8849 Tank 5 Rugged Phone Review: HUGE Battery, BIG Projector, FAST CPU!

8849 Tank 5 Review!

This is a CRAZY smartphone. Everything and the kitchen sink! Or literally, a smartphone with a HUGE battery, camping lanterns, rugged shell, and a built in projector! This generation 8849 includes a POWERFUL new SOC from MediaTek!

Let’s take a look! Continue reading “8849 Tank 5 Rugged Phone Review: HUGE Battery, BIG Projector, FAST CPU!”

Vivo X300 Ultra Camera Conclusion: My Favorite Ultra of 2026

An Ultra camera phone in every sense of the word.

This year, we’ve seen an incredible arms race in mobile camera tech. It’s impossible to really “go wrong” with a Xiaomi, Vivo, Oppo, or Huawei if the main criteria you care about is photography.

The bracket for Chinese Ultras is really tight right now, but there are a handful of small refinements, new features, and accessories that just barely push the Vivo over the edge for me. This is an increasingly mature photography and video solution which continues to blur the lines between phone and proper camera.

I can’t claim it’s the objective best phone of the year, but this is my favorite Ultra of the year. Continue reading “Vivo X300 Ultra Camera Conclusion: My Favorite Ultra of 2026”

What’s Going On with Clicks Communicator? Jeff Gadway Spills the Beans on Business and Bootloaders!

UPDATE!

Audio version can be downloaded here: https://pinecast.com/listen/b1cc52d2-ea2c-4abf-b414-ffd8949aed95.mp3

Building a better phone and unlocking those bootloaders!

Jeff Gadway is a co-founder of Clicks Technology, and is the company’s CMO. He was very generous with his time, chatting out the company’s philosophy, the inspiration behind the Clicks Communicator, his thoughts on competitors, and most importantly, what’s happening with MY pre-order!

If you’ve been curious about this retro phone project, this podcast is a MUST listen!

What if OnePlus Left the Smartphone Market?

I’ve gotten numerous requests to comment on the recent round of rumors that OnePlus could be packing up and leaving the global smartphone market. I don’t like commenting on rumors, but this topic has surfaced with enough regularity, I can at least contribute some thoughts.

[Please remember, my brand bias is “competition”. The main thing I care about is seeing an accurate description of competitive options in a consumer market. I spend unequal time on less search engine popular brands, because I don’t believe those companies get a fair consideration from tech influencers with larger audiences. With that disclaimer out of the way…]

What if OnePlus Left?

I’d be really sad to lose OnePlus.

Continue reading “What if OnePlus Left the Smartphone Market?”

vivo X300 Ultra FULL Camera Tour!

vivo X300 Ultra Camera Tour!

Getting the most out of an ULTRA priced phone camera can be kinda tricky. These cameras do a TON of stuff now, and the menus, options, and settings can be a bit obtuse.

Let’s spend a few minutes talking through the layout, options, and controls for the X300 Ultra. Why would someone spend THIS much money on a phone camera? There’s a LOT it can do! Continue reading “vivo X300 Ultra FULL Camera Tour!”

Are these basically the same phone? iQOO 15R vs OnePlus 15R!

iQOO 15R vs OnePlus 15R!

I wanna call this a FIGHT FOR BLOOD! Two phones enter, and BOTH phones will probably leave, because the overall experience between these two devices is nearly identical.

OnePlus and iQOO have been close cousins for a while now, and even though the BBK alliance isn’t as clearly defined as it used to be, the two companies seem to approach similar devices in similar ways.

Still, I have to declare a winner. What small difference might eke out a win for one of these phones?

You gotta watch to find out! Continue reading “Are these basically the same phone? iQOO 15R vs OnePlus 15R!”

Massive Battery In a Flagship Killer Phone: iQOO 15R Review!

iQOO 15R review!

I’m always torn on the ‘R’ phones. Whatever “reduced” or mid-year option arrives, where does it really fit against the rest of the competition?
This is a great piece of hardware, that is obviously targeting a younger market, and keeping prices in check.

How might this fare against a SLIGHTLY older Premium phone though?

iQOO 15R ASMR Unboxing https://www.patreon.com/posts/iqoo-15r-asmr-is-152814537
iQOO 15R vs OnePlus 15R By the Benchmarks https://www.patreon.com/posts/by-benchmarks-or-153881939

The complete list of how you can contribute to production on this channel AND get yourself some cool stuff! Patreon, Amazon, Humble Bundle, OnePlus, Audible, Merch, and MORE!

https://somegadgetguy.com/2012/07/15/support-somegadgetguy-get-cool-stuff/

Juan’s Phone Photography Book https://amzn.to/2HqvUCk

SomeGadgetGuy’s Gear List:
Panasonic G9 https://amzn.to/4df3DLN
Olympus 17mm f/1.8 https://amzn.to/2StRDxF
Panasonic 12-35mm f/2.8 https://amzn.to/2LAASjA
Rode Wireless Pro https://amzn.to/3WXZGpq
Focusrite 6i6 Audio Interface http://amzn.to/2p5l7py
Shure SM57 Microphone http://amzn.to/2oypnLm
Cloudlifter CL1 http://amzn.to/2oKN9G5
LED Light Panels http://amzn.to/2oy60ls
AJA U-TAP HDMI http://amzn.to/2wfprBF

————————————–
#SGGQA Subscription Links: https://somegadgetguy.com/b/1aj

Patreon: https://patreon.com/somegadgetguy
Mastodon: https://techhub.social/@SomeGadgetGuy
Threads: https://www.threads.net/@somegadgetguy
Twitch: https://twitch.tv/somegadgetguy
Flickr: https://www.flickr.com/photos/jickbahtech/
Instagram: https://instagram.com/somegadgetguy
Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/somegadgetguy.bsky.social

Links on this page may be affiliate links which help support production on this website.

Poco X8 Pro: Plain, but Packs a Punch!

The Poco X8 Pro is in for a review, and I have a LOT of thoughts on Poco’s latest mid-ranger! Let’s take a look at a REALLY plain design, that hides some SURPRISING performance!

Continue reading “Poco X8 Pro: Plain, but Packs a Punch!”