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The Galaxy Z Flip 3 is the Android smartphone of my dreams—mostly. It’s everything I loved about my flip phone from the early aughts, combined with the abilities of a flagship smartphone. But just as I had to ease into the idea of an all-screen phone a decade ago, I’m now finding myself taking a beat before jumping to a foldable.

The Z Flip 3’s flip-down body is a total flashback to the past. I’ve never felt more satisfied hanging up on a video call—regular phone calls are less frequent in this day and age—or even shutting the phone closed after a raid gone bad in Pokémon Go. I love the malleability of the Z Flip 3, which is unlike anything we had back in the day. It has all the requisite features you want out of a high-end smartphone, along with a form factor that lets you take better selfies, pocket the device in a pair of jeans, and even take it around shallow bodies of water.

As with everything in life, there are caveats. The main one here is that there is a learning curve because the Galaxy Z Flip 3 is a different type of phone. The differences were enough to become a disruption to my daily routine that led me back to my brick phone to move more quickly between tasks. Perhaps that speaks more to the general state of the world to which Samsung is marketing its new foldable smartphones than anything else. And I think that’s something to consider if you’re thinking about switching to the Galaxy Z Flip 3.

Flip Phone Redux
The Galaxy Z Flip 3 is Samsung’s third-generation effort at putting the flip phone back into the gadget zeitgeist. Its design is sure to turn heads, which Samsung is betting on. Every Snapchat ad (yes, I still use Snapchat) I’ve seen for the folding phones thus far claims that people will do double-takes when they see the device. I experienced a variety of reactions myself each time I showed off the Z Flip 3. A few folks seemed awed by the folding mechanism, while another friend was vehemently against the entire idea of a folding smartphone.

But flipping the phone closed is only one way to use the Galaxy Z Flip 3. When laid out, it looks and functions like a regular “flat” phone. It has a shiny backside, though the fill is matte and solid, giving it a similar effect to a car with a solid color chassis. The glass back is also very slippery, so it will need a bit of a watchful eye if you’re without a case to keep it from sliding around or off a table.

The Z Flip 3’s overall aesthetic is fun—what an advertising executive might refer to as “young at heart.” Samsung is offering seven different color options, three of which are exclusively available online. There’s both a pink and purple variant, plus cream, green, grey, and phantom black. And paired with one of its bold-colored silicon cases, the Z Flip 3 is one of the cutest smartphones available. You will likely see it sprout up in gadget aesthetic TikToks and Instagram Reels in the coming months. Brace yourselves.

The Galaxy Z Flip 3 is Samsung’s third iteration of the folding flip phone, so it’s had some time to figure out the overall design. Unlike the Galaxy Z Fold 3, which hails the company’s new under-display camera technology, the Z Flip has a punch-out camera squarely in the middle of the 6.7-inch Dynamic AMOLED display. That helps cut down on the outer bezel of the Z Flip 3, which is noticeably bigger than the OnePlus 9 Pro, for example. I don’t mind the bezel, as the phone needs that bit of structure to help retain the folding display. It also gives me more options for gripping the phone, which is already a bit tricky with its tall, narrow profile.

High-Resolution Fold
When the Z Flip 3 is laid out flat, it looks and functions like any other smartphone. I can still toss Poké balls, tap and select a mass of text, switch between applications, or clip it into a tripod in landscape mode to shoot photos. There is a noticeable crease in the middle of the Galaxy Z Flip 3’s 1080 x 2640 resolution display, though only when you’re staring carefully. From afar, and while there’s a video playing on screen, it’s hardly noticeable. The screen’s 120Hz refresh rate certainly helps make up for it.

There is a protective film over the screen to help maintain the integrity of the flexible display over time. I’m curious to see how the display panel will fare over months of use. Samsung claims each of its folding devices can do so about 200,000 times with nary a crack.

After a little over a week with this phone, I’m still trying to figure out how to handle the Galaxy Z Flip 3 in a way that feels natural. I had a heck of a time typing fast with my long nails, so I reluctantly cut them, hoping I’d have a more effortless time multitasking. That’s when I realized that the issue for me is the lack of the third-party accessory I rely on the most: the Pop Socket. I have become so reliant on its existence over the years—I started using one when I bought the first-generation Google Pixel. Every case for every phone I’ve used since then has had one. So when I converted over to the Z Flip 3, I had to adjust my use. I was cradling the Z Flip 3 a little more carefully at first since I didn’t have that extra apparatus on the back to hang on to. The silicon case helped me grip the Z Flip 3 with a little more confidence, and I started to use the included keychain loop on the back, similar to how I’d use a Pop Socket to secure the phone between my fingers. If you’ve built your life around one particular way of handling a smartphone, the Z Flip 3 will throw a wrench into that.

Remember when you could satisfyingly hang up on someone by simply flipping a phone shut? It’s hard to do one-handed with the Galaxy Z Flip 3. Though it’s possible, the phone requires a bit of “breaking in” before it’s soft enough to take that wielding. I had a hard time opening and closing it with just my dominant hand. Anyway, the flip phones that I was handling as a young adult were much smaller than this relative behemoth.

Needs More Folding Software
Another way to use the Z Flip 3, which I ended up using the most, is by folding it at an angle so that half of the screen is in use with your app and choice, and the other half acts as a prop a second display of sorts. In most instances, you’ll see a navigational menu pop up at the bottom, with options to adjust the volume and screen brightness, as well as an option to bring down the notification panel so that you don’t have to attempt to drag your finger across the bent-up display. There’s also a handy screenshot button, though the screen cap will include the navigational buttons, so you’ll have to crop it if you want to leave that bit out.

Not every app can natively support the Z Flip 3’s folding display mechanism, but a Labs feature hidden deep in the settings menu will force any app you want into the half-screen mode. It’s great for watching videos and works with apps like Pluto TV, YouTube TV, and Paramount+. The downside here is, you’re not using the entirety of the Z Flip 3’s vivid display, only a mere fraction. It’s fine at night before dozing off before bed, and I can even see myself using this when we’re flying again.

With the apps that didn’t translate well to the half-screen mode, I was reminded why we no longer have 3- and 4-inch displays. It’s simply not enough screen space! It was fine for messaging apps and text-based social networks like Twitter. But anything more graphical, and it feels like the screen gets cut off. And even when an app works fine on the half screen, sometimes it’s too small to use feasibly.

Google and Samsung redeveloped a few of the Z Flip 3’s included apps to better adapt to the faux dual display. For instance, in the Samsung Gallery app, the top half of the screen is for the image preview, while the bottom acts as a touchpad and navigation carousel. The camera app offers a similar interface, with camera controls at the bottom and the top half serving as a viewfinder. It’s especially beneficial when you’re trying to frame a photo and you don’t have a tripod in tow.

Get a Load of That Cover Display
The 1.9-inch Super AMOLED color display on the back of the device is one of my favorite features of the Z Flip 3. Samsung beefed it up over its predecessor by adding slightly more screen and functionality. I like to stand it up in front of my keyboard during work hours to track the time and notifications as they come in. The screen is small, so you’ll have to open the phone up for some of the longer notifications, but at least you can get a preview before you commit.

When you double-tap the screen, the wallpaper or graphic of your choice pops up. (It looks slick in person.) You can then slide to the right for current notifications or the left for Z Flip-specific widgets. They remind me of the ones that I already use on the Galaxy Watch Active. However, most of them act as exterior placeholders, and if you need to do more than peek at a stat, you’ll have to open the phone for most options.

The best part of the cover display is that it acts as a preview window for the primary camera. This means you can take high-resolution selfies with the Galaxy Z Flip 3’s 12-megapixel camera, which includes optical image stabilization. Double press the power button as you would with the phone open to launch the camera, then tap the screen to being a quick two-second countdown. It’s enough time to fluff up your hair and fake a smile.

Battery Life Leaves You Hanging
Battery performance had me more worried, considering the Z Flip 3’s giant display and high refresh rate. The Galaxy Z Flip 3 has a 3300 mAh battery on the inside with 15W fast charging capabilities, 10W wireless fast charging, and 4.5W reverse wireless charging. That’s quite a few ways to work with such a small battery pack, at least compared to the other big-screened smartphones that have come out in recent years. Even Samsung’s Galaxy S21 has a larger 4000 mAh battery for its 6.2-inch screen. Ultimately, I managed about 11 hours in full in Gizmodo’s battery rundown test before the Z Flip 3 wholly petered out. It’s shorter than the Pixel 5’s 16 hours, and even the Galaxy S21 managed at least 12 hours.

Samsung’s Take on Android Is an Adjustment
There are still some things I’m figuring out about this particular form factor. Most of it has to do with Samsung’s One UI and its interpretation of Android specially tailored to its smartphones. Some of the menu structures vary from what I’m used to on Google’s version of Android on the Pixel or even OnePlus’s version of Oxygen OS running atop Android 11 on its flagship smartphones. That’s all to say that if you haven’t been on a Samsung device in a while, remember that it’s the company’s version of Android and not necessarily Google’s, despite how closely the two companies worked together to make apps better accommodate to folding screens.

At the very least, Samsung has committed itself to three years of major software updates, about on par with what Google offers. But as the company’s track record has proven thus far, you’re like to get the latest version of Android a bit later than when Google pushes it out to the Pixel devices.

Every time I pick up the Galaxy Z Flip 3, I think about whether this is a form factor I could see myself living with day in and day out. Truthfully, I’m still straddling the line. Though there is plenty to like about this flip phone, the fact that it folds is a serious commitment to a new way of using a smartphone. Snapping a photo takes a beat as you move to flip open the phone and get the camera situated. Holding the phone one-handed is hard without help from a case accessory since the screen is so tall. And you’ll have to make some concessions to battery life, which is sure to show its limitations over time.

If you’re curious about the experience and are willing to take the plunge, the price is a little less daunting than it used to be. The Galaxy Z Flip 3 starts at $1,000, but sales and discount offerings can get the phone to as low as $500 outright. That’s only $50 more than the Pixel 5a, which is a traditional smartphone with mid-range offerings. But you’ll still have to ask yourself if it’s worth trading in what you’ve known all this time for a brand new experience.

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Ever since Google got into the mid-range phone game with the Pixel 3a, Google’s most affordable handsets have just been getting better and better. And when you combine all of Google’s Pixel-only software features with an even bigger screen, improved durability, and new support for water resistance on the new Pixel 5a, it really feels like Google—not Motorola or OnePlus—is the new king of mid-range handsets. And better yet, with a price tag of $450, the Pixel 5a might be Google’s best value ever.

Design: Basic, but in a good way
Like previous Pixel A-series phones, the Pixel 5a couldn’t be any simpler. You get a beautiful 2400 x 1080 OLED display, stereo speakers, a punch-hole selfie shooter, two rear cameras, USB-C port, and a rear-mounted fingerprint sensor—basically all the standard features you’d expect on a modern smartphone. And once again, the Pixel 5a still has a 3.5mm jack for wired audio (but no microSD card slot).

But that doesn’t mean there aren’t upgrades, and on the Pixel 5a, Google has been quite clever in its strategy—especially considering the ongoing global chip crunch. Standing at 6.34-inches diagonally, the Pixel 5a’s screen is the biggest on any Pixel A-series phone yet, while also boasting excellent brightness that hit upwards of 800 nits during our testing. So even though fans of small may be disappointed that there isn’t a pint-sized Pixel A this year, giving everyone else more screen for the money is a valuable addition.

Meanwhile, on the inside, Google has switched over to a new metal chassis that’s covered with a matte black plastic shell, combining improved strength with a soft-touch finish that’s quite nice to hold. And for the first time ever on a Pixel A phone, the Pixel 5a features IP-67 water resistance, so you don’t have to worry about an errant splash or a drop in the toilet ruining your day (it’s ok, it happens to everyone). Finally, in back, the Pixel 5a features two rear cameras that Google says are exactly the same as what came on last year’s mainline Pixel 5 (more on those later). It’s practically everything you could really want or need on a mid-range phone aside from wireless charging (which would be nice, but is an understandable omission).

Oh, and one important note about the Pixel 5a is that while it does come with a power brick included in the box, this may be the last time Google does that. Like a lot of other smartphone makers, Google has been planning to stop bundling power bricks with phones to help cut down on e-waste; according to the company, the number of people who don’t already have a USB-C is getting to the point where shipping phones with power bricks is becoming redundant. Look, I don’t make the rules, but that’s how it is.

Performance: When a 1-year-old chip is still more than enough
One of the aspects affected most by the global chip crunch is the availability of processors, so instead of upgrading to a brand new SoC, Google stuck with Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 765G—the same chip Google used in the regular Pixel 5. And you know what, it still holds up. Sure, it’s not a powerhouse by any means, but the 765G (along with 6GB of RAM and 128GB of built-in storage) more than held its own in benchmarks compared to other mid-range phones like the TCL 20 Pro 5G (review on that coming soon). It was also enough to keep apps and games feeling smooth and stutter-free (unless you’re playing intense FPS titles), which is all I’m really looking for in a mid-range handset.

The one strange wrinkle is that while the Pixel 5 has support for both mmWave and sub-6 Ghz 5G—despite having the same chip, the Pixel 5a only supports sub-6GHz 5G connectivity. This means you’ll be able to tap into the wider coverage areas that you get with sub-6Ghz, but you won’t get those super-fast 1000 Mbps+ download speeds that mmWave 5G often provides.

The Pixel software experience
Now, I don’t always talk about the software on Android phones because nowadays device makers have gotten pretty good at nailing the basics. But when you take into account all of Google’s Pixel-specific features like its Personal Safety app, Call Screener, Live Captions, and more, it really feels like Pixels make the most out of today’s AI-powered capabilities. And with three full years of OS and security updates, you’re getting longer support than rival phones from companies like Motorola, which often stops sending out updates after a year or two.

Battery Life: Simply divine
Frankly, the Pixel 5a’s battery life is so long, I thought our video rundown test was broken. But then I tested it three more times just to be sure, and the results are simply fantastic. With an average battery life of 18 hours and 18 minutes, the Pixel 5a has some of the best longevity we’ve ever seen, beating out every phone I’ve tested this year by at least an hour. So while not everyone loves a huge screen, going larger on its display also meant Google had more room for a bigger battery, and on the Pixel 5a, that tactic truly paid off.

For $450, why buy anything else?
I will admit that there is one comparison I have been conveniently ignoring up until now, which is how the Pixel 5a stacks up against Chinese phones with big specs from companies like Xiaomi, Oppo, and others. But my reasoning is simple: They’re not really in the same category. Because, while you can get a phone with big specs for under $500, none of those phones are officially available in the U.S., which means they aren’t a viable option for a lot of people in the land of Uncle Sam.

On top that, because of the ongoing chip crunch, the Pixel 5a will only be available in two markets—the U.S. (unlocked only) and Japan (via Softbank)—which means the Pixel 5a isn’t really competing with the Vivos or Realmes of the world either. But most importantly, while a lot of mid-range Chinese phones place a much heavier emphasis on processors and RAM, with the Pixel 5a, Google is focused on simplicity and usability more than anything else.

The Pixel 5a has all of a phone’s most important bases covered. It’s got a great screen, a straightforward design (now with water resistance), thoughtful software, and better battery life than anything I’ve seen in recent history (and it’s not even close). And if it was my money, I’d be struggling to come up with reasons to buy anything else.

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Battery life is a priority for most of us, whether it’s on a phone we picked up three years ago or a brand new handset. The older your phone (and its battery), the more difficult it is to squeeze out extra time between charges, but if you just bought a new iPhone 12, there are a few ways to make sure the battery lasts as long as possible.

The tips we’re going to talk about apply to all four phones in the new Apple lineup: the iPhone 12 Mini, the iPhone 12, the iPhone 12 Pro, and the iPhone 12 Pro Max. Out-of-the-box battery life is better on the bigger phones. The 5.8-inch iPhone 12 mini lasts a full five hours less than the iPhone 12 Pro Max in our own tests.

According to Apple, the iPhone 12 Mini can manage 15 hours of video playback, the iPhone 12 and the iPhone 12 Pro max out at 17 hours, and the iPhone 12 Pro Max is able to go all the way up to 20 hours. It’s worth bearing in mind those differences as you try and optimize battery life on your own handset.

iOS 14 Updates
As certain as death and taxes are new iOS updates that will introduce battery life bugs for at least some people, and iOS 14 releases are no different—iOS 14.2 was the most recent patch to cause unexplained battery drain on a variety of models, including some iPhone 12 handsets, though it’s not clear exactly how widespread the problem was.

Unfortunately, there’s not much you can do about these iOS-induced bugs except be aware of them and sit tight—Apple will usually push out a fix fairly rapidly. If a recent software update has reduced the battery life you’re used to getting, a quick web search should be enough to find out if other people are experiencing similar issues.

Sometimes the user community or Apple itself will publish steps you can take to get your battery life back up to normal while you’re waiting for a software update to roll out. In the case of iOS 14.2, for example, some users reported that turning off 5G or Bluetooth was enough to fix the problem. If there’s no official word from Apple about an iOS issue, then places like Reddit can be very helpful.

5G or Not 5G
5G has blessed us with super-fast download and upload speeds, and much better network capacity (so your phone can actually keep working in sports stadiums and at music gigs), but it can also be a serious drain on phone battery. Apple says 5G usage is “optimized” to preserve your battery as much as possible, but if you don’t need the benefits 5G brings, or if it’s going to be a long time before it’s rolled out in your area, you can turn back to LTE and potentially save yourself some battery life.

From Settings, tap Cellular then Cellular Data Options, and under Voice & Data you can select LTE rather than the default 5G Auto option. You can also choose Data Mode from the Cellular Data Options menu and switch to Low Data Mode to further restrict how much data your iPhone uses for streaming video and so on, no matter what type of cellular connection you’ve selected. This should also help battery life.

As has always been the case, if your phone is struggling to make a connection to a cellular network, it starts working harder to try and find one, which can drain the battery significantly. If you know signal strength is going to be low or patchy (in the subway or out in the woods for example), then you might want to turn on airplane mode for certain stretches of time to conserve battery life.

Check App Usage
If you’re serious about keeping your iPhone 12 going as long as possible between charges, then it’s always worth doing a bit of detective work to see if any apps are taking more than their fair share of juice. If you open up Settings on your phone and choose Battery, you’ll see the apps that are draining the battery the most. You can check this based on the last 24 hours or the last 10 days.

Obviously, the apps you use most often are going to drain the battery the most, but you might spot some anomalies. Tap the Show activity link at the top of the list to switch between how much battery life each app is using and how much time you’ve spent inside it, as this should tell you whether an app is being more of a power drain than it should be.

If there is an app causing a worrying amount of strain on your battery, you can remove it from your phone with a long press on its home screen icon. If you absolutely need to keep it, make sure you’re running the latest version of the app, and try contacting the developer to report the problem.

Low Power
Mode Low Power Mode on the iPhone was introduced all the way back in iOS 9, and you’ll see a prompt to turn it on when your device’s battery has dropped to 20 percent. It cuts out some background processes, turns off a few visual effects, disables 5G (except for video streaming), stops automatic downloads, and applies a few other tricks too.

If you know you’re going to be away from a charger for an extended period of time you can always turn on Low Power Mode manually. Your iPhone will still function more or less as normal, with the caveats mentioned above—apps won’t be able to be as active in the background, and your emails won’t come through right away (possibly a blessing).

Open Settings then choose Battery and Low Power Mode from the menu. You can enable it whenever you like, but it will turn off automatically if your phone is being charged and climbs above 80 percent. You can also add a Low Power Mode toggle switch to Control Center for easy access—from Settings pick Control Center, then Customize Controls. Display options and other settings The same phone tasks that have always drained the battery more quickly still apply to the iPhone 12.

Display brightness is a big one: If you go to Display & Brightness from Settings you can manage screen brightness and switch to the iOS dark mode if you want to, and it’s also worth lowering the Auto-Lock time so your screen is on for less time when you’re not using it.

Playing audio at a high volume drains battery life, so you might want to turn the level down a notch or two. Heavy GPS use also puts a major strain on the battery—if you open up Privacy then Location Services in Settings, you can limit GPS use for particular apps, or turn it off for your phone completely.

If any of your apps offer you the option, telling them to sync via wifi instead of data connections can give you a bit of extra battery life (keeping a minimum number of apps on your phone helps, too). Stopping your iPhone from listening out for “hey Siri” can give you a little extra time between charges too—go to Siri & Search in Settings to do this.

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Smartphones are one of those technologies that you don’t fully realize how much an impact they’ve had on society until you realize that there are more phones on the planet than there are people. With that said the opportunities for smartphones are endless but here are 3 future improvements we could see over the next decade, or perhaps even sooner.

Better Sensors
From light sensors, accelerometers and of course your camera, phones are packed sky high with all sorts of different sensors that can detect tiny changes in the phones environment. These are mostly built in for minor conveniences such as automatic screen rotation, or perhaps automatic brightness adjustment. While these are useful features, they’re really just scratching the surface as far as usefulness is concerned. Soon we will see these sensors become major selling points, from being able to measure key human vitals such as blood pressure or even glucose levels, these sensors could not only become incredibly convenient for certain demographics but they could also change the entire playing field when it comes to how the healthcare industry takes care of their patients entirely.

Flexible displays
Displays have come a long way, if you ask anyone who had an original iPhone they’ll be quick to note how much brighter and clearer the displays they have now are compared to their predecessors. That being said, screens aren’t confined to maximizing performance, they’re also being built to be bigger and more durable. With folding phones starting to grow into the mainstream we are going to see a larger and larger demand for flexible screens. With flexible displays not only are we going to be obtaining larger screen sizes in smaller bodies thanks to folding and rolling mechanisms, but we are also likely to see an improved level of durability for these screens as well. With screens being able to bend they’re now far less likely to shatter. While this technology is still growing it is likely to improve rapidly if the consumers create the demand for better and better technology.

Reverse Charging
This is a different approach to the two items I listed above, newer sensor capabilities and flexible displays are all rather cutting edge technology at the moment. As for reverse charging, I would make the argument that it’s fairly old. While it may be new that more and more phones are allowing users to reverse charge their various other gadgets, all you’re really doing is using your phones battery as a charger for other items. The reason I think this will play a key role in the future of smartphones is because of the demand for electricity everywhere we go now. With cars and larger tools and appliances turning towards electric systems there may be a day where as long as our phone is fully charged we’ll be able to power any other gadget around us. Imagine a world where your phone battery doesn’t just last a full day, but instead it last an entire week, allowing you to power things like TV, computer or maybe even your car. Now that’s some crazy future I want to live in!

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Introduction
Apple’s iPhones have been known for years now for their durability and long life, lasting much longer than almost any other device with a lot of people being reluctant to change, preferring to keep them for years instead.

With that long life, many users noticed that their iPhones would suddenly get unreasonably slower after performing well as soon as they got older. Many users suspected that this was an intentional move from Apple to push them to change their older models for newer ones quicker.

This turned out to be an intentional move on Apple’s behalf which got a lot of backlash, but it was not meant with a bad intention from Apple, or was it?

Battery Gate and how people misunderstood it
We can not mention the iPhone slowing down without mentioning the infamous battery gate of 2017, but it is not the only reason behind this, and it is not even what you think of it.

So, back in 2017, Apple was accused of intentionally slowing down certain models of the iPhone with certain updates to their phones. Now, this sounds bad, but that is not all of it. IPhones are devices with batteries like any other phone, and with time, these batteries get progressively worse and will no longer be capable of handling the heavier tasks and can’t handle peak performance the way they used to do.

This might be enough for the iPhone to crash down under heavy load and suddenly shut down which used to happen a lot, especially that IOS gets heavier and more demanding every year.

Now, this puts Apple in a hard situation. They can do one of two things:
1.They can let it be and do nothing about it, but this will be very bad for their reputation and would be a bad move, making devices that last longer but then become unusable.
2.Actually do something about it, and this is what they actually did by providing updates that slow down their devices a bit so that they will consume less power when older and go easy on their batteries consuming power slowly and decreasing the risk of suddenly shutting down or going from 20% to 0% in seconds while using it or doing an important task.

Apple then did update the older models of the iPhones to solve this issue which was not a bad move by itself, but Apple made one big mistake, they did not announce their intentions from the beginning. But think about it, how can they do that. Apple can never explain such a plan and get people to go for it.

Apple would have to explain that they are intentionally are going to slow down all iPhones to save some devices from crashing down, and no matter how much they explained this idea, no one will ever go for it, but still, it had to be done since iPhones crashing would have been a great hit to Apple’s iPhone and would affect their long-term sales and their reputation for making durable iPhones.

Conclusions and personal thoughts
It was not at all a bad move on Apple’s behalf and actually did decreased the chance of Apple’s iPhones suddenly stopping and decreased the risk of harm to their batteries and their deterioration.
But the whole idea is, did Apple actually do it all with good intentions and had no harm in mind, or did Apple simply know that they can move more people quicker to the newer models, knowing that they could simply explain it this way if it ever came out.

We can never know what the full reason behind this was since it was a while ago, and Apple was always so secretive, but let us hope that it was made with the convenience of the customer in mind even Apple was eventually fined for this action.

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Even when we go somewhere to unplug, our smartphones are rarely out of reach. That includes our favorite beach destinations. Unlike many summer accessories, our phones aren’t built to handle excessive sun, sand, and saltwater. Luckily, there are steps you can take to protect your device from the elements on your next beach day.

HOW TO PREVENT YOUR PHONE FROM OVERHEATING
Your skin isn’t the only thing that needs protection from the sun when you’re at the beach. If your phone sits in direct sunlight for too long, it can overheat. This can drain your device’s battery, trigger a forced shutdown, and potentially damage its hardware.

The easiest way to avoid this is to keep your phone out of the sun. Make sure it’s in a shady place when you’re not using it, like under a beach umbrella or in a bag. Wrapping your phone in a small towel or tucking it into a drink koozie can also protect it from direct sunlight and keep it from overheating. If your phone does overheat, try blowing on it or cooling it with a fan—like the kind you might bring to the beach to cool down your face.

HOW TO PROTECT YOUR PHONE FROM SAND
Sand has the tendency to get wherever you don’t want it to be. In most cases this is annoying, but when it comes to electronic devices, it can be disastrous. Placing your phone in a resealable sandwich bag before stepping onto the beach should keep it clean and sand-free.

If sealing your phone away for hours isn’t an option, you can avoid the worst-case scenario by investing in some dust plugs. These accessories will block off your phone’s ports where sand can do the most damage. For an even cheaper option, look for any old cords you have lying around. Cutting off the plug part and sticking it into your phone will provide just as much protection as a dust plug.

HOW TO PROTECT YOUR PHONE FROM WATER
Even smartphones that are advertised as water resistant can still suffer from water damage. The good news is that the same plastic bag that protects your phone from sand can also protect it from any moisture you bring back from your swim.

It’s safer to skip the selfies when you’re standing in the water, but if you do drop your phone in the ocean, you need to take quick action. Samsung actually recommends quickly rinsing your phone with fresh water after it takes a saltwater dip, as the salt may clog the device’s openings. Remove excess moisture by wiping it with a dry cloth and gently tapping your phone with the charging port facing down. Setting it near a fan can also help it dry more quickly.

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Robot vacuums are all the rage—and why not!? Vacuuming is one of the most loathed household chores. While it doesn’t come with the ick factor of cleaning the toilet or the tedium of dusting, pushing and dragging a noisy, cumbersome vacuum is its own kind of torture.

Robot vacuums don’t have unwieldy cords or hoses to contend with, and they require little effort from you: You can run one from your couch using a physical remote or smartphone app, and the higher-end models can be programmed to wake up and start cleaning without any intervention at all. Robot vacs easily dispose of the most common household detritus—food crumbs, pet hair, dust—making them ideal for routine maintenance and quick cleanings when you’re expecting company.

Best all-around robot vacuum
iRobot Roomba 960
The Roomba 960’s flawless navigation, stellar cleaning, and advanced features set it apart from all other robot vacuums.

iRobot’s Roomba brand has become as synonymous with robot vacuum as Q-tips is with cotton swabs. The Wi-Fi-enabled Roomba 960 is ample evidence why. It turns a tiresome chore into something you can almost look forward to. With three cleaning modes and dirt-detecting sensors, it kept all the floor surfaces in our testing immaculate, and its camera-driven navigation and mapping were superb. Its easy-to-use app provides alerts and detailed cleaning reports. The ability to control it with Amazon Alexa and Google Home voice commands are just the cherry on top.

Runner-up
Roborock S6 MaxV
The Roborock S6 MaxV is a powerful, highly customizable robot vacuum. It’s obstacle avoidance feature is fairly unique and a great addition to an already exceptional household helper.

When a manufacturer builds one device that’s designed to perform more than one function, you all too often end up with a product that’s a jack of all trades, but a master of none. That wasn’t the case with Roborock’s vacuum/mop hybrid, and this update version features stereo cameras that enable the device to avoid obstacles like shoes and power strips that will trip up robots with simpler navigation systems.

Most sophisticated robot vacuum
iRobot Roomba s9+
The iRobot s9+ is the most advanced robot vacuum around, but it will be out of reach of many budgets.

iRobot has done it again, taking the robot vacuum to the next level by creating another model that can empty its own dustbin. A second powerful vacuum in the Roomba s9+’s docking station automatically sucks the dust and debris out of the vacuum when it docks, storing as many as 30 dustbins full of dirt. And it stores it all in a filter bag, so that nothing escapes in your home’s air when you eventually need to change the bag. But as you’ve probably guessed, this one comes with a very high price tag.

Best budget robot vacuum
iLife A4s Pro
The iLife A4s Pro is a powerful, no-frills robot vacuum that will clean your floors well without sucking a lot of cash out of your wallet.

Whether you’re budget constrained or you just don’t need all the bells and whistles (Wi-Fi connectivity, mapping, smart speaker support) that more sophisticated (and much more expensive) robot vacuums have to offer, the iLife A4s Pro delivers a tremendous amount of bang for the buck.

Runner-up
Wyze Robot Vacuum
The Wyze robot vacuum delivers advanced features and solid performance at a budget-friendly price.

If you can squeeze a little more money into your budget, Wyze Labs has a low-priced vacuum that delivers a number of extra high-value features, including LiDAR navigation, a smartphone app with editable mapping and virtual no-go zones.

Best robot vacuum for pet hair
Yeedi K650
The Yeedi K650 is a no-frills robot vacuum that’s tough on pet hair.

We’ve been impressed with several of Yeedi’s inexpensive robot vacuums, but the Yeedi K650 bowled us over with its ability to pull pet hair off the floor, using the silicone rolling brush you can swap out for its regular bristle brush. The silicone brush eliminates the problem of tangled hair impeding the vacuum’s cleaning.

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If there was ever a speaker likely to stand up to a day around the pool or at the beach, it’s Anker’s $100 Soundcore Motion Boom. It’s easy to lug, IPX7-rated, and sports a rather massive integrated handle that gives it a very sturdy feel. As a matter of fact, my first thought was that I could heave the unit quite a ways out into the water. Yes. Nothing like starting a review with evil thoughts.

Design and features
I think Anker might’ve missed a bet by not offering the Motion Boom in bright colors. Not that the staid all-black the company chose isn’t attractive in a dark knight sort of fashion. But should some brat bring to fruition my devilish thoughts by flinging this beauty into the ocean, fluorescent orange or bright yellow would be a lot easier to spot. IPX7 means its waterproof under one meter of water for 30 minutes (you can read all about IP codes in this other story).

I measured the Motion Boom at approximately 12 inches wide, 4 inches deep, and 4 -inches high with the aforementioned, integrated handle adding another two inches to the overall height. I mention my measurements, as they didn’t jive with the larger dimensions I saw on Amazon. The unit weighs around four and a half pounds.

Sound is pumped through twin 2.5-inch drivers facing forward, and passive radiators on either end of the unit. There was no power rating for the internal amplifier, but from what I heard, I’d guess between 10 and 15 watts RMS per speaker.

The controls for the Motion Boom are located on the top of the unit closest to the speaker face and include Bluetooth (5.0) pairing/status, power, BassUp (80Hz boost), volume up/down, and a multi-function button in the middle. The MFB takes care of play/pause/FF/rewind/answer/hang up and summoning your phone’s voice assistant. There’s also a TWS (True Wireless Stereo) button to link the speaker with another TWS-capable unit to form a stereo pair; i.e., one speaker reproduces the right channel, and the other the left.

On the back of the Motion Boom is a hefty rubber plug concealing both a USB Type-C port for charging the speaker, and a Type-A port for charging other devices. Anker handily includes a, you guessed it—Type-C to Type-A cable. It’s a rather clever arrangement to be sure. There’s no auxiliary analog input.

Sound and run time
Out of the box, I found the Motion Boom’s mid-range somewhat cloudy, which is a shortcoming in weatherproof speakers. It wasn’t horrible mind you, it just wasn’t what I’d call audiophile quality. I won’t say it recovered once the speaker got loud (and it gets very loud for 2.5-inch speakers), but the cloudiness was less noticeable.

What did make a huge difference was EQ-ing the unit using Anker’s Soundcore app. Dropping the 600Hz band a notch or two and upping the 2.5- and 5kHz bands gave me the clearer sound I was looking for. It still wasn’t audiophile level, but it sounded a heck of a lot better.

One thing there was more than enough of right out of the box was thump. The BassUp function is engaged by default and it produces a very round and prominent low end. The BassUp function won’t engage when you customize the EQ, however, so I just upped the 80Hz band to compensate. Voila! Same deal and more than listenable.

With the drivers so close together in the enclosure, there’s not a lot of separation of the right and left signals. However, Anker thoughtfully sent two Motion Booms, so I could pair them using the supported True Wireless Stereo featire. This resulted in a very loud, very bass-y, and decently sonorous combination that would be welcome at just about any beach party.

I wouldn’t call the Motion Boom sonically excellent under any circumstance, but the EQ saved the day as far as I was concerned. It was still running on the factory charge on the 10000 mAh battery at about the 4-hour mark. Anker claims 24 hours of run time (go home!) and 4 hours to a full charge. This of course will drop if you use the Motion Boom’s battery to charge your phone.

You’ll need your own USB AC adapter or a 12-volt power adapter to tap you car’s battery, as Anker doesn’t provide one. Chances are you have more than one already.

Conclusion
After EQ, the Motion Boom sounded good enough that I can recommend it without hesitation for outdoor use, and perhaps some time in the kitchen or garage. There’s no arguing the design’s ability to stand up to the rigors of the pool, beach, or playground. For the price of a similar JBL, you can buy two and have bona fide, recognizable stereo separation—albeit with a small deficit in audio quality compared to that worthy brand.

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T-Mobile’s new 5G home broadband gateway/wireless router matters for one big reason: It’s an alternative to the cable monopolies that dominate most major markets in the United States. Whether it’s a better option than cable is, unfortunately, a question we can’t objectively answer, for two reasons.

First, what T-Mobile officially calls its T-Mobile High Speed Internet Gateway (5G21-12W-A) is “5G”—and the quality and bandwidth of the wireless signal you receive in your home will be dependent on any number of factors, the most significant of which will be the gateway’s distance from your nearest 5G cell tower. You’ll also need to balance what we found against what your own, competing broadband ISP delivers. Fortunately, T-Mobile’s plan offering is flexible enough that you can probably create your own one-month trial.

In my case, cable still regrettably offers the best option for my family of four, living in a house filled with streaming media devices and gaming laptops. T-Mobile’s 5G router offered enough bandwidth for about half of my family, but not quite enough for all four of us and our many devices.

To be fair, though, we never experienced all that the T-Mobile High Speed Internet Gateway has to offer. While T-Mobile labels my house as ”covered” by its 5G services, the reality wasn’t quite as simple.

Specifications and setup
T-Mobile’s router plan is all-inclusive: after confirming your eligibility, for $50 per month, T-Mobile will send you a pre-configured router with an activated SIM inserted. (The $50/mo actually includes a $10/mo AutoPay credit, so the actual price is $60/mo.) There’s no annual contract, either. If you decide the service isn’t for you, you can simply call T-Mobile, cancel, and the company will send you a prepaid label to box up and return the 5G21-12W-A hardware.

T-Mobile’s pricing is already on par or lower than even the cheapest cable contracts, and T-Mobile promises unlimited internet with no data caps or throttling to boot. Still, T-Mobile says that the service is “not intended for unattended use,” so don’t plan to download Linux distributions via BitTorrent.

Because of its coverage map, T-Mobile knows if your home will be close enough to a cell tower to receive a satisfactory signal. If you’re feeling really nerdy, however, you can visit a site like CellMapper.net and discover just how close the nearest cell tower is, and what wireless bands those towers use.

Physically, T-Mobile’s router reminds me of the Harman Kardon Invoke, a now-discontinued cylindrical smart speaker, that, like T-Mobile’s router, included a color display at the top. It measures 8.5 inches high by 4.75 inches in diameter, and is powered by a wall-wart-like plug with a conveniently lengthy six-foot cord. That’s handy, as you’ll want to position the gateway as close to an outside wall or window as possible to receive the maximum signal available. Inside is a Wi-Fi 6 (802.11ax) radio with four antennas to create the wireless network your client devices will connect to. You can also tap its dual gigabit ethernet ports for wired network connections.

T-Mobile’s gateway does have some quirks: There’s a USB-C port, a UPS port for an unterruptible power supply, and an RJ-11 telephone jack on the back of the router. but none of them are functional—at least as far as I could tell. I tried plugging a USB power supply in, but that didn’t work. I didn’t have a compatible UPS to test.

The 5G21-12W-A does have an internal battery, which allows the gateway to be used cable free—well, sort of. Setting up the router requires first turning it on, letting it boot up, and then walking it around the house or apartment to find the best signal. The LCD screen on top communicates this signal information in real time, though it will turn off after several seconds unless you tap it awake. You can also “swipe” through several screens, which tell you the number of devices connected, any service messages from T-Mobile, and more.

Here’s another quirk: While on battery, neither the ethernet nor the Wi-Fi connections can be used. That’s odd, since as I drove around my neighborhood with the 5G21-12W-A gateway to check signal strength, the battery level only dropped by a percentage point or two, meaning that it should realistically offer internet connectivity in case of a power outage. That’s simply not the case.

You might also think that a “wireless” gateway could be set up anywhere, unlike a wired cable gateway that can only be set up near the coaxial cable’s entry to the house. Unfortunately not. Typically, the ideal location will be near a window, one that isn’t partially blocked by a mesh screen. And location does matter, more than you might think: your wireless network must also be organized to take the gateway’s location into account.

While the 5G21-12W-A gateway reported that my house is bathed in a “weak” (2 out of 5 bars) signal throughout, I was only able to establish a “good” (3 out of 5 bars) signal in a corner of my son’s room, next to his window. And that, right in the middle of his Legos, became my new wireless gateway location!

Setup took just a minute or two, overseen by T-Mobile’s smartphone app. Once the usual niceties were completed—picking an administrator password, setting an SSID, and so on—the gateway was up and running. T-Mobile’s app offers a quick and easy dashboard displaying current signal strength, which devices are connected, and so on. The web interface (which, by default, can be accessed via http://192.168.12.1 while the gateway is connected) offers a lot more detail, albeit without much in the way of explanation for people less familiar with 5G and networking tech in general.

Performance and everyday use
I used T-Mobile’s 5G21-12W-A gateway for about three weeks, wirelessly connecting entertainment devices like the Xbox game console, plus my sons’ tablet and PC. Given how much they’re in use during summer vacation, I figured that they would be an excellent test of whether the T-Mobile signal remained constant. The signal dropped three times in that period, according to my kids—usually just a few seconds, but once for a bit longer.

I also tested the speed, of course. With all devices disconnected, speeds ranged from a maximum of 180Mbps to about 120Mbps downstream—again, on what T-Mobile’s app considered to be a “good” signal, or three out of five bars. Upstream speeds, which matter if you’re uploading video to YouTube or backing up files or photos to the cloud, reached just under 50Mbps, which is still much, much faster than the 14Mbps my cable provider, Comcast, offers, with its 400Mbps service plan. These tests were performed with a wireless client close to the router, with no other devices connected to the gateway.

My kids certainly didn’t report any issues while gaming or chatting with their friends via Zoom or Facebook Messenger, and they were able to download game updates normally. I also streamed 4K/60fps video from YouTube without problems. Finally, I re-ran my video-stream test while simultaneously performing a speed test and saw download speeds of 111Mbps, this while Windows updates were wirelessly downloaded to a different PC. The video stream dropped 102 frames out of 18,000—nothing noticeable. Google’s Stadia gaming service also reported a connection of 59Mbps (again, while streaming video) and approved the connection as a candidate for the service, though I didn’t try it.

It’s worth noting that my T-Mobile gateway was not connected to 5G. The T-Mobile app’s “More” tab will show you which frequency band your device connects to, which was typically Band 4 (defined by T-Mobile as a 4G LTE band). A cellular signal app on my 5G-capable T-Mobile phone also showed that the phone (not the router) occasionally connected to bands 2, 66, or 71—again, all 4G LTE bands. T-Mobile does operate 5G services on cell towers aligned along Bay Area interstates, but that tower was on the other side of town, and I doubt that the router ever connected to it. There’s no way of forcing the router to use a particular LTE or 5G band, either.

The router aspect of T-Mobile’s gateway works well, within reason. In my house, a split-level tucked into a hill, Wi-Fi signals tend to get lost in the maze of walls, floors, and ceilings. My traditional ISP gateway built into the basement struggles to push signal throughout the home without repeaters. I was somewhat surprised to see my phone’s signal app report a 65Mbps Wi-Fi link from the router alone, but my notebook PC struggled to connect.

I had far better luck connecting T-Mobile’s gateway to a discrete mesh router. Coincidentally, I also received Vilo’s ultra-low-cost mesh networking system for evaluation, so I simply connected the tiny little mesh nodes around my house. That was an effective, inexpensive complement to what T-Mobile offered, blanketing my home with Wi-Fi coverage.

T-Mobile’s Wi-Fi services and management tools, however, are decidedly lacking. While T-Mobile does a nice job of telling you which devices are connected, you’ll find yourself hunting through the app’s UI to either disconnect each device individually, or else schedule a time to turn them off. I also couldn’t find any options either in the app or web interface to create a guest network, which is simply table stakes for home networking these days.

Finally, I couldn’t connect to my office VPN, GlobalProtect, via the T-Mobile router. This bug, at least, is well documented and attributed to an IPv6 configuration issue. While I was able to connect by adjusting some networking parameters on my PC, a longer-term fix involves rolling back the router’s firmware. The router also doesn’t seem to work with Hulu + LiveTV, according to T-Mobile’s customer-support forums.

Who should sign up for T-Mobile’s home internet service?
I approached my hands-on with the T-Mobile High Speed Internet Gateway (5G21-12W-A) from what now is a very timely perspective—breaking the stranglehold cable providers have on American consumers. The Biden administration is already taking aim at broadband monopolies, but it will be up to the FCC to enact change.

From my experience, I can’t say what the full potential of T-Mobile gateway may be. I imagine there are few places where 5G is available, but cable isn’t. For now, the performance advantage probably lies with cable broadband (or the even harder-to-get fiber broadband service). Folks living in rural areas, meanwhile, probably won’t have any more of a chance to get 5G broadband than they do cable broadband or fiber, leaving them to the mercy of DSL or satellite service providers or—if they’re lucky—an affordable, high-performing WISP (Wireless Internet Service Provider).

Still, not everyone needs ultrafast broadband. If you’re a small household that streams video, checks email, and downloads Windows updates in the background, T-Mobile’s router is absolutely worth checking out. Most broadband connections can already accommodate these needs, and high-speed broadband (greater than 200Mbps) is more of a requirement for larger households with several active streaming devices or laptops in use.

And then there’s pricing, of course. Here, things change dramatically. A price of $50 per month is quite attractive, especially compared to cable bills that can easily top $100 per month (including TV service). Add data caps and possible overage fees, and costs also quickly climb there, too.

Remember, T-Mobile isn’t asking you to cancel your cable, or even switch broadband providers. For $50, you can simply call or contact T-Mobile and sign up for a month’s worth. A T-Mobile representative said that after a month’s time, if you choose to cancel, T-Mobile will send you a prepaid label to return the T-Mobile High Speed Internet Gateway (5G21-12W-A), and credit your bill accordingly. Even with T-Mobile’s current limitations, that’s an enticing offer.

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Venerable Danish luxury audio maker Bang & Olufsen today launched its $399 Beoplay EQ, the first true wireless earphones with adaptive active noise cancellation (ANC). Adaptive ANC is a more sophisticated kind of ANC that uses microphones and speakers to adjust noise cancelling automatically to your surroundings. Bang & Olufsen claims that the Beoplay EQ’s Adaptive ANC effectively eliminates surrounding noise to allow total immersion in the company’s signature sound.

To achieve the maximum noise-cancelling effect, Bang & Olufsen says it developed an adaptive ANC that combines excellent passive sealing. That one-two combination effectively blocks outside noise.

The Beoplay EQ work their adaptive ANC magic via a dedicated ANC DSP chip and six microphones that allow for automatic adjustment of noise-cancellation levels to create what the company calls, “a seamless audio experience.” The microphones do double duty with directional beamforming technology in an effort to deliver crystal clear call and speech quality.

Bluetooth wireless features
The Beoplay EQ headphones sport all the latest wireless goodies. Bluetooth 5.2 is on board with wireless range of approximately 33 feet, and support for both Apple’s lossy AAC codec and Qualcomm’s aptX Adaptive codec. Aptx Adaptive can deliver high-res audio wirelessly with up to 24-bit resolution and sampling rates as high as 48kHz, with a maximum bit rate of 420Kbps. For those who switch sources often, the Beoplay EQ will remember the last eight paired devices. The Beoplay EQ are rated IP54 for dust (they prevent enough dust ingress to protect the earphones) and water resistance (water sprayed from any direction) respectively. The Beoplay EQ’s companion mobile app will perform over-the-air software updates as needed.

Pairing the Beoplay EQ with Apple and Android smart devices promises to be simple and painless thanks to Microsoft Swift Pair and Made for iPhone licenses.

The Beoplay EQ weigh a mere 0.28-ounces. The earbuds have a rechargeable lithium-ion battery with a total capacity of 85mAh. Bang & Olufsen says that you’ll get about 7.5 hours without ANC active, 6.5 hours with ANC turned on, and up to 5.5 hours of talk time.

The Qi-certified, 340mAh wireless charging case is crafted from spacecraft-grade aluminium, complementing Bang and Olufsen’s luxury brand. The compact 1.03 x 3.03 x 1.58-inch case was designed to be as small as possible to fit easily into a pocket while on the go. The case will give two charges with up to 20 hours of play time. The earbuds will reach a full charge in about 1.5 hours while a 20-minute charge will give you up to 2 hours of playback.

“When creating Beoplay EQ, we made a commitment to deliver on the expectations of our customers whether they are using their earphones for travel, business or pleasure,” noted Bang & Olufsen SVP of Product Management Christoffer Poulsen. “The ergonomic earphones have been designed for comfort and provide powerful and authentic sound, making them a must have for design and music lovers. Thanks to the durable aluminium charging case as well as the adaptive active noise cancellation, Beoplay EQ provides a revolutionary listening experience wherever you go.”

Finishes and included accessories
The new Beoplay EQ are available in two finishes: Black Anthracite and Sand Gold Tone. Black Anthracite is available starting today; Sand Gold will be available online and in Bang & Olufsen stores starting August 19th.

One of the biggest problems with true wireless headphones is that they tend of fall out easily. Bang & Olufsen says that the Beoplay EQ are luxurious yet functional. Thanks to their small and ergonomic shape, Bang and Olufsen says that the Beoplay EQ have a comfortable and secure fit.

In the box, you’ll find a USB-A to USB-C charging cable, 0.5m Comply sport 200 tips, and silicone tips in four sizes.

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