Mother's Day 2019: 12 Technology Gift Ideas for Mom this Year

No physical object can repay your mother all the love that she has sent you, but Mother's Day is always a good time to give Mom a pledge of your affection. So, as we have done in the past, we have collected a handful of Ars-y articles that could make his life a little more enjoyable.

Now all the gadgets, services and books we have recommended will not be an excellent choice for your mother. Some people might enjoy a new physical activity monitor, while others would prefer to go to the spa. You know your mother better than us. But at Ars, we pay close attention to business and functionality, and one of the gift ideas below should serve mom longer than flowers and chocolates.

Note: Ars Technica can earn compensation for sales from links on this post via affiliate programs.

Fitbit Versa Lite / Fitbit Inspire HR

Lifestyle changes are not limited to the New Year. If mom wants to be more active or more informed about her health, Fitbit has some new trackers to help. The Versa Lite smartwatch is a more affordable version of the original version of the Versa, released last year. At $ 160, he stays true to the basics: he tracks the activity of the day, sleep and heart rate continuously, and he can map outdoor workout sessions to the Using its connected GPS function. It also has the original Versa design with a few minor tweaks (if you've never used the original Versa, you will not miss anything).

To keep the price as low as possible, Fitbit has removed the altimeter from the Versa Lite as well as the ability to track swimming lengths (although it can track swimming in general as it is water resistant to 50 meters) . The Versa Lite also does not have Fitbit Pay NFC technology, and you can not download Fitbit Coach workouts and track them from the smartwatch display. In addition to the altimeter, most users can do without these features. If mom loves the idea of ​​a smart watch but does not want anything too sophisticated, the Versa Lite is a great choice.

Those who prefer the look of a fitness group should opt for the $ 99 Inspire HR. This is the new fitness group that replaces Alta HR in the Fitbit range. This is a slightly redesigned and updated version of a device that is already killing. It also tracks daily activities, sleep and continuous heart rate, and it can map workouts using the connected GPS.

The sacrifices are inherent in the design of Inspire HR which, while attractive with interchangeable tapes, uses a somewhat limited version of the Fitbit operating system. You will not get the richly colored applications as you would on the Versa Lite, and the space on which you can press and sweep is more limited. However, this may be the best fitness tracker you can get for $ 99.

Mophie Charge Stream Pad +

Wireless charging of your smartphone is easier than taking care of wires, and the Mophie Charge Stream Pad + is one of the best wireless chargers you can get. Most new smartphones, including the iPhone XR and the Samsung Galaxy S10, support Qi wireless charging, which allows them to sit on compatible media, and then go on. switch on without being plugged in This wireless charging stand is simple and effective enough to become permanent fixture on mom's nightstand.

The Qi standard means that the technology inside the wireless charger communicates with the smartphone's technology, which allows it to feel that the smartphone needs a charge and provide it to its power supply. Once the charging of the device is 100% complete, the flow of energy stops working so that the charger does not damage the battery of the smartphone nor overheat it. Mophie's tablet also has internal circuits that prevent overheating more generally.

This is not an eye catching accessory, but it is not meant to be it. The minimalist circle has a TPU coating that prevents it from sliding on a table or desk, as well as a smartphone that may slip during charging. The tablet is case-compatible – it can charge a wireless smartphone even in a protective case (just make sure the case has a thickness of 3mm or less). In our tests, almost all the smartphones we analyzed recorded a charge of 0 to more than 40% after sitting on the Charge Stream Pad + for just one hour. At around $ 50, the Mophie charger could make life a little mum easier for relatively little money.

USB-C power supply unit, wall charger and cable

If mom prefers to charge to the old, you could take advantage of the main advantage of traditional chargers over wireless chargers: increased power. If your mother has a newer phone, you can save a lot of time by improving the equipment that she uses to recharge the phone's battery.

This means that she will board the USB-C Power Delivery train. Devices that work with this robust charging specification will significantly reduce the time it takes for the handset to fully charge. With mobile devices, you're looking for equipment that can provide at least 18 watts of power. This is enough for the new iPhone, especially the iPhone 8 and later, and Android devices (in the United States at least) to load at their maximum speed.

For the road, the Aukey PB-Y13 is a power bank that meets this standard in a portable package. It's about the size of an iPhone XS, so it's not smallbut it is compact enough to fit in a purse or purse. In our tests, the iPhone XS went from 0% battery to just under 80% in one hour. It's not much faster than conventional power banks that charge at 15W and do not have USB-C ports, but it's about twice as powerful as dinky chargers like Apple always include them in the box with their devices. Plus, at $ 30, this extra punch does not have a big bonus. With a capacity of 10,000 mAh, or 37 Wh., It can fill an iPhone XS about three times before having to recharge it itself. It also comes with two USB-A ports; These will reduce the power of the USB-C PD port if they are used simultaneously, but the flexibility is nice.

For the wall charger, try the Anker PowerPort Atom PD 1. It comes with a USB-C port of 30W. The extra power does not add a lot of speed to the charging of the smartphone, but it is enough to charge recent USB-C laptops (though slowly). if the laptop is bulky). More specifically, it has all this juice in a design less than two inches thick, which makes it easy to pack. If your mother often has multiple devices to charge, the Anker PowerPort PD 2 is larger but has the same fast USB-C 30W port with a USB-A port. Both cost $ 30; either should be reliable.

Finally, you will need to make sure that mom has the proper cables to make it all work. We'll turn to Anker again: its PowerLine II USB-C to MFi Certified Lightning cable works just as well as Apple's cables, but costs a few dollars less, while the USB-C to USB-C variant should l & # 39; case. with an Android device. Both come with a lifetime warranty if things go wrong.

No, a package like this will not be the brightest or the most sentimental gift, but it's an upgrade that could help mom every day. The best part? You can just tell him to use the "really slim port" instead of spending six hours explaining the difference between the 70 different USB standards.

The psychology of time travel

In the late 1960s, four women scientists managed to create a time machine and their lives changed forever. In 2017, when time travel became commonplace, one of the scientist's granddaughters receives a note of the future on a death – but whose death is she and can she stop her? ? Kate Mascarenhas's first novel, The psychology of time travel, is a slow-burning complex thriller with an integral element of science fiction. Time travel can be difficult to tackle, but Mascarenhas, with his training in literature and psychology, does so in a unique and engaging way.

Said alternating past and present chronologies, The psychology of time travel plunges into the relationships between the four women scientists and the impact of their invention on the world. The mystery element appears in current chapters when a woman is found dead, and it is possible that a note of the future holds the key to the reason for her death. Not only is the place unique, but The psychology of time travel has a nearly all-female cast – a breath of fresh air for the genre of science fiction.

The novel focuses as much on the lives of these women as on the journey through time and the resolution of the mystery of "whodunnit" murder. Although the alternating temporal structure may be confusing, The psychology of time travel Worth reading by anyone who loves a story that is both stimulating and touching on how time is changing us all.

Emily Eternal

What happens when the government turns to an artificial conscience to help save the human race after the expansion of the Sun threatens to decimate the world? Mom can find in Emily Eternal, M.G. Wheaton's new novel, centered on Emily, is an artificial conscience that acts like a woman in her twenties, although she technically only has a few years. Developed by MIT scientists, Emily "lives" on a university campus where her expertise in machine learning and human awareness helps her to help others overcome trauma. But when she is called upon to use her skills to save the human race from the rapidly expanding sun, she questions the morality of those who claim to do what is right – and her own role in the grand plan.

What follows is a fast-paced novel that is full of dynamic characters who have to deal with morally gray situations. Wheaton just adds enough technical description in the book for things to be realistic, but readers will have to suspend their disbelief to understand the whole idea of ​​an artificial conscience. Emily does not look like Alexa or Siri from Apple. If mom manages to protect Emily, she should be able to appreciate her unique role in a story like this. It is difficult to pigeonhole Emily Eternal a genre because it contains elements of science fiction, thriller and speculative romance that spread everywhere, making it a captivating read.