The 12 Best New Technologies for the New Year

Get rid of your current activity tracker, it’s archaic now. And that’s because Whoop’s new 4.0 technology is a game changer. Unlike the current crop of fitness trackers, the Whoop 4.0 has no screen or buttons (everything is controlled through an easy-to-use smartphone app). The 4.0 is a fitness device that tracks your steps, work outs, and calorie burn. But there’s more—it uniquely focuses on recovery the following day, too. It aims to make sure you feel well-rested, so you’re working at an optimal performance level next time you exercise, making it much less like to injury yourself with overexertion. 

For those familiar with the technology, the Whoop 4.0 is similar to the previous 3.0 model, yet there are some important upgrades. The 4.0 includes added sensors to collect more health data such as blood oxygen levels and skin temperature, readings which are increasingly important in the midst of a global virus that has the ability to reduce blood oxygen levels in our system. What’s more, the 4.0 has a smaller design which makes it more comfortable to wear in bed and on the go. All of your daily health metrics (including sleep) are stored, and can be shown to your primary care physician during your next checkup. 

Meet the most innovative, easy-to-use air quality monitor on the market. The Aranet4 Home records CO2 level, temperature, relative humidity, and atmospheric pressure. The CO2 reading is perhaps the most important. The CO2 ppm (parts per million) levels are easily read on the monitor in colors green (good), yellow (okay), and red (unhealthy). When CO2 levels become too high, a buzzer goes off, warning anyone in the room that they are in danger. The e-ink display means this device is energy efficient, allowing standard batteries to last for up to four years. The device is small and extremely light weight, making it useful at home or on the road when sleeping in hotels or Airbnbs. Lastly, this technology goes a long way in protecting against COVID-19. It’s now well known that ventilation is a crucial element in preventing this disease. As such, high CO2 levels means poor ventilation of air, corralling with the potential aerosol buildup of the virus. 

Imagine a world in which you can grow organic vegetables without the use of soil, only water. What’s more, imagine this process taking place indoors—without the need for sunlight—and enclosed in a sophisticated, Scandinavian–style design. Well, that world is possible with Ingarden, the new at-home, indoor garden that’s both energy-efficient and limitless with its soil-free technology. The process is simple: Place the Ingarden in any location of your home (no natural light required), pour water over the pre-packed pads Ingarden sends, press a button, and voilà, you’ll see your plants growing within a week. Finally, in keeping with the company’s carbon-neutral mantra, fresh microgreens are delivered using recyclable packaging directly to your doorstep, which means less plastic waste will be consumed in comparison to store-bought greens.

The Glow Light by Casper is exactly what’s needed for those who have trouble falling asleep at night and waking in the morning (particularly when the sky is still dark outside). Typically placed on your bed stand, Casper’s Glow Light is a self-dimming, warm light that lulls you into a better and deeper sleep. Let’s say you set an alarm to be up at 6 a.m. through the easy-to-use smartphone app. Come morning, the Glow Light begins to warm up the bedroom, mimicking the sunrise, around 5:30 a.m. in the morning, achieving a full sunrise at 6 a.m. This way, your mind believes the sky is light, and your day is ready to begin. But it doesn’t end there—should you wake in the middle of the night to say, use the restroom, you can simply pick up the Glow Light, give it a subtle shake, and a warm nightlight appears in your hand, allowing you to safely walk to the restroom without straining your eyes with harsh light.

Traditional scales stick to your weight, nothing more. But the Withings Body Cardio scale is no traditional scale—it provides deeper insight into your health by tracking your weight and body composition (such as your heart rate and pulse wave velocity). The scale can be specific about your cardiovascular health with its smartphone app that suggests lifestyle changes to improve your health. Unlike most scales, the Withings Body Cardio has a glass platform that actually looks good, and it also provides a non-slip surface to stand on.

Let’s face it—there’s a pretty good chance many of us will begin going back into the office this year. And that’s a real reason to get rid of that lockdown, work-from-home beard. Thankfully, Philips just released their 9500 series shaver. This new technology comes with a special anti-friction coating to protect your face from redness and irritation. The Philips Norelco Shaver 9500 comes equipped with advanced sensors that warn you when you’re pressing too hard or too little, thus providing the perfect shave. Best of all, perhaps, is this device can be used on a dry face or in the shower. Once a shave is completed, place it head down into a cleaning pod for one minute. The thorough clean is roughly 10 times more effective than cleaning it with water.

For some, there’s no anxiety quite like the feeling that comes from a cell phone’s low battery sign. Anker, a company that has cornered the battery charging space for some time now, now has a sleek and wireless charging portal. With two plug-in options and one wireless portal, three devices can be charged at the same time. A small L-shaped hook can be pulled out of the device, allowing your phone to snuggly fit in the space and sit up on a table to watch any video on your screen.

The future is now, and perhaps never has this been more evident than in the introduction of virtual reality headsets. And while there are many out there for consumers to choose from, we believe that the Oculus Quest 2 is the best in terms of value, crispness of experience, and aesthetic design of the physical device. Whether you want to watch a movie or television show (theirs even a Prime Video VR), exercise, meditate, or tour the world from the comfort of your sofa, the Oculus Quest 2 can accommodate. You can even visit outer space, without having to pay a fortune to join Jeff Bezos.

If working from home has taught us anything, it’s that dead zones at home and dropped Wi-Fi connections are a real problem. Well, here’s your savior: The Nighthawk 8-Stream Wi-Fi Extender. It does exactly as the name suggests, and extends the best Wi-Fi performance and fastest speeds to every part of your home, even in those hard-to-reach places. The Extender is easy to set up and use on any smartphone with the Nighthawk app. As we continue to work from home, this new technology will remain a vital part of our lives.

Of all the home technology innovations that have come to the market place, Amazon’s Echo Show 15 is among the most exciting. With its sleek, 15.6-inch, HD, and smart display, this device is part family organizer, part entertainment. This Alexa–powered technology can be hung on the wall or stand on a desk or table in either portrait or landscape orientation. Whether you’re asking Alexa for daily recipe ideas, cook-along, hands-free with step-by-step instructions, or adding ingredients to your shopping cart, the Echo Show 15 will be your new best sidekick. Play music, display family photos, or even assign reminders to other people in the household. This product can do that and so much more.