Category: Mashable Choice

Google Assistant Lenovo Mashable Choice Reviews Voice Controls

Lenovo’s Smart Display takes smart speakers to the next level with touchscreen

sudshr47 July 26, 2018

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Lenovo Smart Display (10-inch)
$249
The Good

Big • sharp • and responsive touchscreen • Excellent far-field microphones • Good clear speaker • Physical camera privacy shutter • Retro design

The Bad

Kinda big for kitchens • Only has a single speaker

The Bottom Line

Lenovo’s Smart Display is a perfect example of how voice-controlled smart speakers are better with a touchscreen.

Mashable Score4.25
Cool Factor4.0
Learning Curve5.0
Performance4.0
Bang for the Buck4.0

It’s coming out a year later, but Lenovo’s Smart Display is clearly an answer to Amazon’s Echo Show. Read more…

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Alexa Amazon Mashable Choice Reviews Smart Home

Amazon’s Echo Dot 2 is the cheap, voice-controlled smart home hub all your rooms need

sudshr47 July 12, 2018

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Amazon Echo Dot (2nd-generation)
$49.99
The Good

Only $50 • Alexa does everything the Echo does • Small and compact design • Save $20 if you buy two together

The Bad

Weak • tinny-sounding speaker

The Bottom Line

The Amazon Echo Dot still does everything the Echo does, now at an even lower price and it’s not exclusive for Echo or Fire TV owners.

Mashable Score4.0
Cool Factor3.0
Learning Curve5.0
Performance3.0
Bang for the Buck5.0

Amazon’s second-generation Echo Dot is everything the first-generation of the miniature smart speaker should have been: smaller and cheaper. Read more…

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Amazon Amazon Echo Highlights Mashable Choice review

Amazon Echo (2017) review: The best Alexa device yet

sudshr47 July 10, 2018

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Amazon Echo 2
$99.99
The Good

Smaller speaker packs a bigger punch than original • Design you actually won’t mind looking at • Unmatched mics

The Bad

Volume buttons are kind of clunky • Alexa app still requires a lot of setup to get your settings just right

The Bottom Line

Amazon’s second-generation Echo packs better sound and smarter mics into a smaller and better-sounding speaker than the original.

Mashable Score4.0
Cool Factor3.5
Learning Curve4.0
Performance4.0
Bang for the Buck4.5

If only every guest could slide into your life as smoothly as an Amazon Echo.  Read more…

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Google Google Assistant Mashable Choice Reviews Speaker

Google Home Max is the best smart speaker if you love your music loud

sudshr47 July 7, 2018

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Google Home Max
$399
The Good

Max volume is loud AF • Does everything Google Home and Home Mini does • Sick bass

The Bad

Google Assistant can’t hear you well when speaker’s set to highest volume • Finicky touch-sensitive control strip • Twice the size of HomePod

The Bottom Line

Google Home Max is the most powerful Google Assistant-powered smart speaker with the loudest volume and deepest bass.

Mashable Score4.25
Cool Factor4.0
Learning Curve4.0
Performance4.0
Bang for the Buck5.0

There’s only one reason to buy the Google Home Max and that’s to crank the volume up..all the way up. Read more…

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Boosted Electric Skateboards Mashable Choice Reviews Rideables

The Boosted Mini is the best electric skateboard for everyone

sudshr47 May 14, 2018

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Boosted Mini S
$749
The Good

Easier to carry around • Half the price of the Boosted electric longboards • Top-notch build quality • Serious performance

The Bad

Almost the same weight as bigger Boosted Boards • Remote charges with Mini USB

The Bottom Line

The Boosted Mini S is the best electric skateboard for most people with the perfect balance of affordability, size, and performance.

Mashable Score4.25
Cool Factor5.0
Learning Curve4.0
Performance4.0
Bang for the Buck4.0

There are three essentials you need if you want to become a successful vlogger like Casey Neistat: sunglasses, a camera on a selfie stick, and a Boosted Board.  Read more…

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Bitdefender Mashable Choice Reviews Router wi-fi

Worried about Wi-Fi security? This is the router you need.

sudshr47 May 12, 2018

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BitDefender Box 2
$249.99
The Good

Monitors your internet traffic and provides security alerts • Friendly design • Easy-to-use app • Doesn’t slow down your internet

The Bad

Security features cost $99 a year • More notifications • No guest network feature

The Bottom Line

While owning the BitDefender Box 2 means paying more for internet and dealing with some extra notifications, its user-friendly security features bestow something priceless: peace of mind.

Mashable Score4.0
Cool Factor4.0
Learning Curve4.0
Performance4.0
Bang for the Buck4.0

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Facebook Mashable Choice Oculus Reviews VR

Oculus Go review: This is the iPhone of VR headsets

sudshr47 May 1, 2018

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Oculus Go
$199
The Good

Supremely easy to use • Effortless setup • High-quality lenses for a sharp image • Comfortable to wear • Affordable

The Bad

Light leaks from nose cutout • Charges over microUSB • Takes 3 hours to fully charge

The Bottom Line

The Oculus Go is the first VR headset that truly makes it easy to dive into VR without the hassle of connecting a phone or PC.

Mashable Score4.5
Cool Factor4.0
Learning Curve5.0
Performance4.0
Bang for the Buck5.0

I can’t think of a more messy and complicated technology in the last decade than VR. Read more…

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Amazon Gadgets Mashable Choice Reviews Smart Home

Amazon’s Echo Spot is the blueprint for all future smart speakers

sudshr47 December 18, 2017

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Every editorial product is independently selected by Mashable journalists. If you buy something featured, we may earn an affiliate commission which helps support our journalism.

Amazon’s not declaring it a redo, but the Echo Spot, the company’s latest Alexa-powered smart speaker — smart alarm clock is probably more accurate — might as well be one.

The Spot is everything the clunky and expensive Echo Show released this past summer should have been. I’m the happy owner of two Echo devices (the original Echo and an Echo Dot), and thought I couldn’t possibly have room for another, but the Spot proved me wrong. Read more…

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Mashable Choice Microsoft review Reviews Virtual Reality

Acer Mixed Reality Headset gets the VR experience right

sudshr47 November 27, 2017

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The best test of any virtual reality system is how quickly can you forget you’re wearing a virtual reality system? By this measure alone, Acer’s Windows Mixed Reality Headset (and the included motion controllers) is a very good VR system.

Within minutes of donning the headset and finding a VR game to play, I lost myself in the experience. And it wasn’t just me. Each person I asked to try Acer’s headset has the same reaction, especially when I dropped them into the excellent Super Hot virtual reality game.

Said one coworker, “This is definitely the best thing I’ve ever done in VR.” Read more…

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