Hiku
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Hiku grocery scanner makes remembering to buy the milk an $80 convenience
Everything you need to do, you can pretty much handle with the smartphone in your pocket -- it's a multi-purpose tool, after all. (Some even call it a Life Companion.) But, if you're just itching to overcomplicate your life with digital convenience and single-purpose gadgets, then direct your dollars to Hiku. The $80 device packs WiFi, a mic and scanner into a round, silicone and aluminum package to let you scan the barcodes of household and food products with a one-button push to build grocery lists. It does this in conjunction with a companion mobile app and as you might expect, it's iOS-only for now (an Android version is coming later). Oh, and it's got a magnetic back and a battery rated for up to two months, so you can keep it stuck to the fridge for quick access. There's not much more to it than all that, but the company does plan to issue frequent updates and eventually expand the functionality to let Hiku users scan and actually buy products. If you ask us though, it just seems like one more unnecessary gadget to lose. And besides, wouldn't you rather have all the info beamed straight to you shopping cart? Yes, there's a country for that.
