Most tech enthusiasts will know about the “awe dropping” Apple iPhone event happening next week. But there’s another tech confab opening today in Berlin, Germany. IFA 2025, said to be the largest home & consumer tech event, starts later this evening with Acer CEO Jason Chen unveiling the PC maker’s latest innovations. Other big-name exhibitors include brands like Samsung, LG, Sony, Bosch, Miele, TCL, and Hisense.
In fact, at least one major announcement has already been made at IFA. I’m talking about the just-revealed Dolby Vision 2 standard for TVs. One of its key features is Authentic Motion, This “world’s first creative driven motion control tool” will reduce unwanted judder while keeping things “authentically cinematic”. If that means no more soap opera effect — which is still present with the existing Dolby Vision IQ — while removing judder, that’s a win in my books.
It comes in two flavours: Dolby Vision 2 Max and Dolby Vision 2. The former includes bi-directional tone mapping, which gives creators new controls to take advantage of the higher brightness, sharper contrast, and deeply saturated colors offered by premium TVs. Meanwhile, the standard Dolby Vision 2 has a Content Intelligence feature that uses AI to “automatically optimize your TV to deliver a more captivating picture based on what you’re watching and where you are watching.”
Hisense, which is going to talk more about its RGB Mini-LED TVs at its IFA press event, is the first brand to support Dolby Vision 2, though the exact availability has yet to be announced. But you can expect other TV makers to follow suit, and possibly make their own announcements at IFA. Well, except for Samsung, which has been championing its own HDR10+ format for years.
Speaking of which, the South Korean tech giant is planning to talk about its home appliances at IFA, focusing on (you guessed it) the “transformative potential of AI”. There’s also a Galaxy Unpacked event happening this week, with new Samsung tablets and possibly a new Galaxy S25 FE smartphone rumoured to be in the works. We’ll know more about that very soon, so stay tuned!
In short, there’s plenty to look forward to this week if you’re into tech, especially for audiovisual products and home appliances. On another note, I think IFA should step up and raise its profile even more among exhibitors, especially those from non-visa-waiver countries in South America and Asia. Given how the United States has dropped the ball on international tourism under the Trump administration, I would think there’s potential for IFA (attendance grew 18% year-on-year for the 2024 edition) to narrow the gap with CES, which counts over 40% of its attendees from outside the US. But that’s a story for another day.
This week, we checked out DJI’s new mini wireless microphone, gave our verdict on Google’s new flagship Pixel 10 Pro XL smartphone, and had a blast playing games on the huge, but powerful Acer Predator Helios 18 AI.
Looking for a wireless microphone that can deliver top-notch audio recordings suitable for professional use? The DJI Mic 3 (S$349) could be the answer. It's simple to use, and can work with compatible DJI devices, such as its drones or its action cameras. The full kit gets you a charging case, two DJI Mic 3 transmitters, a receiver, USB-C cable, a 3.5mm audio cable, windscreens, and magnetic clips.
The Google Pixel 10 Pro XL isn’t a big upgrade over the previous version, but it does have a potential killer feature in Pixelsnap, which is Google’s take on MagSafe that’s also compatible with existing MagSafe accessories. You also get even more AI features, though the new Tensor G5 chip powering this phone is still not class-leading.
On paper, there are few gaming laptops that can rival the Acer Predator Helios 18 AI. It’s packed with the latest and greatest gaming hardware, from its GeForce RTX 5090 graphics to a PCIe 5.0 SSD. But there are also clear disadvantages — it runs hot and noisy, and it’s also expensive (S$6,999).