The Expert Imaging and Sound Association (EISA) traces its roots to 1982, when editors from five European photography magazines joined forces to select the year’s standout camera. Since those early days, EISA has steadily broadened its scope to include a wide spectrum of consumer electronics—specifically hi-fi, home theater, in-car electronics, and mobile devices—which it categorizes as “Expert Groups.” Over time, the association has also expanded its reach well beyond Europe, growing into a global network of around 50 member publications spanning nearly 30 countries.
SoundStage! Hi-Fi became part of EISA’s Hi-Fi Expert Group in May 2018. Membership grants each publication the ability to nominate products in its category for EISA’s prestigious Best Product awards, as well as to take part in the voting process. A key requirement is that members must have hands-on experience with any product they nominate or vote for. Notably, products can sometimes win in multiple groups—and there are a few instances of that this year.
For the 2025–26 awards season (EISA traditionally announces awards covering the current and following year), two groups from previous years were combined, since some products in each group overlapped. The groups formerly known as Home Theater Audio and Home Theater Display & Video are now merged into the Home Theater & Vision category.
We applaud all the winners for their achievements, and EISA itself for another strong year of recognizing excellence in the industry. Below are links to all group winners. As in past years, only the honorees most relevant to our readership are highlighted directly on this site. For 2025–26, that means the product winners in the Hi-Fi and Home Theater & Vision groups. To explore winners in the other categories, readers can follow the relevant links to EISA’s official website.
EISA’s Best Products of 2025–2026
. . . Doug Schneider
das@soundstagenetwork.com