Author: Stuff writer

Yup, you read us right. The Universal Foldable Keyboard that the ever-friendly Microsoft announced at MWC works with Windows, Android, and iOS devices. It connects to your phone or tablet via Bluetooth, adding the ability for tactile typing to the device. The keyboard layout is familiar, and it even has two keys on the top left for you to switch between two devices simultaneously. So if you’re working on your iPad, and a message suddenly comes in on your Lumia, just tap the key to switch and type. No mess, no fuss. A CLOSER LOOK It folds pretty flat and…

Google Wallet hasn’t been the mobile payment sensation that the Android maker wanted it to be, but with Apple Pay pushing NFC payments into the mainstream, Google will try again with Android Pay. Announced by Android boss Sundar Pichai at MWC 2015, Android Pay is the mobile operating system’s new take on contactless payments from smartphones. Your credit cards and other accounts are stored on the phone, and it’ll work even if you don’t have an active data connection. According to The Guardian, Android Pay sends a one-time-use digital token to the terminal in an effort to combat fraud. The…

With Apple and Samsung embracing fingerprint-scanning home buttons to protect devices and authenticate payments, our digits will soon be the key to opening up a whole new world of possibilities. While the iPhone and Galaxy S6 make use of physical buttons to house the scanner, it would be much better if the screen itself were able to double up as a sensor, letting you authenticate your fingerprints simply by tapping anywhere on the screen itself. Nestled among the torrent of smartphones and tablets here at MWC, we came across a clever piece of kit that could enable us to one…

Microsoft has announced a pair of new mid-range Windows Phone devices, the Lumia 640 and 640 XL. After a cheap mobile? Microsoft is putting its hat in the ring with two new models. As seems to be the trend these days, the Lumia 640 and 640 XL get you big screens without a big price. The Lumia 640 has a 5-inch HD (720p we’d bet) screen, Snapdragon 400 CPU, 1GB of RAM and 8GB storage. Nothing too fancy, then, but enough to get by for most folk. What’s different in the XL model? It has a bigger screen of course,…

Leaks may have spoiled the surprise somewhat, but Samsung’s Galaxy S6 Edge is still a smartphone that makes you sit up and take notice. The Korean company has officially unveiled the S6 Edge, which has the distinction of being the world’s first phone with a screen on three of its four sides: a 5.1in quad-HD Super AMOLED display that covers almost the entirety of the device’s front and most of its left and right edges. BEND IT LIKE SAMSUNG The screen is supremely sharp, boasting a resolution of 1440 x 2560 pixels (QHD or 2K to you and I); that’s a…

The wait is finally over and the Samsung Galaxy S6 is here. And it’s the most beautiful Galaxy phone yet. What’s different? The Galaxy-staple plastic is gone, replaced with metal on the sides and glass on the back. So while it might look a bit like the Galaxy S5, it sure doesn’t feel like that phone. With this shift comes an Apple-like unibody design and a sadly also-Apple-like approach to storage. There’s no memory card slot any more, but you do get to choose between 32GB, 64GB and 128GB Galaxy S6 models. Samsung’s phone designs are changing, but otherwise it’s…

Think the Motorola Moto 360 is the best-looking Android Wear watch? You might change your mind once you’ve seen the new Huawei Watch. The name might not be too imaginative, but the Watch itself, which Huawei showed off as part of its MWC 2015 press conference, is one of the most attractive smartwatches we’ve seen. And when you’re going to wear something on your wrist all day, looks matter. It has a slick-looking metal face that helps it avoid looking too geeky, despite effectively being a miniature computer on your wrist, plus a genuine-looking crown on its stainless steel sides…

This time last year, SanDisk revealed a 128GB microSD card. Clearly it wasn’t satisfied, because it’s just gone and revealed a 200GB one. The SanDisk Ultra microSDXC UHS-I card, Premium Edition (to give it its awfully complete name), manages to cram in 200GB of memory into an object smaller than a thumbnail. Where does all that memory go? How can it possibly fit? Does it have Tardis blood running through its veins? Either way, it’s impressive, and it’s got the speed to match. A 90MB/s transfer speed might stifle a yawn if discussed at the pub, but tell your boozed-up comrades…

Following such a superb phone as the HTC One M8 was always going to be tricky, and at first glance the M9 might be a disappointment. But look below the surface and there’s much to be excited about. It’s clearly an evolution not a revolution, with a very similar design and no competition-smashing specs. Plus, we’ve known everything about it for weeks thanks to HTC’s unerring ability to leak every little detail ahead of its announcement. No matter. If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it, goes the saying. And HTC has left alone those aspects which worked while fixing those…

Samsung’s Android royalty phone for 2015 has been announced at MWC 2015 – and we’re pretty excited about it. The Samsung Galaxy S6 is certain to be one of the most talked-about mobile devices of the year, and with good reason: it’s far more than your standard imagination-free update to the previous year’s model. How? Why? When? Here are the nine essential things you need to know about the new Samsung Android trooper and its Galaxy S6 Edge sibling. 1. IT’S A PROPERLY PREMIUM DEVICE For years people have moaned about how Samsung phones don’t feel like they should cost R10,000…