74 Time November 30/December 7, 2020
BEST INVENTIONS 2020BEST INVENTIONS 2020
DESIGN
A NEXT-GEN TAMPON
Callaly Tampliner
From menstrual cups to period panties,
a slew of inventions have emerged to
provide women with period-care options
to fit their flow. But one ubiquitous
design has barely changed at all since it
was patented more than eight decades
ago: the tampon. Now there’s Callaly’s
Tampliner. Developed by a gynecologist
and garment technologist, it’s a hybrid
tampon and panty liner that streamlines
an inconvenience 7 out of 10 women
otherwise face—needing two separate
products to prevent leakage. What’s
more, a self-wrapping feature folds the
used tampon into the attached liner upon
removal, for a less messy experience.
The product is currently available in the
U.K., Ireland and Sweden; the company
expects that to expand as the product
wins regulatory approval elsewhere.
—NADIA SULEMANMEDICAL CARE
FASTER
DEVELOPMENT
mRNA Vaccines
A pandemic may be a
tough time to test a new
technology, but that’s
exactly what COVID-19
vaccine experts are
doing, with encouraging
results. Two of the first
shots that could be
injected into people’s
arms as early as
December, from Pfizer
and Moderna, rely on a
new technology based
on a genetic material
called mRNA. This
method is both fast and
flexible; vaccine makers
don’t need to grow or
manipulate the COVID-
19 virus—all they need is
its genetic sequence. That
efficiency led to shots
that are more than 90%
effective in protecting
against COVID-19, which
were developed and
tested in record time.
—ALICE PARKENTERTAINMENT
A BIG UPGRADE FOR GAMERS
Microsoft Xbox Series S
The tech giant’s new video console is more
than just a next-gen gaming device—it’s the
basis for what could become the Netflix of video
games. The Series S’s secret weapon is Game
Pass: a subscription service where new hits like
Assassin’s Creed Valhalla and Halo Infinite will
appear the same day as their traditional release.
And those games will look even sharper—the
Series S ($299) can run high- resolution games
at 120 frames per second, a 100% increase over
its predecessor, the Xbox One. What’s more,
because there is no disc drive, the Series S
operates almost silently, making it all the easier to
concentrate on the action. —MATTHEW GAULTENTERTAINMENT
THE VERTICAL TV
Samsung Sero
The Sero ($1,499) isn’t
like most other televisions
you’ve seen before, and
that might be because
Samsung didn’t design
it with just TV viewers
in mind. The 43-in. TV
pivots from a horizontal
to a vertical orientation
with a click of the remote.
Its design is optimized
to accommodate social
media posts, streaming
services and gaming—the
kind of content you may
be more familiar with
viewing in vertical formats
on your phone. The Sero
also has optional wheels,
so it can be moved around
the house.
—AMY GUNIA