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Next week, Samsung will unveil its upcoming family of Galaxy phones. Not the foldable devices, but the traditional S Series devices. With a proven track record, we can expect to see three S25 devices: Standard, Plus and Ultra.
There’s unlikely to be a major change in aesthetics, but we expect some subtle differences – rounded corners, flatter edges and (of course) thinner bezels. At home, at least in the US, the S25 series will likely be powered by Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 8 Elite, designed for on-device generated AI. The chip promises 45 percent faster single- and multi-core performance while using 27 percent less power than the Snapdragon 8 Gen 3, so it could improve battery life, too.
Some rumors point to the Galaxy S25 Slim with a thinner design. Everything is very on trend. However, since the FCC certifications seem to only cover the usual trio of flagship phones, this device may not arrive until later in the year. (If at all.)
Expect a ton of AI wow too. One rumor suggests that the Galaxy S25 series will include an “AI agent that provides personalized clothing suggestions and transportation information,” though the latter is already fully served by Google and countless third-party apps. I’d invest money in Samsung’s heavy-duty show-off chip and its AI tricks – many of which will fall by the wayside. Request: Please steal pixels Add me Image feature.
We’ll be reporting live on Samsung’s first Unpacked event of 2025. Mark your calendars for January 22!
– Matt Smith
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The biggest tech stories you missed
According to Bloomberg, the iPhone 17 Air will be 2mm thinner.
The ultra-thin iPhone we’ve been hearing about over the past few months will get Apple’s Air branding. In his Power On newsletter, BloombergiPhone maker Mark Gurman said the iPhone 17 Air will be about 2mm thinner than any other phone model.
“It will feature an entry-level A19 chip and a single-lens camera system, and will serve as a proving ground for future technologies,” Gorman points out. A single-lens camera could be an interesting decision, as three sensors have become the norm on most premium Apple phones.
Now, what about a MacBook mini?
After eight years of work.
Sonos CEO Patrick Spence is leaving the company after the app’s disastrous launch last year, a redesign of which was missing key features. Back in May 2024, the company rolled out a mobile app that was riddled with bugs and missing features like alarms and sleep timers. Some customers even complained that entire speaker systems wouldn’t work after updating to the new app. Sonos’ stock price has fallen about 13 percent since the app launched. Sonos laid off more than 100 people in August while trying to fix the software and revenue fell 16 percent in its fiscal fourth quarter that ended September 28.
Spence’s pay package includes $7,500 a month through June, $1.9 million in cash and shares in Sonos. I aspire to mess up an app update.
Sharing the Instagram alternative was briefly deemed “spam.”
Meta appears to be blocking links to Pixelfed, a decentralized photo-sharing platform, on Facebook, according to users of both Bluesky and 404 Media. A small group of posts linked to Pixelfed.social have been deleted, with Facebook’s Community Standards on spam used as justification.
There’s even more motivation for users to ditch Instagram: Meta just announced sweeping changes to how it plans to moderate speech on its platforms. The company is ending its third-party fact-checking program and made changes to its hateful conduct policy last week. A Meta spokesperson said the removal of posts to Pixelfed was an error, and they will be reinstated.
https://s.yimg.com/os/creatr-uploaded-images/2025-01/47222690-cf92-11ef-b82b-429bae63d216
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