Gadget of the year
SONY PLAYSTATION 5
The PlayStation 5 is just incredible. Probably the most anticipated launch of the past year, and still (thanks to stock sniping, retailer issues and a worldwide semiconductor shortage) a highly anticipated console for the millions that haven’t yet been able to get their hands on one. It didn’t win this award simply for its properly futuristic design language, or its brilliant upgraded controller. Nor is it here just for its games, a mixture of remastered classics, multi-platform favourites and (at least thus far) only a few high-end exclusives. And it’s not our Gadget of the Year only for its power, which drops true high-end gaming to a price point well below the second-mortgage PC market, or for its backwards compatibility, which effectively upgrades games from previous PlayStation generations to make them crisper and slicker. It’s the impact of the PS5 elsewhere that gives it real Gadget of the Year credibility. It – and, to some extent, the marginally less popular Xbox Series X – has ushered in the acceleration of TV tech, pushing features like VRR, 120Hz refresh rates and automatic low latency to even the mid-range TV market. This isn’t just a console; it’s a benchmark, a statement, a kick in the pants to the entire industry. That’s exactly what next-generation hardware is supposed to be.
$good luck, playstation.com
Best gadget under $100
FITBIT ACE 3
Since we gave Fitbit Ace 3 trackers to our kids, we’ve barely seen them: dinners are rushed so they can run around the garden to get more steps, our mornings are quieter as they try to increase their sleep score and our smartphone app shows ever-increasing amounts of activity. Fitbit’s kids’ fitness tracker is perfectly pitched for its target audience: it looks good, it’s comfortable to wear, it lasts for a week between charges and it has lots of fun watch faces. The app tracks steps, sleep and activity without encouraging calorie counting, and it’s easy to set and track activity goals. We’ve also found that the strap doesn’t irritate sensitive skin like some kids’ watch straps do.
$99, fitbit.com
Best innovation
SAMSUNG MICROLED
MicroLED is the future of television, and Samsung is leading the way in making that future happen. Its panels use thousands of tiny LEDs to deliver per-pixel illumination for exceptional image quality, contrast and responsiveness, and unlike OLED it doesn’t suffer from screen burn or the ageing that reduces OLED’s colour fidelity over the life of a display. According to Samsung, its MicroLED displays will run for over 100,000 hours with no significant loss of performance. It isn’t exactly affordable right now – Samsung’s first consumer MicroLED TV is a 110-inch, 4K display that will set you back well over $100k – but MicroLEDs will get smaller and more affordable fast, just as LED TVs
