Accessories

When the Avea Flare ($99.95) smart light arrived from Elgato, a note inside said "Happy Testing" and that's exactly what testing was like. In fact, my daughter practically grabbed the oversized-egg-shaped smart light fixture from my hands, in a scene that could be straight out of Willy Wonka, except this was not a golden egg. The Avea Flare is an egg-shaped wirelessly charged smart light source that can be tuned to millions of colors using the free companion Avea app. You can select scenic color schemes to match your mood or set it to wake up to a particular scene. There's even an Apple Watch extension so you can control it from your wrist.

The V-MODA Crossfade Wireless ($300) is an impressive pair of Bluetooth headphones with exceptionally hi-definition audio and the convenience of wireless listening enjoyment. They are considered by headphone aficionados to be the best wireless headphones for DJs, gamers, audiophiles and anyone who wears their headphones for long stretches and demands optimum audio quality.

At times, our amazing tech is only as useful as it is portable. Whether you ride a bike or take business trips, keeping all your devices secure and together in an organized pack with their charging cords can be a challenge. Yet with our repertoire of tech devices growing (Macbook, iPhone, iPad, Apple Watch, etc), one person could easily have all four and need to carry, at least, their laptop and phone with them. Luckily, where there is demand there is also supply. Here’s my best tech bags for keeping your devices plus personal gear together in portable style.

At the recent Consumer Electronics Show, I almost skipped past the Sandman Clocks booth. After all, how high tech can a clock be and what does a clock have to do with iPhones? A lot, as it turns out. The 4-Port USB Charging Clock ($29) from Sandman Clocks is first and foremost a clock. That is apparent from the bright and large red LED numerals that are easy to see, day and night. They take up almost the full size of the clock, which is great, especially if you keep it far away from your nightstand. But what really sets the Sandman Clock apart is that it has four USB ports, including a high powered port for charging tablets, which allows it to act as a multi-device charging station. I have my iPhone, iPad mini, Apple TV Siri remote, and Apple Watch on my nightstand. This could charge all of those and not take up any more wall outlets. The Sandman Clock would be ideal for hotels that want to accommodate their guests' many USB devices, without making them unplug a lamp as I've had to do too often.

Thanks in large part to Apple and the Apple Watch, sales of smartwatches outpaced sales of Swiss watches in Q4 2015, according to Strategy Analytics. Apple, Android Wear, Pebble, and other smartwatches combined to sell 8.1 million units in the fourth quarter. By comparison, 7.9 million Swiss watches were sold in the same time period. This had been predicted by Apple's Jony Ive, but the speed at which it happened is mind boggling.

Do you miss the days of carrying miscellaneous items and keys around your neck or at your belt with a lanyard? I remember being in middle school when that was what every self-respecting nerd carried with them. Truly though, it was the practical use of the item which made it such a hit. The Reelcase ($34.95) brings the classic lanyard idea and hides it with an iPhone case, giving you multiple ways to carry your device without using any hands.

When I graduated from high school, I was presented with a set of 10K gold Cross pens by my parents. This replaced a chrome set I had received in junior high school. For many, Cross was a symbol for writers. Over the years, I have collected many pens, but my Cross pens remain front-and-center, flanked by their cousins from Mont Blanc and Cartier. Today, I write on my iPad Air 2 more often than on paper. The closest pen, versus the best pen, usually suffices for the occasional check endorsement or tax note on a receipt. Like regular pens, I have collected dozens of styluses, from the passive type that drove the interfaces of the Sharp Zaurus and the Pocket PC, to the active type used to scrawl across the likes of the Microsoft Surface.