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

Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 6 Pro emerges in AnTuTu test run

Qualcomm is expected to unveil its next-generation flagship chipset – the Snapdragon 8 Gen 6 Pro at the annual Snapdragon Summit next month, and it just leaked in an AnTuTu 11 benchmark run. The SM8975, as it is known internally, managed an impressive 4.83 million points. For reference, the Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5 usually hits between 4 and 4.6 million points. This means the upcoming chip offers a mere 5% boost in AnTuTu. Though, as usual with leaked benchmark runs, this is likely unfinished hardware, so the scores should be taken with a few grains of salt. Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 6...

Source: https://www.gsmarena.com/snapdragon_8_elite_gen_6_pro_emerges_in_antutu_test_run_-news-74182.php

LG joins forces with Nvidia to build AI-powered robots and hardware for self-driving cars

Chairman and CEO of LG Corp. Kwang Mo Koo visited the Nvidia headquarters at Santa Clara, California, to sign a memorandum of understanding with CEO Jensen Huang. This memorandum focuses on expanding the AI capabilities of both companies. LG and Nvidia CEOs posing with a miniature humanoid robot The headline-grabbing announcement is that LG plans to unveil a humanoid robot in the first quarter of 2027. This bipedal robot will use Nvidia’s Jetson Thor for on-board compute and the Isaac GR00T open reasoning humanoid foundation model. The Nvidia Jetson Thor offers 2,070 TFLOPs of...

Source: https://www.gsmarena.com/lg_joins_forces_with_nvidia_to_build_aipowered_robots_and_hardware_for_selfdriving_cars-news-74180.php

Here's when the Fairphone 6+ is rumored to launch and how much it will cost

According to a new rumor, the Fairphone 6+ will become official on August 18. It will be priced at around €685, based on a listing in Denmark. Of course, the price may slightly vary in other European markets because of different VAT rates. In fact, it may not be that bad in the Eurozone - a leak from France said the RRP would be €649. That's €50 more than the Fairphone 6's launch price, and €100 more than it costs today. According to recent leaks, the Fairphone 6+ will have a 6.31-inch OLED screen with a 120Hz refresh rate, the Snapdragon 7s Gen 4 SoC at the helm, 12GB of LPDDR5 RAM, 256GB...

Source: https://www.gsmarena.com/heres_when_the_fairphone_6_is_rumored_to_launch_and_how_much_it_will_cost-news-74163.php

Galaxy Z Fold8 does not impress in teardown

Earlier this week we saw the Galaxy Z Fold8 go through JerryRigEverything’s torture durability test where it survived some hard bends and close encounters with blades and sand. And the team over at iFixit has now brought its teardown expertise to Samsung’s trendy bendy phone. Here’s the full video: The Z Fold8 earned a 4/10 repairability score. That’s not impressive by regular smartphone standards, but it is a point higher than last year’s Z Fold7 repairability score. If you don’t feel like watching the whole thing, here are the key takeaways. The folding screen is still a...

Source: https://www.gsmarena.com/galaxy_z_fold8_does_not_impress_in_teardown-news-74162.php

Counterpoint: US smartphone market contracts, budget devices hit hardest

Counterpoint Research’s latest report examines smartphone sales in the US for the April 1 – June 30 period, aka Q2. The overall market fell by 5% compared to last year as the ongoing memory chip crisis resulted in increased average asking prices (ASP) for devices across the board. In addition, rising gas prices due to the ongoing conflicts in the Middle East also affected consumer purchasing power. Apple, Samsung, Motorola and Google saw their combined sales drop by 4% on a year-over-year basis. The remaining brands doing business in the US saw their sales decline by up to 45% compared to...

Source: https://www.gsmarena.com/counterpoint_us_smartphone_market_contracts_budget_devices_hit_hardest-news-74158.php

Apple again reported to skip launching the iPhone 18 this year

Apple has long been rumored to launch the iPhone 18 series and the iPhone Ultra in phases, with multiple reports claiming the iPhone 18 won't launch this year. Now, a new media report, citing Apple supplier Pegatron, again states that the iPhone 18 won't launch this year and will arrive in 2027 instead. During the earnings call for Q2 2026, Pegatron confirmed that the iPhone 18 Pro and iPhone 18 Pro Max will be launched next month, but the iPhone 18 is expected to launch in Q1 2027, meaning anytime between January and March 2027. Previous reports claimed the iPhone 18 would arrive in March...

Source: https://www.gsmarena.com/apple_iphone_18_2026_launch_skipped-news-74153.php

Samsung Galaxy S26 series receives fifth One UI 9 Beta update

Last week, a Samsung representative announced that the fifth One UI 9 Beta update for the Galaxy S26 series would arrive sometime this week. Well, Samsung kept its promise and released the One UI 9 Beta 5 for the Galaxy S26 lineup. It comes almost a month after the fourth beta was rolled out. [#InlinePriceWidget,14320,1#] The One UI 9 Beta 5 for the Galaxy S26 series has firmware version S948BXXU4ZZH6 and requires a download of around 1.1GB. It comes with the August 2026 Android security patch and some bug fixes. Samsung Galaxy S26 Ultra You can check the complete changelog of...

Source: https://www.gsmarena.com/samsung_galaxy_s26_series_one_ui_9_beta_5_update-news-74134.php

New rumor tells us all about Apple's imminent iPhone price hike

According to a new rumor from a tipster on X, Apple will be raising prices for all existing iPhone models, as well as those launching next month, by $100. The same source also seems to imply that Apple's launch event for the iPhone 18 Pro, iPhone 18 Pro Max, and iPhone Ultra will be held on September 8. That is a Tuesday and Apple has in the past held events on Tuesdays, so it's definitely not out of the question. We all know an iPhone price hike is coming. In late June, Apple increased the prices of all of its products except for iPhones. This is the next logical step, and a $100 bump for...

Source: https://www.gsmarena.com/new_rumor_tells_us_all_about_apples_imminent_iphone_price_hike-news-74124.php

Microsoft increases Windows 11 fees for OEMs

The crunch on the PC market continues as the rising memory chip prices are not the only thing that's getting more expensive. Starting today, Microsoft is hiking up its Windows 11 license fees for OEMs. The price increase is somewhere between 7% and 10%, which is unusually high. One of the PC vendors noted that it's expected for Microsoft to increase prices pretty much every year, but it's usually by a low singe-digit percentages. Big OEMs that sell PCs in large volumes like Dell, Asus, HP, etc. will see their fees increased by around 7%, but smaller manufacturers will probably have...

Source: https://www.gsmarena.com/microsoft_ramps_up_windows_11_prices_for_oems-news-74129.php

Sony Semiconductor and TSMC join forces to make next-gen imaging processors

Sony's chip-making arm, Sony Semiconductor Solutions, will enter into a joint venture with TSMC (Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company) that will manufacture image sensors for smartphones. Sony will be the sole controlling shareholder of the joint venture, which will aim to start volume production in 2029. The joint venture still needs to advance through several regulatory and financial steps. Sony will contribute 465 billion yen ($2.92b, €2.6b) in a combination of cash and assets, while TSMC will contribute 282 billion yen ($1.77b, €1.5b). The strategic partnership will see...

Source: https://www.gsmarena.com/sony_semiconductor_and_tsmc_join_forces_to_make_nextgen_imaging_processors-news-74135.php

Samsung reportedly begins One UI 9.5 development for the Galaxy S26 series while users await stable One UI 9's release

Samsung released the first One UI 9 beta for the Galaxy S26 series in May, and the company recently confirmed that the fifth One UI 9 beta for the lineup will be rolled out this week. While Galaxy S26 series users await the rollout of One UI 9 Beta 5, and of course the stable update, Samsung has reportedly begun working on One UI 9.5 for the S26 lineup. The source also claims that the One UI 9.5 build Samsung is developing for the Galaxy S26 series has a version ending in CZH1, but doesn't provide a timeframe for the release. Samsung Galaxy S26 Ultra Samsung had begun One UI 8.5...

Source: https://www.gsmarena.com/samsung_galaxy_s26_series_one_ui_9_5_development_reportedly_begins-news-74109.php

New Google Pixel 11, Pixel 11 Pro XL, and Pixel 11 Pro Fold renders leak

Google is unveiling the Pixel 11 family at a special event tomorrow, on August 12. Ahead of that, a last-minute leak brings us some new renders depicting the Pixel 11, Pixel 11 Pro XL, and Pixel 11 Pro Fold. The Pixel 11 is shown here in the Obsidian colorway, which, as you can see, is a dark shade of gray. Google Pixel 11 leaked renders Moving on, we have the Pixel 11 Pro XL, also shown in Obsidian. This phone's camera bar protrudes way more from its back than the Pixel 11's. Google Pixel 11 Pro XL leaked renders Finally, the Pixel 11 Pro Fold...

Source: https://www.gsmarena.com/new_google_pixel_11_pixel_11_pro_xl_and_pixel_11_pro_fold_renders_leak-news-74115.php

Leak claims Pixel 11 features a 10.8MP telephoto camera, lacks RGB notification LED

The Google Pixel 11 series is going official tomorrow at the Made by Google event. While most details about the lineup have already leaked, a new rumor has revealed details about the base Pixel 11's telephoto camera. According to tipster @evowizz, the standard Pixel 11 will feature a 10.8MP periscope telephoto camera. It is likely the same sensor used in the Pixel 10 and is expected to support 5x optical zoom. Previously leaked marketing materials suggest the handset will offer up to 30x digital zoom. The tipster also claims the Pixel 11 will be equipped with 12GB of RAM, which...

Source: https://www.gsmarena.com/leak_claims_pixel_11_features_a_108mp_telephoto_camera_lacks_rgb_notification_led-news-74114.php

YouTube will expand Premium Lite availability, increase requirements for revenue sharing

The YouTube Partner Program (YPP) launched two decades ago and now boasts over 3 million creators. However, if you want to join their ranks, you will now have to meet higher requirements than before. That said, if you are already in YPP, you will stay in YPP. For those looking to join, you will need to hit double the metrics of the previous thresholds. For long-form videos, this means 8,000 view hours, up from 4,000 hours. If you want to make shorts instead, you will need 20 million views in 20 days to join, up from 10 million views. Additionally, YPP will impose a minimum of 10 million...

Source: https://www.gsmarena.com/youtube_will_expand_premium_lite_availability_increase_requirements_for_revenue_sharing-news-74111.php

Verizon's latest outage saw mobile and internet services disrupted in Southern California

Verizon hasn't had a great day, to say the least. The carrier has announced that vandals cut multiple fiber cables, causing service disruptions for both mobile and internet customers in parts of Southern California. Repairs were swiftly initiated, and the service was restored within a few hours. Law enforcement was notified and is investigating the incident. Theft and vandalism like this, Verizon says, "represent a direct threat to the safety and security of our communities". The company is "committed to raising awareness and driving proactive solutions to prevent these direct...

Source: https://www.gsmarena.com/verizons_latest_outage_saw_mobile_and_internet_services_disrupted_in_southern_california-news-74099.php

iPhone 18 Pro BOM cost estimated to be up by 40%

We’ve already seen rumors that iPhone 18 Pro availability may be limited at launch due to the ongoing global memory chip shortage and a new TrendForce report now gives an estimate of how much more expensive the upcoming iPhone 18 Pro might end up being. The iPhone 18 Pro’s bill of materials (BOM) is expected to rise by up to 38% compared to its predecessor. This is for the 256GB storage version. As TrendForce puts it, higher retail prices for the iPhone 18 Pro are “unavoidable” at this point. Previous estimates suggest the baseline 256GB iPhone 18 Pro will cost as much as...

Source: https://www.gsmarena.com/iphone_18_pro_components_estimated_to_be_40_more_than_before__-news-74098.php

You can now use Venmo to pay for apps and subscriptions on Google Play

In the US, you can now pay for stuff on Google Play - apps, games, subscriptions, in-app purchases, etc. - using your Venmo balance or the cards and bank accounts linked to your Venmo account. Of course, before you can use this, you need to set it up in Google Play, linking your Venmo account to your Play account, by going to the Payment methods section in the Google Play Store app. Once that's done, you're good to go. Venmo is merely the latest payment method that Google Play has added, following the likes of PayPal and Cash App. Google thus seems adamant about diversifying its...

Source: https://www.gsmarena.com/you_can_now_use_venmo_to_pay_for_apps_and_subscriptions_on_google_play-news-74095.php

Leaked images show off the Fairphone 6+ in Cobalt Blue

A few weeks ago, a new version of the Fairphone 6 surfaced – dubbed the “Fairphone 6+”, the new model was listed with 12GB of RAM and 256GB storage. That is more than the original model, which only has 8 gigs of RAM. This is quite an unexpected move given everything that has been going on in the world of semiconductors. Anyway, the listing was spotted by NieuweMobiel and showed three color options: Cobalt Blue, Horizon Black and Forest Green. Now the Dutch publication also has images that show off the first color: Fairphone 6+ in Cobalt Blue More specifically, these leaked images...

Source: https://www.gsmarena.com/leaked_images_show_off_the_fairphone_6_in_cobalt_blue-news-74093.php

Redmi 17 5G and Redmi 17 4G go official

Following the Redmi 15 series from last year, Xiaomi has now launched its Redmi 17 series with two members. The Redmi 17 4G and Redmi 17 5G share identical looks and key specs. Redmi 17 4G (left) and Redmi 17 5G (right) Both phones come with 6.9-inch IPS LCDs, but unlike their predecessors, the new models feature 1600 x 720px resolution panels instead of the FHD ones found on their predecessors. Both phones come with 120Hz refresh rates. They also share the same 7,500mAh battery with 45W wired and 22.5W reverse wired charging. In terms of chipsets, the 4G variant gets a...

Source: https://www.gsmarena.com/redmi_17_5g_and_redmi_17_4g_go_official_-news-74087.php

iQOO Neo11 Ultra and Z11s to launch next week, design revealed

iQOO has confirmed the launch date of the Neo11 Ultra and Z11s in China. The company has also revealed the design of both smartphones along with several of their key specifications. The iQOO Neo11 Ultra and iQOO Z11s will debut in China on August 18, the company confirmed in a Weibo post. While the Neo11 Ultra is being marketed as the only smartphone in its segment to combine a 2K display with a 9,100mAh battery, the Z11s is being touted as the company's first phone with a 10,000mAh battery. The iQOO Neo11 Ultra features a pill-shaped horizontal rear camera module and will...

Source: https://www.gsmarena.com/iqoo_neo11_ultra_and_z11s_to_launch_next_week_design_revealed-news-74085.php

Gurman: Apple considering a broader redesign of its smartwatch lineup

Apple is reportedly exploring a revamped smartwatch lineup with new designs, form factors, and even a screenless fitness tracker. The report adds that the company is also considering new budget-friendly smartwatch models beyond the existing Apple Watch SE lineup. In the latest edition of his Power On newsletter, Bloomberg's Mark Gurman reports that Apple's industrial design team has spent the past year exploring a “broader rethink” of the Apple Watch lineup. The first Apple Watch According to the report, one of the devices under consideration is a screenless fitness tracker...

Source: https://www.gsmarena.com/gurman_apple_considering_a_broader_redesign_of_its_smartwatch_lineup-news-74084.php

Here's what Asus' and Lenovo's upcoming Googlebooks might look like

Asus has new laptops coming out in time for IFA next month, and we get to see one of them in quite a few alleged renders that appear to have likely been upscaled using AI and kind of messed up in the process. Frankly, at first glance, it kind of sounds like we shouldn't care. However, this might just be our first detailed look at what is one of the very first Googlebooks to come out. Yes, in case you haven't been paying attention to the space, Google announced the Googlebook back in May. We can't say for sure whether these are meant to replace or complement Chromebooks, but given the...

Source: https://www.gsmarena.com/heres_what_asus_and_lenovos_upcoming_googlebooks_might_look_like-news-74080.php

Weekly poll results: smart glasses are a solution looking for a problem

Tech giants are spending tons of R&D money on building new smart glasses that fill various categories. However, based on the results from last week’s poll, all of them are solutions looking for a problem. The outcome couldn’t be more clear – the vast majority of voters are not using smart glasses. To be fair, regional availability is preventing some people from trying them out. But even then it’s clear that most people haven’t found a compelling use-case for them. Less than 5% of voters report that they are actively using smart glasses. Some like them as a replacement for...

Source: https://www.gsmarena.com/weekly_poll_results_smart_glasses_are_a_solution_looking_for_a_problem-news-74029.php

Did Caviar just spill the beans on the iPhone Ultra and the iPhone 18 Pro design, specs and release date?

It’s not uncommon for Caviar to kick off pre-orders on customized unannounced hardware. That has happened in the past. However, this time the way things are laid out seems a bit bold even for the Russian company. It already has its custom designs listed for both the iPhone 18 Pro/Pro Max and the much-anticipated iPhone Ultra. We’ll certainly go over these renders, but first things first: Caviar boldly and unequivocally proclaims that the Apple launch event will be held on September 9. To be fair, that date is a pretty good guess, based on historical evidence and particularly Apple’s avoidance...

Source: https://www.gsmarena.com/did_caviar_just_spill_the_beans_on_the_iphone_ultra_and_the_iphone_18_pro_design_specs_and_release_d-news-74082.php

Google Pixel 11 series and Watch 5: what to expect

Google has a major event planned for August 12 (Wednesday) – it will unveil the next generation of Pixel phones, as well as a new watch and perhaps its first smart tag too. Here is what we know so far, both officially and unofficially. Google is already posting teaser videos like the ones below. They show that we shouldn’t expect much – or even anything – to change in terms of phone design. However, there are new features coming. One new feature is known as Pixel Glow – it’s an RGB LED on the camera visor on the back of the phone. Mind you, this feature may actually be called...

Source: https://www.gsmarena.com/google_pixel_11_series_and_watch_5_what_to_expect-news-74069.php

Deals: the Galaxy Z Fold8, Z Fold8 Ultra and Z Flip8 are now available

The Samsung Galaxy Z8 foldables and new smartwatches are now available globally (the official launch was on Friday). Another major event happening soon is the unveiling of the Google Pixel 11 series next week. First, the foldables. The Samsung Galaxy Z Fold8 is the new hotness – it accounted for 40% of all Z8 pre-orders in Europe and a whopping 70% of pre-orders in Korea. Is it actually that good? Check out our Galaxy Z Fold8 review for our thoughts on the new wide form factor Galaxy. Samsung Galaxy Z Fold8 ...

Source: https://www.gsmarena.com/deals_the_galaxy_z_fold8_z_fold8_ultra_and_z_flip8_are_now_available-news-74059.php