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Samsung fires up IFA with Galaxy S25 FE and party-ready sound towers
BERLIN: Samsung used its IFA stage in Berlin to show it is not done with surprises. Alongside a fresh midrange smartphone, the Galaxy S25 FE, it rolled out two hulking new sound towers — the ST50F and ST40F — aimed squarely at back-garden DJs and living-room party fiends.
The Galaxy S25 FE, on sale now from $650, gives a lower-cost route into this year’s S25 line-up. It comes in four colours and runs on the firm’s new One UI 8 software — a step ahead of the S25, S25 Plus, S25 Ultra and ultra-slim S25 Edge, all of which debuted earlier in the year with One UI 7. The refresh brings a sleeker interface, smoother animations, tighter split-screen multitasking and more AI smarts baked in.
Under the bonnet sits Samsung’s in-house Exynos 2400 processor, which lacks the punch of Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 8 Elite used in the pricier S25 models, but should hold its own. The handset features a 6.7-inch Amoled screen peaking at 1,900 nits, and a camera array built around a 50MP main sensor, with 12MP ultra-wide and 8MP telephoto lenses, plus a 12MP selfie snapper. Despite its mid-tier engine, the phone still runs Samsung’s full suite of Galaxy AI tools — including its Generative Edit photo wizardry and on-device assistant — making it the cheapest ticket into the AI-laced Galaxy ecosystem.
If the phone is about keeping your life in order, the speakers are about blowing it apart. The flagship ST50F sound tower, priced around $700, delivers 240 watts of power, dual 165mm woofers with adjustable bass modes (Deep, Punchy or Gentle), and twin 25mm tweeters for crisp treble. It comes with four sound profiles — from “Standard” to “Stadium” — and can sync wirelessly with others for multi-speaker mayhem. Battery life stretches to 18 hours, the casing is splash-proof, and party lights — embedded in the tweeters, woofers, housing and even the handle — blink, pulse, or strobe in sync with the beat.
The smaller ST40F, expected at $500, is built for patios and garden barbecues. It pushes 160 watts, carries dual 133mm woofers and 20mm tweeters, and offers up to 12 hours’ battery life. Both models have karaoke modes, guitar inputs, Bluetooth, USB and AUX ports, and replaceable batteries for those who fear the lights going out before the party does.
With the S25 FE, Samsung is giving its smartphone base a cheaper AI-driven option. With the sound towers, it is giving them a reason never to sleep.
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Swiggy sees record orders during India vs New Zealand T20 final
Chicken biryani tops match-day menu as fans order 7,500 times per minute at peak.
MUMBAI: India’s T20 final didn’t just break stumps, it broke Swiggy’s delivery records, proving cricket fans celebrate victories with plates, not just flags. Swiggy, India’s leading on-demand convenience platform, reported a sharp spike in food orders during the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup final between India and New Zealand. On 8 March 2026, overall orders rose 23.2 per cent year-on-year compared with the same date in 2025, driven by fans turning living rooms into mini stadiums complete with match-day feasts.
Key highlights from the evening:
- Orders during peak match hours (7–10 pm) were 2.1 times higher than pre-match levels.
- The highest order rate hit 7,500 orders per minute at 19:45.
- Chicken biryani reigned supreme as the most-ordered dish, followed by masala dosa, chicken fried rice, garlic breadsticks and paneer butter masala.
While metros such as Bengaluru, Mumbai and Hyderabad led volumes, the cricketing fever spread nationwide. Among emerging cities, Thiruvananthapuram, Surat and Rajkot recorded the strongest order growth. Smaller markets including Shillong, Agartala and Port Blair also showed significant appetite, underlining the expanding footprint of quick-commerce food delivery across India.
The surge reflects a growing trend of pairing major sporting events with doorstep delivery, turning big matches into shared, convenient celebrations. In a night where every boundary mattered, Swiggy proved the real MVP might just be the delivery partner who kept the snacks and the vibes flowing without missing a single wicket.
