The holiday season is officially upon us and you know what that means: clearing out the bank account to buy gifts for everyone about whom you care, and a handful of people you hope will one day make you famous. Among that lucky group are certainly a few all-consumed entrepreneurs and drooling techies always craving the latest and greatest gadgets. They can be the hardest to shop for, so we thought we’d give you a hand. Here are 9 great gift ideas perfect for the person who works their butt off and/or loves their grown-up tech toys.
1. VoltNow Power Wallet – The Phone Charging Wallet
Is your phone constantly dying? As you jet about the world, making deals and pressing palms, do you find yourself saying, “If only I had a wallet that doubled as a phone charger?” Then you’re in luck. The VoltNow Power Wallet promises that even if you run out of cash, you’ll never run out of smartphone power. It backs up this promise by offering a loaded 4,000mAh battery pack to boost your phone battery. And it looks sexy (or as sexy as this kind of thing can look). Works for Apple and USB-C.
Cost: $80
2. Clear – The VIP Airport Security Pass
Few things are more annoying than waiting in the security / customs line at the airport. Shoes off, belt off, clothes off (if you’re wearing armor). Clear allows you to fly through security lines, giving you more time to rest, eat terrible airport food, and drink from that flask you smuggled in your carry on. Perfect if you’re on a fundraising tour or trying to escape angry investors.
Cost: $15/month
3. AeroPress – The Coffee Magic Maker
Entrepreneurs and techies are fueled by two things: dreams and coffee. Sometimes they’re fueled by cocaine, but those entrepreneurs usually ending up making questionable (business) deals, similar to what Richard did on Silicon Valley. The Aeropress is an amazingly simple way to make an amazingly good cup of coffee (I speak from experience). It also travels well, being small enough to easily fit in a suitcase. If you’re sick of drinking day-old coffee, the Aeropress is your golden ticket.
Or, if you want to make cold brew, consider Prisma.
Cost: $35
4. Smiirl – The IRL Social Counter
If you’re vain enough to want to show your social media count off in the office, Smiirl lets you do it. Put it up on your wall, or on your desk, or next to that bust of yourself, and show just how many fans you have. Of course, while some people will think you have a great sense of humor, others will think you’re a narcissist, and perhaps a few others will think you’re 12. Either way, in the age of the selfie-mirror, just about anything can pass for half-authentic-half-ironic. But talk about a conversation piece…
Cost: $339 (yes, really)
5. Ecomo Bottle – The Water Bottle That Tells You How Gross Your Water Is & Filters It
After raising $453,107 out of a $50,000 goal on Kickstarter, this gadget is a proven winner. Not only does this bottle filter your water, it also tells you the quality of it, reminds you when you need to change the filter, and gives you hydration alerts. If you have a hard time remembering to drink enough liquid or work from an office with germ-infected H20, this is the solution.
Cost: $137
6. AiraWear – The Massage-Giving Hoodie
Do your muscles get stiff from sitting at your computer all day? Do you wish you had your own personal masseuse draped over your shoulders at all times? Yes and yes? I thought so. The AiraWear is an app-controlled massage hoodie that will give you a relaxing massage any time you want. It also has a “posture correction system” that will alert you when you’re slouching. Perfect for the person who is grinding away on the next great app, or just really loves “functional” clothing.
Cost: $199
7. Hyde Smart Wall and Ceiling Tiles – The LED-Display-Embedded Wall Tiles
This is next level smart home / interior design stuff. These wall and ceiling tiles feature an “integrated architectural lighting” system with LEDs that can be controlled from an app or remote control. The lights are in the walls…The mounting system ensures you won’t see any wires sticking out, the yellow pine, white marble, and raw concrete designs will match a number of styles, and apparently they can customize almost any feature from panel size to light position. It can also display the time. In the wall.
Cost: Probably A Lot
8. The JamStack – The World’s First Attachable Guitar Amplifier
Every entrepreneur has a guitar (or 6) in their office, right? When you get burned out, you pick it up, lay down a couple fat riffs, and then go back to changing the world. The JamStack solves the, “Holy crap this amplifier is huge and I’m not bringing it into my office/bathroom,” problem. It plugs directly into your electric guitar and is controlled by a smart app, which can change the amplifier sounds. If you go broke, it’s also good for busking and panhandling.
If you want something for your kids, check out Air Jamz – also very cool and essentially turns everyone into an air guitar phenom.
Cost: $138 (Pre-Order Only)
9. SprayPrinter – Graffiti For Your Walls
Prooooobably something that makes more sense for the office (depending on how cool your significant other is with wall-art). By this point, every startup needs an edgy graffiti-like painting on their wall, but unless you’re an amazing graffiti artist you probably shouldn’t do it yourself. SprayPrinter unlocks your inner street artist, allowing you to put images on a wall even if you know nothing about painting.
It communicates with your phone via Bluetooth, automatically releasing paint from a spray can onto a wall based on the image on your phone. Apparently you just move the canister around the wall, and the intelligence of the device takes care of the rest. The app comes with an artist’s collection but you can use your own images as well. W
Cost: $197 (Pre-Order Only)
Stephen Altrogge is a freelance writer based in Tallahassee, Florida. He writes about tech, marketing, faith, and lots of other things. He’s married to Jen and has three young girls. Every day he consumes more coffee than the entire population of Colombia. He knows more about Star Wars than any respectable man should, and he runs more than any sane man would. He once attempted to eat a 2 pound hamburger in under an hour. He failed.
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$300+ to show off your friend count? Weird!
AeroPress is going to be flying off the shelves this holiday season. There are so many people that are “into” coffee and making their own, or pressing it for that matter. Great list!