Everybody's doing "best of" lists this time of year, so we thought we'd get into the spirit:
Headphones and earphones
Panasonic RP-HTX80B Bluetooth Retro Headphones, $99: Great sounding, great looking, light and comfortable, these headphones offer balanced and accurate high fidelity sound. Battery life is 24 hours, and a 15-minute quick charge yields 2½ hours of playback. (shop.panasonic.com)
Sbode Sport Bluetooth Earphones, $24: These earphones sound far better than you would expect for under $25, and they're comfortable. (amazon.com)
Turntables and vinyl record accessories
LP Gear the Vessel A3SE, $99: This phono cartridge offers shockingly good sound that is competitive with cartridges selling for $400 or more. It's perfect for bringing an old turntable back to life. (lpgear.com)
AT-LP60-USB, $129: This is far and away the best entry-level turntable. Unlike many cheap competitors, it won't damage your records. It features automatic operation, a built-in phono preamp and a USB connection to transfer records to your computer. (audio-technica.com)
Allsop Orbitrac 3 Record Cleaning System, $49: Very easy to use and produces excellent results. (allsop.com)
Spin-Clean Record Washer, $79.99: If you don't mind doing more work than with the Orbitrac 3, this gives your records a deep cleaning as good as or better than an expensive record cleaning machine. (spinclean.com)
Television soundbars
ZVOX AccuVoice AV201 TV Speaker, $199.99: Not a home theater soundbar, but a small speaker that optimizes dialogue reproduction. No other product does a better job bringing vocal clarity to television listeners. If you have trouble hearing and understanding voices on television, this is what you need. (zvox.com)
SoundCore Infini Integrated 2.1-Channel Soundbar, $99.99: This has clean, well-defined sound and a built-in subwoofer for solid bass. (soundcore.com)
Bluetooth speakers
Cambridge Audio Yoyo(S), $179.99: This is the highest-quality Bluetooth speaker available for under $200. It features exotic BMR driver technology for superior sound and is wrapped in colorful, high-quality worsted wool. (cambridgeaudio.com)
Soundcast VG1, $149.99: This compact, premium quality, waterproof speaker is rugged and has clear, dynamic sound. (gosoundcast.com)
Television and video
Air TV, $119.99: Connect an antenna to AirTV and it will stream free local television broadcasts to televisions and portable devices throughout your home. Add an external hard drive and it works as a DVR, recording up to two channels at once. (airtv.net)
Amazon Fire Stick 4K, $49.99: This is one of the best ways to turn your TV into a Smart TV. As the name suggests, it supports 4K streaming. (amazon.com)
Cellphone accessories
VicTsing Bluetooth FM Adapter with 1.44-inch display, $16.99: Adds two USB ports, MicroSD card music playback, hands-free Bluetooth phone calling and music streaming to your older car. (amazon.com)
Anker PowerCore Fusion, $25.99: This ingenious wall rapid charger has a built-in battery so it can charge your devices even without an outlet. (anker.com)
Send questions to Don Lindich at donlindich@gmail.com.
