Tech tools

Compiled by CIARA O'BRIEN

Crayola iPad ColorStudio HD

$29.99

If you have an iPad and a young child, you might be – understandably – apprehensive at handing over your shiny new toy to the “breaker of all things”. But take a look at the Crayola iPad ColorStudio HD and you might change your mind. With a (chunky, easy to handle, won’t write on walls) stylus known as the iMarker and an app, your iPad is now a colouring book that you can change at the touch of a button. The iMarker works as almost anything you’ll need for this app – a pencil, pen, marker, eraser – and you can build your own colouring pages from built-in clip art and images, adding animations and even music to your pages. Share the resulting masterpieces through Facebook and e-mail. Hours of peace, guaranteed.

Griffintechnology.com

Bose Cinemate 1 SR

€1,500

Home cinema systems are one of those things that are good in theory, but when you try to fit a 5.1 surround sound system into a living room the size of a postage stamp, you start to rethink the wisdom of your investment. Bose may have the answer – if you have the cash. The Cinemate 1 SR speaker system has only a single sleek speaker to worry about, but still delivers on the cinema sound.

There’s only one cable to connect to your HDTV, and you can wall-mount it or put it on a table, and the sound will still be impressive. It has technology known as Flexmount that will detect the speaker’s orientation and adjusts the sound for its position.

And with the Adaptiq audio calibration system, you can customise the sound to your room’s acoustics.

bose.ie

Fridgebook magnets

€17

If youre tired of Facebook, but don’t want to give up the chance to update everyone on the day-to-day goings on in your life, compromise with some Facebook-inspired fridge magnets. You can still update your status and have a mini-profile, but with the added bonus of not having to wade through everyone else’s musings about their jobs/life/family/car or deal with the inevitable Facebook rows. And not only do you have total control over who sees it – visitors to your kitchen – you can also erase them permanently when the time comes, because they’re wipe clean. Unlike the digital equivalent.

firebox.com