7 Fitness Wearables That Won’t Dent Your Bank Account.

So the new year has begun and how many of us actually have added fitness goals to our list of New Year resolutions? How many of us have actually stuck to our guns and started doing various physical activities to keep ourselves fit? Let’s not mock those who have begun or who are already in the habit of working out to stay trimmed, toned and healthy.

But for those who have yet to start, remember that exercise is like paying your taxes or going for office holiday parties. They’re awful but necessary. If you want to stay healthy and keep fit, you gotta do it. So how would you motivate yourself to get the ball rollin’? Would a neat and sleek fitness tracker help?

There are so many options these days, with many brands tapping into the fitness market and saturating the retail stores with a host of fitness trackers and smartwatches. Navigating the displays and finding the right tracker or smartwatch for yourself can be a headache so we’ve narrowed it down to seven (7) types that would benefit you.

Here are 7 fitness trackers and smartwatches that can help you achieve your dreams of climbing up that flight of stairs without losing your breath or breaking your bank account.

Huawei Honor Band 4

Image from The Mobile Indian.

The Huawei Honor Band 4 is, by far, the most advanced fitness tracker from Honor yet. Its highlights include a bright OLED screen, good battery life and a sleek design.

At RM245, it is good value for those on the hunt for a low maintenance wearable that can do more than a basic tracker.

The Honor Band 4 is a slim and light fitness band. It may not be as petite as the Fitbit Flex 2 but it still looks more sophisticated than its fiercest budget fitness tracker rival, the Xiaomi Mi Band 3.

You can find the review for it here on TechRadar.

Fitbit Blaze

The Blaze is yet another wonderful design by Fitbit. A smart silver-rimmed fitness watch that makes its rounds within the tech world.

A fitness tracker designed to perfection that comes with a host of amazing features, including GPS connection, on-screen workouts, sleep tracking, and multi-sport modes, while doing a great job as an attractive accessory.

You can find the review for it here on TechRadar.

Fitbit Charge 3

Image from New Atlas.

The Fitbit Charge 3 may not be as sophisticated as the Versa or the Ionic, but it offers many of the same features in a more compact and lightweight design.

It houses a simple, yet clear and bright display with a host of nifty smart notifications, contactless payment capabilities (for a little bit more) and all the features that Fitbit users have come to know and love.

The Fitbit Charge 3 is for those who want to stay active but aren’t so much into working out that they’d consider themselves fitness fanatics. Its amazing fitness-tracking features are all wrapped up nicely in a well-designed app, which makes it worth considering.

You can find the review for it here on TechRadar.

Fitbit Versa

Image from Wired.

Compact and lightweight are two key features of a fitness smartwatch and the Fitbit Versa is both, making it easy and convenient to use.

The smartwatch even comes with the new female health tracking app which is a great addition for women to monitor their menstrual cycle.

Now you can put your money where it’s worth and use this to track your heart rate, daily steps, and sleeping habits. You can find the review for it here on Tom’s Guide.

Samsung Gear Fit 2 Pro

Image from High Tech Industry.

The Samsung Gear Fit 2 Pro is a cool fitness companion for you whether you’re doing laps in the pool or shooting hoops on the court.

Despite its size, the smartwatch can easily register your activities, measure your heart rate, track your stats and present them in bite-sized summaries to help you make better fitness decisions.

You can go all black for class or go bold with a splash of red. If you want to know more about the Gear Fit 2 Pro, read the review for it here on Trusted Reviews.

Xiaomi Mi Band 3

Image from The Verge.

The Xiaomi Mi Band 3 doesn’t offer much of a high-end fitness-tracking experience, but if you just want a relatively basic device that’s affordable and attractive, this may be what you’re after.

The Mi Band 3 doesn’t weigh down your wrist, and offers a good range of features that you’ll be happy with if you’re concerned with the little things like taking a quick look at your daily step count.

The key highlights of the Mi Band 3 are its price and its battery life. Its affordable price tag is synonymous with many of Xiaomi’s products while its battery life boasts to last almost a month. The same could be said about its predecessor, the Xiaomi Mi Band 2.

You can find out more about the Xiaomi Mi Band 3 here on TechRadar.

We hope our summarised reviews helped! Unless you already have something in mind. Are you using any fitness tracker or smartwatch now? What is your favourite fitness tracker? Share with us in the comments below! We’d love to know.

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Best 5 Kitchen Holiday Gift Ideas For Christmas

They were not wrong when they said, “The way to someone’s heart is through his or her stomach.” So, whether you’re shopping the perfect gift for a budding chef, holiday hostess or your home baker sibling, don’t worry, we’ve got you covered.

We did most of the hard work for you and whipped up a list of holiday gift suggestions. Hopefully, these perfectly-packaged presents will make the holiday season for your loved ones even more delicious!

Our gift suggestions come with plenty of fun and festive cheer, not necessarily from the world of technology. Today, we’re sharing 5 sophisticated yet seasonally-stylish kitchen holiday gift ideas that you can get for your family, friends and relatives this Christmas.

Stand Mixers

What’s the best way to make a homemaker’s dream come true? Get them a stand mixer! With interchangeable attachments and mixing bowls ranging from 5 to 7 quarts, these stand mixers are perfect for whisking, kneading, mashing, and spiralizing.

KitchenAid and Cuisinart offer stand mixers in a wide array of colours, so you can find one that matches the recipient’s kitchen decor.

Immersion Blenders

Think about it. No more pulpy mashed potatoes. None of that lumpy pumpkin soup either. Now you can enjoy your best friend’s pot of perfectly-pureed blend of bisque, sauce, or dressing. All you need to get her (or him) is an immersion blender.

Brands like Waring and Hamilton Beach even make immersion blenders that come with different attachments to aid with the mixing as well as the blending. Tally ho!

Coffee Makers

But first, coffee.

That motto is something many of us live by, especially in the mornings before checking your emails. And what better way to do so than with a coffee maker. It’s certainly a great Christmas gift for anyone who enjoys having a cup of joe in the morning.

You have a choice between single-serve models like Keurig or traditional drip coffee makers by KitchenAid and Hamilton Beach. Either option will still keep your favourite coffee aficionados happy.

Espresso Machines

If you think a coffee maker won’t cut it, then level up your friendship with an espresso machine! Let your friends enjoy their weekends with the perfect cappuccino, latte, or espresso shot without leaving their kitchen.

Espresso machines are fun and useful seasonal gifts for coffee connoisseurs, hip and cool college kids, and amateur baristas trying to perfect their craft. Brands like Breville offer class and elegance with sleek colours and metallic finishes.

Waffle Makers

After all the prepping and cooking, baking and brewing, it’s time to settle down for tea with some waffles. That’s what you’d like to hint to your mom and dad, wouldn’t you?

Get them a deluxe waffle maker from brands like Cuisinart or Waring that carry waffle makers with different styles and settings. If your dad never made breakfast, he may never want to leave the kitchen again (and your mom may have to shoo him out!).

There you go. So what is it going to be? Are these sophisticated gifts on your list or have you already sorted it out?

Hana Tei: Giving Your Tastebuds a Reason to Celebrate.

Finding a great-quality Japanese restaurant to dine at, and one that your wallet agrees with you, is quite difficult these days, what with the fluctuating petrol prices in Malaysia.

Before you sigh and walk away, there is a cozy little place in Bangsar that might change your mind. Of course, do remember that anything can induce a gut-wrenching total bill if you don’t practise the ‘moderation is key’ mantra. It’s still worth paying them a visit.

My parents and I, my husband, my sister and her husband took a trip to Hana Tei, a snug little eatery in Lucky Garden located on the same row as Nam Chun Restaurant (Kedai Makanan Nam Chun) and Sun Huat Kee Restaurant (Kedai Makanan Sun Huat Kee). Both Chinese hawker restaurants are on either end of that row.

It’s easy to find seeing as they have a huge sign on the front that says, ‘HANA TEI’, all lit up at night. You really can’t miss it.

The place was a little packed that Sunday night and the only available tables were those that seated four. The waiters offered to combine both tables for the six of us. As a result, families of four who came in either had to wait for a table to be freed up or potentially leave to find another restaurant.

Service was a little slower compared to the two nights ago when my dad had gone there for his dinner. But the wait was, again, worth it. Each of us were given a menu that was unbearably thick (think of your college reference textbooks!) and filled with pages of various authentic Japanese items on both sides.

The food arrived fresh and cold (the latter for certain dishes), hand-made and prepared upon ordering, the slices of raw sashimi were nice and thick (as shown in the menu), the two bowls of beef udon noodle soup arriving hot and steaming in front of my husband and my sister’s other half.

Here, let me give your tastebuds a nudge in the right direction and show you what the six of us had that night for dinner.

We kicked off our epicurean adventure with some mixed greens tossed in wooden bowls. The avocado salad (top) and the salmon sashimi salad (bottom).

Both came with two types of dressings each — apple cider vinegar and roasted sesame — pink radish, cherry tomatoes, leafy greens, cucumber slices, seaweed, salmon sashimi, and avocado.

It was certainly a refreshing touch for the senses.

Normally, I’d order a chirashi don (a bowl of rice with mixed raw sashimi) or a serving of cha soba (cold green tea buckwheat noodles). That night, I decided to go for something different.

A stone plate of salmon rolls with omelette cubes, avocado and seaweed. Thin slices of cold, fresh salmon were neatly placed on top of the rice cubes, complemented with a small dab of mayonnaise and a sprinkle of ebiko (shrimp roe).

It was so good I could have gone for seconds!

For the rest of us to share, my dad ordered a trio of raw sashimi. Five thick slices of tuna (maguro), yellowtail (hamachi) and salmon (can be spelled as sake or shake, depending on which restaurant you go to).

Apparently, there is a difference in the spelling and pronunciation of the word sake as one can mean either salmon or Japanese wine. One thing is for sure, though, is that the menu didn’t lie! Each slice was as thick as what you’d see on the page for raw sashimi.

Grilled squids aren’t our regular orders when we’re on our sushi excursions as some restaurants tend to overdo the grilling, resulting in a rubbery and chewy cephalopod.

That night, my mum thought otherwise. Grilled squid drenched in sweet teriyaki sauce. We took a ring each and bit into it. It broke off easily and the act of masticating was a delightful sensation!

Needless to say, the squid was a grill well done!

There is nothing more that would please my dad than a plate of perfectly grilled beef. He hadn’t wanted to join the temaki (Japanese hand roll) crowd so he chose this for himself. Grilled beef to medium with a pour-over of teriyaki sauce and a side of fried garlic.

We usually have this at Rakuzen, another Japanese restaurant in Bangsar, and it had been the best place to eat it. But Hana Tei one-upped them by preparing this really well. Each cube wasn’t too chunky, juicy and succulent with each bite, and it wasn’t tough or chewy!

Most places tend to overdo the medium bit and would often result in a scene where you could chew over a hundred times and still not be able to cut through the meat. Hana Tei was different. Even my sister agreed that it was better!

Our last order for the meal was the softshell crab temaki or hand roll. Well, at least this was for my husband and I, while my mum, my sister and her husband had the California hand roll.

Fun Fact!

Ever wondered how the California roll got its name? Discover its origin here.

The seaweed wrapper was fresh and crunchy, breaking off with each bite we took. Again, not every restaurant respects the crunch in the seaweed. Some places can have such weak seaweed that you’ll end up in a wrestling match with your hand roll!

That Sunday night was my first visit to Hana Tei and it didn’t disappoint. A good and solid first impression which I hope it would replicate if I ever went back for a second round.

The delivery of the orders was slow only because of the crowd. Otherwise, the staff was polite and professional, alert whenever we needed a refill of hot water for the teapot. Since the place tends to fill up at peak periods, you may want to call in advance and make a reservation. By the time you arrive, your table is ready and you’re all set to order!

Hana Tei also has branches in Cheras South (Selatan) and Kajang. If you live within proximity or in those areas, just know that Hana Tei has your back when it comes to satisfying your cravings for Japanese food!