Author: Duncan Pike

When you ask Android fans what it is about the operating system that makes it better (in their opinion) than iOS, one of the more cited reasons is that Android allows users to sideload apps. Sideloading refers to the practice of downloading and installing an app on your phone that you didn’t get from an official app store, like the Google Play Store, Samsung’s Galaxy Store or Xiaomi’s Mi App Store. You can’t do this on an iPhone. If you can’t find an app you’re looking for on the App Store, then you’re outta luck. Be careful what you sideload…

Not to be outdone by any of the country’s other mobile operators, Telkom is the latest to cut prices of its 1GB and 1.5GB mobile data packages by just enough to make it the cheapest prepaid prices. The telecoms company announced in a press release on Monday, 6 September that it was dropping the price of the 1GB package from R100 to R80 and the 1.5GB from R140 to R90. With these new prices, the company now offers the cheapest 1GB and 1.5GB mobile packages in the country when it comes to prepaid. Of course, Rain’s data prices are still…

An electric Benz - It's what Karl would've wanted Image: Mercedes-Benz Mercedes-Benz has unveiled the new concept for an electric version of the classic G-Wagen, the Concept EQG. While this concept is the first look we've had at the G-Class addition to the EQ range, it isn't too much of a surprise. Back in 2018 when the

This is one of those classic ‘there are no proper verifiable sources, but it kinda makes sense’ type deals. According to “sources with knowledge on the matter” (whatever that means), Amazon is close to launching its own branded TVs. According to those ambiguous sources, the company plans to release a TV designed in-house as well as contract it out to third parties, like TLC. The TVs will range from 55in to 75in, have Alexa functionality built-in and presumably run Amazon’s Fire TV OS. These Amazon waters are muddy It is unclear if these new in-house designed TVs will be a…

Realme, an emerging tech company based in India and China, will launch the brand’s first tablet offering on the 9th of September. That’s next week Thursday. Realme CEO Madhav Sheth tweeted the announcement this morning.  Realme is padding the tablet market https://twitter.com/MadhavSheth1/status/1433648671040552961 From the tweet and the company’s event page on its website, it looks like one of the key selling points is it’s slightly thinner than the competition. No mention of which competition that is. From the image, it looks like an Android tablet but that doesn’t really narrow it down.  We hope there is more to the tablet than the…

If you thought Xiaomi, the world’s second-largest smartphone maker, had finished making the news, you’d be mistaken. The Chinese tech company has officially launched its new Electric Vehicle business, aptly named Xiaomi EV Inc. Lei Jun, Xiaomi’s CEO, announced that he would be heading the venture and that it would be his last. “I am willing to put all my personal reputation on the line and fight for the future of our smart electric vehicle,” said Lei in March when the company first announced plans to enter the EV sector. Xiaomi zooms into another sector According to Nikkei Asia, Xiaomi has…

The next Microsoft event will take place on the 22nd of September at 17:00, during which the company will debut the latest Surface hardware. https://twitter.com/Microsoft/status/1433082292663209993 While it didn’t say as much in its Tweet, the signs are pretty clear. The company’s page for the event shows off what looks to be the next iteration of the Surface Pro X, the company’s 2-in-1 ARM-based laptop. The company usually holds its hardware-focused events around this time of year. With the launch of Windows 11 being so close, what better way to show off the new OS than with new tech to go with it?…

News about Microsoft’s new operating system Windows 11 continues to roll out as we near the launch and we finally have a date for when that’ll be. Late yesterday Microsoft announced the official date it’ll be making the upgrade to Windows 11 available: 5 October 2021. As with the Windows 10 rollout, Microsoft will stagger the rollout for 11, making it available to newer eligible Windows 10 PC users as a free upgrade first. That’s if you’ve got an activated Windows 10 licence (you wouldn’t steal a Windows). The free upgrade won’t be available to everyone right away. You might…

When some people say something is too good to be true, they aren’t talking about the Xiaomi Redmi Note 10 Pro. A still relatively unknown brand in South Africa, Xiaomi has been on a rapid and steady incline in the global smartphone market over the last couple of years. Recently, it overtook Samsung as the top smartphone manufacturer in Europe thanks to the 67.1% year-on-year growth in Q2 2021. Xiaomi has found itself in a very similar position to pre-2019 Huawei before trade bans from the US all but killed its stake in the global smartphone market. That position — providing high-quality,…

The global smartwatch market has seen significant year on year growth from Q2 2020 to Q2 of 2021, according to a new report by Counterpoint. While Apple maintained its lead, Samsung has snuck up behind and overtaken Chinese smartwatch maker Imoo to claim the third spot with a 7.6% market share. Apple still sits ahead of the pack with 28%, down from 30.1% in Q2 2020. Huawei is currently in second place, but not by much. Its current 9.3% market share is down 3.8% from the 13.1% it held last year.  Counterpoint cites the popularity of the Galaxy Watch 3 and Watch Active…