Tops in tech 2013: Some of our favorite gadgets

USA TODAY's Tech team offers a look at some of their own favorite tech gear of 2013.

JEFFERSON GRAHAM: Vizio Soundbar

Buying the Vizio 5.1 Soundbar this summer was truly a life-changing experience. I plugged it into our 50-inch plasma in the bedroom for a review, and the sound was so radically better than what I was used to I not only knew I had to purchase it but that I could never watch TV without a speaker again.

The Soundbar is very attractively priced - it was $329, but now lists for $299, and is often available for $199. The main speaker itself plugs directly into the back of a TV, with the digital audio connection. What's cool about Vizio's package is that it comes with three additional speakers. The sub-woofer plugs into an electrical outlet, and two rear speakers connect to the sub-woofer. The three speakers wirelessly connect to the main soundbar. The connection was simple, the sound is way better than the tinny TV speaker and I couldn't be a happier TV watcher.

JEFFERSON GRAHAM: Canon 70D

All year long I see new cameras, many of them amazing, but not usually so striking that I feel the need to quickly part with $1,000 or more to add to my collection. But that's what happened with the Canon 70D, the biggest camera breakthrough of the year for those of us who like to shoot video on still cameras. Is the autofocus on the 70D that good? No, it's better. The 70D is the first DSLR I've seen that can follow you moving around from left to right, top to bottom, and keep your image in focus the whole time. For anyone out there doing one-man-band productions, this is the ultimate camera.

ALISTAIR BARR: Asus Ultrabook

My daughter is in fourth grade and she is starting to use our family computer, an Apple MacBook Pro, to do homework assignments. This keeps me from important work such as watching YouTube videos and buying stuff I don't need on Amazon.com. So I started looking around for a computer for her. A tablet is a no-go because she is learning to type. An Apple laptop is way too expensive for such a young child. I thought seriously about the Acer Chromebook, but the deal killer was the lack of Skype (I want my daughter to be able to Skype my parents in the UK and there is no way 70 year-olds will learn Google Hangouts, sorry). So I took the Windows 8 plunge and bought an Asus Ultrabook tablet that I found on eBay. It was below $400, which is still an embarrassingly large amount of money to spend on a holiday present for a fourth grader. However, the laptop has so far worked well as I set up word processing software and kid settings. Windows 8 is still baffling, but I plan to upgrade to 8.2 which may bring back the start button at least.

NANCY BLAIR: Jabra Tour speakerphone

I picked up the Jabra Tour car speakerphone at Costco as a replacer for an earlier Jabra Cruiser model I'd left behind in a rental car. While there's nothing particularly sexy about it, if you're like me and drive an older model car it's a terrific way to take calls and listen to music from your smartphone while in the car. At about $100, it promises up to 20 hours of talk time and 45 hours of standby. I have indeed found that this thing just goes and goes and goes. It's very easy to pair with your phone, and the 3-watt speaker isn't half bad for listening to music either. It's also a great way to pump up the volume when you are using your phone for navigation.

Google's new Nexus 5 phone is the first device to run on the latest version of Google's Android operating system.(Photo: Uncredited AP)

NANCY BLAIR: Nexus 5

Anyone in the market for a new smartphone this year had an amazing bounty of gee-whiz devices to choose from. I was lucky enough to spend time trying out several, including the Nokia Lumia 1020 Windows Phone, Motorola's Moto X and the HTC One. They're all incredible phones. The 1020 was a revelation not only for its 41-megapixel camera: I found the Windows Phone platform super intuitive and a pleasure to use. It's easy to see why Microsoft made inroads this year in the smartphone market against the Apple and Android juggernauts. I came oh-so-close to buying one before ultimately deciding on Google's LG-built Nexus 5. I'd moved over to Android phones in my personal life a couple of years ago and was ready to make a move on a phone that I could afford without a carrier subsidy. At $349 for a 16GB handset without a contract it felt like a no-brainer.

BAIG REVIEW: BRETT MOLINA: Pebble smartwatch Google Nexus 5 a solid phone, superb value

The smartwatch trend hasn't taken off as quickly as many experts suggested, and it's easy to see why. They're expensive, some require frequent battery charges like a smartphone and, personally, I look dorky enough without compounding the problem by talking to my wrist.

But the Pebble has always fascinated me, so I took advantage of a birthday gift card and joined the wearable world. I chose black since it looks sleek and doesn't give off as strong a toy vibe.

The Pebble smartwatch.(Photo: Pebble)

Pebble offers notifications for any apps on an iPhone or Android smartphone, as well as a host of customizable watchfaces. For extras like apps, it requires a bit more effort since there's no official app store coming until next year.

MIKE SNIDER: Sonos Playbar

But even as a device for notifications, Pebble has proven worthy. I can quickly glance at emails, messages or alerts and either skip them or grab the phone to pursue further. Plus, the battery life lasts 3-4 days. It's a delightful companion for my smartphone.

Buyers of new flat panel TVs are, in general, getting a bargain when it comes to the picture value they get for what they spend. Screens continue to get thinner and bezels leaner, leaving less room for any built-in speakers.

I have speakers galore in the media room, but in the living room we've bought and tested several sound bar speakers. Sound bar speakers serve as a compromise in cases where individual center, left, right and surround speakers are not feasible.

MIKE SNIDER: Oppo Blu-ray Disc player

My wife and I grew attached to the Sonos Playbar ($699) when I tested it for a story. We bought one soon after. Its nine internal speakers added much-needed dimension to movie soundtracks. And it also made it easier to hear dialogue on TV dramas and reproduced beefier performances during The Voice. And by connecting a $49 Bridge product to our Internet router, I can stream music from my smartphone, iPad or computer. The Sonos Playbar was a sound investment in home entertainment at our home.

Early adopters get to be on the cutting edge of new media and home entertainment delivery. But when the medium is never embraced by the mainstream, they find themselves marginalized.

Such was the case with older high resolution music formats like Super Audio CD and DVD-Audio. But Oppo Digital of Mountain View, Calif., has been catering to early adopters by delivering souped-up Blu-ray Disc players for four years. As game systems took coveted space in my audio/video systems, there was no space for individual SACD and DVD-Audio players. That left a few hundred discs - including many Bob Dylan and Rolling Stones titles - collecting dust.

The Oppo Universal Blu-ray Disc Player.(Photo: Oppo Digital)

Follow us on Twitter: Nancy Blair (@nansanfran), Jefferson Graham (@jeffersongraham), Brett Molina (@bam923), Alistair Barr (@alistairmbarr), Mike Snider (@MikeSnider).

Late last year, Oppo brought out a Universal Blu-ray Disc player that bridged the past, present and future. Not only did the BDP-103 ($499) support those two older high-res formats, but it also played 3D discs, and new high-res music downloads. I sprung for the player before I ever did a story on it and never regretted the decision.Not only do my old discs get some TLC, but so do new high-res and surround discs packaged in recent special editions from Eric Clapton, Van Morrison and Pink Floyd. And I can transfer a PC-purchased high-res music download from Acoustic Soundsor HDTracks to a USB, plug it into the Oppo and be listening in seconds. Plus, the Oppo player is a fast-loading, top-quality Blu-ray and DVD player.The Oppo BDP-103 is the type of Swiss Army Knife-style product that early adopters won't regret betting on.