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The 4 Essential Amazon Devices Travelers Need

Hate coming home to a freezing house after vacation? Don’t have room to pack any books? You need these four amazing Amazon devices for your next trip.

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ecobee4

Two views of the the ecobee4 smart thermostat
Amazon

If you’ve ever left for the airport (or even just for work for the day) only to remember too late that you’ve left the heat or air conditioning on, you need the ecobee4. This smart thermostat is super easy to set-up, and allows you to control the temperature of your home remotely either via an app or by logging on to the ecobee website.  It comes with a sensor that you can place anywhere in your house to help make sure that the temperature is set correctly for your comfort. The sensor and thermostat uses a motion sensor to determine if the house is occupied, and switches to an energy-saving mode if it’s not.

A vacation schedule feature allows you to conserve energy while you’re away, and automatically turns on the heat/air conditioning to make sure your house is at the perfect temperature when you do return home.

The device also has Amazon Alexa functionality built-in, so you use it to check the weather and read the news hands-free on your way out the door.

Amazon Fire HD 8 Tablet

Close up of hands using the Amazon's Fire HD 10 tablet (left) and a close up of the home screen of the Amazon's Fire HD 10 tablet (right)
Amazon

With major airlines moving away from seat-back televisions, it’s more important than ever to bring your own entertainment (unless you enjoy staring into space on long flights). Amazon’s Fire HD 10 tablet is an all-in-one device that makes it easy to download books, movies, or television shows to watch offline in the air—or to stream from your Netflix account while online. You can get free books to read with a Kindle Unlimited subscription, or borrow e-books from your public library before your trip. The tablet’s large screen is great for video calls, and the battery life lasts 12 hours.

Ring Video Doorbell 3

Finger pushing the Ring Video Doorbell 3 (left) and the associated app (right)
Amazon

Worried about what’s happening at your house while you’re away? The Ring Video Doorbell 3 gives you peace of mind, no matter how far from home you are. The easy-to-install electronic doorbell lets you see who is at your door, with live on-demand video at any time (including at night, thanks to a night-vision camera). You can even hear and speak to visitors through Alexa, just as if you were on the other side of the door.

Fire TV Stick 4K

Components of the Fire TV Stick 4K
Amazon

Don’t want to miss your favorite shows while you’re traveling? The Fire TV Stick 4K plugs in to almost any television and makes it easy to stream more than 500,000 movies and TV episodes from Netflix, Prime Video, Hulu, Starz, Showtime, and more. It’s small and easy to pack, so you can connect to your hotel television and watch the same way you would at home.

Caroline Morse Teel is always on the hunt for the newest and best travel gear. Follow her on Instagram @TravelWithCaroline to see what she wears around the world.

Some review products are sent to us free of charge and with no incentive to offer a favorable review. We offer our unbiased opinions, positive and negative, and will never accept compensation to review a product.

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We hand-pick everything we recommend and select items through testing and reviews. Some products are sent to us free of charge with no incentive to offer a favorable review. We offer our unbiased opinions and do not accept compensation to review products. All items are in stock and prices are accurate at the time of publication. If you buy something through our links, we may earn a commission.

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