Ultimate Christmas Gift Guide 2020
nuraphone Headphones (£349)
The nuraphone headphones are a defining moment for wearable audio. Harnessing a greater experience that acknowledges more than just one human sense by broadcasting to touch and sound, they produce richly enjoyable personalised audio performances that do justice to entire eclectic libraries. They’re like nothing else on the market. What other headphones at or around the £349 price point can genuinely compare or present an attractive alternative feature set? The simplicity of the design, with the almost perfect touch controls, a gracile yet intelligently crafted hardy aesthetic for real day to day use and auto on functionality, make these headphones a seamless proposition for any lifestyle. Our only concern is the difference between wired and wireless modes.
New ideas and real innovations are bubbling out of the Switch, both from the hardware and its series defining game titles. The modular Joy Con controllers are the essential ingredient to its design, uniting the top notch hardware within the console as a persuasive at home experience that’s equally as compelling on the move. We think that the Nintendo Switch will boldly influence how the next generation of game consoles will look and function.
wavemaster TWO NEO Speaker (£499)
It’s not every day we get to hear a stereo speaker system that can offer rich detail, shimmering highs and boundless bass all at the same time, without distorting or becoming a congealed singular sound. The wavemaster TWO NEO speakers are an excellent full I/O featured follow-up that offer serious wired lossless audio connections for studio work and impressive wireless Bluetooth living room experiences, all in one single design.
Whilst it feels like a smooth pebble you’ve just picked off the beach, the Vivo X51 5G smartphone has more than just its respectable build quality to boast about. Making a lasting impression in an overcrowded Android smartphone world, not because it has 5G, but because the camera hardware & software marriage stands its ground against more expensive Android devices. Of course the attractive AMOLED display, decent performance and a general positive user experience from Android 10 is all welcome. But that camera setup is the talking point and by default straight out of the box will take photo & video in even very low light situations that look good. Colour accuracy is a little spotty, but hopefully with further updates this can be ironed out.
Affinity Photo - Mac (£33.99) & iOS (£13.99)
Affinity Photo is a truly unique application preserving much of core and technical functionality of the desktop Mac version for its iOS outing. We have been really impressed in particular with the performance offered from the App on our 2020 iPad Pro, working with RAW photos captured from the Canon RP mirrorless camera with multiple layers, hundreds of technical edits and text.
DxO PhotoLab 4 Elite - Mac (£169)
This App has become a cornerstone of our photography workflow. Firstly, the ability to organise shoots in tandem with the file structure of our Mac Finder is blazingly fast and straightforward. The non-destructive editing tools and processes are truly exceptional in power and usefulness with RAW imagery. AI elements such as removing noise with the DeepPRIME feature, is the most impressive implementation we’ve yet to see within any editing App. It’s the definite alternative to Adobe Lightroom and after 5 months of using PhotoLab, we prefer it and version 4 has elevated it further.
STM Myth Backpack (£119)
The dependably sturdy STM Myth backpack keeps a busy tech focused lifestyle, along with all the extra bits that come with it, stylishly organised and charged within a compartmental fusion in blissful comfort on the shoulders. It’s now our 'go to' option, setting a new standard that we rely on.
Kigurumi Adult Onesies (Sponsored)
These Kigurumi adult onesies are a fun gift idea and perfect for snuggling up in front of the fire during the cold winter months.
Siemens EQ.3 s500 Coffee Machine (£499)
The most complicated thing about using the Siemens EQ.3 s500 is having to pick out which mug you want to use. This reasonably compact streamlined coffee machine will eagerly make the morning cups of hot java for the family in a rush, has superb milk wand skills with both dairy and vegan varieties, and continues to impress us with its espresso dexterity and straightforward touch user interface that brings the authenticity of tasty coffee experiences into the comfort of your own home.
The Balsam Hill Nordmann Fir Tree excellently captures the character of the real thing. A firm favourite tree type for Christmas within the UK, this variety from Balsam Hill is practical in every way: it always has full-foliage with no falling needles, no watering necessary and it’s pre-lit!
Ooni Fyra Pizza Oven (£229)
When you slice it all ways, the Ooni Fyra is the most encouraging pizza oven we’ve yet to use. A design that’s undemanding to operate, cooks a pizza in 60 seconds and there’s no arduous clean-up when finished. Al fresco culinary dining at its most enjoyable!
ECHO have designed and produced an exceptionally powerful but quiet battery driven chainsaw. It is up to the felling and logging needs of both private garden users and professional consumers and is a genuine workhorse in its power tool category.