Algi Febri Sugita/Shutterstock

Apple recently introduced iOS 26, the latest software update for its line of iPhones. It offers tons of upgrades to the user experience, including the new Liquid Glass translucent design, more customization options for the Lock Screen, new features for the Phone and Messages apps — like Call Screening and Live Translation, Camera and Photos improvements, and Apple Intelligence enhancements.

It technically works on any iPhone dating back to iPhone 11 series models, as well as iPhone SE models 2nd-generation and later. However, Apple Intelligence is only available for iPhone 15 Pro and newer models. This includes some features you might not even realize leverage AI processing, which, as a result, won’t be available on older phones.

What’s more, before you download iOS 26 to older model devices with less processing power, you should consider potential issues — like slower performance and faster battery drain. This appears to be common when Apple releases new OS models. While software support extends to older phones, you aren’t necessarily getting the full experience of the upgraded operating system.

How iOS 26 might run on older iPhones

Marvin Samuel Tolentino Pineda/Getty Images

It’s tempting to update your older iPhone to iOS 26. It’s always recommended to update your phone to the latest OS available, after all. But there might be some drawbacks when doing so with older phones.

iOS 26 can be taxing on the system for an older iPhone, one less powerful than newer models despite stated compatibility. You could experience slower performance because of the less powerful hardware. If the device has less RAM or a weaker CPU, it’s unlikely to be able to handle processing as quickly as a newer phone might, for example. Overall, the phone could end up being a bit sluggish.

With all the additional features and background processing common to the latest version of iOS, you may also find that your battery drains faster. Batteries degrade over time as it is, so you probably already notice that you’re recharging your old iPhone more than previously. New features and additional processing demands could put more pressure on an already aging battery, potentially leading to overheating.

iOS 26 features you might miss on an older iPhone

Yalcinsonat1/Getty Images

The most notable exclusion when it comes to iOS 26 features you won’t find on compatible older iPhones is anything related to Apple Intelligence, as mentioned earlier. This includes Image Playground, Live Translation, Visual Intelligence functions, and Genmoji improvements, including merge abilities.

Many other AI-related features are absent from installations of iOS 26 on older iPhones. First up: Polls in group Messages and AI features in the Reminders apps, which provide suggested reminders based on things like actions in e-mails or grocery items for a recipe you’ve bookmarked in Safari. You won’t get AI actions in the Shortcuts apps either, missing out on capabilities like summarizing a PDF or producing a daily brief outlining the weather, your appointments, and reminders pertinent to your day’s schedule. Also missing are the lens cleaning warning — which alerts you if the camera lens is smudged — 3D Lock Screen effects, and AI order tracking in the Wallet app, which displays real-time details of any order purchased with Apple Pay.

Basically, you’ll get basic upgrades with iOS 26 on older iPhones. But to enjoy the full experience, you need at least an iPhone 15 Pro.

Source

Jakub Zerdzicki/Getty Images

We may receive a commission on purchases made from links.

3D printing isn’t as simple as choosing a model and hitting the print button. There’s still a learning curve, and all manner of gadgets and gizmos to make your life easier and give your prints a greater chance of becoming what you envisioned; not just a tangle of spaghetti.

I’ve been reviewing 3D printers for the best part of a decade — from the first ever toy machines that printed no more than a few inches cubed (if they managed to print at all), to the almighty Elegoo Orangestorm Giga with a print volume of around 39,000 inches cubed. Rarely a day goes by when one of my machines isn’t pumping out some cosplay props, wargaming terrain, or other such nerdy goodness (you can even 3D print your own laptop parts). I’ve watched the hobby evolve from slinging around glorified hot glue guns, through the awkward phase of Delta printers and polar coordinate systems, and now to the high-speed, precise and reliable CoreXY-based devices — and some things never change.

It’s been a wild ride and I’ve learnt a few things along the way, including what accessories are actually worth investing in. Some are obvious, while some you’ve probably not heard of.

Dry your filaments: Sunlu dryer box

Even if you don’t live in an area of the world that’s constantly above 70% humidity (I do), PLA filament will still absorb moisture from the moment the package is opened. The more moisture it absorbs, the more brittle it becomes, the worse it adheres to the build plate, and the worse your print quality will get as the moisture boils off inside the hot end and interferes with extrusion. Unless you plan to print solidly for a few days and use an entire 1kg roll at once (you could batch print TSA security keys as presents for your entire neighborhood, I guess?), most printers will benefit from a filament dryer to maintain optimal conditions. 

If you’re swapping between a few filaments, a dryer box becomes essential. Leaving them in the bag or a ziploc with a silica gel packet is not enough. The alternative budget solution is sticking a roll in the oven at a very low temperature for a few hours, and that’s not an exact science, nor is it partner-approved. Best case you get nanoparticles of plastic in your Sunday roast; worst case you get the temperature wrong and get a molten plastic pie that you can’t scrape off. Lovely. 

The Sunlu Filament Dryer is what I use, and I’m happy with its performance and features, but they all largely do the same job.

Multicolor upgrade: CMS or AMS units

This one is very much dependant on your printer, but if you’ve got a compatible printer and not yet upgraded to a multicolor AMS/CMS unit, you’re seriously missing out. Just think of all the multicolor flexidragons you could be selling at your local craft market! Even if you don’t plan to do actual multicolored prints, the AMS unit is a great way to store filaments as you swap out colors between prints, keeping them clean and dry within the sealed container. It’s also a lot less hassle to just choose the color you want in your slicer, and let the machine swap them over.

AMS units typically hold four filament rolls in a sealed environment, and keep tabs on the humidity — though you will need to replace the dehumidifier packs occasionally (about once a year in my experience). Sunlu even offers a heater upgrade for your AMS Gen 1, though the next generation units are starting to integrate heaters directly. 

One warning though: multicolor color printing comes with a lot of waste. As the colors change, the machine needs to purge the previous one to avoid color bleed. It does this by printing out a little spiral, then throwing it out of a hole at the back of the printer. You’ll soon be testing out various bin designs. 

Keep the draught out: an enclosure

Sometimes just looking at a 3D printer in a funny way is enough to make your print fail, but ambient temperature fluctuations and draughts are the worst. Being able to keep the temperatures stable is important for flow, and adhesion — especially at the corners. If a part cools unevenly (which can happen even with a heated build plate), it’ll warp, pull up, and potentially slide off.

Putting an enclosure around your printer will keep the heat in, reduce power usage, and increase print quality and reliability — not to mention the safety benefits, if you have children and pets. Here’s one for the ever popular A1 Mini, but as long as you know the size of your printer you should be able to find something suitable. Prices vary from under $20 for a fabric model with a delicate metal wire frame, up to $200 for a more substantial solid Plexiglass system. Of course, at that price, it might be worth simply buying a new printer with an integrated enclosure.

Shiny shiny: holographic build plates

Holographic build plates are a bit like old school records, with thousands of tiny indentations in the surface. But instead of dragging a needle over them to create sound, light is reflected to create a pseudo-3D image. Even more magical is that if you print something on top of a build plate imbued with these specially patterned surfaces, an exact copy of the pattern is transferred to the print. It won’t improve adhesion, and it won’t fix ugly layer lines, but it can certainly add a little bling to the right models. 

Of course, you’ll need to keep in mind it’s only the bottom layer that gets the holographic treatment, so it’s only good for those items that are normally printed upside down with a big, flat surface — like a phone case or badge. You can buy a variety of patterned build plates depending on the effect you want, from rainbow holographic stars to carbon fiber and camouflage.

Glue parts together: Weld-on plastic cement

Sometimes you’ll want to print something larger, complex, or in multiple parts because your build volume is too small. At that point, you’ll need to glue parts together. But gluing plastic can be tricky. PVA or Elmer’s Glue is useless, as it won’t be absorbed. Superglue can work in a pinch, but it’s too brittle to stand up to any rigour. 

Unlike Superglue (or “cyanoacrylate” to give it the technical name) — which produces a layer of chemical bonding — Weld-On plastic cement melts the plastic to physically merge the pieces together, giving a much stronger, and sometimes seamless connection. Be careful not to use too much though or let it drip on the rest of your print; it’ll eat away at the surface and leave indentations, rough edges, or just ruin the surface texture. Be sure to do a test fit first, as well, because once you’ve committed there’s no going back. 

Keep it clean: Isopropyl alcohol

Grease from your fingers is another factor that stops your print adhering to the build plate. Even if you think you have clean hands, it’ll accumulate, and suddenly your prints stop sticking and you can’t work out why. Thankfully, it’s easy to clean off: just a quick wipe with a little 99% isopropyl alcohol every few prints is sufficient to keep your build plate in top condition. A single 32-oz bottle should last you for years; you don’t need to drown the plate with the stuff. 70% “rubbing alcohol” can also work, but only if it’s just isopropyl and water; anything else in the mix could have the opposite effect. 

It’s not exactly a glamorous accessory, but it is an essential. It stinks, and rapidly evaporates — so don’t forget to screw the cap back on when you’re finished. It’s also highly flammable, so keep your vape away from the craft room because we haven’t got to the bit about fire extinguishers, yet.  

Different nozzle sizes

Kirill Gorshkov/Shutterstock

Most printers ship with a 0.4mm nozzle — that’s the width of the molten filament that’s pushed out layer by layer. While you can adjust the layer height in software, the width is determined by your hardware. Luckily, modern printers make it a relatively easy process to swap out the nozzle.

So, why would you want to do this? If you’re printing particularly small models with a lot of fine details, you’ll get cleaner results with a smaller 0.2mm nozzle. Print time will typically double, however. Meanwhile, if you want to print quicker and don’t mind a loss of detail, a larger 0.6mm nozzle will be better. This is especially true if your model has a lot of walls. This Voronoi lamp went from a little under 20 hours to just over 11 hours. If your printer is big enough and happens to be fed by concrete, you can 3D-print a house in 140 hours – imagine the nozzle size on that! 

The other benefit of using a larger nozzle is that you’ll get less clogging when printing with abrasive filaments (like glow-in-dark, wood, or carbon-fiber infused) or flexible filaments (like TPU). While you’re at it, you should also make sure it’s a hardened steel nozzle to lessen the wear and tear of abrasive fibers (printers usually ship with a basic brass nozzle). Sadly, you can’t just swap out the nozzle and start printing in chocolate. 

All the tools: Rustark 3D Printing Kit

Whichever way you look at it, a 42-piece 3D printer toolkit at less than $30 is ridiculously good value. It has everything you’ll need to cut supports and filament, clean the nozzle, scrape your prints off the build plate, debur them, and even some cheap callipers for designing your own models (though I wouldn’t expect great tolerances). There’s a cutting mat, and a bag to store it all in, too. Don’t forget the added fun of playing the “what on earth is this thing even for?” game.  

That said, don’t rush to buy this until your printer has arrived — most come with a little toolkit of the basics, and you can get away without the nice-to-have bits until you’ve got a few prints under your belt. At that point, you’ll probably have a better idea of which tools you need more of and where your arsenal is lacking. 

Safety first: Fire extinguisher

Jj Gouin/Getty Images

While 3D printers are equipped with all manner of safety cut-offs and thermal fuses, they still sling a piece of pointy metal around at upwards of 200 degrees C and run a mini-heater constantly on the build plate. Even if the nozzle temperature has cooled because of an error, the build plate stays hot to ensure the print doesn’t peel away while you fix the other problem. There’s always an unforeseen risk of some glob of plastic getting caught where it shouldn’t, or an electronic part failing, or cables being inadvertently pulled out by moving parts. 

So, having a fire extinguisher around just in case of emergencies is sensible. But what type of fire extinguisher? A regular pressurized water-based extinguisher will ruin the printer for sure, even if the fire otherwise did little damage. Dry powder extinguishers are a little more expensive at around $100, but the chemicals may corrode your electronics. A CO2 extinguisher is best for electrical fires, and won’t damage your printer in the process — but it’s also the most expensive at upwards of $200 each. A cheaper option to consider are fire suppression balls, which sit on top of your printer and shower everything with powder when they detect a flame. Samsung even tried to make a flower vase that could explode into fire suppressing goo. 

Tidy up stringing: Hot air gun

Pixel Enforcer/Shutterstock

Stringing — or whispy strands of extruded filament where the print head moved quickly — is a perpetual problem unless you’re willing to spend hours dialling in the retraction and temperature settings for every new filament you buy.

But there’s a quick and simple “hack” that can deal with stringing: a hot air gun. You don’t need anything fancy, just a quick blast of hot air will shrivel the whispy strings up so they’re either imperceptible, or turn into a tiny ball that you can easily cut off. Just be careful not to leave the hot blast of air dwelling on the print for too long, or you’ll end up deforming it.

In fact, some models are made to be melted with a heat gun after being printed, like this infamous hairy lion whose glorious mane you can melt into place like a L’Oréal commercial.  

Skip this: glue or hairspray for better adhesion

myboys.me/Shutterstock

You might have heard that a glue stick or hairspray is essential to make your print stick to the bed, but it’s not 2010 any more. Modern printers and build plates don’t need glue to print in basic PLA — you’ll just end up with a sticky, unnecessary mess. Material science has come on a long way, and most printers now use an engineered steel textured PEI (polyetherimide) build plate combined with a heated print bed.

That means if you are having problems with adhesion to your build plate, it more than likely points to more fundamental issues with calibration: bed levelling, Z-height, or machine wobble. Make sure you’re printing on as stable a surface as possible, and rerun the height calibration. Hairsprays and glue will just mask the underlying issue (and, ironically, make everything worse). 

In fact, the only time you might need a glue stick on a modern 3D printer is when you’re printing in PETG, and that’s only to reduce the adhesion, not increase it. If you don’t use glue, it can actually stick too well to the bed, ripping up some of the surface in the process.

Methodology

Azmanjaka/Getty Images

This list was created from over a decade of experience, as well as compiled from new user “what else should I buy?!” threads on Reddit. I’ve had my fair share of failed prints, and tried all kinds of techniques to improve print quality or make tricky prints adhere better. I’ve never tried 3D printing shoes though, I’ll admit. Modern 3D printers are getting so close to being plug and play devices that anyone can use, but they’re not quite there yet. Like any hobby, there’s always going to be some essential accessories and maintenance tools, things that can make your life easier, and we’ve tried to share a few with you here.

Source

José Adorno/BGR

Apple is expected to release an all-new iPhone Fold next year. This foldable device has been rumored for a few years, and it’s now finally on its way to becoming a reality. The latest to corroborate Apple moving forward with the iPhone Fold pre-production is The Economic Daily (via IT Home). According to the publication, the iPhone Fold has entered the engineering verification and pre-mass production process.

Not only that, but some assembly factories said that they have already entered the stocking state, so they can ship parts of the iPhone Fold to assembly plants whenever Apple gives a go-ahead. Besides the iPhone Fold, Apple is expected to unveil the next generation of its Pro iPhone models, with the iPhone 18 Pro and iPhone 18 Pro Max expected to launch in September 2026. According to previous rumors, the iPhone Fold is expected to bring a massive change to Apple’s iPhone release schedule, with the company expected to unveil the base iPhone 18, iPhone Air 2, and iPhone 18e in the first half of 2027.

These are the latest iPhone Fold rumors

José Adorno/BGR

Reports claim the iPhone Fold will feature a 5.5-inch cover screen and a 7.8-inch foldable display. Most importantly, Apple is expected to completely remove the crease in the middle of the inner display, making the product stand out from the competition. The iPhone is also expected to feature Apple’s A20 Pro chip, which should use TSMC’s new 2nm manufacturing process. Besides that, all iPhone 18 models are expected to feature 12 GB of RAM, including the iPhone Fold.

In addition to these rumors, Apple might add a massive battery to the iPhone Fold while still maintaining the form factor of two iPhone Airs stacked up. Apple could use silicon-carbon batteries, which could help the company increase the total battery capacity of the iPhone. Finally, there’s also a report saying Apple might use a 24MP under-display camera for the iPhone Fold. However, this seems unlikely since it may compromise the camera quality, as seen on the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold lineup — forcing the brand to revert to a hole-punch setup.

Source

We may receive a commission on purchases made from links.

The Universal Serial Bus (USB) connection has been around since the mid-’90s, introduced as a means of wiring a wide range of accessories to a desktop PC, including peripherals like mice, keyboards, and external storage devices. While the modern world deals mainly in USB-A and USB-C ports, the USB-B standard is still around, too — it’s just not as commonly used. 

The USB-B connector is the largest of the three USB ports. The connection is a boxy shape with slanted top corners, and is primarily used to connect devices like printers and scanners. You’ll also find it on musical gear like MIDI keyboards and synthesizers, as well as various medical technologies. In many cases, you’ll only see a USB-B connector on one end of a USB cable, with the other end being a USB-A connector. 

As the USB standard has evolved over the years, USB-B has been through a couple of generational changes, too. The USB 1.1 and 2.0 generations use the same USB-B connector type, but USB 3.0 introduced a new design that utilized nine pins (instead of the older version’s four) for improved data transfer speeds. And depending on the hardware generation you’re working with, USB-B ports and connectors may also be one of several colors.

Why critical gear still relies on USB-B

Unlike USB-A and USB-C, the USB-B port’s boxier port style provides a more robust and physically secure connection. This isn’t to say that A and C ports aren’t reliable; USB-B was simply designed with extra stability in mind — to give you that extra-snug, wiggle-free hookup that won’t unplug if accidentally jostled.

This is especially important for hardware that requires a steady stream of data to operate, like medical scanners or on-stage peripherals for a live music setup. Should the unplanned nudge or rockstar antics disturb a USB-B cable, the port’s firm hold will likely keep the wire plugged in.

Thanks to the thicker port housing and stronger hold, USB-B connectors are often able to endure more plug-unplug cycles — usually up to 5,000 — than USB-A, which is 1,500 cycles or less. For devices that simply can’t part with a data-power stream for any amount of time, USB-B is often your best bet, and maybe the only USB connector you’ll be able to use.

Why USB-C is the port standard that actually makes life easier

While some of the best uses for your PC’s USB ports tend to involve USB-A and USB-C gadgetry (especially since most computers don’t use USB-B), that doesn’t mean you won’t come across the occasional USB-B-powered tech. There are also several Micro and Mini variations of both USB-B and USB-A you may encounter in the wild.

Generally speaking, USB-C is the connection that matters most as we head into the future of consumer tech and even professional-grade equipment — and it’s also far easier to work with than USB-B and USB-A. Why, you may be wondering? Neither of those port types is reversible, which means your USB cable or peripheral can only be connected one way.

This can prove particularly challenging when you’re fumbling around in a dimly lit space or fighting gravity at an awkward angle — like when you’re half-contorted behind a TV, blindly feeling for a port so you can plug in a flash drive. With USB-A or USB-B, you inevitably end up doing the classic “flip it, flip it back, try again” dance. USB-C eliminates the guesswork. If the connector fits in the space, it’s going to plug in.

Source

Filippobacci/Getty Images

As a photographer, you need to have the best tools to do your job well. That includes appropriate hardware like a camera or smartphone. But hardware alone won’t meet all your needs. You also need to have certain apps to augment your work or fulfill other needs, such as photo storage. However, if you’ve tried to search for photography apps on the Google Play Store or App Store, you’ve certainly been bombarded with a plethora of options. The sheer volume of photography and photography-adjacent apps makes it tough to know what’s really important and what can be skipped.

But you don’t need most of them. In fact, you only need to get a few essential photography apps to meet your different needs as a photographer. You need an app for taking images with more freedom over the shooting process, another for editing to make your work look perfect, and another to store and share your work easily.

Photoshop Express

Mariakray/Shutterstock

While modern smartphones have solid camera hardware, you won’t always get a picture that is ready to share. You may need to adjust the tones, contrast, shadows, and whatnot. That’s where Adobe’s Photoshop Express app comes in handy. It’s an image editing app that is meant for quick photo editing, and unlike other Adobe photo-editing apps, Photoshop Express is beginner-friendly with an easy-to-use interface. 

It features templates that you can use to retouch your images for quickly sharing on social media. And if you prefer to manually adjust different aspects of your image, like saturation, contrast, and brightness, you can do it. The editor also has support for healing, cropping, background removal, overlays, and collages, among other features. You can even edit RAW images in Photoshop Express. 

Like other Adobe apps, the app has built-in AI-powered tools, including an AI text-to-image generator and Adobe’s Sensei for advanced editing, like selective editing without heavy lifting. The app automatically saves your work in Adobe’s Creative Cloud, so you can freely switch devices and pick up from where you left off. Photoshop Express is free to download from the Google Play Store and App Store. It has a free plan, but you’ll need to pay for Premium ($5.99/month or $59.99/year) for full capabilities.

VSCO

Sidney van den Boogaard/Shutterstock

Another essential app for photography is VSCO, available on iOS, Android, and desktop (Windows and macOS). As an editing app, the app includes all the essentials for adjusting different aspects of an image or video for perfect results, such as exposure, size, contrast, tone, saturation, white balance, HSL, blur, and clarity. But if you’re not yet comfortable manually adjusting these aspects, VSCO has over 200 presets that you can apply for one-click editing. 

For example, the app has dedicated film filters that make your photos look like they’re from old-school cameras from companies like Kodak and Fujifilm. It also includes an AI Lab feature (exclusive to iOS as of this writing) with AI-powered editing tools, such as object removal and image upscaling. VSCO stands out with its recipes feature, which allows you to create your own presets for batch editing.

VSCO offers a free plan with limited features, such as access to a handful of presets and one recipe. You’ll need to pay for one of its plans to access all its features without restrictions, including access to all available presets, cloud sync, and advanced editing features like HSL and Split Tone. The Plus plan costs $7.99/month (or $29.99/year paid annually), while the Pro plan costs $12.99/month (or $59.99/year billed annually). You can download VSCO for free from the Google Play Store and App Store.

Halide Mark II

Halide is a camera app that packs advanced features, giving you more control when taking images. When you install the app, it lets you choose whether you want your images to be processed by AI or not. You can choose to disable all processing for a RAW image without artificial enhancements, or select between your iPhone’s default or reduced processing. And when shooting images, you can pick between Halide’s automatic or manual mode if you need more control over the process. 

In manual mode, you can adjust the ISO, shutter speed, and white balance. You can also focus manually using built-in tools like Focus Loupe and Peaking. Aside from that, the app includes several convenience features for shooting stills, such as zebras, grid overlay, zoom, flash, white balance, and a timer. In Halide, you can take photos in different formats, including ProRAW, HEIC, and JPEG.

The app also has an Apple Watch companion app and Siri shortcuts for remote shooting, which can be handy in different scenarios, such as when taking pictures of the moon with your iPhone hooked to a phone holder. There’s also a special feature dubbed Neutral Macro that enables you to take macro shots on any iPhone. Halide is free to download from the App Store. However, you’ll need to pay to use the app. It costs $11.99/month (or $22.99/year) or $69.99 one-time if you prefer to buy the app instead.

500px

Klevo/Shutterstock

As a photographer, your job doesn’t end after shooting and editing images. You also need a way to store the images for future reference or share with a client (if it was a paid job). And that’s where 500px shines. 500px is an app built for photographers to store and share their images. The app has a vibrant community of photographers, so using it gives you a chance to showcase your work to potential clients and get inspiration from others. 

You can upload your hi-res photos to 500px for storage and share them with everyone if you’d like. The app includes image organization features, such as galleries and tags, that come in handy when searching for photos later. You can also license your work to 500px for royalties, which is great if you want to earn an income from your photography skills.

500px has a free plan that limits you to 21 hi-res photo uploads per week, and you can upgrade to the Awesome or Pro plan for $6.49 (or $47.90/year) and $12.99 (or $95.90/year), respectively, for more features. Both plans include features like unlimited storage, advanced analytics, no ads, and offline viewing. The Pro plan also lets you create a portfolio website on 500px to showcase your work. Download 500px for free from the Google Play Store and App Store.

Source

Technical errors with the Home Office’s electronic visa (eVisa) system are causing “high levels of stress, fear and exhaustion” for migrants in the UK, who are being left to navigate the digitisation of their immigration status with minimal support, research has found.

The report, Exclusion by design: Digital identification and the hostile environment for migrants, said the error-prone eVisa system represents a precursor of what’s to come with mandatory digital ID, arguing that efforts to digitise the immigration system represent an opportunity to test such systems on a precarious section of the population before extending them out more broadly.  

On 31 December 2024, the physical immigration documents of millions of people living in the UK expired after being replaced with a real-time, online-only immigration status by the Home Office.

With paper documents having been completely phased out, people are now expected to use a UK Visas and Immigration (UKVI) digital account to generate “share codes”, which they are supposed to use to prove their immigration status when dealing with a range of third parties, including employers and letting agencies.

This means the eVisa system – which trawls more than 90 disparate government databases to generate and determine someone’s immigration status each time they log in – is the only means by which people can prove their lawful residence in the UK, as well as evidence their associated rights and entitlements.

‘Substantial barriers’ 

However, the research – published on 5 December 2025 by academics Derya Ozkul from the University of Warwick and Marie Godin from the University of Leicester, in collaboration with Migrant Voice and the Open Rights Group – has found that the mandatory eVisa system is deeply impacting the daily lives of migrants, including their ability to work, rent or buy, travel, study, and access vital public services.

“The transition to a fully digital immigration status system marks a significant shift in how migrants interact with the UK’s immigration infrastructure,” it said, noting that while digitisation is being presented as a modernisation effort aimed at improving efficiency and security, the research demonstrates that its current implementation has created substantial barriers for many migrants.

It also found that the “frequent technical problems” are being made worse by a lack of support from the Home Office, and that migrants’ sense of vulnerability is being heightened by the wider hostile environment in which this digitisation is taking place.

“Worries of being unable to prove legal status – within a hostile environment that emphasises enforcement, detention and deportation – were pervasive,” said the report, adding that research participants shared “a deep fear of losing their rights” if they made mistakes.

“Because the system requires migrants to regularly update their information, even minor or inadvertent errors were perceived as potentially jeopardising their status,” it said. “This created a persistent sense of vulnerability. Moreover, the burden of managing these risks and the anxiety associated with them falls entirely on migrants.”

It added that this was creating “a deep sense of mistrust” towards the Home Office among migrants with negative experiences of the system, which were particularly acute for those with limited digital literacy, language barriers, disabilities or caring responsibilities.

The findings echo many of the sentiments previously shared with Computer Weekly by people experiencing technical errors with the eVisa system, who spoke in June 2025 about the “anxiety-inducing” psychological toll of not being able to reliably prove their immigration status in the face of a hostile and unresponsive bureaucracy.

“Our report highlights the experiences of migrants across the UK – of different nationalities, legal statuses and family situations – who were forced to adapt to the new system with little time or support,” said Godin.

“Many described confusion and anxiety as they navigated a complex, glitch-prone platform, fearing that even small mistakes could cost them the right to work, rent or travel. The constant pressure to manage their digital status and fix technical issues left many exhausted, reinforcing migrants’ perceptions that the shift to digitalisation prioritised control over fairness, efficiency and accessibility.” 

Ozkul said she hopes the report can serve as a warning about “what can go wrong when systems are made compulsory and digital-only, without offering any alternatives”.

Highlighting how the proposed introduction of digital ID in the UK has been framed around the need to curb illegal immigration, the report said the online-only eVisa has effectively positioned migrants “as a testing ground” for its broader national digital ID ambitions.

“While migrants have served as ‘technological testing grounds’ in other contexts (Molnar 2020), such experiments have typically focused on managing external borders rather than governing populations within state borders,” it said.

“In this respect, the UK represents a distinctive and troubling case: it has piloted a digital identity system on migrants residing within its territory, effectively normalising experimental forms of digital identification on a specific, already precarious group before considering similar digital infrastructures for the general public.”

Policy recommendations

The report goes on to make a number of policy recommendations that can help alleviate the situation for migrants. In the short term, this includes providing non-digital alternatives for migrants, ensuring there is transparency over what data is stored and which government agencies it may be shared with, and creating accessible repeal and redress mechanisms.

In the longer term, it said the Home Office should establish meaningful two-way communication with civil society organisations supporting migrants; introduce clear legal safeguards to prevent individuals or organisations, such as shop staff or political activists, from demanding proof of digital immigration status without lawful authority; and stop the experimental use of technology on migrants.

“The Home Office can take immediate steps to reduce the anxiety that migrants are experiencing by giving them the safety of a physical or digital backup that will allow them to prove their status in any circumstances,” said Sara Alsherif, migrants digital justice programme manager at Open Rights Group, which collaborated with the authors on creating the report.

“However, root and branch reform of this system is also needed and lessons must be learnt, especially as the government intends to roll digital ID out to everyone in the UK.”

The report itself added that implementing the recommendations would significantly reduce the risks and inequities created by the current digital immigration system.

“By prioritising accessibility, transparency and accountability, the Home Office can ensure that the digitalisation of public services does not compromise migrants’ rights,” it said. “Failure to act will perpetuate systemic exclusion, deepen inequalities and erode trust in public authorities.”

Computer Weekly contacted the Home Office about the contents of the report, but received no response.

Source

José Adorno/BGR

Last Friday, Intel’s share price was up 10% due to the news of winning orders for Apple’s M-series chips in 2027. While these talks were already happening months ago — as BGR highlighted GFHK analyst Jeff Pu’s note on the matter – that same analyst now says Intel might get even more orders from Apple, this time for the company’s non-Pro iPhone chips.

According to a note seen by BGR, Intel could start manufacturing Apple’s A-series chips in 2028 using its new 14A process, a node that is also expected to attract major wins from Nvidia and AMD’s server divisions. Additionally, the analyst says this partnership will be key to Apple due to the “Made in America” trend. 

With that, Intel is expected to deliver Apple’s low-end M-series chips starting in 2027, with the company on track to enter its high-volume manufacturing stage later this year and debut the 18A technology during CES 2027. Pu says the yield rate reached 60-65% in November, and it’s targeting 70% by the end of 2025.

What this new partnership means for Apple

José Adorno/BGR

Apple currently only relies on TSMC to produce its most powerful A and M chips. If Intel is able to ensure quality, not only can Apple negotiate the price of future chips, but it can also promote some of its processors being manufactured in America.

According to Pu, Intel is getting its next-gen chip factories ready to begin production in 2026. While it might start with a small production to ensure everything works properly, it expects a big 2027, first with Mac chips, followed by non-Pro iPhone chips in 2028. That said, Intel might be responsible for Apple’s M7 and A21 chips, or the following generation, by using the 14A and 18A manufacturing processes.

What’s more interesting about the story is that Apple will phase out all Macs with Intel chips when it releases macOS 27, and one generation later, it will use the company’s expertise on chips to produce Apple Silicon, which was what pushed Apple away from Intel chips in the first place.

Source

José Adorno/BGR

Apple’s AirPods have been available for almost a decade now. With the latest iteration — the AirPods Pro 3 – users have more features than ever to enjoy the company’s best wireless earbuds. As Apple adds more functionality, though, some users may not be able to take full advantage of all the features, since activating them can involve several steps. This is why we decided to put together a list of all the AirPods Pro 3’s settings so you can discover what you can do with them.

Once you have your AirPods Pro 3 connected to your iPhone, you can go to Settings and tap on your AirPods. There, you can give your earbuds a different name than Apple’s default nomenclature. This screen allows you to switch between the different listening modes, i.e., Transparency, Adaptive, or Noise Cancellation, among other options. Here’s everything else you can do with your new earbuds.

Live Translation, Find My, head gestures, and heart rate measurements

Christian de Looper/BGR

With iOS 26, Apple added Live Translation capabilities to AirPods running on the H2 chip. Users can choose between a variety of languages to have real-time translation in their ears. That said, it’s important to download the languages before using this feature. Apple also offers head gestures for AirPods, which means you can move your head up and down to accept a call or reply to a message, or move side to side to decline calls. You can enable all of these features from the same Settings menu.

You can also find your lost AirPods with Apple’s Find My app. Thanks to the new U2 chip, it’s easier to find your AirPods case even if it’s a bit farther away using Precision Find. An exclusive feature introduced with the AirPods Pro 3 is the built-in heart rate sensor, which works during a workout and even calculates the calories burned based on your heart rate. If you use the Apple Watch with your AirPods, you get an extra channel for measuring your heart rate, making it more reliable.

Hearing health and other custom settings

Christian de Looper/BGR

Apple is taking hearing health rather seriously with the AirPods Pro 3. This is why users can set Hearing Protection or use Hearing Assistance to aid users with mild to moderate hearing loss by boosting voices and sounds around them. Besides that, the AirPods Pro 3 can make adjustments that improve the clarity of music, videos, and calls. Users can take a hearing test from the Health app or activate hearing assistance from the AirPods Settings page. Users can also customize the tap or stem-press actions.

These gestures can be used to invoke Siri, switch noise cancellation modes, play/pause music, etc. You can also tweak call controls, such as pressing once to mute/unmute a call, or twice to end it. What’s new with this generation is the ability to take photos with AirPods. By activating the Camera Remote feature, you can choose whether pressing the stem once or pressing and holding it can start a recording inside the Camera app.

Other good-to-know AirPods Pro 3 features

Christian de Looper/BGR

The AirPods Pro 3 has a new Battery settings menu, which not only optimizes charging patterns with usage but also delivers charging notifications when the battery is low or when the AirPods have been fully charged. There’s also an Accessibility page that can make it easier for you to adjust the speed required to press your AirPods stem for activation, use ANC with just one AirPod, turn on Loud Sound Reduction, and even adjust the volume of tones played by the AirPods.

One of our favorite AirPods features is turning on the “Off Listening Mode,” which shows how much your AirPods can protect you against loud noises. This feature is perfect for when you’re at a concert or passing by a construction site. Finally, at the end of the AirPods settings screen, you can check the model, serial number, and firmware version. Users can also check the Limited Warranty and add AppleCare coverage on the same page.

Source

Lee Charlie/Shutterstock

If you grew up around some of the earlier models of televisions and computers, you may have received at least one sternly-worded warning to never place a magnet near them. These warnings still persist into the modern day, with the notion of placing a magnet near any electronic device generally considered a bad idea because it could damage the electronics. In actuality, while magnets can be mildly hazardous for some devices, the lion’s share of concern is a myth rooted in outdated technology.

The primary worry regarding magnets and electronics is that placing a magnet near a device could shift its components around or erase vital data. This was certainly true at a time when electronics like TVs and hard drives used magnetized components, but in today’s world, such components are rarely used, if ever. The technology used in modern devices today is much more resistant to the mild magnetic fields you’d find on a typical consumer-grade magnet, so it’s not nearly as much of a concern. That’s not to say there’s no concern whatsoever, as an extremely powerful magnet could still damage modern electronics, but the odds of the average person owning or even encountering such a magnet are low.

Magnets used to be a bigger concern for CRT TVs and hard drives

Pressmaster/Shutterstock

In the olden days of cathode ray tube (CRT) television sets and traditional disc-based hard drives, magnets were certainly more of a valid concern. That’s because these types of electronics made use of magnetized components to store data and display pictures. A CRT TV, for example, uses a cathode ray to beam electrons onto a phospor-covered glass surface. The singular beam is moved rapidly via a process known as electromagnetic deflection, which uses internal magnets. The phosphor then glows to create a solid picture. Similarly, a hard drive also uses magnets to write and overwrite data on the metal platter hard disc drive (HDD).

Placing a magnet near either of these devices could, in theory, damage them, distorting the screen or corrupting the data, as placing one magnet near another magnet can mess with its magnetic field. Before you throw away all of your hard drives, though, it’s worth noting that you would need a particularly powerful magnet applied directly to the most vulnerable point to do damage. In general, you would need to place a very strong magnet magnet right on top of a cathode ray tube or a hard drive’s platter to permanently damage them. Just leaving a fridge magnet beside a modern TV or computer won’t have a significant affect on either device because such a low-grade magnetic field isn’t strong enough to alter an established electromagnetic current.

Modern tech is more resistant to magnets, though not completely

Sundry Photography/Shutterstock

Modern TVs and PCs, alongside similar electronic devices like phones, make far less use of those heavily magnetized components than they used to, if they even still use them at all. Flat screen TVs, for example, now use liquid-crystal displays (LCD) and LEDs, with no magnets or cathode rays involved. While hard disc drives still exist, today’s newest computers have more reliable solid-state drives (SSDs) that don’t use magnetic platters to write data. Without these magnetic components, there’s even less risk of an errant fridge magnet damaging your electronics when the odds were already low.

For the sake of being thorough, however, we should clarify that it is possible for certain kinds of magnets to still be hazardous to modern electronic devices. Specifically, we’re talking about scientific-grade neodymium magnets with a pulling force of at least 450 pounds. This kind of magnet could absolutely damage any kind of electronic device – even the flash chips in a solid-state drive wouldn’t be immune to that kind of powerful magnetic scrambling. Don’t panic, though, because the odds of a neodymium magnet ever coming near your electronics are extremely low. You’ll typically only find these kinds of magnets in professional-grade equipment, like MRI machines, magnetic cranes, or the massive superconductive magnets in a fusion reactor. Unless you happen to walk into a hospital’s MRI screening room, it’s probably not something you need to worry about.

Source

M21Perfect/Shutterstock

The Mac Mini is one of Apple’s most appealing computers, particularly for those who want the benefits of a desktop computer without the premium pricing of Apple’s more professionally minded Mac Studio. The Mac Mini is Apple’s smallest desktop option, after all, and with the latest models featuring the M4 or M4 Pro chip, it delivers plenty of performance for most people’s computing needs. Starting at $599 for the base model, the Mac Mini even costs significantly less than a new iMac.

But the Mac Mini is a little different than other Apple computers. In order to achieve that $599 price point, Apple has left some things out of the package that you would typically get when purchasing another Apple computer. The Mac Mini itself also requires a little knowledge in order to ensure you’re getting your money’s worth, and these are important considerations when making a purchase.

Understanding what comes in the box, what doesn’t, and which hardware configurations are best for your needs will be imperative as you go through the process of purchasing a Mac Mini. These considerations can be the difference between a great value purchase and an expensive mistake. So let’s explore some of the things you need to know before making the purchase a new Mac Mini.

You’ll need peripherals

Duckycards/Getty Images

Unlike many of Apple’s other computers, the purchase of a Mac Mini only includes a power cord and the Mac Mini. That means no keyboard, no mouse, and no display. This is important to know when making a purchase, as it will help you nail down the true cost of going with a Mac Mini as your desktop computer. Staying within Apple’s hardware ecosystem will set you back $79 for a Magic Mouse or $129 for a Magic Trackpad, as well as $99 for a Magic Keyboard. And getting an Apple-made display for the Mac Mini will add to its cost substantially, as the Apple Studio Display goes for $1,599.

Of course, if you’re switching from another desktop computer you likely already have all of the peripherals you’ll need to make the Mac Mini a true value play. It will work with non-proprietary Bluetooth accessories such as keyboards and mice, and it includes USB-C ports and an HDMI port for connecting a monitor. Brands such as Dell, BenQ, and LG make more affordable monitor options than Apple if you don’t already have a monitor you can pair with a Mac Mini. Third-party keyboards and mice will also be much more affordable than Apple’s offerings if you just need some entry-level equipment to get up and running with a new Mac Mini.

It has port limitations

Aytug Bayer/Shutterstock

Apple has equipped the Mac Mini with some speedy connectivity options. On the back you’ll find three USB-C ports with Thunderbolt 4 support, each capable of transmitting data at high speeds. These are ideal for connecting hard drives, solid state drives, and card readers for the transfer of large media files. With the M4 chip onboard, the Mac Mini can even power up to three external displays using these ports. Also on the back of the Mac Mini are an HDMI port and an ethernet port, with the front side of the computer sporting two USB-C ports and a headphone jack.

But Apple’s all USB-C approach presents a limitation for some users. If you’re bringing older equipment from a previous desktop computer to your Mac Mini setup, you’ll be just fine if those happen to be wireless peripherals that connect via Bluetooth. But it’s important to recognize that the Mac Mini has no USB-A ports, which means any of your older equipment that utilizes a USB-A connection will need an adapter. The Mac Mini also lacks a built-in SD card reader, so if you do creative work that relies on media captured by external devices, you’ll need to track down an external USB-C card reader.

Pick the right processor

Koshiro K/Shutterstock

The base Mac Mini comes with Apple’s M4 chip. This is the same processor Apple uses across its Mac lineup, and it’s designed to be both powerful and power efficient. Power efficiency isn’t particularly important with a desktop computer, but ensuring you aren’t spending money on performance capabilities you don’t need is imperative. The M4 processor is going to offer plenty of power for users who only have basic computing needs, but it’s also capable of handling tasks such as photo editing, 4K video playback, and multitasking across software. The cheapest M4 Mac Mini is the only model most users will need, especially if your daily tasks are limited to emails, word processing, spreadsheets, and web browsing.

Apple does have professionals in mind with the Mac Mini, however. The M4 Pro chip is a significant upgrade over the base M4, and it’s available as an upgrade option in the Mac Mini. The M4 Pro’s GPU is nearly twice as powerful as the M4’s, and its Neural Engine contributes to speedy AI-based workflows. With the M4 Pro onboard a Mac Mini, professional video editors can take on multiple streams of 8K video, and coders can compile millions of lines of code at a time. The price of the Mac Mini jumps from $599 to $1,399 when upgrading to the M4 Pro chip, so be sure it’s something you can fully put to use before spending that extra money.

Nail down your RAM and storage

Ronstik/Getty Images

Older versions of the Mac Mini had a design that allowed you to access the hardware and make upgrades on your own, but that’s not the case with the current Mac Mini. Through its unified memory architecture, Apple has integrated the RAM directly with the M4 chip. This delivers faster performance and better power efficiency, but it means you have to get your Mac Mini’s RAM selection correct at checkout. Apple includes 16GB of RAM in its $599 base model, and for an additional $200 you can upgrade to 24GB. A Mac Mini with 32GB RAM will cost $999.

Nailing down the proper amount of internal storage for a Mac Mini isn’t as drastic getting the RAM right, because you can always connect an external SSD through one of the USB-C ports. But upgrading the internal SSD on a Mac Mini is not an easy process, and Apple doesn’t officially support such a move. Despite Apple’s markup on internal components, it will be easiest to simply upgrade the internal storage when purchasing a Mac Mini. The base model comes with 256GB of storage, which will be plenty for users who don’t plan to load the machine up with bulky applications or large media libraries.

There’s savings in buying refurbished

Barry Paterson/Shutterstock

If you’ve looked at MacBooks, iMacs, and Apple’s lineup of professional desktop Macs and you’ve decided on a Mac Mini purely for financial reasons, shopping refurbished Mac Minis is also an option. Apple often discounts the refurbished base model Mac Mini to $509, which is $90 less than purchasing it brand new. Upgraded Mac Minis are also available in Apple’s refurbished inventory, and they can come with even more savings. Apple doesn’t have a definitive price drop for its refurbished products, but often the price of a refurbished Mac Mini with upgraded hardware can amount to some of that hardware being free compared to a new model with the same specs.

The advantage of buying from Apple’s refurbished store rather than hunting for used Mac Minis on third-party marketplaces is that Apple backs refurbished products with the same one-year warranty it provides new models. They’re also eligible for AppleCare+ extended coverage, and Apple will package the refurbished Mac Mini in a new box with its included power cable. The biggest limitation of shopping Apple’s refurbished Macs is inventory. Refurbished Macs can sell quickly without any guarantee of which models are coming in next. If you find a refurbished Mac Mini that suits your needs, be sure to make a purchase while you know it’s in stock.

Source