Stuff UKの January 2022 の目次

Hello! Welcome to our special Stuff Awards issue, celebrating the very best tech of the last 12 months. This is where we reward the gadgets that are simply too good not to own – our definitive guide to what brilliant stuff you probably should have bought over the past year, culminating in the crowning of our definitive 2021 Gadget of the Year. And it’s not all on us – you’ve also voted for the Readers’ Gadget of the Year, and what a closely fought battle that was… Plus, whether you’re a health fanatic or someone whose idea of exercise is walking to the kitchen for more crisps, you’ll love our guide to top fitness gear. If you plan to start going to the gym, running or doing something more exciting…

Looks like a normal black T-shirt to me. Ah, but that’s the point, you see. Prevayl’s SmartWear is supposed to look like any other gym gear, but look closely and you’ll see there’s a pocket on the front to slip the bundled sensor inside. You might think that fabric barrier would limit its effectiveness when measuring your vital stats, but there are conductive fibres in the clothing to pick up your data. That’s why all of Prevayl’s kit is so tight-fitting – not just to startle old ladies, but also to ensure the electrodes make good contact with your skin. It means you don’t need to wear a fitness watch, chest strap or any of that jazz. So what can it measure? Despite being about the size of a broad…

APPLE LETS YOU BREAK YOUR iPHONE A BIT MORE Got an injured iPhone 12 or 13 and the confidence to have a go at fixing it yourself? Apple’s new Self Service Repair scheme means you’ll soon be able to buy official parts and tools to replace a screen, battery or camera, with more parts and other products to follow next year, starting with M1 Macs. ATTENBOROUGH WANTS A GO ON YOUR PS5 The iPlayer app is finally available on your PS5 – and the BBC has made it worth the wait. As well as being able to access the usual catch-up catalogue, the PS5’s iPlayer app also allows you to stream in 4K (when available), so you’ll be able to watch stuff like Sir David’s The Mating Game in Ultra…

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Until Google released the 6 Pro this year, its Pixel phones had always fallen short of greatness. Whether it was a relative lack of power, underwhelming battery life or dated design, there were always good reasons to choose a rival flagship. But with its statement looks, nippy new Tensor processor and incredible photographic ability, the 6 Pro is the Android phone we’ve been waiting for. As usual the cameras are the headline act, delivering detail-packed snaps in pretty much any environment thanks to algorithm-assisted shooting modes. AI also keeps the noise down when you use the 20x telephoto lens to zoom right in, while Magic Eraser helps you remove photobombers. It’s tricks like these that set the Pixel 6 Pro apart from the competition, but it’s the whole package that…

If you’re one of those people who believes rules are made to be broken, Baba Is You will be right up your rebellious street. Originally released for the Switch back in 2019 but brilliantly converted for iOS and Android in 2021, this is a puzzler where breaking the rules is the only way to succeed. Each of the increasingly intricate 2D levels has a set of laws displayed on movable tiles, which can be shuffled around to change how the game works and allow you to adjust your approach: take control of the walls, become a rock (no, not Dwayne Johnson), turn lava into harmless gloop, and remix the world to your own ends. Like all the best puzzle games it feels impossibly taxing until you work out a solution,…

This Samsung was the first 2021 telly that Stuff dragged into its testing lab – but as it turned out, it might as well have also been the last, because nothing has come close to beating it since. The QE65Q95A is a first for Samsung as well, introducing its Neo QLED tech to the world. It uses thousands of Mini LEDs to create nearly 800 discrete dimming zones, which means better brightness and contrast than a conventional LED screen… for the kind of eye-popping 4K picture quality that’ll have the neighbours sticking their noses against the window to get a better look. Even when it’s turned off the QE65QN95A is a sight to behold: a super-slim One Connect box takes care of the cables, so the whole thing measures just…

Remember proper headphones? People used to wear them before AirPods and their millions of in-ear clones took over the world. No? One listen to a pair of Fidelio L3s should jog your memory, because these noise-cancellers prove just how good a pair of head-huggers can be. Luxurious without being ostentatious, their metal frame and headband are cushioned with leather, with touch controls on the right earcup. The ANC might not be the most effective around, but when they sound as natural as this you’ll be too lost in the music to care: there’s real warmth, lashings of detail and an uncluttered soundstage with nicely judged bass. Who needs little white sticks when you can don a pair of these? £259 / philips.co.uk HIGHLY COMMENDED Apple AirPods Max SHORTLISTED • Audio-Technica…

Most people would probably need a magnifying glass to tell the difference between the Apple Watch Series 7 and its predecessor, but spend some time with one on your wrist and it soon becomes clear how much of a difference a single millimetre can make. That’s how much bigger the Series 7’s case is… but combined with the thinner bezels, it means the always-on screen is a full 20% larger than the one on the Series 6. Parts of the OS have been overhauled to make the most of it, including an AI-assisted full QWERTY that works surprisingly well; so while there are no major additions to the health and fitness features that already made the Apple Watch great (ECG, blood oxygen, GPS etc), the Series 7 proves that even…

Imagine Groundhog Day: The Game but with John Wick as the main protagonist and you’ve pretty much just imagined Deathloop. OK, there’s no Keanu, but there is Colt Vahn – a man with a stupid name and lots of weapons who wakes up every morning on an island that’s stuck in a time-loop. Escaping is a case of doing all the right things at the right time, but what makes Deathloop so irresistible is the freedom it gives you to play however you want. Whether you want to skulk in the shadows or go in all guns blazing (literally) is up to you, with various special abilities available to make picking off the island’s assorted residents even more satisfying. With a gripping story set in a stunningly realised world, Deathloop…

from £210 / stuff.tv/WatchGT3 ■ Huawei’s Watch GT series has always kept its ‘smart’ ambitions in check in favour of sensational battery life. For context, an Apple Watch will stumble to its knees begging for a top-up after around 18hrs; the Watch GT 3 can go for as long as two weeks. ■ The two sizes of this watch are fundamentally different in design. The 46mm version has a dial etched around the face and a bevelled edge, while the 42mm option has a curved edge and a smaller fascia. Both sizes sport a satisfying rotating crown. ■ The 46mm model’s OLED face has a Samsung-beating (and Apple-matching) 326 pixels per inch. That means it’s sharp, and the display’s quality is excellent. Outdoors it’s easy to see what’s on screen,…

FIRST ADD THESE… ONE GOOGLE PIXEL 6 PRO CASE Squeeze your Pixel 6 Pro into this recycled plastic case for that unbeatable ‘official Google accessory’ sensation. Available in Soft Sage, Stormy Sky (basically grey), Light Frost (basically white) and a Google Store exclusive Golden Glow, one of these cases will perfectly match the phone’s natural je ne sais quoi. £25 / store.google.com TWO HEKTAR WORK LAMP You could spend £69 on Google’s own fast wireless charging stand. Or you could save yourself some money and grab this slightly slower, much more useful wireless charging lamp from Ikea. In addition to powering up your phone, it’ll light up your working space, and its dark grey Scandi-styled steel finish should complement most decors. £50 / ikea.com THREE BOSE PORTABLE SMART SPEAKER If…

THE BASICS ■ Be prepared Practise everything. Know how to get quickly to your preferred video app, settings, focusing and formats. These need to be second nature prior to capturing anything important, be that a cherished family moment or a surprise UFO landing on your shed. ■ Sound off Smartphone makers claim their microphones are great. Well, they’re fine for ad-hoc video, but for anything serious you’ll want an external mic like the Shure MV88 (£119). Either way, take care to not knock your device or mic when shooting, or you’ll wreck your audio with unwanted clunks. And be mindful of background noise – notably wind – that can drown out a subject. ■ Get lit Phones are sensitive to changes in light – bear that in mind when shooting…

1 Google Pixel 6 Pro from £849 / stuff.tv/Pixel6Pro The Pixel 6 Pro is a true flagship device and the best Google phone yet. With smart shooting modes adding flexibility and a trio of lenses delivering delightfully detailed images under every kind of lighting, this Pixel is trading blows with the best. It has one or two weak spots, but Android 12’s slick user experience mostly makes up for them. It’s the fact that cameras are now only a part of the package, rather than being the main benefit, that will give Apple and Samsung owners serious pause for thought. Stuff says Ambitious and uncompromising, this is Google’s finest smartphone by far ● NOW ADD THIS Google Pixel Stand (2nd Gen) This wireless charger will juice up your Pixel at the…

1 Apple Watch Series 7 from £369 / stuff.tv/WatchS7 If you’ve got an Apple Watch Series 3 or even earlier, upgrading to this one will be like walking into a lighting shop from a dark and foggy winter evening: the display is bigger and clearer, and there are new input options too. As a wearable it can’t be beaten simply because it does so much, especially if you’re into fitness; just bear in mind that it’s probably not worth upgrading from a Series 5 or 6 – and of course, its usefulness remains totally dependent on you having an iPhone. Stuff says The mighty Apple Watch cements its place at the top of the wearable tree 2 Garmin Fenix 6 £554 / stuff.tv/Fenix6 Anyone who’s truly into their fitness will appreciate the…

1 Amazon Echo (4th Gen) £90 / stuff.tv/Echo Having morphed from a cylinder to a sphere, the latest Echo is an excellent newsreader, weather forecaster, personal assistant and intercom straight out of the box; but it’s now also a capable speaker and a very accessible smart home hub. It doesn’t sound as good as the Sonos One or Apple HomePod for listening to music, but it’s significantly smarter than both and considerably cheaper too. Stuff says An all-round upgrade that makes the Echo a smarter speaker than ever ● NOW ADD THIS Honeywell T6R This Zigbee-enabled thermostat is wireless so you can place it where it’s most convenient. £200 / amazon.co.uk ● TIPS & TRICKS ● The Echo’s built-in Zigbee hub can hook up hundreds of smart home devices without a…

1 GoPro Hero10 Black £380 / stuff.tv/H10B At a glance it’s almost impossible to tell the Hero10 Black apart from its predecessor. Each is a little box with screens front and rear, and a lens housing that juts out. Under the hood, however, GoPro has truly levelled up its latest action camera – and much of that is down to the new GP2 processor. It’s more responsive and captures better images in all lighting conditions, while ‘nice to have’ features (better livestreaming and webcam support, faster wireless and wired transfer of video) iron out some old issues. Stuff says Beefed-up internals make the Hero10 Black a nippy, powerful, polished action cam 2 DJI Air 2S £880 / stuff.tv/Air2S DJI’s laurels remain assuredly un-rested-upon, and this may be its best drone yet: an…

1 Amazon Echo Dot (4th Gen) from £50 / stuff.tv/Dot This fabric-covered take on Marvin the paranoid android in disguise as a Magic 8-Ball feels playful yet classical. It can’t match a full-size smart speaker for audio, but as a little radio and an Alexa assistant for the bedside table or kitchen worktop, this cutey gets the job done. It’s worth paying £10 more for the ‘with Clock’ version, which adds extra functionality beyond telling the time. Stuff says With the optional clock, this is our favourite bedside wondergadget ● NOW ADD THIS Sportlink Wall Mount This minimalist acrylic mount for the Dot will keep it clear from wet surfaces in the bathroom or kitchen. £9 / amazon.co.uk ● TIPS & TRICKS ● Fed up of yelling? Alexa’s voice can work…

It’s OK to have a party as long as it’s not a party, apparently, so why not invite Loewe’s Klang trio to play tunes all over your house? Clad in acoustic fibre and topped by touch-sensitive glass panels, these three trapezoidal totems can work together to fill multiple rooms with music. Pair them with Apple devices via AirPlay 2, hook up a whole batch using DTS Play-Fi, or simply stream from your phone or laptop over Bluetooth. Smallest of the lot is the dinky MR1 (£299), a 30W wireless speaker that can double up as a rear unit for the German maker’s Bar5 MR soundbar. Then there’s the MR3 (£549), equipped with three drivers plus a subwoofer and two passive radiators to serve up a solid 150W of beefy bass…

As I only fight once or twice a year, I have to stay busy and active in the gyms. But because I took a loss in my last fight, there’s been a lot of reconstruction happening in my team. So I’ve approached training with more of a mental approach, looking at ways I can improve rather than just jumping back in the deep end from a physical point of view. I’m not happy about what happened previously [losing to Oleksandr Usyk] because that’s a competitor’s mindset. You have to be angry at losing; it’s not acceptable. So now it’s about driving forward. That’s why I love the Under Armour campaign quote: ‘The only way is through’. We watch the highlights and it’s good to show a lot of the wins,…

OnePlus first stole our hearts back in 2014 with a flagship phone at a less-than-flagship price… but in recent years those prices began to creep up and we started to miss the glory days. In a sense, then, the Nord 2 is very much a throwback. £400 is less than half the price of the Pixel 6 Pro – and while nobody’s suggesting this OnePlus can match Google’s pride and joy, you still get a classy, understated design, a speedy MediaTek Dimensity 1200-AI processor that makes Android zip along, and a stunning 50MP main snapper that copes admirably in almost any conditions. The only real caveat is its relatively stingy battery life; but if it didn’t compromise somewhere, there’s no way it’d be this cheap. £399 / oneplus.com HIGHLY COMMENDED…

When Disney+ launched back in 2019 you could safely ignore it if you weren’t a fan of superheroes, Star Wars or talking mice; but over the past 12 months it’s quietly nudged ahead of Netflix, Amazon Prime, Apple TV+ and the rest as the must-have streaming service. The addition of the Star hub back in February, including a massive catalogue of more grown-up stuff such as Dopesick, Atlanta and Nomadland, means Disney+ has something for everyone now – and with 4K content included as part of the standard sub, you get maximum pixels for your cash. Oh, and The Book Of Boba Fett, Moon Knight and Toy Story spin-off Lightyear are all on the way, so 2022 is looking pretty tasty too. £7.99/m / disneyplus.com HIGHLY COMMENDED • Netflix •…

When you’re spending over six grand on a camera, it’s probably not unreasonable to expect it to be good at everything. In fact, for £6500 you’d almost expect it to take the photos for you. And while Sony’s A1 certainly isn’t for noobs, whether you’re shooting stills or video it very much has all bases covered. The mirrorless A1 is built around a full-frame sensor and Sony’s Bionz XR engine. It can fire off 30 stills per second with tracking autofocus and auto exposure engaged, as well as shooting 8K video at 30fps or 4K video at up to 120fps. You get five-axis in-body image stabilisation, Wi-Fi, a tough weatherproof chassis with an OLED viewfinder, and a battery that can keep going for over 500 stills before it needs recharging……

Bose’s QC Earbuds might be better at silencing the outside world, Sennheiser’s Momentum True Wireless 2s might last longer between charges, B&W’s PI7s might sound a smidge sweeter and Jaybird’s Vista 2s might be happier joining you in the gym… but as an all-round package, Sony’s XM4 true wireless earbuds can’t be beaten. It’s like having all of those other pairs rolled into one. Their 6mm drivers are controlled by a V1 processor for a punchy, detailed and well-balanced listen that doesn’t favour any particular genre of music. Chuck in Sony’s outstanding app, which lets you fiddle with the touch controls, EQ and ANC – and decide whether to prioritise sound quality or signal stability – and there’s only one winner. £199 / sony.co.uk HIGHLY COMMENDED Bowers & Wilkins PI7…

When Fitbit launched its very first fitness tracker in 2009, it was little more than a glorified pedometer – but the Charge 5 knows more about your body than you do. No, really. That’s the whole point. Strap one of these to your arm and you’ll be able to take an ECG heart test, monitor your blood oxygen levels, measure your body temperature, and use the EDA app to assess how your body is coping with stress. You’ll get the best out of it if you sign up for a Fitbit Premium subscription, which unlocks wellness sessions, recommended workouts and the Daily Readiness rating – a metric that tells you when you’d be better off taking a sofa day than going out for another run. Its activity tracking can’t keep…

Sticking the word ‘Pro’ on the end of a product name is often just an excuse to charge more money for it, but Apple’s latest MacBook Pro is so packed with ports and power that it totally deserves the moniker. The M1 Pro processor inside is a real beast, meaning you can now tweak pics on the bus, edit video in your favourite greasy spoon, and put the finishing touches to that future hit single while you wait to see the dentist – and all without hearing a peep from the fan. It’s basically your key to doing whatever you want, whenever and wherever you want to do it, especially when the battery will last up to 17 hours between charges. Combine all of that with three Thunderbolt 4 ports…

As you may have noticed, we love the iPhone 13 Pro. We’ve also fawned over the Galaxy S21 Ultra. We’re big fans of the Oppo Find X3 Pro. But nobody has done it better than Google over the last 12 months. The Pixel 6 Pro represents everything a flagship phone should be. It offers brilliant specs, a fun design and some excellent photography smarts – including the Magic Eraser to remove unwanted people from your images, Stalin-style. And it’s all powered by a new Google-designed Tensor chip that should mean the company can roll out even more features over the next couple of years (though Android 12 is a doozy already). And this is all before you get to the price, which is superb for a top-of-the-line handset (the lower-priced…

1 HOME FITNESS GEAR Hydrow £2295 + £38/m / stuff.tv/Hydrow Rowing engages 86% of the body’s muscles, which explains why 20 minutes at the gym leaves your arms wobbling and lungs bursting. It’s dull, though, which is where this 218cm-long behemoth of a connected rower comes in – with 1000s of classes filmed on some of the world’s most picturesque waterways. The 22in Android-powered touchscreen has all the metrics you could ever need (and a leaderboard if that’s your thing), while the super-smooth seat and rowing mechanism make being in pain surprisingly comfortable. Most of the Hydrow workouts last 20 minutes, which is long enough; the coaches are enthusiastic and engaging, and come without the offputting glitz and glamour of the spin-bike circuit. In fact, we found ourselves going back…

from £1099 / stuff.tv/5sPro ■ Can you tell this is a phone for gamers? The 5s Pro is tall, weighty and decorated with glyphs to remind you. The punchy AMOLED display is absolutely stellar, with a 144Hz refresh rate and 360Hz touch-sampling rate. ■ Asus has paired a Snapdragon 888+ with 18GB of DDR5 RAM, so it’ll run even the most demanding games at full whack without getting a sweat on. You can tweak the CPU and GPU performance, plus there’s an Esports mode that blocks all notifications. ■ A pair of ‘ultrasonic’ shoulder buttons can be mapped to perform any action when tapped or stroked. Not only are these Air Triggers perfectly responsive, with zero latency, but they also offer haptic feedback. Plus there are two touch-sensitive areas on…

RAREVISION VHS If you remain convinced it was 1984 just last week, you might shun 4K and believe VHS is the best video format ever. Nah, but this app lets you revel in retro, adding glitches and old-school titles to new shoots and imported videos alike. £3.99 / Android £4.49 / iOS 8MM VINTAGE CAMERA Anyone with a penchant for old movies will feel right at home with 8mm. You can switch between eight lenses and 13 films, mess up already fuzzy footage by prodding a jitter button… and even replace your audio with projector noise. £3.49 / iOS RETROSPECS Ancient consoles and PCs weren’t renowned for their video prowess. But if you’ve always wondered what a home video would look like fed through a Game Boy, ZX Spectrum, Commodore…

1 Mi Smart Band 5 £32 / stuff.tv/MiBand5 With no installable apps, Xiaomi’s dinky wearable can’t stack up to smartwatches or reply to notifications, but it can relay alerts and track everything from sleep to workouts. It’s better than the Mi Smart Band 4, thanks to a bigger and brighter screen, smarter software and a charger that’s much less annoying. The slightly reduced battery life really isn’t an issue – and with the addition of activity, stress and menstrual cycle tracking, this is a £30 gift that keeps giving. Stuff says Fantastic value and decent features make this an easy fitness tracker to recommend 2 Myzone MZ-Switch £135 / stuff.tv/MZSwitch Myzone’s modular heart-rate tracker can be attached to different parts of the body, while the app gamifies your activity. It’s a versatile…

1 Samsung QE65QN95A £2399 / stuff.tv/QN95A This is Samsung’s single most expensive 4K TV for 2021 (unless you buy a bigger version), but the pictures justify the outlay. The Korean giant’s implementation of the new Mini LED tech is, on this evidence, something to be reckoned with. It’s difficult to imagine how any of the other sets that are incoming this year could be better. Stuff says This Mini LED television is a fearsomely accomplished set – and the one to beat ● NOW ADD THIS Samsung Q-Series soundbars Pairing your QLED with one of these is a stress-free way to get 3D object-based sound. from £549 / samsung.com ● TIPS & TRICKS ● You can configure this TV to work with the voice assistant of your choice, not just Samsung’s…

1 Apple iPad Air The 4th-generation iPad Air ushers in big changes. It looks the spit of an 11in iPad Pro (at least from the front), and supports Apple’s snazzy Magic Keyboard and second-gen Pencil… and the A14 chip makes it blazingly fast, leaving its predecessor in the dust. Sure, there are compromises, but none are critical. So if you were considering an iPad Pro but don’t really need the extra power of that phenomenal M1 processor, it might be wise to save yourself a few quid and buy the Air instead. Stuff says Pointing to the iPad’s future rather than its past, this is a meaningful, impressive, powerful Air update 2 Apple iPad Pro from £749 / stuff.tv/iPadPro The iPad Pro’s display is wonderful and the M1 chip super-powerful, with only…

1 Lego Mindstorms Robot Inventor £248 / stuff.tv/Mindstorms It’s clear Lego has prioritised immediacy and fun with its latest build-your-own-bots kit, which lets you and/or your little ones create five different coding-controlled mecha-beings. Yes, the set lacks a proper screen and relies on a separate device for programming; but it offers great clarity and scope, plus an attitude that encourages tinkering… whatever your age. Stuff says A fun, versatile set for Lego electronics newcomers and old hands alike 2 Sphero RVR £250 / stuff.tv/SpheroRVR Pulling off the balance between serious coding and knockabout fun, this is an all-terrain rover with real programming chops. Just be warned that Sphero is warning of “massive supply chain disruptions”, so you might have to wait. Stuff says Enough fun to convert any coding-phobe 3 Lego Vidiyo from…

THESE MODULES REPRODUCE THE ORIGINAL SYNTH SOUNDS BUT ADD MODERN EFFECTS I’m sure I saw the Pet Shop Boys mucking about with one of these in the early ’90s. Sort of, but not quite. What you’re looking at here are Roland’s fresh re-imaginings of two of its most beloved music machines from decades gone by. The JX-08 is a tribute to the JX-8P analogue synth of 1985, while the JD-08 is a paean to 1991’s digital JD-800. Both look like the kind of toys we’d love to prod and twiddle on for hours, but let’s focus on the JD-08. This compact module is designed to reproduce the classic sounds of the synth that inspired it, but also includes modern effects. Old meets new, got it. Do go on. Back in…

$90,000 approx / chevrolet.com The Americans are still peddling big macho V8 machines, then… Yes indeed – and if you’ve always been partial to a bit of US muscle, the 2023 Corvette Z06 might mean it’s time to open the wallet and dig deep – while you still can buy a car with a V8. American motors deliver a lot for your dollar, and this ’Vette is no exception: it’s packing the highest-horsepower naturally-aspirated production V8 you can buy. Better still, this US-built car is going to be available in right-hand drive. Is it going to be fast? No worries on that front. That 5.5-litre LT6 engine can be wound up to 8600rpm, creating 670hp. In fact, a version of this powerplant has been used in C8.R racecars since 2019,…

Amazon Kindle £70 / amazon.co.uk What’s the story? The cheapest Kindle of the lot is the chubby funster of the e-reader gang. It costs about the same as a pair of trainers, and is the perfect present pick for the person who reads in fits and starts. It doesn’t feel slow to use, and the screen has the same E Ink anti-glare tech as the best e-readers. Its display is exactly the same size as many of its brothers too (6in), although there aren’t so many pixels packed in per inch. Is it any good? Unlike older basic Kindles this one has a front light, which is a massive addition – even if it is significantly less powerful than those fitted to the Paperwhite and Oasis, with only four LEDs…

For a long time the iPad Mini felt a lot like the runt of Apple’s tablet litter. Not only was it the smallest, but it regularly seemed to get overlooked when other iPads were updated and upgraded with newfangled tech. It turns out Apple was just biding its time, because the sixth-gen Mini is a real corker. Redesigned to look like an iPad Pro that shrunk in the wash, its 8.3in screen is the sharpest of any iPad, the A15 Bionic chip handles any task you care to throw at it, and there’s now Touch ID, a 12MP ultrawide front camera, and USB-C connectivity that opens it up for use with a load of accessories – all in a premium, uber-portable form factor that makes it very hard to put…

When you’re caught in the rain without an umbrella, you might think the last thing you need is an app that makes snarky comments about your predicament – but when the forecasts are this good, you can forgive Carrot Weather for being so full of itself. And a major 2021 update for iOS has made this great app even better. A premium account now unlocks a load of customisation options: it basically lets you edit the entire interface to your liking, but also unlocks maps, widgets, notifications and the ability to switch between forecast data sources. With features as handy as that, you won’t even mind when Carrot Weather says it “sucks to be you” as the heavens open when you’re only halfway home. from £free / iOS HIGHLY COMMENDED…

If you were still in any doubt that size doesn’t matter, look no further than Roku’s Express 4K. Despite being about the size of a badger’s bumbag, this tiny telly streamer ticks all the big boxes when it comes to keeping your eyeballs entertained. Not only does it have apps for every streaming service you could want – including Netflix, Amazon Prime Video, Disney+, Apple TV+, BBC iPlayer, All4 and BT Sport – but it’ll also let you watch any stuff that’s available on them in 4K HDR. There’s also support for AirPlay, you can control it using your voice assistant of choice or via the free Roku app, and it does all of that for just £40. It’s almost enough to make you wonder what it could do if…

It feels like you can improve just about anything by adding a laser: eyes, cameras, sharks and now even vacuum cleaners. The Laser Slim Fluffy head that comes with Dyson’s handheld V15 Detect Absolute works a bit like a laser sight on a gun, shedding green light on hard-to-see dirt to help you to hit the target when dealing with any scum and villainy that has decided to infiltrate the floors of your home. If that’s not enough, it also has a piezo acoustic sensor that detects how much grime is hitting the cyclones 15,000 times a second, automatically adjusting how hard it’s sucking to compensate for how filthy your floors are. And with a battery that lasts for up to an hour, you don’t have to worry about it…

It took an eternity for Sonos to come up with a properly portable speaker, but the Roam made that wait very much worthwhile. More practical than the Move, which is better for pure sound but just a little too large for much more than carrying from room to room, the bag-friendly Roam offers both Bluetooth and Wi-Fi connectivity, so it’ll act like any other Sonos speaker within your own four walls; but take it out and about and you can connect your phone directly instead. Despite its compact size the Roam packs a proper low-end thump, while Auto TruePlay means it’ll always adjust its sonic approach to suit its surroundings. Switching between Sonos speakers is easy too: just hold down the play button and it’ll send the audio to the…

Still struggling to lay your hands on a PS5? Never mind. The best deal in gaming this year is an Xbox Series X with a subscription to Game Pass Ultimate – giving you access to over 100 titles, including Halo Infinite, Forza Horizon 5 and Back 4 Blood, for just £10.99 a month. Of course, that would mean nothing if the console itself didn’t cut it; but with Dolby Vision and Atmos support now available on some games, the Series X has really started to show what it’s capable of. Fire up any recent title and it’s obvious what all those teraflops are being used for. It’s just a shame it’s not that much easier to get hold of than a PS5. £450 / xbox.com HIGHLY COMMENDED Nintendo Switch OLED…

Though the PS5 nearly took our Gadget of the Year trophy last year, it’s the Xbox Series X that’s matured with age – and a lot of that is down to the tasty treats served up by Game Pass. You clearly thought so, voting it the Stuff Readers’ Gadget of the Year. When we reviewed the Series X, it was clear this was an incredibly powerful console, but the number of optimised games was minimal. That’s no longer the case. Game Pass is an incredible offering, and it’s helping this machine look ever more appealing. Hits like Flight Simulator and Forza Horizon 5 make Game Pass look like a no-brainer, not to mention Halo Infinite coming to the service on day one. Sony is playing catchup on this front. SECOND…

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Lindy BNX-80 VS Urbanista Los Angeles 1. DESIGN For budget headphones these feel surprisingly well made, with nicely cushioned earcups. You can pair them with two devices simultaneously, which is really handy. They come in a semi-hardshell carrying case and are collapsible. The LAs are fairly chunky cans with a weighty headband and tight-fitting earcups, which aren’t collapsible. But the coolest part is a strip of material called Exeger Powerfoyle that converts any ambient light into recharging power. 2. SOUND Lindy’s active noise-cancellation is especially good at blocking out the pounding roar of trains. As for the music itself, treble is clear and there’s great separation. However, when it comes to bass, they’re considerably lacking. The Urbanistas’ sound is punchy and bass-heavy, especially with the ANC engaged, but lacks some detail in…

from £369 / stuff.tv/SurfaceGo3 DAY 01 As a concept, the Surface Go 3 is neat. It can run, or at least try to run, any application you might use on a £4000 desktop; but it’s also a slim and light tablet for watching YouTube while in bed or on holiday. Microsoft uses new processors in this generation… but on paper at least, even the top-end Go 3 with 8GB of RAM and a Core i3 seems awfully underpowered compared to what else you can get for similar money. Heck, the cheapest iPad steamrolls this thing in some tests. But let’s not write it off before we’ve got started. First things first, Microsoft hasn’t changed the Go series’ design much this year: it’s still a slim and light slab of magnesium,…

1 Sony WH-1000XM4 £239 / stuff.tv/WHXM4 With their balance of wearability, active noise-cancelling prowess and audio performance, there hasn’t been a better package than the Sony XM3s… until now. The XM4s look and sound almost identical, but a range of new features – including Speak-to-Chat, which stops the music when you start talking – aims to lure you away from your current ’phones. If those are the XM3s (still available at a super-low price, by the way), it’s tough to justify the upgrade; but who’s going to knock Sony off its perch now? Stuff says Not surprisingly given their heritage, these are the best all-round noise-cancelling headphones you can buy 2 Bowers & Wilkins PX7 £300 / stuff.tv/PX7 B&W’s second ANC headphones place greater emphasis on comfort and are all the better…

1 Sennheiser Ambeo Soundbar £1799 / stuff.tv/AmbeoSoundbar Utterly convincing Dolby Atmos and DTS:X 3D sound, ample power and lots of inputs mean no other soundbar currently available can perform feats with the solidity and confidence of this Sennheiser. The sheer room-filling scale of this device’s sound is remarkable, and it’s hard to think of any content that wouldn’t benefit from being Ambeo’d. That’s why, as well as being the biggest and the most expensive, it’s the best you can buy. Stuff says The Ambeo Soundbar is a big unit but the sound it makes is bigger still 2 Sonos Arc £899 / stuff.tv/SonosArc Don’t expect this soundbar to do everything a multi-speaker Dolby Atmos setup can do, but its up-firing and side-firing drivers give a real sense of scale for an immersively…

1 Half-Life: Alyx from £22 / Oculus, Vive, Valve Index Announcing Alyx as not only a ‘midquel’ but a VR exclusive got some Half-Life diehards riled up… but in classic Valve fashion, the end result is utterly brilliant. Alyx succeeds because its universe just happens to be a perfect fit for the format. It’s also larger and much more robust than most VR games, at a meaty 12-15 hours. And though it unfolds at a different kind of cadence to past Half-Life games, it feels like a fully fledged solo campaign and a key part of the franchise narrative. Stuff says Valve’s beloved series returns… and offers one of the strongest arguments to date for VR gaming 2 Beat Saber from £23 / Oculus, Vive, PSVR Gleefully swing your twin lightsabers to…

1 Fujifilm X-T4 £1399 / stuff.tv/XT4 The Fuji X-T4 might be the high-end mirrorless camera of your dreams. Relatively affordable for a flagship, it excels at stills and video thanks to in-body image stabilisation, high-speed shooting and 4K recording at up to 60fps. Rapid shooting is backed up by fancy AF tricks that feel equally fast and reliable, and even the battery life goes above and beyond the usual standards. There’s no doubting this is a worthy successor to the already fabulous X-T3. Stuff says A superbly capable mirrorless camera for shooting pretty much anything in style ● NOW ADD THIS Fujifilm XF 16-80mm f/4 This versatile lens covers a bigger zoom range than most and adapts to pretty much any requirements. £699 / wexphotovideo.com ● TIPS & TRICKS ● It’s…