TechTember (maybe you still call it September) kicked off this week with the massive IFA tech show in Germany, and we've had a team on the ground checking out new TV tech, tiny projectors, and vacuums that can climb stairs, among other delights.
It's an event that helps set the tone for the busy consumer electronics and appliance season – and there seems to be just a little less obsession with AI at the show than elsewhere in the tech world. We’ve been handing out our awards for the most impressive new tech we've seen, and you’ll find out top picks in the round-up linked below.
A couple of weeks ago – and also in Germany – the gaming industry was celebrating the unveiling of new titles and gaming hardware at Gamescom, much of which we got to try – and we’ve been handing out awards for that event too.
If you thought there’d be some rest after all this, you haven't been paying attention. Apple’s big iPhone event is now just days away, and the rumors are still coming in non-stop. Are you ready for an iPhone 17 with a full-width camera module? I’m not. Still, I have to pack soon to go cover the announcements from Apple Park, where I’ll see Apple CEO Tim Cook and co announce this year's big reveals, and get some hands-on time with the new devices. You can pre-game the event by reading our voluminous preview coverage.
AI will of course play a role at that event, though no one is sure just how big a role it’ll be. In the meantime, I’ve been asking AI some big questions, and getting some illuminating answers. I sometimes wonder if soon we’ll all be prompting more than we Google… but I digress.
If Apple unveils ever-more expensive iPhones, then it might be missing the lessons we’re learning from more affordable phones like the impressive new Samsung Galaxy S25 FE and the Google Pixel 10. Turns out you can spend less and get more – or at least get close to what the premium handsets are offering.
You can wind down from this week, or gear up for the rest of TechTember, by diving into our recommendations for what to watch this weekend, and our latest hot takes on Peacemaker season 2 – now that remains one truly unexpected show.
And with that, it’s Cupertino here I come…
Lance Ulanoff, Editor at Large
