T3 September 2017

BONAVERDE BERLIN Here on T3 we like nothing more than a face-distorting-strength cup of coffee. We’re always on the lookout for a machine that’s up to the task, and while we’ve come across some particularly noteworthy examples – bean-tocup being our particular poison – none matches the Bonaverde Berlin’s outlandish coffee-making abilities. As well as grinding your beans, brewing the grounds to perfection and then delivering the caffeinated liquid to you piping hot in a carafe, this coffee beast also takes the raw green beans, packaged and delivered direct from plantations around the world, and roasts them before your very eyes. Forget bean-to-cup, this is plant-to-cup. The whole process is extremely slick: farmers package and RFID tag the beans, you order them and scan the bag using the built-in RFID reader on…

Matt Bolton EDITOR Matt went on a tour of audio manufacturers for a future feature, and now all he wants to talk about is toroidal transformers and how circuit boards get soldered. Please save us. Jo Gulliver SENIOR ART EDITOR Jo’s off on the trip of a lifetime to the Canadian wilderness, so she’s been hoarding the hardier tech we have lying around. At least we’ll find out what can survive a bear attack. Andrew Westbrook OPERATIONS EDITOR Andy’s been sorely tempted by the HTC U11 (p96) and its squeezy edges. The problem is that, as a protector of the English language, he has a natural aversion to anything labelled “USonic”. Nick Odantzis DEPUTY EDITOR Having tested all the gear for our smart home buys (p42), and then even added a smart plant pot (p98), Nick’s house is basically sentient at…

3 FOR £6! Amazing subs offer on p56 You could get a whole automated install going if you’re getting your house renovated, but that’s not exactly something you do all the time. For the most part, people want to buy one thing – a smart bulb so they can have more control over lighting, or a smart smoke detector when their old one runs out. That’s what our main feature on p32 is all about – finding you the easy home gadget upgrades that can be first buys for a lot of people. That said, the real strength of smart home gear is when it’s all working together, so that same feature also runs through what your next steps should be once you’ve got the stuff, and how you can control it through…

Steve Jarratt, space man When we wanted to launch T3 into space, there was only one possible writer: the man who launched T3 in the first place! The mag’s original editor took on our Man vs Tech challenge this issue (p58). Steve May, AV expert Our resident maestro of the audiovisual arts took on not just our complete guide to actually watching 4K video on your lovely 4K TV (p80), but also put together a super-swish hi-res audio jukebox (p20). Ian Evenden, robo fan Testing selfcontrolled robots that are equipped with large spinning blades is brave job, but Ian was up to it for our head-to-head review of the latest automated lawn mowers (p94). Get 3 issues of T3 for just £6! See p56…

£379.99, hihonor.com Good timing: my contract’s up for renewal. Feast your eyes pronto on this glass- and metal-enrobed, Android 7.0 beauty with a 5.15-inch, Full HD multi-touch display. The Honor 9 is causing quite a stir thanks to the raft of tasty tech features it’s flaunting in comparison to that reasonably low price. Tasty tech? Tell me more! Well, the Honor 9 is powered by a Kirin 960 processor, with either 4GB or 6GB of RAM and 64GB or 128GB of internal storage, expandable up to 256GB (microSD). There’s a 3,200 mAh battery with SuperCharge tech for fast-charging, and EMUI 5.1, which “intelligently” redistributes the phone’s power and memory management based on how you use the device. Nice. What else? How about a dual-lens camera with 2x hybrid zoom and a low-light function forcapturing high-res images…

$735 (£562), seed.hym-originals.com Now that looks retro! HYM Seed Audio’s new audio player looks vintage, but there’s nothing old-school about the tech. The Seed is an all-in-one Wi-Fi and Bluetooth system with capacitive touch controls and built-in speakers. In short, it’s all you need to get the party started. Built-in speakers? There are two sitting underneath the record deck. Each speakerfeatures a one-inch silk tweeter and a four-inch Kevlar woofer, powered by a 70-watt amplifier. Vibrations from the speakers won’t ruin sound – the Seed uses a patented Tri-point suspension system to keep vibrations at bay. Does it sound good? The Seed is designed to deliver a warm-sounding vinyl experience with top-notch audio quality. That starts with an Audio TechnicaAT3600 cartridge Hi-Fi MM phono cartridge. While the turntable is tuned to offer a flat-frequency response, you…