I've spent the past five weeks with Xreal ROG R1 glasses, a cutting-edge pair developed jointly by Xreal and Asus. As with all ROG-branded products, these glasses (also known as a wearable monitor) have a very specific design language, a near-ridiculous number of features, and a price tag that puts them squarely in "enthusiast" territory.

They also pose a rather interesting alternative to traditional monitors that I'm not sure smart glasses are quite ready to bridge yet: replacing a gaming monitor with a virtual one. That's not to say the picture quality, resolution, or even features aren't there — it's top-notch in these categories among any comparable pair, after all. Rather, I'm just not sure how many people are ready to make smart glasses a proper replacement for monitors.

But if you're seriously considering clearing off your desk or you just want a robust on-the-go virtual monitor solution, Xreal ROG R1 is the best pair of smart display glasses money can buy. It's the ideal combination of the Xreal One Pro's ease and the robust feature set of a ROG device. Here's everything you need to know before buying.

What is Xreal ROG R1?

Xreal ROG R1 is a pair of smart glasses jointly designed by Xreal and Asus, featuring industry-leading 240Hz micro-OLED displays and a unique desktop dock with multiple input options. ROG R1 also supports the Xreal Eye camera and prescription glasses inserts.

ROG R1 can be used independently of this dock, which is how I used them the vast majority of the time during my five weeks of use, including a week's vacation away from home and one particularly long travel day spent in airports and on planes with the glasses.

Xreal Rog R1 retails for $849.99 and can be purchased at Best Buy, Xreal's website, or Asus' website. The box includes the glasses, a USB-C cable for the glasses, a microfiber cleaning cloth, a manual, three total nosepiece shapes/sizes, a prescription glasses adapter, the desktop dock, plus two USB-A to USB-C cables for the dock.

Displays aren't the only headliner feature

The ROG R1's displays have a clear advantage, as they're the only pair of smart display glasses with a 240Hz display. That pair of micro-OLEDs runs at 120Hz when connected directly to any device, but connecting the glasses to the included ROG R1 dock unlocks 240Hz mode.

This is achieved through a special chip inside the R1 dock, which provides the extra horsepower needed to run at 240Hz. You'll need a device that can natively push 240Hz to take advantage, however, as the only interpolation mode supported on these glasses is upscaling 60Hz signals to 120Hz. There's no native way to scale 120Hz to 240Hz, which I was disappointed by, but I understand why it's a limitation.

Outside of 240Hz, the optics component of ROG R1 is essentially the same as in Xreal One Pro. When not plugged into the dock, it supports the same color and brightness output, plus the same 57-degree FoV via prism lenses. So, if you're not particularly interested in the 240Hz or dock functions, is there still a reason to choose these over Xreal One Pro? Yes, but only if you enjoy tweaking every last aspect of a device.

Xreal ROG R1 sports the most detailed OSD menu I've ever seen on a pair of smart glasses. There are very few glasses that offer a proper OSD menu — Xreal One was the first — and while I thought Xreal's previous efforts felt like a monitor, ROG R1 takes those options to the next level.

Honestly, the number of features available for both the glasses and the dock is borderline overwhelming. You'll easily spend 30 minutes just scrolling through everything to test them out and, undoubtedly, much longer figuring out your favorite settings.

ROG R1 supports several different presets, too, including custom ones you can save for later use. While I love all the additional (optional) settings, I really enjoyed the refreshed quick settings menu, which lets you instantly adjust brightness, lens tinting, speaker volume, screen size, and screen distance without having to dive through a bunch of annoying menus. Just click the minus button to open this menu.

The temples offer three angle adjustment options, and the left and right temples are independent, so you can find the display angle that best matches your face shape. The three different nose pads further enhance comfort, and the arms all use spring hinges, so they bend backward quite a bit to accommodate different head sizes.

Both Anchor and Smooth Follow modes use low-persistence black frame insertion to eliminate motion blur that can occur with spatially tracked virtual screens, and both 3DoF and 6DoF modes use PWM dimming at all levels. The 0DoF mode uses DC dimming at brightness levels 3-10, while levels 1 and 2 use PWM dimming.

These are 8-bit displays with no 10-bit support, so there should be no dithering at all. Despite the PWM dimming, I found these glasses quite comfortable with the prescription inserts. Normally, low-frequency PWM dimming (240-1000Hz) hurts my eyes and gives me a headache, but Xreal appears to be following the refresh rate here (120Hz), which typically doesn't bother me.

The dock changes everything

No other pair of smart display glasses to date ships with a dock like ROG R1. This dock sports two HDMI ports, one DisplayPort, and two USB-C ports on the back (one is power), plus a USB-C port on the front for your glasses. This means you can easily connect multiple computers or consoles to the dock and switch between them using the buttons on top of the dock, similar to a KVM switch.

Better yet, each button and joystick direction can be customized to perform virtually any feature or function toggle supported by the dock, so you can truly nail down your ideal configs and have them ready with a single press.

While the dock is phenomenal for providing 240Hz support and expanding preset and monitor parameter adjustment options, it's also a weird downgrade for spatial tracking and quick settings.

While the glasses alone support five quick settings for adjustment, plugging them into the dock removes the audio adjustment option. There's also no way to use 0DoF mode when plugged into the dock, only the 3DoF or 6DoF modes. Note that 6DoF requires the Xreal Eye attachment for the glasses, which can't be used with prescription lenses.

I also find it irritating that all the buttons on the glasses are disabled when plugging them into the dock. I understand that Asus/Xreal wants the dock to be the primary option, but it's still annoying for someone who switches between using the dock and plugging the glasses directly into portable devices.

Xreal should be able to address those issues in a firmware update, though, so while this is certainly annoying in its current state, there's no reason it needs to stay that way. Overall, the ROG R1 is an incredible pair of glasses that offers higher-quality imagery and more options than any other pair of smart glasses on the market.

If you're looking for an ultra-clean desk setup with no monitors, this is truly an incredible solution, especially given how well Xreal's spatial tracking system works. I'd still recommend the $450 Xreal 1S for most people, but the ROG R1 is an impressive enthusiast option for gamers seeking the highest-end solution.

Fitbit Air automatically detects activities in the Google Health app

The Google Fitbit Air is a screenless fitness tracker that monitors your health and activity data in the background. Without a screen onboard, there's no way to manually start tracking a workout directly on the Fitbit Air. Instead, users need to pull out their phone and open the Google Health app to manually track a workout with the Fitbit Air.

The alternative is to use the Fitbit Air's automatic activity detection feature. The fitness tracker monitors health metrics in the background, including your heart rate, steps, and cardio load. These metrics give your Fitbit Air an idea of when you're being physically active. After finishing, you can open the Google Health app to view automatically detected workouts or edit the details.

Google's automatic activity detection might not always get it right, and confirming or modifying the activity in the Google Health app helps improve the results. You can view activities recorded on the same day in the Today tab of the Health app, while older activities appear in the Fitness tab. From there, you can view workout recaps and tap a suggested activity type, or pick other options from the list to confirm.

Google says that "activity detection gets smarter the more you use it," and adds that you can choose from 150 activity types. You can customize activity types and minimum durations for automatically recorded activities in the app. For example, you might not want your 15-minute walk to work to count as an activity, so you could set a 20-minute minimum duration for walks that your Fitbit Air automatically detects.

To improve the accuracy of your Fitbit Air's automatic activity detection, manually start a 10-minute outdoor walking workout using your phone and the Google Health app. Keep your phone on you as you complete the workout. This will calibrate your Fitbit Air, making automatically detected activity data more accurate.

In short, your Fitbit Air can automatically detect activities. However, you may want to confirm or edit activities later in the Google Health app for the best results.

Android phones are exceptionally capable these days, but they are also more deeply connected to everyday life. Banking, shopping, messaging, travel bookings, work accounts and even smart home controls now live inside the same device people carry everywhere.

All this integration has changed the nature of Android security threats and moved risks beyond the category of suspicious pop-ups or obviously malicious downloads.

Fake parcel delivery texts arrive through SMS, phishing links spread through messaging apps, and harmless-looking apps can quietly request access to photos, microphones, contacts or location data without users fully realising what they’re agreeing to.

At the same time, Android remains one of the most flexible mobile platforms available, which is part of its appeal. The ability to sideload apps, customise devices and install software outside traditional app stores gives users more freedom, but it can also create additional opportunities for bad actors to exploit.

That’s why mobile security in 2026 increasingly focuses more on reducing exposure in the background before problems escalate, which is exactly where Bitdefender Mobile Security for Android can help you.

TL;DR

Bitdefender Mobile Security for Android focuses on the risks Android users increasingly face every day, including malicious apps, phishing links, risky permissions, and unsafe public Wi-Fi networks. Its protection tools work across apps rather than just in browsers, with background scanning helping to reduce exposure without constantly interrupting normal phone use.

Android threats no longer live inside the browser

Many modern Android threats now appear inside everyday apps rather than through traditional desktop-style malware attacks.

Phishing attempts increasingly arrive through WhatsApp messages, Instagram DMs, Telegram chats and fake delivery texts designed to look legitimate at first glance. In some cases, users may never even open a web browser before exposing personal information.

Fake Android app updates have also become more convincing, with some imitating banking apps, streaming platforms or productivity tools closely enough to fool users into downloading malicious software or entering login credentials into cloned interfaces.

Sideloading remains another area where Android users need to stay alert. Installing APKs outside official storefronts can sometimes provide access to useful apps unavailable elsewhere, but unofficial downloads may also contain hidden malware, spyware, or aggressive advertising software that runs silently in the background.

This is where modern mobile security increasingly shifts towards prevention rather than reaction. Instead of waiting for a device to become obviously compromised, Bitdefender Mobile Security for Android proactively identifies suspicious activity, risky downloads and malicious links before they cause wider problems.

What are risky Android permissions — and why do they matter?

App permissions control what software can access on an Android device, including microphones, cameras, contacts, files and location data. The problem is that many users grant permissions automatically without questioning why an app needs them in the first place.

A photo-editing app requesting permanent location access or a flashlight app asking to read contacts may not sound too risky, but permissions can potentially expose far more personal information than you think.

Android has significantly improved permission transparency in recent years, with clearer controls and better visibility into what apps access behind the scenes. That said, permission requests have become so common that many people automatically tap “Allow,” creating opportunities for malicious actors to quietly collect unnecessary data over time.

Bitdefender’s Mobile Security for Android can help users identify suspicious behaviour patterns without requiring deep technical knowledge or overwhelming them, and by simplifying decision-making while keeping people in control of their devices.

Web protection now needs to work across apps

The way people use the internet on Android has changed dramatically over the past few years. Many users now spend more time inside apps than traditional web browsers, which means phishing protection can no longer focus solely on browser-based threats.

Malicious links are increasingly spreading through messaging platforms, social media apps, QR codes, and SMS conversations. A fake delivery notification, concert ticket update or password reset request can appear convincing enough to encourage users to click before questioning its legitimacy.

This is one reason why cross-app web protection has become increasingly important for Android security platforms.

A dedicated solution for your mobile phone, such as Bitdefender Mobile Security for Android or a Bitdefender multi-platform security solution, can detect suspicious links across multiple apps and services, reducing exposure wherever a potentially harmful link appears.

Background protection matters because modern phishing attempts often rely on speed and distraction rather than sophisticated hacking techniques.

Android security works best when it stays out of the way

The best mobile security tools are often the ones users barely notice day to day. Constant warnings, intrusive pop-ups and complicated settings menus can quickly lead people to disable protections altogether, particularly on personal devices used for work, travel and entertainment throughout the day.

That’s why many modern Android security platforms now prioritise quieter background monitoring designed to reduce friction during normal usage. Background scanning, malicious app detection, and automated web protection enable security tools to operate continuously without forcing you to constantly manage alerts.

This is especially beneficial for families or households with several Android devices, like shared tablets and family phones, where not all users may be able to recognise risky download suggestions or suspicious links.

Fortunately, Bitdefender's system can manage this automatically, operating in the background without requiring users to surrender control over their privacy settings and permissions.

Why public Wi-Fi still creates privacy risks

While public Wi-Fi remains convenient, it’s also a security risk for mobile users. Airports, cafés, hotels and train stations all rely on shared wireless networks, yet users often have limited visibility into how secure those connections actually are.

In some situations, attackers may attempt to intercept unsecured traffic, impersonate legitimate networks, or redirect users to malicious login pages designed to steal credentials or payment details.

Mobile devices are particularly exposed because they frequently connect automatically to previously used networks, sometimes without users realising it.

For Android users who regularly work remotely or travel with sensitive personal information stored on their devices, Bitdefender's secure browsing remains an important way to reduce exposure on unfamiliar networks.

Does Android still need antivirus software?

Android is considerably safer than it was a decade ago, thanks to stronger built-in protections, stricter app store policies and improved permission management. That said, modern mobile threats have evolved alongside the platform itself.

Rather than focusing solely on traditional “viruses,” many attacks now target phishing, account theft, malicious links, fake apps, and data-harvesting techniques that rely heavily on user behaviour rather than technical exploits alone.

As Android devices increasingly replace laptops for banking, shopping, communication and work, the amount of sensitive information stored on phones continues to grow.

That’s why modern mobile security tools increasingly focus on broader privacy and exposure reduction rather than simply scanning devices for malware signatures.

• Explore how Bitdefender security solutions can help protect your devices, identity and privacy — all in one place.

Insta360 is a brand better known for its lineup of rugged action cameras, but they also make other relevant equipment such as microphones. The Insta360 Mic Pro is a spectacular new wireless lavalier mic kit that has a distinctly unique feature unlike any other: E Ink displays.

Mics for Android, iOS, and cameras are probably not the first few keywords that pop in your mind when you think of E Ink displays. After all, these e-paper screens are more popular with reading tablets and digital frames. Insta360 is has actualized and unlikely convergence of the two.

Released on May 19, 2026, the Insta360 Mic Pro usually costs $329.99 for the dual mic and receiver kit, but you can get it for a $50 off right now thanks to Prime Day.

• Prime Day June 23-26: see the full list of deals

✅Recommended if: You need a versatile mic kit that works with plenty of platforms, has a rechargeable carrying case, and has built-in E Ink displays.

❌Skip this deal if: You want mics that aren't very visible.

The Insta360 Mic Pro also comes in a singular mic kit without a receiver as well as a single mic and single transmitter kit. Since the mics can be used via Bluetooth with Android and iOS smartphones, you don't need to buy the transmitter kit if you don't plan on using the mic with a camera.

The single mic kit without a transmitter is 15% off on Amazon, going from $99.99 to $84.99. Meanwhile, the single mic and receiver kit is also 15% off, selling for $169.99 on Amazon instead of the usual $199.99.

You get a plug-and-play experience when using the Insta360 Mic Pro on smartphones

Setting up the mic is a simple matter of downloading the Insta360 app and plugging the transmitter into the USB-C port of your smartphone. After that, the mic is ready to use. The transmitter automatically connects all mics to your phone.

Once connected, you can use the app to choose any picture you like and set it as the display image for your mics. Each individual mic can have its own wallpaper. The Insta360 app allows you to resize and preview the image before confirming.

The sky is the limit when it comes to display customization

Whether its faces, brand logos, photos or captions, as long as it's an image, you can set it as the mics' wallpaper. And because the mics use E Ink panels, once the image is set, it hardly affects battery life at all!

The Insta360 Mic Pro delivers superior audio quality and comes in a carrying case with USB-C charging. The transmitter, USB-C adapter, and both mics fit inside and charge wirelessly when docked.

You get a handful of other extra accessories in the box too, including two windshields, a 3.5mm audio cable, two button magnets, two clips, a carrying pouch, and a USB-C cable. That's a lot of value for your money.

Both mics in the Insta360 Mic Pro kit feature auto gain control, 32-bit float, a 30-hour battery life, a 400m connectivity range, 3-mic array & directional pickup, and NPU-powered noise canceling thanks to dedicated AI chips.

You can customize the settings of each mic within the Insta360 app. This is where you can enable or disable auto gain control, and choose the sound direction from four options: Omni, Voice focus, Cardioid, and Figure 8.

Here are various audio samples recorded outdoors with different settings and a lot of background noise like traffic and chatter.

• Auto gain control disabled; sound direction set to Omni

• Auto gain control disabled; sound direction set to Voice focus

• Auto gain control enabled; sound direction set to Omni

• Auto gain control enabled; sound direction set to Voice focus

• Auto gain control enabled; sound direction set to Cardioid

• Auto gain control enabled; sound direction set to Figure 8

• Bluetooth connection

It's an excellent kit from Insta360 that's definitely worth the spend

The Insta360 Mic Pro is a value-packed wireless lavalier kit that can adapt to whatever environment it needs to record in. You can connect as many as four mics (receivers) to the transmitter, in case you'd like to add on more individual later on.

Maybe you're combing through the market to find a fantastic microphone kit for your vlogging needs, or maybe you are a amateur videographer. Or perhaps, you're just starting out as a student in media and journalism. For all of those scenarios and more, the Insta360 Mic Pro is a high-quality starter kit that's compatible with a wide range of devices.

After three years of trying (and failing) to build any semblance of a schedule, we wanted to get a smart calendar to see if it made things any easier. And with our toddler set to start pre-school soon, we needed a way to plan the family schedule, add and change meal plans, have a shared to-do list, and just bring some level of organization to the daily routine.

There's a decent amount of choice if you're looking to get a smart calendar these days. Cozyla, Skylight, Hearth, and Amazon all make dedicated devices aimed at this category, and while I liked the look of the Skylight Frame, I wasn't keen on yet another subscription just to use a shared calendar, and the coincidentally, I got a review unit of the Cozyla Calendar+ 2, so that's what we ended up using.

I tested the 15.6-inch variant of the Cozyla Calendar+ 2, and it costs $349 on Amazon as of writing. There's also a 24-inch model that retails for $699, a 32-inch model that costs $899, and a 32-inch 4K option that is available for $1,099. The larger 24-inch and 32-inch models are good to consider if you're mounting the calendar on a wall, but if you want to just position it on the kitchen island (like we have), the 15.6-inch model is arguably the better choice — and it costs a lot less.

I'll get to the features in a little bit, but let's talk about the product itself. The Calendar+ 2 is sold in a white color option, and it houses a 15.6-inch 1080p panel with a standard 60Hz refresh and chunky bezels on the sides. The panel itself is decent enough; it doesn't come close to the clarity of most modern tablets like the Xiaomi Pad 8, but it gets the job done in this context. I would've preferred an anti-glare coating on the screen given the use case, but that's only available on the 24- and 32-inch models, which is annoying.

Coming to the hardware, the Calendar+ 2 is powered by a Rockchip RK3576, which has Arm's v7 Cortex A72 cores running at 2.11GHz and A53 cores at 1.91GHz. There's 4GB of RAM and 64GB of storage, with around 38GB available for use. You won't see something this old on a phone or tablet, but it is serviceable on a device that's ostensibly meant as a shared family calendar.

On the software front, you get Android 14 out of the box, and while the Calendar+ 2 runs Cozyla's custom CalendarOS, you have the Play Store, so there's the ability to install custom apps. This is a big enough differentiator, and while the hardware is decidedly entry-level, you can install YouTube, to-do list apps, and just about any productivity app on this device without any issues.

The interface was laggy when we set up the calendar, but it has gotten much better thanks to recent updates. The home page pulls up the calendar view with widgets for tasks and meals, and there are dedicated tabs: Calendar, Tasks, Meals, Notes, and Settings. You get an App Library that serves as the app drawer, and you can add widgets, apps, or folders to the home page and customize it as needed.

In fact, the biggest advantage to the Calendar+ is the sheer amount of customizability. You can install any app you want and tweak the interface to highlight the information that matters to you. We used the Calendar+ 2 predominantly for two things: meal planning and managing to-do lists.

Adding a meal plan to the calendar was an exercise in frustration — when we set it up a few months ago. The interface on the Cozyla itself was slow, and while a desktop app would be ideal, Cozyla still doesn't have that, so we manually added everything via our phones.

Now, this was only a problem because we added an Indian meal plan. Cozyla has a recipe database, but that mostly includes western dishes, and even Indian dishes like rotis, dal, or chutneys weren't available, so we had to add all of these individually. Having said that, Cozyla rolled out updates in the last two months that made a big difference. There's a decent selection of global dishes now, and that's good to see — it made adding new dishes to the meal plan that much easier.

Setting up calendars is as easy as logging in to your account and syncing to the device. You can use Google, Apple, Outlook, Yahoo, and CalDAV as the providers, and it was relatively straightforward to link my Google calendar to the device. The best part of the calendar is the Tasks feature; it lets you add to-do lists and assign chores, and it made a big difference in how regularly I do the laundry.

We've been using this calendar for just under six months now, and honestly, I'm glad I waited before writing the review — the updates to the app and calendar made it much more responsive, and Cozyla sorted out a lot of the lingering bugs, making the Calendar Plus 2 a better overall product now. And the fact that you can get it for 20% off means now is as good a time as any to buy the smart calendar.

The next evolution of Meta AI glasses is taking an unexpected turn. The company announced three new styles today, one of which is co-designed with Kylie Jenner, but none of the new styles use familiar designer glasses brand names. Instead, 2026’s new Meta AI glasses prominently sport the company's branding, and I got to try them all on at a hands-on event in New York.

Meta Fury, Meta Adventurer, and the Kylie Jenner-styled glasses are all launching at a lower price point than the previous generation because of it, enabling more people to experience Meta AI glasses.

In a Q&A, Meta CTO Andrew Bosworth told Android Central that these glasses are still built by EssilorLuxottica, the brand behind Ray-Ban, Oakley, Prada, and countless other popular fashion brands, so customers can expect the same quality and lens customization options as previous entries.

Meta showed us just a handful of the 26 total new styles it's launching, which include color and lens options from each of the three designs. Meta Fury are the thickest pair of the trio, Adventurer is a slimmer design than Ray-Ban Meta smart glasses, and Kylie's design is all its own.

The new designs all come with more personalization options than ever, including 3-way adjustable nose pads to fit a wider variety of nose shapes, as well as adjustable temple arms that move 5 degrees inward and outward for added comfort. While the temple arms didn't feel like they did much for me, the adjustable nose pad angle made an immediate comfort difference.

Meta also added a new customizable action button on the top of the right glasses arm, which defaults to starting a Meta AI conversation so you can skip the “Hey, Meta” hot word. Alternatively, it can be used for different image capture modes, to start a live translation, to call the Be My Eyes service, to play music, or to start Meta AI in various ways.

All three glasses come with a charging case design that looks identical to Meta Ray-Ban Display, but now feature a detachable soft outer layer that you can swap out for different styles. Just like the Ray-Ban Display case, the sides can be folded inward and the case folded up to make it more pocket- or bag-friendly.

The Kylie Jenner “Starfire” model includes several special features over the other two models, as well, including metal nose pads (which Meta says are easier to clean), special action sounds, a custom Meta AI voice modeled after Kylie Jenner’s, and even a mirror inside the charging case.

Even more surprising is that these new glasses use the upgraded chipset that debuted with Meta Ray-Ban Display glasses late last year, giving them a slight advantage over other Ray-Ban- and Oakley-branded Meta AI glasses. While Meta was conservative with battery life estimates — which the company says is possibly slightly better than previous generations — they highlighted the smoother Meta AI conversations the spec bump brings.

These glasses also include turn-by-turn audio directions, bringing the feature over from the Display glasses. With the new glasses, Meta is also launching a bevy of new features for new and existing Meta AI glasses owners.

A whopping 14 new languages have been added to live translation: English, Spanish, French, Italian, German, Portuguese, Arabic, Chinese, Dutch, Finnish, Greek, Hindi, Indonesian, Japanese, Korean, Russian, Swedish, Thai, Turkish, and Vietnamese. While all of the new ones require cloud processing to work, that brings the total number of supported languages to 20.

A Meta representative had me run through a real-time demo while he spoke Chinese, a language Meta says is particularly difficult because words often require some context to understand. Processing latency on Chinese translation was noticeably longer than in other languages; however, the Meta AI app shows real-time progress and translations into both languages, so the person you're speaking to can understand what you say by reading the screen.

Meta AI glasses can now also help with food logging by analyzing photos of food with Meta AI. Just ask Meta AI how many calories are in whatever you’re eating, and it’ll give you a breakdown to help you more accurately log your food.

Meta Fury, Adventurer, and Meta Glasses by Kylie are available right now for $299 at Meta.com, Lenscrafters, Sunglasses Hut, Best Buy, and Amazon. You can order clear lenses, sunglasses, and prescription lenses for prescriptions from -12 to +2.25.

Anyone who has spent time diagnosing a warning light, tracking down an electrical fault, or dealing with a flat battery knows that the right tool can save far more than its purchase price. The trouble is that professional-grade diagnostic equipment has traditionally come with a professional-grade price tag.

Topdon has built a reputation among DIY enthusiasts, workshop technicians, content creators and automotive professionals by offering tools that bridge the gap between consumer affordability and professional capability.

Now, the brand’s Prime Day deals let you get Topdon’s top-tier tools for less. During the promotional period from June 23 to June 26, some of the company’s most popular products will be available at lower prices. Now is a good time to upgrade your garage setup or invest in equipment you've been considering for a while.

A diagnostic tool for almost every need

Not every vehicle owner needs the same equipment. Some drivers simply want a reliable way to read and clear fault codes, while others need thermal imaging, battery testing or emergency jump-starting capability. Topdon's Prime Day lineup covers all of these use cases and then some.

The flagship offer is a comprehensive diagnostic scanner reduced to $699.98. The Topdon One is designed for deeper access to vehicle systems and offers advanced diagnostics that go beyond basic code reading to identify issues more quickly and accurately.

For everyday drivers and enthusiasts, the Carpal OBD2 Scanner Bluetooth provides a more accessible entry point. Available for $37.97, it connects directly to a smartphone, giving you an easy way to monitor vehicle health, read fault codes and gain insight into what's happening beneath the bonnet.

The appeal of tools like these is that they allow you to identify potential problems before they become costly repairs. In many cases, a quick diagnostic check can help determine whether a problem requires immediate attention or can wait until the next scheduled service.

Seeing what the eye can't

Thermal cameras have become increasingly popular among mechanics, electricians, HVAC technicians and maintenance professionals because they reveal heat patterns that are invisible to the naked eye.

Hot spots can indicate failing components, electrical issues, overheating systems and insulation problems long before a visible failure occurs.

The TC002C Duo Thermal Camera, discounted to $229.68, is designed for users who need professional-grade thermal imaging in a compact package. It can help identify overheating electrical connections, battery issues and mechanical faults without dismantling equipment.

Meanwhile, the compact and portable TC004 Mini Thermal Imaging Camera, available for $149.99 during the promotion, offers a more affordable entry into thermal diagnostics. DIY users, homeowners and technicians who want thermal imaging capability without carrying bulky equipment will find this tool quite handy.

Insurance against unexpected breakdowns

Few situations are more frustrating than a flat battery when you're already running late, but Topdon also has a solution for this issue.

The Car Battery Tester 24V 12V Load Tester, available for $69.59 during the sale, delivers workshop-style battery diagnostics in a handheld format. It can assess battery health, cranking voltage, and charging performance in minutes, helping users identify problems before they lead to breakdowns.

For those seeking extra peace of mind, the JS3000 Jump Starter, discounted to $132.98, is designed for petrol engines up to 9.0 litres and diesel engines up to 7.0 litres and provides emergency starting power when it's needed most.

More than just hardware

One reason Topdon has gained traction among enthusiasts and professionals alike is its focus on software support and ongoing development. Many of its products receive software updates that add features, improve functionality and help maintain compatibility with newer vehicles and systems.

The company also emphasises customer support and after-sales service, helping you get the most from your equipment long after the initial purchase. This combination of value, capability and support is what makes the brand’s Prime Day offers particularly compelling.

For anyone considering a diagnostic scanner, thermal camera, battery tester, or jump starter, the June 23–26 Topdon Prime Day sale offers an opportunity to buy tools that could save time, money, and frustration for years to come. The only question is which one will earn a permanent place in your toolbox.

Slowly but surely, Huion has been expanding its focus outside of professional-grade drawing tablets and graphics tablets. I tested the Kamvas Slate 11 for amateurs and hobbyists and was quite pleased with its performance. A newer, more compact tablet has now joined the brand's Android tablet portfolio.

The Huion Note E is an Android 15 tablet that came out on May 20, 2026. Fresh out of the oven, this 8.4-inch tablet comes with a paper-like IPS LCD that has an anti-glare coating on top, designed to imitate paper or E Ink.

Priced at $369 on Amazon, this-stylus bearing tablet isn't the cheapest budget tablet. But it's shockingly adept and carves out a niche for itself, overlapping with both cheap Android tablets and E Ink tablets in a way.

It's not an E Ink tablet, but feels non-distracting like one

While you get full access to Android 15 and the Play Store, users need to manually register their Huion Note E on the Google Device Registration website to enable Play Protect. Do this as soon as you set up the tablet, and you'll have zero issues with apps. I installed all the usual Google apps — Chrome, Drive, Docs, YouTube, Photos, etc. — as well as others like Goodreads, Pinterest, Stremio, Moon+ Reader, and CamScanner.

Not once did an app crash on me, nor did multitasking give me trouble, though I admit I did not try gaming. The 6nm Mediatek Helio G99 processor paired with 6GB RAM and 128GB storage delivers reliable everyday performance for daily usage. Based on the chipset's popularity with budget phones, I'd say light gaming should be smooth sailing as long as you're not expecting anything extravagant.

Apart from swiping or using buttons to navigate or access quick settings, the layout of the Note E isn't typical for an Android tablet. There's a bar on the left with shortcuts for Home, Notes, To-Dos, Favorites, Apps, Files, Feedback, and Settings. You can add apps of your choosing to Favorites. It reminded me very much of an Onyx Boox tablet.

Notes is basically the native Huion Notes app seen on other Huion tablets, like the Kamvas Slate 11. It has cloud sync and backup, as well as useful features like OCR, image uploading, and drawing.

You also get Huion's HiPaint drawing app preloaded, which I found very easy to draw on. The matte 60Hz screen produces 16.7 million colors and 300 nits of brightness, so the color production is accurate but doesn't feel washed out. This makes annotating, highlighting, and sketching a blast. Comics also look spectacular.

As an avid reader who prefers E Ink displays, I was not expecting to use the Huion Note E as much as I actually ended up using it. Huion is focusing more on the note-taking aspect rather than drawing or reading, with a bigger emphasis on the former. You can write directly into any text field, and the native OCR does a fine job, even with my wonky cursive.

Thanks to the battery-free EMR stylus powered by PenTech 3.0, the writing experience is charming. The paper-like display mimics the scratchy, calming sensation of etching on paper with the stylus. The stylus can detect 8,192 levels of pressure, and it attaches to the side of the tablet magnetically. Huion also provides a free case with stylus storage.

Huion could improve some aspects of the Note E tablet

There is no physical volume button, and the stereo speakers are easily put to shame by any budget Android phone in terms of both loudness and clarity. However, a pair of Bluetooth earbuds or a speaker can fix that.

The Huion Note E also has an 8MP camera, which is sufficient for scanning documents, but I don't recommend it for much else unless you're in a pinch. Here's a sample photo taken in the daytime with plenty of natural and artificial light:

Notice how dull and grainy the image is. Still, the textures of the dress are captured, so it's not too shabby.

The 4,500mAh battery delivers about 6.5 hours of screen time. I found that with a few hours of use every day, the tablet easily lasted for two to three days. The 18W "fast" charging is, however, comparable to a snail's pace, and it takes two hours to fully recharge the Note E.

How does it compare to an E Ink tablet?

As I mentioned, I ended up using the tablet every day. Funny enough, I didn't read for very long on it. Compared to an excellent E Ink tablet that runs Android like the Onyx Boox Note Air 5 C, I can spend hours reading on the Boox, but the Huion gave me a headache after an hour. The eye comfort of an E Ink display cannot be beaten by a typical LCD.

What I did find superior, however, was the snappy refresh rate compared to an E Ink tab. Despite having the layout of an e-paper tablet, it responds instantly and has no ghosting. Multitasking is fluid, video playback is dynamic, and even writing is snappier. This is a drawback of E Ink devices as a whole. Drawing or writing in color is so much more appealing on an IPS display as opposed to a color E Ink screen. Naturally, the Note E shines in comparison.

I have picked up crafting and beaded jewelry making hobbies lately, and the Huion Note E has been a boon. I can swipe through designs and ideas on Pinterest, download them, and then add the file to HiPaint and create my own templates or tutorials.

Sometimes when I'm lazy, I just sketch the design quickly in the Notes app. I have a smooth workflow now, and because I'm honing my craft daily, I'm using the Note E every day too.

Is the Note E tablet worth your interest?

I can see students benefiting greatly from a tablet like the Huion Note E. The tablet is perfect for note-taking, studying, drawing, and sketching. You can download any app, like a university or school's learning management app, like Moodle. From its stylus support to its UI layout, it is a true blue digital notebook that makes studying easier at all levels.

And unlike E Ink tablets, video playback is possible. Apps like Canva and Camscanner are also much easier to use on a snappy tablet like the Note E as opposed to the Onyx Boox.

Of course, there are cheaper alternatives out there, like the Xiaomi Pad 7 or the Amazon Fire Max 11. There are also bigger, more powerful tablets with better productivity features, like the Samsung Galaxy Tab S11 Ultra.

But Huion offers something unique that's definitely worth your interest: a non-distracting tablet that's almost like an E Ink tablet, offers better eye comfort, has fantastic stylus support, but doesn't have the limitations of an E Ink tablet. It is easily one of the best tablets for students.

How Oura Ring 5 tracks activities

Since the Oura Ring 5, like any smart ring, is a circular device you wear on your finger without a screen or buttons, everything is controlled in the app. With AAD, you can begin a specific workout, and the Oura Ring can use its motion-sensing accelerometers and heart rate measurements to determine not only that you're doing something but, in many cases, also pinpoint the specific activity.

This could be housework, walking your dog, or going for a run. Oura says the feature is 89% accurate, meaning it can guess the activity and begin logging it accordingly. It doesn't always get it right, but if it doesn't, you can edit the log and change it to what the activity really was. This level of intricate logging is challenging to accomplish, since most smart rings and even smartwatches with automatic activity detection can only detect specific activities with very distinct movements, like running, boxing, or rowing.

Oura says incorrect activity detection was one of the biggest pain points for customers with previous-generation rings like the Oura Ring 4, so the company set out to fix it. In fact, user input helped build it. The more users corrected the incorrect logging of an activity, like thinking a hike was an elliptical workout, the more these updates were slowly training its algorithm. The update will, as noted, apply to rings dating back to the Oura Ring Gen3.

Company employees also put the feature through rigorous tests to help the machine learning algorithm better detect specific movement patterns. Following the tests, Oura said logging of activities like hiking, yard work, and housework saw up to a 50 percent gain in prediction accuracy. For those who engage in intense activities, you'll also see more data, like more accurate total duration, intensity, and active calorie burn.

It isn't perfect, of course. The device is worn on your finger, which moves less than your arm during exercises but more during activities like typing or washing dishes. This makes it a challenge for the sensors to intelligently figure out what you're doing. If an activity involves limited or no hand movements, such as lifting weights, riding a bicycle, or using an elliptical machine, it might not get it right. But AAD has been refined to take into account certain factors it never did before. Oura even had volunteers take fake showers to train the algorithm not to count movements during showers as activity!

The result with the Oura Ring 5, one of the best smart rings, is that you can not only more confidently go on with your day's regular exercises knowing that the smart ring will track them even if you forget to manually set it in the app, but it may also track activities you never gave yourself credit for before, like walking the dog, doing chores around the house, or dancing.

Being able to simply do an activity instead of telling an app you're about to do it and advising once you've stopped makes the process easier. And these updates to AAD with Oura Ring 5 also ensure you get the credit you deserve for every moment of log-worthy movement throughout your day.

Tribit makes some of the best budget Bluetooth speakers that money can buy. While I have tested many speakers from the brand, I had not gone hands on with in-ear or over-ear audio accessories from them until recently.

Priced at $49.99, the Tribit QuietPlus 81 over-ear headphones face extremely tough competition against other budget wireless headphones. Tribit tried to pack as much value as possible to compete with alternatives. But is it enough to justify this price tag? Here's what I found out after weeks of testing.

What the Tribit QuietPlus 81 over-ear headphones bring to the table — or to your ears

Tribit released the QuietPlus 81 over-ear headphones in December 2025. There is only one color variant, Black, and it costs $49.99. If you're lucky, you can grab these headphones at a discount during the upcoming Prime Day or during Black Friday/Cyber Monday sales later in the year.

Here are the key technical specifications of the headphones.

The Tribit QuietPlus 81 headphones have an adjustable headband, a foldable design, and soft, cushioned ear cups that can rotate. The ear cups are made of breathable protein leather and memory foam. While they are very comfy, even for someone like me with several piercings per ear, they get really hot and sweaty after a while.

Multipoint connection is available, but the headphones can only connect to two devices. A USB-C to USB-A cable and a 3.5mm audio cable are included in the box.

The battery life is impressive and the touch pad feature is handy

The specs are impressive on paper, with the crown jewel being the 110-hour battery life with ANC off, and 70-hour playback with ANC on. I was astounded at how long these headphones last. If you don't use the Bluetooth mode and stick with the AUX cable, you'll seemingly never run out of charge.

Fast charging puts the cherry on top, delivering five hours of playtime with a quick ten minute charge.

The Tribit app is as handy as ever. Just like with the brand's Bluetooth speakers, the app also has an equalizer for the QuietPlus 81 Bluetooth headphones. Apart from the six presets, you can also fully customize the equalizer to your liking and save it under a name of your choosing.

The trio of buttons are unintuitive and have a learning curve, but they can accomplish a number of tasks. What's really cool is the transparency feature of the touch pad. You can simply touch and hold the touch pad area in the right ear cup to enable a temporary transparency mode. The ANC itself is alright; works well enough but nothing groundbreaking, and some loud noises still seep through.

If you have a feeling someone is calling your name or talking to you in real life, or maybe you want to keep on ear out for a sound for a few seconds, it's pretty handy. There's no need to pause your audio playback or pop the headphones off your ears.

Unfortunately, there's not much more to love about these headphones.

The downsides pile up and drown the good parts

As much as I love most of what Tribit creates, this one's a miss for several reasons.

The buttons can be confusing to use. There's no dedicated pause/play or forward/backward button. Instead, the power button is used for all these actions and it can be very confusing. Also, the power off sound comes after a really long press, to the point that I initially thought there was no audio notification when shutting off.

There's no auto pause/play feature when you take the headphones off or put them back on. You also have to press and hold the volume button to reduce the volume, but press to increase, which is not user-friendly.

Also, the headphone jack is a little janky. When plugged into my laptop, there was a moment when only one ear cup was working. I had to twist and turn the cable until it worked. Bluetooth connection is smooth, however.

The touch pad that enables the temporary transparency mode also toggles Tribit's signature XBass preset on and off, and triggers the voice assistant. Although the transparency feature is really useful, the touch pad itself isn't the most accurate and does not always detect the taps correctly.

Honestly, I'd rather have physical buttons for this kind of stuff. Plus, there's no audio notification when XBass toggles on or off, so you lose track of whether it was enabled or disabled.

Naturally, the sound produced by the 40mm dynamic drivers is a significant factor. Despite all my best efforts messing around with the equalizer, the Tribit QuietPlus 81 headphones still sounded a bit murky and flat.

XBass is designed to add a magical bass boost that brings the audio to life, and it works well on Tribit speakers. But on these over-ear headphones, the audio is overwhelmingly bass-ridden, clearly compensating for lack of detail. XBass feels like an artificial enhancer: sickeningly sweet, almost medicinal and bitter if it were a flavor.

Should you buy the Tribit QuietPlus 81 headphones for $50?

The Tribit QuietPlus 81 headphones prove that a brand could do everything right on paper, but shoddy execution could still be their downfall.

Is this the best pair of wireless headphones for $50? The short answer is: no.

Competitors like Edifier, Sony, JBL, JLab, and a few other brands all have superior offerings in this bracket. It is a highly competitive arena, after all.

The Edifier W800BT Pro cost $49.99 too, but come with hi-res audio. Sony's WH-CH520 wireless headphones retail for $69.99 but frequently sell for half off. Even now, you can grab them for just $38 and enjoy incredibly high-quality sound on a tiny budget.

Then there's also the JBL Tune 510BT priced at $49.95 and the JLab Go Lux ANC that's usually $49.99, but currently on sale for $33.24.

Going off of sound quality alone, you're better off with almost anything else within the sub-$50 price segment.

Samsung's Galaxy Z Flip series has consistently offered flip phones fit to compete with Motorola's Razr lineup. When I reviewed the Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 7 last year, I recommended it over the Motorola Razr Ultra 2025. Despite the raw performance and multitasking software deficiencies of the Galaxy Z Flip 7, it felt polished, premium, and durable. About a year later, the Motorola Razr 2026 family is already here, and we're awaiting the official launch of the Galaxy Z Flip 8.

If you were considering buying an Android flip phone ahead of an expected launch, I'd usually recommend waiting to see what happens. This year is different. Component shortages are raising prices across the board, and the Galaxy Z Flip 8 could be affected. For perspective, every Razr 2026 model — including the base, Plus, and Ultra variants — received a price hike of at least $100 this year. Could the latest flip phone launch be a sign of what's to come for the Galaxy Z Flip 8?

There's no perfect answer as to whether you should wait for the Galaxy Z Flip 8 or buy one of its competitors today. With so many unknowns, we don't know for sure how the Galaxy Z Flip 8 will stack up. That said, there's as good a reason as ever to buy now and avoid the risk of price hikes or sellouts.

Why you should wait for the Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 8

Pricing considerations aside, this could be a big year for the Galaxy Z Flip line. The Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 8 is expected to include a number of upgrades, starting with the chipset. It'll be powered by the Samsung Exynos 2600, which uses a smaller 2nm Gate-All-Around (GAA) architecture. Compared to the Galaxy Z Flip 7's Exynos 2500 platform, the newer chip offers CPU performance up to 39% faster while delivering better power efficiency.

We know this because the Exynos 2600 already powers the Samsung Galaxy S26 in some regions, giving us a taste of how the Galaxy Z Flip 8 might perform. That processor is rumored to be paired with 12GB memory and either 256GB or 512GB of storage. The operating system will be One UI 9 based on Android 17, and we hope that Samsung finally opens up the cover screen for running full-screen apps without installing Good Lock.

There's quite a bit of room for Samsung to build upon the Galaxy Z Flip 7. The IP48 rating could be bumped to IP68, and the Qi2 Ready wireless charging could be replaced with the magnetic version. The device could get thinner or lighter, too. Unfortunately, none of these potential improvements is a sure thing for the Galaxy Z Flip 8. In fact, it may be more likely that the Galaxy Z Flip 8 doesn't include these upgrades, so keep this in mind as you make your choice.

For those who care about software support, the Galaxy Z Flip 8 will start with Android 17 and get a full seven years of guaranteed Android OS upgrades. While you could go with a Galaxy Z Flip 7 instead, it'll have a software support window that is a year shorter once it gets the Android 17 upgrade. The situation on Motorola Razr phones is worse, as you only get three years of Android OS upgrades, even on the flagship Ultra models.

You can also expect that the Galaxy Z Flip 8 will get new software features that may remain exclusive to Samsung's latest phones, at least to start. There's a new Gemini Intelligence suite of premium AI features set to debut on the Galaxy S26 and Google Pixel 10 series later this summer. Might the Galaxy Z Flip 8 also be included? It certainly sounds reasonable.

So, there are a few solid reasons to wait for the Galaxy Z Flip 8. You'll probably get a new processor and major software improvements, with other uncertain hardware upgrades possible as a bonus. If the price is the same or only slightly higher than the Galaxy Z Flip 7, the newer model will be worth the wait.

Why you shouldn't wait for the Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 8

The biggest question mark surrounding the Galaxy Z Flip 8 is the phone's potential price point. If it launches at the same $1,099 sticker price as the Galaxy Z Flip 7, there may be enough upgrades to justify the purchase. After all, a new processor and exclusive software additions are all but guaranteed. That might be wishful thinking, though.

We just saw Motorola hike its flip phone prices, and Samsung increased the cost of both the Galaxy S26 and Galaxy S26 Plus earlier this year. Given the precedent, I'm going to assume the Galaxy Z Flip 8 will cost more until proven otherwise. To be clear, I hope I'm wrong. Reports from Korean news outlets like Newspim suggest the same.

A forthcoming Galaxy Z Flip 8 model with 256GB of storage could cost, say, $100 or $200 more and still make sense with carrier discounts. Those who purchase their phones unlocked and pay in full might find a $1,199 or $1,299 Galaxy Z Flip 8 a tough sell, and I can't really blame them.

Usually, I'd recommend interested buyers consider grabbing a discounted current-generation model ahead of the new one's debut, but the market conditions threw a wrinkle in that, too. The Galaxy Z Flip 7 isn't discounted at all by Samsung, Best Buy, or Amazon, likely due to the pricing challenges we've covered. If you're worried about the Galaxy Z Flip 8 being more expensive, it still might make sense to keep an eye out for a Galaxy Z Flip 7 deal instead of waiting.

An outside contender is the Motorola Razr Ultra 2025. The phone's successor, the Razr Ultra 2026, costs a whopping $1,500. It's not a serious option for people on most budgets. Meanwhile, the Razr Ultra 2025 is available for $800 and comes with 1TB of storage, and it'll make you think twice about waiting for the Galaxy Z Flip 8.

You'll need to accept the year-old processor and very short software support window. Those who can get over those hurdles could find themselves acquiring an outstanding flip phone for an even better price.

What about the Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 8 FE?

Last year brought us the Galaxy Z Flip 7 and a cheaper Galaxy Z Flip 7 FE, but will we get two Galaxy Z Flip 8 models this time around? It doesn't seem likely, as we haven't heard much of anything about a Galaxy Z Flip 8 FE, and we keep hearing about the Galaxy Z Flip 8, Galaxy Z Fold 8 (wide), and Galaxy Z Fold 8 Ultra. Samsung might be skipping the "Fan Edition" version this year, so don't hold your breath waiting for it.

We won't have to wait much longer to see what the Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 8 holds. Rumors point to a Galaxy Unpacked event in London set for July 22, 2026. This is likely where we'll see the new Samsung foldables for the first time, with general availability coming around two weeks later.

For a few years there, Samsung's Galaxy Z Fold series was feeling a little boring. Most releases were very minor tweaks of the previous year's design, and Samsung wasn't pushing specs like it used to. But last year's Galaxy Z Fold 7 changed that when it debuted as the thinnest foldable of all time, and Samsung apparently isn't done making major design changes for 2026's rumored release.

The Galaxy Z Fold 8 is rumored to debut in two sizes for the first time, and it appears to follow an industry trend of making book-style foldables wider rather than taller. If you don't like that trend, that's OK, because Samsung is allegedly going to offer both a tall and wide variant of the Z Fold 8, with a few other changes in store.

Is it worth waiting for the Galaxy Z Fold 8? Considering we're expecting to see the unveiling in just a few weeks on July 22 (per rumors), I'd say there's no reason to rush into a buying decision until then.

What changes do we expect for the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 8?

While the Galaxy Z Fold 8 family is sure to receive the latest round of Qualcomm processors, the rumored size changes are apparently making Samsung consider a bit of a name change to the Z Fold 8. Here's what we expect to see:

• The Galaxy Z Fold 8 Ultra: This one's the "true" successor to the Z Fold 7 and is said to look nearly identical to that phone. Same tall dimensions, three cameras on the back, and top-tier specs with a slightly larger battery than last year. This one's rumored to be 2mm thicker than the Z Fold 7.
• The Galaxy Z Fold 8: The standard Z Fold 8 is said to be the wider model, which essentially looks like someone took a Z Fold 7 and squashed it down. This is supposed to be more of a passport shape, allegedly only has room for two rear cameras, and likely has a smaller battery than the Ultra.
• S Pen support is rumored to be added to at least one of these models. If I had to bet money on which one, it would be the Ultra since it's rumored to be thicker than the Z Fold 7.

S Pen support seems to be up in the air, depending on which rumor you follow. The latest rumors suggest the Ultra is 2mm thicker than the Galaxy Z Fold 7, making it 0.18 mm thicker than the recently released Motorola Razr Fold.

Motorola's excellent foldable supports stylus input on both the inner and outer displays, something Samsung never offered on the Z Fold series, so this rumored thickness increase for the Z Fold 8 Ultra is almost certainly S Pen-related, if it's true.

2 big reasons to wait

If you're happy with the current size and shape of the Galaxy Z Fold 7, the Galaxy Z Fold 8 Ultra should offer a similar look and feel, albeit in a slightly thicker form factor (assuming that rumor is true). Samsung likely chose the name Ultra for this model because it's packing in all the tricks instead of focusing on a single ultra-thin model, as it did in 2025.

That means potential Z Fold 8 Ultra buyers can expect better battery life than the Z Fold 7, as well as potential camera upgrades and likely S Pen support. The Galaxy Z Fold 3 through 6 supported S Pen input on their foldable inner screens, but Samsung removed this support on the Z Fold 7 to keep it as thin as possible.

Stylus support comes with a thicker build, and since the Z Fold 8 Ultra is rumored to be 2mm thicker than the Z Fold 7, we're feeling pretty good about potential S Pen support returning. Since the battery is rumored to only be increasing by 600mAh, there's little likelihood that the thickness increase is only for battery space.

Furthermore, if you find current book-style foldables to be too unwieldy and tall, Samsung's rumored Galaxy Z Fold 8 may be the device you were looking for. Oppo first launched a wide foldable in 2021, but abandoned the wide design a few years later. Google also debuted its first Pixel Fold with a wide design, and I hate to say I told you so, but Google got it right the first time.

Now, the wide design trend is back and looks to be better than ever. Huawei just launched its second-generation wide foldable, and now it's rumored that Vivo, Honor, and even Apple are launching wide foldable phones this year.

That means Samsung has a lot of upcoming competition in this space, so while you should wait for the Z Fold 8 if you want a wider foldable, I don't think you should actually buy something until you hear from the rest of those companies sometime this autumn.

Plenty of reasons to consider something else

Samsung gets a lot of things right, but the company has been guilty of "coasting" in more than one area in the past few years. Samsung's foldable phones nearly always sport the latest processors and have truly excellent software that's backed up for years to come, but the rest of the spec sheet falls behind the competition in some major areas.

Every other Android vendor with a book-style foldable phone — with the exception of Google Pixel Fold models — puts substantially higher-capacity, faster-charging silicon-carbon batteries inside their devices. That means longer battery life and less time hooked up to a charger than Samsung's phones.

Other companies, like Honor and Motorola, also offer even better build quality and life-proofing than Samsung does. The Razr Fold, for instance, has an IP49 rating, which makes it more resistant to water jets and other water-related activities than Samsung's IP48 rating. Folks outside of North America can also choose from the Oppo Find N6, which offers an IP59 rating, or the Honor Magic V6, which is IP69 rated.

Samsung also often falls behind in cameras and displays, even if the company often experiments with things like anti-reflective displays and its trademark Privacy Display. The rumor is that the Z Fold 8 and 8 Ultra won't see either of those display enhancements, and there's no word on whether Samsung will finally make its displays safe for PWM-sensitive people.

We've also seen a massive jump in foldable phone camera quality over the past two years, with brands like Honor, Oppo, and (surprisingly) Motorola leading the way. Much of this has come from hardware and design innovation, as manufacturers figure out new ways to put big camera sensors into thin phones.

The Z Fold has never had cutting-edge cameras, and the Z Fold 8 family likely won't either. That's even more the case if you're considering the wider Z Fold 8 model, which is rumored to only have two cameras on the back.

One more thing

If you've been looking to buy any new piece of electronics this year, you're almost certainly aware of the huge price increases sweeping the world as AI data center construction has jacked up the prices of storage and RAM. Given that Samsung has already raised prices on many of its existing phones, there's little doubt the Z Fold 8 family will be subjected to the same price increases.

Samsung isn't alone in that, obviously, but nearly any new phone will cost you more than it would have last year, and that's a difficult reality to deal with in a year of high inflation. Even if you were going to buy an existing phone, though, you're going to pay those higher prices, so you might as well wait for a new model and see what the final word is.

A souped-up Galaxy Z Fold 8 Ultra and a wider Galaxy Z Fold 8 certainly sound enticing, especially if you live in North America and have fewer options than the rest of the world, so why not wait until mid-July to make a decision you won't regret? I know I certainly would.

The Motorola Razr Fold has arrived, and there's a lot to like about Motorola's first book-style foldable. From its performance to the impressive cameras, the Razr Fold is a great first attempt at this type of foldable phone, making it a worthy competitor to Samsung's Galaxy Z Fold lineup.

But even though the Razr Fold just hit store shelves, we're already looking forward to the next iteration and how the company can improve upon an already great package. So, after spending several weeks with the Razr Fold, here's what I want to see out of the Razr Fold 2027.

More colors

Lately, Motorola is known for its bold color choices, especially since partnering with Pantone a few years ago. Just about every Motorola smartphone is offered in exciting colors and finishes, such as vegan leather, Alcantara, and wood, which helps phones like the Motorola Razr 2026 stand out even more.

The Razr Fold is sort of the odd one out. Sure, Motorola still uses alternative and premium-feeling materials besides glass, which I appreciate. However, the Fold is only available in two colors, and they're basically black and white. This sort of runs counter to Motorola's color philosophy, which tends to steer away from "safe" colors.

On the one hand, I get that this is Motorola's first book-style foldable, so it wants to play it safe by offering just two color options. It is a rather expensive phone, and Motorola may use this to gauge demand for future models.

With any luck, the Razr Fold 2027 will add one or two more color options to its roster. After all, it's a great smartphone, and probably the best Motorola flagship since the Razr Ultra 2025, so I would like to see Motorola really show it off with bold color options.

More configurations

The Razr Fold is a powerful phone, and a big reason for that is the fact that Motorola paired the Snapdragon 8 Gen 5 with 16GB of RAM. That's enough to run plenty of on-device AI features and tons of open apps without the phone breaking a sweat. However, with the RAM crisis inflating prices across the board, perhaps it's time for Motorola to consider offering more than just one configuration for the device.

This is a strategy Samsung utilizes with its devices. For example, it offers three RAM/storage configurations for the Galaxy Z Fold 7, starting at 12 GB/256GB and going up to 16GB/1TB, allowing Samsung to offer the phone at a variety of prices.

Motorola could do the same thing with the Razr Fold 2027, not only to benefit consumers willing to pay more for higher RAM and storage, but also to offer a cheaper model, perhaps with just 12GB of RAM and 256GB of storage. For many on-device AI features, 12GB is plenty, and 256GB is a good amount for many people, especially as cloud storage options become more prevalent.

This way, the Razr Fold 2027 could start at a lower price of, say, $1,700, allowing Motorola to further undercut its rivals.

Magnets everywhere

The Motorola Razr Fold has great charging specs, offering 80W wired charging and 50W wireless charging. That last one is particularly interesting, especially since achieving such speeds will likely require a very specific type of wireless charger, like the Motorola TurboPower 50W Wireless Charger. Wireless charging this fast is often hard to come by (it's not even on Motorola's website) or expensive.

Instead, I would love to see Motorola offer the Razr Fold 2027 with Qi2 charging capabilities, especially given how the standard is growing and how many Qi2 chargers are already out there. Furthermore, the Razr Fold should come with built-in magnets to fully take advantage of the standard, unlike Samsung's stopgap Qi2-Ready implementation.

Sure, charging may be limited to just 25W with the Qi2.2 standard, but that's still plenty quick (many Samsung phones charge at the same speed using a cable), and if you need faster charging, you could just plug it in. Frankly, I would be willing to cut the wireless charging speed in half if it means I get to attach magnetic accessories to my phone or stick the Razr Fold on a magnetic stand without needing a case.

A truly flagship chipset

Performance on the Razr Fold is pretty spectacular, despite the fact that the phone is running a sub-flagship chipset. The Snapdragon 8 Gen 5 is a step below the Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5, and it's more in line with the original Snapdragon 8 Elite, albeit with lower clock speeds. Still, given how volatile smartphone pricing has been in 2026, it's no surprise Motorola didn't go for the top-of-the-line chipset, likely to keep costs down while providing plenty of performance.

It's a strategy Motorola is known for with its flagship foldables, with its previous highest-end Razr phones generally opting for sub-flagship options rather than the most premium chip available. The company changed that up with the Razr Ultra 2025, which sported the Snapdragon 8 Elite, so we hoped that would be the case with this year's Razr models.

But while the Snapdragon 8 Gen 5 is still a great chip, it would be nice to see the Razr Fold 2027 running on whatever flagship chipset we get from Qualcomm, which will likely be the Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 6. This would help it compete better with some of the best foldables from Samsung and others.

Motorola might even consider giving it a flagship MediaTek chipset, as the company isn't shy about mixing chips among the Razr series, as the lowest-end Razr flip phone usually runs a MediaTek Dimensity chipset. This could potentially help offset costs, as Qualcomm isn't exactly cheap.

And again, Motorola can help offset the cost of its next Fold by offering more configurations, giving it more wiggle room to feature a more premium chipset that we expect to see in a flagship of this caliber.

Better durability

The Razr Fold is a pretty solid phone, especially as foldables go. It has an IP48 and IP49 rating, meaning it's largely protected against water ingress and water jets. You can get it wet or submerge it, and it should be fine in most common conditions (although it's not completely waterproof).

That said, dust protection leaves a bit to be desired. That "4" means it's protected against dust particles 1mm or larger, but anything smaller could still cause some damage.

Right now, the Google Pixel 10 Pro Fold is the only foldable phone with full dust protection, meaning it is possible. And given that consumers are still concerned about foldable durability, the Razr Fold 2027 should step up its protection to give them more peace of mind.

And on that note, I would like to see more cases and screen protectors available, both first and third-party. After all, you can never be too safe when it comes to a $1,900 product.

The Motorola Razr Fold has one of the best cameras on a foldable phone, thanks to its triple 50MP system and Pantone-Validated sensors. However, it's not just the sensors themselves that make the cameras great, but the software behind them.

Motorola has a few interesting tricks up its sleeve, such as Action Shot for fast-moving objects and Signature Style to create your own color science. But one interesting new feature is Frame Match, which sounds a bit like the Add Me feature on the Pixel 10.

You may not have heard of this feature, but with summer just around the corner and plenty of people likely to travel for the World Cup, the feature is perfect for taking better vacation photos, especially if you wanna be in them.

What is Frame Match?

Frame Match is a feature that helps users frame a photo just how they like it. You take a photo to create an overlay of the scene you want to take a photo of. The idea is that you can then give the phone to a friend or a friendly stranger, and they will see the overlay. You can then position yourself in the photo while the person taking it lines up the overlay with the scene in the viewfinder, ensuring it's framed exactly how you want while you're in it.

As someone who often tries to capture the best angles of others but is often underwhelmed with photos others take of me, I actually really love this idea.

Inspiration seems to have been taken from one of our favorite Pixel features. Add Me is a neat feature that lets one person take a group photo, and then they can be added into the image by giving someone else the phone and making sure they're lined up with the original photo. That way, no one is left out of the group pic.

Theoretically, you can probably do as much with Motorola's Frame Match, although I haven't tried this method yet.

For now, this feature is available on Motorola's latest smartphones, including the Razr 2026 series. It will likely come to other Motorola smartphones, such as its 2025 models, although it's not guaranteed.

How to use Frame Match

1. Open the Camera app.

2. Scroll through the carousel of camera modes until you reach Frame Match.

3. Tap the shutter button. This will take an initial image that will act as an overlay.

4. Give someone else the phone and move into the frame.

5. The person taking the photo can increase or decrease the opacity of the overlay using the slider at the bottom (they may have to tap the icon with the five squares to open it).

6. Once the images are lined up and you're positioned in the photo, the person taking the photo taps the shutter button to take the complete photo.

The result should be a photo with you in it and at the angle of your desire, ensuring you're getting the best parts of the scene into the image without having to direct the person capturing the photo. Motorola does the work for you.

This feature sounds perfect if you're traveling this summer

I don't expect to do much traveling this summer, but I can already think of some fun ideas that I would love to try out if I were. Imagine you're in Paris and want to snap a perspective shot of yourself with your finger on top of the Eiffel Tower. Or you're in Italy and want a fun shot of you "holding up" the Leaning Tower of Pisa. You know, typical tourist stuff.

Frame Match should make the process a bit smoother, especially if you know exactly how you want the scene to be captured. It's your vacation and your memories, after all, and your photos should come out exactly how you want them to.

The past two years have yielded significant advancements in smart glasses. Whether you're looking at a "wearable TV" or a pair of glasses with an AI companion built in, smart glasses have never made more sense to get than they do now. And as they continue to grow in popularity, they're only getting better and better.

Viture specializes in the "wearable TV" smart glasses segment and recently delivered its first pair of glasses with built-in spatial tracking. It also offers the best smart glasses ecosystem you can find today; that includes the only smart glasses that work with the Switch 2, a wearable spatial neckband, and several controllers.

I had a conversation with Viture's Optical Lead, Dr Deqing Kong, about the company's latest releases and learned about even more exciting products in the pipeline for the future. These represent the next generation of quality and eye comfort, and it won't be too long before they're ready to buy, too.

The roadmap to perfection

My biggest issue with smart glasses today isn't display quality or functionality; it's comfort. Smart glasses like Viture Beast offer built-in spatial tracking and a design that's significantly smaller and lighter than a VR headset, but the micro-OLED displays at the heart of the optics engine aren't always the most comfortable to look at for long periods of time.

For me, this is because I'm sensitive to low-frequency PWM dimming. Almost all smart glasses that use PWM dimming employ a 120Hz or 240Hz frequency, while RayNeo's most recent two generations offer 3840Hz (not a typo) PWM dimming. According to Dr Kong, this disparity is due to two factors: display quality and manufacturer specifications.

RayNeo uses SeeYa micro-OLED displays, a smaller firm out of China, while Viture and Xreal utilize Sony micro-OLEDs. Viture used SeeYa SY049 panels for the Viture One, but Dr. Kong told me that Sony panels offered greater color saturation and pixel density, so Viture switched to Sony for future product releases.

SeeYa panels have historically been more comfortable for me, in part because they use different dimming methods and, according to Dr. Kong, because Viture One's optics have a narrower FoV and higher pixel density. All major Viture and Xreal models released in the past year have a much wider FoV over 52 degrees, which lowers the pixel density of the glasses, but Viture's next glasses will more than make up for this.

Dr. Kong tells me that Viture's upcoming smart glasses, set to release later this year, will feature a large FoV with 2560 x 1600 resolution, a notable upgrade from the 1920 x 1200 resolution Viture's latest releases sport. The following year, we should expect a further bump in resolution, which may also coincide with an increase in FoV.

In addition to this, they'll feature up to 3840Hz PWM dimming, ensuring that people like me can find them comfortable no matter how long they're worn. That solves two huge problems in one fell swoop, and while there are plenty of other obstacles that'll need to be overcome to make smart glasses "perfect," these important steps will ensure that everyone finds the sweet spot as products evolve.

Pushing the boundaries of wearable tech

Every pair of smart display glasses (wearable TVs) you can buy today uses micro-OLED displays, regardless of which company makes the display or the glasses. While micro-OLEDs deliver some of the same great advantages of OLED TVs and smartphones, they also need to work a little differently because of the inherent nature of how lenses work on a wearable.

So while the latest Sony ECX348 micro-OLEDs can pump out an eye-searing 5,000 nits of brightness, that amount of light is cut by 1/5th — meaning your eyes receive around 1,000 nits — by the time it hits your eyes because of the glasses' birdbath optics. That number is even lower on VR headsets, and even though headsets like Galaxy XR and Apple Vision Pro use similar 5000-nit panels, their pancake optics reduce brightness down to under 200 nits by the time the light reaches your eyes.

For a VR headset, this low brightness level isn't a huge deal since most headsets block out external light, but smart glasses have to work around this differently since they don't obscure your vision. Glasses like Viture Beast and Xreal 1S use dimmable electrochromic film, which you can adjust in the glasses settings, adding tinting to the front of the glasses to reduce light interference with the display.

And while electrochromic film is very effective in reducing forward light, these glasses still have to overcome peripheral light leaks with higher brightness levels. Dr. Kong tells me the next Viture glasses will feature displays with a peak brightness of 8,000 nits, which, if the math stays the same, means they'll deliver an effective brightness level of 1,600 nits to your eyes.

Dr. Kong indicated that VITURE's display roadmap extends well beyond next-generation glasses, with further gains in resolution, brightness, and custom silicon on the horizon.

At the same time, we'll also see an improvement in color reproduction and capabilities. Current micro-OLEDs use 8-bit SDR color output, and while glasses like RayNeo Air 4 Pro are the first to debut with HDR10 support and 10-bit color, RayNeo's HDR10 implementation uses temporal dithering — a software flicker technique that simulates HDR.

VITURE's position is to wait for true panel-level HDR rather than ship a software workaround. Any flickering like this can cause headaches and discomfort for some people, so companies must offer ways to disable these techniques for affected users.

These upgraded micro-OLED panels will also feature RGB self-emission, which means they'll work more like the OLED screen in your TV or smartphone. Current smart glasses and VR-mounted micro-OLEDs feature white light pixels with RGB filters on top. Self-emissive color pixels will provide an upgraded color range and power efficiency.

I'm not privy to which of the two upcoming generations of glasses will support a wider color gamut, but Dr. Kong tells me that future Viture glasses will support 10-bit HDR output and 100% DCI color. Some of these improvements are tied to the coprocessor in the glasses, and Viture is working on a new, custom chip scheduled to debut in 2027.

That new chip will also support AI-based super-resolution, similar to AI upscaling on phones like the Galaxy S25 Ultra, but the quality upgrade will likely be even more pronounced because of the perceived size of the virtual display in Viture glasses.

Lastly, Viture tells me it's working on several other pain points for its users. Native color options, "professional grade color management," anti-aliasing, and anti-chromatic aberration are all in the pipeline for future Viture glasses. That last part, in particular, is music to my ears, as many glasses with larger FoV suffer from chromatic aberration around the edges of the lens.

This all spells an incredibly exciting future for smart display glasses, especially ones that focus on delivering top-tier image quality. Viture Beast was a huge step forward for the company's glasses, adding native spatial tracking and several other important features. The company's next steps look to take those improvements and combine them with the Luma line to create something even more impressive.

And if you absolutely can't wait, stay tuned for Prime Day (starting June 23) to check out some smart glasses sales. These kinds of products always go on discount for Prime Day (and similar sales events), which makes it the perfect time to pick up a pair.

If you are interested in Samsung Wallet, surely you must have heard the news that your Samsung phone is officially a TSA-approved digital passport. This means that you can now use a digitally stored passport inside Samsung Wallet at most Transportation Security Administration (TSA) checkpoints across the U.S.

Samsung partnered up with CLEAR to bring verified digital IDs into Samsung Wallet for Samsung Galaxy phone users.

If you want to learn how to set up your digital passport, read this handy guide we have. After setting it up, you must be wondering about compatibility. Here's what you need to know.

Where can you use Samsung Wallet?

First, lets start off with availability of the e-wallet from the Korean tech giant. Samsung Wallet itself is available in the following countries:

• Australia
• Bahrain
• Brazil
• Canada
• China
• Denmark
• Finland
• France
• Germany
• Hong Kong
• India
• Italy
• Kazakhstan
• Korea
• Kuwait
• Malaysia
• Norway
• Oman
• Qatar
• Singapore
• South Africa
• Spain
• Sweden
• Switzerland
• Taiwan
• Vietnam
• UAE
• U.K.
• U.S.

Samsung Wallet availability in a region includes features such as adding debit, credit, prepaid, and loyalty cards, as well as digital keys. Not only can you keep passwords, addresses, and card details within Samsung Wallet, but you can also unlock, lock, and start your car from your Samsung phone.

Note that some features of Samsung Wallet may not be available in certain regions or may be available only in a limited capacity. It depends entirely on the region.

Where can you use your digital passport stored in Samsung Wallet?

Moving on to Samsung ID with CLEAR, this is the part of Samsung Wallet that securely holds your digital passport. As of right now, this is a U.S.-exclusive feature, so only American citizens with a valid passport can store their passports digitally within their Samsung Wallet.

You can use your digital ID at more than 250 TSA checkpoints inside the U.S., and you can view the participating states on the TSA website. However, this digital ID will only work for domestic travel and not for international travel.

So if you're planning to go abroad, don't forget to bring the original physical copy of your passport with you!

Android gaming has come a long way in the last five years, but power constraints remain the biggest issue. Unlike a desktop PC, phones have significant thermal restraints and a power budget that doesn't extend beyond 5W. That's why we don't see many games with ray-traced shadows and realistic lighting effects, but that could be changing thanks to Arm's Neural Technology.

Arm introduced the tech last year, and the brand is now readying Neural Dawn, a game made in collaboration with Sumo Digital that highlights the best that the AI-assisted neural rendering suite has to offer on mobile. The game itself is launching later in Q4 2026, and Arm just rolled out a trailer. Ahead of its debut, I talked to Peter Hodges, Director of Developer Ecosystem Strategy at Arm, and Lukáš Medek, Art Director at Sumo Digital and Game Director of Neural Dawn, to get a better sense of what the tech has to offer, and why this is a big deal for mobile gaming.

Let's start with the game itself: Neural Dawn will have four levels and around 120 minutes of gameplay, and it follows a "research scientist within a cave network who is guided by light to uncover the truth behind a collapsing civilization, the head scientist’s hidden plan, and their own connection to it." Basically, the game sees the mobile debut of Unreal Engine 5.5's MegaLights dynamic lighting technique, and this allows game makers to add hundreds of dynamic lights into a scene. Medek talked about how the tech enabled Sumo Digital to deliver dynamic lighting instead of having to "bake" lighting into textures or use "fake shadows."

The issue with the lighting system is that you get a lot of noise, and Hodges says this is where Arm's Neural Denoising makes a difference. The tech ensures you still get a lot of detail, with minimal noise that isn't noticeable in most scenes.

It also allowed the studio to iterate faster, and make lighting an "active part of the storytelling process," and it is impressive that the tech is making its way to mobile. In addition to dynamic lighting, Neural Dawn gets Arm's Neural Super Sampling tech, which is similar to what NVIDIA does with DLSS and AMD with FSR. Essentially, upcoming Mali GPUs will have dedicated neural accelerators that enable higher-quality visuals while using the same amount of power. Hodges talked about how the tech will reduce overall rendering costs to deliver games with much better visual fidelity on phones.

With NSS, visuals are rendered at a lower resolution, and the tech leverages AI to essentially upscale textures. Arm also has frame upscaling that enables smoother motion, and it's great to see these features make their way to mobile devices. Arm says the AI-assisted suite will be limited to phones powered by the upcoming Mali GPUs — Hodges didn't go into detail about the actual products — as it needs the dedicated neural accelerators.

Ultimately, Neural Dawn is a great showcase for how Arm's neural rendering tech can make a difference on mobile devices. The brand is taking all of its learnings from the exercise and creating a playbook that studios can utilize to understand how to incorporate neural graphics into their own games, and the Neural Graphics Development Kit — which combines all of these technologies — is available in early access. The big question is whether other game studios will bite, but I'm hopeful that we'll see at least a few titles that leverage these features in the coming years.

That said, the fact that these features are only available on Mali GPUs is a limitation, as it rules out Pixels (the Pixel 10 Pro XL uses the PowerVR DXT-48-1536) and Samsung's Galaxy S devices — the S26 Ultra is powered by Qualcomm's Adreno 840, and the S26/S26+ have Samsung's homegrown Xclipse 960. That leaves phones powered by MediaTek hardware, which includes select OPPO, Vivo, and Xiaomi devices. There's a possibility that the neural tech won't see much mainstream use in North America — MediaTek just doesn't have enough of a presence in the region — but we should have more details around that situation when Arm details new hardware.

There's no shortage of ways to manage your data, whether it's an external SSD or HDD, a home NAS server, or buying a higher-storage variant of your phone. I have a DiskStation DS1823xs+ that stores over 150TB of my data, but when I'm on the go, I rely on external SSDs.

TeamGroup does a great job in this area, and its X2 Max is what I predominantly use while traveling. It resembles a USB flash drive, but it houses an SSD, and it has both USB-C and USB-A connectors, allowing me to connect it to just about any device. And coming in at $149 for the 1TB variant, it's a decent choice if you want a fast external drive.

If you want a drive that attaches to your phone, you should take a look at the PD20M. The key benefit to this external SSD is that it securely attaches to your iPhone — or any Android phone with a magnetic case. I have the 2TB model of the drive, and it currently costs $233 on Amazon, which is $60 more than what it launched at two years ago; you don't need me to tell you that all storage and memory drives have inflated prices these days.

I used a half-dozen of these MagSafe drives over the last two years, and I like the PD20M the most because of its size. At just 8.2mm and 40g, it is thin and light, and the build quality is decent. The drive is made out of plastic, and while it isn't anywhere as durable as LaCie's Rugged SSD4, it held its own in everyday usage.

There is some flex to the housing when you squeeze it, but after six months of extensive use, I didn't see any issues with the build quality. The only omission in my point of view is ingress protection — having any kind of resistance to dust or water ingress would have made it a much better choice for outdoor use.

The PD20M has a rubber base that ensures it doesn't damage your phone when it's attached, and the magnets have a strong connection — I didn't see any issues using it with my iPhone 17 Pro, Pixel 10 Pro XL, or Galaxy Z Fold 7. The PD20M has a flat cable that lets you connect it to your phone, and while it's long enough to attach without any issues, the cable gets in the way — particularly when you're shooting videos while it's connected.

I used this drive predominantly with the Pixel 10 Pro XL because it has the requisite magnets pre-installed, and as I have the 256GB model of the phone and constantly run out of storage, I needed a reliable external drive to store videos and photos.

The drive itself uses the USB 3.2 Gen2x2 interface and has a bandwidth of 2,000MB/s. In my testing, I got reads of 1,750MB/s and writes of 1,590MB/s, which is more than adequate when it comes to transferring data to and from the drive. The bandwidth makes it a great choice when recording 4K footage.

MagSafe inclusion gives it an edge over most other external SSDs, and even if you have a phone that doesn't have the requisite magnets, you can use it as a portable drive. However, the PD20M is best-suited if you have an iPhone or the Pixel 10 Pro XL, and the slim design along with reliable bandwidth make it a good overall choice.

Whether you're preparing for a long flight or a road trip, tablets have become must-have additions to any summer travel packing list. The best tablets for travelers should have great battery life, good-looking displays, and enough power to access your favorite streaming services or games without skipping a beat.

But with so many options to choose from, how can you select the Android tablet that's best for you and your needs? It's going to depend on a few factors, from budget and size to use case, so before you hit the road, let's take a look at the best Android tablets for travel in 2026.

What is the best tablet for travel?

As with most device purchases, the right tablet for you really depends on how you plan to use it. Need a versatile device with incredible battery life? The OnePlus Pad 3 is probably the best all-rounder, with impressive performance, a stunning display, and a reasonable price tag to match.

Need a laptop replacement? Devices like the Samsung Galaxy Tab S11 Ultra can handle heavy media consumption and large file management with ease. There are also plenty of great options if you just need an e-reader or something kid-friendly. Needless to say, we've tested all of the tablets listed above and can vouch for their quality, regardless of your needs or budget.

What features should I look for in a tablet for travel? 

The tablet you choose for your journey should have a nice display, a lightweight-yet-durable build, and enough battery life to handle those long travel days. The dimensions are important as well, so take a moment to think about the size of your luggage before you commit to a specific model. If you want to use accessories like a detachable keyboard or stylus, it's also important to confirm that the tablet is compatible.

Last but not least, I'd recommend confirming that the device you choose has enough storage to hold all of the stuff (movies, games, etcetera) that you need for those long trips when you won't have access to a cellular connection or Wi-Fi network. Some tablets might even come with a microSD slot so you can expand your storage capacity if necessary.

As much as I'm a fan of Google's products, the company's naming scheme is still incredibly confusing. Qualcomm probably still holds the crown there, but Google also has a habit of giving very similar names to products that are completely different. Just look at Google Wallet and Google Pay. And another perfect example of this is Android Auto and Android Automotive.

Android Auto and Android Automotive are two names that sound almost identical, which is probably why so many people still confuse them. I've lost count of how many times I've seen people assume Android Auto is simply a shorter name for Android Automotive.

But that's not actually the case. Despite the very similar branding, the two platforms work completely differently. Here are the five biggest differences between Android Auto and Android Automotive.

Android Auto needs your phone, Android Automotive doesn't

The most basic, and probably the biggest, difference between the two is that Android Auto mirrors your phone onto your car's display, while Android Automotive is a full operating system that actually runs the car itself.

Android Auto depends entirely on your smartphone. You connect your Android phone to your car, either wirelessly or through USB, and the car's screen essentially becomes a secondary display for apps like Google Maps, Spotify, WhatsApp, and more.

Android Automotive, on the other hand, runs directly on the car's own hardware. The operating system is built into the vehicle itself, which means you don't need your phone connected to use things like navigation, music streaming, or even video apps. Think of it as Android OS, but designed specifically for cars.

This also means Android Automotive vehicles usually come with their own cellular connection for things like traffic updates, app downloads, and other connected features.

Android Automotive controls the actual car

Another major difference between Android Auto and Android Automotive comes down to hardware access. Since Android Auto simply mirrors your phone onto the car's display, it only really has access to things like the screen and audio output. It can't control features like air conditioning, seat ventilation, or other vehicle functions,

Android Automotive, on the other hand, is built directly into the car from the ground up. Because of that, it can control much more than just infotainment. It can manage climate settings, heated seats, window defoggers, ambient lighting, and even EV-specific functions depending on the vehicle.

This also means you can directly ask Gemini on Android Automotive cars to control the car's systems, whereas you cannot experience this on cars with just Android Auto.

Android Automotive cars can be without Google apps

One thing that makes Android Automotive confusing is that not every Android Automotive car actually comes with Google's apps and services built in.

That's because Android Automotive itself is just the operating system. Car makers can choose whether they also want to license Google Automotive Services, or GAS, which includes things like Google Maps, Gemini, the Google Play Store, and other Google apps.

There are still some Android Automotive cars out there that don't ship with GAS. However, most newer Android Automotive vehicles from brands like Ford, Honda, Polestar, Volvo, and others are now moving toward including Google's services by default.

Android Auto, on the other hand, is much simpler in that regard. Since it mirrors your phone directly onto the car's display, you automatically get access to Google services like Google Maps, YouTube Music, and other apps straight from your phone once it's connected.

Android Auto and Automotive don't update the same way

Since Android Auto is mostly tied to your smartphone, new features usually arrive through updates on your phone itself. If Google adds a new Android Auto feature, you typically receive it through updates to the Android Auto app or Google Play Services, both of which usually update automatically in the background.

Android Automotive works very differently. Since it's the actual operating system running the car, updates are handled much more like phone software updates. Just like Google updates Pixel phones and Samsung rolls out One UI updates for Galaxy devices, Android Automotive updates are delivered through the car manufacturer rather than directly by Google.

That creates a much bigger dependency on the automaker itself. Some brands are excellent when it comes to long-term software support, while others can be noticeably slower with updates.

So while Android Automotive can potentially offer a much deeper and more advanced experience over time, the actual experience depends heavily on how committed the car manufacturer is to software updates.

If you've used Android in your car, it's probably Android Auto

All things considered, if you've used a modern car infotainment system at any point over the past few years, chances are you've used Android Auto.

That's because Android Auto is available across a huge number of vehicles today. Android Automotive, on the other hand, is a much bigger commitment for automakers since it requires them to build the operating system directly into the car's architecture instead of simply supporting phone projection.

Sure, there are now plenty of vehicles from brands like Volvo, Polestar, Ford, and others using Android Automotive as the underlying platform, but it's still fair to say that Android Automotive hasn't become nearly as common as Google probably hoped it would by now.

Handing a teen their first phone comes with a mix of excitement and mild panic. Messaging apps, social media, and online browsing all open the door to connection, but also to risks that aren’t always easy to spot.

Screentime of the child is one thing to worry about, but scams, unsafe links, and public Wi-Fi networks can cause a lot more harm to younger people, potentially exposing their personal data without anyone realising it.

The good news is that Bitdefender’s Mobile Security for Android can manage those risks with tools that work in the background while still giving parents peace of mind.

TL;DR: Bitdefender Mobile Security helps protect your teen’s phone by blocking unsafe websites, securing public Wi-Fi connections, and monitoring threats across apps. It reduces the risk of scams, data leaks, and unsafe browsing without requiring constant supervision.

How do you stop teens from opening unsafe websites?

Bitdefender blocks known malicious and phishing websites before they load. Better still, it does it in real time, checking links and preventing access to pages designed to steal a teen’s personal information.

Of all people, teens are probably the most susceptible to scams. Most kids would click on links without thinking twice, especially in messaging apps, DMs, or emails that appear to be from friends.

An update from a friend, a video you can only see if you click through to another application, a message that contains the name of someone they know and also happens to include a link – the list of threats is endless.

The Bitdefender Mobile Security for Android can handle these issues early, reducing the risk of passwords, login details, or payment information being compromised.

Is public Wi-Fi safe for teens to use?

Public Wi-Fi is unsafe for anyone, not just young people. These networks, which are ubiquitous everywhere but especially in cafés, schools, or public transport, can easily expose browsing activity and personal data.

Encryption provided by Bitdefender Premium VPN keeps the child’s data private, even on shared networks, making it harder to intercept.

The temptation is too great for children not to use public Wi-Fi when their data allowance is low, making them even more vulnerable to online threats. Using Bitdefender can help ensure they won’t accidentally tap on malicious links or message scammers.

Can threats come from apps as well as websites?

Bitdefender monitors activity across apps, not just web browsers, and flags suspicious behaviour before it becomes a problem.

As most adults know, fraud now happens inside apps, too, where scammers use fake profiles, phishing links in messages, and malicious downloads can all appear within platforms that feel familiar and safe.

Bitdefender monitors internet activity across all apps, flags suspicious behaviour, and prevents teens from accessing links they shouldn’t click.

How does Bitdefender help with online scams?

Bitdefender identifies scam attempts and blocks known threats before they can reach your child by using real-time threat detection to spot suspicious links and activity.

Teens are often targeted through social media or messaging apps, where scammers can take on the persona of their close friends, or pose as brands or influencers offering free help or products to test

These messages can look genuine, especially when they reference familiar platforms or trends. Bitdefender can detect these threats early and reduce the chance of engaging with those scams in the first place.

Do parents need to manage security every day?

Bitdefender runs continuously in the background and only sends alerts when something needs attention. There’s no need to check settings or run manual scans – all happens automatically in the background.

This means you don’t have to check your child’s phone every day or run an app on your phone to see what they’re up to. Once Bitdefender is set up, the system runs quietly in the background while the phone is used as usual, reducing the need for constant supervision while still maintaining protection.

Can Bitdefender protect teens without feeling restrictive?

Bitdefender focuses on protection rather than restriction, allowing teens to use their phones normally while reducing exposure to common risks. Teens are naturally opposed to any restrictions on their privacy, and constant reminders or limits can be difficult to enforce.

Bitdefender supports safer use in the background, creating a balance between independence and protection. Peace of mind for the parents and an untainted online experience for the child.

Managing your teen’s phone safety doesn’t need to involve constant checking or complicated controls. Bitdefender Mobile Security helps cover the risks of everyday use, from unsafe links to public Wi-Fi.

• Explore how Bitdefender security solutions can help protect your devices, identity and privacy, all in one place.

UAG, or Urban Armor Gear, is a prolific smartphone accessory maker from California. The brand has been around since 2012 and makes some of the most rugged phone cases and phone stands around. Expanding its lineup of accessories, UAG released the Metropolis Tracker Card in March 2026.

The brand's first attempt at a Bluetooth tracker is fairly decent, with one standout feature. UAG has blended a mix of average specs with one that gives the UAG Metropolis Tracker Card a bit of an edge: MagSafe wireless charging.

Magnetic wireless charging in Bluetooth trackers is fairly new

Typically, even the best Bluetooth trackers were not rechargeable up until very recently. Users were expected to spend $20 to $30 on a single tracker, use it for one to three years, depending on the model and brand, and then throw it away.

Naturally, this was awful for the environment as the used-up trackers would end up in landfills. It also created a recurring expense for users, as at the end of the product lifecycle, users were expected to simply purchase a new one.

Eventually, brands started coming up with trackers powered by replaceable CR2032 cells, and then rechargeable ones with proprietary or USB-C charging.

Wireless charging only entered the conversation very recently. In October 2025, the newly released Chipolo CARD became the first Bluetooth tracker card to boast magnetic wireless charging, but it was not officially MagSafe certified.

Five months from the Chipolo CARD 2025 launch, the UAG Metropolis Tracker Card made its debut. Between now and then, a few brands have launched their own versions of Bluetooth trackers with wireless charging capabilities.

As Bluetooth tracker cards go, the UAG Metropolis Tracker Card sits on the more expensive side, but touts mid-range specs. The 65 ft (20 m) Bluetooth range and IPX4 splashproof rating aren't impressive.

However, the Metropolis Tracker Card also has its upsides. It supports both Apple's Find My Device and Google's Find Hub networks, making it versatile. It gets as loud as 95dB, and it's only 0.12 inches thick.

The 100mAh cell inside can last for up to five to six months on a single charge. UAG guarantees a lifespan of 300 recharge cycles at the very least. The cool hexagonal pattern is very stylish.

Not only does the Metropolis Tracker Card support standard Qi wireless charging, but it also supports MagSafe charging and is MFi certified. The Metropolis Tracker Card also gives proximity notifications, but only to iOS users.

UAG vs. Chipolo vs. Pebblebee

Here's a quick three-way standoff between the UAG Metropolis Tracker Card, Chipolo CARD (2025), and Pebblebee Card 5. All three are in the same price bracket and feature wireless charging support, but only UAG and Chipolo have magnetic wireless charging.

Clearly, the UAG Metropolis Tracker Card is the most expensive but has the worth Bluetooth range, waterproof rating, and battery life. It also weighs the most, and is the thickest of the lot.

The bottom line...

At the end of the day, the UAG Metropolis Tracker Card is better than your average Bluetooth tracker only because it is MFi certified and has official MagSafe support. When compared against other Bluetooth trackers from just as well-established brands, it is lackluster at best and perplexingly overpriced at worst.

If you want a rechargeable Bluetooth tracker with wireless charging, just get either Chipolo or Pebblebee's card trackers. Both brands make some of the best universally compatible Bluetooth trackers on the market, with lower prices and better specs.

I can only see Apple users benefiting from the UAG tracker's proximity notifications. But even then, I'd recommend the alternatives because competing brands make better trackers with support for iOS and Android alike.

It's that time of the year again. Apple executives took to the stage to announce some new features and additions coming to the iPhone with the upcoming iOS 27 update. While Apple mostly focused on refining the fundamentals (read: fixing what it broke), the company also introduced a handful of useful additions that make iOS 27 feel like more than just a maintenance update.

Sure, Google fixed a few of our annoyances with the Android 17 update by adding features like updated emojis and the ability to create widgets just by describing them. But Apple still came up with a few great ideas this year, including some AI features (an area where Google usually loves reminding everyone it's ahead).

And after watching the iOS 27 announcements, there are a few features that I genuinely wish Google would steal and bring to Android.

Android needs to take parental controls more seriously

Apple spent a big chunk of the WWDC keynote focusing on the new and improved parental controls coming with iOS 27. And as someone who's soon going to enter the parenting stage myself, I can absolutely see why Android users would want some of these features on their phones as well.

Apple has added a number of thoughtful parental control improvements in iOS 27. It's no longer just about restricting app downloads based on age ratings, but the company is going much further this time.

One of the biggest additions is Time Allowances, which lets parents set limits for specific app categories rather than individual apps. For example, you can decide how much time your child can spend on entertainment apps versus educational apps.

There are also more granular controls throughout the system. If a child visits a website they've never accessed before, parents can approve it directly from their own device before access is granted. Apple has also expanded its communication safety tools.

In addition to automatically blurring nudity, iOS 27 can now detect and blur graphic or violent content in shared images and videos as well.

Google Family Link lacks most of these capabilities, and it feels like it's time for Google to give its parental controls a much-needed upgrade.

It's time to bring Shortcuts-like automation to Android

As advanced as Android has become when it comes to AI and automation, it still doesn't have a true equivalent to Apple's Shortcuts app. Google offers Pixel Rules, but it's fairly limited in what it can do.

Samsung is really the only Android brand offering something close to it with its Modes and Routines feature, but that's Samsung-exclusive and not available across Android as a whole.

Google really needs to bring a native automation app like this to Android. With iOS 27, Apple has made creating shortcuts and automations even easier. For creating Shortcuts, users no longer need to dig through complex menus. Instead, they can simply describe what they want using natural language, and the system builds the automation using AI.

With Google pushing Gemini so aggressively across Android, it feels like the perfect time for the company to build a similar app. Android already has the AI capabilities; it just needs a proper, system-level automation app to tie everything together.

Siri mode in the Camera app

This is something I've been asking for on Android for years. We're in 2026, and there are still Android phones that don't even support basic things like native QR code recognition directly through the camera app. Meanwhile, Apple has gone much further by integrating Siri Mode directly into the camera experience.

With Siri Mode, you can simply point your iPhone at something and take action immediately. Point it at a plate of food, and it can identify nutritional information. Point it at a restaurant bill, and it can help split it. You can even point it at a flyer or poster and have it automatically create a calendar event with the relevant details.

What I really like is that all of this is built directly into the camera app. It's not that Android lacks these capabilities. In fact, most of them already exist, and Google Lens is available in the camera app on many Android phones. The problem is that these features remain fragmented across apps and services.

Google can already recognize objects and information through AI, but you often need to launch Gemini Live, which is actually tucked into Google Lens. Similarly, Google Lens can identify all sorts of things, but that often requires opening the app. If Google forces Gemini mode directly into the camera app across all Android devices, it would make the overall experience feel much more cohesive and useful. Perhaps that means evolving Google Lens.

Spatial reframing

Google already offers Auto Reframe on Pixel phones, which can help change the frame of the shot you've already taken. But Apple is taking things a step further with a new feature called Spatial Reframing in iOS 27.

What makes Spatial Reframing interesting is that it doesn't just let you extend the frame using generative AI. It can actually change the perspective of a photo after it has been captured. In addition to changing the frame in 2D, you can shift the whole camera angle and then have AI generate and fill in the missing parts of the image to match the new framing.

It's a much more ambitious take on photo editing than simply expanding the edges of a picture, and something, I think, a lot of Android users and especially Google Photos users would benefit from.

Google killed Pixel Studio at the worst possible time

The timing couldn't be more ironic for this one. It's only been a few days since Google officially killed off the Pixel Studio app on Pixel devices, while Apple has gone in the opposite direction by introducing a significantly upgraded Image Playground app in iOS 27.

The previous version of Image Playground was mostly limited to generating emojis and cartoon-style images, but the new version goes much further. Apple now allows users to generate more realistic and genuinely useful images through its Private Cloud Compute infrastructure.

Like most modern AI image generators, you can choose the style you want, whether that's realistic, cartoon-like, artistic, or something else entirely. But what I really like is that Apple is thinking beyond just image generation itself.

You can tell the app exactly where the image will be used. For example, whether you want a landscape image, a portrait image, or even a wallpaper, it will optimize the output accordingly.

That might sound like a small thing, but it's exactly the kind of detail that turns AI image generation from a gimmick into a genuinely useful tool.

If you're an Android user, you know the deal. Every year, Apple takes the stage to announce a bunch of "new" features that you've been using for years. It might be annoying if it weren't so predictable, but it gives Android users a sense of pride, knowing they're always on the cutting edge when compared to their iPhone-toting friends.

Apple's iOS 27 update is no exception to this, and I w̶a̶s̶t̶e̶d̶ spent a solid 2 hours of my life watching Apple's WWDC 2026 on June 8 to see which updates you can now ̶b̶r̶a̶g̶ ̶a̶b̶o̶u̶t̶ celebrate with your friends.

There are plenty of times every year when my mind is blown by one of Apple's announcements, but it's never for the reason they're hoping. Rather, I'm constantly blown away by what features iPhone users didn't have, and it reminds me that I regularly take my favorite Android features for granted. Here are all the iOS 27 features already on Android.

Animations and transparency

Last year, Apple launched iOS 26 with a new "Liquid Glass" aesthetic that was quickly panned. Liquid Glass evolved substantially from its announcement to the eventual release a few months later, but iOS 27 is finally adding a proper transparency slider to allow users to customize their preferred look.

Many Android OEMs rushed to update their Android 16 releases in the fall with a similar transparent glowing glass aesthetic, but all of them either offered a way to disable this effect entirely, and OEMs like Honor even offer a transparency slider (pictured above).

Apple also talked about enhanced, smoother animations throughout the OS, something Android OEMs specifically touted years ago, and have further doubled down on in the past two years.

Core features that weren't so "core"

Apple gushed about how its phones can now seamlessly hand off data between Wi-Fi and cellular data connections, like it was some amazing breakthrough. I'll have to see exactly what's different here to fully understand Apple's angle, but Android users have had what appears to be an identical feature for years. Reminds me a bit of when iPhone users couldn't make phone calls and browse the web at the same time.

Likewise, Apple Messages is apparently just now getting a "still sending" indicator for when your messages haven't quite made it to the other side. How was this not a baseline feature before, especially given how many additional features that platform has over other messaging platforms? Very weird.

AirPods now also support custom EQs for users who care about that sort of thing, and I'm 100% sure I've been doing this on my Android phones since 2009. This Motorola Razr Fold I'm using right now, for instance, has Dolby Atmos built in and offers advanced EQ options plus automatic smart adjustments with virtual surround sound options.

Apple's password manager can now automatically identify compromised passwords and help you change them. Meanwhile, Google Assistant was able to do this four years ago, and Google Password Manager has identified compromised passwords for users for more than half a decade.

Apple's Photos app now supports automatic sharing and group albums, two features the Google Photos app has had for a very long time.

Apple is also overhauling its parental controls suite with a bunch of features that are already in Android's Google Family Link app, albeit with a better UI than Google's app. But I've long used the Bark app for my son's Android phones because it offers far better parental controls than either Google or Apple's built-in solutions. Apple doesn't allow these services to access usage data on iPhones, and that severely hampers the usefulness of such apps.

Siri, but make it Gemini

Well, it's 2026, so did you expect anything different than a company spending 40 minutes on new AI announcements? Even Apple isn't immune to this, announcing an upgraded Siri AI assistant with all the great features Android users have been enjoying for the past year or two via Google Gemini, Galaxy AI, OnePlus AI, Motorola AI, Honor AI, or whatever other favorite Android vendor you've been using.

Apple spent lots of time dunking on other companies for breaching your privacy with AI tools, but just saying "iPhone is more private" may not necessarily be true. After all, Apple is launching its new Siri AI features in the U.S. only at first, with availability in other regions (like the more privacy-focused EU and UK) "sometime in the future" once Apple has worked around regulatory restrictions.

As we heard last fall, Gemini is the brains behind the new Siri AI and, as such, every new Siri feature Apple announced is already available on most Android phones. That all starts with the new adjustable Siri voice that finally doesn't sound like it was made in the AOL days, something Google debuted with its ancient Google Assistant roughly a decade ago. Curiously, Siri AI is only available in English to start, while Gemini currently supports 70 languages.

There's also now a dedicated Siri app that keeps all your searches and other relevant data in one place for you to access later. It's wild to me that Siri is just now getting a dedicated app, but, hey, that's an iPhone for you. Google Assistant and Gemini have always had dedicated apps, but I like the way Apple is pulling together information in one place, similar to the way Pixel Screenshots, Nothing Essential Space, and other Android phones do.

There's even a new Siri camera mode that looks identical to Google Lens, which has been integrated into Android phones since 2017. Siri AI is also coming to the Apple Watch and likely offers similar functionality to the existing Gemini app on Wear OS watches.

Apple Intelligence

Apple Intelligence is Apple's catch-all term for AI features that are separate from the Siri AI assistant. Essentially, if you're using an AI feature that's not asking Siri for something, it's Apple Intelligence. Apple's initial rollout of Apple Intelligence last year was downright terrible, but the company went back to the drawing board for this year's implementation.

Apple Intelligence will now be able to pull relevant information in certain apps on your phone, like pulling in your airline reservation into the phone app when calling that airline. This identical scenario was shown off with Google's Magic Cue on the Pixel 10 series last fall, and Now Nudge on the Galaxy S26 series also offers identical functionality, thanks to Android's Personal Intelligence.

Apple Intelligence is also able to populate context-sensitive buttons when you search your screen. Late-2024 phones like the Honor Magic 7 Pro experimented with similar features, and the Android 16 update for Honor phones further improved that. Google's own Circle to Search also sports similar functionality, including the ability to ask Gemini context-sensitive commands based on what you circle.

Apple Photos now has a ton of new AI-powered editing tools, all (but one) of which have been available in Google Photos for years. You can also now use Siri to write emails, generate ideas from photos, scans, or prompts, edit calendar entries using natural language, and perform plenty of other similar activities that felt extremely familiar to me as an Android phone reviewer. Apple also added Google's excellent AI-generation warning to photos.

Apple is working toward fixing its terrible keyboard by enhancing voice dictation with Siri AI. Google integrated Assistant with Gboard back in 2020, and OEMs like Nothing and Google have recently started rolling out natural language dictation, as well, which is a generation ahead of what Apple showed off today. Autocorrect might finally not suck on iPhones, too, but we'll have to wait and see the public verdict on that one.

Apple's Home app is getting an Apple Intelligence glow-up that looks identical to the Google Home app upgrade that was announced last fall. That includes asking Siri about context-sensitive info in recorded videos, aggregating and analyzing smart home data to deliver better notifications, and more.

More to come

So yeah, Android users have been enjoying a lot of features that Apple users still won't have access to until iOS 27 launches in a few months. Even then, if history has proven anything, not all of these features will be available when iOS 27 is made public.

We also fully expect Apple to reserve some unannounced features for the upcoming iPhone 18, like the rumored anti-theft protection that Android also already has. If you want the latest and greatest features, it's pretty clear that Android continues to be the best platform to own.

I wasn't that keen on the AirPods Max initially, but when the USB-C model came out, I wanted to take a look. I tested the headphone against my $3,000 audio gear, and lossless audio proved to be the defining feature — it gave the Max a distinct edge against the likes of the WH-1000XM6, Bose QuietComfort Ultra Gen 2, and even the Bowers & Wilkins Px8 S2.

With the AirPods Max 2, Apple hasn't changed the fundamentals. The headphone has the exact same design as the original model, and retailing for $499, it costs the same as well. You even get the same smart case; this is one area where I wanted to see a change, as the case doesn't really offer much in the way of protection — particularly around the headband. And there still isn't a power button; you'll need to put the headset inside the case to power down.

Another bugbear is that the design still isn't foldable; the Max 2 takes up just as much space as its predecessor, and I'd really like to see a hinge-style design that makes it more portable. Lastly, coming in at 386g, the Max 2 is on the heavier end of the scale as these things go; it won't give your neck a workout like the Audeze MM-500 or the LCD-S20, but it isn't as light as the Bose and Sony headsets.

That said, the Max 2 does a great job distributing that weight evenly over your head, and you won't notice the heft at all. The reason for the added weight is the metal design, and this is where the Max 2 has an advantage over its rivals; the aluminum and steel chassis looks gorgeous, the build quality is a level beyond what you usually get with Bluetooth headsets, and they look every bit as premium as the $799 Px8 S2.

If anything, I'm glad Apple didn't change the design; the AirPods Max became instantly recognizable because of the unique design, and the Max 2 carries that same heritage. I also like that you get the same color options; I'm using the Midnight model this time, and I prefer it to the Blue variant of the original Max.

Controls are the same as previous generation; you get the Digital Crown and a physical button, and they're located on the right. There's the standard USB-C connectivity, and you can use the Max 2 in lossless mode by plugging it in to an audio source and get 24-bit/48kHz playback, which is one of my favorite features on this headphone.

The Max 2 is highly comfortable to wear thanks to the fabric ear cups and mesh headband, and I didn't see any issues with the fit whatsoever. I ended up using the Max 2 for just over a week now, and having listened to a few dozen hours of music, it's just as comfortable and easy to wear as its predecessor. While the clamping force is a bit high, it doesn't get uncomfortable at any point.

A big change this time is improved ANC, and it's noticeable when switching between the Max 2 and its predecessor. The Max 2 is able to tune out low-frequency sounds to a greater extent, and it's now on the same level as the Sony WH-1000XM6 in this regard — which makes it a great choice to travel with.

With the upgrade to the H2 chip, you get a lot of the same features as the AirPods Pro 3, which is another plus point with the AirPods Max 2. Conversation Awareness makes a huge difference when you're using the headphone outdoors, with the feature automatically lowering volume when you start speaking to someone.

Adaptive Audio is another useful addition, and it dynamically adjusts the sound based on the fit. You also get Loud Sound Reduction, Live Translation, Voice Isolation (when making calls), and Personalized Volume, and these inclusions make the Max 2 a well-rounded product.

I used the AirPods Max 2 with my iPhone 17 Pro and the iPad Pro M4, and I had absolutely no issues pairing the headset with my Apple products. If you're not in the Apple ecosystem, you can use it as a standard Bluetooth headset as it connects via Bluetooth 5.3. I did just that, and didn't have any problems using the Max 2 with my Find X9 Ultra, Vivo X300 Ultra, and the Pixel 10 Pro XL. Note that you miss out on spatial audio, button customization, and wear detection on audio, but you still get excellent noise isolation, and the same great sound.

Talking about the sound, the AirPods Max 2 has a slightly different tuning, with the sub-bass getting a little more energy this time. That leads to an added rumble, and while it's enjoyable with music, it can get a little distracting with movies. The mid-range is natural, vocals come through with a decent amount of clarity, and there's much better instrument separation and dynamics this time around. That said, the mids trail off at the higher end of the range, and the treble is a bit bright at times, which leads to sibilance.

On the whole though, the AirPods Max 2 sounds better, and the tuning is in line with what you get with other high-end Bluetooth headsets. There is some customizability to the sound, but the default tuning is good enough that it works across most mainstream genres.

Battery life is decent; I got just under 21 hours of listening time with a full charge, and that's a bit higher than the 20-hour figure Apple quotes. My Bose QC Ultra Gen 2 and B&W Px8 S2 last closer to 30 hours, and while this isn't a huge deal in daily use, it becomes relevant while traveling. I would've much preferred an upgrade to battery life — that's one of the key reasons I use the QC Ultra Gen 2 while going on intercontinental flights now — but the Max 2 doesn't move the needle in this area.

If you're in the Apple ecosystem and are looking to upgrade, the AirPods Max 2 is the obvious choice. It doesn't make much sense to buy it if you've already got the AirPods Max, but if you're using another headset and are mulling a switch, there's a lot to like in the AirPods Max 2. The design, sound quality, added features, and seamless integration with Apple products makes it a standout headset in 2026.

I'm admittedly not much of a TikToker, but I've got lots of coworkers and friends who spend every waking hour perusing the platform's bevy of short-form videos. So when one of them notices a trend happening, I tend to drop what I'm doing and start digging. What I found was something I never expected: People are ditching their iPhones for Nothing Phones.

After sifting through thousands of comments in videos like this one, I've been genuinely surprised by some of the responses, especially the top comments. "I'm getting a Nothing Phone when my iPhone dies," notes the top comment, followed by "Charlie XCX is a model for Nothing Phone soooo."

Just a few threads down from that reads "I’m so tempted by the nothing phone," "I have a nothing phone and it's so good," and plenty of people noting that they're still on iPhone 11s and 12s and don't want to upgrade (or update iOS).

So I knew I had to do a little digging to get to the bottom of this. Was Nothing paying people to plant comments on social media to get the word out about the brand? Do artists like Charlie XCX really influence public opinion on products this much? Will anyone reading these comments actually know what a Nothing Phone is, anyway? The answers I found were surprising, but in the very best ways.

Social media guerrilla warfare

When you're a small startup brand in a world where Samsung and Apple rule the roost, the only way to see real success is by employing a form of guerrilla warfare tactics. That means more than just launching an expensive marketing campaign or getting big-name influencers to represent your brand (and then go back to using iPhones in their free time). It means building a community of evangelists who will go to the corners of the Earth for you.

Vogue Business published an article on Nothing's strategy in December 2025, detailing the ways the company has been playing to TikTok regulars as its core audience. In the physical world, the brand has been opening pop-up locations and sponsoring concept stores, having fashion models carry its products on the runway in London and New York, and even hooking its headphones "around bagstraps at fashion parties," Vogue notes.

Nothing has brought in people like Charlie Smith to lead clever new marketing campaigns that play to the company's "irreverent, slightly punk attitude," to use Smith's own words. When the Nothing Phone 4a Pro launched, the company graffitied its own billboards and used this as a way to speak to users on social media in a way other brands are ignoring.

So it's little surprise to me that TikTok is seeing an uptick in recommendations for the Nothing brand. And while I only have a vague idea who Charlie XCX is (sorry, editors), the company's late-May ad campaign featuring her as an investor and brand ambassador is certainly making more people aware of the brand's existence.

But it's not just social influence and subtle messaging driving the Nothing brand; it's also the cost of its phones. Comments like "Sick of phones costing 1000 plus dollars" are driving another clear trend among these posts. Nothing's most recent models cost half that and offer compelling designs and specs, plus better battery life and faster charging than an iPhone.

Nothing's first phone, which launched to middling reviews in 2022 and carried a sub-£400 price. The Nothing Phone 2 came the following year with slight refinements but, ultimately, wasn't a very exciting release. It wasn't until the Nothing Phone 2a came along in 2024 with an even more budget-friendly price that people started paying attention. "Why would you buy anything else?" posited Android Central's Harish Jonnalagadda in his review, and that sentiment seems to be holding strong today.

Beyond that, there's something uniquely appealing about Nothing's transparent, neon-glowing retro style. The company initially became known for its Glyph Interface, which lit up a caricature of the Apple logo on the back of the Nothing Phone (1). Now, its latest phones have ditched LED strips for a dot-matrix "display," which debuted with the Nothing Phone 3.

True to the brand's approach, the Glyph Matrix display on the back of that phone was bare-bones as heck when it launched, but is now filled with everything from virtual pets to music visualizers, and even a whole flippin' Pokedex.

The company has also been at the forefront of AI-based gadgets like Essential Space, Essential Apps, and Essential Voice, all of which have debuted interesting new ideas before the big guys get around to doing it. Essential Apps, in particular, has been a huge hit with the community, and is yet another way Nothing is playing to the group that's going to drive the brand for years to come.

Will a Nothing Phone solve every iPhone user's irritations with their phones? Probably not, but it does appear to be mending some pain points in everyday life. I've seen some posts about people dumping their 2-year-old flagships for a Nothing Phone, which seems crazy at first until you realize how much better the battery life is compared to Samsung or Apple flagships.

And there are other avenues you may not consider, as well. Two years ago, a friend of mine suffered from random, chronic migraines and couldn't figure out what was causing them. I suggested it could be the PWM dimming on her iPhone causing it and sent her a Nothing Phone 2a to try since the company employs more eye-friendly dimming methods. After two years of being migraine-free, she has only used Nothing Phones since then.

Whether the company's latest marketing direction continues to stick is anyone's best guess, but the brand has made real headway into India, the UK, and the U.S. lately, so it's clearly appealing to people who want something different from the usual suspects. Have you tried a Nothing Phone? Let us know what you think in the comments.

In a move that I never saw coming, Supernatural is coming back from the dead, and its founders and coaches are starting a completely independent company for the relaunch.

The news sideswiped me mid-morning on Wednesday when the Facebook community's post (via Good Virtual Reality) was published, and it's the biggest VR news to hit since Meta closed most of its internal studios back in January.

As you probably guessed, one of those studios was Within, the house that made Supernatural and was acquired by Meta (then Facebook) back in 2021. Despite a landmark legal battle between the FTC and Meta over the acquisition, Meta washed its hands of what it used to claim was "the future of at-home workouts." But because of a thriving, outspoken online community, Supernatural is coming back, and this time it's fully free of Meta's clutches.

What made Supernatural special

Supernatural's original April 2020 launch couldn't have been more timely. Most of the world had shut down due to COVID. People weren't leaving their homes, weren't going to work, and definitely weren't going to the gym, but Supernatural quickly paved the way for people to stay fit at home and still get that coach-led experience they'd been sorely missing. My genuine first impression is pictured above, and it tells you everything you need to know.

Supernatural isn't (or wasn't) just a realistic-looking Beat Saber clone. Each day brought a new coach-led workout, filled with popular music, gorgeous vistas, and gameplay that rewarded those who put in 100% effort. As Russell Holly put it when he wrote about it that May, "I'm dripping in sweat, every inch of me is sore, and I have a huge smile on my face."

At the time, I had never gone to a coach-led gym class and, quite frankly, had very little interest in such things. Russell's recommendation, along with the fervent recommendations from the VR community at large, convinced me to try it. I spent the next several months playing it every day, and I quickly realized the power a coach's voice had. It, along with my wife, pushed me into a substantially healthier lifestyle than I had ever had.

And I'm far, far from alone in that sentiment. The official Supernatural Facebook community has over 113,000 members, and the responses to this week's news have been overwhelmingly positive. "No! I’m not crying at work!" reads one post, and nearly all of the replies are the same. "I cried too." "Definitely crying! This app changed my life." "I’m crying at work!!!!"

It's because Supernatural wasn't just an excellent, coach-led daily workout. It was an entire community of people who found a way to make working out fun and share in those wins together. People encouraged each other. They cried with each other. They won with each other, and the unceremonious plug-pulling that Meta did in January 2026 was more than just heartbreaking to those folks. It was the end of something that changed their lives for the better.

What's the new Supernatural going to look like?

Supernatural is returning, and while most important parts of the experience will remain, plenty of things will undoubtedly change. The team isn't shying away from saying that this isn't the same old app under new management. It's OG management taking back the reins and creating something new (and hopefully better) in the process.

Per the official Supernatural website, your favorite coaches will be back "on day one," new workouts and future features will be built using feedback, and the community will be central to the entire experience. Since the coaches need to be paid for their ongoing work, Supernatural will still be a subscription-only experience, but fans can lock in a "founder's rate" by registering interest in the relaunch, which is currently slated for the fall of 2026.

The standard rate is going up to $20 per month or $200 per year, but let's be real: there's no chance you'll ever find a coach-led gym class that's just $20 a month. Even if you need financial aid to cover the cost, Supernatural Scholarships will be available to help.

While specific platforms haven't yet been announced, Supernatural will still be a "VR workout app." That almost undoubtedly means Meta Quest first, since it's a fully standalone, wireless VR console, but now that Supernatural is free of Meta's funding and influence, it may also mean it comes to other VR platforms.

"We’re returning to our roots and plan to build major parts of the technology from the ground up as a much smaller company," says the Supernatural team, and that tells me that this game will almost certainly be less reliant on Meta's proprietary development tools and, instead, built in a way that's more sustainable for future growth.

There's no chance the core gameplay loop changes, although I imagine plenty of new ideas from the community can be implemented in this rebuilt Supernatural. As licenced, popular music was one of the core facets of what made Supernatural so uniquely powerful, I also doubt that we'll see any real change in the soundtrack.

Regardless of the specifics, one thing is certain: Supernatural is back, the community is on fire for the new direction of its favorite workout app, and VR fitness is about to have a full-on renaissance this fall. The real question is whether other now-defunct Meta studios will also see this kind of revival, as well.

The summer travel season is upon us, which means many folks are searching for a new Android phone to accompany them on their adventures. There are plenty of devices that should serve as ideal companions when you hit the road, although finding the perfect phone for you may take a bit of research. Fortunately, I'm here to help.

When shopping for a travel-ready Android phone, you'll probably want to prioritize battery life and camera hardware first and foremost. You may also want to confirm that your new device has eSIM compatibility and a rugged build. Needless to say, I've gathered some of my favorite Android phones for travel into this guide, with versatile selections from Samsung, Google, Motorola, and beyond. Wherever you're going and however much you want to spend, your new feature-packed travel buddy can be found below. Happy trails!

Which Android phones are best for travel?

The best Android phone for travel will depend on a few factors, such as where you're going, what you'll be doing, and how much you want to spend. Taking in the sights in some famous international city? You'll want a device with a good camera. Planning a white-water rafting trip or a long-distance hike? The answer will be a rugged phone with good battery life and a high water-and-dust resistance rating.

That being said, I selected the phones above because they're some of the most versatile and complete phones on the market. The Google Pixel 10 Pro, for instance, is packed full of the latest camera tech and handy AI features such as real-time Voice Translate, while the OnePlus 15 boasts up to three days of battery life AND an impressive IP69K water-and-dust resistance rating.

What features should I look for in a travel-ready smartphone?

Like I mentioned above, desirable features in a travel phone will depend on where you're going and how you're planning to use the device. With that said, I would prioritize battery life, camera tech, and durability above all else when choosing a phone for your summer travels.

After all, modern smartphones are not just for calling and checking social media. In many situations, your Android phone will be your boarding pass and train ticket. It might also be your translator, map, and even your wallet, so it's important to choose a phone that will handle all of these jobs with ease.

What is eSIM?

Embedded Subscriber Identity Modules, or eSIM, is a digital technology on many smartphones that replaces the physical SIM card used to store user information on a device. In other words, it's a relatively new technology that lets you easily swap phones or wireless plans in minutes, rather than having to move a tiny physical chip from one device to another.

Phones that are eSIM-compatible are particularly useful when traveling, since you can quickly switch to an international phone plan directly from your device. It's also better for security reasons, since you won't have to worry about a physical chip being tampered with or stolen. Some compatible devices will even let you manage multiple eSIMs simultaneously, which means staying connected while traveling is easier than ever before.

Oura very recently announced the Oura Ring 5, and while I knew that it would be “40% smaller than Oura Ring 4,” when I received my unit, I never anticipated that the ring would be as gorgeous, sleek, and thin as it is.

No, I’m not even kidding; this ring is so thin that after I put it on, I’ve forgotten that I’ve been wearing it. But that’s not my only takeaway after wearing it just for a few days, so ahead of our full review, here are my first impressions of the Oura Ring 5.

40% smaller, same battery size

I want to spend a bit more time on how thin and sleek this new ring is. In two years' time, Oura managed to make the ring 40% smaller without compromising its battery life or performance.

The company says that the new design was based on the internal architecture, adding lower-profile sensor domes for better skin contact, more powerful LEDs, and more consistent readings.

At the time of writing this article, I’ve worn the Oura Ring 5 for two days, and the thinner design is so unobtrusive that I keep forgetting that it’s on my finger.

The Oura Ring 4 is visibly thicker by comparison. I didn’t hate it because it kind of reminded me of a gold cigar band ring, which I always thought was pretty fashionable. But now the Oura Ring 5 blends nicely with my other rings and truly feels like a regular gold ring.

Again, while I didn’t care much about the size, I could always tell when I was wearing the Oura Ring 4. I could feel it even if I was just reading a book. But with the Oura Ring 5, it truly feels like an invisible and silent health tracker that always runs in the background.

Working out has been a dream

I can say ad nauseam how thin this ring is, but you notice it more when you’re working out. Part of my workouts includes weightlifting, and when it comes to heavier weights, there were many times when I would remove my Oura Ring 4 because it would pinch my skin or, because of its bulkiness, would make lifting uncomfortable. That defeats the purpose of wearing a tracker.

But now, with the thinner model, I didn’t even feel my ring while weightlifting. I explicitly expressed how impressed I was to Android Central’s managing editor, Derrek Lee, who has been extensively testing the ring for a full review coming soon.

I will also add that, from the Oura Ring Gen 3 to the Oura Ring 5, my biggest concern has been scuffing. Both my Oura Ring Gen 3 and Oura Ring 4 have gotten so scuffed because they're so thick, especially during my workouts. But so far, I genuinely do not think this will be the case with my Ring 5, or at least not to the same extent. The ring's construction is so fantastic that, with any luck, scuffing should be less of a concern (though we might still recommend buying a cheap ring cover for added protection).

Automatic activity detection continues to impress

I think Oura has been taking automatic activity detection (AAD) a lot more seriously, because since the Oura Ring 4, I have noticed a considerable improvement in detecting my workouts.

My household is working on a backyard project that involves extensive digging. I didn’t think Oura would be able to detect it, so I figured I would have to go into the app and manually enter my work.

Turns out, the auto-detection has improved so much that the Oura Ring 5 detected I was doing “yardwork.” Derrek has also told me that when he goes out, it will always auto-detect that he’s dancing.

This is huge because the less work I have to do to input my workouts, the easier it is for me, as lazy as that might sound. But if I am going to spend money on a wearable like a smart ring, I want to know that it is actually smart.

Moreover, with the Oura Ring 5, the company supports live workout tracking directly in the app, including pace and distance, as well as lock screen widgets. Plus, lower-motion workouts like Pilates will also be detected, which more fitness enthusiasts should love.

Is the price worth it??

The new ring is $50 more than its predecessor, and while that might not be a HUGE change, it’s still a change.

But for how sleek and thin it is, I would get the Oura Ring 5 over the Oura Ring 4 any day. I think the big problem that most people have with the ring is that it requires a separate paid subscription. And while that sucks, I will say it’s a pretty big bonus as part of the ring, especially given how inexpensive the subscription is.

Here’s a list of all of the features you get with a $5.99/month membership that I have taken full advantage of:

• Detailed sleep analysis
• 24/7 heart rate tracking (Daytime, Nighttime, Activity)
• Integration with third-party health and wellness apps like Strava
• Advanced temperature monitoring
• Blood Oxygen Sensing (SpO2)
• Daytime Stress
• Dynamic activity goals with Automatic Activity Detection
• Heart Health (Cardiovascular Age, Cardio Capacity (VO2 Max))
• Metabolic Health (Glucose Tracking, Meals)
• Oura Labs
• Resilience
• Weekly, monthly, quarterly, yearly, and anniversary reports
• Women's Health (Cycle Insights, Pregnancy Insights)

But the good news is you can buy the Oura Ring 5 and the membership with your HSA/FSA, which is a potentially great way to use your medical benefits.

And honestly, I think the monthly subscription is worth it. I am so thrilled and excited to see Oura continuously improving and investing in its product and listening to user feedback. I don’t think I’ll ever stop wearing a smart ring because it’s truly changed the way I think about my health, and I think if you’re going to invest in getting a ring, it should be the Oura Ring 5.

At the outset, the ZimaCube 2 doesn't look any different to its predecessor; it has the same distinctive chassis, and you still need screws to install HDDs in the drive bays (what is this, 2010?). Even the box that it comes in is unchanged, and because it is designed to just fit the NAS, all the accessories — the power brick, cables, and screwdriver — are delivered in a secondary box.

It isn't until you boot it up that you realize the ZimaCube 2 has a few new tricks. Thermal management was a big problem on the original ZimaCube, and IceWhale (the brand behind the NAS) resolved the issue with this product. Then there's the internals; the ZimaCube 2 gets the new Intel Core i3-1215U platform — just like the DXP4800 Pro I tested — and it is much better than the N100 the ZimaCube came with.

The design is unchanged, and you still get a cube that's a little wider and taller than most 6-bay NAS models. I got the silver model this time, and I prefer it to the dark grey unit — it is just that little more distinctive, and it looks better overall. The reason for the height is that the internals are housed above the drives, and you can access the PCIe and SO-DIMM slots by removing the screws on the side panels and lifting up the lid. The NAS comes with an 8GB DDR5 memory module pre-installed, and holds up to 64GB of memory in total (a maximum of 32GB in each slot).

There's a magnetic grille that sits in front of the drive bays, and it creates a unified design that doesn't immediately give away the fact that the ZimaCube 2 is a NAS system. The drive bays are easily accessible, but I'm a little annoyed that IceWhale hasn't come up with a toolless design to slot in HDDs. There's a dedicated panel next to the HDD bays where you can install M.2 SSD; there are four SSD slots, so you get a total of ten bays in total when you include the six HDD bays, but the issue is that the SSD bandwidth is limited to 800MB/s.

You also get a PCIe 4.0 x4 lane with an x16 connector, as well as a PCIe 3.0 x2 lane with an x8 connector. The inclusion of two lanes gives you much greater flexibility if you want to add a GPU or networking card down the line, and it's a definite bonus over other 6-bay NAS servers in this category.

That said, you miss out on native 10GbE connectivity, with the ZimaCube 2 instead offering two 2.5GbE ports. It's still a decent alternative, but if you need a true 10GbE NAS, you'll need to add an NIC. Just like the ZimaCube Pro, the ZimaCube 2 retains Thunderbolt, and you get two Thunderbolt 4 ports. There are four USB-A ports as well, and a USB-C connector if you want to connect external drives to the NAS. Rounding out the ports, you get HDMI 2.0 alongside DisplayPort 1.4, and 3.5mm audio out.

Configuring the ZimaCube 2 is much easier than its predecessor. When I tested the ZimaCube, I had an issue with my unit where the HDDs wouldn't be recognized, and I ultimately had to change the mainboard. That wasn't a problem with the ZimaCube 2; the Seagate IronWolf HDDs showed up immediately, and I was able to partition the drives and create a new storage volume. The only bugbear is that JBOD is not available as of writing, but that shouldn't be a big issue to most users buying this NAS.

What I like about Zima OS is that it allows you to connect to other NAS servers on your network, so if you're migrating and need to move a lot of data, this is just about the easiest way to do it — if you're using new HDDs in the ZimaCube 2.

Like other NAS servers, ZimaCube 2 uses a web interface, and it has a clean design with dashboards that show real-time memory, system, and network usage. The OS itself is installed on the dedicated 250GB SSD that's pre-installed, and this is something I like quite a lot. Another benefit to using ZimaOS 1.6.1 is that it has an app store that's one of the best you'll find on any NAS system today.

Whether you need Home Assistant, Plex, Jellyfin, Calibre-web, Pi-hole, Tailscale, RetroArch, or Immich, you can easily install hundreds of apps via the app store. If you have a niche utility that isn't available, you can use Docker containerization. Of course, you can also install TrueNAS or any other NAS software if you want. Honestly, I want other brands to build out their software in a similar way; UGREEN's own store doesn't have nearly as exhaustive a list of apps you can install.

The NAS is powered by the Intel Core i3-1215U, and it is a much better choice than the previous generation. It has plenty of headroom if you're multitasking, and I didn't see any issues with hardware transcodes. If you're looking to build out a homelab with the ZimaCube 2, I'd suggest getting additional memory; 8GB of RAM is decent enough, but 16GB gives you much better overhead if you want to run several hobby projects — this is one of the best home NAS servers you can get at the moment.

Ultimately, the ZimaCube 2 is much better than its predecessor, and coming in at $799, it doesn't cost much more than other 6-bay NAS models. If you need 10GbE connectivity natively, the ZimaCube 2 Pro is a better choice as it also has 16GB of pre-installed memory, but you'll be shelling out $1,299. If you're using a NAS and need a more powerful model to run projects or your media library, the ZimaCube 2 is a great all-round choice.

When I was a kid, I always looked forward to seeing what new gadgets Q would cook up in the latest 007 James Bond movie. From Geiger counter wristwatches to folding sniper rifles, exploding pens, and even X-ray glasses, there's no shortage of fantastic devices that the Bond universe has cooked up.

Every gadget has its roots in the era it came from, so it makes sense that the 5-star-rated 007 First Light video game that just came out in May 2026 would use smart glasses as one of its gadgets. The partnership between Even Realities and IO Interactive came at the perfect time, as I was already using the company's new G2 glasses for a few weeks when I found out.

Even Realities G2 sports dual monochrome displays (one in each lens), the most minimalist frames you'll find on any pair of smart glasses today, and up to 2-day battery life. To make things even cooler, the G2 is designed to pair with Even Realities R1, the company's first smart ring, enabling health monitoring and glasses gesture control by just touching the ring. It already feels like a 007 gadget, and that's made even more legitimate by seeing James Bond wear them.

The all-day wearable smart glasses

Most smart glasses suffer from two main problems: weight and battery life. Take my beloved Ray-Ban Meta Gen 2's, for example. While Ray-Ban Metas are arguably the most popular smart glasses on the market, no one is buying them for their battery life. No matter which Meta glasses I use, I can't get more than a few hours' use out of them, and that number drops substantially if you use the camera.

Then, there's weight to consider. My reading glasses weigh 32g, while Ray-Ban Meta and Oakley Meta HSTN smart glasses weigh between 48g and 52g, depending on the size and style you choose. The higher-end Meta Ray-Ban Display glasses with a display in the right lens bring that up to a whopping 69g.

Even Realities G2 is only 37g, despite having a display in each lens, a pair of batteries, and a microphone for commands. The battery lasts well over a day in my use, and the charging case makes it easy to quickly top up if I need to. They're also substantially thinner and more svelte-looking than any of Meta's glasses, and that's all down to a very specific design constraint Even Realities worked under.

I spoke with Will Wang, Founder and CEO of Even Realities, ahead of the G2's launch, specifically about the company's design ethos. "How do you define a good pair of glasses?" Wang asked me during the interview. The obvious answer is that they've got to look good and be comfortable; otherwise, I'm not going to want to wear them.

"To make a good pair of smart glasses, we knew we had to look at the traditional glasses category and see how we evolve from that."

On top of those two categories, smart glasses need good enough battery life to keep you from worrying about charging them. Smartwatches went through this pain point for years until a true 24-hour+ watch debuted, but the first ones to achieve that goal did so by including only "necessary" features and leaving out the battery-draining ones.

Likewise, Even Realities glasses — both the G1 and G2 — ship without any kind of onboard speakers or cameras. It's the polar opposite of what companies like Meta and Google are trying to achieve with the "AI glasses" product category, and it just might be the winning combination for a different crowd of people.

Regarding glasses with cameras, Wang was adamant that they posed a privacy problem. "To me, at this stage of how society is or how regulation is in place, I think it's a big 'no,'" Wang says, noting that there's far too little concern being paid to glasses with cameras onboard because they're not obvious enough.

"It's really different from a VR device because, you know, as a VR device, everybody knows that you are wearing it, and you're not wearing it outdoors all the time, right?" Wang noted, "You can have all the cameras you want to capture the room for spatial tracking [on a VR headset]" without it being a visible privacy problem.

But smart glasses are different.

"You really need to respect your own privacy as well as people around you, right?" Wang is far from alone on this front, too. Cruiselines and even the U.S. Air Force have banned those types of glasses, and Wang clearly doesn't want Even Realities to get mixed up in those kinds of headlines.

And don't worry, no one can see the displays on the glasses when they're looking at you. The waveguide optics are designed to shine light towards the wearer. If someone sticks their face up to your glasses from the outside, they can see a mirrored version of the display, but if someone is this close to you already, you might have other things to worry about.

Apps that make it feel like a gadget

While there are no cameras or speakers on Even Realities glasses, they do have a single microphone that can be used to interact with Even Realities' own (limited) AI assistant or selectively with Perplexity via a setting on the Even Realities app on your phone.

You can also use the microphone to translate a conversation live, something other smart glasses do, and the translation will appear right on your glasses' lens displays. It's crazy cool, and the various scaling and comfort-level options on the green monochrome display make reading easier and more comfortable than I've found with Meta Ray-Ban Display glasses.

The displays can be set to three different distance levels and also adjusted vertically to best fit your vision. The display will light up any time a notification comes in, if you tilt your head up enough, or if you double-tap either the touchpads at the end of each temple or the Even Realities R1 smart ring on your index finger.

A smart ring a spy would love

This smart ring is another unique point that sets Even Realities G2 apart from the pack and, again, makes this pair feel more like a James Bond gadget. One side of the R1 ring features a touchpad you can swipe or tap to navigate the glasses' on-screen menus. A single tap acts as a click or touch, while a double-tap navigates backward. Having the pad on one side ensures that lefties and righties can wear it comfortably on their index finger and only interact with their thumb.

On top of genius navigation via a very unobtrusive smart ring, Even Realities G2 supports web apps that both Even Realities and the community have made. At the time of writing, there are hundreds of apps available for the glasses, ranging from weight-lifting counters to speedometer dashboards, calculators, virtual pets, birdsong identifier apps, and even ePub readers. Yes, you can read a whole book on it, and it's surprisingly comfortable since it's right in your line of sight.

In essence, these glasses are a smartwatch for your face. Pairing it with the R1 ring will also track heart rate, body temperature, sleep cycles, and all the usual stuff you'd expect from something like an Oura Ring. Since I don't like wearing watches most of the day (I only wear them while working out), this concept appeals to me greatly.

Your next smartphone companion?

As with anything, it's not a perfect experience, but I can see most of my concerns being addressed quickly through feedback. I'd love a more customizable dashboard, as I don't care to read news regularly on my glasses; it's just too much regular information for my taste.

I'd also love to be able to launch apps from the glasses a little more easily than with the current implementation. Right now, launching them from the Even Realities phone app is the quickest way (and sometimes the only way, depending on the app), partially defeating the purpose of having apps on your glasses in the first place. Lastly, better messaging reply capabilities are a must, especially if I'm replacing a smart watch with these glasses.

Get those in place, and I can see myself offsetting a significant amount of my daily phone checking and tinkering to my Even Realities glasses in no time. Until then, I'll be toying around with all the new apps on the glasses in my downtime and enjoying every minute of it. Even Realities G2 is available from the Even Realities website for $599 and ships in two different styles.

The Fairphone 6 might just be the most interesting Android phone you can buy today, but probably not for the reasons you expect. In a year marked by increasing reliance on AI, cloud services, and privacy concerns over data handling, Murena's Fairphone 6 stands alone.

The Fairphone 6 offers seemingly everything for the person who wants a unique phone this year and is tired of all the negative technology trends. It has built-in security for blocking apps and web trackers, a way to hide your IP from snooping advertisers and companies like Meta and Google, a privacy switch on the side that can disable microphones and cameras on a whim — or just enable an ultra-minimalist mode for when you need to unplug — and it's impressively repairable, with 14 components you can easily swap out yourself.

It's the anti-smartphone in so many ways, and it may just be the phone you need to upgrade to if you're worried about your digital privacy and want to ensure you've got a phone that not only gets eight years of software updates (yes, eight!), but also one that's impressively easy to repair.

Redefining privacy and value

The sixth-generation Fairphone is a mid-range Android 15 or Android 16-powered phone that's designed to be sustainable and repairable at its core. I list both OS's because Fairphone sells two models: one with a fairly bare-bones version of Android that comes with all the usual Google apps and services, and the more privacy-focused Murena /e/os version that I'm focusing on here.

The minimalist plastic build features two obvious screws on the back for easy disassembly, which reveals a battery that can be easily removed and replaced. That design also allows for the removal and replacement of 14 main components that Fairphone sells for reasonable prices. Fairphone also sells several accessories, like cases and screen protectors, so you don't have to worry about having a hard time finding the right fit.

The phone runs Murena's /e/os, a privacy-centric fork of Android that receives monthly security updates for the first three years, then bi-monthly until June 2033, when support officially ends. The /e/os operating system strips out all the Google tracking bits, including Google Play Services and any of the usual Google apps that are preinstalled on other Android phones.

But don't worry, the App Lounge built into /e/os contains common Android apps, open-source apps, and progressive web apps, which means your favorite apps are almost certainly available right away. The key here is that this app store doesn't rely on Google's tracking to serve you apps; it doesn't even require you to sign into an account, if you don't want to!

Alternatively, the Fairphone 6 runs an extremely minimalist version of Google Play Services, so you don't have to jump through hoops to use standard Google apps. Just sign in to your Google account, and it keeps your data siloed to those specific apps, instead of having OS-wide tracking or integration features as a normal Android build does.

The core of the visible software privacy filters is right on the (very iOS-inspired) home screen. Swipe over to the leftmost panel, which contains a list of widgets, and tap on Advanced Privacy to get started.

From here, you can see which apps are trying to track your personal data, as well as a list of controls you can use to keep things as private as possible. By default, most of these advanced features are turned off for compatibility reasons, but a quick tap of any of the three categories can change that.

I recommend that every Fairphone user enable the feature that prevents app trackers and ads. I've seen no evidence that it breaks apps, even those that usually punish users when ads are blocked, since it seems to be smart enough not to block ads on these kinds of services. Everywhere else, though, it does an impressively good job of blocking ads, and there's zero configuration. You just turn it on, and it works.

The other two categories — Geolocation and real IP address — are likely a little more niche, but are nevertheless important for folks worried about online privacy. Geolocation allows you to fake your location, including a "random plausible location" option or a specific location you can pick from a map. The IP address section lets you fully mask your public IP, so websites can't guess where you are based on that alone.

All of these settings — ads, geolocation, and IP — are super granular and can be configured per app, although the default setting applies to all apps on the phone, so configuration is only required if you want to dive deeper.

My other favorite key feature of this phone is controlled by that bright yellow switch on the right side. By default, this switch immediately disables all camera and microphone access, so you can join meetings and toggle it off without worrying about being unmuted.

But while this is a great default option, I actually preferred to change this switch to Fairphone Moments, a new /e/os feature that instantly makes the phone minimalist. It reminds me of the NXTPAPER key on the TCL NXTPAPER 70 Pro, a great feature more phones need.

Murena /e/OS is currently quite a bit behind on Android updates, as the phone still runs Android 15 as of this June 2026 review. Android 16 is in the works, but it's entirely likely the phone will remain at least one version behind for the foreseeable future. It's slated for eight total OS updates, likely meaning this phone will see Android 23 as its last version.

Even being a version behind, eight years of OS and security updates is simply unheard of for any phone, regardless of whether it's Android or iOS. That helps pivot the value proposition quite a bit, especially considering the repairability of this phone compared to nearly unrepairable phones like the Galaxy S26 Ultra.

Of course, the $749 price puts it just under flagship phones like the OnePlus 15 and cheaper semi-flagship models like the Google Pixel 10 and Nothing Phone 3. Despite the similar price, its specs are quite a bit worse than those of the other phones in every way. It's got a slower processor, significantly worse cameras, and a smaller battery capacity.

And while the AMOLED display looks pretty good in a very OLED way, it's a bad choice for people who are sensitive to PWM dimming.

I'd love to paint the specs in a better light, especially given the absurd price increases we've seen on technology this year, but this isn't a phone you're going to buy if you're looking for the best performance or camera quality. You're buying it for the privacy, the long-term support, and the repairability.

Which brings me to the final point: this isn't a phone for everyone, but it is a phone that excels in what it aims to do best. There's no other phone on the market quite like the Fairphone 6, and if those three categories are the most important to you, this could be the dream phone you've been waiting for.

The revamped Google Health app (formerly Fitbit) has landed alongside the new Fitbit Air, and while not everyone is happy with the changes, my experience has been pretty positive.

I've been using the new UI for six months, staring with the Health Coach preview launches toward the end of 2025, and while the upgrade to Google Health has brought in some useful changes and features, there are still some improvements I would like to see. These are my biggest highlights after spending some time with the new Google Health app.

A welcome redesign and AI overload

I should start by saying that, unlike some long-time Fitbit users, I was not married to the old Fitbit app design, which I found dull and uninteresting.

The new design is much more colorful and animated, making information easy to see and understand. Your focus metrics are easily accessible at the top of the Today tab, or you can scroll to dive deeper into today and yesterday's activities.

The tabs are also clearer in their focus, now with four tabs in the navigation bar, including Fitness, Sleep, and Health. I find this much better than the old app's three tabs, and I'm glad Sleep and Health have their own dedicated sections.

The app is very AI-focused, and if you're subscribed to Google Health Premium, the Health Coach is everywhere. I don't actually mind the Health Coach too much (more on this later), but it can be quite overwhelming in the app. Every section is inundated with information and large blocks of text to help you better understand your metrics.

Google says it's working to make Health Coach messages "more concise without sacrificing helpful detail" while enhancing messages with "more visuals like charts, maps, and glanceable stats."

I think this is a step in the right direction, but Google should go further and simply hide the Coach messages. Just present the data on each tab visually, and add a small button to each card with the typical AI sparkle icon to expand it to view Health Coach messages.

That way, users aren't bombarded with AI-generated text and can decide when they want the additional insights. Give us more control over the experience.

Keeping me on track

The Coach tab in the previous Fitbit app was pretty bare-bones, with daily run recommendations being the only feature I found remotely useful. Google took that and ran with it, expanding AI to underscore the entire app experience.

During the onboarding process, I told the Coach my goals, available equipment, and any ailments that might hinder my performance. It even provided some welcome pushback when I suggested how much I wanted to work out each week, warning that I might overexert myself. After settling on a schedule, the coach has been pretty great about keeping me on track week to week.

Part of this is thanks to the more flexible weekly Cardio Load, which basically measures how intense your activities are. This metric is available on the Today tab and is also easily visible in the Fitness tab for additional guidance.

I told the Coach that I want to gain muscle mass, lose body fat, and become more consistent at running so I can run my first 5K later this year. Since then, my weekly workouts have focused on these goals, with a variety of exercise types in each session and a weekly running goal that includes varied circuits at different target distances and paces.

You can either follow the workouts to the T or edit them to your liking. I tend to just follow what Fitbit tells me, making small adjustments here and there depending on how I feel.

You can also start a workout in-app or send custom runs to your Pixel Watch. Unfortunately, I'm still unable to send non-run workouts to the watch, which feels like either a bug or an oversight.

Another downside is that while the workout UI feels more structured and easy to follow, the Pixel Watch still can't automatically count reps or sets, something I love about Garmin and even Samsung smartwatches.

On the plus side, workouts can even automatically progress to the next exercise after a set timer ends, but it would be nice to see this implemented with auto rep counting.

I also don't like that workouts are now listed in the Fitness tab as "suggestions," which feels a little less committal. In the preview, each day of the week had a set workout or rest period, which provided a nice structure.

Fortunately, Google has already noted that users are demanding more structure, and it is "bringing back weekly structured schedules later this year in some way," which I look forward to. Until then, this format isn't horrible, especially for users who prefer the flexibility.

Encouragement goes a long way

Despite how overwhelming the AI can be on the Google Health app, I actually find it to be quite encouraging. Messages are usually pretty insightful, taking your activity, sleep, and metrics into account to properly prepare you for the day.

For example, I worked out a ton during the first few days of the week, more than I usually do. As a result, I was encouraged to rest on Wednesday, which I did. Later that evening, the app told me the rest was "exactly what your system needed" while keeping things "low-key" with a light walk.

It then started prepping me for my return to the gym the next day, suggesting I set an alarm, pack my gear, and drink more water since it noticed my resting heart rate was increasing.

The Coach usually provides insightful messages like that, often delivered as notifications on my phone throughout the day, after a workout, or when I wake up. And if need be, it will change its tune if it notices things are off, such as if I didn't get enough restful sleep.

You can, of course, chat with the Health Coach if you want more insight into your sleep, workouts, or other metrics. A few times, I've had to tell it to adjust my workout schedule and cardio load because I was traveling for work that week and knew I wouldn't be able to get to the gym. The Coach would then work with me to shift my goals based on when I could get back to the gym that week or just remove my workout plan for that week entirely. It's pretty flexible.

You can also ask for advice on how to improve specific metrics, and it will respond with suggestions on what you can do, complete with links to the sources it draws from.

This is the kind of experience I would expect from a personal trainer, so it's great that I can get it through a relatively inexpensive app subscription. That said, I still don't think it can fully replace having a real person train you.

Almost a replacement for MyFitnessPal

Food logging is a Google Health feature that I want to love, but it doesn't quite hit the mark. When logging food you can either tell Coach what you ate or you can take a photo of it. Surprisingly (or perhaps, unsurprisingly), object recognition is pretty good, and the app can fairly accurately discern what your meal is just by snapping a photo.

Another alternative is taking a photo of the barcode, if there is one, offering an alternative to MyFitnessPal's own barcode-scanning feature, which you need to subscribe in order to have access to.

The downside of either of these methods is that while Google Health knows what you are eating, the information it logs is still inaccurate. For example, I took a photo of a meal I made, which just consists of four scrambled eggs and roughly 2oz of ground beef. The app knows its scrambled eggs and ground beef, but the nutritional value was quite off, with the app underestimating the amount of protein.

I tried to make it easier by scanning the barcode of a Barbell protein bar, which clearly lists the nutritional value on the wrapper. The app recognized the bar, but the calories were still off by 10, and that was only one of a few inaccuracies I noticed with food logging.

Fortunately, Google Health syncs with MyFitnessPal, so I can still log my meals in that app and the correct nutrition values will appear. Still, I'm hoping Google can step up its game here, because it would bring the Google Health app one major step closer to being my one app to rule them all.

My health in one place

Speaking of one app to rule them all, it's clear that this is Google's goal with the Health app, especially now that you can link your medical records. I linked my previous and current medical providers with the app, and now I'm able to see my conditions, medications, visit history, vaccines, and even lab results, all in one place.

I actually find it to be a convenient way to not only see everything in one place but also bring more context to Coach for your overall health.

You can also log new lab results in the app if they don't sync automatically, although the app seems to do a good job syncing the information. I just wish the data was laid out better; seeing the historical data of 788 lab results, 95 medications and 71 conditions just looks overwhelming, especially since I currently only take a few medications and have a few conditions.

You can also ask Coach about certain details of your medical history, and Coach even warned me that a recent test showed results that are "outside normal limits" (don't worry, I'm fine). And while some may find this access useful, others will undoubtedly find it intrusive.

You can choose what gets synced, and Google says the only time any of your information is shared is to verify your identity with CLEAR. Otherwise, it assures that your synced medical history is "securely stored" in the app. but again, it's up to you if you want to give the Google Health that additional info.

More to come

Obviously, Google Health is not perfect and there are quite a number of things that either need fixing, tweaking, or that are just plain missing. Many users have complained about the AI Heath Coach hallucinating, although I haven't knowingly experienced this. Sleep profiles is something I miss from the old Fitbit app, matching users with cute animals based on their sleep styles.

Fortunately, Google is already hard at work preparing updates to the app, and has provided a list of updates coming soon or later this year. Sleep profiles still isn't among them, but I'm holding out hope.

Still, it's a great sign that Google is listening to user feedback to create a comprehensive health app for everyone, and I, for one, am all for it. Just remember to give a thumbs up or down for any features or AI responses in the Google Health app if you really like something or things don't look right.

Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 8: Minor upgrades that might just make a difference

With foldables no longer the niche products they were just a few years ago, competition in this segment has never been more intense. After the recent unveiling of the Razr Fold by Motorola, all eyes are now on Samsung's upcoming line-up of foldables, which is expected to go official on July 22.

The Galaxy Z Fold 8 is rumored to be largely identical to its predecessor, at least in terms of design. However, when compared to the Galaxy Z Fold 7, the upcoming foldable is expected to have some welcome improvements on the inside, most notably in the battery and charging department.

If the leaks and rumors are to be believed, the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 8 will get a bigger 5,000mAh battery. While not all that impressive by 2026 standards, it'll still be a worthy upgrade over the 4,400mAh power pack that has remained the same across multiple generations of Samsung's flagship foldable smartphone.

Not only that, but the newest foldable is also expected to support faster 45W wired charging. Again, it's nothing groundbreaking (even compared to the 60W wired charging speed of the Galaxy S26 Ultra), but it's still an upgrade over the measly 25W wired charging you get with the Galaxy Z Fold 7. As far as wireless charging is concerned, the 15W speed is expected to remain unchanged.

Even with all these improvements, Samsung's latest upcoming top-tier foldable won't be able to touch Motorola's Razr Fold, which packs blazing-fast 80W wired and 50W wireless charging, as well as a 6,000mAh silicon-carbon battery. Add in stylus support, and you'll see why it's one of the best foldable phones available in the market right now.

While we have no doubts that the Galaxy Z Fold 8 will end up being a part of that list as well, it's largely shaping up to be an incremental update over the previous-gen model.

When Mark Zuckerberg's Facebook bought Oculus back in 2014, the company billed VR as "a strong candidate to emerge as the next social and communications platform." Seven years later, in 2021, Facebook rebranded to Meta in an effort to become the de facto metaverse leader.

In the five years since then, a lot has changed at Meta, but one thing is clear: the original vision of VR as the next social and communications platform is becoming a reality, even if the path to get there looks very different from what was expected.

Instead of an all-encompassing capital-M Metaverse controlled by a single company (à la "Ready Player One"), a swath of free-to-play games from small indie developers has taken root, serving as social hubs for millions of Meta Quest gamers every month. Gorilla Tag began the movement in February 2021, and no one at the time had any idea how it would fundamentally transform VR in just a few short years.

"When we started our studio, we were building the wrong games," said Spencer Cook, CEO of Continuum, the studio behind the uber-popular Ug VR. The line came from a 2026 GDC panel where the studio helped explain what made Ug VR the success it has become and how VR is different from what seemingly everyone thought.

It's a powerful example of how each medium has its own draws, and how the same kinds of games that work on a TV-mounted console don't work on a head-mounted VR system.

Social first is how you win

For years, Meta and many VR-first developers chased the idea of creating the next Grand Theft Auto, Mario, Uncharted, or Halo. Meta poured billions into gaming development, creating genuinely phenomenal titles worthy of 5-star reviews. It stacked up big names like Batman: Arkham Shadow, Marvel's Deadpool, The Walking Dead, Assassin's Creed Nexus, and so many more, creating a powerful library of games any gamer should have been jealous of.

But it didn't work, and no one really understands why. Instead, VR gamers by the millions are coming back day after day to play social-first games that are (by developers' own admissions) simple experiences without "polished mechanics" or "clever gameplay ideas". It would sound damning if it didn't work so well.

Ironically, all of the biggest VR games these days follow the advice Andrew Eiche laid out when I interviewed him a few years ago. Eiche is the CEO of Owlchemy Games, creator of VR classics like Job Simulator and Vacation Simulator, and those games all follow the idea of letting you roleplay without letting exposition get in the way. In other words, you're not playing in the shoes of Cal Kestis or Kay Vess to save the galaxy; you're playing in your own shoes and a character of your own creation.

In addition, the most successful VR games in 2026 are almost exclusively designed to enable players to create and share content on the world's most popular social media platforms. From YouTube Shorts to TikTok, these games' videos amass millions of views and have created real success for the people playing them and having fun making content. It's an endless wheel of fun and success, and it keeps giving birth to more games like it.

For a few years, anything that looked or moved like Gorilla Tag was hastily referred to as a Gorilla Tag clone, but players have learned that this label is simply incorrect. Titles like Yeeps, Scary Baboon, Wizherd, Digi Gods, and Ug VR all share similar movement mechanics to Gorilla Tag, but there's often a special gameplay hook that separates these titles from the rest of the pack.

Last week, I spoke with Kyle Joyce, CEO of Enver Studios and creator of Scary Baboon, one of the most popular social VR games today. As you might expect from the name, this one uses familiar Gorilla Tag mechanics and the popular PS1-era art style, but blends it with horror-lite mechanics that fans of Five Nights at Freddy's and Poppy Playtime simply love.

The studio has expanded Scary Baboon recently with new co-op experiences that let players work together to solve problems, fight monsters, and explore the world. The key here is that players aren't fighting each other; they're working together to survive, and it's this concept that has also spawned the "friendslop" genre.

To date, seven million people have installed Scary Baboon (that's unique players, not installs), and Joyce told me the retention rate is impressively high. This tracks with the Ug VR GDC video I linked earlier, where Spencer Cook outlined a 70% retention rate among the game's audience. Scary Baboon's latest update lets players fight back against the monsters regularly haunting the halls. Still, players have to be smart about weapon usage because monsters can become enraged and invincible for a while if hit too much.

Scary Baboon's latest updates have been so popular that the company has been able to ink a deal with "a large, legacy IP" that'll debut in an update this July. Joyce says their numbers have consistently been up in recent months, owing to the success of both the latest updates and the shift from "frustrating PvP" to a friendlier co-op PvE experience.

"Our audience would rather play with their friends than against them," Joyce told me. I can relate to this, as I find myself gravitating toward non-PvP experiences more and more. This is especially the case with free-to-play titles like Scary Baboon or Animal Company, both of which I regularly play with my son and have regular content updates to explore.

Joyce says his studio has been focusing on community feedback and letting players drive the game's future, while also acknowledging that they can't please everyone. Joyce said this focus is why he started creating content for the game and participates in community events, helping other players feel involved in the game's creation.

Unsurprisingly, Ug VR's creators say "our success comes from knowing what entertains our players and from engaging with the community." It's a very different model from what has made games successful in the past, particularly because of the speed and voracity at which the community consumes and shares content.

It's taken a solid decade of learning and growing, but it's become clear that VR games do best when socializing or role-playing are the core experience. Given the impressive rate of growth of these types of games along with the stagnation of more traditional games, it's clear that VR's success will look different from what many initially thought, but players who embrace this change will find a unique, engaging experience that's truly different from what's available on any other video game medium.

Privacy on Android is more than just using Private Browsing to buy cheaper flight tickets. People are often surprised by how everyday tasks, such as checking your bank account, shopping online, and especially using public Wi-Fi, can expose your personal data without you realising it.

Worse still, many risks aren't obvious until something goes terribly wrong, which is where Bitdefender Antivirus Plus comes into play. Despite the name, it goes beyond traditional antivirus software, combining phishing protection, scam detection, VPN features and app security in a single package.

TL;DR: Bitdefender Antivirus Plus protects your data across apps, websites, and Wi-Fi networks on your phone. It reduces the risk of scams, tracking, and data theft during everyday use by blocking unsafe sites, securing your connection, and scanning apps in real time.

How does Bitdefender protect your data on Android?

Bitdefender monitors your phone for threats and blocks them before they can cause harm by scanning apps, checking links, and detecting unusual activity in real time. This is particularly important when downloading new apps or clicking links in messages, something that many of us do on a daily basis.

Due to advances in scamming techniques and machine learning, some threats are hidden and don’t look suspicious at first. They might even look like they came from someone we trust, using an email address that looks familiar enough not to arouse suspicion.

Bitdefender flags these threats early, so you don’t have to figure it out yourself. Even better, the app does it all automatically and has no significant impact on battery life.

Can Bitdefender stop phishing and scam websites?

Bitdefender blocks access to known malicious and phishing websites before they load, helping prevent sensitive data from being entered into fake pages. It analyses URLs instantly and compares them against its vast library of threat databases.

We’ve all heard horror stories of others being scammed out of their money when shopping online, logging into banking apps in web browsers (after an email prompted them to do so), or clicking offers in seemingly safe emails or on social media.

Fake websites often closely mimic legitimate platforms, making them difficult or nearly impossible to spot them by yourself. Bitdefender’s approach prevents credentials and payment details from being entered into compromised sites, which can significantly reduce the risk of fraud.

Is it safe to use public Wi-Fi without added protection on your phone?

Public Wi-Fi networks are among the least secure ways to get online, as they can expose browsing activity and personal data to interception. Bitdefender’s built-in VPN encrypts your internet traffic, making it harder for third parties to access information sent between the device and websites.

This is handy not only for business professionals who often rely on airport or hotel Wi-Fi to check their emails, but also for everyone else who prefers to work in cafes or on public transport.

Checking emails, accessing accounts, or making payments is far safer with Bitdefender's Antivirus Plus, as it protects data in transit and helps maintain privacy on shared networks. In other words, it makes public Wi-Fi safe to use.

What does Bitdefender’s Virtual Private Network (VPN) actually do?

Bitdefender’s VPN encrypts internet connections and routes traffic through secure servers to reduce tracking and protect data from getting accessed by malicious third-party groups. It can be turned on and off as needed.

While many use VPN to access content in other regions of the world, their use goes far beyond entertainment. The Bitdefender Premium VPN lets you access region-sensitive content, avoid websites tracking you while browsing, and secure connections outside trusted networks, such as public Wi-Fi.

And, of course, it also supports everyday activities like streaming or browsing without exposing personal data, adding an extra layer of privacy without requiring separate apps or a complex setup.

Does Bitdefender protect apps as well as websites?

It’s one thing to use Bitdefender’s protection when using a web browser, but it can also monitor activity across apps, identify suspicious behaviour, and block threats within installed applications.

Social media is rife with scammers, but you can also encounter malicious intent on messaging apps. Threats can come from within apps, which might make them feel more legitimate (e.g. banking apps). Bitdefender secures your entire Android ecosystem from these threats.

Do you need to actively manage Bitdefender?

Bitdefender operates continuously and autonomously in the background, scanning for threats and applying protection. The system sends alerts only when action from you is needed; otherwise, it does its thing with minimal interaction.

Once installed, the application quietly runs in the background, maintaining security while allowing normal phone use and maintaining consistent protection.

Bitdefender Antivirus Plus protects personal data across everyday scenarios, from blocking phishing sites to securing connections on public Wi-Fi.

• Explore how Bitdefender security solutions can help protect your devices, identity and privacy, all in one place.

Audeze knows how to make a good pair of headphones, and the Sony-owned brand has diversified in the last two years, mainly with the introduction of the Maxwell and the new Maxwell 2 gaming headsets. While I like the Maxwell 2 a lot and use it extensively, the MM-500 continues to be my go-to choice while I'm at my desk.

However, the MM-500 costs $1,699, and if you want Audeze-branded headphones in the vicinity of $500, the Maxwell 2 and MM-100 were the only option — until now. Audeze rolled out the LCD-S20 at the end of last year, and I've been using the headphones for most of the last six months.

The LCD-S20 has planar drivers and even comes with similar SLAM tech as the electrostatic CRBN2, which costs $5,999. The best part is that the LCD-S20 comes in at $499, making it one of the most accessible options in Audeze's catalog. Don't get me wrong; that's still a lot of cash towards a headset, but given the drivers, tuning, and the price, it may just be the best Audeze product in recent years.

The LCD-S20 shares a lot of the same characteristics of the MM-100, including the design. The key difference is that the headphone has a closed-back design, and it does a much better job with isolation and audio leakage as a result.

As with all Audeze headphones, build quality is excellent. The LCD-S20 is made out of a mix of aluminum, magnesium, plastic, and steel, and it feels every bit like a high-end product. The bundled ear pads are highly comfortable, and while I would've preferred greater adjustability around the headband, it hasn't proven to be a problem. The outside of the ear cup is finished in fabric, and this allows you to easily distinguish the LCD-S20 from the Maxwell 2.

If anything, the only issue I have with the LCD-S20 is the weight. At 550g, it's one of the heaviest headphones in this category, and you'll feel that heft. Yes, the headband does a good job distributing the heft evenly, but there's no doubting that you'll notice the weight — particularly if you're using it for an extended amount of time. After using the LCD-X, LCD-GX, MM-500, MM-100, and the Maxwell 2 over the last four years, I'm now used to the bulk of these headphones, but it is something to consider if you're eyeing the LCD-S20.

You get the same cable bundled with the LCD-S20 as the MM-100, and it is a good choice. It connects to either ear cup, has a 6.35mm connector, and you get a dongle that lets you convert it to 3.5mm out. There's no cloth carrying case with the LCD-S20, which is a bit of a letdown, but other than that, I don't have any issues with the accessories bundled with the product.

Coming to the sound, the LCD-S20 uses the same 90mm planar drivers as the Maxwell 2, alongside Neodymium N50 magnets, Fazor waveguides, and SLAM tech that delivers a cleaner low-end. The bass itself is rich and detailed, and even though the LCD-S20 has a slight boost in the sub-bass frequencies, it is still quite controlled. You get an engaging bass with plenty of vibrancy and fast transients, and I like it better than the MM-100 in this regard.

Mids are clean and natural, with vocals shining in the mix. The treble is smooth, and while you don't quite get the airiness, overall dynamic range is pretty good. The soundstage and tuning makes the LCD-S20 a good choice for casual listening as well as studio monitoring — if you don't mind the heft.

The LCD-S20 has 18Ω impedance and 93dB/mW sensitivity, and you'll need a good source to make the most of the LCD-S20. I used the headphone predominantly with the Fiio K19, and it did an excellent job unlocking its full potential.

Overall, I enjoyed using the LCD-S20 quite a bit. It's a great addition to Audeze's catalog, and alongside the MM-100 and the Maxwell 2, the brand has a decent selection of mid-range products aimed at different use cases.

I was initially hesitant to get a smart lock; I didn't like the idea of using an internet-connected product to control the main door. I have dozens of smart home products in the house, and while I don't mind using them, I'm still wary about security vulnerabilities, which is why I put all IoT devices in their own VLAN.

These fears proved unfounded once the Nuki Smart Lock Ultra showed up. I wasn't familiar with Nuki, but it's the rare smart home brand that cares about security. The Smart Lock Ultra comes with end-to-end encryption, I didn't have to set up an account to use it, and Nuki didn't ask for any data outside of what's needed to set up the device.

Honestly, it's such a refreshing change of pace to most other smart home products I use that I recommend Nuki just for its security practices. Of course, there's also the fact that the Smart Lock Ultra is a great piece of kit; I really like the design of the lock, and after a full year of use, it has proven to be unerringly reliable — something I can't say about any other product I tested in this category.

All of these positives come at a cost, however. The Smart Lock Ultra is available for $359 in the U.S. and costs €349 in Europe, and you'll ideally need to get the Keypad 2 as well, with the bundle going up to $409/€429. Now, what are you getting for what price? The Smart Lock Ultra is unquestionably the best retrofit smart lock around, and the design along with sensible security measures give it a sizeable advantage.

The Smart Lock Ultra is a retrofit solution, so you can install it over an existing deadbolt. The lock comes with its own universal cylinder that's designed to fit most door profiles, and it's pretty straightforward to install. I set it up while getting the house interiors done, and the contractor was able to install it in under 15 minutes. I had an existing Yale lock on the door, and it wasn't any problem to slot in the Smart Lock Ultra over it. Nuki provides all the requisite parts, and the lock comes with three sets of keys that can be used to manually unlock the cylinder (you can order more as needed on Nuki's site).

The Smart Lock Ultra is encased in stainless steel, and it's much smaller than most of its rivals. The design itself is quite elegant, and the base of the unit has an interchangeable plastic ring that's available in white or black. The unit has an LED ring that flashes white when the door is unlocked, and red when the built-in battery needs to be charged. It's a well-designed product, and I didn't run into issues with installation or usage over the last year.

Nuki went with a brushless motor, and it has proven to be reliable. It does get quite loud when unlocking, and while there are three modes, even the quietest Gentle mode can get pretty loud. Controlling the lock is best done with the Nuki app; it has a minimalist interface, and plenty of features to get the most out of the lock. You can easily configure auto unlock, night mode — which automatically locks the door — and set up the built-in Wi-Fi. Once you connect the product to your home network, you can control it remotely from anywhere in the world, and even after a year of use, it's just cool to be able to do that.

You can control the Smart Lock Ultra with just about any smart home platform. It integrates with Google Home, HomeKit, Alexa, and Samsung's SmartThings platforms, and comes with Matter over Thread. I also got the Keypad 2, and I use it to unlock the door with a fingerprint. You can set up a numeric lock as well, and it's a nifty solution if you want to give someone access to your home.

The one problem came two weeks ago when a plastic cog that sits in between the motor and the thumb turn broke. This cog is designed to fail so as to not damage the motor, and in that regard, it worked as intended. Basically, a guest tried to open the door while the motor was still unlatching, and the cog broke as a result. Nuki bundles two of these cogs with the Smart Lock Ultra, but it should ideally provide more; we broke one initially while calibrating the product, so there weren't any left to use with the lock. Thankfully, there's a 3D-printed solution that came to the rescue. I got the part 3D-printed, and it slotted into the lock without any issues (I got 20 of these made just in case).

Battery life has been decent overall, with one caveat. I initially had to charge the Smart Lock Ultra once every two months, but nowadays, I'm having to plug in the charger every four weeks on average. Nuki has a charger with a USB-C port and a pogo pin on the other side, and it's convenient to just use a power bank to charge the product while it's connected to the door (it just needs 10W of power). I recently got a new router system, and I switched the built-in Wi-Fi to Compatibility mode, which according to Nuki uses more battery. I reverted the setting to the Automatic mode, and I'll update this post if I notice a difference in the battery life next month.

On the whole, the Smart Lock Ultra is the best retrofit solution around. It's effortless to set up and use, looks great, connects to every smart home platform, and has class-leading security features. Yes, it costs more than its rivals, but you're also getting a much better overall product, and a level of trust that you don't normally see in this category. That alone makes it easy to recommend the Smart Lock Ultra if you're looking to get an internet-connected product to lock your door.

There's no doubt that Torras makes great accessories; I used the brand's iPhone 16 Pro Max cases last year, and tested several iPhone 17 Pro cases over the course of 2026. I like the Ostand models as they offer all-round protection while looking stylish, so it's great to see Torras making custom variants of these cases ahead of the 2026 World Cup.

Torras collaborated with Portugal's football association to design the cases, and the result is two variants that are based on the jersey. They look different enough to the regular Ostand models, and I think Torras did a good job overall distilling the colors of the Portuguese jersey into a phone case. There are two styles: Wave of Passion, which as the name indicates has a wavy design across the case, and Glory Slash, which has diagonal streaks and generally has the better design of the two.

Now, as with most things to do with football, these cases are on the costly side at $66 each. That said, a regular Ostand Q3 Air costs $56 on Amazon as of writing, so you're not shelling out too much of a premium just to get the Portugal livery. The cases are available for the iPhone 17 Pro and Pro Max models, as well as last year's phones.

Oh, and these cases are limited edition as well, so if you like the designs, you'll probably want to get your hands on one soon. Torras bundles football stickers with each case as well, so you can easily put a number 7 on the case if you're a CR7 fan.

A defining trait of the Ostand cases is the built-in ring in the middle that enables a kickstand, and this is highly convenient in daily use. I got both cases to use with my iPhone 17 Pro, and I went with the Glory Slash model as that looks a little more distinctive. The metallic ring stands out against the red and grey of the case, and you get the Portuguese flag colors at the bottom of the case alongside this text: Dedication, hard work, and belief.

The case fits without any issues, and the metal buttons on the sides have excellent tactility. You get a dedicated button for Camera Control as well, but seeing as how I'm not a fan of the feature, I just ignored it. The sides have a textured finish that makes a difference in regular use, and I like that the Portugal football emblem is etched into the right.

There's a raised edge around the camera island at the rear that ensures the cameras are protected should the phone take a tumble, and you get air-cushioned top and bottom protection that makes a big difference.

The magnetic ring doesn't affect MagSafe connectivity in any way, and I was able to use my iPhone 17 Pro with the Baseus Nomos 245W Qi 2 charging pad and other MagSafe accessories without any issues.

On the whole, Torras did a great job with this collab, and either case is a good choice if you're a fan of Portuguese football and want to show off your allegiance. Now, I'm just waiting for a brand to do an Argentina collab.

I like what Huawei is doing with its wearable strategy; the brand's Watch Ultimate 2 is the best high-end smartwatch, and I prefer it to the Galaxy Watch Ultra because of its weeks-long battery life. The Watch GT 6 Pro is a great all-round smartwatch, and Huawei's latest Watch Fit 5 Pro is aimed towards fitness.

The Watch Fit 5 Pro is aimed at a younger audience, and that's immediately evident when you look at the choice of colors and the styling of the bands. The smartwatch costs £249 ($335) on Amazon U.K., and it's available in most countries where Huawei has a presence. I've been using it as my daily driver for just over a month now, and here's why I think it is a better choice than the Apple Watch or Galaxy Watch 8.

The Watch Fit 5 Pro has a stylish design

Huawei has an orange color of the Watch Fit 5 Pro that stands out considerably — as I found out while using it in Thailand ahead of the launch event. This is a smartwatch that's designed to grab attention, but it isn't ostentatious.

You can also get it in white and black, but the orange one is the most distinctive by far. The nylon band feels good to wear and is extremely light, and the case itself has a gold hue, with the orange accents contrasting it quite well.

The case has subtle curves around the edges that gives it added elegance, and makes the Watch Fit 5 Pro less utilitarian — it looks just as good as other mainstream models.

The build quality is great; the smartwatch is made out of aluminum, and the bezel has a titanium alloy to give it better durability. I also like that it has a physical button on the right to launch workouts, and a rotating bezel to navigate the interface.

This is the best display on a fitness smartwatch

The Watch Fit 5 Pro easily has one of the best displays you'll get today. The 1.92-inch OLED panel is bigger than last year, and it goes up to 3,000 nits now. What's also good to see is that it has 60Hz refresh, and just like the best phones, the smartwatch uses LTPO tech to good effect, switching down to 1Hz to increase efficiency.

Another positive is that the bezels are uniform on all sides, and they're noticeably thinner than what you get on most smartwatches. That's one of the reasons how Huawei was able to fit a bigger panel into a similar-sized chassis.

With 3,000 nits brightness, viewing outdoors isn't an issue at all. I tested it in Bangkok's intense summer, and on a particularly hot day in Hyderabad, India, where it was well over 105 degrees (41 degrees Celsius), and I didn't have any problems using the Watch Fit 5 Pro. Colors are vibrant, and the interface is easy to navigate.

The Watch Fit 5 Pro lets you monitor everything with ease

One of the best things in the Watch Fit 5 Pro is mini-workouts. The idea is that instead of sitting at your desk all day, you take short breaks of five to ten minutes to do short workouts wherever you are. These guided low-intensity workouts are easy to do, and they have adorable animations featuring a panda.

But the real reason you'll want the Watch Fit 5 Pro is how good it is at regular workouts. I used it at the gym and while cycling, and it's one of the better choices in this category. It delivered metrics consistent with my Apple Watch, and it comes with the ability to sync data with other fitness platforms, including FIIT and Strava.

Huawei outfitted the Watch Fit 5 Pro with a new TruSense sensor system, and it provides more accurate measurements across the board, including heart rate, blood oxygen monitoring, sleep info, and activity data.

You get dual-band GPS, cycling insights that include power and other metrics. Running is also covered, along with city and trail running. The smartwatch has IP68 and IP69 water resistance, and it covers over 100 workout activities.

You don't miss out on the basics

While the custom interface that Huawei uses isn't as extensible as watchOS or Wear OS, Huawei provides all the basics, and I didn't feel like the Watch Fit 5 Pro was missing out on the software side of things. I didn't have problems taking calls on my wrist or viewing notifications, and the built-in vibration motor is decent enough.

Huawei doesn't use Google Pay, but the brand is turning to Curve Pay to enable NFC payments globally. I wasn't able to use the feature in India, but it is available in the U.K. and other countries where Curve Pay has a presence.

The battery life is incredible

I don't like charging smartwatches daily, and that's one of the main reasons why I like the Watch Fit 5 Pro. Thanks to a bigger 471mAh battery, the smartwatch lasts seven days between charges. It's this battery longevity that gives it a distinct edge over Wear OS and other Android smartwatches.

Honestly, the tweaks to the design and improved battery life make the Watch Fit 5 Pro a great alternative if you want a smartwatch that isn't made by Apple or Samsung. The design is much more elegant this year, the new TruSense system is better at fitness and health monitoring, and while there isn't much in the way of third-party integration, the essentials are covered. I didn't think I'd like the Watch Fit 5 Pro as much as I do, and it's a good option to consider if you're in a country where Huawei sells it.

I used to take a dedicated camera while traveling, but that hasn't been the case in the last five years. Phone cameras have gotten so good that I just don't see the need to bring a mirrorless camera along, and that point was proven during a recent vacation to Thailand. I took the Find X9 Ultra along, and my wife got her Vivo X300 Ultra, and between these two devices, we managed to take plenty of great photos. There's also the added versatility of external lenses, and the 200mm lens on the X300 Ultra in particular is a delight to use.

All of this is to say is that I don't quite see the value in lugging another camera along. However, the same isn't true of instant cameras; I have a few older Instax cameras in the house, and they're fun to use, and are a novel way to take photos when guests show up.

That's what makes the the Instax Mini 13 all the more interesting; the overall design of the camera hasn't changed, but it is available in fresh colors, and it has a few new features that make it a pretty solid choice if you want an instant camera in 2026. The Instax Mini 13 costs just $95 in the U.S., and it is available in India at ₹8,499 ($88), and the pricing makes this a great starter camera if you haven't used one previously.

The major new addition on the Instax Mini 13 is a timer; there's a two-second and 10-second timer, and while I don't really see the point of the two-second timer, the latter is plenty useful. We used the timer to good effect to get everyone in the frame when relatives came over recently, and the vertical orientation works to its advantage.

I also like that there's a selfie mirror that makes it effortless to frame subjects; if you're in the mirror, you show up in the photo, and that makes taking group selfies hassle-free. Another positive is that you don't need to fiddle with any settings; like most instant cameras, the Instax Mini 13 has automatic exposure and flash control, so you get well-lit photos even in low-light situations.

While I tend to shoot using the viewfinder most of the time, the Instax Mini 13 is designed to be a selfie camera, and it's easy enough to use it as one. The image quality itself is decent, and the resultant prints look good.

The whole point of an instant camera is its ability to print out photos in real-time, and the Instax Mini 13 does a great job in this area. Fujifilm built out its instant camera offerings over the last decade, and you now have a decent choice of options available — whether you want to shoot wide-angle or need additional controls — and it's good to see that this category is doing well. Alongside cameras, Fuji has a good selection of film styles, and that adds to the overall charm of the Instax Mini 13.

Emily Dickinson once said that “progress is a comfortable disease.” When I read that, it means to me that the “progress” society makes in some areas often comes at a cost that is detrimental to what was. In this case, we’re talking about audio quality and Bluetooth earbuds. With them, the “progress” was consumers benefiting from: wireless connectivity, active noise canceling, water resistance, AI-powered smart features, and convenience.

What did we lose, though, and is yesterday’s tech worth resurrecting? To find out, I dumped the earbuds I’ve been living with most recently, Sony’s excellent WF-1000XM6, and picked up Final Audio’s recently launched $80 A2000 in-ear monitors (IEMs).

What have I learned from the last three weeks using wired IEMs as my daily carry audio and communications device? Let’s talk about it!

But why, though?

As good as aptX and LDAC Bluetooth codecs can be, they just don’t compare one-to-one with a wired connection. Generally speaking, wired connections are a better choice for almost any technology. Wi-Fi versus Ethernet cable is another example of that.

With wired audio connections, you’re going to expand that soundstage, have a more consistent chance to discover details in songs that you may have been missing, and never have to worry about charging the earbuds or headphones before a gym session, or packing a charger if you go on vacation.

Why? Ultimately, because they consistently sound better, and there’s no battery to worry about.

My test subject(s)

Final Audio was releasing their new budget IEMs, the A2000, for $80, and reached out to me to see if I’d be interested in reviewing them. I accepted, but thought I’d do something different, which spawned this article. Much like the Sony WF-1000XM6 that I put on the shelf for them, the A2000 has a sizeable soundstage, delicious dynamics, delightful detail retrieval, punchy mids, sparkling treble, and fairly tight, blooming booming bass.

“Much like” is an important distinction because, though the A2000 is like the XM6 with regard to sound, it improves upon that in every way possible. The Final Audio A2000 comes with four pairs of silicone eartips, including the pre-installed pair. You get a 3.5mm right-angle-terminated, 1.2m-long oxygen-free copper (OFC) cable that also comes with two clip-on earhooks.

The A2000 bodies are more stylish than the XM6. You get a two-tone ABS plastic shell that is black on the outside, with a Japanese-style Shibo (translation: wrinkled paper) coating that resists fingerprints and adds texture.

The inner part is a vibrant blue, but the most important inner part — the speaker in each — is Final’s f-Core DU dynamic driver, along with all the sound-producing internals made in-house by Final — something you don’t see often.

Those shells connect to the included braided OFC cable via standard 2-pin connectors, so you can easily swap the included cable for another one, depending on your use case.

My experience: Trading the Sony WF-1000XM6 for the Final Audio A2000

You’re likely very used to the convenience of Bluetooth earbuds, and with good reason. There are no cables, so you can just pop them in your ears and keep it moving! And with transparency modes, technically, you’d only ever need to take them out of your ears to charge them. Being used to all that convenience is going to require you to make some changes, going back to wired earbuds.

It took me about a week to adjust to hanging my wired earbuds around my neck when they weren’t in my ears. Not that they weren’t comfortable, but there’s no “pass-through audio” to allow me to carry on conversations with them in my ears.

Also, I have an older car, so no Bluetooth or USB-A connectivity, which means hanging them around my neck when I drive, or keeping one in my ear for phone calls during my commute.

With wireless earbuds, you just remove them from your ears when needed and place them in their case. Now, you’ll have wires to contend with, and unlike the WF-1000XM6 in their case, wired IEMs won’t fit into the coin pocket of your pants.

However, what I gave up in convenience, I gained in superior sound quality. Music always sounds great with the Final A2000 IEMs, and it isn’t affected by wind or other atmospheric conditions that can make Bluetooth connections unstable. I was never worried about whether I had placed them on their charger the night before, or how much charge they had when I went to the gym. And being connected to wires, I never feared losing them.

The A2000s punch above their $80 price point, delivering sound that is bright in the upper midrange, so vocals, podcast voices, and cinematic dialogue all sound crisp. The elements of some tracks teeter on sibilant, as there’s definitely some lift in the upper treble, but my guess is they’re tuned like that to give a stronger sense of detail than the $80 price tag belies.

Bass has solid weight to it and isn’t mushy, while transient sounds are handled pretty well, all things considered! Many costlier pairs of Bluetooth earbuds will struggle to match the overall audio fidelity of the Final A2000.

As good as aptX Lossless and LDAC are, there’s just a live quality to music that is often missing when you compare it to the wired playback of well-engineered, high-quality audio files. That said, going back to wired is only going to be for certain people:

• Those not wanting to spend $200-$300 semi-annually for the latest Bluetooth tech, but want something with a longer useful life than an earbud’s rechargeable batteries.
• Music lovers. If audio fidelity matters, and I don’t think it truly does for many consumers, you’ll want wired IEMs instead of Bluetooth if you can get past the lack of convenience that Bluetooth offers.

Wrapping up the experience, most folks don't pay attention to battery estimates, which always show that the battery life of earbuds is significantly reduced when compared to using them mostly for audio playback. For example, the Sony WF-1000XM6 earbuds I switched out have an estimated five hours of "continuous communication time" with noise canceling on, but that number jumps to eight hours for all other uses.

So, if you spend a lot of time making voice calls, wired earbuds may be a much better choice for you.

“You've got to COORDINATE!!”

As good as Final’s A2000 sounds, the IEMs aren’t specifically designed to ease the transition back to wired carrying, so you’ll need a microphone. Fortunately, there are some good options on the market for replacement cables with two-pin connectors and inline microphones. Even Sennheiser offers a microphone-cable upgrade for its IEM series, such as the venerable IE900 that I reviewed, and there are options from other brands as well.

I already have a few mobile DACs at my disposal, and the PR rep from JackRabbit Media, who arranged the Final A2000 review, also sent me modular cables from Dekoni’s Audio Ensemble collection. The combination of the two made my transition back to wired everyday carry a bit easier.

The Dekoni cables have been a godsend, allowing me to connect to the DAC of my choosing, or one of their own, by simply twisting the lower half of the cable connector, then twisting on the cable ends I want to use.

I found myself coming back to one of their modular ends terminated in a USB-C DAC, which supports up to 32-bit/384kHz DSD256, and at times, I switched to another end terminated in a 3.5mm connection, which I used to connect to the excellent Questyle M18i, which has a microphone on it that is better than most Bluetooth earbuds.

I also used this opportunity to test a wireless connection when necessary with the high-quality iFi GO blu Air Bluetooth DAC, which comes with a magnetically attached clip (and those magnets are strong!) and has a great microphone.

Final thoughts

For tinkerers, one of the most compelling realizations I walked away with was that instead of buying a Bluetooth earpiece and learning it, you can literally build your own ideal everyday carry audio setup. You can buy IEMs based on your budget or level of music appreciation, and if you want to keep things simple, some options include a microphone cable.

And if you want, you can pick up one of the great mobile DACs that bridges the gap between Bluetooth earpieces and wired IEMs, like the iFi GO blu, which can be used both wired and wirelessly, unlike the GO blu Air, which is designed for wireless use only.

At Google I/O, we got more hands-on time with Android XR, though in the form of more compact, wearable glasses. Companies such as Xreal and Samsung are aiming to bring Android smart glasses to the masses later this year with more portable models that can be worn anywhere, unlike the rather massive Galaxy XR headset. More importantly, Google is leaning on Samsung to bring its vision of "intelligent eyewear" to consumers with stylish offerings.

We're still some months away from an official launch, but Samsung's announcement reinvigorated excitement for Android XR after a year of waiting for a proper competitor to Meta's Ray-Ban smart glasses. However, Samsung and, more importantly, Google, will have to learn from past mistakes to truly get Android XR off the ground and avoid another "Glassholes" situation.

Understanding smart glasses

The smart glasses market is still somewhat in its infancy, and it has only recently begun to pop off. Right now, Meta absolutely dominates the market, doing a great job establishing the glasses as a media device with AI features, as opposed to the other way around. In fact, it wasn't until later that the company really leaned into AI, adding multimodal capabilities that let Meta AI "see" what you're seeing so you can make sense of it.

But now that AI and even displays are becoming part of the picture, consumers are starting to wonder what the endgame is. And in a world where smartphones are everywhere, the purpose of smart glasses isn't clear to everyone, especially when consumers aren't even fully convinced that smart watches are necessary.

I spoke with Jitesh Ubrani, research manager for IDC's worldwide device tracker, who told me in an interview that while the long-term goal for smart glasses (or intelligent eyewear, as Samsung likes to call it) is to eventually replace our smartphones, though it's "not happening anytime soon," even as AI models like Gemini become more capable.

However, in the short term, smart glasses are positioned as smartphone companion devices, and companies have to make their use cases simple and appealing for consumers.

According to Ubrani, "the selling point or the more immediate selling point for a lot of these smart classes today is really audio-video first and AI second. And so that's a very clear and easy use case to sell to consumers."

Let's face it, we live in a content-driven world, and Meta is leaning into its ownership of Instagram to help draw consumers in.

"It's great for content creators," Ubrani tells me. "And it offers value in the sense that it's reducing friction that consumers would otherwise have or face if they didn't use these glasses. It's a lot easier for me to take a picture with my glasses than pull my phone out of my pocket, open the camera app, and take a picture. Same thing with translation and playing music."

I myself am pretty new to the current iteration of camera-touting AI glasses, but I have recently found myself taking the Ray-Ban Meta Gen 2 to concerts and other social events. I like that it saves me from being another smartphone hovering above the crowd and lets me easily capture images and videos with little effort.

I am also planning to run my first 5K later this year, and I already know the Ray-Ban Metas will be on my face to document much of the experience.

This is the kind of experience Google and Samsung need to lean on with their upcoming smart glasses. Don't get me wrong, I can't wait to have Gemini on my face, frankly, because I'm more invested in Google's ecosystem than Meta's. However, perceptions of AI remain mixed at best, and not everyone will be as excited about their glasses being able to tell them what’s in front of them or order an Uber.

That's why it makes sense for Google and Samsung to focus less on AI, while obviously not ignoring it. Draw consumers in with stylish eyewear and a great camera to capture images and video they can immediately post to their socials. Then remind them about the extra benefits that come with having Gemini or even a display on their face, such as real-time translation and Nano Banana editing features.

And for some, this is already a benefit that Google and Samsung will have over Meta, especially given how Android XR will be deeply integrated with their smartphones.

"From the device maker's perspective — from Google's perspective — it's about creating stickiness," Ubrani notes. "You stay within their ecosystem. You use their products and services more. And they're able to, in turn, learn from that and create more stickiness further down the line."

Fashion and Gen Z are the key

If Samsung and Google want Android XR to take off, they will have to do more than just partner with companies like Gentle Monster and Warby Parker. This is a great start, following Meta's strategy to get more smart glasses in consumer hands by bringing the tech to stylish, everyday eyewear. And from the looks of it, Samsung's glasses may be something the average consumer would want to put on their face.

The next step is to get the marketing right by appealing to Gen Z and fashion types. Ubrani highlights how this has worked for Meta, noting how the company had a mix of "fashion influencers and fashion blog writers" at Meta Connect alongside analysts, journalists, and developers.

It's a strategy I've noticed lately with more tech companies. Motorola has leaned heavily on Gen Z as its target audience for the Razr series, while also partnering with fashion icons like Paris Hilton. This strategy has helped the company achieve new heights with its Razr series, now with half of the U.S. foldable market, a far cry from just a few years ago, when it was clawing its way back to relevance.

"We need to see Google do some of the same," Ubrani tells me. "It can't just rely on Samsung or Warby Parker and Gentle Monster. It has to invest on its own, going after a very mainstream audience that may not necessarily pay attention to tech."

That's not to say Google needs to create a pair of first-party smart glasses. While Google is surely capable of making its own "Pixel Glasses" or the like, Ubrani thinks it's way too early for Google, as the company isn't exactly known as a fashionable brand.

I will say that the Pixel smartphone lineup is slowly changing the perception of Google's products (they've never looked better). Still, the search giant doesn't have the market share Samsung does, and that's a clear reason the companies are working so closely together on Android XR, just as they did with Wear OS. It would be nice to see other companies like Motorola in the mix, but Google is putting its best foot forward to get things off the ground, which I think should help it in the long run.

Other challenges

With Samsung at the helm and Google's backing, Android XR is clearly poised to challenge Meta's dominance or even stave off an eventual Apple entry… right? Ubrani isn't fully convinced.

"It's not to say that they're not capable, it's just that Meta's partnership with EssilorLuxottica is huge, right? Because EssilorLuxottica is the largest glasses maker in the world. They have a huge amount of distribution [Meta is] leveraging to sell these glasses. Then on Meta's side, Meta has this marketing and ad business that's huge and rivals Google's in many ways, and they're also leveraging that."

It also helps that Meta has been willing to lose money on its Reality Labs division to sell its glasses. This heavy subsidizing has paid off, helping get more glasses on more faces, despite lacking the same ecosystem lock-in that Google will clearly benefit from. But even so, Ubrani thinks Samsung and Google need to be willing to do the same if Android XR is to be successful, especially since their partners don't have the same level of distribution as Meta and EssilorLuxottica.

"But you know, Samsung has scale, Google has scale, and so potentially they can get there. I just don't know if they're quite there yet, and it's a little too early to kind of make the call as to if they will get there."

The pieces are falling into place

When Google Glass launched in 2012, it was doomed to fail for many reasons. Aside from being too ahead of its time, the device just didn't have any consumer appeal. Sameer Samat, President of the Android Ecosystem at Google, said as much while speaking to the media at Google I/O this week.

"The most important thing I learned is that fashion comes first, technology comes second."

It sounds as if Google is well aware of the steps it needs to take to ensure Android XR is successful and doesn't repeat the same mistakes it did in the past. And by leaning on Samsung, Google can potentially avoid any direct comparisons to Google Glass.

It also helps that consumer perception has changed from the days of Google Glass. With the prevalence of social media and the omnipresence of smartphone cameras, consumers are more accepting of camera-laden eyewear, even if there's still some hesitation.

"We've certainly come a long way from glassholes where these things are more welcome, and in some cases, you also know people genuinely want cameras on their faces," Ubrani says.

"It's not to say that the work's done, like I think there are still some social taboos, and we need to change some of these social norms... but we're certainly more accepting of the technology today than we were 10 years ago."

Motorola Razr Fold: Top-tier foldable with big battery and super-fast charging

Motorola has been a force to be reckoned with in the world of foldables for quite a few years now, and with the launch of the Razr 2026 series, the brand is looking to solidify that position even further. However, things are a bit different this time, as the brand has brought a new weapon to the battlefield, namely the Motorola Razr Fold.

As the company's first book-style foldable phone, the Razr Fold is easily the finest piece of mobile technology Motorola has made to date. It's built around a stunning 8.1-inch LTPO pOLED folding display with a 120Hz refresh rate and peak brightness of up to 6,200 nits. Complementing that panel is a 6.6-inch LTPO pOLED cover screen, which features an even faster 165Hz refresh rate and up to 6,000-nit peak brightness.

You get a Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Gen 5 under the hood, along with 16GB LPDDR5X RAM and 512GB UFS 4.1 storage. Add stylus compatibility to the mix, and the Galaxy Z Fold 7 seems to pale in comparison.

However, there's a lot more to the Razr Fold than stylus support and powerhouse specifications. A smartphone this loaded needs an equally robust battery to back things up, which is why the Razr Fold comes with a big 6,000mAh silicon-carbon powerpack to keep the lights on. As noted by Android Central's Derrek Lee in his Motorola Razr Fold review, the battery easily lasts over a day on a full charge. And the best thing is, it can be charged up in little to no time.

The Razr Fold supports speedy 80W wired charging, ensuring it's ready to go in almost no time. The 50W wireless charging is equally (if not more) impressive, and there's 5W reverse wireless charging also thrown into the mix for juicing up devices like wireless earbuds. Of course, to hit these charging speeds, you'll need a USB-C charger that's up to the task.

Arguably one of the best foldable phones on the market right now, the Motorola Razr Fold offers a premium user experience, complete with a slim yet durable build, fantastic cameras, and even long-term software support. If you're looking for a well-rounded foldable flagship and the steep price tag isn't an issue, you should certainly consider the Razr Fold.

Motorola found a hit with the Razr Ultra last year, pairing excellent cover screen software with a powerful Snapdragon 8 Elite chip and solid rear cameras. A potential sticking point was the price — the Razr Ultra 2025 eclipsed every Galaxy Z Flip model to date at $1,299, which proved higher than even the latest Galaxy Z Flip 7.

Well, if you thought the last-generation Razr Ultra was too expensive, I have bad news. The newest Razr Ultra 2026 is here, but it's $200 more expensive, making the flip phone a hefty $1,499.

There will be quite a few people who say $1,500 is too much to pay for a flip phone, and I can't really blame them. With the right deal, you can find big-screen foldables for sale at that same price point. Premium Android flagships, like the Galaxy S26 Ultra, are somehow cheaper. If you're on the fence about the Razr Ultra 2026, these are the top four alternatives. They strike the same notes as Motorola's premium flip phone while offering greater value.

Motorola Razr Ultra 2025

The Razr Ultra 2026 made a crucial mistake — it comes with an inflated price tag and minimal upgrades. Usually, consumers can live with a higher price or stagnant progress, but asking them to sacrifice both is tough. It has the same design, same displays, and same processor as the Razr Ultra 2025.

Don't get me wrong, there are some notable Razr Ultra 2026 upgrades, such as Gorilla Glass Ceramic 3, a brighter main screen, and a new 50MP LOFIC (Lateral Overflow Integration Capacitor) main camera sensor.

That said, with the same processor, displays, thickness, and weight, the Razr Ultra 2025 is easy to see as a viable alternative. You can find brand-new Razr Ultra 2025 models for around $700 or less right now, and that's roughly half the price of a Razr Ultra 2026. Paying half price for a year-old phone in new condition with the same processor and build as its successor sounds like a sweet deal to me.

The one drawback? Software support. Motorola infamously provides short software support windows for even its flagship phones. Both the Razr Ultra 2025 and Razr Ultra 2026 are getting three years of Android OS upgrades, which means the 2025 model has just two remaining. If there's any reason to skip 2025 and go with 2026 or one of the other alternatives on this list, it's software support.

Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 7

The Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 7 might have less powerful hardware than the Motorola Razr Ultra 2026, at least on paper. It's powered by the Samsung Exynos 2500 processor, and some will view that as weaker than the Snapdragon 8 Elite inside the flagship Razrs. Even if that is true, I used the Galaxy Z Flip 7 and didn't notice any lag or stutters. It performed like you'd expect a flagship phone to. Best of all, it's $400 cheaper than the Razr Ultra 2026 at its full retail price.

The Galaxy Z Flip 7 isn't just a cheaper alternative to the Razr Ultra 2026; it's downright better in a handful of ways. Specifically, Samsung's flip phone is thinner, at 13.7mm when folded, and lighter, at 188 grams. It also offers a full seven years of Android OS upgrade support, so if you buy it now, you'll still have roughly six years of support remaining after Samsung rolls out Android 17.

The drawback to going with the Galaxy Z Flip 7 is the limited cover screen software. With optional Good Lock modules, you can make the Galaxy Z Flip 7 cover screen more versatile, but it's still not as agile as the Razr's software.

Personally, I find the Galaxy Z Flip 7's hardware to feel more premium and refined than the Motorola Razr Ultra's, largely thanks to its thinner, lighter build and flat sides. When you factor in that you're saving around $500 by going with the Galaxy Z Flip 7, it's an easy sell.

Motorola Razr Fold

I understand that the audience for flips and folds is usually quite different. Those who prefer clamshell foldables want a compact, portable experience, while those who prefer book-style foldables want a larger screen for multitasking, gaming, or content consumption. That said, some people want a folding phone one way or another and opt for a flip phone to save money. In that case, there's a strong argument for buying the Motorola Razr Fold over the Razr Ultra 2026.

If you were considering the Razr Ultra 2026 at $1,499, consider that you could upgrade to the Razr Fold for around $400 more. I don't want to downplay spending that much extra money, but it's clear that the $1,899 Razr Fold is a better value than the $1,499 Razr Ultra 2026. For that extra cash, you get a large 8.1-inch main screen, a trio of 50MP rear cameras, and a 6,000mAh silicon-carbon battery.

If you buy it now, you get a Moto Pen Ultra for free, which is a $99 value. The Razr Ultra 2026 doesn't support an active stylus of any kind, so pen lovers will want to upgrade to the Razr Fold.

If the sticker price of the Razr Fold is too high, perhaps hold off on the Razr Ultra 2026 and wait for sales. Remember how the Razr Ultra 2025 is already around $600 off just a year after its release? You can expect the Razr Fold to eventually see similar sales, and it could be priced below the retail price of the Razr Ultra 2026 soon enough.

Samsung Galaxy S26 Ultra

Finally, there's the Samsung Galaxy S26 Ultra. In some ways, the Galaxy S26 Ultra is the antithesis of the Razr Ultra 2026. The former is large and tall, while the latter folds in half to remain compact. However, the higher price point of the Razr Ultra 2026 means that it faces new competition. The Galaxy S26 Ultra is still priced at only $1,299, which means the objectively better phone costs $200 less than the Razr Ultra 2026.

Not everyone wants the "better" hardware — there's still certainly a case for choosing the Razr Ultra 2026 anyway. But consider all that you get for $200 less with the Galaxy S26 Ultra: a Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5 for Galaxy chipset, a 200MP main camera, a 6.9-inch display with Privacy Display, an inbuilt stylus, and a seven-year Android OS upgrade commitment.

If you care about having an "Ultra" phone, the Galaxy S26 Ultra certainly hits the mark while coming in cheaper than the Razr Ultra 2026.

Again, the Motorola Razr Ultra 2026 sounds like a great phone — it just doesn't have a great price. If you want the absolute best value, go with one of the other four compelling options on this list. Or, wait for a Razr Ultra 2026 deal to make the price more manageable.

The OnePlus Pad series is still where I think the company has some of its old "Flagship killer" instincts left. Last year's OnePlus Pad 3 brought together a premium design, solid software, powerful hardware, and very few compromises, so I was genuinely excited when OnePlus told me it was working on a successor.

On paper, though, the OnePlus Pad 4 feels like a fairly incremental upgrade. It brings the latest Qualcomm flagship chipset, an even bigger battery than last year, and keeps a very similar overall design. There are also a few odd downgrades this time around, mostly because of rising memory and component costs, which now seem to be affecting tablets as well.

But Android tablets in general still feel like they're stuck in a weird spot right now, and that's exactly where the OnePlus Pad 4 lands, too. It's undeniably powerful, but whether it truly has what it takes to compete against the very best tablets on the market, I'm still not fully convinced. I've been using the OnePlus Pad 4 for the past three weeks, and here's what I've learned.

The display is still fantastic, but OLED would've made it unbeatable

One of the only complaints we had about last year's OnePlus Pad 3 was that OnePlus still used an IPS LCD panel on what was supposed to be its flagship tablet. Unfortunately, that's still the case with the OnePlus Pad 4 as well.

The OnePlus Pad 4 comes with a very similar 13.2-inch IPS LCD display to last year's model. It's still a really good panel overall, with Dolby Vision support and up to a 144Hz refresh rate. OnePlus has also bumped the brightness from 900 nits to 1,000 nits in high brightness mode, which definitely helps a bit more outdoors.

But as we've been saying for the past couple of years, an LCD panel still just can't reproduce colors and contrast the same way an OLED display can. You probably won't notice much of an issue while using it, but the moment you place it next to an OLED panel, the difference becomes pretty obvious.

That said, I still had a pretty fun time binge-watching the first season of "Your Friends & Neighbors" on Apple TV, especially thanks to that eight-speaker setup that makes the whole experience pretty joyful.

The thin design is great, but this tablet really needs a case

The OnePlus Pad 4 is impressively thin at just 5.9mm. It's not the thinnest tablet around — the Galaxy Tab S11 Ultra is thinner at 5.1mm, and even the Xiaomi Pad 8 Pro comes in slightly slimmer at 5.8mm. However, the overall design of the OnePlus Pad 4 still feels very premium. You get a unibody metal build along with a relatively small camera module on the top-right corner that still protrudes slightly.

On the front, the bezels are fairly slim, and I still appreciate that OnePlus uses separate volume buttons instead of a unified rocker. But one thing I immediately realized after taking the tablet out of the box is that combining such a slim design with a massive battery also makes it quite heavy.

And because of that, using the OnePlus Pad 4 without a case quickly becomes uncomfortable, especially during longer sessions. Honestly, if you're planning to buy a tablet this large and heavy, a case should probably be the first accessory you pick up. Even when using it on a desk, you'll want something that can prop it up properly instead of constantly holding it in your hands.

Open Canvas remains one of the best things about OnePlus tablets

That said, this massive 13.2-inch display also ends up being the perfect fit for OnePlus Open Canvas. For those who don't remember, Open Canvas is OnePlus' multitasking system that lets you run up to three apps side by side, and honestly, it turned out to be one of my favorite parts of using this tablet.

Most of the time, I had Slack, Google Docs, and Chrome open together for writing, research, and communication, and the large screen handled that setup really well. I didn't need to switch between different tabs again and again, and even though the OnePlus Pad 4 supports floating windows and more traditional split-screen multitasking, Open Canvas just feels much more natural on a display this size.

And I think multitasking on this tablet could get even better once Android 17's App Bubbles feature eventually arrives here.

The Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5 barely breaks a sweat here

The OnePlus Pad 4 is powered by Qualcomm's Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5, and the tablet barely falters no matter what you throw at it. In some ways, the chip almost feels like overkill for an Android tablet, but if you're planning to use this as your primary gaming or productivity device, the extra power definitely helps.

I played a bunch of games on the tablet during my time with it, and everything ran extremely smoothly without any noticeable frame drops or heating issues. OxygenOS also feels pretty well optimized for this large screen.

One slightly odd downgrade this year, though, is the RAM configuration. The base OnePlus Pad 4 now starts with 8GB of RAM, whereas last year's model offered 12GB by default.

It didn't really affect my day-to-day usage much during testing, but I can see it potentially becoming a limitation in the long run, especially for those who might pick this for things like editing (with the Adobe Premiere app coming to Android later this year).

The battery life is exactly what I want from a large Android tablet

The OnePlus Pad 4 ships with a massive 13,380mAh battery and support for 80W SuperVOOC charging. Thankfully, the real-world battery life is just as impressive as the specs suggest.

What I absolutely loved is the tablet's standby time. I went on a four-day trip to Thailand without the tablet, and it had 68% when I left. Even after returning, the battery only dropped to just 62%, which is incredibly good, especially considering the tablet stayed connected to Wi-Fi with notifications enabled the whole time.

That's what matters the most for a tablet. Unlike a phone, you don't necessarily use a tablet every single day. Good standby life means that whenever you pick it up, there's usually enough battery left to use it immediately, without first plugging it in and waiting for it to charge.

Verdict

So what's not so good about this tablet? Well, barely anything. But when I say Android tablets are still in a weird space right now, it's mostly because the app ecosystem hasn't fully caught up.

Android itself is now pretty capable when it comes to multitasking and productivity, but app developers still don't seem to treat Android tablets with the same seriousness as iPads. On the iPad side, you have access to Apple's entire suite of professional apps, along with much better optimized creative apps for video editing, writing, drawing, and photo editing. There are also several AAA games available on the iPad now that still don't have proper Android counterparts in sight.

And, yes, that isn't really OnePlus' fault. The hardware here is genuinely excellent, and the company has done a really good job with the software experience too. The OnePlus Pad 4 pretty much has everything it needs to succeed as an Android tablet, but the broader Android tablet ecosystem still holds it back slightly.

Of course, there are also some concerns around OnePlus right now, especially with the company scaling back operations in a few regions. That said, at least in markets like India where OnePlus tablets still seem to be doing well, the Pad 4 makes a lot of sense.

For the price, this is still a fantastic gaming tablet and, honestly, one of the better multimedia Android tablets you can buy right now.

Google once again took to I/O to extol AI and talk about how agentic AI is going to free us from mundane tasks to such an extent that we'll all have so much free time we won't know what to do with. There's just one problem with that — AI in its current iteration isn't anywhere close to being as good.

I like using Google's services; I set up my Gmail account close to two decades ago, I have 11 years' worth of photos and videos stored in Photos, and important documents in Drive — a good chunk of my digital presence is inexorably linked to my Google account.

I was okay with the tradeoffs it involved; I didn't mind sharing my data with Google back when all it did with that information was serve me targeted ads. That isn't the case with AI. With Google using personal data to train AI models — ostensibly to provide customized information — I'm wary of how much of my data is being siphoned into Gemini. Thankfully, it's easy enough (for now) to prevent Gemini from accessing Drive, Photos, Gmail, and other services. I did so by disabling Gemini's logs; go to your Google's account settings, and toggle Gemini Apps Activity to off.

While it's easy enough to ignore Gemini right now, Google is intent on putting that damn sparkle icon just about everywhere. I'm greeted by an Ask Gemini button in Chrome, it's ever-present in Gmail (I don't want to summarize a 100-word email!), and for reasons I don't understand, it's bundled into Google Photos (which had a metadata-based search that was just fine), and even Maps is getting Gemini now.

Google also showcased how Docs Live acts as a "thought partner and co-writer" when you're "rambling a stream of consciousness or brainstorming an idea." Umm, no thanks. I get that AI is the ultimate buzzword now, and Google is ideally positioned to leverage it — the search giant already has troves of data from billions of users, so it makes sense to put that to use to train its models. But I don't want any part of it, and while I get that these features are useful if you need assistance in drafting a document or writing a formal email, I don't see any utility in any of the myriad of new Gemini features coming to Docs, Gmail, or even Keep. I don't want to talk to Keep to organize my thoughts — that's where I go to jot down never-ending to-do lists.

All I wanted was for Google to make any meaningful changes to Search, but what we got instead was a wholesale AI makeover that doesn't address the lingering issues facing Google's marquee product. The quality of search has degraded to such an extent that it's an SEO-riddled spam — particularly in India. Google knows this, and that's why it started serving Reddit and Quora results prominently on the page, ostensibly to deal with spam.

As brands increasingly push these AI services and make them harder to ignore, I'm reminded of a post that talks about teaching in the age of generative AI. It goes into how LLMs have made coursework frictionless to a point where the "process of doing the work" is negated. That made me think a lot about how a little amount of friction is needed, even with mundane tasks. Whether that's cleaning up digital data (a Sunday morning task I've been doing for the better part of a decade), sorting out all the bills, managing subscriptions, organizing photos and videos, there's a sense of reward that I get when doing these tasks, and I don't want AI to remove that friction.

Look, I'll admit that Google did a decent job outlining its AI vision; Gemini Spark, Omni, Daily Brief, and Universal Cart all tie into what the brand has been doing over the last year, and it's a natural extension to the chatbot. I get that these features have tangible utility, but I don't see a need to use any of them, and I don't see that changing soon.

Google I/O is currently underway, and after sitting through a monotonous an exciting keynote address, I got the chance to demo some upcoming Android XR glasses and prototypes. Samsung and Xreal are seemingly two of the most dedicated players in the space, and I got to try both Xreal's glasses and the latest Google prototype, which the Samsung glasses are no doubt based on, giving us a look at how Android XR will span different types of eyewear.

Samsung was set to launch Android XR hardware last year with the Galaxy XR, but it's a large, bulky device you wouldn't want to wear around. This time around, the focus is on more compact glasses for everyday wear. These are the ones I got to play with, and while I can't wait for audio-only glasses to come around, I'm more excited about what Samsung and Xreal have in store when it comes to display glasses.

Xreal is unreal

The first demo I got to try was arguably the more interesting one. Xreal teased its Project Aura glasses last year, and I was able to give them a spin ahead of the launch later this year. These glasses sport two OLED displays behind the lenses, one for each eye.

If you're familiar with Xreal products, the design here shouldn't surprise you. They're thick glasses that sit a little further from your face than usual, in order to give you room for the displays. It's a design I'm not a fan of from the outside looking in, but when they're on your face, you don't notice the difference.

The Project Aura glasses have two cameras on either side of the lenses for perception and tracking, while the middle is for taking photos and videos. One temple holds all the buttons: volume rocker, Home/Gemini, and a dimming button to control the electrochromic dimming of the lenses.

There's also a separate puck that connects to the glasses, which houses the battery and compute (it's powered by Snapdragon). I wasn't able to get solid figures on battery life, but you can probably get through a full movie while wearing them.

The puck also has a touch panel to control the glasses, which I thought was pretty clever. And in true Xreal form, you can plug in other devices like laptops and phones to display your windows and apps.

So, what was it like to use the glasses? Pretty cool actually! The visuals are better than I expected: Text is legible, colors feel plenty vibrant, and everything is super responsive. Aside from the puck, you can use gestures to control the glasses, similar to Galaxy XR. You pinch and drag to select, move, and resize objects.

Interacting with the Android XR UI feels intuitive and reminds me of the Quest 3, so I was able to pick it up quickly, swiping through and resizing apps.

I opened a trailer for the Spider-Man 2 video game, and at first, the video looked a bit washed out, which worried me. Then I adjusted the electrochromic dimming, which supports five levels. Eventually, the video looked super crisp and vibrant, as if I was watching it on my laptop's OLED display. I was thoroughly surprised at how good it was, and it even stayed in place against a wall as I moved around.

Second, I was able to play with an app created for the glasses using Antigravity. I basically used my hands to paint shapes in a 3D space by pinching my fingers together. I could change the colors of the "paint" and even alter the thickness by twisting my wrist. And again, it stayed in place as I moved around the space. I admit, this left me very impressed.

According to Xreal, Project Aura is a sort of in-between device, aiming to give us the power and utility of the Galaxy XR (hence, the external power puck), but in a more compact form factor like the Meta Ray-Ban Display Glasses. I never got to use Galaxy XR, but I was left more excited about display glasses than I ever was before.

Making a case for monocular display glasses

I also got to try Google's prototype monocular display glasses, which are used as a reference model for Samsung's upcoming glasses. This isn't my first time using them, but there were some new tricks I was able to try this time around. For instance, there are new widgets you can access and scroll through by swiping on the touch panel.

One widget is the Translate widget, which I opened with a tap and used to translate what someone was saying to me in Korean. And even as the person paused before continuing to speak, the glasses kept translating, which felt like a small but really useful component.

Additionally, I was able to take advantage of Nano Banana on the glasses—which feels a little crazy to do on glasses—but given their visual nature, I guess it makes sense. I was able to take a photo of myself with the glasses, then tell Gemini to put me in space with Neptune in the background. It took some time to generate (everyone was on the Wi-Fi), but a preview appeared on the glasses and on the paired Pixel.

But even previously announced features like Google Maps integration is still impressive on monocular displays like this. It's cool to see a simple directions in your line of sight as you're walking, but tilt your head downwards, and the glasses will display a section of map so you can actually visualize where you're going as you go. I can see this being much more useful than glasses just barking directions at you.

It may take some time to get used to the single display, which sits on the right lens, but your eyes adjust fairly quickly. And unlike dual-display glasses like Project Aura, information is displayed in a much simpler way so as not to overwhelm you.

The singular display option feels like a nice medium between audio glasses and full-on XR glasses, and I'm really excited to see how Samsung and others incorporate them into various designs. I still feel like audio glasses are more my speed, but my experience at Google I/O left me much more open to display glasses.

Both Xreal and Samsung are expected to launch their glasses later this year. Let's just hope they're not priced out of reach.

The stable build of Android 17 is now rolling out to Pixels, so if you're using the Pixel 6 or above, you can download the latest version of Android. As is the case with every new version of Android, the main question is whether you'll be able to install it on your phone. While most manufacturers are doing a good job with software updates in general, there's still plenty of fragmentation, and this affects budget and mid-range phones to a greater extent.

As a high-level overview, if your phone was released in 2024 or later, there's a good possibility that it will make the switch to Android 17 without any issues. The only caveat here is Xiaomi's mid-range phones; the Redmi Note 13 Pro+ debuted globally in January 2024, but because it came with Android 13 instead of Android 14, Xiaomi isn't going to update the phone to Android 17. This is insidious to say the least, and Xiaomi used the same strategy with the Redmi Note 14 Pro+ and this year's Redmi Note 15 Pro+ to get out of delivering meaningful updates to its phones.

Thankfully, this isn't the case with most phone brands, so even if you have an older phone, there's a good chance that it will get the update to Android 17. The easiest way to do this is break things down by manufacturer, so let's get started.

Google

Google's Pixels get Android updates ahead of every other phone, and that isn't changing in 2026. With Android 17, Pixel 6 and above are getting the stable build now, so you can just head on over to your phone settings and install the update. Google's Android 17 eligibility list includes 20 phones in total (Google has been busy in the last three years):

• Google Pixel 6
• Google Pixel 6 Pro
• Google Pixel 6a
• Google Pixel 7
• Google Pixel 7 Pro
• Google Pixel 7a
• Google Pixel Fold
• Google Pixel 8
• Google Pixel 8 Pro
• Google Pixel 8a
• Google Pixel 9
• Google Pixel 9 Pro
• Google Pixel 9 Pro XL
• Google Pixel 9 Pro Fold
• Google Pixel 9a
• Google Pixel 10
• Google Pixel 10 Pro
• Google Pixel 10 Pro XL
• Google Pixel 10 Pro Fold
• Google Pixel 10a

Samsung

Samsung guarantees seven Android OS updates to its flagships and six years of updates to its mid-rangers, and the brand is doing a much better job getting these updates out the door. With the S series, the Galaxy S23 and above will make the switch to Android 17, and with Galaxy A models, all devices starting with the Galaxy A24 should get Android 17.

Galaxy S series

• Samsung Galaxy S23
• Samsung Galaxy S23+
• Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra
• Samsung Galaxy S23 FE
• Samsung Galaxy S24
• Samsung Galaxy S24+
• Samsung Galaxy S24 Ultra
• Samsung Galaxy S24 FE
• Samsung Galaxy S25
• Samsung Galaxy S25+
• Samsung Galaxy S25 Ultra
• Samsung Galaxy S25 Edge
• Samsung Galaxy S25 FE
• Samsung Galaxy S26
• Samsung Galaxy S26+
• Samsung Galaxy S26 Ultra

Galaxy Z series

• Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 5
• Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 5
• Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 6
• Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 6
• Samsung Galaxy Z Fold Special Edition
• Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 7
• Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 7
• Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 7 FE
• Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 8
• Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 8
• Samsung Galaxy Z TriFold

Galaxy A series

• Samsung Galaxy A24
• Samsung Galaxy A34
• Samsung Galaxy A54
• Samsung Galaxy A15
• Samsung Galaxy A25
• Samsung Galaxy A35
• Samsung Galaxy A55
• Samsung Galaxy A06
• Samsung Galaxy A16
• Samsung Galaxy A26
• Samsung Galaxy A36
• Samsung Galaxy A56
• Samsung Galaxy A07
• Samsung Galaxy A17
• Samsung Galaxy A37
• Samsung Galaxy A57

Galaxy M series

• Samsung Galaxy M15
• Samsung Galaxy M35
• Samsung Galaxy M55
• Samsung Galaxy M07
• Samsung Galaxy M16
• Samsung Galaxy M36
• Samsung Galaxy M56
• Samsung Galaxy M17e
• Samsung Galaxy M17

Galaxy F series

• Samsung Galaxy F06
• Samsung Galaxy F07
• Samsung Galaxy F15
• Samsung Galaxy F16
• Samsung Galaxy F17
• Samsung Galaxy F34
• Samsung Galaxy F35
• Samsung Galaxy F36
• Samsung Galaxy F54
• Samsung Galaxy F55
• Samsung Galaxy F56
• Samsung Galaxy F70e

Vivo

Vivo is crushing it; the X300 Ultra is the best phone you can buy in 2026, and the X300 Pro has cameras that are nearly as good. The mid-range V70 Elite has exciting cameras as well, and the brand's software efforts are much better thanks to the new OriginOS interface.

Vivo's X300 models will get five years of software updates, and the mid-rangers like the V70 and V70 Elite are guaranteed with four Android OS updates. Vivo is doing a much better job delivering updates on time, and in addition to platform releases, I get regular security updates on the X300 Ultra and X300 Pro. This is the list of all the Vivo and iQOO phones that will make the switch to Android 17:

Vivo X series

• Vivo X100
• Vivo X100 Pro
• Vivo X100 Ultra
• Vivo X200
• Vivo X200 Pro
• Vivo X200 Ultra
• Vivo X200 FE
• Vivo X200T
• Vivo X300
• Vivo X300 FE
• Vivo X300 Pro
• Vivo X300 Ultra

Vivo X Fold series

• Vivo X Fold 3 Pro
• Vivo X Fold 5

Vivo V series

• Vivo V40
• Vivo V40 Pro
• Vivo V50
• Vivo V50e
• Vivo V50 Lite
• Vivo V50 Lite 4G
• Vivo V60
• Vivo V60 Lite
• Vivo V60 Lite 4G
• Vivo V60e
• Vivo V70
• Vivo V70 FE
• Vivo V70 Elite

Vivo T series

• Vivo T4
• Vivo T4 Lite
• Vivo T4 Pro
• Vivo T4R
• Vivo T4 Ultra
• Vivo T4x
• Vivo Y seri

Vivo Y series

• Vivo Y05 4G
• Vivo Y11
• Vivo Y21
• Vivo Y31d 4G
• Vivo Y51 Pro
• Vivo Y300 GT
• Vivo Y300i
• Vivo Y300t
• Vivo Y400
• Vivo Y400 4G
• Vivo Y400 Pro
• Vivo Y400 Pro+

iQOO

• iQOO 12 Pro
• iQOO 13
• iQOO 15
• iQOO 15R
• iQOO 15 Ultra
• iQOO Z10
• iQOO Z10 Lite
• iQOO Z10R
• iQOO Z10x
• iQOO Z11x
• iQOO Neo 9 Pro
• iQOO Neo 10
• iQOO Neo 10R

OPPO

OPPO is similarly doing good things both with the hardware and ensuring its phones are available globally, and the Find X9 Ultra is a close second to the X300 Ultra if you want a camera-focused flagship in 2026. The brand now guarantees five Android OS updates to its high-end phones, and even the Reno 15 models will get the same number of updates. While older phones won't get as many software updates, OPPO has a good selection of phones that will be updated to Android 17:

Find X series

• OPPO Find X7
• OPPO Find X7 Ultra
• OPPO Find X8
• OPPO Find X8 Pro
• OPPO Find X8 Ultra
• OPPO Find X9
• OPPO Find X9 Pro
• OPPO Find X9 Ultra

Find N series

• OPPO Find N5
• OPPO Find N6

Reno series

• OPPO Reno 11
• OPPO Reno 11 Pro
• OPPO Reno 11F
• OPPO Reno 12
• OPPO Reno 12 Pro
• OPPO Reno 13 F
• OPPO Reno 14
• OPPO Reno 14 F
• OPPO Reno 14 Pro
• OPPO Reno 15
• OPPO Reno 15 Mini
• OPPO Reno 15 Pro

OPPO F series

• OPPO F25 Pro
• OPPO F27 5G
• OPPO F27 Pro+
• OPPO F29
• OPPO F29 Pro
• OPPO F31 5G
• OPPO F31 Pro 5G
• OPPO F31 Pro Plus
• OPPO F33 5G
• OPPO F33 Pro 5G

OPPO A/K series

• OPPO A5 5G
• OPPO A5 Energy
• OPPO A5 Pro
• OPPO A5x
• OPPO A6 Pro
• OPPO A6x 5G
• OPPO K13
• OPPO K13 Turbo
• OPPO K13x
• OPPO K15 Pro

Motorola

Motorola's update policies have thankfully changed for the better in recent years, but the brand still lags behind its rivals. The latest Razr Fold stands out as it is slated to get seven years of Android OS updates — just like Google and Samsung phones — but the rest of the Razr 2026 models will get just three updates.

Annoyingly, Motorola's Moto G series devices will just get one to two platform updates, and that means if you have an older budget Motorola phone, there's a good chance that your device won't switch to Android 17.

Motorola flagship series

• Motorola Razr 2024
• Motorola Razr+ 2024
• Motorola Razr 2025
• Motorola Razr Plus 2025
• Motorola Razr Ultra 2025
• Motorola Razr 2026
• Motorola Razr Plus 2026
• Motorola Razr Ultra 2026
• Motorola Razr Fold
• Motorola ThinkPhone
• Motorola ThinkPhone 25
• Motorola Signature

Motorola Edge series

• Motorola Edge 2024
• Motorola Edge 50 Fusion
• Motorola Edge 50 Pro
• Motorola Edge 50 Neo
• Motorola Edge 50 Ultra
• Motorola Edge 2025
• Motorola Edge 60
• Motorola Edge 60 Fusion
• Motorola Edge 60 Neo
• Motorola Edge 60 Pro
• Motorola Edge 60 Stylus
• Motorola Edge 70
• Motorola Edge 70 Fusion
• Motorola Edge 70 Fusion+
• Motorola Edge 70 Pro

Motorola Moto G series

• Motorola Moto G 2025
• Motorola Moto G Power 2025
• Motorola Moto G Stylus 2025
• Motorola Moto G47
• Motorola Moto G37
• Motorola Moto G37 Power
• Motorola Moto G87
• Motorola Moto G86
• Motorola Moto G86 Power
• Motorola Moto G77
• Motorola Moto G75
• Motorola Moto G67
• Motorola Moto G67 Power
• Motorola Moto G57
• Motorola Moto G57 Power
• Motorola Moto G56

Nothing

Nothing is doing a great job in general as a phone manufacturer, and the Phone 4a and 4a Pro are my recommendations if you need a budget or mid-range phone in 2026. A distinct software interface with plenty of flair and unique extras, clean design ethos both with the hardware and software, and generous updates have allowed Nothing to stand out considerably. With the brand guaranteeing at least three updates for its entry-level and budget phones, most of its portfolio will switch to Android 17:

• Nothing Phone 2
• Nothing Phone 2a
• Nothing Phone 2a Plus
• Nothing Phone 3
• Nothing Phone 3a
• Nothing Phone 3a Pro
• Nothing Phone 3a Lite
• Nothing Phone 4a
• Nothing Phone 4a Pro
• CMF Phone 2 Pro

OnePlus

OnePlus isn't what it used to be even a few years ago, and while its ambitions are much more modest in 2026, it continues to have a decent portfolio of devices. Most of its phones released in the last three years will be updated to Android 17, and with the software now identical to ColorOS, you should see the stable update roll out just a few weeks after it becomes available.

OnePlus numbered series:

• OnePlus 11
• OnePlus 11R
• OnePlus 12
• OnePlus 12R
• OnePlus 13
• OnePlus 13R
• OnePlus 13s
• OnePlus 13T
• OnePlus 15
• OnePlus 15R

OnePlus foldable:

• OnePlus Open

OnePlus Nord series:

• OnePlus Nord 4
• OnePlus Nord 5
• OnePlus Nord 6
• OnePlus Nord CE4
• OnePlus Nord CE4 Lite
• OnePlus Nord CE 5
• OnePlus Nord CE 6
• OnePlus Nord CE 6 Lite

Xiaomi

Of all the major phone manufacturers, Xiaomi stands out for its egregious policies around software updates. The brand consistently releases phones with old versions of Android, and uses this as the excuse to not deliver timely updates. Then there's the question of when these updates are rolled out; Xiaomi is consistently among the last to deliver platform updates to its phones. With that out of the way, let's take a look at what Xiaomi phones will be updated to Android 17 (eventually):

Xiaomi numbered series:

• Xiaomi 13
• Xiaomi 13 Pro
• Xiaomi 13 Ultra
• Xiaomi 13T
• Xiaomi 13T Pro
• Xiaomi 14
• Xiaomi 14 Pro
• Xiaomi 14 Ultra
• Xiaomi 14T
• Xiaomi 14T Pro
• Xiaomi 14 CIVI
• Xiaomi 15
• Xiaomi 15 Pro
• Xiaomi 15 Ultra
• Xiaomi 15T
• Xiaomi 15T Pro
• Xiaomi 17
• Xiaomi 17 Ultra

Xiaomi foldables:

• Xiaomi MIX Fold 3
• Xiaomi MIX Fold 4
• Xiaomi MIX Flip
• Xiaomi MIX Flip 2

Redmi Note series:

• Redmi Note 14
• Redmi Note 14 Pro
• Redmi Note 14 Pro+
• Redmi Note 14 Pro 4G
• Redmi Note 14 4G
• Redmi Note 14S
• Redmi Note 15
• Redmi Note 15 5G
• Redmi Note 15 Pro
• Redmi Note 15 Pro+
• Redmi Note 15 Pro 4G

Redmi series:

• Redmi 15
• Redmi 15 4G
• Redmi 15C
• Redmi 15C 4G

With the stable Android 17 build now available, it shouldn't be long before manufacturers start sharing their own rollout plans. I'm monitoring the same, and will update the post with all the information as and when it becomes available.

Google I/O 2026 just wrapped up, and unsurprisingly, almost every major announcement during this year's keynote revolved around Gemini. From the new Gemini models to a Gemini-powered shopping cart that can track prices and deals for you, nearly everything Google announced had Gemini integrated into it in some form.

I haven't really been too sold on Google's Gemini push over the past few I/O events. A lot of the features felt interesting on stage, but never really impacted my day-to-day life in a meaningful way. But the I/O 2026 felt a little different. Google has now integrated Gemini much deeper into its core products, and some of the new features genuinely look like they could save users a lot of time.

Here are the top five things you need to know from Google I/O 2026.

Gemini is slowly becoming the AI assistant Google always wanted

Ever since Google announced Gemini, the company has been trying to position it as the replacement for the original Google Assistant. But after I/O 2026, it finally feels like that transition is actually happening. Google introduced something called Gemini Spark, which is essentially a personal AI agent that can run 24/7 in the background and take actions on your behalf.

And these actions aren't limited to your device. Since Gemini Spark runs in the cloud, it can continue working even after you close your laptop or lock your phone. For example, you could ask it to monitor your credit card bills for suspicious charges or track updates from your kid's school and summarize important information directly into Gmail.

It works somewhat similarly to projects like OpenClaw, although Google still doesn't allow local browsing, messaging, or emailing directly through Spark just yet. The company says those features are coming later. Google also emphasized that Spark won't take important actions like spending money or sending emails without explicit user approval.

Alongside this, Google also introduced a new feature called Daily Brief. It works similarly to the Daily Hub on the Pixel 10 series, pulling together updates from Gmail, Calendar, and other Google apps into a more digestible overview. It can automatically prioritize tasks based on your goals and even suggest immediate next steps.

Both Gemini Spark and Daily Brief are starting to roll out for Google AI Ultra subscribers in the U.S.

Gemini will now edit videos for you

Gemini can already generate images and edit photos, but now Google is taking things much further with video. Replacing the older Veo branding, the company introduced Gemini Omni, which brings conversational video editing directly into Gemini.

For example, you can simply type things like "apply a cinematic zoom to this clip" or "swap the background," and Gemini will edit the video for you automatically.

What makes Gemini Omni even more interesting is that it supports multiple types of input at once. You can combine text, images, videos, and even audio into one final output. For example, you could provide a still image, an audio track, and a visual effect prompt, then ask Gemini to generate a complete video using all of them together.

Since Omni is built on Gemini's reasoning architecture, Google says it has a much better understanding of real-world physics and movement, including things like gravity, motion, and object interaction, making the generated videos look more realistic overall.

For now, Google is launching the first model in the Omni family called Gemini Omni Flash. It's rolling out to Google AI Plus, Pro, and Ultra subscribers through the Gemini app. Google also says users will be able to remix YouTube Shorts using Gemini Omni starting later this week.

Gemini can now track deals and price drops across the web for you

One of the best features Google announced today, at least in my opinion, is the new Gemini-powered Universal Cart. The feature works across different retailers and Google services, and once you add products to the cart while browsing Search or chatting with Gemini, it starts working in the background automatically.

Google says Universal Cart will track price drops, monitor stock availability, show price history insights, and even notify you when a product comes back in stock.

What makes it even more interesting is how smart it seems to be. For example, if you're building a custom PC, Gemini can understand compatibility behind the scenes and stop you from adding incompatible components to your cart. And if something doesn't work, it'll suggest alternative products automatically. It can also analyze the cards you've saved in Google Wallet and recommend the best payment method to maximize cashback, rewards, or savings.

Another big advantage is that it works across multiple retailers instead of locking you into one storefront. So whether you're adding products from Amazon, Walmart, Nike, or Target, everything gets tracked together in one Universal Cart.

Universal Cart is expected to begin rolling out later this summer, although only in the U.S. for now.

Google Search is getting a whole lot different

For years, the Google search box has basically just been a place where you type questions and get results from the web. But at I/O 2026, Google announced some major changes to Search that could dramatically change how people use it going forward.

Search is no longer limited to just text. Google says users will now be able to combine text, images, videos, and even Chrome tabs into a single search query. Search is also getting something called Search Agents, which work somewhat similarly to Gemini Spark. These agents can run in the background 24/7 and keep track of information that matters to you.

For example, you could create a Search Agent to monitor a stock you're interested in or continuously look for properties in a specific area within a certain budget and size range.

Google is also introducing custom dashboards and trackers for ongoing tasks. The company describes these as personalized "mini apps" built around your own workflows, whether that's planning a wedding, tracking nutrition goals, or managing long-term projects. Google says these agents and mini apps will begin rolling out later this summer, initially for AI Pro and AI Ultra subscribers in the U.S.

Gmail is finally getting the conversational AI search it needed

If you've ever wondered why Gmail still felt stuck with old-school keyword search despite Google pushing conversational AI everywhere else, Google is finally changing that at I/O 2026.

The company has introduced a new feature called Gmail Live, which lets users conversationally search through their inbox instead of typing traditional keywords. For example, you could simply ask something like, "Find the flight number for my flight today," and Gmail will pull up the relevant information directly.

Alongside this, Google is also expanding the AI Inbox experience it first introduced earlier this year. The feature essentially turns Gmail into a more personalized dashboard for tasks, updates, and important information using Gemini. Google says the expanded AI Inbox experience will now roll out to Google AI Plus and AI Pro subscribers as well.