Tech winners & losers: OnePlus Pad review, Asus ROG Ally outdoes Steam Deck and more
PS5 redesign? This week's tech headlines all in one place
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📆 Calendar
📱 Today: OnePlus Pad pre-orders begin in the US – I reviewed it already
👾 7 days: Guardians of the Galaxy (I’ll have an IMAX review in advance)
🤖 12 days: Google IO – we’ll have live updates of the big keynote
🎮 13 days: Asus ROG Ally launch date – I went hands-on already
⚔️ 14 days: The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom – buy it here
🍎 38 days: Apple’s WWDC 2023 keynote (maybe its AR/VR headset)
Today’s tech 👍 winners & 👎 losers
OnePlus Pad review: $479 Android tablet that's a price-for-performance beast
👍 📱 Winner: This new Android tablet and iPad rival that I reviewed today is superb for its price. We also did an unboxing on Instagram.
Pros
✅ 📱 A $479 Android tablet that rivals the value of Apple’s iPad
✅ ⚙️ Great combo: 128GB of storage & Dimensity 9000 chipset
✅ 📺 Crisp 11.61-inch IPS display with fluid 144Hz refresh rate
✅ 🪄 Software tricks enable SIM-free data sharing, OTP auto-fill
Cons
❌ 🤔 Out-of-the-box settings require some fine-tuning
❌ 🌈 Just one color – you better like Halo Green
❌ 💳 No version with a SIM card
Android tablets are mounting a comeback in 2023, and the new OnePlus Pad is eager to become the best value in their resurgence against the dominant Apple iPad. Google is going to steal headlines with the Pixel Tablet next week and Samsung launched a trio of Galaxy S8 tablets two months ago, but there’s a place for OnePlus, too.
At $479, the OnePlus Pad takes the company’s “Never Settle” motto and stretches it to fit a superb-looking 11.61-inch screen. Next to the iPad 10.9, this OnePlus tablet is bigger, more pixel-dense, offers a higher screen refresh rate and is more affordable when considering the storage specs and the significantly cheaper accessories.
As I suggested in my OnePlus 11 review in February, OnePlus is the best-positioned Android manufacturer for consumers facing a tough economy. The new OnePlus Pad extends OnePlus’ lead in the value-for-performance game. More…
It's time to stop buying video games at launch
👎 💔 Loser: $70 games that ship incomplete, treating gamers like beta testers, writes The Shortcut's
.
When was the last time a video game launched without any issues? Honestly, I couldn’t name one title with any conviction. And that’s why I no longer buy video games on release day.
You see, I grew up during the halcyon days when video games were deemed complete, ready to ship, and worked as intended. Laughably, that was only a few decades ago. More…
Asus ROG Ally hands-on review: it makes Steam Deck look dated
👍 🎮 Winner: I loved testing this thing – but it’ll all come down to the price. Check out our other video on Instagram.
Pros
✅ 🎮 PC gaming handheld with full HD display and 120Hz refresh rate
✅ ⚙️ Powerful AMD Ryzen Z1 CPU, RDNA 3 GPU and 512GB SSD
✅ 💿 Full Windows 11 and natively supports major gaming platforms
✅ 🙌 Lighter, more ergonomic and grippier than Steam Deck
Cons
❌ 💰 Could be pricey – they’re being coy with the final cost
❌ 🔧 Windows 11 still isn’t optimized for handhelds
Rumor has it that this Steam Deck rival will cost $699.99 and we know it’ll definitely be under $1,000. If it’s the former, then the Asus ROG Ally just might be the ultimate PC gaming handheld… until the Steam Deck 2 launches.
Here’s what I thought about testing it for several hours: More…
Dyson's air-purifying headphones are available to buy – they're not cheap
👎 😷 Loser: $1,000? Skip this overpriced tech and the Bane comments
➡️ The Shortcut Skinny: Dyson Zone price
👀 You can now own the Dyson Zone headphones
😷 The headset includes a magnetic visor that purifies the air
🤔 You also get noise-canceling and an app
😲 However, they cost $999.99 from Dyson’s website
See the Super Mario Bros. Movie in Japanese – for a limited time
👍 🇯🇵 Winner: I’ll be seeing this one tonight – I already saw the Mario movie five times in 3D, 2D, IMAX, 4DX and Dolby Cinema. Why not once more, right?
🇯🇵 The Super Mario Bros. Movie will be shown in Japanese for a limited time
🎦 Select cinemas and locations will be showing the film
💰 The film continues to rake in the cash – closing in on $1B this weekend
🍄 The Super Mario Bros. Movie 2 is inevitable at this point
PS5 sales near 40 million but Sony fails to mention how PSVR 2 is performing
👎 🥽 Loser: While I helped 400,000 people buy a next-gen console via my Twitter, I haven’t been able to fully recommend PSVR 2 (maybe if Spider-Man VR comes out) and Apple’s headset is rumored to be around the corner. Watch out, Sony!
➡️ The Shortcut Skinny: PS5 sales record
🚀 PS5 consoles continue to fly off the shelves
📈 Sony sold 19.1 million PS5 consoles in 2022, a 56.5% YoY increase
🤐 However, it didn’t mention PSVR 2 headset sales at all
📉 Sony said it expects profits to slip despite record PS5 sales
One of the best PS5 games is getting a sequel
👍 🏹 Winner: This will be the third Horizon game on the PlayStation 5
➡️ The Shortcut Skinny: Horizon strikes back
🙌 A third installment in the Horizon series is coming
💪 Developer Guerilla Games has revealed its working on another sequel
👩🦰 It will star Aloy, so is likely a mainline release
📅 There’s no word yet as to when it will appear
Only Japan will get this Final Fantasy 16 limited-edition PS5 controller & console
👎 Loser: I mean, it’s cool, but good luck finding one for a reasonable price
➡️ The Shortcut Skinny: FF16 DualSense design
🎮 Sony has unveiled a limited edition Final Fantasy 16-themed controller
🤩 It comes alongside a limited edition PS5 console design
😲 But they’ll only release in Japan
🕹 A standard Final Fantasy 16 console bundle is coming to the US
New Sony patent suggests a PS5 redesign could be on the cards
👍 Winner: Yet another sign a new PS5 design is coming soon
➡️ The Shortcut Skinny: PS5 redesign
🆕 A new patent has been filed by Sony
💿 It shows a mountable optical disc drive
🤔 The PS5 redesign may include a detachable disc drive
🤷♂️ However, nothing has come of that initial rumor so far
Asus ZenBook S 13 (2023) hands-on review: impressively light
👍 Winner: It’s lighter than my MacBook Air and made of recycled parts
Pros
✅ 💻 Impressively thin and light making the MacBook Air feel hefty
✅ ⚙️ Stacked: Intel Core i7 13th gen CPU. Up to 32GB RAM & 1TB SSD
✅ 📺 13.3-inch OLED, 2.8K resolution and a 180° lay-flat hinge
✅ ♻️ Recycled metals & plastics for an eco-friendly, yet durable design
✅ 🔋 Promises 14 hours of battery life plus USB-C Easy Charge
Cons
❌ 💰 $100 more than last year’s launch price
❌ 👇 No touchscreen and dialed back 550 nits peak brightness