Imagine someone finally came up with the time machine, traveled to, let’s say, medieval Europe and brought along to the future a middle-aged farmer from the past.
Let’s call him Gilbert. Gilbert would be quite shocked for a little while with the number and variety of cool devices the humanity has invented within several centuries.
But I bet he’ll get used to the convenience in no time, so getting back to his previous farmer’s lifestyle would be unthinkable.
My point is that we surround ourselves with new technologies and populate our apartments with gadgets of all sorts. And that’s for a good reason – to ensure that our lives are getting less complicated, more things are done, we are becoming the better, healthier and smarter versions of ourselves.
Here at ipoki.com, we are trying to keep track of all the best apartment gadgets that bringing their owners a couple of steps closer to the fascinating future and improve the overall quality of our lives. Now let’s jump into more details.
Are you interested in a particular apartment gadget? Then use the table of contents below to jump to the most relevant section. And you can always go back by clicking on the black arrow in the right bottom corner of the page. Also, please note that some of the links in this article may be affiliate links. For more details, check the Disclosure section at the bottom of the page.
Here's what we'll cover:
Cool apartment gadgets
In case if like most humans, you are not a fan of old school smoke detectors, I feel you! There’s a lot of “what not to like” about it: random low-battery chirping, ear piercing testing… climbing up on a ladder regularly to change batteries… you know what I am talking about. So if you are sensing that a change in this department will do you good, look no further. The cost of Nest might seem a bit insane, but with those, you’ll be set for 10 years (not seven, as in modern competitors’ case) and there are so many additional features that very well worth of that extra money.
No waking up during the night anymore because of the random error chirps, the pre-installed batteries will last for a year or two as some users reported, and you can receive the alerts about your home state even if you are out of town. That’s huge.
Another thing: with just a few manual adjustments, the Nest’s thermostat can study your habits and begin automatically regulating the temperature, saving you a ton in the long run.
And for what’s it worth, those smoke detectors look like they arrived straight from the future. Really sleek.
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Lightning is a big deal when we are talking about interior design. And this cool device will be an immense help if you are going for a chic, modern and functional look for your apartment. It’s bright enough to light up any space – from the bedroom to the living room and has a choice of three different light temperatures.
You can voice/touch control the lightning easily from your smartphone using the app, Google Assistant, Amazon Alexa, and even IFTTT. No subscription or ninja skills in gadget’s setup needed. Beautiful and awesome!
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Must have kitchen gadgets
Maybe for some, it doesn’t sound like a significant upgrade, but this touchless trash can be a real space saver for some apartment owner, especially when we talking small spaces. It will match well, fit a TON of trash in a very seamless way and looks pretty. On top of it, the manufacturer boasts that batteries will last up to 1.5 since the can only use power precisely when needed.
Another good thing to mention – it will last almost forever, but thanks to the clean look would hardly go out of fashion even if you are going to remodel your place completely. It has an automated lid that holds all the odors when closed, it prices reasonably, and doesn’t require fancy bags (any 13 gallons trash bags will do). Simply a no-brainer if you are in search of a new gadget for your kitchen.
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Even people who describe themselves as “not being new to pressure cooking” have only “WOW’ to say about this particular kitchen device. Some might think it’s pricey, but the cost is insanely generous for what this thing can do for you. No, it won’t bring you sleepers or give you a back rub, however, if you use this cooker you will make up the cost of in saving on not eating out.
Not to mention that it would be way better for your well-being.
Unless we are not personally in charge of purchasing in all those restaurants, it’s hard to be 100% sure what’s boiling in their cauldrons. This one pot will replace 10 common kitchen appliances – pressure cooker, slow cooker, egg cooker, yogurt maker, warmer, rice cooker, cake maker, saute/searing, steamer, and sterilizer.
I mean nobody really has it all together, but it’s nice to have options of what you are going to cook, right? Especially if it’s just programming the whole thing with the push of several buttons. A must-have kitchen gadget!
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And continuing the topic of healthy eating and the advantages of knowing where exactly the products you eat are coming from … check this thing out!
I know, it sounds overwhelming – can we even garden with our busy lives? Isn’t it easier to buy stuff in the grocery store, or get it to deliver, or even better so, get the food delivered from your favorite restaurant?
Well, I’d say go for gardening if you care about your body and well-being.
Let me just share a couple of facts. Take New York, for instance, there are these stats published by the New York Times in 2018.
According to this article, there were 26,101 restaurants in NYC alone that were a subject to health department inspections in 2017. 1,019 were closed in 2017 because of unsanitary stipulations, 4,670 restaurants had assaults related to mice and 1,325 – to cockroaches. So, roughly speaking, each 5th time you are eating out you are in serious danger, to say the least.
Another piece of data shared by Johns Hopkins from University Bloomberg School of Public Health in his article here approximately 48 million people gets sick (followed by hospitalizations in ~128,000 cases and 3,000 deaths) because of food-related illnesses. It’s per year, in the US alone. And since Americans eat out on average five times per week, you can sense where I am going with that.
And the last nail to the coffin of eating out. Bill Marler, a food-poisoning lawyer who probably knows his stuff (otherwise he’d be out of a job), shared some insights on what not to eat in the restaurants with Business Insider. The salad is #1 on the list. Apparently, even the healthiest food turns into a life-threatening disaster when you are eating out. So yeah, I’d say we have to be more careful about food quality control and if we can quickly grow herbs and salads ourselves, why not do it?
The most amazing part is that with this indoor herbs gardening set the whole process will be a piece of cake. Up to 7 plants can be grown at a time: herbs, salads, veggies, flowers, whatever you want. This smart garden uses water and nutrients to grow plants naturally… no pesticides, herbicides, GMOs, any of that. Setup is straightforward and you can see outcomes in just a few days (plants grow so fast – one day it’s 2 mm and the next day it’s 1 inch).
Most plants sprout within 7-14 days, are ready for reaping in 4-6 weeks. Those will continue producing crops for up to 6 months and longer. This is magic that also tastes great.
Well, this video speaks for itself in case you want to see more.
Some might think of high electricity charges while using this. But here’s math shared by heavy users: even if it’s on 24 hours a day, it’s 315 kWh (36 watts x 24 h x 365 d)
Most people pay approximately 12 cents per kWh, so it’s $38 of annual electricity expenses. But you don’t have to have it on all the time, except the harvesting period, so we are talking more like $25-$30 annually. That’s way less than you might spend ordering salads of questionable quality at the restaurants or even regularly buying organic produce from the grocery stores.
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Cool gadgets for your bedroom
This is an excellent lamp for people who want a charging hub for their devices… And to be honest, it’s also a fantastic bed lightning option for nightstands in general, even when you don’t care about your phone charging nearby. Keeping the phone near your bed is not great anyways, but, well, we live in constant turbulence and urgency, and any device we bring to our apartment should be as functional as it’s possible.
(Reading glasses that actually read or produce movies of what they are reading and translating it into our consciousness? Yes, please!)
So yeah, that’s when this charging lamp comes handy. It can power up 3 devices simultaneously (iPhones, Smartphones, Smart Watches, and other USB devices). It looks nice. And it gives you some lightning.
What else can you ask for?
90-Day Money Back Guarantee and 24-month warranty is an additional pleasant bonus from the manufacturer. Very well worth giving this lamp a try.
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This cool device is another example of true multitasking: it lights, it makes the air breathable, it disperses some aroma into it, therefore changing the overall vibe of your bedroom from relaxing to energizing.
It takes some time to find a diffuser that is the perfect size, looks exceptional (yet cheap), can change colors, quiet and does last many hours. This one works great, and you will love it’s the mesmerizing neon effect when it is on.
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If you experience insomnia and you are not a fan of any pills (followed by addictions), then you might have to give this speaker a try.
It won’t make miracles and putting you to sleep in a second, but it does work. The delicate lightning and sounds (ocean, heartbeat, zen, and more options) will keep your mind distracted from major sleep-breakers, soothe you and you can finally get some rest. And if it won’t work for you, you can always send it back.
So, very well worth a shot.
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Check our guide for more Bedroom Gadgets options
Best apartment gadgets
This smart lock is simply mind-blowing.
I guess we all want to feel safe in our houses, so I don’t need to sell you that. But on top of being great and look awesome, Lockly solves more issues that are common for other smart locks. For instance, the pin code security issues that are typical with regular keypads – this lock will shuffle numbers on the touchscreen so nobody can tell which pin code you are typing.
For extra safe locking, you can use a superior fingerprint reader (yes, welcome to the future!).
While you can use your phone (via the Lockly app) to unlock the door, you might find that fingerprint reader is fast and works perfectly! And in fact, this cool device also has a physical key option in case you are sharing your household with someone who’s not very future-friendly.
Lockly app runs on both iOS and Android. While some will complain that the app is not exceptional, it’s pretty much self-explanatory, works stable and does the job. On top of unlocking function, you can also track the unlock history by each user 24/7 so you can always be aware when your door is opened by someone else. Security. Reinvented significantly.
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Foobot is one of the best apartment gadgets for those who care to live longer and healthier.
Air is quite essential for us humans. And as long as we can’t really live without breathing, exhaling a bunch of invisible pollutants at all time doesn’t seem like a great option.
And if there’s a way to fix it why not take advantage of it? And it is! It’s sleek, precise, and loves to share the data at your convenience.
Berkeley National Lab determined Foobot to be among the most reliable monitors for PM2.5 readings. It works with a wide range of other connected devices and open API services from Nest (that we covered in the first section of this review) to IFTTT. So, given that you spend some time and set everything up, Foobot will shower you with data about things you’re breathing in. E.g., you can hook up IFTTT with Google Sheets and save the history of readings if you are a real data geek.
And there are some cooler little things about it. For instance, if you double tap a device, it will send readings to your phone. Saves you a couple of seconds – no need to launch the app to check the stats – and feels like you have another conscious robotic friend at your service.
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For now, I am wrapping it up. I hope you enjoyed this guide as much as I enjoyed researching it. This list is in the constant development so you might also check in on hour research in several months again. You can check more of our guides, for instance, this epic list of all the cool gadgets for men.
At ipoki.com we only mention the products that we’ve researched and considered worthy. But it’s important to mention that we are a participant of several affiliate programs, including Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a mean for us to earn fees by linking to Amazon.com and affiliated sites. As an Amazon Associate ipoki.com earns from qualifying purchases.