Drew Fleming
Women may get better with age, but we also seem to get busier! In a world full of activities and overwhelming responsibilities from sunup to sundown, it’s a good thing there are house-cleaning robots and virtual personal assistants to help you stay on track. Such gadgets can keep life in balance for women in their fab 50s.
Lockitron: $179
Always forgetting to lock your front door—or accidentally locking yourself out of your home—just became a non-issue. Lockitron is essentially an automatized door lock. Connected via wireless to your smartphone, the device allows you to lock or unlock your door for guests or family from anywhere in the world. You can even set it to receive a notification when your child unlocks the door using his own phone or key, so you’ll know he made it home safely when you’re gone. Lockitron is available for pre-order now and is expected to ship around July 15, 2014.
iRobot Scooba: $279
Photo by Tibor Antaloczy via Wikimedia Commons
House cleaning robots have been a long time in the making, but they’re now taking the home cleaning world by storm. iRobot’s Scooba eliminates some of the more unpleasant and time-consuming housekeeping chores on your list: it washes your tile, wood or linoleum floors automatically, self-navigating around corners and covering every inch of your floor. The Scooba only uses clean water, and the efficient design keeps clean and dirty water completely separate. If you’re looking for more of a spot cleaner, check out Macy’s stores for a Dyson steamer, which is portable and powerful enough to steam clean tough stains out of your carpets and rugs.
Things iPhone App: $10
Need your own personal assistant to keep up with scheduled appointments, to-dos and weekly goals? Things, Apple’s classic productivity app, allows you to create to-do lists, schedule appointments, and even organize by project or day. A “someday” category also allows you to add tasks that you’re just not sure when exactly to schedule. A simple, intuitive interface makes it easy to start using immediately.
Nest Smart Thermostat: $249
Photo by Amanitamano via Wikimedia Commons
It’s been called the iPhone of thermostats. The Nest makes heating and cooling remarkably attractive and easy to manage from your smartphone no matter where you are. But its most attractive feature isn’t its wireless capacity. It can actually save you money on your electric bill by learning your routines and patterns and adjusting the temperature for efficiency when you’re not using your space. According to Nest.com, the device could lower your heating and cooling bill as much as 20 percent over the course of a year. With savings like that, it would easily pay for itself while making your life easier.