We select

Best products of the year 2024-2025

By / 4 November 2024 - 9:00 am
Best products of the year 2024-2025

Every year, the L&B Tech Reviews editorial team reviews hundreds of products within the various categories of home electronics. That’s why it’s always exciting to see which products the editorial team chooses to honour with the title “Best of the Year”.

In the past year, we’ve unpacked and tried more products than ever before. Many of them have given us great joy, some of them have been frustrating to use, and a few have simply been too bad for us to take the time to test them.

But here we’ve collected all the best of those that made it through the needle’s eye in the past year. In other words, the best products we’ve seen and reviews to date. In short, this means that everything you’ll find here are products that we don’t just recommend, but that we recommend most warmly.

We’ve awarded these products a gold medal. These are the products that have excelled in one way or another, or that we’ve been so impressed with that we’d like to own them ourselves.

The gold winners are selected from a long list of nominated products that we have tested. All of them gret products. But what you see here are only the best of the best.

So whether you’re looking for a new TV, better speakers, a proper soundbar, a new amplifier, a better laptop or a new pair of headphones, we have the product you’re looking for right here. Please read our product guide before you buy, so you can shop on a safer footing!

Winners Best products of the year 2024-2025

Bowers & Wilkins 606 S3

Great speaker for the money

Bowers & Wilkins' new 600 Series has been updated where it's most noticeable: the sound.

  • Big, open and rich soundstage. Engaging music reproduction at a very favourable price.
  • Limited dynamic contrast. Requires a powerful amplifier to perform at its best.

In this price range, the Bowers & Wilkins 606 S3 is a standout. It plays music with a quality that is rare in this class and can easily challenge more expensive speakers in the compact class. Apart from the lack of dynamic range, it has clear qualities as an all-round music communicator, and if you avoid connecting it to the weakest amplifiers, you can get a lot of use out of the small B&W speakers. A great buy and well worth the money.

Marantz CD 50n

The CD player of the future

With a CD player and streaming, the CD 50n is perfect for many people. Especially those who value sound quality.

  • The design stands out and the sound quality is exceptional for its class. HDMI is a welcome bonus, and with HEOS, streaming in high sound quality is a breeze.
  • Occasionally slow to respond to commands.

If you don’t need an SACD player, the CD 50n is a better buy than the SACD 30n. In this way, Marantz has created a problem for itself, because the CD 50n costs much less, is almost as well equipped – and has HDMI input for the TV sound. There are only slight differences in sound quality, and both are perfect combinations of CD and network player. The Marantz CD 50n may lack that one per cent in dynamic contrast, but you have to ask yourself if it’s worth paying so much more for so little.

TCL 55″ C655 (QLED780)

Cheap and great budget TV

This newcomer from TCL is a great choice when you want great picture quality without paying a premium.

  • The TCL QLED780 delivers impressive image quality for its price range with sharp details, good color reproduction and good contrast.
  • The TCL screen is a little too limited in contrast and brightness to make the most of modern HDR video. Only three HDMI inputs.

The C655/QLED780 is the latest in the line of affordable LCD panels from TCL. The picture quality is well above average and we were particularly impressed with the contrast and colour reproduction of the TCL screen. Add a well-functioning Google TV user interface and you get a total package with excellent performance for the price.

The model range is also available in a wide range of screen sizes, so whether you’re looking for a new kitchen TV or a large cinema screen, there are plenty of options here. However, the sound is a little thin, so you’ll have to pay for a separate soundbar. A great buy in the budget class!

LG OLED G4 (OLED65G4)

The very best OLED TV

This year's top model LG OLED G4 has received a few updates that make this TV a truly phenomenal imaging machine - perhaps the best we've seen.

  • The LG G4 is an excellent TV with fantastic picture quality, great connectivity and format support, and a sleek and stylish design.
  • The sound reproduction is quite thin and will need help from a soundbar.

The G-series from LG has traditionally been among the best OLED TVs on the market, and this year’s OLED G4 is no exception. The combination of raw and contrasting picture quality, great design and a smart user interface and good design make this an excellent overall package. This year it even comes with a foot in the box (!) – so you can quickly set up the TV. The fact that the price starts a little lower than its predecessor did back in the day is no disadvantage either.

Of course, the LG OLED G4 faces strong competition from the Samsung S95D in terms of picture quality, usability and design. And if the built-in TV sound is an important factor for you, Samsung has a clear advantage. But as a pure imaging machine, the G4 is – by a narrow margin – the best in our opinion. Therefore, it’s a narrow but well-deserved victory for LG in this duel.

All in all, we have no hesitation in giving the LG OLED G4 top marks and our special recommendation. It’s simply a great TV!

TCL X955

A mind-blowing film experience!

Size does matter! TCL has previously impressed us with its affordable big screens. But do they have what it takes to climb into the highest class? The top series X955 in 98" and 115" gives us the answer.

  • The TCL X955 delivers an impressive picture experience with dazzling brightness, nuanced colour reproduction and crisp contrast. A great big screen for sports, gaming and home cinema.
  • Like most LCD screens, the viewing angle is relatively narrow. You therefore get the best viewing experience sitting directly in front of the TV.

TCL has previously impressed us with its large and affordable LCD screens. With the X955 series, they really take the step up to the high-end class. And we have to say that the Chinese manufacturer has succeeded well with its largest and most expensive TV to date.

Technically, the X955 delivers impressive brightness and contrast. The black level is also very good, with very little “halo” effect thanks to very precise and well-functioning local dimming.

Grayscale and colour reproduction is very nuanced, although colour precision is not quite “studio quality” out of the box. It may therefore be worth paying for a Calman calibration on this monitor.

All in all, we can safely recommend the TCL X955. If you’re dreaming of your own IMAX cinema, the 115″ TCL 115X955 MAX could be for you. But the 98-inch is in itself wild enough for most people, and appears to be the more sensible choice of the two – to the extent that a 98″ TV can be called sensible!

BenQ V5010i

Impressively lifelike picture

The BenQ V5010i delivers impressive image quality right from the start with accurate colors and good contrast. An ideal choice for use in the living room.

  • Excellent color performance right out of the box. Best-in-class contrast. Good adjustability.
  • The remote control is a bit sluggish, especially when entering passwords in the Android TV interface. Although the sound from the speakers is powerful enough, it sounds rather woolly and stuffy.

The BenQ V5010i is a projector that not only promises a lot, but delivers on most counts. Its impressive color performance and good contrast make it stand out from the crowd. The user experience is intuitive and the factory-calibrated image quality is a big advantage.

The projector balances high performance with good usability. The V5010i is therefore an attractive package for everyday use and also provides great experiences in a home theater context. The Android TV interface isn’t the fastest we’ve come across, so if you’re a very active user, it might be worth investing in a streamer on the side.

Asus Zenfone 11 Ultra

The solitary top model

The Asus Zenfone 11 Ultra deserves its name, but it's actually not the top model in the range. It is the only model.

  • Thanks to Snapdragon 8 Gen 3, this is one of the fastest mobiles on the market. Priced slightly cheaper than the big competitors. Now finally with 3x telephoto camera.
  • It's still an awful lot of money. In reality, this is a ROG Phone 8 in civilian clothing.

The Asus Zenfone 11 Ultra is an excellent, but also very strange Asus smartphone. It looks like its ancestor. However, that parent is not the Zenfone 10, but the ROG Phone 8, with which it is identical in almost all respects.

The engine in the two mobiles is also the same, the Snapdragon 8 Gen 3. This makes the Zenfone 11 Ultra one of the undeniably fastest mobiles on the market right now. It also makes it expensive, but Asus has still managed to keep the price below €1,200. This makes it one of the cheapest Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 mobiles.

With three rear cameras, including one with Asus’ ingenious gimbal image stabilisation, the Zenfone 11 Ultra is a super powerful phone that should be considered by anyone looking for a high-end Android phone. But mobile buyers are loyal to Apple, Samsung and OnePlus. So it’s likely that the Zenfone 11 Ultra will also remain a well-kept secret.

Marantz Cinema 30

Home cinema at its best

The Marantz Cinema 30 is a wild home cinema flagship, perfect for those looking for great sound, multiple channels - and the best room correction on the market.

  • Accurate and resolved surround sound, Dirac Live makes a big difference, especially in the bass. Great ease of use.
  • You'll always want even more power. No balanced inputs or outputs. Time for a Bluetooth remote control?

The Marantz Cinema 30 is a high-end amplifier for the discerning home cinema enthusiast. It delivers a wonderful combination of powerful surround sound, high resolution and advanced audio processing. The support for up to four subwoofers is particularly impressive, and together with Dirac Bass Correction, it delivers amazing bass integration in the room. Don’t worry, it also works great with two or just one subwoofer.

Compared to its sister model, the Denon AVC-X6800H, they have very similar performance. The Marantz has some slight advantages on the music front and also has a more playful look. The price makes it best suited to those who appreciate a premium aesthetic product.

The Marantz Cinema 30 is far from being cheap, but it provides a top-notch surround experience for people who really want to invest in a serious home cinema.

WiiM Amp

Insanely good

With built-in streaming and great sound, this little Wiim amplifier is a real bargain for the price.

  • Powerful and rich sound. Analogue and digital input, HDMI Arc. Streaming up to 24-bit/192 kHz. Supports Chromecast Audio and AirPlay 2.
  • Few inputs, no turntable input. No Roon support (yet).

This small amplifier from Wiim is one of the very best buys on the market at the moment. The price is as remarkably low as the performance is high. Usually amplifiers in this price range are too weak, too anaemic to play music with conviction. Not so with the Wiim Amp. It remarkably combines power and finesse with user-friendly streaming in high-resolution quality. If we were to be really critical, we could have pointed to too few inputs and the absence of any kind of indicator telling us which input is selected, but that doesn’t change the fact that the Wiim Amp is a sensational bargain.

DALI Rubikore 2

Dynamic stage masters

FIRST REVIEW: DALI has given its close-to-top range an upgrade with technology from the super-expensive Kore. The result exceeds our wildest expectations.

  • Large and very precisely drawn soundstage. That speakers at this price can sound this good is almost outrageous.
  • The playing style leans a little on the popular side. But it never gets bloated. So we're happy to forgive that.

The old Rubicon series stood for really good sound at the level just below high end. And with Rubikore, the ambitions have been raised considerably. Rubikore 2 is quite simply the best two-way compact speaker in the price range I’ve heard. As a tester, I could perhaps wish for a slightly more monitor-like sound in the upper bass. But for music enjoyment, it works perfectly. And all criticism is silenced when you experience the acoustic scene the small speakers paint: clear, crisp and full of detail. If the larger members of the series are as good, it ought to be a success.

Argon Audio Forte A4 WiFi

Now you can listen to hi-fi without cable

The Argon Forte series has been upgraded with Wi-Fi and multi-room. It makes a big difference.

  • Sounds almost indecently good for the price. Really nice voice reproduction. Now with multi-room and music streaming.
  • No sub-bass. If you want to play loud in large rooms, this is not the speaker for you. Costs a third more than the version without Wi-Fi.

The Argon Audio Forte A4 WiFi is a very successful speaker set that adds new capabilities to its already excellent predecessors. Among true active stereo speakers in its price range, Argon is virtually unrivalled. The Wi-Fi model is slightly more expensive than the Bluetooth-only version, but the addition of multi-room and music streaming more than justifies the price difference. And if you don’t need that, the standard version is still available. Bass reproduction is as good as you’d expect from a tiny speaker unit in a tiny enclosure, but if you’re playing in even medium-sized rooms, a subwoofer will be necessary. Or consider buying the larger A5 model.

Radiant Acoustics Clarity 6.2

Pure like spring water

FIRST REVIEW: Nordic Hi-Fi, the company behind Argon Audio, has launched a new speaker brand - with technology from Lyngdorf, but a less daunting price tag.

  • It's rare to find a speaker so free from colouration and distortion. Deep bass in a mini cabinet. They're not inexpensive, but they sound like more.
  • The playing style is bare and naked, so if you prefer a warm and charming reproducer, you may want to look elsewhere. Requires a powerful amplifier.

Peter Lyngdorf’s mission with Radiant Acoustics Clarity 6.2 was to bring technologies from his companies, and not least Purify, down to a price point where more people can participate. The result is a very unique speaker. And a speaker that doesn’t compromise in many places. The drivers and cabinet are of a quality that you would normally have to pay twice as much for. Or more.

If you are looking for charm (which Peter Lyngdorf would probably call distortion), this is not the speaker for you. What comes out of it is very much what goes into it. Distortion and colouration are very, very low and you’re listening more to the rest of the chain than to the speakers.

This places demands on the amplifier, which must also have a good amount of raw power and dynamic range to make the very heavily driven speakers perform at their best. If you have the right equipment and can live with the striking appearance, the Clarity 6.2 can be a great buy.

Bose QuietComfort Ultra Headphones

Bose is back at the top

Bose QuietComfort Ultra Headphones are really good and also support lossless audio via Bluetooth.

  • Full and rich bass, effortless playing style. aptX Lossless! Among the best for noise cancellation.
  • Subdued midrange. Slightly tame dynamics.

The Bose QuietComfort Ultra is a successful new top model from Bose. It focuses on sound quality, noise reduction and customisation. Whilst not necessarily setting new standards in all areas, they represent a significant effort by Bose to keep up with and in some cases surpass the competition. A great choice for those looking for quality and reliability in their audio equipment.

Dali iO-12

Absolutely pure sound

The Dali iO-12 is among the most expensive wireless headphones we've tested. Can they really be worth that much?

  • Super clean and dynamic sound. And they're just as good when used as passive head-fi on your home stereo. Luxury down to the smallest, subtle detail.
  • Relatively heavy. No app and only one noise cancellation setting. On the other hand, nothing needs to be adjusted.

The Dali iO-12 are noise cancelling headphones in a price range that borders on hubris. You can get excellent ANC headphones for less than half the price. In fact, we’ve only tested two other wireless headphones in the same price range, the Focal Bathys and the Mark Levinson No. 5909. These are excellent competitors, with the Dali probably most similar to the Focal Bathys in their ability to reproduce dynamics. We haven’t pitted the two directly against each other, but the iO-12 stands out as one of the cleanest and most undistorted I’ve ever worn on my head. At least if we limit the field to wireless headphones and thus exclude the insane Sennheiser “Orpheus” HE1, which you cannot even afford to dream about.

The ability to play even better with cable – and best of all with everything switched off – is an unexpected trump card that makes the Dali iO-12 more than “just” excellent wireless headphones.

Roborock S8 MaxV Ultra

Dynamite on the floor

Roborock's new flagship model doesn't boast a stylish design. On the other hand, the S8 MaxV Ultra is quiet and efficient.

  • Efficient cleaning with minimal messing around. Has few problems with doorsteps. Easy and intuitive app. Good voice control.
  • Quite noisy in use. The design looks cheap and the containers have corners where dirt can settle.

In terms of design, Roborock S8 MaxV Ultra looks like an industrial machine. The robot sometimes sounds like this when it’s at work or emptying its dust chamber into the stand. I’m not thrilled with the angular design. I’m particularly bothered by the awkward containers with corners where dirt can collect and the open top where dust will accumulate.

However, design is a matter of taste, so it shouldn’t be the downfall of the Roborock S8 MaxV Ultra. On the contrary, the robot vacuum cleaner is easy and efficient to use. The app and robot are a pleasure for the home’s floors and for the home’s occupants.

My floors, carpets and tiles were generally clean after meeting Roborock S8 MaxV Ultra.

The S8 MaxV Ultra is efficient and does what I set it to do without wandering off into other rooms of the home. The voice control works, and talking to your vacuum cleaner – almost – doesn’t feels foolish. Especially when it responds nicely and obeys.

Wilfa Uniform Black WSFBS-200B + Scale

Solid grinder does it all by itself

Wilfa makes acclaimed machines for coffee brewing. However, the top-of-the-range Uniform WSFBS-200B easily takes control and leaves little room for user preferences.

  • Easy and simple app. Grinds evenly. Convenient with automatic stop. Anti-static metal ensures that ground coffee doesn't build up in the container.
  • No option for choosing the coffee strength per cup or being able to grind a certain number of cups at a time.

Uniform is for users who want precisely ground beans for specific types of coffee. The app is preset to distribute water and amount of ground beans in relation to each other according to the type of coffee.

If you (like me) know in advance how you like your coffee, you can skip the app’s instructions and make your coffee as usual. By doing so, you might end up paying for more than you need.

Conversely, the Wilfa Uniform WSFBS-200B delivers impressively uniformly ground beans, whether you grind for espresso or French press. Which you should expect, because the Uniform has 5.8 cm wide, stainless steel blades of Italian origin. You can see it and feel it.

Ninja Creami Deluxe 10-in-1 NC501EU

Like no other ice cream machine

The Ninja Creami Deluxe challenges established ice cream machines with a technology from the catering industry that may change the way you make ice cream in the future.

  • Many recipes, in addition to the common types of ice cream. Makes ice cream incredibly fast. Impressive texture on sorbet, slushice and ice cream. You can really experiment with your recipes. Lightweight and easy to move in and out of a cupboard.
  • As noisy as a large blender. The ice cream usually needs to be "blended" a few times before the texture is right. Cannot freeze ice itself, but requires an already frozen ice mass.

The Ninja Creami Deluxe introduces a whole new way of making ice cream. The technology is convincingly practical in the home, which is not always the case with technology originating from the professional world. The Creami Deluxe manages to produce a texture as soft and delicious as a traditional ice cream maker.

Most importantly, it’s fast. The noise may be a challenge for some, but that’s the price you pay for the brutal approach. The variations alone, especially slushice, give the Ninja Creami Deluxe an advantage over most “regular” ice cream machines. Once you get used to having a few different ice cream flavours in the freezer beforehand, it’s hard to go back to a regular ice cream maker. The Ninja Creami Deluxe is simply smarter.

Wilfa Dualfry Grill 10L Airfryer AFG-10

The airfryer that can handle large oven dishes

An extra-wide airfryer turned out to be what was needed to make the oven redundant.

  • Huge capacity, even for larger oven dishes. Quick settings can be modified. Grill grid included. Can attain extra high temperatures. Window and lighting.
  • The preheating is annoying. No smart phone app. Takes up quite a lot of space. Cannot be run in dishwasher. Slow warming up.

At first, we were sceptical about the low but extra wide format, which makes the Dualfry Grill take up a lot of space on the kitchen counter. But it’s precisely this format that makes it possible to cook things that don’t fit in a regular airfryer and made the regular oven superfluous throughout the test. Also note the extra high temperature and the grill grate to get a proper surface. However, we were annoyed that you can’t opt out of preheating and that it takes so long to heat up.

Zaptec Go

Small and smart charging solution

Zaptec Go is a compact and smart EV charger for the home. It's a popular model among many EV drivers, but is it suitable for you?

  • Built-in Wi-Fi, smart app control, charger with up to 22 kW. Together with optional Sense, it balances the entire household power load. Affordable, compact and connected.
  • Does not work optimally with the electricity supplier's own smart features for charging electric cars. Doesn't communicate directly with the car, so it doesn't automatically know how much power to smartly manage.

Zaptec Go is an excellent choice for those looking for a compact, smart and affordable EV charger for the home. It’s easy to install, virtually flawless to use and has all the features you need to charge your EV quickly and efficiently. Plus smart power management and up to 22 kW charging power.

Samsung Galaxy SmartTag2

Samsung's new smart tag is impressive

With the built-in AR technology in SmartTag2, it's even fun to find something that's gone missing.

  • Many advanced features to find what's lost.
  • Works only with Samsung Galaxy mobiles.

If you own one of the supported Galaxy models, it would be a good idea to buy Samsung’s own SmartTag2. We’re impressed with the new features, the design and how easy it is to use the tag.

Acer Swift Go 14 (R7-8845HS)

It has almost everything for half the price

The Acer Swift Go 14 is lightweight, has a gorgeous screen and costs next to nothing. Its flaws are few - and they're easy to live with.

  • 2.8K OLED display. Slim, light and elegant PC. Fast enough for almost anything. The price is amazing.
  • A touchscreen would have been perfect.

The Acer Swift Go 14 is a lesson in well-chosen solutions. The OLED display is excellent, there’s plenty of storage space and the processor is really fast. The fact that it doesn’t cost more is impressive. The graphics performance isn’t for serious gaming, but it’s still fast enough for any task you might encounter in the office. And also for editing those vacation videos after hours. A touchscreen would have been the icing on the cake. But at this price, there’s nothing to complain about. Absolutely nothing.

Ajax FireProtect 2 RB (Heat/Smoke/CO)

The smoke alarm that's more than a smoke alarm

Ajax FireProtect 2 is part of a professional alarm system that professionals can install in your home

  • A smoke alarm with all the features you could imagine.
  • Requires an expensive hub to operate.

This is not a smoke alarm you buy to test if you like it. You buy it because you want the ultimate protection for your home and probably because you plan to add more security products from the same manufacturer. In this context, the FireProtect 2 is a top-class smoke alarm. But we’d like to see it in a slightly smaller and more discreet version.

Acer Predator Helios Neo 16 (PHN16-72-97Z5)

More of a good thing

The 2024 edition of the Acer Predator Helios Neo 16 gives you plenty of power and a sharp display at a great price.

  • Very nice i9 processor. 240 Hz QHD display. The price is even more competitive than before.
  • The GeForce RTX 4070 is not a top model. But it's perfectly sufficient.

If you dream of the fastest gaming laptop on the market, the Acer Predator Helios Neo 16 is not the answer. It is, however, the computer you would buy instead of just dreaming.

The Acer Predator Helios Neo 16 is about half as fast at 3D shooters as the best gaming laptops on the market. But it costs between a third and a quarter of those. And there’s still enough power to run the vast majority of games at any relevant resolution and speed. At least as long as you use the built-in 240 Hz QHD display.

This year’s model is very similar to last year’s. But you get a lot more performance for not just the same money, but actually a little less.

Scroll to Top