Whether you’re shopping for a gift or looking to buy something for yourself, here are a few of our favorite electronics currently on the market.
Google Home and Amazon Echo (also known as “Alexa”) are both smart speakers that respond to voice commands and can act as a unique combination of personal assistant, entertainment hub and smart device controller. This is the perfect present for the person who seemingly already has everything, as both devices can help you do everything from order pizzas, to search the internet for information to manage your calendar and control smart home devices.
The new Microsoft Surface Book hasn’t changed too much since last year’s version, but that isn’t necessarily a bad thing. We liked it then, and we still like it now. No other 2-in-1 is currently able to perform at the level of the Surface Book: it offers the horsepower of a high-end laptop while it’s bright, detachable screen is everything you want out of a standalone tablet. For the person who wants compute power, touch screen capabilities and portability, the Surface Book is the only choice.
Wireless (Bluetooth) headphones have come a long way since those first hands-free speakers hit the market nearly a decade ago. And especially now that the new generation of Apple iPhones no longer have a headphone jack, the demand for wireless earbuds and other headphones is on the rise. All the big manufacturers are now making them, including Apple, Beats and Bose, at a variety of price points, making wireless headphones and earbuds the perfect choice for just about anyone.
The Google Pixel is the search engine giant’s first bona fide step into the smartphone ring, and they have already started to make some waves. Ask just about anyone who has tried the Pixel and they will tell you that it features superior camera technology. Additionally, the Google Pixel seems to offer the best software experience of any Android-based phone. All of this comes with a pretty steep price tag at the moment, but if you’re an early adopter who already has all the other cool tech gadgets, this just might be the big new thing you’ve been waiting for.
And last, but certainly not least, if a TV is on your list of must buys in 2017, don’t miss out on 4k or Ultra High Definition (UHD) technology. Just like HDTV revolutionized the picture quality about a decade ago, UHD has quadrupled the available pixel density. With that said, there is currently limited content being produced for television viewing in full 4k resolution, meaning you won’t always see a difference (right now), but we are betting that this technology is here to stay and that programming will quickly catch up.