Editor
Jodee Tan chevron_right
Welcome to our first episode of Tapau, a collective ProductNation web newsletter run by the editors and their ADHD brains, where we share with you about anything and everything worth your time. This is also a space for our creativity to run free, so all support for this project will be appreciated & well-loved.
Tapau ("daa-pow") means takeaway in the Malaysian context, borrowed from the Mandarin language. In every episode, we hope you takeaway at least one piece of information you find helpful, whether it's a tech or gossip news!
If you find something interesting to explore, please reach out to us at [email protected]!
What's Up
This section is where we talk about stories most people should know about.
January 2025 is fresh out of the oven and we're starting to see interesting developments around Malaysia. There's the new MyBorderPass app that lets you use QR codes to go through immigration at KLIA in just 10 seconds, KTM's MySawasdee train that travels between Malaysia and Thailand for RM95 (one-way) is a hit, and Maybank's new Money Lock, a scam-proof feature, lets you lock a customised amount of cash which you can only access via ATM or Maybank branches.
There's also the sad reminder that inflation is hitting us in the face again, with University Malaya Medical Center raising their patient fees (consultations from RM5 to RM15).
Tech Tarik
GIF by Giphy / Source from Chamelo Sunglasses
If you want interesting tech updates worth your time, Tech Tarik is where you can get ahead with the latest news.
- Lenovo's new AI PC, the Lenovo Yoga Slim 7i Aura Edition, is now in Malaysia from RM7,499. What caught our attention is its Smart Share feature, which allows you to quickly transfer files between phones and computers.
- The annual Consumer Electronics Show (CES 2025) has a lot of interesting tech that caught our attention. Our favourite is the colour-changing sunglasses!
- Adding onto that, we discovered that Samsung has a C-Lab (creativity lab) programme that nurtures startups, showcasing at CES 2025. The most intriguing idea we read about was Ghostpass, an authenticator system that stores your biometric info in your smartphone. It sounds simple until you realise you can leave your phone behind. Authenticator machines used in public spaces will retrieve your information from the cloud to allow you access instead.
- HONOR Magic7 Pro will be the first smartphone to have a pre-installed Google Gemini app on their devices soon! We foresee more AI smart devices this 2025 year. Productivity will be the forefront of the AI scene and AI smartphones would be a good starting point to your AI journey.
Living & Breathing
It's time to unwind. Here's where we share lifestyle discoveries and whatnots.
It's the new years and we're determined to get back in shape after the holidays. "Unfortunately" we're starting to receive invitations to Hari Raya Buffets in Klang Valley and it's not even Chinese New Year yet!
- One World Hotel's upcoming Raya buffet was massive. I was particularly overwhelmed by the choices because, it's a continental-style buffet with emphasis on local food.
- Despite its high price, it's really the perfect buffet for every pick-eater in your family. We really like their curries and beef soup, so take the chance to visit if you can.
We also recently gave away an ASUS ROG keyboard, where the winner could choose any keycap and switch setup they want. Our video editor did an ASMR video on this (above), and now we wish we were the winner (/curses).
The winner's choices were:
- Switchlab Sakuya Cherry (Dye sub PBT keycaps)
- Geon x Haimu RAW Linear switches
- The result is a beautiful black and white design with a minor touch of red
If you think you're lucky, make sure to join our giveaways next time!
Here's a random reflection corner you obviously didn't ask for.
I'm constantly thinking about how to live a simpler life I can appreciate. The digital world is very taxing on mental health.
- Instead of cakes, I have been asking for Birthday croissants since 2023. So far, still waiting for a good time to go back to KLCG because they're always packed (please tell us where to go for good croissants!).
- There's the recent "post your year's worth of every month" trend. I don't join trends often but I thought this was a good way to be reflective.
- I'd like to take this moment to talk about the Californian wild fires that spared no one including celebrities, which went uncontrollable due to droughts and the fury winds of Santa Ana. Malaysia is blessed that wild fires don't happen this way.
- With our rich forest biodiversity, I hope everyone takes part in sustainable practices that reduces waste, as Malaysia only uses matured trees for production, and takes part in replanting younger saplings. Excess waste does contribute to cutting trees that are not ready to go yet.
That's all for our first episode. I must say, credit where credit's due, this series is inspired by The Verge's newsletters. We're hoping to do this as frequent as we can for now. Any suggestions that you have, do let us know!
[Cover image credit sources: Expedia & Chamelo Sunglasses]