Todd Bernhard

I have an Apple Watch, but there are times when I don't always wear it. That's why I was pleased to try the Activity Tracker app (free) from Bits&Coffee. Even as I type this, my Apple Watch battery has less than 10 percent left. This is why I can't always wear it, but I almost always have my iPhone with me. When combined with the Activity Tracker app, I can keep track of steps via the built-in pedometer independent of my Apple Watch.

I had the opportunity to try iHealth Clear Wireless Blood Pressure Monitor ($79.99). It's a quality device to measure your blood pressure, with the added value of being able to connect to a free, attractive smart app. I tried it and got results similar to a professional device. The unit itself looks like an oversized iPhone dock with an LCD screen and would blend in just fine in any Apple enthusiast's home.

I love the Echo series of products from Amazon. Being able to just talk to Alexa is the stuff I dreamed of as a kid. It's as close as the average person can get to being Tony Stark of Iron Man. That said, Amazon has some surprising gaps in the Echo (and Tap) product line. The are now have four devices, the Echo, the Echo Dot, the Tap, and the Echo Look. Each has its advantages and disadvantages. The models with Echo in their name allow you to just say "Alexa" and ask a question or issue a command. It's magical.

The folks at BiGR Audio love to create cool audio products that belie their name, like the QUARK Bluetooth Speaker ($39.99). It's tiny; perhaps the world's smallest Bluetooth speaker, as they say, which befits the QUARK name. It looks like a slightly large dice cube, made of wood with tiny speaker holes on one end. On the bottom, there is a push button that not only turns it on or off, but acts as a Bluetooth shutter remote control. Another side has a microUSB port that is used recharge the device, which has a 2.5 to 4 hour battery life.