Innholdsfortegnelse for December 2016 i T3

£1,499, www.aerix.co Looks nice. What on earth is it? This is the Aerix Duet, a high-spec sound system with an integrated slot-loading CD player and DTS Play-Fi module. Basically, that means you can stream music from Spotify, Deezer and TIDAL. Oh, and there’s built-in Bluetooth, too. Are there two of them, or am I seeing double? As the name suggests, Duet incorporates a pair of minimalist cubes mounted on a matted chrome plate – a striking design that sets it apart from practically every other high-end streaming system. Ok, but what makes it stand out from other stereo systems? Inside each cube are two horns, one for high notes, one for bass, which team up with vertical-firing drivers and tweeters to create an immersive 360-degree ‘Atmosphere of Sound’.…

This is your chance to tell us what you want to see in your favourite gadget magazine, and in the process win this smart security bundle worth £379! By answering the questions at the link below, you’ll be able to tell us what you like (and dislike) about T3 magazine, and we’ll listen – this is your chance to have your say. At the end of the survey, just fill in your details and you’ll be automatically entered into a draw to win this smart security bundle – consisting of a mydlink Smart Home Security Kit and a Ring stick-up outdoor security cam. It’s a bundle worth £379! Tell us what you think of T3 by visiting the link below. The closing date is 31 December 2016. To participate in…

1st Sony KD-65ZD9 Price: £4,000 URL: sony.co.uk  T3 RATES: This TV doesn’t just look slick, with its minimal design and rose gold trim. Sony’s Backlight Master Drive technology proves stunningly effective with 4K HDR content. 4K HDR Netflix and Amazon simply add to the fun. T3 SLATES: The Android smart TV platform is clunkier than most (although YouView brings catch-up relief), and the onboard sound isn’t as clear as rival soundbar systems. T3 SAYS: The best 4K HDR performance we’ve seen. The deep blacks, wide colour and sparkling highlights will enhance 4K Blu-ray, Sky Q 4K and HDR-capable consoles. 2nd LG OLED65E6 Price: £4,499 URL: lg.co.uk T3 RATES: Wonderful picture quality – both HD and 4K HDR. First-class usability and stunning design. T3 SLATES: That price! It’s the dearest telly…

Free, App Store (IAPs from £2.99) What puts most people off starting guitar is having to learn songs like Mary had a little lamb and Frère Jacques. That’s fine if you’re seven, but adults need grown-up tunes. CoachGuitar has the answer to keeping your attention with lessons based around classic rock tracks. Even better, you don’t need to learn to read music at all – its songs are taught through videos showing a guitarist playing along to a backing track, and there’s a fretboard underneath with a colour-coded system that shows you where to put your fingers and which strings to play. It’s almost idiot proof. You’ve got complete control over the video too, so you can slow it down, loop it or pause at any moment. We were genuinely…

Rob Carney EDITOR Rob’s smart home has really come together this month, with Amazon Echo taking centre stage. He doesn’t need to move from his sofa to turn all of his lights on and change his heating. Nick Odantzis DEPUTY EDITOR Back from his adventures in South America, Nick has being showing us all of his GoPro footage (trust us, all of it!). He’s also had to give back his beloved Golf GTE to Volkswagen (sob). Claire Davies ASSISTANT EDITOR Our very own Santa has been compiling the best Christmas gift guide known to man for as long as she can remember now. Check it out starting on p59 and get your credit card ready… Luke O’Neill ART EDITOR Luke’s love of Christmas is only second to Ebenezer Scrooge, but…

From £1,599, microsoftstore.com Another laptop? I can’t deal with the excitement here! Like buses, you wait for an exciting laptop all year, then two come along at once. The updated Surface Book is hotly anticipated, especially after winning a prestigious T3 Award earlier in 2016. Does it have a Touch Bar? Nope, the Surface Book is innovative in a different way – it’s a hybrid. The entire 13.5-inch display is touch sensitive, and the keyboard can be removed for a full tablet experience. What’s the point of that? It’s more adaptable than a traditional laptop – business during the day, party (gaming, movie-watching) at night. It’s the mullet of computers, if you will. It equals the MacBook Pro in terms of power and has a (claimed) longer battery life.…

From $2,999 (£2,396), microsoft.com More Microsoft? What’s going on? Yes, the company is having a bumper month. Not content with releasing the best Surface Book yet, Microsoft has also unveiled the Surface Studio, a digital hub for creatives looking to get touchy-feely with their drawings and illustrations. You can also write on it, but that’s boring. Hey, it lies down flat! Isn’t that precious? It’s called Studio Mode. Hold either side of the screen and you can manipulate the Zero Gravity Hinge, flattening the screen from Desktop Mode (standing) to lying flat. Neat. What’s the screen like? It’s a 28-inch PixelSense Display rocking 13.5 million pixels. The 10-point multi-touch display means you can rest your hand on the screen while drawing, leaving your digital creations untouched by your palm. Can…

THE READER Jon Warren Jon has been saving up to buy his first VR kit and is now ready to splurge. He tried the HTC Vive and loved it, but doesn’t know where to start when looking for a suitable gaming PC. THE EXPERT Louise Blain Louise has tested all the new VR headsets in her work for GamesRadar and Official PlayStation Magazine. From VR horror to gentle deep-sea experiences, she’s seen it all. 01 EYES ON THE PRIZE It’s important to remember that even though your brain is fighting zombies, in reality you’re still in your living room. Thankfully, the Vive’s Chaperone system will fire up clear grid walls any time you get close to your own real ones – helping you to avoid walking straight into a wall.…

Guru is – or rather Guru’s family are – determined that he be first in line for Elon Musk’s one-way trip to Mars, so it’s time to stock up with spacefaring gimmicks. Of course it is. Stowed neatly in Guru’s carry-on baggage, weight limits be damned, will be Ozma Records’ impeccable repackage of Voyager’s golden record, successfully Kickstarted at press time. It comes with a lovely book, exquisite packaging, and three slabs of vinyl containing all the audio from the world’s most distant record, currently hurtling through interstellar space some 20 billion kilometres away. Sadly it is not made of real gold, so will be useless for barter in the new world society. GaGu may have to use his glistening false molars instead. At least one of Guru’s hounds deserves…

1 ACTIVATE SKILL The first thing to do is open the Amazon Alexa app and sign in. Hit the menu top-left and choose Skills from the list. Here you’ll see a shopfront of all the ‘skills’ Alexa can link to. There are loads here, from knowledge-based services (such as chemistry facts) to games, quizzes and much more. But we’re going to focus on smart home. 2 LINK ACCOUNT We’re going to be setting up our Hive devices, so search for Hive and choose the Hive skill. Hit the Enable Skill button and wait while it activates. Next you need to link your Hive account to authorise Amazon Echo to control your devices. Hit Link Account, add your Hive details and wait for the confirmation. 3 ADD DEVICES Next you need…

01 PIVOT SWIVEL ARMCHAIR A statement piece for your home office or living room, this highbacked swivelling chair, with brushed steel base, has a real Bond feel to it. Run your fingers over its cool, faux leather while conjuring your plans for world domination. £399, dwell.co.uk 02 LOGITECH POP HOME SWITCH STARTER PACK Control a range of smart products, such as locks and blinds, from brands like LIFX and Sonos, with this app controlled, Wi-Ficonnecting gizmo. Have fun creating Recipes via the Pop app (Android, iOS) to control a suite of smart tech via just one Pop Home Switch. £120, logitech.com 03 KITCHENAID 1.9L STOVE-TOP KETTLE Add an instant style update to your kitchen with this whistling, stove top beauty. We love its stain-resistant porcelain exterior, and thumbpress spout for…

IPHONE 7/7 PLUS Yes, they’re missing a headphone socket, but it’s not a huge issue and the rest of the package is waterproof, well designed, backed by a great software library… simply two great phones. £599, apple.com SAMSUNG GALAXY S7/S7 EDGE We originally had the Note 7 in here, but probably best we don’t talk about that! The Galaxy S7 Edge may be pricey, but its 5.5-inch AMOLED screen is the best out there . £639, samsung.com HUAWEI P9 PLUS Huawei has been making some brilliant phones, and the P9 Plus is no exception. The dual cameras (made by Leica) are a bit different to the iPhone’s – one being dedicated to black and white shots. £629, consumer.huawei.com…

01 QUIK If you’re in a hurry, this app does everything for you, quick, including matching your clips to music. Free, App Store, Google Play 02 MAGISTO This app makes a great video from your clips in three steps. Some features require in-app purchases. Free, App Store, Google Play 03 SPARK CAMERA Perfect for combining snippets of your holiday without having to edit them all together yourself. Free, App Store 04 IMOVIE Apple’s official video editor. Sadly a little buggy, but has nice features on offer for larger projects. £3.99, App Store 05 PREMIERE CLIP From Adobe, one of the biggest names in the business, this simple app will make quick videos with ease. Free, App Store, Google Play 06 CAMEO A nice app with slick themes from the people…

Apple Lightning to 3.5mm-headphone-jack adapter Apple’s own solution to the problem it created is simple and elegant: a little cable extension that converts your Lightning port to a headphone port. It’s really cheap, and it works a treat. £9, apple.com/uk Belkin Lightning Audio + Charge Rockstar This cable breaks the iPhone’s Lightning port into two, giving you one port for charging and another for audio. You’ll still need to use the adapter to convert Lightning audio to headphone output, mind. £34.99, belkin.com Scosche StrikeLine MFi Directly compared to Apple’s own converter, this device looks slightly more expensive (which it is, of course). The built-in controls mean it’ll replace any headphone controls that no longer work, as welll as adulterating headphones that don’t have any. £40, scosche.com…

Do I need scissors? As you might expect, the phrase is somewhat metaphorical. Cutting the cord is the practice of disconnecting yourself from traditional TV services in favour of getting the content you want from online sources instead. The more legitimate sources that pop up – and the more our viewing habits change because of them – the more popular it becomes. So I’ll save money? That depends on what you want to watch. If all you’re interested in is Netflix or Amazon Prime, one of those services will be significantly less expensive than a Virgin Media or Sky subscription – but bear in mind that an unbundled broadband connection may work out slightly more expensive than one that comes with TV. If you’re a voracious consumer of streaming services,…

Raise the ISO Most cameras, including those found in modern phones, will give you the opportunity to raise the ISO level, which increases the sensor’s sensitivity to light. Just what you’re looking for, right? Maybe. A higher ISO also means a more noisy shot, with more digital grain, so experiment with your camera before committing to a particular number. Open the aperture This piece of advice is mainly for people with SLR cameras: making the aperture wider enables more light to reach the sensor. Your kit lens might not let you go beyond f/3.5; a wider lens with a maximum aperture closer to f/1.8 is more suitable for low-light conditions. Prices start around £50 and rise astronomically from there. Tweak the shutter The shutter blocks all light coming into your…

Denon DNP-F109 AirPlay and DLNA 1.5 support means the DNP can grab tunes seamlessly from your network and play them back through your stereo – although it requires an ethernet connection. Pick up the £379 DNP-730AE if you need Wi-Fi. £219, denon.co.uk Sonos Connect The Connect offers supreme compatibility with online streaming services, and if your personal collection is DRM-free, it’ll handle that too. It’s easily expandable to a multi-room set-up and simple to install, but lacks a built-in display. £279, sonos.com Sony HAP-S1 Compatible with high-res audio, containing its own 500GB hard drive and screen, and able to stream (and upscale) audio from Wi-Fi sources, this could be the ultimate hi-fi upgrade. It even includes a built-in amp to hook up speakers. £799, sony.co.uk…

Garmin Vivoactive Suitable for all activities but especially swimming, the Vivoactive adapts well to changes in your swim plan, buzzes on workout milestones to keep you motivated, and records a huge amount of data. If you rely on metrics to push through the metres, this is for you. £159.99, buy.garmin.com TomTom Spark A nice big screen with easily visible graphics means the Spark is ideal for a quick glance between strokes. Tell it your goals and the screen will display how close you are to beating them, rewarding you with extra buzzing should you do even better than expected. From £149, tomtom.com Misfit Speedo Shine 2 If all you’re after is a record of your activity, this is fine, although the lack of a screen and the relative lightness of…

BMW C Evolution Newly updated for 2016, the C Evolution is BMW’s second stab at the electric-motorcycle market, and it’s better than ever, with more power, more range and a gorgeous Ionic Silver/Electric Green colour combo. From £13,500, bmw-motorrad.co.uk Boosted Board If you’ve got the style and the skills, the Boosted Board longboard could be the ultimate way to get from A to B, with a range of 14 miles and a terrifying top speed of 22mph. A handheld remote lets you control how fast or slow you go. From £800, boostedboards.com Electron Wheel Crave an electric bicycle but already have a decent humanpowered pedal machine? No worries – simply upgrade it with the Electron Wheel, by taking out your front wheel and putting this on instead. Job done. $799…

3 FOR £6! Amazing subs offer on p92 The reality will probably be a nice pair of socks and some underpants, but we can all dream, can’t we! So that’s why we’ve put together what I reckon is the dream Christmas gift guide – you’ll find ideas for dad, mum, partner, the kids and of course, yourself (who would begrudge you buying a cool bit of tech as a present to yourself?). Check it out on p59 and you never know, Santa might just have read it as well… What’s more, we’ve put together a monstrous, massive, majestic tech competition. You can win over £11,000 of top tech. Turn to p90 to enter (and if you win, I’ll deliver the prizes personally. That’s a promise). Elsewhere, we’ve launched a brand…

£165, misfit.com Hmm. A new Misfit, eh? Indeed. The company behind the Misfit Ray, Shine, Flash and other popular fitness trackers has unveiled its first smartwatch, the Misfit Phase. It’s handsome, with its classic timepiece looks, and has all the smarts you need to stay connected. Oh yeah? Tell me about the smarts. We’re not saying the Misfit Phase is here to push the boundaries of smartwatch technology, but if you’re shopping for a smartwatch that trades heavily on its looks whilst still keeping you up to date with notifications, all while tracking your sleep and daily activity 24/7, the Phase will see you right. What else can it do? Activate your phone, control your smart lighting or indeed any connected home device and play/pause music on your…

£300, motorola.co.uk T3, I’ve got some news. I’m pregnant. Well, my partner is… We know. T3 knows everything, and we certainly know quality baby tech when we see it. Like Motorola’s Smart Nursery 7, a portable Wi-Fi baby monitor kit capable of sleep-monitoring, expression detection and night vision. Yuss! I wanna hi-tech nursery. Well, the Smart Nursery 7 is a great start. It comprises a Smart Nursery Camera and Smart Nursery Monitor, enabling you to eyeball baby’s bedroom, to monitor the temperature in there along with humidity, sound and movement. How do I control it? The Smart Nursery 7 works with the Motorola Hubble Connected app (iOS, Android), so you can control the camera and monitor from your smartphone or tablet – whether you’re at home or out…

I ’m sorry,” said the man in the white coat. “There’s nothing we can do. It’s gone. It’s gone.” Softly, the woman began to sob. Behind us, more wounded were wheeled in on trollies by uniformed staff, accompanied by men and women wearing pained expressions. The woman in charge paced the room. Her face told of lack of sleep and dealing with too many traumatised people. “Have you done triage on these?” she asked her exhausted team. Addressing the room, she barked, “We’ve got a wait of 2-3 hours before you’ll be seen, ladies and gentlemen.” Over and again, I heard the same question from the lips of the desperate: “The data. Can you save the data?” Nurse, the screens! Yeah, so, it wasn’t a hospital or a vet. It…

WHAT’S THIS THEN? It’s a thing that you stuff with expensive electronics then hurl as high as you can in the sky. SOUNDS SENSIBLE. Indeed it does. The AER is an expanded polypropylene dart-type thing with a compartment in the front for your GoPro. When the mood for (limited) aerial shooting takes you, you can screw in the GoPro, lob this thing in the air, and it’ll sail majestically back to the ground capturing beautiful footage all the way. WOULDN’T YOU JUST GET A DRONE? If you wanted precise control of your shots and had enough money to fly and maintain one, probably. But AER has its advantages: it’s waterproof, cheap, isn’t forced to comply with super-harsh flying regulations, and since it’s impervious to most damage (if you do break…

THE EXPERTS There’s nothing these lot don’t know about smart homes ROB CARNEY Editor of T3 and an expert on all things smart home, Rob is particularly interested in connected lighting, and loves it when his Hue NICK ODANTZIS Paranoia has taken hold of deputy editor Nick, and therefore he’s a smart home security expert. He currently has no less than eleven connected cameras around his home CLAIRE DAVIES Sleep expert Claire knows all about wellbeing tech and keeping yourself healthy around the house. She also knows more than is healthy about kitchen gadgets! DUNCAN BELL Lifestyle editor Duncan is a connected home – and multi-room audio – expert, and can advise on everything from setting up your Sonos to getting Amazon Echo to order you a puppy CHRIS HASLAM…

BLUETOOTH TRACKERS Tile Slim SLIP THIS LITTLE SLAB INTO YOUR WALLET, AND MAKE IT CHIRP FROM YOUR PHONE IF YOU LOSE IT £29.99, WWW.THETILEAPP.COM DESIGN The Tile Slim is about two inches square and the thickness of three credit cards, with a silver button in the middle. It links to an iOS or Android phone using Bluetooth LE. It’s light and attractive, but perhaps a touch bulky once in your wallet. FEATURES The device itself is basic, but its app has clever features. If Tile Slim is in range, you can make it bleep; if it’s out of range, the app will show where it last connected on a map. If it’s lost or stolen, use the Tile community to help find it via the app. PERFORMANCE The Tile Slim’s…

GEARS OF WAR 4 The shooter franchise that helped to sell a bucketload of Xbox 360s is now current-gen only, and looking gorgeous on the Xbox One – just like Marcus here. £44.99; PC, Xbox One BATTLEFIELD 1 Biplanes, Zeppelins and trench warfare are about as opposite to COD as you can get. Playing both this year seems like a requirement rather than a choice. £44.99; PC, PS4, Xbox One TITANFALL 2 Respawn Games’ sequel is causing quite the stir, and rightly so considering its founding fathers launched the COD franchise. The campaign is a must. £44.99; PC, PS4, Xbox One DISHONORED 2 The graphical finesse looks set to surpass the original; here’s hoping the flexible gameplay remains intact, appeasing pacifists and sadists alike. £44.99; PC, PS4, Xbox One…

IF YOU’RE LOOKING FOR THE VERY BEST TECH AVAILABLE TODAY, YOU HAVE DEFINITELY COME TO THE RIGHT PLACE. T3 Elite is the best gadget-buying guide you will ever encounter. To create it, we’ve ruthlessly filtered all the categories that count, to bring you rock-solid recommendations. We’ve selected a Super Six of elite gear for each of the categories listed below. If something’s not included, we don’t rate it – it’s that simple. Each Super Six is ranked in order, and the number-one product makes it into The Elite (p128), which is our pick of the 12 best products you can buy today. To make your next purchase as straightforward as possible, we’ve also included useful buying advice, and highlighted the hottest gear you can get for £100 and under.…

Smartphones 01 SAMSUNG GALAXY S7/S7 EDGE www.samsung.com PRICE From £569 TESTED T3 255 The S7 duo are superbly designed phones with brilliant cameras, beautiful screens and some innovative additions. T3 SAYS These Galaxies are simply the best phones of the year, whichever you go for. 02 iPHONE 7/7 PLUS www.apple.com/uk PRICE From £719 TESTED T3 262 Water resistance, great haptic feedback and an amazing camera set-up are just some of the features on Apple’s stunning new releases. Expensive but brilliant. T3 SAYS If you can get past the lack of a headphone socket, you have a winner here. 03 HTC 10 www.htc.com PRICE £570 TESTED T3 256 HTC finally delivers with its new handset, with loads of power, a responsive interface, great battery life and incredible audio capabilities. The camera…

TVs 01 PANASONIC TX-65DX902B www.panasonic.co.uk PRICE £3,299 TESTED T3 258 This big 4K beast certainly has the wow factor, delivering stunning picture clarity, terrific sound and a range of features that include Netflix and Amazon streaming. T3 SAYS Getting the cinema experience on your home TV has never been closer. 02 SONY KD-65ZD9 www.sony.co.uk PRICE £4,000 TESTED T3 263 An amazing panel, that not only looks incredible, but is equipped with Sony’s Backlight Master Drive technology, meaning 4K HDR content is jaw-droppingly good. T3 SAYS If you want to make the most of 4K HDR content - this is the screen for you. 03 PHILIPS 55PUT6400 www.philips.co.uk PRICE £629 TESTED T3 255 Another 4K bargain – this Philips isn’t quite up there with the Panasonic at number one, but with…

Laptops 01 DELL XPS 13 www.dell.com PRICE £1,060 TESTED N/A The XPS 13 is brilliantly designed and outperforms its rivals under the hood. The infinity display gives you the expanse of a 13.3-inch screen on an 11.9-inch laptop. T3 SAYS With its fantastic performance and build, it’ll serve you well for years to come. 02 HP SPECTRE X360 www.hp.com PRICE £849 TESTED T3 244 The X360 is powerful and has a massive 12.5-hour battery life. Its 360-degree rotating keyboard enables you to use it as a tablet or stood upright for hands-free video. T3 SAYS For a relatively modest price, you get a powerful and versatile machine. 03 ASUS ZENBOOK NX500 www.asus.com PRICE £1,699 TESTED T3 239 The diminutive NX500 boasts a stunning design, impressive power and a bright, vibrant…

Home audio 01 NAIM MU-SO QB www.naimaudio.com PRICE £595 TESTED T3 256 With powerful, room-filling sound, exquisite detail, a rock-solid build and eye-popping design features, the Qb is a stunning wireless speaker in a condensed package. T3 SAYS It might be smaller than the original Mu-so, but the Qb is every bit as incredible. 02 B&O A1 www.beoplay.com PRICE £199 TESTED T3 257 This portable speaker has an astonishing 24-hours battery life, making it perfect for long-listening on the move, aided by the hard-wearing, splashproof design. The sound is also remarkable, given the size. T3 SAYS Small, powerful and portable. 03 RIVA S www.rivaaudio.co.uk PRICE £199 TESTED T3 257 This is a beautifully made Bluetooth speaker, and IPX4 splash resistance makes it great for the poolside. Thirteen hours of battery…

Smartwatches 01 APPLE WATCH SERIES 2 www.apple.com/uk PRICE From £369 TESTED T3 262 Apple’s wearable now packs GPS, water resistance for swim tracking, and even more styles – not to mention the ace watchOS 3, which keeps everything ticking over. T3 SAYS Apple has nailed it this time – the Series 2 is the best smartwatch around. 02 MONDAINE HELVETICA 1 www.mondaine.com PRICE £650 TESTED T3 259 The Helvetica 1 is stunning on the wrist and packed with smarts, including fitness and sleep tracking contained within a sub-dial at the bottom – though further notifications can be found within the phone app. T3 SAYS A stunning and smart timepiece. 03 PEBBLE TIME STEEL www.getpebble.com PRICE £229.99 TESTED T3 249 The Pebble Time Steel brings with it ease of use, a…

Connected tech 01 CANARY www.canary.is PRICE £160 TESTED T3 254 Though a little on the hefty side, the Canary looks slick. It offers excellent 1080p video day or night, and motion-triggered events, while the app is feature-packed and intuitive. T3 SAYS The Canary is the best all-round connected security camera you can get. 02 DJI PHANTOM 4 www.dji.com PRICE £1,229 TESTED T3 259 The most advanced drone T3 has ever tested, the Phantom 4 boasts a huge array of features, including obstaclesensing, giving just about anyone the ability to shoot professional-looking video. T3 SAYS Top dollar equals top aerial antics. 03 SNOOPER DVR-4HD www.snooper.co.uk PRICE £149.99 TESTED T3 263 As well as a sharp 1080p image for recordings, Snooper’s dash-cam offers speed detection, forward-collision alerts and lane-departure warnings, and has…