Wigs Out, Geeks Out! Cosplay Shines at Comic Con Africa #ComicConAfrica

Hi Guys, 

There’s something truly magical about walking through the doors of Comic Con Africa into a pumped-up crowd of all your favourite characters, from superheroes, obscure video game personalities, favourite anime characters, villains, and anti-heroes. It’s not just about the outward transformation of stepping into a favourite character. It’s about stepping into a space where creativity is not just accepted but celebrated, complimented – and even awarded. A place where fans can show up as their truest, most imaginative selves and be met with nothing but encouragement, awe, and community.

Cosplay is the beating heart of Comic Con Africa. Whether fans have spent months crafting armour and props or they’ve simply grabbed their favourite hoodie, cape, or themed glasses for a day of casual Cosplay, every form of expression is welcome at Comic Con Africa.

Daily Casual Cosplay Competitions

Every day at the Con is a new chance to shine with daily casual Cosplay competitions. These are open to everyone - first-timers, veterans, kids, and those who want to join just for the fun of it. No pre-registration ahead of the Con is required. Fans can book their spot on site daily at Cosplay Central. There is no pressure, just pure joy and a little friendly competition.

There are two sessions per day, giving casual Cosplayers loads of opportunities to strut their stuff on the prestigious Main Stage. Plus, for the younger fans, there’s a dedicated casual competition for contestants under 13, packed with fun and fantastic prizes.

The Ultimate Cosplay Competition

The Comic Con Africa Cosplay Champs is where artistry meets adrenaline. These costumes aren’t just outfits: they’re a physical manifestation of hours of late-night sewing, foam cutting, airbrushing, and those all-important finishing touches under LED lights. This is where passion becomes wearable art.

In 2025, Comic Con Africa has refined the competition to incorporate more skill levels so that everyone has a chance to enter and be celebrated, starting from Novice and moving up to Journeyman, Masters, and Overall Champion. Within the skill levels are two categories: Needlework and Armour. All have incredible prizes lined up for the winners. There will also be spot prizes highlighting specific areas of excellence, such as best make-up, most standout wig, or most accurate prop.

After a rigorous judging process, the top 30 contestants will battle it out on the Main Stage on Sunday, 31 August 2025 - an unmissable spectacle for fans at the Con. Stage presence, creativity, and crowd-thrilling performances all come together during the crowning of our Comic Con Africa Champion of Cosplay. The stakes are high: one Overall Champion wins the honour of representing South Africa overseas at MCM in London in May 2026: flights, accommodation, and dreams included. They’ll be up against the best Cosplayers from around the world competing for the international title of Crown Champion of Cosplay.

Applications close on 5 August, with limited slots available. The Con is ready to showcase African Cosplayers’ unlimited potential and is calling on Cosplayers of all levels to enter the Championship.

Pre-registration is required. To learn more and to enter, visit the Championships of Cosplay page.

Meet International Cosplay Icons

This year, Comic Con Africa is thrilled to host two internationally acclaimed Cosplayers: Yuji Koi Cosplay of Switzerland and Majed Cosplay of Kuwait. From breathtaking builds to behind-the-scenes stories, these global icons will share their journeys, pose for photos, and offer exclusive signed print sales of some of their most iconic Cosplays. This is Cosplay fans’ chance to connect with some of the best in the world, right in Johannesburg.

Cosplay Is For Everyone

Comic Con Africa is filled with electric, spotlight moments - but the quiet ones matter just as much. Like a Loki variant sketching fan art in the food court. Or a little Leia giving high-fives to strangers. Or the silent nod of appreciation between two Mandalorians who’ve never met before. This is what Cosplay does: it brings us together. It creates safe, inspiring spaces to be unapologetically creative and to have a whole lot of fun while doing it.

For Those Who Need to Know More: What Is Cosplay?

Some might refer to Cosplay as dress-up, but it’s so much more than that - it’s a form of storytelling and art. Cosplayers create super accurate costumes of their favourite characters from comics, video games, books, art, anime, and more. It’s where sewing, sculpting, electronics, wig-styling, acting, makeup, and movement all combine to bring characters to life. It’s about passion and creativity, hours (sometimes hundreds of hours) of investment into sewing, pattern-making and embroidery, and working with sculpting materials like PVA and Worbla. Cosplay is a spectacular form of art.

Subscribe: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCf-6P7TDOoCy8qCEQb7eUNw/join 

The Life's Way Blog: https://www.thelifesway.com/

Join this channel to get access to the perks: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCf-6P7TDOoCy8qCEQb7eUNw/join

If you like my content, please do support - https://www.patreon.com/TheLifesWay

Aum Namah Shivay!

Subscribe to my YOUTUBE Channel for historical tech, new gadgets, stationery, product reviews

and mystery unboxings. #TheLifesWay Link to other platforms - https://linktr.ee/thelifesway

Your Lifestyle and Technology Blog for the Last 12 Years!

How to Protect your Electronics during loadshedding? @HisenseSA

Hi Friends, 

It seems that load-shedding has staying power when we wish it wouldn’t. With it brings frustrations, work and life interruptions, while it also poses a risk to your appliances, costing you even more money.

Damage to electronics results from power surges, which are an increase in the voltage of an electrical circuit when the power is switched off then back on. While the voltage fluctuation is temporary, it can be strong enough to damage the components in your devices and appliances. The damage is made worse when there are frequent power outages.

Want to prevent damage to your appliances and devices? Here are some tips from Hisense, a leading global consumer electronics and home appliances company:

Unplug all your electronics

The best way to prevent damage is through prevention. When you know you are about to be loadshed, unplug all your appliances and devices. Desktop computers are particularly vulnerable, so ensure you know the loadshedding schedule, and shut them down and unplug them before the power goes off.

Get a UPS

A UPS (uninterrupted power supply) can provide backup power when your main power source is down. Depending on the size of the UPS battery size, it could supply power for minutes or hours, but you can use the time to either continue being productive or save files on your computer, before shutting it down and unplugging it.

Invest in surge protectors

A surge protector is an electrical appliance that protects your equipment against power surges. When electricity is restored after loadshedding, a surge protector diverts any excess energy into its grounding wire.

You can buy plug adapters fitted with surge protectors, or get one for your DB board, which should be installed by an electrician.

Check your insurance

Check if your home insurance policy covers you for damage to your electronics as a result of power surges and if there are any specific limitations for more expensive electronics like laptops. This will ensure that if you do suffer any damage, you can claim and replace the damaged items.

If your insurance doesn’t allow this, it might be worthwhile getting more cover.

A friendly reminder… though you probably know this by now:

Charge your devices in advance so that you have enough power during loadshedding

Get a power bank for your phone and tablet and ensure it’s fully charged before loadshedding hits.

Get into the habit of saving files and documents you’re working on in case you’re unexpectedly loadshed.

And good to know…

If you want to continue cooking without interruption, the Hisense Free Standing Gas Cooker is a sure way to keep the meals coming when there’s no power.

The HFS905GES Free Standing Gas Cooker has:

• Matt finish
• Auto-ignition
• 2 Convection Fans
• Double-layer glass door
• Storage compartment
• Easy-clean interior
• 6 functions
• Wok burner
• Flame failure device

It’s available from retailers from around R9 999.

Cheers!!!

Contact Aashish Rai Jain at thelifesway@gmail.com to collaborate and promote your brand, services and products. #TheLifesWay #PhotoYatra #8YearsofTheLifesWay. Follow me on www.instagram.com/thelifesway for all travel-related photo posts and subscribe to my YOUTUBE Channel too. Namaste!

Support me if you like reading this blog post which was done free of charge - https://www.buymeacoffee.com/TheLifesWay

@SamsungSA on a Mission to Identify and Support Black Industrialists #BBBEE #EEIP

Hi Friends,

Samsung South Africa is running a search for 2 (two) established black industrials in the e-waste sector, which require financial and business support, to take their business to the next level. The initiative is part of Samsung’s R280-million Equity Equivalent Investment Programme (EEIP). EEIP is a Department of Trade and Industry (dti) initiative where multinational companies are invited to participate and contribute positively towards B-BBEE in South Africa. This programme is strongly aligned with the objectives of the National Development Plan 2030, which is the elimination of poverty through job creation and entrepreneurship.

“Samsung is focussed on two very important missions – the growth of entrepreneurship in the country and the development of e-waste programmes. This e-waste project achieves both objectives and affirms our commitment to growing South Africa and preserving the nation’s natural resources,” says Hlubi Shivanda, Director: Business Innovation Group and Corporate Affairs at Samsung South Africa.

Supporting the Government’s Black Industrialist Programme

Samsung, in collaboration with the dti, aims to provide opportunities for Black Industrialists in the Recycling sector, to participate in the e-waste Black Industrialist program as one of the projects under EEIP. Samsung will be an integral partner in the creation of the only black-owned and operated e-waste beneficiation plants in Africa that can separate Waste Electronic and Electrical Equipment (WEEE). The objective is to develop and support the establishment of the e-waste Black Industrialists, who will be operating in the full value chain of e-waste management that includes collection, dismantling, pre-processing and beneficiation of e-waste materials.

Comprehensive Business Support

Business support includes grant funding for operational growth, mechanization, skills development program (quality control, safety, and business development) and the introduction of beneficiation plant technology. This Black Industrialist programme targets black Industrialists, including women. Ultimately through industrialization, the aim is to create employment, boost innovation and grow the economy.

Providing Access to Experts

Samsung has partnered with a black-owned incubator that will market, recruit and select the Industrialists for this programme. In addition, the incubator will support the selected enterprises for the duration of the programme.

Terms and Conditions apply

Cheers!!!

Contact me at thelifesway@gmail.com or editor@thelifesway.com to collaborate on your products, events, and services. #TheLifesWay #PhotoYatra! 

Product Review - @AstrumSA ET300 True Wireless Freedom Headset #Bluetooth #Earphones

Hi Friends, 

I simply love earphones and since the launch of Bluetooth versions in all kinds of earphones and headphones, it has became more and more useful to a lot of people around the world. No more tangling and snipping of wires as you run to catch your morning bus or trains. I have been using my Bose in-ear earphones wired ones since many years now and the cable now has starting showing the wires inside and on the verge of breaking down so I was looking at all those new product launches by several brands like Samsung, Bose, Apple, Sony and many others. The price range is too high and there are not many features in any one of the model as compared with Bragi Dash. 

I was invited to rAge Expo 2017 and as a part of media kit, I got the choice to choose between Astrum slim speaker and other Astrum True Wireless Headset ET300 in white color. I immediately chose ET300 model so that I can try out their products at my leisure and enjoy the music wirelessly. 

Let's checkout some of the product features which I found to be useful and loved the most. The first being the Bluetooth v4.1 connectivity but the product can only work within the boundaries of a room of 10m as beyond that the connection loses with your smartphone or tablet. And the best part is that each earplug can work independently in case you don't want to use both of them together. You just have to switch ON one of them by pressing on the middle portion of the unit and by long pressing it starts blinking blue and red meaning that bluetooth pairing is ON. As you put them into your ears, it tells you by voice command which side is which. If you just want to use both of them, then simply switch them ON and they get automatically connected to one another and then you can long press one of them to get connected the unit to your bluetooth enabled devices. 

Both the earplugs gets settled in your ears easily and comes with various silicon earbuds in small, medium and large sizes and one pair of ear hooks to keep them on your ears in case you take them to running or gym etc. The sound quality on Astrum ET300 is awesome in the price range at which it's available in the market which is around ZAR 600. I simply adored the audio quality and was amazed at how good it is considering Astrum was not a well known brand to me.

The device comes with a case which doesn't have any internal battery but can be used to charge the earplugs and to take them with you while not in use. The only con here is the plastic cover of the charger which comes out of the socket easily as it doesn't have any locking mechanism and can be lost in your bag while you travel. The ear units are magnetically attached to charging pins inside the charging unit. I was expecting the case to have some battery backup but at this price range it's difficult to ask. 

The total product weight is around 50 grams and each unit has around battery capacity of 40mAh which easily gives music time of two and half hours max and can be charged to full capacity in around 60 minutes. These can be charged using the case with a micro-USB cable provided inside the package or from your android smartphone charging cable. The cons here is that ear units can't be charged if they have ear-hooks on them which is a pain to take out all the time after every 2-3 hours because you first have to take out ear buds and then ear-hooks. When the battery is low, voice prompts warns you to charge the device before finally switching off the device automatically as the battery voltage lowers 3.0V value.

The Astrum headsets ET300 can also be used to take hands-free calls and when the call is over, you will go back to the music if that's being played earlier. You can use the earphone to accept the call using the central button to answer the call by shortly pressing the same. If you press the button for 2 seconds, it can also reject the call and will voice prompt the same too. You can mute the microphone during the call by double clicking on the central button and same to undo the same. 

Overall, in the end I must say that I love the Astrum ET300 headsets and is using them daily for atleast one charge though I would have loved it more, if it would have come with a charging case with some battery backup. Go checkout the device at many of the online retailers or at Tech House in Fordsburg, Johannesburg. 

As I was checking online, I just saw that a new version of the device ET300 has been launched with all the cons taken care of which I have written for the review of the White ET300 True Wireless Freedom Headsets I received in my media pack but looking forward to review them too. 

Cheers!!!

Contact me at thelifesway@gmail.com to blog, share and influence about your products and services on all my Social Media channels #TheLifesWay #PhotoYatra !

@AstrumSA Secures An ASIA Business Achiever Award in Hong Kong #Electronics

Hi Guys, 

Astrum Holdings Limited has just won an ABAA (Asia Business Achiever Award) hosted by the Asia Business Consultation Association - in Hong Kong. This award is a prestigious milestone rewarding almost a decade of daily efforts at Astrum Holdings Limited. Established in Hong Kong in 2008, the organisation has since branched across the globe, launching in South Africa in 2010. Since its establishment, the company has been developing and providing people with new technologies that deliver a positive effect on their lives.

Mr Manoj Kumar Pansari – Chairman and Managing Director of Astrum Holdings Limited says that the teams’ priority is to be able to provide robust, reliable yet affordable high-tech devices all around the globe. Astrum Holdings Limited has a ‘’can-do’’ corporate culture that allows it to be open to new ideas and think big which is something that makes the company stand out amongst other competitors within the industry.

Besides creative features and new designs, Astrum Holdings Limited enforces strict business principals, regarding quality, innovative, practical and fair business practices. Astrum Holdings Limited has dedicated itself in every aspect towards moving forward and constantly keeping abreast of technological advancements, product development and design, ensuring the organisation provides their clients with the best solutions possible. The company has put product and service quality at the core center of its business, along with a focus on innovation.

Mr Manoj Kumar Pansari – Chairman and Managing Director of Astrum Holdings Limited 

“It is now up to us to live up to this award by continuously developing new and robust technologies that can positively affect people’s lives. Winning this award makes me proud and I hope that this is the first of many awards to come,” says Mr Pansari.

The pursuit of technology and innovation is what drives us and how we improve our daily lives. We’d like to create a progressive realisation of this by serving as the bridge that connects people with a range of products that not only meets needs and expectations, but awakens a heartfelt sense of wonder in all of us” says Amit Pansari, Director at Astrum Holdings Limited South Africa.

Astrum Holdings Limited believes that South Africans should have access to innovative products that enhance and simplify their lives. Technology and quality are the factors that the company focuses on to grow and develop its business. The world-class products are available through a number of retailers including: Takealot, Loot, Computer Mania, Fastrak, Mitabyte, Osmans, Matrix Warehouse, The Gadget Shop and Mobimend.

For more information visit: https://www.astrumworld.com/sa/en/, follow on Facebook: Astrum South Africa, Twitter: @AstrumSA, Instagram: @astrumworld_sa, send an e-mail to: info@astrum.co.za or call: (011) 314 0400.

 

Cheers!!!

 

Contact me at thelifesway@gmail.com to blog, share and influence about your products and services on all my Social Media channels #TheLifesWay #PhotoYatra !

@AstrumWorld - A Top Global Brand is Ready for #rAgeExpo2017 @rAgeExpo

Hi Friends,

rAge is all about discovering what’s new in the world of technology and having fun while doing it. With hundreds of cool products on display, it’s a veritable hotbed of the best products and tech companies in SA. Ready to make its mark at this year’s event is Astrum - a global leader in providing people with access to an impressive range of new technologies. The company prides itself on breaking the trade-off between innovation, quality and cost, and as such, can provide consumers with robust, reliable – yet affordable – high tech devices.

Express Dock HD DA710

Established in Hong Kong in 2008, the organisation has since branched across the globe, launching in South Africa in 2010. Astrum aims to break down the barriers between people and technology and will be featuring a wide range of products at the event. Everything from headsets, to power banks, speakers and cameras to keyboards and more.

Sound Box ST 150

“Humans have a natural appetency for exploration. The pursuit of technology and innovation is what drives us and how we improve our daily lives. We’d like to create a progressive realization of this by serving as the bridge that connects people with a range of products that not only meets needs and expectations, but awakens a heartfelt sense of wonder in all of us” says Amit Pansari, Director at Astrum Peripherals Pty Ltd.

The team is not only looking forward to awakening a sense of wonder for rAge visitors but also as it further expands its presence throughout South Africa.

Eye Protecting LED Lamp NL 050

In line with this, the company has announced the opening of a branch in the Mother City. Under the management of Sias Strydom, the Cape Town team - based in Milnerton - will follow the global Astrum undertaking of providing exceptional quality at a competitive price, with excellent service to their customers.

Besides creative features and new designs, Astrum enforces strict business principals, regarding quality, innovative, practical and fair business practices. Astrum has dedicated itself in every aspect towards moving forward and constantly keeping abreast of technological advancements, product development and design, ensuring the organisation provides their clients with the best solutions possible.

Wireless headet HT600

Most of all Astrum believes that South Africans should have access to innovative products that simplify and enhance their lives. The world-class products are available through a number of retailers including: Takealot, Loot, Computer Mania, Fastrak, Mitabyte, Osmans, Matrix Warehouse, The Gadget Shop and Mobimend. 

 

Astrum will be selling their products at the rAge Expo 2017 from 6-8 Oct 2017. I am specially looking forward to get Eye Protecting LED Lamp as I need the same to work on my laptop (without backlit keyboard) late in the night while everyone else is sleeping and to write my diary each night before sleeping. I have contacted the brand on facebook some 2-3 months back and asked about the price earlier but never received the answer so I am going to checkout the same again now at the rAge expo.

Cheers!!!

Contact me at thelifesway@gmail.com to blog, share and influence about your products and services on all my Social Media channels #TheLifesWay #PhotoYatra !

Product Review - Nokia Lumia 720 + Wireless Cover + Wireless Charger

Hi Guys,

DionWired is an electronic store from the business empire of Walmart & they continue to run Blue Monday sale to clear off their old stock and make way for the new. I always try to see what they have on offer for that day and if price suits me I go for the same.

This week DionWired sold Nokia Lumia 720 which is an outdated model from the house of Nokia & Windows but I wanted the same to test and look what and how these phone works. I have been using Android phones in major proportions all these years since Google G1 and iPhone 3GS for some 2-3 months. 

When I ordered the phone, I never expected that it will come with the wireless charger along with this package. It was a great surprise and sweetened the deal. I really wanted to see how this works and how fast is the charging on Qi devices.

 The package also included the wireless cover for Lumia 720 to enable the wireless charging.

You already know all about the phone features as it's an old model. It has 4.3 inch screen with Gorilla glass. It has 6.7 megapixel Carl Zeiss Lens with a flash built in. The model has expandable memory and inbuilt memory of 8gb. The battery is 2000mAH which gives good output to last a day for average usage. The speakers are loud for music and movies playback. The phone weights 128 grams and with wireless cover some extra 50-60 grams. The pack also includes Nokia Stereo headsets WH-108 which are old designed (not in-ear ones) but the sound quality is nice but they gives cracking sound if moves around a lot as the wire is very thin between the connector and the ear buds. The phone takes micro SIM and has volume buttons on the side. It has Windows 8 operating system and touch screen is fast and responsive.

 The setup was fast and quick if you have an outlook, live, windows or hotmail account. It integrates with all the preinstalled apps and makes the phone work perfectly great. You can quickly go to Microsoft Apps store and install necessary apps like Whatsapp, Viber, Skype (Lumia 720 has front facing camera), WeChat, Facebook, Gmail etc etc. It has dual core 1ghz Qualcomm Snapdragon S4 processor which works fine with 512mb RAM.

The wireless plate (DT-900) comes with it's own energy efficient power supply with a long 1.8m cable to keep it always connected to the power plug. You just need to put the phone over the same and the led glows white.

The charging cover has pins which gets inserted into the touch points on the back of the phone and makes this whole thing work. 

HERE Maps app brings a lot of maps functionality with offline guidance capabilities also. 

The sound quality of the phone is loud and awesome. The camera is also nice for starters considering the other new models have better ones. Overall the phone is really nice and has a lot of good features. I bought the same for my dad and considering his skills and needs, it will be a major upgrade to his earlier Nokia phones. 

The Windows 8 OS makes this model really good and I was unable to spend more time with it as I had to send it to India very next day of my purchase but I will really want to review more of the Nokia Lumia devices.

Cheers!!!

Contact me for your product's review on twitter @araijain or @thelifesway or email - thelifesway@gmail.com

Twitter Goodies - Incredible Connection #Selfie Contest

Hi Guys,

I have been in South Africa since Nov 2013 and was really missing all the competitions and winnings that I used to do in India, so I thought of trying out the Twitter space here. I started following various brands and companies I was aware of and came across @IncConnection . It's a electronic retail store here and is always active on social media space. They launched a contest on the occasion of Valentine's week to send them selfies with the people you love. My selfie with my daughter fetched me "ON THE SPOT" Award and I received these awesome goodies. A Flexible LED Light for laptops and an Ouann multimedia headset with microphones. 

Flexible LED was in my wish list from many a days so I felt really great to receive the same.But as you know, I love headphones and these ones are not that great of the likes of Sennheiser or Sony or Skull Candy that I have already in my kitty.

It was my first win here in South Africa and I really thank Incredible Connection for the same. 

Cheers!!!