Mobile News 3 Days

Last updated: July 9, 2026, 5:30 AM ET

Foldables and Phones See Major Updates

Samsung confirmed substantial for the Galaxy Z Fold, equipping it with a custom Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5 chip. This follows reservations opening for the upcoming Galaxy Z Fold 8 and Z Flip 8 series, with the company also confirming the Fold 8 and Fold 8 Ultra will feature the custom Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5 for Galaxy processors. The upcoming Galaxy Z Fold 8 is also rumored to have a significantly improved display design. Meanwhile, the Redmi Note 17 series this month, with the Pro model confirmed to pack a massive 9,000mAh battery and Gorilla Glass Victus protection. A Geekbench listing for a Xiaomi device, suspected to be the Redmi Note, suggests it will be powered by a specific chipset and include a certain amount of RAM. The iQOO Z11 Lite 5G will launch in India soon, with its design revealed. Motorola has unveiled the Moto G77 Power in India, featuring a 7,000mAh battery and a 6.72-inch 120Hz LCD display powered by the Dimensity 6400 chipset. The vivo T5 Lite 5G has been teased for launch, boasting a 6,500mAh battery capacity.

AI and Smart Devices Take Center Stage

nubia is set to unveil what it claims is the world's first AI agent smartphone later this month. Separately, Amazon is reportedly working on a more powerful, agentic Alexa assistant, codenamed 'Moonraker,' to handle multi-step tasks more effectively internally. OpenAI announced that GPT-5.6 Sol, Terra, and Luna will be publicly available starting July 9. Meta is implementing a mandatory update for its smart glasses that the camera if the privacy light is tampered with, addressing user concerns. Memo Mind's camera-free One smart glasses are now available, offering waveguide notifications, onboard sound, and AI features. Rollme's Air Cam earbuds combine open-style audio with an 8MP camera system. Solos is launching AI glasses with a focus on privacy, including a camera-free model and a clip-on privacy shield for another option. Marshall has launched its next-generation Acton and Stanmore speakers, which come with customizable buttons.

Google and Android Ecosystem Updates

Google rolling out an important update for Pixel phones, serving as its first Android 17 update since its June launch. The company also confirmed its next Pixel event will take place in New York on August 12 at 6 p.m. ET, likely for the Pixel 11 series. Leaks suggest the Pixel 11 could double its base storage to 256GB, but with a potential price increase. T-Mobile is offering a free Google Pixel 10 with "most plans" when adding a new line, though the specifics of the promotion are still unclear. Google is reportedly developing a cloud-free automatic backup feature for Android devices to Windows PCs, which will operate over Wi-Fi when both devices are on the same network. Wear OS 7 has been released and is available for eligible Pixel Watch models, bringing new features and. Google Photos is rolling out "Video Remix," which uses AI to reimagine videos and create personalized scenarios. Google is also reportedly preparing to allow Gemini within Google Maps to order takeout, potentially replacing separate delivery apps. Google has further stated that uploaded search media will be used to train its AI, though users can opt out via their settings.

Autonomous Driving and Regulatory Scrutiny

The NHTSA has identified a pattern of autonomous vehicles interfering with first responders and is demanding solutions from AV manufacturers. Waymo plans to go fully autonomous in four additional cities: San Diego, Las Vegas, Tampa, and Denver, removing human supervisors. Separately, a judge has approved a $1.5 million SEC-Musk settlement concerning Twitter investments. Elon Musk stated that X will directly message users about posts that receive a Community Note to make these crowd-sourced corrections more noticeable on the platform. CNBC reports that the US government is looking to restrict the corporate use of Chinese AI models, as US companies increasingly turn to them for cost savings. Alibaba has received a temporary reprieve from a US ban related to Chinese military entities, following a judge's ruling.

Gaming and Entertainment News

Microsoft reportedly canceled the Avowed sequel, with Obsidian now focusing on a Fallout game. id Software, the developer behind Doom, is reportedly losing half its staff amidst shakeups at Xbox. Nintendo will equip the upcoming Switch 2 with a user-replaceable battery, starting this autumn in Europe. Nintendo also plans to stop selling the Switch 1 in Europe in 2027 to comply with battery regulations. The Avatar Aang: The Last Airbender series and a July 25 release date.

Other Tech and Gadget Updates

LG's 77-inch OLED TV is currently 50% off at Best Buy, representing a $1,500 saving. Samsung's Galaxy S26 lineup is seeing discounts on Amazon, with prices comparable to Prime Day deals. Samsung's Galaxy Watch 8 Classic is still available at a record low price, with a 33% discount on Amazon currently. Portable Samsung SSDs are also discounted at Amazon, offering up to 1TB of storage for as little as $0.20 per gig. The Steam Machine from Valve is considered not worth its asking price, five years after its potential ideal release. Roku devices still lead in popularity but are lacking in several key categories compared to competitors. Nothing's new Ear 3a earbuds can record calls and save audio content using on-device storage. The Nothing Phone (4b) has been announced as a budget-friendly option with premium software promises and a larger battery, though its hardware isn't particularly distinctive. Nothing also plans to release the Nothing Ear 3a, successor to the Ear (a), with call recording capabilities and on-device storage. The Fi Ultra pet tracker is utilizing T-Mobile's Starlink satellite service for coverage in rural areas. Duck Duck Go Browser will now block video ads, including those on YouTube, by default within its application. Apple has released the third developer beta of iOS, including bug fixes, improvements, and new features.