Behind The Bytes

The calm before the MWC storm... Abbas recounts his travels to the Samsung MENA Forum in Rome. Daanesh isn't convinced by the pricing on the Lenovo Yoga 920. Mike gushes (as usual) about Bang & Olufsen's newest headphones. Other topics of interest: OSN & Netflix joining forces Is Nest officially launched in the UAE? Apple HomePod grey market prices aren't too crazy

Can Intel's new Vaunt smartglasses prototype hurry up and get to market already?! Apple HomePod reviews are in and Abbas says he still won't be buying one. Daanesh gushes over the admittedly cool Tesla Falcon X launch, and the lads chat about movies for a bit at the end.

Abbas explains why he won't be buying an Apple HomePod. Dubai gets AI-powered CCTV cameras. Daanesh speaks passionately about phones with five cameras and convince Mike that they're a good thing. The lads get excited about MWC, even if it's looking a little thin this year.

While the none of the lads are actually at CES this year, they sure do have a lot of opinions on what's been going on over in Las Vegas. Expect a lengthy chat about TVs, self-driving cars, VR and Linda.

2017 has been a busy year for tech. The lads round up the favourite gadgets and stories from the last 12 months.

Apple buys Shazam... and we're not entirely sure why. The new iMac Pro is lovely and it's probably only a matter of time until Abbas gets one. Google and Amazon need to calm down and stop feuding. Facebook launches a messenger app to creep on your kids.

Honestly, this week is just a Google Pixel love-fest. All three of the lads have had serious hands-on time with the Pixel 2 XL and talk about their likes and dislikes. Other topics of note: Mike’s Sonos explainer A couple minutes of Mac whinging

Oh you know we spend a large chunk of the podcast discussing the iPhone X - especially now that both Abbas and Daanesh have had some extensive hands-on time with it. We also ponder the alternate reality where HTC's upcoming U11 Plus was actually the Pixel 2 XL and everything was right in the 2017 smartphone world. Other topics of interest: B&O's Beoplay E8 wireless ear buds are classy but don't fit in Daaneh's ears Mike hates on Bluetooth Abbas fights Sith lords in AR

Daanesh is out this week, so Abbas and Mike hold the fort to discuss early reviews of the iPhone X. Rumours swirl about new phones from HTC and Razer and Mike talks about his experience using the FitBit Ionic for a few days.

The lads chat about their experiences using the Huawei Mate 10 Pro after a full week with the device. They give props to Motorola for the Z2 Force and its mods and while Apple Pay launched in the UAE this week, no one has tried it because they can't even remember the last time anyone actually used an iPhone. Go figure.

This is it, all the hype has lead to this...the Huawei Mate 10 (and its Pro big brother) is finally announced. The lads give their immediate impressions of the phone after spending a little time with it at the official launch in Munich, Germany.

It turns out that GITEX Technology Week is far more interesting than GITEX Shopper. The lads chat about all the things poised to make Dubai the super city of the future - flying taxis, flying motorbikes, wireless power, airport face-scanning aquariums...the lot! Other talking points: There's a new Blackberry phone... but who is it for? Reports of the iPhone 8 exploding may be greatly exaggerated MATE 10 HYPE REACHES MAXIMUM LEVELS Oh, and Abbas went and preordered something special, but we won't spoil the surprise here...

This week we're coming at you just moments after Google's Pixel 2 reveal event - expect hot takes on all the new hardware, sadness at the fact that none of it is coming to the Middle East officially, and Mike getting a couple words in about the new Sonos kit.

Daanesh returns this week with tales of empty GITEX halls. The UAE iPhone 8 launch fails to impress. What will result of Google buying a big chunk of HTC? Dubai gets smart about electric car subsidies. And Mike gets giddy over new Sonos product leaks. Oh, and we're all really excited about the Huawei Mate 10...have we mentioned that before?

Abbas and Mike hash out the spate of Apple announcements that were unveiled this week, including the much-hyped iPhone X.

We welcome Daanesh (hi!) from Gulf News/GNTech to the Behind the Bytes fold as we tackle the big 8s for 2017 - Nokia 8, Samsung Galaxy Note8 and the incoming iPhone 8. Plus, Mike gives his impressions from his time at IFA in Berlin and Abbas recounts his struggles setting up an account with the recently launched Virgin Mobile.

We shake things up a little this week with our first ever guest, Omar Kassim, formerly of Middle East e-commerce giant JadoPado. Omar chats with Abbas and Bhavishya about e-commerce in the region and his latest venture Esanjo, a cryptocurrency real estate startup. Then on the bottom half of the show, Mike shows up and we chat all things MS Paint, Smartphones and AR...y'know, the usual. In this episode we also bid a fond farewell to Bhavishya who is leaving Dubai for more temperate climes. Take care bud, we'll miss you!

Topics discussed: Rampant OnePlus 5 speculation Mike goes hands-on with the Sony Xperia Touch Mike goes eye-on with the Sony Bravia A1 OLED TV Nokia launches in the UAE but is it enough to make a comeback? Dubai is getting flying taxis by the end of the year but would you actually sit in one? Etisalat and Du are fighting to give you free Eid Wifi Abbas demos why you shouldn’t register with Virgin Mobile - LIVE! The Xbox One X is actually cheaper than the new iPad Pro - think about it

WWDC 2017 blowout! tvOS gets Amazon Video and nothing else! watchOS gets some new faces and surfing tracking skills macOS High Sierra: dumb name, cool operating system New MacBooks! New iMacs! THE iMAC PRO IS A BEAST and Abbas wants one VR is coming to Mac, with 100% more Star Wars, get excited! iOS 11: Bahvishya is less excited New iPads! Mike implores you to stop taking photos with your iPad AR on the iPad looks super dope HomePod: dumb name, cool product

Topics include: How essential is the Essential phone? WWDC 2017 predictions and the Apple Pizza Box Is anyone actually going to buy the new Nokia 3310? Bhavishya pitches a WhatsApp phone Blackberry KEYone vs. Sony Xperia XZ Premium Qualcomm’s crazy new 18-core processor Computex 2017 news