Here's a Rewritten Version of the Gear News of the Week: Samsung Sets a Date for Galaxy Unpacked, and Fitbit’s AI Coach Comes to iOS
Samsung Unveils Galaxy Unpacked Date: February 25
Samsung has officially announced its next flagship smartphone lineup will be unveiled on February 25 at the Galaxy Unpacked event in San Francisco. The company sent out invites earlier this week, and the event will begin at 10 am Pacific (1 pm Eastern). It will be livestreamed here. Rumors suggest the Galaxy S26 series, including the Galaxy S26, Galaxy S26+, and Galaxy S26 Ultra, won't have major changes from their predecessors. They'll likely be powered by the latest Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5, with minor charging speed improvements and camera hardware upgrades.
Fitbit's Personal Health Coach Arrives on iOS
Months after Fitbit's Personal Health Coach launched in a public preview for Android users, the Gemini-powered health service is now available to iOS users. To try it out, you must have an active paid or trial Fitbit Premium subscription and a phone running iOS 16.4 or higher. Personal Health Coach is also expanding to English speakers in other countries, including the United Kingdom, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, and Singapore. While some users are wary of divulging personal health information to a large corporation, even one that promises not to use it for advertising, Fitbit's AI coach is the easiest and most helpful of the services I've tried, and at $10/month for Fitbit Premium, it's cheaper than a real running coach.
iOS 26.3 Makes Switching to Android Easier
Apple has released iOS 26.3, making it easier to switch to Android phones thanks to a collaboration with Google. Now, you can place your Android device next to an iPhone to begin the transfer process, similar to switching between iPhones. Photos, texts, notes, apps, and even the phone number are transferred over. iOS 26.3 also introduces a new privacy feature called Limit Precise Location, which limits some information that cellular networks may use to determine your location. However, this feature is only available on Apple devices with Apple's custom C1 or C1X modem.
The Android 17 Beta That Never Was
Google was supposed to launch the Android 17 beta this week, but the company pulled the release without explanation. Typically, Google releases developer betas first, then public betas that everyone can join to test the software. However, last year, Google introduced the 'Android Canary' release channel to replace developer betas, giving developers faster access to test experimental features and platform changes. Google says the public beta is 'coming soon.' When it does arrive, expect mandatory requirements for apps to support resizing and windowed multitasking modes to improve the Android experience on larger screens. There's also a new API that allows apps to access metadata from all camera sensors, and a new API that levels out audio across apps.
YouTube Arrives on the Apple Vision Pro
Two years after the Apple Vision Pro entered the market, the YouTube app is finally available on visionOS. That means you can watch standard 2D videos on a theaterlike screen in a virtual space, but you can also watch 3D, 180- or 360-degree videos and enjoy the more immersive experience in the 'Spatial' tab. Up until now, AVP owners could only watch YouTube via the Safari browser on visionOS.
