ICYMI: the week's 7 biggest tech news stories from Apple and Samsung phone leaks to Nintendo's Switch 2 reveal

Date:
Sat, 18 Jan 2025 08:00:10 +0000

Description:
Here's the biggest tech news stories from Apple, Samsung, TikTok and more.

FULL STORY ======================================================================

Next week, we have Samsung's first Galaxy Unpacked event of 2025, but before we can get there, we've seen a week filled with tech announcements.

Leaks for the event were a dime a dozen, but we also saw the long-awaited Nintendo Switch 2 announcement, game-breaking Windows 11 updates, and kept up to date with the latest TikTok ban news.

Here's our recap of the week's biggest tech news in case you missed it. What
a speedy overview.

When you're done, feel free to check out our picks for the 7 new movies and
TV shows to stream this weekend (January 17) . Nintendo Switched things ups

After years of speculation, hype, and rumors, the Nintendo Switch successor finally broke cover with Nintendo releasing a Nintendo Switch 2 trailer. Creative name aside, the short teaser showed us plenty it confirmed the console and its screen are larger than before (weve heard its now an 8-inch display from leaks), showed us the new button on the right JoyCon, and gave
us a new kickstand design for the console, alongside clips of a new Mario
Kart title (while many are calling it Mario Kart 9 , if Nintendo counts Tour as a mainline game this would be Mario Kart 10 ).

Though its light on specifics, theres a lot we still arent certain of from this trailer alone; most importantly, its unclear how much the console will cost when it is released and what its specs are.

For those details, well have to watch this space and wait to see what
Nintendo announces next. Read more: Nintendo has officially revealed its next console! TikTok faced its end for now (Image credit: Getty Images)

TikToks US ban has been looming for some time, but it came into focus this week as we approach January 19 the day it comes into full force. Users
afraid of losing the app took to rival services, but not just Instagrams
Reels and YouTubes Shorts. Chinese-made alternatives such as RedNote and also Lemon8 (which is owned by ByteDance, just like TikTok) proved popular.

There were hopes that the US Supreme Court would stop TikToks app store execution, but they have not, and while at the time of writing, there are reports the US Government might not enforce any fines related to the ban at first that has yet to be confirmed. All TikTok fans have left to hold onto is that when Donald Trump steps in as President on January 20, he could work to overturn the ban a ban which he has been a vocal opponent of despite being one of TikToks original detractors.

Were not holding our breath, but perhaps this time next week, well all be
back to sharing dances on the clock app. Read more: TikTok Ban updates live Samsungs Unpacked announcements leaked

Samsung Unpacked event (which will be held on Tuesday, January 22) might
still be days away, but we might already know everything there is to know about the brands upcoming smartphone announcements thanks to leaks.

This includes the full specs and color options for the entire three-phone lineup (made up of the Galaxy S25, Galaxy S25 Plus, and Galaxy S25 Ultra), details of AI enhancements, including a new morning brief feature , and even the Samsung Galaxy S25's jazzy new ringtone (which Samsung itself released early).

As with all leaks, we should take these details with a pinch of salt until Samsung makes an official announcement, but with that happening fairly shortly, we dont have long to wait and see what it has up its sleeve for us. Read more: Samsung Galaxy S25 latest news, rumors and everything we want to see Apples 2025 roadmap leaked (Image credit: Karen Freeman / Future)

Speaking of leaks, Apples iPhone and iPad roadmap for 2025 was teased by reporter and reputable tipster Mark Gurman this week (via a paywalled Bloomberg article), with him detailing what tech we should see in the next 12 months.

The first is the iPhone SE 4 with Apple Intelligence and Face ID, which will land in Q1 or early Q2. Then, alongside it, Gurman says well get the iPad 11 with an A17 Pro chipset (just like the iPhone 15 Pro) and 8GB of RAM, which should mean its powerful enough to boast Apple Intelligence.

Sometime in Spring, Gurman says we should get a new iPad Air with an M4 chipset to bring it in line with the latest iPad Pro models, and then
rounding out the year will be the blockbuster iPhone 17 , iPhone 17 Pro , iPhone 17 Pro Max , and iPhone 17 Air (or possibly just iPhone Air) launches. Read more: Apples packed 2025 iPhone and iPad roadmap just got tipped Windows 11 24H2 broke games (Image credit: Ubisoft)

Its the same story again for Microsofts Windows 11 and its 24H2 update, causing problems for multiple users. This time around, gamers are frustrated with the functionality of their games, notably Ubisofts Assassins Creed Odyssey , after Valhalla and Origins received patches to fix constant
crashes.

While it's easy to point the finger at Ubisoft developers, the 24H2 update
has been a long-lasting irritant to the user experience , with numerous bugs pushing some people away from operating systems (at least for now).

Valve announced that SteamOS will be coming to other handheld gaming PCs, providing gamers with a great alternative. Also, a native cloud image, Bazzite, running SteamOS (not affiliated with Valve), can be used on desktop PCs, so Microsoft needs to get its act together before potentially losing plenty of users. Read more: Windows 11 24H2 forces Ubisofts AC fixes DJI launched a first-of-its-kind drone (Image credit: DJI)

DJI unveiled the new and unique Flip, a multi-use drone for beginners unlike anything we've seen before. Its Star Wars spacecraft-like body features folding propellors with guards, meaning you can fly safely up close, armed with auto-tracking flight modes and 4K videos up to 60fps, plus slow motion 100fps clips.

It's ultimately like a larger, pricier, and supercharged DJI Neo although
the latter offers FPV flight so check out our DJI Flip vs DJI Neo article to discover the key differences. During our in-depth DJI Flip review, we found that you get better 4K video and 48MP images than the Neo, with the quality approaching what you'll get from DJIs Mini 4 Pro without quite hitting those same heights.

Ultimately, whats most distinct about the DJI Flip is its first-of-kind folding design, which still falls within the 249g-and-lighter category of drones that's largely restriction-free. Read more: DJI Flip review a new
breed of beginner drone OpenAI predicted AGI in 2025 (Image credit: Getty Images)

OpenAI CEO Sam Altman predicts well achieve AGI (artificial general intelligence, also known as superintelligence) "as we have traditionally understood it" in 2025 a bold prediction for the year.

AGI is a type of AI that matches or even surpasses a humans cognitive capabilities across a broad range of cognitive tasks compared to current AI models, which can only attempt to match people in a few specific areas. Its what sci-fi has trained us to imagine when we think of AI.

This would be a major advancement in the AI field, with many experts saying AGI would lead to a revolution unlike anything weve seen so far. For now,
well have to take Sam Altmans word that AGI is almost here, but we could be
in for a wild 2025 if his prediction is correct. Read more: Sam Altman predicts artificial superintelligence (AGI) will happen this year



======================================================================
Link to news story: https://www.techradar.com/tech/icymi-the-weeks-7-biggest-tech-news-stories-fro m-apple-and-samsung-phone-leaks-to-nintendos-switch-2-reveal


--- Mystic BBS v1.12 A47 (Linux/64)
* Origin: tqwNet Technology News (1337:1/100)