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Fairphone has released the 6 Plus, a modest upgrade to last year's Fairphone 6 featuring a newer midrange Snapdragon chipset and a new cobalt color option, and it's now officially for sale in the US. The device costs $649, includes 12GB of RAM, a five-year warranty, and up to six OS upgrades, while maintaining Fairphone's signature repairability with 12 user-replaceable parts.
A CNET reviewer says the Galaxy Z Fold 8 has become their favorite phone to use daily, citing its slim 4.5mm unfolded profile, 9.7mm folded thickness, and light 201-gram weight. The device lacks a telephoto camera and has an average 4,800-mAh battery, but its compact form factor and versatile display have made it stand out compared to past innovative designs like the Galaxy S25 Edge and iPhone Air.
Nothing has revealed early plans for Nothing OS 5.1, a minor update that will let users remap the Essential Key found on some of its phones, currently tied to the Essential Space app. The company also confirmed it's beginning work on a larger Nothing OS 6.0 release planned for 2027, while Nothing OS 5.0 remains in beta on the Phone 3 ahead of a stable rollout expected in mid-October.
A developer released an open-source bike computer that uses an eInk display and can record rides and navigate preloaded routes entirely on its own, without needing a paired phone. The companion app is used only to prepare routes or transfer data before a ride, not for ongoing operation.
RugOne unveiled the Xsnap 7 Pro, a rugged smartphone with IP68/IP69K ratings whose rear camera module detaches to work as a standalone action cam shooting 2.7K video at 30fps. The device launches on Kickstarter September 7 for €799 in limited quantities before a global release in October priced at $999.
New research examining phone-free classroom policies, now adopted by a growing number of states, finds essentially no measurable improvement in student test scores and only marginal shifts in other outcomes like behavior. Cell phone restrictions in schools aren't a new phenomenon either—Maryland first banned phones and pagers in classrooms back in 1989 to curb communication tied to illegal activity.
At IFA in Berlin, Xiaomi unveiled a new passport-shaped foldable phone positioned as a rival to Apple's rumored folding iPhone, alongside three Mijia-branded home appliances: a Cryo Fresh refrigerator with air circulation and nano blue light sterilization, a Tri-Drum Washer Dryer Pro claiming 35% better energy efficiency, and a high-power Conditioner Turbo Pro. The launch marks Xiaomi's push to bring its broader Mijia ecosystem brand into European markets, building on smart home products already sold there.
A Pew Research Center survey of nearly 10,000 US adults found that 53% believe they use their smartphones too much, while 36% say their usage is about right. Younger adults reported the highest rates of overuse, with 70% of 18-to-29-year-olds and 64% of those aged 30-49 saying they're on their devices excessively. Separately, Semrush data shows people worldwide spend over four and a half hours daily on their phones, checking them roughly 58 times a day.
A hobbyist project called RotaryCell adds internal electronics to an unmodified rotary telephone, letting it place calls over LTE using an ESP32-S3-based LilyGO board, a battery, and the AG1171 ringer chip, while keeping the original handset, dial, and hook intact. The current release is a documented, hand-wired working prototype on firmware v0.10.4, with new integrated PCBs already ordered from JLCPCB but not yet assembled or validated.
Multiple Pixel 11 Pro and Pro XL owners say their screens wake up on their own from minor vibrations, like something being set down nearby or driving over a bump, rather than actually being picked up. The only current fix reported is disabling the 'Lift to check phone' feature entirely, and some users say the feature feels far more sensitive than on earlier Pixel models.
ZDNET published a roundup of the ten products its readers bought most often over the past month, with phone cases making up a large share of the list. The list is compiled from actual reader purchase data through ZDNET's affiliate links rather than editorial rankings alone.
Apple is set to unveil its first foldable phone, the iPhone Ultra, alongside the iPhone 18 Pro line at next week's event. While earlier rumors suggested a delay into late 2026 or even 2027, the most recent supply chain reports from Weibo leaker Fixed Focus Digital and Cailian News Agency indicate the device remains on track for a September release, though with very constrained initial stock.