Author: Stephen Fenech

It’s nearly Christmas and if you’re thinking of setting up some lights you can’t go past the Philips Hue that allows users to control the colour and brightness. And you can control it all with a smartphone app for iPhone and Android to make your lighting do exactly what you want it to do. Now there are even more choices with the Philips Hue lighting systems. We’ve still got the Starter Pack that comes with three screw-in bulbs and the bridge that connects to your router to give you wireless control of the system. The circular bridge unit links to…

Episode 125 of the top rating Tech Guide podcast, hosted by editor Stephen Fenech, is available now to give you the lowdown on the latest tech news and reviews. On this week’s show, we take a look at the tech we’re buying for Christmas, the top internet searches of 2014 and the Star Wars Episode VII The Force Awakens trailer – we take a shot-by-shot look at it. In the Tech Guide reviews, the Braven Mira water resistant speaker you can listen to in the shower, the Bose wireless Bluetooth on-ear headphones and the Lifeproof Fre waterproof case for the…

To insure or not insure – that is the question. Optus has launched Yes Cover to give customers protection if their device is lost, stolen or damaged. We all carry smartphones around with us every day and use other devices like tablets often, especially when we’re travelling. And unfortunately we sometimes misplace these devices or, even worse, they get stolen and all we are left with after all that is the heartache and the bill to replace it. But now Optus customers have the option of taking up Yes Cover for an additional $13 a month on top of their…

If you’ve ever wanted to have your say on the radio but didn’t want to wait on hold for ages then the VoiceByte app let’s you easily make yourself heard. 2GB in Sydney is already using VoiceByte – available on iOS and Android – to gather content from listeners for their programs. In fact, VoiceByte is being used as a way for listeners to submit a question for Tech Guide editor Stephen Fenech to answer during his popular 2GB tech segment every Wednesday afternoon as part of Chris Smith’s Afternoon Show. It’s not unusual for callers to wait for up…

There are a lot of Bluetooth speakers on the market at the moment but not all of them are quite as versatile as the Braven Mira water resistant speaker. The circular speaker can be used anywhere – including in the shower or by the pool. And the handy hook on the back can be used to hang it off the shower head and anywhere else and it can also be used as a kickstand to prop it up on any flat surface. On the front are the controls – volume up and down, on/off switch and the play button. The…

The teaser trailer for the new Star Wars movie has just been released and we’ve been poring over every frame for clues about the film’s plot and characters. Star Wars Episode VII The Force Awakens isn’t released until December 2015 so this first official glimpse is super cool. As an avid Star Wars fan I was eagerly awaiting this first official teaser trailer but there were a few hoaxes and fan-made clips that looked real enough. One fake trailer started like the real thing with the Disney and Lucasfilm logos but what we got was video of the Rick Astley…

Lifeproof has released its first waterproof for Apple’s new iPhone 6 to allow users to enjoy their summer without worrying about damaging their device. The Lifeproof frē is available in white/grey and black and seals the iPhone to make it waterproof, dustproof, shockproof and even snowproof. The case offers military grade protection to save the device from damage if you drop it – a mishap that’s the number one cause of device damage and often results in a smashed screen. The Lifeproof case can handle drops from a height of up to two metres. It also has a built-in screen…

Two Blokes Talking Tech Episode 186, with Tech Guide editor Stephen Fenech and EFTM’s Trevor Long, is your tour of the latest tech news and reviews. On this week’s show – which can be viewed on YouTube or heard in the usual ways – the blokes take about Regin – the world’s most feared computer virus, your technology personality type and the Kobo Aura H2O waterproof e-reader. Also on the agenda, Apple gets behind World AIDS Day, cheaper smartphones from Boost Mobile and Kogan, high tech car servicing with Audi and one-minute reviews on the Bang & Olufsen BeoPlay A2…

Bose has eliminated the cable with its new Soundlink on-ear headphones but it certainly hasn’t had any impact on the company’s trademark high sound quality. These Bluetooth headphones have a padded headband with ear cups about the same size as those found on the excellent QC3 noise cancelling headphones. And while these Soundlink headphones don’t have active noise cancellation they still form a decent seal thanks to soft leather feel when they rest on your ears for a nice level of passive noise cancellation. They are also very lightweight so there’s no issue with wearing them for extended periods to…

Stay updated and educated with the latest tech news and reviews with Episode 124 of the top-rating Tech Guide podcast, hosted by editor Stephen Fenech. On this week’s show, discover your technology personality type, Netflix is finally coming to Australia and finding the right cloth to clean your device. In the Tech Guide reviews we take a look at the Kobo Aura H2O e-reader that’s waterproof, the Bang & Olufsen BeoPlay A2 Bluetooth speakers and the unusual looking BlackBerry Passport smartphone. In the Tech Guide Help Desk we answer the question about choosing between an activity tracker and a smartwatch.…

A new virus called Regin has been described as the world’s most dangerous bug ever with experts saying it is probably the work of  a government agency. The malware, discovered by internet security company Symantec, is capable of stealing data and passwords, taking screenshots and can even control the cursor. Regin was also able to gain access to phone calls after attacking a telecom company’s infrastructure. Symantec says Regin has been around a long time and can go years without being noticed inside a computer system. It is suited for long-term surveillance of governments, research institutes, individuals and other countries.…

To mark World AIDS Day, Apple has created a special section of the App Store – Apps for (RED) – with all proceeds going to global fund to fight AIDS. For the next two weeks the new Apps for (RED) section of the App Store will offer 24 apps with exclusive new content with funds directed to help achieve the goal of an AIDS-free generation. On World AIDS Day – December 1 – Apple will also donate a portion of sales at Apple’s retail and online stores around the world. The day also happens to coincide with one of the…

As Australians we love technology and are early adopters of all types of devices but new research has identified six distinct technology personality types. Digital Ethnographer Jonathan Hutchinson partnered with Microsoft in his research to identify the different ways people approach and use technology in their day-to-day lives. From looking at consumer use, adoption and personal behaviour the study pinpointed six different personalities that consumers will be able to identify with. Here are the six tech types: THE CREATOR This user is always working on a new project and regularly share ideas while using technology to try and turn that…

Bang & Olufsen has entered the Bluetooth speaker market but in typical style, the company has put its own unique design spin on it to make it stand out from the crowd. The BeoPlay A2 is about the size of a trade paperback book and has a leather strap on one end. It is also flat – an unusual shape for a speaker – with a grille on the front and the back. Not that you can actually pick the front or the back – it’s really up to the listener how they’d like to place it or hold it.…

There are lot of waterproof products on the market – smartphones, speakers, cameras – but the Kobo Aura H2O is the world’s first waterproof e-reader. Forget sealing your e-reader in a plastic zip-lock bag or special waterproof case next time you’re within sight of water. Kobo’s Aura H2O can not only handle a splash – it can even be fully submerged. The device has a 6.8-inch e-ink high definition screen with a resolution of 1430 x 1080 with 265dpi (dots per inch) so the text is razor sharp and easy to read. The display has built-in ComfortLight technology that illuminates…

BlackBerry’s main customers today are the ones that stayed loyal or are locked in with a corporate device and the new BlackBerry Passport isn’t going to change that. The Passport gets its name because it is the same shape as the travel document we carry on overseas trips. It’s also a name that suggests mobility. But the shape is not what we’ve grown used to in the smartphone market and also nothing like any other BlackBerry that we’ve ever seen before. It has a 4.5-inch square touchscreen with a 1400 x 1400 resolution and a three row physical keyboard that…

The Mobile Cloth from PC Range is a low tech product but it is specially designed to keep our high tech devices shiny, clean and bacteria free. It is inevitable that when using touchscreen devices like smartphones and tablets that fingerprints and marks are going to end up on our screens. The PC Range Mobile Cloth has been specially designed and made of microfibre material which has fibres that are each 100 times thinner than a human hair. They are woven in a special pattern called nubs to make it easier to wipe off fingerprints as well as 98 per…

There are phone cases for decoration and phone cases for protection and the Tech21 case for the iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus ticks all the boxes. If you’re investing in the Apple’s new iPhone 6 or iPhone 6 Plus or then it’s worth spending some extra dollars on a case that’s going to defend the device against accidental drops. And the latest Tech21 Impactology range can offer unrivalled protection while still offering a sleek and compact design. The Tech 21 Shell, Band, Frame and Wallet cases offer slightly different looks and styles but what they all have in common…

Episode 185 of Two Blokes Talking Tech, with Tech Guide editor Stephen Fenech and EFTM’s Trevor Long, can be seen and heard now for the latest tech commentary. On this week’s show – which was broadcast live on YouTube while being recorded – the blokes talk about Nokia’s comeback with an Android iPad-like tablet and Netflix finally coming to Australia and New Zealand. Also on the program – the DJI Phantom drones and how these flying cameras have made the news for wrong reasons. The podcast is about to turn 10 years old, Jawbone’s new affordable UP Move activity tracker…

Boost Mobile is providing a big screen experience without the big price tag with its latest offering – a 5-inch Alcatel OneTouch smartphone for less than $100. Boost Mobile View 5.0 is the first device with a 5-inch display offered at this price point in Australia. The $99 Alcatel OneTouch smartphone includes a 5-megapixel camera, a 1.3Ghz quad core processor along with 4GB of internal memory and a microSD card slot to expand the memory even further. Running Android’s Jelly Bean operating system, the Alcatel OneTouch device is 9.9mm thick and weighs 160g with a screen resolution of 854 x…