Is it permissible to use dhikr and tasbih applications on mobile phones, taking into consideration that they are "innovated" and were not known to the Salaf, and that the phone itself is made by the "disbelieving West," and that it contains personal pictures?

The programs used for counting tasbih and takbir are not an innovation (bid'ah); rather, they are a helpful tool, similar to prayer beads (misbahah), especially when needed. Anything that conforms to the Sharia (definition) texts and does not contradict them, even if it emerged after the Salaf, is acceptable. These programs are merely a tool for counting dhikr, and they resemble prayer beads. The fact that the mobile phone is manufactured in the West does not affect the ruling, for the criterion is whether a thing conforms to our religion or contradicts it. As for the presence of respectable personal photos on the phone, there is no harm in it. However, it should not contain photos of 'awrat (private parts) or forbidden images, in order to keep the religious programs on it pure.