OPINION: August is now in the rear-view mirror, meaning it’s time for us to name our final winners and losers from last month.
This week, Garmin announced the latest updates to its high-end lines with the Fenix 8 and Enduro 3 smartwatches. Meanwhile, Motorola unveiled its latest range of affordable smartphones and Apple sent out save-the-dates with the tagline ‘It’s Glowtime’ for the big iPhone 16 launch this September.
Keep reading to learn who (or what) we named our winner and loser this week, and why.
Winner: Garmin
Our winner this week is Garmin as the company announced the long-awaited upgrade to its Fenix line of smartwatches.
The new Garmin Fenix 8 features an AMOLED display for the first time, putting the screen more on par with the Apple Watch Ultra 2 and the Samsung Galaxy Watch Ultra.
The AMOLED screen replaces the MIP LCD panel on the Fenix 7, which used a built-in memory to make pixels more easily visible in bright conditions and extend the battery life of the device. While great for reading outdoors, MIP screens can often appear dim and washed out in low-light conditions, such as indoors, making the AMOLED display on the Fenix 8 a more attractive option for everyday use.
Not only are AMOLED screens brighter and offer superior contrast compared to MIP screens, but they have their own perks when it comes to battery life as black pixels can reserve power by remaining unlit. That said, if battery life is your main priority, the solar charging version is still available and now delivers 50% more solar power than its predecessor.
The Fenix 8 isn’t the first Garmin wearable to boast an AMOLED display, with the Venu, Forerunner, Vivoactive, and Epix lines all offering AMOLED configurations in 2024. However, it’s great to see Garmin upgrade another model to AMOLED, making the Fenix 8 an even more capable rival to the Apple Watch Ultra 2 and Galaxy Watch Ultra going forward.
Loser: Sony
This week’s loser is Sony as the company announced a PlayStation price hike in its home country of Japan.
This isn’t a small increase in price, either. According to a report by VGC, Sony notified fans that the cost of the PS5 would rise from ¥66980 to ¥79980 from September 2. That’s a ¥13000 – or $90/£69 – increase, taking the price of the console from about $460/£350 to $550/£418 in a matter of days.
The more affordable Digital Edition isn’t exempt from this price hike, with the disc-less console likewise increasing in cost from ¥59980 to ¥72980 with the same ¥13000 added on. This takes the price of the PS5 digital edition from roughly $415/£315 to $505/£384.
Sony also revealed that the price of its DualSense controllers and PlayStation Portal will be increasing, adding even more expenses for those looking to pick up an extra controller or game away from their console.
“Given the recent challenging external environment, including the current fluctuations in the global economic situation, and the impact it will have on our business, we have reached this decision”, explained Sony in a Japanese PlayStation Blog update (translated via Google Translate).
Thankfully, there’s been no indication that these price hikes will extend to the rest of the world, but it paints a worrying trend particularly as this isn’t the first time that Japanese gamers have had to endure a pricier PS5.
