T3 September 2015

GARMIN VARIA Cycling safety just got a serious kick up the jacksy – and no, the government hasn’t made comically oversized airbag helmets or day-glo skinsuits mandatory. Garmin’s approach to keeping road riders safe is to target the two-tonne objects around them. It’s launched a smart bike system consisting of a radar and a rear light. The former keeps an eye out for motor vehicles approaching from behind. If one gets too close for comfort (within 140 metres), the radar will alert you via a handlebar-mounted console, while the rear light will adjust its pattern to warn the vehicle of your presence. An optional smart lighting kit adds a front light with an auto-adjusting beam; and you can also daisy-chain two lights at the back for indicators. The bike age cometh! Price…

Rob Carney EDITOR Rob has been travelling the world over the past month, meeting the legendary Quincy Jones in New York with AKG, before heading to Austria with GoPro for white-water rafting. Tough life, huh? Claire Davies ASSISTANT EDITOR Anyone for a jetpack flight? Claire has been tracking down seven tech-flavoured adventures for you to try this month, including the chance to make like James Bond with your own jetpack. Paul Dimery PRODUCTION EDITOR Dimmers’ foray into electric vehicles continues this month, our Production Editor bombing around Bath and Bristol on his Gocycle G2. Find out how he likes it in Our Gadgets (p102). Nick Odantzis DEPUTY EDITOR Nick – or ‘Rhythm’, as he’s known to us (you work it out) – spent a day this month testing the BMW i8 with some lucky readers. See how everyone got on on…

SAVE 60% on a new T3 subscription p58 A true connected home is finally a reality. Your heating can talk to your lights, and your lights can talk to your security system. Hey, some of the tech even talks to you. On p46, you’ll find the best gadgets to improve every area of your home – we’ve put together the ultimate tech pad. Personally, I’d love to live there. Let’s focus on the lounge for a minute, though, as this month we bring you a group test of the latest 4k televisions. We’ve put the best new models from LG, Panasonic and Sony up against each other – flick to p60 to find out which panel came out on top. Moving outside – way outside into the countryside, in fact – this month’s Man…

Kairos Dot Matrix & Icon From $1,199 (circa £769), kairoswatches.com My, that’s a big one! If ‘big and bold’ is your cup of tech brew, these Kairos mechanical smartwatches are worth more than a quick fondle. They’re heavy watches, built for men who like the feel of something swanky encasing their wrists. They look expensive… Both of these models stride into the premium price bracket, but you have options. The MSW (Japanese mechanical watch movement) versions of the two watches are cheaper, while the SSW (Swiss movement) versions cost more. In terms of finishes, both come in either chrome, coated all black or double gold plated. What about those displays? Interesting, aren’t they? The Dot Matrix has a fully functioning display, capable of showing notifications before switching off to unveil the mechanical watch face beneath. The Icon’s…

£1,300, uk.akg.com Woah, they're no shrinking violets... So, you’ve noticed the rather ostentatious gold and black stylings then? On a cheaper pair of headphones from a company that wasn’t AKG, and that didn’t have legendary producer Quincy Jones backing them, we might agree. But the N90Q headphones are so feature-rich, the opulent gold trim is pretty damn fitting. What do they feel like when worn? Sublime. The N90Q's are premium over-ear 'phones designed with memory foam pads to make them comfortable as well as close-fitting. And what about design and performance? To start, they're rocking AKG’s analogue active noise-cancelling technology. They also come with a huge amount of customisation to deliver a truly personal experience – the proprietary TruNote tech provides instant calibration to adjust the frequency response and tailor the audio using a pair of…

£TBC, ztedevices.com I've heard zilch about this phone. Yeah, the "iPhone this" and "Samsung Galaxy that" buzz can be hard to cut through, but the Nubia Z9 is a serious flagship contender from China that's worth checking out. Like today. Like get online now and have a peek. Big words. Can you prove 'em? Yes! And it's easy to do so when the Nubia Z9 has a premium metal body, a cutting-edge Snapdragon 810 processor, Sony-made 16MP rear and 5MP front cameras, and a 5.2-inch full HD display that's truly edge-to-edge – i.e. there are no bezels either side of the screen. The Z9 also runs Android 5.0 Lollipop, so it's fully up to date. Sounds swish. What about special features? Ah, you're one of those types. You need 'special'. Well, you're in luck because the…