Author: Trent Meikle

It’s that time of the month week again. Time to delve into the Central Energy Fund’s (CEF) latest data dump to glean what we can about the country’s expected petrol and diesel price changes in the first week of the New Year. Anybody who’s been paying attention should already have a rough idea of what’s coming — and know that we come bearing good tidings, with the new forecasts predicting a R1+ drop for diesel drivers at the least. Diesel on your mind? You might be thinking that another price drop is just too good to be true. After an…

Do you know what the world needs more of this morning? That’s right — AI. TomTom and Microsoft announced a partnership that’ll bring artificial intelligence to cars. Possibly because TomTom misses being inside your vehicle. Specifically, TomTom’s announcement promises a “fully integrated, AI-powered conversational automotive assistant,” that’ll dig its claws into the car’s infotainment system sooner rather than later. TomTom in your head (and car) As is the point of artificial intelligence, TomTom’s AI is designed to relieve its owner of the tasks you’d find in a car. No, it won’t drive the thing, but it will control aspects like…

WhatsApp’s update list hasn’t been as eventful as it usually would be these last couple of months. The last we heard, it was in the process of releasing what it calls a ‘Secret Code’ feature, though according to the official blog, it did eventually get around to making voice notes ‘View Once’ toggleable. Still, aside from a minor update here and there, it’s been virtually silent. WABetaInfo, on the other hand, has kept up a steady torrent of news surrounding the messenger’s ongoing developments in the coveted beta program. Two of those updates caught our eye — each either targeting…

Yay! Even more AI! If you thought 2024 would bring the downfall of this year’s favourite keyword, think again. Nearly every company out there is only just dipping its toes into the AI pool, while the bigger names out there are diving in, head first. Samsung falls into the latter category, with the South Korean conglomerate reportedly packing its next big thing — the S24 Ultra — to the brim with AI features. Apparently, that’ll be the case for plenty of its devices, with on-device AI reportedly also AI wending its way to the company’s line-up of Galaxy Buds. Artificially intelligent earbuds…

When you’re in South Africa and can’t always afford the latest and greatest from the likes of Samsung, Apple, or Huawei, you’ve probably turned your head in Oppo’s direction before. And for good reason. It’s established itself as one of the more consistent brands pumping out wallet-friendly devices. Stuff has grown rather fond of the Chinese manufacturer, having recently spent a couple of days with the Reno 10 and its ambitious camera (plus a bunch of other stuff). Oppo’s got us noticing its latest addition to its popular A-series line-up: the Oppo A58. The pull factor here is easily the…

December is quite famously known for being a time of giving and spreading joy. MTN, it seems, didn’t get the memo this time ’round, having just announced a price hike for its post-paid customers right before the festivities kick off. MTN South Africa didn’t waste a second before sticking the blame on the country’s biggest foe: load shedding. Fortunately, MTN’s price hikes won’t be plaguing your bank accounts before you’ve had a chance to do some Christmas shopping. Customers on a post-paid price plan will only feel the sting come 1 February 2024 – two months earlier than the company’s…

Google TV is faster now We’re big fans of Google TV OS at the Stuff office; having taken it for a test drive when Xiaomi’s TV Box S (2nd-gen) was in the building. It makes the search giant’s announcement that it would be “enhancing [the] Google TV experience with performance improvements, new updates, and more,” all the more sweet. Unfortunately, those “new updates” don’t apply to South Africa. Google is introducing some changes to the ‘Live’ tab — a feature that’s currently only available in the US, with no official word on a global rollout. We haven’t been skipped where the performance…

Newcomers to the petrol party over on Stuff won’t understand why we’re so giddy about the Central Energy Fund’s (CEF) latest petrol and diesel price predictions for the first month of 2024. It might seem obvious, considering the CEF is forecasting another drop in the country’s fuel prices — for the third month in a row. Our old hands, though, know just how rare it is to come off better in a fight with the Department of Mineral Resources two months in a row, let alone three. Petrol saw R1.78 and R0.65 drops in November and December respectively, with diesel seeing similar-enough…

E3 is dead. Forever ‘End of an era’ is one way to describe E3’s official exit from this world. “I cri evrytiem,” is… another way to put it. Oh, right. We haven’t told you the bad news yet. E3 is dead. Forever. We’ve become so accustomed to banging out those annual ‘E3 is cancelled’ articles (no, really, look), it was a bit of a shock to see the official E3 account on X.com confirming its demise. “After more than two decades of E3, each one bigger than the last, the time has come to say goodbye. Thanks for the memories.”…

Being a gamer isn’t easy. Especially during the Holiday season. Not only are we expected to conquer family meet-ups — which tend to be more difficult than Malenia if they’re a ‘conventional’ gamer — but when the annual “So what do you want for Christmas?” question rolls around, we don’t have much to say. Oh, we have an answer, but how can you explain to your grandmother that all you’re after is an original GameCube with copies of Double Dash and Wind Waker? We usually end up spouting more simple (and generally more attainable) items like those in this Gift Guide. If…