Mark Henninger

Harman International, the Samsung-owned powerhouse behind JBL, Harman Kardon, Mark Levinson, Revel, and Arcam, has agreed to buy Masimo’s Sound United division for $350 million in cash. If regulators sign off, the sale should close by the end of 2025—just three years after Masimo stunned the market by paying roughly $1.0 billion for the very same collection of brands. For home-theater enthusiasts, the headline isn’t the price swing; it’s what happens when Denon and Marantz AV receivers, Polk Audio and Definitive Technology speakers, Bowers & Wilkins luxury models, Classé electronics, Boston Acoustics, and the HEOS multi-room platform all move under the same roof as Samsung TVs and Harman’s own audio lineup.

Looking ahead, we've refreshed our Sound & Vision Top Picks list to better reflect how AV enthusiasts shop today. There are numerous excellent product evaluation sites online, all diligently testing the equipment we consider for inclusion in our lists.

Year after year, these sources typically arrive at a consensus—though the concept of labeling a single product as "best" remains inherently subjective. After all, what might be "best" for one person's budget and preferences may not align perfectly with another's needs. Some products stand out for their top performance, but they usually have high prices.

PRICE
$1,999.99

AT A GLANCE
Plus
• Glasses-free 3D technology delivers a surprisingly comfortable viewing experience
• Excellent 2D performance with a high refresh rate and snappy response time
• Effective eye tracking maintains a stable 3D effect
• Versatile performance across games, VR-style content, and productivity tasks
• Polished Samsung build quality and design

Minus
• Noticeable resolution drop in 3D mode
• Brief delay for eye tracking to lock onto your position
• Premium price tag

THE VERDICT
Samsung’s G90XF 3D gaming monitor takes a bold step forward, introducing a glasses-free 3D experience that’s both immersive and easy on the eyes. It eliminates the bulk and fatigue of traditional 3D glasses or VR headsets, providing a more natural sense of depth that doesn’t strain your vision over time.

Yes, you’ll sacrifice a bit of resolution when toggling on 3D, but the resulting holographic effect more than makes up for it—games and videos truly pop off the screen.

Bowers & Wilkins (B&W) has announced the Px7 S3, a third-generation over-ear model that the company positions as its “most advanced and capable” wireless headphone to date. The new design replaces 2023’s Px7 S2e and brings several firsts to the line, including a discrete on-board headphone amplifier, an upgraded eight-microphone active-noise-cancellation (ANC) system, and upcoming support for both spatial-audio processing and Bluetooth LE Audio with Auracast broadcast mode.