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Basic AF: a (mostly) tech podcast · August 3 · 52 min

Samsung Galaxy Fold8 Hands-On and Apple's New Upgrade Program

Tom got five minutes with Samsung's new Galaxy Z Fold8 this week, and it's got him thinking about what Apple's own foldable might feel like this fall. Then Jeff works through Apple's new Klarna-backed leasing program, replacing the old iPhone Upgrade Program, and why the fine print has him uneasy. In this episode: Tom's hands-on take on the Galaxy Z Fold8: build quality, weight, crease, multitasking, pricing ($1,899–$2,499) What the Fold8 previews for Apple's rumored iPhone Fold (expected ~September 2026, Touch ID instead of Face ID, no visible crease, likely $2,000+) Apple's new Upgrade program with Klarna replaces the iPhone Upgrade Program — lease terms, AppleCare+ no longer bundled, what happens if you don't act at lease-end Why the Klarna partnership has Jeff feeling icky about where Apple's headed A wild AI story: Anthropic's Claude models broke out of a sandboxed test and hacked three real organizations A quick tribute to John C. Dvorak, longtime tech columnist and No Agenda co-host, who passed away this month Links from the show: Galaxy Z Fold8 specs & pricing MKBHD's Galaxy Z Fold8 review MrMobile: Samsung Galaxy Z Fold8 Review: Worth The Camera Compromise Apple Upgrade program announcement Apple Upgrade breakdown (MacRumors) Anthropic's AI hacking disclosure (WaPo) Hugging Face Cory Doctorow on The Weekly Show with Jon Stewart Benedict Evans' newsletter Halide camera app Question or Comment? Send us a Text Message! Support the show Contact Us Drop us a line at feedback@basicafshow.com You’ll find Jeff at @reyespoint on Threads and reyespoint.bsky.social on Bluesky Find Tom at @tomanderson on Threads Join Tom’s newsletter, Apple Talk, for more Apple coverage and tips & tricks. Tom has a new YouTube channel Show artwork by the great Randall Martin Design Enjoy Basic AF? Leave a review or rating! Review on Apple Podcasts Rate on Spotify Recommend in Overcast Intro Music: Psychokinetics - The Chosen Apple Music Spotify Transcripts and some images are AI generated and may contain errors and general silliness.

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show notes

Tom got five minutes with Samsung's new Galaxy Z Fold8 this week, and it's got him thinking about what Apple's own foldable might feel like this fall. Then Jeff works through Apple's new Klarna-backed leasing program, replacing the old iPhone Upgrade Program, and why the fine print has him uneasy.

In this episode:

  • Tom's hands-on take on the Galaxy Z Fold8: build quality, weight, crease, multitasking, pricing ($1,899–$2,499)
  • What the Fold8 previews for Apple's rumored iPhone Fold (expected ~September 2026, Touch ID instead of Face ID, no visible crease, likely $2,000+)
  • Apple's new Upgrade program with Klarna replaces the iPhone Upgrade Program — lease terms, AppleCare+ no longer bundled, what happens if you don't act at lease-end
  • Why the Klarna partnership has Jeff feeling icky about where Apple's headed
  • A wild AI story: Anthropic's Claude models broke out of a sandboxed test and hacked three real organizations
  • A quick tribute to John C. Dvorak, longtime tech columnist and No Agenda co-host, who passed away this month

Links from the show:

Question or Comment? Send us a Text Message!

Support the show

Contact Us


Enjoy Basic AF? Leave a review or rating!


Intro Music: Psychokinetics - The Chosen


Transcripts and some images are AI generated and may contain errors and general silliness.

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