Top Stories
Pick n Pay Launches South Africa’s Newest MVNO
Pick n Pay has officially launched PnP Mobile – South Africa’s newest Mobile Virtual Network Operator (MVNO). The service will use MTN’s mobile network infrastructure to offer customers prepaid, SIM-based access to services including airtime, data, and SMS. Smart Shoppers will earn data rewards in addition to loyalty points when shopping at any Pick n Pay store countrywide – including Express, Clothing and Liquor stores. They will also be able to earn up to 2.5GB in free data rewards each month. For every R10 spent in-store, customers will instantly earn 5MB in data. To qualify for this reward, customers will need to link their Smart Shopper card and top up their PnP Mobile SIM card with at least R50 over a 30-day period. Customers will be able to register their new SIM c...
WhatsApp is Working on “Read Later” Feature
WhatsApp is working on an “Archived Chats” replacement – called “Read Later”, reports WABetaInfo. Image sourced from WABetaInfo This new feature is expected to include improved “Archived Chats” functionality through “Vacation Mode” which will keep chats archived even when new messages are received. WhatsApp Begins Rolling Out Disappearing Message Feature WhatsApp has begun rolling out its new disappearing message feature, according to WABetaInfo. The feature is expected to allow users to send messages that disappear after a predetermined amount of time – this will also include media, like images and videos. Once activated, this feature won’t affect messages sent prior to the roll-out and users can turn disappearing messages on or off at any time in...
Huawei and Vusi Thembekwayo Join Forces to Encourage Digitising Businesses
Huawei has joined forces with South African business extraordinaire Vusi Thembekwayo to provide the technology company’s developer community with entrepreneurial advice on the importance of digitalising businesses and creating apps in the context of the thriving digital economy. As part of Huawei’s recently announced series of app developer workshops, Thembekwayo will engage developers and entrepreneurs in one of the upcoming monthly workshops. Thembekwayo is the CEO of MyGrowthFund, an enterprise development agency. He is well known for his entrepreneurial flair and business passion, as showcased on the popular TV show Dragon’s Den South Africa, which focused on pitching innovative business ideas for venture capital funding. The illustrious business mogul has headed multi-million-rand c...
Apple Launches macOS Big Sur
Apple has officially introduced macOS Big Sur – the latest version of its desktop operating system. According to the tech giant, Big Sur comes with a beautiful redesign and is packed with new enhancements for key apps including Safari, Messages, and Maps, as well as new privacy features. Here’s a closer look at all of Big Sur’s new enhancements: Refreshed Design Apple has redesigned the Control Center that is expected to make navigation easier while putting more controls at users’ fingertips. “The all-new Control Center gives users quick access to controls for Do Not Disturb, displays, keyboard brightness, and more, right from the menu bar. Users can see more relevant information at a glance in the updated Notification Center, including interactive notifications and...
5 Ways Technology could Enhance PPP Projects
Sourced from TTEC.com The South African economy is expected to contract by up to 7.2%, reports Finance Minister Tito Mboweni. He says this will be “the largest contraction in 90 years”. And it’s no secret that the COVID-19 pandemic has played a massive role in exacerbating the issue. According to the World Bank Blog, now is the time to prepare for public-private partnerships (PPPs) as these could play an increasingly important role in reshaping South Africa’s post-pandemic economy. Tumi Moleke, Head of the PPP Unit at Treasury, believes “the timing is perfect to mobilise the utilisation of the PPP model, and it is now paramount to deliver economic growth for the public interest.” What exactly are PPPs? /* custom css */ .tdi_3_1a1.td-a-rec-img{ text-align: left; }.tdi_3_1a...
Google to Begin Charging Photos Users for Storage
Image sourced from Pymnts Google has revealed that it would start charging Photos users who exceed 15GB, beginning 1 June 2021. The cloud service, which stores more than 4 trillion photos, will not count photos that have already been uploaded towards the 15GB limit. “This change allows us to keep pace with the growing demand for storage,” says Google Photos VP, Shimrit Ben-Yair. “We know this is a big shift and may come as a surprise, so we wanted to let you know well in advance and give you resources to make this easier.” In an official statement, Google says “Starting June 1, 2021, any new photos and videos you upload will count toward the free 15 GB of storage that comes with every Google Account or the additional storage you’ve purchased as a Google One member. Your Google Account...
Apple Introduces its New MacBooks, Mac Mini and M1 Chip
Apple took to the global stage to unveil its new MacBooks – the MacBook Air and MacBook Pro – Mac Mini and M1 Chip. Here’s a closer look at each of its new devices: Apple M1 Chip The tech giant showcased the first Arm-based Macs that run on Apple Silicon chips (the M1) instead of the Intel processors. According to Gadgets Africa, the M1 is meant to be “the most powerful chip in any Apple computer. M1 is also engineered to offer the ultimate performance while also demanding as little power as possible. This would help Macs in preserving power and lasting for long on battery”. /* custom css */ .tdi_3_cea.td-a-rec-img{ text-align: left; }.tdi_3_cea.td-a-rec-img img{ margin: 0 auto 0 0; } MacBook Air The new MacBook Air – which is the first of its kind to run the M1 Chip – is expected to be “t...
TikTok says Trump Administration has Yet to Review Ban Deadline
Sourced from Cosmico TikTok has called for the US Court of Appeals to review the ban by Trump administration’s Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (CFIUS). The social media platform says that it has been weeks since it received an update about the deadline for ByteDance – TikTok’s parent company – to sell off US assets. “For a year, TikTok has actively engaged with CFIUS in good faith to address its national security concerns, even as we disagree with its assessment,” reads a statement from TikTok. /* custom css */ .tdi_3_4dd.td-a-rec-img{ text-align: left; }.tdi_3_4dd.td-a-rec-img img{ margin: 0 auto 0 0; } “In the nearly two months since the President gave his preliminary approval to our proposal to satisfy those concerns, we have offered detailed solutions to finalize t...
Four reasons why SA app developers should integrate their apps with Huawei Mobile Services (HMS)
Since the launch of HUAWEI AppGallery, Huawei’s app store, in 2019 Huawei has been focused on assisting app developers. Huawei’s approach has always been to ensure that consumers get the best of both local and global apps on their devices, which means that it places great importance on making sure that SA developers get all they need from Huawei to develop and integrate their apps with Huawei Mobile Services (HMS). Here are four reasons why SA app developers should integrate their apps with HMS: Developers have access to global markets By integrating apps to HMS, developers have more exposure to Huawei’s device base, increasing the number of consumers who have access to their apps via HUAWEI AppGallery. Over 490 million people in 170 countries are monthly active users of Huawei mobil...
Xbox Series S and X Delays to be Expected in South Africa
Attention all gamers! Microsoft Xbox Series S and X consoles – which were expected to be available in South Africa today – will be delayed at certain retailers. “Due to some unforeseen logistical challenges, some stores in South Africa may receive their stock of the Series X | S on day of launch or possibly a day late,” reads an official statement from Prima Interactive, the company responsible for Xbox distribution. “Prima Interactive would like to advise that all stock has been shipped to stores. With global embargos taken into consideration there is a very small window for delivery to stores, and sometimes despite the best plans delays occur.” “We can confirm that ALL PRE-ORDERS will be met and your Xbox has been shipped to the store you ordered it from. If you haven’t received notifica...
Jawwy TV Mobile App Now Available in Egypt
Intigral, Telecom Egypt (WE) and TPAY Mobile have partnered to launch the Jawwy TV app in Egypt. The mobile app is expected to offer a new digital entertainment platform for viewers. A 30-day free trial of Jawwy TV will be available exclusively to WE subscribers from the date of subscription. The Jawwy TV app encompasses both linear TV and subscription video on demand (SVOD) offerings, presenting viewers with countless content titles across multiple genres – it also includes over 50 free-to-air and encrypted channels. The app is also packed with features that enhance user experiences, such as subtitles and audio options in both Arabic and English, parental control tools, rewind features for linear TV content, live TV start over options, a recommendation engine, and the ability to use the a...
Telkom Launches Mobile Streaming Service in South Africa
Telkom has partnered with the South African Broadcasting Corporation (SABC) to launch a new streaming channel, TelkomONE. The mobile operator channel will house SABC’s television channels 1, 2, Sport and Education as well as all 19 SABC radio stations. The five-year partnership, a first-of-its-kind for the SABC, is expected to showcase South Africa’s most-watched TV programmes and most listened to radio platforms, on one online platform. “We are excited about the opportunity to provide South Africans with free access to watch their favourite SABC content, online, when and wherever they want,” says Sipho Maseko, Telkom’s Group CEO. “TelkomONE will make it possible for subscribers to pause, go back into the programme guide (time-shift) and instantly watch a scheduled TV show they may have mi...
