To the majority of outsiders, the beautiful southern city of Queenstown is synonymous with thrilling, blood-pumping adventure filled activities. From the bungee jumps, jet boats, canyon swings and a whole lot more, there’s a reason this town has earned the label of ‘Adventure Capital of the World’. However, don’t let this moniker fool you into […]
As the much discussed Facebook-to-Meta transition rolls on, kernels of information continue to be revealed giving us a clearer picture of how the platform is going to look when it’s all said and done. While we know that Meta and its figurehead Mark Zuckerberg have their feet squarely planted in the realm of virtual and augmented reality, it remains to be seen how the company plans […]
Look, even if you’ve never been to Wellington in your entire life, at the very least you’ll likely associate the city with one or both of its two defining natural features; the wind and/or the hills. Yes, the country’s capital has so many other great things going for it, but in order to enjoy the city’s many pleasures the locals must learn to endure that darn wind and those hellish […]
When you wander into an ‘op shop’ or stroll through a flea market while out on a Sunday walk, chances are you’re probably not expecting to make a life-changing discovery. You might come across a few great finds; maybe a cool retro jacket or an interesting old piece of furniture worth taking home, but your expectation isn’t to come across something worth five, […]
Recently I’ve been seeing a concerted effort online to start brandishing the “Web 3.0” stick and waving it around at everything trending. We’ve been waiting for this day since we first settled on what Web 2.0 meant. So what is it, and should you care? Well, eventually you’re going to be interacting with it on […]
I know for a fact that my wife has already bought me some new briefs for Christmas as a stocking stuffer and it shames me to know that she didn’t splash out on the good stuff. So consider this quick article a PSA to anyone else out there looking to refresh their top drawer this […]
Hacker Geoffrey Huntley made waves in the tech world recently when he released The NFT Bay, a gigantic art project/trolling of the NFT community in the style and trappings of the Pirate Bay with blessedly less porn popups. Essentially the project has scraped 15 terabytes of ostensibly NFT images and collected them all in one […]
Have you considered this employee benefit for your business? Finding and retaining great staff: As any business owner will attest, it is perhaps one of the most – if not the most – important aspects of running a successful venture. But as with all important things, it certainly can be challenging. Particularly in a tight […]
When it comes to riling up people on the internet nowadays, Elon Musk clearly reigns supreme as the world’s most polarising poster. The Tesla CEO and intermittent world’s richest man has taken over the mantle from the banished former President Trump and the calmed entertainer Kanye West as Twitter’s most conspicuous user. While much of Musk’s Twitter output is either sharply satirical or just downright silly, when he […]
One of the trickiest areas for parents nowadays is deciding when it’s the right time to put one of those mind-controlling devices we call a cell phone into their kid’s hands. Is 10 years old too young? Probably, but chances are their ‘cool’ friend has one already and if everyone else is doing it, what’s the worst that could happen, right? But if that wasn’t enough, the conundrum seems as though it […]
According to a new release from Luxury Car manufacturer Rolls-Royce, they have just brought the world its fastest all-electric aircraft. Dubbed The Spirit of Innovation, the aircraft hit 555.9km/h, over 213.04 km/h faster than the previous record. The previous record was set back in 2017 by the Siemens eAircraft powered Extra 330 LE Aerobatic aircraft. […]
You spend a third of your life sleeping. This is a fact used to justify you spending ridiculous amounts of money on mattresses that don’t wobble you awake when you partner is rolling around. Well, you spend almost your entire life with teeth in your head, so maybe you should consider spending two thirds more […]
The Festive Season offers some of the most anticipated cooking moments of the year, and Le Creuset is proud to be at the centre of many Christmas traditions. This timeless and iconic cookware will elevate any dish you want to create for your family and friends. If you’re looking for quality cookware, look for the […]
You need good tools on hand to make good food. We’ve highlighted a lot of premium kitchenware recently, from pots and cutlery to coffee makers. To top off the collection we want to highlight Kenwood’s MultiPro Express Weigh+, which is an entire toolkit in its own right. Save yourself the hassle of needing a pair […]
If you’re looking for a coffee machine that’s as flexible as your taste buds, then the Nespresso Vertuo Next should be a top consideration. If you feel like sharing a pour-over style coffee with family in the morning, a double shot Flat White after lunch and a Long Black this afternoon, Vertuo Next has you […]
My favourite thing about the LG A9T Ultra All-In-One Tower Handstick Vacuum Cleaner isn’t how long its name is, it’s the short work it makes of cleaning up the house. This thing as an absolute beast of a vacuum. It’s cordless, meaning you aren’t going to doing any extra vacuuming for all the side tables […]
Get on the hype train losers, we’re going shopping for NFT’s. Is it a bubble? Most certainly it is. Will a bunch of suckers be left carrying the bag? Absolutely! Do we want to miss out? Well according to my boss, I have to write this so let’s have a look at the hottest NFT […]
1836 was a very interesting year; the Battle of the Alamo happened in Texas; Charles Darwin returned on the HMS Beagle with its hold stuffed full of biological goodies he would use to base his Theory of Evolution on; and Adelaide was founded in Australia. Across the globe, another venerable institution opened its doors too, […]
I got the great opportunity recently to take the Huawei FreeBuds 4 for a whirl ahead of their November 19th drop. The bottom line for everyone who just needs a quick recommendation: They’re comfortable, the audio is ridiculously good and they’re super shiny. Huawei has been delivering a strong line of audio products over this […]
There’s nothing sexier than clothes that will outlive you. Vollebak’s Mars Jacket fits perfectly into that category, with everything about it being form following function. It’s made out of five layers of aluminised Mylar, with a surface layer of Teflon, Kevlar and Nomex. The outer shell has ballistic nylon used in flak jackets, making it […]
Hot off the back of Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings, newly forged star Simu Liu has treated himself to a new home in Los Angeles. Bought in the unpretentiously named Mount Olympus neighbourhood, the $5 million mansion spans around 4,700 square feet and comes with five bedrooms and six bathrooms, in case […]
The last few years, both at home and abroad, have been rife with democratic controversies that have had the world up in arms. After all, I think we’re all still recovering from the tireless, headache-inducing news cycle from the US Presidential election last year. However, all others pale in comparison to the stunning reverberations that went […]
2021 has been a complicated year for a lot of sectors, but one industry that has undeniably seen massive progress is the aerospace industry. I’m not sure exactly how many groundbreaking launch stories we’ve covered here over the past 12 months, but it seems every week we get a new piece of news regarding another major success or development in the aerospace world. This week […]
The fashion industry has long been known for perpetuating ideal body image myths on the catwalks, then following up by profiting off the insecurities they created. The winners of course are the big name fashion and underwear brands. What this leads to is a raft of self-confidence issues – and not just for women, but […]
At the beginning of the year, Beeple made headlines around the world for selling a digital artwork for $69 Million. That $69 million was spent by a crypto investor who has ties to NFTs and crypto platforms of his own. You couldn’t get better advertising if you spent that money on billboards and TV commercials. […]
As you’ve probably noticed if you’re a regular follower, here at M2 we simply can’t resist a random brand crossover, from the predictably cool (such as Ray Bans collaboration with Facebook on smart glasses) to the wonderfully weird (TAG Heuer’s bizarre Super Mario watch link up). It’s fitting that, in the era dominated by Marvel […]
Motor-racing is a fascinating industry, as it is not only a ground for incredible feat of sporting achievements, but a ground ripe for awesome feats of innovation in engineering. One only needs to pay notice to the ways Formula One cars have evolved over the years to understand the seemingly limitless possibilities that the motor-racing industry offers forward-thinking engineers. Of course, to this point, one […]
For as long as we have been conscious of the effects of petrol emissions have on our environment, gas guzzling pick up trucks have been squarely in the cross hairs of environmentalists looking to see changes implemented. As a result, EV manufacturers have been doing their part to change the narrative and make sure the beloved model survives the ongoing transition from gas […]
A wise man once said, “A man in possession of a pair of pants must be in want of a belt”. While we cannot confirm the identity of this man or follow up for further comment, his words are undoubtedly true; a great pair of pants without an equally great belt is a piece incomplete. […]
Words by Senior Fire Fighter Josh Darby, First Responders While many firefighters are motivated to join the service for noble reasons, such as a desire to serve their communities, my motivation was quite different – I wanted to get out of school! At 16 years of age, the local volunteer fire brigade, situated on a […]
If there’s one thing we’ve learned about modern tech companies in the last few years, it’s that they aren’t satisfied doing just one thing. The neverending carousel of major players copycatting each other in a desperate effort to seize control over our dollars and attention spans keeps on spinning and shooting out products that look suspiciously like ones we’ve seen before or are already using. It’s not […]
Full time Internet Troll, meme connoisseur, and billionaire Elon Musk took to Twitter this week to pick the hive minds brain about whether he should sell some Tesla stock to pay his taxes. “Much is made lately of unrealized gains being a means of tax avoidance, so I propose selling 10% of my Tesla stock. […]
It’s said that a business is always a reflection of its leadership. So, a CEO who has been given no mandate to grow his or her business from the shareholders will always cultivate a culture of conservatism within the company. On the other hand, a CEO who has been given a free hand is far […]
Congratulations, you’ve made it to November! While we’ll admit it’s been a pretty tough road to get here and the circumstances are less than ideal this year, November is still our favourite month of the year, because it marks the release of our annual M2 Man of the Year issue. The MOTY issue allows us to highlight one exceptional Kiwi man who has gone above and beyond in 2021, […]
Premium audio specialists B&O have created a true work of art, befitting anyone who enjoys both good music and good vibes. It’s so retro cool you’ll be painting your lounge orange and browns and dusting off your bell bottoms. What we have here is the Beosystem 72-22. The 72 denotes the release date of the […]
When I get wheeled into sales meetings – kind of like an uncharismatic Denny Crane – I have a habit of derailing the conversation with unfiltered dad jokes. But in my defence, I think I redeem myself when talking both about our content mix and our audience – both connected by a philosophical strand of […]
Lee Jung-jae, along with his co-star HoYeon Jung, have been launched to international stardom with the breakout hit Squid Game premiering on Netflix. In the show, Jung-jae looks pretty lovable and shaggy, but for this shoot you can see what makes him popular at home in South Korea. If I need to tell you what […]
This issue we review something new, something old and something you must do in 2022. Gone Tomorrow By Lee Child First up, we continue our review of classic Jack Reacher novels, this time number 13 of the series, from 2009. Unlike later books where Reacher’s adventures happen in small Midwest towns and counties of America, […]
When we think of the first pictures of space, we generally think of the greatest hits like the Blue Marble, maybe a footprint on the moon. We don’t consider that the first photo from space was taken just a year after World War II had finished on a captured Nazi V-2 Rocket. Launched on October […]
While we’ve certainly checked off a lot of boxes on the ‘gadgets of the future’ list in the last few years, we’re still not quite living in a world with robot servants catering to our every whim. However, Tesla are seemingly intent on papering that gap and we recently got our first look at their […]
Keanu Reeves has a reputation as an all round nice guy to uphold, and it has once again been bolstered by social media snaps his stunt team from John Wick have chucked online. He has a five man stunt team that help make him look like an absolute bad ass on screen. Apparently they put […]
Last Night In Soho – In Cinemas 11 Nov As a director, Edgar Wright is a certified genius. He’s never missed. From his Cornetto Trilogy (Shaun of the Dead, Hot Fuzz, The World’s End), to his musically inclined trips through Baby Driver and Scott Pilgrim Vs. The World. He just knows how to layer his […]
We catch up with Guillaume Dehan, Founder & CEO of Supergenerous, to talk about success, his morning routine and what makes him tick. What’s your morning routine? I kick off the day with a HIIT session early in the morning (I recently joined the cult of F45 and am loving it), then get ready and […]
Cutting Edges Jérémie Heitz set himself the challenge of skiing 15 of the steepest slopes in the world, paired with his mountain guide Sam Anthamatten. For their expeditions, they were also trailed by one of the hardiest documentary film crews in the business, Sherpas Cinema. For this latest trip, the team hit Peru and Pakistan […]
Joe Naufahu is not only one of our most accomplished actors whose career has include roles on Games Of Thrones, Head High and My Life is Murder New Zealand. But the ex-rugby player also runs Auckland gym Ludus Magnus. And while he might but living multiple lives, Joe just rolls with the punches while always […]
Over the years, we have M2 Man Of The Year winners from a range of areas of excellence and impact from business, environmental, social, sporting, entertainment, technology and even rocket science. But the M2 Man of the Year 2021 winner, Allbirds Co-Founder Tim Brown, has had a journey that intersects many of the areas. His […]
As we arrive at the end of the year, we can look back, dust off our hands and tell ourselves, “Wow I sure did get nothing done while the rest of the world went down in flames”. It’s been both a glacial and quick year, as the months disappear into various lockdowns and level announcements. […]
I was just a kid when the Twin Towers fell. I was at a friend’s house and the family was evangelical enough to believe that TV was the devil. They managed to conjure one out of somewhere though. It was early morning and we squinted through the poor reception of the Television at repeating images […]
Our world has become a small one, made of lightly jostling bubbles. Time moves quicker than usual, but in the moment, it’s at a snail’s pace. This new insular world we’ve created for ourselves is due to an even smaller world of microorganisms that inexplicably have the power to ravage our civilisation. They’re small, but […]
Harking all the way back to the rugged prehistoric Stone Age, as a way to prevent cavemen from catching the ol’ bojangles on bushes or pesky branches whilst off hunting wooly mammoths, the modest (and very practical) underwear has and will always be one of humankind’s earliest and greatest inventions. Like most pioneering miracles, the […]
One of the many great wonders Mother Nature provides us with is the gradual, graceful changing of the seasons. As we travel in time from the glowing warmth of spring to the blazing delight of summer to the crisp modesty of autumn to the piercing chill of winter, the colours and textures around us morph […]
We’ve compiled our top pick’s for the dad, brother, friend or other man in your life. Here is the M2 2021 Christmas Gift Guide. Montblanc Explorer Ultra Blue When you give a gift, remember first impressions count. In that regard, the Montblanc Explorer Ultra Blue comes out the gates swinging with its bottle assembled by […]
Fluid volumes and streamlined shapes create a voluminous non formal look in Zegnas latest Summer 2022 collection. “My aim at Zegna is to create an accord between the essence of tailoring, which is our reason for being, and the rhythm of the modern world. What I have done is a rewiring of luxury crafting, following […]
Let’s imagine a future where structural integrity is no longer a consideration of industrial design. Let’s imagine a world where Jeff Bridges is King. Let’s imagine Dust, the Tesla Electric Motorcycle. Designed by industrial designer Nazar Eisa, the Tesla Dust is the eternal impossible dream of designers everywhere after watching Tron: Legacy exactly once. It...
On my way to Rolls-Royce Motor Cars Auckland in Newmarket, I was making a mental note of road widths, corner angles, gradients and traffic, mapping out a safe route for my test drive with the 2021 Rolls-Royce Black Badge Cullinan. I was going through this exercise because the 2.7-tonne SUV is technically speaking, a beast […]
Imagine a future where with nothing but a thought, you could turn up the radio, open your windows, or change the lighting. We kind of forget that Brain interfaces aren’t actually science fiction anymore. There are setups that allow for basic utility within VR gaming, and the tech is already being used as a viable […]
“Your most unhappy customers are your greatest source of learning.” – Bill Gates, founder and CEO Microsoft “So often people are working hard at the wrong thing. Working on the right thing is probably more important than working hard.” – Caterina Fake, co-founder Flickr “The fastest way to change yourself is to hang out with […]
Age Is Just A Number SRW Laboratories, the company that brought us the Cellular System Range, a range of supplements that support healthy aging at a cellular level, brings us another innovative product, which is a New Zealand first. The DNAage is an at-home epigenetic, saliva-based DNA test kit, which is conveniently boxed up, delivered […]
One of the world’s most sought after performance coaches, Owen Eastwood, (Ngāi Tahu) has made a global impact across a number of fields by drawing on the universal human need to belong and tapping further into the idea of Whakapapa and an “unbroken and unbreakable chain of people who share a sacred identity and culture.” […]
The COVID-19 pandemic has brought a whole new meaning to the phrase ‘change is only constant’. Living and working in these times of radical uncertainty where the impacts of COVID are still rampant across the globe including supply chain issues, talent shortages, and just the sheer lack of resources, means that we need to prepare […]
It seems we all self-sabotage, but how much it is impacting our success depends on the scale that each of us is doing this. There are literally hundreds of ways you could self-sabotage, but most of them are caused by similar reasons. So, let us look at the five big reasons why we end up […]
Four times Extreme Kayaking World Champion and Rotorua local, Sam Sutton, describes the lessons that have come from going past the point of no return in kayaking, the relevance for life in general and seizing opportunities with full commitment. True to this, Sam seems to be living multiple lives. While not much past 30, he […]
The Registered Master Builders House of the Year awards celebrate the very best in residential building across New Zealand. This prestigious competition is judged by a team of experts who score each property on its workmanship, design, functionality and style – and award quality standards based on that score. The Gold quality standard is 80% […]
While single malt whisky might generally be considered to be the bee’s knees (technically speaking) compared to blended, the category has only really been around since the early 1960s. Prior to this, Scotland’s commercial whisky industry was based on blended whisky. As a bit of context to the difference between single malt and blended, there […]
Port Is In, By that, we mean Port is in everything you’re going to be drinking and gifting these holidays. These last two years have been one long sameness, and everybody is looking for a change. A change of scene, a change of job (so many of my friends are in new gigs now, in […]
We have a ridiculous amount of tech for you this issue, covering everything from stock trackers to earbuds. Rock Solid Storage Finally a portable SSD with WIFI for manly men. You can be digging your 4×4 out of a ditch and never be more than a few swipes away from accessing 8TB of data. The […]
Time to sink 1000+ hours into a title with no regrets. Forza Horizon 5 5 November Horizon is the breath of fresh air that I’ve always needed in a racing sim. Sure, it’s more on the arcadey side of things but exploring Mexico, checking off events, and blasting down kilometres of fencing is just such […]
I spend a lot of my time here at M2 reviewing things. It only seems right that I apply this same method of review to my own son, who I received just over a month ago. As of six weeks ago, I received a review unit of a baby to keep. This is fine since […]
Since first picking up a camera at 14, Rotorua local, Graeme Murray, has made a world renowned career out of photography. From portraiture to still life, from action to landscape photography, from ocean to mountain to studio, Murray’s work inspires the world. And he does a lot of it from his base in Rotorua which […]
We’re almost ready to put another year in the books which means it’s time for our favourite recurring M2 tradition; adding another name to the annuls of history with our M2 Man of the Year 2021. For those uninitiated, our Man of the Year issue highlights one Kiwi man who has flown higher in their field than any other over the calendar year. The Man of the Year search does not […]
Believe it or not, if you are reading this, and you manage your investment property privately, you have probably experienced at least one of the following reasons as to why a professional agency is contracted to manage a private property. Over the last 5-6 years, and especially within the last few years, the industry has changed significantly. The recent […]
It’s the year to invest in commercial real estate and there are countless reasons why, writes Property Brokers Commercial Sales Consultant Ulf Fuhrer. For many residential property investors, commercial real estate presents as a risky, complicated and costly option. This couldn’t be further from the truth. With the right knowledge and support, investing in commercial […]
Keeping up with phone trends can at times feel like an impossible task. Few industries move on faster than the smartphone industry, with the constant evolutions in hardware and software features proving tricky for the casual consumer to track. The latest emerging trend is one that might look familiar to a lot of readers, as it is not dissimilar to an iconic bygone trend which […]
This century has thus far been an incredible time for innovation and has produced some of the most groundbreaking solutions to human problems the world has ever seen. But there’s one problem that for decades has haunted humans all over the world and has befuddled even the world’s greatest minds. That is, of course, the question of how the heck am I supposed to drink this delicious, chilled glass of orange […]
While it isn’t from lack of trying, the long anticipated ‘hoverbike’ has yet to find a mainstream foothold in our transport landscape, even among the society’s elite who could probably afford to maintain one. It appears that the logistics behind bringing the science fiction staple into reality might be a bit more complicated than the movies might’ve had you believe. We’ve seen a few examples here […]
If you’re worried about getting presents in from overseas to people in time for Christmas, you have good cause. Those good old Covid restrictions have stretched the world’s supply chain systems to breaking point – is there nothing they can’t ruin? – so this year it might be wiser to buy local. This will ensure […]
Summer is fast approaching and with it (hopefully) the loosening of restrictions and the return of backyard hangouts with friends, family, neighbours and honestly, just about anyone who will hang out with us as we’ve been deprived of human contact for some damn long. At the same time, while movie theaters around the country are back in business and Auckland cinemas will likely […]
