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Pushing Land Rover’s best-connected 4x4 to its limits

The phone that will change photography

*

Zoom in 100x to find shots you never knew existed It starts with 10x Hybrid Optic Zoom enabled by a revolutionary folded lens and high resolution image sensor. Couple that with Super Resolution Zoom enhanced by camera AI to get close up to the action and capture moments you might have missed.

Space Zoom Video Snap Changes how you capture photos and videos

*30x Super Resolution Zoom available on the S20 and S20+.

100x Super Resolution Zoom available on the S20 Ultra.

You can pull 33MP stills right out of 8K video It’s a whole new way to capture still photography every time you hit record. 8K video turns every frame into a crisp image that you can pinch in on for once-in-a-lifetime shots.

Bright Night We almost tripled the sensor size so you can shoot more of the night In low light, the pro-grade camera system lets you captures multiple action shots at once, merging them into one stunning shot with less blur and noise. With larger image sensors and AI, switching to Night mode means you can shoot night-time scenes like daylight.

Single Take A whole new way to take one shot and turn it into multiple formats Single Take is essentially burst mode turned beast mode.

With revolutionary AI, it lets you shoot for up to 10 seconds and get back a variety of formats - meaning you can choose the best style for the moment without having to reshoot.

Specifications are subject to change, correct at time of print.

Welcome How on Earth did we get here? If you’re anything like the Stuff team, you’re bunkered down at home wondering when things will get back to normal. The sad truth is: It’s probably going to be a while. South Africa’s initial lockdown still has a few weeks to run at the time of writing but don’t be too surprised if you’re getting even more familiar with your home in the coming months.

These are extraordinary times – expect some extraordinary measures to go with them.

That isn’t to say that the Earth’s stood still, however. We’re still here, you’re still here, the world of tech… that’s still there too. Deadlines have been revised backwards across the planet – hence the lack of firm pricing through much of this special issue – but the items we’re fond of will be along in due course. As will our return to ‘normal’.

We’ve put together a great special issue of Stuff for you. It’s a little smaller in size but that speaks more to the speed at which it was made than anything else. We’ve got specific COVID-19 survival tips for you – of the tech kind, because that’s what we do. If you’re staring down cabin fever, there’s advice to be had (p40) and if you’re battling to set up a home office, we’ve got options (p44). We also have suggestions on how to shop without leaving home (p48) and even a few recommendations on keeping the kids busy and educated (p39). School’s out, after all.

There’s more, because there always is. The best phones of the year so far (p30), some folding awesomeness from Huawei (p26), a new Land Rover (p50) or one of the most creative games you’ll ever play (p62) round out this issue.

Plus a whole lot more.

We’re living in interesting times, folks, but the world hasn’t ended. It’s still around. We’re just inside for the moment. Stay safe and stay home, as much as you can.

Advertising Business director Sally Hudson sally@stuff.co.za Senior account manager Thalia Pallotta 083 375 2418 thalia@stuff.co.za Management Stuff South Africa is published by the Stuff Group (Pty) Ltd. Directors: Toby Shapshak, Sally Hudson PO Box 74, Melrose Arch, 2096 Kelsey Publishing UK Stuff UK content is published with the permission of copyright holder Kelsey Publishing Ltd, Cudham Tithe Barn, Berry’s Hill, Cudham, Kent TN16 3AG ... and a word about prices Generally, we show the manufacturer’s recommended price.

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1 Promotions, giveaways and competitions are entered through Stuff Group’s website www.stuff.co.za and are opened for Issue 105, 2020 on 6 April 2020 and close on 26 April 2020. 2 The judges’ decision is final and no correspondence can be entered into. 3 Employees of Stuff Group and their families are not allowed to enter. Advertising and public relations representatives may not enter competitions in the issue in which their promotions, giveaways or competitions are carried. 4 Prizes are not exchangeable for cash and/or other products. Prizes are available while stocks last. It is at the discretion of Stuff Group and the custodian of the prizes to ensure that, should there be a problem with the stipulated prize won, a reasonable replacement of the same value will be offered. 5 Stuff Group carries promotions, giveaways and competitions in good faith and cannot be held responsible for any misrepresentation on the part of the custodian of the promotions, giveaways and competitions. 6 Winners will be notified telephonically and by mail. It is the responsibility of the winner to ensure that the correct address and contact details are given. It is the responsibility of the custodian of the promotion, giveaway and competition to ensure that prizes are sent out correctly and within the specified time. 7 Prize delivery will take four to six weeks from the time the winner has been notified. 8 Promotions, giveaways and competitions are open to South African residents only. 9 All prize-winners will be published on www.stuff.co.za the following month, once the competition lines have closed. 10 Readers may not claim for more than one prize at a time, and once announced as a winner in any Stuff promotions, giveaways or competitions, will not be eligible for another prize for three (3) months thereafter. 11 By entering any promotions, giveaways or competitions, or by accepting any prize, entrants agree that their personal details may be retained by the promoter and/or Stuff magazine and used for the purpose of sending them information about future promotions, events and news, as well as for internal administration and analysis. 12 Unclaimed prizes will be kept for three months and will not be resent. 13 Participation in any promotion, giveaway or competition and/or acceptance of any prize implies full knowledge and acceptance of all rules.

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p26 Folder and wiser?

HOT STUFF 6

12 14 16 17 18 22 24

The Hot Five ● HTC Vive Cosmos Elite ● Dyson 360 Heurist ● Fujifilm X-T4 ● B&O Beosound Balance ● Asus Zephyrus Duo 15 Vital stats Carbon 1 Mark II A smartphone cut from the bodywork of an F1 car (not really – they’d notice) Icon Spengle Gold The wheel of (costing a freakin’) fortune Apps We’re too reliant on Google, says… er, Google Start menu Yes, it’s time to invest in a bald cat Games FFVII is back. So… wasn’t very ‘final’, was it?

Stream Buckle up, it’s time to take a trip to Tiger town Wheels Czinger 21C Just another 3D-printed hybrid hypercar

TESTS p54

p48 Teaches Chinese

p50 Glad it’s all Rover?

4

26 First test Huawei Mate Xs Flagship phone with folding flair 50 Tested Land Rover Defender (2020) ‘Old’ offroader with ostentatious oomph 52 Tested Marshall Monitor II ANC Comfy cans with chaos cancellation 54 Tested Huawei Sound X Music machine with more muscle 56 Tested Acer Swift 5 (2020) Pretty PC with prime portability 57 Tested Jabra Elite Active 75t Sporty stick-ins with superb stamina 62 Games Dreams

05.20 STAY SAFE

P30

FEATURES 30 Cover feature Stuff Mobile Awards The most exciting phones that would have stolen the show at MWC, if only there’d been a show to steal 39 Mini meme Education Apps Contrary to Pink Floyd’s beliefs, they do some need education 40 COVID-19 Stuck at home?

Here’s how to stay sane – using tech. Yes, online gaming is involved 44 COVID-19 Home office Essential kit for working at your domicile, John Spartan 46 COVID-19 Video conferencing Get started (and then git gud) at Zoom 48 COVID-19 Stay home For once, listen to the introverts. Let the food come to you 58 Instant upgrades DJI Mavic Mini Make our top ’copter even topper 60 Beta yourself Track your life Apps can help you work, rest and and improve 64 Random access memories Apple iPad (2010) This was the biggest tablet since Moses

STAYINFORMED We humans are social creatures but the best thing to be right now is an introvert. Coronavirus Disease 19 (COVID-19) will require everyone’s efforts to be beaten and, for once, you can do it by posting on Twitter.

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p3 5

Station to station These sinister black cubes are the Base Stations, which allow you to create a playable space of up to 15m2 (around 3.5x3.5m). Place them as high as you can for best results.

HOT FIVE #1 COSMIC RAISE

Ziggy star-trussed It doesn’t matter how immersive a VR world is if you keep getting tangled in wires.

HTC sells a wireless adaptor for the Cosmos range… but it does add more money to the price.

HTC Vive Cosmos Elite When it comes to virtual reality, the second word is the most important part: you want things to feel as close to reality as possible.

How do you do that? Cramming as much tech as possible into the thing you stick on your face is a good place to start, and HTC has very much obliged with its new PC-powered Vive Cosmos Elite.

On the inside there are two 3.4in LCD displays that offer a combined resolution of 2880x1700, with less space between the pixels to minimise the screen-door effect, while the faceplate on the front offers better inside-out tracking than the original Cosmos. It also comes with

two Lighthouse Base Stations, which track the movement of the headset and the controllers from wherever you put them in the room.

With that much tracking going on, your in-game thrusts and swipes should be more accurate than ever before, with fewer blind spots. What’s more, the faceplate is swappable, so when the AR-focused XR version launches (see right), you’ll also be able to buy its faceplate to go on your Elite.

Anyone know any virtual banks we can virtually rob?

As hot as...a ‘sauna on Venus’ VR experience Rtba / evetech.co.za

Sound and vision You get a pair of stereo headphones built in, while the flip-up design means you can easily jump in and out of your virtual worlds to make sure nobody’s sneaking up on you.

THE FULL HEADSET SET

Pairy monsters

COSMOS XR

The Cosmos XR will start as a developer kit but eventually go on general sale, with pass-through cameras allowing you to combine virtually generated worlds with the real one around you.

Rtba

COSMOS PLAY

This entry-level option drops the number of inside-out cameras from six to four, which should make it that bit more affordable and probably a better bet for entry-level games.

Rtba

The Cosmos Elite also comes with two rechargeable Vive Controllers, which include 24 sensors, a multi-function trackpad, triggers and haptic feedback for extraimmersion.

SHAGPILE AND ERROR Dyson 360 Heurist

The word ‘heuristic’ means encouraging someone to solve a problem by trial and error. It also applies to computers… and robot vacuum cleaners, especially ones with 450,000 lines of code – hence the name of Dyson’s latest auto-sucker.

With its 360º vision system, quad-core processors and intelligent mapping, the 360 Heurist goes all Indiana Jones on your house and commits the layout to memory, with eight sensors on the front and sides to avoid obstacles and get right up close to the edges of a room. There are even eight LEDs around the camera so it can carry on cleaning underneath furniture and when

the lights go out. Combined with a full-width brush bar, two different bristle types and a filter for finer particles, that means it should never miss a spot.

Its digital motor spins at 78,000rpm, meaning it sucks 20% harder than the old model and has twice as much power as any other robotic dust-guzzler. At max power it’ll need to head back to base for a recharge after 20 minutes, but in quiet mode it’ll keep slurping for as long as 90 minutes… which is handy, because it can get to work while you watch the 2019 rugby final. Again.

As hot as… the robots’ World Cup Final Rtba / dyson.co.uk

HOT FIVE #2

8

Clean app

Straight up

Dyson’s Link app gives you control over the 360 Heurist’s mode and schedule, plus it lets you divide the map it plots into different cleaning zones, adding no-go areas around obstacles it discovers.

There’s no point setting your robo-vac to work if it gets stuck on a sock five minutes after you leave the house. The 360 Heurist has sensors that’ll let you know if it falls or is tilted at a funny angle.

HOT FIVE #3 YOU REMIND ME OF MY X Fujifilm X-T4

Like a self-riding penny farthing or a Super-8 camera that can shoot 8K, Fujifilm’s X-T4 is deceptively modern. Its weather-sealed magnesium alloy chassis might give it the look of something you’d see being used to shoot hippies in the Summer of Love or document life during the Vietnam War, but it’s not just the 3in flip-out LCD screen that’ll give away its contemporary credentials.

The 26.1MP APS-C X-Trans CMOS sensor and X-Processor 4 inside are identical to those of its predecessor – but with a speedier, quieter shutter that can fire off up to 15fps, a new battery that can take up to 600 frames without conking out and in-body image stabilisation, it’s a major upgrade that’ll please stills shooters and videographers alike.

The latter can also take advantage of 4K and Full HD video, including a new 240fps slow-mo mode, and an IS Boost mode that’s designed to make static handheld shots as solid as a marble statue of Tyson Fury. Like all the latest flagship phones there’s no 3.5mm headphone port either, although you do get a USB-C adaptor in the box. See what we mean about it being deceptively modern?

As hot as… a nuclear sledge from R26 000 / fujifilm.co.za 9

Cool as... ahem, metal

Everything’s going to be oaky

The Duo 15 uses Thermal Grizzly’s Conductonaut Liquid Metal Compound that’ll lower the machine’s temp by up to eight degrees. In addition to running cooler, it’ll also be quieter.

The Balance is available in either natural oak or black oak. The interface is lasered directly into the aluminium, so it’s only visible when you get close enough for it to light up.

HOT FIVE #5 DOUBLE THE XP Asus Zephyrus Duo 15

HOT FIVE #4 BEATS BY BUDDHA

Bang & Olufsen Beosound Balance We don’t want to come across like some pseudo-inspirational Instagram account, but life is all about balance. Demolish an extra-large takeaway pizza on your own, for example, and you’ll need to spend the next few days munching carrots to balance it out. No, we’re not qualified dieticians, why do you ask?

B&O agrees with this philosophy, which is why its new Beosound Balance Wi-Fi speaker looks like such a consummate all-rounder.

Made from solid oak and aluminium, it has truly high-end looks and should pass the ear test too, with seven drivers 10

that promise tight bass and enough oomph to fill any yoga studio. A built-in mic even allows it to adjust its sound to suit the shape of your home, much like the Sonos Move’s Auto Trueplay feature.

It has Google Assistant and Amazon Alexa on board, plus you can use Spotify Connect, Apple AirPlay 2 or Chromecast to feed it your tunes. Just don’t forget to listen to something ugly and rubbish occasionally to balance things out.

As hot as… a spicy meat feast pizza with napalmstuffed crust R41 000 / e-piphinay.com

No, you’re not seeing double from being stuck in your house for too long. Asus has another dual-display machine on the way, and this time it’s part of the phenomenal Zephyrus gaming range.

The Duo 15 features a main 16:9 display, while the touch panel above the keyboard sizes in at 14in with a 32:9 ratio. The bottom screen can be lifted so you don’t have to strain your gaming neck injury. Again.

The main display can be customised up to 300mHz/3ms or 4K Adobe RGB if you’re partial to designing stuff. Both of ‘em are Pantone validated, which makes this Zephyrus a design powerhouse.

Powering this beauty is an Intel 10th Gen Core i9 10980XE and Nvidia’s brand new GeForce RTX Super with ROG Boost – Asus’ own overclocking software. This allows the machine to output 100W, up from 80W – all thanks to a swanky liquid metal cooling system. Yes, we’re talking Magneto-slushie-type cooling.

The second display should prove particularly useful for gamers and creators alike. That’s because it runs apps independently from the top display, including mobile apps. You can, for example, run PUBG on the main screen while running PUBG Mobile below. Just a thought.

As hot as…a T-1000. In lava Rtba (June 2020) / asus.com/za

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V I

T A L S T A T S

YOUR DAILY DOSE OF (CARBON) FIBRE Carbon 1 Mark II

R15 750 (import) / carbonmobile.com

The clue’s in the name of this eye-catching Android that won’t weigh you down ● Weighing in There are two very good reasons carbon fibre is often used in racing bikes and high-performance car parts: it’s very light and very strong. That also makes it ideal for something you carry around all day and occasionally drop on hard floors, don’t you think? Carbon Mobile’s Carbon 1 Mark II is the first phone to be made from the stuff (the Mark I never went on general sale) – and at 6.3mm thin and 125g, it’s 1.8mm slimmer and 63g lighter than an iPhone 11 Pro. ● Powering up Holding a phone that light might make you think it’s been pumped full of coriander instead of the necessary bits of silicon; but while the Mark II isn’t going to worry Android 10 flagships from the likes of Samsung and Huawei, there’s still a MediaTek P90 processor, 8GB of RAM, 128GB of storage and a 3050mAh battery behind the 6in 2160x1090 AMOLED screen. You also get dual 16MP cameras on the back and a 20MP selfie-cam, plus a side-mounted fingerprint sensor. ● Cooling off Those specs might sound a bit 2018, especially considering the R16 000 asking price, but there are hurdles to overcome when making a phone out of carbon fibre. It’s not good for reception and doesn’t dissipate heat well, so Carbon Mobile has had to use ‘Hybrid Radio Enabled Composite Materials’ to make sure you can still make calls and stop it turning into an expensive hand-warmer. ● Forking out Only 2000 Mark IIs are being made available for shipment in June, which suggests Carbon Mobile is expecting it to hold limited appeal – but if you feel like owning a featherweight slice of F1-style engineering, it’ll certainly make you stand out.

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The screen’s tough, with the thinnest ever Gorilla Glass 6 at just 0.4mm.

ORIGINAL PILOT MATERIALS ● Fairphone 3

The chassis of the Fairphone 3 isn’t just transparent because it looks cool – it’s also a nod to the responsibly sourced, recycled materials used to make it. And it’s modular, making it easier to repair rather than throwing the whole thing away.

● ADzero

Back in 2012, a student at Middlesex University designed a phone made of bamboo that weighed about half as much as an iPhone 4. Sadly it never made it into production, probably due to too much pressure from a panda-based lobby group.

OK boomer

ULTIMATE EARS HYPERBOOM Looking forward to the new Xbox coming out? So is Ultimate Ears, by the looks of it. How else do you explain the decidedly One X-esque cuboid styling of its new Hyperboom Bluetooth speaker? It’s three times as loud, six times as bassy and about four times as big as the Megaboom 3; and if you’ve got a playlist that’s guaranteed to get any party started, the Hyperboom’s one-touch controls can summon it with a single press. Despite its fabric coat it’s also IPX4-rated, so you won’t have to worry about it frying itself if it accidentally takes a sip of somebody’s homebrew and with a 24-hour battery there’s a pretty

● Vertu Boucheron 150

Vertu was famous for cladding its phones in weird stuff and charging a fortune for them, but it surely peaked with the solid gold Boucheron 150.

Released in 2008, it took 2000 hours to make and cost R670 000, which makes the Carbon 1 seem like a bargain.

Easy cam, easy go (again

LOMOGRAPHYSIMPLEUSEFILMCAMERA

THE FIRST CARBON FIBRE PHONE, IT’S 6.3MM THIN AND WEIGHS JUST 125G

Lomo doesn’t do normal. Its cameras and lenses are often deliberately wonky, leaking light and distorting your snaps in search of uniquely quirky shots. And now, in its quest to buck yet another trend, its new disposable camera isn’t actually disposable. The Simple Use Film Camera looks exactly like the kind of throwaway snapper you’d buy at the chemist and eventually drop off at Foto First six months later; but once you’ve clicked through 36 frames of the pre-loaded LomoChrome Metropolis film, you can simply reload it with any of the others that take your fancy. It even comes with three blendable colour gel flash filters to mix up your shots. Say cheese. from R500 / lomography.com 13

I C O N

THESE ARE THE WORLD’S MOST EXPENSIVE RIMS, HAND-LAID WITH 24-CARAT GOLD

SPENGLE GOLD R224 000 (pair) / spengle.com/collections Has Pusha T got a new bike?

Depends – is Pusha T a Lycra man who likes spending his Sundays riding two abreast on the R540 near Magalies? We think not. But if he is, do let him know that these are the world’s most expensive bicycle rims, with 24-carat gold leaf painstakingly hand-laid over Spengle’s high-performance carbon monocoque. They’re made for top-end road bikes rather than low riders.

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Are they any good, though?

They quite probably are. Spengle’s cutting-edge carbon monocoque, a construction method that involves several spun pieces of aluminium riveted together, is also used in Formula 1 cars.

You know, the ‘shell’ that keeps Lewis Hamilton and his pals safely cocooned in their cars as they flip into the air at 275km/h and crash back onto the tarmac upside-down.

Spun aluminium? Sounds fiddly…

Perfection can’t be rushed – so if you want to splash out in time for spring you’d better get your order in now, because each wheel takes three months to build.

They’re constructed at Spengle’s custom facility at the base of the Tatra Mountains in Slovakia, and each one goes through 30 stages of structural and performance testing before making it onto the road or trail.

So that’s where my money going?

Well, they were never going to be cheap or available from Cycle Lab. Yes, it’s £10 000 a wheelset in the UK, €10 000 in Europe and $10 000 in the US (clearly Spengle doesn’t concern itself with international currency conversion calculators).

But they’re built to order for any road bike, and there’s no denying they’ll bring even more attention to yourself as you ignore red traffic lights with your AirPods in.

Like streamers do

LOGITECH STREAMCAM Back in our day, if you wanted to make some money as a youngster you could clean your parents’ house or work in a grocery store. These days it seems you just need to go on YouTube and before you know it you’re a millionaire with your own signature line of vape liquids. But where do you start? Logitech’s new StreamCam isn’t a bad place. Plug it in via USB-C, perch it on top of your screen and it’ll capture 1080p footage at 60fps, with auto-exposure and face-based autofocus to make sure your army of fans can always see you in sharp relief. Fame and fortune surely await… or bemusement at why your ‘ASMR for guinea pigs’ channel hasn’t hit the big time.

Rtba / logitech.com

WTF ARE PANASONIC’S STEAMPUNK GLASSES? That is some high-end Mad Max cosplay.

Isn’t it just? It’s not hard to imagine yourself saddling up some sort of gas-guzzling Frankenstein of a motor, donning a pair of these and taking off across the Australian outback. In actual fact, they might help you to experience exactly that, because they’re far from just a useless movie prop. These are, according to Panasonic, the world’s first HDR-capable virtual reality goggles.

I thought we’d given up on VR?

Get with it, Gramps. We won’t pretend there aren’t various issues stopping VR from going truly mainstream, but one of the main ones is just how unwieldy the headsets can be – most of them still involve strapping something the size of a box of duck eggs to your face. These still aren’t exactly what you’d call subtle, but they’re definitely more ‘glasses’ than ‘headset’. They’ve even managed to include a pair of built-in Technics earbuds.

Surely the performance must suffer?

Whiten the corners

ORAL-B IO

What’s the smartest thing you’ve ever put in your mouth? Stephen Fry’s little finger? An avocado in a cravat? Brush your teeth with one of Oral-B’s new iO electric brushes and that might just take the title.

With a smart pressure sensor that tells you whether you’re pressing too hard or not hard enough, a visual timer that counts up to the dentist-approved two minutes, and AI brushing recognition to make sure you cover every single mouth cranny, it’s probably smarter than the average toddler – and much easier to fit in your mouth. And to think it used to be enough to make sure you brushed twice a day.

Rtba / oralb.co.za

Quite the opposite, if the specs are to be believed. The Oculus Rift S uses a single Quad HD LCD panel, whereas these are capable of displaying 4K video (like the Rift S, they have to be plugged into a PC to supply the visuals). Each of the circular eyepieces has its own micro OLED panel inside and Panasonic has used picture-processing smarts from its TVs and Blu-ray players, plus optical tech from its Lumix cameras, to make sure the virtual world looks as close to the real one as possible. You can even fit them with prescription lenses.

Right, what are they called and when can I buy some?

That’s the catch. These are a prototype, so it’s unlikely you’ll ever be able to buy them in their current form – but it goes to show you can make a pair of VR goggles that don’t make you feel like you’re auditioning to be the new member of Daft Punk.

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9

1 The White Door

2 Fantastical

3 Nightfall

4 FlickType

5 Unitied

6 Moleskine Journey

7 Classic Trek 80

8 Vilmonic

9 Giftr

R479 / Android ● R50 / iOS You awake in a white room with memory loss. Then follows a pointand-click adventure in a shoebox, your desire for freedom dovetailing with unease, suspicious motives and a sense of creeping horror.

R30 / iOS, watchOS Fed up yelling at your Apple Watch, or scribbling letters one at a time?

Go old-school with this surprisingly usable QWERTY keyboard, with added alternative word smarts by way of Digital Crown twiddling.

Free (IAPs) / iOS If Picard has sent you to a happy place of Trekkie nostalgia, you might as well go all the way. This game squirts the ancient Trek-80 into your phone, with delightfully clunky text-based warbird-hunting.

16

8

Free or R90/m / iOS This calendar uses natural language for input, integrates weather, adds sports dates and TV listings, and lets you propose multiple event times, after which it sorts your schedule.

It’s more like a PA than an app.

R37 / Android ● R30 / iOS What can soko-ban block-sliding offer mobile gaming in 2020? Quite a lot, as it turns out – at least if you concoct 42 deviously designed levels, each with several blocks that slide as one.

Free (IAPs) / Android, iOS Life’s almost extinct. It’s your job to bring it back. No pressure. The visuals are crude but there’s nuance and depth here, in what amounts to a cleverly crafted mash-up of Spore and Minecraft.

Free / Android, iOS There are hints of dungeon-crawling and Sky co-op in this multiplayer game where you roam isometric worlds and battle nightmares.

It’s aimed at kids – there are no ads/IAP – but is fun for adults too.

R70/m / iOS The fancy notebook people have made another app that will result in you buying fewer fancy notebooks.

This one is about bringing balance to your day with a mixture of journalling, planning and wellness.

Free or R110 monthly / iOS Gif just won’t die. And if you’re of the opinion there can never be enough gifs, this app uses AI to rifle through your snaps, and helps you quickly craft jerkily animated goodies to foist on the world.

IN THE SPOTLIGHT

GOOGLE DIGITAL WELLBEING EXPERIMENTS Free / Android Google wants you to buy Android phones… but not use them, judging by its Digital Wellbeing Experiments.

These free apps have various tactics to help you switch off, like Screen Stopwatch’s guilt-inducing timer that counts upwards whenever you use your phone.

We Flip is a game shared with friends, where the first to unlock loses; Activity Bubbles gradually fills your screen as you mess about; and Envelope (for the Pixel 3a only) has you put your phone, erm, in an actual envelope.

Frankly, Bear Focus Timer seems like a lot less hassle.

ST KIC AR K TE R

The latest startups, crowdfunded projects and plain crazy ideas

Meow soon is now?

MARSCAT

Like the idea of a cat more than the reality? Want a four-legged feline friend you can pet and play with, but that doesn’t bring you dead things as gifts, rake its claws down your shins and cough up furballs? Then grab yourself a MarsCat, an autonomous robokitty that moves and meows much like the real thing. It’ll respond to your voice and play with the bundled toys, and has a personality that develops as you interact with it. Unlike a real cat, though, MarsCat’s behaviour can be changed: this Pi-powered unit is open-source. And although the outlay might feel like a clawed swipe to your savings, it’s got nothing on vet bills. $699 / elephantrobotics.com BACK IT STACK IT

ST KIC AR K TE R

I GONDI GOE-

ST KIC AR K TE R

ST KIC AR K TE R

SACK IT

Handset devil

Squeal around the fountain

A push and a hush

The head-blaster ritual

Keen on a smaller phone? The t2’s tiny form (47x21x12mm, 13g) might be taking things too far. It’s capable, mind: Bluetooth, a music player, even games like a shrunken Crossy Road on the 1in display. It can’t shoot great snaps or video but it does the job as a spare, a cheapo mobile for the kids, or some tech to make you feel like you’re a giant. $79 / worldssmallestphone.com

This dinky synth, designed for live performance, is packed full of features and old-school cool.

It spits out bleeps, bloops and ear-smashing noises that recall classic videogames, and adds a sequencer, arpeggiator, looper, effects and filters. Just the thing if you want to become the next Chipzel combined with half an Orbital. £126 / sonicware.jp

Snoring can cause all sorts of problems – for the snorer and anyone unlucky enough to be sharing their bedroom. This pillow helps everyone to get a good night’s sleep by listening out for snoring then inflating one of its four airbags to gently reorientate your head, thereby improving airflow and – in theory – shutting you up. £226 / motionpillow.com

These chunky smart specs are aimed at gamers – you can tell from the NES-like buttons on the side. But also, they reduce strain on the eyes and ears: audio is piped directly to your lugs so you can ditch earbuds, and your peepers are calmed by blue-light-filtering lenses.

They’re even IP55 waterproof for sweaty marathon sessions. $109 / mutrics.com

ZANCO TINY t2

LIVEN 8BIT WARPS

MOTION PILLOW

MUTRICS GB–30

17

G A M E S

OUT 10 APR

FIRST PLAY FINAL FANTASY VII REMAKE PS4 Final Fantasy VII is one of the most important games of all time. The original 1997 title introduced the Japanese RPG to the world and bewitched a generation of gamers.

Following the exploits of teenage mercenary Cloud Strife, it was years ahead of its time… and its message about the need to give back to the planet to prevent Armageddon has hardly lost relevance.

Square Enix knows this is one of the most loved games ever; and so, after years (decades!) of fan requests, rumours and 18

pundits insisting it couldn’t be done, FFVII has returned.

The remake is a completely new project, built from the ground up in a modified version of the Unreal Engine. Square Enix is eking out the story of the original in episodes, each game focusing on one major portion of the story. The first game, due out on PS4 on 10 April, tackles Cloud and his crew’s attempts to sabotage Shinra’s activities in the city of Midgar.

As soon as the camera pulls in on Cloud, you can see this is a true 2020 game – one that extracts

every byte of power it can from the console. Turn-based combat isn’t turned on by default: you’re encouraged to get up close and personal with your enemies, laying down attacks until you build up enough points for a special move. This system feels like what Final Fantasy XV was supposed to be: a perfect mix of tactical and real-time.

By expanding the game in meaningful ways, Square Enix has created a title as relevant to veterans as it is to people who just want to play a bleeding-edge RPG. It’s gaming gold.

FIRST LOOK RIDING ONTO NEXT-GEN CONSOLES

OUTRIDERS PS5, XSX, PS4, XB1, PC

Having made Bulletstorm and Gears of War: Judgment, People Can Fly has credentials when it comes to brash shooters. The trailer for Outriders suggested more of the same… but a first look at gameplay shows some

fresh territory. It keeps the squad-centric cover-based approach, and mates can drop in to flank you; but this game has more of a Borderlands ‘shooter looter’ approach, as well as powers that let you, for example, slow down or ignite incoming foes.

While not the same kind of live-service online game

as Destiny, Outriders feels very much inspired by the look and feel of that title – albeit with a distinctive twist. It takes place on a planet called Enoch, the home for what’s left of humanity, but your crew of first arrivals faces some odd, power-bestowing anomalies.

Despite such compelling hooks, Outriders can’t help

but feel something like the mashed-up parts of a lot of other games, only with less visible personality than previous People Can Fly efforts.

Let’s hope that improves, because this will be one of the first PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X games out of the gate next Christmas.

BESTOFTHESWITCH’SNEXTODDBALLINDIEGEMS

SKATEBIRD

Switch, PC They call Tony Hawk the Birdman, but he’s got nothing on these extreme avian athletes. SkateBird lets you command the cuddly little fliers on skateboards as they grind on bendy straws, catch air on halfpipes made from skating magazines and safely flutter down from high places.

BOYFRIEND DUNGEON

Switch, PC Why simply wield swords, scythes and sabres when you can… uh, romance them?

That’s the zany premise behind this dating dungeon crawler. Your weapons transform into male, female and non-binary hotties for you to enjoy in more ways than one.

Bold new territory for a Nintendo console.

SPORTS STORY

Switch Storylines are part of what makes real sport so exhilarating, but that’s not what this title is all about. To quote the blurb, it’s ‘a game about sports, but not always’.

This sequel to Golf Story is part retro RPG, part golf/tennis/football/volleyball/etc sim, and 100% charming throughout.

INCOMING APRIL ● RESIDENT EVIL 3 ● PREDATOR: HUNTING GROUNDS ● MINECRAFT DUNGEONS ● GEARS TACTICS MAY ● WASTELAND 3 ● THOSE WHO REMAIN

19

Know who your buds really are

SAMSUNG GALAXY BUDS+ The trend of wireless earbuds is really catching on but Samsung has known that for a while. Their second-gen Galaxy Buds+ are joining the party and they brought snacks. Not only is the audio pumped out of these stylish little orbs remarkably clear and filled with an impeccable amount of bass, they’re able to pull off those impressive audio acrobatics for a long time. With an approximate play time of eleven hours and capable of charging wirelessly through the sleek storage case, the Galaxy Buds+ are the guests that rock up last but bring the soul of party with them.

R3 000 / samsung.com/za

Build ‘em up, race ‘em down

LEGO TECHNIC DOM’S DODGE CHARGER We can only imagine Fast and Furious fans are a little down in the dumps. Fear not, even though the highly anticipated ninth film in the franchise was simultaneously announced and then delayed until next year, LEGO thought they’d do you all a favour. This Technic replica of very fast and especially furious protagonist Dominic Toretto’s 1970 Dodge Charger consists of 1,077 pieces, an operational bonnet and overflows with authentic details ripped straight from the version you’ve seen in the films. Even better, the LEGO Dodge Charger has functioning wheels, meaning you can re-enact some pretty neat stunts, if you’re willing to risk a rebuild.

R1 700 / greatyellowbrick.co.za

I am a leaf on the wind

ASUS ROG ZEPHYRUS M15 Stuck indoors a little longer than you expected?

We don’t blame you, it’s scary out there. If you need a good reason to keep yourself firmly planted at your desk, the Zephyrus M15 is just reason. A powerful but portable gaming laptop equipped with a magnesium alloy chassis, RTX 2070 Super graphics card and a new generation Intel Core i7, this machine will run any piece of software you throw at it. It’s durable, surprisingly lightweight and just what you need when you’re sick of playing games in the lounge and want to move to bed instead. Just… don’t actually throw anything at it.

Rtba / asus.com/za

20

Square me the details

CANON SELPHY SQUARE QX10 Physical media seems to be forever under threat, but where there’s a fridge there will always be room for printed photos… and Canon’s battery-powered Selphy Square QX10 wants to make printing them as easy as possible. The latest addition to the Selphy line prints square (2.7x2.7in) snaps straight from your phone in just 42 seconds. The use of dye-sub tech gives your photos an extra layer of quality and, Canon says, resists the effects of fading for up to 100 years. The paper, sold separately, has a peel-and-stick back and a border for scrawled captions. Or if you prefer a more digital approach, an app lets you tweak your photos before printing. Better clear some space on that fridge.

R3 000 / canon.co.za

DROP EVERYTHING & DOWNLOAD

Rtro Free (IAPs) / iOS

If you’ve tried Moment you’ll know it’s a serious camera app, turning your phone into a sort-of DSLR. This one feels like what happens when the Moment folks let their hair down. It’s all about vintage video effects – but not by-the-numbers filters. Instead, each filter has been crafted by a pro filmmaker who outlines their inspiration in a succinct story, along with what the effect does.

When you’re shooting, Rtro is keen on immediacy: drag the shutter vertically to zoom; tap a subject to have focus follow them; and double-tap to flip cameras, so you can record your beautiful self rather than what’s in front of you. You can capture a minute per movie, across multiple shots, and share it with the world.

Crest friends forever

LEGO STAR WARS: THE RAZOR CREST There’s no doubting Disney’s craving for merch moolah – so as we eagerly await The Mandalorian on Disney+ in all its 4K glory (one day), right on cue here’s a Lego version of the titular bounty-hunter’s ship.

The 1023-piece Razor Crest does a fine job of replicating his trusty transport, and features a cargo hold with opening sides that double as access ramps, built-in carbonite facilities, spring-loaded shooters, an escape pod and a cockpit for two minifigures. Speaking of which, the Razor Crest is bundled with the Mandalorian himself plus Greef Karga, Scout Trooper, IG-11 and a preposterously adorable Baby Yoda.

Seriously, the little tyke has somehow become even cuter in Lego form.

Rtba / greatyellowbrick.co.za 21

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S T R E A M Drag queens, large tigers, bonkers introverts and local horror all feature in this month’s selection of on-demand TV

RuPaul’s Drag Race

Guns Akimbo

The Mask

Completely OTT, but the most fun you can have in front of a TV, is watching the new season of RuPaul’s Drag Race. The twelfth instalment of the show featuring men that look better than Donatella Versace in makeup follows a brandnew group of drag performers. This time you can expect more plastic, more cattiness and more twists.

S12 / Netflix

Daniel Radcliffe’s game developer wakes up to find he’s been drafted into a real-life televised death match in this action comedy… and the creators of the lethal contest have even taken the time to bolt pistols to both his hands. The only way he’ll make it out alive is to take out the champion, a balletic killer played by Samara Weaving.

Film / Amazon Prime

The 1994 motion picture The Mask featuring slapstick legend Jim Carrey is a must-watch, especially in this time of global turmoil and dysfunction. Like, things could be worse – someone could get hold of an ancient mask that gives them insane magical powers. The Mask is a cult classic, depending on what year you were born. Check it out.

Film / Netflix

Community

Rage

Ozark

After a lawyer is sent back to college for faking his degree, an oddball group of friends is formed.

Each character has their quirks, and the bunch are challenged with a variety of scenarios to overcome. Community is very much a critically-acclaimed sitcom.

We don’t listen to critics, but this one is worth the binge.

S1-6 / Netflix

We haven’t suggested many Showmax Originals in the past. Well, there weren’t that many. Rage is the platform’s latest original movie, featuring a bunch of matric students on their way to the annual Rage festival. Things take a dark turn after they check into a creepy house.

It’s a gripping, intense horror that we didn’t expect to see made here.

Film / Showmax

Possibly the most tension-wracked TV show since Breaking Bad, Ozark returns for a third season with Jason Bateman and Laura Linney still struggling to keep their family together in the face of drug cartels, hillbilly crimelords and the FBI. Ah well, these things will happen when you’ve been forced into laundering millions for society’s worst people.

S3 / Netflix

If you’re aching for some Kardashian-level insanity to watch, (maybe even up it a notch), we’ve got a suggestion for you: Netflix’s most recent true crime (we’re not even sure we can call it this) documentary, Tiger King. It embarks on a rollercoaster ride featuring tiger breeders in the US. But… brace yourself for polygamous gay communities, a worrisome cult of young women working on a wildlife resort, the strange disappearance of a husband, and the attempted murder of a wife. You can’t make this stuff up.

DO M N’ TH ISS T IS

Tiger King Limited Series / Netflix

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W H E E L S

Czinger 21C

PRINTS & THE REVOLUTION $1 700 000 / czinger.com

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Woah, is that a prop from an upcoming Ridley Scott movie?

No, but you are looking at a very futuristic hypercar. LA-based tech firm Czinger was founded off the back of Divergent 3D, a company that specialises in advanced additive manufacturing techniques and the next generation of robotic assembly systems.

a hypercar with the looks and performance to take on the best?

When we asked CEO and founder Kevin Czinger why he decided to build a car, he responded: “Because they’re awesome, man. They’re what the planet is built around.

Look outside: parking lots, streets, the entire structure of the modern world is built around the car.”

So… they 3D-printed a car?

Well, what better way to showcase this new ability to achieve true ‘generative design’ than by creating

And what does ‘generative design’ actually mean?

According to Kevin, his new method of designing, 3D-printing and

rapidly assembling his vehicle is “the antithesis of today’s car production methods”. In short, most mass-produced vehicles require special tooling that can’t be altered. Czinger’s tech allows a designer’s creative ideas to be expressed digitally then physically in a very short space of time.

Are there any off-the-shelf parts?

Not really, besides the brakes. Even the engine and hybrid powertrain have been developed in-house.

The beauty of the 3D-printed

chassis (and most of the car) is that it can be rapidly tweaked and adjusted over time – or at least until the lead engineers are happy.

Seems like a lot of effort…

True, but Kevin Czinger is a car nut as well as a tech genius. The 21C weighs just 1090kg in its lightest guise, but packs 1250hp from a twin-turbo 2.9-litre V8 engine and 220kW electric motors at the front wheels. The team is made up of former Tesla and Koenigsegg folk… and rocket scientists, which

The C21 has a seven-speed sequential transaxle gearbox with a hydraulic-actuated multi-plate clutch.

Which is nice.

Czinger hopes the 21C will beat the current production-car lap record of the Laguna Seca race circuit by a full two seconds.

THE 21C IN NUMBERS 1.7 MILLION

Dollars you’ll need to buy one

3000

Man-hours put into each car goes some way to explaining why the car can hit 100km/h in 1.9 seconds and go on to a top speed of almost 435km/h with the racing ‘aero pack’ deployed. Oh, and it shoots flames in an X pattern.

Say what?

Yeah, the man responsible for the engine and powertrain, Jon Gunnar, said it was the most efficient way to get exhaust gases out of the car, seeing as the designers were adamant on the jet-fighter-style inline seating layout.

Could this be my Top Gun fantasy for the road?

It seems that way, doesn’t it? The great thing about software-heavy digital design and advanced additive manufacturing is that, if you can think it, you can probably do it. Better still, most of the cool skeletal design features you see aren’t actually ‘design’ features at all. They’re the result of advanced algorithms working out the most efficient way of creating very light but very strong structures.

Wow. And what does the future hold for Czinger?

Of course, like any good Californian tech company, it believes it will change the world for good, but we’ve heard that many times before. That said, the technology involved here is very impressive.

If it does indeed help to reduce the environmental impact of car manufacturing and free up designers to be as creative as they want, then it can only be a good thing. And if nothing else, the car looks alright, doesn’t it?

80

How many will be built

790

Kilograms of downforce created by the most advanced aero package

330

Patents filed in the car’s design 25

DIGITAL EDITION G LATEET THE ST IS SUE FROM WEBS OUR ITE

ONLY R30

SINUGE? S I M ISS AN UA O Y S PY GETCK CO BA

R20

AVAILABLE FROM OUR WEBSITE

stuff.co.za/shop

F I R S T T E S T H U AW E I M AT E X S

Huawei to the danger zone A big-screened superphone that transforms into a tiny-bezelled tablet sounds great… but the Mate Xs has a display that dices with disaster

Rtba / huaweistore.co.za

T

he Huawei Mate Xs seems like the first truly uncompromising model of the new generation of foldable phones.

Closed, it’s a huge-screened smartphone with stellar specs, including a sensational camera co-engineered by Leica. Open it up, and the Xs transforms into

a Galaxy-Fold-beating 8in tablet that’s low on bezel and high on resolution… and doesn’t need a notch. Huawei achieves this 2-in-1 design by making the Mate Xs fold with the screen on the outside. That’s why, unlike the competition, this is a killer phone and tab.

But that’s not the full story, as three things put Huawei’s

foldable supremacy in question: the screen, the software and, ouchy, that expected price.

First, the screen. It’s plastic, as on most foldable phones, and thus more fragile than glass ones. This means the Mate Xs is a bit of a daredevil with its always-exposed display.

Next, the software. Huawei has done a splendid job of

unshackling itself after it was banned from buddying up with Google… but while it runs loads of Android apps, many you may take for granted just don’t work properly on the Mate Xs. There’s a lot to weigh up here, especially given the final issue – that incoming price – but there’s no denying the tech in this thing is groundbreaking.

27

F I R S T T E S T H U AW E I M AT E X S

1

2

4

1

Fold your attention

This phone is striking – unfold it and folks will gawk. We’ve been stopped in the street, interrupted while on a call and cross-examined by a waiter while using it. And turning it from phone to tablet is a more seamless experience than with Samsung’s Galaxy Fold.

2

Unfold stories

The Kindle app showcases the Mate Xs’s excellence beautifully, as books go from ‘tall’ to ‘tablet’ for a much better read on the big screen. Magazines are also handled superbly. The AMOLED screen pops colourful pages with panache, and the size is spot-on.

3

Break the fold

We didn’t manage to break our Xs even after a couple of fumbles.

Still, although we tried to avoid putting it on scratchy surfaces and generally took care of it, there were a couple of minor dings visible at certain angles by the end of our week of testing.

Good Meh Evil

O ap K, w ps e ov ’ve er m fro an m age aG d So oo to t op m e gle ra en G … oo ph nsfe bu g on r m t M le e. o ap app st s s U do , lik Xs sin es e D is g ap ,w o aj p hic cs, oy s o h i wo .O n sh n ut th an ’t loo e o Ar dy p k a t gh . loo ene ile , w ks dfro e’v … up m ej lap M ab us to at ou t d pp e t 5 ro y. …b 0c ppe th ut m d e s th w th hil e p cr er eo h ee e’s n. z pe one Ph ero ne o ew s d… n . ign Ev of a p en da ad so m de , a ag dp tw et oc ha o ke t it t f ’ll c ro o m st no , it’ w sg on oi . ng Oh in w ,s or o k, me inc n lud on ing -G Ub oog er le U an ap st nfo d o ps ar ld tin ing ur don g t it ba ’t o f in nk ee a c . l m afe or , t e n he Ch at ex ur pe in ro al. ri to m en yo e w ce ur o is Go rks og w le ell ac bu co t y un ou t. ca n’t log

24 hours with the Huawei Mate Xs

10mins 20mins 40mins 41mins 41.1mins 41.2mins 28

1hr

4hrs

5hrs

F I R S T T E S T H U AW E I M AT E X S

TURN TO P30 FOR MORE NEW PHONES

Techspecs Screen 8in/6.6in 2480x2200 AMOLED Processor Kirin 990 5G RAM 8GB OS Android 10 with EMUI 10.0.1 Cameras 40MP + 16MP + 8MP + ToF Batteries 4500mAh Storage 512GB Dimensions 161x79x11mm, 300g

To foldly go…

3

5

4

Baby it’s fold outside

5

Fold and wrinkly

When the Mate Xs is a phone it looks slick, with a taut screen and tiny bezels. Open it out, however, and the screen slackens a touch.

A few small ripples are visible when they catch the light and you can tell you’re tapping and swiping on plastic.

H of uaw th e e b i’s as ow ics n a … pp … st or fa but el nt th ac as e ks tic Au al all ro ot y w ra ell Sto W fo re tru ow rf w illin or ly , In g g ks st st ell ag ap ar ra s. on m an a A sq d 20 qu ua Pr i c re im % k ta e V in ba ble id ju tt st er t. eo af y loo ew top k -u m Go inu p a de og te nd ny le s. it St ’s ing iss un ga u th e nin ine is s a is si g. d a s de pe , th cia er l b e’s it o n fk o it.

15hrs 17hrs

■ Four sensors

■ Two batteries

■ Three apps

■ 990 Kirins

The main 40MP camera is the best on any current foldable, plus there’s an ultra-wide 16MP and a 3x zoom. Of course, all can take selfies when folded.

The fourth sensor is a time-of-flight rangefinder.

Foldable screen tech is not for everyone just yet – especially if you live somewhere chilly. When you first power on the Mate Xs, a prompt pops up warning you not to fold it when the temperature drops below -5°C. And it isn’t water-resistant either.

14hrs

The Mate Xs has some impressive numbers to go with its headline figure of two devices in one

23hrs

24hrs

Open the Mate Xs out and you can multitask across three different apps at once. With the help of a handy sidebar, drag one to the right and one to the left, then overlay a floating app for ace productivity.

With a battery in each half, the Mate Xs packs a combined 4500mAh of power and charges very quickly – over 80% in 30 minutes. Ours reliably lasted a day of assorted phone and tablet use.

Huawei’s Kirin 990 chipset is mega-fast, so whether you’re 3D gaming, 5G streaming or 4K shooting, you’ll be laughing. This phone also has stacks of storage: 512GB, plus a nano memory card slot.

The Mate Xs is a slice of the future. The lack of Google services will make it a challenge, and foldable tech is still in its infancy. That said, Huawei’s hardware is stunning: this is a killer smartphone and, opened out, an impossibly thin slate. Would we recommend it, though? Not unless you’re a clued-up nerd with cash to burn.

STUFF SAYS ★★★★✩ The Mate Xs is an astonishing feat of engineering that will get an astonishing price tag to match 29

MOBILE AWARDS

B I

Barcelona was due to host the world’s biggest phone expo until the coronavirus struck. So instead of shooting Gaudi buildings with 100x zoom and 5G gaming on the beach, the Stuff team decamped to a suddenly silent South Africa to size up the all-new Androids angling for your money…

TESTED SAMSUNG G A L A X Y S 2 0 U LT R A Price from R27 000 / samsung.com/za o limits. No compromises.

The Samsung Galaxy as designed by Jurassic Park’s John Hammond. The S20 Ultra takes everything we’ve come to expect from a Galaxy phone, then gives it a stunning high-refresh-rate screen and a set of cameras that could embarrass a DSLR. Throw in hardware that could rival a desktop PC, 5G connectivity and a colossal battery, and you’ve got the blueprint for what all future flagship phones should look like… only you can put an S20 Ultra in your pocket today.

N

Give yourself a big hand

The familiar mix of glass and metal is instantly recognisable as a Galaxy phone, with screen bezels that have shrunk even further to the edges, but

30

the S20 Ultra’s styling feels a little conservative. The display has lost its prominent curves, and your only colour choices are black and grey.

Then again, if you want cutting-edge design, there’s always the folding Galaxy Z Flip on p34.

The 6.9in screen makes the S20 Ultra both taller and chunkier than an iPhone 11 Pro Max, and you’ll struggle to use it one-handed unless you’ve got mitts like Andre the Giant. The in-display fingerprint sensor is easier to reach now it’s further up the screen, but can be a little sluggish to detect your digits.

The chunky camera bump is impossible to miss on the back of this phone. A case will help it blend in better, and stop the glass from becoming a fingerprint magnet.

Bokeh boomer

An impressive camera count is the main reason to buy an Ultra over the vanilla Galaxy S20, with a whopping 108MP main snapper joined by a 48MP telephoto good for 100x hybrid zoom and a 12MP wide-angle, plus a 40MP front-facer for selfies. There’s even a depth sensor for giving your portraits a bokeh blur.

The 108MP sensor is physically bigger than anything else you’ll find in a phone right now, and uses algorithm-based cleverness to create 12MP images. Daytime shots are brilliantly detailed and vibrant, with expertly judged exposure and well-balanced HDR. But there’s also some of the aggressive sharpening and overblown skin-smoothing that we’ve come to expect from

Generation wide The ultra-wide camera doesn’t have the highest pixel count, but it matches the main sensor for accuracy.

MOBILE AWARDS

UI my sunshine Samsung’s Android interface is getting bolder, with few pre-installed Google apps but lots of Samsung ones.

Watts going on The bundled charger will manage a full top-up in under an hour; the optional 45W adaptor can go even faster.

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MOBILE AWARDS

Samsung, which undoes a lot of the sensor’s capacity for detail.

Zoom is the real head-turner here, with a periscope-style setup good for 4x optical, 10x ‘hybrid’ using multiple exposures, and up to 100x digital with sensor cropping. Up to 10x, this is easily the best phone camera zoom around, even making the iPhone 11 Pro Max look positively amateurish. Results up to 30x zoom are usable but clearly processed and artifact-heavy, while 100x zoom is little more than a gimmick: the viewfinder shakes so much it’s near-impossible to focus on a faraway subject, and images have the clarity of an early webcam.

Refresher, anyone?

Samsung’s AMOLED phone panels always deliver ultra-vibrant colours, unbeatable viewing angles and impeccable brightness, and the S20 Ultra is no exception. HDR10+ videos look sublime, with infinite contrast and amazing highlights.

The big change for 2020 is the 120Hz refresh rate. Turn it on and animations suddenly flow like water, with every bit of motion becoming

so much easier on the eye. Even scrolling through Twitter is suddenly a treat for the eyeballs.

Clever scaling means you won’t notice that 120Hz forces you down to a Full HD+ 2400x1080 resolution, but having a screen update itself twice as often isn’t going to do your battery life any favours. If you insist on sticking at 120Hz, you can expect a 25-30% faster battery drain over the standard refresh rate. Throw in some 8K video recording into the mix and you can be out of juice in 12 hours – that’s despite the colossal 5000mAh battery.

Exy’s midnight runner

A new phone generation needs new silicon, so every Galaxy S20 gets Samsung’s octa-core Exynos 990 CPU. It’s paired with a massive 12GB of RAM and 128GB of built-in storage, while a microSD card slot leaves room to grow later.

It’s a real powerhouse, as you’d expect, showing no signs of slowdown at any point and running every app and game smoothly. All that RAM lets you pin up to three apps in memory so they never need to

reload, but the phone is so quick to multitask you might not need to.

Mobile data is super-fast, as long as you’re on a 5G network. But you live in sunny SA, which doesn’t have such luxuries (in large enough coverage areas) just yet. Early adopters in cities with 5G will love the speed increases when they get them, but it’s not yet a feature to buy a phone for.

VERDICT

The S20 Ultra proves Samsung still rules when it comes to Android hardware. But it’s not perfect. The high refresh rate saps battery, and the 100x zoom isn’t all that useful.

Oh, and it’s eye-wateringly pricey.

The S20 and S20+ have identical performance and equally gorgeous screens, but both cost significantly less. They’ll be more than enough phone for most.

Because the night Low-light photos are an improvement over the previous generation, but Google and Apple still do it better.

I can hear music A down-firing speaker handles bass and mid-tones while the earpiece blasts out the high frequencies.

Tech specs ● 6.9in 3200x1440 AMOLED ● Exynos 990 ● 12GB/16GB RAM ● 108MP + 48MP + 12MP + 0.3MP rear, 40MP front ● 5000mAh ● 128GB/512GB/1TB ● 167x76x8.8mm, 222g

STUFF SAYS Outmuscles any Android phone you care to name ★★★★✩

FACTORY FLAW The coronavirus is causing tech production lines to grind to a halt. That includes Samsung’s foldable phone factory in Gumi, South Korea.

PANEL BEATER LG Display is a major supplier of OLED panels.

Its phone screen factory was temporarily closed after a bank worker nearby tested positive.

PHONE IN SICK All this could cause major shortages for Samsung and LG, while Apple has warned of iPhone shortfalls.

Microsoft says it won’t meet PC expectations, and Valve expects issues with VR headset supplies.

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MORE SUPER SHOOTERS

C O R O N AV I R U S CALLING

LG V60 THINQ The third ‘dual-screen’ smartphone from LG gets a Snapdragon 865 chip and 5G connectivity, but it’s the camera and mic setup capable of HDR10+ 8K video with 3D audio that piques our curiosity.

The main 64MP shooter competes with the Galaxy S20 (right) on sensor size, while pixel-binning creates 16MP images to combat noise in low light. It’s joined by a 13MP ultra-wide lens with a 117° field of view, and a ToF depth sensor.

Rtba / lg.com/za

SAMSUNG GALAXY S20

REALME X50 PRO 5G

The S20 line is catnip for spec-hounds. Both the 6.2in S20 and 6.7in S20+ sport HDR+ AMOLED displays with 120Hz support, and each gets Samsung’s latest CPU, a 10MP selfie-snapper and 5G capability. Where the two differ slightly is in the rear cameras: the S20’s triple array consists of a 12MP ultra-wide lens, 12MP wide-angle and 64MP telephoto; the S20+ also gets a ToF sensor. fromR19000/samsung.com

Coming up fast on the outside, RealMe’s first 5G handset gets a 64MP quad-cam setup including a 12MP lens with 20x hybrid zoom, a wide-angle lens and a portrait lens.

Flip it on its front and dual 32MP and 8MP in-display selfie-snappers are there to capture your narcissistic side. That’s a lot of picture power, while a Snapdragon 865 processor and 6.44in 90Hz display mean it’s no mug in other areas either. from R12 000 / realme.com

MOBILE AWARDS

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Tap of the world Samsung has ditched the physical button for waking its Bixby assistant: now you double-tap the power button.

8K computer The S20 Ultra can film in 8K… but for now, that’s best used for pulling still photos from your footage.

JOBY GORILLAPOD STARTER KIT Joby’s flexible friend has legs that will wrap around just about anything, or rubber feet for placing it on terra firma.

It’s something of a bargain.

R480 / trekinn.com

DJI OSMO MOBILE 3 A 3-axis foldable gimbal for phones, the Osmo Mobile 3 isn’t vlogging a dead horse when it comes to keeping footage smooth and stable. It weighs just 405g.

R1 900 / myistore.co.za 33

MOBILE AWARDS

NOW ADD THESE

ANKER POWERCORE 10400 POWER BANK Portable, high capacity, and fast charging capabilities make this power bank an essential accessory for weathering the storm.

R500 / incredible.co.za

SAMSUNG ORIGINAL GALAXY Z FLIP COVER We know it’s pricey, but that’s the cost of keeping something so flipping expensive and delicate safe, right?

R1 700 / cellucity.co.za 34

Clips like sugar Single Take mode uses every camera at once then lets you choose the best stills from the autogenerated clips.

Moto crash A 3300mAh battery thrashes that of the Motorola Razr, but only time will tell if stamina is going to be an issue.

MOBILE AWARDS

SAMSUNG Z FLIP Price R30 000 / samsung.com/za This hole world You get a pair of 12MP snappers on the rear, main and ultra-wide, plus a 10MP selfie-cam in a punch-hole cutout.

Can stand me now The free-standing format means you can easily take group selfies or make video calls without a tripod.

ot all foldable phones are really phones. Sure, they operate like them, and you can definitely make calls on them, but in practice the Huawei Mate Xs and Samsung Galaxy Fold are foldable tablets.

Samsung’s second foldable feels a lot more viable as a smartphone. Like the reborn Motorola Razr, the Galaxy Z Flip is an old-becomes-new-school flip phone with a clamshell design that opens up to reveal a large display.

It’s still prohibitively pricey, but of all the phones we’ve folded – and reader, rest assured we’ve folded all the foldable phones – it might just be the one we want most.

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Flipping shiny

The Z Flip looks like a (very tall) phone with a 6.7in display that folds in half.

Opened up you see a small crease, but it’s not overly noticeable and you’ll soon forget it’s there.

The ‘hideaway hinge’ allows the Z Flip to remain open at a range of angles, and the ‘snap’ as you close

it completely is satisfying. Folded, the Z Flip should slip into the shallowest of jeans pockets.

The outside is made of Gorilla Glass and it’s a fingerprint magnet.

There’s also a tiny OLED display by the rear camera module showing the time and notifications; and, adorably, you double-click the power button (that’s also a fingerprint sensor) to open the selfie-camera.

Flipping tall

As welcome as the mini OLED is, it’s there to encourage you to open the Z Flip. And when you do, you’ll be greeted with a FHD+ AMOLED display with rounded corners, a 21.9:9 ratio and 425 pixels per inch. For reference, the non-foldable Galaxy S20 dwarfs this at 563ppi.

The width should make this a great movie machine – the screen isn’t as sharp as some, but it’s still vibrant and colourful. While the Galaxy Fold’s display is plastic, the Z Flip features a new type of bendable ultra-thin glass and feels far more premium.

MOTOROLA RAZR

Bendy tablet or folding smartphone – however you look at it, the crazily expensive Xs is a great feat of engineering that opens to show an 8in display with a two-layer polymer structure for extra strength. A Kirin 990 processor and 40MP Leica quad-cam prove that, where the Z Flip scrimps, the Xs splurges. Well, that’s what some extra cash gets you. Flick back to p26 for the full review.

Rtba / huaweistore.co.za

The stuff of pop-culture legend in the mid-’00s, the original Razr was a must-have handset. The reboot adds a flexible 6.2in screen with a zero-gap hinge that’s backed up by a front-facing 2.7in display for on-the-fly interactions.

Rounding off the revamp is a 16MP main camera, 5MP selfie-camera, 128GB of storage, 6GB of RAM and a Snapdragon 710.

The biggest challenge?

Finding and affording one.

R31 800 / motorola.com

SAMSUNG GALAXY FOLD Looking unlike any other handset when it launched last year, the Fold now has serious competition.

This little chunk has a one-hand-friendly 4.6in display – but lurking inside is a 7.3in tablet-like Infinity Flex display. It’s packed with top-end tech, including a 7nm processor, 12GB of RAM, 512GB of memory, a 4380mAh dual battery and a six-sensor camera array.

R44000 / samsung.com/za

M O R E FA N C Y F O L D E R S

H UAW E I M AT E X S

Flipping versatile

As soon as you start folding, the Z Flip automatically splits the screen in half – effectively giving you two displays to play with. So you can browse your gallery while the top screen remains in camera viewfinder mode, or play YouTube videos while leaving the bottom free for controls and comments.

It’s something of a mixed bag in the general specs department. You get a Snapdragon 855+ and wireless charging, but no 5G support or microSD storage. And it’s unlikely to perform any miracles in the camera department. But right now, the flippy form factor seems like the most refined and practical approach to the foldable future.

Tech specs ● 6.7in Infinity Flex FHD+ AMOLED, 1.1in Super AMOLED ● Snapdragon 855+ ● 8GB RAM ● 12MP + 12MP rear, 10MP front ● 3300mAh ● 256GB ● 74x87x17mm (folded), 167x74x7mm (unfolded), 183g

T H E H UAW E I & GOOGLE SAGA TRUMPED UP America’s moron-in-chief issued an executive order restricting US companies from doing business with Huawei without a special licence. Microsoft has one but, for now, Google hasn’t.

PHONEY WAR That means Windows laptops by Huawei and Honor are fine, but their new Android phones have little or no access to Google services.

HUAWEI KIDDING? The Mate Xs doesn’t come with Google apps and the newly-announced P40 and P40 Pro suffer the same issues. Huawei’s AppGallery offers alternatives, but it’s still some way short.

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MOBILE AWARDS

SONY XPERIA 1 II Price Rtba (import) / sony.com ony’s most attentiongrabbing phone is now the Xperia 1 II. Confused by the name? So are we. But all you need to know is that, from now on, Sony will be using a similar naming structure for its Xperia flagships as it does for its Alpha cameras. So instead of the Xperia 2, we get the Xperia 1 II. We’ll get used to it.

Something to admire about Sony’s mobile strategy is that it’s very much doing its own thing – and that trend continues here. Sporting a tall and skinny 21:9 6.5in 4K HDR OLED display, the Xperia 1 II is a tempting proposition for movie-watchers… especially when you factor in the Dolby Atmos sound and motion-blur reduction tech.

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For the players

It might lack the high-refresh-rate display you’ll find on gaming-focused rival handsets, but it’s not without its own selling points. That wide display is as appealing for games as it is for movies, and the ability

OH, WHAT A WORLD We’re getting closer to a era where 5G is accessible, but not enough current smartphones support 5G connections. Likewise, local ISPs don’t have the infrastructure to distribute consistent 5G coverage.

SINGING IN THE RAIN Rain is spreading 5G signals further across South Africa, but plenty of people are still struggling with 4G connectivity.

SOMEWHERE OVER THE RAIN-BOW Both Telkom and Vodacom have pledged to introduce 5G services in 2020 but we’ve yet to see how these alternatives will differ from Rain’s limited coverage.

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For the listeners

Sony is one of the few phone makers that continues to build a 3.5mm audio output into its handsets – so if you prefer studio-grade wired cans, don’t overlook the Xperia 1 II. This phone’s sound has been tuned in collaboration with Sony Music Entertainment, wireless hi-res audio is still supported, and the Xperia 1 II is the world’s first smartphone with 360 Reality Audio hardware decoding to optimise sound quality if you’re listening to music on Tidal.

Hey, some people do.

For the snappers

In a world where 108MP snappers are (sort of) becoming the norm, a trio of 12MP lenses – main, ultra-wide and

M O R E C R E AT O R S A N D C O N S U M E R S

5G: ARE WE THERE YET?

to connect to the PS4’s DualShock 4 gamepads means you don’t have to put up with touchscreen controls. If you do, response time has apparently been upped, and Call of Duty: Mobile is one of the titles you can play out of the box.

OPPO FIND X2 Oppo’s latest 5G phone has an ultra-responsive 120Hz 6.7in QHD+ AMOLED display with HDR10+ that, on paper at least, should make for an incredible gaming and movie-watching experience. It also has a 48MP main camera, 48MP ultra-wide, 13MP periscope telephoto, and a Snapdragon 865 processor. Pick the pricier Pro version for beefed-up specs including a superior snapper. from R20 400 / oppo.com

telephoto – isn’t going to grab any headlines; but that’s not to say Sony isn’t bringing anything to the mobile photo game. Utilising tech developed for Alpha cameras, this Xperia offers continuous autofocus that performs focus and exposure calculations 60 times per second.

It’s the first phone with a 20fps AF/AE tracking burst mode, and supports real-time eye-tracking AF for humans and animals. And with improved white balance settings and manual controls for ISO, shutter speed and more, the Xperia 1 II should be a capable camera whether you’re shooting in the day or at night.

There’s no exact release date yet (Sony says late 2020), and no price either, but we envisage something in a similar ballpark to last year’s (unreleased here) Xperia 1.

Don’t think Zeiss Zeiss camera lenses calibrated for Sony’s Xperia phones claim better rendering and contrast by reducing reflections.

Deeply dippy An IP65/68 rating ensures you don’t need to worry about it getting wet if you’re watching soccer in the bath.

Tech specs ● 6.5in 4K HDR OLED ● Snapdragon 865 ● 8GB RAM ● 12MP + 12MP + 12MP rear, 8MP front ● 4000mAh ● 256GB ● 165x71x8mm, 181g

SONY XPERIA 10 II Want one of Sony’s uniquely tall and skinny phones but don’t want to pay full whack? The Xperia 10 II gets a 21:9 6in FHD+ OLED display, which should bring nice colours and deep blacks. It’s designed for Netflix, but if you need to be more productive, the wider display facilitates two apps running side by side for effective multitasking.

You can also shoot in 21:9 and record 4K video.

R7 259 (import) / sony.com

H UAW E I M AT E B O O K PRO 5G OK, it’s not a phone, but this iPad Pro knockoff has a 10.8in display for gorging on games, movies and more. The 16:10 aspect ratio makes it look like a giant mobile, and with a Kirin 990 it’s equipped like a flagship phone too. That 5G capability is something the iPad Pro can’t muster, and could be the difference when downloading box sets before a flight.

Rtba / consumer.huawei.com

MOBILE AWARDS

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Love hertz A sub-6GHz 5G spectrum antenna boosts 5G – which isn’t of much help in SA right now but one day...

Everlasting glaze Gorilla Glass 6 on both sides should make it tough enough to endure a bit of rough handling when travelling.

PHILIPS FIDELIO X3 A headphone port deserves proper cans. The X3s have all the right minerals, wrapped in Kvadrat and Muirhead leather.

They arrive in June.

Rtba / pclinkshop.co.za

LG MINIBEAM With wireless phone-mirroring and Bluetooth audio, this 720p short-throw pico projector is good for impromptu screenings. Short battery life, though.

R5 300 / hificorp.co.za 37

MOBILE AWARDS

HONOR VIEW 30 PRO Price Rtba / hihonor.com onor’s first take on a 5G phone (that we’re likely to see here) has a string of top specs to tempt you away from the more established names. Although, of course, as Honor is a Huawei brand, there is one thing missing: the Google Play Store.

H

Kicking and screening

The first thing to note is that the View 30 Pro gets a generous 6.57in FHD+ display offering 400ppi and a screen-to-body ratio of over 91%. There’s a slim bezel with a dual-lens punch-hole camera and it’s all metal and matt glass.

Innards include the top-class Kirin 990 processor, 8GB of RAM and either 128GB or 256GB of storage. A 4100mAh battery with wireless charging is designed to last all day, and there’s a side-mounted fingerprint scanner.

Zoom and gloom

The rear triple-camera setup includes a 40MP Sony primary sensor for improved

A BETA FUTURE Still waiting for Android 10? Android 11 is already available for devs, with a public beta soon and a full release in Q3, probably alongside the Pixel 5.

BUBBLE BOBBLE Features include a native chat bubble (nearly identical to Messenger) and better control over app permissions to your location, mic and camera.

DEV IS IN THE DETAIL Want to try it out? The Developer Preview is only for Pixel phones – and not even all of them. Once it reaches public beta it ought to expand to semi-recent devices, then the latest launches.

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MORE WILD CARDS

COMING SOON: ANDROID 11

low-light photography. It’s backed up by an 8MP telephoto lens with 3x optical, 5x hybrid and 30x digital zoom, and a 12MP ultra-wide offering a 109°-equivalent field of view. In terms of selfie shooters, you get the combination of a main 32MP sensor and a secondary 8MP ultra-wide for ‘classic’ group shots that you’ll regret you posted in the morning.

So the hardware is tip-top – it’s just the software and apps that remain the elephant in the phoneshop, forcing you to find alternatives to all your favourite Google services. Oh well, at least it looks good, and is soon to be available in ocean blue, midnight black, ‘Icelandic frost’ and sunrise orange. No official word on pricing just yet, but expect to pay around the R14 000 mark.

Tech specs ● 6.57in FHD+ LCD ● Kirin 990 ● 8GB RAM ● 40MP + 12MP + 8MP rear, 32MP + 8MP front ● 4100mAh ● 128GB/256GB ● 163x76x9mm, 206g

XIAOMI BLACK SHARK 3 A phone for serious gamers, the BS3 comes with physical pop-up trigger buttons that, Xiaomi says, can be activated 300,000 times and withstand a million clicks. Other specs include a 120Hz 2K QHD display, a 5G-ready Snapdragon 865 and up to 16GB RAM. The normal BS3 gets a 4720mAh battery while the Pro version will have 5000mAh. Both support 65W fast charging.

Rtba / mi.com

HONOR 9X PRO

SONY XPERIA L4

Available in China since last year, the global version of the 9X Pro features a 6.59in LCD display that’s notch-free owing to a 16MP pop-up selfie-cam. With the Kirin 810 AI chip you get 6GB of RAM and 256GB of storage, expandable to 512GB via microSD. The rear cameras comprise a 48MP main shooter alongside telephoto and ultra-wide lenses. There’s a 4000mAh battery and a side fingerprint sensor.

Rtba / hi-online.co.za

With a 6.2in 21:9 HD+ LCD display, the L4 is built for browsing and using two apps at once. It’s also the first in Sony’s L series with a triple-camera setup: a 13MP main lens, a 5MP ultra-wide and a 2MP depth sensor. Rounding things off is an 8MP selfie-cam, a 3580mAh battery, a side-mounted fingerprint sensor, 3GB of RAM and 64GB of storage. Plus a headphone port, because Sony still likes those.

R4 000 (import) / sony.com

TESTED APPS

Mini meme

● Duolingo Kids

The insanely popular language learning app has branched out into basic literacy for kids just battling to string letters together.

Duolingo Kids is exactly what your little ones need to brush up on their ABCs and figure out the loose rules of English. Daily lessons are designed to improve their skills. This free app will have them reading Twain before most adults who say they’ll get around to him someday.

Free / iOS

● WWF Together

Reading and maths are super important, don’t get us wrong, but it also pays to just know more about the world around us, right? The World Wildlife Fund compiled this app to help teach kids about the environment, animals and what they can do to help save the world in their own small way. Gorgeous visuals, tons of interactive elements and loads of information makes for an essential learning experience.

Free / iOS

WE DO NEED AN EDUCATION

When kids are stuck at home, you realise the true value of school isn’t learning. It’s peace and quiet around the house. Hand an iPad with these apps to your child for a few hours of blissful, educational silence.

● Mental Maths 5-6

It might be everyone’s least favourite subject, but math is essential for developing brains.

This handy app, published by Bloomsbury, offers a range of exercises and activities based on topics such as fractions, time, counting and all the different forms of sums your kids would be learning in the classroom.

There are even built-in tests for your kids to practice on, to really simulate the misery of school.

R60 / iOS

● Khan Academy Kids We suspect that most modern day teenagers wouldn’t get through high school without the help of Khan Academy. With the addition of a dedicated kids app, your precious darlings will have access to free world class education at the press of a button. With courses on maths, literacy, emotional wellbeing and social skills, Khan Academy Kids is one of the tightest, most generous education apps.

Free / Android, iOS

● Dr Seuss’s ABC:

AR Version

Wanna teach your kids the alphabet and blow their minds at the same time? This adaption of Dr Seuss’s book has animated characters walking around your home as they explain letters and words, all through the power of augmented reality! Sure, you could just read the book to them but this app provides some interactive exercises to help tricky letters stick in little brains.

R70 / Android, iOS

● My Very Hungry Caterpillar

Who among us has not heard of this insatiable insect and his everlasting desire for food? The beloved kid’s book has been adapted into an app that offers plenty for kids to learn and do.

With an emphasis on teaching communication, nurturing and respect for others, your children will be attached to their very own hungry caterpillar in no time. It’s a little expensive to unlock, though.

Free (IAPs) / Android, iOS 39

STAYING SANE AT HOME

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It’ll help immensely to think of the next few months as a Rocky montage, one where you’re not allowed to touch new people (at all) until the big fight

ROUTINE MAINTENANCE The first rule of surviving extended time at home is: Preserve your routines. It’s tempting to wake at 10AM and stop working at 2PM but you’re sacrificing productivity and sanity this way. But you don’t have to perform the miracle of time-management alone.

As long as you’ve got a phone you’ve got help on-hand. Check out these apps, stat.

ST RE A KS R80 / iOS

Combining typical iOS design with some genuinely useful features, Streaks is a habit-tracking app you can use to ensure you’re ticking all your boxes each morning.

Yes, you can use it to ensure you wear pants but it’s far more useful for making certain you’re eating right, beginning work on time or putting in a few minutes of exercise every day. If there’s one thing you need at home right now it’s stability.

Because there sure doesn’t seem to be a whole lot of it out in the world.

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STAYING SANE AT HOME

I N SI G H T TIMER

TODOIST Todoist is more of a free-form to-do list app that’s nonetheless very capable of organising your day. You can set basic tasks (like ‘Make Coffee’) for consecutive days, set up deadlines and reminders, and assign priorities to what you’ve got to execute on the given day.

It’s a fine option for automating your daily reminders and for pinning down new challenges as they arise. It’s easy to use, and even integrates with Gmail, Google Calendar and Slack – so you can inflict your organisation on other folks with equal ease.

Free (IAPs) / Android, iOS

Free trial (IAPs) / Android, iOS Not everyone can afford a high-end mindfulness app. Unfortunately, most of them are paid-for. Except Insight Timer, which has content from meditation and mindfulness experts, psychologists and neuroscientists – without charging users a cent. There are more than 25000 guided meditations, from a range of schools of thought and covering the entire spectrum of mental maintenance. Yes, including stress and anxiety. There’s a section dedicated to helping kids, too, so Junior can also offload some of the psychic dreck that’s currently building all around the country.

YOUR MIND’S ( THIRD ) EYE The reason you’re at home avoiding people will weigh on your mind. Your family is likely nearby (bad) or you’re totally isolated (worse, somehow).

That’s a lot to carry around. In addition to giving your body some attention, it’s a grand idea to be mindful of what’s going on in your mind. Here are options that don’t require a shrink.

HEA DSPAC E Mental health isn’t cheap, but it doesn’t have to cost the Earth. This app either requires a monthly subscription (which’ll cost more than Netflix) or has an annual payment. It’s worth it. Headspace is built to make getting off to sleep during rough times easier but it covers all aspects of the mindfulness journey.

Of special note is the section on stress relief and anxiety – a place South African users will find themselves spending more than a little time at present. Save the productivity and sport meditation for a slightly happier time. from R60 / Android, iOS

DO IT NOW Life is a game. You may as well get good at it. Spend less time on the Xbox and more time ticking boxes with Do It Now, a gamification app that turns you as a human into you as an avatar – one earning virtual XP in search of the next level. Packed to the brim with stats, habit-developing features, and the ability to track all your tasks (as well as cloud access so you can sync over more than one device), it helps you take the game of life more seriously.

Free (IAPs) / Android, iOS

CAL M Free trial (IAPs) / Android, iOS Perhaps the best option if you’re keen on some self-prescribed brain-washing, Calm has a free section. If you want to pay for it (and you’ll want to), it offers an annual sub.

Make the call after you’ve tried some of the free exercises, explored the guided meditations and breathing programs, and tried out the Sleep Stories. Like adult colouring books, these are stories designed to make grown-ups go to sleep. Music tracks are available for meditations, and there’s a white-noise machine included but… some stuff is paywalled.

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STAYING SANE AT HOME

D UOL IN GO Free / duolingo.com Whether you’re using the excellent smartphone app or the equally impressive web interface, Duolingo wants you to learn another language.

And it wants you to learn it so much that it’ll make you feel terrible if you skip a lesson. There are dozens of languages to learn, free of charge, but if a bolstered curriculum vitae is your aim, perhaps give High Valerian and Klingon a miss. You can pay for Duolingo Plus but mostly that just removes ads, while giving you a warm, fuzzy feeling inside.

UPSKILL YOURSELF As many South Africans are learning, it’s very possible you’ll wind up working longer hours working at home than when you were at the office. That happens. But if you have enough free time (or are unemployed for the duration of this mess) putting a few new lines on the old CV isn’t a bad idea. Here are a few options.

GO OGL E A NA LYTICS ACA DEMY Next time you want a job you can do from home, it should probably have an online marketing component to it. Google’s free Analytics Academy gives you the ins and outs of one of the most-used analytics tools on the planet. And, since Google already has all the money (or knows where it is), they’re not charging students to access these new skills. Next time there’s a stay-at-home emergency (or there’s just too much traffic), you’ll be at a job that only requires an internet connection and a little peace.

Free / analytics.google.com

A LISO N Free / alison.com After something a little more applicable to real-world spaces but don’t have the cash for full-on university study? Online resource Alison offers more than 1500 completely free courses, from certificates to diplomas and learning paths across the health, business, lifestyle and humanities sectors.

Want to study journalism, digital photography, hygiene, or psychology? Have at it, without paying a cent. Alison even offers courses on what you need to know about the coronavirus, in case you’re not getting enough information on the subject from the medias (traditional and social).

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MINECRA FT You might not be all that interested in fast-paced twitch combat or hyper-competitive build shenanigans. How about slowing the pace down with Minecraft, the internet sensation that decided to stick around and become an institution. Sure, you can go it alone but a few mates and a shared world – along with chat – and you’ve got the cure for what ails you, socially.

Creativity, friends, some sedate music – just remember to turn the Creepers off or you’ll find yourself having a tough time at night. That hissing noise can be rough on the nerves. from R300 / All of them

STAYING SANE AT HOME

C AL L OF D U TY : WAR ZON E Free / PC, PS4, Xbox One The inclusion of this one’s a no-brainer – the world’s most popular paid-for shooter takes its second crack at the battle royale with the free-to-play Warzone. At the time of writing there are more than 30 million players, meaning there’s always someone to talk smack to. Which also means there are potential team-mates out there, willing to give you a hand (both in game and with the stress we’re all feeling right now). People on the internet aren’t always monsters – except that one guy who is totally using hax.

GET YOUR GAME FACE ON Social interaction in the form of competition and co-operation is way down, so it makes sense to unship a games console or PC and get some time in with other people – whether you’re capturing the flag, trying to be the last man standing or are just trying to make something cool doesn’t matter. Doing it with other people matters.

FORTNI TE Free / All of them?

Playable on everything from a PC to a Switch, with a fair selection of smartphones thrown in, Fortnite might mystify the olds a little (why the heck are humans doing the Floss in real life?) but it’s just the thing for keeping the younger set busy. When they’re not paying attention to those lovely educational apps (p39) you downloaded for them, obvs. There’s a ton of interaction to be had in the world of Fortnite and its cheerful vibe and colour scheme might lift a flagging adult spirit or two. Just one round?

43

IN

WORKING FROM HOME

N I K G R O W

J S P R U O Y

The Great Isolation is upon us, and for good reason. Luckily, a remote workplace is very doable using some basic tools and software. The best part? Clothing is optional

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MACBOOK PRO 2019

FELLOWES MAXI COOL LAPTOP RISER

Got some cash to invest? The new MacBook Pro 2019 is an absolute beast, especially if you’re used to doing processheavy computing at work. This Mac features a 13in or 16in IPS display and up to a Core i9 processor. Opt for this if you’re already in the Apple ecosystem. from R24 000 / myistore.co.za

When at your desk, ergonomics is key.

You spend ages there, best make it comfortable.

This riser keeps thermals cool and gives the display a boost, so you don’t break your back (literally) spending all day in front of it.

The rubber finish will keep your machine from sliding off.

R400 / incredible.co.za

DELL INSPIRON 5593 i7 Choosing a laptop to spend your self-isolation with is almost like choosing a spouse. You want one that works hard, can support you and doesn’t cost much money. Consider the simple, yet powerful, Dell Inspiron 5593 i7. How does the saying go? You can throw a Dell in the ocean and it’ll come out working. Don’t try that at home, kids. The Inspiron 5593 is powered by a Core i7 processor, and 8GB of RAM – it’s got two additional slots if you need even more horsepower. The display is brilliant at 15.6in, and a resolution of 1920 x 1080. It’s a great budget option for a home setup.

R13 000 / dell.co.za

EPSON ECOTANK L5190 Whether you’re filling in forms, filing that stuff Bob told you he needs ASAP or helping the kiddo with homeschooling – you’ll need a printer. The Epson Ecotank L5190 is refilled using inktanks and not pricey cartridges.

It’s also a scanner, copier and fax. Get stuff done at a good price.

R5 700 / epson.co.za

WORKING FROM HOME

HUMAN CONNECTIONS Going all-digital is kind of a prerequisite when employees start to work from home. To make that happen, each person working on a project will need a stable internet connection.

Luckily there are a few options.

RAPOO 8200M WIRELESS SET

[ Graphics designed by Freepik]

Elevating your setup? You’ll need a wireless mouse and keyboard.

If you’re not a pro gamer, any battery-powered kit will do the trick, like the Rapoo 8200M that includes a keyboard, mouse and dongles. If you’re not keen on filling your machine’s ports with receiver dongles, both devices connect via Bluetooth.

R600 / incredible.co.za

PHILIPS LATTEGO SERIES 3200 What you’ll likely miss from the office is a coffee machine. And when it comes to coffee machines, bigger almost always equals better. This LatteGo makes better cappuccinos than your closest Starbucks. And you can’t go to Starbucks right now. The Ricoffy in the pantry can stay there for another year.

R9 000 / hirchs.co.za

FIBRE ME UP

LOGITECH WEBCAM C920 HD PRO Sometimes the camera on your laptop won’t cut it. Or maybe you’ve got a sweet desktop setup at home but no cam. If your boss suddenly wants some proof you’re actually working, you may need an external webcam. The Logitech C920 HD Pro should do the trick.

It captures in 1080p and is fitted with stereo sound, so you can look and sound good in your PJs. The cam itself features a full HD glass lens flanked by two microphones that capture stereo sound. Installation is so easy your toddler can do it (don’t let them, though), featuring a rubber-lined clip you can easily attach to your monitor.

R2 200 / incredible.co.za

For the most stable connection, a fibre line is the go-to. It’s also the most expensive option, but the sight of 100Mbps download speeds and uncapped allocation is marvellous. There are a variety of ISPs that offer packages from R600 upwards, depending on preferred speed. Notable mentions include Vox, Afrihost, Supersonic and Mind the Speed.

LTE YOU LATER

You may not be ready for the commitment of a physical line, and that’s okay. Many LTE packages can give you 4G speeds that should be enough to keep the workflow going. Depending on the data cap per month, you can pay anything from R250p/m for LTE access. Have a look at offers by MTN, Vodacom, Rain and Telkom. And get a decent dongle.

#DATAHASFALLEN

Following a push by the Competition Commission to lower data costs in SA, MTN and Vodacom have given in and lowered their data costs by about 20%. A 1GB monthly data bundle that used to cost R150 on both networks has dropped to R100.

If all else fails, and the above are impossible, load up your SIM with some prepaid data to stay connected.

1MORE TRUE WIRELESS EARBUDS

DELL SE2719H 27IN MONITOR

The easiest way to access to a mic to take calls and join video conferences (or block out the kids) is via noise-cancelling earbuds. To acquire the luxury of noise cancellation, you’d generally lob out thousands, but 1More’s Bluetooth earbuds offer stellar cancellation and decent battery life at a lower price than rivals.

R1 800 / incredible.co.za

We don’t know your life. We do know that a second monitor can up productivity (or procrastination, depending on the situation).

We’d suggest a decent second monitor for your laptop. The Dell SE2719H IPS monitor supports Full HD, has an antiglare finish (for that harsh morning sun) and perfectly thin bezels.

R2 700 / evetech.co.za 45

VIDEO CONFERENCING

OK, ZOOMER Okay, you’re stuck. Maybe you have to work from home, maybe you want to set up a virtual yoga group. Who knows? What we do know is that you should use Zoom.

It has earned its reputation as a reliable, easy-to-use tool to handle meetings of up to 100 people — and that’s on the free version. We look at how to fully utilise Zoom’s capabilities and up your video conferencing game.

1 Get set up Zoom is free-to-use for anyone with access to a laptop/computer or even a smartphone. If you need to host particularly large online meetings, there are paid-for business packages that add additional features and increase limits. But that’s not necessary… unless you’re running a Fortune 500.

To start, just add an external webcam to your desktop PC or use the webcam on your laptop. Oh, and an internet or data connection is important. That’s all you need.

4 Be the host 3 Sign up and download 2 Connect your webcam Your laptop probably has a webcam, but if you’re toting a tower, you’ll need an external webcam (p45) and a microphone. Some monitors feature integrated cameras, but external webcams are fairly cheap, so invest in one. Order online, if you can. After it has been set up, make sure your webcam works in Windows 10’s Camera app.

If you’ve got a Mac (any Mac), however, it’ll have a built-in camera above the display, so you’re all set.

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Head to Zoom’s website, and click the ‘Sign up, it’s free’ button in the upper right corner. Create a profile and check your email for the confirmation.

You’ll be guided through setup, after which you can invite colleagues to join Zoom. You’ll be prompted to download the desktop app. Do this, it’s more seamless than the browser application.

This also means you can run Zoom while working in your browser.

There are browser extensions for Firefox and Chrome, and a plugin for Outlook, but you can get away with using the app. There are also mobile apps available that you can install on your Apple or Android.

After the app has been installed, you’ll need to sign in with your newly created account.

You’re now ready to start your first meeting.

Your boss would be so proud.

Click the ‘New meeting’ button to start hosting. Don’t be startled if your face suddenly pops up on the screen. This is where you realise you should put on actual clothes and comb your hair.

The Zoom app then tests your speakers and microphone. If everything works, invite your colleagues (or clients, or yoga friends) to your first meeting. Meetings can also be scheduled for a later time, when you’ve had time to change your clothes.

To do this, click the ‘Schedule’ button and fill out the date, time and topic of the upcoming meeting. Just choose the calendar (Outlook, Google Calendar, or whatever mail client) and click the ‘Schedule’ button again.

VIDEO CONFERENCING

NOW TRY

SKYPE

Good old Skype has come a long way, and we’re proud to see it’s still going. The video chat service has turned into a verb, “I’ll Skype you”, even if the user doesn’t intend to use Skype.

If you’re looking for a quick chat with a few colleagues or friends, Skype is still the boss.

Windows, Mac OS, iOS, Android

MICROSOFT TEAMS

Almost a natural evolution of Skype, Microsoft Teams is a digital workplace, featuring chat, video call and file-sharing capabilities. It seamlessly connects with Office 365 as well as OneDrive to make it easier to share files and collaborate with others.

Windows, Mac OS, iOS, Android

5 Join a meeting There are a few ways to join a meeting. If someone sends you a link to a scheduled meeting, just click the link.

You can also click ‘Join’ on the main Zoom screen – from here you’ll need to enter a Meeting ID or Personal Link Name. When you’re in the meeting, you can connect using video, audio or both.

The host also controls your audio – they have the power to mute you if you’re being too loud.

7 Share the screen 6 Chat, share files and react Everyone in the meeting can also share files through Zoom’s chat feature. Move your mouse over the video window, and a series of buttons will appear at the bottom of the screen. Click ‘Chat’ and send memes to your colleagues.

This is a great place to ask questions during a presentation or share files that are being discussed with the group. You don’t need to head to your email to share files while in a meeting, which is pretty nifty.

You can ‘react’ to messages by using emojis.

Just… no eggplants, please.

If you’re hosting, hit the ‘Record’ button at the bottom of the screen to record the video of a meeting. You might need it as proof for later (take that, Carol). If you’re not the host, you’ll need approval from the host to record the screen.

Our favourite feature is the ‘screen share’ option.

This allows the host to show a slideshow or do training on their own PC, while the team look on in awe.

TRELLO

Even when you’re in an office environment, we’d suggest implementing a good project management system like Trello. It’s an agile project management tool, specifically designed to help visualise work, control work in progress and create a workflow.

Web

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ONLINE SHOPPING

RETAIL THERAPY

SOCIAL DISTANCE SHOPPING The shopping you knew is gone (for a while, at least). In its place is something that requires a little more space

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ONLINE SHOPPING

ell done, you. When everything went bad you didn’t rush the stores in an attempt to hoard enough items to survive a year in a post-apocalyptic wasteland. You saw the situation for what it was, didn’t panic about anything and just stocked up for a week or two. Thumbs up, friend!

Problem is, that first batch of supplies is starting to run a little thin. We get it, one packet of twominute noodles just doesn’t fill you up. You’re gonna need to head out to the shops fairly soon but you don’t want to risk stepping outside, right? Fortunately, there are loads of places that provide you access to essential groceries.

If you know where to look. Even better, you don’t even need to look very far. We’ve got a guide on where to shop while in isolation.

It’s easier than you’d think…

W

STILL WARM

MR DELIVERY

When you need something small delivered quickly, Mr D is your main guy. Though bear in mind they’ll only be working again from 16 April.

[ Graphics designed by Freepik]

Through WiFi, we overcome

The first place you should check for groceries are your online retailers, specifically Takealot.

While sites like Loot.co.za aren’t going to be much help right now, no matter how essential you think that new bike helmet actually is, Takealot has donned the armour of a provider. SA’s largest online retailer has assured everyone that they do in fact deliver necessary supplies for a price that’s actually not expensive.

Clicking on over to Takealot reveals whole categories filled with groceries that you’d have to drive minutes to collect from your local shopping centre. It’s a waste to leave your house for a bit of Sunlight dishwashing liquid when Takealot could just swing by.

Having said that, we would also advise you to use caution when using Takealot. It’s certainly the most convenient and cheapest option but that means everyone is using them. We’ve seen cases of people ordering food and toiletries through Takealot in March and the estimated delivery date being halfway through April.

They may not be the best solution if the situation is desperate but Takealot is certainly your best bet if you plan ahead. Very far ahead.

‘Shopping’ locally

If Takealot is taking far too long then you could try Zulzi, a local delivery app that does its best to get your shopping to you in

IT’S A WASTE TO LEAVE YOUR HOUSE FOR A BIT OF SUNLIGHT DISHWASHING LIQUID WHEN TAKEALOT COULD JUST SWING BY under an hour. That’s...well, that’s quite impressive. You can even ask the Zulzi shoppers to travel to a range of local stores, including Pick ‘n Pay and Woolworths, schedule your delivery for a specific date and save shopping lists for repeat uses. Just be warned that it can be quite pricey, and the human element means that mistakes do happen. That’s the price of convenience.

Woolworth the effort

For those of you practicing social distancing and isolation (keep it up!) but don’t want to sacrifice the standard of living you’ve become accustomed to, don’t stress because Woolworths delivers.

You don’t have to worry about running low on your ridiculous little finger burgers. All you need to do is phone up your local Woolworths, tell them what you want and wait for them to arrive

with the goods. Want some inside information? Delivery on your first online order is free! You’ll have to start paying your way after that but it’s a nice introduction to the service.

PLAN AHEAD

Obviously online shopping will be more expensive, so always double check you have everything you need before placing that order.

Necessities only!

Picking and Checking

You’re not fussy like those Woolworths shoppers, right?

You can just sign up for Pick ‘n Pay Delivery or the Checkers Food Service to access thousands of groceries and have them delivered to your door. Going this route is probably the cheaper option in the long run as, depending on when you want your stuff delivered, you’ll be paying only R50 to have a driver drop off your goods. If we’re choosing between the two, we’d go with Pick ‘n Pay. Just because they have an app for the whole process, making everything even easier.

BE PATIENT

Those folks delivering our stuff are doing us all a huge favour, so maybe cut them some slack f they’re running late? They’re doing their best.

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TESTED LAND ROVER DEFENDER (2020)

Just l

Traditionalists will be choking on their Pimm’s, but Land Rover’s all-new Defender is as techy as it is tough 4

from R948 000 / landrover.co.za It was never going to be easy to replace one of the most iconic cars in the automotive landscape.

Land Rover’s decision to unleash an ultra-modern, technologically advanced replacement for its Defender was sure to ruffle some pheasant feathers.

But you can’t accuse the company’s engineers of taking any shortcuts, because this model rides on a new, rugged D7x architecture, uses the latest Terrain Response 2 off-road system, comes in two body styles and has more nods to the original than you can shake a tan leather shooting stick at.

Toughness is built in, yet it’s possible to flatten your nearest mountain while digesting that latest Spotify Made For You playlist thanks to the addition of always-on dual LTE modems.

The chuntering, stripped-out farm-patrollers of yesteryear might be a distant memory, but the go-anywhere attitude still remains.

2

3

Roverboard Floods ahead? Hit a button on the touchscreen and it softens the throttle response, sets the heating to recirculate cabin air, locks the driveline and adjusts the ride height to its off-road setting (1) while activating the Wade Sensing screen on the infotainment system.

GOOD MEH EVIL

50

A supremely comfy place to sit

Roverview That Pivi Pro infotainment system runs through a rather smart 10in interactive display (2). Powered by Snapdragon chips, highly configurable tiles and over-the-air software updates make it one of the most customisable and futureproof in-car tech systems.

The new off-road tech rocks

Diesel model lacks punch

Roverweight This new Defender is as tough as old army boots. It can carry a payload of 900kg and a static roofload of up to 300kg, and can tow up to 3500kg (3). Inside, the materials have been selected for durability and there’s a choice of old-school steel wheels. Because blingy alloys are for drifters.

You can spec a winch!

We’re not sold on the styling

But you can’t hose the interior

TESTED LAND ROVER DEFENDER (2020)

Roverhead ‘Alpine lights’ along the sides of the roof are a nice nostalgic touch, and let in extra sunlight for you to write your hunting trip invitations.

Tech specs Engine 2-litre petrol, diesel or mild-hybrid AWD auto Max speed 192km/h (petrol) 0-100km/h 7.6s (petrol) Displays 12.3in driver display, 10in infotainment Connectivity Bluetooth, LTE, 5G, Android Auto, Apple CarPlay, up to 7x USB

Let’s off-road!

When testing the brand new Defender, there was only one logical place to do it – the Skeleton Coast

■ Suits you, sir

■ Winch was nice

■ I was very dunked

■ Brilliant!

Land Rover hosted the debut drives of this car on some of the harshest terrain on earth: Namibia’s Skeleton Coast, where six Defenders journeyed over 500km, almost all off-road, to prove the machine’s hardiness.

Fitted with the Explorer pack, each Defender had a winch, an engine snorkel, chunkier wheel-arches and a roofrack laden with spare tyres, hydraulic jacks, spades and myriad tools for digging Defenders out of sodden riverbeds.

1

Roverpowered The infotainment system is 5G-compatible, while the dual LTE modems allow uninterrupted access to entertainment. Still too old-fashioned? A Mild-Hybrid Electric Vehicle (MHEV) option will be joined by a Plug-in Hybrid Electric Vehicle (PHEV) version in the near future.

Rover your shoulder Every variant of this Defender can be specced with the latest ClearSight off-road assistance tech. Ground View uses trick cameras to render the bonnet invisible, while Rear View projects a live video feed onto the mirror (4). There’s even a colour head-up display for on/off-road info.

The drive saw at least 12 punctures, three rescues from thick mud and two cable-ties required to clip bodywork back into place.

“This is as close to the old Camel Trophy races as you can get,” said one experienced onlooker.

There’s no denying the new Defender is a major departure from the much-loved original, but this is a modern car for modern drivers – one that can still handle the world’s toughest terrain while its occupants relax inside. And the upcoming electric and hybrid models will ensure the new Defender resonates with urbanites as well as off-road fans.

All the vehicles came out of the other side more or less unscathed, making miraculously short work of the fiendish terrain.

Despite all the comfort and cutting-edge tech, this is still very much the tough warrior of old.

STUFF SAYS ★★★★★ An absolutely epic 4x4 that manages to tackle the tough stuff and mix it with the most modern of machines 51

TESTED MARSHALL MONITOR II ANC

Eight days a tweak Combining long battery life with customisable EQ, Marshall’s first ever noise-cancelling cans are a magical mystery tour de force Rtba / marshallheadphones.com If your aim in life is to feel the same raw power from your headphones that you do from a rock concert, there are some clear limitations.

Strapping an amp stack to your head isn’t really recommended unless you’re a World’s Strongest Man competitor, and any sort of prolonged listening will leave you with tinnitus akin to being stuck in a lift with My Bloody Valentine for seven years.

Marshall’s new over-ear cans attempt to deliver a scaled-down version, by drawing on nearly 60 years of producing some of the finest amps rock music has ever seen, only in a more practical form factor and with less risk to your hearing. They also have tweakable EQ, and active noise-cancelling so at least a live recording can’t be ruined by someone talking all the way through it.

Styled to resemble Marshall’s famous amps, the Monitor II ANCs offer definite swagger… but is there anything going on under that rock star facade?

GOOD MEH EVIL

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Killer rock’n’roll styling…

Wired honey pie The little coiled wires running to the earcups echo the ‘vintage guitar lead’ look of the included 3.5mm cable.

Twist and pout The first thing you notice is the classic cursive logo bearing Jim Marshall’s surname (1). That’s surrounded by amp-style textured plastic, with squishy padding for your head. These cans are not heavy, they twist and fold away easily, and the hinges help them adapt to your head shape.

You won’t ANC me Hit the ANC button (2) on the left earcup to turn the noise-cancelling on or off. Want more control?

Using the Marshall Bluetooth app, you can choose how much noise to let in on a sliding scale from 0 (full ANC) to 100% (no ANC). It’s a neat feature that’s genuinely useful.

Here, pair and everywhere On the right earcup, the M button (3) can be used to switch between EQ presets – or you can set it to summon your voice assistant.

Equipped with Bluetooth 5.0, our cans paired immediately with a strong signal that never once faltered. You’ll get about 30 hours of playback with ANC, 45 without.

Strum together Marshall’s headphones look the part… and they sound pretty great too. While some cans only seem to be suited to certain genres, these span all of them. Being able to switch between EQ presets, or create your own, makes these the noise-cancellers of choice for those with broad tastes.

Sergeant peppy Custom-tuned 40mm dynamic drivers deliver powerful, crisp audio with Marshall’s signature punch. Bass is strong but not overcooked, vocals are clear, there’s a warmness to acoustic tracks, and the ANC works a treat.

Then again, who needs ANC? The passive isolation is excellent.

…with a slick folding design

No touch controls, only buttons

Nice EQ customising options The price is distinctly premium

2

Battery life is up with the best

TESTED MARSHALL MONITOR II ANC

Tech specs Connectivity Bluetooth 5.0, USB-C, 3.5mm Battery life Up to 45hrs (30hrs with ANC) Weight 320g

I’m looking through UI Interacting with Marshall’s noise-cancellers is easy enough, and the app opens up more control options

■ Shove me do

■ Day skipper

■ What goes off

■ Fuel on the hill

The ANC and M buttons are camouflaged to look like rivets on the back of the earcups, but they’re easy to locate. In keeping with the vintage vibe, a gold button on the right cup turns the cans off and on.

3

The gold button doubles as a joystick to control the volume (up and down) and skip (left and right).

There’s no annoying double-tap to master, because pressing down on the joystick takes care of play and pause.

1

The Marshall Bluetooth app, originally created for the brand’s speakers, has been updated for headphones. It lets you set a timer to turn off your cans after a set period, in case you’re falling asleep to Ringo’s Greatest Hits.

Marshall’s amp-inspired design is the big sell here, and it’s as close as many of us will ever get to a backstage pass; but there’s more going on than good looks. A sturdy foldable design, slick controls, a comfy fit, adjustable noise-cancelling and great all-round performance make them a hit. They’re not cheap, but they’re easily Marshall’s best cans yet.

If you forgot to charge your cans overnight, you can score up to five hours of wireless playtime with a 15-minute boost. The ’phones are supplied with a USB-C charging cable plus a 3.5mm lead for wired listening.

STUFF SAYS ★★★★★ A tidy set of over-ear headphones packed with more customising options than any other noise-cancellers 53

T E S T E D H U AW E I S O U N D X

Shut up and jive Huawei has partnered with French audio specialist Devialet to deliver a smart speaker that rivals the HomePod… only you probably won’t understand it Rtba / consumer.huawei.com Huawei is getting itself a bit of a reputation – quite a few, actually.

There’s the one for ruffling White House feathers, and the one for causing UK 5G controversy, but also the one for making excellent smartphones and picking clever partners to work with – thus its excellent Leica phone cameras.

So when it came to making the Sound X smart speaker, it called in the big guns at Devialet – the high-end French audio brand responsible for the outrageous Phantom wireless speaker.

Together they’ve conjured up an Apple HomePod-esque effort… but due to the US trade ban with Google (which we’re sick of explaining), its AI assistant doesn’t speak English.

Huawei says it’s coming to South Africa but it hasn’t been able to say when. When it does, it should be about on a par for price with the HomePod. Until then, it’s relying on sound quality alone as a straight Bluetooth speaker… but that’s fine by us.

1

2

Meshin’ around The Sound X follows the basic cylindrical form of the HomePod, but opts for a black piano-gloss finish and a mesh fabric grille on the bottom section only. The eye-catchers are the exposed subwoofers (1) – one on each side – that vibrate in the fashion of the Devialet Phantom.

GOOD MEH EVIL

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It’s bigger than a HomePod

Design your name There are no ports here, only a power socket that feeds into the bottom (2), and the lead is removable (but nowhere near as nice as Apple’s fabric effort).

There’s Huawei branding, ‘co-engineered with Devialet’ branding, and touch controls on top, which we’ll come to later.

It sounds better than a HomePod

The steady pair’s picnic On startup, our Sound X speaks Chinese. This is Huawei’s Xiaoyi voice assistant, and it’s really not a lot of use to us. Instead, Bluetooth 5.1 pairing is simple and steadfast, and anyone with a compatible phone can use Huawei Share NFC streaming with a single tap.

Supports hi-res and a stereo pair No smarts outside China

Supports HiLink smart home

Nice gesture controls

T E S T E D H U AW E I S O U N D X

Tech specs Output power 65W Drivers 6x 1.5in full-range, 2x 3.5in subwoofers Mics 6x far-field Connectivity Wi-Fi, Bluetooth 5.1, NFC Dimensions 203x165x165mm, 3.5kg

Howzit, China?

Just because it’s speaking Mandarin, that doesn’t mean you can’t navigate the Huawei Sound X

■ On tap

■ On call

■ On hand

■ On the quiet

The top of the speaker is home to an LED touchscreen display.

It features four controls: volume up, volume down, microphone mute, and an ellipsis button for entering Bluetooth pairing mode with a long tap.

3

A multicoloured LED ring encircles the touch controls and is there to acknowledge voice commands or reflect a change in volume – but only when using the touch controls, not your smart device.

Off the wall You can adjust the sound profile based on whether you decide to place the Sound X in the middle of a room or up against a wall.

Water feeling Devialet’s 360° sound is provided by six full-range drivers (3) plus those woofers, with ‘push-push’ tech cancelling out unwanted vibrations while preserving the bass. To prove this, Huawei says if you put a glass of water on top it’ll remain completely still. We tried it and it works.

Spray it loud The sound is colossal – distinctly more expansive than that of the HomePod. It’s physically bigger, but so is the audio experience.

Bass is controlled, allowing the other frequencies to breathe and exposing plenty of detail. It’s pure head-nod territory – Devialet has worked wonders.

Move your hand towards the controls and motion sensors will kick in to illuminate them – handy in a dark room. Tapping the mic button sends all of them red, and lights up the LED ring in the same colour.

With the appropriate voice smarts for this region, the Huawei Sound X might well become the best smart speaker in its price range. At the moment it doesn’t possess them, but that still makes this a sonically brilliant standalone Bluetooth speaker, backed by Devialet expertise. We wonder what it’ll cost.

You can also mute the speaker using gesture controls – simply place your hand on the top of the Sound X and it’ll quieten down, which works well if you need to hear something in the background.

STUFF SAYS ★★★★✩ A big dose of Devialet audio engineering at an affordable price… even if it’s in need of some elocution lessons 55

TESTED ACER SWIFT 5 (2020)

Holding out for a kilo If you refuse to carry over 1kg of laptop, the 2020 version of Acer’s Swift 5 could be the slinky all-rounder you’ve been waiting for Rtba / shopacer.co.za ■ Laptops are pretty light these days, but there’s always room for improvement – and the 2020 evolution of the Acer Swift 5 has found it. You lose a bit of stiffness, but this 990g charmer has just about everything you could ask for from a modern Windows laptop.

■ The 14in IPS LCD panel is a touchscreen and it looks great.

Blacks are deep, colours rich, and hardly any laptops with this power at this price are any sharper. The Microsoft Surface Pro 7 is, but you get lots more for your money here.

Last action kilo The 54Wh battery is better than the latest Dell XPS 13’s, and good for 9hrs’ streaming or a full fun-packed day of typing.

■ The keys have decent travel and tactile feedback, and are backlit with two brightness levels. What’s not so good is the fingerprint scanner – as on most Windows machines, it refuses to work half the time – and a trackpad that’s plastic rather than glass. The speakers are weak too.

■ There are no big compromises on performance. Our 10th-gen Core i5 model had 8GB of RAM and a 256GB SSD. This is Acer’s entry-level spec, but it’s far from entry-level hardware and runs Windows 10 perfectly. It’s also effectively silent.

■ Serious about gaming on your laptop? Buy the Core i7 version and you get one of Intel’s Iris Plus GPUs, which bridges the gap between dedicated hardware and bog-standard built-in stuff.

Tech specs Screen 14in 1920x1080 IPS touchscreen CPU Intel Core i5-1035G1 RAM 8GB OS Windows 10 Home Storage 256GB SSD Connectivity USB-3, USB-2, USB-C, HDMI, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth Battery life Up to 12.5hrs Dimensions 318x210x15mm, 990g

■ Working-class kilo

The real-world practicality of the Swift 5 is off the charts. Its footprint is small, the low weight is brilliant for portability and the connections cover all the basics.

As well as a full suite of USBs, you get a full-size HDMI output.

■ Have-a-go kilo

Acer also aims for practicality with the screen. This is a 14in IPS LCD touchscreen panel of 1080p resolution, and the slim surrounds mean you couldn’t really fit in much more without making it a bigger laptop.

STUFF SAYS An ultra-light laptop that doesn’t dump everything to stay slinky ★★★★✩

This pocket battleship can outgun most R20 000+ rivals 56

The ultra-light new Acer Swift 5 sacrifices very little for its sub-1kg weight. Its screen is great, the keyboard is fine, connectivity is more versatile than many and raw performance beats the MacBook Air. Even the battery lasts a full day, just. So where’s the catch? Shrug off the superficial and only the trackpad could do with a level-up… but that’s one reason it’ll come in under the R20k mark.

TESTED JABRA ELITE ACTIVE 75T

Sweatier groove on Jabra’s Elite 75t true wireless earphones now have a workout-ready Active sibling. But are they the best gym buddies on a budget?

Rtba / circuitcity.co.za ■ Built to withstand the rigours of soundtracking your stints in the pain cave, these are the sporty new addition to Jabra’s Elite line-up of true wireless ’phones. They come with better battery life, improved durability and a more compact design than previous models… And pricing should be rather reasonable.

Slippery when sweat A grippy coating is meant to keep the buds in place while you run.

It’s OK, but clip-on wing tips would be better.

■ Rich and well-balanced sound is backed up by plenty of big-bass oomph. A customisable equaliser in Jabra’s app also lets you set your sounds how you like them: there are five presets, or you can use a slider to find your own levels.

That’s something Apple’s AirPods Pro don’t offer.

■ The fast-charge feature provides an hour’s juice from just 15 minutes on the plug, so no low-power surprises can derail your workout.

There are quicker fast-charging headphones out there, but that’s rapid enough to deliver a session’s worth of motivational tunes in the time it takes to pack your gym bag.

■ An IP55 rating means they’re waterproof and sweatproof. You can’t swim with them, but sweaty or rain-soaked runs and rides are covered, and you should get away with the odd puddle drop.

■ Sweat weekend

Beyond comfort, sound and durability, the feature that matters most with true wireless buds is battery life. A single charge on these offers 7.5hrs, and there’s another 20.5hrs in the charging case. That’s a lot.

■ Sweat blanket

HearThrough Transparency mode is a neat feature for fitness-focused buds. Engaged with a simple tap, this setting softens your tunes and lets more sounds leak in from the outside world for safety on the road.

■ The physical buttons make it easy to switch tracks and cancel incoming calls from your boss while you’re being screamed at in a spin class; but mastering all the combinations of taps and presses of the single-button controls takes time.

Tech specs Connectivity Bluetooth 5.0 Battery life 7.5 hours (buds), 20.5 hours (charging case) Waterproofing IP55 Weight 2x 5.5g (buds), 35g (case)

STUFF SAYS Among the best sporty true wireless buds you can stick in your ears ★★★★✩

If stamina’s your priority, these could be your new best buds

These Jabras might not have all the fancy features of some true wireless buds – there’s no active noise-cancellation for a kick-off – but they offer an impressive mix of perfect portability, solid sound and brilliant battery life in a slick little package that’s enticingly wallet-friendly. Mind you, if you don’t care about waterproof versus water-resistant, the non-Active version offers almost identical attributes for R3 600.

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FI R TH ST ES AD E… D

DJI MAVIC MINI

58

ONE DJI FLY MORE COMBO

TWO SANDISK EXTREME 128GB

THREE WD MY PASSPORT WIRELESS PRO

If you can stump up an extra R2 000 when you pick up your drone, go for the Fly More bundle. In addition to the Mini itself, it comes with a protective propeller guard, two extra batteries for an extra hour’s flight time, a charging hub that can double up as a portable power bank, a carry case and more.

R9000 / ormsdirect.co.za

The Mavic Mini captures 2.7K footage on microSD cards.

Five minutes of footage will take up about 1.5GB of storage, so you’ll want to be packing a decent card that can hack high-resolution footage.

Sandisk’s Extreme cards are a perfect balance of space and speed, and 128GB should keep you busy.

R690 / incredible.co.za

You’re in the field, flying high and loving life, until you get an alert: your Mavic Mini’s memory card is full and playtime is over. Not so fast!

Stick your memory card into one of these and all your photos and videos will be backed up on the spot – no laptop needed – so you can get right back in the air. from R3 500 / bhphotovideo.com

NO TH W T IS RY …

DO A TH WN ND ES LO E… AD

INSTANT STANT UPGRADES

DJI FLY

1 CARRY THAT WEIGHT

2 BRING IT HOME

3 MAKE IT QUICK

If you’re new to drones or plan on flying your Mavic indoors, propeller guards (included in the DJI Fly More Combo) are a must; but you should tweak a setting in the DJI Fly app to help the drone adjust its flight style for the extra weight. In the camera view, tap the three dots at the top-right to open the app settings, scroll down to Advanced Safety Settings, then select Payload Mode.

A drone’s take-off point is usually set as its ‘home’. Should its battery die or the connection to the controller be lost, it can be set to return to a home point in the settings menu: Safety > Advanced Safety Settings > Signal Lost > Return To Home.

If you’ve been trekking a long way with your drone, you might need to change that home point.

Scroll down to Update Home Point in the settings menu.

Quickshots are automatic one-button-press manoeuvres that grab high-impact footage while you take centre stage.

They can be fired up within the app, and there are five to experiment with. To try them out, have the drone hover at least 2m above the ground; then, while you’re in the camera UI, tap the 2.7K icon above the record button and choose the Quickshot you’re after.

4 PICK A MODE

5 SAVE YOUR SKIN

6 FIND MY DRONE

The Mavic Mini can shoot in three flight modes: Sport, Position or CineSmooth. As the name suggests, Sport mode is fast, whipping across fields like a greyhound. Never use this indoors! Position might well be your default mode, gliding with purpose but at a moderate pace. CineSmooth is your choice for silky cinematic pans. Modes can be accessed under the Control tab in settings.

It may be mini, but DJI’s pocket drone can still be a finger-slicing quadcopter: if you grab it before its blades stop spinning, it’ll cut right through skin. So if you’re using it around kids or pets, best prepare to deploy the emergency propeller stop. To activate it, pull both joysticks diagonally down towards each other and hold. Of course, if you do this in mid-air your drone will plummet to earth.

It’s a reliably hardy drone in most conditions, but an angry gust of wind, a sudden rain shower or a mid-air collision can still throw the Mavic Mini maydaying to a crash landing.

Luckily, DJI has put a transmitter inside its dinky drone. In the DJI Fly app settings, scroll down to Find My Drone – it’ll show you where it was last active and can even activate a flashing light and beep.

The DJI Fly app is your hub for all things Mavic Mini. It’s what you launch to activate pairing with the drone, and also has tutorial videos and guides for novice flyers.

Free

AIRMAP

Local restrictions on flying drones can vary from one park to another, so you’ll need to do your homework.

This app is the simplest way to check you’re not in a no-fly zone.

Free

UAV FORECAST

Wet or windy weather can put the kibosh on any aerial shoot, which is why this one is a vital addition to your app arsenal, letting you know at a glance if it’s safe to fly.

Free

59

BETA YOURSELF

TRACK YOUR LIFE You don’t have to spend your time at home binging on Netflix and snacks. This is a perfect time to build some new habits.

Stuff has the apps to help and the tips to keep you sane.

THE BASICS

■ Prioritise your tracking

What we’re talking about here is tracking your entire life, but be reasonable: monitoring everything you do can become onerous. If you don’t fancy the busywork, decide on what you care about most. Once you’ve infused a couple of habits into your routine, there’s a good chance you’ll be hooked on the idea and will want to expand it into other areas.

■ Set attainable goals

Time to get a grip? Before you start, don’t set yourself up for disappointment, or morale will go through the floor – and tracking kit out of the window.

Go easy on yourself at first, whether attempting to eat better, reduce screen time or exercise more. Positive trends are what’s important, not blazing to the best possible you in an instant.

■ Streamline everything

Tracking can rapidly become complex if you splash out on a ton of hardware and end up juggling apps. Where possible, centralise and simplify. If you can use one app for multiple types of tracking, do so. One piece of hardware over three?

Great – that will save time, money and brain load.

■ Keep data private

Tracking is inherently personal.

That’s just as true whether monitoring food intake or keeping tabs on your Tiger King addiction. So be sure you can trust the systems you’re using with this personal data.

That’s doubly important whenever money enters the equation – especially if you link financial trackers to live bank accounts.

■ Don’t get obsessive

It’s vital to understand your motivations – and what demotivates you. If tracking something specific starts to get you down, ease up on demands or temporarily stop.

For example, there’s no point tracking sleep with an app like Sleep Cycle (Android, iOS) if you get anxious about never getting your eight hours – and then end up with insomnia.

START SOLID ■ Track habits

Unlock ’n’ roll

Don’t invest time and effort in systems you can’t get data out of. If export options (like the pictured one from Apple’s Health app) don’t exist, head elsewhere.

60

Infusing new habits into your routine requires you do them often – and tracking helps with this. Streaks (iOS), Habitica (Android, iOS) and Productive (Android, iOS) all provide flexible systems for setting and tracking such goals.

■ Watch your money

Always running out of cash before payday? Then figure out where it’s all going. YNAB and Mint are popular options for complex budgeting. Expenses (Android) and Pennies (iOS) are also solid, even if only to sanity-check non-essential spending.

HANDY HARDWARE

APPLE WATCH

There are some decent Wear OS options for your wrist; but if you have the means and an iPhone, the Apple Watch is a superb wearable for all kinds of health tracking, from general exercise through to keeping an eye on your heart and ears. from 4000 / myistore.co.za

WITHINGS BODY CARDIO BOOST YOUR BODY ■ Manage your meals

GET PRODUCTIVE ■ Monitor app usage

Android and iOS both have app-tracking baked in, so you can check your usage.

If you find you’re spending too much time in an app or game, define limits. This won’t block it but will alert you when your allocation runs out.

■ Don’t waste time

Products like Harvest, Toggl (both Android, iOS), Timesheet (Android) and Hours (iOS) track working hours by project, ensuring you don’t fritter the day away. Add Bear Focus Timer (Android, iOS) to keep your attention on the task at hand.

MyFitnessPal (Android, iOS) tracks food intake, often via scanned barcodes. But don’t get hung up on calories.

It’s usually better to boost exercise and broadly track ‘negative’ habits (like allowing a few ‘bad’ foods per week).

■ Track exercise

Think about how you want to exercise, and use a system geared to your preferences and motivation. That might be Runkeeper (Android, iOS) if you like running, or Apple Watch rings for general activity.

■ Map out wellness

Try using the customisable Moodflow (Android, iOS) to take stock of how you feel every day, and spot patterns that affect your mental health. For getting started with meditation, try Smiling Mind (Android, iOS).

KEEP TABS ON MEDIA

It’s not healthy to be tormented by your weight – general fitness is more important. But this smart scale is useful to check trends, not only regarding the kilos you’re carrying but also your muscle mass and heart health.

R4760 / bigapplebuddy.com

■ Tally your TV

Tracking needn’t always be about health and wealth: keep tabs on shows and movies to know what’s coming up, what you’ve watched, and what you liked. Try Simkl or Trakt and related clients, such as Television Time (iOS).

Letterboxd (Android, iOS) is good for films.

■ Tot up your tunes

Most streaming services will serve up an annual report on what you’ve subjected your ears to over the past 12 months. But Spotify has inbuilt last.fm support so you can delve into the fine details.

UPRIGHT GO 2

With health, it’s relatively simple to track things like calorie intake and exercise minutes. So the Upright Go 2 hones in on posture, buzzing when you slouch. That might sound oddly specific, but it can have a real impact on how you look and feel.

R3400 / fredmuk.com

61

TESTED GAMES

PS4 / playstation.com

Dreams

This isn’t really a game, it’s a whole new platform for creating, consuming and sharing interactive installations. We’ll let you be in our dream if we can be in yours…

edia Molecule’s debut title, LittleBigPlanet, democratised game design but was restricted to user-generated 2D platforming.

Dreams is an altogether more complex creator in which you make whatever you want – art, animations, music – or spend your time diving into the warped imaginations of others.

It’s tempting to head straight into game creation, but that would be a mistake. Instead, have a go at Art’s Dream, the two(ish)-hour

M

campaign created by MM’s own employees. It’s a sweet tale of self-rediscovery, starring a washed-up musician who enlists childhood toys to help him get his mojo back and reconnect with his jazz band. Just go with it.

This is a showcase of just how versatile Dreams is. At one point you’re a fox, 3D-platforming in a watercolour fantasyland; then you’re playing a point-and-click game in a grimy back alley and watching a mean-spirited bouncer taunt you by means of a ludicrous

musical number. The only pity is that this is the only campaign of any substance.

Dreams lets you create games without writing code, animations without training, and music without investing in a DAW. You really can build entire games, but first you’ll need to learn how to sculpt, paint, add text and arrange music. Good thing, then, that MM has produced tutorials and how-to videos that are, dare we say it, fun.

Creation is based around the PlayStation’s largely under-used

motion controls. Once you’ve got to grips with the basics, you can create scenes using the menu tools, or remix levels uploaded by others. There are also basic templates for FPS games and ball-rolling puzzlers.

Understandably, most games in Dreams lack pro polish; but the clunkier ones are sometimes quite endearing. The game just wants you to make something and put it out there, and we applaud anyone who makes the effort. Playermade levels will only get better.

STUFF SAYS Succeeds like no other game before it in giving players the tools to create ★★★★✩ 62

TESTED GAMES

Baked beans and Freddie Mercury

In this game, superhero Stuff Man rushes to meet his copy deadline.

In this game, a mechanical elephant tries to put up an Ikea bookshelf (possibly).

Creation is only half of the Dreams package. The other is Dream Surfing, essentially a social media space for creativity. When you like something you can give it as many thumbs-up gestures as you see fit. The most liked creations are browseable by setting a filter, and you can also search for games you’ve previously played, games you haven’t, and updates since you last logged in.

Best of all is Autosurf mode, which is Dreams’ version of shuffle. Spend half an hour here and you may need to lie down. One minute you’ll be playing a fairly rudimentary open-world Spider-Man game; the next you’re gazing at a staggeringly accurate remake of horror classic PT or a near-photorealistic digital painting of breakfast.

In our time with Dreams we watched a piece of asparagus perform stand-up comedy, got trolled by God on the way to heaven, nearly teared up at a Freddie Mercury tribute and, perhaps most impressively of all, sampled a half-decent 3D Sonic game.

These dreams can be small snippets or multi-level RPG epics. The variety of content on display is already as astonishing as the variety of quality.

63

Born this weigh The original iPad weighed in at 680g, or 730g if you got a 3G-enabled one. Even the current 12.9in iPad Pro is lighter. Those bezels must have been filled with lead…

RANDOM ACCESS MEMORIES 2010

Apple iPad (1st gen) O

h my, the bezels. I can’t take my eyes off of them. They’re huge!

That chunky screen surround demonstrates that, although this ten-year-old tablet is recognisably an iPad, Apple has not stood still. Its first crack at the form factor also lacked a camera, and had a reflective screen with a lowish resolution that today feels like the pixels are slicing into your eyeballs. Still, it was user-friendly; you could hold the internet in your hands and make the iPad ‘be’ anything via apps. But yes, it now feels its age next to the iPad Pro, which fully made good on the platform’s promise.

But you still can’t do proper work on it, no?

It’s just a blown-up iPhone!

That joke hasn’t aged any better than its subject. Dismissing the iPad as a giant iPhone was always odd, since that was its strength: dispensing with fluff. The message was clear when the device was first revealed: a relaxed Steve Jobs sat in an easy chair, thumbing through the internet, casually ignoring broken Flash containers while Adobe execs raged in their offices. As for ‘proper work’, you got a bigger canvas for finger-painting in Brushes and getting organised with Things – although typing on glass was never much fun.

Hence why PC makers finally won this war with touchscreen laptops! The end!

Only if you’re a masochist. Most touchscreen laptops offer a miserable tablet experience that feels tacked-on. They lack focus because they’re trying to be all things to all people.

Ironically, that’s a problem Apple also now faces, given the emergence of iPadOS, increasing complexity due to pro-orientated user demands, and ludicrously convoluted multitasking gestures. The company’s battle over the next ten years will be figuring out how to propel the iPad into the future without ditching the accessible elegance of its past.

DON’T MISS THE NEXT ISSUE! ON SALE 27 APR