Over the years (and on this forum), I’ve moaned about technology. But today I want to say how grateful I am for technology. I sat in my bed this morning and communicated with over 100 people sending updates, sharing photos, expressing love and gratitude. There is no other way to do easily this.
So to those of you who make this possible, developers, designers, and creatives, a big thank you from me and keep up the good work!
I wondered if we might share what our favourite piece of tech was in 2025 and why?
Mine has been my Delonghi La Specialista Arte coffee maker. It still makes me smile every time I use it!
Especially as in the UK it’s now more than £1 per item (at least) even to send a Christmas card to those you love. It’s amazing we can stay in touch so easily.
Before answering that, I recall the first time I experimented with IRC back in the late 80’s and carried on conversations with people around the globe. I’ll never forget the flash of realization of what this meant in terms of doors flying open and barriers instantly falling.
For me, tech then was all about communication. And still is. This year for a month, my wife and I found ourselves in a conflict zone with no possibility of exit. We stayed in touch with family and friends with WhatsApp which gave us an easy, frictionless path to assure them we were OK and safe. It was the same feeling of the old IRC days – one click, and a pathway thousands of miles long opens to another person. It’s still magic.
The majority of my professional and personal work revolves around text. I’m grateful for the amazing writing tools at our disposal. I had Gemini create an illustration of my writing tools. Note: I only use AI for editing.
For me, this year, I’m most grateful for the joy it has been learning Tinderbox. For me, it’s been a hard application to grok, but once I did, it has helped me move a variety of projects forward. I’m still learning and applying, but I suspect Tinderbox might become in 2026 one of the few apps core to performing my knowledge work for many years to come.
Without a doubt, my favorite piece of tech in 2025 is the Asahi Intecc Sion Blue 0.014" Coronary PCI Guidewire (and its accompanying fluoroscopy/angiography system). I thought my new iphone 17 Pro was pretty snazzy until I found myself in an OR about to get an angiogram and two stents, the day after Xmas. I mean, the phone is still neat, but it ain’t even close to my favorite tech gift of 2025.
Given the apparent preference for straight-forward simplicity that your posts here suggest, you might want to give Tinderbox a pass. However, if you want a new rabbit hole to explore in 2026, then have at it.
I love Tinderbox; and have used it for decades: but I never suggest it to friends, because I value their friendship more.
Yes, I’ve already decided it is not for me. I reviewed the site and watched the video. Tinderbox makes DT and Scrivener look like child’s play! And, there is no iPad app, so that automatically disqualifies it. Besides, it is Jan. 1, so I’m resolved to not changing apps or workflows for 12 months. Notice I said resolved, not promised.
For me, the moment was around 2000 or so. I was working (in New Zealand) for a multinational company and regularly communicating with people in Canada (Vancouver) and the UK. One day I woke up and felt quite under the weather, so decided to take the day off sick.
Except there was a significant piece of work underway which I did not want to stall due to my absence. While sitting up in bed, I got my laptop, dialled into work, fired up our company chat client, then contacted a colleague who was in New Zealand but a different city, and a person in the UK. Once I had them both responding, I introduced them to one another, laid out a few “next steps” for them, then logged off and left them to it.
It’s a tough choice. My AirPods Pro 3s I use every day that I would have trouble living without. I still have the 2s and, somewhere, the 1s. Or for the less used but the greatest joy using, my 150-450mm lens for my DSLR. I use it to photograph birds and I love being out with them.
I’m glad you asked this question, @svsmailus because I think about this a lot and I immediately know my answer. My favorite piece of technology, one that I use everyday (in winter) and that never fails to evoke a sense of awe is our Tulikivi masonry stove.
Aside from allowing us to have a massively hot fire in the middle of our without burning it down, the stove is precisely engineered. Air enters from the bottom, which makes supplying oxygen for the fire easy but powerful. The fire combusts at several layers making sure that nearly everybit of fuel is used, and the stove itself is lined with layers of fire brick that retain heat so that a fire that burns for just a couple of hours heats our entire home for an entire day. All of that while being safe (enough) to touch and after several hours, especially inviting to lean upon. It also dries our clothes on rainy days and is pretty to look at.
I love how we love tech here and I especially love giving us a chance to be geeky and name it directly. Thanks again Simon!
My favorite piece of technonoly for 2025 is the Breville Control Freak Induction cooker. It has accurate closed loop temperature control and can save recipes. I use it everyday for almost all cooking except for boiling water or when I need to use 2 pots.
Surprisingly to me, I have really enjoyed my Epomaker mechanical keyboard. Having used Apple and Logitech keyboards since I made the switch to Apple 7 years ago (retired, no more Windows!) and liking them, I didn’t really feel the need, but being a bit of a geek, the idea of being able to play with different switches and keycaps a bit seemed like it would be fun.
I got the Epomaker TH-108 Pro, white/blue color, with Sea Salt Silent switches, and I love it. My typing speed has increased, and it just feels nice. I’ll probably buy some different switches to feel/hear the difference, and maybe some different keycaps just for fun.
How can you walk the dog if you don’t have the headphones, or avoid being sent scatty by the awful music in the gym?
It’s an hour a day that wouldn’t otherwise be available. I completed a 150-hour conversation Welsh course purely by doing the lessons on the dog walk
Otherwise on the walks I listen to audiobook and podcasts. At the moment I’m about to listen to the 110th episode of the Anglo-Saxon History podcast…
There is no way I would have found time to do any of this without headphones of some sort – and the iPads Pro (I’ve had all three versions) are very good. Having the Noise ‘No I don’t want to listen to really bad music while I’m suffering in the gym, thank you’ Reduction is very welcome…
I’ve enjoyed reading everyone’s choices. Mine is a toss up between Alter, which I used most of the year, and the Insta360 X5 action camera, which I’ve only had since Christmas but have been pretty immersed in since then, as only a geek can be.
Alter is an AI app that is always a keystroke away, although I feel as if I’m only scratching the surface of its capabilities, as I see how others use it. The Insta360 X5 scratches the photography/videography itch that started with my first camcorder, and combines it with my main passion, skiing. I frequently ski by myself since my family isn’t as obsessive about it as I am, and I’ve always been the type to self-analyze myself to improve. Insta360 footage looks almost like drone footage, and allows this self-study in ways that my old GoPro did not.
Nice, timely topic! I just put solar panels on my roof this month. Seeing my electricity begin to shift from coal to solar is a great feeling. My kids are getting into it too and so we like to look at our metrics every day and hope for more sunny days than cloudy…a rare thing this time of year in New England.
I wish I could have one, but we live in a rather insubstantial, barely-meets-code house common in modern construction. One of the many things I miss greatly about our previous 1916 brick Chicago two flat is the steam heat. Radiant heat of all kinds is sooo much better than forced air heating. And usually beautiful too. Like this gorgeous monster, mid refinish.
I too use mine all of the time. When I put my trousers on in the morning, 4 things go in my pockets (iPhone, AirPods, Wallet, and Keys) plus my watch goes on my wrist.
AirPods Pro 2 are used:
while doing chores
when walking the dog
when exercising
when reading to block out noise from other people
when commutting
If I could, I’d also use them for work teams calls, but I have a Windows Laptop which I don’t want to unpair from my apple gear and then re-pair them after use. I’m not buying a pair AirPods just for work.
I also have a venerable pair of Standard AirPods 2s which I wear in bed if I need to fall to sleep in the middle of the night without waking when I listen to old podcasts I know well.
And, there is no iPad app, so that automatically disqualifies it. Besides, it is Jan. 1, so I’m resolved to not changing apps or workflows for 12 months. Notice I said resolved, not promised. 
