Apple's iPhone Duo has been officially on sale for two weeks, and the company said today that the App Store now has over 100,000 apps that are built for the foldable.

"It's been wonderful to see how quickly developers have embraced iPhone Duo, and we're grateful for their creativity and innovation," Susan Prescott, Apple's VP of Worldwide Developer Relations, says in a statement. "Today there are well over 100,000 apps built for iPhone Duo already live on the App Store, and thousands of optimized apps are being added to the store each day." Prescott adds that "the enthusiasm has been incredible, and we're excited to see the pace of updates …

Read the full story at The Verge.

When I first read Allison and Nilay's Verge review of the iPhone Duo, I was immediately struck by one of their complaints: that the cover display is too small. That's not how the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 8 feels, I thought. Had they got it wrong?

After a week and a half using the Duo, I know exactly what they mean - and it's not the screen's fault at all. Apps that feel comfortable on Samsung's short foldable and the similarly sized Xiaomi 18 Fold are often cramped and compact on the Duo's cover screen, robbed of screen space by a right-hand rail that most apps don't make use of anyway.

That's just one of the ways that Apple's first foldable …

Read the full story at The Verge.

Android fans with a bit of iPhone Duo envy, take note: The Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 8 is discounted to $1,599.99 at both Amazon and Best Buy, a hefty $300 markdown from its usual price, and just $50 higher than the lowest we’ve seen. Considering the device only launched a few months ago, you’re saving a significant amount of cash on the unlocked device, and you can also opt for the 512GB model, doubling the storage, for just $200 more (Amazon, Best Buy). Best Buy currently has all three colors in stock, while the 256GB model is currently sold out on Amazon in cream.

The shorter and wider passport-style shape (similar to the iPhone Duo) quickly became natural and comfortable to handle, according to our reviewer Dominic Preston’s experience with the Z Fold 8. Despite its thin and light construction, it doesn’t skimp on battery life, with a 4,800mAh battery that still had 40 percent charge remaining after a full day of use. The interior 4:3 screen has the same ratio as most Apple iPads, which is great for watching movies or TV, but even better for reading. There’s no telephoto lens on this model (it’s present on the pricier Z Fold 8 Ultra), and it only has an IP48 rating, so you’ll want to be careful near the beach, but those are small compromises to make given the discounted price.

Read our Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 8 review.

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Other deals to consider

• Both Amazon and Best Buy are selling the Beats Pill for a discounted $99.95 and $99.99 respectively, a sizable break from the usual $149.99 price point. The 2024 edition of this iconic Bluetooth speaker adds in lossless audio over USB-C, as well as native feature support for both iOS and Android devices. It’s rated IP67 for dust and water resistance, and comes in three different colors to match your other Beats devices. Read our review.
• The Ring Battery Doorbell 2K is on sale for $39.99 at Amazon, over half off its $99.99 list price. This battery-powered doorbell camera is easy to install, and shoots clear 2K resolution video with a 140-degree field of view and up to 6X digital zoom. You’ll get real-time notifications on your phone for any activity the camera spots, with live view and two-way talk in case you need to have a chat with your neighbors or delivery folks without coming to the front door.
• You can pick up the Lego Star Wars: Ahsoka Chopper set for just $66.99 at Amazon, the lowest price we’ve seen yet for this 1,039-piece building kit. This brick-based droid has great play features, like detachable arms and center wheel for different display positions, and a head that spins and bobs realistically. It stands at over 8.5 inches when fully built, making it a fun addition to your existing Lego display or bookshelf.

Motorola is patching a hole in its US lineup with a non-folding flagship phone, but the pricing puts this device dangerously close to the company's expensive tablet-style foldable. The long-rumored Motorola Signature 27 is real, featuring top-of-the-line specs, a super-bright OLED screen, and a ton of cameras. But all this high-end hardware won't come cheap in the age of AI. Motorola's new flagship smartphone will run a whopping $1,600 when it arrives later this month.

The Signature 27 is a new take on flagship smartphones from Motorola, leaving behind the middling legacy of the Edge series. However, you'll still immediately clock this as a Motorola device due to its distinctive use of materials and Pantone colors. The phone is metal, ceramic, and glass, but the backs are textured polycarbonate. The device comes in Coal Smoke (black) or Capulet Olive (green) colors. The former has a "tactical weave" finish inspired by automotive design, and the latter is "textile-inspired."

This device will include the Snapdragon 8 Elite Extreme Gen 6, the most powerful mobile chip Qualcomm offers right now. While some smartphones have flirted with 16GB of memory, that's less common these days. The Signature 27 will have 12GB like Samsung's base model flagships. However, there's not going to be an upgrade option for more. You will, however, get a generous 512GB of storage.

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The first modern smartphones had 3.5-inch screens, which can be hard to remember in today's world of gargantuan glass slabs. Sure, people talk about wanting smaller phones, but will they buy one? Enough Phone is betting they will. The company will begin taking preorders for its first device today, which is built around a petite 5.3-inch screen that is apparently the smallest it could find with decent performance metrics.

The company's cheeky name is reflected in its approach to phone design. A flagship killer this is not, but it's probably "enough" for most people. It has a mid-range MediaTek processor, a single rear-facing camera, a polycarbonate body, and a fingerprint sensor in the power button.

With that compact screen, the Enough Phone will be dwarfed by almost every existing smartphone. While it's a bit thicker, the device has almost the same footprint as the iPhone 13 Mini. Thinness takes a hit, as the designers have opted to make the battery user-replaceable. Like the Fairphone, you'll just have to remove a few screws to get the back cover off.

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After introducing true liquid cooling to its gaming phones last year, Redmagic is upping the ante in its 12 Pro by building RGB lights into the transparent cooling loop, too.

And they work! Sort of. The lights do turn on, and they can be set to glow in set patterns, activate for specific apps, or trigger for notifications and calls. The problem is that like last year's 11 Pro, the cooling system itself uses fluorescent blue liquid, which the lights have to work against. Blue or white lighting just makes it look more blue, green turns out turquoise, and red or orange lights mostly produce colored bubbles swimming in a blue tide.

The liquid- …

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Apple CEO John Ternus doesn't have a timeline for when iPhone Duo supply constraints could lift. During an interview with Reuters, Ternus said the company is "working hard to get it to as many customers as quickly as possible, but at this ​point, we're not able to predict when supply and demand will be in balance."

Apple launched its first foldable last month for $1,999, featuring a 5.4 outer display and 7.6-inch inner screen. Preorders for the iPhone Duo quickly sold out, with some shipments expected to arrive in 2027. Apple also made a limited number of iPhone Duo models available in-store at launch.

In his interview with Reuters, Ternu …

Read the full story at The Verge.

When I declared this spring that Vivo's X300 Ultra had the best cameras in any phone, two things made it stand out in my mind: its excellent main camera with a narrow 35mm focal length and what remains the most capable ultrawide in any phone worldwide.

You won't find either in the new X500 Pro Max. It has an impressive camera system with world-leading dynamic range and the same great telephoto lens found in the Ultra. But it's lost a little something of what made its predecessor quite so special.

Read the full story at The Verge.

The man who helped develop the technology for liquid crystal displays — the screens in flat-panel televisions and laptops — has died at 101.

© via Hilsum Family

The man who helped develop the technology for liquid crystal displays — the screens in flat-panel televisions and laptops — has died at 101.

© via Hilsum Family

The recent updates to Google Maps and Apple’s Maps use artificial (and human) intelligence for better navigation, planning and travel guides.

© Apple

The recent updates to Google Maps and Apple’s Maps use artificial (and human) intelligence for better navigation, planning and travel guides.

© Apple

Running an app ecosystem has gotten a lot more complex for Google after its loss in the Epic Games antitrust case. While US users can access app stores in Google Play by court order, international users will use Google's voluntary Registered App Stores program. Google has announced that stores wishing to be part of that program are now free to apply, and support will roll out to some Android devices later this year.

App stores accepted into the program will enjoy preferential treatment on the Android platform. Users of approved stores will be able to install apps with a single click, similar to the experience in the Play Store. These stores will also be allowed to update apps silently in the background like Google's store does.

"In March, we announced the Registered App Stores program to give third-party app stores a more streamlined way to reach users while maintaining the safety and security of the Android ecosystem," said a Google spokesperson. "Eligible app stores outside the US can now apply to register their stores ahead of the new simplified installation experience rolling out to users later this year."

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The iPhone Duo launched last week, offering anyone willing to spend $2,000 a chance to experience Apple's first foldable phone. For some early buyers, the morning after isn't going great. Despite the company's big talk about its "precision-engineered" hinge, some devices appear to have a hardware flaw that destroys the device's impressive internal display within hours (or minutes) of use.

The Internet is currently overflowing with images of busted iPhone Duos, all sporting almost identical damage. The OLED is marred by several bright lines originating just below the midpoint of the display. These bands of damaged pixels extend all the way to the bottom and right edges. Some units also show lines of dead pixels following the crease from the top to the area where the bright lines begin.

Anyone who has seen a damaged OLED panel will be familiar with this type of defect. When the layers of the display are damaged, the pixels no longer receive the correct voltage to illuminate them. Instead, they get the full driving voltage and are permanently on at maximum brightness. Some pixels can get no voltage, leaving them totally black. The only fix is to replace the OLED, but swapping the iPhone Duo's screen reportedly costs half as much as the device itself.

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Streaming services can introduce you to a wonderland of nearly unlimited audio, but downloading your digital collection has advantages.

© Apple

With phone and computer prices soaring, it helps to know the true cost of owning electronics so you can bring those numbers down.

© Sisi Yu