Author: Stephen Fenech

It’s not too hard to entice a Star Wars fan like me to buy something even with the smallest link to the movies and the new TV shows. With that in mind, the Seagate Special Edition FireCuda External Hard Drive fashioned after the Beskar Ingot seen in The Mandalorian had me at hello. For those not familiar with The Mandalorian and that corner of the Star Wars universe, Beskar is a super strong metal that can withstand lightsaber strikes and laser blaster shots. This metal can only be found on Mandalorian worlds and creates a pattern of wavy lines when…

People may be surprised to learn that indoor air quality can often be worse than the air outside. Panasonic has joined the clean air cause with its new nanoe X technology to reduce indoor pollutants. The Panasonic Portable nanoe X Generator brings the company’s air purifying technology to the desktop. Panasonic already offers a range of nanoe X products which are built for homes, large living areas and offices. Panasonic has commissioned Australian research which found that 61 per cent believed air quality has a significant effect on their health. “Australians are concerned about the air they breathe and as…

More and more Australians will be buying an electric vehicle in the years ahead and a company called IonBlue has now made it possible to ensure the electricity to power these EVs is sourced from renewable energy. In 2021, there were 24,078 EVs sold in Australia with demand set to increase by 200 per cent in 2022 thanks, in part, to state government incentive schemes. Electric vehicles have zero emissions, but they require power to recharge the onboard battery. And not everyone who owns, or will own, an EV has solar panels and batteries to harvest the renewable energy to…

The new Ecovacs Robotic Deebot Neo robot vacuum has inherited a lot of premium features from previous models so it’s an ideal choice for anyone looking take their first step into the category. And if you get your skates on this Wednesday March 9 and head to your local Aldi store, you’ll be able to score the Deebot Neo for the wallet-friendly price of $399 – that’s half price the regular price of $799. The Deebot Neo is both a vacuum and a mop and can take over the cleaning duties without you lifting a finger. It has TrueMapping laser-based…

Who you gonna call? This week on The Best Movies You’ve Never Seen podcast we’re watching Ghostbusters starring Bill Murray and Dan Akroyd. The comedy smash was directed by Ivan Reitman who recently passed away. Ghostbusters was one of his most popular films along Stripes, Kindergarten Cop and Up In The Air. Ghostbusters tells the story of three scientists who are kicked out of their university and decide to set up a business catching ghosts at a time when supernatural events are starting to occur across New York City. Fun fact: the original title for Ghostbusters was Ghostbreakers because another…

Ladies and gentlemen, fasten your seatbelts. PlayStation has launched Gran Turismo 7 – the latest version of the iconic driving simulator – in Australia. The Polyphony Digital title is an immersive driving experience which is aimed at enthusiasts and casual fans alike. Gran Turismo 7 is available for PlayStation 4 and PlayStation 5 from today. It gives players the ability to race, collect, unlock, tune and even photograph their car. And right from the get-go, Gran Turismo 7 tries to get to know you and ask you how you like to drive whether it’s with a control pad or motion…

Lenovo has released a range of new products designed to meet the needs of customers living in the hybrid world while still staying productive and entertained. The new products include the ThinkPad X13s, the ThinkBook 14s Yoga Gen 2 and the Lenovo IdeaPad Flex 5i. Lenovo has produced a portfolio of products to ensure easy connectivity for everyone to allow them to access information, to stay in communication and to enhance collaboration. LENOVO THINKPAD X13S The ThinkPad X13s was designed in partnership with Qualcomm Technologies and Microsoft and is the first to include the Premium Snapdragon 8cx Gen 3 compute…

Samsung’s new S22 range have exceeded our expectations for what a smartphone can deliver in terms of performance, features and photography. Samsung’s latest flagship devices have been built on years of development and improvement and have reached a point where they are setting a standard for others to follow. We’ve been using the Galaxy S22 Ultra and the Galaxy S22+ for our review. They combine excellent design with a stunning screen, powerful performance and one of the best camera systems you’ll find on a smartphone. The S22 Ultra has a 6.8-inch display with the S 22+ sitting at 6.6 inches.…

Get onboard and listen to Episode 525 of the Two Blokes Talking Tech podcast with Tech Guide editor Stephen Fenech and EFTM’s Trevor Long as they discuss the week’s biggest tech stories and products. On this week’s show: what we can expect to see at the upcoming Apple Event, the smartphones released at Mobile World Congress by TCL and Oppo, Australians brace for probable Russian cyber attacks, Ecovacs launches new Deebot Neo robot vacuum through Aldi stores, PlayStation VR2 unveiled and MG Motor release the new plug-in hybrid. You can listen to the show right here on the Tech Guide…

Power is something we always needs no matter where we are and the new EcoFlow flagship portable power station – the DELTA Max – is one of the most advanced solutions you can find. The device can be used in a variety of situations including camping, 4WD activities, in a caravan, working in remote areas and any other outdoor activity that you want to enjoy miles from the nearest power source. It has enough output to run a fridge or a dryer. So in the event of a power outage – none of your food in the fridge will be…

Apple has confirmed it will be holding an event next week which it has labelled “Peek Performance” and likely to unveil a more affordable iPhone, a new iPad, an updated MacBook Pro and possibly a new Mac. The virtual event will kick off at 5am (AEDT) on March 9 and will be streamed live. The star of the show will be an updated iPhone SE which will maintain the look and feel of the previous model which includes a 4.7-inch display and a home button with Touch ID. The device is likely to include Apples new A15 bionic chip as…

Coles has become Australia’s first major supermarket to take to the air and offer drone delivery so their customers can receive popular grocery items faster and easier. Coles has partnered with on-demand drone delivery company Wing and Canberra residents will be the first to trial the new service to receive their deliveries within minutes. This follows the successful partnership between Wing and KFC for food delivery in the Queensland town of Logan. Canberra customers can order their groceries via the Wing app. There will be more than 250 items available to order using the drone service including bread, fresh produce,…

MG Motor has added another vehicle to it’s successful HS plus EV line-up – the HS plus EV Excite – which has both a petrol and electric powertrain giving drivers the best of both worlds. The mid-sized SUV is priced at $46,999 on the road and has a direct injection four cylinder 1.5L turbocharged petrol engine as well as a compact yet powerful 90 kW electric motor. And Tech Guide had a sneak peek at the vehicle ahead of its launch. The MG HS Plus EV Excite is surprisingly roomy for a mid-size SUV and has an impressive fit and…

Ecovacs Robotics has launched its latest robot vacuum – the Deebot Neo – a model designed especially for Australian homes and customers who wanted free up time from their cleaning. The unit will be available in next week’s ALDI Special Buys catalogue at a price of $399 from March 9, down from its usual $799 recommended retail price. The Deebot Neo has doubled the suction power of previous models and includes other advanced features usually found on more expensive products, including advanced mapping and mopping technology. And it can all be controlled from the palm of your hand using the…

Do yourself a big favour and take a listen to Episode 491 of the top-rating Tech Guide podcast, hosted by editor Stephen Fenech, so you can stay updated and educated about the latest consumer tech news and reviews. On this week’s show, how the Russian-Ukraine conflict will impact the already weakened semiconductor industry, we take a look at the smartphones announced at Mobile World Congress in Barcelona and nearly half of all Australian use up all of their mobile data each month. In the Tech Guide reviews, we’ll check out the LG NanoCell Mini LED 4K Smart TV, Panasonic unveils…

The Australian Cyber Security Centre has issued a warning to all Australian businesses amid the escalating conflict between Russia and Ukraine to increase security measures against a possible targeted Russian cyber attack. The ACSC says Russia could retaliate against Australia for supporting Ukraine. Australian businesses are now at serious risk of disruption or becoming the victims of malicious activity from Russian cyber criminals. These attacks could come in many forms including denial of service attacks and ransomware attacks. If successful, these attacks on Australian businesses and organisations could cause financial, operational and reputational damage. The Office of the Australian Information…

Huawei has released a range of new products at Mobile World Congress in Barcelona including a flagship laptop, the company’s first all-in-one PC, a 2-in-1 laptop and its first E-ink tablet. The company also released a new HarmonyOS tablet, the company’s first ever printer as well as a new portable speaker. Huawei has set out to create a new smart office experience where Huawei devices can be connected to one another to create a more functional module. HUAWEI MATEBOOK X PRO This is the company’s latest flagship laptop which can connect with other Huawei devices to create a smarter office…

Telstra, in partnership with Qualcomm and Ericsson, revealed it reached record download speeds of an incredible 5.9Gbps on its mmWave 5G network as it prepares to exclusively release the mmWave compatible Netgear Nighthawk M6 Pro Mobile Hotspot. This new download speed record was achieved with a test device powered by the Snapdragon X65 5G modem-RF System and Qualcomm FastConnect 6900 subsystem, an Ericsson Radio System and dual connectivity software connected to Telstra’s commercial mmWave 5G mobile network. Announced at Mobile World Congress in Barcelona, the Netgear Nighthawk M6 Pro Mobile Hotspot includes mmWave 5G connectivity to connect Telstra customers faster than…

TCL has unveiled its latest range of 30 Series smartphones at Mobile World Congress in Barcelona with 5G connectivity, high quality cameras, sleek design and impress displays. The company also revealed three new tablets including the innovative NXTPAPER family along with the TCL TAB 10s 5G. There are five knew smartphones in the TCL 30 series – the TCL 30 5G, the TCL 30+, TCL 30, TCL 30 SE and the TCL 30 E which all offer impressive design, performance and features at various affordable price points. One feature they all have in common is an innovative camera with 50-megapixel…

Get busy living – or get busy dying. This week on The Best Movies You’ve Never Seen we’re watching The Shawshank Redemption starring Tim Robbins and Morgan Freeman. It tells the story of Andy Dufresne (Robbins) who is wrongfully imprisoned for his wife’s murder in Shawshank where he meets Red and a host of other colourful inmates and reshapes their lives and the walls that hold them inside. While the movie ranks high on the lists of the best movies of all time, The Shawshank Redemption was actually a commercial flop at the box office. But it did earn seven…