It’s not that the other wireless chargers can’t output 15W or more, it’s just Apple that has made sure to limit the input at 7.5W if the device detects third-party hardware. We’ve unfortunately become accustomed to expect this type of behavior from Apple, so it’s nice to see that UGreen decided to include 15W wireless charging as an option for iPhones.

And I’ve noticed that UGreen has acquired a (good) habit of adding more variety to its GaN chargers, including a 300W unit that was capable to keep alive multiple laptops even at a higher load. Obviously, the UGreen 100W Mini MagSafe station will handle one laptop and a few other lighter devices (smartwatch, phone) and that’s more than enough for a single-user office. That being said, I did expect the UGreen 100W Mini MagSafe to look a bit different than the regular chargers and indeed it does.

The manufacturer went with a cylindrical case completely made out of plastic covered by a dark gray matte finish, with the the top and bottom being black. The device measures 3.5 x 2.4 x 2.4 inches (9.0 x 6.0 x 6.0cm), so it’s a bit bulkier than your regular 100W GaN charger – as a comparison, the GaN X is almost half its size. But there’s a good reason for it: the MagSafe wireless charger needed to be embedded in a proper way. Indeed, about half the device (the upper side) is occupied by the wireless charging components, but the heavier portion is at the bottom, which means that even if the upper section is put at an angle, the charger remains stable.

And yes, as I mentioned, it is possible to ‘open up’ the upper part in a similar fashion to a lid, allowing you to put the iPhone at an angle or you can just leave it flat. Since it’s a MagSafe charger, it is magnetic and it is powerful enough to keep my regular iPhone 12 attached with no chance for it to fall off. The angle can be adjusted the way you like it, so you don’t really need to put it almost vertically. The bottom of the charger has four silicone feet to keep the device steady even if multiple cables are connected.

And, on the rear side, there is a two-pin connector for the Power cable – the provided one is quite long (6.6 feet). On the lower front section, the manufacturer has added the three USB ports. One is USB-A port which can output up to 22.5W (10V / 2.25A), while the other two ports are USB-C. Both of them are capable of outputting the max 100W (21V / 5A) as long as only one is in use, otherwise, the output will be limited to 65W and 30W per USB-C port, depending on which is the first that is connected to a device.

If you decide to also use the USB-A port to its maximum, the output will be limited to 45W for the first USB-C, 30W for the second USB-C port and 22.5W for the USB-C port. There is, of course the wireless charging aspect that we need to take into account and if you decide to add it into the mix alongside all three USB ports, then the output will be limited to 45W and 25W for the USB-A – the wireless charging will remain 15W. There are some other variations, so I have added a photo with all the possible combinations for the simplicity sake.

I do need to mention that there is no LED and, while it’s far from a deal breaker, it’s nice to know if the device is powered. And this also takes us to the question on whether the UGreen 100W Mini MagSafe charging station uses any power when it’s in idle mode (no device connection). To check it out, I used a multimeter (gave up on the smart one that I used from Gosund and went with an offline tool) and the result was an average of 0.3W. So no, it’s not flat out 0W, but it’s very close to negligible.

If you don’t want to waste any energy whatsoever, then simply detach the cord from the outlet as soon as you’re done charging up a device. After that, I had to check the output of each port to see if the advertised values are accurate. Unfortunately, I don’t have a device that can be charged at 100W using a USB-C cable, but I still have the 13-inch MacBook Pro which does get above 50W when pushed to the limit. The MacBook Pro was almost to 0%, so it quickly drew an average of 58W (20.21V, 2.88A) and I connected a smartphone which was at 0% to the USB-A port.

I saw that it drew an average of 15W (7.33V, 2.06A) which is below the 22.5W limit, so it was interesting to see it stay there (perhaps a imitation of the multimeter?). In any case, I connected a secondary smartphone to the other USB-C port and I could see that the multimeter for the first USB-C port turned off and then turned back on.

Yes, the UGreen 100W Mini MagSafe charger has that power redistribution feature implemented and it seems that it isn’t affected by the USB-A port, but it does react as soon as the second USB-C is connected to a device (when disconnecting it as well) and it does react to the wireless charging. Connecting all ports and putting an iPhone at the top, we can see that the multimeter for the USB-C port showed that the output went from 58W to 43.6W. This shows the 45W limit in action.

I also wanted to see if an iPhone would indeed be charged at 15W, so I allowed my phone to get close to 0% (not a difficult task, unfortunately) and I put it on the UGreen 100W Mini MagSafe power station. Afterwards, I used the multimeter to check how much power the charger would draw from the outlet.

At its maximum, it was 21.9W, way above the 15W, but I assume that it’s just to push the phone quickly above the 10% because a few minutes later, the multimeter showed 15W and, about 20 minutes after that, it went lower to 8W. It’s not a consistent 15W, but that’s an observation I made with other MagSafe chargers (Benks InvisiBoost), so it seems to be normal to prevent battery wear.

As for protection, the UGreen 100W Mini MagSafe does have what’s called the Thermal Guard safe charging feature which takes 6000 temperature readings per minute to ensure that the device won’t overheat. Then again, GaN tech already keeps this possibility in check. As for the wireless charger, you do need to be careful not to put any metallic piece in between it and the phone (smartwatch or earbuds) to limit the risk of malfunction.

Mark B

Mark is a graduate in Computer Science, having gathered valuable experience over the years working in IT as a programmer. Mark is also the main tech writer for MBReviews.com, covering not only his passion, the networking devices, but also other cool electronic gadgets that you may find useful for your every day life.

www.mbreviews.com

And no, the output of a single port does not reach 300W, the maximum for the first USB-C connection being 140W, so in a sense, it’s similar to the UGREEN Nexode 140W, but the second and third USB-C connection can go up to 100W (one at a time), while the fourth can reach the remaining 45W. So, it’s not about powering up a single powerful device, but multiple still-very-much-demanding gadgets.

Be it three laptops or more. I wouldn’t mind seeing gaming laptops being kept alive by a GaN charger via the USB-C, but at the moment, the manufacturers are still working towards pushing the output towards 240W, while maintaining the device affordable and compact, so it’s going to take a bit more. Which is why the UGREEN Nexode 300W will be more suitable for an office with multiple work-focused machines (since the discrete GPUs are a known power hog). I did mention that there is a focus on compactness, but is the UGREEN Nexode 300W truly compact?

Kind of. The device measures 4.3 x 3.7 x 1.9 inches (11.0 x 9.5 x 5.0cm), so it’s not small by any means, but is it compact when compared to the 250+ W laptops chargers out there? Absolutely yes and much better looking as well. Indeed, the UGREEN Nexode 300W is covered by a soft matte finish and there is a plastic shell that wraps around the device, enhancing the look of the rounded corners. The GaN charger is not going to look out of place on the desk and you don’t have to hide it away as you would with the regular laptop power bricks.

On the rear side, there is a three-pin power connector which is universal, so it’s possible to use third-party cables (kudos to UGREEN for this) and the dedicated cable itself is quite long, comfortably reaching a power outlet from the table. Beneath the charger, we see that there are two large rubber feet that do keep the device into place and it’s also worth mentioning that the UGREEN Nexode 300W is not lightweight, which means that it’s very difficult to make it budge when there are multiple cables attached.

And this takes us to the front of the GaN charger where the manufacturer has added the four USB-C ports and the single USB-A port. There is no LED light that shows when the unit it powered up which I guess can be seen as a minus by some, while those that position the UGREEN Nexode 300W in the bedroom will welcome having less lights shinning in their eyes. The uppermost USB-C port offers an output of 140W (28V/5A), while the USB-C2 and USB-C3 can reach up to 100W each (20V/5A), but if you’re using the first USB-C port, then only one of them will reach the maximum 100W, the other automatically being limited to 60W.

The fourth USB-C port can reach up to 45W (20V/2.25A), but, know that it will get limited to 20W if all ports are connected and charging devices. The last port, the USB-A offers an output of 22.5W (10V/2.25A) and it’s pretty much unfazed by any other connection, but we will see if it will disconnect the moment we attach or detach a device. Before that, I need to mention that inside the package, UGREEN has included a long USB-C to USB-C cable (6.6 feet) and it’s a very peculiar one.

The cable is rated at 240W, so it’s a bit overkill for our needs, but it’s still nice to see it as an accessory to the UGREEN Nexode 300W charger. With that out of the way, I wanted to check the accuracy of the power output claims. The problem is that I still don’t have devices that require 140W – well, I do, but none support USB-C charging. So, I will still be using the 13-inch MacBook Pro that I used before, which can go up very near 60W when pushed to the maximum. I know that the 16-inch MacBook Pro uses a 140W charger, but yeah, I am budget constrained, so the 13-inch model will do.

Also, I think that the reason why nobody is that keen on going above 140W is because there are no devices that require it at the moment. In any case, I connected the MacBook Pro and, since it wasn’t near 0%, the computer wanted about 50W of power, while the voltage was 20.09V and the amperage, 2.5A and it’s a bit curious considering that the specs mention 5A for 20V.

Anyway, I then played with the other USB ports and, as expected, I couldn’t really push either of them to the maximum, but it’s worth mentioning a very important aspect. If you have been using other GaN chargers, you know that most have a very nasty habit of disconnecting the devices that the charger is powering up when you connect or disconnect a new device. This happens when the manufacturer didn’t want to include a finer system of detecting the required output, so it just disconnects all devices to start over.

The good news is that this doesn’t happen with the UGREEN Nexode 300W and it means that you can connect devices that require continuous power. And it’s an advantage that it has over the UGREEN Nexode 140W. I was wondering just how energy efficient the charger is and I know that the GaN technology should ensure that very little heat is wasted, but we are dealing with a higher output than usual, so is it better than the regular large charging bricks (that I used to use to heat up my feet during the winter)?

It is and I have added a photo of the thermal performance to see for yourself. It’s going to heat up a bit near the front, but it never gets hot to the touch. Additionally, the manufacturer uses the ‘Thermal Guard system’ which continuously monitors the inner temperature (6000 readings per minute), so it can quickly stop any issues such as excessive current, overcharging or overheating. But there is a certain cost to these readings, although very close to negligible.

I disconnected all the devices and used a multimeter to check how much power the UGREEN Nexode 300W requires while it’s in idle mode. As you can see, it’s about 0.2W (although it’s a bit lower since it fluctuates between 0 and 0.2W). Again, it’s negligible, but if you don’t use the charger, it’s best to disconnect it from the power outlet since it can add up in time.

Mark B

Mark is a graduate in Computer Science, having gathered valuable experience over the years working in IT as a programmer. Mark is also the main tech writer for MBReviews.com, covering not only his passion, the networking devices, but also other cool electronic gadgets that you may find useful for your every day life.

www.mbreviews.com

And, while the Infinity 1300 and the 1500 series easily found their way into the market due to the higher output, the 600W Growatt VITA 550 may need a bit more persuading, right? Well, it may actually be the other way around. Surely, those that drive campervans will welcome the high-output stations, but most people that go camping (from morning to noon) just use their regular cars and have less requirements in terms of devices that need power.

A few smartphones, a laptop and why not, even a portable projector can be handled by the Growatt VITA 550. And the good news is that you can use solar panels to keep the power station charged over the day as well. One interesting aspect behind the Growatt VITA 550 is that it uses LiFePo4 batteries which means that the entire unit will be more lightweight, it will provide more charging cycles and it should also recharge faster.

Growatt mentions 1.6 hours with AC and 2.5 hours using solar panels, but we’ll check these claims for ourselves. There are also lots of outlets and ports, as well as support for WiFi connection (yes, there’s an app), so let’s put the Growatt VITA 550 to the test and see how well it performs.

Design and Build Quality

I have recently tested a 400W power station from Allpowers (the R600) and it was interesting to see that the Growatt VITA 550 is not that much bigger despite the 600W output, while having a similar amount of ports and charging options. Indeed, the VITA 550 measures 12.2 x 8.4 x 7.8in (31.0 x 21.3 x 19.8cm), so while not seemingly that compact (it actually is when compared to other similar devices), it does have some elements to allow the user to easily move it around. Well, it’s just an element, the handle at the top.

But how heavy is the Growatt VITA 550? It weighs 17.99lbs (8.16kg). The case of the portable power station is made of plastic and it’s covered by a darker gray matte finish (and a lighter band near the top). I do have the same complaint here that I had with the Allpowers R600 and the S700: it’s not possible to replace the batteries. I don’t deny that they last for a long time, but adding the ability to add new batteries should still limit the amount of e-waste that’s thrown on landfills to a certain extent.

I understand that it may not be as easy as on UPSes, but I am sure the engineers can come up with clever designs to allow it. While the weight of the device is enough to keep it steady into place, the manufacturer has also attached four large silicone feet at the bottom, so no, the power station will not budge an inch regardless of the amount of cables that are connected. I have looked around the case to search for any ventilation holes and it seems that there are only two, one on the left and one on the right side of the case. If you look closely, you should see a fan which pushes the air out, while on the other side, there’s the air inlet section.

This small fan immediately started after I connected the Growatt VITA 550 to a power source and it will remain operational for the entire time the batteries are recharging. And yes, it’s fairly loud for the entire duration. The top of the unit is home to the wireless charger, a feature that seems to now be common on portable power station (I’ve seen it on the R600 as well). Of course, the wireless charger is turned off by default, but it will be enabled after pressing the DC Power button.

The maximum that this charger can reach is 15W, but, since Apple is being Apple, if you want to recharge an iPhone, the output will be limited to 8W. On the right side of the Growatt VITA 550, you will notice that there is a cover which, when removed, it will expose the AC in port, a Fast Charging Power indicator and a solar charging port. I really liked that the manufacturer has included a MC4 to XT60 solar panel charging cable into the box, so you only need the panels and you’re good to go.

The aforementioned indicator is also a button which you need to press in order to enable the AC fast charging feature, otherwise, it’s going to recharge slower. The front panel is the main area of interest and I like that the layout is well thought-out, each section having a particular type of ports. There’s an LED display in the middle of the top half of the front panel, and there’s an ON/Off button underneath it. To the right, there’s a car outlet, as well as two DC 5521 outlets, while immediately underneath, there’s the DC button.

This button will also enable the wireless charger, but don’t forget that the USB ports are also DC, so enabling them will turn on the wireless charger as well. It’s also worth mentioning that there is a fairly long (5-foot) car cable in the box. On the left side of the display, there is a flashlight (it does have a flashing light pattern besides the static white light). Underneath the flashlight, there’s the USB ports area: two regular USB-A ports (12W max), one fast charge USB-A port (19W max) and a USB-C port that can go up to 100W.

To the right, there’s the WiFi button (to enable it) and the AC receptacles. Depending on the area you purchase the Growatt VITA 550, you may get three receptacles (US) or two of them (EU). Unlike the car outlet, there is no cover over the AC outlets.

The Display

The display is not really incredibly big (about the same size as on the R600), but it does show all the necessary info with large icons that are easy to understand. The display is colored and it does have a backlight, but, to preserve battery life, it does turn off after a few seconds. You can re-enable it by short pressing the Power button. After a few minutes have passed and no device is connected to the Growatt VITA 550 (or doesn’t draw power from it), then the portable power station will enter in hibernation mode.

To return it to normal mode, long press the Power button. By default, the display will show the amount of battery life that’s available (0 to 100%), while the Input power is displayed on the left (in Watts) and the Output power will be shown on the right side (also in W).

On the lower right corner, you can see how many hours of power are left. If you enable the AC Power block, then the display will show the Voltage and the Hz. Also, when charging up, you will see the remaining time on the bottom left corner (until it reaches 100%). After pressing the WiFi button, I saw that the Growatt VITA 550 also supports Bluetooth (the WiFi and Bluetooth icons will appear on the screen) and, depending on the type of device that’s being charged (or charging the power station), various icons will appear at the top left and right corner of the display.

Unlike some Allpowers power stations, it does seem we get pretty much the full experience without needing to rely on the app, but even so, let’s see what it has to offer.

The Mobile Application

The app that needs to be downloaded is called myGro (available for both iOS and Android) and, after installing it, the app requested that the user agrees with the Agreement and the Privacy Policy. The latter shows what data is being collected and from what I could gather, it seems to be the smartphone log, the WiFi collector config log, various info about the identity of your device (smartphone) and some more. This data can be shared with Growatt associates, as stated in the policy.

Next, I could create an account (possible with an email or phone number). Well, could is a big word because things got very weird from this point forward. I first entered a complicated password with symbols and numbers and it seemed to have been accepted by the servers. But, after trying to log in, the password was wrong – impossible since I use Bitwarden.. Anyway, I decided to change the password and I got ‘Network error, please check network and try again’. What does that even mean?! We haven’t yet entered any network credentials.

I also tried third-party login and after getting all the data, it said Logging in, only to show the Registration page again. What is going on? And that’s when it occurred to me that I was using an iPhone, so let’s see if Android yields better results. What do you know, it worked.. So, despite the supposed support for iOS, you cannot create an account or change the password on iOS. With that out of the way, I finally got to the pairing process – and I could either use WiFi or Bluetooth.

I chose the former and then I could select the VITA 550 from the list; afterwards, it asked for the WiFi credentials (supports only 2.4GHz) and I finally gained access to the user interface. There are two main sections, Input and Output. The Input section does show a bit more info than what we get on the display, such as the temperature and the Solar/Car Charge, while the Output section allows the adjustment of the flashlight (the brightness), it can enable the AC and/or the DC blocks.

And you do get to see a live graph of the performance of the Growatt VITA 550. There are a few extra Settings which you can access by tapping on the cogwheel icon and here you can set a Discharge limit (to increase the longevity of the battery), set the Temperature Unit and it’s here where you can set the Charge Mode (Super or Slow). It’s possible to set a time limit for when the AC will enter in timeout mode, same as the Screen.

What’s inside the Growatt VITA 550?

The Growatt VITA 550 has a FCC ID page, so I didn’t really have to open the device myself and, from the photos that were uploaded, we can see the three-coil wireless charger, so you get more flexibility in terms of the area where the smartphone needs to be placed. Underneath it, there’s the main PCB with all its main components. I could identify the ESPRESSIF ESP32-C3 Bluetooth WiFi antenna. Beneath this board, there’s the PCB with the inverter circuitry.

Further down, we finally can reach the section with the batteries and we are dealing with multiple cells – there seem to be 28 in total. I kind of get why you can’t replace them easily, but I guess the manufacturers could make a removable block of cells, allowing the user to continue using the Growatt VITA 550 even after the cycle of the initial batch has ended.

The Growatt VITA 550 in action

The first thing that I did after taking the Growatt VITA 550 from the package was to charge it up to 100%. It took about an hour and a half to go from 35% to 100%, which makes sense considering that I did not enable the Fast Charging option (no reason to put any strain on the batteries yet). Then, I decided to check out if the device can handle a couple of my tools.

The first one is a 400W Black and Decker drill and it did work most of the time, but I did experience an error at some point, the screen showing F01. The manual says that this means there was an output short circuit. The good news is that it cleared after I reconnected the drill which, by the way, required about 242W when not pushed to the max. In this state, the Growatt VITA 550 would have handled it for almost two hours which is not bad at all.

Moving forward, I connected a 900W Dewalt angle grinder and the portable power station handled it without problems. The displayed showed that the average power that it drew was 390W (it can go higher) and, if kept in this state, the Growatt VITA 550 would keep the angle grinder functional for a bit over an hour. Afterwards, I connected a Desktop PC which requires only about 60W to run Linux and we see that the power station could keep this device alive for close to 5 hours which is impressive. The interesting thing is that the fan started up, but only on its lowest setting (barely audible).

I wanted to see if the DC and AC outlets manage to offer the output that’s promised by the manufacturer, so I used the Kaiweets KM601 multimeter to first check the two AC receptacles. Since the unit that I have is built for EU standards, there are only two outlets available and, while the screen said that the output is 230V, 50Hz, the multimeter showed 231.5V and 50Hz.

Next, I enabled the Car outlet DC power block and, as you can see, the multimeter showed an output of 13.15V for the car outlet and the two DC5521 outlets. The target is 12V, so there is a mild deviation, although not enough to mess with any connected electronics.

Now let’s move to the USB ports. To check their output, I used two separate types of multimeters. The USB-C port can reach up to 100W, but I do not have a device that will require such a high input. I can only connect the 13-inch MacBook Pro that I used when testing GaN chargers. I used a Thunderbolt 3 cable and it seems that it’s not supported (in hindsight, it does make sense), so I had to use a regular USB-C cable to power up the MacBook Pro.

As you can see, both the multimeter and the display show an average of 57W and the voltage is 19.91V which is very close to ideal. The two USB-A ports are said to be able to reach up to 12W and it’s true as you can see from the photos that it did reach 11.8W (5.14V). But I couldn’t properly check the Fast Charge USB-A port because the multimeter was limited at 5V (the port can go up to 9V and even 12V).

Now let’s talk a bit about the protection features that the Growatt VITA 550 has put into place. There’s over charging and over discharging protection, there’s over and under temperature protection, as well as protection against under and over voltage. Additionally, we already saw the short circuit protection in action and there is also overload protection. Lastly, it’s worth mentioning that the Growatt VITA 550 can be used as an UPS.

The Conclusion

The Growatt VITA 550 seems to have everything that’s necessary to be an appealing option for the people that want to have a short trip in nature, but still need some way to keep their devices powered up. The output for the USB ports and the outlets is within norm and there is a fairly wide variety of ports to choose from. The device is not really lightweight, but it does have a handle for moving around. And it’s possible to charge up the station quickly enough either from a wall outlet or using solar panels (all the needed cables are in the package). So, if you’re in the market for an entry-level power station, look no farther than the Growatt VITA 550.

Mark B

Mark is a graduate in Computer Science, having gathered valuable experience over the years working in IT as a programmer. Mark is also the main tech writer for MBReviews.com, covering not only his passion, the networking devices, but also other cool electronic gadgets that you may find useful for your every day life.

www.mbreviews.com

Well, a couple of them actually. While the global tablet market is stagnating and perhaps even actually shrinking, that’s not really the case in China, where the users always preferred bigger screens (the reason why your phone is also bigger than you may be comfortable with).

And the second reason is that Google has finally focused a bit more towards the larger-screen format over the last year, so there should be a heightened interest from the users, now that the iPad may get some competition. I have tested a few AGM smartphones and they’re flashy and unapologetically rugged, but that’s not really the case with the AGM Pad P1. No, we’re dealing with a 10-inch tablet that has a simple, minimalist design and you wouldn’t even guess that it’s IP68 and IP69K rated. Does that make it rugged?

Kind of, because I am not convinced that the device will survive tumbles on the floor or any other serious mechanical shock, but AGM has added a silicone case to offer additional protection. So, it’s pretty much fair to say that AGM went after Samsung’s reign in this market (with its Active series) and considering the price tag, it may actually pull it off. I know that everyone has their own expectations from a rugged tablet, so let’s put the AGM Pad P1 to the test and see what it can offer.

The Design and Build Quality

I admit that I expected a Transformers-style tablet considering that it comes from AGM, but the Pad P1 went for a more elegant look, sporting an aluminum case and that includes the frame as well which seems a bit thicker than the rear panel. I do need to mention that there is a portion where the frame is made of plastic and it’s where you can find the microSD/SIM tray – yes, it’s protected by a silicone cover.

I think that the reason behind this decision is not that they ran out of metal, but to allow the wireless signal to go through the case. Next to the SIM tray, there is a microphone and it seems to be the only one that AGM has included. The rear panel is covered by a gray matte finish and there isn’t much going on here if we ignore the prominent bump for the rear camera. Indeed, the AGM Pad P1 has added the 8-megapixel rear camera and the LED flash light within a rectangular protrusion.

And yes, the developers did add chrome and other design elements to make it look good, but the tablet won’t stay properly on the table unless you use a protective case. The good news is that we do get one already installed on the AGM Pad P1 and it has a transparent rear side, while the top is matte dark gray. This case does ensure that the camera section is protected against mechanical shocks, so it’s advisable to keep it on. And don’t worry about the size since it doesn’t really add that much.

Speaking of size, the AGM Pad P1 does measure 9.8 x 6.3 x 0.3 inches (25.0 x 16.0 x 0.9cm), so it’s not really larger than the regular Samsung Tab A 10-inch series and the tablet weighs 1.1lbs (470g), so it’s fairly lightweight. In contrast with the Samsung Active tablet series, the AGM Pad P1 does look and feels more like a regular tablet – no large silicone frame o strange rear design patterns. As for buttons, the Pad P1 has a volume rocker and a Power button at the top which can be a bit unintuitive if you’re familiar with smartphone (and you most likely are), but it’s not a deal breaker – both buttons are metallic.

And there are two speaker grills, one to the left and the other to the right – they’re located on the frame, so if you decide not to use the default protective case, make sure that it doesn’t cover them to get a good sound experience. Lastly, I should mention the USB-C and 3.5mm jack port which are both covered under the same silicone cover. And it’s nice to see that the manufacturers haven’t given up on actual proper headphones and that they do respect the USB-C standard since I have seen a weird trend of returning to microUSB on some cameras (hopefully, it doesn’t stick).

What I didn’t see on the AGM Pad P1 is a fingerprint sensor, so you can access the display either via a PIN or by letting the camera scan your face.

How rugged is the AGM Pad P1?

AGM has advertised the Pad P1 as a rugged tablet, but how rugged is it actually? As I mentioned in the intro, the AGM Pad P1 is IP68-rated, as well as IP69K-rated and what this means is that the tablet is pretty much dust-proof and that it will survive continuous submersion under water for prolonged periods of time. So it’s pretty much waterproof and I wouldn’t worry using the AGM Pad P1 in a very humid environment (it will also experience no damage when it’s raining).

The speakers will not allow water or dust to enter the enclosure and the ports are protected by silicone covers, just make sure to properly close them after use. Now let’s talk about the resistance to shocks. The display is big, but it doesn’t seem to have Gorilla Glass protection or any other alternative, so yes, this is a vulnerable spot. The way AGM wants to fix it is by making the silicone case mandatory.

The case has prominent corners to protect the device if it’s falling and the screen is protected by the folding portion of the protective case. I would have liked to see some MIL-STD test being passed, which would have suggested that the AGM Pad P1 can be confidently used in a place with corrosive elements or any other harsh industrial environments. But, at the moment, it will work great with the general elements and nothing more.

The Display

The AGM Pad P1 is equipped with a 10.36-inch LCD display that has a resolution of 1,200 x 2,000 pixels and the pixel density is 300ppi. And the funny thing is that there are more pixels than on the Tab Active4 – you may think that Samsung would add AMOLED on its expensive tablet, but no, it’s TFT LCD, so yes, the AGM Pad P1 can definitely hold its ground against it. But there is a catch, the brightness. The Tab Active4 Pro prides itself with more than 480 nits, while the AGM Pad P1 goes up to about 300-340 nits. So, while more than enough indoors and with some shade, it may not be that great if it’s very bright outdoors.

The screen is also quite a bit reflective, so keep that in mind as well. The bezels are noticeable (quite similar to what you get on the Samsung Tab A series), but considering that the Pad P1 is advertised as a rugged tablet, they’re actually some of the less prominent in this market. Now let’s talk about colors. The display is able to offer fairly accurate colors and I had no issue when watching videos and movies – everything was detailed and nicely reproduced. The blacks can get surprisingly deep and the white is decent, although with a very slight tint of blue.

The viewing angle is good and the refresh rate of the display is 60Hz which I suppose it was to be expected considering the price tag of the tablet. And I do look forward to when the manufacturers are able to add 120Hz+ panels even on budget tablets and phones.

The Internal Hardware and Performance

The AGM Pad P1 relies on an octa-core MT8781(Helio G99) SoC – dual-core ARM Cortex-A76 CPU clocked at 2.2GHz and a 6-core ARM Cortex-A55 CPU clocked at 2.0GHz. Additionally, the tablet uses a Mali-G57 MC2 GPU, 8GB of RAM and it does have an inner 256GB flash storage; you are able to add a microSD card with a capacity of up to 2TB, which is plenty for this type of device.

The Helio series is not as great as the Dimensity series, but it still is fairly energy efficient and should be able to handle most tasks decently well, but let’s not dabble in specs and see some results from the synthetic benchmarks. The first results come from Geekbench 6 and, as you can see, we got 731 for the single-core CPU test and 2,043 for the multi-core CPU test. The single-core score puts the AGM Pad P1 next to the Xiaomi Poco M2 Pro and the Realme 7 Pro, while the multi-core score puts it next to the Galaxy Note10 5G.

I had to run the GPU test as well and the result was 1279 (OpenCL score) which puts the AGM Pad P1 above the Razer phone, but below the Huawei Nova 5T. This shows that the processing power is decent, suitable for an entry-level to mid-range tablet, but the GPU performance may be a bit less than expected, so let’s run the GFXBench tests to get a better idea about the graphics performance.

The Low-Level Tests were no match for the AGM Pad P1 and the 1080p, as well as the 1098p tests were passed decently well (with good FPS), but it is worth noting that the 1080p Aztec Ruins Vulkan Normal and High Tier tests results weren’t that impressive.

As a comparison, the Pad P1 seems to be positioned very near the NVIDIA Shield tablet in terms of performance. Lastly, I had to run some 3DMark benchmark tests, the Slingshot normal and extreme versions in particular. Running the regular version of the test showed a score of 3481 which seems to put the AGM Pad P1 near the Apple iPhone 12 Pro Max. The Slingshot Extreme test showed a score of 2594 which puts the Pad P1 tablet next to the Realme X7 Pro.

The synthetic tests do paint a fairly accurate picture about what to expect from the rugged tablet, but let’s play some actual games and see how the device performs. The first one is Asphalt 9, a mobile game that pretty much plays itself. And it ran without any issues, same as other mobile games like Genshin Impact. Since I am not a fan of mobile gaming, I usually end up just using Steam Link to play the games from my computer, so was the AGM Pad P1 able to handle AC Odyssey? As you can see from the video, the mirroring worked perfectly fine, but I do advice that you use a controller because the game will not play that well with touch-sensitive commands.

The Software and Support

The AGM Pad P1 comes with Android 13 out-of-the-box, so we pretty much get the latest available version, but will the tablet see any future Android upgrades? It’s difficult to say right especially since the manufacturer has not made any remarks in this regard yet. I know that AGM doesn’t upgrade its rugged smartphones line to newer Android versions at all, so maybe they’ll have a change of heart with the tablet series? Probably not, but it’s just supposition at this point in time.

Now, let’s talk about bloatware. The AGM G2 Guardian, the H5 Pro and the Glory Pro, all came with pretty much a stock version of Android. There was very little proprietary apps, such as the IR camera which was a necessity, so it can’t be considered bloatware. Checking the GUI of the AGM Pad P1, I could see the Find my Phone app, the usual Google bloatware (not AGM’s fault) including the Kids Space (?) and the Personal Safety app.

Perhaps the only proprietary app is the AGM Mobile which helps you contact the manufacturer in case of problems. Aside from that, I really liked the night mode on this tablet and the possibility to adjust the icons to fit with the darker background (it’s in Beta, but it’s a step in the right direction).

The Cameras

The tablets have never been good for photo shooting or video recording and even the more expensive options lacked in this department when compared to the smartphones (not even the iPads have good cameras). Are there people that still insist capturing photos with their tablet? Yes. Should they? Not unless they really have no choice. That being said, the AGM Pad P1 is not going to change my opinion on the tablet camera performance.

We are dealing with an 8-megapixel rear camera with auto-focus and it will do great at capturing documents (as long as there’s good lighting), but I would suggest to get a dedicated better shooter for anything else.

During the day, when there were no compromises in terms of light, the photos were still grainy and not really that detailed. The colors were kind of washed out and the leaves were not very clearly defined. What I did like was that the sky was not overblown and I did try capturing some close-up shots of some leaves, but I had some trouble properly focusing on the subject. The 5-megapixel front-shooter is not that much better, but I suppose it will work fine for conference calls.

The Call Quality and Connectivity

The AGM Pad P1 does allow you to insert a SIM card, so the tablet can work as a sort of alternative to a smartphone. I say sort of because I see this addition more as an alternative to the local WiFi connection. When you’re outdoors, it may be counter-intuitive to rely on the phone as a hotspot and just have the tablet connect to the 3G/4G network by itself. Certainly, you can take calls using the AGM Pad P1, but all will be on the speaker.

And the dual-speaker system works decently well, the sound being fairly clear and loud, but as for the microphone, you will need to be near the tablet and it should be quiet around you to have a proper conversation with the person on the other end of the call. Then again, Bluetooth is supported and you can always just use TWS earbuds as an alternative. As for WiFi, the tablet will connect to both 2.4GHz and 5GHz network (802.11ac supported).

The Battery Life

The rugged tablet has a 7,000mAh battery, same as the AGM G2 Guardian and the manufacturer says that it should last for a long time. But we need a specific number, so I checked it out during the last week of testing and while I was running the stress benchmark, the battery would drop by 20% every hour of use. If you’re playing games, the tablet will need to recharged after about 4-5 hours. If you’re using the tablet for occasional browsing, some YouTube watching and other more work-related tasks, I think that 8 hours is a realistic battery life. There is more because the AGM Pad P1 supports 18W fast charging and the manufacturer did include a charging brick into the package, as well as a USB-C to USB-A cable.

The Conclusion

The AGM Pad P1 is advertised as a rugged tablet, but I think it caters to a broader demographic as well. Sure, we do get dust and water protection, and the protective case ensure that the tablet will not get damaged from mechanical shocks. But it doesn’t have a toy-like design that other rugged tablets do, so, considering the price tag, I do see it working well enough in other situations where the elements are not as challenging. Still, if you do need to rely on a tablet when working outdoors, the SIM card will ensure a good WiFi connection and the device should survive most outdoor conditions.

Mark B

Mark is a graduate in Computer Science, having gathered valuable experience over the years working in IT as a programmer. Mark is also the main tech writer for MBReviews.com, covering not only his passion, the networking devices, but also other cool electronic gadgets that you may find useful for your every day life.

www.mbreviews.com

I say that because the focus was towards creating a silent typing experience which is accomplished using Kailh Midnight switches and a generous amount of foaming inside the case. Additionally, the keyboard was designed to survive accidental spills, sporting the IPX4 rating, a rarity in the price range of the Kensington MK7500F QuietType Pro. And there is more because the keyboard has also passed the MIL-STD-810H Method 504.3 test which states that it should suffer no visual degradation due to constant use of disinfectants.

So, overall, it’s a durable, silent mechanical keyboard, so why not market it for gaming as well? There is absolutely no reason why gamers wouldn’t be able to use the Kensington MK7500F, especially new parents that don’t want to disturb their children. And, while there is no RGB, Kensington did include a white backlight that shines from underneath the keys, so you can see them during the night.

What will office workers appreciate far more than gamers is the extra keys which are added besides the keyboard being full-size. There are four keys for call and video control, very useful for conferences. And let’s not forget that the Kensington MK7500F can connect wirelessly to the PC (not only via cable), so it does have a long-lasting battery built into the case. That being said, let’s check out the Kensington MK7500F and see if it’s a worthy purchase.

The Design and Build Quality

The Kensington MK7500F is a full-size mechanical keyboard with a few extra keys, so it does have a fairly large footprint. It measures 19.13 x 10.55 x 1.96 inches (or 48.6 x 26.8 x 5.0cm), so it will occupy some space from the desk, although it’s a minor compromise to make considering the variety of keys that’s offered. Indeed, there’s the NumPad available along with some Shortcut keys above (Calculator, Search Desktop and Screenshot), as well as some Meeting controls that sit above the ESC and function keys.

These keys are programmable, but their default functions are the following: Mute, Camera, Answer Call and End Call. There is also a battery LED which isn’t the most accurate since it will be green as long as the charge is above 15% and will become red as soon as it drops below that value. The key blocks are divided by a metallic plate which stretches across the entire top surface of the keyboard, while everything underneath it is made of plastic. Does that have an impact on the sturdiness of the Kensington MK7500F.

Absolutely not, the board is solid and won’t bend no matter how much pressure you put on it (by hand, obviously). I did like that the keyboard came with a protective silicone layer, but I was a bit surprised to see that there was no key remover tool which is usually found in the box of mechanical keyboards. And I think it’s because Kensington discourages you do to so. I have removed the cap from one of the keys and I saw that there was a sort of protective cover made of transparent plastic that prevents you from taking out the switches. This has to be the layer of protection against the water spills and it will definitely work, trapping the liquid and preventing it from reaching the PCB.

This doesn’t mean that you can’t change the switches, it’s just you’re going to have to completely disassemble the keyboard to do so – also, you need to prepare a soldering iron. I have mentioned that the Kensington MK7500F QuietType Pro can connect to a computer in multiple ways. You can connect it using the provided USB-C to USB-A cable and I noticed that using a different type of cable may not always get a good contact with the port from the keyboard.

It’s worth mentioning that the USB-C port is hidden by a protective cover. Moving the switch from the left side of the keyboard will enable the WiFi mode where you need to rely on the provided USB receiver – it does support 2.4GHz and it does have a dedicated space on the bottom, so you don’t lose it. The third connection type is via Bluetooth and the Kensington MK7500F QuietType Pro supports the version 5.0, so the range is up to 30 feet with some walls in between the PC and the keyboard.

Not that you’ll type that far from your monitor. I should also mention the very comfortable wrist pad (it’s soft and squishy) as well as the option to elevate the keyboard at two different angles.

What’s inside the Kensington MK7500F QuietType Pro?

The keyboard is very well done and the sound dampening pad has really peaked my interest, so I decided to open up the keyboard to see how it works and whether there is room for improvement. There are lots of screws on the rear side of the Kensington MK7500F that are hidden by silicone covers and four of them sit underneath the silicone feet, so those need to be removed as well. Then, I had to take a prying tool and carefully detach the plastic bottom part, revealing a sound dampening foam.

Can it be replaced for a thicker one? Sure, you can cut one or two dB from the typing sound if that’s what you want, but know that the existing foam is already fairly thick. Then, I could see the PCB with the battery attached to it using a plastic bracket. We’re dealing with a 4,000mAh 14.8Wh TE-PL5050110 battery and its connector needs to be detached before we can proceed with the teardown.

Then, after taking a few screws out, I managed to remove the top metallic plate and get a good view on the silicone cover that has a double role. It’s for extra sound dampening and for ensuring that water and other liquids won’t reach the PCB. I have seen that Kensington has added a few canals to guide the liquids out which is excellent design. Next, I removed a portion of the silicone cover (as you can see from the photo) so I could take out the Kailh switch, but unfortunately I could not.

The switch is soldered to the motherboard and I am not sure why they decided this to be a good idea since I can’t see how it would have had an impact on the spill-proof design if the switches remained swappable. So, if you intended to upgrade the keyboard, you need to take out the soldering iron which is not something that the regular user wants or likes to do.

Yes, I know, the keyboard enthusiasts are not really the targeted demographic, but it’s a nice keyboard, so why not still offer this option? Lastly, I need to mention that between the PCB and the top side of the switch there is an extra layer of silicone for extra-extra sound dampening and protection.

The Kailh Midnight Pro Silent Tactile Switches

The Kailh switches installed in the Kensington MK7500F QuietType Pro come factory pre-lubed, have a muffler pad positioned at the bottom of the base of the switch and they rely on what’s called the 5-pin scheme for better stability. The operation force is 45+-10 gf, the pre-travel is 1.9+-0.4mm and the total travel of the switch is 4.0+-0.4mm. I got all that info from Kailh official website, but I can confirm that the switches are way quieter to type on than the Gateron red switches (even the optical ones, as seen on the Tezzare TK63), the Gateron brown switches that I have on my daily driver, a GMMK TKL keyboard or the OUTEMU red switches from the Redragon K656.

The noise difference is night and day, especially on the spacebar, which is usually the loudest key on a keyboard. Also, I could not hear or feel the spring when pressing the keys on the Kensington MK7500F QuietType Pro and what’s interesting is that the manufacturer went with tactile switches and not linear, the latter usually being more quiet. I think that the developers really liked the feel of these switches (and I can’t blame them), so they just did their best at adding every type of sound dampening methods to lower the dB, while not compromising the feel of the switches.

Now let’s talk about the potential to develop key chattering in the future. Pretty much all mechanical keyboard that don’t use optical switches are vulnerable to key chattering at some point. And it really depends on the board and QC, but it’s also a matter of luck since some don’t develop it after a decade of use, while other expensive keyboard get it a few weeks in. So it is possible for the switches on the Kensington MK7500F to develop key chattering in the future which is why the option to swap them out when they do should have been an option. It can still be done, just more difficult.

The Key Caps

The key caps are made of ABS and I do like that they’re soft to the touch and have that depressed shape, so my finger doesn’t slip when typing. Other than that there’s not much else that can be said. You can replace them with other keycaps and I assume some people will do so considering that the LED light doesn’t really shine through the letters.

The Connectivity and Latency

There are three ways to connect the Kensington MK7500F QuietType Pro keyboard to a computer. The first is by using the provided cable (which is 6.5 feet long or 2 meters) and you don’t really have to do much else, it’s a plug and play concept. The latency is, as expected, very low and this is most likely the best way to game using this keyboard. Next, we got the WiFi connection option which relies on a very small receiver and I test stuff all the time, so it’s easy to misplace these tiny devices or just have no idea which is for which device.

So I do appreciate that Kensington has written their logo on the receiver. As for latency, it’s very low, pretty much no perceptible difference when compared to the wired connection. The Bluetooth connection is going to offer a way higher latency than WiFi and especially the cabled connection, so if you intend to use the keyboard for gaming, make sure you use the other two methods instead. For anything else, Bluetooth is fine and I actually saw that the Kensington MK7500F supports multi-device connection, meaning that it can be connected to five devices at the same time (three Bluetooth, one wired and one WiFi) and be able to easily move between them.

The Battery Life

As I mentioned before, in the teardown section, the Kensington MK7500F QuietType Pro has a 4,000mAh battery and that’s a hefty amount considering that we’re dealing with a keyboard. The manufacturer claims that it’s possible to reach up to 90 house with the backlight set to maximum, but, if you’re fine with keeping the LEDs off, then it should be possible to push the battery life to about two weeks and a half. That’s on a single charge. I always keep the backlight on my keyboards on, but not at the highest brightness level, it’s on medium. Doing the same with the Kensington MK7500F QuietType Pro, I got close to 6 days which is a very respectable result.

The Konnect App

The Kensington Konnect is available for both Windows OS and MacOS, and I installed it on a computer that used the former system.

During installation, despite seemingly given the option to install on different available drives, the target drive for the app would not budge from the main drive, so make sure it has enough space for the installation. Then, it is possible to adjust the functions of the eight extra buttons – you can also disable them. The Advanced mode will allow you to change the way the other regular keys function, you can also set shortcuts, set macros and/or create snippets. It’s also possible to set Profiles, as well as assign these changes for specific types of Applications.

The Conclusion

The Kensington MK7500F QuietType Pro is a really well done keyboard and while I wouldn’t call it completely silent, it’s definitely quieter than most other mechanical keyboards (the majority of them are extremely loud). I like the way the keys feel when pressed and I am sure that the people that either work in office or from home will appreciate the fact that it’s full-size and the extra programmable keys. Is it suitable for gamers as well? I don’t see why not, just know that the option for upgrades is very limited.
ee why not, just know that the option for upgrades is very limited.

Mark B

Mark is a graduate in Computer Science, having gathered valuable experience over the years working in IT as a programmer. Mark is also the main tech writer for MBReviews.com, covering not only his passion, the networking devices, but also other cool electronic gadgets that you may find useful for your every day life.

www.mbreviews.com

It’s not that you couldn’t do the same with the other projectors, but the advantage is that you don’t need to rely on a tripod to do so. But, the compact form factor does seem to have come at a cost. No, the price tag is very much in the affordable realm, the cost came at the resolution level.

This is not a 1080p projector, it has a 480p native resolution which is scaled up to cover a maximum of 100 inches of real estate – you can go higher, but then the details will be visibly impacted. Another potential shortcoming can be the 360 LED Lumen, so the NOMVDIC R150 is not really a very bright projector which means that it will require a darker room for a better image quality. Not all is doom and gloom because we do have auto keystone correction and it still blows my mind that this technology manages to be ported at such low price points.

I just hope it has a better implementation than the Formovie Dice. As for autofocus, you will need to do it manually using the front-facing wheel and there is a 4,800mAh battery inside the case to enhance the portability factor of the projector. Overall, it does seem that the NOMVDIC R150 is an honest projector considering its price, so let’s put it to the test and see how it performs.

The Design and Build Quality

The NOMVDIC R150 is without a doubt one of the most portable projectors I have seen on the market so far (raises up to its name – the V is an A upside down, so it’s Nomadic R150). It measures 6.8 x 3.2 x 3.1 inches (17.3 x 8.1 x 8.0cm), so it’s just a short cylinder which will not occupy much space from your backpack.

Hell, the NOMVDIC R150 will most likely fit larger pockets. And it’s not really that heavy either – at 1.6 pounds 720g), the projector seems to be perfectly balanced to not be a burden while being carried around and not feel cheaply built (that premium feel that we think we get from heavier devices). I admit I was accustomed with the rectangular projector, so seeing the Bluetooth speaker-like design was a fairly unique approach, but there is a reason for it beyond just the ‘standing out’ factor. The manufacturer wanted to provide a means for adjusting the angle of the NOMVDIC R150 without having to rely on a stand or on a tripod, as it’s the case with pretty much all other projectors.

This was accomplished by allowing the user to rotate the lens side of the device up to 90 degrees. There is a plastic band that surrounds half the cylindrical case (the larger portion) and a silicone foot on the smaller portion which will make sure to keep it in place. When paired with the automatic keystone adjustment, this system should work really well (we will see in the testing section). If you still wish to use a tripod, there is a metallic mounting hole on the bottom for this reason alone.

The entire case of the NOMVDIC R150 is made of plastic covered by a black matte finish, with the exception of the purple band that goes around the device where it meets the rotating section. The NOMVDIC R150 does have integrated speakers which are customized by Harman Kardon, so the sound quality should be similar to the XGIMI Halo Plus. After opening the device (as you will see in the next section), I noticed that there are two lateral tweeters and one larger speaker pointing upwards (subwoofer?), all on the right side of the projector.

On the left side of the device, there’s the ventilation outlet section which pushes the air out from the inner fan. I didn’t see any other openings with the exception of speaker area, so is that enough to keep the NOMVDIC R150 at a suitable temperature? As all other compact projectors, it will heat up a bit, so I have attached a thermal photo so you get an idea how hot it actually gets.

Where are the ports? If you look closely, you will see that next to the ventilation outlet, there is a silicone cover that can be detached (while ruining your nails), thus exposing the ports area.

Here, you will see the Power switch (red for Off, green for ON) which sits next to the 3.5mm Audio Out jack followed by an HDMI port and a USB-A port as well (5V/2A). The NOMVDIC R150 also has a USB-C port that can be used for both powering the projector (recharging the battery) and for video input. Lastly, there’s a Power port and I have to say that I am impressed that the engineers were able to cram everything in such a small area.

At the top if the device, there’s the controls section where there are three touch-sensitive buttons: two for volume control and one for Play/Pause. Next to them, there are five LEDs which light up to show the battery status of the projector (one for each 20%). I also need to mention the front-facing manual focus adjustment ring and next, to the lens, there’s a sensor to communicate with the remote control – the auto keystone correction doesn’t seem to use a ToF sensor or a dedicated camera, so I am even more curious to see it in action.

NOMVDIC R150 Teardown

I am not a fan of opening up projectors, as I said many times, but the NOMVDIC R150 did not have an FCC ID page with internal photos, so I had to take out the tools and see what makes the device tick. First, I had to detach the left and right side circular covers with a prying tool (there are two screws on the ports section that had to be removed), then I could simply slide the plastic shells from both sides. At this point it’s just a matter of removing the screws and then detaching a part of the inner plastic case to expose the main PCB.

But be very careful when doing so because there is a very fragile connector that needs to be detached immediately afterwards, before taking out the plastic piece – if you break it, you no longer can control the NOMVDIC R150 from the physical buttons. There is more and this is probably the most important thing to keep in mind. Before detaching the PCB, make sure to detach the connector that’s covered by a silver band – if you don’t it will easily detach itself from the slot, therefore losing the communication with the lens assembly.

In case that happens don’t panic and just detach it from the top, take out the PCB, re-connect it to lens part (on the side) and then back at the top. I am not a fan of how the manufacturer decided to do things, but once I figured out all the ‘little traps’, it’s easy to fix. That being said, I have been able to identify a few components, from which there was the Texas Instruments DLPC3435 0.2″ controller which pushes the native resolution of 480p to a perceptible resolution of 720p or 1080p, the quad-core 1.5GHz Mediatek ARM MT9269EDATAA (A53) processor, the Chrontel CH7217A-8F low-power semiconductor for the USB-C port (translates the signal) and the 16GB of eMMC memory from Samsung (SEC 134 B041 KLMG1JETD).

How does the NOMVDIC R150 achieve 720p and 1080p?

I am familiar with the X300 which offers a native resolution of 1080p, but the NOMVDIC R150 has a native resolution of 480p which is then dithered to either 720p or 1080p. The concept is the same as on the XGIMI Halo Plus and the Formovie Dice, but these two aforementioned projectors used a native 720p resolution chip, so yes, you will have to keep the projected image quite a bit smaller if you don’t want to notice the loss of details.

The throw ratio is about 1.2 (100 inches / 2.6m), but I would go for a smaller projected area if you want to get a detailed image. The DLP technology developed by Texas Instruments and the idea is for the lens to shift half a pitch between pixels, effectively pushing the resolution to 1080p. Well, it’s more of what the human brain sees and it can be tricked into believing that there are more pixels being displayed.

Still, if you ever put the projected image next to a native 1080p image (the NOMVDIC X300 is a good example), you’re going to see the difference. Furthermore, be aware of the rainbow effect which is very common with DLP projectors.

The Remote Control

The remote control that’s provided in the package follows the same minimalist approach as I’ve seen with other projectors, so it should be easy to navigate the software. But be aware that it’s not Android TV. That being said, the remote does Bluetooth to communicate with the NOMVDIC R150 and there is also a bigger coverage for communicating with the projector. I should also mention that the manufacturer has made available the NOMVDIC Remote Control App, which allows users to control the projector using their smartphones. This app can be used as a remote control or a mouse to navigate in certain apps like Netflix.

At the top, there’s the Power button and the status LED, while underneath, there’s the Settings and there’s also the Focus button which has its function disabled (the same remote is being used by the X300, where this function is enabled). Further down, there’s the D-Pad and it could have been a decent one if it wasn’t for the V in the middle. I get it, it’s your brand and all but the circular OK button is better to press and operate, not the V-shaped one (just add the logo and call it a day). Underneath the D-Pad, there’s the Return and Home pair of button, followed by the volume controls, as well as the Play and Mute buttons.

The Installation and Software Experience

I did like that the NOMVDIC has a power switch, so you don’t accidentally turn the projector on while it’s in your bag, and yes, you do need to flip the switch to On before anything else. Then, you can use the remote to start the installation wizard. It will require that you pair the remote to the projector using a preset combination of buttons, then the language and it will also ask to be connected to a WiFi network – it will work with 2.4GHz and 5GHz (802.11ac).

Afterwards, the OS let me know that there was a firmware available and, after the installation has been completed, I had to redo the previous steps (it only remembered the WiFi credentials). That’s about it, it doesn’t seem to collect any data or at least it doesn’t ask for permission to do so and yes, this is a proprietary OS, it’s not Android TV. It’s always nice to see a different approach, but is it just as good? It’s definitely different and doesn’t throw apps and movies in your face as Android does.

Instead, you get to choose from a horizontal menu between the video Source, the App Center, Settings, Mirroring and Bluetooth. There’s also a File Management where you can navigate the eMMC as you can when connecting an Android phone to your PC. You can also add as many apps as you want, besides the default ones. So let’s head over to the App Center. I suppose I expected the Play Store, but no, it’s a very curated list of compatible apps and while there are some important ones, a few are missing.

I could immediately see Netflix which seems to be a rarity (XGIMI and Formovie had issues adding it), there’s TED Talk, KODI, MXPlayer and YouTube TV. This last app take the place of the default YouTube app. These are from the Recommended list, but there are a few more such as Twitch, Disney and Nick Jr. There’s also Spotify and even Napster, and I also saw Chrome and VLC Media Player. But Prime was missing, which is a bit of a letdown. I also saw a bug (or weird feature, no idea) – if I moved too quickly between apps, it would automatically scroll the left menu instead.

Before moving forward, I do need to mention that the movement between apps is very smooth and I experienced no freezes or stutters skipping forward during a movie or a YouTube video, so the OS is well optimized.

The Automatic Adjustments

The NOMVDIC R150 only offers one type of automatic adjustment and it’s about the keystone correction. So yes, there is no autofocus and you will have to use the wheel next to the lens to adjust it manually. It’s fairly smooth and easy to get right quickly, but you still need to do this every time the position of the projector changes. Which is often because it’s an ultra-portable device.

Now let’s talk about the auto keystone adjustments. In order to better understand where I am coming from, I first got to experience this feature on the XGIMI Horizon Pro and Halo Plus, and the way it worked was that it would micromanage every angle change ensuring that the projected image was always properly squared (as algorithmically possible). This is not at all the case with the NOMVDIC R150 and it has pretty much the same behavior as the Formovie Dice.

Some adjustments can be seen in action (I added a video to showcase how they work), but the projector is not able to produce a perfectly centered image, so you will have to adjust it manually probably 100% of cases. And I have the same complaint as with the Dice – just add a shortcut on the remote if the auto keystone correction behaves in this manner, it’s just easier for the user. I don’t know, at this point, I think that mild and full auto keystone correction should be terms to differentiate between what the device is actually able to do. The manufacturer has clarified that we are dealing with a vertical-only auto keystone correction, so I hope that they will make it more clear on their official website as well.

Manually adjusting the keystones is a bit weird if you use only the two-axis – weird because the background is black and I could not see what I was doing, but the four-axis adjustment is well done. Can the NOMVDIC R150 fine tune this feature from the software? I don’t think so because the hardware doesn’t seem to be there to allow it.

The Image Quality

As with the other projectors that I tested over the years, the first thing that I do is to check the color uniformity and to do so, I displayed some shades and colors from a USB drive. The first shade was white which, besides the uniformity, will also give us an idea about how bright the projected image can actually be. As you can see from the photos, the 360 LED Lumen seems to be enough for a dark room, but it’s noticeably less bright than on other projectors. Also know that LED lumen is not the same as ANSI lumen – I think that after the conversion, it should be roughly 150 ANSI lumen.

Still, the white was fairly uniform and perhaps it gets slightly bit darker at the corners. Next, I projected the black image and again, only on the corners (the left side), the image seems to be slightly darker, while the rest is fairly uniform. Furthermore, I projected the red, green and blue images, and they were very well reproduced – none of the aforementioned darker shades could be seen with these colors.

Next, I played a high-res video from YouTube (it’s this video) and I checked how detailed it looked and if the rainbow effect was visible. I could immediately tell that the image was less crisp than on other 1080p projectors, even the non-native ones, but which used a 0.33″ DLP chip. This was to be expected and fairly in line with the price range of the projector. Even so, it’s not a bad experience.

The colors remain vivid and the rainbow effect is barely there, but yes, if you get close to the projected image, you’re going to see it getting a bit blurry. To counteract it, you should keep a smaller projected view and stay a bit farther away – not ideal, but will help.

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Mark B

Mark is a graduate in Computer Science, having gathered valuable experience over the years working in IT as a programmer. Mark is also the main tech writer for MBReviews.com, covering not only his passion, the networking devices, but also other cool electronic gadgets that you may find useful for your every day life.

www.mbreviews.com

Apparently, gamepads with analogues sticks sell just as well and are cheaper to produce, so we basically ran around in circles, finally reaching the point where inexpensive controllers would use this cool technology, which is not new by any means. But, If you’re not familiar with this technology, know that it fixes what’s being known as joystick drift that happens after the stick becomes old and/or worn off (the potentiometers, to be exact), introducing random sudden actions.

The character may suddenly move on its own or some random action may occur, and there is little you can do besides replacing the controller. That’s why it’s exciting to see that GameSir has equipped the T4 Kaleid with this time proven technology. At the same time, the developers did set a high bar with the G7, so how does the GameSir T4 Kaleid function as a controller?

It does have a similar look and layout, so I assume some of the finesse has been ported to the more budget-friendly model as well. But it also has a very distinct element, the design. The GameSir T4 Kaleid went with a transparent case (not like the T4 Pro, but fully see-through) and there are some cool-looking RGB effects, so let’s put the gaming controller to the test and see how it performs.

Design and Build Quality

The GameSir T4 Kaleid has pretty much the same general layout as the other gaming controllers, but there are subtle differences with each new device. Either the joystick is a bit higher or it’s slightly closer to the D-Pad and the ABXY buttons, but the general feel is very similar across all the versions of the GameSir controllers. I did mention that in the intro that the G7 is very hard to beat, but I don’t think that the T4 Kailed was meant to top that experience.

Instead, the manufacturer improved the T series and tried some new things which, if successful, they will be ported to the top-of-the-line G series as well. So, while the GameSir T4 Kaleid may not be as good as the G7, it is way better than the T4 Pro that I tested more than a couple of years ago. The shape of the case is pretty much the same, which means that the handles are shorter and a bit thinner (than on the G7 and G4 Pro). That grippiness that a lot of you seem to appreciate is also toned down to just some texture on the plastic, so no rubber.

Then again, some make the argument on whether the gamers casually drop the controller when it’s not ‘grippy’ enough, and obviously that’s not the case, it’s just about the feel in the hand. Don’t get me wrong, the GameSir T4 Kaleid feels comfortable enough, and if you have long fingers (as I do), then the access to the shoulder buttons may even be better due to the extra inches – the controls section of the G4 Pro is narrower than on both the T4 Pro and the T4 Kaleid.

One important change from the T4 Pro is the addition of a 3.5mm headphones jack in between the handles, while the USB-C port sits on the other side. Yes, the gaming controller is wired only, which will do wonders for latency, but it will be less comfortable to play farther away from the TV (or monitor) – the cable is fairly long, measuring 6.5 feet (2 meters). Another important difference from pretty much all other GameSir controllers is the use of a completely transparent top, while the bottom section has been left semi-transparent.

This create a very cool effect, since you can see most of the inner components, but everything is enhanced by the RGB lights which shine from the sides in various patterns.

The GameSir T4 Kaleid Keys and Buttons

Let’s get one thing straight, is the GameSir T4 Kaleid just a transparent version of the T4 Pro? Besides the Hall effect sensing sticks, the controls are also mostly improved, so not really.

The thumbsticks are pretty much identical to the ones on the G7 which means that they’re more responsive, easier to move and the texture at the top is just perfect for a good thumb grip. That clank sound when moving the thumbsticks onto the plastic is louder than on other gaming controllers, but I don’t think many people will mind it. I think that the D-Pad is the weakness of the GameSir T4 Kailed since it feels vague and you have to press harder to feel the click – I think it was better on the T4 Pro.

The ABXY buttons are non removable, but that doesn’t mean you can’t change their behavior. Indeed, by pressing the M button and A at the same time, the A-B and X-Y can be inter-changed, allowing you to use a different console layout. And the buttons themselves feel really good to the touch, despite being glossy, and they’re very easy to press (fairly balanced actuation), so that’s a plus.
As expected, the rest of the buttons are positioned in a new way, unlike any other previous controller gen. The middle GameSir button will take you Home, while on the left, there’s the Back button and the Start button on the right side.

If you look closely, you’ll see the icons written next to the buttons, but they’re gray and barely visible (I guess that a different color would have taken away from the design of the controller). Below the Home button, there’s the Capture button which is a dedicated function for the Switch mode (the device is multi-platform after all) and next to the headphone jack, there’s the M button. The GameSir T4 Kaleid needs to be set up to work with the suitable console and you can make it work with Android devices (A+Home), with the Nintendo Switch (Y+Home) and it’s also possible to enable the D-Input (B+Home) and the X-Input (X+Home).

Before moving forward, let’s talk about the trigger (shoulder) buttons. The GameSir T4 Kaleid has both the LT/RT and LB/RB sets of shoulder buttons and the feel is very similar to the ones on the G7. Comfortable to reach and operate.
Additionally, on the bottom of the controller, you can find the R4/LR duo of buttons and while I don’t really use them, they’re useful for various types of games. Be aware that these two buttons are programmable and there is no function set by default.

If you don’t like the way the LT/RT and the thumbsticks trigger the action and wish to calibrate them, it is possible to do so by pressing Back+Home+Start while the controller is turned off and, while they’re still held, connect the USB-C cable to a power source. Then, the Home button will start flashing white slowly. Release the buttons and then press A. Press the LT/RT buttons three times to the maximum travel and then rotate the thumb sticks at their maximum angle three times. Press A and the Home button LED should become solid white to show that the calibration has been successful.

The Software

GameSir offers a dedicated software for this particular gaming controller called GameSir T4K App and I downloaded it on the Windows OS. I have already encountered a harmless bug where if I moved away from the app (put it in the background), it would temporarily fail to see the controller, but a few seconds afterwards, it would quickly detect it again. That being said, there is a very large amount of options available, so you can configure the GameSir T4 Kaleid the way you see fit.

But before anything else, make sure to update the device to the latest firmware update. Then, you can create a custom profile and the first window is the Mappings where you can change the behavior of almost all buttons, expect for a couple of them. The second window is the Sticks where you can adjust the sensitivity of each thumbstick, as well as Swap Left Stick and D-pad or enable the D-Pad Diagonal Lock. The third window allows you to configure the Triggers where you can control how sensitive they will behave, including the option to enable Hair Trigger.

Under Vibration, it’s possible to choose between four levels, as well as turn them off completely and you can also Try Grip Vibration. The Lights window is where you can choose the preferred RGB animation, set Presets, select the Speed and Brightness or disable RGB completely (if you don’t care for those extra FPS). Additionally, you can also set the Auto Sleep inactive time for when the RGB will turn off, thus consuming less power. But it’s also possible to enable Raise to Wake-Up (the LEDs will enable when you raise the controller) and the Audio Reactive Mode (it will change based on the sound).

Lastly, there’s the Motion window where it’s possible to adjust the Reponse Curve (Aggressive, Relaxed, Default or Custom) and the Anti Deadzone. Additionally, you can enable Steer or Aim, Activate a Button and select a Behavior (for repetitive tasks), set the Motion and Active Axis, as well as reverse Horizontal and Vertical controller motion.

Gaming with GameSir T4 Kaleid

Since I only complained about the D-Pad, the overall gaming experience is almost just as good as with the G7, which is excellent. And even the D-Pad wasn’t that bad after I got immersed in a game. I ran a few PC titles, the first being Assassins Creed Odyssey and, since it’s well optimized for controllers, you can see from the video and it’s easy and nice to use the GameSir T4 Kaleid to move the boat, the eagle and the main character.

Then, I switched to the Crew 2 which is hardly my favorite racing game, but I had it installed, so why not try it out? I only had to use the shoulder buttons and the left stick, but the movements felt precise and I suppose the controller is suitable for racing games as well. Lastly, I checked out Tomb Raider again (still haven’t installed the Callisto Protocol due to pure lazyness) and the experience was satisfying. There was no finger fatigue or anything, nor did I actually miss the longer handles as much as I thought I would. If you were wondering about latency, the GameSir T4 Kaleid is a wired controller and I did not experience a higher latency than if I used my wired keyboard and mouse.

The Conclusion

I noticed that GameSir is really adamant against releasing generic, boring controllers and instead, the last few generations have added something new to attract the attention of the gamers. And it worked. The Hall effect sensing sticks are not just some gimmick, no, they’ll actually improve the gaming experience and the life of the controller. The transparent case and the RGB are also a nice touch and the multi-platform support makes the GameSir T4 Kaleid a very attractive option.

Mark B

Mark is a graduate in Computer Science, having gathered valuable experience over the years working in IT as a programmer. Mark is also the main tech writer for MBReviews.com, covering not only his passion, the networking devices, but also other cool electronic gadgets that you may find useful for your every day life.

www.mbreviews.com

There’s 4-point automatic keystone correction and autofocus, and it’s amazing just how often I see these two technologies on more budget-friendly projectors (a couple of years ago, only $1,000+ projectors used to offer them). There’s an inner 16,000mAh battery which will allow for some outdoor movie watching sessions (when camping) and, if the advertisement is true, it seems we are dealing with a native 1080p projector, while the Halo Plus would simulate this resolution (the end result is pretty much the same though).

The advertised brightness is 700 lumen, which is a bit below the 900 ANSI lumen of the Halo Plus, but should still be plenty powerful for watching a movie during the night – there aren’t many projectors that will work semi-decent during the day (if any). Additionally, I saw that the manufacturer has included support for HDR 10, but the refresh rate only goes up to 60Hz. Furthermore, I saw that there is DTS and Dolby support on the dual 10W speakers (not Harman Kardon). That being said, let’s put the Formovie Dice to the test and see if it’s better than its competitors.

Note: Some of you may wonder if the Formovie Dice is the same device as the Wemax Dice and the answer is yes, they’re the same. I checked the FCC ID and confirmed that both use the same chipsets and even the design is identical. The Dice is also identical (on the inside) to the Mi Smart Compact Projector 2 as shown by the installation wizard.

The Design and Build Quality

I was impressed by how small the Halo Plus was, but after taking the Formovie Dice out of the package, I realized that it’s possible to make the projector even more compact than that. At 6.1 x 4.9 x 6.3 inches (or 15.5 × 12.5 × 6.0cm), the Formovie Dice is the smallest projector that I have tested so far and, because the manufacturer decided to use a metallic shell, it does have some weight to itself (4.9lbs or 2.2kg).

It’s not heavy or anything of the sorts, but it does feel ‘fuller’ than some other projectors I have tested (Philbeam S1). I have mentioned the metallic shell, but the Formovie Dice has some plastic bits as well covering the sides of the projector. And it is interesting to see the flexible aluminum that they used to go vertically across the case and then to fix it into place with lots of screws (at the bottom of the Dice). There are some punctured holes in the metallic portion of the case plus there’s the dark gray matte finish which makes the Formovie Dice look very similar to the Halo Plus.

There are some ventilation holes on the sides as well to help with the heat management and yes, there is an inner fan to blow all the hot air out, as on all projectors on the market. But it’s not very loud and you won’t really notice it unless you’re watching some very quiet scenes. I did check inside the projector and I saw that there were lots of heatsinks to help move the heat out, but is this system effective at keeping the temperature in check?

I have added a thermal photo so you can see for yourself just how hot the Formovie Dice can get while it’s projecting movies or videos. One cool design element that you’ll immediately notice is the brown leather handle that will help move the Formovie Dice projector around and, at the bottom, there are four silicone feet to keep the device into place – not that it would move anyway since the weight will keep it steady even if there are a few cables connected to the rear side.

And there aren’t really that many ports, one’s the Power connector followed by the 3.5mm jack to attach a speaker system and then there’s the USB port. Lastly, the Formovie Dice relies on a HDMI 2.0 port if you want to connect it to a PC. If you don’t like keeping the projector on a table or shelf, you can attach it to a tripod using the dedicated hole at the bottom. I am accustomed to have some sort of control over the projector by using the buttons that are usually positioned at the top of the unit. So, in case something happens with the remote, I can still use the device up to a certain degree.

The engineers behind the Formovie Dice considered this to be a bad idea so they only added a Power button and an LED to show that the device is powered up. I, of course, am not very fond of this weird design decision and I am sure other users as well. The last area of interest is the front of the Formovie Dice where rests the lens and next to it, the camera that’s used for both auto-focus and keystone correction.

I know that ETOE E3 Pro also has auto keystone correction but they went with a different approach (ToF) and it was less accurate than on the Halo Plus, so it’s excellent that Formovie Dice went with a camera instead. The punctured area underneath the lens hides one of the speakers – the other speaker points on the other side of the projector.

Formovie Dice Teardown

Unlike other projectors, the Formovie Dice has the FCC ID page filled by clear photos of its components, so I didn’t have to open up the device to check them myself. And I am really not a fan of doing so due to their overly complicated design to cram everything in a small case. That being said, the two plastic sides need to be removed first thus exposing the two 10W speakers, the fairly large fan and the multiple heatsinks.

And, after going deeper, these are the components that I was able to identify: a quad-core 1.5GHz Amlogic T962X-H CPU (ARM Cortex-A53), the i-Chips IP00C788 warping and edge-blending chip and the single-core ZYNQ XC72020 (ARM Cortex-A9) SoC. Then, I saw the two DLPC3437 chips from Texa Instruments that drive the DLP3310 (0.33″ DMD), so all that true Full HD was just fluff.

This chip has a native resolution of 768 pixels which is then ‘upscaled’ using XRP to reach the 1080p. It’s not a bad technology since I have seen it in action on both the Halo Plus and the Horizon Pro, but it’s not native 1080p. The last components that I could identify were the 16GB of eMMC storage from Samsung (SEC831 KLMAG1JETD) and 4x 512MB (2GB in total) of RAM from Samsung (SEC940 K4B4G1646E). So yes, if you check out the specs of the Wemax Dice, they’re exactly the same.

How does the Formovie Dice achieve 1080p?

As I mentioned in the previous section, the Formovie Dice does some XRP magic to achieve perceived 1080p and I guess the advertised DLP tech was a dead giveaway. To get a bit more technical, the lens shifts half of a pitch between pixels in a manner as to appear that the resolution is double than it actually is (the FPGA doubles the pixels by using an actuator) – all this info and more can be seen here on the Texas Instruments official website.

They’re the ones that developed the DLP tech to begin with and I have also seen it in action on the XGIMI Halo Plus (the same identical approach as on the Formovie Dice) and on the Horizon Pro, where the resolution would be scaled to 2160p from 1080p. Since the human brain can be tricked into believing that it sees 1080p instead of the real 720p, does it matter that the Formovie Dice isn’t a native 1080p projector? Obviously, some details will be lost, but, if it can produce a similar image to the more expensive Halo Plus, then the quality should be very good.

I have checked out the pricing for good native 1080p projectors (Epson 1060) and they can go for double the price of the Dice.

The Remote Control

I really like these small, minimalist remote controls that work so well with Android TV and the Formovie Dice offers one of the most compact remotes that I have seen on a projector. But the layout seemed very familiar, too familiar.

It’s almost identical to the one from the Horizon Pro remote – I will put side by side comparison, so you don’t have to take my word on it. The Power button sits at the top followed by the Google Assistant (press it to enable voice control) and then there’s the DPad. Although not as smooth as on the Horizon Pro, it does have a raised OK button so it’s pretty intuitive to use. It’s also made of plastic, just like the entire remote control – you don’t get metal at this price point. Underneath the D-Pad, there’s the App interface button followed by the Back and Home buttons. Lower down rest the volume buttons. As anticipated, there are no batteries in the package and the remote control does communicate with the projector via Bluetooth.

Installation and Software Experience

After powering on the Formovie Dice I was asked to press a couple of buttons on the remote to pair it to the projector and afterwards, the autofocus came into action, followed by the option to manually adjust the keystones. Then follows the Android TV installation wizard.

Select the language, connect the projector to the Internet (there is support for 5GHz, 802.11ac), sign into an account, accept the mandatory data collection, let Google know your location (say No), let it give you personalized results (again, better to refuse) and then the MiProjM05 was ready to be used. That was not a typo, it’s what it said at the end of the installation process and which gave away that the Formovie Dice is the same projector as the Xiaomi Mi one. Moving on, I could see the Android 9 GUI which was the standard about a couple of years back – at least it does have the Android security patch of July 2022 installed.

Navigating the interface was fairly smooth thanks to the 2GB of RAM, but I did see a slight delay when moving between tabs. No freezes or stutters, just the occasional perceptible delay. Using YouTube was smooth overall, I could skip forward and move backwards on a video with no stutters and then I wanted to see Prime since it’s usually the least optimized app on Android TV. I couldn’t find it and if I think about it, neither was Netflix and other mainstream apps. There was TikTok, Disney+ and Apple TV, TED talks and RedBull TV? Anyway, I eventually found the Prime Video and, after signing in, I could navigate its interface.

There was a slight, but noticeable delay when moving between tabs, but it was better than I expected. Furthermore, while playing a movie, I could easily skip to the preferred scene (yes, through that weird cluttered mess of scenes that Amazon has implemented when skipping forward). What about Netflix? It’s missing! Yes, just like on the XGIMI projectors, you will have to install Netflix manually but I couldn’t use the same workaround. I installed the DesktopManager app, but no app appeared, so it has to be installed using the .apk method which is very un-intuitive and will limit the video streaming to 720p. This is a big minus.

The Automatic Adjustments

It’s immediately obvious that the autofocus works really well when moving the projector, but it does require slightly ampler movements than on the Halo Plus. What confused me was the auto keystone correction.

I moved the projector at various angles, but the auto-keystone correction just didn’t engage. I turned the projector on and off again, and nothing. I then went to the Settings menu > Projector > Keystone Correction to make sure that the Auto mode was enabled (it was) and I also checked the Keystone Correction section. I clicked on Reset and to my surprise, the perspective projected image got worse. Wait a minute, so the autokeystone correction worked all this time, it just wasn’t very good.

And I did confirm that this was indeed the case after I moved the projector at far ampler angles – as you can see from the video, there are some corrections, just not enough to put the image properly in the center.

As an alternative, if you have a look at the Halo Plus, you can see how it micromanages every movement plus there’s the object avoidance system which is also missing from the Formovie Dice. As a conclusion, ignore the so called autokeystone correction and go directly to the manual settings – if only the manufacturer would have at least added a dedicated button on the remote. Can this be fixed from the software? I am very confident that the Formovie Dice has all the elements it needs to make autokeystone correction work properly (camera, motor), so yes, a software update can indeed fix it.

The Image Quality

The first thing that I usually check when testing a projector is the color uniformity, so I connected a USB drive to the Formovie Dice port and I displayed some images, each showing a color or shade. I started with white and I was already aware how bright the projector was, but displaying a full white image enhances that visual experience. As you can see from the photo, it’s very uniform across the edges, but you also get a glimpse of that rainbow effect that’s a characteristic to this type of projectors.

Only the camera captures it, you won’t see it with your naked eye. I then moved to black which is the bane of all inexpensive projectors (and TVs alike). And it’s actually not bad at all. There were no smudges or shadows to creep into the projected area, although I suppose I saw a slight variation in brightness on the left side. This is more noticeable on camera, so I guess the rainbow effect strikes once more!

Seriously now, the black representation is very good, better than on the XGIMI projectors. Moving on to the red, blue and green images and the uniformity is excellent, no shadows or distortions.

Moving forward, I decided to check out some YouTube videos, something that can enhance the projector’s abilities and what other video than the Amazing Beauty 12K HDR 60fps Dolby Vision? One can dream about the time when budget-friendly projectors will output 12K. Snapping back to reality, I decided to check the viewing angles which should be perfect on a projector, and they were.

But what interested me the most was if the crispness of the image would remain if I got very close to the projected area. As you can see it was excellent, the color reproduction is good, there is a healthy amount of details and I suppose it does rise to the expectations that I had after testing the Halo Plus.

The manufacturer says that the projected area should be between 60 and 120 inches and I agree, although I think the sweetspot is about 70-80 feet away. Now let’s check some movies.

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Mark B

Mark is a graduate in Computer Science, having gathered valuable experience over the years working in IT as a programmer. Mark is also the main tech writer for MBReviews.com, covering not only his passion, the networking devices, but also other cool electronic gadgets that you may find useful for your every day life.

www.mbreviews.com

There are also a couple of Gigabit Ethernet ports which can be aggregated for extra performance and the Zimaboard 832 can be used as a NAS – the CasaOS, the default operating system is built exactly for that. The X86 board is also open for any other types of applications, including running OpenWRT, pfSense or just plain Linux and you can use the built-in 32GB eMMC or, if you want thing to run faster and better, rely on external SSDs.

I am very much sure that this flexibility is what ZimaBoard considers hardware hacking, even though you don’t really need to modify the board itself, you just add any new piece as you would with a puzzle. So I suppose it’s a bit of fluff, but if it will make new-comers curious about what they can accomplish with an SBC and get them into open-source, I have no complaints about it. What you do need to understand though is that depending on the project you have in mind, you may end up connecting multiple types of devices and the ZimaBoard 832 is not designed to keep everything packed together.

No, it follows a spread out open-case design which I suppose does have its charm, but it may not be for everyone. Then again, the heat management is excellent, although the risks for shock and water damage are higher. That being said, I am curious about how well the ZimaBoard 832 performs and I want to try out some different applications, so stick around.

Disclosure: This is the second ZimaBoard 832 that I test because the first one would freeze after a few minutes have passed. If you experience the same behavior, you most likely have a faulty board and should ask for a replacement.

The Design and Build Quality

The ZimaBoard 832 is the best equipped SBC from the bunch, but there is no design difference between the models. We are dealing with a rectangular case that’s mostly metallic because the bottom side is made of glossy plastic, but the top side is solid alloy which has the role of taking the heat away from the PCB.

And it does look like a huge heatsink, but overall, it’s not actually that much larger than a Raspberry Pi. The ZimaBoard 832 measures 5.4 x 3.2 x 1.4 inches (13.9 x 8.1 x 3.5cm) so by itself, it’s not going to occupy much space from the desk. And it does weigh approximately 9.8 ounces (278 grams) which should help keep the device into place when multiple cables are connected, right? Not quite because there are no silicone feet to keep the board steady, so it easily moves around on the desk – just get some from any online retailer.

Overall, it feels very solid and robust, so let’s check out the ports and the slots. You will immediately see the two Gigabit Ethernet ports along with the two USB 3.0 ports – all surrounded by a metallic frame and, on the right side, there’s a Power port. Make sure that you use only the power adapter provided in the package (or at least make sure that the specs match it) otherwise, it is possible to experience hardware failures (mostly the basic failure to boot behavior).

On the left side, there’s a Mini DisplayPort 1.2 that supports 4K/60Hz and I know that a lot of you will be upset that there is no HDMI. And rightfully so, but then again, there are some adapters that transform the signal from DP to HDMI (I used one myself), so I guess it’s not that much of a deal. I suppose that the reason they went only with DP is to shave a few inches from the device. On the left side of the ZimaBoard 832, there’s the PCIe 2.0 x4 slot and I have already used it to connect two types of WiFi adapters (it worked wonderfully well), but it is entirely possible to even attach an external GPU.

Don’t get your hopes up, you’re not going to be able to connect most discrete GPUs because the ZimaBoard 832 will not be able to offer the required power. I was able to power up a GT710, but for anything more powerful than that, you need to rely on external power. There are 8GB of RAM and the N3450 processor could offer some entry-level gaming PC experience. The last area of interest is the rear section where there are two SATA 3.0 ports and a single SATA Power slot, so you do need another adapter if you want to connect two storage devices at the same time.

Lastly, I need to mention the SATA LED which shines white on the wall as long as the SBC is powered on and there is a SATA device connected. There is an extra LED that shines red from the side of the board.

The Internal Hardware + Benchmarks

The ZimaBoard 832 uses an Intel Celeron Apollo Lake processor, the quad-core N3450 which can go up to 2.2GHz (2MB L2 cache) and it’s the same CPU as on the ZimaBoard 432. The N3450 is not a powerhouse, but it should be perfectly fine for server purposes and I suppose some other applications as well. I have installed Mint on the board and it worked fine – then again that distro will run good even on a potato (Microsoft, take notes!). Besides the processor, the ZimaBoard 832 is also equipped with an Intel HD Graphics 500 GPU (200-700MHz), 8GB of RAM and 32GB of eMMC storage.

I doubt that Intel HD Graphics 500 will do great with gaming, but just for the fun of it, I will run some Steam games in a separate section to get an idea about what to expect. I am not going to install Windows, mind you, it’s possible to do so from Linux (but you already knew that, didn’t you?). That being said, I decided to run some benchmarks to get a general idea about the performance of the ZimaBoard 832. The first benchmark that I ran was Geekbench 6, but it failed to finish and I think I know why.

Immediately after the test failed, everything moved slower than usual and the case was hot to the touch. Yes, you guessed, good ol’ thermal throttling. And I suppose I should have seen it coming considering that there is no active cooling system, so running such an intensive benchmark was not really the best idea. So I moved to a faster benchmark, the Linpack Xtreme and, at 20,000 LDA, I saw that I was getting 15.8 GFlops, so it’s pretty much the score I was expecting considering the price tag of the ZimaBoard 832.

It’s a budget-friendly single-board server. Moving forward, I decided to check out the GPU behavior, but know that unlike the CPU, you can use a discrete one for better performance. That being said, I installed the Phoronix Test Suite and ran the Unigine Super. Why not Unigine Heaven? Because it kept giving me errors and the Unigine Super works just as fine.

I selected 1080p for resolution and Medium settings and, as you can see from the results, I ran the test several times, but the FPS stayed pretty much the same. It was about 2 FPS, which is very far from ideal. So I scaled back the resolution to 1024×768 pixels and kept the settings to Low.

The average FPS did rise a bit, although only to 7 FPS. Still not good, so I switch to 800×600 pixels, still low settings and the average FPS rose to 8.9 FPS. Yeah, the Intel HD Graphics 500 GPU is really not a gaming card at all.

Since I had Phoronix installed, I decided to run a RAM benchmark as well and I chose the ramspeed test. This way, I could see that the Integer Average was a bit over 7.7K MBps (Copy, Scale, Add and Triad).

Running Steam Games

I already knew what to expect after I ran the GPU benchmarks, so why torture the ZimaBoard 832 with a somewhat modern title? I guess I just wanted to see a Windows game running on Linux and I low-key hoped that maybe it will be playable with the built-in GPU. So, I installed Linux Mint on an external SSD (a 500GB Samsung 870 EVO) and then I quickly installed Steam. The entire process was ridiculously simple, no workarounds needed, just install Steam and then choose the game that you wish to play.

Things really changed a lot the last few years. Anyway, I chose to install Tomb Raider, again (it’s small, just 10GB) and, after a few minutes have passed, I could access the game. I took the results of the Unigine Super benchmark at heart and chose 800×600 pixel in windowed mode. And I added a video so you can see yourself the gaming experience.

It’s actually better than I expected because I only had a few freezes where water was being rendered, otherwise, the FPS had to be above 20. So yes, you can play games on Linux using the ZimaBoard 832, even the more recent titles, but I do suggest to go with a discrete GPU for a higher resolution and even smoother experience.

The CasaOS

The default system that is installed on the 32GB eMMC storage is CasaOS which is a Cloud system based on the Docker platform. I have played around with Docker when I installed Home Assistant on another single-board computer (the Seeed Mini) and it can run various type of software from containers. It’s also extremely useful at helping develop new applications, and overall, it’s essentially an interesting way of running multiple virtual machines at the same time (each sharing the available resources).

The CasaOS is fairly lightweight and after accessing the GUI, I clicked on Activities to see that there was a dedicated CasaOS shortcut and Firefox for browser (very nice). There are some apps that are already installed, including Rhythmbox, LibreOffice, but if I clicked on Show Applications, I could see that there are a lot more. And I am mostly talking about games, there are a lot of simple games that I suppose will help pass the time. But enough about that, let’s click on CasaOS icon – doing so will open a browser that will automatically take us to the suitable URL. The wizard will ask you to create a new account and then it will load up the dedicated dashboard.

The interface will show some live stats about the CPU, RAM and the Storage, while in the middle, there are two main options, one will allow you to Sync the data between multiple devices, while the other is still in development, but it appears as it may become an alternative to the Home Assistant. You can sync your data via the aforementioned tool (Syncthing), but be aware that it’s not a backup tool, it just syncs the data between multiple devices. I also noticed the Files section which will take you to the inner directories of the OS and there’s also the App Store.

Under the App Store you can immediately install HomeAssistant and it’s very useful if you have a separate device running it (as I do); then, there’s Pi-Hole which I have explored some time ago when I ran it on different types of Raspberry Pi devices. A similar set of features is offered by AdGuardHome and a few more, including anti-malware and anti-phishing which are definitely a must-have on a server. Again, the CasaOS seems to be very useful for an all-in-one device if you’re into secure smart house and ad blocking, and I know you are.

Some interesting apps are Plex (to create a multi-media server) and Jellyfin if you’re looking for a completely free alternative to Plex. qBittorrent is available if you want to download some legally added files (ahem), there’s 2FAuth for 2 factor authentication purposes and there’s support for the proxy server Jackett. For photo sharing, there’s PhotoPrism, Calibre-web and Lazylibrarian for e-books, Duplicati for encrypted Cloud backups, Mylar for comicbooks and a lot more apps. Hell, there’s even the UniFi controller, so I don’t have to run a local instance on my PC anymore.

It is also possible to install a new App manually if it’s not in this list and it’s not a very difficult process as long as you’re a little bit familiar with Docker. There are a few annoyances that I need to mention. First, the CasaOS really dislikes my WiFi adapters: yes, two adapters from Asus (PCE-AC68 and the PCE-AC88) could not be detected, and it’s not the hardware because under Linux Mint, both worked flawlessly. It’s CasaOS. Another element that was missing was the CasaConnect which a few months ago allowed users to create actual separate networks where they could move files between them – this options seems to be gone now.

That being said, the App Store is clearly constantly changing, so a few apps that were available are no longer supported (and I suppose it was a way to avoid legal issues), but a lot of new and exciting ones seem to have made their way here. It does seem that the software has gained some traction especially due to its Docker approach and, while right now there isn’t a huge community behind it, I do see signs that it will grow to be much bigger and popular.

OpenWRT on ZimaBoard 832

I wanted to install either pfSense or OpenWRT on the ZimaBoard 832 to see if I could create a router and for the most part I could.

Since other people already explored the pfSense route, I decided to install OpenWRT and a bootable USB later, I gained access to the OpenWRT command line. I used a separate monitor to check out the state of the OpenWRT ZimaBoard router, but it is also possible to rely on PUTTY or any other similar tool to gain inner access to the software.

The first thing that I did was to ping 1.1.1.1 to see if I got a link and I didn’t, so I simply connected the cable to the other Ethernet port, since I got it backwards – usually, eth0 is LAN and eth1 is WAN.

After gaining access to the web, I connected a second Ethernet cable to a computer and accessed the IP address of the router (by default, it should be 192.68.1.1). Use the password that you set up at the beginning (if you didn’t, use the pwd command) and then you should see the OpenWRT GUI. At this point, I would suggest to get a good wireless access point and just do something else with your life. That’s because unless you have a very specific WiFi card and go through hoops to make it work, you’re not going to make the OpenWRT router to broadcast the wireless signal.

But, I had a ZimaBoard 832 and a PCIe Asus WiFi card, so I decided to give it a go.
What I did was to check if OpenWRT saw the PCE-AC68 adapter, so I used lspci to get a good view on what was available. And there it was, the BCM4360 802.11ac WiFi adapter (from Asus), so I checked the official OpenWRT to download and install the firmware.

That’s how I discovered that there is no support for this card. Lovely. I had another ace in my sleeve, a TP-Link AX200 PCIe adapter that I have been using for testing wireless routers. It uses an Intel AX200 and people on the web said that it could work, probably.

I eventually found out that there was indeed a package available, so I used ‘opkg install iwlwifi-firmware-ax200‘ to install it. I then went to the System > Software section of the GUI to confirm that it was there.

A reboot later still didn’t show the Wireless section under network, so I just followed this guide to force it to appear. And I have had a very unstable connection ever since, so either check the OpenWRT website for some proven WiFi cards or just use an access point (or several, if you don’t mind adding a PoE switch in the mix – the ZimaBoard 832 does have a couple Gigabit Ethernet ports after all).

The Conclusion

I admit I had a lot of fun with the ZimaBoard 832. I used it as a server, I installed Linux to play some Steam games, and set it up as a wireless router. And this is just scratching the surface because the dual SATA, the dual Ethernet ports and the PCIe slot do allow you to get creative and try out other applications as well. I am aware that there are some pfSense boxes out there, as well as some NICs in a similar price range as the ZimaBoard 832, but none offer the same build quality and port variety. It’s pretty much in a league of its own, for now.

Mark B

Mark is a graduate in Computer Science, having gathered valuable experience over the years working in IT as a programmer. Mark is also the main tech writer for MBReviews.com, covering not only his passion, the networking devices, but also other cool electronic gadgets that you may find useful for your every day life.

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But, I have grown wary of budget-friendly projectors because some corners had to be cut to keep the cost low, so what does the ETOE E3 Pro promises and most importantly, does it manage to deliver on those promises? The manufacturer says that the projector offers 1080p footage (it is not simulated, the projector is not using a DMD chip), two 10W speakers, one pointing forward, the other backwards and it seems that the projector relies on two cooling fans to keep the temperature low (the noise level is acceptable).

But I also saw that the ETOE E3 Pro offers both auto-focus and auto-keystone correction which are some of the best features to have on a projector – I’ve seen them in action on the XGIMI Halo Plus and the Horizon Pro, and they were a game changer. I did take a sneak peak inside the device and as you will see, the projector is actually low-key modular, although I am not sure that was the actual intention from the manufacturer.

The ETOE E3 Pro relies on an external Android box and I am fairly sure that you can swap it for something better if you’re not satisfied with the performance of the current mini computer. That being said, let’s put the device to the test and see how well it performs, especially when there are so many competitors out there.

UPDATE 04.25.2023: I have updated the firmware to the version V.3.02.24 and the sound discrepancy between the projector and the Android box is now fixed. Follow these instructions to upgrade your ETOE E3 Pro if you experience the same problems as I did.

The Design and Build Quality

I mentioned that the ETOE E3 Pro is compact and it’s true that the projector is smaller than the older gen projectors, but it can’t really be considered portable. Or can it? The ETOE E3 Pro measures 5.9 x 5.1 x 4.3 inches (or 15.0 x 13.0 x 11.0cm), so it’s about the same size as the Horizon Pro, but we are dealing with a budget-friendly device, so the enclosure is not made of metal, no, it’s all plastic.

As a consequence, the projector is fairly lightweight, and at its 3.57lbs (or 1.62kg), I guess you can actually move it around with ease, but we will see if the auto-focus and auto keystone correction will make changing locations frequently a painless process. The interesting thing is that the projector does come into a travel case, so you should be able to take it with you, but bear in mind that it has no inner battery (then again, you can use something like an Allpowers portable battery). The developers went with an outer shell that surrounds the device from top to bottom and there are three circular holes at the top for the physical buttons.

There is a Power button with an LED and a Return button on the other side, while in the middle, there is a larger, D-Pad-type set of buttons. In the center, there’s the OK button (Enter), while on the sides, there are four arrow buttons for navigation. You can also use them for adjusting the volume (short press) or to Fast forward / backwards, when you long-press the buttons – at least that’s what’s advertised because I did try to adjust the volume via the physical buttons and it didn’t work.

On the bottom, there are four feet with silicone covers to keep the device into place, but I am sure a lot of people will prefer mounting the projector on a tripod – yes, there is a mounting hole to help you do just that. There are no ventilation holes on the sides, but you get plenty on the rear side, as well as on the front, next to the lens. Are they enough to keep the temperature low? I saw that the device does use a couple of fans to cool down, as well as a large copper heatsink, so it should be fine.

But I also took out a thermal camera to check how hot it can get and you can see the result yourself. The rear panel of the ETOE E3 Pro is a bit peculiar because underneath the ports, there is a section called TV and it can be opened to reveal an Android box that’s connected via USB-C ports.

That’s why I mentioned the potential modular aspect of the device since I am sure it’s possible to swap it for any other Android box out there, as long as it fits. As for the ports, there aren’t many, but I guess the ETOE E3 Pro does cover the basics. There is a Power port followed by a USB-A port (2.0), an HDMI port and an AUX port for audio systems. In between them, the manufacturer has also included the IR receiver for the remote control. You can see through the plastic mesh that there are two speakers, one facing forward and the other backwards – it’s a very similar approach to the Xidu Philbeam S1.

The lens is slightly recessed within the body of the projector and ETOE says that they used a ‘fully-sealed dustproof optical engine’, so that dust won’t enter within the enclosure and alter the video quality. It may sound unnecessary, but I will mention the XIDU projector again which did have some issues exactly due to not having properly sealed the optical engine. Next to the lens, there is a ToF (Time of Flight) sensor which essentially emits a light beam and then it measures how long it takes until the light reaches the surface.

Based on the calculations, the ETOE E3 Pro should be able to accurately auto-focus the picture. It’s an interesting system, but I think a camera-based one would have been a bit better since I have seen it in action on the XGIMI Halo Plus and that object avoidance system was gorgeous. But I guess you can’t have everything at this price point.

ETOE E3 Pro Teardown

Projectors are complicated machines and it’s not easy to disassemble and reassemble them, so I decided to rely on the FCC ID photos. And I was satisfied up until I got a blurry picture of the Mediatek SoC. I could tell that there was 1GB of eMMC storage memory from Samsung (KLM8G1GETF-B041) and the inner components of the Android box, but I wanted to know the optical chip behind the ETOE E3 Pro.

So I disassembled the projector myself. That’s how I found out about the two fans (one front facing, the other towards the bottom covered by an aluminum sink), as well as about the position of the speakers and the copper heatsink. And then I got to the PCB, only to find that the manufacturer soldered the heatsink above the SoC. That was just great. So we know that it’s a Mediatek, but I don’t think it uses a DMD 0.33” chipset from Texas Instruments, but take it as mere assumptions. I spoke with the manufacturer and the chip is a Mediatek MTK9269, not DMD from Texas Instruments.

If the ETOE E3 Pro does indeed use the DMD 0.33” chip to scale a 720p image, then there should be rainbow artifacts, but the image did not display this behavior, so I am fairly sure that there is no DMD chip behind the ETOE E3 Pro. Also, if you thought about opening the device yourself, you’re going to void the warranty since there are screws everywhere (underneath the silicone feet and under the label from the bottom side), so there is no way to keep the device in the same state as when you bought it.

Now let’s talk a bit about the Android box. I could tell from the FCC ID photos that the box features an RTL8822CS BT WiFi module (802.11ac), 256MB 2GB of LPDDR4 RAM from ARTMEM (ATL4X16324M092) and 8GB of storage from SanDisk (SDINBDG4-8G).

The Remote Control

The ETOE E3 Pro comes with a small remote control made of plastic and, since we’re dealing with a projector, you only get a small amount of buttons but which are more than enough for navigating the Android OS. I almost forgot to mention that there are no batteries in the package, so you will have to buy your own (or just steal them from another remote, just like I did). The IR sensor is hidden on the front, behind a transparent glossy plastic piece and I also saw that there is a built-in microphone for giving voice commands to the projector (the mic sits next to the LED in a similar manner to the remote from the Sylvox Deck Pro TV).

Other than that, you get the D-PAD for moving between options in the GUI, the OK and Return buttons, as well as the volume control. You get a dedicated Home button, a Google Assistant button and you also get shortcuts to Netflix and Prime Video. The last two buttons will allow you to adjust the focus (as well as enable the menu on a long press) and to go to the Homepage of the ETOE E3 Pro. Just like with other projectors and smart TVs, you will need to pair the remote so that it will communicate via Bluetooth as well as IR – press and hold the Volume Down + OK buttons for about three seconds.

Installation and Software Experience

After powering up the ETOE E3 Pro, I was asked to choose the language and to pair the remote control (press two buttons). Then, I was asked to select the language again which shows that the first time was some leftover code from a prior installation wizard or so I think. Afterwards, I connected the projector to the WiFi network and, since it supports 802.11ac, I used the 5GHz radio band for a better performance. After that, I had to sign into the Google account (you can’t really use the projector otherwise) and then Google will try to focus its big lenses on you.

No Google, I will not give you access to my location, I don’t need your personalized ads, I am not adamant on the ‘better’ voice control, nor do I need your personalized results. I could also let the software install some Recommended apps, but I decided I will install what I need afterwards. Then, I could finally gain access to the OS interface. The Android TV version is fairly optimized, even though I wouldn’t really call it lightweight, but I suppose that the 2GB of RAM should be enough. For comparison sake, the Halo Plus was able to offer a smooth experience thanks to its 2GB of RAM. That being said, while navigating the Android TV interface (version 10), I didn’t see any stutters, but there is a certain delay between the press of a button and seeing the change on the projected image.

Furthermore, while watching a movie on Prime and Netflix, when I wanted to skip forward or go back to a certain scene, there is about a second of delay where you need to insist on the action for it to be registered. I know I am nitpicking a bit because like I said, the screen never froze and there was no stuttering, but neither was the experience perfectly smooth.

It’s about average, I guess. It’s worth mentioning that I didn’t have to do some weird workarounds to get Netflix since it was already added to the suite of apps (unlike on XGIMI projectors) and it’s possible to change some projector settings from the menu. It’s nothing too complex because you can change the Image and Sound Mode, the Aspect Ratio, the Color Temperature and the Projection Settings (you can basically zoom out). But there had to be a weird behavior here as well.

If you’re listening to something on YouTube or watching a movie and want to adjust anything from the menu, the remote will casually forget that you opened the menu and it will navigate the Netflix or YouTube interface instead. The ETOE E3 Pro also has built-in Chromecast, so you can connect to other compatible devices (phone, PCs, tablets) and stream data.

The Automatic Adjustments

Considering the price tag of the ETOE E3 Pro, it’s a bit ridiculous (in the good sense) that the projector actually has auto-focus and auto keystone correction. But it does and it seems to be working relatively well.

I have seen the ToF sensor in the front of the projector which is supposed to help with the auto-focus, so I decided to move the ETOE E3 Pro forward and backward and see if we’ll get a good focus automatically. It’s not an instantaneous process, but a few seconds in both the auto-focus and the auto keystone correction got into action – so I guess that the beam of light is sent every few seconds. And yes, the autofocus worked well, but what about the auto keystone correction?

It doesn’t work when the angle is too large (I actually got a warning when I got too vain) and sometimes it gets it right, other times I had to adjust the corners manually by a tiny bit. ETOE says that “to ensure the visual effect, their automatic trapezoidal correction and autofocus are ±40°”. But as I said before, I can’t complain considering the price tag. You do get the option to adjust both the auto-focus and the auto keystone correction manually, the former actually has a dedicated button on the remote (the one underneath the Netflix button). So, in case you’re not satisfied by the automatic adjustments, you can adjust the image to your own liking. After more extensive testing, I have discovered an issue.

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Mark B

Mark is a graduate in Computer Science, having gathered valuable experience over the years working in IT as a programmer. Mark is also the main tech writer for MBReviews.com, covering not only his passion, the networking devices, but also other cool electronic gadgets that you may find useful for your every day life.

www.mbreviews.com