Technology has long been used to aid and enhance our life. At its highest (and yes I do mean most expensive) form there are tools available to cater for your every whim - you can have a robotic maid, automatic dishwashers and computers that wake you up with a personalized hello and back massage tailored to your needs... There are also toilets that analyze your waste matter and suggest what type of nutrients you're lacking..if you must go that far!

Computers have shifted from being lumbering behemoths to super sleek devices which continually keep shrinking and the word netbook is now all the rage. Everything is slimmer sleeker, and shinier nowadays, but how does this actually affect you?

We all know we should be checking our breast regularly for lumps and bumps, but how many of you actually do? And when you do, are you sure you're doing it correctly?

Well the breastlight aims to make sure you have no doubts about what shape your breast are in, and it does so by passing a red light through the breast tissue. The idea is that by shining the light you get to see the details inside the breast, from blood vessel to veins, and once you're aware of what is normal, you'll easily be able to identify anything unusual.

Power Plates have been around for a while now, and they're a great way of strengthening your core muscles and toning your body in a low impact manner- as well as being easy to squeeze into your lunch break. A session usually lasts around 25 minutes and is equivalent to around an hour of working out due to the increased strain on the body because of the vibrating plate. We've previously tried out the Power Plate, but now there's a new kid on the block- and it's wearing nipple tassels...

Say hello to Burlesque Power Plate sessions which combine showgirl style moves with strengthening exercises. I was so curious I just had to go and try it for myself.

OK, I realize this story seems uber far fetched and telling you about it on today of all days is bound to test your belief levels, but honest to god, this isn't a joke. Give me some credit, eh?

This not so fetching tattoo is the result of research by Draper Laboratories and is created using nano ink.

The idea is that the nano ink used in the tattoo is glucose detecting, and it will change shade depending on your blood sugar levels; which would mean the end of painful daily injections for diabetes sufferers.

Been a bit lazy recently? Feel the spare tyre of Easter egg-dom looming alarmingly close to your midriff as Summer waves a tentative hand? Well perhaps you need to try the FA20 fitness watch then. It's a budget alternative to a personal trainer as it records all activity taken using its internal pedometer. It will also record distance and calories used during your working day and will make graphs of this information so you can track your fitness levels.

Getting into shape can often be considered a chore, as hours down the gym may produce results, but the time passes so slowly! Well the Motivatrix MX10 Workout master aims to change that, as it combines the entertainment value of DDR systems with a fully comprehensive tailored excercise programme.

Sure, it will set you back a fair whack, and will take up most of the space in your games room, but it is equipped with a variety of games, and you can opt to work through a routine in cardio, aerobic, or max-challenge mode.

Are you still carrying a couple Christmas pounds? I know I am, and as it's nearly Feb (with the dreaded Valentine's day looming), I feel like I should get my arse into gear. And naturally, being the queen of the couch, I'd like a quick fix rather than putting in time at the gym.

Well Slendertone style devices have been around for a while, and they tend to tone the muscles, rather than slenderize you. Still, if there's only a thin layer of flab on your midriff, you could get noticeable results whilst catching up on LOST.

When you think Baby G watches (which some would argue are the ultimate sturdy and robust timepiece) do you think Valentines Day? No? Me either. So, I got the info and accompanying images of a line of Baby G watches in a press release with the email header Valentine's gifts...! I don't know about you, but I'd be more than a little thwarted if I unwrapped my Valentines prezzie to reveal one of these. Yep, they're nice (if you're into Baby G) but as Valentines Day presents... when there's much jewellery, chocolate, flowers and netbooks to be had this would rate pretty high on the disappointing scale.

I'm not the most cynical of people. I believed in the tooth fairy till I realized that my money correlated to the change in my Dad's pocket and have a daily struggle with the fact that people who ask how I am don't actually want a response. However the Q-Link pendant was enough to raise my credulous level to a new height, and the fact that it's endorsed by A-listers only adds fuel to that fire.

It's a pendant. With eight contact pads attached to a circuit board that goes precisely nowhere.

It's that time of year again when gyms get inundated with an onslaught of new applicants, deluded into thinking that by signing up for the gym and going for a week the weight will magically fade away (coz that's how losing weight works right?). We all feel the strain of too much turkey and alcohol consumption post Christmas, it's the same every year, but yet we still kid ourselves into thinking we'll actually stick to out healthy New Years resolutions. All this means is we become habitual resolution breakers and then we spend the next few months beating ourselves up about it. I learned a long time ago not to make any New Years resolutions, as I got fed up of feeling waves of disappointment wash over me as I lit up the cigarette I promised myself I wouldn't smoke.

Wanting to be healthy or shift a few pounds shouldn't mean militant workout regimes - it can be about fun, pacing yourself, cutting down, regular exercise and indulging in guilty pleasures too. You could take the Danone Activia challenge, but if you're not into eating things that taste like cardboard, try one of the healthy alternatives by clicking on the image below.

These can't possibly be examples functional, tech-based pieces of jewellery. These are far too high quality metal-y and well designed and generally desirable. And yet, they are. They're all part of WellAlarm, which is your key to all your personal medical details.

The idea is that in the case of you having a medical emergency, bystanders or medical staff can access all your medical details online, after entering your unique ID number. The site's designed to be easily navigated on iPhones, Blackberrys and other smartphones, as well as computers. There's even a freephone number, so they can receive the information over the phone, or via a text message.

I adore it when Zara finds fitness gadgets to film - I always finish watching the video thinking that that particular product is definitely the one to end my regime of non excercise. This one is no exception - not only does it involve centrifugal force (see below) it has flashing lights. Is it a disco? Is it a workout? Who knows, but it looks awesome.

I melt at the word 'centrifugal', despite the fact that every time I mention it here on Shiny Shiny, someone tells me it doesn't' exist. Well, I say nay. Philips wouldn't lie to me, and they're quite sure they're using magical centrifugal force to suck out all the rubbish pulp and bits out of a smoothie, making it a much pleasanter prospect in my book.

It's got an extra large tube, so you can just shove whole bits of fruit in them (possibly excluding the likes of watermelons). Or you could try whole bars of Dairy Milk. Or a tennis ball. The possibilities are, almost literally, endless.

A marvelous start to the new year.

£127 at Comet here

The area of acne is a big business for skincare. Everyone from troubled teens to forty something's want to put the dreaded spots to rest, and are prepared to pay big bucks to do so. We've already seen the the Zeno hit the marketplace to tackle pimples with heat technology, but now there's a new kid on the block.

Say hello to the no!no! Skin, a pocket friendly device that works on your spots. It works in a similar way to the Zeno, using heat and light to target the blemish at its source and minimize its appearance and lifetime on the skin. It uses green and red light to reach into the pore to combat the blemish at its source. The light destroys the blemish whilst the heat speeds up the healing process, and reduces swelling.

With people staggering in at way past ten I feel that this device could never prove more useful. We all know that drunk driving is bad, but what about drunk typing? Looking round the office today, bathed in the sickly aftermath of the work Xmas party I spy faces that look like they could do with lashings of water and super strength Berocca.

We're all probably guilty of not chewing our food slowly as high pressure and lack of time means we wolf things down. This can lead to fun stuff like flatulence, bloating and weight gain as you're not aware you're full. I don't think I could bring myself to wear this electric bite count monitor though, as it looks like a medieval torture device.

iPod mania takes another step forward with the release of a prototype medication called the iPill. And shockingly, it has been designed by Philips rather than Apple- who says bandwagons are a bad thing? Imitation is the best kind of flattery right?

The iPill is a tiny capsule like device which contains a microprocessor and wireless transceiver, as well as a dose of medicine. And what do you do with this hi tech piece of equipment? Why, swallow it of course!

If Christmas is a time for opulence, excess and gluttony, January is a time of abstinence, detoxing and 'defragging your stomach' (copyright: Katie Lee). You may as well face facts, come January you probably are going to join a gym again, you probably will try and do the whole month without drinking and you probably won't have much fun. But you could! Take a look at these insane fitness gadgets, for a taste of what you should be doing in 2009.

Xmas comes but once a year, and once the presents have been open, the shiny wrapping discarded you're left with the Boxing Day aftermath. Say hello to toys you'll use once, novelty gifts and tat that you have nowhere to store, and ugly dresses your mum thinks you'll 'grow into'. The credit crunch may be scaring the nation but the discarded tinsel and packaging boxes in your bin Boxing Day beg to differ. How about getting your loved ones something different, such as an experience they'll treasure forever? Welcome to Airkix indoor skydiving.

See a video after the jump.

This device is still in prototype form so I'm free to be as disparaging as I want. Intrinsically it's not a terrible idea, as a home stethoscope might be a nice way for expectant parents to get closer to their unborn child.

It would be an interesting way to test out all those theories on whether playing Bach or heavy metal really affects his spirits as you could place the stethoscope against the stomach and exclaim, 'wow, Junior's kicking in time to the beat'.