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Reviewed.com Weekly Tech Roundup: January 31, 2014

This week we reviewed some laptops, monitors, and cameras—including Olympus’ promising new OM-D.

Recommendations are independently chosen by Reviewed's editors. Purchases made through the links below may earn us and our publishing partners a commission.

For nearly 15 years, Reviewed.com has tested thousands of products, all to help consumers buy, use, and understand electronics, appliances, and now cars.

This week we tested Olympus’ latest OM-D mirrorless camera, an impressive yet affordable Lenovo laptop, some appliances, and more. We also took a look at the best Super Bowl photos of all time, and investigated the mysterious origins of our favorite Super Bowl snack—buffalo wings.

Olympus OM-D E-M10 Digital Camera Review

The brand new Olympus OM-D E-M10 is a more compact, less expensive option for fans of Olympus’s OM-D line of premium cameras. It’s a step down in size from its sister cameras, the flagship E-M1 and older E-M5, yet it retains the speed and performance the OM-D name has come to represent. It features the same 16-megapixel Micro Four Thirds sensor we loved in many recent Olympus cameras, a high-quality electronic viewfinder, a sturdy metal build, and the super-speedy TruePic VII processor found in the E-M1.

The E-M10’s video capabilities are a little lackluster, but that's not surprising for an Olympus device. If you're a budding videographer and you're interested in the compact Micro Four Thirds system, you should consider buying a Panasonic body. Even so, stills shooters of all stripes should find a lot to love in the E-M10, which will hit store shelves later this year for less than $700 body-only.

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Lenovo Yoga 2 Pro Laptop Review

Lenovo’s Yoga 2 Pro (MSRP $1,399.99) is a highly affordable hybrid PC that undercuts much of its competition with an eyebrow-raising price point. Easily found for around $1,200, the Yoga 2 Pro features a slew of top-notch specs, including a fourth-gen Intel i7 processor running at 1.8GHz, 8GB of RAM, a 256GB solid-state hard drive, and a beautiful QHD+ (3200 x 1800) touchscreen that flips completely around to turn this 13.3-inch laptop into a sizeable tablet. It’s also highly versatile—equipped for graphic designers (despite the lack of a stylus pen), executives, and even less-demanding gamers.

It's a 13-inch hybrid with high-end specs at a mid-range price.

The Yoga 2 has some design-related shortcomings, most related to the decidedly unimpressive touchpad. But at the end of the day, it’s a 13-inch laptop/tablet hybrid with high-end specs at a mid-range price. That's tough to beat.

HP Spectre 13 Laptop Review

When it comes to performance, the HP Spectre 13 (MSRP $999.99) is not exactly a world-beater, but it’s not DOA, either. Its design language is some of the strongest we’ve seen in a while, complete with a "truffle brown" finish that’s ever-so hypnotizing.

But high-end looks can be deceiving. The Spectre 13's Intel i5 processor, 4GB of RAM, and 128GB solid-state drive sound like a great deal for a grand, but we found this laptop's performance lacking. One big perk is the inclusion of Adobe Lightroom 5—a $150 product. But if you’re the type of professional who actually needs Lightroom, you’re probably going to want a more powerful machine. While the look and feel of the Spectre 13 is sure to please, design alone just doesn’t cut it.

GE GDT580SMFES Review

The GE GDT580SMFES dishwasher (MSRP $849) is such a workhorse on its Normal cycle that all the other features—steam, temperature control, and AutoSense—are pretty much unnecessary. The vast majority of our test stains were washed away in the course of everyday cleaning—even the Heavy cycle could only eke out a marginal improvement.

This GE dishwasher is a workhorse.

Overall, the GDT580SMFES isn't the speediest dishwasher we've ever tested, but its slightly extended runtime is more than acceptable considering the wash performance. It’s a solidly designed machine with strong performance and a few extra bells and whistles thrown in—all for less than $900. That’s a good deal any way you cut it.

BenQ XL2720Z Gaming Monitor Review

The BenQ XL2720Z (MSRP $529) is a monitor for serious gamers looking to level up at a mid-range price. It offers a range of nifty features and a quick response time—vital for fast-paced first-person shooters and racing games—but it’s lacking in the design and general picture quality departments. The 27-inch panel is a bit too much real estate for 1080p resolution, and the colors aren't as vibrant or as accurate as we'd like. It’s also a big-ticket item at $529, but for that price you’re getting one of the most specialized gaming monitors available. True gamers in need of a large, low latency display are likely to enjoy, despite our quibbles.


Features Roundup

These Are 12 of the Best Super Bowl Photos of All Time

Sports photography is its own kind of sport, with die-hard professionals all vying eagerly for the best shot of a catch, dunk, or grimace. And the Super Bowl? Well, that’s the Super Bowl of sports photography. Even if you know nothing about the game, these 12 photos all tell stories of their own, complete with triumph, celebration, and heartbreak.

5 Things We Hate About Our Dishwashers

Dishwashers are wonderful appliances that not only save water (compared to hand-washing), but make your domestic life easier. But there are some thing about dishwashers that are so aggravating we wish the engineers at Whirlpool, GE, and so on would tear it all down and start from scratch. Here, we look at five of our most frustrating dishwasher pet peeves.

Origin of the Spices: The Evolution of the Buffalo Wing

Everyone loves buffalo wings, especially for the Super Bowl. This Sunday, Americans are expected to eat some 1.2 billion chicken wings, according to the National Chicken Council. But what exactly is the history of buffalo wing? It turns out, the origin of this tasty appetizer is still mired in mystery. In this feature, we take a look at the hotly debated history of this spicy snack, and the debate over what, exactly, constitutes a buffalo wing.

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