Stuff - UK (2021-03)

SMART HOME TECH

obot vacuum

cleaners are

one of those

gadgets that

will never stop feeling

futuristic. And iRobot

makes some of the best

of them.

The Roomba i3+ costs a

lot more than your average

Henry, but it has premium

features that were up to

now only available in the

even pricier Roomba i7+

and S9+ models.

This includes Clean

Base Automatic Dirt

Disposal, which meant

our droid not only cleaned

after us, but after itself

too. It emptied weeks’

worth of dirt and debris

into the Clean Base (which

doubles as the charging

station) unaided, saving

us from frequent visits to

the bin. And if that wasn’t

enough, it even captured

waste in AllergenLock

bags that block 99% of

pollen and mould from

getting up your nose.

HOME SWEEP HOME

Like the Terminator

of tidying up, the i3+

systematically sweeps

your home. It uses

sensors to feel its way

around while avoiding

furniture that it might

get stuck under – and

while using three different

brushes to loosen and

lift and dirt from every

crevice, even having

a good old scrape at the

skirting boards.

As well as taking orders

from Alexa, the i3+ can

team up with iRobot’s

Braava Jet M6 to vacuum

then mop in a coordinated

effort. And like all good

servants, it’ll learn your

habits and offer up

schedules to suit you.

It’ll even suggest an extra

clean when your area’s

pollen count is high

or during your pet’s

shedding season.

The only thing is, for

another hundred quid

you could pick up a Dyson

360 Heurist... so perhaps

it comes down to your

preferred smart home

platform.

RING VIDEO

DOORBELL 3

A strong alternative to the

Arlo on p40 at the exact

same price, Ring’s latest

Video Doorbell lets you

see, hear and speak

to visitors in 1080p HD.

And as Ring is owned by

Amazon, it’s no surprise

it gets on with Alexa: your

Echo can chime when you

have guests, you can see

camera footage on your

Echo Show or Fire TV, and

you can set lights to come

on when the Ring detects

movement at night.

£179 / ring.com

Philips Hue White

and Colour Ambiance

Starter Kit

The brightest star in smart

lighting remains Hue. The

bulbs are expensive, but

offer the richest range of

tweaking tools... and now

you can control them via

Bluetooth. To use them

with other smart home

tech you’ll need a Zigbee

bridge, but the Starter Kit

includes one – or you could

use the new Echo on p42.

£120 / philips-hue.com

Anova Culinary

Precision Cooker

Sealing food in a bag,

dropping it in hot water

and hoping for the best

is no way to guarantee a

good meal. But precisely

controlling the time and

temperature with this

improved version of

Anova’s smart sous vide

stick, on the other hand,

definitely is – especially

when you can bark orders

at your virtual sous-chef.

£199 / anovaculinary.com

Amazon Fire TV Cube

Reinventing the remote

control, this second-gen

set-top box makes home

entertainment hands-free.

So Alexa can turn your

telly on and off, control the

volume and go to specific

shows – whether they’re

on regular TV or

streaming. An ultra-

powerful chip means Alexa

is quick to flick channels

and ensures the Cube can

handle 4K HDR content.

£110 / amazon.co.uk

TP-Link Kasa Smart

Wi-Fi Plug Slim

You could buy a connected

kettle that boils a brew

with a tap of an app...

or you could save your

money and use the Kasa

smart plug to upgrade

your existing appliances

instead. As well as being

low-cost and compact, it’s

very quick to respond to

Alexa voice commands.

So you won’t have to wait

long for that cuppa.

£12 / tp-link.com

iRobot Roomba i3+

£700 / irobot.co.uk

STUFF SAYS The closest rival to Dyson’s robo-vac offers

smart features that its rival can’t always match ++++,

Prime picks for the queen of the Amazon to boss around and

make your life easier – from bedroom floor to kitchen hob

ALEXA!

NOW ADD THESE...

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