WORK & BUSINESS
Work from home or run your own business from your iOS device
1 Printer Brother MFC-J985DW $169, brother.com
This multi-function printer does copying and scanning as well as printing, all in great quality, and over AirPrint. But one of its best features is its INKvestment cartridges, which are much better value per page than other inkjet solutions, at around 1¢ per black page.
2 Telepresence bot Double Robotics Double2 $2,499, doublerobotics.com
Want to get face to face with people in an office when you work from home, or from across the country? Mount your iPad on this Segway-like device and you can drive it around with constant live video chat, for a real (well, virtual) up close and personal experience.
3 Battery Pack Mophie space pack From $149, mophie.com
There are two things you’re likely to run out of on your iPhone: storage, and battery
4 Label printer Epson LW-600P $114, epson.com
charge. This battery pack fixes both, giving you extra longevity as well as 32GB or 64GB of storage. You transfer files to or from it via its app – great for storing photos and videos, or anything else you need! Design and print labels and stickers from your iOS device using this smart and portable unit. Organize your drawers or cables at home, stick up warning signs at work, print price tags… it’s surprisingly useful.
5 keyboard Logitech K780 $109, logitech.com
Logitech makes excellent keyboards, and this brand new model is no exception. It can connect to three different Bluetooth devices, which you can switch between with a button press, so it’s great for both Mac and iOS. It has a stand to hold your iPad upright, and it’s a full keyboard, complete with numberpad.
6 wireless storage LaCie Fuel From $169, lacie.com
Want an external hard drive you can access from Mac or iOS? LaCie’s Fuel drives come in 1TB or 2TB models, are fast, and offer wireless iOS connectivity via an app.
7 Scanner IRIScan Book Executive 3 $109, irislink.com
This portable scanner can be run over anything – individual papers, or pages from a book or report – and send the scans straight to your iOS device. It’s small, light, and runs off a battery.
8 Barcode scanner Socket Mobile 7Ci Barcode Scanner $199, socketmobile.com
Run a business where you want to scan sale items or track products? Or an event with tickets to track? This barcode scanner connects to your iOS device, and works with a range of apps (and a development kit is available to make your own).
9 payment reader Square Contactless + Chip Reader $49, squareup.com
Take contactless or chip card payments anywhere from a store to a rummage sale with this wireless reader, which connects to Square’s iOS app. It even takes Apple Pay. Square also makes a mag stripe reader.
10 Cash register Star Micronics mPOP $379, starmicronics.com
This Apple-certified cash drawer and receipt printer work with your iPad over Bluetooth to give you a full smart register system. It’s built into one slick unit, with the receipt printer using thermal paper for easy use and refilling. It’s perfect for a small business just starting out, or one with limited space.