15 Cool New Gadgets to Keep on Your Radar

The 2025 version of the MacBook Air looks the same as last year’s predecessor, but Apple has upgraded it with its M4 chip and a better 12-megapixel webcam that supports Center Stage. It also added a new sky blue color option, which looks great. Most surprisingly, Apple has lowered the price; the 13-inch and 15-inch models start at $999 and $1,999, respectively, making them $100 cheaper than last year’s models.

The Dynaudio Confidence 20A are active versions of the Danish hi-fi brand’s Confidence 20 standmount loudspeakers. They have the same two-way design but have built-in amplification and digital signal processing (DSP), therefore streamlining the setup process — just add an audio source. Each Confidence 20A packs 550 watts of power, with 150 watts going to the tweeter and 400 to the mid/bass driver. Naturally, this power and sound comes at a cost. While the passive models cost $13,000, these active models cost nearly double.

The Pro-Ject AC/DC Turntable is the latest addition to the brand’s Artist Series of turntables, each designed to celebrate some of the most iconic musicians and artists of all time. The turntable has numerous lightning bolt designed details — including a giant lightning-bolt-shaped plinth — that take after the AC/DC’s iconic logo. It also is integrated with LED lights, allowing it to glow red when playing records. Despite its unique look, the turntable is designed with high-quality (and heavy) components and promises to deliver an excellent hi-fi sound.

Belkin’s compact USB-C docking station adds eleven ports—four USB-C, one USB-A, a 3.5mm in/out jack, SD and micro SD card slots, two HDMI 2.0, and a gigabit ethernet—to your MacBook. It’s a little beast, too, capable of dishing out 150 watts of power—96 watts for your laptop and the rest for your peripherals. It also has a built-in battery and thus doesn’t require a bulky power supply cable.

The Rotel DX-3 is the Japanese hi-fi manufacturer’s first headphone amplifier, but the company is calling it the “ultimate desktop audio companion” as it can function as preamplifier or standalone DAC, as well. It’s super versatile, with a multitude of analog and digital inputs. It can also work with a wide variety of headphones, thanks to 6.3mm and 4.4mm balanced jacks and user-selectable gain, which can be adjusted for low, medium and high impedances. It also has built-in Bluetooth with aptX HD and AAC so that it can stream audio to wireless headphones.

The British audio maker’s Q SUB Series consists of three different-sized subwoofers: the 8-inch SUB80, the 10-inch SUB100 and the 12-inch SUB120. Each features onboard controls for Digital Signal Processing (DSP) and crossover and a low pass filter with frequency adjustment so that each promises to sound great even when not paired with a matching Q Acoustics home theater or hi-fi system. Each model is available in black or white.

Bang & Olufsen, the Danish hi-fi great, and Saint Laurent, the luxury French fashion brand, have teamed up to revive and restore ten of B&O’s Beogram 4000 turntables, which were originally released in the 1970s. These special-edition models maintain a mid-century design similar to their predecessors but have been updated with wood and aluminum details. And the internals have been fully refurbished and restored in B&O’s Denmark factories. Only ten will be released.

The Audioengine A2+ are upgraded versions of the brand’s 2019-released A2+ Wireless, which have been some of the most popular desktop speakers for years. The 2025 editions of these compact speakers (which have dropped the “Wireless” name) are identical to their predecessors but add the ability to play 24-bit audio and a USB-C input, making it easier to connect to today’s laptops and desktops. Now available in a limited edition matte green finish.

Released in 2025, the iPad (11th-generation) is a refreshed version of Apple’s previous entry-level iPad, the iPad (10th-generation), which was released in fall 2022. The new model has the same design as its predecessor, but Apple has upgraded it with an A16 processor and doubled the base storage, starting at 128GB. Unfortunately, it lacks support for Apple Intelligence, but the good news is that Apple has reduced the price considerably. Instead of its predecessor’s $449 starting price, this new model starts at $329.

Nothing’s third-generation smartphones have a similar unique and transparent design as its predecessor, the Phone 2A, but boost revamped hardware, a new processor and upgraded cameras. Both smartphones have a new physical AI button for accessing Essential Space, a place for saving things like screenshots, other images and voice memos. Both the Phone 3A and 3A Pro are mostly similar, including having the same large 6.7-inch display, but the Pro has an extra lens (telephoto) and a more rounded rear camera bump.

The 2025-released M3 iPad Air is a refreshed version of the M2 iPad Air released the year prior. It has the same design, comes in the same two sizes (11- or 13-inch) and is available in the same four colors. The main difference is that it sports a newer M3 chip instead of M2 (which still isn’t Apple’s newest M4 chip). Also, Apple has introduced a new-and-improved Magic Keyboard accessory for its mid-range tablet, which has an added row of function keys and a larger trackpad.

As its name gives away, the Philips OLED Roku TV is an OLED TV by Philips that comes with Roku’s familiar operating system. It’s only available in a 65-inch model and costs $1,299 — on paper, it’s one of the bang-for-your-buck OLED TVs you can buy. It features a 120Hz refresh rate and boasts support AMD FreeSync Premium, making it a solid option for gamers. It also comes with a 2.1 speaker system that supports Dolby Atmos.

Apple has refreshed its Mac Studio — a beast of a desktop computer designed for creative professionals — for 2025. The new model looks just like its 2023-released predecessor, but Apple has upgraded it with M4 Max and M3 Ultra chips, the latter of which Apple claims is its “most powerful Mac ever.” 

The Xiaomi Buds 5 Pro Wi-Fi are the first wireless earbuds to feature Qualcomm’s S7 Pro chip, which allows them to stream audio over Wi-Fi or Bluetooth. When your smartphone is connected to Wi-Fi at home, the earbuds can play lossless audio up to 24-bit/96kHz with a transmission rate of up to 4.2 Mbps. It’s significantly better than what Bluetooth can deliver. The caveat is that it requires a compatible Xiaomi smartphone to work. And the Xiaomi Buds 5 Pro Wi-Fi aren’t likely to become available in the US any time soon.

Samsung has introduced three budget smartphones in its Galaxy A-Series for 2025: the Galaxy A26 ($300), Galaxy A36 ($400), and Galaxy A56 ($500). All three smartphones are the same size, with a  6.7-inch display, and start with the same 128GB of base storage. The main differences are in their processors and rear camera systems. The standout feature of all three is that Samsung promises six years of software updates.