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Urban life today is filled with screens, from ATM touchscreens to large RGB billboards. We even have all- powerful screens in our pock­ets and we work mostly on screens as well. While a singular screen is more than enough for many use-case sce­narios, creative professionals benefit a whole lot with a secondary screen. A secondary screen provides valuable additional screen space that creatives can utilize. But if you just happen to have some money to burn, you can also build an awesome gaming rig with dual screens. Here we look at some screens that will fulfill both these needs well.

ASUS VZ249H

Price Rs 33,750

 If you are looking for a good budget option, this Asus model is a strong contender. The monitor is 24-inch IPS panel that runs at a native 1920 x 1080 resolution. Since it’s an IPS panel, the colors on this panel look vivid and sharp. The panel also has a great contrast ratio thanks to Asus Smart Contrast Ratio features that pegs the ratio at 80000000:1. At this price point, the monitor looks sleek with almost no bezels and a very thin frame; this near bezel-less feature also makes it great for dual mon­itor setups. The color representation on this monitor is not great, however, and wouldn’t help if you’re using it for color accurate work. But as it’s a secondary screen, it works won­ders and for this price, it’s the strongest deal you’ll get!

MSI Optix G27C2

Price Rs 56,800

 Aesthetically, this monitor seems a part of a larger gaming machine. It does because it was bundled together with MSI’s gaming PCs, which is why many of MSI’s gaming-centered designs come with red accents. While the panel might look like a gaming monster, it performs exceptionally well for creative professionals as well. The panel is a 27-inch 1920 x 1080 VA display, which provides great color accuracy and refresh rates. The VA panels are often con­sidered worse in color representation than IPS panels, but MSI has managed to cover 89 percent NTSC and 110 percent sRBS col­or spaces. The display refreshes at a fast 144 Hz, making for a smooth experience. It may be a tad expensive, but worth it.

BenQ SW2700PT

Price Rs 130,500

 If color accuracy is your biggest concern, the BenQ is the best monitor in the Nepali market that has been built specifically for photographers and creative professionals. The panel is 27-inch IPS display running on a native resolution of 2560 x 1440. At this price, you’d be expecting a 4k monitor, and you’d be right in doing so but even though the res­olution on this panel is low, it makes up for it with excellent color reproduction. The mon­itor covers 99 percent Adobe RGB and 100 percent sRGB color spaces. The matte finish on the screen also screams productivity and the monitor is a great device to work on. This would be great for creative professionals to invest in as it ensures their work has accurate colors throughout.

 For more than a decade, the Burgman redefined the motor­cycling experience after it brought together performance and comfort in a single platform. Now make way for the Burgman Street 125, the biggest 125cc scooter in size but the smallest Burgman in terms of the engine. The Suzuki Burgman Street steps up the oomph factor with its maxi-scooter appear­ance, but underneath shares the same powertrain and underpinning from the successful Access 125. Does the Burgman deliver on all fronts? We find out.

STYLING

The Burgman Street from Suzu­ki’s stable presents the best of both worlds in terms of styling. Not only does the Burgman Street draw a design language from its bigger Burgman siblings, but also creates a new segment of scooters on the concept of elegance. It is handsome enough to tempt the crowd with its bulbous appearance and has an excellent road presence.

The Burgman’s fascia largely resembles its European kin, lean and toned LED headlamp cluster dominating the angular front apron with position lights and turn sig­nals mounted beneath. A cosmetic fly screen sits on top. Along with this fly screen, a fixed all-digital instrument console is mounted on the body. The console does not turn with the handlebar on the scooter. The rather familiar easy-on-eyes multifunction fully-digital instru­ment panel comes with a digital clock, fuel gauge, oil change indica­tor, and a dual trip meter. From its nose to the rear, the baby Burgman enjoys svelte design touches.

Unlike other scooters, the Burg­man sports a wide bodywork which makes way for a horizontal tail unit at the rear, which in turn is flanked by a modernistic LED combination light setup in an elongated polygonal array and a large generous grab-rail. The baby Burgman gets a cubby glove box and rack for storage.

A spacious under-seat storage capacity of 21.5L is enough to car­ry all your belongings. The Burg­man Street rides on tubeless tyres and steel rims. The bold image of the Burgman is only set back by its 10-inch rear rims. The scooter is available in three colours: Metal­lic Mat Fibroin Grey, Glass sparkle black and Pearl Mirage White.

Rs. 229,900 Price of Suzuki Burgman Street 125

ENGINE

The Burgman is powered by the same mechanical unit from the Access. The peppy engine makes 8.6 bhp at 7,000 rpm and 10.2 Nm at 5000 rpm. And it comes with a push-button starter as well as a kick lever. Powered by SEP (Suzu­ki Eco Performance) technology which, according to Suzuki, offers an optimal fuel-efficiency without compromising on either power or performance.

PERFORMANCE

You can commute, take the high­ways, ride the twisties—the Burg­man won’t disappoint. In spite of its sheer size, this is a comfortable scooter thanks to the saddle height of 780mm. The riding position is comfortable and upright with the handlebar at the perfect height. The comfortable riding position is aided by the capacious footboard. The footboards are extended up the front apron which allows the rider to extend legs for a laid-back riding position. Pilot and pillion sit in a long, single soft-padded seat with no sacrifice on comfort for riders of various builds. The ease with which the scooter performs is lively.

The Burgman is quite agile in traf­fic. Performance is adequate and the scooter is peppy enough for city riding. Low-speed maneuvers are easy and it’s the kind of thing you should consider when purchas­ing a maxi-scooter. With its easy acceleration and adequate throt­tle-response, the Burgman is an able performer even on narrow, twisty, or congested streets.

Braking performance on the Burg­man is progressive. A single 170mm, single disc slows the front wheel and a 130mm drum brakes the rear wheel. The brakes are very good, though the front lacks power. But use both firmly and you’ll engage the Combined Braking System. As the name suggests, CBS helps engage both brakes when the rear brake is applied. This comes handy on our roads.

While the front soaks up bumps well, the rear remains a little stiff. However, due to the weighty rear, the scooter does bounce a bit less. Nevertheless, the ride is good as the Burgman is stable.

 You can commute, take the highways, ride the twisties—the Burgman won’t disappoint you

VERDICT

The USP of the Suzuki Burgman Street 125 is its styling. But it does deliver on all fronts, ticking all the right boxes in terms of styling, han­dling, and refinement. The baby Burgman will make you look pre­mium, whether you are commut­ing to work or doing occasional highway runs. But isn’t the asking price of Rs 229,900 a bit too much? Well, if you want to stand out from the pack and are willing to spend a premium, the Burgman Street will be a convincing addition to your garage. The Burgman Street may not be the first maxi-scooter in the Nepali market, but it looks promis­ing for many right reasons.

With the miniaturization of technology, we’ve seen many vital computer components reduced in size to support smaller housing. An entire PC has been reduced to the size of a pen­drive. The proliferation of smartphones also means that computing units can now fit inside the thin and small frame of a smartphone. Miniaturization has helped desktop designs evolve for years and com­puters like the Mac Mini and All-in-One have come through. Larger cases offer better air-flow and cooling but they look bulky and take a lot of space. If you’re worried about space, you may consider some of these mini PC options.

Z83V Mini PC

Price Rs 14,500

 Based on Intel’s Atom X5-Z8350 quad-core CPU, this mini-PC is indeed tiny. The device is 4.9 x 4.9 x 0.94 (L x W x H) in dimensions, which means it can undertake multiple functions. The computer will not look out of place beside a television and can easily be your home theater or a casual gaming PC. Consider­ing the powerful Atom chip, it is no less capable as a computer and performs well even as a standalone desktop.

The powerful CPU is supported by 2GB of RAM and 32 GB of eMMC flash storage. At this price point and size, expecting a dedicated graphic card would be foolish, which is why the integrated Intel HD graphics leaves much to be desired in terms of gaming perfor­mance. In any case, at such a competitive price-point, diminutive form factor and flexible applicability, the Z83V is a compelling buy

Apple Mac Mini

Price Rs 98,000 (i5 MGen2ZA/A)

 If you’re a fan of everything Apple, the Mac Mini is for you. Not only is the Mac Mini small in size, 7.7 x 7.7 x 1.4 inches (L x W x H), it is also a powerhouse as a PC. This mini comes with an Intel Core i5 that boosts upto 2.6 GHz, 8GB of RAM and 1TB of mechanical storage. At this size, the Mac is as portable as the Z83V but performs leagues better. The expensive price point also gets you brilliant build-quality Apple is known for and comes with Mac OS. At this size and hardware, the Mac mini is a stellar device, if only it didn’t suffer from Apple’s exaggerated prices.

 MSI Trident 3

Price Rs 160,000

 The MSI Trident 3 is large in comparison to the for­mer entries on the list: at 13.63 x 2.83 x 9.15 (L x W x H), the device feels like a beast. But larger size allows for powerful hardware. At this size, this Mini PC looks like a shaved-down gaming console and fortunately, performs like one too. The device is equipped with a seventh-generation Intel Core i5 CPU that boosts upto 3.0 GHz and is supported by 8GB of RAM. A dedicated Nvidia GTX 1060 3GB graphics card that gives the device plenty of horsepower for gaming. The comput­er is VR ready if you want to tinker around with VR games and is capable of running demanding games. The MSI Trident 3 is great value for money if you’re looking for a powerful mini-PC.

The Nissan Kicks may well be the last one to arrive at this party of the compact SUVs. A segment dominated by Hyundai Creta, the Nissan Kicks sure has its hands, erm, wheels full. Anyway, the Kicks, even though a bit late, is a reputed name in the international market and it also comes with tricks up its sleeve that give it an advantage. Will the Kicks kick out the competition? Only time will tell.

What's new?

The Nepal-bound model is different to the globally sold Kicks. It is based on the BO platform, unlike the V platform based global-spec Kicks. It gets revised styling, added features and extra equipment. The updates include revised headlamps and tail lamps, advanced infotainment system, more aggressive bumpers, new 17-inch alloys, larger roof rails and more.

Dimensions

The Nissan Kicks measures 4,384 mm in length, 1,813 mm in width, 1,615 mm in height and with a wheelbase of 2,673 mm. It comes with the best-in-class 210 mm ground clearance and a segment-best turning radius of 5.2 m.

Variants

The new Kicks will be available in three variants: XL, XV and XV Pre, in both petrol and diesel range. While the top-end XV Pre (O) is not available in Nepal, the available models get top of the line features, even the base XL trim comes loaded. It comes in seven different colors: Pearl White, Blade Silver, Bronze Grey, Fire Red, Amber Orange, Deep Blue Pearl & Night Shade.

Features

The new Nissan Kicks will come with a 360-degree camera setup that offers rear, side and bird’s eye view, from inside the car. Features list include a first-in-class 8-inch infotainment system, LED daytime running lights, height adjustable driver’s seat, power windows, power-adjustable wing mirrors with integrated turn indicators, automatic climate control, rear AC vents, Bluetooth connectivity, Dual Airbags and more.

Powertrain

The new Nissan Kicks will be available in both Petrol and Diesel options. You get the tried and tested 1.5-liter petrol and 1.5-liter diesel. The petrol motor offers about 104 bhp and 142 Nm of torque, while the 1.5-litre diesel motor delivers 108 bhp and 240 Nm of torque. The Kicks only comes with manual transmission options, a 5-speed unit for the petrol model and a 6-speed gearbox for the diesel version. There is no automatic on offer.

The Nissan Kicks is available at Rs 47.99 lakhs for the entry level variant while the top variant will cost you Rs 59.99 lakhs