Author: Tom Rob Pugh

In early February 2026, within the span of six days, two signals emerged that suggested the next phase of human space ambition may unfold far closer to Earth than many once expected. On February 3, NASA’s Artemis II mission — the long-awaited crewed return to lunar orbit — was forced to delay its launch “wet dress rehearsal” because of technical issues. Then, on February 9, Elon Musk posted on X that SpaceX would shift its long-term development focus from Mars to the Moon. Building a self-expanding city on the Moon, he argued, could be achievable within 10 years. Mars, by…

As China’s smartphone makers pause public launches for the Spring Festival holiday, the competition has not slowed behind closed doors. By mid-February — February 15, to be precise — brands have largely suspended new product announcements, but development pipelines remain active. When the market reopens after the holiday, one of the first devices expected to test consumer appetite for extreme battery life is the Honor X80, a handset built around a 10,000mAh power unit. The timing matters. In 2026, battery capacity has become a defining battleground, with energy density improvements allowing manufacturers to push well beyond last year’s norms. Compared…

For years, China’s smartphone industry treated compact flagships as a niche experiment—useful for brand signaling, but rarely central to growth. That assumption is now under pressure. As of February 2026, Vivo says cumulative sales of its X300 series have reached 1.2945 million units, placing the lineup among the top three domestic flagship models and marking the strongest performance in the history of Vivo’s X series. Against that backdrop, Vivo is preparing to launch the X300s, a so-called “minor refresh” that in practice looks more like a stress test of the company’s long-term strategy: can a small-screen phone deliver no compromises…

Apple’s newest product launch didn’t come with a keynote, a press release, or even much fanfare. Instead, it appeared quietly on Apple’s overseas websites—while remaining entirely absent from the company’s China storefront. The product itself is modest, but the way it was released underscores a broader shift in how Apple is rolling out new hardware accessories across global markets. Earlier today, Apple listed two new Mac-related accessories on its international websites: Belkin iPhone Stands designed to integrate the iPhone more deeply into the Mac ecosystem. Both products are available on overseas Apple sites, yet neither has gone on sale on…

In an industry usually driven by performance-per-dollar, Razer is deliberately moving in the opposite direction. To mark the 20th anniversary of its Basilisk-inspired “Boomslang” legacy line, the gaming hardware company has opened pre-orders for an ultra-limited commemorative mouse that costs 9,999 yuan and is capped at 1,337 units worldwide—a number chosen to resonate with hardcore gaming culture. Each unit carries an individually numbered serial, underscoring that this release is aimed less at mainstream gamers and more at collectors, enthusiasts, and long-time fans of the brand. Pre-orders began on February 7, according to Razer’s China announcement. A Collector’s Object Disguised as…

With OPPO’s next “Ultra” flagship expected to land in March, fresh leaks are painting a very clear picture of what the Find X9 Ultra is all about — and this time, OPPO is going all-in on long-range photography. Recent regulatory listings confirm that the OPPO Find X9 Ultra has officially passed network certification under model numbers PMA110 / PMA120, including a satellite communication variant. At the same time, a detailed specs sheet has begun circulating in the industry, suggesting the device’s final hardware configuration is largely locked in. According to multiple sources, OPPO plans to unveil the Find X9 Ultra…

A fast-emerging reality in biotechnology is no longer just about what can be built in a lab, but how quickly it can be built—and who or what is doing the designing. Researchers at Stanford University and Genyro have reported feeding an artificial intelligence system called Evo2 a vast genomic training set and then instructing it to design a virus, producing a DNA sequence that scientists say has never existed in Earth’s 4-billion-year biological history. The experiment, described as having taken place on Jan. 26, 2026, underscores a widening gap between traditional biological timelines—where evolution proceeds through slow trial and error—and…

The speed of decision-making inside China’s smartphone industry has rarely been so visible. In early February 2026, Redmi moved from publicly dismissing plans for a 1TB smartphone variant to putting it on sale nationwide in less than a week—triggering a backlash that exposed the growing tension between cost control, market demand and consumer trust. At the centre of the controversy is the Redmi Turbo 5 Max, a mid-range flagship positioned in the fiercely competitive 2,000–3,000 yuan price segment. On February 4, Redmi unexpectedly launched a 16GB RAM + 1TB storage version of the device, reversing an earlier statement by product…

Nine years after its debut, Nintendo’s original Switch is still shaping the industry’s balance of power — not by novelty, but by stubborn longevity. At a moment when its successor is already on store shelves, the first-generation Switch has quietly climbed to a position few consoles ever reach, raising an uncomfortable question for rivals and for Nintendo itself: whether a machine nearing a decade of life could still rewrite gaming history. Nintendo disclosed in its latest earnings call that lifetime Switch sales have reached 155.37 million units, a figure that now places it second on the all-time console sales chart.…

Microsoft is using February to make a familiar argument about Xbox Game Pass: that the service can mix day-one releases with older blockbusters, and still leave room for smaller games with sharper ideas. The company’s first-wave schedule for February 2026, outlined in announcements carried by Xbox Wire, GameSpot and IGN, stretches from classic role-playing nostalgia to major licensed worlds and sports heavyweights — while quietly reminding subscribers that the library is also a revolving door. The most strategically timed additions land mid-month, when high-profile titles arrive close together. High on Life 2 launches day one on February 13 for Game…