There are few purely joyous things in life. Laying on a beach with a cocktail in hand, winning $2 on a scratchie and having a shitload of cash to blow once your accountant nabs you a bloody killer tax return.
But what should you spend this unexpected delight on? Considering the world’s gone to hell in a handbasket, we’ve got a few suggestions that are bound to put a smile on your dial…
Apple Watch Series 5
Price: From $649
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5bvcyIV4yzo
While for Android users the decision of which smartwatch to pledge allegiance to is a decision fraught with danger, for Apple fans the choice is easy because the Apple Watch is so damn good.
We’ve had plenty of time being, ahem, ‘wrists-on’ with the Apple Watch Series 5 and even as you start to unbox it you can tell this thing is pure class. From the always-on display to the stainless-steel finish our 44mm model featured, the watch never clashed with anything we wore meaning there was never a desire to actually take it off.
Then there’s the actual functionality of the unit, seamlessly displaying all our notifications, allowing easy responses to text messages, and thanks to the in-built cellular feature of our model, meant we could leave the phone at home and still listen to plenty of podcasts and music during our daily iso walks. You can even talk into it and finally live out your dreams of being an MI6 agent.
Speaking of fitness, perhaps our favourite feature is the Activity app – presenting three daily goals (movement, standing and exercise) as three separate rings that you need to gradually close throughout the day. It does an excellent job of turning fitness into a game, meaning you’ll likely get so addicted you’ll be smashing out burpees at 10.30pm just to close a ring you’d admittedly been slacking on. Okay, maybe just us then?…
The single-day battery life is bound to annoy some of you, but honestly throwing it on charge before bed each night was hardly a pain, and is understandable considering how much this bit of tech is capable of. A worthy investment indeed.
Ultimate Ears MEGABOOM 3 Portable Bluetooth Speaker
Price: $299
We’ve tried out a few of the BOOM products in the past, but there’s no question that the Ultimate Ears MEGABOOM 3 has performed the best. That makes sense considering the larger size allows for a much louder sound and heavier bass – making the most of its spatial 360° sound. It easily handled any track we threw its way, and the ridiculous battery life (around 20 hours give or take) is incredibly impressive and handy for any small gathering you might have. And while you might not be headed to the beach or enjoying a casual pool party at the moment, it’s also packing a IP67 water and dustproof rating, allowing it to be completely submerged in water for up to 30 minutes.
It’s a shame that the wireless charging dock is an addition you’ll have to shell out for (but regular charging cables do come included) and you’ll obviously adding a bit of extra weight to your luggage if you’re taking it around town, but it’s certainly great audio bang for your buck.
Twelve South Airfly Pro Bluetooth Audio Transmitter
Price: $89.95
We’re naturally a big fan of wireless earphones, so it’s an absolute pain in the ass when a bit of tech forces you back to a tangled hell of cords once again. Thankfully Twelve South has intervened with its nifty Airfly Pro. The tiny white wonder helps alleviate corded terror by acting as the handy link you’ve always wanted – using the power of Bluetooth to transmit audio from your Nintendo Switch, one of those swish treadmills, or even the inflight entertainment system of an aeroplane (when you can finally travel again sometime in 2023) straight to your earphones. Alternatively, it can be swapped to receive mode to beam your phone’s music to older cars still rocking a 3.5mm aux port.
From our time using the AirFly Pro we were able to connect our AirPods to our Switch and DualShock 4 with absolute ease. It even comes with its own little pouch and charging cable to take around with you on the go, or if you’re particularly hardcore, connect it to your keychain – that’s how small and compact this powerful device really is.
Jaybird Vista Wireless In-Ear Sport Headphones
Price: $349.95
If the humble headphone has one mortal enemy it’s moisture, and without oversharing, we’ve dealt with plenty of it after turning the home office in a makeshift iso-gym. Enter Jaybird’s Vista wireless headphones. These bad boys don’t only look the part, they’re IPX7 Waterproof & Sweatproof, meaning no matter how hard you’re working out, you needn’t fret about killing them.
Priced at $349 they’re definitely not cheap, but there’s no question this is a premium product. The charging case is sleek, snaps shut securely, fits easily in the pocket and is charged via USB-C meaning you can hopefully cut down on your cable management. The earbuds themselves are relatively compact, minimalist outside of the Jaybird logo, and mercifully don’t make it look like you’re about to hack into the Matrix.
Admittedly they’re not always the most comfortable earbuds in the world after a lengthier period, but there’s a few different sized ear tips to help find the perfect fit, and thanks to the smart wingtip sleeve design, they never fell out during the burpee-ridden hell we endured during multiple tests. Oh, and with the charging case they’re packing about 16 hours of battery life.
They might not be for everyone, but if you’re especially active, or known for your sweaty nature, you won’t go wrong with the Jaybird Vista.
LEGO Art and LEGO Super Mario
Price: $199.99 – LEGO Art or $89.99 – Lego LEGO Super Mario
Yes, we’re putting LEGO on this list because if you even try to claim you no longer feel childlike glee from playing with those colourful tiny blocks then you’re a deadset liar. It’s that simple; line in the sand right there. But if you feel the need to justify your purchase to a significant other, allow us to introduce you to LEGO Art – a brand new line-up that’s more than worthy of a spot on the wall.
From designs featuring The Beatles, Marilyn Monroe or even Star Wars and Marvel characters, each offering presents you with the opportunity to reimagine your studded canvas in a number of different ways. Each set even comes with a unique tile, a new hanging element and a bespoke soundtrack that dives into the inspiration behind the design. You can listen while you build!
This isn’t just LEGO, guys, it’s art.
On the other hand, if you have no shame over your LEGO love, then direct your attention to the upcoming Super Mario collection. This is also some next level building with much of the set being interactive and the moustachioed plumber himself providing expressive responses via the LCD screens and speaker on his chest.
LEGO has also announced companion expansion sets (which we can only assume will be the first of many) allowing you the opportunity to start recreating the Mario adventure of your dreams. It’s not just for kids. We swear.
Both LEGO Art and LEGO Super Mario are out August 1.
Microsoft Surface Go 2
Price: From $629
The Surface Go devices have always tried to blur the line between laptop and tablet without a hefty price tag and the new Surface Go 2 succeeds at this task even better than its predecessor.
It’s wonderfully quiet, is shockingly light and features its own kickstand allowing you to prop it up almost anywhere without a pillow in sight. That’s also ignoring the fact that it runs Windows 10, providing you the flexibility you’d score with any standard laptop.
It’s worth noting though that to make the most of the Surface Go 2 you’ll need a few extras –mainly the Type Cover and Surface Pen – which cheekily bumps up the price a little, but they’re pretty much essential for the full experience. We particularly fell in love with the Surface Pen, which was intuitive to use and created a seamless experience anytime we picked it up, allowing you to navigate webpages, try your hand at creating a works of art or even just adding notes to documents. We even used it to play more games of solitaire than we’d care to admit.
And while the Surface Go 2 might not be the beefiest machine around, we tested it out with the new Command & Conquer Remastered Collection to admirable results.
Sure, it might not be powerful enough to replace everybody’s home pc, but for the average user the Surface Go 2 packs a mean punch and has an incredible amount of flexibility that’ll likely see it becoming a backpack staple.
DualShock 4 Back Button
Price: $69.95
Not to be outdone by the Xbox’s incredibly schmik Elite controller line-up, PlayStation chose to take a different approach with its DualShock 4 Back Button Attachment. Getting the device going is as simple as plugging it into your controller, then making the most of the dedicated button that allows you to remap inputs on the fly – no matter what you’re playing.
Sure, the OLED screen is unnecessarily lavish for a unit that you’re never really looking at, but we’re not complaining because it added a bit of elegance to DualShock and freed up our thumbs for more reflex-intensive games like Apex Legends. But hey, if you want to use it for something like The Last of Us Part II like a total weirdo, you do you, dude.
The only issue right now is that the unit appears to be incredibly difficult to track down unless you shell out a pretty penny on eBay. We’d advise maybe waiting to see if it eventually restocks instead.
Logitech StreamCam
Price: $279.95
With much of the world now working from home, it always helps to have yourself a solid webcam and Logitech’s StreamCam is certainly one of the better ones on the market. Not only is its aesthetic simple and clean, allowing it to seamlessly blend into whatever workstation setup you might have, it’s easy to get up and running via the Logitech Capture software.
The software will help you get the best out of the camera, helping adjust things like white balance and exposure on the fly, which allows you to be a bit less hands-on. Even in relatively dark environments the StreamCam managed to handle our situation perfectly and adjusted the scene automatically with hardly any grain.
If you’re a budding YouTuber waiting to make your millions you’re covered too – the camera is capable of HD 1080p at 60 frames per second and is optimised for popular streaming programs like OBS, XSplit and Streamlabs which many Twitch and YouTube personalities love.
One thing worth noting though is that the camera connects via USB-C so make sure you either have a compatible port or an adapter or else you’ll be shit outta luck.
GoPro HERO8 Black
Price: $529.95
In the world of action cams, GoPro is the undeniable champion and after playing around with the HERO8 Black it’s not hard to see why. Despite some worthy competitors in the past, the little camera that could continues to iterate on its already winning formula.
The slimmer form factor, better shockproof rating and more wind-resistant mic are worthy bullet points, but the actual video is where things matter most and the results are as strong as you’d expect. The highly-touted HyperSmooth 2.0 stabilisation is buttery smooth and performed perfectly on a few test runs. However with that said, we especially enjoyed messing about with the TimeWarp feature which can make any boring journey look like you’re stuck in the middle of a 90s video clip. Seriously, it’s great stuff.
Whatever your adventure, though, the HERO8 Black can handle it all with the right attachment, creating endless possibilities that’ll make it an essential travel companion. Unfortunately, it’s still not great at taking stills and if you want a front facing screen like something like Osmo Action you’ll need to invest in one of the device’s new optional mods, but getting down to brass tacks, in terms of core fundamental features the HERO8 Black is absolutely unrivalled.
