Features

4 simple ways to improve battery life on your smartphone

You don’t need a power bank for this one

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Owning a smartphone has been a need for a lot of people over the past few years — not just for calling and texting your family and friends, but also helping you book a ride or take pictures. It’s essential that your phone is up and running at all times.

But, let’s say the night is still young and your phone’s battery is close to empty, say, around 25 percent left. You or your friends don’t have an available power bank, and there are no charging outlets in sight. You still need your phone to book an Uber or call your parents to tell them how you’re holding up. Say no more, because here are some tips on how you can make your phone last longer.

Force-close your apps

Let’s say you opened a ton of apps over the course of the day, and you kept them idle while using other apps in the process. Having a ton of idle apps open drains your battery despite just being in the background. Your phone is still using power from the battery to refresh your apps in the background, apart from delivering notifications from these apps.

While smartphones have been getting better at managing battery drain from these apps, what you can do is to simply force-close your unused apps. Android smartphones have a built-in feature wherein you can see all the recently accessed apps and regulate their usage. For iPhone users, simply access the Multitasking feature and close your unused apps and turn off the “Background App Refresh” setting.

Turn down your phone’s brightness and screen timeout

Another feature that eats up your phone’s battery is your screen’s brightness. By default, your phone would have the brightness set to automatic, but if you want to see all the colors in full bloom, you would turn the brightness up.

But, for cases wherein your battery is already low, it is advisable to turn it down to conserve energy. Also, you can turn down the screen timeout settings on your phone to the quickest time. The shorter time your phone’s screen is on, paired with low brightness settings, the more your battery conserves energy.

Turn off some phone features when not in use

Apart from idle apps open in the background, your phone also has main processes and features running. Functions such as Wi-Fi and Bluetooth, cellular data, location services, and auto-sync are normally on by default. You would want to keep these running at all times to stay connected, and obviously in case of emergencies.

However, it’s best to turn some of these features off, especially if you’re not actively using them. Of course, the easiest way of turning off your Wi-Fi and cellular services is by turning on Airplane Mode. For the rest, you have to turn them off manually through your phone’s action center. Doing so stops the background processes for the time being, saving your battery life for a while longer.

Use ultra power saving mode

Let’s say your phone is now bordering on the 10 to 15 percent mark, and you are desperate to keep your phone alive. You’ve tried all the things above but your phone’s battery is still depleting by the minute. Luckily, your phone also comes with different battery saving options accessible through its settings.

When you go to your Settings menu, enter Battery options and you’ll likely notice that your phone has both a power saving mode and an ultra power saving mode. If you want to keep your phone on for as long as possible, turn ultra power saving mode on for good measure. While on ultra power saving mode, you only have access to your calls, texts, and other necessary apps you prefer.

There are other ways to improve battery life, but these are the easiest, most accessible ways to do so. Let’s hope your phone had enough power left to scroll through this article!

Tutorials

How to set up Apple Pay on your iPhone

It’s as easy as a single tap.

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Apple Pay is officially in the Philippines!

Pushing the country forward into a cashless and cardless future, Apple has now brought its contactless payment system to the Philippines. As with other countries, Apply Pay will work seamlessly and easily even for those who have problems with technology.

Now, despite how easy it is, sometimes we need to be pointed in the right direction. Here’s how you can set up Apple Pay on your iPhone:

Everything starts with the Wallet app. First, open your Wallet app. Tap the “+” button on the top and select “Debit or Credit Card.”

Normally, this is where you can input your card details (which you can still do, by the way), but the default method now is to just tap your card on the back of your iPhone. Your phone does the rest. You might need to confirm with your bank, but it’s as easy as a single tap.

Pick which cards to use. Once you have your cards online, you might need to change which one is the default card. Again, it’s easy. Just drag your preferred card to the front.

Afterwards, you can tap to pay in supported stores by priming the Wallet app for use. Tapping to pay is also available for Apple Watch. Meanwhile, online transactions can also work on MacBook.

Secure, all the time. If you’re worried about your security especially with online transactions, Apple keeps your information only between you and the seller. They don’t store your data.

Also, it’s not easy to make a transaction without your consent. You need Face ID, Touch ID, or your password. If you lose your phone, you can easily shut your phone down with the Find My app to prevent malicious parties from making transactions.

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Accessories

DJI Osmo Mobile 8P: From a videographer’s perspective

Better tracking, fewer buttons

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DJI’s smartphone gimbals have always chased one goal: delivering cinema-smooth footage without forcing you to carry a heavy rig.

The Osmo Mobile 8P (OM 8P) makes its priorities clear right out of the box. This is not a simple refresh. DJI rebuilt how you control the gimbal, and that decision shapes the entire shooting experience.

Freedom behind the lens

The biggest change is the FrameTap remote, and it’s the kind of upgrade that fixes a problem you didn’t realize was slowing you down until it’s gone.

On the standard OM 8, adjusting your framing meant reaching for your phone every time, which broke the flow of shooting and pulled you out of the moment.

FrameTap puts that control back in your hand. You can reframe shots and manage the gimbal without touching your phone at all, and for anyone shooting solo, that alone changes how usable the whole setup feels. Tracking has taken a real step forward too.

ActiveTrack 8.0, paired with Module 2, held onto its subject even after they stepped out of frame for a moment, then picked them back up without much fuss.

It also lets you sit off-center in the shot instead of forcing you into the middle every time, which gives you more room to compose something that doesn’t look like every other gimbal video.

None of that would matter much if the gimbal itself wasn’t solid, and it still is. The OM 8P holds onto the same foldable design, magnetic phone clamp, and built-in tripod that made the OM 8 easy to live with.

And it remains one of the better compact options for stabilization, tracking, and portability in one package.

The tripod legs are a touch wider this time, and that extra width does make a noticeable difference on uneven ground.

The trade-offs in touch

The trade-off for all that new remote functionality is a control scheme that takes more getting used to. More of the gimbal’s functions now live on the FrameTap touchscreen, the joystick is smaller, and switching between shooting modes takes a few extra taps compared to the OM 8. It’s not a dealbreaker, but it’s a learning curve you’ll need to budget time for.

DJI also removed the zoom and focus wheel, so if you leaned on that dial for quick adjustments, you’ll feel its absence here. Module 2 no longer lets you plug a DJI wireless mic in directly either.

You’ll need to connect it to your phone instead, which adds a step to a setup that used to be simpler. Phone compatibility is still a limiting factor as well. DJI lists support for phones up to around 300g and 11mm thick, so bigger phones or ones in chunky cases may not clamp in properly.

Finding your ideal workflow

The OM 8P makes the most sense for solo creators who want dependable tracking and the freedom of remote framing without stepping up to a dedicated camera like the DJI Osmo Pocket.

If you’re already shooting on a phone with a solid camera, this fills the gap nicely. It’s a tougher sell if you prefer physical buttons over touchscreen menus, or if your phone runs on the larger and heavier side, since fitting it onto the clamp might be a problem before you even get to shooting.

Price, availability

DJI is offering the OM 8P in three combos, so how much you pay depends on how much of the ecosystem you actually need.

  • Standard Combo (PhP 7,499): the gimbal itself, with 8th-gen stabilization and the detachable FrameTap remote included.
  • Advanced Tracking Combo (PhP 9,199): adds the Multifunctional Module 2 for the improved subject tracking we tested.
  • Creator Combo (PhP 11,099): the full kit, built for creators who want everything DJI bundles in from the start.

Is the DJI Osmo Mobile 8P your GadgetMatch?

The DJI Osmo Mobile 8P asks you to relearn a few habits in exchange for a gimbal that finally lets go of your phone. If hands-free framing and steadier tracking matter more to you than a dedicated zoom dial, this is worth the adjustment.

If you’d rather keep things exactly as they were on the OM 8, that learning curve might be the deciding factor.

Swipe right if you shoot alone often and have been waiting for a gimbal remote that actually works. The FrameTap remote alone justifies the upgrade if reaching for your phone mid-shot has been slowing you down.

Consider this if reliable tracking matters to you, especially if you’ve had a subject wander out of frame and stay lost on older gimbals.

And of course, get this if you already own a capable phone under the weight and thickness limits, and you’d rather invest in a smartphone rig than jump to a dedicated camera like the Osmo Pocket.

Swipe left if you lean on physical dials for zoom and focus, and moving those functions to a touchscreen sounds like a downgrade rather than an upgrade.

This is not for you if you use a DJI wireless mic and want it plugged directly into the module without routing through your phone first. Or, your phone runs heavier or bulkier than DJI’s limits allow, since no amount of enthusiasm fixes a clamp that won’t close.

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Features

GadgetSnaps: Westminster Abbey

A thousand years of history, unfolded with the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold8 Ultra

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Graphics by Vincenz Lee | GadgetMatch

Westminster Abbey isn’t just another stop on the London tourist trail.

It’s the stage for coronations, royal weddings, and burials that span nearly a thousand years, all still playing out under the same vaulted ceilings that have been standing since before most countries had names.

Once you get past the crowds and the audio guides, a quieter version of the abbey starts to show itself: worn stone steps, poets resting a few feet from kings, light that shifts across the nave like it’s in on the performance too.

While losing track of time in Poets’ Corner (yes, me, playing amateur historian for an afternoon), I unfolded the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold8 Ultra and decided the abbey deserved more than a quick tourist snap.


All photos captured using the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold8 Ultra.

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