Hey there! Welcome to What Tom's Guide Tested. This is part of a regular column where our writers round up the winners and losers from that week's product reviews. All of these products have passed through the scrutinizing gaze of our expert reviewers, and have been judged. Some are worth buying, others maybe not...
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You know it's been a good week at work when our expert reviewers rave about the products that hits their desk. We love reviewing the good, the bad and the ugly because we want to help you make the right decision by weighing up the pros and cons. But we'd be lying if we said it didn't bring us joy to test 4* or 4.5* products.
I'm Nikita, a reviews writer here at Tom's Guide, and my team and I test and review products day in, day out, to tell you what's worth buying and what to avoid. This week, we were in for a treat. Three products earned the coveted Editor's Choice award. Erin, our in-house audio expert, got to test the Soundcore Space One Pro headset which she liked so much, she almost ditched her beloved AirPod Pro 2s. I got to test the Sony ZV-1F, one of the best cameras for vlogging, and I was very impressed with its pro-level capabilities on a budget.
Erin also reviewed a men's hairdryer which puzzled her at first but once she tested it, she couldn't help but award it 4*. And I got to spend some time with an all-metal keyboard.
Have you been thinking of buying any of these? Fret not, we're here to help make that decision easier. Read on to see what we reviewed this week, and don't forget to check out last week's round-up.
What Tom's Guide tested this week: Highlights of the week
Sony ZV-1F ★★★★½
Stepping up from smartphone photography can seem daunting because of how expensive the best cameras seem at first. And you have to consider a few things: what kind of sensor do you want? 4K or 8K video? And does it fit your budget? Well, Sony's come up with a solution: the Sony ZV-1F. This is the perfect vlogging camera for beginners on a budget, thanks to its straightforward control scheme. It's so easy to use and makes the transition from smartphones to cameras seamless.
Why I loved the ZV-1F even though it isn't weather-sealed and don't have in-body image stabilization, you ask? First, it would be unreasonable to expect those features for just $499. What you do get, though, is a compact and portable camera that you can easily slip into your pocket, and vlogging-specific features, like Product Showcase. You can see how this works above. The camera focuses on the subject closest to the lens, blurring everything else, making this camera perfect for product unboxing videos and reviews.
You also get a useful Background Defocus button which, in simple terms, creates a bokeh effect. You'll usually find these features (that make content creation easy) in pricier Sony cameras, like the ZV-E10 II ($999) or the a6700 ($1,400), so I love that the company isn't skimping on quality at lower prices.
Of course, you get 4K/30P video which is smooth and stable thanks to Active SteadyShot (electronic stabilization), 20.1MP detailed stills, 10 Creative Looks (filters) to experiment with, and the ability to shoot in S-Log 3 to capture a wider dynamic range for more freedom in post-production. I love this small, cutesy camera — this is vlogging extremely simplified.
Soundcore Space One Pro ★★★★½
What elevates a pair of mid-range headphones from 'meh' to excellent? I’ve reviewed countless mid-range cans at this point, but none stick out to me as much as the Soundcore Space One Pro. Sure, JBL’s offerings in the mid-range over-ears are fine, there have been some Baseus and EarFun headphones that were downright laughable, and a set of budget JLabs I actually really commended.
However, none of them come close to the Space One Pro. Soundcore (Anker’s offshoot audio brand) has really outdone itself here: not only do the headphones look a treat and feel comfy as heck, they also sound like much, much pricier cans.
So often, wireless headphones are so pumped up full of bass that you lose a lot of clarity, and some tracks and genres tend to feel muddled. Not on the Space One Pros though. Whether I listened to the world’s haziest shoegaze track or an electro-pop hit with layered synth notes, I could hear every sonic vibration in my soul. Not only do these headphones sound great, but they come with a truckload of features: LDAC and aptX support, a great personalized EQ (that actually makes music sound good), 60 hour+ battery life, and wired playback.
It’s a no-brainer for me: these could be some of the best mid-range headphones on the market today.
By Erin Bashford — Read Erin’s full Soundcore Space One Pro review.
Keychron Q7 ★★★★½
I'm a nerd (surprise!) and get excited when one of the best mechanical keyboards hits my desk. This week, the Keychron Q7 won me over with its all-metal construction and super smooth, super soft typing experience. The 'board is made of full CNC machined aluminum which means it's heavy, weighing 4.01lbs. But that's okay — I don't plan on going travelling with it anyway. And its full-metal construction makes it a robust piece of machinery which is made better with the double-gasket design and layers of acoustic foam which eliminates metallic pings.
This is a 70% keyboard so it's best-suited to casual gaming, especially with its 1,000Hz polling rate. Whether I was taking down monsters in Lies of P or executing perfectly timed headshots in Counter-Strike 2, I could fully rely on the Q7 — and there weren't any latency issues or missed inputs.
Typing is my bread and butter and boy is the Q7 stunning to type on. The new OSA-profile double-shot PBT keycaps make it very comfortable to type on, and the super responsive Gateron G Pro Red linear switches are rapid and work like a charm. If there's only one keyboard I had to use for the rest of the year, I'd happily answer with, "The Q7" — for now, at least.
By Nikita Achanta — Read Nikita's full Keychron Q7 review.
Heist 3.0 Men’s Hair Dryer ★★★★
Although dubious what makes this a men's hair dryer (Heist has claimed it’s because the dryer is oriented towards short hair and focuses on scalp protection), the Heist 3.0 Hair Dryer is an objectively good one. The 3.0 is an ionic dryer, which means it emits positive and negative ions during heating to tame static hair and control flyaways.
During testing, this resulted in smooth, silky hair. Not only does it tame frizz adeptly, it also makes light work of drying an entire head of hair. I’ve got quite fine hair and it took me from sopping wet to about 80% dry in under ten minutes. When I tested this on my boyfriend, it took me 10 minutes to dry a quarter of his hair — but he has thick, dense, low-porosity hair. He has about as much hair in a square inch of his scalp as I have on my whole head.
So while I’m pretty certain that this hair dryer is not solely for men, merely marketed towards men, it does perform exceptionally well. While designed for short hair (which women can have), it works on both short and long barnets, and I had a fantastic time testing this ionic dryer.
By Erin Bashford — Read Erin’s full Heist 3.0 Men’s Hair Dryer review.
Bose QuietComfort (2024) ★★★★
This review is from a couple weeks ago but was missed in the weekly round-ups. Back in 2021, I owned a pair of the original Bose QuietComfort Earbuds, and I loved them to death… until I lost the charging case on a train and found out that I couldn’t order a replacement.
Four years later, I’ve had the pleasure of testing the 2024 iteration and I don’t want to use any other pair (as of now). The new QuietComfort Earbuds are fantastic all around, offering best-in-class active noise cancelation, outstanding sound quality with basslines you can feel in your jaw, and comfort for hours. That QuietComfort moniker is no joke!
Unlike most earbuds, the QuietComfort Earbuds sport a rounded design with rubber bands that make them very comfortable to wear for extended periods of time. They have a solid 8.5-hour battery life, and come with a very detailed companion app to customize them to your liking.
But the main event is the sound quality and ANC, and boy do they sound mindblowing across a range of genres. Thumping basslines, crystal clear vocals, balanced lows, mids and highs make the QuietComfort Earbuds hard to beat.
The ANC is fantastic too, and it drowns out most sounds — say goodbye to getting a headache on a busy commute.
This isn’t to say the earbuds are perfect, and there are a few factors that kept the QuietComfort Earbuds from earning the Editor’s Choice award. Sorry audiophiles, there’s no support for aptX or lossless. The charging case feels a little flimsy which is disappointing considering these earbuds cost $179. Also, they’re too sensitive to voice commands, which I ended up disabling altogether.
They’re still awesome though, and I think it’ll be a while until I find a better pair.
By Nikita Achanta — Check out Nikita's full Bose QuietComfort Earbuds (2024) review.
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