Summer is just around the corner, and we’ve spent months testing grills, coolers, outdoor projectors and audio equipment, as well as keeping tabs on various outdoor lighting and other great gadgets for your outdoor space.Â
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You can (and should!) go down the rabbit hole on other outdoor tech like grilling accessories, outdoor security cameras and other things, but this list is all about entertaining in an outdoor space. If you spend your summers with your friends and family, have a large enough backdoor space, and want to make the most of it, then any or all of these great tech choices are for you.
Pizza ovens are an outdoor cooking sensation. Smaller than your average grill, this propane-powered pizza preparer is simple to use and can evenly cook pizza, and other dough-based deliciousness at a rapid pace.
This is easily the most extravagant thing on this list, but if you spend hours in your backyard like we do, having a TV designed to last is well worth it. This entry from Sylvox is water resistant against rain and splashing from the pool, can work in freezing temperatures as well as hot weather and is smart too.
I have two dogs, Kota and Indiana Bones, and both of them love playing fetch. This ball launcher — currently available through Indigogo — is right up their alley, as it not only launches the soft balls up to 80 feet, but it can fire them in random directions as well. Hours of fun. It also has a fantastic detection function so if the dogs get a little too close it won’t fire a ball straight at their little snoots. The Uahpet iRetriever is now a mainstay in my pups’ daily activities.
For the last two years, we’ve rounded up coolers across the price spectrum, from $10 disposable models to $300 coolers made of rotomolded plastic. The Igloo MaxCold isn’t the most amazing performer, but it’s in the top five, above coolers that cost more than $200. If you want to splurge, Cabela’s, Orca and Yeti all have rotomolded designs that will keep their contents colder for longer, but the small gap between those models and this $100-ish Igloo MaxCold make it hard to justify spending more.
Roasting marshmallows over a fire pit is a tried-and-tested good time, I think we can all agree. But what if we want to take it to the next level? This cowboy fire pit from Pit Boss lets you cook hotdogs, burgers and chicken legs over a fully open flame as if you were hanging out in the wild west.
Having a solar generator with you when you go places is great. I recently took my family to the local lake, and by setting up the Ecoflow River and its solar panel, I could keep all our devices charged and even help out some of our lakeside neighbors. I could also power the pump for all the inflatables on the beach!
While many Bluetooth speakers suffer from poor bass reproduction, the HD-Force from Treblab sounds deep and rich at any volume. The battery will last the length of any outdoor gathering, and the flashing lights on top add a party atmosphere in the evenings.
I’m not saying a middle-age white dude should be embarrassed for liking Lizzo. I am that guy, and she’s great. What I am saying is, it’s nice to be able to hear whatever music you like without earphones and without anyone — family, friends, neighbors — judging you or asking you to change it, especially when you’ve taken on the semi-isolating responsibility of working the grill at an outdoor social event. That’s what these Bose Frames, essentially sunglasses with a decent microspeaker built into the arms, will let you do, and without totally cutting you off from human interaction like headphones or ear buds will. Battery life isn’t great, but they charge fully in less than two hours.
Outdoor lighting can be very boring, but it doesn’t have to be. These smart lights from Govee are designed to be staked into the grass along pathways, and they work great to highlight your path in assorted colors. I used them a little differently, though.
