Reviews of iPhone 16, AirPods 4, Apple Watch 10, PS5 Pro 30th Anniversary Collection
10 tech stories in the quickest format possible
Saturday’s 10-story newsletter ends with discount codes below ⤵️
📱 1. iPhone 16 and iPhone 16 Pro review in progress: Apple's smartest upgrade
Pros
✅ 📐 Bigger screens on the iPhone 16 Pro and 16 Pro Max
✅ 📸 Great photos and impressive 4K120fps slo-mo video
✅ 🔘 Camera Control is a multi-function capture & stylize shortcut
✅ 🔋 Superb battery life so far (up to four extra hours on the Max)
✅ ⚡ 25W faster wireless charging beats Samsung and Google
✅ 🌈 Love the Ultramarine (16) and Desert Titanium (16 Pro) colors
Cons
❌ 🤲 The iPhone 16 Pro Max is a two-hand phone – I almost wish it folded
❌ 🤳 Selfie camera timer could be easier to access (buried in menus)
❌ 🌈 I wish the Pros got the fun colors too
I’m currently testing the new iPhone 16 and iPhone 16 Pro series, and while you’ll have to wait for my full review next week as I put the new camera and battery through their final paces, I already tell you about some of Apple’s winning features.
Update: I’ll be on Rich DeMuro’s Rich On Tech radio show today at 4:30pm ET, talking about all things Apple. Tune in!
All four new iPhones have a dedicated multi-function Camera Control to launch, snap, and stylize photos and video more easily, and I’ve enjoyed faster charging and up to four hours of extra battery life in my testing.
The two Pros excel with bigger screens and fun-to-shoot 4K120fps slow-motion video recording (I’m having too much fun with slo-mo video). All four now play console-quality games via Apple’s powerful A18 and A18 Pro chips.
I’ve toyed around with Apple Intelligence in beta for several weeks, and while it’s not due to launch until iOS 18.1, it promises a smarter Siri (finally), AI summaries of emails and notifications (so clutch) and AI photo-editing tools (magically erase those photo-bombers in the background).
The iPhone 16 and Apple Intelligence are Apple’s answer to a year of AI features found in the top Android phones of 2024. The one-month-old Google Pixel 9 Pro XL with Gemini Advanced AI and the seven-month-old Samsung Galaxy S24 Ultra with Galaxy AI have been particularly impressive. However, if you favor Apple’s cohesive ecosystem over Android and didn’t just buy last year’s iPhone 15 Pro Max, there’s enough here to get excited about if you’re overdue for an upgrade.
Ask Matt Swider on Twitter or Instagram for hand-picked deals from Walmart / Best Buy / Amazon / B&H / Samsung / Google / GameStop / Xbox / Microsoft Office (PC) deal / MS Office (Mac) deal
🎵 2. AirPods 4 hands-on: Pro-level ANC on Apple's open earbuds design
Pros
✅ 🎵 New AirPods with good sound quality at two affordable price points
✅ 🔇 Active Noise Cancellation is effective on the ANC version
✅ 👂 Some people love an open earbuds design without silicon ear tips
✅ 🎧 A few Pro-level features: ANC, head gestures and transparency mode
✅ 🔋 Up to five hours of battery life and 30 hours with the case
Cons
❌ 👂 Can fall out of your ears if AirPods didn’t work for you in the past
❌ 🦻 You’ll miss out on the hearing aid features of the AirPods Pro 2
❌ ⚡ Only the $179 AirPods 4 with ANC have a wireless charging case
❌ 💰 The $250 AirPods Pro 2 are sometimes on sale for $189 at Amazon
I’ve been wearing the new AirPods 4 while writing my ongoing iPhone 16 Pro review and Apple Watch 10 review this week, and I can already tell you one thing: this is the AirPods upgrade for the vocal people who always tell me that they love that classic open earbuds design instead of the silicon ear tips.
The best part is that they pull some pro-level features into a more affordable price point. There are two versions of the AirPods 4. You have the $129 AirPods 4 and the $179 AirPods 4 with active noise cancellation (ANC), transparency mode, a speaker for Find My, and a wireless charging case. Both versions get head gestures to dismiss audible notifications and calls with a head nod and head shake via Apple’s H2 chip.
⌚ 3. Apple Watch 10 hands-on review: thinner, lighter and fit for sleep tracking
Pros
✅ ⌚ Apple’s largest watch screen with a new wide-angle OLED
✅ 🪶 Noticeably thinner and lighter (I love it for sleep tracking)
✅ 🪨 Titanium replaces stainless steel for a lighter, durable case option
✅ 💰 Starts at $399 (42mm) and $429 (46mm) in aluminum
✅ 🔈 Built-in speaker for media playback (not just calls and alarms)
✅ 😴 New sleep apnea detection could help a lot of people
✅ ⚡ Faster wireless charging
Cons
❌ 🔋 All-day battery life at 18 hours can’t match the Ultra’s 36 hours
❌ 🤔 Not the 10th anniversary Apple Watch redesign everyone was wishing for
The Apple Watch 10 marks ten years since Apple announced its entry into the brand-new product category. Fun fact: when I started at TechRadar over a decade ago, I had pitched being a “wearables editor,” and the initial reaction was, “What’s that?” We’ve come a long way from the first Fitbits, the Nike FuelBand and the rumored “iWatch.”
The new Apple Watch 10 shows just how far we’ve come. It’s Apple’s most refined smartwatch with a bigger OLED screen (its 46mm size has a bigger display than the Ultra 2), yet 10% thinner and 10% lighter than the Apple Watch 9 case. It didn’t seem like a big change from the videos during the Apple event – until I put it on.
As you’ll see in my ongoing iPhone 16 Pro review, Apple made its new Pro-level phone displays bigger, but here, it made its watch display bigger and lighter.
The weight difference is noticeable, especially if you intend to wear the Apple Watch 10 for sleep tracking at night. Switching from my Apple Watch Ultra 1, I felt as if I was getting a lot of the same specs as the Ultra without the extra weight. And the timing couldn’t be better. watchOS 11 boasts sleep apnea detection on the Apple Watch 9, 10 and Ultra 2, matching the standout feature I tested and loved in my Samsung Galaxy Watch Ultra review two months ago. More overnight testing to come.
🎨 4. iPhone 16 colors and iPhone 16 Pro colors buying guide
📸 The Shortcut has original photography of each color
🪨 5 iPhone 16 colors: Black, White, Pink, Teal and Ultramarine
🌈 4 iPhone 16 Pro colors: Desert, Natural, White, Black
🟦 Ultramarine is the standout iPhone 16 and 16 Plus color
🏜️ Desert Titanium is the standout iPhone 16 Pro and 16 Pro Max color
🎮 5. Everyone wants PS5 Pro 30th Ann. Collection – only 12,300 will be made
🤯 PS5 Pro 30th Anniversary Collection will be the most expensive console ever
🎉 It features PlayStation-era retro-style PS5 Slim or PS5 Pro
🎮 Sony’s also given the DualSense, DualSense Edge, and PS Portal a makeover
📆 Preorders start September 26, but only 12,300 units will be made
It doesn’t go on sale until September 26, but consider it already gone. Of course, if you follow me on X for in-stock alerts, I’ll help you figure out when it goes on sale.
Be warned: Sony’s limited-edition PlayStation 30th Anniversary Collection will probably cost over $1,000, considering the PS5 Pro alone is $699.
🛍️ 6. iPhone 16 accessories: 12 things everybody needs, picked by experts
🛍️ New iPhones mean fresh accessories – and we are testing them all out
⚡ Faster MagSafe wireless chargers debuted alongside the iPhone 16 series
🔌 Faster wired charging means powerful USB-C adapters are a must
📸 Camera lens add-ons, screen protectors, wallet stands, etc
🤔 7. First PS5 Pro analysis shows mixed results for Sony's new PlayStation 5
🧐 The first analysis of the PS5 Pro shows how it will improve PlayStation 5 games
🤖 Expect Sony’s PSSR technology to do most of the heavy lifting
🤔 Most games will be upscaled from a lower internal resolution to a convincing 4K output
🤷♂️ 30fps modes are still present in games like Hogwarts Legacy and Alan Wake 2
Ahead of the PlayStation 5 Pro’s release on November 7 (reminder: the PS5 pre-order date is September 16), tech experts Digital Foundry have analyzed the first set of PS5 Pro enhanced games. While it’s clear Sony’s new console can deliver higher resolutions and frame rates, it isn’t as straightforward as you might think.
It won’t be able to perform miracles, despite having considerably more power under the hood, so don’t expect 60fps in every game with ray tracing enabled.
🟦 7. Samsung Galaxy Ultra, S25 and S25+ leak during iPhone 16’s launch
📱 Galaxy S25 and 25+ renders leak via OnLeaks & Android Headlines
🍎 The devices have very similar designs Apple’s iPhone 16
⭕ They’re much rounder than the rumored square-shaped S25 Ultra
🔙 The bigger Galaxy S24 Ultra leaked a week prior
📅 We expect Samsung to release them in early 2025
I swear, the entire newsletter isn’t just iPhone 16 and PS5. For Android fans, leaks have begun to pop up regarding three new Samsung Galaxy phones on the horizon. Specifically, the Samsung Galaxy S25 Ultra and the S25 and S25+ have leaked.
📦 8. Amazon Prime Day returns on October 8 for two days of deals
👏 Amazon Prime Day is back for more sales and discounts this October
📆 Deals start on Tuesday, October 8 at 12:01am
⏲️ Deals end on Wednesday, October 9 at 11:59pm
💰 Amazon Prime members will get the best deals
👀 Early TV deals on Amazon are already live for members
Amazon is set to offer more deals and discounts on October 8. It’s a great chance to save before Black Friday begins, but the best deals will be reserved for those who sign up for Prime. Don’t forget you can get a 30-day free trial if you’re a new member.
🤓 9. Snap Spectacles 5 promises the next step in AR, but only for developers
🤓 The Snapchat company unveiled another pair of AR glasses
🤩 Spectacles 5 glasses beam digital graphics into the real world
🤷♂️ However, they’re only available to US developers
💰 They cost $99/mo with a one-year commitment (so $1,188)
👀 10. Nintendo Switch 2 specs and design have reportedly leaked – but are they real?
👀 The Nintendo Switch 2’s specs and design may have been revealed
💧 A Chinese website has reportedly leaked production images of the console
⚙️ A list of specs of Nintendo’s next system has also been shared
🤔 It’s unclear if the leak is real, but a lot of the information corresponds with what we’ve previously heard
A huge Nintendo Switch 2 leak has potentially revealed the console’s specs and design. However, it’s worth taking this information with a huge grain of salt, as we can’t verify whether these details are correct. It’s worth noting that some of the reports do align with what we’ve previously heard, but we won’t know for sure until Nintendo makes an official announcement.
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🍄 $50 Nintendo Gift Card for $44
🟩 $50 Xbox Gift Card for $44
❎ 50% off Xbox Game Pass for $27.49 (Microsoft’s MSRP is now $60)
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