Author: Stephen Fenech

Football fans can watch the new English Premier League season for free if they sign up to selected Optus plans by July 31 that start as low as $30 per month for 12 months. Premier League subscriptions are available from today and are available with a range of Optus products including postpaid mobile plans, SIM-only plans, mobile broadband and home broadband plans. If you’re an existing Optus customer, you can also sign up for the 2016/2017 EPL season if you have an eligible service. You can check your eligibility online at www.optus.com.au/epl from today. And if you live in an…

The drones are about to invade Sydney for Vivid and Tech Guide was able to take a look behind the scenes as Intel’s world record-setting Drone 100 was gearing up for its formation flight over Sydney Harbour. The Drone 100 will illuminate the sky from June 8-12 at 7.55pm (weather permitting) and fly in a choreographed routine to the sounds of the Sydney Youth Orchestra. But the seven-minute performance has been a year in the making. Tech Guide took a trip out to the launch barge positioned in Farm Cove – between the Sydney Opera House and Mrs Macquarie’s Chair…

HTC has just released the mid-level Desire 825 smartphone which has a 5.5-inch display that’s aimed at customers who want a feature-packed device at a more affordable price. Launched in partnership with JB Hi-Fi, the HTC Desire 825 is graphite grey with a polycarbonate design with a chromatic accent. Both the power button and speaker grills have a contrasting colour that enhances the product visually. The 5.5-inch screen has a resolution of 1280 x 720 with 267ppi (pixels per inch) and a 13-megapixel main camera and 5-megapixel front camera. The front selfie camera can be activated without even touching the…

Last year there was a record number of encounters with sharks resulting unfortunately in surfer deaths but a new leg rope that doubles as a personal shark deterrent has just been released. The Modom Shark Leash is an Australian product that was made in collaboration with the US –based Sharkbanz. When the surfer wears the device it creates an electromagnetic field around them and irritates the shark’s electrical sense which the company says will reduce the risk of attack and repel inquisitive sharks. The product from Modom Surf doesn’t use batteries, doesn’t require charging and will not lose its power…

Two Blokes Talking Tech Episode 257, with Tech Guide editor Stephen Fenech and EFTM’s Trevor Long, was recorded at the Museum of Contemporary Art on Sydney Harbour during Vivid where Canon launched its latest SLR camera. The blokes were part of a Canon walking tour with the new 80D and professional photographer Ryan Schembri. Also on the show, and also on the subject of Vivid, is Intel’s Drone 100 which will be soaring over Sydney in formation. We also take a look at the latest social media trends, the iPhone 7 and its lack of a headphone jack, FreeStyle Libre…

Samsung has just revealed two new fitness wearables – the Gear Fit2 and the Gear IconX – which are designed to be easily incorporated into our lives to provide precise tracking and health information. The Gear Fit2 is a wrist band that has embedded GPS and a heart rate monitor to provide instant feedback on the user’s workout. The Gear IconX are cord-free earbuds which can track fitness information while listening to music on the go. “We are committed to offering Australians mobile and wearable technology that can help them reach their lifestyle goals,” said Prasad Gokhale Samsung Australia vice…

If you’re the forgetful type, then the MYNT smart tracker is just what you need. It’s the world’s thinnest smart button that can be attached to anything so you’ll never lose a thing. The device is just 5.5cm long, 2.5cm wide and 3.5mm thick. And being this tiny makes it easy to fit it in your wallet, attach it to a laptop, embed it in your child’s clothing or use it as a pet tag. MYNT is paired with an app on your smartphone and provides an alert when the two are separated.It is thin enough to be placed inside…

We all love a bargain and some of us are even prepared to lie to get one but there are no fibs necessary to get your hands on the affordable Samsung Galaxy J2 through Boost Mobile. According to research commissioned by Boost Mobile, a third of shoppers (32 per cent) have used little white lies to get a better deal including saying it’s their birthday, that they’re newlyweds or on their honeymoon. And the same study said only 26 per cent found it easy to find an affordable smartphone. Well you don’t have to look very far to find Boost…

If you’re a diabetic, then you’re all-too familiar with the daily process of glucose testing with a finger prick but a new device called the FreeStyle Libre has now made that a thing of the past. Usually diabetics use lancets, finger pricking and test strips to monitor their glucose levels but the FreeStyle Libre eliminates all of this. Glucose data is gathered by wearing a small round sensor that’s the size of two stacked 20 cent coins on the back of your arm. A handheld reader is then scanned over the sensor to obtain a quick and painless real-time glucose…

Kogan.com has released its new Agora 6 Plus flagship smartphone that includes a range of features usually seen on premium devices but while retaining affordable pricing for its customers. The Agora 6 Plus (which sounds a lot like the name of a certain Apple product) is being compared by Kogan.com to the Samsung Galaxy S7. Kogan.com is calling it the best smartphone it’s ever made and was created in response to customers asking the company to include the same features as the high end phones. Priced at just $349, the Agora 6 Plus has an aluminium chassis and a bright…

Samsung has launched its 2016 range of curved monitors which not only meet a wide range of uses but are also designed to look good in any part of your home whether it’s for work or play. Ranging in sizes from 22-inch to 34-inch, the Samsung curved monitors have been created to meet the customer’s needs whether it’s for personal use, for work or for enjoying multimedia content. Design has been a serious focus for the Samsung curved monitors with evolving market trends showing the screens being used all around the home including the lounge room and even the bedroom.…

Tune in to Episode 201 of the top-rating Tech Guide podcast, hosted by editor Stephen Fenech who keeps you updated and educated about the latest consumer tech news and reviews. On this week’s show, ASUS challenges Apple with its new ZenBook 3 laptop, Dyson enters the lighting business and 360Fly launches its 4K 360 degree camera. In the Tech Guide interview, we talk to Norton’s Pacific region director Mark Gorrie about our lack of security on our smartphones. In the Tech Guide reviews, we check out the Vividwireless home internet service without cables and the Braven BRV-XXL Bluetooth speakers. In…

Vivid Sydney is about to be taken over by drones. The Drone 100, Intel’s world record-holding drone performance, will make its public debut and fly in formation above Sydney Harbour. For five nights only – June 8-12 – the 100 illuminated drones will be flown in a spectacular choreographed routine to the sounds of the Sydney Youth Orchestra. Weather-permitting, the Drone 100 will soar above Sydney Harbour in a seven minute performance each night at 7.55pm. The drones will create different shapes and light patterns and also reveal a never-before-seen animation for the Sydney performance. The 100 drones will be…

Australian travel tech start-up Seatfrog, which is about to change the way you can score an airline seat upgrade, has attracted $1.2m in international funding before its launch later this year. Seatfrog is a mobile app that will allow passengers to bid for seat upgrade right up until the departure gate. From the airline’s perspective, it allows them to maximize revenue on seats that would, under normal circumstances, fly empty. For the passenger, Seatfrog allows them to access available upgrades and bid for them even minutes before the flight. The successful bidder can not only pay for the upgrade through…

Our smartphones have become the central device in our life that contains our personal information and controls our home devices – but surprisingly most don’t have any security onboard. According to a Norton by Symantec study of more than 5000 consumers from Australia, US, UK, Canada and Japan, the message about securing your mobile device just isn’t getting through. The research revealed that two thirds (66 per cent) of the Australian respondents do not have security software on their smartphones with 33 per cent not even having a password or PIN to in their devices. This is despite the fact…

ASUS has taken the laptop battle to Apple’s doorstep with the unveiling of the head-turning ZenBook 3 – a device that’s thinner and more powerful than the popular MacBook. The ZenBook 3, launched by ASUS at Computex in Taipei, is made of aerospace-grade aluminium alloy and has a 12.5-inch display. It is just 11.9mm thick and weighs 910g. By comparison, Apple’s MacBook has a 12-inch Retina display and is 13.1mm thick with a weight of 920g. On the processor side, the ZenBook 3 is powered by Intel’s Core i7 processor which ASUS claims is twice as fast as the Core…

Braven believes bigger is better which is why they’ve just released this bad boy – the BRV-XXL – the largest Bluetooth speaker they’ve made that can be used anywhere from your bedroom to the beach. The Braven BRV-XXL has a rugged construction so it can take accidental falls, sand, dust and dirt while an IPX5 waterproof rating means it can handle things poolside, beachside, on the work site and in the rain as well. It has a handle and even a shoulder strap so it’s easy to carry with you anywhere despite its size. It is 51.4cm long, 21cm wide…

Don’t want ADSL? Can’t access cable on your area? But don’t worry – there is another way to connect your home to the internet wirelessly with Vividwireless using a 4G LTE network purpose built for data. Vividwireless – formerly called Unwired and bought out by Optus in 2012 – is available in metropolitan areas of Australians capital cities including Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, Adelaide and Perth. This type of service is activated in minutes simply by connecting a wireless modem to a power point in your home. This means customers will have access to the internet if they don’t have a…

Edifier’s S1000DB is a Bluetooth speaker system with a difference. For a start there’s a pair of them to offer the classic look of a lifestyle shelf system that provide excellent sound quality. These active speakers have Bluetooth aptX onboard and are designed with wooden side panels and a black matte finish so it looks as good as it sounds. And audio purists will appreciate being able to position two speakers in their listening area while having the convenience of streaming sound wirelessly from a smartphone, tablet or a laptop. The front facing drivers deliver a solid 120 watts with…

Before Independence Day: Resurgence explodes into theatres on June 23, you can enjoy the special 20th Anniversary edition of Independence Day that includes a restored original and extended version of the hit film. Available now on Blu-ray and DVD and Digital HD, Independence Day 20th Anniversary Edition also includes an all-new 30-minute documentary – Independence Day: A Legacy Surging Forward. The original film, released in 1996, was one of the biggest box-office hits of all time and had an all-star cast including Will Smith, Jeff Goldblum and Bill Pullman. When gigantic alien spacecraft take positions over major cities around the…