Table of contents for Issue 13 in Gadget

Winter is coming... The sun has sat on another summer. The upside of it getting cold is that after months spent outside catching Pokémon and hosting garden barbecues, you justify kicking back with a boxset and doing nothing. But if you’re planning on binging Game Of Thrones from the start all over again, you should think about upgrading your entertainment setup. With screens coming down in price and new shows filmed in Ultra HD launching this autumn, there’s never been a better time to invest in a 4K TV. The Xbox One S and PlayStation 4 Pro have also just been announced with support for 4K and HDR games. But if you’re upgrading all that, you’d be silly not to supercharge your sound the same time, right? Discover a veritable…

“StarVR offers superior specs than other headsets” Missing price tag Neither Starbreeze or Acer have said how much the StarVR costs, most likely because its not aimed at home users. Instead they are aiming it at cinemas and theme parks, as well as car dealerships and aviation training facilities Wraparound optics Custom-made, semicircle-shaped Fresnel lenses curve the light from the headset’s otherwise flat screen, so the image seems to wrap around your face Double vision/ dual display The StarVR headset has not just one Quad HD screen, but two. This works out 2560 x 1440 pixels per eye, or 5K in total Reduced weight The latest model of the StarVR, imaginatively dubbed ‘Version 1.4’, has also reduced the weight of the headset to 380g. In contrast, the Rift weighs 470g…

Remember Fred Flintstone? His cave was packed with all manner of Stone Age mod-cons. Technology may have moved on since then, but our instinct to have a entertainment-laden bolthole remains entirely intact. Creating a personal space is essential, allowing you to express yourself and have somewhere to chill. With a bit of imagination and wad of saved-up money, you can easily produce the perfect getaway. Why not cool some drinks in your personal fridge and gather round your pin-sharp television to watch the latest football? Or recline in a luxury chair and stream some high-quality music? Even pot the black ball on a pool table of your own. Over the next few pages, we’re going to be looking at some of the coolest entertainment essentials. So grab some crisps, pour…

TYPE YOUR ESSAYS IN STYLE Stylish The Chromebook 14 looks as stylish as a £1,000 MacBook, boasting an all-aluminium alloy housing. It certainly doesn’t feel or look cheap Affordable Not only will you be saving money on the laptop itself, but you won’t have to shell out for expensive software like Microsoft Office. Google Drive is completely free Cloud-enabled Most of the applications are cloud-based, so you don’t have to worry about losing precious files, as they’re always backed up Unlike college and secondary school where you relied heavily on dusty textbooks and notebooks to get through your studies, you have more freedom in how you learn at university. Depending on the type of lecturer you have, you’re usually free to bring a laptop into classes to take down notes.…

“Repairs to a fixed wing take considerably less time to diagnose and fix” Drones have gone far past being a niche consumer hobby – in fact, in recent months the drone industry has grown to be worth just over $5.6 billion. There’s now an estimated 2.2 million drones circling the skies, and the number is growing on a monthly basis thanks to a growing number of entry-level choices for budding pilots to check out. Parrot has been one of the more recognisable companies when it comes to the manufacturing of drones. It is renowned for pushing the latest modifications in drone tech, and its latest showcase item is no different. Initially showed off at CES earlier this year, the Parrot Disco is the world’s first camera-connected, fixed-wing drone. Just from…

Drone controllers come in all shapes and sizes, and while some include the absolute basics on them, others pack their controllers with a mix of advanced and sometimes superfluous options. The Disco’s Skycontroller 2 offers a subtle mix of all of these, providing everything a novice pilot needs to safely fly their drone, while offering enough for advanced users to still be happy. At its core are the dual joysticks, used for ultra-precise movements while the Disco is in the air, and it is highly accurate when it comes to landing the drone at the right angle. Situated around the joysticks are a series of programmable buttons, which can be used to modify different control settings until you find a setup that works best for you. Arguably, the Skycontroller’s coolest…

“Audiophiles are now able to choose from a myriad of hybrid turntables” Akai BT500 This is a sleek, wooden belt-driven turntable that can be effortlessly connected to Bluetooth speakers or your computer for creating digital recordings of your beloved vinyl records. £350 | $400 akaipro.com Audio Technica AT-LP60-BT Fully-automatic, belt-drive record players don’t get glossier than the AT-LP60-BT, which also has Bluetooth for streaming to speakers or headphones. £170 | $180 audio-technica.com Lenco L-9 It’s lighter than it looks and is wonderfully minimalistic in its aesthetics: the Lenco L-9 is a semi-automatic record player with an integrated preamplifier that boosts its audio output. £230 | $305 lenco.com Numark TT250USB This piece of kit from Numark is great for music aficionados. It has traditional turntable traits as well as technical, hobby-specific…

Full speed ahead Instead of a quick button press, you’ll have to attach an adapter to your platter to get the quicker 45RPM spin. This can then be helpfully stored on the base after use Stop right now Once you hit stop, the tonearm will lift itself off and the record will stop spinning so that the tonearm can safely return to its resting place Prebalanced tonearm The tonearm is the only one in this test that doesn’t require a headshell fixed or counterweight to balance. It means that upgrades will not be available for the headshell and stylus, though Spin to win The start button tells the motor to start spinning and the tonearm to lift itself up and move onto the record It really doesn’t get any easier…

TESLA MODEL S This fully-electric vehicle includes an autopilot mode, allowing it to steer within a lane, change lanes with the tap of a turn signal, and it can also manage its speed by using active, traffic-aware cruise control. It can scan for a parking space, alert you when one is available, and parallel park on command. From £46,900 | From $90,700 | tesla.com MERCEDES-BENZ E-CLASS The E-Class from Mercedes can steer itself around bends at speed and change lanes automatically. It can even take the initiative to overtake other vehicles automatically, although this particular feature is disabled on cars bought in the UK, which is currently pending a change in the law. £34,440 | $52,150 | mercedes-benz.co.uk VOLVO XC90 Pilot Assist tech allows the car to accelerate, brake and…

“A rotavator uses a series of spinning rotors used to break up soil” WHAT TO DO IF IT KICKS Using a rotavator, especially when you’re tilling new ground, can be hard work. There will definitely be times when the rotavator hits something hard. When it does, it’s extremely important that you let the rotavator ‘kick’ and then gently guide it back on track. Using physical strength to try to control the rotavator will only tire you out, and could cause muscular injury. The more you use the rotavator, the more natural your control of the machine will be. Dead man’s handle Just in case you’re about to run over your foot, releasing this handle with stop the spinning blades immediately Adjustable design The rotavator has height-adjustable handles for ultimate comfort,…

Choose your recipe The Drop app helps you choose a recipe based on what you feel in the mood for, or the ingredients you’ve got available in your kitchen Connected devices Bosch’s Home Connect platform goes beyond ovens, too – the same tech is installed inside coffee machines, fridges and dishwashers for that complete smart kitchen effect Heating and timing If you’ve got a Bosch oven with Home Connect functionality, then it can take the timings and heating levels from your chosen recipe and apply them automatically With the web awash with recipes of all descriptions and our kitchen appliances getting smarter all the time, it makes sense to bring the two together – and that’s the logic behind a new Drop-powered upgrade for Bosch smart cookers running its proprietary…

01 DJI Osmo Mobile What looks like the smartest selfie stick ever is actually a device that turns your phone into an action cam. With image stabilisation, the Osmo Mobile helps you to shoot shake-free video. £290 | $300 | dji.com 02 Xiro Xplorer Mini Drone This flying 13-megapixel HD camera is safe to use anywhere with GPS/GLONASS dual satellite tracking for outside and an indoor visual positioning system to help it avoid bumping into things. £500 | $670 | xirodrone.com 03 Haier Duo Dry The world’s first double-drum washer and dryer. The large drum can switch from washing to drying, while second drum keeps washing. It also comes with a touchscreen and 30 preset routines. £1,700 | $1,250 | haier.com 04 Bang & Olufsen BeoSound 1 Although it may…

It takes a quantum leap The television uses Quantum Dot technology which enhances its luminance. You can also enjoy the benefit of 1,073,741,824 colours – far better than the 16.78 million of the standard sets Ultra Black technology According to Samsung the Ultra Black feature not only reduces light reflection and minimises glare, it absorbs natural light just like the eyes of a moth It’s UHD Premium This panel uses a 10-bit colour system called Rec. 2020 and it has a peak brightness of at least 1,000 nits. It more than surpasses the standard for Ultra HD Premium HDR upscaling Since you may be stuck for some 4K content, this television packs a powerful quad core processor and it will upscale Blu-rays to HDR, improving the clarity of your movies…

SURROUND YOURSELF WITH MUSIC You’ll love the sound of the Philips Fidelio B5. It’s a gorgeous-looking 2.1 soundbar that can transform into a true 4.1 surround system, thanks to detachable wireless speakers that you can not only sling to your rear but use on the go. It calibrates perfectly, delivering clear cinematic sound with great depth and balance, making for an ideal, clutter-free mancave addition. Philips Fidelio B5 £600 | $700 | philips.co.uk THE LUXURY OPTION Beosound 35 £1,745 | $2,785 | bang-olufsen.com THE BUDGET OPTION LG SH7 £300 | $500 | lg.com EXTEND THAT BASS If you want top-quality audio to accompany your dramas and movies, the Loewe Subwoofer 300 creates a superb 3.1 system. It amps the sound to a couple of external speakers and your television and,…

No more mess The awkward power brick is gone, with the power supply now housed inside the console. Additional cooling keeps it from overheating, but it still stays nice and quiet 4K ready While still not powerful enough to play games at native 4K resolution (it does upscale, however), the Xbox One S will run and output 4K Blu-rays and 4K streaming media just fine S for slim The original Xbox One was quite a chunky beast, but this revised model is an impressive 40 per cent smaller – around the same size as a PlayStation 4 The right buttons While not quite as awesome as the pricey Elite controller, the new stock model is still a step up – it has better grips, greater range and now works as…

Tado is the least well known of the thermostats we’ve featured here, but it’s also more of a team player. The recently launched V3 model works with Apple Home Kit and Amazon Echo, so in addition to controlling it with an app on your phone, you can give it voice commands via Siri and Alexa. It’s also compatible with IFTTT’s automation service, so you’ll be able to program it to work with lots of other gadgets around your house in time. However, at the moment, a large part of how Tado heats your home is based around location. By this, we mean that Tado tracks the whereabouts of your smartphone using geolocation. So if your phone isn’t at home, and by extension you’re not at home, Tado won’t bother turning…

Fixed-wing drones are still a relatively unknown quantity, unless you’re heavily involved within the drone community. They do, however, have some big benefits. Fixed-wing drones essentially work the same as conventional aeroplanes, using the single wing to give them lift, because of the efficiency of this, they only need input to move forwards. For flyers, this means they can cover longer distances and put less pressure on the rear-based motors. Rear-based power A brushless engine with a twin-blade propeller helps power the Disco, and gives it the forward motion it needs before the fixed wing takes control Lightweight construction A combination of the fixed-wing design and a plastic foam build, makes the Disco incredibly aerodynamic. The lightweight build means it can travel further for longer Continuous motion The Disco uses…

Take your temperature using 16 infrared sensors Gone are the days of sticking a thermometer in your mouth and waiting for the mercury to rise until you can finally see your temperature… yes, you have a fever (in case you didn’t already know). Now, with the help of modern tech, you can keep tabs on your fever and just about everything else with the Thermo Smart Temporal Thermometer, which you just hold against your forehead for a fast, accurate reading. When we say accurate, we mean accurate: the Thermos is packed with 16 infrared sensors that take around 4,000 measurements to find the hottest point and gauge a temperature. Incredibly, the whole process only takes a couple of second. The Thermos is a blessing for any parent that’s ever had…

Self-driving is perhaps one example of a technology which has advanced so rapidly we haven’t yet learned to fully grasp its implications. Taking human decision-making out of potentially fatal situations, for example, raises some ethical questions about what is ‘right and wrong’ when it comes to deciding who should live and who should die in the event of a car crash. One conundrum raised in the debate is an example known as the so-called ‘tunnel problem’. Imagine that you’re travelling along a one-lane mountain road in an autonomous vehicle. Just before entering the tunnel a child tries to run across the road and falls over. The car has two options. Either it can keep driving and kill the child, but save the driver, or it can swerve to save the…

Our cities are still built around century-old philosophies of transport – after all, the reason we British folk drive in the left is in case we need to draw our sword on the highway (obviously)! The adoption of self-driving technology will have a monumental impact on how our cities will look and feel in the future. Major projects are already up and running to see how this new type of transport can be integrated, including the GATEway project in Grenwich, Move UK, Atlas and the ‘connected corridor’ project on the A2/M2 between London and Kent. 01 No more car parks You can schedule self-driving cars to drop you off and pick you up at your destination. This would mean that having lots of parking could be a thing of the…

Lockout chip A 10NES lockout chip prevented unlicensed third parties from publishing games, although devices, such as Codemasters’ Aladdin Deck Enhancer, got around the restrictions Simple controller As well as fitting comfortably into a player’s hand, the gamepad was inspired by Nintendo’s successful Game & Watch series of handheld electronic games Peripherals A range of add-ons were made available, including a lightgun called the NES Zapper and even a robot called R.O.B. Front loader Games came on cartridges, which had a capacity ranging from 8KB to 1MB. The cartridges would be inserted into the VCR-like, front-loading slot Power-up The NES had a resolution of 256 x 240, a colour palette of 52, sprites, 2KB of RAM and an 8-bit MOS Technology 6502 1.79MHz core processor The 8-bit Famicom was Nintendo’s…

Works with anything The Origin is designed primarily for woodwork projects, but it can cut soft metals, plastics and composites too, depending on your chosen bit Auto-correcting blade Shaper calls the Origin “auto-correct for your hands” and it adjusts the spindle as you move in order to be accurate to within 1/100th of an inch Built-in memory The Origin can remember where it’s been too – you could carry on with a job two weeks later and pick up from where you left off Touch display The five-inch touchscreen display shows where you need to cut as well as enabling you to create designs using the Origin’s onboard software Dust extraction The device comes with a built-in dust extraction port which you can attach to a vacuum cleaner to get…

01 Yes, it is egg-shaped You’ll notice the PowerEgg’s unique shape first – distinctly eggesque. Four rotors and four landing struts pop out of the rugby ball-style shell, and because there’s no ‘front’ or ‘back’ it’s theoretically easier to pilot through the skies. 02 4K video recording The PowerEgg shoots 30fps video at 4K and can go up to 120fps in plain old HD, so it’s suitable for many a filming project. The 360-degree gimbal keeps your shots steady and can point in pretty much any direction. 03 Fly it indoors The drone comes with integrated GPS, so it can find its way home and avoid no-fly zones, but there’s also sonar and ground pattern recognition built in so the flying contraption can orient itself when indoors as well. 04…

WHAT’S NEW WITH THE IPHONE 7? Ready for water We wouldn’t recommend swimming with it, but the iPhone 7 is now water and dust resistant. Specifically, it’s IP67 rated, which means that it can be immersed in water up to one metre deep Super sound system Catching up with a few other flagships, the iPhone 7 finally features stereo front-facing speakers. This means your iPhone will sound twice as loud as its predecessor. It might even please anyone lamenting the headphone jack A bigger battery Every year Apple struggles to keep power-hungry battery critics at bay, but the iPhone›7 might have cracked it. The iPhone 7 Plus gets an hour’s extra battery life compared to the iPhone 6s Plus Some fresh silicon It wouldn’t be a new iPhone without a…

Don’t bother looking for HDR. Sky Q doesn’t support this yet If you want to view the largest selection of 4K content on your telly box, then you’ll have to literally reach for the sky. That’s because Sky Q has now added Ultra HD to the mix, offering all 124 live Premier League games on Sky Sports together with more than 70 movies and five new dramas. The satellite broadcaster began showing 4K programmes since August, kicking off with the first soccer game of the new season, Hull City versus Leicester City. Over the coming months, it’s also going to be screening every Grand Prix in Ultra HD. There will be more than 30 hours of natural history and documentaries in 4K across a selection of channels too. Ultra HD…

Turn it up With your vision restricted, it’s important to know where the basic display controls are. Oculus has a standalone remote. Here, they’re cleverly worked into the headset’s cabling Light ‘em up The lights around the headset are part of how the tracking works – just as the PlayStation Camera can find and follow the DualShock 4 thanks to its otherwise annoying light bar Seeing double Inside the visor is a single 1080p OLED display, giving an equivalent resolution of 960 x 1080 per eye – not quite as sharp as Vive or Rift’s dual screens, but perfectly serviceable Camera shy The base PS VR pack doesn’t come with a PlayStation Camera, which is required for use. If you already have one, great – if not, be aware that…

4K Blu-ray woes While it will allow streaming content and games in 4K, PS4 Pro won’t double as a UHD Blu-Ray player – if you want to get into that scene as well, you’ll either need a Xbox One S or a standalone player Looking Better Greatly enhanced GPU means even better visuals, both when rendering up to 4K and on standard HDTVs. The console knows which it is connected to and can render in an optimal manner accordingly Standing Tall Like the One S, PlayStation 4 Pro can be used in a vertical position, with an optional stand allowing it to be used in such a manner without fear of it falling over Triple Trouble The new design isn’t quite as sleek as the original model, but it still…

Hive is a new innovation from British Gas, but you don’t have to be one of the energy supplier’s customers to get one. While the Nest Learning Thermostat puts the emphasis on automating your heating, Hive instead looks to put control back in your hands. The idea is that you set a schedule yourself using a phone app, choosing the times the heating goes on and off, what temperture it comes on at, and on what day and even in which part of the house. You can also set different schedules for when you’re on holiday and switch on ‘Frost Protection,’ which will activate the heating when your home dips below seven degrees centigrade to stop your pipes from freezing. Of course, if 7°C is to still to warm for…

Two-day battery While you can only use the Force Band to drive BB-8 for a full hour, the battery will last for one to two days in the less power-hungry modes like Force Awareness. Charging takes three hours via a micro-USB port Magnetic manacle Though the Force Band is certainly a toy for all ages, younger users might struggle with a conventional wristwatch buckle, so Sphero has used a simple magnetic clasp and Velcro strap. The strap can also be adjusted to different wrist sizes Go the distance Though it won’t quite reach a galaxy far, far away, the Force Band’s Bluetooth connectivity has a range of 25-30 metres, so you can let BB-8 zip off without fearing that you will lose control Sound effects The ghostly voice of Obi-Wan…

“Pantelligent will send you a notification if you need to turn the heat up or down” Non-stick, no fuss Pantelligent is a pretty great pan, even without the app and sensors. Its durable, non-stick surface means that washing it up after using it an absolute breeze Bluetooth link The pan communicates directly with your phone so that you know exactly what’s going on with your food. It does this via Bluetooth, which is built into the handle of the pan App-solutely perfect The app monitors your food’s temperature while you cook, and tells you if you need to flip it or turn the heat up or down. It’s also great for following recipes Handle the heat Pantelligent’s secret is that it has a temperature sensor built into it. The sensor…

Tonearm tweaks A lever sat behind the tonearm can adjust the height for set-up purposes; a lock then keeps the height setting in place Four feet to perfection You can lower the support feet by rotating them clockwise, or raise them by rotating counterclockwise to create a gap between the player and the surface its resting on The S club S-shaped arms are arguably better for DJs and for groove precision, boosting the midranges of a played vinyl track Pitch perfect These pitch controls are an invaluable asset, with the pitch slider being helpfully lit up when at zero per cent for darker surroundings As the maestros of developing specialist audio equipment for decades, no manufacturer is suited to creating a better turntable for DJs than Numark. This offering is…

Laser light detection LIDAR (Light Detection And Ranging), uses lasers to map the surrounding environment. Light is shone onto objects and their reflection is used to measure the distance between them and the car. The Google autonomous vehicle makes extensive use of LIDAR Mounted video cameras Video cameras fixed to the vehicle can read road signs, spot traffic lights, and keep track of other vehicles, while also looking out for pedestrians and other obstacles Radar and sensors Radar and other types of sensors are positioned around the vehicle and can monitor objects around it. The vehicle’s software can then classify the data and assess whether they’re another car or an obstacle When a human gets behind the wheel of a vehicle they use a combination of eyes, ears and brains…

“A surprisingly decent effect is added seamlessly while you record” You’ve videoed the kids countless times, the odd sunset, trip to the seaside or family event, but you cannot help but feel that every single one of them would be improved enormously with the addition of a dancing skeleton or a rampaging T-Rex. Let’s face it, we’ve all been there, right? Well, this where FxGuru: Movie FX Director comes in to help. Designed to film scenes in short 15-20 second bursts, you pick the effect you want, start filming and then a surprisingly decent graphical effect is added (relatively) seamlessly while you record – it’s a rough form of augmented reality. These clips can then be saved locally or shared on Social Media, and if you fancied creating your own…