Reviews

BlackBerry Priv Review: Nope, Not For Me—Not Even For My Worst Enemy

I really wanted to like the BlackBerry Priv. C’mon! Android on a Blackberry phone! Sadly, the company’s latest, and possibly last, shot at appealing to users who’ve long since moved on falls incredibly short. What Is It? A $700(!) Blackberry smartphone, and the first to run Android. It has a 5.4-inch display plus a slide…

Samsung Galaxy View Review: I Love This Magical Slab of Content

I love movies. I first watched Annie Hall on my phone. I fill my tablet with movies and watch them on planes. I still watch movies on my laptop, even when there’s an actual television just a few feet away. This is why the Samsung Galaxy View feels so terribly intriguing. At first, I didn’t…

New Apple TV Review: Is This It?

Buying a set-top box changed the way I watched everything through my TV. I’ve tried many stream machines but avoided the Apple TV since its walled garden undermined that “everything” detail, but I was sure that the much buzzed upgrade would change my mind. After using it for a week, I’m not as confident. Of…

Pebble Time Round Review: Beauty In Simplicity

Smartwatches are subjected to many metaphors: “Smartphones on your wrist.” Mmm, not quite. Maybe in a few more years. “A wearable computer.” Depends on your definition of “computer.” Better keep looking. “An extension of your smartphone.” Now, that’s an idea–one that Pebble has perfected with the Pebble Time Round. Update (3/1/16): Pebble’s cut the price…

LG V10 Review: Big, Weird, and Not Worth It

I’m a huge fan of weird phones that try to reimagine the average pocket computer as something different than just a slab of metal and glass. That’s why I’ve come to respect LG’s creative risks, even if they don’t always stick. But with the LG V10, they may have gone a step too far. What…

Petition to Release the Cast of CSI: Cyber So They Can Reboot ER 

The late ‘90s were the undisputed golden years for three things: Crushed velvet outfits, Beanie Baby hobbyists, and TV crossovers. Cosmo Kramer popped up on Mad About You, characters flitted from Ally McBeal to The Practice, Detective Munch leapt from Homicide: Life on the Street to Law and Order: SVU, Scully and Mulder went on…

Roku 4 Review: Could Be the Best Streaming Box Out There, Despite Flaws

I’ve been a happy Roku 3 owner for the past few years. It does what it’s supposed to do, with no hassle. It’s been exhilarating seeing the Fire TVs and Chromecasts come into this world, but I stuck by the Roku, waiting for a really cool update. Now there is one with the Roku 4,…

We Dropped the Droid Turbo 2 Over and Over Again to Test Its Shatterproof Screen

We are in the midst of reviewing the recently announced Motorola Droid Turbo 2, and one of the most interesting features of the phone is its supposedly shatterproof display. Any phone can survive one or two errant drops. But what about seventy? As you can see in our video above, the Droid Turbo 2 does…

Sonos Play:5 Review: Wireless Music Made Elegant

Sonos conquered wireless music years ago, before wireless music was even a thing to be conquered. With the new Play:5, the company revisits its flagship speaker with a stunning new design and powerful sound customization. The refreshed Play:5 might be the coolest speaker Sonos has ever made. What Is It? An overhauled version of the…

HTC One A9 Review: An iPhone Only In Looks

Let me be blunt. If I lost my iPhone a week ago and needed a new one, I would’ve bought the HTC One A9. It looks great, and upon first glance, works pretty great, too. But I didn’t lose my iPhone, and the A9 is now more expensive than I thought it was. The newest…

Nexus 6P Review: The Android Phone For Everyone

Google-designed Nexus phones have been beating the handsets designed by third-parties for a few years now, owing to their use of an unfettered stock Android. With the 6P, Nexus finally gets gorgeous hardware to match the luster of its powerful software. It’s the Android phone almost everyone should buy. What Is It? A 5.7-inch Android…

Nexus 5X Review: An Old Favorite With Some New Tricks

I have a confession to make. I love the Nexus 5. Despite its obvious flaws compared to newer and shiner phones (all of which I’ve tried and tested), the Nexus 5 has some intangible quality for me that no other phone has replicated before or since. But now, there’s the Nexus 5X. The Nexus 5X…

Microsoft Surface Pro 4 Review: I Love It, But Not For Getting Real Work Done

Nobody knows what to make of the Microsoft Surface. It’s neat looking, but kind of awkward. Great at certain things and oddly tantalizing, but who’s it really for? Ack, fuck it. This latest hybrid iteration, the Surface Pro 4, is a refinement of sorts and sometimes subtle tweaks can go a long way toward making…

Amazon is Suing 1,000 Fake Five-Star Reviewers

As well as promising the entire world in a FedEx box, Amazon also trades on the quality of its reviews. So it’s actually not surprising that the company is taking 1,114 unknown reviewers to court. https://gizmodo.com/amazon-is-starting-to-sue-sellers-of-fake-five-star-rev-1696953966 It’s not the first time that Amazon has taken legal action against fake reviews: back in April, it sued…

Chromecast Audio Review: A Cheap Way to Teach Your Old Speakers New, Wireless Tricks

In 2013, Chromecast was a revelation. For $35 you could transport virtually anything you could watch on a computer or phone to a television. Easy! Chromecast Audio performs a parallel magic trick for audio and speakers. It’s a similar tech magic trick that’s lost its shock and awe. What Is It? A little $35 dongle…

The Asus Zenfone 2 is a cheap-and-cheerful Android powerhouse, which makes it a prime candidate for people wanting to tinker. Asus just made that job a whole lot easier, offering up a tool to unlock the bootloader (and flash custom ROMs) with minimal effort. [Asus via Android Central]

CSI: Cyber and the Fake Side Piece Tinder Hacker 

The plotlines on CSI :Cyber are daft bordering on absurd, but tonight’s episode wins a special Incompetency Award for inadvertently portraying the Cybercrimes Division as a thoroughly corrupt place to work. Instead of focusing on the revenge porn case she’s directed to pursue, Special Agent Avery Ryan diverts the Cybercrime Division’s attention to helping ex-hacker and…

New Amazon Fire TV Review: Now With 4K But Still Not a Roku

Amazon’s Fire TV is the Amazon Fire of set top boxes. I’m not saying that to sound like an idiot. I’m trying to emphasize how Amazon’s affinity for highly proprietary and basically functional hardware spans categories. The fancy new Fire TV is no exception. What makes the new Fire TV fancy is simple: It supports…

Kuiu Teton Review: High Performance Camo Goes Affordable

Kuiu has disrupted the camouflage market in recent years, making technical outdoors clothing that’s not just radically high-performance, but which also looks cool while obscuring the human silhouette across diverse environments. This new Teton range drops the price points below $100. What Is It? California-based Kuiu has made a name for itself through its philosophy…

CSI: Cyber Is Back, and Still Chock Full O’Ludicrous Tech Tricks

The best-worst show about technology came back for its second-season premiere with 100% more Ted Danson and 1000% more dei ex machina driving its plotlines than before. The cast is slightly different, but the relentless corniness is simply amplified. For the uninitiated, CSI: Cyber focuses on a motley crew of investigators from the FBI’s Cyber…