Robotics

Adam Breeden/ZDNETMobile devices are always a tempting target for cybercriminals. That’s true not just for consumers but for companies. According to Google, more than half of organizations have pointed to smartphones as their most exposed endpoint, and data breaches often occur from improper use of these devices. In a blog post released on Tuesday, Google describes the latest protections available with its Android Enterprise platform.Also: Your Android phone is getting 4 big upgrades, thanks to Android 16Mobile devices have become popular, convenient tools among workers, as they can access email, apps and other internal business resources from anywhere. But often an employee’s phone is unmanaged and uncontrolled, leading to security weaknesses that can be exploited by hackers and attackers. Android Enterprise offers organizations and IT admins a way to better manage these devices, whether they’re company-owned or employee-owned. Though Android Enterprise has been around for a number of years, here are some of the latest initiatives Google has introduced. Security features Advanced protection: Employees can better thwart targeted attacks through strong mobile device protection. With just a single tap, they can enable multiple security features to defend against online attacks, malicious apps, unsafe websites, scam calls and other threats. This feature is accessible on Android 16 and higher but may only be available on certain devices and in specific regions. Identity Check: This feature prevents scams such as PIN theft and shoulder surfing, in which nearby thieves can pick up the PIN or password used to access a phone. With Identity Check, signing in to the device and apps requires a biometric method, such as facial or fingerprint recognition. This feature is also available on Android 16 and higher on certain devices. Also: 7 simple things I always do on Android to protect my privacy – and why you should tooCorporate badges in Google Wallet: Employees can add their corporate ID badge to the Google Wallet app and then use their phones to securely gain entry to NFC-enabled buildings and offices. Secure network access with Access Point Name: Access Point Name, or APN, is a secure gateway between a mobile network and the public internet. With APN enabled, IT admins can apply custom cellular network configurations on managed devices to control how they use cellular data. More

<!–> ZDNET’s key takeaways The Redmagic 10 Air Android phone is available now on Amazon for $729. The 10 Air phone is as elegant as it is powerful and can handle some of the more challenging games. This camera system isn’t necessarily flagship level, and you’ll want to pay attention to network band support. –> […] More

<!–> ZDNET’s key takeaways The Bowers & Wilkins Px7 S3 are available for $449 in Anthracite Black, Canvas White, and Indigo Blue. These headphones provide a listening experience and design profile unlike any other headphones in the same price range. Although these are the best sounding and looking headphones at this price, they fall behind […] More

Reddit (TheACwarriors) / Elyse Betters Picaro / ZDNETIf you’re a Samsung phone user, you can take advantage of a pretty sweet offer: a free year of Perplexity Pro.Samsung doesn’t appear to have made any official announcement about the promotion, so it would be easy not to know about it, but users are seeing the offer under the “Deals and events” tab of the Galaxy Store app. This is a $240 value if you pay monthly, or a $200 value if you pay yearly. Also: 5 projects Perplexity’s new Labs AI tool can whip up for you now – in minutesThe deal comes just a week after news broke that Samsung and Perplexity were in some sort of partnership. Samsung will be preloading Perplexity’s app and assistant on future Samsung devices, and plugging Perplexity’s AI search engine into the Samsung web browser. Perplexity hasn’t been shy about offering freebies to entice users to check out its service. It promoted a free year of Perplexity Pro to anyone with a .gov email address earlier this year, and a free year to Xfinity customers and college students. How Samsung users can get Perplexity Pro for free Here’s how to get your free year of Perplexity Pro. You’ll need to start clean, so if you already have the Perplexity app downloaded, delete it. Go to the Galaxy Store and download the Perplexity app.Open the app and make an account or log in if you already have one (free accounts only).Also: I tested ChatGPT’s Deep Research against Gemini, Perplexity, and Grok AI to see which is bestIf you follow those steps, your free account should be upgraded to Perplexity Pro (it worked when a ZDNET staffer tried it just now). You’ll know you’ve received the upgrade when you get an email titled “You’ve been upgraded to Perplexity Pro via Samsung Galaxy.” More

HP One of the biggest highlights at Google I/O a month ago was the announcement of Google Beam — an AI-powered video communications solution that makes video calls feel three-dimensional and lifelike. Now, in collaboration with HP, the technology is here.  Also: Why the argument for WFH could get a big boost from AI HP […] More

<!–> ZDNET’s key takeaways The Aqara Camera Hub G5 Pro is available for $180 for the Wi-Fi version and $200 for the PoE version. This indoor/outdoor security camera doubles as a smart home hub, features 1520p resolution for crystal-clear images, RTSP support, and has a built-in NPU to process video with AI for visual recognition. […] More

As a smart home reviewer, I love robot vacuums. I enjoy unboxing, setting up, and testing them, and I love seeing new technologies emerge each year. Even if robot vacuums look similar, they’re really different, which means that I’m constantly learning new things about these devices. Also: My picks for the best robot vacuums for pet hair of 2025: Roomba, Eufy, Ecovacs, and moreWe test dozens of robot vacuums each year at ZDNET, both in our lab and at home. As a result, I’m always writing reviews for different models and updating our choices for the best units you can buy. Now, our team has collected data on the top-selling robot vacuums across different retailers so far in 2025. The following are listed in order of units sold through the links clicked from ZDNET stories. (A note: Your privacy is protected — we only have access to aggregate data from our user base, and there is no way for us to identify individual people’s purchases.) Here are ZDNET readers’ most-purchased robot vacuums this year so far. Maria Diaz/ZDNETThe 10 most popular robot vacuums among ZDNET readers
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This robot vacuum and mop was our pick for the best one overall last year, so I’m not surprised to see that it’s the most popular among our readers. It offers standout performance in obstacle avoidance, strong suction power, and effective mopping techniques. It’s so smart that it can even leave its mop pads at the station while vacuuming and then pick them back up when it’s time to mop.Review: Dreame X40 UltraThis Dreame model launched at $1,900 in 2024, but the newest model is now out, so you can buy the Dreame X40 Ultra for only $900 — one of the best values on the market right now.
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Adaptive Power on an iPhone 16 Pro running iOS 26 Developer Beta 1. Kerry Wan/ZDNETApple’s WWDC opener happened on Monday, and my brain has been wrapped around one particular feature ever since. It wasn’t announced during the opening keynote, nor did it make it onto the all-encompassing graphics chart of iOS 26 features, but it’s a big one — if it works.Also: Everything you might’ve missed at WWDC 2025: iOS 26, Liquid Glass, MacOS Tahoe, moreThe feature I’m referring to is called “Adaptive Power,” a battery conservation tool that’s baked into the Power Mode settings in iOS 26. You’ll have to dig through a few columns to access it within the Settings app on the developer beta. Once you turn it on, your iPhone will automatically throttle certain background tasks to help you conserve battery whenever it detects high-performance workloads.In Apple’s words, “When your battery usage is higher than usual, iPhone can make small performance adjustments to extend your battery life, including slightly lowering the display brightness or allowing some activities to take a little longer.” Exactly how aggressive this power-saving mode is remains to be tested, but if it works only when you’re truly pushing your iPhone — like recording videos, editing photos, or gaming — then it’s a feature many users may appreciate. More