Latest from Phone Arena
Phone Arena
3 hours ago
- Business
- Phone Arena
EchoStar pays $500M to stay out of bankruptcy and to buy time for FCC talks
An 8-K filing made by EchoStar indicates that the parent company of the nation's fourth largest wireless carrier, Boost Mobile, and Dish Network, plans on making a debt-interest payment on Friday of more than $500 million. The payment is actually due on Monday and by paying the $500 million, EchoStar gets to delay filing for bankruptcy although it will not make a second payment due July 1st. EchoStar hopes that by making one of the two payments due in the coming week, it has bought itself some time to negotiate with the FCC. The regulatory agency's Chairman, Brendan Carr, has previously threatened to take away some of EchoStar's spectrum licenses. The second interest payment due July 1st, which EchoStar won't pay, comes to $114 million and by refusing to make the payment, a 30-day grace period is triggered. While EchoStar has enough cash on hand to make both interest payments on time, the company is holding off on one of them in order to gain some leverage in negotiations with the FCC. Carr wants EchoStar to give up licenses on spectrum that he says the company isn't using. The FCC Chairman said, "It's my view that right now, we are really working hard to make sure this valuable public resource of spectrum is put to use. No new news to break, but I think the status quo needs to change. There's lots of different paths forward there and all options are still on the table at the FCC." -FCC Chairman Brendan Carr Former FCC chief of staff Blair Levin, who now works as a policy analyst at New Street Research, says that Carr wants to "force a reallocation of spectrum from EchoStar to others." What Levin is talking about is the 2 GHz spectrum licensed by EchoStar which FCC Chairman Carr asked EchoStar about in a letter. Carr wants to know exactly how often EchoStar is using the 2 GHz band. The reason why Carr is so interested in EchoStar's 2 GHz usage is because Elon Musk's SpaceX has its eyes on the 2 GHz spectrum because it is superior for satellite to cellphone communications than the airwaves that SpaceX uses now. The FCC chairman had no comment about a meeting he supposedly attended at the White House earlier this month with President Donald Trump and EchoStar Chairman Charlie Ergen. Secure your connection now at a bargain price! We may earn a commission if you make a purchase Check Out The Offer
Phone Arena
4 hours ago
- Phone Arena
New Galaxy Z Fold 7 and Flip 7 renders show off Samsung's much thinner side profile
Flip 7 Fold 7 Flip 7 Fold 7 Yes, the Fold 7 looks brilliant! No, it's still a dated phone It's good, but needs to be even better Fold 7 Leaked renders of the Flip 7 and Fold 7 . | Image credit — Evan Blass Slim, yet powerful Fold 7 Receive the latest Samsung news Subscribe By subscribing you agree to our terms and conditions and privacy policy Galaxy Z Fold 6 Just what the foldable industry needed Fold 7 Fold 7 Flip 7 Flip 7 Fold 7 Yeah, 8.9 mm. Compared to the 12.1 mm of the Galaxy Z Fold 6 , it almost feels like Samsung has skipped a generation or Samsung hasn't sacrificed performance to achieve this slim form. Under the hood, thewill be powered by the Snapdragon 8 Elite, the same processor that's found in the entire Galaxy S25 is promising its most advanced foldable smartphone yet, and rumors claim that the main display's crease is vastly improved over the. The battery — said to be the same 4,400 mAh as the Fold 6 — and the charging speeds are a bit of a letdown, foldable industry has been in a bit of a downward spiral, despite some excellent phones like the Oppo Find N5, the Honor Magic V5, and the Xiaomi Mix Flip 2 . Samsung is one of the few manufacturers that can afford to continue investing in foldables, and I'm glad it's doing really good, and may just be what the foldable industry needed. Samsung's upcoming G Fold tri-foldable smartphone will further bring innovation to the market, and give the Huawei Mate XT some competition as well. And, of course, if the foldable iPhone comes out next year, that's likely to get some people's Honor Magic V5 is the slimmest foldable ever, as of now. However, if you value long-term software support, or are just a fan of Samsung's One UI, then theis the phone for you. TheFE, andwill be unveiled next month, and will become available for purchase in August.
Phone Arena
5 hours ago
- Phone Arena
Android might be getting this iPhone feature you didn't know you needed when you make calls
Google may be working on a new feature for Android that looks a lot like Apple's Contact Posters in iOS 17. A recent APK teardown of the Google Contacts app reveals code suggesting an upcoming feature called 'calling cards.' While still under development, these calling cards appear to be designed for customizing how you appear when calling someone. The clues were first shared by Android Authority. In version 4.55 of the Google Contacts app, new strings were found that mention using an image as both a contact photo and a calling card. This doesn't give away much, but it hints at a feature that links a profile image to a more personalized call screen. More interestingly, other parts of the code point to support for full-screen images and custom fonts. These features are similar to Apple's Contact Posters, which allow iPhone users to personalize how their name and photo appear on someone else's screen during a call. Apple's feature also ties into NameDrop, a way to share contact info just by holding phones close together. Apple Contact Poster. | Image credit — PhoneArena In Google's case, additional references in Google Play Services mention syncing calling cards to the cloud, and managing them across devices. This could mean that users might be able to set up a card once and use it across different Android devices. If this feature becomes official, it could bring a more modern and visual experience to Android's call interface. Many users already have profile photos linked to their Google accounts, so extending that image into calls could be a simple way to bring some personality to a screen that has mostly remained unchanged. Still, it's important to keep expectations in check. APK teardowns can reveal features in progress, but they don't confirm if or when these features will be released. Google has not announced or confirmed anything about calling cards yet. That said, adding calling cards to Android would make sense. It would offer a small but noticeable improvement to how calls look and feel, especially for those who want to show a little more of their identity. And with iOS already offering something similar, it wouldn't be surprising if Google followed suit. But for now, we'll have to wait and see what this feature actually turns into. Secure your connection now at a bargain price! We may earn a commission if you make a purchase Check Out The Offer
Phone Arena
7 hours ago
- Phone Arena
Samsung's next smart alert might change how you track packages
Samsung may be planning to expand its Now Brief feature with new delivery-related alerts. According to an APK teardown of the Samsung Messages app (version 16.1.10.7), there are signs that the app could soon notify users when they receive messages about package deliveries. Now Brief first appeared with One UI 7 and has slowly gained more functions. Just recently, it was reported that Samsung is working on adding alerts for parking locations, smart home updates, and battery warnings for connected wearables. Now, delivery message notifications could be the next feature in line. The latest findings come from strings of code found inside the Samsung Messages app. One line reads, "You got webp%2$d messages today about a delivery%3$s," while another references, "%d unread messages, including 1 package delivery message." These messages suggest that Now Brief will not only surface package-related updates but also count how many such messages were received that day. This could be helpful for people who want to stay on top of deliveries without constantly checking their apps or emails. Whether it's a new gadget or a personal order, being alerted directly through Now Brief could make the process more convenient. Shortcut to Now Brief on the Samsung Galaxy S25 Edge home screen . | Image credit — PhoneArena However, it's worth noting that these findings are based on an APK teardown, which looks at unreleased code hidden inside an app. These features are often experimental and may never make it to a public release. This possible update also comes after Samsung previously said its Messages app would eventually be shut down. Despite that, new features continue to show up. Some of the other features being worked on include birthday reminders, live location sharing, emoji and sticker reactions, and alerts from the Now Bar about suspicious or blocked messages. If Samsung moves forward with these updates, Now Brief could become a more useful daily tool. It has already shifted from just showing calendar and weather info to offering a wider range of smart alerts. We'll have to wait and see whether delivery alerts will be included in a future update. But the continued development around Now Brief and the Messages app suggests Samsung is still looking for ways to improve its software experience, even if some of these tools stay behind the scenes for now. Secure your connection now at a bargain price! We may earn a commission if you make a purchase Check Out The Offer
Phone Arena
9 hours ago
- Phone Arena
Google Photos just got an update that changes how HDR photos are edited
Google has rolled out a new update for the Photos app that improves how both HDR and SDR images are edited. The goal is to help users keep more of the original detail in their photos, especially when editing images taken in high dynamic range. Photos shot in HDR now keep their full dynamic range and HDR metadata, even after using editing tools like Photo Unblur, Magic Eraser, or Portrait Light. This means the contrast and brightness in the photo should still look accurate after editing, which wasn't always the case before. Google is also adding a new tool called "Ultra HDR" that lets users control how bright an image appears. At the same time, the previous "HDR" slider has been renamed to "Tone," which better describes its role in adjusting contrast and exposure. These changes should make the editing process a bit clearer for users who want to fine-tune their photos. The new "Ultra HDR" and "Tone" tools in Google Photos. | Images credit — PhoneArena One of the more notable changes is the ability to enhance SDR (Standard Dynamic Range) photos to appear more like HDR. This feature uses machine learning to boost highlights, deepen contrast, and improve the overall clarity of older photos or those not originally taken in HDR. While it doesn't turn them into true HDR files, the result is designed to look more vivid on compatible screens. When comparing this to the Photos app on iOS, Google's approach offers more manual control. On iPhones, HDR processing happens automatically with limited editing tools afterward. Apple does preserve HDR metadata, but it doesn't let users convert SDR to HDR or adjust the look of HDR photos to the same extent. In that sense, Google's update gives users more flexibility in how their photos appear. These improvements follow a broader trend of using AI in mobile photo editing, especially on Pixel devices. While some features like Magic Editor aim to make big changes to a photo, this HDR update is more about keeping photo quality consistent after minor edits. In my opinion, this update adds more options without changing how the app works at its core. Some users may need time to get used to the renamed tools, but for those with HDR-capable displays, these improvements could make a noticeable difference in how photos look after editing. Secure your connection now at a bargain price! We may earn a commission if you make a purchase Check Out The Offer
