Our method

We start with a lot

Everything that catches our eye comes through the door: via reviews, reader tips, trade shows, or press releases. We unpack it, hold it, and see what it does. You can only judge honestly once you have had it in your hands.

We buy big

We spend a lot of time on the web, looking for eye-catchers. Products for efficiency, products that are simply very cool, or that just make life easier. We buy these in volume and let everything pass through our own hands. We test everything methodically. Most of it does not meet the standards we set for our products. We only want on our shelves what we would buy ourselves or recommend to someone else. In practice, that means four out of five products do not make it to our shelf. To give you a complete and clear picture of the products that remain, we describe each one thoroughly: all the strengths, all the shortcomings.

We take our time with what remains

Whatever makes it through the first round, we examine thoroughly. We use it daily, measure what matters, and write down what we find:

• –where the specs hold up, and where they don't
• –what it does better than alternatives in the same class
• –what you only notice after a week, not ten minutes

You read why

For every product on our shelves, we explain clearly why it is there. What we recommend it for, what it does well, and what it does less well. No vague sales copy. The reason is stated plainly on the product page, for yes and for no.

We test what matters most

For products in comparable price ranges, with the same function and real competition, we run head-to-head comparison tests. So you know how products stack up against each other, and which one we consider the winner. Why that is, you can read on the corresponding test page.