Author: Brett Venter

Yes, yes, we know that the last dessert-themed Android OS was Android 9 Pie. Perhaps because Android 10 Q is really hard to find a sweet treat for (but actually because Android is a global thing and desserts are… not as universal as numbers). But upcoming launch Android 11 has a cake-themed codename, based on the letter ‘R’. According to Android’s vice president of engineering Dave Burke, the internal codename for the OS is RVC or Red Velvet Cake. Everything is cake If you were on social media at all in the past few weeks, you’d have seen folks going…

Hey kids, do you want to get paid to post things to TikTok? Well, you can’t, yet, but that’s because you’re not an American. The short video service has launched a US-based fund called the TikTik Creator Fund, which will see (some) TikTok users getting a cut of $200 million (or about R3.35 billion). Money for nothing The point of the funding initiative, according to TikTok, is to “…help support ambitious creators who are seeking opportunities to foster a livelihood through their innovative content.” Basically, it wants talented content creators to stick around and make a living on the service…

Work, right? Nobody seems to have enough of it and making a change to your situation right now seems like a silly thing to do. After all, who could possibly be hiring? Actually, according to Microsoft, that’s not strictly true. Going Global Microsoft has identified several in-demand jobs and has put together the resources needed to train people to perform those jobs. Called the Global Skills Initiative, the program aims to advance up to 25 million people in various digital skills by the end of the year. And, of course, we’re only talking about it because the program is now…

All the Samsung-watching eyes might be on 5 August’s Galaxy Unpacked event, which is only in a couple of weeks, but immediately afterwards there will be a new target for your attentions. It’s something the South Korean company calls Life Unstoppable, which is a hopefully-justified burst of optimism in an otherwise terrible-so-far year. A what now? The whole point of the oddball title seems to want to prompt the question, “What is a Life Unstoppable?” If this was the Marvel universe, it would describe the Juggernaut rather well. Here in reality… well, Samsung’ explains that it’s “…45-minute virtual and dynamic…

Here’s one that’s sure to rile the conspiracy theorists up — the South African government has a new policy in the works that would allow mobile networks to build cellular infrastructure like towers or 5G stations on your property. They wouldn’t have to ask you about it, either. More… tell you that it’s going to happen. In the name of progress The point is to accelerate the deployment of communications networks in South Africa, which means that you’re not really being given a choice. According to Dear South Africa, the policy “…gives mobile networks and other licensees the right to…

Look, we’re all for the idea of foldable smartphones. Everybody seems to be working on one, with the notable exception of LG (who have gone the cover-as-second-screen route) and Apple (and even then there is… talk) but we’ve only really seen Samsung’s folding handsets on the market here in South Africa. We’ve gone hands-on with Huawei’s Mate X here in South Africa but we haven’t got a clue when or where you’ll be able to get one. The Motorola RAZR is an interesting take on folding smartphone tech but we’ll probably never see it officially supported in SA. But Samsung……

LG’s known for its TV screens, with some of the best OLED panels in the world coming from the South Korean company. So it’s always an exciting time when the company’s newest sets for the year drop. That time is now, as LG’s got five models due in South Africa for the month of July. But the best is still to come, as there’s a second batch due to launch in September 2020 as well. Pricing may vary However, we’ve only got pricing for the July sets at this point so let’s take a look at those first. First up…

Unless you’ve been hiding in a monastery without WiFi the last six months, you know that the world is a very different place than it was in 2019. And 2020 was supposed to be everyone’s good year. No matter, part of this new situation is having to cope with new things — something South Africa’s busy getting a handle on. SA’s Department of Health has launched a new SMS and WhatsApp service aimed at making info around COVID-19 a little easier to manage. What’s it do? COVIDConnect is a fairly simple contact tracing system for South African users. It’ll be…

This seems to be a theme for the impending launch of Microsoft hardware in this country but Apple… may have to keep an eye on its market share. Case in point, the Microsoft Surface Laptop 3, which is a direct competitor to the Apple MacBook Pro. At present we know they’re similarly priced at the bottom end of the scale but it’s at the top end that Apple tends to get carried away. Microsoft, depending on how much power (at a cheaper price) it can offer users, might steal some of Apple’s lunch. We’re fine with that. Apple’s dominance in…

We’ve already taken a look at the Crosscall Core-T4 rugged 8in tablet, which is aimed at industry here in South Africa, but there’s also a pair of smartphones incoming from the French company. These are the Crosscall Core-X4 and its smaller companion, the Core-M4. No, the M4 doesn’t go faster. Both handsets are constructed with toughness in mind, with IP68 support being common across the range. Basically, it’ll take a while (30 minutes at two metres) for the ocean to destroy your device. But the ocean destroys everything, eventually. Both are MIL-STD-810 tested, and both can handle temperatures between -25° to…