Engadget's best of 2026
Engadget · C · trust 58/100
The highest-rated devices that we reviewed this year in a variety of categories.
Engadget Add Engadget on Google: Preferred Source Google Discover By the end of the year, Engadget writers will complete over 150 product reviews . From Apple's iPhones to Google's Pixels, the AirPods to Sony's 1000X series and MacBooks to Dell's XPS, our reviews team covers a wide range of devices from a wide range of companies. During the course of the year, products that receive a score of 90 or higher earn Engadget's Editors' Choice, while other category-topping devices score in the high 80s.
Now that the year is coming to an end, we've compiled the highest-scoring products (so far) across a range of categories, along with commentary on each one from our writers, for our best of 2026.
Nathan Ingraham for Engadget Google's Pixel 11 is the definition of an iterative update. It looks essentially the same as the Pixel 10, and it has a similar camera array, a new Tensor G6 process, double the starting storage and a $100 price bump. But the Pixel 10 was so good that Google didn't need to reinvent the wheel this year. Refinements to a winning formula, some intelligent software updates and a gorgeous set of colors was enough to win me over.
The Pixel 11 is one of few smartphones in its class to have three camera lenses on the back, including a capable 5x telephoto. That's something you can't get in the otherwise-comparable iPhone 17, and it bests the 3x camera on Samsung's Galaxy S26. Getting a telephoto camera on a phone that costs less than $1,000 is a trick Google may have first pulled last year, but it's still a big deal.
Many of the software tricks Google added this year, like Rambler (which turns your, well, rambling dictation into clearer and more concise text) and Proactive Suggestions (which nudge you to do things like add items to your calendar based on your conversations) are genuinely useful as well. Add in outstanding build quality, fast performance and long battery life and the Pixel 11 does just about anything that most smartphone buyers could want. — Nathan Ingraham, Deputy News Editor
Cherlynn Low for Engadget Of all the iPhones introduced in 2026, the iPhone 18 Pro was the clear choice. Due to a change in Apple's product release strategy this year, there were only three iPhone models to consider: the iPhone 17e , iPhone 18 Pro (and Pro Max) and the iPhone Duo. We haven't been able to review the last one yet, so it's not eligible. Plus, the fact that it's a first-generation product with a hefty price means it's unlikely to be the right device for most people, anyway.
That said, though the iPhone 17e is a solid phone for the cost, the title of best iPhone almost by default goes to the iPhone 18 Pro. It simply offers the top-tier combination of features for the money.
Its overall package of updates seems incremental, but the iPhone 18 Pro served up some compelling new hardware. Variable aperture and pro camera controls are useful for manual photographers, while things like the sensor-signed Apple Reference Image authentication are a convenient and simple addition that can help educate a larger audience on how to tell if a photo has been manipulated.
Throw in a smaller, more functional Dynamic Island, improved thermal management and faster battery charging, the iPhone 18 Pro starts to look more beefy. Plus, the new burgundy and blue color options are quite droolworthy. If you're looking for an Apple handset with the best performance and cameras, the iPhone 18 Pro is the easy pick. — Cherlynn Low, Executive Editor
Devindra Hardawar for Engadget Apple seemingly did the impossible with the MacBook Neo : It somehow delivered a $600 budget laptop that didn't feel too different from a premium notebook like the MacBook Air. Even though it's $100 more now, thanks to the ongoing AI-induced RAM crisis, the MacBook Neo is still a tremendous deal. It's fast enough for everyday computing tasks (even with just 8GB of RAM), its screen is bright enough to use in direct sunlight and it features an excellent keyboard and trackpad.
The MacBook Neo is such a trendsetter, now every PC maker is rushing to copy Apple's formula. But there's still nothing else that offers the same combination of premium build quality and components on the Windows side. — Devindra Hardawar, Senior Reporter
Nathan Ingraham for Engadget The MacBook Air remains one of the best ultraportables on the market thanks to its combination of speed (now with Apple's M5 chip), premium build quality and portability. Sure, there are lighter Windows laptops now, but they're not as performant as Apple's hardware, and they often deliver a worse user experience.
The MacBook Air is the complete package. It's fast enough to handle just about everything you throw at it, including light gaming and video editing. It's sturdy enough to last years. And it's also completely silent, since it has no cooling fan. While Windows notebooks are now offering sleek OLED screens at this price range, PC makers still struggle to match the quality of the MacBook Air's keyboard, trackpad, speakers and battery life. — D.H.
Sam Rutherford for Engadget The ASUS ROG Zephyrus Duo is big, heavy and has one of the most bombastic designs we've seen on any gaming laptop in recent history. But that's exactly what makes it so awesome. Sure, it's ridiculously expensive starting at — wait for it — $4,500, but it has everything you could want in a bleeding edge gaming PC, and then some. It features not one but two 3K OLED displays, a fully detachable keyboard, as much as 64GB of RAM and support for up to an RTX 5090 GPU.
You also get surprisingly punchy speakers and a ton of ports, including a total of four USB slots, a full-size HDMI jack and an SD card reader. And for something this powerful, its battery life isn't half bad either. Really, this thing is closer to a portable battle station than a basic gaming notebook, and if you can stomach its price, there isn't really…
Read the original at Engadget →
Open in TruthVane →