Reviews

Withings wrote the book on making a fitness wearable that wasn't an ugly hunk of rubber on your wrist: now, it wants the Steel HR Sport to do the same for smartwatches. Freshly returned to original co-founder Eric Carreel after a stint as Nokia Digital Health, this first product under new management argues you don't need to sacrifice classic watch style just to get modern smart features. In an Apple Watch Series 4 age, though, does Withings' nod to the analog past make too many compromises for its future?

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Everyone wants to get rid of bezels these days. Few, however, dare to take that to their logical conclusions. We’ve seen Vivo’s pioneering idea in that regard with the NEX S. But being first doesn’t always mean being better, especially without the benefit of hindsight. OPPO has more than just hindsight to bank on, though, and can call upon its experience and partners in crafting its own style of a bezel-less phone with a slider. But is the OPPO Find X really that much better? We put this one of a kind smartphone to the test to bring you that answer.

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A paper notebook review on a site about gadgets and living the digital lifestyle? Even with the prevalence of smartphones, the Internet, and computers in general, there is a growing “counter-culture” that advocates the benefits of paper or, at the very least, writing things by hand. Rather than take one side to the detriment of the other, the folks at Rocketbook got their heads together to develop solutions, not compromises, that bridge the analog and digital in ways you may never have thought of before. Besides, the Rocketbook Everlast paper isn’t really paper anyway.

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The world's first thermal imaging smartphone is the CAT S60, a device first introduced back in February of 2016. This smartphone is part of a collection of Android-based devices made by the folks at CAT, aka Caterpillar. We've not traditionally reviewed a lot of Android devices this far from their original release date for several reasons, one of which is Android updates.

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The Honor Play is a surprisingly low-cost smartphone made with gaming in mind. It features a 6.3-inch display with a notch and a relatively small chin, and it runs a unique sort of Android (with Honor's EMUI on top). The Honor Play is aimed at the newest wave of mobile gamers, bringing a bit of external aesthetic flavor to the mix as it packs in a decent bit of power under the hood.

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Sony may not have intended the coppery highlights on its new WH-1000XM3 noise-canceling headphones as a nod to the old adage that "silence is golden," but faced with a crying baby and a ten hour flight they proved themselves worth their weight in the precious metal. Now in their third-generation, Sony's headphones have gone from upstart Bose rival to segment-shaking heavyweight.

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The EB-5 electric bicycle might be the best bicycle I've ever ridden - and I've been riding bikes my whole life. I've never lent much credence to the idea of using a bicycle with a motor. I always thought it was a bit counter-intuitive to put gas in something that's otherwise the symbol of green living. But with the EB-5, it's all the good parts about the motorized bike, and none of the bad.

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The Samsung Galaxy Watch follows the tradition of the Galaxy Gear S smartwatch line with a new brand and a new outlook on life. The Galaxy Watch uses the newest version of Tizen to deliver a wrist-bound smart wearable device experience that's both powerful and feels natural. The Galaxy Watch is the first smartwatch I've worn that I've not taken off (and left off forever) immediately after my review. In this watch, Samsung's delivered something special.

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The LEGO remote controlled Batmobile is an exercise in beastly looks, battery-powered rumbling motor action, and a new Batman. For some, the new Batman minifig for August of 2018 is enough incentive to own. Even without that Batman - even if this set came with a super old Batman - this set remains a pretty tight box of LEGO bricks and elements.

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Lenovo has a flexible version of its most popular business ultrabook, the ThinkPad X1 Yoga. As the name suggests, the X1 Yoga brings the X1 lineup's robust business features to Lenovo's flexible Yoga design, enabling users to fold the display entirely back into a tablet-like mode. The model's built-in stylus greatly expands the X1 Yoga's abilities versus the X1 Carbon, but is it worth the transition?

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With the continued rise of eSports comes a greater focus on the kind of PC gaming accessories we’re using. If you’re a pro gamer, your mouse and keyboard suddenly become just as important as the hardware inside your PC, as they’re what enable you to flex your skill. It shouldn’t be a surprise, then, that amateur players of competitive games want access to the same hardware the pros use, and Logitech is more than happy to oblige.

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You might not rank Meizu among the top smartphone makers in the market, be it in its home country of China let alone the rest of the world. Not that it hasn’t tried hard, with interesting yet eccentric standouts like the Meizu PRO 5 Ubuntu Edition and the double-faced Meizu PRO 7. Those, however, haven’t exactly put it close to the top nor have they brought in the dough. Meizu has since then changed its strategy, shifting its phones towards more conventional designs and features to try and pull in users who need a serious smartphone. And this Meizu 16th is perhaps the most serious one of all.

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