Xiaomi Mi 5

If you’re looking for a phone with Qualcomm’s new flagship Snapdragon 820 CPU, there’s a less than obvious choice – the Mi 5

We’ve covered a number of Xiaomi devices within the pages of Android Magazine and waxed lyrical about how they deliver over and above consumers’ expectations  for their mid-range price point. The 5.5-inch Redmi Note 3 and five-inch Redmi 3 have both impressed us recently, with Qualcomm chipsets, great battery life and decent cameras. It’s been nearly two years however since Xiaomi’s last foray into the high-end segment of the market with the Mi 4 – a device that gained a large following and has been well supported, even receiving a Windows Mobile 10 ROM recently.

Samsung Galaxy S7 / S7 Edge

Is Samsung’s evolution rather than revolution approach enough?

Being in the business of making successful Android flagship devices is no easy feat. Just ask Sony. Or HTC. Or LG. Arguably the only company that managed to really triumph with its flagship last year was Samsung, with the acclaimed (albeit not perfect) S6 and S6 Edge, which were shortly followed by the S6 Edge + and the Note 5. Highly capable mid-range devices have continued to erode the need for ultra high-spec devices over the last year, and with companies such as Xiaomi entering the fray with the competitively priced and highly capable Mi5, there has never been more pressure to deliver a truly exceptional experience with top of the range products.

Top 10 Maps App Features

If you are a Windows 10 user, you have a powerful Maps app on the Start menu. Roland Waddilove lists his favourite features

1 Print Maps

It doesn’t look like there is an option to print, but there is. In the bottom right corner of the app, are three dots. Clicking them displays a menu, which includes Print. Click it and a window opens with print options; the printer to use is at the top and the default is selected, so it should be fine for most occasions. There is an option to send the map to OneNote, though, which is useful if you are compiling notes for a project. There is also an option to output the map as a PDF file, which can then be saved to disk, emailed, posted online, shared with friends and so on.

Remembering… Text Adventures

David Hayward goes North, West, Down, Get Sword...

Although the latest graphical masterpieces are a wonder to behold, there’s a lot to be said for simply using your own imagination and playing a clever, well written text adventure game.

Text adventures were once as popular as any platformer, 3D space game or arcade conversion. There was a time when computing was pretty low on resources, even 2D colour images were difficult to squeeze on to a tape or 5¼” floppy. So the game makers of the time used a different method to get their products out to the world.

Devolo dLAN 550 WiFi Starter Kit

Devolo delivers modest improvements to its dLAN range

German engineered Devolo dLAN technology has some of the best Powerline gear I’ve used, bar none. But I accept that not everyone can afford its gigabit-capable tech or, indeed, need it. For many, its dLAN 500 spec gear is fine and affordable, especially if all they’re trying to do is deliver networking to a child’s bedroom or wi-fi inaccessible location.