Robot strawberries: In Virginia, a vertical farm is growing 4 million pounds of strawberries a year indoors, on two-story towers, with no soil, no bees and a whole lot of AI. The system analyzes 10 million+ data points a day. It’s less “Old MacDonald,” more “Black Mirror: Produce Edition.” Can’t wait for my future salad to come with bug patch notes.
Your phone has a death date
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Your phone is dying as you’re reading this. Many people don’t realize that, like milk, condoms or your favorite hot sauce that’s been in the fridge since 2018, your phone has an expiration date.
Here are the average lifespans for some of today’s most popular phone brands and makes:
- Apple iPhone: 4 to 8 years; iPhones often get 6+ years of iOS updates.
- Samsung: 3 to 6 years. Flagships get 5 years of updates, but budget models tend to peak around 3 years.
- Google Pixel: 3 to 5 years. Pixels now promise up to 7 years of updates (starting with Pixel 8).
To be clear: These are averages. Like dog years or Tinder bios, your mileage may vary.
What’s your number?
Here’s the juicy bit: Your phone’s expiration countdown starts when it’s manufactured, not when you bought it, so knowing when it was built is super important. Here are ways to find out:
- Look around: The manufacture date is often listed on the package. If you tossed it, check the “About” section in your phone’s settings for a date or serial number.
- Serial number: Many manufacturers encode the manufacturing date within these numbers. The site SNDeep.info can help you decode yours.
- Dial secret codes: Special codes and menus can reveal manufacturing information. Dialing *#06# might or might not show your phone’s serial number.
Yeah, I know. This looks like way too much work.
Hallelujah, an easier way
Instead of taking the steps above, head to endoflife.date. This handy site lists the end-of-life (EOL) dates for devices, software programs and others. Some quick links for you to check your phone’s EOL:
The links below aren’t for phones, but I thought you might want to check the EOL for your other tech:
Digital self-destruction for fun and paranoia
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How to make any USB drive self-destruct
“Kim, I’m paranoid about losing my USB drive. Is there any way to make it so if someone steals it, they can’t see or open anything?” — Dave in Denver
Tech we thought was the future
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It’s Friday, and I’m feeling a little nostalgic. Let’s take a fun walk down memory lane back when our gadgets were clunky, slow and somehow magical.
Remember when flipping your phone shut made you feel like a movie star? Or hearing the sound of a modem? Good times. Take a look at this list and see if there are any you miss.
What’s replacing your smartphone? Here’s what’s coming next
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Let’s be real: Smartphones are getting out of hand, literally.
We traded pocket space for bigger screens, better cameras and more power. Some of these glass bricks are the size of a paperback novel and about as easy to use one-handed.
📵 Phones down, eyes up: That’s the YMCA’s new water safety campaign for parents this summer. Why? Drowning is the number one cause of death for kids ages 1 to 4, and it often happens within 25 yards of a distracted parent. It’s usually silent, with no splashes, and can happen in 30 seconds or less. I know there’s someone you need to share this with.
📱 Need a tough phone or tablet? Samsung just announced the rugged Galaxy XCover7 Pro and Galaxy Tab Active5 Pro. They’re water- and dust-resistant and can survive drops from up to 1.5 meters (that’s 5 feet for people like me who never understood the metric system). As for performance, both run the Snapdragon 7s Gen 3 with 6GB RAM. Oh, and the batteries are removable. Pricing is still TBA.
🤯 No cure for brain rot: If your brain feels fried from endless scrolling, folks are turning to a dumb phone (paywall link). We’re talking only the basics, i.e., phone calls and texts. The trade-off? Anxiety and fear you’re missing out. Basically, you’re screwed either way.
🔐 Android got harder to crack: Google’s rolling out a feature that auto-restarts your locked phone if it hasn’t been used in three days. This puts your data into a fully encrypted state, making it tougher for hackers (or law enforcement) to break in with forensic tools. See if you have it: Go to Settings > Security & privacy > System & updates > Google Play system update. You’re welcome.
⌚ Her watch saved her life: Dr. Amanda Faulkner, a 51-year-old psychiatrist from New Zealand, thought her new Apple Watch was faulty for always nagging about her heart rate. Then it spiked to over 90 BPM, and doctors found she had acute myeloid leukemia. This rare cancer was caught just hours before her organs could have failed. Thankfully, she’s now in remission.
📱 Does your kid have a burner phone? We’ve reached the era of middle schoolers running black market tech ops. A dad posted to Reddit after he found out his 12-year-old son was hiding one in a pillow to access apps he wasn’t supposed to be on. Signs to watch for: They’re ignoring the phone you know about, there are sudden dips in data usage, or you notice new devices using the Wi-Fi.
🍏 Fresh Apple: It’s time to hit that update button for new Apple features. For iPhones, Priority Notifications helps you see urgent messages first. On your Mac, the Mail app can automatically sort your inbox. Plus, Quick Start lets you set up a new Mac by holding your iPhone nearby. Those last two have been on iPhones and iPads for a while. About time, right? Click here for all the updates.
Alexa+ is here … kinda: The gall! Amazon’s new $20/month (Yikes!) AI assistant is rolling out to newer Alexa devices, but a few hyped-up features are MIA. Right now, you can order an Uber, get cooking advice and upload docs for summaries. Storytelling for kids, recognizing who’s in the room and chore reminders are coming. FYI, smarter Alexa is free if you pay for Prime.
I’m scratching my head on this one: People who use a Garmin smartwatch are upset about a monthly fee, and it’s not that they are still using a Garmin. The app’s new AI health and fitness tracking tools cost $6.99 a month ($69.99 per year). Apple Watch, anyone?
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📺 Lost the remote again? If you own a new 2025 Samsung TV and a Galaxy Watch 7 or Watch Ultra, control your TV with a flick of your wrist. Literally. Move the cursor by waving your arm, pinch your fingers to select apps, make a fist to exit or swipe the watch bezel to scroll. Neato!
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Cheap ways to make your old tech better
Reading this on a 6-year-old iPhone 11? It’s well past the average smartphone lifespan of 2.5 years … and I’m impressed you’ve hung onto it this long. Btw, Apple typically provides iOS updates for five to six years after a model’s release.
🖥️ Windows 11 update: Microsoft dropped an optional update packed with 38 changes. What’s new? Live captions and real-time translation for over 44 languages on Copilot+ PCs with AMD and Intel CPUs, plus a fix for random blue screen crashes. Go to Settings > Windows Update > Check for Updates > Download and install.
iPad cracks the case: London police just solved a six-year-old case after finding an iPad in the bottom of the Thames River. It led the forensics team to Amazon and eBay purchases used in an attempted murder plot. Three clowns are behind bars, pointing fingers at who threw the iPad in the water thinking it would be gone for good. Meanwhile, a ton of permanent facial recognition cameras just went up in London.
Own a pair of AirPods Max? In April, Apple’s fancy over-the-ear headphones are getting full lossless audio support. They’re also adding ultra-low latency to smooth out audio. It’ll be in the iOS 18.4 update. Btw, Apple announced WWDC 2025 will kick off June 9. That’s when they’ll announce iOS 19 and all its features.