When I told people about Audible five years ago, most responded to ask what it was. Now, only one in five asks that. The rest? They’re asking me for recommendations. Audible has gone mainstream. Well, middle-class mainstream. Schmoogling the best value out of Audible I more often find myself explaining how to best make sense of Audible’s arcane credit system, and how to buy them as cheaply as possible. From way back when, long before Apple opened a South African app store, I opened a US account. I only switched to the SA store recently, so my advice is all…
Author: Toby Shapshak
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q9GYNKjbW0w Old Mutual backs local startups The future of work, healthcare, and education in South Africa is being shaped by a new breed of innovative startups. But the visionary entrepreneurs behind such projects often can’t do it alone. They need the support, resources, and strategic partnerships only deep-pocketed corporate backers can provide. Given how the startup space in South Africa has blossomed, Old Mutual has launched its own tech venture fund to support this dynamic sector, says Vuyo Mpako, who is Managing Director of Next 176 at Old Mutual. Two successful examples of this are Ken Health and JOBJACK which…
A reliable and secure VPN is part of everyone’s Defence Against the Dark Cybersecurity Arts. It’s one of the cardinal rules of cybersecurity hygiene: never use any free public WiFi without a VPN. Ever. It’s the simplest and easiest way to compromise your security – “sniffing” what you send to a server (usually usernames and passwords) for email, WhatsApp, social media, and other apps. I am a pathological VPN user, as I am with all the security protocols that are unfortunately necessary in this modern, connected, digital age. For years I have paid for a solid VPN for whenever I…
Since Google’s $175 billion search business was declared a “monopolist” by a US court in August, the potential consequences have been widely debated and pose major threats to its profits. These range from breaking up Google’s search business from its other divisions, including selling off the Chrome browser and Android operating system. Both of those are necessary if the US government is going to follow through with its new-found muscle to tackle the digital behemoths of Silicon Valley. This is the first antitrust and most significant trial in the past two years and the first of several major legal efforts…
Just a little over a week into using the new iPhone 16 Pro, it’s safe to say it’s a very good smartphone. The new camera control button is a great addition, and I am already adjusting my handgrip to use it. One push to launch the camera app, then another to take the picture. A slight press gives you the zoom functionality, so you can slide your finger to zoom in or out. It’s akin to what Apple previously offered in the Pro models, just above the camera button, letting you slide your finger to do the same. Now it…
On the brutal stage 19 of the Tour de France, eventual winner Tadej Pogačar was two minutes and 23 seconds behind the stage leader with 8km to go. Within 36 seconds, he was 2:07 behind, having climbed just 200m of the steep Alps mountain road at the end of a 145km ride. He caught leader Matteo Jorgenson inside of the final 2km on the third-last day of this epic sports event to score his fourth stage win. In what was a climbing masterclass and demonstration of supreme athleticism, Pogačar won last Friday’s stage – before claiming his third Tour de…
View this post on Instagram A post shared by Gabriel Medina (@gabrielmedina) Despite all of the amazing footage of this year’s Paris Olympics surfers – taking place in Tahiti, half a world away – the stand-out moment is a still image. It makes the photographer in me deeply happy, filled with nachas (the Yiddish word for heartwarming joy). When Brazilian surfer Gabriel Medina broke out from under those massive curling waves – known as a “kick out” – he gestured number one by pointing his index finger up and appeared to be standing in midair. His surfboard is…
The thing that strikes you first about the Volvo EX30 is that it has no buttons. There are none on the outside, where you open the car just by simply pulling on the driver’s door handle. You lock it by putting your hand over that handle. Alternatively, you can place the button-less remote on the arm of the driver’s door, over the Wi-Fi symbol, which locks or unlocks it. Inside, apart from a few buttons on the steering wheel, there are only two buttons – to open and close the windows. A soft switch lets you toggle between which windows.…
The first time I shaved with my new Philips OneBlade, I should have cut myself three times. As I tilted the electric blade too steeply against my skin, I braced for the sting of the cut. But I escaped unharmed. This hardly seems like fitting material for a column, but the OneBlade is a remarkable electric shaver for those with a frustratingly thick growth. I have tried every kind of shaving technique, new razors, new shaving creams, and wet and dry shaves. Getting the occasional nick is part of the process – unfortunately. I’ve long since settled on the combination…
https://youtu.be/22rurn0leoc Risk isn’t a word that consumers often use, but banks are obsessed with it – as they should be, Emma Mer, Chief Risk Officer at FNB, tells Stuff editor-in-chief Toby Shapshak. Also available on Spotify | Apple Podcasts Now Hear: Why contactless payments are more secure, with FNB Card’s head of fraud Chris Boxall