Mobile

Phones, tablets, wearables, and the software that runs them.

updated
Sep 17, 2026
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September 202612 articles

Snap Specs, on paper, from Snap's own releases and product page, read 17 September 2026. Price: $2,195, with a $200 deposit. With cellular case: $2,395, plus a data plan. Battery: Up to 4 hours; 20 with the case. Weight: 132g or 136g. Display: 51° field of view. Ships: Later this fall: US, UK, France.
Mobile · On Paper

Snap Specs: $2,195, Four Hours a Charge, No Ship Date Yet

Snap's standalone AR glasses take a $200 deposit in the US, UK and France. Cellular is $200 more, plus a data plan from $10 a month.

iOS 27 in three tiers of iPhone, from Apple's iOS 27 page. Tier 1, iOS 27 itself: iPhone 11 and later, and iPhone SE (2nd generation) and later. Tier 2, Apple Intelligence and Siri AI: iPhone 15 Pro and Pro Max, and iPhone 16 models and later. Tier 3, customising how Siri sounds: iPhone 17 Pro and Pro Max, iPhone Air, iPhone 18 Pro and iPhone Duo.
Mobile · Explainer

iOS 27 Runs on an iPhone 11. Siri AI Needs a 15 Pro or Newer

Apple's own lists split iOS 27 into three tiers of iPhone. The iPhone 15 and 15 Plus get the update, but not Apple Intelligence.

A table comparing iPhone 17 Pro at its 2025 launch with iPhone 18 Pro at its 2026 launch, from Apple's newsroom releases. Pro starting price: $1,099 then, $1,199 now. Pro Max starting price: $1,199 then, $1,299 now. Chip: A19 Pro then, A20 Pro now. Aperture control: none then, four settings now. Wired charge to 50 percent: 20 minutes then, about 15 minutes now.
Mobile · On Paper

iPhone 18 Pro: $100 More Than Last Year, Same 256GB to Start

A year apart, Apple's releases put the extra $100 against an adjustable aperture, a new chip and faster charging. The 8x zoom stays.

iPhone Duo on paper, from Apple's release of 9 September 2026: starting price $1,999 with 256GB; a 5.4-inch outer display and a 7.6-inch inner display; Touch ID in the side button; eSIM only, in every country; pre-orders on Friday 16 October; available from Friday 23 October.
Mobile · On Paper

iPhone Duo: $1,999, Touch ID, and No SIM Card Anywhere

Apple's first foldable goes on pre-order on 16 October. Its release describes a fingerprint sensor, not Face ID, and eSIM in every country.

Two routes for switching password managers on Android. The old route: export everything to a .csv file, an unencrypted file is left on the phone, import it and then delete the file, and passkeys cannot move at all. The new route: start in the new manager, Android lists your managers, approve it in the old manager, and passwords and passkeys both move. At launch it works with Google Password Manager, 1Password, Bitwarden and Dashlane.
Mobile · Explainer

Android Can Now Move Your Passkeys Between Password Managers

Until now passwords left as an unencrypted file and passkeys could not move at all. Four managers support the new transfer at launch.

Three steps on the iPhone's Settings, Battery screen. One: look for an Insight — Ongoing iOS Update means the update is still finishing in the background. Two: read Daily Usage, today against the last seven days, which needs iOS 26 or later. Three: open the top app, where Background Activity, Low Signal or Notifications says what used the battery. Apple gives no time limit for an update to finish.
Mobile · Explainer

Battery Draining After iOS 27? Look for One Insight First

Apple's own battery screen flags an update still finishing in the background. It gives no time limit, so the fix is to check, not wait.

Apple Self Service Repair against Samsung Self-Repair. Apple covers iPhone, iPad, Macs, displays and Beats, rents professional tools and offers credit for returned parts. Samsung covers mobile through home appliances, gives parts a 90-day warranty and states the main warranty is not impacted.
Mobile · Guide

Both Makers Will Sell You the Parts Now

Apple and Samsung both run official self-repair. Only Samsung says outright what it does to your warranty.

iCloud+ against Google One, monthly price times twelve, read 10 October 2026: free tiers of 5GB and 15GB, then 50GB at $11.88 against 100GB at $23.88, 200GB at $35.88 against 400GB at $59.88, a tier listed only on Google's Gemini page, and 2TB at $119.88 on both. Google's 2TB plan is $99.99 paid yearly.
Mobile · Explainer

Five Gigabytes Is Not a Phone Backup

Apple gives 5GB free, Google up to 15GB. The two ladders above them meet at exactly the same price for 2TB.

Two checklists. If you are giving a device away: sign out of iCloud or the Google Account, turn off Find My, erase all content and settings, then hand it over. If you are receiving one: ask them to do those four steps first, power it on before wrapping it, stop if it asks for someone else's account, and know that only the last owner can clear it.
Mobile · Guide

The Hand-Me-Down Phone That Will Not Switch On

Activation Lock turns itself on. If the last owner did not clear it, the phone is a brick and only they can fix it.

An ereader resting face-up on a textured blanket, its screen showing a book cover.
Mobile · Shortlist

The Best Ereaders, According to the Reviews

Every ereader here with a current price costs more than at launch, unchanged. Amazon has now announced successors to both Kindles.

Averaged review scores against price: Apple iPad Air M3 at 8.7 with its price withdrawn as superseded by the M4, OnePlus Pad Go 2 at 8.3, no longer sold by OnePlus in the US, Samsung Galaxy Tab S11 Ultra at 8.0 for $1,299.99.
Mobile · Shortlist

The Best Tablets, According to the Reviews

The iPad Air still leads. The cheap OnePlus that outscored a $1,299.99 Galaxy Tab is no longer sold by OnePlus in the US.

Averaged review scores against price: Apple Watch Ultra 3 at 9.0, since replaced by the Ultra 4, Amazfit Active 3 Premium at 9.0 for $169.99, Samsung Galaxy Watch 8 at 8.7, Amazfit Active 2 at 8.7 for $99.99.
Mobile · Shortlist

The Best Smartwatches, According to the Reviews

A $169.99 watch averages exactly what the $799 Apple Watch averages. That is the finding, and it decides more of this than the specs do.

August 20266 articles

A phone mounted on a car dashboard in bright sunlight.
Mobile · Explainer

Why Your Phone Gets Hot, and When to Worry

Apple designs for an ambient ceiling of 35°C, which a summer afternoon clears easily. Warm is normal; the warning is the signal.

SIM cards beside a SIM ejector tool on a white surface.
Mobile · Explainer

eSIM vs Physical SIM: What Actually Changes

You stop needing a paperclip and start needing your carrier's support. Whether that is an upgrade depends mostly on which carrier you use.

A hand holding a phone open at the settings menu.
Mobile · Guide

iPhone Storage Still Full? What Other Actually Is

Most of the blob you cannot delete is cache, and iOS clears it on its own when it needs the room. Apple says so in its own documentation.

Two smartphones side by side on a wooden table.
Mobile · Guide

Backing Up an iPhone? Tick the Encrypt Box

Apple turns encryption off by default on computer backups, and an unencrypted one leaves your Health history and saved passwords behind.

Two smartphones charging side by side on a desk.
Mobile · Guide

How to Check Your Phone's Battery Health, and What It Means

Where iPhone, Pixel and Samsung Galaxy show it, and what each maker says a reading means. Only Apple and Google give you a percentage.

65W struck through on the left; on the right, 20W — the phone's actual draw of 9 volts at 2.2 amps.
Mobile · Explainer

Your 65W Charger Is Not Charging Your Phone at 65W

The phone decides how much power it takes, not the brick — and it stops asking for much long before the battery is full.