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• The iPhone 17 Air battery could be under 3,000 mAh
• This fits in with previous leaks about the handset
• iOS 26 could extend battery life to last an entire day

When Apple gets around to launching the new iPhone 17 series in September, it looks very likely that there's going to be a brand new model: the super-slim iPhone 17 Air. As per a new rumor, that slimness could come at the expense of battery capacity.

Well-known tipster Instant Digital (via MacRumors) says the iPhone 17 Air is going to come with a battery that's under 3,000 mAh in terms of its capacity. The iPhone 16, in comparison, is fitted with a 3,651 mAh battery.

Of course we don't know how that's going to translate into actual battery life, but it seems the new handset might struggle to match the time between charges that the current models offer. According to Apple, the iPhone 16 gives you 22 hours of video playback on a single charge, though more demanding tasks use up more battery life.

As per the same tipster, the power saving mode on the iPhone – which is being enhanced with a new adaptive mode in iOS 26, also due in September – will mean you can get through a day's moderate use with the iPhone 17 Air.

Battery size and battery life

The Samsung Galaxy S25 Edge is another ultra-thin phone (Image credit: Philip Berne / Future)

It's perhaps no surprise that the iPhone 17 Air is going to come with a smaller-than-normal battery. It makes sense that if the thickness of the chassis is shrinking, then there's going to be less room for a battery to power the handset.

Previous leaks have put the iPhone 17 Air battery size at 2,800 mAh, which fits in with the new information. However, there have also been rumors around upgraded battery tech that could enable more battery life to be provided by smaller batteries.

It's also worth mentioning that battery capacity isn't the whole story when it comes to battery life, though it does of course have a major role. iPhones typically have smaller batteries than the best Android phones, but can maximize battery life through design efficiencies and software optimizations.

Bear in mind that none of this is certain until Apple makes it official. If you're wondering what a high-end, ultra-thin phone might actually be like to use in 2025, check out our Samsung Galaxy S25 Edge review.

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• We have some leaked specs for the iPhone 17 Air
• These are the best iPhones you can buy
• The iPhone 17 Air might come in these 4 colors

This is the first Inmotion electric unicycle with UL certification and a built-in eSIM, which lets owners easily locate their wheel. This V9 electric unicycle is a fantastic option for first-timers.

If you don't mind a bad app, the G8 Plus is a solid controller.

The ACP is no longer active, but there are still options for low-cost internet service. CNET shares top picks for each state to help you stay connected.

When abortion and broadband deserts collide, they can exact a devastating toll on women's lives.

Callers to 988 used to be able to press 3 to reach counselors specially trained to help LGBTQ+ young people. The service had been reaching 70,000 people a month.

(Image credit: Smith Collection)

• Group-IB Sustainability Report reveals a significant saving in emissions
• Fighting cybercrime unsurprisingly helps cut emissions
• This comes at a time when tech emissions are at an all time high

Fighting cybercrime and dismantling malicious networks is having a surprising effect on removing harmful emissions, new research has claimed.

Group IB-s Sustainability Report has revealed the organization’s work in dismantling cybercrime networks and removing criminal control over corrupted computers has caused 10k tCO₂e in emissions has been saved

This is the equivalent of a petrol-powered car travelling up to 52 million kilometres, or the carbon captured by 48,000 tree seedlings grown for ten years - or 22.4m kWh of needless electricity consumption.

Tech sustainability concerns

In 2024, Group-IB contributed to local and international law enforcement efforts and operations to dismantle 207,442 compromised computers and removed them from criminal control.

Alongside this, over $2.7 billion was prevented in social engineering losses, and 65 million potential victims were protected, as well as 1,221 criminals arrested.

This comes at a time where emissions are coming under significant scrutiny, as AI and data center developments have led to a serious increase in tech sector emissions, now accounting for 3% of global carbon output, which is predicted to rise to as much as 13% by 2030.

“Cybersecurity must safeguard more than data—it must safeguard our shared future,” said Anastasia Komissarova, Deputy CEO of Group-IB.

With the energy consumption from data centres now roughly equivalent to Japan’s total energy usage, and Google’s data centres alone having used over four billion gallons of water in 2021 alone - it’s easy to see why tech firms are so eager to prove any sustainability wins.

“We are refining our product architecture to cut energy use, powering offices with renewables, deploying AI only under strict ethical and privacy controls, and shaping a workplace where diverse talent can excel," Komissarova added.

"By making our progress public, we aim to prove that innovation, security and sustainability can advance together, and to raise the bar for the entire cybersecurity industry.”

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• Take a look at our picks for the best AI tools around
• Check out our choice for the best AI image generator tools
• "We don't need more, we need better": Are speedy AI website builders killing the internet?

Congo and Rwanda-backed rebels on Saturday signed a declaration of principles in Qatar to end fighting in eastern Congo that commits them to a permanent ceasefire to be signed in one month.

(Image credit: Moses Sawasawa)

Tested by our CNET fitness expert and recommended by the personal trainers we consulted, these are the best chest strap heart-rate monitors for your workouts.

How do scientists monitor the populations of the threatened California red-legged frog? With careful listening and a little help from AI.

(Image credit: Bradford Hollingsworth)

Sonus Faber Concertino G4: Two-minute review

The Sonus Faber Concertino G4 are a very posh set of passive bookshelf speakers. That poshness isn’t just imbued by the colour palette and material choices that define their physical form, even though they do help a bit. Nor is that poshness fully explained by the not-inconsiderable $5,000 / £4,625 / AU$9,495 price point, though, again, that cost does its own fair share of heavy lifting on that front.

The poshness of these posh speakers comes, in my opinion, from Sonus Faber’s dedication to detail. So much attention has been paid to the design, construction, and resulting sound of these speakers, creating an experience arguably greater than the sum of its parts.

On the sound front, these speakers sound unsurprisingly excellent. The two-way design provides for both rich, detailed bass and generous, airy high-end – balanced to the point of tasteful sweetness. There’s a real tactility to the sound produced by the Sonus Faber Concertino G4, as if you could reach behind each instrument or sound source and cup it in your hands. This incredible, three-dimensional resolution is caveated by some serious directionality, but having to sit before your speakers for optimal results is neither a problem, nor anything new.

Visually, it’s hard to beat those walnut sides – but the vegan Ohoskin leather cladding gives it a good old college try. The brass accents consummate the executive nature of these speakers’ design, and the high attention to detail paid in their execution. If you’ve the figurative brass to spare, and are willing to buy more than a great pair of speakers, here’s where to start looking. Among the best stereo speakers money can buy? Absolutely.

(Image credit: Future / James Grimshaw)Sonus Faber Concertino G4 review: Price & release date

• Released September, 2024
• Priced $5,000 / £4,625 / AU$9,495

The Sonus Faber Concertino G4 are something of a celebration for the Italian brand – specifically, an anniversary. It’s been 30 years since the first Concertinos made it to listening rooms around the world, and Sonus Faber has deigned to mark the occasion with this special revisit to its classic design.

The first 300 pairs of the Concertino G4 are numbered via a unique brass plate on the left cheek, and sold as the Concertino G4 Maestro Edition; the pair reviewed here is number 29. The occasion, the numbering of the first out of the gate, and the brand from which they hail are all overt clues as to the lofty space these audiophile bookshelfs aim to occupy on the market. The other is the price – $5,000 / £4,625 / AU$9,495 per pair, with purpose-designed iron stands coming in at an extra $1,500 / £1,375/ AU$2,875 (approx.).

These are by no means the most expensive speakers you’ll see from Sonus Faber – indeed, they actually sit quite comfortably at the cheaper end of the brand’s (dauntingly broad) price bracket – but they are nonetheless considerably pricy objects d’art. How do you think they hold up?

(Image credit: Future / James Grimshaw)Sonus Faber Concertino G4 review: Specs

Type

Bookshelf

Active or passive?

Passive

Bi-wirable?

Yes

Woofer

5-inch paper pulp

Tweeter

1-inch silk dome

Impedance

4 ohms

Dimensions

314mm x 214mm x 297 mm

Sonus Faber Concertino G4 review: Features

• Passive, bi-wirable two-way speakers
• Unique cork damping
• Look at ‘em!

The Sonus Faber Concertino G4 are a pair of passive two-way bookshelf speakers, but also probably the most beautiful pair of passive two-way bookshelf speakers I did ever see. I’ll be breaking down the impeccable aesthetic design of these bookshelfs a little later, but for now – quelle finesse!

Being a passive set of hi-fi speakers, the Concertino G4 are fundamentally uncomplicated and untroubled by the shoehorning-in of needless techy fripperies. However, there are some very nifty goings-on within, that make for a sound as phenomenal as the look. More specifically, the Concertino G4 utilize some precision-modeled cork damping material inside, which does a remarkable job of reducing internal resonances (and, I like to think, contributes a certain ‘springiness’ to the resulting sound of these excellent speakers).

This cork damping is paired, for the first time in Sonus Faber’s history, with a mid-woofer – a 5-inch paper-pulp, long-throw mid-woofer that goes some way to defining the brand’s sonic signature. Couple this with a 1-inch silk-dome tweeter, and you have a stunningly broad, stunningly rich set of living room listeners.

The speakers are, of course, bi-wirable; what else would you expect from a two-way speaker at this price? This writer doesn’t subscribe to the idea that running a bi-wired speaker system results in any tangible sonic improvements whatsoever, but bi-amping is a very different thing entirely – and something the Concertino G4 promise to benefit from all the more.

In the box, you’ll find the speakers, some optional magnetically attachable grille cloth covers, and, if you’re lucky enough to get a double-digit Maestro Edition, one of 100 hand-printed artworks – a copy of an etching, illustrating the Concertino G4’s unique internal damping, delivered in an embossed manila envelope. As far as ‘box candy’ is concerned, this is an excellent little gift, especially for the monumental shame that such downright cool designs are permanently, necessarily hidden from view.

(Image credit: Future / James Grimshaw)

• Features score: 4.5/5

Sonus Faber Concertino G4 review: Sound quality

• Exceptional dimensionality
• Sonorous low-end
• Generous, airy high-end

Holy hell.

Being a writer of variable income (that is, varying somewhere between 'ramen noodles every night' and 'slightly posher ramen noodles every night'), I tend to champion the cheaper stuff over anything. Particularly so when returns diminish starkly after a certain price cut-off, and especially where it’s obvious that a premium brand is cashing in on its perceived pedigree as opposed to offering anything of serious value.

As such, it’s rare for me to recognize anything asking upwards of $2000 as 'worth it'. But the Concertino G4 are exceedingly hard to turn down, simply for the rapturous quality of sound they dare to bring into my humble living room.

I use ‘three-dimensional’ a lot as a term when describing the structure and texture of a given device’s auditory performance, and am forced to again here – but in full acknowledgement that this is about as three-dimensional as any bookshelfs can be. The platonic ideal. The dragon I’ll be chasing for decades to come.

Rich(ard) Dawson’s End of the Middle is a record rich (geddit?) in raw percussive instrumentation, blooming low-tuned guitars and alternately plain-spoken/high-falsetto’d art-folk tales of the unexpected. Through the Concertino G4s, Dawson’s heartbreaking windows into the banal (played from a 12-inch on my Victrola Stream Sapphire) are rendered with stunning richness and clarity.

Aptly for the Sonus Faber name, these are sonorous speakers. The low-end is unbelievably rich and structured; it’s rare to feel like you can reach behind the bass strings and grasp the thick air in their wake. Dawson’s voice is rich [that's enough now – Ed.], complex, and fully present – his fricatives feel as if formed in the room.

High-end information is rendered generously. There’s a sense that all higher elements sit plushly within a cushion of air, presenting themselves forth for scrutiny without force or strain – the same force and strain that, in my self-invented mythos of sound, causes tinniness, cloy or otherwise intolerable screech from lesser sources.

(Image credit: Future / James Grimshaw)

The balance of sound is hugely directional. If you, like me, place these facing across a room as opposed to down it, you’re likely to find patches of especial untamed bass-i-ness. Unsurprisingly enough, if you situate yourself where Sonus Faber’s manual actually instructs you to – that is, dead in front, with the speakers facing you, as one point of an audiophile equilateral triangle – the fruits of the Concertinos’ labor make the sense they’re supposed to make.

Dirty Projectors’ Swing Lo Magellan, also listened to on vinyl, is every bit as immediate as your mind’s ear interprets it. It might be a bit dross to fall on the word ‘musical’ to describe the Concertino G4 here, but here we go nonetheless – the subby kicks of opener Offspring Are Blank are discrete, weighted and musical, a far cry from the placeless wub lesser speakers would offer up as alternative.

As Offspring…’s pre-chorus opens out with twanging guitars, there’s a spring in the step – a delightful bounce emphasized by the rubbery drums and densely sponged short-scale bass of ensuing track About To Die. Percussion throughout the album is supple and giving despite its forefront presence, and David Longstreth’s dry, dead-center vocals are a floaty, reedy delight. My album favourite, The Socialites, has a weight and focus I’ve not heard elsewhere. It's a unique joy.

Speaking of which, the Concertino G4 has no issue bringing that same weight and focus to famously less-focused records, like My Bloody Valentine’s Loveless. Kevin Shields’ stacked soundscapes throb and thrum with excitable energy throughout, while the dead, motorik drums at the center of When You Sleep punch out from behind as if pummeled by a hammer. Side B loud-lullaby Sometimes is a glorious bath of multi-tracked guitars and rabbit-heartbeat kicks, distinct in its indistinctness and clear in its complete lack of conventional clarity. A beautiful paradox delivered through these speakers.

The word I keep returning to with these speakers is ‘generous’. There’s space in and around everything tackled, from distant roomy drums to attention-begging upfront vocals – space enough you genuinely feel as if you could cup each element in your hands, or awkwardly reach around them to grab something. Aside from their clear preference for head-on listening (which is, assuredly, of necessity and by design), these speakers are functionally faultless.

• Sound quality score: 5/5

(Image credit: Future / James Grimshaw)Sonus Faber Concertino G4 review: Design

• Executive walnut and brass build
• Delicious vegan leather cladding
• Nifty magnetically attachable clothe grille covers

Design-wise, it’s hard to know where to start with the Concertino G4s because of Sonus Faber’s trademark meticulousness. Each speaker is a work of art, exuding craftsmanship from every angle. They benefit from beautifully shaped walnut cheeks, with an outward crease that runs from bottom to top, front to rear, and bisect the trapezoidal shape of the whole thing in a very pleasing manner.

New here is the involvement of Ohoskin, an Italian manufacturer of high-quality leather alternatives. This bio-based leather material (made from orange and cactus byproducts) is eco-conscious, sure, but also a stunning ‘pleather’ that clads the top and front of the chassis. It certainly could’ve fooled me.

Between this sleek black not-actually-leather and the solid walnut cheeks, these are a distinctly executive set of audiophile speakers, enhanced further by the mirror-polished brass that forms its front logo panels, rear terminal plates and side-mounted issue number placards. Even the studs holding those walnut cheeks in place are highly reflective, monogrammed indications of attention to detail.

That same attention to detail gifts us sleekness elsewhere. Sonus Faber supplies you with a pair of lightweight cloth grille covers, which you may optionally attach to the front of the Concertino G4 by way of some concealed magnets beneath the pleather.

Now, I think these speakers look far better in their uncovered glory, both for generally preferring uncovered hi-fi speakers and for having my own aesthetic misgivings around the covers' design. Still, the option is a nice one to have, and well-executed besides – from the completely invisible magnets to the soft felt material covering the ‘feet’ on the covers themselves.

• Design score: 5/5

(Image credit: Future / James Grimshaw)Sonus Faber Concertino G4 review: Value

• Commands a considerable price
• But represents more than just ‘good sound’
• Clearly made with skill, reverence and love

When buying the Sonus Faber Concertino G4, you’re actually buying at least two things, not one. Yes, one of them is an excellent-sounding pair of bookshelf speakers, but you’re also buying an immaculately designed, reverently constructed pair of artworks for your living space. On top of that, if you buy the Maestro Edition, you’re also buying a secret third thing – a limited-edition set, made all the more valuable for its combination of rarity and pedigree. It is with this in mind that I suggest, humbly, that value is difficult to ascribe to this set of speakers.

I’ve heard dozens upon dozens of bookshelf speakers below £1,000 – and even owned a fair few second-hand speakers bought for below £100 – that display similarly remarkable attention to detail in the audio realm, even if their chassis leave a little to be desired. Yet all fall short, however marginally, of the dimensionality on display here. Buying the Concertino G4 for performance alone could be justifiable, yes, but only if you’re willing to throw an extra £3,500 at the extra 5-10% that elevates these speakers above their upper mid-range contemporaries.

Don’t get me wrong, I love the Concertino G4s. It’s a rare pair of speakers that can so convincingly render voices and instruments in discrete three-dimensional space, and nothing short of magic to hear the care with which such sound sources are treated. But you can find this for less. What you can’t is the Italian-made, executive-saloon suavity of the Concertino’s form, or the combination of this hand-built reverence with such deferent approaches to audiophilia.

So, while I might not be currently tempted to sell my belongings in favor of owning the Sonus Faber Concertino G4, I do know that, with the right capital and in the right atmospheric conditions, I’d snap them up in a heartbeat. Not just for their impeccable sound, but for the space they command, and for what that command represents.

(Image credit: Future / James Grimshaw)

• Value score: 4.5/5

Sonus Faber Concertino G4 review: scorecard

Comment

Rating

Features

Passive, bi-wirable bookshelf speakers; smart internal cork damping.

4.5/5

Sound quality

Massive depth, clarity and three-dimensionality; careful handling of high-end, weighty low-end.

5/5

Design

A masterclass in executive chic. Cloth grille covers aren’t to everyone's taste.

5/5

Value

Pricy, but it buys you a work of practical art, made with reverence.

4.5/5

Should you buy the Sonus Faber Concertino G4?Buy them if...

You have the cash
The price point is a lot to ask from most people, even if it’s far closer to the floor than the ceiling when it comes to the cost of audiophile-grade hi-fi equipment. That said, these walk the walk – and provide more than sound for the money.

You have a dedicated listening spot
The Sonus Faber Concertino G4 are designed to be listened head-on, like studio monitor speakers. These should be enjoyed as such, then – in a room where they straddle your hi-fi and point directly at your head.

Don't buy them if...

You want a daily driver set of bookshelfs
Sure, the Concertino G4 will serve you marvellously well whatever you deign to throw at them, but buying them for watching Countdown and listening to BBC Radio 4 would be a bit like ordering a Michelin Guide dish on Uber Eats. And scarfing it down while watching Countdown or listening to BBC Radio 4.

You don’t have a dedicated hi-fi spot
You don’t need telling that these speakers want to see the output from an integrated amplifier or broader hi-fi system. You might, though, need telling that these speakers demand their own dedicated space and placement to sound their best.

Also consider

Sonus Faber Concertino G4

Monitor Audio Studio 89

Sonus Faber Lumina II

Type

Bookshelf

Bookshelf

Bookshelf

Active or passive?

Passive

Passive

Passive

Bi-wirable?

Yes

No

Yes

Woofer

5-inch paper pulp

x2 4.5-inch RDT III

150mm paper pulp

Tweeter

1-inch silk dome

x1 MPD III

29mm silk diaphragm

Impedance

4 ohms

6 ohms

4ohms

Dimensions

314 x 214 x 297 mm

340 x 157 x 361 mm

304 x 180 x 263mm

Monitor Audio Studio 89
Another set of passive bookshelf speakers, they incorporate two RDT III mid/bass drivers and a sandwiched MPD III tweeter, arranged vertically for wider sound dispersion.
See our full Monitor Audio Studio 89 review

Sonus Faber Lumina II
If you want that same Sonus Faber experience without having to worry about a potential remortgage, you can achieve just that with these excellent, ‘budget’ offerings from the Italian artisans. There are shortcomings (including a leather finish that may offend), but does a great job of bringing audiophile quality down a price peg.
See our full Sonus Faber Lumina II review

How I tested the Sonus Faber Concertino G4

• Tested for four weeks
• Used in my living room, as my primary listening speakers
• Tested using a Victrola Stream Sapphire and Cambridge Audio receiver

As someone with considerable personal and professional investment both in the enjoyment of music and in its production, I have unique experience on both sides of the equation. I engage with speakers of various types as a matter of course each day, from flat-response studio monitor speakers to gorgeous, flattering hi-fi numbers like these.

For four glorious weeks, the Sonus Faber Concertino G4 speakers were my primary listening speakers in my living room. I wired them into my Cambridge Audio Azur 540r receiver, which received the sound of my vinyl record collection via a Victrola Stream Sapphire turntable (outfitted with an Ortofon 2M Blue cartridge).

First reviewed: July 2025

Read more about how we test at TechRadar

If there’s one thing about Nothing’s entire philosophy as a company that rings completely true, it’s that modern tech looks boring. With focus applied to manufacturing efficiency and broad appeal, the most impressive aesthetics we can get from mainstream phones these days come down to a handful of colour options or an interesting camera bump, with clean-looking backsides to match equally sparse glass screens. The Nothing Phone 3 tries something quite different, mixing practical minimalism and an eye-catching design language into a solid flagship.

I’ve seen folks praise these phones for their focus on reserved user interfaces, while others applaud the unique aesthetics – looking more cassette-futurism than simply sci-fi – but both descriptions apply well across the company's family of products. With the Phone 3, Nothing wants to draw people in with a far-reaching design that is paradoxically both simple and extra with its most powerful device yet.

The exterior, adorned with plenty of plastic to invoke a faux see-through look, along with a pixelated ‘Glyph Matrix’ on the back that can run several animations with varying levels of practicality (and fun), feed into an extremely deliberate style completely unique to Nothing’s tech.

(Image credit: Zachariah Kelly / TechRadar)

Conversely, the company’s Android version ‘Nothing OS’ goes for a bold monochrome look, completely foreign to any other consumer-oriented user interface. It shifts between New Roman-like fonts and dotted lettering, while the system is ultimately built around a focus on disconnecting from your tech. The ‘Essential Key’ below the standby button on the right side of the handset allows you to take quick voice memos and jot notes down to then access later in one unified ‘Nothing Space’ app, incentivising minimalism by treating the phone as more of a reminder box.

This approach is growing on me, but I’m not sure the Nothing Phone 3’s point of difference is compelling enough to pull me away from phones like the Google Pixel 9, the Samsung Galaxy S25, or even Nothing’s own Phone 3a Pro, which was released in March 2025.

To be clear, I don’t think the Phone 3 is a bad phone, but I do think it’s risky for a niche brand like Nothing to get in direct competition with the market-leading flagships, which outmaneuver it on spec and wider support. Nothing will surely have its fans with the Phone 3, but it also lacks the broad appeal of the phones it’s trying to compete with.

Nothing to see here

(Image credit: Zachariah Kelly / TechRadar)

The Nothing Phone 3 has such a divisive exterior aesthetic to it. The layout of the camera array seems kind of ridiculous. The lenses are positioned seemingly nonsensically, with the microphone and telephoto lenses positioned off-centre in the top left corner, and the wide and ultrawide lenses below it.

It’s only when taking in the rest of the exterior that it makes a little bit more sense, but even then you’d have to really want the Nothing Phone 3 to like this aesthetic. I adore it – it evokes an 80s-90s cassette futurism vibe that makes me think of the chunky computers from Starfield, Alien or 2001: A Space Odyssey. A red square on the back flashes as a video recording icon, while the lines and shapes are meant to evoke the imagery of the handset’s circuitry and internal parts. This approach to aesthetic maximalism is best exemplified by the Glyph Matrix, though.

This is a really weird feature for a smartphone. This small circle of large pixels can run through several features (interactive with the back button below the panel), such as displaying battery life, acting as a level, offering advice as an eight ball and functioning as a stopwatch. The most useful feature I’ve found is using the panel to view a pixelated depiction of yourself, allowing you to take selfies using your rear cameras. It’s a neat feature!

(Image credit: Zachariah Kelly / TechRadar)

Is any of this necessary? Nope, but that’s not the point. Nothing’s pretty explicit about wanting to make a ‘fun’ phone that’s as exciting as it is useful, and this third generation of the glyph matrix idea, evolving from simple flashing lights on previous handsets, hits the nail on the head. That said, I find the near-minimalist operating system to not gel as well with this design, and the user interface doesn’t have much of the flair it needs to truly be iconic.

I’ve tried really hard to commit to the operating system offered here. I’ve migrated my standard smartphone use over almost entirely to the Phone 3, applied the brand’s iconic ‘glass’ wallpaper filter, switched the icons to Nothing’s monochrome (as opposed to Android’s standard Material You coloring, which is also available) and have even taken advantage of the brand’s exceptional widgets.

Nothing’s approach to widgets is second to none. Having quick action buttons such as Bluetooth, Wi-Fi, Airplane Mode and Hotspot accessible from the Home Screen without having to swipe the quick settings menu down is really cool. The same goes for all of the other widgets offered by Nothing – the company’s weather widgets look great, and the inbuilt media player widget is exactly what I’ve wanted from Google and Samsung for years.

But then the phone rubs up against the rest of Android – the stuff it has limited ability to change – and you start to see the cracks forming, with Android’s neutral design visible in some menus. But while this breaks the immersion, the thing limiting Nothing’s success more is its ambitious position in the market.

Nothing to it

(Image credit: Zachariah Kelly / TechRadar)

The Phone 3 is properly separate from the rest of the Nothing range, as it’s the only smartphone designed and priced to directly compete with flagship handsets offered by Apple, Samsung and Google – but it feels like we’re veering off course from what Nothing is actually trying to do in the smartphone market.

Make no mistake, the powerful camera set, Snapdragon 8s Gen 4 processor and gorgeous display put the Phone 3 well above Nothing’s previously released handsets in terms of quality and capability, but compared to other leading brands, the phone underperforms.

I’d argue the more premium price point and specs kind of diminish the whole point of a Nothing phone. Take the Essential Key, a multi-button for writing notes, recording voice memos, taking screenshots and launching the Nothing Space, where you can view all of these things. This tool doesn’t actually require much processing power to work smoothly, and indeed it fits quite well into the ecosystem of the considerably cheaper 3a and 3a Pro. It’s a good feature, but it doesn’t feel like the higher price point is doing much to improve it (though, as I wrote in my 3a Pro article, I would like the choice to remap the button).

(Image credit: Zachariah Kelly / TechRadar)

Conversely, the cameras absolutely need improvement, and I would have happily traded the more powerful processor for better photography. I’ve included reference images below of a car I’ll be reviewing soon, the Porsche Macan 4 electric, but know that there’s detail missing from the shots that I don’t believe would have been an issue had I captured the same images with the Google Pixel 9 or the iPhone 16.

Perhaps the Nothing Phone 3 is holding court until the arrival of an even better equipped Phone 3 Pro to take on the iPhone 16 Pro and Galaxy S25 Ultra. For now, these cameras don’t really keep up.

Image 1 of 4

(Image credit: Zachariah Kelly / TechRadar)Image 2 of 4

(Image credit: Zachariah Kelly / TechRadar)Image 3 of 4

(Image credit: Zachariah Kelly / TechRadar)Image 4 of 4

(Image credit: Zachariah Kelly / TechRadar)

I’m taking a hard stance on the Nothing Phone 3 because, while I love what the London-based company is trying to do and am indeed swayed by the aesthetics, I believe this phone could have benefited from a slightly more competitive, or conservative, arrangement of features.

The cameras are fairly unimpressive and the processor, for its added performance, still doesn’t keep up as well as with more established rivals (and even cheaper handsets from mentioned rivals). It kind of feels like Nothing’s tied up – when your goals are minimalism and maximalism, how do you find the right fit?

A premium price makes the device more of an eyebrow-raiser to casual customers, but looking at Nothing’s focus on a healthier relationship with technology, the extra additions don’t feel substantiated, particularly for an inherently niche userbase that Nothing is restricted to by virtue of its divisive aesthetics.

Should you buy Nothing?

(Image credit: Zachariah Kelly / TechRadar )

Nothing has created an awesome handset with the Phone 3. One that truly challenges the Galaxy S25 and Pixel 9 families. However, its strong commitment to niche aesthetics makes it exactly that – niche.

I’m among the folks that love this design approach – one that does accomplish the goal of make tech fun-looking – but as someone who needs broader utility from a flagship handset, I don’t think the Phone 3 is for me.

The Nothing Phone 3 will be a capable handset for those craving fast recharging speeds, great on-device processing performance, high framerate gameplay and even some casual photography. And, if you like the aesthetic, then you’ll be pleased to know that the Phone 3 is cheaper than all of its major competitors.

That being said, the underwhelming array of cameras certainly leaves something to be desired and, although it’s a fairly cost-effective handset, I would highly recommend waiting for it to go on sale.

Major phonemakers are likely not too worried about Nothing at the moment, but it's getting close to a perfectly balanced device here.

If you like the Nothing approach to handsets and want to save some money, I recommend reading our Nothing Phone 3a Pro review.

You might also like...

• I went hands-on with the Nothing Phone 3, and it might just be the most interesting phone of the year – here's why
• ‘We're not just chasing whatever competitors are doing’: Nothing’s AI chief explains why the Phone 3 uses the Snapdragon 8s Gen 4, not the 8 Elite
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Sometimes we want to buy things we want, not what we need, and that's OK. When you're unsure whether to swipe that card or walk away, this guide can help you make a mindful decision you won't regret.

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The USDA has set a deadline of July 30 for states to hand over the sensitive data of tens of millions of people who applied for federal food assistance, while a lawsuit is trying to stop the collection.

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Charleston's top internet provider is AT&T Fiber, according to CNET's experts. But there are great alternatives available if you can't get it at your address.

The Studio season 2: key information

- Officially renewed in May
- Filming reportedly due to begin in December
- No official trailer just yet
- Main cast all set to return
- Plot details kept firmly under wraps
- Hopes for more incredible guest star appearances

The Studio season 2 was officially renewed on Apple TV+ in May – before season 1 of the self-described 'workplace comedy' had even finished. No surprise given The Studio had 100% on Rotten Tomatoes from critics before the show was even released (now, a still incredible 93%).

And it easily made it onto our best Apple TV+ shows list, thanks to its fun, satirical look at the movie industry with a star-studded cast to boot. So, as Matt Remick and the team at Continental Studios are set to return for another series, we're more than ready to strap in for more. And I'm pretty hopeful it'll have a similarly incredible list of guest stars and cameos as season 1.

Here's everything we know about The Studio season 2 on Apple TV+ from release date prediction, trailer, expected cast, plot rumors and more.

Potential spoilers follow for The Studio season 1.

The Studio season 2 release date predicition

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The Studio season 2 was officially renewed on May 6. In an Instagram post by Apple TV, Seth, Ike and Chase Sui are seen discussing the return of the show with their 'winning formula', or as Seth puts it: "a structure that we 100% know works, so we're going to do it over and over again".

And, according to a post on the Film & Television Industry Alliance, season 2 is already in pre-production with a possible filming date of December 3. For season 1, they filmed in March 2024 and the show started streaming a year later. So, I'd say for my The Studio season 2 release date prediction, we're looking at late 2026.

The Studio season 2 trailer: is there one?

No The Studio season 2 trailer just yet, but filming may begin in December (Image credit: Apple TV Plus)

There's no The Studio season 2 trailer yet, and I don't expect we'll see one until late 2026. The season 1 trailer dropped only a couple of weeks before the show dropped on Apple TV+.

So, considering what I've already mentioned about a potential release date, it's a while off yet. I'll be sure to update here as soon as one drops though.

The Studio season 2 predicted cast

Here's hoping The Studio season 2 cast will be full of more iconic guest stars (Image credit: Apple TV Plus)

Full spoilers follow for The Studio season 1.

Given how The Studio season 1 ended, I'd predict all of the main cast to return, as follows:

• Seth Rogen as Matt Remick
• Catherine O'Hara as Patty Leigh
• Ike Barinholtz as Sal Saperstein
• Chase Sui Wonders as Quinn Hackett
• Kathryn Hahn as Maya Mason

The Studio became quickly well-known for its incredible roster of guest stars and cameos who appeared throughout season 1. These included Bryan Cranston, Zoë Kravitz, Martin Scorsese, Charlize Theron, Ben Stiller and so many more.

I actually can't list all of them because we'd be here all day, but I'm sure more seriously standout names will be making an appearance in season 2. Though, in conversation with Deadline, co-creators Seth Rogen and Evan Goldberg may have run out of people to ask. Rogen said: "We've called in all our favors many, many years ago. We got everyone who was only willing to do this stuff because we were friends with them".

And Goldberg added: "And that was by far the hardest part of the show, delivering those cameos. It was exhausting. Every single day at lunch during pre-production, we had to go and do a phone call with a different celebrity of some nature, or the filmmaker. And it was really draining".

The Studio season 2 potential plot synopsis and rumors

The Studio season 2 plot is being kept under wraps (Image credit: Apple TV Plus)

Major spoilers follow for Slow Horses seasons 1 through 4.

The Studio season 2 is in pre-production and I'm sure the plot will be kept firmly under wraps until it's available to stream on Apple TV+. But, Goldberg did tell Deadline there's one episode that's leftover from season 1: "We actually have on script that I assume will be in season 2, that's finished, called 'The Test Screening'. We worked on it for months because it required a very specific actor, and we almost got that actor, but then they were too busy, so we had to move on".

We also know from the season 1 finale that Continental Studios were at a bit of an impasse with Amazon trying to buy them out and Matt pitching at CinemaCon to stop the sale (and hopefully save their jobs).

And since CinemaCon has been done, there seems to be scope for even bigger. Speaking to The Direct, write Peter Huyck said: "I think one thing we want to do is the big international film festival. That would be a dream to do an episode set there".

Plus, considering the Kool-Aid movie was a big part of season 1, we might find out if all that hard work finally pays off – and hopefully we'll actually get to see it.

Luckily, from the success of season 1, the stories now seem to be coming to them: "This show has legs. It just keeps writing itself. Things keep happening. We're in an industry that is ever-evolving. Before, we sat with studio heads and heads of marketing to get their input to help us. Now people are just coming up to us, telling us stuff. So, the influx of stories is never ending".

And I'm sure The Studio season 2 will be full of these movie-centric stories crafted beautifully for Apple TV+ in the way Rogen and Goldberg know how.

Will The Studio get more seasons on Apple TV+?

Can we dream of more seasons of The Studio? (Image credit: Apple TV Plus)

Given The Studio season 2 is still revelling in its own renewal status, it's unlikely we'll hear about more seasons any time soon. Season 2 received its renewal before season 1 wrapped, so if I was to predict when we'd hear, I'd say when the show is back streaming on Apple TV+. I'll be sure to update here though, if and when news arrives.

For more Apple TV+ coverage, read our guides on Ted Lasso season 4, Foundation season 3, Presumed Innocent season 2, and Silo season 3.

Andy Farrell's Lions get their three-match series against the Wallabies underway in Brisbane.

We've had quite the week this week, so to help you catch up on all the latest tech news, we have this handy one-stop guide to the seven biggest stories of the past seven days.

From Elmo getting hacked to ChatGPT Agent arriving on the scene, we have your firmware update for it all.

And once you're up to speed, be sure to read our guide to the 7 new movies and TV shows to watch this weekend (July 18).

7. Marshall’s new Bluetooth speaker rocked our world

(Image credit: Future)

We’ve been testing the new Marshall Kilburn III, and our reviewer Harry Padoan had a lot of positive things to say.

“The Marshall Kilburn III plates up a delicious meal, composed of well-seasoned audio, meaty features and a beautiful presentation,” adding, “with a 50-hour battery life, you’ll barely ever need to charge it.”

Though he did also highlight some faults, which is why it was half a star off a perfect five-star score, namely that it’s pricier and maybe not as rugged as some might hope.

• Read more: Our Marshall Kilburn III review

6. We watched Stranger Things Season 5…’s trailer

The first trailer for Stranger Things season 5 is finally here.

And if you’ve been worried about spoilers, series co-creator Ross Duffer shared that this first trailer “pulls from every episode except 7, but it’s mostly Volume One and just barely scratches the surface.”

Season 5 is being split into three parts, and this trailer is mostly taking clips from the first drop coming on November 26, so it shouldn’t give too much of the game away.

• Read more: Stranger Things season 5 trailer launch as it happened

5. Fitbit went down with sync and login issues

(Image credit: Future)

Fitbit users were left high and dry this week, as a huge spike in Downdetector reports heralded a big outage for Fitbit's mobile app and web API, leaving Fitbit users unable to sync their devices. When the Fitbit Help Center steps were followed, users ended up locked out of their accounts.

Fortunately, Google soon resolved the issue and reached out to us to confirm that a fix was in progress. However, it's not worked for everyone: there is still what seems to be a relatively small percentage of users who are left high and dry, unable to effectively use their devices. S

ome of them have reached out to us via email, while others have taken to Reddit to voice their displeasure and warn other users. One poor Reddit poster has even seemingly lost all their data since 2018!

• Read more: Here's what happened during Fitbit's "major outage"

4. Elmo got hacked and taught us a lesson

(Image credit: Getty Images)

The Twitter account for the lovable fuzzy red Muppet was hacked this week and proceeded to spew several deeply offensive posts onto the platform.

Arguments aside that those kinds of posts are maybe more at home on Elon Musk’s rendition of the social media platform than Elmo’s usual messages of love and hugs, the hack reminded us why two-factor authentication is so important.

It’s not a completely foolproof solution, but it can make it significantly less likely your account will get taken over.

• Read more: Don't be like Elmo, turn on 2FA

3. ChatGPT Agent entered the game

(Image credit: OpenAI)

Sam Altman, OpenAI CEO, has just announced the latest addition to ChatGPT. It’s called ChatGPT Agent, and it’s designed to perform tasks for you, no matter how complicated. If you can do it online, then ChatGPT Agent can get it done.

The entire concept is a unified agent that can handle the legwork, make informed decisions about which websites to use, and navigate the web independently. Think about things like planning a wedding, booking your car in for a service, making an app to solve a problem, or planning and booking a holiday. ChatGPT Agent can do it all, and you can even watch it work if you want to.

If you’re a Plus, Teams, or Pro user, then you can click ‘Agent’ right from the tools drop-down menu to use the new tool. The Agent uses its own virtual computer to perform its tasks, starting by setting up its desktop environment, and then proceeds to understand the prompt you’ve given it and gather the necessary information. It will sometimes ask for more information or a clarifying question.

• Read more: The autonomous AI promises to handle every click and open tab in your browser

2. We went bananas for Donkey Kong

(Image credit: Nintendo)

While interest at its announcement was somewhat tepid, it turns out Donkey Kong Bananza is the greatest Nintendo Switch 2 title to date, according to Dashiell Wood, one of our expert game reviewers.

That’s because the title “harnesses the powerful Nintendo Switch 2 hardware to offer a gigantic, open-ended world with dazzling destruction that lets you bash, smash, and crash through practically anything.”

• Read More: Our full Donkey Kong Bananza review

1. Google set a date for its Pixel phone drop

(Image credit: Twelve South)

The eagerly anticipated Mage by Google product launch event will happen on August 20 at 10am PT / 1pm ET / 6pm BST / 3am AEST, and it looks to be a product-packed event.

We're expecting not only the Pixel 10 phone line (so the Pixel 10, Pixel 10 Pro, and Pixel 10 Pro XL), but a new Pixel 10 Pro Fold, which now has a tough act to follow given the 4.2mm-thick Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 7. At least they'll both be running Android 16.

A new, possibly redesigned, Pixel Watch 4 is also expected, but we don't have many details for no,w so we’ll have to wait a little longer to have an idea what Google has up its sleeve.

• Read more: We're getting Made By Google in August