Author: Brett Venter

One of the largest pains from Amazon’s Kindle store is that every book you download has some form of digital rights management (DRM). Well, that’s going way. In some cases. If the publisher wants it to. The change was officially announced by the online retailer back in December last year, but now conversions of books to DRM-free ePub and PDF formats are out in the real world. These versions are easily transferred to another device — even if it’s outside of the Kindle ecosystem. Protecting the Amazon Amazon’s switchover was set to come into effect on 20 January, so the first…

Artificial intelligence may be everywhere you can bring a smartphone or a web browser, but it has yet to saturate people. Products like the Notta Memo and the Plaud Note hope to change that. Small, flat gadgets that incorporate microphones and other innards, these are built to link what you do every day (like… talking to other humans) to AI services (that don’t involve talking to other humans). These are just among the opening salvos from various companies, looking to exploit AI before the entire bubble pops. Humane’s effort famously died (it didn’t work the way they said it did),…

Exactly how versatile do you need your smartphone to be? If your requirements include a full 1080p projector, the 8849 Tank X might be just what you’ve always been dreaming of. The brand, which has several Tank and Shark models in its rugged roster, includes just that feature in its latest handset. Plus, a massive battery so you can actually use the thing away from a wall socket. Tank X projector The rest of the Tank X lives up to the name. The phone weighs in at 750 grams, so it’s not intended for casual carrying around. Inside its hefty,…

Volvo has been teasing its newest EV since late last year and, last night, finally unveiled its new EX60. The surprise at the event was the inclusion of a second model of its electric vehicle, the EX60 Cross Country. Guess what that one does? If your guess was ‘Pretty much what the base model does, but on different wheels,’ you’re… actually most of the way there. Wheels “that are exclusive to Cross Country models,” an extra 20mm of ride height with a further 20mm available via adjustment, and Cross Country branding are the main factors. That, and two different all-wheel-drive…

Huawei already sells a couple of generations of smart glasses, but the Chinese company could have something new on the way. A report out of China (via Weibo) suggests that the company’s newest eyewear (or Eyewear, if you’re big on branding) will have more advanced features. This tracks, since there’s little point in walking back your hardware, no matter who you are. The new glasses will reportedly feature AI, because of course they will, and should be capable of simultaneous translations. Huawei wearing these? There are no visuals of the apparent next-generation smart glasses yet. Instead, we’re taking the word…

Sony’s Bravia lineup is a routinely excellent one, but they’re notoriously difficult to buy in South Africa. TCL’s TVs, on the other hand, are exceedingly simple to purchase. The newest business development involving both companies has us hopeful that one day Bravias will be on shelves everywhere in SA. Sony and TCL have announced, via a joint statement, that the Japanese company is turning the reins of its TV business over to the Chinese company. This doesn’t mean the PlayStation maker is stepping back from its television business altogether, however. Sony, and yet so far Under the terms of the…

We first saw Reflect Orbital’s goofy idea to send mirrors into space to reflect light onto dark areas of the planet back in 2024. Back then, it was pitched as a ‘sunlight on demand’ sort of thing. Now, it appears to have evolved enough to request an FCC license. Whether it’ll see the request granted or ever turn into a viable enterprise remains to be seen, but the company has secured enough interest to give an actual mirror launch a shot. The timeline for an actual orbital mirror is reportedly in April 2026, but it won’t actually beam any light…

NASA’s Artemis program might actually launch Artemis II in the next few weeks. The agency has rolled its SLS (Space Launch System) rocket and its Orion capsule payload onto the tarmac in preparation for takeoff. Since Artemis 1 lifted off in 2022, it’s probably time to send the next mission. Provided this new (manned) rocket passes all of its system checks and the upcoming wet dress rehearsals, at any rate. Should all go as expected, and NASA will be extra careful with a crew sitting on top of the massive explosive, Artemis II will be dispatched on a 10-day round…

Casio has been playing hard in the special edition space with its wristwatches, but we weren’t expecting the company’s calculators to get similar treatment. There are two new versions of the Japanese company’s JF-M200-TJ on the way, with a home country release initially, and a global launch planned after. Casio’s wave function And you’ll want one, even if it just does… whatever it is that an advanced calculator does (hint: They teach you how to Sin, of Cos). That’s because of their visual designs, both courtesy of Japanese ukiyo-e artist Hokusai. Even if you’ve never heard of the man, you’ve…

We’ve been expecting them to turn up, and they have. Honor’s Magic 8 Pro Air and 8 RSR Porsche Design handsets were unveiled alongside each other. While they’re aimed at very different users, both handsets have something in common — Honor hasn’t stuffed around with the camera tech. Of course, the RSR Porsche Design model was always going to go just a little harder, helped along by the thicker profile and its attendant internal space. But the 8 Pro Air is no slouch, especially for a smartphone that measures just 6.1mm through its middle. Magic 8 ball The interior of…