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    This Motorola foldable is on sale for $100 off – here’s why I recommend it over most slab phones

    Motorola Razr (2025) <!–> ZDNET’s key takeaways The Motorola Razr (2025) is on sale for $700 and comes in four distinct colors. Its OLED touchscreen, robust camera system, and flexible design combine to create one of my favorite smartphone experiences in 2025. However, the performance from the MediaTek chipset is rather lackluster. more buying choices […] More

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    ChatGPT comes with personality presets now – and 3 other upgrades you might have missed

    Elyse Betters Picaro / ZDNETZDNET’s key takeaways:OpenAI launched ChatGPT customization updates.Users can choose chat color and personality.All users (even free) can now access Advanced Voice Mode.OpenAI is having one of its biggest product launch weeks, releasing its highly anticipated open-source models, gpt-oss-120b and gpt-oss-20b, and GPT-5. Buried within the deluge of the large language models (LLMs) are helpful ChatGPT features that add customization options that could make the ChatGPT experience more enjoyable. Also: GPT-5 is finally here, and you can access it for free today – no subscription neededIn OpenAI’s Summer Update event on Thursday, the company added the ability to choose a color for ChatGPT chats, choose from new personalities when using the Custom Instructions feature, more easily connect your Google productivity apps, and better interact with Advanced Voice Mode. Keep reading below for the full overview of the features’ capabilities and how to access them. ChatGPT chat color optionsStarting with perhaps the most self-explanatory feature, you can now choose a color for your chats. This option is available to everyone, but a few exclusive options are available for paid users. While this won’t largely change your productivity within ChatGPT, it can make the experience more enjoyable or better match your aesthetic preferences. New personalities in Custom Instructions.Custom Instructions, launched in April 2023, lets users set preferences that tailor how ChatGPT generates responses. Now, OpenAI has launched a research preview of four preset personalities: Cynic, Robot, Listener, and Nerd, available in the Custom Instructions experience. The personalities tweak how ChatGPT interacts with users, giving the chatbot different tones that better match your needs and communication styles. For example, OpenAI said some are concise and professional, while others are a bit sarcastic. The personalities are available to all users, opt-in, and adjustable anytime in your Customize ChatGPT settings.  More

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    Can GPT-5 fix Apple Intelligence? We’re about to find out

    Sabrina Ortiz/ZDNETZDNET’s Key takeaways:Apple Intelligence will be upgraded with GPT-5. GPT-5 is OpenAI’s recently launched most capable model.Users will be able to access GPT-5 in iOS 26, iPadOS 26, and macOS 26. OpenAI released GPT-5 on Thursday, saying it’s the company’s most capable, smartest, and fastest model to date. While everyone, including free users, can access the model for free today via ChatGPT, Apple device users will be able to try it out even more easily. Apple’s first foray into the AI race was the launch of Apple Intelligence in 2024. Taking its time to enter the AI space, the company took a different approach from competitors, forgoing the release of its own AI models and choosing to use OpenAI’s instead via an integration with ChatGPT. Soon, that integration will use GPT-5. Also: 3 Apple Intelligence features that would convince me to ditch Gemini and ChatGPTApple confirmed to me that the iOS 26, iPadOS 26, and MacOS 26 operating systems, which are slated to launch in the fall, will be accompanied by GPT-5. Currently, with the existing ChatGPT integration, Apple users have the option to send Siri queries to ChatGPT instead if they’re better suited for the chatbot’s capabilities. Other integrations are ChatGPT with Writing Tools, which uses the chatbot to compose text or images in different areas of the interface, and ChatGPT with Visual Intelligence, which leverages ChatGPT’s multimodal capabilities to give users insights into their surroundings. Because of the update, all of the aforementioned functionalities should give users better answers. For example, at launch, OpenAI claimed GPT-5 is its most capable writing collaborator, which should improve users’ output when using Writing Tools to compose emails, texts, and more. The model is also more accurate than any previous reasoning model and has fewer hallucinations. GPT-5’s responses are 45% less likely to contain a factual error than GPT-4o with web search enabled on anonymized prompts, according to OpenAI. Also: This free GPT-5 feature is flying under the radar – but it’s a game changer for meGPT-5’s biggest appeal is that it is a unified model that combines a smart model for most queries with a deeper reasoning model for harder problems. Then it uses a real router feature that allows GPT-5 to understand which model to use automatically based on the conversation, complexity of the prompt, and more. This allows users to take advantage of the best OpenAI’s models have to offer in terms of quality and speed. Now, Apple users should be able to experience the same thing natively, which should, in theory, improve the Apple Intelligence experience as a whole. Do I think it will make a big change? No, only because I don’t know many Apple users who rely on ChatGPT integrations very often. However, it is nice knowing that even when you do reach for the features once in a while, they will be reportedly state of the art. I am more excited about the many iOS 26 AI features that have been announced and are slated to be released. While less flashy, they are bound to improve the user experience. Some favorites include the Visual Intelligence expansion to the iPhone screen, real-time translation on FaceTime and Messages, and AutoMix in Apple Music.Also: I used Perplexity to make a restaurant reservation – now I’m wondering if Google is holding us backIf you can’t wait to get started with GPT-5 and want to try it out for yourself, you can do so simply by visiting the ChatGPT website or app and signing in to your account. If you don’t have one, creating one is easy — just use Google, Microsoft, Apple, or even your phone number. Once you’re signed in, the model picker will automatically be set to GPT-5.  Artificial Intelligence More

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    Canonical’s OpenJDK builds promise Java devs more speed – and a whopping 12 years of security support

    Liz Leyden/Getty Images ZDNET’s key takeaways With Ubuntu Pro, Canonical’s OpenJDK build includes 12 years of support. ‘Chiseled’ builds are faster, more secure than other OpenJDK builds.  Canonical is aligning Ubuntu’s and OpenJDK’s release cadences. Canonical, the company behind Ubuntu Linux, has announced the introduction of its own certified OpenJDK builds. With 90% of Fortune […] More

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    My biggest regret after updating my iPhone to iOS 26 (and how to fix it)

    Kerry Wan/ZDNETZDNET’s key takeawaysiOS 26 introduces a new gesture behavior to the iPhone camera switcher.This shift in app navigation has caused frustration among pros and casual users.On the latest dev beta, Apple has added a toggle to revert the behavior to the original.While many would say that the public development of iOS 26 has been rocky, one recent feature, introduced in the latest developer beta, has given me renewed faith in Apple.When the company first launched the iOS 26 beta, most people were drawn to the polarizing Liquid Glass design language. The revamped camera app UI came in second, but something was clearly off about it: Navigating the various camera modes was needlessly changed.Also: Five iOS 26 features I already can’t live without – and how to access themCamera buffs noticed it immediately, followed by regular consumers, including myself — muscle memory will do that to you. When gliding left or right, the different modes would pan in the same direction. Why it’s a problemThis is a departure — a complete 180, if you will — from Apple’s traditional interface physics, where widgets, text, and other elements would move counter-directionally, as if you were dragging them away. This has been the case since the early versions of iOS, whether you were scrolling through a web page or a carousel.Also: Update to iOS 26? We tested the public beta on our iPhones – these features are a big dealBeyond going against your instincts, this gesture change introduces the problem of blocking pertinent information on the screen. As you’re scrolling between camera modes, your finger naturally covers where and what you’re scrolling to. You can see things in motion below.[embedded content]The fixIn response to this issue, Apple has added a new setting for the camera app that allows you to revert the scroll direction to how it was in iOS 18. This is only accessible in the latest developer beta, and can be found at the bottom of the Camera settings page under Mode Switching.Also: Best iPhone 2025: I tested the top models and found the best options for youWith it toggled on, scrolling between camera modes will feel like how it’s supposed to. Should Apple want to make the software transition period less disruptive for users, especially once new iPhones launch in September, it would be even wiser to set the original gesture behavior as the default and allow users to toggle it off instead. Hopefully that’s not asking for too much.Get the morning’s top stories in your inbox each day with our Tech Today newsletter. More

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    Have stock questions? Google Finance tests new AI chatbot

    panithan pholpanichrassamee ZDNET’s key takeaways: Google Finance is getting an AI upgrade, including a chatbot. The upgrade comes with a live news feed, plus other features. It will roll out to US users in the coming weeks. You’ll soon be able to ask Google Finance all your money questions via a new AI chatbot, the […] More

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    Should you upgrade to mesh? I compared it with a traditional Wi-Fi router, and here’s my advice

    Maria Diaz/ZDNETWith the adoption of remote and hybrid working, having a reliable internet connection at home is imperative — not just for one device, but for several. If you have a family, maybe even dozens. So what’s better, one single access point, or a mesh network spread about the home?The answer depends on how your home and office are set up and what kind of connection you need. Wi-Fi routers are so good these days that a single access point is often the most straightforward solution. But if you have a larger home or your office is located far away from your router, a mesh network could be a game-changer, boosting the signal no matter where you are.  Also: The best VPN routers of 2025If you’re not sure of the difference, that’s okay, too. Let’s examine both types of connection and consider their pros and cons to determine which one is best for you. What is a traditional Wi-Fi router?A traditional router acts as a central hub for internet connectivity. The router acquires the connection from your internet service provider (ISP), and then allows other devices around the home to connect to it, either via Wi-Fi, or by simply plugging in an Ethernet cable. Typically, routers are password-protected so only your household can connect to it.  You should buy a traditional Wi-Fi router if… More