Tag: PHONES

Don’t Fall for Sketchy iPhone VPNs—Here Are the Only 3 You Should Use

iPhone VPNs, Compared

You might be surprised how similar the three VPNs I chose are when you break down their features, but that’s not an accident. Given how restrictive I was with who made the final cut, there’s a pretty high bar for inclusion. Although there are some minor differences, I designed this list in a way that you can choose one of my picks without reading a single word and still come out the other side with an excellent VPN for iPhone.

Other iPhone VPNs We Tested

Surfshark

Courtesy of Surfshark

Surfshark: Surfshark was a strong contender for the main list. Even its Starter plan comes with extra features like a masked email generator. Features like ad and tracker blocking, as well as unlimited simultaneous connections, come standard across plans. However, it was a bit slower than my top picks, dropping around 20 percent of speed on average, compared to around 15 percent for the top options.

Mullvad: Mullvad is a favorite among privacy enthusiasts, and for good reason. It doesn’t fuss with multi-year discounts or referral programs, and you don’t even need to provide an email to sign up for an account. You can even pay the static monthly fee by mailing Mullvad cash. It’s a great service if privacy is your top priority, but it trades speeds and features in the process. VPN services like Nord and Proton have quickly grown into full privacy and security suites, while Mullvad is more focused on making a robust VPN. In the context of an iPhone, the scales tip more toward those security suites, but Mullvad is still a great privacy-focused option to keep in mind.

ExpressVPN: By the numbers, ExpressVPN should be at the top of the list. It has a ton of servers, a featureset that can go toe-to-toe with Nord, and speeds only a touch below Proton. However, ExpressVPN has found itself in a spiral of increasing controversies over the past four years, and the brand has yet to get back on solid footing. After being purchased by Kape Technologies—the company behind the infamous adware company Crossrider—former US intelligence official Daniel Gericke took over at CTO and continued in that role for two years, even after being fined over $300,000 by the US Department of Justice for hacking activities on behalf of a foreign government. Gericke left in 2023, but that same year, ExpressVPN experienced a large swath of layoffs, and Kape, its parent company, was delisted from the London Stock Exchange. The vast majority of shares went to Unikmind Holdings Limited, a company owned by Israeli billionaire Teddy Sagi, who got his start by creating gambling software Playtech. That’s an extremely condensed version of what ExpressVPN has gone through over the past few years. The company hasn’t done anything nefarious, but the revolving door of executive control tied to controversial names doesn’t inspire confidence.

Private Internet Access: Private Internet Access, or PIA, is also owned by Kape Technologies, and it followed a similar playbook as ExpressVPN and CyberGhost, which Kape also owns. After the acquisition and community backlash, there’s been very little transparency about what’s going on in the company. A connection to Kape definitely raises questions, but that doesn’t immediately disqualify a service from being included. Unfortunately for PIA, it had much slower speeds than any of the other VPN services I tested, so regardless of ownership, it isn’t a top pick for iPhone VPNs.

iPhone VPNs to Avoid

X-VPN: X-VPN is one of many different VPNs that show up high in the search results on iPhone. There’s a desktop app, but X-VPN mainly targets mobile users with its free plan. It was featured in a Tech Transparency Project report about VPNs with ties to the Chinese government, alongside apps like TurboVPN. I haven’t tested TurboVPN, but X-VPN has issues. Even without questionable ties, X-VPN doesn’t have the best speeds, and it lacks basic features like split tunneling, all while charging the same price as top VPNs like NordVPN and Proton VPN.

Hola: Hola is an infamous name if you’ve been around the VPN space long enough. Around a decade ago, Hola fell under fire. It owns a data collection company known as Bright Data (formerly Luminati), and that network is made up of users who use Hola. This network was used for a public distributed denial-of-service (DDoS) attack. Even a decade on, Hola still logs user data, including your IP address, and it still sells access to its peer-to-peer network, meaning you could become an exit node without knowing.

EventVPN: EventVPN comes from the same team behind ExpressVPN, but it takes a very different approach to privacy. It’s free, and it’s only available on iPhone and Macs, but most importantly, it’s supported by ads. EventVPN says it’s able to leverage an ad-supported model with Apple’s advertising privacy features, which allows for tailored ads without giving out personally-identifiable information. That’s the story, at least, but as you can read in our iPhone privacy guide, Apple’s privacy-focused advertising model still shares some critical information, including your zip code. Further, the pervasiveness of ads in EventVPN makes it hard to recommend. You have to wait through a 30-second video each time you connect or disconnect from a server, and a banner ad lives at the top of the app at all times. EventVPN has a paid plan to remove ads, but at that point, you might as well pick up ExpressVPN. And, on the free end, there’s ProtonVPN and Windscribe, both of which I’d recommend over EventVPN.

How We Tested

To earn the best iPhone VPN title, a service needs to satisfy three criteria. It needs to be secure, fast, and easy to use. That may seem straightforward enough, but there’s a little more that goes into it. For ease of use, I only looked at VPNs that offer a one-tap connection. If you need to configure anything, that’s a disqualification. That still encompasses a lot of the most popular VPNs on iPhone, so I narrowed the field further by focusing on apps that balance usability with power. You should have all the relevant features in the iOS app that are available in the desktop app, and organized in a way that they don’t disrupt that one-tap experience.

Speed testing is where I focused a lot of my testing time. Speed testing is highly variable, and trying to come out with one singular number to encompass the speed of thousands of servers is a fool’s errand. The numbers I gathered for this guide are the result of 20 tests I ran for each VPN, then averaged.

I tested five locations for each VPN, measuring my unprotected speed immediately before testing and running three passes before averaging. Each location was tested at a different time of day, and I removed any outliers before averaging. For this guide, that meant if there was greater than a 10 percent deviation between two of the three passes. After averaging the speed drop for each location, I gathered all of those numbers together and averaged them for a final speed drop.

Finally, security. The traditional wisdom with a VPN is that you, at some point, have to put some faith in the company that its privacy policy is accurate and it isn’t lying about its logging practices. That didn’t do it for me. Again, I set a high bar for inclusion.

Every VPN I’ve included here has not only been independently audited, but also been forced to uphold its no-logs policy in legal proceedings. You indeed need to put some trust that the VPN provider you’re using is telling the truth, but the options I included all have rock-solid track records when it comes to transparency.

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Jacob Roach

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November 27, 2025
The OnePlus 15 Has Two-Day Battery Life. ’Nuff Said

On days with light use, I have 70 percent left by bedtime. When I spent more time on the phone, using it for music streaming, navigation, and Instagram Reels-ing, I often ended with around 60 or 50 percent. I’d leave it on my nightstand without bothering to plug it in, a refreshing change of pace. Over the course of two days, I hit an amazing 10.5 hours of screen-on time.

This might be the best battery life on a flagship smartphone today in the US, especially when you pair it with the incredibly fast recharge times. OnePlus remains one of the only companies to include a charger in the box—mostly because it’s the only way to take advantage of its SuperVooc fast-charging technology. I was able to ramp from 15 to 80 percent in 30 minutes (50 percent in 15 minutes). It’s hard to worry about a dead phone if you don’t mind keeping the bulky charger on your person (is a folding prong too much of an ask?).

But there’s always a compromise somewhere. If you’re a fan of wireless charging and are especially interested in Qi2 smartphones that use magnets (like Apple’s MagSafe) for more convenient and faster charging, you’ll be disappointed here. The OnePlus 15 supports wireless charging, but only the standard Qi technology. OnePlus is selling magnetic cases as a salve, but unlike Samsung’s current crop of top-end phones, this doesn’t even turn it into a Qi2 Ready phone. It will only charge at slow Qi wireless charging speeds. (You can buy OnePlus’ proprietary wireless charger to fast-charge, but that’s a separate purchase, and that wireless charger will only recharge select OnePlus devices quickly.)

The beefy battery and super-fast wired charging may outshine the lackluster wireless charging, but now it’s time to talk about the second most impressive feat of the OnePlus 15: performance.

Power Play

Photograph: Julian Chokkattu

This is the first smartphone in the US to employ Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5, a processor we’ll see in most high-end Android phones in 2026. The benchmark numbers are excellent. In a Geekbench 6 test, the OnePlus 15 is officially the first phone to pass 10,000 in multi-core CPU performance, even besting the iPhone 17 Pro Max. However, the iPhone still had a slight leg up in single-core performance (it’s also generally more efficient).

Julian Chokkattu

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November 13, 2025
Nothing’s Budget-Friendly Phone (3a) Lite Is a Diluted Disappointment

The 5,000-mAh battery is ample for most days, and the Nothing Phone (3a) Lite could maybe even last two days of light use. You’ll have to plug in when it runs low (there’s no wireless charging), and the rate tops out at 33 watts. That’s not bad, enabling you to go from zero to 80 percent in less than an hour. There’s 5G, Wi-Fi 6, and Bluetooth 5.3 support, but expect the battery to drain much faster on 5G networks.

Where the MediaTek Dimensity 7300 Pro chipset and 8 GB of RAM really struggled for me was the camera. On several occasions, it took seconds to open, and I had to reboot the phone at one point to get the camera app to load at all. I encountered occasional lag on opening and switching apps, but the camera performance was jarring because general use feels relatively slick for a budget phone.

It doesn’t help that the camera system is disappointing. The main 50-megapixel shooter is capable, if a little slow, with a large-ish 1/1.57-inch sensor and an f/1.8 aperture that handles a range of scenarios quite well. But the 8-megapixel ultrawide is poor, and the 2-megapixel macro is a complete waste of time. Comparing a close-up with the macro and the main camera (see the flower photos) shows how useless it is. There’s a 16-megapixel shooter around front that’s fine for selfies and video calls.

You’d think a design-led company like Nothing would be more calculated in adding features that only add value. If the ultrawide and macro are only going to offer lackluster results, cut them and stick with a single, solid primary camera.

Photograph: Simon Hill

Nothing Phone (3a) Lite, main camera.

Simon Hill

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November 13, 2025
Gear News of the Week: Fairphone Lands in the US, and WhatsApp Is Finally on the Apple Watch

The only smartphone manufacturer with a 10/10 iFixit repairability score is finally bringing its products to the US, but it isn’t starting with its phones. Netherlands-based Fairphone announced this week that it will mark its expansion into the US with the Fairbuds XL, its repairable over-ear headphones. It’ll be available on Amazon later this month.

Fairphone says it achieved 61 percent revenue growth in the third quarter of 2025 compared to the same period in 2024, though this is likely attributed to the launch of The Fairphone (Gen 6)—the company doesn’t release a new phone every year. It sold more than 100,000 units in 2024, including phones and audio products.

Right-to-repair laws have been cropping up all over the US, and Fairphone smartphones are the easiest to repair. The company provides a screwdriver, sells spare parts for years, and offers long-term software support. Its devices may not be the flashiest or the most powerful, but they are a more sustainable solution, also ensuring fair mining practices and wages for workers in its supply chain.

Bringing its smartphone over to the US is a little more complicated than headphones, as it requires carrier certifications, but Fairphone tells WIRED it’s in “advanced discussions” with select retailers and carriers.

WhatsApp Arrives on the Apple Watch

Courtesy of Meta

Meta seems to be on a quest to finally bring its apps to other platforms. A few months ago, it launched an Instagram app for the iPad; now we’re getting WhatsApp on the Apple Watch. Rather than just mirroring your notifications and sending basic replies, now you can read full messages on the Apple Watch, record and send voice messages, see who’s calling, send emoji reactions to messages, and see more of the chat history on the screen.

It syncs with your iPhone, so you don’t need to set it up as a companion device. You can’t take calls on the watch itself or even answer them; you can see who is calling and decline. It also doesn’t seem as though you can add the WhatsApp app as a complication.

Motorola’s Cheapest Phone Now Has 5G

It’s a little earlier than usual, but Motorola’s latest budget phones are here: the Moto G 2026 and Moto G Play 2026. They share a similar look and aren’t too different from the design language Motorola has employed on its 2025 Moto G devices. What’s most notable is that the Moto G Play will have 5G support, making it one of the cheapest handsets with 5G at $170.

Both phones have 6.7-inch 120-Hz LCD screens, big 5,200-mAh batteries, and IP52 water resistance. They’re powered by MediaTek’s Dimensity 6300 processor with 4 GB of RAM, but they differ in storage size, with the Moto G offering 128 GB of internal storage and the Play with 64 GB (both are expandable with a microSD). Cameras are the other place where the two phones diverge, with a 50-MP main sensor on the Moto G and a 32-MP sensor on the Play. Yes, they still have headphone jacks.

Motorola says the Moto G Play will arrive first on November 13 at Motorola, Best Buy, and Amazon for $170, and the $200 Moto G launches on December 11 at Motorola’s website first, then at Best Buy and Amazon on January 15.

Canon’s R6 III Goes More Pro

Courtesy of Canon

Canon has announced its much-anticipated new EOS R6 Mark III full-frame mirrorless camera. The R6 III features a new 32.5-megapixel sensor (the same sensor in the EOS C50 cinema camera), as well as the company’s latest Digic X processor.

Julian Chokkattu

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November 8, 2025
The Pixel 10 Family Is Marked Down on Amazon
If you’re a part of the Pixel crew like I am, you know that discounts on the latest generation are few and far between. That’s why I’m pleased to share that the entire family of Pixel 10 phones, from the regular Pixel 10 all the way up to the recently-released Pixel 10 Pro Fold, are all marked down by various amounts on Amazon.
Photograph: Julian Chokkattu

Photograph: Julian Chokkattu

Photograph: Julian Chokkattu

Pixel 10, Pixel 10 Pro, and Pixel 10 Pro XL
Starting with the base model Pixel 10, you’ll save $200 on both the 128 GB and 256 GB models in all four colors, bringing the prices down to $599 and $699, respectively. The base version of the Pixel 10 makes a few compromises to bring the price down, like foregoing the Pro model’s vapor chamber for cooling, and opting for a smaller camera sensor. It’s still an excellent choice for casual Android enjoyers, particularly at the price, but power users and mobile gamers may want to think about upgrading to the Pro.

Like the regular 10, the Pixel 10 Pro is marked down by $250 across all sizes, but color availability does change a bit, particularly on the 1 TB model. The biggest difference between the two models are the higher-resolution screen, more memory, and the bigger and better camera sensors. You can also get the higher storage models, while the regular Pixel 10 only goes up to 256 GB. The Pixel 10 Pro XL, which has the same specs as the 10 Pro but with a larger screen, is marked down by $300, again with some varying availability between color and storage size.
Photograph: Julian Chokkattu

Photograph: Julian Chokkattu

Photograph: Julian Chokkattu

Photograph: Julian Chokkattu
Finally, we have the Pixel 10 Pro Fold, which just recently became available for purchase, and is already marked down by a not-insignificant $300 for both the 256 GB and 512 GB models, and I even spotted both colors in stock at both sizes. It has not one, but two excellent displays, and feels premium and sturdy, even if it is missing some of the features found on the 10 Pro.

With discounts on a variety of Pixel 10 series phones, you might need a little more help deciding which one is for you. We have a handy guide that compares all the currently available Pixel phones, including the Pixel 9a, which is currently discounted as well. We also have an in-depth review comparing the Pixel 10, Pixel 10 Pro, and Pixel 10 Pro XL specifically, which is worth a read for the extra details.
Brad Bourque

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November 5, 2025
Gear News of the Week: Withings Launches Its Pee Scanner, and Samsung Shows Off a Trifold Phone

A few weeks ago, bathroom and plumbing company Kohler debuted the Dekoda, a health and wellness sensor that lives on your toilet bowl and records signs of your gut health and hydration. Now, Withings has launched the U-Scan. First shown at CES in 2023, the U-Scan also sits inside the toilet bowl. A thermal sensor detects when a fresh, er, sample is being deposited. The U-Scan takes a small sample and analyzes it on-site with miniature biochemical sensors inside an interchangeable cartridge.

There are two separate U-Scans. U-Scan Nutrio analyzes your diet, checking for biomarkers like bio-acidity, hydration status, and ketone levels, which shows that you’ve started burning body fat instead of sugar. U-Scan Calci also checks for calcium, which is a sign that you might have kidney stones. Results are then transmitted via Wi-Fi to the Withings app.

The cartridges are replaceable, and the sensor comes with a docking station to clean and recharge the sensor. Purchasing the U-Scan comes with a complimentary subscription to Withings+, the company’s upgraded app, which also includes a free consultation with a nutritionist.

The U-Scan packages start at $380, which comes with one U-Scan, either Nutrio or Calci, one cartridge, and two to four scans weekly (each cartridge lasts about 2.5 months). For more intensive monitoring, the Intensive package includes two cartridges for five to seven weekly measurements. Replacement cartridges are $100 for one cartridge or $180 for two, and Withings sends you the cartridge automatically depending on which package you select. The U-Scan is now available at Withings.com. We’ll be testing it soon. —Adrienne So

Samsung Brings Its Browser to Windows, and Teases a Trifold Phone

Samsung has long offered its own browser on its smartphones—Samsung Internet—but now the app is finally available on another platform: Windows. Considering Samsung makes Windows laptops and Android phones, this move allows folks who use the company’s browser to share their browsing history and bookmarks between phone and laptop, and if you have saved passwords with Samsung Pass, you can use it to autofill passwords on websites.

The company is taking this opportunity to bring some Galaxy AI features over as well, including Browsing Assist, which lets you instantly summarize webpages or translate them to another language. Samsung says its browser also blocks third-party web trackers, and there’s a Privacy Dashboard that lets you see what has been blocked.

Samsung Internet for PC is only available as a beta right now, but anyone in the US or South Korea on Windows 11 or Windows 10 (version 1809 and above) can download it now.

Julian Chokkattu

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November 1, 2025
Zoom Uncomfortably Close With Oppo’s Crazy New Telephoto Lens

For several years, the top Chinese smartphone brands have been duking it out for photography dominance. Even though year-over-year changes are often minuscule, these companies try to one-up one another. Take Oppo’s latest flagship, the Find X9 Pro, as an example.

It boasts a 200-megapixel telephoto lens developed with camera manufacturer Hasselblad, so you can zoom in on a subject from afar. If that wasn’t enough, Oppo sells a bonkers Hasselblad Teleconverter Kit, a proper 3.28X telephoto lens that slots onto a special case providing more optical zoom than I’ve ever seen in a smartphone.

The Find X9 Pro, launching alongside the slightly more modest Find X9, already launched in China, but will soon be landing in the UK and Europe (not the US). As you might expect, it is an absolute unit in terms of specs. Alongside the versatile camera system with pro software tools, there’s a lovely 6.78-inch screen, and a truly enormous 7,500 mAh silicon-carbon battery.

Close Up

Photograph: Simon Hill

I love a telephoto lens in my phone. While I rarely bother with the ultrawide, the option to zoom in from a distance often proves useful. You can get close-ups at gigs and other stage-based events, pick up on cool architectural details, and sometimes figure out what the hell that distant thing is. Aptly-named zoomers don’t realize how good they’ve got it; you used to need a DSLR with a huge lens to get as close as your average phone can now.

The Oppo Find X9 Pro has a 200-megapixel telephoto lens that supports 3X optical zoom, and it can take excellent shots at 6X zoom by cropping 200-megapixel images down to 50 megapixels. Oppo claims it’s capable of 13.2X lossless zoom using computational photography; I’m not sure about that number, but the Find X9 Pro certainly takes great photos of any distant subject. Technically, the digital zoom goes up to 120X, but anything beyond 30X starts to look like an oil painting.

Impressive as it is, there have been other phones with 200-megapixel telephoto lenses, so Oppo kicked things up a notch with the optional Hasselblad Teleconverter Kit. Used in conjunction with its Magnetic Photographer Case, there’s a sliding attachment that slots over the camera module, then the lens twists and clicks securely into place over the telephoto lens, adding another 3.28X zoom.

Simon Hill

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October 28, 2025
CBP Searched a Record Number of Phones at the US Border Over the Past Year

The recent spike in searches at the border has mostly been driven by an increase in the past six months. Between April and June, CBP searched 14,899 devices—which at the time marked a record high for any quarter of the year. However, the most recent figures show this increase has continued: Between July and September, there were 16,173 phones searched, the newly published CBP figures show.

Over the past decade, there has been an uptick in the number of phone and electronics searches taking place at the border—with the increases taking place throughout multiple political administrations. Statistics published by the CBP show there were 8,503 searches in 2015. Since 2018, the number of yearly searches has risen from around 30,000 to more than 55,000 this year. The new figures are the first time searches have surpassed 50,000.

CBP spokesperson Rhonda Lawson says that its most recent search numbers are “consistent with increases since 2021, and less than 0.01 percent” of travelers have devices searched. Lawson says searches can be conducted to “detect digital contraband, terrorism-related content, and information relevant to visitor admissibility.”

“It may be helpful for travelers to know when they weigh the decision of what device to bring with them when traveling into the United States that searches of electronic personal devices are not new, the policy and procedures for searches have not changed, and that the likelihood of a search has not increased and remains exceedingly rare,” Lawson says.

Of the 55,000 device searches that took place over the past 12 months, the vast majority of these (51,061) were basic searches, with a total of 4,363 advanced device searches—a 3 percent increase over the 2024 fiscal year.

Federal courts remain split on whether advanced phone searches require warrants. The answer can change with the airport. The Eleventh and Eighth Circuits allow suspicionless searches of phones, while the Fourth and Ninth require reasonable suspicion for advanced, forensic searches. Recent district-court decisions in New York go further, requiring probable cause.

Several incidents involving tourists, including a French scientist whose phone was reportedly searched to discover whether he had criticized Trump, have shown how easily the intensified screening can slip into international controversy. In June, a 21-year-old Norwegian tourist was reportedly denied entry at Newark Liberty International Airport because his phone contained a now-famous meme mocking Vice President JD Vance—a small act of humor allegedly treated as grounds for expulsion.

CBP disputes many of those accounts, but the impression abroad is clear: The US is becoming an increasingly harder—if not more hostile—place to visit.

Matt Burgess, Dell Cameron

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October 28, 2025
The Pepsi Man Is Coming to Save Samsung From Boring Design

Samsung has one of the biggest product line ups of any tech brand, yet when it comes to design, it’s consistently seen as an “also-ran.” While other companies have forged distinctive and instantly recognizable design languages, such as Nothing, Samsung has found itself behind in the style stakes. When you’ve got Apple as one of your biggest competitors, that’s not a great position to be in.

That’s not to say there haven’t been improvements in the last decade, and the occasional flashes of promise—most notable in its collaborations with external designers, like the Bouroullec brothers, who fashioned the Serif TV for the South Korean company. But that hasn’t stopped complaints of boring and unoriginal design, both internally and externally, and an inertia when it has led, leaving other companies to close the gap.

Being defined by performance over personality has hardly done Samsung’s bottom line any harm—it recently regained its lead from Apple in global smartphone market share and has been the global leader in TVs for almost two decades. But, in 2025, it looks there’s finally a clear desire from Samsung to bridge the gap between form and function, by giving design the focus it’s been lacking for far too long at the company.

Back in April, Samsung hired Mauro Porcini, its first ever chief design officer. Porcini has spent more than 20 years building award-winning design teams at 3M and PepsiCo, most recently leading a successful global rebrand for Pepsi—the company’s first in 14 years.

For a company as big as Samsung, this hire feels late. Apple created the same position for Jony Ive a decade ago, around the same time it was reported that innovation at Samsung was being stifled beneath layers of management. With those structural issues supposedly unpicked, Samsung now has work to do—something Porcini is keen to acknowledge.

Late to the Party

“We are in a moment of change, where the way people interact with any kind of machine or electronic device is going to be radically different in the coming years,” Porcini tells me. “These machines will change the way people live, work, and connect with each other—the way people fulfil their needs. For a company like Samsung, having design at the top, involved in the way you define the future of the portfolio based on those needs—it’s more important than ever.”

The march of AI is, of course, a helpful hook upon which to tie this long overdue move, but Yves Béhar, the founder and principal designer at Fuseproject who worked with Samsung on The Frame TV, tells me this has been years in the making, and something Samsung had initially looked externally to help put the wheels in motion.

“When we started working with Samsung on The Frame [released in January 2017], the CEO at the time, HS Kim, came to us and said—look, we want to transform ourselves from a consumer technology company, into an experience business,” says Béhar. “So we helped them set some principles around that, and worked on getting that message out into the business—of what it means to think about experience versus tech. This is exactly what we did with The Frame TV.”

Verity Burns

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October 25, 2025
Gear News of the Week: Honor Teases a Bizarre Robot Phone, and Kohler Debuts a Toilet Sensor

Prices start at $325 for the carry-on version, $375 for the checked size, $395 for a larger checked version, or $995 for the entire family set. I am planning on using the carry-on version this weekend, and it easily paired with my iPhone. In every other respect, it’s a normal bag—it has your standard polycarbonate shell with a (I have to say) garish embossed July logo on the side; smooth-rolling wheels, bumpers, and leather finishes. There’s also an inset ejectable USB-C battery.

July’s CaseSafe makes it so you don’t have to fuss with AirTags, but that still doesn’t stop me from saying you can upgrade your current carry-on similarly with an AirTag and a power bank, and it won’t cost you anywhere near $300. —Adrienne So

Fujifilm’s New Instax Has Two Cameras

Courtesy of Fujifilm

Fujifilm announced the Instax Mini LiPlay+ this week, an update to its 2019 Mini LiPlay camera. The LiPlay+ is, like its predecessor, a hybrid camera and Instax printer. In fact, little about the main camera seems to have changed. It still has a 28-mm equivalent f/2 lens that records roughly 5-MP photos to the sensor.

Fujifilm has added a second camera on the back, though, for taking selfies. It’s a 23-mm equivalent f/2.2 lens, but what is kind of fun is the ability to create what Fujifilm calls “layered photos,” shooting both lenses at the same time, superimposing, for example, a circle of a selfie on top of a background. Alas, there does not seem to be a way to make this an actual double-exposure image, which feels like a missed opportunity (especially since Fujifilm’s other cameras, like the X100 series, have long had a double-exposure mode).

The other new feature here expands on the original LiPlay’s ability to record audio and attach it to a print via a QR code. Now it’s not just audio but an animated video with sound and music. The Fujifilm Instax Mini LiPlay+ will be available later this month for $235. —Scott Gilbertson

GrapheneOS Will Come to Another Phone

The security-focused, Android alternative operating system GrapheneOS has announced it will soon be available on phones other than the Google Pixel. The developers said in a post on Reddit that a “major OEM” will soon be added to GrapheneOS’s list of supported phones. No brands were mentioned, but many users are guessing it will be OnePlus, given the company’s past support for CyanogenMod, another Android alternative. The GrapheneOS developers do say that whichever phone it turns out to be, it will be similarly priced.

In a follow-up post, the developers clarified that the phone maker is “definitely serious about working with us. That’s how we have security partner access.” They also explicitly say it is not Fairphone, which sells a separate version running another Android alternative, e/OS. —Scott Gilbertson

Roku Leans Into AI for Its TV Interface

Courtesy of Roku

Roku has announced some nifty software upgrades coming soon to its popular streaming devices and TVs, and they lean heavily on artificial intelligence. Roku Voice now features AI searches, allowing you to ask things like “What’s Barbie about?” or “How scary is The Shining?” and get a helpful answer. Roku is also adding easier access to movie trailers, better searching for shows to watch, and a simpler interface to help you understand what is streaming where.

Julian Chokkattu

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October 18, 2025
WIRED’s Favorite Motorola Smartphone Is $100 Off
Looking for an Android smartphone with a unique twist, and missed out on Prime Day deals? Motorola is coming in clutch with a $300 markdown on the 2025 version of the Motorola Razer Ultra (8/10, WIRED Review) bringing the price down to a very reasonable $1,000.
Photograph: Julian Chokkattu

Photograph: Julian Chokkattu

Photograph: Julian Chokkattu

Motorola

Razr Ultra (2025)
There’s a lot to like about the Motorola Razr Ultra beyond its compact and unique design. This model Razr is available in a variety of colors, but at least on my end, the discount is available on the Pantone colors Scarab and Rio Red. They’re both immediately striking and elegant, setting them apart from the deep blacks and space grays you’re likely to find on other smartphones.

Our reviewer Julian Chokkattu was quite happy with the performance improvements to this generation of Razr flip phones. The screen has also been improved from previous generations, with a smoother crease in the middle that’s harder to spot, although you can still feel it during use. It’s a big 7-inch AMOLED panel with a 165Hz refresh rate, which is great for both regular use and gaming.

Of course, the big draw here is the exterior screen, and Motorola has been rolling out new widgets and compatible apps for the smaller display. You can quickly check the weather, control your music, or interact with a variety of functions, as well as taking selfies with the exterior camera. These features are all totally unique to smartphones that flip in the same way, most of which are a lot more expensive.

The Razr does have a raft of new AI-enhanced features, whether you want them or not. The only one that really stood out to our reviewer was “Pay Attention” mode, which lets you record a conversation or interview in tent mode with real-time transcription and a summary afterwards.

While we think this is the best Motorola smartphone you can currently buy, the less expensive Razr models are discounted as well. The base version is marked down by $100 to just $600, although the Plus model is just $100 more than that, with a more significant $200 discount. If you’re curious about what separates the three versions, make sure to check out our Motorola Razr review for all the details and hands-on impressions.
Brad Bourque

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October 9, 2025
The Best MagSafe Phone Grips

MagSafe grips are hardly the only type of phone grips available. In fact, there are four main other types of grips you can buy.

Cases with attached grips. These are cases with a grip attached to the back. You get a strong and durable grip that will never fall off, but the trade-off is a thicker phone, and these cases typically are incompatible with wireless charging and may not work with other MagSafe accessories.

Clamp-style grips. Also called universal phone grips, these clamp to a phone so you can easily take them on and off, and they’re not limited to a particular kind of phone. The downside is they’re not the fastest to take on and off, and they can sometimes slide up and down the phone.

Adhesive grips. You can stick a phone grip to the back of your phone or case, and while this will typically give you a well-attached grip that likely won’t fall off your phone, the downsides are similar to cases with attached grips. It may block features like wireless charging and restrict you from using other accessories.

MagSafe grips. These grips are all about convenience. You can easily take them on and off, but they only work with devices or cases with built-in magnets. While you can dangle a phone from a MagSafe grip without issue, any additional force could cause the magnets to separate and fling your phone to the ground.

Jacob Roach, Brenda Stolyar

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October 4, 2025
Gear News of the Week: Adobe Premiere Lands on iPhone, and Nothing Lets You Design Your Own Widgets

Adobe has had a busy year designing and redesigning a number of its most popular apps for mobile, and Premiere for iPhone is the latest—a mobile-first video editing workflow that adapts most of the tools from the desktop version of Premiere to a mobile user interface. You can trim, layer, edit, and even auto-generate captions, alongside all the basic editing features you’d expect, like color and exposure adjustments.

The automatic resizing feature is particularly nice, adapting videos to both horizontal and landscape platforms, making sure your subject is centered for both cuts. As with anything Adobe releases these days, there are plenty of AI-powered features, including the ability to generate backgrounds from a prompt and create sound effects from your voice.

Premiere for iPhone is free, though if you want to use the AI features, you’ll have to buy credits within the app. According to Adobe, the Android version is still under development. —Scott Gilbertson

Nothing Reveals an AI ‘Operating System’

No, Nothing isn’t switching from Android to a custom AI-powered OS. However, the phone brand announced a new platform called Essential, which will lay the groundwork for a future in which users generate their own apps and user interface. We’ve heard these ideas before, often called generative user interfaces, and it’s still early days for the technology.

Nothing’s plan starts with two apps: Essential Apps and Playground. The former lets you create “apps” with natural language, though these are really designed in the form of widgets. Just describe what you need—capture all the receipts in my camera roll and export a PDF every Friday—and this will be generated as a widget you can interact with on the home screen. The Nothing Phone (3) supports up to six of these Essential apps, but older Nothing devices are limited to two.

Playground is a place where you can publish not just your Essential Apps but also other Nothing oddities, like Glyph Toys from the Phone (3), camera presets, and EQ profiles. You can download what the community has made and even “remix” them into your own. Eventually, these features will turn into what Nothing is calling Essential OS, which it expects to debut in 2028. (Remember the Essential Phone from 2017? Nothing bought the company’s assets in 2021, and it seems like it was for the name.)

Nothing debuted some of these AI features with the “Essential” branding earlier this year. Essential Space is a new app that debuted on the Phone (3a), triggered by a dedicated button; tap it to capture your screen and have AI pull insights and summarize the contents. Now, there’s Essential Memory, which the company says “brings everything together by learning your habits, and surfacing forgotten details when you need them most.” It’s coming soon, so we’ll have to wait and see to learn more.

Whoop Now Lets You Order Blood Work

Courtesy of Whoop

Hot on the heels of Ultrahuman and Oura announcing that you will be able to schedule and take blood labs with their services, Whoop debuted Whoop Advanced Labs. Not only can you add your preexisting blood work to the Whoop app, but you can also book blood testing through the app (like Oura, Whoop has partnered with Quest Diagnostics). Whoop’s offering is a bit more expensive, at $199 per test, $349 for two tests per year, or $599 for four tests per year, as compared to Oura’s $99 per test. Both purport to combine blood work results with long-term continuous monitoring with their respective trackers.

Labs are routine medical tests that let doctors screen things such as high cholesterol, high blood glucose, and diabetes, or hormone or ferritin tests to check if your thyroid is working or you’re eating enough iron. They can be expensive, inconvenient to schedule and take, and fairly arcane to interpret, so it makes sense that startups are starting to offer them as part of their subscription services.

Still, it’s a sad statement on the current accessibility of health care that routine medical services are now being funneled into revenue streams for private companies. As much as I like the Oura Ring and the Whoop band, they’re not doctors; they still can’t actually treat you for a heart attack or colon cancer. —Adrienne So

Arlo Refreshes Its Security Cameras

Courtesy of Arlo

Arlo’s new Essential 3 range rounds off a busy week for security cameras, with Google showing off new Nest cameras and Amazon releasing a fresh batch of Ring and Blink cameras. Arlo’s Essential 3 lineup includes indoor and outdoor pan/tilt cameras (a first for the company), alongside a new generation of regular outdoor and indoor cameras.

The Essential Pan Tilt ($60) and Essential Pan Tilt Indoor ($50) offer 2K footage, 360-degree pan, 180-degree tilt, and automatic subject tracking, and there are HD versions for a bit less. The 3rd-gen Essential Outdoor Battery ($70), Essential XL Outdoor Battery ($80), Essential Security Camera Plug-in ($50), and Essential Indoor Camera Plug-in ($40) all offer 2K footage, and again, there are slightly cheaper HD versions of each.

Julian Chokkattu

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October 4, 2025
The Best USB-C Cables for Your Phone, Tablet, or Laptop

More USB-C Cables We Have Tested

There are so many cables out there, and plenty of solid options did not make the cut. Here are a few I’ve tested and liked.

Photograph: Simon Hill

Twelve South PowerCord for $30: While I don’t think we want to go back to permanently attached cables and power adapters, they offer a simplicity that could be useful for some folks or situations. The PowerCord from Twelve South is thick and durable-feeling, with a tangle-resistant woven (4- or 10-foot) USB-C cable attached to a compact 30-watt (Power Delivery) wall plug.

EcoFlow Rapid Pro for $21: Kept out of a place above by Anker’s cables, this durable charging cable from EcoFlow is a solid choice if you want fast charging, since it can supply 240 watts. It also has tough metal ends, a lovely woven finish, and comes with a cable tie.

Nomad Chargekey for $29 and USB-C Cable for $25: The Chargekey is a handy wee addition to your keyring with 12 cm of braided cable capable of delivering 240 watts and up to 10 Gbps data transfer, though it can be a little awkward to use. I also tried Nomad’s new Kevlar-reinforced USB-C cable, which is also 240 W but only has 480 Mbps data transfer. It feels durable with metal ends and braided cable, but you can get more capable cables for less.

QDOS PowerMotion Ultra for £40: This USB 4.0 cable is a solid alternative to our top picks for folks in the UK, combining up to 240-watt charging with data transfer speeds up to 40 Gbps. It is relatively thick, feels durable, and comes with a lifetime warranty. I like the braided nylon finish and color-matched cable tie. I also tried the QDOS Powerloop (£20), a handy wearable charging cable that doubles as a lanyard strap. It’s thick, woven, and durable, with screw-off ends that reveal a USB-C cable capable of supplying 60 watts of power and 480 Mbps of data.

Chargeasap Connect Pro for $60: Magnetic tip cables can be handy for kids and folks with dexterity issues. The idea is you stick the relevant tip in your device and then attach the cable magnetically when you need to charge. This one also has an LED display to show real-time power usage. It works best if you leave the tips in your devices, but that means they can’t be charged by regular cables, and the tips are very easy to lose if you remove them. Performance-wise, it’s a standard 100-watt charging cable.

Krafted Connex for £30: I like the idea of a Swiss Army Knife–style charging cable keyring, but the execution here is flawed. It does offer USB-A, USB-C, Lightning, and MicroUSB, but the flip-out plugs don’t have any cable attached, so they are not very adjustable, making it tough to plug into some ports. The Rolling Square InCharge X 6-in-1 Cable above is the same price and works far better.

Scosche Strikeline Premium USB-C Cable for $25: This braided cable comes in various lengths all the way up to the 10-foot cable I tested, and it’s a good alternative to our best long cable above if data transfer is more important to you than charging speed because it offers 5 Gbps data speeds, but only 60 watts for charging.

Ugreen Uno USB-C Cable for $10: I love the smiley-faced Uno line from UGreen, but I assumed the display on this cable would show the charging rate. It does not. It just displays smiley eyes when charging and changes when fully charged. I tested the 6.6-foot cable, but it also comes in 1.6-, 3.3-, or 10-foot lengths. It feels durable and is reasonably priced, but it is rated at a very ordinary 100 watts and 480 Mbps.

Native Union Pocket Cable for $30: This wee braided USB-C to USB-C cable is perfect for slipping on a keyring to ensure you are never caught without a cable. It’s a nice design with braided cables, but you only get around 7 inches, and it maxes out at 60 watts. It is built to last from recycled materials, USB-IF certified, and comes with a lifetime warranty.

Caudabe ChargeFlex for $25: This was our Lightning recommendation, and it’s still good, but the price has gone up and there’s no need to spend this much. It is a thick braided cable reinforced with Kevlar for durability. There is a leather clip you can use for cable management, and the ridged finish on the connectors makes them easy to grip when unplugging.

Cable Matters Gen 2 USB-A to USB-C cable for $10: This is a good alternative to our pick above if you want faster data transfer speeds (it maxes out at 10 Gbps), but it is limited to 15 watts for charging.

Bluebonnet Eco-Friendly Charging Cable for $25: Bluebonnet (an Austin-based studio named after the Texas state flower) made this cable from naturally biodegradable wheat straw. It promises 50,000 plus bends and uses plastic-free packaging. I love the dappled blue finish and the cream ends. They make it easy to pick this cable out of the crowd. It’s nothing special performance-wise, offering up to 60-watt charging and 480 Mbps data transfer.

RUGD Rhino Power USB-C to USB-C for £11: This is a solid option for folks in the UK seeking a tough cable. It has a braided nylon finish and can withstand a minimum of 100 kilograms of tension and 100,000 bends. It can also deliver up to 60 watts.

Casetify Powerthru USB-C to Lightning Cable for $25: This tough, braided cable comes in some fun colors (most notably cotton candy), but it’s kinda pricey for a 100-watt charging cable.

Iniu Braided USB-C Cable for $6: This is a cheap, 6.6-foot USB-C to USB-C charging cable that tops out at 100 watts. Data transfer is only 480 Mbps. One end lights up green when it’s charging.

Lindy USB 3.2 Type C to C Cable for $23: These active cables are suitable for hooking monitors up to your computer, and they support up to 8K at 60 Hz and 4K at 120 Hz. They also support DisplayPort 1.4. I tested the longer 3- and 5-meter variants that max out at 60 watts for Power Delivery and 10 Gbps for data (but they’re out of stock). The shorter cable linked here can go up to 20 Gbps. They work well and feel durable, but they’re a bit pricey.

Satechi USB-C to USB-C Charging Cable for $20: Gear from Satechi always has a classy look, and its braided nylon cables are no exception. This one is 6.5 feet, has a Velcro strap, and is capable of 100-watt charging, with support for PD and QC. Sadly, data transfer is limited to 480 Mbps.

Plugable Thunderbolt 4 Transfer Cable for $70: This active Thunderbolt 4 USB-C to USB-C cable matches our top pick with support for 100-watt charging and data transfers up to 40 Gbps. It is 6.6 feet long and comes with a two-year warranty.

Belkin Boost Charge USB-C for $10: This cable maxes out at 12 watts and 480 Mbps. The basic PVC finish is the cheapest, but you can opt for braided nylon too; both come in black or white at 3.3 or 6.6 feet. These cables are USB-IF certified and work as advertised (I’ve been using one in the car for the last few months).

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Simon Hill

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October 2, 2025
Phone Memes That Are Relatable To Pretty Much Everyone On Earth

Ah, cell phones.

They run our lives now: maps, music, group chats, camera, alarm clocks, whatever — you can’t escape.

Sometimes it’s better, sometimes it’s… worse.

Either way, the struggles are universal. So here’s a fresh scroll of painfully relatable phone memes for literally all of us.

But first, a fun Norm MacDonald bit I love:

Ty

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October 1, 2025
Xiaomi’s New Phone One-Ups Apple’s iPhone Redesign With a Second Screen

Bearing in mind this is the Chinese model (there’s no word on a global edition yet), I was unable to test all of the functionality, but I have a good idea what will work here and what doesn’t. I love the time and notifications, because I don’t have to pick up my phone as much when it’s face down on the desk and I’m working.

The customizable themes and pets are fun. It’s an opportunity to add a little more personality to your phone. While the real-time updates work only with select Chinese apps right now, the utility is clear, and the music controls are very handy. The selfie preview is an obvious benefit, as the photos you can take with the main camera far surpass those taken with any front-facing camera.

Photograph: Simon Hill

I’m also excited about the pin function. You know that awkward dance you do when you’re queuing? You have the QR code that they’ll scan in a minute open on your phone, but you want to continue reading or messaging. Well, this allows you to pin it on the back display and get on with what you’re doing. While I wasn’t able to test it, I know this will be handy.

As a big retro gaming fan, I love the look and feel of the case, and it automatically connects via Bluetooth and triggers the game mode. But once I got over the novelty, I was left wondering why I would ever want to play a game on a tiny screen interrupted by camera lenses when I have one of the most gorgeous 6.7-inch phone displays I’ve ever used in my hand. I tried Angry Birds 2, and it’s totally playable on the back display, but just because you can do something doesn’t mean you should.

And the Rest

Naturally, the 17 Pro Max is a specs beast, and the 17 Pro isn’t far behind. Both are powered by Qualcomm’s brand-new Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5 processor, and my review unit has 16 GB of RAM and 1 TB of storage. The displays feature Xiaomi’s new M10 display technology, and it is sharp and power-efficient, and it gets very bright.

Simon Hill

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September 25, 2025
Give Your iPhone (or Android) an Upgrade With Our Favorite MagSafe Accessories

Other Good MagSafe Accessories

The accessories below aren’t as great as the top picks in this guide, but they’re still good options if you’re looking for more MagSafe gadgets.

Belkin iPhone Mount With MagSafe.

Photograph: Julian Chokkattu

Belkin iPhone Mount With MagSafe for $30: Using Apple’s Continuity Camera feature, you can wirelessly use your iPhone as a webcam for a MacBook. It supports various video calling apps too, from FaceTime to Zoom. This circular silicone puck magnetically sticks to the back of your iPhone and can be used as a phone grip or kickstand, but you need to keep your screen close to a 90-degree angle, or else the weight of the iPhone will drag the screen back or forward. There’s also a mount for external displays, in case you want one for your home desk setup.

STM Goods MagPod Smarter Phone Stand for $31: I’ve been carrying this mini tripod from STM Goods all over my apartment. When I’m not using it to see notifications at a glance at my desk, I’ll place it on my kitchen counter to stream TV shows while cooking dinner, on my coffee table to FaceTime with friends while on the couch, or on the bathroom sink to listen to podcasts while doing my makeup. I’ve also used it to shoot video. It has a magnetic disc with a socket that moves around smoothly, allowing you to position it at multiple angles. The retractable legs are sturdy too, even while tapping through notifications or typing out texts. They fold in neatly into a compact size, making it easy to travel with.

Casetify Wireless Car Charger for $70: I’ve been using this for over a year. It’s easy to install, has MagSafe support (with a USB-C cable) and an adjustable ball joint for various viewing angles, and it’s Qi 2-certified with a 15-watt rate. It’s a bit more affordable than Belkin’s and comes in several fun patterns. (I have the Penguin design, and it’s tough not to smile while looking at it.)

iOttie Velox Pro Magnetic Wireless Cooling Charger for $80: This iOttie option has a suction cup (if your vents are awkward, or you just prefer a dash or windshield mount) that has strong magnets to keep it in place. The telescopic arm also has a ball joint to give you a wide range of movement to find the ideal position. The 7.5-watt charging rate is disappointing, but the USB-C charging cable is removable, so you can detach and stow it when your iPhone is charged. The built-in fan also helps to keep the temperature down when the sun is out.

MagGo Magnetic Charging Station (8-in-1) for $60: This little orb has three AC outlets, two USB-C ports, and two USB-A ports on the back, and over on the front is a Qi2 wireless charging pad that can recharge your phone. It’s great for workstations where you need to plug in a lot of gadgets. Each of the USB-A ports dishes out 12 watts, and the USB-C ports can output 67 watts, though this lowers if other ports or the pad are in use.

Photograph: Julian Chokkattu

A MagSafe SSD Enclosure for $60: If you have an iPhone Pro Max and you want to tinker with Apple’s more advanced video recording formats (ProRes 4K at 60 frames per second or higher), well, you’ll run into one big problem immediately: You can’t natively record without an external storage device. You’ll need a solid-state drive plugged into your iPhone, and it will record your video directly to the external storage. But a dangling SSD doesn’t sound very safe, right? They don’t transfer power or data via MagSafe but merely attach to the back as a convenient way to store the SSD while recording.

Casely Grippy for $25: When Octobuddy (the original suction phone mount) started to get popular, I really wanted one. But since it uses adhesive to attach to your phone, the thought of all the dust and germs the suction cups would collect kept me from trying it. This one from Casely is one of the few that has MagSafe support. It works well, for the most part. I’ve stuck it on kitchen cabinets, mirrors, the refrigerator—basically whatever surface is around. But when sticking it on said surface, I recommend applying extra pressure to make sure the suction cups are really stuck on there. Otherwise, it’ll slide off, and your phone will go with it.

MagSafe is the name of Apple’s accessory system integrated into the iPhone 12, iPhone 13, iPhone 14, iPhone 15, iPhone 16, and iPhone 17 ranges. A ring of magnets on the back of the phone (and in MagSafe cases) can help transfer power more precisely and faster than traditional wireless chargers. However, it’s also a handy way to hold an accessory in place, like a wallet, or to mount the iPhone without requiring clamps.

Although MagSafe is a term made by Apple, Android phones like the Google Pixel 10 are getting MagSafe-like features with the new Qi2 standard. Most of the time, a MagSafe accessory will work without issues with Qi2 devices.

Make Sure Your Case Has MagSafe Too

If you use a case with your iPhone, make sure it’s a MagSafe case (it should have its own ring of magnets inside). A standard case will just weaken the magnetic attachment between the iPhone and the MagSafe accessory. A MagSafe case will maintain the magnetic strength, and sometimes case-makers use stronger magnets for a more secure attachment. We have lots of recommendations in our iPhone case guides:

Is MagSafe Compatible With Android?

Natively, no. MagSafe won’t work with most Android phones. However, there are MagSafe cases for certain Android phones, like the Google Pixel series or Samsung Galaxy phones, and these cases have a similar (if not the same) magnetic ring inside, allowing you to use many of the same MagSafe power banks, wireless chargers, and other accessories, though your mileage may vary. Several accessory companies also include or sell the MagSafe magnetic component that you can stick to the back of your smartphone to enable compatibility, though I’ve never used one I really like.

The Qi2 wireless charging standard is changing all of this. Qi2 adds the Magnetic Power Profile, which is based on MagSafe. That means Qi2 phones feature a similar magnetic attachment system, enabling MagSafe accessories to work with more devices, no case needed. Unfortunately, there aren’t many Android phones with Qi2 natively baked in. Samsung’s Galaxy S25 series, for example, are “Qi2 Ready” phones because you need a magnetic case to enable the Qi2 functionality as there’s no magnets built into the phone. The recent Google Pixel 10 series is the first range to fully support Qi2, so we should see more devices throughout the next 12 to 18 months.

That’s why you may also start seeing “Qi2” MagSafe devices—the latest iPhones all support Qi2, and any device you buy with Qi2 will offer maximum compatibility.

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Jacob Roach, Julian Chokkattu

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September 25, 2025
Qualcomm’s Snapdragon X Revolutionized Windows Laptops. Here Comes the Second Act

Perhaps the most exciting part of the chip is the graphics performance: the Snapdragon X2 Elite and X2 Elite Extreme both use a new Adreno GPU architecture. Qualcomm says power efficiency has improved by 2.3X, so hopefully that means these laptops can scale up performance when it’s needed, in games or creative applications.

Lastly, the company claims there’s a much more powerful Neural Processing Unit (NPU) with 80 TOPS (Trillions of Operations Per Second) of on-device AI processing performance. The Snapdragon X set the initial bar with 50 TOPS, which Apple, Intel, and AMD then had to match in their next chips. We’ve yet to see the explosion of on-device AI processing be relevant for the average person, but hopefully, more performance will provide an incentive for developers to build more unique AI experiences that can utilize the NPU.

Qualcomm boasts “multi-day” battery life on these new chips, though performance was the priority in the company’s product presentation. This is a change from the original marketing around the first-generation Snapdragon X chips, which centered battery life as its primary selling point.

As always, it helps to go first. These second-generation PC chips have been announced months ahead of devices from competitors, which may not arrive until the first quarter of 2026, making it easier to compare with previous-gen chips. Intel is expected to launch its highly anticipated A18 chips (also known as Panther Lake) later this year, and Nvidia’s $5 billion investment in Intel could change everything in the world of PCs. Apple is also expected to debut an M5 chip next month.

A New Smartphone Chip

Alongside new PC chips, Qualcomm also detailed its recently announced mobile chips, the Snapdragon 8 Gen 5. These were officially unveiled last week, but at the company’s Snapdragon Summit conference, it shared new details on how these chips will perform.

Barely a week has gone by since Apple’s A19-powered iPhones hit the market, but Qualcomm is already claiming that its Snapdragon 8 Gen 5 is the “fastest mobile CPU in the world,” with a record clock speed of 4.6 GHz (Apple’s A19 Pro has a clock speed of 4.26 GHz). Like the PC chips, graphics and AI processing have the largest leaps in performance, with a purported 23 percent faster GPU and 37 percent faster NPU. Some slightly faster single-core performance in your next phone might not be noticeable, but the significantly faster GPU could have a bigger impact on mobile gaming.

The other significant new feature on these mobile chips is the embrace of a new video codec called Advanced Professional Video, or APV. This is a “near-lossless” codec created by Samsung meant to compete with Apple’s ProRes format, and uses less storage than current options.

Qualcomm says new phones powered by the Snapdragon 8 Gen 5 will launch “in the coming days,” with entries from Xiaomi, OnePlus, Samsung, Honor, and Xiaomi.

AI, 6G, and the Future of Android

Qualcomm CEO Cristiano Amon.

Photograph: Luke Larsen

During the Snapdragon Summit keynote, Qualcomm CEO Cristiano Amon drew the biggest applause with the mention of 6G as the future connectivity standard, replacing 5G, enabling a more pervasive AI future. “6G is designed to be the connection between the cloud and edge devices,” he said.

Luke Larsen

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September 24, 2025
The Best MagSafe Wallets to Keep Your Stuff Safely in One Place

Other Good MagSafe Wallets

ESR Magnetic Wallet HaloLock With Find My

Courtesy of ESR

ESR Magnetic Wallet HaloLock With Find My for $40: Like Apple’s MagSafe wallet, this one has Find My support. You can use the flap on the back as a grip and fit two cards easily. It does require recharging with a proprietary cable, which is annoying, though it didn’t lose much battery life after six months. Too bad I’ve already lost the cable.

OtterBox Symmetry Series Cactus Leather MagSafe Wallet for $45: It’s nice and simple, thin, lightweight, has a strong hold on my phone case, and offers a dedicated fabric-covered slot at the bottom to push the cards out (I was able to fit three without much trouble). This OtterBox wallet is made from cactus-based leather, which feels nearly as luxurious as real leather. Just know that cactus leather isn’t as eco-friendly as it’s made out to be—these cases are still infused with layers of plastics.

Apple FineWoven MagSafe Case for $50: Any time the wallet is separated from your iPhone, you’ll get an alert and can track it in Apple’s Find My app. It has a single slot that can fit up to three cards, but to take the cards out, you have to remove it from your iPhone and push the cards up via the slot on the back. Unfortunately, Apple’s MagSafe wallets exclusively use the company’s proprietary FineWoven material (made of recycled materials). It’s a commendable effort to reduce reliance on leather production, but several WIRED reviewers have said the material doesn’t hold up all that well after some time.

Bluebonnet Minimalist Full-Grain Leather MagSafe Wallet Card Holder for $68: Bluebonnet’s wallet is thin, even with cards inside, and also comes with an elastic grip you can put your fingers through to hold the phone more securely. The magnets are stronger than those in other wallets I’ve tested, though the bottom moves a bit when using the grip. Bluebonnet claims it can fit up to three cards, but I’ve been able to fit only two (my license and debit card). It’s a struggle to insert or remove more than that.

Avoid This Wallet

Ohsnap! Snap Grip Wallet for $100: I had high hopes for this one, mainly because of its build quality. The wallet is aluminum, can hold up to eight cards (depending on whether they’re lettered or not), has MagSafe support, and comes with a grip that doubles as a kickstand. Unfortunately, the grip is made of plastic, and it broke after a short time (it won’t fold properly back into place). The magnetic hold isn’t as strong as other MagSafe wallets, even with a MagSafe-approved case on my phone. None of that is great, especially at this high price.

Benks 600D MagSafe Wallet with Stand for $33: The Benks 600D MagSafe wallet might be made with Kelvar, but it sure doesn’t feel like it. The inside shell of the wallet is made with plastic, and after just a day of use, I spotted a crack in that plastic right next to the hinge. Worse, I tried to apply a bit of pressure to see if the hinge would still hold up, which completely warped the MagSafe ring. Even without clear durability problems, this wallet wouldn’t make the top of the list. It’s reasonably priced at $30 and comes in a handful of attractive colors, but it’s limited to just three cards, and there’s no easy way to get them out.

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Jacob Roach, Brenda Stolyar

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September 23, 2025
The 25 Key Settings You Need to Change on Your iPhone

Apple’s software design strives to be intuitive, but each iteration of iOS contains so many additions and tweaks that it’s easy to miss some useful iPhone settings. Apple focused on artificial intelligence when it unveiled iOS 18 in 2024, but there’s a lot under the hood that adds to the steady stream of intriguing customizations and lesser-known features from the last few years. Several helpful settings are turned off by default, and it’s not immediately obvious how to switch off some annoying features. We’re here to help you get the most out of your Apple phone.

Once you have things set up the way you want, it’s a breeze to copy everything, including settings, when you switch to a new iPhone. For more tips and recommendations, read our related guides—Best iPhone, Best iPhone 16 Cases, Best MagSafe Accessories—and our explainers on How to Set Up a New iPhone, How to Back Up Your iPhone, and How to Fix Your iPhone.

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Customize the Control Center

Apple via Simon Hill

Swipe down from the top right of the screen to open the Control Center, and you’ll see it’s more customizable than ever. You can tap the plus icon at the top left or tap and hold on an empty space to open the customization menu. Here you can move icons and widgets around, remove anything you don’t want, or tap Add a Control at the bottom for a searchable list of shortcut icons and widgets you can organize across multiple Control Center screens. You can also customize your home screen with iOS 18 to change the color and size of app icons, rearrange them, and more.

Change Your Lock Screen Buttons

Apple via Simon Hill

Screenshot

You know those lock screen controls that default to flashlight on the bottom left and camera on the bottom right? You can change them. Press and hold on an empty space on the lock screen and tap Customize, then Lock Screen. Tap the minus icon to remove an existing shortcut, and tap the plus icon to add a new one. You can also change the weather and date widgets, the font and color for the time, and pick a wallpaper.

Extend Screen Time-Out

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While it’s good to have your screen time out for battery saving and security purposes, I find it maddening when the screen goes off while I’m doing something. The default screen time-out is too short in my opinion, but thankfully, you can adjust it. Head into Settings, Display & Brightness, and select Auto-Lock to extend it. You have several options, including Never, which means you will have to manually push the power button to turn the screen off.

Turn Off Keyboard Sounds

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The iPhone’s keyboard clicking sound when you type is extremely aggravating. Trust me, even if you don’t hate it, everyone in your vicinity when you type sure does. You can turn it off in Settings, Sound & Haptics by tapping Keyboard Feedback and toggling Sound off. I also advise toggling off the Lock Sound while you’re in Sound & Haptics.

Go Dark

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Protect yourself from eye-searing glare with dark mode. Go to Settings, pick Display & Brightness, and tap Dark. You may prefer to toggle on Automatic and have it change with the sun setting, but I prefer to be in Dark mode all the time.

Change Your Battery Charge Level

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If you’re determined to squeeze as many years out of your iPhone battery as possible, consider changing the charging limit. You can maximize your smartphone’s battery health if you avoid charging it beyond 80 percent. The iPhone’s default is now Optimized Battery Charging, which waits at 80 percent and then aims to hit 100 percent when you are ready to go in the morning. But there’s a slider you can set to a hard 80 percent limit in Settings, under Battery, and Charging.

Set Up the Action Button

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Folks with an iPhone 15 Pro model or any device in the iPhone 16 range have an Action Button instead of the old mute switch. By default, it will silence your iPhone when you press and hold it, but you can change what it does by going to Settings, then Action Button. You can swipe through various basic options from Camera and Flashlight to Visual Intelligence, but select Shortcuts if you want it to do something more interesting. If you’re unfamiliar, check out our guide on How to Use the Apple Shortcuts App.

Turn Off Apple Intelligence

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Much vaunted but slightly underwhelming, Apple Intelligence isn’t fully baked yet, and we are still waiting for an improved Siri. If you prefer to opt out of certain features or opt out completely, go to Settings, Apple Intelligence & Siri, and tap on it to toggle Apple Intelligence off. If you prefer to keep select features on, you can find instructions in our How to Turn off Apple Intelligence guide.

Hide Sensitive Apps

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Whether you are embarrassed by your Candy Crush addiction or risque photos, or perhaps you’ve been using the Notes app to plan your partner’s birthday party, you can hide them from prying eyes. I’m not here to judge. To protect an app, you have two options: tap and hold on the icon and select Require Face ID, then Require Face ID or Hide and Require Face ID. The first option leaves the app in place, but no one can access it without a Face ID check. If you prefer to hide the app, choose the second option and then Hide App, and it will be obscured inside a Hidden folder at the bottom of your App Library that requires a Face ID check to open.

Stop Videos Autoplaying or Looping

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If you find it irritating that videos automatically play as you scroll through the Photos app, or it bugs you that they loop and repeat instead of stopping at the end, you can change that behavior. Tap Settings, Apps, then Photos, and scroll down to toggle Auto-Play Motion and Loop Videos off.

Enhance Speech in Movies and TV Shows

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It can be tough to make out the dialog in some TV shows and movies, but Apple has a fix for muffled speech on your iPhone. When you’re playing a video, tap the screen to bring up the menu and select the audio icon. You can select Enhance Dialogue and choose Enhance or Enhance More to make the voices louder and clearer.

Set Up Do Not Disturb

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At an absolute minimum, you should shut up your iPhone at night so it doesn’t disturb your sleep, but Apple offers a wide range of tools to automate or schedule downtime to help you focus. Go to Settings, Focus, and choose Do Not Disturb to get started. You can turn off notifications but set up exceptions so that specific contacts or apps will get through. You can also go to Screen Time and Downtime to set a specific schedule for each day.

Change Your Default Apps

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You don’t have to use Safari as your browser or Apple’s Mail app for emails. You can change the default apps on your iPhone by going to Settings, Apps, and Default Apps. If you have valid alternative apps installed for Email, Messaging, Browser, and a few other categories, you can select them instead of Apple’s apps.

Keep iCloud Files Local

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You can choose to keep certain files that you have synced with iCloud stored locally on your iPhone, which is handy if you want to access them when there’s no internet available. Open the Files app, go to the Browse tab, and choose iCloud Drive. You can tap and hold on any folder or file and select Keep Downloaded to keep a copy on your iPhone.

Limit App Permissions

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It’s worth reviewing your app permissions and limiting them. There are a few routes to do this, but Settings, then Privacy & Security, might be the easiest. There’s a lot here, but I advise looking at Location Services and removing or reducing permissions for apps you don’t think need them. You can toggle off Precise Location for many, since an approximate location is often enough for them to function the way you want. Other apps to keep an eye on are Contacts and Photos, as both now give you the option to allow limited access.

By the way, if you want to turn off Background App Refresh to stop apps sucking down data and draining the battery when you aren’t using them, go to Settings, Apps, and choose any you don’t need to refresh unless you open them to toggle it off.

Change Siri’s Voice

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Apple offers a whole range of voices for Siri now. Go to Settings, choose Apple Intelligence & Siri, and tap Voice to see a list of variations (American, Australian, British, Indian, Irish, South African) and voices (Irish Voice 2 is my pick). Just be aware that if you choose a new one, it may take a while to download.

Set a Shortcut for Your Email Address

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Forget about typing out your whole email address every time. Go to Settings, General, and choose Keyboard. Tap Text Replacement and then the plus icon at the top right to set up text shortcuts, such as “eml” for your full email address, or “addy” for your mailing address. This can also work for any other text you type out frequently.

Show Notifications on Lock Screen

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Apple is all about privacy, but having to unlock your iPhone to see the content of an incoming message can be annoying. You can change how this works by going to Settings, Notifications, and selecting Show Previews. It is set to When Unlocked by default, but you can choose Always or Never.

Make Some AI Art

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If you decide to give AI a chance and fancy generating some art with AI assistance, open up the Playground app. You can pick photos, themes, costumes, accessories, places, or type prompts. Here’s a full guide on how to use Apple’s Image Playground. It’s available on Apple devices running iOS 18.2, iPadOS 18.2, or macOS Sequoia 15.2.

Reduce Car Sickness

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Do you get nauseous when you use your iPhone as a car passenger? Go to Settings, Accessibility, choose Motion, then Show Vehicle Motion Cues. You can turn it on or off to display dots that help reduce motion sickness, but if you tap Automatic, it will turn on when it detects you are in the car.

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September 21, 2025