Image: Tina Tiller

PartnersNovember 25, 2024

The great Spinoff summer 2024 tech gift guide

Staff writers

Image: Tina Tiller

From hard-working headphones to top-of-the-line tablets, these are a few of our favourite gadgets.

For some, the summer months are a time to switch off their devices, to venture out into the sunshine armed with nothing more than a paperback novel and a large floppy hat. Not us! This is the season when tech comes into its own, whether it’s a portable speaker that provides the tunes at a barbecue, a sports watch that tracks the steps expended on a hike, or a cheapo karaoke mic that makes New Year’s Eve worth staying in for.

With the days getting longer – and Christmas shopping becoming an inescapable reality – we’ve put together a list of some of our favourite techie gadgets and devices.

Sonos speaker

My toddler loves standing extremely close to my Sonos One and repeatedly whacking the top of it to turn a song on and off and on and off and on and off and on and off and… you get the picture. Does this make for a relaxing listening experience for me? No. Is this an advisable way to treat a piece of tech? Also no. But it brings her much joy and a much-needed break from screentime, and the Sonos has held up to this prolonged assault remarkably well.

When she’s had enough of bashing the shit out of the long-suffering gadget, Annie enjoys making demands of Alexa, even though Alexa doesn’t often understand her increasingly frustrated pleas for ‘Jolene’, ‘Poi E’ or “HEAD KNEES TOES!” (She always forgets the shoulders.) I’ll be working on a summer playlist that we can both enjoy, and perhaps Annie can expect a sturdier, more toddler-friendly speaker in her Christmas stocking. / Alice Neville

Beats headphones

One of the most annoying things about reporting on the go is being in the middle of a hectic scene and knowing you’ll need some peace and quiet to a) focus and b) actually hear the quotes you’ve hurriedly recorded. Enter: my trusty pair of Beats headphones.

Honestly, these are just a handbag essential at this point. If I leave the house without them, I will go back to retrieve them, and I use them every day, for most parts of the day. I’ll pop them on while I’m walking and training to the office in the morning so I can stay on top of my podcasts, let the noise cancellation help me focus on transcribing stories while I’m at work, and end the day using them to watch my favourite TV show while I’m making dinner in my flat kitchen.

I dropped these headphones onto hard ground last year and cracked the headband bit slightly, but I’ve refused to replace them because they’re too close to my heart (and not actually broken!). A nice wad of tape is keeping them together, and the sound quality is as good as ever. / Lyric Waiwiri-Smith

Kindle e-reader

There is no device I love more than my Kindle. If I was drafting consumer tech, it would be my round one pick. In fact, if I was given the choice between my Kindle or all my other devices, I’d take the Kindle. Every other device I have complicated feelings about – they do too much, I don’t always love the person I become when I’m on them. The Kindle is so simple, so pure – it’s reading, just reading, only and always reading.

Its battery lasts essentially forever – even more so in bright sunshine, when you can dim it to zero and still have perfect clarity. No one can see the cover, so no posing, and no judgement. You are carrying around 1,000 or so books at any given time, so can drop one and pick up another. If somehow you run out, there’s almost everything ever written (apart from Robert Caro! Annoying!) a few clicks away.

The best bit, to me, is that each book is a purchase. I’ve become a boring zealot of the idea that subscriptions are bad for culture, and so books being alone next to music, TV and, increasingly, film, as driven by purchases over subscriptions – it feels fairer, it feels correct. I know a lot of people hate Amazon, not without reason – but I cannot hide my adoration for everything the Kindle does, and represents. / Duncan Greive

Generic-brand karaoke mic

My karaoke microphone at home barely qualifies as tech. It was $30 from a nondescript gadget store at the mall and feels like it would break if you squeezed it too hard. But it brings our household so much joy. Whenever we remember it exists, which is most often during the holidays, we turn it on and delight in the tinny “amplification” the built-in speaker allows as we play karaoke clips on YouTube.

Could we just sing along to a song without the microphone? Of course, but it wouldn’t be near as thrilling. One day we’ll splash out on a powerful microphone with an accompanying speaker that actually has bass and doesn’t crackle, but until then, our budget version will keep us entertained for hours. / Mad Chapman

Samsung Galaxy Tab S10 Ultra

There’s an emerging iron law of technology that tablets, while useful for everyone, are most beloved by the young and the old. My father lives on his, and my daughter absolutely thrashes hers which is, understandably, showing its age. For three years she’s hammered an iPad Mini to the point where its screen has a permanent oily sheen, its battery is hanging by a thread and switching between apps is like setting off on a long journey in The Lord of the Rings. You have no confidence in reaching your destination, nor what might befall you along the way.

So it was quite a scene to hand her the glorious top-of-the-line Samsung Galaxy Tab S10 Ultra for a few days. Its screen is around four times the scale of her current device, and dazzled her with crisp, bright colours and ran every one of her core app rotation without a moment’s hesitation. It streamed hours of video with barely a dent in its battery, and she loved using the in-box S-Pen to draw for long sessions – a much more wholesome use of it as a device than is typical, and ended up preferring it as a navigational tool too. The device came with an excellent and accessible parental mode, allowing us to lock out apps and sites which we want her kept away from, while recreating her app diet from Apple took minutes, not the hours we were dreading. It felt cruel to drag her out of this world and back to her usual device, but such is the life of a tech product reviewer, even one getting their first taste at 10 years old. / Duncan Greive

Garmin Venu sports watch

I bought my Garmin Venu watch while training for a half marathon. I used to think pumping data from a watch to an app on your phone, just to catalogue your exhausted shuffling around the streets, was a stupid gimmick, but it ended up being very motivating. I’m not good at running, and I find it boring, so the huge amounts of information Garmin watches collect (way more than an amateur runner requires) added a layer of intense and nerdy interest. I was suddenly deeply engaged with my VO2 max despite not knowing what it was. I found enormous joy in my watch’s confetti animation celebration when I hit goals.

I’ve had a slack winter, so have been less engaged with my VO2 max. The great thing about summer and a smartwatch is that you’re suddenly more active, and the confetti for moving your body is back, even if it’s because you walked to the dairy and back for a Fruju Snow. It works as the perfect reminder that, as usual, February is for new goals and deciding you’re a runner once more. / Anna Rawhiti-Connell

Any big TV

Forget the sun, kick the sand to the curb and prepare for a summer spent indoors, because the Big TV is the one gadget you need in your life. Who wants a teeny-tiny gadget when you can have a BIG one? No other piece of technology will give you crystal clear pictures, brightly coloured vistas and a ginormous screen that you need to sit ten metres away from to fully appreciate, and while I don’t know much about pixels and stuff, I do know that there is great joy in simply turning on a gadget and letting it do its stuff.

Nobody can screw up a big TV. A big TV brings people together (not too close, because BIG), but it will also give you moments of peace and quiet, when you plonk your ratbag children directly in front of it so their eyes can grow squarer by the second. As far as gadgets go, TVs are a classic. But big, as they say, is good. / Tara Ward

Google Chromecast

In 2015 I was lucky enough to be #gifted a Chromecast and not a day goes by where I don’t marvel at the difference it made to our lives both then and now. Sure, more people have smart TVs these days with magical built-in capabilities, but the Chromecast transforms any old brick-and-mortar television set into a wondrous receptacle for the entirety of the Internet. It’s not just about being able to watch Netflix at the bach, but those midnight YouTube karaoke sessions that are swiftly followed by everyone sharing their favourite fail videos. For the more highbrow among us, you can share your favourite New Yorker articles on the big screen, or do a Powerpoint presentation, or simply watch live streams of the weather.

We use our Chromecast every day, but it will be getting an absolute thrashing over summer – particularly on days when we have to leave the dog at home, blissing out to a compilation of dog reggae for separation anxiety. / Alex Casey

Amazon Alexa system

I have more Alexa speakers in my house than bedrooms and bathrooms combined. There is one in the kitchen, one in the bathroom, and one in each bedroom. They are some of my favourite devices. What’s better than being able to yell from the shower that you want to hear Lady Gaga blared at full volume? Or if, like me, you’re rushing around in the morning and want to hear the news play in every single room you walk into to make sure you don’t miss a thing? In the kitchen, my Alexa sets me timers when I’m cooking (or, realistically, I set them for my partner as she cooks).

It can also be fun to remotely set music to start playing back at home when you’re out, spooking anyone still in the house – or more likely to keep my puppy entertained when I’m out and about. I can also attest that these speakers are simple enough that even the most boomer-minded family member will be capable of asking Alexa, at the very least, to play them talkback radio. In other words, a perfect (and cost-efficient) Christmas present. / Stewart Sowman-Lund

Keep going!

It probably won’t, but a lot can go wrong on holiday (Image: Getty / Tina Tiller)

PartnersNovember 5, 2024

Every travel disaster I can think of – and how travel insurance would help

Tara Ward

Staff writer

It probably won’t, but a lot can go wrong on holiday (Image: Getty / Tina Tiller)

While you might be reluctant to buy travel insurance, you’ll be glad to have it when things go wrong.

As a natural catastrophiser, I spend a lot of time thinking about things that could go wrong – even on holiday. Perhaps I’ll be caught up in a life-threatening multi-car pileup on the motorway on the way from the airport, or I’ll slip in the shower on my first night and spend the next 10 days in a foreign hospital or be pick-pocketed by a street urchin while I’m temporarily distracted by the astonishing sight of a gold-painted human statue who appears to be floating in mid-air. Those guys really are mesmerising.

Luckily for worrywarts like me, there’s a thing called travel insurance. Nobody knows the ins and outs of travel insurance better than Greig Leighton, Chief Partnerships Officer at AA New Zealand, and while he couldn’t promise that I won’t ever be attacked and bitten by a feral squirrel while strolling through Central Park, he did confirm that travel insurance would help if I was.

Travel insurance can act as a back-up plan against unforeseen illnesses, accidents and travel disruptions while you’re away from home – and even before you depart for your trip. While insurance is a product people might not like to buy (nobody likes to pay for something they might not use, Leighton reckons), it’s a necessity if anything goes wrong. “Ninety-five percent of people pay an insurance premium, and their holiday goes absolutely seamlessly,” he says. “It’s only 5% who come unstuck – but the people who do, they need help.”

The author takes an obligatory airplane toilet selfie, left, and with her kids on holiday

So, in a world full of danger and disasters, will travel insurance help me when I chip my tooth and need emergency dental treatment, or if I slip and break my coccyx at La Tomatina? Leighton assures me that travel insurance can cover accidental medical events and some related treatment costs that can quickly add up to hundreds of thousands of dollars. In the worst-case scenario, your insurer can medevac you to hospital to receive critical life-saving healthcare.

Leighton stresses the importance of declaring any pre-existing medical conditions when buying a travel insurance policy. “You don’t want to have a claim declined for a pre-existing medical condition you did not declare. By declaring your condition, it doesn’t always result in an increased premium, but sometimes it does”.

What if I’m stuck in a traffic jam from the result of a fatal multi-car accident on the way to the airport and I miss my flight? Missed connections and travel disruptions may be covered, but Leighton points out that “you’ve really got to read those terms and conditions to understand what the airline should cover, and what your travel insurance policy should cover.”

What if you’re pick-pocketed on public transport and your belongings are stolen? You’re covered* – as long as you weren’t being negligent with your property. What if a huge typhoon comes through, the airport is a washout, and my flight is cancelled? Leighton says coverage for natural disasters depends on what type of event it is and the effect on your travel.

And if the worst happened and I was squished to death by a falling window (this nearly happened to me in London – true story), would travel insurance help my flattened carcass get home to Aotearoa? You bet. Leighton cheerily confirms that body repatriation or funeral expenses where the death occurred are covered, as is accidental death or permanent disablement.

Leighton also stresses that travel insurance is “a must”, but before he could answer my long list of hypothetical (some might say hysterical) travel mishaps, he shared some key things to know about travel insurance.

Buy your policy as soon as you book your travel plans. If you trip over the cat and break your leg one week before your skiing trip to Japan, you’re covered* – but only if you have already purchased your travel insurance. “It’s a really important point, because a lot of people will go through that sequence of booking air travel, then accommodation and tours, and travel insurance comes later,” Leighton says. Buying insurance immediately means you’ll be covered for unforeseen disasters that happen before you leave.

Choose the policy that’s right for you. Are you travelling domestically or internationally? Is it for leisure or work? Are you heading across the Tasman for a weekend of shopping, or planning a round-the-world adventure trip? Different policies have different levels of cover, and it’s important to choose the package that suits your needs. “If you’re doing something that’s got a little more risk around it, then look at the general and section exclusions in the policy wording around the cover you’re covered* for,” Leighton advises.

Always read the terms and conditions. This is a big one. “Our strongest recommendation is for people to read the policy wording so they know what is covered, but more importantly, the exclusions as well,” Leighton says.

Seriously, read the terms and conditions. Every travel insurance policy has exclusions (things or activities that won’t be covered), and it’s important that you know what these are in advance – for example, some policies don’t cover off-piste skiing, while others will only cover motorbike accidents up to a particular CC level. If you’re in any doubt, Leighton recommends contacting your insurer to seek clarity.

There’s a 14 day “cooling off” period. Every customer has 14 days to change their mind, cancel their policy and get a refund. “If you suddenly decide to read your policy and go, ‘I wonder what that means?’, you can exit, or get some clarity from us within that 14-day period,” Leighton says, adding that this is a great “backstop” for consumers.

Thankfully, probability suggests most of us will be part of the lucky 95% who don’t need to claim travel insurance – but if you do have a disaster while you’re away from home, it’s clear that the right insurance policy is invaluable, as peace of mind is priceless. I have one more question before Leighton departs: what if I’ve booked a trip to Australia but booked accommodation in Austria? Out of all my hypothetical travel troubles, Leighton’s not sure about this one. “I think we cover most things, but I think silliness probably isn’t one of them.”

*Please consider the Policy Wording before making any decisions about AA Travel Insurance. Terms, conditions, limits, sub-limits and exclusions apply.