On any given day, the coffee shops in your area will be full of students and remote workers angling for the best spot to claim for the day. You might be tempted to look around at your remote working colleagues for the day to check out what kind of gear they have in tow. Well, you don't need to spy on neighbouring tables any more, as we round up some must-have gadgets for the perfect remote set-up.
reMarkable 2
This tablet offers a writing experience that feels just like putting pen to paper – without the need for paper. It is designed to keep users organised and environmentally friendly. While the long-term savings and eco-conscious benefits are significant, the initial investment can be steep, especially for students and professionals on a budget. The reMarkable 2 lives up to its name, offering a unique experience, but the cost makes it less accessible than it deserves to be.
From Dh1,799
Dyson OnTrac Headphones
Dyson’s OnTrac headphones provide great audio quality with all-important noise cancellation, essential for those coffee shop or co-working space environments. These headphones create a cocoon for you to focus and concentrate. With a 55-hour battery life, they can handle long sessions without needing to be charged.
The customisable design, featuring more than 2,000 colour combinations, gives you a chance to express your style. Enhanced sound range and precise audio reproduction make these headphones ideal for listening to lectures, or any activity requiring clear, accurate sound. Its real-time soundtracking and customisable EQ modes – where you can adjust the loudness of frequency ranges – are useful for both students and creatives.
From Dh1,999
Oura Ring
Finnish brand Oura has become ubiquitous thanks to the Oura Ring, sported by everyone from Gwyneth Paltrow to Mark Zuckerberg. This sleek wearable offers advanced health tracking, including sleep monitoring, activity tracking and readiness scores, helping users stay in tune with their bodies to make informed decisions about their daily routines.
In an age of biohacking, it can offer insights, helping to manage stress and ensure quality rest, crucial for maintaining focus and cognitive performance. The ring’s data-driven insights give users the tools to optimise their sleep, activity and recovery patterns, balancing productivity with overall well-being.
From Dh1,245
Apple M3 MacBook Air
Perennial favourite of the remote creative industries worker, the new Apple MacBook Air, powered by the M3 chip, combines power and portability in a sleek and now familiar package. The device also comes with a 20 per cent faster processing speed than previous models, which could be on the sluggish side compared to their chunkier siblings.
Creatives will appreciate its enhanced graphics and performance in design and multimedia applications, while students will benefit from its multitasking capabilities, whether for running simulations, writing papers or participating in virtual classes. With up to 18 hours of battery life, Wi-Fi 6E for faster speeds and MagSafe charging, the M3 MacBook Air is the machine you can take anywhere.
From Dh4,599
Instax Mini Link 2 and Instax Pal
This dynamic duo is a good option for those who love capturing and sharing experiences on the spot. The Instax Mini Link 2 offers Bluetooth connectivity with both Android and Apple devices, allowing users to print photos directly from a smartphone. Its editing features and customisable print options make it easy to personalise prints before sharing them with friends and family.
Complementing the Mini Link 2, the Instax Pal is a pocket-sized digital camera that captures real-time moments, offering instant prints. Together, they combine connectivity with classic instant photography, making it a great duo for students documenting their days and creatives who need to see beyond the screen.
From Dh695
Greatest of All Time
Starring: Vijay, Sneha, Prashanth, Prabhu Deva, Mohan
Afghanistan fixtures
- v Australia, today
- v Sri Lanka, Tuesday
- v New Zealand, Saturday,
- v South Africa, June 15
- v England, June 18
- v India, June 22
- v Bangladesh, June 24
- v Pakistan, June 29
- v West Indies, July 4
RIVER%20SPIRIT
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A cheaper choice
Vanuatu: $130,000
Why on earth pick Vanuatu? Easy. The South Pacific country has no income tax, wealth tax, capital gains or inheritance tax. And in 2015, when it was hit by Cyclone Pam, it signed an agreement with the EU that gave it some serious passport power.
Cost: A minimum investment of $130,000 for a family of up to four, plus $25,000 in fees.
Criteria: Applicants must have a minimum net worth of $250,000. The process take six to eight weeks, after which the investor must travel to Vanuatu or Hong Kong to take the oath of allegiance. Citizenship and passport are normally provided on the same day.
Benefits: No tax, no restrictions on dual citizenship, no requirement to visit or reside to retain a passport. Visa-free access to 129 countries.
Mercer, the investment consulting arm of US services company Marsh & McLennan, expects its wealth division to at least double its assets under management (AUM) in the Middle East as wealth in the region continues to grow despite economic headwinds, a company official said.
Mercer Wealth, which globally has $160 billion in AUM, plans to boost its AUM in the region to $2-$3bn in the next 2-3 years from the present $1bn, said Yasir AbuShaban, a Dubai-based principal with Mercer Wealth.
“Within the next two to three years, we are looking at reaching $2 to $3 billion as a conservative estimate and we do see an opportunity to do so,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Mercer does not directly make investments, but allocates clients’ money they have discretion to, to professional asset managers. They also provide advice to clients.
“We have buying power. We can negotiate on their (client’s) behalf with asset managers to provide them lower fees than they otherwise would have to get on their own,” he added.
Mercer Wealth’s clients include sovereign wealth funds, family offices, and insurance companies among others.
From its office in Dubai, Mercer also looks after Africa, India and Turkey, where they also see opportunity for growth.
Wealth creation in Middle East and Africa (MEA) grew 8.5 per cent to $8.1 trillion last year from $7.5tn in 2015, higher than last year’s global average of 6 per cent and the second-highest growth in a region after Asia-Pacific which grew 9.9 per cent, according to consultancy Boston Consulting Group (BCG). In the region, where wealth grew just 1.9 per cent in 2015 compared with 2014, a pickup in oil prices has helped in wealth generation.
BCG is forecasting MEA wealth will rise to $12tn by 2021, growing at an annual average of 8 per cent.
Drivers of wealth generation in the region will be split evenly between new wealth creation and growth of performance of existing assets, according to BCG.
Another general trend in the region is clients’ looking for a comprehensive approach to investing, according to Mr AbuShaban.
“Institutional investors or some of the families are seeing a slowdown in the available capital they have to invest and in that sense they are looking at optimizing the way they manage their portfolios and making sure they are not investing haphazardly and different parts of their investment are working together,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Some clients also have a higher appetite for risk, given the low interest-rate environment that does not provide enough yield for some institutional investors. These clients are keen to invest in illiquid assets, such as private equity and infrastructure.
“What we have seen is a desire for higher returns in what has been a low-return environment specifically in various fixed income or bonds,” he said.
“In this environment, we have seen a de facto increase in the risk that clients are taking in things like illiquid investments, private equity investments, infrastructure and private debt, those kind of investments were higher illiquidity results in incrementally higher returns.”
The Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, one of the largest sovereign wealth funds, said in its 2016 report that has gradually increased its exposure in direct private equity and private credit transactions, mainly in Asian markets and especially in China and India. The authority’s private equity department focused on structured equities owing to “their defensive characteristics.”
CREW
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The five pillars of Islam
1. Fasting
2. Prayer
3. Hajj
4. Shahada
5. Zakat
