Tech Tools

Compiled by CIARA O'BRIEN

Pix and Stix

€31

If you have GarageBand for the iPad, you might still feel there is something missing – namely, the ability to properly let loose on the drums. That could come to an end with the Pix and Stix. Useful accessories with a slightly silly name, the pack includes two drumsticks and one guitar pick.

The Stix look just like your average drumsticks, but with one important difference. Instead of wood, these are made from conductive rubber so you can tap away on the iPad screen. You also get a rubber pick in the pack that you can use with the guitar instruments on GarageBand. And they come in three colours – black, blue and yellow.

[ firebox.com ]

Epson Moverio BT-100

From €599 approx

Epson’s Moverio glasses offer you a way to watch videos and browse the web on your own 80in perceived “floating” display. The Android-powered glasses work only with Epson’s portable media player, which you can load up with your own content, or find stuff online via its wifi connection.

The glasses are similar to the Sony personal 3D display, with one main difference – the Moverio glasses are transparent so you can see the world beyond. However it doesn’t interfere with your viewing and you get a sense that content really is being projected on to a wall instead of right before your eyes.

[ epson.com ]

Sony Vaio T Series

From €867

Sony has released its first “ultra book”, the thin and light laptops that are taking on the Macbook Air. The Vaio T Series offers 11in and 13in LED screens, with a choice between solid-state hard drives and hybrid hard drives.

The SSD models give you longer battery life – nine hours – and speedy access to files. The 13in version comes with a hybrid drive that has a 320GB hard drive to store your files and 32GB solid state drive for the system. It has a metal casing that looks stylish but should also keep your laptop safe; inside, you get a Core i3 Sandybridge processor and 4GB of RAM.

[ sony.ie ]