TechRadar Reviews

Fujifilm Instax Wide Evo: Two-minute review

The Fujifilm Instax Wide Evo is instantly striking with its retro design and ultra-wide body. If you're after the best instant camera for hybrid photography (i.e. the ability to print film images taken directly on the camera or sent from your smartphone) and prefer to shoot on wide format prints, then this really looks like it's the model for you.

Although it doesn't come cheap, the Instax Wide Evo is very much the step-up from Fujifilm's other Instax hybrid, the Mini Evo, that was launched in 2021, offering most of the same great features, including an LCD display screen, 10 lens and 10 film effects that make 100 different creative combinations, and a microSD card slot, along with a few more new additions that I'll break down below.

(Image credit: Future)

A wider film print means this instant camera is a bit on the larger side, but it makes use of the extra real-estate by adding more physical buttons that let you quickly change settings. These include a dedicated wide angle button that lets you switch to a more standard field of view (FoV) if you don't want that cinematic look.

Speaking of, you can also switch between six different film styles, one of which puts black bars to give your pictures that IMAX feeling, using a button on top of the camera. There's also a dial on the left side of the camera to cycle through the 10 different lens effects, with another dial on the opposite right side to switch between the 10 different film effects. My favorite, though, is the crank that lets you manually print a picture by winding it, which is a nice design nod to the crank for winding back film on the best film cameras.

So it's a full five stars for all the creative photo editing options it offers, but what about the Instax Evo Wide's image quality? It's by no means as rich or dynamic as an analog instant camera can produce. Instead the picture quality of the physical print outs is more in line with what you'd expect from your phone's smartphone camera. Of course, the digital copies of these images when compared to those taken your phone can't compete.

The Instax Evo Wide will by no means replace your dedicated digital camera – and if you love the 'magic' of purely analog instant film cameras, then this might not be right for you either as your images will always be digital first – but it is a perfect piece of extra gear if you want to be creative with your photography and experiment with a larger field of view.

Fujifilm Instax Wide Evo: Price and availability

There's a dedicated button at the top of the camera for switching between six different film styles. (Image credit: Future)

The Fujifilm Instax Wide Evo was launched on January 21, 2025 with a price tag of $349.95 / £319.99 / AU$599.

That makes the Fujifilm Instax Wide Evo one of the the priciest instant cameras of its kind, says TechRadar's cameras editor, Timothy Coleman. Indeed, for comparison's sake, the only other Instax camera that takes wide-format instant film prints is the Instax Wide 400 and that sets you back $149.99 / £129.99 / AU$229.99.

The Wide Evo is also almost double the price of Fujifilm's other Instax hybrid too, the Fujifilm Instax Mini Evo, which retails for $199.99 / £174.99 / AU$299.99. Does the extra cost account for the more premium, larger features in the step-up model? As the brand's first wide format hybrid camera (and second hybrid camera overall), the Wide Evo does offer a premium package, which it's not great on value.

There's also optional accessories available for the Evo Wide, including a leather case that costs $49.95 in the US and £37.99 in the UK. Although optional, this might be a necessary additional cost to make sure to protect the LCD display screen (if this gets too scratched up, then you won't be able to take let alone see your photos).

Fujifilm Instax Wide Evo: Specs

Film Type:

Fujifilm Instax Wide film

Print size:

62mm x 99mm

Focus range:

f = 16 mm (35 mm equivalent)

Aperture:

f 2.4

Shutter Speed

Automatic switching, 1/4 to 1/8,000 seconds

Power:

Internal lithium ion rechargeable

Charging time:

2–3 hours

Dimensions:

138.7 mm x 125 mm x 62.8 mm (excluding protruding parts)

Weight:

490g

Fujifilm Instax Wide Evo: Design

The left dial on the Instax Wide Evo is for switching between the 10 different lens effects. (Image credit: Future)

• A hybrid instant camera that can print directly or from your catalog of shots, stored on Micro SD
• Plenty of dials and switches to select various film effects
• Includes a mirror and switch to take selfies

When rumors started to circle about the Instax Wide Evo, there was talk that it would be "regarded as the best-looking Instax camera ever made" and that caught a lot of enthusiast's attention, including TechRadar's senior news editor Mark Wilson who said off the back of it that the "Instax Wide Evo sounded like my dream instant camera".

Now that the camera is out in the wild, we can officially say that it's a stunning piece of equipment. It has a relatively slim body to balance the camera's wide build, making the Instax Wide Evo one of the more sizable options on the market. This is offset by a stylish retro look that mimics those vintage cameras that had black textured bodies with silver lenses.

Considering that the only wide-format Instax camera alternative is the big and bulky Instax Wide 400, the Wide Evo's textured, minimal black design is definitely a lot more easy on the eye than the plasticky, dull green finish of its larger cousin. (Another alternative if you're set on a wide-format is 2024's Lomo’Instant Wide Glass – an attractive instant camera that we gave 4.5 stars in our in-depth review.) Indeed, I don't think many would be opposed to slinging the Wide Evo over their shoulder for the day.

This is how you would hold the Instax Wide Evo to take a selfie, with your thumb pulling down on the shutter switch button. (Image credit: Future)

The leather case that you can buy alongside the Wide Evo makes this very easy to do and might be a crucial accessory – not just for protecting it from nicks and scratches but – to make sure that it has a long life, as the LCD screen could easily get scuffed up over time. That's not great for a camera that doesn't have a viewfinder. Of course, I can't yet say that this will be an issue but it's worth considering.

It also helps that the Evo Wide is light – it weighs about half a kilo – making it very portable, but don't expect to be able to fit the Wide Evo in any pocket. As you would expect, because it takes wide-format instant prints, it's on the larger side.

Fujifilm Instax Wide Evo: Performance

This image was shot with the warm film effect and color shift lens effect settings turned on. (Image credit: Future)

• Plenty of scope to try different looks, with 100 creative combinations
• The widest-ever Instax lens and wide-format prints give extra breathing room for your subjects

The Fujifilm Instax Wide Evo's built-in film and lens effects make experimenting with different styles extremely easy. The fact that you can create 100 different creative combinations with these settings means there's plenty of room to play around.

Fujifilm has made the ability to customize all your images with various different effects a core part of the Instax Wide Evo. Indeed, if you're someone that likes to experiment with different effects such as lens flares, borders and color filters, then this camera is built for you.

The entire design of the camera is focused on making those photo editing tweaks simple, quick and easy. Both the lens and film effects each have dedicated dial buttons on the side of the camera. Even the top most prominent button on the camera (the placement of which is normally reserved for a shutter button) is for adding different film styles to your images.

The Wide Evo even has a dedicated button on the front of it that turns off the wide-angle, which is a nice feature that nods to its hybrid functionality. Another more less visible button is the lens of the camera itself, which can be twisted to adjust the intensity of the filter and film effects you're applying.

The dial on the right side of the Instax Wide Evo is for switching between the 10 different film effects. (Image credit: Future)

I had a lot of fun playing around with all the different film effects and styles because of these dedicated buttons, but my favorite physical feature of the camera has to be the hand crank on the side for printing images. It's a nice nod to the analog nostalgia that the Wide Evo embodies.

The shutter button is a lot different to the Mini Evo, which has a standard push button on top of the camera. Instead of this, the Wide Evo has a rocker style switch (like the ones you would use to turn on a light) that's situated on the front of the camera, beside the lens. I found this placement and style initially cumbersome, especially when taking a selfie as I couldn't immediately engage the auto focus by half pressing it down.

To be clear, this might be just be because I didn't spend a lot of time using it and could become more easier, but I will say it's not initially intuitive. That's also not to say that all the buttons are like this. The spin dials and crank for printing photos, for instance, are extremely tactile and easy to use.

On top of all this, there's even an Instax Wide app for more standard editing options, such as being able to crop an image or increase the brightness and contrast, as well as a 'Discovery Feed' for sharing and seeing fellow Instax Wideo Evo owners' creations. One thing to note about the app is that only printed images are automatically saved. Any photos you take on the camera itself won't just appear in your personal library in the app, which means you'll have to still transfer them of a microSD card.

Image 1 of 3

(Image credit: Future)

Every image that you choose to print on the Instax Wide Evo will automatically be saved in a library on the app, giving you detailed information about which effects you used.

Image 2 of 3

(Image credit: Future)Image 3 of 3

(Image credit: Future)Fujifilm Instax Wide Evo: Image qualityImage 1 of 3

(Image credit: Future)

I experimented with several different film effects and styles while testing the Instax Wide Evo.

Image 2 of 3

(Image credit: Future)Image 3 of 3

(Image credit: Future)

• Images are digital first, which loses the 'magic' of analog
• Picture quality of printouts appear flat but look fine digitally
• Not on par with pure analog instant cameras like the Instax Mini 99

There's a trade-off with every instant camera when it comes to picture quality that most of us are willing to accept. These cameras don't produce the same precision as newer dedicated digital cameras, but many people that purchase these type of cameras are more interested in the nostalgia that instantly printed photographs brings, so I appreciate that this isn't the most important component.

When it comes to the picture quality overall, I was most interested in testing out how the film prints compared to those taken on a non-hybrid instant camera as the images are digital first on the Evo Wide. This is a big deal for me because I'm split between analog and digital, and this in my opinion takes a bit of the magic away.

For context, I bought my first Instax in 2014 and of course quickly realized how expensive this style of photography is after discarding some duds, which made me even more selective with every picture I took. My boyfriend decided to buy me an Instax printer to solve this issue, but this for me took away what I loved about the style in the first place. I also found that picture quality from a printer wasn't on par, as the photographs appeared flatter and less dynamic than those printed on an analog instant camera.

Image 1 of 3

(Image credit: Future)Image 2 of 3

(Image credit: Future)Image 3 of 3

(Image credit: Future)

With this in mind, if the image quality of the prints is really important to you then you're better off buying an analog Instax camera in my opinion, because the prints are much more rich in contrast due to the light passing directly though the sensor rather than being digitally scanned. They also don't tend to be as overexposed as those printed on a hybrid Instax.

In terms of the wide-angle prints themselves, the larger size makes them feel much more premium than the smaller rectangular formats that mimic your smartphone pictures and is much more akin to the classic square instant prints that were once more popular.

As for the digital images that are taken by the Instax Wide Evo, these by no means match up to the quality you'd find from one of the best cameraphones, which benefit from more advanced sensors and image processing algorithms. For this reason, outside of sharing the images you take on the Instax Wide Evo to social media, you most likely won't use these elsewhere.

How I tested the Fujifilm Instax Wide Evo

• A one hour hands-on session at the UK launch event
• Ad-hoc testing during the day and night over a week
• I tried various filters, two lenses and selfie mode

My time with the Fujifilm Instax Wide Evo was brief: following attending the UK launch event in London, I was able to test out the camera for less than a week around the office and home.

However, during this time, I had decent chance to get a feel for the camera; how it handles for regular photos and selfies, plus the various filter and film effects possible through the physical controls on the camera.

I used two packets of the Fujifilm Instax Wide Evo at the event, each of which had 10 prints, and a couple more packets during the week-long product loan

Is FBC: Firebreak meant to be a commentary on the monotony of labor under late-stage capitalism? It's the only conceivable reason why a developer as esteemed and talented as Remedy Entertainment would create something that's so fundamentally miserable to play.

Review info

Platform reviewed: PS5
Available on: PS5, Xbox Series X and Series S, PC
Release date: June 17, 2025

A co-op shooter spin-off set in the weird and wonderful universe of the smash hit Control, FBC: Firebreak seems like it was designed from the ground up to be as frustrating as possible. From its artificially padded progression and small selection of levels to the bland cast of characters and poorly designed player abilities, there's very little to like here.

Sure, everything technically functions and seems to work as intended with minimal bugs, but that’s damning with faint praise when stacked up against the studio’s past line-up of ground-breaking experiences like Alan Wake 2.

Out of control

(Image credit: Remedy)

I booted up FBC: Firebreak feeling optimistic, as its core concept is certainly intriguing.

You play as a Firebreaker, specialized agents in the fictional Federal Bureau of Control (FBC) tasked with venturing into abandoned districts of the bureau’s HQ to contain rogue supernatural forces, in a team with up to two other players.

I absolutely adore the portrayal of the FBC in other Remedy games and was excited to learn more about its inner workings and explore new parts of the Oldest House (the mysterious, shifting brutalist skyscraper where the events of this game and Control take place).

Unfortunately, there’s no story content in FBC: Firebreak. You’re introduced to Hank, the leader of Firebreak, and his assistant Jerry, who exchange short quips as you navigate through the main menus, but that, on top of Hank’s occasional guidance during missions, is all you get.

Worse still, the dialogue is never particularly amusing, and the slapstick tone of these interactions feels a tad out of place. Control was not a massively serious game, but FBC: Firebreak really leans into its comedy to its detriment. It’s a game that seems more like it’s trying to ape Borderlands than actually expand on what made the source material so interesting.

It’s also a shame that the playable characters are all generic, masked goons. You can pick from a handful of distinct player voices, but it’s impossible to become invested in protagonists with no other identifiable characteristics.

Even the game’s unlockable cosmetic items fail to help them stand out. There’s nothing appealing about the prospect of grinding for hours in order to unlock a red helmet that nobody is realistically going to notice in an online lobby.

It’s like the developers knew this too, as unlocking cosmetics is often mandatory in order to reveal new shop pages with more useful items.

Dead end job

(Image credit: Remedy)

This is one of many decisions seemingly made to pad out the game’s runtime, which would otherwise be incredibly short.

There are a total of only five missions, or Jobs as they’re called in-game, with each split into three stages. The first two stages are always very basic, often taking just five or so minutes to clear.

They both feel like pointless filler compared to the third, which offers similar but more substantial objectives and sometimes a big boss fight to top it all off. The first two stages are, of course, mandatory as there would be practically no reason to endure them otherwise.

The missions themselves are at least conceptually interesting, but fail to capitalize on their most unique elements in enjoyable ways. Paper Chase, for example, seems like a slam dunk with the novel idea of offices that have been taken over by swarms of supernatural sticky notes.

Sadly, the mission just boils down to mindlessly shooting surfaces covered in sticky notes as an on-screen number showing the remaining notes ticks down for around fifteen minutes.

Best bit

(Image credit: Remedy)

The hub area is home to your living quarters, a few rooms that can be extensively customized by spending a currency obtained on your travels. Placing objects to make the space your own is quite satisfying. Most can also be interacted with to see unique animations.

During every mission, waves of Hiss, humans possessed by a malevolent entity, beam in around you. I can count the number of unique enemies on one hand, with the same few enemy models popping up endlessly with no variation.

Even with the difficulty cranked all the way up, the pacing of these waves feels off-kilter, too, as there are frequent awkward stretches where there are no enemies on screen.

I would be able to forgive most of this if the guns were actually satisfying to use. They aren’t. Generic appearances and sound effects aside, there are just six to choose from.

Poor balancing means that one, the bolt action rifle, is so terrible that you wouldn’t ever want it in your loadout. The pump action shotgun and revolver, in contrast, are by far the most effective of the bunch so there’s no real reason to ever use anything else.

In crisis

(Image credit: Remedy)

Much of the game’s marketing has focused on the Crisis Kits - the three sets of abilities that you can choose in your mission.

There’s the Splash Kit, granting a water cannon that can wash off annoying environmental effects (of which there are several) or put out fires, the Jump Kit with an electrical device for quickly charging generators, and the Fix Kit which lets you quickly repair broken items by swinging a big wrench around.

You can still accomplish all these tasks without the respective kits, but the interactions take the form of highly repetitive button-mashing that gets old quickly. Every mission has some component that can benefit from a particular kit, so there’s no strategy in which one you pick. Each match has three players, so obviously you just need one of each. There are no real advantages or disadvantages of any of the individual kits, either, so it really is as simple as that.

Each kit can be upgraded up to three times to unlock new secondary and special abilities, including a powerful attack that provides a welcome break from the endless shooting.

However, this only feeds into the biggest issue with FBC: Firebreak: the fact that the first hour is unremittingly awful.

For some reason, you start out with broken gear that’s woefully ineffective. The water cannon, for example, can only blast a few drops of water at a time. Similarly, your firearms deal reduced damage. You have to grind through a game after game in this state until you have the currency required to get everything back in working order, not to mention pick up some of those abilities and some perks to boost your stats.

I don’t understand this decision at all, as it just makes for a horrendous first impression. It’s easy to imagine most players downloading the game, experiencing one or two slogging matches with their artificially weakened gear and abilities, and then just uninstalling it to play something more rewarding.

This, unfortunately, makes it very difficult to recommend FBC: Firebreak in its current state. If you could simply log on and play around with everything right away, it might be able to provide a couple of hours of co-op entertainment before the boredom sets in.

As it stands, you’ll be sick of what's there before even getting to experience its flagship features.

Should I play FBC: Firebreak?

(Image credit: Remedy)Play it if…

You can get it for ‘free’
FBC: Firebreak is part of PS Plus and Xbox Game Pass. If you are already subscribed to one of those services, it might be worth trying to see whether it’s tolerable for you and your friends.

It receives some patches
Some of the biggest problems with FBC: Firebreak could be addressed down the line with patches. If you’re reading this after the game has been out for some time, give it a go to see if things have changed.

Don’t play it if…

You’re expecting lots of lore
FBC: Firebreak contributes very little to the universe of Control and other Remedy games. If you’re a huge fan of the lore, you can safely skip this one.

You don’t have hours to grind
The start of FBC: Firebreak is a frustrating grind. Avoid it unless you have the time to invest in order to get to the less painful parts.View Deal

Accessibility

There is, unfortunately, no dedicated accessibility menu in FBC: Firebreak. The controls can be fully customized on console, though, and there are a number of options that allow you to toggle actions like aiming down sights. The game features subtitles throughout.

How I reviewed FBC: Firebreak

I played almost ten hours of FBC: Firebreak on PS5 and DualSense Wireless Controller in the build-up to launch using a copy provided by Remedy Entertainment.

I experienced every mission that the game has to offer at least once, trying out multiple weapons and each of the Crisis Kits. I played both solo and multiplayer, using the game’s built-in online matchmaking to play with random players, and participated in a few matches with other reviewers.

Throughout my time with the game, I compared my experience with my time in other online first-person shooter games of a similar scope, including Wolfenstein: Youngblood, Tom Clancy’s Rainbow Six Extraction, and Helldivers 2.

First reviewed June 2025

28 Years Later reunites Alex Garland and Danny Boyle, and it’s everything you could hope for from this genius writing and directing duo.

It’s been more than two decades since we saw Cillian Murphy wandering around an abandoned London in the opening scene of 2002's 28 Days Later, and the impact of that movie on the post-apocalyptic horror genre can still be seen to this day.

At the time, that movie stood out for its pioneering take on the horror staple that is the zombie, imbuing the 'infected' with an especially terrifying trait: they were able to run. Before this, films like Dawn of the Dead had portrayed zombies as slow-moving, imbecilic creatures, which made the idea of sprinting monsters even more petrifying.

The first sequel, 2007's 28 Weeks Later, wasn't made by the original filmmakers and is not now regarded as canonical, so does not factor into the plot of the new movie 28 Years Later. Instead of the infected reaching Europe, as we saw at the end of 28 Weeks Later, in this telling the 'rage' virus, which escaped from an animal testing lab, has been contained by quarantining Britain from the rest of the world.

A recording of Rudyard Kipling's poem Boots features on the soundtrack of 28 Years Later, evoking parallels with Britain's historic wars (Image credit: Sony Pictures)

28 Years Later has a more folk-horror feel compared to the original, centering on a community of survivors who've made a home for themselves on Lindisfarne, an island separated from the coast of northern England, and from the infected, by a gated causeway.

It's here where we meet Alfie Williams' (His Dark Materials) character Spike, a young boy who's about to make what seems to be a rite of passage to manhood by accompanying his father Jamie, played by Aaron Taylor-Jonson (Kick-Ass), to the mainland for his first kill, the quarry being the infected.

Before they leave, the pair are reminded that the rules of their society mean they won't be rescued if they don't return. This adds a foreboding note to their journey, setting us up for our first encounter with the now-evolved infected, which have morphed into new variants that feel inspired by The Last Of Us.

The new infected include fat, crawling bloaters, pack-like families that can still sprint, and ripped 'alphas' that have evolved to be much smarter and bigger than the rest – and these new leaders aren't as easy to kill, even if Spike, like his father, is already a skilled archer.

The introduction of a baby raises a lot of questions about what this means for the lore of the film series (Image credit: Sony Pictures)

The movie soon shifts from a father and son's fight for survival to an equally fraught mission. When Spike sees a opportunity to save his sick mother Isla, who's played by the incredible Jodie Comer (Killing Eve), mother and son set off in search of a reclusive doctor who's rumored to live on the mainland.

Queue perhaps of the best performance of the movie, as we meet Ralph Fiennes' (Schindler's List; The Grand Budapest Hotel) Dr Kelson, surrounded by skulls and bones in one of the most elaborate graveyard shrines I've ever seen. The introduction of Fiennes' multi-layered character marks a turning point for the film, setting up events that will likely play a central role in the next film – 28 Years Later: The Bone Temple – that's set to be released in January 2026.

In a lot of ways 28 Years Later is a coming-of-age story that grapples with themes of loss, grief, and survival, making it a lot different to the societal breakdown that was the focus of 28 Days Later. The themes running through both films, though, are underpinned by Garland's unsparing exploration of what makes us human.

Much as 28 Days Later did with its flower-painting scene, 28 Years Later at times employs a dream-like aesthetic – look out for the galaxy of stars (Image credit: Sony Pictures)

Despite the time between the two films, 28 Years Later pays homage to the original by including the same lingering wide shots, and by featuring the iconic and unsettling track In the House – In a Heartbeat by John Murphy, while also setting the scene for the next chapter.

The opening scene of 28 Years Later, which shows a group of children watching Teletubbies before they have to flee an attack by the infected, may seem disconnected from the rest of the film, but it all makes sense when Spike unknowingly encounters Jack O'Connell's (Eden Lake) character, who wears the same cross we saw one of the children being given, in the closing scene.

This sets up the film series to go forward on a much more larger scale, as it introduces us to different strands of survivors that will no doubt be a big part of the next two movies. As the first of this new trilogy, 28 Years Later is a captivating watch with multi-layered filmmaking, phenomenal performances, and a story that hits closer to home than it might, initially appear.

28 Years Later is available to watch in cinemas around the world from June 19. We don't yet know which of the best streaming services it will be added to, or when.

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Nintendo Switch 2: two-minute review

After what felt like an eternity of waiting after all the leaks and eventual official announcement back in January 2025, the Nintendo Switch 2 is finally here. To say the console’s had a rough start is an understatement, though, with retail stock difficulty to come by at this early stage. This, plus the console’s relatively lofty price tag (as well as those of its games), means there are some folks seeking handheld gaming console alternatives.

At the time of writing, I’ve had my Nintendo Switch 2 a couple of weeks, and I’ve been spending each and every day playing its games and testing the hardware to rate its performance and assess any improvements over the original 2017 console. Despite the lack of ambition and innovation (at least compared to prior consoles like the Wii and Nintendo DS), I think Nintendo has produced an exceptional system here that finally realizes the full potential of the Switch concept.

The obvious upgrades, such as support for 4K and 1440p resolutions in docked mode and 120Hz capabilities (both in portable mode and docked on compatible displays) are extremely welcome, and grant the Switch 2 a step closer to parity with its more powerful peers in the PS5 and Xbox Series X and S. Of course, the Switch 2 doesn’t quite have the raw graphical prowess of those Sony and Microsoft-built machines, but it’s not a million miles away, as we see with certain Nintendo Switch 2 ports like Street Fighter 6 or Cyberpunk 2077.

(Image credit: Future)

Other display-oriented modernities are present here, too, such as HDR10 and VRR support (though, confusingly, variable refresh rate is currently only available in handheld play). The former provides juicier contrast and richer colors on compatible displays, while the latter smooths out framerates for more stable performance.

Unfortunately, it’s fair to say that the Switch 2’s launch game line-up is on the slighter side. Mario Kart World is great and an ideal title to have from day one, but a good chunk of launch day games have been ports of original Switch games or ones carried over from other platforms. While it is great to see big hitters like The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom rock an extremely solid 4K/60fps on Switch 2, it hasn’t been the most fulsome launch if you’re coming at it from a strictly first-party point of view.

Thankfully, the Switch 2 breathes life into original Switch titles via impressive backwards compatibility. I’ll delve more into this in its own section, but I’ve seen monumental results playing some of my own Switch favorites on the new console - some of which Nintendo itself hasn’t even officially mentioned.

There are some downsides worth talking about, of course. For one, battery life is sorely lacking in handheld mode and feels like an abject downgrade compared to the original Switch models. I also clocked some very noticeable audio delay with multiple gaming headsets and earbuds via Bluetooth connection. Furthermore, the skeleton of the original Switch is still present in many ways, with an almost identical Home dashboard, a lack of customization, and the ongoing threat of drift prevailing in the new Joy-Con 2 controllers.

Still, the Switch 2 is an accomplished bit of kit, and one that provides a night and day upgrade over its eight-year-old predecessor. I’m definitely looking forward to its game library expanding, as well as the system itself receiving various quality-of-life upgrades via future firmware updates.

Nintendo Switch 2: price and availability

(Image credit: Future)

The Nintendo Switch 2 went on sale on June 5, 2025. The console by itself costs $449.99 / £395.99 / AU$699.95. There is also an official bundle that packs in a digital copy of Mario Kart World alongside the console for $499.99 / £429.99 / AU$769.95. Some US and UK retailers have also stocked their own bundles, often throwing in an extra pair of Joy-Con 2 controllers or Nintendo Switch Online subscription time, but you can expect to pay a premium for these.

Price-wise, though, the Nintendo Switch 2 (while certainly more expensive than its predecessor) falls about in line with similar contemporary handheld gaming devices, including the original Steam Deck ($399 / £349 / AU$649) and the Asus ROG Ally ($549.99 / £449 / AU$999). Premium devices like the Steam Deck OLED and ROG Ally X are even more expensive, positioning the Switch 2 at a relatively mid-range price point among gaming handhelds, but certainly on the more affordable side within the space.

In terms of home consoles, the Switch 2 does come in cheaper than the PS5 ($499.99 / £479.99 / AU$799.95) and lands in the same ballpark as the PS5 Digital Edition ($399.99 / £389.99 / AU$649.95). It’s also comparable in price to the Xbox Series X Digital Edition ($449.99 / £429.99 / AU$699).

It’s also worth noting that Nintendo Switch 2 stock has been an ongoing issue since the pre-order phase. At launch, it’s been incredibly difficult to purchase a Switch 2 at retail, and flashes of stock in all major regions come and go in an instant. However, this was also the case with the original Switch and competing systems like the PS5. In both cases, stock became much more plentiful in the months after launch, so I’m hoping the same is true for Nintendo’s latest.

Nintendo Switch 2: specs

Price

$429.99 / £395.99 / AU$699.95

Weight

1.18lbs / 535g (with Joy-Con 2 attached)

Dimensions

10.7 x 4.5 x 0.6in / 272 x 114 x 15mm

Storage capacity

256GB internal

Storage expansion

microSD Express

Connectivity

WiFi 6, ethernet, Bluetooth

Display

Vivid LCD

Resolution (docked)

Up to 4K

Resolution (handheld)

Up to 1080p

GPU

Custom Nvidia processor

CPU

Custom Nvidia processor

Battery life

2-5 hours

Ports

2 x USB, 1 x HDMI, 1 x LAN, 2 x USB-C, 1 x 3.5mm headphone jack

Nintendo Switch 2: design and build quality

(Image credit: Future)

What’s most striking about the Nintendo Switch 2 out of the box is its look and build quality improvements over its predecessor. The console looks distinctly less toy-like, largely helped by an overall sleeker design and the ditching of the original Joy-Con’s neon red/blue aesthetic.

Some may lament the loss of whimsy, and that’s fair enough. But it nonetheless stands out amongst the busy gaming handheld crowd. The Switch 2, despite its increased size, remains impressively slim. In fact, it’s just as thin as the original Switch, and importantly, lacks the bulk of the likes of the Steam Deck OLED and ROG Ally X. This means that even though it is bigger thanks to the larger display size, it remains an eminently portable console.

Though I would recommend investing in a carry case if you’re planning on taking your Switch 2 out and about. While it’s undoubtedly sturdier than the Switch, it’s still prone to the same environmental wear and tear of any handheld system.

The Switch 2 dock has also seen a size increase, but for good reason. This time, the dock houses an internal fan to help keep the unit cool during lengthy play sessions. Thankfully, the dock is still small enough to fit into even the most compact gaming spaces. Whether that be on a TV stand or your computer desk, or elsewhere, you should have little issue incorporating your Switch 2 into a docked setup. The dock also houses two USB ports, one ethernet port, and a HDMI slot for use on TVs or gaming monitors.

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As for the handheld itself, there’s a lot to go over in terms of design. The unit now houses two USB-C ports - one on the top and the other at the bottom. Next to each port are sets of speakers. At the top, you’ll also find the power and volume buttons, as well as the game card slot, 3.5mm headphone jack, and a built-in microphone.

The Switch 2’s kickstand is a huge improvement. The 2017 model had a simple stub kickstand on one side, which felt extremely rigid. The Switch OLED did widen this design idea, but it wasn’t much better overall. On Switch 2, the kickstand has been entirely redesigned. It spans almost the entire length of the handheld and can be rotated to a much greater degree. This allows for greater freedom with how you place your Switch 2 on a surface for tabletop play.

Another massive improvement comes in how the Joy-Con 2 controllers attach to the handheld. Instead of the original Switch’s rigid rail system, the Switch 2 opts for a magnetic connection. As such, the Joy-Con 2 click into place seamlessly and instantaneously. You can also easily pop them back out by pushing in a button housed just underneath the ZL/ZR trigger buttons.

One last thing to note is that the Switch 2 is impressively lightweight. At just 1.18lbs (535g), it’s only marginally heavier than the original Switch, which was 0.88lbs (399g), and the Switch OLED’s 0.93lbs (422g). Admittedly, I was expecting something much heavier before my hands-on preview some months ago, but I remain pleasantly surprised by the Switch 2’s slimness. And when compared to the bulkier Steam Deck OLED’s 1.41lbs (640g), playing with Switch 2 in bed or on the go is less strenuous overall.

Nintendo Switch 2: display

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Unlike the namesake screen of the Switch OLED, Nintendo has opted for an LCD display for the Switch 2. This may come across as a downgrade on paper, but in reality, the move back to LCD has its own advantages. For one, LCD is less prone to screen burn-in than OLED, allowing for a panel that should last longer.

I have no complaints when it comes to the Switch 2’s display. It is a monumental upgrade over the original’s 720p LCD screen.

Furthermore, Nintendo has still managed to ensure that your games still look crisp and vividly colorful during portable play. Nintendo describes its display as ‘Vivid LCD,’ and it’s an accurate description to say the least. The display supports HDR10, meaning games that support this screen tech (like Super Mario Odyssey and the upcoming Metroid Prime 4: Beyond) can be just as eye-poppingly colorful on the handheld as they would be on a larger OLED panel.

This 1080p screen also supports VRR (variable refresh rate), helping demanding games maintain a smooth framerate and helping 120Hz-compatible titles meet that target. At launch, there aren’t many games that benefit from the Switch 2 screen’s 120Hz capability, though Metroid Prime 4: Beyond is confirmed to have a 1080p performance mode that targets this high refresh rate. It’s bound to look stunning on the handheld that already has a native 1080p resolution.

Of course, there will be times when you won’t want to make use of HDR10, perhaps in order to save battery or to have a play experience that’s less demanding on the eyes. Nintendo has thankfully thought of this, and there are options in the settings menu to disable HDR entirely or to only enable it for true HDR-compatible games.

In my testing, I have no complaints when it comes to the Switch 2’s display. It is a monumental upgrade over the original’s 720p LCD screen. The jump to 1080p helps both Switch 2 and OG Switch games look incredibly sharp. Even titles that utilize a dynamic resolution in handheld mode - like Bayonetta 3 and Astral Chain - are better able to meet this target thanks to the increased power of the Switch 2.

Nintendo Switch 2: user interface and settings

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The Switch 2’s Home dashboard is a disappointment at first glance. In fact, you might not be able to tell it apart from the original console’s menu if it weren’t for the rounded edges applied to game icons on the Switch 2. It’s still aggressively bland, then, and you’ve still only got the choice between two basic white and black themes, but there have been some key improvements worth talking about.

The big thing to make note of is performance. Issues with the glacial input delay are practically nonexistent now, and nowhere is this more apparent than the revamped Nintendo eShop. There’s a completely new user interface here, and items are organized much more cleanly and smartly than before. And while, yes, you still won’t be escaping the mountains of genAI shovelware when looking through the deals section, I’d still argue that the eShop now is a good deal more responsive than even the PlayStation and Microsoft Stores.

Over to System Settings, then, and you’ll find much of what was available on the original Switch. On Switch 2, there are plenty more options to take advantage of the hardware’s new features. These include setting TV output to 1440p or 4K, fine-tuning HDR, as well as preventing your system from topping up its battery all the way to full in order to help the battery last longer in the years to come. A similar option is common with best iPhones and best Android smartphones, so it’s nice to see it here on a portable gaming device.

Nintendo Switch 2: audio

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One important addition to the Nintendo Switch 2 is the implementation of a bespoke surround sound system, supported by the speakers on both the top and bottom of the handheld.

What impressed me the most here was the surprising level of audio quality when not using a pair of headphones in handheld mode. The speakers are significantly less tinny than the original Switch (though that did also see an improvement with the OLED model), and they provide surprisingly clear audio for such a compact device.

The speakers work great for a wide range of games, whether that’s the vast immersive soundscape of The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom or the infectiously catchy tunes of Splatoon 3. Even older NES and SNES games that are playable via Nintendo Switch Online benefit, with their simpler melodies coming through with great clarity.

Bluetooth support is where the Switch 2 falters in the audio department. Don’t get me wrong, you’re still getting strong surround sound support here. But with the gaming headsets and earbuds I tested - including the RIG 900 Max HS and the Nothing Ear (a) earbuds - there was a very noticeable audio delay of around half a second. This was the case in both docked and handheld modes, though it was certainly more pronounced with the latter.

On that note, I’d recommend hooking up a pair of wired headphones via the 3.5mm jack. In this case, I tested my Razer BlackShark V2 headphones, and audio came through crystal clear without a hint of delay.

Nintendo Switch 2: Performance

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Now, overall gaming performance is where the Nintendo Switch 2 really impresses. At least at this early stage in the console’s life, the notion of poor framerates and heavily compromised Nintendo Switch ports seems to be a thing of the past.

Nintendo’s own output has thus far been stellar on this front. Mario Kart World runs at a clean 1440p while docked (1080p on the handheld) at a solid 60 frames per second (fps) at all times. That’s especially impressive given the series’ shift to a vibrant open world.

However, I was even more surprised by some of the console’s ports. Street Fighter 6, for example (while slightly worse off in terms of image quality with some noticeable graining), runs superbly at 60fps both online and offline. The marquee single-player World Tour mode does take some hits with battles being locked to 30fps, but that’s the only real blemish on this otherwise exceptional port.

The one major downside to all this is the Switch 2’s shockingly poor battery life. In handheld mode, Nintendo itself estimates that you can get anywhere between two to six and a half hours. However, in all my testing, I simply didn’t find this to be the case. Of course, more demanding titles will drain the battery a good deal more, but even with original Switch games, I struggled to get more than three hours at full charge. And yes, that’s even after bypassing the bug where the console thinks it’s got around 10% less battery life than what it actually has.

Even when playing less demanding titles, such as side-scrollers or Nintendo Switch Online (NSO) retro games, battery life struggles. You can, of course, mitigate things by turning down the console’s brightness and disabling HDR for certain games, but this does come at the cost of overall image clarity.

I’d say, at a push, you can get around five hours tops with less visually demanding games, after testing titles like Hollow Knight, Puyo Puyo Tetris 2S, and numerous Switch Online classic titles. Heck, even idling on the Home dashboard seems to drain the battery at an alarming clip, so do make sure to keep your console in standby when you’re out and about and it’s not in use.

Nintendo Switch 2: Backwards compatibility

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Nintendo Switch 2’s backwards compatibility is - in a word - excellent. Particularly when it comes to running and playing original Switch games. Firstly, most Switch games at a baseline level benefit from Switch 2’s faster internal storage. That means you can expect games to boot and load scenes much faster on average.

For example, booting Xenoblade Chronicles X: Definitive Edition took me from the Home dashboard to the in-game menu in around 4 seconds. Then, from the menu to in-game was roughly 10 seconds. It’s a similar story with Super Smash Bros. Ultimate, which loads into a match in literally less than 3 seconds. Another standout example is Hyrule Warriors: Definitive Edition, which I’ve already written about as being one of my favorite Switch 2 experiences so far, despite being an original Switch title. In the main story mode, the game transitioned from level selection to loading to gameplay in, again, around 3 or 4 seconds.

Many Switch games also benefit from an increase in image quality and overall performance, not just games that have received paid Nintendo Switch 2 Editions. The standout example here is Pokémon Scarlet and Violet. Most would agree that the original Switch release was a mess, with horrific image quality and choppy animations. On Switch 2, the game has been transformed, rocking a solid 60fps and targeting 4K while docked and 1080p on the handheld. Now, the game’s overall art style still does feel a bit flat, but with its key performance issues solved on Switch 2, it’s now well worth playing, as it’s still a fine Pokémon adventure.

Another game that benefits is, again, Hyrule Warriors: Definitive Edition. That game originally had an uncapped framerate, meaning the Switch 2 is able to brute force a 60fps performance at all times. Image quality in handheld mode is also sublime, with the game sporting a 1080p output and no longer needing to downsample to 720p to fit the original Switch display. If you know of any other OG Switch titles with uncapped framerates, definitely give them a try on Switch 2, as the results may surprise you.

Nintendo Switch 2: Joy-Con 2

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Now onto the Switch 2’s pack-in controllers - the Joy-Con 2. And again, we find a pretty sizable improvement over the previous model in some ways. Their overall design is much sleeker, and they’re slightly rounder than the original Joy-Con controllers. Their larger size also makes them much more comfortable to play with for longer sessions - even when sharing an individual Joy-Con 2 with a pal for co-op play.

The big addition here is mouse controls, which are supported by certain titles, including Civilization 7 and Cyberpunk 2077. Mouse controls can also be used to navigate the Switch 2’s Home dashboard and Nintendo eShop (though the lack of a scroll wheel does hurt things a little here). It’s a very smart implementation, and performance is extremely smooth with no unnecessary acceleration. You can even adjust mouse sensitivity in the System Settings menu and in supported games.

It is worth mentioning that there have already been reports of Joy-Con 2 controllers suffering from stick drift, and the sticks themselves appear to have the same design as the originals.

This is a huge shame and a big disappointment, as one of my biggest concerns before launch was the lack of improvements in this regard. Nintendo does offer a free repair and replacement service for Joy-Con 2 controllers suffering from stick drift, but I’d obviously prefer a Hall effect solution in order to avoid this issue entirely.

Nintendo Switch 2: GameChat

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Finally, Nintendo has a true party voice chat solution built into one of its consoles. While numerous titles on the original Switch supported voice chat via the official Nintendo Switch Online app, chatting with friends this way was nothing short of awful - often thanks to forced disconnections between matches and low-quality audio.

So, is GameChat a decent alternative to the likes of Discord? Well, yes and no. GameChat obviously takes great inspiration from the world’s leading group chat software. Audio quality via the Switch 2’s built-in mic is surprisingly clear, and headset microphones are also supported. It is objectively a big improvement over Nintendo’s prior efforts.

The problems come with its implementation. Namely, shrinking the game screen down in order to display your friends’ Switch 2 profile icons. This seems needless, especially when not using the Nintendo Switch 2 Camera accessory, not to mention the fact that GameChat adds massive black borders around your game screen. Discord already solved this with its simple and effective overlay that maintains image resolution while displaying profile icons off to the side in a semi-transparent manner.

GameChat isn’t lacking ambition, though, and there are some neat ideas here. For example, being able to see your friends’ game screens is a novel idea, and a neat way of translating split-screen play in an online space. The problem, again, is the execution of it. Your friends’ displays are rendered at an uncomfortably low framerate, to the point where it can actually be quite distracting.

I hope Nintendo continues to improve the GameChat service going forward and flesh it out with more customizable options, because it is a handy thing to have for party chat with friends online, and it does have some neat ideas of its own. But for now, I would still recommend setting up a chat with friends via Discord.

Should I buy the Nintendo Switch 2?Buy it if...

You want a night and day upgrade over the original Switch
Simply put, the Nintendo Switch 2 is the Switch’s vision fully realized. An astronomical performance improvement, paired with superb load times and a crisp 1080p display, arguably makes it the definitive gaming handheld.

You already have a decent-sized Switch game collection
Your original Switch games play better than ever on Switch 2. While not all benefit from image quality and performance improvements, those that do have never been better. Plus, most games do benefit from the console’s snappier load times.

You want a handheld gaming device that’s genuinely portable
While larger than the original Switch, it remains just as thin. If you’re put off by the bulk of the Steam Deck in particular, then the Switch 2 is an excellent portable alternative if you like to game while out and about.

Don't buy it if...

You’re waiting on more first-party games
Nintendo’s own launch roster for the Switch 2 is very slim. If Mario Kart World isn’t your bag, and you’re not too keen on playing some of these Switch 2 Edition games again, I’d say it’s best to hold off until the game library improves.

You want a gaming handheld that’ll go the distance, battery-wise
The Switch 2’s battery life is incredibly poor. And while battery packs do exist to extend portable playtime, these do have the unfortunate side effect of bulking up the console. If you’re a frequent flyer or regularly find yourself on long commutes, the Switch 2’s battery life might let you down.

Also consider...

If the Nintendo Switch 2 isn’t quite for you, or if you simply can’t find stock for the currently hard-to-get console, here are a couple of alternatives that might better suit your preferences.

Nintendo Switch 2

Steam Deck OLED

Asus ROG Ally X

Price

$429.99 / £395.99 / AU$699.95

$549 / £479 (around AU$849)

$799.99 / £799 / AU$1,599

Weight

1.18lbs / 535g

1.41lbs / 640g

1.49lbs / 678g

Dimensions

10.7 x 4.5 x 0.6in / 272 x 114 x 15mm

11.7 x 4.6 x 1.9in / 298 x 117 x 49mm

11 x 4.5 x 1.5in / 280.2 x 114 x 37mm

Storage capacity

256GB internal

512GB NVMe SSD

1TB M.2 2280 SSD

Storage expansion

microSD Express

microSD

microSD

Connectivity

WiFi 6, ethernet, Bluetooth

Wi-Fi 6E, Bluetooth 5.3

Wi-Fi 6E, Bluetooth 5.2

Display

7.9in Vivid LCD

7.4in OLED

7-inch FHD

Resolution

4K docked, 1080p handheld

1080p

1080p

CPU

Custom Nvidia processor

AMD Zen 2 four core 2.4-3.5GHz

AMD Ryzen Z1 Extreme

GPU

Custom Nvidia processor

AMD RDNA 2

AMD Radeon Graphics

Battery life

2-5 hours

2-3 hours

Around 8 hours

Ports

2 x USB, 1 x HDMI, 1 x LAN, 2 x USB-C, 1 x 3.5mm headphone jack

1 x USB-C, 3.5mm headphone jack, microSD

2x USB-C, 1 x combo jack, 1 x SD card reader slot

Steam Deck OLED
Valve’s premium gaming handheld is impressively customizable, supporting your entire Steam library as well as third-party apps and emulators. The OLED screen is a real treat, too. Just be prepared for some Steam games not being perfectly compatible with the handheld, and expect some performance hits for the more demanding titles.

Read our full Steam Deck OLED review

Asus ROG Ally X
A performance powerhouse and decent battery life position the Asus ROG Ally X as a seriously tempting gaming handheld. While still not quite up to spec with gaming laptops and Windows 11 not being the best fit as an operating system, it’s nonetheless a superb way to play Steam, Xbox Game Pass, GOG titles, and more.

Read our full Asus ROG Ally X review

Nintendo Switch OLED
It does belong to the original Switch family, meaning it’s certainly not packing the power of the Switch 2. But still, the OLED is still a worthwhile and more affordable alternative, and packs a gorgeous 7-inch OLED display.

Read our full Nintendo Switch OLED review

How I tested the Nintendo Switch 2

I tested the Nintendo Switch 2 for just over two weeks for this review. In docked mode, I played on a 4K-capable LG CX OLED TV, but I also split my time evenly between docked and handheld play. My picks for controllers during my testing were the Joy-Con 2, Nintendo Switch 2 Pro Controller, and the wireless Nintendo GameCube Controller for use with the new GameCube classics library via Nintendo Switch Online + Expansion Pack.

My testing also involved playing a whole bunch of Switch 2 and original Switch games. These include Mario Kart World, Street Fighter 6, Yakuza 0: Director’s Cut, Tears of the Kingdom - Nintendo Switch 2 Edition, Deltarune, Xenoblade Chronicles X: Definitive Edition, and Hyrule Warriors: Definitive Edition.

I also compared the Switch 2’s gaming performance to that of the base PS5 and the Switch OLED. While it does lack the sheer power of the former, it’s not too far off the mark as we see with some of the Switch 2’s excellent ports. And in the case of the latter, it’s no contest, and I found it exceptionally hard to revisit my older Switch especially when the new system is almost fully backwards compatible.

For audio, I mostly relied on the Switch 2 handheld’s in-built speakers, but tested headset audio with the RIG 900 Max HS, Nothing Ear (a) earbuds, and the Razer BlackShark V2 gaming headset.

Heipi 3-in-1 Travel Tripod W28S: two-minute review

Ask around, and most enthusiast photographers and creators are familiar with the accessory maker Peak Design, but newcomer Heipi? Nope.

Well, I have a welcome surprise – Heipi's carbon fiber 3-in-1 Travel Tripod W28S beats the Peak Design Travel Tripod in just about every regard, plus it's cheaper too. Three-Legged Thing's Punks Brian 2.0, however, provides stiffer competition for standard use – I explain why, below.

The W28S replaces the W28 – which I described as one of the most relevant and best travel tripods today in my in-depth review – delivering several refinements for a virtually complete and highly versatile three-legged support, in three ways.

Its 3-in-1 credentials cover regular tripod support for camera gear, the ability to support a phone instead via a clamp that's hidden in the integrated ball head, plus a generously-sized removable mini tripod, which is nestled inside the main legs, and which doubles up as a center column – the novelty of this feature hasn't worn off in this second-gen model.

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Given that the main legs can tuck inside the mini tripod legs when you're done, there's no wasted space and the Heipi 3-in-1 is able to pack away more compact than most, plus it comes supplied with a snug-fit carry case.

There are limitations though. I'd hesitate to mount particularly large and heavy gear – although that's true of all travel tripods – and the Heipi tripod's maximum height is bettered elsewhere. Also, despite its 3-in-1 party tricks, there's no monopod built into one of the legs. Nor can you swap out the supplied ball head for a fluid head, which would provide smooth panning movements for video.

If none of the above are dealbreakers, though, then Heipi's latest travel tripod is the complete package, with some unique features.

It's carbon fiber build quality is top-drawer, while improved leg locks are easier to lock-off and unlock than before. Also, they lock-off with even distribution on the leg sections (rather than a clamping lock), which reduces lateral movement between sections.

The addition of a bubble-level in the base is a neat touch, even if you can't see it properly when the center column is tucked away.

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Heipi also offers handy extras for accessory-laden users, such as clamp arms, which easily screw into the mini tripod legs via a 3/8-inch screw. The arms Heipi supplied to me for this review can support accessories such as an external monitor, and can even work with Heipi's optional phone clamp, so you can support a camera and phone simultaneously.

I've been able to switch between using a phone and a mid-range mirrorless camera with moderate size lens, with ease. Panning movement? No problem, unlike the Peak Design which is locked off.

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Even the design of the mini tripod, which easily rests on a table top for vlogging and is impressively sturdy with a 11 lbs / 5kg max payload, has been improved. The last version felt like it sacrificed ease of use for versatility, because it was stiff to extend and put away compared to a regular center column.

Now the mini tripod slides up and down much more easily, and when fully removed it even offers multiple leg angles to work from for a variety of shooting angles, including close to the ground.

It can also be reversed and locked-off upside down in the main legs in order to shoot from lower angles. Put simply, the mini tripod is one of the most sophisticated of its kind.

With camera gear generally getting smaller and lighter, and many creators using their phones as much as 'proper' camera gear, the case for the travel tripod grows as the case for bulkier supports diminishes.

And of all the many travel tripods I've reviewed, the Heipi 3-in-1 Travel Tripod W28S is the one I come back to most often – I reckon this is the best tripod for most people.

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Is Heipi's travel tripod perfect? No. There were times that I wished it could work from a higher level than its 59in / 150cm maximum reach (with the center column fully raised).

However, given it packs away with a tighter diameter than most and to just 17.7in / 45cm in length, while it weighs just 3lbs / 1.35kg (with ball head included), I'm happy to sacrifice any extra reach.

And one party trick it lacks, which you can find in many alternatives, is the ability to remove one of its legs for used as a monopod.

If you can live with the few limitations mentioned above, then the Heipi 3-in-1 Travel Tripod W28S will be the most versatile tripod you've ever used, complete with a high-quality and lightweight carbon fiber build, plus tiny pack-away proportions.

If you want a lightweight support for a variety of camera gear, Heipi would be my first recommendation.

You can discover more about the W28S's design and features in my W28 in-depth review, the two share much in common besides some of the design tweaks mentioned above.

Heipi 3-in-1 Travel Tripod W28S: key specs

Total weight

3.04lbs / 1.38kg (including ball head and mini tripod)

Max height

59.8in / 152cm (with center column fully raised, or 47in / 119cm without)

Legs sections

5

Packed length

17.7in / 45cm

Max capacity

Up to 44lbs / 20kg

Heipi 3-in-1 Travel Tripod W28 price and availability

The Heipi 3-in-1 Travel Tripod W28S with ball head is available now, from $399 / £325 on the Heipi website and from $399 on Amazon US.

There are also optional accessories such as a QR plate, and a different type of ball head in a pricer bundle. Heipi also sells clamp arms, an add-on phone clamp, plus a hammock for stowing accessories or even a weight to increase stability.

Heipi 3-in-1 Travel Tripod W28: Also consider

Peak Design Travel Tripod
For the look and compact fold-away design, the Peak Design Travel Tripod is a leading alternative. However, Heipi's tripod is a compelling newcomer – its ball head has a panning motion, which Peak Design's tripod doesn't, plus the mini tripod and integrated phone clamp. Did I mention Heipi's is much cheaper, too?

Read our Peak Design Travel Tripod review

3 Legged Thing Punks Brian 2.0
The 3 Legged Thing Punks Brian 2.0 sits in top spot in our best travel tripod guide and with good reason; it's the most versatile tripod for regular use – being easier to use and make fine adjustments, and with a better max height. However, Heipi's tripod is versatile in a different way for users that switch between types of gear and uses cases. Both are excellent supports.

Read our 3 Legged Thing Punks Brian 2.0 review

Should I buy the Heipi 3-in-1 Travel Tripod W28S?

(Image credit: Future)Buy it if...

You shoot with a variety of gear in a variety of ways
The phone clamp is a neat trick, while the tripod plate gives a secure hold for camera gear. The mini tripod impresses too.

You want a lighter-than-most tripod
I'm struggling to think of a tripod with a ball head that packs away as compactly as the Heipi 3-in-1. If you need a small package, this is the real deal.

Don't buy it if...

You need a tall working height
It's maximum height of 59.8in / 152cm with the center column fully raised is bettered elsewhere.

You'd like an integrated monopod
It offers features no other tripods do, but what Heipi lacks is a built-in monopod. Perhaps that'll come with a future Heipi 4-in1?

How I tested the Heipi 3-in-1 Travel Tripod W28S

• I've used it over several months
• I've extensively used its 3-in-1 features
• I've attached various mirrorless cameras and smartphones

I've had the Heipi 3-in-1 Travel Tripod W28S for months and it has been my go-to camera gear support during this period.

It has ably supported beginner, mid-range and pro mirrorless cameras, although I've drawn a line at the larger sports-focused bodies and bulky telephoto lenses.

I've also used the phone clamp, attached a variety of smartphones the largest of which was an iPhone 15 Pro Max, plus tried out optional extras including clamp arms for an external monitor.

The mini tripod has had equally thorough testing as the main tripod legs. Generally I've used the gear in fair weather, but it has also withstood moderate rain and use on sandy beaches.

First reviewed June 2025

In my twenty years as a professional writer, I don’t think I’ve ever looked forward to using a keyboard before. Some are good, some are bad, some, like the ones on modern ThinkPads, are easily the best you can get on a laptop and offer very comfortable typing experiences.

In fact, I’ve always hated changing to a new keyboard, with the inevitable typos and finger-slips as muscle memory goes right out the window and the brain tries to relearn the new key placement.

But never, ever, have I wanted to find excuses to type something, anything on a keyboard, or just pressed a few keys as I passed the desk for the thrill of it all.

Until, that is, I got my hands on the Keychron V6 Max mechanical keyboard. And if I could, I’d sit at my desk all day and all night just to feel that pleasing feedback, listening to the satisfying clackety-clack as my fingers depress the keys. It might just be the best office keyboard I’ve ever used.

Keychron V6 Max: Price & availability

This is no budget keyboard - but that’s expected with this sort of design and the features packed in here. It’s a definite ‘investment’ product for those who will be using it day in and day out.

It’s available via the official US Keychron site for $120, while at time of review, it’s currently discounted from £124 to £112 over on the Keychron UK site. In Australia, it’s priced at AU$159 via Keychron.

You can also pick up from Amazon.com and Amazon.co.uk and other online retailers, where it’s going for the RRP.

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This little beast is beautifully designed, with its carbon black frame and light and dark blue keys. To me, it really looks the business, eye-catching but professional.

Unlike some Keychron keyboards, like the Q6 Max we reviewed, this model is built from a hardened ABS plastic rather than dense aluminum. It’s still pretty heavy, though, and not suited to portability. On the other hand, the weight also made it very stable, refusing to whizz across the desk under the slightest provocation while I used it. So, pros and cons.

The V6 Max comes in a range of configurations - first off, you can select between a barebones version and one that’s fully assembled.

In the US, you’ll get the double-shot OSA PBT keycaps, while in the UK, you can choose between PBT and ABS keys, with the latter allowing the backlight to shine through.

You can also choose between a few different mechanical switches (Gateron Jupiter Red, Brown, and Yellow), which will subtly adjust your experience (you can see the full differences between each by clicking here). In this review, I’m looking at the PBT version with Gateron Jupiter Red linear switches.

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Along the top row, nestled between F12 and Print Screen, is a sturdy volume knob that can be clicked to mute/unmute. It’s really useful if you want easy access to volume controls, and easily ignored if you don’t.

Around the back are two switches for changing compatibility between Windows, Mac, and Android devices, and alternating connectivity (2.4GHz, cable, and Bluetooth). Over to the right is a nub which houses both the USB and USB-C receivers.

In the box, you’ll also find a wealth of tools - a charging cable, keycap and switch puller, screwdriver, screws, hex (Allen) key, extension adapter for the receiver, and eleven replacement keys.

Keychron V6 Max: AppImage 1 of 3

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(Image credit: Keychron )

One of the big highlights of the Keychron V6 Max is its near-total customizability, both physically and while using the app at launcher.keychron.com. You’ll need to run Chrome, Edge, or Opera, and connect the keyboard with the wire. I found the app found the keyboard pretty quickly - not instant, but quick enough. And I was pleasantly surprised by the host of options on offer here.

Arguably the most useful here is the keymap, where you can alter what each key does when pressed. It’s very straightforward to use. Then, alongside this, there’s a key test to make sure everything’s running smoothly, an option to create macros, which will be essential for coders, firmware updates and bug reporting, and backlight selection.

To my mind, this backlight tab is where every user should head first. To manually change the keyboard’s backlight, you’ll need to turn it on with Fn + Tab, then cycle through each option using Fn + Q. There’s loads of presets here, but let me tell you, it takes ages to find the one that’s right for you - and one wrong press and you’ll need to cycle through them all over again. In the app, on the other hand, you can quickly find your preferred style, and adjust the color using the palette. Job done.

All in all, I thought the app was a nice extra that gives you much more control over layout and style to fit how you want the keyboard to perform.

Keychron V6 Max: In useImage 1 of 5

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(Image credit: Keychron)

This keyboard is an absolute delight to use. Typing feels natural, comfortable, I used it for hours and hours at a time and never once had any issues. Every keystroke registered quickly and accurately, and there’s a pleasing softness to each one. What more could you want from a mechanical keyboard?

Of course, it helps that it’s incredibly customizable to suit your work, and the desk boasts a gasket mount design with sound-proofing foam under the hood. Saying that, it’s in no way silent during use. As a mechanical keyboard, it has a muted clack that will remind readers of a certain age of busy offices and typist pools.

Personally, I quite enjoy the sound it makes when in full writing flow- it’s somehow soothing. However, it won’t be ideal for those looking for a super low-profile keyboard, where a scissor-switch or rubber-dome keyboard will offer a quieter experience.

Keychron also claims the V6 Max has a polling rate of 1000Hz, which has a theoretical latency of 1ms. So, while it should easily handle competitive gaming, it isn’t strictly designed for this.

For me, it’s one of the best keyboards around, perfectly positioned for productivity-minded professionals, students, programmers - effectively anyone who’s going to be spending a lot of time at their desk. On that score, it delivers an awesome experience.

Should I buy the Keychron V6 Max?Buy it if...

✅ You want comfort when typing
I can’t fault the overall performance of the V6 Max when it comes to general typing, even at speed.

✅ You want to customize your set-up
This keyboard can basically be configured any way you want, from switching out keycaps to redefining the key map using the app.

Don't buy it if...

❌ You don’t type much
For the price and the specs here, it’s going to be overkill for sending the occasional email or replying on Teams - although it’ll feel good while you’re doing so, at least.

❌ You want a silent keyboard
As a mechanical keyboard, this isn’t exactly quiet in use, which you may want in shared workspaces.

Xreal One Pro: One-minute review

After testing the Xreal One glasses I declared them the best smart glasses you could buy, and as you’d hope from an upgraded model, the Xreal One Pro glasses have just bested them.

Overall the specs are more similar than different, but the ways in which they do differ make a world of difference.

The larger 57-degree field of view allows for a bigger image – perfect for a private movie night – and the image quality is better too, thanks not only to the Pro model using the latest Sony micro-OLED displays, but also to a new optic engine which allows the specs to achieve a higher 700-nit perceived brightness, and reduces distracting reflections and blurriness.

On top of the upgrades you can also look forward to the same solid audio tuned by Bose engineers, 120Hz 1080p visuals, an electrochromically dimmable lens backdrop, and a sleek design which helps make the Xreal Ones and now the Xreal One Pros excellent.

There are just two downsides. For one, the Xreal One Pro glasses are 3g heavier than the Xreal Ones at 87g, which is admittedly a fairly minor difference. The bigger issue is that they’re pricer – these glasses will set you back $649 / £579.

The Xreal Eye (Image credit: Future / Hamish Hector)

Factor in add-on costs like the $199 / £189 Xreal Beam Pro, prescription lenses (if you need them) and extra adapters (like an HDMI to USB-C cable), and the complete Xreal One Pro package can get very expensive. You don’t need these add-ons, as the Xreal One Pro glasses come with enough in their box to use them with a wide range of compatible devices, but they're a lot better with add-ons like the Beam Pro.

That said, the Xreal One Pro are meant to be a high-end offering, and you can absolutely see what you’re paying extra for. That's why they've cemented themselves as one of the best smart glasses of 2025.

If you have the cash to splash you’ll be delighted by what the Xreal One Pro offer as an entertainment and productivity device. If, however, you’re on a budget there are more affordable options that offer excellent value for money, even if they’re not able to match the Pro’s highs.

Xreal One Pro: Price and Availability

• Costs $649 / £579
• On the pricier side of things, but boast high-end specs

A pair of Xreal One Pro glasses cost $649 / £579 which puts them on the higher end of the smart glasses spectrum. For that you’ll get the glasses, a USB-C to USB-C cable, a cleaning cloth, and a hard carry case.

If you’re looking to improve them you can grab the Xreal Beam Pro for $199 / £189. It’s a phone-like Android device with nifty features like a camera setup for 3d spatial photography, easy access to a suite of apps for downloading and watching shows, and two ports so you can use your glasses and charge the Beam Pro at the same time.

There’s also the Xreal Eye for $99 / £99. Right now it is just a camera for snapping some simple photos, but it slots into the glasses comfortably and might allow for some other exclusive features in the future.

• Value: 4/5

Xreal One Pro: Design

• New optical design is best yet
• Comfortable to wear for hours
• Offer electrochromic dimming

At a quick glance the Xreal One Pro glasses look almost identical to the base Xreal One specs.

They both resemble typical sunglasses with a few noticeably technological features. For a start one arm has a USB-C port at the end so you can use a cable to tether the spaces to a compatible USB-C device (like a phone, computer, or console).

They have the same button layout – a button on the top of the right arm to quickly swap into transparency mode, as well as a brightness control button (which adjusts the electronic dimming, and the brightness of the image) and a red menu control button on the bottom.

There’s even the same interchangeable nose clips and hard carry case, though their cleaning cloths are different colors (the Pro uses a gray cloth while the regular model uses black).

But one obvious change is the optical setup.

(Image credit: Future / Hamish Hector)

Smart glasses like this use lenses to reflect an OLED screen into your eyes so you can see the screen and what’s going on behind it. The Xreal One Pro glasses have a new shape of lens which is flat and thinner, rather than being chunky and more triangular in shape.

This means the resulting image is disrupted by fewer reflections caused by light from the world around you, and it’s able to boast a wider field of view to boot (giving you a larger virtual image, more on that below).

It’s also easier to look through these lenses when the screen isn’t in use than with the Xreal One glasses. Previously transparency mode was good for simply quickly checking your surroundings, whereas now I’m comfortable moving around while wearing the Xreal One Pro glasses in this mode.

• Design: 5/5

Xreal One Pro: Performance

• 700-nit bright 120Hz full-HD image
• Bose tuned audio from in-built speakers
• 57-degree field of view provides a giant virtual screen

The Xreal One Pro glasses deliver a truly superb performance that’s a Pro-worthy upgrade over the base Xreal One glasses.

This is thanks to the new optical engine I touched on above as well as new Sony OLED panels which combine to deliver some top-notch stats.

You’re getting 700 nits of perceived brightness (100 more than the Xreal One) which helps to further improve contrast and make bright scenes dazzle – qualities which are further aided by the black backdrop provided by the outer lenses with electrochromic dimming.

The field of view is now larger too, at 57-degrees. This makes the virtual screen much larger at a max size of 171-inches – for comparison the 50-degree Xreal One boasted a max screen size of 147-inch.

It’s further enhanced by the optical engine’s reduced blurriness and lack of reflections. The old shape of lens used by other smart glasses can reflect light from the outside world into your eyes distorting the image. Thanks to its new design the Xreal One Pro has far fewer reflections which makes for a far superior viewing experience.

If I’m ever travelling with a pair of smart glasses again, it’ll be these – no doubt about it.

(Image credit: Future / Hamish Hector)

As for the audio the Bose tuned sound is just as impressive as it was with the Xreal One glasses.

That is to say at home you’ll be fine just relying on the glasses’ in-built speakers but while travelling you’ll want a pair of headphones – not only to reduce the noise from the outside world, but reduce the noise your glasses cause.

Headphones are still an upgrade when using the smart specs at home, but with the Xreal One Pro glasses (as with the Xreal Ones) they don’t feel like a necessity for a good sonic experience.

Thanks to its plethora of upgrades the only remaining gripe is still that the image quality is still only 1,080p (full-HD) rather than 4K. 4K is a barrier other smart glasses have yet to cross, and frankly the image looks pretty darn good even at this lower resolution and runs at 120Hz which is nothing to sniff at.

• Performance: 5/5

Should you buy the Xreal One Pro?Xreal One Pro scorecard

Attribute

Notes

Score

Design

The Xreal One Pro glasses don’t mix up the formula much, but there was already a lot to love and their new optical design has only elevated the experience.

5/5

Performance

With a bright 700-nit 120Hz full-HD display, Bose tuned audio, and reduced reflections which make combine into first-class performance.

5/5

Value

The Xreal One Pro glasses are expensive but they’re also an excellent pair of smart specs which makes them solid value for money.

4/5

Buy it if...

You demand peak performance
The Xreal One Pro glasses are very very good. If you’re after the best pair money can buy for entertainment, that’s these glasses.

You want a (near) complete package
Ignoring the need for a device to connect them to, thanks to their great visuals and solid sound the Xreal One Pro glasses feel like a complete package rather than necessitating add-ons like headphones to make up for their sonic deficiencies (something which can’t be said of many of their predecessors).

You appreciate privacy
With the glasses on you can put your phone in your pocket or adjust your laptop settings to ensure only you can see your screen even in public places.

Don't buy it if...

You’re on a budget
The Xreal One Pro glasses are great, but very pricey. You can spend less on alternatives like the base Xreal One glasses or non-Xreal alternatives such as the RayNeo Air 3S and still get something good (albeit not as good).

You don’t plan to get a Beam Pro
You don’t need a Beam Pro to use the Xreal One Pro, but it’s easily the best Xreal glasses add-on out there and runs right up to the line of being a must-buy for Xreal’s specs.

You want Android XR
The Beam Pro, even with the Xreal Eye, doesn’t seem like it’ll support Android XR – if you want Xreal’s Android XR glasses you’ll need to wait a little longer for Project Aura to launch.

Also consider

Xreal One
The Xreal One AR smart glasses cost less at $499 / £449, and offer a solid HD image and Bose audio, but their overall picture quality isn't as impressive.
Read our Xreal One review

RayNeo Air 3S
These budget smart glasses punch well above their weight. Their overall quality doesn't match that of the Xreal One Pro, but if you're after the bets value pair you can find it's these.

Read our: RayNeo Air 3S reviewView Deal

Meta Quest 3
While not a direct competitor to the Xreal One Pro glasses, the Quest 3 is an XR product that you should consider if you want to experience what VR and MR have to offer – it’s simply superb.
Read our Meta Quest 3 reviewView Deal

How I tested the Xreal One Pro

I tested the Xreal One pro glasses over a couple of weeks and predominantly used them with the Xreal Beam Pro, my Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 6, and my computer.

I would also frequently use noise cancelling headphones with them as I love to wear them when travelling, but I made sure to test their in-built speakers in a range of environments to judge their performance.

I also directly compared them with the Xreal One glasses to get a sense of the upgrades the One Pros deliver.

• First reviewed: June 2025

Review information

Platform reviewed: PC
Available on: PC
Release date: June 10, 2025

Early on, while sprinting between rocky islands in Dune: Awakening’s desolate sandy seas, I began to wonder why it's taken so long for Frank Herbert’s fascinating world to be translated into a survival MMO PC game of this scale.

Making the most of the mythic beasts, warring factions, and an unforgiving setting, Funcom’s latest offering reimagines the core material, providing players the opportunity to step beyond the existing lore and carve out their own place amongst the stars. With so much to see and die as a result of, I still feel like I’m only scratching the surface of this monstrously sized expedition into the desert. But, despite the sizable journey ahead, one thing is for sure – I’m thoroughly enjoying the grind.

Dune: Awakening doesn’t take place in the Dune world you know from Herbert’s cult book, Denis Villeneuve’s cinematic duology, or David Lynch’s 1984 space opera. Instead, it’s set in an alternate timeline where Lady Jessica has a daughter instead of a son, and Duke Leto Atreides survives the assault on Arrakis, leading to an all-out war with the opposing Harkonnen dynasty. Without Paul Atreides and his Lisan al Gaib status, the Fremen are missing in action. Naturally, with all this drama, Arrakis has become a battleground over the most important resource in the galaxy – Spice.

(Image credit: Funcom)

Players enter this conflict as a prisoner, whose job is to find the Fremen people and awaken ‘the sleeper’. But before you dive into the many processes needed to uncover them, you first need to make some decisions about your character, namely what they look like and how they fit into the political landscape.

You’ll first get the chance to tweak the physical form of your character. There’s a decent variety of choices, from hairstyles to stature and tattoos, too. Naturally, I opted for a pre-distressed look, picking out murky blue eye makeup and some messy lipstick. Visual identity chosen, you’ll then pick some personality building blocks: your homeworld, social caste, and mentor.

Each option will provide you with alternative starting abilities and emotes. As someone who’s always wanted to use the Voice, I opted for a Bene Gesserit mentor and based myself in the frosty peaks of IX as a Bondsman. Sadly, it’s mainly your Mentor that factors into gameplay, with the other decisions acting more as role-playing flavor. Regardless, I was ready to feel the sand on my digital feet and test my survival mettle.

Fear is the grind killer

Needless to say, this planet is not exactly hospitable. (Image credit: Funcom)

You aren’t just dropped into Dune: Awakening without a clue, and are run through a pint-sized tutorial sequence first. Here, you learn the basics of combat and survival, which amounts to scavenging morsels of water drops from plants and swiping at enemies with a glorified box cutter, before witnessing a sandworm gobble up the remains of your ship.

Emerging into the open sand, your workload is split between maintaining your hydration and shelter while branching out into the surrounding areas of the map in search of story missions. Much of my first hour was spent cowering in the shade, fearing for my life as I followed my objectives to earn some scrappy sun protection and a ranged weapon. Suddenly, I wasn’t so afraid, and I began assaulting enemy camps with my newfound confidence.

As you run between pockets of shade, scavenging for resources and completing objectives, you’ll naturally start to earn Skill Points and Intel Points that fuel your skills, research, and crafting abilities. Soon, instead of scrounging around for a morsel of water and clipping enemies with a pea shooter, you’ll be drinking the blood of your enemies and hammering targets with the improved arsenal at your fingertips. Dune: Awakening has all the hallmarks of a classic survival MMO. However, it’s the clever grapple between feeling brave and weak that kept me interested beyond the climactic opening.

Best bit

(Image credit: Funcom)

To complete quests and rise up the ranks, you’ll eventually need to cross large portions of the desert. And, despite the isolation you might feel in the arid landscape, you’re never truly alone. In Dune: Awakening, Sandworms, otherwise known as the Shai-Hulud, are more terrifying than raiders or dehydration. If you’re unlucky, or simply not paying attention to your vibration meter, they can fleece you of all your precious items and leave you in the dust, literally, with nothing but your underwear. Regardless of how terrifying a prospect, the addition of these iconic creatures only makes the world of Dune: Awakening more immersive and entertaining to explore.

It’s not all desert roses, though, and unfortunately, as I sought out more enemies, I ran into issues with the rudimentary combat. You can block and parry, as well as deliver quick, slow, and ranged attacks, which is fine, if not a little underwhelming. Your limited toolbelt, early on, isn’t complemented by the limited enemy variation, and many of the baddies you face look much the same, and frankly, don’t seem too smart either.

On one occasion, while taking out a duo of scavengers, the firing stopped abruptly mid-fight. As I sheepishly wandered around the corner, I noticed that the second scavenger was standing frozen, as if they’d forgotten I was there. As you push into more difficult districts on the map, there are complicating factors like shields, and your opponents have more diverse combat skills, though that does little to make the combat more enticing, and as of right now, it feels like fighting still needs some fine-tuning.

Thankfully, when the combat excursions start to get old, you can tackle story missions called the Trials of AQL, which arrive as alternate challenges that test your dexterity while explaining the history of the Fremen. Hidden amongst the craggy horizons, the trials felt like a carefully constructed extension of the lore, rewarding your attention with gear essential to survival long term. It’s clear Funcom cares about the material that the studio is adapting, and the involved and thoughtful Trials feel like proof of that.

Hope clouds observational skills

See that weird glowing stuff? That's Rapidium - and Jan's going to need a lot of it to make more alters. (Image credit: Funcom)

While exploration will take up the lion’s share of your time, base building is another important aspect to your survival in Dune: Awakening. Say a sandstorm warning pops up on your screen, and you need to quickly assemble a dwelling. All you have to do is craft a useful 3D printing gun and pick a safe spot to place your cover.

Here, external walls and flooring all snap together nicely, while the inside of your home requires a bit more finicky work to get things to fit just right. If you do run into problems, the system itself is quite forgiving, and it’s easy enough to modify your floor plan to fit more appliances if things get a little tight. You can technically build a shelter almost anywhere you’d like, and with the speed at which items respawn, plopping down your possessions in open sand is an obvious no-go.

This brings me to the real antagonist of Dune: Awakening. Beyond the periodic sandstorms, trigger-happy enemies, or unwavering thirst, are the more terrifying and possession-destroying sand worms or Shai-Hulud. Hidden underground in the open sands, the worms are attracted to your movements, which you can track via a friendly vibrations bar that appears at the center of your screen.

Laying out your base smartly (as I have very much not done in this screenshot) is key to making the most of your limited resources. (Image credit: Funcom)

Simply put, the more you move in open sand, the more likely it is you’ll attract a sandworm. Once the bar turns red, it means your luck has run out and you need to sprint away to higher ground or risk losing everything you’ve worked so hard for. Short distances start to feel large, and I felt genuine pangs of fear as I tiptoed between the stone monuments that broke up this seemingly endless world.

Dune: Awakening looks solid in motion, but it isn’t always visually seamless, and there are plenty of frustrating bugs and bouts of texture pop-in that get in the way of the fun. Still, Dune’s desert landscape more than makes up for those small squabbles, and it's easy to get swept up in the carefully constructed details Funcom has embedded on Arrakis.

Visual accents like the billow of a water seal as you cut through it, or the sand particle texture on your windows, help to build the fantasy and commit your exploits to memory. Yet considering how large Dune: Awakening is, I’m sure there’s even more to uncover on my journey to ultimate power, and I’m excited to keep digging and discover more of these details.

Should I buy Dune: Awakening?Buy it if...

You want a challenging survival MMO that’s connected to its setting
Between sunstroke, thirst and the constant threat of sand (worms and storms), Dune Awakening’s survival mechanics do well to complement its sci-fi setting.

You’re looking for a game to sink a lot of time into
The world of Dune: Awakening is sizable, and so it’ll take more than a few hours to grow your reach and power.

You think you’d make a better Lisan Al Gaib than Paul Atreides
Do you think of yourself more as a Timothée Chalamet Paul or a Kyle MacLachlan Paul? Well, Dune: Awakening provides you with all the necessary tools to see if you can out-Lisan Al Gaib both versions of Paul Atreides to prove yourself the superior sandy survivor.

Don't buy it if...

You prefer a more forgiving survival game
In Dune: Awakening, when you die to a sandworm, you lose everything, and I mean everything. As such, it might not be ideal for casual players looking to relax as they mine.

You like complex combat systems
While there is a decent diversity in skills and upgrades, Dune: Awakening’s combat can feel repetitive as you continue to face the same few enemy variants to harvest loot.

Accessibility

You can access the settings from the pause menu while in-game, or at the bottom left of the main menu before you join a server. From the accessibility menu, you can toggle on and off camera shakes, controller rumble, and motion blur.

From this menu, you can also toggle on and off subtitles, choose the font size, as well as select an option to have previous subtitles on screen for a longer period of time. You can also tweak the gamma setting from this menu, too. Dune: Awakening allows you to rebind all your keys from the dedicated Keybinds menu.

Where audio is concerned, you can use a slider in the Audio submenu to tweak individual streams of sound (Master Volume, Music Volume in-game, Sound Effects Volume, Cutscenes Volume, Dialogue Volume, and Radio Volume).

How I reviewed Dune: Awakening

I played Dune: Awakening on Steam, using an Acer Predator XB271HU gaming monitor, a Logitech MX Master 3S mouse, and a Logitech G915 TKL gaming keyboard.

I used my external Creative Pebble V2 computer speakers and Audio Technica ATH-MX50X headphones plugged into a Scarlett 2i2 interface for sound. My gaming PC is powered by an RTX 3080 and an AMD Ryzen 9 3950X.

First reviewed June 2025

Nexar One: One-minute review

The Nexar One is a 4K dash cam that employs a clever modular design and an always-on LTE data connection to offer automatic cloud uploads with unlimited storage, wireless video transfer, and remote streaming. It can be bought with either 128GB or 256GB of internal storage, but there's no microSD card support. Rear and internal cameras are also available.

Unlimited cloud storage and live streaming for as little as $71.90 a year feels like good value, but the One is reliant on a strong cellular signal to work properly; if you have patchy 4G at home, this might not be the dash cam for you.

(Image credit: Future / Alistair Charlton)Nexar One: price & availability

The Nexar One is priced from $329.95 for the 128GB model (which can hold up to 37 hours of recordings), or from $379.95 for the 256GB model (which has space for up to 78 hours). Adding the interior camera featured in this review increases those prices to $379.95 and $429.95 respectively.

Nexar’s LTE Protection Plan costs $9.99 a month or $71.90 a year. This includes the ability to live stream from the dash cam to your phone, plus unlimited cloud storage, a 24/7 parking mode, real-time GPS tracking, emergency alerts, and rear camera compatibility.

Nexar says the One will be available in the UK soon, but hadn’t announced prices at the time of review in June 2025. The cost of the LTE Protection Plan is also unknown for now, and the One is not available in Australia.

Nexar One: specsNexar One specs

Video

4K resolution at 25 to 30 frames per second

Field of view (FoV)

140 degrees (forwards), 160 degrees (interior)

Storage

Internal (128GB or 256GB), cloud (unlimited, fees apply)

GPS

Yes

Parking Mode

Yes, with remote streaming

App support

Nexar Connect app

Dimensions

3.5 x 2.75 x 1.2 inches / 88.9 x 69.8 x 30.5mm

Weight

7.4oz / 210g

Battery

Yes, used to record parking events

Nexar One: Design

The Nexar One is a clever piece of design, as far as dash cams go. It doesn’t have a screen, so there’s no chance of being distracted while you’re driving, and the unit itself is relatively slim, but with the LTE data module and interior camera connected, it’s quite large.

The clever bit is how the Nexar One uses magnets. Firstly, it connects to its windshield mount with a very strong magnet. You then stick the mount to your windshield with an adhesive strip, and a power cable runs from the mount to your car’s OBD2 port for a constant power supply, even when it’s parked and turned off. Power is then sent to the dash cam itself as soon as the magnets snap it into place.

(Image credit: Future / Alistair Charlton)

There are more magnets on either side of the main unit. You can remove a cover from one end to attach what Nexar calls the connectivity add-on, which is basically an LTE (4G) antenna that gives the dash cam a cellular data connection for live streaming to your phone and cloud video storage – more on that later.

Removing the cover from the other end enables you connect the optional interior camera, which sold separately but was also provided by Nexar for this review. Overall, it’s a clever design that's been nicely executed, and I especially like how Nexar includes an OBD2 cable in the box, rather than a USB cable and a 12-volt socket adapter.

As mentioned, there’s no microSD card slot, with the One relying entirely on internal storage.

(Image credit: Future / Alistair Charlton)Nexar One: Performance

The setup process requires the Nexar Connect smartphone app and, for the dash cam, a decent 4G connection. Although I live in London, my street has awful cellular coverage, so it wasn’t a surprise to see the One fail to get itself online. I drove about half a mile, parked up, and the dash cam then quickly connected to Nexar’s cloud service and completed the setup process.

While video quality is the most important aspect of any dash cam, there’s more to this model than video recording. You can use either the Nexar Connect app or Nexar’s online dashboard to view every journey completed with the One installed. Your driving route is shown on a map, along with the distance and duration of your journey. It’s then easy to either view a low-resolution timelapse of a journey, or download a high-resolution portion.

(Image credit: Future / Alistair Charlton)

If you’re away from your car (and therefore not connected directly to the dash cam via Wi-Fi), you can view the mapped routes and timelapses. And, while you can request to download a high-res portion of between 30 seconds and five minutes, the download won’t happen until the next time you turn your car on. Instead, it’s best to get in your car, connect directly to the dash cam over Wi-Fi, and transfer high-res recordings to your phone.

Another feature is live streaming, where the Nexar One’s LTE connection lets you view a live feed from the dash cam on your phone. This takes about 30 seconds to start and when using LTE (instead of a direct Wi-Fi connection) you’re limited to three minutes of live viewing at a time. This is understandable, given how much data would be swallowed up by longer streams. It’s a handy way to check up on your car, and means you can view a live feed right after the dash cam detects a collision while parked, as it will automatically start recording.

Since I live in an area with patchy cellular coverage, some driving routes and timelapses failed to upload right away. This process happens after you park up, while the dash cam is powering down, but a poor data connection can stop the upload from happening. The downloads are then unavailable until the next time you turn your car on and drive to an area with better signal.

(Image credit: Future / Alistair Charlton)

If you live and mostly drive in an area with strong LTE coverage you’ll be fine, but if not – and you want to regularly use the Nexar One’s connected features – you’ll need to think twice about buying it. The Nexar One is designed to connect to a range of networks, instead of just one, so it should always hunt out the best signal. But I found it sometimes failed to connect, especially in known blackspots.

Incidents – where the dash cam detects a collision, either while parked or driving – are sorted into their own section of the app and dashboard, making them easy to find.

The app lets you pick from three video quality options, but frustratingly these use names – Basic, Standard and Premium – instead of recognizable numbers, like 1080p or 4K. Tapping on 'Learn more' opens Nexar’s website and explains that Basic is 720p (and 540p for the interior view), Standard is 1080p (and 720p for the interior), and Premium is 4K (plus 720p again for the interior).

Standard is the default option. These Full HD recordings look great on the phone app, but quality takes a dip when blown up onto a larger computer screen. Footage is okay, but details like the license plates of oncoming vehicles, even at just 20mph in bright daylight, are often difficult to read.

(Image credit: Future / Alistair Charlton)

Bump the Nexar One up to Premium and the 4K videos are noticeably sharper, with more legible license plates and street signs. Files are also larger, with a five-minute clip weighing in at 1.5GB from the front-facing camera and 360MB from the lower-spec interior view.

The larger size of 4K files highlights the Nexar One’s slow Wi-Fi transfer speeds. Moving those five-minute, 1.5GB and 360MB clips to my iPhone, over a direct Wi-Fi connection, took a full five minutes.

The interior camera is of a lower spec, but still provides a decent view of the driver and front-seat passenger. Since I drive a small two-seater (a Mazda Miata, or MX-5 for non-US readers), this camera manages to capture an acceptable view out of the rear windshield too. However, due to my car’s tiny front windshield, I’ve had to partially hide the Nexar One behind the mirror, which blocks some of the camera’s interior view.

If I bought the Nexar One myself, and still owned a car tight on space, I’d likely do without the interior camera. That said, if you’re a taxi or ride-share driver, having recordings of your interior (and a sign telling your passengers as much) could be useful.

Lastly, there’s a parking mode. This works when the Nexar One is connected either with the included OBD II cable, or the optional hardwiring cable that powers it from the fuse box. When a collision is detected, the camera springs into life and starts recording. These videos appear in chronological order in the app, but can only be downloaded when you next switch your car on – and so long as the camera has a good cellular connection.

(Image credit: Future / Alistair Charlton)

Parking mode, unlimited cloud storage, live streaming and other functions – including emergency alerts, GPS tracking and rear camera compatibility – are all part of a subscription plan. This is priced at $9.99 a month or $71.90 for a full year. Although the Nexar One works like any other offline dash cam without this fee, storing footage locally, not subscribing removes much of its functionality. If you don’t want to pay for a subscription, you’d be better off buying a different dash cam.

That said, I can see the value here – especially if you live in an area with solid cellular coverage. Having videos available online, through the app or any computer browser, takes away the usual dash cam pain point of having to eject the microSD card and transfer footage manually. I also like the idea of being able to check in on my car while I'm away from home, but my local cellular coverage made that tricky.

The dash cam occasionally sent phone notifications, promising more information when tapped. But doing so simply opened the app and showed me the home screen. It also sometimes told me a recording was in process (while the car was parked and switched off), then saved a five-minute journey in the Activity page of the app. Tapping on this brought up a page full of error messages, a map with no indication of where the car was, and the promise of a timelapse and high-res clip being “available shortly”.

Nexar told me it has had some issues with a recent firmware update, but after reinstalling the latest firmware I still experienced connectivity problems. The One connects to multiple phone networks, but it seems that none could provide the coverage it needed to function where I live. It worked fine elsewhere, but poor signal at home takes away a chunk of the One's functionality.

I asked Nexar if it can be connect to home Wi-Fi for video uploads and firmware updates but, and was told that while this is on the roadmap, there's no timeline for launch.

(Image credit: Future / Alistair Charlton)Nexar One: Sample videosFront cameraInterior cameraShould you buy the Nexar One?

(Image credit: Future / Alistair Charlton)Buy it if...

You need lots of cloud storage
Nexar’s subscription fee generously includes unlimited cloud storage for your recordings. Low-res timelapses and location data are automatically uploaded after every journey, while high-resolution clips can be requested manually and are uploaded when the dash cam is next switched on. Incidents, like collisions, are uploaded in full.View Deal

You want 4K footage
The Nexar One can record at 4K resolution, which captures a good amount of detail in your videos. The interior camera is limited to 720p HD.View Deal

You want live streaming
Its LTE connection makes the Nexar One function like a security camera. You can view a live video stream on your phone or computer, so long as the dash cam is in an area with cellular coverage, which is handy for keeping an eye on your parked car.View Deal

Don't buy it if...

You live in an area with poor LTE coverage
Since the Nexar One is so reliant on the cellular phone network, it struggles to function properly in areas with poor signal. Clips fail to upload, and even the setup process will fail without a decent connection.View Deal

You’re on a budget
At over $300 for even the simplest model, the Nexar One is an expensive dash cam – especially when you factor in the ongoing cost of a data subscription. There are plenty of other dash cams that offer high-quality video recordings for less money, but go without the bells and whistles of the Nexar One.View Deal

You want a compact dash cam
If you drive a car with a particularly small and/or shallow windshield, you should pass on the Nexar One. With the LTE module and interior camera attached, it’s a big dash cam that takes up plenty of space. You can tuck it behind the mirror, but that’s likely to partially block the view of the interior camera.View Deal

How I tested the Nexar One

• I installed the Nexar One in my own car
• I used the dash cam during multiple journeys over the course of a week
• I downloaded footage, adjusted settings and experimented with the live streaming function.

I installed the Nexar One in my car and used it as my dash cam for about a week. I used it on numerous journeys, and recorded footage every time I used my car. I then downloaded (and uploaded) footage from the dash cam to check its recording quality, and used the live streaming function to see how well that worked.

• First reviewed June 2025

Viltrox AF 50mm F2 Air: one-minute review

This isn’t my first Viltrox lens review, and nor it will it be my last, because the Chinese lens maker is on a roll, producing a string of excellent optics for users of all skill levels and budgets. Coming in at the opposite end of a recent cinema lens that could cost up to $200,000, the 50mm f/2 Air costs less than $200 / £200 / AU$320, and offers excellent value for money.

It’s a tiny and lightweight prime that's available for Sony E and Nikon Z mounts – I had the latter for this review – with a decent maximum f/2 aperture for defocusing backgrounds. You don’t get the sharpest detail or creamiest bokeh I’ve ever seen – for those you'll want to check out the excellent Viltrox 135mm f/1.8 LAB – but the Viltrox 50mm f/2 is an excellent casual lens for enthusiasts, especially for portrait photography, and an ideal foil to a standard zoom.

I’d have preferred the lens’s minimum focus distance to be a little closer, which would bolster its everyday photography credentials, while a couple of external controls to speed up changing settings, such as an AF / MF switch, would be welcome. However, the Viltrox AF 50mm F2 Air delivers performance and image quality that belie its price – and the fact it squeezes proprietary camera-brand alternatives with its aggressive pricing is the cherry on the cake.

(Image credit: Tim Coleman)Viltrox AF 50mm F2 Air specsViltrox AF 50mm F2 Air specs

Type:

Standard prime

Mount:

Nikon Z-mount / Sony E-mount

Sensor:

Full-frame

Focal length:

50mm

Max aperture:

f/2

Minimum focus:

1.67ft / 0.51m

Filter size:

58mm

Dimensions:

Φ68 x 58.6mm

Weight:

7.8oz / 220g

Viltrox AF 50mm f/2 Air: Price and availability

• Available for Sony E and Nikon Z mounts
• $199 / £229 / AU$319 list price, but it usually can be found for less

Hovering around the $200 / £200 / AU$320 mark and often available for a little less, the Viltrox AF 50mm f/2 Air is an excellent value prime lens, especially when you considering its build quality and optical performance.

Price-wise, it reminds me of the old Canon EF and Nikon F-mount cheap nifty fifties for DSLRs, being an affordable first prime for enthusiasts. There's bad news for some though – Viltrox's lens is only available for Sony E and Nikon Z lens mounts.

Viltrox AF 50mm f/2 Air: Design

• Weighs just 7.8oz / 220g
• No external buttons or controls
• Available for Sony E and Nikon Z mounts

The 50mm f/2 Air lens is, as the name suggests, designed with an emphasis on light weight over absolute performance – it’s positively featherweight, especially compared to alternatives such as Nikon’s own Z 50mm f/1.4.

It’s a small lens, too. I paired the 50mm f/2 Air with a Nikon Z6 II, and I could barely feel the lens. It's not often that I'd describe a camera / lens pairing as rear-heavy, but that's the case here.

This is also excellent value, with a sale price often dipping under $200 / £200 /AU$319, and the list price only a little more. For context, the Nikon-own f/1.4 lens is double the price (and double the weight), while Nikon's Z 50mm f/1.8 is four times the price.

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Viltrox’s lens well made too – a rugged metal barrel and rear mount instil confidence, even though there’s no proper weather-sealing to speak of (such are the compromises with such a low-cost lens).

There's a generously sized focus ring with smooth and easy rotation, and that’s it for controls. No AF / MF switch, no optical stabilization, no focus distance limiter – this is a simple bit of gear.

The lack of controls could, depending on which camera you pair the lens with, make changes to camera settings a little fussy. My camera doesn’t have an AF / MF switch, and because the lens doesn’t either I need to dive into a menu to switch between the two focusing methods, which can be frustrating.

Otherwise, there's little to talk about regarding design – this is a simple and lightweight optic that accepts 58mm threaded filters and comes supplied with a decent lens hood.

(Image credit: Tim Coleman)Viltrox AF 50mm f/2 Air: Performance

• Bright maximum f/2 aperture ideal for portraiture
• Fairly limited close-focusing capabilities
• Snappy autofocus speed

This is no pro-quality lens, but for beginners and enthusiasts the optical quality and performance of the Viltrox 50mm f/2 Air are perfectly sufficient.

The bright, zoom lens-beating maximum f/2 aperture ensures plenty of light intake and makes this lens great for low-light photography, as well as for defocusing backgrounds for dreamy portraits. Bokeh is smooth enough – I didn’t really spot the ugly ‘onion ring’ effect that can be evident in cheap optics.

(Image credit: Tim Coleman)

Optical clarity is perfectly acceptable, even if this isn't the sharpest 50mm lens I’ve used. With a little extra sharpening in post, most users should be perfectly happy with the results.

I shot all images in JPEG and uncompressed raw, and with lens corrections switched off there are slight signs of chromatic aberration, but the Viltrox has a reasonable handle on such distortions.

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Note the minor lens flare in the bottom middle of the frame when shooting straight towards sunlight (Image credit: Tim Coleman)Image 2 of 3

For head and should portraits, bokeh is generally big, smooth and round, with a little cat's eye shaping the corners (Image credit: Tim Coleman)Image 3 of 3

There's little sign of bokeh fringing either (technically known as longitudinal chromatic aberration) (Image credit: Tim Coleman)

I found the 1.67ft / 0.51m minimum focus distance a little limiting for close-up shots – the maximum magnification is a modest 0.11x. This isn't really a macro lens in any way, and perhaps even less of an everyday lens, with portraiture being its strongest suit.

With such a small and lightweight collection of ashperical (ASPH), ED and IF lens elements, the 50mm f/2’s STM autofocus motor has an easy job – those lens elements are moved with ease for quick and precise autofocus. Not once did I perceive sluggish autofocus on account of the lens rather than the camera.

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Shot using the maximum f/2 aperture, vignetting is evident in this bright scene (Image credit: Tim Coleman)Image 2 of 4

I stopped the aperture down to f/5 at which point vignetting is pretty much gone (Image credit: Tim Coleman)Image 3 of 4

Using the f/2 aperture helped to isolate the tree in the foreground. Chromatic aberration is well controlled, but vignetted means the corners are a little dark. (Image credit: Tim Coleman)Image 4 of 4

Stopped down to f/5, brightness is more consistent throughout the frame. (Image credit: Tim Coleman)

Overall, the Viltrox AF 50mm F2 Air is a capable performer, especially when you consider its compact size, low price and bright maximum aperture. For users on a budget who are looking to step up from a standard-zoom kit lens, this is an ideal choice.

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(Image credit: Tim Coleman)Should you buy the Viltrox AF 50mm F2 Air?Buy it if...

You want a low-cost fast prime

Mirrorless lenses can get pretty pricey, but the Viltrox 50mm f/2 Air is a true nifty fifty – it’s that cheap second lens you can pick up after a kit lens.

You have a small full-frame or APS-C camera

Mirrorless lenses can get pretty big and heavy, and aren't always the best fit with a number of today’s compact, rangefinder-style mirrorless cameras. Not so the Viltrox 50mm f/2 – its light, small, and pairs wonderfully.

Don't buy it if...

You’d like quick access to manual controls

There’s only one external control on the lens, and that's a focus ring. All other changes need to be made in-camera, which, depending on your camera’s external controls, could prove to be a menu-diving time sink.

You shoot a lot in adverse conditions

The Viltrox 50mm f/2 lens isn’t weather sealed. Its build quality is solid enough, but you’ll want to think twice about shooting with it in poor weather.

(Image credit: Tim Coleman)How I tested the Viltrox AF 50mm F2 Air

• I've used it over a loan period of several months
• I paired the lens with a Nikon Z6 II
• I've used it in a range of scenarios, generally in fair weather, and checked image quality at the various aperture settings

I paired a Z-mount version of the Viltrox AF 50mm F2 Air with a Nikon Z6 II for several months, during which time it has seen moderate use, generally in fair weather. Size-wise, the camera and lens are perfectly balanced, with no hint of wrist strain due to front-heaviness.

To test optical quality I’ve snapped portraits with the aperture wide open at f/2, and also taken series of images at each aperture setting to compare sharpness and check for lens distortions.

• First reviewed June 2025

Launching alongside the Nintendo Switch 2, Fortnite Nintendo Switch 2 Edition is quite simply the same game, but better. Bless developer and publisher Epic Games for trying, but Fortnite on the original Nintendo Switch is hardly the most elegant way to play and feels like you’re at a significant disadvantage thanks to the decreased graphical fidelity, framerate, and draw distance. It’s forgivable on handheld, but with TV mode, it looks rough and feels rougher. But I’m glad to say the Nintendo Switch 2 edition is a great way to play, no matter where you are.

Review info

Platform reviewed: Nintendo Switch 2
Available on: Nintendo Switch 2; Non-Switch 2 version available on Nintendo Switch, Xbox One, Xbox Series X|S, PS4, PS5, PC, Android, iOS (in some regions)
Release date: June 5, 2025

I mean, what can you even say about Fortnite at this point? Epic Games’ 100-person Battle Royale game has taken over the world over the last eight years, and it’s only grown larger in the time since. In the vein of something like Roblox, Fortnite is both a battle royale and a user-generated game platform where you can find an endless amount of custom maps to play with your friends on.

But let's get into why the Fortnite Nintendo Switch 2 Edition is such a great way to play.

Chug jug with you

(Image credit: Epic Games)

To really hammer that “you can play Fortnite without even touching its main mode” point home, I don’t like Battle Royale – the marquee mode – thanks to the game's building mechanics. However, when it comes to the Zero Build mode, it’s undoubtedly the best Battle Royale game on the market right now. Over the years, Epic has augmented the core mechanics of the game with a host of new movement options like wall kicking and roll landing that keep things fluid in what used to be the jankiest of movement systems.

Of course, the problem with any ‘evolving game’ is that it’s tough to give a review of the main mode because of how it changes. Fortnite Chapter 5 Season 1 was peak, while Chapter 4 and Chapter 5’s third seasons were two of the absolute worst seasons of a live service game I’ve played. This means there could be three-month stretches where you just simply don’t like the game. And considering Epic Games has been experimenting with seasons based around media franchises like Marvel, Star Wars, and a rumored upcoming Simpsons season, if you don’t like those, that’s all you get for months.

Thanks to the use of the Nintendo Switch 2’s feature set and specs, it's one of the best ways to play the game on console and by far the best handheld version.

Outside of that, there are the Epic Games-created modes. There’s Fortnite OG, which brings back the original Chapter 1 map (which can also be played in Zero Build, thankfully); Reload, which is a faster-paced 40-player battle; and Ballistic, a first-person mode that is a take on Counter-Strike. While none of these stand up to the core mode, they offer different ways to take on the mechanics of Fortnite and are solid games in their own right.

Then there are non-shooting modes like the Minecraft-inspired Lego Fortnite, Rocket Racing, and the best side mode, Fortnite Festival, which is a rhythm game mode and the closest thing we’ll get to a new Rock Band game, considering it was developed by Guitar Hero and Rock Band creator Harmonix. This mode gets constantly updated with songs and artists, with a new singer taking center stage with a skin and big song drop every few months or so (with the likes of Sabrina Carpenter, Metallica, and Hatsune Miku showing up).

And despite having so many options, the player base for each main mode is really healthy, meaning you’ll never wait too long to find a game of anything, with some custom games even having dedicated player bases. A few of these Epic-made modes have their own seasons and battle passes, too, which does add up if you don’t subscribe to the Fortnite Crew. However, Epic recently changed it so XP earned in any mode goes towards every single pass, which is a massive step up.

Mouse trap

(Image credit: Epic Games)

Fortnite Nintendo Switch 2 Edition is the same game as it is everywhere else; there are no exclusive modes or anything of the sort. However, thanks to the use of the Nintendo Switch 2’s feature set and specs, it's one of the best ways to play the game on console and by far the best handheld version of Fortnite.

Compared to the Nintendo Switch version, which ran at 880p docked and 660p in handheld mode, Fortnite Nintendo Switch 2 Edition runs at 1224p docked and 900p in handheld, so it still isn’t 4K / 1080p, but it is a significant boost. However, the resolution isn’t where the upgrade matters; the improved textures as well as a far greater draw distance, which was one of the original console’s biggest hindrances – especially with how big the Fortnite map is. Most importantly, Fortnite Nintendo Switch 2 Edition runs at a solid 60fps as opposed to the 30fps of the Nintendo Switch – which in an online shooter that has cross-play with more powerful platforms – makes a world of difference.

Gyro aiming returns from the Nintendo Switch edition of Fortnite, but new to the Switch 2 version is support for mouse controls via the Joy-Con 2 controllers. Effectively, this allows you to use a mouse setup for aiming with the movement capabilities of an analogue stick, and is a wonderful combination.

Best bit

(Image credit: Epic Games)

As I was writing this review, Epic released a Hank Hill skin alongside an emote recreating the King of the Hill intro: my best bit can only be that and even how it looked on the Switch 2, which was excellent.

However, the mouse implementation is a touch awkward. Due to the lack of buttons available, you’ll still need to access the face buttons on your Joy-Con to jump and reload, which creates some uncomfortable moments as you crane your hand. Plus, the mouse controls need to be activated from the in-game menu, as opposed to just sticking the Joy-Con in mouse position like in other games. This isn’t the biggest pain in the world, but it doesn’t revert back once you use a controller that doesn’t support mouse controls (such as attaching your Joy-Con 2 to the Switch 2 itself), which means you’ll need to get the controller off and go through the menu with the mouse to deactivate it.

Fortnite is a phenomenon for a reason; if you let yourself get by the “popular game bad” noise that you often see with this and the likes of Call of Duty, you’ll find what is probably the best Battle Royale game in the genre. And even outside of that, it’s a massive game platform that has an endless supply of whatever you like, from racing, rhythm games, and even custom Fall Guys games.

However, the risks of an ongoing game persist because you’ll occasionally be hit with a season that makes the game bad for months, and there’s not much you can do to help it.

Having said that, Fortnite Nintendo Switch 2 Edition is easily the best way to play on the go or on a handheld device, and while it’s outclassed in power by the PS5 and Xbox versions when it comes to TV mode, it’s still solid to look at, and the mouse controls give it an edge that those consoles don’t have.

Should you play Fortnite Nintendo Switch 2 Edition?Play it if...

You want to play Fortnite on a handheld
Fortnite Nintendo Switch 2 Edition outclasses the version on the original Switch in every way, taking what is a means to an end and making it a fantastic way to play in its own right. Plus, the mouse controls make tabletop mode a great way to play, too.

You want something free to play on Switch 2
Fortnite has a seemingly endless amount of modes and content, and is being updated constantly. And unless you want to pick up a skin of John Cena or Raiden from Metal Gear Solid, you don’t have to pay a single penny to play all of the game’s modes.

Don't play it if...

You need the best graphics and performance from Fortnite
While the Nintendo Switch 2 Edition of Fortnite has a perfectly fine resolution and – in my experience – sticks at a solid 60fps, that’s where you cap out. The current-gen console versions and PC ultimately look better and support higher framerates.

Accessibility

Fortnite has a ton of accessibility options, including multiple color blindness filters, the ability to remap controls however you like, alongside multiple control options like gyro aiming and mouse controls.

A standout feature is the visual sound effects toggle, which displays a ring around your character to indicate the source of sound effects and their corresponding representations (footsteps, loot, gunfire, etc.). This is particularly beneficial for those with hearing difficulties or when playing the game with the sound muted.

How I reviewed Fortnite Nintendo Switch 2 Edition

I played around eight hours of Fortnite Nintendo Switch 2 Edition on top of a good 300-400 hours played across PlayStation, PC, and Nintendo Switch. During my time with the Nintendo Switch 2 edition, I tested Zero Build mode, Fortnite Festival and a number of custom games.

I played this in a mixture of handheld mode on the Nintendo Switch 2 itself and on a Samsung Q60D TV and a Samsung HW-T450 soundbar using the Nintendo Switch 2 Pro Controller and the Joy-Con 2 controllers when using mouse mode.

First reviewed June 2025

Peak Design Pro Tripod: two-minute review

Peak Design’s tripods have a couple of unique design features. One is the leg design, which is not tubular but has a six-sided cross section with an inner edge that fits straight up against the center column, with no gaps. The center column is thinner than most but also has a six-sided cross section for the legs to fit neatly against the legs when folded. This non-tubular construction does seem to give both the legs and the center column unusual stiffness.

The Peak Design Pro Tripods don't use tubular carbon fiber legs. They have a more complex six-sided cross-section designed to fold up tight against a flat-sided center column. (Image credit: Rod Lawton)

Peak Design's clever leg and column design means these new Pro tripods fold down to a very small diameter compared to regular tripods. (Image credit: Rod Lawton)

The other unique feature is a low-profile ball head with no protruding locking nut. Instead, it’s clamped with a rotating collar, and another, just above locks and releases the compact Arca Swiss compatible camera plate.

This low profile head design means that the original Peak Design travel tripod does not have to have its legs rotated 180 degrees from their folded position before you can use it. The low height of the ball head means that you can simply fold the legs in and pack it away without any complicated manoeuvers.

The new Pro Tripods also come with a new Pro Head. It still uses rotating collars to release the ball and the QR plate but it's bigger and more substantial than the original. (Image credit: Rod Lawton)

The Pro head takes regular Arca Swiss compatible plates and also accepts Peak Design's clever new Tilt Mod specifically for video work. (Image credit: Rod Lawton)

These design features made the original Peak Design Travel tripod very different to anything else. Now Peak Design has taken those same design concepts and scaled them up into a Pro version designed for serious professional use.

In fact, there’s not one Pro tripod but three. The regular Pro tripod is the one I spent most time with for this review, but I also got to try out the Pro Lite and Pro Tall variants. The Pro Lite is almost the same height and folded length of the regular Pro Tripod, but has a lighter construction for easier portability. The Tall version has longer leg sections and can even reach eye level for tall people without any center column extension – it exceeded my eye level!

The new Pro tripods aren’t just bigger and more substantial than the original Travel Tripod – they have a new Pro ball head that’s larger and more substantial than the original, plus it has a neat ‘inverted’ design so that the pan axis is above the ball not below it. This means that you can level the pan axis for panning shots and panoramas without having to fiddle around with the leg lengths. It’s not a huge range of adjustment but it might be all you need.

For more extreme pan axis adjustments, or if a lot of your work is video, Peak Design has you covered. There are two new ‘mods’ to go with these tripods: one tilt head for video work, and the other a leveling bowl which you swap out with the standard center column, and which has a regular head attachment screw so that you can use your favorite video head if you want to.

This is Peak Design's new Tilt Mod, which attaches directly to the Pro head to offer a smooth tilt movement for video. (Image credit: Rod Lawton)

Here you can see the Tilt Mod fitted. It clamps straight into the Pro head's Arca Swiss mount so it takes just a few seconds. (Image credit: Rod Lawton)

The Tilt Mod and the Pro head feel as if they were made to go together... but there's another clever touch. The Pro head uses an 'inverted' design so that the pan axis is above the ball. This means that it also acts as a basic but effective levelling head for video work. (Image credit: Rod Lawton)

I love the original Peak Design Travel Tripod, so do the new Pro tripods leave me just as impressed? Yes! It is, literally, just like using scaled up versions of the Travel Tripod. The carbon fiber legs feel just as smooth and warm to the touch, the leg clamps are just as quick and positive, and because these Pro tripods have four leg sections rather than five, they’re a little quicker to set up.

The new Pro ball head is terrific. It’s big and chunky, it locks tight and it doesn’t add a whole lot to the tripod’s height when you’re packing away. As before, there are no protruding knobs or levers to get in the way either.

Peak Design’s use of a rotating collar to lock the QR plate does take a little getting used to. The head has two collars in close proximity and at first it can be a struggle to remember which does what and how they work.

The new Pro head, though, feels absolutely rock solid, and it’s with the pan and tilt mod that it gets really clever. All you need to do is take out the regular Arca Swiss plate and slot in the pan and tilt add-on for a proper fluid pan and tilt action.

There’s an extending panning handle which is stowed against the side of the head via a magnet (Peak Design loves magnets) and can be quickly screwed into the head ready for use. It sounds like a kludge, with one head mounted on top of another, but it absolutely isn’t. It looks like it was made to work this way, and feels like it too. The tilt axis is sprung, by the way, so if you use a longer camera plate you should be able to balance it up fairly well for light and controlled tilt movements.

If you're into more serious video work, you might want to take a look at the Pro Leveling Base. This replaces the center column with a shorter 'stub' column incorporating a leveling bowl. This also has a regular head fitting, so you can still use your favorite video head – it doesn't have to be Peak Design's. (Image credit: Rod Lawton)

The center columns on these tripods are longer than the one in the original Travel Tripod, which is useful, but even though they’re fixed with a small-looking locking knob, they lock down really tight and with no flex.

You can also get spiked feet but these are an optional extra, nor does it seem like Peak Design includes a phone clamp with these tripods, so that will be a paid extra too. It kind of makes sense because these Pro tripods are overengineered for phone use anyway. If you do get the phone mount, it will still slide up into the base of the center column for storage. Here, Peak Design has stuck with its slightly complicated pull-and-twist hook release which is easy when you’ve learned how it works but can be annoying at first.

So that’s a quick tour of the Peak Design Pro Tripods, but which is the best one to get? That’s quite tricky because they are somewhat similar, both in size and price. The standard Pro tripod is expected to sell for $899.95 when it goes fully on sale in November 2025, the lighter Pro Lite will be $799.95 and the Pro Tall will be $999.95. I haven't seen prices for the UK or Australia yet.

Personally, I wouldn’t go for the Pro Lite. I can understand the reasoning – it’s a slightly lighter, slightly cheaper alternative to the regular Pro model – but it’s not a lot smaller and I think I’d rather just pay the extra for the thicker legs of the Pro model. The Pro Tall is interesting, though. If I was 6ft tall and didn’t like using center columns, I would go for this one. It’s definitely longer when packed away, but all of these tripods are too long to fit inside a backpack anyway and would end up strapped to the outside. Besides, for those times when you didn’t need the extra height you could just extend three leg sections not four, for even more stability.

Peak Design Pro Tripods: key specs

Pro Lite

Pro

Pro Tall

Packed length

48.8cm

50.1cm

58.1cm

Packed diameter

8.5cm

9.3cm

9.3cm

Max height, center column down

133.2cm

138.0cm

162.0cm

Max height, center column up

162.5cm

168.4cm

197.4cm

Min height (low mode)

15.8cm

15.9cm

17.3cm

Weight

3.74lbs / 1.7kg

4.19lbs / 1.9kg

4.4lbs / 2.0kg

Max payload

15.9kg

18.1kg

18.1kg

Head

Integrated Pro Ball Head

Integrated Pro Ball Head

Integrated Pro Ball Head

Material

Carbon fiber

Carbon fiber

Carbon fiber

Leg sections

4

4

4

Peak Design Pro Tripods price and availability

The Peak Design Pro Tripods launch on Kickstarter on July 17 2025 but are expected to go on general sale in November 2025. The Pro Lite tripod has an expected price of $799.95, the Pro tripod will be $899.99 and the Pro Tall will sell for $999.99.

The Tilt Mod and Pro Leveling Base will be sold separately and we’re currently waiting for price information on these, but we are told the option spiked feet will sell for $49.95.

Peak Design Pro Tripods: Also consider

Gitzo Traveler Series 1

If you like a tripod with style and quality but in a more traditional form, the Gitzo Traveler Series 1 could be a great choice. It has a straightforward, classic design with no frills or gadgets, just superb materials and construction. It doesn’t go quite as tall as the Peak Design Pro models nor fold so neatly, but it’s a classic design that’s stood the test of time.

Read our Gitzo Traveler Series 1 review

3 Legged Thing Punks Brian 2.0
If you want a full height carbon fiber tripod, you don’t need to pay Peak Design money to get it. The Punks Brian 2.0 is from 3 Legged Thing’s more cost-conscious Punks line, but is both well-made and typically colorful and stylish. There is some flex at full height, though, and when it’s folded up the Punks Brian 2.0 is nowhere near as neat as Peak Design’s tripods. This is still a great value choice, though.

Read our 3 Legged Thing Punks Brian 2.0 review

Should I buy a Peak Design Pro Tripod?

(Image credit: Rod Lawton)Buy it if...

You already love the Peak Design Travel Tripod
Good as it is, the Travel Tripod is not really set up for heavier gear or taller working heights, but the new Pro tripods have all the same design finesse but scaled up for pro use.

You’re more concerned with design quality than price
Heaven knows the new Peak Design Pro tripods aren’t cheap, but they are beautifully designed, exceptionally compact and, based on our samples, very rigid

Don't buy it if...

You’re trying to save money!
If all you need is rock-steady everyday value from your tripod, then you don’t need to pay these prices. There are plenty of cheaper carbon fiber or aluminum alternatives

You need flexible angle/boom options
If you shoot nature close-ups in the wild or you’re working with flat-lays or table-top setups then you need the flexibility of a boom arm, and that’s no an option here

How I tested the Peak Design Pro Tripods

• Operational speed and efficiency
• Stiffness and rigidity
• Ball head operation
• Effectiveness of add-ons

I had just two weeks to try out the Peak Design Pro tripods because loan stocks were in short supply and shared between many different reviewers. However, I know the original Peak Design Travel Tripod very well and I review tripods as part of my work, so I already had a list of what I was looking for and expected from these new Pro tripods.

I particularly wanted to test the speed and ease of deployment and was pleased to find it was just as slick as with the original Travel Tripod but quicker, thanks to the 4-section legs and larger leg clamps. I also wanted to check if the excellent stiffness of the original Travel Tripod had scaled up to these new, bigger sizes, and it has. I don’t remember any other tripods I’ve tested with more torsional rigidity and lack of leg flex than these.

I was also keen to check how the new Pro Ball Head worked. The original was good but quite small and fiddly. This one is much better. Not only does it clamp tighter and hold heavier loads better, the inverted ball design makes levelling the camera for panning shots so much easier.

Lastly, I spent some time trying out the Tilt Mod and Pro Leveling Base and came away impressed. The Tilt Mod fixes so well to the Pro Ball Head that they feel like a single (very smooth) unit and the Pro Leveling Base took a minute or so to swap out with the regular column but lets you use your own tripod head.

First reviewed June 2025

Acer Predator Connect W6x: One-Minute Review

Like most manufacturers, Acer has been focusing on the latest Wi-Fi 7 technology in its best routers and mesh systems.

One advantage of Wi-Fi 7 is its use of the high-speed 6.0GHz frequency band, which provides far higher speeds than previous versions of Wi-Fi. However, there are millions of people who are still using older computers and mobile devices that only support the 2.4GHz and 5.0GHz bands used by the previous generations of Wi-Fi 5 and Wi-Fi 6.

To provide a more affordable option for those users, Acer has also released the Predator Connect W6x, which provides basic dual-band Wi-Fi 6 support using the 2.4GHz and 5.0GHz bands with a top speed of 6.0Gbps (and is also backwards-compatible with older devices that use Wi-Fi 5).

Acer uses the Predator name for its range of gaming PCs and accessories, and while the Predator Connect W6x certainly isn’t the fastest router around it can still provide a fast, affordable option for gaming, streaming and other tasks at a very competitive price.

The only problem is finding the right router with the right model number on Acer’s perpetually unhelpful website.

(Image credit: Future)Acer Predator Connect W6x: Price And Availability

• How much does it cost? $169 / £99 / AU$299
• When is it available? Now
• Where can you get it? Available in the US, UK, and Australia

Your first task is to make sure you find the correct model on Acer’s website, as the company sells a number of routers in the Predator Connect range that look almost identical and have very similar model numbers.

We tested the Predator Connect W6x, which you can spot by counting its array of six external antennae. However, there are also models called the Predator Connect W6 (eight antenna) and W6d (four antenna), which have very similar designs, although they do have slightly different technical specifications.

And Acer’s Australian website carelessly manages to refer to the W6x as being both a tri-band and dual-band router, depending on which web page you look at, so you really do need to take care when ordering online.

Assuming you manage to find the correct model, then the Predator Connect W6x is available directly from Acer in the US and Australia, priced at $169 / AU$299.

That’s a fairly competitive price when compared to similar Wi-Fi 6 routers, but it’s customers in the UK who seem to get the best deal, as the W6x costs just £99. It’s not sold on the Acer website in the UK, though, so you’ll need to shop around online.

• Value: 4.5/5

Acer Predator Connect W6x: Design

(Image credit: Future)

• Low-profile design
• Eight external antennae
• Four Ethernet ports for wired connections

The Acer Predator Connect W6x certainly looks like a gaming router, with a sombre black, low-profile design and an intimidating array of dagger-like antennae (that’s six antennae - count ‘em, not four or eight).

The body of the router stands just 50mm high, 270mm wide and 187mm deep, but the adjustable, rotating antennae are 170mm long so you’ll need plenty of room when you’re setting it up to make sure that the antennae can spread out and zap the Wi-Fi signal far and wide.

The affordable W6x doesn’t have the array of glowing lights that you find on some gaming routers, but Acer hasn’t cut too many corners in order to keep the price down.

The back panel of the router provides a 2.5Gb Ethernet port for a high-speed Internet connection, and there are four Gigabit Ethernet ports available for a gaming PC or console if you prefer a lag-free wired connection for your online gaming sessions.

There’s even a USB port for adding a network storage drive as well. This uses a USB-A (3.0) connector, rather than the faster USB-C, but that’s hardly a criticism at this price.

• Design: 4/5

Image 1 of 3

(Image credit: Future)Image 2 of 3

(Image credit: Future)Image 3 of 3

(Image credit: Future)Acer Predator Connect W6x: Features

• Free security from Trend Micro
• Free parental controls
• QoS for gaming and streaming

The Predator Connect app provides a number of useful features, but it’s not as user-friendly as it could be.

The apps provided with many routers keep things simple by automatically combining the different frequency bands to create a single network, while others prefer to create a separate network for each frequency band.

The Predator app does neither of these things – it starts by simply filling the screen with the various network settings and leaves it up to the user to decide which options to choose.

That’s fine for more experienced users, but home users who aren’t familiar with terms such as ‘band-steering’ and ‘SSID’ may be a bit confused at this point.

Once that’s done, the app provides features such as the ability to create a guest network, or to block Internet access for individual devices. There’s also a QoS option – quality of service – that allows you to give priority to devices, such as a gaming PC or console, that require maximum performance.

Some features are made unnecessarily complicated, though. The app does include a number of security features and parental controls, and we were pleased to find that these are provided free of charge, with no need to pay an additional monthly subscription – as is the case with some of Acer’s rivals.

But, it’s strange that these are initially turned off within the Predator app, which simply tells you to leave the app and connect to the router using a web browser interface in order to activate these features.

Again, this is something that will appeal to more experienced users, but it could be confusing for people who have never used a browser interface to connect to their router before.

• Features: 4/5

Acer Predator Connect W6x: Performance

(Image credit: Future)

• Dual-band Wi-Fi 6
• Top speed of 6Gbps
• 2.5Gb Ethernet for broadband connection

Acer Predator Connect W6x: Benchmarks

Ookla Speed Test – 2.4GHz (download/upload)

Within 5ft, no obstructions: 150Mbps/150Mbps
Within 30ft, three partition walls: 70Mbps/70bps

20GB Steam Download – 2.4GHz

Within 5ft, no obstructions: 150Mbps
Within 30ft, three partition walls: 70Mbps

Ookla Speed Test – 5.0GHz (download/upload)

Within 5ft, no obstructions: 150Mbps/150Mbps
Within 30ft, three partition walls: 150Mbps/150Mbps

20GB Steam Download - 5.0GHz

Within 5ft, no obstructions: 150Mbps
Within 30ft, three partition walls: 150Mbps

The Predator Connect W6x isn’t a top-of-the-range router by any means, as it’s based on older Wi-Fi 6 technology.

Even so, its top speed of 6Gbps should be more than fast enough for most home broadband services. Our normal office router can only manage a top speed of around 80Mbps on the 2.4GHz band when running the Ookla speed test with devices in the same room.

That’s far short of the maximum 150Mbps available with our office Internet connection. Steam downloads struggle even more, at around 40Mbps. Switching to 5.0GHz on our office router provides some improvement, with the Ookla test rising to 120Mbp, and 100Mbps for Steam.

But, when connecting to devices that are nearby, the W6x breezed along at the maximum 150Mbps for both tests on both 2.4GHz and 5.0Ghz bands.

I also have an office at the back of my building that suffers from an annoying Wi-Fi ‘deadspot’ as my normal office router can’t provide a reliable signal in that location at all.

The W6x was able to reach that office, although its 2.4GHz band struggled a bit and dipped to 70Mbps for both Ookla and Steam.

Fortunately, the router’s 5.0GHz band stepped up to the plate and quickly boosted both Steam and Ookla tests up to the full 150Mbps once more.

So while the Acer Predator Connect W6x might not be the fastest router around, it does perform pretty well for an affordable Wi-Fi 6 router and could be a good upgrade for owners of older Wi-Fi 5 routers (especially for £99 in the UK).

Should you buy the Acer Predator Connect W6x?

Category

Verdict

Score

Value

It’s not going to break any speed records, but the W6x is a good, affordable upgrade for people who are still using an old router provided by their ISP.

4.5/5

Design

It doesn’t have any flashing lights for gamers, but the low-profile design looks smart, and the array of eight antenna provides good Wi-Fi coverage.

4/5

Features

The Predator app has some rough edges, but the W6x provides good wired connectivity, along with security features and parental controls that don’t require an extra monthly subscription.

4/5

Performance

The Predator app has some rough edges, but the W6x provides good wired connectivity, along with security features and parental controls that don’t require an extra monthly subscription.

4/5

Overall

It’s certainly not state-of-the-art, but if you just want to replace an old Wi-Fi 5 router then the W6x does the job at a very competitive price.

4/5

Buy it if...

You’re on a budget
The latest Wi-Fi 7 routers are still fairly expensive, but a good Wi-Fi 6 router such as the Predator Connect W6x will be fast enough for most home broadband services.

Your devices are a few years old
Millions of people are still using computers and mobile devices that only support Wi-Fi 5 or 6, so they really don’t need to splash the cash on a cutting-edge Wi-Fi 7 router.

Don't buy it if...

You’ve got a brand-new PC
If you’ve bought a new PC that does support Wi-Fi 7 – especially a gaming rig – then it’s worth spending a bit extra to get a Wi-Fi 7 router that provides maximum performance.

You're a network newbie
The Predator app has a few rough edges, and it might be a bit confusing for people who don’t know much about networking.View Deal

Acer Predator Connect W6x: Also consider

Netgear Nighthawk RS200

A kind of halfway house between Wi-Fi 6 and full Wi-Fi 7, the RS200 supports Wi-Fi running at 6.5GBps. However, it limits itself to just the 2.4GHz and 5.0GHz bands to keep the price down.

Acer Predator Connect T7

If you want to go all-in on Wi-Fi 7, then the T7 is Acer’s high-end option, with tri-band support and blistering speeds of up to 11Gbps for gaming.

Acer Predator Connect W6x vs its competition

Router

Acer Predator Connect W6x

Acer Predator Connect T7

Netgear Nighthawk RS200

Price (as reviewed)

$169/£99/AU$299

$329.99/£236.22/AU$699.00

$229.99/£199.99/AU$449

Wi-Fi Type

Dual-band Wi-Fi 6

Tri-band Wi-Fi 7

Dual-band Wi-Fi 7

Wi-Fi Speed

6Gbps

11Gbps

6.5Gbps

Connectivity

1x 2.5Gb Ethernet (WAN), 4x Gigabit Ethernet (LAN), 1x USB-A (3.0)

1x 2.5Gb Ethernet (WAN), 2x Gigabit Ethernet (LAN), 1x USB-C (2.0)

1x 2.5Gb Ethernet (WAN), 1x 2.5Gb Ethernet (LAN), 3x Gigabit Ethernet (LAN), 1x USB-A (3.0)

Processor

Quad-core 2.0GHz

Quad-core 1.5GHz

Quad-core 2.0GHz

Memory

1GB RAM

1GB RAM

2GB RAM

Storage

256MB Flash

512MB Flash

512MB Flash

Dimensions

49.5 x 270 x 187mm

212 x 109 x 109mm

249 x 150 x 102mm

• First reviewed: June 2025

I wasn't quite sure what to expect from The Alters, the latest game from developer and publisher 11 Bit Studios. From the trailers I'd watched, it seemed almost like parts of several different games were grabbed and hastily cobbled together into something that shouldn't work - and yet, much like my hastily-cobbled-together base in-game, it does.

Review information

Platform reviewed: PC
Available on: PC, PS5, Xbox Series X/S
Release date: June 13, 2025

Following Jan Dolski, a construction specialist on a space mission to find the ultra-rare element Unobtaini- sorry, ‘Rapidium’, The Alters meshes together survival, management sim, third-person action adventure, and decision-based narrative elements with apparent grace and ease. There's a well-struck balance here, never tipping too far in any one direction, keeping you constantly engaged and on your toes. Less than two hours in, I was already having a blast.

Predictably, things go wrong almost immediately for poor Jan, and despite finding an abundance of Rapidium, he's left stranded on a hostile planet with an approaching sunrise that will scorch him and his base to an irradiated crisp. Alone, desperate, and running out of options, he follows the highly questionable directions of a crackly voice on the base comms to utilize Rapidium’s mysterious qualities and create a duplicate of himself: an ‘alter’. After all, many hands make light work - and the rest of the original crew are too dead to help out.

Seeing double

Needless to say, this planet is not exactly hospitable. (Image credit: 11 Bit Studios)

The thing is, Jan’s duplicates aren't exactly that. The core premise of The Alters is right there in the name, with each alternate Jan Dolski having a distinct - though familiar - personality and memories of a life that went a different direction at one pivotal moment or another. It's an excellent central conceit for both a story and a game. Need a miner to help gather the resources required to survive on this desolate planet? Good news: in another life, Jan chose to pursue his father’s mining career. Bad news: Miner Jan has a substance abuse problem and crippling self-esteem issues, and you're going to have to deal with that now.

This is where the narrative segment of the game comes in, with a wide variety of both one-on-one chats and group interactions to be had with Jan’s parallel selves. It's reminiscent of chatting to your crew aboard the Normandy between missions in the Mass Effect series; although instead of a sleek spaceship, your base of operations in The Alters is a thin, blocky structure housed on a gyro inside a gigantic tire. It gives the story a sort of twisted road trip vibe, which I loved - check out Overland and Get In The Car, Loser! If you’re interested in some other very weird virtual road trips.

Best bit

(Image credit: 11 Bit Studios)

Jan's rolling base is certainly unique - just don't question the physical logistics of how such a vehicle would remain upright.

The ‘mobile base’ is just one part of the fantastic and occasionally goofy world-building on display here. True to 11 Bit Studios’ Polish heritage, the life Jan left behind to join this mission is a corporate sci-fi dystopia with a distinctly Eastern European flavor. Janky Europop plays from a jukebox in the social room you can build for the Alters to relax in; Jan’s childhood home is a nondescript mining town with brutalist concrete architecture; two Jan Dolskis bond over their shared love of pierogi. While the planetary backdrop of Jan’s current predicament might be a bit more par for the course, the injection of a little cultural identity helps massively in creating a more unique, interesting setting. The soundtrack is pretty good too, an appropriate blend of synthy overtures and foreboding background music.

I won’t delve too much into the plot to avoid spoilers (this is a story best experienced as blind as possible), but I will say as a lifelong sci-fi lover that the story is solid. The writing and voice acting are both excellent, with some interesting supporting characters and plenty of dialogue that serves to flesh out the characters and move the story along. Particular props go to Alex Jordan, who voices not just Jan but also all of his titular alters - and make no mistake, despite sharing the same origins, this is a greatly varied group of characters who don't always get along. Listen up, Geoff Keighley, because I fully expect to see him nominated for Best Performance at the next Game Awards.

Too many cooks

See that weird glowing stuff? That's Rapidium - and Jan's going to need a lot of it to make more alters. (Image credit: 11 Bit Studios)

Speaking of not getting along, though: we're all going to need to get along, or we're all going to die.

Befriending Jan’s alters isn't enough to survive with the radioactive sunrise mere days away. You need to put them to work, whether that's producing food or equipment aboard the mobile base or gathering resources in the dangerous environment outside.

This is mostly done through a series of menu screens, which have clean, well-designed UIs, and managing your alters takes up a decent portion of your time in-game. They're quite proactive; for example, if an alter in the workshop finishes building all the tools you've queued up for manufacturing, they'll suggest moving to a different assignment, prioritizing stations aboard the base with unfinished workflows and no assigned staff.

It's not the deepest management sim system I've ever seen - 11 Bit Studios previously developed Frostpunk and Frostpunk 2, which offers great complexity for hardcore fans of the genre - but it works well as one component of a broader story-driven survival game and keeps the focus on the micro rather than the macro. You can only have a maximum of six alters out of a possible nine (although two of them, Technician Jan and Scientist Jan, are mandatory for the plot - so it's more like picking four out of seven).

Laying out your base smartly (as I have very much not done in this screenshot) is key to making the most of your limited resources. (Image credit: 11 Bit Studios)

You're also responsible for the base itself, meaning that you'll need an alter - or yourself - on hand to carry out repair work when needed, and you'll need to modify and expand the base to match the evolving demands of your journey across the planet's surface to a promised rescue rendezvous. Thanks to the two-dimensional nature of your base-in-a-giant-tire, rooms are laid out in a grid and can be moved and slotted together Tetris-style to make the most of your available space.

This is another balancing act; everything needs to be correctly connected to function, and every new room added increases the total weight of your base and thus the amount of resources you'll need to travel to the next area. There's always a tradeoff; should you build the alters private cabins to help improve their mood, or make them bunk together in a far more space-efficient dorm room? Do you really need that greenhouse for manually producing proper food, when you could all survive perfectly well on processed organic mush?

Venturing forth

Scanning for mining deposits as you explore each new area is a vital task if you want to stay alive. (Image credit: 11 Bit Studios)

Of course, even with your alters hard at work, this is a team effort. Real boy Jan doesn't get to sit on his hands while his clones do all the heavy lifting, no, sir. You need to make use of every precious hour before sunrise comes, because every single job your alters can do is also something you could also be doing yourself.

This is where the third-person exploration and action elements of the game come into play - though I use the word ‘action’ quite generously here, since The Alters doesn't really have traditional combat. When I said ‘hostile planet’ earlier on, I wasn't talking about angry local megafauna or marauding aliens. The areas outside the base are populated by strange, pulsating anomalies, which can deliver a potentially lethal dose of radiation on contact. Luckily, you can research and build the Luminator: a magic UV flashlight that can be used to target the floating cores of the anomalies and shrink them into a stable ball of useful resources with an admittedly rather satisfying vwoosh.

It's perhaps the weakest component in The Alters’ otherwise flawless assembly of disparate parts, but it's far from a deal-breaker. The anomalies just aren't a particularly engaging threat, although later on, some more interesting variants do show up. One variety has two cores and rhythmically grows and shrinks in size; another warps spacetime in close proximity, causing you to lose hours in seconds while you remain within its radius.

I like the design of the Ally Corp spacesuits Jan and his alters wear - and even their standard-issue on-base clothes have little variations to help keep the alters distinct. (Image credit: 11 Bit Studios)

The rest of the off-base gameplay is a bit more appealing; you explore, gather resources, and map out locations for fixed mining stations, which must then be connected to the base by setting up pylons before being operated by yourself or one of the alters. Your rolling base only makes pit stops at a handful of locations throughout the game, and the maps aren't that large, but they do feel densely populated and hand-crafted - no sprawling procedurally-generated wilderness here. Sometimes, you'll stumble across wreckage from your original crashed ship, and can recover personal effects that certain alters might appreciate, improving their mood.

Brothers in arms

Keeping those alters happy is no laughing matter, however. They can go hungry or become depressed, get injured on the job, or fall sick from radiation poisoning if you force them to work outside for too long. Sometimes you'll find two or more of them in disagreement, at which point you'll need to find a solution - and it's not always possible to stay on everyone’s good side.

Some of these disputes are key to the overarching plot, while others are merely for character development and establishing personal conflicts - but I really appreciate how The Alters makes you stand on your decisions, even the smaller ones. A lesser game would have you pick a side and mete out judgment, with corresponding mood shifts based on your choice, but here you have to back up your words with actions or deal with the consequences. When one alter argues that we need more protection from radiation, while another insists that we should stop gathering irradiated metals altogether, you're expected to follow through on your decision. Fail to build that radiation shield quickly enough after choosing to support that plan? Tough, now both alters have lost some respect for you.

I probably spent more time playing the beer pong minigame than I needed to. But I needed Jan's alters to understand that he's the king, and there's no beating him. (Image credit: 11 Bit Studios)

Fortunately, there are plenty of ways to boost your alters' mental states. Assigning them to work that fits their specialism is a good start, but you can also prepare better food, play beer pong (which has its own minigame), build a gym or a therapy room, or even settle in for a movie night with all of your alternate selves. Hilariously, the ‘movies’ you can uncover from the ship’s scattered wreckage are all live-action shorts made by YouTube comedy duo Chris & Jack, which can be viewed in their entirety while the Jans provide occasional commentary. It's weird, but great. Hell, the only thing you can't do is exactly what I would do in this situation, which is a sloppy make-out session with my clones.

Whatever your methods, ensuring that your self-made crew is healthy in body and mind is of paramount importance. An unhappy or rebellious alter will work fewer hours; an injured one can't work at all. It all plays into the core idea that Jan - perhaps every version of him, in fact - simply wasn't cut out for this job, and you're constantly flying from one near-catastrophe to another. I opted to pick Doctor Jan as my final alter quite late in the game, and I'm glad I did: Miner Jan decided to overwork himself not long after, and kept coming back to base with increasingly severe radiation sickness.

The human touch

It's nice to find your alters gathered to relax in their off-time during the (rare) periods when everyone seems to be getting along. (Image credit: 11 Bit Studios)

In short, The Alters is nothing short of an artistic triumph. It's a cheerfully strange game with a lot of heart, using its premise to ask genuine philosophical questions about the nature of memories and identity, but also managing to remain grounded in a story about people just trying to survive a terrible situation. At one point, Jan leads the alters in a (shockingly good) impromptu musical number. It's silly, but it's hard not to like how downright earnest it all is. It feels like something that was created with genuine love and care, an increasing rarity in today’s game industry landscape.

I wouldn't call it an extremely challenging game overall, so if you're expecting a gritty, difficult survival experience, you might be disappointed - although I've been a fan of management sims for a while, so players less familiar with the genre may find it a bit tougher to stay on top of each new crisis. There are separate difficulty settings for the anomaly combat and the resource economy, which is a nice touch.

Lastly, as a PC game, I found it ran well both on my RTX 4080 gaming PC and an older RTX 3060 gaming laptop, at 1440p and 1080p, respectively.

The game isn't particularly long, either - my first playthrough clocked in at just shy of 20 hours, and I felt was taking my time with it - but there's certainly some room for replayability based on the different available alters and multiple endings. After getting what I'd like to call a ‘good’ ending, I'm already itching to start over and say all the mean things I avoided saying the first time around. Watch out, space: here comes Asshole Jan.

Should I buy The Alters?Buy it if...

You want a meaningful story
The Alters delivers emotional beat after beat across its whole plot, taking the time to muse on human nature while keeping its focus on Jan's struggle for survival.

You like base-building
From fitting together rooms in your mobile base to laying out connected pylons and power lines to support your fast-travel mining outposts, The Alters has a little something for everyone who likes to build stuff.

Don't buy it if...

You want an intense survival experience
Simply put, the various elements of The Alters all work to serve the central narrative - if you want a game that's all hardcore survival or management sim, look elsewhere.

You want fast-paced action
This isn't exactly a slow-paced game - seeing 'SUNRISE IN 3 DAYS' will certainly get you galvanized - but the infrequent combat sections are fairly basic.

Accessibility

There are a small number of accessibility features available in The Alters, primarily focused on reducing some intrusive visual effects (like those caused by certain anomalies, or when Jan is drunk after too much beer pong). There's also the option to adjust the font size of the subtitles and change the entire HUD scale - potentially useful for anyone who struggles to read small text.

A notable omission is a colorblind mode, although this might be a game where it wouldn't actually make much difference; most of the management menu screens are fairly monochrome, and the game broadly manages to avoid overlapping UI elements.

How I reviewed Mario Kart World

I played through the majority of The Alters on a gaming PC equipped with an RTX 4080 GPU and Ryzen 9 5950X CPU, at 1440p resolution, and got a consistent 60+ fps at max settings. I also played a short segment of the game on my laptop, which has an RTX 3060, and found similarly reliable performance at 1080p once I'd tweaked the graphical settings a little.

It took me about 20 hours to complete a full playthrough of the game, which I spread out over the course of a week. I played with a mouse and keyboard, but you can use a controller too if that's your preference. The game is also available on PS5 and Xbox Series X and Xbox Series S.

First reviewed June 2025

Platform reviewed: Nintendo Switch 2
Available on: Nintendo Switch 2
Release date: June 05, 2025

Nintendo is bringing enhanced versions of Nintendo Switch games to the Nintendo Switch 2 and has decided to introduce the new system with the original console’s most iconic launch game: The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild.

I was unsure how it would feel going back to this game after playing the vastly expanded sequel Tears of the Kingdom (which also got a Nintendo Switch 2 Edition release), but even without the mechanical depth of its sequel, Breath of the Wild is still one of the finest games ever made.

Free bird

(Image credit: Nintendo)

Despite being the series’ first time tackling a true 3D open world format, Nintendo’s The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild is nonetheless exceptionally impressive. Outside of a very brief introduction, the player is given complete freedom to explore Hyrule at their own pace and leisure. You’re able to go have a scrap with Ganon right away after making it out of the starting area, or you can explore every inch of the world, befriending the various people of Hyrule.

This freedom extends to the game mechanics, too. Right away you’re given a set of tools, and from there you can do as you please. It’s the type of game where you have a really daft idea – like cutting down a tree to have it roll down and take out the enemy camp, throwing your metal sword at an enemy during a thunderstorm to have lightning strike them down, or picking up a laser turret to use as a makeshift weapon of your own – and it’ll (usually) work.

One of the game’s most derided mechanics is weapon durability, which means every single item you use can - and eventually will - break on you. But in many ways it’s a perfect encapsulation of what makes Breath of the Wild so brilliant, as that spark of experimentation is forced out of you as you have to think on your feet once your best weapon breaks. Even eight years on, there aren’t many open-world games that can stand up to this.

Switch it up

(Image credit: Nintendo)

Of course, this is The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild Nintendo Switch 2 Edition. Unlike other Nintendo Switch 2 editions of games, like the upcoming Mario Party Jamboree + Jamboree TV and Kirby and the Forgotten Land, there’s not actually any new content being added to the game this time around. You don’t even get the pre-existing DLC for Breath of the Wild by buying the full version of the game. Both Breath of the Wild and Tears of the Kingdom are purely technical upgrades on Switch 2, which is somewhat remedied by the fact they are included with Nintendo Switch Online + Expansion Pack subscription tier.

Best bit

(Image credit: Nintendo)

For anyone who played the game on Switch or Wii U, you’ll know just how choppy the framerate in Korok Forest was. Going there and seeing it stick at a solid 60fps was the moment I knew there was no turning back.

However, even if there’s nothing new, Breath of the Wild Nintendo Switch 2 Edition is well worth the upgrade. The game now runs at 1080p in handheld mode and supports 4K in docked mode, paired with HDR that makes the already wonderfully colorful game pop even more. Both modes run at a solid 60fps throughout too. Booting up Breath of the Wild and seeing it run at double the framerate almost felt wrong because of how used to it I am, but it's an incredibly welcome upgrade.

And of course, the first thing I did as soon as I went into my old save (there are two whole save slots now, which is both a godsend and underwhelming) was go to the infamous Korok Forest – which would absolutely tank the framerate in the original release. Lo and behold, it ran perfectly. Sure, that's the type of thing you might expect on more powerful hardware, but when you’ve suffered through that original Korok Forest on Wii U or Switch, it really puts things into perspective.

Note it down

(Image credit: Nintendo)

I said that Breath of the Wild Nintendo Switch 2 Edition doesn’t have anything new in-game, but that’s not the case for the Nintendo Switch Online app, which has added the Zelda Notes feature. This is a companion app that allows you to do a bunch of stuff in-game, such as finding the locations of remaining shrines with a GPS navigation voice telling you where to go and a daily bonus wheel that will give you a roulette wheel that includes prizes like free meals, full health, or even the ability to repair your weapons.

However, the most impactful part of Zelda Notes are the ‘Voice Memories’. These are scattered all across the map, and when you walk in the vicinity of one (of which there are over 100), you’ll hear a voice memo from Princess Zelda set 100 years before the events of the game while preparing for the first calamity. These are wonderful little lore dumps that made the experience of exploring Hyrule again a total joy. It goes without saying that actually having these added to the game as opposed to needing to keep my phone on would be a far more preferable option.

The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild Nintendo Switch 2 Edition is a great – if barebones – update to what was already one of the greatest games of all time. However, the framerate and resolution updates alone make this one worth checking out, especially if you’ve never played it before. Though, if the technical side of things isn't a priority for you, you’ll probably be let down by the lack of new content – unless you fancy having your phone out the whole time for that Zelda Notes functionality.

Should you buy The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild Nintendo Switch 2 Edition?Buy it if...

You’ve never played Breath of the Wild before or are looking to replay it
There is literally no reason to go back to the original Nintendo Switch or Wii U version of Breath of the Wild if you have access to the Nintendo Switch 2 Edition. The enhanced framerate and visuals make this the number one version of the game easily.

You’re into Zelda lore
I can’t believe it either, but the Zelda Notes mobile app is actually a fantastic addition. The Voice Memories are a great addition to the game that give you narrated lore dumps as you explore the map and hear Zelda talk about areas of the map from before Link was put into a slumber.

Don't buy it if...

You don’t have a Switch 2
While it is the definitive version of the game, it’s not so transformative an experience that you need to rush out and buy a Nintendo Switch 2 right away to play it.

Accessibility

The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild Nintendo Switch 2 Edition doesn’t have much going on with it accessibility wise. While you still have access to gyro aiming and the ability to rebind your controls from the Switch 2 menu (which won’t translate to the correct button prompts in-game), there’s nothing much to write home about.

How I reviewed The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild Nintendo Switch 2 Edition

I played 10 hours of The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild Nintendo Switch 2 Edition on top of the 140 hours I played of the game on the original Nintendo Switch. During this time I first played the opening hours of the game again on a fresh save, got myself off the great plateau and explored the world. I then jumped into my old save to test out the Zelda Notes app by finding Shrines I missed the first time around and Voice Memories.

I played this in a mixture of handheld mode on the Nintendo Switch 2 itself and on a Samsung Q60D TV and a Samsung HW-T450 soundbar using the Nintendo Switch 2 Pro Controller.

First reviewed June 2025

Samsung HW-QS700F: Two-minute review

The Samsung HW-QS-700F is one of the company's latest soundbars. It combines the performance of Samsung’s Q series models with a stylish lifestyle-friendly design usually found in Samsung’s S series soundbars. Does this mean this crossover soundbar is twice as nice, though, or has becoming a jack of all trades made it a master of none?

At first glance, you might be forgiven for not understanding why the Samsung QS700F might be considered a designer ‘lifestyle’ example of the best soundbars. With its long, angular, hard-finished main soundbar and compact, roughly cubic subwoofer, it looks mighty similar to the components of Samsung’s latest performance-led Q series models.

That’s not to say it’s ugly; it’s slender enough to fit beneath most TV screens, long and deep enough to promise some potent sound, and robustly finished enough to feel like a premium product. And the new subwoofer design Samsung has adopted across most of its soundbar range this year might even be called cute thanks to its relatively small footprint, rounded edges, crisp black finish and jauntily large circular drivers.

In the end, though, despite unfortunately not joining most of Samsung’s performance-oriented Q series models in carrying a proper built-in LED display, it shares more immediate DNA with the Q series than the usually sleeker, smaller S Series.

The S part of the QS700F deal heaves into view with its so-called Convertible Fit feature. This “dynamic dual set-up” system means that, unlike the vast majority of other soundbars, the QS700F can be configured to truly work in either a wall hanging or stand placement.

Of course, many other soundbars out there can either be attached to a wall or placed on a bit of furniture. Practically none of those other soundbars, though, do what the QS700F does and actually adjust their speaker configuration to optimise their performance for their separate wall-hanging or stand placement options.

What happens with the QS700F, essentially, is that the front and up-firing height speakers in play when the soundbar is sat on a TV stand can reverse their functionality if you tip the soundbar up into a vertical position and turn it upside down to place it flat on a wall. There’s even a gyro system built into the QS700F’s main bar component that can automatically tell if the soundbar is being used flat or vertically, adjusting the sound channel configuration accordingly.

Pictures are worth a thousand words when it comes to explaining this extremely rare feature, so I suggest you take a moment to peruse the below images if you’re still struggling to figure out how it does what it does – and why the result is so different to simply sticking a regular soundbar on a wall bracket.

Image 1 of 2

A gyro system built into the QS700F reverses the front and the up-firing height speakers when the soundbar is tipped up into a vertical position to place it flat on a wall for a wall-mount installation (see next slide). (Image credit: Future)Image 2 of 2

(Image credit: Future)

The QS700F isn’t the first soundbar that’s been expressly designed to look good and work well when mounted on a wall. Most wall-based soundbar designs, however, can’t also be used in a stand set-up. And soundbars that can do what the QS700F does and completely reconfigure their driver array to support both horizontal and vertical setups are very rare indeed. The main current model I can think of is the Devialet Dione, with its ‘rotating ball’ centre channel speaker, but that will currently set you back £1,800 / around $2,440 – two and a half times what the QS700F costs.

Delivering genuine wall or stand placement flexibility isn’t the QS700F’s only attraction, though. Its 3.1.2 channel count is also more numerous than might have been expected with such an affordable and customisable soundbar – especially given that the .2 bit indicates the presence of two up-firing speakers for Dolby Atmos height effects that are available in either of the soundbar’s two orientation options, and the .1 bass channel bit is delivered by an external subwoofer.

This subwoofer manages to combine likeable, compact aesthetics, too, with two startlingly large drivers on two of its opposing sides. One of these is an active 8-inch driver, while the other is a smaller, passive unit, with the dual-sided approach intended to make it possible to underpin music and, especially, film soundtracks with smoother and less directional bass than Samsung’s previous sub designs did.

The Dolby Atmos playback support (for music as well as movies) mentioned earlier is joined by support for DTS:X soundtracks too, while music lovers can enjoy their favourite tunes streamed in via direct Chromecast, Spotify Connect, Airplay and Tidal Connect support. Supported music file formats are expansive, too, including MP3, AAC, OGG, FLAC, WAV, ALAC and AIFF.

Stereo music can be played in its basic two-channel format by the QS700F, as you would expect, but its sound presets also include a couple of options that can upmix two-channel music to take advantage of all of the system’s available channels. The Surround mode is the most straightforward of these two options, while an Adaptive option brings AI into play, with a particular focus on optimising volume and enhancing detailing and clarity.

A Game preset, meanwhile, emphasises the multi-channel directionality of the surround sound (often Dolby Atmos) audio tracks modern games typically use, to both make the game world feel more immediate and intense, and to give you a better idea of exactly where approaching or attacking enemies are relative to your own position.

The QS700F's compact remote control (Image credit: Future)

While the QS700F doesn’t carry nearly as many channels as you get with Samsung’s flagship soundbars for 2025, there’s still enough going on to potentially present you with a bit of a setup headache. Happily, though, Samsung has equipped the QS700F with a so-called SpaceFit Sound Pro system that automatically and constantly works to optimise the tone and impact of the bass to keep it in line with the rest of the soundstage, as well as keeping dialogue and effects in balance.

If you decide you want to make the QS700F a full surround system, you can either add a pair of Samsung’s SWA-9500S speakers for £249 / $299, or a pair of Samsung’s Music Frame speakers for a £800 / $600. As well as being much cheaper, I’d suggest the SWA-9500Ses would be the much better option for adding to the QS700F because they include extra up-firing speakers as well as the main forward-facing drivers, enhancing Dolby Atmos’s hemisphere of sound effect.

The QS700F is decently connected considering how affordable it is for such an innovative design, with an HDMI pass-through being joined by an optical digital audio input and the now expected Bluetooth and Wi-Fi streaming options. The Wi-Fi functionality even extends to support for Samsung’s Wireless Dolby Atmos streaming, where the soundbar can receive Dolby Atmos soundtracks from compatible Samsung TVs without the need for any cables.

The QS700F supports Samsung’s Q Symphony system, too, where the speakers in the TV can work alongside those in the soundbar to create a more detailed and well-staged soundscape, rather than the soundbar just taking over all sound duties by itself.

The one disappointment with the QS700F’s connections is that the HDMI pass-through doesn’t join the HDMI ports on Samsung’s Q990F flagship soundbar in supporting 4K 120Hz gaming feeds. So if you have a console or PC capable of outputting graphics to that format, you’ll have to connect your gaming device directly to your TV and use eARC functionality to send game sound from the TV to the soundbar. That approach can sometimes, though thankfully not that often these days, cause a loss of synchronisation between the pictures on your TV and the sound coming from the soundbar.

The QS700F's top surface control buttons (Image credit: Future)

The QS700F’s performance turns out to be startlingly uncompromised by its innovative multi-placement design. There are some mild differences in how it sounds in its two usage configurations, but overall, it sounds excellent whichever way round you use it, and better, in fact, than most ‘standard’ soundbars at the same sort of price point.

Looking first at performance features that remain consistent regardless of whether you’re using the QS700F in its vertical or horizontal stance, the most immediate thing you notice is how powerful it is. Despite its fairly compact two-piece design, it’s capable of both getting seriously loud and projecting its sound far beyond the boundaries of its physical form. The result is a sound that’s capable of filling at least the front half of even quite a substantial room with a really potent soundstage.

There’s much more to the QS700F’s power and projection than just brute force and loudness, though. Its speakers are also sensitive enough to deliver impressive amounts of detail, be it a mild background ambient sound or a more specific, placed effect. Yet it does so with an excellent sense of balance, where no sound stands out artificially brightly from the mix.

Spot effects are accurately placed in the three-dimensional sound space the QS700F creates in either of its vertical or horizontal placement configurations, too, and sound transitions as noisy objects move around the three-dimensional space are tracked with strong and involving accuracy, clarity and consistency, even if there are multiple moving objects to track at the same time.

Impact sounds are delivered with a degree of venom and projection that’s rare indeed at the QS700F’s price point, while the subwoofer performs well beyond its size, underpinning action scenes with seriously deep and distortion-free rumbles. These also, crucially, feel like natural extensions of the dynamic range delivered by the main bar, with no sense of bagginess or dislocation in the way the subwoofer’s sound ‘attaches to’ it.

Treble effects, finally, also emerge without sounding distorted or overly shrill, especially as the subwoofer’s contributions at the other end of the spectrum provide such a potent counterpoint.

While the QS700F is at its absolute best as an ultra-flexible movie soundbar, it’s also a strong music performer. In either of its vertical or horizontal configurations, music enjoys good staging, with effective but not over-stated stereo separation, nicely positioned vocals that sit at the centre of and slightly above the rest of the mix, and some tight and typically well-timed and consistent bass from the subwoofer.

They might not be to everybody’s taste, but the surround sound upmixing options the QS700F provides for stereo sources work unusually well, too. There’s a level of intelligence and naturalism about the way elements in a stereo mix are separated out and redirected around the system’s 3.1.2 channels that you don’t get with arguably any other soundbar brand bar except, perhaps, Sony. Add a pair of the optional rear speakers and the upmixing becomes even more effective, sounding at times more like a professional surround mix than something that’s being essentially made up on the fly by Samsung’s processing.

The QS700F's rear ports include HDMI pass-through for connecting an external source like a Blu-ray player (Image credit: Future)

Looking at the differences in the way the QS700F sounds in its vertical and horizontal configurations coincides for the most part with the weaker aspects of the soundbar’s performance.

Due I think to its rather unusual configuration, where it sits tucked up into the upper edge of the soundbar when it’s placed on a desktop so that it can also work when the soundbar has been turned upside down and placed vertically on a wall, the centre channel speaker isn’t a total success. It can sound a touch muffled at times when using the soundbar in its TV stand set up, and in the wall-hanging configuration, while dialogue sounds clearer, it can also sound like it’s coming from slightly below the onscreen action. (Simply overriding the auto-calibration system and turning the centre channel volume output up a couple of notches helps the stand set up centre channel issue, mind you.)

With the QS700F used vertically, for wall hanging, height and ambient effects in a Dolby Atmos mix aren’t spread quite as far and wide or with quite as much authority and polish as they are when the soundbar is in its desktop position. Finally, stereo music sounds slightly more open, rich and detailed with the QS700F in its vertical stance. In stand mode, stereo music sounds a bit hemmed in, not quite escaping from the soundbar’s bodywork as cleanly and effectively as movie soundtracks do.

In the end, I’d suggest sticking with Standard mode for stereo music playback if the soundbar’s hanging on a wall, but at least giving an extended trial to the Surround mode for two-channel music if the soundbar’s sat on a surface.

I need to wrap all this up, though, by circling back to the point I made earlier that while there are one or two mostly minor performance differences in how the QS700F sounds in its two different set ups, Samsung’s new soundbar’s unique convertible fit design doesn’t stop it from still sounding much better, especially with movies, in either of its configurations than the vast majority of normal soundbars do.

Samsung HW-QS700F review: Specs

Dimensions (W x H x D)

Main bar: 1160 x 51 x 120mm/45.67 x 2 x 4.725 in, Subwoofer: 249 x 252 x 249mm/9.8 x 9.92 x 9.8 in

Speaker channels

3.1.2

Connections:

HDMI input, HDMI output (eARC), Bluetooth 5.3, Wi-Fi, Airplay, digital optical input, wireless Dolby Atmos

Dolby Atmos/DTS:X

Yes/Yes

Sub included

Yes

Rear speakers included

No

Features

4K 120Hz passthrough, voice assistant support, room calibration

Samsung HW-QS700F review: Price & release date

The QS700F comes with a compact, dual-driver subwoofer (Image credit: Future)

• First available: April 2025
• Price: £749 / $699.99 / AU$999

The QS700F was released globally in April 2025. While the brand launched a slim-design Q700D soundbar in 2024, the QS700F’s unusual convertible fit design means that it stands as a new product category for Samsung rather than just being an evolution of a previous soundbar model.

The HW-QS700F costs £749 in the UK, $699.99 in the US and $999 in Australia. These prices make the QS700F great value for such a flexible but still high-performance model.

Should I buy the Samsung HW-QS700F?

(Image credit: Future)Samsung HW-QS700F soundbar

Attributes

Notes

Rating

Features

3.1.2 channels of sound, Dolby Atmos and DTS support, Bluetooth, and a rare true multi-placement design

4.5 / 5

Performance

Outstanding power, detail and staging that mostly holds up no matter which way round you use it

4 / 5

Design

The way the speakers change their role to suit different setups is genius, and both the main bar and wireless sub are surprisingly compact for such a powerful system

4 .5/ 5

Value

Considering the combination of performance and features it provides, the QS700F looks like a pretty good deal

4.5 / 5

Buy it if...

You want a soundbar that can truly switch between wall and surface use

The QS700F joins the rare breed of soundbar design that can swap speaker duties around depending on whether the soundbar is hung on a wall or sat on a tabletop.

You want much more powerful sound than your TV could ever manage

Worries that the QS700F’s extremely unusual focus on delivering a low-profile design, whether it’s wall- or stand-mounted, would compromise Samsung’s usually powerful soundbar performance proved spectacularly unfounded. No TV sound system can sound anywhere near this good.

Don't buy it if...

You want an out-of-the-box full surround sound experience

While the QS700F creates a large soundstage, it doesn’t include any rear speakers and so can’t extend its sound behind you.

You’re sure you will only ever want to sit your soundbar on a piece of furniture

If you don’t envisage ever wall-hanging your soundbar, then I guess you could get a ‘normal’ soundbar instead. Though the QS700F sounds good enough in its simple desktop mode to stand tall against most of its ‘standard’ mid-range rivals.

Samsung HS-QS700F soundbar: Also consider

Samsung HW-QS700F

Sonos Arc Ultra

Samsung HW-Q800D

Price:

£749/$699/AU$999

£999/$999/AU$1,799

£699/$699/AU$799

Dimensions (w x h x d):

Main bar: 1160 x 51 x 120mm/45.67 x 2 x 4.725 inches, Subwoofer: 249 x 252 x 249mm/9.8 x 9.92 x 9.8 inches

1178 x 75 x 110.6mm/46.38 x 2.95 x 4.35 inches

Main bar - 1110.7 x 60.4 x 120mm/43.73 x 2.38 x 4.73 inches; Subwoofer - 403 x 210 x 403mm/15.87 x 8.27 x 15.87

Speaker Channels:

3.1.2

9.1.4

5.1.2

Connections:

HDMI input, HDMI output (eARC), Bluetooth 5.3, Wi-Fi, Airplay, digital optical input, wireless Dolby Atmos

HDMI input (eARC), Bluetooth, Ethernet port, Wi-Fi, Airplay, Sonos Multiroom

HDMI input, HDMI output (with eARC), Bluetooth 5.2, Wi-Fi, digital optical audio, Airplay, Wireless Dolby Atmos

Dolby Atmos/DTS:X:

Yes/Yes

Yes/No

Yes/Yes

Sub / rear speakers included:

Yes/No

No/No

Yes/No

Sonos Arc Ultra

The Sonos Arc Ultra is one of our current favourite one-box soundbars. The scale and detail of the sound it’s able to produce from its surprisingly compact form is incredible, and while it doesn’t ship with a subwoofer, its integrated low frequency system still delivers startling amounts of rumble and bass. You can add optional rear and subwoofer speakers too. The Sonos Arc Ultra doesn’t support true multi-position placement like the QS700F, though, and it also costs £250 more.

Read our full Sonos Arc Ultra review

Samsung HW-Q800D

The Samsung HW-Q800D was rated by us in our recent best soundbars of 2025 selection as the best soundbar for most people. A position it earns by virtue of being an excellent all-rounder that combines outstanding sound quality, a compact two-piece design, good connectivity and a great value price considering what it offers. It’s a 2024 model, though, so if you want one, you’d best be quick about it – and again, it doesn’t truly support multi-position placement like the QS700F does.

Read our full Samsung HW-Q800D review

How I tested the Samsung HW-QS700F

(Image credit: Future)

• Tested across 9 days
• Used in both a regular living room environment and a dedicated test room, in both its wall-mount and stand mount orientations
• Tested with a mixture of music and video sources

Testing the Samsung QS700F was more complicated than usual, thanks to its Convertible Fit technology, requiring it to be used for half the time in a regular surface-mounted stance, and half the time in a vertical wall-mounted stance. I tested it extensively in both of its configurations with a range of CDs, high-quality audio streams and 4K Blu-ray movie soundtracks.

The 4K Blu-ray soundtracks I used included both Dolby Atmos and DTS:X mixes, since the QS700F supports both, while stereo music was tested both in native two-channel mode and using the soundbar’s multi-channel upmix feature.

First reviewed: June 2025

Read more about how we test

Bravely Default Flying Fairy HD Remaster is a weird Nintendo Switch 2 launch title, something of a time capsule in every manner the phrase could imply. As a game, it’s stubbornly unchanged, and yet by being so familiar, it remains just as enjoyable as it was on its initial Nintendo 3DS release.

Review info

Platform reviewed: Nintendo Switch 2
Available on: Nintendo Switch 2
Release date: June 5, 2025

As the game’s producer Tomoya Asano noted ahead of this remaster’s release, Bravely Default was designed as a throwback to the classic 2D and 16-bit era of RPGs.

Its success both at home and abroad inspired the company to develop its HD-2D titles, such as Octopath Traveler and the Dragon Quest 3 HD-2D Remake. It emulates classic Final Fantasy with a grand globe-trotting adventure to save the world, wonderfully representative of the Nintendo Entertainment System and Super Nintendo Entertainment System eras of the storied franchise.

One day, a great chasm suddenly opens in the earth underneath the village of Norende, with Tiz the sole survivor. The four crystals driving the natural balance of the world have been plunged into darkness. When he runs into one of the Vestals (priestesses of the crystals), Agnes Oblige, he is inspired to protect her and seek a way to reawaken them. Over time, you are joined in your travels by Edea Lee and Ringabel, and these four warriors of light set out to rejuvenate the world.

This is a turn-based RPG, enhanced by a deep job system and much more. The result evolves this basic framework into something highly engaging and, even all these years later, wholly unique. The titular Brave and Default mechanics bring a fascinating risk-reward thrill to difficult combat: you begin with 0 BP in each battle, with any action consuming one point. You can act multiple times in a single term by using Brave, consuming extra BP, but you’ll be unable to act again until you recover to at least zero.

Default is this game’s term for defending: you won’t act, but you’ll gain an extra BP and take less damage, allowing you to act twice next time without skipping a turn. By building up BP across multiple characters and tying it to special moves it allows for some intense all-out attacks if you strategize correctly.

Fairy-ly Strategic

(Image credit: Square Enix)

And strategize you must. Success against bosses hinges on correctly utilizing this system, as well as the jobs. These are the various classes you may already be familiar with, such as mages, thieves, and knights, alongside more exotic jobs like merchants.

Mastery of these classes allows you to inherit some of their abilities to other classes, essentially allowing a character to embody the best of two jobs at once. Battles require not just good strategy but knowing your limits, all while taking advantage of this job system to craft a mage with the speed of a thief, and so on.

One typical frustration when it comes to turn-based RPGs is that combat can soon feel slow or repetitive. These systems combine to avoid that. If you do feel the need to grind to increase your level, earn money, or improve a character’s class proficiency, you can assign actions for characters to take in auto-battles or change encounter rates and battle speed.

Best bit

(Image credit: Square Enix)

After first struggling to beat a boss, stepping back to adjust your jobs and equipment before tackling it with the right balance of offense and defense takes advantage of every aspect of the battle system, and makes victory feel oh-so sweet.

It’s hard to find much to complain about when it comes to Bravely Default Flying Fairy HD Remaster. It was praised in its time for being one of the best RPGs, and that remains true today. The script and characters charm, the battles thrill, just as they did before. Next to nothing has changed.

The character models and world are the same low-polygon 3D models as the 3DS release, bar a few upgraded textures, a fact only more apparent in the models for minor characters or the stiff, limited animations in cutscenes. It’s a testament to the timeless art style of the original game that the towns and select areas remain at times stunning and never feel garish when blown up on a larger screen.

A lingering legacy

(Image credit: Square Enix)

The only real differences in Bravely Default Flying Fairy HD Remaster are more of a necessity than anything else: the old game made heavy use of the network features of the 3DS, encouraging players to send combat support to other players while walking out in the world via StreetPass, or linking the abilities of your party with friends. These have been adapted to the Nintendo Switch Online ecosystem somewhat awkwardly, the joy of encountering strangers while walking outside replaced with much less interesting ghosts in towns.

There are two new minigames, but these feel like they exist primarily as an excuse to justify Nintendo Switch 2 exclusivity. They each use mouse controls, but not very effectively. Luxencheer Rhythm Catch is a rhythm game timed to a few iconic songs from the game’s soundtrack while a character of your choice dances along. It’s serviceable, but doesn't feel as natural as a proper rhythm game should.

Ringabel’s Panic Cruise is easily the more involved and interesting of the pair, putting you behind the controls of an airship as you steer around a course and react to commands by pulling switches and knobs or blowing whistles. I could imagine myself enjoying a full game with this concept and controls, but here it feels like little more than a tech demo. With both hidden in submenus, these will be forgotten almost immediately.

(Image credit: Square Enix)

Take these minimal bonus features away, and this is almost exactly the same game as it was before. Excluding a few quality of life changes and an adaptation from a two-screen handheld to a single-screen hybrid console, this is identical to the original release. Often, titles like Bravely Default may receive a new translation ahead of a new release, but even that remains unchanged here.

This, at least for me, is fine. In retaining as much of this 3DS experience as possible, Bravely Default Flying Fairy HD Remaster stands apart from its contemporaries as something unlike other RPGs on the market right now, faithfully making a classic of the genre accessible to a new generation.

While it’s a tough sell to those who played the original game upon its release due to the unchanged nature of this story and gameplay, I’ve personally enjoyed the excuse to revisit it, exactly as I remember.

For all it isn’t pushing the new hardware to the limits while the limited new features are more of an excuse and obligation to test new hardware than enhance the experience, it’s hard to complain when you have one of the best RPGs of the last 15 years on the largest or smallest screen you could desire.

Should I play Bravely Default Flying Fairy HD Remaster?

(Image credit: Square Enix)Play it if...

You never tried the original game
An adventure inspired by the classics but updated into something singular, Bravely Default is still not only timeless, it’s one of the best RPGs of the past 15 years

You love to strategize
No matter your level or job, an overly offensive or poorly strategized boss fight can leave you vulnerable to defeat in any fight. You’re always on your toes in your journey to save the world.

Characters and story drive your play
Bravely Default has such a charming core cast of characters whose chemistry will leave you laughing from the moment you meet. Their jokes and spirit alone can keep the adventure going.

Don't play it if...

You’re a returning player wanting something new
There’s nothing here you haven’t seen before if you played the original game. While Bravely Default is an enjoyable enough experience worth replaying, don’t come expecting a new perspective on this classic.

You want to push your new Switch 2 to the limits
This is a Nintendo 3DS game at its core, and the title has been given minimal visual upgrades. New content is limited to two minigames. This won’t test the power of the device or push all the new features of Nintendo Switch 2.

Accessibility features

While it’s possible to adjust language and subtitle options in Bravely Default Flying Fairy HD Remaster, and there is hardware-level limited button remapping for those using the Switch 2 Charging Grip or Pro Controller, there are no other accessibility features for those needing features such as colorblind mode.

How I reviewed Bravely Default Flying Fairy HD Remaster

I played 20 hours of Bravely Default Flying Fairy HD Remaster and tried all features, including town rebuilding and bonus minigames.

This brought me partway into the second chapter of the game, although I did complete the game upon its initial release on Nintendo 3DS and compared the experience between the two titles.

Much of the game was played on a Nintendo Switch 2 in handheld or tabletop mode, as well as on an ASUS VG27AQL1A gaming monitor. Audio was utilized in a mix of the system’s internal speakers, Apple AirPods Max connected wirelessly to the device, as well as Denon speakers connected to the monitor via a Yamaha A-S301 Amplifier.

First reviewed June 2025

I’m happy to see Brother boarding the bulk tank bandwagon at last. Given the outrageous profit margins to be had from inkjet cartridges, its reluctance is understandable, but Brother is expecting to catch up with the launch of this compact and competitively priced supertanker.

The Brother DCP-T580DW is the more affordable model in a new refillable range that’s aimed at the home office or micro business. It’s a basic color A4 all-in-one with key features such as auto-duplex printing, hi-res scanning and Wi-Fi with AirPrint compatibility built in. There’s no automatic document feed (ADF), rear paper tray or color display, which are reserved for the slightly more expensive Brother DCP-T780DW, which also performed better on test.

But what puts this modest multifunction printer ahead of the cartridge-bound competition are its four ink tanks and four bundled bottles of ink, enabling you to print up to 7,500 black and white pages and 5,000 color. For comparison, the HP Envy 6530e comes with cartridges containing enough ink for 120 back pages and 75 in color. You can see why consumers are choosing tank printers. But how does this entry-level model from Brother compare to the best ink tank printers? I tested it to find out.

Brother DCP-T580DW: Design and buildImage 1 of 4

(Image credit: Brother // Future)Image 2 of 4

(Image credit: Brother // Future)Image 3 of 4

(Image credit: Brother // Future)Image 4 of 4

(Image credit: Brother // Future)Specs

Type: color tank inkjet printer

Functions: Print, copy, scan

Connectivity: Ethernet, USB, Wi-Fi

Data storage slots: none

Max print speed: 16ipm (mono)

Max paper size: A4/legal

Print quality: 1,200 x 600 dpi

Apple AirPrint: yes

Consumables included: 4 bottles (7,500 black, 5,000 color pages)

Dimensions/Weight: 15.35 x 13.50 x 5.87in (WxDxH) / 17.42lb - 390 x 343 x 149 mm (WxDxH)/7.9kg

The Brother DCP-T580DW is really a second generation tank printer, following the odd-looking Brother DCP-T525W, which was sold exclusively through Amazon. This version sees Brother take its tank printers to the UK for the first time and it looks much more refined, with the four tanks integrated into a commendably compact design that looks no bigger than a cartridge printer.

To achieve this neat form factor, instead than having the ink reservoirs bulging out at the side as before, their capacity has been reduced. At 48.8 milliliters, these tanks are smaller than Epson’s 65ml EcoTanks, or HP’s 70ml Smart Tanks.

In fact, it’s slightly less than some of Brother’s high-capacity INKvestment Tank cartridges. However, it’s still way more than your average cartridge and it allows this printer to be small enough to sit on your desk without stealing too much space.

There’s only one paper input and its cassette, which holds up to 150 sheets of letter, legal or A4 paper, protrudes slightly from the front. There’s a flatbed scanner on top, but no ADF and the display is a very basic single-line affair surrounded by the usual array of buttons on a tilting panel. The two ports for connecting power and USB cables are at the left side, rather than the rear, which might suit your setup, or it might not.

Brother DCP-T580DW: Features & specifications Image 1 of 3

(Image credit: Brother // Future)Image 2 of 3

(Image credit: Brother // Future)Image 3 of 3

(Image credit: Brother // Future)

For an entry-level business inkjet, the Brother DCP-T580DW has a sensible specification. The print speed is quite fast for an inkjet at 16imp in black and white pages or 9ipm in color, while the Wi-Fi is 5GHz with AirPrint compatibility. The print resolution is given as 1,200 x 600dpi, with ink droplets delivered through 420 nozzles. That’s 70 nozzles for each color and 120 for black.

The main paper tray is your only input option and it can hold up to 150 sheets of plain A4, letter or legal paper and the weight limit is 220gsm. It’s worth noting that the step-up model adds a rear multipurpose paper input which is able to take thicker paper weighing up to 300gsm. The DCP-T780DW also has a larger display with a color screen and a 20-sheet ADF that makes the DCP-T580DW look pretty light on features.

Brother DCP-T580DW: Setup and operationImage 1 of 2

(Image credit: Brother // Future)Image 2 of 2

(Image credit: Brother // Future)

The printed quick start guide is very clear, and you probably won’t need it. Simply load your paper, plug in and turn on. The on-screen prompts will tell you to enter the date and time and when to fill the ink reservoirs. I recommend downloading Brother’s accompanying app called Smart Connect, which will help you get your printer connected to your Wi-Fi network.

This iOS/Android app is also great for printing remotely and checking your printer’s status. With such a small black and white display on the printer, your smartphone offers a much better user interface.

Pouring ink into the tanks is a clean and easy process, or at least it should be. The bottles are the same capacity as the tanks and their necks only fit their corresponding tanks, so you can’t make any catastrophic mix-ups. I didn’t spill a drop, until I made the mistake of only part-filling the tanks and replacing the half empty bottles in the box. What a mess!

Unlike Epson, HP and Canon’s bottles, Brother’s bottles don’t re-seal, even when you think you screwed the lids on tight. To be fair to this printer, it did tell me to ‘fill’ the tanks, so I won’t mark it down for human error.

Brother DCP-T580DW: Performance

(Image credit: Brother // Future)

For me, the Brother DCP-T580DW worked well, starting up promptly and printing as quickly as promised. It makes a slightly annoying wining noise when printing, so it’s less quiet than most inkjets, but there were no instances of jamming, creasing or smudging during the test. The ADF managed to pull in multi-page documents and copy them without any problems and the duplicates were faithful enough.

The print quality is acceptable, but somewhat disappointing at this price point. Starting with black text documents on plain paper, it’s evident that Brother is using a dye-based black ink, which is fine, but the characters look slightly less bold than a pigment black. With office oriented printers you often find dye-based C/M/Y and a pigment BK because text looks sharper and is more scratch and fade resistant, but I wouldn’t necessarily expect it at this budget level.

The colored inks look bright enough, so mixed color documents look fine. It’s when you get to printing images and photos on coated paper that you notice a lack of fine detail resolution. The quoted resolution of 1,200 x 600dpi is the same as the more expensive Brother DCP-T780DW, but it’s achieved using exactly half the number of nozzles. The lower-spec printheads on the Brother DCP-T580DW deliver a very noticeable dip in image quality. The overall print performance is probably good enough for most office documents, homework and handouts, but it’s not great for photos.

Brother DCP-T580DW: Consumables Image 1 of 2

(Image credit: Brother // Future)Image 2 of 2

(Image credit: Brother // Future)

Brother comes with three bottles containing 48.8ml of yellow, cyan and magenta and a 108ml bottle of black. This should yield up to 5,000 color pages and 7,500 black and white and a replacement ink set from Brother costs around US$47 or £35, which is a very low cost-per-page. And there’s nothing to stop you using cheaper third party ink.

Brother DCP-T580DW: Maintenance

Being an inkjet printer, the Brother DCP-T580DW is liable to dry out and print badly or not at all if left unused for a length of time. The problem is ink clogging the nozzles and the solution is flushing them through with more ink. At least bottled ink is affordable enough to do that without getting upset. This printer has unusually versatile maintenance options with a choice of three flushing cycles of varying strength depending on the state of your nozzles.

Brother DCP-T580DW: Final verdict

I found much to admire about the Brother DCP-T580DW, from its compact size and fast duplex printing, to its low TCO (total cost of ownership). The features list is rather thin as there’s no ADF, the display is tiny and there’s only one paper input. But at least it ticks all the key boxes, such as auto-duplex printing, A4 scanning, dual-band Wi-Fi and plenty of bottled ink in the box.

It’s a pity the print performance is below average for this price category, with dull dye-based blacks and photos that lack fine detail. For most purposes, it’s probably good enough, but it’s hard to recommend the Brother DCP-T580DW, when the slightly more expensive Brother DCP-T780DW offers all the missing features, more ink and much better print quality.

For more print solutions, I've tested and reviewed the best home printers you can get right now.

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Dyson Purifier Cool Gen1 TP10 Purifying Fan: two-minute review

The Dyson Purifier Cool Gen1 TP10 Purifying Fan is a tower fan and air purifier combo that helps you beat the heat while improving the quality of the surrounding air.

Available in the US, UK, and Australia, you can find the Dyson Purifier Cool Gen1 TP10 Purifying Fan with a list price of $429.99 / £449.99 / AU$799 at Dyson or third-party retailers. As I write this, there are discounts available at Dyson US and Amazon UK, reducing the price to $299.99 / £349.99, so it’s worth checking if there are savings to be made before you buy.

With its bladeless loop amplifier, glossy plastic, and metallic finishes, the Dyson Purifier Cool Gen1 TP10 Purifying Fan has the modern, clean aesthetic we’ve come to expect from the brand. Generally, it’s available in a white and nickel colorway, but there’s a bonus option of black and nickel over in the US.

(Image credit: Future)

Unlike most of the best fans and best air purifiers, the Dyson Purifier Cool Gen1 TP10 Purifying Fan lacks onboard controls and app compatibility, and can only be controlled with the included remote control. While this in itself isn’t an issue, as the remote works well and has a magnetic, curved design that makes it easy to store on the top of the loop amplifier, it does mean that you’d be a bit scuppered if you happened to lose the remote. Not to mention that, at this price point, it’s verging on stingy that Dyson hasn’t given the TP10 the app compatibility that’s included with their more expensive products.

In terms of the fan performance, I got the results I expected when testing the TP10 Purifying Fan; namely that it produced a smooth and cooling flow of air, the strength of which was particularly impressive when running at top speed, as I could still feel the cooling effects 14ft / 4.3m away.

As the Dyson Purifier Cool Gen1 TP10 Purifying Fan’s sensors can only detect particulate matter and not VOCs (volatile organic compounds), it won’t automatically react to all airborne nasties, but it’s still capable of filtering them thanks to the HEPA H13 and activated carbon filter. The LCD screen displays the real-time levels of PM2.5 and PM10 in micrograms per cubic meter, with color coding making it clear how this translates to air quality, ranging from good to very poor. There’s also a 24-hour graph, which offers a basic indication of the changes in air quality over time.

(Image credit: Future)

I was happy with the speedy detection and prompt air clearing I recorded during my time testing the TP10 Purifying Fan, with it detecting and clearing contamination from dry shampoo within a minute of me spraying it, and automatically upping its power when my two fluffy cats paid a visit. It didn’t make a noticeable impact on food odors or the dry shampoo fragrance, however.

The noise levels were also commendable, with the Dyson Purifier Cool Gen1 TP10 Purifying Fan giving whisper-quiet readings as low as 26dB and 33dB in auto mode and on fan speed one, and the highest reading on fan speed ten being just 52dB, which is equivalent to light traffic.

Despite my frustrations around the lack of app support, I’d still recommend the Dyson Purifier Cool Gen1 TP10 Purifying Fan, thanks to the overall good performance from both elements. If you’ve not got your heart set on a Dyson, or don’t want to have a tower fan running in the colder months, I recommend teaming up the Blueair Blue Pure 411i Max with the Shark TurboBlade. Both performed well in our testing, and thanks to regular deals, the two together often work out cheaper than the Dyson Purifier Cool Gen1 TP10 alone.

Dyson Purifier Cool Gen1 TP10 Purifying Fan review: price & availability

• List price: $429.99 / £449.99 / AU$799
• Available now in the US, UK, and Australia

Available from Dyson and other retailers, the Dyson Purifier Cool Gen1 TP10 purifying fan has a list price of $429.99 / £449.99 / AU$799. It’s available in white and silver, with an additional option of black and nickel for shoppers in the US. It’s worth keeping a lookout for potential savings, as at the time of writing, there’s a generous $130 saving on the white model at Dyson US, bringing the cost down to $299.99. Meanwhile, in the UK, there’s a 22% discount in effect, lowering the price to £349.99.

According to Dyson, the 360 Combi Glass HEPA + Carbon air purifier filter used in the TP10 could last around 12 months of 12-hour use. Replacement filters have a list price of $79.99 / £75 / AU$99, so it’s worth considering whether you’re happy to commit to paying this out on a fairly regular basis before making a purchase.

I initially considered the Dyson Purifier Cool Gen1 TP10 Purifying Fan a little overpriced, largely due to the lack of app support for the cost, but the TP10 won me over with its strong airflow, prompt particulate detection, and quick reaction times. Could you get a separate tower fan and air purifier that would do the job just as well for less money? Probably, but if you’re a Dyson fan who wants a Dyson fan, plus an air purifier, I’d recommend this combo.

• Value score: 4 out of 5

Dyson Purifier Cool Gen1 TP10 Purifying Fan review: specs

Type

Purifying tower fan

Fan speeds

10

Oscillation

45, 90, 180, 350 degrees

Timer

Yes

CADR (Clean air delivery rate)

Requested

Filter

HEPA H13 and activated carbon

Particle sizes detected

PM2.5, PM10

Dimensions

8.7 x 8.7 x 41.3 inches / 22 x 22 x 105cm

Weight

10.4 lb / 4.7kg

Control

Onboard power button and remote control

Timer

Only in sleep mode

Additional modes

Sleep mode

Dyson Purifier Cool Gen1 TP10 Purifying Fan review: design and features

• Offers real-time, color-coded PM2.5 and PM10 readings
• No smart features or app compatibility
• HEPA H13 filters are easy to access and replace

Featuring the classic Dyson aesthetic with its bladeless fan and smooth curves, this is a purifying fan I didn’t mind having out on display. That being said, I did find the glossy white plastic was a bit of a dust and lint magnet. The metallic nickel-color plastic was too, but it was barely noticeable compared to the white.

A useful combo for the summer months, the Purifier Cool Gen1 TP10 consists of a bladeless tower fan that sits on a purifying unit. This purifying unit houses a HEPA H13 filter, with H13 being considered to be within the highest tier of HEPA air filtration, and is understood to capture 99.95% of particles as small as 0.2 microns. The filter comes in two halves, with one half clipping into the front of the purifying unit, the other at the back. Both halves are easy to get to thanks to the push-down catches on either side of the unit.

(Image credit: Future)

There are ten fan speeds to cycle through, as well as an auto mode, which uses the sensors on the TP10 Purifying Fan to detect and react to the presence of particulate matter with a diameter of up to ten micrometers. It can’t detect VOCs (volatile organic compounds), which can be emitted by paint and cleaning chemicals, among other sources, but the carbon element of the 360 Combi Glass HEPA and Carbon air purifier filter means it’s still capable of clearing them from the air.

One thing that frustrates me with some Dyson devices is the lack of smart features and app compatibility. Considering this functionality is available with the more expensive Dyson products, and far cheaper brands offer remote control and air quality data via their apps, it seems a little unfair for Dyson to hold this feature back unless customers are willing to pay an even higher premium.

Aside from the power button, there’s a distinct lack of onboard controls on the TP10. This isn’t an outright issue, as I’d have used the included remote control nine times out of ten anyway, but with no app compatibility, it does mean I’d find myself in a bit of a pickle if I managed to lose the remote. As with all of the Dyson remotes I’ve used, the one for the TP10 is curved and magnetized, meaning it can be kept on the top of the fan.

(Image credit: Future)

The round LCD screen on the front of the TP10 is bright and large enough to read easily. It was easy to cycle through the multiple different displays using the information button on the remote control. The information I was most interested in was the particle readings, and I was happy to find there were dedicated screens showing the ambient levels of both PM2.5 and PM10. Both readings are independently communicated in numerals and color rating, making them simple to understand. The TP10 has been programmed to classify readings below 35 micrograms per cubic meter as good air quality, with higher readings colored either yellow for fair air quality, orange for poor, or red for very poor.

While the lack of a companion app means it’s not possible to view historical data, or real-time data when away from home, there’s a 24-hour graph on one of the display screens, so I could at least see if there’d been any spikes in contamination throughout the day – though that was as detailed as it got. It’s worth noting that the continuous monitoring needed to support this function isn’t enabled by default, but it’s a simple case of holding the auto button on the remote for five seconds to enable it.

• Design score: 3.5 out of 5

Dyson Purifier Cool Gen1 TP10 Purifying Fan review: performance

• Returned air quality to an acceptable level within a minute of air contamination
• Didn’t reduce or eliminate odors from cooking or fragrances
• Quickly reacted to the presence of cat fluff and dander

All of the fan functions performed as expected during my time testing the Dyson Purifier Cool Gen1 TP10 Purifying Fan. It was good to have a wide range of oscillation options, with four choices from 45 to 350 degrees, and I appreciated that, unlike the Dyson Cool CF1 desk fan, the TP10 remembered the last oscillation setting I’d used, so I didn’t have to cycle through the options each time. I find it curious that the timer on the TP10 Purifying Fan is only available in sleep mode, which dims the display, so I had to use the remote to wake the display if I wanted to view the current air quality reading whenever I used the timer.

The airflow felt smooth, but seemed to fluctuate a little at times. In terms of fan strength, I found I could feel a noticeable, cool breeze around 4ft / 1.2m away from the TP10 Purifying Fan on setting one, 7ft / 2m on setting five, and 14ft / 4.3m on speed 10, which is admirable considering it doesn’t run very loud.

(Image credit: Future)

To test the PM2.5 detection while the fan was on auto mode, I sprayed some dry shampoo around two feet away from the front of the TP10. The sensors picked up the presence of the dry shampoo particles in about 16 seconds, and I saw the levels of PM2.5 per cubic meter rapidly climbing on the LDC screen.

It was interesting to see a numerical representation of the speed at which the Dyson TP10 cleared the air, as not all air purifiers offer this level of data. In this case, the contamination dropped from 89 micrograms per cubic meter to 35 micrograms per cubic meter, which was back within the green range, within a minute of me spraying the dry shampoo. While it made quick work of clearing the particulates in the air, it didn’t have any effect on the odor from the dry shampoo or from the food smells from the minestrone soup I had on my lunch break.

It’s very easy to tell whether the larger-particle sensors on an air purifier are doing their job once I get my two very fluffy cats involved in the testing process, after evicting them from my living room for the initial stages of my testing, so that I can set a baseline. It was clear the particle sensors on the TP10 were sensitive to pet-related particles like fur and dander after both kitties came to investigate, as both the PM2.5 and PM10 readings rose by around eight micrograms, and the fan speed increased slightly to compensate. It stayed at roughly this level, with the occasional ramp-up in speed, for the entire time they were in the room. Once they’d wandered off, it took less than ten minutes for the purifier to bring the reading back down to its usual level.

(Image credit: Future)

The Dyson Purifier Cool Gen1 TP10 Purifying Fan operated really quietly, considering its size, with a lower than whisper-quiet reading of just 26dB when idling on auto mode, rising to 33dB on fan speed one, 38dB on speed 5, and just 52dB on speed ten, which is comparable to light traffic or background music. This is particularly positive when compared to the readings I got from the Molekule Air Pro, which gave an output of 38dB at the lowest fan speed, 51dB on speed three, and a pretty shouty 78dB at speed six, though admittedly the TP10 doesn’t have any where near as many bells and whistles.

As an added testament to the quiet functioning of the TP10 Purifying Fan, my very timid female cat spooks at most things, but was comfortable enough to touch her nose on the display even when the purifier was ramping up in response to her presence. It’s also worth mentioning that it was quiet enough to fall asleep next to, and I could happily watch TV with the TP10 running at level five fan speed nearby.

The quick detection, reaction, and purifying times meant I was pleased with the performance of the Dyson Purifier Cool Gen1 TP10 Purifying Fan overall, though I didn’t find it made the air feel quite as fresh as the GoveeLife Smart Air Purifier Lite.

• Performance score: 4.5 out of 5

Should I buy the Dyson Purifier Cool Gen1 TP10 Purifying Fan?

Section

Notes

Score

Value for money

The TP10’s premium design, pleasant cooling, and powerful purifying performance mean you won’t be disappointed, but you could save money by ditching Dyson and combining a well-performing fan and purifier instead.

4/5

Design & Features

The smooth curves, bladeless design, and nice material finish make the TP10 an attractive purifying solution. It detects and communicates the ambient levels of particulate matter before they’re captured by the HEPA H13 filter. It’s just a shame there’s no smart features.

3.5/5

Performance

I appreciated the satisfyingly strong airflow and prompt purifying performance, with the TP10’s sensors making quick work of detecting and removing particles from the air. Its quiet operation meant it wasn’t disruptive, so much so that it didn’t phase my flighty feline.

4.5/5

Buy it if...

You want something that’ll purify around your pets
The TP10 reacted promptly to my kitties’ presence, yet was still quiet enough that it didn’t unsettle my timid rescue cat.

You want detailed, real-time air quality readings
It’s easy to see the level of contamination with the usefully color-coded PM2.5 and PM10 readings. Plus, once continuous monitoring is enabled, there’s a 24-hour graph to get a view of the changes in air quality over the last day.

You want two functions in one device
If you’ve been tempted by a Dyson tower fan before, and want to make some improvements on your air quality, too, then this purifying fan is a good way to save space.

Don't buy it if...

You want a purifier that’ll detect VOCs
While the carbon element of the 360 combi filter can tackle VOCs (volatile organic compounds), the TP10 doesn’t have the tech to detect and react to raised levels.

You want to use the purifier independently
The 2-in-1 format of the TP10 worked well for me as I tested it in warmer weather, but as the purifier doesn’t work independently from the fan, it’s worth considering whether that’ll prove problematic in the colder months.

You want to keep an eye on your air quality data
As the TP10 isn’t compatible with the MyDyson app, short of registering your purchase and viewing user guides, there’s no way to view the air quality remotely or to keep track of the trends in air quality readings over time.

Dyson Purifier Cool Gen1 TP10 Purifying Fan review: Also consider

Dyson Purifier Cool Gen1 TP10

Blueair Blue Pure 411i Max / Blue Max 3250i

Shark TurboBlade

Type

Purifying tower fan

Air purifier

Multi-directional tower fan

Price

$429.99 / £449.99 / AU$799

$169.99 / £169

$299.99 / £249.99

Fan speeds

10

3

10

Additional modes

Auto, sleep mode

Auto, night mode

Natural Breeze, Sleep Mode, BreezeBoost

Oscillation

Up to 350 degrees

N/A

Up to 180 degrees

Filter

HEPA H13 and activated carbon

HEPASilent and activated carbon

N/A

App support

No

Yes

No

Dimensions

8.7 x 8.7 x 41.3 inches / 220 x 220 x 1,050mm

18.9 x 10.6 x 10.6" / 481 x 269 x 269 mm

11.8 x 31.6 x 44.8" / 300 x 800 x 1,120mm (max)

Weight

10.4 lb / 4.7kg

7.5 lbs / 3.4 kg

15lb / 8.8kg

Blueair Blue Pure 411i Max / Blue Max 3250i
If you’re after a purifier with smart capabilities that won’t cost you an arm and a leg, then this super-lightweight alternative will fit the bill. It’s better suited to smaller rooms, has fewer speed settings, and only detects and reacts to PM2.5, but it can still filter out the same nasties as the TP10. A key detail is the washable fabric prefilter, which helps reduce the amount of dust that reaches the HEPA filter within, and comes in a range of colors. To find out more, have a read of our full Blueair Blue Pure 411i Max / Blue Max 3250i review.

Shark TurboBlade
This tower fan twist offers multi-directional airflow and a range of adjustments to help customize your cooling, and is a fantastic alternative if you happen to like the bladeless aspect of Dyson fans, but not the price. Tower fans don’t typically offer height or vertical angle adjustments, so this clever concept from Shark is a breath of fresh air. If you’d like more information, go ahead and take a look at our full Shark TurboBlade review.

How I tested the Dyson Purifier Cool Gen1 TP10 Purifying Fan

• I used the TP10 purifying fan in the office and at home
• I observed its detection and purification skills
• I evaluated the strength of the airflow and the sound levels

I used the Dyson Purifier Cool Gen1 TP10 Purifying Fan in our photo studio, my home office, and my bedroom for one week. I evaluated how easy it was to operate, along with the build quality and aesthetics, and explored the available functions and features.

I tested the strength of the airflow by determining at what distance I could still feel a cooling breeze. I also observed the TP10 Purifying Fan’s detection and purification skills, both passively and during standardized testing.

I used a decibel meter app on my iPhone to record the noise levels, taking readings from around 2ft / 600mm away, ensuring the fan wasn’t blowing directly into the microphone.

I checked the timer worked as expected, and tested out the sleep mode to see whether the TP10 Purifying Fan was quiet enough for me to be able to sleep well with it running overnight.

• First reviewed: June 2025
• Read TechRadar's Reviews Guarantee

The Nintendo Switch 2 has finally arrived, and along with it, so have a handful of launch games. Some old, some new, and some, well, they land somewhere between those two categories.

Meet Survival Kids, a cooperative platformer, built on the bones of the 1999 Konami Game Boy Color game of the same name, and developed by the minds behind the wildly popular game engine Unity. Its inception is a mouthful, and yet when it comes to the reality of the game itself, it’s very simple – perhaps too simple.

Review info

Platform reviewed: Nintendo Switch 2
Available on: Nintendo Switch 2
Release date: June 6th, 2025

In Survival Kids, you play as a (you guessed it) kid who, after being capsized in a mythic storm, must craft their way across an ancient archipelago in the hopes of escape.

The twist on this classic survival set-up is that the islands themselves aren’t static and are, in fact, living turtles that can cause the islands to flood. While it’s an interesting premise, Survival Kids commits to a more casual play style, and the submerging occurs only when the player is ready. It’s a reasonable choice for a game built for a younger demographic — I only wish there were multiple game modes for players of all ages, or those who may be more adept.

As you progress, you’ll uncover new biomes and take on chaotic environmental hazards like purple-goo firing turrets and body-barrelling wind tunnels, using earnable tools like fishing rods, trampolines, and comically large leaf fans to best them. Much like the premise, the levels are similarly straightforward and offer an occasionally moreish workload of mindless tasks to complete with friends or by yourself.

Rinse and repeat

(Image credit: Konami)

Every level in Survival Kids begins with a capsizing, and players wash up on the shore of a new island. From this point on, the aim of the game is to consolidate resources and move your base camp to the highest point, where you’ll construct a raft and start the cycle all over again.

The parts you need to complete this objective range from easily-accessible vines and stones (which can be harnessed by chopping down trees or mining rocks) to hidden aeroplane wings and half-buried propeller parts. It’s not as complex as something like Astro Bot by any means, but the diversity of islands and the platforming challenges embedded in them were varied enough to keep me entertained as I continued to explore.

In place of any towering challenges or punishing mechanics, the biggest antagonist you’ll face here is your stamina, which dictates how far you can climb on a climbing net and whether you can unearth objects. To increase your stamina, you need to find and cook food, making sure not to burn your precious meal in your camp’s cooking pot by leaving it on the castaway-hob too long. The more food you load into the pot, the better the quality of the meal, providing you with extra precious stamina.

Beyond staying fed, there aren’t really any stakes to speak of. Sure, you can fall off a cliff and lose your items or fail to wrangle a fish. But you can simply go back and pick them up again or just cast your line at the same fish a second time.

(Image credit: Konami)

You’re never really punished for your mistakes in any meaningful way, which has its pros and cons. By keeping the workload accessible and forgiving, Survival Kids feels like a great introductory game for kids who may not be familiar with the Survival genre. Still, at times, it feels as though it’s underestimating what younger players are capable of, especially when you consider the alternatives on the market like Nintendo’s own appropriately challenging Super Mario Odyssey.

Upon completing a level, you’ll earn stars depending on how quickly you escaped the island or how many collectables — called Treasure Stones — you found in the process. Early on, these stars mean very little, and you can breeze through the game - no questions asked. However, as you near the end, there’s a good chance you’ll need to revisit an island to collect a few more to surpass some star-based progress gates.

With little else to latch onto, Survival Kids often feels a bit dry and lacks the personality to really make its mark. It says something that not even a quirky British narrator can lift the tone. In fact, their chatter quickly started to grate.

Play nice

(Image credit: Konami)

Between island hopping, you’ll also get a chance to customise your cartoon avatar with a selection of kitschy castaway garb. There isn’t a great deal of diversity at first, but it’s plenty to set you apart from your co-op collaborators, and it’s good fun to tweak your hair colour, skin tone, and ocular scenario before hopping into a level. Thankfully, this small pool of outfits is just a jumping-off point, and you can unlock more by completing challenges layered throughout the game.

Alongside meeting the essential crafting criteria, you can complete optional tasks like fishing ten times in a row or cooking with a certain number of ingredients in your pot. By achieving these optional objectives, you can unlock themed outfits to jazz up your mini-me. Many will be achieved automatically as you play, but at the very least, I was pleased to have something else to shoot for outside the confines of the repetitive campaign.

Best bit

(Image credit: Konami)

Survival Kids is at its best when played with friends. Between the simple control scheme and the plethora of comfortably mindless processes to complete, I could chat to my heart's content without needing to maintain an intense back-and-forth to complete objectives.

Survival Kids can be played in single-player mode, however, it’s just not nearly as much fun as it is when you’re playing with friends. Aside from helping collect loot, the most fun I had was antagonising, and subsequently being antagonised by, my co-op partner. On one occasion, I led my fellow-survivor into a wind tunnel where they were gust into oblivion.

The repercussion was that after spending ages fishing and cooking up a delicious meal, they threw it off the edge and out of my reach. When playing solo, these kinds of light-hearted interactions aren't possible, and instead, you’re just left with the workload.

It’s clear there’s been an effort to scale things back in solo mode and make the levels more approachable, like reducing the stamina needed to pull up objects. Unfortunately, it still doesn’t make up for the tedious nature of completing the same tasks alone.

When playing through the later levels in the game, I found myself frustrated, not by the turrets shooting me off the map, but rather the boring nature of carting materials back and forth with no help. It’s admirable that the team at Unity wanted to give solo players a chance, but it doesn’t do justice to the obviously communal aspects at the core of Survival Kids' gameplay loop.

Should you play Survival Kids?

(Image credit: Konami)Play it if...

You want a silly co-op game to play with friends
The simple nature of Survival Kids makes it a great backdrop for chatting with friends and cracking jokes, as you don’t need to focus too hard when solving puzzles. View Deal

You want Nintendo Switch 2 features like GameChat and GameShare
Survival Kids makes great use of both GameChat and GameShare, so it's a good game to pick if you want something that uses those console features.View Deal

Don't play it if…

You want a complex platformer
Survival Kids does offer a decent variety of platforming puzzles, though many repeat over time. View Deal

Accessibility features

In Survival Kids, you can access the settings menu from the main menu or anytime in-game by pressing the pause button and selecting the Options button.

From here, you can toggle on and off subtitles and a level timer, as well as level objective arrows and banners. In the Controls submenu, you can toggle between two layout options. Where audio is concerned, you can use incremental notches to tweak Music, SFX and Narration Volume.

How I reviewed Survival Kids

(Image credit: Konami)

I played Survival Kids' main campaign over twelve hours in a mixture of single-player, local co-op, and online co-op.

I used a Switch 2 console in both handheld and docked modes. When docked, I used an LG OLED C2 55-inch TV, with no additional soundbar or external speaker system.

First reviewed June 2025