Articles by Tom Bedford, Contributor

A pair of headphones with Scrub Daddy sponges on the outside of the earcups

Someone built headphones made from Scrub Daddy sponges, and that's not even the surprising part — they delivered 'godly' audiophile-level measurement results

By Tom Bedford Published 24 April 26

An audio engineer has made open-back headphones with an unlikely material, and everyone's shocked at how good they are.

The Samsung Galaxy A57 being held over a field, showing its back.

Samsung Galaxy A57 review: a competent all-rounder that lacks wow factor

By Tom Bedford Published 23 April 26

The Samsung Galaxy A57 has a thin body, clean software, and a good-looking screen, making it great as an everyday phone. But it struggles with performance and photography.

The Honor Choice Earbuds Clip 2 being worn by a woman who's also using an Honor phone.

'Could be the best open earbuds yet' — Honor's new clips solve my biggest open earbud problem, and I'm already ready to hand out awards

By Tom Bedford Published 23 April 26

The Honor Choice Earbuds Clip 2 Pro have anti-sound-leaking tech, to solve a major open earbud woe.

the chord mojo 2 portable dac connected to a tablet and earphones

'Turns out I'm deaf': Someone built a browser tool to test the difference between Hi-Res Audio FLAC and lossy MP3 with your own music, so you've no excuse for getting it wrong

By Tom Bedford Published 22 April 26

This ultimate FLAC vs MP3 tool tests whether your ears can pick out lossless vs lossy audio with the tracks you know best

'Makes the WH-1000XM6 seem cheap' — Sony just leaked elite 'Collexion' headphones, coming very soon

By Tom Bedford Published 21 April 26

Let's make a… Connexion

AirPods 4 with Active Noise Cancellation earbuds held in a man's hand

New research suggests AirPods with cameras can't happen — unless Apple makes a few major changes

By Tom Bedford Published 20 April 26

Researchers have squirrelled a tiny camera module into earbuds that allows your listening gear to see what you see — but don't get excited about AirPods with cameras just yet.

The SoundPeats Air6 HS on a white and pink background.

'Better than AirPods': these rival earbuds boast better stamina, more reliable Bluetooth — and cost a third of the price

By Tom Bedford Published 15 April 26

The new SoundPeats Air6 HS take the tip-less build of the AirPods 4 and make some improvements.

A dusty vinyl, poking out of a record sleeve.

No, you don't need a new turntable this Record Store Day, just use this cheap extra to clean your vinyl

By Tom Bedford Published 13 April 26

Take it from me: a fancy record player won't improve how your vinyl sounds if you haven't tried this cheap extra first

The H20 Audio Ript Ultra balanced on a ledge.

Are these the best-designed workout headphones ever? I used them for a month to find out

By Tom Bedford Published 12 April 26

The H20 Audio Ript Ultra are designed to survive any kind of exercise — but with a few compromises along the way

The Gadhouse Miko Cassette Player on a blue blackground, with some cassettes spilling out.

'Everyone seemingly hates modern tech': this brand new retro cassette player proves the hipsters right

By Tom Bedford Published 10 April 26

The Gadhouse Miko Cassette Player is part of a growing trend of feature-packed physical music players.

The Honor MouseBud Pro with an earbud coming out.

What if your computer mouse ate a pair of earbuds? Meet Honor’s MouseBuds Pro with ‘skin-like coating'

By Tom Bedford Published 9 April 26

Is it a mouse? Is it earbuds? Is it a plane? No, it's the Honor Choice MouseBuds Pro, which you can buy right now if you really, really want.

An array of Cambridge Audio MSX kit arranged around a red bookshelf.

'Designed to be compact': these new speakers are perfect for small apartments, and come from a 5-star company

By Tom Bedford Published 8 April 26

The Cambridge Audio MSX line lets you build your own audio setup, and it's seen a refresh.

The Tribit Stormbox Micro 3 dropped in some mud.

'JBL-beating': our favorite 5-star cheap Bluetooth speaker just got a new model with double the battery life

By Tom Bedford Published 6 April 26

Tribit has unveiled the StormBox Micro 3, with a range of upgrades over a top-rated compact speaker.

A hand pulling out a CD from a collection next to an iPod resting on a laptop

I finally sold my CD collection — and it reminded me why iTunes was better than any streaming service in 2026

By Tom Bedford Published 4 April 26

Here's how burning discs onto an old iPod helped me appreciate physical media.

9 Comments

The Poco X8 Pro Max placed horizontally on a ledge.

‘The longest-lasting phone I've ever reviewed’ — I spent 3 weeks with the Poco X8 Pro Max, and it beats Apple and Samsung rivals in one big way

By Tom Bedford Published 3 April 26

The Poco X8 Pro Max offers a huge battery, and it lasts multiple days without needing to be charged. For many users, that will be enough of a selling point.

The Leak Sandwich 100 on either side of a Leak TruStream.

A 90-year-old audio brand just put out its most affordable speakers yet — and the specs look very tasty indeed

By Tom Bedford Published 2 April 26

Leak has unveiled the Sandwich 100, a more compact and affordable Hi-Fi speaker for the rest of us.

The Oakcastle MP300 on a table, showing a Green Day album artwork.

I tested this super-cheap MP3 player for a month, and I'm surprised to say it quickly became my go-to music source

By Tom Bedford Published 31 March 26

Recommended

The Oakcastle MP300 may be simple, but it does enough that your phone doesn't, to fit into certain set-ups.

Samsung's Hearapy app running on a Samsung Galaxy S26 Ultra.

I tried Samsung's all new earbuds therapy app for travel sickness — and it might actually work

By Tom Bedford Published 31 March 26

Samsung has unveiled a motion sickness app called Hearapy, so I gave it a spin — and it's not half bad, provided you use the Buds 4 Pro

JBL just upgraded two of our favorite Bluetooth speakers — one's big and powerful, and one's cheap and portable

By Tom Bedford Published 30 March 26

JBL has launched the Go 5 and Xtreme 5, two new portable party speakers which upgrade some of our favorite Bluetooth blasters.

On the left, the Samsung Galaxy A37. On the right, the Samsung Galaxy A57.

Samsung Galaxy A57 vs Samsung Galaxy A37: which mid-range phone is for you?

By Tom Bedford Published 29 March 26

We compare the key features of the Samsung Galaxy A57 and cheaper Galaxy A37.

The Panasonic ErgoFit In-Ear in a woman's ears.

'Sign of the times': Panasonic launches a USB-C version of its cheap wired earbuds, because who has a headphone jack any more?

By Tom Bedford Published 27 March 26

Panasonic has unveiled the ErgoFit In-Ears are coming in a new USB-C form. Goodbye, 3.5mm.

The Soundpeats Cove Pro on the left and oneOdio Focus A1 Pro on the right.

I can’t put down two cheap headphones I tested this year — one’s better for budget audiophiles, one’s perfect for commuters

By Tom Bedford Published 26 March 26

For cheap headphone buyers, the Soundpeats Cove Pro and OneOdio Focus A1 Pro are perfect — just for different people.

The Pro-Ject VC-E Mini on a table, with a white background.

‘Small enough to be tempting’: I need this award-winning turntable company’s new mini automatic vinyl-cleaning machine more than I’ll admit

By Tom Bedford Published 25 March 26

Pro-Ject has launched the VC-E Mini, a new vinyl cleaning machine that's smaller and more affordable than past models.

The Samsung Galaxy Buds 4 case and buds on a ledge.

'Some of my least favorite headphones to test': I used the Samsung Galaxy Buds 4 for a month, and one issue makes them very hard to recommend

By Tom Bedford Published 23 March 26

Samsung's mid-ranged earbuds aim to offer an alternative affordable option to the brand's top-priced Buds, but they're not a worthy substitute.

5 Comments

'Perfect Record Store Day prep': Majority's new turntable-speaker combo is surprisingly affordable (and colorful!)

By Tom Bedford Published 23 March 26

The new Majority Auto turntable and D50X bookshelf speakers are affordable, colorful, and out now (just in time for Record Store Day).

Tom Bedford

Articles by: Tom Bedford

Useful links