Best Review

If you have an all-Mac or mixed Mac/PC network, the Apple AirPort Extreme is the best 802.11ac router you can buy, reviewers say. Updated to support the latest Wi-Fi standards, the AirPort Extreme offers speedy throughput, excellent range and great reliability, and is simple for novice users to set up and use.

The Netgear WNDR3700 is a wireless-N router that simultaneously works on both the 2.4 GHz and 5 GHz bands at speeds of 300 Mbps each. It comes packed with features, is compatible with both Windows PCs and Macs, and allows wireless external hard-drive sharing.

If you want a cheap but reliable wireless router, the Cisco Linksys E1200 is a no-frills choice that’s simple to set up and use. This single-band wireless-N router is a great starter unit for novices and non-techies, with performance and features that make it appropriate for basic home use.

The Cisco Linksys WRT54GL is based on the older 802.11g wireless networking standard, so it’s not as fast as 802.11n or 802.11ac routers. If you have old equipment on your network that isn’t compatible with today’s newer technologies and you don’t plan to upgrade it, experts say you might be better off using a wireless-G router for the time being.

The Asus RT-AC66U is a simultaneous dual-band router that reviewers say is one of the best 802.11ac models available. Experts and users praise its excellent performance on the 5 GHz band, business-class features, connectivity and style. The RT-AC66U is suitable for advanced and bandwidth-heavy use but is relatively easy to set up, even for novices.

The Sony PlayStation 4 moves to the front of the line for those who are most serious about playing games. The hardware lineup is impressive — competitive with gaming PCs — and that shows up in game play. Other pluses include a sleek, compact design and a good — though not class-leading — array of media features. Most judge it to be the best value among high-end video gaming consoles.

The Microsoft Xbox One trails the Sony PS4 in terms of gaming chops, but just barely. Graphics performance is nearly as terrific, though it’s beaten by the PS4 in certain games. Where the Xbox One excels is in its multimedia performance: There’s a Blu-ray Disc player (finally), and it can integrate the content from its bevy of streaming apps with live TV, making entertainment easier to find.

While the Nintendo Wii U isn’t the best choice for serious gamers, it’s still a solid video game console in its own right. The innovative GamePad controller introduces a second-screen experience, though it can be a little clumsy to use at times. The Wii U is backward-compatible and can play games for the original Wii; games and game play are more squarely aimed at a family audience, however. There’s a limited number of streaming apps, but the Wii U can’t play DVDs, Blu-ray Discs or audio CDs.

The best has gotten better with the debut of the Apple iPad Air 2. It’s even more breathtakingly thin than before, but the headline this time around is improved performance — 40 percent better Apple claims, and testers say that the Air 2 delivers — especially for serious gaming. The Retina display now has challengers among Android slates, but that doesn’t mean that it’s not as eye-popping as ever. You’ll also still find more tablet-specific apps for the iPad than for any other device.

Those who want the fit, finish and user experience of an Apple iPad Air 2, but in a smaller tablet. should skip the new Apple iPad mini 3 and stick with the last generation but still current Apple iPad mini 2. It’s unchanged since its debut (when it was called the iPad mini with Retina Display), but has enjoyed a $100 price cut. That’s significant since, internally, the two small iPads are nearly identical, and testing reveals they perform the same. Both have the same access to the hundreds of thousands of tablet-optimized apps Apple offers — more than any other tablet brand. Both run the same generation operating system, and the few hardware enhancements — such as Touch ID — available on the mini 3 aren’t worth its price premium, experts say.

Thinner and lighter than the iPad mini 3, the 8.4-inch Samsung Galaxy Tab S 8.4 also offers an even higher resolution display. Android is far more customizable than the iPad’s operating system (even allowing for Samsung’s TouchWiz add-on), but it’s less seamless and there are fewer available apps overall — fewer still that are optimized for a tablet’s screen size. Performance is excellent overall, though graphics performance is not best in class. Versions with mobile data are available, as is a bigger and just-as-well-liked version, the 10.5-inch Samsung Galaxy Tab S 10.5 (Est. $500).

The 8-inch Dell Venue 8 sits squarely at the intersection of performance and value. It’s not the swiftest performer, but it’s fully capable of doing the kinds of things most users expect from their tablets without breaking too much of a sweat. It runs a non-modified version of Android KitKat — a major plus in the eyes of enthusiasts. The screen resolution is full HD, 1,920 by 1,090 pixels, perfect for enjoying movies and TV programs. A 7-inch version, the Dell Venue 7 (Est. $150) is cheaper and performs similarly, but has a smaller, lower-resolution display.

If you want a good performing but cheap, small tablet, and don’t care about an HD display, the 8-inch Asus MeMO Pad HD 8 can be a good choice. It’s less expensive than the Dell Venue 8, and packs a more powerful quad-core Intel Atom processor. The display is a step back, however, with a resolution of just 1,280 by 800 pixels. The 7-inch Asus MeMO Pad 7 (Est. $125) is smaller and cheaper still, but delivers the same performance, reviewers say.

The Amazon Fire HDX 8.9 is a near-9-inch tablet with top-notch performance, great features and terrific build quality, and a price that’s more than $100 lower than similar-sized premium tablets from the likes of Apple and Samsung. The catch is that it runs a proprietary operating system based on Android, but so heavily modified that it bears little resemblance to its roots. On the plus side, that allows an easy-to-use interface and some features not found on other tablets. The downside is that customization is near impossible, and all content comes from Amazon.com and only Amazon.com — not the larger Google Play or iTunes app stores.

With some of the best parental controls on the market, a no-questions asked two-year warranty, a rugged bumper case and a terrific lineup of kid-friendly content, the Amazon Fire HD Kids Edition is the best choice for those looking for a tablet for now and for the future. It’s a $50 upgrade to either the Amazon Fire HD 6 (Est. $100 and up) or the Amazon Fire HD 7 (Est. $120 and up), but the value of the upcharge is covered by the extras, including a free one year subscription to Amazon FreeTime Unlimited, a child-safe content streaming and app service.

Reviewers love the Booq Boa Flow for its huge capacity, sturdy construction and great interior organization. Made of ballistic nylon, it’s waterproof and has plenty of room for a 17-inch laptop and lots of other gear to boot. Reviewers also praise its cool styling, which one admirer describes as a perfect fit with motorcycle gear.

No other laptop case earns as many recommendations as the Rickshaw Bagworks Commuter 2.1. Reviewers love its durable, lightweight construction, its interior organization and little touches like the magnetic closures that eliminate the ripping noise of Velcro. The bag comes in a huge variety of fabric and color choices, which you can combine to your taste.

Available in capacities of up to 4 TB, the WD My Book gets high marks from reviewers for its speed and ease of use. In professional tests, it transfers files quickly and quietly, and reviewers say it’s also easy to set up.

The Seagate Backup Plus Slim edges out its nearest competitor in every possible quality test. It’s slimmer and lighter, transfers data faster, and gets better reliability ratings from owners. It’s also a good value at $75 for a terabyte of storage, and you can upgrade to 2 TB for just $120.

For protecting your precious data against every possible disaster, you can’t beat the ioSafe Solo G3. Built like a safe (and equally heavy), it can safeguard your files come flood or fire. The drive comes with a year of free data retrieval from ioSafe, which can be extended to three or five years for an extra fee.

The Synology DiskStation DS1513+ network-attached storage (NAS) drive offers fast speeds, a robust interface and a wealth of features. Its five-bay enclosure gives you lots of options for configuring your backup drives. (The drives themselves are sold separately.) Owners praise its speed and easy setup, though novices may have trouble setting up the more advanced features.

The Seagate Wireless Plus is one of the most versatile hard drives on the market. You can access its 1 TB of storage wirelessly from multiple computers, smartphones or tablets — or you can hook it up via a USB cable for faster file transfers. Battery life is up to 10 hours, and it comes with its own media app.

The Dell XPS 27 Touch earns rave reviews as the best Windows all-in-one computer, and one of the best desktop computers overall for most users. It sports an elegant design and enough computational firepower to handle serious work and all but the most serious play.

If you want the best bang for the buck, a traditional tower desktop computer like the Asus M51AC is your best choice. It’s available in a ton of different configurations, but all feature top-notch components and the flexibility to grow as your needs change.

For those on a budget, it’s hard to ignore the value proposition offered by the HP Pavilion 500. Lots of configurations are available, but a price tag of $500 will net a traditional tower with modern components — including the latest Intel Core processor — a huge hard drive, an optical drive and plenty of memory.

For light-duty computing, the Asus Chromebox M004U might be all the computer you need. The hardware is unimpressive compared with the Windows desktop computers above, but is a perfect match for the Chrome operating system it runs. Just make sure you can live with Chrome’s limitations.

The 27-inch iMac is certainly a head-turner. The design is simply gorgeous — looking impossibly thin even if the rear of the system does have a bit of a bulge. Performance is good even in the iMac’s base configuration, and available upgrades can transform it into a powerhouse that can stand toe-to-toe with anything short of a dedicated gaming rig.

The Falcon Northwest FragBox nicely splits the difference between good but not great gaming-oriented computers and powerhouse systems with prices in the stratosphere. It can be configured to meet your needs and budget. When maxed out, it can compete on an equal footing with systems that cost thousands more. Build quality is beyond first rate, as is user support.