News: Mobile News

Apple Watch gets reformulated, non-patent-infringing blood oxygen monitoring

Thu, 14 Aug 2025 18:38:28 +0000

Feature had been removed from US Apple Watches after Apple lost a patent fight.

Vitals tracking on the Apple Watch Series 10.

Credit: Apple

In early 2024, Apple removed a blood oxygen monitoring feature from its then-current Apple Watch Series 9 and Ultra 2 watches, following a ruling that the feature violated light-based pulse oximetry patents from a California-based company called Masimo. Removing the feature allowed Apple to circumvent an import ban and continue selling the Series 9 and Ultra 2 (and, later, the Series 10) in the US.

Today, Apple announced that it's restoring a version of the blood oxygen monitoring feature to affected Series 9, Series 10, and Ultra 2 watches. Apple says these updates were "enabled by a recent U.S. Customs ruling."

The feature has been redesigned, presumably to get around the Masimo patents that prompted the import ban in the first place. Apple says that sensor data from your watch will be sent to your iPhone for processing, and you can find the data in the Respiratory section of the Health app on your phone. The old version of the feature allowed results to be viewed directly on the Apple Watch, as shown in Apple's documentation.

The redesigned version of the feature will be available on the Apple Watch Series 9, Series 10, and Ultra 2 after users install the watchOS 11.6.1 update on their watches and the iOS 18.6.1 update on their paired iPhones.

Apple says that watches outside the US won't be affected by the update, since they were never subject to the US import ban in the first place. It also won't affect Apple Watches purchased in the US before the import ban went into effect—Apple never removed the feature from watches it had already sold, so if you bought a Series 9 or Ultra 2 watch in the fall of 2023 or if you're still using an older watch with the blood oxygen monitoring feature, the updates won't change anything for you.

Masimo originally sued Apple over the blood oxygen monitoring feature in January of 2020. According to Masimo, Masimo and Apple had initially met in 2013 to talk about a potential partnership or acquisition, but Apple instead poached Masimo's engineers to implement the feature on its own without Masimo's involvement.

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Posted Friday 15 August 2025 at 4:36 am AEST (my time).

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Another Pixel 10 leak points to wireless Qi2 charging

Thu, 14 Aug 2025 02:48:28 +0000

It looks like Google’s rumored ‘Pixelsnap’ case could come with a ring for magnetic charging.

We’re just one week away from Google’s Pixel 10 launch event, but the steady stream of leaks shows no sign of stopping. Now, new leaked images shared by Dutch outlet NieuweMobiel show what looks like Google’s rumored “Pixelsnap” cases with a ring in the center, hinting at support for the Qi2 wireless charging standard.

Bringing Qi2 magnetic charging to the Pixel 10 would be a pretty big deal. Among Android phones, only the HMD Skyline comes with the built-in magnets to fully support Qi2 magnetic charging, while “Qi2 Ready” phones like Samsung’s newest foldables rely on magnetic cases to make them Qi2-compatible.

Image: NieuweMobiel

This latest leak aligns with another leak we saw last month, which showed the Pixel 10 what appears to be a wireless charging puck. As shown by NieuweMobiel, the new Pixel 10 cases could come in blue, black, green, and light blue, while the Pixel 10 Pro and Pro XL could have gray, green, and white options.

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Posted Thursday 14 August 2025 at 12:47 pm AEST (my time).

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Google posts an official look at the Pixel 10 Pro Fold

Wed, 13 Aug 2025 07:40:41 +0000

It looks like the leaks — and like the Pixel 9 Pro Fold.

Google’s next Pixel launch event doesn’t happen until next week, but the company has already announced the Pixel 10 Pro Fold with a brief video teaser published on Tuesday. Based on the video, the new Fold will closely resemble the Pixel 9 Pro Fold — though that’s not a huge surprise, based on what’s already leaked about the device.

The 30-second teaser includes a few shadowy glimpses of the new device, a peek at the unfolded inner display, and a solid look at the back of the foldable and its camera system. The teaser also shows that the phone will come in the nice gray color that Google has already shown in a similar video for a Pixel 10.

Google’s Pixel 10 Pro Fold video doesn’t include any specs, unfortunately, though the phone is rumored to have an IP68 rating that would make it dustproof. Leaks have also shown the phone in green and gold colors that aren’t in this video. And while the video’s description includes the August 20th Pixel 10 event date, the video doesn’t say when the phone might actually be released — and a report from WinFuture indicates that may not happen until October.

Fortunately, with Google’s event just over a week away, we don’t have to wait too much longer to get all the details.

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Posted Wednesday 13 August 2025 at 5:39 pm AEST (my time).

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WhatsApp finally adds a useful photo feature for Android users

Sat, 09 Aug 2025 17:25:35 +0000

WhatsApp is rolling out a new feature to share motion photos in chats, groups, and channels in the latest beta (version 2.25.22.29) for Android. The feature allows users to send photos that have short bursts of movement and sound.

This is not the first time we've heard about this feature, WABetaInfo reports that it was under development in version 2.25.8.12, but now more beta testers are starting to get it. If you're a beta tester but don't have it yet, it may take a few weeks to roll out for you.

Motion photos are made possible by including a recording of the moments before and after a picture is taken, including the audio. They make for more dynamic content than a static image thanks to the movement and audio which makes it a bit more immersive. It can also help users relive memories more vividly compared to a static photo.

By including the ability to send motion photos right in WhatsApp, it eliminates the need for users to have third-party apps to share this type of content. WABetaInfo says that devices from Samsung (Motion Photo) and Google Pixel (Top Shot/Motion Photos) can already capture this type of content. It also notes that Pixel Pro users may need to temporarily disable the 50MP high-resolution mode to use the Top Shot feature.

When you select a motion photo from the gallery, users will be able to choose to send it in dynamic mode or convert it into a static photo. To do this, you can use the drawing editor to easily convert between motion photo and static. This gives users more control over how they share their content. If you do send it as a motion photo, a small motion icon in the top-left corner of the thumbnail will help recipients identify that the image contains movement and sound.

Source and image via WABetaInfo

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Posted Sunday 10 August 2025 at 3:24 am AEST (my time).

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Microsoft killing its free highly rated document scanner app soon this year

Fri, 08 Aug 2025 18:17:57 +0000

As you probably already know, Microsoft is ending support for Windows 10 very soon, this October. The OS turned 10 last month, but it is not the only decade-old Microsoft feature that is going out of support soon.

The company has announced that it is also retiring the Microsoft Lens , which is in fact, a year older than Windows 10 as this scanner app (for documents and more) debuted back in March 2014 on the Windows Phone. At the time, it was known as the "Office Lens" app, and Microsoft released it for Android and iOS too, about a year later.

Later in 2021, the app was renamed to Microsoft Lens, and over on both the Google Play Store and Apple App Store, the software is very highly rated with it being one of the best-rated free Microsoft apps on both fronts.

Unfortunately, for those that use it, the tech giant notes that it will retire the Microsoft Lens mobile app for iOS and Android in phases beginning September 15 2025, and this will carry on till the end of the year.

After December 15, 2025, Microsoft says that users will not be able to create new scans, though their existing files will stay available in the MyScans folder without further support.

The full phase-out timeline is given below:

Mid-September 2025: Retirement process begins.
Mid-October 2025: New installs of Microsoft Lens will be disabled in the Apple App Store and Google Play Store.
Mid-November 2025: Microsoft Lens will be removed from app stores.
Mid-December 2025: Users will no longer be able to create new scans in the Microsoft Lens app.

If you are wondering about a replacement, you would be absolutely correct if you had guessed it would be some Copilot app, as after all, that is what seems to take the front seat these days.

As such, for document scanning going forward, Microsoft recommends the Scan feature in the Microsoft 365 Copilot app as it "will continue to invest in new features and improvements" there. The Scan feature on the Microsoft 365 Copilot app on Android now supports scanning text in Word, tables in Excel, and more. The company notes that new scans saved to OneDrive can be accessed under MyCreations in the Copilot app.

For those who have access to the Microsoft 365 Admin Center portal, they can find the message under ID MC1131064.

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Posted Saturday 9 August 2025 at 4:16 am AEST (my time).

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Google Takes Aim at Apple's AI Missteps in Hilarious New Pixel 10 Advertisement

Fri, 08 Aug 2025 03:12:43 +0000

Google is making the most out of Apple's bad AI situation to advertise its futuristic Pixel 10 phone.

Apple's "Think Different" and "not first, but best" have been its worst enemies in the generative AI landscape. While its competitors like Microsoft, NVIDIA, and Google are making bank in the ever-evolving category, the iPhone maker hasn't made any significant headway, save for trivial features like Writing Tools.

Last year, during the annual WWDC event, the company promised to overhaul its digital assistant Siri with a flagship and next-gen AI experience. It also unveiled Apple Intelligence, the answer to Microsoft's Copilot, OpenAI's ChatGPT, and Google's Gemini.

But it has now been well over a year and change since the iPhone maker made the promise, but it all seems to be vaporware. The company recently announced that it had delayed Apple Intelligence's launch to 2026 without an explanation.

However, this move has received backlash, with multiple users indicating that the company used false AI ads to push iPhone 16 sales. The company has landed itself on the wrong side of justice, battling the lawsuit.

More recently, Google capitalized on Apple's misfortunes with AI in a hilarious advertisement (soundtracked to Dr. Dre and Snoop Dogg's The Next Episode banger) for its upcoming flagship Pixel 10 phone (via artificial intelligence on IG😞

"If you buy a new phone because of a feature that's 'coming soon,' but it's been 'coming soon' for a full year, you could change your definition of 'soon' — or you could just change your phone."

The ad then flashed "Ask more of your phone" text alongside the launch date, which is slated for August 20, 2025. Perhaps more interestingly, the advertisement evoked a futuristic vibe with the camera roving up and down the sides of a jet black phone, the kind featured in previous Apple ad campaigns.

Apple has been building 2 versions of Apple Intelligence concurrently

In June, Apple's Senior Vice President of Software Engineering, Craig Federighi, and Apple Global VP of Marketing, Greg Joswiak, discussed the company's AI approach, highlighting the reason for Apple Intelligence's delayed launch.

As it turns out, the iPhone maker has been working on two versions of the Siri architecture simultaneously. The executives revealed that the first iteration (V1) was inferior compared to the second one (also known as V2), which boasts "a deeper end-to-end architecture that we knew was ultimately what we wanted to create, to get to a full set of capabilities that we wanted for Siri."

We realized that V1 architecture, you know, we could push and push and push and put in more time, but if we tried to push that out in the state it was going to be in, it would not meet our customer expectations or Apple standards, and that we had to move to the V2 architecture.

Apple's Senior Vice President of Software Engineering, Craig Federighi

Federighi indicated that he could share a demo of the V2 architecture in action as it's already in in-house use, but admitted that it has not reached the quality to make a great Apple feature."When we started with Apple Intelligence, we were very clear: this wasn't about just building a chatbot," he added.

To that end, it seems highly unlikely that Apple will announce the launch date of its AI strategy until it is ready to seed it.

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Posted Friday 8 August 2025 at 1:08 pm AEST (my time).

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Alleged Samsung Galaxy S26 Edge battery and thickness revealed

Wed, 06 Aug 2025 21:26:21 +0000

Earlier, it was revealed that Samsung is planning to make the Galaxy S26 Edge slimmer than this year's model. The current model, the Galaxy S25 Edge, is already thin, measuring just 5.85mm, but the S26 Edge is rumored to trim down its thickness. It was also suggested that the Galaxy S26 Edge could come with a bigger battery than the 3,900 mAh battery on the Galaxy S25 Edge.

Though one leak suggested that the battery capacity could be 4,078 mAh, reliable leaker IceUniverse appears to have sources claiming otherwise. Notably, the battery on the Galaxy S26 Edge is expected to be bigger than what was previously tipped, and possibly coming in at 4,200 mAh.

It could be really interesting to see Samsung packing a bigger battery, because one of the few criticisms that the Galaxy S25 Edge received was for the mediocre battery. While battery life is also dependent on how well Samsung optimizes the apps and other features, a few extra bits of juice won't hurt.

Coming back to the thickness, the Galaxy S26 Edge could measure just 5.5mm. If true, then this would be the same thickness as the rumored Apple iPhone 17 Air, which is also tipped to measure 5.5mm. Dummy units of the iPhone 17 Air have also appeared, showing off the ultra-slim design. Samsung might be quite curious to at least stay in line in the slimmest phone race, as this year's model will leave the company behind, if the Apple iPhone 17 Air is a thing.

Next year's S26 lineup is expected to get a big shakeup, as Samsung could merge the standard and models and introduce a Galaxy S26 Pro. So, in 2026, we may get the Galaxy S26 Pro, Galaxy S26 Edge, and the Galaxy S26 Ultra.

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Posted Thursday 7 August 2025 at 7:24 am AEST (my time).

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Latest Pixel update finally fixes button navigation issues

Wed, 06 Aug 2025 15:34:08 +0000

Google's Pixel handsets are an enticing option for people who want a more vanilla version of Android directly from Google, while also leveraging premium hardware. However, it can become annoying when your expensive phone developed firsthand by Google itself runs into software issues that remain for months. Google has now finally fixed one such problem in its Pixel devices.

A few hours ago, Google began rolling out the August update for supported Pixel devices running Android 16. Importantly, it finally fixes a bug that has existed at least since June according to The Verge. Basically, for the past month or so, many Pixel owners have been complaining that following software updates in June, the navigation buttons and gestures on their device occasionally become unresponsive.

For example, the back button in the three-button navigation system needs to be pressed multiple times before the operating system finally registers it. Google has now finally patched this problem, though it says that it only occurred under specific conditions on the Pixel 7, Pixel 7 Pro, Pixel 7a, Pixel 8, Pixel 8 Pro, Pixel 8a, Pixel Fold, Pixel Tablet, Pixel 9, Pixel 9 Pro, Pixel 9 Pro XL, Pixel 9 Pro Fold, and Pixel 9a.

In addition, the August update has also resolved a problem for the aforementioned devices where the scheduled dark theme wouldn't work as expected. There are also general system stability improvements in tow too. In addition, it also contains a patch for the high severity CVE-2025-26784 security vulnerability that permitted out-of-bounds write operations.

Overall, you should see the following software versions on the devices below after installing the August 2025 update:

Pixel 6: BP2A.250605.031.A5
Pixel 6 Pro: BP2A.250605.031.A5
Pixel 6a: BP2A.250705.008.A1
Pixel 7: BP2A.250805.005
Pixel 7 Pro: BP2A.250805.005
Pixel 7a: BP2A.250805.005
Pixel Tablet: BP2A.250805.005
Pixel Fold: BP2A.250805.005
Pixel 8: BP2A.250805.005
Pixel 8 Pro: BP2A.250805.005
Pixel 8a: BP2A.250805.005
Pixel 9: BP2A.250805.005
Pixel 9 Pro: BP2A.250805.005
Pixel 9 Pro XL: BP2A.250805.005
Pixel 9 Pro Fold: BP2A.250805.005
Pixel 9a: BP2A.250805.005

If you don't see the over-the-air (OTA) update on your Pixel device just yet, don't worry as updates are gradually rolled out in phases spanning a few days.

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Posted Thursday 7 August 2025 at 1:32 am AEST (my time).

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One UI 8 officially arrives in September, here's the likely list of eligible Galaxy devices

Wed, 06 Aug 2025 08:01:28 +0000

Samsung introduced the Android 15-based One UI 7 update in April. The company was a bit late rolling out the software due to bugs and glitches. However, Samsung quickened things up and launched the Galaxy Z Flip7, Galaxy Z Fold7, and the Galaxy Z Flip7 FE with Android 16-based One UI 8 update out of the box.

The One UI 8 public beta went live for the Galaxy S25 series in May, and now the company has officially confirmed the expansion of One UI 8 beta to more devices, such as the Galaxy S24 series, Galaxy Z Fold6, and Galaxy Z Flip6, starting next week, in Korea, the U.S., the U.K., and India. More devices, including the Galaxy S23 series, Galaxy Z Fold5, Galaxy Z Flip5, Galaxy A36 5G, Galaxy A55 5G, Galaxy A35 5G, and Galaxy A54, will pick up the beta update in September.

Additionally, Samsung has confirmed that the official One UI 8 update will roll out for flagship phones in September. Based on the features available on the One UI 8 beta update, it is more of an incremental update and smoothens things up, which One UI 7 introduced.

While Samsung hasn't shared an official list of eligible One UI 8 devices, based on the company's update policy, below is a purported list of devices that will receive the One UI 8 update:

Smartphones

Galaxy S25, Galaxy S25+, Galaxy S25 Ultra, Galaxy S25 Edge
Galaxy S24 Ultra, Galaxy S24+, Galaxy S24, Galaxy S24 FE
Galaxy S23 Ultra, Galaxy S23+, Galaxy S23, Galaxy S23 FE
Galaxy S22 Ultra, Galaxy S22+, Galaxy S22
Galaxy S21 FE
Galaxy Z Fold Special Edition
Galaxy Z Fold 6
Galaxy Z Fold 5
Galaxy Z Fold 4
Galaxy Z Flip 6
Galaxy Z Flip 5
Galaxy Z Flip 4
Galaxy A73
Galaxy A56
Galaxy A55
Galaxy A54
Galaxy A53
Galaxy A36
Galaxy A35
Galaxy A34
Galaxy A33
Galaxy A25
Galaxy A24
Galaxy A15 (LTE+5G)
Galaxy A16 (LTE+5G)
Galaxy A06
Galaxy A17
Galaxy F56
Galaxy F55
Galaxy F54
Galaxy F34
Galaxy F16
Galaxy F15
Galaxy F06
Galaxy F36
Galaxy M56
Galaxy M55s
Galaxy M55
Galaxy M54
Galaxy M34
Galaxy M53
Galaxy M33
Galaxy M16
Galaxy M15
Galaxy M06
Galaxy XCover 7
Galaxy XCover 7 Pro
Galaxy XCover 6 Pro

Tablets

Galaxy Tab S10+
Galaxy Tab S10 Ultra
Galaxy Tab S10 FE
Galaxy Tab S10 FE+
Galaxy Tab S9 FE+
Galaxy Tab S9 FE
Galaxy Tab S9 Ultra (Wi-Fi/5G)
Galaxy Tab S9+ (Wi-Fi/5G)
Galaxy Tab S9 (Wi-Fi/5G)
Galaxy Tab S8 Ultra (Wi-Fi/5G)
Galaxy Tab S8+ (Wi-Fi/5G)
Galaxy Tab S8 (Wi-Fi/5G)
Galaxy Tab A9
Galaxy Tab A9+
Galaxy Tab S6 Lite (2024)

Do note that this isn't an exhaustive list and we will keep updating it as and when more information pops up.

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Posted Wednesday 6 August 2025 at 6:00 pm AEST (my time).

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Google reportedly delays Pixel 10 Pro Fold, Watch 4 & Buds 2a launch until October

Wed, 06 Aug 2025 06:08:05 +0000

Google already confirmed that its new Pixel-branded devices will debut on August 20, with pre-orders opening just a few days later. However, according to the latest rumors, only the standard Pixel 10 models will be available shortly after launch. Those interested in the Pixel 10 Pro Fold, Pixel Watch 4, or Pixel Buds 2a may have to wait until October for availability.

According to a new report by WinFuture, citing well-informed sources, Google has faced supply chain problems and has delayed the launch of Pixel 10 Pro Fold, Pixel Watch 4, and Pixel Buds 2a to sometime in October.

Meanwhile, all of these delayed devices will be unveiled alongside the rest of the Pixel 10 models on August 20, but you should wait for a few months before getting your hands on them. The report also didn't say when the pre-order for delayed devices will be open.

Nevertheless, only the Pixel 10, Pixel 10 Pro, and Pixel 10 Pro XL will be available for purchase in stores starting August 28, just a few days after the official unveiling. The rest of the new Pixel devices are more likely to arrive on October 9, 2025.

Based on the previous reports, the Pixel 10 Pro Fold is likely to get a new, bigger display as well as IP68 certification. Changes to some internal components may have caused disruptions in Google's supply chain, though the exact reason for the delay is yet to be discovered.

This isn't the first time Google has staggered the rollout of its Pixel devices. Last year, the Pixel 9 and Pixel 9 Pro XL were unveiled on August 13 and became available for purchase on August 22. However, the Pixel 9 Pro and Pixel 9 Pro Fold didn't hit store shelves until September 4. The Pixel Watch 3 and Pixel Buds Pro 2 followed on September 10 and September 26, respectively.

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Posted Wednesday 6 August 2025 at 4:07 pm AEST (my time).

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iPhone 17 series rumored to be unveiled on September 9

Wed, 06 Aug 2025 06:06:40 +0000

Every September holds special significance for Apple enthusiasts: it's when the company unveils its latest iPhone models. As the launch of the iPhone 17 series draws closer, speculation is mounting about the exact date Apple will unveil the new devices.

The German website iPhone-Ticker might have the answer. The outlet claims internal information from German mobile phone providers shows that Apple will pull back the curtain on the iPhone 17 series on Tuesday, September 9. This means Apple's event for the latest iPhones is 35 days away.

The September 9 timeframe for unveiling the iPhone 17 series actually aligns with last year's release date for the iPhone 16 series. For comparison, the iPhone 15 models were released on September 12, and the iPhone 14 debuted on September 7. Apple never releases phones on September 11, and the reason is quite apparent.

Apple's release and preorder pattern for the iPhone 17 series also won't be different this year. After debuting the iPhones on Tuesday, September 9, preorders begin on Friday, September 12. Deliveries also start on September 19.

The US, China, Europe, and Japan are the most important markets for Apple, so customers in these areas can expect to get their hands on the iPhone 17 series sooner than anybody else.

But the iPhone 17 series might not debut alone at the upcoming September event. Apple Watch Series 11, the new Apple Watch Ultra, and the next-generation AirPods Pro are other products we expect to make a debut alongside the iPhone 17 models.

All the previous rumors surrounding the iPhone 17 series converge on one key point: a significantly redesigned back, featuring changes such as a repositioned camera module and a relocated Apple logo. An alleged iPhone 17 Pro unit was recently spotted in public, seemingly confirming the rumors about its redesigned back panel.

Apple is also rumored to replace the Plus variant in the iPhone 17 series with a so-called Air or Slim model.

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Posted Wednesday 6 August 2025 at 4:05 pm AEST (my time).

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More people are interested in buying tablets, according to latest shipment numbers

Tue, 05 Aug 2025 16:16:42 +0000

Smartphones might be more popular than tablets, but that doesn't mean there aren't enough lovers for the big-screen devices. Fresh data from the analytics firm Canalys reveals that global tablet shipments have continued their growth streak for the sixth quarter.

The firm said that the worldwide tablet shipments reached 39 million units in Q2 2025, with an annual growth rate of 9%. Europe, the Middle East, Africa, and China are among the top regions that have contributed significantly to the increased numbers. For comparison, the total number of tablet shipments in the second quarter of 2024 was 35.7 million units.

Apple kept its leading position in the tablet market by shipping 14.1 million iPads in the second quarter. The Cupertino giant was followed by Samsung (6.7 million), Huawei (3.2 million), Lenovo (3.1 million), and Xiaomi (3 million).

While it's been more than a year since new iPad Pro models arrived, Apple refreshed its cheapest tablet and iPad Air earlier this year, right before the start of the second quarter.

The tablet market was supported by consumer subsidies in China and a ramp-up in commercial tenders globally, according to the firm. It notes that gaming tablets have become a popular niche category for buyers, especially in Asia.

The tablet market benefited from new product launches in the gaming segment, like Vivo Pad5, Xiaomi Redmi K Pad (8.8-inch), and shipments for Lenovo's Legion Tab have more than doubled in consecutive quarters.

Tablets are also being marketed as a key element of the connected ecosystems that many device makers have adopted in recent years. Most of them are trailing Apple, which has been leveraging the stickiness of its ecosystem for years.

The firm also shed some light on the performance of Chromebooks and said that they are "experiencing a period of revitalization." Lenovo secured the top spot in the Chromebook shipments market share by shipping over 3.5 million units in the first half of 2025.

It notes that Japan's government-led GIGA School Program played a significant role in pushing Chromebook shipments to 11 million units, where Lenovo was one of the big partners.

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Posted Wednesday 6 August 2025 at 2:16 am AEST (my time).

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Samsung's One UI 8 beta opens up for more devices, check if your phone is getting it

Tue, 05 Aug 2025 16:14:26 +0000

Samsung has announced that it's expanding its One UI 8 beta program to more devices from next week. If you have a device from the Galaxy S24 series, a Galaxy Z Fold6, or a Galaxy Z Flip6, then you’ll be able to join in with the beta. These devices follow the rollout of the beta to the Galaxy S25 series.

The Korean smartphone maker is also placing geographic restrictions on this beta rollout, with access coming first to users in Korea, the US, the UK, and India. Following this rollout, in September, devices in the Galaxy S23 series, Galaxy Z Fold5, Galaxy Z Flip5, and several A-series phones will get the update too.

The beta program is available through the Samsung Members app for any readers who want to try it out. The official rollout of One UI 8 is planned for September, starting with the Galaxy S25 series.

The One UI 8 update focuses on a smarter, more convenient AI experience, which includes multimodal capabilities that understand real-time context. When you pair a One UI 8 device with Galaxy Buds3 or Buds3 Pro, you can activate Google’s Gemini with voice or a long-press. The update brings productivity enhancements and personalized, proactive suggestions tailored to each user.

Samsung’s beta release clearly prioritizes its newer devices, with it already being available on the S25 series and coming soon to the Galaxy S24 series, Fold6, and Flip6. Samsung’s announcement also says that One UI 8 Watch will expand to more Galaxy Watch models beyond the Galaxy Watch8 series later this year without providing specific models or dates.

If you do decide to join the beta testing, be sure to provide feedback, as your suggestions could affect the final version of the software.

Image via Depositphotos.com

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Posted Wednesday 6 August 2025 at 2:13 am AEST (my time).

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NewPipe adds support for Android Auto

Tue, 05 Aug 2025 16:13:45 +0000

NewPipe has been updated to version 0.28.0. The latest update adds support for Android Auto integration.

According to the announcement, the feature had been requested by users since 2018. In 2022, haggaie, a contributor began working on the feature. Later on, a member of NewPipe's developer team picked up the work and finished it. NewPipe says that Android Auto support was tested by many users on various cars, before the feature was added to the player.

The open source streaming front-end now lets you listen to music or podcasts from your car's interface. It also supports accessing and playing streams from your history, local playlists and bookmarked playlists. In addition to controlling the player, and the playing queue, you can also use it to search YouTube, or other services supported by the app. NewPipe for Android Auto does not support video. That's understandable, you shouldn't be distracted while driving.

NewPipe 0.28.0 also comes with customizable tabs for the main screen. Go to Settings > Content > Content of main page, and tap on the + button. Choose a channel group and add it to the feed. This will create a new tab on the main page, with a feed that has all the videos from the selected channels. The app now lets you share a local playlist as a YouTube temporary playlist. The download's panel now displays the date when videos were downloaded.

NewPipe's SoundCloud implementation now displays likes in channel and feed, and also adds support for AAC 160k streams.

Download NewPipe from the GitHub page or F-Droid, it's worth noting that the F-droid version has not been updated to v0.28.0. For a full change log, refer to the releases page on NewPipe's GitHub.

NewPipe is working on more features, including a seek chapter title preview in NewPlayer, as well as an updated UI for the audio player.

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Posted Wednesday 6 August 2025 at 2:11 am AEST (my time).

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MIT sees astonishing light-speed 6G processing with its new "100 times faster" chip

Mon, 04 Aug 2025 17:47:33 +0000

Data traffic is growing at an almost dizzying pace. Edholm’s law shows that both data rates and spectrum needs keep rising exponentially. At the same time, deep neural networks are gobbling up more computing power just as Moore’s law is slowing. This mismatch has pushed engineers to hunt for new ways to handle future networks like 6G.

A team at MIT (Massachusetts Institute of Technology) built a new AI chip designed just for wireless signals. Their device is called a multiplicative analog frequency transform optical neural network (MAFT-ONN). It works entirely in analog form on raw radio-frequency (RF) signals. In lab tests it handled modulation classification that quickly reached 95 percent accuracy. It also ran nearly four million fully analog multiply-accumulate operations to recognize handwritten digits from the MNIST (Modified National Institute of Standards and Technology) dataset.

Classical optical neural networks often hit roadblocks on scaling up and end up with a lot of extra hardware. MAFT-ONN solves this by converting signals into the frequency domain before any digitizing happens. Every layer uses a single optical processor to do both the straight-line (linear) and the more complex (nonlinear) math right on the spot. “We can fit 10,000 neurons onto a single device and compute the necessary multiplications in a single shot,” says Ronald Davis III PhD ’24.

Thanks to moving data in analog form near the Shannon capacity limit (which defines the maximum amount of information that can be transmitted over a communication channel), MAFT-ONN runs hundreds of times faster than regular RF receivers. In a single 120-nanosecond shot it hit 85 percent accuracy. By taking a few more measurements it can climb above 99 percent. “The longer you measure, the higher accuracy you will get. Because MAFT-ONN computes inferences in nanoseconds, you don’t lose much speed to gain more accuracy,” Davis adds.

Compared to digital AI chips, this photonic (since it's based on light) processor is about 100 times faster while sipping far less power. It’s also smaller, lighter, and cheaper. That makes it a natural fit for edge gadgets like cognitive radios that tweak their modulation formats in real time to push data rates higher and cut interference.

“There are many applications that would be enabled by edge devices that are capable of analyzing wireless signals. What we’ve presented in our paper could open up many possibilities for real-time and reliable AI inference. This work is the beginning of something that could be quite impactful,” says Dirk Englund, professor of electrical engineering and computer science at MIT and senior author of the paper in Science Advances.

Pushing deep-learning at light speed could help beyond wireless. It might let self-driving cars react in the blink of an eye or allow smart pacemakers to keep a constant watch on heart health. Next, the team plans to add multiplexing schemes to boost computation even more and to adapt the design for larger AI models like transformers and large language models.

Source: MIT News, Science Advances

This article was generated with some help from AI and reviewed by an editor. Under Section 107 of the Copyright Act 1976, this material is used for the purpose of news reporting. Fair use is a use permitted by copyright statute that might otherwise be infringing.

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Posted Tuesday 5 August 2025 at 3:47 am AEST (my time).

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This is Microsoft's canceled Windows-based Surface Duo — the dual-screen Windows Phone from 2018 that we never got

Sun, 03 Aug 2025 01:50:07 +0000

Surface Andromeda was the successor to Windows Phone we never got. Now, we know exactly what it would have looked like thanks to leaked images of prototype hardware from 2017 and 2018.

It's a widely known secret that Surface Duo started life as a Windows Phone, and thanks to new images, we finally have our best look yet at the now scrapped hardware and software that Microsoft was originally working on back in 2017.

Codenamed Andromeda, this dual-screen device was supposed to set the stage for a new era of Windows phones. It ran a custom version of the OS built from the ground up for this new form factor, but the project was unfortunately scrapped in 2018 after a myriad of issues and delays.

Microsoft would later tweak the hardware and recycle it as an Android device, which became the Surface Duo we know today. But the original design and vision for Andromeda was quite a bit different.

Andromeda was designed as a digital pocket notebook that could also replace your phone. It prioritized inking and pen use, differentiating it from the rest of the smartphone market considerably.

Andromeda was similar, but also different to Surface Duo.

(Image credit: GooFish.com)

Up until now, we haven't ever seen Andromeda running the version of Windows it was designed to. We've seen the Andromeda hardware before, and we've also seen the OS it was supposed to run, but never both at the same time. That has finally changed thanks to these new images.

The images were discovered in listings on Chinese commerce platform GooFish, and includes a whole bunch of prototype Andromeda hardware from 2017 and 2018. The devices are in various states of disrepair, but some of them are in working order and do run the special version of Windows that Microsoft scrapped.

These images give us a close look at the Andromeda hardware, and confirm a number of differences compared to the Surface Duo that shipped. Andromeda had a back camera system, built-in wireless charging for the Surface Slim Pen, and a metal frame that gave it a more premium feel.

(Image credit: GooFish.com)

These earlier Andromeda prototypes feature a fabric outer shell and slightly altered shape.

(Image credit: GooFish.com)

The original Surface Duo omitted all of these things. It wouldn't get a back camera system until Surface Duo 2, wireless charging for the pen only arrived via a detachable cover accessory, and the device simply never got the more premium metal frame that its older Andromeda sibling had.

My sources say that the reason for this was weight. Microsoft wanted Surface Duo to be light, and one way to shed weight was by replacing the metal frame with a plastic one. Unfortunately, plastic isn't as strong, and on a device as thin as Surface Duo, that resulted in the USB-C port cracking over time.

Andromeda also had smaller hinges, which were enlarged on Surface Duo to make them stiffer. I also understand that some Andromeda hardware had a secondary monochrome camera sensor, which was designed to help scan 3D objects. At the time, Microsoft was on a 3D kick with HoloLens and the Windows 10 Creators Update.

Interestingly, the listings on GooFish also reveal an even earlier Andromeda prototype (seen in the gallery above) that was a different shape than Surface Duo. These earlier models are slightly narrower and taller, with a home button underneath the displays and a fabric-like material on the outer shell, giving it more of a journal aesthetic.

Andromeda running Windows Core OS.

(Image credit: GooFish.com)

The version of Windows that Microsoft was developing for this hardware was also fascinating. It was built on Microsoft's new at the time Windows Core OS, and featured a universal shell that was purpose built for the dual-screen form factor.

The "home screen" was a digital journal that was always ready to ink on, letting the user jot down notes or create reminders, sticky notes, and more. Apps would run above the journal, accessed via the Start menu which could be opened by swiping from the left on the left display.

Cortana was both your digital assistant and notification center, accessed via a swipe from the right hand side of the right display. The lock screen was also a digital inking canvas, ready to be written or drawn on with the Surface Pen.

The Andromeda lock screen let you ink directly onto it.

(Image credit: GooFish.com)

The Andromeda OS effort was never finalized, so we don't really know what the final product would have been like. It's rough in a lot of areas even towards the end of the project, but at least we now know the vision behind Andromeda and its OS.

I first wrote about the Andromeda project all the way back in 2017, after teasing its codename on Twitter in 2016. It was probably the most interesting Surface device I've ever followed the development of, and its story is still yet to be told in full.

Not many people realize that the death of this device was the death of Windows Phone. While Microsoft did begin winding down the Windows 10 Mobile platform in 2017, it was supposed to be replaced with Andromeda and Windows Core OS in 2018, but that's a story for another time.

For now, let's just enjoy this last look at Microsoft's infamous Andromeda project. Do you think Andromeda would have succeeded in its original form? Let us know in the comments.

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Posted Sunday 3 August 2025 at 11:48 am AEST (my time).

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Prices leak for every Pixel 10 phone

Thu, 31 Jul 2025 18:12:54 +0000

Google’s Pixel 10 lineup might not see any major price increases this year.

We’ve already seen what every Pixel 10 model looks like, and now we might know the pricing, too. A new leak from Android Headlines suggests the base Pixel 10 with 128GB of storage will have the same $799 starting price as its predecessor, while the rest of the lineup isn’t seeing any major changes, either.

The price of the Pixel 10’s 256GB model also appears to remain unchanged, as Android Headlines lists it as costing $899. Meanwhile, the Pro-level Pixel 10 could still start at $999, jumping to $1,099 for 256GB, $1,219 for 512GB, and $1,449 for 1TB.

The Pixel 10 Pro XL is the only model that may get a small price bump, but that’s only because Google is supposedly getting rid of the 128GB model. Instead of starting at $1,099, the Pixel 10 Pro XL may cost $1,199 for 256GB of storage, which is the same price as the 256GB Pixel 9 Pro XL. The Pixel 10 Pro XL is also rumored to come in a 512GB variant for $1,319, along with a 1TB version costing $1,549, according to Android Headlines.

As for the Pixel 10 Pro Fold, Android Headlines suggests the device will start at $1,799 for 256GB of storage. It may also have the same $1,919 price tag for 512GB of storage, while the rumored 1TB option could cost $2,149.

We’re still weeks away from Google’s Pixel launch event on August 20th, but there has already been a trove of leaks — including one from Google itself — that suggest that Google is making several updates to its Pixel lineup. That includes bringing magnetic Qi2 charging to the Pixel lineup, dust-proofing the Pixel 10 Pro Fold, and adding a third camera to the base Pixel 10.

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Posted Friday 1 August 2025 at 4:12 am AEST (my time).

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Samsung Galaxy S26 Edge to pack a bigger battery, S26 Pro to follow suit

Thu, 31 Jul 2025 18:11:36 +0000

New details about the next year's Galaxy S26 lineup are already popping up in plenty. Recently, it was revealed that Samsung could introduce the fastest charging in the company's history with the S26 Ultra. Reports suggested that it may support 60W fast charging and come with a 5,000 mAh battery.

The S26 Ultra is also tipped to be slimmer, lighter, and bigger than the S25 Ultra. Similar details about the Galaxy S26 Edge have also been tipped, with claims that Samsung could make next year's Edge significantly slimmer than the S25 Edge. That's not all. The S26 Edge is also expected to pack a bigger battery despite being slimmer than this year's S25 Edge.

Now, the Dutch website GalaxyClub.nl has shared some exciting information about two of the Galaxy S26 series models. Notably, Samsung is speculated to introduce a bigger battery inside the Galaxy S26 Pro. It is worth mentioning that ongoing rumors are suggesting Samsung could merge the standard Galaxy S26 and S26 Plus models into a single model, the Galaxy S26 Pro.

This means that the Galaxy S26 series will include the Galaxy S26 Pro, Galaxy S26 Edge, and Galaxy S26 Ultra. Based on the leak, the S26 Pro will feature a 4,175 mAh battery, which will be marketed as 4,300 mAh. If true, this will be a leap from 4,000 mAh on the base Galaxy S25, which the Pro is expected to replace.

On the other hand, the leak also suggests that the Galaxy S26 Edge could get a 4,078 mAh battery. Though it isn't anything significant, it is better than the mediocre 3,900 mAh battery on the current Edge model.

For now, the charging speeds for both models are under wraps. Since this isn't official information, we would suggest you take it with a huge grain of salt. We will see more development in this regard as we inch closer to launch.

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Posted Friday 1 August 2025 at 4:10 am AEST (my time).

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This could be our very first real-world look of the upcoming iPhone 17 Pro

Tue, 29 Jul 2025 18:03:05 +0000

A lot has already been said about the upcoming iPhone 17 series. From dummy units suggesting a design change to the camera module to rumors of the selfie camera getting a boost from 12MP to 24MP and the Pro models packing bigger batteries, we've heard it all.

Fresh leaks also claim that this year, Apple will introduce an orange-ish color to the iPhone 17 Pro lineup. However, the latest leak is something that will intrigue you even more, as a potential developmental iPhone 17 Pro was spotted in the wild. But before we go further, we would like to let you know that this could very well be a false alarm, as blurry images reveal very little about the mysterious device.

An X user that goes by the name @Skyfops shared a couple of blurry images of the mysterious device, speculated to be the iPhone 17 Pro. Things got interesting when Bloomberg's Mark Gurman also reposted the same post and said, "Wow. This looks legit."

In one photo, a man wearing sunglasses can be seen holding an iPhone inside a protective case, possibly intended to disguise the design of the latest iPhone models. On the other hand, he also seems to be holding an iPhone 16 Pro with a sticker on the back, most likely a data matrix code Apple uses to track developmental iPhones issued to employees.

The big takeaway that the mysterious device is an iPhone 17 Pro is that the LiDAR scanner, LED flash, and rear microphone appear to be on the extreme right side of the camera module, which is what previous rumors have indicated. More weight gets added when a veteran like Mark Gurman also thinks that this could be legit.

The leaker also said that a different man seen in the second photo was security, trying to cover up the front of the iPhone. Take it with a big grain of salt, though.

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Posted Wednesday 30 July 2025 at 4:02 am AEST (my time).

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Another Google Pixel 6a catches fire after battery-nerfing update

Mon, 28 Jul 2025 23:07:40 +0000

Google's Battery Performance Program update was supposed to stop this.

The Pixel 6a was a widely beloved phone when it launched in 2022, offering almost all the capabilities of the more expensive Pixel 6 phones at a much lower price. Just a few years into their Pixel love affair, though, owners have been dismayed to learn that a new software update will destroy the phone's battery life. Google says the update is necessary to limit the risk of battery failure, but it would seem that in at least one case, even this heavy-handed update wasn't enough—a user has reported their up-to-date Pixel 6a recently exploded overnight.

In early July, Google's monthly Pixel patch included a major change for the Pixel 6a. Due to the risk of battery fires, Google said that devices with more than 400 charge cycles could see their capacity and charging speed drastically reduced. The company offered a pittance in Google Store credit or a free battery swap in recompense, but taking advantage of either can be a pain. This came just months after a similar update rolled out to the Pixel 4a that killed its battery due to similar fire risks.

A Redditor using the handle /u/footymanageraddict has posted photos of a pile of slag that used to be a Pixel 6a (spotted by Android Authority). This is not the first public report of a catastrophically failed battery in a 6a—a string of similar fires in the spring led Google to release this controversial update. Importantly, this phone reportedly had the battery safety update installed, which was supposed to prevent this kind of occurrence.

According to the Reddit post, the phone was plugged in to a standard USB-PD charger overnight (the OEM Steam Deck plug). The unlucky owner awoke to a burning smell and a face full of battery fumes but was able to fling the flaming phone onto the floor, where it thankfully expended its remaining energy without setting the house ablaze.

Half measures

A lithium-ion battery fire is hard to extinguish, which is why manufacturers take the risk of defective batteries so seriously. Google didn't take this one seriously enough to recall the phone, though. Pixel 6a owners are supposed to take Google's word that the "Battery Performance Program" will make the phone safe to use, even if it only lasts a few hours on a charge. It still feels like the company is doing the minimum to avoid liability.

The owner of the recently exploded phone says battery replacements are not available via retailers in their country. Shipping a phone in for a battery swap can take weeks and simply isn't an option for many people who rely on their device for communication. Google's $100 cash or $150 store credit options don't come anywhere close to covering the cost of a new phone, either.

Pixel 6a owners might be looking at their phones with more trepidation going forward. Google's half measures are forcing its customers to continue using hobbled devices that may still burst into flames, and that doesn't seem like a great way to manage the situation. We've reached out to Google for comment and will report back if we get a statement.

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Posted Tuesday 29 July 2025 at 9:06 am AEST (my time).

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5G promised a revolution, but here's what we actually got

Sat, 26 Jul 2025 21:47:47 +0000

Were smart cities and AR surgery ever anything more than 5G marketing hype?

By Robert Triggs

Depending on where you live, you’ve likely had 5G in your pocket for at least a couple of years — or possibly close to half a decade. In any case, the wireless tech has certainly been around long enough to have had time to accomplish the numerous lofty promises that CEOs piped up to upsell us, which included everything from rejuvenating retail to traffic lights pushing updates to your car.

While some of those promises might have come to pass, quite a lot of them have obviously not. I don’t know about you, but my city’s traffic lights aren’t any more in sync than they were a decade ago. But let’s answer the big question: Now that we’re several years into 5G’s global rollout, has it come close to living up to the hype?

For you and me, 5G promised three major improvements: gigabit speeds boasting 10x or greater enhancements over 4G, latency as low as 1ms, and more reliable coverage.

Let’s start with that first point, which was always overly reliant on the promise of expensive, short-range mmWave spectrum.

This technology has mostly seen deployment in dense urban hotspots — stadiums, airports, and downtowns — in a few countries like China and the US, but the rest of the world has largely ignored it due to its cost and poor signal range.

Even in the US, only Verizon remains highly committed to the technology, with AT&T and T-Mobile preferring localized deployments. Instead, much of the world’s 5G network coverage is based on repurposed 4G spectrum and select 6-GHz bands.

So how does the data compare to the hype?

Ookla’s US speed test report between July and December 2024 shows a huge discrepancy in data rates across the country. In many states, the median download speed seen by consumers remains around the 50Mbps data range, and even in the best case, consumers typically experience sub-200Mbps speeds.

That’s serviceable for light work on the go, but falls well shy of the gigabit potential we were promised (although consumer speeds were never going to sustain that level for any length of time). Equally, latency remains comparatively high for our gadgets, averaging 63ms nationwide, fine for browsing but too high for real-time applications like cloud gaming or AR/VR.

The situation is equally varied when we look at the global picture. Western consumers are sitting somewhere between 100Mbps and 300Mbps for typical 5G download speeds, but that’s a very broad range.

Once again, typical speeds vary quite widely, with the worst markets scoring hardly much faster than a reasonable 4G at under 100Mbps and the fastest well over 300Mbps, which challenges a decent fibre package. South Korea’s operators score over 400Mbps for 5G downloads, for example.

According to the GSA’s June 2025 report, upload speeds are substantially slower, between 20Mbps and 50Mbps. However, that’s still a step up from the 5Mbps to 15Mbps range common on 4G LTE networks.

Taking a step back, the report reveals that 5G speeds are around 3x faster than 4G LTE on the same networks.

That’s obviously a solid benefit, but again, it’s nowhere near the 10x speed boosts marketing at the start of 5G’s deployment, partly because mmWave reaches so few customers. In addition, looking at 5G in isolation is rather generous — you certainly won’t be connected to 5G all of the time, so typical speeds will be slower.

Given that some 4G LTE-A networks were already capable of hitting 100Mbps or more, a lot of 5G’s benefits could also be quite heavily exaggerated by this data.

Carrier coverage remains spotty

Considering the positives, carriers have some seemingly decent coverage numbers to boast about these days, which you’d hope, given that we are years into the rollout. In the US, at least 75% of customers are now covered with 5G, with similar figures of around 80% in many European countries as well. Other regions range from 60-90%, depending on how early they started their deployment.

As you’ve probably experienced, urban areas have the best 5G coverage, while rural areas often remain more limited.

However, coverage doesn’t always mean connected. You might dip in and out of cell areas on your commute, or might not actually receive a 5G signal when sitting in your home.

While geographic coverage appears robust, users are spending less than half their time connected to 5G.

Rather than measuring geographical reach, Opensignal’s 5G Availability metric records time spent with an active 5G connection, and that number is obviously much lower than area, and varies greatly depending on your country and network. Puerto Rico leads the charts with 57.4% typical 5G connectivity time, followed by India (54.3%), Kuwait (45.6%), Singapore (40%), and the US (37.5%) in fifth, based on data collected between January and March 2025.

This is likely due to the fact that many suburban and rural areas still lack strong mid-band 5G to boost signal coverage.

Even if we give 5G the benefit of the doubt in terms of speed, latency, and geographical area, US consumers typically spend just over 1/3 of their time connected to a 5G network — hardly a convincing case that the technology is a major game changer for our daily lives. EU countries fare even worse.

So while everyday mobile performance is a mixed bag, what about the futuristic use cases 5G was supposed to unlock?”

Where are all the smart cities?

If consumer coverage and speeds are a little disappointing, the overhyped futuristic applications promised by 5G remain aspirational, to put it politely. Outside of flashy demos, things like remote robotic surgery and fully autonomous smart cities were always more pipe dream than near-term reality.

This is partly because many networks are still Non-Standalone 5G (NSA). NSA relies on 4G infrastructure for core functions, while Standalone (SA) is built from the ground up to enable features like network slicing and ultra-low latency. According to Téral Research, just 74 out of 354 global public 5G networks have migrated to SA — a rather disappointing 21%.

Additionally, Omdia and Ookla note that European carriers are notably behind the US, scoring just 2% against 24% in 5G SA availability. As of mid-2025, 163 further operators are investing in SA, but until full Standalone 5G is widely deployed, many advanced features — like ultra-low latency and true network slicing — will remain on the sidelines. Many of the initial 5G promises are also being batted around again with 5G Advanced — only time will tell.

Instead, a few private enterprises have deployed their own private 5G networks for specific use cases, such as security systems and warehouse robotics.

Other sectors like ports, airports, and manufacturing plants have adopted private 5G networks for logistics, asset tracking, and low-latency automation. While still limited in scope, these deployments hint at future potential — particularly if costs fall and software ecosystems mature. Notably, nearly 90% of tightly controlled private 5G deployments are based on Standalone.

A slow transition to Standalone 5G has kept many of the biggest benefits off the table.

Skepticism aside, some new 5G-powered capabilities have made their way into the consumer space. Fixed Wireless Access for home use is well established for some consumers in the US and abroad, giving access to reasonably quick data speeds in lieu of often more costly cable setups.

However, data speeds and reliability are just as variable as mobile packages. Satellite connectivity in the Pixel, iPhone, and such is only possible because of 5G-NTN, though that will cost consumers extra to use in the long term.

However, these 5G benefits have come at a considerable cost to carriers. In addition to the raw equipment costs, carriers have spent a fortune on new spectrum. AT&T spent some $27 billion in the US C-band action, and

Verizon a staggering $55 billion. Yet in October 2024, OpenSignal noted that “5G hasn’t yet had a substantial impact on operators’ profitability.” Partly because plan prices haven’t risen in line with the costs, which is good for consumers, but equally because business use cases haven’t really manifested.

Carriers are now prioritizing network efficiency to keep investment costs under control.

Has 5G been worth it?

Overall, the rollout of 5G has had some benefits, but those perks are certainly limited when compared to the initial promises and costs.

Mobile broadband is undeniably faster than the 4G era, and even though around 3x the speed is far from what was often marketed, this has helped push data speeds from dubious to far more usable. Latency is better too, ensuring activities like streaming and browsing feel noticeably smoother, but it’s nowhere near low enough compared to fibre for consumers to contemplate real-time applications.

5G is faster and more reliable, but perhaps not by the margins promised.

All of this has to be carefully weighed against the costs, in terms of carrier investments, data plan costs, and hardware prices.

Data plans certainly haven’t become much cheaper, and, if anything, premium 5G tariffs remain expensive.

Likewise, 5G modem, radio (particularly for mmWave), and chipset prices continue to rise, in part due to the costs of implementing the complex array for 5G networking brands and technologies. It’s one of the reasons why modern flagship phones are just so pricey.

Of course, the promised future of mass IoT and automation certainly hasn’t appeared. We’ll have to see if those promises ever materialize before 6G networks roll around. But when it comes to 5G, I imagine I’m not alone in feeling that the next-gen network is fine but has hardly been worth the hype, and the data proves it.

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How to make your iPhone homescreen icons clear using iOS 26

Fri, 25 Jul 2025 18:27:40 +0000

The public beta allows you to apply the new Liquid Glass design to your icons.

Back in 2024, we described how the then-new iOS 18 enabled you to tint your homescreen icons, allowing you to tweak the look of your iPhone’s display. Now, with Apple’s introduction of its Liquid Glass design for iOS 26, you can make your icons completely clear (assuming you’re a fan of the new invisible look).

The process of customizing your icons works exactly the same as it did for the tint:

Long-press anywhere on the wallpaper background so that the icons start to do their little dance. You’ll see an Edit button in the top-left corner; tap it, and then select Customize.
At the bottom of the screen, a pop-up menu will offer several options, including Light and Dark (so that the icons won’t change no matter what mode you’re in), Tinted, and Clear. Go ahead and tap Clear.

A pop-up menu offers several options for customizing your icons.

Screenshot: Apple

Now you have see-through icons.

Screenshot: Apple

And that’s it! Your homescreen icons will immediately assume the Liquid Glass design, letting you see through them to your wallpaper (which is kind of nice, especially if you’re really proud of your wallpaper).

If you want to try something else, such as the tinted look, or go back to the way things were, just follow the same steps. Have fun!

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Posted Saturday 26 July 2025 at 4:25 am AEST (my time).

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Samsung launches new foldables and smartwatches with a big focus on AI

Fri, 25 Jul 2025 07:37:37 +0000

Samsung has launched its new Galaxy Z Fold7 and Z Flip7 globally. Those who buy will be getting Samsung’s thinnest and lightest foldables yet and they come packed with Galaxy AI features. The Z Fold7 features an expansive screen, a 200MP camera, and AI editing features like Generative Edit to remove unwanted objects.

Meanwhile, the Z Flip 7 features an edge-to-edge FlexWindow for quick access to features and content creation, also integrating AI.

In addition to the two new phones, the Korean smartphone giant has also launched the Galaxy Watch8 and Watch8 Classic with a focus on “ultra-comfort” and real-time health insights. The watches feature a BioActive Sensor for the continuous tracking of sleep, stress, nutrition, and activity.

They also introduce a new Antioxidant Index which lets users measure their carotenoid levels in 5 seconds. Carotenoid measurements help evaluate if your diet contains adequate antioxidant-rich fruits and vegetables, providing insight into your overall nutritional health. These watches have also come with a cushion design and dynamic lug system for a better fit and sensor contact.

All of the new devices are available from July 25 across 49 markets initially, but this will expand to over 110. The Z Fold7 is available in Blue Shadow, Silver Shadow, Jetblack, and Mint colors while the Z Flip7 comes in Jetblack, Blue Shadow, Coralred, and Mint. There is also a Galaxy Z Flip7 FE (Fan Edition) available in Black or White, targeting a wider audience. Pre-order data shows that “Blue Shadow” is the most popular color for both of the foldables

If you’re planning to buy, consider using our Amazon affiliate links below and Neowin will earn commission that helps to support the website. Here are the direct links to purchase the new Samsung devices:

Samsung Galaxy Z Fold7: $1,999.99 (Amazon US)
Samsung Galaxy Z Flip7: $1,099.99 (Amazon US)
Samsung Galaxy Z Flip7 FE: $899.99 (Amazon US)
Samsung Galaxy Watch8: $349.99 (Amazon US)
Samsung Galaxy Watch8 Classic: $499.99 (Amazon US)

When you buy, Samsung will give you 6 months of free expanded access to Google AI Pro and 2TB of cloud storage with the new foldables. There’s also Samsung Care+ available which offers comprehensive coverage for accidental damage, repairs, and replacements.

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Posted Friday 25 July 2025 at 5:36 pm AEST (my time).

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New Samsung Galaxy S25 FE leak reveals new colors and storage options

Fri, 25 Jul 2025 07:35:56 +0000

Samsung still has a few phones scheduled to be unveiled this year. While there is uncertainty surrounding its first tri-folding phone, the Galaxy S25 FE is highly likely to be unveiled towards the end of this year. With the launch of the Galaxy S25 FE, the S-series will gain a fifth member. Samsung might replace the under-performing "Plus" model from the S-series lineup with the "Edge" model.

Details about the Galaxy S25 FE are emerging as we are getting closer to its launch. A fresh leak by reliable leaker MysteryLupin on the social media platform X gives us information about the two storage options and new colors Samsung could launch the Galaxy S25 FE in.

According to the leaker, Samsung's next Fan Edition phone could come only in 8GB RAM option. It will have two storage options though, the usual, 128GB and 256GB. Unfortunately, 256GB is yet to become the standard storage option across the industry.

Additionally, the Galaxy S25 FE is tipped to launch in new colors, similar to its elder siblings, the Galaxy S25 series. The phone could launch in four colors: Navy, IcyBlue, JetBlack, and White. Out of the four, the first two colors are similar to that of the Galaxy S25 and S25 Plus, whereas the JetBlack is a Titanium Finish color for the S25 Ultra, exclusively available online. Lastly, the white color could be a toned-down variant of the WhiteSilver shade of the Galaxy S25 Ultra.

Previous reports have suggested that the Galaxy S25 FE could get a 12MP selfie shooter, an upgrade over the 10MP camera on the S24 FE. On the rear, it is purported to pack a 50MP primary camera. It has also been tipped that Samsung could use the in-house Exynos 2500 processor to power the Galaxy S25 FE.

For now, other details about the phone are still under wraps, but they will pop up as we near the device's launch date.

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Posted Friday 25 July 2025 at 5:35 pm AEST (my time).

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Apple releases iOS 26 public beta with tweaked 'Liquid Glass'

Fri, 25 Jul 2025 02:00:05 +0000

Apple is rolling out the first public beta of its upcoming operating systems. iOS 26, iPadOS 26, and macOS 26 Tahoe are now available for public testing after a couple of months in the Developer Beta program.

In case you missed it, Apple changed its operating system branding strategy at WWDC 2025. Now, all of Apple's systems carry a single version that represents the current year (technically speaking, the next year). As such, Apple jumped from iOS 18 all the way to iOS 26, with iPadOS, watchOS, tvOS, and macOS following suit.

If you have a compatible iPhone, iPad, or Mac, you can sign up for the public beta program on the official Apple website. It will ask you to sign in with an Apple ID and then get you a profile to download the update. After that, head to Settings > General > Software Update.

You can check out the list of iPhones that support iOS 26 here, iPads that support iPadOS 26 here, and Macs that support macOS 26 Tahoe here.

While public betas are much more stable and less buggy than developer betas, you should keep in mind that they are still pre-release operating systems. Therefore, they could be less stable, more power-hungry, and unpolished. Especially, when you factor in that this year's updates introduce a reworked design language called "Liquid Glass," which went through several tweaks and alterations during the first few weeks in the Developer Beta program after quite a critical initial reception from users and developers.

If you still want to try it, make sure to back up important data and be ready to restore your device to iOS 18 in case something unexpected happens. I nearly bricked my 13-inch M1 iPad Pro with iPadOS 26, so beware.

iOS 26 and the rest of the operating systems are expected in September or October 2025 with the launch of new iPhones and other Apple products.

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Posted Friday 25 July 2025 at 11:59 am AEST (my time).

News posts... 2023: 5,800+ | 2024: 5,700+ | 2025 (till end of June): 2,864

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