Author: Marcé

Oh, the end of the year — when retailers get the red, white and green decorations out of the storeroom, end-of-year parties are badly attended, and awards are given to the best tech of the year. Ask us, we’re grinding to get the Stuff Gadget and App of the Year awards sorted before the Christmas spirit befalls us. The Google Play store has crowned its favourite apps of the year — and we’re happy to report that we agree with most of the 2018 winners (if you don’t, head to the Stuff App of the Year page and vote for…

Before you get too excited, it’s safe to say that 5G is still quite a way off for South Africa. The problem is two fold. First, in order to roll out commercial 5G services mobile network operators need access to the radio frequency spectrum 5G requires. The Independent Communications Authority of South Africa (Icasa) is responsible for making that happen, but is bogged down in arguments about how to do it. Second, it’s going to take a while before we see 5G-capable devices in our market. Yip, even if you’ve got one of this year’s flagship phones you’re going to…

We’ll likely see new AirPods with a wireless charging case next year according to an Apple analyst. And that’s not all — the updated wireless earbuds will probably feature Bluetooth 5.0 and a W-series chip. Ming-Chi Kuo, the oft-accurate analyst, made the forecast in a note seen by AppleInsider. These predictions are in line with the rumours we’ve seen throughout the year, and ‘Pods-lovers will be happy to hear that these predictions are as close to the truth as we’re going to get outside of an Apple announcement. Apparently the the updated pods will feature an “all-new design,” according to…

From drawing cash, to swipe, insert chip, and now tap-to-pay mechanisms — transacting in stores has evolved with the needs of humans. Now physical, plastic cards might become obsolete thanks to digital channels like Samsung Pay. Samsung Pay is the company’s digital payment platform, and aims to replace the wallet completely. How? By loading bank cards, as well as loyalty cards, into the Samsung Pay app and using a Samsung smartphone to pay for items. How does it work? When someone taps a bank card (or their Samsung device), it uses near-field communication (NFC) to ‘talk’ to the point-of-sale terminal,…

Samsung customers are officially allowed to get excited — the Samsung Pay platform will add a total of five more banks in 2019. At this stage, Samsung Pay only supports Absa, Standard Bank, Mastercard and Visa payments.  Who are the new participants? Earlier this month, Discovery announced their banks will launch early next year. The company publicly announced that they will launch with Samsung Pay. Samsung will also add Investec to the lineup, and has said in a media briefing today that they will be adding a total of three banks to the platform in Q1 of 2019. So what…

The real paranoid types can relate to that slight worry you feel when inserting your bank card into an ATM. Is it being skimmed? Will it come out? Who is watching me? To aid with (most of) these questions, FNB is implementing a contactless ‘tap’ system to their ATMs. Many have kicked against the growing rollout of tap-to-pay systems, claiming that the systems are fairly insecure but happily FNB’s ATMs will still require a PIN after tapping. FNB says this will save about 20 seconds of transaction time. And will offer more than a little peace-of-mind.  The system is said…

Every parent’s dream app has arrived in South Africa. Called Family Link and created by Google, the app gives parents more control over their children’s smartphone habits. The short version? No more illicit Netflix for little Jenny after 22:00 any more. Family Link helps parents keep track of their children’s smartphone activities while also offering a remote control function. A parent can, for example, place a lock on a phone at scheduled times to make sure the whippersnappers are getting enough sleep, or not using the device at school. It essentially lets users digitally manage what their children are up…

Although slightly late (MTN, iStore, PlayStation and Xbox have all already come to the party), Huawei has decided to join in the fun and announced the its specials for this Black Friday. We’re quite sure you’ve already got your credit card handy (as you’ve likely been making online purchases since a hair past midnight). But unfortunately Huawei doesn’t have any standalone special prices for handsets this year — only special discounts through service providers. Key amongst them is one of our favourite devices of 2018, the Huawei P20 Pro. It has a superb camera and a massive battery that can…

Jaguar Land Rover has confirmed that the new Range Rover Evoque will come to South Africa. The luxury compact SUV is available in 2.0-litre diesel as well as petrol variations, and is a great companion for both outdoors and city-livin’ types — if you can bring yourself to take it off-road, that is, and risk a stone chipping its rather fetching exterior. You’ll likely recognise the Evoque, because Land Rover has changed the coupe-meets-SUV styling of its predecessor. It’s a little something they call “…a sophisticated evolution of the distinctive coupé-like silhouette, typified by its distinctive fast roofline and rising…

Let’s get down to business — here is what South Africans really want this Black Friday: cheap data. And MTN has just that coming to market tomorrow. Here’s the lowdown on MTN’s Black Friday deals. As expected, MTN’s deals will only be available from 23 November to 26 November (which is Monday). Anyone who’s due for an upgrade now, or are looking to sign up with the yellow network provider can take advantage of these deals. All new and old clients will receive a 12-month MTN Entertainment Pass when they sign up or upgrade. These passes include access to Facebook,…