Top-rated reviews of the week (photos)

Here's our weekly roundup of the new products CNET reviewers liked best.

Bose AE2

Editors' rating: 4 out of 5

The good: Lightweight and comfortable design; sealed earcups isolate wearer from ambient noise; headphones fold flat; detachable cord; detailed sound with well-defined bass.

The bad: Sound can be a tad brash.

The bottom line: If you can't afford Bose's noise-canceling models, the Bose AE2s--and their improved design and sound quality--make for a good alternative at half the price.

Read CNET's full review
Prices start at $149.95

Motorola Droid Pro (Verizon Wireless)

Editors' rating: 3.5 out of 5

The good: The Motorola Droid Pro combines a touch screen and full QWERTY keyboard into a compact design. The Android 2.2 smartphone offers enhanced security features for business users, as well as mobile hot spot capabilities.

The bad: The Droid Pro's HVGA display isn't quite as sharp as the competition. Call quality could be better. Paltry internal memory.

The bottom line: The enhanced security features and touch-screen-keyboard combo make the Motorola Droid Pro a nice BlackBerry alternative, but it still has some shortcomings.

Read CNET's full review
Prices start at $179.99

Nintendo Wii Hardware Bundle

Editors' rating: 3.5 out of 5

The good: Clean, accessible design; great library of family-friendly games; still-iconic controller design can be used for motion games or more traditional button-based games; Virtual Console library and WiiWare games offer a unique and affordable collection of classic titles; Wii Sports Resort and Wii Sports included with system; Wii Remote Plus controller updated to include MotionPlus built-in; Netflix streaming.

The bad: Online connectivity hampered by closed-garden design; graphics and video playback cap at 480p; other than Netflix, no other video-streaming or entertainment offerings; can't play CDs or DVDs; graphics continue to look ever more outdated compared with rival consoles; the unique qualities that motion gaming offered are now available in accessories from rival consoles.

The bottom line: For families and lovers of casual games, the still-affordable Wii represents the best console bundle value of the holiday season in terms of dollars spent; however, the Wii's getting long in the tooth, and other game consoles offer more entertainment options and functionality for their higher price tags.

Read CNET's full review
Prices start at $199.97

Pantech Crux (Verizon Wireless)

Editors' rating: 3.5 out of 5

The good: The Pantech Crux is slim and lightweight with a bright and colorful touch-screen display. It has external media keys, a 3.5mm headset jack, GPS, stereo Bluetooth, a 3-megapixel camera, an HTML browser, and threaded messaging. The music player has stereo and surround sound settings. We also like the sliding screen-lock mechanism.

The bad: The Pantech Crux has sluggish performance, and the touch screen can be rather finicky. Call quality is mixed.

The bottom line: The Pantech Crux makes a good multimedia feature phone on paper, but its poor touch-screen performance prevents us from recommending it.

Read CNET's full review
Prices start at $0.01 with two-year contract

Samsung Continuum (Verizon Wireless)

Editors' rating: 3.5 out of 5

The good: The Samsung Continuum features two displays; the smaller ticker window is a great tool for quickly accessing information and multitasking. The smartphone also has a 1GHz processor and a 5-megapixel camera with HD video capture. It offers full wireless options and can be used as a mobile hot spot.

The bad: The smaller screen makes for a more cramped typing experience. Ticker display currently isn't available for third-party apps. Runs Android 2.1, and Bing is set as the default search engine. You can't uninstall preloaded apps and services.

The bottom line: More than just a gimmick, the Samsung Continuum's secondary display is a useful management and multitasking tool, but its constant flow of information might not appeal to everybody.

Read CNET's full review
Prices start at $49.53

Casio Exilim EX-S7 (black)

Editors' rating: 3 out of 5

The good: Nice design, features, and photo quality for price.

The bad: Long shot-to-shot times; short battery life.

The bottom line: The budget-friendly Casio Exilim EX-S7 offers a slim design and a better-than-basic feature set, and its photo quality is good for the price, too.

Read CNET's full review
Prices start at $106.90

D-Link Boxee Box

Editors' rating: 3 out of 5

The good: Attractive user interface; two-sided RF remote includes a QWERTY keyboard; quirky cubelike design; built-in browser that can play Flash video; apps currently include Pandora and MLB.TV; extensive codec support for local content.

The bad: Basic apps like Netflix, Vudu, and Hulu Plus are promised soon, but not available yet; content holders like Hulu are blocking Boxee's browser; double-sided remote has an assortment of usability issues; Boxee's online TV show data is frequently outdated and incomplete; virtually no popular movies available; unorthodox design may not fit in small home theater cabinets; can't be controlled by standard IR universal remote; can't connect to older, non-HDMI TVs.

The bottom line: The Boxee Box by D-Link has some innovative design choices and a promising user interface, but mainstream content is mostly missing in action until future firmware updates are available.

Read CNET's full review
Prices start at $199

Samsung Contour SCH-R250 (MetroPCS)

Editors' rating: 3 out of 5

The good: The Samsung Contour has large, easy-to-press dialpad buttons, a smooth body, and voice commands.

The bad: The Samsung Contour has a low-resolution screen and camera, the WAP browser is slow, and battery life is a bit stunted.

The bottom line: If you're shopping for a very basic cell phone, you'll find the Samsung Contour comfortable and user-friendly.

Read CNET's full review
Prices start at $49