On its 4th version, FL Studio Mobile 4 has finally come into it’s own from under it’s desktop sibling. The linear-timeline based mobile-first DAW is not a stripped down version of FL Studio, but an companion app that stands on its own very well.
UserInterface
Whereas the x86-based FL Studio for Mac and PC can be very overwhelming by it’s multi-windowed, complex user interface – FL Studio Mobile is 100% scalable, with flat vector-friendly graphics opposed to the desktops bitmapped GUI. This makes for a very modern, if simplistic look and feel – similar to Ableton Live.
The GUI contains control aspects that slide out from the bottom (Drum Pads or Keyboard), right (selected instrument or effect) and left (Track Controls) edges of the screen. It’s a well arranged interface, with enough depth to satisfy the most demanding audio professional.
Drum PadsKeyboardMixer ViewTimeline View
Instrumentsand Effects
Many of the desktop VSTs and effects from Image-Line’s collection is present. DirectWave – allows you to use presets saved from the desktops version; Slicer, is a stripped-down version of sample chopping Slicex; Transient Bass, along with GMS (Groove Machine) are two of the newer synths included. SuperSaw and Minisynth are the two exclusives to FL Mobile, with the legendary pattern based Drum Track – (which FL Studio is popular for) rounding out the Instruments.
The list of Effects included are more extensive, with more than 20 effects included. The options are broad, ranging from the essentials like reverb, delay, EQ and compressors – to more advanced and creative ones like Autoduck, Spacer and Auto-Pitch.
Standout features
FL Studio Mobile’s standout features include a full automation for any parameters on a track’s timeline, instrument or effect. On iOS, you can use Audio Units and IAA-compatible apps within the DAW.
Importing samples from my Sound Library from pCloud
Perhaps the most useful, is the ability to import your own sounds and samples from outside the program. This allows for more advanced beatmakers, producers and musicians the ability to create a more custom sound of their own. Connect to external storage, or even import sounds uploaded to, Google Drive or OneDrive.
Lastly , the ability to purchase the complete Preset and Sample Libraries for each of the virtual instruments is possible – from the built-in store – giving access to many exclusive sounds from desktop counterparts of the built-in instruments.
FL Studio Sound Shop
Conclusion
FL Studio is a very powerful DAW, bringing advanced desktop level music production abilities to smartphones and tablets. There are few music making apps that can match the capabilities of this program, and those who are FL Studio users on desktop platforms looking for way to make music on the go will be doing themselves a disservice to overlook this app.
ThinkPad, ThinkBook, IdeaPad… Lenovo has a product naming pattern going on here if you’ve noticed. Today we’re looking at a first here at Labfreq – the Slim 7 Carbon – our IdeaPad debut.
Specs
The Slim 7 Carbon is a 14-inch laptop rocking the signature, sleek “IdeaPad” design language with aspirations for ThinkPad X1 Carbon-level durability. Upon opening the lid of the device, the vibrant display with punchy hues and deep blacks immediately stood out from the usual cooler matte look/feel seen on most laptops. It helped that it’s Touchscreen, the glossy screen giving the colors an almost polished feel.
Specs
IdeaPad Slim 7 Carbon 14
Processor
AMD Ryzen™ 7 5800U Processor (1.90 GHz, up to 4.40 GHz Max Boost, 8 Cores, 16 Threads, 16 MB Cache
4 x speakers with Dolby Atmos® Speaker System Smart amp Digital signal processing (DSP)
Camera
IR + time of flight (TOF) camera
Connectivity
802.11AX (2 x 2) Bluetooth® 5.1
Ports
USB-C 3.2 Gen 1 2 x USB-C 3.2 Gen 2 (DisplayPort™ 1.4 + PD 3.0) Headphone / mic combo
Special Features
One of the more unique additions is the Lenovo AI Chip, making features like Smart Rapid Start for fast, hands-free login, Smart Adaptive Sensors for automatic display tuning, and Smart Presence Detection that automatically wakes up or locks the PC possible.
The 14-inch, QHD+ OLED display with 90Hz refresh rate has a 16:10 aspect ratio, offering more screen space for productivity boosts. It also features Dolby Vision™ HDR, color accuracy with 100% DCI-P3, and deep blacks from VESA®DisplayHDR 500 True Black (whew!)
There’s also Dolby Audio, which adds the ability to listen to and create Spatial Audio experiences. Preloaded software was minimal, with Alexa, Dolby Vision, Lenovo Vantage, McAfee, and Office 365 pre installed.
Conclusion
The IdeaPad Slim 7 Carbon is a very capable ultrabook, packing an AMD Ryzen 6000 SoC, with a Nvidia graphics card – AAA gaming is possible with this laptop. The 16:10 display ratio leaves headroom for fitting more info on the screen. For anyone looking for an AMD-powered laptop with decent gaming specs, the Slim 7 Carbon just might me the perfect fit.
Cloud Storage has evolved from a niche perk to an essential contingency, particularly with companies making the move to more hybrid/remote workflows. Some cloud storage providers are more popular than others, due to the fact they are integrated into popular ecosystems (think Android, ChromeOS, iOS/MacOS, Windows.) But does the market share of these services reflect the fact that they are truly the best on the market, or is it bulit-in convenience? Here we explore the most popular (and powerful) Cloud Storage service providers and their feature set – to see which offers the best bang per buck. in Alphabetical Order):
Google Drive
One of the more popular products on this list, Drive is possibly the most used – being integrated in Google’s ecosystem. It comes with 15GB of free storage, linked to your Gmail account. This space is shared between your emails in Gmail,pics and vids in Google Photos, along with whatever you saved in Drive. Though its widespread use is mostly due to it being an extension of the Internal storage on Android and Chromebook devices, many companies and individuals have raised concerns around privacy. The storage capacity can be upgraded through paid subscription tiers, ranging from 100GB for $1.99/month to $49.99 for 10TB/month.
Features:
File storage, sharing, and access from any device
File streaming directly from the cloud to Mac or PC
Offline access to files
Shared team drives
Google search technology for files
Cloud-native collaboration apps (Google Docs, Google Sheets, Google Slides)
Collaborate on Microsoft Office files without converting file formats
Supports over 100 file types
Integrates with dozens of tools and apps like Adobe, DocuSign, Salesforce, Slack, and more
Desktop app and mobile app
Access from Windows, Mac, Linux, iOS, and Android devices
Dropbox is the oldest product on this list, and the one that inspired companies like Apple, Google and Microsoft to get into the Cloud Storage game. It’s collaborative and file sharing features make it a popular, near-standard in the workplace and it edges out cloud services lied to big Tech ecosystems with top-tier encryption.
Dropbox uses stronger encryption to keep stored files safe with Advanced Encryption Standard (AES) 256-bit encryption — the same encryption standard used to protect top-secret data. (Google Drive only uses 128-bit encryption for example)
Dropbox has three subscription tiers: Standard, Advanced, and Professional – which prices range from $12.50/month to $20/month for the Advanced.
Features:
Cloud file storage and backup
File sharing and large file transfer
File recovery and version history
Document collaboration and editing through Dropbox Paper
Syncing across devices
Password sync and storage
Desktop app and mobile app
HelloSign eSignatures
Integrates with tools like Zoom, Canva, Slack, and more
Access from Windows, Mac, Linux, iOS, and Android devices
Apple’s cloud service isn’t as available on third-party platforms as much as the others – pretty much Apple devices and the Web. It allows users to store data such as documents, photos and music on remote servers for download to iOS, macOS or Windows devices. It also enables to share and send data to other users. It is also helpful to manage Apple devices if it is lost or stolen. It was launched in 2011. While it offers some of the lowest fees in this list, the price to value ratio is lower than the others – due to being more or less unavailable outside of Apple’s walled garden of products
OneDrive is Microsoft’s cloud storage service, and its tight integration with Windows assures it has a massive user base. It gives the convenience to users for storing files, personal data and for sharing files. It offers 5 GB free storage space. It was launched by Microsoft in 2007. It is mostly used by professional workers to store the data related to work which might need more security.
The most secure cloud storage provider on the list, pCloud is a relative newcomer that has apps for every major platform, including Linux. It offers up to 10GB of free storage, and is also the only provider on this list that offers a lifetime subscription for a one-time purchase.
Features:
Up to 10 GB of free storage
Ability to sync from popular online services
Unlimited transfer speeds -Custom Branding Links
Embedded Music player (Sorting by artist, album; Shuffle; playback);
-Share link customization (expiration, password protection, upload/ download privileges);
While all of the products on this list are reliable and robust, Dropbox and pCloud offers the more agile and cross-platform services – while Apple, Google, and Microsoft’s cloud storage are mainly extensions of the Internal storage on their own branded devices. Google Drive and Onedrive is a bit more open and available on other platforms than iCloud, but those are still edged out by Dropbox. pCloud takes the crown, edging out Dropbox by a slight margin with features like Branded Link Sharing, 30day file revisions, Client-side zero encryption, and the ability to buy a lifetime membership, which makes it the only Cloud service provider to allow you to buy Cloud storage outright.
IdeaPad Duet 5i arrives to challenge the Surface and iPad head-on
Expanding on the success and popularity of their Duet line of tablets for ChromeOS, Lenovo is expanding the design to the IdeaPad series to create a classy and stylish Windows 11 tablet.
The IdeaPad 5i speaks the same design ethos as the Chromebook Duet, which we reviewed last year.
IdeaPad Duet 5i comes equipped with a 12-inch, 2.5K IPS touchscreen display in taller 16:10 format, bundled with a Bluetooth keyboard, optional Active Pen 3, with up to 12th Gen Intel Core i7 processors. Check out Lenovo to learn more.
“360 degrees of thin and stylish 2-in-1 creativity”
Hot On the heels of the release of their Galaxy S22 smartphone line-up, Samsung announced the laptop counterpart at this year’s Mobile World Congress.
The Galaxy Book 2 Pro 360 is the MacBook Pro contender of 2022, being configurable with up to 16GB RAM + 1TB SSD, a Intel® Core™ i7-1160G7 Processor, and S Pen, with up to a 15.6 Super AMOLED touchscreen Display.
It also has tons of software features, like “Galaxy Continuity” and blockchain-powered Private Share. You can even pre-order to receive $50 Samsung Credit, if you do so before it’s March 18th release date. Check out Samsung for more details.
This year’s MWC (Mobile World Congress) has been dominated by computer OEMs . What is usually a tech conference for mobile devices (smartphones,etc.) has become a highly anticipated showcase for upcoming laptops and tablets.
Below are all the links to our articles associated with product announcements at this year’s Mobile World Congress.
Lenovo is a regarded as a highly innovative brand who’s products have received high ratings in our product review database. Keeping their upcoming products on our radar, we’ve compiled all the info of interest to our readers on their upcoming ThinkPad lineup: the ThinkPad T Series, ThinkPad P Series, and the 1st Gen ThinkPad x13s.
ThinkPad x13s
ThinkPad X13s is the world’s first laptop powered by the Snapdragon 8cx Gen 3 compute platform, 5G, and 28 hours of battery life.
ThinkPad X1 Xtreme
ThinkPad X1 Extreme Gen 5, powered by up to the latest 12th Gen Intel Core i9 H-Series processors and available with the latest NVIDIA GeForce RTX Laptop GPUs, up to 64GB DDR5 memory, and optional dual Solid-State Drives (SSD) supporting up to a massive 8TB.
ThinkPad T Series (T14,T14s,T16)
ThinkPad T14
ThinkPad T series updated with 16:10 aspect ratio displays with low blue light technology with FHD camera options Available with either the latest 12th Gen Intel Core or the latest AMD Ryzen PRO 6000 Series processors.
