Best buys in 2020
Pen
The best pen of the year award goes to uni-ball Signo Gel pen. Feels good in the hand and has a smooth flow. The uni-ball Eye Broad has a 1mm tip compared to 0.75mm for the Signo Gel pen.
Masks
The mask of the year for its reusability and comfort goes to Boldfit and Uniqlo. The most uncomfortable and disappointing ones were from March Tee.
The silliest purchase of the year was this portable desktop vacuum cleaner. I expected too much perhaps đ
Phone
Pixel 4a – A compromise buy as I was drawn to iPhone 12 but it was too expensive. A reliable phone with a great camera. I have my doubts about its longevity though.
Monitor
27â AOC Monitor – Iâve used an AOC 24â monitor for many years. AOC is a good value-for-money monitor brand that offers acceptable levels of quality at a much cheaper rate. I didnât need a top-of-the-line monitor and picked this to use at the farmhouse.
Monitor Mount
RIFE Wall Mount Monitor Arm – I was looking for an adjustable monitor arm that can be wall-mounted for my customized sit and stand desks I had designed. This has a good amount of vertical travel to adjust the monitor for sitting and standing positions. It can be moved horizontally and rotated. Here are the specs for quick reference: Screen Size:13″-27″, Load:0-8kg, Arm Span: 455.6 mm, Tilt:’-70°~+60°, Swivel:360°, Rotation:360°, Vesa:75/100. Build quality is good and has no rough edges.
Health Tracker
Dozee Health Tracker – This device goes under your mattress and tracks your sleep quality, breathing, and heart rate through the night. If you have older folks with health conditions at home, this can be quite useful.
Home Stuff
iLIFE V80 Dry & Wet Cleaning Robot – A cheaper version of iRobot. This model doesnât come with a smart app but has basic built-in features and auto-scheduling routines. Does a decent job of cleaning the house and takes about 45 minutes for the full house before returning to its base. A good backup to have.
Absorbia Reusable Moisture Absorbers – These are essential for protecting your electronic gadgets, clothes, shoes, and other leather items against moisture. The reusable pack is not built great, but I use it because it can be refilled.
Dry/Wet Waste 2-in-1 Dustbins – Our two previous dustbins turned out to be too small during the lockdowns. This one is reasonably well built and designed with handles for carrying them out individually while they sit together under one lid. The color and the labeling are helpful to ensure everyone in the house segregates the waste properly.
Router
TP-Link Deco M9 Mesh Routers – Easy to set up and managed entirely from the mobile app. They call it a smart router but it doesnât connect with Alexa or Google Home. However, it can trigger notifications when a recognized device is connected/disconnected from the network. If you need a web interface then youâre out of luck. Since it creates a single network ID and not separate ones for 2.4GHz and 5 GHz like traditional routers, your smart bulbs/switches wonât work. But you can create a separate guest network and pick only the 2.4Ghz frequency as a workaround.
TP-Link Archer C7 – Home is a mess of many routers connected through switches and ethernet cables to achieve maximum coverage. Will switch to a mesh network someday and will have a lot of routers to sell đ In the meantime, this router seemed like a good balance of price and features. TP-Link app interfaces are definitely better than what Netgear has to offer.
Internet backup solution: TP-Link Load Balancer + SIM-based 4G device. The load balancer can aggregate two internet connections doubling your speed in theory or be set up to fall back on the 2nd connection if the first one fails. I needed this for the farmhouse and while itâs not entirely set up yet, I have tested it. FYI, a Jio or Airtel hotspot does not provide an ethernet connection option, so while you can plug it into your laptop, this solution provides for the whole house. And if you have security cameras or smart devices, this type of internet backup is useful.
Speakers & headphones
Lead Headphones and Leadpods – I discovered this on Cred and bought the headphones first and the Leafpods later. For casual listening and calls, these are great value for money. Impressed with the design and build quality.
Edifier R 1280 – Near field-powered speakers with a ton of connectivity options in a very attractive-looking design. The sound quality is impressive with good details, but if you’re a bass thump lover, you might find it lacking.
Smart Devices
Tinxy WiFi 4 Node Smart Switch – An Indian company that manufactures these little devices which go inside the switchboard. This means they can be retrofitted to your existing switches. It can be controlled via their app and works with Alexa and Google Home. The app is basic but does the job. I have this setup at the farmhouse and my home office to control the lights, fan, and sockets. I also bought the AC/Geyser module to control the AC. So far theyâve worked reliably at both locations so I can definitely recommend them. The scheduled routines for turning lights on and off have run without any issues in the last 6 months.
Smart Bulbs – Iâve tried Solimo (Amazonâs brand), Wipro, and Syska smart bulbs. Solimo stocks have been low or out of stock ever since the lockdowns started. Wipro is the next best option in terms of reliability. I wouldnât buy Syska again as I donât find them to work as well as the other two. All three work with the SmartLife app which then can sync with Alexa and Google Home. (Iâve added Wiproâs smart tube lights in the office and they work great)
D3D WiFI Security Camera – I have two of these setup at home to monitor the house when we are not there. Can connect via WiFi or ethernet. It comes with a card storage slot and the app provides an option for cloud storage. Iâve opted for both. Unfortunately, this is not a smart device and canât be managed via Alexa or Google Home. But their poorly designed and sluggish app does provide options to set up triggers and alarms based on movement and sound. Working reliably for the last 6 months
Books for a 3-4-year-old:
- Jungle Book: Bird songs of India
- Press Here
- Llama Llama Red Pyjama
- The Incredible Book Eating Boy
- The Little Prince Pop-up Book
- Be Kind
Books I read in 2020
Here’s a list of books and my short reviews for each of them.
Books I bought in 2020 obviously outnumber what I read đ