Independent, authoritative testing – it’s our promise to you
We pride ourselves on our independence and rigorous review-testing process, offering long-term attention to the products we review and ensuring our reviews are constantly updated and maintained – regardless of when a device was released, if you can still buy it, it’s on our checklist and you will how we test, review and rate.
We have assembled an expert team of some of the finest technology journalists on the planet, who are not only experts in their field but are the same people we write our reviews for: those who want to know about and use the latest and best technology.
Visit our About Us page to learn more about AudioGuru.
Our Reviews Guarantee
Our Promise
- We select products for review based on what we believe our readers want to know.
- We’ll tell you what we think, not what advertisers want you to hear.
- Our expert reviewers love technology and want you to love it too.
- We’ll let you know why if a product doesn’t meet our high standards.
Our Rating System
We use a familiar Editor star rating system to keep things recognizable and straightforward: the more stars, the better.
We rate the brands/products on several criteria depending on the specific attributes of a product type, and we add a score out of 5 for each.
- Design – How does the product look and feel? Is it well built or cheap to the touch?
- Features – Does it have the features and functionality we expect/want?
- Usability – How easy is it to use and get the most out of? Are the controls in the right place, and is the interface logical?
- Performance – How well does the product work? Do all the features perform as they should?
- Value – Is the launch price reasonable when weighed against the other criteria?
You’ll be able to find an editor rating for each review.
EXAMPLE
| Attributes | Notes | Rating |
| Design | With a sleek, premium style, the [EXAMPLE] offers a design that matches the competition and the price point. | 4/5 |
| Performance | Slick and smooth in its operation, the [EXAMPLE] has enough power to keep it competitive, but it doesn’t break any new performance barriers | 4/5 |
| Value | For the price, the [EXAMPLE] is packed full of features often found on rivals at a higher price | 4.5/5 |
Overall review ratings
Our expert reviewers will take into account the scorecard ratings and nuances of the individual product to determine its final star rating, which is displayed at the top of the review.
AudioGuru’s star rating system is designed to give you a brief indication as to whether we’d recommend the product or not. However, we’d always advise reading our reviews to determine if a product is right for your needs.
The final star rating is out of five, and reviewers can award half-star ratings if they feel a product falls between two of the ratings.
User Review vs. Editorial Review
We headline two different types of articles with the word ‘review’ – ‘hands-on reviews’ and ‘full product reviews.’ It is essential to distinguish between them.
Hands-on reviews are a journalist’s first impressions of a piece of kit based on spending some time with it. It may be just a few moments or a few hours.
We have been able to play with it ourselves and give you some sense of what it’s like to use, even if it’s only an embryonic view.
We use the word ‘review’ here partly because we are giving an honest opinion based on it and partly because readers increasingly use the word ‘review’ in searches when looking for these early views about a product.
However, hands-on reviews are not the same as full product reviews. Our full product reviews are always based on the finished release product, which has been thoroughly tested and benchmarked and will always contain a complete verdict and score.
Our Reviewers
Our reviewers are specialists, each with expertise in a particular technology. With decades of combined experience reviewing technology under their belts, our team has consistently lived, breathed, and reviewed technology since AudioGuru’s conception in 2020.
The reviews are based on collaborative research by AudioGuru’s writers and technical team, who have in-depth knowledge about music and technical aspects of sound reproduction.
The result is a team with an almost comprehensive knowledge of the areas they cover, ensuring our reviews give you an in-depth experience of each product and the vital broader context, providing you with the exact information you need when it comes to making a buying decision.
Meet the Team
Our content writer Sana Saif is an expert in explaining and writing about lifestyle and products. She’s been with us for a very long time. She is experienced in writing product descriptions and has written about multiple brands and audio devices in the past. With proficiency in writing product descriptions, articles, blogs, press releases, reviews, social media, and website content, she understands the customers’ and readers’ perspectives and queries pretty well. Interior designer by profession; she has also worked on home automation projects and knows the importance of technology and good sound for your home.
Specialist expertise
Because our writers are specialists, they are constantly in touch with the communities they report on. That means our experts can rate products against others of the same type.
AudioGuru commissions our reviews only from those with the requisite level of expertise: from our team of writers to other external experts when needed.
What this means is if you see a review of a home theater system on AudioGuru, you know it’s been reviewed by an expert in home theater, not other categories.
How We Test
We emphasize real-world testing over labs because that’s where products get used. However, we benchmark every product that sells based on specific performance indicators.