Innholdsfortegnelse for September 2023 i T3

For me the new Apple Vision Pro headset isn’t just about mixed or virtual reality – its killer feature is that you’ll be able to do more things ‘head back’ rather than ‘head down’. The problem with so many gadgets – including phones, tablets and laptops – is that you use them with your neck bent forward, concentrating on the task in hand, rather than with your head back and relaxed. I could scream, the amount of time I’m forced to be ‘head down’ to do what I need to do. Over the years I’ve developed a bad case of ‘tech neck’ or ‘gadget stoop’, a curve of the back and a roundness of the shoulders that comes from crouching over small screens. It was never this way with TV…

Nike’s latest innovation, the Run Division Aerogami Jacket (price TBC, nike.com), is designed to interact with your body as you exercise. The technology utilises tiny winged vents that open as sweat builds against the skin, allowing better airflow and for sweat to escape. The vents close back up when the body cools down, and sweat dries. This capability comes from a moisture-reactive film applied to the ducts that autonomously contracts and expands upon sensing sweat against the body.…

EUFY MACH V1 ULTRA A game-changing floor cleaner that vacuums, mops and steams in one intelligent machine. Packed with stylish design flourishes like a small LED display on the handle, it comes with multiple attachments. And it’s cordless! £749, eufy.com SMEG PBF01 PERSONAL BLENDER The ultimate Nutribullet dupe, the Smeg PBF01 Personal Blender makes delicious smoothies, sauces and milkshakes, churning through thick vegetables and frozen fruit without breaking a sweat. The compact powerful appliance has a classic retro design. £109.95, smeguk.com SAGE BARISTA TOUCH IMPRESS Easily the smartest bean to cup machine we’ve ever seen. The upcoming Barista Touch Impress perfectly froths different types of milks, has an impressive touchscreen, 30 grind settings and makes barista-quality coffee. £1,199.95, sageappliances.com…

DAVE DENTON, NEWCASTLE UPON TYNE Q Can you help me identify garden birds? A Chris Packham appears to have blocked Guru’s number, more’s the pity, and he’s more convinced by the day that the restraining order from ‘B Oddie’ is legitimate. So it seems that calling in noted TV avian experts is right out. Using tech to interrogate the local flying fauna, though? That’s a bit more realistic. One option is the Netvue Birdfy, a combined feathered friend feeder and birdwatching camera. In its basic form that’s about it – it’s a wireless camera with close focus, surrounded by a gravity-fed container of seed. Pay for the AI upgrade, though, and it’ll grab snippets of video of your garden visitors and make a pretty solid stab at automatically identifying their…

September is a big month for Apple users, as it’s usually the time when the new iPhone is announced. I suspect by the time you read this we will already know what the iPhone 15 has in store for us. Faster memory, brighter screens, higher-quality cameras, and longer battery life are all par for the course these days but there’s often a killer feature in there too. Smartphones have become much more than just a communications tool. For me, my phone provides my social media and news updates, my banking, shopping, music collection, camera and smart home hub. Even when I get in my car, my iPhone syncs automatically with CarPlay to provide my navigation and music. Having the ability to do this was a major factor in choosing my…

HOW WE TEST In T3, we feature only the finest gadgets out there, and we believe that you – our loyal reader – deserve only the best tech in your life. We don’t want you to waste time, and money, on inferior products, and that’s exactly why our Tested section exists. In here you’ll find only the latest and hottest tech. Each product has been handpicked and tested by T3’s experts. We only choose people with specialist knowledge for each test, so you know you’re going to get an outcome based on many years of experience in their respective field. As well as our traditional five-star rating system (right), we also give out awards to particularly exceptional gadgets, using the line-up below - so when you spot one of these,…

CLEER ARC II SPORT With their IPX5 rating, Cleer Audio’s ARC II Sport buds are a must-have if you don’t like to compromise on sound quality, even during your sweatiest workouts. The headphones have 16.2mm neodymium drivers with aptX Adaptive that support lossless audio. £199, cleeraudio.co.uk SHOKZ OPENFIT Mostly known for their bone-conduction technology, Shokz’s latest buds are open-ear headphones with powerful bass and a well-rounded sound profile. Thanks to the super soft silicone construction, the Shokz OpenFit is comfortable enough to wear all day. £179, uk.shokz.com SENNHEISER SPORT TRUE WIRELESS Sennheiser’s buds allow you to use them in open-ear or closed-ear mode using the unique ear tip design. They don’t sound half bad, either, and have a small form factor, so you can listen to your favourite songs and…

The Maldives is hard to beat for winter sun. The Amari Raaya Maldives resort, which opened in August 2023, proves that holidays to the Maldives don’t need to break the bank – this is one of the Raa Atoll’s most wallet-friendly resorts, with rates starting from £273 per night on a B&B basis. The best bit? The Maldives becomes even more accessible this October, when Virgin Atlantic launches direct flights from the UK. Alternatively, consider sun-soaked Florida. Famous for its theme parks, it’s also got the Kennedy Space Center Visitor Complex. Currently, on average, there’s one rocket launch every five days so it’s highly likely you’ll be there for blast off. There’s a packed calendar of events, including opportunities to dine with NASA astronauts. Get lucky and you might meet…

We can all agree that the summer months are the best time of the year. Having said that, the UK is definitely not equipped for the hot weather that summer (or, often, September) brings. Time after time, we see people comparing their sunburnt arms to Drumstick Squashies sweets and others drenched in sweat from the humidity. To make summer more manageable, investing in a fan or air conditioner is the way to go. Air conditioning or AC isn’t massively common in the UK, and you only tend to find big powerful units installed in offices or shopping centres. But air conditioners, especially portable ones, offer incredible cooling and can improve the air quality in your home… although they come with a hefty price. Luckily, retailers and brands have started to…

Your old pal Gadget Guru has been working mainly out of his car this month, for reasons which definitely do not involve the fumigation of his office nor his expulsion from Guru Towers by a Mrs Guru finally at the end of her tether – though he can definitely see why you’d think that. If he were to say it’s been a fun experience, please know that means his sciatica has gained enough strength that it has developed sentience and is manifesting its feelings through Guru’s mouth. This very edition of Gadget Guru has been written while periodically moving GaGu’s car around the Asda car park in order to find somewhere shady to lurk; curse his choice of a Lenovo Yoga Slim 7 (£450 if you can still find one),…

Samsung hasn’t had much big-screen foldable competition in the past, but for 2023 it’s a different story, thanks to the new Google Pixel Fold and upcoming OnePlus Open. Despite this, the new Z Fold 5 is still the folding phone champion… for now. You’ll have a good idea of what to expect from the Z Fold 5’s design. A polished frame, matte glass back and tall body that serves up a narrow cover screen but makes up for it with an expansive inner display. While some foldables – namely the Honor Magic Vs and Pixel Fold – don’t open out completely flat, Samsung’s Z Fold 5 locks into place with a satisfying snap. The hinge is the first real highlight. The Z Fold 5 is much chunkier than some foldables…

If you’re looking for the very best tech available today, you’ve definitely come to the right place. Best of the Best is the most useful gadget-buying guide you will ever encounter. To create it, we’ve extensively tested the best tech the world has to offer, to bring you rock-solid recommendations for your home life, daily commute and the tech you use all the time. In 54 different categories, we’ve chosen the top four products, so you can choose one that’s just the right mix of features and budget for what you need. These rankings come from real testing by our team of experts – they’re the products we’d choose for ourselves, and we can’t recommend any higher than that. Look for the links above each category that take you to…

Smart rings combine the jewellery-style nature of classic step-tracking bands and the health insights of smartwatches. They went through many iterations in the last few years, refining the design to enhance comfort levels and, therefore, adherence to wearing the rings 24/7, which is required for accurate estimations. The new Ultrahuman Ring Air ($299, ultrahuman.com) is said to take this design philosophy to the next level with its compact, ultra-thin and notch-less form, boasting a smooth inner shell to ensure comfort. The wearable is designed to be unobtrusive and more comfortable during sleep than bulky devices, says Ultrahuman. Weighing as light as 2.4 grams (the smallest, size 6 ring), it stands as the lightest smart ring in the market today. Despite the sleek design, the Ultrahuman Ring Air can monitor key…

SOUNDCORE BY ANKER LIBERTY 4 NC NOISE CANCELLING EARBUDS Whether you’re heading to the Maldives or the mountains, block out unwanted in-flight audio with Soundcore by Anker’s new earbuds, which reduce external noise by up to 98.5%. £79.99, amazon.co.uk HELLY HANSEN WOMEN’S AURORA SHIELD FLEECE Heading to the slopes but travelling light? Stash Helly Hansen’s zip-up fleece in your carry-on – it’s great for plane journeys, and a perfect mid-layer on the mountain, too. £140, hellyhansen.com SALOMON’S S/PRO SUPRA BOA 120 SKI BOOTS This winter, many ski brands are launching their first BOA ski boots – ones with ratchet-style systems that make tightening boots a breeze. We recommend these. £520, salomon.com…

1 MORILLO 2 DOOR SIDEBOARD At one time the wealthy would have entire rooms called ‘cabinets of curiosities’ to display their idiosyncratic collections. This ethos is back on trend, says Habitat, as it “sees us celebrate and showcase the more personal moments and landmarks of our lives”. This chic industrial-style cabinet is a perfect modern take on the curiosity cabinet. £290, habitat.co.uk 2 EICHHOLTZ LAGONDA CABINET Create a little drama with your cabinet and make it the focal point of the room with a stylish gold glass unit. Glass shelves sit discreetly among its sharp angular build. With limited space to display, take care to curate your treasures in detail to create maximum impact. £2,994, sweetpeaandwillow.com 3 BAMBOU CABINET A splash of vintage green and a Victoriana silhouette makes this…

AEW COLLISION It’s the ‘what Guru has actually been consuming’ issue, and given that he has no time must prioritise his likes: big men slapping meat. AEW’s second weekly two hours is great. POUR LA VIE ENTIÈRE GaGu must listen to mild electronic indie music sung in French while working, or his mind will otherwise wander and nothing will ever get done. This EP by Blond fits the bill. WILDFROST This isn’t the best card-battling roguelite ever - it’s no Slay the Spire - but it has at least got its hooks into Guru in his rare off-hours. Very thinky gameplay loop, lovely presentation.…

Gravel bikes are ‘cycling’s current big thing’, as almost every brand on the planet has launched one. Raising the question, what is the best gravel bike? As their biggest strength is their sheer versatility, you won’t be surprised to hear they come with many strengths. Some provide flawlessly engineered performance on both trails and the tarmac. Others offer a best-of-both-worlds bike for those on a budget. Still more can be used as rough-and-ready commuting bikes with fat tyres to bulldoze through potholes. And a handful more offer electric motors to power you up hills and tracks without breaking a sweat. MONEY WELL SPENT PINNACLE ARKOSE X DI2 2023 Although it might not have the same credentials as other big-name brands, the Arkose X is one of the best gravel bikes…

Samsung’s 2023 clamshell flip phone is easily the series’ biggest upgrade ever. Not only does it best the larger-screened Razr 40 Ultra, but having dug deeper into it, it feels like the best folding phone in this design format. Here’s why it’s flippin’ great – but still not quite perfect… The Z Flip 5 is a true step-change in design compared to its predecessor, as it features a much larger cover display: it’s 3.4 inches across the diagonal, significantly up on the 1.9-inch panel of the Z Flip 4. And it looks great. It’s not just that the screen is larger, though; it’s altogether more functional too. It’s highly responsive – which means using a batch of widgets (that vary from animated wallpapers, to a calendar, plus some limited apps…

The LG C3 is so brilliant it almost worries us that any OLED TV we review hereafter will feel inferior. But the LG C2 – its predecessor from 2022 – is sorta-kinda every bit just as good and most definitely much cheaper right now. That puts this 2023 model in a sticky spot. Because it’s excellent – but is it actually worth buying? The million-dollar question (or two-and-a-half-grand question in this case) is: ‘just what is new in the LG C3?’ The answer, not to sound too much like a politician, is both simple and complex. Line up the LG C2 next to C3 and, on face value, you could identify them as one and the same TV. They’re both very handsome, both very slim to their edges, and both…