Top Hardware 2025: Best and Worst Picks
In the running for top hardware 2025
Arctic Freezer 36 – The Arctic freezer 36 just happens to be one of my very favorites, offering remarkably quiet air cooling at a great price. I mean, installation is a tiny bit tricky on Intel PCs, but it’s easy enough to figure out. It’s just a good cooler that’s worth every single penny. It comes in black, too, which is really neat. And let’s be honest here, the contact frame is just a nice bonus.
Thermal Grizzly Der8enchtable – This particular product has caught my eye, I must say – it’s a high-quality benchtable designed specifically for motherboard testing and overclocking. It’s just sublime, really – the build quality’s top-notch, and there’s plenty of room for accessories. But be warned: this particular table comes at a bit of a premium price. It’s worth every dollar, though.
WD Black SN8100 2 TB NVMe SSD – Oh boy, I just can’t stop raving about this SSD. I think I’ve found my new go-to for storage – it’s one of the best PCIe 5.0 drives out there, with blazing-fast synthetic performance and quick load times. It’s competitively priced, too, although I wish they had a 4 TB option just yet. Overall, though, it’s just an awesome choice for anyone who needs a fast drive.
Razer Wolverine V3 Pro 8K PC – I just love this premium gaming controller – it’s durable, has an 8,000 Hz polling rate, and even customizable functions! TMR thumbsticks and Hall effect triggers just make it a solid choice for gaming. But yeah, it does come with a pretty high price tag, and I’m kinda disappointed there’s no haptic feedback. Still, it’s a great controller for serious gamers.
Be Quiet! Light Mount gaming keyboard – This beautiful keyboard is a direct upgrade to the Mountain Everest 60 – beautiful build quality, great RGB lighting, and it just feels amazing to type on. Though it’s not as affordable as its predecessor, I just can’t see getting tired of it anytime soon.
Soundcore Liberty 5 – I really love these gaming- mode earbuds – they offer great gaming audio, have loads of battery life, and even customizable options! They’re perfect for gaming at home or on the go – I just wish the white version didn’t show fingerprints and scuff marks quite so easily.
Other top hardware picks that didn’t quite make the top 6
Fractal Design Terra – A really compact PC case with awesome GPU support and some real wood trim, although cooling options are kinda limited.
NuPhy Air60 HE – Love the design of this keyboard: really low-profile, Hall effect switches, and more customizations than you can shake a stick at.
WD Black SN7100 1 TB – A top-rated PCIe 4.0 SSD with excellent performance and really cool pricing.
AVerMedia Elite Go GC313Pro – This capture card comes in a super cool charging brick design, offering 4K footage at 30 fps – I’m seriously impressed.
The products that just didn’t make the cut
Corsair Xeneon Edge – A really pricey secondary screen that just isn’t worth the cost, with weird tearing issues to boot. It’s expensive and not really all that useful.
Razer Joro & Basilisk Mobile – This combo just tries to be too much at once: a portable gaming keyboard and mouse combo with AI buttons and a price tag to match. I don’t think it’s worth it.
Colorful iGame RTX 5070 Ti Vulcan OC – This pricey graphics card had some really inconsistent performance, and that’s not even mentioning its weak stock performance.
OneXPlayer X1 Air – I just can’t get behind this tablet: it’s too bulky, tries to be both a gaming handheld and a laptop, but just doesn’t cut it in either area.
Nacon Rig M2 Streamstar – Great vocal capture, but the setup is super fiddly and way too pricey to boot.
Logitech G PowerPlay 2 mouse pad – Super disappointing: limited mouse compatibility and a super thin, flimsy pad that just doesn’t cut it.
2025 in the books
2025 was a year of highs and lows in the hardware world – some products, like the Arctic Freezer 36, really stand out from the crowd, while others, like the Corsair Xeneon Edge, just disappoint all around.
