Judges for the prestigious English-language literary award praised as “utterly original” the book that chronicles the death of Abraham Lincoln’s 11-year-old son Willie using the accounts of hundreds of narrators.

“The form and style of this utterly original novel reveals a witty, intelligent, and deeply moving narrative,” said Lola Young, chair of the judging panel, in announcing the prize at a ceremony in London.

Saunders, 58, described the award as a “great honour, which I hope to live up to with the rest of my work, for the rest of my life.”

In a brief, politically-tinged acceptance speech, he made several thinly-veiled references to the controversial policies of US President Donald Trump.

“We live in a strange time,” he told the audience. “In the US now we’re hearing a lot about the need to protect culture. Well, this tonight is culture.”

This year’s Man Booker Prize shortlist pitted three US and three British writers against one another.

The award, launched in 1969, was only open to writers from Commonwealth states until it began permitting authors from other English-speaking countries in 2014.

Last year Paul Beatty became the first American to win the award for his novel “The Sellout”.

Saunders was the British bookmakers’ favourite ahead of the announcement on Tuesday.

In a lengthy and varied writing career, he has penned award-winning short story collections, essays, illustrated fables and a bestselling children’s book, as well as many pieces of journalism.

In 2006, he was awarded both a Guggenheim Fellowship and a MacArthur Fellowship, while in 2009 he received an Academy Award from the American Academy of Arts and Letters.

IF THE Royal Crematorium representing Phra Sumeru Mountain, the sacred cosmological mountain of Buddhist cosmology, embodies the very highest of Thai arts and architecture, then the landscaping of the ceremonial ground at Sanam Luang can only be described as a Thai masterpiece.

Designed by the award-winning Nong Nooch Tropical Garden in Pattaya, the ground is covered with more than 100,000 marigolds and other yellow flowers interspersed with pops of white.

The landscaping is based on two colours: white symbolising purity and yellow representing the late King’s day of birth.

Indeed, under its direction, more than 300,000 marigolds were planted in both Bangkok and Chon Buri from August onwards to ensure the flowers would bloom and retain their golden glory until the ceremony came to an end.

The design emphasises simplicity to reflect the sufficiency philosophy while maintaining the seriousness and dignity of this sad event. The landscaping is based on two colours: white symbolising purity and yellow representing the late King’s day of birth.

“We designed the landscaped gardens for the cremations of Her Royal Highness Princess Bejaratana Rajasuda and His Holiness Somdet Phra Nyanasamvara, the Supreme Patriarch, and we are extremely honoured to be invited to do the job again,” says Kampon Tansacha, managing director of Nong Nooch Tropical Garden.

“We give the yellow two interpretations – the first refers to the colour for Monday, the day on which the King was born, and the second to the yellow shirts worn by Thais everywhere on days when he would give a special audience, turning the crowds into a sea of yellow.

“This time, we will all be wearing black so we will use these marigolds as a substitute for the people as we send our beloved monarch to heaven.

“Most space is devoted to pavilions and several activities, so there’s not much space for gardening. We’ve had to put the marigolds in pots around the ceremonial site.”

The landscape design emphasises simplicity and sufficiency while maintaining dignity.

Despite that lack of space, 70,000 marigolds are already blooming alongside another 30,000 other species of flowers, plants and bushes. Among them are the white Phitsanulok ixoras, yellow lotuses, sai yod thong (Chinese bangan, curtain fig and glossy fig), cha nab thong and khoi phum (Streblus asper or Siamese rough bush). The garden is being tended to daily by a team of experienced gardeners.

“We brought all the plants to Sanam Luang on October 8 but the heavy rains damaged some of the marigolds, so we are constantly replacing them. The marigolds are planted in sand because it absorbs water very well, making it perfect for the rainy season,” Kampon says.

The landscaped garden is already 99-per-cent complete and boasts several kinds of local plants and flowers, which can be found in the Royal Palace and temples.

“We select the plants with which the late King Bhumibol would be familiar. We have also prepared beautiful pots of yellow ground orchids and bonsai to decorate Phra Thinang Song Tham [the Royal Merit-Making Pavilion],” Kampon says.

The entrance to the ceremonial site has a showcase of a dike and rice field in the shape of the Thai numeral nine, along with vetiver grass, Chaipattana aerators, a weir, and such royal initiatives as the Kaem Ling (“Monkey Cheek”) floodcontrol project. 

A dyke and rice field in the shape of the Thai numeral nine, along with vetiver grass, Chaipattana aerators, a weir, and such royal initiatives as the kaem ling (“monkey cheek”) flood-control project, have been recreated at the entrance to the ceremonial site.

Designed by Phorntham Thamwimol of the Office of Architecture, Department of Fine Arts, this area illustrates the late King’s genius in water resource management and is the first time that the royal cremation ground of Sanam Luang has been adjusted in this way.

“His Majesty paid a great deal of attention to water, which is the heart of agriculture. This is why we chose to plant an actual rice paddy and combine it with other royal initiatives to demonstrate how King Bhumibol helped his people,” Phorntham says.

“Four ponds with yellow lotuses have been planted here along with Mahajanaka mango, vetiver and various shrubs and trees clipped into ornamental shapes to create coherent layers.”

The base of the crematorium simulates the Anodard Pond (Heavenly Pond), inspired by the mural at Wat Suthat Theppawararam. 

Like the royal crematorium, the ceremonial site imitates heaven but at the foot of Phra Sumeru Mountain. From here, the visitor can only see the old city of Rattanakosin and the Phra Si Ratana Chedi pagoda, adjacent to the Temple of the Emerald Buddha, where some relics of the late King Bhumibol will be installed.

“There is an invisible axis intersect, one running from the spire of the Phra Si Ratana Chedi pagoda, adjacent to the Temple of the Emerald Buddha, and the other from the middle of the Phra Ubosot in Wat Mahathat Yuwaratrang- sarit,” Phorntham says.

The landscape around the Royal Crematorium is decorated with white tiles and gold walls to represent the four continents: Uttarakuru Thawip in the north, Purvavideha in the east, Jambu Thawip in the south, and Aparagodaniya in the west.

Four ponds with yellow lotuses have been created around the ceremonial ground.

The base of the crematorium simulates the Anodard Pond (Heavenly Pond), inspired by the mural painting of Wat Suthat Theppawararam. It is home to auspicious animals such as 10 species of elephants in the north, four breeds of horses in the west, four types of Singha (lion) in the east, and seven types of cows in the south. There are also sculptures of mythical creatures from the Himmaphan Forest.

“The base of the royal crematorium is decorated with the Himmaphan Forest in line with Thai beliefs. We chose to represent the Anodard Pond to relate to water and the design is different from the royal crematoria of Her Royal Highness the Princess Mother and Her Royal Highness Princess Galyani Vadhana, which were adorned with stones and grass,” Phorntham says.

“The ground level pools have a water circulation system at each of the corners and we have used technology to create lighting effects for day and night and project water effects in emerald green.”

The products include handmade bags, natural-dye cotton outfits for teddy bears and woven trays, and can all be purchased at Starbucks stores in Thailand.

“We are grateful to have a chance to work with SACICT and provide an opportunity for Thais at the district level to promote their innovative arts and crafts and generate income. We are also giving a boost to Thai handicrafts by showcasing their uniqueness to Thais and foreigners. Customers can buy these crafts through our 303 stores in Thailand,” said Murray Darling, managing director of Starbucks Coffee Thailand.

So far, three products are available. The handmade bag is produced through a collaborative program between SACICT and the Department of Corrections that trains underprivileged inmates of the Central Women Correctional Institution as part of the Kamlangjai Project under the Royal Initiative of Her Royal Highness Princess Bajarakitiyabha. The project aims to provide assistance to as well as support and inspire women in prison to self-develop so they can find work and become worthwhile members of society once released.

Another product is natural-dye cotton from the Nong Bua Daeng hand-woven natural dye colour groups in Chaiyaphum, which is creatively sewn into outfits for Starbucks’ teddy bears. The group is well known for its use of locally available natural ingredients, such as blue from indigo which is extracted from the leaves of certain plants and yellow from the core of the jackfruit tree and Coscinium fenestratum, which are found in Surin and Sri Sa Ket provinces. The wastewater is treated after the dyeing process, thus reducing contaminants and making the water safe for discharge into the environment.

Woven tray is also a folk art product that draws on Thai wisdom from the descendants of SACICT craftsman from Varni Southern Wickery in Phatthalung province.

“We are delighted with this collaboration from the private sector in supporting the handicrafts created by SACICT members in various provinces, who order the raw materials and creatively produce them as community handicraft products so that we can distribute them internationally. We believe that this collaboration between SACICT and Starbucks will help generate income for these local craftspeople while also showcasing Thai handicrafts and promoting these distinctive works to the public,” said Amparwon Pichalai, CEO of SACICT.

The handmade bag is now available at the store while the teddy bears with natural-dye cotton outfits and the woven trays will follow shortly afterwards. For more information, visit http://www.Starbucks.co.th

Michelle Leon from the US and the third runner-up in last year’s pageant acted as emcee and welcomed Nawat Itsaragrisil, president of Miss Grand International Organisation, Tran Minh Tien, chairman of Let’s Viet TV channel’s Lasta Multimedia, the sponsor of the event, and the judges, Vo Thi Phuong Anh, of Sun Spa Resort & Paradise Cape, Theresa Chaiwisut, vice chairman of Miss Grand International, Miss Grand International 2016 Ariska Putri Pertiwi and Vietnamese designer Le Si Hoang.

The judges decided on the 10 best national costumes but kept them secret, instead inviting fans to vote for their 15 favourites at the pageant’s Facebook page. The costumes that receive the most votes will be combined with the judges’ selection, cut to 10 and the winner announced at Musical Water Fountain Stage of Vinpearl land on October 25 at 8pm.

Today is the swimsuit competition at Vinpearl Phu Quoc Resort & Golf on Phu Quoc Island. The semi-finals take place on October 23 and the final on October 25.

Watch all shows live at Facebook Live: MissGrandinternational or http://www.MissGrandInternational.com.

Book Expo Thailand 2017 – one of the largest annual book trade events in Thailand – opens today at Queen Sirikit National Convention Centre and, this year, as befitting the year of mourning, celebrates the life of His Majesty the late King Bhumibol Adulyadej.

“We have a new logo and corporate identity this year,” says Suchada Sahasakul, the new president of the Publishers and Booksellers Associations of Thailand (Pubat). “The world is going through major changes and the country has now entered the digital era, Thailand 4.0 as it’s known. To make sure the book business can survive the tough times ahead, we must adopt new ways of thinking as well as technological innovations, bringing a tangible and visible meaning to the world of reading.

“Our new logo represents both the book business and reading. We are also setting up a booth to present our organisation and its aims and hosting a seminar. Visitors will find our information centre next to Thailand Post,” Suchada says.

“Pubat’s new corporate identity is all about friendliness, simplicity and internationalism,” adds graphic designer Wichit Horyingsawad. “The new logo has a modern, geometric design and is both easy to remember and informal. It consists of three circles and three lines. The circles represent to publisher, seller and distributor as the main organisations of Pubat and will be printed on souvenir T-shirts, caps and bags.”

The theme too is unforgettable – “Khwam Song Jam” (“Memory”) in remembrance of His Majesty the late King Bhumibol Adulyadej.

“It is only appropriate that the book circle comes together with readers in mourning the passing of His Majesty the late King. The theme focuses on his books and souvenirs and features an exhibition set out in chronological order that looks at the

late King’s seven decades on the throne, along with royal projects and his books. It is like a timeline of Thailand. For example, the first decade is about His Majesty’s studies overseas and his first literary work, ‘When I Left Siam for Switzerland’, which was published for the first time in 1946. In 1947, the late King granted permission to publish his literary work in the monthly magazine Wong Wannakhadee. In his book, he stated: ‘If the people don’t abandon me, how can I abandon them?’ This rare magazine will be also displayed at the exhibition courtesy of Paisarn Piemmettawat, the managing director of River Books. We have Paisarn’s permission to make copies of magazine and distribute them to people coming to the expo,” says the new Pubat president.

“I found 30 rare magazines at a book stall in Sanam Luang more than 30 years ago, and one of these carried an episode of the late King’s first |

literary work spread over 14 pages together with rare photos,” says Paisarn Piemmettawat, an avid collection of old books and photos with more than 30,000 titles in his personal library.

Several more exhibitions are sharing space with the 939 booths of 389 publishers spread out over an area of 20,000 square metres. They include “9 Soo Sawan Kalai” (“King Rama IX Will Rest in Peace in the Heaven”), a photo exhibition by Baan Phra Arthit Publishing, “Khob Fah Klib Thong … Song Thang Rao Kawee-Cheewit-Ochigny”, which looks at the life of poet Orchigmy, as well as “100 Annual Book and Cover Design 2017” covering the methods of book making.

“It’s difficult to judge from a cover whether a book is fiction or non-fiction. Fiction usually uses more fonts and non-fiction more pictures. We are using the exhibition to showcase the new laminating method through 99 titles. Some of these will later travel to Germany for the Frankfurt Book Fair as well as to Taiwan for the Taipei International Book Exhibition,” says Suluck Visavapattamawon, the Pubat’s vice president.

The book expo also features daily seminars on the topic “9 Days 9 Memories Tha Sathit Nai Jai Thai Nirand” and will be led by former prime minister Chuan Leekpai, Pol Gen Vasit Dejkunchorn and Dr Danai Owattanapanich as well as other new authors. The talks will be held every evening at 6, except for October 25-26, days on which they be replaced with a live telecast of the royal cremation ceremony at Sanam Luang.

Thailand Post, which has been part of the expo for the last decade, is using the event to launch three sets of commemorative stamps on October 25, the first day of the ceremony. The first set features nine portraits of the late King created in pastels by Suvit Tangsombat. The second set has three stamps relating to components of the royal cremation ceremony, namely the Royal Urn, the Palanquin with Three Poles and the Great Victory Chariot, all with a backdrop of Dusit Maha Prasat Throne Hall. The last set “Phra Merumas” shows the Royal Crematorium with a blue sky above it and mourners below.

“The stamp is still a symbol of a country. For Thailand, it is like the national archives, running from 1883, the year the first stamp was released, to the present day. We are displaying 79 sets and 353 stamps honouring the late King at Bangkok General Post Office until the end of this month,” says Wibul Serichaiporn, marketing manager of Thailand Post’s Stamp Service.

“We are also producing a limited edition of a stamp book, titled ‘2493 Phuea Prayot Suk Haeng Maha Chon Chao Siam’ featuring the five longest stamps in the world and three sets of the royal cremation ceremony as well as posters.”

Pubat has also created two bookmark collections made of metal, and wood and leather string. The metal bookmark features three icons of the late King – his car, camera and dog – plus his quotes – while the wood and leather bookmarks take the form of the late King’s hand gestures accompanied by royal words. All come in a limited edition run of 9,999 pieces.

BETWEEN THE LINES

•   Book Expo Thailand 2017 kicks off today at Queen Sirikit National Convention Centre and runs through October 29.
•  It’s open daily from 10am to 9pm.
•  Find out more by visiting http://www.Pubat.or.th/index.

Running from Saturday (October 21) to October 27, the project brings together flower vendors, the public and volunteers from across the country to take part in decorating six remarkable floral arches using millions of flowers. The exhibition will be held along a 400-metre-long stretch of Chakphet Road and each floral arch displays different meanings about the deep feeling of love and loyalty the Thai people have for the late Monarch.

The first arch called “Thais” features an astonishing floral tunnel designed to resemble a dazzling fabric. The length of the tube is 89 metres to represent His Majesty’s age when he died. The edge of the tunnel is decorated with pure white flowers, while different colours are gradually added to grow into the colours of the Thai flag.

The second arch called “The Rain” is inspired by the famous picture of the granny Tum Channit holding a wilting lotus flower while waiting patiently to greet the late King . The picture was taken in the year 1955, during his visit to Nakhon Phanom Province. The meaning of this flora arch implies that King Bhumibol’s graciousness is like the rain, or showers of blessing, which revive withered flowers and lets them become blooms in Thai hearts. This arch uses lotus flowers to simulate a stream of water. A floating lotus implies that the principles of the late King help enlighten people.

“The Imprint” is the title of the third arch and is fashioned into the shape of a mountain range in Thailand’s north. It is decorated with bountiful chrysanthemums mixed in with other flowers that grow in the north and become the floriculture products that drive the local economy.

Then comes the “Home” arch boasting an assortment of 77 daffodils in the shape of Thailand. This decorative arch conveys the meaning of the love that Thai people, from all 77 provinces have for King Bhumibol.

The fifth one is “King Rama IX” arch decorated with marigolds – their yellow the symbolic colour of the day on which the late Monarch was born – in the shape of the Thai numeral nine.

The last one “Montarop” represents a heaven’s gate and is exquisitely decorated with montarop flowers, or magnolia, which is believed to originate in heaven.

For further information about the exhibition, visit “ChumchonPakKlongTalad” page on Facebook.

With signature designs and consistent concepts of thoughtful resource utility, natural style, simplicity and no-brand branding, Muji has won the hearts of consumers around the world while also delighting designers interested in strong concepts.

As part of the celebrations marking Central’s 70 years in business, “What is Muji?” and “The Core of Muji Designs” deliver the thoughts and ideas behind the designs and probe further into the brand’s philosophy of products manufacturing.

Satoru Matsuzaki, president and representative director of Ryohin Keikaku, and designer Naoto Fukasawa made the trip to Bangkok to introduce the several limited edition items that will be sold in the exhibition.

Yuwadee Chirathivat, chief executive officer of Central Group said: “It has been 10 years since we brought Muji to Thailand and the feedback from Thai customers has been amazing. After the success on our first branch at Central Chidlom, we expanded fast, and today have 14 branches in Bangkok and across major cities in Thailand, to accommodate the demand of Muji’s quality products. We are delighted to be hosting this exhibition to celebrate our 70^th anniversary and to inspire new generations of designers.”

The products in the exhibition are designed by Fukasawa and include Right Angle Socks – designed with a 90-degree angle at the sole imitating life-size feet to be a perfect fit and stay tight around the ankles, Mattress with Legs, the frame-free mattress with a strong wooden base for support that serves as both bed or a sofa, and the award-winning Wall Mounted CD Player in a space-saving compact size.

Among the limited editions on sale are Fukasawa’s biography (50 copies), the Aluminium Hard Carry Bag in 34-litre and 60-litre sizes (20 pieces), the Solar Watch (30 pieces) and the Park Watch (20).

The Muji Flagship Store at Zen CentralWorld is also celebrating the brand by offering exclusive services including the “Muji Yourself”  decorating station, an interior consultation  service by design experts and “Doi Tung – ‘Shokoku Ryohin”, which brings together quality local products from each province.

“What is Muji” continues through October 1.

Camper was founded in 1975 in Mallorca, Spain as a family-run business dedicated to creating original footwear concepts. Today the company sells around 4 million pairs of shoes annually, has more than 400 stores, and is available in 40 countries.

Camper’s heritage stems back almost 140 years when the Fluxa family began making handcrafted shoes using the high quality materials and latest manufacturing processes and machinery. Its approach to footwear design is to create unisex concepts that blur the boundaries between sporty and smart. Hybrid models now feature prominently across the collection and combine familiar features with fresh elements to create new styles infused with the new spirit of evolution.

The exhibition displays the brand’s first shoe, the Camaleon, which was inspired by the footwear of local farmworkers. The unisex style was a sustainable model, made of surplus offcuts of leather, worn out tyres, and strips of canvas. “Twins” was created in 1988, when Camper decided to challenge the idea that shoes must be identical. Reception for this playful concept was overwhelming and has resulted in collaborations with several of Spain’s best-known artists. Pelotas, one of Camper’s most influential and recognisable icons, became hugely popular in the mid-nineties. Inspired by the pioneers of sport, each Pelotas model is infused with a different sporting passion but always features the characteristic 87 balls on the outsole. The concept has been reinvented many times, from the classic retro leather upper to the technical materials of more futuristic designs. Pelotas has sold over 11 million pairs to date.

The Wabi shoe gets its name from stems from the verb “Wabiru” which means to ask for forgiveness. Created by Camper in 2000, this concept emphasizes the contradiction between rural and urban, inside and out. Wabi represents production innovation by reducing the production process down to just four steps and using minimal components.

Also on display are old posters of interesting Camper’s Ad campaign such as the one that belongs to the T37 campaign (A/W 1993-1994) and was designed by the graphic designer, sculptor and illustrator Pere Torrent.

Synology’s DS418j is a four-bay NAS server with which you can easily create your private cloud storage.

It’s like having a computer to which you can attach up to four internal hard disks – either 2.5 or 3.5inch – ending up with as many as 40 extra terabytes of storage. (That’s if you use four 10TB hard drives, of course.)

The server will also help you manage, protect and share your data conveniently, but there’s much more to it.

Among other features, the Synology NAS can stream video content to a smart TV and music to WiFi players. It can become your centralised backup storage for any and all home computers.

A Realtek RTD1293 dualcore 64bit processor running at 1.4GHz provides the power and 1GB of DDR4 RAM provides the operating memory.

The four drive bays are ready for a 3.5-inch SATA hard drive, a 2.5-inch SATA HDD and a 2.5-inch SSD (solid state drive).

And all of this is fairly compact. The DS418j measures 184x168x230mm, so it sits comfortably on your desk or beside your home router. It only weighs 2.21 kilograms.

Performancewise, it’s pretty amazing, reading encrypted data at better than 112MB/s and encrypted-writing 87 MB/s. Eco-friendly, it consumes a mere 21.22 watts while in use and 8.97 in HDD hibernation.

It’s really easy to set up. I simply undid the four screws by hand at the back to remove the cover. There you see the four plastic drive racks, ready for hard drives to be mounted using a screwdriver and the provided screws. Then you just push the racks back in place and reattach the cover.

Now you need to install DiskStation Manager 6.1 software, for which you need a LAN cable. Hook it up, turn the server on, and you see a network drive displayed on your Windows Explorer.

Click that for the prompt to download and install DiskStation Manager.

Be warned that you must use a blank drive during installation, because the software will reformat your drive and erase all existing data.

After installation, another prompt appears to register for an account with Synology via email. You need that to get a server name with QuickConnect service. (I chose “PaisalDrive”.)

With the server name and QuickConnect service, you can access your content on the DS418j from any Web browser. Just type http://quick¬connect.to/PaisalDrive.

During installation you’ll see another prompt to create a username and password for accessing content on the drives inside the DS418j, including remotely.

Now you’ve got your own private cloud following you around everywhere. No more hassles setting up port-forwarding rules, DDNs or other complicated network settings.

The DiskStation Manager-enabled functions of the DS418j can be expanded with various utilities available for download.

You can, for example, easily share the storage space with family, friends or colleagues, creating a user-account for each person. They can access and share anything that’s not designated as private and kept in a personal folder.

The DSM browser-based user interface allows you to easily organise and share everything in File Station mode. Files are moved and uploaded with a simple drag-and-drop.

In File Station, you can create file links and file requests to share large files in storage. File Station also allows for full content search in case you forget a particular file’s name. In Document Viewer you can look at files without having to download and open them in Microsoft Office or iWork.

Best of all, File Station can connect to your public cloud accounts, such as Dropbox and Google Drive, to check on files or move them over to your NAS.

Download Station allows you to pull files off the Internet through several different protocols – BT, FTP, HTTP, NZB, Thunder, FlashGet, QQDL and eMule. It can also search for torrents directly, so you can download large files without having to keep your desktop or notebook computer running.

For a home user like me, the fun of the DS418j is Video Station on the Synology DSM. Video Station is a powerful app for storing and organising movies, TV shows, home video and RV recordings. And all of this can be streamed to your computer, phone, tablet or TV set.

Then there’s Audio Station for building a personal music centre and streaming your favourite tunes from the DS418j with your computer, phone, DLNA, AirPlay device or Apple Watch.

Photo Station lets you share pictures with everyone as well keeping them all in one central location.

Once the DSM 6.1 is installed, you see folders for storing video, photos and audio files for these stations to stream.

Then you use Synology mobile apps to access the content on your DS418j. There are apps for iOS, Android and Windows phones – DS video, DS audio, DS photo and DS cloud.

DS video supports Apple TV, Android TV, DLNA TVs, Chromecast, Samsung TVs and the Roku player. Use this to watch videos on the NAS or stream them to your TV set. DS photo also supports Apple TV and Android TV.

I found I could quickly and easily transfer files from my notebook computer to the DS418j using File Station. DS video and DS photos streamed content from the DS418j via Apple TV without a problem and the video played smoothly and the photos were displayed instantly.

The DS418j comes with two USB 3.0 ports and the Synology DSM 6.1 has USB Copy 2.0 app that allows you to control which folders and where the files are transferred.

Surveillance Station lets the DS418j be used as storage for your security camera recordings. It’s compatible with more than 5,200 different IP cameras.

You can watch live feeds, play back recordings, receive instant alarms and manage camera settings.

Synology DS418j has a suggested retail price of Bt10,920.

KEY SPECS

– CPU: Realtek RTD1293 64bit dualcore 1.4GHz

– Memory: 1GB DDR4

– Drive bays: Four compatible with 3.5-inch, 2.5-inch drives with 40TB maximum capacity

– External ports: One LAN (1GbE) port, two USB 3.0 ports

– File system: Internal drive – EXT4, external drives – EXT4, EXT3, FAT, NTFS, HFS+, exFAT

– Supported RAI type: Synology Hybrid RAID, Basic, JBOD, RAID 0, RAID 1, RAID 5, RAID 6, RAID 10

– File-sharing capacity: Maximum local user accounts 1,024

– System fans: Two, each 80x80mm

– Dimensions: 184x168x230mm

– Weight without hard drives: 2.21kg

You have a phone and you love taking pictures of yourself and your gang. You need the ZenFone 4 Selfie from Asus.

It’s not only got dual selfie cameras, it’s also got a selfie app. With this combination, you’re guaranteed to get great 20-megapixel shots of The One and Only as well as enviable wide-angle “wefie” shots of you among your many admirers.

You’ll be famous even if you’re not famous.

The dual-camera system combines a standard view for 20-megapixel shots and an 8MP wide-angle camera with a 120-degree field of view.

On the front camera’s screen, you see a human-type icon at the bottom, above the shutter. If it’s a single character, the focus belongs to you and you alone (20MP at 31mm-equivalent focal length).

Tap it to turn the single character into a mob of three characters and you’re ready to share the limelight (12mm-equivalent focal length in a 35mm film camera).

The optics are quite good considering that you’re now seeing 200-percent more posing space, which is ample room for a large wedge of friends plus neighbouring scenery.

The Softlight LED flash delivers plenty of fill light, almost like pro studio conditions, so everyone’s skin will look soft and shiny. You’ll be so popular!

Portrait mode blurs the background so that the central subject stands out more. Again, the result seems almost professional.

Beauty mode performs pro-quality image retouching and enhancement. It will soften the complexion, lighten the skin, remove blemishes, enlarge the eyes and define the cheeks. All of this is done automatically in this mode, but manual fine-tuning is also possible.

The SelfieMaster app adds more fun to the process. If you haven’t been “enhanced” enough already, this is where you go full-tilt glamorous.

There are 10 levels of beautification to choose from. Wrinkles, acne and the like don’t stand a chance, and it can be used in video and live streaming as well. Smart photo editing will also let you create collages and slideshows to share with friends.

The 16MP rear camera has phase detection autofocus and, thanks to the 26mm-equivalent focal length, shots of scenery can be quite dramatic.

Pro mode enables full control of shooting parameters, including white balance, exposure, focus and ISO. You can set the shutter speed anywhere from 1/16,000 of a second to 32 seconds, with the long exposures opening up terrific possibilities for images of light trails and the night sky, normally the stuff of DSLR cameras.

The ZenFone 4 Selfie is a beauty with its metallic finish of concentric circles that shimmer as the device is turned. Up front is an elegantly curved 2.5D glass display. The phone comes in Sunlight Gold, Rose Pink, Deepsea Black and Mint Green.

There are two nanoSIM card slots and a microSD slot that will take memory cards of up to 2TB. So even when both SIM slots are in use, you can still boost the storage capacity.

The phone’s power comes from a Qualcomm Snapdragon 430 octacore processor running at 1.4GHz. An Adreno 505 GPU handles graphic tasks. You’ve got 4GB of working memory (RAM) and 64GB of internal storage.

The CPU isn’t as fast as the best that Qualcomm makes, but the phone performs fine and isn’t slow by any means.

A fingerprint sensor integrated in the home button lets you unlock the phone in a mere three-tenths of a second and will recognise the fingerprint anywhere within 360 degrees. You can scan up to five fingers.

Fast Internet connection is possible, as I found testing the phone with TrueMove H’s 4G LTE network. Backing up photos to the cloud and downloading apps are done very quickly. The Ookla Speedtest app measured download speed at 60.1Mbps and uploads at 30.27Mbps.

The ZenFone 4 Selfie can play 24bit/192kHz High-Resolution Audio files. I put on my Sony MDR1ABT HiRes Audio headphones and was fully impressed with the music quality.

The Asus ZenFone 4 Selfie has a suggested retail price of Bt8,990.

KEY SPECS

– Network: LTE Cat 4, HSPA+, GSM

– Operating system: Android 7.1

– CPU: Qualcomm Snapdragon 430 1.4GHz octacore

– Memory: 4GB

– Storage: 64GB, expandable with microSD up to 2TB

– Display: 5.5inch IPS with 720×1,280 pixels

– Rear camera: 16MP with 26mm-equivalent focal length lens

– Main front camera: 20MP with f/2.0, 31mm lens

– Second front camera: 8MP with 120-degree wide-angle 12mm-equivalent focal length 6p lens

– Wireless connectivity: 802.11 b/g/n, Bluetooth 4.0, WiFi direct

– Navigation: GPS, AGPS, GLO, BDS

– SIM cards: Dual nano

– Sensors: Fingerprint, accelerator, ecompass, gyroscope, proximity, ambient light

– Battery: 3,000mAh

– Dimensions: 155.66×76.2×7.85mm

– Weight: 144 grams