Mobile News 24 Hours

Last updated: August 25, 2026, 8:36 PM ET

Smartphones & Mobile Hardware

The mobile world is buzzing with new launches and leaks. Xiaomi took home the top EISA Smartphone award for the 2026-2027 cycle, with Honor, Oppo, and Samsung also earning recognition from the Expert Imaging and Sound Association. In the budget segment, the Redmi 17C 5G is now official, featuring a Dimensity 6300 SoC and a hefty 6,000mAh battery. India-based Fire-Boltt has entered the smartphone market with the Boltt Ace 5G and Evo 4G, both offering large batteries at affordable prices. Meanwhile, the Realme C100i is headed to India with a launch set for August 27, featuring a redesigned camera bump for the Indian market.

Sony has refreshed its midrange lineup with the Xperia 10 VIII, but the update comes with a significant price hike that may not be justified by the modest upgrades. Our review notes it feels like the same phone with a new name. On the folding front, the Huawei Mate XT2 will be unveiled next month, potentially featuring a new folding mechanism for its tri-fold design. The Oppo A7 Pro has surfaced in a Brazilian certification listing, hinting at an 8,000mAh battery. Vivo is preparing its T5 5G for a September 2 launch in India, and a vivo X500 Pro Max has been spotted on Geekbench ahead of its China debut.

Poco has officially confirmed the chipsets for its upcoming F9 series, with the F9 Pro and F9 Ultra set to feature Snapdragon 8 Elite processors. Qualcomm is pushing performance boundaries with its next flagship chip, which breaks the 5GHz barrier with a whopping 5GHz clock speed on its Oryon CPU cores.

Samsung & Galaxy Ecosystem

Samsung is making waves with its software and hardware updates. The updated Smart Switch app in One UI 9 simplifies the phone-switching process and can copy more data, even from iPhones. The One UI 9 Beta 6 is now rolling out for Galaxy S26 users, hopefully marking the final beta before a stable release. The Galaxy A57's One UI 9 beta is also imminent after months of internal testing.

to the Galaxy S27 Ultra, new renders show a redesign that looks increasingly iPhone-like with a horizontal camera plateau. The device is tipped to be nearly the same size as the S26 Ultra, and Samsung may be developing self-healing glass for the display. Meanwhile, the GrapheneOS upgrade for Motorola phones will finally become a reality in 2027, with foldables to follow.

Samsung's market position remains strong, as the company led the Southeast Asia smartphone market in Q2 with a 24% share, and was the only brand showing growth in a market that declined 15% year-over-year.

Apple Silicon & Macs

Apple has refreshed its desktop lineup with new silicon. The Mac mini and Mac Studio now feature the latest M6 and M5 Ultra chips, making them the most powerful consumer desktops Apple has ever produced. The company also announced its M6 and M5 Ultra chips with full specifications, aimed at professionals handling AI modeling and 3D rendering tasks. The M5 Ultra features an 80-core GPU that can power through AI models and 8K video work.

Comparing generations, the M5 Ultra vs M3 Ultra shows significant performance gains. The standard M6 chip offers respectable improvements on a new 2nm process, though M5 users shouldn't feel too much FOMO. The Mac mini with M6 and Mac Studio with M5 Ultra represent a major leap forward for Apple's desktop computing.

Software & Apps

Instagram is simplifying video creation with a new feature that automatically trims clips for Reels. Called First Draft, the tool handles the busywork of video editing for users. Chat GPT is expanding access to its upgraded task scheduling tool, now available to free accounts, while paid users can configure prompts triggered by events in Gmail, Slack, or GitHub. Anthropic is giving users more control over what Claude remembers, with memory now working across chats and Cowork sessions.

Apple has reversed a controversial decision to undermine its own Hide My Email privacy feature, deciding that weakening its own privacy protections was a bad idea after all. WhatsApp is strengthening its 2FA settings, allowing users to replace the six-digit code with a stronger alphanumeric password. Nothing OS 5.0, based on Android, will debut in open beta on August 26, initially available for select devices, with the full rollout detailed for other models.

Gaming & Entertainment

The gaming world has several exciting announcements. A remastered The Witcher 3 will release on September 29, and current owners of the popular RPG will get the upgrade for free. A Cyberpunk 2077-edition Commodore 64 has been created in collaboration with CD Projekt Red, featuring a 2K77 theme on the revived classic computer. ASUS is celebrating the 20th anniversary of its gaming division with the ROG XBOX Ally X20, which features a larger 7.4-inch OLED display. The company's first gaming soundbar, the ROG Gjallar, is now available in the US for $600.

Xbox is celebrating its 25th birthday with a bunch of translucent green accessories for the console. The evolution of Xbox controllers over the past quarter-century shows how Microsoft has slowly refined the familiar ABXY buttons and offset thumbsticks. Nintendo has revealed its latest Switch 2 bundles just ahead of the console's price increase next week. Gamescom Opening Night Live delivered updates including Final Fantasy and Gears of War previews during its two-hour showcase. The industry has shifted away from movie tie-in games, which were huge in the 2000s but have mostly dried up in the last decade.

Wearables & Accessories

The Pebble Time 2 is a smartwatch designed to push back against current trends, and it does so beautifully — the perfect device for a select group of people who want a simpler wearable. Garmin's Fenix 9 lineup raises the bar with faster maps, smarter training features, titanium design, brighter displays, and serious battery life for athletes and adventurers. Ben Q's first dual-monitor desk lamp is excellent, but it'll cost you. The Nokia 300 Charge doubles as a 10W powerbank, offering a unique dual-purpose design. For e-reader enthusiasts, the PocketBook Q is a phone-sized device with a month of battery life, 32GB of storage, and a distraction-free reading experience, arriving this fall for $175.

The reMarkable Paper Pro writing tablet has scored a rare $100 discount at Best Buy and Amazon, making it a great time to pick up what many consider the perfect writing tablet.

Transportation & Space

Waymo is expanding to Germany, with service in Munich planned for 2027. The company has set up subsidiaries in several European countries this summer as it prepares for expansion. Uber is adding new safety features for teen riders, allowing parents to view a live feed from a driver's selfie camera during trips, though the company will only access recordings to review safety reports. SpaceX is partnering with NVIDIA for its Starmind project, with Elon Musk aiming to harness solar energy for AI computing in space. NASA's Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope is scheduled for launch on August 30, and here's how to watch the live stream.

Security & Connectivity

The Find My iPhone feature is a vital security tool that should stay on almost all the time, but there are specific situations when you might need to turn it off. Understanding the difference between Thunderbolt 4 and 5 is important — Thunderbolt 5 offers extremely fast data transfer and lots of power, but most devices can't take advantage of it yet. Mint Mobile has finally received its Google Pixel 11 stock, and the deals are even better than expected, with options under $900. The Galaxy S27 Ultra's design continues to generate buzz with leaks revealing more details about the upcoming flagship's dimensions and camera layout.