Photos: The gadget days of summer

While many people are fans of the count-and-divide-by-5 method, this handy tool gives an accurate reading of storms out of ear's reach.

This 75-Mile Range Thunderstorm Detector gives the ETA of approaching storms through a flashing LED light, beeps and text messages on its screen. This gives you time to hike for cover or head back into the harbor long before you're in danger of getting struck. It's available at Hammacher Schlemmer for $430.

Photo by Hammacher Schlemmer