XFX is gearing up to release a brand new version of the AMD Radeon RX 7900 XTX which is slated to feature a huge 3.5-slot design with power requirements of at least 850W. That means you’ll need 3x PCIe power connectors, deviating from the standard two of the base and partner models for the added functionality.
Spotted by Videocardz, the upcoming Phoenix Nirvana RX 7900 XTX measures in at a massive 13 x 5.1 x 2.8 (LxWxH) making it the largest of the current AIBs available, and dwarfing AMD’s own reference model from 2022. The full model has yet to be fully unveiled, however, teases of the card’s design make a mighty impression. What’s more, it’s alleged to launch at $1,090, just $91 over MSRP.
Given its length, it’s highly likely to be a triple fan graphics card what with that massive heatsink sitting on top. It’s alleged that there’s a total of eight 6mm heat pipes onboard with a vapor chamber for the GPU and the memory modules. From this information, we can glean that this variant is going to have some serious overclocking runway, as we’ve already seen from the likes of the ASUS Tuf RX 7900 XTX.
One of the more interesting claims made by XFX regarding the upcoming Phoenix Nirvana variant is that it will be using “premium thermal pads” for enhanced conductivity, according to the source. This means that the new graphics card could be able to push overclocking further than what we’ve seen from competitors, especially given the size of the heatsink on top.
You may need to do that overclocking yourself, though. The teased information states that the Phoenix Nirvana will be clocked identically to the company’s existing Speedster Merc 319 at 2615 MHz, which isn’t quite as fast as AMD partner cards go, as some versions can push up to 2800 MHz.
The best graphics card for gamers gets better
We haven’t been shy about our love for AMD’s RX 7900 XTX since its release nearly two years ago. The RDNA 3 flagship packs a ton of value for money with its competitive pricing and huge 24GB memory pool. It’s easily the best graphics card for gamers wanting to game in 4K, and it’s good to see Team Red’s partners continue to support it.
The pricing, if accurate, may not be too exciting though. That’s because we’re now seeing many RDNA 3 GPUs including the 7900 XTX available at discounted prices – some even seeing permanent discounts. Should everything about the design and the speed of the card be true then it’s likely going to offer leading thermal performance, even if it doesn’t push the boundaries of what we know it can do out of the box.
Get the hottest deals available in your inbox plus news, reviews, opinion, analysis and more from the TechRadar team.
We recommend reading our full AMD Radeon RX 7900 XTX review to get the full low down on the cards. Even though RDNA 4 is on the horizon, there’s still a lot to expect out of the current crop of GPU hardware to take advantage of.
With all the chatter about the artificial intelligence features of Intel’s new Core Ultra CPUs, it’s easy to forget that AMD has been busy doing AI too. AMD has outfitted many of its Ryzen processors with neural processing units (NPUs) since mid-2023, and it’s continued to expand its AI offerings ever since.
Acer’s latest Nitro 17 gaming laptop (model number AN17-42-R9TH) is built atop an AMD Ryzen 7 8845HS, which sits near the top of AMD’s product line. If you’re engaging with AI on the desktop, you’ll probably bypass the CPU altogether. With the Nvidia GeForce RTX 4060 graphics processor in the Nitro 17, everything from gaming to AI image generation gets a significant boost. Aside from the processors, Acer hasn’t exactly pushed the specs to the limit here: 16 GB of RAM and a 1-terabyte solid-state drive are more or less entry-level options today.
That’s just what’s under the hood. On the outside, the Nitro 17 is every bit the beast you are probably expecting, with a 17.3-inch screen (resolution limited to 1,920 X 1,080 pixels), a daunting 34-millimeter thickness, and a weight that tops 6.3 pounds. It is the heaviest and thickest laptop I’ve tested since 2018, and that’s without the power brick (another full pound).
Photograph: Acer
This laptop has been tricked out for gamers—arguably gamers from the ’90s, but gamers all the same. Sharp, angled corners abound from every angle. The screen is spaced away from the back of the laptop by about a centimeter and propped up on a small riser that feels like a separate device bolted on top of the chassis. It’s largely the same design as 2023, minus a few graphical flourishes.
The responsive keyboard rests in a beveled tray, and it’s color-backlit with four tunable zones and a variety of modes that let colors roll across the keys in various patterns. There’s a numeric keypad and full-size arrow keys along with custom keys, like a Copilot button and a Nitro key that launches Acer’s NitroSense software, which lets you tune every aspect of the laptop experience. Above the keyboard is a stand-alone button that cycles through four power modes, from Quiet to Turbo, all exactly what they sound like.
A tour around the sides and back of the laptop reveals plenty of ports, including two USB-C ports— one USB 3.2, one USB 4—an HDMI jack, a microSD card slot, a full-size Ethernet adapter, and three USB-A ports—one USB 3.2 and one USB 2.0. Why there’s a crusty old USB 2.0 port on the device I can’t fathom, but with this many connectivity options, it probably doesn’t matter much. Much of the rest of the space around the edges features various vents and grilles for the dual exhaust fans. When they run, which is any time there’s a moderate load on the machine, they can get a bit noisy, though I’ve encountered plenty of louder machines in recent years. I expected more from the speakers on the unit, though they’re fine for casual entertainment and gaming use.
For years, Motorola has dominated the budget smartphone market in the US with its Moto G lineup, but these Android phones have never felt particularly exciting. Handsets like the Google Pixel 3A or even the new Nothing Phone (2a) have almost always offered more features, better performance, cooler designs, and nicer cameras for just a few more bucks.
They also suffered from a lack of near-field communication (NFC) support—the sensor that enables tap-to-pay for contactless payments at cash registers, train stations, and the like. Motorola notoriously skipped this perk on its sub-$300 phones in the US for almost a decade, even though it has been standard on competing devices that are as low as $150. This year’s Moto G Power 5G changes that—it is hands down the best Moto G the company has ever made, and is honestly the best phone you can buy for under $300 right now.
Hello Moto
It’s important to make sure you’re looking at the Moto G Power 5G for 2024, as the name of this device has stayed the same over several years. One of the best parts of the new version is how it looks and feels. Gone is the shiny, boring plastic design in favor of a textured vegan leather back that does a surprisingly great job of resisting fingerprints (dust and lint tend to get stuck in the grooves though). I suggest buying the Pale Lilac model, but the Midnight Blue, which is more black to me, is handsome too.
Photograph: Julian Chokkattu
Using this phone, it’s easy to forget it costs just $300. The 6.7-inch LCD is sharp and I’ve had no trouble reading the screen on bright sunny days. The speakers sound decent, there’s a 3.5-mm headphone jack, and the side-mounted fingerprint sensor is reliable.
Performance is a standout too. This Motorola is powered by MediaTek’s Dimensity 7020 chipset with 8 GB of RAM, and while you will notice a few stutters here and there, like when switching between apps, it’s otherwise fairly snappy and smooth. I’ve found it performs more fluidly than Samsung’s Galaxy A35 5G ($400), which I’m currently testing, even if the Samsung scored slightly higher on benchmark tests. To assuage any concerns, I have used the Moto G Power 5G as my daily smartphone for almost a month and haven’t run into any issues.
The 5,000-mAh battery cell comfortably lasts a full day of heavy use—I’ve hit 39 percent after five hours of screen-on time—with enough to make it to the following morning on a single charge. One of the biggest surprises is that you can wirelessly recharge this phone. I say that because wireless charging is generally not available on sub-$400 smartphones. Nothing’s fancy-looking Phone (2a) at $350 doesn’t even have it. I love popping my phone on my bedside wireless charger instead of hunting for a cable in the dark, so it’s a welcome addition, and I hope to see wireless charging creep into cheap phones.
Similarly, I love that a sub-$300 Moto G finally has NFC support. It’s about damn time! I’ve used it to pay for my subway fare, late-night trips to the deli, and coffee. No wallet needed.
Neuromorphic computing is about mimicking the human brain’s structure to deliver more efficient data processing, including faster speeds and higher accuracy, and it’s a hot topic right now. A lot of universities and tech firms are working on it, including scientists at Intel who have built the world’s largest “brain-based” computing system for Sandia National Laboratories in New Mexico.
Intel’s creation, called Hala Point, is only the size of a microwave, but boasts 1.15 billion artificial neurons. That’s a massive step up from the 50 million neuron capacity of its predecessor, Pohoiki Springs, which debuted four years ago. There’s a theme with Intel’s naming in case you were wondering – they’re locations in Hawaii.
Hala Point is ten times faster than its predecessor, 15 times denser, and with one million circuits on a single chip. Pohoiki Springs only had 128,000.
Making full use of it
Equipped with 1,152 Loihi 2 research processors (Loihi is a volcano in Hawaii), the Hala Point system will be tasked with harnessing the power of vast neuromorphic computation. “Our colleagues at Sandia have consistently applied our Loihi hardware in ways we never imagined, and we look forward to their research with Hala Point leading to breakthroughs in the scale, speed and efficiency of many impactful computing problems,” said Mike Davies, director of the Neuromorphic Computing Lab at Intel Labs.
Since a Neuromorphic system of this scale hasn’t existed before, Sandia has been developing special algorithms to ultimately make use of the computer’s full capabilities.
“We believe this new level of experimentation – the start, we hope, of large-scale neuromorphic computing – will help create a brain-based system with unrivaled ability to process, respond to and learn from real-life data,” Sandia lead researcher Craig Vineyard said.
His colleague, fellow researcher Brad Aimone added, “One of the main differences between brain-like computing and regular computers we use today – in both our brains and in neuromorphic computing – is that the computation is spread over many neurons in parallel, rather than long processes in series that are an inescapable part of conventional computing. As a result, the more neurons we have in a neuromorphic system, the more complex a calculation we can perform. We see this in real brains. Even the smallest mammal brains have tens of millions of neurons; our brains have around 80 billion. We see it in today’s AI algorithms. Bigger is far better.”
Sign up to the TechRadar Pro newsletter to get all the top news, opinion, features and guidance your business needs to succeed!
With Apple set to announce iOS 18 (and a whole lot more) at its Worldwide Developers Conference (WWDC) on June 10, it’s rumored that the company is in talks with ChatGPT developer OpenAI to help with a major AI upgrade for the iPhone.
This comes from the usually reliable Mark Gurman at Bloomberg, who says discussions between Apple and OpenAI have been “renewed” and are now intensifying, according to unnamed people “familiar with the matter”.
Last month Bloomberg reported that Apple was speaking to Google about using the Gemini chatbot inside iOS 18, so this hasn’t come completely out of the blue: Apple is clearly looking for a partnership with someone for its next big software upgrade.
What this latest report suggests is that OpenAI might have emerged as the frontrunner in the race, which means tools like ChatGPT and Dall-E (also developed by OpenAI) might find their way into the iOS 18 update, expected to be rolled out around September time.
To be confirmed
Siri could be in line for an upgrade (Image credit: Apple)
Gurman says that Apple hasn’t made a decision yet: it might decide to work with Google, or with OpenAI, or with both companies. What is certain is that iOS 18 is going to be focused very much on artificial intelligence – Apple has already confirmed it.
We can expect iOS 18 to come with some kind of local, device-based AI too. Apple has already been showing off some new large language models (LLMs) that are small enough to be stored and run from a smartphone.
Exactly what we’ll get remains to be seen, but some kind of AI text and image generation seems likely, plus a substantial upgrade to Siri. There have also been rumors of features like AI-powered playlist generation in Apple Music.
Get the hottest deals available in your inbox plus news, reviews, opinion, analysis and more from the TechRadar team.
All eyes are now on WWDC 2024 in June, when everything Apple has been working on should be revealed – for iOS, macOS, watchOS, tvOS, visionOS, and more. Public betas of these updates will then follow, before the final versions get pushed out.
Samsung has launched two new power banks with a new design language. One has a battery capacity of 10,000mAh, while the other has a 20,000mAh battery capacity. Both are now available for purchase in the USA.
Samsung’s 25W 10,000 mAh and 45W 20,000 mAh Battery Packs pricing in USA
The new 25W 10,000mAh Wireless Battery Pack (EB-U2510) from Samsung is priced at $44.99, while the 45W 20,000mAh Battery Pack (EB-P4520) is priced at $29.99. Both power banks follow Samsung’s new design language and come in beige color. You can buy them from Samsung.com in the USA.
The 25W 10,000mAh Wireless Battery Pack has two USB Type-C ports for charging other devices and the battery pack. It maxes out at 25W of power when you connect one device. When you use two USB Type-C ports simultaneously, the power output drops to 15W and 10W for the two ports. It also features 10W wireless charging for smartphones, wireless earbuds, and Galaxy Watches. When both USB Type-C ports and wireless charging are used, the power output is dropped to 10W + 10W + 5W. It comes with a 3A USB Type-C to USB Type-C charging cable.
The 45W 20,000mAh Battery Pack has three USB Type-C ports and can reach a maximum power output of 45W. It can charge three devices simultaneously at 15W each. It comes bundled with a 5A USB Type-C to USB Type-C charging cable. Both power banks have four LEDs for status indication and have been certified by UL for safety.
Spring isn’t just the time for cleaning your home. It’s also the time for renovating, refurbishing, and restoring. That yardwork project you put off last fall? Those garage projects you wanted to do all winter when it was too cold to work out there? Now’s the time to stock up on tools and gear, but you have to act quickly if you want to snag a deal. Home Depot’s Spring Black Friday ends after April 28, and Lowe’s SpringFest ends after May 1, but there are still deals on loads of our favorite gear from brand favorites, such as DeWalt, Milwaukee, Ridgid, Klein, and Kobalt.
Special offer for Gear readers: GetWIRED for just $5 ($25 off). This includes unlimited access toWIRED.com, full Gear coverage, and subscriber-only newsletters. Subscriptions help fund the work we do every day.
If you buy something using links in our stories, we may earn a commission. This helps support our journalism. Learn more.
Tool Deals
Gearwrench 232-Piece Mechanics Tool Kit
Photograph: Home Depot
The Gearwrench brand is my favorite entry-to-mid-level tool brand for chrome hand tools. Made in Taiwan, these sockets, combination wrenches, and ratchets have excellent manufacturing tolerances, meaning less slipping off bolt heads and potentially damaging them. This kit only comes with 1/4-inch and 3/8-inch drive sockets and ratchet handles, not 1/2-inch, but that shouldn’t matter unless you’re working on large projects, such as cars’ axle components or building a deck. The organization box is also excellent, with sturdy slide-out drawers and built-in handles that make picking up the heavy box a breeze.
An impact driver is a power tool that delivers rapid, repeated forward thrusts as it rotates on a bolt or screw head. It works wonders for stubborn screws and bolts that may be too rusted in place to remove without a power tool. An impact driver typically fits small screws and bolts. Similarly, a hammer drill delivers the same thrusts but is designed for drilling through tough materials that could choke up a normal cordless drill. This combo kit includes two batteries and a charger, so when you run one dry, you’ve got another to use while the first one is charging.
An impact wrench is similar to an impact driver in that it uses repeated forward thrusts to loosen stubborn bolts, but it tends to be more powerful and meant for larger bolts. I’ve used one to loosen rusty suspension bolts and engine bolts enough times in the garage to consider one a godsend for heavy-duty mechanical work.
DeWalt 20V Max XR Cordless Drill Kit
Photograph: Lowe’s
The cordless drill is arguably the most versatile power tool in a homeowner’s toolbox. Not only can it drill, but it can be fitted with screwdriver bits for Phillips head screws, Torx, triple square, and hex bolts. A similar 20-volt DeWalt has been my standby for years, and the XR version adds a brushless electric motor for a longer life span. The speed is adjustable from 650 to 2,000 rounds per minute, which is useful because you won’t need a high RPM all the time. The ergonomics are perfect. I’ve spent hours in a row with an ergonomically identical DeWalt with no hand pain. The small LED in front of the trigger lights up dark work areas nicely.
If I were to “hypothetically” say that I’ve drilled more than 100 holes in my apartment walls (and if my hypothetical landlord wasn’t reading this), I’d tell you that these budget drill bits performed excellently in drilling through pre-war drywall, which in my place measures a particularly thick 3/4 inches. I’ve used these bits to repair the frame of a couch, build wooden furniture, and drill through metal picture frames, and they’re the best value out there. They come in several sizes that have never left me wanting.
Gearwrench makes the best value in tools. I tested this 12-piece screwdriver set earlier this year, and I was enamored with how tightly the Phillips head screwdrivers fit into screw heads. That means less slippage that can damage screws and potentially make them nearly impossible to remove or reuse. The rubber-wrapped handle is comfortable for extended periods too.
Garage and Yard Deals
Ridgid Compact Miter Saw Stand
Photograph: Home Depot
Perform any woodworking, even if you’re cutting boards, and you practically need a miter saw. The hang-up comes in finding a stable, secure place to put it while you’re using it. Choosing a stand is vital because a miter saw is dangerous when it’s unstable. I’ve always been impressed by Ridgid stands. The mounting brackets are quick and easy to use, and the structural parts have robust materials that don’t scream cost-cutting. This stand can hold up to 400 pounds, which is plenty for a miter saw.
A stalwart tool of any garage, whether you’re cleaning up after a woodworking project or washing the car, is the shop vac. It’s a supercharged cousin of your household vacuum cleaner. It can suck up wet messes, thanks to its built-in drain, as well as dry ones. Ridgid makes my favorite shop vacs because, with five horsepower on tap (for this model), it has no shortage of power for sucking up large messes, the included hose attachments fit securely, the caster wheels glide easily, and I’ve never had one break while on duty.
Maybe it’s the number of times I’ve stood on a Werner ladder and didn’t fall off, but when I need to purchase a new ladder, I almost always go with Werner. This 8-foot-tall model is made of thick, durable fiberglass that helps cut down on some of the weight when you’re moving it, and it holds up to 300 pounds. There’s a magnetic tool strip at the top, along with a paint can holder and a slot for holding a drill or hammer.
Kobalt 630-CFM Leaf Blower
Photograph: Lowe’s
Leaf blowers aren’t just for fall. They can be a major time saver when you want to clean up the grass shrapnel that remains after edging your lawn, for example. Gone are the days of a bulky, smoke-spewing, gasoline-powered leaf blower. This cordless, electric model from Kobalt moves 630 cubic feet per minute of air, meaning it offers plenty of power while weighing just under 9 pounds. There’s a battery and charger included too.
Other Tool Deals
Klein Digital Multimeter Kit
Photograph: Home Depot
Being able to measure the electrical current flowing through an outlet, car battery, or the like is essential when working with electronics. Klein is a longtime stalwart in tools designed specifically for electricians. This multimeter measures up to 600 AC/DC voltage and 10A DC, and it comes packaged with GFCI outlet testers and cables. If all the dials and screens look complicated, don’t be scared. The included instructions will tell you how to set everything, and it’s far easier than it appears at first glance.
It’s easy to find a decent utility knife, but hard to find a great utility knife. I’ve used tons, from Craftsman to Stanley to no-name brands off Amazon, and the Fastback is my favorite. The replaceable blades are sharper than those from other brands, and you can flick the blade open and shut one-handed with ease. You can store a spare blade in the handle, and there’s a bit holder for a common-sized flat head and Phillips head screwdriver bit. A battle opener and wire stripper round out the features list.
Stanley makes my favorite tape measures in their Fat Max series, but these DeWalt tape measures are nearly good, and hey, they’re on sale. I’d say they’ve earned the right to use “tough” in their name, because I’ve thrown some around a few job sites, and the thick plastic casing can put up with a lot of abuse. One of the few differentiators among tape measures is their ability to extend without collapsing. The DeWalt’s thick tape manages this well, so if you need to stretch it out 10 feet across the room to measure something (which is quite common), then you’ll have a lot fewer headaches with this than a cheaper tape measure.
Plastic trigger clamps won’t be the clamp to grab for the heaviest-duty jobs, but they may be the clamps you reach for the most often. More times than I could count in a month, I need a third hand to hold something steady for me while I work on a project. From pinning a bracket to an awkward place while you bolt it in to keeping hands safely clear when cutting something, you need a few clamps in your toolbox. With 100 pounds of clamping force, these will be more than capable of many day-to-day, small tasks.
Batteries and plastic are near the bottom of the environmentally friendly list, but UK company Gomi has an innovative power bank that may be the most sustainable solution for both. Everything on the Gomi power bank is recycled, including the batteries themselves, and the whole unit can be repaired and replaced instead of tossed away. If you’re looking to feel better about your batteries, read on, because Gomi has taken recycled electronics to a new level.
Let’s start with those batteries, because you might wonder how a battery can be recycled. Batteries degrade over time, and they can be recharged but not completely recycled. When your battery is dead, it’s just dead.
Except maybe not all of the battery is dead. If you have an e-bike, for instance, the battery pack is made up of a bundle of batteries that are roughly a bit larger than an AA battery. Altogether they offer enough charge for an e-bike, but when a bunch of those batteries die, the battery pack needs to be replaced.
Enter Gomi, which tests those old e-bike battery packs to find which cells in the bundle are still viable and which are dead. The good batteries are recovered and used in battery packs and Bluetooth speakers.
It’s all about those swirly (recycled) plastics
(Image credit: Philip Berne / Future)
As for the rest of the power bank, Gomi says the casing is “made from 100% waste plastics and aluminium.” Specifically, Gomi says it is using waste plastic bags that are non-recyclable. They mix and swirl the plastics in a variety of colors before baking them in the oven, and the company is also eager to try custom power banks, if you need them in bulk.
Like all electronics in Europe, the Gomi power bank comes with a two-year warranty, but these power banks are much easier to repair than other models. There is no glue holding the case together, so you can unscrew the power bank yourself to get at those replaceable batteries. Even after two years, you should be able to simply swap out the batteries with Gomi if they are wearing down.
The Gomi power bank isn’t the most advanced charging unit you can buy, but that’s totally beside the point. This one is all about sustainability, not the most powerful charging. The power brick can hold up to 10,000 mAh of charge, but it only charges up to 18W on either the USB-C or USB-A power outlets on top. That’s slower than the best phones you can buy are capable of charging, for sure.
Get the hottest deals available in your inbox plus news, reviews, opinion, analysis and more from the TechRadar team.
(Image credit: Philip Berne / Future)
My review sample came engraved with my name, which is a nice touch you can add to the aluminum back. It also came with a very nice, long USB-C cable wrapped in fabric, not plastic.
In addition to the power bank, Gomi makes a Bluetooth speaker using the same recycled materials and concept. The speaker uses recycled plastics for the casing, which is splash-resistant, as well as the same recycled batteries inside to power the unit. You can even buy two Bluetooth speakers and play them as a stereo pair.
Serious about sustainability and service
If sustainability is important to you, there’s a lot to love in Gomi’s offering. All of those e-bikes you see around your city are leaving behind dead batteries, and Gomi is not only getting the most out of those old cells, it’s openly soliciting new partners if you have batteries you need to recycle. I’ve never seen such an inventive push to use batteries that might otherwise end up in a landfill.
(Image credit: Philip Berne / Future)
I also love the aggressive way Gomi advertises its repair and warranty service. Gomi sells you the first battery with the understanding that you’ll be coming back for a refill on the power cells.
The power banks are more expensive – $85 for a 10K mAh unit. An Anker battery pack with the same power would cost less than $20. Of course, Anker needed to buy freshly mined minerals for its battery, while Gomi is keeping batteries out of the earth. Still, maybe Gomi would do better with a much cheaper battery pack in a simpler style. I’m assuming all those swirling colors add to the cost.
You can buy Gomi battery packs online through Gomi. Customers in the UK can get battery packs serviced directly from Gomi’s factory in Brighton. If you need service from the US, Gomi offers repair service “at cost” to US customers, which is currently around 35% of the retail price. And if you’re a huge fan of the swirling designs, the company even makes artwork from the same recycled plastics.
The new mophie juice pack for iPhone 15 combines a protective case with a power bank. Simply put your handset in the case to greatly extend your battery life and add 6 feet of drop protection.
I did real-world testing on the version specifically for the iPhone 15. (mophie also sells juice packs for the iPhone 15 Pro and Pro Max, but not iPhone 15 Plus.)
mophie juice pack for iPhone 15 review
iPhone 15 offers outstanding battery life — it went for 11 hours in a torture test. But there are always people who want or need more.
MagSafe makes it easy to temporarily connect an external power bank to your iPhone with magnets, like the mophie snap+ juice pack mini. But MagSafe doesn’t always play well with thick, protective cases.
That’s where the mophie juice pack for iPhone 15 comes in. It’s both a case and a power bank. It’s ready to give your handset’s battery a boost at any time with the press of a button.
(If you’re wondering, there’s nothing wrong with my keyboard — mophie hates capital letters for some reason.)
Protective iPhone case
juice pack is a wrap-around iPhone case, but that’s not all. Photo: Ed Hardy/Cult of Mac
While the built-in power bank gets all the attention, mophie made sure the juice pack for iPhone 15 is also a protective case.
That includes 6 feet of drop protection. And the iPhone is almost completely covered to keep it from getting scratched. Only the screen is exposed, and the front of the case puts raised edges around the iPhone screen to help prevent scratches on it.
The additional protection and power bank add a bit of bulk, though. My juice pack for iPhone 15 is 6.3 inches by 3 inches by 0.7 inches and weighs 0.2 pounds. The version for the iPhone 15 Pro has the same dimensions, while the Pro Max one is wider and taller, of course. (I don’t have them to test, though.)
Edges and corners are curved so the case is comfortable to hold. Plus ABS plastic gives it a smooth finish. But it sure shows greasy fingerprints — partially that’s because black is the only color option.
The design covers the iPhone’s speakers, but mophie put in two tubes that channel the sound toward the user. It actually makes audio louder when I’m holding the device. It’s quieter if I put the handset down when listening to music or a podcast, though.
Inserting the iPhone into the case is easy. The top of the accessory separates, and you can slide in the handset until it plugs into the USB-C connector, then replace the top.
And a power bank, too
mophie’s renewed juice pack keeps iPhone 15 series handsets powered up. Photo: mophie
While the mophie juice pack for iPhone 15 makes a nice case, the real highlight is the built-in power bank.
How much energy storage is available depends on the version. The one I tested for the iPhone 15 holds 2,400 mAh. The iPhone 15 Pro variant holds 2,600 mAh and the Pro Max one holds 2,800 mAh.
In my testing, the juice pack gave my iPhone a 28% charge in an hour. In total, the handset got a 47% charge before the power bank ran out.
That’s not surprising. The battery inside the iPhone is larger than the external one — there was never a chance of a full charge.
The accessory isn’t running all the time. You activate and deactivate it with a power button on the back. It’s nice to always have the option to charge up whenever my iPhone’s internal battery is getting low. No matter where I am or what I’m doing.
A series of LEDs next to the power button give a general indication of remaining charge, and whether the battery is receiving power.
Charging the power bank
The mophie juice pack for iPhone 15 covers the handset’s USB-C port but adds one of its own in replacement. Connect a charging cable to this and it’ll power up your phone first, then start recharging the external power bank.
In my tests, the accessory charges at about 7W, and took about two hours to fully recharge.
But be aware, the port built into the case can only be used for power. If you want to connect a monitor, game controller or SSD to your iPhone, you’ll need to remove it from the case. This is easy to do, but it’s something to keep in mind.
Also, the cause won’t charge anything but your iPhone. The USB-C port is power-in, not power-out.
mophie juice pack for iPhone 15 final thoughts
mophie’s power bank and case is ready wherever you are. Photo: Ed Hardy/Cult of Mac
This isn’t mophie’s first case/power bank combo. Far from it. The juice pack line built a loyal following before being phased out in 2020. But now it’s back, and as good as ever.
The accessory is always ready to give your iPhone 15 battery a boost, wherever you are. Though it does add bulk. And it blocks the USB-C port, one of the best features of the latest iPhones.
★★★★☆
Pricing
You can order the mophie juice pack for iPhone 15, iPhone 15 Pro or iPhone 15 Pro Max for $99.95. It just launched on April 23.
PS5 SSD deals have been hard to come by for a while now, but if you’re looking to pick one up right now then Silicon Power’s XS70 range has a bunch of tempting discounts right now over at Amazon.
The most impulse-purchase-worthy deal is the 1TB XS70 PS5 SSD which is down to $74.99 at Amazon (was $85.99). It’s a 13% price cut and takes the drive to its second lowest-ever price.
If you need a bit more storage and breathing room, the 2TB model has the biggest price cut of the three models and is down 22%, dropping its price to $139.99 at Amazon (was $179.99). As far as we can tell, this is nearly a lowest-ever price – perhaps missing that mark by only a couple of dollars.
For those looking to solve their PS5 storage woes in one fell swoop and cover themselves for years to come, the 4TB XS70 has got a handy 10% discount running right now with the drive dropping to $269.99 at Amazon (was $299.99). This is the 4TB model’s lowest price since February and is decent value for a large-capacity drive.
Silicon Power might not be the most famous name in storage, but the brand offers excellent products, and usually at value-busting prices – something that’s accentuated today with these price cuts.
Today’s best PS5 SSD deals
The XS70 comes with a heatsink already so immediately wins points for offering a ready-to-go storage solution. Offering speeds of up to 7,200 MB/s (write) and 6,800 MB/s (read) means it’ll also offer you top-drawer performance, reducing the time you spend looking at loading screens and waiting times while you transfer files. It’s got more than enough chops to make it feel like you’re just using the PS5’s own storage.
In a field barren of price cuts on the best SSDs for PS5, or even any truly outstanding cheap PS5 SSD deals, these price cuts offer a good value way of bolstering your storage.
Not in the US, or looking for even more options? Then check out even more prices on PS5 SSD’s below no matter where you are in the world.
