Ten Plus Systems Blog

Apple Tablets vs. Android Tablets: Which Is Best?

September 13, 2022 | Technology

Looking for a new tablet in today’s market can be overwhelming. With so many brands to choose from, picking the right tablet for you might take a long time, or you might miss out on something good if you rush into a purchase.

As experts in tablet repairs, we’re here to help you pick the right type of tablet for your needs. Should you go with an Apple tablet or an Android tablet? Let’s dive into what features you should be looking at to get the best value for your money.

Price

Price used to be a base of comparison between iPadOS and Android tablets. But now, there are tablets from known brands running Android that are in the same price range as Apple tablets. Brands like Samsung, Lenovo, Huawei, and Amazon are keeping up with the power and quality of Apple tablets.

If price is a major deciding factor between choosing the winner of the Apple tablets vs. Android tablets, Android tablets fare better. That’s because Apple’s cheapest iPad starts at $329. On the other hand, the cheapest Android tablet from Amazon’s Amazon Fire line starts at $59.99.

Size options

When it comes to tablet and display size, the smallest you can get from these three brands is a 7” display. If you prefer smaller-sized tablets, Amazon Fire 7 is a good option. However, this Android tablet isn’t as powerful as iPads and newer Android tablets from Samsung and Lenovo.

The smallest Apple tablet you can get is the iPad mini, which sports an 8.3” display. For bigger tablets, you can get anything from 9” to a little below 13” tablets from Lenovo, Samsung, Amazon, and Apple.

Durability

As for tablet durability, you can opt for tablets with outer materials made of aluminum, such as Apple’s iPad models. If you have no issues with thick tablets, you can also opt for a tablet that’s thicker than normal tablets without sacrificing the processing power and operating system support.

Since newer tablets are thinner than old ones, it’ll be difficult to find a newly-released tablet with thicker builds.

Additionally, since most tablets use the same materials, durability boils down to how you use your tablet. If you’re careful and use your tablet with a protective case or a tempered glass on its display, they can last longer than when you use them without any form of protection.

Screen resolution

Regarding display resolution, you can rely on Apple’s tablets because of their proprietary Retina display. Most Android tablets use AMOLED displays, which are also of high resolution.

When it comes to display quality, the rule of thumb is the resolution should be enough to support a tablet's display size without sacrificing image quality and the smoothness of movements.

Google Pixel 6a vs. Apple iPhone SE: Which low-cost phone is best?

July 07, 2022 | Technology, Tips

Apple released the iPhone SE on March 18 this year in the market. And Google announced the release of the Pixel 6a phone this same year, having pre-orders on July 21 and hitting on July 28. The Pixel 6a appears to be a solid Android equivalent to the entry-level iPhone SE. Prices for both are quite similar, but which of Google and Apple's budget phones is better? Here, we compile the specs to find out.

Apple iPhone SE vs. Google Pixel 6a: Display

Google Pixel 6a’s screen measures 6.1 inches with an OLED touch screen that displays 2400 by 1080 pixels and a 20:9 ratio; that’s 429 PPI density. The phone is protected with Corning Gorilla Glass 3, an Always-on display. Apple's iPhone SE’s Retina HD LCD sports a fairly 4.7 inches with 1334 by 750 pixels of display resolution and a ratio of 16:9, for 326 pixels per inch. This device is protected with Ion-strengthened glass that is coated with oleophobic, wide color gamut, and true-tone. This makes the Pixel 6a have a bigger and notably sharper display. But both claim to have high contrast levels and wide colors.

Apple iPhone SE vs. Google Pixel 6a: Battery

iPhone SE says it has a Li-Ion 2018 mAh that is not removable. That would be 6.96 Watt-hours. This could charge as fast as 20W, 50% in just 30 minutes. This is also 7.5W with Qi wireless charging. This can offer up to 15 hours of video playback.

On the other hand, the Pixel 6a has a battery Li-Po 4410 mAh (also not removable). Its charging rate is at least 18W used with USB Power Delivery 3.0 which is lower than iPhone SE. So in terms of battery life, the Apple iPhone SE has longer hours.

Apple iPhone SE vs. Google Pixel 6a: Processor

Apple iPhone SE has an Apple A15 Bionic Hexa-core with 2 by 3.22 GHz Avalanche and 4 by 1.82 GHz Blizzard; an Apple GPU of 4-core graphics. This operates with iOS 15.4 which is upgradable to iOS 15.5. It has no slot for a memory card, yet it’s available with NVMe internal memories of 64GB and 4GB RAM, 128GB and 4GB RAM, and 256GB and 4GB RAM.

Meanwhile, Google Pixel 6a operates with Android 12 that runs with Google Tensor chipset of Octa-core (2 by 2.80 GHz Cortex-X1 and 2 by 2.25 GHz Cortex-A76 and 4 by 1.80 GHz Cortex-A55) and Mali-G78 MP20 GPU. This also has no card slot but has UFS 3.1 128GB and 6GB RAM. In this case, the iPhone SE has more edge than the Pixel 6a.

Apple iPhone SE vs. Google Pixel 6a: Price

The latest Pixel model has a lot of great features that have a low cost starting at $449. That price makes it great for comparison to Apple's iPhone SE, which starts at $ 429. Though we can’t really give a clear verdict since the Pixel 6a hasn’t reached the market yet, we have its stated specs to give us means of comparing the Google Pixel 6a to the Apple iPhone SE. It seems the Pixel 6a costs more than the iPhone SE, right? And the iPhone still has more upper hand over low-cost phones. But still, both seem to have reasonable and fair prices with all of their capabilities.

Other than the above comparisons, here’s more.

iPhone SE also has main camera features of Dual-LED flash, Pixel Shift, Auto-HDR, panorama having dual 12.2 MP, f/1.7, 27mm, (wide), 1/2.55", 1.4µm, dual pixel PDAF, OIS, and 12 MP, f/2.2, 17mm, 114˚ (ultrawide), 1.25µm with video qualities of  4K@30/60fps, 1080p@30/60/120/240fps; gyro-EIS, OIS. It has a selfie camera feature of HDR that has a single 7MP, with f/2.2 video quality. Then Pixel 6a also has main camera features of Quad-LED dual-tone flash, HDR, and Panorama having single 12MP, f/1.8 wide, PDAF, and OIS with video qualities of  4K@24/30/60fps, 1080p@30/60/120/240fps, HDR, OIS, stereo sound rec. It has a selfie camera that features Auto-HDR, a panorama that has a single 8 MP, f/2.0, 24mm (wide), 1.12µm, with 1080p@30fps video quality. 

In terms of communication, the latest model of Apple features Wi-Fi 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac/6, dual-band, hotspot; a 5.0, A2DP, LE for Bluetooth. It also has A-GPS, GLONASS, GALILEO, BDS, and QZSS; a 2.0 USB Lightning type. The Pixel 6a on the other hand, features Wi-Fi 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac/6e, dual-band, Wi-Fi Direct, hotspot; also a 5.2 A2DP, LE for Bluetooth. Same as iPhone SE it has GPS features and NFC.

The body of the Google Pixel 6a has a dimension of 152.2 by 71.8 by 8.9 mm which weighs 178g, while iPhone SE has 138.4 by 67.3 by 7.3 mm and weighs 144 g. Pixel 6a has an available SIM slot for Nano-SIM and/or eSIM. Both have IP67 dust/water resistance, but iPhone SE also has Apple Pay that can also be used with Visa, MasterCard, and AMEX Certified.

Graduated and Need to Buy a New Laptop? Here’s What to Look For.

June 16, 2022 | Technology, Tips

Are you considering buying a new laptop but wondering what’s best for you? Many people search for the best devices with high-end features but miss what to look for, which is what they need and what’s best for them. Here we’ll discuss what to look for.

Processor

This is also referred to as a chip or CPU (Central Processing Unit). Intel and AMD are the two companies that make processors for laptops.

Core i3 is weaker but cheaper. Yet this chip is still ample for everyday computing tasks. This is available as dual-core and at multiple speeds ranging from 1.30 GHz up to 3.50 GHz, with features of either 3MB or 4MB of cache. 

One may ample if you run web browsers, Office applications, media software, and low-end games. But it can’t handle content creation, heavy editing, or video work. It may also slow down with tougher games.

AMD Ryzen 5 and Intel i5 are indistinguishable when browsing the web or editing documents. Core i5 CPUs are capable of handling a broader range of situations. 

This is usually available as dual-core or quad-core. Its multiple speed ranges from 1.90 GHz up to 3.80 GHz, with 3 MB, 4 MB, and 6 MB cache. Ryzen 7 and Intel Core i7 can also be similar. Intel i7 features either four cores or six cores with frequencies of 2.60 GHz up to 3.70 GHz. This processor is primarily marketed to gaming enthusiasts, gaming artists, filmmakers, and makers.

The Core i9 processor is the most powerful among the four units. These CPUs feature six to eighteen cores with two threads per core when hyper-threading is enabled. It has 2.9 to 3.6 GHz, and up to 5 GHz frequencies if using Intel Turbo Boost. 

In terms of graphic performance, AMD tends to have an edge. So if you’re a video editor or a gamer, this is likely to be your upper hand. 

Memory

Choosing the right memory might boost your device’s performance. It’s been a norm to have 8GB as the bare minimum as it fits our budget and it can already meet our productivity fairly. But for experienced users, it’s not a great choice.

Your machine may get sluggish because some programs demand more memory capacity even modern web browsers lightens the load. So most users who want to multitask without the slowdown are recommended to choose 16GB of main system memory or 36 GB for those heavy multitaskers like video editors. 

The more RAM you have, the faster your laptop performance is. Check if the RAM is soldered to the motherboard, you can upgrade the RAM yourself if it is not soldered. You would also want to check if it has DDR (Double Data Rate). DDR 4 RAM is speedy and common in most laptops. But the manufacturer will give you a list, so it’s better to check before buying.

Storage

This is your laptop’s filing cabinet. The most common storage choice these days is a solid-state drive (SSD), but some budget laptops still use spinning drives. SSD is can be budget-friendly and faster especially if they use an NVMe connection. 

The recommended minimum space amount is 256 gigabytes. If you use Cloud, you can choose less. But it’s better to have a ready space for more. It will eat up space quickly if you install a lot of software or games. You may notice that the hard drive doesn’t have the same space as what was advertised. The space didn’t reduce, it just has something to do with the difference between the binary that Windows use and decimal bytes that drive makers use. 

Battery Life

Many focus on the number of hours that the manufacturers quoted. A laptop’s battery life is often different from what is said on the box. It can differ due to the screen brightness, type, or amount of software you run. These affect how long the battery lasts. 

The battery life of your device also differs from the type of processor that you use. You should look for the rating of the battery in milliamps-hours (mAh) or Watt-hours (Wh). If the number is bigger, the battery will last longer.

Design

You should consider your laptop design according to which field you are in or where you use your laptop for. If you travel and take your laptop with you a lot of times, you might like the slim ones. There are also notebook laptops, which are slimmer, lighter, and simplified sets of tools. Ultraportable and Ultrabook are quite similar to notebooks. 

Ultrabook’s strong point is strong security and anti-theft protection. In convertible (2-in-1), you can quickly switch to touchscreen mode or the traditional keyboard model. Convertibles also transform in various ways like detaching, sliding, twisting, and fold-back mechanisms. The most high-end convertible has a high-resolution screen with a wider color gamut, optimized for multimedia that is great for watching videos.

After you narrowed down your choices, check the reviews and look for something beyond the specifications you prefer. I hope you find this article helpful.

iPhone Battery Health: How to Check and Improve It

May 11, 2022 | Technology, How To

Just like all batteries, iPhone batteries tend to deteriorate in performance over time. An iPhone that can last you 12 hours out of the box can only last you two or three hours after a year or two. You wonder, why does my iPhone’s battery health deteriorate so fast?

Which iPhone Model Is the Best for You?

February 21, 2022 | Technology

Apple usually comes out with 2 to 4 models of the iPhone with every generation. That means you’ll have to choose between 4 different iPhone models to find the best iPhone model that will suit your daily productivity, social, and entertainment needs.

Moreover, if you’re a smartphone user who takes high-quality photos and videos, plays heavy mobile games, and does other hardware-demanding tasks on your phone, you’re bound to look for an iPhone that can serve all your needs without an issue.

Fortunately, we came up with a list of iPhone 13 models to find the best iPhone model for you. Go through our list and finish reading it to find a suitable smartphone:

1. iPhone 13 mini

Today’s smartphone mantra is the bigger, the better. That doesn’t stand true for the iPhone 13 mini. It has a 5.4-inch Super Retina XDR display, which is by far the smallest viewable screen since the iPhone 8. 

Since not everyone is a fan of big smartphones with wide screens, the iPhone 13 mini is perfect for people who like to have their cell phone fit just right in their hands and pockets. It’s never easy to always have to hold your phone in your hands because it won’t fit in any of your pockets, right?

With the iPhone 13 mini, you get 5G support, a powerful dual-lens rear camera that can capture up to 4K@60fps videos, the A15 Bionic chip, and up to 17 hours of video playback on Wi-Fi. When it comes to storage, you can have up to 512GB to store all your images, photos, files, and apps.

Even with all those features, the iPhone 13 mini is still mini – it only weighs 140g! Size-wise, this is the best iPhone model for users to like the comfort of having a cell phone with a size that’s just right to fit in their palms and pockets.

2. iPhone 13

The iPhone 13 mini made a slight jump and became the iPhone 13. The iPhone 13 is just a tad bigger, with a 6.1-inch Super Retina XDR display and the same rear camera power. It’s also powered by the same A15 Bionic chip but has a bigger battery that can play up to 19 hours of video on Wi-Fi.

It’s also 5G-enabled to let you stream videos without a problem. However, you get 63 additional grams for a bigger display and battery. If you think carefully, 2 hours of additional video playback and .7 inches of additional screen size isn’t all that big of an improvement to accept carrying a 173g iPhone around when there’s the 140g iPhone 13 mini with the same features.

But if you’re looking for the selling point of the iPhone 13, it’s the familiar size that the colorful iPhone XR has. Are you a fan of the XR? The iPhone 13 is a good way to look back.

3. iPhone 13 Pro

Since iPhones are famed for their superb camera quality, the iPhone 13 Pro gets a huge upgrade from the iPhone 13’s dual-lens rear camera set up.

The iPhone 13 Pro has a triple-lens set up with 6x optical zoom, LiDar Scanner for better photos in Night mode and low light environments, a bigger battery that allows up to 22 hours of video playback on Wi-Fi, and up to 1TB of storage.

However, the screen size didn’t change. The iPhone 13 Pro still has the same 6.1-inch screen you’ll see in the iPhone 13 but with ProMotion. Even if the Pro version weighs 33 grams more (203g), the only changes you’ll see is the better camera, bigger battery, and more storage capacity.

So if you want the iPhone 13 with a better camera and more storage to take advantage of the quality of that camera, get the iPhone 13 Pro.

4. iPhone 13 Pro Max

The brightest of the iPhone 13 line is the iPhone 13 Pro Max, which has the same camera as the iPhone 13 Pro. However, its screen size is much bigger, with 6.7 inches of the viewable area on Super Retina Display with ProMotion.

It has a beefier battery, allowing up to 28 hours of video playback on Wi-Fi. Its storage capacity is also capped at 1TB, which we think is enough if you’re not trying to shoot movies on your iPhone.

The iPhone 13 Pro Max has the biggest display, so this one is perfect for creators who want to utilize the camera power of the 13 Pro Max for content creation. In addition, you’ll also appreciate this model if you love watching videos on your phone.