Stuff Gadget Awards Winners – Gadget of the Year (and Buddies)

As each Connor MacLeod and Sean Connery as soon as mentioned, there will be just one. That applies to extra than simply Stuff‘s 2025 Gadget Awards winners, of course. But there really can only be a single Gadget of the Year in any given year. Directly below, you’ll discover out which one knocked Stuff’s socks off sufficient to nab the spot.

You’ll additionally discover a pair of different Gadget Awards winners in classes which might be somewhat murkier than smartphones, tablets, gaming, or the rest so simply categorised. The finest design and the largest innovation are somewhat extra ephemeral and tougher to lock down. We, clearly, reckon we’ve completed okay. But then, we’d.

The race for subsequent yr’s Stuff winners is already nicely underway. Loads of tech has launched onto the market, however it’s solely across the third a part of the yr that we’ll actually, correctly have a way of who the contenders are. After that, it’s round-up-and-vote time. Stick round, we’ll nail the perfect of 2026 to the wall simply as quickly as we will.

GADGET OF THE YEAR

NINTENDO SWITCH 2

Nine years in the past, Nintendo saved handheld gaming from obscurity. Last yr, it did one thing arguably tougher: perfecting what already labored brilliantly. The Switch 2 is refinement elevated to artwork kind – proof that typically the boldest transfer is confidently iterating slightly than recklessly reinventing. And we couldn’t be extra impressed by what it achieves.

It’s Nintendo’s best-built {hardware} up to now. That 7.9in Full HD 120Hz display transforms transportable play solely, whereas DLSS upscaling lastly brings 4K gaming to your tv. Cyberpunk 2077 working easily on Nintendo {hardware}? We by no means thought we’d see the day. And backwards compatibility ensures your complete library can include you – usually enhanced.

Yes, battery life isn’t nice. And storage enlargement prices an excessive amount of. But these compromises fade in opposition to what the Switch 2 achieves: seamless hybrid gaming. The Steam Deck presents energy, certain, however Nintendo’s transitions between modes are a sort of invisible magic that makes console-quality gaming really transportable for the primary time.

DESIGN OF THE YEAR

SIGMA BF

Some merchandise enchantment to your logic, whereas others converse on to your soul. The Sigma Bf sits firmly within the latter camp. This full-frame mirrorless digicam is probably the most strikingly minimalist we’ve seen in years – a glossy aluminium block that makes even Leica’s famously restrained M11-D look over-engineered.

It’s all about sharp traces, with nearly no buttons and no flaps or doorways – simply superbly clear metalwork that turned heads all over the place whereas we examined it. That uncompromising aesthetic calls for sacrifice, and there’s no viewfinder or scorching shoe, with barely awkward ergonomics that saved us anxious about dropping it… however the Bf isn’t engineered for practicality – it’s crafted to encourage composition. Sometimes coronary heart ought to trump head, and this soul-stirring piece of Japanese magnificence reveals precisely why.

from R43 000 / sigmaphoto.co.za

HIGHLY COMMENDED

Apple iPhone Air

SHORTLISTED

Nikon Z6 III ● Bose SoundLink Max

INNOVATION OF THE YEAR

HUAWEI MATE XT

A ten.2inch pill that slips into your denims pocket isn’t simply intelligent engineering – it’s sci-fi made actual. The world’s first tri-fold smartphone transforms via three configurations: 6.4in cellphone, 7.9in book-style gadget and full pill. That Z-shaped twin hinge achieves one thing genuinely modern: tablet-sized display actual property minus the majority.

At simply 12.8mm thick when folded, the Mate XT proves tri-fold needn’t imply chunky. Yet Huawei has crammed in correct flagship cameras, 16GB of RAM and 66W speedy charging. The 16:11 facet ratio even allows you to run three apps aspect by aspect for unprecedented multitasking.

Of course, ‘the Huawei issue’ stays, and battery life can’t fairly match rivals. But that is much less about perfection and extra about pushing the thought of what a cellphone will be.

R70 000 / shopper.huawei.com

HIGHLY COMMENDED

Apple CarPlay Ultra ● Sony RGB LED

SHORTLISTED

Eufy MarsWalker ● Porsche Wireless Charging