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Hades 2 is a fantastic modern epic – punishing, rewarding, and full of life, even in death

TechRadar Reviews - Thu, 10/02/2025 - 17:00

Though it’s only been five years since its predecessor, roguelite game Hades 2 feels long-awaited. The weight of expectation on developer Supergiant to surpass the massive success of Hades must have loomed more dauntingly than the sword of Damocles itself. So, how do you build on a game ranking among the best roguelites in modern history?

Review info

Platform reviewed: Nintendo Switch 2
Available on: Nintendo Switch 2, Nintendo Switch, PC
Release date: September 25, 2025

With a refreshed cast of Grecian heroes and gods, Hades 2 carves its own take on mythos, making for a game that feels both familiar and wildly different to Zagreus’ tale.

For one thing, gameplay mechanics have been boldly reinvented, and there’s a whole lot more variety in each run. In Hades 2, range and placement can make or break your strategy; the addition of Magick gives Melinoë an entirely different moveset to Zagreus, and with less mobility than her brother, it’s all to play for on the battlefield.

The stakes are immediately high, and nothing encapsulates the shift in priorities better than the art and world-building Supergiant is so famed for. An inventive array of new foes, friends, and plenty of frenemies make for a captivating narrative that rarely strays into “wall-of-text” territory, and it’s a breathtaking journey from start to finish.

With war brewing at the home front in Tartarus and on Olympus, a war of the gods has begun once again, but will the Princess of the Underworld be able to defeat Time itself?

Generational trauma

(Image credit: Supergiant Games)

The game begins at a crossroads – the crossroads, in fact, between the surface and the road to Tartarus. Readying for battle in this liminal space between life and death, Melinoë, daughter of Hades and Persephone, prepares to battle primordial powers to rescue her family.

Your foe is Chronos, the Titan of Time and father of Zeus, Poseidon, and Hades – for the nerds, yes, that’s an amalgamation of Chronos, the primordial concept of time itself, and Kronos, the leader of the Titans; two different figures from mythos. It’s fine, I’m not mad about it.

Before the events of the game, Chronos captured his chthonic son, along with Persephone, Zagreus, and a host of other underworld dwellers. Thankfully, Melinoë was whisked away just beforehand and into the care of Hecate, Witch of the Crossroads, to be trained in the art of witchcraft and, hopefully, rescue her relatives – and thus the story begins, and the generational trauma continues.

For your first few runs, you’ll venture towards Tartarus through Erebus (and Oceanus, if you can trounce the first guardian), but after these first two more linear levels, there’s a lot more diversity in chambers and encounters.

However, you’ll also quickly unlock access to the Surface, where Chronos’ goons are mounting an attack on Olympus. Having two options to venture keeps the game feeling fresh, removing the frustrating feeling of repeatedly falling at the same hurdle, and it’s a welcome change to the formula.

(Image credit: Supergiant Games)

There’s a lot of ebb and flow to the game’s two pathways, and each region offers dynamic maps with plenty of ways to progress by gathering resources, meeting with allies, and finding familiars to recruit. Some regions can feel a little gruelling; Tartarus’ Fields of Mourning, in particular, forces you into repetitive waves of enemies to cash in on multiple rewards per encounter, but you often only really want one of them.

However, other levels like the City of Ephyra play on the level design to push you to think harder about your build’s foundations, choosing six of ten possible rewards; both examples dismantle the classic two-door choice convention and keep the game varied.

Along the way, various gods from Hades – plus some new faces – will appear to deliver Boons: powerful upgrades to your attacks, movement, weaponry, chance modifiers, and beyond. These feel improved on Hades’ strong foundations; there’s a great variety on offer, and it’s rare that I really need a re-roll to find something useful.

Another noticeable difference is the increased focus on resource gathering. Doing away with the trade mechanics makes for much more rewarding progression materials, and there’s a lot more to find within each region. Your familiars can help you here, with each specializing in a different resource (spirits, seeds, fish, and foliage) as well as helping out during combat.

Which witch is which?!

(Image credit: Supergiant Games)

Oft characterized in non-game lore as the goddess of ghosts, spirits, and sometimes nightmares, Melinoë is a wildly different protagonist from her brother Zagreus. She bears a glowing, enhanced arm capable of wielding various Arcana card power-ups, and can use Magick to charge and cast enhanced abilities through Omega spells.

Like your regular abilities, Omega spells have a further set of Boons, allowing you to build around your powerful charged attacks instead of just amping up your base damage. Alternatively, you can pretty much ignore your spells altogether if you prefer button-mashing your standard attack, special, and cast; the game rewards you for playing well, not for playing every feature.

Now, the cast has switched to an area of effect (AoE) crowd control move; you can sit in it to slash at enemies on the border or build it up to be a damage-dealing trap for your enemies. This is vital, and certainly the most significant change to combat at a base level. Using it well, and often, is key to surviving with enough strength for bigger battles, especially in later levels where you’re contending with hordes of the undead or fiddly ranged attackers.

There’s a great, gradual progression arc to power up throughout the game, and I found myself genuinely surprised on multiple occasions that there was still more to unlock.

Once again, there are keepsakes, weapon unlocks, and enhancements you can build into your runs to make your attacks hit even harder.

Best bit

(Image credit: Supergiant Games)

Eris is a real pain to tackle the first few times, but hoo boy, is it fun to thrash her once you learn the ropes. She’s not as punishing as late-game bosses like Prometheus, but there’s a satisfying knack to timing your dodges and landing hits.

From an enormous, badass battle-axe to skulls that land with a “BOOM!”, Melinoë uses a mix of ranged and melee weapons to tackle her foes, but with way less mobility than her older brother. There’s no more double dash, but you can always use the new infinite sprint to zoom away from danger. Still, combat feels satisfyingly snappy, just with a greater emphasis on positioning.

Mel also swaps God Calls for Hexes, gifts from Selune that can be upgraded via a skill tree as you journey onwards. Personally, I’m a fan of the health regen Hex, which can be leveled to stack across regions and deliver huge amounts of health; particularly useful when you’re running with a squishier Mel build.

Each of these changes feels meaningful, and not just to differentiate Hades 2 from its successful predecessor. Plus, there’s so much variety and depth to each run that there’s no point in banking on specific builds; your Keepsakes can help pave the way for specific Boons, but you’re up against greater odds than in Hades.

That’s doubly true when you contend with the great variety of enemies, mini-bosses, and bosses. There’s no one way to play Mel, and the combatants want you to remember that; some punish you for an over-reliance on dashing, some for sitting too still or getting too close; others, you just have to hope you’ve built around strongly enough to kill before they can get you first (Prometheus, I’m looking at you. I’m judging you, in fact. Relentlessly.)

On the road again

(Image credit: Supergiant Games)

Calling the crossroads a liminal space feels at odds with the teeming life, love, and emotion housed in the battle camp Mel and her associates call home, but perhaps that’s exactly the point. Here, in a space designed for passage, a band of heroes, villains, and gods alike from mythos find refuge and comfort from a world in a perpetual state of pre-apocalypse. Of course, that’s all tinged by the undertones of the dysfunctional Olympian family tree, but if you can look past the bickering siblings, Mel and Hecate’s mommy issues, and, of course, the many mortals left in the wreckage of godly pettiness, there are some beautiful bonds formed at the crossroads.

From shopping to decorating and even gardening, there’s a lot to do between runs. Hecate's cauldron offers permanent upgrades both in and out of runs, and there are more interactive spaces like the salt baths and the fishing pier. There’s a huge amount of unlockable content and interactions here; characters react to the outcome of the previous run and even the items Mel takes with her to the field, making it genuinely rewarding to sit through dialogue.

Eris, Nemesis, Moros, and Icarus are the romancable options (at least, the only ones I’ve encountered), but I’d really encourage forming bonds with all of the main cast. Deep secrets and connections to other figures in mythos mean characters like Dora expand the universe even further and teach you more about Mel’s history and identity. Greg Kasavin was not messing around when he put pen to paper for Hades 2, though I do share some fans’ criticisms of the slightly rushed ending.

(Image credit: Supergiant Games)

The world is, of course, more than its writing. Darren Korb’s tremendous musical talents are once again in full force, providing a dramatic underscore to the on-screen action with even greater zeal. Jen Zee also delivered with some excellent refreshed character designs, each with subtle hints to the more militant themes in the game.

Even Aphrodite now bears arms (though clothing still appears to be optional), and Zeus is armored up in preparation for the great battles on the horizon. New animations for character cards breathe life into the designs, aided of course by another stellar cast of talented voice actors.

Rolling credits for the first time is only the beginning; there’s a lot more you’ll want to eke out of these relationships on your road to the ‘true’ ending, and that’s the real magic of the Hades 2 formula. It takes repetition and makes it a thematic driver, pulling you deeper into the world of the Gods and their follies.

Hades 2 absolutely surpasses its predecessor in almost every way, building on its success reservedly but meaningfully, and it’s a must-play game for all to enjoy. It’s a masterpiece in its own right, though Mel’s story is inseparable from Zagreus’ successes in more ways than one.

Should Supergiant choose to revisit the land of the gods with a sequel, I’m once again left wondering how it could withstand its legacy, but with a fresh confidence that they can once again go the distance.

Should you play Hades 2?Play it if...

You love fast-paced action
Punchy, zippy, and full of zest, the combat in Hades 2 is tremendously satisfying. Even with the new focus on positioning, there’s a lot of speedy decision-making and dashing around to enjoy here.

You enjoyed Hades
Without being a straight repeat, Hades 2 captures the essence of what made its predecessor so great: a stunning blend of story, style, and sticking it to the man. The man is Chronos, and he is actually a concept, not a man.

You appreciate art and world-building
The creative powers behind Hades and its sequel are immense, and few games have enraptured me with artistic appeal quite as well as this.

Don't play it if...

You hate repetition
While there’s a lot less of it in Hades 2, naturally, you’ll have to grind your way through areas. The mid-game suffers the most here, but it’s a very temporary setback. Also, it’s kind of the whole point of roguelites.

Accessibility

Within the settings, you have the option to toggle ‘God Mode’ under the Gameplay tab, which reduces the difficulty in the game, offering more damage resistance the more often you die. Alternatively, you can customize features like Auto-Fire/Auto-Sprint, Aim Assist, Dead Zones, and more to make gameplay more accessible. There are subtitles for both speech and song, as well as changeable vibration settings and visual effect settings.

(Image credit: Supergiant Games)How I reviewed Hades 2

I got 50 hours of the game, unlocking both the main ending and rolling credits on the ‘true’ ending of Hades 2 using a Nintendo Switch 2. I played it in both docked and undocked mode to see if legibility or performance is impacted by the screen size, comparing my experience against other roguelites, including Dead Cells, The Binding of Isaac, Towa and the Guardians of the Sacred Tree, and, of course, the original Hades.

I tried different settings, including God Mode, to see the impact on the game’s accessibility and performance, and tried playing both with a Corsair Void Max Wireless v2 headset and through the Switch 2 speakers.

First reviewed September 2025

Categories: Reviews

King of Meat offers brilliant combat and dungeon creation, but its platforming ground me down

TechRadar Reviews - Thu, 10/02/2025 - 12:00

This party platformer serves up a steady stream of challenges with buckets of content to unlock, ranging all the way from a robust roster of weapons to neat cosmetics that help you run wild in the excellent character creator.

Personalization and customization are consistent highlights in King of Meat, and when you’re not tackling its wide selection of community-made levels, the expansive dungeon maker gives you a powerful but approachable set of tools for crafting your own.

Review info

Platform reviewed: PS5
Available on: PC, PS5, Nintendo Switch, Nintendo Switch 2, Xbox Series X, and Series S
Release date: October 7, 2025

It’s a meaty package given the modest $29.99 / £24.99 asking price, but there are some rough edges to bear in mind before you dive in. Its copious animated cutscenes are gorgeous, but the constant parody humor can sometimes grate. It’s perfectly serviceable if you’re willing to regard it with some degree of irony, but hardly entertaining material. The platforming can also be a drag, as it's quite slow and precise - the opposite of what you would usually expect from a colorful multiplayer party game like this.

Pair this with a difficulty level that ranges all the way from a complete cakewalk to unbelievably punishing, depending on the design of your current dungeon, and the experience can often frustrate.

Meat your maker

(Image credit: Amazon Games)

Set in the fantasy kingdom of Loregok, everything in King of Meat is centered around the titular in-universe TV show.

Although online play is the focus, there’s a surprising amount of story here and heaps of voiced dialogue. The handful of vendors in its small hub world frequently dispense world-building lines, and there’s even a pretty solid single-player mode that has you traversing through a series of developer-crafted dungeons as little narrative segments play out.

Despite the reliance on rather passé parody humor, it’s certainly entertaining enough and offers a nice little diversion if you’re waiting for your friends to hop on for a multiplayer session. Reaching new high scores in these levels unlocks loads of neat goodies too, including in-game currency and some nifty cosmetics, giving you a good reason to replay each of them a handful of times.

The star of the show is the multiplayer, though, divided into three distinct leagues that can be tackled with up to three other players. The league tryouts are your beginner levels, intended to be immediately approachable to low-level players. Populated by basic skeleton enemies or simplistic puzzles, they’re not particularly thrilling, leading to a rather weak first few matches, but soon give way to the much more exciting Global League playlist and the super challenging Imperial League.

Global League is where I routinely have the most fun, but enjoyment does hinge heavily on the design of the level that you’re playing. Although there is a fairly large selection of developer-made stages (which comprised the bulk of my early testing time), the community also has the power to create new levels that feed into the mix.

Sizzle reel

(Image credit: Amazon Games)

When you’re playing a well-designed level, everything just clicks.

One particularly memorable example had me completing quite complex spike-based puzzles with a team of randoms, all of us communicating through the in-game chat wheel (populated by barks like ‘nice’ or ‘sorry’) and the quick ping feature.

Carefully timing my position on pressure plates to disable traps so the other players could progress and do the same for me was immensely satisfying and had us all frictionlessly working like a hive mind despite the lack of detailed communication.

Going head-to-head with just the right mix of enemies in more wave-based challenges also helps the shockingly deep combat shine. Chaining different combos together to fill up the on-screen audience excitement meter is immediately rewarding, with more elaborate streaks resulting in louder cheers and higher points.

Best bit

(Image credit: Amazon Games)

The specials mode offers up a platter of limited-time challenges, with some aimed at solo players and others geared towards teams. They’re some of the best levels that I’ve seen, with a good mix of devious traps and combat challenges. Competing in them puts you on a huge leader board, and yes I managed to reach number one a handful of times.

There are loads of weapons to try too, with both a primary and secondary slot. Primaries range from your average medieval fare like swords and hammers to magical knuckle dusters and electric guitars, while secondaries include a bomb launcher and, my personal favorite, a literal gun. Completing challenges with each weapon feeds into a large set of skill trees, with unlocks increasing key stats and improving the efficiency of attacks.

Powerful Glory Moves are charged like an ultimate ability as your brawl, unleashing powerful effects, including healing for your team and an amusing burp that sends enemies flying. It’s all very strong on paper, but the issues start to come to the fore when you’re playing a less well-designed stage.

One random choice dumped me in a long, straight corridor that was just overflowing with super powerful enemies - a wildly unfair slog that saw me losing all five of my lives in a matter of seconds.

(Image credit: Amazon Games)

Platforming is rather slow and cumbersome, too, which makes some of the more parkour-oriented stages feel unfair. Your maximum running speed is a snail's pace, and your jump is floaty and inaccurate. Throw in some consistent issues with hit direction thanks to server latency, and you have a recipe for annoyance when you’re trying to navigate everything from spike pits to moving platforms - which unfortunately are practically omnipresent.

I’m not exactly sure why developer Glowmade didn’t go for a lighter, faster style of platforming here, as it would easily make everything so much more exciting.

Dungeon master

(Image credit: Amazon Games)

Those with a creative streak will likely be able to forgive this, though, as King of Meat doesn’t fall short when it comes to customization.

The character creator is excellent, giving you loads of control over your armored competitor with a variety of outfit parts, plus decals and accessories that you can place anywhere. The unique, almost-modern-but-still-medieval look is cute too, and means that traffic cones and tracksuit bottoms don’t look at all out of place next to suits of armor.

There’s also the superb dungeon creator. It’s not quite as expensive as something like the level builder in Super Mario Maker, as it fundamentally relies on placing pre-set rooms, but you can achieve an awful lot with it. There are loads of decor items to place freely, tons of enemies, special effects, and a robust logic system for those keen to create more adventurous contraptions and puzzles.

The ability to quickly play your dungeon from the start or your current room in order to spot any sore spots is a blessing and makes creation fun and easy. Uploading your tracks for others to try is simple too, and I personally can’t wait to discover what kind of things players will come up with.

All of this leaves me a bit conflicted about King of Meat. The groundwork is all here for a fantastic experience, and the team behind the game has clearly put a huge amount of care and attention into almost all of its core elements - I just wish the platforming and comedy weren't quite so tedious.

Should I play King of Meat?Play it if…

You’re after a new co-op game
King of Meat is fun with friends and supports playing with up to three of them at any one time. Its low asking price makes it an attractive proposition if you’re looking for something to play on your next virtual game night.

You’re wildly creative
From the character creator to the dungeon maker, King of Meat gives you a wealth of tools to express yourself and run wild with creativity. If you’re the kind of person who loves those systems, you’ll get a lot out of this.

Don’t play it if…

You can’t stand the style of humor
There is a surprising amount of narrative content in King of Meat, and a lot of it is filled with annoying parody humor. If that’s not your cup of tea, I’d give it a miss.

You’re in it for the platforming
Combat is exciting, but the slow platforming is one of the weakest parts of the overall package.

Accessibility features

There are loads of accessibility options in King of Meat. This includes a range of speech-to-text options, including narration of the in-game menus and chat box. Subtitles are enabled by default, and you’re free and customize the size, color, and background opacity of them. The controls can also be customized with a huge range of input options that remove the need to hit buttons.

Photosensitive users can remove the screen flash that occurs when you take damage, or disable a selection of other in-game effects.

How I reviewed King of Meat

I played more than ten hours of King of Meat on PlayStation 5 ahead of the game’s launch. During that time, I played a heap of levels both alone and with other players online.

I also had a lengthy co-op session with a colleague in order to assess the game’s potential when you’re playing with friends. I unlocked the bulk of the game’s content, including most of its weapons, and played with all of the ones that were available to me. I became global number one in a handful of the daily challenge levels and also spent some time as the level creator, experimenting with the tools on offer.

Throughout my time with the game, I played it with the standard DualSense Wireless Controller and an Astro A20 X gaming headset for audio.

First reviewed September 2025

Categories: Reviews

PolarPro's pricey Peter McKinnon Edition II variable ND filter is pretty much flawless, and does the job of several NDs

TechRadar Reviews - Thu, 10/02/2025 - 10:28

PolarPro VND Filter Peter McKinnon Edition II: Two-minute review

The latest product of PolarPro’s ongoing collaboration with hugely popular videographer and YouTube creator Peter McKinnon, the VND Filter Peter McKinnon Edition II has become an interesting and valuable part of my camera setup over the past few weeks.

First, a quick explanation of what a ND filter does. One of the key principles of photography and videography is the so-called “exposure triangle” – the way that ISO, aperture and shutter speed interact to control the amount of light that hits an image sensor.

By adding a neutral-density (ND) filter – which reduces the amount of light coming in without affecting the color hue – to the equation, photographers gain one extra factor to influence how the camera behaves, and more control over shutter speed and aperture.

For photographers, the ability to reduce light means we can use longer shutter speeds than the lighting conditions would ordinarily allow. That means artfully blurred waterfalls, or night-time shots with streaking, laser-like car headlights. For videographers, control over shutter speed allows for motion blur and wide-open aperture shooting in brighter conditions.

The main selling point of the PolarPro VND Filter Peter McKinnon Edition II (also known as the PMVND II) is that it’s a variable ND filter. In other words, twisting the filter allows the photographer to select an ND value from anything between two and five stops, saving them the bother of having to add filters to and them filters from their lens. (PolarPro also sells a stronger 6-9 stop edition of the VND filter, plus mist-diffusion Black Mist versions of both).

(Image credit: Future | Sam Kieldsen)

Because my review sample sits at the weaker end of the range for ND filters, I found that it couldn’t stop enough light to get truly long exposures outdoors on a bright, sunny day. Even at its highest 5-stop setting, and with my camera at its lowest ISO setting, a shutter speed of anything longer than a second resulted in a blown-out, overexposed image. So, if you want to shoot multi-second daytime exposures on sunny days or in bright landscapes (like snowfields), you’ll want to have the 6-9 stop filter to hand. If you’re feeling flush, buying both filters provides a wide stopping range.

On more overcast days, at night or indoors, however, the two to five stop range feels very usable. Even during the day, it allowed me to set a wider aperture than I’d normally be able to use for video, resulting in a shallow depth of field with background bokeh while maintaining an ideal shutter speed (of roughly double my frame rate, as the rule of thumb suggests).

The filter glass is extremely clear and neutral, although it does appear to add a very slight warm color cast when compared to shots with no filter attached. I couldn’t spot a single incidence of ghosting or chromatic aberration, however – two issues that can plague cheaper filters. And it doesn’t seem to affect the sharpness of images at all, which is what I would expect of a filter in this price range.

I also encountered no vignetting when shooting with a wide-open aperture at my lens’ widest field of view (12mm on a Micro Four Thirds camera, equivalent to 24mm on a 35mm or full-frame camera). PolarPro claims the filter exhibits no vignetting right down to 16mm, but I wasn’t able to put that to the test myself.

I also noticed that a small amount of additional contrast could creep into shots as I moved up the ND stop range. That’s a side effect of the variable ND filter design, I think – VNDs require polarized glass to achieve their variable effect, and that will affect the final image slightly. If that’s a no-no for you, you’ll need to use regular, non-variable ND filters instead.

While performance is strong, build quality might be even better. I was sent a 67mm filter to review (it’s also available in 49mm, 77mm, 82mm and 95mm sizes), and used a step-up ring (also by PolarPro) to fit it to the 62mm thread on my Panasonic 12-60mm F2.8-4.0 lens. Both the filter and ring screwed on smoothly and securely, with no awkward threading.

Image 1 of 5

No filter attached (Image credit: Future | Sam Kieldsen)Image 2 of 5

ND 2 (Image credit: Future | Sam Kieldsen)Image 3 of 5

ND 3 (Image credit: Future | Sam Kieldsen)Image 4 of 5

ND 4 (Image credit: Future | Sam Kieldsen)Image 5 of 5

ND 5 (Image credit: Future | Sam Kieldsen)

The combined case and lens cap (known as the Defender 360) makes fitting even easier – and ensures greasy fingerprints stay well away from the filter glass. The cap features two parts, one metal (aluminum to be precise) and one rubber, with the rubber element gripping around the filter’s frame so that you can, with a twist, add or remove the filter from your lens. When not in use, the filter sits inside the rubber part while the metal screws back on over one side to keep it safe. It’s an ingenious piece of design.

The filter itself feels beautifully precision engineered. The machined ridges or knurls on the edge give your fingers plenty to grip onto, while the subtle 'click' expressed as each ND stop is reached is welcome (and useful) feedback. Of course, some users might prefer a completely smooth turn, particularly videographers who want to adjust the stopping value while rolling the camera. It’s something to note, but I personally found it a clever design touch.

And, while this is a subjective thing, I think the PMVND II looks really classy too, with its two-tone black and brass finish. It’s hydrophobic too, with water beading and running off the glass easily.

Overall, I’m hugely impressed by the quality of the PolarPro VND Filter Peter McKinnon Edition II. Yes, it’s expensive – but it’s also thoughtfully designed, impeccably constructed, and works exactly as a variable ND filter should. If you’re looking for an ND filter to expand your creative repertoire, this 4-in-1 champion should certainly be on your radar.

(Image credit: Future | Sam Kieldsen)PolarPro VND Filter Peter McKinnon Edition II: Price and availability

The PolarPro VND Filter Peter McKinnon Edition II is available now worldwide, priced at around $150 / £150 / AU$260 for the 49mm size or around $250 / £240 / AU$450 for the 67mm, 77mm, 82mm and 92mm sizes.

The filter is available in two ND stop ranges: 2-5 (which I'm reviewing here) and 6-9, with both models additionally available in a Black Mist version designed to soften highlights for a different look.

These are high prices for ND filters, but I think the quality and adaptability of the PMVND II makes it well worth the price to the right buyer.

Should I buy the PolarPro Peter McKinnon VND Edition II filter?

(Image credit: Future | Sam Kieldsen)Buy it if...

You find swapping filters a drag
As a VND, this is actually four ND filters in one. Rotating the filter enables the user to move from two to five stops of ND strength.

You value rugged, tactile design
The PMVND II is built to superb standards, from its clean, smooth rotation to its innovative lens cap, which doubles as a protective case.

Don't buy it if...

Your budget is limited
The PMVND II is unashamedly premium, and you can obtain a VND filter, or a set of ND filters, from other brands for a lot less.

You want full smooth rotation
I like the filter's 'clicks' as it hits each ND stop setting, but videographers may prefer a click-free alternative for smoother transitions while filming.

How I tested the PolarPro Peter McKinnon VND Edition II filter

I used it for several weeks
I fitted it to a Panasonic Lumix GH6
I tested it for photo and video capture

I used a 67mm PMVND II on and off for several weeks in the late summer and early autumn on the English south coast, threading it to a 12-60mm zoom lens on my Panasonic Lumix GH6 via a 62mm-to-67mm step-up ring (also supplied by PolarPro). I recorded video and shot photos using all of the filter’s ND levels, and tested it in various weather and light conditions, from overcast drizzly evenings to blazingly sunlit mornings.

First reviewed October 2025

Categories: Reviews

I tested NotebookLM and found it very useful for academic, technical, and general research

TechRadar Reviews - Thu, 10/02/2025 - 05:39

Navigating the web to analyze data can be tiring. From scouring various websites looking for the correct data to analyzing and summarizing the data you’ve obtained, online research can be hectic. But what if I told you it doesn’t have to be?

Thanks to recent artificial intelligence (AI) advancements, you can have a virtual research partner that helps you analyze and summarize data from the web. That partner is named NotebookLM.

NotebookLM is an AI-based research and note-taking app developed by Google, the company best known for its eponymous search engine. Released in 2023, NotebookLM has amassed a large user base, thanks to its features that help users research and retrieve insights from bulky documents.

How does NotebookLM work, and what sets it apart from similar tools? Is it free or paid, or both? What are its key features? I’ve reviewed the app extensively to answer these essential questions. Read on to learn in-depth about NotebookLM and whether it’s a suitable tool to adopt.

NotebookLM: Plans and pricing

NotebookLM is a freemium tool, i.e., it has free and paid versions. The free NotebookLM is a very capable tool that integrates the latest models of Gemini, Google’s proprietary large language model (LLM). It lets users upload PDFs, Word documents, and presentations to extract data and generate summaries. You can ask NotebookLM questions and get detailed answers under this free plan.

However, the free plan imposes limits on the number of documents you can upload, the number of daily chat queries, notebooks, and audio and video generations. Specifically, the free plan allows 100 notebooks, each with up to 50 sources, 50 daily chat queries, 3 audio overview generations, and 3 video overviews.

You can increase the limitations by subscribing to the NotebookLM Pro plan. This plan allows 500 notebooks, 500 daily chat queries, 20 daily audio generations, and 20 daily video overviews. As a Pro user, you can also share your notebooks with other users and extensively configure the AI assistant’s response style, among other benefits.

To become a Pro user, you need to subscribe to the Google AI Pro plan, which costs $20 monthly. This plan unlocks more than just NotebookLM’s advanced features. It also unlocks access to AI features on other Google apps.

That said, at $20 monthly, the Google AI Pro plan is quite pricey. It’s justifiable if you’ll heavily use the provided features, but otherwise, the free NotebookLM version works well for the average user. You can try the Google AI Pro plan for one month to test its features before making a final decision.

(Image credit: Google)NotebookLM: Features

NotebookLM is a mobile app you can download on an iOS or Android device. It’s not accessible via a web browser. This app functions as a companion you can use to extract data from uploaded documents or external web pages.

You can create distinct notebooks on the app, with the free plan allowing up to 100 notebooks. On each notebook, you can extract data from up to 50 sources on the free plan and 300 sources on the Pro plan.

Here’s an illustration to make it simpler to understand. Imagine you’re a student tasked with reviewing a research paper and generating key insights. The research paper is bulky, with over 5,000 words.

Instead of scanning through every paragraph manually to extract key points, you can upload the research paper in PDF format to NotebookLM. Then, NotebookLM will study and analyze the paper on your behalf, and you can ask it comprehensive questions related to the research paper.

For instance, if the research paper is about the prevalence of a disease in different regions, you can ask NotebookLM to provide a detailed breakdown of the number of infections observed in each region and the percentage compared to the total number of infections. You can ask it to visualize this data for you.

A research paper is just a single example. Instead of uploading a PDF file to NotebookLM, you can provide a specific web address and ask it to analyze the information on that web page.

For example, NotebookLM can analyze a long news article about recent mergers & acquisitions in the tech industry, and you can ask specific questions like “Which companies got acquired recently?” “How much was [company name] acquired for?” “Give me a breakdown of all the acquired companies mentioned in the article and how much they were acquired for?”

NotebookLM solves a key problem that most people experience. Reading through and analyzing large volumes of information can get tiring. Often, when I experienced this problem, I always wished for a virtual assistant that could help me sort through the information and find the desired key points. I was happy when Google announced NotebookLM in 2023, and I became an early adopter.

My main use case for NotebookLM is sifting through voluminous articles and reports to generate insights. I’ve used it heavily for both personal and work activities. For example, I often read detailed economic reports issued by think-tanks and government agencies. NotebookLM has extensively helped me to analyze and note crucial information from these reports.

I like that NotebookLM lets users share notebooks with friends, family, and colleagues, even on the free version. As a free user, you can grant a collaborator “Viewer” or “Editor” access to your notebook.

(Image credit: Google)

A Viewer has access to uploaded source documents and shared notes, but can’t remove these documents or add new ones. In contrast, an Editor can remove or add new documents to your notebook. Sharing is as easy as generating a unique link and sending it to the desired collaborators, who can access it with their Google accounts.

If you’re subscribed to the Pro plan, you can share a notebook in chat-only mode, wherein the collaborator can’t modify the source documents but can ask the AI system questions related to the documents.

When sharing a notebook on the Pro plan, you can monitor two key metrics about how collaborators have interacted with your notebooks: the number of users who have made at least one query per day and the number of queries made by each user. However, these metrics are only available if you've shared the notebook with at least four other users.

NotebookLM doesn’t just issue text answers. It can give audio answers in a creative way. For instance, I used NotebookLM to turn an article into an audio conversation. The conversation was akin to two human hosts discussing a deep dive into the article on a podcast. The AI hosts summarized the article, highlighted key information, and had back-and-forth conversations about the information contained in the article. However, don’t expect perfection.

In my case, I observed several mistakes during the audio conversations, including key information being skipped, factual inaccuracies, and references to information not present in the document. Likewise, the speech sounded unnatural in several cases, owing to excessive use of filler words, such as “you know” and “like,” which isn’t typical in real human conversations.

That’s not to say the audio overview feature isn’t helpful. Indeed, it’s beneficial, and such a feature available for mass usage would have been unthinkable a few years ago. However, you shouldn’t rely entirely on it to summarize documents. It works most of the time, but a minor mistake can be significant when analyzing documents.

Similar to the audio overview feature I just discussed, NotebookLM also has a video overview feature. That is, users can turn documents and articles into AI-generated video narrations. The narrations will include images, quotes, figures, and diagrams pulled from your document, with an AI voice dissecting the key points in a conversational tone.

I liked that I could tailor video overviews according to my needs, for example, by selecting the images and quotes I wanted to include in a video narration. I also liked that I could create multiple video overviews for the same PDF document or web page, gaining different perspectives.

Visual learning is more interactive and fun compared to reading long text. If you have a long text piece, NotebookLM makes the perfect companion to convert the long text into a visual narration that's easy to learn from. However, beware of the limitations.

I noticed some mistakes in the video overviews I generated, similar to those of audio overviews. These mistakes included inaccurate information and some key data I highlighted being skipped. Just as I mentioned earlier, you shouldn’t rely 100% on NotebookLM to summarize your documents. Manual reading remains important.

NotebookLM is very useful, especially the free tier, but it still needs significant improvements. The good news is that Google is committed to continually improving the underlying Gemini LLM that NotebookLM is based on. It has released various updates to boost Gemini’s accuracy and will continue doing so amid intense competition from the likes of ChatGPT.

(Image credit: Google)NotebookLM: Interface and in use

NotebookLM is as simple to navigate as a mobile app can be. After opening the app, the homepage lists all the notebooks you’ve previously created, or prompts you to create a notebook if you haven’t done so. The button to create a new notebook is prominently highlighted at the bottom.

You can easily create a notebook, add files, and begin asking questions and generating audio or video overviews. Every feature is neatly arranged at the bottom of the dashboard, and you can quickly upload a file, paste text, or enter an external web address to be analyzed. I give NotebookLM a perfect score in user-friendliness.

NotebookLM: Support

As a NotebookLM user, the first place to consult when troubleshooting issues is the official NotebookLM Help Center hosted by Google. This Help Center has comprehensive details about every functionality accessible on NotebookLM.

From learning how to use NotebookLM to changing configurations and resolving commonly encountered problems, the Help Center provides detailed answers. Personally, I encountered most issues when trying to import files, some of which failed to import initially, but the Help Center quickly solved my problem.

If you’re a Google AI Pro subscriber, you can get direct help from Google’s support team in addition to the self-help resources from the official Help Center. Google’s support team is reachable via live chat, email, and telephone and provides detailed answers.

NotebookLM: The competition

NotebookLM is a unique tool that combines note-taking and artificial intelligence-based research. Most rival apps focus on one of these functions but don’t combine the two. Its main competitors aren’t as popular, and they are mostly new apps launched within the last four years.

A competitor I’d like to highlight is Logically (formerly called Afforai). Just like NotebookLM, Logically lets you upload documents and ask its AI assistant in-depth questions related to the document. It doesn’t stop there, but also helps you add more relevant information to text documents, such as citations, tables, and diagrams.

Logically has a free plan and a paid version that unlocks unlimited access to its AI assistant. Users can also pay for addons like external large language models, a file annotator, and a reference manager.

I can’t confidently say Logically is better than NotebookLM or vice versa. However, Logically has a broader feature set that combines both NotebookLM’s core AI-based research feature and other useful AI-based features like writing assistance, file annotation, and academic reference management.

NotebookLM: Final verdict

NotebookLM is a valuable tool to have in your toolkit. It makes things easier when researching information online, thanks to its ability to extract key insights from long swathes of text and convert voluminous text into engaging visual summaries.

I’ll proudly recommend NotebookLM to students, teachers, corporate professionals, or information sleuths who engage in extensive research. Whether on the free or paid version, NotebookLM offers features that make research less hectic and more interactive.

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Categories: Reviews

After a couple of months with the Garmin MARQ Golfer (Gen 2), there’s no other way to put it: this is the best golf watch on the planet right now

TechRadar Reviews - Thu, 10/02/2025 - 03:52

Garmin MARQ Golfer (Gen 2): One minute review

Simply put, the Garmin MARQ Golfer (Gen 2) is the best golf watch money can buy, and one of the best bits of tech I have ever tested or even used, period. There, I have said it. I said something similar about the Garmin Approach S70 when I tested that last year, I know, but this premium watch really is something else.

I’ve tested a whole range of tech in my years, and there’s only a handful of products that I’ve really hated letting go of, and in a very strong field, this golf watch is absolutely one of them. If you’re looking for a do-everything golf watch but one that does everything at a premium level, brilliantly, then this is it.

In every functionality I tested, this watch has excelled, and from strap to screen, its design and build have proved a perfect balance of confidence-giving robustness, ease of use, and slick looks.

Design-wise, the Golfer (Gen 2) is a beauty. My review unit is the Carbon Edition, and its sleek black and green colorway makes for an aesthetically pleasing watch on the face of it, but there’s sturdiness under the hood from the leather and rubber strap, to the robust bezel and case, and especially the excellent domed glass screen – itself a joy to use. It also has a pleasant weight and size to it that makes its one size (46mm total diameter) hit the goldilocks physical size for me of being great for sport, as well as a daily driver.

The watch comes with all the excellent golf features that we’ve come to expect from Garmin. Extra features like the PlaysLike Distances are brilliant; there are 43,000 courses preloaded, and there are so many other features, such as swing tempo measures, stat tracking, and more. Throw in the fact that when you buy the watch, you get three CT10 trackers that you can put in the top of your clubs too, and the package is basically complete and void of holes (nearly). Then, team this with the Garmin Golf Membership subscription – sadly not included with the watch despite its high price – and you have the ultimate on-course caddie if you really are going big.

It not only looks the part on the wrist as a daily smartwatch, but it’s chic, easy to use, responsive, and does everything well. I wish there were a more ‘premium looking’ font on the watch, though, as Garmin’s default one doesn’t scream more-than-two-thousand-dollar device.

A lot will be made of the MARQ Golfer (Gen 2)’s price tag, but we’re swimming in premium waters here; an end of the pool that all markets of tech have. And there is a market for this. And if this isn’t for you, then Garmin offers a host of alternative options that are cheaper and more focused. But if you are in the market for a best-of-the-best golf watch, then read on to find out why the Garmin MARQ Golfer (Gen 2) is the absolute peak of wrist-bound on-course companions and the premium option for you.

If you’re looking to go big, go premium, and go once on your golf watch, this is the watch for you.

Garmin MARQ Golfer (Gen 2): Specifications

Garmin MARQ Golfer (Gen 2)

Price

Starts at $2,300 / £1,999.99 / AU$3,900

Dimensions

1.8 x 1.8 x 0.59in / 46 x 46 x 15mm

Weight

2.89oz / 82g

Bezel/case

Titanium (Grade 5) / fused carbon fiber bezel / Fused carbon fiber with titanium rear cover

Display

390 x 390px; 1.2in / 30.4mm; Domed sapphire crystal AMOLED

GPS

GPS+GLONASS+Galileo+SatIQ Technology

Battery life

Smartwatch mode: Up to 16 days; GPS only: Up to 42 hours; All satellite systems: Up to 32 hours

Connection

Bluetooth, ANT+, Wi-Fi

Water resistant?

Yes, 10 ATM

Garmin MARQ Golfer (Gen 2): Price and availability

(Image credit: Future/Rob Dwiar)

List prices of $2,300 or $3,100 / £1,999.99 or £2,699.99 / AU$3,900 or AU$5,249 (Fused Carbon or Titanium version)
Premium price tag makes it expensive, but the value proposition is strong
No subscription included feels a little mean

Right, let’s get the big one out of the way first: this is an expensive smart or golf watch. There is a market for this level of premium golf watch, and the Garmin MARQ Golfer (Gen 2) certainly doesn’t swim alone here.

Garmin, as a brand, is also one of the best for offering watches up the entire scale of golf watch premium-ness, too; heck, even some of its non-golf devices can help you out on the course. As a result, the Garmin MARQ Golfer (Gen 2) earns its place in the brand’s lineup, appealing to those who are on the lookout for a top-tier golf and smart watch that delivers without compromise.

So, it’s expensive, but does it offer good value? After using it for a long while, and comparing it to my also-premium TAG Heuer Connected Calibre E4 Golf Edition, I think it does. Its featureset and capability are unrelenting and truly top-tier. As I said above, if you really are looking for one premium golf watch to rule them all, then this is it. It does everything the Tag Heuer does, and it’s got all that Garmin excellence in data tracking, too.

It’s also worth noting that, at the time of writing, there are two variants of the watch available and a sizable gap between them in terms of price. My unit is the Fused Carbon Fiber model, which sits a full $800 / £700 / AU$1,349 more than the Grade 5 Titanium model. As a result, the latter makes a much more compelling value proposition argument, and is only a ‘bit’ more than the Tag Heuer.

There is one notable drawback on pricing, for me, though: it feels a little mean to offer a complete golf watch but not include a Garmin Golf Membership subscription.. This feels like it would be a worthy addition from both price tag and premium-experience perspectives.

Value score: 4/5

Garmin MARQ Golfer (Gen 2): Design

(Image credit: Future/Rob Dwiar)

1.2in / 30.4mm AMOLED screen is superb
Domed sapphire crystal lens material is a joy to use
Slick, robust, chic, perfectly weighted, and well-made

The case and bezel are rock solid and confidence-inspiring, and the aesthetic of the Carbon model is slick and a good balance of understatedness and a bit of flash. The build is so good here: you’re also getting a good water resistance rating of 10 ATM, allowing it to withstand swims.

The AMOLED screen is wonderfully sharp, bright, and vivid, and the domed lens is something I wish all smartwatches had across the board. The screen is also slightly smaller than the Approach S70 (a purely golf-focused watch), which is something to be aware of if you value screen real estate above all else, but I actually find it to make for a better watch overall.

Even the watch strap is top-tier. The outside is a smart-looking leather strap that ensures it looks the part at all times, and the inside is made of an FKM rubber, which is perfect for when you get hot on the course, as well as for ensuring it doesn’t slip and slide all over the shop. Take note, other golf watch manufacturers.

A big gripe of mine with the brand's golf watches – and even with some of the best Garmin watches – is the subpar bespoke charging mechanism, which means you have to lay your watch flat on its front and have a cable sticking up from its rear. Luckily, the Golfer MARQ (Gen 2) features a different solution, which, much like my Samsung smartwatch, involves a flat charger tool that means you can lay your watch flat on its back. It’s not the nice dock that I have with my Tag Heuer, but it’s definitely an improvement.

The buttons are intuitive to make navigating the watch and apps very easy, easier than the S70’s three buttons, which have multiple functions each. However, I do have a minor gripe with one small design element: Garmin’s default font.

While it’s a perfectly serviceable font and makes for clear reading, it started to grate on me a little after a while using the Gen 2. It looks a bit simple and not as chic as the font on my Tag Heuer, and thus doesn’t feel as premium as the watch itself or befitting of such an otherwise premium experience.

Design score: 5/5

Garmin MARQ Golfer (Gen 2): Features

(Image credit: Future/Rob Dwiar)

All the golf features you could want (bar one)
All the fitness trackers you could want
All the daily smartwatch features you could want

In brief, when it comes to features, the Garmin Golfer MARQ (Gen 2) is bursting at the seams and has everything you could possibly wish for from a premium golf watch. Or a smart watch. Or a fitness tracker. Or a sports smart watch. There are frankly too many to go over.

Headlines in the golf feature set make for delightful reading, though. It has all the courses you could want and presents them beautifully. It’s got a supremely accurate golfing yardages, built into a fulsome and complete virtual caddie experience, offering features for shot dispersion, wind direction and speed, pin finder for blind shots, club tracking (with the CT10 trackers), a brilliant PlaysLike distance feature which tells you the actual yardage of the holes with weather and topography factored in, information about hazards and doglegs, score and stat tracking, swing temp features, and more. It’s frankly wild how much Garmin has crammed in just from a golfing perspective.

The only golf feature ‘missing’ is the green contour data and imaging. This can only be acquired via a paid subscription to the Garmin Golf Membership – that’ll still be an extra $9.99 / £9.99 / AU$14.49 a month, sadly. I really think Garmin could have included that with this watch, given the device’s price tag and commitment folks will be making.

As a Garmin watch, it also channels the best of the brand’s pedigree when it comes to sports, fitness, and health tracking, too. Once again it is impossible to go through all those features, but know that if you’re looking for your next golf watch to be capable of handling your exercise and workout routines, sleep health and body battery monitoring, body condition tracking, offer maps for walking and trail hiking, as well as have you covered for stock trading, skiing, paying with your watch, then the Garmin Golfer MARQ (Gen 2) can handle it.

As a premium watch, it also offers a superb experience for daily use, with plenty of functions for messaging, music control, calendar, sunset, and weather viewing. Whatever you think you want your watch to do, the Garmin Golfer MARQ (Gen 2) can almost certainly do it.

Features score: 5/5

Garmin MARQ Golfer (Gen 2): Performance

(Image credit: Future/Rob Dwiar)

Unparalleled on-course performance
A joy and easy to use with intuitive controls
Excellent as a day-to-day smartwatch and for fitness and health, and its battery lasts forever

As might be obvious already, this is probably the closest thing to a perfect golf watch as you can get right now. The Garmin Golfer MARQ (Gen 2) is basically unparalleled in its on-course golfing features and makes for the perfect virtual caddie. This is something I cannot emphasize enough, either.

There are basically too many excellent golf features to mention individually, but the headline ones are sublime. Firstly, you’ll be incredibly hard-pushed to find a course that it doesn’t have a map for, with over 43,000 preloaded onto the device.

Once you are on the course, the complete virtual caddie role that the Garmin Golfer MARQ (Gen 2) successfully plays is extraordinary. The maps of the holes are clear, the yardages are accurate and on-point, the wind speed and direction tool is useful, and I cannot imagine playing without the PlaysLike distance feature now. This feature is so good and brilliant on the course, factoring in weather and environmental conditions as well as topography to give you a more accurate yardage for club selection. Combine this with the brilliant views of greens and hazards, a shot dispersion feature that can help you factor in what could come into play, and the pinpointer feature for when you have zero sight of the green, and it’s a complete experience. And that’s before the quality round and score logging, too.

Enhancing this further is the shot tracking that the watch is capable of when combined with the CT10 trackers for your club. While my Tag Heuer has built-in shot tracking and is thus more convenient for this, the Golfer MARQ (Gen 2) covers its bases on that front by coming with three of said trackers too.

The display and domed glass make the watch a delight to use, whatever the weather outside on the course, too, with the domed form of the lens making a brilliant screen to interact with compared to a flat screen – it’s a subtle design difference, but an impactful one.

(Image credit: Future/Rob Dwiar)

Flitting back between normal smartwatch and golf mode is as simple as one button press, and this ease of use and intuition is a microcosm of the broader experience of having the Garmin Golfer MARQ (Gen 2) on your wrist. Its design and build mean that it’s also beautifully weighted and comfortable, looking great for sports and socialising alike.

Engaging with other features is a joy, too. From messaging to maps, from stress to sleep, and the array of wider health and fitness apps, the Garmin Golfer MARQ (Gen 2) excels.

The above is all supported by a battery life you’ll rarely have to worry about. For example, I used the watch for two weeks, all day, every day, and for two full rounds of golf, and still had a bit more than 10% battery life left over. Garmin lists the battery life as “Up to 16 days” when in smartwatch mode, and “up to 42 hours” in GPS-only mode, and my experience has me believe that this is accurate. After a while, I gave up counting and tracking the battery life; in all honesty, it is that good.

My gripes are tiny, and I feel like I’m nitpicking intensely, but at this price, it pays to be hyper-aware of anything that impacts the experience.

As previously mentioned, it seems like a misstep to not include a subscription to the Garmin Golf Membership to unlock even more features for the watch. Additionally, the default Garmin font doesn’t ‘feel’ at home on such a premium watch. A small nitpick, I know, but compared to the slick Tag Heuer presentation of text, this does let the Golfer MARQ (Gen 2) down. Finally, I have noticed that the default style for notifications is showing the original or first message that gave you the notification, not the most recent. As a result, glancing at the watch to see what’s been said most recently in a conversation or group chat is impossible after you’ve received a few messages.

However, these really are nitpicks of the smallest kind. Overlooking these tiny complaints, the Garmin Golfer MARQ (Gen 2) does everything spectacularly, and it’s the best smart or golf watch I have ever used.

Performance score: 5/5

Garmin MARQ Golfer (Gen 2): Scorecard

I tested Google Forms and found it perfect for basic surveys, but limited for complex, large-scale surveys

TechRadar Reviews - Thu, 10/02/2025 - 02:43

Google Forms is an online form builder with robust functionalities, both on the free and paid tiers. It simplifies the process of creating and managing online forms to gather data from various audiences. It doesn’t have the most advanced data collection features, but it works well for collecting and analyzing simple data.

I reviewed Google Forms extensively so that you don’t have to go through the same stress. My review focused on essential factors, including its features, pricing, ease of use, and customer service. Read on to learn about Google Forms’ unique strengths, weaknesses, features, and how it fares against rival online form builders.

(Image credit: Google)Google Forms: Plans and pricing

Google Forms is a freemium tool. Anyone with a Google account can access the free version and enjoy most features. The free version lets you create surveys to gather and analyze data. There’s no limit on the number of responses you can collect, as long as it fits within your allocated storage space.

Free users have 15 GB of storage for data collected on Forms and other Google tools. They’re also limited to self-service and community support. If you need more storage space, direct support, enhanced security, and collaborative features, a Google Workspace subscription unlocks these benefits.

Google Workspace is designed for businesses with employees who need access to Google’s software suite, which includes Forms. It unlocks premium features on Google Forms and many other Google tools, such as Docs (document editing), Sheets (spreadsheets), and Meet (videoconferencing).

Google Workspace has three pricing plans: Starter, Standard, and Plus. The Starter plan costs $7 per user per month and unlocks 30 GB of storage for each account. It also unlocks access to Gemini, Google’s artificial intelligence (AI) assistant, which can help you create online forms.

The Standard plan costs $14 per user per month. It provides 2 TB of storage per account, ample enough to store vast volumes of data collected via forms. It also includes access to Google Gemini and direct support from Google’s team if needed.

The Plus plan costs $22 per user per month and increases storage to a sizable 5 TB per account. It unlocks enhanced security features for organizations where data security is paramount. Google Gemini and direct support, which are available on other plans, are also included.

Google offers an Enterprise Plus plan with no regular pricing. This plan is designed for large companies, typically with a minimum of a few hundred employees, that can negotiate a custom plan with Google’s sales team.

The core features of Google Forms remain the same in both the free and paid versions. What differentiates the paid plans is access to Google Gemini, higher storage space, enhanced security, and access to advanced features on other Google tools.

Google Forms is designed as a simple tool for individuals and enterprises to gather and analyze data. It doesn’t have the most sophisticated features you’ll find on form collection tools designed specifically for businesses, but it works well for everyday forms.

(Image credit: Google)Google Forms: Features

Google Forms offers a decent set of functionalities that enable you to create and manage online forms. It lacks some sophisticated analytics, customization, and integration features, but it meets most basic form creation needs.

To start, Google Forms has a library of pre-loaded form templates. Examples include templates for party invites, event registrations, online orders, and RSVPs. You can use these templates as the foundation for your forms, instead of going through the hassles of creating them from scratch.

Whether you select an existing template or create a form from scratch, Google Forms makes the creation process noticeably easy. You can input as many questions as you like in a numbered format. Existing questions can be rearranged by dragging and dropping them in the desired positions.

Each question on a form can have various response formats, including a short text, paragraph, multiple choice, checkboxes, dropdown list, rating, date, time, and even a file upload. Any uploaded files will count towards your allocated storage space, so carefully consider this if you’re creating forms for a large number of recipients.

You can insert images to add context to a question. A question can be compulsory or optional, depending on your preferences for collecting data. The short text format lets respondents answer a question in a single line, and the paragraph format allows respondents to type their answers in multiple lines.

You may choose to make your questionnaire a quiz, with point values assigned to each answer and automatic feedback once the respondent completes the questions. You can choose to collect email addresses during your response, and respondents can receive an email copy of their answers after completing the form.

As a respondent completes a form, you can choose to display a progress bar highlighting how far they’ve gone and how many answers are left. You can also choose to shuffle the question order for each respondent. Likewise, you can display a custom message after a respondent clicks the submit button, e.g., “Thank you for your response!” These features may sound trivial, but they go a long way in creating an interactive form that people are encouraged to complete.

I liked that Google Forms allows respondents to edit their responses after submitting a form. This feature is helpful, given the tendency for people to make mistakes when filling out forms. For instance, if I create a form asking people for their opinion about a product, it’ll be helpful to allow them to edit their responses after interacting with the product repeatedly. However, the response editing feature isn’t enabled by default. You have to toggle it on manually.

(Image credit: Google)

Notably, respondents don’t have to complete a form in one go. If a respondent has a Google account, which includes most online users anyway, and is signed in, their responses to each question are saved as a draft for 30 days. They can close the form and return within 30 days to the same responses, then complete the rest and finally press the submit button.

With your form created, you can share the link via email, social media, or embed the form on your website. All responses will be collated and displayed in a single dashboard, making them easy to analyze. You can export the responses to Google Sheets for further analysis.

Google Sheets comes in handy if the responses are numerical, as you can use formulas to analyze them. For example, I created a mock quiz and got mock responses from some friends and colleagues. Then, I used Google Sheets to grade the forms automatically. You can conduct real quizzes and grade them just like I did, saving considerable time, especially when dealing with many respondents.

On Google Sheets, you can also generate charts to visualize responses, from bar charts to pie charts, line charts, and scatter plots. I liked that the charts were very customizable, but that sounds more like something to discuss in a Google Sheets review than in Google Forms.

I mentioned earlier that Google Forms’ core features don’t differ much between the free and paid plans, but the latter unlocks valuable collaboration functionalities. Under a Google Workspace plan, multiple users can collaborate in real-time to create and edit forms.

For example, five employees can work on the same form, with each adding questions and configuring settings. Every employee can monitor each other’s changes on the form and message each other via Google Chat to clarify changes.

A standout feature on Google Forms is its support for conditional logic, i.e., showing or hiding questions based on a responder’s previous answer. For example, in a survey about which smartphone brands people use, selecting “iPhone” opens a new question of “Which iPhone do you use?” and selecting “Samsung” opens a new question of “Which Samsung smartphone do you use?”

However, Google’s conditional logic support is basic. It doesn’t allow the most complex workflows that are permitted in various business survey tools. Generally, Google Forms excels in basic form management but has limited dynamic features. It doesn’t have as many integrations and customizations as you’d find in survey apps like Qualtrics XM.

For example, Google Forms doesn’t let you directly capture signatures from respondents, detect a respondent’s geographic location, or generate PDFs from form data. Though it’s slightly customizable, all forms created on Google Forms retain a similar structure, which doesn’t bode well for businesses that always want to deliver a unique experience.

Google Forms integrations are mostly limited to other Google tools, but with few third-party integrations compared to rival survey apps. Another drawback is that while Google Forms lets you embed forms on a website, you can’t host the form directly on a custom domain.

From my perspective, Google Forms was created mainly as a free tool for individuals and businesses to manage everyday online forms. It works excellently for basic forms, with features that many rivals charge money for. However, if you need an online form app with extensive integrations, customizations, and features, you’re better off with an alternative.

Google Forms: Interface and in use

Google Forms scores an A+ in simplicity and ease of use. The interface is as simple as it gets, which I’ve observed as the norm with Google tools. From creating forms to viewing and analyzing responses, the Google Forms interface is easy to navigate. It helps that the app doesn’t have many complex features, so it isn’t hard to familiarize yourself with the interface.

You can easily add questions, rearrange them, and insert visual elements when creating forms. After creating a form, the Publish button is prominently displayed at the top-right corner, so you can click it and share the form with respondents. I liked that Google Forms has many keyboard shortcuts that make navigation more fun, although it took me some time to master them.

Google Forms is accessible only via the web interface. There are no dedicated desktop and mobile apps, unlike some rival tools.

Google Forms: Support

Google Forms users have access to reasonable support resources, depending on their tier. Free users can scour through the Help Center to resolve issues. The Google Forms section of the Help Center contains abundant user guides that will help you troubleshoot issues.

Free users can also check Google’s official support forum for answers to their questions. If the answer isn’t present, you can ask a new question and expect answers from other Google Forms users, but there’s no guarantee. Fortunately, Google Forms’ intuitive interface means you wouldn’t encounter many problems in the first place.

If you’re subscribed to Google Workspace, you can get direct help from Google’s support team via email, telephone, and live chat. Google has a 24/7 support team, but response times can vary depending on your location and the type of issue. Nonetheless, Google offers decent support with few complaints.

Google Forms: The competition

Google Forms has many rivals with unique strengths and weaknesses. As I’ve mentioned, Google Forms doesn’t have the most advanced features you’ll find in some rivals. SurveyMonkey is the main competitor I’d like to highlight and examine what sets it apart from Google Forms.

SurveyMonkey doesn’t have an interface as intuitive as that of Google Forms. However, it offers more sophisticated features, integration, and customizability. With SurveyMonkey, you can create more dynamic forms and customize them to fit your brand.

The built-in analytics features are more comprehensive on SurveyMonkey than on Google Forms. SurveyMonkey has many more third-party integrations, making it an ideal choice for businesses that want to conduct complex surveys.

The drawback is that SurveyMonkey isn’t as cost-effective as Google Workspace, considering the additional features you’ll get with the latter outside Google Forms. SurveyMonkey does have a free plan, but with minimal features compared to Google Forms’ free version.

Google Forms: Final verdict

Google Forms fulfills a valuable need for creating simple online surveys and collating responses. It’s the go-to tool I recommend for individuals or businesses seeking to conduct simple surveys.

However, if you need the most complex survey features and extensive customization, it’s not the best choice. Google Forms is perfect for small surveys but not large-scale ones.

We've featured the best survey tools.

Categories: Reviews

I reviewed Edifier’s palm-sized Bluetooth speaker, and it's one of the best small models of the year – here’s why

TechRadar Reviews - Wed, 10/01/2025 - 05:00

Edifier ES20: two-minute review

I’ll be honest, the Edifier ES20 took me off guard. This super-small Bluetooth speaker is powered by a 6W driver and is less than 10cm in height and width. But it really does punch above its weight. And not only sonically – also in terms of its looks, feature-set, and battery life.

Yep, this tiny, square-shaped model impressed me in almost every area. Let’s start where it matters most: audio quality. Largely due to its physical limitations, the Edifier ES20 isn’t capable of deep rippling bass or ultra-imposing loudness, but there’s still a lot to love. Bass response is rapid and impressively deep, but mids never feel obscured, while instruments in the treble range come through sounding controlled, yet expressive.

OK, the Edifier ES20 only makes use of the SBC codec – a lot of the best Bluetooth speakers would offer AAC, and maybe LDAC for good measure. But still, I was impressed with the clarity of my favorite tracks. If you want a more nuanced listen, you could pair a second ES20 up for stereo sound.

Another area the ES20 impressed me in was the looks department. It has a retro vibe to it, similar to models like the Marshall Willen II, or speakers from Klipsch. I’m a big fan of that, and when you pair its classy aesthetic with appealing (and customizable) ambient lights, this thing really has it all.

There’s even more to love, though. 15 hours of playtime is very solid – that’s a couple more hours than a lot of rivals in this weight class can offer. In addition, I was a fan of the ES20’s modest price point, especially in the UK and Australia – for reference, it's $89.99 / £49.99 / AU$99.99.

Just generally, it has everything you’d want from a model like this. It’s compact, light, IP67 dust and waterproof rated, and great-sounding. There are some small imperfections worth noting, though. Firstly, the sound of the ES20 is noticeably compressed at peak volumes, especially when you crank things up all the way to 100%. That’s common for small speakers, and I’d recommend getting a larger model anyway if loudness is your aim – the Bose SoundLink Flex Gen 2 is a still-compact but significantly more powerful pick.

Another thing is that the ES20’s EQ options are seriously lacking. There are four modes: Music; Gaming; Movies; and Outdoor. I don’t think that having a single ‘Music’ calibration is enough – especially when there’s no custom option and the modes that are here sound a little too similar to one another.

Still, it’s important to look at the bigger picture. And that tells me that the Edifier ES20 is an excellent small-sized speaker that really nails it where it matters. Sure, the EQ options are lacking, but the default tuning sounds plenty good enough. Tie that together with luxurious looks, a generous helping of battery life, and wonderful waterproofing, and the Edifier ES20 is easy to recommend.

(Image credit: Future)Edifier ES20 review: price and release date

$89.99 / £49.99 / AU$99.99
Launched in June 2025

The Edifier ES20 was launched in June 2025 as part of Edifier’s new ‘ES’ range. That apparently stands for ‘Elegant’ and ‘Superb’, or ‘Edifier Sound’. Anyway, enough of that! This speaker has a list price of $89.99 / £49.99 / AU$99.99, meaning it's a fair bit more pricey in the US, compared to other territories – more on that later. You can purchase the ES20 in either black or white.

Edifier ES20 review: specs

Drivers

1x 43mm full-range driver

Dimensions

3.6 x 3.7 x 2 inches / 90.4 x 93.7 x 49.7mm

Weight

0.7lbs / 326g

Connectivity

Bluetooth 5.4

Battery life

15 hours

Waterproofing

IP67

(Image credit: Future)Edifier ES20 review: features

Effective hands-free mic with noise cancelling tech
Attractive and personalizable ambient lighting
Weak EQ options

The Edifier ES20 offers a fairly hearty helping of features considering it’s a small, affordable Bluetooth speaker.

First of all, you get multi-point connectivity, if you want to link multiple devices to your speaker. In addition, you can pair two ES20 models together and unlock stereo audio, if you’re looking for a more nuanced and powerful audio presentation.

There’s also an inbuilt microphone – something you won’t see in all Bluetooth speakers nowadays. Edifier described it as a “high sensitivity” mic, which harnesses the power of noise cancellation for clear, hands-free calling. And largely, I’d say that’s exactly what you get. My voice sounded clear, even when I stood quite far from the speaker – though there was some noticeable sibilance.

Perhaps the most interesting feature, though, is the speaker’s customizable ambient lighting. Using the Edifier ConneX app, you can pick from a range of lighting options, including: Breathing; Rainbow; Static; Glittering and Colorful; or Emergency Light. This visual aspect only enhances immersion into your music, and the option to personalize aspects like light modulation rate, brightness, and the displayed colors, is a nice touch.

If you do make use of the ambient lighting – it can be disabled entirely, if you’d prefer – it will drain the speaker’s battery at a more rapid rate. Speaking of, you get up to 15 hours of playtime from the ES20, which is pretty good, actually. That’s more than rivals like the JBL Clip 5 and the LG xboom Go XG2T can dream of.

This lil’ fella’s on a roll so far… but I’m gonna have to burst its bubble a bit. And that’s down to one thing in particular – EQ options. There are four here: Music; Gaming; Movies; and Outdoor. Unfortunately, I wasn’t hearing a whole lot of difference between these. On top of that, there’s no custom multi-band equalizer to make use of – something I would have appreciated, personally. This isn’t a totally crushing miss – largely thanks to the ES20’s impressive audio output…

Features score: 4.5/5

(Image credit: Future)Edifier ES20 review: sound quality

Punchy, rapid bass response
Controlled treble, well-balanced mids
Some distortion at peak volume and no fancy audio codecs

Yes, I was very impressed with the Edifier ES20’s sonic performance – especially given its incredibly compact build. It’s powered by a 43mm full-range driver, makes use of a 55mm passive radiator, and has a maximum power output of 6W. That doesn’t sound like a lot – but this small speaker is more mighty than you may expect.

When bumping Burning Down by Dimmish, the rapid, thumping bass was replicated responsively and impactfully. Sure, the ES20 couldn’t quite match the depth you’d expect from some of the best party speakers, but that’s to be expected due to its physical limitations. With the ES20, you’re not putting up with the ‘boomy’, muddy low-frequency performance of many budget competitors – it’s punchy, as Edifier claims.

In addition, Burning Down showcased the controlled yet expressive nature of the ES20’s treble output. Higher-pitched percussion wasn’t overly forward in the mix, and it never sounded tinny or harsh, even at mid-to-high volume levels. Instead, it was tonally accurate, disciplined, and clean.

I’d say the ES20 certainly has a warm sound signature, really leaning into that ‘mightier than it looks’ angle. But even still, bass isn’t overbearing, meaning that in tracks like Each Time You Pray by Ned Doheny, I was still treated to clear, well-balanced vocals and neatly defined acoustic guitar.

You won’t get the most nuanced, detailed listen in the world, especially if you’re only using one ES20 rather than two – which can be used in stereo mode. For instance, in Minute by Minute by The Doobie Brothers, I wasn’t wowed by next-level instrument separation between the groovy bass, synths, and McDonald’s iconic vocals. The speaker also uses the most basic SBC Bluetooth audio codec, so don’t expect to see LDAC or aptX support.

Then again, it’s important to emphasize that this is a very small model – so you can’t expect the most expansive soundstage or the effortlessly layered sound you’d uncover on premium, larger models.

Both music and podcasts come through very clearly on the ES20, and unless you push the volume up to 90-100%, you won’t be subjected to distortion or overly compressed audio. That’s about as much as you can ask for from a sub-$90 / £50 / AU$100 speaker of this stature!

Sound quality score: 4/5

(Image credit: Future)Edifier ES20 review: design

Gorgeous retro-style design
Fantastic protection against the elements
Attractive lighting

The Edifier ES20 is an absolute beauty, and looks much more luxurious than its modest price tag would suggest.

It’s got an almost Marshall-style retro look to it, with an appealing speaker grille protecting the driver, and a faux leather material used for the outer casing and button controls. Yep, there’s nothing about this that screams cheap. You can scoop it up in either Black or White – we went for the latter, but both compliment the speaker’s classy looks brilliantly.

On top of this, the reverse side of the speaker has ambient lighting, which can illuminate a wall behind it, for example, adding a bit of visual flare to your listening experiences. As I mentioned earlier, the lights are highly customizable through the Edifier ConneX app, and if you’d prefer to have them off, you can.

This model’s not only a pretty face, though, it’s also highly practical. Firstly, it’s very small, coming in at less than 10cm wide and tall, and just over 300g in weight. It also comes with a fabric carry strap, so you can easily attach it to a backpack, for example.

Crucially, it's also very well protected against the elements, thanks to its IP67 rating. That means it's plenty dustproof, but can also be submerged in up to a meter of water for 30 minutes. Not bad, is it?

Combine all of this with well-sized on-board controls, small rubber feet for added stability, and a handy LED light strip to indicate battery life, and the ES20 nails it in every way.

Design score: 5/5

(Image credit: Future)Edifier ES20 review: value

Pricing a little inconsistent across territories
But regardless, you’ll get plenty of bang for your buck
Rivals are playing in a similar ballpark, price-wise

The Edifier ES20 isn’t all too expensive, even considering its small size. Actually, I have been tempted to refer to it as ‘cheap’ once or twice in my review, had it not been for its US pricing.

See, the ES20 comes in at £49.99 in the UK and AU$99.99 – fairly even pricing across the territories using current exchange rates. But in the US, this model costs $89.99, which isn’t so proportional. This may be down to the tariffs imposed by the US government earlier in 2025, but still, it means the ES 20 is more mid-priced, than cheap, for a speaker this small.

After all, a top-class rival like the JBL Clip 5 has a list price of $79.95 (£59.99 / AU$89.95), but can often be found for under $60 now. Still, its most similar competitor, the Marshall Willen II will generally cost more than $100, so you’re still not overpaying for the ES20 – it’s just that you’re getting even more bang for your buck outside of the US!

Speaking of, this speaker has qualities that far outstrip a range of competitors in its price and weight class. It offers genuinely punchy, largely distortion-free sound, gorgeous looks, and plenty of playtime. Combine that with its IP67 rating and ambient lights, and you’re looking at awesome value for money.

Value score: 4.5/5

(Image credit: Future)Should I buy the Edifier ES20?

Attributes

Notes

Rating

Features

Ambient light options, multi-speaker pairing, good mic and battery life, but EQ options a little lacking.

4.5/5

Sound quality

Punchy, clear audio with a bass-forward sound signature, SBC only and some compression at peak loudness.

4/5

Design

Gorgeous retro looks, amazing waterproofing, appealing lighting.

5/5

Value

Despite slightly disproportionate US pricing, remains affordable and has plenty of quality.

4.5/5

Buy it if...

You want an ultra-compact option
The Edifier ES20 is a pleasantly small, square-shaped speaker that can fit into any small nook and cranny or be thrown in a bag. It's perfect if you need a speaker to take on the go, or just for personal listening in your bedroom, say.

You’re looking for something a little rugged
With an IP67 dustproof and waterproof rating, the Edifier ES20 is well and truly ready to take on any environment. It will be well-protected against solid particles, but can also be submerged in as much as one meter of water, for 30 minutes. That’s perfect for bathroom use, or even taking beachside.

Don't buy it if...

You want the best audio quality possible
If you want a truly jaw-dropping audio experience, the ES20 may not be your best bet – largely down to its physical limitations. It doesn’t support any codec above SBC – the most basic Bluetooth codec, in essence. This speaker won’t muster the most nuanced, detail-oriented performance ever – if you want a small option that does that, I’d recommend looking at the Bang & Olufsen Beosound A1 3rd Generation.

You want something powerful enough for parties
Due to its physical limitations, the Edifier ES20 isn’t powerful enough to power a party on its own. It has a maximum power output of 6W – pretty common for a model in this weight class – and it’s less than 10cm in height and width. If you want a compact party speaker, I’d recommend the JBL Flip 7, but if you’ve got a little more space my top picks would be the LG xboom Stage 301 and the Tribit Stormbox Blast 2.

Edifier ES20 review: also consider

Edifier ES20

JBL Clip 5

Ultimate Ears Miniroll

Price

$89.99 / £49.99 / AU$99.99

$79.95 / £59.99 / $89.95

$79 / £69 / AU$99

Drivers

1x 43mm full-range driver

1x Integrated class D digital amplifier

46.8mm active driver

Dimensions

3.6 x 3.7 x 2 inches / 90.4 x 93.7 x 49.7mm

3.4 x 5.3 x 1.8 inches / 86 x 134.5 x 46 mm

4.8 x 4.1 x 1.9 inches / 122 x 105 x 48mm

Weight

0.7lbs / 326g

0.6lbs / 285g

0.6lbs / 279g

Connectivity

Bluetooth 5.4

Bluetooth 5.3

Battery life

15 hours

12 hours

Waterproofing

IP67

JBL Clip 5
For a while now, the JBL Clip 5 has been one of my favorite small speakers around. It’s got a neat carabiner design, impressive audio capabilities, and an enticing set of color options. It can often be found on sale for a good deal less than its already low list price, so if you’re drawn in by its more modern look, I’d suggest grabbing it. Read our full JBL Clip 5 review.

Ultimate Ears Miniroll
OK, it’s not cake, unfortunately, but the second best kind of miniroll comes from none other than Ultimate Ears. Personally, I really like UE’s personality-filled waterproof speakers, and the Miniroll is no exception. It’s a small-sized circular model with buckets of bass, a handy carry strap, and some truly eye-catching colorways. Read our full Ultimate Ears Miniroll review.

How I tested the Edifier ES20

(Image credit: Future)

Tested over the course of one week
Mainly used in the music testing space at Future Labs
Predominantly tested using Tidal

I spent hours with the Edifier ES20, during which time I listened to music, tuned into podcasts, and took a couple of phone calls. I exhausted all of the ES20’s features, tried all of its light customization options, and tried listening at various distances and angles.

For the most part, I used the ES20 in our music testing room at Future Labs. Here, I went through the TechRadar testing playlist, which features tracks from a range of genres. I also listened to songs from my personal library – mainly via Tidal, but sometimes on Spotify.

More generally, I’ve reviewed dozens of speakers, headphones, earbuds, soundbars, and more here at TechRadar, where I have a particular focus on audio-visual technology. I’ve tested most of the ES20’s competition, so I know what it takes for a speaker to stand out in a highly convoluted market.

First reviewed: September 2025
Read more about how we test

Categories: Reviews

Super Mario Galaxy and Super Mario Galaxy 2 are as magical as ever on Nintendo Switch 2

TechRadar Reviews - Tue, 09/30/2025 - 08:00

It is hard to overstate how magical the original Super Mario Galaxy felt when it launched on Wii back in 2007. Gravity-defying levels, soaring orchestrated music, and a sense of wonder that still stands out alongside the other staples in the platforming genre, almost 20 years later.

Platform reviewed: Nintendo Switch 2
Available on: Nintendo Switch and Nintendo Switch 2
Release date: October 2, 2025

In celebration of the Italian plumber's 40th anniversary, Nintendo has re-released this classic alongside Super Mario Galaxy 2 on Nintendo Switch and Nintendo Switch 2 in one enhanced package.

I was curious to see if these classics could shine just as brightly two decades later. The good news is they're as magical as ever, offering the same incredible journeys now with gorgeous visuals and the ability to play the sequel on the go for the first time ever.

Cosmic performance

On Switch 2, both games look fantastic. Docked, you get crisp 4K resolution that makes every planet sparkle. Handheld mode delivers smooth 1080p visuals that feel perfectly tuned for portable play.

I encountered no performance hiccups across either adventure. Frame rates remain locked, load times are snappy, and the vibrant art style still feels timeless. These games were stunning on Wii, but the extra fidelity here makes them genuinely pop on modern displays, like my Samsung S90D OLED TV.

It is worth noting that Super Mario Galaxy did appear on Switch once before, as part of the limited Super Mario 3D All-Stars collection. That version didn't reinvent the wheel, but it gave Switch users access to the game alongside Super Mario 64 and Super Mario Sunshine. Unfortunately, Nintendo no longer sells 3D All-Stars, an odd choice that has led to inflated prices on the second-hand market.

(Image credit: Nintendo)

This new Switch 2 release offers the same core experience, now enhanced with sharper visuals, better performance, and bundled alongside Super Mario Galaxy 2 for the first time on modern hardware. For fans who missed out on 3D All-Stars, or who simply want the most definitive way to play, this collection is a clear step forward.

The sound design has also aged remarkably well. Koji Kondo’s orchestral score is given room to breathe with a cleaner mix, and it feels cinematic in a way that very few modern platformers achieve.

Hearing the soundtrack through my Sonos Arc Ultra is a reminder of just how ambitious Nintendo was with these titles and genuinely brought me back to my childhood.

In my time playing this game, I've been listening to both games' soundtracks on repeat as I work. In fact, as I write this review, I'm bopping my head to Gusty Garden Galaxy - gorgeous.

Galaxies intertwined

(Image credit: Nintendo)

The core adventures remain intact, so if you've played through either game recently, you might not want to jump back in. Nintendo has a solution, however, offering both games as a complete package or as individual titles, perfect for those who luckily own the aforementioned 3D All-Stars.

Super Mario Galaxy's planet-hopping platforming eases players into its gravity-bending tricks, while Super Mario Galaxy 2 embraces creativity and challenge right from the start. Having them bundled together only highlights how well the sequel doubled down on experimentation.

Galaxy 2 adds Yoshi to the mix, alongside power-ups like the Cloud Flower and Rock Mushroom, each of which introduces new mechanics that feel clever even today. Returning to these levels reminded me how bold Nintendo was in the Wii era, layering complexity onto Mario without losing accessibility.

(Image credit: Nintendo)

Nintendo has added some small but welcome touches for this new release. In Super Mario Galaxy, there is an additional chapter in Rosalina’s picture book that fleshes out her story in a way longtime fans will appreciate.

Super Mario Galaxy 2 goes a step further with a completely new tale in its own picture book, offering fresh lore and a reason to revisit the Comet Observatory between levels. These are not game-changing additions, but they add warmth and make this edition feel more than a simple upscaled port.

Wii controls reimagined

As someone who hasn't played 3D All-Stars in nearly five years, one of my biggest questions going back to these games was how well the controls would translate to modern hardware. The original games were designed with the Wii Remote and Nunchuk in mind, leaning heavily on motion controls.

Best bit

(Image credit: Nintendo)

Super Mario Galaxy and Super Mario Galaxy 2 have some of, if not the, best video game soundtracks of all time. It has been a magical experience reliving my childhood through gorgeous orchestral music that makes me feel just like that famous scene from Pixar's Ratatouille.

On Switch 2, motion is still present with the Joy-Con, but it feels far less intrusive than it once did. You can play comfortably in handheld, docked, or with a Pro Controller, and I found myself gravitating to the latter for longer sessions.

All you need to do is hold down ZR and use the gyro in the Pro Controller to pick up Star Bits. In fact, I much prefer it to the Wii experience, but that might be my cynical 30-year-old brain that no longer appreciates a gimmick.

A trip down memory lane

(Image credit: Nintendo)

The biggest compliment I can give Super Mario Galaxy and Super Mario Galaxy 2 on Nintendo Switch 2 is that these adventures feel as fresh today as they did at launch in 2007 and 2020, respectively.

The level design is inventive and playful, constantly surprising you with new mechanics that rarely outstay their welcome. Few platformers manage to strike the same balance of accessibility and depth.

Nintendo has not tinkered much beyond resolution, performance, and the new story content, but that restraint works here. The design is so strong that all it needed was a modern coat of paint.

Mario’s journey through the stars is still a cosmic marvel

While part of me would have liked to see some new content like we've seen in the past with the addition of Bowser's Fury in the remaster of Super Mario 3D World, I've just enjoyed the simplicity of replaying these classics in 4k.

If you have never played Super Mario Galaxy or its sequel, this is the definitive way to experience them. And if you have, the combination of rock-solid performance, upgraded visuals, and new story content makes these experiences worth revisiting.

Few platformers feel as inventive, joyful, or downright magical as Super Mario Galaxy and Super Mario Galaxy 2. Nearly twenty years on, Mario’s journey through the stars is still a cosmic marvel.

Should you buy Super Mario Galaxy + Super Mario Galaxy 2?Buy it if...

You’ve never played Super Mario Galaxy or Super Mario Galaxy 2
These games haven't aged a day, providing some of the best platforming experiences you can have on any console. If you've never played Super Mario Galaxy or its sequel, now is the time to jump on board with gorgeous visuals and buttery smooth performance.

You want to relive the nostalgia of youth
I know I keep talking about the magic of both games' soundtracks, but I've had such a blast replaying both and genuinely felt moved hearing some of this music again. The full experience is nothing short of extraordinary and lives up to modern gaming design almost two decades later.

Don't buy it if...

You own 3D All-Stars
If you already own Super Mario 3D All-Stars, then I think you can skip the original Mario Galaxy here. Luckily, Nintendo offers Super Mario Galaxy 2 on its own, albeit digitally, so if you've already experienced the first in the series recently, you can jump into its sequel on Nintendo Switch and Nintendo Switch 2.

Accessibility

Not much to write home about in terms of accessibility. Both games include an Assist Mode, which increases your life and bounces you back from falls.

Settings allow you to change the way you interact with the camera via thumbsticks and motion controls.

It would've been nice to see more additions to accessibility, but it appears as if Nintendo has kept even the settings faithful to the originals.

How I reviewed Super Mario Galaxy and Super Mario Galaxy 2 Nintendo Switch 2 Edition

I played around 25 hours total, split between both games, and used my OLED TV for a full 4k experience. I played Super Mario Galaxy and Super Mario Galaxy 2 Nintendo Switch 2 Edition in a mixture of handheld mode on the Nintendo Switch 2 itself and on one of the best OLED TVs, the Samsung Q90D, using the Nintendo Switch 2 Pro Controller.

I had previously played both games on the Wii and had experienced Super Mario Galaxy on Nintendo Switch as part of Super Mario 3D All-Stars.

First reviewed September 2025

Categories: Reviews

I tested the Pecron E3600 and found it to be an affordable and dependable portable power station

TechRadar Reviews - Tue, 09/30/2025 - 05:44

The Pecron E3600 power station is built like a tank and offers great autonomy thanks to its 3072Wh LFP battery pack.

Specifications

Battery chemistry: LiFePO4

Battery capacity: 3072Wh

Number of charge cycles: Over 3500 before 20% drop

AC output power: 3600W, surge 7000W

Number of AC outlets: 5

Number of USB sockets: 4 Type A, 2 Type C

Number of 12V sockets: 1 XT60, DC 5521, 1 Car Adapter

Number of extra battery ports: 2, total of 15360Wh

Number of power inputs: 3

Fastest charge time: 1.3 hours

Additional features: Bluetooth and Wi-Fi

Weight: 36kg

A high-efficiency 3600W AC inverter, which can surge to 7200W for short periods, can power both heavy-duty machinery, such as welding machines, and home appliances. Charging the unit takes just over one hour using the fast-charge mode from the grid. Solar charging takes only a bit longer, reaching two hours.

What makes the E3600 unique is its blend of output sockets that includes the RV-friendly TT30. A Wi-Fi interface supported by Bluetooth, along with a well-designed interface, delivers an excellent user experience out of the box, thanks to the bright IPS screen, which offers a clutter-free menu. The E3600 is heavy, weighing 36kg, and will most likely require two persons to lift.

The E3600 typically costs $2299, and is on special for $1259, which is an unbelievable price for a 3kW-class power station. We recommend getting the wheeled trolley for $149. The solar kit bundles the E3600 with a different number of solar panels, with prices ranging from $1559 for a single 300W panel to $3404 for six 300W panels.

(Image credit: Future)Pecron E3600: Design

The E3600 weighs 36kg and measures 44.5 cm x 30.7 cm x 35 cm. The unit is well-packed and ships with numerous accessories, including solar and grid charging cables, a screwdriver, and a nylon pouch. The plastic station feels sturdy, and with two built-in handles, it can be carried around by two people with some effort.

The station packs a 5” color LCD that Pecron uses judiciously, incorporating big icons, some animations, and multiple languages. Ultimately, the display conveys data to the user in a quick and efficient manner. Two push buttons control the output sections, turning them on and off. Other features are available by navigating the menu using the touchscreen.

The E3600 includes a 30A TT30 outlet, ideal for use in an RV, along with four 15A 120V AC sockets. The station supports 100V, 110V, and 120V, with the option found hidden in the display’s menu. The DC outputs are also plentiful. Pecron offers two 15W wireless chargers, both located at the top of the unit. In addition to providing standard six USB sockets, it also features an XT60 12V/30A socket to power small appliances, such as coolers.

The E3600 offers quick charging through an AC input that also supports slower charging times. The power cable is custom-built with a proprietary circular socket, and unlike competitive products, it cannot be substituted with a standard household AC cord. At a power input of 3200W, the fast charge fills the battery in one hour and twenty minutes, with a five percent efficiency reduction due to heat.

(Image credit: Future)Pecron E3600: In Use

A common feature of power stations is to control the unit using a mobile app. The E3600 is no exception; it uses Bluetooth to initiate setup and eventually connects through Wi-Fi. All features available on the main display are also present in the app, including real-time charging and output information, as well as control over AC and DC outputs.

A slow charging mode limits the power to 1800W to accommodate more standard home energy distribution. The mobile app allows further reduction of the charging current. With up to 2400W of DC power at its Anderson inputs, an optimal solar configuration consists of a series arrangement of three 300W panels, since the station’s input allows a maximum DC voltage of 150V.

The unit can power devices at temperatures ranging from -20 to 45 degrees Celsius. Charging, on the other hand, is more restrictive, with an operating temperature ranging from 0 to 45 degrees Celsius. The station protects against short circuits by cutting off power when they are detected, effectively acting as a fuse. Any overcurrent on the input ports is also monitored to reduce the risk of thermal runaway in the batteries.

Pecron’s E3600 packs a UPS mode. When the unit connects to an AC outlet, power typically flows from the grid to output devices, bypassing the battery. The E3600 switches to its battery in under 20 ms when the AC power is removed. This process reduces the battery's charge and discharge cycles, helping to extend the station's life.

Pecron E3600: The Competition

Among the competition to the E3600 is the Bluetti Apex 300. This station has the same characteristics as the Pecron station. It can deliver 3800W to its 20A AC outlets and features a 2700Wh battery, which is smaller than that of the E3600. The number of available sockets is lower; the Apex 300 lacks the TT30 30A socket and does not provide wireless charging.

(Image credit: Future)Pecron E3600: Final Verdict

The E3600 is a great power station for those on a budget who require a large amount of battery capacity. The output options are also numerous, featuring a variety of wireless charging options, low-power DC outputs, and a high-current socket for the camping car. The output power is rated at 3600W, which may seem reasonable on paper, but it can surge to twice its rated power for a short period.

The station is not without drawbacks. It is heavy due to its reliance on LFP battery chemistry. You will need two people to move it around. The UPS mode is functional, but it requires adjusting settings in the mobile app.

Buy the E3600 if ... you are on a budget but need a large amount of battery capacity and output power.

Don’t get the E3600 if ... you are looking for a lightweight power solution.

We've listed the best power banks.

Categories: Reviews

I reviewed the JBL Charge 6 Bluetooth speaker, and if you want big, high-quality sound for a great price, it's unbeatable

TechRadar Reviews - Tue, 09/30/2025 - 05:26

JBL Charge 6: Two-minute review

The JBL Charge 6 portable wireless speaker isn’t as closely related to the outgoing JBL Charge 5 as it might first appear. Oh, in physical terms they’re closely related – but the Charge 6 adds some nice new specification upgrades, as well as a very useful carry handle, in an effort to maintain the Charge’s position as the pre-eminent mid-priced option among the best Bluetooth speakers.

So as well as 45 watts of power and an impressive frequency response of 54Hz - 20kHz, the JBL Charge 6 can be hard-wired via USB-C in order to deliver true hi-res audio. It will run for 24 hours from a single charge – longer if you don’t mind sacrificing some bass response – and can act as a charger for your smartphone.

Two JBL Charge 6 units can form a stereo pair, and it can connect to any Auracast-enabled speakers for as numerous a speaker system as you fancy. An IP68 rating and a predictably robust standard of build and finish means it is happy in pretty much any environment.

And in action, the Charge 6 is a deft and assertive listen with a whole lot of positives about the way it deals with your audio files. Over Bluetooth, it’s punchy and detailed in equal measure, with a nice tonal balance and fairly even frequency response. Up the ante with some hi-res stuff via USB-C and it gains additional dynamism, insight and rhythmic positivity.

Really, only lowering volume to ‘background’ levels can upset it – quite a lot of its direct and expansive nature goes astray when you try to listen quietly. This thing is made for fun.

So yes, ‘Charge 6’ turns out to be a little more than just ‘Charge 5 +1’, and it's as good as speakers this size, at this price, get right now.

JBL Charge 6 review: Price and release date

Released in April 2025
Officially priced at $149 / £129 / AU$179

The JBL Charge 6 is on sale now, and in US you can find it for $159, in the the United Kingdom it sells for £169 (unless you decide you fancy the rather lively purple or red finishes, which for some reason are £5 less expensive), while in Australia it goes for AU$229.

That's a similar price to the JBL Charge 5 at its launch, though the older model can now be found in the $120-$140 region regularly, or is £119 in the UK at the time of writing.

The Charge 6 is a good price for this kind of speaker – for example, it's priced similarly to the Sonos Roam 2, which is much smaller and less powerful than this, but the JBL doesn't have the multi-room Wi-Fi skills of the Sonos.

(Image credit: Future)JBL Charge 6 review: Specs

Weight:

1.37kg

Dimensions:

229 (W) x 99 (H) x 94 (D) mm

Battery life (quoted):

Up to 24 hours (28 with boost mode)

Connectivity:

Bluetooth 5.4 with SBC and AAC codecs

Drivers:

53 x 93 mm mid/bass 'racetrack' driver, 20mm tweeter

Aux-in:

No (USB-C audio passthrough)

Charger port:

USB-C

Microphone:

Waterproof rating:

IP68

JBL Charge 6 review: Features

45 watts of power
54Hz - 20kHz frequency response
24 hours of battery normally, can be boosted to 28 hours

When it comes to a wireless connection, the Charge 6 uses Bluetooth 5.4 (good) and is compatible with SBC and AAC codecs (less good, but normal).

Unlike a lot of nominal rivals, though, the JBL has a USB-C slot that can be used for data transfer as well as for charging its battery, meaning that if you connect it to an appropriate source, hi-res audio of up to 24bit/96kHz can be yours (very good indeed).

The battery itself will run for around 24 hours (as long as you’re not absolutely blasting the volume), and if you switch ‘playtime boost’ on, that number rises to 28 hours in exchange for a rather obvious curtailing of low-frequency presence.

This is basically as long as battery life gets for portable speakers – certainly for speakers that are actually easy to carry around.

The JBL will even act as a power bank, so you can connect your phone to the USB-C port to charge it if push comes to shove – but this will, of course, eat into the Charge 6’s own battery life. From ‘flat’ to ‘full’, by the way, takes a fairly leisurely three hours.

No matter how the audio information makes it onboard, it’s attended to by 45 watts of Class D power driving a 20mm tweeter and a racetrack mid/bass driver. It's basically the same speaker setup as the JBL Flip 7, but with bigger speakers in all cases and more power – lovely.

In conjunction with the passive radiator at each end, JBL claims this arrangement is good for a frequency response of 54Hz up to 20kHz.

Features score: 4.5/5

(Image credit: Future)JBL Charge 6 review: Sound quality

Big and punchy (but also deft and detailed) sound
Capable of significant volume
Loses interest at lower levels

You might think you know what you’re getting, sound-wise, when you look at the Charge 6. And in some ways, you’d be right – give it a stream of Outkast’s The Way You Move and the JBL delivers it with scale and considerable substance. Its sound is big and weighty, and there’s plenty of drive and momentum to ensure the rhythm is expressed with real positivity.

But the Charge 6 is no blunt instrument. It retrieves and reveals plenty of detail, is more than capable of handling the transient or minor events in the recording, and is just as adept at describing the harmonic variations as it is the broad dynamic strokes of ‘quiet’ and ‘loud’. Sure, it’s an energetic and quite forceful listen – but it pays just as much attention to the light and shade of a recording as it does the attack.

Its frequency response is fairly even; there’s a slight skew to the bottom end, sure, but it’s nothing fatal. And its tonal balance is equally well-judged, so there’s crisp presence at the top end to balance the punchy lower frequencies – and in the midrange, the JBL makes the character and technique of a vocalist pretty apparent.

Switch to a 24-bit/96kHz FLAC file of The Past is a Grotesque Animal by of Montreal, served to the Charge 6 via USB-C, and the entire presentation steps on. The soundstage opens up yet further, detail levels enjoy a big uptick, and the amount of space available to each element of the recording makes for greater overall scale.

Dynamic headroom increases, the unity of the frequency range is made more apparent, and the control of low-frequency activity makes for a rhythmically positive and articulate sound.

It’s worth noting that many of these uncomplicatedly enjoyable aspects of music-making are rather diminished should you decide to listen to the Charge 6 at volumes levels of ‘modest’ or below.

The JBL is not especially tolerant of being treated as a ‘background listening’ device, and a fair amount of its directness and assertiveness deserts it in the circumstance. No one puts Baby in the corner, so it seems…

Sound quality: 4.5/5

(Image credit: Future)JBL Charge 6 review: Design

IP68-rated for dust and waterproofing
Seven finishes, and useful carry handle
Reasonably compact at 229 x 99 x 94mm

In broad terms, it’s JBL Charge business as usual here. The speaker is almost cylindrical, with a flattened area on the bottom for it to rest on. Each end of the almost-cylinder features some sturdy rubberization to protect the passive radiator (and its rather alarming ‘!’ branding) at each end.

A few physical controls are arranged across the top, at the rear there’s a USB-C slot, and the entire thing is wrapped in hardwearing fabric.

Changes in design over the outgoing Charge 5 are very few – but they’re all significant. Those rubber end caps are now even more robust than before. The material that covers almost the entire speaker is now 100% recycled material. The controls are in two rows for even greater ease of operation.

The IP rating has risen from a very acceptable IP67 to IP68 – which indicates the Charge 6 is virtually impregnable. And there’s now a flexible, branded carry-handle that fits to the top of the speaker and means it’s more easily portable than before.

A choice of seven different finishes runs from a business-like black to a camo number JBL calls ‘squad’. No matter the color you choose, though, you’ll be in possession of a carefully designed and beautifully built portable speaker.

Design score: 5/5

(Image credit: Future)JBL Charge 6 review: Usability and setup

JBL ‘Portable’ control app
A few physical controls
Auracast and stereo pairing

The two rows of physical controls on the Charge 6 cover volume up/down, play/pause, power on/off, Bluetooth pairing and Auracast pairing – as long as the other speakers in your prospective group are Auracast-enabled, there’s no practical limit to the number of speakers you can join together or the amount of space you can cover.

Each of the controls is reliable, and very positive in its action – and the ability to pair two Bluetooth devices at a time is very welcome too.

The company’s ‘Portable’ control app is a useful little number too. Here’s where you can form a stereo pair with another Charge 6, check out a number of EQ presets or establish some of your own, check on battery life, and turn on ‘playtime boost’.

It’s a clean and stable app that’s a cut above the sort of thing some rival portable speakers are accompanied by.

Usability and setup: 5/5

(Image credit: Future)JBL Charge 6 review: Value

If you want it for background listening, look elsewhere for your Bluetooth speaker, and spend less money while you’re at it – the five-star JBL Flip 7 would work nicely.

But if you decide to let it do its thing, the JBL Charge 6 has more than enough sonic talent to justify its asking price – and the fact that it’s so well made, so hardy and so very usefully specified only seals the deal.

Value score: 5/5

Should I buy the JBL Charge 6?JBL Charge 6

Attributes

Notes

Rating

Features

Can't fault the battery life, USB-C connectivity, or Auracast option – higher-res wireless would be nice, though

4.5/5

Sound quality

Powerful, well-balanced and more detailed than you expect – especially in its USB-C mode

4.5/5

Design

Tougher than ever, made from more recycled material, and with a useful handle

5/5

Usability and setup

Very easy, with just the right amount of controls on the device, and a good app

5/5

Value

Reliable, long-lasting, great-sound – feels like a superb option for the price

5/5

Buy it if…

You want balanced and vigorous sound from your speaker
The Charge 6 may look a bit of a bruiser, but it’s a deft and insightful (as well as bruising) listen.

You like a bit of hi-res audio
Hard-wired via USB-C to an appropriate source, the JBL can be a genuinely hi-res device.

You want ‘portable’ to mean ‘portable’
That new carry-handle makes more of a difference than you might think.

Don’t buy it if…

You are likely to do your listening at modest levels
The JBL gives away quite a lot of its sonic animation at low volume.

JBL Charge 6 review: Also consider

Sonos Roam 2
This hits the Charge 6 more-or-less head-on where price is concerned, and in its own way it's just as adaptable a listen, with multi-room over Wi-Fi on offer instead of USB-C audio and Auracast. Its battery life is relatively miserly, though, and it doesn’t have the outright scale of sound to compete either.
Read more in our Sonos Roam 2 review

Bose SoundLink Plus
This is just as robust as the JBL Charge 6, both in the way it’s constructed and the way it sounds. It doesn’t lose interest at lower volumes, either – but it’s not quite as deft a performer as the JBL, and it’s a little more expensive too.
Read more in our Bose SoundLink Plus review

How I tested the JBL Charge 6

(Image credit: Future)

Tested for over a week
Tested in a variety of real-world locations
Connected wireless and wired, with a variety of file types

I connect the JBL Charge 6 via Bluetooth to an Apple iPhone 14 Pro, an Apple MacBook Pro and a FiiO JM21 digital audio player.

I also connected it to the laptop via USB-C, where the Colibri software on the machine allowed the Charge 6 to play authentically hi-res content.

I listened indoors and outdoors, at a variety of volume levels and to a variety of types of music. And I did all this for well over a working week (and sometimes at the weekend too).

I tested Gmail and found it an excellent and reliable platform for business and personal use

TechRadar Reviews - Tue, 09/30/2025 - 02:43

Gmail is the world’s most popular email platform, with a stunning user base of over 1.8 billion. In other words, over 20% of the world’s population uses Gmail in individual or business capacity.

Given that Gmail is free, easy to use, and is operated by Google, the company behind the world’s leading search engine, it’s no surprise that Gmail is very popular. However, does that translate into Gmail being the best email provider for you? What are its features, and how does it fare against competitors? This guide will answer these questions.

I’ve thoroughly reviewed Gmail to help you determine whether it’s the best email platform for your personal or business needs. Read on to learn about Gmail in detail, including its pricing, ease of use, security, and key features.

Gmail: Plans and pricing

You can use the personal version of Gmail for free. However, like most things, it’s free up to a certain point. Users have up to 15 GB of free storage for pictures, videos, other documents, and other attachments in their email inbox. If you exceed 15 GB, you’ll either need to delete files to free up more space or pay for additional storage.

Extra Gmail storage requires a Google One subscription, with the lowest tier being $20 annually for 100 GB of storage. Ultimately, Gmail offers excellent storage capacity for free – most users don’t surpass 15 GB, except they’ve used Gmail for a long time or use email much more frequently than others.

Businesses can pay for an advanced version of Gmail via Google Workspace. The business tier increases the cloud storage allocated to each employee, and businesses can create emails attached to their custom domain. It’s the same Gmail interface, but with features designed for business use and a custom domain to give employees a more professional appearance.

Google Workspace plans start from $7 per user per month, which provides 30 GB of storage per account, double the free limit. The Standard plan costs $14 per user per month, providing 2 TB of storage per account. The Plus plan costs $22 per user per month and unlocks 5 TB of storage per account. These plans are reasonably priced, given the massive amount of storage space they provide.

Business plans are limited to 300 users, except for the Enterprise plan which has no limit (Image credit: Google)Gmail: Features

Sending and receiving emails are the primary features you’ll expect from Gmail. You can compose emails and send them to your desired email addresses. The maximum number of recipients per email is 500 for free accounts and 2,000 for Google Workspace accounts. However, most users aren’t hitting this limit, so I see no issues here.

I like that Gmail lets you send scheduled emails. You don’t always have to send emails immediately after you type them. Instead, you can set the email to send at a specific time. This feature comes in handy in many endeavors, such as sending birthday wishes ahead of time and sending event reminders to colleagues.

In this era of artificial intelligence (AI), Gmail hasn’t been left behind. Google has invested significant resources in incorporating AI features that have made Gmail much more intuitive than before.

For instance, I enjoyed the Smart Reply feature, which crafts quick, automated responses to emails. The AI system reads your email and suggests quick responses, such as “Well noted, I’ll work on it,” “Here it is,” or “I’ve attached the document here,” among others. The suggested responses are based on the content of the email you’re replying to.

The Smart Reply feature may sound trivial, but it helped me a lot. It gets tiring having to retype mundane responses to personal and work emails – the feature saved me a lot of time here, which I spent creating detailed responses for the emails that needed them.

I also enjoyed the Smart Compose feature, which functions as an AI assistant when typing emails. It can read your mind… just kidding, it can’t. It analyzes the words you’ve already typed and suggests the next words and phrases. It’s right many times, but can be amusingly wrong. The good thing is that you can hit enter whenever it gets the right suggestion and ignore it if the suggestion isn’t right. Smart Compose saved me considerable time when typing emails.

Gmail boasts plenty of features to optimize the user experience (Image credit: Google)

Apart from intuitiveness, security is a key issue when choosing an email platform. Spam attacks have become more sophisticated due to AI tools that have made text generation a breeze. Hence, security is more important than ever, and Gmail delivers well in this criterion.

By default, Gmail has spam filters that analyze incoming emails and rate their likelihood of spam. If found to be spam, an email is automatically sent to the spam folder. From my experience, Gmail’s filters ensnare most spam messages, but some crafty ones occasionally make it through. When I encountered such an email, I immediately blocked the address and deleted their emails.

False positives can also occur. Some legitimate emails, such as password recovery attempts, might be sent to the spam folder, but you can always visit the spam folder and transfer such emails to your main inbox. If you mark an email in the spam folder as “Not Spam,” further emails from that address will land in your main inbox.

Another crucial security feature I liked is “Confidential Mode,” which allowed me to set expiration dates for emails. For instance, I sent an email containing sensitive information to a friend and set it to self-destruct a day after sending. I also set passcodes for specific emails, and the recipient needed this passcode to read the content– I gave them the passcode via SMS and other communication channels.

Likewise, with Confidential Mode, you can prevent recipients from copying, forwarding, or downloading the contents of your email. However, this feature doesn’t prevent users from taking screenshots of the photos and text – it just makes it difficult to transfer the content directly via email, so be careful about the information you send.

Gmail always prompts users to enable two-factor authentication, which adds an extra layer of security to your email account. With this feature enabled, no one can access your account simply by having your Gmail credentials. Logging in also requires a unique one-time PIN sent to your phone number or other Google-linked devices. Without this PIN, no one can log in to your account on a new device.

I advise always enabling two-factor authentication for your Gmail account. This overlooked feature protects you from most malicious attacks. According to Microsoft, two-factor authentication is the antidote to 99.9% of security attacks.

Gmail offers advanced encryption to protect emails during transmission, ensuring they can only be read by the intended recipients. All emails and their attachments are automatically scanned for malware, and any suspicious ones are blocked. Note that the scanning isn’t perfect; some suspicious attachments may slip through, so avoid opening any attachment from an address you aren’t familiar with.

If you’re like me, who frequently sends and receives emails, your inbox can easily get cluttered, and sorting through vast numbers of emails can get tiring. Fortunately, Gmail lets you organize your inbox and make your emails easy to navigate. You can create labels, such as “Work,” “Family,” “Newsletters,” and “Shopping,” and add specific emails to each of them, or automatically label emails based on the sender’s address. Whenever you want to view a specific group of emails, you can simply click on the relevant label.

For example, if you want to read your daily newsletters, you can click on the “Newsletters” label and see the new emails sent from the addresses you’ve previously marked.

Similarly, you can create custom filters to archive, forward, or even delete emails originating from specific addresses. Gmail’s labels and filters help you automate email sorting and reduce the time you spend navigating your messages.

Gmail seamlessly integrates with other Google tools you may be familiar with. For example, you can upload files to Google Drive and attach them to your email by clicking a few buttons. I found this feature handy when sending large files that would have taken a long time for the recipient to download– instead, the recipient could simply access the file online on Google Drive.

Google Meet isn’t the most popular videoconferencing app, but I liked its smooth integration with Gmail. I could start Google Meet calls directly from my Gmail interface and switch back to emails when done, while on the same browser tab.

Other notable integrations include Google Calendar, which allows you to create events from emails and set reminders, and Google Tasks, where you can convert emails directly into tasks on your to-do list.

Gmail: Interface and in use

Gmail’s interface is one of its main strengths. I think the user-friendliness is the main driving force behind Gmail’s popularity, although being affiliated with Google also helps a lot.

I’ve tested many email platforms, and Gmail stands out for its intuitiveness. Everything feels easy to navigate, even as a first-time user. It helps that first-time users don’t have cluttered inboxes that can make navigation more challenging. Yet, even with a packed inbox, I’ve discussed how filters and labels let you simplify navigation.

The features are neatly arranged on the left side of your dashboard, where you can quickly sort through them. You can switch between your main inbox and other folders smoothly. You can sort through spam, trash, sent, scheduled, and other email categories without a hitch. The Compose button is boldly displayed at the top-left corner, and the menu for composing and sending emails is easily understood at a glance.

Gmail’s user-friendly interface makes it easy for even amateur users (Image credit: Google)

You can access Gmail from your web browser or download the app on your desktop (Windows and macOS) or smartphone (iOS and Android). The app works exactly as the website, but has faster loading times and offline access.

Gmail: Support

I’ll rank Google’s support as decent. It’s not the most outstanding, but it isn’t bad either. Users have access to an extensive knowledge base that details all Gmail’s features and provides guidance on troubleshooting common issues.

If you encounter any problems, the knowledge base and official Help Center should be the first places to seek help. Likewise, if you’re a new user who wants to learn the ins and outs of Gmail, the Help Center should be the first place to consult.

Gmail is a free tool, so don’t expect much direct help as a personal user. Google has a support team, but they’re more focused on enterprise customers who pay for Google Workspace and other tools.

For paying Google Workspace subscribers, Google offers decent support. Response times vary according to your plan, but the support team doesn’t take long to reply to email complaints.

Gmail: The competition

Gmail is the most dominant email platform worldwide, but it has no shortage of competitors. Many free email platforms have tried to chip away at Gmail’s market share for a long time, with mixed results. The two rivals I’d like to highlight are Zoho Mail and Proton Mail.

Zoho Mail offers a free version for personal use, just like Gmail. However, this free plan provides just 5 GB of storage, unlike Gmail’s 15 GB. Zoho is more competitive on the business side, with plans that are more affordable than Gmail, although Gmail still offers more storage.

Businesses can subscribe to Zoho Mail for as low as $1 per month per user, while a Google Workspace subscription starts at $6 per month per user. Zoho Mail isn’t as user-friendly as Gmail. In fact, I got confused several times as a new user, but it’s a more affordable email solution for businesses with limited budgets.

Proton Mail is a secure email solution that offers end-to-end encryption, self-destructing messages, password-protected emails, and adherence to robust Swiss privacy laws, among other features. I wouldn’t say it’s more secure than Gmail, as Gmail offers many of the same features optionally. However, Proton Mail is more geared towards privacy and doesn’t have advertisements.

The drawback is that Proton Mail isn’t as intuitive as Gmail, and the free plan is much more limited, e.g., 6 GB storage compared to Gmail’s 15 GB storage. You’ll need a paid plan to enjoy most of Proton Mail’s features.

Gmail: Final verdict

Gmail is an email platform that I recommend any day and at any time, both for personal and business use. I can summarize the reason as “it just works.” Gmail provides the email features you’ll need, even on the free plan.

The paid plans are more expensive than other options, but the intuitiveness and seamless integration with other Google tools make it worthwhile if your business can afford it. Gmail is a solid choice that makes emailing an enjoyable experience.

We've also featured the best email clients.

Categories: Reviews

MSI Stealth A16 AI+ review: thin, light, and hot

TechRadar Reviews - Mon, 09/29/2025 - 10:27

MSI Stealth A16 AI+: Two-minute review

Some of the best gaming laptops are those that are portable enough for you to take on the go with you, whether it's because you’re a commuter or just because you want to use your laptop in various places - and love to game.

With more options hitting the market over the past year thanks to the release of Nvidia’s 50 series graphics cards, we've been eagerly awaiting MSI's new edition of its Stealth series, the MSI Stealth A16 AI+.

The good news is that the new MSI Stealth A16 AI+ is once again a formidable gaming laptop, deftly balancing powerful performance with a sleek design, making it a candidate for our best thin and lightweight gaming laptops buying guide.

While its battery life leaves something to be desired and it can run hot under pressure, its vibrant OLED screen, robust build, and exceptional gaming capabilities make it a compelling choice for those looking for a portable powerhouse.

It's a strong contender in the competitive gaming laptop market, offering a premium experience for both work and play, but it comes at a (high) price: $2,899 / £2,199. While this is the average price for laptops featuring these specifications, that doesn’t take away from the dent it leaves in your wallet.

(Image credit: Future)MSI Stealth A16 AI+: Price and availability

How much does it cost? $2,899 / £2,199
When is it available? Now
Where can you get it? US, UK, and some European regions

You can pick up the Stealth A16 AI+ for $2,899 / £2,199 which is an average price for laptops which feature the Nvidia GeForce RTX 5070 Ti. You can customize the MSI Stealth A16 AI+ to come with the more powerful RTX 5080 and RTX 5090 GPUs, but this will increase the price by quite a bit - however, even then, the MSI Stealth A16 AI+ remains reasonably priced compared to the competition.

Currently, you can purchase the Stealth A16 AI+ in the US, UK, and select European countries.

While there’s currently no confirmation as to when the device will be coming to other markets, MSI does typically release its products in other regions later down the line.

Value: 3 / 5

MSI Stealth A16 AI+: Specs

The Stealth A16 AI+ impresses with its potent specs: an AMD Ryzen AI 9 HX 370 processor, up to an Nvidia GeForce RTX 5090 GPU, 64GB LPDDR5X memory, and a 2TB SSD, making it a future-proof powerhouse for demanding tasks and gaming.

MSI Stealth A16 AI+ 5070 Ti

MSI Stealth A16 AI+ 5080

MSI Stealth A16 AI+ 5090

Price:

$2,899 / £2,199

$3,299 / £2,249

$3,999 / £3,399

CPU:

AMD Ryzen AI 9 HX 370

Graphics:

Nvidia GeForce RTX 5070 Ti

Nvidia GeForce RTX 5080

Nvidia GeForce RTX 5090

RAM:

64GB LPDDR5X

Screen:

16-inch Widescreen Display - QHD+ (2560 x 1600) - OLED - 240Hz

Storage:

2TB SSD

Ports:

2x USB-A, 1x USB-C, 1x HDMI, 1x Ethernet port, 1x Audio jack

Wireless:

Wi-Fi 7, Bluetooth 5.4

Camera:

HD Webcam

Weight:

2.1kg

Dimensions:

355.8 x 259.7 x 19.95 mm

(Image credit: Future)MSI Stealth A16 AI+: Design

Thin and light for its size
OLED display is fantastic
Good selection of ports

The Stealth A16 AI+ features a sleek and understated design, perfect for both professional environments and gaming setups. Its chassis feels robust yet surprisingly lightweight, making it an excellent companion for those who need to work or play on the go.

The narrow bezels around the display add to its modern aesthetic and maximize screen real estate, drawing you deeper into your content.

MSI has been generous with port selection, ensuring you're well-connected without the constant need for adapters.

You'll find a versatile array of ports, including multiple USB-A and USB-C ports, an HDMI output for external displays, and an Ethernet port for reliable wired internet.

(Image credit: Future)

This comprehensive connectivity is a significant advantage, especially for gamers who need a load of peripherals or frequently switch between setups. However, if you’re hoping to run a streaming setup from this laptop you may need a USB adaptor so you can hook up a webcam and microphone too (though the included webcam and mic array do a fine job if you're not planning on doing professional-level streaming).

The OLED screen itself is a highlight, offering vibrant colors and sharp detail that enhance everything from those AAA story games to high-definition movies. Its ample size provides an immersive viewing experience, whether you're deep into a creative project or enjoying a casual browsing session. The more I use OLED screens, the more I wish they would become the industry standard.

(Image credit: Future)

Despite its large screen, the overall size and weight of the Stealth A16 AI+ remain impressively manageable for a gaming laptop at less than 2cm thick. It’s also relatively lightweight when compared to alternative gaming laptops on the market at 2.1kg - for example, the MSI Raider A18 HX comes in at 3.6kg.

Design score: 5 / 5

MSI Stealth A16 AI+: Performance

Excellent gaming performance
Good at multitasking
Can get hot

Benchmarks

These are the results of our benchmarking tests for the MSI Stealth A16 AI+:

3DMark: Night Raid: 38,762; Fire Strike: 30,723; Time Spy: 13,384
GeekBench 6: 2,930 (single-core); 15,398 (multi-core)
CrossMark: Overall: 1,897 Productivity: 1,982 Creativity: 1,765 Responsiveness: 1,729
Total War: Warhammer III (1080p, Ultra): 176fps ; (1080p, Low): 380fps
Cyberpunk 2077 (1080p, Ultra): 105fps ; (1080p, Low): 176fps
Dirt 5 (1080p, Ultra): 206fps ; (1080p, Low): 287fps
PCMark 10 Battery Life: 4 hours 57 mins
TechRadar movie test: 4 hours 45 mins

During our testing, this laptop consistently delivered exceptional performance across a variety of demanding applications and, crucially, in the latest AAA gaming titles.

Whether it was playing Cyberpunk 2077 at ultra settings or engaging in fast-paced combat in Call of Duty: Modern Warfare III, the Stealth A16 AI+ maintained impressively high frame rates, ensuring a smooth and immersive experience.

This was with the Nvidia GeForce RTX 5070 Ti inside, so if you buy a model with the more powerful RTX 5080 or 5090 GPUs, then you're going to get even better gaming performance.

(Image credit: Future)

I was able to render breathtaking visuals without a hitch. Even with ray tracing enabled, the laptop held its own, providing a stunning level of graphical fidelity that truly elevates the gaming experience.

Beyond gaming, the processor handled intensive multitasking and content creation with ease, making it a truly versatile machine for power users.

One thing to note is that the laptop did get quite hot and loud when running games at ultra, opening a lot of intensive programmes at once, or when benchmarking. While it wasn’t too hot to use the keyboard - an issue I’m seeming to face more and more in the world of gaming laptops, it was certainly worth noting.

(Image credit: Future)

The speakers on the laptop are decent - they certainly get the job done - but you won’t be able to take advantage of directional audio within games.

Performance score: 4 / 5

MSI Stealth A16 AI+: Battery life

Not brilliant battery life
Very short when gaming

While MSI promised up to 13 hours of video playback, I found that the Stealth A16 AI+ just didn’t deliver anywhere near this.

During my time testing the MSI Stealth A16 AI+, I noticed that the battery life was closer to around six hours when using the laptop for general browsing or watching videos, which came down to about an hour when playing intensive games.

In our battery life benchmark, we got just shy of five hours in both the PCMark 10 edition and our own TechRadar movie test.

Battery life: 2 / 5

(Image credit: Future)Should I buy the MSI Stealth A16 AI+?

Attributes

Notes

Rating

Price

The value of the laptop is pretty average when compared to alternatives on the market with the same specs.

3 / 5

Design

This laptop has an immaculate design featuring a decent array of ports and remaining light when compared to alternatives.

5 / 5

Performance

You get exceptional performance from this laptop but it does get quite hot and loud.

4 / 5

Battery life

The battery is significantly below the promised lifespan which is very disappointing.

2 / 5

Total Score

This is a well-priced thin and light laptop with some excellent components that means it offers fantastic gaming performance. However, it can get quite hot, and battery life isn't the best.

3.5 / 5

Buy it if...

You need a sleek gaming device
You want a gaming laptop that's also highly portable and can be used for work on the go.

Screen quality is important to you
If you want a vibrant OLED screen for an immersive visual experience, then this could be the laptop for you.

You want a powerful device
This is a powerful machine that can handle demanding AAA gaming titles and intensive multitasking with high frame rates.

Don't buy it if...

You want to go all day without charging
If you want a long battery life for extended use away from a power source then this isn’t the laptop for you.

You are on a tight budget
While this laptop is priced fairly compared to alternatives, this doesn’t mean it won’t put a dent in your wallet.

You are sensitive to laptop heat and fan noise
This laptop gets very hot and loud when you’re using intensive software or playing demanding games.

MSI Stealth A16 AI+ review: Also consider

MSI Stealth A16 AI+

Asus Zenbook A14

Apple Macbook Pro 16-inch (M4 Pro, 2024)

Price:

$2,899 / £2,199

$1,399.99 / £1,099.99 / AU$2,899

$2,499 / £2,499 / AU$3,999

CPU:

AMD Ryzen AI 9 HX 370

Snapdragon X X1 26 100 Processor with Qualcomm Hexagon NPU up to 45TOPS

Apple M4 Pro (14-core)

Graphics:

Nvidia GeForce RTX 5070 Ti

Qualcomm Adreno GPU

Integrated 20-core GPU

RAM:

64GB LPDDR5X

4GB DDR4

24GB unified memory

Screen:

16-inch Widescreen Display - QHD+ (2560 x 1600) - OLED - 240Hz

14.0-inch, WUXGA (1920 x 1200) OLED 16:10 aspect ratio, LED Backlit, 0.2ms response time, 60Hz refresh rate, 400 nits

16-inch, 3456 x 2234 Liquid Retina XDR display (mini-LED, 1,000 nits sustained brightness, wide color P3 gamut, ProMotion technology)

Storage:

2TB SSD

16GB LPDDR5X on board

512GB SSD

Ports:

2x USB-A, 1x USB-C, 1x HDMI, 1x Ethernet port, 1x Audio jack

1x USB 3.2 Gen 1 Type-A, 2x USB-C, 1x HDMI, 1x 3.5mm Audio Jack

3x Thunderbolt 5 (USB-C), HDMI, SDXC card slot, 3.5mm headphone jack, MagSafe 3

Wireless:

Wi-Fi 7, Bluetooth 5.4

Wi-Fi 6E (802.11ax) (Dual band) 2*2 + Bluetooth 5.3

Wi-Fi 6E (802.11ax), Bluetooth 5.3

Camera:

HD Webcam

FHD camera with IR function to support Windows Hello

12MP Center Stage camera with support for Desk View

Weight:

4.6 lbs (2.1kg)

2.16 lbs (0.98kg)

4.7 lbs (2.2kg)

Dimensions:

355.8 x 259.7 x 19.95 mm

31.07 x 21.39 x 1.34 ~ 1.59 cm (12.23 x 8.42 x 0.53in ~ 0.63in)

14.01 x 9.77 x 0.66 inches (356 x 248 x 17mm)

If you're in the market for a new laptop, here are some alternatives to the MSI Stealth A16 AI+...

Asus Zenbook A14
For those seeking a premium, ultra-lightweight, and highly portable laptop, the Asus Zenbook A14 is an excellent choice. It offers a powerful processor and a stunning OLED display, all within a design optimized for superior portability.

Read our Asus Zenbook A14 review

Apple Macbook Pro 16-inch (M4 Pro, 2024)
For intensive tasks such as 3D animation or demanding video rendering, the Apple MacBook Pro, with its M4 Pro processor, offers superior performance. Read our Apple MacBook Pro 16-inch (M4 Pro, 2024) review.

How I tested the MSI Stealth A16 AI+

Tested for two weeks
Used in a variety of scenarios
Ran benchmarks and played games

For two weeks, the MSI Stealth A16 AI+ served as my primary laptop for both work and leisure.

I thoroughly integrated it into my daily routine, using it for typical workdays, evenings spent gaming and watching movies, and even general browsing. To assess its portability and performance outside my usual setup, I also brought it to various remote work locations.

Beyond everyday use, I conducted comprehensive benchmark tests using software like 3D Mark and in-game tools to evaluate its performance.

First reviewed September 2025
Read more about how we test

Categories: Reviews

Small but perfectly formed, the De'Longhi Dedica Duo is my new favorite entry-level espresso machine

TechRadar Reviews - Mon, 09/29/2025 - 08:00

De'Longhi Dedica Duo: two-minute review

The De'Longhi Dedica Duo is an excellent entry-level espresso machine that looks great and performs extremely well, despite its modest price tag.

It has a similar appearance to its predecessor, the De'Longhi Dedica Style, but with some key improvements – including a wider drip tray that can accommodate two espresso cups. The steam wand has been upgraded with a cool-touch handle and a knurled control dial for better grip, and the machine is available in a choice of four colors (including three gelato-inspired pastel shades).

The Dedica Duo's accessories, such as the color-coordinated portafilter handle, feel robust. It comes with two pressurized portafilter baskets, a coffee scoop, a pin tool, a descaler pack, a tamper, and a stainless-steel milk pitcher. The water tank is easily accessible at the back, with a hinged lid to keep water fresh, and it can be fitted with an optional water filter.

(Image credit: Future)

The machine is operated by illustrated buttons on top for single shot, double shot, cold brew, and steam. Colored lights on these buttons indicate the machine's status, requiring reference to the manual for full understanding.

Although it takes a little while to heat up, the Dedica Duo delivers a good shot with a fine grind consistently. There is some minor dripping after the pump finishes due to the absence of a three-way solenoid valve.

The Dedica Duo's cold-extraction mode, while slower than preparing hot espresso, is much faster than traditional overnight cold-brewing and produces a full, mellow flavor. This cold brew is versatile, suitable for drinking straight, with milk and ice, or in blended drinks and cocktails.

My only real complaint is that the system of lights to indicate the machine's current status and any problems (such as scale, or air in the system) can be confusing, and you'll find yourself having to refer back to the manual quite regularly while you're getting a handle on things. Other than that, though, this is an easy machine to recommend and worthy of a full five stars.

De'Longhi Dedica Duo: price and availability

Released in August 2025
List price of $299.95 / £279.99 (about AU$600)
Sold in the UK and US, but not yet in Australia

The De’Longhi Dedica Duo launched in August 2025 with a list price of $299.95 / £279.99. At the time of writing (September 2025), it isn't yet available in Australia, but hopefully that will change soon.

At that price, it's one of the most affordable espresso machines I’ve tested in the past year. The Casabrews 5418 Pro is in the same entry-level bracket with a list price of $299.99 (about £220 / AU$460), but it’s clear that Casabrews has cut quite a lot of corners, and it can’t compete with the Dedica Duo for build quality and performance.

Value score: 5/5

De'Longhi Dedica Duo: design

Updated design with refined details and new colors
Wider drip tray to accommodate two espresso cups
Accessories feel substantial and well made

The De’Longhi Dedica Duo is a compact, smart-looking espresso machine. At first glance it bears a strong similarity to its predecessor, the Dedica Style. It’s almost exactly the same size, but on closer inspection you’ll notice lots of refinements and improvements.

Most noticeably, the Dedica Duo comes in an updated range of colors, with classic stainless steel accompanied by soft shades of white, pink and green, which De’Longhi says were inspired by different flavors of gelato. Candy-colored appliances have become increasingly popular in 2025, and they look good, with a satin finish rather than gloss.

Image 1 of 2

(Image credit: Future)Image 2 of 2

(Image credit: Future)

For me, one of the most notable updates is to the drip tray, which is now considerably wider, making it easier to fit two espresso cups underneath the portafiter when pulling a double shot. If you have a particularly tall cup, you can remove the stainless steel grille and place the cup directly on a removable ridged plate at the bottom of the tray. A nice touch, and one that helps make clean-up easier.

The steam wand now has a cool-touch handle, which is a nice upgrade, and its control dial sports a knurled texture that looks good and provides extra grip. The wand doesn’t bend, but it does pivot, and its angle makes it easy to achieve a good whirlpool movement when texturizing your milk.

Image 1 of 2

(Image credit: Future)Image 2 of 2

(Image credit: Future)

All of the Dedica Duo’s accessories feel robust in the hand, unlike those of some other entry-level coffee machines I’ve tested recently (I’m looking at you, Casabrews). The portafilter handle is satisfyingly weighty, with a textured end that matches the steam wand dial, and is colored to match the body of the machine.

You get two pressurized portafilter baskets (one for single shots and one for doubles), a coffee scoop, a pin tool for clearing the hole of the steam wand if it becomes blocked, a pack of descaler, a weighty tamper that makes it easy to put sufficient pressure on your ground, and a stainless steel milk pitcher (with a fine spout ideal for pouring latte art).

(Image credit: Future)

The machine’s water tank slides onto the back, and has a sturdy-feeling hinged lid to keep water fresh. It can also be fitted with an optional water filter, but this needs to be purchased separately. The tank lifts out easily and is simple to slot back into place. You’ll need to pull the machine away from the wall to do this, but it’s so small and light, this shouldn't present a problem.

The Dedica Duo has a power switch on its right-hand side, and is operated using a set of illustrated buttons on top: single shot, double shot, cold brew, and steam. Pressing combinations of these buttons, or pressing and holding, provides access to certain menus, and the colored lights on them give you information about the machine’s current status, so it’s useful to keep the manual on hand for reference. For example, a solid white light on only the steam button means there’s probably air in the system that needs clearing.

Design score: 5/5

De'Longhi Dedica Duo: performance

Steady pressure for consistently extracted hot espresso
Cold-extraction works well, too, producing a smooth flavor
System of indicator lights can be confusing

The Dedica Duo is an excellent entry-level espresso machine, providing the steady pressure necessary for preparing consistently good coffee. The Casabrews 5418 Pro I reviewed a few weeks ago was so variable, it had me questioning whether I actually knew how to make espresso at all; the Dedica Duo has restored my faith in my own abilities. It takes a little while to heat up, but once it does, and the espresso buttons on top are illuminated, you can be confident that you're going to get a very good shot. I've been using a fairly fine grind for my coffee, and the results have been faultless.

There's no three-way solenoid, so you can expect a little dripping after the pump has finished, but that certainly isn't the end of the world.

(Image credit: Future)

The Dedica Duo’s star feature is cold extraction, and it works very well. Whereas some other espresso machines I’ve tested recently create "chilled" drinks by asking you to fill a cup with ice and then dumping a shot of hot espresso on top, the Duo’s cold brew mode bypasses the Thermoblock heater and uses ambient-temperature water direct from the tank.

This takes longer than brewing hot espresso (measured in minutes rather than seconds), but it's still a lot faster than preparing cold-brewed coffee in the traditional way (by infusing the grounds in the fridge overnight), yet the resulting flavor profile is very similar. The flavor is full and rounded, but more mellow than the same coffee extracted hot. Whether you drink it straight, add milk and ice, or use it in blended drinks and cocktails, it’s very tasty.

Image 1 of 3

(Image credit: Future)Image 2 of 3

(Image credit: Future)Image 3 of 3

(Image credit: Future)

It’s worth noting that the Dedica Duo isn’t a quiet machine. Unlike some advanced machines from the likes of KitchenAid or Jura, the Duo has no space in its compact chassis for sound-deadening material, so you’ll be able to hear its pump working away at full volume. Pumping water doesn’t take very long, though; but if you’re sensitive to noise then it’s something to be aware of.

For me, the only disadvantage of the Dedica Duo is the system of lights that change colour and/or blink to indicate your machine’s status or any problems. These aren’t always self-explanatory, and until you’ve learned what they all mean, you’ll find yourself referring back to the manual regularly. Perhaps it would be better to have a small row of status lights for common issues in the interest of clarity.

Performance score: 5/5

Should you buy the De'Longhi Dedica Duo?De'Longhi Dedica Duo score card

Attribute

Notes

Score

Value

Very reasonably priced, squarely in the "budget" bracket for an espresso machine of this type.

5/5

Design

Modern and stylish, with thoughtful touches such as a wide, adjustable drip tray and cool-touch steam wand.

5/5

Performance

Brews consistently well hot or cold, with steady pressure from the pump. Status lights can be confusing, though.

4.5/5

Buy it if

You're shopping for your first espresso machine

The De'Longhi Dedica Duo is much better made than most coffee makers in this price bracket, and the designers haven't cut corners to keep its price down.

You have limited space

At just 15cm wide, the Dedica Duo is one of the smallest espresso machines I've ever tested. It tucked in easily beside my toaster, and I'm sure you'll find space for it, even on a countertop that's short on space.

Don't buy it if

You don't want cold extraction

The biggest difference between the Dedica Style and Dedica Duo is the latter machine's cold espresso mode. If you're not intending to use that, you could save some cash by opting for the older Dedica Style instead.

You're an experienced barista already

The Dedica Duo only comes with pressurized filter baskets, so if you want the control of a single-walled basket, you might be better off looking elsewhere.

De'Longhi Dedica Duo: also consider

If the De’Longhi Dedica Duo doesn’t sound like quite the right espresso machine for you, here are two alternatives in the same price bracket, both of which come highly recommended.

De’Longhi Dedica Style

If you’re unlikely to use the Duo’s cold brew function, you could save a little cash by opting for the older Dedica Duo. It doesn’t look quite as modern, and we found it difficult to fit two espresso cups onto its drip tray, but it’s still an excellent little entry-level espresso machine that comes highly recommended.

Read our full De’Longhi Dedica Style review

Breville Bambino Plus

The Bambino Plus is another compact espresso machine that comes highly recommended for beginners making their first foray into speciality coffee. Unlike the two Dedica machines, it has an adjustable steam wand with three texture and temperature settings, making it easier for newcomers to prepare the right type of foam for lattes, cappuccinos and other drinks.

Read our full Breville Bambino Plus review

How I tested the De'Longhi Dedica Duo

I used the De'Longhi Dedica Duo for three weeks in place of my usual coffee machine, and brewed coffee using a blend of fresh Brazilian and Colombian arabica beans, freshly ground using a Sage Dose Control Pro grinder. I used the tamper provided with the machine to tamp the coffee. I tested the steam wand with chilled, full-fat dairy milk and oat milk.

I flushed the machine with hot water before and after brewing to make sure it was clean, and purged the steam wand and wiped it with a damp cloth after making each drink.

For more information, see how we test, rate, and review products at TechRadar.

First reviewed September 2025

Categories: Reviews

I tested Google Calendar, and found it excels at helping manage day-to-day schedules

TechRadar Reviews - Mon, 09/29/2025 - 02:54

A digital calendar is one of the most sought-after tools, both for personal and professional use. It helps you plan your schedule ahead of time and adhere to it, instead of juggling random activities, which often leads to confusion. The best calendar apps are a productivity booster, especially in the workplace.

If you need a calendar app, you have an endless list of options to choose from, both free and paid. Google Calendar is one of the top options known for its simplicity and ease of use. I’ve reviewed Google Calendar extensively so that you don’t have to go through the same hassles. Read on to learn about its pros, cons, features, and what sets it apart from the competition.

Google Calendar: Plans and pricing

Google Calendar is a freemium tool. The free version is designed for personal use, unlocking access to a detailed calendar where you can plan your schedule and receive reminders.

However, the free plan lacks the features designed for business use, such as the ability for employees to create appointment booking pages and reserve conference rooms at the office. It also lacks the collaborative features that businesses get when they pay for a Google Workspace plan.

(Image credit: Google )

Google Workspace unlocks access to the premium features of the Calendar app, as well as other tools like Google Docs, Sheets, Slides, and Meet. It’s a single stone that kills multiple birds in corporate settings; companies gain access to many valuable tools that help employees collaborate seamlessly and boost their productivity.

Google Workspace has three pricing plans: Starter, Standard, and Plus. The Starter plan costs $6 per user per month. It unlocks 30 GB of storage for each account and the core features of Google Calendar. However, this plan doesn’t include the ability to create appointment booking pages.

The Standard plan costs $14 per user per month. It provides 2 TB of storage per account, which covers information stored on Google Calendar and other Google apps. This plan unlocks the ability to create appointment booking pages and direct integration with Gemini, Google’s artificial intelligence (AI) assistant. Gemini is very helpful when using Google Calendar, a topic I’ll dive into later.

The Plus plan unlocks access to everything on the Standard plan and upgrades the available storage space to 5 TB per account. There’s no difference in the core Calendar features available in the Plus and Standard plans. Instead, the difference lies in the Plus plan having advanced security features and access to a digital vault for organizations to retain data for an extended period.

There’s notably an Enterprise Plus plan, but without standard pricing. This plan is targeted at large organizations that want to negotiate custom deals with Google’s sales team.

Each Google Workspace plan has a 14-day free trial period that enables you to test its features. You can also use the free Google Calendar app to test the core features and get a good hint of what to expect on a Google Workspace plan.

Google Calendar: Features

Google Calendar is designed as a daily companion where you can record future events and receive reminders when due. You have a calendar with all the future dates, and you can set events on specific dates and choose to receive reminders at particular times.

For example, you can choose to receive a reminder two days before or a day before an event. A reminder will be sent to your email address or via a push notification if you’ve downloaded the Calendar smartphone app.

Google Calendar lets you add many details when creating an event. First, you'll add the title, location, and time. Then, you can add guests by entering their email addresses, and Google will send them an invitation to the event. If the event happens to be a videoconference or webinar hosted on Google Meet, you can generate a video meeting link that’ll be sent to invitees.

Google Calendar integrates with Gmail, Google Meet, and other Workspace productivity apps (Image credit: Google)

After adding events, you can monitor them easily from your dashboard. Picture a calendar listing all the dates in a year: all the future dates you’ve added events for will be highlighted, and you can click on any date to view the event. You can also switch the calendar view from the whole year to a specific month, week, or day.

What I’ve discussed above are the core Google Calendar features, but there’s much more to the app, especially for paid Google Workspace subscribers. If your business subscribes to Google Workspace, multiple employees can have shared calendars that foster collaboration.

For example, you can create an organization-wide calendar that lets employees keep track of important company events. Any upcoming meetings, holidays, and other events will be posted on this calendar, and each employee will receive reminders.

An assigned administrator can control access to this calendar, i.e., by choosing which accounts can add events to the calendar or can only view existing events. When someone adds an event to the organizational calendar and sets a reminder, all other people with access to the calendar will be notified.

Employees can also share their personal calendars with select colleagues. For instance, a team leader can share a calendar with their subordinates, giving them insight into the team leader’s schedule and the ability to book meetings directly with their team head. Different work teams can create their calendars to keep tabs on each other’s schedules and ensure they don’t set events on conflicting dates.

A memorable feature I used is the Gemini integration. Google unveiled its Gemini artificial intelligence (AI) assistant in 2023, in response to the AI boom spearheaded by OpenAI’s ChatGPT. In 2024, it announced direct Gemini integration with Google tools, including Calendar, for Workspace subscribers.

The integration lets you interact with Gemini directly from your Calendar dashboard instead of using it as a separate app. Gemini can perform many tasks to help you manage your schedule.

For example, I asked Gemini to create events for me rather than spend the time to do everything manually. I asked it about specific events, i.e., “When is [event name] scheduled to be held on the calendar?” This is the tip of the iceberg, as Gemini can do much more. It’s like having a virtual assistant to help you plan your schedule.

Google Calendar can display daily, weekly, or monthly schedules or a list of upcoming events (Image credit: Google )

Users can create appointment booking pages via Google Calendar. Essentially, you’ll create a professional booking page and set your desired dates and time slots for people to book meetings. Colleagues and clients can visit the link and schedule a meeting, and you’ll be notified about every booking.

If you’re a professional who provides consultation services, you can require clients to pay to book a meeting directly from the booking page. This feature works by integrating a Stripe account to accept the payments.

Google Calendar has extensive integrations with other Google tools. For example, the Gmail integration provides a seemingly trivial but valuable feature: When you receive an email about any event, it can be automatically added to your schedule with just a click. Generally, you can convert any email directly into an event on your calendar.

Another example is the integration with Google Chat, which allows multiple people sharing a calendar to chat on the same dashboard. This way, colleagues can chat about calendar-related topics without juggling separate apps or browser tabs.

Google Calendar also has integrations with third-party tools. An example is Slack, a popular business messaging app. The Slack integration enabled me to view upcoming events and receive reminders directly on Slack instead of juggling between it and Google Calendar. I also scheduled meetings directly from Slack, and these meetings were automatically added to my Google Calendar dashboard.

Another third-party integration I tried is Todoist, a well-known task management app. The integration enabled me to sync tasks from Todoist to my Google Calendar dashboard.

I enjoyed using Google Calendar to manage my schedule. It’s not just an effective calendar app but one of the most collaborative ones I’ve used. Other apps may offer more advanced features, but Google Calendar excels at enabling people to create and manage shared calendars. It’s second to none in collaborativeness and simplicity.

(Image credit: Google)Google Calendar: Interface and Use

Simplicity is a highlight of using Google Calendar. It has a noticeably straightforward interface that is easy to grasp. The homepage is the calendar, and you can sort through it to pick any date. Then, you can add an event to the date and set when to receive the reminder.

After setting events, you can always monitor them from your dashboard, which provides a complete view of your calendar. Click on any date in the calendar, and you’ll see any events set on that date. You can switch the calendar between different views (year, day, week, month, or any specific time frame). All the features are neatly arranged and easy to find in the top and left menus.

You can access Google Calendar from your web browser or download the Android or iOS mobile app. The mobile app makes it more convenient to monitor your schedule on the go, with the same features as the web browser version.

Google Calendar: Support

Google Calendar users have access to ample support resources. As a free user, your main support resource is the official Google Calendar help center, although it’s also useful for paid subscribers.

The official help center contains guides concerning all Calendar features. It’s the first place to consult to troubleshoot any issues with the app. In my case, I faced just a few issues with Google Calendar, mainly learning how to use some complex features. The help center quickly resolved these issues.

There’s also an official help community where you can ask questions and get answers from other Google users. This community provides valuable help for free users facing complex issues.

Paid subscribers can access direct support from Google’s team. The team is available 24/7 via email, live chat, or telephone, and is known for resolving customer issues quickly. While free users don’t have access to this direct support, the Google Calendar help center is sufficient to resolve most issues. Google Calendar’s intuitive interface minimizes the amount of help you’ll need in the first place.

Google Calendar: The competition

Apple Calendar and Calendly are the main Google Calendar competitors I’d like to highlight. Both are robust calendar apps with unique pros and cons when compared to Google Calendar.

Just like Google Calendar is extensively integrated with other Google apps and the Android operating system (which is owned by Alphabet, Google’s parent company), Apple Calendar is extensively integrated with Apple apps and the broader iOS ecosystem.

Apple Calendar is pre-installed on iPhones and has a simple, intuitive design similar to Google Calendar. Calendar data is encrypted, and users have full access to their Calendar when offline. However, Apple Calendar lacks the collaborative features offered on a Google Workspace plan. It’s designed for personal rather than business use.

Calendly is a calendar app designed for businesses to automate many scheduling tasks. It has more advanced appointment scheduling features than Google Calendar, including the ability to handle round-robin scheduling and other complex team scheduling demands. Calendly is also much more customizable and has a broader library of third-party integrations than Google Calendar.

However, Calendly is a more expensive option, considering that you’re paying only for a scheduling tool, unlike a Google Workspace subscription that unlocks both the Calendar app and many other Google tools. Calendly is a good option for large businesses with complex scheduling needs, while Google Calendar is more suitable for small-to-mid-sized firms.

Google Calendar: Final verdict

Google Calendar strikes an ideal balance between functionality, simplicity, and pricing. Given the other tools available as part of a Google Workspace subscription, it’s a cost-effective option for small to mid-sized businesses, enabling them to manage schedules effectively and ensure employees stay on the same page.

Google Calendar doesn’t have the most advanced features, but it’s sufficient for day-to-day schedule management, and the intuitive interface makes it a good choice for companies across diverse industries.

We've also featured the best calendar apps and the best productivity tools

Categories: Reviews

Squarespace Acuity review 2025

TechRadar Reviews - Sun, 09/28/2025 - 17:46

Appointment scheduling tools streamline the booking process by letting clients pick their own time slots. You avoid the back-and-forth emails and phone calls. These systems sync with your calendar and send automatic reminders.

Having scheduling built into your website builder offers unique advantages. Your clients never leave your site to book appointments. The integration feels seamless and maintains your brand experience throughout. You can customize the booking page to match your website's design perfectly.

Squarespace's Acuity Scheduling brings professional appointment management to your website. It handles everything from simple consultations to complex group classes. The tool can work independently, but also integrates smoothly with your Squarespace site.

We tested Acuity against other scheduling solutions to see how it performs. Our review covers pricing accuracy, feature depth, and real-world usability. You'll discover whether this tool fits your business needs and budget.

Squarespace Acuity: Pricing

(Image credit: Squarespace)

Acuity subscriptions are separate from your Squarespace site subscription, meaning you can use Acuity on its own or integrate it with your Squarespace website.

There are three plans to choose from for this product, starting with the Emerging plan. This plan is ideal for start-ups and solo entrepreneurs. It costs $20/mo ($16/mo on annual billing) and offers essential appointment management features like calendar syncing and automatic reminder emails.

Next, the Growing plan at $34/mo ($27/mo for a yearly subscription) supports 2-6 calendars and additional perks like SMS reminders and support for packages, memberships, and subscriptions.

Lastly, the $61/mo ($49/mo annually) Powerhouse plan supports up to 36 calendars and includes advanced features like multiple time zones and custom API and CSS integration. In the end, it’s all about picking the right plan based on the size and complexity of your business.

Although you don’t need a Squarespace website builder subscription to use Acuity, building your website on the platform makes it super easy to integrate your site with the scheduling tool. Check out our Squarespace promo codes page to find the best discounts across the Squarespace range of tools.

Squarespace Acuity: Features

(Image credit: Squarespace)

Acuity offers scheduling features that rival dedicated appointment platforms. You get unlimited appointments, payment processing through Stripe/Square/PayPal, and automated email/SMS reminders. The system handles recurring bookings, group sessions, and custom intake forms seamlessly.

Compared to competitors like Calendly, Acuity actually provides more business-focused features. Calendly excels at simple meeting scheduling, but, Acuity supports subscriptions, memberships, and gift certificates. You can create appointment packages and offer multiple services with different durations.

Other website builders offer basic scheduling, but few match this level of depth. WordPress booking plugins require technical setup and multiple extensions. Wix provides simpler booking widgets without advanced payment or business features.

Acuity's integration ecosystem includes 40+ apps through Zapier and direct connections to Google Analytics. However, it lacks some team-specific integrations that Calendly offers, like CRM connections to Salesforce or HubSpot. That's because the focus stays on service-based businesses rather than sales teams.

Squarespace Acuity: Ease of use

(Image credit: Squarespace)

Acuity strikes a good balance between power and simplicity. The setup wizard guides you through essential configurations like time zones, booking intervals, and client permissions. We found the interface intuitive even for non-technical users, though it's more complex than basic schedulers like Calendly.

Its learning curve sits in the middle range among scheduling tools. Beginners can get basic booking running quickly, but mastering advanced features takes time. The "look busy" feature and buffer time settings show thoughtful design for real-world scheduling challenges.

Client-facing booking pages are clean and straightforward. Your customers can select services, pick times, and complete intake forms without confusion. The mobile experience works well, though some users report the timezone selector is small and easy to miss.

That said, Acuity lacks specific accessibility documentation or WCAG compliance features. While most scheduling tools don't prioritize accessibility, this could still be a limitation for businesses serving diverse clients. Its interface relies heavily on visual cues and mouse interaction, which may challenge users with disabilities.

Squarespace Acuity: Tools

(Image credit: Squarespace)

Email notifications

Acuity lets you send automated emails to clients about their appointments, packages, and subscriptions. Currently, you can send various notifications to your clients including initial confirmation, reminders, cancellations, follow-ups, package/gift certificate orders, and subscriptions, including payments, renewals, and cancellations.

If you're on the Growing or Powerhouse plans, you can send text message appointment reminders so your clients don’t miss a booking. Plus, to make sure your team stays on the same page, you can set up internal notifications to keep your staff informed about new, rescheduled, or canceled appointments.

Lastly, to reach out to your clients with promotions, updates, and more, you can also send marketing emails using Squarespace Email Campaigns.

Syncing appointments with third-party calendars

Acuity easily syncs with calendar programs like Google, iCloud, Outlook Office 365, Outlook Exchange, and Outlook.com. Any changes made to your appointments in Acuity, whether canceled, rescheduled, or edited, are automatically reflected in your synced third-party calendar. For instance, Google Calendar updates almost instantly, while Microsoft Calendars may take up to 10 minutes to reflect these changes. Plus, to prevent clients from booking appointments when you're busy, you can also block off time in Acuity for events on your third-party calendar.

You can even let your staff members see Acuity appointments on their personal calendars by syncing their third-party calendars. To do this, simply add them as a contributor if you're using a Squarespace account or as a user if you're logged in with an Acuity account.

Payment processor integrations

Squarespace lets you collect payments for appointments by integrating with popular payment processors like Stripe, Square, and PayPal. Before accepting payments, you must connect at least one of these processors to your Acuity account. However, once connected, you can manage your payment preferences and account settings through the processor’s online portal or mobile app.

Remember, the payment processors used in Acuity are separate from those in Squarespace Commerce, and each comes with its own terms and conditions. For instance, Square’s processing fees differ depending on how the payment is made, while Stripe’s fees vary by country (USA, UK, Ireland, and Australia).

Scheduling blocks

Squarespace Acuity's Scheduling Blocks let you smoothly integrate your scheduling page into your Squarespace site.

This means your visitors can book appointments directly without leaving the site. Setting up a scheduling block is simple; just edit the page, click "Add Block," and select "Scheduling." You can then choose which schedule to display, whether it's your general schedule or one for a specific calendar, appointment type, or category.

Similarly, you can display a calendar from an Acuity account that is not linked to the Squarespace website as a custom link. Plus, for improved privacy, you can password protect your scheduling page, limiting access to only those with the password.

Squarespace Acuity: Integrations

(Image credit: Squarespace)

Acuity integrates with Google Analytics to help you track how clients interact with your scheduler. With its valuable insights, you can refine your booking process and improve appointment rates.

Getting started is fairly simple. Just sign up for a Google Analytics account and follow the guide available on their site. After setting up the integration, it may take up to 24 hours for statistics to start populating in Google Analytics. Acuity will only send events that occur after the integration is live. When using Google Analytics for conversion tracking, keep in mind that conditions are case-sensitive. For instance, entering "Page_view" instead of "page_view" can stop your goals from tracking properly. So, it's better to consult Google's documentation on custom dimensions and metrics for accuracy before you get started.

Further, with the help of API services like Zapier, you can integrate with several third-party apps. Some key integrations include syncing your appointments with personal or business calendars, setting up video conferencing, and connecting with tools for social media, email marketing, accounting, conversion tracking, CRM, or other client engagement applications. These integrations help you to streamline your workflow and enhance your scheduling capabilities.

Squarespace Acuity: My verdict

With its wide range of features, seamless integrations, and flexible pricing plans, Acuity makes it easy to manage scheduling, payments, and client communications all in one place. Whether you just launched your first business or are part of a larger team, you get the tools to improve your booking flow, client engagement, and grow your business efficiently.

But, don’t just take our word for it, it's always best to try out the features for yourself. So, if you have a website on Squarespace or are currently on a free trial, give Acuity Scheduling a test run and see if it meets your expectations.

If you want to learn more about what Squarespace offers, you can read our full Squarespace review here.

Categories: Reviews

The Nutribullet Triple Prep System is a blender and food processor combo that handled almost every recipe I could throw at it

TechRadar Reviews - Sun, 09/28/2025 - 12:00

Nutribullet Triple Prep System: one-minute review

True to its name, the Nutribullet Triple Prep System is a blender combo that provides the functionality of three kinds of kitchen appliances in one. Nutribullet as a brand may have made its start with personal blenders, but the lineup has expanded to include

Alongside a 1,500 watt motor base, the system includes a long list of accessories: a 64oz pitcher, two travel cups with lids, a food processor work bowl, a shredding/slicing disc, a tamper, a food pusher, and a dough blade. So, it’s pretty much a full toolkit for any home chef looking to whip up smoothies, shakes, soup, dips, and more.

(Image credit: Abigail Shannon)

As expected, during my tests, there was almost no hurdle the Nutribullet Triple Prep System stumbled at. From chopping carrots to crushing ice, the machine proved to be an exceptionally useful assistant in the kitchen again and again. What’s more, it was more user-friendly than many

There are a few problems that held the Triple Prep System back from perfection though. For one, the blades in the pitcher can’t be removed, which makes hand washing a good bit more difficult than it needs to be. As well as that, it doesn’t perform well with very small batches, given its smallest container is 24oz.

Nutribullet Triple Prep System: price and availability

List price: $244.99 / £229.99 / AU$349.95
Available in the US, UK, and Australia
Sold through Nutribullet’s website and other third-party retailers

The Nutribullet Triple Prep System is widely available to buy in the US, UK, and Australia. Across all three of these regions, you can pick up the Triple Prep System directly from the Nutribullet site or on Amazon. When it comes to third-party retailers in the States specifically, some of your other options are Target, Best Buy, and Walmart.

At over $200, the Triple Prep System is undoubtedly on the higher end of the Nutribullet range. It is one of the brand’s most multifunctional machines though, so it makes sense that it would set you back more than the rest. For context, you can get a basic Nutribullet personal blender for as little as $80.

Even with that higher price tag, if it saves you the cost of buying a blender and food processor separately, the Triple Prep System is incredible value for money. That said, it’s probably not a great idea to opt for it if you don’t plan to make use of its full suite of features.

Value score: 4/5

Nutribullet Triple Prep System: specs

Price

$244.99 / £229.99 / AUS $349.95

Weight

8.7lbs / 4kg

Size (H x W x D)

8.75 x 8 x 7.75 inches / 22.2 x 20.3 x 19.7cm

Travel cup capacity

32oz / 900ml or 24oz / 700ml

Jug capacity

64oz / 1.8 liters

Work bowl capacity

7 cups

Presets

Smoothie, puree, frozen drinks, nut milk, dressing, chop, dough, dip.

Nutribullet Triple Prep System: design

Plenty of presets to choose from
Smart attachment recognition
Slightly large footprint, but accessories nest for storage

One of my favorite features of the Triple Prep System is how it smartly recognizes which container you have attached to the base, and changes which presets are available based on that knowledge. It even modifies the duration of presets depending on which attachment you’re using.

For example, the Smoothie preset runs for 50 seconds with the pitcher and 60 seconds when using the travel cups. More blending time for a smaller container may sound counterintuitive, but your ingredients having less space to move around means that the motor has to process for longer to ensure all of the mix comes in contact with the blades.

(Image credit: Abigail Shannon)

You wouldn’t have to know all that though, because the Triple Prep System makes that change for you. The touch button layout is clean and intuitive: you’ve got start/stop controls, a pulse button, and clearly labeled presets for smoothies, soups, frozen drinks, and food processing tasks. Any preset that isn’t suitable for your attached container conveniently disappears too, helping to make using the machine an almost foolproof experience.

The majority of parts are dishwasher-safe, which offers a welcome reprieve from having to scrub out smoothie remnants and soup leftovers by hand. The extractor blade isn’t suitable for dishwasher cleaning, but given the fixed pitcher blades caused me far more struggle when cleaning than the extractor blade, I didn’t find this to be too much of an issue.

(Image credit: Abigail Shannon)

Given the sheer number of functions this machine serves, its slighter larger footprint feels like a worthy trade. If you cook from scratch or make fancy drinks at home regularly enough, you can probably justify keeping the motor base on your kitchen counter between uses. When you go to store the Triple Prep System away in your kitchen cupboards, you’ll probably find its wealth of accessories and attachments more of a curse than a blessing.

Certain parts of the system (like the shred/slice disc) slot together or into each other so it does seem like there was some effort made to save space. However, it still is a system that requires some generous-sized kitchen cupboards.

Design: 4.5/5

Nutribullet Triple Prep System: performance

Consistently great results with smoothies and soups
Does a great job crushing ice
Struggles with very small batches

Blenders are Nutribullet’s bread and butter – particularly ones for making smoothies. With that in mind, it made a lot of sense to start my testing there.

The smoothie recipe that’s used during TechRadar’s testing processes is a doozy in a couple of respects. It includes blueberries, which have skin and tiny seeds for the blender’s blades to try to contend with. But it also contains kale: the fibrous leafy vegetable that’s the enemy of many at-home smoothie lovers. While kale is great for sneaking nutrients in your drinks, it can be really difficult to completely break down if your blender isn’t up to the task – and plenty of blenders aren’t.

Image 1 of 1

(Image credit: Abigail Shannon)

Thanks to the Triple Prep System’s 1,500W motor and the guidance of its smoothie preset, I managed to blitz up a thick, tasty smoothie with virtually no off-putting ‘bits’. Any grittiness from the berries’ seeds disappeared entirely and no chunks of leaf remained.

Roughly the same was true when I tried to replicate the smoothie in one of the travel cups. Upon very, very careful inspection, there were minuscule flecks of unprocessed kale floating in the smoothie but these were few and far between, and weren’t large enough to detect in the mouth when drunk.

Crushing the ice in the travel cup gleaned far less than ideal results so I opted to try it in the pitcher instead. Don’t get me wrong, I was reasonably satisfied with what the travel cup produced: well-crushed ice with some little chunks that escaped the wrath of the extractor blade. However, I wanted to see if the added surface of the pitcher would produce a better end result.

(Image credit: Abigail Shannon)

Sure enough, without much fuss, the pitcher’s blades managed to pulverize the cubes into fine, icy grounds that were just perfect for a snow cone or daiquiri. The Triple Prep System’s volume output hit a peak of 96db during this part of the test (roughly equivalent to some power tools). While this level of noise is certainly not pleasant to be exposed to for too long, it is a good bit higher than the blender’s average which was closer to 87db.

As testing continued, the Triple Prep System continued to impress. After mixing up a hummus recipe in the food processor’s work bowl on the ‘dip’ preset and scraping the sides, I was treated to a creamy dip with zero unincorporated segments of chickpeas. Thicker blends sticking under the blades and on the edge of the container was a notable problem with the Nutribullet SmartSense that I found added extra time to making this simple, delicious recipe. Thankfully, the Triple Prep System avoids the same mistake.

Image 1 of 2

(Image credit: Abigail Shannon)Image 2 of 2

(Image credit: Abigail Shannon)

Next, I put its shred/slice disc to work on a block of cheese and found that it provided a result that was really consistent. However, the slight inconvenience of chopping the cheese small enough to fit through the narrow gap in the food processor’s lid might make this a less attractive option in the future.

The only real disappointment I experienced during testing was how the Triple Prep System performed making mayonnaise. The pitcher was obviously too large to properly blend a batch, so I opted to use the food processor work bowl instead. The issue is that – even when I doubled the usual recipe – the container was still far too spacious.

(Image credit: Abigail Shannon)

An alternative mayonnaise recipe written specifically for a Nutribullet suggested using a 18oz cup, but the Triple Prep System not only doesn’t include a container that small but doesn’t have any more compact attachments that would allow you to gradually drip oil into the emulsion as it’s blending. So, unless you’re anticipating mixing up an industrial-sized tub of mayo, it’s worth doing this recipe by hand or with an immersion blender.

Performance score: 4.5/5

Should you buy the Nutribullet Triple Prep System?Nutribullet Triple Prep System score card

Attribute

Notes

Score

Value

It’s far from the lowest-cost option when it comes to blenders. But given the breadth of tasks it can be used for, it’s very good value.

4/5

Design

Takes up more space than many blending solutions but attachments nest for storage. Build quality is very strong.

4.5/5

Performance

Excels in almost every test. Great for smoothies, hummus, and crushing ice. Struggles with small batches.

4.5/5

Buy it if

You want a complete food prep system

If you're in the market for a personal blender, jug blender, and food processor all in one, the Nutribullet Triple Prep System has you covered.

You’d like a blender with dishwasher-safe parts

Once you’re done blitzing up something tasty, you can just pop your pitcher, processor, or cup into the dishwasher. There’s no need to hang over the sink and wash them by hand.

You struggle with chopping or dicing

If your knife skills are lacking or you just want to save yourself some time and effort in the kitchen, the Nutribullet Triple Prep System is more than suited to stepping in as your sous chef.

Don't buy it if

You just need a blender for drink prep

If you’re not much of a home chef and solely see yourself using your blender for mixing up smoothies and shakes, the Triple Prep System is seriously overkill.

You’re on a super tight budget

At over $200, there are definitely lower-cost blenders you can opt for instead.

Nutribullet Triple Prep System: also consider

If you’re on the look-out for options that are similar to the Nutribullet Triple Prep System, here’s some alternatives worth considering:

Nutribullet SmartSense Blender Combo

If you need a powerful base and multiple blender cup sizes but don’t care for having a food processor, this is a slightly cheaper and more pared back alternative from the same brand.

Read our full Nutribullet SmartSense Blender Combo review

Breville the Fresh and Furious

If you’re a home cook but don’t see yourself batch blending too often, it probably makes more sense to opt for a jug blender that’s on the smaller side. While you don’t get travel cups with this blender, it has a variety of useful presets and is ideal for singletons or small families.

Read our full Breville the Fresh and Furious review

How I tested the Nutribullet Triple Prep System

Alongside my usual kitchen tasks, my testing involved using the Nutribullet Triple Prep System to make TechRadar’s standard test recipes.

Throughout this process, I assessed the effectiveness of both manual and preset blending. I used a decibel tracker to determine how loud the blender is during use and after each blend, I cleaned the blender attachments and accessories by hand.

Categories: Reviews

Xiaomi's shiny new open earbuds fix one massive problem with this kind of headphone design

TechRadar Reviews - Sun, 09/28/2025 - 05:00

Xiaomi OpenWear Stereo Pro: Two-minute review

“I can hear your music,” is something my mother used to tell me when I was young, worried that I’d damage my hearing by cranking my music too loud, and it’s something I’ve heard from multiple people since I started testing even the best open earbuds.

These safety-focused open-fit headphones don’t put the earbud in your ear but just outside it, letting you hear surrounding sounds – but until the Xiaomi OpenWear Stereo Pro came along, this also meant that people around you could hear the distant ring of your tunes too.

No more! Xiaomi’s sophomore open-ear offering fixes the problem, with a bespoke 10mm driver that’s designed to eradicate sound leakage, and does a decent job at stopping bystanders hearing your music. My local park was no longer regaled by early-morning Busted and Hansen sprints, which I’m sure the community was overjoyed with.

That driver’s just one of five nestled into each earbud, a surprising spec given that most earbuds have one and even top-end ones have only two or three, and you can see them arranged in a flower-like pattern on each bud. But my first-glance comparison between this layout and the look of the five-camera Nokia 9 PureView, which was the first smartphone to use this many rear sensors, continues further than I’d like. Just as that phone offered a packed spec-sheet that didn’t deliver as promising results in testing, the OpenWear Stereo Pro may have the hardware but can’t seem to make good on it to stand a cut above the rest.

For most of my testing, I listened on the default sound profile and the buds sounded awful, really tinny and compressed – luckily I discovered that changing to one of the other few audio presets clears up lots of my problems, adding depth and range, and I wish I hadn’t written most of this review before discovering that! Oh well, a few hours of rewrites gave me more time to review the buds.

That extra testing time didn’t give me extra insight on the design, which isn’t quite as robust or rigid as open-ears need to be for gym users. Doing exercises that don’t see me stand upright like sit-ups, skull-crushers or anything reclined saw gravity drag the buds away from my ears, though thankfully they were okay when running or cycling.

It’s in the feature set that Xiaomi goes some way in winning me over. I’ve already mentioned the sound leak suppression system but the company has also brought back an easily-toggled voice note recording system, which I’ve found really useful in quickly letting me leave reminders to myself.

Despite winning points back, though, the Stereo Pro level out as being ‘fine’ buds, instead of the solid ones they’d need to be to compete in this rapidly-growing and hotly contested market.

Xiaomi OpenWear Stereo Pro review: Price and release date

(Image credit: Future)

Available from September 24, 2025
Costs £139.99 (roughly $180, AU$280)
In line with most open-ears

The Xiaomi OpenWear Stereo Pro were announced in September 2025 at a launch event by the company, which also included the Xiaomi 15T smartphone, some new versions of existing wearables and a few other bits and pieces.

The earbuds cost £139.99 (roughly $180, AU$280). A US release is unlikely given precedent, and an Australian one is possible due to Xiaomi releasing some of its earbuds there, but not guaranteed.

That price puts the Stereo Pro in line with most other open-ears, which generally sit between £100 and £160 (or $/AU$ equivalent), though some of our favorite options sit at the lower end of that spectrum. More on that in the Competition section below.

Xiaomi OpenWear Stereo Pro review: Specs

Drivers

Tweeter + 2x balanced armatures + 18x13mm dynamic driver + 10mm driver

Active noise cancellation

Battery life (ANC off)

8.5 hours (buds) 45 hours (case)

Weight

9.7g (buds) 72g (case)

Connectivity

Bluetooth 5.4

Waterproofing

Xiaomi OpenWear Stereo Pro review: Features

(Image credit: Future)

Two useful features
Presets, but no equalizer
8.5 hours of listening per charge

Xiaomi puts the battery life of the OpenWear Stereo Pro at 8.5 hours for the buds, a figure which my own testing gave me no reason to doubt. The charging case bumps that up to 45 hours and both are slightly above average, the case figure to a commendable degree.

The Xiaomi Earbuds app for your phone or tablet gives you some extra control over your buds, with the ability to customise touch controls and jump between a few sound profiles (like EQ presets, but without there being an actual EQ). I’ll mention these in more detail later but it’s not quite as much as customization as other buds give you.

The flashy feature that’s designed to make the Stereo Pro stand out from the crowd is a driver which is designed to stop sound leaking. By ‘leaking’, I mean music from the buds that people around you can hear, which is both annoying for them and embarrassing for you (especially if your music taste is poor but trust me, we’re all judging you).

From my testing (and my partner’s, due to her being my guinea pig) the feature does a decent job at reducing sound leaking. It doesn’t totally remove it and sound leaking is still apparent, but it downplays open earbuds’ natural tendency to spread music around (due to the design). It’s most efficient in public areas where it brings your music just quiet enough to be drowned out by background noises.

Another feature present, that Xiaomi has ported over from its standard earbuds, is a recording mode. You can enable this with a gesture command, and it records audio from the buds or, apparently, a built-in speaker in the case.

It’s a useful feature for people who like to record their own voice notes on the go (let’s be honest: it’s a lot easier than using your phone’s notes app) but many countries have laws against recording unawares people, so you’ve been warned.

Throughout testing, I bumped up against a problem that seemed to be a connectivity one, rather than a sound one, though it did affect the audio. Now and then the buds would jump between tunings, from the usual one to an extra-compressed one and back again after a few seconds. There was no way of controlling or pre-empting this. I put it down to a connectivity issue because from time to time the buds would also lose connection for a few moments, a problem likely linked.

Features score: 4/5

Xiaomi OpenWear Stereo Pro review: Design

(Image credit: Future)

Very shiny earbuds
Comfortable to wear but unreliable hold
Hardy carry case

If you’re familiar with the look of open earbuds, the thing that’ll hit you about the Xiaomi OpenWear Stereo Pro is just how shiny they are. The counterweight and bud both come with a sheen so clean you can do your hair in them, making them look really rather premium. You can pick up the buds in gray, white or, like my test unit, rose gold.

And if we’re making judgements based on appearance, seeing the five drivers on the other side, complete with the text ‘5-driver sound system, designed by Xiaomi’ makes a loud statement about the buds’ audio quality.

Each bud weighs 9.7g, which is a little more than some rivals I’ve tested, but it doesn’t tell. They’re comfortable to wear for long gym sessions or trips, though when I wore them for my workout the bud would often move away from my ear if I leant down or lay down. I’ve found this problem in a few other open-ears and it seems to happen most when the material connecting the bud and counterweight is weak, and therefore unable to hold the bud rigidly.

The case is an oval clamshell that retains your color choice from the bud – and again, has a little ‘designed by Xiaomi’ in case you forget who made it (the name appears four times across the case and buds, not counting a little removable information sticker on the case).

Strong magnets grip the Stereo Pro when you put them in the case, so I never needed to fuss much about putting them in perfectly, which was handy when I wanted to sheathe the Xiaomi in a hurry. Features of the case include a USB-C charging port and pairing button but not much else.

Pre-release information provided to TechRadar didn’t mention an IP rating for the buds or case, so keep them safe from rain.

Design score: 3.5/5

Xiaomi OpenWear Stereo Pro review: Sound quality

Five drivers per bud
Default sound profile is bad
Low max volume

(Image credit: Future)

A glance at the Xiaomi OpenWear Stereo Pro’s specs list sets up high expectations for the buds’ audio chops, and that’s because each bud has a startling five drivers (most rivals have one).

There’s a tweeter for refining treble, dual balanced armatures aimed again at higher-frequency tones, an 18x13mm dynamic driver that’s targeted at bass and the aforementioned 10mm sound leak reducer. And if that overwhelming hardware list somehow doesn’t impress you, perhaps the support for Hi-Res Audio and LDAC, SBC and AAC codecs will.

After reading all those specs, seeing the five drivers individually presented on the earbuds in a distinct way, and setting up my expectations fittingly, I was pretty shocked to discover that the Stereo Pro don’t sound good at all. In fact, I wrote a pretty scathing review of the sound – and then connected the buds to the phone app (not available immediately because I had early access to my review sample), changed from the default sound profile and found most of my issues vanish. If you’ve just bought these buds, make this change straight away.

In their default sound profile, the Xiaomi OpenWear Stereo Pro sound tinny, compressing a multitude of instruments into one sound and losing the details from almost all of them. In rock songs instruments like rhythm guitar, accompaniment keys and backing vocals are muddled and drum lines and more prominent guitar lines are akin to sleigh bells for how jangling they sound. Reverb fills the space that a detailed soundstage should take up.

Changing from the default sound profile really widens instruments, as well as the soundstage (though if you’re a masochist, the in-app toggle to increase the dynamic range turns the tinniness up to 11). It doesn’t make audio sound great, but it brings it in line with other open-ears.

The drivers’ emphasis on higher-end audio helps vocals and guitar solos stand out, and while there’s sufficient bass it sounds ill-defined and loose unless you fix it in the equalizer. Most of the time, it turns songs into a wall of distorted sound in which you can’t make up the textural details. I can see some listeners being okay with this aspect of the buds, especially ones who like high-powered metal music, but bear in mind that if you try head-banging these buds are going to go flying.

The buds don’t even go very loud, so I sometimes struggled to hear music when I was nearby a road.

Sound quality: 3/5

Xiaomi OpenWear Stereo Pro review: Value

(Image credit: Future)

Your money could go further
…unless you want those features

As mentioned before, the Xiaomi OpenWear Stereo Pro sit around the average price of open earbuds, and also as mentioned, there’s lots of competition.

In fact, some of our favorite options are cheaper, making Xiaomi’s offering feel hard to recommend given that its performance also doesn’t match up.

The exception to this is whether or not the buds’ features sound enough to win you over, but for me, the sound quality is a sticking point.

Value: 3/5

Should I buy the Xiaomi OpenWear Stereo Pro?

(Image credit: Future)Xiaomi Openwear Stereo Pro score card

Attributes

Notes

Rating

Features

The decent battery life and useful extras make up for the wobbly connection.

4/5

Design

The buds are flashy and shiny with handy touch controls but the buds aren't held in place reliably.

3.5/5

Sound quality

The Stereo Pro gives unconvincing sound, even when you’ve turned off the poor default mode.

3/5

Value

There's bound to be something that works better within your budget... unless the features appeal to you.

3/5

Buy them if…

You're worried about sound leakage
The new anti-sound-leak driver reduces how much of your music people nearby can hear, so you don't have to feel ashamed when you listen to your guilty pleasures any more.

You take frequent voice notes
If you're the kind of person who likes to record their thoughts, either for voice memos or just to keep notes, the quick recording feature will be useful..

You want something flashy
Not literally flashy, but the Xiaomi's shiny design makes them stand out from the crowd.View Deal

Don’t buy them if…

You want refined audio
You've hopefully already read the sound quality section of this review. Suffice to say, the buds aren't for audiophiles.

You plan to mostly wear at the gym
I found the buds fit mostly well when I was walking, running and cycling, but gym workouts brought the fit problems when I'd bend over or lie down a lot.

Xiaomi Openwear Stereo Pro review: Also consider

Xiaomi Openwear Stereo Pro

Huawei FreeArc

Honor Earbuds Open

Technics EAH-AZ100

Drivers

Tweeter + 2x balanced armatures + 18x13mm dynamic driver + 10mm driver

17x12mm

16mm

17x12mm

Active noise cancellation

Yes

Battery life

8.5 hours (buds) 45 hours (case)

7 hours (buds) 28 hours (total)

6 hours (buds) 40 hours (total)

7.5 hours (buds) 38.5 hours (case)

Weight

9.7g / charging case: 72g

8.9g / charging case: 67g

7.9g / charging case: 52.5g

9.6g / charging case: 88g

Connectivity

Bluetooth 5.4

Bluetooth 5.2

Bluetooth 5.4

Waterproofing

IP57

IP54

Huawei FreeArc
Our top-rated open earbuds stand out from the crowd for sounding better than any of their rivals. They’re also solid in build and understated in design and, most importantly, undercut the Xiaomi (and most other rivals).

See our full X review

Honor Earbuds Open
Another open earbud that excels in the features department — and roughly matches the Xiaomi in terms of price — comes from Honor. However again the fit is better and the presence of noise cancellation works wonders.

See our full Honor Earbuds Open review

How I tested the Xiaomi OpenWear Stereo Pro

(Image credit: Future)

Tested for two weeks
Tested at home, in the office, on runs, at the gym and while cycling

I used the Xiaomi OpenWear Stereo Pro for two weeks before writing this review, which is the standard TechRadar testing time.

During the testing period I used the buds at home, on walks around my neighborhood, on runs, at the gym, while cycling and on busy public transport. I paired them to my Android smartphone and most of the testing was done on Spotify and Netflix.

I've been reviewing gadgets for TechRadar for nearly six years, which has included lots of Xiaomi gadgets in the past. For the last year I've been reviewing countless open earbuds, and so have a lot of experience in the area with which to compare the Xiaomis.

First reviewed in September 2025

Read TechRadar's reviews guarantee

Categories: Reviews

The Nutribullet SmartSense is an excellent, powerful blender, though its 'smart' mode feels unnecessary

TechRadar Reviews - Sat, 09/27/2025 - 12:00

Nutribullet SmartSense Blender Combo: one-minute review

Nutribullet is a brand most well known for its compact personal blenders which – while suited to blitzing up smoothies and protein shakes – aren’t exactly heavy duty pieces of culinary tech. But models like the Nutribullet SmartSense Blender Combo aim to up the power and functionality without compromising too much on simplicity or affordability.

By combining a full-sized pitcher with Nutribullet’s familiar single-serve cups, and adding a smart auto-cycle that adapts blending power on the fly, it aims to cover the needs of both speedy smoothie lovers and home chefs.

(Image credit: Abigail Shannon)

For the most part, it succeeds. Most everyday tasks are handled quickly and consistently. The SmartSense auto cycle is genuinely useful for hands-off blending and the 1,500W motor packs more punch than most people will ever need.

But all that isn’t without its caveats. The SmartSense Blender Combo struggles with thick or dry blends and requires you to intervene a couple of times during the blending process to ensure all the ingredients are within reach of the blades. You’ll also find that very small batches of dips don’t quite reach high up enough to get blended.

Nutribullet SmartSense Blender Combo: price and availability

List price: $164.99 / £149.99 / AU$299.95
Available in the US, UK, and Australia
Reasonable price for a two-in-one blender combo

In the US, UK, and Australia, the Nutribullet SmartSense Blender Combo is available to purchase on the Nutribullet site. and from third-party retailers like Amazon.

In terms of cost, the Nutribullet SmartSense Blender Combo sits on the mid/high end of the Nutribullet range. Understandably, you’re paying more than you would for a dinky personal blender, but it won’t quite set back as much as a top-of-the-line food processor/blender combo.

Similar models from other brands include the Cuisinart Velocity Ultra Trio

Value score: 4.5/5

Nutribullet SmartSense Blender Combo: specs

Price

$164.99 / £149.99 / AUS $299.95

Weight

9.81lbs / 4.45kg

Travel cup capacity

32oz / 900ml and 24oz / 700ml

Jug capacity

64oz / 1.8 liters

Blending speeds

Presets

Auto (SmartSense)

Nutribullet SmartSense Blender Combo: design

Five blending speeds and an auto mode
Pitcher with fixed blades and a vented lid
Travel cups with extractor blades

The Nutribullet SmartSense Blender Combo consists of a blender base which can either be attached to the included 64oz pitcher, 32oz travel cup, or 24oz handled travel cup. All three of these add-ons are made from BPA-free plastic, meaning you can enjoy the lightness and durability of the material without worrying about harmful chemicals leaching into your soups and smoothies.

The SmartSense Blender Combo box contents also included a tamper but during testing, I found that it offered very little in the way of practical help. A far more useful tool was a cheap silicone spatula I tend to use while baking. It had the flexibility necessary to scrap the edges of the blender jug, but didn’t tend to get ingredients stuck to it like tamper did.

(Image credit: Abigail Shannon)

Like the rest of the build, the attachments of the SmartSense Blender Combo are sturdy enough to inspire confidence. The only real concern I’d have is the possibility of stains or scratches developing after long-term use, but even this would just be a superficial complaint. Not to mention, a good thorough clean after every use helps to prevent this. Thankfully, attachments for the SmartSense are dishwasher-safe so this task is a little easier.

Blending with the travel cups is done with a separate extractor blade but in the case of the pitcher attachment, the blade is sealed into the base. This means that, when you’re hand-washing your blender (which those of us without dishwashers are cursed to do) it’s a little difficult to clean. Without being able to pop the blade out and wipe it down, it’s best to blitz some warm water and soap in the pitcher to loosen some of the debris that tends to get stuck underneath. This isn’t a dealbreaker, but it definitely adds an awkward extra step to maintaining the machine.

(Image credit: Abigail Shannon)

One great thing about the pitcher’s design is that its lid has a vent which allows you to add ingredients mid-blend and – crucially – allows for steam to escape when making hot recipes. I’ll admit that throughout my years in the kitchen, I’ve occasionally taken my chances blending hot sauces and soups against manufacturers’ instructions. To try to reduce steam production and the chances of the lid blowing off from the pressure, I’d let everything cool down a bit before pouring it in. But even with these attempts to mitigate risk, the likelihood of getting scalded (or at the very least making a mess of your kitchen) means that blending hot food in an unvented blender is a terrible idea. A tiny gap in the lid makes a big difference when it comes to making this blender an even more versatile piece of kitchen kit.

Controls on the motor base are exceedingly simple to navigate. There’s an on/off button, which – alongside powering the machine on and off – also prompts the appearance of rather cute “hello” and “goodbye” messages on the base’s LED screen. The plus and minus buttons are used to adjust between the 5 power settings, but you can skip all that by using the Auto button that activates the load-sensing setting and estimates the right blending speed and time for you.

Design score: 4.5/5

Nutribullet SmartSense Blender Combo: performance

Makes stellar smoothies with virtually no nasty bits
Crushes ice (with some assistance from you)
Dry blends were a disappointment

Coming in at 1500W, the Nutribullet SmartSense Blender Combo should have more than enough power to handle most jobs. Testing started with a smoothie recipe from the Nutribullet site consisting of blueberries, milk, banana, and kale.

Fibrous green veg really puts blenders through their paces, so it’s a great way to reveal just how well it performs. Frozen kale tends to produce fewer gritty chunks than its non-frozen counterpart, but it turns out it’s oddly difficult to find pre-frozen kale in the UK, so I just proceeded with the fresh version instead.

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(Image credit: Abigail Shannon)

Thankfully, the power of the Nutribullet SmartSense Blender managed to blitz away any unpleasant texture to produce a smooth, thick end result. Despite my expectations, the kale didn’t pose any problem for the SmartSense.

In fact, the only inconsistencies that were left after blending were the tiny seeds from the blueberries. Personally, this isn’t the kind of textural inconsistency that gives me the ick but even if it was, it seems a tad unfair to expect a blender under $200 to have the seed-pulverizing powers of something like a Vitamix A3500.

The SmartSense Blender Combo also makes light work of crushing ice cubes, on the condition you scrape the ice from the sides midway through. The blades certainly don’t have any difficulty slicing through rock solid chunks of ice (and in fact, the machine doesn’t even go past 95db while doing it) but the structure of the pitcher means that the ice tends to pool around the edges before it’s done being crushed. The good news is after a little intervention, you should be able to rustle up your own daiquiris or frappuccinos at home no problem.

(Image credit: Abigail Shannon)

Despite delivering a pretty stellar performance in the realm of drinkable delights, the next hurdles for the Nutribullet SmartSense Blender really exposed the machine’s weak points. One of the fatal flaws of the SmartSense Blender Combo is the placement of the pitcher’s fixed blades. They sit just a little too high and don’t cover enough surface area across the pitcher’s bottom so it’s frustratingly easy for ingredients to escape the blender’s vortex.

During the hummus-making phase of testing, I found that the machine consistently created a tasty, well-incorporated dip. However, achieving that result required me to intervene two or three times to redistribute the ingredients and make sure none of my chickpea mixture avoided blending.

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(Image credit: Abigail Shannon)

This blade placement problem majorly impacted my ability to make mayonnaise with the blender too. Due to the sheer size of the pitcher, I found I had to double a normal batch in order to have my yolk/vinegar/mustard emulsion even touch the blades at all.

Even then, I couldn’t maintain a consistent enough vortex to create a satisfying result. If you’re truly set on making mayonnaise with the SmartSense Blender Combo, the best way to do it is to mix up your emulsion by hand and then put it back into the blender for the step where you gradually incorporate oil.

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(Image credit: Abigail Shannon)

One other very notable development during my tests is just how redundant the Auto function felt. While the SmartSense name definitely provides a fancy selling point, I found that I actually didn’t appreciate the automation of the blending process. It’s not like the SmartSense Auto blending ever got things too far wrong but rather I preferred to keep my eye on what I was working on and adjust the power as needed.

I can definitely see the appeal of this for folks who find their attention pulled by kids or pets while in the kitchen, but the removal of control actually made things less convenient in my experience, so I mostly opted for the manual options.

Performance score: 3/5

Should you buy the Nutribullet SmartSense Blender Combo?Buy it if

You want a blender for drink and food prep

Thanks to the varied attachments and vented pitcher lid, the Nutribullet SmartSense Blender Combo is well suited for whipping up smoothies, shakes, sauces, and soups.

You need a blender with dishwasher-safe parts

If you want to avoid the tedium of washing your blender by hand, you can with the SmartSense Blender Combo.

You’d like a large-capacity blender

The pitcher included with the SmartSense Blender Combo is a hefty 64oz, making it ideal for batch blending multiple servings to enjoy with your family or by yourself over the course of the week.

Don't buy it if

You’re big on dips, butters, and doughs

The SmartSense Blender Combo works best with recipes that contain a decent bit of liquid. If you’re using it to mix up something like peanut butter, you’ll notice that this isn’t its strong point.

You need a personal blender

If you see yourself ever only using your blender for making small servings of smoothies, the SmartSense Blender Combo is a tad OTT.

Nutribullet SmartSense Blender Combo: also consider

If you’re on the look-out for options that are similar to the Nutribullet SmartSense Blender Combo, here’s some alternatives worth considering:

Braun Tri-Force / PowerBlend 9

This jug-style blender sports a slightly higher price tag than the SmartSense Blender Combo, but it’s ranked as our best blender for a reason. It’s super efficient and its unique triangular design prevents the kind of frustrating side stickage seen with the SmartSense. The Tri-Force’s presets also have the kind of true ‘hands-off’ experience you’d expect from an auto mode.

Read our full Braun Tri-Force / PowerBlend 9 review

Nutribullet Triple Prep System

This 3-in-1 bullet blender/jug blender/food processor combo system is a bit of an upgrade from the SmartSense. If you see yourself using your Nutribullet for preparing food just as often (if not more often) than you use it for creating drinks, consider the Triple Prep System instead.

How I tested the Nutribullet SmartSense Blender Combo

Alongside using it for some of my usual kitchen tasks, I put the Nutribullet SmartSense Blender Combo through its paces with TechRadar’s usual test recipes. During my tests, I alternated between using the Auto and manual speed controls to determine the best approach for each recipe. I used a decibel tracker to determine how loud the blender is during use. After each blend, I cleaned the blender attachments and accessories by hand.

Categories: Reviews

I spent weeks testing the Klipsch Flexus Core 300 soundbar, and its built-in Dirac Live room correction is a game-changer

TechRadar Reviews - Sat, 09/27/2025 - 06:00

Klipsch Flexus Core 300 Soundbar: One minute review

Klipsch Flexus Core 300 soundbar with optional Flexus SURR 200 rear speakers and Flexus SUB 200 subwoofer (Image credit: Future)

The Klipsch Flexus Core 300 isn’t the cheapest Dolby Atmos soundbar you can buy, but those who can afford it will find it matches the best Dolby Atmos soundbars on just about every level.

Now, it might not be the best soundbar for everyone. Aside from the big price tag, it’s also physically big. But it does everything else right. It has all the ports one could want, and it has all the features you’d expect to see in the best soundbars. Most importantly, it sounds really good. And once you set it up with the Dirac Live feature, the sound quality goes from really good to great. It’s that last bit that really puts it over the edge for me.

If you’re looking for a soundbar system that gives a true theater experience at home, the Klipsch Flexus Core 300 is more than capable, and the experience gets even more immersive when you add the accompanying surround speakers and subwoofer.

Klipsch Flexus Core 300 review: Price & release date

Klipsch Flexus Core 300 system packaging (Image credit: Future)

Price: $1,199.99 / £1,049.00 (about AU$1,830)
First available: September 2025

The Klipsch Flexus Core 300 soundbar system reviewed here is anything but cheap. In fact,the Core 300 soundbar, with the Sub 200 subwoofer, and Surr 200 surround speakers that I tested will set you back an eye-wateringly high $2,299.97 / £1,827 (about AU$3,500).

Individually, the Core 300 soundbar goes for $1,199.99 / £1,049.00 (about AU$1,830), while the Sub 200 subwoofer is $599.99 / £419.00 (about AU$910) and the Surr 200 surround sound speakers are $499.99 / £359.00 (about AU$760) per pair. There are cheaper versions available of the subwoofer and surround speakers, so you can get away with a lower system cost, but you won’t have the same experience.

Also. Aussies will have to sit this one out (at least at the time of writing).

Klipsch Flexus Core 300 review: Specs

Dimensions (W x H x D)

soundbar: 54 x 3 x 5 inch / 1371 x 76.2 x 127mm; subwoofer: 15.25 x 15.25 x 15.25 inches (387 x 387 x 387mm); surround speaker: 4.1 x 8.75 x 4.31 inches 105 x 222.25 x 109.5mm

Speaker channels

5.1.2 (soundbar), 7.1.4 (with sub and surround speakers)

Connections:

HDMI 2.1 passthrough, HDMI eARC, USB-C, optical digital, subwoofer output, Bluetooth

Dolby Atmos/DTS:X

Yes/Yes

Sub included

Available separately

Rear speakers included

Available separately

Features

4K 120Hz passthrough, Dirac Live room calibration, AirPlay, Google Cast, Google Home support

Klipsch Flexus Core 300 review: Features

The Klipsch Flexus Core 300 soundbar and the optional wireless sub and rear speakers uses wireless dongles to transmit and receive audio signals (Image credit: Future)

Dolby Atmos and DTS:X support
Night and dialog
Can adjust the volume of individual speakers

As you would expect from its price, the Klipsch Flexus Core 300 is feature-filled. It supports both Dolby Atmos and DTS:X, and you can add an optional subwoofer (or two subwoofers since dual subs are supported) and wireless surround speakers for a full surround sound experience. On top of that, it has built-in Dirac Live, a calibration software that minimizes the effects of room reflections on the sound.

The Flexus Core 300 features movie and music modes, along with a night mode that compresses the audio dynamic range for late-night viewing. A dialog mode offers three different levels to emphasize the specific part of the mid-range where dialog sits. This is a bit more subtle than what I’ve found on other soundbars, but still effective.

In the app, there are quite a few additional options for fine-tuning the sound. There’s a three-band EQ, and you can adjust the individual volume of each channel if you feel like something is out of balance. The only thing missing, surprisingly, is any kind of voice assistant support – a feature typically found on the more expensive soundbars.

WiFi streaming supports Spotify Connect, Tidal Connect, AirPlay, and Google Cast. Google Home is the only supported smart home ecosystem.

Features score: 5 / 5

Klipsch Flexus Core 300 review: Performance

Both the Klipsch Flexus Core 300 soundbar and SUB 200 subwoofer are large compared to most soundbar systems (Image credit: Future)

Basic sound quality is very good
Dirac Live elevates sound clarity
Immersive soundstage

There are two experiences when listening to the Klipsch Flexus Core 300: with and without Dirac Live. Without it, the soundbar sounds very good. Action movies like The Workman have that oomph you expect from a movie theater experience, where you can just feel the subwoofer. Whether it’s a sound effect of someone getting punched or the low notes in the score that add a sense of foreboding, the sound has an impressive sense of weight to it.

The treble is as good as you would expect from a soundbar this pricey as well, with synths, flutes, and windchimes sounding crisp with no loss of detail.

The mid-range is what suffers the most without Dirac Live as it sounds a bit overstuffed without adjustments and dialogue can get lost just a little bit. You can offset with a three-band EQ that provides a 6 dB boost or cut, and changes to the EQ, even with presets active, are noticeable.

But, the real solution is to use Dirac Live (which I describe below in the usability and setup section). Once you’ve gone through the Dirac Live setup, the soundbar will create a custom EQ profile to adjust for the reflections of soundwaves bouncing around your media room, and the difference is stark. Dirac Live makes this soundbar go from good to amazing, with everything sounding clean, especially in the mid-range.

I watched The Batman, the first episode of The Residence, and an Eagles vs Cowboys football game, along with plenty of music during my testing. No matter how complex the soundtrack or music was, I could hear everything with precision. That alone justifies the Flexus Core 300’s price. Other room calibration systems I’ve tried can be very good, but this one is great.

I also experienced immersive sound when testing the surround sound speakers, even when they were not as widely placed as they should be. For the most part, their presentation was subtle; I would almost not realize that there was audio coming through them until I paid attention and realized that I was hearing the sound of wind.

Performance score: 5 / 5

Klipsch Flexus Core 300 review: Design

The Klipsch Flexus Core 300 has a bright alphanumeric LED display for control feedback (Image credit: Future)

Modern, elegant look
Large soundbar and subwoofer
Extensive ports

While the Klipsch Flexus Core 300 comes in basic black, there’s something about its look that’s more elegant than a lot of the competition. (A walnut version is also available.) The soundbar and subwoofer both have wood grain showing through the black (not so for the surround sound speakers), and a silver Klipsch logo is featured prominently on each unit.

Now, don’t mistake that elegance for compact. This isn’t Apple. The Klipsch Flexus Core 300 soundbar is 54 inches wide, and the SUB 200 subwoofer is a 15-inch cube. The SURR 200 surround speakers are just under nine inches tall and a bit over four inches wide and deep. If you’re limited on space, this is not the system for you.

Focusing on just the soundbar, I really appreciate that the Klipsch Flexus Core 300 has an alphanumeric LED display that’s bright and sizable enough that it’s easy to read.

As far as controls go, most of the functionality is either on the remote or in the app. The soundbar itself just has power, input, and volume up and down buttons situated off-center on top.

The Flexus Core 300 comes with just about everything portone could ask for, including but not limited to multiple HDMI ports featuring eARC and 4K 120Hz passthrough, along with an optical digital input and RCA subwoofer output. Of course, there’s Bluetooth as well.

Most of your interaction with the soundbar will probably be through the remote. While I wish it was rechargeable instead of using AAA batteries, that’s really the only criticism I can throw at it. It feels good to hold with its rounded back, and the layout allows you to adjust most functions without having to use the app, including switching sound modes and adjusting the volume of the surround speakers and subwoofer.

Design score: 4.5 / 5

Klipsch Flexus Core 300 review: Setup & usability

Klipsch's control app lets you adjust all system functions and is also used for Dirac Live calibration (Image credit: Future)

Generally easy to set up
Sub and surround speakers use wireless dongles
Dirac Live calibration requires silence

Klipsch packs the soundbar, subwoofer, and surround speakers with their own manual, and setting them up is a fairly straightforward process, though not exactly plug-and-play. I’ve set up a few soundbar systems with wireless connections before, and those typically get paired right out of the box. Here, both the subwoofer and surround sound speakers come with their own wireless dongle that needs to be plugged into the soundbar before pairing.

Considering that the sub and surround speakers are separate purchases, that makes sense. But it’s an additional step, and you have to press the pairing button on each external speaker and wait for the soundbar to connect.

If you want to get the most functionality out of Klipsch’s system, you also need to set up the app. This part was easy – all I had to do was connect it to Wi-Fi and answer some personalization questions.

The only thing I found a little difficult was setting up the Dirac Live calibration, which is finicky compared to other automatic calibration systems I’ve used. But then again, Dirac Live is the standard that audiophiles use for room correction.

The soundbar comes with a wired microphone that gets placed around the sitting area, and the calibration process requires complete silence. If a pet passes by or someone calls out during the ten-minute Dirac Live calibration, or if the air conditioner is too loud, then the test will fail and need to be run again.

Setup & usability score: 4.5 / 5

Klipsch Flexus Core 300 review: Value

Klipsch's SURR 200 rear speakers are easy to setup and deliver immersive surround sound (Image credit: Future)

Expensive compared to other premium soundbars
Other premium systems not as well designed
Competition doesn’t support Dirac Live

As great as the Klipsch Flexus Core 300 Soundbar System is, it’s expensive compared to the competition. That’s especially true if you compare the system to premium models from large manufacturers like Samsung and LG, and not boutique audiophile brands that typically go for even more money.

As far as specific examples go, the LG S95AR is an impressive soundbar system in its own right – I gave it a very favorable review – and comes with surround speakers and a subwoofer without requiring an extra purchase. Its price tag of $1,699.99 (about £1,260 / AUD$2,610) might seem higher than the Flexus Core 300’s price tag of $1,199.99 / £1,049.00 / AU$1,695, but it’s actually a good deal when you consider it’s a complete package. The Klipsch is more aesthetically pleasing and sounds better, but both are quality systems.

The Samsung HW-Q990F, which retails for $1,799 / £1,699 / AU$1,995. Is a feature-filled 11.1.4 system that also makes the Klipsch Flexus Core 300 Soundbar System feel overpriced. Again, there’s a difference in aesthetics and the Samsung (along with the LG) doesn’t support Dirac Live room calibration, although they do provide their own proprietary calibrations.

Value score: 4 / 5

Should I buy the Klipsch Flexus Core 300?

Section

Notes

Score

Features

Dolby Atmos, DTS:X, Night and Dialog mode are all here along with Dirac Live room EQ

5 / 5

Performance

Very good immersion and basic sound quality that is strongly enhanced by Dirac Live

5 / 5

Design

Classy looking and with an LED display, but large for a soundbar

4.5 / 5

Setup & usability

Relatively easy to set up, though Dirac Live calibration can be finicky if you don’t have complete silence

4.5 / 5

Value

As great as this soundbar system is, it’s among the more expensive options

4 / 5

Buy it if...

You want a true home theater experience
This system is probably the closest you can get to a home theater experience with a soundbar. It not only sounds good, but you can feel it.

You want great sound, no matter the room
With Dirac Live, you’ll get clear, balanced sound even if you’re putting the soundbar in a less-than-ideal room

You want all the features
Whether it’s Dolby Atmos, room calibration via Dirac Live, or HDMI passthrough with 4K 120Hz support, you’ll find it here.

Don't buy it if...

You have a small space
This is a big system, and the sound will overwhelm smaller spaces. If you have a cramped or small media room, there are other, much less expensive options that will give you a good experience.

You want a smart home system other than Google
Google Home is the only smart home ecosystem the soundbar supports. Considering that many people use Alexa or Apple HomeKit instead, the limited support is, well, limiting.

Klipsch Flexus Core 300 review: Also consider

Klipsch Flexus Core 300

Samsung HW-Q990F

LG S95AR

Sonos Arc Ultra

Price

$1,199.99 / £1,049.00 (about AU$1,830)

$1,999 / £1,699 / AU$2,099

$1,699.99 (about £1,260 / AU$2,610)

$999 / £999 / AU$1,799

Dimensions (w x h x d)

Soundbar: 54 x 3 x 5 inch / 1371 x 76.2 x 127mm; subwoofer: 15.25 x 15.25 x 15.25 inches (387 x 387 x 387mm); surround speaker: 4.1 x 8.75 x 4.31 inches 105 x 222.25 x 109.5mm

Soundbar: 1232 x 70.8 x 138 mm (48.5 x 2.8 x 5.4 inch); Subwoofer: 249 x 251.8 x 249 mm (9.8 x 10.0 x 9.8 inch); Rear speaker: 129.5 x 201.3 x140.4 mm (5.1 x 8.0 x 5.5 inch)

Soundbar: 49.2 x 2.5 x 5.3 in (1250 x 63.5 x 134.6mm); subwoofer: 7.9 x 16 x 15.9 in (200 x 406 x 404mm); rear speakers: 6.3 x 8.8 x 5.6 in (160 x 223.5 x 142mm)

2.95 x 46.38 x 4.35 inches (75 x 1178 x 110.6mm)

Speaker channels

5.1.2 (soundbar), 7.1.4 (with sub and surround speakers)

11.1.4

9.1.5

9.1.4

Connections

HDMI 2.1 passthrough, HDMI eARC, USB-C, optical digital, subwoofer output, Bluetooth

1x HDMI out (with eARC), 2x HDMI 2.1 in, optical digital audio, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth

2x HDMI (1 with eARC), optical, digital, Bluetooth, USB type-A

1x HDMI with eARC, Ethernet, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth

Dolby Atmos/DTS:X

Yes/Yes

Yes/No

Samsung HW-Q990F

If you want a powerful, all-encompassing surround sound and Dolby Atmos-equipped soundbar, the Samsung HW-Q990F has about as much going for it as the LG S95AR. Like the LG soundbar, it’s also a bit pricey and has an obscured LED display.

Read our full Samsung HW-Q990F review

LG S95AR

The LG S95AR is a premium surround sound system that sounds great and has a whole list of features, including some that only work with LG TVs (and therefore you won’t find with other soundbar systems). It is a minor update from its predecessor, and expensive, though not nearly as pricey as the Klipsch.

Read our full LG S95AR review

Sonos Arc Ultra

Sonos’ flagship 9.1.4-channel soundbar is less pricey and more compact than the Klipsch, and it can also be extended with the company’s wireless subwoofers and surround speakers. Unlike the Klipsch, there is no HDMI passthrough or DTS support, and the design of the Sonos app prioritizes multiroom music streaming over soundbar functionality.

Read our full Sonos Arc Ultra review

How I tested the Klipsch Flexus Core 300 Soundbar

(Image credit: Future)

I used the Klipsch Flexus Core 300 Soundbar system for several weeks
Tested with TV, movies, games, and music

I used the Klipsch Flexus Core 300 Soundbar System regularly for several weeks with TV, movies, games, and music. I tested the different modes and inputs, and I spent a lot of time with the Dirac Live calibration.

I’ve tested plenty of tech gear over the years ,from laptops to keyboards and speakers, and so have been able to use my expertise towards giving an honest and fair opinion, not to mention a critical eye, to any product I test.

I tested one of the most popular laptops cooling pads, and it’s the first ever to outright flunk our chilling test

TechRadar Reviews - Sat, 09/27/2025 - 06:00

Klim Mistral: review

The Klim Mistral is a mid-market laptop cooling pad that has proven particularly popular on online retailers such as Amazon. While it had an original list price of $86.97 / £74.97, shop around and you can pick it up for less, with even Klim selling it direct for $69.97 / £59.97. This seems a pretty decent outlay, especially given it rocks pretty hardcore 4500rpm fans. But how did it perform in practice?

First off, I was pleasantly surprised by its aesthetics. As I remarked in my Klim Wind review, I wasn’t all that enamored by the look of that cooling pad – I still stand by my assessment that it looks like a "cyber-goth butterfly". By contrast, the Mistral is more mature-looking, dropping some of that edgy gamer styling for a cleaner silhouette and a five-color LED light strip – although the latter is cheaper-looking than some, clearly just showing 10 separate RGB LEDs.

There are also plenty of design touches that would imply it offers more professional cooling. For example, it comes with a rubber seal around its rim that will create a high-pressure area designed to force cooling air into your laptop's fans, maximizing their effectiveness. In addition, Klim has supplied heat shields to redirect air flow should your laptop also vent from the rear as well as from beneath; our testing Acer Predator Helios 300 laptop with an Nvidia GeForce RTX 3080 GPU sits firmly in this camp, so I dutifully applied them.

When it comes to ergonomics, the Mistral offers a good range of height settings, offering six in total. The top 29-degree angle is too steep to use the keyboard comfortably, but spot-on if you’re just using the screen, while the lower 19-degree angle felt comfortable for long typing sessions. Conversely, I found the placement of the laptop rests to be a bit uncomfortable – they’re easy to adjust to the height of your laptop, but since they stick up above the lip of the wrist rest, I found they dug into my wrists. However, I find this is a problem with a majority of cooling pads.

So it’s safe to say that after experiencing this mindful design, my expectations of the cooling the Mistral would offer was quietly optimistic – or maybe even loudly optimistic, once I’d seen those two enormous 4500rpm fans built-in. Unfortunately, my hopes were dashed more thoroughly than a college student’s AI-written dissertation.

(Image credit: Future)

As always, I tested the Klim Mistral’s cooling capacity by running a 3DMark Steel Nomad stress test on our testing laptop for 15 minutes with the cooling pad on max power, measuring the device’s temperature before and after. During the test, our laptop rose from 77ºF / 25ºC to 113.9ºF / 45.5ºC, a whopping 36.9ºF / 20.5ºC – for context, we’ve only had one cooling pad perform worse, the $29.99 / £29.77 TopMate C12 Laptop Cooling Pad, which presided over a rise of 41ºF / 22.8ºC. That’s significantly below what I’d expect from a cooling pad at this price.

In fact, I was so baffled that I did something I never do: I gave the Mistral a second chance. I re-ran the test later in the day, in the event that user error had somehow contributed to this poor performance. Ensuring the laptop was sat firmly on top of the seal, I found the results were certainly different – but not in the way I’d hoped. This time, the laptop’s core temperature rose a ludicrous 54.9ºF / 30.5ºC. Given our baseline stress test for our laptop only saw it rise 57.4ºF / 31.9ºC, this would mean the cooling pad shaved off only 2.5ºF / 1.4ºC, which is negligible enough not to be worth the trouble.

Trying to give Klim the benefit of the doubt here, it does warn heavily on its website that only certain types of laptop will work properly with the Mistral. Your computer will need to be between 15 and 17 inches and feature downward ventilation – but our testing laptop did meet both these criteria. I have also seen several online user reviews mention that the design of their laptop meant there were still small gaps around the rubber seal, negating the high-pressure effect intended.

Still, even if the Mistral's poor performance is down to the fact our laptop isn’t the perfect fit for its design, most of the other cooling pads I’ve tested have functioned regardless of the shape of our testing device. Sure, it’s perfectly possible that the Klim Mistral will send a chill through your laptop more icy and severe than your second-grade teacher – but do you really want to roll the dice on that?

(Image credit: Future)

Another thing that Klim warns about on its site is that its supposedly high-performance design can result in a lot more noise. If I’m honest, it didn’t really strike me as much of an outlier here: measuring the combined noise output of the cooling pad and our laptop 10 minutes into our test, it clocked 61dB from a few inches away and 51dB at my head height. That’s pretty much par for the course for medium to high-end cooling pads, so it wasn't really a concern. If you're a bit more noise-sensitive though, you may find your mileage here varies.

Ultimately, I feel like the Klim Mistral’s build and price write checks that its cooling can’t quite cash. Yes, I’ll accept that it might achieve better results if you have the exact design of laptop – but is that something you should really have to take a punt on when spending $69.97 / £59.97? Fundamentally, other options on our list of the best laptop cooling pads offer more predictable performance, whether you’re spending this kind of money or much less.

(Image credit: Future)Should I buy the Klim Mistral?Buy it if...

You need flexible, ergonomic design
Offering six height settings, the Klim Mistral is easy to adjust to the most comfortable angle needed for any given task.

You want mature looks
Unlike its edgelord-y stablemate, the Klim Wind, the Mistral has far more restrained looks, offering a cleaner outline and some five-color LED lighting.

Don't buy it if...

You don’t want to gamble with your cooling
Fundamentally, I couldn't get the Klim Mistral to perform as it should. If that’s even remotely a risk you don’t want to take, I’d look elsewhere.

You prefer quiet
Given its 4500rpm fans, the Klim Mistral isn’t excessively loud, but nor is it exactly demure. If you don’t want to annoy your room-mates or colleagues, we'd steer clear.

Klim Mistral review: also consider

Llano RGB Laptop Cooling Pad
For me, this represents the crème de la crème of laptop cooling pads. Sure, it sounds like a hyperventilating vacuum cleaner, but it offers the most effective chilling of any of the products I’ve reviewed. In tests, it only let our laptop’s temperature rise by 14.4ºF / 8ºC – and looked fantastic while doing it, oozing restrained, RGB-lit style. The only real caveat is the price: at $119.99 / £129.99, it costs a pretty penny. Read my full Llano RGB Laptop Cooling Pad review.

Llano V10 Gaming Laptop Cooling Pad
If you want a cooling pad more in line with the price of the Mistral, the V10 Gaming Laptop Cooling Pad is definitely closer at $89.99 / £116.26. Despite this, it still offers vastly superior cooling to the Mistral, trimming our laptop’s heat rise to just 21.6ºF / 12ºC, making it a decent way to cool your computer without having to step up to the full price of the Llano RGB above. Read my full Llano V10 Gaming Laptop Cooling Pad review.

(Image credit: Future)How I tested the Klim Mistral

Used it over the course of several days
Measured the heat rise of a laptop with the pad on maximum settings
Recorded how much noise it made two-thirds of the way through our stress test

To put the Klim Mistral through its paces, I followed TechRadar’s standard testing procedure. Running a 3DMark Steel Nomad stress test for 15 minutes on our Acer Predator Helios 300 laptop with an Nvidia GeForce RTX 3080 GPU, I set the Mistral on its maximum cooling and measured our laptop’s temperature before and after using a thermal camera. I then compared this to the benchmarks recorded from every laptop cooling pad test we’ve run to date.

In addition, I recorded the combined noise output of the cooling pad’s and our testing laptop’s built-in fans. To do this, I used a sound level meter to measure their volume 10 minutes into the test, recording it both from a few inches away and at my head height (21 inches away). This allowed me to get a sense of both an objective volume, as well as the subjective amount of noise you’re likely to experience in use.

Finally, I made sure I used the Klim Mistral in a variety of scenarios to get a sense of its ergonomics and how comfortable it was in use. I did this by using it to play multiple games and by using it for some of my daily work, so I could build up a meaningful impression of how it works in practice. I bring plenty of experience to this table: not only have I been covering gadgets for many years, but I’m also a creative and gamer, which means I have a lot of experience of pushing my laptops to their limits.

First reviewed: September 2025
Read more about how we test

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