Author: Duncan Pike

The Huawei Nova Y9a isn’t particularly new and it doesn’t offer anything particularly unique or interesting to talk about. It was originally released in September 2020 in other parts of the world but only found its way to South Africa this year. It is officially priced at R6,500 but, depending on where you look, you should be able to find it for less. And just as well. At R6,500 it’s competing with the likes of Xiaomi’s Redmi Note 11 Pro. That device doesn’t have to find workarounds to not having Google Mobile Services (GMS) and ships with up-to-date tech, making…

Before they were released, there were murmurs that the current generation of gaming consoles from Sony and Microsoft would be the last. Cloud gaming was the new hot thing, with everyone trying to get in on the action. Well, a job listing on AMD’s LinkedIn page suggests that we’ll be getting at least one more generation of consoles. Calling all System-on-Chip Verification Engineers AMD is responsible for the custom-designed SoCs (system-on-chip) powering the PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series consoles. Those are based on AMD’s RDNA 2 architecture. AMD is now on the hunt for a verification engineer. They’re needed, specifically,…

For those of you who don’t know, last week Thursday, 5 May, was World Password Day. Why do passwords need a day? If you have to ask, then you’re part of the problem. The day was marked in 2013 by Intel Security as the first Thursday of May every year. The intention was to create awareness of and advocate for good cybersecurity and password habits. This is… sadly lacking, especially among people who think that ‘Password1’ is a good password. To celebrate the occasion this year, Microsoft, Apple, and Google – the overlords of your personal info – announced plans…

Sony may have had the stones to launch its risky, open-back Linkbuds but it seems that was enough risk for the company. The latest leaks, courtesy of Jon Prosser, include a price and release date for the Linkbuds S. It might sound like these in-ears are sequels to the Linkbuds but the previously leaked design says otherwise. According to Prosser, we’ll be hearing more about the Linkbuds S from Sony on 18 May. They’ll apparently cost $200 (R3,200), a whole $20 (R320) more than their hole-bearing brothers. More true wireless options The whole open-back, totally transparent thing is nice, but…

Chinless third-gen Razr images have leaked Image: Evan Blass via 91Mobiles Images of the third generation of Motorola’s iconic Razr flip-phone have leaked. The most notable change is the loss of the chin that featured in previous generations of the phone. This one is also getting upgraded camera chops over its 2020 predecessor. These leaks come courtesy of notable leaker Evan Blass, via 91Mobiles.Apart from the loss of the chin, Motorola seems to have gone with a curvy look rather than the boxy design of the previous two. That all means, if these leaked photos are the real deal, that…

It hasn’t been a good couple of months for Sonos and keeping secrets. The company’s latest soundbar is all but official. The only thing we don’t know is when it will be available for purchase in South Africa and what the exact price will be. And how it will sound, of course. Rumours first emerged last month that Sonos had a new soundbar in the works with a more wallet-friendly price tag of $250 (around R4,000). Those rumours included renders showing off a smaller design, limited port selection, and a different arrangement of internal speakers. Then, Wednesday 5 May, Chris…

Sony’s WH-1000XM4 has long been regarded as one of the best sets of wireless Active Noise Cancellation (ANC) headphones you could get. We said as much in our review. Well, images of its successor have leaked and all we can say is, it’s about time. The XM4 was released in August of 2020. It has since enjoyed its spot in the top 5 of most reviewers’ lists. The XM5 will look to, at the very least, continue Sony’s streak and improve on what was already a great package. The leaks, courtesy of The Walkman Blog, are a little light on…

Huawei’s latest smartphone to launch in the country, the nova Y70 Plus, aims to make its mark in the wallet-friendly market segment. Just like all the other smartphone manufacturers out there. Huawei obviously hopes that its features will persuade customers to choose its smartphone over all the others. This is a budget device, so don’t expect every bell and whistle. Or even most of them. Huawei picked a few areas to focus on; namely the battery, the screen, and the price. Light on the wallet but you’ll likely pay elsewhere The nova Y70 Plus doesn’t take risks in the design…

Telegram is gearing up to offer a premium subscription tier, if the latest iOS beta is anything to go by. A range of stickers and reaction emojis were uncovered in the iOS 8.72 beta. When selected, users are asked to sign up for a premium service in order to make use of the stickers, according to an Android Authority report. Help keep Telegram’s lights on Telegram has been free pretty much since it launched. It’s about time we saw something like this. Last year was the first time the company earned revenue, thanks to premium features and an ad platform.…

Coca-Cola releases its first flavour for gamers, but why? Coca-Cola isn’t the first soft drink company to attempt to cosy up with gamer culture. We’re sure it won’t be the last. The one to do it the best was arguably Mountain Dew, best seen in the MLG Montage parody days of the late 2000s. That’s not going to stop Coke from trying to squeeze its way into the conversation – and people’s mouths. Coca-Cola Byte is the latest experiment from Coca-Cola Creations, the division that brought Coca-Cola Starlight to select shelves last year. SA shelves missed out there and we’ll…