Ideas we like…

A tablet that can replace my laptop

Apple’s new iPad Pro blurs the line between laptop and tablet. The Magic Keyboard now comes with a trackpad at the bottom, and the hardware inside is virtually on a par with the tech inside a Macbook Air. The operating system will still be iOS (rather than OSX, which you usually find on Macs), but increasingly apps are becoming just as sophisticated as full-scale Mac software. It now includes a LiDAR scanner, which means it can scan and see the world around it, empowering some incredible augmented reality experiences. iPad Pro 2020, from £769, apple.com

A console that likes your old games

Microsoft is rewriting the book when it comes to console design with this monolith that we rather like. The Xbox Series X will boast full backwards compatibility, with upscaling technology that will actually make your old games look better. It also offers a ‘smart delivery’ system, which means if you buy a game on Xbox One, it’ll also deliver the upgraded version to your Series X. It will be up to individual developers whether they use the system. And of course, it almost goes without saying, but it will be incredibly powerful. It will be able to play games at 4K, at frames rate as high as 120fps. Microsoft says it’ll be twice as powerful as the current Xbox One X. Xbox Series X, £TBC, xbox.com Out November 2020

A smarter robot vacuum cleaner

Dyson has given its robo-cleaner some new brains. More precisely, they’ve put a quad-core processor and 10GB of storage onboard, 20x what its predecessor the Eye was equipped with. The extra computing oomph means that it should get better at navigating and charting the ins and outs of your house. Once the Heurist has mapped your home, you can tell it to clean only specific areas via your home or identify no-go areas full of precious cables. Dyson Heurist, £799, dyson.com