January, 2022 - Organizer

7:09 pm | January 28, 2022

Editor's Note

• Original review date: October 2021
• New Fenix 8 launched September 2024
• Launch price: $699.99 / £599.99 / AU$1,049
• Official price now: $699.99 / £599.99 / AU$1,049

Update: November 2024. The Garmin Genix 7 was recently supplanted by the Fenix 8 at the very top of Garmin's range. The new model for 2024 packs advanced GPS and a new heart rate sensor, but it is very expensive. The Fenix 7 wasn't cheap in its heyday either, but you can normally find a pretty good deal on one these days, making it an attractive pick.

Savings of nearly 30% off make the Fenix 7 an enticing pick over some of Garmin's mid-range models, or a great cheaper alternative to the Fenix 8. In fact, if you find the right deal, you might end up paying up to 50% less for your Fenix 7 compared to the newer model, which is a saving not to be sniffed at.

Two-minute review

The Garmin Fenix 7 is designed for anyone who gets a thrill from the competition and wants to push themselves to hit a new high – whether it’s a cycling sportive, a half marathon, an Ironman, or the gruelling sweat of a CrossFit competition. The Fenix 7 doesn’t assume that you’ve already nailed down a full training plan and know exactly how to balance work and recovery, though – it gives you tools that will help you understand your current fitness level, set a realistic goal, and train in a way that will help you achieve it.

It packs the same advanced workout tracking and training tools that made the Garmin Fenix 6 the best multi-sports watch around back in 2019, but also introduces some new features that make it all more accessible to new users.

The most obvious upgrade here is the introduction of a touchscreen. The watch still has the five physical buttons of previous Fenix watches (including a newly reinforced start button), but it's a huge help for panning across maps. It's been carefully implemented, though; the screen is locked by default during workouts to prevent accidental button presses, and Fenix purists can opt to deactivate touch entirely if they prefer.

The display is still memory-in-pixel rather than AMOLED like the Garmin Epix (Gen 2) or Garmin Venu 2. It's readily legible in most lights but lacks contrast, and the use of a blue rather than white backlight means its colors are sometimes muddy. However, it's part of what makes the Fenix 7 so frugal with its power usage. This is a watch that can keep running for weeks in the right conditions, and even the non-solar versions offer impressive longevity.

The Garmin Fenix 7 comes in three sizes, and is available in standard, Solar, and Sapphire Solar editions (Image credit: Future)

On the software side, there's a new real-time stamina meter that shows how your energy declines during a workout so you can adjust your effort accordingly. This is the first time it's been possible to see changes in stamina in a chart that you can read at a glance.

There's also a new on-screen race predictor that estimates how your current training regime will affect your 5k, 10k, and half marathon race times. This data was already available in the Garmin Connect app, but the new chart on your wrist allows you to see how your times are trending – and hopefully dropping – thanks to your efforts.

If you're already happy with your Fenix 6 then we wouldn't recommend rushing out to upgrade right away, but the Fenix 7 is packed with thoughtfully crafted new features and refinements that make a real difference in everyday training.

Garmin Fenix 7: Price and release date

Available to order now
Costs more than Fenix 6

The Garmin Fenix 7 series launched on January 18, 2022, and is available to buy direct from Garmin. Prices start at $699.99 / £599.99 / AU$1,049 for the standard version. The top-tier Fenix 7X Sapphire Solar is $999.99 / £859.99 / AU$1,499.

That’s a significant increase from the Fenix 6, which started at $599.99 / £529.99 / AU$949 when it launched in 2019. However, it’s much less than the Garmin Epix premium everyday watch, which launched the same day, starting at $899.99 / £799.99 / AU$1,399. While you're working out how to save, check out the Garmin promo codes currently available.

Garmin Fenix 7: Design

Touchscreen and physical buttons
No increase in weight
Premium materials

Design score: 5/5

The Fenix 7 comes in three sizes (42mm, 47mm, and 51mm), with standard, Solar, and Sapphire Solar variants:

We tested the standard 47mm Sapphire Solar edition, which is the first watch that combines the advantages of its sunlight-harvesting Power Glass with tough crystal.

Our review watch had a graphite gray titanium case and a black silicone strap, but various other colorways are available. The silicone band is a good choice for sport and is easy to clean, but you can also choose a watch bundled with an additional leather or woven strap for everyday use.

The watch uses Garmin's QuickFit bands, which are released from the case housing by pushing down on a plastic clip. They're extremely easy to swap, but aren't interchangeable with the old-style quick-release bands, which are removed by pushing a pin to the side. The Fenix 7 Sapphire Solar weighs 73g with the silicone strap attached, and 50g without.

That’s almost exactly the same as the Fenix 6 Solar, which comes in at 72g with its strap, and 49g without. It’s impressive that Garmin has managed to keep the weight consistent while increasing battery life substantially, and improving the screen technology.

The Fenix 7’s interface will be immediately familiar to Fenix 6 users, and consists of five physical buttons together with a touchscreen that locks automatically during activity tracking to avoid accidental pausing or cancelling of activities. If you’d prefer to stick with just the buttons, you can choose to disable the touchscreen completely. It’s also possible to switch it off during sleep to avoid accidental touches at night, but we didn’t find this to be a problem.

Rather than equipping the Fenix 7 with an AMOLED screen like that of the Venu 2 and Epix watches, Garmin has stuck with a transflective memory-in-pixel display. It’s a sensible choice that helps conserve battery life, though it’s not as bright as we might have liked.

It's easy to read in most lighting conditions, but we found it a little lacking in contrast compared to watches like the Garmin Instinct Solar (shown below on the left) and often needed to use the backlight. The fact that this light is blue rather than white means that the screen colors can sometimes look muddy; particularly red and purple shades.

When it comes to charging, the Fenix 7 uses the same proprietary USB cable as all other Garmin watches released during the last couple of years. This may come as a disappointment to anyone hoping for contactless charging this time around, but the cable is easy to use and plugs securely into the back of the watch.

The Fenix 7 is water resistant to depths of 100m, making it suitable for pool and open water swimming, plus activities like kayaking, windsurfing and stand-up paddleboarding (all of which have their own profiles), but for diving, you’ll want a specialized swimming watch like the Garmin Descent Mk2.

Garmin Fenix 7: Battery life

Largest model lasts up to five weeks
Customizable battery saving settings
Solar and Sapphire Solar versions available

Battery life score: 5/5

Battery life has always been one of the selling points of Garmin's sports watches, and the Fenix 7 range really delivers. First, though, it's important to note that the life of each watch in the range will depend on the size of its battery, whether it has a solar cell, and the size of that cell.

The Fenix 7 Sapphire Solar we tested is equipped with the Garmin's Power Glass, which harvests energy throughout the day to keep the watch’s battery topped up. You’ll still need to plug the watch in occasionally, but the solar cell extends its battery life significantly.

To clarify, you can't charge the watch via solar charging only; it merely reduces the battery drain. You can't just leave the watch out on the sun all day and expect it to be fully charged by the time you collect it in the evening. Exactly how often you'll need to recharge will depend on how you use it and which sensors you choose to enable. These are the figures given by Garmin itself for this particular model:

All of those figures are a huge upgrade on the equivalent Fenix 6 Solar, and real-world performance proved even better. Despite us making regular use of the backlight, tracking an average of one workout per day using GPS, and keeping nocturnal SpO2 monitoring enabled, the watch kept running for three weeks before needing a top-up from its charging cable.

We were also able to try the non-solar Garmin Fenix 7S, and despite having the smallest battery capacity in the range, it retained 56% of its charge after a week of use. That far exceeds Garmin's suggested battery life of 11 days in smartwatch mode alone.

It’s now easier to see the remaining charge level; one of our chief complaints with the Fenix 6 Solar was that you could only see power remaining measured in days, but the Fenix 7 gives you the option of checking the percentage as well. It’s a small but welcome touch.

You can toggle the general Battery Saver mode on and off through the watch itself, or make more specific tweaks through the Garmin Connect smartphone app by disabling certain tracking metrics.

Garmin Fenix 7: Smartwatch features

Excellent GPS navigation tools
On-board music storage and Garmin Pay
No microphone for hands-free calls

Smartwatch feature score: 4/5

The Garmin Fenix 7 features all the sensors you’d expect from a top-end smartwatch, including the company’s latest generation Elevate 4 optical heart rate monitor, altimeter, compass, SpO2 (blood oxygen) sensor, and temperature sensor.

SpO2 monitoring can run continuously, overnight, or only on demand during spot-checks. The Garmin Fenix 6 recently received a firmware update that alerts you if you move your wrist too much while the watch is taking an SpO2 reading, and that’s a feature you’ll also see here with the Fenix 7.

On the subject of travel, the Fenix 7’s GPS tracking and mapping are excellent. The watch recorded our pre-measured 5km test route to within 50 meters, making it the most accurate running watch we've tested to date.

The Fenix 7 excels for everyday navigation as well, removing the need to have your phone out and clearly visible in an unfamiliar place where it could be easily stolen. The Fenix 7 can even highlight points of interest for you, such as stores and cafes. It’s well thought through and really enhances the Fenix 7 as a watch for everyday use rather than just sports.

Until now, if you wanted a set of maps for your Garmin watch, you'd have to pay for and download them through the Garmin Connect app, but no longer. The Fenix 7 Sapphire editions come with a full set preinstalled, which is extremely useful, and users of the standard models can download their preferred packs directly through the watch using its new Map Manager.

The touchscreen makes panning across maps far easier than using buttons alone, though the MiP display doesn't refresh as quickly as an AMOLED screen, resulting in less smooth scrolling, and the blue-tinted backlight means things aren't always as easy to distinguish as we might like.

Course plotting on Garmin Connect — The course plotter in Garmin Connect can create a measured route that you can follow with turn-by-turn directions on the Fenix 7 (Image credit: Future)

If you’re tired of your usual running, cycling or walking routes, you can use the course creation tool in Garmin Connect to create a new one; just select a starting point, a distance, and an overall bearing (north, south, east, or west) and the app will generate a suitable route in a couple of seconds. You can then sync this to your Fenix 7, which will give you turn-by-turn directions as you go.

There’s also Garmin’s extremely useful TracBack feature, which lets you tag your starting point and then directs you back there once you’re ready to finish your walk, bike ride or run. It’s ideal for occasions when you want to go on a little adventure, though if you’re out hiking or orienteering, then you should always have a paper map and compass to be safe; the Fenix 7’s multi-band GPS is excellent, but no device is infallible.

Sleep monitoring is also impressive, accurately detecting changes between sleep and wakefulness that sports watches often fail to differentiate. Each morning you’ll receive a sleep score, together with some tips on how to get a better night’s rest, but this data will also be factored into stats such as your body battery, which shows how you're balancing work and recovery.

There’s storage for music, too (the Sapphire editions of the watch give you more space for saving maps and tracks), and you can use the Fenix 7 to listen to songs, podcasts and audiobooks through your phone’s default media player.

When you’re on the move, you can use Garmin Pay to make contactless payments in stores and pay for public transport in many locations. Sadly, most UK-based banks aren't supported, but at least it's also valid for a range of public transport services, including Transport For London.

One feature that’s conspicuously lacking from the Fenix 7 is the microphone featured in the recently released Garmin Venu 2 Plus, which allows you to receive phone calls and use your phone’s voice assistant directly from your wrist. It’s an extremely useful feature to have at your disposal mid-workout, and we’ve got our fingers crossed that Garmin might introduce it at a future date in a Garmin Fenix 7 Plus.

Garmin Fenix 7: Fitness tracking

One of the most accurate GPS watches we've tested
Real-time stamina tracking to help with pacing
Training load guidance for balancing rest and work

Tracking score: 4.5/5

The Fenix 7’s upgraded training tools help you balance work and recovery and make the abstract concept of training load easy to understand. It’s still a watch tailored to serious athletes, but Garmin’s advanced features are now more accessible for those taking their training to the next level.

Perhaps the best example of this real-time stamina tool, which shows how much fuel you have in the tank during your workout. This helps you avoid bottoming out and lets you more accurately judge when to turn around during an out-and-back run.

It’s a practical addition that’s extremely simple to use and accurately reflects your energy levels based on your training load. During runs on tired legs, our reported stamina drained much faster than when we were fresh, and we were able to adjust our training on the fly accordingly.

The watch’s heart rate monitor is extremely responsive, making this an excellent watch for high-intensity interval training (which is now available as an activity profile). A colored bar at the top of the watch screen allows you to see your current heart rate training zone at any time, so you can increase the effort when you want to push to the next level and see the effects immediately.

Once your activity is finished, the Garmin Connect app will reveal how your stamina decreased – and whether your effort matched your potential. It’s another useful insight that lets you know whether you’re pushing yourself hard enough or holding back as you start to tire.

Garmin Connect app screengrabs — The Garmin Connect app makes it easy to manage your training load and check the effects of your workout on your fitness (Image credit: Future)

Another new motivational tool is the race predictor, which uses your current performance to estimate how long it will take to complete a 5k, 10k, half marathon, and marathon based on your current fitness. It’s only an estimate, but a graph showing how your predicted time changes based on your training can really galvanize your efforts. It’s all available right on your wrist, so there’s no need to delve into Garmin Connect to find it.

In our tests, Garmin's predicted race times were roughly accurate – erring on the optimistic side – and changed rapidly in response to your most recent performance. We set out to beat our predicted 5k time, and although we didn't quite manage it, the watch set us a tougher goal in response.

You can see your seven-day training load at a glance on the watch face, with advice on whether you need to dial up the intensity, take your foot off the gas, or stay where you are for optimal results.

The Fenix 7 isn’t just a runner’s watch, though – it also has an impressive set of tools for cyclists and can be connected to the company’s line of bike computers and lights. Garmin has recently expanded its range of cycling modes and takes factors like incline and terrain into account when calculating your exerted effort.

Mapping for cyclists is particularly impressive. The watch won't just map a route for you; it also gives you the option to avoid toll roads, narrow trails, unpaved roads, and major highways, letting you customize your ride to suit your bike, your preferences, and your level of confidence. Touches like this really show that this was a watch developed by people with a genuine passion for their sport and who want to make it accessible to a wider range of people.

The watch can detect climbs automatically as well; its ClimbPro feature identifies when you've begun an ascent and presents you with info on the gradient, distance, and elevation gain of the entire hill so you can manage your effort and avoid setting out too hard or keeping too much in reserve.

Garmin Fenix 7: The Garmin Connect app

All data presented clearly and explained
Lots of extra tools including gear tracker
Personalized workouts and training plans

Companion app score: 5/5

Like all Garmin watches, the Fenix 7 syncs with the Garmin Connect app for iOS and Android. Connecting the watch is a breeze, and the watch syncs data automatically whenever you complete a workout, or open the app.

If you’re upgrading from an older Garmin device, all the data will be pooled together seamlessly, though selecting a training session will allow you to see which device recorded it.

Garmin Connect is one of the best-developed fitness apps and puts much more information at your fingertips than the likes of Huawei Health or even the official Coros app. All your most recent stats (such as heart rate, workouts, sleep, and menstrual cycle) are shown on a central dashboard that you can rearrange and customize at will. Don’t want to see your step count? Just slide it to the right, and it’s gone.

Tapping on any of these stats will allow you to drill down through the data in more detail, and every graph and table is accompanied by an info panel that explains exactly what the information means and how you can use it. The app also provides suggestions where appropriate so you can improve your training habits.

Open up the app’s main menu, and you’ll discover a huge array of extra tools, all specifically designed with sportspeople in mind. For example, there’s a gear tracker so you can keep track of how long you’ve been using your various pairs of running shoes and work out when it’s time to replace them, and you can set up emergency contacts who should be alerted if the Fenix 7 detects an accident.

You can connect with other Garmin users as well, though most users are more likely to make use of the app’s Strava compatibility instead.

There are customizable training plans for runners and cyclists, which set you certain sessions to complete during the week and adjust based on your performance, plus various Peloton-style instructor-led workouts. It’s all free of charge, and there’s no indication that Garmin plans to implement a Fitbit Premium-style subscription to access it.

You can download third-party apps, new watch faces, and extra data fields (which are presented on screen during workouts) through a second app called Garmin Connect IQ.

There isn’t a huge array of apps to download, but many of those available have been created by passionate Garmin users and solve a real need – such as the unofficial Parkrun apps, which display your personal barcode, so you don’t have to carry it on a keychain or wristband. There are also apps for popular services, such as mapping tool Komoot, which are favored by runners and cyclists.

First reviewed January 2022

Garmin Fenix 7: New updates

Since its launch, the Fenix 7 range has received a number of software updates, and Garmin very kindly added quite a few features to the watch that were previously only available on newer Forerunners, such as heart rate variability tracking, Training Readiness Score, Race Day widget and more.

One of the most significant improvements is the addition of SatIQ. This system automatically scans for GPS signals and changes the GPS settings in real-time to conserve battery life without compromising GPS accuracy. Considering how good the battery life on the Fenix 7 is, the addition of SatIQ turns the watch into an absolute battery powerhouse, only overshadowed by the Garmin Enduro 2, a watch that has a battery life that shouldn't be possible on a wrist wearable.

Garmin added other features as well, like the morning report and improved the running power feature, making the Fenix 7 an even more competent multisport watch than before. There really isn't anything the Fenix 7 isn't good for, from running training and outdoor adventure tracking to cycling recovery.

Buy it if

You want to crack a new personal best
The Garmin Fenix line has always offered some of the best training tools, but the new additions offered by the Fenix 7 make it easier to balance rest and recovery, and help you see the long-term benefits of the work you're putting in today.

You want to explore
For long camping trips, the excellent battery life will keep the watch running for days even with regular use of the watch’s navigation tools. Its multi-band GPS is extremely accurate, and its turn-by-turn navigation and TracBack functions make it easy to try out unfamiliar routes or just go exploring.

You're tough on your watches
The Fenix 7 is built to last, and the new Sapphire Solar version means you no longer have to choose between maximum battery life and durability. You can also rest safe in the knowledge that Garmin will continue to support it with firmware updates for many years to come (the Fenix 6 received a major update just the day before the Fenix 7 launched).

Don't buy it if

You’re a casual sportsperson
The Fenix 7 is a joy to use, but will be serious overkill for casual runners, cyclists and gym-goers. Other watches in the Garmin range, including the entry-level Forerunner 55 and the all-purpose Venu 2 Plus, are a better choice if you’re not planning to kick your training up to the next level.

You’re happy with your Fenix 6
The Fenix 6 has stood the test of time, and received a major firmware update the day before the launch of the Fenix 7 that brings its workout tracking profiles and fitness algorithms right up to date. The Fenix 7 is a seriously premium watch, and if you’re satisfied that you’re making the most of your existing watch’s training tools, it’s tough to justify the extra cost.

Also consider

Garmin Forerunner 955 Solar

Another of Garmin's top-tier watches with amazing battery life and endless features. Geared towards runners and triathletes rather than adventurers.

Suunto 9

A slightly cheaper, still top-tier Garmin rival packed with fitness credentials

On a budget? Check out the best cheap running watches

MSI Raider GE76 2022 review

5:00 pm | January 25, 2022

Author: admin | Category: Computers Computing Gadgets Gaming Computers Gaming Laptops | Tags: CPU, RAM, Total War | Comments: Off

Editor's Note

• Original review date: January 2022
• Launch price: Starting at $1,599 (about £1,280/AU$ 2,320)
• The MSI Raider GE76 2022 is still available, but availability might be limited

Update – September 2024: The MSI Raider GE76 2022 is a fantastic gaming laptop, but at current prices, you might be better off with one of MSI's other gaming laptop offerings, many of which are going to feature updated specs and possibly better pricing.

Still, if you can find the MSI Raider GE76 2022 model for substantially cheaper than its launch price, this could be a fantastic bargain come Black Friday or other holiday shopping sales in the months ahead.

Original review follows.

For years, the MSI Raider GE76 has been a great gaming laptop for showcasing what the latest mobile hardware from Intel and Nvidia is capable of. And now, in 2022, with the launch of the Intel 12th-generation Alder Lake processors and the Nvidia GeForce RTX 3080 Ti, we have a laptop that's basically on the level of a full-fledged gaming PC, but fits in a (large) backpack.

While the high power of this gaming laptop means it doesn’t have the best battery life in the world – only reaching about five hours – it is one of the first gaming laptops we’ve used that we would genuinely call a '4K gaming laptop'. In fact, with DLSS, this laptop should have no problem playing even Cyberpunk 2077 with high settings at 4K with ray tracing enabled. But because this is a 1080p gaming laptop with a 360Hz display, all that power is instead directed to providing an incredibly smooth gaming experience.

However, this much power comes at a price. The configuration we reviewed, with an Intel Core i9-12900HK, 32GB of RAM and an Nvidia GeForce RTX 3080 Ti, will set you back a whopping $3,999 (about £3,000, AU$5,600). That’s a lot of cash to throw at a gaming laptop, but at least you're getting something that’s both incredibly powerful and fits in your bag.

MSI Raider GE76 2022 back of laptop, where you see some ports — (Image credit: Future)

Price and availability

SPEC SHEET

Here is the MSI Raider GE76 configuration sent to TechRadar for review:
CPU: 2.4GHz Intel Core i9-12900HK (20 cores, 16MB cache, up to 5.0GHz Turbo)
Graphics: Nvidia GeForce RTX 3080 Ti
RAM: 32GB
Screen: 17-inch LED, 360Hz, 3ms
Storage: 2 X 1TB M.2 SSD
Optical drive: N/A
Ports: 3x USB-A,1 x USB-C with Thunderbolt 4, 1 x USB-C with DisplayPort, 1 x HDMI, 1 x MiniDisplayPort, SD card reader, audio combo jack
Connectivity: Killer WiFi 6E AX1675 (2x2 ), Bluetooth 5.2
Camera: FHD 1080p Webcam
Weight: 6.9 pounds (2.5 kg)
Size: 15.63 x 11.18 x 1.02 inches (397 x 283 x 25.9mm; W x D x H)

The MSI Raider GE76 will be available in early February 2022, and will start at $1,599 in the US. The spec that’s going to be available at that price hasn’t been announced yet, so we can’t speak to whether or not it’s going to offer good value.

However, the price goes all the way up to a whopping $4,199 (about £3,120, AU$5,900), for which you're getting an absolutely overkill spec sheet. We didn’t review quite the top-end configuration, and the configuration listed to the right will cost you $3,999 (about £3,000, AU$5,600).

That’s about $500 more expensive than the top-end spec for last year’s model goes for in the US right now, though that’s likely due to the fact that it includes a more-powerful RTX 3080 Ti, rather than its non-Ti equivalent. But due to the chassis design, you’re getting no-compromises gaming performance, which may be worth the large price increase, especially if you really want to play the latest and best PC games without having to worry about upgrading anytime soon.

MSI Raider GE76 2022 side of gaming laptops with some ports — (Image credit: Future)

Design

One look at the MSI Raider GE76 and there's no mistaking that it is a gaming laptop. There are plenty of sharp angles, a gunmetal-gray lid, and more ports than you can shake a stick at. Oh, and there’s the giant RGB light bar on the front of the keyboard deck that we can’t figure out how to turn off.

The laptop looks like a tank, and it’s kind of built like one too. The entire chassis is made from metal, from the lid to the bottom of the laptop where all the ventilation is found. The MSI Raider GE76 is definitely a laptop that can withstand a beating, although that does mean it’s quite heavy.

The laptop is about an inch thick and weighs 6.9lb, which means it’s definitely noticeable when it’s in your bag. To add to the weight, you’ll need to carry the charger around with you, which is also quite heavy and bulky. So while this is definitely more portable than a gaming tower, it’s still not something you’re going to want to carry with you as you commute to work every day – unless you really want a workout.

But thanks to the size of this laptop you do get a full keyboard with a numpad. There are some compromises to fit it in this chassis, with the buttons on the numpad being quite narrow. It takes some getting used to, especially if you don’t want to accidentally hit the right arrow key when you’re going for the 0 key, but that’s something that will come with time.

The keyboard is also quite comfortable to type on, with plenty of travel. They’re still chiclet keys, but they feel much more substantial than on most laptops. However, we do notice that sometimes the spacebar will repeat, and we’ll have to hit backspace a few times to get back to where we were. It’s a small issue, but something that does get annoying after a while.

Perhaps more impressive, though, is that even with that full-sized keyboard, MSI was able to fit top-firing speakers. They sound incredible for a laptop, and listening to Tear You Apart by She Wants Revenge we could clearly hear the bass guitar, even when all the other instrumentation (and even the vocals) are bassy themselves. As for games, Guardians of the Galaxy sounds more clear than on many gaming laptops, and loud enough to render the fans inaudible.

The display, meanwhile, looks incredible. While it is just a 1080p panel, the colors here are bright and accurate. Everything looks absolutely vibrant, whether you’re blasting aliens in Guardians of the Galaxy or digging around the colorful new menus in Windows 11, and you don’t have to worry about compromising on image quality just to get that 360Hz refresh rate.

And of course, because this is a thick gaming laptop in 2022, there are plenty of ports on offer. You get two USB-C ports, one of which is Thunderbolt 4, three USB-A, an Audio Combo jack, a dedicated charger, HDMI, Mini-DisplayPort, and an SD card reader. Basically, you don’t have to worry about a dongle further weighing you down here; MSI has all of its bases covered.

MSI Raider GE76 2022 bottom of laptop, showing ventilation — (Image credit: Future)

Performance

Benchmarks

Here's how the MSI Raider GE76 performed in our suite of benchmark tests:
3DMark: Night Raid: 53016; Fire Strike: 27515; Time Spy: 12615
Cinebench R23 Multi-core: 16345 points
GeekBench 5: 1847 (single-core); 13451 (multi-core)
PCMark 10 (Home test): 7892 points
PCMark 10 Battery life: 4 hours and 39 minutes
Battery life (Techradar movie test): 4 hours and 54 minutes
Total War: Three Kingdoms (1080p, Ultra): 104fps; (1080p, Low): 310fps
Metro Exodus (1080p, Ultra): 92fps; (1080p, Low): 187fps

The MSI Raider GE76 reviewed here is packed with an Intel Core i9-12900HK, 32GB of RAM and an Nvidia GeForce RTX 3080 Ti. So, in essence, it’s a behemoth of a gaming laptop.

This thing absolutely tore through our benchmark suite, blowing away every other laptop we’ve reviewed, and even came within reaching distance of some of the most powerful gaming desktops we’ve reviewed. The Core i9-12900HK is just 48% slower than the desktop version of the Core i9-12900K. That sounds like a huge difference, but we’re talking about a desktop chip with a PL1 (power level 1) that’s 2.7x higher than the 12900HK. Intel knocked the scaling out of the park, basically.

But it’s not just the CPU that’s impressive. The Nvidia GeForce RTX 3080 Ti is capable of some blisteringly fast speeds, too. In Metro Exodus with Ultra settings, this laptop was 41% faster than the Razer Blade 15 with an Nvidia GeForce RTX 3080, and was only 19% slower than the Alienware Aurora R13 – a desktop with an Nvidia GeForce RTX 3090. This is truly desktop-level gaming performance.

Even in Guardians of the Galaxy, with the graphics absolutely maxed out – including ray tracing – we're constantly seeing framerates hovering around 120 fps. And that's without any form of DLSS or FSR running. This laptop is that powerful.

There isn’t a game out there, especially with a 1080p or 1440p panel, for which you won’t be able to just crank the graphics preset up to maximum and let it ride. Yes, this is an expensive laptop, but if you want no-compromises gaming performance, and you don’t mind dropping a small fortune on a gaming laptop, the MSI Raider GE76 is the device for you.

MSI Raider GE76 2022 front of the laptop rgb light bar — (Image credit: Future)

Battery life

While battery life in gaming laptops has come quite a long way in the last few years, you’re still going to take a massive loss when you’re running components that are this power-hungry.

The MSI Raider GE76 falls just short of five hours in both of our battery tests. That would be appalling performance if this was an Ultrabook, but really it’s about what we expect out of a gaming laptop of this caliber.

You won’t be able to take it with you to work without the power cable and just forget about it, but it should be able to get you through a short Netflix binge without dying on you. Yes, that charging cable is a bit heavy, but you’re going to want to pack it if you’re going to be carrying this laptop around with you.

MSI Raider GE76 2022 numpad — (Image credit: Future)

Features and software

As far as modern gaming laptops go, MSI doesn’t pre-install a lot of software on the Raider. MSI center does come pre-installed, but you can go through and manually pick which optional programs you want, rather than them all being shoving onto the SSD out of the factory. That’s the way we'd like it to be with more laptops.

On the other hand, it does come with Norton Antivirus preinstalled, which is something that’s absolutely unnecessary on such an expensive device in 2022. You do get a bit of a free window before it starts begging you to buy an expensive subscription, but our advice is to just uninstall it and get one of the best free antivirus programs instead.

MSI Raider GE76 2022 side of laptop with even more ports — (Image credit: Future)

Camera

Webcams are more important now than they’ve ever been, but the one in the MSI Raider GE76 is just, you know, there. It’s a 1080p sensor, but images look sort of flat, and it doesn’t pick up lighting super-well.

Then again, as this is a gaming laptop you’re probably not buying it to be in video meetings all day, so it probably isn’t a deal-breaker. You’re still going to be able to show up in a Zoom call relatively well – just don’t go thinking it’s going to use any kind of software to enhance the image, as the latest laptops from Lenovo or Apple are doing.

MSI Raider GE76 2022 back of laptop — (Image credit: Future)

Buy it if…

Don’t buy it if…

Identity Guard review

8:29 am | January 21, 2022

Author: admin | Category: Computers Gadgets Pro Security | Comments: Off

Our series on identity theft protection apps will evaluate the features, pricing options, competition, and also the overall value of using each app. However, these are not full hands-on reviews since evaluating identity theft protection apps is almost impossible. It would require several months of testing, purposefully hacking accounts to see if the protection app works, handing over personally identifiable information, performing multiple credit checks, and risking exposure of the reviewer’s personally identifiable information.

Maintaining a strong understanding of your online identity is crucial. This knowledge empowers you to effectively monitor your credit, review bank accounts, and stay vigilant against potential threats. Equipped with accurate information, you can proactively respond to and potentially prevent identity theft. The absence of such information can leave you feeling vulnerable and powerless against hidden adversaries who may impersonate you and commit crimes without your awareness. The field of identity theft protection relies heavily on the information at your disposal and the subsequent steps taken to address any issues that arise.

Identity Guard, an identity theft protection app, offers a plethora of robust features, including expert consultations for identity recovery. However, it falls short in providing detailed information about its functionality and benefits. The website, resembling an online brochure, lacks comprehensiveness. In comparison, Norton LifeLock excels in presenting clear and detailed information about how its tools protect, assist, and resolve identity theft issues. Identity Guard could greatly enhance user understanding and satisfaction by improving the website's content and incorporating more detailed explanations within the app.

Identity Guard, established in 1996, stands as a venerable entity in the identity protection sector. Its longevity in the industry speaks volumes about its commitment to safeguarding individuals' sensitive information. With over two decades of dedicated service, Identity Guard has significantly impacted protecting over 47 million identities. This remarkable achievement showcases the company's proficiency in recognizing and mitigating identity fraud risks.

Identity Guard, renowned for its commitment to safeguarding individuals' identities, has achieved remarkable success in resolving identity fraud cases. Surpassing the milestone of 140,000 resolved cases, Identity Guard's expertise and dedication have empowered countless individuals to reclaim control of their compromised identities. This outstanding track record is a testament to the organization's unwavering commitment to protecting its clients from the devastating consequences of identity theft.

Through the years, Identity Guard has honed its capabilities, developing a comprehensive suite of identity protection solutions tailored to meet the unique needs of individuals and families. Its team of highly skilled professionals, armed with cutting-edge technology and extensive knowledge, works tirelessly to detect and resolve identity fraud attempts promptly and effectively. Identity Guard's proactive approach includes continuous monitoring of credit reports, social media activity, and dark web surveillance, ensuring that potential threats are identified and addressed in a timely manner.

Moreover, Identity Guard's commitment to excellence extends beyond resolving identity fraud cases. The organization is dedicated to providing unparalleled customer support, offering personalized assistance and guidance to individuals throughout the recovery process. Its team of knowledgeable and compassionate professionals works closely with clients, providing emotional support and practical advice to help them navigate the complexities of identity theft and restore their peace of mind.

You can sign up for Identity Guard here

As a result of its exceptional service and proven results, Identity Guard has earned the trust and confidence of individuals seeking comprehensive identity protection solutions. Recognized as a leader in the industry, Identity Guard continues to raise the bar for identity protection services, empowering individuals to take control of their identities and protect themselves from the ever-evolving threat of identity fraud.

Identity Guard Review — (Image credit: Identity Guard)

Plans and pricing

Regarding pricing, Identity Guard is transparent, unlike Norton LifeLock, which has confusing plans and tiers. Identity Guard categorizes its plans into two main groups: individual and family, with the latter being more expensive. Within each group, there are three tiers: Value, Total, and Ultra. Unfortunately, the lowest tier, the Value plan, lacks credit monitoring and an actual credit score, two essential features offered by Identity Guard. Some identity theft protection apps provide credit monitoring but don't include the full credit score. To access the credit score, users must upgrade to the Total or Ultra plan.

Value offers a budget-friendly identity protection plan at $8.99/month (or $7.50/month when paid annually). While it provides essential features like high-risk transaction alerts, a risk management score, and $1 million in identity theft insurance, it lacks more advanced options like a VPN or a comprehensive credit score. Its safe browsing extension and password manager are useful additions, but may be too similar in comparison to free browser extensions. Given its omission of a credit score, the password manager might seem somewhat superfluous to some users.

By upgrading to the Total plan, which costs $19.99 per month or $16.67 per month with an annual subscription for the individual plan, you'll gain access to a credit lock, financial transaction monitoring, and 3-bureau credit bureau monitoring, along with a monthly credit score. Furthermore, Identity Guard provides bank account monitoring as an added layer of protection.

For $29.99 per month or $25 per month on an annual subscription for the individual plan, the Ultra tier provides advanced monitoring services. These include credit and debit card monitoring, 401k and investment account monitoring, and criminal and sex offense monitoring. Additionally, premium features such as home title monitoring, USPS address change monitoring, and an Experian credit lock are included with this subscription.

In contrast to some competitors' family plans, which limit the number of children covered, the Family Plans offer the advantage of covering up to two adults and an unlimited number of children. The Value tier of the Family Plan starts at $14.99 per month, with annual discounts available.

All plans include customer support through phone or email with a dedicated case manager based in the United States. The support service is available six days a week: Monday through Friday from 8 AM to 11 PM, and Saturday from 9 AM to 6 PM They are not available on Sundays. For email inquiries, the target response time is 24 to 48 hours.

Although there isn't a free trial, the annual plans come with a 60-day money-back guarantee.

Interface

If you seek detailed explanations of every feature and a user-friendly dashboard that guides you through each step, Identity Guard may not be the ideal choice for you. The marketing department's involvement appears to have overshadowed the app's functionality. Website notifications about IBM Watson and a prominent logo on the dashboard serve as reminders of its presence, although paying customers may not fully grasp the role of this super-intelligent mainframe in protecting their identity. While IBM Watson likely correlates identity tracking information and alerts users to potential issues, the customer's primary concern should be the effectiveness of the app, not the underlying mechanisms behind its operation.

While the app highlights the fundamentals of credit scores and monitoring, offering valuable insights for identity protection, it lacks comprehensive information in other crucial areas. Notably, there's limited coverage of criminal activity, fraud, banking issues, credit card problems, and identity theft beyond credit agency reports. Furthermore, the interface falls short in providing sufficient tips and instructional resources to assist users in navigating the process and comprehending potential risks.

Features

Identity Guard offers tiered identity theft protection services, including a standard suite of monitoring and tracking tools designed for individuals concerned about their credit. The higher tiers provide additional features like a credit score check, making it easier to identify and address potential suspicious activity.

The standard entry tier of Identity Guard includes the following features:

Credit Monitoring: It continuously monitors all three major credit bureaus (Experian, Equifax, and TransUnion) for unauthorized changes or inquiries. If any suspicious activity is detected, you will be notified immediately.
Fraud Alerts: Identity Guard places fraud alerts on your credit file, making it more difficult for fraudsters to open new accounts in your name.
Identity Theft Insurance: This coverage reimburses you for expenses incurred due to identity theft, such as legal fees, lost wages, and child care expenses.

The two higher tiers of Identity Guard (Total and Ultra) include all the features of the standard tier, plus the following:

Credit Score Check: With this tool, you can regularly check your credit score and track your credit history. This information can be helpful for identifying any potential problems that could affect your creditworthiness.
Dark Web Monitoring: Identity Guard scans the dark web for your personal information, such as your Social Security number, credit card numbers, and passwords. If your information is found, you will be notified immediately so you can take steps to protect yourself.
Identity Restoration Services: If you become a victim of identity theft, Identity Guard's team of experts will work with you to restore your identity and minimize the damage caused by the fraud.

In terms of the more basic features, the app does alert you about activity related to your bank account and other personal info, such as if there was suspicious activity over the phone where someone tried to use your bank account. The app provides consultations with experts who can guide you through any recovery or fraud remediation steps. Identity Guard doesn’t note whether these are licensed private investigators (which is the staple feature of some competitors, such as IdentityForce).

Identity Guard lacks a virtual private network (VPN) component, which is a notable limitation.

The competition

Identity Guard offers a limited user experience compared to Norton LifeLock. While Norton LifeLock provides comprehensive background material and a user-friendly dashboard to track progress in protecting online identities, Identity Guard lacks these features.

Other apps like IdentityForce excel in explaining their features but have their own drawbacks, such as hard-to-find explanations. Identity Guard's standout feature is the inclusion of an actual credit score, which can be beneficial for individuals focused on credit checks, such as those applying for a home or car purchase.

However, Identity Guard lacks monitoring for criminal activity conducted in the user's name, such as sex offenders impersonating individuals to secure loans. This limitation could compromise the overall effectiveness of Identity Guard's identity protection services.

Ultimately, users seeking a more comprehensive identity protection solution with background material, progress tracking, and robust monitoring capabilities may find Identity Guard lacking compared to other options in the market.

Final verdict

The Identity Guard website, which acts as the entry point for the app, gives the impression of haste and lack of polish. Upon arriving at the landing page, users are greeted with a minimalist design that lacks essential navigation options or information about the app's features and benefits. This omission is particularly confusing, as users may struggle to understand the purpose and functionality of the app without proper guidance. To access the homepage, users must manually delete the landing page URL, which adds an unnecessary step to the user experience. These issues collectively make it challenging for potential users to evaluate and learn about the app, potentially limiting their understanding of its capabilities and deterring them from exploring it further.

While the app does include valuable features such as credit score monitoring, there is a concerning lack of transparency regarding its identity protection capabilities. This lack of clarity leaves customers in the dark about the specific measures the app takes to safeguard their personal information and protect them from identity theft. Without detailed and accessible information about these critical aspects, users may be hesitant to trust the app with their sensitive data, undermining their confidence in the app's ability to effectively protect their identity. This deficiency in transparency not only erodes customer trust but also makes it challenging for users to make informed decisions about using the app.

We've also highlighted the best identity theft protection

HubSpot CRM review

7:49 pm | January 17, 2022

Author: admin | Category: Computers Gadgets | Comments: Off

From ourHubSpot CRM review, we can confidently say Hubspot CRM provides a powerful platform that's both intuitive and easy to use, cementing itself firmly in our list of the best CRM software for small and midsize businesses looking to consolidate their sales, marketing, and customer service tools. In this HubSpot CRM review, we’ll discuss some of its key features and capabilities.

HubSpot CRM review: Snapshot

HubSpot is the perfect solution for businesses seeking powerful, easy-to-use CRM software, with the lightweight but highly capable free-forever plan making the platform accessible for smaller or newer businesses.

This free plan provides a capable platform to manage and maintain new leads through a variety of HubSpot's complimentary CRM, marketing, sales, and customer service tools. These include dashboard reporting, deal tracking, and pipeline management, all accessed through a simple and easy-to-use interface.

However, it’s worth noting that the free plan comes with limited customer support, so you won’t have access to in-app chat or phone support. Additionally, while HubSpot users can benefit from integration with hundreds of third-party apps, some of these do require an upgrade to one of the paid plans.

If you’re looking to upgrade, you have a couple of options. HubSpot tools are split across five hubs - Sales, Marketing, Customer Service, CMS, and Operations - and each comes with a Starter, Professional, or Enterprise paid plan. Alternatively, combine elements of each Hub with the CRM Suite bundle upgrade, starting from $45 a month.

While Starter plans feel affordable and offer ample capabilities for smaller businesses, prices can rise steeply if an upgrade to the Professional plan is needed. When it comes to pricing, competitors like Zoho CRM's Standard plan certainly work out cheaper, especially if your business is still in its infancy.

So, is HubSpot the best CRM software for you? In our HubSpot CRM review, we’ll tell you everything you need to know to make an informed decision.

Score: 4.5/5

Read on for the full review.

HubSpot CRM’s competitors

HubSpot CRM: Key features

A feature that makes HubSpot CRM initially stand out is how easy it is to get started, making it ideal for newcomers to the CRM world.

During setup, HubSpot asks a series of questions to determine how you plan to use the platform and offers guided tours of each individual area like Marketing, Sales, and Customer Service. Extras like the HubSpot Academy - the complimentary online training hub full of courses - are also a nice touch.

Another aspect that makes HubSpot stand out from its competitors is the sheer volume of features included in the free-forever plan. For instance, the shared inbox feature keeps all incoming email and live chat correspondence in one place, making client communication more accessible for the whole team.

Creating and sending basic email templates doesn’t take long, either; you have the option to effortlessly import contacts from external mail providers, and then design your email around one of five templates, saving you valuable time to focus on other tasks.

The free plan also offers the ability to add a support form and tracking code to your website so that you can see what visitors are doing, capture their details in your database, and track interactions with them over time.

HubSpot CRM: Highlights

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Hubspot's new user quiz — HubSpot CRM asks questions to help new users get started (Image credit: HubSpot)

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The HubSpot Academy offers a variety of resources to help you grow your business (Image credit: HubSpot)

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HubSpot's analytics dashboard — Install a tracking code on your website to capture visitors data directly in HubSpot (Image credit: HubSpot)

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HubSpot's email settings — Connect your personal email to HubSpot to log and track client communications (Image credit: HubSpot)

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HubSpot's sales dashboard — Sharing your deal forecast is easy with HubSpot (Image credit: HubSpot)

It’s easy to create deals within the Sales dashboard in less than five minutes or make activity reports that can be filtered according to each team member or customer engagement level. These can be accessed and downloaded in various formats, such as xlsx or pdf, to use outside of the HubSpot environment.

HubSpot’s free plan doesn't just help you organize and automate sales and marketing tasks either: it also streamlines your day-to-day processes. For instance, managers can send notes to salespeople to get them to follow up with new leads, easily share the deal forecast and dashboard with the touch of a button, and customize deal stages to match existing sales processes.

Connecting external ad accounts is also very straightforward, with prompts throughout showing you how to pull your campaign data into HubSpot via Facebook, Google Ads, or LinkedIn, so that it’s all in one place. You can connect up to two ad accounts on the free plan.

For teams looking for more specific platform capabilities, an upgrade to the Starter plan for individual hubs or the CRM Suite bundle provides stronger tools. For instance, on the Marketing hub’s Starter plan, you can quickly create branded, optimized email campaigns that can be sent in bulk to targeted leads through segmented lists.

You can also see how and when your clients are interacting with your emails to further optimize future campaigns. Likewise, with the CRM Suite Starter plan, you’ll find feature upgrades like additional ad account options, meeting scheduling, two deal pipelines, and 5,000 email templates.

Features like these make onboarding and working with HubSpot feel simple for both beginners and larger players looking for a new CRM solution, making the software a solid choice for a variety of businesses.

HubSpot CRM: What’s new?

HubSpot claims that this year's product updates add even more power to their already intuitive software, with the most notable being the introduction of the Operations Hub. This new software aims to assist with general operations, simplifying processes with tools like historical data syncing between HubSpot and dozens of popular third-party apps, plus company insights on your clients.

The Operations Hub aims to connect apps, clean your client data, and automate your business processes in one central CRM platform, which can be accessed via the free plan, or with additional features as part of the CRM Suite Starter plan.

HubSpot users can also now enjoy campaign data in the custom report builder, allowing specific metrics like video plays, page views, and conversions to be added to custom reports to show how campaigns are performing.

Finally, HubSpot has introduced the ability to create deals from within Gmail and Outlook via the HubSpot sales extension. Salespeople can now enter the deal name, stage, amount, and other required details in just a few simple clicks without interrupting their workflow.

HubSpot CRM: Pricing

While HubSpot generously provides a strong free-forever plan, there are also a variety of paid plans to suit various business needs. The cheapest is the Starter plan, which costs $50 a month, or $45 a month if paid annually, for two paid users.

Upgrading to the Starter plan provides all the free tools with increased limits and removes HubSpot branding from things like forms, landing pages, and live chat features. Starter plan customers can also access email and in-app chat support to receive help much faster than free plan users.

Testing HubSpot CRM

Before you decide on whether to choose HubSpot CRM, it’s important to determine the simplicity and capability of the platform plus the available support. Below, we analyze HubSpot based on these aspects to help you determine whether it’s right for you.

How easy is it to get started with HubSpot CRM?

Getting started with HubSpot — HubSpot asks a few questions to quickly personalize your account (Image credit: HubSpot)

A HubSpot account can be created in under five minutes and without any payment details. You can create an account from scratch, though it’s quicker to use an existing Google account.

Once basic details have been entered, HubSpot asks a series of questions regarding your job title, industry, company name, size, and previous experience using CRM platforms, to help tailor your experience and offer invaluable demos.

HubSpot CRM: Customer support

HubSpot’s support feature, HubBot — HubSpot’s on-page help feature, HubBot, is quick and intuitive (Image credit: HubSpot)

HubSpot cements itself as a strong choice for CRM novices, with tools like HubSpot Academy - an online hub full of courses and workshops to help you grow your business, sharpen your skills, and master the CRM tools needed to attract and engage clients.

While HubSpot’s free plan doesn’t include phone or email support, you are able to chat with other users in the HubSpot Community or find answers in HubSpot’s knowledge base.

Alternatively, there’s also the option to speak with the on-page chatbot, HubBot. During our test, in a few quick clicks, we were given the option to speak with a member of the team - this took just over five minutes. Overall, this feature feels incredibly useful for professionals looking for quick answers without interrupting their workflow.

Alternatives to HubSpot CRM

While HubSpot provides plenty of features to cement itself as a frontrunner in the CRM software sphere, competitors like Insightly and Zoho CRM might be more suitable for certain businesses.

Insightly is a powerful and versatile CRM platform that secures itself as a leader in the space by providing advanced automation tools, strong lead management features, and customizable dashboards to help manage deal pipelines. With a strong selection of features for managing contacts and projects, the platform is a worthy rival to HubSpot. However, the lack of a free plan can make it feel inaccessible to smaller businesses.

Likewise, while Zoho CRM provides strong lead capture and management tools, integrated email marketing, and automated workflows, the lack of customization on certain features and limited customer support options make it feeler unsuitable for larger teams. For more information, read our Insightly and Zoho CRM reviews.

HubSpot CRM: Final verdict

Ultimately, HubSpot is a strong contender in the list of best CRM platforms, with the most valuable quality being the sheer generosity of features included in the free plan. This plan is quick and simple to get started with, and details like the questions asked during setup make users feel valued and supported during onboarding.

The quality of the CRM features included for free is also unrivaled in terms of simplicity and usability, with tools like email optimization, the shared inbox, and simple deal and report creation streamlining team workflows.

This makes the platform ideal for small and medium businesses, as it adds a level of transparency to client communications and keeps everything in one place, freeing up time for teams to focus their energy elsewhere.

While customer support in the free plan can feel somewhat limited, the HubBot chat feature included within the dashboard is intuitive and quick. The HubSpot Community and Knowledge Base are thoughtful finishing touches, providing users with plenty of resources to develop their CRM skills.

While the free plan would be ideal for smaller businesses, HubSpot’s premium plans are great for midsize businesses needing more powerful or larger capabilities. The feature upgrades in the CRM Suite bundle Starter plan feel affordable for slightly larger businesses, offering upgrades like one-on-one tech support, additional email marketing send limits and list segmentation, and up to 10 reporting dashboards.

However, prices do rise dramatically if upgrading to the Professional plan ($1,600 a month for five users), which means larger teams may want to consider an alternative.

Editor's Note

• Original review date: January 2022
• Launched alongside Lite, Nano and Nano+
• Launch price: $1,349 / £1,129 / AU $2,499
• Official price now: $1,149 / £899 / AU$2,199

Update: March 2024. Announced in 2021 to go up against the DJI Air 2S, the Autel Evo Lite+ landed in January 2022 with better specs than its DJI rival, but also a higher price tag. While DJI has gone on to release more accomplished drones since, including the dual-camera DJI Air 3, we still rate the Autel Evo Lite+ as a decent alternative to the Air 2S. Its 1-inch sensor shoots quality 5.4K footage at 30fps, and flies for longer at 40 minutes. Larger pixels help it perform well in dim conditions, while aperture adjustment gives it another trump card versus the DJI Air 2S. Probably the key consideration today is price. The DJI Air 2S can be found for significantly less than Autel’s contender online, but if you value those additional features, it’s worth looking for seasonal discounts on the Evo Lite+. Reductions are region-specific, but we’ve seen generous price cuts on its official premium bundle in the UK, for example, which includes two extra batteries, a multi-charger, ND filters and spare propellers.

Two-minute review

In August 2021, Autel threw DJI something of a curveball when it announced four new drones in two new series: the Evo Nano Series containing the Nano and Nano+, plus the Evo Lite Series and its Lite and Lite+ models.

What wasn’t apparent at the time was that DJI was moving to bring the DJI Mavic 3 to market, a drone that none of these designs competes directly with. But, what these new drones did target was three of DJI’s most successful products: the DJI Mini 2, DJI Air 2S and DJI Mavic 2 Pro.

The flagship model of this new Autel generation is the Evo Lite+, a drone with a remarkably similar specification to the Air 2S. It's able to capture 5.4K video at 30fps and 4K at up to 60fps using a low-light capable 1-inch sensor. Offering a variable aperture camera and 40 minutes of flying time, the new Autel Evo Lite+ leapfrogs both the DJI Air 2S and Mavic Pro 2 capabilities.

For existing Autel fans, it offers almost everything they love about the Evo II series, but in a more transportable package and with significantly better flight times. The only obvious caveat is that the Evo Lite+ costs more than the DJI Air 2S, with the standard version commanding a similar price to the Air 2S Fly More Combo. DJI now doesn’t officially sell the Mavic 2 Pro since it launched the Mavic 3, but the Evo Lite+ is cheaper than that drone was when it was available.

Jump to…

Autel EVO Lite+ — (Image credit: Mark Pickavance)

Price and release date
Design and controller
Features and flight
Video and image quality
Should I buy it?

The Evo Lite comes in two flavors that offer the same flight dynamics, but different camera options. The cheaper Lite model has the same 1/1.28-inch sensor and autofocus f/1.9 optics that Autel also used on the Evo Nano+. These can record 4K HDR at 30fps video recording and the equivalent of 50MP stills. It also has a four-axis gimbal allowing for recording video and still images in portrait mode, for those looking to publish on social media.

Conversely, the Evo Lite+ reviewed here has a 1-inch sensor and a variable aperture: f/2.8 to f/11, and can record in 5.4K at 30fps, 4K at 60 fps, and 1080p at 120fps. It lacks the fourth-axis stabilization of the Evo Lite, but the larger pixels in the sensor give it better light-gathering potential in low-light conditions. Both Lite series designs come in signature Autel Orange, Arctic White and Deep Space Gray.

These are the best drones you can buy right now

Autel Evo Lite+ price and release date

Announced on August 28, 2021
Standard kit costs £1,129 / $1,349 / AU $2,499
Fly More Bundle costs £1,399 / $1,649 / AU $2,999

After making some customers who pre-ordered these drones anxious, the Evo Lite+ started to ship from the manufacturing facilities in China, and availability should improve over the first quarter of 2022.

Like most drones, the Evo Lite+ is available as a standard kit or in a premium bundle that includes many extras, including more batteries. The standard kit consists of the drone, controller, one battery, propellers, a charger with all cables, and costs $1,349 / £1,129 / AU $2,499.

The premium bundle adds two more batteries, a soft carry bag, three prop replacements, a multi-battery charger and four ND filters. Even with a quoted flying time of 40 minutes or more, a single battery isn’t enough for most customers, so getting up to two hours of operational flying with the premium pack is the way to go.

Design and controller

Mounts a 1-inch camera sensor
Another compact, foldable design
Extra battery capacity delivers longer flight times

Since the original DJI Mavic was so successful, many (but not all) drone makers have followed its structural form.

The Lite+ follows the same pattern as most small drones that can fold for transportation. Four pivoting arms aid with rapid deployment as the blades can remain attached.

Physically, the Lite+ is close to the size of the competitor drone, but at 820g, it’s a good 20% heavier than the 595g DJI Air 2S. Much of that additional mass comes from the battery, which makes up a significant portion of the rear drone superstructure. Instead of the battery fitting inside the drone, it slides from the rear to engage the body and includes the power-on button.

The capacity of this battery is a whopping 6,174mAh (68.7 Wh), a significant increase over the 3,500mAh (40.42 Wh) that the DJI Air 2S has, and this capacity is reflected in a maximum flight time of 40 minutes over the 30 minutes of the DJI drone.

While the 30 minutes quoted by DJI for the Air 2S is considered something of a stretch by most owners, the Lite+ can hover for longer than that if you let the battery levels get low.

We wouldn’t recommend doing that, but our experience revealed that Lite+ could fly for at least 30 minutes or more before getting to 20% capacity. A time that allows for great opportunities to get the shots needed without feeling pressured for time.

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Autel EVO Lite+ Carry Bag — (Image credit: Mark Pickavance)

The nose of the Lite+ is dominated by the large gimbal needed to control the 1-inch sensor and its associated optics, about which we’ll talk in greater detail later.

Anyone who flies drones will be acutely aware that any mistake can be a costly error when flying close to structures and trees. To reduce the possibility of accidents, Autel included a suite of visual collision detection sensors on the front, rear and underside.

There are none on the side, making orbital maneuvers as risky as they are on a drone without avoidance features. These sensors require light to function and are disabled if the drone exceeds standard speeds.

Other notable design choices on this drone are that the microSD card slot is on the left side under a small cover, and a USB-C port is in the mirror position to the right. The drone contains 6GB of internal memory to save the embarrassment of those who forget their SD card, and it can take a 256GB card for those aiming to record plenty of 5.4K video.

Short pegs are molded under each motor position and lift the drone clear of the ground. Still, we’d be cautious about operating this design from grass since the camera gimbal is remarkably close to the surface of even the flattest ground.

Bright LED lights are included both underneath the body and on the end of each arm, making the drone relatively easy to see in low-light or dark conditions. The props are the dual blade variety where centrifugal (or centripetal) forces orientate them when spinning, and they are easily removable without a tool.

We were impressed by the quality of construction and the apparent robustness of the parts. The Lite+ is well built, and the tolerances of the connecting parts are high. We’re sure that it would be possible to damage the Lite+ seriously, especially flying in sport mode. However, the body and arms look tough enough to handle minor accidents without unexpected rapid disassembly.

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Equally well-made is the controller, a design that initially looked a little too much like an Xbox controller for our tastes. That said, it’s of high quality, has sufficient battery for at least three or four flights, and the sticks are accurate enough for subtle control without resorting to ‘smooth’ mode, the Autel version of DJI’s ‘tripod’ or ‘cine’ flight mode.

A slight disappointment with the controller is that there isn’t anywhere to store the thumbsticks. Autel doesn’t include spares even in the premium pack, so losing them could be highly problematic. While the DJI controller used on the Mini 2, Air 2S and Mavic 3 might not be as ergonomic to hold as the Autel design, it did stow both the thumbsticks and the phone cable.

A spring-loaded arm extends to securely hold a phone above the controller, though some additional hardware will be required to mount a tablet. Included is a power adapter that will charge both the batteries and the remote. The remote can also be charged using a USB-C cable in a pinch.

In the premium pack, a three-battery charging station is included. It doesn’t speed up the 90 minutes of charging, but the ability to connect them all and walk away is a convenience.

Other enhancements for premium pack customers are two extra batteries over the one included with the drone, more replacement blades than the one set that comes as standard, and a stylish soft carry case for the drone, charger, cables and all the other spares and accessories.

A set of four ND filters was also in the bag, but the missing item for us was any strap to hold the blades in position while folded.

Features and flight

New Fly application
Live 2.7K video within a kilometer
Real-world flight times of more than 30 minutes

The flight experience of this drone is enjoyable, and transitioning from a DJI drone or other brands should be a breeze for even novice pilots.

What became more apparent as we flew the Evo Lite+ more is that the significant amount of power available in the Lite+ allows for both subtle control and dramatic performance when required.

For example, the Lite+ can climb at 29 km/h, enabling it to reach its typical legal operating altitude of 120m in just 15 seconds. Without restrictions, a flight ceiling of 5 km (16,404 ft) is technically possible, though inadvisable. A top speed of 67.6 km/h can be reached in sport mode, roughly the same maximum as the DJI Air 2S.

However, where this design exceeds the Air 2S is in quoted maximum wind resistance, with the Lite+ being rated to handle 61.2 km/h (38 mph) breeze, nearly double that of the Air 2S.

While we firmly believe that the wind resistance of the Air 2S is probably understated, the extra mass of the Lite+ may give it a significant advantage on blustery days.

Up to a kilometer away, the transmission system relays 2.7K video back to the phone or tablet, enabling a clear view of what the drone is observing. Beyond that range, the quality drops to 720p. And for those flying in a region where it is legal to operate outside visual range, the Lite+ transmission can function out to 7km.

At shorter ranges, being behind buildings or other obstructions had minimal impact on the video quality or the control responses.

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For the new Evo Lite and Nano drone series, Autel has a new software package that replaces the Autel Explorer with the Autel Sky application. In use, it is similar to the DJI Fly application and provides similar functionality that anyone flying the DJI Mini 2 or Air 2S would recognize.

It includes a selection of four 'quick shots' that are named differently but automate various classic drone moves without the need for manual intervention. Autel promises a firmware update shortly that will add dynamic tracking and a few other tweaks that aren’t in the Lite+ we tested.

We’ll talk more about video and still capture later on, but there are plenty of options for all manner of photographic exercises. In the settings are the usual suspects for controlling what happens when the drone disconnects, its return-to-home altitude, and the different controller flight modes.

By default, when the drone is first activated, it enters Novice mode, where the height and range from the controller are limited. Once Novice mode is deactivated, you can set these to the legal limits in your region, but this flight envelope isn’t enforced, and the drone isn’t geofenced.

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In smooth and standard flight modes, the collision detection system is active and provides visual and audio feedback if you are moving toward obstructions. Should you ignore the warnings and push on, the drone will eventually refuse to move in the direction it considers to be potentially hazardous.

Depending on what you are trying to do, this can be irritating or a feature that could avoid a huge repair cost. It is possible to disable it, and it will turn off automatically when the drone is flying fast in Sport mode, but it has its uses. The system might also miss thin wires and twigs, and it can’t see to the sides, so never assume that it will always keep you from trouble.

Video and image quality

1-inch 20MP sensor
Shoots up to 5.4K video
Clean images even at high ISO settings

Emblazoned with a ‘6K’ label, the camera has a maximum recording resolution of 5472 x 3076 at 30fps recording video and 5472 x 3648 for still images. That’s almost identical to what the DJI Air 2S offers, but that drone has a fixed f/2.8 lens, whereas the Lite+ can adjust aperture from f/2.8 to f/11.

That allows this drone to lock its frame rate but control the amount of light in the exposure, reducing the need for ND filters. And, if you do use ND filters with it, there is a much larger scope for adjustment and better depth of field control.

The advantage of a 5.4K resolution sensor is that it allows a good margin for cropping to 4K in post, or a lossless zoom in 4K, 2.7K and 1080p capture. Obviously, you only get a 1.3x lossless zoom in 4K, but more in the lower resolutions.

Going beyond 4x zooming is largely pointless, but the Fly app will allow up to 16x zoom to be selected for those that like pixelation.

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Automatic settings shot

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Automatic settings shot

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HDR from 5 images

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HDR from 5 images

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HDR from 5 images

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Standard settings shot

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Wide panoramic stitched by Sky app

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Night mode shot

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Standard photo settings

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Wide panoramic stitched by Sky app

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Default settings

As you might reasonably expect using a sensor of this scale, the quality of the images and video it can capture is high.

Professional drone cinematographers might not be pleased to discover that this camera is only 8-bit and not 10-bit. And, there is also no D-Log profile. For those who pride themselves on extracting every bit of contrast and saturation from their footage, the Lite series is something of an affront.

For others with less demanding requirements, it produces usable footage that is reasonably balanced by default without the need for convoluted post-processing. It’s a different mindset, and those who don’t like this approach can always invest more heavily in the DJI Mavic 3 or the disturbingly expensive DJI Mavic 3 Cine.

Autel tells us that it's working on LUT for the standard profile, as it did for the Evo II series drones.

The Evo Lite+ shines in its low-light capability, as it offers unique night photography and videography modes. With these, it is possible to boost the ISO up to 64000, yet keep excessive grain from rendering the footage unusable.

The best still images we captured in normal light used the exposure bracketing mode with five combined images. This feature doesn’t allow the EV offset between each image to be defined, sadly.

There are also various panoramic, spherical and wide-field shooting modes, and the Autel Fly application post-processes these for you while retaining the source images.

As will most action cameras, the images tend to have strong pin-barrel distortion that might need to be adjusted in editing software, but the results are generally free of chromatic fringing.

Overall, the image and video quality on the Lite+ is excellent, even if there is no Log mode or bit-rate adjustment available. The autofocusing technology is first-rate, and the stability of the drone provides an excellent platform for stationary and moving cinematography.

Should I buy the Autel Evo Lite+?

Buy it if...

Don't buy it if...

DJI ban: what it means for drone fans and the future of DJI

Pipedrive CRM review

4:24 pm | January 13, 2022

Author: admin | Category: Computers Gadgets | Comments: Off

Pipedrive is an easy-to-use CRM that powers more than 95,000 small and medium-sized businesses. Find out if it’s the best CRM software solution for your company in our Pipedrive CRM review.

Pipedrive CRM review: Snapshot

Pipedrive is an extremely user-friendly CRM that’s ideal for small businesses turning to CRM software for the first time. It allows you to build an unlimited number of custom deal pipelines and move deals through them just by dragging and dropping. The platform also offers highly customizable reports, straightforward calendar and email integrations, and automated workflows to streamline your sales process.

While Pipedrive does a great job with the tools it has, it’s missing a lot of tools that growing businesses need. It doesn’t offer project management tools and there are relatively few email marketing tools. You also have to pay extra for web forms and chatbots that can help you generate new leads.

Overall, we enjoy the experience of using Pipedrive, but we don’t think the platform stands out in the crowded field of CRM software. For roughly half the price, Apptivo is just as easy to use, offers just as many customization options, and includes email marketing and project management tools.

Score: 3.5/5

Read on for our full and detailed review.

5 reasons why a small business needs a CRM

Today's best Pipedrive CRM deal

Get Pipedrive CRM from $14.50 / £12.50 per user/month Ranging from Essential to Enterprise, Pipedrive's CRM pricing plans cover a great mix of features, allowing you to do everything from managing leads and forecasting revenue to e-signing documents on the go and customer data analysis. Pipedrive's CRM plans are billed annually to help you budget for the business year ahead. View Deal

Pipedrive’s competitors

Pipedrive CRM key features

One of the best things about Pipedrive is how easy it is to manage deals. The platform starts you off with a default deal pipeline that should work for most businesses. Alternatively, you can create an unlimited number of custom deal pipelines, each with as many steps as you need. The deal pipelines are essentially kanban boards, allowing you to drag and drop deals from one stage to the next as your sales team makes progress.

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Pipedrive review — Pipeline lets you create an unlimited number of deal pipelines, and you can drag and drop deals to move them through the sales process. (Image credit: Pipedrive)

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Pipedrive includes a built-in calendar for easily scheduling meetings and tasks. If you use Outlook or Google Calendar, you can set up automatic two-way sync with your Pipedrive calendar.

The calendar module in Pipeline enables you to propose meeting times to a client by designating specific times that you’re available. Helpfully, upcoming meetings are shown in your deal pipelines by a series of icons.

Pipedrive offers a new suite of tools called Leadbooster to help you find new leads. This is a paid add-on to any of Pipedrive’s plans that costs $39 per month. It includes simple web forms that you can embed in your website as well as a live chat module with an optional chatbot. Leadbooster also comes with a web scraping tool that can help you find potential clients from a database of more than 400 million online profiles.

The reporting interface in Pipedrive is another highlight of this platform. You can create an unlimited number of custom reporting dashboards and dozens of custom reports. All data can be exported to Excel with a click if you want even more analytical power.

Pipedrive supports automated workflows to help your sales team stay on top deals. The software comes with more than 30 workflow templates that can automatically move deals through your pipeline, schedule meetings, or trigger emails. You can also create your own workflows using a straightforward visual editing interface.

Pipedrive CRM: What’s new?

Pipedrive CRM now integrates with Xero and Quickbooks for accounting help. (Image credit: Xero)

Pipedrive has been busy making updates to its platform since we last reviewed this CRM. It recently added integrations for video conferencing with Zoom and Google Meet, project management with Monday and Trello, and accounting with Xero and Quickbooks.

Pipedrive also added two-factor authentication and gave users the ability to group custom reports within the reporting dashboard.

Pipedrive CRM: Pricing

Pipedrive offers four pricing plans: Essential, Advanced, Professional, and Enterprise. All plans include unlimited deal pipelines, contacts and customizable reports.

Pipedrive CRM Essential Plan

The Essential plan has only limited activity management features and doesn’t include workflow automation.

Pipedrive CRM Advanced Plan

The Advanced plan adds automation, but lacks integration with cloud storage platforms like Google Drive.

Pipedrive CRM Professional Plan

The Professional plan enables you to organize your sales employees into teams, provides more detailed reporting options, and offers custom report fields.

Pipedrive CRM Enterprise Plan

The Enterprise plan comes with phone support (in addition to live chat, available on all plans) and security alerts.

Plans can be paid monthly, or annually for a discount. You can try out Pipedrive for free for 14 days before purchasing a plan.

Testing Pipedrive CRM

We took Pipedrive for a spin to see how easy this software is to use and how much leeway the custom pipelines and dashboards afford.

Pipedrive CRM: Adding deals

We began working in Pipedrive by creating a set of deals. The process was incredibly simple, since you can add deals right from inside your deal pipeline instead of needing to first navigate to the relevant contact.

A pop-up lets us add details about the contact behind the deal, the deal’s expected value, which pipeline to add it to, and what stage to put it in. Even better, Pipedrive offered the option of adding custom fields to the deal details, which would be great for scoring leads and assigning priority to deals.

Adding a new deal in Pipedrive — Pipedrive makes it easy to add new deals to any sales pipeline. (Image credit: Pipedrive)

Setting up an entirely new deal pipeline was just as easy. You can add as many stages as you want, and Pipedrive enables you to assign a probability to each stage to indicate the likelihood of a deal in the stage closing. (Pipedrive doesn’t use past data to automatically calculate these probabilities.)

Pipedrive CRM: Generating custom reports

Navigating the reporting module within Pipedrive was just as straightforward. The platform includes a default dashboard and 11 premade reports, which on their own will offer plenty of information for many small businesses. Reports in the dashboard can be rearranged just by dragging and dropping and filtered by date range or a set of employees.

Creating a new report only took a few clicks. Pipedrive offers a set of filters that you can combine with logical operators to create a highly specific dataset, which you can then plot onto several different chart types. Below the charts, you’ll find a summary table with all of the relevant data and an option to export a CSV for further analysis.

Creating a custom report in Pipedrive — Pipedrive enables you to create custom reports using a series of filters to specify the dataset you’re interested in. (Image credit: Pipedrive)

All custom reports can be saved and grouped into folders for quick access later.

Alternatives to Pipedrive CRM

zoho logo

(Image credit: Zoho)

Pipedrive stands out for being extremely easy to use. However, for the price, it lacks some advanced features that we’ve seen in comparable CRM software.

One of the most notable competitors to Pipedrive is Zoho CRM, which costs just slightly more than Pipedrive. Zoho CRM offers unlimited pipelines and dashboards just like Pipedrive, but it also offers unlimited workflow automations with its entry-level plan. It also offers email marketing - a critical function of a comprehensive CRM - as a standard feature.

The drawback to Zoho CRM is that its feature-rich interface isn’t easy to use, especially if you’re diving into CRM software for the first time. Our Zoho CRM review found that the platform has a steep learning curve. However, navigating that curve may be worth it if your business needs to know how to prioritize deals or wants to use email marketing to bring in new leads.

Pipedrive: Final verdict

Pipedrive is one of the most user-friendly CRM platforms we’ve tested. It’s easy to navigate from the moment you first open the platform and allows you to simply drag and drop deals as they move through your sales pipeline. It’s also highly customizable, offering unlimited deal pipelines and excellent reporting capabilities.

While Pipedrive does a great job at helping your team manage deals and set up meetings with potential clients, we found that it’s much more limited in scope and functionality than competing CRM software. Pipedrive has only the most basic email marketing tools available and doesn’t offer any features for project management. In addition, lead generation features like web forms and chatbots require a paid add-on.

Ultimately, that means that Pipedrive can work well for businesses that are upgrading to a CRM for the first time. However, it may not be the best option for businesses that are looking for a comprehensive, scalable CRM solution.

For that, we think Zoho CRM or Apptivo are better options. Apptivo in particular stands out because it costs significantly less than Pipedrive and offers much of the same functionality. Apptivo’s platform, which uses apps like building blocks, can also better grow with the needs of your business.

5 reasons why a small business needs a CRM

Zoho CRM review: Snapshot

Zoho CRM has been ranking high on sales management software lists and, recently, it’s doubled down on developing customization and automation options while making its design more user-friendly. That’s very good news, as its extensive set of features can get overwhelming if you’re new to the product.

The product offers contact and deal management, email marketing, call logging, meeting management, and task reminders, with additional AI-backed pipeline recommendations and predictions for higher-tier plans. For a productivity boost, you can use customization tools to design your analytics dashboard, for example, and create automation rules such as sending emails after customer calls.

Zoho CRM is more feature-rich and cost-effective than solutions such as Insightly and Freshworks CRM, but it’s in tight competition with advanced sales and marketing suites like HubSpot CRM and Salesforce (US-only link). It could be the best choice for you if you require advanced automation, customization, and email marketing functionality.

Score: 4.5/5

Read on for our full and detailed review.

Today's best Zoho CRM deal

Get Zoho CRM from $14 / £12 per user/month
Zoho's CRM plans cover a great mix of features, from the basic to more sophisticated, making it a great choice for small, medium, and even larger businesses that want to accelerate productivity in their sales pipeline.View Deal

Zoho CRM's competitors

Zoho CRM: Key features

Zoho’s core CRM, comprising contact and deal management, captures data about prospective leads, from contact details to deal status and communications. Though the default list view, including multiple filters, feels a bit clunky, Zoho CRM also includes a Kanban view segmented by pipeline stages and a customizable Canvas view.

Through automation, you can remove manual work by creating rules, such as assigning sales reps based on account characteristics and setting tasks triggered by pipeline changes. Automation setup comes with a learning curve, but the streamlined process can help generate more business.

Zoho CRM’s paid plans include email templates, mass email campaigns, and tracking performance metrics such as open rates. For more advanced marketing functionality, you can integrate with Zoho Campaigns, a separate product in the Zoho suite. Generating new leads is also a key strength - Zoho CRM enables you to gather data from web forms and scrape social media sites.

Zoho CRM makes dashboards and reports highly customizable, which can support pipeline decision-making. For example, you can select chart types and metrics to visualize a customer segment, or export a list of deals based on chosen filters.

For Enterprise plans and above, Zoho’s advanced analytics such as anomaly detection can help identify high-value customers, and the Zia Artificial Intelligence assistant can forecast revenues and suggest tasks to automate.

Zoho CRM: Highlights

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Zoho CRM's content creation screen — Adding new contact records is easy, especially when creating your own custom fields (Image credit: Zoho CRM)

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Zoho CRM's rule-setting menu — Automating rules and tasks can save your team a lot of time (Image credit: Zoho CRM)

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Zoho CRM's webpage discussing third-party integrations — Expand your sales and marketing functionality with third-party integrations (Image credit: Zoho CRM)

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Zoho CRM's Canvas feature — Zoho CRM’s Canvas feature helps you design your very own interface (Image credit: Zoho CRM)

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Zoho CRM's ZIA AI feature demonstrated — Zia AI predictions and recommendations are available for Enterprise plans and above (Image credit: Zoho CRM)

Zoho CRM: What’s new?

Over the past year, Zoho CRM has seen improvements primarily across its workflow automation, email, and social media integrations, as well as the Zia Intelligent Assistant functionalities. Based on prospect interactions with calls and emails, you can now automate tasks or follow-ups. Social media account updates can also trigger actions, including sending email campaigns.

Workflows have been more closely integrated with Zia. For example, you can decide to automatically follow Zia recommendations without any manual oversight. Zia’s data enrichment function has also been upgraded: it can, for example, pull contact data from email signatures and save it to the CRM.

There’s been an update to the look and feel of the software, too. User interface elements, such as buttons, have a more modern feel, and Kanban board elements have been rearranged for more clarity and ease of use.

Overall, Zoho CRM is good at releasing marginal improvements across usability and functionality; however, its overwhelming list of features needs clearer categorization.

Zoho CRM: Pricing

Zoho CRM has five main pricing plans, with one additional CRM Plus plan for larger enterprises. The free plan, for up to three users, has the core CRM with contact and deal management, but with limited automation, customization, and support options.

Paid plans are $14 to $52 per user a month, billed annually. Zoho CRM Plus, featuring a more comprehensive set of sales, marketing, and helpdesk tools, starts at $57 per user a month (billed annually). Subscriptions can also be billed monthly at a slightly higher cost (starting from $20 a month on the Standard plan, and increasing up to $65 a month on Ultimate).

Testing Zoho CRM

We’ve analyzed Zoho CRM’s key differentiating features from the perspective of a sales team, testing the efficiency of key activities such as adding new contacts. Below, we look at customization, automation, and general usability, as these features affect sales teams’ productivity in closing deals.

How customizable is Zoho CRM?

Zoho CRM's custom fields setting demonstrated — You can create custom fields for your contact records in Zoho CRM (Image credit: Zoho CRM)

You can customize almost every aspect of Zoho CRM, though there can be limits depending on your plan. For example, Canvas, which is a customization tool that re-styles page interfaces, deal boards, and more, includes only one design for Standard plans, three for Professional, and five for Enterprise.

Zoho CRM’s features, also called modules, contain a variety of filters and visualizations that can help you control what you see. In the contact and deal modules, data can be filtered by deal stage, country, and other variables, and you can even go so far as formatting the text in which results are displayed. The default list view for data-heavy modules can feel excessive, so it’s worth designing a simplified user interface.

A variety of external integrations, including with other Zoho products, also contribute to a personalized experience. Adding tools such as Zoom and Mailchimp is only three clicks away via the Marketplace module, and can enrich your customer data and communication. Integrations are limited on the free plan, however.

On the downside, the various Zoho CRM branded customization tools, such as Wizards and Canvas, can get confusing, and the differences between them aren’t always clear.

Is Zoho CRM automation effective?

Zoho CRM's workflow rules setting demonstrated — You can set advanced workflow rules in Zoho CRM (Image credit: Zoho CRM)

Automation tools in Zoho CRM can be very powerful, but the learning curve can be jarring at first. When you set up an automated task, for example, you’re taken to a process flow view where you must select the time of the trigger, the person responsible, and other conditions.

This can be tedious and time-consuming to start with, but the level of detail may be valuable to bigger organizations with complex pipelines. Other automations are simpler. Say, for example, you want to set up a lead scoring rule such as, “add 10 points if the account’s yearly revenue is over $100,000”. This takes around three clicks and can help you prioritize high-value opportunities.

Though the automation section is one of the platform’s most competitive features, it can also be tricky to find it among Zoho CRM’s many modules and settings.

Is Zoho CRM easy to use?

Zoho CRM's Kanban view — The Kanban view makes it easy to drag and drop deals (Image credit: Zoho CRM)

The product is easy to use once you find the function you’re looking for; however, those new to the software have to learn where tools sit through trial and error.

For instance, creating a new record for a lead or a deal is one click away on the home screen and module pages. Though there are many data fields you can fill in the record, only a handful are mandatory, so you can save it in a matter of seconds. If you customize the page layout to only contain your most relevant customer fields, you can further streamline the process.

Mass emailing, though a key differentiator for Zoho CRM, is not straightforward to use. It doesn’t sit under the expected "Campaigns" module, but as an action under "Contacts", "Leads", and "Deals". However, once you find it, the mass email function is easy to set up and send to specified segments.

Finally, the web-based Zoho CRM loaded pages relatively quickly, considering the amount of data it works with. A TTFB (Time to First Byte) of around 400 ms was recorded (our test was performed with Google Page Speed, on a Windows 10 PC with an Intel Core i5, 8GB RAM, and 68Mbps internet speed).

Alternatives to Zoho CRM

Zoho CRM has strong competition, particularly at its lower price levels. For instance, its free plan, while covering customizable contact and deal management, doesn’t include email marketing and has limited third-party integrations.

Competitors such as Insightly and Agile CRM include mass email campaigns on their free plans; the free Hubspot CRM additionally analyzes email campaign performance, which Zoho CRM can’t do without integrating with Zoho Campaigns. Read our review of Insightly to find out more.

On paid plans, Zoho CRM’s feature set is quite competitive but has some gaps. For instance, if you want to keep track of projects after closing deals, Zoho CRM features are limited to invoicing and purchase orders - whereas software like Insightly has broader project management functionality, including project task management, timelines, and a meeting tracker.

Salesforce (US-only link) is Zoho CRM’s competitor for enterprise-grade businesses, offering similar features with more advanced customization and reporting. Salesforce is particularly useful for large organizations that develop custom sales applications - for example, using sandbox environments—but this comes at a significant price compared to Zoho CRM. Read our Salesforce review to learn more.

Zoho CRM: Final verdict

Zoho CRM is well worth your attention if you’re looking for a comprehensive set of sales and marketing features, with enhanced productivity via automation and customization options.

Leads and deals are easy to organize and edit using the drag-and-drop Kanban or self-designed Canvas view. Advanced automation and workflow rules can be set to categorize leads, assign tasks, and more, but it may take some time to do this with ease.

Generally, Zoho CRM’s customization options come with both productivity value and a difficult setup. However, the vast tutorial library and email support will help guide you through.

Zoho CRM’s inbuilt email marketing and client management tools, including invoicing, are competitive additions to the core CRM, distinguishing Zoho CRM from competitors who focus on niche aspects of sales management. Moreover, integrations with other Zoho products and third-party solutions expand what you can do with this software.

Overall, Zoho CRM’s plans cover a great mix of features, from basic to more sophisticated, making it relevant for small, medium, and even larger businesses that want to accelerate productivity in their sales pipeline.

Editor's Note

• Original review date: January 2022
• Launch price: Starts at $349 / £349 (around AU$490)
• Target price now: Starts at $349 / £349 (around AU$490)

Update – September 2024: Well, it looks like our reviewer was bang on the money back at the start of 2022; Windows on Arm really did just need some more time in the oven, as I noted that Samsung's new Galaxy Book4 Edge was able to play modern games thanks to its powerful Snapdragon X Elite chip.

There was an interstitial update to this laptop in February last year with the Galaxy Book2 Go, but that model still used the older Snapdragon 7C+ chip and suffered from the same Windows compatibility issues as the version reviewed below. With no new iteration this year, it's possible that the Book Go series might be dead - never say never, though.

You can still pick up the original Samsung Galaxy Book Go from most retailers (chiefly Amazon) for roughly its original launch price, since the Book2 Go arrived with a higher entry price. But at this point, there's little reason to recommend it over any of the best ultrabooks.

Original review follows.

Two-minute review

We have to imagine that, some time in 2016 or 2017, Samsung gleefully signed on to the Windows on ARM program, a move which eventually led to the Samsung Galaxy Book Go. We'd also have to imagine that Samsung is not feeling nearly as gleeful right now, because whatever Windows on Arm is supposed to be, the Galaxy Book Go just isn't it.

Its failures aren't only the fault of the Snapdragon processor at its heart. That chip sure does its darnedest, and works at a decent clip when running things which are pre-baked to support it. It runs cool, the machine is super-quiet, and the phone-esque features that such a chipset brings (notably instant-on and ridiculous battery life) are a real highlight here. But challenge it in any way and it crumples.

Whatever compatibility layer Windows 11 has implemented for x86 apps is generally pretty poor, which we somewhat expected. But we expected slightly more snappiness on the desktop; the 4GB RAM package in this laptop just isn't enough to do more than one or two things at a time. This is a machine that looks for all the world like a normal Windows laptop, but doesn't have the pop where it counts - even at the very reasonable price point.

Samsung's attempts to hit that price have also led to some serious sacrifices in the hardware department. The screen, notably, reaches a commendable 1080p resolution, but is utterly terrible in every other way. The case is bouncy plastic which does not exactly fill us with confidence. The ports are passable but honestly pretty lacking in options. The LTE connectivity is not 5G, and if Samsung's own Galaxy A13 can manage it for far less money, it's a real shame that this can't. Admittedly Qualcomm's exclusive contract for Windows on ARM means Mediatek's cheaper chipsets don't get a chance to shine, but we're still annoyed.

Ironically, it's only the familiarity of Windows that really saves this. You can, with luck and a big asterisk, run whatever Windows apps you need, something a Chromebook can't offer. If you're careful with your tab management you might even find this to be a reasonable tool for using online apps. But the Galaxy Book Go is far from a productivity powerhouse. Pick one up and we'd imagine you'll feel the same kind of buyer's remorse as Samsung must be feeling for going down this path in the first place.

Price and availability

Spec Sheet

Here is the Samsung Galaxy Book Go configuration sent to TechRadar for review:

CPU: Snapdragon 7c Gen 2 (Kryo 468 Octa-core CPU, up to 2.55 GHz)
Graphics: Qualcomm Adreno
RAM: 4GB LPDDR4x
Screen: 14-inch 1920 x 1080
Storage: 128GB eUFS
Ports: 2x USB 3.0 Type-C ports, 1x USB 2.0 Type-A port, micro SD reader, nanoSIM, audio combo jack
Connectivity: Bluetooth 5.1, 802.11 ac (2x2), 4G LTE
Camera: Built-in 720p webcam
Weight: 3.04 pounds (1.38 kg)
Size: 12.75 x 8.85 x 0.59 inches (32.3 x 22.4 x 1.49 cm; W x D x H)

While it's not the most ultra-cheap laptop in the world, the 4GB spin of the Galaxy Book Go supplied to us for review lands squarely in the budget bracket at $349 (£349, around AU$490). That said, we can find no evidence of it being officially available in Australia - though stocks seem plentiful elsewhere.

That's a magic number: it puts the Galaxy Book Go head-to-head both with a good number of Chromebooks, including Samsung's own Galaxy Chromebook Go, with which it shares much of its hardware design. It also puts it up against the lowest reaches of the x86 market - somewhere a Windows-on-ARM laptop might not really want to be.

It's more pricey than, say, the Lenovo Ideapad Duet, a double-duty tablet which realistically offers a lot more flexibility; it's also fairly equal with the Microsoft Surface Go which, even a year on, remains a solid performer.

So the Samsung Galaxy Book Go has its work cut out for it. It has to throw around Windows on a platform which might better suit a Linux or Android environment - something those two competitors don't have to worry about. It has to offer enough non-touch laptop to be worthy of a price point which can get you a fairly solid two-in-one machine. Can it do it? Well, no. And here's why.

Design

Samsung hasn't gone mad with the Galaxy Book Go's design: this is pure, plain, silver'n'black functionality laid bare.

That's absolutely fine. It's thin enough, inoffensive, and sized just right, with reasonably thin side bezels giving it an impressively compact footprint - and we'll forgive its chunky chin and forehead, as the extra vertical reach stops the control surface ending up too cramped.

There's even a discrete power button, in these days of all and sundry moving that function to the top right of the keyboard. It feels sad to offer points for such a minor feature, but here we are.

The matte-finish screen is, even considering that its 1080p resolution tops most other machines of this price, absolutely horrendous. It is so low-contrast it feels like you're peering through smoke to look at it, the colors are terrible, and while it's not overly smeary at speed you can absolutely feel the 60Hz refresh rate.

It's also attached to such a weak and flexible lid that touching it - or even typing particularly vigorously - causes little LCD wobbles in the bottom corners suggesting the panel is under some serious tension.

Its hinge is somehow both stiff and wobbly. It's slightly too rigid to open one-handed, fixes the position nicely when open, but allows enough play that using it on your lap sees it bouncing around. On a desk things aren't so bad, however.

There's similar cut-corner flexibility on the base. The keyboard deck is soft and springy (though there's some solid travel on its keys) and the trackpad is standard cheap-and-cheerful fare. None of this affects the Galaxy Book Go's functionality, and we had no problems typing this review or mousing around, but there's no getting around the downsides of the price point: magnesium alloy stiffness this ain't.

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In terms of ports, things are fairly basic. The left edge offers up a USB 3.0 Type-C port (for charging and data) along with a combined audio jack and a microSD reader, while the right edge contains another Type-C port (the only one capable of video output) as well as a USB 2.0 Type-A port, a Kensington lock slot, and a NanoSIM cradle for LTE connectivity.

An extra Type-A port might have been nice - and HDMI output is sorely lacking - but modern problems require modern solutions, and you'll have to work with Type-C if you want to hook up an external display.

The unit itself is, given its mostly flimsy plastic outer, surprisingly weighty. We'd have to presume there's either a heavyweight passive cooler or a huge battery inside, or perhaps both. This feels like every bit of its 1.38kg - it's not a shoulder-breaker by any means, but you'll notice it in your bag.

Performance

Benchmarks

Here's how the Samsung Galaxy Book Go performed in our suite of benchmark tests:

Mozilla Kraken 1.1: 1927.3ms
JetStream 2: 55.851
Geekbench 5 CPU Benchmark: 508 (Single-Core); 1399 (Multi-Core)
Cinebench R20 Multicore: 359
Battery life (Techradar Movie Test): 11hrs 30mins

Windows on ARM, then. Frankly, simply knowing that this is a Windows on ARM device, you'll probably have formed your own opinion about what the Galaxy Book Go is capable of - the good news is you're right, whatever you might think. Except when you're not.

Do you think ARM is more at home on phones, tablets, or operating systems built around it like macOS? Bang on: while Windows 11's core functions are snappy enough if the processor isn't overburdened, it's very easy to find ways to push the Galaxy Book in the wrong direction and fall foul of the not-so-quick translation layer.

Sometimes things get very syrupy; Google Chrome, for example, doesn't yet have a native app, and ran terribly. Few things we tried entirely refused to run, meaning this is a far cry from the dark days of Windows RT, but we'd suggest you shouldn't buy this if there's something you specifically want to do outside of a web browser which isn't Chrome, which is a pretty ridiculous statement to make of a Windows laptop.

On the flip side, certain things genuinely surprised us. For example, less demanding 2D indie games built for traditional PC processors ran pretty smoothly, though 3D is something of a test too far.

Think Windows on ARM basically turns a laptop into a phone? Right again, kinda: Qualcomm's mobile processor expertise makes phone-adjacent functions work superbly well.

This is a machine meant for monumental battery performance, something we'll get to shortly, but also one which instantly wakes from sleep with all of your radios already connected. It runs silent and stays cool even when you're doing entirely too much. For a functional budget laptop, that's ideal - and almost unique to this category. Samsung also includes a whole bunch of ecosystem apps which tie this nicely to its own phone line, though you'll find a lot more performance with your phone docked in DeX mode, which renders them somewhat moot.

Think scaling up what is essentially phone hardware to run a full laptop isn't going to work? First, you shouldn't overlook the MacBook, which makes magic with its M1 chip, but in the case of the budget-priced Galaxy Book Go you're not entirely wrong.

4GB RAM gives this less memory to work with than even many budget phones, and it's not hard to push it to the cap if you're not frugal with your browser tabs. But again, we were relatively surprised: whatever the middling benchmarks might suggest, there's enough power here to see you through your day-to-day browsing, work and mild entertainment, as long as you're happy to stay in your lane.

That's where your expectations should end; were you to ask more than that from this, you'd be as disappointed as you would be of a basic x86 machine at the same price. Passable is the word of the day. The down-firing speakers are loud but lack clarity, making Samsung's choice to license Dolby Atmos confusing at best. The webcam is fine, but completely unspectacular and easily blown out by bright lights. The LTE connectivity is a nice touch, but it's a clear generation behind.

The benchmark results bear our real-world experiences out. Cinebench, running through what it internally calls a Virtual CPU (the ARM-to-x86 translation layer, in other words) crawled its way to one of the lowest scores we've ever seen it produce. Geekbench similarly struggled, particularly compared to the kind of results we'd expect from a similarly-specced standard Windows machine. Even the browser benchmarks, run through the native Microsoft Edge app, didn't blow us away.

Battery life

We have to give the Galaxy Book Go its due: it does have a really massive battery. This thing goes and goes; it burned through our movie test for nigh-on half a day.

The fact that you wouldn't actually choose to watch a movie on it is irrelevant: you could, and you could do so for the vast majority of an international flight. Never mind that this is too big for a tray table and the viewing angles will make the screen impossible to use. You could do it. That's what matters.

Buy it if...

Don't buy it if...

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Shokz OpenRun Pro review

8:20 pm | January 10, 2022

Author: admin | Category: Computers Fitness Headphones Gadgets Health & Fitness | Comments: Off

Editor's Note

• Original review date: July 2022
• OpenRun Pro 2 launched August 2024
• Launch price: $179 / £159.95 / AU$250
• Official price now: $179 / £159.95 / AU$250

Update: November 2024. The Shokz OpenRun Pro are some of the best bone conduction headphones on the market, but they're no longer Shokz's latest and greatest. The company unveiled its OpenRun Pro 2 earlier this year, and the new version boasts better audio thanks to a new driver for the high and mid ranges. There's also an integrated air conduction driver for bass, new dynamic 3D audio, and four EQ modes.

Vibrations have also been reduced, and you'll get an extra two hours of battery life to boot. However, you'll find the OpenRun Pro 2 often priced at around $179 / £159.95 / AU$250, whereas the original OpenRun can often be found for less than $100/£100 in major deals events. As such, if you can get them at a good price, they're definitely still worth considering in 2024.

Two-minute review

Shokz (formerly known as AfterShokz) has long held the top spot in our guide to the best running headphones, and the OpenRun Pro are its best-sounding headphones yet.

The main difference between this new set of headphones and the Shokz OpenRun (originally called the Aeropex) is the addition of new bass transducers to the pads that channel vibrations to your aural nerve.

The upgrade is immediately noticeable when you hit play, and means opting for bone conduction rather than in-ear headphones no longer means a big compromise on sound quality. It's particularly impressive if you enjoy heavy music, which is far richer than with other bone conduction headphones.

The downside of the new transducers is the way they vibrate more noticeably against your skin. It's no more than a tickle, but if you prefer to run with the volume high then you may find it becomes irritating over time. All bone conduction headphones suffer from this to some extent (it's pretty much unavoidable due to the way they work) but the extra bass means it's particularly tangible here.

Shokz OpenRun Pro bone conduction sports headphones — Shokz is the new name for AfterShokz, which rebranded in December 2021 (Image credit: Future)

The other upgrades here are small, but thoughtfully designed. For example, the control buttons used to adjust power, volume, and tracks are now slightly larger so they're easier to press when you're wearing the headset. Shokz has also relocated the OpenRun Pro's charging connector so it's no longer occupying the same area as the buttons, and is easier to use.

Like the recently upgraded OpenRun, the OpenRun Pro have a quick charge feature that gives you an hour and a half of playback after just five minutes of charging; a game-changer if you've forgotten to power them up and it's time to hit the gym. If you rely on tunes to get you through a workout, they come highly recommended.

Price and release date

Most expensive Shokz to date
Available to order now

The Shokz OpenRun Pro were announced at CES 2022 on January 5, 2022, and became available to pre-order from the company's website the same day for $179.95 (about £130 / AU$250). That makes them the most expensive headphones in the Shokz lineup.

For comparison, the Shokz OpenRun (originally known as the AfterShokz Aeropex) cost $159.95 / £149.95 (about AU$240) when they landed in October 2020. At the budget end of the range, the Shokz OpenMove launched at $99.95 / £79.95 (about AU$140),

Design

Larger buttons than OpenRun
Repositioned magnetic charging port
IP55 water resistance rating

Shokz has struck upon a design that works, and the OpenRun Pro don't deviate from that formula. Following the same OpenFit schematic as the company's other headphones, they feature a pair of pads that sit on your cheekbones and transmit sound via vibrations to your aural nerve, leaving your ear canals open. These pads are joined by a flexible but springy titanium band, which keeps them firmly in place while you run without ever pinching (an issue we sometimes had with the budget Shokz OpenMove).

A large button on the left pad allows you to receive calls using the headset's built-in microphone, and the right pad features multi-functional controls for power, volume, track, and battery status.

The OpenRun Pro are currently available in black and blue.

At first glance, the new headphones looks almost identical to their predecessor, the OpenRun, but there are a few significant differences. Firstly, the control buttons are larger, making it easier to adjust the volume, skip tracks, and power the headphones on and off without seeing what you're doing. Holding the volume down button during playback will tell you whether the power level is high, medium, or low.

Secondly, the charging connector has been repositioned. Like the OpenRun, the OpenRun Pro use a proprietary magnetic charging cable, which is much easier to connect than the fiddly micro-USB used by older models. However, for the newer model, Shokz has moved the charging port so it's no longer in line with the control buttons, making the cable easier to connect.

In all other respects, the two headsets are very similar. The OpenRun Pro are very lightweight and comfortable, even for long runs, and their light titanium construction means they never bounce as you move.

They have a water resistance rating of IP55, which means they'll be fine when you're sweating hard or running in the rain, but aren't suitable for swimming. For that, you'll want a set of waterproof headphones like the Shokz OpenSwim.

Performance

The sound quality of the Shokz OpenRun Pro is extremely impressive. The new bass transducers make a real difference, and the overall result far surpasses anything we've experiences from bone conduction headphones in the past. We particularly enjoy a rock and metal playlist while running, and the OpenRun Pro are the first model that really does justice to heavy music. It's not on a par with a pair of top-tier conventional headphones yet, but the gap is definitely closing.

The downside of the extra bass is that you don't just hear it – you can also feel it as a more noticeable buzz against your face that pulses with each beat. All bone conduction headphones produce this effect to some degree at high volumes, but it's particularly noticeable with the OpenRun Pro.

The sensation isn't uncomfortable, and unless you crank the volume up high it's little more than a tickle, but if you're wearing the headphones while concentrating at work then you might find it a distraction.

Another frequent problem with bone conduction headsets is the sound leakage; with no silicone seal between the transducers and the outside world, it can be easy for those nearby to overhear your songs, audiobooks and phone calls. You might annoy workmates in a quiet office if you crank up the volume on the OpenMove Pro, but when kept at modest levels they're the least leaky Shokz headset we've tested to date.

Despite the improved bass, ambient noise is still clear thanks to the open-ear design. Many noise-cancelling headphones have a 'transparency' mode that uses a microphone to transmit external sound to your ear, but this doesn't give the same directional awareness you get from bone conduction headsets.

When AfterShokz announced that it was rebranding as 'Shokz' in December 2021, it also launched a new version of its Aeropex bone conduction headphones with quick charging. This is a feature that it's carried over to the OpenRun Pro, and a five-minute charge while you're getting changed and lacing up your running shoes will provide 1.5 hours of playback.

When the OpenRun Pro begin to run low on juice, a voice will warn you that it's time to charge them. You'll receive two warnings before the headset powers off, so if you're close to home or at your desk, you'll have time to plug them in.

A complete charge will keep your music playing for up to 10 hours (a figure matched in our tests) which is the most impressive battery life of any headset we've tested to date. If you've been turned off other bone conduction headphones due to their short playtime, it's well worth checking out the OpenRun Pro. You might be pleasantly surprised.

Buy it if

You want a set of all-purpose headphones
The OpenRun Pro are excellent running headphones, but they're also comfortable enough to wear all day at your desk, with sufficient battery life to keep you going all day. The improved on-board microphone makes them great for video calls, too.

You're planning long training sessions
The OpenRun Pro's quick charge feature is a game-changer if you're disorganized, but give them enough time to juice up fully and the headset will keep running for 10 hours. That's more than enough for all but the toughest ultra training sessions.

You enjoy heavy music
The OpenRun Pro is the first bone conduction headset we've tested that really does justice to bass-heavy music, and is a viable alternative to in-ear headphones when you need solid sound to keep you motivated.

Don't buy it if

You want noise cancelling
The appeal of bone conduction headphones is that they always allow ambient noise in. You could use them with a pair of earplugs to block out your surroundings, but that's no substitute for active noise-cancelling.

You're easily distracted
The tickle of the new bass transducers might be annoying if you're very sensitive to small distractions and want a pair of headphones to wear while you're wearing. The original OpenRun headset feels less 'buzzy' against your face.

You're on a tight budget
The Shokz OpenRun Pro are the most expensive bone conduction headphones we've tested. If you don't mind sacrificing some sound quality, the original OpenRun, and even the older Trekz Air are both good alternatives.

We've tested and ranked the best running watches

Workbooks review

2:36 pm | January 5, 2022

Author: admin | Category: Computers Gadgets | Comments: Off

Workbooks is an innovative CRM software solution with a strong focus on business outcomes. Focused on the mid-market, it enables clients to automate processes, grow revenue, and achieve key performance metrics across all departments. Read our Workbooks review to learn why Workbooks might be the best CRM software solution for your business.

Workbooks review: Snapshot

Workbooks is an excellent CRM product for midsize enterprises, offering software solutions for customer service, sales, marketing, and operations teams. Its primary differentiating factor lies in the Shared Success program, which provides customers with free consulting hours and annual workshops to ensure that Workbooks continues to align with every client’s business goals for years after the initial implementation.

Workbooks lacks a diverse third-party app marketplace and developer community, which is a weakness relative to competitors like Salesforce and HubSpot. Users that require a large amount of third-party customization might not be satisfied with its offering. In addition, its free version is limited to only two users and has fewer features, which could make it less appealing to very small businesses.

Overall, we consider Workbooks to be a fantastic platform when used for its intended purpose - providing CRM software solutions to midsize organizations.

Score: 5/5

Read on for our full and detailed review.

Workbooks’ competitors

Workbooks’ key features

Workbooks’ features are broken down into four categories: Sales, Marketing, Customer Service, and Order Management.

While some of these features are notable in their own right, most are not unique to Workbooks. What truly differentiates Workbooks from other CRMs is its collaborative approach to customer support: Shared Success.

Customer Service

Workbooks provides a versatile ticket management platform for customer service teams. Customer inquiries from multiple channels, such as email and online chat, are aggregated into a centralized ticket database for agents to handle.

The system’s versatility also means that it can be used by Human Resources and IT to handle internal employee tickets.

Sales

Sales teams can benefit from an effective database system for their leads. The Workbooks database is based on flexible entries, with two types of record: organizations and individuals connected to these organizations. So for example, one record can be listed as an employee at one company, a contractor for another, and a supplier for yet another. The database will also automatically trawl the web, suggesting updates to employment information and relationships between records based on the information it found online. This ensures that salespeople have current information at their fingertips at all times.

Workbooks: Key features and highlights

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Workbooks review — A versatile ticket management platform that can be used for customer service, IT, or HR. (Image credit: Workbooks)

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Marketing

Marketing features include campaign management and lead qualification. Marketing teams can run campaigns from within Workbooks and receive feedback from the system on their success. The system also uses a proprietary scoring system to rank the quality of leads. When a potential lead clicks on the company website, it adds a little to their score. If that individual then lingers there, clicks on a few links, and reads some information, their score will increase, and eventually, the system will escalate this potentially interested customer lead to a marketing representative. In this way, Workbooks automatically qualifies leads for the benefit of the marketing team.

Order Management

Order management is a premium feature, available to only Business level license holders. It facilitates back-end interactions with suppliers and assists when invoicing or quoting customers. Customized invoices and quote management are notable features as few CRM programs provide them.

Shared Success

The Workbooks team conducts an introductory workshop with every client. They then come up with a CRM solution that is tailored to that particular client’s business goals. Afterward, the client receives a set of free consulting days in their first year, equal to one day per £1000 of annual license value - or $1328. So a customer with a £10,000 annual license value will receive 10 free consulting days with the Workbooks team in the first year. This way, the Workbooks team can ensure that everything runs smoothly and that their CRM continues to help the customer hit their key performance indicators.

Workbooks - What’s new?

Workbooks made two major changes in recent releases. The first has to do with Workbooks’ Office 365 integration - Office 365 users can open Workbooks in a sidebar within any Office application. This feature was recently expanded to include Microsoft Teams and Sharepoint.

Workbooks also implemented a tool for its Order Management side, called Configure, Price, Quote (CPQ). CPQ proactively finds component parts relating to a specific customer quote. For instance, if a customer requests a quote for a roofing project, the sales rep would normally have to locate the pricing of all the relevant components and man-hours before being able to compile a quote. In practice, this means that the customer is unlikely to receive a quote the same day, which decreases the likelihood of closing the sale.

With CPQ, reps can pre-configure quotes within the software before heading out, and the CPQ system will automatically fill in pricing details for components and man-hours so that representatives can provide an immediate quote to clients during the meeting.

Workbooks - Pricing

Workbooks’ pricing structure is simple. There are two plans: Standard and Business. With the standard plan, users get access to all of the customer-facing CRM features of Workbooks - sales, customer service, and marketing management solutions. The premium plan, Business, unlocks all of the order management features, like invoicing and supplier contract management. Billing on all Workbooks plans is annual.

Compared to other CRM providers, Workbooks' pricing is highly competitive. For instance, to unlock sales, marketing, and customer service features with Salesforce, a user would have to subscribe to Sales Cloud, Service Cloud, and Marketing Cloud, potentially a multi-thousand-dollar subscription. Workbooks offers similar features for $34/user/month.

*Limited to two users.

**Pricing is per user per month.

Testing Workbooks

Workbooks’ key differentiating factor lies in consulting support. They advocate that the process starts right from the beginning, with a consulting call to book a co-funded workshop. We wanted to test just how easy it was to get started with Workbooks.

How easy is it to book an initial consultation with Workbooks?

Screenshot of call booking screen, Workbooks. — Testing the Workbooks call booking function. (Image credit: Workbooks)

The only way to get started with Workbooks is to book a call for an initial consultation. You cannot otherwise access the software, even in its free form. We decided to test this booking process for ourselves, as this initial step could set the tone for the entire customer experience.

Workbooks’ website has the button "Let’s talk" in the top right corner, as well as on nearly every webpage. We clicked it, and it took us to a booking calendar for a 30-minute appointment.

We found that the booking process was easy and there was plenty of availability—we booked on a Thursday and were able to get a call as early as the next Monday morning. At that point, it was a simple matter of picking a date and an available time slot, then hitting confirm.

One issue North American customers should be aware of is that booking times are only available during British business hours, which means that when we tried to book from the West Coast our available call times ranged from 2:30 am to 7:30 am—so maybe grab a coffee if you are calling from the US or Canada.

Alternatives to Workbooks

Workbooks is most comparable to HubSpot as they are both CRM providers geared towards midsize enterprises. Unlike Workbooks, HubSpot has a large established third-party app marketplace. If you are an advanced CRM user, comfortable setting everything up on your own, HubSpot could give you a little more customization than Workbooks.

However, Workbooks is significantly easier to use for users without enormous technical expertise. The Workbooks team will work with the client to set up the program, provide free consulting in the first year, and touch base annually after that to ensure that the client is still satisfied with their CRM. This type of ongoing, personalized support, with free consulting hours, is unique to Workbooks, and difficult to beat unless you need absolutely no assistance in setting up and maintaining your CRM.

Small businesses and solopreneurs might find Workbooks less beneficial, as the free version is limited in scope, and the free consulting is not available since it is based on your total annual subscription fee. On the other hand, HubSpot’s free version has unlimited users and similar features to Workbooks' free version.

Salesforce is another competitor of Workbooks, being the largest and most established player in the CRM space. However, it’s primarily geared towards large Enterprise users. Features like VoIP calling, which allows for full-scale call center integration, as well as over 3000 third-party Apps, make Salesforce a more appealing choice for a large organization.

For this reason, compared to its alternatives, Workbooks is best suited for midsize enterprises where it is a superior choice in terms of pricing, features, and consulting support.

Workbooks: Final verdict

Workbooks is a full-featured CRM at a very affordable price point. It is unique on the market for its blend of annual workshops and free consulting hours. The company will work with you on an ongoing basis to make sure that your CRM platform continues to help you achieve your unique business goals. Workbooks can support customer service, sales, and marketing teams, and help users manage customer orders.

Workbooks falls a little short in its offering to very small and very large businesses. For the latter, it lacks the breadth of features and range of third-party apps that some may require. That being said, for a client that is okay with a fairly standard offering, Workbooks can provide a level of one-on-one support that few other providers offer. For small businesses, Workbooks is more expensive than some alternatives. Its free version is limited and only accepts two users, while some competitors offer unlimited users on their free plan.

For this reason, Workbooks outshines its competition primarily as a midsize business CRM, with its key differentiating features being consulting and low price.

Next steps

For more information on CRM software, take a look at our guide What is CRM software? You may also want to read our take on the best CRM for small business, the best CRM for real estate, and the best free CRM software to help you select the best CRM software for your needs.

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