It goes without saying that summer is the best time of the year: it's lighter, warmer and just generally more pleasant overall. But it's also because you get to play with a lot of seasonally-appropriate tech. Afternoons spent grilling with a tipple in hand, days at the beach, hitting big fitness goals, travelling to far-flung destinations.
Here you'll find gadgets to enhance your summer fun, whether it's rugged portable speakers, brilliant BBQs, or ways to stay cool and hydrated.
Beach essentials
LOEWE WE.HEAR PRO SPEAKER
Designed in collaboration with pro ball-kicker Kylian Mbappé, Loewe's speaker features IPX6 water resistance so it can withstand splashes and sand. High-quality sound is delivered courtesy of an array of drivers and bass radiators that pack 100W of music power, while an enormous battery provides 24 hours of playback and will even charge your other devices. It's the perfect way to soundtrack your beach footie sessions.
£249, loewe.tv
NIKE VALIANT MIRRORED PRO
Open-water swimming is one of the greatest pleasures of a beach trip – and a decent pair of goggles can help you dodge jellyfish or any other floating ‘undesirables' depending on water quality. Nike's Valiant Mirrored Pro goggles feature a 3D gasket that contours to your face for a watertight fit, plus a mirrored coating that helps reduce glare and blocks UV rays.
£32.99, nike.com
Cover Feature World Cup Ready T3
IGLOO PLAYMATE ELITE
Not to be confused with some poor exploited woman hanging off the arm of Hugh Hefner, this Playmate dates back to 1971 and has become the gold standard for portable cooling. The tent-top push-button lid and Thermecool insulation keep everything frosty while providing durability, and the authentically retro good looks make it a perfect prop for your beach Insta sessions
£44.95, igloocoolers.com
HOVERAIR AQUA
Flying a drone over water can elicit a feeling of utter dread: one false move or minor malfunction and it's instant death for your tiny camera-copter. HoverAir's Aqua is touted as the world's first 100% waterproof self-flying camera, with a buoyant design that can take off from, and land on, water. With 4K 100fps filming and precise RTK tracking, it's perfect for shooting surfing and kayaking sessions.
£1,129, hoverair.com
Upgrade your camp
AEROPRESS STEEL
Aeropress's ubiquitous coffee machine has become a common sight at both campsites and high-end boutique cafes. This version maintains the simple operation that ensures an espresso-like coffee without a huge machine, but switches from plastic to robust steel, ensuring better flavour from a hardier unit.
£159.99, aeropress.co.uk
THULE APPROACH 2
Thule has taken its expertise in attaching things to other things with wheels into the arena of roof-rack tents. The Approach 2 is a soft-shell tent that feels like a caravan, with outward-angled walls for mega interior volume, plus panoramic skylights so you can stargaze from the roof of your car. Once you're ready to go, it packs down (and up again) in just three minutes.
From £1,999, thule.com
Cover Feature World Cup Ready T3
YETI TRAILHEAD FIELD CHAIR
A chair that's suitable for even the heftiest of abominable snowmen, Yeti's camping chair can support up to 158kg but weighs just 4.5kg. Its UV-resistant Twilite fabric won't sag or fade, while GroundGrip feet find stability on the most uneven forest floors. It might be massively overengineered and quite expensive – but it'll last a lifetime of adventures.
£225, yeti.com
ECOFLOW TRAIL 300 DC
This mega powerpack doesn't feature an AC converter or three-pin socket, which means it's about half the weight and size of similar units. You'll still find USB-C and USB-A outputs, plus a 12V car connector, so you can charge power-hungry laptops and drones, or even run your camping fridge. It's also dust and shock-resistant, and its 2.58kg weight is barely noticeable in a backpack.
£159, ecoflow.com
Entertaining outdoors
GAMESIR G8 PLUS (MFI)
You might not need to splash out on a new console to enjoy games on the go. GameSir's G8 Plus (MFi) will wrap around anything from a smartphone to an iPad Mini and connect via Bluetooth or USB-C. Pair it with an emulator for retro thrills, or stream the latest games from the cloud so you don't miss out.
£75.99, gamesir.com
EPSON LIFESTUDIO FLEX EF-72
Suitable for use both indoors and out, Epson's portable projector matches good looks with excellent image quality. The all-in-one unit includes Bose speakers, Dolby Audio, 4K Pro UHD picture, and built-in Google TV for a massive library of apps and content. Just add dodgy hotdogs and chattering teens for the full cinema experience.
£1,149, epson.co.uk
Cover Feature World Cup Ready T3
MARSHALL KILBURN III
It may not go up to 11, but everything else about Marshall's Kilburn III portable speaker is designed for heavy duty rock ‘n' roll. Boasting Class D amplifiers, the Kilburn delivers a wide and immersive soundstage that belies its compact size. With 50-plus hours of playback and an IP54 rating, this is a speaker that's ready for touring.
£299, marshallheadphones.com
AKAI MPK MINI IV
Team your laptop with this portable MIDI keyboard and you've got a complete setup for creating EDM while you're OTG. Boasting 25 velocity-sensitive keys, eight MPC pressure pads for finger drumming, plus an OLED display and assignable knobs, it includes everything you need to become Tiësto on the train.
£94, akaipro.com
On the move
SATECHI ONTHEGO USB-C LANYARD CABLE
Are phone straps the new man bags? It certainly makes sense to remove all the extraneous bits and bobs of a bag that's essentially only going to contain your phone anyway – and it's always on hand to take snaps, answer calls, or garrote people. Satechi's phone strap has the added benefit of working as a USB-C charging cable, so you'll never get caught short again.
£29.99, satechi.com
SAGE THE SHAKE & TAKE
Can't get to the Caribbean? With Sage The Shake & Take, you can enjoy a Piña Colada on the Piccadilly Line. This compact cup allows you to mix drinks wherever you go, or you can add a travel lid to transport your caffeinated beverages. A double-wall thermal design keeps hot drinks warm and cool drinks cold.
£39.95, sageappliances.com
Cover Feature World Cup Ready T3
BOOX GO 10.3 (GEN II)
This paper-thin tablet uses E-Ink so your jetlagged brain won't be further confused by bright, flashing colours. At just 4.6mm, it's thinner than a pencil, and it positions the E-Ink closer to the surface for unbeatable clarity. Unlike similar Kindle tablets, Boox runs Android so you can download apps, while an additional pen allows for a pencil-and-paper-like experience for notes and doodles.
Around £233, boox.com
ECHO WATER FLASK
Hydrogen isn't just the universe's most abundant element – it's a potent antioxidant that aids recovery from everything from marathons to marathon drinking sessions. Echo's flask uses solid polymer electrolysis technology to infuse water with up to 8ppm of molecular hydrogen. It also boasts Bluetooth to sync your intake and hydrogen levels to the Echo app.
£299, echowater.co.uk
Play your cards right
Not a recipe, but a game in which players put cards down while repeating the titular words until there's a match. Great fun.
tacocatgames.com
A game of strategy and luck, the goal is to flip, swap, and collect cards to reach the lowest score possible. Its compact box makes it the perfect social lubricant for a long-haul flight.
magilano.com
A high-stakes, push-your-luck race to 200 points. There are twelve 12s but only one 1, making every hit a calculated risk. It's easy to play but hard to master.
theop.games
In the tech garden
1977 OUTDOOR SOFA
No longer will you have to drag your sofa betwixt living room and garden for outdoor comfort. This modular system features a lightweight aluminium frame and fabric that is water, stain, and UV-resistant. Its sculptural design is fully rearrangeable, and offers a level of ergonomic comfort and support rarely seen in outdoor furniture.
From £2,347, kingliving.co.uk
FOCAL LITTORA OD SAT 5
Focal takes its indoor hi-fi expertise into the great outdoors with these speakers. Designed to discreetly tuck into flowerbeds or behind your wheely bin, they make use of the brand's M-shaped tweeter and Iris IP cone to deliver high-end sound in the open air. An IP55 rating ensures you can keep listening when it starts drizzling.
£349, focal.com
Cover Feature World Cup Ready T3
NINJA WOODFIRE ELECTRIC BBQ GRILL & SMOKER
Infuse your food with smokiness without needing a huge pyre. Making use of wood pellets, this weather-resistant cooker grills, air fries and smokes, while eliminating the mess and fire risk of a conventional barbie – and ensuring your bangers aren't still frozen in the middle.
£299, ninjakitchen.co.uk
PHILIPS HUE FESTAVIA GLOBE
We've had smart homes, now we're moving onto smart gardens. Philip's RGBIC technology brings 16 million colours to your patio, allowing for custom lighting and fluid motion effects. Fully Matter-compatible and IP65-rated, they can turn a quiet evening drink into a psychedelic light show.
From £139, philips-hue.com
Temperature control
LUME QUIET AIR CIRCULATOR FAN
Forget the constant whirr of desktop fans, Lume's model uses jet turbine-inspired blades to circulate air up to 20 metres without any intrusive buzz. It also boasts a smart eco mode that adjusts speeds based on ambient temperature, so your electricity bills will be as chill as your home.
£149, aircraftvacuums.com
WATERDROP M6H INSTANT HOT RO SYSTEM
By making use of reverse osmosis, Waterdrop's system filters 99.9% of contaminants, resulting in a tastier, healthier glass of water. That's not all: it also provides instantaneous chilled, ambient, or boiling water at the touch of a button, so it can replace both your plasticky water filter and your scaled-up kettle.
£499, waterdropfilter.co.uk
Cover Feature World Cup Ready T3
SMEG SODA MAKER
Fizzy water is simply better than normal water, and we should have dedicated reservoirs for it. Until that day, we'll have to make do with Smeg's soda maker, which brings the company's distinctive stylings to carbonated drinks. Precise controls and a luxurious stainless steel make this the classiest way to serve cold sparkling drinks.
£149.95, smeguk.com
CUISINART SMOKELESS FIRE PIT
Bonfires and fire pits are the cosiest way to stay warm on a chilly night – but their eyewatering plumes of smoke will always follow you wherever you go. Cuisinart's tech negates this with a double-wall design that creates secondary combustion, so smoke burns off before it leaves the pit.
£249.99, cuisinart.co.uk
Sports and outdoors
STUBBLE & CO MOTION BACKPACK 20L
A backpack that's as suitable for cross-country adventures as it is cross-city commutes, Stubble & Co's Motion Collection boasts a 3D mesh back panel to negate the awful sweaty back syndrome on hot days. Recycled, waterproof fabrics ensure your tech and kit won't get wet in a downpour, while the sleek design doesn't make it look like you've got lost on a DofE hike.
£125, stubbleandco.com
GENTLEMEN'S HARDWARE PICKLEBALL SET
Is pickleball here to stay, or a bubble that's about to burst? This set is the best way to find out, consisting of two premium wooden paddles with high-grip handles, heavy-duty balls, and a stylish carry case. Best of all is its sub-£30 price tag, so you can try out the sport without breaking the bank.
GARMIN INSTINCT 3
Hulk out with Garmin's most rugged watch in a subtly eye-catching Fern Green hue. Once a budget option, the Instinct range is rapidly catching up with Garmin's premium watches, and this one includes a whopping 50mm AMOLED display, multi-band GNSS, and an LED flashlight for finding the trail when the Blair Witch is in pursuit.
£399.99, garmin.com
Cover Feature World Cup Ready T3
BEATS POWERBEATS PRO 2 (NIKE SPECIAL EDITION)
Nike adds its ubiquitous tick to Dr Dre's flagship workout buds. The ear-hook design keeps everything in place while you Hyrox, and integrated heart-rate sensors offer better tracking than wrist-based units while syncing directly to Nike's Run Club app.
£249.99, beatsbydre.com
Hydrate smarter
Combining 500mg of sodium with 3g of high-purity creatine monohydrate, this blend ensures you stay hydrated, supporting strength and cognitive clarity. It's a clean, refreshing way to fuel your endurance.
£35, rhealsuperfoods.com
Alongside essential electrolytes, each sachet contains 250mg of Cognizin citicoline, a potent nootropic designed to sharpen focus and eliminate tiredness. With zero sugar, and peach spritz and lime margarita flavours, it's the thinking person's electrolyte.
£29, heights.com
As well as the instant hit of childhood lollipop nostalgia, you're getting 600mg of electrolytes and a hit of coconut water powder to ensure your hydration levels stay topped up on a long summer trek.
£24.99, myprotein.com
Travel essentials
RICOH GR IV MONOCHROME
Eschewing the current fad for colour photographs, Ricoh's GR IV Monochrome puts all its efforts into creating amazing B&W shots. With a built-in red filter and 28mm f/2.8 lens, it captures breathtakingly sharp, high-contrast shots with film-like grain. Perfect for adding a touch of class to your summer snaps.
£1,599.99, ricohgr.eu
QUIP ULTRA LITE
The ultimate addition to every washbag, Quip's Ultra Lite electric toothbrush strips back on bulky charges and heavy cases to deliver simple but powerful brushing. Three sonic modes and a pressure sensor polish your pearly whites, while 30-day battery life will keep you going on long trips.
Around £48, getquip.com
Cover Feature World Cup Ready T3
DYSON HUSHJET MINI COOL
Dyson shrinks its airflow tech to handheld size with the HushJet Mini. Weighing in at just 212g, its motor spins at 65,000 RPM, rivalling its full-size cousins. It's also whisper-quiet, so you can stay chilled without drawing attention. It also makes the perfect desk fan for medium to large mammals such as badgers.
£99.99, dyson.co.uk
B&W PX7 S3
Now available in a pleasing mauve colourway, B&W's Px7 S3 look utterly classy and feel sublimely comfortable. On the ears, the 40mm drivers and aptX Adaptive tech ensure you won't miss a beat, while eight-mic active noise cancellation drowns out annoying co-travellers and family members on long journeys.
£399, bowerswilkins.com
Lost in translation no more
Still the most reliable all-rounder. The most recent update has integrated Gemini's AI capabilities, picking up on local nuances for fluent conversations, while offline language packs help you order a beer when there's no signal.
Sub-100ms real-time interpretation eliminates awkward pauses during conversations. Its dual-screen display and AI assistant handle local slang and technical terms, keeping conversations natural across 60+ languages.
An essential app for Asia, Papago Plus uses an offline-first framework focused on cultural nuance. Its camera mode doesn't just translate text, it explains dishes and ingredients to prevent any menu mishaps.