Author Archives: Vincent Nguyen

It's been a long time, in tech industry terms, since Google announced its second-generation Pixel Buds, and it's fair to say that the truly wireless earbud category has moved on considerably in the meantime. In all honesty, I expected to be blown away by Google's promised sound quality, comfort, and features for the Pixel Buds' $179 price tag. So at the end of the day, are they worth your hard-earned money? Let's find out.

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I'm cutting straight to the chase to flat out tell you that Nura's new NuraLoop earbuds are hands down the wireless earbuds I think you can buy right now. Superb sound quality across every type of music genre, long-lasting battery life on a single charge - making them ideal for long international flights, when we can take them again - and chock full of features to enhance your daily life. From the sound of it, you's be forgiven for thinking that the NuraLoop is the best thing since sliced bread.

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It’s been several days and a whole lot of typing since Apple's Magic Keyboard for iPad Pro landed on my doorstep, and I’m already thinking about version 2. How can Apple make a great keyboard and trackpad even greater? Well, short of buying Brydge and building in the advantages of its Pro+ keyboard, I'd say there are five main things Apple could improve on. Here's what I'm hoping Apple changes for the next Magic Keyboard.

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It’s safe to say that I’ve waited 10 years for a proper iPad keyboard accessory from Apple. Was the wait for the Magic Keyboard for the iPad Pro worth it? Absolutely. It's probably better to be late to the game but have a solid product, than to deliver something that’s mediocre - I’m looking at you, Folio Keyboard - though I can't help but wish it hadn't quite taken a whole decade to arrive.

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Happy harmony is the new iPad Pro and Brydge's Pro+ keyboard, arguably the purest and best accessory out there for Apple's laptop-replacing tablet. If you want the simplest form of a keyboard attachment for the iPad Pro, I recommend skipping the review and heading straight to Apple.com to purchase the Magic Keyboard. If, however, you’re looking for the best typing experience available that happens to have an integrated trackpad and looks damn sleek, then keep reading my review of the Brydge Pro+. I promise it’ll be worth your time.

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The iPad is in many ways like the electric cars of the automotive world. Range anxiety is one of the biggest concerns for many EV buyers, which is why there are still so many gasoline engine cars on the road. Much the same, in laptops versus tablets, the biggest question is whether an iPad can do "enough" to replace a regular laptop. For would-be buyers of the 2020 iPad Pro, the most important question is likely whether it’ll tick all - or at least most - of the boxes to supplant a traditional laptop. While I can't make that buying decision for you, I’d like to lay out what’s new with the 2020 iPad Pro, why it's now the only "computer" I need with me on the road, and why the obsession with "replacement" may now miss the point.

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The 2020 World Car Awards had its share of challenges this year due to the coronavirus, but that hasn't stopped the winners being announced this week. Things kicked off last year at the 2019 Frankfurt Motor Show, where the candidates were presented to the public. Next, test drives took place before the Los Angeles Auto Show back in November. That’s when the real fun began, as each juror got the chance to drive all the nominated vehicles. It was also the place where we started casting our votes.

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There are a lot of factors to consider when your ultimate packing goal is to only travel with one bag. Do you opt for one with wheels, go fashionably hand-carried, or pick a backpack? Over the years I've developed a preference for the latter, and lucky for me there has been a big surge of backpacks over the past couple of years. The options range from startups through to the likes of Tumi, Nomatic, Wandrd, and Boundary Supply, and you'd be forgiven for finding it all overwhelming.

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Mercedes-AMG and Cigarette Racing have a long history of creating high-performance racing boats, but few are as striking as this year’s Miami International Boat Show specials: the 59’ Tirranna AMG Edition, and its one-off Mercedes-AMG G 63 Cigarette Edition SUV cousin. From that point, I didn’t know where to look first: should I feast my eyes on Mercedes-AMG’s newest racing boat, or should I ogle at the newest G 63? Since the new 59’ Tirranna AMG Edition was still out on the first run giving journalists a test ride, I spent some time with the Mercedes-AMG G 63 first.

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The Jaguar F-Type lives in a competitively niche market. Flanked by the Porsche 911 and BMW 8-Series, the F-Type is dedicated to purists, much in the same manner that a Mazda Miata MX-5 aims to thrill the enthusiast's senses. When the F-Type first launched in 2013, it instantly gained recognition as the evolution of the luscious E-Type from the 1960s. Those teardrop-shaped headlights, the classic sportscar proportions of bulbous rump and long hood... oh, and it behaved like a proper Jag as well. Gutsy engines, a standard manual gearbox, rear-wheel drive, and that iconic silhouette. When you're taking inspiration from the past, choosing a car so gorgeous that old man Ferrari thought it to be the most beautiful machine with four wheels isn't a bad place to begin.

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Once in a while, one company stumbles onto a new technology that pulls the rug out from under their industry - and sparks plenty of competitors trying to do the same. For Nura, that innovation centered on how it could create truly personalized hearing profiles simply by having people sit through a series of beeps and boops while wearing their headphones. Headphones offering personalized audio has since then popped up left and right, pushing the company to step up its game. That next level comes in the form of the NuraLoop, a pair of around the neck earbuds that brings Nura's technology to a more discreet and more personal wearable device.

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In many ways, Mercedes-Benz's new VISION AVTR concept car is everything we've come to expect from automakers at CES 2020: exaggerated style wrapped in an ambitious message, in this particular case James Cameron’s epic “Avatar” movie. Certainly, the VISION AVTR - which stands for Advanced Vehicle Transformation - is full of gloriously hi-tech details that Mercedes says embody the next chapter of sustainable luxury. Think ecologically-sound mobility mixed with awe-inspiring, futuristic design that tries to highlight the interaction between humans and machines. It's a tall order, but then again the VISION AVTR is a big car.

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