Author: Stephen Fenech

Telstra has decided to lay off 8,000 staff in a bid to slash $1b off the bottom line as well as restructure the business and spinning off their fixed line business into a separate entity. Telstra will also drastically reduce the number of mobile plans for business and consumers from a massive 1800 plans to just 20. Telstra made the announcements today with chief executive Andy Penn saying the moves were designed for the company to remain competitive in the fast-changing telecommunications market. “We are now at a tipping point where we must act more boldly if we are to…

If there is one thing that TCL has demonstrated over the years is that it can deliver quality and value with its televisions and the new 2018 models are certainly no exception including the X4 QLED TV. Tech Guide took a look at the 55-inch X4 which, at $2199, provides plenty of bang for your buck. The TV has a virtually invisible bezel around the 4K QLED display so you’re getting a decent sized picture without having a massive TV in front of you. And running below the screen are built in Harman Kardon speakers so the X4 can deliver…

If you want to stay updated and educated about the latest consumer tech news and reviews wrap your ears around Episode 304 of the top-rating Tech Guide podcast hosted by editor Stephen Fenech. On this week’s show – we have Optus CEO Allan Lew talking about the FIFA 2018 World Cup streaming debacle and how this has affected the company’s brand. Also on the program, how to avoid being scammed by criminals targeting World Cup fans and Telstra is about to unleash faster speeds on its 4G network. In the Tech Guide reviews, we check out the HTC U12+ smartphone…

Apple has been fined $9 million in the Federal Court for misleading customers with its repairs policy which was found to be in breach of Australian Consumer Law (ACL). This decision was the result of an Australian Consumer and Competition Commission (ACCC) court action against the electronics giant. It was found that Apple’s decision not to provide free repairs to Apple devices which had been serviced by a third party, was against ACL. It all started in April 2017 when the ACCC filed court action against Apple when it refused to repair devices bricked by “error 53”. This error occurred…

Optus, under fire from soccer fans for technical issues that has affected its exclusive FIFA 2018 World Cup streaming service, has handed over the rights to SBS to televise all matches on its network for the next 48 hours. The move will buy Optus some time to sort out its streaming issues. The company is confident that by the time the broadcast returns exclusively to Optus Sport all of the issues will be addressed. Optus CEO Allan Lew held a phone conference with the media and said the experience has “no doubt affected the Optus brand” but he assured customers…

Optus is under fire from soccer-loving customers after the first three nights of its exclusive full broadcast of the FIFA 2018 World Cup were plagued by technical issues leaving viewers staring at error screens instead of the live matches. But now Optus has resorted to offering free Fetch TV set-top boxes valued at $170 while stocks last for its customers affected by the streaming so they can watch the live World Cup matches without interruption. People vented their anger on social media with fans asking the telco to hand over the coverage to a TV network like broadcast partner SBS…

Australian customers are feeling the need for speed with new data revealing 70 per cent of new NBN connections are based on speed tiers of 50Mbps and above. Going back to December 2017, research show that orders for plans promising 50Mbps and higher have almost tripled. They’ve gone from 16 per cent to 44 per cent while at the same time average bandwidth congestion has been reduced by more than five hours to less than 30 minutes per service per week when compared to the same time a year earlier. The shift towards faster speeds is the result of NBN…

Telstra is planning to boost its 4G network to achieve speeds of up to 2Gbps using technology that was tested in a record-breaking demonstration earlier this year. Telstra is also preparing to launch the world’s fastest 4G device – Netgear’s new Nighthawk Mobile Router. Telstra, together with Ericsson, Netgear and Qualcomm, started testing 2Gbps over LTE in the Ericsson lab in Stockholm Sweden using a prototype commercial device. The results have been a huge success and found that aggregating 100Mhz of spectrum across three frequency bands and utilising 4×4 MIMO (multiple input and multiple output) meant speeds up to 2Gbps…

Apple’s iWork suite of applications – Pages, Numbers and Keynote – have been given a significant update both on the Mac and on iOS devices with a major focus on enhancing creativity. Included in the update is a new Drawing and Smart Annotation. It’s also possible to record, edit and play audio directly to Pages, Numbers and Keynote documents. In Keynote on iOS, you can now add math equations, edit master slides and export a presentation as a movie or an image. Here are all the updates: iWork for iOS What’s new in Pages • Easily record, edit, and play…

Start your weekend with Episode 347 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, the World Cup is underway and the different ways you can watch it, all the new games unveiled at E3 in Los Angeles and the new Sonos Beam smart soundbar. Also on the program, how the new CarChase service can sell your car, Virgin Wi-Fi now available on international flights and BlackBerry unveils the new Key2 device. In the minute reviews, we talk about…

If you really want to get into the spirit of the 2018 FIFA World Cup, then look no further than Facebook Messenger which offers new themed features, camera effects and hidden games. New Messenger Camera Effects: Football fans can access filters which can paint their faces green and gold and put on festive wigs to support the Socceroos. To whack on the face paint and wig open the Messenger camera, click on the soccer ball filter and selected scenes of your choice. New Camera Frames: You can also choose anew camera frame that feature the flag of each country competing in…

Belkin has released an even higher capacity portable battery – the 15,000mAh Pocket Power – which has enough juice to charge your smartphone on the move five times. That makes this device one of the most powerful batteries you can buy. The Belkin 15,000mAh Pocket Power features polymer battery cell technology which makes it lighter and thinner to carry around with you every day. There are two USB ports so you can charge your smartphones and tablets anywhere. And with all that power comes a lot of responsibility in the form of sensors that can monitor heat, voltage and circuitry…

Crumpler has released a cool Star Wars collection so fans can express their love for the franchise where ever they go with these impressive new shoulder bags and backpacks. These officially licensed Star Wars bags feature designs inspired by the lovable droids – C3PO and R2-D2. Customers have the choice from an every day waist pack to tablet and laptop sleeves all the way through to backpacks and a shoulder bag. CLAM CHOWDER – STAR WARS – $49 This is a waist pack which is designed to be worn across the body. Made of weatherproof nylon and tarpaulin, it has…

The FIFA 2018 World Cup has already kicked off but football fans should take care as cyber criminals will be using this massive sporting event as an opportunity to launch online attacks. Fortinet, a global leader in integrated and automated cyber security solutions, says large-scale events like the World Cup can become major cyber-attack targets and not just for large companies but ordinary individuals as well., Experts are expecting a spike in online scams and phishing attacks as the FIFA 2018 World Cup gets underway. Fortinet has come up with some security tips to protect yourself online while still enjoying…

HTC’s new U12+ smartphone has been thoughtfully designed with features to enhance the user experience while providing a unique translucent look that’s like nothing else on the market. The device has a sharp and bright 6-inch 18:9 Super LCD display with a resolution of 2880 x 1440 that goes edge to edge giving you more to look at in a relatively small space. HTC has also (thankfully) decided not to follow the trend of other Android smartphone manufacturers and include an iPhone X-style notch like the Huawei P20 Pro and LG G7. On top of the “no notch” screen is…

SBS and Optus, the exclusive broadcasters of the 2018 FIFA World Cup in Russia, have partnered to launch the World Cup app and the first ever virtual reality app for the most watched sporting event in the world. Developed jointly by Optus Sport and SBS and with the cooperation of FIFA, the World Cup apps are available to download now ahead of the tournament kick off on June 14. From the app, Australian users will have free access to 25 live matches. The remaining 39 games are available exclusively to Optus Sport Premium subscribers for $15 per month or free…

The Electronics Entertainment Expo (E3) is underway in Los Angeles – it is the biggest gaming event of the year and where Sony, Microsoft and Nintendo have announced their latest games for this year and beyond. Each of these companies showcased console exclusives as well as first glimpses of exciting upcoming titles. Here’s what was announced by Sony, Microsoft and Nintendo at E3: SONY PLAYSTATION Sony rolled out of its big guns at E3 and showed 10 minutes of gameplay for The Last of Us Part II. In the game, Ellie is now 19 and has to navigate this post-apocalyptic…

If you want to stay updated and educated about the latest consumer tech news and reviews then you need to listen to Episode 303 of the top-rating Tech Guide podcast, hosted by editor Stephen Fenech. On this week’s show, all of the announcements from Apple’s Worldwide Developers Conference including iOS 12 for iPhone and iPad, macOS Mojave for Mac, watchOS 5 for Apple Watch and tvOS 12 for Apple TV 4K. We also take a tour of the Tesla factory in Fremont and talk about CarChase – the company that helped sell our car. In the Tech Guide reviews we…

Ever tried to sell a car? It’s not easy. It takes a lot of time to organise and there’s no guarantee you’ll even sell it. Now there’s a better way. It’s called CarChase and we can tell you it’s an amazing service. How do we know that? I used CarChase to sell my car and within two weeks it was sold. Buying and selling car can be intimidating for all parties involved. They may feel uncomfortable haggling on the price, annoyed with tyre kickers and time wasters and fearful of letting a complete stranger test drive their car. With CarChase…

It’s one thing for a Bluetooth speaker to sound great but when it puts a light show on for you as well then it’s on another level. And that’s exactly what you get with the Sony Extra Bass SRS-XB31. This is a speaker with a difference. Yes you get exceptional sound but this provides some eye candy at the same time. The Sony SRS-XB31 ($229) is the medium size speaker in the Extra Bass family sitting between the XB21 (149) and the XB41 ($269). The XB31 is 23.1cm long, 8.7cm tall and 8.1cm thick which is a good size to…