Gadgets that simplify your life - Part 1
Grab some of these to live in relative comfort and bask in their convenience
A year ago, they were double the price, and are now available for a steal!
DOOR LOCKS
Yale YDME 50 Digital
Rs 9475, Buy it on Amazon
Yale is just what the security professional ordered. This zinc alloy marvel in chrome finish relies on four AA batteries to secure your home and office. You can lock using RF card, pin code, or a mechanical key, in case of emergencies. This nifty device can also store and recognise data of 30 RF cards and 78 pin code users. If the lock runs out of juice, it will alert you with an alarm sound and LED lights. To ensure safety and convenience, the lever handle enables automatic locking from the inside. This is a must-buy for apartment dwellers. One note, though: The lock works for doors with thickness ranging from 35mm to 55mm.
STORAGE DRIVES
Samsung T7 Touch Portable SSD
Rs 10,392, Buy it on Amazon
The latest and greatest from Samsung is this privacy-focussed 500GB portable solid state drive (SSD). Compared to the hard disk drive (HDD) that comes standard with every operating system, the SSD is claimed to be 9.6-times faster than HDD. This particular edition (MU-PC500K/WW) scores in its embedded fingerprint and password security feature (AES 256-bit encryption). You can safely move around with the T7 as it is also shock-resistant (no moving parts unlike HDD). Sporting the faster USB 3.2, the nifty tool can read up to 1050 mbps and write up to 1000 mbps. As 4K footage is increasingly being captured, the demand for memory and quick transfer has never been more acute. This palm-sized 56-gram beauty is perfect for content creators, photographers, gamers, and anyone who uses a PC or smartphone to do any memory-intensive work. No wonder, the T7 was an honoree at the CES 2020 Innovation Awards. If you feel 500GB is too less for your needs, you have the option of picking up a 1TB or 2TB variant. And if you own the T5, this is doubly faster as SATA has given way to the NVM Express technology found in midrange and high-end laptops. Time for an upgrade if you have the need for more speed. While the device (available in black and silver) is claimed to be safe from falls of up to six-feet, you get the additional three-year limited warranty to boot. The T7 works seamlessly with PC, Mac, Android devices, and gaming consoles. Now you know why Samsung is the world’s number one flash memory since 2003. Sweet, sweet innovation. Cloud drives can be unpredictable and unsafe. Stick with a physical drive any day.
IRON BOXES
Rossmann Handheld Portable Garment Steamer (1500 watts)
Rs 2,649, Buy it on Amazon here
Compact, portable, and the size of an iPad, the Rossmann is a great accessory to have on-the-go, and at home. Perfect for hang drying or flat ironing (horizontal), the device gets hot within 25 seconds, and switches off automatically if it’s too hot or the water level is abysmal to avoid accidents. With a 300-ml water tank (distilled or RO water only), you can remove wrinkles on your clothes that are just off the washing machine. Use the steamer on any fabric. For thick garments, the extra brush will do the deed. You get a glove for added safety. Iron away.
AIR PURIFIERS
Philips AC 1215/20 Portable Room Air Purifier
Rs 9799, Buy it on Amazon here
You might have forgotten air purifiers, but they actually work well during COVID-19. They are known to not only clean the air of allergens, dust, mold, and smoke, but also remove airborne viruses in tiny suspended droplets. Such purifiers are perfect to remove the COVID-19 viruses too as they tend to linger in the air for hours before they settle on surfaces. The device from the Netherlands goes a step further than the others by offering an additional HEPA layer to remove 99.97% PM 2.5 (particulate matter), H1N1 virus and ultrafine particles that can weaken your respiratory system. The four-stage filtration process removes house dust mites and pollen to prevent you from allergy attacks. The company also offers 2+3 years of extended warranty if you register your product online. With a capacity to purify up to 333 sq. ft of space, expect disinfection of a 200 sq. ft room in 12 minutes. The machine offers real-time monitoring of air quality through its color-coded circular ring that turns blue when all is fine, but switches to red if the interiors are heavily polluted. The lights are less intense and the sound is feeble enough for you to have a sound sleep. The gadget is also independently tested to be 100% ozone-free. With a child-lock functionality, you can also prevent any accidental setting changes. Importantly, this 6.68kg device switches to the night mode automatically in case you forget. Smart.
ROUTERS
TP-Link Wi-Fi 6 Router AX1800
Rs 6299, Buy it on Amazon here
With almost everyone working from home, there can be enough bandwidth congestion to ruin your day, particularly if your significant other is streaming 4K on Netflix, and your kid is on a video Zoom call with 50 of their classmates. This is where upgrading to a Wi-Fi 6 router should help and also future-proof you. It is 30–40 percent faster than Wi-Fi 5, because it is much akin to adding new lanes to decongest Internet traffic. To make the most of these routers, you also need to have Wi-Fi 6 compatible laptops and smartphones. iPhone 11 is Wi-Fi 6 compatible, and so are all the 10th generation Intel core processors. Therefore, this dual-band router will max out at 1201 Mbps on 5 GHz band (802.11ax) and 574 Mbps (802.11ax) on 2.4 Ghz. No more buffering while gaming, downloading or streaming as you can get Wi-Fi speeds of up to 1.8 Gbps. Welcome to the gigabit club.
SMART DISPLAYS
Echo Show 5
Rs 4,999, Buy it on Amazon here
Imagine a 5.5-inch monitor that sits on your tabletop or kitchen counter, and takes orders. That’s the Echo Show 5 for you, weighing all of 410 grams. The magic word is ‘Alexa’, and the rest of your words will be heard and immediately actioned. You can ask the device to play your favourite songs or movies from a streaming service, or ask to see the feed from the Wi-Fi cameras monitoring your kids room. It’s a smart display with a camera that allows you make video calls to people who also have the Alexa app or Skype installed on their devices. If your home is host to other smart devices, you can also control the geysers, AC or bulbs in your house through the Echo Show 5. This voice-enabled device makes your entire day ultra convenient. You can wake up and ask Alexa to read the day’s top headlines or play your favourite song, or remind you of your day’s ‘to-do’ list. It will be the Jeeves you were looking for but didn’t know where to find. Fret no more. Now you can dim the lights, pay your utility bills through Amazon Pay, check in on your aged parents or young kids (through smart cameras), or switch on the geyser or AC with just your voice. Don’t worry about privacy either. You can disable the camera (1MP) and microphone when you are not using it; the camera shutter can physically cover the lens too. If you prefer a larger screen real estate, you can go for an 8-inch (Rs 9,999) or a 10.1-inch Echo Show (Rs 16,999). The future is now, where are you?
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