Gift Guides    Tech Cases

Gift Guide 2012: Tech Gifts

Once upon a time, people who loved technology and gadgets were considered geeks. It’s weird to think about just how recently that era was, particularly since the general public now sits in rapt attention whenever Apple unveils a new product in California. Now everyone’s a gadget person, and meeting someone who’s not is a jarring experience. I can think of one person I’ve met in the last five years who didn’t have a cell phone, and he was profoundly strange.

With so many of us leading gadget-centric lives (I have an iPhone, an iPad, a MacBook Pro and an iMac. All in my tiny apartment. For no reason. They’re like a little family that I live with.), technology is a natural source of great holiday gifts. After all, if you want to buy something that a friend or family member will really use, odds are that choosing something to make their phone or tablet experience more enjoyable is a great way to go. Below, we’ve selected some of the most stylish tech gifts of the season to get you started.

Juicy Couture Faux Fur Earmuff Headphones
$98 via ShopBop

Earbuds are boring. So are Beats – everyone has them, let’s be real. You know what’s not boring? Hot pink, fur-covered earmuffs that also play music. There’s no better way to brighten up a boring black coat look.

Boostcase Hybrid Case and Battery Sleeve
$80 via Nordstrom

You might have seen charging cases before, but this one’s the best for one simple reason: When you don’t need the bulk of the battery, you just slip it off and still have the matching, totally durable, slim-profile hard case underneath. My purple one was a total lifesaver during Fashion Week, and if you’re a heavy iPhone user, you NEED one of these. (Or your friend or loved one needs one. This is a gift guide. Right.)

Kate Spade Stripe Bow Tech Gloves
$78 via Bloomingdale’s

One of the worst nuisances of winter is having to take your gloves off and get your hands cold in order to so much as check a text message on a touch-screen phone. These bright, cheerful gloves have material in the fingertips that allows you to manipulate touch screens without fear of frostbite.

Apple iPad
$499 and up, via Best Buy

Let’s be serious: If you want to give a great gift to someone who doesn’t have an iPad, give them an iPad. Even if they’re an iPad naysayer. Every single iPad naysayer I know lover his or her iPad. I love mine. They’re great! If nothing else, it’s a good way to tame an overflowing book collection. (And play Angry Birds.)

Jonathan Adler Porcelain Smartphone Dock
$48 via ShopBop

Everyone has to charge their phone, but phone chargers or ugly. This thing? Not ugly. Nothing Jonathan Adler makes ever is. It’s an appropriate decor piece for either a nightstand or desk, and all you have to do is feed your regular charger up through the bottom.

Nike+ Fuelband
$149 via Nike

If you have a friend who’s already a fitness freak, working on becoming one, or someone who just likes data, this little band is pretty neat. It tracks your daily activity as you wear it, which allows you to set goals and track your progress. Pretty neat, eh?

3-in-1 iPhone Photo Lens
$70 via Neiman Marcus

We all have that friend who has to Instagram her every move. With a small attachable lens, her photography options are suddenly quadrupled over the regular ol’ iPhone camera. This one allows for fisheye, wide-angle and close-up macro photography.

Tory Burch Travel Adapter
$95 via Neiman Marcus

If you have a friend who loves to travel (or one who’s about to go on her first big jaunt abroad), this is the perfect piece to send her off on the right note. When she returns and no longer needs to carry the adapter, the case can be used for all kinds of small jobs inside a larger handbag.

Alexander McQueen Ocelot iPad Case
$360 via Net-a-Porter

Any roundup of tech gifts wouldn’t be complete without a super luxe iPade case. This one manages to stay under the price point of the iPad itself, and the dark print won’t show wear.

guest

1 Comment
Most Voted
Newest Oldest
Inline Feedbacks
View all comments