Happy Holidays!
Tis the season for jolly thoughts, and great pounding of heads against walls as we fuss about what on earth to get for those difficult-to-buy-for folks.
With that in mind, we have gathered a few ideas to help, across many price ranges, in hopes of easing your stress. Have a wander through, and you may get some ideas for them – and treats for yourself. All prices are in Canadian dollars unless otherwise specified.
ChatGPT for Dummies
OpenAI’s flagship product has gathered a lot of attention – and prompted a lot of misconceptions. Pam Baker’s addition to the Dummies lineup, ChatGPT for Dummies, demystifies the technology in an easy-to-read format, explaining ChatGPT and other generative artificial intelligence technologies in clear, concise language. It even offers tips on how to create useful prompts that will get you the answers you need.
It’s a great read for anyone who wants to use ChatGPT, or is just curious about the GenAI craze.
Huawei Watch Buds
Keeping earbuds corralled when they’re not actually in your ears can be a challenge. Huawei is attempting to solve that problem with the Watch Buds, MSRP $698.99. At first glance, it’s a slightly plump smartwatch, but if you pop the latch on the bezel, you’ll discover a set of earbuds stashed inside. They charge from the watch, and you control them by touching your ear. It sounds odd, but it works. They include active noise cancellation, and you can answer a phone call by simply popping one into your ear.
The watch itself pairs with both iOS and Android phones, and offers health and fitness features such as sleep tracking, step counter, smart heart rate monitoring, blood oxygen measurement, and fitness routines. The battery is rated to last three days – which is actually short for a Huawei watch, likely due to the battery size shrinking to accommodate the earbuds.
Kensington Pro Fit Ergo Vertical Wireless Mouse
The Kensington Pro Fit Ergo wireless mouse is a $49.99 six-button rodent designed with ergonomics in mind. It allows you to rest your hand on it at an angle, almost as though you were shaking hands, easing wrist strain. It also has a lip on the right side to support your pinky. It’s very comfortable to use, but, sadly, there’s only a version for right-handed mousers. Downloadable KensingtonWorks software lets you customize the buttons to suit your usage patterns.
The mouse connects wirelessly to its USB nano receiver, and is compatible with Windows, MacOS, and Chrome. Kensington says one AA battery lasts a year – and there’s a low battery indicator on the mouse so you won’t be surprised by it dying abruptly.
Roku
With the increasing popularity of streaming, Roku devices, ranging in price from $29.99 (the basic Express model, and the Premiere model, which is regularly $39.99 but on sale until year-end) to $129.99 for the Ultra and $189.99 for the Streambar (which combines a soundbar with Roku’s 4K streaming), provide connectivity for non-smart TVs that can’t access streaming services themselves. And it’s not just for paid services – the Roku Channel offers a ton of free viewing, as do several other channels such as Tubi.
The devices all arrive with everything you need in the box – cables, remote with batteries, power adapter, and, of course, the Roku itself. There’s also a Roku app available that can act as a second remote.
Samsung Galaxy Tab S9
This year’s Galaxy Tab series from Samsung comes in three sizes: The Tab S9 has an 11- inch display, the Tab S9+ 12.4 inches, and the Tab S9 Ultra 14.6 inches. All three are now water and dust resistant (IP68 rated), with dynamic AMOLED screens and the latest Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 processors. All also include an S Pen in the box, and have 13 MP rear and 12 MP ultra-wide angle (UW) front cameras (the S9+ also offers an 8 MP UW rear camera, and the Ultra adds a second 12 MP wide angle front camera to that).
The fancy new screen eats into battery life, but it’s a gorgeous display, so it’s a trade-off.
The Galaxy Tab S9 starts at $1099.99, the Tab S9+ at $1349.99, and the Tab 9 Ultra at $1599.99
Kensington Pro Fit Ergo TB550 Trackball
If you prefer trackballs to mice, check out the $69.99 Kensington Pro Fit Ergo TB550 Trackball. As its name suggests, it is slanted to keep your wrist in a natural position to avoid strain. It’s wireless, rechargeable (up to four months per charge), and offers connectivity via its nano dongle or over Bluetooth LE. Its seven buttons can all be customized via free downloadable KensingtonWorks software.
Since trackballs can get a bit grungy over time, there’s an eject button that lets you pop the ball out for cleaning.
Like its mouse sibling, it’s only available for right-handed use.
Tushy Classic 3.0
Finally, for the person who already has every tech toy imaginable, here’s something completely different. It uses zero electricity, although it actually contains some sophisticated tech.
Europeans are well acquainted with bidets, which are much kinder to your bottom than using wads of expensive toilet paper, and do a better job dealing with what’s left after you do your business. The Tushy Classic 3.0, list price $134.95, fits under the toilet seat, installs in about ten minutes, and uses a jet of water redirected from the feed filling the toilet tank to cleanse.
If you happen to have a handy power outlet, and the toilet is next to a sink, other Tushy models offer warm water feeds, and even heated seats, but the Classic, though basic, does just as good a job.
The Tushy Classic 3.0 provides an excellent and economical introduction to bidets. Plus, their website and written materials are full of silly jokes (as well as useful information).
