better because they use less aggressive filters to eliminate image noise and therefore show more image details, such as hair, yarn or the grain of a wooden table. The Galaxy S9, on the other hand, can achieve a lot even in very low light and shows very little noise – but some of the photos seem a bit too smooth. All in all, the camera is great despite this criticism. Compared to the Plus model, you do not need a second lens for an “optical” double zoom and improved portrait mode with variable bokeh effect.

High-speed camera for super slow motion

We also had fun in the test with the super slow motion function. The Galaxy S9 records events in HD resolution at a speed of 960 frames per second – i.e. extremely fast – but unfortunately only for about 0.2 seconds (Samsung does not reveal the exact number, it should be 184 milliseconds). The system then plays back this recording in just under 6 seconds with a 32-fold slowdown – and that is quite respectable. With good light, cool and impressive super slow motion is always possible. In the evening and at night, however, there is no need to use this function, as the exposure time per image is extremely short, so you can hardly see anything.

Sony started with this super slow motion technology with the Sony Xperia XZ Premium. However, Samsung has extended the technology with a useful automatic mode, which starts the recording if desired, if movements are to be seen in a definable image area. There is also a normal slow motion mode in which you can record actions at 240 frames per second in full HD resolution for much longer. Unfortunately, Samsung hid it well. To unlock it, call up the camera app and then go to “Edit Camera Modes | Main Camera | Slow Motion” via the control dial. It can then be called up in the camera app next to the other modes.

If you like, you can also create a cartoon avatar of yourself that reacts to facial movements. This reminds us of Apple’s Animojis on iPhone X, but didn’t really convince us.

Galaxy S9 duos with excellent equipment

The equipment of the Galaxy S9 is excellent, especially in the duo version tested by us. Besides a fast working fingerprint scanner there is also face and iris recognition. The smartphone is waterproof according to IP-Norm 68, can be charged wirelessly, has a headphone jack, fast USB 3.1 type C, also fast AC-WLAN and Bluetooth 5.0. 49 gigabytes of the nominal 64 GByte memory are free. We think that 128 GB of memory could have been in it at the high selling price. As with the predecessor, the storage space can be conveniently expanded via a micro SD card.

The Duos model, which can be found mainly in free trade, also has a hybrid slot that optionally accepts a second SIM card, so that users can be reached at the same time, for example at home and at work, under two phone numbers on one device. On the secondary SIM card, however, the Galaxy S9 does not support LTE and therefore no voice-over LTE with improved sound quality – this is only possible on the main SIM.

All in all, we really like the Galaxy S9, but with its introductory price of 850 Euros, there are not enough improvements to justify the additional price of currently 300 Euros (as of March 2018) compared to the Galaxy S8. Enthusiasts who don’t look so much at their wallets will undoubtedly get an excellent smartphone.

Very good photo quality, but…

High-speed camera for super slow motion

If you like, you can also create a cartoon avatar of yourself that reacts to facial movements. This reminds us of Apple’s Animojis on iPhone X, but didn’t really convince us.

Galaxy S9 duos with excellent equipment

Apps / Smartphones / Tablets

A Guide to Mobile Casino Apps

The proportion of Internet users who go online with a tablet or smartphone is already very high and will continue to increase. The method of playing has also changed a lot with the apps and this also applies to online casino games. Since the already established download software and instant games do not work on mobile devices, we first had to develop our own apps. But the casinos started relatively late and so the mobile game selection doesn’t reach the same extent as on the PC – but which mobile casino has the best offer so far?

Overall, NetBet has the best mobile casino. The game selection is not the largest, but still above average with over 200 mobile games. You can also play the million jackpots of all major providers, including the Age of the Gods jackpots. The web application for the browser is suitable for all common operating systems.

Some brands have a web application for the browser and downloadable programs for Android and iPhone/iPad, some still have very limited game offerings and others have no live dealer games. Gambling is the most important, but not the only criterion for a good casino app.

That’s what a good mobile casino is all about!

When comparing mobile casino games, the number of games comes first, but there are other criteria to consider. In the following I would therefore like to take a look at the operation and clarity, the advantages and disadvantages of the web version and download apps as well as the availability of play money and real money games.

Once you’ve check out our guide below be sure to visit online-casino-osterreich.at for in-depth reviews of casino providers available in German.

How many games are available from the individual providers?

As already mentioned, the choice of games is not only the most important factor when comparing apps, the following overview also shows that individual online casinos are far superior to others. But an excellent casino on the desktop doesn’t have to be good on your mobile phone. If you want to play on your mobile phone or tablet, you should know which games you really want to play – only then can you choose the right provider based on this table.

As you can see in general comparison to the games, at most casinos only a fraction of the games are available on mobile devices. BetVictor has by far the largest selection of games in a direct comparison of apps, but even at 888 a large part of the games is already available on the move – even if this is comparably low in absolute figures. In terms of the number of games, the Microgaming casinos are also quite well positioned, but there are no live games yet and they can only be played in a mobile browser.

What are the differences in operation and clarity?

During the development of the mobile software, the casinos naturally also had to adapt the operation to the devices. On the one hand, all elements must now be accessible safely and reliably with the finger instead of the mouse pointer; at the same time, all games and information must be clearly visible and clearly arranged on the small displays. The following video shows you some examples of how well (or badly) some casinos have done this.

As you can see, there are no really big differences in the apps, only InterCasino makes it a bit too complicated for itself. But the real problem of Inter is only the meager range of games.

Download vs Browser – what are the differences?

At the mobile casinos you can find both real apps to download and versions that run directly in your browser like the well-known instant games. The games are available in the browser of all casino providers, but many casinos do not offer download apps. There are various reasons for this. On the one hand, there are still uncertainties about how the stores of Google, Apple and Windows treat programs with real money games. Occasionally one reads in the technical literature of various Tools, which were removed from the Store for most diverse reasons, so that the Web portals of the casinos represent an always attainable alternative.

In addition, the development of a native app is also more complex than a website optimized for mobile devices. Since the game has to be developed in the browser for the reasons mentioned above, a download app only serves as an additional alternative. For the players, however, a real application is a bit more user-friendly. Especially the start of the games is much easier. While you can start it directly by clicking on the icon, in a web app you first have to open the browser and bookmark the casino page or enter the URL directly.

The differences in the operation itself are rather small. The games are divided into categories, which can usually be quickly overlooked. You can scroll with the familiar wipe gestures and a game is called up directly with a simple click. In the games themselves, the art is to present both the game and the options. In slot machines, these are the stakes, the number of paylines or the car game. In addition, some providers have further improved existing games in operation. This can usually be seen in titles by the addition “Touch”.

Can I try out the mobile games for free?

The purpose of these mobile casino apps is, of course, to play for real money, which is why the problem of availability in the App Stores still exists. At the same time, gambling exclusively for play money in the stores is no problem at all – so the question is justified. In most cases you can also play the games for free. However, there are different approaches in casinos. While in some casinos you can switch between real money and play money at any time, this is not so easy at other casinos. At InterCasino, for example, if you want to play for real money, but if you want to try a game for free, you have to log out. A few casinos do not offer any free games on mobile devices, which I personally find very intrusive.

Are there any bonuses for smartphones and tablet users?

Of course, when you play with a casino app, you don’t have to forego the welcome bonus. Once you sign up, you can claim your bonus by making a deposit from your mobile device. Special bonuses for mobile phone users are more the exception than the rule – but there are such bonuses. Unfortunately, our Top10 don’t have such a bonus on offer, but you’ll get a huge welcome bonus just like everyone else.

But if you would like to start with a little extra gift, maybe the offer from All Slots Casino is something for you. Here you get as a new registered player a 5€ starting present, if you try out the mobile games. You can even win real money. Of course there are also conditions for this offer, especially how you can get your winnings paid out. You can find out more about this on the bonus page in the bonus conditions section.

Compatibility and minimum requirements

The compatibility has to be differentiated between a web application and a native application. If you download an app, it depends solely on the operating system whether this program can be installed and used. Since the Web app runs in the browser, it also depends on the browser whether the required minimum requirements are met. In the following table you will find the minimum requirements for the download versions.

In general one can say that the applications presented here work with most halfway modern smartphones and tablets. Restrictions usually exist with Windows Phones and Blackberrys. Here there is often only the possibility to play in the browser, if at all, but even that is not always possible.

What you need to know when installing on Android devices

There are also differences in the installation. While real apps for iPhones and iPads can only be downloaded from the iTunes Store, the situation on Android often looks exactly the other way around. Of course, some providers can also be found on Google Play, but in most cases the casinos will offer the apk download directly on their site. However, it is important to activate “Allow installation from unknown sources” in the security settings before installation. Unknown sources are all those that are not part of the Google App Store.

It is recommended either to select the option “only once” or to deactivate this function after installation. This protects you from accidentally installing apps that have no place on your phone

Useful tips for mobile users

There are a few tips for playing on a smartphone or tablet. Most of the tips are generally valid, but some refer specifically to casino games.

Never save your password

You should never save your password for both the native app and the browser application. Even if this is very convenient at first, not having to enter your login data every time (especially with the small display keyboard), you should still do without it for security reasons. Imagine losing your mobile phone and the finder or thief gets access to your device, which isn’t really difficult today. All they need to do is launch your app or browser and have immediate access to your real money account (that’s why you shouldn’t store banking data on their mobile phone). The money cannot be paid out to a third party, but this prevents the verification of payment methods when disbursing via a new payment method. However, they can gamble all your credits, but then it will be difficult to prove to the casino that you were not. Also, the terms and conditions often state that you are responsible for the security of your casino account and stored passwords are probably not one of them.

Ensure a stable connection

In principle you should always keep an eye on the fact that you are playing with a reasonably stable internet connection. If reception from your mobile network operator or WLAN is very poor, your connection may be interrupted more often. However, a mobile casino has provided for such cases in its connection protocols. Once you are connected to the provider again, the game will continue. The worst thing about these abortions is that they can be very annoying. If the game is interrupted several times in a row and has to be reloaded if necessary, the game fun is over.

Keep an eye on data consumption

Of course, data is constantly transferred to and from the mobile casino while playing. Apart from loading the games in the web apps, the game data is relatively small. However, the Live Dealer games on the mobile phone are interesting because they are video data (streams) – partly in HD quality. The problem here is that these streams can quickly consume the data volume of your mobile contract. If this is exhausted, the connection becomes either very slow, which can be seen immediately in the quality of the transmitted images, or additional data volume must be purchased at high cost. If you have the possibility, you should always play with a WiFi connection. However, if the connection there is too slow or if you want to save your mobile data, you should do without Live Dealer games and use the normal mobile casino games.

Watch your battery consumption

The casino games of the latest generation also have various demands on graphics and sound. Therefore, the processor of the mobile device is well challenged, which is clearly noticeable in the battery consumption. You won’t be able to change that, but there are a few little tips that can help you avoid unnecessary energy consumption, so you can play longer or stay reachable longer. To list all the little things would go a little too far here. Nevertheless, I would like to give a few general tips: Minimizes display brightness, uses WiFi instead of the mobile connection, disables unnecessary feedback on keystrokes such as vibration or sound, and closes unnecessary active programs. Even the correct charging causes the battery to lose less power in the long run and those who are on the road a lot should think about a replacement battery.

Conclusion

With mobile games, online casinos still have a lot of catching up to do. The game offerings do not yet match those of the desktop versions, but there are already some positive exceptions like the BetVictor app, which can convince with an above-average number of games. Also only a few offer the popular Live Dealer games, available only in the 888 Casino App and in a downloadable app from Ladbrokes. Otherwise the number of games is between 50 and 80 for most providers, which is a decent choice with enough variety. Only InterCasino could not convince with only 12 games.

Motorola / Smartphones

Motorola Moto G5 Plus Review

Overview

Lenovo’s Moto G5 Plus again reaches for the top price performance – but has to admit a narrow defeat. The mid-range mobile phone combines solid all-round performance, appealing workmanship and a current Android version – but fails in the camera test. The strongest competition currently comes from our own company.

Pros

Long battery life
Good workmanship
fingerprint scanner
Almost unchanged Android version

Cons

Weak camera
No notification LED

Moto G5 Plus: Lenovo introduces an aluminium housing

For the first time Lenovo wraps the Motos in an elegant aluminium dress and wants to satisfy fans of high-quality cases with this step. Optically this is unquestionably successful, the matt metal back is more attractive than its plastic predecessors. The smartphone fits comfortably in the hand, but the frame offers more support than the smooth back. Some might be bothered by the discreetly projecting Moto logo, as it is a bit sharp-edged. Unfortunately, the device is not watertight.

The strength of the Moto G5 Plus is the great battery life

The very long battery life is really fun. The 3,000-milliampere-hour battery takes the Moto G5 Plus above the 10-hour threshold in an online runtime test. In everyday use, the mobile phone will reliably accompany most users through the day. But it goes even better: The big endurance runners in our best mobile phone list come to about 13 hours.

We also like the user interface, which is based on the native Android design and responds very quickly to input despite the midrange processor. The device also acknowledges scrolling on long web pages with smooth and even gliding of the image. Lenovo installs the latest Android 7, wants to play important patches regularly for a while, but unfortunately not monthly.

Fingerprint scanner with Handlings-Plus

Like the Moto G4 Plus, the G5 Plus also has a fingerprint scanner on the front, which unfortunately does not serve as a home button in the standard setting. Accordingly, above the lower device frame a black band with software keys occupies some screen area again.

That can be changed this time: Via the Moto app, users can hide the software bar under “Action | One-button control” and integrate the three functions into the fingerprint scanner button. A tap then triggers the home function, a wipe from the side opens the app changer or instructs the system to go back one step. This may feel a bit fiddly at first, but it is a practical addition.

Striking photo weakness

However, we don’t like the photo quality – no matter if it’s daylight or twilight. The Moto G5 Plus puts a powerful soft focus over the 12-megapixel camera to reduce image noise and artifacts, but ruins many details. In one of our laboratory photographs of a fine yarn, the individual threads are barely visible. At dim light the quality decreases again, but here a lot of cams fail in cheaper models.

Solid display, neat equipment

The display is 5.2 inches diagonal, but not huge. Lenovo strikes a good balance between image area and manageability. Thanks to Full HD resolution, the image sharpness is at a top level. With around 450 cd/m², the Moto G5 Plus does not shine extraordinarily brightly, but it is usually enough to recognize contents outside. Moto users have to do without a status LED to display messages. To do this, the phone turns on briefly when you take it in your hand and displays the number of missed events on the screen.

Lenovo sells the device with a nominal 32 GByte of memory, of which 23 GByte are still free. If you want more, simply expand it with a memory card. A dual SIM function and LTE support are also on board. Fast AC WLAN is missing.

The Moto G5 Plus is available in grey and gold at a recommended retail price of around €285. With our price comparison Bestcheck you get it a little cheaper.

Samsung / Tablets

Samsung Galaxy Tab S3 LTE (SM-T825N) Review

Overview

The new Samsung Galaxy Tab S3 is the current tablet flagship and also the best Android tablet currently tested. It presents itself as a powerful tablet with a great AMOLED display and above-average features.

Class features and new functions

Samsung wants to revitalize its tablet portfolio with the Tab S3 and combines good-looking hardware without relying on revolutionary new features. The tablet can now be operated with a stylus (included) and an optional keyboard is also available.

An important innovation compared to the old Note tablet: The pen is no longer integrated in the device, but it is now much larger and lies in the hand like a real (but still quite compact) pen. The tip no longer feels so hard on the screen, but simulates the feeling of real writing better. Although Samsung sees the Tab S3 as predestined for media consumption, it has a 4:3 screen like the iPad. So if you watch widescreen movies, you have wide black bars. However, the format is very suitable for digital newspaper reading.

Glass meets metal

The design is strongly based on the Galaxy S7 or Note 7. The Tab S3 shows itself in a slim glass housing, which is framed in a metal frame. It fits well in the hand, feels narrow, and the rounded edges (both at the corners and at the edges) look pleasing and provide for a more pleasant pressure in the palm. However, the latter is more important with a smartphone, which is often held closely in one hand, than with the Tab S3, which is usually held with two hands. The Galaxy S7 also features a slim camera mount that hardly protrudes – its weight is slightly higher than the very light Xperia Z4 Tablet. However, this should not have a disturbing effect in the long term.

Chic, but no longer beautiful

However, the cleaning cloth should always be within easy reach of the user, as the glass housing collects unparalleled grease streaks. Allegedly Samsung uses a coating to prevent this, but after a few inputs with the finger not much could be seen in the test. Reflections and grease streaks are the order of the day here; in addition to greater susceptibility to breakage and scratches, they are the disadvantages of glass housings. In return, it looks chic and modern and minimalist. Overall, therefore, a successful design, albeit with slight weaknesses.

Beautiful display, good running times

The AMOLED of the Galaxy TAB S2 measures 9.7 inches and has a resolution of 2,048 x 1,536 pixels. This results in an above-average pixel density of 264 ppi. The tablet also has stable viewing angles and a great contrast of 8,995:1 and a display brightness of 468 candelas per square meter, making it easy to work outdoors.

Compared to its predecessor, the Galaxy Tab S3 finally scores with good runtimes: When displaying a white web page, the Samsung Galaxy TAB S2 9.7 broke down after only 9 hours (Galaxy Tab S2:about 4 hours). If you mainly watch movies, the battery lasts for about 8 hours. Only the charging time is with about 3 hours a little high, but still within limits.

CPU and stereo sound system in the Galaxy Tab S3

Unfortunately, Samsung uses last year’s high-end system-on-chip, the Snapdragon 820, not the Refresh 821 or even its successor, the Snapdragon 835, because the Snapdragon 820 is proven and powerful enough. We didn’t notice any Ruckler in the test, the performance was fast as expected, the system reacted smoothly. Nevertheless, it is a pity, especially in view of the higher price, above all because users want to use a high-quality tablet for several years, and the latest SoC generation increases future security.

For good sound on the go or on the couch, the AKG Quad speaker system, whose stereo output even adapts to the holding direction of the Tab S3 – similar to the speakers in the current iPad Pro. The sound is, for a tablet, overall very good, but does not come close to middle class Bluetooth speakers. We find it nice to be able to wake up the screen with a pen to take notes. To do this, press a button on the pen once while touching the screen. With this feature, Samsung wants to offer the comfort of a notepad – and eliminate it. And: The tab S3 can convert handwritten notes into text.

Smartphones / Sony

Sony Xperia Z3 Review

Overview

The Sony Xperia Z3 shows no real weaknesses in the test. Highlights are the high quality and waterproof case, the extremely bright display, the solid battery life and the great performance. PS4 remote play and a current Android system are strong three inputs.

pros

Beautiful IP68 protected housing
top performance
Good 20MP camera with 4K camcorder
Very bright Full HD display
LTE Cat4, WLAN-ac, NFC, Bluetooth 4.0, microSD slot
Android 4.4.4 with Sony UI

Cons

Little new compared to its still young predecessor

Note: This smartphone has been re-tested according to the new mobile phone test procedure of July 2016, the test report has been adapted.

Sony Xperia Z3: All good things…

Just a few months after the release of the Xperia Z2, Sony is launching its successor: the Xperia Z3, the latest Z being the fourth model in the Xperia Z series. The optimizations on the Z3 already start with the housing: It looks one track rounder and is therefore more comfortable to operate than its predecessor. The elegant housing is also protected according to IP Standard 68, making the Z3 completely dustproof and resistant to “permanent immersion”. The flaps for microSD, Nano-SIM and microUSB close and open smoothly, stereo speakers on the front ensure better sound. The Z3 is lighter and slightly smaller than its predecessor Z2 with the same display size, but despite all these improvements – precisely because it will be on the market shortly after the Z2 – the Z3 is not a huge leap forward and the price is set at around 510 euros, even for re-testing.

Sony Xperia Z3: Extremely bright

The 5.2-inch screen made for big eyes in the test lab – literally! The crisp Full HD display brings it up to a full 650.3 cd/m² brightness without ambient light. This makes it easy to read even in direct sunlight. The only point of criticism on the LCD screen is the bluish white point.

Sony Xperia Z3: 20 megapixel photos and 4K video

The camera of the Xperia Z3 shoots with a maximum of 5,248 x 3,936 pixels and films with 3,840 x 2,160 pixels, i.e. in 4K. This means that the camera units of Z3 and Z3 Compact are identical. In terms of quality, the cam with continuous shooting, panorama and automatic mode is currently one of the best smartphone snaps. In the test, it shoots extremely sharp images that appear bright even in dark environments. In low light conditions, partly oversaturated colors and a clear noise (2.3 VN1) cloud the impression a little, but overall the images remain good.

Sony Xperia Z3: Android version and CPU

Although Sony is producing new smartphones at high speed, the Japanese manufacturer is keeping most older devices up to date. So it comes as no surprise that the Z3 comes directly with the latest Android version 4.4.4 on the market. In addition there is the Sony UI, which adds some DeepL accesses, Sony’s services like Video- and Music-Unlimited and the PS4-Remote-Play. If you have a PS4, you can stream its image to your smartphone via WLAN and play without a TV. The Playstation’s Dualshock 4 controller is supported as an input device. Individualization is also very important: Downloadable designs let you completely change the look of your user interface in just a few steps. Thanks to Sony’s numerous film licenses, home screens in Spiderman or Ghostbusters look are possible. Android runs very smoothly and stable. Although the Japanese do not yet use the latest Snapdragon with the code number 805, the S801 with four cores and 2.5 GHz drives the smartphone first-class. It runs significantly faster than its somewhat sluggish predecessor at the time of testing. The 3 GB RAM obviously pays off. The Qualcomm processor also enables LTE Cat4, which means maximum surfing speeds of 150 Mbps.

Sony Xperia Z3: Acoustics & Connectivity

The chic Japanese has a strong sound. The pre-installed Walkman app offers numerous equalizer settings so you can get the perfect sound out of your phone. Even when you’re on the phone, the other person you’re talking to is always easy to understand and the sound and volume are always right. This also applies to the speakerphone, which is useful in contrast to that of many competitors. The suppression of background noise is usually fine. As already mentioned, the Z3 offers a microSD slot. It swallows cards with up to 128 GByte of storage space. This makes it easy to expand the 16 GByte internal storage space (around 11 GByte free). An NFC chip that can be used for all common functions, Bluetooth 4.0, lots of streaming options and WLAN-ac round off the complete package.

Sony Xperia Z3: Alternative

The alternative to Sony’s current Z3 is of course the hardly weaker Z2, the Sony Xperia Z2, which is not quite as sleek as its successor. Very good battery life, an equally powerful camera and the latest Android available as an update are the strengths of the Z2, the biggest advantage over the Z3 being its much lower price. Of course, the current Z top model is stronger, but the equally great predecessor is currently available in online shops for around 310 euros.

Lumia / Smartphones

Microsoft (Nokia) Lumia 950 Review: Windows 10 for your pocket

Overview

The Lumia doesn’t lack performance, the display is on top level and also the photo quality is outstanding. In addition, the Lumia 950 can be used like a PC on a monitor via the dock. But a big minus: the short battery life.

Pros

Device with accessories can be used as Windows 10 PC
Sharp display
High speed
Memory expandable
Battery exchangeable
Integrated wireless charging
Unlocking via iris scan

Cons

Very short battery life
Low quality design

The Lumia 950 was together with the larger Lumia 950 XL the first smartphone with Windows 10 mobile. In the meantime, the dual SIM variant Lumia 950 Dual SIM is also available. Unlike previous dual SIM models, the COMPUTER BILD test has no disadvantages in comparison to the normal single SIM variant, for example in terms of battery life. With Windows 10 mobile, Microsoft also offers the entry-level model Lumia 550 and the stylish mid-range device Lumia 650 (also known as Lumia 650 Dual SIM).

Lumia 950: price under 300 Euro, even with dock

With prices of less than 300 Euro the Lumia 950 is a real bargain. The dual SIM version (Lumia 950 Dual) is currently available in the Microsoft Store (as of September 6, 2016) even officially for 299 euros – including Microsoft Dock (for monitor, keyboard, mouse). Students get away again more favorably: They receive further 29.90 euro discount, pay thus even only 269.10 euro. The larger Lumia 950 XL costs 399 Euro, for students only 359.10 Euro. Both offers are real bargains in view of the built-in technology, especially since Word, Excel, PowerPoint and OneNote are also installed in mobile versions for mobile work. You don’t need popular apps like Pokémon GO, Snapchat and the connection to smart hardware like Sonos. And even though Microsoft itself is sticking to Windows 10 mobile, support for Windows smartphones is currently declining. One reason: Microsoft itself is only launching a few new models and other manufacturers have not yet jumped on the bandwagon.

Startup problems fixed

The problems with connections to Bluetooth hands-free kits, for example in Mercedes or VW cars, have now been solved after several firmware and software updates. The still not very long battery life can be extended in practice by switching off the look function (display of the time in standby, can be deactivated in the settings in the submenu Extras). With the latest firmware version, unlocking the display by double-tapping the display finally works, but not as smoothly as with earlier Lumia smartphones. Despite the update to the Anniversairy Update, Windows 10 Mobile is not mature in all respects. In addition, the latest Twitter and Facebook apps offer similar functions to iPhone, but do without special Windows Phone functions such as automatic synchronization of profile photos, contact data and the timeline with the built-in address book.

Lumia 950: As good as the XL version?

The Lumia 950 offers similar technology to the large Lumia 950 XL, but there are three important differences: First, the display has a diameter of only 5.2 inches (instead of 5.7 inches in the Lumia 950 XL), which is about the same size as the Galaxy S6, but since it has the same high pixel count (2560×1440 pixels), it is actually sharper. Apart from that, the display of the Lumia 950 impressed in the test with a similarly high brightness reserve and contrast as the display in the 950 XL. Secondly, the six-core processor (Qualcomm Snapdragon 808 with 1.8 GHz) is used, while in the larger Lumia 950 XL the Octa-Core processor Snapdragon 810 ensures speed (but also high heat generation). In the everyday test the Lumia 950 was no slower than the XL version and reacted even faster in some points. In addition, the 2,900 mAh battery is slightly weaker than the XL version (3,270 mAh). Thus the Lumia 950 achieved a very lean battery life of only eight hours and 20 minutes in the test. This is over an hour less than on the iPhone 6, with the high power consumption of the new Windows 10 smartphones in standby mode. It can’t be ruled out that Microsoft will reduce the hunger for performance with a future Windows 10 update. An advantage over the large Lumia 950 XL: The charging coils of the Lumia 950 are arranged in such a way that even older wireless charging cups such as the Nokia DT-910 or the Nokia CR-200 car cradle can continue to function without problems.

Clock display in standby mode

The OLED technology of the screen is also intended to save power. This ensures that the device consumes little energy when displaying dark image components. This ensures that the time is always visible even in standby mode. This is probably not the reason for the low battery life.

20MP camera

Previous Lumias were characterized by a particularly good photo quality for smartphones. The Lumia 950 also bears the name Pure View and again features a Carl Zeiss lens. The resolution is 20 megapixels. A highlight is the combination of optical and electronic image stabilizer. The easiest way to take pictures is to use a separate shutter release with a two-step pressure point for focusing and shutter release. For example, a “Triple LED RGB” flash prevents red eyes in poor lighting. Save videos in 4K (3840×2160 pixels at 30 fps) as needed. The front camera has a resolution of 5 megapixels. The Lumia 950 (like the Lumia 950 XL) is the first smartphone that achieves a “good” rating for photos in low-light situations and at the time of testing (28. In daylight, the photo quality is better than that of the iPhone 6S or Galaxy S6, just a touch behind Moto X Style and Moto X Play.

Storage

The Lumia 950 comes with 32 gigabytes (GB) of storage space, of which 24.19 GB are free ex works. In addition, the Lumia is expandable via microSD, even swallowed the new 200 GB microSDXC cards in the test. Advantage over Android devices up to Android 5: Under Windows 10 mobile, most apps can also be installed on the memory card, map data for the navigation apps can also be stored on the memory card differently than before. The main memory is 3 GB, which is a lot of memory.

Lumia 950 charges quickly or wirelessly

The Lumia can be charged quickly via the supplied USB-C power supply and is charged to 50 percent in about 30 minutes. Wireless charging takes longer. The Lumia 950 weighs 150 grams and measures 145×73.3×8.2 millimeters.

Design

The matt plastic housing fits well in the hand. They’re not ugly, but the design for a flagship product looks a bit upright – especially since Microsoft has dispensed with the gaudy colors typical of Lumia’s past. At least: The housing is changeable, as is the battery. If you don’t like black or white, you can replace the back with three different coloured leather covers by Mozo.

Tablets

Nvidia Shield Tablet K1 Review

Overview

The Nvidia Shield Tablet K1 offers cool gaming features such as Gamestream, but is also great for surfing and videos. In the review we like the – measured by price – good equipment and the chic additional features. The Android tablet shows weaknesses in battery life.

The hardware basis of the shield tablet is the new Tegra-K1-SoC (System-on-a-Chip), which combines four computing cores with 2.2 GHz clock frequency each and a so-called Companion Core with 1.0 GHz. For graphics output, it also features a Kepler GPU with 192 cores (CUDA cores) clocked to 900 MHz, which also accelerates demanding games with ease. 2 GB of RAM, 16 GByte integrated flash memory, a microSD slot, an HDMI port and the 8-inch 16:10 display (1,920 x 1,200 pixels) complete the most important features. As an operating system, Nvidia is running a version of Android 6.0, which is enhanced with specific applications such as the Gamestream function or a special app marketplace for games.

Nvidia Shield Tablet K1: More than just a tablet PC

At the time of the test, the Shield tablet, which costs around 200 euros, was ranked 25th in our top tablet PC list and prevailed over many significantly more expensive models. For reasons of comparability with other tablet PCs, the exciting but Nvidia-specific gaming features are only partially included in the evaluation.

Bright Display

The 8-inch mirroring IPS panel shows only one great weakness in the test: while the high resolution of 1,920 x 1,200 pixels (pixel density: 283 ppi), which enables lossless playback of Full HD videos and the brightness of a maximum of 371 candela per m² upper average, the chessboard contrast of 112:1 is only mediocre.

Cool Accessories

Besides the high performance hardware Shield offers some additional features. A striking feature is the active stylus (optional), which Nvidia calls DirectStylus 2. In the practical test, the stylus proves to be flexible and can be used very well in corresponding applications. For this purpose, the manufacturer installs an in-house drawing and painting app called Dabbler, which also demonstrates the pen’s pressure sensitivity nicely. However, these features also offer other tablet manufacturers out-of-the-box. The two loudspeakers to the left and right of the display deserve special praise. They provide surprisingly good sound for movies and games. Our test kit also includes a wireless game controller and a magnetic cover to protect the display. However, both are also optional and are not included in the standard scope of delivery.

Only average mobility

Satisfactory mobility also denies a top position in the best-performing list. This is partly due to the relatively high weight of 360 grams. The thickness of one centimeter does not match the leading group around the iPad mini and the Sony Xperia Tablet Z2 (each 0.7 cm). Since the battery life of 5:53 hours (video) and 6:32 hours (office) does not inspire, the device only scores 71.8 out of a possible 100 points in this category.

The tablet for gamers

Tablet PCs for players are not new. However, devices like the Archos Gamepad 2 or the Snakebyte Vyper 7 couldn’t convince at all. Quite different with the Nvidia Shield, to which we pronounce the predicate “first seriously recommendable gamer tablet”. The reason for this is not the Android environment itself. Although it offers some nice games like the chic tablet version of Skylanders Trap Team, it doesn’t match classic PC gaming. The real highlight of the tablet is called Gamestream. With this feature, players will have a wide range of expansion options at their fingertips. You can stream your PC games directly onto the tablets and play them at home within the WLAN. You can also clone and play the signal on a TV set. This requires an HDMI connection between the tablet and the TV.

Shield relies on the performance of a PC or laptop equipped with a GeForce GTX graphics card. A GTX 650 is the minimum on the computer, while a model of the GeForce-700M, 800M or 900M series should be installed on the notebook. It also supports a few models from the older GeForce-600M series.

Gamestream

In the field test we liked Gamestream very much. The PC-to-tablet module works perfectly in the WLAN, is largely free of layers and is very easy to set up. Thanks to the optional controller and the support of Bluetooth versions of mouse and keyboard, a good alternative to the touch screen is available. Cloning to a Philips TV has also worked fine.

Brands / Smartphones

The Sad End of Nokia

With Nokia mobile phones, Microsoft wanted to take the lead in the smartphone war. But the equipment remained in the shop. Now thousands of employees had to vacate their desks. For Microsoft, it is an end with horror.

With the brightly coloured Nokia mobile phones everything should become better. When Microsoft took over the Finnish traditional manufacturer last year, it was a challenge for Apple and Samsung to dominate the smartphone market at will. But the takeover of Nokia’s mobile phone division became a monumental flop for Microsoft. The devices are on the shelves like lead, the mobile operating system Windows Phone is still struggling with puny market shares and many renowned manufacturers such as LG, Sony or Samsung turned their backs on Microsoft.

Now Microsoft boss Satya Nadella finally pulled the plug: The Windows giant writes the enormous amount of 7.6 billion dollars (converted 6.9 billion euro) on the Nokia deal. That is twice as much as the original purchase price of $3.8 billion. In addition, 7800 employees lose their jobs. This conversion will cost up to another 850 million dollars. All in all, the Nokia deal opens up a hole of almost 9.5 billion dollars in the company’s coffers.

Billion errors with consequences

Microsoft had big plans: The idea behind the Nokia deal was that you could be as successful with software and hardware from a single source as Apple was with your iPhone. There, the sale of equipment and software is mutually beneficial.

However, Microsoft did not achieve the sales surge it had hoped for. Smartphones with Google’s Android mobile operating system have a market share of up to 80 percent. Apple comes to around 15 percent and is highly profitable. 89 percent of all worldwide smartphone profits end up in Cupertino. Microsoft’s Lumia smartphones, on the other hand, account for only a few percent of the market, although sales have increased recently – but primarily in the low-cost, unprofitable segment. Even at peak times, the devices never sold as well as Nokia would have needed.

The dismissal of 7800 employees and the write-off of billions of euros is the temporary end of a serious billion-dollar mistake. A year ago, Microsoft had already announced the reduction of around 18,000 jobs, which had hit former Nokia employees hard. According to original announcements, more than 30,000 Nokia employees should switch to Microsoft at the time of the acquisition. Finnish Finance Minister Alexander Stubb warned in an initial reaction that the restructuring could have an impact on the state budget.

Microsoft continues to build smartphones

However, Microsoft does not want to withdraw completely from the smartphone business: CEO Satya Nadella emphasizes that Microsoft will continue to offer smartphones. However, he announced a much smaller range of models and said in euphemistic business speech: “In the short term, we will offer a more efficient and focused portfolio of mobile phones and retain the capacity to reinvent ourselves in the mobility sector in the long term. In the future, the focus will be on three areas: the low-end market, where some successes have recently been celebrated, the business sector and high-priced flagship models.

At the same time, Nadella explained that Microsoft no longer wants to operate its own mobile phone business. The mobile phones are probably only developed by Microsoft and built by other manufacturers. Google has a similar approach to its Nexus devices. Microsoft clearly acknowledged that the outlook for the devices was below expectations. The division was recently merged with the Windows area. The former Nokia boss Stephen Elop was also sung. He had gone from Microsoft to Nokia, made the deal with his former employer and then took over the management of the merged appliance division.

The takeover of Nokia mobile phones was still being negotiated under the long-standing head of Microsoft, Steve Ballmer. He wanted to position Microsoft at any price as a successful device manufacturer. However, his successor, Nadella, made no secret of his opposition to the Nokia takeover – and has adopted a completely different strategy since he took office. He opened his own software for other systems – including the office software Office365 and the clouds storage OneDrive – and also offers the programs for iOS and Android. In addition, it is concentrating much more strongly on the cloud business. Nevertheless, he will not get around forging new partnerships with other manufacturers if he wants to pull the rudder around in the mobile sector in the long term.

The end of an era

For Nokia, recent events are virtually the end of a spectacular descent from world market leader in mobile phones to insignificance. In the era of modern smartphones, the traditional Finnish company had lost its connection to the competition with the launch of the iPhone.

A course setting at the beginning of 2011 could have been decisive: When the development of a new operating system took a long time, Elop opted for Microsoft’s Windows Phone instead of Google’s Android. Next year Nokia plans to make a smartphone comeback. But perhaps it is already too late for that.

LG / Smartphones

LG G3 Review

Overview

The LG G3 looks impressive. The workmanship is top, the quad HD display is extremely sharp. However, the screen achieves normal values for brightness and contrast. The poor online runtime remains in the retest, but the working speed increases noticeably with Android 5.0.

Pros

Clean workmanship, high-quality appearance
Android 4.4.2 with modern UI
LTE Cat4, NFC, WLAN-ac, infrared transmitter, microSD slot
Excellent camera with fast focus
Ultra-sharp quad HD screen

Cons

Poor online runtime
Weak handsfree speaker

LG G3: Quad HD display and processing

The LG G3 is the first smartphone available in Germany with a so-called quad HD display. The resolution of the screen is 2,560 x 1,440 pixels, resulting in a pixel density of an incredible 538 PPI. The 5.5-inch screen looks extraordinarily sharp, but does not make current Full HD competitors pale with envy. This is also proven by our laboratory measurements. With 409.7 cd/m² the screen is bright, but the contrast of 153:1 could be better and the white point is not in the ideal range. Instead, the G3 LCD tends to bluish. The ergonomics of the G3 are excellent, despite the 5.5-inch display. The rounded back and the extremely narrow edges around the display make the XXL smartphone feel like a 5-inch device. Here LG has a clear advantage over Samsung and colleagues. The processing of the smartphone is very good, the plastic back in metal optics makes a valuable impression. The cover on the back is removable, underneath there are slots for microSIM and microSD as well as a removable battery. Unlike the Sony Xperia Z2 or the Galaxy S5, the G3 is not explicitly protected against dust or water.

LG G3: Performance Problems and Memory Variants

LG offers the G3 in two different memory variants. There is a version with 16 GB internal memory and 2 GB RAM, which is currently available for around 350 euros. Furthermore, the South Koreans have a version with 32 GByte memory and 3 GByte RAM on offer, which costs 405 Euro. The quad-core Snapdragon 801 (2.5 GHz) with the graphics unit Adreno 330 works in every version of the G3, the G3 suffered from annoying performance problems under Android 4, with Android 5.0 both versions are really fast, but cannot keep up with the elite.

LG G3: Android 5.0 and the new Optimus UI

LG has gone to great lengths to make its overloaded user interface more accessible. This includes a completely new optical design. iOS-like symbols, bright colors and sometimes very large fonts provide a clear experience, but cannot hide the fact that the UI has hardly changed functionally. The settings menu is further divided into four sections, and you can select widgets and apps after a long press on the home screen. In addition to numerous DeepL accesses, the message center provides controls for brightness and volume. For certain apps such as YouTube and the browser, a split-screen mode is available, some applications can also be minimized PC-like in a small window. The new Smart Notice is a useful widget for the home screen. Smart Notice displays weather and time as well as time- and location-based messages. For example, it recommends activating WLAN at a known location, uninstalling apps that have not been used for some time, and reminds you of missed calls. To the left of the home screen you will find the so-called Smart Bulletin. There the G3 shows special information such as health tips from the LG Health app or information on how to use the smartphone. With the pre-installed security app, the G3 has a kill switch. You can therefore delete the device remotely.

LG presents here as usual a very versatile UI, which also looks modern due to the optical reorientation. The South Koreans are at least on a par with the competition.