tech trends
If you’re not a tech person, it can be hard to keep up with the hottest new gadgets. Tech is an essential part of our everyday lives, but finding the right gadgets for your needs - whether it’s for working, staying fit or having fun - can be overwhelming. It feels like, with every passing month, we get a glimpse of what it's like to be a Jetson. Technology just keeps getting smarter, making this glimpse of the future, a reality and more interesting. The year 2021 provided insights into a whole new batch of must-have recommendations. There were some repeats from 2020 like the latest iPhone and various laptops but also newcomers like streaming services and smart-home devices.
It was just a few years ago that voice assistants like Amazon Alexa and Google Assistant weren't common things to have in your home, and now apps and voice assistants can control everything from your lightbulbs to your refrigerator. You can talk to your microwave and control your blender from your phone, and it's not weird. (Okay, it's a little weird.) Wired or not, these gadgets help you dial in everything from your game-playing to your customised coffee order to your sleep. That’s why we have assembled the following list, which falls into the categories of all that was hot in the past year. This week You! brings to you a roundup of all the coolest gadgets and appliances that were popular last year…
Smartphones of all types are always among the most desired holiday gifts. Last year, Apple, Google, Samsung, and others released phones that operate on the faster 5G spectrum. There was an increased interest in foldable phones, which have improved in quality recently and are slowly becoming more affordable. If buying someone a new phone isn’t within your budget, you can get accessories like headphones, phone cases, and chargers.
The Dyson Airwrap styler is a hair-styling tool by Dyson that can dry and style your hair simultaneously. It features various attachments to achieve different looks, including a blow-drying nozzle that helps to pre-dry hair for curling, rounded and flat brushes that allow you to dry your hair while brushing through it, and curling iron barrels to help you achieve bouncy curls. The Airwrap uses a special technology similar to jet engines that creates a vortex to pull the hair towards the barrels or attachments, keeping strands firmly against their surfaces while also monitoring and adjusting the heat so your hair never burns.
If your recipe calls for constant stirring, this gadget called the Automatic Pot Stirrer will save your arm and let you step away from the stove. You can manage the settings on it for how fast you want it to stir and for how long.
A good night’s sleep is one of the most important things you can do for your health and wellbeing. Memory foam mattresses are fashionable, but their spongy embrace isn’t for everyone. Simba’s Hybrid Luxe Mattress patented hybrid solution pairs springs with open-cell foam, a memory foam-like material with internal pockets that allow the mattress to disperse heat. This creates a mattress that’s firm, ensures two people sleeping in a bed won’t feel each other move around, and is cooler than memory foam. The company’s latest upgrade, the Hybrid Luxe, adds a second set of springs to provide extra support and remove any chance of sore joints for side sleepers. Plus, Simba has added a breathable bamboo wool layer just beneath the top layer, to help regulate your temperature and fend off a sweaty night’s sleep.
Print photos and video stills directly from your smartphone with this handy instant printer from Fujifilm called the Instax mini Mobile Photo Printer. Connecting wirelessly to your device (available in iOS and Android) it takes around 12 seconds to print each photo, with a full charge allowing you to print off 100 continuous shots. There are a handful of extra features including Party Mode which can combine images from several phones to create mystery prints, with the options to create a collage, or insert an image into one of 27 styles of frame.
The Echo in the form of a speaker, is the brains of your smart-home operation - the Professor X, Tony Soprano, or Iron Man of the whole situation. The Echo plays music, gives you news and weather updates, but most important, you can use it to control your other smart-home appliances. All you have to do is be within earshot of your speaker and say what you want to command it to do.
Nope, you are not mistaken. Read and look again: the world’s first and only rollable TV; the OLED Rollable TV. Can you believe it, all of your favourite shows and movies rolled into one disappearing surface, like a yoga mat? It might take a while to process such a masterpiece, but it’s the future, and it is out of this world. ‘How is it possible?’ is probably the first thing on your mind. The million-dollar trick is the self-lit pixel technology that helps build the TV’s paper-thin screen. Because of this flexibility, the TV can be rolled into three modes: zero screen view which will just function as a speaker, line view which will only display a basic control dashboard, and full-screen view for all the content you want.
Control your brew all from your phone! Simply pre-set your morning beverages for your family and press a button when you’re ready for your drink. This fully automatic coffee maker called the De’Longhi Dinamica Plus remembers your go-to order, providing you with familiarity only a barista could understand.
If you’ve ever wished you could simply talk to your microwave, now’s your chance. This GE Smart Countertop Microwave Oven connects to Alexa, so you can control it with your voice. It also has scan-to-cook technology that helps cook your food perfectly every time.