Gadget goodness for that special someone on your list this year
Updated 12-17-20
Roccat gaming devices from Turtle Beach
The Vulcan 121 AIMO programmable gaming keyboard with living keyboard lighting; is a piece of art for your desktop. Not only delivering a constant lightshow, it can also be programmed for all your favorite games. The Titan switch tactile keys are precise and responsive. Made of aluminum, it will stand up to your toughest challenges.
The Kain 200 gaming mouse optical sensor is adjustable up to 16,000dpi and will last up to 50 hours on a single charge. The Titan Wheel 2.0 scroll wheel performs flawlessly and the programmable Omron switches are designed to last up to 50 million clicks.
The Elo 7.1 Air headphone with a detachable, noise-cancelling microphone will take your gaming experience to new levels. Immersive 7.1 channel surround sound is powered by precision-tuned 50mm drivers, while Superhuman Hearing®boosts critical game sounds so you hear other players before they see you.
Lenovo Chromebook Duet
Premium feel
Small little Chromebooks have a habit of feeling cheap – but not this one. It has a solid feel, a great texture finish (no fingerprints on the rear) and a nice looking textured fabric back cover/folding stand. The keyboard is also nice and rigid – and works great. The 400 nit screen (1920×1200) is absolutely gorgeous and plenty bright.
2 in 1
One of the benefits with the Chrome OS is being able to use my Android apps on this bigger screen in tablet mode. Perfect as a backup device, it’s awesome to have around for cooking in the kitchen or as an alternative laptop for Zoom meetings. There’s a 2MP front-facing camera and a nice 8MP rear-facing camera with a 64GB eMMC hard drive. It’s small enough (under a pound in tablet mode) and just a tad over 2 pounds with stand and keyboard attached. Check the crazy low price under $300 at Lenovo, which includes free 12 months of Google One membership and 100GB of storage.
EpiqVision Mini EF12 Smart Streaming Laser Projector
Amazing sound and image quality
Epson has packed amazing projection and audio into the EpiqVision Mini EF12 Smart Streaming Laser Projector. From just 7 feet away, thhis throws a gorgeous 84″ wide image with great color. Max image size is 150″. I even tried it on a medium grey wall and the whites look completely normal. Wirelessly stream any content or use USB or HDMI inputs (2). Android TV is built-in, so download those favorite apps or watch YouTube with its own dedicated button on the remote. You’ve got to see this to believe what’s packed in this compact package. Premium Yamaha audio amplifier pumps out great sound. Check the full specs here.
Vissles-M Portable Monitor
Vissles-M Monitor
Gorgeous 15.6″ 10-finger touch screen with accurate color, can also be set up vertically for browsing or checking long email chains. Built in speaker sounds good and has volume and brightness control switch. Comes with cover/stand.
Also available in non-touchscreen for slightly less. Learn all about the other benefits.
Feit Electric Wireless Battery-Operated Security
SmartVideo Doorbell
Place anywhere – USB rechargeable battery can last weeks. Motion detection and voice communication without the monthly fees. Take pictures or record video right from the app. 1080p video makes for crystal clear recordings.
Learn more. Model CAM/DOOR/WIFI/BAT
Jabra Elite 85t Active Noise Cancellation Earbuds
Only what you want to hear
These top-of-the-line earbuds from Jabra take noise cancellation to a new level – actually – pick from 11 levels of ANC. Add in the “HearThrough” function and these will be your everyday earbuds of choice. Great bass with 12mm speakers, and six microphones allow you to tune out the noise and yet speak comfortably. Fine-tune it all with the Jabra MySound app on your phone and pick the best levels for your situation. Control your day with Siri and Google Assistant voice controls or pick Soundscapes to mask the sounds around you while concentrating. . Read about all the amazing features on their website.
My Passport 1TB SSD from Western Digital
Solid portable drive
With a whopping one terabyte capacity, you never need to leave home without all your important files. Or, backup up every single vacation photo you shoot while on the road. It won’t take any time to do so with write speeds up to 1000MB/s and read speeds up to 1050MB/s. Connect to your computer withUSB 3.2 Gen-2 with USB-C cable and USB-A adapter if needed.
PowerDirector 365 for Business from Cyberlink
Simple ad creation
PowerDirector 365 for Business features premade video ads available to quickly customize and publish on social media with free stock photos, stock video or your own media. Ads can be created in 1:1, 16:9 or 9:16 formats to fit any social media style. Your ads will be ready to go in literally minutes. New templates added each month.
Need more???
For even more flexibility, take your project into the advanced editor for complete control of all aspects of your production. Read more about Power Director’s editing capabilities in this review I did last year.
Tools for work from Klein Tools
Neck & Face Warming Band
Stay warm this winter with this Neck and Face Warming Band. Long knit band can be worn in multiple ways to cover just the nose and mouth, or over the top of the head in place of a hat. The outside layer is made of super evaporative performance knit fabric and has anti-odor treatment for freshness. The inside layer is made of breathable fleece fabric for warmth. Comfortable for all-day wear.
Tradesman Tumbler
Keep your hot drinks hot for four hours and your cold drinks cold for 12 hours in this double-walled Tradesman Tumbler. Fits in your truck cup holder, or attach it to a metal object with a hanging earth magnet. Holds 20 oz. of your favorite beverage and won’t leak even if turned upside down.
Zappiti Pro 4K HDR
Pro 4K HDR Media Player
Keep all your movies, music, and photos organized in one place with this Zappiti 4K HDR Media Player. Equip it with up to 32 TB of storage in the front accessible two hot-swap drive bays, or serve up media from network-accessible drives or computers on your home network. A beautiful interface also provides trailers and digital information about your media files.
Intuos CTL4100 WL pen tablet by Wacom
Compact pen tablet
Now you can have the expert editing capability of a wireless tablet in a compact six by eight-inch tablet that recharges with a simple USB connection. The Wacom Intuos Wireless Bluetooth tablet is just the thing for artists, budding artists, and digital photographers. Comes with three complementary artist’s software programs.
LumiCharge – T2W
Lamp and Speaker
The ideal bedside or desktop combination of Bluetooth speaker, wireless charger for your cellphone, choice of three color temperature lights, along with an LCD readout of time, date, and temperature from Lumicharge. Unique hinged arms allow light to be directed where needed. Also has USB port for wired charging devices. Pair with Amazon Alexa or Google for added capabilities. Comes with accessories for Apple Watch.
Tranquility Weighted Blanket
Weighted blanket
This temperature balancing weighted blanket from Tranquility helps you to relax for a full night’s sleep. It includes a plush, machine washable cover that keeps you cool in warmer weather and keeps you warm when the temperatures drop. Tranquility offers a range of styles available in numerous weights both at Target and Walmart.
USB-C Travel Dock by OWC
Travel dock – USB-C
Perfect for a backpack or briefcase, the OWC USB-C Travel Dock has a built in USB-C connection cable in the base, and allows pass through power up to 100 watts. Around the perimeter are 5 ports of connectivity: (2) USB 3.1 Gen 1 (Type-A), (1) HDMI, (1) SD card, (1) USB-C power pass through. Lightweight but powerful, and the perfect companion when away from your desktop. Learn more at OWC.
Ancestry.com
AncestryDNA
The easy way to look back into your family’s roots. Where did they come from, what nationalities are represented, and maybe more importantly, who is out there that you might be related to that you never knew about. Learn more at https://www.ancestry.com/dna/
Ancestry.com
Build your family tree for generations to follow. Start from scratch or build onto a relative’s already existing tree. Research historic newspapers and databases to confirm distant relatives – see what type work they did and read about their achievements. https://www.ancestry.com/
ESHLDTY T1 Waterproof RGB MultiOutlet
Plug in 13 Devices
Amazing power strip tower has nine 110v outlets, spaced wide enough apart to allow power cubes next to each other. Also has three USB-A power outlets and one USB-C port with 2.4A which will identify your smart devices for proper power.
Perfect for outdoors, the unit is IPX6 waterproof and able to take rain or water splashed on it from a hose.
Available now on Indiegogo, you can get either the 9 outlet model I tested or a 12 outlet, slightly taller unit.
Also built in are multi-colored light arrays that will even dance to your music.
Theta Z1 360-degree camera
Stills and video
Shoot 4K spherical video or panoramic stills measuring 6720 x 3360 (23MP). Superior noise reduction in low light situations. Save in RAW format or JPEG, both recorded simultaneously. Supports live 4K streaming at 120Mbps or 2K at 42Mbps with 4-channel microphones aiming in each direction.
A magnesium body is tough enough to give years of service and comes with a soft case for protection in your pocket or camera bag. See all the details and watch a fantastic nighttime shot in 360 degree motion.
Tranya M10 Bluetooth earbuds
Big sound Small $$$
Get great bass sound through a 14.2mm graphene driver and up to 80 hours of use with the charging case. Recharge overnight via USB-C or via wireless charging. Pairs with your phone in about 1 second with its Qualcomm chipset. Four microphones help cancel out ambient noises.
Check out their website for more info or order at Amazon.com for only $49.99.
FeiyuTech AK2000C Camera Gimbal
Real remote control
This gimbal is an amazing deal for anyone with a compatible mirrorless camera or certain DSLR cameras. (See compatibility chart.)
Try out four specialty modes in additoin to standard gimbal operation: Inception mode, Time lapse, Vlkog selfie, and Portrait shooting. All done via an OLED display for efficiency and quick mode changes. A beautiful piece of equipment, only about as big as a letter-size sheet of paper, and a tremendous bargain for the money.
See all the details at https://www.feiyu-tech.com/ak2000c/
Vivid-Pix Restore Software
One click restoration
If you aren’t willing to spend days learning photo editing software, but you’ve got lots of old photos you’d love to save, Restore by Vivid-Pix is your answer.
Simply open your original image and then select which automatically restored image looks best – save the file and you’re done. Restores color, contrast and sharpening – does not remove scratches or tears.
No credit card required for a free trial at https://vivid-pix.com/
Have you tried any of these products? If so, please leave a comment below or drop me a note. I’d love to hear what you think.
Cover Photo by Caley Dimmock on Unsplash. Balance of photos by Doug Bardwell or product manufacturer.