Pocket-lint has been told by a reliable source that Samsung may be considering using its own Exynos hardware again for the Samsung Galaxy S23 FE and potentially the 2024 Galaxy S24 series in some regions, moving away from Snapdragon.

The return to Exynos hardware raises questions about whether fans will be happy.

While Snapdragon may still be used in the US for the Galaxy S24, Europe is currently expected to have the Exynos variant, which has previously been unpopular with some technology enthusiasts and network operators.

Can't say I'm stoked about this... Australia had Exynos for a long time and didn't get Snapdragon until the S22. I skipped the S22 when I had an S21 Ultra, but I am loving my S23U.

This Exynos chip is claimed to be awesome, but it'd be pretty impressive if it's more awesome than the Snapdragon chips.

There may still be some hope for some though, as Wood also said: "I'd be surprised if Samsung decided to return to Exynos for the important European market, but we might see it in some smaller markets to ensure Samsung's in-house platform stays in the game. There's also likely an element of Samsung wanting to keep Qualcomm on its toes too, which may be what is driving these recent rumours."

Related reading on Lemdro.id: Another Samsung Galaxy S23 FE leak details the phone’s diverse chipsets in different markets

Sony's release of its new WF-1000XM5 buds (The Verge) has reminded me that probably my most consistently carried pieces of tech, after my phone, is my earbuds. They live in the coin pocket of my jeans — nowadays no more dedicated to coins than a glove compartment is to gloves. 😂

At the moment, I ride for the Beats Fit Pro, which is a bit pathetic in some ways because I'm now onto my second pair after the first developed crackles and reduced output in the left ear bud. The best part? My current pair has started doing the same, just four months in. Yet, I love the fit so damn much that I keep putting up with it... (I'll be taking these ones to an Apple store on the weekend to see if they'll replace them like they did with my first-gen AirPods Pro a couple of years ago.)

Photo: TheStreet.com

Photo: ScreenRant.com

I've been on the 'true wireless' train for a very long time now, as my ADHD and related touch hypersensitivity always saw me get easily irritated by the cables of wires buds, especially if I had them running down the inside of my shirt. Wireless buds have been a godsend for me, even if I do constantly fiddle with their position in my ears!

The Beats Fit Pro are probably the best fit I've ever had, and the sound is good enough for me. As much as I live for music, I'm not an audiophile, so while I do demand good sound, I don't seek out the absolute very best.

My only real demands are good sound, excellent fit, and a very coin-pocketable design.

I've had the Sony WF-1000XM4 buds, but they were a bit uncomfortable and cumbersome, and so I ultimately returned them for the Beats Fit Pro. I think I'm addicted to the winglets now, but even still, I'm bloody tempted by the XM5s...

So, what are your favourite buds? What are you biggest priorities?

Wired or wireless, hit me.

Main photo: Sony WF-1000XM5 buds next to XM4 buds. Chris Welch, The Verge.

Ahoy all,

I know Samsung's phones don't do it natively (apart from using the actual shutter settings in pro mode), but does anybody know if there's an app that can emulate the iPhone's live photo long exposure effect (as seen here), using Samsung's motion photo function?

On the iPhone, you can open any live photo, then tap a menu option to have it stack each frame to create a long-exposure effect.

Blows my mind that Samsung hasn't dived into this type of thing, especially considering the Pixel now also has some great post-processing motion effects

Cheers!

Hello, Techventurers and Everyday Carry enthusiasts!

Okay, that was a bit corny...

Welcome to Tech Kit – an EDC community for tech gear.

Our goal here is to share ideas, suggestions, reviews, photos and appreciation for the gadgets and gear that help us navigate our daily lives – whether you're a seasoned tech junkie or new to the world of 'EDC'.

EDC, or 'everyday carry', is often viewed through the lens of an outdoors or survivalist experience, focusing on pocket knives, compact multitools, tiny but powerful torches (tech!), first-aid packs, and so on.

To be clear: that's all great, and it's welcome here. Show us your knives, tools, and all the rest.

But, of course, this community has tech in the name.

That means our main focus is on the sort of pocketable and baggable tech that help you get through a regular day – the tech kit that saves the day.

The simplest examples of EDC tech vary from obvious things like your phone and smartwatch, to a power bank and a laptop or tablet, charging cables, card readers, earbuds or headphones, gaming systems, and so on.

Of course, it can get a lot more complex for many people, adding things like cleverly compact multi-format USB keyrings, tech-enhanced wallets, a compact camera or photo-improving phone accessories, etc.

If you can carry it and it's tech, we want to talk about it!

Here's a quick overview of what we'll aim for in c/techkit.

Post Photos and details: Got a new piece of tech that's revolutionizing your day-to-day life? Snap a picture and share it with us. We love seeing what others carry and finding inspiration for our own collections.

Ask Questions: Not sure if that new pocket projector is worth the investment? Need help choosing a power bank? Feel free to ask your questions. We're all here to help each other.

Share Information & experience, reviews: Come across an interesting article or video about EDC tech? Got thoughts and first-hand experience to share? This is the place! We're all here to learn and stay on top of the latest advancements.

Participate in Discussions: We're keen to run weekly themed discussions where we dive into specific areas of EDC tech. These might range from "The Best Portable Gaming Devices of 2023" to "Survival Tech: What You Need In Your EDC Kit", and so on.

Lastly, a reminder to please keep everything civil and respectful.

We all have different needs and preferences when it comes to our tech, and that diversity is what makes this community special. Check out the sidebar for rules and guidelines.

Cheers!

Photo: Taylor Welden, Carryology.

So, up front, I'll admit I'm one of those guys that gets hung up on tiny, largely irrelevant quirks in apps. Yeah, I'm great fun at parties.

So, what's your favourite keyboard app? I keep coming back to SwiftKey. I feel like it's the best typing experience for me, with fairly accurate prediction and correction — although it's far from perfect, of course. I've seen plenty of people complain about it, and apart from Microsoft adding Bing to it, it's not received much in the way of innovation or useful updates since they bought it.

I particularly like that a long press on the backspace key will delete one whole word at a time, speeding up the longer you hold it down. I simply haven't found the backspace methods on Gboard or the Samsung keyboard (which used to be Swype I guess?) to be as predictable or reliable. Gboard's swipe back doesn't feel predictable in what it will do, and Samsung's backspace is more like iOS.

I also find SwiftKey to be the best at remembering sequences of words; if I start typing my address, it'll generally remember each successive word and offer it as the main prediction on the top row. Samsung and Gboard both do that to some extent, but I just haven't found them to be as reliably predictable in the results.

On the other hand, I hate that SwiftKey doesn't can't add an image to its clipboard. Copying and pasting images is a breeze with both Gboard and Samsung's keyboard, but with SwiftKey I pretty much have to download/screengrab and upload any image I want to insert in a chat or post.

So, that's it. Rant over! What's your favourite keyboard app, and does anything irritate you about it?

This is good to see, but as Welch notes, the lack of stylus support is a real miss here.

As a Samsung user myself, I'd obviously just look to the Galaxy Fold, although not being able to store the stylus onboard (without a case) does suck.

All that said, I'm very happy with my S23 Ultra for editing photos. Yeah I've gotta zoom in a lot, but it's not that big a pain. I actually start most of my Sony A7RV edits in Lightroom on my phone, only moving to desktop when I need to switch to Photoshop for final edits.

Any mobile photo editors in our growing community here?