Accessories

This year, Mother’s Day falls on May 8. That means it’s time to buy a gift and plan for flowers. I don’t care who you are, your mom waddled around for nine months and gained a tiger’s skin worth of stretch marks (or went through a strenuous adoption process) — the least you can do is get her a gift to show your appreciation. Even if your mom isn’t a tech pro, there are plenty of tech items she would love and get a lot of wonderful use out of. Here’s awesome Mother’s day gifts for the tech mom in your life.

I'm enjoying making my home smarter via Apple HomeKit-compatible devices. So far I've written about iHome's SmartPlug ($39.99), which lets you set up an on/off schedule as well as control an appliance remotely, and Elgato's Eve Room ($79.95), which lets you monitor volatile organic compounds in the air in a room, as well as humidity and temperature. In this post I'll cover a handy gadget from Elgato that lets you monitor how much electricity an appliance is using: Eve Energy ($49.95). Elgato has also given me Eve Weather and Eve Door & Window and I'll cover those HomeKit devices in future posts.

Thanks to everyone who entered the April 18 iPhone Life Biweekly Giveaway! Every other week we give away amazing prizes, so if you didn't win this time, make sure you enter the May 2 giveaway and tell your friends to enter too!

And the winner is... (drum roll please):

When Apple released its hunchback battery case, users were less than impressed by the company's ability to hide the extra power. It’s generally accepted in the battery case world that a case that recharges will also add a significant amount of bulk to your iPhone. Well it’s time to strip that assumption away and set a higher standard, because Kuke by Kuner ($46) has proven you can do it another way.

I love a beautiful bag. Keeping everything organized in an aesthetically pleasing carrying case makes me feel as though me, my iPad, and this gorgeous bag could take on the world. Not only does it feel good but it’s simply practical to have a bag that can carry your iPad Pro, it’s corresponding cables, and a few extra items so you aren’t lugging around multiple bags wherever you go. For freelancers, writers, artists, and professionals of all kind, going portable makes having everything you need at any time easy. So here’s four beautiful high-quality bags that are perfect for carrying your iPad Pro.

Don't forget to enter this weekend's Giveaway Contest! 

Here's how it works: Every other weekend we raffle off tons of great apps and accessories for FREE then announce the winners through iphonelife.com, Facebook, Twitter, and Google+. To enter, go to iPhoneLife.com/giveaways. If you win an app, we will email you the promo code. If you win an accessory, we will ask you for your mailing address.

While some had hoped for an update to the Apple Watch during Apple's recent iPhone SE announcement, it looks like we will be staring at our old Apple Watches even longer. A new report from KGI Securities analyst Ming-Chi Kuo suggests the next major Apple Watch release date won't be until 2017. Instead he predicts that Apple will have a minor "s" version update in 2016, as opposed to a bold new change.