In the Good Housekeeping Institute Tech & Engineering Lab, we evaluate the electronics and devices that power your everyday life: the smartphone in your pocket, the TV in your living room, the headphones you won’t leave the house without. Our experts use standardized testing methods to determine which tech products are worth investing in—and share tips on how to get the most out of them.
Our engineers also evaluate baby and kid gear, including toys, strollers, car seats, cribs, and baby monitors. Beyond that, we apply our analytical approach to test everything from cars for families to artificial Christmas trees to home office equipment, ensuring products perform the way you need them to.
Our team members have backgrounds in mechanical engineering, chemical engineering, and tech reporting, allowing us to combine technical expertise with real-world insight to deliver trustworthy, data-backed recommendations.
How We Test
Our approach combines testing in the Lab with testing in the real world, meaning feedback is captured by both our experts and home consumers. For our Lab testing, we develop standardized testing protocols so we can compare products side by side, ensuring our recommendations are based on measurable results, not just first impressions.
In the Lab, we assess factors like durability, safety, performance, ease of use, structural integrity, and overall value, in some cases using specialized equipment to collect data. For baby and kid gear, we prioritize safety and reliability, reviewing products against established standards and evaluating how intuitive they are for parents to use. When testing toys, we incorporate feedback from kids to gauge engagement, age-appropriateness, and durability during play.
A look at some of our lab equipment:
Drop Tester
This machine allows us to verify durability claims by simulating repeated drops from a consistent height. We use it to test toys, phone cases, and other devices that could crack or shatter, helping us evaluate how well they would withstand real-world impact.
X-Ray Fluorescence Machine
The handheld HDXRF identifies a product’s elemental composition, detecting elements on and just below the surface. In toy testing, we use it to ensure compliance with safety standards and to confirm that hazardous elements like lead and barium do not exceed allowable limits.
Decibel Meter
We use this meter to measure the maximum decibel levels a device can reach. It’s especially useful for testing products like fans, air purifiers, baby monitors, and sound machines to determine how loud they are and their impact on your home environment.
miniDSP EARS
To test headphones, we use this device, which mimics the shape and acoustics of human ears, with microphones inside the ear canals. It generates frequency response graphs to assess sound accuracy, clarity, balance, bass, midrange, and treble performance.
Kill-A-Watt
This plug-in power meter measures a device’s electricity use in kilowatt-hours (kWh), the same unit used to calculate your utility bill. We use it to track both active and standby consumption on appliances like air conditioners, heaters, humidifiers, fans, and other household electronics.
When it comes to consumer evaluations, we screen our testers to understand how the products will be used in their everyday lives, ensuring we have a well-rounded panel. For instance, if we're testing travel tech, we want to know what types of trips potential testers will be taking. If we're testing parenting gear, we consider whether a stroller might be used on bumpy city streets or rugged terrains. This helps us capture more comprehensive data in a wide range of settings.
Meet Our Experts
The Tech & Engineering Lab plays a unique role within Good Housekeeping. In addition to testing and covering products within our own domain, we support every Lab across the GH Institute. From maintaining and procuring Lab equipment to developing systems that capture and analyze data, our engineers help ensure the Labs run smoothly. We also contribute to articles about their tests, translating complex data into clear takeaways.
To create content about our test findings in the baby- and kid-related areas, we partner with GH's senior parenting & relationships editor, Marisa LaScala, who oversees toy content, as well as parenting contributor Jessica Hartshorn, who covers all types of parenting and pet gear. Together, we combine engineering expertise with a parenting point of view to help inform our recommendations.
We also evaluate all types of products that submit to Good Housekeeping Award programs—including Toy Awards, Travel Awards, Parenting Awards, and Family Car Awards—as well as those that apply for and earn the Good Housekeeping Seal.
Alec Scherma
Alec oversees testing for the Tech & Engineering Lab, including toys. He also manages the systems that facilitate lab and consumer testing as well as the procurement and maintenance of lab equipment for the GH Institute. Alec graduated from Drexel University’s College of Engineering with a B.A. in mechanical engineering. Before joining GH, Alec worked in semiconductor manufacturing.
Nik Greenwald
Data & Product Operations Manager
Nik works across Labs to develop testing protocols, analyze data, and build tools that support product evaluation. He also contributes to testing in categories like audio, informed by his experience as a music producer and DJ. Nik holds a degree in chemical engineering from Northeastern University. Before joining Good Housekeeping in 2022, Nik worked in the labs of MIT and Regeneron.
Olivia Lipski
Senior Reviews Writer & Analyst
Olivia tests and writes about tech, cars, parenting, travel, home, and more. Since joining Good Housekeeping in 2021, she has covered the latest innovations and put countless products through hands-on testing to help readers shop smarter. As a mom to a toddler and a dog owner, she understands firsthand what works (and what doesn’t) in busy households.
GH Tech & Engineering Lab Testing Facts and Findings
- Each year, our experts attend major industry events like CES and Toy Fair to spot emerging trends, noteworthy innovations, and products worth putting to the test.
- Toys is (by far!) our most engaging category, both with readers and consumer testers. Our toy testing process takes place all year long. We send toys to homes to get feedback from children and parents, and we bring kids into the GH Institute Labs so we can see firsthand which toys they gravitate towards and which ones keep their attention.
- We test headphones everywhere; not just during a commute or in the office, but also at noisy nightclubs and sound-isolated recording studios.
- Because of our unique backgrounds in tech and engineering, we focus on products that benefit from the insights of an engineer. On any given day you can find us in the Lab testing anything from strollers and pens (like GH Seal holder Pilot Pen) to the latest LEGO (another GH Seal holder!) and Apple products.
