Tech Talk

Tech editor Susi Weaser sizes up the hottest toys to hit the streets.

Travel gadget
Griffin AirCurve
This speaker uses precisely zero power to amplify the relatively paltry iPhone speaker, thanks to a custom-engineered “waveguide” — roughly translated as “magic”. The amplification is only by about 10dB, so it’s not the thing to kickstart a party. However, it is great for travelling with and ensures that if you’re using your iPhone as an alarm clock, you won’t miss your chance to wake up in time to be the first by the pool.
€16.50, www.play.com

Kids’ gadget
Tooth Tunes
Kids, they love watching TV but hate brushing their teeth. This toothbrush comes in different versions, playing a song from either Hannah Montana or High School Musical, lasting exactly two minutes (the recommended brushing time). The more effectively they brush, the better the quality of the audio, thus preventing the sneaky ones from just turning the brush on to enjoy the warblings of Miley Cyrus et al.
€8.50, www.amazon.com

Eco-gadget
Wattson
To maximise your cool gadgets budget, it’s advisable to cut down in other areas – enter the Wattson. This Star Trek-esque equipment will measure how much power each of your gadgets is sucking up, showing you in pounds, euros or watts. You can even set a household limit and have it glow an environmentally unhappy red if you creep over.
€111, www.gadgetshop.com

Sci-fi gadget
Philip Stein watch
A watch that can calm and re-energise you, as well as reduce jetlag? What witchcraft is this? The makers claim that by tampering with the electric field of the battery and the magnetic field of the watch movement using a chip, they can change the energy frequency and balance the body’s energy flow, known as “chi”. Did we mention it tells the time, too?
€410, www.philipstein.com