Reviews

Razer Nabu X Review: Fit for Fitness, Not for Gaming

Razer loves to announce BIG, INDUSTRY SHAKING gadgets only to immediately scale them down. The company’s first laptop started life as a handheld game console. Its first tablet originally had handlebars. The Nabu X is Razer’s latest big idea, similarly shrunk down. It’s weird, but also kinda neat. What Was It? Okay,so originally, the Nabu…

Moto E (LTE) Review: When Cheap Means Cheap

Last year, all the most exciting mobile phones were dirt cheap. For just a couple hundred dollars, I could buy an amazing device without tying myself to a contract. So I convinced myself cheap phones were the future. Maybe they still are. But not Motorola’s Moto E. It isn’t nearly daring enough. What is it?…

Garmin Fenix 3 Watch Review: The Smartwatch For Outdoor Athletes

I run, bike, swim, surf, snowboard, paddle, hunt and ride motorcycles. Not only is the Garmin Fenix 3 the first smartwatch capable of keeping up throughout all those activities, but it’s also the first to genuinely help me become better at them. The Fenix 3 is, as you guessed, the successor to the Fenix 2.…

Microsoft Surface 3 Review: The Tablet I Want At The Price I Don’t

I’m dancing on the grave of Microsoft’s original Surface tablet, and I feel no remorse. It’s hard to feel sad—it was a beautifully crafted ten-inch tablet that ran a crippled version of Windows. It was awful. Now it’s dead, and I’ve got a way better tablet. I’m so happy. What Is It? It’s a cheaper,…

Crowdsource Your Next Camping Trip

Looking for a good place to go camping this weekend? Need to borrow a tent to make it happen? The same tools you use to find a new restaurant or save money on hotels or rides are finally coming to the outdoors. Yelp, For Campgrounds How do you find new places to go camping? If…

ASUS G501 Lightning Review: If The MacBook Pro Could Game

Want a thin gaming laptop? We have a whole guide for that—but the ASUS G501 wasn’t the best laptop on our list. In fact, I kind of dismissed it with just three sentences. It deserves more. Let’s take a slightly deeper look. What Is It? Emblematic of what manufacturers seem to think a thin gaming…

Polaroid Zip Review: Tiny, Fast, and Pretty Damn Fun

When I was a teenager, I got a job at Kmart to fund my photography habit. It bought me my first SLR—but also a later model Polaroid, arguably one of the greatest cameras ever. Tomorrow, Polaroid will ship a device that attempts to recapture some of that old magic: The Zip. In some ways, I…

Logitech MX Master Review: The Best Mouse Got Better

Roughly three million years ago, when I’d just started at Gizmodo, Logitech’s Performance Mouse MX won our Best Wireless Mouse Battlemodo. It was a triumph of ergonomics and it was a joy to use. Well, almost four years later, it’s received an update: the MX Master. Rather than mess with success, Logitech retained everything that…

FourSevens MMU-X3R Review: 2,000 Lumens Of Handheld Flashlight Power

The MMU-X3R is FourSevens’ brightest handheld flashlight yet. At 2,000 lumens, it’s brighter than my car’s high beams and is small enough to fit into the palm of my hand. But, is it the right light for you? What Is It? Three Cree XML-2s — some of the most powerful LEDs on the market —…

Parrot Bebop Drone and Skycontroller Review: Looks Aren’t Everything

You’ve graduated from your cheap beginner drone, and you want to try something new. Something that can shoot beautiful video from the sky—but doesn’t cost $1,000+ like a camera-equipped DJI Phantom. You spot the $500 Parrot Bebop Drone, and pull the trigger. It’s kind of fun, you think, between strings of obscenities. https://gizmodo.com/the-best-drone-for-every-indoor-need-1644579797 What Is…

Intel Compute Stick Review: Don’t Buy It

Who wants a cheap HDMI stick that can turn any TV into a full Windows computer? Everybody, right? That’s what we thought. Oh god were we wrong. When Intel announced the $150 Compute Stick at CES, we figured it could become the ultimate miniature PC for all kinds of people. Too bad it’s terrible. Theoretically,…

PopSlate Lightning Review: This iPhone Case Has An E-Ink Screen in Back

What does the back of your phone look like? Is it covered by a case? Either way, I’m willing to bet it looks the same every day. What if you could personalize it with the push of a button, wirelessly beaming your favorite photos to an e-ink screen that lives in a special iPhone 6…

New MacBook Review: Stupidly Thin

The new MacBook is a marvel of engineering. It’s beautiful, and far more functional than a computer this size has any right to be. But it’s not for me, and I doubt it’s for you, either. It’s just too damn thin. What Is It? The latest crazy-thin Apple computer—a tiny 12-inch laptop with a incredible…

HBO Now Review: It Passed the Game of Thrones Test, But Is That Enough?

I still remember that terrible night in 2011 when millions of fans screamed in agony as Game of Thrones started, stuttered, and died on HBO Go. We all felt burned by HBO’s crappy internet service. But HBO Now, launched just in time for last night’s GOT premiere, promised to be better. Was it? Yes. What…

HP Spectre x360 Review: My New Favorite Backflipping Windows Laptop

“Oooh, what’s that?” It’s the reaction I get every time I pull out the new HP Spectre x360 in a coffee shop. It hasn’t failed yet. Java fiends always want to know where I got such a good-looking laptop—and they’re always surprised when I tell them the answer. But the truly surprising thing about HP’s…

Vapium Summit Review: A Sweet Vape That Doesn’t Break the Bank

Portable vaporizers these days are all about compromises. Frequently they don’t last long on a charge, they don’t hold enough herb, they’re unwieldy, and more often than not, they taste like shit. So, it’s rather refreshing when a little vape comes along as solves most of those problems while staying well under the $200 barrier…

Samsung Galaxy S6 Review: Not The Next Big Thing, Just a Fantastic Phone

Remember the good old Samsung Galaxy S III? It was a fantastic little trooper, but we’ve come a long way since plastic phones were king. Today, the Galaxy S6 goes on sale—and it’s finally, finally catching up with the iPhone, Nexii, and other glass-and-metal devices that have been catching your eye for years. It’s stylish,…

Today isn’t just the day you can pre-order an Apple Watch or MacBook — it’s also the day three new flagship Android smartphones are going on sale. Read our reviews of the Samsung Galaxy S6, S6 Edge and HTC One M9. Then weep for your wallet.

HTC One M9 Review: A Great Phone That Can’t Keep Up

Everyone loves an underdog. They’re new, exciting, and upset expectations. In 2013, the HTC One M7 brought that incredible disruptive energy to smartphones, and the following year’s M8 ran neck and neck with the best you could buy. Today, the HTC M9 goes on sale, and it’s no longer an underdog—but it’s not exactly leading…

New MacBook Meta-Review: The Laptop of the Future, Just a Tad Too Early

Apple’s newest MacBook is undeniably slick. But with its single port and a processor that’s far from super-charged, it’s also got a few potential pain points. The first reviews are just coming in, and it seems like a shoo-in for Laptop of the Future. Just maybe not quite yet. Here’s a quick tour of the…