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I tested LG’s new earbuds fine-tuned by will.i.am and a lack of style was the last thing I expected

2:00 pm | April 1, 2025

LG xboom Buds: two-minute review

Enter the LG xboom Buds, a pair of wireless earbuds fine-tuned by the man who spins his chair around on UK primetime TV… and produces a few hit songs now and then too: will.i.am. LG and will.i.am’s combined effort looks to supply “supreme sound”, effective ANC and unique style factor.

And for the price of $99 / £119, that sounds like a pretty sweet deal. Sure, the LG xboom Buds aren’t the cheapest on the market, but they're hardly priced in the premium cost bracket. Having said that, these earbuds don’t quite hit the dizzying heights we’ve seen from a handful of previous efforts, with good but not great sound and disappointing design.

Let’s start by tackling sound – the thing that matters most for us in our hunt for the best earbuds. Out of the box, you’re going to be struck by decent, deep and impactful bass output, ramped-up treble and fairly clean mids. I’d argue that the treble is overly forward on occasion, and can get a little grating at high volumes. That’s not the end of the world, of course, just hop into the xboom Buds app and take it down a peg – but it’s still a bit of an inconvenience when other options (see the Nothing Ear (a) are good from the box).

Bass is responsive, controlled and capable of going pretty deep. The xboom Buds are even capable of handling dark sub-bass – exactly what I’d expect from a product with ‘boom’ in its name. You’re not going to get a super-detailed listen out of these earbuds – there are no fancy codecs like LDAC and you’re not going to get the phenomenal instrument separation required to conjure up an expansive, nuanced soundstage. But with the right tuning, the xboom Buds certainly sound clean enough for the price.

Something that, for me, reduced my enjoyment when listening though was the fit. They feel a little chunky in-ear and protrude a fair bit, making for a not-so-elegant appearance or security. Don’t get me wrong, these aren’t too uncomfortable to use or anything, I just didn’t like keeping them in for particularly long sessions. It’s also worth noting that each bud has a practical hook that ensures it’ll stay in, even in more action-packed moments. They’re also IPX4 splashproof, ensuring they’re workout-ready.

I feel like I need to give these buds their flowers and one area where they deserve praise is in their features. The xboom Buds have a bundle of options to mess around with, whether that be EQ adjustment, customizable ANC or adaptive touch controls. Another major feature is Auracast compatibility, which enables you to connect up to any available broadcast nearby, such as music playing from a TV at the gym.

What’s a bit of a shame, though, is the removal of certain smash hit features from the LG Tone Free T90S – one of LG’s more recently released pairs of wireless buds and for me personally, among the best I’ve tested. Sure, leaving out Dolby Atmos, head tracking and immersive audio tech is understandable – the xboom Buds are a more budget-friendly alternative and that’s premium stuff in the audio world. But I would’ve loved to have seen Plug & Wireless return – which enables you to stream audio over Bluetooth from a source wired to the charging case. There’s no UVnano tech for keeping your buds bacteria-free either, which was pretty nifty on the T90S.

But back to the positives: ANC is proficient at nixing excess noise. In public areas, chatter and vehicles in my surroundings had their rumblings kept pretty quiet – dulled at the worst of times and totally cut out at the best. There’s also a transparency mode that’s great if you want to let a few ambient sounds through.

Another positive is battery life. These can knock out ten hours with ANC off and 7.5 hours with it turned on, which is only lengthened by the lightweight charging case. That should be enough for a day or two’s worth of listening and it’s an improvement on the T90S’s nine hours and five hours you get with ANC off and on, respectively.

All in all, the LG xboom Buds are a solid, yet flawed entry into the South Korean tech giant’s audio portfolio. They have sound quality that’s up-to-scratch for everyday listening and that will likely suit non-audiophiles perfectly, though the more keen listeners among you may wish for a bit more sonic finesse. Not to mention the fact that they have a feature-set and battery life that can compete with some of the best noise cancelling earbuds about.

In the end, though, these are let down by sub-par style and comfort. Given they’re on sale now, I’d highly recommend picking up the LG Tone Free T90S instead, or if you’re willing to cheat on LG, the Sony WF-C700N – more on those later.

Person holding LG xboom Buds in their charging case — (Image credit: Future)

LG xboom Buds review: price and release date

$99 / £119
Launched in the UK March 2025
Coming to the US in April 2025

The LG xboom Buds launched in 2025 and the first hundred UK customers could grab them for £99. Now, the xboom Buds are available for $99 / £119, meaning they’re in a middle place between being budget and mid-range earbuds. You can grab them now on LG’s official website in either black or white – I tested out the latter variant.

LG xboom Buds review: specs

LG xboom Buds and their various ear tips on a table — (Image credit: Future)

LG xboom Buds review: features

Great app with customizable ANC, touch controls and EQ
Auracast broadcast option
Plug & Wireless, and UVnano left out

LG has a real knack of packing its audio tech with a flowing fountain of features and the xboom Buds are no different. But one of the flagship inclusions here is Auracast. This is a type of Bluetooth technology that enables you to tune into an audio broadcast transmitted from a phone, TV or similar device. Just download the LG xboom Buds app and you can access any nearby broadcasts.

The app also opens the door to some classic features like EQ options and adjustable ANC. In terms of EQ, you’re looking at a pretty slim set of presets: Natural; Immersive; Bass Boost; and Treble Boost. But you can also save two custom calibrations with the eight band equalizer, which you’ll likely want to make use of for the best possible sound – more on that later. ANC is pretty good too, during testing it effectively dulled the sound of a hairdryer and keyboard clacking, but it didn’t deliver that near-silent listening experience you’d expect from the Bose QuietComfort Ultra Earbuds, for instance. There’s transparency mode here too, which enables some ambient noise to creep through if you’re on a run or similar.

Something I loved about the xboom Buds app was that it instantly triggered a test to determine the best in-ear fit for listening as well as optimizing ANC. All I had to do was position myself near a noise similar in volume to an air conditioner and the xboom Buds could work their magic. Some other nifty extras include: whispering mode, for keeping your voice clear when speaking softly on calls; wind noise detection, for reducing the disruptive nature of wind to listening; Find My Earbuds, which plays a sound if your buds have gone on the run; and game mode, for reduced latency.

All in all, there’s a lot here that was seen in LG’s recent outing, the LG Tone Free T90S. That means customizable touch controls, multi-point and voice alert, for reading messages received aloud to you. But unfortunately, you’ll also lose out on a few top-class inclusions from the T90S. That includes UVnano bacteria cleaning technology, Plug & Wireless (which enables you to connect the charging case to a source like an in-flight entertainment interface and stream its audio output over Bluetooth) and immersive sound tech like Dolby Atmos and Head Tracking.

So, if you still want the most premium audio and feature-rich option, the T90S are still going to be your best pal. But that doesn’t mean these buds don’t have a strong set of features in their own right. And that’s not to mention the fact that the xboom Buds actually have superior battery life. You get ten hours with ANC off and 7.5 hours with it turned on, which is only extended by the handy charging case. That’s not going to blow your mind, like the JBL Live Beam 3’s twelve hour battery life (ten with ANC on), but still LG serves up a commendable slice of playtime.

Features score: 4.5/5

LG xboom Buds plugged into USB-C charger — (Image credit: Future)

LG xboom Buds review: sound quality

Clear audio output with rich bass
Do need some tuning for a more balanced sound, though
AAC, but no aptX Adaptive this time out

After powering the LG xboom Buds on, I realized that they were set to the Natural EQ mode, which places emphasis on deep bass and treble sounds. Right off the bat, I switched into a custom EQ with more tempered treble. The default calibration put so much emphasis on sounds residing in the upper frequency range that higher-pitched sounds – especially percussion – could get quite grating.

Making that small alteration, made a world of difference. Treble sounded much more controlled and mids became a lot clearer too. But as the xboom name suggests, there’s some serious attention paid to low-end sounds. So, when listening to Black Eye by Allie X, I found the drum machine hits to have admirable depth – they were also rapid enough to ensure that the track maintained its trademark ‘bounce’. Vocals, synths and other elements weren’t separated enough to make for an elegantly layered, nuanced sound, but they were clear enough in the mix to ensure a decently enjoyable listen.

Unfortunately, though, delicate electronica that enters the fray around the song’s minute mark was a little too understated – perhaps in part due to the lack of higher resolution Bluetooth streaming. You get AAC here, but there’s no aptX Adaptive – something that made for a great inclusion in the LG Tone Free T90S.

Still, that shouldn’t detract from the fact that these buds are still capable of delivering a generally clean, enjoyable listening experience. When tuning into Come On Back With Your Love – Sunrise Mix by Kolter, vocal chops were clear and pumping bass had my head bopping.

The xboom Buds also handled bangers with imposing sub bass pretty well too. I was instantly struck by the in-your-face rumble that runs through The Boys Are Back In Town by Yung Gravy – something that cheaper rivals typically struggle with. Quality did take a bit of a hit at peak volumes – I’m talking 90% - 100% – but I never felt the need to blast my music quite so loud.

One more sound-related aspect I want to touch on is mic quality. Now, when I recorded a voice note, speech was relatively clear with limited static and I could only hear a bit of sibilance. On a video call with a colleague, there was a slight tinniness to my voice – not to the point where my words were hard to make out – but enough that switching to my everyday headphones made a noticeably positive impact.

Sound quality score: 4/5

LG xboom Buds out of their charging case — (Image credit: Future)

LG xboom Buds review: design

Not particularly sleek looking
Secure, but slightly uncomfortable in-ear fit
IPX4 splashproof

I’ll get straight to the point, reader: I’m not a massive fan of the design LG has gone with for the xboom Buds. Firstly, they look a little bulkier in-ear than the sleek and elegant-looking T90S. They protrude out a fair bit too, meaning they’re not the most discreet buds on the market.

The xboom Buds are a fair bit cheaper than the T90S and that shows from the more basic charging case and their plain outer casing. I tested the white variant, though these are also available in black if you’d prefer. The only design quirk here is that the buds have an almost hook like contraption fitted that keeps them firmly sealed into your ear, which is pretty handy for when you’re getting active. The hooks are a little awkward visually, but in-ear, they’re not going to be visible – not a bad addition all in all.

But something that’s more noticeable is that the in-ear fit of these is a touch uncomfortable, at least in my view. Their rounded shape made them feel a little too chunky in my ear, unfortunately, which meant I rarely wanted to keep them in for longer than an hour or so at a time. Sure, these buds feel nice and secure and form a tight seal, I just wish they looked and felt a bit more discreet.

On the upside, these are IPX4 splashproof. Well, at least the buds are – you’ll want to keep the case away from water. That means they’ll be well suited to workouts or use in light rain. There are also different sized ear gels in the box if you want to tighten or indeed loosen the in-ear feel.

Design score: 3/5

Someone picking one of the LG xboom Buds out of its charging case — (Image credit: Future)

LG xboom Buds review: value

Much cheaper launch price than LG’s previous buds...
...but fewer premium features included here
Still by no means cheap and better value options are out there

With a list price of $99 / £119, the LG xboom Buds are essentially a budget to mid-range option with competition including the excellent Sony WF-C700N – more on those later. That makes them much cheaper than 2024’s LG Tone Free T90S, which launched at £229 (about $300), but these were admittedly more premium.

Of course, these buds are a totally different proposition. They’re not designed for the most high-end audio experience and take away that focus on spatial, three-dimensional sound. They’re also a bit more bare-boned with no UVnano tech or Plug & Wireless. But given that they still have a rich feature-set in their own right and they sound decent, all things considered, they’re not priced too badly.

I would argue, however, that there are a lot of buds that sound as good, if not a little better, that cost a fair chunk less. For instance, we scored the Nothing Ear (a) five out of five for sound quality, thanks to their fun, zealous sound and inclusion of LDAC. But they’re regularly available for less than $100 / £80. And even if you want to go for that more premium LG Tone Free T90S option, they’ve received a hearty price cut, making them available for closer to the $180 / £150 mark. I think they’re worth that extra cash.

That’s not to mention that $99 / £119 is by no means cheap for wireless earbuds. There are lots of excellent cheap options to choose from too if you’d prefer, such as the budget-friendly Sony WF-C510, which we even preferred to the far pricier Apple AirPods 4.

Value score: 3.5/5

LG xboom Buds in their charging case on a pink background — (Image credit: Future)

Should I buy the LG xboom Buds?

Buy them if...

You want wireless earbuds for a workout
The LG xboom Buds have a hook-like contraption attached to them that keeps them firmly in-ear, even during more active periods. They’re also IPX4-rated, making them both sweat and splash resistant.

You’re looking for Auracast-ready earbuds
There aren’t a ton of wireless earbuds out there that support Auracast, so if you want a solid pair that incorporate such tech, these are worth a look. Just fire up the LG xboom Buds app and you’ll be able to tune into any nearby Auracast broadcast. Easy as you like.

Don't buy them if...

You want top-tier sound quality
The xboom Buds don’t sound bad, let’s get that straight. But they’re not the most talented in the audio department either, sometimes lacking in instrument separation and detail. They’ll also require some tuning out of the box due to the top-loaded treble, which can get fairly harsh at high volumes.

You’re a movie fanatic
Unlike the LG Tone Free T90S, the LG xboom Buds don’t offer support for Dolby Atmos or head tracking. As a result, you’re not going to get the most immersive, three-dimensional sound in the world out of these.

LG xboom Buds: also consider

Sony WF-C700N
I’ve personally owned the Sony WF-C700N for well over a year and can vouch for their quality. These are some of the best value earbuds around, with impressive ANC, surprisingly detailed sound and a comfortable fit. You’re not going to get that Auracast compatibility here, and they have just been superseded by an upgraded Sony WF-C710 model (review incoming) but I’d still put these above LG’s latest earbuds effort. Read our full Sony WF-C700N review.

Nothing Ear (a)
These unorthodox looking buds are still a firm favorite of ours here at TechRadar. Why? They offer stellar sound with LDAC, admirable noise cancelation and wonderful in-app experience. No wonder they’re still sitting pretty as our best mid-range option in our best wireless earbuds guide. Read our full Nothing Ear (a) review.

LG xboom Buds review: How I tested

Tested for two weeks
Used in the office and while on walks
Predominantly tested using Tidal

I tested the LG xboom Buds over a two week period, using them for hours during each working day and beyond. I tried them out at the office, while at home and when on walks to assess the fortitude of ANC across multiple environments.

Most of the time, I tested these wireless buds using Tidal on the Samsung Galaxy S24 FE, but I also tried using them with both Spotify and YouTube on my Windows laptop. When listening to music, I ran through the TechRadar testing playlist, which features tracks from a wide variety of genres but I also tuned in to hours worth of tunes from my personal library.

Where appropriate, I compared these to the LG Tone Free T90S earbuds on metrics such as comfort, audio quality, ANC capabilities and features.

First reviewed: March 2025
Read more about how we test

I usually hate cleaning, but the Roborock F25 Ace wet-dry vacuum made it kind of satisfying

7:35 am | March 31, 2025

Author: admin | Category: Computers Gadgets Home Small Appliances Vacuums | Tags: Australia, LED, UK, US | Comments: Off

Roborock F25 Ace: Two-minute review

If you’re someone like me whose home features predominantly hard floors, then investing in a wet-dry vacuum cleaner can be a godsend as it drastically reduces the amount of time it takes to clean, while also delivering excellent results.

The Roborock F25 Ace is the second wet-dry vacuum cleaner I’ve personally tested and after using it twice a week for four weeks straight, I’ve retired the previous one I had into storage.

Not only is the F25 Ace ludicrously simple to set up for first-time use, it’s left my floors looking cleaner, and I can’t feel any dust or grit underfoot after a session, something I’ve previously experienced with other such floor washers. It feels especially well built too, and I have every confidence in its reliability for years to come.

The F25 Ace is the range-topping model in Roborock’s latest F25 series of wet-dry vacuums. How many models it sits above depends on where you live. In the US, for example, there are four other models below it and a separate F25 Ace Combo that adds a vacuum cleaner attachment for soft flooring – much like the Tineco Floor One Switch S6 that I’d been using before this. Australia gets just two F25 models, with the Ace sitting just above the standard F25. At the time of writing, this series isn’t available in the UK but I’ve had confirmation it’s “coming soon”.

Roborock F25 Ace vacuum cleaner — (Image credit: Future / Max Langridge)

What does this range-topping model offer over its lower-specced siblings? A more informative display (in comparison to other models, anyway), app connectivity and a few other notable cleaning features, including power-assisted wheels and an automatic detergent dispenser, both of which ultimately provide a more convenient and thorough cleaning experience.

What made my time using the F25 Ace particularly joyful was the fact it can maneuver around corners and furniture with ease thanks to a pivoting cleaning head, and the ability to lie completely flat to help get to hard-to-reach places, like under furniture. This maneuvrability, combined with its excellent cleaning results, make it a strong contender to be one of the best wet-dry vacuum cleaners.

The self-clean cycle is especially effective and, with the right settings activated, quiet too. It was a good job the hot self-clean cycle was effective, as the F25 Ace returned plenty of dirty water following each cleaning run around my home. The amount of dust and debris on my wooden floors was invisible to my eyes, but the Roborock machine was able to pick it all up and then some! Both the clean and dirty water tanks are simple to remove, clean out and refill, and depending on how large your home is you may not need to refill the clean tank after every use. In my case, it held enough water to complete two full cleans and two self-clean cycles.

There is plenty of customization on tap via the app, and you’re able to make just as many adjustments – the amount of water used during cleaning, the amount of detergent released, how thorough of a self-clean you want the machine to perform and more. There’s quite a lot to get your head around and certainly more than I’ve been used to from a vacuum cleaner, but they’re features I certainly appreciated.

At $549.99 / AU$999.99 it’s competitively priced compared to its closest rivals. It is still a decent chunk of cash, however, so I would say only people whose homes are virtually all hard floors should consider buying it. If you have a mixture of hard and soft flooring, then the aforementioned Tineco machine may be better suited to your needs, or two separate, more affordable vacuum cleaners.

Roborock F25 Ace review: Price & availability

Available since mid-February in US and late March in Australia; currently not sold in the UK
List price $549.99 / AU$999
Available directly from Roborock and authorized retailers, including Amazon

The Roborock F25 Ace made its official debut at CES 2025 in January and was available to buy in the US by mid-February. It’s currently enjoying a staggered launch around the world, with Australians able to purchase the appliance since late March 2025. At the time of writing, it’s been confirmed for launch in the UK, but pricing is still to be announced.

The F25 Ace is listed on Roborock’s US store with a list price of $549.99, while in Australia it’s available for AU$999.99. This puts it in the upper mid-range price bracket based on our experience and in direct competition with other wet-dry vacuum cleaners such as the Dyson G1, which costs $699.99 / £599.99 / AU$999, and the Tineco Floor One S7 Pro, which tops our list of the best wet-dry vacuum cleaners and costs $799 / £599 / AU$1,299.99. The latter can regularly be picked up at a discount however, especially during major sales events.

There are several other models within the F25 series depending on where you live. The US store also lists the F25 Alt, which misses out on smart dirt detection, the extra-informative LED display and app connectivity. There is also an F25 Ace Combo for $749.99, which adds a separate stick vacuum cleaner for cleaning carpets and other areas in handheld mode.

Roborock says the filter and roller head should be replaced every 12 months at the latest. A spare filter is supplied, but not a roller. The company has listed pricing for official replacement parts, but third-party options are available, the cost of which depends on where you live. You’ll also need to factor in the cost of replacement bottles of the floor cleaning solution, which you can get from the official Roborock store. The company says you should only use its own solution with the F25 Ace.

Value score: 4.5/5

Roborock F25 Ace review: specs

Roborock F25 Ace review: Design

Roborock F25 Ace roller head — (Image credit: Future / Max Langridge)

Lightweight and easy to maneuvre
Lie-flat design for hard-to-reach areas
LED display is good, but not great

There’s minimal effort required to get the F25 Ace up and running. Once you remove the pieces from the box, all you need to do is clip the handle into the main unit, then snap on the roller head. There are various pieces of protective packaging to remove but, otherwise, that’s all there is to it.

You’ll want to plug the charging dock in and place the machine onto it immediately for two reasons: to make sure there’s power before you use it for the first time, and connect it to the app via your home Wi-Fi network. There aren’t any other attachments included with the F25 Ace, aside from a small brush to help clean the filter and dirty-water tank, a small bottle of cleaning detergent and a spare filter.

Roborock F25 Ace clean-water tank removed — (Image credit: Future / Max Langridge)

The Roborock F25 Ace follows a similar design language to floor washers from other brands, such as our current favorite wet-dry vacuum cleaner, the Tineco Floor One S7 Pro. Both are sleek grey-and-white units with the dirty-water tank on the front and a long, non-adjustable handle with a few control buttons for power, cleaning mode selection and self-cleaning. The S7 Pro does, however, come with a spare roller head, something not included with the F25 Ace.

Where the design of these two machines differs, and what is one of the F25 Ace’s key selling points, is that its clean-water tank is at the base of the machine, placed over the roller head beneath. On the Tineco Switch S7 Pro, the clean water tank is at the rear, which prevents it from tilting too far back.

Having the clean-water tank positioned towards the base of the machine, says Roborock, allows it to have a lower center of gravity, making it easier to move around your home and lay it flat to push under furniture. It also provides added weight to ensure the roller head remains in constant contact with hard floors to help improve its cleaning efficiency.

The dirty-water tank is on the front of the machine, as is the case with similar models from other brands. The capacity remains the same across all models within the F25 series at 720ml (the same as with the Tineco S7 Pro). The clean-water tank maxes out at 740ml, which is less than the S7 Pro’s 850ml capacity. It’s also smaller than other models in the F25 series, which get a larger 870ml water tank. Despite that, I was able to regularly get two full mopping runs from a single fill across a cleaning area of approximately 120 sqm / 1,300 sqft in my apartment.

Where Roborock says the F25 Ace differs from other floor washers is the design of the roller head. It features what the company calls JawScapers – 141 3mm-long comb teeth – positioned behind the roller. Not only is this said to prevent hairs getting tangled, but it also claims to squeeze dirty water out of the roller and into the tank, to prevent water marks appearing on the floor during cleaning sessions.

Roborock F25 Ace LED display — (Image credit: Future / Max Langridge)

The F25 Ace has an LED display that shows you its battery life, the current cleaning mode and a small colored bar to indicate its dynamic performance facilitated by a proprietary DirTect Smart Sensor on the rear of the machine. This sensor detects the amount of dirt in the water it’s mopping to automatically adjust water-flow rate and suction power, while the roller head remains spinning at the same speed. For the majority of my testing, the bar (thankfully) remained blue, indicating my floor was a ‘normal’ level of dirty, although there were the occasional bits that pushed it into the red and nothing was needed on my part – the F25 Ace did what was needed by itself.

The LED display is clear to see, but compared to models from other brands, I found it to be a little uninspiring. It conveys information via icons only, which took me a few uses to wrap my head around. If voice prompts are on, it will tell you what mode you’re in, but there’s no extra information to tell you what each mode means and the user manual isn’t much help. This doesn’t affect the machine’s cleaning prowess, but it does mean the user experience isn’t as good as I’d expected.

The display on the Tineco S7 Pro on the other hand is a lot better at imparting information, using images, words and more colors to tell the user what’s going on. You’re also able to adjust settings better on the S7 Pro thanks to buttons on the handle – something the Roborock doesn’t have and requires you to use the app, which isn’t ideal if you need to tweak a setting on the fly and your phone is in another room.

The Roborock F25 Ace (along with the F25 Alt in the US) benefits from a few proprietary technologies that sets it apart from other models in the F25 series. These include SlideTech 2.0 Automated Wheels to add motorized assistance to reduce the effort it takes to push the F25 Ace around your home.

Roborock F25 Ace detergent dispenser lid — (Image credit: Future / Max Langridge)

You can adjust the level of motorization in the app between Mild, Moderate and Intense. I left this setting on the default Moderate mode and appreciated how the vacuum didn’t want to take me for a walk around my home, as was the case with the Tineco Floor One Switch S6 that I’ve previously reviewed. The Intense setting, however, will pull you along for a ride.

The added motorization makes the machine feel lighter than its 4.7kg weight would suggest. Robrock does say the wheels “intelligently detect the user’s push and pull strength and adjust the power assistance in real time,” but I couldn’t tell if that was actually happening during my testing.

Another feature found on the F25 Ace is an automatic detergent dispenser. The 100ml compartment is next to the clean-water tank, both of which sit within a removable clear plastic unit on the roller head. You’re able to set the ratio of detergent to water to one of three settings within the app, and the appropriate amount of detergent gets automatically sprayed directly onto the roller during a cleaning run. I stuck to the default setting of Daily for the majority of my testing and that was enough to occasionally leave some soap suds on the floor. Another swipe over these areas took care of the remaining suds.

And, a small niggle, but the previous Tineco machine had an auto-stop feature when the handle is returned to its starting position. The Roborock machine doesn’t have this feature, and I found I missed it as it made pausing, cleaning and moving the machine to another room a bit easier.

Design score: 4.5/5

Roborock F25 Ace review: Performance

Powerful performance leaves floors clean
Exclusive features work well
Some setting tweaks may be required for best results

The F25 Ace is my first Roborock review, but I have tested similar wet-dry vacuums before. I was already quite impressed by the Tineco Floor One Switch S6’s mopping, cleaning and drying capabilities, and our reviewers have always rated other Roborock machines, like the Roborock Dyad Pro, very well. So my expectations from the F25 Ace were high going into testing and it didn’t disappoint.

Thanks to the aforementioned SlideTech wheels, I found it incredibly easy to move the machine around my home. The cleaning head has a 70º angle of pivot (35º left and right), making tight turns possible.

Roborock F25 Ace lying flat — (Image credit: Future / Max Langridge)

I also found that thanks to its ability to tilt backwards by 180º, cleaning the floor under my dining table, for example, was easier than with other vacuum cleaners and I barely had to move the chairs. Instead I was able to weave the F25 Ace around the chair and table legs with ease with a light push with one hand. Do note that when the machine is totally flat, the cleaning head loses the ability to pivot, but any angle smaller than 180º allows it to remain agile.

Where I found the lay-flat ability most useful was getting underneath my bathroom vanity unit, an area that’s been ignored because no other vacuum or floor washer I’ve tried could get under it.

Similar to when I tested the Tineco Switch S6, I was surprised by just how much dirty water was collected after one run throughout my home. I was also impressed with how much debris was collected, especially as much of it wasn’t clearly visible to my eyes before the cleaning run. The F25 Ace has 20,000Pa suction power, so was evidently able to vacuum even the smallest of particles. Combined with a roller that rotates at up to 450rpm, and gets cleaned by scrapers within its housing unit on each turn, my floors felt much cleaner underfoot once I’d finished a session.

The design of the roller head on the F25 Ace ensures it can get closer to edges. To test this, I poured some milk along the edges of my kitchen cabinets to see how much would be cleaned up. It performed exceptionally well, mopping up the entire spillage in just one run. It wasn’t quite the same story with dry debris, as it did miss a few grains of rice I poured on the floor.

But, for dry spills in the center of the floor, I have zero complaints. I poured generous helpings of rice and coffee beans onto my floor and with one push over either spill with the F25 Ace cleared it up entirely.

Compared to the Tineco machine I’ve previously tested, the Roborock F25 Ace’s default water-rate flow is higher, meaning it uses more water for mopping. This really isn’t an issue as the roller is very effective at mopping, leaving no puddles behind. If the floors remain too wet for your liking, you can reduce the water-flow rate via the app.

That said, if you are going to use the detergent – and Roborock strongly suggests you use only the one it provides or recommends – you might see soap suds not fully disappearing with each swipe. This happened to me on occasion and I had to run the roller head over those areas a couple of times more to ensure no soap scum accumulated on my floors.

Roborock promises that the F25 Ace will leave floors streak-free, but I don’t completely agree with that claim. While my floors were certainly clean after going over them, when I viewed them in the right light, I could see some noticeable streaks where the roller head and wheels had passed over. They’re not so noticeable that it bothered me too much, but it’s not exactly fulfilling the promise.

Performance score: 4.5/5

Roborock F25 Ace review: Maintenance

Self-clean cycle is effective
Time and temperature settings can be adjusted
Dirty-water tank will need extra cleaning

Once placed back in the dock after a cleaning session, a voice prompt will instruct you to perform the self-clean cycle, which you activate by pressing a button on the handle or within the app.

Roborock says the whole cycle – cleaning and drying – should take approximately five minutes using a combination of hot water and 90ºC / 194ºF hot air. While that’s more or less true, I found it can be closer to 10 minutes in the Quiet Drying mode.

During self-cleaning, the roller head spins in both directions while it’s blasted with hot water to help remove as much dirt and bacteria as possible, with all dirty water being collected in the tank. You’re able to choose between ‘High’ and ‘Room Temperature’ water settings in the app – naturally, hotter water will be more effective for cleaning. Roborock doesn’t say how hot this water is, but does claim it uses 90ºC / 194ºF hot air as it hits the roller head, which is quite good as many robot vacuums with self-cleaning cycles use 75ºC air for drying.

Roborock F25 Ace JawScrapers — The JawScrapers help remove debris from the roller head during cleaning. (Image credit: Future / Max Langridge)

Considering how much dirty water was collected after each run around my home – indicating how dirty the floor was – the roller head looked surprisingly clean. The quality of the roller itself also seems to be very good because, even after several uses. It does have a limited lifespan, though, and you will need to replace it at some point – Roborock recommends changing it once every six to 12 months, depending on your use case.

The washing part of the self-clean cycle is quite noisy. I used a decibel meter app on my phone and recorded a maximum reading of around 75dB. The drying, however, registered a pleasant 55dB that Roborock calls “Quiet Drying”.

Using this drying mode will lengthen the time it takes to complete the self-clean cycle, so you can choose a quicker option. You can track the progress of the self-clean cycle in the app – it was how I realized the drying process took longer when quiet.

Roborock F25 Ace dirty-water tank — (Image credit: Future / Max Langridge)

A voice prompt will inform you once the self-cleaning cycle has finished and instruct you to empty the water tank. Of course, this is only if you can hear the prompt. I had the F25 Ace stored in my laundry room towards the back of my apartment, and with the door closed, I could barely hear them. I would have liked a phone notification too, giving me a greater chance to ensure the dirty-water tank is cleaned out promptly. You can empty the dirty-water tank while the roller head is drying to save on time.

Once the tank had been emptied and debris collected in the filters washed away, I left all the pieces to air dry before returning them to the machine. The majority of debris came off under a tap, but Roborock supplies a long brush to help agitate any particularly stubborn pieces.

I did notice when cleaning the day after mopping up the milk spillage that milky water was being collected in the dirty-water tank, suggesting that the roller head wasn’t completely cleaned during the previous self-clean cycle. It didn’t have any effect on the cleanliness of the floor.

Maintenance score: 4.5/5

Roborock F25 Ace review: Software

Plenty of customization
Remote access when away from home
Pop-up notifications would be a nice feature

As I’ve already alluded to, the F25 Ace can connect to an app to open up a good selection of customization options. App connectivity is only possible on the F25 Ace and F25 Alt models, which I think is a shame as I think the other models in this range would also benefit from that extra control.

I was pleasantly surprised that the app gives me remote control over the F25 Ace’s settings when away from home. Not only can you make adjustments, you can also start a self-clean or drying cycle. While I don’t think it will see much use, I think this feature is handy if you’ve had to do an emergency quick clean before running out the door in the morning, letting you start a self-clean cycle while you’re on the road or in the office.

Screenshots of the Roborock app showing cleaning mode and self-clean cycle of the F25 Ace. — (Image credit: Future / Max Langridge)

One feature I found utterly superfluous was the remote control mode. It asks you to lay the F25 Ace flat on the floor (there’s a small wheel in the handle to ensure it remains level), after which you can move it around your home using the remote control buttons on your phone. It doesn’t work well at all during my testing, where the machine either had a significant lag between command and action or didn’t register the button presses at all. While the roller turns when being remote controlled, I didn’t see it doing any cleaning at all.

Then there are the voice prompts that let you know what the machine is doing – when you switch cleaning modes, instructing you to perform a cleaning cycle or to tell you it’s finished. You can change the language of the voice prompts within the app or adjust the volume level. If you want to switch them off, as I did after testing them for this review, you just mute them by moving the volume slider all the way down.

I didn’t find the voice prompts too useful as they were unclear most of the time and, as I mentioned earlier, I would have appreciated additional pop-up notifications on my phone, particularly when the dirty-water tank needed emptying.

Software score: 4.5/5

Roborock F25 Ace review: Battery life

Good battery life, but may not suffice for larger homes
Up to 60 minutes in Eco mode; 40 minutes in Auto
Recharge time can take a while

The Roborock F25 Ace has a 4,000mAh battery that the company says is good for up to 60 minutes of use in Eco mode or 40 minutes in Auto mode. However, this is only really relevant for anyone with a particularly large surface area to clean as the machine recharges whenever it’s on the charging dock.

I never had any battery issues when cleaning my apartment with the F25 Ace, which has an approximate total cleaning area of 120 sqm / 1,300 sqft, as I was able to complete a full clean in roughly 10 minutes wherein I used just 15% of battery. For context, Roborock says the 60-minute runtime in Eco mode should be enough to cover a 410 sqm / 4,413 sqft space.

However, when I returned the F25 Ace to the charging dock to self-clean, I noticed the battery level continued to drop by as much as another 10%. I assume the power required to complete the clean uses up more battery than it receives from the dock.

Battery life score: 5/5

Should you buy the Roborock F25 Ace review?

Buy it if...

You want an easy, thorough clean

The F25 Ace can be moved around with little effort and its cleaning performance is stellar, leaving you with clean floors in no time at all.

Your home has hard-to-reach areas

Thanks to its ability to lie flat, the Roborock F25 Ace can get into more places than a large number of similar machines, meaning more of your floors will be cleaned.

You like to take control of your appliances

There are numerous customization options with the F25 Ace via the app, covering cleaning and maintenance. You may find the default settings don’t work for you, so you can easily change them.View Deal

Don't buy it if...

Your floors are carpeted

It may seem obvious, but the Roborock F25 Ace only works on hard floors. If your home is predominantly carpet, you’ll want to look at other vacuum cleaner models. View Deal

You have a limited budget

I think the F25 Ace is worth the money, but the fact remains there are cheaper alternatives available, like the Shark HydroVac Cordless, which can also work on low-pile soft floors.View Deal

Roborock F25 Ace review: Also consider

Tineco Floor One Switch Pro 7

Our favorite wet-dry vacuum for a reason, this powerful machine cleans incredibly well, can get up close to edges and has a gorgeous, interactive LED display. It costs more at full price, but can now regularly be picked up at a discount.

Read our full Tineco Floor One Switch Pro 7 reviewView Deal

Shark HyrdoVac Cordless

If your budget is tight, this Shark machine is a great option, especially as it can also be used on low-pile carpets, making it a more versatile proposition.

Read our full Shark HydroVac Cordless reviewView Deal

How I tested the Roborock F25 Ace

I tested this wet-dry vacuum over a period of about a month in my apartment, using it to clean at least twice a week. I experimented with the various settings adjustments within the app to see what effect they had on the overall cleanliness of my floors.

To really test its mopping and vacuuming credentials, I spilled milk and scattered grains such as rice on the floor to see how much was vacuumed up.

I made a note of how well the brush roller head was washed and dried after each cleaning run around my home and assessed how much clean water was left in the tank (and how much dirty water was collected).

This is the first Roborock vacuum cleaner I’ve tested, but I have previously tested the Tineco Floor One Switch S6, which is a similar wet-dry vacuum cleaner, but which also has extra attachments for cleaning carpets and other soft floorings.

The Huawei FreeArc are the best-sounding open-ear headphones I’ve ever tested – and they’re surprisingly cheap

6:00 pm | March 24, 2025

Author: admin | Category: Audio Computers Earbuds & Airpods Gadgets Headphones | Tags: ANC, Australia, US | Comments: Off

Huawei FreeArc: One minute review

With audio brands and tech companies announcing open-ear earbuds left, right and center, it was only a matter of time before Chinese giant Huawei got in on the action too.

It was only minutes into the testing for this Huawei FreeArc review, though, that I understood these to be some of the best open-ear buds on the market right now. Huawei’s onto something here!

The reason for this is simple: as of their release, the Huawei FreeArc are the best-sounding examples of this form factor, and that’s a really impressive selling point given how earbuds like this work.

For those who aren’t familiar, open-ear headphones like these dangle the earbud over your eardrum, instead of plonking it straight in there; this means you can still hear sounds beyond your music. Useful for people in busy areas or who need to hear announcements, but less useful for audiophiles as having a bud centimeters from your ear can spell doom for well-tuned music.

Not with the FreeArc, though. Music has an impressive soundstage, sounds delicately tuned and maintains bristling energy. The best compliment I can give to Huawei is that I often forgot I was listening to open-ears.

Two enthusiastic thumbs up in the audio department, then, although the FreeArc do struggle just a little in a few other departments. The battery life is one, with the 23-hour lasting power of the case in particular an area that might dissuade certain buyers.

If you’ve got an Android phone, you’ll also find the app install process an absolute pain, as you have to side-load multiple apps through APKs. The process is only suitable for technophiles, or someone who can rope in a tech-savvy relative or friend to help.

OK so great-sounding, just slightly annoying to set up? Yes, but we're missing the big draw. Huawei has priced these buds to sell, making them some of the most affordable open-ears on the market right now.

You can overlook a few of issues in tech with competitive pricing, and the Huawei FreeArc do benefit from that when you consider their feature set. But purely from a sonic perspective, these are an absolute steal at the price.

Huawei FreeArc review: Specifications

Huawei FreeArc review: Price and availability

The Huawei FreeArc on a white shelf. — (Image credit: Future)

Announced in February 2025
Priced at £99.99 (roughly $130, AU$200)
Not on sale in Australia or US

The Huawei FreeArc were announced in February 2025, at the same time as a slew of rivals, and went on sale shortly afterwards.

You can pick up the buds for £99.99 (roughly $130, AU$200) so they’re priced competitively against many of these competitors. There’s no US or AU pricing at the time of writing and I don’t expect the buds will go on sale in either region.

There are a few open-ear buds priced around that general area, or a slight amount cheaper, but most competitors cost up to 50% more. So Huawei has put out a really tempting option here.

Huawei FreeArc review: Design

Mid-sized charging case
Comfortable and reliable bud fit
Temperamental touch controls

The Huawei FreeArc comes in a square carry case; it’s not the smallest I’ve ever seen from open-ear buds, but it’s definitely at the smaller end of the spectrum.

The case measures 67.8 x 67.8 x 26.5mm and weighs 67g, and it has basically what you’d expect from an earbuds case: place to lay each bud, a pairing button, and a USB-C port for charging.

The buds themselves weigh 8.9g so they’re not the lightest open-ears I’ve ever tested, but the difference is just a gram or so and they are by no means heavy. Like most open-ears (although not ear-clip/cuff designs – see the Bose Ultra Open), they consist of the main body as well as a sports loop that circles and slips behind the ear, which in the Huawei’s case ends in quite a pronounced teardrop shape.

I found them reliably comfortable and lightweight to wear, and they didn’t shift much during exercises or runs, a problem some other open-ears have. Instead they’re firmly held pretty close to the ear, so you can hear your music well.

The buds’ body supports gesture controls, but I found them a little bit temperamental in picking up my touch. You’re meant to be able to swipe to change volume, double tap to pause or play songs and triple-tap to skip songs, and while the tapping ones worked well, I had to fight with the buds to pick up swiping.

The charging case doesn’t have any protective certification but the earbuds are IP57, which was a pleasant surprise to see given that most rivals are IP54. The ‘5’ in common means that they’re dust resistant and the ‘7’ means that they’re waterpoof up to a depth of 1m for half an hour, whereas most rivals are simply splash-proof. I don’t think this means that you should swim with the buds, but it still means they’re protected from the elements.

You can buy the FreeArcs in black, white or pale green, and as you can tell from the images, my review sample was the former.

Design score: 4/5

Huawei FreeArc review: Features

Battery life is 7 hours (only 23 for case)
App has convoluted installation process
Could do with extra features

The feature set is the Huawei FreeArc’s Achilles Heel, so let’s get the criticisms out the way upfront.

Firstly, the battery life isn’t amazing. At 7 hours of listening per bud, it’s not awful, though plenty of other buds (especially open-ears) beat it. But worse is the charging case, which only gets you 28 hours of listening, a stat that’s got to be one of the lowest I’ve seen in buds like this.

My biggest issue was that downloading the Huawei AI Life app, to unlock extra features, was an absolute pain (on Android, at least, but on iOS it’s simple). To get it on my Realme phone I had to download Huawei’s AppGallery (as an APK on my browser, as it’s not on the Play Store), which took some convincing on my phone, then use the AppGallery to download the AI Life, convince my phone to let me side-load apps from this app, and then set it up via this app. It’s a lot of faff and it took me about 10 minutes, which is approximately 9 and a half minutes more than this process generally takes me during reviews.

I’m not entirely convinced that the process is worth it either. It mainly lets you find your earbuds if you’ve misplaced them, manage which devices your buds are connected to, and change what the gesture controls do.

The main feature of the app is access to four music presets (default, Elevate for workouts, Treble boost and Voices for boosting vocals). You can also make your own, which gives you access to a 10-band equalizer.

Unlike at least one contemporary rival (that would be the Honor Earbuds Open) there’s no active noise cancellation, no low latency mode and no gimmicky AI feature – yes, I’m looking at the Honor Earbuds Open's AI translator here. None of these are ubiquitous in open-ears so I can’t detract points for that, but the FreeArc do feel like they’re missing some kind of USP.

Features score: 4/5

Huawei FreeArc review: Sound performance

The Huawei FreeArc on a man's head. — (Image credit: Future)

Large 17mm x 12mm drivers
Impressive sound stage
Could have done with ANC

The core selling point of the Huawei FreeArc is that they’re the best-sounding open-ear earbuds I’ve tested to date. That’s not the biggest compliment in the world, given that the form factor naturally leads to worse audio (the speaker is dangling away from your ear, of course, and bass clout is usually the first casualty), but I was still impressed with how the FreeArcs sound.

The most palpable and immediately-obvious positive of the FreeArcs’ audio is the soundstage: it’s unprecedented for open-ears, and I was surprised to be able to pick out the strums of guitars and range of piano keys when I was listening.

Music is energetic and exciting, zealous and crisp, and it was a joy to listen to my favorite workout songs and actually hear the details in them. Admittedly, lots of my excitement came from the sheer fact that I could make out individual lines in songs (I hate to harp on, but open-ears generally sound pretty bad), but the Huawei’s do sound great.

Each earbud has a single 17mm x 12mm driver, which is bigger than I can recall seeing in past open-ear headphones, and that might go some way in explaining the quality of the Huawei FreeArc's sonic performance.

I would have liked to hear a little more bass in the FreeArc, as it ended up sounding just a touch underwhelming during workouts when I wanted a bassy kick. The aforementioned Elevate mode does improve things in terms of bass clout, but it also makes more complex songs sound oddly ‘crunchy’ and distorted, so I stopped using it.

It was almost a shame to listen to such high-quality audio in open-ears – it sounded amazing when listening in quiet environments, but as soon as I left the house or went somewhere busy, the extraneous noise that can't help but enter your ear makes it hard to appreciate the detail. ANC would be a blessing on these buds.

Sound performance score: 5/5

Huawei FreeArc review: Value

Given that Huawei tends to release premium products, I was surprised to see the FreeArcs go for £99, which makes them fairly affordable as open-ears go.

They'd be decent value if they only had 'good' sound quality, but the fact that they sound great really helps cement the Huawei FreeArc as one of the best-value open-ear buds you can buy right now.

Value score: 4.5/5

Huawei FreeArc review: scorecard

Huawei FreeArc: Should I buy?

Buy them if...

You're an audiophile

If you care about audio fidelity but still need to use open-ear headphones, the FreeArcs are your go-to pick.

You're on a middling budget

While I can't recommend the Huawei FreeArc for people on a low budget, those willing to spend a middling amount will find these a great pick..

You have an iPhone or Huawei mobile

I've waxed lyrical about the app installation pains, but this isn't an issue for people who use iPhones or Huawei devices.

Don't buy them if...

You wait a while before charging

The FreeArcs' battery life isn't awful, but the case charge is. If you don't often get a chance to power up your gadgets, their 23-hour lasting time might not cut it.

You don't listen when it's quiet

Due to their design, you can only make the most of the Huaweis if you listen somewhere quiet. If you only use earbuds in noisy environments, you might not appreciate these buds.

Also consider

Honor Earbuds Open

These buds cost a little more and don't quite match the Huawei buds in sound, but their battery life is better, plus they offer effective active noise cancellation (I know, it shouldn't work, but it does).

Read our full Honor Earbuds Open review

OpenRock Pro

Fitness users should look perhaps to the OpenRock; they have an incredible battery life and a sturdy design – don't expect quite the levels of sonic brilliance as the Huawei or Honor options above though.

Read our full OpenRock Pro review

How I tested

I listened to the Huawei FreeArcs for two weeks before writing this review, and the testing process coincided with that of two rivals: the Honor Earbuds Open and the EarFun Openjump, which helped me better understand all three.

I used the Huawei FreeArc alongside my Android smartphone for most of the review, and also paired them to my Windows laptop at several times. Mostly I listened to music on Spotify but also tested podcasts, games and TV shows. I tested them at home, in the office, on walks around my area and also for various workouts (road cycling, running and gym workouts).

The FreeArcs are the latest of many products I've reviewed for TechRadar; I've been doing so for over six years and have reviewed headphones, smartphones, tablets and more.

De'Longhi La Specialista Touch: two-minute review

The De'Longhi La Specialista Touch is one of the best espresso machines for those taking their first steps into the world of coffee and wanting a guiding hand along the way. It's one of the most affordable models around with a built-in grinder, and is surprisingly compact considering just how many features are on offer. Don't let its small plastic chassis fool you – this is a seriously good coffee machine.

De'Longhi's Smart Bean system helps tailor brew settings to suit your preferred beans, without the need for any specialist knowledge, while the smart dosing and tamping system will see you create a well-measured, even puck without any channelling or cracking, which can lead to poor extraction.

The results are reliably excellent, and tinkering is encouraged once you've built up some confidence, with room for nine custom drinks alongside the extensive menu of customizable options.

The steam wand is another standout feature, with options for manual and automatic milk texturizing. Its integrated temperature probe helps new users avoid overheating their milk when steaming freehand, and the auto frother includes options for both dairy and plant-based milk.

The only real drawbacks I found concerned cleaning and maintenance. After a while, the grinder started to feel a bit sticky when dialling in settings, but De'Longhi's manual and instructional videos don't show how to disassemble and clean it (they only show cleaning the exterior). There also doesn't seem to be an option to flush the group head after brewing an espresso.

The cold brew function is fine, but doesn't produce such a well-rounded and full-bodied drink as the Jura J10 I reviewed recently. However, this machine is a fraction of the price of the J10, and aimed at a very different user. If you're considering investing in your first coffee maker, the La Specialista Touch is definitely worth your consideration.

De'Longhi La Specialista Touch: price and availability

Launched in March 2025
Costs £699.99 / $1,099 (about $900)
Not yet available in the US

The De'Longhi La Specialista Touch launched in March 2025, and has a list price of £699.99 / AU$1,099 (about $900). At the time of writing, it isn't yet available in the US.

The price puts this coffee machine in the middle of the La Specialista range, costing less than the La Specialista Opera and Maestro, but less than the La Specialista Arte, Arte Evo and Arte Compact. As the name suggests, what differentiates this machine from the others is its touchscreen, which makes it super easy to operate and especially well suited to beginners.

De'Longhi La Specialista Touch coffee machine on kitchen counter — The De'Longhi La Specialista Touch is surprisingly small, and won't dominate your kitchen counter (Image credit: Future)

De'Longhi La Specialista Touch: specs

De'Longhi La Specialista Touch: design

Compact and lightweight, with a metallic-finish plastic case
Large touchscreen and user-friendly interface
Includes tools to assist with dosage and tamping

The De’Longhi La Specialista Touch is compact for such a fully featured semi-automatic coffee machine. In fact, it’s the smallest in the La Specialista range, measuring just 17.5 x 15 x 14.6 inches / 44.5 x 38 x 37cm. I should note that the photos in this review were shot in TechRadar's roomy test kitchen, not my small apartment. Its case is made mostly from plastic with a metallic silver finish, which keeps the weight down considerably compared to stainless steel, and is easy to clean with a damp cloth.

It’s operated via a vivid 3.5in color touchscreen, which is responsive and surprisingly resistant to fingerprints. The interface is well designed, with menus supported by diagrams and illustrations, and additional information available at every stage via a "Help me" button, which gives new users extra guidance without adding visual clutter.

Selecting bean roast on De'Longhi La Specialista Touch coffee machine — The machine is operated via a bright 3.5in color touchscreen (Image credit: Future)

The water tank slots neatly onto the back of the unit, and the machine is supplied with a testing strip so you can configure it to suit the hardness of water in your area (this is important, because limescale build-up can affect the performance of the probes that detect the water level in the coffee machine’s boiler). The tank is easy to fill and carry thanks to its built-in handle, but you’ll need a long-handled brush to clean inside; it’s too narrow for all but the smallest of hands.

The portafilter handle feels reassuringly weighty in the hand, and I particularly liked the knurled metal at the end. It’s supplied with two non-pressurized, single-walled baskets: one for single shots and another for doubles.

Water tank removed from De'Longhi La Specialista Touch coffee machine — The water tank has a capacity of 1.8qt / 1.7 liters, and slots onto the back of the machine (Image credit: Future)

Unlike some other machines in this price band, the La Specialista Touch doesn’t have a pull-down tamper that will add just the right amount of pressure to your coffee grounds. You have to take things into your own hands, but there’s a set of tools to make that less daunting for new users.

These include a dosing and tamping guide that attaches above the basket before grinding to funnel grounds neatly into the basket; a rubber tamping mat that sits on your work surface and keeps the filter handle steady; and an "advanced tamper" that lets you see when you’ve achieved the perfect dosage, and whether you need to add or remove some ground coffee. If you need to remove some, there’s a handy dose adjustment tool that you can place on top of the basket and twist to take a little off the top.

Accessories for De'Longhi La Specialista Touch coffee machine — You get a set of accessories to help you dose your coffee consistently without using scales (Image credit: Future)

It’s a smart system that reduces the risk of user error by eliminating the need to weigh anything, although it’s also worth noting that you can’t use the grinder without the guide in place.

The La Specialista Touch is designed to accommodate different-sized cups, with a little platform that you can place on top of the drip tray when using espresso cups. This helps to avoid splashing and preserve the crema as you pull your shot.

On the right-hand side you’ll find the steam wand, which has both manual and automatic settings, and is partnered with a temperature probe to help new users avoid creating custardy, overheated milk. There are automatic settings for both dairy milk and plant-based substitutes, which is a welcome addition. Things are changing, but some machines are still set up exclusively for dairy.

Drip tray from De'Longhi La Specialista Touch coffee machine — The drip tray is thoughtfully designed and practically impossible to spill when you're carrying it to the sink (Image credit: Future)

The only accessory I'd have appreciated is a knock-box for disposing of used pucks, since new users can easily knock the basket out of the handle and into the bin – but that’s a small wish. Everything supplied here feels solid and dependable.

The drip tray is also particularly well designed. It’s mostly enclosed until you choose to disassemble it for cleaning, with a pouring spout at the back for easy emptying.

Design score: 5/5

De'Longhi La Specialista Touch: performance

Guided brewing with auto adjustments for different beans and roasts
Milk texturizing is excellent (manual and automatic)
Rinsing and cleaning features could be better

The De’Longhi La Specialista Touch guides you through the process of brewing a perfect shot of espresso one step at a time, helping you achieve the consistent results that are the hallmark of a good coffee maker. The Bean Adapt Technology system automatically recommends ideal grinding and dosing settings to suit your chosen coffee, and takes the mystery out of setting up the optimum brewing process.

After loading your beans into the hopper, you’ll be asked a few basic questions about what you’re using: arabica or robusta, and the roast. The machine then uses this information to adjust the water brewing temperature and pre-infusion length (how long the grounds are allowed to soak before the shot is pulled).

Using grinder on De'Longhi La Specialista Touch coffee machine — Twist the tamping guide onto the portafilter and push it underneath the grinder to dispense your coffee without mess (Image credit: Future)

Many other machines stop there, but the La Specialista Touch goes further, giving you a hand with dosing your beans as well. When you’re ready to start, twist the tamping guide onto the basket, then push it under the grinder until it hits a button at the back of the machine and hold it still until grinding stops automatically.

Once the dose has been dispensed, you’re prompted to use the "smart tamper" to press down evenly (using the rubber mat for stability) and make a note of where the guide line ends up. If it reads +1 or +2, you have too much coffee and need to use the dosage adjuster to trim a little off the top. This twist-on tool is excellent, and allows you to remove just a few grounds without disturbing the whole coffee bed.

Image 1 of 2

Using smart tamper from De'Longhi La Specialista Touch coffee machine — The tamper lets you see whether you have an appropriate dose of coffee, or if you need to add some more or trim a little off the top (Image credit: Future)

Image 2 of 2

Coffee puck prepared using De'Longhi La Specialista Touch coffee machine — It's easy to produce a perfectly even bed of coffee (Image credit: Future)

If the smart tamper reads "OK" then you’re ready to proceed to the next step, and if it reads -1 or -2 then you need to top it up a little. Push the handle under the grinder again to dispense some extra coffee, then tamp again. Dosing beans by volume rather than weight seems strange if you’re used to using scales, but it’s a valid method of dosing and the tools supplied with the La Specialista Touch make it pretty foolproof.

When you’re done, just enter the name of your beans using the on-screen keyboard, and you’re all set. Experimenting with different beans is part of the joy of coffee-making, so I appreciate the ability to create multiple profiles for different beans.

The machine’s grinder has 15 settings, and when brewing each drink, you’ll be prompted to dial it in. Your preset options are:

Espresso
Cappuccuno
Cold brew
Latte macchiato
Latte
Flat white
Hot milk
Long black
Americano

The machine can also dispense hot water, and in addition to customizing any of the presets, you can also create profiles for nine personal recipes. You’re not bombarded with options, but you are encouraged to tinker and experiment with brewing times and grind sizes to achieve the taste you prefer.

I was curious to test the cold brew function, particularly after experiencing the impressive results of the Jura J10, which was able to create a drink with a strikingly similar flavor profile to coffee brewed cold the traditional way, overnight.

Before starting the cold brew process, the De’Longhi La Specialista Touch will run cold water through its circuit to bring the temperature down (a sensible choice), then the water is passed slowly through the freshly ground coffee at low pressure. This machine doesn’t use the same "pulsing" brewing method as the J10, as you can see from the steady dripping in the video below.

The resulting cold brew americano (in this case) was smooth, but didn’t display the richness of the same drink made using the J10, with a thinner mouthfeel. It was okay, but not on the same level as traditionally cold-brewed coffee.

However, milk texturizing was excellent, with the Auto LatteArt system preparing your milk according to the drink you’ve chosen from the menu. Simply fill the pitcher to between the "maximum" and "minimum" lines, then select the option for dairy or an alternative. Next place the pitcher under the wand, adjust the wand to the angle marked "A" and you’re ready to begin. The wand will automatically incorporate air into the milk, then heat it to the correct temperature.

Foaming milk using De'Longhi La Specialista Touch coffee machine — The Auto LatteArt system works well to create different milk textures (Image credit: Future)

Achieving different textures for different drinks can be tricky, and I was impressed by how well the Auto LatteArt system managed to create different proportions of foam and steamed milk for various drinks. I’d say that the foam on my latte macchiato was a bit too aerated for my liking, but cappuccinos and caffe lattes turned out consistently well.

I also appreciated the temperature probe for manual steaming. Strictly speaking, it isn't necessary (I usually just use my hand on the side of the pitcher to judge temperature), and there will always be a degree of latency before temperature changes in the pitcher register on the machine’s display. Nevertheless, it’s a thoughtful addition for a machine designed to give new users a helping hand.

The only area where the De’Longhi La Specialista Touch seems to be lacking is maintenance. After some time I found that the grinder was becoming trickier to adjust – a sign that it had started to collect debris and coffee oils, and therefore required cleaning. De’Longhi’s instruction manual and cleaning video only describe cleaning the hopper and outside of the grinder using the brush supplied with the machine, so I’ve contacted the company to find out whether it’s possible to disassemble the grinder to access the burrs. I’ll update this review once I’ve heard back.

Having browsed through all the menus, I also haven't found a setting for rinsing the groupset between brews, and there’s no button to purge old grounds from the grinder if you’re changing the grind size – both of which are surprising.

Performance score: 4.5/5

Should you buy the De'Longhi La Specialista Touch?

Buy it if

You're looking for your first espresso machine

The De'Longhi La Specialista Touch will help you brew great espresso, even if you're a complete beginner. Using it you'll develop your coffee-making skills so you can move to the next level. It's a machine that can grow with you, or let you stay in your comfort zone.

You're a little intimidated by technicalities

It's not fully automated, but the La Specialista Touch doesn't assume prior knowledge and makes brewing espresso a simple process.

You have a small kitchen

A fully manual machine such as the Gaggia Classic will take up even less space, but if you want a semi-automatic espresso maker then this is one of the most compact models available today.

Don't buy it if

You're time-poor

Dosing correctly using the smart tamping tools takes time, so if you want your coffee as quickly as possible then a fully automatic bean-to-cup machine would be a better choice.

You already use a coffee grinder

If you're already happy dialling in, grinding, and dosing your coffee, then you won't need all the features offered by the De'Longhi La Specialista Touch.

De'Longhi La Specialista Touch: also consider

Breville Bambino Plus

You'll need a separate grinder, but this is one of the best small espresso machines around. In fact, it's the one the trainer recommended when I completed my SCA training. Note that Breville products are branded as Sage in the UK.

Read our full Breville Bambino Plus review

Breville The Barista Touch Impress

A more premium semi-automatic espresso machine, the Barista Touch Impress is larger and pricier than the De'Longhi La Specialista Touch, but gives you even more of a helping hand to create the perfect drink thanks to its Impress puck system. One of the best coffee makers around.

Read our full Breville The Barista Touch Impress review

How I tested the De'Longhi La Specialista Touch

I used the De'Longhi La Specialista Touch with my favorite Burundi and Panama Winter Blend from local coffee shop Mokoko, fresh that week. I tested the water in the TechRadar test kitchen (hard) and configured the machine accordingly during the startup process. I used fresh water each time I began using the machine, and emptied the tank at the end of the day.

I used the Bean Adapt Technology system to configure the machine for my coffee, and dialled in the grinder so an espresso shot was extracted in about 28 seconds.

Latte prepared using De'Longhi La Specialista Touch coffee machine — (Image credit: Future)

I tested the milk frother using unhomogenized whole milk, freshly bought the same day and fridge-cold.

First reviewed March 2025

I’m an open-ear headphones naysayer, but the Honor Earbuds Open won me over for sound

2:00 pm |

Author: admin | Category: Audio Computers Earbuds & Airpods Gadgets Headphones | Tags: ANC, Australia, US | Comments: Off

Honor Earbuds Open: One minute review

I’ve long been a naysayer of open-ear earbuds, despite (or probably because of) testing a huge number of them. However the first few months of 2025 brought a slew of impressive such buds to make me change my mind, and the Honor Earbuds Open is one of the ringleaders of the operation. While making it onto our list of the best open-ear earbuds is a relatively low bar, the Honors hurdle over it with ease.

Open-ear earbuds, for those of you who don’t know, are wireless earbuds that don’t sit in your ear, but rather very near your ear canal, to allow outside noises to get in too (useful for if you want to hear public service announcements on a commute, the noise of traffic that you’re nearby or light conversation). While Shokz popularized the category, most tech brands are now starting to reveal their own takes on an open-fit approach (production of such designs is reportedly up 600%, according to rival Huawei), and Honor is simply the latest company to take up the challenge. But the Chinese electronics firm, perhaps best known for its aspirational smartphones, has done a very good job here.

Given their design quirks, you have to forgive a few things with open-ear buds. But the slam-dunk of the Honor Earbuds Open is that they deliver everything you want in normal headphones, not just gimmicky "Ooh I can still hear you" ones.

For example, the Honors sound great, a compliment I’ve never once paid to open-ears. They offer energetic bass, bristling treble and a soundstage that’d be most welcome on normal earbuds, let alone ones that don’t even sit within your ears.

The fit is fantastic too, which is often the area that ruins otherwise-great open-ears. The Earbuds Open fit comfortably and securely, whether I was lounging at home, working out at the gym, cycling or going on runs. It was easy to forget I was wearing them at times!

Honor has also offered a feature that is incredibly rare in open-ears: active noise cancellation. When I first saw that the buds had this, I was baffled; after all, the entire point of open-ears is that they allow you to hear surrounding sounds. However in practice, it worked really well, with its light-touch implementation ensuring you can hear important environmental sounds without drowning your music in the hustle-and-bustle of city life.

A few issues affect the Honor Earbuds Open, most annoyingly the limited battery life which rules these out for long-distance runners. I also found the touch controls a little annoying to use, and you can easily mark any earbuds down for some of the features they don’t offer (an equalizer here) but none of these are deal-breakers… as you can probably tell, from the glowing review score and verdict.

The unfortunate release right at the same time as a cheaper, better-sounding rival (more on that in the 'Also consider' section) will only hurt the Honors, but they remain some of the best open-ear headphones on the market right now.

Honor Earbuds Open review: Specifications

Honor Earbuds Open review: Price and availability

The Honor Earbuds Open on a brown table. — (Image credit: Future)

Announced in February 2025
Priced at £149.99 (roughly $200, AU$300)
Not on sale in Australia or US

The Honor Earbuds Open were announced at annual tech conference MWC in February 2025, alongside a few other Honor gadgets.

You can pick up the buds for £149.99 (roughly $200, AU$300). Honor doesn’t seem to have a huge presence in the US or Australia, so I wouldn’t expect to see the buds go on sale in either region.

That’s a price slightly north of what some impressive rivals cost, (see the Shokz OpenFit Air, priced £119, which is around $150 or AU$229) but there are also big-name open-ears that cost a lot more, and the difference between Honor’s buds and its close rivals isn’t huge.

Honor Earbuds Open review: Design

Light-weight buds that are comfortable to wear
Comes in black or beige
Cigarette-case holder

The Honor Earbuds Open case reminds me of a cigarette case from an old movie. It’s wide and flat, incredibly slim and opens in a clamshell-style to reveal the curled earbuds hidden underneath. More practically, this compact design makes the case particularly easy to slip into pockets without it being a burden.

The case weighs roughly 80 x 61 x 20mm, and weighs 52.5g, so it’s smaller than a lot of other open-ear cases.

Now onto the buds: you can see the pictures, and you know what open-ear buds are like (hopefully, at least, if you’re considering buying some!). Like sport earbuds, they have a round-the-ear hook, holding the bud itself close to your ear and, hopefully, steadily in place.

I found the Honors to be some of the more comfortable open-ears I’ve tested, thanks to the light weight (7.9g) and their soft plastic material. They also held the bud surprisingly close to the ear, which probably helps explain the superior audio quality which we’ll get to.

Rarely, for a pair of open-ear buds that isn’t being marketed towards athletes, the buds are secure enough for intense sports. I took them for several runs and gym workouts and never had an issue – they stay in place just fine.

Each bud has a touch control, which you can toggle by double- or triple-pressing the body of the bud (the silver bit in the images). It readily picked up my touch every time, but since you have to repeatedly hit the part of the bud that hangs down, I found myself repeatedly pushing it into my ear when I wanted to pause, which was a little bit annoying.

Two other things to note: firstly, you can pick up the buds in black or beige (which Honor calls Polar Gold). Secondly, they have an IP54 rating, which means they’re splash- and dust-proof – but don’t get them too wet.

Design score: 4.5/5

Honor Earbuds Open: Features

ANC is rare showing for open-ears
A few extra features with Honor app
Battery life is only 6 hours (40 for case)

The Honor Earbuds Open are the first open earbuds I’ve ever seen that have noise cancellation. What the point of noise cancellation is on an earbud form factor that people pick to let in outside sound I won’t understand, but it worked surprisingly well, so I can’t complain.

It’s by no means industry-leading noise cancellation, but its ‘less-is-more’ approach worked wonders. The open-ear frame lets you hear important sounds around you like train station announcements, the engines of nearby vehicles or calls from people in shops you’ve just left letting you know you’ve left your credit card behind. And the noise cancellation removes the unimportant sounds: distant traffic, annoying screeching trains and horrible weather conditions. Honor has found the Goldilocks spot for ANC: just right.

I personally chose to keep ANC off, not because I love hearing winds announcing that it was about to rain half-way through my 15k run, but because the battery life needs it. The buds only last for 6 hours of listening time when you’ve got ANC off, and even less when it’s on – I’d estimate about 4.5 hours. The charging case brings that total up to 22 hours which again isn’t great, and many rivals beat it.

If you download the Honor AI Space app on your smartphone, you get access to a few extra features. One of these is the ability to toggle the ANC on and off, another is the ability to connect to multiple smartphones, and you can also find your earbuds or change what the gesture controls do.

There’s technically an EQ toggle, but you can only change it between two modes: ‘Original’ and ‘Workout amplifier’, the latter of which I tested when I was working out and also in a more controlled sound environment. From what I can tell, the latter reduces the bass and the audio quality in favor of more volume and treble; I can see the reasoning for these changes, but they’re not pronounced enough for it to be worth the switch.

Another feature I need to flag is AI Translate; Honor’s website says you need the Honor Magic 7 Pro to use it, but it worked fine on my Realme phone. This is basically an interpreter app that lets you converse with someone in two of eleven languages, using both your phone’s speaker and the earbuds.

From what I can tell, and coming from someone who’s monolingual, it seemed to work well. It’s just a curious feature to come packaged with earbuds, especially when you could equally download and use Google Translate’s app.

Features score: 4.5/5

Honor Earbuds Open review: Sound

The Honor Earbuds Open in a man's ear. — (Image credit: Future)

Large 16mm drivers
Impressive treble and bass
No equalizer

I was ready to declare the Honor Earbuds Open the best-sounding open earbuds I’d ever tried; unfortunately, another pair of open-ears I was testing alongside them somehow managed to just pip them to the post, but they’re still great to listen to. I regularly forgot that I was listening to open-ear buds!

Tech-wise, the Honors each boast a 16mm dynamic driver each, which is bigger than on most rivals I’ve tested. And it tells.

Perhaps the most noticeable improvement the Honor Earbuds Open offer over other open-ears I’ve tested is that they have this thing called ‘bass’ – I can’t remember the last buds with this form factor that I’ve tested that have any noticeable amount of bass, a natural side-effect of buds hovering above ears. However the Honors offer warm and energetic low tones, perfect for thumping workout tunes.

But that’s not all: the buds have crisp treble, which is another useful component that lets the Earbuds Open cut through noise, and a pronounced sound stage that makes songs sound detailed and rich when you’re wanting to enjoy your tunes.

The only audio problem I faced was one that’s pretty common in all kinds of wireless earbud: mid sounds fell by the wayside a little compared to treble and bass. But in the eternal words of Meat Loaf “two out of three ain’t bad”, and the Honors are the first open-ears I’ve tested that I’ve actually been glad to put on my ears.

Sound performance score: 4.5/5

Honor Earbuds Open review: Value

Given that the open-ear bud market is still rather new, it’s hard to make decisive statements about the price categories for this kind of audio product. But I’d roughly say that these are at the cheaper end of the mid-range market.

With that in mind, there are definitely cheaper options available to you, although picking them up will naturally saddle you with worse-sounding earbuds (except in one case; more on that below). But there’s more to life than audio quality and some more affordable buds are better for certain uses, with longer battery life or more robust builds.

So if you’re looking for any passable pair of open-ears, the Honors might not offer you great value for money, but if you really care about good-sounding audio they’ll arguably be worth the higher price.

Value score: 4/5

Honor Earbuds Open review: scorecard

Honor Earbuds Open: Should I buy them?

Buy them if...

You need workout and non-workout open-ears

While many open-ear buds are best for exercising purposes, the Honors were equally good for that and for general use.

You need noise cancellation

There are very few open-ear buds that offer Active Noise Cancellation (ANC) but the Honors do – and in use, it is effective.

You need earbuds that translate for you

Admittedly a very niche use case, but if you need an on-the-go translator, I can't think of another pair of earbuds that offer it as a feature!

Don't buy them if...

You need a longer battery life

If you want to listen for long periods of time, whether it's through a full work day or a long run or a journey, the Honors won't help you much.

You like to fiddle with your audio mix

It's pretty easy to find wireless earbuds with some kind of EQ tab, even many open-ears, so the Honors won't suit people who like to tinker with their tunes.

Also consider

Huawei FreeArc

These open-ears from Honor's ex-parent-company Huawei are cheaper than the Earbuds Open, plus they sound better and have a few more features. The battery life is even worse though.

Our full Huawei FreeArc review is just days away…

OpenRock Pro

These open-ears have a fantastic battery life, and they're really sturdy too, perfect for fitness users.

Read our full OpenRock Pro review

How I tested

I used the Honor Earbuds Open for two weeks in order to write this review. I tested them at the same time as two rival open-ears: the Huawei FreeArc and EarFun Openjump, which provided ample opportunity for comparison.

Through the review I used them alongside my Android smartphone, largely for music streaming on Spotify but also for streaming TV shows and playing games. As mentioned through the review I used them at home, on walks around my neighborhood, on cycle rides, on runs and at the gym.

I've been testing gadgets for TechRadar for over six years now, and have reviewed, amongst other things, many other open-ear earbuds.

Philips Sonicare 7100: Two-minute review

The Philips Sonicare 7100 isn’t quite as eye-wateringly expensive as the Philips Sonicare 9900 Prestige, but at £350 (around $450 or AU$715) it’s still extremely pricey for a sonic toothbrush with a lithium rechargeable battery that will eventually decay. However, it’s a gorgeous piece of kit with a powerful motor, four brushing modes, three intensities, and a couple of cool accessories such as a charging travel case (downgraded from the Prestige's leather to cheaper plastic) as well as a stand. It's definitely up there with the best electric toothbrushes on our list.

The brush is very satisfying to hold and use. It feels premium: I’m used to very plasticky cheaper electric toothbrushes, so I’m pleased to say that if you're paying all this money, the Philips at least is satisfyingly weighty and incorporates metal into its design. Coupled with the black outer shell, it’s slightly reminiscent of a lightsaber, albeit one that cuts through plaque rather than Sith lords.

At 62,000 bristle motions per minute, the Philips Sonicare 7100 is on a par with the Sonicare 9900 Prestige in terms of its brushing performance. It’s got four brushing modes (Clean, Sensitive, White and Gum Health), and each one has three intensities, for 12 brush settings in total. It’s a case of trial-and-error to find the right one for your brushing routine, and I have a sneaking suspicion that a few of these setting and intensity combinations end up being repeated, based on sound and mouthfeel alone.

However, one thing’s for sure: this toothbrush is powerful. After using my cheaper, lower-powered brush for a while, the blast of the full-power Clean setting on the Philips was surprising, to say the least – a bit like grabbing onto a metal handrail and experiencing a static shock. After prolonged usage, and with the option for such a high-power setting should I want it, I’m not sure I could go back to my comparatively underpowered usual toothbrush.

The power is evident in the motor, which does emit a moderate whine: using my phone’s decibel meter app, I measured readings of 55-57 decibels, equivalent to a soft conversation. The Ultim8 Supermouth brush, which I’m also testing, measured 44-46 decibels in comparison. The Philips is at the louder end, then, but it’s worth it for that extra oomph.

The battery life – up to three weeks – is largely immaterial, as your brush will likely either be on the charging stand or in the charging travel case most of the time. However, such a good battery life does mean that when you’re caught on the hop – for example, taking your case on long trips – that the brush will hold out and still provide a good clean.

There are only two issues I have with the Philips Sonicare 7100. The first is its price: while it’s an excellent toothbrush, it is more expensive than most in its category, although it does seem to receive frequent discounts. The second is in its name – Sonicare. This is a sonic toothbrush, which is a lot better than a manual brush, but some studies have shown that some oscillating brush heads are marginally more effective at getting rid of plaque than sonic ones. Our guide to sonic vs rotating toothbrushes can tell you more, but the power of the Philips will ensure that with regular proper usage, you’re still getting a great clean.

Philips Sonicare 7100: Specifications

Philips Sonicare 7100: Price and availability

£349.99 in the UK (around $450 / AU$715)
Frequently on sale
The Sonicare Expertclean 7500 is the similar equivalent model in US and Australia

The Philips Sonicare 7100 is available in the UK priced at £349.99 (around $450 / AU$715). This is crazy money for a toothbrush, but it’s frequently on sale: at the time of writing, Amazon has it for £158.99 (around $205 / AU$325). I don’t know what it is about electric toothbrushes that means they're priced so highly and then get such severe and almost permanent discounts, but it’s a recognized phenomenon.

Want one in the US or Australia? Philips doesn’t sell the Sonicare 7100 there as it categorizes its products differently in those regions. However, it does sell a very similar Sonicare Expertclean 7500, with four relabelled modes (Clean, White+, Gum Health and Deep Clean) and a slightly differently-shaped charging case. That retails for $199 / AU$312.

If the Sonicare 7100 wasn’t so frequently on sale I’d consider it poor value. However, it should be fairly easy to pick this brush up for around £150-£200, which makes it a very good buy indeed.

Value score: 3.5/5

Philips Sonicare 7100: Scorecard

Philips Sonicare 7100: Should I buy?

Buy it if...

You want more power

Want a serious sonic clean? The Sonicare 7100 has the power to tackle the toughest plaque.

You want to brush on the go

The charging case is convenient and very well-designed, with space for your brush head.

You want lots of options

With four modes, each with three intensities, you’ve got 12 combos to choose from.

Don't buy if if...

You can’t find it on sale

No toothbrush that I’ve yet tried is worth spending £350 / $450 / AU$715 on.

You want an oscillating brush head

As powerful as the Sonicare line is, if you’ve been advised to use an oscillating brush head by your dentist, consider the Oral-B iO Series.

You want to repair it

Unlike sustainable toothbrush manufacturer Suri, this toothbrush is not designed to be taken apart.

Also consider

Suri Sustainable Sonic Toothbrush

The best sustainability-focused sonic toothbrush.

Read our Suri Sustainable Sonic Toothbrush review

Philips Sonicare 9900 Prestige

The best premium electric toothbrush.

Read our Philips Sonicare 9900 Prestige review

How I tested

I used the Philips Sonicare 7100 for one week. I charged it using both the plug-in base and carry case, tried all the different modes on the toothbrush, and used a decibel meter app to calculate how loud the brush was compared to other brushes on the market.

First reviewed: March 2025

I wasn’t a fan of syrup in coffee until I tried the Jura J10 espresso machine – here’s why

2:00 pm |

Author: admin | Category: Coffee Machines Computers Gadgets Home Small Appliances | Tags: US | Comments: Off

Jura J10: two-minute review

If you like elaborate coffees with flavored syrup, the Jura J10 is the fully automatic coffee machine of your dreams – and if you don’t, it might just change your mind.

The J10 also does a great job of the basics, producing consistently rich and well-balanced espresso thanks to a grinder that monitors the consistency of the grind, from which the J10 recommends the optimum temperature and extraction time for each drink (while still letting you tailor the settings to your preferences). The crema isn’t quite as thick and stable as that created by the KitchenAid KF6, but it’s still up there with the best espresso machines – and the J10 has a lot more to offer besides.

In addition, its cold brew option works well as well, and is in fact one of its stand-out features. It uses a different process to the Jura Z10 we reviewed back in 2023. The Z10 also offered a cold brew option, but the J10 works by pulsing water slowly through the grounds rather than forcing it through at high pressure, as you can see in the video below, which the company says should yield a more rounded flavor.

During tests, I found the process delivered a similar flavor profile to traditional overnight cold-brewing methods, taking the bitter notes out of your beans and producing a drink that’s much smoother than one brewed hot. With an ice cube or two to bring down the temperature a bit further, you’d be hard-pressed to differentiate it from the real thing.

The J10 certainly isn’t a cheap option; even if you’re currently placing takeaway coffee orders several times a week, it will take some time for it to pay for itself. Nevertheless, it’s a pleasure to use. The Sweet Foam system isn’t complicated, but it’s implemented perfectly and works exactly as promised. The flavor is distributed evenly throughout the milk rather than being concentrated in the bottom of your cup, so you’ll actually need less syrup for the same intensity of sweetness, and you can use any type of coffee syrup you like, including sugar-free ones.

Adjusting the milk foam setting on the Jura J10 coffee maker — A dial on the front of the machine lets you choose between hot and foamed milk (Image credit: Future)

The J10 does an impressive job of texturizing milk, on a par with the excellent Siemens EQ900 Plus, and with a dose of syrup its foam is even more stable, lasting to the very last drop.

It has a couple of quirks, though. The drip tray is unusually shallow, which means you have to take care not to spill its contents, and the customization menus time out sooner than I’d like. Overall, however, the Jura J10 is a treat to use.

Jura J10: price and availability

Launched in early 2025
Priced at £1,795 / AU$3,990 (about $2,300)
Not yet available in the US, but that may change soon

The Jura J10 launched in early 2025, and is available to buy direct from Jura and from a handful of third-party retailers. It has a list price of £1,795 / AU$3,990 (about $2,300), but at the time of writing (March 2025), it isn't yet available to buy in the US. Other Jura machines are available in the States, so hopefully it will only be a matter of time before it hits those shores.

Jura is charging a premium price for its fully automatic espresso machine then, but it isn't the most expensive around. It comes in less than both the Siemens EQ900 Plus (also a great option for well-extracted espresso paired with perfectly foamed milk) and the KitchenAid KF8 (more stylish to look at, but not so good with dairy).

Value score: 4/5

Jura J10: specifications

Jura J10 review: design

Hopper for whole beans and ground coffee
Detects which of its two dispensers you're using
Sweet Foam system attaches to milk texturizer

The Jura J10 is a smart-looking espresso machine with a glossy piano-black finish. The exterior is made entirely from plastic (even the silver-colored components), which in my opinion isn't a bad thing – the whole machine is easy to wipe clean and isn’t excessively heavy. Some of its rivals weigh over 37.5lb / 17kg, so a machine I can move easily is a refreshing change.

Milk container attached to Jura J10 coffee maker — The Jura J10 is an attractive machine, and the company has even considered what its removeable milk system looks like (Image credit: Future)

Unusually for an automatic coffee machine, it has two dispensers: one in the middle for coffee and hot water for espressos and americanos; another on the right for lattes, cappuccinos, and steamed milk, with optional syrup added as the milk is texturized.

There’s a single, generously sized hopper on top, with an airtight seal to keep your beans fresh. Like the KitchenAid Fully Automatic Espresso Machine K8, the Jura J10 also has a chute for adding a scoop of pre-ground coffee, if you want to try something different.

Image 1 of 2

Bean hopper of Jura J10 coffee maker — The Jura J10 has a single, generously sized bean hopper (Image credit: Future)

Image 2 of 2

Grind setting adjustment on Jura J10 coffee maker — A control dial allows you to adjust the grind size. and the chute lets you add two scoops of ground coffee (Image credit: Future)

Personally, I prefer the twin-hopper setup of the Siemens EQ900 Plus, which can be filled with two different beans at once. Nevertheless, it’s still nice to have an option if you want to switch to decaf in the evening, or have a guest who’s particularly fond of a certain bean or blend.

The J10's water tank is accessed by lifting a flap at the top of the machine and then pulling it out of the side. It’s easy to remove, reinsert, and carry to the tap thanks to a convenient folding handle. The J10 is supplied with a water filter, with a cartridge that pushes onto a plastic adapter and then twists into place in the bottom of the tank to help reduce limescale buildup and remove impurities. Additional filter cartridges are available direct from Jura for $20 / £15.95 / AU$27.90 each.

Water tank removed from Jura J10 coffee maker — The J10's water tank is easily removed, and has a replaceable filter to help prevent limescale (Image credit: Future)

The only drawback of the design (and it’s a minor one) is that the drip tray is wide and long, but shallow, which makes it relatively easy to spill the contents while carrying it to the sink. The machine doesn’t warn you until it’s almost full, so I found myself emptying it before I was prompted to avoid getting water on the floor. I did appreciate the spout shape at the back of the tray, though, which makes it easy to pour out the contents when you get it over the sink.

In general, the milk systems of fully automatic coffee makers are quite ugly, often taking the form of open plastic tubs attached to an otherwise stylish machine by a length of slightly medical-looking rubber tubing. This isn't the case with the Jura J10, which has a glass milk container with an airtight lid that’s designed to be stored in the fridge between uses, and which attaches to the machine’s foaming dispenser using a tube with a metal sleeve. It’s a much more stylish solution than most, and works well.

Syrup container for Jura J10 coffee maker Sweet Foam system — The Sweet Foam system uses a small container of syrup that attaches to the milk texturizer (Image credit: Future)

You do get a plain plastic tube, but this is only used for cleaning the milk system. The Jura J10 comes with a two-part tank that sits on top of the drip tray when it’s time for a deep clean. Just add some cleaning tablets (again, available to buy from Jura), choose the program, and the machine will do the rest, pouring hot water onto the tablets to make a cleaning solution, pumping it through the unit, and depositing the waste water into the smaller section ready to be poured away.

The Sweet Foam system uses a small container that you fill with your preferred syrup (regular or sugar-free), which you attach to the milk foamer. As the steamed milk is dispensed, it becomes infused with syrup, distributing the flavor evenly throughout the milk.

Design score: 4.5/5

Jura J10 review: performance

Espresso is consistently well-extracted with rich crema
Milk is perfectly foamed, and Sweet Foam system works brilliantly
Cold brew tastes authentically milk and well-rounded

There’s an impressive assortment of presets, including espresso drinks, hot and steamed milk, and hot water. Tap the arrow button above the drink menu and you’ll see a set of extra options including cold brew, extra shot, and Sweet Foam. Select one of these, and you’ll see an icon over the drinks that can be prepared in the way. It’s a smart system that means you don’t have to browse through multiple menus to prepare custom drinks.

As you’d expect with a premium automatic coffee machine, you can also create your own custom beverages, adjusting the temperature, volume, and brew time to suit your preferences. It’s also easy to tweak the machine’s own presets, which is a nice feature that means you can tailor the whole menu to suit your tastebuds – and your cups.

Drink menu on Jura J10 coffee maker — The Jura J10 offers an extensive menu of customizable drink options (Image credit: Future)

I was occasionally frustrated when the customization menus timed out and returned me to the home screen before I’d finished making my choices, but that was the only drawback for me. I just had to be more prepared and not spend time dithering.

When you select a drink, the machine will recommend a grind setting from "mild" to "intense". This is fairly unusual – most fully automatic espresso machines I’ve tested will adjust the grind size for you automatically, and again you’re not given a huge amount of time to do it.

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Making espresso using the Jura J10 coffee maker — The Coffee Eye system detects where you've placed your cup, illuminates either amber or white, and changes which drink options are shown on the menu (Image credit: Future)

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Jura J10 coffee maker preparing a latte macchiato with syrup — The milk texturizer is excellent, and foam with syrup lasts even longer (Image credit: Future)

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Latte macchiato made using Jura J10 coffee maker — The Jura J10 makes an impressive latte macchiato (Image credit: Future)

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Cup of espresso made using Jura J10 coffee maker — Espresso is delicious, even though the crema isn't quite as thick and stable as that produced by the KitchenAid KF6 (Image credit: Future)

Both dispensers can be easily moved up and down to accommodate different sized cups, and the J10 has a system called Coffee Eye that detects which one your cup is beneath, and only displays beverages that will be dispensed there. It’s a clever addition, and one that eliminates any potential confusion. The machine also has different colored lights that illuminate to show where you’ve placed your cup – white for the espresso dispenser, and amber for the cappuccino dispenser.

The Sweet Foam container lets you control the amount of syrup added to the milk, allowing you to tailor the flavor to your preferences, and you can use any type or flavor you want, including sugar-free. I used a Tate & Lyle coffee syrup provided by Jura; not only were the results delicious, with the flavor distributed much more evenly than it would be if you simply added a pump of syrup to the cup, it also made the foam on my latte macchiato even more stable and long-lasting.

You have to remove and clean the container after each use, but this doesn't require much effort. Having the syrup in some sort of tank inside the machine for use on-demand would mean the machine would need another type of cleaning cycle to wash out the sugar, and you’d be limited to one type of syrup at a time.

In the J10's setup, the syrup doesn’t enter the rest of the milk system at all, so there’s no sugar in the machine to act as a breeding ground for bacteria. Plus, you can use a different flavor whenever you feel like it. I washed the container by hand, which took only a moment, and Jura recommends popping it in the dishwasher once a week for a deeper clean.

I was particularly interested to try the cold brew option, which promises authentic-tasting cold coffee drinks in moments, with the same flavor profile as cold brew that's been extracted in the traditional way over the course of many hours. Cold brew does take longer to dispense than a shot of hot espresso, but not by much – it drips from the dispenser, rather than issuing in a stream – and the taste is very impressive. It might not be quite as flavorsome as authentic cold brew, but it’s very close; it's sweeter, with far less bitterness than espresso brewed hot. Throw in some ice and I think you’d be hard-pressed to tell the difference.

Cleaning the milk system of the Jura J10 coffee maker — The Jura J10 comes with a two-part tank for deep-cleaning the milk system (Image credit: Future)

Like any fully automatic coffee maker, the Jura J10 requires regular cleaning to keep it hygienic and ready to brew. One feature I particularly appreciated was its ability to run a rinsing cycle automatically when it hasn't been used for a certain period of time. This is something I’ve only previously seen on commercial bean-to-cup machines, and it makes a lot of sense. You can tinker with the cleaning and maintenance settings (including rinsing) by tapping the small arrow button on the bottom of the coffee menu.

Performance score: 5/5

Should you buy the Jura J10

Buy it if

You enjoy decadent coffee drinks

The Jura J10 lets you replicate even complicated coffee orders at home, and gives much better results than just adding a pump of syrup to your cup.

You enjoy cold brew

The J10's updated cold brewing system is fast and effective, producing a flavor profile strikingly similar to coffee brewed cold overnight.

Don't buy it if

You prefer traditional coffees

If syrup and cold brew aren't your thing, you can get excellent results from a more affordable machine such as the standard Siemens EQ900.

You're a bit clumsy

The wide and shallow drip tray can be prone to spilling if you're not careful, and the J10 won't warn you until it's very full.

Jura J10: also consider

Not completely sold on the Jura J10 coffee maker? Here are two other premium bean-to-cup machines for you to consider.

Siemens EQ900 Plus

Another premium fully automatic espresso machine, the Siemens EQ900 Plus makes the best latte macchiato I've had at home. If you want a more affordable option, the standard EQ900 is very similar, only lacking the smart cleaning function.

Read our full Siemens EQ900 Plus review

KitchenAid KF8 Fully Automatic Espresso Machine

Not interested in syrup or cold brew? The KitchenAid KF8 brews exceptional espresso, and has specially configured settings to handle both dairy and milk substitutes.

Read our full KitchenAid KF8 Fully Automatic Espresso Machine review

How I tested the Jura J10

I used the Jura J10 with three different coffee beans: my favorite Burundi and Panama Winter Blend from local coffee shop Mokoko; Jura Malabar Monsooned India Pure Origin; and Jura Cafe Creme Guatemala, Brazil, Costa Rica Blend. The latter two were provided by Jura, along with Tate & Lyle Barista caramel syrup.

Bags of coffee beans and bottle of syrup used when testing Jura J10 coffee maker — (Image credit: Future)

I used the milk system with chilled whole milk, purchased that day. For more details, see how we test, review, and rate products on TechRadar.

First reviewed April 2025

I tested this ultra-expensive electric shaver from Philips – here’s why I’d buy it

12:35 pm | March 7, 2025

Author: admin | Category: Computers Gadgets Hair Care Home Small Appliances | Tags: AU, UK, US | Comments: Off

Philips Shaver S9000 Prestige: one-minute review

Product info

This model has slightly different names and product codes in different territories:

UK and AU: Philip Shaver S9000 Prestige, SP9883/35
US: The SP9883/35 variant doesn't appear to be widely available from online US retailers, but you can find the very similar Philips Norelco S9000 Prestige (product code SP9886/89) on Amazon US.

If you’re in the market for a premium electric shaver, it’s well worth checking out the Philips Shaver S9000 Prestige. This premium model is packed with Philips’ SkinIQ tech for an adaptive, delicate shave, a highly ergonomic design and waterproofing – meaning it offers an all-round excellent user experience.

For reference, I specifically tested the SP9883/35 variant of the Philips Shaver S9000 Prestige – and this doesn’t come cheap. It’s available now in the UK and Australia with a list price of £699 / AU$999. Thankfully, though, it’s unlikely you’ll have to pay quite this much in all regions. For instance, I’ve spotted it going for much closer to £300 from a lot of UK retailers. Still, that’s quite a bit to spend on an electric shaver – so is it worth it?

Well, if like me you have pretty sensitive skin and are used to irritation after a typical shave – then I’d say the answer is yes. Whether I was having a wet or dry shave, the Philips Shaver S9000 Prestige glided across my face with ease and never felt strenuous or sharp on my skin – something we always look for in our hunt for the best beard trimmers and electric razors. You can also adjust power to low, medium or high depending on what feels and works best for you.

But wait… there’s more. This easy-to-handle shaver harnesses SkinIQ technology and Ultraflex suspension, meaning the S9000 Prestige’s head can adjust its power and positioning depending on hair thickness and shaving angles. That makes for a super simple, rapid shaving experience – ideal if you need a quick trim before heading to the office. It also comes with a self cleaning station, which can get your shaver looking all shiny again after just one minute: pretty cool!

Is this model perfect? Not quite. The SmartClick trimmer – which you can easily click on to the top of the shaver – isn’t perfect for cutting down those overgrown hairs, as I found myself going over the same patches a couple of times. And when using the default shaver head, I still found it easier, personally, to get rid of the odd straggler with my manual razor – but your mileage may vary.

Otherwise, this is a top-class option that I’d highly recommend, especially if you want a shaver that’s going to play gentle. That’s not even mentioning the fact that this is a beautiful model with a handy display and solid battery life of one hour. And it comes with a wireless charging pad. Pretty convenient, right?

Philips Shaver S9000 Prestige, alternate heads, self-cleaning station, cleaning fluid — (Image credit: Future)

Philips Shaver S9000 Prestige: Price and specs

Philips Shaver S9000 Prestige review: design

Fantastic ergonomic grip
Premium metallic exterior
Interchangeable attachments

In terms of design, it doesn’t get a whole lot better than the Philips Shaver S9000 Prestige. It has a premium-looking metallic build with an ergonomic rubber grip, which makes handling the shaver both extremely easy and satisfying.

On top of that, there’s a display on the face of the shaver that indicates the power level in use – between one and three – battery life, travel lock activation and more. Above that screen, you’ll find a few button controls: power on/off, power level down, and power level up. All of this makes for a pleasingly visual, straightforward user experience – something you’d expect from a shaver with such a high price tag.

Philips Shaver S9000 Prestige with head detached — (Image credit: Future)

Another great aspect of the S9000 Prestige’s design is its support for multiple attachments. It comes with a few interchangeable heads including the default foil shaver, SmartClick trimmer and nose hair trimmer. These all easily clip on and off and are quick and straightforward to wash, thanks to the shaver’s great waterproofing. You also get a brush for cleaning tighter crevices – Philips have thought of everything.

There are even more goodies in the box worth mentioning, though. First of all, this model comes with a self-cleaning station and a quick clean pod. This contraption can both clean and lubricate your shaver in just one minute using the power from the S9000 Prestige itself. Philips says this is 10x more effective than a simple wash under water – I’m not sure I can speak to just how precise that is, but it did get the shaver spick and span when I tried it out.

On top of that, there’s a wireless charging pad that you can connect up to a shaver socket in your bathroom for some extra juice when you’re running low. This works fantastically well and your S9000 Prestige will make a beeping noise to let you know it’s building some battery life back.

Finally, you can pack the attachments, shaver and more into an expensive-looking carry-case that is included with the S9000 Prestige. It has a hardy exterior and plenty of room inside, making for a nifty travel companion. The pristine look and feel of the case feels pretty indicative of the overall quality you’re getting, design wise. With excellent build quality, a durable exterior and plenty of tasty extras in the box, you’re getting the full package with the Philips Shaver S9000 Prestige.

Design score: 5/5

Philips Shaver S9000 Prestige review: performance

Comfortable, rapid shave
Harnesses adaptive SkinIQ tech
Pretty standard one-hour battery life

And the shiny exterior isn’t all for show, this shaver is a pretty neat performer too. Firstly, that firm-feeling grip I mentioned ensures seamless handling, regardless of what angle you’re trimming at. I found it to be a big step up from my usual electric-shaver, which can be a bit challenging to handle in tighter, more awkward positions.

But how about the shaving itself? Well, a standout plus here is that the S9000 Prestige is a not only smooth, but rapid operator. Within mere minutes I was able to achieve a clean shave using the Dual Precision rotating blades, which can achieve up to 165,000 cutting actions per minute. The blades took care of hairs growing in multiple directions with ease for the most part. I did, admittedly, have a few stragglers, which were easier to remove with my manual razor – but this really was a minor inconvenience.

Person turning on the Philips Shaver S9000 Prestige — (Image credit: Future)

The default shaver head uses some pretty nifty tech to ensure you get a close shave, such as SkinIQ. This tech senses hair density on your face (or head) and adapts cutting power for a more gentle shave. It also has an ‘Ultraflex’ suspension system that helps the heads work along every contour of your face.

All in all, this is designed to deliver a more efficient, but also a more comfortable shave. And for me personally, that was greatly appreciated. I have pretty sensitive skin and the technology packed into this shaver helped to reduce a lot of irritation. As well as the adaptive SkinIQ tech, there’s an option to manually adjust the shaver’s power – which paired with the default head’s Hydro SkinGlide Coating, ensures a more relaxed shaving experience.

Philips Shaver S9000 Prestige on wireless charging pad — (Image credit: Future)

If I was to be more critical, though, I have to say that the included SmartClick trimmer is a little underwhelming. After four days of growth – yeah, it wasn’t my best look – I tried to give myself a more even, neat look, using this trimmer on the lowest grade. It worked decently well, but just wasn’t as efficient as I’d hoped for, as I found myself going over the same patches on my face a fair few times. Also, this trimmer only has five lines to indicate the length it cuts down to, but I would prefer a measurement in millimetres – something my everyday shaver uses.

Meanwhile, you get a decent battery life of one hour out of the S9000 Prestige. That’s very much in-line with what a lot of hi-tech electric shavers can manage. But if you’re hoping for more, fear not. After every shave, you can simply pop the S9000 Prestige onto its wireless charging pad and get it fighting fit in no time. It takes three hours to get this shaver’s battery fully restored – not bad considering the use of wireless charging.

Performance score: 4.5/5

Philips Shaver S9000 Prestige review: value

Very expensive list price
But regularly available with a considerable reduction
High cost does come with premium design and performance levels

OK, I won’t beat around the bush. If we’re talking about its list price, this shaver is very, very expensive. I’d argue a bit too expensive even. £699 / AU$999 is a lot of cash to spend, especially considering you can spend much less than that and still get a very astute shaver, like the Braun Series 9 Pro, for instance.

But I bring good news. You’ll rarely have to pay such an astronomical fee for this stylish shaver. In fact, I’ve seen it going for close to £300 in the UK via retailers like John Lewis – that’s more than 50% off! And that really changes the picture – in this price range, the S9000 Prestige is well-worth considering. Otherwise, it would be tough to recommend – even given its high-level performance.

Philips Shaver S9000 Prestige resting on block — (Image credit: Future)

Ultimately, the Philips Shaver S9000 Prestige is built to last and packs in a gentle, personalized shaving experience. You’re unlikely to need an upgrade or replacement in the near future if you pick this up, which really adds a lot of weight in the value department. And although I can’t overlook its sky-high list price, I’d still happily recommend this shaver in the knowledge that it’s regularly discounted.

Value score: 4/5

Should you buy the Philips Shaver S9000 Prestige?

Buy it if...

You want ultimate comfort
Not only is the Philips Shaver S9000 Prestige extremely comfortable to handle, but it’s kind to the skin in-use. That makes it the perfect shaving companion, even for those with sensitive skin.

You’re rocking the clean-shaven look
If you’re someone that likes to maintain your clean shave every day, or maybe every other day, this is a top-tier option. The rotating blades and suspension tech help you to dust off any facial hair swiftly and seamlessly, meaning you won’t have to waste all too much time perfecting your look.

Don't buy it if...

You’re on a budget
Even though this model can be purchased at a significantly cut-price, it’s still not the most budget friendly. And at full-price, this one’s a no-go if you’re not looking to spend an arm and a leg. Even an alternative like the Reamignton T-Series Beard Trimmer and Hair Clipper can get the job done (if you’re in the UK) for less than £100, but there are tons of options out there.

You want a phenomenal option for short beards
The only thing about the S9000 Prestige I didn’t love was the SmartClick trimmer. Don’t get me wrong, it does work pretty well, but it’s not quite elite. Sometimes I needed to go over the same patches again and I also wished that it indicated, in millimetres, how short it cuts across its five levels.

Philips Shaver S9000 Prestige: also consider

Braun Series 9 Pro
Like this Philips shaver, the Braun Series 9 Pro has the triple threat of a beautiful build, ergonomic design and excellent shaving performance. It takes just 50 minutes to get it up to full charge again and has a solid battery life of one hour to boot. Again – this one can achieve a great shave, whether wet or dry, so if you’re looking for a premium alternative, you can’t go wrong with this. Read our full Braun Series 9 Pro review.

Panasonic Arc6 review
Another fantastic wet and dry shaver is the Panasonic Arc6. Its battery life isn’t quite as long as this Philips model and it isn’t quite as elegant looking, but you still get a super-smooth shave and plenty of features, like a self-cleaning station. Read our full Panasonic Arc6 review.

How I tested the Philips Shaver S9000 Prestige

Tested for one week
Used for a wet and dry shave
Trimmed for a neat stubble look and then went for a clean shave

I tested the Philips Shaver S9000 Prestige for one week, ensuring to try out all of its various features and attachments. I typically keep my facial hair trimmed to around 2mm, so I used the SmartClick trimmer at first to replicate my typical shaving routine.

On top of that, I also tried having a wet and dry shave with the default head attachment. I also made use of the included wireless charging pad and self-cleaning station to ensure the shaver was up to TechRadar Recommended standard.

Read more about how we test
First reviewed February 2025

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