Becky Scarrott

Becky Scarrott

Audio Editor

Becky became Audio Editor in 2024, but joined TechRadar in 2022 as Senior Staff Writer, focusing on all things audio and hi-fi. Before joining the team, she spent three years at What Hi-Fi? testing, reviewing and generally enjoying everything from wallet-friendly wireless earbuds to huge, multi-product high-end sound systems. Prior to gaining her MA in Journalism in 2018, Becky freelanced as an arts critic alongside a 22-year career as a professional dancer and aerialist – any love of dance is of course tethered to a love of music. Becky has previously contributed to Stuff, FourFourTwo and The Stage. 

When not writing, she is usually throwing shapes in a dance studio, spinning in the air to improve the tolerance of her inner ear to dizziness, drinking coffee, watching football or trying to surf in Cornwall with her other half; an irritatingly good surfer and an even better football writer. 

Articles by: Becky Scarrott

A selection of open earbuds on pink background, taken by TechRadar
The best open earbuds, all real-world tested by TechRadar: open-fit buds to stay aware of your surroundings

By Becky Scarrott

Stay aware with the best open-ear headphones and air-conduction buds for running outdoors, sports, yoga and more.

Mur Mur speaker and AI ecosystem in green, with moss in the background, showing the eyepiece in the top
What if Sims and a smart speaker had a baby? Meet the bijou speaker with a ‘tiny world inside’ — just don’t expect it to play your Spotify playlists

By Becky Scarrott

Part Sims-style society, part AI-generated muzak?

Person holding Sony WH-1000XM6 and Sony WH-1000XM5
The best Sony headphones for all budgets, as tested and recommended by our audio experts

By Becky Scarrott

Updated Our pick of the best Sony wireless earbuds and over-ear headphones, however much you're able to spend.

An array of Bluetooth speakers on table
What are the best Bluetooth speakers money can buy? I’ve tested more than 30 models, and these are my top picks for every budget

By Harry Padoan

Updated Looking for the best Bluetooth speaker money can buy? Here are the top portable speakers on the market right now, all TechRadar tested.

A selection of excellent over-ear headphones, on a red-brick background
The best over-ear headphones for any budget, all tested by our experts

By Becky Scarrott

Updated Looking for the best-sounding headphones? These are the cans you need to get more from your music.

A triple split-image, showing Nothing pink earbuds (a screengrab from the Nothing X app), Meta Ray-Ban 2nd Gen glasses on blue background, and a woman with short hair, wearing glasses and smiling
The great privacy revolt: people are pushing back against the glasses that record, the earbuds that eavesdrop and the TVs watching our lives — here’s what we can do about it, according to an AI research CEO and a digital rights advocate

By Becky Scarrott

'The chicification of surveillance is deeply concerning'

2 Comments
ICYMI split image of Bose headphones, the GTA VI box art and Kojima holding a CD-player
ICYMI: here's the week's 7 biggest tech news stories from our Z Fold 8 Ultra review to GTA 6's Netflix partnership

By Hamish Hector

The week's biggest tech news stories from Samsung, Google, GTA, Netflix and more for August 7, 2026.

A man with blonde hair in profile, wearing three pairs of open earbuds in white, black and coral, on white background
CMF's first clip-style open earbuds are here with a tempting price tag and, thankfully, none of Nothing's flagship surveillance tech

By Becky Scarrott

If the Nothing sub-brand's inaugural clip-style open earbuds can ace the ‘three point fit’ idea, I predict a class-leading set of LDAC-toting buds — especially for this crazy low price

A split-screen image with Qobuz's managing director Dan Mackta and the Qobuz app on a smartphone, with TR's 'On the Record' franchise badge in the foreground
‘You'll notice I do not call it AI music, because I don't think it's music’: Qobuz’s Managing Director Dan Mackta on music streaming’s biggest problem, and how he hopes to tackle it

By Becky Scarrott

‘The whole thing is just a really, really big bummer’ — Qobuz’s Managing Director on the scourge of AI-generated audio in streaming, and why he still refuses to call it music

A split-screen image with Deezer's screen depicting AI content on one side, Manuel Moussallam (Deezer's head of research) on the other, and TR's 'AV Insider' badge in the bottom left corner
‘What we're really fighting is people scripting computers to generate thousands of songs and uploading them in batches to overwhelm, flood and replace’: Deezer's Head of Research on that industry-leading AI-filter — and why we need it now more than ever

By Becky Scarrott

‘Just by relying on some plain signal processing and mathematical tools, we were able to actually detect these artifacts for most models out there’

A car's CD player and burned CDs, on a hot day
How the odd after-market CD player in my mom’s old car helped me deal with the grief of losing her — and why I can’t sell it now (even though I should)

By Becky Scarrott

A shock loss, an old car stuffed with CDs and the Sharpie I used to write the track names on: how recorded music always brings you closer

Nothing Ear (3a) on a floral background, with pink, red and yellow flowers
'Not the USP I wanted': Nothing’s new Ear (3a) earbuds sound good and the ANC is effective, but they hide a troublesome secret I found it hard to get past during testing

By Becky Scarrott

Is everything coming up roses for Nothing's new $99 / £99 noise-cancelling earbuds? Depends on whether the USP sits well with you, I think… 

Status Audio Pro X GoldenSound, next to AirPods or held in a hand, with gold accents showing
‘We’ve actually been using the Harman Curve incorrectly’: GoldenSound's new Status earbuds aim to rewrite an industry standard and, having tried them against AirPods Pro, I like it… to a point

By Becky Scarrott

Status Audio and GoldenSound think we’ve been using the Harman Curve all wrong when it comes to earbuds, and their new collab will prove it

A split screen image showing CDs in their cases on one side and in sleeves in a book on the other
You can't deny it any more: physical music is back in a big way with new sales figures proving it... and no, this time it's not vinyl

By Tom Bedford

Stats prove that nostalgic CD-buying is even bigger than nostalgic vinyl-buying, which could prompt a sea change for some music lovers.

Sennheiser wired headphones on a colorful background showing the techradar logo
The best wired headphones, all tested by TechRadar's audio experts

By Becky Scarrott

We pick out the best wired headphones for big audio upgrades, no matter how much you want to spend.

The earbuds for AirPods Pro 2 and AirPods 4 held next to each other
The dream of AirPods with removable batteries is still seemingly out of reach, and it's all because of a new EU ruling

By Tom Bedford

Apple fans have been clamoring for AirPods with removable batteries to make them repairable, but it's likely not coming any time soon thanks to a new EU ruling.

Spotify managed accounts screengrabs on blue background
Spotify parents rejoice! KPop Demon Hunters need never cloud your Wrapped results again, thanks to Managed accounts launching on Spotify Free

By Becky Scarrott

Spotify just brought its Managed accounts service to its free tier, meaning your kids’ top track need never bag the top spot again

Green Day's Billie Joe Armstrong seated in front of a light blue amp, with his famous guitar, Blue
The American Dream is killing me — until I see Billie Joe Armstrong's new Marshall guitar amp (and then I'm as consumerist as they come)

By Becky Scarrott

It would be hard to walk the Boulevard of Broken Dreams carrying Marshall’s new signature amp, but Billie Joe Armstrong still thinks you should try

The Anker Soundcore Liberty 5 Pro and JLab JBuds Mini on a violet gradient background.
The best earbuds for small ears, all tested by a petite-eared audio expert

By Becky Scarrott

My pick of the best earbuds for those with a smaller ear canal, tragus or concha, however much you're able to spend.

A selection of earbuds held in two hands, above a Persian carpet
The best budget earbuds, all real-world tested by our expert audio team

By Becky Scarrott

The best budget wireless and wired earbuds you can buy today, with options from Sony, Nothing, EarFun, JLab and more.

FiiO M11S digital audio player
Best MP3 player: top portable hi-res music players for any budget, all tested by our experts

By Becky Scarrott

Updated Looking for the best portable hi-res music player? Here's our pick of digital audio players from Astell & Kern, Sony and more.

Nothing Ear (3a) on a table with Nothing Headphone (a) below, both in pink to show the difference in colorways
'You could've given me 10 guesses, I wouldn't have gone for this': my favorite cheap Nothing earbuds finally have a successor, but the USP isn't my idea of 'joyful'

By Becky Scarrott

Nothing's new Ear (3a) don't just deal in the odd use of parentheses and new colorways; there's also on-ear chat recording and a host of new features

Sonos Era 300 speaker
The best wireless speakers, all tested by us — from JBL, Sonos, Bose, and more

By Becky Scarrott

Updated Looking for the best wireless speaker? These are the top TechRadar-reviewed and approved buys to hear music throughout your home.

The top of a Dyson HushJet Mini Cool fan next to a hand holding the Oppo Find X9 Ultra, next to two hands holding a Sony A7R VI
The best tech of 2026 so far — the 21 finest gadgets we've tested this year

By Mark Wilson

TechRadar has spent days testing 639 products across phones, TVs, laptops, cameras, smartwatches and more in 2026. These are the best ones we've reviewed so far this year.

2 Comments
The Steam Machine, a PS5, and a Garmin Forerunner 70 watch.
ICYMI: The week's 7 biggest tech news stories from PlayStation killing physical games to Anthropic finally re-releasing Fable 5

By Hamish Hector

As the USA turns 250, here's the week's biggest tech news stories from PlayStation, Valve, Garmin, WhatsApp and more.

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