best buys… Curated picks of third-party kit
If you’re not fussed about 4K but still want exceptional image quality, this IPS display is truly superb. It offers 99% coverage of the Adobe RGB colour space, 10-bit colour and a 2560x1440-pixel resolution. It has HDMI 1.4, DVI and Mini DisplayPort connections, and four USB 3.0 ports for expansion.
With two blazing fast Thunderbolt 3 ports and a 5Gbps USB-C port to boot, the Drobo 5D3 can provide you with rapid file transfers to and from your Mac. You can load it up with up to five HDDs or SSDs of differing capacities, giving you plenty of flexibility for storage options. It’s pricey, but a worthy investment.
The Eco-Tank ET-2600 has a fairly high cost, but its innovative cartridge-free design will save you a ton of money in the long run. It’s got a scanner and copier, plus Wi-Fi and USB connectivity. Replacement inks are cheap, working out at a mere 0.2p per page for mono text, and just 0.35p per page for colour.
We love this display. At 32 inches diagonally it’s big enough to make its 4K resolution worthwhile, and its colour rendering is excellent – 100% of sRGB, 93% of Adobe RGB and 97% of the P3 gamut that Apple’s new MacBook Pro uses. It’s big, bold, beautiful and superb for productivity and colour work alike.
This router has an awful lot going for it. The winner of issue 321’s group test, the Asus scored an impressive five stars in three out of four categories. It performed brilliantly in our tests, has excellent connectivity (with both Ethernet and ADSL options), and it looks great too. It will keep your network powered for years. The Netatmo Presence is an impressive outdoor security camera. Set in a sturdy housing, it’s built to defy the elements. It has a built-in floodlight to deter intruders, and a 100° field of view recorded in 1080p. There’s also an SD card included, making it easy to store and access your footage.
This drive is the fastest portable SSD we’ve ever tested. Freecom claims its write speeds can reach 700MB/sec, but in our tests it blazed past that to reach 713.8MB/sec write speeds and 907.3MB/ sec read speeds, thanks to its USB 3.1 Gen 2 capability. It’s costly, but worth it if you feel the need for speed.
The winner of MF317’s head-to-head review introduces a whole new level of connectivity to your Mac. Equipped with two Thunderbolt 3 ports for blazingly fast file transfers, plus many more ports, you won’t be lacking options to hook up your devices. And it can even charge the latest 15-inch MacBook Pro. Your MacBook needs protection, and the STM Kings backpack is the best way to guarantee that. Winner of MF316’s group test, it cleverly suspends your MacBook away from the floor to prevent bumps. With loads of storage, comfortable straps and a snazzy design, it’s a great all-rounder.