SRTH

250 SPECIAL EDITION
TH
GADGETS / GAMES / GEAR
Capture
the
night
195
+++++

GADGETS
LIFESAVING RATED
INSIDE
WEARABLES Shoot
Why it’s watches the
E
stars
N
to the rescue
E RP H O
SU P E ST
SU PE RT P OW E R , M O R
E
E
, M OR E M O B I L
ME RAS E Y O UR
E CA R A D
MOR NS TO UPG
REASO Go
extra
wide
PLUS! SONOS
FIFA vs PES played MOVES
Noise-cancellers clash OUTSIDE
Mega Drive Mini mashed
& ‘the future’? £4.99
Dec 2019
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weird psychokinetic connection with the editorial Management
Managing Director
team, but because the world’s best-selling gadget Phil Weeden
Chief Executive
magazine (yes, us) has reached the milestone of Steve Wright
Chairman
its 250th issue. Steve Annetts
Finance Director
What does that mean? Well, we’re still here. We’re older, but not Joyce Parker-Sarioglu
Publishing Director
necessarily wiser. Stuff actually launched back in 1996, when the Kevin McCormick
Publishing Operations
Notorious B.I.G. was still alive and Spurs ended the season trophyless. Manager
Charlotte Whittaker
Our Hot Stuff editor Matt Tate follows the Lilywhites, and now knows Retail Distribution
Managers
full well that some things never change. The world of tech, however, Eleanor Brown,
Steve Brown
has moved on exponentially (textbook segue). Audience Development
Manager Andy Cotton
Netflix was launched around the same time, offering DVD rentals. Head of Events
Kat Chappell
I wonder if anyone predicted it would be making its own movies Senior Print Production
Manager
Nicola Pollard
by now? We suspect even the celebrated futurist Matthew Griffin Print Production
Manager
didn’t prophesise that, and yet we’ve still given him the gig to talk Georgina Harris
Print Production
about what’s next for gadgets – see page 68. Controller
Alicia Stewart
This issue’s 16-page smartphone supertest proves that, for now, Subscription
Marketing Manager
mobiles remain the most important devices in our lives. We rate Nick McIntosh
everything from the latest iPhones to Google’s new Pixels. • Volume 23 issue 12
• ISSN: 1364-963
• On sale 31 Oct 2019
Here’s to another 250 issues, by which time we may be reviewing • Audit Bureau of
Circulations: 39,953
the iPhone 34. Presumably still with a Lightning connection. (Jan-Dec 2018)
James Day, Editor-in-Chief / @James_A_Day

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3
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Making Stuff up
Editor-in-Chief
James Day I HAD LUNCH I DEFILED THE
Hot Stuff Editor WITH FUJI’S NEW MONACO ELITE
Matt Tate RETRO CAM There’s no way of writing
Online Editor Fujifilm’s X-Pro3 is a bit this without sounding awful,
Natalya Paul special – aimed at those but enjoying collection by
Contributors who have retro sensibilities, chauffeur from Nice Airport
Andrew Williams, probably still love film cameras, and quite in a new Bentley is about as lovely as life
Craig Grannell, possibly own a selection of berets. I spent gets. No, I hadn’t become an overnight
Andrew Hayward, the afternoon in London’s Borough Market pop sensation – I was among the world’s
Sam Kieldsen, to test it out… but having skipped lunch, my billionaires to test the new Flying Spur. With
Tom Wiggins, acute desire to go head-first into a massive supercar performance and an interior more
Tom Morgan, paella meant that none of the photos I took opulent than a sultan’s smoking room, it
Verity Burns, inside the food market were in focus. So might just be one of the greatest material
Chris Rowlands, I dashed back and asked this willing staff possessions in the world. Unlike my shirt,
Simon Lucas, member to strike a quick natural pose. which might just be one of the worst.
Basil Kronfli, Natalya Paul, Online Editor Leon Poultney, contributor
Leon Poultney, Review
p63
Vikki Blake,
Alan Wen,
Jon Denton,
Barry Lineker,
Richard Purvis,
Ross Presly
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5
CONS
ON THE
COVER
P58
P12
p46
The Goog
place
HOT STUFF TESTS

8 The Hot Five 31 First test Apple Watch Series 5
O Microsoft Surface Neo Simply the best, better than all the wrist?
O Google Pixel 4XL 58 Tested Nintendo Switch Lite
O Bowers & Wilkins PX7 The portable console just got portabler
O Nikon Z50 60 Versus Noise-cancelling headphones
O Amazon Echo Buds p40 Sennheiser Momentum Wireless vs Dali IO-6
16 Vital stats Amazon Echo Studio Queer 63 Tested Bentley Flying Spur
Smart speaker with a permanent grimace iPhone Built like Gary Mabbutt, moves like Gareth Bale
18 Icon Transparent Speaker 67 3 of the best Tablets
We can see through the hype A spate of great slates debated and rated
20 Apps 72 Tested Google Nest Hub Max
Including an app for making apps Good listener, even better speaker
22 Games 73 Tested Sega Mega Drive Mini
What’s going to keep us indoors this winter? Never mind the tech, feel the Chris Rea puns
24 Stream 77 Tested Huawei Watch GT 2
How to watch Godfatherfellas A sexy tracker to raise your heart-rate
26 Start menu 78 Long-term test Sonos Move
Invest in ear-trumpets for hamsters I like to move it, move it (into the spare room)
27 Wheels 80 Tested Games
Tech-first car news, featuring an exciting FIFA 20 vs eFootball PES 2020, Link’s
Volvo. No, really. Awakening, Borderlands 3, Ghost Recon
p42
That 7T’s
show
6
WIN!
12.19
p29
P104
P68
FEATURES TOP TENS SAVE!

38 Cover feature Smartphone supertest 88 Smartphones, tablets, mobile games
All the big makers have wheeled out their What’s the handiest, handsomest handset?
latest flagships, so… wait, you don’t wheel 90 Headphones, wearables
out a ship, do you? Anyway, we tested them… In-ears, on-ears, smartwatches, trackers
55 Mini meme Mobile football managers 92 Laptops, wireless speakers
Just go out there and enjoy yourself Porta-powerhouses and music movers
56 Upvoted Mice 94 TVs, soundbars, smart speakers
The best digital rodents for every purpose All you need for a lazy night/day/year in
64 Instant upgrades DJI Osmo Action 96 Home cinema, consoles, games
Do this before you do gnarly stuff Streaming gadgets and gaming goodies
68 Future gadgets 98 Tech toys, electric cars, VR Subscribe
A tech soothsayer tells us what’s coming… Playing, driving, escaping from reality
and it’s going to pop our trembling minds 100 Smart home, drones, action cams, compacts
to Stuff and
74 Beta yourself macOS Catalina Comfort when you’re in, fun when you’re out get 58% off!
Come and get your luvverly fresh Apple 102 System cameras, budget buys
106 Random access memories Commodore 64 ‘Proper’ cameras and the best tech bargains
ZX Spectrum fans, prepare to be indignant 104 How to buy… a TV soundbar p36
7
Chip to
be square
Microsoft’s reveal video for
the Neo showed an Intel logo
on the processor. Exactly
which kind isn’t known,
but it’s expected to come
from the Lakefield
hybrid range.
HOT
FIVE
#1
THE ANSWER IS
OUT THERE, NEO
Microsoft Surface Neo
‘Neo’ is an anagram of ‘one’, which is weird
considering Microsoft’s newest Surface
tablet has got two screens. Shouldn’t it
be called the Wot instead? Someone in Stuck
Microsoft’s marketing department isn’t with you
trying hard enough. Prop the Neo up in an ‘A’
Maybe it’s missing a letter and should shape and one person could
be called the None, because apart from watch a movie while someone
the size of the displays there aren’t any facing them carries on
confirmed specs available yet. That doesn’t working on the other
mean we don’t know what it’ll do, though. screen. Could get
The 360° hinge between the two 9in annoying, mind.
screens means they can be folded back
to create a tab with displays on both sides,
opened out flat as a single 13in slate, or
somewhere in between to be used like a
regular laptop with a fold-out keyboard. It
runs Windows 10X, which allows for proper
split-screen multitasking, and comes with
a Surface Pen stylus that attaches to the
back when not in service.
Fortunately, Microsoft has plenty of time
to work the other details out, because
the Neo isn’t due to be released until the
end of next year – along with the Surface
Duo, a smaller dual-screened device that
runs Android. Yep, it’s the return of the
Windows Phone! Sort of.
As hot as… a double-shot magmaccino
£tba / microsoft.com
8
20 PAGES
OF THE BIGGEST
STORIES FROM
PLANET TECH
The power
of shove
In laptop mode the
keyboard can be placed
on top of the lower screen,
which then becomes
a massive trackpad
or secondary
display.
MORE
’SOFTIES
SURFACE PRO X
With a custom-built
CPU, the keyboard cover
included and somewhere
to store and charge the
stylus, the Surface Pro X
could just be the ultimate
Windows tablet.
from £999
SURFACE LAPTOP 3
Available in a new 15in
version with a bigger
trackpad and USB-C
ports, the updated
Surface Laptop should
give the MacBook Pro a
real kick up the rear.
from £999
9
Better when
I’m glancin’
Google has doubled the
camera count on the back,
so you now get a 12.2MP
dual-pixel main camera
and a 16MP telephoto.
Max video quality is
4K at 30fps.
MORE
GOOGLIES
NEST MINI
You might struggle to tell
the difference between
this new Nest Mini and the
original Home Mini smart
speaker; the easiest way
to tell them apart is that
this one sticks to the wall.
£50
PIXELBOOK GO
A griddle-inspired
Chromebook with a
13.3in touchscreen and
a battery that lasts up
to 12 hours, the top-end
Pixelbook Go comes with
a 4K screen.
from £629
NEST WIFI
Google’s mesh Wi-Fi
system now comes with
a speaker on board, so you
can ask Google Assistant
stuff while it pours hot
internet into every nook
and cranny of your gaff.
from £149
10
SMARTPHONE
SUPERTEST p38
Like I’m gonna

confuse you
This year the standard 5.7in
Pixel and 6.2in Pixel XL look
identical. The only difference,
aside from screen size, is
the battery: 2800mAh
compared to the XL’s
3700mAh.
HOT
FIVE
#2
NOTCH ON
THE ROCKS
Google Pixel 4XL
Almost as suddenly as it arrived, the Age
of the Notch seems to be on the way out.
Apple aside, Samsung and Huawei have
managed to shrink theirs down to pinholes,
while OnePlus, Oppo and Xiaomi have
ditched them completely and opted for
natty pop-up selfie-cameras to make
space for more screen.
That makes the full ‘forehead’ at the top
of Google’s new Pixels something of a
throwback, but it’s worth it when you find
out what they’ve crammed in up there
above the smooth-scrolling 90Hz OLED
display. The Pixel’s radar-based Motion
Sense tech knows when you’re around, so
it’ll turn the display off when you’re not
within reach and fire up the face-unlock
sensors when you go to pick it up; plus it’ll
enable more responsive gesture controls
for snoozing alarms, silencing calls and
skipping songs sans hands.
Google has also multiplied the cameras on
the back for the first time, promising better
background blurring on your portraits and a
low-light mode that’s so good it’ll allow you
to take photos of outer space. Perhaps the
Age of the Bezel wasn’t so bad after all.
As hot as… running the Venus marathon
in under two hours
£829 / store.google.com
11
Dear future
headband
The arms are made with
a lightweight carbon-fibre
composite, so the PX7s will
stand up to whatever rough
and tumble your daily
commute can throw
at them .
Just
got pad
The PX7s are over-ear
headphones, but if you’d
prefer more discreet on-ears
there’s also the PX5 model
(£270), with smaller 35mm
drivers and 25-hour
battery life.
12
All about
that space
Nikon has also added two
new lenses to its Z-mount
arsenal: a 50-250mm
f/4.5-6.3 zoom and a
16-50mm f/3.5-6.3
pancake. Mmm,
pancakes…
HOT
FIVE
#3
HOT
FIVE
#4
CODEC THE BUILDING A
HALLS WITH BRIDGE CAMERA
BOWERS JOLLY TO YOUR HEART
Bowers & Wilkins PX7 Nikon Z50
Codecs are a bit like vitamins – they’re Indecisive snappers who can’t choose
essential for things to work properly between a full-frame DSLR and a regular
but only professionals really need CSC have just had their choice made even
to know much about them. That said, tougher with the arrival of Nikon’s Z50, its
it’s worth noting that B&W’s PX7 first DX-format mirrorless model. That’s
wireless headphones are the first to use Nikon’s name for an APS-C sensor, which is
Qualcomm’s new aptX Adaptive Bluetooth smaller than a full-frame one so it can fit in
codec, which promises 24-bit/48kHz the Z50’s little 395g chassis.
quality and low latency. To normal people You get 20.9MP to play with here, with an
that means they sound better, especially Expeed 6 processor doing the heavy lifting
with their 43mm drivers – the largest in each time you press the shutter button,
any of B&W’s cans. plus a nice chunky grip to wrap your paws
Lifting an earcup automatically pauses around to make up for the lack of built-in
your music, plus you get three levels of image stabilisation. Round the back
active noise-cancelling to choose from. is a 3.2in flippable touchscreen and a
So whether you’re trying to block out your 2360k-dot electronic viewfinder, but it’s
fellow commuters’ stomach-churning also covered with buttons and dials, so
sniffling or the sound of next door’s new those who prefer to keep their eyes on the
conservatory being built, there should be a prize and adjust using physical controls will
setting to send you off into your own little feel right at home.
world. Battery life extends to 30 hours, The Z50’s phase-detection autofocus,
with five hours available off a 15-minute auto exposure and 11fps burst mode
quick charge via USB-C – so you can should help you keep up with all but the
stay in that world for well over a day, most Bolt-like subjects, while 30fps
although you might need to emerge 4K video and a microphone input should
every now and then to eat. After all, put it on the radar of any wannabe
everyone needs their vitamins. YouTube sensations.
As hot as… a napalm smoothie As hot as… steamed sunspots
£350 / bowerswilkins.com £849 (body only) / nikon.co.uk
13
Flow
excuses
The drivers are inspired
by in-ear monitors used by
professional musicians, but
a quick double tap allows the
noise in when someone
has to interrupt
your groove.
Tips
are movin’
The Echo Buds come with
six different tips in three
different sizes – so unlike
AirPods, you don’t need
to have Apple-approved
earholes to wear them
comfortably.
HOT
FIVE
#5
IS THERE AN
ECHO IN-EAR?
Amazon Echo Buds
The best thing about Apple’s wonderfully
slick AirPods? They’re so conspicuous that
nobody can ever think you’re nattering
away to yourself when you’re just trying
to get Siri to add an aubergine to your
shopping list. The worst thing? They
still look ludicrous. If you can cope with
the former but not the latter, Amazon’s
Alexa-housing Echo Buds could pose
serious competition to Apple’s inexplicably
popular in-ears.
With a snug fit, three microphones on each
bud and Bose’s active noise-reduction tech
on board, everything is designed to make
sure you can hear them and Alexa can
always hear you. Your phone’s built-in voice
assistant can also be summoned with a
long press on one of the buds, so you can
have more than one imaginary friend, but
they still support all the Alexa skills you use
on your Echo at home, making Siri look like
a bit of a dunce in comparison.
Each charge should last five hours, with an
One new extra 15 on offer from the charging case,
Amazon Echo and the IPX4 rating means they’re just
gadget not enough as happy in the gym as they are in an
for you? unexpected downpour. Alexa, why are
Turn the page… AirPods so popular again?
As hot as… desert yoga
£120 / amazon.co.uk
14
MASTERS OF
COLOUR
Over 80 years of experience in
photography goes into every camera
we make. It’s part of what makes
the FUJIFILM X Series special
FUJIFILM-X.COM
IMAGE TAKEN BY UK X-PHOTOGRAPHER MARIANNE CHUA
AMAZON TURNS
IT UP(WARDS) The Studio can
use Alexa to
Amazon Echo Studio control Zigbee-
compatible smart
£190 / amazon.co.uk home devices.
When it comes to weather

forecasts, pointless pub
trivia and conducting the
smart home, Amazon’s
Echo speakers are
peerless. But with the
possible exception of
the Echo Plus, they don’t
have the sonic muscle
to do your Rick Astley
back catalogue justice.
That changes with the
Echo Studio – the most
powerful Echo to date.
OStudio apartment
This is the first smart speaker
capable of delivering 3D audio,
with Dolby Atmos and Sony’s
360 Reality Audio bringing added
depth and height to your tunes.
There aren’t many songs that
support the format yet, and you’ll
need to subscribe to the new
Amazon Music HD service, but
even on its own the Studio is
a room-filling monster capable
of giving Sonos a scare.
OAnother fine mesh

Under its grey mesh hood, the
Echo Studio has five directional
speakers – one of which fires
upwards – while a 5.25in woofer
and 330 Watts of peak power
produce big bass. That’s
complemented by a 1in tweeter
and three 2in midrange drivers.
There’s a 24-bit DAC and the
power amp has 100kHz of
bandwidth for hi-res music
playback. Echo Studios can
be stereo-paired or connected
to some Fire TV devices for 5.1
surround sound.
OGoing commando
This is also a proper smart home
hub with voice commands. It has
an Alexa wake-up button, volume
controls and a mic disabler on the
top, and – like the Apple HomePod
and Sonos Move – is capable of
calibrating its output based on the
acoustics of where you position
it. Pre-order now for its release
on 7 November.
16
H O T S T U F F
ECHO THOSE
SENTIMENTS The arm-buyer strikes back
OSonos Move GARMIN LEGACY SAGA
The first truly portable speaker With its droids, hyperdrives and holographic chess sets, the Star Wars
from Sonos is a fairly hefty 3kg universe has its fair share of enviable tech – but one thing you won’t
and twice the price of the Echo see on Tatooine or Bespin is one of Garmin’s Legacy Saga Series
Studio – but hold off on your smartwatches. With their SW-inspired designs – one based on Darth
judgement until reading our full Vader and the other on Daisy Ridley’s Rey – they’d fit right in, offering
review on p78. 24/7 health monitoring, on-screen workouts, smart notifications
£399 / sonos.com and Garmin Pay to anybody who wears one, no matter how many
midi-chlorians they have inside them. With its larger 45mm case, the
Vader edition lasts a day longer than Rey’s seven, but both include GPS
OApple HomePod and a heart-rate sensor, and work with iOS and Android.
It has its Siri flaws, but one thing £350 / garmin.com
that can’t be disputed is just
how good Apple’s smart
speaker sounds. It’s also had
a fair old price drop and an
AirPlay 2 upgrade.
£279 / apple.com
OBose Portable
Home Speaker
Promising 360° sound and
deeper bass than any rival
speaker of the same size,
Bose’s effort will work with
Alexa or Google Assistant.
£329 / bose.co.uk
Puck up your troubles

TILE STICKER
Tile has been on a mission to stop us being massive losers. Specifically,
losers of bags, keys and wallets, thanks to its smart trackers and
THE 5.25in app-based network of like-minded users. It’s now refreshed its
WOOFER AND established Pro and Mate products by boosting their range and added
a credit-card sized Slim model, but it’s the new Sticker that’s piqued our
330W AMP interest. The tiny puck with a 150ft range has an adhesive back that, Tile
says, will attach itself to just about anything. That could mean slapping
PRODUCE it on a laptop, a bike saddle, a tortoise or your partner before they go out
BIG BASS for the night – although if you take that idea seriously you’ve got some
serious trust issues to resolve.
from £35 (twin pack) / thetileapp.com
17
PARTS CAN BE
SWAPPED OUT AS
NEW WIRELESS
AND AUDIO TECH
IS LAUNCHED
TRANSPARENT SPEAKER
from £450 / transparentspeaker.com
Is that really a transparent speaker I mean, it’s pretty clear what technologies become available. (with black cones and controls)
called Transparent Speaker? they’ve done here… There’s also the ability to add is £900. And if you don’t like the
Perhaps the Swedish makers were Yes, very good. But before you plug-in upgrades like an Amazon see-through aesthetic… well, firstly
worried things would get lost in go thinking you can see through Echo or a Sonos Connect. we appreciate you sticking with
translation, but at least the name what looks like a pretty standard us this far down the article, and
ensures you won’t confuse it wireless speaker, there’s more Perhaps things aren’t quite so secondly your patience has been
with any opaque devices on your to it than that. You see, the folks transparent after all. rewarded because the brand’s
discoverable Bluetooth list. It also at Transparent Sound claim this Just stop. If this is right up your Uncrafted range swaps glass
means we can concentrate on the device has been designed to minimalist Scandi street, the panels for wood, steel and
more important things at play with become better over time, thanks 30W Small Transparent Speaker stoneware editions from £1350.
this gorgeous creation, like the to a modular system whereby (with white cones and controls) Lastly, we also like that every
aluminium uniframe combined components can be swapped is yours for £450 and the 100W Transparent Sound speaker can
with tempered glass panels out as new wireless and audio Transparent Speaker twice its size be wall-mounted.
18
H O T S T U F F
WTF
ARE ECHO
FRAMES?
Hope I die before they get old
MARSHALL MAJOR III VOICE They look like… normal glasses?
They certainly do, but in a feat comparable
How many Marshall amps do you think Pete Townshend smashed up
to the genie’s miraculous occupation of
in his rebellious prime? Sixty might be pushing it, but that’s how many
a lamp, Alexa has managed to squeeze
hours of battery life the legendary brand is promising you’ll get from its
herself into these unassuming spectacles.
new Major III Voice headphones. For context, that’s double what you’ll
They’re part of Amazon’s ongoing mission
get from Sony’s class-leading WH-1000XM3s – if the claims hold up,
to put its voice assistant into every
that is. You get the same 40mm dynamic drivers as the standard Major
existing physical object – and when
IIIs, but the new cans – if you hadn’t already guessed – add voice
you think about it, it’s a bit of a surprise
control via Google Assistant. With a press and hold of the voice button
that the Frames were actually beaten to
you can tell it to play your favourite playlist, read your text messages
it by the Alexa toilet.
or give you directions to the nearest amp repair shop.
£150 / marshall.com
You’re worryingly infatuated with the
Alexa toilet. So what do these things
do, then?
Put simply, the Echo Frames are
prescription-ready glasses that offer
hands-free access to Alexa. There’s no
camera or AR features – both of which
tend to make wearables look like Star Trek
props – to speak of here. Using them is
much like using any Echo device you might
have in your house: you can use voice
commands to check your calendar,
make phone calls and control compatible
smart home devices, with the Frames
wirelessly funnelling your requests
through the Alexa app on your phone
(Android-only at launch). If you get a
notification or alert, you swipe the panel
on the right temple to play the message.
But won’t everyone be able to hear

my wife giving me a bollocking for
forgetting to pick up milk?
Apparently not. Amazon says the Frames’
open-ear audio tech make use of four
Papaya and higher micro speakers that direct sound straight
ONEPLUS 7T PRO McLAREN EDITION into your ears, rather than those of nosy
passers-by. There are volume controls
Good God, Formula 1 is boring, isn’t it? Still, we’ll tell you what isn’t boring: on board for when you’re in a noisy place.
the latest McLaren Edition from OnePlus. We loved the 6T tie-in with Meanwhile, a pair of beam-forming mics
the F1 team because, as well as some awesome styling, it debuted are designed to pick up your voice without
Warp Charge 30 tech offering a day’s power in 20 minutes. The new requiring you to raise it. They can be turned
7T Pro McLaren Edition doesn’t get first dibs this time – it shares Warp off with the double tap of a button.
Charge 30T with the standard 7T Pro and to all intents and purposes it’s
the same phone. But wait, there’s a chunky 12GB of RAM here for extra When can I get them?
speed. Then there’s the car-seat Alcantara case, some customised The Echo Frames are currently US-only,
McLaren software, plus the subtle papaya orange glow that illuminates but we’ll be surprised if it stays that way
the curved edges when you get a notification. Brrrm-brrrm indeed. for long.
£799 / oneplus.com
19
A P P S
This month’s mobile must-downloads
1 2 3
IN THE
SPOT-
LIGHT
SNEAKY
4 5 6 SASQUATCH
Apple Arcade
People were
never against
mobile games,
just exploitative
freemium
awfulness. So
while Nintendo
blazes the latter
trail, the new
Apple Arcade
subscription
service goes
fully premium,
meaning things
7 8 9 like Sneaky
Sasquatch can
exist. Like Yogi
Bear meets
Metal Gear, it
has you play as
the titular hairy
chap, who steals
grub, hides from
rangers and
acquires kit from
a kleptomaniac
raccoon. You
might narrow
1 A Park and Pigeons 2 Mario Kart Tour 3 Dear Esther your eyes at
£1.99 / Android, iOS £free (IAPs) / Android, iOS £4.99 / iOS ‘Apple does
In this score-chaser, you too can Remember all your fun times with Florence created a market for games’, but you
be a pigeon, desperate for whatever Mario Kart? Well, forget them here, narrative sort-of-games, and have to love a
scraps the humans have dropped… because this stripped-down slice this one sees you explore a gloomy title where a
including, for some reason, entire of loot boxes and IAP even has a island, piecing together a story cartoon beast
bagels. Get munching, chase your subscription that costs as much from letter fragments read by an steals a golf cart,
foes away and watch feathers fly. as Apple Arcade. anonymous man. drives into a tree
and is the next
day chastised by
4 Mindkeeper: 5 Apollo: Immersive 6 Pixelmator Photo the raccoon,
The Lurking Fear Illumination £4.99 / iPad who had to hire
£1.99 / watchOS £2.99 / iOS Most famous for letting you a wheelbarrow
Doom on Apple Watch? Not quite, Apple gives you all kinds of new enhance any snap with a single to get him
but you do get tidy 3D visuals portrait photo trickery in iOS 13. tap (powered by machine learning), home safely.
on your wrist in this auto-runner But Apollo lets you map on lighting Pixelmator Photo now ramps up
where you stomp along, turning effects that weren’t originally productivity with batch edits and
whenever you twiddle the crown. there – you massive cheat, you. full Files/Photos integration.
7 Flick Launcher 8 Pocket Casts 9 Codea

£free or £3.29 / Android £free / Android, iOS £14.99 / iOS
Another launcher! This one has a This one’s not new, but it has a new Want to get own work in the App
dock search bar, custom gestures, business model: Pocket Casts is Store? Codea is a sharp way to
and the means to get at Google now free, which is a big deal for such craft apps and games that utilise
Now with a swipe. But also, its AI a well-regarded podcast player. your device’s abilities. And yes,
wants to give you the app you want Check it out with some of our people have released apps made
before you realised you wanted it. faves – you’ll find them on Stuff.tv. in this app. It’s like appception.
20
NEWS FEED
Eggstravagance THE PLAYSTATION 5 IS
OFFICIALLY INBOUND
LINN SERIES 3 Sony has finally confirmed the PS5 will
Ever been told your taste in music stinks? Maybe you should invest launch in 2020. The next-gen console
in a Linn Series 3 speaker – which looks as if it could double as an will support ray-tracing for lighting
air-freshener. Unfortunately, especially considering the astronomical effects, and swaps the hard drive for
price, it doesn’t do that at all (and if it did, it’d surely smell of hard-boiled an SSD. A new controller replaces rumble
eggs); but it does stream from all your usual services, including Spotify with more realistic haptic feedback,
and Tidal, plus there’s Bluetooth and AirPlay if you want to connect your while adaptive L2/R2 triggers allow
phone. Control is via the Linn app, a connected Alexa device or the for customised resistance.
touch-sensitive buttons on the cut-glass top, and there’s even an
HDMI ARC socket for hooking it up to your TV. Just remember you’re
shelling out nearly three grand. No wonder it’s only available in Harrods. OCULUS QUEST BECOMES
£2950 / harrods.com THE HANDIEST HEADSET
The rather brilliant Oculus Quest
has already freed us from wires and
external sensors, and soon you’ll be
able to use it without controllers. From
early 2020, the Quest will support
hand-tracking, using a new method
of deep learning that can understand
the positions of your fingers.
REALME STAKES CLAIM AS

CHEAP PHONE CHAMPION
China’s Realme has launched the
X2 Pro, a flagship impersonator at
a fraction of the cost. On the spec
sheet is a top-end Snapdragon 855+,
a 64MP quad-camera, a 6.5in Super
AMOLED screen and a 4000mAh
fast-charging battery. Enough to
leave the iPhone 11 a bit embarrassed?
Quite the chimer

STAR WARS SEASON
ARLO VIDEO DOORBELL STARTS IN THE KITCHEN
Star Wars is full of cinematic icons,
Arlo says its first video doorbell allows users to get a bigger, more
from brave heroes like Han Solo to
precise picture of their front porch. Fairly useless in itself, unless you’ve
timeless villains like Darth Vader Round
been at the pub too long and can’t remember what the hell your house
Dutch Oven. Nope, we’re not making
looks like, but excellent if there’s someone dodgy standing on it and you
that one up: thanks to a collaboration
want to catch them in the act of looking shifty. With high-resolution
between Star Wars and pot dealer Le
live video, two-way audio (including direct-to-mobile video calls)
Creuset, a bunch of classic characters
and what Arlo claims is an industry-leading vertical field of view with
have been turned into kitchenware.
an optimised 1:1 aspect ratio, you can capture people from head to
toe – even if your would-be burglar is a basketball player in 6in heels.
Out now in the US priced $149, it arrives in Europe early next year.
£tbc / arlo.com
21
OUT 19
NOV
FIRST PLAY SHENMUE III PC, PS4

Pioneering the open-world in the UK. But after years of on his face requires training and
concept, Shenmue was at its false starts, campaigning from levelling-up before you can beat
time the most expensive game fans and a record-breaking him in a fight. Yet it’s the other
ever made. It not only had Kickstarter, the story finally things you get to do that stay
cutting-edge graphics featuring continues with the series’ true to the original Dreamcast
a detailed location with dynamic legendary creator Yu Suzuki experience: poking your head in
weather cycles and hundreds back at the helm. cupboards for no reason, doing
of characters with their own While Shenmue III picks up money-making jobs disguised
schedules, but it was the start right where its predecessor left as mini-games, wasting your
of a cinematic epic as student off in rural China, it also feels like dosh on toy capsules, asking the
Ryo Hazuki embarked on a quest stepping into a time capsule – as locals the same question for the
to avenge his father. if all the advancements of Skyrim umpteenth time.
[ Words Alan Wen ]
The saga was, however, cut and Red Dead Redemption And of course it’s Ryo, who’s
short by the untimely demise never happened. still as oblivious and robotic
of its host platform, the Sega There’s an attempt to move as ever. Yep, this is Shenmue
Dreamcast – which just recently towards a typical RPG system, alright, and it’s exactly what the
celebrated its 20th anniversary as a task to find a man with a scar fans have been waiting for.
22
FIRST LOOK WATTAM I SUPPOSED TO DO NOW?
WATTAM (thanks) and hit the button to

start the game.”
green cube thing who
happens to be the mayor.
them into the air with a
confetti bomb hidden under
PS4
While this answer is in no By the looks of it you’ll your hat.
When Katamari Damacy way helpful, it does accurately also assume control of We can’t make any sense
creator Keita Takahashi was describe exactly what we anthropomorphic acorns, of it whatsoever right now,
asked in a recent blog post want to do every time we ice-cream cones and toilets but if you’ve had your fill of
how you’re supposed to play see this game’s action. First as you strive to ‘reconnect moody violence this year and
his latest oddball creation, he announced way back in 2015 the people’. want something a bit more
replied: “Turn on the PS4 or and finally coming to PS4 on Playing solo or in co-op, cheerfully absurd to kick off
PS4 Pro, grab the controller, 4 December, Wattam sees you can dance with your the festive season, Wattam
buy/download Wattam you play as a bowler-hatted miscellaneous pals or blow looks like just the thing.
BEST OF GAMES COMING TO GOOGLE STADIA
CYBERPUNK 2077 RED DEAD REDEMPTION 2 DESTINY 2: THE COLLECTION

Stadia Stadia Stadia
When CD Projekt Red’s follow-up to The You probably don’t need an excuse to sink Sign up to the monthly Google Stadia Pro
Witcher 3 arrives next year, Stadia users another 100 hours into the genre-defining subscription service and you’ll get a free
will be among those able to play it. The cowboy epic, but Stadia makes it possible game each month, the first of which is
developer was satisfied that Google’s (internet permitting) to play the entire Destiny 2: The Collection. All of the game’s
processing could do its new game justice, thing on a compatible tablet or phone. available expansions will be playable in up
so you’ll be able to play as an immaculately If this works as advertised, Stadia is going to 4K @ 60fps, with a Chromecast Ultra
rendered Keanu wherever you are. to be pretty difficult to ignore. included in the Founder’s Edition.
INCOMING
DECEMBER
OTERMINATOR: RESISTANCE
OBRAIN AGE: NINTENDO
SWITCH TRAINING
2020
OORI AND THE WILL OF THE WISPS
OGODS & MONSTERS
OTHE LAST OF US PART II
OIRON MAN VR
OFINAL FANTASY VII REMAKE
23
H O T S T U F F
Scorsese, De Niro, Pacino and Pesci are

coming to Netflix to make you an offer you
can refuse but almost certainly shouldn’t
Servant Marriage Story The Marvelous Mrs Maisel

Let’s twist again! M Night Shyamalan From The Squid and the Whale The first two seasons of Amazon’s
picks up the ‘executive producer’ to The Meyerowitz Stories, Noah fast-paced period comedy drama
reins on this series produced Baumbach’s movies have a knack scooped up armfuls of awards,
exclusively to stream via Apple for laying bare the tragi-comic and we’ve been relishing the return
TV+. Details are scant, but if the complexities of modern human of trailblazing stand-up comic
creepily lifelike doll used in the relationships – and this Netflix Midge Maisel and the show’s
promos is any indication, we’re original with Adam Driver and spot-on depiction of mid-century
in for a rollercoaster ride of Scarlett Johansson promises Manhattan – the best since Mad
psychological horror and things more of the same by digging into Men. Proof that Amazon can match
that go goo-goo-ga-ga in the night. the breakdown of a marriage. Netflix for original content.
S1 / Apple TV+ Film / Netflix S3 / Amazon Prime Video
The Expanse The Witcher The Grand Tour

Having saved this fine space opera Henry Cavill ditches Superman’s The world’s best-known trio of
series from cancellation, Amazon cape for Geralt’s white ponytail stonewashed manbabies returns
appears to have inundated its in this adaptation of the Polish for another series of hi-octane
showrunners with enough cash fantasy novel series. If you’ve stunts and backslapping banter.
to up its production values as it played the games, you’ll know It’s unlikely to win over new fans,
‘expands’ into uncharted parts of what to expect: a hearty mix of but will surely drag your dad back
the cosmos. Its sobering vision monster-slaying, potion-quaffing, to the telly to see what japes will
of a near-future solar system grim warfare and nudity. It could ensue as the three sniggering berks
colonised by rival factions is either be the next Game of Thrones continue their non-carbon-neutral
mercilessly rooted in real science. or the next Xena: Warrior Princess. trot around the globe.
S4 / Amazon Prime Video S1 / Netflix S4 / Amazon Prime Video
The Irishman Film / Netflix

TH ISS T
M N’
The streaming event of the year, if not the decade? Fuggetabout it! The Irishman is
DO
not only Scorsese’s long-awaited return to the world of organised crime; it also brings
together the holy trinity of gangster movie stars: De Niro, Pacino and Pesci. It’s kind of like
IS
The Expendables but with people who can act. Set over several decades (this is a great
advert for CG de-ageing tech), the film delves into one of 20th-century America’s biggest
mysteries: the disappearance of mob-connected union boss Jimmy Hoffa.
24
S T R E A M
25
S T A R T M E N U
The latest startups, crowdfunded projects and plain crazy ideas
TE -
R
AR K
ST KIC
Listen up
EARHD
Sorry to break it to you, but the
design of your ears is flawed.
Sound reflects off of your pinna,
which acts like a funnel. This helps
you determine where sound’s
coming from, but causes
distortion. Like tiny ear-trumpets
from the future, earHD is like a
lughole upgrade. These wearables
focus sound to a central location.
This isn’t about amplification – it’s
more like ‘cleaning’, removing
clutter and heightening the detail
for anything from lectures to
hi-res audio. That might sound like
rot, but boffins at the University of
Southampton have verified the
claims, which – if you were already
excited by the concept – will be
music to your ears.
from £199 / flareaudio.com
BACK IT
STACK IT
SACK IT
GOE-
TE -
TE -
TE -
R
R
AR K
AR K
AR K
GONDI
ST KIC
ST KIC
ST KIC
I
Clear up Beat up Cut up Light up

MUDITA PURE POCKETDRUM CHOPBOX ARCADE CODER
Like a sci-fi take on an old Air-drumming’s fine, but it’s Yep, even chopping boards are This tactile board mostly
blower, the Mudita Pure mixes basically flailing arms and spitty now ‘smart’, although this one comprises 144 chunky LEDs,
sleek modern design with drum noises. This is better: avoids gimmicks and Alexa. and is designed for up to four
a distraction-free ethos. Bluetooth-enabled drumsticks Instead you get a scale and players to do battle on classics
Everything’s stripped back that use spatial awareness timer, with a digital readout like Whack-a-Mole and
and offline, and it’s all about and haptics to make it feel that’ll last 30 days before you Snake. But delve into iOS
mindful tech use – so no like you’re playing the real have to recharge your board. app Game Studio and your
internet or email, but there is thing. You can even strap There’s an integrated second kid can create new games or
a music player and meditation a PocketGuitar (which is a sort board, but sadly no automated try Painter Mode, for fashioning
timer. Oh, and a headphone of air-guitar plectrum) to your chef to make your dinner. dazzling multi-coloured light
port. Take that, Apple! foot for the kick drum. Perhaps in ChopBox 2.0. shows and more.
$258 / mudita.com from £56 / aeroband.net $99 / theyescom.com £80 / techwillsaveus.com
26
Kindle surprise
AMAZON KINDLE KIDS EDITION DROP
When their alternatives are playing FIFA, learning a new dance from
Fortnite or riding an e-scooter while vaping, it can be difficult to EVERYTHING
convince kids to read a book. But show them something that looks
like technology and they’ll be 300 pages into Anna Karenina before
you know it. That’s why Amazon has made the Kindle Kids Edition: a 6in
& DOWNLOAD
e-reader with an adjustable front light and loads of sprog-friendly Astro Golf
features, such as achievement badges and definitions shown over £1.89 / Android £1.99 / iOS
O
difficult words. Like its kids’ tablets, Amazon will replace it if anything
happens in the first two years, so no worries if it’s run over by When you think of someone playing ‘sport’
a two-wheeled vape addict. with planets, it’s usually a colossal alien
£100 / amazon.co.uk potting them into black holes, like Ronnie
O’Sullivan crossed with Galactus. But Astro
Golf is far more sedate, as you smack a ball
between planets in a single-screen solar
system that whirls off to somewhere new
when you complete a hole.
With its minimalist vibe, drag-based
controls and endless nature, there’s more
than a hint of mobile classic Desert Golfing
about this title. But it differentiates itself
through endearingly bonkers gravity-aided
ball-smackage (slingshots aplenty!) and
an entertainingly tricky ‘hard’ mode that
forces you to get a hole in one in order to
progress – every single time.
A cartridge among the pigeons

ANALOGUE POCKET
It’s 30 years since the Nintendo Game Boy arrived, but if you still love
the authentic experience of original cartridges, Analogue Pocket gives
you a better way to play. This handheld handles the entire Game Boy,
Game Boy Color and Game Boy Advance back catalogue on its 3.5in
1600x1440 615ppi display. The buttons are mappable, there are stereo
speakers, and it charges via USB-C. Want to head beyond Nintendo?
There’s a built-in synth/sequencer and adapters are planned for a
range of other systems’ cartridges, including Sega Game Gear and Atari
Lynx. And when you want some big-screen action, you’ll be able to drop
it into a dock (sold separately), grab a Bluetooth controller and go crazy.
$199 / analogue.co
27
W H E E L S
Volvo XC40 Recharge

SWEDE’S ELECTRIC
No engine? No air
intake required… and
a filled-in front grille
makes for better
aerodynamics, which
improves range.
£53,000 (est) / volvo.com NEWS DASHBOARD
Where have you been hiding? The Batteries mean bulk, don’t they?
XC40 has been around for years! Is it nippy?
Sure, the planet-destroying petrol It does tip the scales at over two
and diesel versions have. But this tonnes, but this XC40 doesn’t
cutest of crossovers has swapped hang about when you give it the
an engine for electric motors. beans. Instant torque and a very
Two of ’em, actually – it’s an SUV, healthy 402bhp mean it’ll crack
and so the motoring powers that 60mph in 4.7 seconds.
be have decided it must have BUY ONE ASTON, SUPER ’VETTE NOT TAYCAN
four-wheel drive. Any tech treats inside the cabin? GET ONE FREE! GOES TOPLESS THE MICKEY
Lots if you’re an Android fan: this Oh, the £250,000 One year ago, a Porsche’s first
Well, it looks just like the old one is the first production car to swap DBS Superleggera Corvette without electric car made
to me… in-house infotainment for Android isn’t exclusive a V8 engine in front its debut in Turbo S
Seeing how the original was Automotive. Google Maps comes enough for you? of the driver was colours, but you
a tasty piece of four-wheeled baked in, the Play Store is a tap Aston Martin has unthinkable. It’s had to be a Bond
Scandi sculpture from the country away and you can go hands-free something special un-American, supervillain to
that brought us flat-pack furniture with Google voice commands. tucked away… but dammit! But the afford one. At £80k,
merged with meatballs, that’s you’ll need to be mid-engined C8 the Taycan 4S is
no bad thing. Volvo’s design team How long until it hits the road? jackpot-rich to changed all that, less likely to upset
have used the lightest of light Volvo is aiming for the middle of afford it. Just 19 of and now you your bank manager,
touches, but look closely and 2020 –with plans to launch an the DBS GT Zagato can get one but it’ll still zip
you’ll spot a charging port instead EV a year through to 2025. They’ll will be built, and one as a full-blown silently to 60mph
of a fuel filler cap. Mind you, with be proper range-toppers packed will set you back convertible… and in 4.0 seconds. The
250 miles of range between with kit, and with high prices. Even £6m… but you do it only takes a 79kW battery is
top-ups and fast-charging hitting with the plug-in car grant, XC40 get a retro DB4 GT button-press to good for 250 miles
80% in 40 minutes, you won’t be Recharge customers are unlikely Zagato thrown in. take the top down. between charges.
using it very much. to see any change from £50,000.
28
W I N
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F I R S T T E S T A P P L E WAT C H S E R I E S 5
Always-on
my mind
With a display that no longer needs waking up with a violent gesture, Apple’s latest
Watch is turning the screw on its rivals. But is it worth upgrading from Series 4?
from £399 / stuff.tv/WatchS5
pple’s domination health features that the other arguably the first smartwatch new screen doesn’t annihilate
A of the smartwatch
market is so easy it’s
boring, like watching
wearable makers still haven’t
been able to match.
You’d be forgiven, then, for
that could save your life), it
does have one key addition:
an always-on display.
your battery either.
Also new to the feature set
is a built-in compass, while the
a cat play with a couple of mice fearing that Tim Cook and pals By no longer requiring you to watchOS 6 update adds a host
that are already half-dead. would be planning a nice long flick your wrist to see the time of new tricks that make the
[ Words Matt Tate ]
There’s no great secret to snooze on their laurels after the and any notifications that may Watch even smarter than it
this continuing success: it’s all excellent Apple Watch Series 4. have popped up, the Watch S5 was already. This is still a great
down to a seamless relationship But while the Series 5 isn’t as becomes a lot more like, well, an wearable, then – but has its
between hardware and software, significant an upgrade as last actual watch. And because of maker done enough to entice
and a bunch of really impressive year’s model (after all, that was the clever tech powering it, the you to dump last year’s model?
31
2
1 Gimme five
Out of the box the Watch S5 is
near-indistinguishable from its
predecessor. The dimensions
are the same, there’s a button
for quick app-switching and fast
access to Apple Pay, and you still
get satisfying haptic feedback
from the digital crown.
2 Five o’clock shadow

Until the battery conks, this thing
stays on. An ultra-low-power
LTPO display allows the refresh
rate to adjust from as high as
60Hz to as low as 1Hz; combined
with an ambient light sensor, this
ensures it isn’t gulping juice like
your five-year-old nephew.
3 Five towns
As well as the familiar built-in
GPS, the new Watch has a proper
compass. Open its app and you’re
shown which way you’re facing,
your incline, plus latitude and
longitude. It works well and
doesn’t require a cellular or
Wi-Fi connection.
4 Five alive
Cellular S5 watches are now able
to make international emergency
calls from nearly anywhere in the
world (Apple’s official line is 150
countries), regardless of where
they were bought. And you don’t
even need to have activated the
cellular plan for it to work.
5 Nine to five
Battery life will vary day by day,
but as long as you remember to
charge it every night the Watch
S5 isn’t going to conk out on you.
Just know that it’s a step down 5
from the S4… and of course, there
are other smartwatches that can
go for days between charges.
24 hours with
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Th
Ap
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…
It
1min 3mins 15mins 45mins 2hrs 2.1hrs 3hrs 6hrs 9hrs
32
Tech specs
Screen 1.78in 448x268 (44mm) / 1.57in 394x324 (40mm)
OLED with 3D Touch Processor Apple S5 Storage 32GB
OS watchOS 6 Battery life Up to 18hrs
Sensors Accelerometer, gyro, HRM, barometer, compass
Dimensions 44x38x10.7mm, 47.8g (44mm);
40x34x10.7mm, 39.8g (40mm)
The pretty that never sleeps

So, how does the Apple Watch Series 5’s always-on
display work in the real world?
Q Time’s up Q Time out

The appeal of a display When your wrist is
that doesn’t need waking lowered, the screen
up is obvious. You can now dims just enough to keep
easily check how much the time and whatever
longer you have to endure complications you have
a meeting at work without viewable at a glance. Raise
4 making your boredom or tap it and the Watch
obvious to everyone. switches to full brightness.
Q Quiet time Q Face time

Cinema mode still makes Apple has re-designed
the Watch go completely most of the watch faces
black unless you tap it – a for the always-on display.
feature you may also find Choose the new Numerals
yourself using in dimly lit Duo face, for example, and
restaurants, or any other the colours will drain from
situation where you don’t the numbers when the
want to annoy people. screen dims.
If you use an iPhone, this is the best

smartwatch for you. It’s not cheap,
but it works beautifully within Apple’s
ecosystem. But does it do enough to
justify an upgrade? If you own an S4
s? t
and have no major issues with wrist-flicking,

re es
ab ts
tio h
ca lick
ts
ly e
le.
eli d i
.
op atc
ns
ice is
en
s r , an
em t
then probably not. Most of the best new

s n No
ho he s
ov o
ty W
pr ’m n
em m
ar ng
ar le
ow t
se za
features come from watchOS 6, and they

-p pp
, s dy
I
y e tori
di t
gs ha
ird t A
a
ee b
m
r m oni
rth lre
on h S
ec
sp ew
work on the old model too. @MattWTate

ea s a
fte m
f s it
no erf
ig n
w
g a el-
on wa
h
s
till p
t
no d
yb ri
kin cib
o
io e
ch is
an sso
at erg
ds ln
at th
oo de
an til
ing ce
ific m
tw u,
… ss
sl w
ar yo
tic pro
STUFF SAYS +++++

nt as
p i ne
ce e’
sm ind
ide ri h
fa er
ap he
no e
Th
Th
M
Si
T
This is a minor upgrade, but

an always-on display makes
the best smartwatch even better
17hrs 18hrs 20hrs 23hrs 24hrs
33
The alternatives:
Two subtle smartwatches
Do the latest offerings from Withings and Fitbit stand up to the Watch S5?
Withings Fitbit Versa 2

Move ECG from £200 / fitbit.com
£130 / withings.com
What’s the story?
Not too big, not too small,
What’s the story? not too clever and not
This neat hybrid too dumb, the first Versa
smartwatch will do offered a sprinkling of
basic exercise and sleep smartwatch tricks and
tracking, but what makes fitness functionality while
it a worthy Apple Watch keeping things simple. Its
rival is its ability to take successor looks similar,
an electrocardiogram with the same pebble-like
(ECG) and alert the user face that blends pleasingly
to an irregular heartbeat. into the background.
Withings had some
business dalliances Is it any good?
with Nokia Health, but The Versa 2 has a single
is independent once again physical button for waking
and continues to offer solid it up, summoning Alexa
wearable tech with a focus or making payments. So
on affordability and style. comfy you’ll forget you’re
wearing it, it’s worth
Is it any good? keeping on at night to
There’s no denying the track your sleep. The 1.4in
absence of a heart-rate OLED display betters the
monitor lets this one previous model’s LCD and
down in the exercise includes an always-on
department. But for those option, although this
looking for simple health reduces the six-day
tracking it’s a no-brainer, battery life down to five.
and the accompanying The lack of GPS will be a
Health Mate App is deal-breaker for some;
an insightful addition. but if you don’t mind
Withings has done taking your phone out for
a fine job of making a run, the Versa 2 provides
a comfortable, subtle enough smartwatch and
wearable that doesn’t exercise modes to keep
need charging because most people happy.
the battery lasts an
entire year. KEY SPECS
Screen 1.4in 300x300
KEY SPECS AMOLED touchscreen
Screen 1.4in analogue Storage 5GB
Storage Free online Battery life Up to 6 days
Battery life 12 months Sensors Accelerometer,
Sensors ECG, altimeter, HRM, altimeter, ambient
accelerometer light, relative SpO2
Dimensions Dimensions (40mm face)
38x38x12.5mm, 31g 40x39.8x12mm, 40g
Stuff says Stuff says

++++, ++++,
A top watch for heart A solid all-rounder
health if Apple’s with handy smarts
is out of budget and an epic battery
34
C AT C H T H E W I N T E R L I G H T
W I T H N I KO N
Photographer: ©Alex Stead
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SUPERTEST SMARTPHONES
Call on me
Selecting the best phone to buy 4
5
has suddenly got extra-tough,

3
so we’ve weighed up the latest
contenders and picked out 2
the cream of the crop
1
here’s something
T strange going on with

the 250th-issue Stuff
smartphone supertest.
Rather than being filled with flagship
phones released throughout the
year, most of the mobiles paraded
here have landed in the last few
weeks. Whether it’s a desperate
bid to beat Brexit stealing all the
column inches or the insatiable
pursuit of your Christmas cash,
tech companies have gone a little
bit launch-crazy.
So an apology: Nokia, LG, Samsung
and others don’t feature because
we only have so much paper. All
make wonderfully unique phones
– and if you don’t believe us, head
over to Stuff.tv and trawl through
our encyclopaedia of reviews to
find your perfect match. We’ve also
largely ignored 5G due to its current
niche status.
No prizes for guessing that most
of the phones featured get five stars;
but before moaning that we’re going
soft in our old age, a reminder that
the first iPhone arrived in 2007, and 1 Oppo Reno2 2 Huawei Mate 30 Pro 3 Motorola One Zoom
It’s been a big year for No Google Play, no The wild-card bargain
after 12 years and countless billions the Chinese upstart party? Perhaps, but of the bunch wants
in R&D it’s little wonder makers have and the Reno 2 joins Huawei hasn’t stopped to bedazzle you with
a burgeoning line-up making bad phones an OLED display and
started to get the hang of this. of bold phones with and we certainly rate not one but four rear
pop-up selfie-cams. this Mate. cameras.
38
4 Apple iPhone 11 5 Asus ROG Phone II 6 OnePlus 7T 7 Google Pixel 4 XL 8 Apple iPhone 11 Pro
Apple in ‘affordable Gamers, we haven’t The cult brand is back Dual cameras with The first iPhone to
smartphone’ shocker. forgotten about you, with extra-fast Warp astrophotography be tagged ‘Pro’ has
The standard iPhone 11 and the ROG Phone II charging, an equally smarts mean the new something of the night
might just have enough represents the best of rapid processor and Pixels are seeing stars, about it, and we’re not
about it to tempt you a top-benchmarking a super-smooth 90Hz but how many have we just talking about the
away from pricier rivals. bunch. screen. given them? ‘midnight green’ finish.
39
In tests, our USB-C

fast-charger took us
from 2% battery life to
50% in just 30 minutes.
Shame it’s still a
Lightning connection on
the other end *sigh*.
40
Sweet camera skills make

this an extra-tasty Apple
So the iPhone has followed almost on the surface this thing does The A13 Bionic chip comes out front camera, for the benefit of
every other area of Apple’s device look a lot like last year’s iPhone on top in benchmark testing those living life at a similar pace),
empire and gone ‘Pro’, but what XS, but flip it over and you’ll see too, bringing about untouchable this is a serious and solid phone in
does that actually mean? Well, a triple-camera array that’s up speeds. The fact there’s no 5G every meaning of the word – and
this is Cupertino’s elite handset, there with the best we’ve tested option doesn’t bother us for now one most definitely worthy of
its gladiator, a knight in recycled this year. And with Apple finally (but ask us again in 12 months), wearing the ‘Pro’ moniker.
aluminium charging into battle catching up on the competition while its fast-charging capabilities In short, it’s a smartphone
against the Android enemies vying and developing some sharp are a godsend that iPhone fans that’s going to take wicked
for the smartphone throne. Night Mode photography have been waiting for. photos in any scenario and
OK, we may have re-watched a tech, it’s the best all-round Anyway, #slofies aside (that’s carry out all your daily tasks
Marvel movie or two recently, and smartphone camera, full stop. slow-mo selfies shot with the with finesse.
O APPLE iPHONE 11 PRO FROM £1049 +++++
DISPLAY
Nits outbreak
Night Mode is The 5.8in ‘Super Retina XDR’
automatically enabled display sees marginal gains
when the 11 Pro detects
from the iPhone XS but contrast
it’s dark. Depending on
the available light, it then is excellent, with the darkest
takes several seconds to blacks and brilliant levels of
render an image. detail. Maximum brightness
goes to 800 nits, or a staggering
1200 nits for HDR content.
OOOOOOOOOO
FOR
A BIT
MORE
CAMERA
Night fever
The Pro sees the birth of an
extra 12MP f/2.4 ultra-wide
lens, joining the primary 12MP
f/1.8 cameras with OIS and
the 2x 12MP telephoto. There’s
a noticeable improvement to
image quality, but the most
notable development is Night
Mode which, believe us when
we say it, beats Google at its
own game. The front camera
Apple iPhone 11 gets a 12MP slofie upgrade,
Pro Max while video quality overall is PERFORMANCE
from £1149 / undeniably epic – it’s capable The dark side
apple.com of recording 4K video at 60fps Apple’s A13 Bionic chip is
The 11 Pro Max is the with astounding stabilisation. a notable step up: video
11 Pro with a bigger After floundering in space, Apple is easy to export and edit,
6.5in display and is now top of the shots. apps feel faster and FaceID
battery. Delve a tad OOOOOOOOOO is supposedly quicker (though
deeper and you’ll in reality it’s hard to tell the
discover that display difference). New to iOS 13 is
matches the 11 Pro’s Dark Mode, with system-wide
458ppi resolution DESIGN support for all apps to reduce
and you’re getting Matt impulsion eye strain and stretch out
around five hours More screen and less notch battery life, which stands at
more usage than the would’ve been nice, but a matt four more hours than the XS
old XS Max. So this is back with a stainless steel edge and gets speedy charging from
the best iPhone you contrasts well. The rear lenses, an 18W mains plug. We kiss
can buy if you have also encircled in stainless steel, goodbye to 3D Touch, replaced
the metaphorical lie flat when the Pro wears a by Haptic Touch, and welcome
and physical deep case. It has an IP68 rating for a swipe keyboard for very jazzy
pockets required. waterproofing. brush typing.
Stuff says +++++ OOOOOOOOOO OOOOOOOOOO
41
OnePlus lives up to its slogan

with a phone that’s T-riffic
It’s no secret that the OnePlus 7 the only months-old 7 model. latest Warp Charge 30T is even great battery life and a dreamy
was a bit, well, meh. Sure, it was Most significantly, it adds the faster than on the 7 Pro. new design.
powerful and good-looking, but same super-smooth 90Hz Significant upgrades mean While the Xiaomi Mi 9T Pro is
just too similar to the 6T before it. refresh rate as the 7 Pro, although a slight price hike over the 7, still likely to offer better value for
Honor and Xiaomi then launched this 6.55in panel is still at only but for your dosh you’re getting money, the OnePlus 7T – thanks
low-cost flagship-specced 1080p resolution. better-than-flagship features for to that 90Hz screen and Oxygen
phones in the 20 Pro and Mi 9 The rear camera setup gains a lower-than-flagship price. The OS being so darned gorgeous –
with more cameras, lower prices a third sensor and a redesign, the camera isn’t the best around, but won’t disappoint if you can stump
and similar innards. processor has been upgraded it’s competitive and outguns its up the extra. It lays down a real
Enter the OnePlus 7T, offering to the newer Qualcomm predecessor in every way. The marker to the established order
an array of enhancements over Snapdragon 855+, and the phone also has stacks of power, including Samsung, LG and Sony.
O ONEPLUS 7T £549 +++++
PERFORMANCE
Imagine Snapdragons
With a Snapdragon 855+ chip, The ace super-macro
this phone flies. The 8GB RAM feature gets you as near
and 128GB storage will keep all as 2.5cm to a subject for
but the most demanding users snapping with pin-sharp
happy, although there’s no precision. Video clocks in
microSD slot. A speedy under- at 4K @ 60fps.
screen fingerprint scanner and
face unlock are on board too.
OOOOOOOOOO
FOR
A BIT
MORE
DESIGN
The thin blue line
The new 7T is longer, thinner
and better-looking than its
predecessor, without sacrificing
the va-va-voom of stereo
speakers and a fancy in-hand
feel. The front has more screen
and less bezel with a dinky
droplet notch and elongated
20:9 aspect ratio, but the magic
starts when you flip it around
and gaze upon the dreamy
‘glacier blue’ finish of ethereal OnePlus 7T Pro
frostiness. It does grubby up, so DISPLAY £699 /
whack it in a case, but there’s Love hertz oneplus.com
one in the box with a pre-fitted Its screen is a beauty, lifting the Despite a different
screen protector. The circular Fluid AMOLED tech from the design the 7T Pro
camera surround is also an 7 Pro. It has a 90Hz refresh rate, shares some key
excellent statement piece. and trust us, you’ll notice the specifications with
OOOOOOOOOO difference, gliding through the 7T, including the
menus, sites and news feeds 90Hz display. But
with punch and pizazz. Even here you’re treated
switching back to the 60Hz to 6.67in of it, and a
CAMERA screen of the knockout pop-up selfie-cam,
The hold steady Samsung Galaxy Note 10 Plus along with the
A 48MP sensor with f/1.6 lens feels slower. At 6.55in it’s not vertical rear lens
will grab great pictures, and a dainty display and its extra formation of its Pro
image stabilisation holds things height might require a bit more predecessor. Other
steady in Nightscape mode. stretch than you’re used to. major differences
A 2x zoom 12MP camera with That said, it’s sharp enough include double the
f/2.2 lens gets you closer to at over 400ppi, gets incredibly storage at 256GB
the action, while the 16MP cam bright and is protected by and a bigger battery
offers a wide-angle option. Gorilla Glass. at 4085mAh.
OOOOOOOOOO OOOOOOOOOO Stuff says +++++
42
A beefy 3800mAh
battery makes this a
morning-to-night phone,
with Warp Charge 30T
filling it to around 70% in
30 minutes – but there’s
no wireless charging.
43
Why go Pro when the basic

iPhone is as brilliant as this?
Say hello to the new everyman one time to ascertain the most and that’s one department where silly expensive. The new Bionic
iPhone. Available in a fruity array optimal versions, then mashes the iPhone 11 trumps the 11 Pro. A13 chip packs serious power,
of colours, with a seemingly them together for the best It’ll last a full day with heavy use, the cameras are near-faultless
modest dual-lens camera and possible results. Plus, low-light and well over a day if you’re not for a smartphone and, just to
powered by Apple’s A13 Bionic performance sees huge a working, gaming, photo-taking reiterate, it’ll last all day. The lack
chip, this is the most affordable improvements and portrait mode freak like us. There’s no fast 18W of an OLED display is more of
handset in the new class of 2019. isn’t only reserved for humans charger in the box like there is an issue than the absence of
While a dual-lens cam sounds now. Strike a pose, cat. with the Pro, but we suggest you a telephoto lens – so if you can
meagre by today’s standards, We’re impressed… but let’s get buy one for £29. bring yourself to get over that,
clever software known as Deep real. All of the above doesn’t really You’re getting a neat package then start thinking about what
Fusion takes multiple photos at matter if you run out of power, with the iPhone 11 – and it’s not colour you might opt for.
O APPLE iPHONE 11 FROM £729 +++++
FOR
A BIT
LESS
Sony Xperia 5
£699 /
sonymobile.com
The Xperia 5
has a lot of
competition
from the iPhone
11 and others,
but Sony does
premium very
well. With an
epic HDR OLED
display in an
elongated 21:9
aspect ratio,
ample gaming
power and a
fine versatile
camera, there’s
lots to love here.
Stuff says
+++++
CAMERA DESIGN DISPLAY PERFORMANCE

Twice as nice Toy soldier OLED astray Chips and dips
You might think you’re Square camera module The iPhone 11 totes an LCD What we really care about
being short-changed not aside, it looks like an XR panel, not OLED, but it’s it that A13 Bionic chip. It
getting a third telephoto but with extra colours. far brighter than the XR’s. beats its flagship rivals
like the iPhone 11 Pro, but It feels robust enough For big media consumers, in Geekbench tests and
it’s not a big deal. You get to take a few drops, while no OLED is a big deal; for is incredibly quick and
the same wide-angle the notch remains. This those taking a few pics at responsive. The new U1
12MP main sensor and a phone is a little thicker the weekends, emailing chip makes AirDrop much
12MP ultra-wide.You just than the Pro, but still and WhatsApping, it speedier too, even for
have to move forward a bit. manageable in the hand. shouldn’t matter. sizeable file transfers.
OOOOOOOOOO OOOOOOOOOO OOOOOOOOOO OOOOOOOOOO
44
Moto rules the mid-range

with a high-stamina bargain
Someone at Motorola clearly 2019’s must-have extras, like a a modern design, stellar battery of choice – even if that does limit
doesn’t know when to say notched OLED screen and life and a feature list that borrows you to a single lens.
‘when’ – at least when it comes in-display fingerprint scanner. heavily from the flagships. Then again, the bezel-toting
to camera lenses. The One Zoom, It’s the wild-card bargain in The only problem is, we know Pixel 3a is a little behind the times.
the latest in a steady stream of the Stuff supertest, but with the ‘number of camera lenses’ isn’t If you want something fresher but
outstanding mid-rangers from minerals to mix it with the best… a true measure of greatness. insist on stock Android, Moto’s
the Moto production line, has and that’s before you realise it Performance on the One Zoom latest all-rounder – muscling in on
four of the things. It’s a veritable manages to stick the landing with is merely OK, screen quality is a the mid-range with multipurpose
camera-bag of kit squeezed into a sub-£400 asking price. This step below rival handsets, and at quad cams, a great battery and a
something that fits in your is an attractive proposition for this money Google’s Pixel 3a is laundry list of top features –
pocket, along with a whole load of bargain hunters, complete with arguably still the cameraphone might be the One to go for.
O MOTOROLA ONE ZOOM £380 ++++,
FOR
A BIT
MORE
Google
Pixel 3a
£399 / store.
google.com
While the new
Pixels take the
limelight, the
3a’s simplicity
is refreshing
in a world of
gimmickry. The
design is a tad
dated, but
Android in its
purest form and
an outstanding
single-lens cam
mean you’d be
mad not to
consider it.
Stuff says
++++,

Four to the floor Go your own way OLED Zeppelin Faux par
The main 48MP sensor A mid-ranger that hasn’t By switching from LCD Look past the feature
is joined by a 16MP ultra- ripped off Apple? Moto to AMOLED, the Zoom list and the One Zoom
wide and 8MP telephoto, has done its own thing and elevates itself above the is a faux flagship: the
while lens number four is it works nicely. You get a other One models. It’s Snapdragon 675 is an
for depth-sensing, so this huge screen with minimal sizeable at 6.4in with eight-core chip but it
is really a triple-lens setup bezels and a small notch; Full HD+ resolution offering won’t match the heavy
that’s good for blurry the back is glass, but enough detail in text and hitters. You won’t notice
bokeh. Up front, there’s with a matt finish hiding images. Viewing angles are the difference while
25MP selfie-cam. fingerprints. excellent, colours less so. web-browsing, though.
45
A stargazer is born, but does

Google care about phones?
Google’s own phones to take us leaves stuff like design dynamism work put into the Pixel 3. You also wishing it had more storage and
crash-landing into a new decade and ultra-long battery life for get to experience Android’s latest more stamina.
are here. The Pixel 4 and 4 XL give others to fight over. developments before anyone Still, if you’re in the market for
Android 10 its debut, and show With the Pixel 4 XL, the tech else, and in its purest form. a stripped-back, tasteful Android
us what Google really cares giant has taken aim at those The rest? This phone’s design with a forgiving camera and a
about these days – other than preferred areas and hammered takes the iconic simplicity of the fancy feature for shooting the
everyone’s data. Focusing on the them like a Japanese swordsmith. older Pixels and simplifies it until night sky, go ahead, it’s a great
bigger brother of the two, the 4 The camera is the main one: it seems generic. And it’s hard to phone… but Google has proved
XL, not a great deal has changed. Astrophotography mode is a ignore that other phones offer once again that it’s more of
Cameras and Android are still delight, and all the progress here more for less, or at least for a software company than a
the Pixel fixations, while Google is entirely in line with the brilliant the same money. We’re left hardware one.
O GOOGLE PIXEL 4 XL FROM £829 ++++,
DESIGN
This means bore
If there were to be a ‘boringcore’ New gesture controls do
phone, the equivalent of some everything from skipping
tracks and controlling
sort of indie film sub-genre
alarms to initiating
where they’re all set in a PTA multitasking screens and
meeting, this is it. It looks like more, so take the time to
the very essence of a modern familiarise yourself.
smartphone, but absolutely
nothing more.
OOOOOOOOOO
FOR
A BIT
LESS
CAMERA
Looking at the stars
There are two rear cameras:
a primary 12MP joined by a
new 2x lens. It’s the first time
Google has included ‘real’ zoom
using a tiny motor, and with a
bit of machine learning you end
up with far better photos than
expected. Night Sight has had
a bump and takes low-light
snaps nobody thought possible
two years ago, while the new
Astrophotography is a bold Google Pixel 4
gesture of intent from Google: PERFORMANCE from £669 / store.
it’s Night Sight taken to the Mind the store google.com
extreme. The phone must be A Snapdragon 855 runs the Aside from a smaller
held completely still, but the show – and no shocks that display than the XL
results are ridiculous and offer it glides through Android and version (5.7in) with
a legit reason to buy a tripod. runs top-end games perfectly. an inferior 444ppi
OOOOOOOOOO PUBG, Ark: Survival Evolved and a wee 2800mAh
and Asphalt 9 were essentially battery, the Pixel 4
made for this hardware after shares virtually all
all. There is a lingering sense the same specs…
DISPLAY that Google has been stingy meaning you get
OLED it be elsewhere, though. Your £829 a processor and
Feast upon on a 6.3in 90Hz ‘entry-level’ model has 6GB camera fit for giants
OLED with super-conservative RAM and 64GB storage, where in a much more
style: no curved edges, a fat lip the £450 Oppo Reno2 has affordably priced
above the display, and borders 8GB and 256GB respectively. package. Just don’t
on the other sides. Kudos Apple gets away with it, but too expect it to last
to Google, though, for this many Androids offer more for all day every day if
screen’s tasteful approach less and it didn’t take us long you tend to hammer
to colour reproduction. to find our 4 XL was 50% full. your phone.
OOOOOOOOOO OOOOOOOOOO Stuff says ++++,
46
The 3700mAh battery

is about the smallest
you’ll find on a plus-size
top-end Android. It’s
passable for a day or so,
but serious phone freaks
will need a power pack.
47
Oppo serves up premium

specs at a non-flagship price
According to the Internet, ‘Reno biggest little smartphone brand that’ll steal the spotlight in any last at least an entire day, there’s
is a city in the northwest section of 2019. gadget gathering. little here not to like, especially
of the US state of Nevada, Tenuous links aside, it’s a warm This is a truly eye-catching, given its sub-£500 price.
approximately 22 miles (35 km) Mojave Desert welcome to the luxurious-feeling handset that If you’re after a rock-solid
from Lake Tahoe, known as the Oppo Reno2. Falling between the meets all the requirements you’re performer with quirky features
Biggest Little City in the World’. original Reno and Reno 10x Zoom, likely to have for a smartphone. separating it from the plethora
From what we can gather, it has it joins its siblings crammed with It packs camera capabilities of other options available, this
nothing to do with the naming of multiple lenses and camera for almost any situation and could very well be the phone for
Oppo’s Reno smartphone series, smarts, coupled with a big bold it doesn’t compromise on power you – stylish, innovative and full
but there’s a metaphor in there screen, fast-charging and a and performance either. With of stamina, the Reno2 delivers
somewhere for arguably the swanky pop-out selfie-camera more than enough stamina to in spades.
O OPPO RENO2 £450 ++++,
FOR
A BIT
MORE
Samsung
Galaxy S10e
£670 /
samsung.com
A simplified star
in the Galaxy
series, the S10e
surfs under the
radar. Sporting
the same-size
battery and
screen as an
iPhone 11 Pro,
there’s 6GB
RAM and 128GB
storage plus a
microSD slot.
This is a sensible
Samsung at a
sensible price.
Stuff says
++++,

Speccy four eyes Setting the tone Notch on your nelly Reno speedwagon
Four rear cams are driven The two-tone Oppo looks Dominating the front is a A Snapdragon 730G is
by 48MP, 8MP, 13MP and vaguely hypnotic. A lack notchless and edgeless technically mid-range, but
2MP sensors serving all of camera bumps means 6.5in AMOLED display coupled with 8GB of RAM
purposes, from 20x digital all lenses sit flush, save for with 401ppi. It’s good for it handles games on their
zoom to wide-angle. In a ceramic bump to stop gaming, reading, movies highest settings with
daylight at least, it takes scratches. The pop-up and everything else. ease, even with other
fine point-and-shoot cam rears its head when We’ve seen brighter, apps open. The in-display
shots bolstered by summoned – and that but it’s perfectly useable fingerprint scanner is also
scene-detecting AI. means a clear screen. in full daylight. insanely fast and reliable.
48
A red-hot gaming phone for

those who like to play it cool
If you’re serious about mobile even people who take mobile really) spurts crisp, silky-smooth undeniably the greatest gaming
gaming and want a leg up over antisocial-ness to entirely new visuals at your peepers. Rivals mobile of all time.
your online opponents, the ROG levels are humans. like the Black Shark 2 can’t touch Of course, all that tech doesn’t
Phone II is the ultimate gamers’ Officially the first phone to it for specs, performance and come cheap. But if you can find
handset of 2019. We just thought come packing Qualcomm’s dedicated features. the green queens and you’re a
we’d put that one to bed early, jacked-up Snapdragon 855+ And that’s only the tip of mobile gamer, this is simply the
because in case you were chipset, giving it more grunt than a very dense gaming iceberg. best piece of kit for you right now:
wondering how a laptop a Bavarian pig farm, it houses a We’ve blasted our way through a super-premium device in every
manufacturer had somehow whopping 6000mAh battery for countless Android titles, all in the regard that others can’t match
snuck a smartphone into the Stuff entirely possible all-day gaming, name of quality tech journalism, to for performance, battery life or
supertest, it’s here on merit. Plus, while the 120Hz display (yes, conclude that the ROG Phone II is accessory support.
O ASUS ROG PHONE II £830 +++++
FOR
A BIT
LESS
Nubia Red
Magic 3
from £419 /
redmagic.gg
The first ever
smartphone
with a fan can
power anything
in the Play
Store. A 90Hz
AMOLED,
built-in shoulder
buttons and
official
accessories
mean not many
handsets can
beat this at
playtime. It’s OK
as a ‘phone’ too.
Stuff says
++++,

It takes two Millennial falcon Mega hertz Game gear
Asus has reused the The ROG is more alien A perfectly flat display The graphical clout of that
Zenfone 6’s combo of vessel than phone thanks is better for gaming as Snapdragon 855+ ensures
48MP primary lens and to the asymmetrical edge-hugging controls games like PUBG Mobile
wide-angle secondary glass rear, angular camera remain responsive play with top detail levels
snapper. It works a treat grille and microchip-style and easy to poke. The and a super-stable frame
and photos pack detail pattern, and that’s before 120Hz refresh rate brings rate. Software is geared
even in tricky lighting, discussing the big LED ultra-smooth visuals, towards gamers, including
while HDR+ mode logo. It’s weighty but with a zippy 240Hz touch Game Genie for blocking
combats harsh contrast. comfortable to clutch. response rate. calls and notifications.
49
The 4500mAh battery is

big and clever, stretching
across two days and
going from 0 to 100% in
under 75 minutes with
27W wireless charging.
50
Huawei go again… but could

you buy a G-free Android?
When it comes to writing the Huawei. In case you aren’t in the and ample power and battery, of its generation, has a champion
2019 chapter in the history loop, at the time of writing the this is going to be one bittersweet of a camera, and comes with
books, there’ll be plenty of US government has still blocked write-up… not least because our stacks of power.
bonkers stuff to include. There Huawei from having access to review handset was a Chinese Getting it with no Play Store
was Nigelfest, the theft of a gold the Google Play Store and other import, so regional device is an expensive gamble, though,
toilet from Blenheim Palace, and Google apps. functionality and performance which makes it impossible to
the ‘Wagatha Christie’ saga Its latest flagship, the stunning may vary. recommend to almost anyone
involving Coleen Rooney and Mate 30 Pro, is the first casualty All things said and done, the in the west. Until then, admire
Rebekah Vardy… but one of tech’s of this war – and we’re warning Mate 30 Pro looks and feels like from afar that two-star app
weirdest tales is probably Donald you, despite its sensational a slice of the future. It’s bold, is support and (almost) five-star
Trump’s ongoing beef with design, innovative camera system arguably the best-looking phone everything else.
O HUAWEI MATE 30 PRO €1099 ++++,
PERFORMANCE
Kirin in the name of
Huawei’s new UI gives Performing sensationally with
you in-game options to everything thrown at it, this
eke the most out of the
phone benchmarks like the
experience and turn the
display’s corners into L best with its Kirin 990 and 8GB
and R buttons – which of RAM. Its biometrics work to
work like a charm. perfection too, with an under-
display fingerprint scanner and
secure face-unlocking.
OOOOOOOOOO
FOR
A BIT
LESS
CAMERA
Shots fired
The camera excels across the
board, but comes alive at night.
A 40MP main sensor encores
after debuting on the P30 Pro,
but now there’s an ultra-wide
‘cinema’ camera with a 40MP
sensor and an f/1.6 lens. The
telephoto camera features
8MP resolution with an
f/2.4 3x zoom lens, and
a depth sensor joins the party.
Huawei P30 Pro Meanwhile, the front camera
from £750 / has a terrifyingly sharp 32MP DESIGN
huawei.com sensor. Macro shots are solid, Hear the sirens coming
It’s been out since standard shots top-quality and Put the Mate 30 Pro in your
April, but given you dynamic range only bettered by hand and it sucks you in like
can now get a P30 the iPhone 11 Pro Max, while it a siren’s song. The sliver of
Pro with £150 makes light work of 4K at 60fps. metal along the sides, the
knocked off, it’s OOOOOOOOOO polished top and tail and the
worth considering curved glass either side all
for the camera alone. make it feel as good as it looks.
It set a stratospheric You’ll find a power button but
benchmark of DISPLAY no volume rocker – swapped
zooming capabilities It’s a wrap for some side-tapping slidey
on smartphones The almost-wraparound nonsense. There’s a lone
at no compromise 6.53in OLED display is glorious, USB-C port, a dual-SIM slot
to battery life with a 94.1% screen-to-body and that bold round camera
or performance. ratio and 18.5:9 aspect ratio. surround. Available in three
Partnering with Leica Resolution isn’t quite as sharp eye-catching colours plus
really has been as the OnePlus 7 Pro but some vegan leather editions,
Huawei’s smartest remains crisp if you don’t it’s IP68-rated with Gorilla
move yet. have microscopes for eyes. Glass 6.
Stuff says +++++ OOOOOOOOOO OOOOOOOOOO
51
The winner is…

Apple iPhone 11
No, we haven’t accidentally
left off the ‘Pro’ part. Apple
has risen back to the top on
the strength of its wondrous
cameras and extraordinary
A13 Bionic chip, but not with
the handset you may have
been expecting.
The 11 Pro and 11 Pro Max
make us very happy indeed,
but we can’t shake off the
nervous twitch that comes
with spending more than
a grand on a mobile. And
so the standard 11 – with
its still-excellent cameras,
equally adept processing
power and cool shades of
pastel – comes first.
In the words of every career
politician, let’s be clear, all the
phones here are incredible… E ST
and Android fans, you’re spoilt T ER
for choice from OnePlus to INN
Huawei with every Samsung W
and Sony in between. The
Empire simply struck back.
+ Now add these

Greenwich Humber
If you’ve got Qi wireless
charging, the Humber is
crafted from bull-hide and
brushed aluminium, and uses the latest
USB-C connection – and it works with
Greenwich’s lush phone cases.
£60 / greenwich.design
Mous Clarity
Phones are so pretty now, it
seems a shame not to show
them off. So the Clarity case
is transparent, but has the sort of impact
absorption that sees Mous show off by
chucking iPhones around Apple Stores.
from £40 / uk.mous.co
Ted Baker Power Bank

Crafted from luxury Italian
leather, this portable
5000mAh power bank
is Qi-enabled for wireless charging
in addition to a cable connection so you
can boost two devices simultaneously.
£80 / proporta.co.uk
52
OiPhone 11 Pro OOnePlus 7T OiPhone 11 OMoto One Zoom

THE SUMMARY OPixel 4 XL OOppo Reno2 OROG Phone II OMate 30 Pro
WHAT’S NEXT?
We all know 5G and folding
phones are a thing and will
continue to be a thing in
CAMERA PERFORMANCE
2020. Mass adoption of 5G
10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 depends on dropping prices,
better coverage and greater
availability… so watch this
space to see if mobile
makers and networks
actually make it happen.
If you’re looking further
afield, firstly get you… and
secondly head to p68 and
TECH read our exclusive interview
RATER with futurist Matthew
Griffin, where he discusses
everything from graphene
batteries charging in
seconds to 11k screens
with natural 3D.
Otherwise, sticking our
DESIGN DISPLAY neck out and putting our
considerable reputation on
10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 the line, we reckon this time
next year you’ll be seeing an
iPhone 12 and maybe some
Google Pixels.
Display CPU Memory Battery Cameras Dimensions

Apple iPhone 11 6.1in 4GB RAM, 12MP + 12MP 151x76x
Apple has done the unexpected and produced an affordable 64/128/
1st handset that doesn’t really scrimp on specs.
1792x828
LCD
A13 Bionic
256GB
3110mAh rear, 12MP
front
8.3mm,
194g
from £729 / stuff.tv/iPhone11 storage
OnePlus 7T 6.55in 8GB RAM, 48MP + 12MP 161x74x

A smooth display, a rapid processor, super-fast charging and Snapdragon
2nd a capable display make this the latest Android to beat.
2400x1080
855+
128GB
storage
3800mAh + 16MP rear, 8.1mm,
AMOLED 16MP front 190g
£549 / stuff.tv/OnePlus7T
Apple iPhone 11 Pro 5.8in 4GB RAM, 12MP + 12MP 144x71x

Is the Pro the best phone Apple has ever made? Yes. It’s just 64/256/
3rd too super-expensive to top our test.
2436x1125
OLED
A13 Bionic
512GB
3046mAh + 12MP rear,
12MP front
8.1mm,
188g
from £1049 / stuff.tv/iPhone11Pro storage
Asus ROG Phone II 6.59in 12GB RAM, 48MP + 171x78x

It’s a gaming-centric phone… but the ROG Phone II delivers in Snapdragon
4th so many areas, how could we ignore it?
2340x1080
855+
512GB 6000mAh 13MP rear, 9.5mm,
AMOLED storage 24MP front 240g
£830 / stuff.tv/RogPhone2
Google Pixel 4 XL 6.3in 6GB RAM, 160x75x

The purist’s Android choice, with clean software and a terrific Snapdragon 12MP + 16MP
5th camera, but not the most dynamic smartphone around.
3040x1440
OLED
855
64/128GB
storage
3700mAh rear,
8MP front
8.2mm,
193g
from £829 / stuff.tv/Pixel4XL
Huawei Mate 30 Pro 40MP + 8MP

6.53in 8GB RAM, 158x73x
It’s got all the spec credentials to be a top-three phone, but + 40MP
6th losing Google Play grinds our gears just too much.
2400x1176
OLED
Kirin 990 256GB
storage
4500mAh
+ ToF rear,
8.8mm,
198g
€1099 / stuff.tv/Mate30Pro 32MP front
Oppo Reno2 6.5in 8GB RAM, 48MP + 160x74x

This Oppo offers the brand’s best bang for your buck, but Snapdragon 13MP + 8MP
7th falls agonisingly short in key areas.
2400x1080
AMOLED 730G
256GB
storage
4000mAh
+ 2MP rear,
9.5mm,
189g
£450 / stuff.tv/Reno2 16MP front
Motorola One Zoom 6.4in 4GB RAM, 48MP + 8MP 158x75x

8th With features to pique your interest at an excellent price,
Motorola are the mid-range kings for a reason.
2340x1080
Snapdragon
675
128GB 4000mAh + 16MP
+ 5MP rear,
8.8m,
AMOLED storage 190g
£380 / stuff.tv/OneZoom 25MP front
53
America’s No.1 Soundbar brand*
The best sound in cinema

now in your home
36” 5.1.2 Soundbar System

with Dolby Atmos®
£599
Available online at:
Richersounds.com | Costco.co.uk | Amazon.co.uk
*Source: The NPD Group, Inc., U.S. Weekly Retail Tracking Service, Sound Bars, Based on Units, Feb. 4, 2018 – Apr. 6, 2019
TESTED APPS
Mini meme
MOBILE
OFootball Drama
This one isn’t just concerned
with what happens on the pitch. FOOTBALL OKevin Toms
Football * Manager
Should you fancy something
MANAGERS
You spend time in CYOA-style really retro, this one takes you
sections working on your back to the source. Kevin Toms
relationship with the club owner was responsible for the original
(and, er, his wife), winning Football Manager, released in
tactical cards to use during 1982 on the Tandy TRS–80.
matches. Sharp humour Not even Christmas and your real-life This isn’t a pure port, but it
presents a cynical take on team is already flirting with relegation? echoes the original’s simplicity
the game, although matches and idiosyncrasies (such as
drag a bit – you’ll wish there
Think you could do better? Prove it the way player skill levels vary
was more drama and less with these tactical games… season by season), and even
football. Still, worth a shot. includes crude highlights.
£4.99 / Android, iOS £3.29 / Android O £2.99 / iOS
ONew Star Manager OSSC 2019 ORumble Stars OFootball Manager

This follow-up to the acclaimed Harking back to the 16-bit era, Football 2019 Touch
New Star Soccer is potential this one recalls Player Manager The notion of unruly footballers If you’ve played Football
bliss for any armchair manager and Sensible Soccer. You being akin to animals might Manager on PC you’ll know
who gets frustrated whenever manage a team but also play belong to another era, but the what you’re in for here, since
some idiot fluffs a shot. Here, entire games, hoofing the ball players here are literally lions, this is effectively the same title.
not only do you get control over between dinky teammates. pandas and the like (along with It can be a bit spreadsheet-tastic
a beleaguered team, but you’re Gameplay’s not as fast as in the odd explosive device). Your but there’s no denying the
also hands-on during key those old classics, giving you task is to fire them into play at sheer depth of this sim, as
on-pitch moments, guiding a fighting chance; and your the optimum moment, to thwart you dig into everything from
players into position and tapping phone’s pocketability is an your online opposition’s plans. It’s tactics to transfers. You’ll need
the ball in precisely the right obvious plus over hauling about Clash Royale meets Subbuteo a powerful tablet… or try the
place to ensure it ends up in an old Amiga and CRT telly. meets The Jungle Book. This stripped-back Football Manager
the net. No pressure, then. £2.99 / Android really is a funny old game. 2019 Mobile for half the price.
£free (IAPs) / Android, iOS £free or £3.99 / iOS £free (IAPs) / Android, iOS £19.99 / Android, iPad
55
UPVOTED
PERFECT POINTERS
The princely puck The Cupertino clicker The streamlined sidekick

Azio Retro Classic Mouse Apple Magic Mouse 2 Microsoft Surface Mobile Mouse
This classy clicker might channel vintage Longing to boost your iPad’s touchscreen A mouse might be nothing without a
vibes, but it’s no old-school scroller. Crafted with the tactile certainty of a solid click? surface, but you don’t need a Surface to
from leather and aluminium, the refined Good news: iPadOS brings mouse support enjoy the charms of Microsoft’s Mobile
RCM packs a battery good for months and to your tablet. And what better peripheral to Mouse. Pocket-friendly and powered by a
a sensor that works on even the glossiest add than Apple’s own, with its slender shell, trio of AAAs, this Bluetooth buddy gets the
of retro desks. You can even switch the top rechargeable cell and multi-touch surface basics just right: compact, attractive and
cover to match your antique mousepad. that works like, y’know, a touchscreen. way more reliable than Windows 8.
£97 / aziocorp.com £79 / apple.com £30 / microsoft.com
GRABBABLE GAMERS
MICE
The whopping whizzer Sick of cursing his cursor, The slinky snake
Corsair Ironclaw RGB Wireless Chris Rowlands picks the best Razer Viper
Not some prototype pet from Stark desktop rodents to rekindle Want the edge in your next quick-draw
Industries, this is a sculpted weapon for the his love for the ol’ click and click-off? Quit those one-finger pull-ups
large of hand. Littered with RGB lights and scroll (and no, nobody and wrap your palm around Razer’s latest
custom buttons, it harbours an arsenal of wired warrior. Its optical switches use
gaming essentials, from Omron switches to calls them ‘mouses’) infrared for lightning-fast clicks, while a
surface calibration, while speedy Slipstream svelte 69g shell and Speedflex cable should
wireless means it’s no lumbering giant. help to cut your trigger time.
£70 / corsair.com £80 / razer.com
CREATIVE CONTROLLERS
The sculpted scroller The swanky sphere The reborn roller

Logitech MX Master 3 Kensington Expert Wireless Trackball Microsoft Pro IntelliMouse
Mastering a skill is said to take 10,000 hours. Keen to confound your colleagues? Besides As familiar as a floppy disk, Microsoft’s
On a tight deadline? Spin up the machined its trackball accuracy and a static setup trusty clicker is back (again) and better than
steel wheel on the moulded MX Master 3 that’s kinder to your wrist, the red orb on ever. Don’t let the understated packaging
and it’ll scroll through 1000 lines in a single this ergonomic number offers guaranteed fool you: a braided cable, remappable
second. Much too fast to digest any office amusement. How you’ll laugh as Ian buttons and seriously precise sensor make
information, sure, but at least you’ll know from IT wrestles with its unfamiliar form. this throwback device a boon for gamers
the scale of your ignorance. How you’ll cry when he lobs it at a wall. and graphic designers alike.
£100 / logitech.com £80 / kensington.com £60 / microsoft.com
1 Cut the cable 2 Button up

Tangle-phobic? Far from their haywire origins, Remappable buttons aren’t just good for
HOW TO today’s wireless mice are faster and more reliable
than ever – and a good Bluetooth gaming mouse
gamers. From page navigation to advanced
editing tools, most can also be customised with
DECIDE won’t give you any issues with lag. software-specific shortcuts.
56
UPVOTED
The cordless comeback

Logitech G502 Lightspeed
Imagine a gaming mouse. Now imagine a
TIE fighter. Now imagine the two, melded
together in an angular package that’s
wire-free and fast as you like. What
have you got? The Lightspeed sequel
to Logitech’s legendary G502. An
endoskeleton design inherited from
the G Pro shaves 7g off the weight, while
on-the-fly wireless charging means
battle need never cease. Pew-pew.
£130 / logitechg.com
3 Take it in hand 4 Play the numbers game

Mice are meant for your paw, so pick one that DPI is the unit of measure for mouse sensitivity
fits. Compact, ambidextrous examples might and it’s a race to the top for the quickest clickers
slip more easily into your satchel, but ergonomic (think 16,000 and more). If you’re more about
is the way to go for all-day comfort. Powerpoint than PUBG, you needn’t aim so high.
57
TESTED NINTENDO SWITCH LITE
The legend of svelter

Nintendo’s slimmed-down Switch Lite promises
all the fun of the full-size console – well, nearly
all – in a miraculously pocketable package 1
£199 / stuff.tv/SwitchLite
Many people wrote off the
Switch before it had even
appeared on shelves… but
to say Nintendo has proved
the naysayers wrong would
be understating it. With a steady
supply of excellent games that
are equally playable on the TV,
the train and the toilet, it’s not
unreasonable to suggest that
Ninty’s comeback console has
already earned its place in the
company’s hall of fame.
Which brings us to the Switch
Lite. While still sharing its bigger,
comparably heftier brother’s
name, the Switch Lite can’t
actually switch. There are no
detachable Joy-Con controllers
here, and no TV dock.
You can play nearly all of the
same games on the Lite, and 3
many of them are arguably
[ Words Matthew Potato ]
better suited to it – like virtually

any old-school platformer that
requires a D-pad.
But by sacrificing versatility for
portability, does the Lite lose any
of the original console’s charm?
Every Switch way but loose The rare Switch project The seven-year Switch
We love the Switch’s Joy-Cons, It comes in grey, turquoise or At 275g, the difference in weight
but moving parts do make the yellow (2). The latter two are from the full-size Switch is quite
original console feel unnervingly just plain fun to look at, but it’s something. You can easily hold
breakable at times. No such good that Nintendo has included it right up to your face for long
worries with the Lite. Wrapped a more muted option for those sessions without feeling the strain
in a single piece of grippy matt who’d rather not attract attention on your wrists, and it’s noticeably
plastic (1), it feels sturdier and on the bus. And there are bound less of a presence in a backpack.
has a much cleaner, if slightly to be new colours and special It could prove too small for those
less premium, overall look. editions down the line. with bigger hands, mind.
Even more Most D-pad

portable Switch titles brings new
than the play just as precision to
original Shame well… Celeste
GOOD you can’t
MEH connect it
EVIL to the TV …but a Fiddly to
handful set up as
need the a second
Joy-Cons console
58
TESTED NINTENDO SWITCH LITE
Tech specs
Screen 5.5in 1280x720 LCD touchscreen
Processor Nvidia Tegra Storage 32GB
Connectivity Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, NFC,
microSD, USB-C charging Battery 3570mAh
Dimensions 208x91x13.9mm, 275g
Lite entertainment
Now let’s concentrate on what the Switch Lite
really excels at: games. Here are four of the best…
Q Breath of the Wild Q Three Houses

Switch launch title The Standouts this year
Razor Lite Legend of Zelda: Breath include the hugely
The display has the of the Wild has been addictive tactical RPG
same 720p resolution bothering the ‘greatest Fire Emblem: Three
as the original’s but is games of all time’ lists Houses plus Super Mario
smaller at 5.5in, so it’s ever since its release, and Maker 2, Astral Chain…
actually a bit sharper since then Nintendo has and the Link’s Awakening
– and you can tell. maintained a steady flow remake reviewed on p82
of other great games. of this issue.
Q The Witcher 3 Q Katana Zero

Crazy Switch assuagings The Switch-hiker’s guide The Switch has succeeded And that’s without
Because the left-hand part of the On the bottom you’ll find the where the Wii U failed by mentioning the countless
console no longer has to double USB-C charging port and a getting more third-party indie games that have
up as a detachable controller, microSD card slot that you’re support, be that new found their natural home
Nintendo was able to introduce definitely going to need if you titles like Wolfenstein: on Nintendo’s console.
a proper D-pad (3), which makes plan on downloading more than Youngblood or ports of The time-bending,
all the difference in side-scrolling a handful of full-fat games. The classics like The Witcher 3, samurai-themed
platformers. It’s not the best lack of support for Bluetooth which is somehow playable sidescroller Katana Zero
D-pad, but it’s much better than headphones remains annoying, in its entirety on the Lite. is one of 2019’s best.
four face buttons. and there’s no HD Rumble feature.
The Switch Lite is a joy to play games on; and STUFF SAYS ++++,
while it’s a totally unnecessary luxury for owners Not as clever as its bigger
of the original console, it is a more desirable
piece of kit to have in your hands. Whether or
brother, but the Switch
not it’s a superior handheld to the old PlayStation Lite is probably the best
Vita, it trounces Sony’s long-retired portable in the games truly handheld console
department – and that’s what matters. @MattWTate Nintendo has ever made
59
Hush
cuppies
Still not succumbed to the luxurious quietude of premium wireless over-ear
headphones with active noise-cancellation? Here are two new options…
ENJOY THE
Sennheiser Momentum Dali IO-6 SILENCE…
Wireless (2019) OR DON’T,
What’s the story? WHATEVER
What’s the story? Unlike Sennheiser and all the other
These days if you’ve got £300 or so spend brands mentioned on the left, Dali has
on some wireless over-ear headphones no pedigree in headphones and is writing O The Sennheisers
with noise-cancelling skills, it’s hard to its own history as it goes along. The Danish offer three ANC
go wrong. Bose, Bowers & Wilkins and company’s been a leading light of passive modes, plus
Sony each have a great pair to sell you; loudspeaker design for over 35 years, so a ‘transparent
even Microsoft has a decent option. The it must have thought the time was finally hearing’ feature
Momentum Wireless have always been right to get a piece of the noise-cancelling that actively
in the mix too… but they’ll have to be really wireless headphone action. That’s if there’s amplifies external
good to take on the class of late 2019. any left to grab… sounds to keep
you in touch with
Are they any good? Are they any good? the outside world
This is a truly over-ear design, and those Who wants to tear up the rulebook? The when you need
generous earcups will overwhelm anyone IO-6s look exactly as you’d expect a pair to be. All this can
whose lugs are on the smaller side. They’re of expensive headphones to look, and be controlled via
distinctive without being show-offy, with feel how you’d expect them to feel. The a suite of physical
a smart combo of exposed steel and soft, earcups swivel through 180°, which makes buttons on the
tactile sheepskin. Everything looks and them easy to sling around your neck or right earcup, or
feels made to last. pack into their case, and build quality seems using the neat
The 17-hour battery will be exhausted up to prevailing standards. and reliable Smart
long before Bose or Sony rivals start to There’s a selection of controls and Control app.
flag, but at least charging (via USB-C) is inputs on the right earcup, with a 3.5mm
rapid – and there’s a jack socket for wired input on the left in case the battery dies… O There’s no Dali
listening when the juice runs out. but that really shouldn’t happen when app, and the IO-6s
Sound-wise, they’re brilliantly capable. you’re getting 30 hours of playback time don’t have degrees
It doesn’t matter what sort of music you even with ANC engaged. of ANC – it’s either
like to listen to, where you listen to it or Right from the off these over-ears on or off. But there
at what volume levels – these cans are give a detailed, three-dimensional and is a ‘transparency’
always an enjoyable listen. Presentation tonally impeccable listen. It’s not always setting, as on the
is open and wide, with great attention to possible to describe the sound of a pair Sennheisers. The
the details and texture. Bass hits hard but of headphones as ‘fun’, but in this case noise-cancellation
the overall tonality is brilliantly judged. it’s pretty easy. is pretty gentle,
which means you
Price £349 / stuff.tv/MomentumWireless Price £349 / stuff.tv/Dali6 don’t get that
[ Words Simon Lucas ]
Tech Bluetooth, 3.5mm, USB-C charging, Tech Bluetooth, 3.5mm, USB-C charging + feeling of inner-ear
voice control O 17hr battery O 304g audio, voice control O 30hr battery O 325g pressure that some
rivals inflict – but
Stuff says +++++ Stuff says ++++, background noise
Big headphones, big price, big sound: these For sound, the Dalis are easy to recommend; is never completely
are the best Momentums yet for features, not so much eradicated.
60
3
1 Untitled juice game

The Dalis can go from flat to
fully charged in just 2hrs, and TE
the USB-C port can be used
as a PC/Mac audio connection WI ST
as well as for charging. NN
ER
2 Last cans standing
Dali’s 30hr stamina estimate,
which with some headphones
is revealed to be about as
accurate as pub gossip, proves
quite correct.
3 Tile be home for Christmas

You can tweak the EQ with
Sennheiser’s app, and these
cans are compatible with Tile
tracking – good news for
serial headphone-losers.
4 I’ll standby you

Accelerometers pause the
music if you take them off
your head, and they go to
standby if you hang them
around your neck.
61
Everywhere you are
Read it, like it, share it
facebook.com/joinstuff
youtube.com/stuffmagazine
twitter.com/stuffTV
Apple News
instagram.com/stuffmag
T E S T E D B E N T L E Y F LY I N G S P U R
Come on you Spur Revised tech, stunning performance and

new levels of interior luxury ensure this
super-sedan is in a league of its own
Flying B from £168,300 / stuff.tv/BFSpur
This is the first
ever Bentley with Q As Stuff celebrates its 250th
a retractable Flying B issue, Bentley is busy cracking
mascot on the bonnet. open the champagne for its big
You can even get a centenary. Its birthday present to
version with wings itself? A spanking new Flying Spur,
that light up. revised from the ground up to offer
not just one of the most relaxing
rides ever on two wheels, but one
that also packs a serious punch.
Q The ride in the rear leather seats

is akin to flying first class – and
it’s made even better by a new 5in
colour touchscreen remote control.
Hit eject and it rises out of its
holder, allowing the occupants
to turn on the massaging seats,
adjust the ambient lighting and
control the entertainment on the
seat-back screens.
Q Tech treats are extended to the

front half of the cabin too, with
a new 12.3in digital touchscreen
taking care of entertainment and
car functionality. You can option
the beautiful Bentley Rotating
Display, which flips around to
reveal analogue dials, a ‘digital
detox’ wood veneer finish or the
infotainment screen.
Q Power is provided by a 626bhp

6.0-litre twin-turbocharged W12
engine that effortlessly propels
this three-tonne barge to 60mph
in just 3.7 seconds. But more
importantly, clever 48V electronic
actuators on the rollbar of
each axle can adjust stiffness
in milliseconds. This means the
ride is pillowy-soft when it needs
to be, or firm for the rare occasions
when you fancy challenging a
Lamborghini to a race up the side
Q Short corner Q Late winner of a mountain.
All-wheel-drive doesn’t mean Bonus tech features include
you can drive your Flying Spur up Wi-Fi for up to eight devices, Tech specs
a cliff, but it does equate to better a phone app for controlling many
grip in poor weather conditions. features remotely, a head-up Engine 6.0-litre twin-turbo W12
It also has all-wheel steering, display for the driver and even 0-60mph 3.7s Top speed 207mph
and tackles corners like a car night vision that monitors the Displays 12.3in touchscreen,
half its size. road up to 300 metres ahead. 5in touchscreen remote control
STUFF SAYS Punchy styling and interior luxury… plus Herculean performance +++++
A car that feels Limousines are traditionally opulent, comfortable and cosseting places that only the
this good just to super-rich can afford to spend time in. Very little has changed here, but the fact that
sit in shouldn’t be the new Flying Spur can drive the way it does and offer such a breadth of interior
this good to drive technology is quite remarkable. It’s the luxury limo that thinks it’s a supercar, and
Leon Poultney it should be on any lottery winner’s shortlist.
63
DJI OSMO ACTION
ONE TWO THREE

CYNOVA DUAL 3.5mm/ BLAVOR SOLAR GOPRO 3-WAY
E… D
USB-C ADAPTER POWER BANK GRIP/ARM/TRIPOD

ES AD
TH ST
R
FI
Ultra-wide action cameras This camera charges up The Osmo Action won’t
capture stunning footage via a USB-C port, so it gets work with every GoPro
and make adventures look on perfectly with battery accessory out there, but
larger than life, especially packs. Why would you get it will work with this one:
when laid against an upbeat just any old battery pack for a selfie stick, tripod and
backing track. But if you your all-action adventures, camera grip in one. Its smart
plan on vlogging, the Osmo though? Blavor makes a folding design makes it
Action’s microphones are splashproof, dustproof and perfect for grab-and-go
pretty weak. No sweat: you shockproof 10,000mAh sightseeing, while its bendy
can get great audio with an solar power bank complete design means it won’t get in
external mic of your choice with torch, compass and your shot like a traditional
and this USB-C adapter. wireless charging pad. selfie stick.
£39 / dronesdirect.co.uk £26 / amazon.co.uk £60 / gopro.com
64
E… AD
IS DO
TH WN ND
ES LO
TH W
…
DO A
NO
DJI MIMO
This app works as a
remote viewfinder,
also giving control
over shooting
modes plus photo
1 BE QUICK 2 GO STEADY 3 FRONT UP and video capture.
It even gives you
Above the USB-C flap you’ll find RockSteady, DJI’s clever image DJI has given the Osmo Action the option to
the most powerful button on stabilisation tech, is what makes a front display so you can frame wirelessly transfer
the Osmo Action: Quick Switch this such a great action cam. your vlogs perfectly. If you files to your phone.
(QS). Press it to cycle through When you fire it up, life through can’t figure out how to make £free / Android, iOS
a bunch of predefined shooting the lens looks like a steadied the switch, we’ve got three
modes… or customise it to suit still-life snapshot – completely solutions for you. Option one
your needs. To do this, fire up mindblowing. To check that this is to double-tap the screen on
the Quick Switch menu, tap feature is active, swipe up on the back with two fingers – but
the three dots on the right and the viewfinder and ensure the that won’t work mid-recording.
look through the list of modes. RockSteady box at top right To switch any time you want,
Simply check and uncheck to is blue. This works at up to 4K you’ll need to go for option two:
suit your needs, and you’ll have (16:9) resolution, but won’t work long-press the QS button. As
a bespoke list at your fingertips. at 4:3 or with HDR activated. for the third option… PREMIERE
PRO
You can sign up for
a 30-day free trial
of this top-class
video editing suite
when you create a
new account… and
your brilliant new
camera probably
deserves it.
£30/m / adobe.com
4 SPEAK OUT 5 TUNE UP 6 DON’T VLOG UNTIL…

LYNDA
Just like GoPro’s Hero7 Black If you want complete control As hard as it might be to believe, If you’re a fan of
flagship, this cam can take voice over your content, swipe in from action cameras weren’t created video tutorials
commands, and they’re a piece the right of the viewfinder and for vlogging. The clue’s in the and YouTube just
of cake to master. You can tell it you can fine-tune photo and name: these gadgets were isn’t cutting it any
to start or stop recording, take a video capture. With photos, DJI made to be whacked onto bike more, Lynda is
photo, shut down or, yes, switch gives you full manual control helmets and gliders. By default, the next step. It
screens. With no wake-up word over everything other than therefore, they’re set to expose has hundreds of
required, it feels really natural to the fixed aperture. You can also for scenery, not faces. So if you courses on video
bark orders hands-free. Fire up set a custom white balance plan on vlogging, go to settings editing, and seven
this feature by swiping down for videos, make footage look and select Face-Oriented are specifically
from the top of the viewfinder flatter and more cinematic, Exposure. The camera will about action cams.
[ Words Basil Kronfli ]
and tapping the image of the or change the video recording now make sure your mug is £15/m / lynda.com
person speaking. format from mov to mp4. always exposed beautifully.
65
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Satmap.com | [email protected] | 01372 869 070

G R O U P T E S T TA B L E T S
It’s bezels at dawn as Apple’s latest iPad duels with Samsung

and Amazon slates built for different purposes and purses
BEST BEST
FOR FOR
BARGAIN DIGITAL
LOVERS ARTISTS
BEST
FOR
MULTI-
TASKERS
Amazon Fire HD 10 Apple iPad (2019) Samsung Tab S6

What’s the story? What’s the story? What’s the story?
Amazon’s Fire HD tablets never change all Apple’s 2019 entry-level iPad is hard to The iPad Pro is Stuff’s No1 tablet, but it’s
that much on the outside, but the latest 10.1in get excited about it, but it’s not like there’s oh-so-easy to spec up and spend a fortune
version has had some significant upgrades nothing to talk about. The 10.2in Retina on. If you want an alternative, Samsung is
on the inside that make its £150 asking price display is larger, there’s support for the arguably the only name competing in that
seem like a bit of a steal… that is, if you can full-size Smart Keyboard and it runs iPadOS, genuinely premium arena. The Galaxy Tab S6
learn to live with a bit of a chubby bezel and Apple’s tablet-specific software designed to is its latest offering… and it might well be the
a matt plastic casing. make the slab a credible laptop alternative. best Android tablet money can buy.
Is it any good? It it any good? Is it any good?

Amazon frankly obliterates the competition It’s inferior to the iPad Air and Pro, but if all After a fling with glass rears, Samsung has
at the lower end of the tab market. Headline you want it for is media consumption and reverted to aluminium on the Tab S6 and
features here include Alexa hands-free typing docs, Apple’s cheapest slate is hard it feels glorious to grab. The 10.5in display
functionality and a new picture-in-picture to beat. The £130 extra for an Air buys you offers sharp images, rich colours and great
mode for streaming video from Prime or a faster processor than the A10 Fusion and contrast, but it’s with artwork that things get
other services while you check your email a better screen, but they’re not must-haves, interesting thanks to the S-Pen – a serious
or browse the web. A faster processor, especially as this iPad remains an attractive piece of tech for sketching and other creative
12hr battery life with USB-C charging and and strong-performing tablet. And the new pursuits. Elsewhere, the Snapdragon 855 chip
32GB of expandable storage all make this OS’s arrival makes this an ideal time to invest holds plenty of power for gamers, making this
an incredibly tempting proposition. in an iPad if you haven’t done so for a while. the best premium tab for Apple-phobes.
Price from £150 / amazon.co.uk Price from £349 / apple.com Price from £619 / samsung.com
Stuff says +++++ Stuff says ++++, Stuff says ++++,

An absolute bargain if you’re OK forfeiting A minor update, but this is still the best Speedy and packing the ace S-Pen, this is the
premium build quality entry-level tablet top Android tablet for sketchers and gamers
67
FUTURE GADGETS
NEXT BIG
THINGS
The future of gadgets is always a tough one to predict,
so we asked someone else to do the hard work for us
himp chauffeurs, roads makers are pretty much the only
C replaced by tubes and

rocket mail are just
some of the forecasts
companies I’ve come across that
by their own definition live in a
permanent state of crisis, fearing
for 2020 that look set to miss they’ll be disrupted, so they’re
the mark. No mention of Spurs fixated with continually inventing
winning silverware… but it just ‘the next thing’.”
goes to show, making predictions Griffin claims Huawei has a ‘2012 Griffin believes the only vibrate and
is risky. So to mark our 250th Division’, named after the disaster way we’ll move away generate energy.”
issue with some future-gazing, movie, where a team of over 200 from smartphones is if The tech still has a while
we decided to largely wash our people look at every weird piece of makers can figure out to go, he admits, but
hands of it. new tech and “have a faff about” to something new to do battery-free phones
Instead meet Matthew Griffin, figure out how best to use it – not with the screen that the have already been
an award-winning futurist dubbed unlike the Stuff office. Samsung mass market will accept. successfully tested for
‘the adviser behind the advisers’, has a team up to 3000 building all So expect to see ever basic functions like calls
whose clients include leading tech manner of prototypes. more flexible displays, and texts.
firms and governments. “I look “Culture, regulation and liabilities, but with some incredibly
at two types of future: 0-20 insurance, geopolitics, accessibility cool things crammed You can’t hurry, love
years, where most companies and affordability typically control inside… or in the case “We’re looking at 2040
sit, and 20-50 years, where most whether something will emerge of batteries, removed to 2050 before ditching
governments try to sit,” Griffin tells and be widely adopted,” says Griffin. altogether. batteries altogether
Stuff. “Take Samsung and Huawei. So a lot of it might not… but we “Samsung is readying because phones are
The world’s two largest phone made him spill the beans anyway. graphene-based so energy-hungry; but
lithium-ion batteries as materials get lighter,
that will charge in more flexible and more
seconds,” he says. energy-efficient we can
“They’re about 400% do all sorts of things,”
faster and give you three adds Griffin. “For now,
times the energy density. phones are likely to use
But phones won’t always ever more advanced
have batteries.” AI processors, feature
11k screens with a
In the air tonight natural 3D effect that’s
Griffin explains: “There already being tested,
is a type of energy tech and offer greater VR
called ‘backscatter’. We integration.
all know there’s energy in “This is where the
the air around us – radio ecosystem of gadgets
FUTURE waves, radiation, sound becomes more than the
– so about two years sum of its parts. So for
SMARTPHONES ago the world’s first example you have your
smartphone without phone, but you buy a
a battery was created, packet of plasters that
that harvested radio are effectively electronic
frequency energy from tattoos for monitoring
the air. your vitals,” says Griffin.
“We’ve got companies “Before long your
in the UK using materials phone becomes
with nano-sized hairs, a fully blown tricorder
so whenever you talk or monitoring every area
there’s a sound, the hairs of your health.”
68
FUTURE GADGETS
A bug’s life Watt next?

Backscatter is an At present a few
accidental reinvention microwatts can be
of Soviet spy technology harvested from the air,
where bugs were but it takes tens of
activated and powered thousands just to
by radio waves. make a call.
Prodigal sun
Ambient light can also
be turned into a trickle of
electricity using solar
panels… but those panels
are currently only
17% efficient.
69
FUTURE GADGETS
Chatter bots
Amazon has already
introduced Alexa
Conversations, where
skills are coded to
support natural and
multi-topic chats.
Cheating heart
Google AI can reportedly
predict whether a patient
will experience a heart
attack or other major
cardiovascular event
within five years.
Twitch doctor
The AI system that can
tell if you’re lying is called
Avatar. It looks out for
changes in eyes, voice
and posture to give
away a fibber.
70
FUTURE GADGETS
FUTURE FUTURE FUTURE

ASSISTANTS MOVIES SPORT
How do you fancy being placed

in the centre of a football match
while it’s being broadcast on
TV, or taking on the world’s best
athletes from your sofa? If that
sounds a bit Ready Player One,
that’s because it kind of is – thanks
A full social life with about to have a heart to VR, haptics and 5G.
Alexa awaits – but your attack, or if you’re “Let’s start with footballers,”
AI butler could one day enjoying the movie says Griffin, “I could take the video
turn super-sleuth in a you’re watching.” of a Premier League game, convert
criminal investigation Griffin’s been working with one of it using Samsung or Nvidia tech
too. “By giving AI a Turn it on again the world’s biggest film companies into a 3D VR simulation on an HTC
long-term memory and “It can assess your on the future of movie-making Vive and put a player straight back
improving its contextual personality, character (tough gig). It’s set to heavily into the game to analyse where he
analysis and reasoning, and intent for criminality involve VR and AI, and it’s giving went wrong. I could then combine
you get to the point fairly and figure out whether the Oscars people a headache. that with AI rendering and a haptic
quickly where you can you’re lying with greater “The Lion King was made entirely Teslasuit, so if he did something
have a conversation,” accuracy than a in VR and the Oscars have no idea different the AI could compensate
Griffin tells Stuff. polygraph. Effectively how to classify it, because it’s not and we’d see the results.
“There are lots of that’s Alexa giving you real and it’s not animation,” he “Using the same VR tech running
people doing it – Google, a medical or a psychiatric says. “All they really used was over 5G I could ‘sub’ you in: put you
Microsoft, IBM, the assessment at home, or a 20x20m studio. The team went in a Teslasuit and VR headset, pitch
usual suspects – but even questioning you as to Africa, figured out what they you against top-class footballers
realistically, this time a suspect – and it can do needed and created the entire and see how you do – in a game
next year you will see this now. The only thing savannah in VR back home.” that’s actually playing on TV.”
Amazon saying you can holding it back is the
have a chat with Alexa: issue of privacy: who Land of confusion Follow you follow me
asking it follow-up wants Alexa always But AI film-making is where it gets And if you actually want to work up
questions like why watching?” really interesting. “We’re increasingly a sweat – just without leaving the
something is the way All this stuff means using AI to create synthetic content. house because, you know, light
it is, or how to make adoption is likely to be Think text generators like OpenAI drizzle and all that? Griffin says
something.” gradual if at all, so you that can write the news, synthetic electromagnetic floors are on the
may notice your AI butler audio like Google Duplex, and AI way, allowing you to run in every
Take a look at me now staging interventions first musicians being signed by Sony. direction while using VR, without
Talk is only half the story, to gain your trust. “Then there’s AI creating video. the need for a treadmill. That
because Griffin claims “Let’s say you ask We will get to the point where you means running a marathon
the biggest impact we’ll Alexa to play you a song. press a big button, go ‘Make me a but always staying in one room,
see is AI plus machine If Amazon wanted, it blockbuster Marvel movie’ and off perhaps pausing every so often for
vision. “Those two could say: ‘I’ve noticed it goes… but first about 70 different a Pot Noodle. Sounds alright to us.
technologies combined your voice is a little AI disciplines have to mature.”
change everything, deeper than usual, That means machines grasping
because it means you’re I think you’re getting the what a story is – plus emotions, the
giving smart devices flu, would you like me to laws of nature and more.
better than human sight,” video-call the doctor?’ “To give you an idea, three years
he says. You then sit in front of ago decent ‘deep fake’ tech was at
“Then the camera on a screen, get assessed the back of a lab and you needed
your laptop, tablet, phone and are issued with a a bunch of experts to do anything
or TV can monitor your prescription – and this with it. Now you can get it free
behaviour, health and is two weeks before you in an app. And all these fields are
mood, to tell you if you’re actually get properly ill.” accelerating at a similar pace.”
71
TESTED GOOGLE NEST HUB MAX
Lovin’ this Hub

Google’s latest home assistant has a 10in screen,
I don’t mind
The Nest Hub Max is
available in either chalk
or charcoal finishes,
meaning it can’t
security-cam smarts and enough audio power possibly clash with
anything.
to usher in a new era of singing digital butlers
£219 / stuff.tv/NestHubMax
QThe future never did bring

us a teleportation pad in every
living room… but you can have
a disembodied voice reminding
you to buy toilet paper. This, and
turning off your bedroom light
while you’re under the covers,
is a big part of the reality of digital
assistants – but the Google Nest
Hub Max does more than that.
QAs well as being a great host

for Google Assistant, this gadget
jacks up the ‘virtual butler’
experience with sound good
enough to make it the only
speaker you need 95% of the
time, and a big screen that’ll
make waiting for pasta to cook
a lot more enjoyable.
QThe Nest Hub Max only has

two mics, not seven like the Apple
HomePod or Amazon Echo Dot,
but it seems to hear just as well.
It’ll understand commands over
music and background noise,
and Google Assistant is still ahead
of Siri and Alexa in terms of how
natural interactions feel.
QAudio isn’t just an afterthought

here: the Hub Max sounds great
for a smart display. It has a 75mm
bass woofer and two tweeters,
all adding up to a beefy-sounding
speaker that gives real punch to
your tunes.
QThe inclusion of a Nest camera

means you can use it like a video
intercom, or (with a Nest Aware
subscription) as a home security
cam. Sadly our review unit proves
unreliable in this role, and there’s
no night-vision mode. Q Cue remind me Q Good misser
This thing has a touchscreen The Hub Max is a pro at being an
Tech specs but it responds better to voice ‘ambient’ display. It can match a
commands, and the screen room’s lighting so it doesn’t stick
Display 10in 1280x800 touchscreen wouldn’t impress anyone if this out too much, while keeping
Connectivity Bluetooth, Wi-Fi, were a standard tablet either: what’s on the screen clear. It’s
Google Assistant, Chromecast 1280x800 pixels over 10 inches much better at this than the
Dimensions 250x183x101mm, 1.3kg doesn’t look sharp up close. Amazon Echo Show 5.
STUFF SAYS A model smart display, even if a few aspects still need tweaking ++++,
Nice gadget… Smart displays are going through a bit of an awkward stage as Google and Amazon
and it’ll be even wrestle for power over your living room. In this case that means you can’t play
better when Prime Video or Netflix on the Google Nest Hub Max. The security cam feature is
it’s finished a bit wobbly too, but buy this product knowing it’s a bit of a work in progress and
Andrew Williams you’ll be happy. After all, it does plenty to keep you entertained already.
72
TESTED SEGA MEGA DRIVE MINI
Drive is home for Xmas Sega’s long-awaited entry into the

miniaturised retro console market has
arrived in time to squeeze onto Santa’s sled
Let’s dance £70 / stuff.tv/MegaDriveMini
From the moment
you turn it on, the QNearly two decades after Sega
Mega Drive Mini charms officially left the console-making
with its catchy menu business, it’s a delight to see the
music by legendary Japanese company revive its most
composer Yuzo beloved 16-bit machine – and this
Koshiro. is the real thing, not some branded
knock-off using dodgy emulation.
QIt’s too late for the Mega Drive’s

30th anniversary, which was last
year, but the wait has been worth
it: this lovingly dinky and accurate
replica includes a whopping 42
games, more than the SNES Mini
and PlayStation Classic combined.
QSega has done an excellent

job of faithfully reproducing the
console based on its iconic Model 1
design, except at a hand-friendly
55% of the original size. It’s even
got flaps for the dummy cartridge
slot. Bundled in are two control
pads, and the six-foot cables are
a vast improvement over the ones
you get with some mini consoles.
QThe emulation work has been

handled by retro masters M2, also
behind the Sega Ages ports for
the Switch, so you can expect
these 40 classic games to run
every bit as well as you remember
them. As a bonus, they’ve even
ported a pair of old arcade gems,
classic puzzler Tetris and hardcore
shoot-’em-up Darius.
QFor modern audiences who

might have a problem with the
old-school difficulty levels of these
games, you’re able to create up to
four save states… though there’s
no rewind function. Handily, you
can access the save menu just by
Q The code to hell Q Cool if you think it’s over holding down the start button on
While Sega has re-released its A lot of the games are perfect for your controller.
16-bit back catalogue on other pick-up-and-play sessions, and
platforms before, this collection over a third support two-player. Tech specs
offers a fine summary of the Those who want to invest in
console’s history – including their nostalgia for longer can Games included 42
third-party titles such as Street also enjoy RPGs like Shining Force Connectivity HDMI, USB
Fighter II and Castle of Illusion. and Phantasy Star IV. Dimensions 270x176x73mm, 998g
STUFF SAYS Sega’s back – and this really is the ultimate mini gaming machine +++++
Sega’s console There’ll be playground rows and online feuds over whether Nintendo’s or Sega’s
comeback is a games are better, but the Mega Drive Mini wins the mini retro console war in terms
perfect little box of the faithful recreation of both hardware and software. It’s taken a long time to get
of arcade fun here, but as the saying goes, to be this good takes ages – and the Sega is going to be
Alan Wen the must-buy console this Christmas.
73
BETA YOURSELF
macOS CATALINA
It may be named after an island, but the new Apple OS makes
the Mac less isolated than ever, linking up apps, services
and devices – Craig Grannell delves into its best bits
THE BASICS approval, and warning you

when your passwords are
rubbish. It’ll nuke your old
QPrepare yourself extensions, mind.
Before updating, choose
‘About This Mac’ from the QMake yourself appy
Apple menu, then System As with iOS, Catalina brings
Report. Under Software, click some welcome updates to
Applications. Anything listed Reminders. Elsewhere, Notes
as ‘No’ in the ‘64-Bit’ column has a gallery view, and Photos
is not compatible with Catalina. brings out best moments.
Check for updates, and hold Also check the Mac App Store
off on installing the new for iPad ports such as the
OS if none are available and new Mac Twitter app, Carrot
you consider those apps vital. Weather and GoodNotes.
Before you do update, make are available on Mac, and
a full bootable backup using on-boarding can be clunky, QZoom it better
SuperDuper or Carbon Copy leaving you to figure out The green zoom button still
Cloner – just in case. the controls. switches a window between
full-screen and windowed
QGet your game face on QGo on Safari mode (or maximises
The Mac App Store now has Check out the useful new displayed content if you
an Arcade tab. If you’re already features of Apple’s browser: alt-click), but you can now
signed up to Apple Arcade, open tab recommendations hover over it for more options.
progress will sync from in the address bar, improved These include snapping the
wherever you left a game media controls when current window to half of the
on your other Apple devices. right-clicking a tab’s speaker screen, or sending it to an iPad
But note that not all titles icon, per-site download if you’re using Sidecar.
SCREEN TIME
QMonitor usage
In System Preferences,
select Screen Time. Here,
you can peruse app usage
Nighty night by individual app or category,
Dark Mode isn’t new to unearthing your unhealthy
Mac, but automating it is. Twitter addiction. Websites are
In System Preferences > listed too, as are notifications.
General, click Auto to have
your Mac switch to Dark QKnow your limits
Mode during evenings. Under App Limits, click ‘+’ to
set a daily limit for app groups
(or a single app found via
search). Limits can be set
per day by clicking Custom,
allowing you to differentiate
weekend usage. Use
Downtime and Always
Allowed to severely limit
access during certain hours.
74
DAY-ONE
INSTALLS
MOOM
Catalina enhances the
zoom button, but it’s a
far cry from Moom. With
this app you can create
custom shortcuts for
tweaking windows, snap
windows when they’re
dragged to a screen
edge, or replace Apple’s
zoom smarts with a
clever canvas.
$10 / manytricks.com
BETTERTOUCHTOOL
If you’re usually wedded
to your keyboard,
BetterTouchTool will
DO THE be bliss. Use it to create
SPLITS and trigger system-wide
shortcuts for everything
from app launches to
QAdd some Music firing system commands
Sorry, iTunes fans (both of or scripts. Also use it to
you), but that app’s now dead power up your trackpad
on Mac. For audio delights, and Siri remote.
you now use the Music app. $21 / folivora.ai
MEET THE FAMILY It’s basically iTunes Lite, but LOCK IT DOWN
heavily emphasises Apple
Music; the iTunes Store clings
QSketch with iPhone on in the sidebar. QFind your stuff
It was already possible to use Find My provides a central
your iPhone as a handheld QSync in Finder location to track kit… and
scanner; now you can import To sync a device with a Mac, anyone who’s okayed your
sketches too. In a context or back it up, connect it to digital voyeurism. With a
menu, select Import from your Mac and select it from device, click info for options,
iPhone or iPad > Add Sketch. the Locations section of such as having your iPhone
Doodle away on your iPhone, Finder’s sidebar. You’ll get play an ear-splitting noise BACKBLAZE
and tap Done to import. the same options that used when it’s lost in your flat. Time Machine is now
to exist within iTunes. baked into macOS, so
QRide the Sidecar QWatch your apps you can back up files just
If you have supported kit, QFind other media Ensure your Apple Watch by plugging in an external
connect to your iPad from TV and podcasts have been is running watchOS 6 and is drive. That’s great until
the AirPlay icon in the menu relocated to standalone TV signed in to the right Apple ID. something goes wrong
bar (activated in Display under and Podcasts apps. Purchases Then, in System Preferences with that backup, or you
System Preferences). You can go along for the ride, but be > Security & Privacy, you get robbed – so cloud
now send Mac windows to mindful that Up Next in the can allow it to unlock apps. backup is a must. This
your iPad display, use Apple Mac TV app directs you to Double-click the watch’s side is a reliable choice.
Pencil, and interact with a Apple’s store rather than button when prompted to $6/m / backblaze.com
virtual Touch Bar. third-party telly apps. access locked content.
75
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We pick out the Choose from
best price for our roster of
every featured great-value
product retailers
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T E S T E D H U AW E I WAT C H G T 2
Pretty in sync Don’t let the ‘Watch’ part fool you: while
the GT 2 is a handsome wearable for
fitness tracking, it’s not all that smart
from £179 / stuff.tv/WatchGT2
QThe Watch GT 2 is a beauty:

Metal ticky
round and sleek with a giant, bright
As well as two
screen. It’s a smartwatch we’ve
standard shades of
loved having on our wrist… except
stainless steel, you get
it isn’t really a smartwatch at all,
a titanium option for
just a very fancy fitness tracker.
the 46mm version
Running Huawei’s Lite OS, there’s
or rose gold for
no app ecosystem, but it does offer
the 42mm.
up to two weeks’ battery life.
QChoose between a suave but

sizeable 46mm with a speaker
and call functionality or a 42mm
version minus those features. Both
have zingy AMOLED screens, but
the 46mm has higher resolution
plus double the stamina and RAM.
QLite OS is easy to navigate, but

limited compared to Wear OS. It’s
lacking a voice assistant, while
message notifications give you
truncated snippet previews. You
get staples like a timer, alarm and
stopwatch, but performance lags
behind Apple and Samsung. Still,
it’s perfectly usable, and a drop in
smoothness for better battery life
will suit many people.
QHuawei has upped its tracking

game, adding stress monitoring
to the mix as well as a barometer.
There’s detailed sleep tracking
too, although it couldn’t tell when
we woke up in the night unless we
got out of bed. Heart monitoring is
accurate and there are 16 workout
modes to select from, plus links to
Apple Health, Google Fit and My
Fitness Pal – but not Strava.
Tech specs
Screen 1.4in 454x454 (46mm) or
Q Slim tickings Q Alive and ticking 1.2in 390x390 (42mm) AMOLED
Our GT 2 was the 46mm Sport If you have automated heart and Processor Kirin A1 Storage 4GB
Edition and it looked glorious. stress tracking turned off and Battery life Up to 2 weeks
The watch has a dial etched into don’t fire up a lot of workouts, Sensors Accelerometer, gyroscope,
the frame and two crown-like you may be able to hit Huawei’s geomagnetic, HRM, ambient light,
buttons on the right, and it isn’t claimed two-week battery life. barometer Water-resistance 5ATM
obnoxiously chunky. And the If you actually plan on using your Dimensions 46x46x10.7mm, 41g;
rubber strap feels comfortable. wearable, it’s more like one week. 42x42x9.4mm, 29g
STUFF SAYS The best-looking tracker money can buy – but it’s not a smartwatch ++++,
Sexy on the The Watch GT 2 is having an identity crisis. We’re impressed with the design, the
outside, not so tracking skills and the battery life… but it’s undeniably less functional than an Apple
sophisticated Watch or a Galaxy Watch, and it doesn’t play nicely with third-party apps so won’t be
on the inside one for serious fitness fiends. If you’re OK with those compromises, it’s cheaper and
Basil Kronfli probably better-looking than most, if not all, its competition.
77
TWO WEEKS WITH THE SONOS MOVE
Carry on amping
Sonos’s first portable speaker promises all of the brand’s signature audio quality
on the go – so Simon Lucas keeps on moving for a fortnight of hobo-friendly hi-fi
£399 / stuff.tv/SonosMove
Sonos One on steroids. The

DAY 01 bottom of the cabinet is heftily
The Sonos range of wireless rubberised for durability – the
speakers has been crying out Sonos website shows a Move
for a battery-powered portable being heedlessly dropped from
offering for ages – and finally, a height with no ill effects, though
our favourite multiroom audio we’re not about to test that
specialist has caved in. theory. Not on the first day of
Could it be, though, that Sonos testing anyway.
has left it too late? After all, every The top of the Move has
other brand with half a reputation basic touch-controls and mics,
for wireless speakers has had and from there down to the
a portable Bluetooth (and apparently bomb-proof base
sometimes waterproof) version it’s pretty much all sturdy
in its range since the days acoustic grille. Oh, except at
when Boris Johnson was just the back of the speaker – there
the harmless old Mayor of you’ll find a sculpted handle, plus
This thing is certainly loud and punchy

enough to make itself heard outdoors,
and there’s real authority to the bass
London. Are there any customers USB-C for charging, a power
left to woo in 2019? on/off control and a switch
Fingers crossed that there are. to toggle between Bluetooth
Because not only is the Move and Wi-Fi inputs. There’s also
the speaker Sonos should have a setup/reset control.
launched years ago, but it’s one The Move feels hard-wearing
of the best products of its type and built to last – the ‘shadow’
and price that we’ve heard. black finish (which is currently
There have been concessions your only option) is supposedly
made to the Move’s outdoorsy able to withstand all sorts of
potential where design and build outdoor unpleasantness like
are concerned, but not so many heat, cold, sunscreen and
that you wouldn’t pick this out as (obviously) mustard. Its IP56
a Sonos product. rating means humidity, rain,
At 24cm it’s on the tall side, salt-spray, dust and all the
but its gentle cylindrical shape rest shouldn’t put a crimp in
serves to make it look like a its performance either.
78
LO N G -T E R M T E S T
01 05
Donut of Truth™
01 Hi-fi sound with plenty of 04 A slight lack of substance
04 power for outdoor listening to the top end, especially at
02 The best Wi-Fi range of higher volumes
any Sonos speaker 05 Sound quality isn’t quite
02 03 Easy to make part of a as good over Bluetooth as it
03 multiroom setup is with Wi-Fi
Tech specs OR TRY...

Drivers 1x tweeter,
1x mid-woofer,
2x Class D amps
Connectivity
Bluetooth,
Wi-Fi, AirPlay 2,
voice control,
USB-C charging
Battery life 10hrs
Water/dust-
proofing IP56
IKEA
Dimensions 240x SYMFONISK
160x126mm, 3kg from £99 / ikea.com
The Move isn’t the
only new Sonos kit
to consider – thanks
to a collaboration with
Swedish meatball
enthusiasts Ikea.
Its Symfonisk range
comprises a wireless
DAY 02 DAY 07 speaker (£99) and a
Wireless range is good – I’ve just Time to introduce the Move to table lamp with one
popped out into the garden to the rest of my Sonos multiroom built in (£150).
entertain the birds and it’s held the system. It’s child’s play – thanks Solidly built, smart
Wi-Fi connection without resorting in part to the simple excellence of and premium to the
to Bluetooth. Sonos’s control app. The physical touch, these dual-
Audio is delivered by a mid/bass controls are minimal but effective, branded devices can
driver and a downward-facing and the mics for voice control be integrated into
tweeter, fuelled by two Class D prove bat-like. Or is it hawk-like? an existing Sonos
amplifiers. Sonos is saying nothing Whatever, it’s got really good ears. network, but a slight
about the composition of the dip in sound quality
drivers or the output power, but compared to a Sonos
this thing is certainly loud and DAY 11 One means they
punchy enough to make itself You know Sonos’s Trueplay tech, won’t be a genuine
heard outdoors. for tuning the sound to the room? threat to the
The Move has Auto Trueplay, established order.
which recalibrates the speaker Stuff says ++++,
DAY 04 whenever it’s moved.
Staying in the house today, there’s Of course, moving the Move
real control and authority to the means you might need to switch
bass, despite how deep the Move from Wi-Fi to Bluetooth reception,
extends and how hard it hits. Low which is simply a case of pressing
As well as a
notes start and stop on time, never the switch on the back. This does
USB-C socket,
merging into a vague drone. have an impact on sound quality:
the Move has a
And there’s plenty of texture the presentation loses just a bit of
mains-powered
and detail revealed in vocals: it positivity and expansiveness. STUFF SAYS
ring in which it sits
exposes so much detail in Tom
to charge.
Waits’ infamously croaky grumble Sonos finally
that I’m getting a sore throat just DAY 14 gets up to
from listening. Even though it’s taken an eternity
Up at the top end, though, to get here, Sonos’s first portable
speed with
things can lack a little body. speaker is entirely worth the the portable
There’s no shortage of attack,
but treble sounds can get slightly
wait. Its adaptability and, most
importantly, its sound mean it’s
speaker craze,
splashy – a trait that becomes fine value for money and a bit of and in style
more apparent the more you up a no-brainer for anyone who’s +++++
the volume. already Sonos-inclined.
79
VERSUS GAMES
The scoring
twenties
Both sides have given it 110 per cent but at the end of the day there can only be one winner and
luckily it’s gone in the back of the net and you have to say it’s no more than they deserve, Gary
T
TES ER
INN
W
FIFA 20 eFootball PES 2020

It’s hard to feel sorry for PSG, one really nice addition is the Some people say we shouldn’t is a reflection of the ‘we’ll take
but Neymar and his ultra-rich confusingly named ‘lofted ground compare Messi and Ronaldo. what we can get’ approach to
mates do find some hilarious pass’, letting you lift the ball Rather, we should just sit back licensing that underdog Konami
ways of getting dumped out slightly off the turf to get it over and enjoy a time when two of is still forced to take.
of the Champions League every an outstretched leg. football’s GOATiest GOATs can Still, with Barca and Bayern
season. There’s a theory that For those who don’t have time spur each other on to even already on board, the addition
they’re so used to swatting to master skill moves, EA has greater heights. of Juventus means this game
aside every other French team added ‘strafe dribbling’, which It feels like we’re in a golden has three of the biggest clubs
that they’ve forgotten how to makes lateral movements while age for football games right in Europe covered. Their arenas
defend against good sides… and in possession easier. It’s best now too. While FIFA’s resources are meticulously recreated and
in recent years, FIFA has had a deployed in short bursts and will mean it’ll surely keep winning the the TV-style camera angle is a
similar issue. make lumbering centre-halves battle off the field, the past few triumph of authenticity.
It’s become so obsessed look like Bambi on ice… but you versions of Konami’s PES series And the football itself? This
with high-tempo, high-scoring also have a new weapon to have represented a genuine is a more patient approach than
football that it’s neglected the defend against it: an ‘agile jockey’ alternative. With less frenetic you get from FIFA, with defences
other side of the game: defence. move that allows defenders to gameplay and equal focus on tougher to break down. Konami
And so, particularly in FIFA 19, it’s move more nimbly. defence and attack, PES has has added a new finesse
lacked nuance and subtlety. The Journey mode is gone built a reputation for being a dribbling option and there
There are some real-life teams and in its place is Volta, which more considered game. are new first-touch techniques,
that play kamikaze football – but is almost identical to the old FIFA But can Konami iron out the making for a brilliant range of
it shouldn’t be easy, and there Street but with added narrative. niggles, or is it just too annoying ways to move the ball and open
should be ways to stop them. These matches are fast-paced to play as a team called FV Green up space. But it’s easy for passes
Has FIFA 20 managed to strike affairs, full of the kind of tricks Black in a kit that looks like it was to go astray, and tackling is still a
a better balance? that’d land you in A&E if you ever designed by George at Asda? bit of a lottery.
tried them at five-a-side, and PES 2020 remains the gaming
[ Words Tom Wiggins ]
Pundits’ analysis the skills required to be good at Pundits’ analysis equivalent of Tottenham under
First impressions are good. You Volta are almost entirely different Fire up eFootball PES 2020 and Pochettino: hugely impressive
do seem to get a bit more time to those in the main game. It’s you’ll be greeted by one of four despite operating on a tighter
on the ball now, and possession not for everyone, but you are faces: Lionel Messi, Miralem budget than its rivals, but just
feels a touch looser. Long passes essentially getting two games Pjanic, Serge Gnabry or, er, not quite good enough to take
are slightly more effective, and for the price of one. Scott McTominay. Well, this the next step.
STUFF SAYS ++++, STUFF SAYS ++++,

FIFA 20 succeeds in giving you more control, An engrossing and rewarding football game that
but it still loves goals more than anything else still can’t quite do it at the highest level
80
VERSUS GAMES
PS4, Xbox One, Switch, PC / stuff.tv/FIFA20
PS4, Xbox One, PC / stuff.tv/PES2020
81
TESTED GAMES
Switch / stuff.tv/LinksAwakening
The Legend of Zelda:

Link’s Awakening
Re-awakened for the Switch generation, one of our favourite Zelda titles plays it safe with
a pretty straight remake of the Game Boy original – and that’s absolutely fine with us
he last Legend of Zelda weirdest entries. This version remain faithfully intact. It’s what also a couple of niggles, including
T wound up shaking up
the whole series – and
comes a long way from the 8-bit
original, but reimagines it with an
you might call a frame-by-frame
remake, even though the outdoors
a chugging framerate every time
the open-world island has to load
all open-world games, in fact. You art style that’s adorable. Essentially, is now a seamless open world. up on leaving an interior.
could call it a hard act to follow. Koholint Island resembles a huge That means all the narrative Compared to the endless hours
But with a Breath of the Wild toy playset. elements and puzzles play out of exploration in Breath of the Wild,
sequel on the way, Nintendo has The plasticky feel makes total just as you remember. this game is relatively short. But
decided for now to return to a sense here – and it also sounds Apart from adding more heart it scratches the itch for Zelda fans
more traditional top-down Zelda, incredible, from the familiar music pieces and seashells, this remake who’ve missed old-fashioned
with all the dungeons and items brought to life with a new orchestral attempts to increase its longevity dungeons… and if you’ve never
we’ve known and loved in the arrangement to the pitter-patter of by letting you assemble your played Link’s Awakening, then you
series’ three decades. Link’s footsteps. own dungeons… but this is more owe it to yourself to experience
Well, we say ‘traditional’, but But even with new visuals and ‘remixing’, using tiles from existing one of the finest of the 2D entries
the Game Boy classic Link’s audio, the important thing is that dungeons, than actually creating, at its most weird and wonderful.
Awakening is still one of the the island’s layout and story beats and it feels restrictive. There are Alan Wen
STUFF SAYS A magical if familiar return for the handheld Zelda classic ++++,
82
TESTED GAMES
Nintendo Switches
things up a bit
Perhaps the best part of being
able to play Link’s Awakening
on Switch is that there are
immediately more buttons to
take advantage of than just the
A and B options on the Game
Boy. That means organising
your equipment is much more
convenient than before, so
you can spend less time in
the menu screen.
While you still only get to
freely map two items to X and
Y, a lot of your key equipment
is actually mapped to specific
buttons once you’ve acquired
them. You’ll always slash
your sword with B, the right
shoulder buttons put your
Well, you’d want awakening Phew, that’s better. Next shield up, and holding the left
too if you dreamed about in the series: Link’s shoulder buttons charges up
a graveyard full of eyeballs. Morning Bowel Movement. your Pegasus Boots dash. And
you don’t need to manually
equip the power bracelet to
pick up objects.
Just as convenient are some
very modern features such
as auto-saving, as well as an
improvement to the fast travel
system, including a few extra
warp points. Taking a leaf from
Breath of the Wild, you can
even add pins to the map,
including in dungeons – so
you can keep track of clues
if you’ll need to come back later
with the right gear.
And of course, if all those
conveniences sound too easy,
you can always play on Hero
mode for a proper challenge.
83
TESTED GAMES
PS4, Xbox One, PC, Stadia / stuff.tv/Borderlands3
Borderlands 3
As long as you have a high cringe threshold, the latest in the ever-tasteless
open-world FPS series will keep you blasting away long into the night
orderlands 3 is a bit like different play style: Amara the

B that bloke in your office
who “tells it like it is”.
Siren, FL4K the Beastmaster,
Moze the Gunner, and Zane the
You’re not friends exactly, but Operative. With the main events
you’d sit in the kitchen eating happening to the people around “Oh no,
a warm sandwich with him if you, all you really do is bounce someone’s
you had to. from mission to mission, collecting taken all my
This is the Borderlands brand. stuff or clearing the bad guys. It’s Pom-Bears and
It’s unapologetic and in-your-face a shame your character is so bland
just left a load
and puerile, and we love that. But and irrelevant… especially with so
while Handsome Jack was the many colourful folks occupying the of old guns.”
villain to rule all villains, your new NPC ranks.
antagonists – Calypso Twins But the key to Borderlands 3’s
Troy and Tyreen – are animated appeal is a delightful gameplay
meatbags of every millennial trope loop that will keep you pressing
you can think of. onwards way after you promised
This latest instalment tries so yourself you’d go to bed. Thanks
hard to be young and hip and meta, to expansive skill-trees and literally
it sometimes ends up the very thousands of weapons, you’ll never
opposite: ageing, old-fashioned want to stop experimenting.
and not remotely cool. Despite all its flaws, this title “Those
That doesn’t make it a bad should be exactly what faithful Pom-Bears
game, though. If you’re able to Borderlands fans have been were clearly
set aside the groan-worthy patter waiting for. Just be warned that, marked with
and numerous bad-taste jokes, if you don’t like poop jokes or my name, you
sitting at the core is a satisfying suspect you’d find it hard to
monster!”
shooter-looter stuffed with overlook its less-than-sensitive
engaging firefights, a memorable approach to diversity and
cast and many, many guns. difference, it’s unlikely you’ll
You set off as one of four Vault find life comfortable on Pandora.
Hunters, each offering a slightly Vikki Blake
STUFF SAYS Lame jokes aside, the biggest and boldest Borderlands game yet ++++,
84
TESTED GAMES
PS4, Xbox One, PC, Stadia / stuff.tv/GRBreakpoint
Tom Clancy’s Ghost

Recon Breakpoint
Here at Stuff, we love getting all excited about new videogames that are
imaginatively conceived and thrillingly executed. This is not one of them…
n Ghost Recon Breakpoint towards the next bit of loot, all in

I we see the final form of
what Ubisoft has been
an effort to increase a Gear Score
that will allow you to take on
leaning towards for years: a game increasingly difficult areas.
“I’d just like to structurally driven by an endless, Now, there’s nothing essentially
make it clear purposeless grind, and one that wrong with restructuring Ghost
that absolutely can be expedited by forking out Recon with some loot – it can be
nothing about cash for microtransactions. intoxicating when done well – but
Yes, this is still another giant it’s hard not to feel a little cynical
this game was
open world, another tactical about why this game has had such
my idea.” military shooter, and another a major design overhaul.
multi-million-dollar production… And while it may be entirely
but every element of its design possible to finish its enormous
feels tainted by greed. campaign and side missions
The game’s story is built around without spending an extra penny,
discovery and clues. People you microtransactions are so clearly
meet on the mysterious island of baked into the design – offering
Auroa – a kind of tech utopia that’s game-changing gear, not just
been seized by a mercenary – fill cosmetics – that it doesn’t
you in on the whereabouts of key speak highly for the game’s
“Apart from characters and plot points. But true intentions.
possibly this while on the one hand you have What’s more, it feels hopelessly
exploding shed. the island’s backstory to explore, unfinished. Enemy AI is awful – like,
You can never you then meet a local resistance GoldenEye on the N64 awful – and
have too many force and are shoved into a the game is riddled with typos.
Destiny-style social space filled Really, it’s a title stuck between
of those.”
with other players dancing about two camps: never offering the
and spinning in circles. compelling loot churn of The
And while the game purports to Division, and never allowed to
be a survival sim, you can’t go two thrive as a military survival game.
seconds without being directed Jon Denton
STUFF SAYS Cynical and unfinished, with ugly monetisation and broken AI ++,,,
85
DIGITAL EDITION
Available online from

Readly or Pocketmags
TOP
NEW
HOT
BUY
TEN
This gadget has
leapt straight
outta testing
and into our
rankings.
BARGAIN
OF EVERYTHING
Time changes
everything,
including Stuff
Top Ten entries.
BUY
UPDATE
Searing with
techy genius,
a product that’s A solid gold
set our hearts bargain.
aflame. Worth owning,
regardless of
cashflow.
Smartphones 88 Games 97
HOW
Tablets, mobile games
Headphones
Wearables
89
90
91
Tech toys, electric cars
VR headsets & games
Smart home
98
99
100
TO USE
Laptops
Wireless speakers
TVs
Soundbars,
92
93
94
95
Drones & action cams,
compact cameras
System cameras
Budget buys
101
102
103
THEM
smart speakers How to buy… 104
Home cinema, consoles 96 a soundbar
TOP TENS SMARTPHONES 88
1 HOT
BUY
Huawei P30 Pro

from £799 / stuff.tv/P30Pro
Huawei’s superphone sets a stratospheric

benchmark for camera power, with no cost
TIPS & to overall performance. Everything about the
TRICKS design is top-notch, with only screen sharpness
failing to hit the very highest marks – at least
Use Huawei’s by Huawei’s own giddy standards. But it’s those
OneHop tech for oh-so-clever rear camera lenses that really set
O Prices quoted are for handset only unless otherwise stated

quick wireless file the P30 Pro apart. Just be aware that ongoing
transfers from the political problems for the brand make this a risky
phone to your laptop. purchase at present.
The P30 Pro works Stuff says +++++

as a wireless charger, Heaps of power – and the best
so you can share its smartphone camera you can buy
juice with any other
Qi-enabled device.
O NOW ADD THIS
Drive an Audi? You Huawei Smart View Flip Cover
can use this phone This case has a transparent window
as a digital car key, that will display your P30 Pro’s
to unlock it and even notifications, time and weather.
start the engine. £15 / amazon.co.uk
Samsung Galaxy S10 5G

2 3 4 +++++£1099 / stuff.tv/S105G
This 5G hardware will have you future-proofed with
sensational snaps and a stunning screen
Oppo Reno 10x Zoom

5 +++++£700 / stuff.tv/Reno10x
A wondrous camera phone that gets a lot right
despite its overbearing software.
Huawei Mate 20 Pro

6 +++++£500 / stuff.tv/Mate20Pro
The last-gen Huawei flagship is still a stunning phone
that makes most look lazy in comparison.
Xiaomi Mi 9T Pro
7 +++++ £399 / stuff.tv/Mi9TPro
Makes all the right sacrifices to become the most
desirable phone you can get for under £400.
Samsung Galaxy S10 OnePlus 7 Pro Sony Xperia 5

from £799 / stuff.tv/S10 from £649 / stuff.tv/OnePlus7Pro
8 +++++£700 / stuff.tv/Xperia5
Sony’s best compact phone yet: a pocketable flagship
with a sensational screen and a great camera.
Some phones have more power, The 7 Pro is not an affordable
some have better cameras, some ‘phone of the people’ but it is just
last longer between charges… but the sort of expensive handset Honor View 20
the S10 isn’t far behind in any area,
and has just about every feature
you could want: a versatile camera,
OnePlus should make – with the
features people actually want.
If you want the meaty bits of
9 +++++ £350 / stuff.tv/View20
Honor enters the big leagues with one of the best
phones in its class… and it’s got a punch-hole.
a gorgeous display and truly ace a premium phone for less cash,
performance. buy this one.
Moto G7
Stuff says +++++ Stuff says +++++ +++++ £220 / stuff.tv/MotoG7
Nothing else running Android is quite An ultra-high-end phone that focuses The G7 may be more of the same from Motorola, but
so well rounded on the important stuff that’s exactly what we wanted. A budget no-brainer.
FOR UP-TO-DATE NEWS AND REVIEWS OF ALL THE BEST NEW PHONES, VISIT STUFF.TV/TOP-10/SMARTPHONES
TOP TENS TABLETS 89 MOBILE GAMES TOP TENS
1 HOT
BUY
Apple iPad Pro

from £769 / stuff.tv/iPadPro
Data Wing
£free Android, iOS
The iPad Pro isn’t cheap, but it’s a mobile powerhouse like no This game starts off as if Asteroids had a baby with a top-down
other, with a diverse and rich app ecosystem, tons of power, racer: your triangular craft blasts around circuits, gaining speed
a gorgeous screen, and the kind of focus on creativity and when its bum scrapes neon track edges. Soon you discover
productivity that just doesn’t exist on other tablets. If you just you’re part of an OS ruled by a deranged AI. Story and game
want to faff on Facebook or Netflix it’s massive overkill, so we’d quickly expand, as you glimpse the world beyond the screen and
recommend going for the iPad Air (from £479) instead; but even battle gravity in cavern-based sections that recall 8-bit classic
if you don’t actually need the new iPad Pro, you’re going to want Thrust. Rarely do mobile titles pack in so many hours of clever,
one if you have it in your mitts for five minutes. thoughtful narrative. Pretty much never are such games free.
Stuff says +++++ Stuff says +++++

Once again Apple blasts ahead of the pack, with A mobile game we’d happily recommend if it cost a
a stylish, powerful tablet full of creative potential fiver – for nowt, it’s an absurdly generous bargain
Microsoft Surface Go Jumpgrid

from £379 / stuff.tv/SurfaceGo £2.99 / iOS
Having this slinky Windows tab up your Pac-Man and Frogger meet Super Hexagon
sleeve (not quite literally) is like carrying and buckets of adrenaline in this superb
a mini PC on you at all times. The processor game, a twitch/arcade/punishment
is adequate for everyday tasks and the 10in crossover masterpiece. It’s a stunning
screen is lovely. ride that will leave you a quivering wreck.
An affordable, ultra-portable workmate The best twitch arcade game on mobile
Apple iPad (2018) Oddmar

from £319 / stuff.tv/iPad2018 £free (IAPs) / Android O £4.99 / iOS
Last year’s basic iPad is about to be bumped Oddmar looks like it could have breezed in
off by the 2019 model (reviewed on p67); from a PS4. Now available on Android as well
but while it’s still here, this tablet’s low price as iOS, it’s packed full of superb level design
and subtle improvements over the previous and lush animated visuals, as a beardy Viking
version make it a fine workaday tablet. oaf sets out to save his tribe.
A versatile tablet for both work and play Touchscreen platformers can be great after all
Amazon Fire HD 8 Bring You Home

+++++ from £80 / stuff.tv/FireHD8 +++++£3.19 / Android O £2.99 / iOS
For the price, you get a stonkingly capable Make your own future with this imaginative,
tablet that doubles as an Echo Show. brilliantly designed and devious puzzler.
Samsung Galaxy Tab S6 Knight Brawl

++++, from £619 / stuff.tv/TabS6 +++++£free / Android, iOS
This is the Android tablet to get if you like If Monty Python made a sword-fighting game
doodling or gaming. for mobile… it still wouldn’t be this silly.
FOR FULL REVIEWS OF ALL THE PRODUCTS IN OUR TOP TEN LISTINGS, VISIT STUFF.TV/TOP-10
Sony WF-1000XM3
£219 / stuff.tv/SonyWFXM3
Sony WH-1000XM3
£249 / stuff.tv/SonyWHXM3
The original WF-1000XMs had an easy job in the early days of Sony’s WH-1000 series was already a top performer, and the
noise-cancelling in-ears, because there simply wasn’t much in WH-1000XM3s make for an even more compelling package.
the way of competition. That’s all changed now – yet the way With Bluetooth wireless and great noise-cancellation, they’re
the XM3s serve up sound quality as spectacular as this while the ultimate public transport stress killer… well, aside from a
being truly wireless, while effectively cancelling background chauffeur or a lottery win that lets you retire. The leather pads
noise and while remaining comfortable in the ears, is quite make them incredibly easy to wear, not unlike sitting in one of
something. So, just as it was with the original XMs, it’s job those ultra-comfy leather chairs, and most importantly of all
done for Sony. the sound quality is fantastic.

Outright winners on design, build, specifications and, Great wireless headphones with effective ANC and
most importantly of all, performance a sound that nails just about everything
Libratone Track Air+ Bose NCH 700

£171 / stuff.tv/TrackAirPlus £350 / stuff.tv/BoseNCH700
These distinctive wireless buds are You won’t find a better voice pickup system
excellently designed and sweatproof, than Bose’s, while the company’s already
provide up to 24 hours of battery life, offer exceptional noise-cancelling tech is now
active noise-cancelling, and are neat in all even better. Other features, such as the
senses of the word. slick touch controls, are also winners.
Ace design, sound and versatility As all-rounders these are hard to beat
RHA TrueConnect B&O H9i

£149 / stuff.tv/TrueConnect £329 / stuff.tv/H9i
The RHA TrueConnects seem to nail all the Like all B&O products, these noise-cancelling
important stuff. They sound fantastic, the cans scream luxury… but they’re not just a
design is lovely, plus there’s waterproofing pretty face. There’s measured punch in the
to IPX5 and the Bluetooth 5.0 connection low end and timing is spot-on, with a crisp
is rock-solid. and expressive midrange.
Superb all-rounders with great tone Some of the best noise-cancellers you can buy
Cambridge Audio Melomania 1 Urbanista Seattle Wireless

+++++£120 / stuff.tv/Melomania1 +++++from £59 / stuff.tv/SeattleWireless
These engaging buds are light yet robust, Bags of style and fantastic sound quality at
affordable yet great-sounding. a throwaway price.
Beats Powerbeats Pro Sennheiser Momentum 2.0

+++++£220 / stuff.tv/PowerbeatsPro +++++from £219 / stuff.tv/Momentum2
It’s no longer all about the bass: these are the Pricey but just about worth the outlay, the
best true wireless buds for iOS users. Momentum 2.0s will have you smitten.
TO READ THE FULL REVIEWS, VISIT STUFF.TV/TOP-10/IN-EAR-HEADPHONES & STUFF.TV/TOP-10/HEADPHONES

TOP TENS SMARTWATCHES 91 FITNESS TRACKERS TOP TENS
1 HOT
BUY UPDATE
1 HOT
BUY
Apple Watch Series 4

from £349 / stuff.tv/WatchS4
Moov Now
£49 / stuff.tv/MoovNow
Series 5 is here, and almost certain to take top spot next month, Slow and steady wins the race, and the Now has gone on to prove
but while the old model is still available from some stockists it that with a marathon-like pace helping it finally make it to the
remains a great option. The larger screen, improved processor top of this list. We’ve long considered this tracker a bargain, but
and louder speaker mean it’s easier to actually do stuff on it further reductions have helped it enter the realm of ‘downright
than any previous Watch, and it has superb health features. steal’. OK, so it doesn’t have a screen or smartphone skills,
Whether you’re navigating using Maps, going for a run without but with guided voice coaching, a six-month battery and solid
your phone or just wanting to keep track of your activity, it does waterproofing, it has everything you’d ever want in your perfect
a great job of handling all these things and more. fitness tracker.

A sleek and sophisticated redesign of the previous A bargain-tastic fitness band that does more than just
Watch makes this the best wearable ever… for now track your steps
Samsung Galaxy Watch Fitbit Inspire HR

2 from £279 / stuff.tv/GalaxyWatch
A sturdy and stylish smartwatch with plenty
of power and a truly lovely user interface.
2 £90 / stuff.tv/InspireHR
Fitbit’s latest is a great little tracker. As well
as step-counting, it’s surprisingly capable
Those with an iPhone are still likely to get for proper run-tracking if you go out with
a better experience and more functionality a phone. Add notifications and that’s just
from an Apple Watch, though. about everything we want in a low-key band.
Stuff says +++++ Stuff says ++++,
The best smartwatch for Android users All the tracking skills that most people need
Garmin Vivoactive 3 Withings Steel HR Sport

3 from £200 / stuff.tv/Vivoactive3
It looks good, isn’t a wrist-dominator,
outlasts just about all normal smartwatches
3 £190 / stuff.tv/SteelHRSport
Like Paul McCartney’s career, the Steel HR
Sport can keep on going and going… and going.
and gets you the same kind of tracking as the With a subtle, stylish design, it promises to
Fenix 5 at half the price. We just wish it had last for 25 days on a single charge. This is one
more smart features up its sleeve. hybrid that won’t burn out even when you do.
A fine smartwatch for sporty types One of the most well-rounded, stylish hybrids
Garmin Fenix 5 Fitbit Charge 3

4 +++++£450 / stuff.tv/Fenix5
Like the annoying kid in school who’s both
super-smart and great at every sport.
4 ++++,£130 / stuff.tv/Charge3
A capable tracker with an easy-to-wear
design and long battery life.
Garmin Forerunner 945 Suunto 9

5 +++++£520 / stuff.tv/Forerunner945
A well-built, comfortable and feature-rich
smartwatch, perfect for fitness freaks.
5 ++++, £349 / stuff.tv/Suunto9
Epic battery life and accurate tracking make
this a great – if pricey – option.
FOR THE FULL REVIEWS, VISIT STUFF.TV/TOP-10/SMARTWATCHES & STUFF.TV/TOP-10/FITNESS-TRACKERS

TOP TENS LAPTOPS
TIPS & A Touch ID button Apple charges a

TRICKS at the top right of the hefty premium for
keyboard saves the extra storage, so
agony of forgetting consider a cheaper
your password. external SSD. Apple MacBook Air
from £1099 / stuff.tv/MacBookAir13
With the ‘basic’ version of the MacBook Pro no

longer in Apple’s line-up, a July update to the Air
model – including a £100 price drop – sees it
power to the top of this list. And justifiably so,
because in 2019 this is absolutely the go-to
MacBook for most people. It looks every bit
as premium as the Pro, and the fantastic screen
represents a substantial leap from the old
generation’s basic panel. That keyboard is
a treat for your fingers too.
Stuff says +++++

Its stunning design, screen and features
make this the perfect MacBook
O NOW ADD THIS

Satechi Type-C USB 3 Combo Hub
Two ports not enough? This hub adds
loads more and sits snugly against
the MacBook Air’s side.
£35 / amazon.co.uk
Huawei MateBook X Pro

+++++ from £1300 / stuff.tv/MateBookXPro
Not massively better than the 2018 model, but
this is a real powerhouse of a Windows laptop.
Apple MacBook Pro (2019)

+++++ from £1299 / stuff.tv/MacBookPro13
The entry-level Pro grows up with a revamped
screen, a Touch Bar and more powerful innards.
Dell XPS 15 2-in-1

+++++ from £1599 / stuff.tv/XPS2in1
A powerful, portable and versatile hybrid, but
with a hefty price tag to match.
Razer Blade 15 Advanced

++++,from £2130 / stuff.tv/BladeAdvanced
Razer’s Blade models are our favourite gaming
laptops, and this is a worthy flagship.
Microsoft Surface Laptop 2 Dell XPS 13 Asus ZenBook Pro 14

++++,from £1099 / stuff.tv/ZenBookPro14
from £832 / stuff.tv/SurfaceLaptop2 from £1349 / stuff.tv/XPS13
A capable multimedia laptop with a clever
gimmick: a second screen instead of a trackpad.
While there’s little that’s truly new Last year’s Dell XPS 13 was one of
about the Surface Laptop 2, that the best Windows laptops in the
also means this computer has world, and the new model is even BARGAIN
BUY Acer Swift 5
kept everything that made it such better. Every element is top-quality. ++++,from £699 / stuff.tv/Swift5
a phenomenal device in the first As before, you get style, portability, A capable and extremely portable laptop at
place. The additions of Intel’s latest performance and great battery a tempting price that’s just dropped by £200.
processors and the full version of life… and as before, every part of
Windows 10 ensure it’s even better. it just feels good.
Asus Chromebook Flip C434
Stuff says +++++ Stuff says +++++ ++++,£549 / stuff.tv/FlipC434
An even stronger all-round There’s nothing else out there that’s One of the best high-quality Chromebooks, with
workhorse than its predecessor quite so well rounded a great screen and strong battery life.
FOR UP-TO-DATE NEWS AND FULL REVIEWS OF ALL THE BEST NEW LAPTOPS, VISIT STUFF.TV/TOP-10/LAPTOPS
93 WIRELESS SPEAKERS TOP TENS
TIPS &
TRICKS
With iPhones and
Android devices,
you can control your
Sonos speakers from
Sonos speakers
use a feature called
Trueplay that tunes
the sound to your
1 HOT
BUY
your lock screen. room’s acoustics. Sonos multiroom

system
from £199 / stuff.tv/SonosOne
If you want to pretend your favourite band is

playing in your living room, there’s no better
option than a Sonos wireless speaker. They
look great, work with your smartphone and
boom out your tunes with dazzling finesse
– from the compact and Alexa-compatible
One (£199) to the flagship Play:5 (£499) and
the TV-friendly Beam (£399).
Stuff says +++++

Infinite music in every room without the
need for custom installers? Sign us up!
O NOW ADD THIS Spotify Premium

Sick of playing your iTunes library
on repeat? Sign up to Spotify for
more new music than you could
ever possibly listen to.
£9.99/month / spotify.com
JBL Xtreme 2
2 3 4 +++++ £279 / stuff.tv/Xtreme2
A hefty portable speaker that growls with
confidence whatever you play through it.
KEF LSX
5 +++++ £999 (pair) / stuff.tv/KEFLSX
Convenience and fine sound at a real-world
price, and in some vivid colours.
Marshall Tufton
6 +++++ £350 / stuff.tv/Tufton
Huge power, 360° clarity and long battery life
make this the perfect portable party speaker.
Loewe Klang M1
7 +++++ £104 / stuff.tv/KlangM1
Exceptional build quality and sound in
a comprehensive compact speaker.
Naim Mu-so 2 B&W Formation Wedge

BARGAIN
BUY Jam Heavy Metal
£1299 / stuff.tv/Mu-so2 £900 / stuff.tv/BWWedge
8 +++++ £96 / stuff.tv/JamHM
Classy sound and design at a bargain price: this
is still the best affordable Bluetooth speaker.
The Mu-so 2 is a fuller, richer, The Formation Wedge does look a
more detailed and louder listen bit weird, and it might seem unduly
than the model it replaces, with expensive at first acquaintance. UE Ralis
lots of added functionality, and
it’s every bit as handsome and
decorative. Too expensive? You
But make up your own mind about
the looks, think long and hard
about the price, then hear the
9 +++++ £170 / stuff.tv/Ralis
A pretty speaker with great battery life, and it
sounds superb when cranked up.
can still get the original Mu-so Wedge in action – and the pros
for several hundred pounds less. will far outweigh the cons.
UE Megaboom 3
Stuff says +++++
Naim’s luxury wireless speaker
sequel is an improvement all round
Stuff says +++++
A brilliant illustration of what a
wireless speaker is capable of
10 +++++ £170 / stuff.tv/Megaboom3
You’ll struggle to find a better, or more fun,
portable Bluetooth speaker.
FOR UP-TO-DATE NEWS AND REVIEWS OF ALL THE BEST NEW HI-FI, VISIT STUFF.TV/TOP-10/HI-FI-STREAMING
TOP TENS
TIPS & Pick one of the expert First turn off any Looking for some
TRICKS preset modes and extra processing, HDR10+ content?
you won’t have to do then bring it back Warner Bros, Fox and
too much tweaking to bit by bit to see if Amazon are on board
get a fantastic picture. you like the changes. with the format. Panasonic FZ802B
from £1500 (55in) / stuff.tv/FZ802B
As 4K TV prices continue to tumble, there’s

been a mad dash from manufacturers to
convince the world their OLED panel looks
better than everyone else’s. So which one
really does? This Panasonic, showcasing one
of the best 4K HDR displays on the market for
a pretty affordable price. OK, so the design looks
plain and the lack of Dolby Vision might surprise
a few, but when the picture looks so detailed
and natural, who really gives a damn?
Stuff says +++++
You won’t find a better OLED for the
money than this talented Panasonic
O NOW ADD THIS Sky Q

Once you’ve got a 4K TV, you’ll want
access to the best 4K content. Sky Q
is a good bet for watching and recording
all your favourite shows and films.
from £20 + £22/month / sky.com
Philips 55OLED+903
+++++ £1500 / stuff.tv/55OLED903
Philips enlists hi-fi specialist Bowers & Wilkins to
deliver a stylish TV with great sound.
Samsung QE65Q90R
+++++ £2499 / stuff.tv/QE65Q90R
Samsung has stuck to QLED… and upped its
game to rival OLED in virtually every way.
Samsung QE55Q8DN
+++++ £1149 / stuff.tv/SamsungQ8D
This affordable QLED option is a brilliantly
accomplished TV and worth every penny.
Panasonic TX-55GZ1500 LG 55 C8 Philips 55POS9002

+++++ £999 / stuff.tv/55POS9002
£2000 / stuff.tv/GZ1500 £1349 / stuff.tv/LGC8 Available at a relatively affordable price for an
OLED 4K HDR set, this Philips is an ace bargain.
This isn’t the biggest or most The current LG flagship television
expensive OLED in the Panasonic doesn’t appear to be a huge
range, but on a ‘quality versus upgrade on 2017’s model, but Sony KD-65XF9005
price’ basis it might be the single some clever tweaks to the +++++ £1499 / stuff.tv/KD65XF9005
best OLED you can buy right now. processor have turned this into one It may have a mid-range price, but this Sony’s
It’s a 4K screen equipped to deal of the finest OLED screens you 4K LCD panel is still a proper belter.
with any HDR standard you care can get. Sure, the E8 has
to mention, and its handling of a more jaw-dropping design
contrast has to be seen to be and more immersive audio, Panasonic TX-58GX800
believed. Colour and dynamism but the C8 offers the exact +++++ £799 / stuff.tv/58GX800
are as good as you can get, and same picture quality at a less Not the last word in picture excellence, but this
even the little integrated soundbar premium price. For this reason, is a lot of TV for the money.
does admirable work. The GZ1500 it’s our top pick from LG’s
is the complete package. impressive range.
LG 65SM9800
Stuff says +++++ Stuff says +++++ ++++, £1999 / stuff.tv/65SM9800
An excellent TV with superb HDR Small improvements make this Among the best backlit TVs around and a fine
picture quality – worth every penny LG’s best OLED television yet OLED-dodging compromise.
FOR UP-TO-DATE NEWS AND FULL REVIEWS OF ALL THE BEST NEW TELEVISIONS, VISIT STUFF.TV/TOP-10/TVs
TOP TENS TOP TENS
Sennheiser Ambeo Soundbar

£2199 / stuff.tv/AmbeoSoundbar
Sonos One
£199 / stuff.tv/SonosOne
Utterly convincing Dolby Atmos and DTS:X 3D sound, ample Making an amazing speaker was an easy job for the multiroom
power and lots of inputs mean no other soundbar currently champs, but getting Amazon’s Alexa voice assistant to dance
available can perform feats with the solidity and confidence along in time with it… well, that wasn’t such a simple task. But
of this Sennheiser. The sheer room-filling scale of this device’s the One is now an altogether more well-rounded device than it
sound is remarkable, and it’s hard to think of any content was at launch, supporting Spotify with voice control as well as
that wouldn’t benefit from being Ambeo’d. That’s why, as Amazon Music and TuneIn Radio, while the early Alexa hiccups
well as being the biggest and the most expensive, it’s the seem to have been fixed by a series of software updates. It also
best you can buy. has an improved processor in its current ‘Gen 2’ form.

The Ambeo Soundbar is a big unit but the sound it Sonos’s Alexa-powered speaker remains a class apart
makes is bigger still from the competition
Sonos Beam Amazon Echo Dot

£399 / stuff.tv/SonosBeam £50 / stuff.tv/EchoDot
Sonos’s great-value Alexa-equipped If you don’t want to make room for a full-size
soundbar offers fine audio quality, comes Echo in your tat-cave, the 3rd-gen Dot is
with loads of features and is compact a good bet. The only downside is its lo-fi
enough to fit into the average living-room speaker, but the 3.5mm audio output will
AV setup without taking over. solve that problem for most.
Compact, affordable and packed with smarts One of the best bargains in tech right now
Vizio SB36512-F6 Google Home Max

£599 / stuff.tv/Vizio36512 £299 / stuff.tv/HomeMax
An intriguing 5.1.2 Dolby Atmos setup with If you want a smart speaker that can blow the
a wireless sub and rear satellite speakers, doors off a party, this is the best you can get
all for under 600 nicker. Not bad… and the right now. All the smarts of the basic Home
quality of its delivery, from film dialogue to speaker are here, naturally, and the larger
thrumming helicopters, is deeply impressive. drivers offer much more powerful bass.
A bargain Dolby Atmos upgrade A smart speaker that’s ready to party
Q Acoustics Media 4 Apple HomePod

+++++£179 / stuff.tv/Media4 ++++,£279 / stuff.tv/HomePod
This is a whole lot of under-telly hi-fi For Apple Music users who want a high-end
for the money. smart speaker, this is a cracking choice.
Sky Soundbox Amazon Echo (2nd gen)

+++++from £249 / stuff.tv/SkySoundbox ++++,£90 / stuff.tv/AmazonEcho
The best-value upgrade ever… as long as Nothing else does the job this well – at least
you’ve already got Sky. until we’ve tested the new 3rd-gen Echo…
FOR FULL REVIEWS OF ALL THE PRODUCTS IN OUR TOP TEN LISTINGS, VISIT STUFF.TV/TOP-10
TOP TENS HOME CINEMA 96 CONSOLES TOP TENS
1 HOT
BUY
1 HOT
BUY
Sky Q
from £20 + £22/month / stuff.tv/SkyQ
Sony PlayStation 4 Pro
£319 / stuff.tv/PS4Pro
Sky Q works flawlessly and could change the way you watch As a gaming platform, PlayStation 4 is the best around – which
TV – especially now 4K’s arrived. With Sky Movies’ huge range makes the PS4 Pro the best of the best. Games optimised
of films and Sky Sports in stunning Ultra HD, along with the new for the new console look stunning on a 4K HDR TV, and are
addition of Netflix, there’s something for everyone to treat their substantially improved by the extra grunt inside this slightly
eyes with. And 2TB of storage means you can record 350 hours’ bigger machine. Sure, it can’t match the Xbox One X for sheer
worth of entertainment, so you’re unlikely to be sweating over power or resolution, but it makes up for that with an impressive
which show needs deleting. Factor in its multiroom skills, and line-up of games – including Uncharted 4, Horizon Zero Dawn
Sky Q is undoubtedly the best TV experience you can get. and Bloodborne – and virtual reality support.

You’ll have to cough up for a subscription, but this is the The system for console gamers who have a 4K TV
best box for watching both live and recorded shows and want the best catalogue of games on offer
Amazon Fire TV Stick 4K Nintendo Switch

2 £50 / stuff.tv/FireStick4K
Amazon’s latest streaming stick offers 4K
plus a faster processor than its predecessor,
2 £279 / stuff.tv/NintendoSwitch
Nintendo’s console earned a promotion in
our list after it impressed us with a growing
and comes with the new Alexa Voice list of fantastic games. Plus, no other device
Remote. It is very Prime-centric, but the here offers the joy of portable gaming. Train
selection of third-party apps is excellent. journeys will never be boring again.
The best 4K streaming stick you can buy This 2-in-1 console is the real deal
BARGAIN
BUY Google Chromecast Microsoft Xbox One X
3 £30 / stuff.tv/Chromecast
The latest Chromecast is an incredibly neat
little gadget that will let you watch almost
3 £399 / stuff.tv/XboxOneX
There’s no doubt the Xbox One X is the
most powerful console here, capable of
all of your favourite streaming and catch-up producing stunning 4K visuals… but it simply
services on a television that doesn’t have doesn’t have the line-up of games to usurp
the apps built in. the PS4 Pro from top spot.
The cheapest way to smarten up your TV A 4K monster held back by its game catalogue
Roku Streaming Stick+ Sony PlayStation 4

4 ++++,£50 / stuff.tv/RokuPlus
This simple all-rounder is a great choice for
the open-minded telly watcher.
4 +++++£250 / stuff.tv/PS4
Haven’t got a 4K TV? This is the best way to
enjoy PlayStation’s brilliant exclusives.
Apple TV 4K Microsoft Xbox One S

5 ++++,from £179 / stuff.tv/AppleTV4K
Streaming boxes might be on the way out,
but Apple’s 4K version still has its uses.
5 +++++£199 / stuff.tv/XboxOneS
No longer our Xbox of choice, but the One S
remains a serious affordable option.
FOR FULL REVIEWS, VISIT STUFF.TV/TOP-10/HOME-CINEMA & STUFF.TV/TOP-10/GAMES-MACHINES

TOP TENS
Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice

2 3 +++++ from £38 / PS4, Xbox One, PC
A brutally punishing action adventure that will
get your heart a-pumping.
Forza Horizon 4
+++++ from £25 / Xbox One, PC
This is a bar-raising sandbox-racing game
experience that’s worth buckling up for.
Fire Emblem: Three Houses

+++++£43 / Switch
Crammed with tactical and social depth, this is
the best Fire Emblem game so far.
Resident Evil 2
+++++from £20 / PS4, Xbox One, PC
Highly polished and much more than just
a remake, this is the series’ best entry yet.
God of War Super Smash Bros. Ultimate Super Mario Maker 2

+++++£40 / Switch
£25 / PS4 £45 / Switch
One of Nintendo’s smartest ideas in years feels
perfect for the Switch.
A lot has changed for PlayStation’s It’s no exaggeration to say this
god-slaying champion, Kratos. is hands-down the best Smash
He’s acquired a beard and a new game yet. There’s just so much NEW Gears 5
magic axe… but while the action going on, with a huge array of +++++£44 / Xbox One, PC
is as breathtaking as ever, it’s fighters – it’s a fantastic way to Huge, thrilling and luxurious at every turn – this
the surprisingly mature storyline enter into the world of Smash, is absolutely essential.
that’s the draw here, with Kratos and long-time fans of the series
learning the ropes of parenting. will not be disappointed.
NEW Astral Chain
Stuff says +++++ Stuff says +++++ +++++£40 / Switch
The epic return of Kratos is yet Smash is well and truly back, and it’s The most stylish and innovative action game
another phenomenal PS4 offering bigger and better than ever before you’ll play this year.
FOR UP-TO-DATE NEWS AND REVIEWS OF ALL THE BEST NEW GAMES, VISIT STUFF.TV/TOP-10/GAMES
TOP TENS TOP TENS
Lego Boost Creative Toolbox

£150 / stuff.tv/LegoCreativeToolbox
Jaguar I-Pace
from £60,995 (with PiCG) / stuff.tv/ipace
Building Lego models is already ridiculously good fun, so think Not content with simply making an electric vehicle that can get
what great a time you’ll have when the completed model turns you from A to B with minimal fuss (and fuel bills), Jaguar has
into a functioning robot. With the accompanying tablet app, you created something desirable, fun to drive and impressively
can use simple coding to make the robot move, fire projectiles capable when the going gets tough. This car offers Amazon
and play various games. And rather than retiring it to the dusty Alexa integration, smartphone connectivity and a 10in
shelf once you’re bored, you can rebuild him into four other touchscreen on the upper deck. With the I-Pace, Jaguar
programmable models: a harmonica-playing cat, a driveable can happily claim to be the first mainstream brand to really
rover, a working robot-builder and a playable guitar. give Tesla something to worry about.
All hail Vernie and friends – for value and sheer fun, it’s Fun, fast and practical, the I-Pace is the greatest thing
hard to beat this programmable Lego kit to happen to electric cars in a long time
Propel Star Wars Nissan Leaf

X-Wing Battling Drone from £27,995 / stuff.tv/NissanLeaf
£65 / stuff.tv/SWDrone Nissan has really got it right with the latest
The Star Wars Battling Drone works indoors Leaf – an accomplished family car that
and outdoors, and doesn’t require a licence packs some serious range and performance,
or CAA permit to fly. It’s a total blast… just a and acts as a flagship for the company’s
shame there’s no camera or app. most advanced driver assistance gizmos.
Is the Force strong with this one? You betcha! A strong candidate for your eco-conscious cash
Sphero Bolt Tesla Model S

£150 / stuff.tv/SpheroBolt from £77,200 / stuff.tv/TeslaS
This little rolling ball of tech is great fun, and This sleek saloon re-writes the rules
educational to boot. We hope your skirting for all-electric performance and offers
boards are up to taking a few knocks, but if advanced autonomous driving tech that
your kids have any curiosity about coding it’ll most of the other makers are only just
keep them entertained for months to come. beginning to explore.
Proves that learning really can be fun A true groundbreaker among high-class EVs
Kano Harry Potter Coding Kit Volvo XC90 T8

+++++£100 / stuff.tv/KanoHarryPotter +++++from £66,645 / stuff.tv/XC90T8
A magical way to make coding accessible This plug-in hybrid 4x4 looks great and can
and fun to learn. tackle the twistiest routes.
Nintendo Labo VR Kit BMW i8 Roadster

++++,from £35 (+ Switch) / stuff.tv/LaboVR +++++from £127,105 / stuff.tv/i8Roadster
An irresistible mash-up of cardboard-folding The electric motor turns this stunningly
adventures and lo-fi VR entertainment. futuristic convertible into a genuine supercar.
FOR UP-TO-DATE LISTINGS AND FULL REVIEWS OF ALL KINDS OF GADGETS, VISIT STUFF.TV/TOP-10
TOP TENS VR HEADSETS 99 VR GAMES TOP TENS
1 HOT
BUY
1 HOT
BUY
Oculus Quest
from £399 / stuff.tv/OculusQuest
Blood & Truth
£28 / PSVR
The Quest offers all manner of fully interactive, roamable virtual Blood & Truth uses every trick available to deliver an absolutely
worlds that you can throw in your backpack without a single rollicking action thriller – sweaty palms are guaranteed. Covering
wire. That’s a mindblowing technical feat. Yes, the battery life a huge breadth of environments and sequences that will make
is average, but the inside-out tracking and total absence of any you forget its relatively short runtime, it turns London into a
cables make this the best all-round VR headset to date. It also playground packed with dazzling action set-pieces, while the
ships with the Oculus Touch motion controllers included, which story keeps you grounded with a likeable and compelling cast.
means you can play fully fledged Oculus Rift titles without being Anyone with a PSVR needs to play this; and for those who don’t
anywhere near a PC. already own one, the time is now.

If you’ve been waiting to board the VR bandwagon, A stunning full-length VR action blockbuster with
the Quest might be the best reason yet to go for it a great story
HTC Vive Superhot VR

2 £499 / stuff.tv/HTCVive
There isn’t much difference between this
and the much cheaper Oculus Rift, in all
2 from £16 / Oculus Rift, Vive, PSVR
There’s something really cool about hiding
behind a desk before blitzing your opponents
honesty. But if you’re thinking of upgrading with streams of bullets as if you were starring
to the Vive Pro in the future, this is a great in your very own Matrix movie. A wonderfully
gateway headset. action-packed title.
Stuff says ++++, Stuff says +++++
A solid choice for immersive virtual reality A superb 2-in-1 VR puzzler and shooter
HTC Vive Pro Farpoint

3 £799 (headset only) / stuff.tv/HTCVivePro
This high-end headset offers the best
virtual reality experience by a long way,
3 £16 / PSVR
If it weren’t in VR, Farpoint would be a
distinctly average space-based FPS. But
but its sky-high price means you should the PSVR headset and Aim Controller lift
only really buy it if you’re a VR obsessive it above the pack and make it a must-play,
with a super-powerful gaming PC. not just for VR fans but also for FPS addicts.
Stuff says ++++, Stuff says +++++
This hardcore headset is overkill for most Simply a thrilling VR experience
Google Daydream View Moss

4 ++++,£99 / stuff.tv/DaydreamView
This budget-friendly option is the best way
of bringing VR to the masses.
4 ++++,£18 / PSVR
This platform puzzler offers a one-of-a-kind
fable that’s perfect for VR.
PlayStation VR Thumper
5 +++,,from £260 / stuff.tv/PSVR
It can deliver incredible experiences, but
the PSVR is held back by niggling issues.
5 ++++,£15 / Oculus Rift
This mesmerising rhythm game is best
played in VR, despite the lack of tracking.
FOR FULL REVIEWS, AND TO EXPLORE MORE OF THE STUFF TOP TEN LISTS, VISIT STUFF.TV/TOP-10
TOP TENS SMART HOME 100
1 HOT
BUY
Tado Smart
Thermostat V3+
from £200 + installation / stuff.tv/TadoV3Plus
It might not be as pretty as the Nest 3.0, but

TIPS & Tado has quietly evolved into the best all-round
TRICKS smart heating system around. Like autopilot
for your boiler, it senses when you’re leaving
Check out the app’s home or coming back thanks to the app’s
Energy Savings geolocation. And Tado’s gadgety goodness
Report to see how is second to none, with the option of zonal
well you’re doing control for individual rooms and voice smarts
each month. from the likes Alexa and Google Assistant.
Crank up the nerdery Stuff says +++++

by tinkering with Tado roasts the competition with its
Tado’s IFTTT channel combination of simplicity and smarts
or adding it to your
HomeKit setup.
O NOW ADD THIS
Hook up an Amazon Tado Smart Radiator Thermostats
Echo or Google Once you’ve tasted the joys of zonal
Home to change smart heating, you and your wallet
the temperature will never go back.
with your voice. £70 each / tado.com
Philips Hue Starter Kit

2 3 4 +++++from £60 (white) / stuff.tv/PhilipsHue
Become an indoor god with the smartest way
of lighting up your home remotely.
Brisant-Secure Ultion Smart

5 +++++from £229 / stuff.tv/UltionSmart
Tradition and tech partner up in a smart lock to
please everyone.
Arlo Pro
6 +++++£200 / stuff.tv/ArloPro
A good home cam that becomes a great one
outdoors. Your shed has never been so secure.
Google Wifi
7 +++++£129 / stuff.tv/GoogleWifi
A signal-spreading wonder that’ll make your old
router look like a tech dinosaur.
Netatmo Welcome Nest 3.0 Google Nest Hub

£157 / stuff.tv/NetatmoWelcome £180 / stuff.tv/Nest3
8 ++++,£119 / stuff.tv/NestHub
Google’s rebranded smart helper, formerly the
Home Hub, offers real value for money.
Netatmo’s smart cam has face This is one of the cleverest (and
recognition capability, which best-looking) smart thermostats
works well once it’s got to know on the market. Nest learns your Amazon Echo Show 5
you, and the usual motion and
noise detection is easy to control.
You can also remotely monitor
habits – when you’re in, when
you’re likely to need a lot of hot
water and so on – so it can control
9 ++++,£80 / stuff.tv/EchoShow5
A great alarm clock and a feature-packed smart
display: this is a sub-£100 bargain.
your house to keep the paranoia the boiler to save energy and keep
at bay while on holiday. that shower nice and toasty.
Nest Hello
Stuff says +++++
A neat security cam with loads of
features and storage options
Stuff says +++++
A simple and mess-free smart
thermostat with Alexa compatibility
10 ++++,£229 / stuff.tv/NestHello
Not only is this a nifty smart doorbell, but it also
doubles as a useful security camera.
FOR FULL REVIEWS OF THE BEST SMART HOME DEVICES, VISIT STUFF.TV/TOP-10/SMART-HOME-DEVICES
TOP TENS DRONES & ACTION CAMS 101 COMPACTS TOP TENS
1 HOT
BUY
1 HOT
BUY
GoPro Hero7 Black

£319 / stuff.tv/Hero7Black
Sony DSC-RX100 V
£799 / stuff.tv/RX100V
This is basically the excellent Hero6 Black (a five-star action We wouldn’t recommend buying this camera if you already own
cam that cost £500 at launch) with a bunch of improvements the old IV model, but a few improvements have ensured Sony
added – the most useful of which being the incredibly effective remains the top dog in our compacts list – and we’re keeping this
HyperSmooth image stabilisation, which has a huge impact on model above the newer RX100 VI simply because of the huge price
video quality. It’s great to see a company like GoPro continue difference. It remains one of the finest point-and-shoots we’ve
to innovate in ways that are genuinely valuable to its main ever seen, with a flexibility that few pocket cameras can muster.
customer base, and the Hero7 Black is the best camera it’s While it’s still not exactly cheap, we reckon this is the cam to buy
made in years. if you want fantastic-looking snaps from your holidays.

GoPro’s smoothest operator ever, and a brilliant Only a small improvement over the RX100 IV, but this
flagship action cam Sony is close to premium point-and-shoot perfection
DJI Osmo Action Panasonic Lumix TZ200

2 £329 / stuff.tv/OsmoAction
The image stabilisation is sensational and the
face-optimised metering makes DJI’s action
2 £599 / stuff.tv/TZ200
This Panasonic compact is a significant
upgrade from the TZ100, offering extra
cam an ideal choice for vloggers. It has some reach with the zoom lens, better colour
idiosyncrasies, but this is a smart shooter that reproduction, and an improved experience
captures great footage without faff. when using the electronic viewfinder.
Despite a few quirks, this is a stellar cam Small, neat and not dramatically overpriced
DJI Mavic 2 Pro Sony DSC-RX100 VI

3 £1349 / stuff.tv/Mavic2Pro
Aimed at the enthusiast willing to spend a
little more to fly and film a little further, this
3 £979 / stuff.tv/RX100VI
A true all-rounder that shoots 24fps
at full resolution and has stunningly fast
is an undeniably pricey drone – but we think autofocus, topped off with a whopping
it’s worth every penny. It’s a fantastic flyer 8x zoom lens that’s quite spectacular
that feels superbly responsive in the air. for such a tiny camera.
The gold standard in portable flyers A dinky yet luxurious point-and-shoot
DJI Mavic Air Panasonic Lumix LX100

4 +++++£769 / stuff.tv/MavicAir
A cracking gadget that combines the best
bits from the Spark and the Mavic Pro.
4 +++++£449 / stuff.tv/LX100
One of the most capable compacts on the
market, with superb stills and HD video.
NEW DJI Osmo Pocket Fujifilm X100F

5 ++++,£329 / stuff.tv/OsmoPocket
Silky shooting in a pint-sized package: this
gimbal/cam takes a novel niche and fills it well.
5 +++++£1169 / stuff.tv/X100F
The best street shooter around if you don’t
need the flexibility of interchangeable lenses.
FOR FULL REVIEWS, AND TO EXPLORE MORE OF THE STUFF TOP TEN LISTS, VISIT STUFF.TV/TOP-10
TOP TENS SYSTEM CAMERAS 102
1 HOT
BUY
Fujifilm X-T3
£1349 / stuff.tv/FujifilmXT3
It’s really hard to find anything bad to say about

the X-T3 – it’s just consistently great in so
TIPS & many ways. Fuji has looked at virtually every
TRICKS feature on the X-T2 and upgraded it. With
substantial tweaks made to the pro-level
Pre-shot ES mode video options, the high-res EVF, the super-fast
starts taking photos autofocus and the burst shooting, what you’re
and adding them to left with is an all-round beast of a camera in a
O Prices quoted are for body only unless otherwise stated

the buffer as soon as small, beautiful form. As APS-C shooters go, it’s
you half-press. the best there is.
Sports Finder mode’s Stuff says +++++

display enables you An incredible stills shooter with video
to see what’s about smarts to match
to come into frame
for moving shots.
O NOW ADD THIS
Tapping an area on Manfrotto 190 Go! Carbon Fibre Tripod
the 3in touchscreen You no longer have an excuse for
will let you set the wobbly photos with this carbon-fibre
focus point or take tripod. It weighs just 1.65kg.
an instant shot. £249 / manfrotto.co.uk
Panasonic Lumix G9
2 3 BARGAIN
BUY 4 +++++£999 / stuff.tv/LumixG9
The G9 is the best Lumix camera to date and
a fine choice for wildlife or action photography.
Sony A6500
5 +++++£969 / stuff.tv/A6500
A cracking system cam for action photography,
but stick with the A6300 if your budget is tight.
Fujifilm X-H1
6 +++++£899 / stuff.tv/XH1
By adding in-body image stabilisation, Fuji has
created a wonderful all-rounder.
Canon EOS 80D
Sony A7 III Fujifilm X-T20 7 +++++£980 / stuff.tv/80D

The 80D is so easy to use that even a toddler
would get some great shots with it.
£1755 / stuff.tv/SonyA7iii £599 / stuff.tv/XT20
The A7 III manages to pack in a lot With its 24.3MP APS-C sensor, Nikon Z6
of technology and desirability for
less than £2000. It’s a fantastic
all-rounder that’s well suited to
plus a touchscreen, the X-T20
will deliver results that are in some
cases just as good as you’ll get
8 +++++£1699 / stuff.tv/Z6
A top-notch and reasonably sized mirrorless
camera from the optical experts.
a bunch of shooting scenarios, from Fuji’s pricier models – and
coping well with landscapes, will leave you with a lot more
portraits, and even a little bit spare cash in your account. With Nikon D850
of high-speed sport shooting.
As a camera design it’s admittedly
not the prettiest thing we’ve ever
well-laid-out controls, a huge
viewfinder, excellent AF and
access to superb lenses, the
9 +++++£2699 / stuff.tv/D850
This super-cam has enough fantastic features
to excel in pretty much any situation.
seen, but it handles well for its X-T20 is just one more fantastic
compact size. mirrorless camera from Fuji.
Canon EOS RP
Stuff says +++++
A fantastic all-rounder that excels
in low-light conditions
Stuff says +++++
The X-T20 nails the sweet spot
between price and performance
10 +++++£1399 / stuff.tv/EOSRP
A full-frame mirrorless snapper that’s light
enough not to be a burden.
FOR FULL REVIEWS OF ALL THE BEST NEW CAMERAS, VISIT STUFF.TV/TOP-10/SYSTEM-CAMERAS
103 BUDGET BUYS TOP TENS
1 HOT
BUY
SNES Classic Mini

£70 / stuff.tv/ClassicMini
TIPS &
TRICKS
Why bother splashing out over £200 on a
Chickens killed you games console when you can get the SNES
in Zelda again? You Classic Mini for a fraction of that? Especially
can rewind up to five when you get 21 classic titles pre-installed on
minutes and pretend this nostalgia-inducing machine, including the
it never happened. likes of Super Metroid, A Link to the Past, Super
Mario World and the never-before-released
For full-fat nostalgia Star Fox 2. And with two controllers bundled in
you can read the the box, you’ll be able to start the Super Mario
instruction manual Kart action right away.
for each of the SNES
games online. Stuff says +++++
With 21 classic games installed, gamers
Stop trying to raid won’t find better value anywhere
Bowser’s castle in
one sitting, and use
one of the four save O NOW ADD THIS
slots to take a break. 8Bitdo Bluetooth Retro Receiver
Fed up of those short cables? Use
this clever device to connect most
modern controllers wirelessly.
£15 / 8bitdo.com
Moov Now
2 3 4 +++++ £49 / stuff.tv/MoovNow
The best budget tracker you can buy – gives
most Fitbits a run for their money.
SoundMagic E10
5 +++++ £30 / stuff.tv/E10
We love the E11s, but the previous model is still
available for real bargain-sniffers.
Moto G7 Play
6 +++++ £124 / stuff.tv/G7Play
Motorola’s still got it – here’s another cracker
we’d happily pay twice as much for.
Vodafone Smart X9
7 ++++, £99 / stuff.tv/SmartX9
Network-branded phones may not be cool, but
this one’s a legit bargain.
Raspberry Pi Zero W UE Wonderboom 2 Google Home Mini

from £9.30 / stuff.tv/PiZeroW £90 / stuff.tv/Wonderboom2
8 ++++, £49 / stuff.tv/HomeMini
The friendliest and most knowledgeable
miniature smart speaker around.
It might be nearly twice the price of This tiny speaker is a mighty delight.
the original Pi Zero, but when you’re It’s ideal for the park, or even if
still getting change from a tenner you’re looking to use one (or two) Ryze Tello
the wireless Pi is fantastic value.
Simplicity is key, with no need to
mess about with dongles or hubs.
to supercharge your bedroom
setup. Audio quality is ramped up
from its predecessor, giving you
9 ++++, £89 / stuff.tv/Tello
Rule the skies without breaking the bank with
this affordable toy drone.
This also means your Pi projects can better bass and more detail, but not
be squeezed into smaller places. at the expense of dinky portability.
Ikea Tradfri Dimming Kit
Stuff says +++++
The Pi Zero was already brilliant;
wireless add-ons make it better
Stuff says +++++
A rugged little wonder that’ll bring
a sonic boost to any occasion
10 ++++, from £25 / stuff.tv/IkeaSmartLights
Philips Hue might have colour-changing bulbs,
but Ikea’s Tradfri smart lights are crazy cheap.
FOR FULL REVIEWS OF ALL THESE GADGETS, AND TO EXPLORE MORE TOP TEN LISTS, VISIT STUFF.TV/TOP-10
TOP TENS HOW TO BUY 104
HOW TO BUY Make movies sound

absolutely monster…
A TV and bag yourself
an extra multiroom
SOUNDBAR speaker to boot
DOLBY ATMOS
Surround-sound
JARGON tech using up-firing
BUSTER speakers for 360°
audio with height DTS:X
virtualisation. An Atmos rival that
uses your existing
surround-sound kit:
no upwards-pointing
drivers required.
MPEG-H
Set to revolutionise
car audio and VR
headsets, this audio
codec simulates vast
3D spaces.
HEAD FOR THE BAR RAISE THE BAR
1 What an 2 Wall of 3 Cabinet 4 Satellites 5 Follow

Atmos-phere sound reshuffle of love through
Soundbars are a hot The obvious first At the risk of your That’s not to say If you’ve got a 4K
ticket thanks to an consideration is eyes glazing over, separates are dead. TV, look for a bar with
influx of competing finding a bar that let’s talk speaker The likes of Denon, 4K pass-through for
technologies claiming fits into your setup, configurations. Marantz and Yamaha the best audio quality
to be good enough or can at least be Traditionally, true are still pushing out from games consoles.
to do away with accommodated surround-sound great Atmos AV And remember most
AV amps, separate with some furniture has required five or amps for those with soundbars now
surround-sound jiggery-pokery. The seven speakers plus the space and budget double as wireless
speakers and, bigger the soundbar, a subwoofer; but required. Or, as a multiroom speakers.
in some cases, the more drivers it’s makers have found compromise, check O Get this:
subwoofers. The likely to house, and ways to squeeze out soundbars with Sonos Beam
triple threat of Dolby that should mean more channels into wireless satellite £399 / sonos.com
Atmos, DTS:X and bigger and better one box, aided by the speakers. We
MPEG-H has made sound. No cabinet likes of Dolby Atmos. like Vizio’s Atmos
virtual 3D audio a space? It can be B&O’s Beosound offering because
reality without the wall-mounted with Stage has four main the woofer sits at
need to fill your living your TV. drivers, four subs and the back of the room
room with wires. O Get this: three tweeters. for cool sofa wobbles.
O Get this: B&W Formation O Get this: O Get this:
Sennheiser Ambeo Soundbar £999 / Beosound Stage £1250 Vizio SB36512-F6
£2199 / sennheiser.com bowerswilkins.com / bang-olufsen.com £599 / vizio.com
OR TRY Q ACOUSTICS M2 SKY SOUNDBOX

ONE OF
£169 / qacoustics.co.uk from £249 / sky.com
Short on space? A soundbase This high-end unit is optimised
THESE… sits underneath your TV and
can offer impressive bassy
to produce the best sound for
shows broadcast on Sky Q
rumbles. The M2 is a fine and channels. It’s twice the price
affordable example. if you’re not a Sky subscriber.
SUBSCRIBE, SAVE CASH AND GET STUFF DELIVERED FOR FREE: SHOP.KELSEY.CO.UK/STUFF
DEALS TOP TENS
IN THE NEXT ISSUE OF
GET THE BEST
GADGET DEALS
WITH STUFF
THE CHRISTMAS
GIFT GUIDE!
NEW BEATS OUR GUIDE TO

NOISE-KILLERS ANDROID 10
ON SALE
28 NOVEMBER
Ever wondered what’s up get a small commission.
with the links in Stuff? It’s that simple, and has
We’ve got a team of retail no impact on how much
pros who scour the web you pay.
to find you the best
SUBSCRIBE ONLINE NOW… gadget deals – visit any O In the mag: We pick
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If you make a from our roster of
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Call 01959 543747
Full details on p36
Electric
fright orchestra
Tunes from the C64
have formed the heart
of a decades-long retro
remix scene, which recently
surpassed itself with a full
orchestral concert
courtesy of 8-Bit
Symphony.
RANDOM ACCESS MEMORIES 1982
Commodore 64
h look, you’ve dredged up the Sorry, wasn’t listening, I was reading about We’d console ourselves with non-brown
O brownest computer ever.

Sure, the C64 wasn’t pretty. It had
chunky brown keys that you had
the ZX Spectrum – a proper micro.
Ah, it’s like all the ’80s playground arguments
never went away and they’ve now found a
vector games that played at more than 1fps…
Don’t even trying throwing Elite at us. No-one
in their right mind plays that on a Spectrum
to smash as if your fingers were tiny hammers. new home here on the last page of Stuff. Yes, these days. But some C64 classics still pack
These were baked into a beige case, because the ZX Spectrum was a decent piece of kit, a punch, as evidenced by the C64DTV and the
by law every computer from the USA had to with some superb games. But every Speccy recent C64 Mini. And a full-size take on the
be that colour in the 1980s. And then there owner would go wide-eyed on hearing tunes latter is due in December, with switchable
were the graphics, which were often various pumped out of the C64’s SID chip, felt pangs modes, HDMI out, a revamped joystick and
[ Words Craig Grannell ]
shades of murk. But let’s not get bogged of jealousy at the use of joysticks rather than that very brown keyboard. Maybe that last
down in the negatives, because this computer rubber keys, and could only dream of their part’s not the smartest move, but we can’t
didn’t become the biggest-selling micro of its system running arcade classics like Turrican II, wait to have another crack at Gridrunner
era by accident – there are loads of ways in Mayhem in Monsterland and Paradroid even while fending off angry Spectrum owners
which it was amazing. half as ably as the C64 could. with a rolled-up copy of Zzap!64 magazine.
DON’T MISS THE NEXT ISSUE! ON SALE 28 NOV

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250 SPECIAL EDITION

GADGETS / GAMES / GEAR

James Day, Editor-in-Chief / @James_A_Day

GET THIS are not the property of the contributor,

www.stuff.tv facebook.com/joinstuff twitter.com/stufftv instagram.com/stuffmag

DALI’s IO6 wireless,

DALI iO | Go with Music

HOT STUFF TESTS

FEATURES TOP TENS SAVE!

Like I’m gonna

When it comes to weather

OAnother fine mesh

Puck up your troubles

But won’t everyone be able to hear

7 Flick Launcher 8 Pocket Casts 9 Codea

REALME STAKES CLAIM AS

Quite the chimer

FIRST PLAY SHENMUE III PC, PS4

WATTAM (thanks) and hit the button to

BEST OF GAMES COMING TO GOOGLE STADIA

CYBERPUNK 2077 RED DEAD REDEMPTION 2 DESTINY 2: THE COLLECTION

Scorsese, De Niro, Pacino and Pesci are

Servant Marriage Story The Marvelous Mrs Maisel

The Expanse The Witcher The Grand Tour

The Irishman Film / Netflix

Clear up Beat up Cut up Light up

A cartridge among the pigeons

Volvo XC40 Recharge

£53,000 (est) / volvo.com NEWS DASHBOARD

WIN 1 OF 6 LEATHERMAN MULTI-

GoPro MAX GoPro HERO8

from £399 / stuff.tv/WatchS5

2 Five o’clock shadow

the Apple Watch

1min 3mins 15mins 45mins 2hrs 2.1hrs 3hrs 6hrs 9hrs

The pretty that never sleeps

Q Time’s up Q Time out

Q Quiet time Q Face time

If you use an iPhone, this is the best

and have no major issues with wrist-flicking,

then probably not. Most of the best new

features come from watchOS 6, and they

work on the old model too. @MattWTate

STUFF SAYS +++++

This is a minor upgrade, but

Withings Fitbit Versa 2

Stuff says Stuff says

Photographer: ©Alex Stead

Get instant discounts on selected Nikon cameras and NIKKOR lenses.

has suddenly got extra-tough,

T strange going on with

In tests, our USB-C

Sweet camera skills make

O APPLE iPHONE 11 PRO FROM £1049 +++++

OnePlus lives up to its slogan

O ONEPLUS 7T £549 +++++

Why go Pro when the basic

O APPLE iPHONE 11 FROM £729 +++++

CAMERA DESIGN DISPLAY PERFORMANCE

Moto rules the mid-range

O MOTOROLA ONE ZOOM £380 ++++,

CAMERA DESIGN DISPLAY PERFORMANCE

A stargazer is born, but does