The Popular Mechanics Technology Department had a busy year. We visited Apple’s new HQ, installed betas, reviewed hundreds of prototypes - the whole time asking ourselves the questions you would: Is a $1,000 phone worth $1,000? Should I upgrade my camera before that vacation? Is it time to join the smart-watch revolution? Here are our picks for the newest technology we think will most improve your life.
1. Apple iPhone XR
For those of us who don’t need the flagship iPhone XS, the XR is an easy recommendation for anyone who wants an iPhone. It’s got the same chip, same memory, and same Face ID as the XS, for hundreds of dollars less. Among its negligible concessions is an LCD display (rather than OLED) that, unless you regularly watch 1080p HD videos, you won’t care. Plus, colors! Buy Now ($749.99)
2. OnePlus 6T
Since it arrived in the U.S., OnePlus has been the best value for Android phones. The 6T’s coolest trick is an under-screen fingerprint scanner, which preserves the phone’s thin bezels without requiring an expensive face-scan system. Buy Now
3. Google Pixel 3
A showcase for the useful stuff that comes out of Google. Google Pixel 3 will prompt callers to identify themselves and show you a real-time transcription, so you can ignore spam calls. And most importantly, Google keeps its title of the best camera on a smartphone. Buy Now
4. Samsung Galaxy Note 9
The Note9 is a powerhouse, with industry-top specs, a huge battery, and, yes, a headphone jack. Our favorite: the X20 LTE modem, which means download speeds up to 1.2 gigabits per second. Real-world users won’t hit those numbers yet, but the speed bump is still noticeable with the right carrier. Buy Now
5. Devialet Reactor
A few years back, a French company known for expensive amplifiers released the Phantom, one of the few wireless home speakers so beautiful and so able to fill a room with clean sound that it set the standard for the modern era of wireless speakers. This new, smaller model sounds almost as great as the original Phantom, but for $700 less and with a smaller footprint. Buy Now
6. Sonos Beam
The most convincing reason yet to allow Amazon’s Alexa into your house. Not only will the Beam’s acoustics blow away your TV’s built-in speakers, but walking into a room and saying, “Play Stranger Things,” and having the TV do just that feels like the future home is finally arriving.Buy Now
7. Bose Sleepbuds
They don’t play music. They don’t track your activity. All these earbuds do is play soothing sounds - white noise, a campfire, rustling leaves, specific loops that distract your brain from car horns and snoring. They’re up to Bose’s high standards of design: light enough to forget you’re wearing them, and slim enough not to notice if you sleep on your side. As for efficacy, your mileage may vary, but we can’t go back to sleeping without them. Buy Now
8. GoPro Hero7 Black
After the Karma Drone went away, GoPro needed a hit. So its engineers built GoPro Hero7 Black, an uncannily effective image-stabilization system resulting in a camera that captures footage that’s less Cloverfield and more Planet Earth II. Buy Now
9. Nikon Z6
Mirrorless cameras are the future of photography, and the last of the SLR holdouts are now on board. Both have created fantastic devices, especially in low light when you need a high ISO. The controls are so intuitive, it’s clear that these are not just converted SLRs. Already got Nikon lenses? Go Nikon. Buy Now
10. Canon EOS R
Got Canon lenses? Pick up Canon’s mirrorless. Neither will disappoint even serious photographers. Buy Now
11. Sony RX100 VI
The capabilities of most modern cameras crammed into a pocketable point-and-shoot. The OLED viewfinder is especially brilliant, making a small camera feel like the only one you’ll need to pack. Buy Now
12. Apple Watch Series 4
Okay, gather ’round. This time it’s for real. The smart watch and the Apple Watch in particular have until now mostly been classified as Pretty Cool. For me, the watch’s greatest attribute was that it made me reach for my phone fewer times per day. But the new Series 4 feels like an arrival. The screen is bigger enough that even if you never saw the previous ones, you’ll probably say, “This is a big screen.” It displays eight complications at once - texts, calendar, heart rate, even the time! - which means less poking tiny icons to find stuff. I probably won’t need the ECG and fall-detection capabilities, but those are astonishing bits of technology that could help millions of people. The haptic feedback on the dial, so it feels like a mechanical dial? Beyond cool, and actually useful. The beautiful visuals that are meant to help calm you? They calm you. So, here’s something I’ve never said before: You should get a smart watch, and I recommend this one. Buy Now
13. Dyson Cyclone V10 Absolute
No, really. You can give someone a vacuum, and they’ll thank you. Besides being prettier than any other appliance, the V10 is impossibly powerful for being cordless. Dyson is so confident in its technology that, starting with this model, the company is no longer making corded vacuums. Buy Now
14. Xbox Adaptive Controller
The result of years of research and testing with occupational therapy groups, this Xbox controller can be custom mapped and modified so gamers with motor disabilities can play. Buy Now
15. Fat Shark 101
If you’re not a photographer, but think drones are a blast, first-person-view flying is what you’re looking for. This kit comes with goggles similar to those used in the Drone Racing League, and a compact, newly redesigned drone that’ll survive inevitable crashes. Buy Now
16. Kindle Paperwhite
The best-value Amazon Kindle is now waterproof, which makes Paperwhite the only e-reader to buy in 2018. Buy Now
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