The big 2025 tech preview: The 10 most exciting gadgets, gear and launches coming in the next 12 months

Another year, another 12 months of technological possibilities. Though we’re still a way off from seeing robots capable of emotional love and with the second generation Apple Vision Pro looking like a distant dream, there’s still plenty to be excited for as we begin another rotation round that fiery ball of light in the sky.

AI will continue to be on the lips of every tech executive (whether we like it or not), surveillance devices will continue pushing into our everyday lives, and inevitably prices will continue to rise on the gear plugged into our walls, thrown into our bags and squeezed into our pockets.

There are a few significant anniversaries in 2025 too, with the Mac Mini (Jan 11) and Google Maps (Feb 8) turning 20. It’ll also be 25 years since the introduction of the best-selling video game console of all time, the PlayStation 2.

But enough about the past, it’s time to look to the future: ready yourselves for what 2025 has in store for the world of tech.

1. Nintendo Switch 2

The original Switch arrived in 2017, followed by the Switch Lite in 2019, and the updated Switch OLED in 2021. We’ve been waiting patiently for a generational leap forward from the Mario makers and, after years of rumors, 2025 will finally be the year we’re treated to the Switch 2. Nintendo has already confirmed its next generation console will be backwards compatible with original Switch games and Switch Online will carry over too. It’s hinted at a big announcement in March. This will be massive.

2. Tri-fold smartphones

Huawei wowed the world with the tri-folding Mate XT in September 2024, a phone which can fold out to an iPad-rivalling 10.2-inch tablet. At launch availability was limited to China, but in 2025 expect to see this seriously slick smartphone arrive in more markets, and for other manufacturers to announce rival handsets with equally impressive triple flexibility. As for the price? Well, it’s not going to be cheap, but did we mention it’s a smartphone which folds out to become a massive tablet?

3. Sony WH-1000XM6

Sony’s over-ear WH-1000XM series of headphones have been among the best for years, so it’s about time we saw the next generation break cover. The most recent set - the WH-1000XM5 - arrived in 2022, so things are aligned nicely for 2025 to deliver us the Sony WH-1000XM6. Sure, the name’s a right mouthful, but you’ll soon forget that as you place these cans over your ears, marvel at the astonishing noise cancellation, and become lost in your favourite beats. We’d recommend readying a playlist in advance.

4. New AMD and NVIDIA GPUs

PC gamers are in for a treat in 2025. After waiting patiently for more than a year now, both AMD and Nvidia are all-but-certain to launch new, high-end GPUs in early 2025. As well as delivering even more stunning visuals on our computers and laptops, the new GPUs will continue to push advancements in AI which not only benefit gaming, but can help us with other personal and work related tasks. And hopefully we’ll see some AI applications that go beyond the LLM chatbots.

5. Big, beautiful TVs

TVs are getting bigger, with television makers keen for us to squeeze as many inches as possible into our front rooms, and the trend is set to continue in 2025. Reports point towards Samsung adding a new size to its premium TV line-up, with a whopping 83-inch option on its hotly tipped QD-OLED and W-OLED-toting S90F and S95F ranges. Not to be outdone, LG is also upping the ante with its new range of QNED LCD TVs arriving at CES 2025 in Las Vegas - with sizes ranging from a reserved 40 inches all the way up to a staggering 100 inches.

6. Social scuffle

It’s been more than two years since Elon Musk took over Twitter and renamed it X. Since then, brands pulled advertising, some users fled, while others rejoiced at the new owner’s views on freedom of speech. The result is an uncertainty as to what will become the next dominant social platform. The likes of BlueSky, Discord, Hive, Mastodon, Threads and more are vying to usurp X for the most daily active users crown. X remains on top for now, but in 2025 we’ll see more users pick a side - plus there’s the small issue of TikTok’s looming ban in the US.

7. Amazon Alexa AI (and new Echo speakers)

Amazon’s AI-infused Alexa assistant was supposed to arrive in 2024, but reports of problems during testing claim the retail and tech giant pushed the launch to 2025. Amazon is lagging behind the likes of Apple Intelligence, ChatGPT and Google Gemini, even though it first showed off the AI-enhanced Alexa back in September 2023. The delay could be a blessing, as Amazon’s range of Echo smart speakers are also due an upgrade. A dual launch of Alexa AI in a sleek series of fresh hardware could be the catalyst to get the assistant’s name back on everyone’s lips.

8. Android XR / Samsung Project Moohan

Google announced the Android XR platform at the end of 2024, setting 2025 up nicely as the year we’ll see a fresh assault on the VR headset and smart glasses market. Samsung is already signed up to launch a headset (currently codenamed Project Moohan), but expect to see a number of mixed-reality wearables revealed as we go through the year and companies look to battle Apple’s Vision Pro and Meta’s Quest VR headsets. Smart glasses are the most intriguing, with a slimline design and the ability to deliver information such as directions or translations directly in your line of sight in real time.

9. iPhone 17 gets a fresh look

There are three certainties in life: death, taxes, and an iPhone launch every September. For the past five years the iPhone launches have looked rather… similar, at least in terms of external design. Sure, the notch was shrunk and then usurped by the dynamic island, and the rear camera layout was tweaked - but overall, visually, it’s been pretty copy-paste. In 2025, the iPhone 17 series is tipped to sport a bold new design. This could be the biggest shake-up to the iPhone since the iPhone X dropped the home button and bulky bezels back in 2017. And with Apple Intelligence having had time to mature by that point, it could be a very important year for Apple’s leading smartphone.

10. GTA VI

GTA VI will be the biggest release of 2025. Not just in gaming — in anything, TV, movies, tech, the lot. Big. Huge. Rockstar’s crime sim will be inescapable next year. A game 12 years in the making from a deviously secretive developer has whipped fans of the world’s most popular video game franchise into a frenzy, for the most anticipated launch event this millennium. We know GTA VI’s release is ‘Fall 2025’ and the game is set in Rockstar’s fictional US state of Leonida (aka Florida), while rumours point to the franchise’s first female protagonist and a map size unlike anything that’s come before. The wait has been long, but it will be worth it.

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