July, 2020 - LABFREQ

July 29, 2020February 16, 2023

Steinberg Cubasis 3 Review

Steinberg, the company responsible for the concept of the Digital Audio Workstation and VST plug-in technology – has released the mobile version of its flagship product. Cubasis 3, is “a new app redesigned and developed from the ground up with all new code opposed to bringing an update of Cubasis 2”, according to the developer. Is it an all-new app, or simply an incremental update to the former version? Let’s find out.

Hear Cubasis 3 in Action – prod. by Tre’mendous

Cubasis is a “Mobile Music Creation System” which gives you an unlimited amount of audio, MIDI, and Send tracks to produce original music. It has four main views: the default Arrangement view, the Media (Where all of your audio files, projects, presets reside), Keys/Pads, and Mixer view.

The arrangement view is where the recording, performing, editing and, you guessed it – Song Arrangement takes place. All of your beat imports, MIDI parts, vocal phrases, and audio takes go here – in the default view. Any MIDI performances are played in the Keys View.

Keys View allows you to play your selected instruments and capture your performances. Cubasis has drum pads, that allow you to play percussive sounds and drum kits in a more traditional manner.

Lastly, you have the Mixer View, which allows you to get your song mixes down to perfection. And even has the ability to achieve quality masters – if you’re up for the task.

Instruments and Effects

Cubasis has a nice collection of instruments and effects, many are mobile versions of Steinberg’s desktop VSTi and VSTfx Collection. MiniSampler, MicroSonic, Micrologue, and Classic Machines – the latter as an in-app purchase that comes with 12 drum machines.

MiniSampler

The MiniSampler allows you bring in custom sounds, and set start and end cue points to create you own samples from any audio file on your device;

Microsonic

MicroSonic is a mobile take on Steinberg’s Halion Sonic virtual instrument, which features its own sample library of real-world instruments…

Micrologue

Micrologue – the mobile version of Cubase’s resident synth Retrolouge, gives you a streamlined version of the desktop virtual instrument. It’s a Polyphonic Synthesizer with two Oscillators;

Classic Machines

And Classic Machines is a collection of the most used drum machines in modern music.

The internal effects cover all of the essentials, EQ, Reverb, Delay, Compressor, Chorus, etc. Each audio track you add to your session has a channel strip in one of the four effect slots by default. The Channel Strip combines a cut filter, noise gate, compressor, and saturator which can all be bypassed in the signal line individually. There is a similar plug-in, the Master Strip, which combines a Multiband Compressor, Stereo Imager, and Loudness Maximizer to help you bring your mix closer to a final master.

Then there are plug-ins for more creative purposes, like the Micrologue ARP, and Spin FX -which gives you Dubstep, Hip-Hop, and Trap DJ style transitions and drops at the press of a button.

Conclusion

Cubasis 3 is a near-identical replica of it’s motherDAW Cubase, from the UI to the UX – minus the pop-up and dropdown menus of the Desktop interface. Standing in place of those options is a touch-friendly MediaBay with drag and drop functionality, and access to Audio Units and IAA instrument and effect expansion if you’re on iOS, though the Android version is identical with the exception of the latter.

What Steinberg has given the masses is the ability to have a Digital Audio Workstation with an interface customized for touchscreens, that’s just as useful and fully-featured as a Studio One or Pro Tools – without all of the excessive bloat and fat. It runs on the iPhone, iPad, and all but the cheapest budget Androids. It’s a nearly indispensable tool for a music producer or mix engineer with a modern smartphone and a very low bar-to-entry for aspiring artists and beatmakers. If you are a creative who likes the idea of being able to lay down an idea asap, from anywhere – that can be transferred to the “Studio” if need be – you might want to give Cubasis 3 a close look.

Alternatives:

Audio Evolution Mobile:

A fully featured mobile daw available on Android and iOS.

Read Review

FL Studio Mobile:

The  most popular beat making program has a mobile version that's every bit as addictive as it's desktop counterpart.

Read Review

July 25, 2020February 18, 2021

Lenovo Chromebook Duet: First Look

The Chromebook Duet is a 2-in-1 laptop/tablet hybrid by Lenovo that many people have been clamoring to the local Best Buy and seeking its availability on Amazon to purchase recently. With it’s included detachable keyboard, protective back cover and quality build for a reasonable asking price (starting at $279/64GB) – I begin to understand why, as my curiosity in the Duet as a tablet grew. Now that I have had the device for a few days, these are my impressions.

The Chromebook Duet has a 10.1 inch FHD IPS touchscreen with 400 nits of brightness, and USI pen compatibility. It packs an 7000 mAh battery that offers up to 10 hours of battery life, has 4GB of RAM and up to 128GB of internal storage. The two-tone Ice Blue + Iron Grey design is made of aluminum alloy, and I must say – I like the look and feel of the Ice Blue and how it offsets the ‘serious’ metallic Grey.

In-Depth Review : In Progress

This is my first time interacting with Google’s operating system – ChromeOS, which powers the Chromebook Duet. We’ve all heard the whispers of rumors around the internet about the web-centric OS being little more than the Chrome browser, but I beg to differ. Having only used Apple products, my Macbook Air and iPhone Xr – I felt right at home transitioning from macOS to ChromeOS – and the experience is quite similar to the one on my iPhone, particularly with gesture navigation. Will it be able to converge my desktop/tablet workflow? Time will tell.

I will be using the Chromebook Duet as my primary computing device for the next few weeks. Be one of the first readers to be notified when my in-depth review goes live, subscribe to Labfreq below!

July 25, 2020October 17, 2020

Samsung Galaxy A71 5G – Video Review

Samsung officially released the Galaxy A71 5G on June 19th in the U.S. With a 6.7″ AMOLED display, Snapdragon 765g, 128GB of internal storage, of RAM, and 5G connectivity – securely housed in an aluminum frame and Gorilla Glass 3 – the A71 5G is ready for the affordable premium market. I share my thoughts on the device as how it compares against other devices released so far this year, in the video below:

The A71 5G is the first device that’s compatible with both T-Mobile’s low-band 5G spectrum and Sprint’s 2.5 mid-band 5G spectrum, offering customers optimal next-generation connectivity at a more affordable entry level price point.

Sprint/T-Mobile 5G network covers the majority of the city of Houston

Benchmarks from Geekbench, for those who are into that sort of thing.

Conclusion

The Galaxy A71 5G is a quality device that offers access to the Galaxy ecosystem at a more reasonable cost than the Galaxy S20 line. With a four camera set-up (64MP Main camera,16MP wide, 5MP Macro, and 5MP Depth), a beautiful AMOLED display with a punch hole 32MP front camera, and in-screen fingerprint scanner. Galaxy fans looking to save a few bucks with few compromises can’t go wrong with this device.

July 22, 2020July 25, 2020

LG Velvet First Look: Unboxing, Design, Dual Screen Case and more

The Velvet is the latest Android smartphone by LG, available today (July 22) at ATT for $599 USD. The 6.8″ display has refined edges that meet the ultra-slim metal frame with a curvy backside that’s unlike any design on any smartphone by LG. It rocks a Snapdragon 765g with 6GB of RAM,128GB of internal storage, and a 3.5mm headphone jack. On the photography front – a 16MP front camera with three lenses, a 48MP Main, 8MP Wide, and 5MP depth cameras on the back. A few extras like stereo speakers, IP68 Water and Dust resistance, MIL-STD 810G compliance, and wireless charging – makes the LG Velvet a nice option for those due to upgrade their smartphone.

I received a reviewers kit from LG, and while the device is was complimentary – I have not been paid by LG to skew my opinion and my views are 100% neutral and unbiased. If you like to learn more about the LG Velvet, check out our unboxing video below. In-depth review coming soon.

July 19, 2020July 23, 2020

Review: PUBG Mobile – New Map: Livik

Players Unknown Battleground Mobile (Pubg Mobile) Is an action-packed multiplayer shooting game. With 100s of players finding themselves jumping out of a plane and parachuting onto an island or destination as they so desire.

Introduction

Pubg Mobile made its debut to mobile platforms in 2017. However, it became even more popular in April-May of 2018. Pubg Mobiles’ main popularity stems from the accessibility of being able to play a battle royal pc game on one’s mobile device. Whether you decide to play Classic Battle Royal or Death-matches Pubg Mobile makes gameplay enjoyable, entertaining, and exciting. On another note, Battle Royal consists of 100s of players with teams of 4 each parachuting themselves and scattering around different parts of the map working together with one purpose in mind to eliminate as many opponents as you can. Ultimately being the last man standing for yourself or your teammates. The feeling of going into a battle royal aiming to be the last person alive is the greatest thrill for any gamer. Becoming the “last man standing” not only gives you popularity but always ensures you’ll unlock incredible gifts and crates to help upgrade your wardrobe and weaponry.

Earlier in July (2020), an update was released that added ‘Livik’ – a map inspired by Nordic-styled environments. It’s a smaller map, measuring 2kmx2km with 52 players. The smaller map promotes faster, more intense experiences. Livik is broken into six zones and offers rich and diverse environments, from volcanic areas with sparse vegetation to mountains covered in snow. Two exclusive weapons, the SMG P90 and Marksman Rifle MK12, as well as a new Barrel Extender and a Monster Truck, will also be available – exclusively in Livik.

Graphics

Screen Icons and Displays are featured in the above image

With distinct display of graphics pubg mobile features many on screen icons, motions, and most importantly a wide view range of the arena. From my experiences playing PubG Mobile the graphics exceeded my expectations. As I expected 240p of imaging but instead got 1080p of action packed realness in each game. To the left of your screen is a scroll icon allowing players to move their camera view from left to right and even 360 if that’s what you desire. Team Death-Match arena displays its graphics of crates and broken down barns as the map. It’s depiction of an actual walls, crates, wood, guns and people. Making players feel as if their are in the actual virtual reality. Pubg accurately displays images of objects within arena allows for a sense of uniqueness.

Gameplay

For starters, Pubg Mobile does offer arena training and Cheer Park which is a place where players can go to practice their skills and interact with others to form friendships or create teams. If you’re anything like me, a girl whose terrible at first person shooting games. I found that arena training to be quite helpful. It allowed me to become familiar with the controls. And have a feel of how a match would actually be without all the hassle of getting killed everytime. Arena training is perfect for those who are just begining/starting out who aren’t quite sure how to handle all the controls. Overtime, the more you practice the better you’ll become and the faster you move in game.

Arena Training- Players are able to pick up weapons, ammunition in order to help their game play.)

Moreover; the key component of Pubg Mobile is you guessed it “Survival”. For example Team Death-match offers First Person view of the game in which the player is essentially playing to kill opponents and at best try not to get killed during game play. Although you’re able to respawn after each death the objective of each “deathmatch” game is to get to the 40 points before your opponents do. You and your teammates camp and run around the arena in order to kill your opponents. In order to “win” or gain the victory it’s important to work together as a team. Pubg Mobile also offers first person and third person views. Which allows players to choose which view is suitable for their ideal game play.

Glitches and Cheating Galore

While glitching is something that’s a more controllable issue, cheating opponents is something Tencent really needs to get a grip on. Glitching seems to occur when connected to a congested wi-fi network, or when playing on mobile data and I have a weak signal. Based on our personal experience during the review, the game ran smoother on a strong mobile data connection.

During the game I noticed how several players who were on the United States server had foreign names and letters who didn’t speak English. From our experience this has been the most common cheating we’ve encountered. Alongside other cheats that include speed boost, auto aim, wall hacks.

*Sometimes* you just don’t choose a smart place to land…

Conclusion

PubG Mobile is best known for its Classic or in this case the Battle Royal. Which features 100 players placed onto a map fighting against each other on teams of 4. Except for this time “Survival” is the true name of the game. As long as you survive until the very end it doesn’t matter how many kills you get in-game. Once you land into the map the main objectives are to collect, survive, and kill. Survival comes into play since you have to constantly move around the arena in order to kill off other opponents and keep from getting yourself killed. Factor in the importance to collect as many weapons, ammo, helmets, armor, and protection.

No matter how many kills you get whether it’s 1 or 30. The biggest take away from playing Battle Royal is to Survive. Winning 1st plce, basically being the last one standing in Battle Royal is the biggest achievement any player wishes to accomplish in this game. Not only for the title but also for the awesome prizes and gifts you obtain from winning.

Again players are able to select their view of first person or third person camera. Personally for me, PubG Mobile is more enjoyable in a first-person view. Although I have yet to win in a Battle Royal. Playing PubG Mobile with my mate is exciting and entertaining. Anybody at the age of 10+ will have an enjoyable time playing Pubg Mobile.

July 19, 2020July 19, 2020

Review: Covergirl TruBlend Concealer

Covergirl has had many great concealers over the years. Although by far “Covergirl TruBlend Undercover Concealer” has to be my all time favorite.

Covergirl’s Trueblend Undercover Concealer is ideal for the everyday girl/guy who just rolled out of bed wanting a 5-minute no-makeup-makeup look. Or getting all glammed up for a date night or night out with friends. Any look is achievable with this concealer. The versatility this concealer allows makes it easy for any makeup queen to go from a day to night look in seconds.

The only downside I can say about this product is if you have dry skin it’s best to mix this concealer with a primer or moisturizer for all-day hydration.
Whether you choose to wear it as a concealer to spot corrector to hide a few blemishes here and there. Or like me, I prefer to wear it as a foundation, as the coverage is amazing and will cover redness, acne spots, even uneven skin tones perfectly without that heavy coverage feeling.

No matter what type of girl/guy you are. Whether you decide to be a Natural Dewy skin girl/guy or a dramatic bold queen. Covergirl’s TruBlend Undercover Concealer will have you looking slew and your absolute best all day and night.

Me sporting the TruBlend ‘Soft Tan’ shade. Notice how the

Shade Ranges

I am wearing the shade ‘Soft Tan’ which is located under the tan section. As the image above shows, there are 8 different shades within each range. Covergirl offers different shades for every skin type and color, so you’ll never have to worry about finding you’re right shade. The darker shades offered works perfectly as a two-in-one concept, cream contour is a major part of my makeup routine. With someone, any changes offered I’m able to not only use this concealer as a foundation I’m also using it as a cream contour in my everyday makeup routine.

Pricing

Prices may vary depending on where you buy your makeup from. For me I went to my local Target and bought it for $7.99 per concealer, it’s very affordable for those who are on a budget and aren’t looking to spend a fortune on their daily makeup. For a drugstore makeup product, this is priced fairly well. As most concealers are rather expensive, the drugstore is the best way to get makeup without burning a hole into your wallet. This concealer is guaranteed to save you money and have you feeling and looking confident.

Application

Trueblend Undercover Concealer has a doe-foot applicator which makes it easier to get into hard to reach places of the face. A decent amount of product is picked up with every application, there is no need to re-dip or pumping the wand to get enough product. Just one swipe on both cheeks,t- zone area, and chin will give you flawless looking skin each and every time.

Overall

I highly recommend Covergirl concealer because not only do they over 30 shades ranging from fair to deep, they also are multifunctional. It works great with all skin types. I currently tried a wear test and my overall result, this concealer lasts all day for me without any touch-ups. It’s easy to blend and work with, covers all or most imperfections, vegan free, last all day, does not crack or crease when applied as an undereye concealer or eyelid primer.