2024 was a year of change for me. I left my job as the Editor-In-Chief ofMobileSyrupafter running and helping to build Canada’s premiere technology website for more than 10 years, for the devices managing editor role at Pocket-lint. I then found myself back in theEIC role a few months later, but this time at Pocket-lint.
I’m thrilled to take the helm of a historic publication likePocket-lint, and the stellar team and I have big plans for 2025, including content that aims to offer a glimpse at the small but nimble editorial team behind the site. This “my 5 favorite things” story is an example of this – and yes, if you’ve followed my work in the past, you’llrecognize the format from MobileSyrup😉. You’ll see other members of the Pocket-lint editorial team’s five favorite things stories hit the site in the coming days.
Outside of work-related changes, there are a lot of things I liked this year, ranging from playing Ship of Harkinian (a PC port of Zelda: Ocarina of Time) on theROG Ally Xto the Fallout TV show and a surprisingly empty pop-punk festival experience.
The iPhone 16 Pro is now my gold standard for phone photography
Apple Intelligence is still missing, but the Camera Control button and Photographic styles make for a worthy upgrade for photographers.
1Ship of Harkinian on the ROG Ally X
Reliving one of my favorite childhood games has been a blast
If you told me a few months ago that I’d spend 30 plus hours playing Nintendo 64 classic The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time towards the latter half of the year, I quite simply wouldn’t believe you, but here we are. I’ve known aboutShip of Harkinian, a PC port of Ocarina of Time, for quite some time, but I’ve never bothered to get it up and running until recently. It seems like the perfect game to play on the Steam Deck OLED, but any time I looked up the steps to get it working on Valve’s handheld, it just seemed too complicated.
This is where the Windows-basedROG Ally Xcomes in. Because it runs Windows 11 (which is both its best and worst feature), you can do pretty much anything you can with a laptop on the handheld, allowing me to get Ship of Harkinian and a 4K texture pack calledOoT Reloadedinstalled in just a few minutes. Ocarina of Time has aged remarkably well for a game that released way back in 1998, and that extra sheen of high-resolution textures and 60fps brings its visuals up to par with its remarkable gameplay. I’m surprised at how much I remember about Ocarina of Time but also how much I’ve forgotten, especially when it comes to some puzzles early in the game (the number of times I’ve needed to use a walkthrough is embarrassing).
The legend of Zelda: Echoes of Wisdom is a nostalgia-fueled adventure with frame rate issues
Zelda’s first game is far more than a gimmick-filled spin-off in the long-running series.
2Fallout TV show
I’m still surprised at how much I enjoyed it
Unless it’sThe Last of Us, I’ve pretty much given up on video game TV shows, but I’m glad I gave Amazon’s Fallout TV show a shot. It pretty much perfectly captures the game series' tongue-in-cheek tone, and Ella Purnell (Lucy MacLean), Aaron Moten (Maximus), and Walton Goggins (The Goul 🥵) offer excellent performances. It’s a bit crude and shockingly gory at times, but there’s also heart to it, just like the long-running game franchise.
Part of why I think the Fallout TV show works so well is because it’s only set in the game’s universe, giving its creators (which includes executive producer Jonathan Nolan) free rein to do pretty much whatever they want within the confines of the game’s universe. I’m looking forward to season 2 when it likely drops at some point in 2026. The Fallout TV show is available to stream onAmazon Prime Video.
Apple’s AirPods 4 with ANC might just be the best update yet
The entry-level wireless earbuds get several new features, including active noise cancellation, conversation awareness, and improved sound quality.
3Attending All Your Friends Fest
Getting a private concert from Gob was pretty cool
I’m a sucker for nostalgia, so when my partner managed to get her hands on VIP tickets toAll Your Friends Fest, a pop-punk/emo festival that seemed like it aimed to be a smaller scaleWhen We Were Young, I was all in. Then I found out it was way out inBurl’s Creek, a festival venue that’s roughly two hours away from Toronto, and my excitement quickly disappeared. In fact, at one point, my partner and I planned to skip the festival altogether, but I’m very glad we didn’t.
As a compromise, we hit up only the Friday date, and to my surprise, the venue was pretty much empty. This gave us the chance to watchSilverstein,Gob,Billy Talent, and more, from the front row. In a way, it almost felt like a semi-private concert experience. I doubt next year’s festival will be as low-key, so I’ll always treasure having the opportunity to see several of the brands I grew up listening to up close and personal. And hey, Gob may not have playedMing Tran, but at least I got to listen toSodawhile standing 5-feet from the stage.
The iPhone 16 offers nearly everything I want from a phone
Apple’s base iPhone is a solid, all-around device that really should feature a 120Hz refresh rate display.
4Anbernic’s RG35XXSP taught me the importance of authenticity
Playing retro games is all about the platform you’re gaming on
Anbernic RG35XXSP
I used to think it was silly to want to play retro games with old school controllers or, in this case, a familiar-looking device. “It’s the game that matters, not the device,” was the opinion I held for years. Then I came acrossAnbernic’s RG35XXSP, a retro handheld that’s a little more than inspired by Nintendo’s classicGame Boy Advance SP, the first backlit Game Boy released in North America.
If you put the two handhelds side-by-side, most people probably wouldn’t even be able to tell the difference. Anbernic has recreated the GBA SP in a remarkable way, right down to its clamshell design, button layout, and the several smart software tricks it offers, like pixel scaling, a virtual drop shadow border around the display, and more. In some ways, I’ve found that playing GBA games on a handheld with this familiar design is a better experience than the far more expensive and premium-feeling FPGA-basedAnalogue Pocket(you’re able to pick up theRG35XXSP for just $60). I also can’t complain about the countless ROMs that may or may not be already installed on the RG35XXSP depending on what storage configuration you opt for, or its small size, which makes it easy to take with me on work-related trips (the above picture is me gaming away on a plane).
The Chromatic is such a good Game Boy remake it feels like Nintendo made it
If your goal is to play old school Game Boy games in the most authentic way possible, the Chromatic is one of the best options available.
5Going to the Tea House at the Royal Botanical Gardens
Checking out flowers and eating tasty treats
I really like technology, and that’s a big part of why I got into the journalism space. But I also like totally unplugging, flowers, gardening, and drinking tea. In an effort to briefly disconnect from our busy lives, my partner bought tickets to theRoyal Botanical Gardens Tea House, a beautifully decorated and historic tea house located in southern Ontario, for my birthday. For a few hours, we munched on scones, macarons, tarts, and more, and, of course, also had tea. We then spent the afternoon wandering around the Royal Botanical gardens, checking out the sprawling park’s walking trails, stunning flowers, and its tropical plant-filled greenhouse.
It was a short respite during a year that feels like it’s been absolutely non-stop for the both of us, and whenever I’m having a tough day, I think back to that very chill experience and do my best to remember that life isn’t always a relentless whirlwind.
Pocket-lint Awards 2024: Our top phone, tablet, streaming app, and more
The 2024 calendar year has been marked with quality tech products from start to finish – here are the gadgets we love the most at Pocket-lint.
