Whether you’re camping, barbecuing or having a simple picnic, these gadgets make the perfect accompaniment to dining al fresco
STAR WARS LIGHTSABER BBQ TONGS
Inject a little fun to your outdoors dining experience with this barbecue accessory. With this gadget, you will be able to stop your meat going “to the dark side” (burning) by turning it frequently. Designed as Darth Vader’s lightsaber, these moderately priced Star Wars barbecue tongs will appeal to film fans who are not afraid to feel the force of chargrill duties. In addition to the shape of the tool, it also comes with sound effects and a red storage case to complete the Star Wars feel. Requires 2xAA batteries. £19.95
SPEAKER BLANKET
OK, you might not want to take this to a crowded park where it could be considered rather anti-social to enforce your music on others, but, if you’re simply picnicking in the garden and don’t want to drag out additional apparatus, this novel picnic blanket is perfect. It comes with built-in speakers and a pouch to pop your MP3 player/phone into. Then, it’s just a case of plugging it in using a 3.5mm headphone connection and choosing what tunes you want to listen to. And there you go, a soundtrack to your picnic. The blanket is water resistant. Requires 4xAA batteries. £22.95
VERYSMART 50/50
Can’t agree whether to have a barbecue or not? Well this outdoor grill will make the perfect gadget for those who like to mix things up a bit. On one side, you’ll find a traditional barbecue – where you can grill your food over charcoal. On the other is a plancha plate where you can sizzle some other dishes – perhaps you could combine the two and cook your meat/veggie option on the barbecue, before adding it to the stir-fry that you’ve got on the go. Both sides are powered by gas canisters that sit underneath and there are individual temperature controls on each side. £379
OUTWELL ECOCOOL 24L COOLBOX (240V, 12V)
This may look like a regular cool box (and it can be used as such) but you can also power it up using the 12-volt car adaptor, to make it more like a fridge or oven. Once it’s running, you can choose to have it set to cool or warm. If you want to keep your food hot, simply pop it on the “warm” function and you can expect your dishes to stay between 50-60C. When it’s on cool, it promises to keep your food 18-25C below the external temperature. £69.99
BIOLITE CAMPING STOVE
This stove will brighten up any night under the stars. Not only can you cook your beans or boil water for your morning cuppa on the device, but you can charge your phone on it too. This is particularly impressive given that the energy for the stove doesn’t come in the form of a gas canister but instead you use “renewable biomass” – twigs, sticks etc. Load up the main canister (the part which looks slightly like a grater) with your fuel and set it alight, then, once it’s hot, pop your food/water in a suitable pan on top and heat up. As for the phone-charging facility, it uses thermoelectric technology converting the heat to electricity which you can then use for powering up your phone. £139.99