Phonocut is a home vinyl recorder for cutting your own records at the push of a button

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Cassettes, a.k.a. the worst audio medium in history (sorry, hipsters), had one redeeming feature: the mix tape. It was insanely easy to make your own compilations, before drag-and-drop and streaming obliterated such concerns. Now, Phonocut (from €1499; blanks from €55 for ten) brings something similar to vinyl fetishists. A dream of record lovers for decades, Phonocut frees record production from high-tech pressing plants with their demands for runs of many hundreds of units. Instead, you plonk a 10in blank (inspired by the original shellac record format) on to Phonocut. Connect an audio source via stereo minijack, press a button, and the device starts cutting sound waves into grooves – in real-time. A few minutes later, you’ll have a beautiful black disc housing your favourite tracks – or a super-rare white label of you singing in the shower.

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I’m a regular contributor to Stuff magazine and Stuff.tv, covering apps, games, Apple kit, Android, Lego, retro gaming and other interesting oddities. I also pen opinion pieces when the editor lets me, getting all serious about accessibility and predicting when sentient AI smart cookware will take over the world, in a terrifying mix of Bake Off and Terminator.

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Mobile apps and games, Macs, iOS and tvOS devices, Android, retro games, crowdfunding, design, how to fight off an enraged smart saucepan with a massive stick.