How we test and research
The short version: we do the reading so you don't have to, and we tell you plainly when a recommendation is based on research versus our own hands-on time. We would rather be useful and honest than pretend we run a lab we don't.
Where our recommendations come from
For most products, we synthesize three things: published lab measurements from independent testing outlets (for displays, that means sites like RTINGS and TFT Central; for audio, batteries, and cameras, the equivalent specialist labs), professional reviews from established publications, and the consensus of long-term owners in communities that use the product every day.
Before anything publishes, we verify the current model, its specifications, and its price against the manufacturer and at least one retailer. Products get discontinued and superseded constantly, so a recommendation that was right six months ago can be wrong today. If a newer model has replaced the one we are writing about, we say so and point you to it.
When we have hands-on time, we say so
Some of what we cover, we have used ourselves. When a review is based on genuine hands-on time, it carries a "Hands-on tested" label and describes what we actually did with it. When it does not, it carries a "Researched and verified" label instead. We will never write "I tested this for six months" about a product we did not test. That single habit is the line between an honest recommendation site and the content farms Google spent 2024 and 2025 clearing out.
What our scores mean
An overall score out of 5 is our editorial judgment of how good a product is for the people we recommend it to, at its current price. Where it helps, we break that into sub-scores by category, so you can see the reasoning instead of a single number with nothing behind it. A great screen with mediocre ports and a high price does not get one flat 4.5; it gets a high display score, a low ports score, and a value score that reflects what you actually pay.
We change scores when the facts change. A product that gets a price cut, a firmware fix, or a newer rival can move up or down, and the review's update date reflects a real change, not a timestamp bump.
How we handle "best" picks
When we call something the best, we tell you who it is best for and why, and we name the runner-up and the budget option so you can disagree with us. Most people are not edge cases, so we lead with the pick for the majority, then handle the exceptions. If the cheaper or older model is the smart buy, that is what we tell you, even when it earns us less.
Affiliate links, plainly
grimtech is free to read because some links, including Amazon links, earn us a commission when you buy through them, at no extra cost to you. Which product we recommend is decided before any link is added, and the commission never changes the verdict. Where it is useful, we link more than one retailer so you can buy where you prefer. Read more about who we are on our about page.
Found something wrong?
If a price, a spec, or a claim is out of date or incorrect, we want to fix it. Corrections are made on the page itself, with the update date changed to reflect the real edit.