Alongside the long awaited Y6p, Huawei is set to unveil the Huawei Y8p in Kenya as from next week on 15^th June 2020. Pre-orders of the same model are expected to start soon after and will be updating the official recommended retail price as soon as we get it. Unlike the Y6p model which pack’s a massive 5000mAh battery, the Huawei Y8p instead focuses on photography with an impressive 48Megapixels sensor alongside other two sensors to complement variations in environments or different kinds of photos.

It’s a bit disappointing that we don’t get the same battery capacity as its immediate sibling but as anyone can guess, the tech giant is betting on an impressive camera to offer some kind of comfort. We also get some taste of high-level tech that’s missing on the Y6p such as an in-display fingerprint scanner but heavy users or for that sake gamers will need to cope with a 4000mAh battery.

Under the hood, the Huawei Y8p packs a 6GB RAM as well 128GB worth of internal storage space which of course can be supplemented by an external MicroSD card. The front panel is equipped with a 6.3 inches dew drop OLED display that manages to stretch further from side to side only giving room to a small notch at the top housing a selfie snapper.

Unlike the Y6p, the display panel on this model spells premium across the board, it utilizes OLED technology and has an ample screen resolution enough to make those images and text pop. The ultra-clear display is maxed out at 2400 x 1080pixels resolution that sums up to 418 pixels per inch. Thanks to the OLED technology, the panel on this device should provide remarkable visual experience and cinematic color gamut. Both bright and dark details should look vivid while watching videos, playing games or browsing images.

At the back, we get a set of three sensors; 2 megapixels depth camera, 48 megapixels main camera and an 8 megapixels ultrawide angle sensor. Photography shouldn’t be an issue for creators and if you’d rather go for a premium display panel, then this device is a good fit. Lastly, it goes without saying you’ll have to live without the Google services but Huawei has provided it’s AppGallery to load some apps. For those who can afford to do some minor hacks here and there, you could easily sideload missing apps from APK’s downloaded from other sources.  

Huawei’s next sequel on its mid-level themed Y-series lineup is expected to officially launch and pre-orders to start soon after on the 15^th of June 2020, we’ve therefore gathered enough info so you could decide if it fits your needs or move on to the next. And just like current Huawei devices, the Huawei Y6p comes amidst bad blood between the tech giant and the US government that has resulted in lack of Google Play services onboard, though you still have the Huawei AppGallery for some of the android applications.

The standout feature rests within the massive 5000mAh battery that the company says should last 20hours plus surfing on 4G networks, 32hours of video playbacks, 36hours on 4G calls and 37 hours of FM radio without headsets. Though lithium ion batteries still have a long way to go, we kind of like the idea of having such an incredible amount of mAh in a mid-tier device; with normal use, Huawei Y6p should last at least a day or two. Huawei was kind enough to include reverse charge capability in this handset; meaning, you could easily charge other devices with a compatible cable, though there’s no wireless charging yet.

Huawei Y6p packs a 6.3inch Dewdrop Display that stretches all the way with minimal bezels. The only obstruction on the front panel emanates from that notch housing the front selfie camera. According to the tech giant, the handset manages to cover a decent 88.4 percent of the entire front panel with the display screen the rest of it being taken by a narrow frame and a discreet front camera. However, don’t expect the kind of sharpness you get on pricier siblings or top tier competitors; Huawei only managed to equip this device with a low rated 720x1600pixels resolution that sums up to 278pixels per inch which is way low in the smartphone world.

On the backside, there’s a triple Rear Camera setup that includes a 13 MP clear main lens, a 5 MP wide angle lens and a 2 MP depth lens. This ample combination should produce standard images that you can confidently share with your peers or on social media. We acknowledge that there’s quite a bit of effort that goes in producing those sharp detailed vivid images under varying conditions; however, we expect the Y6p to do just fine in the arena given the price tag.

The front 8 Megapixels selfie camera is touted as the beauty camera which basically means that Huawei included some software enhancements to process photos taken by adding a few details such as automatic retouching.

Huawei Y6p Specifications

Huawei Y6p Price in Kenya: (TBA)

Xiaomi is expected to officially unveil its latest sequel in the Mi band lineup with some substantial upgrades over the former. I’ve been a big fan of the Xiaomi’s bands lineup for really good reasons. Unlike the competition, Xiaomi’s alternatives have been known to offer very good battery lifetime with my band 4 going all the way to 21 days. They also have some pretty mazing combination of features and price.

The tech giant has at least confirmed some nifty features coming on the band 5 correcting some of the band 4’s flaws. In its own way, the band 4 isn’t a bad choice for many, it has some of the best features in the industry and costs just a fraction of available alternatives. However, as we all can acknowledge, something good can always become better.

Upgrade of charging system to magnetic charging for the Mi Band 5

Previous Mi bands such as band 3 and 4 required users to separate the band from the tracker in order to charge. The band 5 will instead utilize a magnetic charging connection that’ll be hooked below the band without having to remove it from its housing as has been the trend.

In addition to the magnetic charging, the band 5 is set to come with more upgrades over its predecessor such as 20% larger screen giving users a much-needed upgrade as the previous model had a somewhat tiny display.

We also expect a range upgrades on sensors that will be included such as a heart rate sensor, as well as oxygen level sensor. It’ll also come packed with a range of tracking features to track your sleep, stress, and respiratory health.

According to android authority, the band 5 will come equipped with women’s health tracking and remote camera control, in addition to 11 sports modes plus NFC support.

Smartphones have undoubtedly evolved over years with some interesting tech inside, we can now choose from a range of features that suit our style and preferences such as whether to go for a punch hole front camera or notch, the same way we have an option to choose between an under display fingerprint sensor or a physical button and so forth. However; unlike other aspects of our handsets, batteries still have a long way to go. There hasn’t been a noticeable development in the mechanics used in the lithium ion batteries used in almost all phones currently available. There isn’t a smartphone out there that can comfortably promise to take you through an entire day under heavy use and still have some battery juice in the evening, hence the need to have a power bank just in case.

Power banks basically stores power to charge your devices when you need it. And there are a couple of power bank technologies you could choose from such as those that have alternative charging methods such as using solar and so forth. But as much as they can offer some kind of reliability, carrying power banks can sometimes be a tedious endeavor, I for example cannot have it for more than a day without simply misplacing or sometimes not even using it. But if you are let’s say travelling or moving to a remote location that power isn’t much of a necessity, then perhaps power banks could offer some solace.

While the batteries inside our smartphones haven’t evolved that much, the modes of charging them has tremendously improved from the gone days. We now have wireless charging option that you don’t need to hook a cable between your phone and the power source. Not all power banks support wireless charging technologies such as Qi. If your phone supports wireless charging technologies, then here are a couple of reliable power bank options you could opt for.

Reliable wireless power banks you can buy here in Kenya for less than Ksh.5,000

• Promate AURAPACK-10 10000mAh Power Bank /Wireless Charger

Promate isn’t a common name internationally, but they do have some interesting products you should really try them out. Take for example their wireless power bank – Promate AURAPACK -10 10000mAh going for around Ksh5,600 here in Kenya. It comes equipped with the Qi wireless charging technology and has a battery charge capacity of 10,000mAh.

• Samsung wireless Power bank EB-U1200CPNG

The Samsung Wireless power bank comes with fast charge capabilities and from our list of best power banks available locally, it features the best combination of price at only Ksh.3,500 and features. Features include fast Wireless Charging output (FAST CHARGE, Qi, Galaxy Watch), Fast Wired Charging In and Out (AFC, QC2.0 max.15W)

• Xiaomi’s 10000mAh Mi Wireless Power Bank

Xiaomi is known for its feature pack that doesn’t churn out as much cash to own. And its wireless power bank is no different, it comes with Qi Certified 2-Way Fast Charging capability, 10W Fast Wireless Charging and 18W Fast Charging via the Output Port. This power bank solution also offers great value for your money with a price tag of only Ksh.3,500.