The best gift you can give a person is something they will use every day. While building out a smart home can be a massive investment, if you build it up gradually you can eventually surround yourself with some smart tech that makes your home life just a little bit better.
Ahead of the festive season we’ve scoured local retailers to find some hi-tech gift ideas for those looking to improve and upgrade their surroundings. From robo vacs to bug control we’ve assembled a decent spread for you to peruse. Note that pricing is correct as of 6th December.
Moving air
With heatwaves gripping many parts of the country, some may be looking to invest in an air conditioning unit. This is a costly purchase and we have a better option, the Meaco Fan Sefte.
When we reviewed this semi-smart fan earlier this year we were blown away at not only how silent it is but how effectively it moves air around a room. If you’re the sort of person who sleeps with a fan on, this is well worth consideration and the price – while high for a fan – is justified by the Sefte’s capabilities.
Get the Meaco Fan Sefte from Solenco for R3 999
Keeping an eye on things
An internet-connected security camera is a great piece of kit. Not only can you keep an eye on your home while on holiday, but if you have young children or elderly family members at home alone during the day you can tune into the camera feed.
Creating a network of cameras can also just improve your home security and give you a way to gather some evidence in the event of a break-in.
Get the Xiaomi 360 Home Security camera directly from Xiaomi for R799
The argument settler
The Google Nest Mini is an incredibly subdued piece of technology that can be extremely useful once you start using it. For example, using Hey Google, you can set timers, convert measurements and even look up facts and have them read back to you, a great feature for game night.
The Nest Mini can be controlled via voice and the Google Home app and you can even have searches sent to your smartphone if you want. We have two set up at our office and they have proved to be the smartest smart home gadgets we’ve used.
Get a Google Nest Mini smart speaker from Leroy Merlin for R1 299
Instant heat, less risk
Induction stovetops are all the rage in some parts of the world but they can still be very expensive locally.
These stovetops and burners use magnets to heat the pot or pan placed on them. This means that the stovetop cools quickly and there is very little risk of burning. If you’re a single person who often just uses one stove plate, we highly recommend that you add an induction hot plate to your kitchen.
Of course, your pots and pans will need to be compatible with induction stovetops. Most cast iron, enamelled iron, magnetic stainless steel and anodized aluminium should work on an induction plate. Alternatively there are ways to get around this but at that point, you may as well use a regular stovetop.
Get the Mellerware 1800W Induction Cooker from Takealot for R775
Add depth to your viewing
If you want to take your TV viewing experience from ordinary to extraordinary we highly recommend you consider adding an LED strip to the back of your TV. This helps reduce eye strain and it can make the experience more immersive. We’ve opted for a cheap option here that reacts to sound but there are products that sync to your set-top-box via HDMI allowing the lighting to change according to the picture on screen.
Get the Govee Bluetooth RGB LED Backlight Strip for your TV from Takealot for R499
“Is the WiFi down?”
The reason your internet is always “down” is that you are using the dinky router your ISP gave you when your fibre line was installed. At a push that will cover a room or two in your home but what you really need is whole home coverage. A mesh WiFi system is a must if your WiFi signal isn’t reaching the areas it needs to. The TP-Link Deco M4 system is a great option and can easily be expanded with additional units if needed.
Get the TP-Link Deco M4 AC1200 Whole Home Mesh Wifi System from Takealot for R3 198
Cleaning up without moving a muscle
With more people at home comes more mess. Rather than spending your December vacation cleaning up every day, let a robot do it for you. The Proscenic M9 self-emptying vacuum with rotating mops is a steal and will clean for 60 days without any intervention from you. It’s WiFi enabled and has a suction rating of 4500Pa.
Get the Proscenic M9 from Takealot for R9 999
Treat yourself
There are many projectors on the market but we’ve had our eye on the Hisense C1 for a good long while. Whether you want a 65-inch or a 300inch picture, the C1 will give it to you in a glorious 4K resolution.
The laser projector has a brightness of 1600 ANSI Lumens and uses Hisense’s Vidaa operating system to access all your apps, channels and streaming services from the projector itself. It also has intelligent features such as the ability to keystone the screen automatically.
Get the Hisense 65-300 C1 4K Smart Projector from Amazon for R24 999
[Image – André Azambuja from Pixabay]
