Tech

L'art De L'emballage

Unboxing the Osmo 360 II is a treat. Everything is so beautifully wrapped, with the care of a Parisian pâtissier boxing up a tarte au citron, and the products themselves are of obvious quality, each with a reassuring heft and finish. It is quite exciting revealing them one by one.

There's a particular kind of despair that comes from watching a dog shed across an open-plan floor faster than you can mop it. Cardine tile downstairs, carpet on the stairs and landing, and a coat that seems to renew itself daily — this is not a house that forgives a lazy cleaning routine. So when the MOVA Z60 Ultra Roller Complete arrived, the question I actually cared about wasn't whether it had impressive numbers on a spec sheet. It was simpler: would it get my Saturday back?

If you’ve ever tried to squint at a vibrating smartphone clamped to your handlebars while doing 70 mph on the M1, you’ll know what a struggle it is. Between the overheating warnings in summer, the fear of rain wrecking your expensive phone, and the constant fear of it taking a dive into the tarmac, phone mounts are a bit of a faff. 

Dystopian. A lie can travel halfway around the world while the truth is still putting on its shoes. This old adage - incorrectly attributed to Mark Twain - highlights how misinformation can spread faster than the truth. And, in an era of information overload and accelerating tech deciphering the wheat from the chaff is certainly challenging. The same could apply to Artificial Intelligence (AI).

In the pantheon of great luxury, time has always reigned supreme. Not the ticking sort measured by Rolex and Patek Philippe—though we admire both—but the elusive, emotional kind. A fleeting smile. A voice lost to silence. A moment you’d give anything to relive.

And now, astonishingly, you can. Watch the Alexis Ohanian video here.

A Hug That Changed Everything

Steinway & Sons, a name synonymous with the finest pianos on the planet, have been crafting their instruments for over a century and a half. With factories in Hamburg, Germany, and New York, Steinway pianos are the epitome of quality and craftsmanship, loved by musicians and piano aficionados worldwide. My recent visit to their Hamburg factory demonstrated to me just how meticulous their craftsmanship is, their extraordinary pursuit of excellence and the use of innovative technology in an analogue instrument. 

Energica are an electric motorcycle manufacturer. 

The new Fujifilm GFX100S is based on the original medium format GFX100, but in a smaller body, smaller price with image stabilisation and the same terrific lenses.

It is, without doubt, the best stills camera you can buy today, the sensor, lenses and image processing plus the numerous Fujifilm film styles deliver unparalleled quality. In good light, it rivals the best medium format film cameras of yore and in poor or low light it is infinitely superior.

I don’t know about you, but I use whatever bike I’m riding, in all weathers. I ride as much as possible. 

I ride for work and play, so inevitably I end up having to stop to take and make phone calls, interrupting my fun. I’ve often toyed with the idea of an intercom, but never really believed they work. How can they, I usually have to wear earplugs, so surely there’s no way I could hear an intercom?