Who cares about QR Codes?

I am the kind of gal that admittedly likes gadgets and accessories just because they are cool, I don’t even need to have a use for them to make me want one! If there is a new iPad case, a new speaker, a new product announcement from Apple, I want it. This has resulted in a vast collection over the years of all kinds of gadgets, gizmos and some stuff that I just hang onto for no good reason other than I might need it one day. Some things have been a bit of a fad, others have stood the test of time. Over the years I have found that I few items in my collection of gadgets that have either become invaluable or the kind of item that really stands the test of time.

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My first must have and favorite gadgets are portable bluetooth speakers, and I have had several over the years. The battery powered speakers from Skullcandy I had were one of my most favorite pocket sized speakers! It took up little room in my bag and I could have my music wherever I wanted. You never realize how much you miss having music wherever you go until you start to use these kinds of speakers and then suddenly don’t have them! I eventually outgrew my little Skullcandy speakers and upgraded to a larger but still portable Altec system. This speaker system went everywhere with us. In fact, it still travels with us in our camper even though it features a 30 pin connection for our phones. What I loved most about this set up was that it had a rechargeable battery, so unlike my little Skullcandy speakers I didn’t need to worry about carrying around spare AA batteries. It also allows me to use a 3.5mm headphone cable and an FM radio. I recently started to use the “**Outdoortech Turtle Shell**”:http://www.smalldog.com/product/85338/outdoor-tech-turtle-shell-2-0-rugged-wireless-boombox-electric-blue speakers to replace the old Skullcandy speakers for immediate portable sound, and as a huge bonus this speaker is bluetooth, something none of my previous portable units had. I will admit, I still haven’t found a better replacement for my aging Altec portable speaker as far as sound quality goes, but I will also admit finding a newer solution would require my having to let go!

My second must-have gadget is an airport express base station. You might be surprised that it is not the Airport Extreme. Why do I love the “**airport express**”:http://www.smalldog.com/product/80932/apple-airport-express-base-station-802-11n-wi-fi so much? Well part of it might be a bit nostaglic. It was my first introduction into wireless speakers. How cool was it to plug in my Harmon Kardon speakers, simply tap my iPhone while sitting on the couch, and my speakers came to life like magic? But the great features don’t stop there. It’s a really powerful and inexpensive wireless router. For many, we don’t have huge areas we need to cover with wireless. Maybe it’s just a small apartment, or perhaps your house just isn’t that big. When I first started to use the airport express the one draw back was that the only ethernet port had to be designed (in most cases) for your internet modem, but in recent years Apple has added a second ethernet port allowing for more flexibility and versatility with this little gem.

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iPad and iPhone cases are another huge weakness of mine. I probably have no less then five cases for my phone and for my iPad. You could say I collected cases like some girls collect shoes! But on a serious note, this is a very important accessory for your iPhone or your iPad. Some folks prefer form fitting and minimal, others prefer a more rugged case. I have come to prefer several cases. However, I think cases that combine both slim form factor and serious protection are the “**Lifeproof**”:http://www.smalldog.com/wag900002119 cases. I have one for my phone and one for my iPad. What I love most of them is that they come off easily! I don’t always want a heavy duty case on my devices, but have found that many cases that offer greater levels of protection end up being very difficult to take off your device.

I remember only a couple years ago when drones were new and cutting edge technology. Now, there are huge sections of the show devoted to drones of all sorts: fighting drones, mini drones, paper airplane drones and dancing drones. I don’t know if it is the Star Wars influence but droids were everywhere, including “laundroids” for folding your laundry, grill cleaning droids, window washing droids and all kinds of robots.

3D printers were new and unique and again whole sections of the show were devoted to “replicators” making everything from iPhone cases to clothing to spare body parts. Several companies were there just to show their filaments for these 3D printers.

Scooters were everywhere. You know, the ones in the news that have the batteries that blow up. Well, literally dozens of companies were showing their versions and the original Segway had a booth, too. Some one-wheel scooters were there as well as shoes with wheels that zipped you around.

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Self-driving cars and technology for self driving cars dominated the North Hall and some concept cars were shown, too. My favorite was the Faraday electric car that looked like a single seat batmobile.

USB-C made its debut at the show with hubs, cables and some USB display port displays, too. I think we will see a lot of USB-C stuff coming up!

Less prevalent this year was the huge variety of iPhone and iPad cases. There were huge sections last time but while there were several companies showing cases it was toned way down. In their place, power banks of all sorts were being shown in every imaginable shape and size. The Apple battery case, aka the hump, was universally panned but several companies had slim battery cases for the iPhone.

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I did walk through the TV section but it was not as notable as in past years. The 3D fad has sort of expired and 4K displays are common. I still love the OLED displays, though.

Other areas that were huge were health care and fitness with a lot of wearable fitness devices and health monitors or all sorts from implantable blood glucose devices to blood pressure cuffs, thermometers and scales. The home automation section was larger than previous years and there were some new HomeKit compatible devices. I liked the NoLok offering of bluetooth compatible padlocks and bike locks that work similar to the Kevo system.

It was a quick trip out to Vegas but it was certainly worthwhile. I will follow up next week with a bit more.