T3 India December 2016

This is probably the most hi-tech piece of hipster denim you’ll ever set eyes on. We’ve seen fashionable wearable tech before – Lyle & Scott’s bPay contactless jacket came to market about a year ago, looking great but lacking a little in the smarts department, other than a contactless-payment chip nestled within the sleeve. However, the Levi’s Commuter X Jacquard (CXJ) takes the smart-clothing genre to another level. Levi’s isn’t exactly well regarded for its tech-industry know-how, unless we’re talking material enhancements like water-resistance, so the denim guru has brought in some help: namely, Google. The collaboration – a year-long deal – sees the Levi’s Commuter Trucker jacket receive an upgrade in the form of Google’s Project Jacquard, which infuses interactivity into the material. How so, you ask? Using conductive…

While demonetisation has kept our citizens on toes, here at T3, we were busy compiling the gifts that you can buy for yourself, your significant other, parents and even kids. Our cover story this month on pg 52. We’ve seen some product announcements this month, like Xiaomi’s innovative Mi Mix, Asus Zenfone 3 Max, Acer’s thin laptop and more. Everything in Hype from pg 12. We’ve got two flagships competing between behemoths for the reviews. There’s the Apple iPhone 7 Plus and Google Pixel XL. Take your pick! For the gamers out there, we played the Watch Dogs 2 on pg 96. As always, keep the wonderful suggestions and comments flowing. I’ll see you next month! Views and opinions expressed in the magazine are not necessarily those of Next Gen…

TBA, www.mi.com/in What sorcery is this? Where’s the bezel on the top of this phone? No sorcery at all. The bezel-less Mi Mix from Xiaomi is real and available for sale right now. Not in India but it’s out there and can be imported. You say no sorcery, but exactly how has Xiaomi done away with the top bezel? Instead of using an external earpiece which justifies using the top bezel on a phone, Xiaomi uses Cantilever Piezoelectric Ceramic Acoustic technology. Quite a mouthful, isn’t it? To answer your unasked query, it basically converts electrical energy into mechanical energy, which vibrates when voltage is applied to it. The mechanical energy is transferred to the internal metal frame that vibrates even more to produce sound. Uh-huh, I’ll pretend to understand that,…

17,980, www.vivo.co.in I remember the V3, but what happened to the V4? Who knows but Vivo is touting V5 as the successor to the V3. All companies have weird naming conventions nowadays anyway. It’s confusing, but don’t worry, we are here to keep you informed! Thanks for that, but let’s get down to business. Why should I bother with the V5? If you are selfie-obsessed and like all things pretty, then this is the phone for you! Not only does the V5 feature a 20MP front camera, but it has also been housed in an ultra-slim frame with curved edges and a metallic back cover. Sure, the design is derivative, what with those shiny antenna lines, but it works in the end. You really go on and on, don’t you?…

14,999, www.lenovo.com/in So, the name doesn’t leave much to the imagination. That, and the massive size, of course. As if that wasn’t enough of an indicator, the Phab2 Plus proudly wears the phablet moniker on its sleeves by marketing it towards consumers who use their device for data consumption more than voice calling. So we’ve finally reached the stage where calling is treated as a secondary thing. Unless you have a hands-free Bluetooth device, we doubt anyone would like to hold something that covers their face! What it does focus on is Augmented Reality snapping. This sounds interesting. Tell me more. Basically, the dual 13MP rear camera lens setup, with the Futjitsu Milbeaut image processor helps provide these Augmented-Reality special effects. There is a dedicated AR mode available as a…

2,999, www.tp-link.in Aren’t five antennas a bit much? A decade ago sure but now not so much. With everything ranging from your fridge to phone need to be connected to the net, even five of them might very soon be considered the norm. I know what a router is but what does Dual Band mean? The Archer C60 can relay signals over 2.4GHz and 5GHz bands simultaneously offering a cumulative speed of upto 1350Mbps. Notice we say cumulative since it is the combined speed of 450Mbps + 867Mbps on both bands. Ah, so this is where the five antennas come into play. You’re a quick study! Three at 2.4GHz and two at 5GHz are arranged in an alternate order which results in reduced interference and more stable dual band coverage.…