2025: A look back at the most notable tech

Quick Overview

The Verge staff selected their favorite tech items of 2024, featuring the Matic Robot Vacuum, the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 7, the Also TM-B e-bike, the Amazon Alexa Plus smart speaker, the upgradable Framework Laptop 16, the Nintendo Switch 2, the PlayStation Portal, the Insta360 X5 camera, and Sora 2 AI video generation as standout technologies.

Key Points: The Matic Robot Vacuum, designed by former Google Nest engineers, costs $1,245 and features a unique design that avoids a giant dock, functioning more like a friendly pet. The Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 7 was praised for being incredibly thin and light when folded, though its cameras were noted as not being as great as mainstream phones. The Also TM-B e-bike stands out for its unique design, including a belt drive, removable battery that doubles as a portable power bank, and a $4,500 launch price. The Amazon Alexa Plus was highlighted for its potential, despite a bumpy start with the generative AI revamp of its voice assistant. The Framework Laptop 16 was recognized for its high upgradability, featuring swappable ports and a dedicated GPU module (like the Nvidia RTX 4050), allowing owners to upgrade components easily. The Nintendo Switch 2 was noted for having the biggest launch, featuring quality-of-life updates and allowing cloud streaming via the PlayStation Portal, which enables playing console games anywhere. OpenAI's Sora 2 AI video generator was a standout for producing highly realistic and editable video content, with the potential to impact how media is created and consumed.

Context: This video presents a roundup of technology items and trends that members of The Verge staff consider their standouts for 2024, covering hardware, software, and emerging AI technologies. The segment features several staff members, including Owen Grove, Jennifer Pattison Tuohy, Antonio G. Di Benedetto, Victoria Song, and Hayden Field, each presenting their personal pick across different categories like home robotics, mobile, computing, gaming, and AI.