Author: Marcé

Last year seemed to be the year of the Vivo in South Africa. We saw the brand launch a total of three devices in the territory in 2020, with very little to see this year. Finally, new leaks show off the upcoming Vivo X70 range of devices.  There are three smartphones expected in the range, including the base X70, the X70 Pro and the X70 Pro Plus — and all three of them may play host to different SoCs (system on chips).  According to a Weibo tipster called Digital Chat Station, the X70- range will be revealed on 9 September…

Everyone’s favourite messaging app regularly decides to disappoint some users equipped with older smartphones. WhatsApp rolls out app updates every now and then, bringing with them increased functionality and useful bits and pieces like cross-platform transfers.  This means some smartphones might not be able to handle the latest version of the app — the same is true for around 43 smartphones come 1 November 2021.  WhatsApp dropped in a snap New reports detail that WhatsApp will stop functioning on many older smartphones, including three iPhone models that are still very popular in rotation — the iPhone 6S, SE and 6S…

Right about now, there are more hardware options for designers and creators in general than in any other industry. Because people in the reactive fields need to work on more powerful hardware than the general office worker, they can choose from a variety of gaming notebooks as well as those aimed at creators — like these machines revealed by Asus this week.  The company introduced its ProArt Studiobooks, as well as Zenbook Pro and Vivobook Pro laptops, bringing with them some impressive new hardware configurations. We also got a first look at the Asus Dial — a nifty addition that…

If anything, we know Twitter’s CEO is a major cryptocurrency stan — which means it’s just a matter of time before the digital currency is introduced into the social media app’s Tip Jar feature.  In May, Twitter announced it’s adding a mighty useful feature called the Tip Jar — this allowed normal users to ‘tip’ other normal users if they found their content interesting or helpful. But up until now, they’ve only really been in the form of regular money. New reports point to bitcoin integration coming in the future sometime.  Tips, but make it decentralised A leak by researcher…

Generally, products launched together are aimed at more or less the same bunch of users — but here Fujifilm’s got something for professionals, as well as people on their way to becoming professionals. Meet the GFX50S large format camera and the X-T30 II mirrorless cam.  The GFX50S II is positioned as the most affordable large-format shooter in the GFX range, while it features the always handy In-body Image Stabilisation (IBIS). On the other end of the spectrum, the X-T30 II is lightweight and improves on its predecessor’s image quality and autofocus performance. GFX50S II: For the professionals The completely mirrorless…

Remember the Electronic Vaccine Data System (EVDS)? The online government platform was rolled out in 2020 which aimed to help manage public vaccinations against COVID-19. Initially, it just collected data and sent out notifications of vaccine appointments, but now users can book a date and site that suits them.  Vaccine Walk-in Department of Health announced that as of the 1st of September 2021 its digital platform will now allow South Africans to register for the vaccine, book a date and choose a vaccination site.  https://twitter.com/HealthZA/status/1433040409991778309 Before this, users complained of the system notifying them of vaccination appointments last-minute, and even…

The Independent Communications Authority of South Africa (Icasa) recently announced that it’ll be taking back the free spectrum handed out during the harsher lockdown levels in 2020.  The temporary radio frequency allocated to mobile networks when the world was ending a little bit will be yanked away come 30 November. This will cause a sort of ‘digital load shedding’, according to BusinessTech.  Back in April 2020, Icasa made additional temporary spectrum available to help mobile networks cope with the troves of people suddenly working from home. Residential network infrastructure just wasn’t ready for this type of influx. But the important…

Back in April 2021, the Democratic Alliance announced it’s taking on Facebook to curb the potential for disinformation on its platform in South Africa come local election time. What followed was a whirlwind of events that ended in the MP heading the project, Phumzile Van Damme, resigning from her post and Facebook pulling out of the deal.  Now, Van Damme has announced a new project aimed at combatting fake news in the upcoming local elections. Called the 2021 Local Government Election Anti-Disinformation Project, it’s not linked to a political party, but rather a host of local entities dedicated to human…

Whether you grew up watching Pokémon or not, the series and its critters have become part of global popular culture in the past decade. Now might be the time to pick it up, if you fall into the latter category. Especially if you own a Nintendo Switch console — because the Pokémon TV app has become available on the whole range.  In addition to the Pokémon content available through the app (which is already available on phones and smart TVs), the Switch version includes a bunch of extra videos and other content.  Pokémon is home https://twitter.com/Pokemon/status/1430935737441136643 While you stare at…

Apple does it, Samsung does it, even all the game companies are doing it — now Netflix, the streaming giant, is planning its own ‘fan event’ to showcase what it’s been working on. The event, aptly named Tudum (if you don’t instantly hear the correlation, get out) will feature trailers, interviews with showrunners and originals announcements.  It’s planned for 25 September 2021 and will feature first looks at incoming original content on the platform, including movies and series. It’ll run for three hours, so grab some popcorn and settle in. This is gonna be a long Netflix and chill sesh. …