Mobile News 24 Hours

Last updated: September 21, 2026, 2:01 PM ET

Lava Virat Curve Debuts With Dimensity 7100

Lava has made the Virat Curve fully official, equipping it with Media Tek's Dimensity 7100 SoC and a 6,000mAh battery. The launch follows the company's teaser campaign from last week, positioning the device as a mid-range contender with an emphasis on endurance and sustained performance rather than flagship-tier silicon.

Googlebooks Arrive With Snapdragon X Elite

The first Googlebook laptops are now available for pre-order and will ship on October 4, with Google pitching them as machines that work more seamlessly with Android phones. Qualcomm's Snapdragon X Elite powers this inaugural wave, built around tighter integration between Chrome OS and Android. The lineup spans Acer, ASUS, Dell, HP and Lenovo, covering a range of sizes and form factors. Media Tek is also entering the fray with its Dimensity CX C10 Max, a 3nm chip designed for fanless, AI-first Googlebooks and the company's first high-end laptop silicon.

Apple's Mac Lineup: Power at a Price

Apple's Mac mini (M6) lands at $899, but reviewers note it has lost the value proposition that made prior generations compelling. The Mac Studio (M5 Ultra) sits at the opposite end, priced at $11,299, where the extra AI and graphics performance over the M5 Max only justifies the premium for a narrow set of professional workloads.

iPhone 18 Pro: Variable Aperture Arrives

Apple's iPhone 18 Pro series introduces the company's first variable aperture camera on a phone, and a teardown has revealed the mechanical complexity behind it. The same engineering that enables better photographic control makes the module incredibly hard to repair, raising familiar questions about repairability as Apple pushes camera hardware further.

Apple Pay Heads to India

Apple Pay is reportedly set to launch in India next month, according to a new report. The move would open one of the world's largest payments markets to Apple's wallet, where it would compete against entrenched UPI-based services.

Xiaomi 18 Pro Sets September 23 Date

Xiaomi has confirmed its flagship 18 Pro series will launch on September 23, with the company teasing a hardware-level privacy screen among the headline features. The date puts Xiaomi's flagship squarely in the fall launch window alongside Apple and Samsung's competing devices.

One Plus 16 Design Officially Revealed

One Plus has shown off the design and color options for the One Plus, even though a launch date remains unannounced. The early reveal gives the company an extended runway to build anticipation before the flagship's formal debut.

Realme 16 Pro Harry Potter Edition

Realme's Harry Potter Edition of the 16 Pro is now official, featuring what the company calls quadra light-sensing color-changing technology. It's a novelty play aimed at collectors, but the color-shifting finish is a genuine materials-science flex.

Gmail's Small but Welcome Update

Gmail has added a copy-code button for verification codes, a tiny change that removes a recurring annoyance for anyone juggling two-factor authentication. It's the kind of quality-of-life fix that rarely makes headlines but gets used daily.

Amazon Blocks Meta's Muse AI

Amazon has barred Meta's Muse AI agent from shopping on its site, calling the agent a safety risk. The move sets an early precedent for how retailers may treat third-party AI agents acting on behalf of consumers.

Apple's Siri Home Hub Nears Launch

Apple's long-rumored home hub device, a smart display built around Siri AI, may be almost ready to ship. It would compete directly with Amazon's Echo Show in the smart-display category Apple has so far avoided.

Space XAI's Grok Bot Enters Beta

Space XAI's Grok Bot is in early beta, positioned as a digital teammate capable of handling complex and tedious tasks. Early access is available now, though the product remains clearly unfinished.

Retroid Expands Duo Lineup

Retroid has added a Lite Plus to its Duo handheld lineup, and the company is offering free exchanges for existing Duo Lite customers who want to upgrade. It's a rare customer-friendly gesture in the handheld emulation space.

Ear Fun Wave Pro X Reviewed

Ear Fun's Wave Pro X arrives as the company's newest flagship headphones, aiming to compete on features and performance at a value-oriented price point.

How-To: Getting More From Your Devices

Engadget walks through the difference between USB-A and USB-C, covering why USB-C eliminated the right-side-up problem and what the connector change actually means for data and power. For anyone deciding what to do with an old handset, there's a breakdown of trade-in versus selling and which route tends to yield more value. If you're setting up a home network, there's guidance on choosing an Ethernet switch to add ports, plus a comparison of wired versus wireless internet for home service. An iPad can serve as a second screen for a Mac or Windows PC, and an old Android tablet can be repurposed as an Android Auto head unit using the Open Headunit app. On the messaging side, there's a guide to joining FaceTime calls from Android or Windows, and instructions for using Xbox mode on Windows for a console-style interface. Two iPhones can share one mobile number via iPhone handoff, though carrier support varies. Drivers unhappy with Siri can check which chatbot apps work with CarPlay, including Chat GPT and Claude. For cord-cutters, there are seven ways to get free movies and TV on a smart TV, and an explainer on whether standby mode offers any real benefit. Finally, Chat GPT can be used to make custom stickers for iMessage and WhatsApp.