Shining through the darkness that is 2020, the recent tech releases are shocking everyone. Shockingly enough for this past year, it’s not an electric shock.

First of the bunch is the iPhone 12. While their previous phones are notorious for breaking, Apple is breaking that stigma with their new Ceramic Shield glass. Tests have shown that it can withstand head height drops onto concrete.

That fancy new glass isn’t the only new thing growing on this Apple tree. The iPhone 12 also has support for that fancy new 5G thing. Putting all the “cancer” conspiracies to the side, this brings a lot of speed to the table.

However, that speed comes at a price. Battery life. The 12 mini lasts for a mere 7 hours, the 12 for 8 hours, the 12 pro for 9 hours, and the 12 pro max for 11 hours. For reference, the iPhone 11 and 11 Pro both last for roughly 11 hours.

To charge that battery, one must pay extra for a new USB type C charging brick. Due to Apple “reducing e-waste” they no longer include one in the box. Even though the old ones no longer work with the new cable. Or you could buy a magnetic, wireless MagSafe charger.

Moving on to the Macs, they’re using a fancy new processor. The M1 processor is a mix of strong and weak cores. The stronger cores use more power, so using weaker cores that use less power on easier tasks lowers the total power consumption.

Side note, the Macs no longer support external graphics cards. Because reasons.

The iPad Air looks almost exactly like its predecessor, with a slightly smaller screen and slightly larger border. You can even use the same case on them. However, you won’t be able to use Face ID. Just boring old Touch ID.

On the bright side, the iPad Air works like a laptop now. Say goodbye to the weird mobile websites that never quite look right as you can now use the desktop version.

However, if you want to use it as a laptop, I’d suggest you reconsider. With a base storage size of 64 Gigabytes, you’ll run out of space in no time. For an extra $150, you can upgrade to 256 Gigabytes. But that’s still nowhere near enough. Not to mention most Windows laptops can get 1 Terabyte, 4x the max of the iPad Air, for $50 cheaper.

Enough with the Apple, onto the consoles. With its easy quick resume and SSD, the Xbox Series X will blow any Xbox you’ve ever played out of the water. Loading times that seemed to take hours now take seconds. Throw in some ray tracing and 4K video quality, and you’re in for a treat.

The Series X will even let you play classics from all the way back to the original Xbox. Unless those favorites are on the exclusion list. Check this link to be sure your favorites are compatible.

The PlayStation 5 is no letdown either. Speedy load times from their SSD will bring you into their world. 4K video, ray tracing, and haptics. But what are haptics, you may ask. Built into their new controller is a whole new world to experience.

You know how the controller vibrates when you shoot a gun or when the room shakes? That’s called rumble. Give the rumble a dash of science fiction, and you get haptics. But the PS5’s controller, the DualSense, isn’t fiction. With this controller, you can feel so much more. No mere words can describe the experience.

For those of you who have a PS4, it is compatible with your games and external storage. However, you will be needing a new controller. You can’t get haptic feedback through a crummy rumble.

Speaking of science fiction, we have the Oculus Quest 2. Standing at $300, Facebook’s newest VR glasses are the cheapest VR experience money can buy. For that price, you get good enough video quality and two good enough controllers. The best part is that you don’t need an expensive gaming computer to go along with it.

For those looking to try VR for the first time, there’s no better option. When the other options are a cardboard headset that’ll make you throw up and the fancy glasses that cost an arm and a let, there really are no other options. But make sure you have a real Facebook account.

To use the Quest, you need to log in with your Facebook account. And it can’t be a throw away account. If it gets suspended due to suspicious activity, you will lose access to all of the games you bought and the Quest itself.