2025 has been quite the year for technology to say the least! A bunch of brand-new hardware entered the fray while updated firmware drastically changed the way we interact with slightly older hardware. With themes of creativity and embracing longevity, I asked a few members of the B&H staff about their favorite products this year, and we have a wide range of devices here—from microphones and small cameras for content creation to devices made to enhance the gaming experience, take a look at what makes us tick.
Steven Esposito
DJI Mic Mini
I am a long-time streamer who loves to play games online, but I also love hands-on projects like model building. Unfortunately, the mic I have doesn’t reach all the way to my secondary setup. This is where the DJI Mic Mini comes into the picture! It is a fully wireless lavalier mic system that is compatible with my computer setup. I plug the receiver into my computer’s front-panel USB-C port, set it up in OBS, and that’s it. Now, everyone can hear me nice and clearly without having to lean into the mic or adjust my entire setup. And that is only scratching the surface of what this thing can do.
Steven Wong
Loupedeck Live S
As a person who frequently switches between apps, but has limited desktop space, the Loupedeck Live S was an easy choice to make. With 15 bright, customizable buttons that dynamically switches icons as I tab between apps, this controller fits in perfectly. Not only does it streamline applications like Photoshop by making it easy to resize brushes and access my most-used tools, but it also works for everyday tasks like checking emails and managing broadcast software like OBS.
Mos Khan
iPad Air
Looking to replace my defunct 13-inch Air, I wanted to give the iPad a trial run as my main device but there’s not much I can say about that topic that hasn’t already been retread a ton and then some. After talking myself up and down the full iPad line up, I ultimately settled on the 11-inch iPad Air with M3 and I’m happy to report that, for the way I use it anyway, it has become pretty invaluable as an all-around companion device to me over the last several months.
I picked up a Magic Keyboard and the new Pencil Pro too, which have opened me up to using my iPad in different ways. For example, the keyboard allows me to fill the gap left behind coming off of a MacBook and the Pencil Pro allows me to jot something down if I really need to commit something to memory. Could I have gotten a MacBook for the combined cost of all three? Sure, but what I’ve found really works for me is the modularity of it all, especially the keyboard. I don’t always need it so it’s nice to be able to just switch between using it as a tablet if I just want to read manga or watch YouTube. The new iPadOS update has been pretty stellar too in terms of bridging the Mac/iPad divide—almost makes me wish I had gotten a 13-inch.
Kay Lee
Samsung 1TB 990 EVO Plus PCIe 5.0 x2 M.2 Internal SSD
Games these days take up a lot of storage, and it becomes a nuisance having to uninstall something to make space when I’m running out of room on my 1 TB SSD. I decided to install the Samsung 1TB 990 EVO Plus M.2 NVMe drive into my build for additional storage. I’m now using it as a dedicated drive for all my games that I’m currently playing through, such as Death Stranding, Baldur’s Gate 3, and many others that I’ll most likely pick up from a Steam sale. The loading speeds are lightning fast when I boot up my games, and I have much better peace of mind seeing my storage usage bars are no longer in the red.
Freddy Gerngross
ASUS ROG Strix SCAR G16
I thoroughly enjoy the ASUS ROG Strix SCAR 16! I use it for both gaming and CPU intensive music production software like Ableton, and it is a beast at both! My unit came with an RTX 5080 and 32GB RAM with an Intel Core Ultra 9 24-core processor. It runs CyberPunk 2077 on ultra settings with ray tracing hovering around 100 fps, it is a beautiful thing to behold especially on the 1440p 240hz OLED screen!
Projects I have in Ableton that slowed down even my 2022 27” iMac had no issue running on the ROG Strix with 100+ tracks all with intensive digital signal processing, EQ and compression on nearly every track. The keyboard is big, soft, and reactive. It also has a numpad feature on the trackpad so the keyboard can be more comfortable to type and game on.
My only qualms are the plastic chassis, the size and weight, and the amount of heat and noise it generates when it goes turbo mode; but both the latter issues are things that are to be expected with this sort of machine.
Alec Kubas-Meyer
FUJIFILM X half Digital Camera
The FUJIFILM x half was built for Instagram. With its vertical aspect ratio matching Meta's recent update of the app's classic grid and image processing that prioritizes aesthetics over accuracy, it's tailor made for this moment. It's also deeply flawed, which in today's age can be as much a pro as a con: for every time the autofocus took what felt like hours to lock in, the actual captured moment often feels even more candid. That doesn't always or even often make for a better photo, but that's not what the camera is for. The smaller, 1"-type sensor and baked-in film simulations (my favorites being the super contrasty Classic Negative and black-and-white Acros) mean that every single experience immediately turns into a kind of hazy memory perfect for sharing with friends, family, and followers. And its small size makes it nearly pocketable and so easy to just bring around and capture images with. Where I put time into compositions on my X-T4 and X100VI, the X half gives me what it gives me and that's that. And I love it for that.
Mathew Malwitz
Samsung T9 Portable SSD
As a traveling nature and wildlife photographer, a reliable system for unloading my memory cards after every day is essential. For years, I’ve struggled to find the right blend of size and speed for my needs. Some drives required a warmup period before they could perform at their top read and write speeds, while others simply couldn’t handle the larger files sizes that come with higher megapixel cameras. There’s nothing worse than getting back from 14 hours out in the field to four hour download times.
Cut to earlier this summer when I finally purchased a Samsung T9 Portable SSD. This drive delivers stunning sequential read speeds of up to 2000 mb/s, which is nearly double that of its predecessor, the T7. I immediately noticed a difference when uploading a days’ worth of shots, and I’ll admit that I’m a bit trigger happy. You’re listing to a guy who took 40,000 images on a 5-day trip. Not only is it blazingly fast, but it’s surprisingly durable with impact resistance at heights of up to 9.8’.
For added security when in use, I slapped a Max Huggins Slipdrive to the back of my laptop so I can securely attach my T9 and move around free of dangling wires and peripherals. An added feature that I have yet to experiment with, is compatibility with select smartphones such as iPhones with the USB-C port and Samsung Galaxy Phones. While I have not upgraded my phone in quite some time, I can appreciate the ability to save all my photos to one device. If you’re looking to upgrade your portable storage solutions, I can’t recommend the T9 enough.
These are just a few of our favorite devices of the year! If you’re interested and wish to dig into each of the products we discussed, feel free to dive in and take a look at them for yourself! Maybe you’ll find the same love and appreciation for the technology as we do!
