Tata Harrier : First Ride Review

After months of writing my first impressions of the Tata harrier, I finally got to take it out on a little test ride. It was a relatively small ride but it was enough to make me not want to give it a second thought. Let me explain why..

So, as I had mentioned in my previous post, I was totally floored by how the Tata Harrier looked. I loved how butch it looked, the bold new design, the LED's on the bonnette and the main headlights being part of the bumper, the humongous tires, the interiors and almost everything about the car was very impressive. I just couldn't wait to get my hands on the car and yesterday was finally the day.

It is said that beauty is only skin deep and I feel it kind of applies very well in case of the Harrier. Its a great looking car no doubt but only after you drive it will you know how unrefined the car actually is. It took me a while to get the driving position right and after I did, I could feel the unease from the moment I put it into first and started to drive it. Then engined felt extremely laborious. There was a lot of noise creeping into the cabin which was quite unnerving and most importantly the A pillar and the huge rear view mirrors kept coming in the way when I want to take a right turn. I didnt like the hand break and also the storage space near the hand break which didnt have a push button life. I just didn't like it one bit and was waiting to get out of it.

I drive a Hyundai Creta and by far I think its one of the best car there is. Im not being partial towards it because I own one. The sheer number of Creta's on the road is testimony of the fact that it is just the perfect little SUV. The cabin feels rich and its so quite in spite of it being a diesel engine. There is ample amount of power when you need it and its not too large and neither is it too small and its extremely easy to drive. It was introduced with the tag line of "The perfect SUV" and I feel Hyundai just nailed it. Nothing seems to be able to come anywhere close to how good this car is. Most importantly, mind you the Creta just had a face lift and the version 2.0 is yet to come. If they can maintain keep everything like the current creta and design it in a much futuristic way, I dont think anything can ever beat it.

Anyways I digress from what I initially started off saying. I didn't like the Tata Harrier one bit. The Tata buzzard which is a 7 seater version of the current Harrier is also around the corner. The design once again looks spot on but I hope the engineers at Tata do something to the noise insulation and the slightly sluggish performance. The 19L on road price for the Tata Harrier seems way to steep. Just waiting to see the sales figures. The Jeep Compass was a runaway success but it fell flat suddenly. Tata Harrier may also face the same problem. Lets see.

I wish I took some photos of the interior to add in this article but like I said. I just wanted to get out and get back in my Creta.

I'll keep doing more of  these reviews. Stay tuned for more. 

OnePlus 3 Long Term Ownership Review

I've had the OnePlus 3 for a little over 2 years now. This was my first departure from the more popular mainstream brands like Samsung and Sony and I do not regret that decision one bit. I confess that I was slightly apprehensive about making the switch but after hearing all the almost rave reviews of the devices from OnePlus, I just had to give it a shot. To add to that, my previous phone the LG G3 had given up on me and I was in desperate need of a new phone.

I missed out on the OnePlus 3T by a few months but I still am quite happy with the one I have.

What are the few major things that people usually look for in phones?
1. A decently and not too large a screen with great resolution.
2. A good camera
3. Great battery life
4. Speed of operation
5. Easily available service centers
6. Good sound quality.

The OP3 ticks all those checkboxes.

Screen Size and Resolution: The screen size at 5.5 inches is just about right. Its not too large and neither is it too small. The resolution is also quite good and none of the colors are too saturated. Viewing it under the sunlight is ok when you turn up the screen brightness to a 100%, otherwise in normal light its quite crisp and pleasing to the eye. A friend of mine noticed that it has a slightly more pronounced blue tinge but I didn't notice it that much.

Camera: The camera is great in good light but to be frank it really sucks in low light. I had recently been to a wedding where the whole stage decoration was ruined because of untimely rains and wanted to capture that and this is what I got. Its absolutely pathetic to say the least.

The light spreads and the images are also extremely grainy making the photos absolutely un-usable. Its not a deal breaker though. I seldom click in the night and this doesn't bother me as much.

The day time photos are very good though. Hers is a sample.

Battery life: This is where the OP3 shines like a bright burning star. Gone are the days when I need to carry my charger or an external battery with me. I never ever felt the need for it in all these years of using it. Given that it has a Type-C port, borrowing a charger from someone is also quite difficult as not many phones have a Type-C port. The OP3 also has a dash charging capability which charges it from 10 to 100% is just about and hour which is extremely handy.

I browse on social media all day, I watch a lot of Youtube videos and my data is also on all day and yet at the end of the day I am left with at least 15% battery life which in my opinion is a cracker of a deal. I remember having frustrating times when I am sometimes out late in the nights and I my phone had died making it difficult to call someone or even book cabs. Its a breeze right now and I am loving it. The 3000mAh is quite adequate.

Speed of Operation:  This is another strong point of the OP3. There is absolutely no lag what so ever. Even if all the apps on my phone are open and running in the background, it doesn't slow down or stutter. Switching between apps is also very easy. The highlight though is the finger print scanner. The scanning is very fast and it opens almost instantly. Its even faster than an iPhone and quite secure as well.

Service: OnePlus has a service center in most of the big cities. I one feel face forward on a concrete road when I was on a morning run with my phone in hand. I landed full weight on my phone and the whole screen was shattered. I took it to the service center and the screen was replaced in a matter of a few hours. That is an amazing turn around time. Im not sure how it is in smaller cities but if you are in big cities, its not a problem at all.

Audio Quality: This is not a problem either. The sound output from the earphone for calls and also from the external speaker is crisp and clear. The speaker isnt as loud as a Beats audio or something but its good. More than adequate to say the least.

All in all its an amazing phone. The only chink in the armour is the bad night time image quality but other than that it a no nonsense perfect phone.

Tata Harrier : First Impressions

Tata's most advanced and the most awaited car is here. The Tata Harrier has finally made its way to the showrooms. The design hasn't changed much from the concept and I must say it looks absolutely stunning. I went to the Tata showroom here in Himayatnagar to check it out and I am thoroughly impressed. I was pressed for time, so I didn't get to take a test drive but I will go there this weekend for sure and write a detailed review. I didn't have my camera along either, so I couldn't take any high quality pictures but here is one I clicked on my cellphone and it sure is a stunner.

Please forgive the background and the poor image
quality. I promise to get better pictures and post them soon.

The interiors of the car were fantastic. I drive a Creta and I could see a world of difference as soon as I got into the Harrier. The whole instrument layout, the floating 8" touch screen, the wide seats and cushioning gave the car a very upmarket and rich feel. I simply loved it. As a lot of reviewers have already pointed out, I didn't really like the airplane style hand break lever and the center arm rest cubby hole which has to be pressed to get it opened. I sat in a parked car and could still make out that the A pillar and the rear view mirrors were too large and quite in the way of a clear view. A lot of cars I have driven don't have that problem so I found this to be a bit of an oddity. Another miss for a lot of people was the sun roof. I don't really feel its need so I don't miss it much. Its just a nice to have.

The rear seat was extremely comfortable. It didn't take too much of an effort to get in and the seats were wide and very accommodating. It is much bigger than my creta and I could feel that translate into space inside the cabin. The leg room and the head room were just massive. What I specially liked is the two level storage bins in the doors. It has space for the one liter water bottles and it also has an extra space to put your phone or other tiny items.

All in all it seems like a very good package. I am really looking forward to driving it this weekend. I heard about the engine noise and a few other little niggles but I would like to have a first hand feel of it before commenting further.

Tata seems to have gotten the pricing quite right as well. The Creta has been reigning supreme in the mid sized SUV segment since the past 3-4 years and it seems to have found the perfect rival. The Harrier is priced at around the same range, approximately 17-18 lakhs on road which is right around the Creta SX(O) price range. It is much bigger and more powerful than the creta and it sure promises to be its nemesis. Whats more noteworthy is that it will severely undercut the much costlier Jeep compass and is sure to hit its already dwindling sales. I havent seen to many new versions of the Mahindra XUV 500 but even that is bound to take a hit. Hyundai better pull up its socks and do something drastic for the next version of the Creta. If they don't watch out, the Harrier is sure to have their piece of the pie.

p.s. : I only compared the harrier to the Creta because I drive a creta. I will write a more exhaustive review soon.