HDMI 2.2 has been officially launched by the HDMI Forum, the organisation responsible for certifying and developing HDMI specifications. Notably, HDMI 2.2 supports up to 16K resolution, way more pixels than any of us will see in our living rooms for some years.
I’d like to see more TVs support HDMI 2.1 across all ports before we get too carried away, but this latest development is looking further ahead into the future than the right here and now. Per the HDMI Forum’s announcement, the latest specification supports 16K resolution at 60Hz, and up to 12K resolution at 120Hz.
See that tiny 4K rectangle? That’s likely what your TV displays. Image: HDMI Forum.
Considering 8K TVs are still fairly uncommon, it’ll be a while until the masses see the full benefits. Arguably, the most important part coinciding with the announcement is clearer labelling for HDMI cables. The cable that supports HDMI 2.2’s full 96Gbps bandwidth will be called “Ultra96”, along with a label that clearly communicates its capabilities.
It’s not just future displays that are set to benefit from the new specification. 8K and 4K displays that support HDMI 2.2 will be able to handle uncompressed video in 10-bit and 12-bit colour; 8K at 60Hz, and 4K at 240Hz, to be precise.
Once the new standard rolls out, it should be easy to find a compatible cable. Image: HDMI Forum.
Another benefit comes in the form of the Latency Indication Protocol (LIP). It’s meant to improve syncing between audio and video, particularly if you use a TV and soundbar.
Don’t expect a bunch of HDMI 2.2 devices and cables to flood shelves just yet. The launch of the specification means that companies can now work on officially certified technology. The HDMI 2.1 standard launched in 2017, and there are still plenty of devices that don’t support it today.
In other words, don’t feel the need to immediately rush out and update your home entertainment setup anytime soon.
Shokz is out with two new sets of open-ear headphones, the OpenFit 2+ and the OpenDots One, including a pair of funky-looking buds with a clip-on design.
Of the two, the quirkily-named OpenDots One are the clip-on buds in question. They retain a similar open-ear ethos, albeit with a different way of attaching to your ears. According to Shokz, the OpenDots’ design is intended to fit any ear shape or size, unlike many in-ear buds. At 6.5 grams per bud, they hopefully shouldn’t weigh your ears down either.
Each earbud is interchangeable, too. It doesn’t matter which ear they go in, as the buds automatically recognise which side they’re on. No more fumbling around in the early morning darkness, trying to figure out which earbud is which, before setting off for a run.
The OpenDots One headphones work in either ear interchangeably. Image: Shokz.
In Australia, the Shokz OpenDots One go for $339 via the brand’s website on 3 July. These buds last up to 10 hours of listening time, which extends to 40 hours when paired with the included wireless charging case.
From an audio perspective, the OpenDots sport two 11.8mm drivers, intended to produce a decent sound mix. Dolby Audio is also supported; just don’t expect noise cancellation from a set of open-ear headphones.
OpenFit 2+ is a sequel to the open-ear staple
Also priced at $339 are the OpenFit 2+ headphones, a new-and-improved version of a model that didn’t originally launch in Australia. In essence, it succeeds the original OpenFit, a set of open-ear buds we rated highly in 2023. It’s a more conventionally designed set of open-ear headphones that wrap around the ear instead of clipping on.
The OpenFit 2+ has a more familiar-looking open-ear design. Image: Shokz.
Its biggest improvement is the inclusion of two audio drivers, up from the original’s one. One driver focuses on deep bass frequencies, while the other produces clear higher frequencies. Shokz says that there’s less sound leakage, which is a challenge for the open-ear design.
The OpenFit 2+ gets up to 11 hours of audio playback on a single charge, reaching 48 hours with its charging case. It also has an IP55 rating, meaning the buds stand up to sweat and light rain.
Seemingly out of nowhere, Nintendo announced that Drag X Drive, an upcoming Switch 2 exclusive, is going to release on 14 August. At the same time, Nintendo confirmed the game will cost $30 locally. All of this came from a sudden reveal via the Nintendo Today app, followed by a blink-and-you’ll-miss-it trailer on YouTube.
Based on what I played at a preview event, $30 seems like the sweet spot for Drag X Drive. It takes the form of a 3-vs-3 wheelchair basketball game, replete with skate ramps from which to launch sick tricks and dunks on anyone bold enough to get in the way. I had a great time playing it (poorly), but Drag X Drive relies heavily on multiplayer, and it’s not one I can foresee playing for long periods.
The biggest differentiator here is that the game serves as an example of the Nintendo Switch 2’s mouse controls. With a Joy-Con in each hand, you mimic a wheel-pulling action on a surface, like a desk or your lap. Impressively, it feels like a reasonable approximation of using a wheelchair, although my dainty little arms and shoulders quickly fatigued after a brief session.
I liked what I played pre-release, but I’m not 100% sold on the game’s longevity. Will it contain enough depth to play again and again? I’m not sure. I think there’s enough of a skill ceiling that dedicated players will reach and make fools of us all, posting outrageous trick-shot compilations online.
Based on the price, Nintendo seems to acknowledge it needs to get people through the door for the best Drag X Drive experience. Multiplayer games live and die by the number of willing participants.
Once 14 August rolls around, we’ll know for sure if the $30 price tag hits nothing but net.
When I recently reviewed a security camera from Ring, a brand owned by Amazon, I was impressed by how easy it was to set up. My brother-in-law, who always gets my help with tech stuff, then tells me he just set up an Eero Wi-Fi router, and it was easy. When Amazon’s Eero Pro 7 became available, I had to test it for myself to see if it was as simple to use as all the other devices.
Over the years, the Wi-Fi standard has evolved with new versions becoming available every few years, offering improvements that surpass those of previous versions. Each new version has always been backward compatible. In other words, any phone, PC, or other internet-connected gadget still works, even if it doesn’t have the latest Wi-Fi standard.
At the moment, the latest standard is Wi-Fi 7. To make the most of a Wi-Fi 7 router, you need devices that support Wi-Fi 7. Only the latest phones and PCs support this, so think of it as future-proofing yourself for your next purchases.
Image: Angus Jones.
Wi-Fi 7 can deliver transfer speeds far beyond what is available through an NBN connection. Its main advantages are its ability to reduce latency (good for gamers and virtual reality) and improve the reliability of the connection, which ultimately improves Wi-Fi coverage. Wi-Fi 7 also supports more devices at the same time. That’s a handy one because, let’s face it, every year we introduce more connected devices into our homes.
Eero Pro 7 features
While using Wi-Fi 7 technology, the Eero Pro 7 functions as a tri-band mesh router that supports up to 560m² coverage when set up as a three-unit system. When connected via Ethernet, an Eero Pro 7 unit supports speeds of up to 4.7Gbps, while reaching 3.9Gbps via wireless.
The Eero is available in either a single pack (up to 190m²) or a three-pack (up to 560m²), suiting anything from a unit to a large house. Any one of the three-pack hubs can be connected to your home’s NBN connection box, which makes installation simpler.
Image: Angus Jones.
In the box, you will find your router mesh hubs and power supplies, as well as an Ethernet cable. The mesh hubs are identical and have a glossy plastic finish without any protruding antennas. Unless you have a dark-themed house, they don’t look out of place. To work correctly, no router should be hidden away in a cupboard if you don’t want to affect its performance.
Tri-band refers to 2.4GHz (slower speed, longer range), 5GHz, and 6GHz (fastest speed, shortest range) radio frequencies. The 7 Pro enables the combining of channels to give you the best result. Put simply, the latest technology works really well, and the kids are less likely to complain.
The router has only two Ethernet ports, both 5Gbps, and either can be connected to your NBN modem. Some brands force you to use a specific port, complicating the setup process.
Once upon a time, I would have recommended Ethernet for the best connection. Now, assuming you have coverage, Wi-Fi is so good. Almost every device uses Wi-Fi, meaning Ethernet cables are all but obsolete except for a select few devices. If you do need more ports, you can usually find a five-port 1Gbps switch for around $30 online.
The Pro 7 is also a Matter, Thread and Zigbee smart home hub, meaning that your mesh hubs double as extra connection points for controlling internet-connected devices, such as lights and speakers.
Alexa smart home connected devices. Image: Amazon.
Each mesh hub supports up to 200 connected devices, which increases to upwards of 600 devices with three hubs.
The Eero seems to be all about how the average user operates a router, making usage simple and excluding features that most people don’t need. One such exclusion is a USB port; many routers let you directly plug in storage drives to operate as a home media server.
Most routers come with parental controls to limit children’s internet usage. If you want this feature (something many Australians don’t use), you will need to pay $160 per year for Eero+. For this subscription, you also receive VIP support, a VPN, enhanced security to block threats, the ability to use your smartphone’s data in the event of an NBN outage, ad blocking, and a range of additional analytics tools.
Eero Pro 7 specifications and price
Wireless
Wi-Fi 7
2.4GHz, 5GHz, and 6GHz network bands
Coverage
Covers up to 190 square metres (single unit)
Up to 560 square metres (three units)
Dimensions
18 x 15 x 8 cm
154g
Networking
Wired: Up to 4.7Gbps
Wireless: Up to 3.9Gbps
Two 5Gbps Ethernet ports
One USB-C port (power supply)
The setup of the Pro 7 is impressive. Amazon has done its homework and made networking simple to get started, which, for most people, is some form of black magic.
Setup is done exclusively through the Eero smartphone app, which once installed and an Amazon password added, will automatically find your hub connected to your NBN modem by the supplied Ethernet cable.
The next step is clever and one I have never seen before. It asks you to name your Wi-Fi network and enter a password. Every other brand’s router I’ve used has a preset name that you can change. By forcing you to set up your Wi-Fi name, it allows you to enter your old Wi-Fi name and password, meaning all your existing connected devices automatically connect to your Pro 7.
Screenshot: Angus Jones.
Adding additional hubs is as easy as turning them on, but the Eero app also gives you some handy hints, as well as testing the placement of the hub. That’s it; your devices are connected to the internet, and like most people, you will never touch it again until it fails or technology advancements demand its replacement.
Screenshots: Angus Jones.
If you do wish to touch it, you can set up a guest network to prevent visitors from accessing your printer or shared drives. Through the app, you can also test network speed, check on connected devices and see data usage.
The Eero has one small LED light that can be turned off, but in normal operation, it will glow white when everything is okay and red when there is no internet access.
Wireless backhaul between the mesh hubs is significantly faster than traditional methods, resulting in far better reliability of connections for devices further away from the hub connected to the NBN modem. The speed of data transfer is also better at the extremes of the range than in previous models. Note speeds on any router will reduce the further you are away from a mesh hub.
Each Pro 7 hub has internal antennas positioned to maximise coverage, including sending a signal across multi-storey houses. The Pro 7 hub can also be used with older Eero mesh systems to expand existing networks.
To be honest, the Eero Pro 7 is overkill in my house as we survive very happily using a 50Mbps NBN plan. To really start to take advantage of this router, you need the highest available 1Gbps NBN connection (NBN will soon support up to 2Gbps). In summary, the geek in me wants it not because of customisation but rather its simplicity and performance, but I could save some money by purchasing a lower-end model.
Who is the Eero Pro 7 for?
If you want a simple setup with amazing performance, then Amazon’s Eero Pro 7 is a best-in-class router. If you want to be able to tinker with the settings, then this router is limited, and you will need to pay more for the Eero+ extra features.
To get the most out of this router, you will need an NBN plan of 1Gbps, which will cost around $1,500 per year. Therefore, paying $1,200 for a fully fledged mesh system to maximise that speed is likely within power users’ budgets.
Now, having set up an Eero mesh router, I can see how my so untechnical brother-in-law managed to do it, and I look forward to taking advantage of more Wi-Fi 7-supported devices as they become available.
GadgetGuy occasionally uses affiliate links and may receive a small commission from purchased products.
Amazon Eero 7 Plus Wi-Fi Mesh Router
Easy and fast; there's no better way to describe the Eero Pro 7 mesh Wi-Fi router system. It's the ideal set-and-forget networking device.
Features
7
Value for money
7
Performance
8
Ease of Use
10
Design
9
Positives
Super easy to set up
Great use of technology to improve Wi-Fi experience
There is a trend among The Youth and new parents: a move away from just using their phones to take photos, and embracing cameras that they feel allow them to stay in the moment more. I’ve spent the last year with a Canon EOS R50 to take photos of my daughter, and the last month with the brand new Polaroid Flip.
The two cameras offer vastly different experiences, but both offer the benefit that once you’ve taken the photo you want, there’s no screen to get lost in. You can’t just immediately upload it and then accidentally get distracted by a social media scroll. It also makes it easier to have phone-free days without fearing you’ll miss being able to take a video of baby’s first steps, or photographing a friend in the perfect light.
At the fanciest end of the range in this story is the Canon EOS R50. It’s a mirrorless camera with interchangeable lenses that allows people to go deep with exactly how they want their photos to look. But it also allows sleep-deprived novices to take the best photos of their life with almost no effort. You point, shoot, and then marvel at how the scene somehow looks better in the photo than in real life, as though it’s somehow also capturing the emotional magic around it.
Canon’s EOS R50 gives you more control over your photography. Image: Alice Clarke.
It’s easy to transfer the photos from the camera to your phone or a computer, so you can print them and put them in an album. I’ve been using the Canon PIXMA TS9560 home printer when I want the shots to look amazing in any size, and then heading to the Kmart Kodak photo printer area when I’m feeling lazy.
There are photos I’ve captured with the Canon EOS R50 that I’m confident I would never have been able to get with my phone. While it’s true that the best camera is the one you have with you, phone camera sensors can only be so large, and the lenses can only be so fancy without increasing phone size. It’s so easy to see which photos of my daughter were taken on the Canon, and which were taken with my iPhone 16 Pro Max. The quality difference is huge.
Taken using the Canon EOS R50. Image: Alice Clarke.
At $998 for just the camera and a lens, you’d want it to be pretty great, and that’s a lot of money for someone who isn’t a seasoned photographer to spend. But having seen the photos, and gotten to stay in those moments without a phone getting in the way, I’d say it’s worth every penny for people who take photography (or the subjects of their photography) seriously, even if they’re not really good at it yet.
(Don’t) shake it like a Polaroid picture
On the other end of the scale is the Polaroid Flip. This is not a camera you buy because you want to take the most incredible shots of your life. This is the camera you buy because you like the iconic Polaroid aesthetic, both in the camera and the photos taken.
The instant printouts make it fun to have at a party, and easy to stick in a scrapbook or album without fussing with a printer. I have friends who take photos of their baby with a Polaroid camera most days so they can paste the photo in their diary to help them remember, and create beautiful keepsakes. I love this idea so much.
The Polaroid Flip helps you live in the moment. Image: Alice Clarke.
Plus, remember back in the 90s and early 2000s when we had cork boards with heaps of Polaroids of our friends up in our rooms? It was such a cool tradition.
There’s also something extra special about the experience of taking a Polaroid photo. It’s like a ritual. The physical experience is part of what makes it feel like an occasion rather than just another thumbnail in a digital camera roll you’ll never look at again. Though, of course, you should ignore Andrew 3000 and not shake the Polaroid pictures, merely put them somewhere dark for a while as they develop.
However, the thing that stops me from going all-in on the Polaroid Flip is just how expensive the photo paper is.
I can move past the fact that every photo I’ve taken has been overexposed and generally hasn’t looked amazing. That’s the aesthetic; it’s like complaining that an album on vinyl sounds too warm.
Image: Alice Clarke.
But 16 photos cost $62.95 at full price. That’s almost $4 a photo that you don’t know if it’ll be good. You can buy a 27-photo disposable camera for $28 and then get the photos scanned and printed for $32. The i-Type film gets more affordable if you buy in bulk, with 40 packs going on special for $103.20 (usually $129). But that’s still a commitment after you’ve already shelled out $399 for the Polaroid Flip camera (no film included).
It’s not a dealbreaker, as it still has its place. But it makes the Polaroid Flip more of a special occasion camera, rather than an everyday device.
My foray back into traditional cameras has been a successful one. I still take most photos on my phone, because I’m lazy, and it’s what I have in my pocket. But when I print them, and when I look back, I think it will be the photos I’ve taken on the standalone cameras that I treasure the most. They look better, and the memories around the moment are less blurry because of the lack of screen.
While discussion around Australia’s youth social media ban simmers, there’s another digital issue plaguing parents across the country. Although many are aware of parental controls designed to keep children safe online, more than half of parents don’t use them.
That’s according to new research commissioned by Snapchat, a social media app with a predominantly young user base. In a survey of more than a thousand Australian parents, 82% reported being aware of parental controls across various apps and online platforms. However, 57% of parents don’t use them. While there’s slightly more uptake for device-specific parental controls, it appears that the tools available via apps and online aren’t used as much.
This is despite Snapchat’s research finding that when parents use such online safety tools, they overwhelmingly find them helpful. More than 90% of respondents said parental controls help keep their families safer online, and recommend that other families use the tools too.
“While awareness of parental controls is growing, too many Australian parents still aren’t utilising the options available to them as they grapple with parenting in a digital world that many didn’t experience when they themselves were growing up,” said Susan McLean, a cyber safety expert who previously worked for Victoria Police.
Looking closer at parental controls
When the federal government first floated an underage social media ban, experts argued that education was a better solution. Parental controls are a set of tools embedded in apps, online platforms, and gaming ecosystems that let families set screen limits, restrict access to harmful content, and monitor general use.
McLean stressed that while features like parental controls are valuable, they’re best used as a holistic approach to online safety.
“[Parental controls] are not the only measure, but alongside speaking with your family regularly about how to stay safe online, setting up accounts and devices together and establishing clear rules about the use of technology, parental tools should be a vital part of any family’s online safety strategy.”
Another twist has been added to Australia’s contentious youth social media ban, after the eSafety Commissioner called for YouTube to be included alongside other social media apps.
YouTube was previously considered exempt when the federal government’s proposal passed the upper house last year. At the time, the video-sharing platform was considered exempt in part due to its use in education. Other platforms, including Facebook, Instagram, and TikTok, would be subject to the federal government’s legislation preventing children under the age of 16 from accessing social media sites.
Now, Julie Inman Grant, Australia’s eSafety Commissioner, contends that YouTube is one of the most harmful social media platforms. ABC News quoted Inman Grant as saying that YouTube is “the most prevalent social media site” children use.
“And when we asked where they were experiencing harm and the kinds of harms they were experiencing, the most prevalent place where young Australians experienced harm was on YouTube — almost 37 per cent,” Inman Grant said.
“This ranges from misogynistic content to hateful material, to violent fighting videos, online challenges, disordered eating, suicidal ideation.”
As a result, the eSafety Commissioner has advised the current communications minister, Anika Wells, that YouTube should be considered part of the social media ban. On the original exemption for YouTube, Inman Grant said that “providing a specific carve out” would “be inconsistent with the purpose of the Act.”
The eSafety Commissioner also requested more clarity over Australia’s youth social media ban, which is set to begin by December 2025. Some platforms are considered exempt because they provide messaging services or access to online gaming.
and new parents: a move away from just using their phones to take photos, and embracing cameras that they feel allow them to stay in the moment more. I’ve spent the last year with a 
