From the best football apps to the perfect TV for watching goals galore, this is the tech you need to see in the Premier League 2013-14 season.
The cricket has been won, the customary two weeks of sunshine have come and gone. Now the whole of Twitter can briefly stop talking about Rooney, Suarez and Bale transfer sagas and turn our attention to events on the pitch.
The Premier League starts this weekend and if you are wondering how to make the beautiful game a 24/7 love affair, we’ve selected the essential tech that will make sure you are well equipped for the new season.
Football app: Live Score Addicts
Giving you a nudge when the goals go in, Live Score Addicts is one of the most comprehensive live score apps available on the App Store, and is also available on Google Play. It covers over 300 leagues across the globe including international cup competitions. The push notification service can be set up for as many teams as you like and will alert you to kick-off times and key match incidents.
There are video highlights during and after the game, details on starting line-ups, player biographies and live tables to see when your team has briefly escaped the relegation zone.
Price: Free | Platforms: iOS and Android | Download Live Score Addicts iPhone app | Download Live Score Addicts Android app |
TV for watching football: Samsung UE40F8000
This ultra slim 40-inch LCD TV should have all you need to make the beautiful game look, well, more beautiful. The Full HD 1080p Samsung UE40F8000
has a 100Hz refresh rate to keep the action looking smooth, and offers exceptional contrast levels, deep blacks and detailed images. Smart TV support means you also have access to
optimised TV apps like BBC Sport and Twitter. If you still need to feel a
little more immersed in the action the 8000 supports active 3D as well.
Read more: Need a bigger TV? Check out our round-up of the Best TVs to buy.
Football website: Squawka
Providing you with the ammo to end the greatest pub football debates, Squawka is a stats service that analyses the game to Statto-like levels. Powered by Squawka’s own player performance scoring algorithm, the web app covers the Premier League, major European league competitions and leagues in the US, Brazil and Mexico. All the data is delivered in real-time and the chat panels means you can argue your case with other people while watching the game from the comfort of your sofa.
Link: Squawka
Camera for football photography: Canon EOS 100D
If you actually
manage to get to a few games and don’t want to have a blurry smartphone picture of Van Persie as your lasting
memory, the Canon EOS 100D
is a great camera to take to the match. Smaller and lighter than most
traditional DSLRs, the EOS 100D has a 18-megapixel sensor to
deliver high quality shots and can shoot Full HD 1080P video.
An
additional telephoto zoom lens will get you up close to the game and a
burst rate of four frames per second will help capture fast-paced action.
There’s a dedicated optical image stabilisation to reduce camera shakes,
a Sports shooting mode and a 3-inch touchscreen display to review
your best and worst shots.
Price: £650
Read more: See our round-up of the best DSLR cameras to buy.
Football service: BT Sport
Replacing ESPN as the broadcaster set to play second fiddle to Sky Sports, BT Sport is a set of subscription-based sports channels available for free to all BT Broadband customers. Set to cover 38 games across the season including the Premier League opener, Michael Owen and David James are among the former and current players called up for commentary and punditry duty.
There’s a free iOS and Android app available to BT Broadband subscribers that lets you stream content live when you can’t make it back home in time for kick-off.
Price: Free to BT Broadband customers, £12 or £15 (HD) a month for non-customers | Link: BT Sport | Download BT Sport app Android app | Download BT Sport iOS app
Have we covered all the gadgetry to make next season’s footy the best ever? If we’ve left a must have match day accompaniment out let us know in the comments.
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Editorial independence
Editorial independence means being able to give an unbiased verdict about a product or company, with the avoidance of conflicts of interest. To ensure this is possible, every member of the editorial staff follows a clear code of conduct.
Professional conduct
We also expect our journalists to follow clear ethical standards in their work. Our staff members must strive for honesty and accuracy in everything they do. We follow the IPSO Editors’ code of practice to underpin these standards.
