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iPhone

Over the past ten years, Apple’s iPhone has become the company’s most valuable —and recently, somewhat volatile— asset. Since its introduction in 2007, the iPhone helped to jumpstart the smartphone revolution, and with it came some big innovations. The App Store, touchscreen gaming, the mass adoption of social media, and protecting user data with biometrics. Its product lineup is enmeshed in Apple’s ecosystem, and the impact that it continues to have around the globe is vast.

Dominic Preston
Dominic Preston
Gemini gets profound on mobile.

The Google AI assistant’s Deep Research mode now works on both Android and iPhone, though is still exclusive to paying Gemini Advanced subscribers. The mode, which can produce relatively detailed research reports, launched as a web-only option in December. It expanded to Android last week and iOS yesterday.

ChatGPT has its own deep research feature, which we tested last week to mixed results.

Leica made a $329 iPhone camera gripLeica made a $329 iPhone camera grip
Andrew Liszewski
Richard Lawler
Richard Lawler
Bloomberg: iOS 18.3 added Starlink support on iPhones.

According to Bloomberg and user reports, T-Mobile’s list of eligible devices for beta testing Starlink direct-to-cell connections now includes iPhones. While only a few Samsung Galaxy devices were supported at first, now iPhone owners with the most recent update can reportedly connect, as well as some people with Android 15 devices.

That gives those owners an alternative to Apple’s Globalstar-connected service while off the grid that works without pointing their phone at the sky first.

Jay Peters
Jay Peters
68 percent of all iPhones are already on iOS 18.

And 76 percent of iPhone introduced in the last four years are on it, too, according to Apple’s iOS adoption stats that were spotted by 9to5Mac. The figures, from Apple, are “As measured by devices that transacted on the App Store on January 21, 2025.”

Andrew Liszewski
Andrew Liszewski
A 3D scan captured by an iPhone helped recreate a 50-year-old Atari arcade machine.

Atari’s Space Race debuted in 1973 with a limited number of arcade machines featuring a futuristic fiberglass cabinet design.

They’re now hard to come by, so the Retro Collective recreated one from scratch using a crude 3D iPhone scan of an original unit that was refined, 3D-printed, and assembled like a giant retro gaming puzzle with some added electronics.

A 3D scan of an Atari Space Race arcade cabinet being rotated back and forth.
An iPhone with a LiDAR camera was used to scan the rough geometry of an original 1973 Atari Space Race arcade cabinet.
GIF: YouTube
Wes Davis
Wes Davis
Dbrand says it’s replaced all of the Ghost Cases with Ghost Case 2.0.

Dbrand said in November 2023 it would freely replace purchases of the Ghost Case, a clear smartphone case it claims will never yellow, but which was overly scratch-prone when released.

After manufacturing delays, Dbrand emailed The Verge to say it’s finally sent replacements to customers, who seem to be pleased with the results so far.

Richard Lawler
Richard Lawler
Apple is number three in China’s smartphone market for Q4.

Maybe it’s the lack of Apple Intelligence in China, or maybe it’s the Mate 70 series’ performance.

Either way, MacRumors points out these Counterpoint Research stats showing iPhone sales in China put it in third place in Q4, behind both Huawei and Oppo (which includes OnePlus), and fourth place for the full year, despite its second-place finish globally.

Jay Peters
Jay Peters
Will the next iPhone SE have a Dynamic Island?

That seems to be what Evan Blass is suggesting in an image leak about new Apple products posted to his private X account.

The leak also includes a post that appears to show parts of URLs about the upcoming products. The products include an “iPhone SE (4th Gen),” a new 11th-generation base iPad, and 11-inch and 13-inch iPad Airs with M3 chips.

An image showing pictures of Apple products on FaceTime calls
Image: Evan Blass
Andrew Liszewski
Andrew Liszewski
OK Go’s new music video plays out across 64 iPhones.

According to a behind the scenes look at its creation, it took eight days and 1,043 takes for the band to shoot the 64 one-shot videos used in the music video for “A Stone Only Rolls Downhill.”

The band is already well known for its creative music videos, but a sequence featuring 42 iPhones playing a mosaic of synchronized clips is especially mind-boggling.

Thomas Ricker
Thomas Ricker
The iPhone SE 4, dummy.

Sonny Dickson is doing his annual thing of leaking non-working iPhone “dummy units” used by case and accessory makers. This is the fourth-generation of the budget iPhone SE that should have an improved OLED display amongst other improvements. Importantly, it’s also expected to have a USB-C jack so it can once again be sold in the EU.

Wes Davis
Wes Davis
iPhone phishing scams want you to reply.

Bleeping Computer points out why so many of those phishing texts about packages or unpaid tolls urge you to reply with something like a “Y” these days.

It’s because when the iOS Messages app’s “Filter Unknown Senders” option is on, links from those senders are disabled by default. Replying activates the link so you can tap it, which savvy Verge readers know you should never, ever do.

Umar Shakir
Umar Shakir
Apple Pay adds Synchrony as another buy now, pay later option.

After Apple discontinued its short-lived Apple Pay Later service last year, it picked up several third-party BNPL options instead, including Klarna and Affirm. BNPL usage has been on the rise, and surveys have indicated that users have overspent and missed payments. Last year, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau ruled to classify BNPL services as credit card providers.

Richard Lawler
Richard Lawler
The Watch Duty: Wildfire Maps app has been downloaded 1.5 million times in two days.

Per NBC reporter Scott Budman. As a “one-stop shop for everything needed during a fire emergency,” the Watch Duty app has become a lifeline for people trying to navigate the wildfires around Los Angeles.

Emma Roth
Emma Roth
There could be an “Apple Invites” app in the works.

Code spotted in iOS 18.3 beta 2 hints at an Apple Invites app that could help users plan in-person events and manage invites, according to 9to5Mac. It’s still too early to tell how it might differ from the Calendar app, though.

Andrew Liszewski
Andrew Liszewski
ShiftCam’s tiny 2TB SSD upgrades your iPhone’s recording capabilities.

The Planck SSD is drop-proof, IP65 water-resistant, and weighs just 10 grams, meaning you’ll barely feel it attached to your smartphone.

With transfer speeds up to 1,050MB/s it’s fast enough to unlock ProRes 4K 60fps recording on the iPhone 15 and 16. ShiftCam will launch the Planck through a Kickstarter in February in 1TB and 2TB capacities, according to 9to5Mac.

The ShiftCam Planck SSD attached to the bottom of an iPhone.
The 1TB ShiftCam Planck SSD from two different angles.
Two ShiftCam Planck SSD drives attached to a USB-C hub.
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Full retail pricing for the Planck SSD is expected to be $189 for the 1TB version and $299 for the 2TB. It will be discounted as part of the Kickstarter crowdfunding campaign to $125 and $199.
Image: ShiftCam
Wes Davis
Wes Davis
Satechi’s got new Qi2 chargers on the way.

They include 2-in-1 and 3-in-1 OntheGo folding chargers that feature a 15-watt Qi2 magnetic charging pad and an Apple Watch pad with 5-watt output to AirPods. The 3-in-1 supports Apple Watch fast charging.

Satechi also announced a set of magnetic Qi2 power banks reminiscent of Anker MagGo chargers like this one. Satechi says it’s all coming in the second quarter, with prices ranging from $69.99 to $99.99.

Picture of the 2-in-1 charger folded, sitting upright and sandwiched between an iPhone on the front and Apple Watch on the back.
Picture of the 3-in-1 charger unfolded, with an iPhone, AirPods, and Apple Watch all charging.
Three-quarter render of the 3-in-1 stand folded up, each circular pad neatly stacked on the other.
Profile render of the 3-in-1 stand folded up in, each circular pad neatly stacked on the other.
Render showing the charger unfolded next to its cable. The charger’s embedded Apple Watch puck is visible.
Render of the front of the power bank standing upright, with the power button visible on the side.
The power bank viewed from behind, standing upright with its fold-out kickstand visible, and the USB-C port visible on the side.
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Satechi 2-in-1 OntheGo Qi2 stand.
Image: Satechi
Andrew Liszewski
Andrew Liszewski
SanDisk’s MagSafe SSD piggybacks an extra 2TB of storage on your iPhone.

Similar to the Dockcase Smart Magsafe SSD, SanDisk’s new Creator Phone SSD sticks to the back of your phone using magnets while connecting with a short USB-C cable. It offers read speeds up to 1,000MB/s and write speeds up to 950MB/s, which is fast enough to unlock ProRes 4K recording at 60fps on the iPhone 15 and 16.

The SanDisk Creator Phone SSD attached to the back of an iPhone.
The SanDisk Creator Phone SSD will be available in the spring with 1TB of storage for $109.99 or 2TB (pricing not yet available) and is compatible with Windows, Android, iOS, and macOS devices.
Image: SanDisk