Gadget Guru’s magic box

With Guru’s own personal assistant departing for pastures new after GaGu’s lighthearted jibes got a little too personal, he’s been on the search for a digital replacement that can take a little ribbing. And while Amazon’s Alexa is lovely and thick-skinned, Mrs Guru insists that the Echo go nowhere near her precious living room (much like the old PA) on account of its black-and-blue LED cyber-styling. Guru is instead attempting to sell his other half on the Lenovo Smart Assistant (pictured), which seeped out at this year’s CES: it’s a more neutrally coloured Alexa tube with nice fabric on the bottom, and there’s a neat Harmon Kardon edition (due, hopefully, in May), which should retail for about £150. Let’s see if she bites.

Far more exciting, and far less likely to receive clearance from Guru’s family coffers, is the Cycleboard (£1,100, above right), a three-wheeled, wood-decked scooter that promises to send you hurtling through the streets at up to 20mph. Its 25-mile range makes it perfect for a tricky commute, but it’s the potential to show up those teenagers at the skate park that GaGu’s really interested in.

Finally, Guru’s precious Pebble Time is starting to (metaphorically) burn his wrist a little since Pebble the company shut up shop, tore up its warranties and sold its assets to Fitbit, so the hunt is on for a fancy new smartwatch with reasonable battery life. While it’s tempting to play with those Apple Watch knock-offs on AliExpress (from £10, which gives you a clue as to their quality), Guru is no idiot. The Nixon Mission (£340) looks utterly beautiful, but Guru’s lax attitude to extreme sports doesn’t match up to its ambition. Google’s clandestine work on a flagship smartwatch, due for release this year, is also exciting; the big G could pull something special out of the bag, or it could push out something a bit mundane, as it does all the time. Perhaps Fitbit will make the most of Pebble’s e-ink tech and cough up a new watch with a high-contrast, better-saturated colour screen. But Guru isn’t holding his breath...