Ski goggles for over 1,800 euros

Attention: Santa Claus, this Coca-Cola creep with lint in his beard, wants to sell you bargains! It’s better to keep an arm’s length away! (MarekPhotoDesign.com; Photocreo Bednarek/Adobe Stock)

It’s cold and it’s winter. Two facts that don’t become any less true (and make you shiver) when you look at lists filled with seasonally relevant equipment.

Regardless, in this article today we will introduce you to a handful of tech devices for everyday life in winter. Among them: augmented reality ski goggles at outrageous prices.

❗ Trigger warning in advance: No, we have not tested the items presented here ourselves. We just scoured the internet (like Mel Brooks did the desert in Spaceballs) and picked out a selection of what we think are worthwhile tech helpers.

You have to find out for yourself – if you and your wallet likes – whether these devices can prove themselves in everyday life.

Well, end of the announcement. What follows are 6 tech gadgets with hopefully practical added value for your everyday life. The order of the products presented is random.

6 tech gadgets the world doesn’t need, but you might

⛄ AR Ski Goggles: One of the most exciting tech innovations we are looking forward to in 2024 is the Apple Vision Pro mixed reality glasses. But a quick change of scenery, away from the desk and onto the ski slopes.

Because there are augmented reality ski goggles. You read that right. You’ll have to find out for yourself whether that’s totally brilliant or totally stupid.

To the question “Who invented the Smart Ski Goggles?”, we can answer: “The Swiss!” More precisely: the Swiss start-up Ostloong. However, there are also competitors, such as the RideOn AR Goggles, which were financed through crowdfunding.

The mountain calls – and the wallet answers? AR ski goggles are an expensive gadget, but are they worth it?

The RideOn AR Goggles offer the following functionality: HD camera for photos and videos. The latter could be worthwhile if you want to go on a ski trip to review maneuvers in order to further develop your skills on the snow. Or just to take vacation pictures from the mountain. You can also have a HUD appear that informs you about the current altitude or speed.

Cost question: In our opinion, AR ski goggles are not (yet?) suitable for the masses. The Swiss start-up’s glasses are said to cost $2,000 (approx. 1,800 euros). For comparison: The cost of ordinary ski goggles is between 20 and 300 euros.

What alternatives are there? Let’s be honest: the mountain is dangerous (snow avalanches!), skiing and snowboarding equipment costs money and it’s cozier in front of the computer at home anyway, right? That’s why we cheekily suggest: If you like playing video games and are into winter sports, would you rather play a game of “Winter Resort Simulator 2”? Or will you dig out the fun cult classic “Supreme Snowboarding” again? We would do it like this.

⛄ Hand warmer: Pocket warmer and Hand warmer there are dozens and dozens on online stores. In principle, these things always work the same way: They are technical devices that fit comfortably on the palms of your hands and give off heat to your gripping tools, which are battered by wind and cold. Depending on the manufacturer, these devices should keep you warm for up to 20 hours when fully charged.

Net Extras: You can also use many of these hand warmers as a power bank for your smartphone, tablet, etc. Regulating the heat emitted up and down in multiple stages is another convenient function of many of these products.

Some like it hot – and some hand warmers charge your phone.

How much do the hand flatterers cost? In terms of price, hand warmers range between 20 (Bolei USB hand warmer) and 30 euros (Ocaapa UT2s).

What alternatives are there? Aside from good old “rubbing your hands together”? There are also reusable pocket warmers or heated gloves (see below). If you prefer something less technical, warm your paws with a cup filled with a hot drink of your choice.

⛄ Electric ice scrapers: Which employee with a driving license doesn’t know this? Before the sun rises, you stand at your vehicle and rake the icy windows with an ice scraper until you have a clear view again (and hopefully a clear journey).

This can really hurt your hands and arms. To make ice scraping more comfortable, there are “electric ice scrapers”. A prominent example from the goods carousel is the Kärcher EDI 4. Its rotating plastic blades cut up unpleasant ice cream.

Ice scrapers are supposed to remove frost ice, but not scratch the car window, right?

The testers of the FAZ Kaufkompass were very impressed with the device. However, our colleagues at Autobild punished the same electric ice scraper in the test because it was said to cause scratches on dirty windows.

How much do these things cost? To take advantage of the advantages of a Kärcher EDI 4, you have to spend around 50 euros. This is how much the electric ice scraper from Kärcher costs, whereas an ordinary ice scraper in manual operation costs around 10 euros and is often even priced lower. Lescar’s window scraper, which also works electrically, costs around 20 euros.

❗But be careful: In the Auto Bild comparison mentioned above, the electric ice scrapers performed poorly (all school grades 5) – unfortunately this also applies to the Kärcher EDI 4 presented here. Are the poor grades justified?

What alternatives are there? If you are unsettled by the different reviews, you don’t have to worry: Ice scrapers are also available in a wide variety of forms beyond the electric ones. There are all sorts of extras, from the gloved ice scraper to integrated rubber bristles.

And if you can do without the electronic part, get an ice scraper from Lyvanas, Licargo, or another competitor and get off well and cheaply.

⛄ Lichtwecker: One of the biggest question marks of civilization is: “Why do all of us working people have to get up in the winter while it’s still pitch black outside?”

All joking aside: it can actually be harder to get up in winter. Above all, it stays dark longer in the morning, which can stimulate the production of the sleep hormone melatonin – which is bad, because your employer is already hitting the time clock at the same moment.

It’s a good thing that there are modern alarm clocks that provide light or even simulate sunrises. If you have trouble getting up, especially in winter, a light alarm clock like this could be worth it.

»And God said: Let there be light! But Jesus didn’t find the switch,” Jack Orlando once said in the point-and-click adventure of the same name. Which brings us to light alarm clocks…

How much do these things cost? In terms of price, light alarm clocks range between 30 euros (Foryond light alarm clock K9) and almost 300 euros (Lumie Bodyclock Luxe 750 DAB). In terms of price, there should be high-quality light alarm clocks that are neither junk nor lead straight into the poor house.

What alternatives are there? If you want to top your wake-up performance in another way, we recommend… a hot cup of coffee. Humor and caffeine aside: If you don’t want to spend money on an alarm clock, you can use “natural alarm tones” on your cell phone, like birdsong. This means that waking up is less of a shock and more of a gentle gliding over (to the waking state).

If you also want to be woken up using your sense of smell, you can do so with devices such as Aromeo Sense, which combine soft light and gentle sound with an olfactory environment that helps you wake up (such as a citrus aroma).

☕The probably the best alarm clock in the world Incidentally, the designer Joshua Renouf was responsible: The so-called “The Bariseur” automatically makes you a cup of coffee when you press the snooze button. Send this man the Nobel Peace Prize! At least.

⛄Heizlüfter: Sometimes there are living areas that are difficult to heat. Or you live in Berlin Neukölln and forgot to get wood for your fireplace.

In such cases, a fan heater may be worthwhile. What you need for a fan heater is a socket (with a functioning power grid behind it, of course). The fan heater then sucks in cold air and releases it as warm air.

No, fan heaters are by no means a new invention. But if you want to warm up your gaming cave quickly and practically, you could put a few bills in a fan heater (please don’t take this literally!).

Fan heaters don’t have to be a visual affront, but can also be real eye-catchers, like this aesthetic example here.

How much do these things cost? You really don’t have to spend a fortune on a fan heater. Many of the cheaper parts have a price tag between 15 and 20 euros, but still receive many good customer reviews on the top dog Amazon.de.

What you should pay attention to when buying is whether the fan heater you are considering has enough power or whether the cable is long enough for you.

What alternatives are there? If you don’t know what to do with fan heaters, there are still infrared heaters and oil radiators. Infrared heaters in particular are slim and flat, which means they can be attached to walls and ceilings. But that was only mentioned in passing.

⛄Touchscreen Gloves: In winter, the smartphone is less fun, at least outdoors. Either the bare fingertips are too cold to operate the touchscreen, or the gloves are detrimental to operating the touch-sensitive screen.

However, there are gloves that keep you warm and make it possible for adults to use their favorite toy. Because the fingertips of such special gloves make it possible to discuss the (non)sense of pureed carrots in the parents’ initiative’s parent chat, even while wearing gloves.

“Hey, Samuel from the bowling club is calling!” It’s a good thing you’re wearing touchscreen gloves and can therefore answer Samuel’s call

How much do these things cost? You can usually find these types of gloves from your trusted online or local retailer for just 10 euros. But it can also be more expensive: The “finger gloves” from The North Face Etip cost around 40 euros.

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Were there some highlights for you among the winter gadgets presented here – or have all the products already been in your virtual shopping cart and you are just one click away from buying happiness? But seriously: a hand warmer like this can undoubtedly make the cold winter days more pleasant, don’t you agree? But do you really need AR ski goggles? Regardless of whether you are a technology euphoria or not, please write us your opinion about the winter equipment in the comments.