T3の July 2020 の目次

AER 557 There are many adjectives one can apply to e-scooters. Convenient. Efficient. Fast. Not currently road legal. But rarely will you find them described as ‘graceful’ – at least that is until now. The AER 557 is like the iPod of electric scooters: although it’s far from the first, it may well be the product that defines the design language of all the vehicles that zip along in its tracks. Not only does it have a gorgeous aesthetic, with slow curves and beautifully rounded lines, but it’s also ergonomically designed for stability: its 20-inch wheels can slide gleefully over small bumps and its wide anti-slip bamboo deck makes it easy to find a comfortable position to stand. Being able to glide effortlessly along without constantly having to correct one’s…

CARDBOARD KARAOKE Challenge your chums to Pop-Idol-inspired singing competitions with the help of this brilliant cardboard karaoke machine. Simply download your favourite karaoke app, slot in your smart phone and you’re off. £24.99, firebox.com MONOPOLY SPEED Traumatised by memories of Monopoly sessions that lasted for entire days? Then you need the latest version – Monopoly Speed. Timed rounds make it possible to play entire games in 10 minutes, with a timer used to count down buying and trading stages. £16.99, amazon.co.uk SMIDGE PICNIC SET Liven up picnic lunches with this 28-piece picnic set. It’s both dishwasher and microwave-safe, and entirely plastic-free – it’s made from plant materials and is 100% biodegradable. £79.99, wearesmidge.com…

Don’t want to make a racket as you work out at home? It is possible to have a silent home workout session using a suspension training system such as the TRX HOME2 (£169.95, trxtraining.co.uk). TRX systems are sturdy, quick to set up, extremely portable and with them, you can work every muscle in your body. The HOME2 system was designed for home use and comes with a door anchor. To make the most of it, included in the price is a one-year subscription to the TRX app where you’ll find plenty of workouts for all body parts.…

1 SOFOLOGY CRICKET 3 SEATER TEAL VELVET SOFA Quite possibly the most perfect sofa in the world. It nails the eclectic glamour trend, and, quite frankly, looks like something Ziggy Stardust would have been happy lounging around on. You can buy the Cricket sofa in various sizes, from a two-seater up to a movie night-ready corner suite. It also comes in leather, but why would you want that when you can have plush velvet? From £899, sofology.co.uk 2 ELLA JAMES FUSCHIA SILK TABLE LAMP A clever way to do maximum colour on a smaller scale. The base is made from a mix of aluminium, brass and iron, while the shade is crafted from fine silk. Ella James’s lamps are versatile enough to work in modern and period-style homes, so you…

DANCY BOY You can keep your Citroens and onion strings: France’s greatest export is now officially atmospheric synth-slinger Lewis OfMan. Album’s on the way, and it’ll be huge. RAGNAROK Modern-day Vikings in an actual Norwegian language series with compelling twists and that typical Scandinavian mystery vibe? Put the hammer down and get Netflix on. THE EXPANSE Guru was late to the party on this Prime series, apparently Jeff Bezos’ favourite chunk of gloomy political sci-fi. A begrudging viewing turned into a compelling one.…

1 COWBOY SMART BIKE The sleek lines of the Cowboy bike conceal the fact this is no standard towpath trudger – there’s a hidden motor and enough juice to assist you to cruise 70km stashed inside the downtube. There’s an integrated navigation system built into the control app, which also locks the bike, tracks it if stolen, and dashboards all the data including battery charge – an urban essential. £1,790, cowboy.com 2 DASHEL CYCLE HELMET The Dashel Cycle Helmet delivers head protection in extreme style, with little in the way of faff or pretension. Five concealed air vents keep your bonce cool, coolmax pads keep you comfy, and when you’ve dropped it too many times to be safe anymore, Dashel will recycle it for you and give you a discount…

The Xbox Series X means business. If the PS5 has run in the opposite direction from the expected black box console design, Microsoft has turned around and embraced it. No social distancing required here, thank you very much. Microsoft’s next-generation console is a stark monolith with a UHD 4K Blu-ray disc drive. While a digital only version hasn’t yet been revealed, Xbox Series X is actually only one part of an Xbox ‘family’ of devices. This would mean it’s not outside of the realms of possibility for a disc-free version to arrive in the not-sodistant future. Just like the PS5, we only have a Holiday release date to go on and Microsoft has been equally tight-lipped in terms of the price of the console. As the Xbox One sold so…

1 LINN SERIES 3 On the premium end of premium, the Series 3 is a glittering combination of high-end design, unrivalled connectivity, and impeccable audio. Linn’s proprietary Exakt Link tech delays high frequencies so they reach your ear simultaneously with the lows – and multi-room synchronisation is no problem either. £2,950, linn.co.uk 2 SONOS ONE (GEN 2) Compared to first-party Alexa-enabled devices, the Sonos One might seem a little expensive but its powerful sound blows the Echo range out of the water. That and, frankly, Sonos’ multiroom expertise speaks for itself: the company pioneered the concept, and the Sonos app is second to none for getting those tunes everywhere. £199, sonos.com 3 RUARK R5 On its own, this is a speaker loaded with extras. You can stream audio at a…

From £1,399 consumer.huawei.com With the Gram 17, LG has tried to make a laptop that’s both super-light and super-large – a laptop that doesn’t make much of a compromise on screen size or portability, in a market where you usually have to choose between one or the other. In case you missed it, there was also a 2019 version of the LG Gram 17; this 2020 edition adds some small improvements (including a redesigned hinge) without messing with the original formula too much. The lightweight, premium construction means the computer is just about as portable as it possibly can be – it weighs in at a mere 1.35kg. You might think it’s missing some components when you pick it up, though the full keypad and expansive screen still mean it’s…

GRAND SEIKO X WATCHES OF SWITZERLAND, TOGE Combining British Racing Green, the texture of Grand Seiko’s Mount Iwate dial, a gold GMT hand, and a brown leather strap, this piece beautifully combines Japanese and British design. £5,200, watches-of-switzerland.co.uk TIMEX, Q TIMEX This popular reissue is now available in three new colourways! Features a true-to-the-era stainless-steel bracelet, functional battery hatch, rotating bezel, and luminescent markers and hands. £159, timex.co.uk HUBLOT, BIG BANG GMT ALL BLACK YOHJI YAMAMOTO Designed in partnership with renowned designer Yohji Yamamoto, this Big Bang has been given the all-black treatment using the concept of ‘invisible visibility’. The GMT function is ace for jet setters. POA, hublot.com MAURICE LACROIX, AIKON QUARTZ CHRONOGRAPH This sporty watch features a black sun-brushed dial and three ‘snailed’ sub-dials. It delivers chronometric precision,…

Building a complete home gym is a laborious activity. Where should you start? Get a pair of dumbbells? What size? Do you need a weight bench? A kettlebell? How about a pull-up bar? Maybe an ab roller? And even if you had all this equipment, what workout should you do with them? Would you check out a few videos on YouTube? Or maybe watch a few Instagram live videos? If you don’t want to put yourself through all this and get demotivated instantly, the NordicTrack Fusion CST Trainer (£1,999, nordictrack.co.uk) might be a good addition to your home gym gear shopping list. It’s a 2-in-1 machine that can help you build strength and shed fat at the same time, with structured workouts displayed on a 10-inch touchscreen tablet mounted on…

Everyone has kitchen gadgets they hardly ever use. For nine months of the year, ice cream makers fall into that category for most folks, but in the glorious summer months they come out of exile, like Napoleon returning from Elba. You can get all sorts of ice cream makers, from what could best be described as ‘very chilly mixer attachments’ – such as the Smeg on page 37 – to really cheap ones that can only be described as ‘a plastic bowl you put in the freezer’. Let’s get real here though. If you want to make ice cream properly you need to get a proper, industrial-catering-grade machine from nisbets.co.uk. Or, at the very least, one of their more stylish, kitchen-friendly cousins. Our picks are the Cuisinart ICE100BCU (£249, cuisinart.co.uk)…

DARREN ARCHER, CANTERBURY Q Which smart camera has the best battery life? A With Guru Labs currently out of commission following an unfortunate and mysterious ‘leakage’, your white-coated hero is unable to give definitive answers here. Instead, let’s throw a big pinch of salt at some manufacturer claims and see which battery lies look the most plausible. Swann’s Smart Security Camera (£130) is plenty cheap, but its battery life is poor, stated to offer you a month yet offering Guru, in his previous tests, about a week. Netgear states four to six months in ‘normal use’ for the entire range of Arlo cams. That’s not exactly amazing, particularly once you’ve subtracted a month or so for pessimism reasons or to account for those oiks constantly galloping around your perimeter, though…

One of the more heartening things about the recent global apocalypse has been that people have still been taking the time to stay fit. Many people quite reasonably assumed the UK’s population would come out of the other end of this twice as wide as when it went in. Not so, statistics say, and really it’s not so surprising. When the news is full of nothing but the grim fate awaiting the unwell, booming interest in fitness and health seems like a natural reaction to me. If you are one of the many people who have been trying to avoid becoming half man, half sofa while stuck at home, you will probably know it has not been easy. Not just for the usual reasons to do with willpower or lack…

1 INTEX SWIM CENTRE FAMILY POOL WITH SEATS Sometimes the pool is the only thing that’ll keep everyone cool and entertained, and this one has significant comfort upgrades over the standard paddling pool. With built-in inflatable seats and drinks holders there’s fun for adults and kids alike here, plus it’ll fit on most patios or smaller spaces that can’t manage a more serious-scale swimming pool. £59, amazon.co.uk 2 COX AND COX RAVELLO TABLE/BENCHES Garden entertainment requires a table and seating, whether for a long sunny lunch or just a quiet cup of tea of an evening. Whatever the purpose, this solid eucalyptus table and benches combo will fit in anywhere and requires little maintenance. There’s plenty of space for four diners if required, or all the best bits of a…

1 WEBER PREMIUM TOOL SET This high-quality BBQ tool set comes with the three most popular grilling utensils: a pair of long-armed tongs for turning the majority of ingredients, a two-pronged fork for lifting and turning chunky cuts and a flat turner for burgers and halloumi. £53, weber.com 2 NAPOLEON JETFIRE CHIMNEY STARTER This speeds up the charcoal ignition process by about two-thirds. Load it with charcoal and place it on top of the fire grate, then light firelighters beneath it. When ready, pour the contents onto the fire grate. Voila. £17, napoleon.com 3 WEBER CONNECT If you tend to burn food a lot and wish to make your barbecuing session go without a hitch, consider this new meat probe system that uses an app to monitor the food’s internal…

There’s no denying it. 2020 has been a turbulent year. And now, for the first time since the original grey game changer 25 years ago, Sony is launching a console generation with a colourful box. Well, monochrome and some blue lighting. Let’s not get too far ahead of ourselves. The PS5 has finally been revealed with a striking design in two flavours. If you’re buying a next-gen console for access to 4K Blu-rays as well as games, you’ll want the full fat version with the UHD disc drive, but if you’ve chosen a physical-media-free future, there’s a slightly slimmer Digital Edition. This should also slim down the wad of cash you’ll be handing over but no pricing has been revealed as yet. So what’s inside the so-clearly-designed-for-maximum-airflow box? On paper,…

HALO: INFINITE His green-armoured-ness is back for the sixth game in the Halo series. Coming to Xbox Game Pass on launch – a lovely flex from Microsoft – Master Chief is returning with all new technology for Series X. The Slipspace engine has been designed to deliver more emotional performances than ever before. SENUA’S SAGA: HELLBLADE 2 Ninja Theory’s original Hellblade is a tour-de-force of an action adventure game with a strong focus on mental health. The trailer for Senua’s sequel doesn’t give much away other than the fact that it’s on its way but pencil in 2021 for another dark journey on Xbox Series X. SCORN Horror doesn’t get much more HR Giger-influenced than Scorn. From the minds at Ebb Software, this atmospheric first-person experience describes itself as non-linear…

1 AUDIO-TECHNICA ATH-M50XBT Absolutely built to last, and flexible enough that they’re just as happy plugged into a DJ booth as they are streaming tunes wirelessly from a phone. AT’s headphones might be a little longer in the tooth but their accomplished studio-quality soundstage means they’ve lost none of their rough-and-ready charm. £170, audio-technica.com 2 TAOTRONICS SOUNDSURGE 90 HYBRID If you’re willing to forgive the odd niggle or three, TaoTronics’ ultra-budget Hybrid ANC over-ears will surprise you. Not only do they pack Bluetooth 5.0, they’re perfectly competent audio-wise, their noise cancelling is decent, they’re light and comfy, and they don’t look too shabby either. £70, taotronics.com 3 BOWERS & WILKINS PX7 This isn’t simply a case of Bowers & Wilkins grafting wireless functionality onto one of its existing sets of…

60 SONOS ARC 64 LG GRAM 17 65 XIAOMI BLACK SHARK 3 66 SAMSUNG GALAXY TAB S6 LITE 68 SAMSUNG GALAXY BOOK S 70 MOTO 360 HOW WE TEST In T3, we feature only the finest gadgets out there, and we believe that you – our loyal reader – deserve only the best tech in your life. We don’t want you to waste time, and money, on inferior products, and that’s exactly why our Tested section exists. In here you’ll find only the latest and hottest tech. Each product has been handpicked and tested by T3’s experts. We only choose people with specialist knowledge for each test, so you know you’re going to get an outcome based on many years of experience in their respective field. As well as our…

There’s no denying that this year’s summer holidays look slightly different. Unsurprisingly, more holidaymakers are choosing self-catering properties and this seems a trend likely to continue well after lockdown is over, whether it’s beautiful cottages or alpine chalets, such as the ones rented by Les Chalets des Fermes (from £7,076 for six nights, chaletsdesfermes.com). You’ll find them in the pretty village of Megève in the French Alps, and there are nine to choose from, although our favourite is Le Chalet du Darbelet, which sleeps up to 10 people. Book a stay and you’ll enjoy spectacular views of the Beaufortain mountains, as well as easy access to clearly marked hiking routes. Closer to home, consider Cliff Beach House in Ireland’s stunning Ardmore Bay (from £2,215 per night, cliffbeachhouse.ie). This six-bedroom villa…

An unusual thing has happened: the lady from Aukey gave Guru some bargain products to review. This is rare, owing to Guru’s prevailing reputation as a git, but he’s happy to switch out the usual moaning about cats for some genuine product criticism. First up, the 8000mAh Wireless Charging Power Bank (£30), a slim black slab with Quick Charge 3.0 USB output, which somehow also features a Qi charger stuffed into its guts. A fundamentally great idea, although the capacity isn’t quite large enough to justify the bag space. The Aukey 20,000mAh Universal Power Bank (£40) is certainly more like it in terms of capacity, and it spits out 3A even if it doesn’t have quick charging. It’s big, thin-ish and heavy enough to bat a seagull out of the…

1 TENTSILE SAFARI CONNECT TREE TENT Slung between a trio of trees like a triangular hammock, the latest generation of Tentsile tents guarantee you’ll sleep like a baby, supercomfortable due to the lack of cold ground contact, the canvas’s weather resistance and your distance from any creepy-crawlies. The latest versions can also be pitched on terra firma – ideal for garden camping in a ‘new normal’ pinch. £800, tentsile.com 2 ITIWIT INFLATABLE SUP BOARD This beginner stand-up paddleboard is generously wide when inflated, something you’ll be grateful for as you learn to keep your balance on the water. A comfortable foam deck gives plenty of room to manoeuvre, and a handy bungee can retain a drybag or wetsuit boots. Weighing in at just 9kg it’s easily portable and inflates to…

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MARVEL’S SPIDER-MAN: MILES MORALES Insomniac’s webbed PS5 launch title isn’t quite a full blown sequel to the PS4 original but is a standalone game similar in scope to Uncharted: Lost Legacy. Miles’ adventure takes place in a snowy version of Marvel’s New York with new villains and unique quests. HORIZON FORBIDDEN WEST Aloy is back. Well, not in time for PS5’s launch but Sony has announced a 2021 release date for our reunion with our favourite robodinosaur battler. As if the original wasn’t big enough, Guerrilla is promising an even larger world where Aloy will be diving underwater as well as hurtling across a new, well, horizon. GRAN TURISMO 7 Adding a squirt of nitrous to the series’ overly long loading screens isn’t the only improvement coming to Sony’s exclusive…

SPECIFICATIONS Drivers 11 (8 woofers, 3 tweeters) Connectivity HDMI eARC, ethernet, Wi-Fi, Apple AirPlay 2 CPU quad core 1.4 GHz A-53 Memory 1GB SDRAM, 4GB NV Dimensions 1141.7x87x115.7mm Weight 6.25kg £799 sonos.com The Arc is Sonos’ first foray into the world of Dolby Atmos and 3D audio. Sonos has been making home cinema products for seven years now, since the Playbar, and took a big step into the waters of surround sound with the ability to combine satellite speakers with the soundbar for a 5.1 system. But home cinema technology moved on, Dolby Atmos arrived, and 3D audio with height became the big new thing. Really, the only flaw the fantastic Sonos Beam had was a lack of Dolby Atmos height support, and actually we didn’t mind that because it was…

SPECIFICATIONS Processor Exynos 9611 2.3GHz quadcore & 1.7GHz quadcore Screen 10.4-inch, 2000x1200 LCD Memory 4GB Storage 64GB Battery 7040mAh Cameras 8MP rear; 5MP front OS Android 10.0, OneUI Dimensions 244.5x154.3x7mm Weight 467g From £349 samsung.com If you don’t need a premium-level tablet, the Samsung Galaxy Tab S6 Lite is terrific value. It’s a ‘pure’ tablet in every respect, not bundled with a Bluetooth keyboard or billed as a multifunctional productivity powerhouse, but it is excellent for sketching, digital note-taking, web browsing, zoom calls and consuming content. At 10.4 inches with 2000×1200 resolution, the screen is big and bright, retaining a premium look and feel due to satisfyingly slender bezels. The screen is LCD, which unfortunately compares unfavourably to the OLED and AMOLED screens we’re seeing in its betters and contemporaries. Even…

If you’re looking for the very best tech available today, you’ve definitely come to the right place. Best of the Best is the most useful gadget-buying guide you will ever encounter. To create it, we’ve extensively tested the best tech the world has to offer, to bring you rock-solid recommendations for your home life, daily commute and the tech you use all the time. In 54 different categories, we’ve chosen the top four products, so you can choose one that’s just the right mix of features and budget for what you need. These rankings come from real testing by our team of experts – they’re the products we’d choose for ourselves, and we can’t recommend any higher than that. Look for the links above each category that take you to…