I love fighting games, but I'm not usually one for tag fighters — often because I find learning more than one character intimidating and time-consuming. So, when Marvel Tokon: Fighting Souls was first revealed last year as a 4v4 tag fighter, I'd already resigned myself to thinking: 'well, that's probably not for me.'

Not two, not three, but four? You're having a laugh.

I needn't have worried so much. Arc System Works has designed Fighting Souls such that learning a quartet of fighters inside and out is absolutely not necessary. It's possible to play that way at a higher level, of course. But as your team only has a single health bar, you can rock one character as your main, while relying on the remaining three as assist moves to help you out in a pinch.

It helps, too, that Marvel Tokon: Fighting Souls has a fantastic onboarding process for new players. The game's story mode is broken into five episodes — each focused on a group of heroes (the Avengers, X-Men, etc.) or the villainous Knights of Doom. Episode chapters are structured to introduce you to fighters and their strengths, or otherwise various important system mechanics. Training tools are similarly great, with a fully-featured training mode, combo trials, and an ingenious 'level-up missions' category that tasks you with creating your own combos to reach a damage threshold.

All good so far, but I unfortunately have to stress that Tokon's immediate future looks perilous. The PC version of the game is currently facing myriad issues, many of which seem to be a direct result of corporate interference.

At the time of writing, Arc System Works is hard at work deploying patches to improve PC matchmaking and performance, but I'm not sure there's a fix for intrusive anti-cheat bloatware and forcing PlayStation Network account creation to access its online features.

Absolutely champion

Enough doom and gloom for now. I'd rather chat about all the elements that I feel make Marvel Tokon: Fighting Souls such a wonderful game for a bit. For me, it started with its single-player story mode.

Titled 'Episodes', Tokon's story is broken into five distinct, well, episodes. Each is centered around one of the game's five main teams. The Fighting Avengers, for example, are your stalwart heroes like Captain America and Black Panther.

The Samurai Outriders are made up of anti-heroes and tricksters like Deadpool and Loki. Meanwhile, the Knights of Doom bring a more villainous flavor, stacked with evildoers like Doctor Doom, Green Goblin, and Carnage.

The premise is simple. An intergalactic fighter called the Champion is holding Earth hostage, and the aforementioned five teams have been selected to participate in a tournament to decide the planet's future. Each episode culminates in a fight with the Champion, and individual chapters are bookended with stunning comic book cutscenes, with each episode even featuring a unique artist and colorist.

This lends all of them a unique sense of identity, and helps to keep things feeling fresh as you progress. Each episode is about an hour long, and all are worth playing through as you'll not only get a feel for each individual character, you will also unlock colors for a bit of added flair for your faves. Oh, and as a bonus, you'll also unlock the Champion as a playable character upon clearing your first episode.

There are a lot of fun character moments, too. Ms. Marvel is often adorably starstruck by the heroes she encounters. The X-Men are flabberghasted that Magneto would team up with an egotistical maniac like Doctor Doom. There's a cute running gag between episodes where everyone gives Loki the side eye, despite a seeming earnestness from the God of Lies to genuinely turn over a new leaf in the search for his brother Thor (who is currently mysteriously absent from the game's playable roster).

Overall, Episodes are a great way to kick off your Tokon journey. It'll help you find characters you enjoy playing, and present a charming story that's well worth playing through just to experience its wonderful artwork and voiced performances.

Assist me

Marvel Tokon: Fighting Souls is remarkably easy to just pick up and play, and I reckon you'll have a blast in local play with friends for casual couch bouts. Movement, special moves, assists, and supers are all straightforward to execute. For specials in particular, you have options for simple or motion inputs with the d-pad. Motion-inputted special moves (such as quarter-circle-forward) do around 10% more damage on average, so you'll have a bit of an edge if you can master weaving them into your gameplan.

The 4v4 setup can be wonderfully chaotic; there's no limit to the number of characters that can appear on-screen, so it's very possible to spam the assist button to throw the kitchen sink at your opponent in a pinch.

Characters you place in your assist slots are highly versatile, and can be individually called upon by pressing the assist button and the corresponding direction on the d-pad. One assist slot is for projectile, for example, while another is a vertical for anti-airs. This is universal across the cast, so you don't have to be precious about which characters you choose if you're only planning on maining one or two.

Elsewhere, you can perform an assist counter while guarding to get your opponent off of you, or even swap to one of your assists to directly control them. There's a ton you can do with assists, and learning to incorporate them in your playstyle is a huge part of the learning process. It sounds like a lot, and it is, and there's much more assists can do, like extending your combos and taking part in a massively damaging last round super. It might take a bit to wrap your head around, but thankfully, the tools are there to help you get to grips with assists and more besides.

Trained to perfection

Marvel Tokon: Fighting Souls has some of the best tutorialization I've ever seen in a fighting game. You of course have a fully fleshed out training mode, where you can freely practice combos and setups against a dummy. There is also a comprehensive tutorial section known as the Battle Guide, that'll walk you through basics like movement all the way to advanced techniques like wakeup options and blocking cross-ups.

Of particular note is Character Lessons, which includes primers on every character playable in the game. These start off with basic move introductions, as well as the properties of each characters' unique button. For example, Storm's Tempest unique lets her control the wind to push herself and her opponent around. Magik's unique has her placing a portal that she can instantly warp to and perform attack out of to surprise the opponent.

Lessons then offer a selection of combos for you to try out for each character, many weaving in assists, special moves, and supers. Finally, the highlight of Character Lessons for me are the Level-Up Missions, which task you with performing a combo to meet a certain amount of damage. These don't hold your hand much, with little guidance outside of telling you which button to start your combo with, or to include a special move at some point. They're great fun to experiment with, and even unlock colors for your characters, too.

Once you feel sufficiently warmed up, I highly recommend jumping into Arena mode for some offline quickplay. This is essentially the game's Arcade mode, in which you play through a series of five matches. You'll get to choose your route as you go through, unlocking some lovely concept art for your efforts.

There's also Survival mode; a 100-match gauntlet with some light roguelite elements. Between matches in Survival mode, you'll get to choose and upgrade Support Souls — cards that offer various benefits like increased movement speed or attack power. Getting through all 100 is no easy task, though, with several significant difficulty spikes on your way to the top. But again, your efforts will be rewarded with unique character colors if you make it to the end.

True believers

If you're familiar with Arc System Works' back catalog, it should come as no surprise that Marvel Tokon: Fighting Souls is a mind-bendingly gorgeous fighting game.

The developer is the master of modern cel-shading, and the roster of Marvel icons look even sharper here than characters do in Guilty Gear Strive and Dragonball FighterZ. Not that those games are slouches at all in the visual department, but Tokon by comparison looks impressively pristine at all times.

There aren't a ton of characters or stages at launch (I personally think 21 characters is a bit slim given the 4v4 setup), but when they look and animate as well as they do, I can forgive the base roster being as svelte as it is by tag fighter standards.

Every character is brimming with personality and charming little touches. Doom's cartoonish aptitude for evil is perfectly captured in his intimidating slow walk and thousand-yard stare. Ms. Marvel's attacks feel peppy, snappy, and excitable. And Deadpool? Well, almost every move in his arsenal is a loving reference to other iconic fighting games, and there are some impressively deep cuts therein.

The game's background stages are a real draw, too. The New York City stage is teeming with detail and references to the wider world of Marvel. The X-Mansion tends to populate the further a match progresses, with iconic X-Men like Psylocke, Colossus, and Gambit appearing in the background. If you're a Marvel head, you'll likely love the amount of respect and admiration Arc System Works has for the brand.

Pride before a fall

Marvel Tokon: Fighting Souls is another slam-dunk for Arc System Works, then. With it and the recent Marvel vs. Capcom Fighting Collection: Arcade Classics compilation, I'm ecstatic to see Marvel active again in the realm of fighting games. But every story has its villain, and for Tokon, it's not the Champion. It's Sony.

I hate to admit that I'm concerned for Marvel Tokon: Fighting Souls' future. On PC, the game's anti-cheat DRM worsens performance. Furthermore, Linux and mod support are non-starters, and because online play requires a PlayStation Network account, countries where the service isn't supported (there are well over 100 of them) can't access network features at all. Throw in lopsided netcode that discourages crossplay between PS5 and PC, and you have a recipe for an exceptionally messy launch month largely thanks to publisher meddling.

For these reasons, I can't give Marvel Tokon: Fighting Souls a glowing recommendation, as much as I would like to. At least if you were planning to pick up the game on PC. I want Tokon to have a long, bright future, but I worry that too much damage has already been done. Now, the state of the game has improved since launch in regards to performance and matchmaking quality, thanks to a small handful of fixes deployed by Arc System Works.

I just can't help but feel anxious about this rocky PC launch. Especially with the recent news that Riot Games is shuttering development on its League of Legends fighting game, 2XKO. It shows that huge companies absolutely aren't afraid to completely tear down a good thing if it isn't generating satisfactory revenue or player count. If folks walk away from Marvel Tokon: Fighting Souls because of the issues it's facing on PC, then what's stopping Sony from doing the same?

I hope I'm just overthinking it. Marvel Tokon: Fighting Souls is one of the most fun and unique fighting games I've played in some time, and I hope its candle won't be snuffed out before it truly gets the chance to shine its brightest.

Should I play Marvel Tokon: Fighting Souls?

Play it if...

Don't play it if...

Accessibility features

At launch, Marvel Tokon: Fighting Souls has a small handful of accessibility features, largely utilizing text-to-speech options.

You can enable text-to-speech and adjust its volume and speed. You can also choose to enable or disable subtitles that display during battle entrances and conclusions.

How I reviewed Marvel Tokon: Fighting Souls

I played Marvel Tokon: Fighting Souls on PC for approximately 15 hours for this review. I completed the episodic story mode in its entirety, cleared most Arcade mode routes, and put a good chunk of hours into training mode, character lesson guides, and casual online play.

I tested the game with the GameSir G7 Pro controller, as well as the leverless Razer Kitsune. I also hooked up my RIG 900 Max HS gaming headset to experience the game's excellent audio and wonderfully upbeat soundtrack.

First reviewed August 2026

The Oppo Reno 16 5G is a stunning mid-range phone with a lush display, fantastic camera and strong performance. If you’re looking for a phone with “summer looks” and “star vibes,” that’s exactly how Oppo is describing its new mid-range handset, which is aiming to be among the most trendy, flashy looking models on the market.

But it’s not all marketing hype — I really do think that the Oppo Reno 16 5G is a gorgeous phone. It's slim, comes in some beautiful color options, and has a striking 3D holographic design on the reverse side, making it the ideal option for those seeking an aesthetically pleasing and stylish digital companion. It's also lightweight and compact for those who prefer a smaller device.

Don’t be fooled, though, this thing isn’t just a pretty face. Like all of the best phones, the Oppo Reno 16 5G offers solid performance (thanks to its Qualcomm Snapdragon 7 Gen 4 processor), a clean and easy-to-use UI, and a 6,000mAh battery for seamless everyday use.

Another highlight for me, though, was the camera quality on the Reno 16 5G. It has a highly capable system of cameras, featuring a 50MP wide, ultra-wide, and selfie camera, as well as a 50MP telephoto lens. And for a mid-range phone, this thing produces really impressive results. The telephoto lens — which in itself isn’t always a guarantee to get at this price-point — can capture detailed, rich photos with surprisingly little compromise, and the phone is also able to capture 4K 60fps footage with its main or front camera — not bad, eh?

The display, though small, is also vibrant and punchy, and finer intricacies come through nicely when watching movies or YouTube videos in full HD. You won’t get the perfect contrast and detailing that the priciest flagships plate up, sure, but compared to rivals, the Reno 16 5G’s display is very decent indeed.

On the software side, things are pretty good — albeit slightly flawed. ColorOS, which runs on Android 16, runs like a dream the vast majority of the time, and is both well-laid out and easy to customize. Bloatware is relatively limited too, which was a relief for me, even if a handful of the usual offenders (like Temu and AliExpress) are pre-installed.

There are some small oddities, and the default AI-generated background carousel is truly awful, though it can be deactivated if you prefer (and yes, I do indeed prefer). Other AI features are more palatable, and all centralized in the Mind Pilot app, which is fine enough.

In fact, most of my gripes with the Oppo Reno 16 5G are relatively minor. I would’ve liked to have seen wireless charging onboard, and the device can get a little toasty when the processor is hard at work. But overall, this is an excellent phone.

The one thing that I consider a sticking point is the device’s price. At £649 (about $880), it’s more expensive than its recently released predecessor, and is certainly towards the top-end of that mid-range bracket. When rivals like the Nothing Phone (4a) Pro offer similar performance across the board (as well as a stunning design), the high cost could prove to be a turn off for a lot of consumers. Still, the Oppo Reno 16 5G is certainly a highly capable mid-range phone with the substance to back up its style, and I’d recommend it — especially if you spot it on sale!

Oppo Reno 16 5G review: price and availability

• Priced at £649 (about $880)
• Released in July 2026
• Not sold directly in the US, but could conceivably be imported

The Oppo Reno 16 5G was released in July 2026, just half a year after its predecessor. In the UK, the Oppo Reno 16 5G is priced at £649 (about $880), and comes with 512GB of storage and 8GB of RAM. However, some different storage options are available in other markets, such as India. The Reno 16 5G is quite expensive for a mid-range phone, and costs about £50 more than its predecessor did at launch.

The standard Reno 16 5G is not sold in Australia, but a similar model is available called the Oppo Reno 16F 5G. Although Oppo’s phones aren’t directly sold in the US, you could potentially import it. The Reno 16 5G is available in a range of colors across different markets, but in the UK there are two options: Pop White and Purple Black.

Oppo Reno 16 5G review: specs

Oppo Reno 16 5G review: design

• Impressive build quality
• Attractive look with 3D pattern
• Ultimate IP69K dust and waterproof rating

It really feels like a lot of the Oppo Reno 16 5G’s appeal is in its design. Even on Oppo’s website, a substantial amount of attention is placed on its aesthetic, which is meant to radiate “summer looks” and “star vibes”. And I have to say, this is a really great-looking phone.

The Pop White variant I tested is slim, lightweight, and has an excellent standard of build — it's constructed from aerospace-grade aluminum, according to Oppo. The Reno 16 5G is a fairly compact device, with a 6.32-inch display, and it feels incredibly comfortable in-hand. It's worth noting that it's very similar form-wise to my Xiaomi 17, so moving across to the Reno 16 5G felt natural for me, but if you’re accustomed to a larger phone, like the iPhone 17 Pro Max, say, then it may feel a little undersized to you.

Something that’s unique about this device is its use of ‘Holoverse 3D technology’. On the glass back cover of the phone, you’ll see a visual of a floating planet that actually pops out at you, much like graphics on a 3D display but without having to wear the glasses. It looks fantastic, I’ve never seen this on a phone before, and it adds some nice flair to the Reno 16 5G’s aesthetic.

Right, we’ve ascertained that this is an excellent-looking phone, but does the Oppo Reno 16 5G have the practical elements to make it a true design marvel? Well, yes.

It has well-sized buttons, the camera module is pretty low-profile, and perhaps best of all, the device has an IP69K rating. IP69K is the pinnacle of the dust and waterproof rating tree, and means that the phone is fully protected against dust ingress and can survive high-pressure, high-temperature water jets from close range. It will even survive being submerged underwater, meaning it's pretty accident-proof — though I still wouldn’t recommend scrolling in the shower or anything.

• Design score: 5/5

Oppo Reno 16 5G review: display

• 6.32-inch AMOLED display
• 120Hz refresh rate
• Solid peak brightness of 3,600 nits

The Oppo Reno 16 5G has the sort of screen you’d expect from a mid-range device. It has a 6.32-inch AMOLED display, with a 2640 x 1216 — sometimes known as Full HD+ — resolution.

But what does this mean in-use? Well, I found that the Reno 16 5G produced vibrant, punchy colors, solid contrast, and decent detailing. When watching a wildlife video on YouTube in 1080p HDR, I was struck by rich green tones, intense reds, and azure blues that helped every part of the environment pop. When tuning into The Dark Knight Rises on Netflix, black levels weren’t the best I’ve seen, but the picture was still relatively detailed, and finer elements, like lines on faces were still perfectly visible.

As you’d expect from a mid-range model, the Reno 16 5G’s display has a 120Hz refresh rate. That means that keen mobile gamers can enjoy 120fps gameplay, if software supports it that is. More generally, this meant that scrolling and typical use was incredibly smooth and fluid.

In addition, the Reno 16 5G has a commendable peak brightness of 3,600 nits. This meant that I had no issues using the phone outdoors during an incredibly bright (and sweltering) summer in the UK.

All in all, you’re getting good performance for a phone in the mid-range category. Don’t expect flagship quality in terms of detailing and resolution, but when comparing it against rivals, you’ll likely be satisfied with the Reno 16 5G’s display.

• Display score: 4/5

Oppo Reno 16 5G review: software

• Runs ColorOS 16.0, with five years of OS and six years of security updates
• Lots of AI functionality — but some parts are more welcome than others
• Relatively light on bloatware

The software experience on the Oppo Reno 16 5G is pretty good overall, but it isn’t without its flaws.

This phone runs ColorOS 16.0 out of the box, which is running on Android 16. You’ll get five years of OS updates, and six years worth of security updates. This is pretty good for a phone in this price-range, and will likely serve most users across their time with the device.

ColorOS 16.0 provides the kind of user experience that those familiar with Android would expect. The UI is clear and looks pretty stylish, accessing apps and settings is quick and easy, and you can customize the home screen swiftly.

But let’s take a deeper look at what the Reno 16 5G has to offer. Like a lot of rivals, Oppo is going pretty hard on AI functionality. To be honest, I don’t ever use AI functions on my usual phone, but there are a few options worth highlighting.

Most functions sit in the Mind Pilot app, which lets you make use of Gemini, Perplexity, or ChatGPT, or as I like to call them, the three horsemen of the apocalypse. You can insert basic prompts, ask it to remember vocal prompts and store them as memories, or manage your transactions. Essentially, it’s able to record and collect content on-screen, and help you organize it all in one central hub. Does it work? Sure. But I’d rather handle these sorts of tasks manually

The Reno 16 5G also uses AI to generate some wallpaper options for you — at least that’s what it did for me by default. The results are often ugly and unlikable. The prompts are also left on the wallpaper, a decision I find baffling decision. A lowlight was ‘Farmer saves kittens using a broom handle’, which literally just displayed a ginger cat swimming underwater. This is the sort of AI use that leaves a sour taste, and almost no one actually wants it. Thankfully, you can disable this, but Oppo, please just get rid of this feature.

Something that I did appreciate, however, was that the Reno 16 5G was pretty light on bloatware. You’ll see a few unwanted apps — AliExpress, Temu, and Block Blast to name a few. But I wasn’t subjected to a swathe of shoddy mobile games or unwanted AI chatbots — something I got on the Xiaomi Redmi Note 15 Pro 5G — and most of the pre-installed stuff was things you’d expect, like Google and Meta apps, for instance.

And to finish on a high, I want to shout-out the Snap Key. This is a button on the left side of the phone that enables you to instantly trigger one of many functions. Options include: taking a screenshot, turning on the torch, opening the camera, and more. It's fully customizable and works like a dream, and I wish my flagship Xiaomi phone had this.

• Software score: 3.5/5

Oppo Reno 16 5G review: cameras

• Very solid 50MP main camera
• But the telephoto lens is a real highlight
• Solid selfie camera and video performance

I used the Oppo Reno 16 5G to take photos in a wide variety of lighting conditions, both inside and outside — testing all of its cameras and video performance in the process. And after checking the final results, I have to say that the Reno 16 5G is a pretty nifty phone for photography.

The main 50MP camera is really solid, delivering the exact kind of quality I’d expect from a mid-range device. In bright outdoor conditions, the camera is at its best, producing vibrant colors and plenty of detail. I snapped some trees by my office, and the richness of the greens and gorgeous blue sky were captured fantastically well. Taking photos also feels incredibly easy, with image stabilization on board.

On a more overcast day, the main camera maintained impressive color accuracy and delivered great contrast. Some finer details could’ve looked clearer, but the final results were strong overall. The main camera also did great indoors with, or without, artificial lighting. It replicated the striking emerald green color of my strange yet beloved frog ornament, for instance.

Something that truly exceeded my expectations, though, was the Reno 16 5G’s telephoto lens. Usually, budget or mid-range phones struggle to provide clear and detailed images when zooming in too far, but the Reno 16 5G is an exception. Even when taking a photo at 7x zoom, the intricacies of a building in the distance were surprisingly clear, and details of surrounding foliage were captured with relative ease.

You also get a good quality, 50MP selfie camera, which can zoom out to easily fit you and all of your friends in frame. No more weird arm craning needed.

Video is also great on the Reno 16 5G. You can capture footage in 4K at 60fps — either with the main or selfie camera. Advanced stabilization tech and tilt correction help you to get smooth, fluid, and quality footage at all times.

There are a number of editing and processing tools that also help you get impressive results on the Reno 16 5G. These include ProXDR, which shows your photos with enhanced dynamic range, and AI Remix Collage, which includes options like an AI eraser, and Perfect Shot (which detects stuff like closed eyes).

• Camera score: 4.5/5

Oppo Reno 16 5G review: performance

• Smooth everyday performance with Qualcomm Snapdragon 7 Gen 4 processor
• Really good built-in speakers, good codec support
• 8GB of RAM enough for multi-tasking, but gets a little hot with higher-demand stuff

Like a lot of its recently released fellow mid-rangers, the Oppo Reno 16 5G makes use of the Snapdragon 7 Gen 4 chipset. This is a pretty solid option shared by other models we’ve rated highly, like the Nothing Phone (4a) Pro. But how does it perform in practice?

Well, I found the Reno 16 5G to run nicely, and experienced very few performance blips during my intensive testing. Of course, it handles the standard stuff like social media scrolling, menu navigation, and surfing the web with ease. But I also found it up-to-the-task for gaming. I hopped onto Genshin Impact — a relatively demanding, 3D game — and the Reno 16 5G handled it without a hitch. Whether I was dashing around sprawling areas, doing battle with mysterious creatures, or watching cinematics, the phone held its own with frame drops kept pretty minimal.

Even when multi-tasking between a lot of apps at once, then Reno 16 5G seemed to keep things under control. I had one occasion where there was a bit of slow-down on the home screen, but this only lasted for a very brief moment. The model I used has 8GB of RAM, which is the standard for a mid-range handset.

One thing I will say is that when the processor is put to work, the device can get pretty hot to the touch. It’s something I’ve also experienced with my Xiaomi 17, and after I left the phone to cool off for a few minutes, it was fine to use again, but this is an issue that some more powerful phones may not pose.

An area of the phone’s performance that impressed me was its audio capabilities. I review a lot of audio gear here at TechRadar, so it's fair to say that I have high standards. But I found this to be a great lil’ device sound-wise, right across the board. The built-in speakers provide surprisingly clean, articulate sound, and although there’s little in the way of bass, I’d never expect impactful low-end from phone speakers.

There’s also excellent Bluetooth codec support, with both LDAC and aptx (thanks to the Snapdragon chip). That means you can enjoy higher-res wireless streaming on the go, if you have compatible headphones or speakers, like the Sony WH-1000XM6 or Bose SoundLink Max.

• Performance score: 4/5

Oppo Reno 16 5G review: battery life

• 6,000mAh battery is good for a day’s use
• Supports 80W wired charging
• No wireless charging

The Oppo Reno 16 5G has a 6,000mAh battery, and while I’ve tested phones with more than this, that’s still quite large. I found it to be good for a day’s worth of mixed usage — gaming, watching videos, scrolling the web, and general use. Your mileage will vary depending on the applications you use and how intensive they are, but Oppo says you get over 60 hours worth of calling time with the Reno 16 5G. Not bad, is it?

When your phone does run dry, it doesn’t take all too long to bring it back to life, either. It supports very fast 80W wired charging, and I found it could charge to full in around an hour.

Something that I found slightly disappointing, though, is that the Reno 16 5G does not support wireless charging. At this price, it would’ve been a nice feature to have, especially as my wireless charger stand is a staple of my office desk setup.

It’s also worth noting you get the standard battery preservation options, battery saving settings, and a hub where you can view battery use by app.

• Battery life score: 4/5

Should I buy the Oppo Reno 16 5G?

Buy it if…

Don’t buy it if…

Oppo Reno 16 5G review: also consider

How I tested the Oppo Reno 16 5G

• Tested over the course of a week
• Used for gaming, photography, and general productivity
• Made full use of various features and camera settings

I spent a week testing the Oppo Reno 16 5G, during which time I tested out its various features, put it through its paces with mobile games, and snapped a whole lot of photos.

When taking photos, I stuck mainly to the 16:9 aspect ratio, and tried snapping buildings, foliage, household objects and more in a range of lighting conditions. These included: artificial light, low-light indoors, natural light outdoors and indoors, and nighttime outdoors. I also made sure to assess the phone’s battery life across a full day of mixed usage, compare its software to that of my Xiaomi and Nothing phones, and test its display side by side with some rivals.

More generally, I’ve spent years testing gadgets here at TechRadar, where I serve as a Senior Reviews Writer. I’ve reviewed a number of phones including the budget-friendly Xiaomi Redmi Note 15 Pro 5G and the flashy Nothing Phone (4a).

• Read more about how we test
• First reviewed: August 2026

I've reviewed a lot of gaming chairs, sat my butt on plenty of seats promising the best of the best comfort, or ergonomic longevity (I'm convinced noblechairs wants my posture to last me until I'm 126 years old), and I've got to say, aside from possibly the AndaSeat Novis, this might be the most comfortable chair I've ever sat in.

At least, part of it is. The seat base. The fabric, the material, lovely; the base width, great. The backrest? Right up my street. But the Soma is a bit of an odd one when it comes to everything else it's trying to do. And an even bigger issue is its launch day price tag.

It's $500/£500 (about $954 AUD), which is a lot, and yes, there's RGB lighting in this, but Razer doesn't include an integrated battery (or even an optional one at checkout), doesn't pack a long enough cable, and doesn't include an adapter. The brand doesn't even include a cushioned headrest (you have to buy that separately). For 500 bones, frankly, that's utter madness.

The RGB itself (two diffused strips that run alongside the upper part of the backrest) is forward-facing only, and you can't really see it when you're sat down. It's not like a keyboard or a mouse, which is at least in your periphery, and needing your machine on with the cable hooked up separately if you opt to go without a battery bank means you'll probably spend about 5-10 seconds every session watching it just light up.

It's great for a streamer, sure, but even then it does feel more like an advert rather than something classy.

I had the lighting on for a day when I first got it for testing, then promptly unhooked the USB cable Razer graciously provided me with and never touched it again. Best gaming chair? Well, it won't be because of its RGB; that's for sure.

Razer Soma Chroma: Price and Availability

• Costs $500/£500 (about $954 AUD)
• Remarkably expensive given what it lacks
• Single colorway and fabric option

Right, now you can grab the Razer Soma Chroma for $500 USD and £500 GBP (about $954 AUD). It sits roughly between the Razer Iskur V2 X (at about $350) and the standard V2 (that's $600 or so).

You can pick one of these up today, although there's little in the way of choice. No different color options, no different materials, you get what you get.

Sold separately, of course, you can also get a male-to-female USB-C extension cable, headrest, and power source (you'll have to source your own on the latter).

On the warranty front, Razer's got you somewhat covered with a 14-day returns policy via the RazerStore, and as standard it comes with a 3-year warranty, which upgrades to 5 if purchased direct and registered.

Razer Soma Chroma: Specs

AndaSeat Phantom 4 Pro: Design and Aesthetics

• Bold gamer style
• Perforated channels for air (read: debris)
• Green logo on an RGB product

The Soma Chroma is unabashedly gamer. There's just no two ways about it: the sharp lines, jagged polygonal design, the channelling, the RGB, the stitching — it doesn't exactly give off this allure of premium professionalism. That's to say I'm sure 16-year-old Zak would've loved it, but me, sat here in my ‘rustic’ office, dealing with media, clients, and more on the daily, yeah it kinda sticks out like a sore thumb.

Particularly with the striking green Razer logo etched in the backrest right behind my head, in a not-so-obscure glossy green plastic. Which again I have to question. This is an RGB product, right? That means you can set that lighting (hypothetically, if you use it) to any color you like.

That's great, but certain colors clash with green quite aggressively. Bright reds, neon blue, pinks, high-saturation yellows. Basically all off limits, all because the logo's bright neon green. It's 2026, guys; we've had RGB products for a seriously long time now. I thought it was common knowledge that you don't stick colored accents on them.

The lighting is also awkwardly placed. You can't actually see it from the back of the chair, and it's solely positioned behind your head, facing forward, so you literally never see it, outside of the five to ten seconds you go to the toilet and sit back down again. It's diffused, it looks good when you do manage to catch a glimpse of the stuff, and you can easily configure it in Synapse, but honestly it just feels like a bit of a swing and a miss.

How'd you connect all that? Well, there's a short USB-C cable located in the back of the chair that hooks up to your battery bank, which you can then stow away in a small zip pocket in the seat base. But it's really short; that cable. If you're imagining some retractable 6-foot thing you can pull out when you need it, no, it's not that.

You're not connecting this thing to a wall plug, or anything of the sort. Razer provided me with a seriously long extension cable (two in fact) for it, but that doesn't come by default, annoyingly. And of course, there's no built-in battery, or included power bank, or the option to add one to your order. I used the extension cable to effectively run the entire chair to the back of my PC, and it does run off USB power. That said, you don't have to go that route; you can just use a USB plug, and then let the included wireless dongle handle the RGB side of things.

Now I'm done wailing on the lighting; the good news is the finish is genuinely lush, it's like a neoprene-feel soft-touch fabric, and it's a delight to sit on. I'm writing this review in the midst of yet another heat wave in the UK, and skin-on-chair contact has been genuinely lovely. Compare that to the number of AndaSeat's chairs I've reviewed recently that leave me begging for AC, and well, it's a nice change that's for sure.

Ok, we've had bad, we've had good, now it's back to bad. There are channels in the chair base, and I get the concept. The idea is that it helps air circulate your, well, back passage, to stop you heating up so quickly, and it kind of works. But it comes with a major caveat, and that's that it also holds onto all manner of dust and debris.

If you own a dog, or cat, or have a habit of sitting at your desk eating from time to time, you're cooked. You'll be getting the blow duster out you use for your PC on the chair base at least once a week.

Razer Soma Chroma: Comfort and adjustability

• Super comfortable, wide seat base
• Generous lumbar support
• Armrests and the castors are letdowns

Fortunately for the Soma, sitting on it is a treat. The cold-foam base is comfortable as all hell, and the seat base is wide enough for the weirdos like me who sit cross-legged to do so in absolute bliss.

The armrests, however, are more basic, two-dimensional affairs. There's no four- or even three-directional setup here like you'd find on almost all of its modern counterparts from competitors at this price.

You can raise them up and down and swivel them, and that's it. They're padded and modestly squishy, but if you'd put them on an Ikea chair, I wouldn't be able to tell that they were Razer-designed and made.

Oh, and it doesn't roll. Well, it does, but it's just so frustratingly stiff it beggars belief. I wrote about this in the AndaSeat Phantom 4 Pro review earlier this year. It's basically, I think, a result of overcompliance with the EU's EN 1335-2 safety measure, which means that in an emergency any unmanned chair shouldn't move easily. I don't quite understand the logic behind that, but here we are.

And it frustrates me because I can't roll up and down my desk, or if I need to lightly move it to put my shoes on, or I just want to get more comfortable at my setup, it's a minor struggle. And yes, I know that's a first-world problem, but it's $500/£500 for this thing, from a seriously reputable brand.

One final flag from me before I move on. There's no headrest cushion included either. Razer will sell you a headrest, but it's at additional cost. Eugh. No magnetic freebie for you, no sir. Not even a strapped one.

Razer Soma Chroma: Assembly

• Seamless, standard build
• Missing shear bolt on recline
• Massive manual

As far as building the thing goes, the Soma Chroma is genuinely smooth. If you've built one gaming chair before, you'll get along with this one just fine. It's a bit heavy; Razer recommends you'll need two people to build it, but it's more than easy enough to do solo.

Plus the manual is massive, and printed onto a giant sheet of card, which feels a bit overkill (a book would've been fine; I'm not that old, I can read).

The only cause for concern is that you do need to be a touch careful installing the backrest, as there's no safety bolt sitting between you and the tilt angle arm. So if you do hit that lever too aggressively, there's a chance the bracket can snap forward. So do bear that in mind.

Should You Buy The Razer Soma Chroma?

Buy it if...

Don't buy it if...

Also consider...

Make sure to consider these alternatives as well.

How I tested the Razer Soma Chroma

• Used for over a month
• Fully built by hand solo
• Set up in all manner of configurations

I spent well over a month with the Razer Soma Chroma, testing the ins and outs of how it held up under serious usage. Working from home, it endured the hardships of a constant 9-5 "office" job, along with late evening gaming sessions, through normal operating conditions and heatwaves abound.

I've spent years testing gaming chairs from all manner of manufacturers, and I compared this one directly to a slew of products from AndaSeat, Noblechairs, and Secretlab as well. I also fully tested the Synapse and WiFi dongle, and tracked the real-world usage and feel of it throughout the month, documenting any moment where I thought "ahh this is good" or "ahh not so good".

I also got my five-foot-five partner to sit in and provide me with her direct feedback as well, along with a few close friends to get their thoughts and feelings on it, which directly feeds the opinions you see here as well. I questioned them intensely on the comfort, the feel, and the build quality of the Soma Chroma to get a broad picture of opinions on it.

Read more about how we test.

First reviewed August 2026

Over the past two decades, I’ve been lucky enough to test hundreds of smartphones from a range of brands around the world. Some of these brands receive the credit they’re due, others are criticized fairly or unfairly, and some fail to get the global recognition they deserve.

Xiaomi's sub-brand, Poco, falls into the latter category, and the Poco F8 Pro is another example of an extraordinary phone that should be talked about more than it is.

While its pricier sibling, the Poco F8 Ultra, packs true flagship specs and a stunning denim material finish, the Poco F8 Pro more closely follows Poco’s model: take the core features that every smartphone user needs, build a great overall experience, and offer it at a truly affordable price.

The Poco F8 Pro marries the first-gen flagship Snapdragon 8 Elite chipset with 12GB of RAM and either 256GB or 512GB of storage. Yes, this is not the second-gen Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5 that powers many of the current best Android phones, but you’d be hard-pressed to notice the difference. The Poco F8 Pro flies through day-to-day tasks with flagship-level ease, and its Bose-tuned stereo speakers deliver the same great audio experience as its pricier sibling.

There’s also an excellent 6.59-inch 120Hz OLED display, which is my favorite size for a smartphone screen, and it’s wonderful to use, with a 3,500-nit peak brightness and excellent color reproduction. As is customary with Poco phones, there’s no skimping on battery life, either, with the F8 Pro packing a 6,210mAh battery that can last for multiple days, and 100W charging that’s among the fastest on any phone.

There’s also a 2.5x telephoto camera, a first for Poco’s Pro lineup, although it does lack OIS. That’s indicative of the Poco F8 Pro as a whole; yes, there are compromises — including a lack of wireless charging, occasional slowdowns under heavy gaming loads, sluggish USB speeds, and some bloatware in apps — but if you can live with them, this phone offers the best value-for-money in its price bracket.

Poco F8 Pro review: price and availability

• Launched for £549
• The current retail price in the UK is ~£449
• Not available in the US or Australia

In terms of availability, the Poco F8 Pro falls into the "widely available outside the US" category, and if you’re in the UK, you’ll find it’s priced extremely aggressively (the phone can be imported to the US, but its network compatibility will be limited).

At the time of writing in August 2026, the 256GB model is available for just £449. That's £100 cheaper than its already reasonable £599 launch price, and exceptional value for money in 2026 (note that the Poco F9 series is likely to arrive towards the end of the year, though we're expecting to see a sizeable price hike for all models).

This £400-£500 range pits the F8 Pro directly against devices like the Google Pixel 10a, Nothing Phone (4a), and Samsung Galaxy A57. But compared to these phones, it offers the fewest compromises against a £1,000+ flagship. If you want the higher 512GB storage option, that configuration has also been discounted by £100 to £499.

The Poco F8 Pro is available in three colors: Black, Blue, and Titanium Silver. There’s no denim-leather finish, like you'll find on the Poco F8 Ultra, but my Titanium Silver unit did come with a nice silicone case in the box.

• Value score: 5 / 5

Poco F8 Pro review: specs

Poco F8 Pro review: design

• Three colors
• Premium aluminum and glass design
• 6.59-inch display is ergonomically friendly

I mentioned earlier that 6.59 inches is my favorite smartphone screen size, and that’s because it's at the top end of the perfect 6.5-6.6-inch range. With these sizes, I’ve found you get the comfort benefits of a smaller phone like the Pixel 10 Pro while also getting the viewing benefits of larger flagships like the Galaxy 26 Ultra.

The F8 Pro strikes the perfect balance between those two phone sizes, and it pays off: it’s very comfortable to hold. Yes, it lacks the added grip of the denim leather finish on the Poco F8 Ultra, but the F8 Pro's is a more mature approach that appeals to everyone. Instead of a denim back, you get a flat aluminum frame paired with a frosted glass rear panel. It’s adult and functional, but deliberately less interesting than its flashier sibling.

What makes this design more comfortable is the overall lack of heft: weighing 199g and measuring 8.1mm thick, this is a phone that’s lighter than most, and that pays dividends in the overall experience. What's more, despite being thinner and lighter than many other phones, the F8 Pro still offers full IP68 dust and water resistance; it's one of only a few devices to do so at this price point.

At the top of the phone, you’ll find the IR blaster, which is a common feature of Chinese-made phones, and it’s brilliant. I think every phone maker should bring back an IR blaster, as it’s a feature you don’t know you need until you lose your TV remote or need to bypass a locked-down hotel TV remote. Yes, the IR blaster has solved both of those problems for me.

• Design score: 4.5 / 5

Poco F8 Pro review: display

• 6.59-inch 120Hz OLED display
• Flagship-grade color accuracy

The F8 Pro's 6.59-inch display is not only the perfect size but also an excellent all-around panel. Poco has rightly recognized that the display is arguably the most important part of any phone, and here you get a vibrant, rich, and colorful display that’s a joy to use.

Poco claims the display can reach a peak brightness of 3,500 nits. In day-to-day use, it is apparent that this display isn’t just bright; it’s extremely colorful, with testing showing it covers 99.2% of the sRGB gamut and 96.5% of the DCI-P3 color space. This is flagship-level display performance, and it makes the Poco F8 Pro a champion for consuming content.

Beyond that, there’s a 120Hz dynamic refresh rate. While it lacks the expensive LTPO technology found on £1,000+ flagships, the phone's software automatically cycles between 60Hz and 120Hz depending on the content you’re using. The higher refresh rate is perfect for super-smooth scrolling and gaming, but drops to save battery when you’re just reading a book or an article online.

The display is protected by Corning Gorilla Glass 7i, which offers strong durability against general wear and tear. Across my testing, I have had no concerns about the toughness of the F8 Pro's screen.

• Display score: 4.5 / 5

Poco F8 Pro review: cameras

• 50MP main sensor
• First Poco Pro with 2.5x optical telephoto
• 8MP ultra-wide camera

Poco’s rivals should take note of the Poco F8 Pro for several reasons — most of which are positive. Poco has traditionally ignored telephotos on its more affordable devices, but the Poco F8 Pro marks a shift in this area, likely driven by increased competition from triple-camera-toting rivals.

Although Poco has added a 50MP telephoto lens with 2.5x optical zoom, it lacks OIS, and the ultra-wide camera is an 8MP snapper that just about scrapes by. The 50MP Light Fusion 800 main camera sensor, meanwhile, takes excellent daylight photos with dynamic range and natural colors that look fantastic on the Poco F8 Pro screen.

The new telephoto lens does a decent job overall, but it’s nothing to write home about, and somewhat ironically, the 50MP main sensor enables a 2x in-sensor crop that can take better photos than the telephoto lens. The lack of OIS means you’ll get some blurry photos unless your hands are perfectly stable, so while it’s great that a telephoto lens exists, it won’t be as capable as those you'll find on a true flagship smartphone camera.

While the main rear camera can handle up to 4K video at 60 fps (and even 8K at 30 fps), the 20MP selfie camera is noticeably compromised, with Poco limiting selfie video capture to 1080p. These aren’t necessarily dealbreakers, but they are compromises you need to be conscious of.

Poco F8 Pro review: camera samples

• Camera score: 3.5 / 5

Poco F8 Pro review: performance

• Flagship Snapdragon 8 Elite chipset
• 12GB RAM + 256GB/512GB storage
• Excellent in-display fingerprint sensor

If speedy performance is your jam, look no further: the Poco F8 Pro has the best processor you’ll find in a smartphone at this price.

The Poco F8 Pro uses the first-generation Snapdragon 8 Elite processor, which is paired with 12GB of RAM and either 256GB or 512GB of storage. This processor powered many of the best Android phones last year (including the Galaxy S25 Ultra), making it extremely powerful and far superior to the mid-range chipsets used by other phones at this price point.

During day-to-day use, the chipset absolutely shines. It’s fast to respond, shows no signs of slowing down, and often reminds me of the Duracell bunny in that it just keeps on going. If you want a phone that can handle most things you throw at it, this is the best package at this price point. It’s great for everything from everyday multitasking and social media to emulating Nintendo Switch games, though it struggles under the heaviest gaming loads.

Many phones aren’t limited by their internals as much as by how effectively phone makers manage thermals, and Poco firmly took the approach of raw power over cool operation in the F8 Pro. This means the aluminum frame and camera island can get a tad warm to the touch, but not to the point where it’s dangerous.

Where Poco does deserve credit is for the excellent in-display fingerprint sensor, which is fantastic even with wet or sweaty fingers. This is among the best in-display fingerprint sensors on any phone, and it’s wonderful that Poco chose not to skimp on this feature like many rivals in this category.

However, the F8 Pro is an exercise in acceptable compromise, so you do have to live with sluggish USB 2.0 wired speeds. Mind you, this is a trade-off I find acceptable, especially since you can use wireless transfer apps like LocalSend to easily send files to other devices or to your Mac or PC.

• Performance score: 4.5 / 5

Poco F8 Pro review: software

• HyperOS 3.0 with Android 16
• 4 Android updates and 5 years of security updates
• Bogged down by bloatware and ads

Like all current Xiaomi phones, the Poco F8 Pro runs HyperOS 3.0 on top of Android 16. Depending on what you are used to, HyperOS 3.0 will either be comfortable or polarizing.

All phone makers are now forced to focus on longevity as well as features, especially as phones cost more and customers upgrade less frequently. For Poco, this presents an interesting challenge: it offers a respectable four years of Android version updates and five years of security updates, which provides some longevity, but it is known to be slow in pushing these updates out to users.

Look beyond this (and the final point below), and you’ll find that Xiaomi actually has some neat software features. Take Hyper Island, which looks and feels exactly like Apple’s Dynamic Island. It was inevitable that Xiaomi would be among the first to adopt (read: copy) this feature, and while the UX is unabashedly inspired by Apple, Xiaomi has executed it extremely well. Timers, voice recordings, and music playback all minimize into a dynamic bubble centered around the selfie camera.

Then there’s Hyper Connect, which makes even more sense in light of the above. Like many Android phone makers, Xiaomi is targeting Apple users, and Hyper Connect enables file sharing, clipboard syncing, and interoperability with Apple devices, as well as other Android phones and PCs.

Throughout this review, I’ve talked about compromises, and the biggest one comes in the software department. But first, some context: simply put, there isn’t much margin in making affordable smartphones, especially given the current AI-fueled RAM and storage shortage, which has increased the cost of these components by up to 10x.

What this actually means for you is that Poco had to either raise prices or offset higher costs with higher income from alternative revenue sources, such as ads. In native apps like Themes, Files, and Security, you’ll find annoying system-level ads that slow down the experience. There are also many preloaded apps, although you can at least remove these.

All of this serves as a reminder that this phone has compromises, which detract from the overall experience. However, the pragmatist in me also recognizes that companies like Poco already had tight margins before the current RAM crisis, which will have been eroded further, and if ads like these mean it’s possible to keep making phones like these, then this is a trade-off that becomes slightly more acceptable. I’d rather they didn’t exist, but I also recognize that the raw cost of tech has exploded in a very short amount of time.

• Software score: 3.5 / 5

Poco F8 Pro review: battery life

• Huge 6,210mAh battery
• 100W charging gets you to full in 42 minutes
• No wireless charging

What happens when you put a humongous battery in a phone with a power-efficient display and flagship performance? You get phenomenal battery life, and when you need to top it up, one of the fastest charging speeds of any smartphone.

The 6,210mAh battery in the Poco F8 Pro is massive, and far larger than batteries offered by the mid-range competition. It features Poco’s latest silicon-carbon technology, which offers much higher energy density, allowing Poco to pack a larger battery into the same size or a smaller phone.

In practical use, it offers around 7 to 9 hours of screen time over up to two days, depending on your settings. This puts the F8 Pro on par with most flagship phones and makes it superior to others in this category.

Then there’s 100W charging, and it’s ridiculously fast, charging your phone to full in around 42 minutes. This gives it a charging rate of around 148mAh per minute (mAh/min), which is considerably faster than its rivals, and almost three times the speed of the 30W charging on the Google Pixel 10a (57 mAh/min).

Again, like any phone at this price, there are compromises, but in this case, it’s the lack of wireless charging or an included charger. The former is a dealbreaker for some, while the latter is common practice among flagship smartphone makers but a shift for Poco, which traditionally included a charger in the box. Regardless, for most people, this is the best battery life you can get at this price.

• Battery score: 4 / 5

Should you buy the Poco F8 Pro?

Buy it if...

Don't buy it if...

Poco F8 Pro: also consider

There are three real competitors worth considering, but like the Poco F8 Pro, they all have their compromises.

How I tested the Poco F8 Pro

• Review test period = ~2 weeks
• Testing included = Everyday usage, including navigation, web browsing, social media, photography, gaming, streaming video, music playback, and reading e-books.
• Tools used = Geekbench 6, 3DMark, CellMark, native Android stats

I used the Poco F8 Pro for approximately two weeks across two different stints, including over a week of consistent usage before writing this review.

Read more about how we test

First reviewed: May 2026

Having reviewed these laser engravers for a few years now, there are several essentials I look for in any laser engraver for TechRadar Pro, and one top priority is that it's fully enclosed. While I might’ve looked at fully open designs earlier on, these days there’s really no excuse for an open-frame design other than cost. When it comes to running a business, safety is obviously paramount, so it makes sense to look for a fully enclosed rather than open-frame design.

Beyond the physical design, I've found a few extras that really help with the review process, simplifying the cutting, engraving, and placement of materials such as cameras. Then there are added features, such as air assist, that are essential for creating clean, crisp lines and reducing scorching.

What’s surprising for a machine of this price is that the M2 ticks all the boxes. It has dual cameras, one that gives you a good view of the entire workspace and a second that gives you a close-up view, air assistance built in, and, as ever, there’s a vent at the back that you can attach to your air filtration system.

But it goes even further by adding more head module options, so you can not only laser cut and engrave but also print and cut. Of course, coming from xTool, it also has a range of accessories that can further expand what you can do with this machine.

I’ve had the M2 for a couple of months and have really been able to give it a more extensive test than I usually would with these machines, partially because I’m interested in getting some of these for use within an educational establishment, and making sure that it’s easy, secure and robust enough is a major focus.

I’ve also been asked by several friends who have been looking at laser engraving machines and which option they should go for. At this price point and with the 610 × 569mm dimensions, it just, on paper at least, looks like a great option.

Sure enough, while I only have the 10W laser model to review in this test, I have looked at previous XTool machines with multiple module heads, and they’ve worked exceptionally well; I will take a look at the print and cutting heads later.

Initial setup was easy, and after I’d run through the unpacking, installing the module head and powering up, it was then just a case of connecting the USB cable directly to my MacBook Pro, installing xTool Studio, waiting for it to connect, allowing the firmware to update, and it was time to start.

The one slight oddity with the modular head is that it installs magnetically, although it requires a connecting cable for data from the head to the machine, which I found a little odd. Why this isn’t wireless or just uses contacts, I have no idea; possibly just to keep costs down, but once that cable is connected, getting into the utilisation of the machine is all pretty fast.

What I like is that xTool has now introduced a safety video at the beginning, with a longer version that you can view online, and a really good tutorial which essentially enables you to get started with cutting projects such as placemats. You can see the results of this project in the pictures.

Those initial tutorials are essentially a no-brainer setup guide to using the M2, and when you run through those initial projects, which will take you less than an hour, you’ll be pretty proficient with how the machine works.

As ever, in the software you’re able to assign different parts to different cutting, engraving and scoring methods with a simple click; you highlight a path, enabling you to then assign it to whichever type of cut you want. Again, with xTool’s knowledge in the sector, this is all incredibly well thought out.

Essentially, over my two months with the machine, it sat in the corner of the workshop, attached to one of the xTool air filters, and ran seamlessly for every project I’ve thrown at it.

The workflow, from the ability to recognise the materials through to being able to preview so that you can accurately place your designs, and through to the cutting and extraction, all just works incredibly easily.

At present, if you’re looking for a new, fast, relatively cheap professional-level laser engraver for a small business, then you really can’t go wrong with the superb M2.

xTool M2: Price & availability

At present, the xTool M2 is available for $599 / £599 direct from xTool with the 10W laser. I've also often seen promotional offers on this price, so just keep an eye out.

If you’re looking for the colour print-and-cut bundle, which lets you make stickers and other projects, it's available for $749 / £749. There’s also the deluxe bundle, which includes everything, available for $989 / £989.

The laser cutter and engraver is also widely available from online retailers like Amazon.

xTool M2: Design

The xTool M2 is instantly recognisable as xTool, with its sleek, simple white body and protective transparent yellow hinged lift-up lid. What’s impressive for a machine at this price is that it measures 610 × 569 × 180mm and weighs 12.3kg, which is handy, as I had to move it around quite a lot over the two months to install and remove other machines.

Part of the reason that this machine has been kept out in the workshop for so long is its manoeuvrability; when I needed it, I could just move it over to my computer desk. It was very easy to lift, carry and place, something that I don’t usually find with most of the laser engravers, other than the designs that I tend to avoid.

The full enclosure means this machine has a Class 1 laser safety classification, making it better suited to domestic small business and educational environments. If you work in a business, check whether your insurance covers this device classification.

The transparent upper cover helps keep everything safe; it's yellow and prevents the laser beams from exiting the machine. It also lets you monitor the laser engraving, and the two internal cameras let you view what’s going on remotely.

What’s impressive is that the relatively low-profile design accommodates objects up to 100mm thick. This is essentially for direct cylindrical engraving and without the use of any type of riser base.

It’s also great to see that there is built-in air assist, essentially keeping the smoke away from the beam where the laser hits the material, something which is usually done by an external pump. However, you still ideally need an air filter to use with the machine, or you can vent it out a window.

On inspection, it does feel a little more plasticky than the more expensive xTool machines. However, it’s still a great-quality, solid machine; when I moved it around the workshop, it felt robust.

Another point here is that, with such a large transparent upper cover- something that I have had issues with on other manufacturers’ models in the past, especially splitting- the design of that lid is again good on my unit, although the hinges are free and not sprung or cushioned. After what must be hundreds of openings and closings, it’s still in excellent condition.

One of the slight oddities of the design, which seems to be the case with so many of these enclosed laser engravers, is that there’s no honeycomb grid included in the box. Instead, you get four magnetic clamps that clamp onto the corners of any material you place, plus four alignment markers on the base of the machine.

At first, I wasn’t overly impressed with the design of these clamps. I would’ve preferred the honeycomb grid. However, it doesn’t take long before you realise just how useful they are, and not only do they hold offcuts of work nicely and securely, but they’re also extremely easy to use. After a few days of using them, I warmed to them and now see them as a slightly preferred method, to the point where I’ve made a few additional ones on the Prusa Core One to add to the original four.

xTool M2: Features

What you get is a feature-packed machine from xTool, and in this review I’m focusing on the 10W laser, so that’s the entry-level version, but there is also a 20W blue laser available as well if you do need a little bit more power or, for that matter, speed.

Other modular heads are available, such as the 3W IR laser, which is designed for metal and plastic engraving. However, that’s not yet available on the market, and there’s an optional full-colour CMYK inkjet system with 1200dpi resolution and 40ml cartridge capacity. This is used alongside a cutter so you can create stickers and other printable objects.

One of the big features for me is the dual camera system. You have a 2-megapixel close-view camera and a 5-megapixel distance-view camera. These are both really useful, especially if you’re trying to refine the positioning of your designs.

From my experience with these machines, especially the F2 Ultra recently, I’d say this close-up camera is especially useful when using the 3W IR module and will probably also come in handy if you’re into printing stickers.

Like any product released today, AI plays a major role through the software. You have the automatic creation system, which is just a point-and-click system: give it a text description, and it will develop something for you.

But more than that, there’s also automatic material detection, which can essentially see what’s put into the workspace, evaluate it, and come up with a close match; through the test, I was really impressed with how well this worked. Essentially, once the material is detected, it adjusts all the settings to optimise for that material, rather than you having to look at a chart or work through trial and error.

Another major feature is the built-in adjustable air assist. You can adjust this in the software, but it essentially blows air across the laser, keeping the site where the laser meets the material clear of smoke. This means you get a much cleaner cut, and it also helps reduce scorching.

When it comes to file support, xTool, as ever, has an increasing library of assets that you can dip into to get straight into producing products. However, if you do want to import your own, then the new software supports SVG, DXF and PDF, and there’s plenty of flexibility, especially with the AI tool, to have a bit of fun with those files as well.

One feature I really like, especially when trying to cram as many designs onto one sheet of 3mm basswood as possible, is the new smart nesting and batch filters, which, again, are activated through the software.

These seemed to work really well, optimising the spacing on the sheet of basswood well beyond anything that I could do myself, and once again this helps to cut down on costs.

In the software, when I entered a few materials that weren’t recognised by the system, there is a huge material database. This can be a little daunting, but you can take control of the settings manually if you need to. Just do a quick test chart, and then you should have the settings that you need for engraving, scoring and cutting almost any material.

As ever, being from xTool, there’s a range of accessories, including a rotary engraving system for cylindrical and spherical objects. Still, there’s a full list, and it is extensive on the xTool website.

xTool M2: Performance

As ever with these laser engravers, they’re either quick to set up and calibrate or it takes most of the day; thankfully, because this machine is from the xTool stable, it’s extremely easy to unbox and get up and running. That said, the paper manual inside was a little on the sparse side, even for xTool.

However, two very large QR codes on the packaging link directly to the online setup instructions and manual, which include plenty of pictures and information. The point is that the setup is extremely straightforward: position the M2, remove all the packaging, plug in the power, install the laser module with the connecting cable to the machine, and switch on.

Then, in the software, wait for it to connect, run any updates and follow, firstly, the safety guidance, which is a very quick video of less than two minutes, and then follow the tutorials. After completing it, you should be up and running.

Once I’d created some of the tutorial projects, including the placemats, I moved on to my own projects, creating a few boxes, a small display shelving unit and a few other bits and pieces, including a bracket that I needed for my van, and throughout I was impressed with how quick and easy this machine is to use.

This is, of course, an entry-level machine in the pro market of laser engraving, so whilst the machine is extremely competent, through use you do start to notice a few small design points. These points highlight that this is an enthusiast-level machine rather than a pro-level one.

The first of these is the overall design. Whilst the design is solid and works exceptionally well, there’s no kill switch on the side. If you want to use this in education or most workplaces, you’ll need to add something to kill the power yourself.

But really, other than that, there is very little here that doesn’t impress, even when you’re used to using something like the xTool P2. For me, the workflow from the P2 down to the M2 is similar; it’s just a smaller machine.

While it is obviously slower and less powerful, that 10W laser module will happily cut through basswood up to 8mm thick, as quoted by the company. Although I didn’t have any 8mm basswood available, the 3, 4 and 6mm basswood that I generally use cut through with absolutely no issue whatsoever in a single pass.

The maximum speed for the cutter is 600 mm per minute, which is mid-range, and in the test you obviously reduce that depending on whether it is cutting or engraving. What really impressed me was the engraving resolution. If you want to do some really fine detail work, the M2 is an ideal solution, and converting images into halftone and then bringing those in got some stunning results.

As I went through the pack of test materials, including paper, wood and leather, I was just really struck by how easy the M2 is to use. The software is obviously great, but those two cameras do make a real difference to the precision of the laser, enabling you to get a preview of the material and really closely align the design to a fraction of a millimetre, which is far better than I have seen on even a lot of fibre lasers, where pure accuracy is definitely needed.

What strikes me about the xTool M2 is that it makes a lot of the more expensive xTool laser engravers a little bit obsolete. You get a relatively lightweight machine you can shift and move around, take off the work surface, and easily place on a lower shelf when not in use, freeing up loads of space.

You get a 10W laser for general work, and you can purchase the 20W when you need a little extra power or speed, plus a modular head system with the inkjet so you can push it for further projects.

What I liked was that the workspace area inside the machine is pretty decent, and whilst it’s not the largest out there, it’s surprisingly large for a machine of this size and far easier and safer to use than any open-frame laser engraver on the market.

While in this review I’ve looked at the M2 in isolation, it is worth pointing out that alongside the laser engraving machine, I have also added in the extractor filter, which is essential. I will update this review with the print head and cutter and possibly the 20W head at a later date.

xTool M2: Final verdict

The M2 is really easy to recommend. It’s a very well-priced, fully enclosed laser engraving machine.

A few things really make it stand out against much of the competition, including the built-in air assist, so no extra devices are sitting around on the work surface. But for me, what appealed was that I could quickly lift it and stow it away.

It’s a big machine, but at just over 12kg it’s not particularly heavy, and it’s quick and easy to disconnect and then plug back in.

Unlike some machines that require you to disconnect various pedal switches, air assist, and more, the M2 took a couple of minutes to disconnect and stash, then bring out and get up and running again.

In the workplace, one major downside is that it doesn’t have that kill switch on the side, which will be an issue. Still, everything else is simple, and if you’re a small business, it makes a lot of sense.

Here you have a high-quality, high-end enthusiast or pro-level machine with a 10W laser. This lets you engrave plenty of materials, and you can also add the inkjet module to create stickers if you want. Plus, with a rotary tool, you can flip the head from vertical to horizontal to engrave cups, mugs, and more.

I’ve looked at plenty of these laser engravers over the last few years, and the xTool machines have always stood out for quality and attention to workflow; the M2 is especially polished for its price point and the audience it’s aimed at.

Should you buy the xTool M2

Buy it if...

Don't buy it if...

For more crafting tech, I've tested and reviewed all the best 3D printers and the best laser engravers.

A new smart specs maker has arrived on the scene, and it’s looking to arrive with a bang. The L'Atitude 52°N Smart Glasses are loud and proud, and after L'Atitude dispatched a slightly rocky first batch of review units to tech publications (including ourselves), I’ve been putting the newer, more production-ready glasses through their paces over the past month.

Let’s first unpack the selling points, which I discussed with L'Atitude’s founders (including ex-OnePlus engineer Gary Chen) in the weeks before my review. Made in Europe and unapologetically Euro-coded, with Berlin-inspired and, coming soon, Milan frame designs, these won’t be the glasses for everyone, and that’s okay, the team says; but they are for adventurers.

On board, you’ll find Goya AI (named after the Spanish painter, Francisco Goya), a dulcet-toned Southern California male voice assistant who’s eager to help you explore the world with features like AI Tour Guide, Live Translation, and the usual retinue of camera-laden smart-glasses features.

At least, that’s the pitch. On vacation with my lovely mom on the Greek island of Santorini, I put these supersized specs to the test, and although I can see them shaping up to be terrific travel companions, right now they’re dogged by big problems. From spotty software to an entirely unclear future in terms of how much its AI features will cost when the subscription plan kicks in sometime in the next year, it’s hard to recommend L’Atitude’s bold frames from a value perspective, at least for now.

L'Atitude 52°N review: price and availability

• List price: starts at $465.00 (about £345)
• Availability: US, with UK availability expected soon.

The L’Atitude Berlin glasses start at $465, which converts to about £345, increasing to $520 if you opt for photochromic lenses. At the time of writing, they’re exclusively available in the US and EU, with UK availability to follow soon. You can choose from Obsidian (black) and Dune (greige) frames as well as grey gradient, orange, and photochromic lenses. These prices apply to both the currently available Berlin frames, as well as the upcoming Milan model, which offer a more delicate design.

Already, that’s a lofty list price, especially when compared to the comparatively expensive Meta Ray-Ban (Gen 2), which start at $379 / £379 / AU$689. And it gets worse.

The major dampener here is that these glasses will, at some point, also require you to take out a subscription in order to use the full set of features, but right now we have no confirmed pricing for this. I asked the brand about its plans in this area, and they told me: “Customers who purchase any Departure Collection [a.k.a. Either the Berlin or Milan frames] product by December 31, 2026 and register an account will automatically receive a complimentary 12-month trial of all AI features, requiring no separate purchase or activation.

“The trial starts as soon as the account is activated and grants full access to current and future AI capabilities, including upcoming releases, with a generous daily usage allowance of 60 minutes. After the trial period, users can continue to enjoy AI features with a subscription plan, while essential functions will always remain accessible. AI usage tracking will soon be available in the app for added transparency.”

As for pricing for said plan, various sources cite this as “less than $20” per month, though L’Atitude didn’t confirm this when I asked. So overall, this offers little comfort given that you’re already shelling out for an already expensive pair of specs, and until that final number is confirmed I can’t in good conscience give these glasses a higher value rating.

If you love the designs here, and especially the fact no other pair of smart glasses look quite like them, then you could argue that the value-for-money proposition is improved; personally, I still think it’s a hard sell.

• Value: 2.5/5

L'Atitude 52°N review: specs

L'Atitude 52°N review: design

• Chunky but funky frames
• Lightweight with IP65 rating
• Charging case is a behemoth

Design is where L’Atitude takes its biggest swing, and while other fashion-first and adventurous designs have hit the market in 2026, I do think the brand is carving an exciting niche, especially in the European market.

Do I love how the Berlin frames look on my face? No, but the stylish, rounder new Milan frames weren’t available for me to try when I started my testing. Still, there will be some who find the boxy shape and unapologetically Berlin-esque chunkiness is right up their street.

The nose grips were fine, but overall the glasses were a little too big and loose of a fit for me. While traversing the famous steps of Oia, which are notoriously perilous, having to hold these onto my face while I looked down at the cobbled roads meant I took a bit of a tumble and hobbled home with a sprained finger and a nasty gash; I’d put a fair chunk of responsibility on my choice of shoes and general clumsiness here, though.

They are pretty well designed, though. At just 50-51g, they’re light and comfortable to wear, and though the plasticky frames aren’t quite as svelte as, say, some Ray-Ban Meta frames, they’re far from cheap-looking. They’re IP65 rated for weather and dust resistance, and a scratch-resistant treatment is applied to the lenses, meaning they’re towards the more durable end of the spectrum versus other currently available smart glasses.

The arms house the Bestechnic BES2800 6nm chipset and 200mAh battery, as well as some pretty punchy speakers for listening to music or podcasts, calls, or chatting with the AI on the go. In day-to-day settings while out and about, I found sound leakage to be pretty minimal unless someone’s very close by and you have the volume turned up; however, in a quiet room you can hear at least some of what’s going on on-device, even at lower volumes, albeit not clearly.

There’s a 12MP camera on the left-hand side of the frame, and a matching dummy camera on the right side. A recording light flashes while you’re filming or taking shots; this is pleasingly bright, so those around you will know you’re recording. If the light is covered, capture is immediately shut down; whether or not lights are enough to alert potentially unconsenting parties is a separate conversation, but for now, this is the privacy bar that’s been set by smart-glasses manufacturers. I tried several times to obstruct this and gladly found it’s pretty darn reliable.

The biggest design fault, for me, is the case. Now, these are bulky frames, but the charging case is a real heifer at 2 x 6.8 x 3.14 inches / 5.2 x 17.5 x 8cm (H x W x D), which somewhat defeats the purpose of branding these glasses as travel-friendly, as it’s going to take up a good chunk of your carry-on luggage space. Speaking of which, I noticed following both my flight to and from Santorini that the case had suctioned shut due to the cabin pressure on board, and I had to prise it open with a pin.

Still, the case is robust and well-made, and with its IP67 rating it’s hardy enough to come along on more adventurous trips, too. Plus, it lights up a nice orange color when the glasses are charging.

• Design: 3.5/5

L'Atitude 52°N review: Performance

• On-device photo transfers are a privacy boon…
• But some shots are lost in the void
• Great photos, decent video

L'Atitude really wants you to treat its glasses, and specifically Goya AI, as a travel companion; the moment you open up the app, the AI Tour guide feature is front and center. But how do they fare on the camera-hardware side?

Fairly well, I’d say. Horizontal and vertical photos captured by the 12MP Sony sensor, and cleaned up by the on-board AI, are comparable to results from my second-generation Meta Ray-bans, and the specs record well-stabilized 1080p video at 30fps (though this pales against the latest Meta Ray-Ban’s 3K capture), with clips from 30 seconds to three minutes.

Even low-light and night shots came out pretty well, and I found that framing shots broadly felt natural, though some were a little wonky. The five-mic array captured my voice impressively clearly and without too much background noise, and the speakers deliver bright, clear audio.

With 32GB of on-board memory, there’s a decent amount of room to store photos and videos before sharing them from your phone — your content goes straight to your local companion phone app instead of a permanent cloud database, swerving the privacy minefield of your most personal moments living on someone else’s database.

That being said, uploading your content isn’t always easy. I most definitely lost a few shots — especially if my glasses ran out of battery before I had a chance to sync them — and syncing sometimes inexplicably stalls, and you have to wait a while to try again.

Elsewhere, everything works as expected; the touch controls on the arms are responsive and intuitive, and the battery lasts up to six hours — with moderate use, I generally saw four to five hours of usage. The case offers between eight and 10 full charges, and fast-charges the glasses to 70% in 20-25 minutes.

• Performance: 4/5

L'Atitude 52°N review: AI features

• Goya AI often cuts you off
• Replies are spotty at best
• Tour guide feature is a work in progress

I’d originally tried some beta versions of these frames, and while the current software is far from perfect, it’s impressive to see how many kinks L’Atitude has ironed out in a few short months.

Contrary to earlier reviews you may have read, as well as my own experience, I’m pleased to report that many of Goya AI’s advertised features now work (hooray!), though in my experience it’s still not always quite as advertised.

Some of that may be to do with my main testing location; Santorini is beautiful, but there aren’t a great number of landmarks for which the tour guide feature could come in handy; and Oia, where we stayed, is a labyrinth of winding stairways, private paths and roads less traveled, so navigation — even on more developed software like Google Maps — is a challenge.

That being said, I did get to try the AI tour guide out on the ruins of the Castle of Oia, which it helpfully informed me were the ruins of the Castle of Oia, offering little else beyond a few brief words on its popularity as a sightseeing and photography spot in Santorini. This was all happening while I was fighting for my life not to be pushed off the edge of the castle walls by other tourists, so while it’s accurate, I wouldn’t exactly call it additive.

I tried this feature on a few locations back home in the UK to much the same results; sometimes, the synopses were more detailed, but I couldn’t seem to find any landmarks that offered the full walkthrough experience I’d hoped for when I first read about the “expert-level guidance” offered by the feature.

The five-mic array may help capture great audio for your video, but so much is lost in translation when speaking with Goya AI. Maybe it’s my British accent, but I found that more than half of my questions were entirely misheard, making for some hilarious if not mildly frustrating interactions with the on-board intelligence. It frequently cut me off, answered completely different questions to what I’d asked, and often couldn’t recall previous prompts.

Sometimes Goya AI does seem to understand you, but doesn’t want to execute your commands. When I asked it to take photos, shoot video, tell me what I’m looking at or play music from Spotify, Goya would occasionally spit out a totally random response at best, and at worst behave as though it was about to follow my command before doing big fat nothing. It had good days and bad days, so I have to wonder how much of this stems from connectivity issues. Regardless, spending much of your time yelling at your glasses is not what you want when you’re out travelling or in public places.

Translation to and from Greek isn’t yet available, so when I got home I tested this feature out with my Spanish friend. I wouldn’t quite call spoken-word translation live as advertised; Goya can handle approximately one sentence at a time, will need to think for up to 20 seconds, and will then speak it in your native language through the glasses. When I asked Goya to translate a written book synopsis from Spanish to English, though, it worked much more quickly and fluidly; with both tests, I was impressed with its accuracy, though it’s to be expected with Google’s Gemini under the hood.

• AI: 3.5/5

Should I buy the L'Atitude 52°N?

Buy them if…

Don’t buy them if…

How I tested the L'Atitude 52°N

• I took the glasses on my week-long vacation to Santorini, and tested them for around 10 hours in the UK
• I tried all of its advertised software and hardware features
• I used its AI to help enrich my vacation. Well, I tried.

As these are travel-focused smart specs, what better way to test them than to hit the road and take them on vacation? On my trip to Santorini, I tried their travel-focused software features, including the AI tour guide, asking for restaurant recommendations and questions about the island’s history, weather, and the like.

Having recently reviewed the second-generation Meta Ray-bans, I used those specs, which we rate as the best overall smart glasses pick for most people, as my main comparison point, but I’ve also sampled a range of other models at trade shows and in our offices over the past few years.

I ran the L'Atitude app from my iPhone 17 Pro.

• First reviewed: August 2026

Some developers saw this as a challenge: how to replicate painting on a canvas in the digital world. Escape Motions’ Rebelle is a serious competitor in this field, and have introduced a few new features with their latest 8th version. Let’s take a look at it.

You can check out Rebelle 8 by clicking here.

Rebelle 8: Pricing & plans

• A multi-platform software package
• One-off license at a cost that won’t break the bank
• Free trial available

There’s a lot of good news for people who like to own - actually own - multi-platform software: first of, Rebelle is available for Windows and Mac users (sadly, Linux fans are all too often left out of the loop, as they are here).

Even better, there’s no option to rent the software: you purchase it with a one-time fee of $90. Which is quite reasonable for software of this caliber, especially since you’re allowed to install it on up to three computers.

There is a more advanced version, called Rebelle Pro for $150. Finally, Escape Motions offers a very generous 30-day trial so you can check out the software and see how it works for you.

You will have to create an account with them in order to access it, but all they ask is an email address - you keep your credit card details to yourself.

All in all, this feels like a very good start. Rebelle 8 available to buy from developer Escape Motions by clicking here.

• Pricing & plans: 5 / 5

Rebelle 8: Interface

• A well-designed interface
• Familiar enough to ease you in if you’re new to Rebelle
• Different enough that there’s going to be a bit of a learning curve

If this is your first foray into Rebelle, you’ll find the interface very similar to other image editing applications. You have two sidebars, one on either side. The left one focusses on your brushes, while on the right, you have your layers, color selections, and navigational options.

The rest of the screen real estate is devoted to your canvas, but that’s not all there is to it. Hop on over to the Menubar’s Window menu to see other tools, which are available by default as floating windows.

However the interface is highly flexible, enabling you to dock these windows into either sidebar, be it as their own unique dedicated area, or sharing the space with other tools - when that happens, a small series of tabs will appear above that shared section, allowing you to switch between them.

This allows you to create a unique setup to match what you need to see as you digitally paint your projects. You’re also able to export this layout to make it easy to set up Rebelle on another computer with your customized personalised setup.

Overall, the interface is similar enough to not feel intimidating, but different enough that it will take you a few minutes to understand where everything is, and what it does. But the main takeaway is that it’s well designed, and is easy enough to understand that it won’t take you long to get the gist of it.

• Interface: 4 / 5

Rebelle 8: Tools

• So many brushes to play with, and so many parameters to explore
• Lots of different types of canvases
• Create truly unique projects… as long as you can handle some of the quirks

The tools available are pretty much all the various brushes you can work with - and there are so many. You start with selecting the type of brush from the top left section of the interface, like an acrylic brush, or one for watercolors, inks, pastels, etc.

Beneath that is another panel, with a handful of parameters to customize how the selected brush will paint on your chosen canvas, and you could easily leave it at that, but that would be ignoring the dozens of options further down the sidebar.

For instance, the Express Oil brushes have sub-categories, such as Round, Glaze, and Flat, and if that’s not enough, a drop down menu allows you to browse through and purchase additional ones.

The options and flexibilities are immense, and it can be a lot of fun to paint digitally in that way. You also have all the advantages of working on a computer, such as having multiple layers, cloning sections, erasing others, the lot.

There were a few things I was disappointed by, the biggest one being that I could only have one project open at a time. As someone who far too often has too many ideas on the go, this felt unnecessarily restrictive to me.

Another had to do with controlling the canvas itself. I work on a laptop and use a multi-touch trackpad for everything, but even with all the options I could find disabled, that canvas would move or suddenly zoom in or out at random moments.

Thankfully there’s a handy and simple keyboard shortcut to bring it all back to the centre, filling the screen, but it got really annoying by the end. I think the lesson here is don’t use the trackpad when doing serious artistic work with Rebelle.

Also, despite using a powerful computer to test this out (a laptop with an M5 chip), I felt like sometimes I had to wait a few seconds for the software to render the stroke I made. This app needs a lot of power.

• Tools: 4 / 5

Rebelle 8: What's new?

• No revolutionary ‘wow’ additions
• Relatively small improvements makes creative life much easier

Version 8 brings a few refinements to this software package - nothing earth shattering, but they’re welcome additions nonetheless. Here are some I felt were important to mention.

The Canvas Panel has been streamlined, making it easy to select a new type of paper and see all those you don’t yet have, but are available for purchase - you can even test this new canvas prior to acquiring it (if this constant advertisement is not your thing, use the filter options to remove those as yet un-owned canvases from the list).

On the other side of the interface are your favourite brushes. That’s nothing new. But right next to them is a new tab, featuring all the latest brushes you’ve used in your current session. This is a most welcome way to help you keep track of what you’ve been working with without you having to do anything.

When it comes to painting, there’s always been a limit to how big a brush can be. In the standard sidebar, that’s usually up to 100. Switch to the Creator Brush panel and you can now go up to 3,000 which is almost big enough to cover an entire canvas with one brush stroke.

There’s also a new Symmetry tool which essentially cuts your canvas right down the middle and everything you draw on one side is instantly mirrored on the other.

And last on my list is the ‘Line’ tool which always allowed you to easily draw parallel lines, but now lets you add perpendicular ones as well, which can save you a heck of a lot of time.

Should I buy Rebelle 8?

Buy it if...

You’re a creative who’s always loved the feel of the brush on your canvas, are looking for a way to reproduce this digitally, and love the fact you only need to pay once to own the software.

Don't buy it if...

Your creative outlet doesn’t extend to replicating how real-life brushes work in a digital environment, and you’d be much happier with the likes of Photoshop or Pixelmator Pro instead.

How I tested Rebelle 8

I fired up my trusty M5 MacBook Pro for this review of Rebelle 8. I sadly couldn’t test the software on my PC laptop - it’s high time I upgraded anyway - although it does show that Rebelle needs more oomph than a lot of other software in its category.

The minimum requirements are an Intel i7 chip with 16GB of RAM, and my PC can’t match that. Considering the computations needed to simulate how real-life paint and brushes behave, I’m not surprised at all that Rebelle 8 would need more power than Photoshop.

But on my Mac, aside from the issues I highlighted in the review, I had no complaints, and the gallery on Escape Motions’ website shows how realistic the paintings done with Rebelle can end up looking.

For more creative tools, we tested the best photo editors and the best digital art and drawing software.

I've reviewed a lot of coffee and espresso machines over the years, and the Terra Kaffe Demi is one of my favorites. It's dead simple to use, and the results are incredible. Before the caffeine from my morning cup of coffee hits my bloodstream, I don't have the wherewithal to weigh and grind beans, put them in a filter, set up the machine to brew, and brew the coffee. I just want my coffee and I want it fast. But I like my coffee black, so it's important that it actually taste good. The Terra Kaffe Demi Compact Fully Automatic Espresso Machine hits all the marks. Plus it looks sleek and gorgeous in my kitchen while taking up very little space.

Pour fresh whole beans into the hopper and fill the water tank. Turn the dial on the side to scroll through your options: espresso, lungo, americano, and drip. Press once to select your pick. The conical burr grinder grinds your beans just right, and then brewing begins. In just seconds, you have your drink.

This lovely slice of tech doesn't come cheap, and it doesn't have the bells and whistles of some other similarly priced machines. If you want a machine that automatically froths your milk, or has a menu with dozens or even hundreds of drink options, this isn't the one for you. You must use whole beans; there's no pre-ground coffee option. But if the four drinks offered are sufficient for you, then keep on reading.

Terra Kaffe Demi: price and availability

• Available on several websites including Amazon
• Retails for $795 (about £590 / AU$1,100)
• Comes in four colorways

The Terra Kaffe Demi is sold on a number of websites, including Amazon, Sur La Table, Nordstrom, Seattle Coffee Gear, and Terra Kaffe's own website. It retails for $795 (about £590 / AU$1,100) or can be rented from Terra Kaffe for $39 (£30 / AU$60) per month. There are four color options: Slate (black), Cloud (pale gray-blue), Forest (dark green), and Dune (tan).

Terra Kaffe Demi: specs

Terra Kaffe Demi: design

• Small footprint
• Sleek, minimalist aesthetic
• Four brew styles

The Terra Kaffe Demi is a compact, sleek design with a minimalist aesthetic, perfect for a modern kitchen. A dot matrix style display screen shows on the front of the machine. The left side of the machine has the power button, but you'll use that only rarely. On the right side of the machine is the simple dial that controls everything. You can scroll through the menu by twisting the dial, and select by pressing it. A long press of the dial puts the machine to sleep. On the back of the machine is a 46.5 ounce (1375 ml) water tank. The 4.6-ounce (130-gram) bean hopper sits atop the machine.

The Terra Kaffe Demi's spout can be raised and lowered to accommodate different sizes of cups and mugs. The maximum height is 5.7" (14.5 cm), which is high enough for many travel mugs. You'll want to lower it when you brew into smaller cups in order to minimize coffee spatter.

The menu dial on the right side of the machine controls everything. The display on the front lets you know what's going on, whether the machine is rinsing, heating up, or ready to brew. You can choose your brew: Espresso, Lungo, Americano, or Drip.

Espresso is a concentrated brew, and the default is 1.6 ounces. Lungo is a longer extraction, and the default is 2.8 ounces. Americano is espresso plus water, and the default is a 1.6-ounce espresso shot plus 2.8 ounces of water, totalling 4.4 ounces. Drip is usually made with a drip machine, but the Terra Kaffe Demi makes a brew that tastes like drip coffee by pulsating the water through the grounds rather than applying the consistent high pressure needed to make espresso. The default Drip cup size is 5.6 ounces. There's even a Hot Water option, in case you want to make tea or hot cocoa.

You can turn the dial to dig into the Menu option if you want to change the brew temperature, strength, or amount. You can also adjust the number of espresso shots in your brew. When you're deep into the menu changing the settings, just press and hold the dial for a couple of seconds to bring you back to the drink menu. Or just wait about half a minute, and it will go back by itself.

Cleaning the Terra Kaffe Demi is pretty simple. The machine regularly rinses itself, so it's probably a good idea to keep a cup under the spout when not in use. You'll want to empty the used coffee ground "pucks" from the waste bin, give the bin a rinse, and pour out the water that's collected in the drip tray pretty regularly. I do those simple tasks pretty much every day, but if you don't drink much coffee, you could spread it out to every few days.

Once a week, Terra Kaffe recommends that you remove the brew unit and rinse it thoroughly. That sounds like a hassle, but it's actually quite easy and takes only a few seconds. I like being able to get into a machine and get it really clean. Many automatic coffee machines don't have that option, so I wonder how gunky they are getting over time.

Additionally, you'll need to run cleaning and descaling cycles on occasion, probably once every couple of months, depending on your usage. The machine will prompt you when you need to run those. The Terra Kaffe Demi does come with one packet each of cleaner and descaler. Once you use them, you can buy those products on their website.

There is also an internal clock, though that's not visible from the outside of the machine. It can be accessed in the settings menu. The reason for having a clock is that you can set the machine to automatically wake up, warm up, and be ready to brew at a specific time of your choosing. Warmup is pretty quick anyway, so I don't see much reason to do that, but if you're a rushing-out-the-door-every-morning sort of person, those seconds might count.

Another cool feature is that you can fully drain the machine, in case you won't be using it for a while or plan to put it into storage. Most coffee automatic coffee machines have water just sitting in the machine which ... can't be good.

• Design score: 5/5

Terra Kaffe Demi: performance

• Incredibly easy to use
• Use default brew styles or create your own
• Great results

As mentioned above, the Terra Kaffe Demi makes four different brew styles: Espresso, Americano, Lungo, and Drip. Each of them can be brewed at the default settings if you want to keep it simple. However, if you want to dig into the menu options, you can make all kinds of adjustments to each of those options. You can change the number of shots, the strength of the brew, the shot volume, and the brewing temperature. I used the default settings in my testing unless otherwise noted.

Espresso

I found the espresso quite smooth, strong, and delicious. The Terra Kaffe Demi gives it a lovely crema. I also tried brewing it over ice to make an iced coffee, which turned out great. The default shot volume is 1.6 ounces, or 50ml. The strength is "High" (.39oz/11g) and the brewing temperature is 205°F (96°C). All of those can be adjusted in the settings menu.

Lungo

A lungo is made by brewing more water through the coffee grounds than you would for an espresso. While the same amount of coffee is used for a lungo as it would be for an espresso shot, the higher water volume makes a taller, less concentrated drink. The default Lungo is 2.8 ounces, or 83ml. Everything else is the same as the Espresso settings listed above: "High" strength (.39oz/11g) and brewing temperature of 205°F (96°C). Again, those can be adjusted in the settings menu. I thought the Lungo was very good, nice and smooth but still plenty strong. It produces a lovely crema. I also tried this one iced, which diluted it a bit much for my tastes (though it might be perfect for someone else's.)

Americano

An Americano is a regular espresso shot with water added, which is different from a lungo where the extra water is brewed through the coffee grounds. Coffee connoisseurs will be able to taste a difference between extra water brewed through the grounds and extra water added after. I can't really tell, but both options are offered in case you have a preference.

The default Americano is the same 1.6-ounce (50ml) espresso shot plus 2.8 ounces (83ml) of water, totalling 4.4 ounces (130ml). The espresso is brewed with the same strength and temperature as the above cycles, and again, all of this can be adjusted in the settings menu. Frankly, all this extra water made it a bit weak for my tastes, but it was nice and smooth. Even with all the water added, the crema remained intact.

Drip

Technically, this is an espresso machine, so it can't make "drip coffee" the regular way. However, the Terra Kaffe makes a pretty good impression of a drip coffee by using a slower, pulsating water flow to lower the pump pressure. Continuous high pressure steam is used to make Espresso, Lungo, and Americano, but the Drip setting pauses and restarts the water flow as it brews, increasing the amount of time the water has contact with the coffee grounds.

The results were really quite tasty, though it does take longer to brew than it might with a dedicated drip machine. The default settings are actually the same as the Espresso: 1.6 ounces (50ml) shot volume, "High" (.39oz/11g) strength, and is 205°F (96°C) brewing temperature, all of which can be adjusted in the settings menu. More water is added to make Drip, so the total default volume is 5.6 ounces (166ml). It does produce a crema, which isn't expected in a drip coffee, but it works.

I fiddled around with the settings a bit, increasing the strength to "Max" and it still isn't a super strong cup of coffee. This is down to personal taste, I thought it was just strong enough but my husband thought it tasted weak.

I did put some in the fridge overnight to make iced coffee the next day. It was drinkable, but it did pick up a little bit of bitterness. The better way to make iced coffee is to use the Espresso setting (or Lungo if you like it less strong) and add ice.

Hot Water

The Hot Water option is great for making tea or other hot beverages. The default volume is about seven ounces (200ml) and the temperature is 201°F (94°C), but of course they can be adjusted in the settings menu.

Notably, the Terra Kaffe has a separate water nozzle, so it's not pulling (potentially bitter) coffee leftovers on its way through. You won't get stale coffee notes in your tea. It's close enough to the coffee nozzle that you wouldn't notice that there are two unless you look closely.

• Performance score: 4.5/5

Should you buy the Terra Kaffe Demi?

Buy it if

Don't buy it if

Terra Kaffe Demi: also consider

How I tested the Terra Kaffe Demi

I brewed and drank every drink on the menu: Espresso, Lungo, Americano, and Drip. I tried the Espresso, Lungo, and the Drip (pre-chilled) over ice. I drank many cups of my favorites, Espresso and Drip. I drank all of them black and lightly sweetened. I tried the iced coffee with frothed skim milk as well. I cleaned and emptied the waste bin and drip tray every day or two. I pulled out the brew unit and cleaned that once as well.

First reviewed July 2026

While it’s more affordable, with the full plastic build, it actually pulls many features from far more expensive machines, including the slightly larger Falcon A1. Designed to sit on your desktop, it measures 336 x 377 x 341 mm, giving it an incredibly compact footprint. Essentially, it's designed to be accessible and usable whenever you need it.

While the design aesthetics might not match that of some rivals' larger machines, the workflow and robust build make it an ideal option for education and small studios where you want to experiment with the technology to create items and even have small production runs.

In this review, I had access to the 10W version, and from unboxing to setup it took no longer than 10 minutes. Activation required a single push of the button on the machine, then a few steps, and it was connected to the mobile app.

On the Mac, it took a few more steps, with the wired connection needed first before you can switch over to Wi-Fi, but in both cases it's one setup, and then you don't have to revisit it later.

When it comes to use, the Falcon Design Space software is once again well laid out, as I saw with the Falcon A1 and Falcon T1, and with a few sample designs I was able to cut directly onto the paper and the basswood supplied.

I was instantly impressed with the results, starting with the basic ruler sample. I laid out five from the outset, and with an 18-minute engraving on the small sheet of 3mm ply, the results were actually incredibly impressive, with little scorching or burning, if any, visible.

After a month of using the machine on small projects, the engraving quality across a wide range of surfaces was consistently good, with the best results coming from wood and paper.

I also had to connect the A1C to the Bambu Lab air filter because I didn't have the Falcon one to use, but it worked perfectly with no issues. So if you already have an air filter, it should work without the dedicated one from Creality.

During the test, I was purely focused on that 10W laser cutting materials on that 150 x 150mm working area. There is a lower-powered option at 5W if you mainly work with paper, and also a 1.2W IR laser module, giving you even more scope for this one small machine.

What surprises me is the price, and whilst that is slightly reflected in the design and materials used, when it comes to pure functionality, this is a level of machine for its size that you just wouldn't have had a couple of years ago. It’s far better than any of the open-frame designs still available on the market.

One thing I would watch for if you're thinking about buying the A1C: note that there are two versions, and the cheapest doesn't include the camera, and that is a major part of the ease of use for this machine.

It also cannot be upgraded, so I'd really spend that extra money to make sure you get the version with the AI camera, which is the one I’m looking at here. I'd also push and get that 10W laser. It makes a huge difference, especially if you're going to be working with wood.

Even if you start working with paper, card, and acrylic, taking that upgrade is definitely something you're going to want to do in the future.

If you just want to laser small objects, then this is an absolutely superb option at an incredible price and a really good complement to the Creality Falcon range. It will be interesting to see where the company takes laser engraving technology next.

Creality Falcon A1C: Price & availability

To me, price Creality has set is great for a small-build entry-level engraver. But in my opinion, opt for the 10W model with AI camera for maximum future-proofing.

The basic 5W Falcon AIC is $199 from Creality or $299 for the 10W model. In the UK, it's similarly priced at £199 for the 5W version and £289 for the 10W.

However, there is a version with an AI camera attached, which is definitely the model that I would go for.

The 5W Falcon A1C with AI camera is priced at $259 at Creality's store, or $379 for the 10W model. In the UK, it's £249 for the 5W AI camera version and £369 for the 10W.

I'm also seeing the models with the AI camera on sale at Amazon in the US and UK, where you can get the 5W for $259 and the 10W for $379. It's more expensive there for UK readers, with the 5W retailing for £326 and the 10W at £445 at the time of review.

Creality Falcon A1C: Design

The Creality Falcon A1C is an extremely compact, fully enclosed laser engraver that comes in a variety of different options. In this review, I've been looking at the 10W version, which I highly recommend because it works with the widest range of materials and is a great starting point for any hobbyist, small business, or educational facility.

Alongside the A1C, I would also recommend getting the air filter, which uses a tube connected to the vent hole at the back. In this review, I haven't got Creality's version, so I've adapted it for use with the Bambu Lab air filter, which is used with the Bambu Lab H2D.

What I really like about the A1C's design is that it’s so compact, with a footprint of only 336mm wide and 377mm deep. Essentially, it fits neatly on the workshop workbench.

While the design is fully plastic and you can really feel where Creality has pulled back on the material use to make this as affordable as it is, it's still of decent quality and, with its visor lid ensuring that you stay fully protected from any laser rays, it's also a great option if you're just getting into laser engraving and definitely a big step up from the open-frame designs.

The machine itself, while light at just under 10kg, is well designed and sturdy, so it sits firmly on the work surface and stays put as you lift and close the lid. It's also worth highlighting that there is a security USB key on the back, so if you are using this at home and don't want the kids to get close to it, or if you have other people in the office, you can remove the key for safety; without it, the machine isn't usable.

Also, on the safety features, it has all the usual knock and tilt kill switches, as well as lid-lifting alerts. It also has a large safety stop button on the side, so if you are using this in education, it essentially has everything needed to pass most safety checks. However, you will need to check with your institution to make sure it is fully in line.

Now, whilst the build is fully plastic, it's all of really decent quality, and that weight helps ensure minimal vibration from the laser as it works away inside. It also has full autofocus, although you do need to activate it through the app software. It's essentially a pin that lowers with the laser head to touch the material's surface, ensuring the laser is perfectly focused, and you get the best possible cut, engraving, or score.

The system is simple and effective, and throughout the month of testing, it was completely faultless on the small work area, as long as I always remembered to hit that autofocus button before processing.

Another major feature of the model that I've looked at is the AI camera. Now, this produces a preview of the material on the platform, and I found the exposure was a little dark; sometimes, if using a darker material, you can only just make out where it’s placed in the work area. The front section, in contrast, is always perfectly visible.

One of the big differences between this machine and many others that I've looked at, especially at this size, is that, like some 3D printers, it has a raising platform. So essentially you put your material onto the platform, and it raises depending on the height and type of object and material that it’s made from.

This means that despite it being really small, you can also get a rotary attachment that fits perfectly inside, so you can do mugs and cups.

The platform is manually adjusted with a knob on the side, letting you raise or lower it depending on what you're putting inside, or it moves automatically when using the autofocus.

As this is also a compact laser engraver with an air system, you can secure paper and other objects to the platform, and for wood and acrylic there's also the grill platform you can pop those on top of.

Whilst this still feels, in many ways, like an entry-level laser engraving platform, I'm surprised by the volume of features it includes. They've been taken from professional laser engravers, so whilst this is relatively cheap, especially with all the present offers, it actually offers a very compact professional option at an incredible price.

Creality Falcon A1C: Features

In this test, I've been looking at the Creality Falcon A1C 10W diode laser option, which is good for wood, bamboo, paper, cork, cardboard, leather, glass and fabric. There's also a 5W diode laser option available. This is of lesser power, so any ambitions to cut through materials will have to be reduced.

However, if you just want to score or engrave, then the 5W option is actually a good choice. My personal advice would be to spend that little bit extra and go for the 10W version. That way, you are at least future-proofing yourself.

There's also an optional 1.2W IR module available, which enables even more engraving options. Essentially, the diode lasers let you engrave wood, paper, and soft materials, while the IR laser is designed to engrave and mark metals.

Swapping between the heads is relatively easy and, although I didn't have the IR head to test, the process is very straightforward. A simple securing screw can be undone without tools: drop out the head, pop in the new one, and the system automatically recognises the new head and updates the software, ready for you to get started.

Another feature I really like is full autofocus: you put the material you want to engrave underneath, hit autofocus, the head touches the material, and it focuses the beam. It's a mechanical approach, but it worked incredibly well.

Speed-wise, it can engrave at up to 15,000 mm per minute, which is relatively fast for such a small laser. For most of the test, I reduced this to a more standard 6,000 mm per minute for fill and line engraving, and 450 mm per minute for line cutting. These are the default settings, but after testing above and below, I found the factory defaults were by far the best.

One of the things I really liked on the other Falcon machines is that you use the Falcon Design Space software, which is available for Mac, PC, iOS, and Android. It's really easy to use, well thought out and gives you plenty of options.

If you want to use third-party software such as LightBurn, that's also supported, so if you're working with other laser engravers and want everything under one roof, that is possible.

For connectivity, you can connect via Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, or USB. Mobile workflows are really easy: connect through Bluetooth or Wi-Fi, quickly upload, select your settings, and move on.

On the Mac/PC, using Falcon Design Space, you initially connect through USB and, once set up, you can connect through Wi-Fi, which gives you plenty of options and has proven to be a really solid way of working.

Alongside the machine, there’s a range of accessories, including the rotary engraver, which is a standard accessory for most engravers. It's great to see it here as an upgrade option. There's also the air purification accessory, which I would definitely recommend if you are thinking of buying this or, for that matter, any laser engraver.

Creality Falcon A1C: Performance

Getting started with a Falcon A1C doesn't take long. It's a small machine, so unboxing and setting it up on the desktop takes no more than five minutes. Once the packaging is removed, the power is plugged in, and the cutting surface is installed, you can lower the platform using the dial on the right-hand side of the machine so the cutting platform and material can be slipped into place.

Before I got started, I also just wanted to check the emergency stop: testing this simply involved hitting the red button. Everything shut down, and it was the usual twist to power the machine back on.

Having a stop button on the side of machines is essential. This button enables you to kill the power, so that if one of the materials that you've popped inside catches fire, you can deal with it quickly. Hit stop, and that kills the power, so you're only dealing with the fire and not the laser moving as well.

I then popped in the first piece of 3mm ply, loaded up the iOS app and quickly ran through a couple of test engraves. I was surprised by how easy it was to connect to the app and get started; it took no more than five minutes.

I then moved over to the MacBook Pro and, again, it took a couple of minutes to connect the USB cable, do a quick test card and then disconnect the Mac, at which point I could use it over Wi-Fi back in the house.

Popping in materials was all easy enough, with that dial on the side basically activating the motor so the platform raises or lowers. You can then place your material in, hit autofocus once the lid is down, and it's then primed and ready to go. Back in the Falcon software, you can activate the camera to preview the material and the design you've loaded, move it around, and you're almost ready to go.

If you've downloaded a pre-designed cutting path from the Creality site, it's very easy, as the different cuts and engraves have already been highlighted. However, if you're importing paths from your chosen software, then you'll need to select the path and allocate line cutting or engraving.

Essentially, if you import your logo and want it to be a placemat with the logo engraved, Then you want the placemat to be cut out in a disc obviously, what you need to do is select the logo as your first engraving layer and assign that as a line engrave, and set the speed to 6,000mm a minute at about 60% with a one-time pass for 3mm basswood board.

Then, for the letters, create another layer with the text, select Fill Engraving, set the speed to 6,000 mm/min and power to 60%, and run one pass. Finally, you want your logo cut out of that mat, so select a circle from the shapes, draw it around your logo, select line cutting, set the speed to 450 m/minute and power to 80% with one pass, go to Processing and wait for your placemat to be cut.

Another level of ease is that there are loads of materials present; just select the material type and a preset for that is loaded. Through this test, I used basswood ply or paper for the majority of cuts, and these materials could be selected in the presets. With the AI camera enabling you to line everything up perfectly, it was very quick and straightforward to start getting impressive results from the outset.

During the test, I found that the small 150 x 150mm work surface was a little restrictive. For example, a placemat for a mug measuring 90mm x 90mm means you can only do one at a time. Also, if you want to do anything larger, then you will need a larger machine. However, for small home projects, there’s still plenty of scope.

The camera, while useful, is also limited. Seeing the material at the top left in the preview can be difficult because of its position on the laser head and, unless you have bright lighting in the workshop, the preview can look a little dark. There’s also a stop on using the camera while the laser is in action; this is just to review the material, not to monitor the project's progress.

Checking the quality of some engraving, it's exceptionally high, with a good, accurate laser delivering outstanding results considering the size and scale of this machine.

For fine detail, as you'll see on some of the coasters, you have to be very careful about how you convert the image for laser engraving. Still, after a few runs and a little bit of experimentation, you'll settle on the best results for the material that you're using.

Likewise, when it comes to cutting, there's very little, if any, scorching, which means that if you are doing small production runs, you can quickly wipe the wood afterwards and go straight to finishing with a bit of wax, depending on what you're doing.

Overall, the performance and quality this small machine can produce are exceptionally high, and for anyone or a small business looking to get into laser engraving, this is a great starting point and will absolutely show what can be done with this technology.

Creality Falcon A1C: Final verdict

Creality Falcon A1C is an interesting machine. It’s a Class 1 laser, and interchangeable modules enable you to swap between a 5W (optional) or 10W diode laser and a 1.2W IR head (Optional), and there's plenty of flexibility in what you can do with this machine.

My one thing to point out is that there are two versions of the machine. Just make sure you're opting for the slightly more expensive one with the AI camera, which is the version I've looked at in this review. The cheaper version doesn't feature the AI camera, so positioning is a little bit trickier, and you can't preview exactly where things go.

When it comes to use, the studio software makes things easy. Although there’s still a learning process, especially with putting your cutting and engraving paths onto different layers, after a few runs it's relatively easy to work out.

If you are totally new, I highly recommend downloading some pre-made templates and seeing how they are made; it all starts to make sense pretty quickly as you click through those layers.

Whilst the machine itself is cheap, you will have to pay extra if you want to purchase many of the accessories, including the 5W diode or IR heads, but even then they're not usually expensive compared with other laser engravers. One real limitation is the 150 x 150 work area, a size I normally associate with a fibre laser, not a diode like this.

However, that small size also means you can easily sit it on a desktop. It's great for a small workshop or anyone wanting to dabble in laser engraving, as it gives you a superb idea of what larger, more expensive machines can do, and 10W in a small machine like this is still substantial enough to create some pretty impressive products.

When it comes to cutting quality, it’s exceptionally good, and the engraving quality is, too; at this level it's well above what you would normally expect.

If you are looking for a small, compact laser engraver, this is a great place to start. I would suggest spending that little extra and buying the air filter at the same time, and if you can afford it, the rotary addition is always a worthwhile accessory.

Should you buy the Creality Falcon A1C

Buy it if...

Don't buy it if...

For more crafting tech, I've tested and reviewed all the best 3D printers and best laser engravers.

I should preface this largely negative review by saying that I was a huge fan of the first Insidious movie, and have been a fan of James Wan's ever since Saw. So it truly does pain me to say I did not have a good time with Insidious: Out of the Further, because I went in hoping to see an intriguing new entry, but what followed was almost entirely predictable.

Recently, we have seen some good horror sequels. Take a look at Saw X for example, which is infinitely better than some of the movies that came before it (I still can't get over how bad Jigsaw is). But Insidious: Out of the Further feels like a way to profit from the popular franchise without really adding much to it.

It's a shame, because it did have potential. Here, Alice Eve plays Gemma, a young mother who is raising her daughter in her childhood home. She lives a normal life until she discovers she can travel into The Further, which is a purgatorial realm of lost souls. Gemma realizes she can bring what lives in The Further back to the real world, which is great news for demonic entities who use Gemma to their full advantage. Cue carnage unfolding in our realm, and plenty of evil round the corner.

I first saw Alice Eve in Netflix's The Haunting of Bly Manor, and she is undoubtedly the best thing about Insidious: Out of the Further. As a new arrival to the Insidious franchise she's front and center of this sequel, and does a great job in the role.

Unfortunately, Eve's strong performance can't make up for the movie's many flaws. Insidious: Out of the Further is the scariest of the franchise due to the sheer number of jump scares, many of which have extremely loud audio to go along with it.

But the fact it was able to make me jump in my seat multiple times does not make it a good movie. The special effects and makeup feel really off, and not at all on the same level as previous movies. A lot of the narrative decisions frustrated me too, and I think it tries to take itself too seriously by stuffing loads of new lore into its runtime, making it feel bloated.

It's essential to see the other Insidious movies first, which may seem obvious, but I would encourage you to rewatch (or at least read up on them) before you go and see Insidious: Out of the Further, otherwise you might end up feeling lost. This really is for die-hard Insidious fans who know their stuff, so casual fans might be left scratching their heads.

Insidious: Out of the Further does not come close to the quality we've seen in a wave of recent great horror movies. It pales in comparison to fresh horror hits like Obsession and Backrooms, despite the fact the trailer repeatedly reminds us that it's produced by the same people; Blumhouse and Atomic Monster.

Having said that, if you want to go just to be startled by a carousel of jump scares, it's a great choice. I'd recommend this for those who want to test their nerve, and it's best seen with a crowd for this reason. I would advise against buying any popcorn in case you throw it all over yourself, because the scares are certainly in abundance here.

But it's not a necessary addition to the Insidious franchise at all, and doesn't live up to the 2010 movie that started it all. After 16 years, perhaps it's time to put this franchise to bed for good.

The Poco F8 Ultra demonstrates what’s possible when performance doesn’t come at a premium. Packing a top-end Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5 chipset, a huge 6,500mAh battery, and a bright 120Hz AMOLED display, it's among the very best phones on paper — but it's Poco's photography chops and unique Bose partnership that set the F8 Ultra apart from other ‘flagship killers’.

A trio of rear cameras steals the show. Poco phones (as well as those made by its parent company, Xiaomi) often sneak under the radar for photographic performance, but having shone in both day and nighttime environments during my testing, there’s rarely been any situation where the F8 Ultra’s cameras haven’t exceeded expectations. What’s more, Xiaomi’s HyperOS 3 seems to finally be fulfilling its AI-centric potential, with genuinely useful photo features that allow beginners to fine-tune their shots to perfection.

The brand's Bose partnership sets an equally high standard. While for many, the addition of a dedicated 1620 subwoofer in the phone's rear panel may seem like a token gesture, partnering it with symmetrical, dual 115F speakers quickly highlights how ‘flat’ other phones sound without external audio devices. Bass is noticeable, and the overall soundscape is more than pleasant enough to enable most to ditch the headphones entirely, so long as the situation suits!

While the F8 Ultra's design may bear a striking resemblance to that of Apple’s iPhone 17 Pro, that’s hardly a bad thing. The phone feels superb to hold and rivals its most premium opposition for style, despite its huge 6.9-inch display. The rounded corners, flat aluminum edges, and impressive thinness (7.9 or 8.3mm, depending on variant) help its size feel manageable, and it’ll quickly feel much like its more premium counterparts in everyday use. The denim-like variant is certainly an acquired taste, but I grew accustomed to it quickly and, frankly, it feels superb to use.

Under the hood, the combination of a huge 6,500mAh battery and Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5 chipset is stellar. The F8 Ultra achieves all-day battery life with ease, all while retaining superb performance under strain from gaming or multitasking. The only drawback: it does suffer from the chipset’s trademark overheating problems. While I never found the phone to be fatally hot, this temperature increase is certainly noticeable when gaming for long periods, and it can lead to some performance drops as a result.

The phone's availability is another drawback. It's available in the UK via both carriers and retailers, but only via third-party retailers like Amazon and eBay in the US. Still, the latter is more than can be said for the best Xiaomi phones, so I suppose that's a small win. The Poco F8 Ultra isn't available in Australia at the time of writing.

Poco F8 Ultra review: Price and availability

• Launched for £749 / $729
• But it's now almost always on sale
• US price varies heavily depending on the seller

The Poco F8 Ultra undercuts almost any comparable phone when it comes to price. It launched for $729 / £749 back in November 2025, but is now available for significantly less — especially in the UK — likely due to the imminent release of the Poco F9 Ultra, which is rumored to land towards the end of 2026.

It's a win in itself to see one of Xiaomi’s devices available via Amazon or eBay in the US. It’s not available directly through carriers, though you’ll no longer have an issue using a US SIM with this device.

Even without a discount, the Poco F8 Ultra starts from the best part of $200 / £200 less than you’d normally expect to pay for a device boasting the latest chipset, triple cameras, and a huge battery. It even gets 4 years of major Android OS updates and 6 years of security updates. By which point, Xiaomi will almost certainly have released something of even better value to replace it.

Xiaomi and Poco do sell phones in Australia, but the Poco F8 Ultra isn't currently available in that region.

• Value score: 5 / 5

Poco F8 Ultra review: Specs

Poco F8 Ultra review: Design

• iPhone-like camera plateau design
• Super comfortable to hold despite huge size
• Denim blue choice may not be to some people’s taste

Poco adopts a reliable yet stylish look for the Poco F8 Ultra. That said, the first thing that needs discussing is its Denim Blue option.

While the material itself isn’t denim — rather, Poco's own nano-tech material — it looks and feels as though you’re texting from a pair of Levi’s. It’s no doubt a strange experience to begin with, but you’ll quickly see the benefits of this new material, namely a complete lack of scratch marks and a nice grippy feel in the hand.

If you’re after a more traditional look, there is also a black variant. It uses Poco’s ‘Glass Fibre’, which gives a feel closer to that of a glass-backed phone. It should feel less slippery to hold and pick up fewer scratches than the competition, though you’re definitely likely to see more fingerprints here than on its denim-look counterpart.

Either variant is also pleasantly comfortable to hold despite the phone's huge 6.9-inch display. The F8 Ultra has a rounded aluminum frame and only weighs 220g at most (or 217g if you choose the black version). That’s over 10g lighter than an iPhone 17 Pro Max, and yet the weight cut doesn’t leave the phone feeling any less premium when you’re holding it, nor does it feel so light that it could be easily dropped or broken.

Where the F8 Ultra and the iPhone are more similar, however, is in their shared camera plateau design. In the case of the F8 Ultra, the plateau houses not only the rear cameras but also the subwoofer that headlines the phone's Bose partnership. Unlike many plateaus, the Poco F8 Ultra’s doesn’t protrude hugely despite its more-than-capable cameras, which we’ll cover later.

Aside from these features, the F8 Ultra's design bears little to shout about, which in many ways, is a win. The denim look is certainly a unique choice should you choose it, but both this and the black variant will soon leave you thinking you possess a phone far more premium than its price tag suggests.

• Design score: 4 / 5

Poco F8 Ultra review: Display

• Bright and easily viewed
• Great refresh rate
• Simple punch-hole front-camera

The Poco F8 Ultra’s display gives the phone a premium feel from the moment you boot it up. This huge 6.9-inch 2608 x 1200 AMOLED screen is capable of a 3500-nit peak brightness, which, while lower than many equivalent phones, does a faultless job of keeping the display punchy and viewable from almost all angles.

You also get a 120Hz refresh rate to play with, meaning scrolling through social media or gaming is smooth enough for even the most serious mobile gamers. This display also offers up to 480Hz touch sampling, which gives the screen a super-responsive feel, no matter if you're gaming or switching between apps.

The Poco F8 Ultra's display is also one of Xiaomi’s ‘eye-care’ displays. These use a combination of hardware and software to reduce eye strain, headaches, and sleep problems caused by phone displays. Technologies such as high-frequency PWM dimming and circadian rhythm adjustments are employed to keep you healthy and have little to no impact on the device’s performance.

All of this technology is housed under ‘Poco Shield’ glass, which is proprietary to Xiaomi and kept for only its most premium devices. In the months of using this phone, I’ve never found reason to doubt Xiaomi’s claims of improved scratch- and impact-resistance compared to industry-standard solutions such as Corning glass. I've been able to confidently use the F8 Ultra in crowded environments without a case, where, frankly, it’s had more than one abrupt meeting with a floor.

That said, the biggest part of why this phone feels so premium to use is just how much display it gives you to play with. It has a huge 94.25% screen-to-body ratio and opts for a simple punch-hole front camera. This, partnered with its huge size, leaves the F8 Ultra's screen feeling nothing short of flagship-worthy while you're streaming, gaming, or browsing. Good job, Xiaomi.

• Display score: 4 / 5

Poco F8 Ultra review: Cameras

• Brilliant levels of detail and vibrancy
• Low-light shooting is top tier
• Selfie camera has room for improvement

The Poco F8 Ultra’s cameras are nothing short of superb — whether you use them at night, for close-ups, or even just regular shooting.

No matter the subject, the Poco F8 Ultra captured a level of vibrancy and detail in each shot that, frankly, it had no right to given its price point. Most noticeably, while shooting in cloudier conditions, shots continued to be detailed and well-balanced, without falling foul of extreme white blowouts in backgrounds.

I did find focusing on the F8 Ultra a touch more fiddly than some might like, especially when looking to shoot in dimmer, indoor environments, but with time, it becomes manageable. That said, the phone was near-flawless in picking up the subject matter and retaining razor-thin focus margins to the rest of the frame.

Each of the three main cameras is 50MP, with the phone even offering a 50MP shooting mode to make full use of these megapixels — though it sacrifices much of the camera's adaptability should you choose to use it.

One of the standout inclusions on the phone's spec sheet is its Light Fusion 950 light sensor. Taking the F8 Ultra out for some night photography proved just how beneficial the device’s 43% improvement in light sensitivity (versus the F7 Ultra) can be. Details remained sharp, backgrounds were rarely a mere abyss of black, and the vibrancy I’d seen in the daytime remained to a surprising degree.

On the front of the phone, there’s a 32MP selfie camera which does a good enough job. It definitely leaves selfies a touch smoother than you’d expect given the quality of the rear cameras, and it's sometimes a touch excessive when adjusting skin tones in bright environments. But it’s still a camera I’d happily use to snap my next night out.

Whether you’re shooting selfies or regular shots, there are also a strong number of preset modes and effects you can use to make the shot your own if you aren’t a seasoned pro. It’s not quite as many as you’d get from something like a Pixel or Galaxy phone, but the Poco F8 Ultra's camera itself proved more than capable of providing strong results no matter the subject matter, even in my amateur hands.

Poco F8 Ultra review: camera samples

Poco F8 Ultra review: Performance

• Flagship-level specs provide the expected power
• Doesn’t struggle with multitasking or intense games
• Brilliant audio capabilities

It’s frustratingly difficult to fault a flagship-killer's performance when it packs a Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5 chipset and DDR5X memory because, in short, it’s packing the same tech as its premium rivals, with a far smaller price tag. What’s more, there’s nothing to suggest any corners have been cut elsewhere on the F8 Ultra.

For example, I tested it with hugely demanding games such as Call of Duty: Mobile and Genshin Impact, and it never so much as dropped a frame. It’ll get a touch warm, as any phone would (including flagships), but, in fact, the alternative back panel material makes it far more manageable to hold when it does.

Day-to-day use is a doddle. Depending on the storage configuration you choose, you get either 12 or 16GB of DDR5X RAM, and 256GB or 512GB of UFS 4.1 storage. Simply put, nothing is slow to load, and you’ll likely be able to multitask however you choose to without any noticeable slowdown.

What’s more, having now spent well over six months with the device (yes, I've been testing it for a while), these performance levels haven't dropped off whatsoever. The F8 Ultra is backed by a huge 6,500mAh battery, which we’ll cover later, and it's remained a remarkably capable phone for heavy-duty gaming sessions while I'm on the go. This performance is, in part, helped by its ‘Game Turbo’ mode, though, on trying with and without this option turned on, the difference is far less noticeable than you’d expect.

Streaming on the device is something I also came to enjoy thanks in no small part to its unique Bose subwoofer system. It’s well known that regular phone speakers often return flat, unappealing soundscapes, but the F8 Ultra’s Bose partnership quite simply throws this possibility out of the window. The subwoofer allows for a 2.1-channel audio system that restores the punchiness you want while watching intense TV series or horror films (in private, please).

Of course, the F8 Ultra is no match for a proper speaker or sound system, but I’ve certainly found myself more comfortable using the phone to play music aloud or quickly watch videos while at home without connecting to a speaker separately.

• Performance score: 5 / 5

Poco F8 Ultra review: Software

• HyperOS 3 is simple enough for anyone
• AI is becoming increasingly involved in the experience
• Remains beginner-friendly without AI integrations

HyperOS has quickly matured into a clean and easy OS since its launch in late 2023. Yes, the ever-increasing amount of AI features may put off those keen to avoid extreme data collection in the name of convenience, but the software experience, regardless, is smoother than ever.

Navigating menus and finding settings and toggles throughout the device is smooth, and everything is essentially where you’d expect it to be. The functionality of some of the icon-based toggles could be clearer, but this is a problem that’s apparent across most Android OS packages nowadays.

Photo editing is so far the best use of Xiaomi’s increasing AI toolset. Beginners can quickly and easily improve their photos with an ‘AI Beautify’ tool that does a far better job than most auto-adjust photo tools I’ve come across in the past.

There are several more excessive options, such as sky adjustments, image expansion, and portrait adjustments, that may disturb photography purists, but, as yet, these tools aren’t quite as refined as they need to be for everyday use.

Outside of photography, you get several AI-based writing improvement, search, and speech tools that can be toggled to improve the everyday experience. Thankfully, having tested the Poco F8 Ultra both with and without these additions, the user experience remains simple enough if you’re keen to keep AI away from your everyday tasks.

All in all, HyperOS 3 more than matches up to the F8 Ultra’s premium specs; it provides a simple enough experience for casual users, while power users can make the most of its many customization options.

• Software score: 4 / 5

Poco F8 Ultra review: Battery

• Huge multi-day battery life
• Sub-hour charging times are very helpful
• Includes 22.5W reverse wireless charging

It’s no surprise that the Poco F8 Ultra’s battery credentials are flagship-grade. The phone packs a 6,500mAh battery with 100W wired and 50W wireless charging, and in testing, these figures resulted in months of day-long battery life and little worry about the speed of impromptu top-ups.

Slower use days will get you multiple days of battery life, which was a welcome surprise, and in truth you'll probably get beyond a day of endurance even with a reasonable amount of social media scrolling and general browsing.

Gaming and streaming were, understandably, the biggest drainers. But, even so, it would only make an hour or so’s difference to the battery life I’d come to expect. To this day, over six months later, I’m still never remotely worried I’ll run out of battery on the Poco F8 Ultra so long as I'm leaving the house with 40% charge or above.

And the phone's 100W charging makes charging a breeze. Getting back up to 100% is comfortably done in under an hour, though in my experience, it takes a tad longer than the advertised 38 minutes. 22.5W reverse wireless charging is also a handy addition for when friends find themselves in a pinch.

In my experience, you’d scarcely find better battery life at this price point. Only Poco's own Poco X8 Pro Max trumps the F8 Ultra for battery value, though you will get even better endurance from true flagships like the Oppo Find X9 Pro and OnePlus 15.

• Battery score: 5 / 5

Should you buy the Poco F8 Ultra?

Buy it if

Don’t buy it if

Poco F8 Ultra review: also consider

How I tested the Poco F8 Ultra

• Tested over multiple months
• Used as both a daily driver and second phone
• Compared with previous testing

I tested the Poco F8 Ultra over a period exceeding six months, with the phone arriving at the time of its launch.

In that time, it was either my main or secondary phone and was put through several forms of testing. This included extensive usage to test battery life, intensive streaming and gaming testing, as well as regular daily use to spot usability issues, bugs, and other problems consumers may face.

This review was conducted using my own experience of the phones industry alongside other experiences reviewing phones in similar price brackets.

Read more about how we test

First reviewed: July 2026

JBL is back with its new generation of touchscreen-equipped earbuds, and the JBL Live Beam 4 may just be my favorite of the bunch.

These in-ear wireless earbuds come with a number of improvements over their predecessors, including enhanced active noise cancelling capabilities, new “fidelity drivers” for more advanced audio, and better call quality to boot. That’s not to mention an updated UI for the smart charging case, which is packed with more features than ever before.

But are these changes good enough to cement the JBL Live Beam 4 as some of the best wireless earbuds that money can buy? Here’s what I think after weeks of testing.

Let’s start by talking about the smart charging case, which is the Live series’ unique selling point. Although it certainly borders on gimmicky, the revamped UI is actually pretty responsive, and is packed with plenty of functionality. You can adjust the ANC mode, equalizer, spatial sound settings, and playback settings, for instance, and 'favorite' certain settings for speedier access.

But that’s not all. You can also access tools such as a timer, flashlight, and a Find My Buds application, and also set a background — including a custom photo, which I loved doing. Gaining access to these instruments without needing to remove your phone (or other source device) may be handy in certain situations — like when your device is in a bag or on charge.

As chic as the touchscreen case is, though, I still found myself gravitating towards the JBL Headphones app on my phone — the ease of a larger screen, and the full control available in the companion software made it a more natural choice for me.

The feature-set available is pretty comprehensive just on the case though, and marks a vast improvement on the suite of features to be found in JBL's past screen-toting buds. On top of what I’ve already mentioned, you can activate a smart talk option — similar to Sony’s speak-to-chat feature. You can also customize touch controls, and alter how your voice — and the person on the other side — sounds on phone calls (there’s a natural, powerful, or bright version).

Given that JBL has also included ‘Perfect Calls 2.0’ tech, which harnesses an AI-trained algorithm, you may expect primo call quality here, but unfortunately, I found it to be a touch underwhelming. It was by no means bad, but during a call, my colleague noted how my voice lacked the clarity and definition they’d expected. When making a voice recording I found this to be accurate — my speech was clear enough, but there was a fair bit of sibilance, and background noises were pretty prominent too.

But let’s talk about arguably the most important feature of all — active noise cancellation. You can choose to have this on, off, or use a transparency mode, all of which are easy to cycle through in-app or on the smart charging case.

But just how good is the ANC on these earbuds? Well… it’s decent. We weren’t blown away by noise the cancelling on the JBL Live Beam 3, and despite some improvement, I still found them a little prone to letting external noise creep in. Whether it was passing by traffic, typing in my office, or chatter on buses, I could still hear a fair bit, even when listening at around 70% volume. The Beam 4 still dulled sounds effectively, and kept me focused on my tunes, but if you’re expecting the silence-inducing ANC of the Bose QuietComfort Ultra Earbuds Gen 2, for instance, then you may be disappointed.

Anyway, I think it’s about time I started giving the JBL Beam 4 their flowers, because they impressed me in almost every other area — including what is arguably the most crucial of all: sound quality. These are a fantastic-sounding pair of wireless buds, especially with LDAC activated for higher-resolution Bluetooth streaming.

Right out of the box, the Live Beam 4 offer exciting, impactful, yet detailed audio. As is usually the case with JBL audio gear, the bass is fairly forward, but not to the point that it’s distasteful or ‘boomy’.

For instance, tuning into Soul Mass Transit System’s Feel Da Vibe, I was struck by the deep, hypnotic bassline, which rippled throughout the track effortlessly, never sounding lethargic or unrefined. In addition, synths in the mid-range and drums up high never sounded drowned out or obscured by the hard-hitting bass.

More stripped-back, acoustic tracks sound great on the Live Beam 4 too. For example, in 78 Rotações by Jards Macalé, fingerpicked guitars sounded expressive and vibrant, and the natural tonality of the raw playing was replicated with finesse. Sure, vocals could have been separated in the mix a bit more effectively, but I still really enjoyed the listening experience overall — subtle percussive elements and guitar licks sounded were positioned brilliantly, and the buds’ broad soundstage made for a surprisingly immersive presentation.

All in all, I’d argue that these are some of the best-sounding earbuds in their price range. Treble is controlled yet vivid enough to capture the excitement of more energetic tracks, mids are detailed and clean-sounding, and bass is impactful yet disciplined. One thing, though: keep Spatial Sound off. This setting only made my music sound compressed, and vocals sound artificial and shrill. You also have to turn LDAC off to use it, so I’d steer clear, personally.

Something else I really liked about the Live Beam 4 is their design. Their stems make them easy to remove from your ears, and the glossy finish on the exterior is pretty enticing. The case itself is pretty neat-looking too and is built to a very high standard. The display itself is fairly bright, and although the case is on the bulky side overall, it’s still small enough to slot into just about any pocket.

In the ear, the buds also feel phenomenally comfortable and secure. I never felt the need to take them out, even when listening to music for hours on end — something I honestly can’t say about a lot of competitors. They’re also IP55 dust and waterproof-rated, meaning I was able to use the Beam 4 even if it was pouring with rain outside.

So are the JBL Live Beam 4 worth their £179.99 / AU$269.95 (about $240) asking price? For me, it’s a resounding yes. They offer genuinely sophisticated sound, a really comfortable in-ear fit, and plenty of features to play around with. The smart case — though admittedly a bit of a gimmick — is responsive and a fun inclusion, and I enjoyed setting a custom background, using the built-in applications, and having swift access to EQ settings, for example.

The battery life — although unchanged from the previous gen — is still plentiful too, 12 hours for the buds, and up to 48 hours with the charging case is better than you’re getting from Apple and Bose’s flagship earbuds.

So, even if the ANC and call quality could be better on the JBL Live Beam 4, they still earn my hearty recommendation, and if you want wireless earbuds that come with a unique twist, they’re well worth checking out.

JBL Live Beam 4 review: price & release date

• List price of £179.99 / AU$269.95 (about $240)
• Revealed in May 2026

The JBL Live Beam 4 were revealed in May 2026, about two years after their predecessor, the JBL Live Beam 3. They come in at £179.99 / AU$269.95 (about $240), meaning they cost the same as the previous gen model did at launch (in the UK). We’re yet to receive any information about pricing or a launch in the US, but we’ll update this review if and when we hear more.

They’re priced competitively, coming in at a lower cost than top-tier rivals like the AirPods Pro 3 and the Bose QuietComfort Ultra Earbuds Gen 2.

JBL Live Beam 4 review: specs

Should I buy the JBL Live Beam 4?

Buy them if…

Don’t buy them if…

JBL Live Beam 4 review: also consider

How I tested the JBL Live Beam 4

• I tested over the course of multiple weeks
• Mainly used Tidal when assessing audio quality
• Took with me on walks, public transport, and to the office

I spent multiple weeks testing the JBL Live Beam 4, and took them with me just about everywhere I went. This meant that I was able to test the buds’ noise cancelling in a wide variety of environments, including buses, the office, and while on walks in my city.

When assessing audio quality, I mainly used the music streaming app, Tidal, which supports higher-resolution streaming. I did also dip into Spotify from time to time, however. During my time with the Beam 4, I made sure to cycle through the TechRadar testing playlist, which features tracks from a wide variety of genres, but I also bumped a ton of tunes from my personal library as well.

More generally, I’ve spent years testing audio gear here at TechRadar, and have reviewed everything from hulking party speakers to audiophile-friendly wired and wireless headphones. I’ve also tested several pairs of wireless earbuds from the likes of LG and Sony, so I know exactly what it takes for a product to stand out in this competitive segment of the market.

• Read TechRadar’s reviews guarantee
• First reviewed: August 2026

aloSIM covers 200+ destinations with prepaid data starting at around $3.50 per week, and, unlike most travel eSIM providers, many qualifying plans include a phone number through its sister app, Hushed.

aloSIM: Plans and pricing

You can buy aloSIM data by single country, by region, or through the Global plan, either as fixed data with a set validity window or as a per-day unlimited plan.

The unlimited plans cap full-speed data at 2 GB a day. After that, speeds drop to 512 Kbps until the next day resets. That's fine for maps and messaging, but it'll slow down video calls.

If you're crossing borders on a single trip, regional or Global plans usually save money compared to buying a new eSIM at each stop, as long as your route stays within the countries covered by each bundle.

Here’s what the pricing looks like for the popular regions:

Frequent travelers also earn 5% back in aloCASH on every purchase, with credit that stays valid for a year and rolls over into future eSIM purchases. But the real reason to pick aloSIM over competitors like Airalo or Saily isn't the price. It's the bundled Hushed number.

What makes aloSIM different?

aloSIM comes with a real phone number through Hushed, an eSIM profile that never expires, free hotspot sharing on every plan, and an app that runs smoothly across supported devices. Most competitors offer one or two of these. aloSIM bundles all four, and that's really the whole case for choosing it over a plain data-only eSIM.

Real phone number

Qualifying plans include a free US or Canadian number through Hushed, with calls, texts, and voicemail working over Wi-Fi or mobile data. Claim it from your aloSIM account after purchase, under Calling and Texting.

You get $3 in credit to start, then it's pay-as-you-go or a subscription. It doesn't matter if your trip has nothing to do with North America either; the number still works for calling and texting anywhere in the world once it's active. This matters most for calling a hotel or rental agency, not just messaging friends on WhatsApp.

Reusable eSIM profile

Once installed, the profile stays on your device permanently, not just for the current trip. Return to the same country six months or a year later, and there's no reinstall, no new QR code, no re-entering settings. You just buy another data plan and top up the existing profile. For frequent flyers to the same handful of destinations, this alone cuts real setup time.

Free hotspot sharing

Every plan includes tethering at no extra cost, so a laptop or tablet can piggyback off your phone's data without a separate purchase. Most competitors either charge for this or cap it at a daily limit. aloSIM doesn't meter it separately, though heavy hotspot use will still draw down your plan's regular data allowance faster.

The aloSIM app

Most day-to-day account management, plan purchases, and eSIM installs occur through the app rather than the website. A couple of features are worth knowing before you download it. Real-time usage notifications flag when you're running low on data, so you don't get stranded mid-trip. Automatic installation skips the QR code entirely on supported devices, pushing the eSIM straight onto your phone with a single tap.

aloSIM: Installation and activation

If you've never used an eSIM before, aloSIM's step-by-step guide walks you through choosing your device model and the installation process, making setup one of the more beginner-friendly experiences available.

Setup takes about two minutes if your phone is already unlocked and eSIM-ready:

• Check: Dial *#06# and look for an EID number. If it's there, your phone supports eSIM. aloSIM also has a device checker on its site if you'd rather skip the dialing.
• Shop: Pick a destination, choose a data size, and pay in the app or on the website.
• Install: If you're buying through the mobile app, the 'Automatic Installation' button installs the eSIM directly on your device without scanning anything. On desktop, you'll scan a QR code instead. Stay on home Wi-Fi so the install doesn't glitch out.
• Activate: Decide whether your regular SIM stays active for calls, or you go fully dual-data with aloSIM handling everything. The eSIM connects automatically once your phone picks up a partner network at your destination.

aloSIM: Compatible devices

Most eSIM-capable phones from the last five or six years will work. If your phone is tied to a payment plan or locked to a carrier, none of this matters until it's unlocked. Check the full compatibility list if your phone is older or less common.

Here's the rundown by brand:

aloSIM: Support

Support is available 24/7 via live chat, with a help center covering installation, activation, compatibility checks, and APN troubleshooting.

The refund policy covers two specific situations: your phone doesn't support eSIM, or you can't connect to a local network once you land. You'll need your original receipt and a short explanation of what happened. For connection issues, support will walk you through basic troubleshooting first, before approving anything. It's not a change-of-mind policy, and it won't help if you've already burned through your data.

And if you bought through a third-party voucher bundle like StackCommerce, the sale is final the moment you redeem the code in-app.

Think of it as a fair policy, but not a generous one. aloSIM will make you right if the eSIM genuinely doesn't work, but it won't cover buyer's remorse or a plan you simply didn't use. For a $5-$10 purchase, that's a reasonable trade.

aloSIM: Final verdict

aloSIM isn't necessarily the cheapest travel eSIM, but it's one of the few that combine reliable international data with a genuine calling solution. It's a good option for travelers who expect to call hotels, rental agencies, tour operators, or receive verification texts while abroad.

If none of that applies to you and you only need mobile data, Airalo or Saily will save you money. But the moment you need to make an actual phone call abroad, aloSIM is the one built for it.

aloSIM: FAQs

easySim is part of the easy® family, the same group behind easyJet and easyHotel, which makes it feel more trustworthy than most newer eSIM brands walking in cold. Plans start at $3.99, work in 200+ countries, and let you share data via a hotspot with no monthly fees or SIM swaps. The catch is that it's data-only, so no calls or texts. But for most UK and European trips, it's a simple, safe choice.

easySIM: Plans and pricing

Prices shift by destination, since some countries cost easySim more to license data for than others; that's the country breakdown above. Buying by continent instead? Regional plans follow the same logic, and here's what the smallest bundle (1GB, 7 days) starts at across each one:

The European regional plan covers 36 countries, including France, Germany, Spain, Italy, Greece, Portugal, Switzerland, and Turkey. Check the full list on easySim's website before buying if your destination is less common.

For most travelers, fixed-data plans are the better pick. A 5GB or 10GB plan covers a typical one-or two-week trip without any slowdowns. Unlimited plans suit longer stays or heavy daily use, but if streaming is part of your routine, a large fixed-data plan will serve you better than the throttled unlimited tier.

easySIM: Key features

easySim keeps things simple. There's no plan store to dig through, and once the eSIM is installed, you top up whenever you need more data without touching the setup again. You'll get an alert once you've used 80% of your allowance, and if you lose your phone, easySim can disable the eSIM remotely so it's not sitting there exposed.

I also like easySim for the way its hotspot and network access function. Fixed-data plans come with fully unlimited hotspot, no daily cap the way Holafly imposes one, so you can share your entire allowance with a laptop or another device without watching a counter.

And in key markets like Spain and the UK, easySim switches between multiple local carriers instead of locking you to one, which matters more than you'd think until you're standing somewhere with one bar of signal.

easySIM: Installation and activation

Setup takes about five minutes, and you'll be done before the kettle boils. Install the eSIM before you travel so you can sort out any issues while you're still on Wi-Fi.

Here's the four-step process:

• Check compatibility: Dial *#06# on your phone. If you see an EID number next to your IMEI, your phone supports eSIM. Also confirm it's carrier-unlocked. easySim's website has a compatibility checker if you're unsure by model.
• Buy a plan: Go to easysim Global, pick your destination and data size (starting at $3.99), then pay.
• Install the eSIM: Your account shows a QR code or tap-to-install link within ten minutes. On iPhone: Settings, Mobile Data, Add eSIM. On Android: Settings, Connections, SIM Manager, Add eSIM. Stay on Wi-Fi for this step to avoid setup issues, then set easySim as your active mobile data line.
• Activate on arrival: Enable data roaming for easySim, the step most people miss, and it won't connect abroad without it. Turn off roaming on your home SIM too, or your phone might quietly switch back and charge you anyway. Single-country plans activate the moment your phone picks up a local network; regional plans may kick in as soon as the eSIM is installed.

easySIM: Compatible devices

easySim works with lots of eSIM-compatible phones and tablets from all the big brands. Every device needs to do two things: support eSIM (not all phones do, even newer ones), and be unlocked from any specific network.

Here's a quick summary by brand:

Recent flagships are reliably supported. For anything older or less common, use easySim's compatibility checker on its website.

How easySim's six-month guarantee works

Most eSIM providers sell you data and wish you luck. easySim gives you 6 months to find out whether it actually works on your phone before it's your problem to solve alone.

• The guarantee covers one scenario: the eSIM can't be installed or activated, and you haven't used any data. Phone incompatibility is the usual culprit. Not every device that claims eSIM support plays nice with every provider, and you often don't find that out until you're already trying. Most rivals give you a much tighter window. Saily voids refunds once you've used 1% of your data . easySim gives you six months.
• What it doesn't cover: slow speeds once the eSIM is up and running or data you've already used up. Weak signal at your destination isn't grounds for a refund either. This guarantee is strictly for activation failures, nothing else.

To claim, get in touch via live chat, WhatsApp, or email, confirm you haven't used the plan, and explain what went wrong. Refunds are returned to your original payment method or to your easySim wallet. Reviewers on REVIEWS.io who went through the process describe it as quick, usually resolved within a couple of days.

This one matters most if it's your first eSIM or you're not fully sure your phone will cooperate. Some Android models are hard to verify in advance, and the guarantee is what takes the risk out of finding that out the hard way.

easySIM: Support

easySim has an AI assistant called Kerry that'll walk you through the app, check your phone for eSIM support, and handle the basic stuff.

For anything trickier, like an activation that's stuck, you're routed to a real person via chat, WhatsApp, or email. No phone line here, so don't expect to call anyone.

The FAQ section covers most of what you'd want to know before buying, including compatibility, hotspot, calls, and texts, so you can skip the chat entirely for those questions. The one recurring gripe is getting past Kerry before reaching a human for the harder stuff. Once you're through, resolution is fast.

easySIM: Final verdict

easySim is best for travelers who want affordable plans, unlimited hotspot, and one of the strongest refund policies in the eSIM market. For most UK and European trips, it's an easy recommendation.

Network availability varies by destination, though. Some countries get multiple carrier partners; others rely on a single local network, so your experience will differ depending on where you land.

If you need a local phone number or calls and texts, look elsewhere; easySim is data-only. And if you want the most feature-rich app experience, Airalo or Saily edge out the rest. For everything else, easySim does the job without the extras you probably won't use anyway.

easySIM: FAQs

Most providers in this space are near-identical. You pick a destination, buy a data pack, scan a QR code, and hope it connects when you land. The real differences between Airalo, Holafly, and the rest come down to pricing and country lists.

Jetpac does something none of them do: it accounts for the part of travel that has nothing to do with data. Your flight is delayed. The gate area is packed. You have three hours and nowhere to go. That's where SmartDelay comes in. Free airport lounge access, triggered automatically when your flight hits a 60-minute delay.

Jetpac: Plans and pricing

Jetpac sells three types of data packs: single-country, regional, and global. All are one-time purchases. No subscription is required. Plans activate automatically when you arrive at your destination.

*Unlimited plans run at full speed for the first 3GB in any 24-hour period, then throttle to 1Mbps for the remainder of the day.

New user offer: Your first pack can be 1GB for $1, valid for 4 days. It is a real trial. Buy it before a trip, test connectivity on your specific route, then upgrade to a larger pack once you know it works for you.

Single country plans

Prices vary by destination. In Japan, as a benchmark, 5GB costs $10, 10GB costs $20, and 30GB costs around $30 with current promotions. The US plan costs $15.99 for 10GB over 30 days and is available via AT&T, Verizon, and T-Mobile. These are fair prices for a destination-specific pack.

Single-country plans work well for focused trips. They activate upon arrival, and the clock starts only once you connect.

Regional plans

Regional packs are the sweet spot for multi-country travel. The Europe plan covers 32 to 43 countries, depending on how Jetpac counts them (independent reviewers land on 32 confirmed). At around $20 for 10GB (sale price; standard pricing varies; confirm on the live product page before publishing) or $34.99 for 40GB (sale price; $70 at standard pricing), it undercuts most competitors that offer similar coverage. Prices reflect current promotional rates as of June 2026 and are subject to change.

Other regions available include Southeast Asia, Asia-Pacific, Latin America, the Middle East, Africa, North America, and Oceania. Each region has its own country count and pricing.

Global plans

The global plan covers 96 countries, a useful number for frequent multi-region travelers, though short of the 200+ the homepage markets. It starts at $69.99 for 30GB over 30 days, rising to $249 for 50GB over 365 days.

It suits people who travel across continents in a single trip or want a single plan that works year-round without having to think about regions.

Unlimited plans

Available in select markets including the US, UK, and Japan. The daily speed cap is the key thing to understand: full speed for the first 3GB, then 1 Mbps until midnight local time. At 1 Mbps, you can browse and message without issue. Video streaming becomes inconsistent.

If you use a lot of data, a large fixed-data regional pack like Europe 40GB (currently on sale for $34.99) often delivers a better day-to-day experience than the unlimited tier.

Jetpac: Features

Jetpac keeps the product focused. The app is clean, the plan selection is not overwhelming, and the features that exist are useful rather than decorative.

• Global coverage: One profile, 200+ marketed destinations. The app connects automatically to the strongest available local network: T-Mobile and AT&T in the US, O2 and Vodafone in Germany, KDDI and SoftBank in Japan. You land, turn on data, and it picks up. No manual network selection needed.
• Single reusable eSIM: Install Jetpac once. On every future trip, you buy a new data pack, and it loads onto the same eSIM profile. No QR codes to scan again, no reinstalls. For frequent travelers, this saves real time over the course of a year of trips.
• Unlimited hotspot: All plans include full tethering with no separate cap on tethered data. Single-country, regional, global, unlimited, all covered. If your laptop needs to connect to the internet through your phone, any plan will handle it.
• Apps that stay active after data runs out: When your data pack runs out, WhatsApp, Google Maps, Uber, and Grab keep working at no extra charge. Running out of data at midnight in an unfamiliar city is a lot less stressful when you can still call a ride. Note: this applies to packs of 3GB and above.
• Paid lounge passes: For travel days without delays, Jetpac sells individual DragonPass passes in the app for $30 to $55, covering 1,300+ lounges worldwide.
• Fast Track security: Paid passes range from $12 to $20 and are available at select airports across Europe, the UK, and parts of China. Discounts of up to 50% regularly appear in the app. Not available in North America.

How Jetpac's SmartDelay lounge benefit works

Every eSIM on the market sells you data. Jetpac sells you data and then gets you into an airport lounge when your flight goes sideways. It's called SmartDelay and runs on Collinson's LoungeKey network, which covers 1,100+ lounges worldwide. The same infrastructure behind Priority Pass and DragonPass, except you're not paying $32 a visit.

Setup takes two minutes. After buying any Jetpac pack, open the app, go to SmartDelay, and enter your flight number and departure date. Register any time after booking, but no later than 24 hours before departure. You can add one companion, and each data pack covers up to two flights.

When FlightStats reports a qualifying gate delay, Jetpac sends the LoungeKey voucher straight to your email. Show it at the entrance and walk in.

Who actually benefits from this? Economy travelers without a premium credit card or airline status. If you're flying Ryanair or AirAsia and your flight goes sideways, you have no lounge fallback. This is it, at no extra cost.

A few real limitations I came across:

• Delays under 60 minutes don't qualify, even if they result in a missed connection
• Weather and ATC-coded delays may not trigger it, depending on how the airline files the reason
• Coverage is strong at major hubs like Changi, Heathrow, and Frankfurt, but thin at smaller regional airports. Check the lounge finder if you regularly fly from a secondary airport.

SmartDelay is included with every Jetpac pack, from the $1 new-user trial upward. No competitor at this price point offers anything close.

Jetpac: Installation and activation

Setup takes around five minutes on an iPhone. Android can take slightly longer if manual APN configuration is needed.

Here is the full step-by-step process:

• Download the app. Search "Jetpac Global" in the App Store or Google Play.
• Create an account. Sign in with your email (a one-time verification code is sent, no password required) or continue with Google or Apple ID.
• Buy a plan. Select your destination, choose a data size, and pay in-app via card, Apple Pay, or Google Pay.
• Install the eSIM. On iPhone: Settings → Mobile Data → Add eSIM. Name the line "Jetpac" and follow the activation steps. On Android: Settings → Connections → SIM Manager → Add eSIM. Some Android models require you to enter APN settings manually. Jetpac's help center lists the correct APN by carrier.
• Turn on data roaming. This step is easy to miss. Go into your mobile data settings and make sure roaming is enabled specifically for the Jetpac line.
• Land and connect. The plan activates automatically when you arrive. Most users are online within two to three minutes of landing.

Two things to get right before you start. First, install on Wi-Fi, not mobile data. Installing an eSIM profile over cellular causes failures. Second, after activation, turn off automatic data switching on your device. If your phone reverts silently to your home carrier's data connection, you will be charged roaming rates and wonder why Jetpac is not working.

Jetpac: Compatible devices

If you are on a recent flagship like the iPhone 17, Pixel 10, or Galaxy S25, compatibility is confirmed. Jetpac's device page was last updated in November 2025 and covers current models.

For any older or less common device, use the compatibility checker at jetpacglobal.com before purchasing. Jetpac's support team also confirms compatibility over WhatsApp in minutes.

Jetpac: Customer support

Support is available via in-app live chat, WhatsApp, and email at support@jetpacglobal.com, with round-the-clock availability advertised across all three channels. Email is quoted within 24 hours; most reviewers report WhatsApp responses well within that, regardless of the hour.

Customer support is the most praised element; users regularly describe issues being closed within 10 to 30 minutes via WhatsApp.

Negative reviews cluster around Android installation failures (almost always solvable with manual APN setup), regional connectivity gaps, and occasional SmartDelay voucher delays. Reddit threads echo this, with iPhone and mainstream Samsung users rarely posting problems at all.

Jetpac: Final verdict

For most international travelers, Jetpac lands in a strong position. Data packs are priced fairly, the single reusable eSIM is a practical convenience, and SmartDelay is the kind of perk that actually changes the experience of a delayed flight, not just something listed on a features page.

The $1 new-user trial is the right starting point. Buy it before a trip, verify coverage works on your specific route, and size up from there. The risk is as low as a dollar.

The real limitations are specific. The global plan covers 96 countries, not 200+. Unlimited plans throttle usage after 3GB per day, making them a poor fit for remote workers or heavy streamers. Android setup is less smooth than iPhone. And SmartDelay only covers one companion, not the five older reviews suggest.

If you need a local incoming number, a truly unlimited high-speed connection, or coverage in very remote areas, competitors like Holafly or Airalo are worth comparing. For the frequent economy traveler who wants working data and airport perks without a premium credit card, Jetpac is the best option in its price range.

Jetpac: FAQs