2016 Holiday Gift Guide: High-Tech Ideas For Young And Old
Didn’t find everything you needed on Black Friday or Cyber Monday – or hadn’t even gotten around to making a gift list yet? It’s not too late. Here’s our top-ten list of 2016 holiday gift ideas.
1. Amazon Echo Dot (2nd Gen): Welcome Alexa to your home. The Amazon Echo automated assistant in this small hands-free device can understand voice commands and control all of your smart home devices, play music or read you the news, and even call you an Uber or order you a pizza.
Image credits https://www.amazon.com/All-New-Echo-Dot-2nd-Generation/dp/B015TJD0Y4
2. August Smart Lock: Control access to your home with your smartphone once you’ve replaced your interior deadbolt with the Smart Lock. You can lock and unlock your door, create virtual keys for your guests, track who comes and goes – all thanks to a Bluetooth connection to your phone.
Image credits http://august.com/products/august-smart-lock/
3. Intel Compute Stick: Just when you think computers couldn’t get smaller, meet this full-featured Windows 10 machine that’s about the size of a pack of gum. Just plug the stick into a monitor, connect power, and use one of several available apps to turn your phone or tablet into a keyboard.
Image credits http://www.intel.com/content/www/us/en/compute-stick/intel-compute-stick.html
4. Whistle GPS Pet Tracker: Never worry about Fluffy getting lost. You use the app to define a “Whistle Zone” for your pet and attach the tracker to his collar, and the system tracks his whereabouts via GPS and notifies you whenever he strays and wherever he goes. The GPS works nationwide, too.
Image credits http://www.whistle.com/
5. Google Home: Not a fan of Alexa? Google Home does just about the same thing with a virtual assistant that response to voice commands. The system will play music, podcasts or radio stations, search Google to answer voice queries, interface with smart home systems, work throughout the home – and it’s customizable.
Image credits https://www.cnet.com/pictures/no-thats-not-an-air-freshener-thats-google-home/18/
6. OnePlus 3T: This new high-end Android smartphone is sleek, trim and fast, with a quad-core Snapdragon 820 chipset, Adreno 530 GPU and – unusual for a phone – a full 6GB of RAM. There’s a 16 megapixel camera and another 8 megapixel one for selfies, capacity for dual SIM cards and a super-fast charger.
Image credits https://www.cnet.com/products/oneplus-3t/review/
7. Odyssey Pocket Drone: Drones are all the rage, and this cool one looks much like a phone and collapses to fit into your pocket when not in use. The toy quadcopter has auto takeoff, land and return; the HD camera is good but not great and the drone is a bit flimsy, but it’s a great starter drone at a reasonable price.
Image credits https://www.cnet.com/products/odyssey-pocket-drone/review/
8. Nintendo NES Classic Edition: This is for the grown-ups and not the kids, although the latter may quickly become converts. All of the classic games from the 1980s Nintendo console, from Donkey Kong to Super Mario Bros. are in this much smaller digital unit, and you can choose whether they look just like they used to or have modern-day resolution.
Image credits http://www.nintendo.com/nes-classic
9.Logitech X100 Mobile Wireless Speaker: Listen anywhere on this portable speaker with great acoustics. It works on a Bluetooth connection within 30 feet, has a five-hour rechargeable lithion-ion battery, and you can control it completely from your phone or tablet.
Image credits https://www.cnet.com/pictures/logitech-x100-product-photos/3/
10. Sony Playstation VR: It’s expensive, it’s cool, and it’s the future. The virtual reality headset plugs into your PS4 (not included) and puts you into an amazing world of VR gaming. The headset’s HD 1080p display and 3D audio make the experience one that you’ll wish was available years ago.
Image credits https://www.playstation.com/en-au/explore/playstation-vr/
Happy shopping, and don’t keep all of them for yourself!
