26
Reviews
Do you need advice on what you should buy?
Email us at [email protected]WHAT SHOULD I BUY? We solve your buying dilemmas
Can you recommend a small but powerful phone?
27 April – 10 May 2022 • Issue 630Q
I have a Samsung Galaxy A3
phone (launched in 2014) with
a 4.7in screen. I’m generally
happy with it, but its 16GB of storage
and 2GB of RAM are holding me back,
and very few apps seem to be
able to use its external
storage option. I want a new
phone that I can still slip into
a shirt or trouser pocket. Can
you suggest anything that
would fit the bill?
Mike FrizelleA
If you’re willing to switch from
Android to iOS, there’s a very
obvious option. Apple’s latest
iPhone SE (£419 from http://www.snipca.
com/41565 – read our full review on page
25) has a 4.7in screen that would suit you
perfectly. Inside the case it has many of
the same components as the larger
iPhone 13, so you’re getting the latest
phone in a smaller (and cheaper) package.
However, as you’re familiar with
Android there’s a strong chance you’d
rather not switch to Apple. In this case,SPECIFICATIONS
15 customisable LCD keys •• USB-C •• Requires
Windows 10 or 11, or macOS 10.13 or later ••
84x118x25mm (HxWxD) •• 145g •• Two-year warranty
http://www.snipca.com/41566VERDICT Too useful to be just for
gamers, this makes it easy to control
and switch between your programs★★★★★
ALTERNATIVE Stream Deck Mini
£70 For a cheaper
alternative, Elgato
makes the smaller
Stream Deck
Mini, but it only
has six buttonsPROGRAM SWITCHER ❘ £140 from Amazon http://www.snipca.com/41566
Elgato Stream Deck Mk.2
Pushes all the right buttons
If you have heard of the Stream Deck
before, it’s probably because of its
popularity with Twitch streamers –
gamers who use these devices to control
all kinds of complicated processes while
broadcasting live video streams of their
gaming sessions. However, we’re not
including this review in the expectation
that Computeractive readers will take up
live game streaming. Instead, we think
Stream Deck’s shortcut magic can just as
easily be applied to any Windows task,
dramatically simplifying the use of
complex or regularly used tools.
The Stream Deck has a 15-button panel
that can be used to control anything on
screen, from browsers to office software.
If there’s a keyboard shortcut for it, it
can be assigned to one of the Stream
Deck’s buttons.
These buttons are individual screens,
capable of displaying any icon you like.
They can even be animated should you
prefer, with countdown timers that show
how much time is left, or Spotify play
buttons that change to display the album
art of the track you’re listening to.we think your best bet is the Asus
ZenFone 8 (£599 from http://www.snipca.
com/41564, pictured), which has
128GB of storage and 8GB of RAM – a
significant upgrade on your Samsung
Galaxy A3. For another £100 you can
get the 256GB/16GB version. The
screen is 5.9in, which is a little bigger
than your current phone, but it’s still
smaller than the vast majority of
Android phones available today.The ease with which shortcuts can be
changed is one of this device’s great
strengths. Open a program and the
shortcuts relating to it will appear on the
deck – all within easy reach while you’re
using it. Then, should you switch to
another program, the buttons change
to the shortcuts that are relevant to
that one.
You can also assign buttons as ‘folders’
that hold more options, effectively
giving you an unlimited number of
commands across the 15 controllers. You
can even assign a series of tasks to a
single button, such as loading favourite
websites when you open your browser.
There’s a vast library of
pre-programmed icons and commands
for a huge range of software – all of which
are available for free. If you can’t find the
tools for the software you use, you can
simply create it yourself, with easy-to-usetools that let you program the buttons
and design new icons.
You can do all this with the Mk.1
version of the Stream Deck as well.
However, this new Mk.2 version is a
slight upgrade in that it offers a USB-C
connection and a sturdier stand.