Review: 5 Must-Have Gadgets for Summer
It’s summer, the perfect season to spoil yourself and your loved ones with cool new techie must-haves. Don’t know where to start? I’ve rounded up my top 5 tech picks for the summer season. Each of these gadgets will make ideal gifts for a loved one or yourself this summer. Whether you’re after something simple to make your everyday life a little easier or something high-tech to help you get the most out of the summer season, there’s something on this list for you.
Logitech Craft Advanced Keyboard
In the market for a new keyboard? This nifty gadget from Logitech is sure to appeal to creatives who love anything that can help improve productivity. While it may not look very futuristic, this isn’t any ordinary keyboard. This slim, minimalistic wireless peripheral is bursting with potential thanks to a variety of customisable features designed to help make a creative’s life a little easier.
The biggest feather in the device’s cap is no doubt ‘The Crown’; a touch-sensitive silver control button and dial that can be customised to improve the efficiency of a number of tasks from media control to editing. The clever addition is responsible for many of the keyboard’s creative applications. Users can spin the wheel as well as press and tap it like a button to change settings in various applications. Whether it’s raising or lower the volume of your media; adjusting things like temperature, exposure and contrast in Lightroom; or switching between tabs in a web browser, you need only give the dial a twist and a tap to action a wide variety of tasks fairly quickly.
The device pairs to your computer using Bluetooth and comes with a USB charging cable to top up the juice when the internal battery runs out. We got a full 2 days of use on a full charge, but it all depends on how much you use the keyboard throughout the day. I really enjoyed using this gadget and after a few weeks of having it by my side, it’s been difficult to say goodbye. Of course, even the best things can’t be perfect and the Logitech Craft does come with one downside — the price.
Coming in at a recommended retail price of R3,200 it’s a little on the pricey side, making it hard to justify even if it is the coolest thing since sliced bread! If the features appeal to you, you won’t regret forking out a few grand on this high-performance keyboard, but unless you’re a photographer or video editor who slaves away in front of software all day, it may prove to be a little too much of a gimmick for the price hefty price tag.
The Logitech Craft is available online through Geewizz.
Xiaomi JIMMY JF41 Smart Fan
If you think all fans are created equal, think again. This smart fan from Xiaomi will no doubt put the bog-standard standing fan you’re currently using to shame. Not only is it extremely powerful, yet oh-so-quiet, but it has all sorts of nifty features to boot.
A brushless digital motor, with high-precision bearing, reduces noise by 30% ensuring the Xiaomi JIMMY JF41 fan can cool down a room in no time at all while still being super quiet. Furthermore, streamline wing-shaped fan blades also help to greatly reduce the vibration and wind resistance, making it as quiet as possible. Working noise of the fan in ‘sleeping mode’ is only 30dBA so it won’t disturb your slumber.
The fan creates air circulation throughout the room by providing up to 15 meters distance and 360-degree wide-area oscillation with 30, 60, and 360 degrees oscillation options to choose from. Plus, with the 360 oscillating head feature, you can set the pedestal fan to blow the air up towards the ceiling.
The Xiaomi JIMMY JF41 offers multiple speeds and modes, including ‘natural wind’ mode and ‘constant wind’ mode, each mode has 3 grades, enabling you to select the most suitable wind mode for your need. It has a timer option which allows you to set a timer for the fan to automatically turn off after a period of use (1-7 hours)
This standing fan is also extremely lightweight, making it easy to move to different rooms, wherever it is needed. It’s quiet enough to use while you’re watching TV or sleeping, making it the ideal summer gadget for your home.
The Xiaomi Jimmy JF41 Smart Fan is available online through Takealot at R1,999.
LG XBOOM Go PL Bluetooth Speaker
If you’re serious about music, then you’ll want to invest in a good-quality speaker with excellent sound, like the LG XBOOM Go PL series. Bring the beats this summer with LG’s latest XBOOM Go PL series of Bluetooth speakers. The new line-up of portable speakers are lightweight, water-resistant, and compact with excellent battery life.
The LG speaker series includes the PL7, PL5, and PL2 speakers, each with a long list of features you’re sure to love. Developed in collaboration with Meridian Audio, LG says the speakers produce rich, premium sound with less distortion, even when the volume is turned right up. The end caps on the PL7 and PL5 function as passive bass radiators, vibrating with the music so you can literally feel the beat.
In addition to great battery life, the XBOOM Go is also pool-party proof. The speaker is rated IPX5 water-resistant, so it can handle being sprayed with water, keeping it safe from splashes, spilled drinks, and other water hazards associated with summer.
The LG XBOOM Go PL speakers are available online from Takealot.
Sony ZV-1 camera
Designed for content creation, the Sony The ZV-1 camera offers all the features you could want as a content creator on the move.
Featuring a selfie-friendly vari-angle LCD screen, easy body grip for one-handed control, and a recording lamp, this vlogging camera is a must-have for anyone who creates content for a living or as a hobby. A directional 3-capsule mic with wind screen picks up your voice clearly with less wind noise; while the Bokeh switch and Product Showcase Setting make videos look more interesting with less effort.
The great thing about this camera is that there is no experience necessary to capture great-looking videos. With the ZV-1 you can easily capture amazing videos of you and your world, without any tricky setup. Quick modes, like Soft Skin Effect mode, make subjects and skin colours look vibrant, natural and healthy while the large 1.0-type CMOS sensor and wide-aperture lens deliver images with professional background bokeh, as well as clear detail even in challenging low-light conditions.
Plus, publishing your content has never been easier. With the ZV-1 you can instantly transfer movies to your smartphone using the free Imaging EdgeTM Mobile app for iOS and Android7. The app lets you simply transfer, edit and upload images shot on the ZV-1 instantly to social media platforms, from wherever you are.
Playing with this little camera has been a pleasure of note and makes shooting professional-looking video an absolute breeze. It’s lightweight and fits into your hand easily, without feeling bulky or clumsy. If you know a content creator you want to spoil this summer, you can’t go wrong with gifting this gem.
The Sony ZV-1 camera is available online from Takealot at R14,499.
ghd platinum+ hair straightener gift set
Treat a loved one or yourself to good hair days this summer. This summer, queens deserve nothing but the best, so treat a special lady in your life (or yourself) this Christmas with the ghd platinum+ gift set. Featuring a paddle brush and chic styler bag to complete the styling kit, this kit will ensure you can enjoy good hair days all year long!
The ghd platinum+ is ghd’s most advanced hair straightener yet. The nifty styling tool is so intelligent it predicts the needs of your hair as you style. Suitable for all hair types, the ghd platinum+ is equipped with ultra-zone technology to adapt the power according to your styling speed and the thickness of your hair, so you can enjoy beautiful results, tailored to you. The infinity sensors within each styling plate monitor heat 250x a second to ensure the optimum styling temperature of 185ºC is maintained throughout styling, to deliver beautiful results in just one stroke.
The styling plates of the ghd platinum+ are precision-milled and finished with a high spec gloss to allow your hair to pass smoothly through, whilst the unqiue wishbone hinge holds the plates in perfect alignment for an effortless styling experience. The ghd platinum+ is more than just a styler – the rounded barrel allows you create a myriad of styles including classic curls and beachy waves with ease and control.
This styler truly is the Rolls-Royce of flat irons on the market right now. Styling your hair with the ghd platinum+ couldn’t be easier and you’re guaranteed a beautiful professional look every time. This styler is so gentle on the hair, yet you don’t need more than one pass with the iron to get a sleek, polished look. You’ll quickly fall in love with this styler after just one use, trust me, it’s well worth the splurge for hair that looks salon-perfect.
