BERLIN—Depending on who you ask, IFA stands for either “Innovation for All” or “Internationale Funkausstellung.” The latter, which translates to “International Radio Exhibition,” reflects the show’s origins as a radio and broadcasting event when it first launched in 1924. Over the past 101 years, however, IFA has evolved into one of the world’s leading consumer electronics and home appliance trade shows, drawing tech enthusiasts, media, and major brands from across the globe.
(Credit: Andrew Gebhart)
These days, “Innovation for All” better captures the spirit of the event. IFA is no longer just a German or European affair; it’s a global stage for showcasing cutting-edge technology, setting trends, and offering a first look at the devices that will soon shape how we live and work.
After last year’s landmark 100th anniversary, our expectations for IFA 2025 were sky-high—and the show delivered. From groundbreaking advances in AI and robotics to ambitious new products from industry heavyweights like Dyson, Lenovo, and Samsung, this year’s show was packed with tech that feels both exciting and forward-looking. We’ve been on the ground in Berlin, navigating the vast Messe Berlin exhibition halls to get our hands on the most talked-about innovations—and to uncover hidden gems from lesser-known brands.
Below, we’ve rounded up our favorite discoveries from the show. Whether they’re fully polished consumer products or still just experimental concepts, each one offers a glimpse into where tech is headed—and why you should be paying attention.
Best Overall
(Credit: Andrew Gebhart)
Eufy RoboVac Omni S2 and Marswalker
The Eufy Marswalker climbs stairs, not just a single step, to reach multiple floors. An accessory for Eufy’s new flagship robot vacuum, the RoboVac Omni S2, the Marswalker looks like a NASA rover, with rugged wheels in every corner. It flips open a front ramp so the S2 can drive into its central cavity, then closes the door and starts climbing or descending the stairs, a mind-blowing sight to behold. If it works as intended in the real world, it could add long-awaited and much-needed versatility to robot vacuums in multi-story homes.
Dreame has a similar accessory on display at IFA, but its Cyber X is just a concept at this time, whereas the Marswalker is slated to go on sale alongside the S2 this summer. The S2 itself looks like a capable vacuum and mop hybrid, with strong suction power, a self-cleaning roller mop, and a built-in aromatherapy system, but the Marswalker stole the thunder as one of the most talked-about devices of the show.—Andrew Gebhart
Best Smart Lighting
(Credit: Andrew Gebhart)
Govee Permanent Outdoor Lights Prism
With the Govee Permanent Outdoor Lights Prism, you can decorate the outside of your home once and easily change the colors to match the season. Govee is known for its colorful smart bulbs and already makes some of our favorite outdoor string lights. This model updates the line with a more durable build designed to withstand extreme temperatures, a brighter light output, increased color accuracy, and extra customization options.
In particular, each lighting unit now houses three color-changing bulbs instead of just two on prior models. Since each bulb can be controlled individually and changed to a different color, the lights allow that much more flexibility when setting a scene to your liking.—AG
Best Home Appliance
(Credit: Andrew Gebhart)
Midea Chill Master
Dispensing water has never been this hands-off. This refrigerator from Midea automates the process so you can go do something else while your glass fills. The Midea Chill Master has a dispenser that senses the size of your glass. Set it in place, and select whether you want crushed ice, cubed ice, water, or a mix of ice and water. Then hit the autofill button, and the nozzle lowers down to just over the rim of the glass and starts dispensing. By lowering the nozzle, it avoids unnecessary splashing, and this kitchen appliance is smart enough to add ice before water if you select a mix. The interior of the fridge even has its own custom water pitcher in the door that keeps itself full when not in use, so you’ll always have cold water on hand when you need it.—AG
Best Cordless Vacuum
(Credit: Dyson)
Dyson V16 Piston Animal
Dyson’s V16 Piston Animal, announced during IFA, looks even better than its Editors’ Choice award-winning predecessor, the Gen5 Detect. Dyson’s latest flagship cordless vacuum offers 315 air watts (AW) of suction, up from 262AW last generation, and features a dust compactor that compresses debris inside the bin so you don’t have to empty it as often, a feature we first saw in the iRobot Roomba 205 robot vacuum. Dyson says the V16 can hold up to 30 days’ worth of debris in its bin, or three times more than the older V15 series. The V16 also promises improved anti-tangle performance, even when vacuuming “the longest hair.” In addition to the vacuum-only model, it will be available in a wet and dry version called the V16 Piston Animal Submarine; both are slated to arrive in the US in 2026.—Angela Moscaritolo
Best Robot Lawn Mower
(Credit: Tyler Hayes)
Roborock RockMow Z1
Roborock makes some of the best robot vacuums, and now it’s moving outside to tackle your yard. At IFA, the brand debuted a trio of robot lawn mowers, including the flagship RockMow Z1, which conveniently supports auto-mapping like the Eufy E18, and uses all-wheel drive to traverse hills with up to an 80% slope without slipping or losing traction, exceeding the most rugged models we’ve tested, the Husqvarna Automower 435X AWD (70% grade) and the Mowrator S1 (75% grade). Border trimming tends to be a weak spot for robot lawn mowers, but the RockMow Z1 promises to get within 3 centimeters of walls, hopefully saving you from having to break out the edger. There’s no word yet about US availability or pricing.—AM
Best Sports Tech
(Credit: Andrew Gebhart)
Acemate Tennis Robot
The Acemate Tennis Robot offers coaching and serves as a skilled opponent for practicing your rally techniques. The rectangular body has a slot on the front for sending tennis balls your way, and a large net on the top helps it catch your returns. It even has wheels on the bottom to stay on the move. Altogether, the robot goes beyond a simple ball machine with its capability to return a variety of shots instead of sending a single, static one. Its algorithms help it track your returns, move to catch them, and shoot back within a fraction of a second. It also provides coaching via a companion app, and it can show you the speed, spin, and placement of your shots throughout a rally. The Tennis Robot is a cool invention that could be a useful tool for any enthusiast looking for extra time on the court.—AG
Best Smart Glasses
(Credit: Will Greenwald)
Rokid Glasses
I’ve been following waveguide display-equipped smart glasses for a few years, and the Rokid Glasses are the most full-featured pair I’ve seen yet. They incorporate stereo micro-OLED displays, speakers, microphones, and a 12MP camera in a light and unassuming frame that you can easily wear while walking around. The Rokid Glasses can shoot photos and videos, translate languages, and answer your questions with a built-in catch-all voice assistant. I got an early look at Rokid’s pre-announcement event in NYC and am currently testing them for a full review, and so far they’re showing tons of potential.—Will Greenwald
Recommended by Our Editors
Best Smartwatch
(Credit: Amazfit)
Amazfit T-Rex 3 Pro
A rugged smartwatch with a flashlight, the Amazfit T-Rex 3 Pro will track your activity and can help you explore with its dual-color LED light. Available in 48mm and 44mm sizes, the T-Rex 3 Pro has a bright, AMOLED display that reaches 3,000 nits, but it can still supposedly last two weeks on a single charge. Aimed at trail runners, endurance athletes, and outdoor adventurers, it uses AI to track your activity and recovery and can help you find your way with dual-band GPS, offline maps with smart rerouting, and even ski maps. The T-Rex 3 Pro can track 180 different types of sports, including trail running and strength training, and can auto-detect reps for the latter. It offers impressive specs for a variety of athletes, and it’s now available in the US for $399.—AG
Best Phone
(Credit: Eric Zeman)
Samsung Galaxy S25 FE
The Samsung Galaxy S25 FE offers many of the S25 series’ best features at a more affordable price, namely Galaxy AI, a suite of productivity and creativity tools. Galaxy AI offers features like Notes Assist for organizing your entries, real-time call translation, and advanced photo editing. The S25 FE improves on its predecessor with smaller bezels and a more compact body that weighs less (6.7 ounces versus 7.51 ounces). And although it’s the lowest-cost S25 smartphone, Samsung uses high-quality materials like Armor Aluminum for the frame and Corning Gorilla Glass Victus 2 on the front and back. The S25 FE could be a great way to enter Samsung’s Galaxy ecosystem.—Iyaz Akhtar
Best Tablet
(Credit: Eric Zeman)
Samsung Galaxy Tab S11 Ultra
The Samsung Galaxy Tab S11 Ultra is wild. It’s a super-thin (0.20 inches thick) Android tablet with a giant 14.6-inch OLED screen. Its size and quad speakers should make it a killer media machine, and Samsung’s customizations propel Android forward with better multitasking. Samsung includes a hexagonal S Pen patterned after a yellow No. 2 pencil, now with a larger nib for improved writing. Both the Tab S11 Ultra and S Pen are IP68 rated, so you can sketch away without worrying about dust or water. The Tab S11 Ultra may not be for everyone, but its audience should be pleased.—IA
Best Gaming Handheld
Hands On: Lenovo’s Legion Go 2 Puts OLED and a Faster Ryzen Chip in Your Grasp
Lenovo Legion Go 2
Hot off the tail of the Lenovo Legion Go S with SteamOS, Lenovo is set to drop the Legion Go 2, a full-fat follow-up to the Legion Go. The new gaming handheld features an OLED panel with a 1,920-by-1,200-pixel resolution, a 240Hz refresh rate (with a VRR window of 144Hz), and improved ergonomics. The Legion Go 2 runs Windows 11, which means you can access games across pretty much any platform, from the Epic Games Store to Steam to Xbox. But the biggest update is the handheld’s processor. The Legion Go 2 utilizes the AMD Z2 and Z2 Extreme, AMD’s newest high-powered silicon, tailored to handheld machines. The Legion Go 2 could be one of the most powerful PC gaming handhelds on the market. We look forward to putting this one through its paces when it launches in October for $1,049.99.—Zackery Cuevas
Best Laptop
(Credit: Rob Pegoraro)
Acer Swift Air 16
The Acer Swift Air 16 laptop offers a powerful combination of portability and performance. It’s exceptionally light for a 16-inch laptop, with the IPS-screen model weighing just under 2.2 pounds, making it surprisingly easy to carry. As our contributor Rob Pegoraro noted, this laptop is so light it will “leave the smallest possible dent” in your shoulders. Powered by AMD Ryzen AI 300 Series processors, it’s a Copilot+ PC, offering seamless AI experiences for productivity. The laptop also features a versatile port selection, claims of long battery life, and a high-resolution AMOLED display option, proving that you don’t have to compromise on features for a lightweight design.—Brian Westover
Best Prototype
Lenovo’s ThinkBook VertiFlex Concept Laptop Twists Its Screen in a Way I’ve Never Seen
Lenovo ThinkBook VertiFlex Concept
We’ve seen quite a few creative laptop screen formats over the last several years, including multiple displays, foldable panels, and rollable extending displays, but Lenovo’s VertiFlex concept stands out. The design is as simple as it is useful: You can easily rotate the screen in place to swap between horizontal and vertical layouts on the fly. All it takes is a push or pull on any of the corners, and hidden hinges in the lid help move the display between orientations with a satisfying feel. It’s an elegant solution for viewing long documents, big spreadsheets, and coding windows, bringing a vertical monitor layout to a compact laptop. As a concept, the VertiFlex is currently not planned for launch as a retail product, but we hope that changes in the future.—Matthew Buzzi
See More of the Best From IFA 2025
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