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Wanted to buy an ASUS ZenFone smartphone but got put off by distributors and sellers offering it at non-retail pricing? Well, ASUS Malaysia now have another option with their soft launch of the ASUS Store (http://store.asus.com/my). Designed to serve all the ZenFone smartphone buyers here in Malaysia, the site offers the ASUS ZenFone 4, ZenFone 5 and ZenFone 6 at the retail pricing of RM299, RM519 and RM699 respectively. Unlike other online stores, the devices for sale here are not going to be sold in batches. Instead, you can add them to your shopping cart at any time (sort of like a pre-order) and expect to get it within the next 1 ~ 2 working days. For East Malaysians the wait is extended by a day to 1 ~ 3 working days. So far, the number of colours available to choose from are limited but new colours like Yellow and Purple are expected soon. Also, there is no mention of the other ASUS ZenFone range of devices like the ZenFone 5 LTE or ZenFone 4 A450CG but we assume these should be added soon.

While not all Malaysians are buying gifts next month, quite a few of us will be trying to think of what to get for our loved ones. In a discussion amongst ourselves and other techies at the Tech Kaki's discussion show in collaboration with KL Gadget Guy and Nasi Lemak Tech, we've listed down some tech gifts which we think would bring a little light to the lives of those who receive it. Check it out in this article.

OPPO Malaysia's latest flagship smartphone, the OPPO N3 is now available on pre-order for RM2098. The N3 offers a number of flagship smartphone level features and tech specs but the most notable is the motorized and automatic 16MP rotatable camera on top. There are some conditions for the pre-order though, as you can only pre-order for 1 OPPO N3 smartphone and you must pay a deposit of RM100 beforehand. For this pre-order batch, OPPO Malaysia only have the OPPO N3 in white and the pre-order period is until 20 December 2014 with the pickup date on 1 January 2015. You will get some freebies including a Rapid car charger, screen protector and O-click 2.0 but this is limited to the first 3000 pre-orders. Check out the OPPO Malaysia site for more details.

We've almost always wanted to expand the internal storage of our smartphones and mobile devices, with the microSD usually being one of the accessories you get first. We don't think you'd need to do that with the newly announced Linshof i8 smartphone as it packs 80GB worth of internal storage for just $380 (RM1270). Featuring a hexagonal design the Linshof i8 comes from Germany and uses two SanDisk memory modules, one 64GB and one 16GB for the storage (although we are wondering why they didn't just go 128GB straight). Other notable tech specs includes a 2.1GHz octa-core processor (unfortunately, still 32-bit), 3GB of RAM, a 5-inch Full HD 1080p Super AMOLED display, a 13MP rear camera with wide-angle lens and an 8MP front camera. The smartphone will come with Android 5.0 Lollipop right out of the box, a 3100 mAh battery and 4G LTE connectivity. IT will support NFC, Bluetooth 4.0, GPS and HDMI 1.4 with 3D. While there is no Malaysia release date or pricing yet, it is expected to get released in Q1 of 2015. The Linshof i8 will also come with a similar hexagonal tablet with 10-inch display featuring 2048 x 1536 pixel resolution and 9000 mAh battery as well.

According to Microsoft's Works Wonder Campaign page, we may soon see a new device in the Joi tablet range from SNS Network. The yet to be announced Joi 10 Flip tablet was listed on the Works Wonder page with details about its tech specs and pricing. The new tablet convertible features an Intel Atom Quad Core Z3735D processor with 2GB RAM and 64GB eMMC memory. On the front, there is a large 10.1 inch display with an undisclosed resolution. However, the unique selling point of the device is its detachable QWERTY keyboard called the FlexiCover. From the image above, it looks like the cover can also act as a stand to the tablet much like the tablets from the Lenovo Yoga range. You also get Office 365 Personal with the device, but only for a limited period. The Works Wonder page has priced the convertible at RM999. However, we still don't know the official Malaysia release date of the device just yet.

A month back, HTC announced the HTC RE, a GoPro competitor alongside its dual-13MP camera HTC Desire Eye. Now, both the devices are expected to hit the Malaysian markets on 5 December 2014. While GoPro is marketed as the camera for the adrenaline junkies, the new HTC RE is more of a professional camera for everyday use. It features a 16MP f/2.8 aperture Sony camera sensor with 146 degree wide angle lens. While it doesn't support 2K, you can record videos at FULL HD 1080p resolution at 30 fps and HD 720p resolution at 120 fps. The HTC RE comes with Wi-Fi and Bluetooth connectivity options and is compatible with Android and iOS. There's an 820 mAh rechargeable battery on board, good enough for 1200 images or 1 hour 40 minutes of video shooting. The HTC Desire Eye is also a one of a kind product.  It features a 13MP camera as well as dual LED flash on both the back and the front. Other tech specs like a Snapdragon 801 SoC, 2GB RAM, 16GB internal storage with MicroSD card slot and 2300 mAh battery are in line with the flagship smartphones available in the market. HTC has yet to announce the official Malaysia pricing and availability of both the devices but we should know more next week.

The Lenovo Vibe Z2 Pro is finally available for sale in Malaysia. Lenovo Malaysia is bundling the JBL E-40 Bluetooth Headphone with the device, all for a price tag of RM2299. Tech specs wise, the Z2 Pro is one of the best smartphones in the market. It comes with a 2.5Ghz Snapdragon 801 processor with 3GB RAM. For storage, you get 32GB which unfortunately is non-expandable. On the front, there's a large 6 inch display with Quad HD 2K resolution. Even with a display of this size, the Z2 Pro measures just 156 x 81.3 x 7.7 mm, thanks to the thin bezels. However, at 179 grams it is a bit heavy due to its premium metal finish. On the back, there is a 16MP camera with OIS, autofocus and dual LED flash. The front camera measures 5MP which should be enough for everyday video calls and selfies. Lenovo has smartly embedded a 4000 mAh battery inside, which the company claims delivers up to 45 hours of talktime and 39 days of standby time. Check out the Lenovo Facebook page for more details on Malaysia pricing and availability and our tech spec comparison of the Lenovo Vibe Z2 Pro and Huawei Ascend Mate 7.

We won't lie to you, most Malaysians like to eat, ourselves included and looking to meet up and talk one on one with Malaysia's tech crowd today was Intel Malaysia and Singapore's new Country Manager, Sumner P. Lemon. On hand to meet and greet Malaysians at a casual makan-makan, we were able to ask him a few questions. According to him, the main thing that he will be focusing on in this new position is growth, particularly areas in the Malaysia tech industry which show signs of growth. This includes the mobile and smartphone industry without forgetting the PC and notebook computer markets. As such, we should be able to expect many new Intel powered smartphones and mobile devices in the remainder of 2014 and for 2015 laying to rest rumours that Intel would be less involved with mobile devices in 2015.

The ASUS ZenFone lineup has seen tremendous popularity throughout the world and it looks like another variant of the popular ASUS ZenFone 5 is all set to hit the Malaysian market. This rumoured variant could be the ASUS ZenFone 5 Lite, the affordable version of the ZenFone 5 and is expected to be available in Malaysia pretty soon. The device with the model number A502CG was recently released spotted on the Malaysian SIRIM database.  While ASUS Malaysia has not yet made any official announcements about the pricing or availability, the device recently went on sale in Philippines for just 5595 Pesos (about RM417). If Malaysian pricing comes around this figure, the ZenFone 5 Lite would lie in between the ZenFone 4 and the ZenFone 5, giving another option to choose from in the ASUS smartphone lineup. Some of the main tech specs of the device include a 1.2GHz Intel Atom Z2520 processor, 1GB RAM, 8GB internal storage, MicroSD card expansion slot, qHD 5 inch 960 x 540 pixel resolution display and a 2,500 mAh battery. As you can see, the processor and the display have been downgraded, but what is surprising is that ASUS has included a larger 2500 mAh battery on the device.

If you are looking for a cheap smartphone, the new Huawei Honor 3C Lite is a great option. This affordable version of the Honor 3C will be available for pre-order starting 28 November 2014 from VMall.my. Starting from the above date, you can pre-order the device for just RM399 from the online store as opposed to its regular retail price of RM449. In addition, 10 lucky winners who buy the Honor 3C will get a free holiday trip to Langkawi. The pre-order starts at 10AM on the said date and ends at 6PM on 3 December 2014. The first batch of pre-orders will start shipping from 8 December 2014. Even though the Honor 3C Lite is much cheaper than the original Honor 3C, the tech specs remain more or less the same. You get a Quad Core 1.3GHz Mediatek processor, 5 inch 720p display and an 8MP rear camera like the Honor 3C model. However, the RAM is reduced to 1GB, as is the battery capacity from 2300 mAh to 2000 mAh. Surprisingly, Huawei has increased the onboard storage from 8GB to 16GB in this cheaper variant. The Honor 3C also comes with 6 months exchange warranty along with a 1 year Original Manufacturer warranty.