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ReviewsHeadphonesBluetoothAmazon’s New Echo Buds Are Annoyingly Good for the Price
Amazon is trying its hand at earbuds again after stumbling out of the gate with its first pair of Echo Buds in 2019. The improvements, I’m mildly irritated to say, are good. Amazon’s hardware is all over the place: Its Kindle lineup is excellent but still sports microUSB ports, its smart displays are very good … Continued
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ReviewsHome EntertainmentThe Fender Mustang Micro Puts a Tiny Amp In Your Pocket
Most guitar gear is pretty simple: You plug a cable designed in the 1950s into a jack that’s just as old and start playing. The electronics inside the various amps and pedals are where things get interesting, which is why Fender has created the $99 Mustang Micro. The Mustang Micro is a tiny device that … Continued
By John Biggs -
ReviewsFirst LookThe Asus Zenfone 8 Is an Affordable, Compelling Option If You Love Small Phones
Compact phones have fallen out of fashion in favor of bigger and bigger screens, but the new Asus Zenfone 8 has arrived with outsized performance in a small package. The Zenfone 8’s 5.9-inch display is about the same size as the Pixel 5, but instead of a mid-range Snapdragon 765G processor, Asus crammed in Qualcomm’s … Continued
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ReviewsFirst LookThe Realme 5G Is a Refreshingly Simple and Cheap 5G Phone
It’s not very flashy, and it doesn’t have a huge tagline emblazoned on its back like its more expensive sibling, but the Realme 8 5G is the kind of simple and affordable phone we could use more of in the U.S. The Realme 8 5G starts at 200 pounds (around $285) for 4GB of RAM … Continued
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ReviewsSmart HomeArduino’s New DIY Kit Makes It Easy to Build Smart Home Gadgets
The Arduino Oplà kit is a simple way to start building Internet of Things gadgets for fun and, for some, profit. The $114 starter kit includes an Arduino MKR WiFi 1010 board—basically a tiny, programmable microprocessor—and an IoT Carrier that looks kind of like a flower with an OLED screen in the center. What you … Continued
By John Biggs -
ReviewsFirst LookSennheiser’s New $1,300 Earbuds Are the Best I’ve Ever Tried
It seems like every month companies announce new wireless earbud options that offer improved battery life, better sound, and noise cancellation upgrades that help block out more of the world around you. In just a few short years, Bluetooth earbuds have gone from being bulky and not completely wireless to completely wire-free and small enough to … Continued
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ReviewsLaptopsThis Gaming Laptop Would Be Solid Without the Gaming Part
Adata is a company best known for its SSDs, DRAM modules, and peripherals, which it markets under its gaming moniker XPG, but the company has also recently stepped into the world of gaming laptops. I loved the first ever XPG gaming laptop, impressed by the choice of components, the mechanical keyboard, and the way its … Continued
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ReviewsRoutersAsus’ First Wi-Fi 6E Router Is a Beast for Gaming, but Struggles Everywhere Else
It seems like only yesterday that Wi-Fi 6 routers really started to hit the market, and that’s true—the first products trickled out in late 2018, and the new 802.11ax standard is only now going mainstream. But the FCC has opened up the 6 GHz band to unlicensed use, so router manufacturers are taking the ax … Continued
By Wes Davis -
ReviewsHome EntertainmentGamingThis Little Cube Puts Game Boy Games On the Big Screen
Back in ‘94, Nintendo released the Super Game Boy, a cartridge adapter that made Game Boy games playable on a TV through the SNES. Hyperkin’s new Retron Sq does the exact same thing, but as a standalone console that offers modern HDMI connectivity. Its simplicity makes it easy for anyone to use, but it also … Continued
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ReviewsPhonesSamsungSamsung’s Galaxy A52 5G Gives You the Most Phone for Your Money
Samsung’s Galaxy A52 5G has a lot to live up to. Not only is it the successor to last year’s top-selling Android phone, but it’s also the star of Samsung’s new mid-range A-Series (the slightly more premium Galaxy A72 isn’t coming to the U.S). With people holding onto their phones for longer, there’s a good … Continued
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ReviewsToysLego’s 2,354-Piece Space Shuttle Discovery Is Worth Every Penny
One of the best ways to learn is to study under someone who’s already highly skilled, and when it comes to building with Lego, the official sets are a treasure trove of knowledge from some of the world’s most talented model makers. The new Lego Space Shuttle Discovery is not only a wonderfully detailed model, … Continued
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ReviewsWearablesWe’re Not Ready for Smart Glasses Yet
After the original Google Glass crashed and burned, consumer smart glasses were put on the back burner for a while. There’s no shortage of reasons why, which makes it a little baffling that in 2021, high-tech glasses have made a mini-comeback. Facebook, Apple, and even Samsung are all rumored to be working on a pair … Continued
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ReviewsOther GadgetsIt’s Time to Upgrade Your Camping Chair to a Portable Folding Hammock That Doesn’t Need Trees
As the waves of pollen that keep many of us trapped indoors throughout the spring subside, it’s time to start gearing up for summer activities. If that includes camping, or really any inactivity that has you relaxing under the sun, it’s worth considering a camping chair upgrade. The folding Mock ONE lets you set … Continued
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ReviewsLaptopsThe Razer Blade 15 Advanced Is the Definition of a Premium Gaming Laptop
Gamers aren’t a monolith, and neither are the systems they game on. Some prefer more barebones systems that aren’t much more than a collection of components, while others seek out beastly desktop replacements that light up like a battleship. But when it comes to premium gaming notebooks, the Razer Blade 15 Advanced fits the description … Continued
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ReviewsWearablesThe Jiobit GPS Tracker Changed My Tune on Toddler Surveillance
I’d convinced myself long ago that when I became a parent, I’d do everything in my power to avoid overly surveilling my child. But then I decided to go back to work full-time a bit sooner than I’d initially planned, so to help ease my anxieties about sending my toddler out into the world, I … Continued
By Florence Ion -
ReviewsFirst LookThe New Razer Orochi V2 Is a Nice Little Lightweight Travel Mouse for Gamers
Razer products are known for their in-your-face-designs and attention-grabbing RGB lighting, but for its new Orochi V2 mouse, Razer stripped away almost all the extra fluff and created a super simple and lightweight travel mouse for gamers. Starting at $70, the Orochi is relatively affordable and sports a very straight-forward design that’s almost completely ambidextrous … Continued
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ReviewsHome EntertainmentAnker’s R2-D2 Mini Projector Is Adorable but Flawed
They say if you build a better mouse trap, the world will beat a path to your door, but you can probably be just as successful by slapping some Star Wars graphics on it instead. That’s what Anker’s done with its Nebula Capsule II mini projector, which now looks like a legless version of R2-D2. … Continued
