Author: Stuff writer

Imagine seeing a colour you like and literally picking up an object, placing it said shade, and then snatching it for use in your own images. If all goes well for Apple, you could soon be able to do this using its Pencil stylus. The company has been working on providing the sharpest Pencil in tech for a while now. The device was launched alongside the iPad Pro in 2015. It introduced ways for digital artists to design by integrating physical gestures with Apple’s tech. In 2019, the company applied for a related patent that would include “an on-board display”.…

Over the years, Microsoft has been persistent in its attempt to get people to use its search engine, Bing, over Google. Set up a Windows device and note how many times the company prompts you to use Bing over Google, with a note informing you how its features are just as good as Google’s. Despite its efforts, Google remains the biggest search engine in the world and it’s also a verb. You don’t just use Google to search, you also Google most things online. In its latest attempt to become a better search engine, the tech giant is reportedly working…

At some point, you’ll need to decide whether or not to get your child a cellphone, then you’ll need to figure out the best way to keep them safe when they eventually get on to social media. Social media platforms including Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, TikTok, Spotify, Snapchat, and even YouTube all include age restrictions on their respective platforms. Kids need to be at least 13 years old to legally be on most social media. This is mostly to protect kids from being abused and exploited on the platforms. It’s all fun and games until pedophilia and cybercrime come along. Read…

In what seems to be the final gift to its users for 2022, messaging platform Telegram’s 12th latest update has a range of new features designed to make 2023 a better year for chatting. On the last Friday of 2022, Telegram announced the addition of  “Hidden Media, Zero Storage Usage, New Drawing Tools, Profile Pictures for Your Contacts, and More”. “Nobody will miss 2022, but this update offers some pleasant reasons to remember it,” said Telegram in a blog post. Hidden media, supported by spoiler formatting, lets users hide the content that they’re sending so their contact can choose when…

Smart homes have been on the horizon for a very long time but there have been issues preventing their uptake. Part of this is cost related but a major problem has been compatibility. Matter, introduced this year, hopes to change all that. Matter is a new smart home standard backed by the likes of Apple, Amazon, and Google. They collectively make some of the easiest-to-use smart home gear on the planet but historically they haven’t always played nice together. That’s about to change, especially since almost all the major smart home brands are involved as well. If all goes as…

Is it a gift from the Department of Energy or just the government making sure that you get back from your holiday destination so you can continue going to work (on location)? Either way, you’ll be pleased to note that the petrol price will drop at midnight on 4 January. To save, you can either wait till Wednesday morning to fill up or just pour in just enough to get you by until then. Petrol prices drop on 4 January 2023 by R2.06 for both 93 and 95 octanes. Diesel 0.05% will decrease by R2.69, and diesel 0.005% will decrease…

Tablets have evolved. You can do much more with them now than you could a few years ago. So if you can now do most basic things on a tablet, should you rather opt for one as your daily driver or for a laptop instead? First, you must ask yourself if you need the power of a laptop (along with its size) or the portability of a tablet. You might also require both. As it happens, there are ways you can have that without buying two devices. Apple’s latest iPad Air has the same processor as a MacBook Pro. Non-Apple…

Online shopping scams aren’t going away any time soon. In fact, they keep evolving to keep pace with the evolution of technology and security features for online platforms. Though security features for online shopping platforms continue to improve, some common scams continue to be successful for scammers. Avoiding these requires shoppers to play a role in securing their own money and data when shopping online. We know it’s cliche, but it’s a cliche for good reason — if it’s too good to be true, it probably is. Check the link “Just like that guy who broke your auntie’s heart in…

To date, understanding how to use Microsoft Excel to its full potential has been a skill that most people simply don’t have. Some try (really hard) to excel but eventually they realise there’s more to life than spending all that effort memorising formulas when they must still deal with the data that needs to be processed – the actual reason they’re using Excel in the first place. Yes, we know those odd users who can remember Excel formulas even in their sleep. They are not the norm and we’re glad Microsoft realises this fact. The company is finally coming through…

Finally, a company has designed a high-tech ring specifically for women. It’s not a wedding ring, of course. More of a promise ring, one that could help women to manage their physical and mental health. Movano Health announced its Evie smart ring this week. which was designed with women’s health as a priority. The company plans to showcase the ring next week at CES 2023 in Las Vegas. The ring measures a woman’s “resting heart rate, heart rate variability, SpO2, respiration rate, skin temperature variability, period and ovulation tracking, menstrual symptom tracking, activity profile, including steps, active minutes and, calories…