Technologies
Best Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 4 Cases
Samsung’s latest flagship foldable phone is on sale at many retailers. Here are the best cases for protecting your Galaxy Z Fold 4.
The new era of smartphones is upon us. With foldable smartphones going mainstream, especially in Europe and China, the Galaxy Z Fold 4 and the Galaxy Z Flip 4 are arguably the best foldable phones available to buy in the US. These are expensive phones, even if you do take advantage of some of the best Galaxy Z Fold 4 deals, so if you’re going to drop the money on something like this, you’ll want to protect it. That means the next thing on your shopping list should be a good Galaxy Z Fold 4 case.
We haven’t had the chance to test all the cases on this list just yet, but we can draw on our experiences with Z Fold 3 cases from some of the same brands, even if those Z Fold 3 cases won’t fit the new model. As more Galaxy Z Fold 4 cases hit the market, we’ll be checking them out and updating this collection accordingly.
Go straight to the source for Galaxy Z Fold 4 case with Samsung’s Fold 4 Standing Cover with S Pen. This case not only protects the back and sides of your phone but can also serve as a kickstand and comes with a detachable S Pen slot.
Spigen’s crystal clear Air Skin lets your Galaxy Z Fold 4’s color shine through while protecting its back and edges. It adds just enough protection without being bulky thanks to its form-fitting and lightweight design. Wireless charging works uninterrupted and there are cutouts for buttons and speakers. It also comes in black if you don’t want a clear case.
If you want to add a layer of protection with minimal bulk, Ringke’s Slim Case is a top choice. At just 1.2mm thick, it protects the back and sides of your device from scuffs and scrapes without weighing the whole thing down and makes use of adhesive to stay in place. It is available in black, clear or frosted finishes.
Combining a hard shell and an impact resistant soft core, UAG’s Civilian case offers military-grade protection against drops for your Galaxy Z Fold 4. Its raised edges protect the display glass and its grippy material should help your phone remain in hand so you don’t actually have to test out its drop test rating. It’s still thin enough to allow for wireless and reverse wireless charging.
If you like to store your cards and ID alongside your phone, you’ll be glad to know that Galaxy Z Fold 4 wallet cases exist. This Fyton case can keep a couple of cards handy and easy to access and the wallet portion of the case also does double duty as a convenient kickstand. A variety of colors and finishes are available.
If you’re planning on using the S Pen with your Galaxy Z Fold 4, you’re going to need somewhere to store it when it’s not in your hand. Spigen’s Thin Fit P is designed with a dedicated cutout on the side for the S Pen when it’s not in use. It doesn’t add a ton of bulk or an odd lump on the back of your device like you get with Samsung’s first-party option. You can save $10 at Amazon by activating the instant coupon on the product page.
If you want to wrap your Galaxy Z Fold 4 in a leather case, Samsung offers a first-party option. It protects the back and sides of your device though the choice of colors is a little disappointing with just black or moss gray options to choose between.
If you’re a little worried about dropping your $1,800 phone, Samsung’s Silicone Grip Case is worth checking out. Thanks to its built-in security strap, you can slide your hand around the phone and under the strap for a little extra peace of mind. As well as adding some utility, the strap also offers a unique design flourish that you might find attractive depending on your tastes. It comes in two colors (white or black) as standard, but additional interchangeable straps are sold separately if you want one that better fits your personal style.
If you don’t need the S Pen storage but would still like your Z Fold 4 case to do double duty as a stand, you ought to check out Samsung’s Slim Standing Cover. It offers a soft, matte finish, protecting the back and edges of your device, and can be used to prop up your unfolded Z Fold 4 for hands-free viewing.
Technologies
Today’s NYT Strands Hints, Answers and Help for Dec. 5 #642
Here are hints and answers for the NYT Strands puzzle for Dec. 5, No. 642.
Looking for the most recent Strands answer? Click here for our daily Strands hints, as well as our daily answers and hints for The New York Times Mini Crossword, Wordle, Connections and Connections: Sports Edition puzzles.
Today’s NYT Strands puzzle is a fun one, and the theme is interesting. Some of the answers are difficult to unscramble, so if you need hints and answers, read on.
I go into depth about the rules for Strands in this story.
If you’re looking for today’s Wordle, Connections and Mini Crossword answers, you can visit CNET’s NYT puzzle hints page.
Read more: NYT Connections Turns 1: These Are the 5 Toughest Puzzles So Far
Hint for today’s Strands puzzle
Today’s Strands theme is: Feeling peckish?
If that doesn’t help you, here’s a clue: Can I see a menu?
Clue words to unlock in-game hints
Your goal is to find hidden words that fit the puzzle’s theme. If you’re stuck, find any words you can. Every time you find three words of four letters or more, Strands will reveal one of the theme words. These are the words I used to get those hints but any words of four or more letters that you find will work:
- BAKE, BAKER, BONE, BONES, SIRS, FUNS, FACT, BUTT, DIET, DIETS, GREW, STEW, GOUT, DINE, NEST, NETS, TEAK
Answers for today’s Strands puzzle
These are the answers that tie into the theme. The goal of the puzzle is to find them all, including the spangram, a theme word that reaches from one side of the puzzle to the other. When you have all of them (I originally thought there were always eight but learned that the number can vary), every letter on the board will be used. Here are the nonspangram answers:
- BAKERY, CAFE, BISTRO, BUFFET, BREWERY, STEAKHOUSE
Today’s Strands spangram
Today’s Strands spangram is DININGOUT. To find it, start with the D that is three letters to the right on the top row, and wind down.
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Technologies
Today’s NYT Mini Crossword Answers for Friday, Dec. 5
Here are the answers for The New York Times Mini Crossword for Dec. 5.
Looking for the most recent Mini Crossword answer? Click here for today’s Mini Crossword hints, as well as our daily answers and hints for The New York Times Wordle, Strands, Connections and Connections: Sports Edition puzzles.
Need some help with today’s Mini Crossword? Three of the clues involve a now-infamous Gen Z/Gen Alpha joke, so you might want to have a young person nearby. Read on. And if you could use some hints and guidance for daily solving, check out our Mini Crossword tips.
If you’re looking for today’s Wordle, Connections, Connections: Sports Edition and Strands answers, you can visit CNET’s NYT puzzle hints page.
Read more: Tips and Tricks for Solving The New York Times Mini Crossword
Let’s get to those Mini Crossword clues and answers.
Mini across clues and answers
1A clue: Beaver’s building project
Answer: DAM
4A clue: Unit of distance originally equivalent to 1,000 paces
Answer: MILE
5A clue: Number of dwarfs or deadly sins
Answer: SEVEN
6A clue: Extra-large film format
Answer: IMAX
7A clue: Crosses (out)
Answer: XES
Mini down clues and answers
1D clue: Difficult-to-work-with stars
Answer: DIVAS
2D clue: U.S. soccer star ___ Morgan
Answer: ALEX
3D clue: Roughly half of the adult population
Answer: MEN
4D clue: 5-Down-5-Across, for one
Answer: MEME
5D clue: Broadway musical about the wives of Henry VIII
Answer: SIX
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Technologies
The Mystery of the iPhone 17 Pro’s Missing Night Mode for Portraits
Is it a bug? Is it a technical issue? Or did Apple just yank a camera feature that wasn’t popular?
It’s a mystery. Night mode isn’t available in Portrait Mode on the iPhone 17 Pro, and no one seems to know why. Yet.
Night mode automatically brightens photos and captures more details, even in low-light conditions. You can adjust the exposure time manually. In Portrait mode, the camera focuses sharply on the subject you’re snapping and blurs the background, creating a depth-of-field effect.
The first clue that Night mode for Portrait mode was gone came from an Apple support document titled Take Night mode photos with your iPhone camera. It states what many iPhone aficionados already know: «Night mode automatically brightens photos and captures more detail in low light.»
Don’t miss any of our unbiased tech content and lab-based reviews. Add CNET as a preferred Google source.
Night mode for the iPhone 17 Pro is listed in two separate parts of the iPhone online user guide (here and also here) for selfies and time-lapse photos. But it isn’t included on the guide’s list for snapping Night mode photos in Portrait mode. The feature is still available on iPhone Pro and Pro Max on the 12, 13, 14, 15 and 16 series.
Upon investigation, CNET staffers verified that, indeed, Night mode is no longer an option in Portrait mode with the iPhone 17 Pro.
An Apple representative didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment.
When the iPhone 17 Pro was launched in September, Andrew Lanxon, CNET’s lead photographer in Europe, was impressed by the camera upgrades over the iPhone 16 Pro, including optical zoom that doubled to 8x, a telephoto camera sensor 56% larger than before and 48 megapixels of resolution.
Lanxon, a professional photographer and YouTuber, was excited to get shooting with the iPhone 17 Pro. But apparently, he will have to do without Night mode in Portrait mode.
Why did Apple do it?
Why was Night mode removed? «There doesn’t appear to be a hardware reason for it,» said CNET senior writer Jeff Carlson. «The Lidar camera that helps with low-light focusing and depth perception is still there. Perhaps it’s a software issue, but as of the iOS 26.2 release candidate, the feature isn’t present.»
Carlson found it curious that it’s taken three months since the launch of the new pro model before people noticed that it’s missing. He speculates that the feature was possibly removed because it «wasn’t being used and Apple could devote other processing resources elsewhere,» he said. «Perhaps something broke in the development of the new operating system and revamped Camera app, and it hasn’t been a high enough priority to fix in the regular release schedule.
«People have gotten used to having iPhone models that enable shots that are otherwise difficult for smartphone cameras, especially on a flagship like the iPhone 17 Pro,» Carlson said. «I hope the feature returns to give everyone the most control over the photos they capture.»
One parallel might be what Samsung did earlier this year — removing S Pen Bluetooth connectivity on the new S25 Ultra. Samsung said they removed the feature because not many people were using it. Is Apple doing the same thing with Night mode for portraits?
Some people miss it, some don’t
A subreddit on the topic appeared to be a mix of «who cares» and «oh darn.» Redditor kaoss_pad was «low key happy» that the feature had vanished, saying that «it would often surprise me and activate when I didn’t want it and ruin a moment.»
Some Redditors weren’t even aware of the feature. CultofCedar posted, «lol didn’t even notice that wasn’t a thing,» and Successful-Cover5433 wrote, «I didn’t even know you could.»
A couple of folks weren’t happy about the mysterious disappearance, including nsfdrag, who posted, «Kind of a bummer, I like the feature.»
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