The 10 best tech gadgets I used in 2016

By Brandt Ranj, Insider Picks From Business Insider

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I had the great pleasure of trying a whole bunch of great tech last year.

Some were products in parts of the tech world I was familiar with, while others had me exploring completely new ground.

These are my 10 favorite gadgets from last year. I’ve broken this list down into the major categories I’ve covered, and picked my favorites. In some cases, these were the absolute best products in their class; in other cases, it was the product that resonated with me the most.

In either case, any of the 10 products on this list get my highest recommendation. In my mind, they stand high above the rest.

My favorite overall gadget: The Amazon Echo
My favorite overall gadget: The Amazon Echo
Amazon
No gadget I’ve used in the past year has impacted my life quite like the Amazon Echo.

I went from a skeptic to a believer in a matter for days; it’s the center of my smart home, my quick way to do conversions and calculations, and occasionally my go-to Bluetooth speaker. Its versatility is a testament to Amazon’s desire to make Echo an open platform.

Buying one opens your home up to an entire ecosystem of devices, an ecosystem that continues to grow in interesting, and sometimes unexpected, directions.

Amazon Echo, $179.99, available at Amazon

Read more of my thoughts on the Amazon Echo here.

My favorite smart-home accessory: Philips Hue Bulbs
My favorite smart-home accessory: Philips Hue Bulbs
Philips
The first thing I did after I bought my Echo was pick up a set of Philips Hue smart bulbs. I’d heard about them for years, but the idea of operating my lights using an app seemed cumbersome.

Controlling lights with my voice, though, has become a staple of my day-to-day life. Since my bedroom only has overhead lighting, and outlets are at a premium, these bulbs have been a game-changer.

This starter set includes three bulbs and a Hue hub, which is everything you’ll need to smarten up a room in your house.

Philips Hue Starter Set (3rd Generation), $199.99, available at Amazon

Read my full review here.

My favorite wired headphones: Beoplay H6
My favorite wired headphones: Beoplay H6
Beoplay
For me, the Beoplay H6’s were love at first listen.

They reproduce sound accurately — regardless of what genre of music you enjoy — are comfortable to wear for extended periods of time, and don’t have a long, tangled cable.

They’ve become the headphones that stay on my desk at work, and while I don’t listen to them while reviewing other headphones, they’re always a pleasure to return to. If you find wireless headphones totally uninteresting, there’s no pair of wired headphones I’d recommend higher.

Beoplay H6 headphones, $299.99, available Amazon

Read my full review here.

My favorite Bluetooth headphones: Master & Dynamic’s MW50’s
My favorite Bluetooth headphones: Master & Dynamic’s MW50’s
Instagram / @Masteranddynamic
If you are looking to cut the headphone cable for one reason or another, my favorite pair is Master & Dynamic’s MW50’s.

I only started using them recently, but they blew me away. I’m used to some level of compromise with Bluetooth headphones, but outside of some build-quality nitpicks I couldn’t find any.

Music sounds incredible through these headphones, with none of the distortion or artifacts you’d find in lesser pairs. They’re also comfortable to wear for extended periods of time.

Buying these is a big investment, but if you’re a music lover who wants to embrace the future, they’re the way to go.

Master & Dynamic MW50, $449, available at Amazon

Read my full review here.

My favorite MacBook accessory: OWC’s Aura SSD
My favorite MacBook accessory: OWC’s Aura SSD
YouTube / MacSales. com
Over the past five years Apple’s laptops have gone from somewhat upgradable, to virtually un-upgradable.

When I bought my MacBook Pro in 2013 I understood I’d probably never get to upgrade its storage, despite my need for more space. MacBook-accessory maker OWC proved me wrong by releasing the Aura SSD, an internal MacBook Pro storage upgrade.

Whether you started off with 256GB of space and want 480GB, or started with 512GB and need 960GB, you’re covered. The upgrade process isn’t difficult, and in the months since upgrading I haven’t encountered a single problem, or experienced slowdown of any kind.

OWC Aura SSD (480GB), $257.50, available at Amazon

OWC Aura SSD (960GB), $459.50, available at Amazon

Read my full review here.

My favorite iOS accessory: Brydge’s Aluminum iPad Pro Keyboard
My favorite iOS accessory: Brydge’s Aluminum iPad Pro Keyboard
Amazon
I love my iPad Pro, but I write for a living and need to use a physical keyboard.

I don’t like keyboard cases (I’ve tried them a couple of times before), but Brydge’s solution is different. They essentially made a MacBook Pro keyboard that the iPad Pro can slide into.

When you’re done, you can slide the iPad Pro out and use it separately. This complementary nature makes the case feel less constraining. More like a tool than a holding cell.

I’m also happy to say that this is a full-sized keyboard; so if you’re used to typing on a MacBook Pro, you won’t have to change your typing habits to accommodate smaller keys.

Brydge Aluminum 12.9 inch iPad Pro Keyboard, $149.99, available at Amazon

Read my full review here.

My favorite iPhone case: Pad & Quill’s Woodline Case
My favorite iPhone case: Pad & Quill’s Woodline Case
Pad & Quill
I reviewed quite a few cases in 2016, each of them made to perfectly serve a different market. But my favorite case is Pad & Quill’s Woodline; it’s the perfect mix of everything I look for in a phone case.

It’s slim and light, which is useful since I have a plus-sized phone, but still strong enough to protect the back of my phone well. It’s also beautifully crafted.

That’s not necessarily something I used to care about with a case (it’s still secondary to weight and protection for me), but it’s a very nice feature to have.

Woodline Case for iPhone 7, $49.95, available at Pad & Quill

Woodline Case for iPhone 7 Plus, $49.95, available at Pad & Quill

Read my full review here.

My favorite Bluetooth speaker: Anker’s SoundCore Sport XL
My favorite Bluetooth speaker: Anker’s SoundCore Sport XL
Anker
It’s not the biggest, or necessarily best Bluetooth speaker I’ve tried this year, but Anker’s SoundCore Sport XL is definitely my favorite.

This speaker is small enough to fit perfectly on a shelf in my kitchen, but durable enough to survive getting totally submerged in water. It’s powerful enough to fill a room with sound, but light enough to throw into a bag for outdoor use.

The versatility of this speaker has made it the one I use most in my day-to-day life — whether I’m streaming a podcast while cooking, or hanging poolside.

Anker SoundCore Sport XL, $59.99, available at Amazon

Read my full review here.

My favorite audio product: AudioQuest’s Dragonfly DAC
My favorite audio product: AudioQuest’s Dragonfly DAC
Audioquest
I’ve used quite a few audio products this year, but my favorite has to be the small-but-powerful Dragonfly DAC (Digital Analog Converter) by AudioQuest.

Most people don’t think twice about plugging their headphones directly into a device, but music geeks like me do. I’d been curious about this product for a couple years, and I wasn’t disappointed.

Music sounds cleaner, clearer, and overall better when listened to through this DAC, which is pretty remarkable given its small size. My ears got so attuned to the way music sounded when using the Dragonfly, that it became jarring when I switched back to my laptop’s headphone jack.

AudioQuest DragonFly Black USB DAC/Headphone Amplifier, $98.75, available at Amazon

AudioQuest DragonFly Red USB DAC/Headphone Amplifier, $198.75, available at Amazon

Read my full review here.

My favorite car tech accessory: Automatic Pro
My favorite car tech accessory: Automatic Pro
Automatic
I’m a tech geek, but not a car geek.

I know how to drive, but that’s about as far as my car knowledge goes. The Automatic Pro has started to change that. It’s a small dongle that plugs into a diagnostic port that’s been present in most cars since 1996.

After a short setup, the Automatic Pro connects to a server using a 3G connection and sends diagnostic and trip data as you drive. You can retrieve that data through Automatic’s app, and get insights into the health of your car, and your abilities as a driver.

I’ve found those insights very useful, and the data is easy to access and understand — even for a non-car-geek like me.

Automatic Pro, $129.95, available at Amazon

Read my full review at link below.

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IMAGE: Screen Shot 2017 01 10 at 1.24.52 PM
Instagram / @masteranddynamic

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