Author: Brett Venter

It’s quite something to see Samsung’s handset in action, particularly in this day and age. We got to head to Samsung’s offices, suitably masked and sterilised, to check out the company’s new hardware for ourselves. It’s one thing to see it on a live stream, it’s another to hold reality in your hand. And this bit of reality feels pretty good. Samsung’s created another solid set of smartphones here. There are two new Notes — the Note 20 and the Note 20 Ultra and, if you’re a creative sort, then you really, really want the Ultra. The video and creative…

Samsung’s headphone tech has progressed at a fantastic clip, thanks in no small part to the company acquiring Harmon (and, by extension, the great audio tech AKG was putting out) in 2016. We’ve seen the Galaxy Buds and the better buds, the Galaxy Buds+, in action — now it’s time for something a little… different. This is Samsung’s Galaxy Buds Live. A real Live one Which, we’ll admit, are a little strange to look at. They look like little kidney beans and are about the same size as some of those larger options you see in the grocery store and…

If you’ve been paying attention, you’ll know that today’s the day Samsung’s Galaxy Unpacked event takes place. It’s just a few hours away but if, like us, you really don’t like to wait then you don’t have to. Samsung’s gear has been gloriously leaked by Evan Blass, who has a history of doing this sort of thing. Front of the line https://twitter.com/evleaks/status/1290814720933601282?s=19 The leak takes the form of images of… pretty much everything, as well as a couple of promo videos for Samsung’s Note 20 lineup. Everything’s there — the Note 20 (in various guises) the Galaxy Watch 3, Samsung’s…

Right, so this’ll likely provoke a few arguments. Huawei has, likely for a short while, dethroned Samsung as the world’s top smartphone vendor. That’s based on a report from Canalys which states that the Chinese company has outshipped every other smartphone maker on the planet for the first time. But, perhaps, not for the last. And, lest you think that Canalys is thumb-sucking numbers, we’ve also seen similar information from another market research firm, Omdia, regarding Huawei’s performance in the market. Huawei shipped 55.8 million units worldwide in Q2 2020, compared to Samsung’s 54.3 million units. But, before you get…

Lockdown hasn’t been kind to many — if you’re lucky it’s just your waistline that’s taken the hit. But the likes of Fitbit are out here trying to keep us off the couch and moving and its new Fitbit Charge 4, the successor to (what else?) the Fitbit Charge 3, is here to help. The thing is, this wearable fitness tracker isn’t much of a fashion statement — which might be why we’re so fond of it. If you want something that’ll look good in the gym you’re not allowed to go to, get an Apple Watch. This is a…

Samsung has it, FNB has it, even Apple and Google have their own versions — we’re talking about digital wallets, payment options that work through your smart devices and let you pay for stuff. Now, Huawei’s also getting in on the action. Huawei Pay will be in South Africa a little later this year. More details required Sadly, that’s about all we know. Huawei Consumer VP for MEA Likun Zhao, at a media briefing today, confirmed that a version of Huawei Pay — customised for the South African market — will be rolling out in South Africa in Q3 this…

Are you so attached to your Huawei smartphone that you wish all your devices would be made by the company? Do you look longingly at people who have both an iPhone and a MacBook? Well, then you’re in luck because a Huawei laptop is now within reach. Specifically the Huawei Matebook D, a mid-range notebook from the Chinese company that’ll launch in South Africa from 7 August. Double your fun In fact, there are two versions of the Huawei Matebook D ready to go — the Matebook D 14 and the Matebook D 15. At present they’re both priced the…

It’s always sad when a friend has things go badly, they have to sell off most of their things and then they turn to drugs. Except, perhaps, in this one very specific case. Kodak, of camera film fame, has made the sort of industry jump we’ve only seen Nintendo make (moving from making cards to video games, and that was about fifty years back). Kodak’s just gone… in another direction. That’s right, Kodak will be making and selling drugs. First one’s free?  And not in a sketchy way, like that one guy from your home town who twitches all the…

If you want to go to space you either need a pilot’s license and several degrees (as well as American citizenship) or one heck of a lot of money. Virgin Galactic has long been after the second category of space tourist, as the company hopes to take passengers to the edge of space where they can experience weightlessness, before returning them home safely. And in case you thought it has abandoned its ambitions, the company just revealed what the cabin of its Spaceship craft will look like. If you’re paying $250,000 for a ticket to space, you kinda want to…

This is a place I didn’t ever think I’d get to be — playing Command and Conquer: Red Alert in 2020 and loving it. The game has a special place for me because it was the first game I ever played on a PC that was all my own. Literally the first thing I did on booting up the PC, which ran Windows 98 and contained a mighty AMD K6 processor, S3 Virge ‘graphics card’, 32MB of RAM and a 4GB HDD, was install and run Command and Conquer Red Alert. It was absolutely glorious playing at a detailed 640×480…