Author: Brett Venter

Samsung South Africa is bringing two new TV technologies to South Africa in the next few months. First up is QD-OLED, followed by new MicroLED screens that will puncture and drain all but the most well-padded of wallets. Both are a little late to the party but that doesn’t mean we weren’t expecting them to turn up. At the very least, an invitation has been open ever since both were announced. QD-OLED – Quantumania Samsung took the wraps off a new screen technology called QD-OLED at the end of 2021. A combination of its quantum dot technology and more traditional…

German auto brand VW has all sorts of high-tech ideas. NFTs and EV battery recycling are just two of these, but the folks at VW Norway are either really smart or really bored. Volkswagen Commercial Vehicles in Norway has unveiled an EV of a completely different sort. It’s really compact, has limited range, and only moves at 20km/h. That would be awful if it was an actual car but it’s an office chair. Office chairs usually don’t move at 20km/h unless their owner was just fired and the chair was lobbed out of a high-rise window in frustration. VW moves…

Earlier this month, social media company Meta announced widespread layoffs. Some 13% of the company’s workforce will soon be looking for work. Those folks have to come from somewhere. It seems like Portal and the rest of Meta’s hardware division are taking the knock. A brief report from Reuters says that Meta is slamming the brakes on its hardware divisions. At the moment it appears that VR is safe — because of its metaverse utility — but everyone else… well… Portal to nowhere Portal, if your memory is a little short, was a lineup of smart displays. They were primarily…

Warfare is increasingly becoming more automated. So much so that the term ‘killer robots’ has entered the lexicon. If humanity is fine with blowing them up using ‘bots, why not unleash a few robot medics as well? That’s the question being asked by researchers at the University of Sheffield. It is a legitimate question to ask. Military doctors are extremely valuable. They also take a very long time to make. It doesn’t always make sense to send them to places where bullets are whizzing by. They go anyway. But they might not have to if the UK’s robo-medic plan takes…

Yet another brilliant group is attempting to combine NFTs with a pre-existing system in a manner that adds more or less nothing of value. The Spectrum is a South African property development based in the Western Cape. The concept behind it is ‘purchasing an apartment but with added NFTs’. The development is offering 306 units across ten floors in a property located just off Nelson Mandela Boulevard in Cape Town. Of these, micro, studio, one-, and two-bedroom units will be available. But, as mentioned, you’ll need a crypto wallet as well. The thing is, we’re not really sure why. Getting…

Most of the planet is acquainted with Chris Rock’s most recent hit. The standup comedian and actor is hoping for another one early next year when he becomes the first artist to live stream an event on Netflix. Talk of the streaming service jumping into live streaming has been around for some time. Rock’s announcement as the first to take the leap is just confirmation of what has been suspected for months. ‘We will Chris Rock you’ – Netflix, probably Chris Rock is about to make history as the first artist to perform live on Netflix! The legendary comedian, writer,…

Last year, several tech companies achieved a market valuation of $1 trillion. Tesla, Apple, Google, Microsoft, and even Amazon were valued at at least R18 trillion in 2021. The market for these companies looks a little less like the GDP for a small country these days. Amazon has perhaps the most ignoble distinction — the American company has become the first to lose more than $1 trillion in value. Last year, the company’s market cap was $1.88 trillion. This year? ‘Just’ $870 billion. Deforesting the Amazon The drop in the company’s value is part of a broader trend. Tech companies…

It’s not a great time to be working for Meta. For at least 11,000 people, at least, that won’t be a problem anymore. The downside is that those 11,000 people are set to be unemployed rather soon. Mark Zuckerberg, in a message to his employees (and the entire internet), has announced massive layoffs for the social media company. 13% of Meta’s workforce are set to ‘pursue other opportunities’ in the coming days. In addition, the company is “…cutting discretionary spending and extending our hiring freeze through Q1”. Meta? I barely knew her This is the first time that Zuckerberg’s company has…

South Africa may not have the largest presence in space but the country certainly contributes. Our astronomy is top-notch and the country has serious satellite skills as well. It’s perhaps unsurprising that South Africa has been selected to participate in NASA’s current Artemis explorations. Specifically, the country is set to host one of NASA’s ground-based tracking stations. The place is Matjiesfontein in the Karoo, an area often selected for astronomical exploration. A lack of interfering infrastructure and favourable weather makes the area ideal for this sort of science. We wouldn’t Artemis this Ground was broken on the new Artemis facility…

South African retailer Pick n Pay has yet another new service to offer its customers. Following its decision to accept bitcoin as payment for goods (in some stores) and teaming up with Mr D, the company has launched something completely new. Called Pick n Pay Home, the new online store operates in direct competition with… pretty much any store with the word ‘Home’ in the name. Mr Price Home, House and Home, @home… all of them must now contend with the blue-and-red company as well. A new Home for Pick n Pay The online store is dedicated to homewares. The…