If you have a family like me then you will no doubt be facing the same problem as me when it comes to technology around the house, or more importantly, old technology. I’ve made something of an effort recently to clear out any old tech around the house and trying to cut down on the technology that we use especially the multitude of devices that we have that essentially do the same things. When it comes to the best technology you need around the house, here is what I’ve trimmed down to.

Wi-Fi

It goes without saying that in order for your tech to be fully functional, solid wi-fi is essential and so too is a great router. As a family there are often times when we are all hooked up to the internet for our various devices and as such we needed a solid internet service provider who offered us sufficient bandwidth to cope with our online demands.

I recently switched to Frontier Communications FiOS internet and it has been perfect for the home and the family, don’t just accept the internet that you already have, there is likely to be much better and cheaper options on the market.

Laptop

After years of having a desktop computer, we recently ditched it in favor of a home laptop, with specific rules that it wouldn’t be taken out of the house. The capabilities of laptops these days have rendered the desktop that we had obsolete, we can connect to everything like printers and scanners wirelessly and store all of our data, documents and photos on the laptop. A laptop takes up less space, has less cables and can be used all around the house, perfect.

Tablet

With the laptop, I wasn’t sure whether a tablet would be necessary but it has proved to be a great choice for the family. Despite being portable, the tablet generally says in the living room and is perfect for games and browsing when the laptop seems to cumbersome, or if someone is already on the laptop.

Surprisingly, I’ve found that we use the tablet a great deal for taking photos at family meals and events, the ease of opening it up and get online with speed is why I love the tablet so much.

Games Console

My kids love to play games, on their phones, on their tablet, on the laptop and of course on games consoles, I took the tough parental decision last year to get rid of the old PS3 that we had and the xBox 360 as well in favor of a PS4 which the kids would have to share.

This decision has helped us a lot as they have to take turns on the computer and it means that they don’t spend their lives on it. Having just one console also saves us on electricity costs and internet usage, it has also taught the kids ab bit more about sharing and they play far more games together now, perfect for family democracy!

Android Box

We did away with cable recently and bought one of these Android boxes, we can now watch all the shows we love using services like Netflix, Kodi and other online TV providers. It is super simple to use and the box is so small that it is hardly noticeable. If you find that you’re paying too much for cable then take a look at these cool little internet boxes.