Water, sandy beaches, greasy sunscreen and your favourite tech gadgets may not go together all the time; but if you’re heading to the beach or pool this holiday season, there’s no need to leave your gadgets behind.
Listen to your music, answer phone calls, take pictures and read books with the help of water-resistant products.
Here are some of the best water-resistant products on the market right now:
PHONES
For occasional underwater use, I like iOttie’s line of IPX8 classified waterproof skins for iPhone 4/4S/5, Samsung Galaxy S3/S4 and Samsung Galaxy Note 2. The thin, plastic-film skins (KSh 2,000 for 2 on iottie.com and Amazon) come with five sealing tapes and leakage indicators. Additional sealing tapes are available for purchase.
For a more rugged option, check out the Frieq Universal Waterproof case (KSh 1,500 on Amazon). The durable plastic pouch fits smartphones up to 5.3-inches and is IPX8 certified for use down to 100 feet.
TABLETS
For tablets and e-readers, check out TrendyDigital WaterGuard Plus case for small tablets (KSh 2,000 on trendydigital.com and Amazon). If you’re looking to do more, check out Sony’s water-resistant Xperia Tablet Z (KSh 45,000 on sony.com orAmazon). The ultra-thin 10.1-inch Android tablet is rated for submersion down to 3 feet for up to 30 minutes. That means it will handily survive a dunk in the pool and even allow you to take underwater photos with its 8MP camera.
CAMERAS
the 16MP Panasonic Lumix DMC-TS5 (KSh 38,000 on panasonic.com or Amazon). Not only does it take sharp shots down to 43 feet, it has built-in Wi-Fi for instant sharing.
For outdoor sports enthusiasts, the GoPro Hero3 models are certainly the best. The entry-level White Edition will be sufficient for most people with its high-quality 5MP camera, full HD video capture, built-in Wi-Fi for sharing and waterproof housing rated to 197 feet deep. The high-end Black Edition is truly impressive with a 12MP camera capable of shooting at 30fps in burst mode, Wi-Fi remote control and enhanced low-light performance.