Eliana Willis

Kerry Wan/ZDNETFor many people, motion smoothing on TVs is only appropriate for gaming and watching live sports; enthusiasts typically prefer turning off the feature to watch anything else because it can detract from the filmmaker’s original intent, making on-screen images seem artificial or hyper-realistic. This is what’s called the “soap opera effect.” Also: How to turn off ACR on your TV (and why you shouldn’t wait to do it)It’s a perfectly descriptive metaphor that probably requires no explanation. You can see it all too well: the cinematic film should not look like a daytime soap; you shouldn’t feel like you’re on the set with the actors. But it is appealing to feel like you’re in the stadium watching your team with thousands of fans. The soap opera effect makes sense for live sporting event broadcasts. More

Victrola Harmony <!–> ZDNET’s key takeaways The Victrola Harmony turntable system is available for $299 in the colors Natural, Walnut, and Black. This system includes a full-size turntable, two bookshelf speakers, and an A-T ATN3600L cartridge, all great components for beginners. At its $300 price point ($100 up from its debut in Jan.), people willing […] More

Yuliya Taba/Getty Images Part of the “passkeys are more secure than passwords” story is derived from the fact that passkeys are non-human-readable secrets — stored somewhere on your device — that even you have very limited access to.  OK, so what happens to those passkeys if your device is stolen? Over on Spiceworks.com, ZDNET’s sister site […] More

Kerry Wan/ZDNETIn a series of rare events, the iPhone 17 Pro has seemingly appeared publicly ahead of its expected September launch. Late Monday, X user @Skyfops shared two images of what can be assumed to be an Apple employee handling a test development iPhone.Also: You can download iOS 26 public beta right now – how to install (and which iPhones support it)While the iPhone is encased in a security cover, typically used to hide the device’s final design, there’s a dead giveaway that the model in question is the unreleased iPhone 17 Pro: the right-aligned LiDAR sensor and flash. Even Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman thinks the images look legit.Leaks and rumors have long pointed to the upcoming series of iPhones featuring a redesigned camera bar, with the same arrangement of cameras on the upper-left corner as previous models, flanked by additional sensors on the right side — all upheld by a protruding module. For phone enthusiasts, think Poco M4 Pro design. More

Mowrator S1 <!–> ZDNET’s key takeaways The Mowrator S1 remote-controlled lawnmower costs $3,999. This mower makes fun work of yard maintenance; perfect for someone with mobility issues, has a long-lasting battery, and fast RC response. Unfortunately, it is an expensive device, at $3,999, and it’s not meant to perform completely hands-free cleaning like a robot […] More

Sabrina Ortiz/ZDNETAs they say, fashion is cyclical. It turns out that phones are, too, because flip phones are so back. Gone are the days of clunky phones that don’t fit in tiny pockets. Samsung has just released its brand new Z Flip 7, an AI-full upgrade to one of its most unique smartphone models. Also: T-Mobile will give you the iPhone 16e for free with no trade-in – here’s how to get yoursHowever, Verizon is now offering the Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 7 More