Author: Stephen Fenech

Samsung has released its first new TV for 2024 – the S95D OLED – which is running a world-first anti-glare technology to preserve colour accuracy and reduce reflections. The Samsung OLED S95D will be available in 55-inch, 65-inch and 77-inch and has been built for bright and open Australian homes. The OLED Anti-Glare technology helps maintain brightness and image sharpness while a new hard-coating layer and surface coating pattern can overcome the trade-off that comes with gloss and reflection. In fact, the Samsung S95D OLED has been verified as “Glare Free” by Underwriters Laboratories – an independent safety science company.…

LG has just announced the pricing and availability of its impressive 2024 OLED and QNED TV range – and the good news is that some of the new TVs are up to 25 per cent cheaper than last year’s models. There are 35 new OLED models in the range which boast brighter screens and faster more powerful AI processors. LG has also responded to the demand for larger screens in the market by releasing a 98-inch QNED and the 97-inch OLED M. But perhaps the biggest news is LG offering some of its 2024 TVs at prices up to 25…

The new 13-inch and 15-inch MacBook Air with the M3 chip is an impressive update for the extremely popular laptop and would be a welcome improvement for customers looking to upgrade. Like the iPhone, each improvement to the MacBook Air is incremental and probably wouldn’t appeal to a customer who purchased the laptop in the last year or two. The iPhone 15 released last year will probably win more customers who have much older devices rather than someone who purchased the iPhone 14. It’s the same thing for the new MacBook Air with M3. Yes, there are significant improvements even…

Press play and go to the top of the class with Episode 591 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, Samsung has just unveiled its new range of Galaxy A series smartphones, we sit down with the Epson global president and discover his vision for the future and Acer has moved into the health and wellness space with a range of appliances. In the Tech Guide reviews we take a look at the new Hubbl entertainment platform,…

Uniden has just introduced the latest members of its dash cam family – the DashView and iGO Cam series. There are five new models in the ranges led by the DashView 60+ which is Uniden’s first 5K resolution dash Cam. The new models offer high tech features and a slick design which stick true to the brand’s commitment to industry-leading Japanese quality that’s built for Australians. There are now even more options with the dash cams to capture video outside and inside the vehicle which makes it attractive to recreational drivers, commuters and professional users like taxi drivers, couriers and…

Samsung has just unveiled its latest Galaxy A series smartphones – the A55 5G and A35 5G – which offer a selection of the company’s latest innovations at a more affordable price. Many of the features onboard had been inspired by the flagship Galaxy S series devices including an improved camera, sleek design and even more robust security. The Samsung Galaxy A55 5G and A35 5G will go on sale on March 25 and will be priced at $699 and $549 respectively. “With the Galaxy A series, we are expanding our latest technologies to a wider audience so that more…

Epson’s global president Yasunori Ogawa was in Sydney last week to celebrate Epson’s 40thanniversary in Australia and Tech Guide got a chance to join him in a fireside chat. We spoke about the future of printing and other applications for Epson’s print head technology, where the projector market is going and Epson’s commitment to make its augmented reality glasses even smaller and lighter. Mr Ogawa joined the Seiko Epson Corporation in 1988 and his first task was to design image sensors for fax machines before being assigned to the projector division which would go on to be responsible for commercialising…

Get into gear and join Tech Guide’s Stephen Fenech and EFTM’s Trevor Long for the latest episode of Two Blokes Talking Electric Cars  – The EV Podcast. This week, Stephen and Trevor are discussing charger locations and why they don’t install more, we talk to Fred Tuckwell – chair of OCN – Independent Voice of Strata Owners – and ask him about EV and infrastructure in apartments and go through the February EV sales figures. https://youtu.be/a6J7LCSH4GU?si=7B73_OiukWtU7d-r You can listen or the watch show right here on Tech Guide site using the audio player below or by pressing play on the…

Hubbl is here! This new platform wants to become your one-stop entertainment destination for movie, TV shows, sport and news. It does this by combining popular streaming services with Foxtel’s own apps along with free to air catch-up apps and, if you have an antenna, broadcast TV channels. Hubbl is available as a standalone box ($99) or as a TV called Hubbl Glass (55-inch $1,595 and 65-inch $1,995). This report is focused on the Hubbl Box and the service’s operating system and performance. We will be reviewing Hubbl Glass in the coming days. Hubbl can do a lot of things…

Everybody runs!!! This week on The Best Movies You’ve Never Seen podcast we’re watching Minority Report starring Tom Cruise and directed by Steven Spielberg. Minority Report is based on a Phillip K Dick short story and  tells the story of the PreCrime division in Washington in the year 2054 where they investigate murders and arrest the perpetrator before they happens. But what happens when the perpetrator in one case is the main investigator? Stephen watched Minority Report at the movies and has rewatched it many times – and Trevor is seeing it for the first time. We go through the…

Come and hang out with the Two Blokes Talking Tech – Tech Guide editor Stephen Fenech and EFTM’s Trevor Long – so you can hear Episode 623 of the popular podcast. This week: the NBN have decided to increase your home broadband speeds – for nothing, we share our first impressions of Hubbl and Apple has released new upgraded 13-inch and 15-inch MacBook Airs which are now running the M3 chip. You can listen to the show right here on the Tech Guide site using the audio player below. It is also possible to subscribe to the popular weekly tech…

Tech company Acer, best known for its laptops, has expanded into the lifestyle home appliance space in Australia with its new Acerpure range. These include air purifiers, an air circulator and a vacuum cleaner. Acer is also looking to enter the beauty and cooking space later this year. Australians are moving towards wellness-orientated tech solutions and Acer decided to respond to that demand with a range of simple yet smart appliances that can improve air quality and provide greater comfort and easier cleaning in your home. “Acerpure’s mission is to provide technological innovations to resolve various consumer concerns and provide…

Synology has unveiled a brand new addition to its product line – the BeeStation – a personal cloud storage and back-up system that’s designed to be easy to use and manage. The Synology BeeStation can be used to store backups and manage and share data and all without subscription fees and with complete control to ensure your data stays private. This personal cloud device works straight out of the box and has of built in 4TB hard drive which provides plenty of room for documents, personal files, photos and videos. And set up takes just minutes. By simply scanning a…

Arlo has crossed the 3 million mark for paid subscriptions which showcases the growth of the ecosystem and the increasing demand for home security in Australia and around the world. Arlo Secure subscription plans start at $4.95 per month and offer up to 30 days of 4K recording stored in the cloud on Arlo’s SmartCloud platform, smart notifications, object detection, smart zones and priority care and support on all plans. “Arlo launched the first consumer AI subscription in June of 2018, revolutionising the security market and foretelling the incredible value the technology can create for users across many industries,” says…

Tech Guide Episode 590 is coming to you from Las Vegas where we attended the NRL season-opening double header at Allegiant Stadium – but we’ll keep you updated and educated about the latest consumer tech news and reviews. In this week’s show, we share our experience from Las Vegas for the NRL double header, Hubbl announces its launch date and Apple shares some stories about customers whose lives were saved by Apple Watch. In the Tech Guide reviews, we take a look at the new ASUS Chromebook Plus, Kobo releases its eBook report and Ecovacs is offering a huge special…

The NBN has revealed plans to offers speeds five times faster on its NBN Home Fast products taking it from 100/20 Mbps to 500/50 Mbps at no additional cost to wholesale retailers. NBN says it will accelerate the speeds for customers connected to the NBN via Fibre to the Premises (FTTP) and HFC (Hybrid Fibre Coaxial) technologies. It is also planning on tripling the download speed of its popular NBN Home Superfast product from 250/25 Mbps to 750/50 Mbps and the NBN Home Ultrafast from 500-1000/50Mbps to 750-1000/50-100 Mbps at no additional charge. These accelerated speeds are expected to be…

Apple has announced new 13-inch and 15-inch MacBook Air laptop computers which now contain the company’s latest and most powerful M3 chip. Available from Friday March 8, the new MacBook Air models are up to 60 per cent faster than the M1 models and up to 13x faster than the fastest Intel based MacBook Air. “MacBook Air is our most popular and loved Mac, with more customers choosing it over any other laptop. And today it gets even better with the M3 chip and new capabilities,” says Greg Joswiak, Apple’s senior vice president of Worldwide Marketing. “From college students pursuing…

Join Tech Guide’s Stephen Fenech and EFTM’s Trevor Long for the latest episode of Two Blokes Talking Electric Cars  – The EV Podcast. This week, Stephen and Trevor are discussing the factors that can affect the range of an EV and Mercedes Benz  is thinking about revising its EV designs. https://youtu.be/GKBq0oXFdNA?si=9SSZGtWS4lXVR2tB You can listen to or watch the show right here on the Tech Guide site using the audio player below or by pressing play on the YouTube player above.

The new Hubbl entertainment platform will go on sale on March 10 and will kick off a national advertising campaign starring brand ambassadors Hamish Blake and Andy Lee. Hubbl is an all-new entertainment operating system which combines streaming apps and freer to air TV and bring all the best content to the surface. It will be available to customers as either a standalone box for $99 or as part of the Hubbl Glass TV available in 55-inch ($1,595) or 65-inch ($1,995). They will be available from JB Hi-Fi and Harvey Norman. WHAT IS THE HUBBL PLATFORM – READ MORE HERE…

You talk to your partner before you go to the suits. This week on The Best Movies You’ve Never Seen podcast we’re watching Black Rain starring Michael Douglas and Andy Garcia and directed by Ridley Scott. Black Rain tells the story of cop Nick Conklin who, while being investigated by internal affairs, witnesses a murder in a busy restaurant and apprehends the perpetrator – a Japanese crime figure who Nick must accompany to Japan after he is extradited. Stephen watched Black Rain at the movies and repeatedly on a South Sydney end of season trip where the movie was being…