Upgraded tech in recontact

From a computing perspective, more capable Gremlins is the obvious way forward, including software agents that act on your behalf, perhaps anticipating your needs and putting things in place for them (much like a capable executive assistant).

Lots of drones and drone swarms too. Surveillance and delivery are the obvious roles.

Combat with high-tech people gets deadly, when everyone has a smart gun and all the bullets are self-guiding. (US Army is already testing self-guiding sniper bullets.) Hook those into a swarm of small surveillance drones for precision-guided indirect fire in every soldier's hand... A team of half-decently equipped soldiers will annihilate you before you even know they're in the area.

Things like autopilots where good to stat up in BPv2 as having high Aptitudes but low Skill. They were superb in good conditions, but as soon as things became complex, you wanted a human with a real depth of skill.

That's a good point. I can see a lot of things being made as "outback ready", with simple and easy-to-repair construction. Exposed bolts and screws. Spare parts in little compartments inside the case.  Smart devices that have a fallback, manual-operation mode. 

I'll go the other way too. Native catamarans with self-calibrating auto-pilots and auto-sail-trimmers bolted on. Wood-burning stoves with a thermocouple and fan attached, to give the most efficient and controllable cooking.

Another couple of thoughts.

Flat-pack construction drones. You buy a box of "joints" (electric motor, sensors, perhaps a hydraulic system or two) and some plans. Using a supply of thick industrial bioplastic sheets, you use a 3ax or laser cutter to cut out the panels that make the various sections of limb. Assemble it with some standard bolts, let the controller learn the precise geometry of what you've bodged together, and you've got a half-decent construction drone. It won't be as good as a bespoke one, but it's perhaps easier to use on the frontier. Repair is easy enough, and you could probably use wood in place of some of the bioplastic.

The "Me-Arm" is the kind of aesthetic I was thinking of.

Another one, glancing at the entry for Poseidon trilobites. You just know that some eccentric uncle will get fed up with the juvenile "roach" infestation every spring, so they've decided to do something about it. They get a small drone, train a vision system, and mount a taser-like thing on it. It wanders around, hunting and zapping roaches when they appear. But the AI's not that great, so it also targets pet rumble bees, tree stumps, and people's feet. But it'll work better after just a little bit more tinkering!

I think that AR glasses or implants should be a major thing, many newcomers should be extremely reliant on it and on strong/fast/easy accessible brandwith, and on Poseidon is a luxury outside the main settlements. Also ad-hoc distributed network for subcultures (ex. Native activists, insurgents, newcomer etc) could be a part of the setting.

It's such a staple of the genre, isn't it? In cyberpunk in general, AR glasses or visors or cybereyes are so pervasive they're not even a fashion statement - they're practically digital underwear.
And you're absolutely right, I think! Constant, comfy access to information is a must. ...I mean, I wouldn't mind that even nowadays! I keep bumping into things while walking around with my iPhone out.

Come to think of it, users with neural jacks or those wearing 'trodes get the AR treatment from their VIs (used to be called bodycomps). Which also brings a question - will we see a design upgrade of the 'trodes? It's such a common wearable, so very practical. And if there's one area of rapid tech improvement that seems to be trumping all others, it's users' comfort.

Finally, finally a way for me to defeat IKEA!!  Yes please, more of that! A combination of AR interface, limited self-learning assistance software and a 3D fabricator can change even a hopeless case like myself into a self-reliant frontier settler!!

I might also need some health & safety Programmed Reflexes. Something that would ensure I won't drop stuff on my feet, lift heavy loads incorrectly or end up burning my hands or eyes with a chemical torch.