BLU R1 HD review
Florida-based BLU enjoys a popular presence in the affordable Android smartphone market, with a slew of entry-level and mid-range devices on offer, that are great options for those on a budget. What is great about BLU’s latest smartphone, the R1 HD, is that if you are an Amazon Prime member, you can avail special discounts and offers that help make this already affordable smartphone even cheaper.
More BLU reviews:
- BLU Energy XL review
- BLU Vivo 5 review
Affordability without compromising on quality is what BLU promises, but does the company manage to deliver? We find out, in this in-depth BLU R1 HD review!
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Design
We are now seeing an impressive trend where affordable smartphones feature high quality builds, and that is certainly also the case with the BLU R1 HD. The device features a metal frame and a polycarbonate backing, that feels great in the hand. The matte finish of the back cover offers a lot of grip that supersedes the slipperiness of the metal sides, and the slight curve along the sides of the back allow for the phone to sit nicely in the palm of your hand.
Taking a look around the device, the volume rocker is on the right side, with the power button right below it. The buttons come with the same metal finish, and offer a good amount of tactile feedback. The back cover is removable, giving you access to the two microSIM card slots and the dedicated microSD card slot. However, while the back cover is removable, the battery is not. Finally, the headphone jack and the microUSB port are at the top and bottom respectively.
We are definitely seeing more and more affordable smartphones that go above and beyond what their price points would suggest as far as design and build quality are concerned, which is absolutely fantastic, but when you consider how affordable this phone actually is, the BLU R1 HD certainly impresses.
Display
The BLU R1 HD comes with a 5-inch IPS LCD display of 1280 x 720 resolution, resulting in a pixel density of 294 ppi, and a Corning Gorilla Glass 3 panel helps keeps the display protected, which is always a nice touch.
The resolution may disappoint some, but there is only so much you can expect from a device priced at $100. The quality of the display is actually quite good, with content appearing sharp overall, along with good viewing angles and decent color reproduction. You don’t get the punch that you would with the AMOLED screens out there, but this display will certainly get the job done.
Performance
Under the hood, the R1 HD comes with a quad-core MediaTek MT6735 processor, clocked at 1.3 GHz, and backed by the Mali-T720 GPU and 1 GB or 2 GB of RAM depending on which version of the device you pick. This review unit comes with 2 GB of RAM, and the overall performance of the phone has been quite good.
There have been no serious issues with day to day performance, and opening, closing, and switching between apps has been fairly smooth. The device also handles gaming quite well, even though it understandably struggles a touch with more graphic-intensive games. Of course, the R1 HD isn’t a performance powerhouse, which is reflected in the benchmark scores, but it isn’t expected to be. For those looking for a decent performer on a budget though, the BLU R1 HD is certainly up to the task.
Hardware
8 GB or 16 GB are the internal storage options available, which also dictates how much RAM you get with the device. With rather low storage options, especially if you pick the 8 GB iteration, users will certainly appreciate the availability of a dedicated microSD card slot, allowing for expandable storage up to an additional 64 GB.
The device comes with two microSIM card slots, but that is a very market dependent feature, and something that may not be all that useful in the US. This phone is also unlocked, allowing you to pick the GSM network carrier of your choice, and you do get 4G LTE connectivity, with bands 2, 4, 7, and 17, with support for band 12 expected to arrive with a future OTA update.
The R1 HD comes with a single speaker unit on the back, which isn’t a great placement, making it easy to cover up when holding the phone in both the landscape and portrait orientation. The sound quality is pretty good however, with no distortion at the highest volume levels, and good highs and lows. The positioning could have certainly been better, but overall, this isn’t a disappointing speaker by any means.
The device comes with a non-removable 2,500 mAh battery, which may seem small, but does offer good battery life. With average usage, the phone comfortably allows for a full day of use, and even with heavy usage, that involved streaming video over LTE and keeping the screen brightness at maximum, the phone managed to last for 8 hours. There are no quick charging capabilities here, and takes around two hours to get back to a full charge, which isn’t too bad.
Camera
The R1 HD comes with an 8 MP rear camera, with a f/2.0 aperture and a 4P lens, along with a 5 MP front-facing unit with a wide angle lens. As is the case with any budget-friendly smartphone camera, these cameras can be hit and miss. The front-facing camera faces issues with overexposure and some noise, and while the wide angle lens allows for you to capture more of the scene, detail is lacking. There is a front-facing flash however, which is useful for any selfie lovers out there.
The story is the same with the rear facing camera as well. You do get good looking shots in daylight and well-light conditions, but the camera does tend to overexpose shots, and noise will start to creep in as the lighting deteriorates. The camera app has a few built-in shooting modes available, including Panorama, but video recording capabilities are limited to Full HD at 30 fps. As is the case with the picture quality, videos tend to look a little grainy as well. Overall, the cameras of the R1 HD will do in a pinch, but are certainly not something to write home about.
Software
On the software side of things, the R1 HD is running Android 6.0 Marshmallow out of the box, which is great to see, given that some other, more expensive, BLU smartphones released earlier this year were launched with Android 5.1 Lollipop. BLU has also done a good job with keeping the software very close to stock, and there aren’t really a whole lot of extras packed in.
As mentioned, there is an Amazon Prime exclusive version of the device available, with Prime members able to avail discounts and offers when picking up the phone, and later on as well. There is a catch however, with this version coming with lockscreen ads in tow. Essentially every time you press the power button, you will be greeted with a new ad, which you can swipe away to get to your homescreen, and you will even see an ad tacked on at the end of your notifications in the notification shade.
The presence of these ads can be a deal breaker for some, but some users may even appreciate the offers available and the products being displayed. Of course, a standard version, without these ads, is available as well.
Specifications
| Display | 5-inch IPS LCD display 1280 x 720 resolution, 294 ppi |
| Processor | 1.3 GHz quad-core MediaTek MT6735 processor Mali-T720 GPU |
| RAM | 1/2 GB |
| Storage | 8/16 GB expandable via microSD card up to 64 GB |
| Connectivity | Wi-Fi Bluetooth 4.0 GPS FM Radio microUSB 2.0 |
| Battery | 2,500 mAh |
| Camera | 8 MP rear camera, f/2.0 aperture, LED flash 5 MP front-facing camera, wide angle, LED flash |
| Software | Android 6.0 Marshmallow |
| Dimensions | 143 x 70.7 x 8.5 mm 142 grams |
Gallery
Pricing and final thoughts
The BLU R1 HD is currently priced at $100 for the 8 GB and 1 GB RAM version, with the 16 GB and 2 GB RAM iteration requiring just an additional $10, so the latter is definitely the way to go if you do decide to pick up this phone. Amazon Prime subscribers can available a $50 discount, but you will have to deal with the non removable lockscreen ads in this case.
So, there you have it for this in-depth look at the BLU R1 HD! This phone gets a lot right, with a solid design and build quality, decent performance, a clean software package, and an unbeatable price point. The camera experience is a bit of a let down, and the ads, if you go for the Prime version, can get annoying, but at this price, these are understandable compromises to make. If you are looking for a good option on a budget, the BLU R1 HD should definitely be considered.
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ASUS ZenPad Z8 review – CNET
The Good The Asus Zen Pad Z8 starts at only $149 with 4G LTE. It’s slim and lightweight with a sharp, bright screen and smooth performance. The battery lasts longer than the vast majority of tablets and charges quickly via USB-C.
The Bad The front-facing speaker and camera quality leave a lot to be desired.
The Bottom Line While it’s not fit for writing your next term paper on, the Asus ZenPad Z8 is our favorite budget Android tablet and is perfect for casual use.
You know the type of love song where the singer basically just lists a bunch of generic things about the person they’re enamored with? Like hair and eyes? That’s kind of how I feel about the Asus Zen Pad Z8. There isn’t just one specific, unique thing about it; it’s everything — the whole package — that makes it special.
While I don’t plan to write a ditty about the Z8 anytime soon, I’m not above rattling off a list to justify my infatuation. Its sharp, bright colorful screen make it great for catching up on episodes of UnReal; its perfectly portable size reminds me of carrying around a paperback book; it has 4G LTE so you can play Hearthstone while relaxing at the park and it packs a long-lasting battery. The best part? It’s totally affordable.
The catch is that it’s only available through Verizon. It costs $249 off contract or $149 with a two-year agreement. Verizon also offers qualified customers with a 25-month payment plan that makes it less than $11 per month.
Satisfyingly smooth
- Android 6.0.1
- Snapdragon 650 CPU
- Adreno 510 GPU
- 2GB of RAM
- 16GB of internal storage
- MicroSD card slot expandable up to 128GB
- USB-C
A tablet is a glorified toy. Any parent who frequently hands theirs over to their kids knows this. Though some tablets — like your Surfaces and iPad Pros of the world — make great laptop replacements, most are like the Asus ZenPad Z8 — meant for casual tasks, like streaming video, playing games, checking email and browsing the web.
Because of its $149 to $249 retail price (depending on whether you get it under contract or not), the Asus ZenPad Z8 could be considered cheap, (for comparison’s sake, the newest Samsung and Apple tablets in the same size category will cost you a cool $400) however it doesn’t feel, look or act cheap; apps launched swiftly, web pages and videos loaded in seconds, and it charges fast via USB-C.
It has a USB-C connector on the bottom edge.
Josh Miller/CNET
It averaged 12 hours of life in our battery test, which is really good for an Android tablet; iPads usually hit that number or above.
On separate occasions, I streamed a few episodes of “Supernatural” (catching up) and “Gilmore Girls” (re-watching) on the 4G LTE network with the screen brightness and volume cranked all the way up, and I never had to worry about the battery dying. Wish I could say the same thing about my laptop.
Benchmarks
Asus ZenPad Z8
17,856
3,638
1,536
Asus ZenPad S 8.0
13,468
2,927
919
Apple iPad Mini 2
15,015
2,465
1,374
Legend:
3DMark score (Ice Storm Unlimited)
Geekbench 3 score (Multi-core)
Geekbench 3 score (Single-core)
Note:
Longer bars indicate better performance
Osmo Creative Set Release Date, Price and Specs – CNET
Osmo wants your kids’ art saved for posterity, not just yellowing on the fridge door. The company makes educational tech products and accessories, including a line of drawing and programming tools for the iPad. Its latest package, called the Creative Set, combines a new app, called Monster, with a whiteboard, markers and an eraser, plus a handful of previously released apps.
Like other Osmo software, you’ll also need another product the company sells, the Osmo base and mirror, which is available separately. Your iPad sits upright in the stand, while a small angled mirror rests on the top of the iPad, and allows the iPad camera to see what you’re drawing (on the whiteboard, with the markers) in real time.
Jacob Krol/CNET
The whole thing sounds a bit complicated, but in practice it’s very simple. Like previous Osmo apps, the new Monster app uses a player’s pen-on-paper (or marker on whiteboard) input to drive the software.
Upon launching the application, Mo the Monster appears and it moves right into a question and answer game. Mo will ask for something to be drawn, like a fruit or a friend. The drawings get scanned by the iPad’s camera via the mirror add-on and are imported into the app, where they are used in animated presentations, including a magic show. You can even share the drawings via email in the gallery section after the show.
Jacob Krol/CNET
I had a few days to play around with the set and application, and I have to admit: I think I would’ve enjoyed playing with this when I was a kid. The setup is a little complex, with multiple pieces of hardware required, but it works as it’s supposed to most of the time. In hands-on use, I found having the right lighting can be a big factor. If the room is too dark, the app will not pick up the entire drawing.
All of this can still get repetitive, even with different questions being asked, and I’m hoping that future updates will build off of the magic show storyline and offer other experiences. An update to the scanning quality would be nice to see, but an optimal lighting environment can fix this issue.
This Creative Set is available now for $49 in the US and is coming soon to the UK and Australia for £39 or AU$69. The Monster application is included, as is access to Osmo’s similar Newton and Masterpiece applications. Coming soon, the Creative Kit ($75, £57 or AU$100) will include everything from the Creative Set, plus the base and mirror.
Mini review: Our quick verdict on the Moto G4 and G4 Plus
Since 2013, the Moto G has been our favorite mid-range smartphone — or favorite budget phone, even, depending on how you define “budget.” Now in its fourth generation, the G series has expanded to include three models, two of which we got to take for a spin in a recent review. Indeed, the 5.5-inch G4 and G4 Plus mostly impress, but not every design decision feels like an improvement. Though the phones are more expensive than they used to be, at $200 and $250, respectively, the plastic build feels less durable than we would have otherwise expected.
What’s more, the G4 is no longer waterproof, and its camera suffers in low light, to boot. The G4 Plus at least offers a better camera and faster performance, though it too has a chintzy build that doesn’t feel likely to stand years of wear and tear. Those complaints aside, the handsets nonetheless deserve their strong scores of 84 and 86 — and they continue Moto’s tradition of holding down the “value smartphone” crown.
Seagate Backup Plus Hub review – CNET
The Good The Seagate Backup Plus Hub is fast, has tons of storage and since it comes with two additional USB 3.0 ports it won’t hog your desktop’s expansion options. The drive has software that lets it work with Mac and Windows interchangeably.
The Bad The USB hub doesn’t always work when the drive is connected to a USB 2.0 port.
The Bottom Line Though it has some issues with USB 2.0, the Seagate Backup Plus Hub is an excellent external storage drive for any USB 3.0 desktop computer.
In most cases when you connect an external USB drive to your computer, you lose a USB port to it. Not so with the Seagate Backup Plus Hub. It has two extra USB 3.0 ports on the front, essentially giving you an extra port when you connect it.
Things work smoothly as long as you’re connecting the drive to a USB 3.0 port on your computer. When connected to USB 2.0, however, sometimes my computer wouldn’t recognize what was connected to one of the Backup Plus Hub’s two USB ports, through the drive itself worked fine.
It’s not a huge deal, since most newer computers have at least a few USB 3.0 ports, but if you have mostly USB 2.0 ports on your system this will get annoying, fast. If you do have an older machine and you’re reasonably technically adept, I’d recommend installing a USB 3.0 add-in card, which will add a few more ports to your system.
CNET USB 3.0/3.1 external drive performance
Seagate Backup Plus Hub
181.3
195.78
Segate Backup Plus Desktop
150.9
180.45
Samsung Portable T3
125.9
221.4
Seagate Expansion
125.2
127.93
G-Tech Gdrive EV ATC
119.0
138.73
Seagate Backup Plus Slim
118.8
125.35
Toshiba Canvio Slim II
118.8
118.49
Buffalo MiniStation Extreme
110.3
118.82
WD My Passport Ultra
110.2
117.34
WD My Password Slim
107.7
107.89
LaCie Christofle Sphere
105.5
111.43
SiliconPower Armor A60
104.3
114.48
WD Elements
95.7
102.15
Legend:
Write
Read
Note:
Longer bars mean better performance
The Backup Plus Hub is compact for a desktop external drive. It measures just 4.6 by 1.6 by 7.8 inches (118 by 41 by 198 mm) with a weight of 2.3 pounds (1.1 kg). And like all desktop drives, it requires its own power adapter (included) to function. Out of the box, the drive is formatted in NTFS and should work right away when connected to a Windows computer. It includes Paragon Driver for Mac that lets it work with a Mac computer without a reformat. Alternatively, you could reformat it into the HFS+ file system if you only want use it with a Mac.
Amazon Kindle 2016 review – CNET
The Good The most affordable Kindle gets a subtle but worthwhile design upgrade (it’s slimmer, lighter and less angular) and adds Bluetooth audio for accessibility, so visually impaired readers can hear VoiceView audio.
The Bad No integrated light; price hasn’t gotten any lower.
The Bottom Line While the 2016 Kindle isn’t a huge improvement over its predecessor, it’s a perfectly good e-reader with a clearly improved design and a big upgrade for the visually impaired.
Amazon’s most affordable Kindle e-reader ($80; £60; AU$109) has been refreshed for 2016. It’s now 11 percent thinner, 16 percent lighter, has more rounded edges and comes in white as well as black.
The design changes may not seem major, but any time you can shave some weight off an e-reader it makes a difference. At 5.7 ounces or 161g, the latest entry-level Kindle is actually the second lightest Amazon reader, trailing only the top-of the line Amazon Kindle Oasis.
The new Kindle (on right) is smaller and lighter than the 2014 model. It’s available in white or black.
Sarah Tew/CNET
It feels light in hand, but it’s worth noting that the shell and edges are made out of of hard, smooth plastic (it retains the same no frills look, making it a touch slippery). Optional protective covers are available, including Amazon’s well-designed form-fitting case — though it’s a bit pricey at $30, £20 or AU$30 (it’s slimmer and lighter than previous covers).
One key missing feature is the integrated light found in the step-up Paperwhite, Voyage and Oasis models. Also, those devices have higher-resolution displays — this entry-level Kindle’s screen isn’t as crisp (167 ppi compared to 300 ppi of its more expensive siblings).
But this Kindle does have a touchscreen (unlike the pre-2014 baseline models) and it’s equipped with 4GB of storage, which enables you to store thousands of e-books. Amazon has also apparently doubled the amount of RAM, bumping it up to 512MB. I didn’t really notice a difference in performance, however.
AIVAnet 