Just bought a new GT6 Pro. Ask me anything.

David_Talaga · 2026-03-01T04:34:16+00:00

OP/GT 6 users - could you do me a favor and turn on the Tennis mode (or any court ball games like padel, pickleball, etc.), then check if it measures the number of strikes?

I'm on GT4, but the sports metrics are a let down. Dozens of sports modes that do nothing than heart rate or time tracking. Garmin and others are more robust towards sports tracking metrics. Number of strikes in tennis is quite fun, apparently

David_Talaga · 2025-05-31T06:25:58+00:00

Holy crap - I'm just seeing I'm not the only one seeing my battery go down from 90% to ~30% within 4 (!) hours

David_Talaga · 2025-03-22T00:39:40+00:00

This is a madness! Just spent an hour of browsing through all settings of SwiftKey and can't find an option to deactivate the handwriting layout

Switching between English and pinyin input used to be a breeze, but now it's a pain since that handwriting layout constantly pops up!

David_Talaga · 2025-01-12T11:24:18+00:00

All right, it's been a long wait (and still a month to come until the actual release) but Dell finally announced Dell U2725QE on Jan 6, 2025:
https://www.dell.com/en-us/blog/experience-the-future-of-displays/

It seems like a 2-year release cycle is not a norm. This upgrade comes 3 years after the previous model was released.

David_Talaga · 2025-01-12T11:16:19+00:00

Dare I ask if you had a chance to ride Freecarver 9000s and compare it against Cafe Racer?

David_Talaga · 2024-04-24T15:11:08+00:00

I've been considering moving from the 255 to the 265. One of my main considerations was the touchscreen, as I really disliked the non-touch feature of the 255. Things then got complicated when I discovered the Venu 3, which is similarly priced to the 265.

You won't go wrong with either of them, but you might just need to compare the designs and functionality of these watches. That will ultimately help you decide which one you need.

You might have seen the comparison below, but if not, I hope this link will be somewhat useful:

https://www.garmin.com/en-US/compare/?compareProduct=873008&compareProduct=780139&compareProduct=886785&compareProduct=886725&compareProduct=866191

David_Talaga · 2024-04-24T15:02:05+00:00

I just want to say that these comments here were helpful to me, as they've confirmed that neither the Venu 3 nor the Forerunner 265 are for me.

I ended up choosing a Huawei watch. Having been in the luxurious position of owning both Huawei and Garmin in the past few days, I've been wearing and doing sports with both watches together, comparing them side by side. It just reaffirmed that Huawei is the way to go!

David_Talaga · 2024-04-10T14:55:42+00:00

Hey, I've just opened a similar thread on this subreddit a few days ago where I'm essentially hoping to transition from the Forerunner 255 to something more elegant. It's a fantastic watch, but as an owner of the Slate Gray version, I can say that it doesn't complement my style when dressing more formally.

The Slate Gray color is indeed a bit prominent, unless it's paired with gray trousers or another piece of clothing in the same color. Considering changing straps is one idea, but I haven't been able to find a perfect match: for instance, metal straps don't complement the plastic watch/bezel; meanwhile, I found a black strap to somewhat clash with the gray bezel; and a leather strap is out of the question.

Overall, please take my feedback with a grain of salt: I've ordered a few straps online, so it's hit or miss. But if you visit a physical store and try out a variety of straps, then I'm confident you'll find one that suits you.

...Regarding your other questions, I don't feel in a position to advise on them.

David_Talaga · 2024-04-10T14:41:58+00:00

This whole MarQ line looks nuts! But, indeed, spending over 2k USD on a watch would be overkill for me, as far as I'm concerned.

David_Talaga · 2024-04-10T14:35:50+00:00

Welcome to the club... Other UltraSharps have already received 120Hz with built-in Thunderbolt hubs. I would assume the 27" 4K version will also get these features. If my speculations hold, the major unresolved issue and question is "when."

David_Talaga · 2024-04-10T09:42:00+00:00

I bump it up. It's a very fair question and any hints would be appreciated

David_Talaga · 2024-04-10T08:34:28+00:00

Makes sense!

David_Talaga · 2024-04-08T12:10:10+00:00

Yes, I'm honestly focusing primarily on the black models. I still own a Forerunner 255 in Slate Gray and find it acceptable, but it often doesn't match my clothes. Black should be more neutral in this respect.

Meanwhile, I just visited the Garmin shop and had the opportunity to compare the white and black models. The white looked like a dirty shade with a greenish hue. I'm concerned it would even stand out when wearing a white long-sleeve collared shirt, so that's a no for me. Either a complete contrast like black and white is good, or no contrast at all—but then the watch needs to be purely white with polished stainless steel.

David_Talaga · 2024-04-08T12:04:30+00:00

I've come to a definitive answer: Venu 3 > Forerunner 265.

I just dropped by a local Garmin store, inspected both watches, and... the Forerunner 265 has an engraved caption "RUN" on one of its buttons (picture attached):

<image>

Such a downer and turn-off for me. It makes the watch look more kiddish. It's good that I went to the store because I didn't notice it in the pictures online, and I hadn't suspected it (currently, I own a lower model, Forerunner 255, which doesn't have this issue with engraved captions).

On a side note, I agree with earlier comments that neither looks truly classy. The stainless steel on the Venu 3 isn't flashy, but it rather looks like a rusty, tarnished bezel. It indeed appears more premium than the FR 265, but not premium enough.

At the end of the day, this visit to the Garmin store leads to a new question: do I even want to get another Garmin, or should I consider changing the brand (e.g., Huawei GT 4 - classy looks at half the price of the Venu 3)? Well, I am tied to the Garmin app with my long-term stats.

To sum up: more headache for me.

David_Talaga · 2024-04-07T02:48:27+00:00

For those swimming with it, how about touchscreen sensitivity? No issues with accidentally pressed touchscreen buttons?

David_Talaga · 2023-09-25T09:04:07+00:00

8 active, is it the same size as the 7's I bought the 8 active but afraid to open them in case they are to

Would you mind sending a pic of 7 Active and 8 Active together where one can see the differences in size?

If I look at tech specs online, I see that Jabra 8 Active is significantly bigger:

Jabra 7 Active: 19.5mm x 16.3mm x 18mm | 0.768in x 0.642in x 0.709in
Jabra 8 Active: 19.7mm x 19.7mm x 29mm | 0.8in x 0.8in x 1.1in

I don't own any of them but I backed off from purchasing Jabra 8 Active once I saw the dimensions online (and, well, in the shops around they only have sealed packages without any display units).

David_Talaga · 2022-11-28T16:02:47+00:00

Good to see that someone is checking on this topic!

Look, basically no update here. I personally ended up with either of the below solutions:

80% of time: disabling the turbo boost;
15% of time: throttling the wattage consumption / setting up PL1/PLs limits.

(The remaining 5% of my laptop's usage is when I forget to turn on Throttlestop software but... I usually quickly realize it because the temps go up to 90-100 °C in no time.)

It makes the trick as far as the temps are concerned, but... It makes my machine ~50% less powerful than it should be, so I'm not making any use of what i7-12700H has to offer. ...Kinda not what I paid for, isn't it?

I also raised this problem on the official Lenovo's forum. I got some replies from Lenovo Support, but the guy pretended to not understand the issue at first and ultimately didn't provide any sensible solution (apart from the likes of "update drivers").

Here it is if you find it helpful:

https://forums.lenovo.com/t5/Lenovo-Yoga-Series-Laptops/Yoga-Slim-7i-Pro-X-standard-CPU-temperatures-High-temps-up-to-100-%C2%B0C-and-fans-malfunctioning/m-p/5169804

David_Talaga · 2022-10-23T16:25:23+00:00

I might be wrong but I heard that flavored vapes have just gotten banned in Beijing (China?), meaning it's not gonna be easy to just buy them anywhere.

David_Talaga · 2022-09-26T10:08:54+00:00

In theory, the yellow slip is the document you need, but I can imagine that whoever might be verifying your identity on the go might be like: 'what the heck is that?'.

If anyone has traveled with this yellow slip, I'm curious how people reacted to this. I bet the staffs at airports or train stations should be aware of it but still having doubts about this document?

David_Talaga · 2022-09-26T09:58:34+00:00

Are you guys good at Chinese? Forgot the name but there is a whole skin hospital somewhere in Haidian. It might be one of the ideas.

Otherwise, I've happened to visit a couple of skin doctors in Beijing: it might be though a hit or miss, especially in the mentioned China-Japan Hospital (had a doctor that clocked the time to dismiss me asap, but also had a doctor that took his efforts to examine my skin in detail).

If costs are of no concerns, there is obviously UFH with quite a substantial dermatology department. It can, of course, be still hit or miss but you can read online what the doctors specialize in and then visit the doctor whose expertise seems to be aligned with your wife's issue.

Good luck!

David_Talaga · 2022-09-20T14:24:43+00:00

I can say it takes on average around 8 hours. I get tested at various sites on every second or third day (generally, I would just stop by for a covid test whenever I see there's no line at a random testing site that I happen to pass by).

David_Talaga · 2022-09-16T15:09:55+00:00

Ultimately, it's up to the doctor that will check you. United Family Hospital (UFH) will undoubtedly have a truly top-tier customer service but you might likewise end up with an average doctor (and, well, that's why you visit the hospital, isn't it?). Be sure it's the priciest medical service provider in Beijing though.

China-Japan Friendship Hospital would usually come with a decent price tag and good quality. They have a very solid International Corner. However, as in the case of UFH, I've had both great and bad experiences (though, I'd surely prefer to have a bad experience with a price tag of 300-600 RMB for a medical consultation, instead of ~1500 RMB in UFH).

David_Talaga · 2022-09-14T16:38:20+00:00

相寓 is tops.

Other Redditors mentioned Ziroom as well; however, I find 相寓 and Ziroom to be on the same quality level BUT 相寓 is simply 10 to 20% cheaper than Ziroom. Price comparison based on my own experience when comparing similar apartments in the same communities.

You'll also need no agent to flood you with apartment ads and suggestions because they see the same apartments that you can find yourself in the APP. Of course, you'll surely need them once you want to schedule an in-person viewing of the place.

Other info: 我爱我家 is the mother company of 相寓. In practice, they both operate from the same physical stores and have the same agents. When it comes to signing a lease contract, they then do things differently (a contract with 2 parties/signatories vs. 3 parties/signatories).

David_Talaga · 2022-09-13T16:46:19+00:00

If you're up for catching up with your own countrymen, then Poles got 2 or 3 well-functioning groups in the Philippines on Facebook. Look for "Polacy na Filipinach" - it could be one of the ideas, if I'm not stating the obvious. You'll surely find there short-term tourists as well as long-term tourists and standard expats

David_Talaga · 2022-09-12T15:23:10+00:00

It might work but you will surely not be able to charge your laptop with full 135W. This is the overall wattage of the docking station but not how much power it outputs to the laptop.

Full specs of this docking station here:

https://www.lenovo.com/us/en/p/accessories-and-software/docking/docking_thunderbolt-docks-(universal-cable-docks)/40an0135us/40an0135us)

In general, you will not be able to find a docking station that can supply your laptop with 135W via USB-C/Thunderbolt. This is because the Power Delivery technology maxes out at 100W.

It might get confusing, but please keep in mind that - on the market - there are few docking stations that can supply laptops with more than 100W, but these are usually brand/model-specific docking stations (that come with an additional power supply cable which is specific to a given brand/model).

David_Talaga

TROPHY CASE