Author: Stephen Fenech

Trying to remember all of our passwords is one of the most difficult tasks of our modern digital lives. In fact, it’s near impossible. But with LastPass that’s no longer an issue. How many times have you heard that you need a different password for all of your accounts? And that you should change them regularly? Security experts say your password should be like your toothbrush – you should change them regularly and don’t share them with anyone. But trying to remember them all – good luck. What most people do is re-use the same password across many of their…

In a world-first, the new free Freeview FV app is now available for users to watch live TV from 16 free-to-air channels as well as access catch up content anywhere and on the go. The app is free to download and use for iOS (iPhone and iPad) and also for Android smartphones. It will be available for Android tablets in 2017. Live streaming channels available from launch includes ABC, SBS, Seven, Channel 9, TEN, ONE, ABC2/ABC KIDS, ABC ME, ABC News 24, 7TWO, 7Mate, 7Flix, Racing.com, 9Gem, 9Go! and 9Life. And more live channels will be added to this list…

Start your weekend with Two Blokes Talking Tech Episode 275, with Tech Guide editor Stephen Fenech and EFTM’s Trevor Long, that provides incisive commentary on the latest tech news. On this week’s show, the blokes discuss Apple’s renewed battle against am energised Microsoft and how the companies’ latest products will appeal to customers. Also on the program, the Ring connected doorbell, the DJI Mavic Pro drone, the levitating Death Star Bluetooth speaker, Tesla tiles that are actually solar panels and the Oral B Genius. In the minute reviews, we take a look at the Plantronics BackBeat Go 3 Bluetooth earphones…

In today’s digital world we carry around a lot of technology including our laptops and mobile devices and SwissDigital has released some smart bags that can protect them and keep them charged on the move. But what makes them a level above a regular bag is the included tech features which include Bluetooth, audio controls, solar panels, LED lights and battery packs to keep your devices powered throughout the day. All of the SwissDigital bags have internal wiring to connect the battery to a USB port on the outside of the bag for easy charging. They are made from durable…

There are still a considerable number of Galaxy Note7 users who are stubbornly holding on to their recalled smartphones. There are so many that Samsung is sending out an automatic software update to limit the battery charge on all devices. Two months and two recalls later, Samsung is still trying to mop up the Note7 mess after a battery cell issue forced the electronics giant to halt production of the flagship model. There have been a number of customers on forums and on social media boasting that they still have the device and others saying they have no intention of…

The electric toothbrush has become more intelligent than ever with the release of the Oral-B Genius which naturally includes Bluetooth and a companion app to help you take better care of your teeth. But the breakout new feature of the Oral-B Genius is the Position Detection technology which works like a GPS system for your mouth. It uses the toothbrush’s built-in motion sensors and video recognition using your smartphone’s camera and it’s all tracked through the Oral-B app. This ensures that users cover all areas of their mouth without missing a zone as well as cleaning for a dentist-recommended two…

Laser’s new BD3000 Blu-ray Disc player is not only affordable but it can also play DVDs and Blu-ray Discs from any region in the world so there’s no limit to where you can buy your movies. We just returned from the US with some Blu-ray Discs – which are all Region A – knowing that the Laser BD3000 would have our back and be able to play the movies. There’s been a few times when we thought the movie we purchased overseas was OK for all regions and would work in our region-locked (and far more expensive) Blu-ray Disc player…

The Force is strong with this levitating Death Star Bluetooth speaker that magically defies gravity and rotates above a magnetic base and streams your music at the same time. As a Star Wars fan, this is one of those must-have products that I would have bought just to watch it float majestically in mid-air and spin on its axis. But the fact it is also a Bluetooth speaker gives you another reason to purchase the product. Now what you get in the box is a base with the Star Wars logo on the front and the Death Star speaker. The…

One of the best features of the excellent new Google Pixel smartphone is Google Assistant which can do everything from search for info to organise your day. But it also has a great sense of humour and a wealth of jokes to tell. When you say “OK Google”, the Pixel is ready to listen. Just say “tell me a joke” and right away you’ll see – and hear (she delivers the joke in her own voice as well) – the many jokes in its repertoire. Now we’re not saying these jokes are all brilliant and will be putting comedian Kevin…

Tech Guide has had a hands on look at the new MacBook Pro which Apple unveiled late last week – the company‘s first major overhaul of the laptop in four years. We checked out the space grey entry level 13-inch MacBook Pro – without the Touch Bar – and were immediately impressed by how much smaller and thinner the device is. Just holding the new MacBook Pro in our hands and we could feel how much lighter it was as well. We put the new 13-inch MacBook Pro back to back with the MacBook Air and it was noticeably slimmer…

Tablets are great for regular usage and regular users but what do you use on a building site, out in the field and in other rugged environments? One solution is the Panasonic Toughpad FZ-A2. It is the world’s lightest rugged Android 10.1-inch tablet. Up to 84 per cent of Australian organisations have staff that regularly working outside the regular office environment and they are using laptops, smartphones and tablets to do their jobs. In fact, seven out of 10 Australian companies now offer a BYOD (bring your own device) option to their employees. But consumer grade devices for these workers…

What better group of people can you ask for to help design your next product than your most passionate customers. That’s exactly what Kobo did when developing its latest e-reader – the Aura ONE. They say your users are your best engineers and Kobo turned to its most avid readers to ask them what they wanted to see in the next product. The result is the Kobo Aura ONE – an e-reader for true booklovers. It has one of the biggest e-ink screens you’ll find on a e-reader at 7.8-inches, has a new display lighting system and is also completely…

Since Apple decided to not include a headphone jack on the iPhone 7, customers have paid even more attention to Bluetooth earphones so the release of Plantronics BackBeat Go 3 wireless earbuds was timed to perfection. While Bluetooth earphones and headphones are nothing new, there are even more customers in the hunt than ever before. Plantronics has a history of audio that goes as far back to when man first landed on the moon. It pours those decades of experience into the BackBeat Go 3 wireless earbuds. The problem in the past with Bluetooth earphones was they were often bulky,…

Apple has unveiled its latest and greatest MacBook Pro – on the 25th anniversary of the release of the company’s first PowerBook–– which has had some remarkable changes inside and out. Unveiled at a special launch event at Apple’s Cupertino headquarters, the MacBook Pro includes some dramatic design changes and stunning new features. The MacBook Pro – still available in 13-inch and 15-inch models – is thinner, lighter and faster than the previous models as well. The 13-inch model is just 14.9mm thick which is 17 per cent thinner and also 23 per cent smaller in volume. It weighs 1.37kg…

Netgear has raised the bar for your wireless home network with the release of the Nighthawk X10 – the world’s fastest router for media streaming and content backup. The Nighthawk X10 AD2700 Smart Wi-Fi Router has a powerful 1.7Ghz quad core processor with a Quad Stream Wave 2 wi-fi architecture as well as the next generation 802.11ad for combined wireless speeds of up to 7.2Gbps. Also onboard is the latest MU-MIMO (multiple user – multi in, multi out) technology which supports simultaneous streaming and doubles the wi-fi speed to mobile devices. The aggressive design is complemented with four external Active…

Microsoft has debuted new sleek Surface products that offer professional grade power and performance and include features that will help you unleash your ideas and creativity. Surface Studio and the second generation Surface Book, unveiled at a Microsoft media event in New York today, are products the company believes will empower a new wave of creativity. MICROSOFT SURFACE STUDIO The star of the Microsoft event was the all-in-one Microsoft Surface Studio which combines a powerful computer and a 28-inch PixelSense display. The Surface Studio’s touch screen can be tilted and lowered to the desktop level and enable the user to…

Bose has just unveiled three new wireless speaker systems – a soundbar and two luxury home entertainment systems – that take your TV and movie viewing experience to the next level. Once again, the respected audio company has created a range of products that follow the tradition of combining superior design and audio technology. There’s the SoundTouch 300 soundbar that defies the limitations of single speaker performance and the Lifestyle 650 and 600 home entertainment systems for true surround sound. BOSE SOUNDTOUCH 300 SOUNDBAR – $999 The Bose Soundbar is less than a metre in length with a thin profile…

Tablets sales in Australia have bounced back thanks to the boom in high-end laptop replacement devices like the iPad Pro, Microsoft Surface Pro and the Samsung Galaxy Tab Pro S. According to a new study by Telsyte, sales of tablet devices grew by four percent in Australia year-on-year with 1.59 million units purchased in the first half of 2016. It is the first time the tablet market has shown signs of growth since 2014. And the devices responsible for the surge are the powerful convertible products which can be used as tablets and also laptop replacements. Products like Apple’s iPad…

It’s time to get updated and educated about the latest consumer tech news and reviews with Episode 222 of the top-rating Tech Guide podcast hosted by editor Stephen Fenech. On this week’s show, Samsung’s new augmented reality app that could save your life, the Nespresso machine that releases your inner barista and Kodak gets back in the picture with a new photo sharing app. In the Tech Guide reviews, we take a look at the Google Pixel smartphone, the Ring connected doorbell that means you can answer your door from anywhere and the Samsung curved full high definition monitor. In…

There are bike locks and then there’s the SkunkLock – a lock that strikes back when a thief tries to tamper with or saw through it with noxious fumes that will induce vomiting and irritation. Regular bike U-locks are not going to stop a determined thief which is what led founders Daniel Idzkowski and Yves Perrenoud to create the SkunkLock. They’ve both lost bikes to criminals and then had no way to get around. In the US alone, more than 1.5 million bikes are stolen each year. A regular bike lock can be cut with an angle grinder in seconds…