While we’d heard that the new iPhone 13 may run into production issues resulting in fewer units shipped in the coming months, the situation might be even more dire. A new report suggests most of Apple’s new slate of products, including the iPad mini 2021, new iPad 2021, Apple Watch 7, and MacBook Pro, are backordered so severely that shipments might not be fulfilled until November or December.

Backorders on new Apple products aren’t new, but new devices are seeing the longest delays in years, per Bloomberg. 

Apple’s online store listings illustrate how far out product delays are: at the time of this writing, it’ll take at least a month to get an iPhone 13 Pro in your hands in most markets (estimated arrival: Nov 19-29), and the the MacBook Pro 16-inch has an identical month-away shipping window (the MacBook Pro 14-inch has a three-week delay until Nov 12-19). While you can get a new iPad mini 2021 rushed to your door in two hours for an extra fee in some countries, normal deliveries are delayed for a month, and the same is true for the new iPad 2021. The Apple Watch 7 seems hit hardest, and will take over a month to arrive (Nov 30-Dec 7). 

The delays aren’t limited to Apple’s newest products – even the iPhone 12 and iPhone 11 lines are seeing similar delays from two weeks to a month, respectively. 

Apple’s not alone in product delays: the global chip shortage continues to make GPUs and PS5s nigh impossible to get, and impeding the rollout of other products. But the backorders come on the heels of an earlier Bloomberg report claiming production delays will result in 10 million fewer iPhone 13 units shipped over the next few months into the crucial holiday period, which is when Apple’s sales typically peak for the year. 

Apple is expected to do almost $120 billion in sales, up 7% from last year, of which half is projected to come from iPhone sales, but that number could fall short if these shortages persist. More importantly for consumers – that new iPhone or MacBook Pro you’ve been eyeing might not make it in time for a holiday gift.

Analysis: why all these Apple delays?

We were excited to see the new MacBook Pro 14-inch and MacBook Pro 16-inch models debut at Apple’s October event, but quickly saw that the continued impact of Covid on production and supply chains could mean a lot fewer MacBook Pros available to buy over the holidays, let alone many MacBook Pro Black Friday deals. 

Diving deeper into the reported 10 million-unit iPhone 13 shortfall, analysts and experts affirmed that the report was plausible given how many fault points along the production, supply, and shipping chain could result in serious cascading delays.

But Apple does command a lot of priority among those chains due to the sheer volume of its orders – while the company rarely shares how many units it’s sold, IDC estimated that the company sold around 90.1 million iPhones during Q1 2021 (which includes the 2020 holiday season), per CNBC, and we’d only expect them to sell more. So fewer iPhones for this year’s holiday season is relative: we don’t know how many more iPhones Apple had projected to sell.

Analysts further cautioned us against reading too much into a single supply chain report and its effects – retailers could rely more on existing stock, or Apple could make adjustments (or coax more device shipments) to make up for the shortage by the time holiday sales roll around. It’s too early to tell if consumers will run into availability issues with Apple’s new products – but these reports do suggest buyers might want to account for delays during Black Friday and other upcoming shopping periods.

Via 9to5Mac

• Best phone 2021: the top 15 smartphones you can buy in the US right now

If you’ve been eager to pair your pre-ordered Google Pixel 6 or Google Pixel 6 Pro with the rumored revised Google Pixel Stand, rejoice: a listing for the 2nd Generation Pixel Stand is up on the Google online store – but it won’t launch on October 25 alongside the Pixel 6.

To be clear, the listing for the Google Pixel Stand (2nd Gen) says it is ‘coming soon.’ We reached out to Google, which confirmed to TechRadar that the wireless charger wouldn’t arrive on October 25, but didn’t give a release date. 

The Google Pixel Stand (2nd Gen) improves on its predecessor with faster charging up to 23W – but only for the new Pixel phones. Other devices charge at up to 15W, which is about standard for wireless charging in most handsets anyway. 

Interestingly, the new Pixels don’t charge at the same rate: peeking at the fine print of the specs sheet, the Google Pixel 6 wirelessly charges up to 21W, while the Pixel 6 Pro goes up to the stated 23W. It’s a minuscule difference, but more sleight of hand to obscure the actual recharge rates of these phones. 

If you’re using a Qi-certified EPP charger (aka a non-Pixel Stand), expect the new Pixels to wirelessly recharge up to 12W. 

Wireless charging: does it matter?

Most phones, especially at the flagship level, can wirelessly charge – and some can even act as chargers themselves (the Pixel 6 and Pixel 6 Pro included), sapping their own battery life to recharge other Qi-certified devices. 

There are a few flagships that don’t, like the Asus ROG 5, a gaming-focused phone that saves space and avoids the heating issues that come with wireless recharging in order to preserve thermal capacity and space for its huge 6,000mAh battery and gaming-intensive features. 

Whether or not Pixel 6 owners use wireless charging, they’ll still benefit from the large 4,612mAh battery, while the Pixel 6 Pro has a larger 5,000mAh battery. Both have a maximum charging speed of 30W, though neither includes an actual charging block in the box – you’ll have to buy that separately, but as far as we know, you won’t have to buy a Google-specific charger to get that top recharging rate.

Via Droid Life

• Google Pixel 6 event: Pixel 6, 6 Pro, Android 12 and all the launch news

We enjoyed the Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 3 when it came out in August, and fans who have been waiting to pick one up have even more reasons to buy now that Samsung has added more colors for buyers to customize their own clamshell foldable.

The Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 3 Bespoke Edition, as it’s called, lets buyers choose the color of the top and bottom sections as well as the hinge between. The Bespoke Edition adds blue and yellow to the existing white, black, pink, and cream color options along with the silver and black hinge choices – all told, there are 49 possible combinations, per Samsung.

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You’ll have to pay a bit extra for the privilege: the Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 3 Bespoke Edition price starts at $1,099 (around £TK / AU$TK), which is above the $999 / £949 / AU$1,499 base pricetag. 

And while there's no Samsung Galaxy Fold 3 Bespoke Edition, fans should stay tuned: starting with the Galaxy Z Flip 3 Bespoke Edition, Samsung will expand this initiative to other devices moving forward, the company told TechRadar over email.

Samsung's latest Unpacked: what else is here?

Sadly, the rumors weren't true: the Samsung Galaxy S21 FE isn't launching yet, though fans of the Samsung Galaxy Watch 4 will at least get a new update that includes some new watch faces, a gesture control feature, and enhanced fall detection.  

And the Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 3 isn’t the only device getting special editions. There are new versions of the Samsung Galaxy Watch 4 and the Samsung Galaxy Buds 2 themed to Paris-meets-Tokyo brand Maison Kitsuné.

The Samsung Galaxy Watch 4 Maison Kitsuné Edition has Moonrock Beige straps with a cutout shaped like the brand’s fox logo and engravings, as well as a Stardust Gray strap. There are Maison Kitsuné-themed watch faces, too.

The Samsung Galaxy Buds 2 Maison Kitsuné Edition come in similar colors – Moonrock Beige for the earbuds and a Stardust Gray leather case, which is emblazoned with the fox logo. The right earbud features the fox head, while the left has a fox tail, and there's a theme for your paired smartphone, too. 

Both special editions are pricier than their standard versions: the Samsung Galaxy Watch 4 Maison Kitsuné Edition in 40mm is priced at $399 (around £290 / AU$530), which is above the 40mm Galaxy 4’s pricetag of $249.99 / £249 / AU$399. 

The Samsung Galaxy Buds 2 Maison Kitsuné Edition costs $249 (around £180 / AU$330), which is above the standard Buds 2 price of $149.99 / £139.99 / AU$219. 

• Samsung Galaxy Unpacked part 2 live blog: what on earth is coming?

The Google Pixel 6 and Google Pixel 6 Pro have launched, and they have pretty attractive list prices. But if you’re looking across carriers and at online retailers, you might see different pricetags. Here’s why the Google Pixel 6 price is all over the place – and what you’ll be paying.

Google set a baseline price for each of its phones at the starting 128GB of storage level: $599 / £599 / AU$999 for the Pixel 6, and $899 / £849 / AU$1,299 for the Pixel 6 Pro. Interestingly, the latter’s price doesn’t seem to vary much on the market – it’s the Pixel 6 that’s showing different pricetags among carriers and retailers.

The long and short of it: Google has released different versions of the Pixel 6 which vary between the model sold in the company’s online store and those provided by carriers that work with their own networks. What’s different? 5G capability – and support for more bands means higher prices.

For instance, the version of the Pixel 6 sold by Google itself only supports sub-6 5G (2.4G/5GHz/6GHz bands) for that $599 price, and the Pixel 6 model T-Mobile sells also comes in at that $599 level with sub-6 5G only. 

The other two US mega-carriers, Verizon and AT&T, both confirmed to TechRadar that the Pixel 6 models they sell connect to their respective sub-6 and mmWave networks. These versions are pricier as a result: The Verizon Pixel 6 starts at $699, while AT&T’s Pixel 6 pricetag is $739.

These pricetags are all broken down by installment agreements and can be hard to parse, but the prices can be defrayed, as each provider (even Google) offers different trade-in deals – Verizon, for instance, is offering up to $700 off either Pixel model if the buyer trades in their current phone. There are some caveats (older phones grant less trade-in value, and these deals require users to sign up for 5G-enabled plans), but it’s still some method to save money on a brand-new phone.

Wait, which Google Pixel 6 do I have?

To preempt one worry – yes, every version of the Pixel 6 has the same specs, cameras and features. The only difference is in 5G capability and cost. 

The confusion started when mobile analyst Anshel Sag tweeted about an official Google support post that laid out several Pixel 6 and Pixel 6 Pro models with varying 5G capabilities, along with which countries they’d be available in. Most confusing were multiple US versions that implied the Pixel 6 would be mmWave-only – the models sold by AT&T and Verizon.

Both AT&T and Verizon confirmed to TechRadar that their Pixel 6 versions work with mmWave and sub-6 5G, so it may be a case of launch day confusion or errors in the support post. 

Regardless, the confusion over the versions and the differences in price are worth exploring to understand which version you'll want to buy from different carriers and providers.

• Google Pixel 6 launch event: Pixel 6, 6 Pro, Android 12 and all the latest news

Shortly after Google officially unveiled its Google Pixel 6 and Pixel 6 Pro phones, which launched with Android 12, the switch was seemingly flipped – and older Pixel phones can update to the new software now.

We’ve confirmed that the Google Pixel 5a can upgrade right now, though Google hasn’t officially announced which regions it’s rolling out to first nor has the company confirmed which older Pixels can upgrade. (We suspected that the Google Pixel 3 may be the oldest phone to get the new software, as it was the oldest to get the Android 12 beta.)

As always, the update is free, and will come to Pixel phones immediately while owners of other handsets will have to wait weeks or months for manufacturers to greenlight Android 12 updates to their devices.

Android 12: Material You and more features coming

Android 12 is launching with plenty of upgrades, but the biggest one is Material You, a user interface overhaul that lets users choose from color palettes and then makes all the icons and menus sync to those colors. 

It brings a sleek and synchronized look to Android, which had looked like a vibrant grab-bag of whatever colors Google and app developers chose to put in their icons. It's contextual to the background, too – move an icon around and it will shift colors to match the section of the phone wallpaper surrounding it.

Otherwise, Android 12 brings smarter face detection that rotates the screen to portrait or landscape depending on how you're holding the phone, a built-in remote to control smart TVs, a unified media player in Quick Settings, Car Key to unlock your smart car with your phone (for devices with UWB) and digital key sharing, a new AVIF photo format, a 'Quick Tap' feature that lets you customize a shortcut for tapping the back of your phone, and app access while downloading.

There are plenty more features, of course, but the new update looks like it will bring a lot of small but meaningful improvements to the Android ecosystem – whenever devices get the upgrade, that is. 

• Google Pixel 6 launch event: Pixel 6, 6 Pro, Android 12 and all the latest news

Want a Samsung foldable that’s truly your own? Soon you may be able to order a Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 3 or Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 3 and choose what colors it comes in – and we might hear more at next week’s Samsung Unpacked event on October 20.

That’s not according to a rumor or leak – that comes from Samsung itself in a video teaser. The video, bluntly titled ‘Get ready to unfold something unmistakably you,’ shows a trio of aliens spinning a color wheel that changes the hue of their clothes. Not too subtle, Samsung.

Presumably, this applies to both the Z Fold 3 and the clamshell foldable Z Flip 3. If you really wanted to read into the video, only the aliens’ tops and bottoms are changing, suggesting that prospective buyers will only be able to tinker with the colors on the backs of the Z Fold 3 or top and bottom of the Z Flip 3 – no double-tones, designs, or inscriptions. We should also expect users to be able to change the color of the hinge, too, though perhaps with fewer options given its metal construction.

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Analysis: Color customization, a feature of the past...and back again

Most smartphones come in a handful of colors, and the Z Flip 3 is available in several bright and pastel hues, but the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 3 can only be bought in black in many markets. Opening up to many more colors is a boon, and hopefully won’t cost anything extra – and is likely something Samsung is betting will entice more customers to take the plunge and pay for the pricier foldable, which starts at $1,799 / £1,599 / AU$2,499. (The Z Flip 3 is a more comparatively affordable at $999 / £949 / AU$1,499, but would certainly be more enticing with more colors.)

Of course, Samsung isn’t the first phonemaker to offer a device in a custom assortment of colors – for years, Motorola had its own customization service, Moto Maker, to let customers pick from a variety of hues. The 2014 Moto X, for instance, had “18 back colors, 7 accents, and 2 front panels,” per The Next Web, though other phones could be similarly customized. But Motorola slowly phased it out, opting for Moto Mods before abandoning those too.

But a return to true customizability in colors would be welcomed by consumers, even if it may take more time to personalize the phones before arriving at their door. We’ll have to see just what Samsung has in mind for its foldables on October 20.

Via Android Authority

• Best foldable phones 2021: the top folding smartphones right now

It’s still unclear when the Samsung Galaxy S21 FE may arrive, with suspicions divided between next week and January, but a new leak leans toward the latter – and even suggests a launch date of January 11. 

We’ve heard conflicting reports about the Galaxy S21 FE’s potential release, but this is the first date we’ve heard, coming courtesy of leaker Jon Prosser, who tweeted a launch date of January 11, 2022. Notable leaker Max Weinbach affirmed these findings in a reply to Prosser’s tweet.

Prosser asserted in a follow-up tweet that the S21 FE had been delayed yet again, supporting the notion that Samsung had planned the phone’s release (probably around September when the Samsung Galaxy S20 FE had been released in 2020) but that issues had pushed the launch back. Rumors have suggested supply and production difficulties had caused the prior delays, and possibly this one as well.

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Analysis: so why isn’t the S21 FE here yet?

Samsung has not yet confirmed that there is a Galaxy S21 FE headed for the market, but enough rumors have asserted its existence that we believed one was coming. If it was going to arrive at the same time of year as its predecessor, we would have expected a September launch, but rumors of its delay reached us before then – and pinned the blame on the global chipset shortage.

It’s the same vague reason we suspected the Samsung Galaxy Note 21 was formally cancelled. The Galaxy S21 FE was even reportedly cancelled as well according to a Samsung official, with S21 FE support pages dropping from the internet to boot. Another rumor suggested the phone would finally come in October, and a Samsung Unpacked event announced for October 20 raised suspicions that the S21 FE would finally launch then. 

But yet another rumor reset the supposed launch window for January, perhaps even setting the S21 FE in the early-year release slot typically reserved for the year’s flagship phones (in this case, the Samsung Galaxy S22). Prosser’s tweet at least gives us a date to expect, though it’s unclear if the S21 FE will replace the S22 or if we’ll see both phones share the stage.

• Best Samsung phones 2021: finding the Galaxy phone for you

It’s still unclear when the Samsung Galaxy S21 FE may arrive, with suspicions divided between next week and January, but a new leak leans toward the latter – and even suggests a launch date of January 11. 

We’ve heard conflicting reports about the Galaxy S21 FE’s potential release, but this is the first date we’ve heard, coming courtesy of leaker Jon Prosser, who tweeted a launch date of January 11, 2022. Notable leaker Max Weinbach affirmed these findings in a reply to Prosser’s tweet.

Prosser asserted in a follow-up tweet that the S21 FE had been delayed yet again, supporting the notion that Samsung had planned the phone’s release (probably around September when the Samsung Galaxy S20 FE had been released in 2020) but that issues had pushed the launch back. Rumors have suggested supply and production difficulties had caused the prior delays, and possibly this one as well.

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Analysis: so why isn’t the S21 FE here yet?

Samsung has not yet confirmed that there is a Galaxy S21 FE headed for the market, but enough rumors have asserted its existence that we believed one was coming. If it was going to arrive at the same time of year as its predecessor, we would have expected a September launch, but rumors of its delay reached us before then – and pinned the blame on the global chipset shortage.

It’s the same vague reason we suspected the Samsung Galaxy Note 21 was formally cancelled. The Galaxy S21 FE was even reportedly cancelled as well according to a Samsung official, with S21 FE support pages dropping from the internet to boot. Another rumor suggested the phone would finally come in October, and a Samsung Unpacked event announced for October 20 raised suspicions that the S21 FE would finally launch then. 

But yet another rumor reset the supposed launch window for January, perhaps even setting the S21 FE in the early-year release slot typically reserved for the year’s flagship phones (in this case, the Samsung Galaxy S22). Prosser’s tweet at least gives us a date to expect, though it’s unclear if the S21 FE will replace the S22 or if we’ll see both phones share the stage.

• Best Samsung phones 2021: finding the Galaxy phone for you

The Nokia G300 is the company’s next budget phone, and at $199 (around £145 / AU$269), it’s one of the cheapest 5G phones on the US phone market.

The phone has a 6.5-inch HD Plus 20:9 ratio display, 6GB of RAM, and 64GB of storage (expandable up to 1TB of storage) – which is more than you’ll get from the 32GB that come standard on most budget phones. For rear cameras, it has a 16MP f/1.8 camera, 5MP ultrawide, and 2MP depth sensor, along with an 8MP front-facing shooter.

The phone’s design isn’t too advanced, which is to be expected from a budget device, with a teardrop notch and thick chin bezel that look a bit dated. But the enlarged lock button with fingerprint sensor is a nice touch, it packs a 3.5mm jack, and the phone looks reasonably sleek.

Budget phones: now with 5G!

5G connectivity is the highlight of the Nokia G300, but its other specs put it competitively with other smartphones at its price tier. Our best cheap phone around the same cost is the Moto G Fast – but since it runs Android 11 out of the box, the Nokia G300 has the edge. 

Of course, with Android 12 just coming out, we’re eager to see which budget phones get the upgrade first. Budget phones are often the last to get updated, and the cheapest phones usually don’t get more than a single OS upgrade, so what comes in the box is nearly the extent of what they’ll ever have. But for their price, like the G300, they’re the cheapest ways to get 5G speeds.

• iPhone 13: the best Apple flagship yet

Update: it's Samsung's next launch event today (October 20) at 7am PT / 10am ET / 3pm BST today (or 1am AEDT on October 21), and we expect the Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 3 BTS edition to be among the announcements. Head to our Samsung Unpacked live blog for all the action.

In what may be the most blatant tease ever, an official Samsung tweet asked if we’d forgotten the Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 3 (we loved it) and tagged K-pop megagroup BTS, as well as including the hashtag #GalaxyxBTS.

Yeah, we think they might collaborate on a phone.

The tweet seems pretty self-explanatory, going so far as to display images of the BTS members, some even holding the Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 3, and pointing to the official site for the next Samsung Unpacked event, which the company has announced will be happening on October 20. 

If you recall, these images seem to be from BTS’ appearance during the last Samsung Unpacked in August which saw reveals of the Z Flip 3 and the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 3. That in itself felt like a hint that a collaboration between the globally famous group and the phonemaker might be happening, and this feels like all but confirmation.

You got BTS in my Samsung...again

What would a Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 3 BTS Edition look like? We haven’t the foggiest idea, as the images of the BTS members in the tweet don’t show any special versions of the Z Flip 3 – just one of the lilac colors you can buy today. 

It’s not the first collaboration between the megagroup and the phonemaker – the Samsung Galaxy S20 Plus had its own BTS edition launch in July 2020, which came in a vibrant violet hue with blue-toned edges, as well as BTS-themed software customization. There didn’t seem to be any branding...except for a telltale purple heart on the camera block for true fans to spot.

Presumably, the Z Flip 3 BTS Edition (or whatever it’s called) could have a similar coloring and software package, as well as a logo somewhere in the design, but that’s all speculation at this point. It’s pretty obvious that we’ll see the device revealed at Samsung Unpacked on October 20, so we (and BTS fans eager for their next phones) will just have to wait for the event to see it shown off.

Via SamMobile

• Samsung Galaxy S22 news, price, leaks and what to know so far

The iPhone 13 release window might be affected by the global chip shortage after all: a new report suggests Apple has cut its production expectations by up to 10 million units due to production issues stemming from a lack of components.

While the ongoing chip shortage caused by the impact of the Covid pandemic has affected the PS5 restocks, cars and other phones, we hadn’t heard whether it would affect the iPhone 13. But while Apple was expecting to produce 90 million of the phones (including the iPhone 13, iPhone 13 mini, iPhone 13 Pro, and iPhone 13 Pro Max), its suppliers Broadcom and Texas Instruments have struggled to provide components, sources told Bloomberg.

The biggest focus of the global chip shortage has been on supply shortages for Nvidia GPU stock as well as the PS5 and Xbox Series X stock. But this new report explains how much farther afield the issue ranges: for the iPhone 13, Broadcom supplies wireless components while Texas Instruments provides display parts, per Bloomberg. And those are reportedly not the only suppliers struggling to get Apple enough components.

So how would 10 million fewer iPhones affect Apple?

While production doesn’t precisely equal sales, phone shipments are shorthand for success, and having 10 million fewer iPhones can put a serious dent in Apple’s bottom line. But it’s important to put this in context, especially given how many numbers are thrown around. The short answer is up to $7.2 billion in lost sales going by last year's numbers – read on for how we got there.

In years past, the months after a new iPhone launches will see the most sales all year: the end of 2020 (which Apple loops in with early January on its financial calendar, making this Q1 2021) saw a record $65 billion in iPhone sales. Companies are notoriously shy about listing units sold in their reports (unless they choose to disclose them as bragging points in press releases), but research firm IDC estimated Apple shipped 90.1 million iPhones in that period, according to CNBC. 

If Apple had shipped 10 million fewer iPhones in that period, which is about 11%, napkin math suggests it could have dropped sales by $7.2 billion. That’s a wide guess, of course, and doesn’t reflect whether consumers would settle for an iPhone shipped later rather than giving up if they can’t open one up over the holidays. 

It also doesn’t reflect the iPhone line’s record sales through the entirety of the 2021 fiscal year: Q1 2021 iPhone sales were up 18% over Q1 2020, growing in Q3 2021 to a staggering almost 50% increase over Q3 2020 sales (per Apple’s earnings reports for Q1 2021 and Q3 2021, respectively). In other words, we’re on track for another record year of iPhone sales during the holiday season, and 10 million fewer iPhones in stores or online could put a big dent in Apple’s biggest sales period ever. 

We’ll have to wait for guidance from Tim Cook and other Apple executives when the company announces its Q4 2021 earnings on October 28, 2021.

• iPhone 13: the best Apple flagship yet

While we were expecting the flagship OnePlus 10 to launch as the next of the company’s phones, rumors suggest we’re getting the more affordable OnePlus 9RT instead – and a new leak shows off the phone in what look like official renders.

Before we dig into the leak, we've now heard the phone will be launching on October 13. It's thought that is a China-only launch for now, but it's also possible the phone will eventually land in India.

The OnePlus 9R didn't come to the US or Europe, so we don't currently expect you to be able to buy this handset in those regions.

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Noted leaker Evan Blass aka @evleaks tweeted out a trio of photos showing off the back of the purported OnePlus 9RT in crisp detail. 

These seem to be press renders, though they look sharp enough to be photos, and the last image even has a neat red OnePlus-style box, lending added authenticity to the leaks. 

Per the photos, the OnePlus 9RT seems to have slightly rearranged cameras compared to the OnePlus 9 Pro, and could pack one more lens than the OnePlus 9, suggesting it could have a wider photographic range. 

Blass followed up the images with a cryptic tweet with only one word, “Martin” – potentially a codename for the phone. It also included the numbers 10/13, which were then confirmed a few hours later as the launch date for the new handset.

Analysis: OnePlus 9RT isn’t the OnePlus phone we were expecting

The OnePlus 9RT is certainly not the phone we were originally expecting – for years, the company would release an updated version of that year’s flagship as a ‘T’-branded model.

Thus, we anticipated a OnePlus 9T to come out in October or November that would refine the OnePlus 9’s features and perhaps add more perks. Then last month, OnePlus confirmed to TechRadar that there wouldn't be a OnePlus 9T.

Instead, the company seems to be focusing on the OnePlus 9RT that will likely only be available in China and India.

Presumably, this would follow up on the OnePlus 9R released in April 2021 as a more affordable alternative to the OnePlus 9 with some slightly less impressive specs – a Snapdragon 870 instead of the leading Snapdragon 888, for instance. That phone was released in India only, so the OnePlus 9RT could be an updated version with a wider release but we've yet to learn where it'll arrive.

What have we heard about it? Multiple OnePlus 9RT specs leaks suggest will have the same Snapdragon 870 chipset, 4,500mAh battery and 65W fast charging speed as the 9R, but a slightly improved 50MP main camera. 

A different rumor asserts that a Geekbench score was made by a OnePlus 9RT with a Snapdragon 888 chipset, though, so it’s possible the phone may bump up the performance of its more mid-range predecessor up to flagship speeds. We’ll wait to see how these predictions pan out, though.

• Best OnePlus phones of 2021: these are the top new or older OnePlus handsets

Motorola’s bread and butter are affordable devices with good features, and its next budget phone, The Moto G Pure, could be a high value at a low price of $159 (around £115 / AU$219) unlocked. 

The Moto G Pure packs a 6.5-inch Max Vision HD Plus display, with a teardrop notch at the top for the front-facing 5MP camera. The rear cameras feature a 13MP f/2.2 lens paired with a 2MP depth sensor for portrait effects, and the camera mode includes all of Motorola’s usual camera tricks like Spot Color.

The phone is powered by a MediaTek Helio G25 octa-core 2 GHz chipset and 3GB of RAM, with 32GB of storage expandable up to 512GB via microSD card. The phone packs a 4,000mAh battery and an included 10W charger – which is respectable capacity if not a fast recharger. 

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The Moto G Pure has an IP52 water and dust resistance rating, comes in a single Deep Indigo color, and like other budget phones, has a fingerprint sensor on the back of the device. The phone is available for preorder, and will go on sale October 14.

Where does the Moto G Pure sit among budget phones?

The Moto G Pure includes some of the best features of the Moto G line, and in the US, it supersedes the Moto G Fast as the brand’s leading budget handset below $200. Depending on how the phone performs, the Moto G Pure could take its place on our best cheap phones list. 

We've yet to learn if the phone will be coming to the UK or Australia, but Motorola's radio silence on the subject suggests this will be an exclusive product for the US.

The Moto G Pure isn’t quite as advanced as other Moto G series handsets – even the Moto G9 Play has a 48MP main shooter and macro lens, has a 5,000mAh battery, and starts at 64GB of storage to boot. 

But that phone costs a little more with a price of £159.99 / AU$299 (roughly $220), and comes with Android 10 in the box. The Moto G Pure is a step down in perks and price, coming in at $159 (around £115 / AU$219) but running Android 11. 

Like most budget phones, the G Pure will only get a single update to Android 12, but at least it’ll get this year’s best upgrades and features.

• iPhone SE (2020) vs iPhone XR: which of the cheaper Apple iPhones is for you?

After months past the point we expected to see it launch, we still don’t know the Samsung Galaxy S21 FE release date, but a new leak suggests it could come in January – and that the Samsung Galaxy S22 has been delayed.

We’ve heard plenty about the Samsung Galaxy S21 FE, including several reports that it may have been canceled, so hearing it may come in January isn’t a total surprise. A new leak from SamMobile claims it will be a quiet launch, perhaps even over emailed press release instead of a bombastic event. 

Separately, the SamMobile report claims the Samsung Galaxy S22 launch may have been delayed – though for how long is unclear. Typical flagship S-series phones arrive in January (the Samsung Galaxy S21 launched on January 14, 2021) after CES in the beginning of the month. 

Perhaps the Samsung S21 FE will be announced during that slot, or even introduced at CES 2022, with the company waiting a few weeks to a month to launch the Samsung S22. But the latter is speculation even beyond what we’ve heard from this leak, which only (separately) stated the January S21 FE launch window and the uncertain delay of the S22.

Dude, where’s my Samsung Galaxy S21 FE?

It’s been a rocky road for the Samsung Galaxy S21 FE. Given that its predecessor, the Samsung Galaxy S20 FE, was released in September 2020, we were fully expecting the S21 FE to follow suit – but now into October, we’re wondering if we’ll see the phone at all. 

While we have enough evidence to suggest the S21 FE does exist and should be nearing readiness to launch – Samsung itself confirmed the phone with a listing that was quickly taken down – rumors about its actual release are all over the place. An August report suggested it could come soon, while another claimed it will be here at the end of October. 

The ‘affordable flagship’ niche is something Samsung has invested in for years, first with the Samsung Galaxy S10e in 2019 and, in 2020, the Samsung Galaxy S10 Lite and Samsung Galaxy Note 10 Lite. Finally, the company seemingly settled on the ‘Fan Edition’ branding with the Samsung Galaxy S20 FE, which was a hit. We expect the S21 FE to be successful, too, but we’ll have to see if the phone actually comes out and proves us right.

Via PhoneArena

• iPhone 13 Pro Max vs Samsung Galaxy S21 Ultra: which 2021 flagship phone is for you?

A new leak suggests a Samsung Exynos chipset could get ray tracing tech, meaning the company’s next flagship phone series – the Samsung Galaxy S22, expected in early 2022 – could be powered by Exynos silicon with this feature.

Ray tracing renders more dynamic (and true-to-life) lighting and reflections in computer graphics, and is mostly used as a benchmark feature for top-end computers rendering the latest games. At Computex 2021 in June, AMD boldly announced that it would bring its own graphics tech (including ray tracing) to the next generation of Exynos chipsets, but we hadn’t heard anything since from Samsung – until now (sort of). 

The leak comes courtesy of noted leaker Ice Universe, who tweeted a purported screenshot of a Weibo post from the official Samsung Exynos account which “clearly stated that Ray Tracing technology is about to be mounted in the new Exynos GPU.” Per the screenshot, the supposed Weibo post was published on October 4, but a cursory view of the Exynos Weibo account doesn’t show a post later than October 1, suggesting it may have been deleted if it had been posted at all.

If true, this would be a huge accomplishment for Samsung, and a big bragging point to hold over both Apple’s A-series chips and Qualcomm’s Snapdragon silicon. We’ll have to see whether Samsung comes out officially acknowledging the tech will come to Exynos chips or if we’ll have to wait longer for ray tracing to reach smartphones.

Ray tracing: desktops, laptops...and smartphones?

Ray tracing remains a feature for top-specced desktop PCs, though more recent updates from Nvidia and others have enabled the tech for lower-end hardware and, potentially, laptops. It wouldn’t be a surprise if smartphones and tablets weren’t far behind.

Whether ray tracing will be visible or recognizable is another question. We expect only the top-tier Exynos chipsets to pack in ray tracing anyway (the AMD announcement only mentioned that some silicon will get augmented with its tech, so presumably, that will be the high-end models) – this means we could expect the flagship Samsung Galaxy S22 range to get it. 

Those phones have at least Full HD (2400 x 1080) AMOLED displays, while the most expensive Galaxy S22 Ultra is expected to have a WQHD (2560 x 1440) display like its predecessor. Since ray tracing is so processor-intensive, many gamers are opting to use it with 1080p resolution anyway, so the real question will be screen size: will gorgeous light and shadow rendering matter on screens as small as the 6-inch displays that are standard on current smartphones?

That’s a question we won’t know until the next suite of Exynos chipsets land next year, starting – we expect – with the Samsung Galaxy S22 in January 2022.

• iPhone 13 Pro Max vs Samsung Galaxy S21 Ultra: which 2021 flagship phone is for you?