Smartphones

Galaxy for the Planet: Samsung’s tangible climate actions

Minimizing impact on the environment by 2025

Published

August 16, 2021

MJ Jucutan

Climate change is real. Technology giants have been committing to sustainable platforms to reduce environmental footprints over the years to come. It’s not just Apple, Google, and Netflix — Samsung is taking charge through tangible climate actions across its business.

The South Korean giant unveiled Galaxy for the Planet, the sustainability platform for its Mobile Communications business. The initiative aims to reach its targets by 2025 and evolve its commitments to address new challenges over the years.

What does Samsung hope to achieve?

At GadgetMatch, we’ve discussed the importance of a circular economy, where Dell has been leading the charge.

Samsung is taking its own steps, investing in eco-conscious materials for its products to foster circular economy. The company hopes to use various recycled materials across all its mobile products by 2025. Of course, the phone maker promises to take strength, aesthetics, and durability into consideration.

Not just that, the South Korean company aims to incorporate eco-conscious solutions into its product packaging. We all know how plastics dominate every device package, which is why Samsung is working on eliminating single-use plastics from product packaging. Samsung plans to replace unnecessary resources and materials to commit to its goal.

Energy-saving to the fullest

Energy-saving technology has been distinct across all products produced by the technology giant. From airconditioning systems, smart televisions, and other appliances — Samsung prioritizes energy efficiency and reduced power consumption.

Furthermore, Samsung holds the crown for the most energy-efficient in the mobile industry, significantly reducing the standby power consumption across its smartphone chargers to 0.02W. To achieve zero power standby consumption, Samsung will reduce it below 0.005 by 2025.

Zero waste to landfill

E-waste populates our landfills, which is why Samsung is minimizing waste generated at its mobile worksites. The commitment is to divert all waste by 2025, while also practicing sustainable efforts to reduce e-waste on a global scale.

Some of its endeavors were optimizing product lifecycle, improving product design processes, and promoting initiatives like Galaxy Upcycling, Certified Re-Newed, and Trade-In programs.

Check out Samsung’s sustainability progress through their 2021 sustainability report.

First Look

First Look: Apple iPhone Duo

The foldable we’ve been waiting for!

Published

September 11, 2026

GadgetMatch and Michael Josh Villanueva

Apple’s first ever foldable is finally here! Say hello to the iPhone Duo.

In this video, THE Michael Josh shares his first impressions.

Those include the design, display, cameras, performance, and what it’s actually like to use Apple’s latest iPhone.

Is the iPhone Duo the future of the iPhone or just an interesting experiment?

We take a closer look and share everything that stood out during our hands-on experience.

News

iPhone Duo: Price, availability in the Philippines

As listed on the Apple website

Published

September 10, 2026

GadgetMatch

Apple has officially entered the foldable smartphone market with the iPhone Duo, its first foldable iPhone. It uses a passport-style design that opens into a larger display while retaining a more conventional smartphone experience when folded.

Price and availability

The iPhone Duo starts at PhP 159,990 in the Philippines for the 256GB model as listed on the Apple website.

Here’s the full local pricing:

256GB — PhP 159,990
512GB — PhP 175,990
1TB — PhP 207,990
2TB — PhP 254,990

The iPhone Duo comes in Star White and Night Sky.

Actual availability in the Philippines has yet to be officially announced.

A foldable design with two displays

The iPhone Duo has a 5.4-inch outer display when folded and expands to a 7.6-inch main display when opened. Both orientations use the same aspect ratio, allowing iOS to transition between them seamlessly.

The rear chassis uses Ceramic Shield, while the front display gets Ceramic Shield 2. The device is also IP68-rated for dust and water resistance.

Its hinge uses carbon fiber supports and magnets that produce an audible click when the phone is folded.

A20 Pro brings flagship performance

The iPhone Duo is powered by the A20 Pro, the same chip found in the iPhone 18 Pro series. Apple says the chip delivers 35 percent better sustained performance than the iPhone 17 Pro.

It also comes with the new C2 cellular modem, which provides up to 50 percent faster uploads. Like other foldables, the Duo can be used in different configurations, including tent mode and a partially folded book-like position.

48-megapixel camera system

The iPhone Duo gets a 48-megapixel Fusion Main camera alongside a 12-megapixel 2x telephoto camera.

For selfies and video calls, it has a 12-megapixel Center Stage camera. The inner display also uses an under-screen camera for a cleaner look.

Battery life goes beyond a day

The iPhone Duo offers up to 31 hours of video playback using the inner display and up to 44 hours using the outer display.

Charging is also quick. Apple says a 20-minute charge can replenish half the battery, while a five-minute charge can provide up to five hours of video playback.

For the complete specifications and first-look details, check out our main iPhone Duo launch coverage.

News

iPhone 18 Pro series: Price, availability in the Philippines

As listed on the Apple website

Published

September 10, 2026

GadgetMatch

Apple’s latest Pro iPhones are now listed on the Philippine Apple website, with local pricing starting at PhP 94,990. The iPhone 18 Pro and iPhone 18 Pro Max bring a new A20 Pro chip, a variable-aperture main camera, longer battery life, and a redesigned Dynamic Island. (Apple)

iPhone 18 Pro and Pro Max price in the Philippines

The iPhone 18 Pro starts at PhP 94,990 for 256GB. The iPhone 18 Pro Max starts at PhP 99,990.

Storage	iPhone 18 Pro	iPhone 18 Pro Max
256GB	PhP 94,990	PhP 99,990
512GB	PhP 110,990	PhP 115,990
1TB	PhP 142,990	PhP 147,990
2TB	PhP 189,990	PhP 194,990

Both models come in black, silver, glacier, and burgundy. Apple offers both Pro models with up to 2TB of storage.

A variable-aperture 48-megapixel camera

The iPhone 18 Pro series gets a new 48-megapixel Fusion Main camera with variable aperture. It can open as wide as ƒ/1.48 for low-light photography, while narrowing to ƒ/4 can keep more of a group in focus.

Apple also adds Pro controls that let users manually adjust aperture, shutter speed, white balance, and exposure through a histogram.

A20 Pro brings more performance

Both models run on Apple’s A20 Pro, built on a 2nm process. It has a six-core CPU, seven-core GPU, and a Dual 16-core Neural Engine.

Apple says the GPU is up to 40 percent faster than A19 Pro, while memory bandwidth increases by 50 percent. A redesigned vapor chamber also has three times the surface area of the previous generation, enabling up to 40 percent higher sustained performance.

A smaller Dynamic Island

Apple redesigned the Dynamic Island to make more room for information. It can now display up to three Live Activities at once while retaining Face ID for authentication and unlocking.

Battery life gets a major boost

The iPhone 18 Pro delivers up to 36 hours of video playback, while the iPhone 18 Pro Max reaches up to 45 hours on eSIM-only models.

The Pro can reach 50 percent charge in around 15 minutes, while the Pro Max can get around seven hours of video playback from five minutes of wired charging.

Philippine availability

Apple has confirmed September 18 availability for more than 65 countries and regions, including Singapore. It also says the iPhone 18 Pro and Pro Max will reach another 20 countries and regions starting September 25. However, Apple has not yet specified the Philippines in its published launch-day country list, so a Philippine release date has not been officially confirmed.

The Philippine Apple website does list the iPhone 18 Pro as a new model with local pricing, however.