Techtober could have come to an finish, however our evaluations staff remains to be exhausting at work with this fall’s haul of latest gadgets. During the last two weeks, we’ve examined two new Apple merchandise, a robust gaming handheld, some significantly spectacular headphones and Meta’s sporty good glasses — and that’s simply the beginning. Learn on to atone for all you would possibly’ve missed, together with our picks for the very best of 2025.
Apple MacBook Professional M5 (14-inch)
Apple
The M5 14-inch MacBook Professional retains every thing we love about Apple’s pro-grade laptops, whereas additionally including in a way more highly effective GPU.
- Sooner GPU than M4
- Glorious design
- Great keyboard and trackpad
- Helpful port choice
- Lengthy battery life
- No OLED display screen choice
- Upgrades can get pricy
$1,538 at Amazon
In relation to the brand new M5-powered MacBook Professional, the query isn’t whether or not it’s a succesful machine or not. The actual dilemma is whether or not to purchase now or await much more muscle from the upcoming M5 Professional and M5 Max chips. “When you completely want a workhorse MacBook Professional at the moment, you may must accept the M4 Professional and M4 Max (that are nonetheless far quicker than the bottom M5 chip),” senior evaluations reporter Devindra Hardawar defined. “However for many creatives, the M5 MacBook Professional provides a powerful stability of energy and portability.”
Sennheiser HDB 630
Sennheiser/Engadget
Sennheiser strikes nearer to open-back efficiency in a set of closed wi-fi headphones with the HDB 630, however they appear extra midrange than high-end.
- Excellent sound high quality
- Excessive-res streaming dongle included
- Lossless audio over USB-C
- Extraordinarily lengthy battery life
- Costly
- Fundamental design with plenty of plastic
- Greatest audio efficiency requires further steps
$500 at Sennheiser
Sennheiser makes use of a USB-C dongle to bridge the hole between wi-fi comfort and audiophile-grade sound high quality with the HDB 630. The issue is that they don’t actually appear to be a set of high-end headphones and the $500 asking worth is steep. “Pretty much as good because the HDB 630 is sound-wise, I also can respect that these aren’t the very best headphones for everybody,” I wrote. “When you crave the very best sound high quality that also provides the comfort of wi-fi headphones — and also you’re okay with a number of further steps — the HDB 630 is a worthy funding. Simply don’t go away dwelling with out that dongle.”
Lenovo Legion Go 2
Lenovo / Engadget
Whereas it is not tremendous inexpensive beginning at $1,100, the Lenovo Legion Go 2 is just like the SUV of gaming handhelds due to its mixture of robust efficiency and unmatched adaptability.
- Good efficiency
- huge 8.8-inch OLED show
- Removable controllers and built-in touchpad
- Comes with a case
- Costly, particularly the Z2 Excessive mannequin
- Massive and ponderous
- Finicky fingerprint sensor
$1,100 at Greatest Purchase
Generally it’s higher to have a utility participant as a substitute of a specialist. In response to senior evaluations reporter Sam Rutherford, that’s precisely what you get with Lenovo’s Legion Go 2. You encounter nice efficiency from a tool with an enormous 8.8-inch OLED show, however the handheld is pricey and ponderous. “Identical to an SUV that may go off-road a few times a yr, you won’t use the Legion Go 2’s full capabilities on a regular basis, however if you do and every thing comes collectively, you understand all that utility is not only for present,” he mentioned. “Whereas the ROG Xbox Ally X is the higher worth, I respect how Lenovo’s handheld was made to deal with a wide range of battle situations.”
Apple iPad Professional M5 (13-inch)
Apple / Engadget
The iPad Professional stays maybe probably the most spectacular piece of {hardware} Apple sells, and it’s extra highly effective and succesful than ever. Too dangerous it’s so extremely costly.
- M5 chip is a big replace for some GPU-powered duties
- Presumably the very best display screen I’ve ever seen
- Extraordinarily skinny and lightweight
- First iPad with quick charging
- iPadOS 26 is a significant enchancment
- Prohibitively costly
- Equipment just like the Magic Keyboard and Apple Pencil Professional make it price much more
$1,248 at Amazon
The M5 iPad Professional is spectacular, however it’s additionally solely too costly. Whereas the brand new chip provides a large improve, the display screen is great and quick charging has lastly hit the iPad, this mannequin additionally requires you to spend extra on equipment. “Except you’re going to use it as your essential pc — all day, day-after-day — and know precisely what advantages you’ll get from the iPad over a extra conventional laptop computer, you’re in all probability higher off shopping for an iPad Air and saving your self some huge cash,” deputy information editor Nathan Ingraham wrote.
Oakley Meta Vanguard
Engadget
Wraparound frames aren’t for everybody, however the brand new look permits some distinctive capabilities that can enchantment to even informal athletes.
- Higher battery life, audio system and sturdiness than Meta’s different glasses
- Redesigned digicam makes photographs and movies extra usable
- Motion button means you are able to do extra with out saying “Hey Meta”
- Hyperlapse clips are sort of jittery
- Extra third-party app integrations, please
$499 at Meta
Meta’s sportier collab with Oakley has arrived, with a slew of options that may persuade you to exchange your motion cam with a set of good glasses. “When you’re a devoted bicycle owner, runner, hiker or [insert outdoor activity of your choice], there’s so much to love,” senior reporter Karissa Bell mentioned. “The digicam makes much more sense for motion cam-like POV footage, and higher video stabilization means you are extra more likely to get pictures you truly wish to share.”
Different latest evaluations
In different evaluations, deputy shopping for recommendation editor Valentina Palladino put the marginally up to date Powerbeats Match by way of their paces and senior reporter Igor Bonifacic went on a gaming spree with the Fractal Design Scape. Igor additionally spent a while with the Galaxy S25 FE and I check drove Amazon’s utterly rebuilt Echo Studio. Senior author Sam Chapman compiled an inventory of the very best free VPNs and printed an in-depth assessment of Non-public Web Entry VPN.
Engadget’s better of 2025
In case you missed it, we introduced our greatest of 2025 earlier this week. We made our picks based mostly solely on the very best assessment scores in a wide range of classes, so there’s a spread of gadgets that made the reduce. Our editors additionally defined why each was the very best in its class, so it is a good alternative to get reacquainted with this yr’s crop of devices and providers.
