TECH THAT CAN CHANGE YOUR LIFE

From lounge room to office to outdoors, we reveal the devices, apps and trends that can transform how you live!

THE TECHNOLOGY SPACE has always been fast-paced, but there seems to be more companies than ever creating truly unique technologies that save you time and transform the ways in which we live our lives. Smartwatches might not have been quite as revolutionary as originally thought, but the mature wearables space is starting to incorporate integral time-saving features like NFC payment that is simple enough to let you ditch your wallet entirely, and they now offer locally stored subscription music playlists that mean you can exercise using just a watch and a pair of Bluetooth headphones. The latest external GPUs like the Razer Core X can now transform paper-thin ultrabooks like the Apple MacBook into powerful workstations or gaming rigs through a simple Thunderbolt cable. Smart speakers like Amazon’s Alexa and Google Home have taken the Wi-Fi streaming idea that was pioneered by Sonos and have integrated smart assistant capabilities for something that has entirely transformed our smart homes and will continue to do so long into the future. Smart assistants are, more broadly, leaning heavily on the generous investment in AI by the likes of Apple, Google, Amazon and Samsung to really push the boundaries of tasks that can be performed by machines. Whether it’s the management of your calendar, giving you directions, searching for information or even, in the case of Google Duplex, getting on the phone and booking appointments for you by talking to real humans, the AI that is being integrated into smart assistants is going to dramatically shape the way we live our lives moving forward. Consumer technology has been developing faster than ever, and when you take a second to look back at all the transformative tech that has emerged recently, it’s inspiring to look at the gadgets and apps that have most dramatically pushed the dial forward.