Author: Toby Shapshak

Podcasts are the new radio. They are an essential part of the media mix for any media company or media diet. We’ve been recording podcasts at Stuff for years, while I present T2S2, my own podcast where I speak to interesting people about interesting things. Scrolla.Africa, the brand-new mobile news service of which I am the chief commercial officer, has also launched its own podcast hosted by Jeremy Maggs and Scrolla’s political editor Zukile Majova. Unlike Stuff’s extremely accomplished director of audio Hans Baumgarten, I don’t have much training in audio equipment. Luckily, I don’t need it. We liked the…

Changing consumer behaviour and a lack of storage means people are turning to so-called super apps like Nedbank’s Avo and Moya.app. Their apps provide more than one service – including messaging, news and a marketplace – and are increasingly popular. Lentell discusses how Moya.app has grown to 10 million customers, while Maharaj, who is the executive in the digital fast lane division, tells Stuff Studios editor-in-chief Toby Shapshak about the first super app launched by a bank, Avo. Also available on Apple podcasts | Google podcasts | Spotify

Now that our smartphones have become the centre of our lives, the way we pay for things has completely changed. I was in New York in May and London in August and used my phone to pay for everything – as I have done for the last year at home. Nedbank’s executive for emerging innovations Chipo Mushwana and Payments Association of SA CEO Ghita Erling tell Stuff Studios’ editor-in-chief Toby Shapshak about current trends and developments. Also available on Apple podcasts | Spotify | Google podcasts

For a time, FedGroup’s investment app was the top downloaded app in South Africa. When it launched it was a revolutionary way of investing in bee hives and raspberries. It also epitomised how FedGroup itself operates, and now its amicable CEO Grant Field is following his passion and trying to fish plastic out of South Africa’s rivers. He spoke to Stuff Studios’ editor-in-chief Toby Shapshak. Also available on Apple podcasts | Spotify | Google podcasts

Samsung has sent us its latest and greatest foldable smartphone, the Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 4. Experience Samsung’s latest folding device fresh out the box in the unboxing below. Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 4 https://youtu.be/_COwE8u-hXc

The 15th of September was a big day for the crypto industry, which saw arguably the biggest change to this blockchain-based world. Called ‘The Merge’, it was a significant change in, well, the business model, for Ethereum, which is still stable and hasn’t collapsed. Ethereum is one of the biggest cryptocurrencies, second in size to Bitcoin, and it has fundamentally changed how it uses the blockchain to register changes and create value. Instead of using the very energy-intensive process known as proof-of-work, Ethereum has shifted to what is called proof-of-stake. It claims to be 99% more energy efficient. Among the…

The first thing you notice about the Audi e-tron Sportback 55 quattro S line is the rear-view mirrors. Or lack thereof. Instead, there are streamlined cameras and 7-inch OLED screens in the door. They are roughly on the same eye line but it does take some getting used to. The added advantage is that the Sportback warns you if there are cars in that lane (with an orange warning). If it’s clear, you see the green indicator light. It’s a small thing, but it’s useful. Make yourself at home Once you’re inside, it’s what we’ve come to expect from this…

The big takeaway from Apple’s over-hyped new gadget announcement last week was not the massive upgrade of the new iPhone 14 but of the original PC maker’s continued ability to spin a decent reality-distortion field. The phrase that emerged from the recorded briefing – in and about Apple’s remarkable circular headquarters in Palo Alto – was “dynamic island”. I removed the caps to keep us a little bit saner. There it was, in full sight after such a long absence, Apple’s amazing skill at producing Steve Jobs’ famous reality-distortion field. It has become institutional. Trapped on Apple’s dynamic island Dynamic…

Samsung have sent us its latest and greatest foldable smartphone, the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 4. This incredible device is accompanied by the perfect companion, the Galaxy Watch 5 Pro. Experience Samsung’s latest folding flagship and wearable device FRESH out the box. Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 4 https://youtu.be/MucUfC-rXJQ

I recently went on a family holiday and read three books. Not necessarily “read” but listened to. I’ve always been a big reader. I have been my whole life. Reading was my refuge, something I could do that gave me great pleasure and opened my mind to the wonders of the world. Not surprisingly I always loved science fiction. Holidays are all about reading for me. But this trip was different, not just because it was the first holiday overseas after Covid, but because I was using my new (old) favourite app Audible. Again. I have been using the audio book app for probably a decade, although I have taken a…