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Is it better to use an AI-generated image (left) of an upcoming device (PS5 Pro) or use a stand-in official image (PS5; right) until the actual product is spotted? (Image source: Dall-E 3 / SIE - edited)

AI-generated content in tech media: Good or bad - have your say

CheckMag With AI seemingly infiltrating all corners of the internet, it's time to actually ask whether AI content has a place in tech media, and if so, what is its place? What about the ethical and legal implications? Reader comment is wel...

Julian van der Merwe, 30 Mar 2024 02:30

As expected, Fujifilm's X100VI cameras are becoming more and more difficult to get your hands on.

5 Fujifilm X100VI alternatives you can actually buy without the $3,000 scalper markup

CheckMag It's no secret that the Fujifilm X100VI is nearly impossible to buy right now, with Fujifilm citing months of catchup ahead to fulfil orders again. If you're looking for solid performance in a charming package, here are five solid...

Julian van der Merwe, 28 Mar 2024 18:45

Even powerful smartphones, like the Apple iPhone 15 Pro Max and Xiaomi 14 Ultra don't hold a candle to APS-C sensors in cameras like the Fujifilm X-T30 II. (Image source: Fujifilm - edited)

Smartphone cameras suck — buy a compact camera and a mid-range phone for better photography

CheckMag Hot take: Smartphones are not cameras. It's not their fault. It's just a fact. With cameras as portable and powerful as the Fujifilm X100VI and X-T30 II, skip the flagship phone upgrade and grab a real camera instead — your memori...

Julian van der Merwe, 14 Mar 2024 21:44

Nintendo's patience had clearly worn thin with the Yuzu emulator and its team, and for good reason. (Image: Nintendo)

The End of Yuzu is a blow to emulation – but not an undeserved one

CheckMag So. Yuzu is dead. The expected headline-grabbing battle ended with a whimper, with Tropic Haze, the team behind the emulator, settling almost immediately to the tune of a whopping $2.4 million. This wasn't just a slap on the wrist...

Matthew Lee, 08 Mar 2024 18:17

Those brief moments where it looked like audiences might start switching over from Netflix to its competitors seem long in the past, now. (Image: Pixabay)

The Death of Netflix may have been greatly exaggerated – or maybe its rivals are all just doing even worse

CheckMag In mid-2022, a month before Tom Cruise and the US Navy did their very best to show that the big screen was in rude health, the apparent king of the small-screen announced that it wasn't doing so great. Some said it was all over fo...

Matthew Lee, 01 Mar 2024 02:23

Both MSI and Intel are largely unproven in the handheld gaming space - can the Claw really stick the landing? (Image: MSI)

MSI Claw A1M: 4 big doubts that mean the Steam Deck has nothing to fear

CheckMag The MSI Claw A1M may well be the introduction of Intel to the world of portable gaming devices, but that's a long way from breaking the dominance of AMD's APUs on the space, especially in regard to Valve's incumbent handheld.

Matthew Lee, 01 Mar 2024 00:47

Variable aperture on the Xiaomi 14 Ultra turns the smartphone into a full-fledged compact camera. (Image source: Xiaomi - edited)

Forget the 1-inch sensor - the Xiaomi 14 Ultra's variable aperture is the true headline feature

CheckMag Xiaomi spent a lot of time hyping the wrong feature on the Xiaomi 14 Ultra. The f/1.63–4.0 variable aperture is the true game-changer for photography and videography buffs. Combined with the 1-inch sensor, who even needs a compact...

Julian van der Merwe, 27 Feb 2024 23:03

Google Clips launched for $249 in 2017, which was considered pricey for what it could do. (Image source: Google/Internet Archive)

Google Clips: Time for a relaunch?

CheckMag Google Clips wasn't a success, but with recent advancements, updated specs, and additional features, Google might want to bring this product back to the market.

Habeeb Onawole, 12 Feb 2024 16:10

The MSI Claw A1M will be the first gaming handheld may be at its best with a mid-tier Intel Core Ultra processor. (Image source: Notebookcheck Reviews on YouTube)

Forget the Ultra 7: MSI Claw will be best with the Core Ultra 5 135H

CheckMag MSI was right to go to Intel for the Claw A1M, but the Core Ultra 7 155H isn't the right move. The Core Ultra 5 135H has a trick up its sleeve — a top-end iGPU combined with a more efficient mid-range CPU.

Julian van der Merwe, 09 Feb 2024 22:56

TLOU Part 1: Joel standing in Boston (Image Source: Sony)

The Last of Us 2 should not exist despite its near universal acclaim

CheckMag In a perfect world where hunger and poverty do not exist, Naughty Dog doesn’t end up making The Last of Us Part II. In this rather unperfect world where corporate greed exists, we as the consumer have to deal with the hot mess tha...

Daniel Murti, 29 Jan 2024 00:44

The design of the Nintendo Switch 2 console is still a mystery. (Image source: Nintendo/DallE 3 - edited)

Nintendo Switch 2: 8-inch LCD concerns show a lack of faith in the innovative Japanese company

CheckMag It has been widely reported that the Nintendo Switch 2 console will be arriving in 2024 sporting an 8-inch LCD panel. Despite this being unconfirmed information from an analyst, it still has many fans concerned about both the size...

Daniel R Deakin, 28 Jan 2024 19:07

However controversial this article might be, it probably pales in comparison to Jeff Fisher pronouncing "Ti" as "Tie" in yet another keynote. (Image: NVIDIA)

Nvidia's DLSS 3 was the biggest loser of CES 2024

CheckMag NVIDIA showed off a lot at their CES keynote back on the 8th of January. They showed off their Super series of GPUs. They showed off their renewed belief in saying "AI" a lot to boost their stock market performance. But they also ...

Matthew Lee, 23 Jan 2024 15:41

Pokemon Go seems as popular now as it did when it launched in 2016 (Source: PokemonGoLive)

Please! When will Pokemon Go die?

CheckMag A franchise whose opening marketing statement was “Gotta Catch Em All”, yet introduces new Pokemon characters every 3 years. How feasible is it to actually collect every single one? A game that spawned zombies on street corners fr...

David Devey, 21 Jan 2024 21:27

Pretty much everything these days requires a subscription. (Source: freestocks on Unsplash)

The next time you buy a computer with Windows 12 you could find yourself tied into a subscription

CheckMag There used to be a time when a single payment would get you full access to Windows for the lifetime of that version. However, in recent times hardware and software all seem to require a subscription. While there might be some legi...

David Devey, 20 Jan 2024 22:44

The MSI Claw is Intel's first Meteor Lake gaming handheld, and it shows some serious promise. (Image source: MSI - edited)

MSI Claw A1M: 4 epic features that turn the latest gaming handheld into a Steam Deck killer

CheckMag The Intel Core Ultra 7 CPU and its Arc iGPU in the MSI Claw A1M are set to break AMD's apparent monopoly on gaming handhelds, but hall-effect joysticks and a Thunderbolt 4 port are also strengths that cannot be ignored with this p...

Julian van der Merwe, 18 Jan 2024 22:04

Fujifilm's X100V is due for a refresh. Here's what we want to see from the next compact APS-C powerhouse. (Image source: Fujifilm - edited)

Fujifilm X100VI: 4 gamechanging updates we want to see in Fuji's next-gen digital rangefinder camera

CheckMag Fujiflm X100VI rumours are coming in hard and fast, with an expected release in early 2024. From IBIS to dual card slots and better video chops, here are all the killer features we naïvely hope Fujifilm will give us in the upcomin...

Julian van der Merwe, 16 Jan 2024 22:54

A highly portable satellite Internet dish sounds like a great idea - but is it, really? (Image source: Unsplash)

No Elon, portable Starlink dishes are a bad idea

CheckMag The portable Starlink dish is actually coming and the question of "why pay over half a grand for bizarrely low connection speeds" is the first to come to mind. With average 2023 cellular connection speeds close to 200 Mbit/s, will...

Sergey Tarasov, 16 Jan 2024 22:50

80 million monthly active users is a big number, but it's not the same as 80 million monthly paying customers. (Image source: Epic Games)

Epic Games Store's "untold success story" is anything but that

CheckMag Epic Games might have won its lawsuit against Google, but no amount of bullish claims in a victory lap can hide the fact that it still needs to get its own house in order to be taken seriously.

Matthew Lee, 04 Jan 2024 01:24

A more frugal "eighty" is on the cards. Or at least that's what historical data suggests (Image source: Notebookcheck/Unsplash - edited)

Desktop GeForce RTX 5080 very likely to have a ~275 W TBP: Why this matters

CheckMag The RTX 2080, the GTX 780, the GTX 580, the GTX 480 and the GTX 280 all sported a TBP of around 240 W, as the table below shows, while the GTX 1080, the GTX 980 and the GTX 680 were even humbler at under 200 W. With the RTX 3080 a...

Sergey Tarasov, 02 Jan 2024 21:06

Asterigos: Curse of the Stars takes players on a mythology-infused journey through a mysterious cursed city-state. (image source: Steam)

Killer quality: 5 of the best Steam Winter Sale indie game deals that ooze AAA aspirations

CheckMag Dig into the smashing beats of Metal: Hellsinger, soar through the skies in Solar Ash, or embrace your inner space scientist with Outer Wilds in five of the best 2023 Steam Winter Sale deals on indie games that defy expectations.

Julian van der Merwe, 30 Dec 2023 14:34

The Nintendo Switch is getting long in the tooth, but a flash cart could give it a new lease of life (Source: Amazon)

A Nintendo Switch flash cart could be the best thing to happen to the ageing console

CheckMag Rumours suggest that a Nintendo Switch flash cart may be coming for Nintendo`s handheld console. Nintendo will probably try very hard to shut this down, but this might be just what the console needs to extend its shelf life.

David Devey, 27 Dec 2023 20:15

Aurora finally made its debut this summer, around half a decade - two Nvidia graphics generations, or six Call of Duty releases - behind schedule. (Image: Argonne National Laboratory)

Intel's defeat by AMD at Supercomputing 2023 was bigger than half a million Ryzen 9s – literally

CheckMag Gaming frames may get all the hype and excitement on the internet, but when the enterprise world has orders of magnitude more money to throw around, the world of interconnects and accelerators is far more important.

Matthew Lee, 08 Dec 2023 22:53

Tesla's Cybertruck is surely an impressive vehicle, but repeated production delays take the punch out of many of its technological achievements. (Image source: Tesla)

Tesla Cybertruck: 4 supposedly revolutionary features that other EVs did first and better

The Tesla Cybertruck Delivery Event finally happened, and Tesla CEO, Elon Musk, claims it is the company's most revolutionary product yet. Needless to say, it was a mix of frustration and elation for pre-order holders. Unfortunate...

Julian van der Merwe, 06 Dec 2023 19:15

Being hit with a Cybertruck probably feels like being headbutted by this guy. (Source: Photo by Robert Linder on Unsplash)

The Cybertruck is for drug dealers and real life Carmageddon enthusiasts

CheckMag With the Cybertruck finally landing in consumers hands, the question remains as to who this product is aimed at. Does the Cybertruck have a place in the modern world or is it the fantasy of those who seek to dominate our crowded r...

David Devey, 05 Dec 2023 20:21

Once you make a great game, a question arises - can you make an even great one? (Image source: Rockstar)

Those excited about GTA VI had better keep their expectations in check

CheckMag Despite finer-looking graphics, games released in 2023 aren't in any meaningful way better than what we played 20 years ago. Shoot random people, steal cars, blow things up - is Grand Theft Auto VI really going to be breaking any ...

Sergey Tarasov, 02 Dec 2023 16:28

Microsoft Bluetooth Mouse long-term review: Smart electronics, poor haptics

CheckMag The Microsoft Bluetooth Mouse can do things that most mice can't while looking just as exquisite as similar-priced competitors. It is also a bit too large for small to medium size hands, and the clicks sound loud and "dry" to the ...

Sergey Tarasov, 25 Nov 2023 22:29

Even before the rumoured Apple Car turns up, Apple and the EV industry share a number of worrying similarities (Image Source: Vanarama)

3 unfortunate similarities between Apple and the electric car industry

CheckMag Even before rumours started circulating about Apple creating its own electric vehicle, some of Apple's business practices shared a lot in common with electric vehicle manufacturers. While not uncommon in the tech industry, they se...

David Devey, 17 Nov 2023 19:16

Oversized EVs defeat the object of electrification, and their ranks are growing. (Image source: Tesla - edited)

Tesla's Cybertruck is just another bloated EV that misses the point of green transportation

CheckMag Electric cars were conceived as a more environmentally-friendly form of transport. With the effectiveness of EVs being called into question more and more, it's time to address the elephant-sized trucks and SUVs in the room. Super-...

Julian van der Merwe, 15 Nov 2023 16:48

Why Windows on ARM is far from dead

CheckMag Some people compare Windows on ARM with Windows RT, declaring its death. But such proclamations may be a tad early. Arguably, Windows on ARM is more alive now than it has ever been since the 2016 Qualcomm/Microsoft partnership ann...

Benjamin Herzig, 14 Nov 2023 19:33

This isn't the first time Microsoft has tried its luck with ARM chips (Image source: Unsplash/Microsoft/ARM - edited)

Windows on ARM is certainly more dead than it is alive

CheckMag Of the 10 ARM-powered laptops we tested in 2022 and 2023, just 1 comes with Windows on ARM - all the rest are Apple MacBooks. Apparently, laptop makers do not see much point in using ARM chips; worse still, software developers do ...

Sergey Tarasov, 13 Nov 2023 19:41

With cellular connection, the customer has no way of influencing the speeds that he or she is getting. (Image source: Unsplash)

It's time to stop taking multi-gigabit cellular modems seriously

CheckMag When getting a laptop with a Gig+ Wi-Fi card such as the AX200, consumers know they are getting at least 900 Mbps in either direction. In contrast, download/upload rates smartphone chip makers such as Qualcomm mention in media rel...

Sergey Tarasov, 30 Oct 2023 03:07

The iPhone camera may not be exactly as it seems (Image source: Apple - edited)

Apple needs to be more honest about the iPhone camera specification

CheckMag Does measuring features differently to the competition make a product better? Is Apple "Thinking Different" or hoping branding will sell more devices? There certainly seems to be some convenient favouritism shown by Apple in regar...

David Devey, 23 Oct 2023 20:07

Final Fantasy XIV is one of the biggest games still sticking to the subscription model, even 10 years in. (Image source: Square Enix)

Bringing back subscription games could be the answer to greedy microtransactions

CheckMag So, another game comes out. It’s packed with battle passes, a cosmetic store, and an intolerable grind carefully designed to inflate playtime until you give up and spend money on it. It’s not made to be fun, it’s made to drive eng...

Matthew Lee, 12 Oct 2023 18:26

The titanium credit card might even get discontinued (Image source: Unsplash - edited)

Apple Card is slowly fading into oblivion

CheckMag The titanium credit card Apple launched in 2019 was set to conquer the world, according to easy-to-excite types. The hype was so abundant that Samsung followed suit shortly out of fear of missing out. It's Q4 2023 and Apple Card's...

Sergey Tarasov, 02 Oct 2023 04:12

Steam Deck fans need to cool their jets on a next-gen model, lest they be rewarded with disappointment. (Image source: Valve)

Steam Deck 2 delay was right choice for Valve as mid-generation refresh would fare better

Valve won't be releasing a Steam Deck 2 with more performance until at least 2025. Given the broadly parallel smartphone market's reputation for disappointing incremental updates, this is the right choice. Valve should, however, t...

Julian van der Merwe, 30 Sep 2023 17:23

Nintendo's upcoming Switch 2 may not feature the ground-breaking graphics capabilities we had hoped for. (Image source: Nvidia/Nintendo - edited)

No way the Nintendo Switch 2 will be a Steam Deck killer - despite alleged PS4-like prowess

Recent Nintendo Switch 2 leaks have led to much speculation about specifications. The apparent suggestion is that Nintendo's next-generation hybrid handheld console would match the PS4 in performance, but lofty performance doesn't...

Julian van der Merwe, 23 Sep 2023 17:42

The Steam Deck was launched in 2022. (Image source: Petar Vukobrat on Unsplash)

Supposed Steam Deck killers are missing the point

There are plenty of supposed Steam Deck killers available in the portable gaming space, from the Asus ROG Ally to the Lenovo Legion Go and all the Ayaneo and ONEXPLAYER devices in between. But none of them have managed to outright...

Matthew Lee, 11 Sep 2023 23:36

Will Apple silicon laptops be useable past the day Apple stops supporting them? (Image source: Notebookcheck/Unsplash - edited)

Apple silicon-based Macs and MacBooks are set to age faster than any Mac in recent history

Apple tends to support its products for six or seven years. For the Apple silicon-based MacBook Air and Mac mini released in H2 2020, this means that almost half of their useful life is now behind them, and with no Windows compati...

Sergey Tarasov, 17 Jul 2023 19:18

Microsoft is being way too agressive in trying to push its browser to the top (Image source: Microsoft/Unsplash - edited)

Microsoft Edge is getting out of control and this needs to stop

BodyCheck Microsoft just keeps adding new features to Edge, the default browser of Windows. Most of these are not only useless, they also hamper productive workflow by throwing the user into a bottomless pit filled with unwanted pop-ups, re...

Sergey Tarasov, 25 Jun 2023 18:40

There are cases where the cheaper material is the right material. (Image source: Asus)

Ditch the glass: It's time to bring back less-fragile plastic smartphones

There was once a time when smartphone design featured a healthy amount of diversity, but those days are long gone. Smartphone manufacturers have somehow convinced the average consumer that glass — one of the most fragile materials...

Julian van der Merwe, 21 Jun 2023 19:41

The PlayStation Showcase showcased some seriously disappointing hardware (image via Sony)

The PlayStation Showcase's hardware announcements were bad and Sony should feel bad

Sony's PlayStation Showcase was host to quite a few surprises. Metal Gear Solid being resurrected was nice, as was Alan Wake 2 and Dragon's Dogma 2. Unfortunately, Project Q and the PlayStation Earbuds weren't one of them.

Anil Ganti, 26 May 2023 17:17

Opinion: It’s 2023, so shouldn’t mobile computing be better than this?

Having spent the past few weeks trying to find a new laptop, I have made a few observations about the landscape of mobile computing in 2023. Am I just a crazy old man yelling at clouds? You be the judge.

Douglas Black, 11 May 2023 01:13

Tesla has thusfar led the EV charge, but wider adoption by legacy manufacturers is the key to mass adoption. (Image source: Tesla)

Electric vehicles for everyone: 3 reasons why EVs make sense more than ever in 2023

Electric vehicles have clearly boomed in popularity in the past few years, with many new companies and most established marques fighting to get a slice of the pie. With the market maturing, it seems more and more like EVs are the ...

Julian van der Merwe, 25 Apr 2023 18:34

The new M2 MacBook Pro 14 & 16 are here, but you should probably get the cheaper M1 predecessor

Apple launched the new MacBook Pro line-up with M2 Pro and M2 Max, but we only got a short introduction video instead of a launch event. In addition to new processors, you get Wi-Fi 6E, TB4 and HDMI 2.1, but also higher prices in ...

Andreas Osthoff, 22 Jan 2023 00:25

Xiaomi Mi A1, broken but still alive thanks to multiple custom Android 13 ROMs (Source: Own)

The five-year-old Xiaomi Mi A1 is still alive thanks to multiple Android 13 ROMs

Released in September 2017, the Xiaomi Mi A1 is now half a decade old and one of the few Android 7 handsets that can run Android 13. Official software support for it stopped at Android One, but this Qualcomm Snapdragon 625-powered...

Codrut Nistor, 20 Nov 2022 16:56

MIUI 13.0.6 on Xiaomi Mi 10T Pro details (Source: Own)

MIUI 13.0.6 Global Stable brings the April 2022 security patch to Xiaomi Mi 10T Pro users

Although it is already June and the May security patch has been around for a while, the MIUI 13.0.6 Global Stable software update for the Xiaomi Mi 10T Pro only includes the April security patch. As its description shows, this 262...

Column by Codrut Nistor, 03 Jun 2022 14:10

Android 12-based MIUI 13.0.2 now available for Xiaomi Mi 10T Pro (Source: Own)

MIUI 13 finally hits the Xiaomi Mi 10T Pro, but it's far from perfect

After a long wait, Android 12 arrived on the Xiaomi Mi 10T Pro in Europe (and other regions, since the update is a global one) as MIUI 13.0.2. The update package has 3.3 GB in size and includes quite a few changes and fixes, but a...

Column by Codrut Nistor, 10 Apr 2022 18:48

Is this the iPhone 8, iPhone SE 2020, or iPhone SE 3? It's hard to tell. (Image via Apple)

Opinion: The new iPhone SE is a smartphone solution in search of a problem

With Apple's unveiling of the long-rumored iPhone SE 3, the iOS world has a new budget option. While it may look like a decent value on paper, the new iPhone SE has far too many trade-offs and compromises for its US $429 price tag...

Column by Sam Medley, 09 Mar 2022 00:44

Telegram has been targeted by censorship for a while now (Source: MUO)

Telegram could be banned all over the European Union

Pointing out the undeniable fact that it is being used extensively by extremist groups, Germany aims to shut down Telegram across the country, and even across the entire European Union. In addition to death threats against officia...

Column by Codrut Nistor, 14 Jan 2022 16:38