Let’s be honest — there’s a lot of cool gadgets to choose from — right from an AI-enabled Pictionary board to a toilet that flushes automatically and sprays perfume, there’s no dearth of variety of new technological innovations.
Yes, variety is the spice of life, but we’ve narrowed down our holiday gifting guide to include a few useful (or just plain supercool) gadgets that you can gift or even keep for yourself.
Here are the 10 coolest gadgets you can gift someone this holiday season:
- Philips Hue: Smart Lights for the New Age Home
“Siri, turn the lights purple.”
If you want to control the lighting of your home with your voice or from your phone, Philip Hue smart bulbs are the latest, best addition. The starter pack comes with three coloured bulbs and a hub to control the lights via a mobile app. Philip Hue integrates support from Amazon’s Alexa, Google Home, and Apple Homekit so that you can control the lights by voice commands too.
Key USP: Can change up to 16 million colours.
2. Sonos Play:1: Music to Your Ears
If you are looking for a hi-end quality speaker at a relatively cheaper price, Sonos Play:1 is perfect. Don’t let the diminutive size fool you, the sound quality that Sonos delivers is every music snob’s idea of heaven.
The speaker works on Wifi and needs to be connected to a power socket and can be controlled by an android and iOS. It’s compatible with more than 100 music streaming services and can be voice-controlled through Alexa or Google Assistant.
Key USP: Sonos Play: 1 offers deep, rich quality sound from a high-end speaker retailer at a price that won’t put a dent in your pocket.
3. DJI Spark: Up, Up, and Away!
“Is it a bird?
Is it a bat?
No, it’s your new DJI drone!”
If you have just been initiated into the world of drone flying or are thinking of gifting a drone to a newbie, then go for the DJI Spark. This drone is easy to use, compact, and lightweight.
Key USP: It captures smooth, clean images and footage — which is excellent for the price.
4. Nintendo Switch Lite: Nostalgia Reloaded!
Nintendo’s miniature version of Switch brings back the 90s nostalgia factor of hand-held gaming devices — but it’s packed with present-day uber cool graphics.
Key USP: A good battery life and a lightweight body make it a great travel companion.
5. Google Daydream: AI Dream of Virtual Reality
Watch your favourite musician perform from the first row, tour the Louvre Museum, or cheer your favourite sportsmen from the sidelines, Google’s new virtual reality headset has two built-in lenses and an NFC chip that will enable you to see the world in virtual reality.
You just need to check if your android phone has the specs to support VR, then you’re all set to go.
Key USP: It is compatible with a variety of phones and is a great novelty for the price it is offered at.
6. Sphero BB-8 Droid: Star Wars Fans Unite
Welcome to earth, R2-D2!
This smartphone-controlled droid is one of the most fun gifts you can gift or receive at Christmas. It is expensive for a piece of Star Wars memorabilia, but it has a cool bunch of tech — it can move around, it responds to your voice commands, and is the most fun you’ll have with a robot this year.
Key USP: You get your own voice-controlled robot!
7. GoPro Hero 8: Your Partner in Your Next Adventure
What more can you ask for with a 12 MP camera that accommodates wide angles?
GoPro Hero has also upped its game with great stabilization, and smart use of the time-lapse recording.
Key USP: This is a must-buy for all the adventure junkies who love to take videos of their travels.
8. Amazon Echo Show (2nd Gen): Your Butler at Your Service
If you want an AI piece of technology that serves as a hub to control your smart home devices like your smart speakers, smart lights, then Amazon Echo Show is the best pick. The video has a good screen size, decent resolution, and the audio is clear and loud.
Key USP: You have your own virtual butler at your service, and your butler has a big video screen.
9. iRobot Roomba: The Future of Cleaning is Here
The future is here. This robotic vacuum cleaner boasts of Wifi connectivity, camera navigation to avoid bumping into things, and a smartphone app that provides alerts and detailed cleaning reports. It cleans really well too!
Key USP: It can be operated via voice control too! It’s a perfect addition to your smart home!
10. Dyson Pure Cool Me: Breathe Easy
Dyson Pure Cool Me claims to purify 99.5% of the air around it and has been built for personal use. This might seem like an overindulgence, but given how the pollution levels are going up, it might seem like a sound investment.
Key USP: Great gift idea for people who want to save the environment and breathe pure air!
Now that you have matched with the gadget of your dreams, the next step is thinking about how to finance your purchase. It would be wiser to put your savings aside for more important things and use a gadget loan to finance your gifts for the holidays. You can buy gadgets on EMI without causing a dent in your bank account, and pay the gadget loan back in small investments every month.
