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Subsidize the cost of your next iPhone by selling your current one. Here are the best places to do so.

If you were tempted to treat yourself to the latest iPhone this Christmas or you plan to gift one to someone else in your family, you might be wondering what the most cost-effective way to do it is. Saving as much money as possible is paramount if you’re wanting to regularly upgrade to the best iPhone which is why subsidizing your next phone by selling your current one is such a great idea. But how do you get the most money back for your existing device?

Well, there are numerous ways to trade in an old iPhone and earn hundreds toward your new one, but each option has its own list of pros and cons. Fret not, though, as we’re here to help guide you through the process. We’ve put together a list of the best places to sell, so you can work out the best iPhone deal for you. Below, you’ll find three different ways you can make some cash, as well as when to make the sale and what you can expect from the process.

Looking for a quick and easy option? Consider selling your old device to a buy-back service. Although it’s not entirely without risk — if the old iPhone isn’t in the condition you said it was, for example if it is a broken iPhone, you may not get the full value quoted by the buyer — it does minimize the time and hassle, especially compared with trying to sell it yourself on, say, eBay or Craigslist.

There are traditional trade-in options like those offered by Apple and Best Buy (see the next section), and then there are buy-and-sell marketplaces like those listed below. Before you spend a lot of time hopping from one to another to get quotes, head to Flipsy, which compares US trade-in values at multiple buy-back stores. It shows you the payment methods, price-lock duration (that’s how long you have before you need to send the phone in) and price based on the condition of the old device. (Because each buyback program and store is little different when it comes to “condition” definitions, Flipsy doesn’t drill down beyond phone model, carrier and storage.) SellCell is another price-comparison service for anyone looking to score top dollar for an old iPhone.

If you’d rather check out some individual marketplaces yourself, below are a few options that are worth a look. The sample quotes are based on iPhone 13 trade-ins for “good” condition devices in December 2022 and were correct at the time of writing.

Apple and Tesla stocks have tumbled over growing concerns about delays in their production lines in China.

Apple shares hit their lowest point since June 2021. Tesla’s stock has dropped 73% from a record high in November 2021.

Companies have struggled to keep production going in China due to Covid restrictions and weeks of lockdowns.

Now they are facing a staffing crunch as China battles a Covid wave after lifting years of restrictions.

China announced that it will lift its strict quarantine rules for travellers on 8 January, a positive sign for many investors who are seeing an ease in supply chain movement in 2023.

But global investors are also being cautious ahead of additional interest rate hikes, a global economic slowdown and the ongoing war in Ukraine.

Given the spike in Covid cases in key manufacturing hubs, analysts say production will take time to ramp up once again.

“Factories are going to experience labour shortages for at least 4-6 weeks as the wave passes through their production regions, and of course most migrant workers will go back to their home villages for the Lunar New Year at the end of January,” says Simon Baptist, chief economist at The Economist Intelligence Unit.

“Production looks unlikely to be back to normal in China until late February.”

Production delays hit Apple supplier Foxconn earlier this year following unrest at its Zhangzhou plant known as “iPhone City.” The company said its revenue in November was down 11% compared with the same month in 2021.

This week, media reports said Tesla’s Shanghai manufacturing plant had cut production as Covid infections rose in China. The company declined to comment.

But analysts say the company’s sluggish sales are evident in the fact that it has offered discounts to both Chinese and North American customers.

Investors have also raised concerns about Tesla chief executive Elon Musk, who has repeatedly made controversial headlines. He took over Twitter in October after a drawn-out legal battle and since then, Mr Musk has focused a significant amount of his time on running the social media platform. Some have cited his alleged distraction during this time as another reason for the fall in Tesla’s share price.

Last week, Mr Musk tweeted asking users if he should continue as the head of the platform – they voted no, prompting him to announce that he would resign from his position once a replacement is found.

Analysts say he now needs to rebuild investors’ and board members’ confidence.

“Musk is viewed as ‘asleep at the wheel’ from a leadership perspective for Tesla at the time investors need a CEO to navigate this Category 5 storm,” wrote Webush tech analyst Dan Ives in his newsletter.

“Instead Musk is laser-focused on Twitter which has been an ongoing nightmare that never ends for investors.”

Transfer all your information from your old phone to your new iPhone 14 without losing a thing.

So, you received a new iPhone 14 this holiday season and you’re tempted to tear that box open and start toying with all the new features of iOS 16. Before you do so, you will want to patiently set up your phone and sync your information. Rushing the setup process is the last thing you want to do — now’s the time to make sure your new iPhone 14 is set up to your liking.

1. Use Apple’s direct transfer method
   During the setup process, you’ll be asked if you want to directly transfer apps and information from your old iPhone to your new one. This feature was first rolled out with iOS 12.4, so if it’s been a few years since you’ve upgraded phones, it’ll be the first time you’ve seen the option.

The tool is straightforward to use. Make sure you have both phones, preferably plugged in and charging to ensure they don’t run out of battery, a Wi-Fi connection and enough time for the process to finish — it could take over an hour.

The more information you have on your phone, like photos in your camera roll, the longer it will take. When the transfer starts, the phones will show you a time estimate. Every time I’ve used this tool, that estimate has been accurate within a couple of minutes. It’s worth taking the time if you don’t use Apple’s iCloud service to back up your phone.

1. Use a Mac or PC to transfer your data to an iPhone
   The method I personally use with every new iPhone is to restore from an encrypted backup using a Mac or PC. Not only does this process transfer all of your apps, settings and preferences, but it also means you don’t have to sign into the countless apps you have on your phone.

Before you can use this method, you’ll need to create an encrypted backup of your current iPhone. I know that may sound intimidating or overly complicated, but it only means you have to check an extra box and enter a password.

On a Mac, you’ll use Finder to back up your old iPhone. We outlined the steps when Apple killed iTunes. Just make sure to check the Encrypt backup box and enter a password you’ll remember when prompted. Let your Mac go to work, creating a backup file. It will let you know when it’s done.

On a PC, you’ll need to use iTunes (it’s not completely dead) to create a backup. That process is explained here. Again, you’ll need to make sure the Encrypt backup box is checked and enter a password.

To restore your new phone, open Finder or iTunes, and connect your phone to your computer. Click Trust when prompted, and then follow the prompts, selecting the backup you just created as what you want to use to restore the phone. You will need to enter the backup’s password before the process begins — so make sure you don’t forget it!

Once it’s done, your new phone will be an exact copy of your old phone and you won’t have to spend any time signing into apps or random accounts.

1. Android user? This app is your answer
   Apple doesn’t have many Android apps listed in Google’s Play Store, but Move to iOS is one of them. This free app will connect your Android phone to a new iPhone and allow you to transfer the most important information from one phone to the other.

Here’s the entire step-by-step process as well as some caveats, like the fact that it won’t transfer any locally stored music or PDF files.

No matter the process you used to set up your new phone, you’re sure to be giddy with excitement as you explore what it can do.

As a battery saving measure, your iPhone automatically adjusts the brightness of your screen depending on the light in your environment. The less light there is around you, the dimmer your display gets — but that may not be what you want.

Even if it’s dark, you may want to keep your iPhone’s brightness up, because it helps you better see what’s on the screen, whether you’re reading an article or watching a movie. However, fixing this issue is not always as simple as toggling off an auto-brightness setting — although that’s a good start.

In this guide, we’ll show you two settings that you need to disable to help prevent your iPhone from automatically dimming. And how your iPhone might adjust its brightness even when those two settings are disabled, if you’re not careful.

While you’re here, you should also check out the most annoying things about your iPhone (and how you can fix them). And these 10 hidden iOS 16 features that will make your iPhone experience so much better.

First, disable auto-brightness
Yes, this may seem a bit obvious, but the first thing you want to do is to make sure that you have automatic brightness disabled in your settings. The feature is pretty self-explanatory — it automatically adjusts your brightness depending on the light in your environment. But if you want to prevent your display from always trying to adjust, you must disable this feature.

In the Settings application, go to Accessibility > Display & Text Size and toggle off Auto-Brightness at the bottom of the page. You would think that this setting would exist in Display & Brightness, so it’s not uncommon that auto-brightness would be enabled without you really knowing, since it’s tucked away in Accessibility.

If your brightness continues to automatically adjust, there’s another setting you need to disable.

You also need to turn off True Tone
If you have an iPhone SE (2nd generation) and later, the True Tone feature has the ability to measure the color temperature and brightness in your environment and then adjust its display to match it. True Tone is useful — it not only helps show more accurate colors across various lighting situations, it’s also easier on the eyes, which you need if you’re constantly reading on your phone.

Again, if you don’t care about the feature, don’t use it or are simply annoyed that your brightness continues to automatically adjust, you need to disable it. In Settings, go to Display & Brightness and toggle off True Tone under the Brightness header. As long as auto-brightness is also disabled, turning True Tone off should prevent your iPhone from automatically adjusting your brightness.

Don’t let your iPhone overheat
Your iPhone has several ways of protecting its internal components, and that includes automatically dimming your display. Even if you have both auto-brightness and True Tone turned off, if your iPhone is overheating it will automatically adjust the display intensity.

According to Apple, to help prevent this from happening, you should use your iPhone in temperatures between 32 to 95 degrees F (zero and 35 degrees C) and store it in temperates between 4 to 113 degrees F (between 20 below zero and 45 degrees C). If you leave your iPhone in your car or on the sidewalk on a hot day, there’s a good chance that it will overheat, thus causing your display to automatically dim.

However, overheating doesn’t occur only because of a sunny day. A faulty battery could cause your iPhone to overheat: Go to Settings > Battery > Battery Health & Charging and check if your battery needs to be replaced. Another reason could be buggy software: Go to Settings > General > Software Update and more sure to always be on the latest update to deal with any software bugs and issues.

Apple has tap-to-click turned off by default, but you should turn it on.

Having unboxed and set up many MacBooks over many years, there’s one setting that drives me up the wall. So if you’re buying a new MacBook or got a new model for the holidays, you should always try clicking a few boxes in the System Preferences menu.

This trick will work in everything from the 14-inch and 16-inch MacBook Pro to the new M2 13-inch MacBook Pro and M2 MacBook Air, as well as older MacBooks.

One of the best things about MacBooks has always been the huge glass trackpad, which always felt more responsive and offered more surface area than the touchpad on most Windows laptops. The difference has narrowed over the years, but it’s still hard to beat a Mac trackpad. However, it makes me nuts to see (and hear) people clicking down on their touchpads to do anything. Guess what? These touchpads haven’t physically depressed when clicked on for years. Instead a clever bit of haptic feedback makes it feel like you’ve clicked down.

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Windows laptops have long been set up for tap-to-click, which means a simple tap of your finger works the same way as a left mouse button (or ancient touchpad button) click would. A two-finger tap is the equivalent of a right mouse button click.

But every time I set up a new Mac, I spend several moments tapping on things with no effect, because MacOS has tap-to-click turned off by default. Why? I’m assuming it’s just to make my life more difficult. Fortunately, it’s easy to fix. And if you’re a determined clicker and have no intention of becoming a tapper, that’s OK — change these settings and you can still click away, but now the tapping will work, too.

As a bonus, while we’re doing this we’re going to turn on both Exposé, which is a useful multifinger gesture, and tap-and-drag, which is a much easier way to move things like folders around on the screen.

Fix Apple’s dumb default touchpad settings
System Preferences > Trackpad > Point & Click > Check the checkbox for Tap to click (which is unchecked by default).
System Preferences > Trackpad > More Gestures > Check the checkbox for App Exposé (fifth checkbox from the top).
System Preferences > Accessibility > Pointer Control > Trackpad Options > Check the checkbox for Enable dragging (without drag lock).
The instructions above work if you’re using MacOS Monterey or earlier OS versions. If you’re using the new MacOS Ventura system, expected to be widely available in the fall of 2022, the instructions are mostly the same, but you’ll be accessing the new System Settings menu, rather than the older System Preferences menu.

That’s it, your MacBook is now set up in a logical way.

The site works like OpenAI’s ChatGPT, which went viral earlier this year for its unique and realistic responses from a computer program. But be careful about its answers.

You.com, a search engine launched last year promising more customizability, began offering a ChatGPT-style chatbot on its website Friday that can answer questions and hold a conversation, bringing more artificial intelligence-powered technology to the wider web. Though it does offer some answers with incorrect facts.

The search engine’s new feature follows ChatGPT, an AI chatbot that went viral earlier this year for being able to offer unique answers to complex questions, based on information it gleans from around the internet. You.com said it hopes to stand out, though, by offering answers to more-current questions, like, “Who won the 2022 World Cup?” ChatGPT has information only up to last year.

People who use You.com should be careful, however, as its confident answer to the World Cup query appeared to get details wrong, like where the final was held, what date it occurred and who scored the winning shot. When CNET asked the chatbot the question again, it omitted those details.

A note on the site says, “This product is in beta and its accuracy may be limited,” and adds that “You.com is not liable for content generated.”

ChatGPT has also been criticized for confidently publishing incorrect answers. You.com’s chat program is limited in other ways as well, and is seemingly unable to provide useful responses to requests like, “Write me a solitaire program in HTML for the web.”

Both chat programs do things like offer results from the web and repeat encyclopedia-like entries on various subjects. They can also write a letter in response to a prompt such as, “Write me a letter to an old friend who I don’t really like but keep in touch with out of obligation.”

ChatGPT, You.com and other similar chatbots are part of a broader shift in the tech world, where artificial intelligence programs are increasingly being coded to create new forms of art, music, writing and even their own code. Their popularity and seemingly fast evolution has begun raising questions about what art is, and whether computers can truly create unique products drawn from a reservoir of information.

The sudden popularity of ChatGPT in particular has reportedly had alarm bells ringing at Google, which has built its corporate image around AI work like self-driving cars, real-time translation apps and smart assistants. The search giant has its own ChatGPT-like tech called LaMDA, which it’s resisted releasing publicly because of possibilities it might offer embarrassing answers or start repeating hate speech. Other chatbots, from Microsoft, Facebook and more, have struggled with these issues.

For now, ChatGPT and You.com exist mostly as interesting demonstrations of what the future of AI could look like. And You.com co-founder Richard Socher said in a statement that he believes integrating chat functionality into You.com will help it stand out from Google. “People are looking for something new,” he said.

For instance, when asked to write a haiku about Jamaican beef patties, You.com produced this novel result:

Flaky crust, so golden

Seasoned beef inside, so savory

A Jamaican treat

One other thing that separates the two chatbots for now is that You.com will display website results alongside its responses, something ChatGPT isn’t currently designed to do.

The holidays are near, so you might be getting a new iPhone for Christmas. If so, here’s what you should do first.

The iPhone, and more specifically the iPhone 14 series, will be a popular gift for Christmas this year. If you do end up getting the latest Apple phone, there are many new features to look forward to, like the always-on display and the Dynamic Island, but you’ll also have the chance to explore the latest software update — iOS 16.

Before you get into all the hidden features or most annoying settings, if this will be your first experience with iOS 16, there are three things you should do first before anything else, to improve your iPhone experience. In this story we’ll show you what these things are, and how they’ll make your life better.

No. 1. Create a new wallpaper option for your iPhone lock screen
Apple has completely redesigned the lock screen on iOS 16, allowing you to fully customize various elements, like the date and time, add tiny widgets to let you keep up with the weather and popular news, and create multiple wallpaper profiles that you can easily switch to and from.

And if that sounds appealing, customizing your lock screen should be the first thing that you do after installing iOS 16.

To customize your lock screen, press your finger down anywhere on the screen while it’s locked and then unlock your device when prompted. Once you do that, a brand-new lock screen interface will appear, where you can shuffle through and customize your various lock screen wallpapers.

If you tap the + button at the bottom right to create a new wallpaper, you can browse through various Apple wallpapers, featuring weather and astronomy, emojis and more. A few of these wallpapers contain built-in widgets, but you can also just add them later.

If you choose to upload your own photo, look for one that features a person or object clearly in the foreground. If you adjust the image just right, you’ll be able to use the new depth effect feature, which pushes the time behind whatever object is in focus, creating a layered sort of look.

You can then tap any of the lock screen elements, like the date and time, to customize the look. If you hit Add Widgets, you can add tiny transparent widgets to that section of your wallpaper.

When you’re finished, tap Add and choose whether you want to use the wallpaper only on your lock screen or on your home screen as well. Here’s how Apple is changing the lock screen on iPhone 14.

No. 2. Set up a Focus profile so that you’re not distracted by notifications
Last year Apple introduced Focus, the evolution of Do Not Disturb, which you can configure to receive only important notifications and alerts and block everything else out. But the productivity feature has been heavily reworked on iOS 16, and it’s worth checking out and setting up if you want to reduce distractions on your iPhone.

In Settings, go to Focus and then choose a profile or profiles that you want to configure. Inside a Focus profile, you can then choose to receive notifications from certain people and apps, show silenced notifications on your lock screen, hide notification badges and make it so that your lock screen and home screen wallpapers automatically change when your Focus profile is turned on.

Additionally, you can schedule when you want your Focus profile to be turned on (when you go to sleep) and back off (when you wake up). If you use the Health app, you can retrieve your sleep information to choose an adequate schedule for Focus.

And finally, you can use Focus filters to customize how apps and system settings interact with you. For example, you can add an app filter to Safari so that only certain tabs show up, or add a filter to the Mail app so only some email messages get through to you. For system settings, you can throw on a filter to automatically turn on Dark mode and Low Power mode whenever your Focus profile is turned on.

Once your Focus profile is finished, you can swipe down from the top-right side of the screen to access the Control Center and then tap on the Focus control to turn on whatever profile you’ve created.

No. 3. Set up iPhoto to remove duplicate photos and videos to clear up clutter and free up storage
And if you need a quick way to clear some space on your iPhone, there’s now a built-in feature in Photos that scours your camera roll for any duplicate photos and videos. This is a great way to not only do some spring cleaning but also remove files that are taking up storage on your iPhone.

In Photos, go into the Albums tab, swipe all the way down and tap on Duplicates. Now you can go through all your photos and videos and either hit Merge for each set of duplicates or tap Select > Select All > Merge to delete all of the duplicates at once. At the bottom of each photo or video you’ll see the size of the files, so you’ll want to prioritize bigger files first.

Fix your 2022 Mac Studio and more with genuine Apple parts and tools.

Apple on Tuesday again expanded the Self Service Repair program it launched earlier this year, adding more desktop models. You can now personally try to fix your 2021 M1 iMac, 2020 M1 Mac Mini or 2022 Mac Studio and Studio Display, the company told CNET via email.

You can replace or repair components such as the display, speakers, fan, Wi-Fi antenna, logic board, audio board and more. Visit the online Self Service Repair store to buy Apple parts or rent the tools you need for a repair.

Earlier this month, the repair program spread to eight European countries: Belgium, France, Germany, Italy, Poland, Spain, Sweden and the UK.

See more information on Apple service and repairs here.

OnePlus’ next phone and earbuds now have an event date. On Monday the Chinese smartphone maker announced that its “OnePlus Cloud 11 Launch Event” will take place on Feb. 7 in New Delhi, India.

The company says that the Cloud 11 name “represents the upgraded technology and performance delivered by the brand’s latest products, and to elevate the user experience from Cloud 9 to Cloud 11.” As for what those products will be, the company has confirmed that its next flagship phone — the OnePlus 11 5G, complete with a Hasselblad camera system and returning alert slider that was absent on the 10T — and Buds Pro 2 earbuds will appear with OnePlus also teasing additional products as well.

It wasn’t immediately clear what those other products will be, though OnePlus has already started talking about its upcoming mechanical keyboard in India. While the company sells only phones, a watch and earbuds in the US, in other markets it has a wider product portfolio. In India, for example, OnePlus also sells televisions, monitors and additional wearables.

OnePlus says it will share additional information about the February event “in the coming weeks.” In the interim, those thinking about their next upgrade now have an idea of when at least one major Android phone may arrive.

Samsung, Google and OnePlus have new phones in the works too. Here are the top ones to watch based on rumors so far.

This year isn’t quite over, but rumors about new phones are already buzzing. While it’s hard to know what’s exactly in store for the smartphone industry in 2023, it’s possible to make some educated guesses since companies like Apple, Google and Samsung mostly stick to the same launch routine each year.

The iPhone 15 lineup, for example, is expected to arrive in September — possibly with USB-C charging for the first time. If Samsung maintains its typical release cycle, the Galaxy S23 will be one of the first new phones we see in 2023.

Such launches would come after the smartphone space took subtle but important steps forward in 2022. The iPhone, for example, gained satellite connectivity for emergencies and car crash detection, while Google found more ways to make use of its custom Tensor chip in the Pixel 7 and 7 Pro. Samsung, meanwhile, gave its flagship Galaxy S lineup a fresh look and an upgraded camera.

Here are the new phones we’re likely to see in 2023 based on previous launch cycles, rumors and reports.

What we’re expecting: Apple’s new iPhone family usually launches in September, and we have no reason to believe 2023 will be any different. The adoption of USB-C charging is one of the biggest changes we’re expecting to see on Apple’s next-generation iPhones. The European Union recently mandated that all new phones sold in the region must support USB-C charging by 2024. Apple said it would comply with these rules, but did not specify whether that means we’ll see a shift to USB-C starting in 2023. It’s also not confirmed if a USB-C iPhone would get a global release, or if it would remain solely as a European model.

Otherwise, we’re likely to see routine changes such as some camera upgrades and a new processor. TF International Securities Analyst Ming-Chi Kuo, who is known for making predictions about upcoming Apple products, also says Apple may do more to distinguish the iPhone 15 Pro from the regular iPhone 15.

It already made a step in that direction with the iPhone 14 generation by keeping features like the Dynamic Island and new A16 Bionic processor exclusive to the Pro line. What’s more interesting, however, is the idea that Apple could further differentiate the larger iPhone 15 Pro Max from the smaller iPhone 15 Pro, according to Kuo. The main difference between the regular Pro and Pro Max comes down to screen size. Giving the Pro Max some extra perks could further convince shoppers to splurge on Apple’s biggest (and most expensive) iPhone. Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman also believes Apple could change the name of the iPhone Pro Max to the iPhone Ultra in the future to better align with other products like the Apple Watch Ultra.

Why I’m excited about it: The iPhone’s long-anticipated transition to USB-C is arguably the biggest reason to get excited about Apple’s next smartphone. The switch means iPhone users will finally be able to charge their iPhone, iPad and Mac with the same type of charging cable, reducing friction and making the iPhone that much more convenient. I’m also looking forward to seeing whether Apple further distinguishes the iPhone 15 Pro Max from the iPhone 15 Pro. I’ve argued that Apple needs to give its supersized iPhones more functionality that takes advantage of their larger screens, similar to the iPad.

What we’re expecting: Based on the rumors, Samsung’s Galaxy S23 could bring some noteworthy upgrades to the camera and design — two areas that have traditionally been a big focus for the South Korean tech giant.

The rumored Galaxy S23 Ultra could include a 200-megapixel main camera, according to a prolific leaker who goes by the name Ice Universe on Twitter. That sounds like a huge jump from the Galaxy S22 Ultra’s 108-megapixel main sensor on paper. But it’s important to remember that factors like sensor size and speed also play a very important role in image quality. The new 200-megapixel sensor is only said to be slightly larger than the iPhone 14 Pro’s and is reportedly a bit smaller than other Android flagships, according to Ice Universe.

Samsung may also give the regular Galaxy S23 and S23 Plus a tweaked design that more closely matches that of the Ultra model. Images from reliable leaker Steve Hemmerstoffer suggest Samsung will eliminate the camera bump from the S23 and S23 Plus, replacing it with the protruding lenses found on the Galaxy S22 Ultra. The images were published on the tech blogs Digit and Smartprix in partnership with Hemmerstoffer.

Although we don’t know precisely what to expect in terms of performance, Samsung usually puts Qualcomm’s latest mobile chip in the new version of its phones that launch in the United States and certain other markets. That means we will likely see the Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 in Samsung’s next Galaxy phone. The new chip offers better power efficiency, ray tracing for improved aesthetics in mobile games and upgraded AI that can better separate you from your Zoom background, among other enhancements. The analyst Kuo even believes Samsung could ditch its own Exynos processors and rely solely on Qualcomm for the Galaxy S23.

Why I’m excited about it: Smartphone cameras have already gotten so sophisticated that I’m curious to see whether Samsung’s 200-megapixel sensor actually makes a meaningful difference. Either way, it’ll be interesting to see how Samsung pushes the camera experience forward in the S23 lineup given the increased competition from Google’s Pixel series in recent years. I’m also in favor of the Galaxy S23 and S23 Plus’ rumored design change to more closely resemble the Galaxy S23 Ultra. Based on the renders, it looks cleaner and sleeker compared to the Galaxy S22’s camera bump.

What we’re expecting: If Google maintains its tradition, we could see a cheaper version of the Pixel 7 known as the Pixel 7A launch in the spring or summer time frame. Rumors about the Pixel 7A are scarce right now. But developer Kuba Wojciechowski claims to have found details possibly pertaining to the Pixel 7A in the Android codebase, suggesting that some fairly significant upgrades are in store.

Wojciechowski’s findings indicate the Pixel 7A could have a screen with a higher refresh rate of 90Hz and wireless charging — two characteristics that are noticeably absent from the Pixel 6A. Leaked renders from Hemmerstoffer that were once again published on Smartprix also suggest the Pixel 7A will have a very similar design as its predecessor.

The Pixel 7A could also include the same Tensor G2 processor that powers the Pixel 7 and 7 Pro as well as a camera setup that includes wide and ultrawide sensors. That’s if the Pixel 7A follows in the same footsteps as the Pixel 6A, of course.

Why I’m excited about it: Google’s A-series Pixel phones are seriously impressive from a value standpoint. That’s why the Pixel 6A has received a CNET Editors’ Choice award and is our favorite Android phone under $500. If Google manages to address the Pixel 6A’s very few shortcomings while maintaining the same price of $449, it’ll be an even more formidable challenger to Samsung in the affordable phone space.

What we’re expecting: Google’s Pixel 7 and 7 Pro are only a couple months old, but rumors have already started to surface about the Pixel 8 family. German tech blog WinFuture claims to have found references to two unreleased Pixel smartphones in publicly available code. The findings indicate that these two devices are codenamed “Shiba” and “Husky” and that they’re powered by a new processor codenamed “Zuma.” The code also suggests these devices will run on Android 14 and include 12GB of RAM, according to WinFuture.

Why I’m excited about it: There haven’t been many rumors about the expected Pixel 8 and 8 Pro, which means there isn’t too much to get excited about yet. But what I’m most interested in is what new features Google’s next-generation chip will bring to its future phones. Google’s current Tensor chips have enabled features that seem practical and useful in everyday life, such as Magic Eraser and Face Unblur for improving photo quality and the ability to add speaker labels to transcripts in the Recorder app. That makes me excited about where Google could take things next.

What we’re expecting: Samsung may be best-known for its Galaxy S devices, but its series of Galaxy A phones are worth your attention if you’re shopping on a tighter budget. The next phone in this series is expected to be called the Galaxy A54 5G, following the Galaxy A53 5G’s launch last spring.

Based on the few leaks that have surfaced so far, the Galaxy A54 5G will be a modest improvement over the A53 5G. It’s expected to have a 6.4-inch screen, which is slightly smaller than the A53’s 6.5-inch display, and a triple rear camera. That’s according to the leaker Hemmerstoffer, who shared renders claiming to show the Galaxy A54 5G’s design with the tech blog 91Mobiles. A report from the Dutch tech site Galaxy Club also suggests the A54 5G could have a slightly larger battery than its predecessor.

Why I’m excited about it: When I tested the Galaxy A53 5G around the time of its launch, I thought it felt much more expensive than it actually was. It’s not perfect, but Samsung provides a well-rounded package for the price with the Galaxy A53 5G. I’m hoping the success of Google’s Pixel A series motivates Samsung to up its budget phone game even further.

What we’re expecting: Even though foldable phones are still new to most people, Samsung’s Galaxy Z Fold will be on its fifth generation in 2023. The next version of Samsung’s phone-tablet hybrid could have a slot for storing Samsung’s S Pen stylus, a lighter design and a less noticeable crease, according to Korean news outlet The Elec. The report didn’t definitively say the Z Fold 5 will have these improvements, but did say Samsung has cited them as barriers that must be overcome to make foldable phones more popular.

Otherwise, we can probably expect to see routine improvements to the camera and processor in the Galaxy Z Fold 5. Samsung also added some new multitasking features to the Z Fold 4 this year, such as the ability to use the bottom portion of the screen as a mini trackpad when the display is folded halfway. So there’s a chance we’ll see other software enhancements in the future, too.

Samsung typically releases its new foldable phones in August, meaning we’re likely to see the next Z Fold around that time next year.

Why I’m excited about it: The Galaxy Z Fold 5 needs a lot more than an included S Pen to bring foldables into the mainstream. But making the S Pen a bigger part of the experience could go a long way in further defining who the Z Fold is for and why it exists in the first place. Samsung is promoting the Z Fold 5 as a productivity-oriented device, so having an embedded S Pen seems like a natural move. The Galaxy Z Fold 4 and Z Fold 3 are both compatible with the S Pen, but they must be purchased separately.