The best products we’ve tested so far this year

Can you believe it’s August already? Surely we skipped a month there somewhere, right?

CHOICE’s crack team of experts are now eight months into their 2026 testing schedules, and they’ve scrutinised a heck of a lot of products in our labs – XX to be precise.

As always, they’ve seen products ranging from first-rate to flops and while we frequently reveal the products to avoid, this time we’re sharing the top-tier products that have caught our experts’ attention – exclusively for CHOICE members.

TVs

Want to go big at home? Many shoppers are keen on big screens, but they don’t come cheap: the 64- and 65- inch TVs we’ve tested range in price from $699 to $4999.

Exclusively for CHOICE members, here’s our experts’ 2026 picks for great TVs at great prices.

Laptops

Our tech testers have very high standards, so not many laptops make the cut to be recommended by our experts.

But some products that don’t quite make the grade are still worth considering, especially if you can pick them up for a good price.

One laptop we tested this year hits the sweet spot between price and performance.

Want the inside info? Join CHOICE to access all our reviews and test results. Or if you’re already a CHOICE member, log in to see our experts’ recommendation.

Wireless security camera

Kitchen

Even though spring is just around the corner, it’s still pretty chilly in many parts of the country – which is perfect weather for comfort food.

Slow cooked meals aren’t just good for your tastebuds – they’re also good for your budget. Slow cookers can turn cheap cuts of meat into tender, juicy morsels that you can pad out with legumes and other cheap ingredients. 

And cooking in bulk means you’ll always have meals on hand so you won’t need to eat out or order in.

Here are CHOICE’s kitchen expert Fiona Mair’s picks of the bunch for 2026.

Babies and kids

There’s no two ways about it: kids are expensive. 

Between prams, car seats, bassinets, cots and change tables, you’ll have dropped quite a bit of cash before your baby is even born – so anything you can do to minimise costs will ease the pressure.

Strollers

You can spend quite a bit on a pram for your new bundle of joy. We’ve tested prams and strollers ranging in price from $119 to $2599. 

But there’s some good news for thrifty parents: three strollers costing less than $250 wowed our experts in our 2026 test, outperforming prams costing hundred (and even thousands) of dollars more.

And they passed all our rigorous safety tests, which means you can rest easy knowing that your little one’s ride is safe.

Here are the three bargain strollers from our 2026 testing that CHOICE experts recommend.

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Alice

Alice Richard is a Content creator and marketer. Alice writes on a range of topics, from health insurance to heaters and BBQs to bargain-hunting, always with the aim to help consumers find the best products to buy, and which to avoid. Alice can take vast amounts of data from CHOICE product tests and turn it into content that is easily digestible and fun for readers.  Alice has a Bachelor of Arts from the University of Queensland.

Alice Richard is a Content creator and marketer. Alice writes on a range of topics, from health insurance to heaters and BBQs to bargain-hunting, always with the aim to help consumers find the best products to buy, and which to avoid. Alice can take vast amounts of data from CHOICE product tests and turn it into content that is easily digestible and fun for readers.  Alice has a Bachelor of Arts from the University of Queensland.