Author: Brett Venter

Now is not a great time to be involved in advertising for social media companies as, spurring on by events in the States, large-scale advertisers have pulled their advertising budgets from the likes of Facebook, Twitter and YouTube, among other platforms. The most recent entities to pause their ad spend are Coca-Cola and Starbucks, with Coca-Cola’s global boycott kicking off from 1 July and continuing for the entire month. Starbuck, citing the effects of hate speech on social media, has also paused its campaigns “…while we continue discussions internally, with our media partners and with civil rights organizations in the…

Tech-makers, from Apple to Samsung and everyone in between, are super-keen on keeping you in their own little ecosystems — which might prompt you to ask a few questions about ‘Why’. But if you’re not in a question-asking mood, you might want to check out Huawei’s latest attempt to bring you into the fold: a pre-order special for the Watch GT 2e, which’ll net you a pair of Huawei Bluetooth sports headphones and a smart scale if you act fast(ish). What’s the big deal? Huawei really wants you to go out and buy its new Watch GT 2e fitness tracker/smartwatch…

If you weren’t a bit of a germaphobe before the events of the past few months, you’re probably a little along that road by now. Hand sanitiser, previously a ‘nice to have’, is now an essential monthly purchase if you’re planning on shopping in safety. Masks are worn (often poorly — there is a right way and a wrong way) everywhere and folks are generally more aware of germs. And now LG’s launching a little something for these virus-conscious times. Meet your new ‘buds LG’s got a pair of new true wireless earbuds on the way — the LG TONE…

When you mention Dell, people go one of two ways. Either they think you’re all business, or they get the right idea and start thinking along the lines of Alienware — the really exciting Dell division. But the company also has a middle-ground in their Dell-branded gaming kit. Which isn’t quite as ‘enthusiast’ as its Alienware stuff but isn’t nearly as stuffy as their office gear. It’s basically gaming in shorts and a T-shirt, as opposed to an esports jersey or a business suit. Clumsy metaphors aside, Dell announced this week a whole new crop of gear in its gaming…

Everyone knows at least one person who is a little too into their fashion brands. We’re not sure how many of those people are also a bit obsessive about gaming but the people at the middle of that particular Venn diagram have something to look forward to — an esports-themed Gucci wristwatch. Wait, seriously?  Pretty much. The Gucci wristwatch is currently available for pre-order for $1,620, or a little over R28,000. It was made in partnership with esports organisation Fnatic which has also partnered with BMW, OnePlus, and other notable brands. But there’s something special about it, right? Depends on…

It’s always sad when a tech company or brand goes away. But it’s just one of those things — something starts, something ends. And that’s the case with camera brand Olympus: the company is getting out of the camera game. Olympus announced that it would be offloading its imaging business in a statement explaining what would happen to the division. According to the statement, Olympus will be ” carv[ing] out Olympus’s Imaging business to a new company (“NewCo”) and subsequently transfer its shares to a fund managed, operated or otherwise handled by JIP”. Familiar territory JIP, in the statement above,…

Every year it’s the same thing. Apple announces new software at WWDC and we get all excited. But with annual software launches comes the annual culling of the devices. Some years the harvest is less devastating than others but Apple not supporting your devices is a little like Agent Smith — inevitable. New generations of operating system are on the way for all of Apple’s products in 2020, from the Apple Watch to the Apple iPad. But not everyone’s going to be joyfully updating when release day comes. Read on to find out if you’ll be upgrading your Apple hardware…

Last night was Apple’s first digital-only WWDC, a move brought on not by a need to innovate or to renovate the Steve Jobs Theatre, but by external circumstances. You know the ones. But that didn’t have to mean a lack of announcements, just a lack of bums on seats, Well, seats owned by Apple, anyway. There were plenty revealed and loads to see, so here’s most of it. In a quick, easily digested format. Kinda like a liquid bran muffin. Apple drops Intel We knew this was coming. Trouble is, it’s been coming a rather long time, just like an…

It was Apple’s WWDC event last night and while the celebration of all things Apple software tends to only revolve around… well, software, there were a few items of interest. One of them was the realisation of a long-standing rumour: Apple is dropping Intel processors from its Macbook lineup in favour of in-house ARM-based chips. That’s…. certainly something. Slow break-up The split won’t happen right away if you’re bothered by Apple’s new tastes in silicon (you needn’t be, but that’s quite beside the point). MacBook models won’t be switching over en masse. Instead, the transition will take place over a two-year…

It’s a little strange to say but we’ve watched this little robot dog grow up. Spot, Boston Dynamics’ creepy faceless canine, has come a long way. From its origins as a tethered robot to something altogether scarier, we’ve seen Spot go autonomous and even herd sheep. And now you can have one, if you have the cash. And fulfil a few other conditions but it’s mostly about the money. Boston Dynamics has put Spot the wonder dog on sale, for the princely sum of $75,000. Best of all, you only need a deposit of $1,000 to secure one. We doubt…