Product reviews & rankings

Paid for itself in two haircuts and produced acceptable results from cut four onward — the first three were genuinely bad, and the back of your own head stays a problem.

A $65 bell carried a complete beginner programme for four months and then ran out of headroom for swings — the powder coat, though, wore in rather than out.

A real upgrade on the stickered original and still 13% slower in our own solve averages than a $10 magnetic speedcube — but it survives drops the speedcube doesn't.

Ten-second nib swaps, a clip that never slips and flawless start-up over four months — but the triangular grip is non-negotiable and the F nib feathers on cheap office paper.

Four months of shaving cost $3.10 in blades against roughly $65 in cartridges — after a first fortnight that produced 11 nicks and a real learning curve.

Handled 400 screws, two wardrobes and 43 brackets without complaint, then took four minutes per hole in brick because it has no hammer function.

A $15 watch that gained just over two minutes in six months and needs nothing from you — but the light is useless, the alarm is too quiet, and the strap is already cracking.

Omnidirectional sensing and a genuinely good camera in a 248 g airframe — but expect 20 usable minutes per battery, not 34, and a real cost above $1,000.

Induction heating produces genuinely identical grains throughout the pot and keeps rice edible for 12 hours, but the cycle takes 50 minutes and the melody cannot be turned off.

The best cutting edge we've used under $20, attached to a wooden handle that swells shut if it gets wet and a design with no clip and no one-handed opening.

A 14-second fold into a block that stands up on its own is genuinely class-leading — but it weighs 12.6 kg, rides harsher than a $600 hybrid, and eats tyres at twice the rate.

The Vinylon F fabric shrugs off rain and looks new after five months of daily use, but the flat straps bite above 5 kg and the laptop sleeve has no padding at all.