Every article on TechiQuest ends with a score out of 10. This page explains where that number comes from, what goes into it, and what it can’t tell you.
What the score is
It’s a research score. We don’t run products in a lab. For each article we read the vendor’s pricing pages and documentation, independent reviews and benchmarks, and recent changelogs. Then we judge each product against four criteria for its pillar. Every source is linked at the bottom of the article with the date we read it.
If an editor later tests something hands-on, the article says so in its own section. Until then, nothing on the page claims we’ve used the product.
The four criteria
Each pillar has its own criteria, because a dock and an AI assistant fail in different ways.
| Pillar | Criteria |
|---|---|
| Software & AI | Cost efficiency, time saved, output quality, admin and security |
| Remote Hardware | Performance, build quality, value, setup |
| Systems & Workflows | Time saved, setup effort, tool cost, adoption |
Each criterion gets a score from 0 to 10, to one decimal place.
How the overall score is worked out
The overall score is the plain average of the four criteria, rounded to one decimal. There’s no hidden weighting.
An example: in our Thunderbolt 5 dock comparison, the Plugable TBT-UDT3 scored 8.3 for performance, 8.0 for build quality, 9.0 for value and 8.6 for setup. That averages 8.475, which we publish as 8.5.
The cost model
- Time is priced at $65 an hour. That’s a loaded cost for a salaried team member: pay plus overheads. When a tool saves or costs time, we turn it into dollars at that rate.
- Hardware is spread over 220 working days a year, so a $300 dock can sit next to a $20 subscription. The Plugable dock at $299.95 over three years comes to $0.45 per working day.
- Prices are list prices on the day we checked, and each one carries an “as of” date. Discounts, sales quotes and regional pricing are left out unless the article says otherwise.
- Hours saved come from a stated assumption, and the article shows it. Anything modelled rather than measured is labelled as modelled.
How to read a score
| Score | What it means |
|---|---|
| 9.0 and up | Rare. The clear default for most teams. |
| 8.0 to 8.9 | A strong pick, with the trade-offs named in the article. |
| 7.0 to 7.9 | Worth it in a specific situation, not as a default. |
| Below 7.0 | We’d look elsewhere first. |
Scores are most useful inside one article. An 8.5 dock and an 8.5 AI assistant were judged on different criteria, so don’t compare them directly.
What a score doesn’t cover
- How a tool fits your team’s own workflow and existing contracts.
- Long-term reliability, unless an independent source has reported on it.
- Price changes after the date in the article. We re-check prices each quarter and update the date when we do.
Money and independence
Some links on TechiQuest are affiliate links, and we may earn a commission if you buy. The score is set before any affiliate link is added, and a commission never changes it. Vendors can’t pay for coverage, placement or a score. The affiliate disclosure has the details.
Corrections
If a price, figure or source is wrong, tell us and link the correct source. We fix the article and update its date.