DID Electrical Appliances, Lifestyle Sports (Ireland) and Rath-Wood Home & Garden, pled guilty to breaking sales pricing legislation in Dublin District Court today. Prosecutions were brought by the Competition and Consumer Protection Commission (CCPC) against Lifestyle Sports, DID Electrical, and Rath-Wood following sweeps of the companies’ websites during the 2023-2024 winter sales season, including Black Friday.
These are the first prosecutions in the country under new legislation first introduced back in 2022. The new laws means retailers can only show discounts based on the lowest price for a product in the past 30 days. All of this means it’s very likely that more retailers will be handed similar prosecutions as it’s far from just this three not following the rules.
And rightly so. CCPC Chair Brian McHugh says “misleading sale discounts harm consumers and harm competition. It is vital that traders are transparent with consumers, displaying prices clearly and accurately. Businesses must be able to compete openly and honestly, and consumers must be able to shop with confidence”.
As a result of the today’s findings, the three retailers were ordered to €1,000 to Little Flower Penny Dinners and the varying legal costs of the CCPC.
The CCPC continues to encourage customers who spot misleading sales information to report it. Complaints are a valuable source of information to the CCPC as they help identify sectors where consumers may be at risk. Both consumers and retailers themselves should notify the CCPC of fake discounts on using the reporting form on ccpc.ie, by contacting the CCPC helpline on 01 402 5555 (Monday to Friday, 9am to 6pm) or by emailing ask@ccpc.ie.
Over the past year I’ve been reporting what I deemed to be, for want of a better phrase, inappropriate content in the comment sections of TikTok. From numerous reports, I could remember at most two which were acted upon. In late December, I started systematically tracking the content I reported, all of which were initially deemed by TikTok’s moderation processes to be permissible under the platform’s community guidelines.
Disclaimer: From here on in, some content you see may be offensive. There is language and terminology here which I find reprehensible, but I’m including it to show the reprehensible content passing TikTok’s moderation processes.I am not including the videos which these comments appeared in, nor am I including usernames. But all are recorded.
Racism in TikTok Comments
This is perhaps the worst of the examples I’ll present in this article. It uses a word which I literally could not bring to say out loud myself. It was said in reference to a footballer in a highlights video.
This comment stopped me in my tracks as some of the most overt racism I’ve ever seen in any comment section. It had been posted over 24-hours ago and garnered over 2,300 likes from other users on the platform – which is a problem in and of itself.
However, I refuse to believe that in this 24-hour period, no one else reported this comment. Regardless of whether they did or not, I did report it for violating TikTok’s policies against hateful or discriminatory language targeting ethnicity or race.
The result of this report was more unusual than the rest of the reports in this article. Because it disappeared. I went back to the video and the comment had vanished too, along with any trace of my report.
TikTok lost any good will with me at this stage, so I wasn’t giving the benefit of the doubt. I logged out of my account and sure enough, there it was. Hidden from me, but visible to everyone else.
TikTok Allows Misgendering in Comments
I’ve seen plenty of examples of misgendering being allowed in comment sections across TikTok. To make it worse, TikTok as a company has portrayed itself has a safe space for the LGBTQIA+ community by specifically including misgendering, dead naming and more as unacceptable according to community guidelines.
These guidelines state that “Dead naming or misgendering someone by using their former name or gender rather than their chosen identity, or by promoting conversion therapy programs that attempt to change a person’s sexual orientation or gender identity” and falls under “not allowed”.
Yet, I’ve seen countless examples of this going unchecked.
This specific comment appeared under a creator who identifies as she/her. Transphobic comments on TikTok often take the form of veiled hate. For example here, the commenter would likely laugh this off as a misunderstanding, but it was quite deliberate, as is often the case.
Again, this comment was reported, and that report was dismissed. I appealed the decision, which was also dismissed.
Irish Targeted in Derogatory Slur on TikTok
We have a bit of a “water off a ducks back” attitude in Ireland, but that doesn’t mean TikTok’s responsibilities don’t include derogatory slurs aimed at the Irish community.
The term “annoying mick” uses a derogatory slur targeting Irish individuals, which constitutes hate speech under TikTok’s community guidelines, as it attacks someone based on their nationality or ethnicity.
Given some of the other hate I’ve seen, I wouldn’t be overly fast to say this is the worst of what I’ve seen. However, it does point to TikTok’s weaknesses in identifying content which breaches the platform’s own community guidelines.
This was reported, dismissed and dismissed again on appeal.
Body-Shaming and More Hypocrisy from TikTok
TikTok, like most tech companies, is very good at making it look like they care and that they are doing the right thing to serve a healthy online community ethos. Unfortunately, body-shaming is another area where TikTok speaks a good game publicly, but then utterly fails to act.
In this comment, the commenter makes an extremely hurtful comment about the creator. Some might argue that it’s somewhat veiled, but that is looking from the point of view of an automated system. A human set of eyes should quickly see that this is a hurtful comment targeting someone’s physical appearance – an important point in the context of TikTok layoffs – more on that later.
This kind of language targets an individual’s appearance, which is prohibited under community guidelines, and it exactly the kind of comment that their previous “newsroom content” said the company was against.
I reported this comment, and that report was dismissed. I appealed this and that appeal was also dismissed, meaning TikTok deems this content to be acceptable.
TikTok Allows Anti-immigration Comments
Some more context is needed here. This comment appeared on a video from Dublin Airport where someone was putting a bottle into a bin. These bins are called FODs or Foreign Object Debris bins. They are used to reduce the number of bottles and rubbish that ends up on the runway.
Throughout all of these comments, I do hear you reading it saying “ah but how they said it, how would a moderator catch that”. And that’s the kind of leeway big tech companies doesn’t deserve, nor should we allow them.
The comment is undeniably a veiled reference to immigrants, equating them with “foreign object debris.” Such language could be considered discriminatory or dehumanizing, which violates TikTok’s community guidelines regarding hateful behaviour.
Two similar examples spring to mind, both involving Tiger Woods. Both Sergio Garcia and Fuzzy Zoeller made “fried chicken” remarks towards Woods. It’s generally accepted that these remarks were racist, even if the speakers later claimed they were meant as jokes or taken out of context. What mattered wasn’t just their intent, but how such comments reflected and reinforced broader prejudices.
It’s all social media platforms’ responsibility to understand various vernaculars, context and veiled-meanings to ensure comments sections are free from hate.
I can somewhat understand that an automated system might miss the nuanced hate in this comment. But TikTok always says that why we have the reporting system. This comment was both reported by myself, and when that report was dismissed, I appealed it. This too was dismissed.
Reporting Methodology
Reporting this vile content on TikTok required a few steps. Some of the steps are required by the platform, but others were needed by myself to simply keep track of reports. TikTok’s system makes it very easy to lose track of what was said and by which account.
There is a two-step reporting process. After the initial review, you can appeal any decision with some additional evidence.
This is where my AI-trained model was very useful. This model was trained using TikTok’s own Community Guidelines. All I had to do was screenshot a comment I thought was likely breaching the guidelines, and upload it to my AI-model. This model would then tell me what was breached and prepare the “extra evidence” comment to upload to TikTok’s second round review, including which guidelines were breached.
TikTok’s Reaction to My Findings
I gathered the above and sent it to TikTok in January. A few days later, I had a phone call with a TikTok spokesperson based in Ireland. After reviewing the comments I gathered, they confirmed the content breached TikTok’s Community Guidelines and should not have remained on the site. They also confirmed to me, it had been removed manually.
The spokesperson told me that TikTok was dedicated to keeping the social media platform safe, highlighting that the company had 40,000 safety professionals responsible for finding content that breaches Community Guidelines, but little was given by way of explaining how content like this was missed or deemed appropriate for the site.
Remembering this was just two months ago, it’s even more disappointing to see TikTok undermining that “commitment” to creating a safe environment.
To be clear, this is extremely disappointing, not only in light of my research, but because it’s difficult to see anyone lose their job. Having been through it twice recently myself, I feel massively for everyone impacted.
However, it’s making it clear that TikTok does not see high quality content moderation as a key requirement of running a social media platform. The company spokesperson highlighted TikTok’s automated process of finding offensive content was supported by human moderation too, but now I’m lefting wondering how much will that process be harmed by layoffs, considering it’s obviously already not fit for purpose.
The reality is that social media platforms have a responsibility to moderate content. Hate doesn’t need much oxygen, let alone the abundance of oxygen that lax content moderation approaches offer. While Twitter has completely fallen apart, Trump’s administration has led to Meta also axing many policies and fact checking processes, leading to new or renewed concerns.
TikTok is awash with content ranging from harmless and hilarious, to, as I’ve demonstrated, outright hateful. If the reports are accurate surrounding redundancies at the company being focused on content moderation teams, I’m extremely worried as to where we go from here.
Perhaps there needs to be renewed political focus on the issue, but that clearly won’t be coming from Stateside.
My advice to you is to continue to be vigilant on social media. Report what you deem offensive, and take regular breaks if you can. Resist the urge to stay in comment sections longer than you spend watching the content itself, and remember, it’s not always a person on the other end of that comment.
It Takes Two was a groundbreaking game that opened up co-up gaming to the masses – most impressively, opening it to couples, with my and my other half loving it and completing it. Now, the spiritual successor, Split Fiction, is here.
Created by the same game studio, Haze Light, Split Fiction sees you and another gamer take on the roles of two game writers – Zoe and Mio. You both get trapped in a simulation at the hands of a greedy games publication studio trying to steal writers ideas. The result, is that all of your ideas, past and present, become your reality. Because Zoe likes fantasy and Mio likes sci-fi, you’ll set off on an adventure and explore an exciting range of worlds together.
If you are familiar with It Takes Two, you’ll love the balance of puzzle solving, quick thinking and boss beating in Split Fiction. There’s still the same humour and even some Easter eggs left to the original game, despite this not being a literal sequel.
The majority of the game takes place in split screen, and is playable either on one screen locally or in co-op mode online. The best part is that you of you will be able to play it with just one purchase too.
I was initially a little apprehensive about buying Split Fiction as the game looks a lot more technical and “gamer-focused” than It Takes Two, but I can confirm that me and my other half have logged a few hours of gameplay on Split Fiction and I both the control systems are more intuitive and the gameplay even more enjoyable than It Takes Two. Split Fiction tends to let whoever is able to power on with a challenge to go ahead, reducing the amount of stalling that takes place.
Split Fiction is available today for about €50 and as the studio promised there are no in-game purchases or microtransactions – just a lot of fun, and can be played on PlayStation 5, Xbox or PC.
Watch my early takes on Split Fiction over on TikTok.
Split Fiction is here! 🎮 From the creators of It Takes Two, this co-op adventure lets you and a partner play as two game writers trapped in a mash-up of fantasy & sci-fi worlds. 🌍✨ We were worried it’d be too technical, but it’s just as intuitive & fun as It Takes Two! Best part? One purchase = two players. No microtransactions, just pure co-op chaos. 🤝🔥 Available now on PS5, Xbox & PC for around €50! Who’s playing? 👀 #SplitFiction#CoOpGaming#ItTakesTwo#couplegoals#couplegaming
Today at MWC in Barcelona, Xiaomi has unveiled the Xiaomi 15, its latest flagship smartphone, featuring a Leica-engineered camera system, a Snapdragon 8 Elite processor, and the Xiaomi HyperOS 2 platform. Xiaomi promises to offer high-end performance and imaging capabilities, the Xiaomi 15 combines cutting-edge hardware with AI-driven software enhancements.
The Xiaomi 15 features a 6.36-inch CrystalRes AMOLED display with a 2670 x 1200 resolution and 460 PPI pixel density. It supports a 1-120Hz adaptive refresh rate, HDR10+, and Dolby Vision, ensuring smooth visuals and vibrant colours. The screen brightness peaks at 3200 nits, and the TÜV Rheinland-certified display includes Low Blue Light, Flicker-Free, and Circadian Friendly (which we know I love) certifications for eye comfort.
In terms of design, the Xiaomi 15 has a high-strength aluminium frame and Xiaomi Shield Glass, offering enhanced durability. It maintains a 94% screen-to-body ratio with ultra-thin 1.38mm bezels. The phone is IP68-rated for water and dust resistance. Broadly speaking, the Xiaomi 15 will be available in Black and Green in the Irish market.
Performance and Software
Powered by Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 8 Elite, the Xiaomi 15 is built on a 3nm manufacturing process and features an octa-core Oryon CPU with two Prime Cores at 4.32GHz. It includes LPDDR5X RAM and UFS 4.0 storage, with configurations of 12GB + 256GB (the only one coming to the Irish market) or 12GB + 512GB.
I’m keen to ensure this article doesn’t wander into the realms of review, but to date, the Snapdragon 8 Elite has been mightily impressive from my experience with it in the HONOR Magic 7 Pro.
The device runs on Xiaomi HyperOS 2, which introduces HyperAI, HyperCore, and HyperConnect for optimized system performance, seamless device interconnectivity, and AI-powered enhancements. Features such as AI Speech Recognition, AI Writing, and AI Image Processing are included.
Camera System
Developed in collaboration with Leica, the Xiaomi 15’s camera system consists of:
50MP Leica main camera (ƒ/1.62, Light Fusion 900 sensor, OIS, 23mm equivalent)
Additional imaging technologies include Xiaomi AISP 2.0, Master-lens system with wide and bubble bokeh effects, and fast street photography mode.
For videography, the Xiaomi 15 supports 8K recording at 24fps and 30fps, 4K Dolby Vision® recording at 24fps, 30fps, and 60fps, and 4K Log video capture. The 4-mic array and MasterCinema mode enhance audio and video recording capabilities.
Battery, Connectivity, Pricing and Availability
The 5,240mAh Xiaomi Surge Battery supports 90W wired HyperCharge and 50W wireless HyperCharge. Xiaomi claims the device offers up to 25 hours of video playback. The Xiaomi Surge P3 charging chipset improves efficiency and charging speed.
The Xiaomi 15 includes Wi-Fi 7, Bluetooth 6.0, NFC, and USB-C connectivity. It supports dual SIM (nano SIM + nano SIM / nano SIM + eSIM / eSIM + eSIM). The ultrasonic fingerprint sensor enhances security, offering faster and more accurate unlocking, even with wet hands.
You can read my full review of the Xiaomi 15, but for now, I’ll close out by saying the Xiaomi 15 12GB RAM with 256GB memory is available for €1,099, SIM-free from Harvey Norman Ireland and on plan from Tesco Ireland and Vodafone Ireland.
Xiaomi also launched the Xiaomi 15 Ultra; very much a photography-focused smartphone. The Xiaomi 15 Ultra will be available in Ireland in silver chrome, sporting 16GB RAM and 512GB memory. It will set you back €1,599 and is available SIM-free from Harvey Norman Ireland and on plan from Tesco Ireland.
Updated 2/3/25: Added actual colours available in Ireland for both devices.
The Department of Health and the HSE have launched the first version of the HSE Health App, a first step in Ireland’s new digital healthcare strategy. Available now for free on the App Store and Google Play, the app is designed to provide secure access to personal health information and improve how people interact with the health service.
Features and Functionality
In its initial phase, the HSE Health App offers several features, including:
A digital list of self-declared medications and records of medicines received through the Drugs Payment Scheme or Medical Card Scheme.
Storage for European Health Insurance Card (EHIC), medical card, Long-term Illness (LTI) card, Drugs Payment Scheme (DPS) card, and GP Visit card.
Access to flu and COVID-19 vaccination records.
Information on HSE services such as Emergency Departments and Injury Units.
Maternity service appointment viewing for expectant mothers.
To access personal health information, users must log in with a verified MyGovID account. Without verification, the app can still be used for general health information and locating HSE services.
The launch would appear to me to be a bit of a mixed bag. I can see the usefulness and necessity of having an app like this, but I do hope the experience and features are improved. For example, I don’t have very much information in the app beyond my Covid vaccination and my European Health Insurance Card.
Yet my freshly renewed EHIC card from December last year isn’t registered in the app, with just my old card that’s expired being shown.
A Step Towards Digital Healthcare
Minister for Health, Jennifer Carroll MacNeill TD, highlighted that the app is a key part of Ireland’s push towards digitised patient health records. The aim is to provide patients with easier access to their medical information while also improving the efficiency of healthcare services. Future updates will include appointment notifications and reminders to help patients manage their care.
HSE CEO Bernard Gloster stated that the app is part of a broader digital transformation initiative, leveraging technology to enhance healthcare accessibility and efficiency. Damien McCallion, HSE Chief Technology and Transformation Officer, emphasised that the app is an evolving project, with new features planned annually.
What’s Next?
The HSE is working on expanding the app’s functionality, with upcoming features including:
Public hospital appointment notifications and reminders.
Access to referrals and waiting times.
Additional self-care information and support services.
I’d love to see the ability to share information from other users so I could keep track of my Mam’s appointments. I’m sure parents would also like to track kids appointments if they have some. This will become available once the National Shared Care Record is rolled out. Then the app will enable people to choose if they want a family member, carer, or trusted person.
Accessibility has also been a focus, with consultations held with disability organisations and patient advocacy groups. The app has been tested for compatibility with assistive technologies and meets HSE and European accessibility standards. Currently, the app is available in English and Irish, but there are additional languages planned for future releases.
Eir today launched Ireland’s first Wi-Fi 7 home broadband package for €49.99 per month. It’s one of the few times I’ve seen a provider in Ireland rolling out a technology this quickly, and it demonstrates an understanding of delivering a great connected home experience from Eir. To be honest, I didn’t think Eir had this in them, and it’s really blown the cobwebs off the brand in my eyes. But this offer could be a double-edged sword.
To enjoy Wi-Fi 7, you need both a Wi-Fi 7 router or mesh system alongside a Wi-Fi 7 supported device, such as the iPhone 16 or Samsung Galaxy S25.
Once you have everything lined up, you can download or stream faster and more reliably than ever before. Given it launched in early 2024, I didn’t expect to see any Irish providers rolling it out this early. It’s genuinely refreshing to see such an innovative approach to home connectivity and Eir deserve kudos for that.
Is Wi-Fi 7 Important?
Wi-Fi 7 isn’t essential, and you can have a great wireless experience at home without it. But I was highly critical of Virgin Media’s 5Gb launch last week, because frankly I don’t think people need it. I concluded you’d be better off upgrading your Wi-Fi mesh system or running LAN cables than buying “more speeds” from your ISP for what looks likely to cost €100 per month.
I was disappointed to see Virgin Media also wasn’t upgrading their hardware because this would have been the bigger story. Instead, their 5Gb broadband will roll out over the company’s Wi-Fi 6 routers.
Eir’s launch today shows me that they’ve evolved into a company that understands the connected home, possibly more than any other ISP in Ireland. And given their stuffy history, I’m personally shocked to be writing that.
Eir’s Wi-Fi 7 Offering
For €49.99 per month, Eir is offering a Wi-Fi 7 router to customers. This is an exclusive in Ireland for any providers, but of course you could buy your own Wi-Fi 7 router if you wanted to. Beyond this, Eir is also offering early adopters an additional mesh point and a free upgrade to 5Gb broadband later this year when they launch it.
The maths here is mind-boggling. For likely half the price of Virgin Media, you’ll have both 5Gb broadband and Wi-Fi 7 across your home if you go for Eir’s €49.99 offering.
So what’s the catch?
Is Eir Broadband Worth the Risk?
Well, the catch is that many are reluctant to trust Eir. As I posted on Bluesky about the launch, I immediately had people slating Eir’s customers experience.
This is a great package. 2Gb home broadband with Wi-Fi 7 for €49.99 per month. Early adopters get mesh and free upgrade to 5Gb later this year at no extra cost. Eir has absolutely blown the cobwebs off their brand here.
The latest ComReg Consumer Care Statistics Report is a fairly damning, with over 500 customer care issues for home broadband alone between October and December 2024. This is compared to Virgin Media’s 216 reported issues.
I typically don’t have to contact my internet provider for anything, but it would appear that while Eir arguably have Ireland’s most attractive offering, it could be a poison chalice for those early adopters who’ve been tempted by the technology and value.
Is that worth the risk? Well, when Eir launched this I was tempted. I checked my Eircode and, whether fortunately or unfortunately, I couldn’t get their service at my address. But this tells me the offering is compelling and I was indeed tempted.
But those customer care statistics make for bad reading. Yet, the price of Virgin Media is getting out of hand. I honestly believe that if Eir was available at my address, I’d take a punt on it.
At the launch, Eir also announced new Android-powered Eir TV boxes for €14.99 per month.
Virgin Media’s recent announcement of 5Gb broadband was a bit of an eye-opener for me. Home broadband customers don’t need to be charged more money for more speed into the home. I get by on a 500Mb connection, so why would more people spend on 5Gb? Truth be told, if you’re going to invest in anything at home, it should be either CAT 6A LAN cables or home mesh systems to improve your Wi-Fi coverage.
There has been a lot of excitement about Wi-Fi 7 since it launched last year, but why should you care about it?
What is Wi-Fi 7?
Wi-Fi 7 is the latest protocol for broadcasting Wi-Fi in your home, and in launched early in 2024. Typically in Ireland, home broadband providers don’t really talk much about these things, but they really should.
The smart home of today doesn’t really need faster speeds, especially not if you already have 1Gb or 2Gb home broadband. What you need is better infrastructure, and that’s what a modem that supports Wi-Fi 7 offers you.
I didn’t expect an Irish broadband provider to cop this, but Eir did when they recently announced 2Gb broadband including Wi-Fi 7; something I absolutely didn’t expect from a brand I would consider to be usually lagging behind the cutting edge by some distance.
By signing up to that package, you not only have the promise of great speeds, but also the hardware to support faster wireless internet connection in the home with more reliability across more devices. Basically, whether it’s for work calls, downloading movies or streaming games, Wi-Fi 7 offers a faster and more stable experience. But it takes a lot to access it.
What do you need for Wi-Fi 7?
The first thing you need is a Wi-Fi 7 supported router at home. Most homes have the router supplied by their internet provider (ISP). This is what plugs into the wall and broadcasts a Wi-Fi signal through your home. If you have a white Virgin Media router, you have Wi-Fi 5 and if it’s black, it’s Wi-Fi 6. Eir, right now, is the only provider offering Wi-Fi 7 out of the box.
However, you can purchase a (rather expensive) Wi-Fi 7 mesh system and plug this into your router to get Wi-Fi 7 throughout your home. Just remember that you need to connect the mesh system to your router with the correct, CAT 6A LAN cables, to get the most speed. You’ll also be limited by the connection speed you’ve signed up for (500Mb, 1Gb, 2Gb etc).
Those are the two ways of getting a Wi-Fi 7 signal in your home. But that’s not the whole story. You also need a device that’s capable of connecting to Wi-Fi 7. In the world of phones only the latest iPhone 16 range supports Wi-Fi 7 for Apple, while it also features on the Samsung Galaxy S25 series, Google Pixel 9 series, and HONOR Magic Pro 7, to name but a few examples.
But even if you’ve shelled out for a new M4 MacBook, you won’t have Wi-Fi 7. Instead, you’ll, rather oddly, be limited to Wi-Fi 6e.
My point here is that to make the most of an investment in Wi-Fi 7, you need to have a fast broadband connection in your home, a Wi-Fi 7 router or mesh and a device that supports Wi-Fi 7.
Should you focus on Wi-Fi 7?
Wi-Fi 7 is an excellent and exciting technology to support the wireless home of 2025. But getting it could be quite expensive if you are going the mesh route. Getting Eir is probably the most accessible way in Ireland to get Wi-Fi 7, but Eir’s customer care is a massive sticking point for prospective customers.
As I said when Virgin Media launched 5Gb broadband, I run my home off a 500Mb connection wired up to a Linksys Velo 6e mesh system with key devices connected via CAT 6A LAN cables. I have more than enough connectivity with all of this. If I was building a home, I’d be tempted to add Wi-Fi 7 alongside LAN cables, but it’s not a must-have.
It is, however, the first time in years I’ve given consideration to Eir now that they offer it as standard. So credit where it’s due for them opening this conversation in Ireland relatively early for a market that typically adopts very late.
CRKD has released the Neo S Frost Edition controller, an Apple Store exclusive controller for mostly mobile gaming. It might be a little tricky to get your hands on, in terms of finding it to buy, but more than capable for gaming on the go thanks to great battery, compatibility and form factor.
Design
The stand-out feature on the CRKD Neo S Frost Edition isn’t one that will affect your gaming. It’s the look of it. Blizzard-style snow blending up into a transparent body give this controller a stunning look.
But let’s glide towards the actual gaming chops of this controller. I always reluctantly lean towards calling this form-factor of controller, “retro”. Sure, it’s fairly retro in its style and feel, but there’s a lot more here than your old SNES controller had. Functionality I’ll get into later.
My take on this particular form factor is two-fold. For simple mobile gaming or ROM emulation of retro games, this is a perfect design. But if I’m cloud gaming modern games, the shoulder buttons just feel a little too tight for me.
A bit of GTA on the go on a flight.
Which is why CRKD included reprogrammable buttons on the rear that feel slightly more comfortable to me. But what I would say is that generally, gaming with this form-factor isn’t the same as gaming with a console controller. It takes a little adjusting, but is very doable.
The importance of this form-factor is portability. It is significantly easier to slot this style of controller into a backpack over a full-sized console controller, or even the likes of the GameSir G8 Galileo.
If you’re gaming, like me, on an iPad most of the time, you’ll probably just leave the tablet on a flat surface while holding the controller. But if you’re a mobile gamer, you might need the CRKD mount which is unfortunately sold separately, despite being nearly essential for mobile gamers.
Functionality
Despite the “retro” vibes the CRKD Neo S Frost Edition gives off, it is ram-packed with features. I’ll address the elephant in the room first. While this is an Apple Store exclusive, it will work with Apple devices, Android devices, smart TVs, PCs and the likes. It connects via Bluetooth, so it’s pretty universal.
The controller bears what has become a modern standard. You get Hall effect thumb sticks, the usual console-style button layout but with tighter shoulder buttons. As I mentioned, you can remap these to two additional buttons, S1 and S2 on the rear, two buttons in a surprisingly natural position.
Setting those buttons up is pretty easy too, all configured through the CRKD app. Here is where you can change mappings but also customise vibration feedback. As someone who was disappointed with how customisation worked on the 8Bitdo Ultimate 2C recently, CRKD’s approach is excellent. It’s user-friendly and inviting, making me want to engage with it and make my own gaming experience as perfect as possible for me.
The CRKD app offers a wealth of customisation options.
Another nice feature with this controller is the charging dock that it comes with. Might seem odd for a mobile gaming controller to have a dock, but remember, this is a mostly mobile gaming controller. You can have this controller sitting on your desk, ready to be grabbed for a game at any moment. It’s also a clever idea because when you get home from your day of mobile gaming, your controller has a home where it can easily be recharged. You just have to make a habit of doing it.
That’s not to say the battery life isn’t impressive. The controller manages its power cleverly, offering up over 6 hours in gaming battery life. Plenty for the average flight and more than enough for even the longest commutes.
Finally, the base of the controller features a 3.5mm headphone socket for wired accessories.
Who is CRKD?
Before I wrap up and give the final verdict on this controller, I was interested to know a little more about CRKD (which, fun fact, is pronounced “cracked”). The controller says “Designed in California, Made in China”, but I couldn’t find out much more about them.
However, I did find out they are owned by the Swedish Embracer Group, specifically Freemode. They are basically an investment company or video game holding company that owns and operates a vast number of game developers and publishers.
In today’s world, I like to know there’s a European ownership angle here.
CRKD have a really cool aspect to them. When you buy a CRKD controller, you can add it to the CRKD app by tapping the rear of the device against your phone. This is you “collecting” it, and “collecting” is a big element of what CRKD do. Once you “collect” the controller, you get details, including which number in the limited batch you received.
Each CRKD controller has a somewhat limited availability, which is an extra bit of “neat” to add into the mix.
The Verdict: CRKD Neo S Frost Edition
While it looks great, the feel of the CRKD Neo S Frost, off the bat, isn’t my cup of tea. But the customisation is worth its weight in gold here. It let me make the controller suit my personal style.
I like the flexibility of this type of controller over the likes of the Backbone, but it’s a pity that the mount is a separate accessory, given how essential it is.
Another frustrating element is just how hard this specific controller might be to get. It’s only available in Apple Stores, but even at the time of writing, this couldn’t be bought on Apple’s online store or ordered for pickup in the Belfast Apple Store.
There are plenty over in the UK for pickup if you really want one, but this controller leaves me with only one recommendation.
I can highly recommend the CRKD NEO S controller, but just don’t bother waiting around to find the Frost Edition. It’s pretty and all, but functionally, it’s the same as the rest of CRKD’s NEO S range. Generally this controller will set you back anything from €40 to €75, but right now there’s a version of it available for sale Amazon. Nice and simple.
Virgin Media today announced it would be launching 5Gb broadband in Q2 of 2025. This adds to the company’s home broadband offerings of 500Mb, 1Gb and 2Gb. This falls under the company’s ongoing €200 million network upgrade to full fibre.
Speaking at the launch event today in Dublin, Virgin Media’s Vice President of Consumer, Paul Higgins, said Virgin Media is responding to consumer trends, increasing data consumption and what our customers have told us in terms of their broadband services”.
But there are some key questions which remains to be answered ahead of Virgin Media’s 5Gb launch in Ireland.
How much will Virgin Media 5Gb Broadband Cost?
Unfortunately, the launch event was a little light on the details of how much 5Gb broadband would cost consumers. Looking at Virgin’s offering today, every incremental increase in your connection speed typically adds €10 to your monthly bill.
Today, 2Gb broadband costs €90 per month after discounts. Logically, that would leave me to believe 5Gb broadband could be the first internet-only connection in Ireland to break through the €100 per month barrier.
Naturally, you can expect to see some discounts for new customers, but I don’t expect existing customers to be given a financial incentive to upgrade to 5Gb broadband.
So is there any incentive for them, or in general, to have 5Gb broadband?
Do you need 5Gb Broadband?
At a potential cost of €100 per month, you would have to start asking just how much do you need 5Gb broadband. In fact, you should be asking if you need faster broadband at all if you don’t generally feel the need on a day-to-day basis.
As you might imagine, I live in a pretty tech-heavy household. There are regularly multiple devices streaming to different devices, games downloading and games being streamed live, all while someone could be having a video call with family or work.
This typically happens concurrently on my 500Mb Virgin Media connection, in a mix of Wi-Fi devices and some hardwired into my network. Could I make an argument for 1Gb? Maybe, but I’d be reluctant to pay anything extra for it.
A large part of today’s launch event focused on “beating the buffer” as being a perk of 5Gb broadband. But given I do all of this, in a highly connected home, on 500Mb broadband, I fail to see why many consumers would be champing at the bit to spend anywhere near €100 per month on broadband.
Will 5Gb Broadband Need New Hardware?
Whether or not your existing Virgin Media router will need upgrading to access 5Gb speeds depends on what you have today. My 500Mb (white) router is not capable of handling anything beyond current speeds. Even if I wanted 1Gb broadband, I would need a new (black) router – also known as the Hub 2.
If you want access to Virgin Media’s 5Gb offering, or indeed its 2Gb offering, you will need their fibre-enabled hub. If you don’t have this, then you will need a hardware upgrade. This will also reduce the number of properties compatible with 5Gb broadband, as the address will need to be fibre-powered.
Another setback for consumers is that the existing routers Virgin Media use only support, at best, Wi-Fi 6. This means there’s no access to Wi-Fi 7, which is arguably essential to make the most out of a 5Gb connection. It’s easily overcome back plugging a Wi-Fi 7 mesh system into the router, but still, far from ideal.
It’s exciting to see Ireland’s broadband infrastructure push new speed limits, but we may have reached the point of diminishing returns. If you are experiencing buffering in your home, I’d look at checking your Wi-Fi strength away from your modem and potentially running LAN cables to key devices before taking the leap with 5Gb broadband.
Bad news for PlayStation gamers if you were settling in for a late night of gaming. The PlayStation Network (PSN) is down. Sony’s PSN is experiencing a major outage as of Friday evening, with widespread reports of issues affecting account management, gaming and social features, the PlayStation Store, and even PlayStation Video.
According to Downdetector, user reports of problems began spiking around 11PM GMT Irish time, with Sony officially acknowledging the issues at 12PM.
Gamers are struggling to launch digital games, access online features, or even see their friends and trophies on PS5 and PS4. Some users report being unable to sign in entirely.
Sony has stated that they are working to resolve the problem “as soon as possible”, but as of now, there is no clear ETA for when services will be restored. This marks yet another PSN outage, following a similar incident in October that lasted around eight hours, as well as a partial outage in May.
If you were hoping for a weekend gaming session, you might have to wait it out or turn to other platforms for now. As of this writing, Xbox Live and Nintendo Online do not appear to be experiencing similar problems, but the wider cause for PSN’s issue are unknown.
We’ll keep you updated as soon as services resume. Stay tuned, and fingers crossed for a quick fix!
