Hasta La Gadget!

“Who am I going to be worried about? Oh Facebook seeing? No, I’m not worried about Facebook seeing. They’re going to look at my great art collection and say they want to come steal it? No, I never really thought about it.” That’s my 72-year-old mother Sally Constine’s response to whether she’s worried about her privacy now that she has a Facebook Portal video chat device. The gadget goes on sale and starts shipping today at $349 for the 15.6-inch swiveling screen Portal+, $199 for the 10-inch Portal, and $100 off for buying any two.

The sticking point for most technology reporters — that it’s creepy or scary to have a Facebook camera and microphone in your house — didn’t even register as a concern with a normal tech novice like my mom. “I don’t really think of it any different from a phone call,” she says. “It’s not a big deal for me.”

While Facebook has been mired by privacy scandals after a year of Cambridge Analytica and its biggest-ever data breach, the concept that it can’t be trusted hasn’t necessarily trickled down to everyone. And without that coloring her perception, my mom found the Portal to be an easy way to video chat with family, and a powerful reminder to do so.

For a full review of Facebook Portal, check out TechCrunch hardware editor Brian Heater’s report:

As a quick primer, Portal and Portal+ are smart video screens and Bluetooth speakers that offer an auto-zooming camera that follows you around the room as you video chat. They include both Facebook’s own voice assistant for controlling Messenger, as well as Amazon Alexa. There’s also a third-party app platform for speech-activated Spotify and Pandora, video clips from The Food Network and Newsy, and it can slideshow through your Facebook photos while it’s idle. For privacy, communications are encrypted, AI voice processing is done locally on the device, there’s an off switch that disconnects the camera and mic and it comes with a physical lens cover so you know no one’s watching you. It fares well in comparison to the price, specs and privacy features compared to Amazon’s Echo Show, Google Home Hub and other smart displays.

When we look at our multi-functional smartphones and computers, connecting with loved ones isn’t always the first thing that comes to mind the way it did with an old-school home telephone. But with the Portal in picture frame mode rotating through our Facebook photos of those loved ones, and with it at the beck and call of our voice commands, it felt natural to turn those in-between times we might have scrolled through Instagram to instead chatting face to face.

My mother found setting up the Portal to be quite simple, though she wished the little instructional card used a bigger font. She had no issue logging in to her Facebook, Amazon Alexa and Spotify accounts. “It’s all those things in one. If you had this, you could put Alexa in a different room,” the Constine matriarch says.

She found the screen to be remarkably sharp, though some of the on-screen buttons could be better labeled, at least at first. But once she explored the device’s software, she was uncontrollably giggling while trying on augmented reality masks as we talked. She even used the AR Storytime feature to read me a bedtime tale like she did 30 years ago. If I was still a child, I think I would have loved this way to play with a parent who was away from home. The intuitive feature instantly had her reading a modernized Three Little Pigs story while illustrations filled our screens. And when she found herself draped in an AR big bad wolf costume during his quotes, she knew to adopt his gruff voice.

One of the few problems she found was that when Facebook’s commercials for Portal came on the TV, they’d end up accidentally activating her Portal. Facebook might need to train the device to ignore its own ads, perhaps by muting them in a certain part of the audio spectrum as one Reddit user suggested Amazon may have done to prevent causing trouble with its Super Bowl commercial.

My mom doesn’t Skype or FaceTime much. She’s just so used to a lifetime of audio calls with her sister back in England that she rarely remembers that video is an option. Having a dedicated device in the kitchen kept the idea top-of-mind. “I really want to have a conversation seeing her. I think I would really feel close to her if I could see her like I’m seeing you now,” she tells me.

Convincing jaded younger adults to buy a Portal might be a steep challenge for Facebook. But perhaps Facebook understands that. Rather than being seemingly ignorant of or calloused about the privacy climate it’s launching Portal into, the company may be purposefully conceding to the tech news wonks that includes those who’ll be reviewing Portal but not necessarily the much larger mainstream audience. If it concentrates on seniors and families with young children who might not have the same fears of Facebook, it may have found a way to actually bring us closer together in the way its social network is supposed to.

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Xiaomi has worked their way to be the 4th largest smartphone manufacturer in the world, and their mid-range smartphones continue to straddle the comfortable level between price and performance. While the Redmi Note 5 is not the newest device on the block in this category, it has aged well over the past half year. Here is a review of the Xiaomi Redmi Note 5 for those who would like a highly functional smartphone without having to take out a second mortgage on their home.

My usage pattern
The Redmi Note 5 screams value for money right from the moment you open the box. There are no headphones included, but it does feature a transparent case and a two-pin charger with a microUSB cable. Powered by the Qualcomm Snapdragon 636 processor, the Redmi Note 5 is no slouch when it comes to performance, and any smartphone that is capable of handling PUBG Mobile without running into lag or a stuttering frame rate is certainly decent enough to be your daily driver.

I would like to provide the right frame of reference concerning my use of the Redmi Note 5 so that readers will have a better idea of what to expect should they decide to pick up the device. As my daily driver, the Redmi Note 5 will provide me with tunes from Spotify for an average of 3 hours each day, not to mention an average of 3 hours’ of screen time. I have Bluetooth turned on to connect to my smartwatch, while Wi-Fi is never turned off so that I can seamlessly drift between my mobile data and home Wi-Fi network. Both SIM card slots are taken up as I sport two numbers, and I also turn on mobile hotspot capability for up to 30 minutes daily.

Design
What is there that can be said about the Redmi Note 5’s design? The updated visual details bring the handset up to par with what a modern day smartphone should look like, where the 18:9 display makes an attempt at a minimal bezel look, pulling it off decently. However, the top and bottom bezels are still fat when compared to the flagship devices that are in the market, but that is to be expected.

I like the feel of the metal chassis that exudes a breath of style and elegance, but the major downside would be the slippery feel even though my palms barely sweat at all. I would strongly advise purchasing a third party protective case in order to enjoy a more secure grip each time you use the smartphone. Despite packing in a beefy 4,000mAh battery, the Redmi Note 5 remains surprisingly light and slim, which is a good thing.

At the back lies a fingerprint sensor that is easy to access with one’s index finger, and it performs with relative accuracy that makes it far more convenient than typing a passcode or forming a pattern to unlock the device. The 3.5mm audio port and microUSB port are located at the bottom of the device, which is a far better design idea than its predecessor (Redmi Note 4) which places the 3.5mm audio port above while the microUSB port is at the bottom, especially when you are charging the handset while listening to your favorite tunes.

It would be nice to see the Redmi Note 5 migrate to USB Type-C though since it would help elevate the device to a more premium standing in terms of perception.

User Experience
Xiaomi’s handsets run on MIUI, which is skinned on top of Google’s Android mobile operating system. With MIUI 9.5 arriving right out of the box, you would do well to perform a system update and enjoy all that MIUI 10 has to offer. It does not feel bloated, and the Snapdragon 636 processor is more than capable of handling all swipes and interactions without any kind of slowdown. If you are a first time owner of a Xiaomi device, the learning curve is not steep at all and extremely easy to pick up.

My eyes did not find any issue with the 5.99-inch 18:9 Full HD+ display that delivered an acceptable degree of brightness for its price point, while colors remain vibrant. This makes the Redmi Note 5 above average in its visual department, be it for gaming or watching movies.

I also find the built-in 4,000mAh battery to be extremely useful since I no longer have to charge the handset halfway through the day. In fact, with my described usage pattern, I am able to push it all the way to one and a half day’s use with reserves to spare before plugging in the charger. The Redmi Note 5 also supports Quick Charge 2.0, but you will need to purchase a separate charger that caters to that feature.

Arriving in two flavors of 3GB RAM and 32GB of internal memory and 4GB RAM and 64GB of internal memory, you might want to settle for the latter as the lack of a dedicated microSD memory card slot might mean making a sacrifice of one SIM card slot just to fit in your microSD memory card. Again, a lot of it depends on your usage pattern, so do think things through carefully before making a purchase.

Camera
There are dual rear cameras in the Redmi Note 5, comprising of a 12MP f/1.9 primary shooter and a 5MP f/2.0 sensor. The latter will help capture depth information so that better looking portrait shots can be taken. The 12MP sensor itself is impressive as it boasts of a large 1.4μm pixel size, enabling it to absorb even more light to deliver above average shots in low light conditions. However, there is no optical stabilization for a handset at this price point, which would mean grainy and blurred shots are part of the deal under less-than-ideal situations.

Do be aware that there is some lag when booting up the camera app, although it seems to happen randomly. Still, this is an irritating quirk that I hope Xiaomi will be able to weed out with a future software update, as some moments are lost within seconds. Apart from that, there is also a noticeable shutter delay in between shots at times, especially when I tried to capture images under low-light conditions.

In terms of picture quality under adequate lighting, the Redmi Note 5 performs admirably for a device in its class. There is also a 13MP selfie camera in front, and while both the front and rear cameras are able to capture portrait shots with the bokeh effect around the subject, the dual rear cameras do it better due to the secondary lens.

Conclusion
If you want an everyday workhorse smartphone that gets the job done quietly and without having to pull attention to yourself, the Redmi Note 5 is certainly worth exploring. However, those who always want to be on the cutting edge of technology would do well to give this a pass and aim higher up the smartphone food chain.
[ Xiaomi Redmi Note 5 review copyright by Coolest Gadgets ]