9 – Breaking News & Latest Updates 2026
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Sean Hollister
Sean Hollister
A futuristic flashlight that shines UV and lasers at the same time.

I love how flashlights have evolved in the past decade with powerful LEDs, lithium-ion batteries and USB-C charging, and while this Olight ArkPro is way pricier than my Wuben X4, it feels way more elegant, compact, and offers both a green laser beam and UV light as well as up to 1700 lumens of white.

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Sean Hollister
Sean Hollister
OhSnap is already building two new MCON sliding gamepads that aren’t so dang thick.

I had a blast with the OhSnap MCON viral sliding gamepad, save for one teensy thing — it’s incredibly impractical to keep your phone attached to it because it’s thick and blocks the cameras. The upcoming ~$100 MCON Slim and ~$60 MCON Lite might fix that, but they don’t have the spring loaded action. The Lite uses 3DS-style Circle Pads, the Slim has touchpads. Tentatively coming September.

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Allison Johnson
Allison Johnson
The Clicks keyboard really clicks into place.

Can the magnets inside the Clicks Power Keyboard support the full weight of a Google Pixel 10 Pro Fold? Yes, as it turns out. And while you can attach it to the back and use it handheld with the phone unfolded, you’ll probably do best to prop up the phone on a kickstand and just type over Bluetooth. But let the record show that I tried it.

Richard Lawler
Richard Lawler
Hands-on with Samsung’s Galaxy Z Trifold.

Three folding panels, two sets of hinges, and a frame that’s just barely thinner than a USB-C port, what more could you want? Allison Johnson finally got some hands-on time with Samsung’s trifold at CES 2026, and she’s already thinking of ways to replace her laptop.

Dominic Preston
Dominic Preston
The Robot Phone is real(ish).

I only got to see (and not touch) a prototype, and the fold-out gimbal camera wasn’t operational. So it’s strictly TBC what the Robot Phone will actually do, but Honor did tell me this is no concept: after the full launch at MWC next month it will go on sale — but only in China.

Photo of a prototype Honor Robot Phone at CES 2026, with the camera folded out
Photo of a prototype Honor Robot Phone at CES 2026, with the camera folded in.
Photo of a prototype Honor Robot Phone at CES 2026, with the camera folded out
Photo of a prototype Honor Robot Phone at CES 2026, seen from the side
Photo of a prototype Honor Robot Phone at CES 2026, at an angle with the camera folded in
Photo of a prototype Honor Robot Phone at CES 2026, with the camera folded out from the back
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The Robot Phone has a stabilized camera that folds out of the body.
Photo: Dominic Preston / The Verge
Terrence O'Brien
Terrence O'Brien
You can stress test your foldable phone with a Flappy Bird clone.

If you’re Samsung or Google, you probably put your folding screens through the wringer with fancy machinery. If you’re a resourceful developer and infosec expert, you build a Flappy Bird clone that you control by flapping your phone like wings. If you’re not particularly worried about your foldable, you can play Foldy Bird here.

Thomas Ricker
Thomas Ricker
The US government makes Chinese phones?

The Financial Times reporting on the delayed Trump Mobile phone that’s definitely not made in the USA:

Trump Mobile’s customer service team told the Financial Times that the recent US government shutdown had delayed deliveries of the phone.

Sure.

It added there was a “strong possibility” the device would not be shipped this month.

Duh.

Emma Roth
Emma Roth
The Samsung Galaxy A17 5G will start at $199 when it launches in the US next month.

The budget-friendly smartphone is “slimmer and lighter” than its predecessor, and will be available on January 7th. It features a 6.7-inch display with an up to 90Hz refresh rate, along with 4GB of RAM and up to 2TB of expandable storage.

Samsung is also launching the Galaxy Tab A11+ in the US on January 8th, starting at $249.99.

Image: Samsung
Terrence O'Brien
Terrence O'Brien
You can download Andromeda OS, the canceled Windows build intended for Surface Duo.

When Microsoft was first developing the Surface Duo, it was originally intended to run a Windows 10-based OS code-named Andromeda that looked a lot like Windows Phone. Of course, the company ended up canning those plans, opting to make the Duo Android-based instead.

But you can now get your hands on an unstable build of Andromeda and see what might have been.

Richard Lawler
Richard Lawler
JerryRigEverything bends the Samsung Galaxy Z TriFold beyond its limits.

Samsung’s three-panel foldable phone won’t be officially available in the US until next year, but it’s already hit the YouTuber’s durability test table. Its thin frame (that’s different sizes across all three sections) doesn’t deal well with being bent the wrong way, even if Samsung’s hinge technology is pretty resilient, but... it didn’t explode.

Press play for a peek at the test results and a look at all three internal battery cells.

Richard Lawler
Richard Lawler
AT&T’s ‘wrapped’ says its network now averages an exabyte of data every day.

According to AT&T, the highest call day (through the beginning of December, because just like Spotify Wrapped, everyone’s data feed cuts off a bit early) was October 31st, and the most texts were sent on December 1st.

And as for how its data traffic compares to previous years:

Just ten years ago, we moved only 91 petabytes of data across our network each day. The leap to an exabyte marks an astonishing 1,000% increase over the past decade and more than 11,000% increase over the past 20 years

Who owns Trump Mobile?Who owns Trump Mobile?
Dominic Preston
Phones were fashionable again in 2025Phones were fashionable again in 2025
Allison Johnson
Richard Lawler
Richard Lawler
What happens once phones are banned?

This report from New York magazine follows up after a few months of the state’s bell-to-bell ban:

At one high school, an entrepreneurial senior even bought a pouch-unlocking magnet on Amazon and tried to charge classmates a dollar per jailbreak. But generally, with phones off-limits, the atmosphere feels different. There’s a pleasant buzz in the lunchroom, chatter in the hallways, and an alphabet of new analog hobbies popping up just about everywhere.

OnePlus 15R review: unbeatable battery life, beatable value

7

Verge Score

You can skip your nightly recharge three nights in a row.

Allison Johnson
Allison Johnson
Allison Johnson
You’ll still be able to buy a new phone with a headphone jack in 2026.

Motorola is making sure of it with the latest edition of its Moto G Power. It goes on sale in the US on January 8th for $299 and comes with a 5,200mAh battery to justify its name. That, plus 8GB of RAM? In this economy?

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