Even by recent standards, there’s been an absolute deluge of products that have launched over the last week. And that can only mean one thing: even more top gear for TechRadar’s testing labs to put through their paces. So pull up a pew, kick back, and check out our recap of all the hottest gadgets we got our hands on this week.
First of all, we’ve been appraising Samsung’s astoundingly clever Galaxy S25 Ultra to see how its slick design, super-intelligent AI features, and much larger screen stack up compared to other premium flagships. In addition, we’ve been checking out how Nvidia’s GeForce RTX 5080 powerful graphics card compares to the RTX 5090 and which is more worthy of your spend. And there’s way more where that comes from, so make sure you catch up below.
Pros
✅ Design aligned with rest of S series but remains suitably Ultra
✅ Biggest Ultra screen to date
✅ Impressive AI
✅ Outstanding battery life
Cons
❌ Generative AI still struggles with some prompts
❌ Samsung still over-saturates photos
The Samsung Galaxy S25 Ultra marks a real step forward for the brand’s premium flagship. It features a streamlined design that’s thinner and lighter than before and feels more like a phone than a phablet, despite still integrating an epic 5,000mAh battery and finding room to stow that S Pen. It also features the largest display to ever grace the Ultra and its cameras have had an, admittedly quite modest, boost, with the ultra-wide lens being upped to 50MP.
But inevitably – as we’re living in 2025 – the most noteworthy advances involve AI. It’s deeply baked into the phone at every level, offering an AI experience that barely any of the best phones can rival and blending Galaxy AI, Google Gemini and Bixby into a mostly seamless package, although some seams still show. Generative AI features are also seriously impressive; adding generative elements on top of your photos is a breeze, while whole-cloth image generation is impressive, even if some prompts still provoke odd responses. All in all, it’s an incredibly smart gadget that will likely reveal its true utility the longer you use it.
Pros
✅ Excellent performance
✅ GDDR7 and PCIe 5.0
✅ Thinner design
✅ Improved cooling
Cons
❌ Still pricey
❌ Not much of a boost over previous gen
❌ Biggest performance boost involves DLSS 4
❌ Might get better value out of Nvidia RTX 4080 Super
The Nvidia GeForce RTX 5080 goes a long way toward making the Nvidia RTX 4090’s game-changing performance more accessible for the average gamer. Admittedly, it’s still not the cheapest GPU you can buy, and it’s not quite as ridiculous a powerhouse as the RTX 5090. Also, the biggest performance boost you’ll see will require DLSS 4 – the inclusion of which entirely relies on the game developer in question.
Despite this, the RTX 5080 is currently the best graphics card you can get your hands on in the mainstream consumer bracket. It offers impressive performance, a slimmer design, and more effective cooling, making it a great upgrade for anyone who couldn’t quite stretch to the previous gen’s top-tier GPU.
Pros
✅ Economical, attractive design
✅ Adept, enjoyable sound
✅ Wide range of connectivity options
Cons
❌ No analog input
❌ Doesn’t have enough oomph to fill larger rooms
The KEF LSX II LT are a pair of highly competent hi-res wireless speakers that prove excellent sound neither requires bulk nor boxy design. Not only are they fun-size enough to fit on a desk or shelf, but they’re acoustically optimized to avoid parallel lines. As a result, they sound agile and utterly convincing, offering smooth yet pleasing reproduction across their full frequency range. Naturally, they can’t entirely fill a room with sound quite like a pair of floor standers, but they still offer plenty of low-end punch.
The LSX II LT also offers various connectivity options that rival some of the best wireless speakers. Setting aside dual-band Wi-Fi and Bluetooth 5.0, they provide HDMI ARC, digital optical and USB-C inputs, and a subwoofer pre-out. Although the lack of an analog input here does mean you won’t be plugging in a wired turntable – or any other non-digital source. Still, though, they can offer an excellent all-in-one (alright, two) streaming system that won’t eat up all your space.
Pros
✅ Light and manageable
✅ Powerful suction
✅ Decent selection of tools
✅ Outstanding battery life
✅ Comparatively affordable price
Cons
❌ Fairly average bin emptying system
❌ Unnecessarily sensitive power trigger
❌ Makes slightly irritating whining noise
❌ Lacks a low-power mode
The Dreame R20 is a lightweight, easily maneuverable cordless stick vacuum that nonetheless offers impressive suction power and a wide selection of tools that rivals some of the best cordless vacuum cleaners. Not only does it function great on hard floors, with its ‘intelligent dirt detection’ system making short work of whatever grime we encountered, but it performs admirably on deeper carpets, too. And it’s easy to duck under furniture and weave around chair legs as needed.
It can occasionally sound a bit whiney, which may or may not irritate you based on your personal tolerance of such things, while it’s not always that easy to empty its bin when it’s filled with things like hair. Our main quibble, though, is its power trigger – it’s sensitive enough that we found it easy to accidentally switch it off during use, which can be occasionally frustrating. However, with its competitive price, it’s still a great value performer for the price.
Pros
✅ Remarkable burst shooting and auto-focus speed
✅ Fantastic build quality and excellent handling
✅ Strong performance all-round
Cons
❌ Extremely expensive
❌ Probably too much camera for most people
❌ Might not be high res enough for everyone
The Canon EOS R1 is pretty much the fastest camera the brand offers, making it one of the best professional cameras you can buy when it comes to sports or wildlife photography. It offers staggeringly fast shooting speeds and autofocus, making it a snap to catch unerringly crisp shots of subjects in movement. Additionally, 6K Raw video capture is the icing on the cake, allowing you to shoot hi-res footage while you’re at it. Its solid build quality and new secure grip coating mean it should be at less risk of sustaining damage.
However, if you’re more interested in shooting static subjects, you may find the Canon EOS R1 has more cameras than you need. Not only do Canon cams like the EOS R5 Mark II offer higher resolution, they come in cheaper too, making it a more suitable choice for anyone who doesn’t have a need for speed. For action photography though, the EOS R1 simply can’t be beat.
https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/mzywgxBbbLGGgdncCB433J-1200-80.jpg
Source link
josh.russell@futurenet.com (Josh Russell)
