Tech & Mobile 24-Hour Briefing
×Tech & Hardware
Last updated: October 25, 2026, 10:40 PM ET
Gaming & Entertainment
Epic Games has made its Fortnite x One Piece techpowerup.com collaboration official, with the mini-season set to begin November 1. Meanwhile, a fan petition asking EA to keep Mass Effect alive has picked up close to 180,000 signatures techpowerup.com following the Bio Ware shutdown.
Xbox & Streaming
Netflix reportedly walked away techpowerup.com after Microsoft asked $800 million for its game IP, with Netflix having offered $500 million for seven years of exclusive rights. Xbox also lost its first chief operating officer, as Helen Chiang departed techpowerup.com the company after just three months.
GPUs & Graphics Software
NVIDIA has released version 1.9.0 of its RTX Path Tracing techpowerup.com toolkit, delivering roughly 20% faster performance and adding Windows on Arm support. NVIDIA CEO Jensen Huang has also put a rough figure of $2,000 per GPU annually techpowerup.com on the company's software business. On the community side, a new Linux tool now brings Resizable BAR support to Intel Arc techpowerup.com cards on older motherboards, while modders have pushed GeForce RTX, and 40 techpowerup.com compute performance by up to 2x.
Coming Up
The Fortnite x One Piece mini-season techpowerup.com starts November 1.
Mobile News
Last updated: October 25, 2026, 10:40 PM ET
Foldables & Apple's Duo
Early buyers of Apple's first foldable, the iPhone Duo gsmarena.com, are reporting inner display damage they attribute to a potential hinge defect. Reviewers, meanwhile, are asking which Android handset comes closest to the Duo's design engadget.com and feature set.
Smartphone Launches & Deals
Oppo has pushed its Find X10 series gsmarena.com into European markets with faster launch timing, and early pre-order discounts are now live. Huawei's Pura 90 Plus gsmarena.com surfaced in live images ahead of launch, with its chipset now revealed. GSMArena's weekly poll gsmarena.com suggests the One Plus 16 could have been a global hit despite its market pullout.
Software & Platforms
Rumors that Samsung will rebrand One UI as Galaxy OS appear to be unfounded engadget.com, according to Engadget's review of recent reports. Google's Chrome memory usage engadget.com may be more myth than reality, though the browser remains a frequent target of complaints.
Privacy & Security
Ray-Ban Meta smart glasses drew criticism over their data collection, and Engadget advises owners to adjust four privacy settings engadget.com before wearing them. A separate guide covers MacBook privacy controls engadget.com that tighten built-in protections.
Home Networking & Connectivity
Mesh Wi-Fi owners can improve performance by adding an Ethernet backhaul engadget.com, while devices stuck on the wrong Wi-Fi band engadget.com may be running slower than necessary. Engadget also argues that IPv6 support engadget.com is now worth enabling on home networks, and outdoor runs of standard Ethernet cable engadget.com carry their own caveats.
Travel & Everyday Tech
The TSA's position on AirTags in checked bags engadget.com clarifies what travelers can pack, and the iPhone's built-in Measure app engadget.com uses LiDAR for surprisingly accurate measurements.
Audio & Home Upgrades
Earbuds typically cost less than headphones engadget.com because they are simpler to build, while AI glasses engadget.com are emerging as a possible replacement depending on audio quality. Old speakers can be repurposed to upgrade TV sound engadget.com, and smart switches engadget.com offer a more inclusive smart home option than bulbs.
Subscriptions & Pricing
Sony's PlayStation Plus engadget.com has changed considerably since 2010, with pricing reflecting its expanded offerings.
Quantum & Apple Ecosystem
Quantum computers must run colder than deep space engadget.com to keep qubits stable, and Apple's CarPlay bell icon engadget.com signals notifications that many drivers overlook. Pairing AirPods with Samsung phones engadget.com costs users most of Apple's exclusive features.
Coming Up
The Oppo Find X10 Pro Max gsmarena.com is positioned for European availability, and Huawei's Pura 90 Plus gsmarena.com has been confirmed for a launch that is now imminent.
Apple News
Last updated: October 25, 2026, 10:40 PM ET
iPhone Duo
Teardown site iFixit has taken the iPhone Duo apart and pointed to hinge damage as a likely cause of the screen cracks users have been reporting. A separate iFixit analysis reached similar conclusions about early screen failures, while Apple Insider traced the repeating crack pattern to a small amount of hinge failure. Owners have described the cracks as seemingly identical, and reports from early buyers suggest the problem is not isolated.
On the software side, the Duo's outer display now includes a setting to accommodate cases or frames that partially cover the screen. The device also adds a new Shortcuts trigger that can run actions when the phone is opened or closed, and Apple is reportedly weighing a fix for Safari's cramped layout on the Duo.
Security & Services
Apple is addressing a security threat tied to compromised eMudhra certificates and is working on a mac OS update with an additional fix. Meanwhile, Instagram has launched an Apple TV app featuring Reels and live shows, while Apple Music's rebrand drew attention after a security certificate failure in this week's Sunday Reboot coverage.
Hardware Pipeline
Apple's product calendar is crowded this week. Mark Gurman reports a new iMac and 14-inch MacBook Pro powered by the M6 chip are expected, and Apple is reportedly unveiling OLED touch-screen MacBook Pro models on Wednesday. The OLED iPad mini 8 is also slated to debut this week, the first overhaul of that line since 2021. Looking further out, OLED iMac and MacBook Air models are still years from launch, and a touch-friendly interface is coming to macOS Golden Gate.
Retail & Deals
Apple is rolling out a new anti-theft scanner in its stores to check iPhone boxes, according to Bloomberg. On pricing, the Air Tag 2 has fallen to a record low of $23 on Amazon.
Leadership
Jeff Williams' successor-era shuffle continues, with John Ternus reassigning more roles as several long-time executives prepare to retire.
Coming Up
The OLED iPad mini 8 debuts this week, and the touchscreen MacBook Pro is expected Wednesday. Gurman's reporting points to the new iMac and 14-inch MacBook Pro landing in the same window.