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?

Apple’s midyear WWDC event is largely dedicated to developers, but the opening showcase is all about what’s coming for consumers. And while this year’s WWDC 2020 keynote didn’t reveal any hardware per se, it had plenty of exciting software changes coming to Apple’s lineup of devices.

While no devices were shown off, the event had one giant announcement: going forward, the tech giant will be ditching Intel chipsets in its Mac lineup in favor of one designed by Apple itself. That’s right: just like the iPhone, iPad, and Apple Watch lines all use in-house chipsets, the Mac family will get proprietary silicon. 

But there’s still plenty to get excited about with operating system updates. For instance, there are some meaty quality-of-life changes coming to iOS 14 that will auto-organize your app collection, enhance group chats, enhance Maps with greener navigation options, and make it far easier to download relevant apps while you’re out and about. And it’s finally catching up to Android by adding picture-in-picture video viewing.

iPadOS 14 will get some of those iOS perks itself along with more features that take advantage of tablet screens, like ‘sidebars’ filled with useful shortcuts and more robust menu choices. WatchOS 7 finally gets sleep tracking, as well as more workout modes and better customization of watch faces. Heck, it’ll even monitor how long you’re washing your hands.

MacOS 11 Big Sur, as it’s named, gets interface refinements and tweaks to Finder and the Toolbar, as well as a Control Center a la iOS and iPadOS for quick shortcuts to brightness and other features. For Apple TV, tvOS 14 is adding picture-in-picture and support for specialty Xbox controllers like the Xbox Elite 2 and Xbox Adaptive Controller.

That’s a lot of upgrades, both long-awaited and unanticipated-but-welcome. Here’s a breakdown for every corner of the Apple ecosystem that’s slated to get new tricks. 

• Will your iPhone get the iOS 14 update?
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• Will your iPad get iPadOS 14? There's good news for owners of most iPads

Everything we heard at WWDC 2020

Mac’s Apple chipset: one for the whole Mac family, eventually

The big announcement of the day was saved for the Mac family, which is officially shifting away from Intel chips to use Apple-designed silicon in future Apple desktop machines. The first Mac to use an Apple chipset will be released before the end of 2020, while the transition for the full device lineup will take two years, Apple CEO Tim Cook said. The company is still pledging to support Intel-powered machines with new software upgrades for years. 

Apple didn’t undersell the importance of the moment, and compared this transition to three prior Mac turning points in the device’s history: when it shifted to PowerPC chipsets, then when it introduced MacOS X, and finally when it adopted Intel chipsets. 

Why change silicon? Apple credited its own chipsets as crucial to the success of its device line, starting with the A4 Bionic chipset in the iPhone 4 and onward with the Apple Watches and iPads released over the years. The new Mac chipsets will be a family of SoCs for the entire Mac line. Like its other system-on-chips, Apple is focusing on performance and power management with a neural engine for machine learning and scalable architecture.

iOS 14: quality of life, media watching, and getting around

iOS 14 has gotten the lion’s share of improvements at WWDC 2020. Most importantly, Apple has generously noticed how terrible we all are at organizing our pages and pages of apps – now, your final page on the Home Screen will be auto-generated app collections, and if you want, you can hide pages of apps you don’t really use. Yes, it feels a little Android-ish to us, too.

You can also insert mini-apps called Widgets into your Home Screen pages – think of them as the abbreviated apps you’d see on your Apple Watches, which you can customize in the Widget Gallery. iMessages has improved, too, adding some work chat-inspired features like inline replies and pinned conversations. 

Siri will no longer take up the full screen, opting instead for a small popup at the bottom of the display, and can now send audio messages. And another inherited-from-Android feature: iOS 14 will get picture-in-picture video viewing. Huzzah.

Maps has been upgraded to offer cycling directions, which will be added to a handful of big cities at first. Cycling will give you ideas of elevation and suggested routes, while a new dedicated EV mode will track routes from EV recharging station to recharging station. 

Carplay has some upgrades too, including new backgrounds and, in select vehicles, allowing users to use their phones in place of car key fobs. The first car to take advantage of this will be the newest BMW 5 series: in the presentation, we saw someone unlock their doors via NFC on their iPhone. This goes beyond one linked device: it allows you to share ‘keys’ and vary access with conceivably anyone with an iPhone. This feature will be coming in iOS 14 but will also be made available in July for iOS 13 users.

Finally, iOS 14 will get improvements to the App Store in the form of new App Clips, which are small digital pop-ups prompting users to download the right app for a service. These can be triggered via NFC – like waving your iPhone in front of a smart scooter station – but they can also be prompted by text or QR code. Best of all, you don’t have to necessarily go through the rigmarole of registering with a new service so long as they accept Apple Pay and signing in with Apple. 

iPadOS 14: more real estate, some iOS 14 perks 

While iPadOS has been out since late 2019, we haven’t seen it shift course much from iOS. iPadOS 14 will bring more features and perks to take advantage of tablet screens.

Some of these had obvious appeal: Apple showcased new sidebars for apps that offer shortcuts and handy perks – think of similar toolboxes and panels in Adobe apps – along with expanded menu dropdowns. 

There are less flashy methods to expand the real estate, like adding art and lyrics when listening to music in full-screen mode. Other tweaks are simply functional: instead of taking over the full screen, incoming calls will be reduced to just a notification tab at the top – a change that’s also coming to iPhoneOS 14. That goes both ways: iPad will get those nice widget and app auto-organizing features coming to iPhoneOS 14, but we imagine they’ll have a greater effect on an iPad screen.

There are Apple Pencil upgrades, too. A new feature called Scribble lets you write in text fields (like, say, Safari’s search bar) and your penmanship will automatically be converted to typed text. There’s also assistance for your handwritten notes that ‘fixes’ your drawings into shapes – make a wobbly arrow and iPads will straighten it out for you. There’s also new text recognition features: you can select written words and even copy blocks of them to paste into other apps, where it will be converted to typed text. 

AirPods: smarter device switching and surround sound...even in motion

New firmware upgrades will improve automatic switching between your Apple ecosystem devices: if you’re watching media on your iPad and listening through AirPods, but get a call on your iPhone, your AirPods should automatically switch over.. 

The AirPods Pro also get a ‘big if true’ update that simulates directional surround sound using algorithms, audio filters, and tinkered frequencies. What that means: if you physically move your head, the accelerometer and sensors in the Pro keep the sound oriented around your device, allowing you to tilt your ears around a cohesive soundspace. This will supposedly adjust even if your entire body is shifted – like, say, if you’re riding a bus.

Apple Watch 6: Sleep tracking at last. And hand washing?

WatchOS 7 has refined how developers can craft complications, enabling more combinations and watch faces to help users create their own ideal watch faces. Apple’s also made it easier to share watch faces via a new feature, Face Sharing. When you see a watch face you like, click the button prompt and it will download – as well as prompt you to get any missing complications.

Just like in iOS 14, watchOS 7 includes improvements to Maps that add cycling directions, with elevation changes and navigation prompts that appear as large, easy-to-read complications.

Workouts are getting an upgrade, too, adding Dance as a total body workout, which tracks popular (yet broadly-defined) dance styles like Hip Hop and Latin. How? Advanced algorithms detect the difference when wearers use just their arms, just their legs, or combinations of the two. There are more workouts, too, like core training, functional strength training, and even cooldowns for post-workout sessions. The corresponding Activity app in iOS 14 has also been redesigned.

But the big addition is sleep tracking, which uses machine learning to detect patterns and feeds the info into the Health app on the Apple Watch ad linked iPhone. The feature prompts users to establish their own ‘wind down’ routine to end the day. In the morning, wearers can be woken up with either audio tones or haptic vibration for quieter personal alarm. They’re greeted by a wake-up screen with status updates to start your day like temperature, notifications – and crucially, battery life. 

Finally, watchOS 7 is getting another health feature of sorts: handwashing detection. Your Apple Watch will harness machine learning and analyze audio to monitor whether you’re washing your hands for the duration of a full 20-second countdown, with fun sounds and a ‘well done’ at the end. 

MacOS: Big Sur

The next macOS update is officially named Big Sur, taking its title from yet another classic California locale. But with the new version comes a bunch of changes. Many of these are interface tweaks, aspiring for more clarity. Windows will use depth, shading, and translucency to convey a hierarchy, which will come to both light and dark modes. 

Other tweaks are just as svelte: Mac apps are becoming more squared-off (‘squircles,’ if you will), with a new sidebar and toolbar for Finder. But other shifts are bigger, like macOS inheriting the Control Center from iOS, allowing users quick access to brightness and other settings. There’s also a notification center that lists notifications and widgets, too, like the ones headed to iOS 14.

Maps will also get improvements in macOS Big Sur, with indoor maps and Lookaround (Apple’s street view) and other iOS 14 upgrades like cycling and electric vehicle station navigation. 

Safari: refinements

Safari is also getting some improvements, with site privacy reports that show what they’re accessing. Safari will monitor your saved passwords and compare them against data breaches, which Google already does with Chrome. 

As other browsers get smarter about tab management, Safari is introducing new features: hovering over one, for instance, shows a preview of the page. 

tvOS 14: Xbox gaming time

In tvOS 14, gaming will get multi-user support, while support will be added for specialty the Xbox Elite 2 and Xbox Adaptive Controller. Picture-in-picture is coming to Apple TV, too.

 As WWDC 2020 keynote nears, we expect Apple to reveal plenty of new software features coming to its devices, especially new ways to track health through iPhones and Apple Watches. But we’re also hoping the tech giant chooses to move beyond simply providing the tech to track Covid-19 and promotes its own tracker that works within its health suite.

To be fair, Apple has plenty of reasons not to release its own solution. Most notably: it’s letting other countries make their own decisions according to their own health and privacy protocols.

In early April, Apple announced it was partnering with Google to enable Covid tracking within its phones. Folks assumed this meant the companies were releasing their own apps, but the tech giants deliberately noted they were simply enabling governments or health services to create their own iOS and Android apps based on Apple and Google’s software API model.

That model, the companies explained, provided ways to anonymize data (via randomly generated keys and Bluetooth encryption) to keep it from being used to identify individuals. An app built on this model would alert users that they’d been in proximity with a Covid-infected person, but not in a way that would indicate who they were. The data would be decentralized, to keep identities from being exposed or data exploited.

While there are certainly concerns over this model, it’s been vindicated in its own way: the UK NHS initially rejected it in favor of contracting domestic companies to build their own app, but two months later, the failed effort has led the NHS to embrace Apple and Google’s model. 

Part of the problem was technical. Since NHS-contracted developers weren’t using the tech giants’ specific model, which allows constant Bluetooth scanning in the background, they needed to find less efficient workarounds for restrictions in Android and iOS, which the NHSX conceded wasn’t possible, Wired UK explained. Further, battery loss and bugginess hindered use of the app. 

Similarly, Australia’s home-built CovidSafe app has struggled to work around operating system restrictions, to the point where researchers found that simply locking an iPhone would prevent it from exchanging contact info, per ZDNet.

In short: avoiding the Apple and Google model/API and its access has led to what seem like intractable roadblocks for basic background use, let alone the litany of little issues that annoy users into ditching their country’s apps. 

Enter WWDC 2020, and the benefits of integrating Covid-tracking with the Health app.

Health app advantages

Apple isn’t the kind of company to decide for users what data is tracked – after all, the Apple/Google tracking API is opt-in by default – but there’s plenty of resources that the Health app, and Apple’s range of devices, could assist with. 

Currently, Apple is pretty hands-off with Covid examinations, providing only an online screening tool that requires folks to self-report on symptoms and pre-existing conditions. While the latter are outside the scope of Apple’s device lineup to detect, there are some biological factors that could be. 

Take, for instance, the recently-released study by West Virginia University and startup Oura Health that, in its first phase, predicted Covid-19 related symptoms like fevers, coughing, and breathing difficulties three days in advance with over 90% accuracy – so long as they were wearing an Oura Ring, a device that measures body temperature, heart rate, sleep patterns, and respiratory rate. The study also tracked psychological, cognitive, and behavioral biometrics to contextualize results, but the results are promising.

Apple’s devices can track some, but not all, of the factors allegedly monitored by the Oura Ring. While the latest Apple Watch 5 can’t measure temperature, it can track heart rate,and  its successor, the Apple Watch 6, is rumored to be getting sleep tracking along with the capability to measure the oxygen levels in your blood via a pulse oximeter – which can be used to find respiratory rate.

Combine that tracking with the conditions a user has already disclosed within their Health app, including Covid-relevant factors, and their Apple Watch + iPhone setup could detect that they’re potentially Covid-positive before they do. Which, of course, could prompt users to get tested, thus accelerating positive identification. 

We could see Apple simply announce that kind of robust tracking at WWDC 2020 and leave further action (like contact tracing) up to governments and health services. But a holistic Apple-run approach could streamline detection. Think: after encountering a Covid-positive person or even being in a location that’s been visited by some, the Health app could prompt a user to be aware of particular symptoms given their medical history. Even those potential infection vectors could be fed to at-risk users to avoid certain Covid-risky areas, for instance. 

There’s a lot of reasons governments would want a personal handle on running contact-tracing, but Apple at least has the tools to see it done well.

Is Apple still working on its AirPower charging mat? Judging by this leaked image, yes – and we may know a little more about the tech giant’s long-delayed recharging accessory. 

What’s new? First, that the AirPower is still being developed. Leaker Jon Prosser tweeted a pair of photos purportedly showing the Apple charging pad (if you remember, he claimed the project was once again in development back in March). But the leak also suggests the tech giant has been able to get their AirPower prototypes to charge an Apple Watch.

Judging by the above images, both the Apple Watch and the AirPods Pro pictured are charging simultaneously. One more interesting note, which Prosser himself confirms multiple times in the tweet’s replies: the cable does not plug in to the AirPower via a Lightning port. 

Presumably, this could be a USB-C port; Apple has abandoned the Lightning port in the newest iPad Pro models, and there’s rumor that the iPhone 12 might be the last Apple handset to feature it. 

• Every rumor we've heard about the AirPower, Apple's official charging mat
• The best iPhone chargers you can find in 2020
• WWDC 2020: all the announcements we're expecting from Apple's midyear show

AirPower at last?

Despite this alleged progress, there’s no indication that AirPower is officially headed to the market yet. After a long silence about its development, Apple admitted in an email to press that the device it had been working on didn’t ‘achieve our high standards, and we have cancelled the project’ in March 2019. 

Reports had emerged that the AirPower overheated, and even competing products weren’t able to pull off what Apple aspired to do: charge three devices at once, including Apple Watches. 

Given the perpetual interest around an official Apple charging pad, we aren’t surprised that yet another leak affirming its resurrection has drawn so much attention – and with the Apple WWDC 2020 keynote just around the corner, we wouldn’t be surprised if we end up hearing more during or after its annual developer conference.

• Can't wait for AirPower? Here's our list of the best wireless chargers on the market

As the Apple WWDC 2020 keynote approaches, we may see some rebranding of the company's software: a leak claims that iOS will be renamed iPhone OS.

That comes courtesy of noted leaker Jon Prosser. This time, he simply tweeted ‘iPhone OS’:

Given the proximity to Apple’s WWDC 2020 event, which starts June 22, it’s possible that Apple will take the opportunity to rebrand iOS to iPhone OS, if this tweet is accurate. In that case, iOS 14 would likely be iPhone OS 14.

Why make the switch? Possibly to further delineate the iPhone’s operating system from iPadOS, which has been adding features and capabilities to distinguish itself from iOS since it was released in September 2019. 

• iOS 14: everything we've heard about the upcoming operating system
• iPadOS 14: all we know about the next version of Apple's tablet operating system
• WWDC 2020: the rumors and leaks about what's coming at Apple's event

Will iPhone OS be different from iOS?

Since this leak is just two words, we can’t really divine any insight into how iPhone OS would differ from iOS, if at all. 

Perhaps it’s simply a renaming convention – and, to be clear, a second renaming, since Apple originally changed the name from iPhone OS to iOS back in June 2010. While it’s been a decade under the iOS moniker, now that the operating system has split from covering both iPhones and iPads, it would make sense to switch back to plainly stating which OS supports which device. (That would leave out iPod Touch models, though.)

Which doesn’t mean that the operating systems will be totally different from each other: a leak back in February suggested iOS 14 (or iPhone OS 14) could inherit iPadOS features like the app switcher. 

• Whatever iOS 14 (or iPhone OS 14) brings will be featured on the best iPhones

Motorola Edge Plus owners are taking to forums to voice concerns over display issues that have manifested after a recent software update in early June.

Edge Plus users complained on Motorola forums that the edges of their screens became tinted a greenish gray. Other photos also showed darkened spots and even entire displays turned a green hue. Here's an example one user posted:

Motorola rushed out a software fix, though some users reported that the issues persisted, even after replacing the phone (a forum admin recommended users swap out their Edge Plus devices if the greening didn’t go away in a day or two). 

If the software update (located in Settings > System Updates) doesn’t fix the issue, Motorola advises users to contact the Motorola Support Team for individual actions. For now, this seems like a limited problem, but given the forum thread is nine pages long at the time of this writing, it doesn’t seem like an exceedingly rare issue.

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Flagship aches and pains

2020 has been a bit of a year for green-tinting display issues. Back in April, both the Samsung Galaxy S20 Ultra and the OnePlus 8 Pro had issues with green lines or areas manifesting in their handsets. 

Both of those phones use Samsung displays, which could be a clue, although it’s unclear where Motorola is sourcing the waterfall-style curved screen it uses on the Motorola Edge Plus.

• Best phones: the top phones on the market today

We’ve been hearing rumors for years that Apple has been working on a foldable iPhone, and so far, that’s all they are: rumors. But enough have cropped up to suggest design elements and features that may come to the final device.

How long Apple has been working on a foldable phone is unclear, but the tech giant infamously keeps its projects under wraps until it’s ready to reveal them. Likewise, Apple has typically taken its time releasing its own take on new devices, so we wouldn’t be surprised if we saw the iPhone 12 come out later in 2020 before a foldable iPhone.

But getting a foldable phone with a level of Apple polish sure is enticing. Only a few of the devices have been widely released, and phonemakers haven’t ironed out some of the bigger issues, like display durability and battery life. 

There’s the old sentiment that the age of the smartphone didn’t truly arrive until the first iPhone came out in 2007 – and while that oversimplifies phone evolution, it also speaks to how much Apple’s product designs influence types of devices. 

For better or worse, there’s a reason we have widespread facial recognition but far fewer headphone jacks, for instance. But the resulting Apple product will very likely be the most refined version of a foldable we’ve yet seen.

Here’s everything we’ve heard – which, right now, isn’t much – and what we’d like to see in a foldable iPhone.

• All of the foldable phones we've seen so far

Cut to the chase

• What is it? The first folding phone from Apple
• When is it out? We don't know - maybe 2021?
• How much will it cost? Expect it to be expensive

Foldable iPhone release date and price

Sadly, we haven’t heard anything remotely close to an idea of when the device will be coming out, much less a solid foldable iPhone release date. 

Heck, we’ve only heard rumors about patents and leaks, like this one from Jon Prosser, that talk about a ‘current prototype,’ suggesting that Apple may not have even finalized a design. Prosser went on to confirm that the tech giant was working on a foldable, but implied that it wouldn’t be coming this year. 

We may be a ways off from a commercially-available foldable iPhone – but given how well the company keeps its new designs under wraps, the device could be farther along than we suspect.

We also don't know how much this is set to cost when it does land, but considering a lot of foldable phones costs well over the $1000 / £1000 / AU$2000 you should expect it to be a high price to pay.

Foldable iPhone leaks and rumors

At this point, foldable iPhone rumors fall broadly into two camps: one which suggests the device will have a true folding display, and the other suggesting two distinct screens separated by a hinge.

Several designs were revealed in a patent dump back in February 2019, some with a large display on the inside of folding sections with a single hinge, while another had two hinges for a hypothetical three displays that fold in on themselves in a Z-shaped formation.

Other patents, like the one discovered in March 2020, reveal Apple could be working on a foldable with two distinct displays separated by a hinge. While the patented design suggests the tech giant would attempt to minimize the bezel between the screens as much as possible, it would still be more noticeable than a truly folding long display.

That’s what leaker Jon Prosser suggested on Twitter: Apple’s current foldable iPhone design has two separate display panels on a hinge. 

While it’s purportedly just a ‘current prototype’ and not a final design, it’s described as having rounded edges like the current iPhone 11, unlike the alleged squared-off edges we’re anticipating in the upcoming iPhone 12. There’s also no notch for front-facing cameras: the sensors checking Face ID will be housed in a ‘tiny forehead’ on the outer display, according to Prosser.

And that’s all we’ve heard about the design, which is far from presenting a cohesive image of a foldable phone design.

Foldable iPhone: five things we’d like to see

1. Top-tier cameras

Foldables bridge the gap between phones and tablets, but the ones we’ve seen released, like the Samsung Galaxy Fold and Huawei Mate Xs, have packed the best cameras featured on those brands’ other flagship phones. 

While there’s no reason to guess Apple wouldn’t do the same, the tech giant hasn’t bothered to upgrade the cameras on its iPads in generations. Given the iPhone SE 2020 didn’t seem to improve on the lens of its predecessor, the iPhone 8, we could see Apple save costs by opting to give its foldable iPhone a single camera instead of the full suite seen in the iPhone 11 Pro and 11 Pro Max.

2. Apple Pencil support

One way Apple could surpass other foldables: introduce Apple Pencil support. While we expected Samsung to introduce stylus integration with its foldables, rumors have gone back and forth over whether the upcoming Samsung Galaxy Fold 2 will pack an S Pen stylus (seen in the Galaxy Tab S6 and Galaxy Note 10). 

Given how the Apple Pencil 2 attaches magnetically to the newest iPad Pro tablets, we’d love to see how Apple’s styluses could be integrated with its foldable iPhone.

3. The old Apple polish

Yes, we'll say it: even though the first round of foldables have been impressive for simply pulling off folding screens, they’ve come with design weaknesses, from hinge issues to cracking screens. We’d love to see a design that makes everything move smoothly and stand up to punishment.

Not that Apple’s lineup is unimpeachable, as crackable iPhone displays, malfunctioning butterfly keyboards, and battery-throttling on older iPhones have shown. But in looks and function, at least, Apple has maintained a reputation for sleek and functional design.

4. iPadOS integration

When iPadOS split off from iOS, we got excited for the possibilities of a new operating system forking off to truly take advantage of iPad screen real estate. Thus far, we’ve been pretty pleased with the multitasking features that let us pull up multiple apps at the same time, which we’ve found personally handy in writing in Google docs while looking up stuff in Safari, for instance.. 

We’d love to see a version of the OS in the foldable iPhone for the same reasons, though of course, there’s a lot of unknowns. Will the device’s display be large enough to properly handle the iPadOS controls? If it expands to 7.9 inches, the size of the iPad Mini’s screen, it conceivably could be able to, but until we know what the foldable will look like, it’s unclear how good a fit iPadOS will be. 

5. Battery life

Foldable phones like the Galaxy Fold and Huawei Mate X have had respectable battery life for first-generation devices, but we’d like more in Apple’s take on foldable phones. iPhones in general aren’t known for lasting longer than a day, and flagships from Samsung and Huawei pack larger-capacity (in sheer milliamp Hours) batteries that seem to take them past the one-day mark handily.

We’d like Apple to use the extra device space to keep its own foldable last longer than the competition.

• Best iPhone: the top Apple phones you can buy right now

The US has a new cheap 5G phone option: the Samsung Galaxy A71 5G, boasting mid-range specs and triple rear cameras, which will be available on June 19 for $599.

We first saw the standard Galaxy A71 at CES 2020, and appreciated its value: the 6.7-inch AMOLED display is large for a more affordable phone, though its Full HD+ resolution isn’t quite as sharp as the QHD screens on the top-tier Samsung Galaxy S20 phones. 

The cameras, on the other hand, are a robust suite headed by a 64MP main shooter, a 12MP ultrawide camera managing a 123-degree field of view, a 5MP macro and a 5MP depth sensor. Add a 32MP front-facing camera, and the A71 has more photographic capability than most phones at its price point. 

There’s still a bit of unknown in the A71’s specs, specifically in its chipset, which varies by region (some are packing the Snapdragon 730, some the gaming-focused Snapdragon 730G, per GSM Arena). But we do know the US version will pack 6GB of RAM, 128GB of storage (expandable to 1TB via microSD), and have a 4,500mAh battery.

All of that is respectable, though you can get similar specs in cheaper mid range phones – but it’s the 5G access in this version that really sells the A71 5G. And you’ll be able to get it on every major US carrier, starting with T-Mobile and Sprint on June 19 and coming to Verizon and AT&T later in the summer.

• Happening Monday, June 22: it's the Apple WWDC 2020 keynote
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• 5G is rolling out in the US – check here for details on each carrier's 5G network

The Samsung Galaxy A71 competition

At $599, the A71 is pricier than solid mid-range phones like the $399 iPhone SE 2020 (which isn’t 5G-capable), yet cheaper than the $699 OnePlus 8, which does connect to 5G networks.

Given these price-and-feature points, the A71 occupies a sweet spot that brings 5G connectivity down to a more affordable price tier. For a bit more money, you can get better performance and a few extras, like a telephoto lens, in the OnePlus 8. 

But if those perks aren’t essential, the A71 opens the door for folks who wouldn’t be able to manage a $699 pricetag – or those who don’t want to jump through the hoops of the OnePlus 8’s limited carrier availability.

• Don't need 5G? Consider the Samsung Galaxy S10 Lite

We first expected the Google Pixel 4a to come out in mid-May during Google IO, but when that show got cancelled, we started waiting for a sign – any official sign – that the mid-range phone would launch soon. We’re still waiting.

But we’ve also heard enough rumors to get an idea of what’s coming in the Pixel 4a. We suspected it would follow its predecessor, the Pixel 3a, as a far cheaper version of the most recent flagship. From what we can tell, the phone will have the best parts of the Google Pixel 4, from cameras to live transcription.

But there’s still a ton we don’t know, either because the rumor mill hasn’t surfaced anything about certain perks or that we’re simply waiting for Google to confirm things we can’t guess at anyway – like, say, a release date.

Here’s the top five things that we still don’t know about the Pixel 4a.

1. Google Pixel 4a price and release date

Yes, these are the big ones – not just because we want to get our hands on the Pixel 4a already (we do!), but because the price could decide the phone’s impact on the market. While its predecessor stood out among mid-range phones with its incredible cameras and streamlined Android capabilities, this year has far fiercer competition with the iPhone SE 2020 and other top-notch cheap phones like the Moto G8 Power.

Given the Pixel 3a was half the price at launch compared to the Pixel 3, we hope the same is true here, and the Pixel 4a follows its predecessor with a pricetag starting at $399 / £399 / AU$649 – or, heck, even cheaper.

2. Will there be a Pixel 4a XL?

While we expected the Pixel 4a to follow the series' precedent in coming out with both a standard and larger XL version, we’ve heard rumors that we won’t see the latter. This could mean that Google expected the bigger model to sell poorly, and didn’t feel it was worth it. 

That makes sense, but it also leads us to wonder whether the Pixel 4a will repeat the weaknesses of the Pixel 4 – in particular, its poor battery life, which barely lasted a day in our casual testing. The Pixel 4 XL, on the other hand, mitigated this issue with a larger-capacity battery, and it lasted noticeably longer. If there is no Pixel 4a XL, hopefully it won’t follow suit.

3. Will it have more than one rear camera?

Google has done wonders with only a single rear camera on the back of its phones for years, but the company finally added a telephoto lens in the Pixel 4. Will we get extra lenses in the Pixel 4a?

The telephoto lens expanded the Pixel 4’s photographic capabilities, sure, but it mostly enabled analog depth effects (rather than digital tricks). We’d like to see what more lenses could do for the 4a, especially if Google mimics Apple and Samsung in bringing an ultrawide camera to its more affordable handsets (the iPhone 11 and Galaxy S10, respectively). 

What we’ve seen isn’t promising: purported Pixel 4a phone boxes got leaked that seem to show a single-camera design (bafflingly, while keeping the Pixel 4’s camera block). But even cheaper budget phones are getting more cameras, like the Moto G8 Power with its trio of rear shooters, so we’d love to see the Pixel 4a empowered with a bigger camera array.

4. Will it keep the best mid-range perks, like a headphone jack?

With no clue as to the phone’s physical design, we don’t know if the Pixel 4a will keep the best features of its predecessor, like the 3.5mm headphone jack and fingerprint sensor – both of which are gone and sorely missed in the Pixel 4. 

Not that everything’s bad in Google’s latest flagship – in fact, we’re quite taken with the Pixel 4’s design, especially in an age when most smartphones are either black rectangles or shimmering color gradients. Give us a phone that looks like it was cut out of a Mondrian and we’ll be happy campers.

5. Will the Pixel 4a be 5G compatible?

This may not be the most exciting feature right now, but we haven’t seen a lot of 5G-compatible mid-range phones, so Google could set Pixel 4a owners up for the future – and stand out from the competition – by enabling its next phone to hook up to the next-gen networks.

A code leak back in January suggested that supposed code numbers for three phones included at least one that’s 5G-compatible (via a Snapdragon 765 chipset). That could be a version of either the Pixel 4a and Pixel 4a XL that has 5G, or it could be referring to the Pixel 5. We haven’t heard much else about which Google phones will connect to 5G networks. 

• Happy to wait? Here's what we're looking forward to with the Google Pixel 5

After a listing for a new game titled Star Wars: Squadrons, complete with some neat game art of X-Wing and Tie Fighter pilots, appeared briefly on the Microsoft Store, curiosity reignited about a new EA Star Wars game.

The listing was really just a title, game art, and a preorder button on the front page of the Microsoft Store, according to a screenshot shared on the forum Resetera. The button went nowhere and the only other info was the game’s subtitle: ‘Pilots wanted.’ No release date, price, or info on whether it would be coming to current consoles or just the upcoming PS5 and Xbox Series X.

Update: The cat's out of the bag: EA quickly tweeted out an official confirmation of the game, complete with the title and previously-leaked art, as well as promise of a full trailer coming on Monday, June 15 at 8AM PT / 11AM ET (below).

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Of course, if Squadrons is the next game EA has cooking for the franchise, it could be the one we heard about in May that's reportedly code-named Star Wars Maverick – which itself has only seen scant details leaked aside from stylized game art. 

Recent rumors suggest that EA would officially unveil Maverick soon before its EA Play showcase slated for June 18, which would have occurred before the now-cancelled E3 2020. Today we’ve heard that EA Motive, the studio reportedly behind Maverick, would have started teasing the game but the Microsoft Store leak spoiled the surprise, per VentureBeat’s Jeff Grubb.

Star Wars: Squadrons will be “an aerial/space combat game about piloting ships in head-to-head battles. It features a single-player campaign, but the main focus for Squadrons is on the multiplayer,” sources told Grubb. Motive had worked on Star Wars: Battlefront II’s single-player campaign and helped BioWare on Anthem, but is now the lead developer on Squadrons.

Where does that leave Star Wars: Battlefront II?

2017's Star Wars: Battlefront II had a rough start, earning ire from fans for a pay-to-win loot box system, but walking back that system, along with years of patches, has built back the game’s reputation and community. As a Battlefront game, it’s mainly large-scale ground-based battles, but it does have specific modes of team-based space combat.

In that sense, Squadrons could conceivably overlap with Battlefront II, but there’s plenty of room for a far more robust starfighter experience. Star Wars gaming history is rich with games, like the Tie Fighter, X-Wing, and Rogue Squadron series, that have more complexity than the arcade-style dogfights in Battlefront II. 

There’s also a question of scale: the Squadrons game art suggests Tie Fighter and X-Wing combat, but the Star Wars universe is littered with ships of all sizes and dynamic worlds that could make for far more robust fights than what we’ve seen in Battlefront II. We’ll have to wait for EA and EA Motive to officially reveal the game, which we expect during the online-only EA Play soon.

Via Eurogamer

• Xbox Series X games: all the titles confirmed for the upcoming Xbox Series X

It’s official: Apple WWDC 2020 is starting June 22 in online-only format, and we now have a schedule for all the talks taking place at this year’s online version of the tech giant’s annual developer-focused show.

Given it's an online-only show, no part of WWDC 2020 will cost money to experience, unlike the pricey tickets Apple sold to attend the event in-person. While the keynote and first day's videos will be free, the following content from June 23 to 26 will require viewers to be members of the Apple Developer Program; so long as you signed up before Apple's WWDC 2020 blog post went live, you can watch everything. 

After the WWDC 2020 keynote, which will go live at 10 AM PT / 1PM ET on June 22, a ‘Platforms State of the Union’ will go over ‘the latest advancements across iOS, iPadOS, macOS,’ and other operating systems – presumably giving an early look at what’s coming in the next versions of each. 

Even if you aren’t into software, these talks will give insight into the devices headed our way, like the iPhone 12 lineup expected to come later in 2020. 

Following those opening remarks, the WWDC 2020 schedule continues from June 23 to 26 with over a hundred engineering sessions led by Apple engineers diving into niche topics – which are aimed at developers, but could provide interesting insight into Apple devices to come. As previously stated, you'll need to be members of the Apple Developer Program to watch these.

Developers can also request appointments with Apple engineers for 1-on-1 meetings, though you’ll have to be a member of the Apple Developer Program to sign up. 

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How to watch WWDC 2020

While tickets to attend WWDC 2020 in person have been pretty expensive in years past, with limited video access for remote attendees, everyone’s watching from afar this year. The typically free-for-everyone keynote will stream live on June 22 on Apple’s website, the Apple TV app, YouTube, and through the Apple Developer app and website. 

To watch the following ‘Platforms State of the Union,’ you’ll need to log in to the Apple Developer app or website. Ditto for the engineering sessions, which will be posted as videos at 10am PT / 1pm ET the day they’re scheduled (June 23 to 26). 

Apple’s also planning to unveil its redesigned Apple Developer Forums on June 18 for anyone who wants to follow along or ask company engineers questions or start up some technical discussions.

More info is coming ahead of the keynote via the Apple Developer app and website; developers who sign up for the Apple Developer program also get instructions over email. 

• Apple's watchOS 7 update: everything we hear will come to the new Apple Watch software

The Android 11 beta is finally here for everyone to download, providing an early look at what’s coming when the next big Android update drops for everyone later this year.

After cancelling Google IO 2020 over coronavirus concerns, which had been slated for May, the company then planned to unveil the Android 11 beta during an online-only event on June 3 – but that event was postponed due to the Black Lives Matter protests across the world. 

In the same spirit, Google has foregone an event and quietly launched the Android 11 beta with short-form videos and web pages that users can peruse instead, the Android team explained in a blog post. To download it, click here.

Just be aware that the Android 11 beta is only for owners of the Pixel 2 and newer: for the first time, original Google Pixel and Pixel XL owners have been left out. This makes some sense – the Android team only made those phones compatible with last year’s Android 10 (then called Android Q) due to popular demand. In other words, if it’s the end of the road for the original Pixel line’s Android upgrades, this is the first we’re seeing of it.

What didn’t we end up seeing? The Google Pixel 4a. After Google IO 2020 was cancelled – which is when we expected the mid-range handset to launch – a rumor suggested it could arrive alongside the public reveal of Android 11. No such luck, and the Pixel 4a remains MIA.

• Android 11: everything we know thus far
• Google Pixel 5: the upcoming phone that will likely launch alongside Android 11
• iOS 14: what we've heard about the next iPhone operating system update

What’s in Android 11?

We got our first look at Android 11 when its first developer preview launched in late February, which was earlier than last year. As was introduced then, the public Android 11 beta has made an effort to highlight messaging chats so they don’t get lost in your deluge of alerts.

The notification drop-down will get a dedicated ‘conversations’ section, which will have shortcuts to set reminders or even break the chat out in a pop-out ‘Bubble.’

Android 11 also improves keyboard suggestions with apps that use Autotfill and Input Method Editors. Voice control accessibility gets a bit smarter by generating labels and access points that are relevant to what’s happening on the screen.

For anyone who commands a bunch of smart home devices from their phone – or even just switches between headphones and speakers – Android 11 has centralized everything under a Device Controls hub, which you can access quickly by long-pressing on the power button.

And it wouldn’t be an Android update without tweaks to privacy. By default, if users haven’t fired up an app in awhile, Android 11 will automatically reset its permissions and ask users their preference upon opening next.

That’s pretty much it for consumers who download the current build of Android 11 beta, though there’s plenty more for developers in terms of back-end streamlining and other improvements. If you want to dive into the wonky stuff, the Android team has uploaded a series of introductory videos on YouTube that dive into what’s changed in the beta. 

Want a preview? Here’s an overview of what’s changed for Android devs:

While we’d heard Destiny 2 was coming to next-gen consoles, Bungie has revealed more details around the feature, saying that current players will be able to upgrade to PS5 and Xbox Series X versions for free. Both will play at 4K 60fps, too. 

Xbox One owners of Destiny 2 will be able to upgrade to the Xbox Series X version via Microsoft's Smart Delivery program, which allows cross-purchasing across console generations for participating games. Though Sony doesn’t have a similar program, PS4 Destiny 2 players will simply be allowed to upgrade to the PS5 version for free, which could set a precedent.

What’s more, Bungie says it will also introduce next-gen crossplay: PS5 owners will be able to play Destiny 2 with those on PS4; likewise, Xbox Series X gamers will be able to team up with those on Xbox One. 

It’s unclear if this will be feasible at launch or if it’s coming later, but we know what’s coming down the line in 2021 – cross-platform play that will finally align players on Sony and Microsoft consoles, per The Verge.

Bungie made the announcements alongside a content roadmap for the next three years, starting with the next expansion, Beyond Light, which launches on September 22, 2020. That will be followed by 2021’s The Witch Queen and finally Lightfall in 2022 – so expect to be playing the sci-fi first-person shooter for a long time to come.

Last but not least, Bungie used today's event to introduce a ‘Destiny Content Vault’ to bring popular content from Destiny and Destiny 2 back into the main game – the Cosmodrome from the original game is coming to Destiny 2 sometime in ‘fall’ (Q3 2020) and strikes like the beloved Vault of Glass are coming later in the year and into 2021. But like a Destiny-style Disney Vault, other content must be rotated out, so expect to see Curse of Osiris and others dropped from the game later in 2020.

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Destiny 2, paving the way for Sony cross-generation

While Microsoft’s confusingly-named Smart Delivery program was introduced as a way for games to keep players as they transition from the Xbox One to the Xbox Series X – potentially losing revenue, but ensuring an easier console transition by gamers who don’t want to buy the same title twice – there’s no equivalent program for Sony players moving from the PS4 to PS5.

Destiny 2 could serve as precedent for more titles to follow suit in giving free licenses to folks who upgrade to the PS5, even if Sony doesn’t canonize it with a proper program name. This could be a way for titles to do the same for PlayStation as they’ve already pledged to do via Microsoft Smart Delivery, like Cyberpunk 2077 or Assassin’s Creed: Valhalla, as The Verge pointed out. We’ll wait to see if other titles end up imitating Bungie’s move.

• 5 things the PS5 must improve over the PS4

While the latest trailer for The Last of Us 2 was shocking in its brutal survivalist violence, it had one last surprise in store: a character is shown playing a PS Vita. Given how few people play the system nowadays, and the new game is set in 2033, we find the implication hilarious that one of the few pieces of tech to survive the apocalypse would be Sony’s underrated handheld console.

Which got us thinking: what are the most absurd devices that pop up in video games?

Sure, plenty of games incorporate tech advances that saturate our own world, like cell phones. But we’ve found some instances when including a specific piece of consumer tech feels, in hindsight, truly bizarre. These go beyond product placement to bend the suspension of disbelief, making us wonder what kind of world we’re playing in.

Here are our favorite moments when gaming and devices don’t mix well at all. 

Sony Walkman Cassette Player – Metal Gear Solid series

In the Metal Gear Solid series, Solid Snake (and his various other aliases) tends to communicate with his superiors using a Codec receiver, a discrete device which directly manipulates the small bones of the ear by using nanotechnology. You’d like to think, then, that Snake would have moved on from his chunky old Sony Walkman Cassette Player to something a bit more… advanced. 

After all, there’s a multitude of reasons why cassette tapes are now a thing of the past: they’re bulky, need to be manually rewound, and the sound quality isn’t exactly top-tier. And yet Solid Snake refuses to leave his antiquated music player behind. Maybe he’s just stubborn; maybe he’s sentimental; or maybe Apple Care won’t cover devices that are taken into a warzone. 

Nintendo Switch – Donkey Kong: Tropical Freeze

The Nintendo Switch is a fabulous console, but it’s hard to argue that its Joy-Con controllers are best suited to smaller hands when they’re detached from the console. At a stretch, you could probably imagine a chimpanzee using a single Joy-Con without much trouble. But a tie-wearing, 300+ pound ape? 

Not a chance. We guess Nintendo missed the memo, though, as Diddy Kong and the ham-fisted DK play Nintendo Switch together as part of the game’s idle animation in Donkey Kong: Tropical Freeze. Diddy probably gave him the inferior right-sided Joy-Con as well, the cheeky little monkey. 

(And before we get notes – yes, we know the original version had DK and Diddy grooving on the 3DS. That Nintendo decided to update it for the re-release is touching.)

Energizer batteries – Alan Wake

In a world where darkness can only be defeated by light, batteries suddenly become a precious resource. That being said, only the best will do for Mr. Alan Wake, who exclusively uses Energizer batteries to power his flashlight. But here’s a question for you... how does Alan Wake always manage to put the batteries in the right way every time? 

Furthermore, how does he achieve this feat of wizardry in the dark and under duress? And finally, what kind of torch drains batteries that fast anyway? Some things in life will always be a mystery it seems, but Alan’s favorite brand of batteries will never be in doubt. And don’t get us started on all the Verizon phones in the game...

Robotic Operating Buddy (R.O.B.) – Super Smash Bros. Series

What do you do when a niche NES peripheral gets largely forgotten about? Turn it into a character for Super Smash Bros, of course! R.O.B. was a typically novel idea from Nintendo that no one knew they wanted (and seemingly no one asked for, either). The toy was compatible with a couple of NES games, but was originally designed to make the NES appear more sophisticated to buyers, who were weary of video games after the infamous video game crash of 1983. 

R.O.B. was admittedly a clever piece of tech, but he’s best recognized today as one of Super Smash Bros. growing cast of characters. The plastic robot made his in-game debut in Super Smash Bros. Brawl, and has been a mainstay ever since. Way to go, little buddy. 

Super Nintendo Entertainment System – Pokemon Red & Blue

Imagine: you’ve been waiting for this day your entire 10-year-old life. You finally get the summons from the kindly professor in town to pick your very own pocket-sized beast to start your amazing journey. You go home to kiss your mom goodbye (like a good kid) and pop up to your room...to play a bit on your Super Nintendo Entertainment System. 

Imagine being in a zoological wonderland where you get to raise, train, and battle Pokemon, but you’d rather sit inside and play Kirby All-Star. Oh well. We all need breaks.

AlienWare Desktop – Sims 2

 Many items in the Sims 2 are comical knock-offs of real-world products, and that extends to computers, coming from fictional in-game brands like LyfeB Gon and PeachySoft. And then there was the AlienWare desktop. For whatever backdoor partnership reason, EA planted one of the top off-the-shelf gaming computers in the world, and its humorous ‘Everything But The Saucer’ description even pokes fun at the cost of the rig both in-game (3100 simoleons!) and real life. (FYI some modders have resurrected the item, but only for Sims 3, sadly...)

Sony Xperia Z5 – Uncharted 4

Sony, Sony, Sony. As an entertainment and technology titan, it’s not too surprising that Sony takes products from one arm of the company and shoehorns them into films – Hotel Transylvania 2 and the James Bond movie Skyfall both have either suggested or literal Sony phones, while a PS4 blatantly appears in Chappie. (Yay, product placement!) But it’s a bit sillier when we realized characters in Uncharted 4 were sporting the Sony Xperia Z5, because even at that point in late 2015, Sony’s phones were struggling to compete. It’s one thing to put your latest phone in James Bond’s hand for a scene; it’s another to pressure your devs to animate your company’s smartphone for some desperate advertising.

Windows Phone & Surface Tablets – Quantum Break

Okay, fair is fair: the 2016 time-manipulating third-person action game Quantum Break is chock-full of Microsoft products like Windows Phones and Surface Tablets, as Kotaku pointed out. This makes sense given the game was published by Microsoft Studios...and developed by Remedy Entertainment, which made Alan Wake (above on this list). It’s hilarious that both Sony and Microsoft leaned on third-party developers to get their devices into games.

• So that's yesterday's tech, here's all we know about the next-gen PS5 and Xbox Series X

While the Moto G8 hasn’t even launched in some regions yet, Motorola is launching two budget phones that are even cheaper: the Moto G Fast and the new Moto E.

Both handsets are priced below the Moto G8 series, and while they aren’t quite as refined, they have respectable perks and features for their cost. Much like this year’s generation of G8-series phones, though, both of these new cheap phones have more defined identities than you might expect.

The Moto G Fast is the slightly swankier device with a Snapdragon 665 chipset and 3GB of RAM. The 32GB of storage is notably small, but it can be expanded up to 512Gb via microSD. The phone has a 6.4-inch HD Plus display and a pair of rear cameras (ultra-wide and macro) and a punch-hole front-facing camera, as well as a large 4,000mAh battery.

Given that Motorola is being a bit more restrained in its G-series releases this year, the G Fast is essentially taking the role of the ‘Play’ version of the Moto G8 series, packing most of its costlier sibling’s perks at a lower pricetag.

• A year for budget phones! The iPhone SE 2020 sets the bar
• The Moto G Stylus and Moto G8 Power have already been released
• And, perhaps soon, we'll see the long-awaited Google Pixel 4a

The new Moto E

The new Moto E is a step down from the G Fast in price and features, though not by much: its Snapdragon 632 chipset, dual rear camera (13MP main shooter and depth sensor) as well as 3,550mAh battery make it a solid budget choice. Its 32GB storage isn’t impressive, but it can also be expanded to 512GB via microSD card.

Both of these new phones are up for preorder on June 5 and will be available in the US at retailers like Best Buy, B&H, and Amazon beginning June 12, though we know the Moto G Fast is coming to the UK at some point (pricing TBA). The G Fast will retail for $199, while the Moto E will cost $149. 

A year for budget phones

While plenty of features from last year’s best phones usually trickle down to cheap handsets, this year’s crop of cheap phones are finally getting a particular set of long-awaited premium features: more cameras.

The Moto G8 and its specialized versions, the Moto G8 Power and Moto G8 Stylus, all have a trio of shooters: main, ultrawide, and macro. The Moto G Fast gets this triple-camera rear setup, too, proving that even the more modest phones are getting the big boy toys. While the Moto E isn’t included in the club, the line had to be drawn somewhere – and the 13MP main camera and depth sensor should suit budget consumers just fine.

• Best cheap phones: our list of the top budget handsets