Deepavali 2020: Best smart gadgets to gift this festive season

Deepavali, the festival of lights is upon us. It marks the triumph of light over the darkness. In India, it's enjoyed with a lot of fervour with crackers and it is also the time of the year, to bring new things for the home. With the Covid-19 pandemic still prevalent in the subcontinent, the celebration is subdued and also advised not to burn crackers as it will have a bad impact on air quality and hazardous to the respiratory system of senior citizens and Coronavirus-infected patients.

. Instead, light Diyas at home, give sweets and if you have the budget to splurge, gift thoughtful presents to loved ones be it family members, office colleagues or neighbours to build a stronger bond.

. DH is listing some of the best smart gadgets to gift your loved ones this Deepavali festive season.

. Mobile phones

. Apple iPhone 12 series Apple iPhone 12 series comes in four variant-- iPhone 12 mini, standard iPhone 12, 12 Pro and 12 Pro Max. All the models come with OLED-based XDR display with up 1200 nits brightness, A14 Bionic, the world's most powerful chipset in the mobile industry. They all come with a full day's battery life and also, the camera hardware is just top-class.

. Must read | Apple iPhone 12 Pro, 12 Pro Max: Everything you need to know

Both iPhone 12 Pro and the 12 Pro Max come with the same triple 12MP cameras-- Wide + Ultrawide + Telephoto lens (52mm in 12 Pro/65mm in 12 Pro Max). They can exceptional images.

. Read our review | Apple iPhone 12 Pro: Back to the feature

Even the iPhone 12 and 12 mini have impressive dual 12MP cameras-- Wide + Ultra wide. They too capture excellent images under all light conditions.

. Must read | Apple iPhone 12, 12 mini: Everything you need to know

Samsung Galaxy Note20 series It is one of the most versatile phones in the industry. It comes with the superior build quality, the best display on a phone, top-notch camera hardware and long battery life. The new Galaxy Note20 Ultra 5G covers all bases and sets new standards to emerge as the top Android phone of 2020.

. Must read | Samsung Galaxy Note20 Ultra 5G review: Powerful, unique and future-ready

. Samsung Galaxy M51 It is one of the best phones under Rs 30,000 in the Indian smartphone market.

. USP of the Galaxy M51 is the mammoth 7,000mAh battery, the biggest we have seen in a tier-1 branded phone in India. With such a high capacity cell, the Galaxy M51 can be able to run for three days easily under normal usage.

. It comes with a 25W super-fast charger that can charge the phone from zero to 100% under two hours. That's a value-addition feature, which will save a lot of time power up the phone. Also, the Galaxy M51 supports reverse charging and comes with a Type-C to Type-C cable.

. Other stipulated features include 6.7-inch full HD+ (2400x1080p) super AMOLED Infinity-O display (with Corning Gorilla Glass 3), peak brightness up to 420 nits, 20:9 aspect ratio, side-mounted fingerprint sensor, Qualcomm Snapdragon 730G octa-core processor with Adreno 618 graphics, 6GB/8GB RAM, 128GB UFS 2.1 storage (expandable up to 512GB), Android 10-based One UI 2.1 OS, FM radio, Dolby Atmos sound system, 3.5mm audio jack, dual-SIM slots, Wi-Fi 802.11 ac (2.4GHz + 5GHz) and Bluetooth 5.0.

. As far as the photography hardware is concerned, it boasts a quad-camera module-- main 64MP (with Sony IMX682 sensor, f/1.8 aperture), 123-degree ultra-wide-angle 12MP (with f/2.2 aperture), a 5MP depth sensor (with f/2.2 aperture), a 5MP macro sensor (with f/2.4 aperture) and a 32MP front camera with f/2.2 aperture.

. Must read | Samsung Galaxy M51: Everything you need to know

Xiaomi Redmi Note9 series Xiaomi's Redmi Note 9 excels in pure performance and also the camera hardware is just fantastic, much better than any other brand in its class.

. Must read | Xiaomi Redmi Note 9 review

Smartwatches

. Apple Watch Series 6 With the addition of a SpO2 sensor and always-on altimeter, Apple has made sure, users don't miss out on any health and fitness tracking features in the Watch Series 6.

. Yes, it is an iterative upgrade over the predecessor Watch Series 5 (review), but truth to be told, the Watch Series 6 is miles ahead of rival brands. Apple has done a great job of software and hardware optimization to deliver the best smartwatch user-experience, health monitoring, and fitness tracking, so much so that, you won't miss the personal gym trainer.

. Must read | Apple Watch Series 6 review: Best smart wearable money can buy

. Also, there is an affordable Apple Watch SE. The Apple Watch SE boasts ceramic and sapphire crystal casing with a Retina LTPO OLED display having 1,000 nits brightness. It will be powered by S5 SiP with 64-bit dual-core processor.

. Must read | Apple Watch SE: Everything you need to know

Samsung Galaxy Watch 3 series The Galaxy Watch 3 is a solid smart wearable build to last long and with the Samsung Health app, users can develop a disciplined routine to improve physical fitness, food intake, mental, and sleep.

. Also, it helps in cutting down on screen time on the phone. With notifications on messages and calls, you can make the decision to ignore or answer them on the Watch before lifting the phone from the pocket.

. Must read | Samsung Galaxy Watch 3 review

Amazfit Bip U It sports a 1.43-inch HD TFT-LCD COLOR display, 2.5D Corning Gorilla 3 reinforced glass, anti-fingerprint coating along with 320x302p resolution, 5 ATM. It comes with an OxygenBeats SpO2 sensor, can track more than 60 sports activities, monitor menstrual cycles and ovulation along with reminders.

. It comes with the Personal Activity Intelligence – PAI Assessment System based on Pai Health research from Norway. Using a special algorithm, this system converts complex data like heart rate, active time, and other indicators into values that help you assess your overall health.

. Amazfit Bip U can also track the breathing to regulate stress and ask the user to relax. In addition to this, it provides breathing exercises that help you balance your stress levels. Users can also view can text messages, emails, and notifications from a number of apps on the smartphone. Also, it can last more than 9 days with a single full charge. It costs 3,999

. Smart Speakers

. Apple HomePod mini It is the most affordable Apple product in India. It costs Rs 9,900.

. Apple HomePod mini comes in a compact design with just 3.3-inches tall. HomePod mini features an Apple-designed acoustic waveguide to direct the flow of sound down and out toward the bottom of the speaker for an immersive 360-degree audio experience.

. Inside, HomePod mini comes packed with an Apple S5 chip, an Apple-engineered full-range driver, a neodymium magnet, and a pair of force-canceling passive radiators, which enables deep bass and crisp high frequencies.

. It also comes equipped with advanced software to analyse the unique characteristics of the music and apply complex tuning models to optimise loudness, adjust the dynamic range, and control the movement of the driver and passive radiators in real-time.

. Must read | Apple HomePod mini: Everything you need to know

Google Nest Audio Google's Nest Audio has a visually appealing aesthetic design and the numerous use-cases offer the freedom to the owner to install it in any part of the house to get things done. Its sensitive microphones can detect voice commands even with noisy background and users can turn or change light colours on smart bulbs, change channels on TVs with inbuilt-Chromecast and other IoT gadgets. Additionally, it can offer to get quick access to real-time weather, latest news, cricket scores, other sports updates, and more. Most importantly, it excels in delivering a really good audio experience. It costs Rs 9,999.

. Must Read | Google Nest Audio review: Well-rounded smart speaker

Amazon Echo Dot (4th gen) Echo Dot speaker houses a powerful 1.6-inch, front-firing speaker, producing clear vocals and balanced bass for a full sound. There is also another variant-- Echo Dot with the clock. It comes with the same hardware as the new Echo Dot. Additionally, it has LED display for users to view time, outdoor temperature, timers, and alarms.

. For the first time, the popular tap-to-snooze feature of the Echo Dot with the clock and will also be available on Echo Dot and Echo. The company says that the materials used for the Echo speakers are ecologically sustainable. They are made with 100% post-consumer recycled fabric, 100% recycled die-cast aluminum, and post-consumer recycled plastic.

. Furthermore, all wood fiber-based materials used in Echo device packaging are made entirely from responsibly managed forests or recycled sources. The new Echo Dot is available in Black, White, and Blue colours for Rs 4,499. And the Echo Dot with Clock costs Rs 5,499 and comes in White and Blue colours.

. Bonus:

. Amazon Fire TV Stick If you haven't already bought an Amazon Fire TV Stick, get the new model. With this users can instantly find channels, control volume with just voice commands. You can subscribe to OTT apps as well.

. It has a faster 1.7 GHz quad-core processor and is said to be 50% more powerful than the predecessor. Also, it consumes 50% less power. It supports faster streaming in 1080p at 60fps (frames per second) with HDR compatibility. It has dual-band, dual-antenna WiFi with support for 5 GHz network, which promises stable streaming and fewer dropped connections.

. For the first time ever, the Fire TV Stick supports Dolby Atmos for immersive sound with compatible content and speakers. Like the previous generation, the retail package will come with the Alexa Voice-enabled Remote with dedicated power, volume, and mute buttons to control the TV, soundbars, and A/V receivers.

. There is also a cheaper but capable Fire TV Stick Lite. It is 50% more powerful than the previous-generation Fire TV Stick. It features HDR support and comes with Alexa Voice Remote Lite with support for voice commands to find, launch, and control content.