Author: Brett Venter

Something like the Seergrills Perfecta could be a touch hit-and-miss for a South African meat junky. Sure, it’s supposed to use AI smarts to cook you the perfect steak (in as little as 90 seconds), but there’s none of the preparation, beer, or woodsmoke locals have come to expect from their seared flesh. (For the record, it’s not a real South African braai unless there’s thornwood involved.) Still, if all you want to do is kick back and uncap some liquid bread, the Perfecta reckons it’ll do all the other work for you. All you have to do is hand…

Flight games are ridiculously fun, but some folks always have to take things too far. Some create replica Boeing cockpits, others buy the Echo Aviation Controller. The gamepad, a product of Honeycomb Aeronautical and its suspiciously Channel Islands-like logo, is designed with rabid flyers in mind. Only not the sort of flight simulator nerd that has a full-scale 747 reproduction in their garage. We can’t all be as obsessive as Bruce Dickinson, and even the hardcore presumably like to relax with a spot of HAWX or something similarly lightweight. But when you’re used to controlling all the different aspects of…

What does it take to build a drone capable of scaring the pants off anyone who has previously reported an EBE experience? Somewhere above R500,000, if the folks from Drone Pro Hub are to be believed. And, since they have much of it on video, it’s fairly believable. It’s not about scaring folks who may have had an encounter, though seeing a home-made project zipping by in the skies at speeds of 600km/h could well do that. Like the early days of the steam engine, folks like Ben Biggs just want to see if they can do it. The drone…

You don’t have a semi-budget smartphone these days unless there’s also a branded limited edition. Oppo’s Reno 14 F is just the latest example of this adage, spicing up an otherwise standard package with loads of Sith-based imagery. Hold onto your wallet for just a little longer, though, because the device hasn’t been officially announced. It appears on the company’s Mexican website, so broader availability isn’t certain either. But, based on the visuals and what’s known from the America-adjacent territory, we’d rather like to see it here. Oppo Reno 14 F-rikken awesome The standard Reno 14 F sports a 6.57in…

Facebook knows just how hard it can be to meticulously craft original content for the internet. Its newest feature for users of the social media platform (and Instagram) lets those creators, the folks who are aware that their “original work is your voice,” keep control over what they’ve made. The new feature “automatically protects your original reels, alerts you when matches to those reels are detected on Facebook or Instagram, and helps you take action if your work is used without permission.” Sounds like a handy way to bang your head against a wall, but at least you get to…

Archer Aviation is one of several companies developing flying taxis (try not to think about what that would look like in South Africa). One indication of how well the outfit’s tech is doing is that it’s now destined for military applications. The eVTOL (electric vertical takeoff and landing) maker has announced that it has entered into a partnership with Anduril Industries — the folks who make the US military’s coolest battlefield helmet — and Edge. The deal sees “its proprietary, dual use advanced powertrain technology, currently in use on its Midnight eVTOL aircraft” being used for something a touch more……

Huawei is nothing if not regular. The company has announced the official reveal date for its new Mate X7 and Mate 80 series handsets via China’s Weibo social media platform. The 25 November unveiling is for the Chinese market, of course, but that doesn’t mean the announcement is irrelevant. It’ll be almost exactly a year since the company first detailed its Mate 70 devices, but we’ll be looking at all-new tech. You can tell because the model number is higher. The Mate 80 will likely be the star of the show, but Huawei’s new Mate X7 foldable is also taking…

Most humanoid robots (most) look very impressive while in motion. Ubtech’s Walker S2 robot, which couldn’t be more aptly named right now, is certainly one of those. The Chinese company that makes these guys has released a video showing a batch of the ‘bots moving from their warehouse home to… somewhere else. As a group, no less. Seeing them all move from a standing start to their eventual destination is a disconcerting spectacle. Of course, that’s exactly what it’s supposed to be. Knowing that the human-sized (and human-equivalent weight) artificial construct can swap its own batteries is cause for even…

It was only a matter of time before we got a new Volvo XC60, and, considering the fun we had with the last edition, it’s a little overdue. The automotive company has dropped four new models in South Africa, starting at R1,060,000 and closing out at a little over a million and a half for the top-end model. For your money, you’ll nab ” refreshed styling, an advanced user experience, updated design details, and enhanced comfort,” according to Volvo. If that sounds like something that’ll get your engine (silently) revving, then the fresh load of mild or plug-in hybrids could…

Adding a terabyte of space to your laptop is simple enough (if expensive) if you’ve got a microSD slot. SanDisk’s new Extreme Fit flash drive hopes to make the process simple for anyone who doesn’t carry around one of Lenovo’s business notebooks, too. The company’s newest peripheral storage device, dubbed “the world’s smallest 1TB USB-C flash drive”, actually comes in several capacities that use the same form factor. It’s supposed to be left connected to a laptop permanently, though we’ve seen too many crowded laptop bags to take that claim too seriously. Extreme Fit for purpose The SanDisk Extreme Fit…