Mac Format - UK (2019-12)

STORE GUIDE Accessories

102 | MACFORMAT | DECEMBER 2019

BEST BUYS... Curated picks of third-party kit

We think these
are the best fitness
headphones money
can buy. The in-ear fit
is solid, and won’t
loosen no matter how
much you run or how
sweaty you get. They look stylish, audio
quality is top notch, while pairing has the
AirPods’ signature simplicity. Whether
you’re pounding the pavement or lifting
weights, these are the ‘phones to beat.

With rich, warm

sound that works

with pretty much

any genre, the KEF

Egg speakers are

ideal partners for

your Mac. They

support high-quality aptX Bluetooth too,

making them perfect for wireless

playback. Quirky design, solid build quality

and support for external subwoofers

makes them a great choice.

The first Naim Mu-so redefined the

wireless speaker market and this second-

generation is even better. AirPlay 2 and

Chromecast compatible, the Mu-so also

proves incredibly easy to set up and use,

thanks to its frequently updated app. But

it’s the sound quality that really makes this

speaker worth the asking price: incredible.

DESKTOP SPEAKER

KEF Egg

£349 kef.com

MULTIROOM SPEAKER

Naim Mu-so 2nd-Generation

£1,299 naimaudio.com

IN-EAR HEADPHONES
Beats Powerbeats Pro
£220 apple.com

THUNDERBOLT DOCK

CalDigit TS3 Plus

£265 caldigit.com/uk

The original TS3 gave

modern Macs a new level

of connectivity. Now

the TS3 Plus offers

an incredible 14 ports.

Its 10Gbps USB-C port and

four USB-A ports (among

others), make it our

Thunderbolt dock of choice, and the price

drop to £265 sweetens the deal. The

Thunderbolt 3 port supplies up to 85W,

so it can even charge a 15in MacBook Pro.

Image credits (left to right, top to bottom): Philips, KEF, Naim

Audio, Apple, CalDigit, Freecom, Brother, Asus, STM Goods

Getting a colour-accurate display used

to cost a pretty penny, but this monitor

is both impressive and affordable. It hits

99% of the Adobe RGB gamut and

supports 10-bit colour. Throw in a host of

ports, an IPS display and a great price,

and you have a seriously good screen.

MONITOR

Philips 328P6AUBREB

£400 philips.co.uk

This drive is the fastest portable SSD

we’ve ever tested. Freecom claims its

write speeds can reach 700MB/sec, but

in our tests it blazed past that to reach

713.8MB/sec write speeds and 907.3MB/

sec read speeds, thanks to its USB 3.1

Gen 2 capability. It’s costly, but worth

it if you feel the need for speed.

EXTERNAL SSD

Freecom mSSD MAXX 512GB

£269 freecom.com

If you want an all-round printer that can
also scan and copy documents, look no
further. Brother’s MFC-J5330DW won
MF #333’s group test, impressing with its
rapid print and scan speeds and A3 paper
handling. The real kicker? It does all that
while maintaining low running costs and
a sub-£200 asking price.

PRINTER
Brother MFC-J5330DW
£191 brother.co.uk

Winner of issue

336’s group test,

this backpack has

had every element

of its build carefully

considered. From the

pocket that lifts your

MacBook off the

ground, to the little extras like supersoft

pockets and the key clip, you’ll find this

a functional and comfortable option for

carrying your MacBook and more.

MACBOOK BAG

STM Goods Myth

£100 stmgoods.com

This Asus router has a lot going for it.

The winner of MF #321’s group test, the

DSL-AC88U scored an impressive five

stars in three out of four categories.

It performed brilliantly in our tests, has

excellent connectivity (with both Ethernet

and ADSL options), and it looks great too.

It’ll keep your network powered for years.

WI-FI ROUTER

Asus DSL-AC88U AC3100

£258 asus.com/uk