Rock Jaw Alfa Genus V2

Listen the way you like

How do you choose earphones? In an ideal world, you’d want to try several and pick the ones that sounded best to you. In the real world, it’s unlikely you’ll have the opportunity: even if you have a local shop that sells a suitable variety, they won’t usually put samples out to try. It’s not very hygienic to wedge gadgets inside your earholes, after all.

Palicomp i3 Aurora

A PC with a splash of colour

Like many desktop PCs we’ve reviewed, Palicomp’s i3 Aurora is not only good for gamers but also for anyone who wants a capable generalpurpose system with scope for future expansion. Its simple black cuboid case comes decorated with smokey swirls in red, blue or green, which makes a striking change, and is less distracting than LED lights.

Windows 10: Should You Upgrade? 100 days to decide

With just weeks before Microsoft’s free upgrade offer runs out (possibly), Jonathan Parkyn asks – is now the right time to switch to Windows 10?

Nobody likes deadlines, but for PC users everywhere there’s a very big one looming. July 29 this year marks not only Windows 10’s first birthday, but also the date when Microsoft’s latest operating system stops being free (unless the deadline is extended). Upgrading afterwards would cost as at least £100.

Cubot X17

A budget phone that isn’t technology’s finest hour

This is, according to its press release, ‘the world’s first V for Victory smartphone’. We can only admire the Dunkirk spirit that inspires marketing people to come up with this kind of Churchillian nonsense. Faced with the odds against finding something new to say about a phone – especially one assembled by a Chinese manufacturer from generic parts at a knock-down price – the truly heroic response is a strategic retreat into gibberish.

Samsung Galaxy S7

Best Android phone ever?

At first glance, Samsung’s Galaxy S7 looks almost unchanged from 2015’s S6. For several reasons, however, it’s actually a significant upgrade. Perhaps the most important is the microSD card slot, which lets you add up to 128GB for around £30 whenever you need to. The S7 runs Samsung’s TouchWiz version of Google’s Android 6 ‘Marshmallow’ operating system, which helpfully makes it easy to move your stuff to a microSD card.