Author: Brett Venter

Earlier this week Roscomsos, the Russian space agency, performed the latest of many (so many) International Space Station (ISS) resupply missions. The launch vehicle behind that trip to the ISS was the Soyuz 2.1a. It’ll also take centre stage later this month when it sends the replacement Soyuz MS-23 capsule to the space station. Soyuz rockets (Soyuz means ‘union’) have been the backbone of Russia’s space program since 1966. The Soyuz 2.1a has been in service since 2004, alongside the 2.1b (2006) and 2.1v (2013). The difference between these? The ‘b’ variant is capable of heavier lift and the ‘v’…

Samsung’s new Galaxy S23 Ultra is almost here, which means that you’ve got a choice to make sometime soon. Do you upgrade from the Galaxy S22 Ultra (or the S20 or S21 counterparts)? Do you hang on for the S24 Ultra? When the phone starts at R31,000 in South Africa, that’s not just a whimsical decision. You should probably consult a financial adviser too. We’re here to assist with the choice part. Assuming your bank account can handle it, or you’re okay with chowing six months’ worth of Indomie noodles instead of real food, you have to ask yourself whether…

Last week, Netflix sprung a little leak. An FAQ turned up online that the company later said was published in error. That FAQ explained in more detail how its password-sharing crackdown would work. Published in error or not, this week the streaming company has expanded the regions where password sharing has become more limited. Of course, this isn’t actually a surprise. The company said last month that it would make its new password policies “more broadly” available over the course of this year. In February, the new standard is being applied to New Zealand, Canada, Portugal, and Spain. Netflix needs…

We know what you’re thinking. An iPhone 14 review in February 2023 when the smartphone lineup launched at the end of 2022? Well, yes. And, in the words of Russel Peters, “No more questions.” We’re here, the phone is here, and so is the review. It won’t happen this late again. But as it turns out, we really haven’t missed much. If you splashed out on an iPhone 13 in 2021, then nor have you. Apple’s most recent vanilla phone isn’t substantially different from its last one. Sure, there are one or two aspects that have altered, but the big…

The best Harry Potter video game made to date doesn’t include mention of the Boy Who Lived himself. That’s a dramatic change from the last few decades, which saw releases featuring Potter, Weasley, and Granger of varying quality. Some of those were worthy of your time. Others were of decidedly more dubious quality. Most of the latter entries are lost in the mists of time. Others are still around. They may even be fondly remembered, in the case of Quidditch World Cup. But those players are remembering the time they spent navigating a broomstick in other Harry Potter games. It…

If you’re a mobile gamer, your Netflix subscription just became a little more valuable. The streaming company has reached an agreement to launch two upcoming games – which are also heading over to consoles – on its catalogue of mobile games, for its subscribers. The games in question are Dust & Neon, a twin-stick shooter, and Highwater, an adventure title with strategy elements. Both are made by Rogue Games, the company that made the announcement on Netflix’s behalf. All right Netflix, we’re listening https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_pkhMtW54to Dust & Neon is also set to launch on the PC and the Nintendo Switch if…

In August last year, speaker specialist Sonos was revealed to be working on a new omnidirectional speaker setup. At the time it was known under the Optimo designation, a codename meant to conceal what the company was up to. That’s changed. The Verge, the same folks who outed Optimo, has detailed more about the upcoming and still unannounced speaker system. The pair of speakers will launch under Era branding, with the models being the Era 100 and Era 300 respectively. A new Era for Sonos It was already known that Sonos’ upcoming speakers would feature a unique design. Up till…

Rolls-Royce, as a brand, conjures images of very expensive British motor vehicles. Sure, you could drive it yourself, but the point of having all that money is to purchase a marvel of motoring engineering that you pay someone else to drive. But the company’s about more than that and it’s about to become even more: Rolls-Royce wants to go to space. Specifically, the company hopes to take to space with a very small nuclear reactor. A Micro-Reactor, to be precise. The company recently shared its hopes to power spacecraft on longer journeys using nuclear technology. The tech could also be…

Marvel, even before it was swallowed by Disney, has always been keen on telling extended, interconnected stories. The company does it well. That’s how something like Marvel’s Wastelanders, a series of narrative podcasts, came about. Wastelanders has a little something in common with a comic book series of the same name but its roots lie in the iconic Marvel comic series Old Man Logan. It’s dark. Like… DC dark. An aging Wolverine sets out on one last heroic quest as a way to atone for… well, you’ll see. The comic series involves one of Peter Parker’s descendants, some truly disturbing…

Every year Stuff faces the same challenge. Choosing the best technology from an entire annual cycle can really take it out of you. But the effort is always worth it when we see the results in print. At least, it’s worth it for us. We’re hoping that it’s worth it for you too. Whether it’s the best smartphone or laptop or tablet or motor vehicle, Stuff has crunched the numbers and come up with several winners. Oh, and we also found time to do our usual gadgets, gear, and other awesome bits too. Check it out in the February-March 2023 issue of Stuff.…