How To Use The Xiaomi Redmi AirDots In Mono Mode

Using the Xiaomi Redmi AirDots in Mono mode is really simple.

Step One: Remove the left headphone from the case

Step Two: Pair Redmi AirDots_L with your phone

Step Three: Now your left headphone is paired with your device and you can use the left headphone independently.

It’s important to remember: Now that you have each of them paired individually you need to take your right headphone out first and make sure it pairs with your device before the left. If you take the left headphone out first the left will pair and they will not be paired together.

BUY THE REDMI AIRDOTS HERE:

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Xiaomi Mi 9 Hands On And First Impressions, WOW!

I've had the Xiaomi Mi 9 now for about 4 hours and I am ridiculously impressed with the device. Here are the initial impressions of the device after a short period of time.

Build: When i took the device out of the box all I could say was wow. The devices feels quite seemless in the hand. The metal frame really gives it a nice heft and a reassuring cool metal detail to break up the sheets of glass. The in hand feel of this device is as premium as the Mi Mix 3 which i have gotten to spend time with (about two hours playing with a store managers test unit here in vietnam). Although the Mi 9 doesn't have the same Teutonic feel of the heavier Mi Mix 3, it doesn't feel like its a budget device or a device made with cost in mind.

Screen: Oh how I have missed AMOLED displays. It's been a few years since I have used an AMOLED display and they really are a thing of beauty. The one on the Mi 9 has fantastic viewing angles, tons of contrast (obviously) and the system wide black mode really does look awesome. Xiaomi advertised this was a Samsung panel and the quality really shows. That said just because it LOOKS great doesn't mean it necessarily color accurate. The temperature can obviously be adjusted in the settings but its definitely a different experience than that on my Pocophone F1.

Cameras: They are great. I already shot a ton of photos with them, in night mode, not in night mode, in pro mode on a tripod, in 48mp vs 12mp mode. I am thoroughly impressed with the amount of detail and dynamic range we are able to get out of this camera and the 3 separate focal lengths are awesome for professional photographers such as myself. Just the freedom to use focal lengths and composition more freely on this device is really awesome.

ALSO GCAM WORKS OUT OF THE BOX! No flashing or modification to the rom required since Xiaomi has already begun enabling camera 2 API standard on devices with newer versions of MIUI. I tried the Gcam night sight on the Mi 9 and compared it directly to that on my pocophone f1 (the pocophone f1 Gcam port is stable). While it's not a clear win for the mi 9 I can surely see that specialized ports of Gcam will yield even better results.

Charging speed: This thing is ludicrous. I came home put the phone on the charger for 20 minutes and it jumped from 46% battery to 87% battery.

Bootloader unlock time: I have already applied to unlock the bootloader of this device and I cannot wait to get Xiaomi EU roms on it. I hate the Chinese rom and its lack of ability to remap the AI button to google assistant. That will obviously be something that changes with global firmware but right now the stock chinese software is my least favorite part of the phone.

I'll be doing more follow ups as I use the device more and i will of course be sharing pictures here as well.

Xiaomi Mi AirDots, After Three Months

Xiaomi Air Dots, my thoughts after two months of extensive use.

There is no beating around the bush, the Xiaomi Mi AirDots have stunned the market by being able to bridge the gap between aesthetically clean and unoffensive and not being an Apple Airpods clone.

Upon First inspection you will see that the Xiaomi MI AirDots come packaged in a flimsy cardboard box which was easily beaten and dented during shipping. Inside the actual box we are greeted by the Xiaomi Mi AirDots, Case, Micro USB Cable, and extra ear tips for customized fit.

Here are my initial impressions from them. Cheap feeling case, with premium feeling headphones. The headphone earpieces themselves are quite solid feeling and feel like they could take quite a bit of use. The case on the other hand feels incredibly cheap. The magnetic lid is less than stellar, and the micro usb connection does not inspire confidence. We will get to more of this later.

The sound these units produce is quite bass heavy and very "thumpy". They sound great with electronic music while Hip-Hop vocals can be often overshadowed and muddy. Much of this can be changed with a simple change to the EQ and you can clean up sound. Once you have tweaked the EQ the Xiaomi Mi AirDots are capable of producing a very pleasing sound. Although the Xiaomi Mi AirDots might not be the most accurate sounding headphone it doesn't make them any less pleasant.

From this point I'd like to talk about how they have handled over 2 months of strenuous use. This is to say that by and large they didn't survive. At least the case didn't survive more than a month. Aseries of minor drops onto tabletops, out of pockets and onto carpets killed my battery case. Tha's right, with regular use i was able to kill the case of my Xiaomi Mi AirDots in LESS THAN A MONTH.


At this point I decided to take the case apart and use my misfortune to fuel more Youtube videos on the subject. Needless to say i was slightly disappointed by the over the design of the case. It's clear Xiaomi was making a budget product when they engineered these. This is unfortunate since the charging case is an integral part of using truly wireless bluetooth headphones.

With the case quality aside you might be thinking that there is some type of hugely redeeming quality in the Xiaomi Mi AirDots and this is where you'd be wrong. They have horrendous touch controls as outlined in my youtube videos, their microphone is atrocious and can't be relied on for calls or even voice commands, and the playback controls are far behind their competitors. The reality of living with these headphones is that they ultimately fail have a quality that puts them ahead of other comparably priced offerings.

In a vacuum the Xaiomi Mi AirDots aren't a bad product. They sound good, fit in your ears well, offer a secure fit and ultimately are a 5/10 on most categories. Here is ultimately where the problem lies. The Xiaomi Mi AirDots do enough things competently enough to be an entertaining purchase but they fail to be astounding at the nearly $40 pricepoint they are available for outside of China.

The QCY T1 Pro is a far better option and I will do a follow up review on it on my blog.

Sigma 56MM 1.4 For Sony APS-C E-Mount

The sony 56mm 1.4 is an absolutely fantastic lens. I have been using this lens for a little more than a week and I love it. Here are a set of sample photos I have taken with it.

Purchase the Sigma 56mm 1.4mm E Mount Here

3 And A Half Scams To Avoid When Traveling In Vietnam

1 Ladies with hats offering donuts: they will give you donuts and over charge you for them. For locals these donuts might be 20k for you with a camera and obviously a tourist 100k

2 Cabs: They are everywhere and they are a headache. Use uber or grab ad it solves 2 issues. First is the language barrier, most don't speak English and explaining to them is a hassle. The second is getting ripped off. It sucks and they will take advantage of you.

3 Motorcycle rentals: If you are only going to be in Vietnam for a few weeks just pay for grabs, motorcycles cost anywhere from 5-7 dollars a day to rent if you are going to be here long term buy a bike, they are cheap and I have done videos about this previously

3 1/2. Parking: This one is trickier since you want to pay for parking in Vietnam. Bike thieves are numerous and leaving your bike unattended can get your bike stolen. Parking should cost between 5-20k vnd. A general rule of thumb, if you are parking directly in front of the store or establishment you intend to visit your fine for less than an hour. More… go at your own risk

I Finally Ate Dog

Dog meat is an extremely controversial subject but living in Southeast Asia the reality is that eating dog is pretty common. Although I don't personally support the consumption of dogs as food I believe that if I am going to be a meat eater I should have no moral quandary  with eating dog meat. 

I was really lucky to be accompanied by 2 others who were mature and adult enough to really open up and talk about this as a subject. Most westerners would shy away from doing this but I think it's an important and necessary experience to have if given the opportunity. 

Traveling around the world you're often exposed to a variety of weird and interesting food. I truly believe that part of traveling the world should be stepping out of your comfort zone and doing new and scary things. Eating new and crazy food is one of them and I hope you enjoyed my video.