GADGET GIZMO SPECIAL ...............Tech Products Worth Spending More On

GADGET GIZMO SPECIAL Tech Products Worth Spending More On





Quality comes at a price. Here are some gadgets you shouldn't compromise on

Every buying decision comes down to a choice between price and quality. Sometimes the cheapest product does the job, but there are times when you should look to buy quality instead.Here are seven products you won't regret pushing your budget for.

1 SMARTPHONE STORAGE

Smartphones are expensive, and if you're set on a particular model, buying the model with the least amount of storage is usually the only way to get it cheaper.

If that reduced capacity is only 16 GB and there's no memory expansion slot, then it's a bad idea.A 16 GB iPhone 6S actually has only around 12 GB of free space, and a 16 GB Nexus 5X only has 10 GB free.

Take a few photos, install a few games, and you'll be spending the next two years deleting stuff just to keep the phone usable.

2 KEYBOARDS

The keyboard is one of the most overlooked parts of your computer, and an area manufacturers skimp on to cut costs. If you do a lot of writing or gaming, a mechanical keyboard will work wonders.

Most keyboards use a plastic membrane across the keyboard, acting as a giant pressure pad. The result is a mushy feel when you tap the keys. On a mechanical keyboard, each key is individually mounted and spring-loaded with its own switch. It gives far greater tactile feedback, and a satisfying click.

Mechanical keyboards are more expensive because they are a mass of moving parts, but they last longer and give more accuracy and greater speed.

3 LAPTOPS

Today even a computer with base specs is good enough for any thing a typical user would need it for: the Internet, Facebook, Netflix, even a little photo editing or casual gaming. So why spend on a new laptop?
For many reasons.

A more expensive laptop will have a better design, lighter weight, thinner body, and will generally be more enjoyable to use. It will likely be made of metal rather than plastic, so will be much more durable. It'll have a battery that can get you through a working day, and it will have better components: a better keyboard, a higher quality screen, and a fast SSD.

4 HEADPHONES

If you've only ever bought budget headphones or just stuck with the ones bundled with a smartphone, you may think they're good enough or that only audiophiles will notice the improvements afforded by a better pair.This isn't true.

Upgrading from cheap headphones to even a midrange set like the Audio Technica M40x will completely revolutionise your listening experience. And it's something everyone will notice.

Quality headphones have a wider frequency range, better bass, and less distortion, and play the music exactly as it was recorded.You hear subtle sounds at the back of the mix that you've never heard before because your cheap headphones could'nt reproduce them.

That said, headphones shouldn't be judged on price alone. Not all expensive headphones are great.Also, the differences become less apparent the more you spend.

5 BATTERIES

For disposable batteries, the question of branded versus generic is not overly important. Tests have shown that the difference is negligible, and even if branded batteries do last longer, the benefit is cancelled out by the increased cost.

There is a difference, though, between alkaline and lithium batteries. Lithium is better here: they last as much as four times longer, work in a wider range of temperatures, and are lighter. They cost more, but are worth it in the right device. They would be wasted in your TV remote, but preferred in a high power device.

For rechargeable batteries ­ what you'd use in a smartphone or camera ­ it's worth spending the extra on an official battery. Third-party batteries can be cheaper, but may not have the capacity they claim.

6 CAMERA LENSES

Photography can be a super expensive hobby. There's always more gear to buy. It's tempting to try and get as much focal length coverage as you can, especially when investing in a new system.

This leads you to buying kit zooms and cheap third-party lenses that often won't give you better results than an iPhone.

You can expect a better lens to be faster, sharper, have less distortion, and be able to resolve more detail. Between several cheap lenses or one quality one, invest in quality every time.

Lenses are an investment, too.Camera bodies can be replaced and lose their value quickly, but a quality lens today and you'll be using it for years to come. And if you do finally sell it, you should still get a decent price for it.

7 USB-C CABLES

Conventional wisdom states that you shouldn't ever pay more than the bare minimum for cables.Yet there are growing suggestions that you might be better served with a higher quality cable, at least when it comes to USB-C.

Google engineer Benson Leung says that some third party vendors “blatantly flout the specification“, with the result that they may damage chargers or ports that they're plugged into.

Until the issue is resolved cheap, no-name USB-C cables are best avoided.

Andy Betts

MM14DEC15