Category: Reviews
Meet Phantom: the £1400 speaker Devialet don’t need you to buy #MWC15
Sitting in the limousine that Devialet provided journalists to persuade them to listen to yet another sound system, I asked the representative a question. "If your product is sold out almost everywhere," I queried, a can of Fanta Limón in my pampered hand, "why do you want us to write about it? People can't buy it."…
Hands on with the LG G Flex 2: make a fist to take a selfie #MWC15
We tried out the upcoming LG G Flex 2 at Mobile World Congress, including a demo of the 'Gesture Selfie' feature that lets you take a photo by making a fist. Here's our hands-on video: LG G Flex 2 UK price and availability It looks like the G Flex 2 will be out in the…
“Holy moly, I’m in Portal!” – hands on with the HTC Vive virtual reality headset #MWC15
HTC's announcement of a virtual reality headset, created in partnership with world-leading games company Valve (Half Life, Portal, Steam...), took Mobile World Congress entirely by surprise on Sunday. We were all feeling pretty clever, thinking we'd already seen everything they had to show (since most of the HTC One M9 material leaked before the launch),…
HTC Desire Eye review – much more than just a ‘selfie phone’
With a front-facing camera as high-quality as its 13 megapixel main snapper, the HTC Desire Eye inevitably hit headlines in the tech world as ‘HTC’s selfie phone’. But as we go hands-on with the mid-range Android smartphone in our HTC Desire Eye review, we find it has a lot more to offer than just a…
From a clutch bag to a light bulb: 5 unusual ways to listen to music
[nextpage title="Next"] Ever feel bored of just listening to music from your speaker, headphones or laptop, and craving something more? There are actually so many unusual ways to play your tunes that you may never have even thought of, like a pillow and a light bulb. Yes, an actual light bulb. We took a look…
Will a Clarisonic actually change your life?
Spoiler: I do not know the answer Like haircuts, bra shopping or your method of poaching eggs, skincare can become an arduous lifelong mission. An obsession, even, like a rollercoaster of hope and disappointment with no clear end point, carrying on doggedly in pursuit of THE perfect solution, THE answer that will change everything, until eventually…
OnePlus One review: the invite-only ‘flagship killer’ is a strong first smartphone from a new brand
The OnePlus One is the first smartphone from Chinese startup OnePlus, available by invite only unless it's Tuesday. (Yes, seriously). The self-dubbed 'Flagship Killer' has turned the tech world upside down, proving that a £270 phone can boast specs as good as a £500+ model, that a phone doesn't have to have a household name brand behind it to be…
2.9% Neanderthal and proud – exploring my genes with 23andMe #HealthAndFitnessWeek
When 23andMe launched in the UK late last year, the response was split between interest and concern. The opportunity to have your genes analysed, your ancestry traced and your health mapped through your DNA seemed irresistibly futuristic to some, and worryingly Orwellian to others. We took the former view, finding the idea of exploring our personal genome both fascinating…
Misfit Flash Review: Best-in-class activity tracking on a budget
So what's a Misfit Flash? A number of key players in the consumer-facing, wearable fitness market have emerged over the past few years. And, after developing their flagship devices, like the Fitbit Flex and Jawbone Up 24, the challenge now is to go bigger, better and more high-end with added functionality and improved design. But…
ASUS Transformer Book review: a tablet/laptop hybrid that’s ideal for work
At ShinyShiny, we like to give devices a good, proper, hands-on review before we give an opinion. So I've been using the ASUS Transformer Book (model T200TA-CP004H) as my main work computer for more than a month now, testing not just first impressions but how it actually performs, day-to-day, when you're relying on it. I…
