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The Xiaomi 15T and 15T Pro Have One Feature That Samsung Phones Don’t

The phones pack a lot for the money but US shoppers will have to look elsewhere.

Xiaomi’s 15 Ultra impressed me earlier in the year with its stellar camera setup that provides superb quality for pro shooters. But the company’s not done for the year just yet; the Xiaomi 15T and 15T Pro pack Leica-branded camera systems and a host of high-end tech into a metal body. I’ve been hands-on, and there’s a lot to like. 

Both the processor and the cameras put in solid performances during my hands-on time with them. Plus, I was intrigued to hear about a unique new feature found only on the Xiaomi 15T and 15T Pro: a walkie talkie mode for making device-to-device voice calls in areas where there is no cell service. 

Read more: I Took Over 1,000 Photos With the Xiaomi 15 Ultra. Check Out My Favorites

At the time of writing, Xiaomi wouldn’t confirm pricing details for the 15T or 15T Pro, but for reference, last year’s 14T Pro started at £650 (roughly $880) in the UK and was a high-performing mid-range handset. I’d expect the 15T Pro to come with a similar price tag. It’s safe to assume the base 15T will be at least £100 cheaper. As with all of Xiaomi’s products, an official US launch is not on the cards. 

Xiaomi 15T Pro cameras

The back of the 15T Pro is home to a triple-camera array, which includes a 50-megapixel main camera, a 50-megapixel telephoto camera with 5x optical zoom and a 12-megapixel ultrawide camera. 

On a sunny late summer day in Edinburgh, I found the main camera capable of taking solid shots with even exposure, accurate colors and plenty of detail. 

Switching to the ultrawide lens, I’m not quite as impressed. The exposure balance isn’t as good and the details are noticeably poorer, especially towards the edge of the frame. Still, it’s fine for snaps. 

But the 5x optical zoom is impressive, delivering crisp details and consistent exposure handling, just like the main camera.

Like the 15 Ultra, it also offers a Pro mode that allows you to shoot in RAW, manually adjust settings and choose from various color profiles — including several of the same Leica-branded ones found on Leica’s regular cameras.

Xiaomi 15T Pro: Design and display

The phone is made with an aluminum alloy frame and a glass fiber back, which feels sturdy in hand, while its IP68 waterproof rating means the occasional splash won’t be a problem. I think the phone looks a bit plain; even its «mocha gold» color leans more towards 1970s couch brown. But looks are subjective and hardly matter if you’re just going to throw a case on it anyway. 

The 6.8-inch display is bright enough for use in direct sunlight, with rich colors and plenty of screen real estate to do justice to mobile games or YouTube videos — perfect for your commute. 

Xiaomi 15T Pro: Processor, battery and extras

The 15T Pro runs on a MediaTek Dimensity 9400+ processor, which clocked some decent scores on the Geekbench 6 benchmark test. It came in a bit shy of the Galaxy S25 Ultra, but a fair way above the Google Pixel 10 Pro XL. In everyday use, I found it nippy and it handled gaming in PUBG and Destiny: Rising without any issues.

Powering the phone is a 5,500-mAh battery, which should get you through a full day of mixed use. It supports up to 90W wired charging, which should get juice back in the tank very quickly, assuming you have a compatible charger. 

The phone runs Android 15 at its core and I’m a bit peeved that it comes preinstalled with a bunch of third-party apps, including Amazon shopping, Amazon music, AliExpress, Facebook and more. It makes the phone feel cluttered right out of the box; I recommend uninstalling whatever you don’t want before you even begin installing your own apps. 

An interesting new feature is offline communication, which lets two 15T series phones make direct device-to-device voice calls from up to 1.9 kilometers away. It essentially turns the phone into a walkie-talkie, offerings a way to communicate in areas where there’s no cell service — like when you’re hiking with friends in the wilderness. It’s a novel idea, and as far as I know, unique to Xiaomi. That said, it currently only works if both you and your friend have a Xiaomi 15T or 15T Pro, so hopefully the company rolls it out to more devices soon. 

Xiaomi 15T and 15T Pro: Are they any good?

The 15T Pro’s solid processor and camera performance make it a decent all-round phone for what I’m hoping will be a reasonable mid-range price tag. While it won’t be offering much competition to the likes of the Galaxy S25 Ultra or the new iPhone 17 Pro, it’s got everything you’d need from an everyday Android phone.

The base 15T packs most of the same camera setup but uses a slightly less powerful processor and misses out on the 90W fast charging found in its Pro sibling. I expect it to cost even less, making it a better option if you’re shopping on a budget. 

Technologies

Peloton’s Friday the 13th-Themed Workouts Let You Try to Escape Jason, the Iconic Killer

The company is collaborating with the companies behind the hockey-masked slasher to light a fire under your next workout.

Do you have what it takes to be the final survivor in your favorite horror movie? Or are you too unfit to outrun the murderous slasher from Friday the 13th? 

Peloton’s new collaboration with the companies behind the hockey-masked movie murderer, Jason Voorhees, brings the campy horror of Camp Crystal Lake to your exercise routine.


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The exercise company joined forces with Jason Universe and Horror, Inc., the original owners of the Friday the 13th film franchise, to assemble three classes inspired by the infamous movie killer. Instructors, appropriately dressed as camp counselors, run themed exercises based on trying to survive Jason’s rampage.

The first class, a 30-minute ride with instructor Camila Ramón, runs from the Peloton studio to Camp Crystal Lake. As cyclists get closer to their final destination, it becomes clear that they’re riding for their lives.

The second class is a 30-minute boot camp with instructor Rebecca Kennedy, focused on improving muscle strength. Kennedy starts with a normal routine before transitioning into training about how to escape the creepy camp.

The session concludes with a 10-minute meditation with instructor Denis Morton focused on breathing techniques that help with «facing your demons and finding calm in scary times.»

Immersive storytelling meets exercise

The new series of exercises is a clever bit of storytelling that blurs the line between reality and fiction. This Jason-themed narrative feels like Peloton’s attempt at an alternate reality game.

«We’re so excited to bring this haunting series to our Members, unlocking a new way for our community to experience a physical journey like never before,» said Ramón. «Reimagining the Jason Universe and Camp Crystal Lake onto our platform allows us to explore a new type of immersive storytelling.»

If you want to survive Jason’s latest killing spree, you’ll have to train hard. While the killer usually ambles forward at a glacial pace, he always seems to show up just when someone gets too comfortable. The original Friday the 13th movie came out 45 years ago, so Jason has decades of slasher experience under his moldering belt.

All three of the new Jason-themed Peloton classes are available to members now. A commemorative limited edition T-shirt featuring Jason Voorhees is also available on Peloton’s apparel website. The scariest thing is its price — $49.

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Technologies

Amazon Prime’s $2.5 FTC Settlement: Learn Who’s Eligible and How Much Payouts Will Be

The online retail giant will soon begin paying misled customers who subscribed to Amazon Prime.

If you thought your Amazon Prime signup process was a little confusing, it’s not just you. The Federal Trade Commission filed a lawsuit against Amazon in 2023, alleging that the retail giant misled customers in marketing Prime subscriptions to its customers. In September, Amazon agreed to pay a $2.5 billion settlement, one of the largest in US history.

The FTC said $1.5 billion will go into a fund to repay eligible subscribers, with the remaining $1 billion collected as a civil penalty. And while Amazon did not admit to wrongdoing, it’s still making changes to how it presents the service. The settlement requires Amazon to add a «clear and conspicuous» option to decline Prime during checkout and to simplify the cancellation process.

«Amazon and our executives have always followed the law, and this settlement allows us to move forward and focus on innovating for customers,» Mark Blafkin, Amazon senior manager, said in a statement. «We work incredibly hard to make it clear and simple for customers to both sign up or cancel their Prime membership, and to offer substantial value for our many millions of loyal Prime members around the world.»


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Why did the FTC file a lawsuit against Amazon?

The FTC filed suit against Amazon accused the company of using «dark patterns» to nudge people into Prime subscriptions and then making it too hard to cancel. The FTC maintained Amazon was in violation of Section 5 of the FTC Act and the Restore Online Shoppers’ Confidence Act

«Specifically, Amazon used manipulative, coercive or deceptive user-interface designs known as ‘dark patterns’ to trick consumers into enrolling in automatically renewing Prime subscriptions,» the FTC complaint states.

Who’s eligible for Amazon’s payout?

Amazon’s legal settlement is limited to customers who enrolled in Amazon Prime between June 23, 2019, and June 23, 2025. It’s also restricted to customers who subscribed to Prime using a «challenged enrollment flow» or who enrolled in Prime through any method but were unsuccessful in canceling their memberships.

The FTC called out specific enrollment pages, including Prime Video enrollment, the Universal Prime Decision page, the Shipping Option Select page and the Single Page Checkout. To qualify for a payout, claimants must also not have used more than 10 Amazon Prime benefits in any 12-month period.

Customers who signed up via those challenged processes and did not use more than three Prime benefits within one year will be paid automatically by Amazon within 90 days. Other eligible Amazon customers will need to file a claim, and Amazon is required to send notices to those people within 30 days of making its automatic payments.

Customers who did not use a challenged sign-up process but instead were unable to cancel their memberships will also need to file claims for payment.

How big will the Amazon payments be?

Payouts to eligible Amazon claimants will be limited to a maximum of $51. That amount could be reduced depending on the number of Amazon Prime benefits you used while subscribed to the service. Those benefits include free two-day shipping, watching shows or movies on Prime Video or Whole Foods grocery discounts. 

Customers who qualify for the payments should receive them by Dec. 24.Customers outside the US aren’t eligible for the payout.

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Technologies

These Already Affordable ANC OneOdio Headphones Are Even Better at $26 Off

They’re one of our favorite noise-canceling pairs for less than $100, and you can snag some for a record-low $64 right now.

Though you could easily drop $300 or even more, you don’t need to spend a fortune to get yourself a decent pair of headphones these days. There are some excellent budget-friendly options out there that still have plenty to offer, and right now you can snag one of our favorite pairs of 2025 for even less. Amazon has knocked $26 off the OneOdio A10s, which brings them down to a record-low $64. Though this deal could expire at any time, so be sure to get your order in soon.

These over-ear OneOdio headphones earned a spot on our list of the best noise-canceling pairs under $100 thanks to their sturdy design and superior comfort. According to CNET audio expert David Carnoy, they also «sound surprisingly decent and have reasonably good noise canceling with a transparency mode.» Plus, they boast an impressive 50-hour battery life and have a 3.5mm aux port for wired listening as well.

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Why this deal matters

Having earned a spot on our list of the best budget noise-canceling headphones, the OneOdio A10s are already a decent value at full price. So a chance to grab a pair on sale — let alone for a record-low price — is a serious bargain. They have a sturdy design, impressive sound and decent noise-canceling capabilities, which is a solid set of features for less than $70.

Though there are plenty of other excellent headphone deals available now, if you’re on the hunt for a different pair.

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