10
HOTTEST HOME KIT
CLEVER TICK
Lenovo Smart
Clock EssentialThere are probably lots of things you’d like
to call your alarm clock when it interrupts
your blissful slumber on another dreary
lockdown morning, but chances are they’re
all a lot less complimentary than ‘smart’
or ‘essential’. Given everything Lenovo’s
Smart Clock Essential can do, though, you
might just find yourself warming to it – even
when it goes off at 7am.
Behind the 4in LED display, which shows
the current time along with weather
updates, it’s imbued with the skills of
Google Assistant, so you can use it for
all the usual news updates, trivia checks,
general life admin and smart home controls.
The 1.5in speaker only has 3W to play with
so it’s hardly going to shake you into action,
but it can always be added to a Chromecast
multiroom setup if you want.
The built-in light on the back should come
in handy if you need to get up in the night
and don’t want to wake anybody else, plus
there’s a USB port round there so you can
use it to charge your phone. All it’s missing
is something to make it easier to get out
of bed. Then we’d happily call it essential.
As hot as... vindaloo porridge for breakfast
£50 / lenovo.comSaturday
night’s all white
for lighting
The screen is monochrome,
so you can’t use it to display
photos or check in on any
connected cameras, but
it will dim when it’s
bedtime.