Techloy Recap: The Biggest Tech Hardware Releases of 2025

Say what you want about 2025, but if you take a look at the slate of tech hardware released this year, many companies pushed the envelope. From ultra-slim smartphones and foldables to powerhouse GPUs, every month saw something new and unexpected.  

Whether it was a radical Samsung foldable, or a next-gen gaming console, this year wasn’t just about incremental upgrades; it was about companies taking bold steps to shake up the status quo.  

As the year draws to a close, now is a great time to look back at some of the most impressive releases of 2025. 

Here’s a month-by-month look at the most exciting hardware releases of 2025.

1. January:

NVIDIA RTX 5090 GPU

In January, the world was flooded with a number of concept products, as always, with the Consumer Electronics Show in full swing. We got to see the most random products unveiled, from flying cars to little old Mirumi. But one thing that really stood out in January was NVIDIA's GeForce RTX 50 Series GPUs, the first set of GPUs to showcase Nvidia's new Blackwell Architecture. 

There were 5 GPUs from the series unveiled throughout this year, but in January, we saw the RTX 5090, Nvidia's flagship offering at $1,999. It's been a performance beast, featuring 32 GB of VRAM, over 21,000 CUDA cores, and a staggering 575 W power draw, meaning the device can handle literally anything you throw at it, be it 8K 60 FPS games or even more intense industrial tasks like running AI training models. 

Galaxy S25 series

We also saw Samsung's S25 series in January, which mostly offered modest spec bumps rather than major surprises. The line up doubled down on AI-powered features, integrating Galaxy AI and Google Gemini into One UI 7 on Android 15.

Under the hood, the Snapdragon 8 Elite for Galaxy boosted performance and on-device AI over the S24 series, while the S25 Ultra got a minor camera upgrade with a 50 MP ultrawide sensor. The more intriguing details, though, were teased for later in the year. We’ll cover those when we get there.

2. February

iPhone 16e

In February, Apple decided to surprise us with the launch of the iPhone 16e, a mid-cycle release that instantly split the tech community. Some praised it as a refreshing, stripped-down iPhone that brought modern performance to a lower price point, while others dismissed it as an overpriced SE successor. 

Starting at $599, the 16e offers Apple’s A18 chip, a 6.1-inch display, improved battery life, and a single 48 MP rear camera, all packaged as the company’s new “budget” entry in the iPhone 16 line up. It wasn’t the most dramatic hardware of the year, but its abrupt debut and polarising reception made it one of 2025’s most talked-about releases. 

3. March

M4 MacBook Air

Apple went on a streak early in the year as it also decided to refresh its MacBook line up in March, giving us its M4 chip in the MacBook Air and also the M4 Max in the Mac Studio.

The 13-inch M4 MacBook Air starts at $999 (with the 15-inch at $1,199), bringing Apple’s next-gen silicon to its thinnest, lightest laptop with up to 18 hours of battery life, a new 12 MP Center Stage camera, and support for dual external displays.

M4 Max Mac Studio

The refreshed Mac Studio offers configurations with M4 Max and the high-end M3 Ultra chips, Thunderbolt 5 connectivity, massive unified memory (up to 512 GB), and up to 16 TB of SSD storage.

This desktop powerhouse is tailored for pro workflows like video editing, 3D rendering, and on-device AI, with pricing beginning around $1,999 for the M4 Max model.

4. April

RTX 5060 Ti

April brought another round of excitement for PC enthusiasts with the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5060 Ti launch. Positioned as a mid-range powerhouse in the Blackwell architecture line up, the 5060 Ti offered 8 GB and 16 GB VRAM variants at $379 and $429, respectively.

While not as monstrous as the RTX 5090, it still delivered impressive performance for 1440p and even some 4K gaming, along with enhanced AI acceleration for content creation and real-time ray tracing. For gamers and creators looking for next-gen features without breaking the bank, the 5060 Ti hits the sweet spot between performance and affordability.

5. May

Galaxy S25 Edge

After getting teased all the way back in January, Samsung finally released the S25 Edge, its entry into the “ultraslim phone” category, a major trend this year.

The phone came in at just 5.8 mm thick, featuring a 6.7-inch QHD+ Dynamic AMOLED 2X display with a 120 Hz refresh rate and Gorilla Glass Ceramic 2. It ran on the Snapdragon 8 Elite for Galaxy, with 12 GB RAM, up to 512 GB storage, and Android 15/One UI 7.

The camera setup included a 200 MP main sensor, a 12 MP ultra-wide, and a 12 MP selfie camera. Its ultra-slim build did mean a trade-off, a modest 3,900 mAh battery, making it the slimmest Galaxy S phone ever.

6. June

DJI FlyCart 100

June saw DJI pushing further into industrial applications with the FlyCart 100 heavy-lift delivery drone. Designed to carry up to 80 kg, it brought advanced obstacle sensing, autonomous route planning, and long-range operation to commercial logistics.

Unlike DJI’s consumer drones, the FlyCart 100 was built for real-world industrial use, from warehouse-to-door delivery to large-scale inventory management. Its launch marked a clear step toward drones not just for hobbyists, but as practical tools reshaping supply chains and delivery operations worldwide.

7. July

Galaxy Flip 7 and Fold 7

Like every other year, Samsung once again released the refresh of its fold and flip series with the Fold 7 and the Flip 7, phones that genuinely made me consider flipping to one of these foldable pieces of hardware for a change (see what I did there?).

The Flip 7 finally stretched its cover display across the entire back, making quick replies, widgets, and camera framing genuinely useful instead of gimmicky. The Fold 7 also got a wider, more functional outer screen that made it feel less like a cramped mini-tablet and more like a real phone when closed.

Paired with the Snapdragon 8 Elite chip, better durability, and lighter frames, this year’s refinements were enough to make even me seriously consider switching to a foldable for the first time.

Nintendo Switch 2

Easily one of the biggest and most anticipated product launches this year, the Nintendo Switch 2 was the long-awaited update to the Nintendo Switch, released all the way back in 2017.

The updated system brought a host of meaningful improvements over its predecessor, including a larger 7.9-inch 1080p display with up to 120 Hz refresh rate, a custom Nvidia-based Tegra processor, 256 GB of internal storage, redesigned magnetic Joy-Con controllers, and 4K output when docked, all while maintaining backward compatibility with the vast Switch game library.

Despite being released during a challenging political climate with massive tariffs, the Switch 2 quickly became the fastest-selling console ever, with over 5 million units sold in its first month.

8. August

Google Pixel 10 Series

In August, we finally got to see the latest Pixel series after months of leaks and rumours. The Pixel 10 series felt like a solid upgrade over the Pixel 9. Even the base Pixel 10 sported a triple-camera setup, making it almost impossible not to recommend the latest model to anyone eyeing a Pixel phone.

9. September

iPhone 17 Series

In September, Apple finally shook up the iPhone design in a way we hadn’t seen since the iPhone 11 era. The iPhone 17 Pro models got a subtle but meaningful redesign, and many users were delighted to see thicker phones with noticeably larger batteries that actually deliver “all-day” battery life. Meanwhile, the base iPhone 17 became a better value proposition, with storage starting at 256 GB instead of 128 GB, all while holding the same $799 price as last year’s model.

iPhone Air

Then there was the iPhone Air, Apple’s entry into the ultra-slim category. It drew mixed reactions: some disliked it, others bought it for aesthetic reasons. But personally, I think the Air pushed Apple to improve the lineup’s value overall, and for that, I’m genuinely a fan. 

10. October

Samsung Galaxy XR headset

In October, we finally learned what Samsung’s long-rumoured Project Moohan actually was, and it didn’t disappoint. It wasn’t as premium, powerful, or immersive as the Apple Vision Pro, but it also wasn’t anywhere near as expensive.

As an XR headset built on Android and powered by Google Gemini, the Galaxy XR immediately felt practical, running most Android apps and experiences straight out of the box. That alone gave people a stronger reason to spend $1,800 on it for everyday use, rather than spending $4,500 on something that often felt more like a status symbol than a usable device.

11. November

Huawei's Mate 70 Air

As mentioned earlier, slim phones became a trend this year, so it wasn't much of a surprise when Huawei also announced they're throwing their hat in the ring.

Enter the Mate 70 Air, a super-slim 6.6 mm device with a 7-inch AMOLED display, Kirin 9020 chip, and up to 512 GB storage. Despite its thin design, it packs a huge 6,500 mAh battery, 66 W fast charging, and a 50 MP main camera, all running on HarmonyOS 5.1. It’s one of Huawei’s sleekest yet most practical phones this year.

12. December

Galaxy Z Trifold

You really can't talk about hardware releases in 2025 without mentioning what was arguably Samsung’s most exciting phone release of the year: the Galaxy Z Trifold, unveiled this December. The phone/tablet hybrid is a product of Samsung's 7 years of experience with fold and flip phones, and it truly delivered.

Pricing varies by region, but for around $3,000, you get a Snapdragon 8 Elite for Galaxy chip, 16 GB RAM, 512 GB or 1 TB storage, and a 5,600 mAh battery, all under a 10-inch wide screen that folds into a 6.5-inch display.  

It’s only the second device in this field, with the Huawei Mate XT as the closest comparison, but this Trifold is definitely a product people are eager to get their hands on, myself included, if the price weren’t so high.