⚡ 14DEC2025: A constellation of smart rings
Tech for protecting against the elements, bleep bloops, my new speakers, opening a coffee shop at home, and more...
Happy Sunday everyone! It's been a manic week with lots of end-of-year work deliverables and fun family events. As a result, we've got a shorter issue this week, so we're going to jump right to it!
Note that some of the links in this issue of the Hiro Report are affiliate links and may earn me a small commission at no additional cost to you.
I want to thank Wimp Decaf for sponsoring this week's issue. If you are looking for a great last-minute gift to give to your coffee-loving loved ones, consider grabbing a bag of Wimp Decaf as a stocking stuffer. Wimp Decaf doesn't have to fully replace your beloved caffeinated coffee. It can just be a way to help you keep drinking coffee longer throughout the day, whether it be by alternating caffeinated and decaf coffees or just cutting your favorite espresso beans with a bit of decaf. Embrace cozy, warm drinks without maxing out your holiday anxiety levels. Grab some Wimp Decaf and get 20% off using code HIRO20.
On to the good stuff:
☕ Homegrind for iOS - I wrote about this super fun app earlier this year, but it continues to get new features and it's just a ton of fun. For those who are not familiar, Homegrind lets you create an informal home coffee shop where family members and guests can order drinks from you via an app and then leave you emojis as tips. It is not meant to be a full coffee shop point-of-sale system; it is purely for fun. That said, they've recently added features like allowing you to add a Venmo link or QR code to the app so that people can give actual tips or donations. You also can now have multiple home baristas with access to the list of orders in case you and your partner are both on call for making drinks. I'm thinking of using it for a little neighborhood pop-up coffee shop to raise funds for charity when it gets a little warmer.
💍 Pebble Index 01 - The folks at Pebble—famous for the original E Ink watch that's now being revived as a modern smartwatch—just announced that they're also making a smart ring. It's designed to capture your fleeting thoughts via a built-in button and microphone. The ring's software is customizable, so you can ostensibly configure it to handle other tasks as well. The big catch? It's not rechargeable. You'll get about two years of use, and then you send it back to be recycled. It also doesn't offer any of the usual health tracking features you expect from smart rings. Personally, I'd have a hard time justifying grabbing one, but it's neat to see experimentation in this space—and who knows? Maybe we were given ten fingers so we can rock a constellation of smart rings?
🎹 Arturia Microfreak Synth - Santa dropped off one of my Christmas gifts early this year and I've been obsessed with it the last week or so… The Microfreak is a hybrid digital dual oscillator synthesizer with an analog filter with wavetable and granular sampling capabilities that is widely considered to be a great first hardware synth for anyone looking to experiment with building their own sounds and patches. Apart from being a good beginner's synth, it's also used by the pros like ambient composer Trentemøller.
🌬️ Arcteryx Incendo Airshell - For Thanksgiving, we went up to the Pacific Northwest for a week of hiking and exploring in the cold and rain. It was a blast, and this little ultralight windbreaker was a lifesaver. It packs down small enough to fit in your jeans' back pocket, but then quickly deploys to protect from chilly wind and light rain/drizzle, all while still being super breathable so you don't find yourself drowning in a sweat swamp while you hike or run. The Arcteryx one is pretty pricey (I was able to get a crazy Black Friday deal on mine), but this much more affordable Patagonia equivalent looks equally as good.
🔈 Edifier R1280DB Bookshelf Speakers - These desk speakers are another Black Friday/Cyber Monday deal pickup that I've been enjoying. I'm far from an audiophile expert, but they sound great to my ears, easily fill my home office, and have lots of nice features like Bluetooth connectivity, adjustable bass and treble controls, and multiple stereo ports. Highly recommended if you're looking for something for your computer, a little record player, etc.
That's it for this week! May you be safe, healthy, happy, and at peace. 🙏🏼