Phones articles

apple a20 pro dram iphone chip memory tsmc shortage
Hardware Apple

Apple's A20 Pro production is going smoothly, except DRAM supply is bottlenecking iPhone assembly

TSMC is sitting on $1 billion worth of finished iPhone chips with nowhere to go
Ripple effect: In the run-up to the launch of the foldable iPhone Ultra, iPhone 18, and iPhone 18 Pro, Apple and its assemblers are working to secure enough mobile DRAM. Apple leans heavily on Micron for these chips and also buys from SK Hynix and Samsung. People involved say they still expect to meet initial demand, but they worry online wait times could stretch and store inventory could run out quickly if the shortage continues.
Full story By Skye Jacobs, 7 comments
grapheneos android password privacy phones data wiper opsec
Security Mobile

GrapheneOS says its data-wiping "duress" password is perfectly legal, after user faces federal charges

Get Off My Phone: The recently unveiled case brought by the US Department of Justice against a GrapheneOS user is rekindling debate around privacy and effective operational security on mobile devices. The GrapheneOS Foundation has joined that debate, reaffirming some key points about the operating system's security features and whether previously deleted data can ever be recovered.
Full story By Alfonso Maruccia, 93 comments
department defense google pixel android government phones pentagon federal
Download of the Week Mobile

GrapheneOS brings enhanced security and privacy to Google Pixel phones

GrapheneOS is a security focused mobile OS for Google Pixel phones (soon Motorola). Based on Android's open source roots, it adds extensive hardening features, stronger app sandboxing, and granular permissions while allowing users to install Google Play services as regular apps. The project has grown past 400,000 active users. Its tools recently made the headlines after prosecutors treated the OS's remote wipe feature as evidence.
By Ivan Franco,
repair phones united kingdom
Tech Culture Mobile

Repair shops are booming during heatwaves as people keep putting phones in fridges

Social media cooling tips are leaving phones with moisture damage
Facepalm: The UK and Europe are going through an unprecedented heatwave right now. It's causing a lot of problems, including devices that keep overheating as temperatures soar. To try to cool them down, some Brits have been placing them in their fridges and freezers, but the only thing this results in is more work for repair shops.
Full story By Rob Thubron, 55 comments
researchers pixel cpu research google pixel data center
Hardware Electronics

Researchers are turning old Pixel phones into a data center – and they outperform some server hardware

Old smartphones are piling up as e-waste, but wait... 25 phones can match a single server CPU
Forward-looking: Researchers at the University of California San Diego are testing whether retired smartphones can still do useful work instead of ending up as electronic waste. Working with Google, the team is trying to turn retired Pixel smartphones into a low-cost data center. The goal is to keep working hardware in use instead of throwing it out after a few upgrade cycles.
Full story By Skye Jacobs, 10 comments
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