How to buy the right sound bar to go with your TV

Your HDTV has crappy speakers. Don’t feel bad, they all do. There’s only so much they can do in that thin enclosure with a tiny bezel around the screen. It’s easy to get great sound in your living room, though. All you have to do is buy a receiver, a center channel speaker, a subwoofer, front and surround speakers. Then you take a bunch of speaker wire, and run it from your receiver...
Hey wait come back! I was only kidding about all the speakers and wires. Sure, a nice 5.1 or 7.1 setup will make your living room sound like a little movie theater, but it can also be an eyesore, or at the very least, difficult and expensive to set up. There’s an easier way: buy a sound bar.
A sound bar is a horizontal “bar” of speakers meant to sit right up under your TV. The right one can really make your TV shows, movies, video games, and music sound a whole lot better than they do coming out of your TV’s speakers, and you can get a good one for less than $500—far less than a whole surround-sound getup.
Before you whip out your credit card for the first deeply-discounted sound bar you find on sale, take note of these considerations. As with all audio gear, you don’t have to spend a fortune, but you do need to take heed of certain considerations.

Measure twice, buy once

Your sound bar is going to sit underneath your TV. Make sure there’s room for it. If your TV is in an enclosure, pull out a tape measure and see how wide it is. See how much room you have in front of your TV. Check out deep your TV stand or enclosure is—if you buy a pedestal-style sound bar, you’ll need to know the depth. Nothing would be worse than unboxing your new sound bar at home only to find it doesn’t quite fit where your TV is.

You want your sound bar to integrate into your entertainment center, not overwhelm it.

Take note of what your TV looks like, too. You don’t have to get a sound bar that exactly matches your TV’s looks, but it helps the sound bar “disappear” if it doesn’t clash terribly with your existing equipment. Some HDTV makers also make sound bars, and they’re made to match the aesthetics of their TV lines. You don’t really need to match this closely if you don’t want to, but the option is there.
Use your smartphone to take a few photos of your TV as it sits in your living room. Some from far away, some up close. Make sure the room is well-lit. That way, when you’re looking around in the store, you can refer to your living room setup and get an idea of what it’s going to look like in there.

Consider pedestal style

There are really two types of sound bars. One is a traditional “bar” a few inches tall and a few inches deep, that sits below your TV, in front of the TV’s stand. Pedestal-style sound bars are typically a foot or more deep, made to be a platform upon which your HDTV rests.

Pedestal-style sound bars are meant to rest beneath your TV.

You’ll want to make sure there’s room for your TV to be lifted up a few extra inches, but pedestal sound bars have some nice advantages. Because of their larger size, they often have enough room for good low-frequency speakers, and don’t need a subwoofer. They also integrate nicely into most entertainment centers, making them harder to notice, especially if your entertainment center is black.

You want a subwoofer

Unless you buy a larger pedestal-style sound bar, do not get one without a subwoofer. A subwoofer is a speaker dedicated to low frequencies, and is absolutely essential to making sure your music has good bottom end, and your movies have good “boom” when things go “boom” on screen.

You can hide away the subwoofer almost anywhere, but don’t skimp and get a sound bar without one.

I know, I know: the whole point of buying a sound bar was to avoid all the extra speakers and wires. But we’re only talking one extra wire, and you can put the speaker almost anywhere in the room. Low-frequency sounds, by their very nature, are hard to pinpoint the location of. So you can plop that subwoofer by a plant in the corner and discreetly run the speaker wire along the baseboard to it, and nobody will be the wiser.

Look for one with Bluetooth

Imagine: You go into your living room, and decide you want to listen to some music while you have your morning coffee and check your email. But all your music is on your phone. Maybe you like to use Pandora or Spotify. So you pull out your phone, press a button on the sound bar’s remote to flip it over to Bluetooth input, and like magic the music that would be coming out of your phone is coming out of your sound bar.
Criminally, not every sound bar supports Bluetooth. You want to make sure the one you buy does. Streaming music from your phone or tablet is just too convenient, and it’s really easy to pair it with your sound bar.

Inputs? We don’t need no stinkin’ inputs!

Some sound bars have HDMI inputs and output and passthroughs and analog audio jacks and... it’s like the Hair Club for Men with all the plugs back there. You probably don’t need all that. You really need a minimum of inputs.

You don’t need a lot of fancy inputs on your sound bar.

First, look at your HDTV’s manual, or dig around behind it. Almost all HDTVs have a digital optical audio output. Buy a sound bar with a digital optical audio input, and just run the audio from your TV to the sound bar. That way anything on your TV, no matter what input it comes in from (cable box, blu-ray player, game console...) will play through the sound bar. Some TVs only have analog audio outputs, which is less ideal, but can still work well and will still give you better sound than sticking with your TV speakers.
Be sure to go into your TV settings and disable your HDTV’s internal speakers, too. You don’t want sound coming out of the sound bar and your crummy TV speakers!

The perils and pitfalls of faux-surround

Some sound bars promise surround sound. It’s a lie. The only way to really, truly get the sensation of sound coming from behind you is to actually put speakers behind you, which sort of defeats the point of a sound bar.
Having said that, some of the “surround” modes on sound bars can give you a wider sound stage and will seem to fill the room better than regular stereo mode. The quality of the surround features on sound bars is all over the map. It often depends on the layout and shape of your living room, and the type of content you’re playing.
As a rule, I would say not to bother with surround modes unless you can listen to the exact sound bar you’re considering in a store, with the content of your choosing, and you think it really does sound good. You don’t have to avoid sound bars with surround modes—they all play in regular stereo just fine—but don’t feel like you have to go out of your way to get this particular feature.

How much should you spend?

Now you know what you need in a sound bar. It has to fit the space, has to have Bluetooth support, has to have a subwoofer (unless it’s a larger pedestal-style bar), doesn’t need a ton of inputs, and doesn’t need fancy surround sound modes.
Only one major consideration remains: price.
There are good sound bars that cost less than $500, but not many really good ones for less than $200. Everyone has a different budget, but that that range should provide some guidance. You can spend well over $1000 on a sound bar, but in that price range, you’re almost certainly paying for frills that may be nice to have, but are hardly necessary.     

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Control iTunes & Apple TV From The Palm Of Your Hand With Remote

If I’m honest with myself, I would have to admit I’m quite a lazy person. If I’m lying on the sofa, I don’t like to get up unless I absolutely have to, and anything that involves using energy is something which I generally don’t like doing. Think of how lazy Garfield the cat is and then multiply that by 100. Then you will have a rough idea of what I am like.

So when I took a closer look at Remote, a free app provided by Apple, I realised I could take my laziness to new heights. Remote is an app that turns your iPhone or iPad into a remote control for iTunes and the Apple TV. With it, you can lie on the couch, with iTunes running on your computer, and be able to switch songs without having to move a muscle. Heaven. The only catch is that it only works with Wi-Fi networks.

Setting It Up For The First Time

After installing it for the first time and opening it up, the first thing you need to do is log in with your iTunes account.

After successfully logging in, you will see the following message.

Turning On Home Sharing On iTunes

Put your iPhone or iPad to one side for a moment, and open up iTunes on your computer. Go to iTunes preferences followed by the tab called Sharing. This is where you can grant access to your iTunes library to anyone in your local Internet network, including any iDevices.

Choose the options as shown in the the screenshot above, but adding a password is not necessary. It certainly isn’t required for the Apple Remote.
Go back to the Remote app on your iPhone or iPad. Access the settings, and tap on Add An iTunes Library. Before doing this, make sure that iTunes on your computer is still open and that Home Sharing is still enabled.

Connecting To iTunes

When you click on Add An iTunes Library, it will immediately give you a PIN number. The PIN number is how you will connect your iDevice to your iTunes. For security reasons, if you do not connect to iTunes within a certain period of time, then the PIN number will refresh to a new one.

Next, connect your iDevice to your computer so that it shows up in iTunes. Click on your iDevice in iTunes, and you will be prompted for the four digit PIN number. Enter in the PIN number that is currently on your iDevice screen and then your iDevice screen will show the following.

Provided you have a pretty good Wi-Fi network, your home library should be found quite quickly. You will then see a link to your library on your iDevice screen.

Controlling iTunes

That’s the setup of Remote now finished, so let’s now take a look at how to operate the Remote. After tapping the link to your home network, you will see everything that you have on your iTunes. So as an example to show you how it works, let’s pick a movie that I recently purchased.

When you tap on the movie, it will immediately start on your iTunes. The screen on your iPhone will then change to show the various controls available.

As you can see the controls are pretty basic, but it is enough to get the job done – play, pause, rewind, forward. There is also a function where you can rewind or forward 10 seconds either way. You can also run your finger along the slider bar (shown in the screenshot above, under the Hobbit artwork), to go to any point in the movie.
When I tested the app, everything worked perfectly. There was never a problem with anything. And those are the kinds of apps that I love. Ones that work right away, as advertised.
Now let’s take a quick look at playing some music, and yes I like ABBA. What can I say? I was an 80′s child.

Playing music is exactly the same as playing a movie. Simply tap on the song that you want to play and it will immediately begin in iTunes. You can use the remote app to play and pause, as well as decide what you will play next.
That is pretty much it. I can’t believe it’s taken me this long to discover the Remote app. Until now I have been wasting precious energy getting off the sofa to switch songs or movies. From now on I will be the ultimate couch potato with my pizza in one hand, and my remote in the other.
Download: Apple Remote (free)

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DirecTV to expand out-of-home live TV streaming, Android tablet support

DirecTV Everywhere will soon become much more useful for travelers eager to watch their favorite shows. As of November 21st, the satellite TV provider is expanding its out-of-home TV streaming selection to include more than 30 live channels, such as HBO and Showtime. Subscribers will also have access to more than 100 channels when at home, and 19,000 on-demand shows through DirecTV's website. The company's Android tablet app is receiving a makeover as part of the expansion -- an impending update will stream both live and on demand video to tablets of all sizes and multiple OS versions. Customers will just have to wait a short while before they get access to DirecTV's wider world of content.

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LG Smart TVs could be collecting personal data, even if you tell them not to

Think you're safe from prying eyes when you turn off your computer or smartphone and flip on the TV? That might not be the case if you have a recent LG Smart TV, according to a UK blogger called DoctorBeet. He noticed that his new HD set was sending private data, regardless of whether a (rather hidden) toggle called "Collection of watching info" was turned on or off. In scanning through his router logs, DoctorBeet noticed that TV station metadata was transmitted (albeit to a server that appears inactive) each time he changed the channel. More insidiously, even the names of files on USB keys he inserted were being sent -- including one he changed to "Midget_Porn_2013.avi" to prove a point. That appears to go beyond what we saw with its Cognitive Networks hookup, which was supposed to supply more features to users, not advertisers. We contacted LG, who made the following statement:

We're looking into this now. We take these claims very seriously and are currently investigating the situation at numerous local levels since our Smart TVs differ in features and functions from one market to another. We work hard to get privacy right and have made this our top priority.

They said it could take another 48 hours to actually confirm or deny what's going on -- so, naturally, as soon as we know, you'll know.

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The Best Products of 2013

 

Merriam-Webster's dictionary defines the word "best" as "better than all others in quality or value." That's something we see a lot of at PCMag: every year our analysts review and rate over 2,000 products. They look at computer systems, cameras, mobile devices, software, games, networks, and much more. And every year products improve on the previous year's offerings, both in quality and value. That's why we share with you an annual list of the greatest products.
Of course, you can always consult specific product categories and check our Editors' Choices, and sometimes one category will have many excellent offerings. But oftentimes that's not good enough. You want things narrowed down; you want the winner amongst the winners. That's why we badger the analysts to pick one and only one device in every category for this list.
You won't see just the same old categories as previous years either. We've got several new types of products this year as we keep up with changing technology. For example, 2013 is the first time we're including wearables because smartwatches and digital health/fitness devices (and apps) have come a long way. We also include a high-end toy that's fun for mature children and playful adults alike. The cloud is also making a huge impact on daily life, so we've added our first cloud storage product to the list. We were sure to include everyone—even nascent 3D printers make the cut this year.
One category sadly missing is game consoles. The current crop of consoles is long in the tooth and the new generation—specifically PlayStation 4 and Xbox One—were not available for testing as we published this list. But check back on PCMag in the coming days for full coverage and reviews.
In our list you'll find 100 products in 99 categories. We had one tie, and the products were so great we decided to include both. Of those products, 95 earned our Editors' Choice seal of approval. What's more, 10 of the products earned a perfect score of five stars: Apple MacBook Air 13-Inch, Grand Theft Auto V, Lego Mindstorms EV3, Spaceteam for Android, ifttt, Photoshop, Flipboard for iPad, Synology Diskstation DS1812+ NAS, a Leica camera lens, and the amazing Olympus OM-D mirrorless camera. Those are all products our testers consider flawless in their current incarnations—and they're only likely to get better. The remaining products in this list all boast an impressive 4-star rating at least.
To be eligible for consideration the product had to be reviewed by analysts in our Labs between November 1, 2012 and November 1, 2013. Our experts use industry-standard benchmarks and several tests developed in-house to get quantifiable, reliable, and reproducible results. Only products that are put through the paces and come out on top make it into "The Best Products of 2013."
And now, we proudly present PCMag's list of the Best Products of 2013. Drumroll please! 

 

DESKTOPS

BUDGET DESKTOP Gateway DX4870-UB2B    $499.99 $539.99 at Amazon

The Gateway DX4870-UB2B is a basic tower desktop PC that checks all the boxes you need from a new desktop, particularly if you already have an LCD display you're carrying over. It's speedy for its segment, has spacious storage, will let you keep many documents open simultaneously, and is relatively inexpensive. It's also expandable so it can grow with your family. A great bang for the buck, it's a solid choice.—Joel Santo Domingo

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	MAINSTREAM CONSUMER DESKTOP Velocity Micro Vector Z25    $999.99 $759.00 at Velocity Micro
The Velocity Vector Z25 is an old-school midtower desktop. It has multimedia and 3D gaming chops, all for a sub-$1,000 price tag. It's the kind of PC you would've paid $2,500 for back in the day, and for multimedia users it comes highly recommended; it has the power to quickly complete tasks with photos and video, while keeping a little in reserve for moderate to hardcore gaming.—JSD

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	ALL-IN-ONE/TOUCH-SCREEN DESKTOP Vizio 27-Inch All-in-One Touch PC (CA27T-B1)    $1,549
With its great features and performance, the Vizio 27-inch All-in-One Touch PC (CA27T-B1) delivers on the promises made by its futuristic design. A touch screen, hybrid drive setup, quad core processor, and improved trackpad help elevate the system to our highest honors.—JSD

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GAMING DESKTOP Falcon Northwest Fragbox (GeForce GTX 780 SLI)    $4,499

High-end gaming rigs like the Falcon Northwest Fragbox (GeForce GTX 780) are made to play premier AAA gaming titles at the highest resolution possible with the highest-quality settings. The Fragbox is certainly capable of that, and it's semi-portable to boot. The latest Fragbox gives users a high-powered fourth-generation Intel Core i7 plus a pair of Nvidia's latest GTX 780 graphics cards. It's smooth as butter on the gaming benchmark tests.—JSD

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	COMPACT/SLIM DESKTOP Polywell B8500    $499.99
The Polywell B8500 small form factor desktop provides time-critical control and business info, and with its size goes where plain business desktops would fear to tread. It's a good choice for the factory control desk, prepress proof desk, or the broker's workspace.—JSD

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BUSINESS/WORKSTATION DESKTOP HP Z230 SFF Workstation    $2,045 $1,601.50 at Amazon

When you buy a workstation PC, you're buying more than just a desktop equipped with powerful components; you're also getting better reliability, tested and certified compatibility with professional software, and a design that lets you fix things quickly and minimize downtime. The HP Z230 SFF Workstation does all of that, and in a notably compact package, giving you a full-featured single-processor workstation you can actually fit on your desk with room to spare.—JSD

 

LAPTOPS

	BUDGET LAPTOP Acer C7 Chromebook (C710-2055)    $279.99 £240.00 at Amazon Marketplace
Google's Chromebooks have long promised affordability and simplicity, and the Acer C7 Chromebook (C710-2055) delivers in spades. It's faster, better, and lasts longer than other Chromebooks on the market, plus it offers a host of online and offline tools with a healthy mix of local and cloud storage.—Brian Westover

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	BUSINESS LAPTOP Dell Latitude 6430u    $1,328 $1,199.75 at Dell Small Business
Road warriors who prefer travelling with a light footprint will dig the Dell Latitude 6430u, a Windows 8-equipped business ultrabook that deftly blends style and performance. With its slick design, excellent keyboard, and great battery life, it's an easy choice for those who want productivity for work without having to settle for a drab, utilitarian business ultrabook.—BW

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DESKTOP REPLACEMENT Apple MacBook Pro 15-Inch (2013)    $1,999 $1,994.00 at Amazon

The Apple MacBook Pro 15-inch (2013) is the Retina display-equipped system that power users have been waiting for. It takes last year's excellent Retina display upgrade and thinner chassis and adds a powerful Intel Core i7 processor with integrated graphics that performs like discrete graphics. Plus the nine-hour battery life is more than adequate for a day's work. It's the pinnacle of laptops designed for uber-picky power users who need to take their time-sensitive projects with them.—BW

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	GAMING LAPTOP Razer Blade (2013)    $1,999.99 $1,999.00 at Amazon
The oh-so-portable 14-inch Razer Blade has you covered when you want to take your gaming on the road, with six hours of battery, an Intel Haswell processor, and the latest Nvidia graphics.—BW

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	ULTRABOOK Acer Aspire S7-392-6411    $1,449.99 $1,519.99 at Amazon
If you're looking for a svelte laptop to show off, yet still be able to do real work in Windows 8, the Acer Aspire S7-392-6411 is the ultrabook you want. It's the current pinnacle of the ultrabook trend and shows the brilliance PC makers can return under Intel's increasingly stringent standards for ultrabooks.—BW

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	ULTRAPORTABLE LAPTOP Apple MacBook Air 13-Inch (Mid 2013)    $1,099 Best Price at Amazon
Equipped with a fourth-generation Intel Core i5 processor, the latest MacBook Air 13-inch shows decent performance gains. But it's the ultraportable's 15-plus hours of battery life that blows away the competition.—BW

 

TABLETS & EBOOK READERS

	LARGE-SCREEN TABLET Apple iPad Air    $499 and up $499.00 at Apple Store
Apple's iPad Air isn't a radical break from previous iPads, but it doesn't need to be. It's a well-built, slim, and light platform for a terrific range of tablet apps, with an unusually fast processor and a much lighter frame than last year's model, but no loss of battery life. As with previous iPads, it's close to a no-brainer.—Sascha Segan

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	SMALL-SCREEN TABLET Google Nexus 7    $269.99 £209.99 at amazon.co.uk
The Nexus 7's $229 price is an amazing value. Its high-res screen is extremely sharp, the battery life is long, and the tablet's body is narrow enough to hold comfortably in one hand. This tablet makes a perfect e-reader or backseat entertainment gadget.—SS

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EBOOK READER Amazon Kindle Paperwhite    $119 (with Special Offers) $119.00 at Amazon

Amazon rewrites the Kindle again to great effect. The revised Kindle Paperwhite is considerably faster and more refined than last year's model, with brighter edge lighting and a useful new Page Flip feature that makes it easier to locate your spot. It's comfortable to hold and lasts for weeks on a battery charge. Plus, Amazon's ebook store and overall app ecosystem remain the best in the business.—Jamie Lendino

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	IPAD ACCESSORY Belkin Ultimate Keyboard Case    $99.99 $82.94 at Amazon
Keyboard cases for the iPad generally come in either traditional folio or thin-and-light cover styles, but both have their drawbacks. The Belkin Ultimate Keyboard Case splits the difference, combining great protection, sleek design, and a comfortable keyboard all in one great package.—Eugene Kim

 

MOBILE NETWORKS & DEVICES

	BEST MOBILE NETWORK Verizon Wireless 4G LTE
AT&T's network is the fastest, but Verizon's is the best. How'd that happen? The two big carriers weren't far apart in our Fastest Mobile Networks study, but the huge differential in our Reader's Choice study landed Verizon in a solid first place. As the only truly national LTE network, Verizon has you covered.—Sascha Segan

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BEST PHONE (TIE)

	Apple iPhone 5s   $199.99
The Apple iPhone 5s may be the same size as last year's iPhone but its more powerful hardware and software makes a major difference. This is the first 64-bit phone on the market, the first with a usable fingerprint reader, one of the two best camera phones out there, and of course, it runs Apple's unparalleled library of third-party apps.—SS
	Samsung Galaxy S4   $199.99
Samsung's flagship smartphone is the Microsoft Office of mobile phones: it has something for everyone. Light and slim, the S4 is nonetheless laden with an amazing number of features, from a simplified Easy Mode to special camera modes that let you insert yourself into a shot, and erase photobombers.—SS

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	IPHONE ACCESSORY Unu DX Protective Battery Case for iPhone 5   $79.95 $79.99 at Amazon
Find yourself scrambling for a charge by midday? Cast your worries away with the Unu DX battery case, which will more than double your iPhone's battery life without adding much bulk. It outperforms many more expensive options, making it excellent value.—Eugene Kim

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	BLUETOOTH HEADSET Plantronics BackBeat Go 2   $79.99 £68.00 at Amazon
Plantronics stepped up its well-respected BackBeat stereo Bluetooth line this year with the BackBeat Go 2, delivering solid sound quality, a sweat-proof nano-coating, and a comfortable fit at an eminently reasonable price. While there are other solid choices at higher and lower price points, the BackBeat Go 2 hits the sweet spot.—SS

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	CELLULAR MODEM OR HOTSPOT Verizon Jetpack 4G MHS291L   $49.99 $39.99 at Amazon
A hotspot should always be able to connect. Verizon's Jetpack 4G MHS291L made by Pantech has the longest battery life of any hotspot we've tested: more than 14 hours of solid LTE streaming on a charge. Combined with the nation's biggest LTE network, that means the MHS291L can keep you online almost anywhere.—SS

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GPS NAVIGATION Garmin nüvi 3597LMTHD   $379.99 $318.96 at Amazon

Garmin has been in the GPS navigation game for a long time and it shows with the top-end nüvi 3597LMTHD. This model includes a 5-inch glass capacitive display with a sharp (for a GPS) 800-by-480-pixel resolution. In a world of free smartphone GPS apps, the expensive nüvi 3597LMTHD really has to earn its keep—and it does, thanks to beautiful 3D terrain mapping, a brilliant magnetic mount, and improved natural-language voice prompts that are accurate and well-timed. Split-screen, photorealistic 3D lane assistance makes exiting complex highway interchanges a cinch.—Jamie Lendino

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	SMARTWATCH Pebble   $150 $149.99 at Best Buy
Smartwatches are still in their infancy but the Pebble is the closest to realizing their potential. Its good looks, useful notification support, and growing list of features (thanks to third-party development) make it a far better choice than any other smartwatch currently available.—EK

 

PERIPHERALS & COMPONENTS

	KEYBOARD Microsoft Sculpt Ergonomic Desktop    $129.95 $70.00 at Amazon
The Microsoft Sculpt Ergonomic Desktop combines an excellent ergonomic layout with Windows 8 features to power-up your regular PC use in addition to making it more comfortable. Throw in the simplicity of wireless and a distinctive, stylish design and it's one of the best ergonomic wireless keyboards we've ever seen.—Brian Westover

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	MOUSE Corsair Vengeance M65    $69.99 $59.99 at Amazon
The Corsair Vengeance M65 may be made for gaming, but with its contoured aluminum construction, adjustable 8200 DPI tracking, and rock solid design, it's also one of the best mice, period. Buy it whether you're gearing up for hours of FPS gaming or just want a well-built mouse for work and play.—BW

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MONITOR Acer B296CL    $599 $560.99 at Amazon

If you're tired of dealing with the clutter of multiple monitors and their associated cables and power bricks, the time is right to upgrade to an ultra-wide monitor such as the Acer B296CL. It's a reasonably priced 29-inch ultra-wide monitor offering a generous selection of ports, solid IPS color performance, and an ergonomic stand. The panel loses some luminance when viewed from an extreme vertical angle and the monitor does not have an auto-rotate feature, but these are trivial issues. —Laarni Almendrala Ragaza

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	PROCESSOR Intel Core i7-4770K    $339 $338.98 at Amazon
The quad-core Intel Core i7-4770K is the company's new top-end chip based on its Haswell microarchitecture, and its second processor built on the 22nm process node. It's a 3.5GHz chip with a 3.9GHz Turbo speed and formal support for up to DDR3-1600. The CPU includes a number of new capabilities and enhancements and is a notable step forward in CPU efficiency.—LAR

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	VIDEO CARD Nvidia GeForce GTX Titan   $999 $1,059.99 at Amazon
Nvidia's supercomputer-inspired GK110 comes to Nvidia's high-end consumer business as the Nvidia GeForce GTX Titan. This $1,000 single-GPU card packs seven billion transistors, 6GB of RAM, and 2,688 shader cores. This is the first time Nvidia has brought a specialized niche product over to the general consumer market. It supports supercomputer technologies like Hyper-Q, Dynamic Parallelism, and GPU virtualization, and is capable of executing any CUDA workload that the high-end Tesla K20/K20X chips support.—LAR

 

STORAGE

	HARD DRIVE LaCie 5big    $2,199 £1,509.99 at Amazon
The LaCie 5big Thunderbolt Series desktop-class external drive gives you a huge 20TB of storage, available instantly. It's the drive to use when you need constant access to all your work or project data. It's also the drive to use if server-based storage is too slow, but you need the gargantuan capacities that a server would provide.— Joel Santo Domingo

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	SOLID-STATE DRIVE SanDisk Extreme II 480GB SSD    $449 £309.99 at Amazon
The SanDisk Extreme II internal solid-state drive is a great opening volley into the high-end consumer market. It offers enthusiast-level performance from a historically OEM-focused company.—JSD

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	PORTABLE DRIVE Seagate Wireless Plus    $199.99 Best Price at Amazon
Carrying your entire media library just became a bit easier with the Seagate Wireless Plus drive. It's a 1TB hard drive with a built-in battery, media server, and Wi-Fi router, so you can share videos, photos, and music on the road.—JSD

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	USB FLASH DRIVE LaCie XtremKey USB 3.0 (32GB)    $84.99 £69.20 at Amazon
The LaCie XtremKey USB 3.0 (32GB) might be the roughest, toughest USB flash drive we've ever dealt with. The LaCie XtremKey USB 3.0 will survive insane amounts of abuse, it looks good, and it's a great flash drive as well.—JSD

 

AUDIO

MP3 PLAYER Apple iPod touch    $229 $292.22 at Cost Central

Smartphones are hogging the spotlight now, but there's still plenty of demand for dedicated music players. The Apple iPod touch (16GB) delivers much more than that. It's basically an iPhone stripped of its calling capability and GPS—meaning you can still run almost all of the 900,000-plus third-party apps and games in Apple's App Store. A dual-core A5 processor, 1,136-by-640-pixel 4-inch display, and excellent-sounding Apple EarPods help seal the deal. Oh, and it's great for playing music and watching TV shows and movies.—Jamie Lendino

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HEADPHONES Bowers & Wilkins P7 Mobile Hi-Fi Headphones    $399.99 $292.22 at Cost Central

Bowers & Wilkins, long known for its luxurious high-end audio speakers, takes its first shot at an over-the-ear (circumaural) headphone—and nails it. The P7 sounds exemplary with all kinds of music. Not only that, but the black leather and aluminum design exudes luxury, and is extremely comfortable to wear for long periods of time. The P7 isn't cheap by any means, but you get everything you pay for, and more.—JL

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EARPHONES Klipsch Image X7i    $199.99 $199.99 at Amazon

The Klipsch Image X7i delivers amazing audio quality for its price range, with tight bass, crisp highs, and a neutral, well-balanced timbre. It's one of the smallest in-canal earphone pairs we've tested, and it's extremely lightweight. The inline microphone and three-button remote control makes it perfect for your smartphone. Sonically, it's more of a flat-response pair than one for those who love boosted bass response; if that sounds good to you, the X7i is the set to get.—JL

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PC SPEAKERS KEF X300A    $799.99

Easily one of the most striking sets of stereo speakers we've tested, the KEF X300A is as close to perfect as we've heard in its price tier. It's an ideal pair of speakers for an apartment, office, or study, and its digital USB connection and 96kHz/24-bit digital-to-analog (D/A) converters ensure pristine sound when connected to a PC or Mac. A switch on the back panel lets you select between "desk" and "stand" (or free space) placement, and KEF throws in a pair of baffles in the box—use them to plug up the rear-facing ports for positioning the X300A system closer to a wall.—JL

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WIRELESS SPEAKER Bose SoundLink Bluetooth Mobile Speaker II    $299.95 $299.00 at Amazon

It's a modest evolution of the first version and that's fine, since the original was great to begin with. At just under three pounds, the Bose SoundLink Bluetooth Mobile Speaker II is compact and easy to tote. It folds up nicely with the attached cover which doubles as a power switch, and delivers smooth, balanced sound throughout the frequency spectrum. It also gets surprisingly loud and can easily fill a sizable room with music.—JL

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PORTABLE WIRELESS SPEAKER Bose SoundLink Mini    $199.95 $199.00 at Amazon

For a speaker that's only seven inches long, we won't blame you for thinking the Bose SoundLink Mini expensive. But of all the tiny portable Bluetooth speakers we've tested, it simply sounds the best, with surprisingly full, rich bass and a smooth midrange. The sturdy aluminum enclosure recalls the design of 1960s tabletop radios, yet sleeker and updated for today. It's ideal for a desk or nearby bookshelf, and thanks to the included charging cradle, the SoundLink Mini is easy to bring along for tunes on the go.—JL

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SOUNDBAR Sony HT-CT260 Home Theater Soundbar    $299.99 $199.00 at Amazon

The Sony HT-CT260 soundbar is one of the most well-rounded speaker systems we've tested. You get a lot for your money here, including stereo Bluetooth streaming, a blue LED status display, three sets of inputs, and a remote control. With powerful bass response and a warm overall sound signature, the HT-CT260 is an excellent buy and an easy upgrade for anyone looking to augment their HDTV in a small living room or den.—JL

 

CAMERAS & CAMCORDERS

	POINT-AND-SHOOT CAMERA Canon PowerShot Elph 330 HS    $229.99 Best Price at Amazon
The Canon PowerSHot Elph 330 HS is the camera to get if you're looking for something compact without breaking the bank. It's the best camera we saw this year for less than $250, thanks to sharp optics, impressive performance in low light, an 8x zoom lens, and built-in Wi-Fi.—Jim Fisher

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	BUDGET POINT-AND-SHOOT CAMERA Canon PowerShot A1400    $109.99 £59.79 at Amazon
If you're looking to spend around $100 for a digital camera, the AA-powered Canon PowerShot A1400 is a solid choice. Like other CCD cameras it's not the best in low light, but it does pack a sharp 5x zoom lens, and it's one of the few compact cameras with an optical viewfinder.—JF

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	HIGH-END MIRRORLESS CAMERA Olympus OM-D E-M1    $1,399.99, body only $1,399.00 at Amazon
The OM-D E-M1 isn't a perfect camera, but it's about as close as it gets. The top-end Micro Four Thirds body is an all-weather shooter with an outstanding EVF, 5-axis image stabilization, fast autofocus, and impressive burst shooting. It does well in low light, and even packs Wi-Fi for remote camera control and easy image transfer to your smartphone. —JF

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MIRRORLESS CAMERA Samsung NX300    $799.99 with 18-55mm lens $697.99 at Amazon

The Samsung NX300 packs a big APS-C image sensor into a svelte body. Its image quality is impressive in all kinds of light, and the autofocus system is impressively quick. There's a sharp tilting rear display with touch input, and built-in Wi-Fi so you can transfer images to your phone or upload directly to social networks. The only thing missing from the NX300 is support for an add-on EVF—you'll need to go with a different camera if that's a must-have feature—JF

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SUPERZOOM CAMERA Canon PowerShot SX280 HS    $279.99 A$212.00 at CameraSky

Lots of folks are hooked on SLRs with image sensors and lenses to match. But if you want a lot of zoom in a form factor that can slide into your pocket, you'll need to look at a compact camera like the Canon PowerShot SX280 HS. Its 12-megapixel, 1/2.3-inch image sensor isn't the largest you'll find in a pocket camera, but you can still shoot at moderate sensitivity settings without significant detail loss. It's impressively small, especially when you consider that it houses a 20x zoom lens and packs built-in Wi-Fi and GPS. —JF

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FULL-FRAME D-SLR CAMERA Canon EOS 6D    $2,099, body only $1,299.00 at RytherCamera

Full-frame cameras feature image sensors that match 35mm film in terms of size—that's roughly twice as big as the sensors in entry-level SLRs. They've long been the tools of pros, but the Canon EOS 6D brings full-frame to the masses at a price point that, while not cheap, is within reach of enthusiastic photographers. The huge image sensor does a great job in low light, and when paired with a wide-aperture lens delivers an impressively shallow depth of field. The 6D can shoot at 4.5fps and adds an integrated GPS and Wi-Fi—and its body is impressively compact, not that much bigger than top-end APS-C (Advanced Photo System type-C) SLRs. —JF

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	D-SLR CAMERA Nikon D7100    $1,199.95, body only £619.99 at eGlobaL Digital Store
Nikon's D7100 is everything a premium APS-C D-SLR should be. It's got a bright pentaprism viewfinder, a lightning-quick autofocus system, and loads of physical controls. Wildlife and sports shooters will appreciate the 6fps burst rate, and there's a vertical battery grip available for anyone who prefers a beefier camera. —JF

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RUGGED POINT-AND-SHOOT CAMERA Olympus Tough TG-2 iHS    $379.99 £215.99 at eGlobaL Digital Store

The TG-2 isn't that different from Olympus's first fast-lens rugged camera, the TG-1, but a few modest improvements and a lower price point make it a winner. The lens opens to f/2 at its widest angle, and the TG-2 is rated for use in up to 50 feet of water. It's also rated to survive 7-foot drops, operate in temperatures as low as 14°F, and to withstand external pressure of up to 220 pounds. This is the go-anywhere, survive-anything camera to get. —JF

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LENS Leica APO-Summicron-M 50mm f/2 ASPH.    $7,195 $7,350.00 at Amazon

I've shot with dozens of 50mm lenses over my life, and you simply won't find one better than the Leica APO-Summicron-M 50mm f/2 ASPH. It's absurdly sharp from edge-to-edge, shows no distortion or chromatic aberration, and is impressively compact. Yes, you'll have to pay for the privilege of using it. At close to $7,200 it's one of the most expensive lenses in Leica's catalog, and you'll need to pair it with a full-frame (or 35mm) rangefinder to get the most out of it—but it's worth it.—JF

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PRIME-LENS COMPACT Ricoh GR    $799.99 $754.89 at Amazon

The Ricoh GR puts a D-SLR-sized APS-C image sensor into the body of a camera which slides snugly into your jeans pocket. The prime lens doesn't zoom, instead giving you a fixed 28mm-equivalent field of view. It's an f/2.8 design that's sharp from edge-to-edge, with a 16-megapixel sensor that is impressive through ISO 3200. Couple that with an excellent set of physical controls and a sharp, bright rear LCD and you have a camera that will wow you, both with its size and the quality of the photos it captures.—JF

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PREMIUM POINT-AND-SHOOT Sony Cyber-shot DSC-RX100 II    $749.99 $748.00 at Amazon

The Sony Cyber-shot DSC-RX100 II is an upgraded version of the RX100, which found itself in this spot last year. It still features a compact body with a 1-inch image sensor and 28-100mm f/1.8-4.9 Zeiss lens, but adds a titling rear display, a hot shoe, and Wi-Fi. The image sensor is still 20-megapixels, but its backside illuminated design showed a 1-stop advantage in low-light image quality in our lab tests. It's the best compact digital camera with a zoom lens we've seen, but you'll have to pay a premium for it.—JF

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CAMCORDER GoPro Hero3 Black Edition    $399.99 $329.98 at Gander Mountain

Adventurous outdoorsmen love GoPro cameras for good reason. They're tough yet small enough to mount on your body, or on a snowboard, surfboard, or skateboard. Add a waterproof housing and this camera can capture your extreme, possibly insane, hobby of choice. The Hero3 Black Edition ups the video quality and adds Wi-Fi. It's not without its issues, however—the Wi-Fi can be a little tricky to use, and while the Hero3 can record footage at 4K, it's limited to 15fps at that resolution.—JF

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WEBCAM Dropcam Pro    $199 $199.99 at Amazon

Dropcam's approach to the surveillance market is software first. Its CVR, or "cloud video recording," is proof of that, and the service costs you a few bucks per month to store a few days of footage. But the hardware also shines. The latest Dropcam improves on the old in every way with better optics, a wider-angle lens, and a slick-looking black paint job. You don't need to pan or tilt when you use a Dropcam Pro; the sensor is so big that even zooming digitally looks pretty amazing. Ease of use, PC-free setup, sharing video streams, and monitoring from anywhere make the Dropcam Pro a winner. You can buy one at the Apple Store, too.—Eric Griffith

 

HDTVs & HOME THEATER

BUDGET HDTV Vizio M551D-A2R    $1,099.99 $1,048.00 at Amazon

You don't need to spend a lot of money for a great, 3D-capable HDTV. The Vizio M551D-A2R can be found for just over $1,000 and its 55-inch LED screen offers very good contrast and color accuracy for the price. It's a passive 3D screen and comes with four pairs of glasses so you can watch 3D movies and play 3D games with your friends and family right out of the box. Plus it's loaded with plenty of online services and apps.—Will Greenwald

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HIGH-END HDTV Samsung PN60F8500    $2,799.99 $2,465.00 at TVSuperStores.com

Plasma might be dwindling but that isn't stopping the technology from producing some amazing screens. Samsung's high-end PN60F8500 is a beautiful 60-inch plasma HDTV that gets very bright and very dark for a contrast ratio of 55,779:1, one of the best we've tested. It's loaded with features and stylish design aspects, including online media services, social network services, voice commands, a touchpad remote, and even a built-in camera for video chat.—WG

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BLU-RAY PLAYER Oppo BDP-103    $499 $499.00 at Amazon

Blu-ray players have become a perfunctory, everyday item not many people pay attention to, but there are still a few models targeted at high-end home theater enthusiasts. The Oppo BDP-103 is built like a tank, features 4K upscaling and 2D-to-3D conversion, and has both dual HDMI outputs and 7.1-channel analog audio outputs. If you want to integrate a Blu-ray player into your high-end surround sound system and projector, this is the one for you.—WG

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MEDIA HUB Roku 2    $79.99 $78.00 at Amazon

For less than $100, the Roku 2 offers more than 1,000 different content channels including big names like Netflix and Hulu Plus as well as niche services like Crunchyroll and Midnight Pulp. It doesn't have motion controls for playing Angry Birds like the Roku 3, but it does have an even better feature carried over from its higher-end version: a headphone jack in the remote so you can watch what you want without disturbing your significant other.—WG

 

PRINTERS

	SMALL-OFFICE INKJET HP Officejet Pro X551dw Printer    $599 £444.42 at Amazon Marketplace
A winning balance of speed, output quality, paper handling, low cost per page, and additional features such as mobile printing makes the HP Officejet Pro X551dw Printer a smart pick over its direct competition. The closest it comes to having a weakness is its print quality, but for most workplaces the HP Officejet Pro X551dw Printer hits all the right marks.—Tony Hoffman

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PERSONAL MONO LASER Samsung Xpress M2625D    $120 $139.99 at Office Depot

The Samsung Xpress M2625D printer offers unusually capable paper handling for personal use. In addition to an automatic duplexer, it includes a 250-sheet paper tray and a one-page manual feed slot so you don't have to swap out paper every time you want to print a page on a different paper stock. Its paper handling, solid scores for speed and output quality, and small size make a highly attractive printer for the price.—TH

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SMALL OFFICE MONO LASER MFP Samsung Multifunction Xpress M2875FW    $280 £209.99 at Amazon

The Samsung Multifunction Xpress M2875FW has lots of strong points and no notable weaknesses. Its particular balance of speed, output quality, paper handing, multifunction printer (MFP) basics, and small conveniences—like Wi-Fi Direct and the ability to copy single-sided originals to double-sided copies—adds up to the proverbial more-than-the-sum-of-its-parts. That's enough to make it an excellent fit for a micro or small office.—TH

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SMALL OFFICE COLOR INKJET MFP HP Officejet Pro X576dw    $799 $718.48 at Amazon

The HP Officejet Pro X576dw Multifunction Printer's mix of fast speed, high-quality output, excellent paper handling, and the convenience of a 4.3-inch touch screen, combined with a long list of MFP features put it way out in front of the pack. That's before considering its low cost per page. It's a laser-class inkjet: the X576dw looks like a laser, feeds paper like a laser, and performs like a laser.—TH

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SMALL OFFICE COLOR TABLOID SIZE MFP Brother MFC-J6920DW    $499.99 $229.99 at Amazon

If you need a tabloid-size (11-by-17 inch) multifunction printer that's both inexpensive and loaded with features, the Brother MFC-J6920DW may be what you're looking for. It's the flagship model of Brother's new Business Smart Pro series and is perfect for a micro or small office needing to print and scan at tabloid size. Its combination of duplex scanning, NFC, and large touch screen make it an appealing choice for users who need any or all of these features.—TH

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3D PRINTER Type A Machines Series 1    $1,695

The Type A Machines Series 1 is geared toward professionals and hobbyists. It's well-suited for that role, being relatively easy to set up and operate, versatile, and capable of printing good-quality 3D objects. It's able to print at a range of resolutions and has a large print area. There's a lot to like about the Type A Machines Series 1 and we encountered very few problems in testing it. All this is enough to make it the best 3D printer for designers, hobbyists, and makers.—TH

 

PROJECTORS

	INTERACTIVE DATA PROJECTOR Epson BrightLink 436Wi    $1,490 $1,490.00 at Epson
The Epson BrightLink 436Wi Interactive WXGA 3LCD Projector brings Epson's leading-edge interactive features to a more affordable projector. The 436Wi offers an attractive balance of image quality, brightness, and price. Unless you need 3D support, it's the short-throw, interactive projector you want. —TH

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MOBILE PROJECTOR NEC NP-M311W    $899 $1,490.00 at Epson

The LCD-based NEC NP-M311W projector delivers a bright image, WXGA (1,280-by-800) resolution, 1.7x zoom lens, long lamp life, near-excellent data image quality, and better video quality than most data projectors can offer; plus it is reasonably portable. Unless you require 3D capability or a short-throw lens, its long list of attractive features makes it a compelling choice for a WXGA projector. —TH

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HOME ENTERTAINMENT PROJECTOR WITH 3D Epson PowerLite Home Cinema 3020e    $1,899 $1,899.00 at Epson

The Epson Home Cinema 3020e offers high-quality 2D and 3D at full 1080p, both as a home theater projector and as a home entertainment projector that stands up to ambient light. It works directly with HDMI 1.4a devices like Blu-ray players and cable TVs. In most ways the Epson PowerLite Home Cinema 3020e is the 2D and 3D home entertainment projector we've been waiting for. It's an excellent low-cost 3D home theater projector as well.—TH

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HOME THEATER PROJECTOR WITH 3D Epson PowerLite Home Cinema 5020Ube    $2,899 $851.85 at Amazon

The Epson PowerLite Home Cinema 5020UBe is an impressive projector for the price. It delivers a high-quality image for both 2D and 3D and a wide range of brightness settings suitable for both theater-dark lighting and a family room with ambient light. Its advanced features include an unusually large zoom and lens shift, an auto-iris, frame interpolation, and super-resolution. Taken together, this constellation of features makes it a highly capable home theater projector for both 2D and 3D.—TH

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SCANNERS

SMALL OFFICE DOCUMENT SCANNER Xerox Documate 5445    $1,195 $762.99 at Amazon

The highly capable Xerox DocuMate 5445 desktop scanner delivers fast speed with duplex (two-sided) scanning, an assortment of world class software, and features such as a 75-sheet automatic document feeder (ADF). Its balance of speed, input capacity, duty cycle, and price, along with its well-chosen set of application programs and capable scan utility make the Xerox DocuMate 5445 an excellent choice for moderately heavy-duty use in a small office or workgroup.—TH

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PERSONAL PORTABLE PHOTO SCANNER Flip-Pal Mobile Scanner    $149.99 $149.99 at Amazon

The Flip-Pal mobile scanner offers an innovative design with PC-free scanning, a 4-by-6 flatbed, and a 2GB SD card. It has a neat trick for scanning originals that won't fit under the flatbed lid: take off the lid, turn the scanner over, and place the glass on top of the item to be scanned. It offers good scan quality and as a flatbed scanner it eliminates the risk of mangling photos or delicate documents possible with a sheet-fed scanner. Its 1.7-inch LCD lets you preview scans on the spot.—TH

 

NETWORKING

ROUTER Buffalo AirStation Extreme AC 1750 Gigabit Dual Band Wireless Router    $189.99 $139.99 at Amazon

Buffalo's AirStation Extreme AC1750 Gigabit Dual Band Wireless Router offers good performance and the latest wireless networking standard, 802.11ac. An extremely well-designed and feature-rich user interface caps off this premium, dual-band router, which can also operate as an access point or wireless bridge. Takeaway features include Web filtering and parental controls, Quality-of-Service, scheduled Internet access, and Eco mode, an energy-savings option that allows you to turn off LED, wired LAN, or WLAN on a schedule. Buffalo Technologies stepped up its game since its debut 11ac router, delivering a more mature 11ac router complete with great new management software, good performance, and lots of cool features.—Samara Lynn

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NAS (SOHO/PROSUMER) Seagate Central    $159.99 to $219.99 $129.99 at Amazon

The Seagate Central is simply the best fixed, single-drive NAS devices we've tested. It ships in 2TB ($159.99 street), 3TB ($179.99 street), and 4TB ($219 street) models, and supports Windows XP (and later) and Mac OS X 10.4.9 (and later). Use it to share and stream files throughout your home network. Seagate also provides customers a complimentary remote access service; all that's required is setting up an online account for anywhere, anytime access to any data stored on your Central devices.—SL

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NAS (SMB) Synology DiskStation DS1812+   $1,000 $839.99 at Amazon

Synology's DiskStation DS1812+ is one of the select products in the annals of PCMag history to achieve a perfect 5 stars out of 5 score. With capacity of up to 32TB (expandable up to 72TB!), and great performance, particularly with write speeds, this box can take just about anything an SMB could think to throw at a NAS. The often-dreary task of storage management is brightened by Synology's Hybrid RAID technology and the ease of configuring its fault tolerance.—SL

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NETWORK UTILITIES WD My Cloud (for Android)   Free

The WD My Cloud app is a companion app to Western Digital's My Cloud NAS device. The app delivers a surprisingly robust level of data management as well as anywhere, anytime, remote access. It's a must-have software addition for users of the My Cloud NAS, especially as we ease into the post-PC era and need our mobile devices to interact seamlessly with our home networking devices. A well-designed interface makes managing the My Cloud from any smartphone a snap, letting you perform tasks such as uploading and downloading files, adding folders, sharing files with others, and more.— SL

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NETWORK APPLIANCES Kerio Operator 1210   $900

The Kerio Operator Box 1210 is a full-featured VoIP for small business in a compact box. Testing proved that Kerio paid attention to security, with features such as blocking an IP address after a specified number of incorrect SIP login attempts, and changing SIP passwords for specific extensions to block malicious activity. We also like that all call-related data is available for reports and all system activity is logged. VoIP administrators can also look at server health, review recorded calls, and look at information about how long customers are spending in call queues.—SL

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NETWORK MANAGEMENT TOOLS Network Toolbox (for iOS)   $5.99

The well-designed Network Toolbox for iOS turns an iOS device into a networking toolkit. It's a one-stop central console chockfull of networking utilities and tools such as SHODAN, FTP, Telnet, Ping, and more. It's so potentially powerful in fact, that upon install, the app flashes the warning: Not intended to assist with analyzing remote sites with the intention of breaking into or exploiting services on those sites. The warning makes sense: Network Toolbox provides just about every utility a would-be hacker needs to access a poorly secured network.—SL

DIGITAL HEALTH/FITNESS

	HEALTH GADGET Withings Pulse    $99.95 $99.00 at Amazon
The Withings Pulse takes everything you love about existing top-notch activity trackers and adds a nifty built-in heart rate sensor, giving you a more comprehensive picture of your overall health. Its elegant design, informative display, and wealth of features make it our new favorite activity tracker.—Eugene Kim

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	HEALTH APP Runtastic PRO (for Android)    $4.99
The Runtastic PRO app tracks running, cycling, hiking, and walking. It spits out incredible maps and graphs about your activities and routes accurately and consistently. The PRO version ensures you get auto-pause extra modes, and the ability to search new routes uploaded by other users.—Jill Duffy

 

MOBILE APPS

IPHONE APP Evernote for iPhone    Free

When it comes to staying organized and keeping track of ideas and other information, Evernote for iPhone does the heavy lifting for you. Integrate it with one or two other apps and you can't do better. Its online synchronization is effortless and the search is outstanding; it'll even use OCR to search terms inside images, even with the free version. (A premium account with lots of extras is $5 a month or $45 a year.)—Jill Duffy

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	IPAD APP Flipboard    Free
It's been years since Flipboard came out on the iPad and it's still the best aggregator of news, social networking, links, video, and images on the platform. Even the page swiping is impressively fast. In version 2, users can create and share personalized magazines—and recipients don't even need to have Flipboard installed to read them.—Eric Griffith

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ANDROID APP Swype    Free

The walled-garden of iOS has grown some amazing apps, but the open field of Android has invited incredible innovation at even the most basic level—such as Swype. This application lets you drag ("swype") your finger between letters to create words (no special hand gestures required), and even predicts your next word before you type or swype. Swype also supports gestures for actions like cut and paste and features several other input methods. It sounds simple but it's revolutionary and quickly makes thumb-typing feel antiquated.—Max Eddy

 

SECURITY

PASSWORDS Dashlane 2.0    Free on a single device or $19.99

Dashlane manages and protects all of your passwords. Version 2.0 is better than ever, with automatic form field capture, security breach alerts, secure sharing of login credentials, and a new browser extension for Firefox and Chrome. It generates strong passwords, rates passwords as you type, helps you replace weak passwords, and even keeps a record of your online purchases. You can securely share logins with other Dashlane users and double-secure your data using Google Authenticator. New to Dashlane? It includes built-in training to walk you through all its password management features.—Neil J. Rubenking

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SECURITY SUITE Norton Internet Security (2014)    $79.99 $19.00 at Amazon

Norton's excellent blocking of malicious and fraudulent websites will keep you away from danger; it's the touchstone we measure other anti-phishing tools against. Its intelligent firewall sets permissions for known good programs and monitors unknowns for risky behaviors, without ever popping up a confusing query. Multi-layered antivirus protection fends off new threats and roots out those already present. It keeps almost all spam out of your inbox without discarding valid mail. All the components of this suite are top-notch and it does the job without trampling your system's performance.—NJR

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STANDALONE ANTIVIRUS Bitdefender Antivirus Plus (2014)    $39.95

Bitdefender's antivirus technology routinely takes top scores in tests by independent antivirus labs, and also scored well in PCMag's hands-on testing. It's one of a very few products that detects phishing sites better than Norton and it can optionally prevent transmission of private data out of your computer. The new Bitdefender Wallet stores passwords and personal data, the SafePay secure browser protects financial transactions, and Bitdefender SafeGo flags dangerous links in your Facebook profile. It even finds unpatched security vulnerabilities. There's definitely a reason for the "Plus" in this product's name.—NJR

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PARENTAL CONTROL OME-Kids    $9.95

Setting up OME-Kids email accounts for your children gives them access to spam-free email while enabling you to keep a watchful eye on their correspondence. Each OME-Kids account gets the same extremely accurate spam filtering as the Editors' Choice OnlyMyEmail Personal. In addition you can control your child's email activity at different levels. You can hold all incoming mail pending parental approval, review received mail, or get a BCC of all messages your child sends. As your child gets older you can step down the monitoring level and allow more privacy.—NJR

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MOBILE SECURITY Bitdefender Mobile Security and Antivirus 1.2.3 (for Android)    Free app; $9.99 per year

To fully protect your phone, a security app needs to bring together protection from malicious software as well as tools to keep your phone safe from loss and theft. Bitdefender for Android does both gracefully, and at a reasonable $9.99 per year—far less than many other big-name competitors. With it, you can also use SMS commands to take control of your phone when it's missing and evaluate how much of your private information each app accesses. It's lightweight and laser-focused on security.—Max Eddy

 

SOFTWARE & INTERNET

	CLOUD STORAGE & SYNC Google Drive    Free
Part office suite and part file-syncing service, Google Drive retains all the best features and core functionality of its predecessor, Google Docs, while also upping the ante on how much collaboration it enables. That it takes on Dropbox and Skydrive so well to sync files between computers and the cloud is almost just icing on the cake. It is one sweet package.—Jill Duffy

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PHOTOGRAPHY/DESIGN Adobe Photoshop CC    $19.99 per month

The gold standard in digital image editing never ceases to amaze us with its ability to top the previous year's release. Not only is 2013's Photoshop CC the first version to be offered in subscription-only format for a reasonable $19.99 a month, but it offers exciting new imaging possibilities with the impressive Camera Shake Reduction feature, Smart Sharpen, Intelligent Up Sampling, and Camera Raw as a filter. Many of the new features target professional designers with more CSS support, automated asset slicing, and conditional actions. No longer are high-end tools restricted to Photoshop Extended edition; you get every Photoshop tool with the subscription, including 3D, video, and image analysis.—Michael Muchmore

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OPERATING SYSTEM Apple OS X 10.9 Mavericks    Free

Microsoft made some impressive strides this year with Windows 8.1, but OS X remains the smoothest, most reliable, most convenient, and most manageable consumer-level desktop operating system on the planet. Top-notch, unobtrusive security is a major plus; so is its tight integration with social media and the ability to run Windows applications through third-party apps. Mavericks is loaded with useful features and, best of all, it's completely free.—MM

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UTILITY VMWare Fusion 6    $49.99

There comes a time in every Mac user's life when they just have to access something on Windows. Okay, maybe not every Mac user, but more than enough to account for the proliferation of programs out there that allow you to run a full version of Windows (or Linux) virtually, right on your Mac. The smoothest-running and least obtrusive on the market is VMWare Fusion 6. It's compatible with hundreds of operating system "guests," so try them all.—Eric Griffith

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VIDEO CyberLink PowerDirector 12    $99.99 $84.99 at CyberLink

CyberLink PowerDirector is a longtime favorite among prosumer video editors. It offers impressive performance, an intuitive interface, and lots of editing goodies. The latest version now has multicam viewing (up to four angles), 3D and 4K editing and output, direct uploading to sharing sites, and can even author a Blu-Ray disc. Considering its price, even serious video editors should look no further.—EG

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WEB BROWSER Google Chrome 27    Free

Our speedy Editors' Choice browser made impressive strides in 2013, offering new support for WebRTC which lets the browser act like Skype, using your PC's camera and microphone for real-time communication. The search ad giant also added a new set of "app" capabilities, with new desktop widgets that actually run outside of the browser window. All this is added to the ever-increasing lead in HTML5 support, speed, and simplicity that distinguish Chrome.—Michael Muchmore

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	WEB APP ifttt    Free
If This Then That, or ifttt, is all you need to remember because this amazingly simple yet powerful service can automate just about anything you do with other Web-based apps, from backing up your photos on Facebook to sending you text message reminders of upcoming appointments.—JD

 

GAMES & TOYS

XBOX GAME Grand Theft Auto V    $59.99 $54.95 at Amazon

GTA V represents the pinnacle of Rockstar Games' design talent. Neighborhoods, mini-games, animations, voice-overs, radio stations—anything you can think of—are wonderfully realized in the fictional city of Los Santos. GTA V even has multiple protagonists you can switch between at nearly any time—a first for the series. As always, Rockstar Games delivers a killer GTA soundtrack, one that contains a satisfying mix of pop, rock, rap, and other genres. Factor in a gang-centric online mode and Grand Theft Auto V becomes the ultimate crime caper of this console generation.—Jeffrey L. Wilson

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	PORTABLE GAMING DEVICE Nintendo 2DS   $129.99 $141.70 at Amazon
Nintendo's newest handheld is a scaled-back, kid-friendly version of the excellent 3DS and 3DS XL systems. It can't display 3D pictures, but it can play every game and run every app the 3DS can. Its lower price and hinge-free design makes it very tempting for gamers on a budget or parents who don't want to spend $170-$200 on a device their kids will throw around.—Will Greenwald

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	PC GAME Bioshock Infinite   $39.99 $31.98 at Amazon
The third installment in Irrational Games' impressive saga exploring the devastating effects of isolation (and isolationism) on the human psyche, BioShock Infinite combines familiar gameplay elements with exciting new mechanics, an engrossing story, and stunning graphics that make it surprisingly complex and powerful even by the high standards of the BioShock series.—Matthew Murray

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PLAYSTATION GAME The Last of Us   $59.99 $58.32 at Amazon

Naughty Dog, the development house behind the Uncharted and Jax and Daxter series, has created what many have hailed as "the last great PlayStation 3 game." The Last of Us combines action and survival gameplay to tell a character-driven tale about a world destroyed by the Cordyceps fungus, a growth that transforms humanity into zombie-like monsters. (The fungus actually exists in the real world and has unusual effects on its hosts.) Moving and action-packed, The Last of Us deserves to be in all PlayStation 3 gamers' libraries.—JLW

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3DS/VITA GAME Fire Emblem: Awakening   $39.99 $39.48 at Amazon

The Nintendo 3DS' Fire Emblem: Awakening isn't radically different from the other games in the strategy RPG series, but there's a refinement on display that makes the title worth picking up. Awakening, like other Fire Emblem games before it, focuses on tactics more so than the grind-heavy gameplay of the Final Fantasy Tactics and Disgaea series. Combat units have their own unique classes, and almost every fighter in your squad has a name, unique art style, personality, and story. A big part of the Fire Emblem experience is perma-death; when your units die, they die for good, so don't get too attached to any one character.—JLW

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ANDROID GAME Spaceteam   Free

Originally an iPhone-only title, Spaceteam debuted this year on Android and simply blew away the competition with its sheer oddity. You play over Wi-Fi or Bluetooth with people in the same room, and the game centers around shouting things aloud to your teammates. Things like "jiggle emergency whittler!" or "set Shiftsanitizer to one!" It's a very silly game, and the lively nature of it makes it a joy to play. Bust it out any time you're around others with cell phones (i.e. all the time).— Max Eddy

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IPHONE/IPOD TOUCH GAME Year Walk   Free

Year Walk is not like most other mobile games. Instead of brief, almost disposable interactions, this Swedish horror game pulls you in and challenges you with devilish puzzles that require you to use your phone in unusual ways. With starkly beautiful cut-out graphics, the game does a great job establishing a moody atmosphere. It has a few cheap (though effective!) scares, but it feels like a self-conscious effort to make the game scarier. And don't forget to investigate the Year Walk Companion app.— ME

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IPAD GAME XCOM: Enemy Unknown $19.99

XCOM: Enemy Unknown is a hit console game about a paramilitary organization tasked with defending Earth from an alien invasion. It made its mobile debut this year and it's as good as its bigger brother (minus the detailed graphics of course). You recruit new troops, discover new high-tech weaponry for vanquishing the enemy, and battle it out in randomly generated levels. A recent update added an asynchronous multiplayer mode for mixing it up with friends on the digital battlefield.—JLW

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IPAD GAME LEGO Mindstorms EV3 $349.99 $349.95 at Amazon

The newest version of LEGO's Mindstorms robotics kit is also the best, with a more powerful brain you can program to do anything. The sample robots start deceptively simple and become increasingly complex, and soon you'll find yourself (or your kids) building unique creations and programming them from the ground up. It's an excellent tech toy for adults and a fantastic science and learning toy for children.—WG

Source : PCMag

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