Have No Fear
late
It’s
time to splurge. And here are the absolute best phones, TVs and gadgets out
there
YOU CAN feel it in the
air. Diwali. That slight nip, that aroma of pollution hanging heavier, that
awesome feeling of being stuck in even more bumper-to-bumper traffic, that
super-romantic fog all around that never lifts after Ravan has been vanquished
with loud and smoky bombs. Yes, Diwali is in the air and even your arms are
feeling the extra weight of handling newspapers with 27 cover pages of sales
and 17 back pages of awesome e-commerce burn-out offers. It’s a great time to
be alive. It’s also a very confusing time to be alive. As a special pre-Diwali
gift to all of you, I’ve tackled the toughest questions that have been at the
back of your head with honest and forthcoming answers. Have no fear, Diwali
TechMan is here!
IPHONE 6S PLUS OR SAMSUNG NOTE 5?
Look, its Diwali. Forget
about the Xiaomis and the One Pluses. It’s time to splurge and buy the absolute
best that the smartphone industry has to offer. This is the time to go into
money-is-no-object mode. After all, you aren’t going to buy another phone for
the next three months! So the quest to buy the best phone in the world is an
important one. It doesn’t matter if it’s for yourself or if you’re giving it as
a gift, or sending it as a legal bribe to all those who did you favours this
year. The iPhone 6S Plus leads in premiumness, prestige, snob value, rose gold
colour, new peek and pop with force touch, great camera, new live photos and
better selfies. The Note 5 beats the pants off other phones in being a rebel,
more businesslike, more corporate, good looks, better hardware, better screen,
better 4K video, an awesome stylus and a slightly better battery life. It’s a
close fight so let me narrow it down. If it’s for yourself, buy the Note 5; if
you already have a Macbook Pro/Air/iPad/iAnything then buy the 6S Plus. If
you’re gifting it, send the Note 5; if it’s a bribe masquerading as a gift,
then send the 6S Plus. After all, Apple bhejoge toh hi toh fruits of your
labour milega na?
CURVED OR FLAT TV?
Curves are good except
when they’re on a TV. Apart from sexism, that statement also has wisdom. Curved
TVs are amazing and LG’s OLED Curved TVs are a sight to behold. But they cost a
lot more money. Money that doesn’t necessarily justify the premium. Curved TVs
cost more, much more and give you less, much less screen size. It’s time to go
big and go 4K. With more and more 4K content now appearing, 4K disc players
being launched in December and almost all good phones and cameras now capable
of shooting in 4K – you would be foolhardy to spend big this Diwali and then
get thrown a curveball! Panasonic, Sony, LG and Samsung have some amazing TVs
and offers on those big TVs, they throw in so many extras that you’ll need a
separate room to keep the freebies. Go as big as you can, make sure its 4K and
make sure it’s as flat as a carpenter’s dream.
DSLR OR MIRRORLESS CAMERA?
None of the above. This
Diwali, do something different. Buy an action camera. A GoPro or a Polaroid
Cube or a Xiaomi Yi. You’ll thank me for this Diwali bomb of advice. The good
part about these is that they’re hardly only for action junkies. Being
super-small, wide-angled, waterproof and practically mountable anywhere – you
can shoot angles and points of view that you didn’t think were possible. The
plethora of accessories and add-ons, plus the fact that you can do some really
quirky things with them (shoot the inside of a washing machine while it’s
washing your clothes, strap it on your dog and send him off for a run), makes
them a no-brainer to choose! If you really want to rediscover your love of
photography, movie-making or love plain fooling around with optics – this is
the way to go. Live a little, live on the edge and shoot off it too!
BLUETOOTH SPEAKER, DOCK OR HEADPHONES?
Once again, none of the
above. This Diwali, start your journey towards fully wireless music across the
house. Room-to-room music systems that are all network-connected are a whole
new way to enjoy music without compromise in sound, and yet using all the
technology that wasn’t even possible a few years ago. All our music is digital
now and it’s strewn all over. On our phones, on USB sticks, on network hard
drives and on laptops and tablets. These whole-house systems go and collect all
that music from all these sources and automatically index and filter them into
intelligent categories. You can play any music from anywhere, in any or all the
rooms. While a lot of companies offer these solutions, it’s Sonos and the new
Bose Sound Touch systems that are miles ahead of the rest. Now that Diwali
TechMan has taken the festive bull by the horns and answered the most important
questions of this season, it’s time for you to start your personal scanning of
newspapers, websites and shopping apps.
I hope you find one of the
above at a 50 per cent off with a 100 per cent cash back, a free Uber ride,
plus a gold coin and a five-bedroom apartment thrown in for free.
Rajiv
Makhni
HTBR1NOV15
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