Mobile News 24 Hours

Last updated: August 9, 2026, 5:44 PM ET

Upcoming Flagships

The week brought a flurry of leaks and announcements about next-generation devices. Xiaomi revealed the Redmi K100 Pro with a redesigned camera island and Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5 chipset, while the Galaxy S27 and Pixel 11 also appeared in the same spec dump. Google’s Made by Google 2026 event is set for next week, promising the Pixel, Pixel 11 Pro Fold, Pixel Watch, and a deep dive into Gemini. Meanwhile, luxury modifier Caviar appears to have leaked the iPhone Ultra and iPhone 18 Pro design specs ahead of Apple’s official launch.

Samsung Galaxy Lineup

Samsung’s Galaxy Z foldables just landed globally, and early deals are already appearing: the Galaxy Z Flip8 launched with an out-of-the-gate discount, while the Z Fold8 and Z Fold8 Ultra are also on sale. For budget-minded buyers, the upcoming Galaxy A18 has appeared on Geekbench with key specs, hinting at a launch Existing Samsung fans should note that the Galaxy S23 FE will get Android 17-based One UI 9 as its final major OS upgrade.

Mobile Trends and Opinions

Feature phones are seeing a surprise revival; a weekly poll asks whether this is a genuine trend or a passing fad. On the other side of the wearable spectrum, a separate poll showed smart glasses are still struggling to find a market, with readers calling them “a solution looking for a problem.” When it comes to buying habits, the debate over digital vs physical games grows as more companies drop disc production. And if you’re thinking of jumping ship, a deep dive covers the downsides of switching to Android from iPhone.

Computing and Accessories

Asus and Lenovo are preparing new Chromebook-style “Googlebooks” for IFA next month; alleged renders of the Asus and Lenovo Googlebooks have surfaced, though they appear to have been upscaled using AI. On the software front, Claude's voice mode is now available, offering a hands-free way to interact with the chatbot.

Tips and How-Tos

Apple users can learn how to hide apps on iPhone to declutter their home screen, while Windows users might need a refresher on how to format a USB drive for transferring files to a PC.