Technologies

Protect Your New iPhone 17 With ESR’s MagSafe Stash Stand Cases

Whether you’re opting for the iPhone 17, the iPhone Air, or the redesigned AirPods Pro 3, ESR has you covered with stylish, all-around protection that won’t break the bank.

It’s that time of year: the moment Apple unveils its long-awaited new slate of devices. This time, they’ve announced the iPhone 17, which comes with an upgraded A19 chip, a ProMotion display previously only available on its Pro models, an upgraded camera system on both the front and back, and more. Apple’s new AirPods Pro 3 are redesigned to fit most people’s ears, and feature live translation and built-in fitness monitors. And, of course, the one everyone was waiting for: the iPhone Air, which at 5.6mm thick is the thinnest iPhone ever.

If you’re thinking about pre-ordering your new Apple devices, you’ll also want to think about the best protection and accessories to keep them safe and working their best. Thanks to ESR, one of Amazon’s top MagSafe sellers, you can protect your phone with stylish, powerful cases and high-tech MagSafe charging technology without breaking the bank.

CNET’s reviewers have praised ESR’s cases for their «premium feel» and affordability. Here are some of ESR’s brand-new MagSafe products for your iPhone 17 and key Apple accessories:

Stylish, all-around protection designed to protect your iPhone 17

The iPhone 17 line is Apple’s best yet, which means you’ll want a case strong enough to protect it without adding bulk or hiding its stylish design. That’s where ESR’s flagship Cyber Tough Magnetic Case comes in. It pairs a reinforced backplate with a wraparound bumper, a raised edge for the screen and camera, and a protective zinc-alloy camera guard. Its Air Guard corners absorb shocks in the unfortunate-but-unavoidable event your phone hits the ground.

With protection that is certified at seven times military-grade strength, the Cyber Tough Magnetic Case can protect your iPhone from drops of up to 23 feet, with a 3-layer design featuring a robust PC backing, a flexible TPE soft shell and an inner PORON lining. The Cyber Tough also has a built-in Stash Stand that, when open, can be used horizontally or vertically, with a tilt range of 15 to 69 degrees for all your hands-free needs. When closed, the stand, which is designed for the iPhone 17’s camera bar, cushions your device from unforeseen impacts. The case is compatible with MagSafe, Apple’s magnet-powered wireless charging for most phones made after 2020. It uses 1,500 g pull force — twice the normal strength — to hold onto MagSafe accessories while keeping a slim profile.

If you’re not off-roading with your phone and lean a little more toward style than maximum-strength protection, the Classic Hybrid Magnetic Case might be your best option. It comes in an original clear design that lets your iPhone’s beauty show through — while still protecting it from drops of up to 11 feet, all in a 1.5mm slim profile. If you prefer a silicon case to plastic, the Cloud Soft Magnetic Case offers smooth grip and, perhaps more importantly for some, that semi-squishy phone-case feel we’ve come to love. It’s made of soft microfiber lining, hard polycarbonate, smooth silicone, and a (necessary) micro-coating that keeps dust off.

No scratches, no dust, no bubbles

iPhone’s delicate glass screens have gotten more durable over the years, but it’s still easy to scratch your phone in your pocket or, worse, shatter it with an accidental tumble on the floor. ESR’s UltraFit Armorite Pro Screen Protector takes screen protection to the next level by getting its material from the same source used in Apple’s phones: Accessory Glass by Corning™. The screen protector’s drop resistance is 10 times the impact absorption of generic models; they’ve even survived drop tests with a 64-gram steel ball. It also has twice the scratch resistance as iPhone’s screen glass, while reducing the visibility of scratches by 25%. The protector boasts an anti-reflective coating that gives 94% optical transmittance with reduced glare and haze, so sunlight won’t slow you down.

ESR’s UltraFit tray takes the annoyance out of the installation process. There’s no danger of bubbles or dust sneaking in between your screen and protector. The screen protector comes in two slightly less protective options: the UltraFit Armorite (with 7x drop resistance) and the UltraFit Classic (2x).

Fast, high-tech cool charging that folds into your life

The CryoBoost Foldable 3-in-1 Magnetic Charging Station collapses into a slim 15.8 mm, which makes it a space-efficient and portable-friendly hub for charging your iPhone, Apple Watch, and AirPods, even all at the same time. The station presents Qi2 with 25W wireless charging, which is basically equal to the speed of charging with a cord. (An iPhone 16 on iOS 26 can get to 50% in only 25 mins.) The efficiency is fueled (and, well, cooled) by CryoBoost technology, which is a built-in fan that actively cools your phone to avoid overheating — all at whisper-quiet fan volume.

The station comes in two other models, for the home office and car: the non-foldable 3-in-1 Charging Station would fit nicely on a clutter-free desk, while the OmniLock Magnetic Car Charger promises your phone won’t pop off when you hit a pothole in the road. For the car charger, the arm is designed specifically for air vents, so it won’t fall off or obstruct the flow of air. For those looking for a unique stand, the ESR Geo Magnetic Wallet Stand features Find My functions — so it’s like an AirTag — and holds five cards, has RFID blocking, and an impressive six months of use with only a 1.5-hour charge.

The ESR CryoBoost 3-in-1 Magnetic Charging Station and the ESR OmniLock magnetic car charger will be available to purchase in September, and the ESR CryoBoost Foldable 3-in-1 Magnetic Charging Station will be available in October. You can purchase these chargers on ESR’s Amazon store or ESR’s official website.

Hear that? That’s the sound of safe AirPods

The ESR Cyber FlickLock Magnetic Case beefs up the protection for your AirPods with a magnetic lid and internal latch, while ensuring that the case can still be opened with only one hand, using a slide-lock mechanism. It’s MagSafe-ready and charging is 136% stronger than the original AirPods case, so you won’t run out of power on that crosstown bus ride. The case comes with a carabiner design to attach to your wrist or bag, but is tested for four-foot drops since, as all AirPod users know, that is definitely going to happen. More than once. ESR’s Orbit Hybrid Magnetic Case uses 1,100 g magnets to keep the lid shut tight and is available in fun colors.

Technologies

Your Pixel 10 Might Have Issues With Older Wireless Chargers

You might want to try taking the case off your phone in order to successfully charge it.

When Google introduced the Pixel 10 lineup in August, it became one of the first major Android phones to receive the Qi 2 wireless charging standard, which Google calls Pixelsnap. However, users noticed issues with wireless charging on the Pixel 10 almost immediately after its release.

Some people are having trouble charging their phone with the new Pixelsnap charger, and others are having issues with older wireless chargers, including Google’s own Pixel Stands. The bulk of the problems happen when a case is on the phone — whether it has the magnet array or not.

I own both the first and second generation Pixel Stands and both will charge my Pixel 10 Pro XL without an issue if there’s no case on it. However, when I add a case to my phone, the problems begin.

I have three cases for my phone, the Mous Super Thin Clear Case, the Magnetic Slim Case Fit by Grecazo, and a no-name soft TPU case. If my phone has any of those cases on and I attempt to charge it while it’s vertical, it starts to charge and then stops after a second or two, and keeps doing that.

I can fix this for the first-generation Pixel Stand by turning the phone horizontal, but it will still charge very slowly. I can’t seem to fix it at all for the Pixel Stand 2 — vertical, horizontal, it doesn’t charge.

Not everyone has this issue

The problem doesn’t seem to be universal. CNET editor Patrick Holland said he had no issues charging the Pixel 10 Pro during his time with it.

A Google spokesperson told me the Pixel 10 lineup is not optimized for older Qi wireless charging standards, but that doesn’t necessarily mean the phones won’t work with older wireless chargers.

Qi 2 is backwards-compatible with older standards, but the phone’s height and charging coil placement on both the phone and the charger are still factors. If you’re having problems, you might see if removing the case helps.

The prospect of potentially needing to replace your older wireless chargers with newer ones isn’t ideal, especially if you shelled out $80 for one or both of Google’s own Pixel Stands. Still, if you want the best wireless charging speed for your brand new Pixel 10 phone, it won’t be with wireless chargers that only support older Qi standards.

Technologies

Today’s NYT Connections: Sports Edition Hints and Answers for Sept. 19, #361

Here are hints and the answers for the NYT Connections: Sports Edition puzzle for Sept. 19, No. 361.

Looking for the most recent regular Connections answers? Click here for today’s Connections hints, as well as our daily answers and hints for The New York Times Mini Crossword, Wordle and Strands puzzles.

The yellow category in Connections: Sports Edition is always easy, but today’s seemed like a no-brainer. The other categories aren’t too tough, either, especially for midwesterners. But if you’re struggling but still want to solve it, read on for hints and the answers.

Connections: Sports Edition is published by The Athletic, the subscription-based sports journalism site owned by the Times. It doesn’t show up in the NYT Games app but appears in The Athletic’s own app. Or you can play it for free online.

Read more: NYT Connections: Sports Edition Puzzle Comes Out of Beta

Hints for today’s Connections: Sports Edition groups

Here are four hints for the groupings in today’s Connections: Sports Edition puzzle, ranked from the easiest yellow group to the tough (and sometimes bizarre) purple group.

Yellow group hint: Spotted on TV.

Green group hint: Unusual team names.

Blue group hint: Air Jordan.

Purple group hint: The Big House is another one.

Answers for today’s Connections: Sports Edition groups

Yellow group: Things seen on an NFL sideline.

Green group: NBA teams with singular nicknames.

Blue group: Teams Michael Jordan played for.

Purple group: Big Ten stadiums.

Read more: Wordle Cheat Sheet: Here Are the Most Popular Letters Used in English Words

What are today’s Connections: Sports Edition answers?

The yellow words in today’s Connections

The theme is things seen on an NFL sideline. The four answers are benches, chains, coaches and medical tent.

The green words in today’s Connections

The theme is NBA teams with singular nicknames. The four answers are Heat, Jazz, Magic and Thunder.

The blue words in today’s Connections

The theme is teams Michael Jordan played for. The four answers are Barons, Bulls, UNC and Wizards.

The purple words in today’s Connections

The theme is Big Ten stadiums. The four answers are Beaver, Camp Randall, Ohio and Spartan.

Technologies

AirPods Pro 3 vs. AirPods Pro 2: Should You Upgrade?

Here’s a look at the key differences between Apple’s latest flagship noise-canceling earbuds compared with their predecessor.

With Apple releasing the AirPods Pro 3, folks who already own the AirPods Pro 2 may be wondering whether it’s worth upgrading.

A good portion of my full review of the AirPods Pro 3 is devoted to discussing the differences between the two models. Here’s how I conclude my review: «Several new features, such as Live Translation, will be available for the AirPods Pro 2, so many AirPods Pro 2 owners won’t feel the need to upgrade right away. But if you’ve been using AirPods Pro 2 for a while, it might be worth passing them on to a friend or relative and upgrading to the Pro 3s.»

Read more: Best wireless earbuds of 2025

AirPods Pro 3 vs. AirPods Pro 2: What’s stayed the same

The AirPods Pro 3’s list price is still $249 (£219, AU$429). That wasn’t a given with all the uncertainty surrounding the Trump administration tariffs, but we’ll see how the price shakes out on Amazon and other retailers, where AirPods models often get discounted.
The AirPods Pro 3 are powered by Apple’s H2 chip, the same one that powers the AirPods Pro 2, AirPods 4 and Beats Powerbeats Pro 2. Rumors pointed to an H3 chip, but that didn’t happen.
No new color options; white is still the only option.
The AirPods Pro 3 stick with Bluetooth 5.3, just like the AirPods Pro 2 (though some true-wireless earbuds have already jumped to Bluetooth 6.0).
The buds still feature a MagSafe charging case with USB-C and wireless charging. However, no USB-C charging cable is included (Apple also left out a charging cable with the AirPods 4, though most people have a USB-C cable).

AirPods Pro 3 vs. AirPods Pro 2: What’s changed

While they look similar to the previous model, the AirPods Pro 3 have been redesigned. Their geometric shape has changed a bit, with the angle of the bud shifted. They’re the same length but slightly smaller width-wise, slightly larger depth-wise and weigh a touch more (5.55 grams vs. 5.3 grams on the AirPods Pro 2).
The AirPods Pro 3 come with new foam-infused silicone eartips in five sizes, including a new extra-extra small size.
The AirPods Pro 3 are equipped with heart-rate sensors like the Beats Powerbeats Pro 2.
2x better noise cancellation compared to the AirPods Pro 2, according to Apple.
While the AirPods Pro 3 have 10.7mm drivers like the AirPods Pro 2, those drivers have been upgraded to take advantage of the buds’ new multiport acoustic architecture, which moves more air through the buds and improves sound quality.
The AirPods Pro 3’s microphones have been upgraded.
The AirPods Pro 3’s Transparency Mode has been enhanced.
New Live Translation feature (also available for the AirPods Pro 2 and AirPods 4 series, but not the Beats Powerbeats Pro 2).
The AirPods Pro 3’s battery life has improved to 8 hours with noise cancellation on and up to 10 hours in Hearing Aid mode with transparency on. The AirPods Pro 2 are rated for up to 6 hours of battery life with noise-canceling on.
Instead of being IPX4 splash-proof like the AirPods Pro 2, the AirPods Pro 3 got an IP57 rating (so did their charging case), which means they can withstand a sustained spray of water. (I poured water on them and they survived just fine.) They’re also dust-resistant.
The AirPods Pro’s case now includes a U2 chip, boosting Precision Finding range in the Find My app by 1.5x (requires an iPhone 17). The AirPods Pro 2’s case has the U1 chip.
Like with the AirPods 4, the AirPods Pro 3’s case no longer has a button for Bluetooth pairing. You simply double-tap on the front of the case to put the buds into Bluetooth pairing mode. The AirPods Pro 2 have a physical button for Bluetooth pairing.

The AirPods Pro 3’s new geometric shape and eartips are among the biggest changes

While the AirPods Pro 3 and AirPods Pro 2 look very similar at first glance, they do feel different in your ears. That’s because the AirPods Pro 3’s new eartips are made of silicone but infused with foam toward the front of the ear tip. Also, the angle of the bud has been adjusted so the eartips point more directly into your ear canals.

If you’re someone who couldn’t quite get a good fit with the original AirPods Pro or Pro 2, the new design could very well help you get a snugger, more secure fit. The fact is that a tight seal is crucial for optimal sound and noise-canceling performance, and Apple redesigned the eartips to make sure users could hear the sound and noise-canceling upgrades with the AirPods Pro 3.

Alas, the new AirPods Pro 3 tips don’t work with earlier AirPods Pro models; they attach differently.

Do you really need the AirPods Pro 3’s heart-rate monitoring?

I personally don’t feel that heart-rate monitoring is a must-have feature, particularly if you already own a smartwatch with the feature. But for some folks, it will be a welcome addition. The heart-rate sensors have been custom-designed for the AirPods Pro 3 (they’re Apple’s smallest heart-rate sensors) and aren’t identical to the ones in the Powerbeats Pro 2, but the experience using the heart-rate monitoring feature is the same.

How much better are the AirPods Pro 3 than the AirPods Pro 2?

It’s always hard to put an exact percentage on how improved one generation of a product is to the next, and there are always some people who will prefer the older model for whatever reason. But for me, the AirPods Pro 3 are about 20-25% better.

While they both use the H2 chip, the newest AirPods have been redesigned on the outside and inside, and most people should notice the improvements to sound quality, noise cancellation and fit.

If you own the original AirPods Pro, I wouldn’t hesitate to recommend upgrading, especially if your battery life has decreased.

If you’re happy with your AirPods Pro 2, there’s no hurry to upgrade unless your battery life has become an issue (some people have the older AirPods Pro 2 with a Lightning connector for charging instead of USB-C). The previous generation supports most of the same features as the AirPods Pro 3 (aside from heart-monitoring), including Live Translation and Hearing Aid mode.

It’s worth pointing out that the AirPods Pro 3 offer slightly better speech clarity for Hearing Aid mode (with Automatic Conversation Boost) and better battery life — up to 10 hours with Transparency and Hearing Aid mode. That makes the AirPods 3 the better choice if you have small to moderate hearing loss and plan to use your AirPods as hearing aids.

AirPods Pro 2 vs. AirPods Pro 3 vs. AirPods 4 with ANC spec comparison

	AirPods Pro 2	AirPods Pro 3	AirPods 4 with ANC
Weight (each earbud)	0.19 ounce (5.13 grams)	0.20 ounce (5.5 grams)	0.15 ounce (4.3 grams)
Weight (case)	1.79 ounces (50.8 grams)	1.55 ounces (43.99 grams)	1.22 ounces (34.7 grams)
Water resistant	IPX4	IP57	IP54
Sensors	Skin-detect sensor, Optical in-ear sensor, Motion-detecting accelerometer, Speech-detecting accelerometer, Force sensor	Skin-detect sensor, Optical in-ear sensor, Motion-detecting accelerometer, Speech-detecting accelerometer, Force sensor, heart-rate sensor	Optical in-ear sensor, Motion-detecting accelerometer, Speech-detecting accelerometer, Force sensor
Microphones	Dual beamforming microphones, inward-facing microphone	Dual beamforming microphones, inward-facing microphone	Dual beamforming microphones, inward-facing microphone
Chip	H2	H2	H2
Conectivity	Bluetooth 5.3	Bluetooth 5.3	Bluetooth 5.3
Active Noise Cancelation, Transparency mode	Yes	Yes	Yes
Conversation Awareness, Adaptive Audio	Yes	Yes	Yes
Voice Isolation, Personalized volume	Yes	Yes	Yes
Battery life	Up to 6 hours +30 hours with case	Up to 8 hours +24 hours with case	Up to 5 hours +30 hours with case
Wire in box	Yes	No	No
Launch Price	$249	$249	$179