Weekly poll results: a surprising number of people are using feature phones

Feature phones are not as dead as you may have thought – one third of voters in last week’s poll use one at least occasionally. Some even use a feature phone full time as their only phone. And others are at least thinking about the idea of ditching their smartphone. As some commenters point out, smartphones are basically a necessity in some countries – you might need one for messaging family and clients, for bank authentication and so on. Even so, some manage to get by with a feature phone as their only handset. That said, a large portion of voters are never going back to feature phones...

Source: https://www.gsmarena.com/weekly_poll_results_a_surprising_number_of_people_are_using_feature_phones-news-74159.php

iQOO 16 tipped to come with a higher refresh rate screen, new design

iQOO is said to launch the iQOO 16 in September, with the latest rumor from China claiming it will have a higher refresh-rate screen than its predecessor. The word comes from reliable tipster Digital Chat Station, who claimed the iQOO 16 will feature a 165Hz refresh rate screen. It will be a 6.85" flat 2K display sourced from Samsung. For comparison, last year's iQOO 15 came with a 6.85" flat display having a 144Hz refresh rate. Furthermore, DCS claimed that the iQOO 16's rounded corners and bezels have minimal changes, but said the camera module on the rear is small, square-shaped, and...

Source: https://www.gsmarena.com/iqoo_16_165hz_refresh_rate_screen_tipped-news-74191.php

Deals: Pixel 11 series goes on pre-order, Galaxy Z8 foldables and S26 models drop prices

Google launched its new Pixel 11 series earlier this week – there is a new vanilla, two new Pro and one new foldable model. All that’s missing now is an affordable a-phone. The massive increase in RAM prices has affected the Pixel series. Google now offers 256GB storage as standard on all 11-series models, which is a good thing, but the Pixel 11 Pro and 11 Pro XL start with 12GB of RAM. If you want 16GB (which is what all Pixel 10 Pro and 10 Pro XL phones had), you will have to get a 512GB or a 1TB model. The vanilla phone only comes with 12GB of RAM, while the foldable always gets...

Source: https://www.gsmarena.com/deals_pixel_11_series_goes_on_preorder_galaxy_z8_foldables_and_s26_models_drop_prices-news-74175.php

iQOO Buds TWS earphones launching on August 20

iQOO will launch the Z11 in India on August 20, and on the same day, the brand will also unveil the iQOO Buds TWS earphones. The teaser posted by iQOO's Indian branch on X reveals the iQOO Buds' design. These are in-ear type and have silicone ear tips, which should offer passive noise cancellation. However, it is unclear whether they will have active noise cancellation. The iQOO Buds' charging case has an LED indicator on the front, above which is the brand logo. At the bottom is the USB-C port. iQOO hasn't revealed the features of the iQOO Buds yet, but we might see the brand...

Source: https://www.gsmarena.com/iqoo_buds_tws_earphones_launch_date-news-74192.php

Here's when Huawei's non-folding wide-screen phone is launching

Following up on the success of the Pura X, Huawei has, for quite some time now, been working on a new non-folding smartphone with a similar 16:10 screen aspect ratio. This device is now rumored to be launching in September. According to a previous leak, it will be powered by a Kirin 9-series chipset, and will have a battery capacity of at least 7,000 mAh. The device is also said to have a 50MP main camera using a 1/1.3" type sensor, as well as a 50MP periscope telephoto camera and a multispectral camera. The phone was initially expected to be launching between October and December,...

Source: https://www.gsmarena.com/heres_when_huaweis_nonfolding_widescreen_phone_is_launching-news-74186.php

Here's our first look at Samsung's upcoming One UI 9.5

While Samsung is still in the process of beta testing One UI 9, with the fifth beta having gone out to the Galaxy S26 series just a couple of days ago, the company is also already working on One UI 9.5. This may be the version that the upcoming Galaxy S27 family will ship with out of the box. An enterprising X user has now installed a leaked One UI 9.5 firmware on their Galaxy S26 to see what it looks like, and the screenshots below show what you can expect. If you had "more glass" on your bingo card for One UI 9.5, then you will be happy. One UI 9.5 screenshots While...

Source: https://www.gsmarena.com/heres_our_first_look_at_samsungs_upcoming_one_ui_95-news-74185.php