From AI-powered pets to rugged smartwatches: The best of IFA 2025

IFA (Innovation For All) is the annual celebration of everything we love about technology. The Berlin-based show may not be the biggest European show for smartphones, but it’s still usually worth paying attention to.

And this year, paying attention has paid dividends, as IFA 2025 hasn’t just brought us some excellent smartphones; we also saw some showstopping new tablets, AI-powered gadgets, and more.

That means competition has been tough as we put together our traditional Best Of IFA list.

When heavyweights like Samsung are wading into the pool and stepping onto the show floor, you know it’s going to be hard to make your product stand out from the rest.

However, a number of great gadgets have managed to do just that, and while the Samsung Galaxy S25 FE has taken a well-deserved place on our list, there are gongs aplenty to be won by those who aren’t the Korean giant.

Here are the ten products that made our list of the best in show at IFA 2025.

Samsung Galaxy S25 FE

Samsung’s newest flagship model was always going to feature highly on this list. While some might quibble with the idea of calling the S-range’s “fan edition” phone a flagship, we have absolutely no problem designating it such.

As is always the case with the FE model, Samsung has crammed in almost everything we love about its top phones, and reduced the price to a level where the basic Galaxy S25 seems like a bad investment as a result.

Being real, you can easily see where Samsung has made cutbacks to drop the price to $649.

The Exynos 2400 processor isn’t a match for the mainline Galaxy S25‘s Snapdragon 8 Elite chip, some of the extra camera lenses have dropped in megapixel count, and the RAM has gone down to 8GB — but all of that is easily forgiven by the pure value on offer here.

Besides, you don’t need top-tier hardware to get a top-tier experience in a 2025 smartphone.

The Galaxy S25 FE is more than capable enough in every area to make it an excellent pocket pal for the majority of people.

And be honest, when did you actually need a 100x zoom on your smartphone? At $649, the Samsung Galaxy S25 FE might be the bargain of the year.

Samsung Galaxy Tab S11 Ultra

From a cut-price hero to a device that’s on the very opposite end of the scale. This is the pinnacle of Samsung’s tablet technology, and it’s hard to argue with that when you see the massive 14.6-inch slate in action.

At 208.5 by 326.3 millimeters, this is a big device for sure, but Samsung has somehow managed to shrink its thickness down to a paltry 5.1mm — that’s actually thinner than the famously svelte Galaxy S25 Edge.

A slimmer profile doesn’t mean Samsung has skimped on cutting-edge hardware, though. It’s powered by a MediaTek Dimensity 9400+, and has a 120Hz Dynamic AMOLED 2X panel on the front.

Storage starts at 256GB, and 12GB of RAM, which it will need because this beast is packed to the gills with AI functions.

Not only can you pair your S Pen’s rough sketches with AI to make a passable image, but it also comes loaded with Gemini Live for your screen and camera.

Stumped by a math problem, or don’t know what an object is? Gemini Live can help.

Throw in Samsung’s improved DeX desktop mode, and you have a hyper-powerful tablet that’s perfect for productive mornings at the coffee shop, whether you’re writing, drawing, or anything else in between.

Govee Permanent Outdoor Lights Prism

There are permanent outdoor lights—we see them all over the place these days—and then there are Govee’s new Permanent Outdoor Lights Prism. The Govee Permanent Outdoor Lights Prism is the first system with three LEDs in a single housing: instead of a single bulb emitting one customizable light, or even a gradient, the Prism bulbs use custom optical zones to put out three distinct colors that overlap and complement each other, creating a mood that’s perfect for a festive holiday or a spooky Halloween.

Like all permanent outdoor lights, the Prisms can operate in severe cold or heat, are IP68-rated for dust and water resistance, and are reportedly covered with a flame-retardant shell that should, at the very least, not add to a raging conflagration.

As its name suggests, Govee’s Permanent Outdoor Lights Prism emits a calming triangle shape. With 16 million colors per bulb, the combinations are almost endless.

Samsung Galaxy Tab S11

The Tab S11 Ultra casts a very large shadow, but that doesn’t mean you should forget about the smaller Samsung Galaxy Tab S11.

The 11-inch display may seem small compared to its much bigger sibling, but it’s no less powerful or capable for being the smaller device of the two.

So much that can be said about the S11 Ultra can also be said about the standard S11, and while it starts at a lower 128GB of storage and only has one camera lens, most of the hardware is exactly the same, meaning this is the powerful tablet of choice if you want something a little smaller.

The smaller sibling still has Gemini Live built in, comes with an S Pen with Writing and Drawing Assist, and other useful AI features like Circle to Search.

While the Ultra is always the tablet to buy if you want something massive and powerful, the standard Tab S11 once again shows that Samsung is just as adept at making a very capable tablet in a smaller footprint.

Acer Chromebook Plus Spin 514

It felt like the furor around Chromebooks had wound down to the point where any more ChromeOS-powered laptops were pointless — but no, Acer has proven us all wrong with the Chromebook Plus Spin 514.

Get past the confusing name and you’ll find an exceptional Chromebook here.

Chromebooks have always excelled in battery life, so it’s no surprise to see a 17-hour battery life touted here.

But the Acer Chromebook Plus Spin 514 has more up its sleeve than just a long lifespan.

Take a peek under the hood, and you’ll find a MediaTek Kompanio Ultra 910 processor, 16GB of RAM, and 256GB of storage as standard. That may seem like overkill in a Chromebook, but there’s more here for it to run than just Google Docs.

AI, 2025’s favorite buzzword, is here again, and the Spin 514 uses its hardware grunt to perform its AI features on-device. And it’s capable of some impressive feats too, like erasing objects from images, and automatically grouping Chrome tabs for ease of use.

It even comes with 12 months of access to the Google AI Pro plan.

Add that it bends full back on itself to transform into a makeshift tablet with a touchscreen, and you’ve got an exceptional piece of technology that’s worth paying attention to.

Amazfit T-Rex 3 Pro

Amazfit is a true diamond in the smartwatch roughs, and the T-Rex 3 Pro has once again shown why that’s the case.

This rugged smartwatch almost begs to be taken on adventures, and with a tough build, bright display, and exceptional battery life, it’s more than capable of making it through even the most challenging climates.

The watch’s case contains an AMOLED display with a peak brightness of 3,000 nits, making it visible even in bright sunlight.

A tough polymer casing keeps the watch safe from bumps and scratches, and a water-resistance rating of 10 ATM means it’ll be impervious to just about any wet climates other than full dives.

We mentioned that the battery life was impressive, and it is, with Amazfit boasting a 25-day lifespan on the larger 48mm model.

The smaller 44mm variant doesn’t last quite as long, but it’s still capable of 19 days on one charge. That’s almost three weeks of normal use.

Still, push it hard and the battery drains faster, but Amazfit claims it will last at least a full week on a single charge when under heavy use. That’s extremely impressive by any metric.

Even the software is geared for big adventures, with free access to offline maps, step-by-step directions, and pinpoint GPS navigation.

Heck, you can even control your phone using the watch’s AI assistant.

DOOGEE V Max Play

Rugged smartphones can go anywhere and do pretty much anything, but the DOOGEE V Max Play is on a whole other level. With its efficient MediaTek Dimensity chip and massive 20,500mAh battery, you’ll barely need to charge it — even when you’re using its built-in projector.

Yes, this phone is a lot more than meets the eye: on the back you’ll find a powerful portable autofocus projector that emits a crisp 480p picture anywhere you want, be it a tent wall, rock face, or makeshift backyard BBQ. The 130dB speaker and dual 1200-lumen camping light also makes this a great device to have at both or a party or in an emergency, and because it runs Android you can play Netflix, Spotify, or anything else your heart desires.

During the pre-order period, Android Police readers can save $100 from the $769.99 price, and a lucky few will even have the chance of getting a free bundled Bluetooth speaker.

Launching in early October, the DOOGEE V Max Play is a genuinely cool product you’re not going to want to miss.

Belkin BoostCharge Retractable Car Charger 75W

You can be forgiven for thinking that we’ve reached peak car charger. After all, how much innovation could there possibly be in what’s essentially an adapter? Quite a lot, as it turns out.

Belkin’s BoostCharge Retractable 75W has been a sleeper hit for many at IFA, and it’s not hard to see why.

The first clue is right there in the name: 75W. That’s enough power to satisfy even the most power-hungry of travel devices, including consoles like the Nintendo Switch 2.

That power is split across a few different ports, though, including a USB-C and a USB-A port.

But the headline here really is the retractable cable built into the charger itself.

This USB-C cable is stored within the charger when not needed, and stretches out to an impressive 75cm, which should be long enough to reach the back seats of most cars.

It’s this cable that gets the lion’s share of power, being capable of up to 60W of charge, but nobody should feel let down by this absolute monster of a car charger.

A must for long journeys.

Anker Prime Power Bank (26K, 300W)

There are power banks for every occasion, but sometimes you just need pure, unadulterated power at your fingertips.

Anker took to IFA to announce the latest in its Prime series, and it’s the perfect power bank if you need to, say, charge two laptops at once or something equally demanding.

Unlike many other entries on this list, there are no AI tricks or special features here, just stats and numbers. But hoo boy, are those numbers impressive.

The power bank contains 26,250mAh of power when fully charged and can discharge that from two USB-C ports at 140W each, or from a USB-A port at 22.5W.

So you can charge two laptops and a phone at once, if you absolutely need to.

When it comes to recharging, it can slot into Anker’s charging base to re-up at 150W, or it can use two USB-C cables at once to recharge at 250W. That’s fast enough to refill to 80% capacity in a staggering 35 minutes.

EufyCam S4

For years, when choosing home security, the choice has been between dome-shaped PTZ cameras and the longer, traditional bullet cameras.

If you can’t choose between the two, there’s now the EufyCam S4, which bridges the gap between the two by, er, smashing the two together to make something incredible.

Okay, we’re being a little flippant. It’s clear a ton of engineering expertise has gone into the EufyCam S4.

The fixed bullet camera has a 4K resolution and a 130-degree field of view, while the 2K RTZ camera fitted below it can rotate clearly through 360 degrees and 70 degrees vertically.

The two different systems work together, so if the fixed camera spots a subject, the RTZ camera will also track their movement, keeping an eye on them even when they move outside of the fixed camera’s view.

The result is a hybrid camera with all the advantages of both types, and thanks to an included solar panel, it should be able to keep its battery topped up by itself too.

It’s sure to be a pricey option, but if you take security seriously, then this is the camera for you.