Author: Trent Meikle

South African motorists are set on a course to enjoy even cheaper fuel prices this June than they did in May, with the Central Energy Fund (CEF) predicting a massive 50c/l drop in diesel prices. Petrol drivers won’t be quite as lucky as their diesel counterparts, but can still expect a reasonable price cut when filling up next month. Keep holding thumbs, pretty please It should be noted that the CEF’s figures below are not final and are subject to change. The Department of Mineral Resources and Energy (DMRE) is officially responsible for adjusting South Africa’s fuel prices at the…

South Africa’s streaming landscape has come a long way in a very short time. Only ten years ago, the country was still eagerly awaiting the arrival of Netflix, before the world’s biggest streamer eventually turned up in 2016. Sure, local player Showmax was busy making a name for itself, but it struggled to find its footing. It has since transformed into an industry giant with some of the biggest names in the biz backing it. Netflix leads the streaming charge Now that most of the biggest streamers in the world – Netflix, Prime Video, Disney+, and Apple TV – have…

Android, coming soon to a desktop near you Ever wanted to turn your Android smartphone into a desktop? If you own a Samsung smartphone, you already can – assuming you’ve got an external display handy to make use of the device’s DeX mode. But what about the rest? Google appears to be developing just that, if the latest updates to the Android 16 beta are anything to go by. The new ‘Android Desktop Mode’ feature, initially spotted by Android Authority back in March, buried deep under developer settings, didn’t function. Fast forward to today, and the feature is operational, but with…

If you’ve yet to see what is arguably one of HBO’s best-ever television shows, we recommend you fix that as soon as possible by making your way over to Showmax and turning on Silicon Valley. It’s a show so crammed full of jokes and equally dramatic moments that will not only have you busting a gut multiple times an episode, but also have you invested in the characters and, most importantly, this ultra-realistic tech world on display. It’s no wonder that Silicon Valley is as good as it is with Mike Judge at the helm, who is behind some of the best series…

We’ve got some bad news for all those still subscribed to Netflix, and especially bad news for anyone who’s a bit late to the Netflix train. The streaming giant has quietly hiked its subscription fees overnight – and has yet to inform all its customers of the change. These aren’t minimal hikes, either, with some going up by as much as 20%. A low blow from Netflix Even with a Premium subscription at hand, Netflix has yet to warn us of the change, instead updating its website to reflect the new prices, which affect the Mobile, Standard, and Premium tiers.…

Even if you’re fed up with Spotify’s continual lack of hi-res audio or YouTube Music’s atrocious UI, customers are typically loyal to a single music streaming service because that’s where their music is. Sure, there are third-party services that can help, but none that we trust to get the job done right. In a bid to get these loyal customers over to Apple Music, the streamer is rolling out functionality to do just that. Goodbye Spotify, hello Apple Music It’s unknown whether this is part of some experimental test from Apple or if the feature is rolling out. Either way,…

South Africa has, so far, avoided the tyrannical fist of Netflix’s more affordable “with ads” tier since it debuted elsewhere back in 2022, but we don’t expect that to be the case for much longer. During the streamer’s Upfront presentation, it provided some insight on its recent ad-ventures, and the results aren’t good. For us, that is. Ad nauseam Netflix reports that around 94 million active monthly subscribers around the world now subscribe to the ‘Basic with Ads’ tier since its launch three years ago. That’s more than double the figure the company reported just a year ago, and it…

It’s been a rough ride for the long-awaited remake of Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time, but it seems like the game is nearly ready for release, judging by Ubisoft’s comments in its latest earnings call. The game was initially meant to be released in 2021, but suffered at least three public delays since, one of which involved handing over development to its team in Canada, which reportedly saw the game started over from scratch. We got the Prince of Persia remake before GTA 6? https://youtu.be/s9_WrUySsnw Ubisoft hasn’t quite committed to an official release date yet, but it has at…

It seems like just about everyone has an MVNO (Mobile Virtual Network Operator) these days, but even we were surprised to see that Spar Group was getting into the game. The group has officially launched Spar Mobile, developed in partnership with megsApp, another local MVNO that piggybacks off the MTN network. While many MVNOs struggle to pick up traction locally, particularly in the early stages of their life, Spar Mobile might just have what it takes to really detract from the hold that other networks like Vodacom, Cell C, and MTN have on this country. How? By handing out free…

It’s about time Android got some love and attention, and Google will oblige with a new design philosophy known as ‘Material 3 Expressive’, building upon the roots implanted when it debuted the ‘Material You’ makeover alongside Android 12 nearly four years ago. Announced at this year’s Google I/O show, the search giant plans to make Android more reactive, customisable, animated, and generally easier on the eyes. Making Android pretty again It’s not out just yet, but it’ll be available to all Android devices as part of the Android 16 and Wear OS 6 updates, due out later this year. Until…