User review competition winners announced!

Our latest user review competition ran from the end of November through to the beginning of January, and to be in with a chance of winning you simply had to enter a user review on the What Hi-Fi? website.

We promised to pick out "the best written, most relevant and useful reviews" - and we have chosen three winners for three prize bundles. With prizes coming in the form of products from Arcam, ATC, Cambridge, Chord, Oppo, Pure, Revo, Roberts, Sennheiser and Shure, there was plenty at stake. So, without further ado...

1st prize - Big Aura's user review of the Sonos Play:5 (2015): "A significant step forward!"

Our winning review successfully strikes the balance between being entertaining and informative, and has been voted the most helpful view on the site since it was published in December. There's some useful information on placement, a comparison with the previous-generation model and Big Aura's own thoughts on sound quality. Few products make it through the review process without a single gripe, and sure enough there are a few negative points to provide balance - and give you a few things to think about if you're thinking of splashing the cash. All told, an excellent, 843-word take on the new Play:5, and one that leaves the What Hi-Fi? review team on high alert... Read the full review here.

2nd prize - vwcampervan's user review of the Audiolab 8200CDQ: "The 8200CDQ is Dead, Long Live the 8200CDQ!"

"There's something about hifi that brings out the obsessive in me", was always going to be a strong start. Sure enough, we very much enjoyed vwcampervan's - is that another obsession? - review of this Audiolab box of tricks. Proving there's plenty of life in slightly older hi-fi products, the review talks through the background of the purchase, the product itself and the various aspects of performance, which all makes for a useful, enjoyable read. Read the full review here.

3rd prize - Mashjenko's user review of the AKG Y50: "You'd struggle to get better for the money!"

We can't help feeling this review is straight out of the What Hi-Fi? review textbook, and of course that's a good thing... Working methodically through everything from build and design to sound quality and features, the review highlights good and bad points, and points out a few under-the-radar issues that could make a difference for you. Frankly, we don't think you could ask for much more from a user review. Read the full review here.

Congratulations to the three winners - check your emails so we can arrange delivery of your prizes.

For everyone else, look out for more competitions in future, and brush up on your skills in the mean time with our guide to how to write your own user review...

Joe Cox
Content Director

Joe is the Content Director for What Hi-Fi? and Future’s Product Testing, having previously been the Global Editor-in-Chief of What Hi-Fi?. He has worked on What Hi-Fi? across the print magazine and website for almost 20 years, writing news, reviews and features on everything from turntables to TVs, headphones to hi-fi separates. He has covered product launch events across the world, from Apple to Technics, Sony and Samsung; reported from CES, the Bristol Show, and Munich High End for many years; and written for sites such as the BBC, Stuff and The Guardian. In his spare time, he enjoys expanding his vinyl collection and cycling (not at the same time).

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