Eliana Willis

Prakhar Khanna/ZDNETHuawei unveiled the world’s first tri-fold phone, the Mate XT Ultimate, in its home country late last year. We weren’t holding out hope for a global release, but it’s finally coming outside China after receiving a record number of preorders — even before the pricing was announced. Also: I tested Oppo’s Find N5 for a week – here’s why it’s a near-perfect foldable phoneThe Huawei Mate XT Ultimate pushes the boundaries of what you can expect from a phone by fitting a 10.2-inch screen inside your pocket — all in a slimmer form factor than more recent foldable phones. I’ve spent 24 hours with the tri-fold phone, and here’s what makes it better than any other book-style foldable on the market right now.The design itself is a technological marvel More

Microsoft says its Majorana 1 contains eight topological qubits and can scale to a million, though the details on how it will scale are scant. Microsoft Quantum Microsoft’s quantum computing scientists announced they have finally realized a long-held goal of building a “topological qubit”, the equivalent of a transistor for ordinary chips, that may help […] More

Prakhar Khanna/ZDNETThe world’s thinnest book-style foldable, the Oppo Find N5, is finally here. I’ve had it for a week, and it has surprised me in more ways than one — both positively and negatively. At 8.93mm thick when folded, it’s closer to slab phones than any other foldable has ever been. But that slimness didn’t come without compromises. Judging by the on-paper camera specifications, I expected it to be underwhelming, but it’s better than other foldable phones in almost every regard. Also: The best phones to buy in 2025Here’s what it’s like to use the thinnest book-style foldable phone in the world — from someone who has used the previous world’s thinnest foldable phones.I love the new, refined design More

As our phones become more like digital wallets that let you pay, present identification, and even travel, traditional wallets already feel pretty antiquated. However, we’re not completely finished with the paper trail just yet. There are still incidentals — like your work ID or certain travel passes — that you may not be able to present virtually, and places that may not accept services like Google Pay and Apple Pay. Plus, a virtual wallet won’t do you any good if your phone dies. A MagSafe wallet is an easy way to keep your cards and cash securely attached to your phone. MagSafe cardholders use magnets to securely attach to your phone, making them easy to detach for wireless charging or to change your phone’s look. Plus, they tend to be an affordable iPhone accessory, making them widely accessible for most price points. They’re a great accessory to have in your phone’s repertoire for vacations, concerts, special events, and more. Also: The best MagSafe battery packsWhat’s the best MagSafe wallet right now? With so many choices available, ZDNET went hands-on with some of the most popular and innovative MagSafe wallet options, testing each for their practicality, durability, versatility, and price. Our pick for the best MagSafe wallet overall is the ESR Aura MagSafe wallet and stand More

ZDNETApple’s Visual Intelligence skill is expanding beyond the iPhone 16. The iPhone 15 Pro will soon get custody of the feature, which digs up details on objects you snap through the camera.In a post published on Wednesday, Daring Fireball’s John Gruber said that Apple representatives told him that iPhone 15 Pro (and presumably iPhone 15 Pro Max) owners will be able to use Visual Intelligence on their devices. The company wouldn’t reveal exactly when the feature would arrive beyond pointing to a “future software update.” But Gruber said he believes it’s destined for iOS 18.4, which should soon be available in beta and slated to go live in early April.Also: How to use Visual Intelligence on an iPhone 16 to identify unknown objectsAvailable on all current iPhone 16 models and the upcoming iPhone 16e, Visual Intelligence is an AI-based feature designed to help you identify and learn about animals, plants, landmarks, businesses, and a host of other items you view with your phone’s camera. Part of Apple Intelligence, the tool is quick and easy to use.Just aim your phone at the item that you want to investigate. Upon long pressing the Camera Control on any iPhone 16 model, you can either run a Google search on the object or ask ChatGPT-specific questions about it. In response, the AI presents you with the requested details. More

Kerry Wan/ZDNETWith the way we use our iPhones these days, it can be hard to make it through a single day on a full charge. A few FaceTime calls, some text messaging, and opening Maps a few times, and you could already be 25% down. If you’ve experienced this problem, you’re not alone. These phones can be very power-hungry — even the more affordable iPhone SE 4 has battery issues. The problem is made worse by all the different apps, features, and settings vying for battery life. And the kicker is there’s a chance you don’t even use some of these functions.Also: Apple launches $599 iPhone 16e: Best features, specs, and everything else to knowLuckily, there are a handful of settings you can tweak to maximize your iPhone’s battery life, and these changes don’t have to mean losing out on your favorite features. Whether you’re rocking the iPhone 16 Pro Max or a version from a few years ago, you’ve got options. Here are the 11 best ways to improve your iPhone’s battery life. 1. Turn off the always-on displayOne of the biggest power drainers on the iPhone Pro series is the always-on display. Apple finally added the feature after years of refusing to, and while the company says it’ll only drain about 1% per hour, that’s still almost a quarter of your battery gone each day while you aren’t using your phone.How to: On your iPhone, go to Settings > Display & Brightness > Always On Display and flip the toggle to off. You’ll thank me later.2. Disable haptic feedback when typing More

Thomas Fuller/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images Is Android Auto causing your phone to reboot? You’re not alone. Over the past few weeks, posts on support forums like Reddit have reported a strange glitch. Any time you try to use Android Auto, the reports say, your phone reboots. In some cases, like those reported on Google’s […] More

Sabrina Ortiz/ZDNETOne practical use case for AI natural language processing is being able to search your photos with the ease of a conversational prompt. As a result, Google unveiled a feature called Ask Photos last year and started rolling out early access to users via Google Labs in September. The feature finally rolled out to me — and the results were surprising. I was excited to try it out for myself. Even though I am a long-time iPhone user, I’ve used Google Photos for about a decade for the additional photo storage and the impressive search interface. Even though the classic search experience isn’t marketed as an AI feature, it has always been super efficient and better than those found on alternatives like Apple Photos. Also: The best AI image generators: Tested and reviewedWith the classic search in Google Photos, I could search terms like “cake,” “hot dog,” “red dress,” or “beach trip,” and it would filter through my many photos and find the results instantaneously. With Google Photos already setting such a high bar, I expected the AI-enhanced Ask Photos to exceed my expectations.It did not. However, the feature has promise, and here are some ways Google can improve it. (I also include some tips on getting the most out of Ask Photos today.)1. Differentiate it from the classic search experience To get started, in Ask Photos I searched “photos of me as a baby” and was met with the message, “I didn’t find any photos of you as a baby, but I might have missed them!” However, when I typed in the search “baby photos,” much like the classic search, it was able to show me all the pictures of babies in my library, which included the ones of me I was looking for. Even though I was able to pull up the photos I wanted, to get there, I had to search the same key term I regularly do in classic search.  The result was I wasted my time trying to use conversational terms rather than thinking of a keyword that populates what I was looking for.Also: How we test AI at ZDNET in 2025In another example, I looked up, “Me in a red dress.” After a couple of seconds of loading, I was met with “I can’t seem to find a picture of you in a red dress as a baby,” failing to recognize that this was an entirely unrelated query, in itself an annoying quirk. Even once it realized what I meant, it showed me pictures of anyone in my camera roll with a red dress. When I typed red dress into the classic search, I was met — almost instantaneously — with a ton of results of red dresses throughout the years, with the ones of me prioritized at the top. To make Ask Photos truly worth it for users, it would need to provide a significant upgrade, which, at the moment, it is not. 2. Make Ask Photos significantly faster Don’t let my first point dissuade you entirely from using Ask Photos. In some cases, it was actually helpful. For example, when I asked it to show my pictures of a Corgi, it pulled up all the pictures in my library of the dog and even told me his name and a bit about his activities. Similarly, when I asked it to show me pictures of the food I cooked, it brought up many homemade meals I’d made over the years. However, one issue remains even when Ask Photos displays the intended results — speed. Also: The head of US AI safety has stepped down. What now?Ask Photos lags a couple of seconds, even when populating the same results as a classic search in response to a simple query. A few seconds isn’t a long time, of course. But when compared to classic search results, which are nearly instantaneous, a few seconds can feel like a lifetime. I think Ask Photos’ speed goal should look toward something like the Gemini chatbot, which populates results much more quickly. 3. Expand the ‘beyond search’ offeringsWhen the Ask Photos feature was launched, one of the selling points was being able to use it beyond search, for example, to create a highlight of special moments from your camera roll using a conversational prompt. Although this is a cute feature, and it worked when put to the test, it doesn’t seem like a significant enough win to convert users to Ask Photos. Also: Mistral’s new AI model specializes in Arabic and related languagesI think Google has many opportunities to leverage its other AI offerings to build more unique experiences. Perhaps a user could use the Ask Photos feature to ask Gemini to remove an element from the background, insert a new element, add a filter, etc. Most people probably will not have an everyday application for creating a video montage, but saving time editing a photo seems more practical. How to access Ask Photos is still an experimental feature, so to get access you have to join the waitlist. You can join the waitlist by going to the Google Photos page, scrolling down to the Ask Photos section, entering your Gmail address, and clicking the “Join the waitlist” button. More