We are specialists in quality batteries. We have batteries, chargers and accessories for everything you can think of. Low prices, big inventory, expert advice. Find your battery here!
Sony LinkBuds Open The Sony LinkBuds Open are a credible update to their predecessor, the Sony LinkBuds. However, the open design isn’t for everyone, and you need to be sure that you want open earbuds before choosing these. If that sounds like you, then you should definitely give these a chance.
Open earbuds are starting to see their day in the sun, and one of the more high-profile options was Sony’s original LinkBuds. But how do the sequels stack up? I had a few days to give them a whirl, so let’s listen in.
What’s it like to use Sony LinkBuds Open? Using the Sony LinkBuds Open is an interesting experience, even if you’re used to unsealed or open earbuds like AirPods and the Nothing Ear (Open). I say that because they definitely blur the line a lot more than either of those products do between merely unsealed and open earbuds. On the one hand, the earbuds let in just about all noise around you, but on the other, they still sit in your ears right in front of your ear canal.
(Image from Sony)
To hold these earbuds in place, Sony added a very flimsy rubber ear fin. However, having a low amount of resistance allows the fin to fit more comfortably to your ear. By having this secondary method to secure the earbuds in your pinnae, even a really bulbous earbud stands a decent chance of fitting you even if it’s not the ideal shape for your ear. I found this to be comfortable, though I was constantly afraid of the earbuds rocketing out should I move quickly — they didn’t, but the feeling of loose-fitting earbuds is something I’ll never get used to.
The earbuds do not have an ingress protection rating, but they do have what Sony is calling “IPX4 equivalent” moisture protection. If true, this would mean the earbuds could take incidental moisture from sweat or rain and keep kicking, making them a decent choice for workouts. When it’s time to recharge, the Sony LinkBuds Open come with a very small charging case, clad in a marble-patterned top. The back of the case has a USB-C port for charging, and does not support wireless charging.
Should you use the Sony Sound Connect app for the Sony LinkBuds Open?
In order to make the most of the Sony LinkBuds Open, you’ll need to install the Sony Sound Connect app for the earbuds. Though installing extra utilities on your phone can make some squeamish for totally-understandable reasons, you’ll want the latest firmware, and the ability to customize your sound a bit with the equalizer if you struggle to get the results you want.
Additionally, installing the app unlocks a few extra features, like Sony 360 Reality Audio with head tracking, answering or rejecting calls with a nod and head shake, adjusting the wide area tap sensitivity, and toggling sound priority modes. If you’re hoping to use the Sony LinkBuds Open in a low-latency mode, toggling the LE Audio will reduce latency should your phone support it.
How do the Sony LinkBuds Open connect? The Sony LinkBuds Open connect to their source devices via Bluetooth 5.3 over SBC, AAC, and LC3. I’m happy to see the LC3 here, as that means that the earbuds are fully embracing the advantages of LE audio, such as minimizing latency on Android devices.
…the earbuds are fully embracing the advantages of LE audio If you’re liable to swap products often, the Sony LinkBuds Open support Bluetooth Multipoint, and you can manage your connected devices through the app. I didn’t have any trouble swapping between devices in the lab, and that was a nice departure from other recent devices. In fact, I was far less frustrated using the Sony LinkBuds Open than I was my old headphones, as I didn’t have to pair and repair every time I switched devices. Though Multipoint is everywhere nowadays, there are definitely some products that do it better than others.
How long does the Sony LinkBuds Open battery last?
（Image from Sony) Subjecting the Sony LinkBuds Open to our standardized battery endurance gantlet, the earbuds were able to last 9 hours and 30 minutes of playback time. This is an outstanding result, and we don’t often see earbuds last this long — even if it’s not unheard of. Though you’re probably not going to be listening to these for ultra-long periods of time, it is nice to know that you should be able to listen at a safe level for long periods of time.
How well do the Sony LinkBuds Open block out noise?
The Sony LinkBuds Open are designed to not block out noise, so it shouldn’t be terribly surprising that they don’t isolate their listeners much. There’s a little bit of noise softened in the highest octaves of your hearing, but there’s a low likelihood that you’ll notice or care much. That’s really not the point of open earbuds like the Sony LinkBuds Open. This is very good for activities where you need to hear the world around you, say, biking or interacting with other people. But it’s very poor for listening to music in a city or on a commute. As long as you understand that outside noise will be a constant nuisance, you can adjust your expectations accordingly.
Should you buy the Sony LinkBuds Open? If you find that you make extreme use of transparency mode, or you find yourself in situations where you need to hear the world around you at all times, a set of open earbuds like the Sony LinkBuds Open is a good choice. Just remember that all open earbuds struggle in the presence of noise, and their semi-in ear design can be tough to fit. Still, it’s a clever design with an undeniable appeal. The creative controls and features make for an interesting experience, and the use of LC3 to reduce latency also is a very nice future-proofing feature. I’d like to see more earbuds follow this path, and it’s important to note products that offer genuinely cool features. Open earbuds like the Sony LinkBuds Open are not the best fit for those who primarily need their earbuds for commuting, as they don’t attenuate noise very well by design. So if you find yourself wanting active noise canceling or less noise, you’re going to want to keep looking.
It looks great and has the best battery life we’ve ever seen from an Intel laptop.
ASUS’s latest Zenbook S14, much like the Zenbook 14 OLED we reviewed last December, is a solid ultraportable with one major selling point: It’s among the first laptops to use Intel’s newest CPUs. In this case, it’s the Core Ultra 7 258V, a processor that sits in the mid-range of the company’s “Lunar Lake” lineup. While Intel touts these chips as its most efficient ever, I’ve been curious about what that means for raw performance, especially since they top out with just eight cores.
Based on my testing, I can confirm that the Zenbook S14 delivers the best battery life we’ve ever seen from an Intel laptop. It reached 16 hours and eight minutes in the PCMark 10 battery benchmark. In comparison, the Zenbook S16 powered by AMD’s new Ryzen AI 9 365 chip only hit 12 hours and 47 minutes. The Intel system’s timing is close to the 17 hours and 45 minutes we saw from the Dell XPS 13 Copilot+ , which is powered by Qualcomm’s Snapdragon X Elite.
ASUS Zenbook S14 The Zenbook S14, powered by Intel’s new Lunar Lake chips, is an attractive ultraportable that’s ready to tackle AI-infused features. It’s an incredible value, especially with an OLED screen, and it offers stunning battery life.
Pros
Attractive modern design
Incredible battery life
Excellent OLED screen
Useful port selection
Responsive and large trackpad
Cons
Keyboard could use more feedback
Performance isn’t much better than Intel’s last gen
We’re still waiting for more AI ready apps to appear
While it’s astounding to see how much progress Intel has made with battery life, that does come with some compromises. In a few benchmarks, the Zenbook S14 doesn’t score much higher than Intel’s last-gen Core Ultra chips, and it’s often bested by AMD’s Ryzen AI on multithreaded tasks. But, as we often say, benchmarks don’t tell the entire story.
A gorgeous ultraportable When I reviewed the Zenbook 14 OLED a year ago, I couldn’t help but point out how dated it looked. It was practically the same as ASUS’ laptops from a decade ago (albeit with slimmer screen bezels). Not so with the Zenbook S14. It’s impressive the moment you open it up and feel its lid, which is built with a material ASUS calls “Ceraluminum.” As the name implies, it’s a combination of ceramic and aluminum, and it feels almost uncanny, like something between high-end plastic and smooth metal. It’s still premium, but it’s also distinctly different from most other laptops. Combining ceramics and aluminum isn’t exactly new — ASUS notes that it’s a popular option for aerospace and watch designs — but we haven’t yet seen it deployed in laptops. It’s not just for looks, either. The material should also be more durable than standard metal. The rest of the Zenbook 14 S’s body is made out of a solid block of metal, but ASUS added some unique tweaks there as well. The lower part of the case features a geometric grille above the keyboard, consisting of 2,715 circular cooling vents. ASUS claims this design enhances airflow while also keeping dirt and dust out.
ASUS 14-inch 3K “Lumina” OLED display dominates the Zenbook S14, and it delivers everything I want from a modern laptop screen. It sports a fast 120Hz refresh rate and 500 nits of peak brightness. While its bezels are relatively thin compared to older ASUS systems, they’re still noticeably chunkier than Dell’s latest InfinityEdge screens on the XPS 13 and 14. The system would look much sleeker if ASUS could shave off more of its bottom and side bezels. Most importantly, though, the OLED display looks glorious, with deliciously dark black levels and colors that pop off the screen.
The Zenbook S14 is surprisingly sturdy for a 14-inch laptop that weighs 2.65 pounds and measures 0.47 inches thin. It’s slightly lighter and a hair thicker than the most recent 13-inch MacBook Air, and feels similarly polished. Notably, it also offers many more useful ports than Apple’s ultraportable. The S14 includes two Thunderbolt 4 USB-C connections, a full-sized HDMI 2.1 port, a headphone jack and even an old-school USB Type-A port. The only thing it’s missing is Ethernet and an SD card slot.
Unfortunately, ASUS couldn’t get everything right with the Zenbook S14. Its quad-speaker audio system is serviceable, but the sound loses any sort of depth and detail as you ramp up the volume. And while it’s nice to have a Windows Hello-compatible webcam for fast logins, the 1080p sensor looks far grainier and less detailed than Dell’s XPS line and the MacBook Air.
Its keyboard also feels merely serviceable, with little responsive feedback while typing. That’s a particular shame, since that’s been a constant complaint we’ve had with ASUS keyboards. At least the touchpad is large and responsive to swipes and multi-finger gestures. You can also adjust the volume and other settings by sliding your finger along the sides of the touchpad.
In use: Capable, but don’t stress it Thanks to Intel’s Core Ultra 7 258V chip, the Zenbook S14 felt impressively zippy from the start. I breezed through the Windows setup process, downloaded the latest updates and installed my usual testing programs in just a few minutes. It didn’t sweat whenever I needed to jump between apps like Spotify, Slack and Evernote, and I didn’t notice any of the lag I often see on Windows notebooks bogged down by third-party bloatware. It was always ready to get work done.
In PCMark 10, the Zenbook S14 scored almost exactly the same as the Surface Laptop 7 for Business, which uses the last-gen Core Ultra 7 165H. It also matched the XPS 13 Copilot+ edition, which had a Snapdragon X Elite chip, in the PCMark 10 Applications benchmark. The Zenbook’s multithreaded performance was noticeably worse than either of those machines in Geekbench 6, likely due to the reduced core count this generation. The big selling point for Intel’s Lunar Lake chips is their dramatically improved NPU (neural processing unit), which can reach up to 47 TOPS (trillions of operations per second) of AI performance. In comparison, the previous Core Ultra chips had a significantly less powerful 11 TOPS NPU, while AMD’s new Ryzen AI chips reach up to 50 TOPS. (More powerful Lunar Lake chips can hit up to 48 TOPS.) Higher TOPS figures means Copilot+ PCs like the Zenbook S14 will be able to tackle demanding AI workloads more quickly, without impacting overall CPU performance.
Unfortunately, there still aren’t a ton of AI features to test at the time of this review. Microsoft’s Copilot+ Windows 11 update for Intel and AMD systems isn’t arriving until November, and even that will only include a beta version of the controversial Recall feature. It’s also hard to find apps that take advantage of a local NPU — most entries in the Windows Store “AI Hub” rely on cloud AI processing.
At least there’s Audacity’s OpenVino plugin, which Intel developed to show off its AI PC hardware. It offers NPU-powered features like noise suppression and transcription, but it also requires an involved setup process that may be confusing to Audacity novices. I was able to completely remove incessant jackhammering from a five-minute clip in one minute and eight seconds using the NPU alone. That’s not very fast in the world of audio editing (CPU rendering can tackle a noise-filled 90 minute file in three minutes and thirty seconds), but what’s key is that the NPU handles the same work using very little power. That could be important if you’re stuck editing on battery in a plane or remote location.
I was also impressed by Intel’s latest Arc 140V GPU, which let me play Halo Infinite between 35 fps and 45 fps in 1080p with low quality graphics settings. That’s far from a smooth experience, but it’s fascinating to see it from a built-in GPU. Intel’s graphics also scored well above the Snapdragon X Elite across the board, especially in the Geekbench 6 GPU test.
Wrap-up The Zenbook S14 leans more on efficiency than raw power, but it’s still an incredible achievement for Intel, a company that used to be infamous for energy-devouring mobile chips. While the Lunar Lake chip’s NPU makes the Zenbook ready for Copilot+ and AI features, its true selling points are its excellent battery life, slick ASUS design and gorgeous OLED display.
Thinking about defecting from Apple? The Xiaomi 14T Pro is a value-tastic iPhone 16 alternative
If you’re thinking about the best phones and jumping ship from iPhone to Android, then Xiaomi’s new 14T Pro makes an incredibly compelling case.
Specifically, when comparing the Xiaomi 14T Pro to the iPhone 16, Apple’s entry-level 2024 smartphone, the 14T Pro runs rings around the iPhone in a few key areas despite costing significantly less. I’m not talking about insignificant, nice-to-have features either, with Xiaomi’s phone packing much more storage, superior camera specs, a higher-capacity and faster charging battery, and even giving you a case and a pre-fitted screen protector in the box.
Are you reading this and waiting for the catch, though? I’ve tried Xiaomi’s 14T Pro and this isn’t a clunky plastic Android phone with hardly any power. From the glass back that curves into the metal frame, to its IP68 dust- and water-resistant body, the Xiaomi 14T Pro looks and feels fantastic. It’s also powered by a MediaTek Dimensity 9300+ chipset, a flagship processor that chews through the latest AAA mobile games, and most of Xiaomi’s artificial intelligence (AI) features are ready to go from launch. Having tested out the new Xiaomi 14T Pro, here are 5 key features that I think are its biggest appeal. Especially if you’re looking for one of the best Android phones and don’t want to pay big money for your purchase.
As you can see from the breakdown below, the Xiaomi 14T Pro’s price-to-storage ratio is much better value than the iPhone 16’s.
The 14T Pro’s starting capacity is 256GB, making its matching 256GB iPhone 16 rival far more expensive, despite, as I’ll come onto, its inferior spec in so many key areas.
In fact, if you want years of storage, you could buy the 1TB Xiaomi 14T Pro for the same price as the 128GB iPhone 16.
Gamers and geeks might be wondering if Xiaomi uses slower UFS 3.1 storage or past-gen LPDDR4X RAM to hit that kind of price, but the 14T Pro runs with nippy UFS 4.0 and LPDDR5X memory, matching the iPhone 16 and 16 Pro head-on.
Where the iPhone edges ahead is with its 3nm chipset, which uses a more cutting-edge manufacturing process, but truth be told, the MediaTek 9300+ is a beast of a chip – so neither phone is left wanting in terms of performance.
iPhones always have smaller batteries than their Android counterparts. One reason is that Apple’s iOS software is more power-efficient than its Android equivalent. Another is that iPhones tend to have smaller screens and bodies, reducing the need and space for huge-capacity cells. A final point is that folks with smaller iPhones are typically used to settling for less screen time than Android users.
When you look at the iPhone 16’s battery specs and charging credentials alongside those of the 14T Pro, anyone concerned about not making it through a full day or in need of fast top-ups looks set to be better served by Xiaomi’s new phone.
Starting with capacity: the iPhone 16’s battery is a modest 3561mAh. This should get most through a full day, especially considering the phone’s compact 6.1-inch screen, but power users will struggle if hot-spotting and video recording for long bouts.
The Xiaomi 14T Pro’s 6.67-inch screen saps battery quicker, but I still found it easy to get through a busy day with 15-20% power remaining thanks to its much higher capacity 5000mAh cell.
Going beyond battery life, the Xiaomi 14T Pro’s charging speeds are also much faster than those of the iPhone 16, across both wired and wireless charging. Neither phone ships with a charger in the box, but both phones support a standard of fast-charging called Power Delivery (PD), with the iPhone 16 Pro capping out at PD 2.0, and the Xiaomi 14T Pro at a faster PD 3.0.
Xiaomi also implements its own proprietary fast charging in the 14T Pro – 120W HyperCharge – which powers the phone up fully in 19 minutes, while the iPhone takes roughly 2 hours.
Even though Apple has bumped up its wireless charging speed to 25W for 2024, it still can’t keep up with Xiaomi’s 50W wireless charging, which takes 45 minutes to charge the phone. That’s less than half the time it takes when plugging in an iPhone 16.
To hit those max speeds across Apple and Xiaomi devices, whether wired or wireless, you will need to pick up compatible chargers, but it’s great to see both phone makers support the PD standard, which increases compatibility across the 14T Pro and iPhone 16 with a huge number of third-party charging solutions.
3. Better camera hardware and pro features
Apple has a long history of handicapping standard iPhone camera software when compared to the company’s Pro series. Going beyond hardware, vanilla iPhones have missed out on raw capture in past years, haven’t supported more manual photo modes and don’t offer advanced video capture options either. Unsurprisingly, the iPhone 16 also has a much smaller camera sensor than the iPhone 16 Pro and no optical zoom camera.
In stark contrast to the pricier iPhone, Xiaomi loads up its 14T Pro with a near-iPhone 16 Pro-sized sensor (1/1.31-inch compared to the iPhone 16’s 1/1.56-inch). That means it can create more natural background blur when snapping close-up objects and grabs more light in low-light scenes. Both phones sport fast f/1.6 aperture lenses with optical stabilisation (OIS), and high-resolution sensors (circa 50-megapixels), so are matched in most other areas.
It isn’t a clean sweep for Xiaomi on the camera front. The 14T Pro’s ultra-wide camera misses out on autofocus, while the iPhone 16 Pro’s ultra-wide can capture super close-up objects for more versatility. As for zoom, though, Xiaomi’s 14T Pro is a clear winner.
While Apple only puts two cameras on the iPhone 16 – a wide and ultra-wide – Xiaomi adds a third on the 14T – a 60mm equivalent telephoto camera, which works out at a 2.6x optical zoom. This combination of optical zoom and in-sensor zooming makes for a better zooming experience, especially in bright environments.
Xiaomi also packs a pro mode with full manual controls into its 14T Pro, with support for handy photographer tools like an on-screen histogram, manual controls, focus-peaking and exposure verification (also called zebra lines).
Anyone who plans on editing video shot on their phone will appreciate Xiaomi’s LOG capture, which ekes out maximum detail from shadows and highlights, and the 14T Pro also has Leica photo processing, creating more dramatic-looking photos.
4. Smoother ProMotion-beating display
Apple has been loading up its vanilla iPhones with disappointing 60Hz displays for years. While most Android phones run with smooth 120Hz screens, making social media feeds and menus flow like butter on a frying pan, Apple’s digging its heels in and saving its ‘Pro Motion’ 120Hz refresh rate tech for its 16 Pro and 16 Pro Max. Meanwhile, in the Xiaomi camp, the 14T Pro’s screen is an ultra-smooth 144Hz, out-performing even the Pro iPhones when it comes to on-screen fluidity.
Now while you probably won’t be able to tell the difference between 120Hz and 144Hz, you can definitely spot the difference between 60Hz and 144Hz, and the Xiaomi 14T Pro looks gloriously fluid when set against Apple’s iPhone 16.
Refresh rate isn’t the only area the 14T Pro takes the crown when it comes to screen performance, with the much bigger 6.67–inch size commanding attention when set alongside the iPhone’s 6.1-inch panel.
The 14T Pro’s in-display fingerprint scanner also means it doesn’t require Face ID for secure unlocking, so there’s no big pill-shaped cutout at the top (the Dynamic Island), just a punch-hole selfie camera. Finally, the Xiaomi 14T Pro’s peak brightness edges ahead of the iPhone 16 as well.
5. In-box accessories Neither Apple or Xiaomi ship chargers in the box with their phones anymore (for European users), but Xiaomi’s still packs in extra value with an in-box black, soft-touch opaque case, and a pre-fitted screen protector with the 14T Pro.
With both phones being IP68 water- and dust-resistant and sporting tempered glass displays, they’re relatively durable out of the gate, but if you still want an extra layer of protection from all sides, only Xiaomi’s got you covered without the need for additional purchases.
Initial impressions Of course, if you’re sold into the Apple ecosystem, then upgrading to an iPhone 16 will be a much smoother experience than switching to Android. The iPhone 16 is also available in a bunch of fun colours, and if you’re after a bigger phone, you could always go for the larger (and pricier) iPhone 16 Plus. I also can’t fault Apple’s after-sales service from experience, especially if you’re signed up for Apple Care (at an additional fee, of course).
Whichever way you slice it, though, having spent a couple of weeks with the Xiaomi 14T Pro, I’ve no doubt it’s an excellent phone that represents great value, especially in the NZ, making it one of the smartest choices for any prospective iPhone user thinking about going to Android in 2024.
The Dell Inspiron 14 Plus sees the venerable PC-maker embrace the Snapdragon platform, and do it well.
Our Verdict Dell makes business PCs, and this is one. It brings all the strengths of the Snapdragon platform – long battery life, cool and quiet running – and melds them with a thin and light design. Creatives may bemoan the lack of GPU power, but as something to take with you when you’re working away from your desk, this makes a good choice.
Think of a Dell laptop and you’ll probably picture a grey machine that’s been built for stability and reliability. It’s not going to be an exciting PC, but this is a brand that makes much of its business credentials, and when you’re likely to be supplying the portable PC fleets of large businesses, what you need is solid, dependable performance on a large scale.
This version of the old reliable Inspiron sees Dell embrace the nascent Qualcomm platform in the form of the Snapdragon X Plus processor, rather than the Elite model found in something like the Microsoft Surface Laptop 7 (you can find the Elite in Dell’s Inspiron and Latitude ranges, but we’re reviewing an X Plus here). Snapdragon has many benefits for a portable machine that’s likely to be used in business situations, such as extended (like, really extended) battery life and mostly silent operation, and Dell has capitalised on them. But is enough to make this one of the best laptops for office workers and writers?
As an office laptop rather than something more directly targeted at the creative or gaming communities, the design of the Inspiron Plus is somewhat more restrained than the average laptop you’ll see on this site. No detachable OLED screens or rainbow lights here, just a plain white keyboard backlight, a simple circular Dell logo printed on the lid, and only one sticker next to the trackpad, advertising that it uses the Snapdragon X Plus processor. Sadly, the keyboard itself is merely ok to type on – the keys are a little lacking in feel, and their grey tone against the silver casing looks washed out. Much better is the trackpad, the texture of which feels good under the fingers and, despite not being the largest out there, is easy to use if you’re fond of swipe gestures.
Elsewhere, things are equally businesslike. There’s a fingerprint reader at the top of the keyboard, a decent-sized Enter key rather than an enormous #, and the Copilot button that summons the chatbot. There’s no numpad, but two speakers have been squeezed down the sides, which makes the keyboard in the 14in chassis a decent size.
Features
Around the edges of the Inspiron 14 Plus you’ll find a fairly standard range of ports. There’s no HDMI, so you’ll need an adapter to connect to a projector, and no Ethernet, though the presence of Wi-Fi 7 takes the edge off this omission a little. With two USB 4 (also used for charging) and a single USB 3.2 Gen 1 Type-A (the 5Gbps type), plus a MicroSD card slot, it’s fairly well equipped, especially if you team it with a dock, but the native ports will fill up quickly once you add an external monitor, a charger, and a mouse and keyboard dongle.
The IPS screen is touch sensitive, and can display a 60Hz refresh rate. Its QHD+ resolution translates as 3200 x 1800 pixels, which gives it a 16:10 aspect ratio. It’s an extremely nice thing to look at, and the colourful Windows 11 desktop background set as default looks bright and sharp. When tempted by the siren song of our colorimeter, it performed well, showing us 96% of sRGB, 76% of Adobe RGB and 75% of the P3 colour gamut – not the best we’ve ever seen, but a respectable response. Brightness hit 365 nits, slightly down on the claimed 400 but not too bad overall.
The presence of a 3.5mm headset port is nice to have, especially for a laptop that will probably see more than its fair share of Teams and Zoom calls, while the 1080p webcam integrated in the top of the screen is joined by an IR counterpart for Windows Hello duties, there’s no physical shutter to block it off. Luckily, Post-It notes are fairly cheap, especially in the office stationery cupboard.
As a Copilot+ model, you get the beginnings of what might be a n exciting new AI ecosystem, with Paint able to upgrade your drawings after you enter a text prompt, plus some nice video background filters and live captioning. At the time of writing Recall is still an experimental feature, and there’s still no reason to buy a Snapdragon machine just because of its AI capabilities and NPU. At the time of writing, Creative Cloud apps such as Acrobat, Illustrator, InDesign and Premiere Pro are still running via emulation in beta form, with only Photoshop and the cloud version of Lightroom getting fully native ports, while Lightroom Classic remains MIA. It’s early days for the platform, but worth checking before you dive in that the app you want to use works.
Benchmark scores
Cinebench 2024
Single core
108
Multicore
640
GPU
N/A
Geekbench 6
Single core
2413
Multicore
13290
GPU (OpenCL)
20555
AI (ONNX single precision)
1888
PC Mark 10
Applications benchmark
13357
Battery life
15h 38m
Handbrake video encoding
05:17, 60.8fps
Performance
Naturally, as the Snapdragon X Plus has fewer processing cores than the Elite (10, capable of a 4GHz single-core boost) we should see lower results in tests than the 12-core Elite chip. And so it partially comes to pass. The Inspiron’s single-core result in Cinebench 2024 is actually 7.5% higher than that of the Surface Laptop 7 (possibly down to superior cooling by Dell?), while the multicore test sees a 27% difference in favour of Microsoft’s machine.
How does it do against Intel? We’re glad you asked. The Core Ultra 9 185H in the Samsung Galaxy Book 4 Ultra has a total of 16 cores and turbos up to 5.1GHz, so should be superior according to the Law of More Being Better, yet scores almost identically in the single-core Cinebench test, with only a 3.7% difference in the Dell’s favour. The plucky little Inspiron then proceeds to win when given a multicore workout, coming in 21% ahead. The Galaxy absolutely flattens Dell’s machine (and Microsoft’s) in rendering tasks by virtue of its Nvidia GPU – the Adreno in the Snapdragon chipset isn’t compatible with the Cinebench test, but we know from runs through 3D Mark that it’s comparatively weak. No integrated GPU is able to take on the RTX 4070, but the Galaxy Book Ultra is more than three times the price of the Inspiron.
Battery life is great, as is the case with many Snapdragon machines. Intel’s latest chips, such as the Core Ultra 9, are rivalling Qualcomm in this area with their low-power cores, but the Inspiron’s score of more than 15 hours is even better than the almost 13 hours that we observed from the Samsung Galaxy Book 4 Ultra.
Who is it for? No Snapdragon released so far has been ideally targeted at creatives. Some of this is software support, and some is rooted in the fact that the Adreno GPU is not suited to the kind of heavy rendering or effect acceleration that we put our Nvidia cards to. We’re sure that will come, along with better utilisation of the NPU for generative AI and other neural networking applications that still run on the GPU in many apps. So for now, thanks to the lightning-fast way Office and other apps run on it, we have to say that this is more of a general admin and office work machine, ideal for presenting and getting ideas down, perhaps a bit of light Photoshop work, rather than something to thunder through raw image files with. And that’s ok.
Xiaomi’s latest premium mid-ranger offers a flagship-feeling experience that seriously impresses
Verdict The Xiaomi 14T Pro is a testament to the benefits of making well-thought-out improvements without going overboard. Buoyed by a much-improved build, a seriously impressive display, and performance that puts even the most premium flagships in a spot of bother, the Xiaomi 14T Pro sits comfortably near the top of a growing tree of mid-range phones, even if it’s hampered by a lack of global availability.
The era of AI phones has well and truly arrived, and the Xiaomi 14T Pro proves that mid-range phones don’t have to miss out on all the fun. As with previous generations of T Pro models, Xiaomi hasn’t skimped on the hardware included in this latest edition, meaning the door is more open than ever for accessible, and affordable, AI exploration.
Unlike many of the latest phones, however, Xiaomi hasn’t put all its focus into AI, and it’s for the better. Straight out of the box, you can see some of the new thought that’s gone into the 14T Pro’s design, with the phone sporting a clean aluminum frame and what Xiaomi describes as a “3D curved back”. These changes, partnered with a traditionally large (if now a tad less obvious) camera bump, give the 14T Pro a superbly premium feel and weightiness in the hand.
Get it loaded up and frankly, AI is the last thing you’ll be thinking about. Xiaomi’s HyperOS is smoother than ever, and the continued priority given to the phone’s display and processing capabilities means you’d easily be fooled into thinking you’re handling a much more pricey device than it is.
Xiaomi’s ventures into AI are much more measured than we’ve seen from the likes of Google and Samsung, and, in fairness, what you’re given here is a pretty good starting point if you’re looking to AI-ify your day-to-day life. While Xiaomi has, of course, added Android-wide features such as Circle to Search and Gemini to the 14T Pro, it has taken positive, if potentially cautious, steps in its own direction in terms of what’s offered uniquely on its devices. Rest assured, though, that the Xiaomi 14T Pro is a more than capable scalpal with which to enter the AI world.
Whether your focus is on AI or some of the other more necessary advancements Xiaomi has made in recent years – I’m looking at you, wireless charging – then you’re unlikely to be disappointed with the Xiaomi 14T Pro. In fact, as ever, you’ll likely find yourself seriously impressed with just how much can be packed into a device whose price tag doesn’t even come close to those of its flagship competition.
Xiaomi does, however, continue to limit the markets in which it operates (by choice or otherwise), which does a disservice to the Xiaomi 14T Pro. Lacking availability in America leaves a market gap that the likes of Samsung or OnePlus can quite happily fill, and while the price of the 14T Pro is impressively cheap for a phone of this quality, there are plenty more premium options out there for, in some cases, only a fraction more money.
The Xiaomi 14T Pro boasts some impressive specs given its price tag. Take a look at the full breakdown below:
Xiaomi 14T Pro specs
Dimensions:
160.4mm x 75.1mm x 8.39mm
Weight:
209g
Display:
6.67-inch CrystalRes AMOLED
Resolution:
2712 x 1220
Refresh rate:
Up to 144Hz
Peak brightness:
4000 nits
CPU:
MediaTek Dimensity 9300+
RAM:
Up to 12GB LPDDR5X
Storage:
Up to 1TB, UFS 4.0
OS:
HyperOS with Android 14
Cameras:
50MP main, 50MP telephoto, 12MP ultra-wide
Selfie camera:
32MP
Battery:
5000mAh
Charging:
120W wired, 50W wireless
Colours:
Titan Gray, Titan Blue, Titan Black
Value score: 4 / 5
Xiaomi 14T Pro review: design
New aluminum frame with 3D-curved back
Smaller camera bump than previous models
Some fingerprint issues
The Xiaomi 14T Pro takes a notable step up in terms of design versus its predecessor, but that doesn’t make it flawless. Coming in three colors – Titan Grey, Titan Blue, and Titan Black – you’d almost expect the phone to be built from titanium, right? Well, despite pre-launch rumors hinting at such an upgrade, there is, in fact, no titanium on the Xiaomi 14T Pro, which, while disappointing, isn’t necessarily a bad thing.
All three colors look positively premium, and with the aluminum alloy frame and 3D-curved back, the phone possesses a flagship-like feel in the hand, much like the Google Pixel 8, which isn’t bad company to be in whatsoever. One thing I did find in testing, however, was that while the back of the phone is indeed lovely, it was an absolute fingerprint magnet. I mainly used the phone in the case that comes with it, but my Titan Gray test model became covered in fingerprints the moment it left that case, which is somewhat of an annoyance when frankly the phone is otherwise rather pleasing to the eye.
The biggest improvement in terms of design comes to the phone’s camera bump. The best Xiaomi phones are known for their cameras, mainly due to the brand’s partnership with Leica (which we’ll come to later), but also due to the sheer size of their camera bumps. In reality, the Xiaomi 14T Pro is no different; the bump covers over 50% of the width of the phone and, by rough maths, over a third of the length, from its position in the top left of the back panel. Despite this, the bump is a huge upgrade from prior models, with this year’s cameras not only protruding less far from the rear of the phone, but also being housed in a color-matched bump.
Gone are the days of a large, garish black block on the back of your device. Instead, you get a lovely, Lego brick-esque square in a color that matches your back panel seamlessly. What’s more, the reduced depth and increased width of the bump means you experience very little wobble should you choose to use your phone without a bump-eliminating case or any case at all, which is a nice (if a tad niche) benefit.
Design score: 4 / 5
Xiaomi 14T Pro review: software
HyperOS with Android 14
Steady but well-thought-out steps into the world of AI
Every phone right now seems to be throwing all its eggs in the AI basket, but Xiaomi seems to be taking a more measured approach to its AI rollout. Despite this, there are still some fundamental qualms I have with Xiaomi’s approach that tarnish the near-premium experience the rest of the phone provides. While the days of being greeted by tens of preinstalled apps on Xiaomi devices are long gone, it seems that Xiaomi isn’t quite ready to give up on them entirely.
On loading up the phone, you’re not only greeted by the array of on-device tools and features, which I’ll get to in a second, but you’re also met with apps such as AliExpress, TikTok, WPS Office, and LinkedIn. Plus, in the same app folder, you’re bombarded with a host of recommended apps and games that aren’t yet installed but could be downloaded from the Mi Store via a shortcut, which overall seems a tad messy and unnecessary in an otherwise impressively clean layout.
Pre-installed qualms aside, there’s very little to take offense to about Xiaomi’s HyperOS or the tools that come installed with the Xiaomi 14T Pro. Instead, this is where we start to see Xiaomi’s slow and steady approach to introducing AI come into its own. First and foremost, your digital assistant comes preset to Google Gemini rather than Google Assistant, and, while it wasn’t available during our review, Circle to Search will also be rolling out to these devices.
Outside of what Google adds to the device, Xiaomi’s app offerings have become evermore positive since the launch of HyperOS. The biggest benefactor for mobile users of the HyperOS upgrade was the Gallery, which not only saw a number of small feature improvements to improve efficiency and add easy access to auto-generated folders and media types, but also gave prominence to Xiaomi’s Best Take feature, which can analyze multiple similar photos and tell you which of the shots is, you guessed it, the best.
The general theme of HyperOS was always to improve the interconnectivity of Xiaomi devices, which essentially boiled down to making everything look clean, work efficiently, and interact seamlessly with each other, no matter what device you were using. The downside of having the nicest user experience on Android, however, is that HyperOS hides some of its best features in the depths so as to not look overly messy – which is made more baffling by the array of apps you’re shown on receiving the device.
One of the best examples of this is Xiaomi’s AI Subtitles feature, which you can use to translate conversations either in-person using the microphone, or even to translate films and TV shows by configuring it to translate system audio. Pretty cool right? The issue is, to find this feature, which worked impressively well in testing, you need to go into the depths of the settings menu, apply for beta access (as it is yet to be fully released), and then add a shortcut to your home screen.
Xiaomi is, however, remaining steady with its AI releases, and we’re expecting AI Recorder and some AI Film features to arrive in the near future. One thing’s for sure, though: this is the most polished HyperOS we’ve seen since launch and the Xiaomi 14T Pro is, arguably, the perfect example of this software given just how smoothly you can access everything, from settings in the updated Control Center to your favorite photos via improved image searching.
If the slow, steady, and simple approach does one thing very well for HyperOS and the Xiaomi 14T Pro in particular, it’s the extent to which simplicity is combined with effectiveness throughout its apps and interfaces. Whether you’re using the Control Center to control your music or the redesigned weather app to check the forecast, there is little to no excess in terms of what you’re shown, and yet you can quickly access anything you might need. When partnered with the Xiaomi 14T Pro’s hardware, this gives you a seriously impressive mobile experience.
Software score: 4 / 5
Xiaomi 14T Pro review: cameras
Leica partnership continues to impress with standard shooting
Some strange variations in light capture and vibrance
If there’s one thing the Xiaomi 14T Pro is supposed to excel at, it’s photography, but right now I’m constantly flitting between loving it and hating it. Since Xiaomi brought its Leica-partnered camera systems to its T series with the 13T and 13T Pro, it has probably set the bar for mid-range photography. With these latest phones, however, it seems to play jump-rope with this bar a little too much, with some features seriously pushing the mark, and some falling annoyingly beneath.
Take, for example, close-up photographs. There’s no denying that the results I was able to achieve were extremely positive, especially when you consider that the Xiaomi 14 Ultra, aka the best camera phone from the brand, offers similar close-up performance. However, I often found myself resorting to standard camera modes rather than the usually more effective portrait mode to take the best shots, as I was having difficulty getting the right levels of focus and exposure otherwise. This isn’t a major issue, but if one mode can get into focus in less than half the time that another can and produce equal – if not better – results, why wouldn’t I use that?
Xiaomi’s partnership with Leica brings into focus several features that supposedly enhance your shooting capabilities. The first of these you’ll likely encounter is the shooting styles: Leica Authentic, and Leica Vibrant. Shooting with the 50MP wide lens is the best opportunity to see the variations in style in action, as the results can be starkly different. Something that became immediately apparent using the Xiaomi 14T Pro was that, whether you chose Authentic or Vibrant, you were guaranteed an immense amount of color. In either mode, shooting in wide made each color almost excessively saturated, with greens of grass making England seem much more beautiful than it was in reality, and, in fairness, making a much more visually appealing scene out of something that was otherwise rather grey. All in all, superb photos, but not necessarily the most honest to the colors in the scene. Cameras score: 4 / 5
Xiaomi 14T Pro review: performance
Dimensity 9300+ chipset benchmarks seriously well
Impressive performance in intense gaming scenarios, if a tad hot
As it doesn’t come from Snapdragon or Apple, the Xiaomi 14T Pro’s Dimensity 9300+ chipset could be easily overlooked, but, if our testing is anything to go by, there’s a seriously impressive bit of kit powering this phone, and I struggled to find any scenarios that put this in any doubt.
In our benchmark testing, the Dimensity 9300+ scored only just under the Samsung Galaxy S24 Ultra in single-core testing, and above the S24 Ultra in multi-core, so I wasn’t joking when I said it could hold its own. Whether it’s the focus on simplicity and efficiency behind HyperOS, sheer performing power, or, most likely, a combination of both, I struggled to create any scenario that caused a genuine performance impact, so you don’t need to worry about killing the 14T Pro off with Chrome tabs or your daily Wordle.
The sheer amount of RAM available on the Xiaomi 14T Pro could also play a big part in these benchmark scores, with the device having up to 12GB physical LPDDR5X RAM onboard, plus the option to extend this by up to a further 12GB using the device’s internal memory. For the majority of the testing period, I ran the 14T Pro with 6GB of Memory Extension as Xiaomi calls it, meaning it totaled 18GB of available RAM at any time with the model I was reviewing, but, in all honesty, that’s probably as much as anyone would need, so having a further 6GB of extension available is just an added bonus.
In gaming scenarios, most notably with the likes of Call of Duty Mobile and Mortal Kombat, I saw very little in terms of performance drops or impact post-session, with the phone able to comfortably play these more graphically intense titles at maximum settings without impacting my ability to smoothly demolish my foes. One thing to note, however, is that the phone was playing games while running at between 38 and 40 degrees Celsius – or 100 to 104 degrees Fahrenheit, if that’s your preferred unit of measure. Not exceptionally hot, but hot enough that even with a case on you could tell there was some serious work happening under the hood. Either way, the lack of any performance drops no matter the circumstance puts the Xiaomi 14T Pro in strong company in terms of performance.
Performance score: 4.5 / 5
Xiaomi 14T Pro review: battery
120W wired HyperCharge continues to impress
Wireless charging finally available with 50W wireless HyperCharge
For me, perhaps the best upgrade available on the Xiaomi 14T Pro is the arrival of wireless charging. What for many phones has seemed like a reasonably standard feature for several years now has long been missing from Xiaomi’s mid-range phones, but now it has arrived with truly Xiaomi-worthy power capabilities.
With 50W wireless charging, the Xiaomi 14T Pro instantly puts the cat among the pigeons in terms of wireless capabilities across both Android and Apple devices. The Samsung Galaxy S24 Ultra, for example, only offers 15W wireless charging, also for a 5000mAh battery, so this is a serious step in the charging game for Xiaomi, whose flagship phones were, frankly, already among the best available from a charging perspective.
The Xiaomi 14T Pro continues to offer Xiaomi’s 120W HyperCharge when wired, meaning you can get a full charge in around 20 minutes, though Xiaomi is yet to confirm any official charge times. Partner this with a 50W wireless charging alternative, and a 5000mAh battery, and you needn’t worry about regularly charging the 14T Pro.
Regular day-to-day use saw me comfortably get multiple days’ worth of runtime from the 14T Pro, while more intense use from gaming saw a battery drain of roughly 10% per hour, which, when you consider the strain of maximum graphics settings and online gameplay, is seriously impressive. Nice work, Xiaomi.
Battery score: 4.5 / 5
Should you buy the Xiaomi 14T Pro?
Buy if…
You love a beautiful display
While the resolution is a tad strange, there’s no denying that the display on the Xiaomi 14T Pro is one of the most enjoyable to use for day-to-day mobile tasks, gaming, and, streaming.
You never want to worry about charging again
Xiaomi’s offering of both 120W wired charging and 50W wireless charging on a phone with a 5,000mAh battery and some serious efficiency features means you’ll never be left wanting for battery life.
You want serious gaming performance
In our tests, the Xiaomi 14T Pro handled even some of the most intense games with ease, and without completely wiping out your battery after one round. Don’t buy if…
You want an infinite array of AI capabilities
While a whole host of AI capabilities are available from Xiaomi, with more to come too, it’s still behind some competitors in terms of the variety and amount of AI-oriented features available.
The Samsung Galaxy S24 FE is here, and it’s full of AI
(Image credit: Philip Berne / Future)
Samsung’s FE line has sometimes struggled to stand out from the main Galaxy S series, but the new Samsung Galaxy S24 FE has a clearer selling point, bringing Samsung’s AI features to a lower price point, and with a bigger screen than the Samsung Galaxy S23 FE.
For an idea of how successful it is, check out our hands-on Samsung Galaxy S24 FE review. But for a look at all the key specs and features, read on.
You’ll also find full details of the Samsung Galaxy S24 FE’s price and release date below.
What is it?A cheaper alternative to the Galaxy S24
When is it out?Launched on September 26, ships on October 4
How much does it cost?Starts at $649 / £649 / AU$1,099 New Zealand has yet to release official prices.
Samsung Galaxy S24 FE: release date and price
(Image credit: Philip Berne / Future)
Announced on September 26 and ships on October 4
Pre-orders are open now
Starts at $649.99 / £649 / AU$1,099
The Samsung Galaxy S24 FE was unveiled on September 26, alongside the Samsung Galaxy Tab S10 Plus and the Samsung Galaxy Tab S10 Ultra. Pre-orders for the phone are open now, and it ships from October 4.
As for the price, it starts at $649.99 / £649 / AU$1,099, for which you’ll get 128GB of storage, and it rises to $709.99 / £699 / AU$1,199 for 256GB.
That makes the starting price $50 / £50 / AU$200 more than the Samsung Galaxy S23 FE, but $150 / £150 / AU$300 less than the Samsung Galaxy S24.
The Samsung Galaxy S24 FE looks a lot like the Samsung Galaxy S24, as you might expect. It has a glass back with three cameras running vertically down it, and a flat screen with a punch-hole camera in the top center.
It has an aluminum frame, and is protected by Gorilla Glass Victus+ on both the front and back. It also has an IP68 rating, meaning it’s dust and water resistant.
The Samsung Galaxy S24 FE’s dimensions are 162 x 77.3 x 8mm, it weighs 213g, and it comes in a choice of Blue, Graphite, Gray, Mint, and Yellow shades, though not all colors are available in all regions.
As for the screen, it has a 6.7-inch 1080 x 2340 Dynamic AMOLED 2X display with a 120Hz refresh rate, a peak brightness of 1,900 nits, and around 385 pixels per inch.
That’s quite an upgrade on the Galaxy S23 FE, which has a smaller 6.4-inch screen and a lower peak brightness of 1,450 nits. It’s also bigger than the Galaxy S24’s 6.2-inch display, though not as bright.
Samsung Galaxy S24 FE: cameras
(Image credit: Philip Berne / Future)
50MP main, 12MP ultra-wide, and 8MP telephoto cameras
Similar hardware to the Galaxy S23 FE
New AI tools
The Samsung Galaxy S24 FE has a 50MP f/1.8 main camera with optical image stabilization (OIS), a 12MP f/2.2 ultra-wide with a 123-degree field of view, and an 8MP f/2.4 telephoto with 3x optical zoom, and this lens also benefits from OIS. Then there’s a 10MP f/2.4 camera on the front. The phone can also shoot video in up to 8K quality at 30fps.
In any case, those camera specs are the same as the Samsung Galaxy S23 FE, but the S24 FE has some upgrades, as it uses Samsung’s ProVisual Engine, which is a suite of AI-powered tools designed to enhance photos and videos, as well as improving performance in low light.
The Samsung Galaxy S24 FE also has a wealth of AI editing tools, such as the ability to move, resize, and remove elements of photos.
Samsung Galaxy S24 FE: specs and features
(Image credit: Samsung)
Exynos 2400e chipset
8GB of RAM
4,700mAh battery
The Samsung Galaxy S24 FE has an Exynos 2400e chipset, which marks it out from the rest of the Galaxy S24 line.
The other models all use a Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 in the US, and either that or an Exynos 2400 elsewhere, but not the ‘e’ version. Still, this should provide plenty of power for most tasks, and it’s paired with 8GB of RAM.
The phone also has loads of AI features. We mentioned some in the camera section, but outside of photos there are also things like Circle to Search, Live Translate, Interpreter, and Browser Assist, giving you the ability to identify things in pictures and videos, translate text and speech, and get AI summaries of websites.
The Samsung Galaxy S24 FE also has a 4,700mAh battery, which is an upgrade on the 4,500mAh one of its predecessor. It supports 25W wired charging, 15W wireless, and Samsung claims it can last for up to 28 hours of video playback.
When it comes to the foldable industry, Xiaomi has paved its way to the top by constantly evolving the technology and bringing about major iterations every time that makes its foldable truly stand out. It has not been long since the company was the talk of the town for its Mix Fold 4, which holds the record for the thinnest foldable profile. Now, the smartphone manufacturer has launched Mix Flip globally to give the industry even more fierce competition.
Xiaomi has fully launched the Mix Flip in global markets today, and it is its first clamshell folding phone
Xiaomi has been making its mark by vigorously bringing in foldable phones of different form factors and giving a tough time to others, leaving even Samsung behind when it comes to the thinnest profile of a foldable. The Mix Flip is the company’s first clamshell foldable, which was unveiled in China earlier this year. Users have long been waiting for the phone to hit global markets and would be relieved to know that it has been officially launched globally.
Although the Mix Fold was limited to Europe last month, it has now been fully released globally. The Mix Flip features a 6.86-inch OLED fold display and a 4.01-inch cover screen. Its peak brightness is 3,000 nits and 1,600 nits when in high-brightness mode, which marks a huge upgrade in visibility, especially in outdoor settings.
Xiaomi is also focusing on functionality along with the new form factor it is bringing forward as the cover display extends support for keyboard typing and also for using apps like YouTube or even Google Maps, providing a major convenience for users. The clamshell foldable features a Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 processor and comes with a bigger-than-average battery for foldable phones, standing at 4,780mAh. It also comes with extended charging cycles going up to 1,600 before the battery hits its 80 percent capacity.
Xiaomi’s Mix Flip is also packed with 67W wired charging that marks a faster speed, but we see the wireless charging and IP rating being absent from the model, which might come as a disappointment to many given how Galaxy Z Flip 6 and even Motorola Razr Plus 2024 is offering complete water resistance.
The Mix Flip followed the company’s pattern of its other flagship phones by opting for a Leica-branded camera setup and featuring a 50MP primary camera and a 50MP 2x telephoto lens. The zoom-in capabilities, in comparison to the Z Flip 6, offer greater clarity and more detailed photo-capturing abilities.
Taking close-up shots, especially for those interested in macro photography, would be of high quality as the telephoto lens offers a minimum focusing distance of nine centimeters. The video calls offer more clarity, which is attributed to the 32MP front camera. Although Xiaomi’s Mix Flip offers a bigger battery and an upgraded camera zoom feature to take on the Z Flip 6, it lacks wireless charging and the IP rating offered by Samsung in its Flip model. The Xiaomi Mix Flip’s base model costs €1,299 (around $1,447) and has 12GB of RAM and 512GB of storage capacity. It is available in a black and purple color scheme.Official prices in New Zealand are not yet available.
Here’s everything you need to know about Samsung’s budget-friendly midrange phone
(Image credit: Samsung)
The FE version of Samsung’s Galaxy S phones sit in a nebulous middle area of the phone giant’s lineup — not quite fully featured enough to compare to the standard Galaxy S models, but a bit more powerful than the more budget-friendly Galaxy A midrange handsets. And the pricing of Galaxy S FE phones typically reflects that middle ground.
That certainly seems true of the latest model, the Galaxy S24 FE, which Samsung has just unveiled nearly nine months after the rest of the Galaxy S24 phones went on sale, but a few months ahead of the likely 2025 launch of the Galaxy S25.
Galaxy S24 FE rumors had predicted a fall launch for this phone, so here are we, wondering if the new model will appeal to people who don’t want to upgrade to the S24 or wait around for the S25 but want something more than what the current Galaxy A35 has to offer.
You’ll have to wait for our Galaxy S24 FE hands-on for that kind of assessment, but here’s a rundown of what the new phone has to offer in terms of pricing, availability and other changes from the Galaxy S24 lineup.
(Image credit: Samsung) The Samsung Galaxy S24 FE comes with a 6.7-inch AMOLED 2X display. It offers FHD+ resolution and a 120Hz refresh rate. Because of that larger display, the S24 FE is about the same size as the Galaxy S24 Plus with similar dimensions and the same size display, though the FE weighs a bit more — 7.51 ounces compared 6.95 ounces.
At 6.4 x 3 x 0.31 inches, the new Galaxy S24 FE is slightly bigger than last year’s Galaxy S23 FE. Otherwise, the exterior design is basically the same as the main S24 line, so if you like Samsung’s aesthetic, this won’t disappoint.
The Galaxy S24 FE will be available in blue, graphite, gray, mint, yellow. As of this writing, the yellow version isn’t available in the Samsung store for order, so it’s not clear when that colorway will actually be available.
(Image credit: Future) The Galaxy S24 FE’s rear camera array features three vertically stacked lenses — a 50MP main camera, 12MP ultrawide and an 8MP telephoto camera with 3x optical zoom. The only real difference between the S24 and the S24 FE is the telephoto lens, which has a higher resolution on the main flagship.
The camera setup on the Galaxy S24 FE should give you enough versatility to capture great photos and video. It will also be boosted by AI-assisted features like Photo Assist that uses generative AI to edit photos and Instant Slo-Mo to transform any video into slow motion.
Samsung Galaxy S24 FE: Performance and battery life
(Image credit: Samsung) Prior to the Galaxy S24 FE’s release, there had been rumors Samsung might turn to a Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 chipset — the same one in the Galaxy S24 for this phone. That didn’t pan out though, which isn’t surprising, since Samsung had to find some way to keep costs down on the FE.
Instead, Samsung is going with its own Exynos 2400 silicon. That should mean performance will lag the main Galaxy S24.
The Samsung Galaxy S24 FE should have more battery life than last year’s S23 FE as well as the standard S24. Samsung equipped the S24 FE with a 4,700 mAh battery, topping the 4,000 mAh power pack in the standard S24 and A55.
The S23 FE wasn’t great on battery life, running an inefficient Snapdragon 8 Gen 1 chipset. The Exynos 2400e inside the Galaxy S24 FE should be more efficient and combined with the 4,700 mAh battery should last longer on a charge
Samsung Galaxy S24 FE: AI features
(Image credit: Samsung) Samsung has made a point of extending AI features to older phones and midrange models, with the Galaxy A35 supporting the Circle to Search feature introduced earlier this year with the S24.
Samsung is bringing a number of Galaxy AI features to the Galaxy S24 FE that you won’t see on A35, though. The new phone will include the Live Translate feature that works with third party apps, Interpreter Mode for two-way conversation with AI-assisted translation, Note Assist, Sketch to Edit, and already mentioned features like Circle to Search, Instant Slow-Mo and Photo Assist.
Samsung Galaxy S24 FE: Sustainability
(Image credit: Samsung) As with the rest of the S24 lineup, the Galaxy S24 FE will come with 7 years of software support, including Android OS upgrades and security updates. That means you can keep hold of your phone for longer. Hopefully it’ll also mean 7 years of spare parts availability, just in case something breaks before 2031.
Samsung says that the S24 FE is made of wide variety of recycled materials including plastics, aluminum, glass and rare earth elements and the packaging is made from 100% recycled paper.
Samsung Galaxy S24 FE: Outlook
While the Samsung Galaxy S24 FE does have a slight price increase, it still offers many of the same features as the Galaxy S4.AI continues to be a major focus of Samsung, which means that the S24 FE is also getting a number of Galaxy AI features, though not all are unique to Samsung devices.
With a larger battery and a potentially more efficient Exynos 2400 chipset, the Galaxy S24 FE could see some big improvements over its predecessor. We’ll find out more once we complete testing on this model.
Looking for an iPhone 14 vs. iPhone 13 comparison? We’ve got you covered
iPhone 14 Apple’s basic 2022 iPhone adds new camera abilities and tunes up the existing chipset, but is overall a small leap forward from the iPhone 13. It’s certainly worth looking at if you’re using an older iPhone model, but the iPhone 14 will leave you disappointed as an upgrade from its predecessor.
iPhone 13 Apple introduced a smaller Face ID notch, Cinematic video mode, and improved the iPhone’s power and display quality. But it still lacks a lot of premium features that similarly priced Android phones have like a fast display refresh rate or a telephoto camera.
Going for an iPhone 14 or iPhone 13 may still make sense in 2024, even now they’re both a few years out of date. Even if they’re not the shiniest and latest models, they’re both still competent phones that could serve you well.
The iPhone 14 is a lot like the iPhone 13, but with a few interesting extras. The addition of a larger main camera, Emergency SOS via satellite and Crash Detection are appealing, but the iPhone 13, as the older and therefore cheaper model, may be a better value proposition for most users.
You may want to check out the newer iPhone 16 and iPhone 15 models before making a buying decision, as these models add more features and power if you’re willing to pay the extra. But if you’re certain the iPhone 14 and iPhone 13 are your two finalists, let us take you through their key differences and similarities.
iPhone 14 vs. iPhone 13: Cheat sheet
Design:The design of the iPhone 14 and iPhone 13 is nearly the same, though the iPhone 14 has no SIM card tray.
Price: Apple no longer stocks the iPhone 13 though, while still selling new iPhone 14s as a budget option.
Performance:Both the iPhone 14 and iPhone 13 use the A15 Bionic chipset, but the newer model has a 5-core GPU. The iPhone 13 has a quad-core GPU.
Cameras:The iPhone 14 has 12MP main and ultrawide cameras, just like the iPhone 13, but Apple introduced the new Photonic Engine in the 14 series. This elevates lighting in photos to brighten images, especially in low light.
Video:The iPhone 14 sports Action mode, which is video stabilization on steroids. It’s ideal for situations where the subject or videographer are in constant motion.
Battery life:Battery life on the iPhone 14 got worse, however, down to 9 hours, 28 minutes in our testing from the iPhone 13’s 10 hours, 33 minutes. The iPhone 14 Plus fared much better at 11 hours, 57 minutes.
The iPhone 14 looks very similar to the iPhone 13. Both are made of glass and aluminum with glossy backs. Both come with notched displays too, with only the iPhone 14 Pro models getting a Dynamic Island to replace the cutout. At least the iPhone 14 has kept the iPhone 13’s shrunken notch design for a slightly less obtrusive experience.
The iPhone 14 has a Ceramic Shield on the front glass for added durability, just like the previous model. Based on drop tests involving the iPhone 14 Plus, though, it sounds like the new models are still prone to damage from drops, so you’ll want to get one of the best iPhone 14 cases or the best iPhone 14 Plus cases, just as the best iPhone 13 cases helped prevent damage to Apple’s older phones. The iPhone 13 changed the rear camera module layout from vertically stacked lenses to diagonally arranged ones on the back. iPhone 14 sticks with that approach.
The iPhone 14 comes in six colors: Midnight, Starlight, Blue, Purple, and Red, plus more recently a new Yellow version. The iPhone 13 colors include Pink, Blue, Midnight, Starlight, Green and Red.
Apple has done away with the physical SIM tray on U.S. iPhone 14 models, which means that the iPhone 14 is an eSIM-only phone. So if you want a SIM card tray, the iPhone 13 might be a better choice for you.
iPhone 14 vs. iPhone 13: Display
The iPhone 14 and iPhone 13 have practically identical 6.1-inch OLED displays, but our testing showed that the iPhone 14 does better on color gamut coverage, and slightly better with color accuracy. Oddly the iPhone 13 is the brighter of the two phones, at least when going by the highest results we found in the lab.
iPhone 14
iPhone 13
Peak brightness (nits)
756
797
DCI-P3 color gamut coverage (%)
83.1
78.1
Color accuracy (delta-e, lower is better)
0.25
0.26
The iPhone 14 lineup also gives you the option of going bigger if you want with the iPhone 14 Plus, which gives you more real estate with 6.7 inches, the same size as the iPhone 14 Pro Max. This panel fits more content on screen at once and is more immersive for watching videos.
However, if you prefer smaller phones, the iPhone 13 mini is still a good option with its tiny 5.4-inch display, although Apple no longer sells that model itself. Something that compact may not be ideal for gaming or for long bouts of reading, but most people can easily use the mini with one hand.
We keep wishing Apple would go higher with the refresh rate for its basic iPhones, but both the iPhone 14 and iPhone 13 use 60Hz. That doesn’t compare well to equivalent Android phones, but if you only care about iPhones, then there’s no difference here.
iPhone 14 vs iPhone 13: Cameras
Some of the biggest upgrades included with the iPhone 14 involve its cameras. Like its predecessor, the new iPhone 14 models feature a pair of rear 12MP cameras — one a main lens, the other an ultrawide shooter. But this time, the iPhone 14’s main sensor is much larger with bigger pixels (1.9 microns), and with a faster f/1.5 aperture and sensor-shift image stabilization.
All of this adds up to better photos and video, delivering better detail and less noise. Night mode is also improved with the exposure now twice as fast. The Photonic Engine feature helps improve low-light performance across all of the cameras. Indeed, all those changes helped the iPhone 14 land on our list of the best camera phones.
The front camera on the iPhone 14 has also changed. This new TrueDepth camera has an ƒ/1.9 aperture that is supposed to help in low light. In contrast, the iPhone 13 makes do with an f/2.2 aperture. And you get autofocus for the first time on a front iPhone camera with the iPhone 14 and iPhone 14 Plus.
In terms of video, Apple has introduced a new Action mode that is designed to add better stabilization to videos taken on the go on the iPhone 14. The feature is extremely impressive.
To see how different the cameras are, we conducted an iPhone 14 vs iPhone 13 camera face-off. Whatever differences exist in the quality of photos is pretty slight, with a few exceptions.
iPhone 14 vs iPhone 13: Performance
A new iPhone normally means new chipsets, but for the first time in the iPhone’s history, this is not the case for the iPhone 14 and iPhone 14 Plus. Apple has stuck with the high-end A15 bionic that powered last year’s iPhone lineup, though it’s not the exact same silicon that the iPhone 13 used.
Instead, the A15 Bionic powering the iPhone 14 and iPhone 14 Plus is the same chip found in the iPhone 13 Pro. That means a 5-core GPU for boosted gaming performance compared to the iPhone 13 and its 4-core GPU.
Our iPhone 14 vs iPhone 13 benchmarks show what that means for the new phones. The bottom line? You’ll see a slight performance boost if you opt for the iPhone 14 over the iPhone 13, even if the older phone somehow completed our video transcoding test faster than the newer one.
iPhone 14
iPhone 13
Geekbench 5 (single-core / multi-core)
1727 / 4553
1668 / 4436
3DMark Wild Life Extreme Unlimited (score / fps)
2583 / 15.47
2189 / 13.10
Adobe Premiere Rush time to transcode (mins:secs)
0:28
0:25
iPhone 14 vs. iPhone 13: Battery life and charging
The iPhone 14 is rated for up to 20 hours of video playback, 16 hours of streamed video and 80 hours of audio. The iPhone 13 is rated for 19 hours, 15 hours and 75 hours, which means a boost to battery life — at least on paper.
Sadly, in our battery testing, where we have a phone surf the web continuously over cellular until it runs out of power, the iPhone 14 fared worse than its predecessor. While the iPhone 13 approached 10.5 hours when we tested that phone, the iPhone 14 could only manage 9 hours and 28 minutes — about half-an-hour behind the average for smartphones.
If you want a long-lasting phone, opt for the iPhone 14 Plus and its bigger battery. That 6.7-inch device held out for 11 hours and 57 minutes.
All of the iPhone 14 and iPhone 13 models charge at a rather measly 20W. That’s much slower than most of the Android competition. For example, the iPhone 14 took about half an hour to get back just half of its battery (54%). The iPhone 14 Plus? 46% in 30 minutes. The iPhone 13 and iPhone 13 mini aren’t much different at 51% and 58% in 30 minutes, respectively.
iPhone 14 vs iPhone 13: Bottom line
The iPhone 14 brings some big upgrades like SOS Emergency satellite connectivity, Crash Detection and improvements in low light photography. Even with those improvements, though, you’ll still find many similarities to the iPhone 13. This includes the A15 Bionic chip, the display (with the exception of the larger iPhone 14 Plus model) and the overall design.
We like the iPhone 14 a lot, even though the iPhone 15 is now here. Upgrading to the iPhone 14 from an older phone, you’ll notice some big improvements, but anyone reading this guide who already owns an iPhone 13 is advised to stay put. The changes aren’t that large.
The question instead is: If you’ve got an eye on your budget, would the iPhone 13 be a better choice? Certainly, you’ll give up some performance and camera gains that the iPhone 14 would deliver, and those Emergency SOS via satellite and Crash Detection features aren’t coming to Apple’s older phones.
So, yes, the new iPhone 14 is an excellent flagship, but the discounted iPhone 13 is still a great value buy.
Whether you’re looking buy an affordable phone or you want a one that folds in half, here are our recommendations for the best Samsung Galaxy smartphones of 2024. The Galaxy Z Flip 6 and Galaxy Z Fold 6 bring a number of welcomed upgrades like a better main camera on the Flip and some unwanted ones like a higher starting price. The new foldable phones follow on the heels of Samsung’s Galaxy S24 series, which arrived earlier this year. The Galaxy S24, S24 Plus and S24 Ultra got new AI features in addition to the regular slew of performance, camera and battery upgrades. With so many different phone models at a variety of prices, you might have a difficult time making a decision on which phone to buy. But don’t worry, we’ve tested and reviewed every phone on this list and are here to help you find the best Samsung phone. >>>>EB-BS928ABY Battery for Samsung Galaxy S24 Ultra Best premium Android phone Samsung Galaxy S24 Ultra With a sharper 5x optical zoom, a faster new processor and that familiar giant display and 100x digital zoom, the Samsung’s “Ultra” phone remains a top choice for mobile photographers that want plenty of screen space. The Galaxy S24 Ultra is also one of the first phones with Samsung’s new Galaxy AI features, which include tools for translating text messages and phone calls instantly and Circle to Search, a new gesture that lets you launch a Google search for almost anything simply by drawing a circle around it. Like the previous two generations, the Galaxy S24 Ultra comes with an embedded S Pen for those who like jotting down notes or doodling. But perhaps best of all, Samsung has committed to updating these devices with new versions of Android for seven years, meaning it shouldn’t feel out of date anytime soon. Still, there are still some important downsides to consider. This phone is expensive, so be sure to look for trade-in discounts if you plan to upgrade. And for that high price, I had hoped Samsung would’ve added extra Galaxy AI features that are specific to the Ultra — perhaps some that take advantage of the S Pen. But Galaxy AI is the same on all Galaxy S24 devices, and it’ll be coming to the Galaxy S23 lineup soon too, so you don’t have to splurge on Samsung’s top-of-the-line phone if you just care about those features. >>>>EB-BF742ABE Battery for Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 6 Best flip phone Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 6 For better or worse, Samsung’s Galaxy Z Flip 6 foldable is packed with AI. It can take a rough sketch and turn it into artwork or help me have a conversation in French or Korean despite my only knowing a few words of either language. The new autofocus/auto zoom feature lets you prop the phone in a half-open position, the Z Flip 6 will automatically zoom in or out (switching between the main and ultrawide cameras) to get a photo that best suits the moment. Samsung’s latest clamshell style foldable has a new 50-megapixel main camera, a smaller hinge and crease, a larger battery and a Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Gen 3. The best ultra-cheap phone for long term use Samsung Galaxy A15 5G For those looking to buy a phone that will last for years, Samsung’s Galaxy A15 5G is an easy choice. Samsung gave it four years of software updates and five years of security support, which is unmatched in this price range. In addition, the phone supports 25W wired charging, and in my tests, it was able to half charge its large 5,000mah battery in 30 minutes. I also like bold light blue. The Galaxy A15 5G feels sluggish compared to competing phones such as Motorola’s Moto G 5G, and as an entertainment device, the Galaxy A15’s single-audio speaker falls short of accidentally jamming when you hold the phone sideways to play games and watch videos. Photography is a typical shortcoming of a phone in this price range, which can take good pictures in outdoor environments, but it is difficult to take pictures in low-light Spaces. This makes the Galaxy A15 5G an easy choice when you just need a phone that can handle the basics, but if you’re looking for the best pocket YouTube player in this price range, you may want to consider other options. Perfect for Samsung fans Samsung Galaxy S23 FE This year, Samsung reinvigorated its FE lineup with the launch of the Galaxy S23 FE. The new phone largely takes the best of Samsung’s Galaxy S22, including a fast (albeit two-year-old) Qualcomm Snapdragon 8gen 1 processor and a 50-megapixel main camera, and puts it inside a colorful aluminum body that highlights a 6.4-inch 1080p display. The phone is priced at the entry-level but boasts Samsung’s high-end features, including desktop-optimized DeX mode and reverse wireless charging. In researching my review of the Samsung Galaxy S23 FE, I found it to be a big improvement over Samsung’s A-Series phones in terms of features and photography. Like the Galaxy S22, though, I did find that the battery life of the Galaxy S23 FE was shorter than I’d hoped during testing, but its 25W wired charge can help you charge quickly in the middle of the day if needed. Best S24 Ultra alternative Samsung Galaxy S24 Plus After testing the 6.7-inch Samsung Galaxy S24 Plus by playing games, texting and calling in multiple languages, taking photos, recording videos and trying out all that Galaxy AI has to offer, I’m happy to say it’s outstanding. Samsung didn’t reinvent the phone, but it did take a great phone and make it better. The challenge for the S24 Plus is that Google’s Pixel 8 Pro has the same price and slightly better cameras. I do think the S24 Plus is an overall better phone in nearly every other respect, even software, which has been rock solid in my testing. Best for productivity and entertainment Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 6 With the Galaxy Z Fold 6, Samsung is getting closer to its goal of making a device that doubles as a phone and a tablet without compromising too much in either direction. The Galaxy Z Fold 6 has an improved design with a sleeker look that’s easier to grip, a less noticeable crease, a new processor and an upgraded ultrawide camera. But it’s really the Galaxy Z Fold 6’s big, bright and crisp internal screen that makes it the best choice for those who want a foldable phone for entertainment. Samsung phone FAQs Why buy a Samsung phone instead of other Android phones? The right phone for you depends on a variety of factors, such as your budget, your current phone and whether you own other mobile accessories from the same company, such as earbuds or smartwatches. Many people prefer to stick with phones from the same company because the experience is more consistent and there’s less of a learning curve when switching to a new device. The same holds true for Samsung; the company’s One UI software (its customized version of Android) can be found across its phone lineup. Samsung’s One UI 6 introduced a more customizable lock screen and the ability to answer a phone call through a text message instead of speaking. Consistency aside, there are some benefits to choosing a Samsung phone over devices from other Android phone makers. Samsung usually excels when it comes to display quality and brightness, and it typically offers a lot of choices in terms of size and pricing. Samsung phones usually offer decent battery life — especially midsize and large phones — and the cameras are usually among the best, especially on the Galaxy S24 lineup. Samsung also offers seven years of Android version updates for most of its new smartphones, which is longer support than even Google provides for its Pixel phones. Google’s Pixel devices also have stellar cameras along with specific software features you can’t get elsewhere. The OnePlus 12 is also cheaper than the Galaxy S24 Plus and Galaxy S24 Ultra at regular prices without a trade-in and offers faster charging speeds. It could be a better choice for those who want to pay a little less but still want a giant 6.82-inch screen and triple rear camera. Which Samsung phone series is best, Galaxy A or Galaxy S? Samsung’s Galaxy A and S series have different uses, so which one is right for you depends on your needs and budget. The Galaxy A series is Samsung’s mid-range and budget phone, which is the best option if you’re looking for a cheap phone and don’t need to trade it in. These phones often offer core features such as large screens, large batteries and multiple cameras at a cheaper price. You get what you pay for; Compared to expensive models, Samsung’s cheapest phones have very limited storage, poor cameras and sometimes struggle to multitask. More expensive phones like the Galaxy A35 5G offer almost all the features that most people want from a basic phone, although you still have to make some compromises on camera quality and overall performance. The Galaxy S series, on the other hand, is Samsung’s flagship smartphone series. Galaxy S phones typically include the best technology Samsung has to offer, along with features you’d expect from any high-end phone, such as high-end design, 5G support, a high refresh rate screen, and multiple high-end cameras. For example, the biggest updates introduced in the Galaxy S24 series include an increase in the Ultra’s main camera to 200 megapixels and a larger battery for the smaller models.
