Some of the list makers include the Apple AirTag, Lego Icons Retro Radio Building Set, iPhone Pocket, ESR Qi2 Wireless Car Charger, Victorinox Cyber Tool L and Dragon Touch Digital Picture Frame.
From a device for remotely tracking bags and keys to a 1970s radio built out of classic brick-snapping toys and—yes—even that weird iPhone Pocket thing, CRN is bringing a host of practical and unusual gadget gift ideas for the techies in our lives.
We’ve scoured the deep recesses of Amazon and read all of the best-of lists to bring you a well-rounded list of popular gifts and more out-there ones, with a range of gadget sizes and price points.
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2025 Gift Guide
Along with the Apple AirTag, Lego Icons Retro Radio Building Set and iPhone Pocket, we’ve added to this year’s gadget gift guide:
The ESR Qi2 Wireless Car Charger
The Victorinox Cyber Tool L “pocket knife for the digital age”
The Dragon Touch Digital Picture Frame
Read on for CRN’s gadget gift suggestions for the 2025 holiday shopping season.
Keychron V3 Max TKL Wireless Mechanical Keyboard
Price: $114.99
Where To Buy: Amazon
Some keyboard jockeys swear a mechanical keyboard adds comfort to their clacking, and one of your best options this season is the Keychron V3 Max TKL Wireless Mechanical Keyboard.
The model boasts a 2.4GHz wireless connection, a 1,000Hz polling rate, gasket mount design and sound-absorbing foam.
Users can connect the V3 Max to three devices through Bluetooth 5.1, and it supports macOS, Windows and Linux. And the double-shot polybutylene terephthalate keycaps promise oil resistance and more durable legends from fade if your typist enjoys snacks by the screen glow, according to a listing.
Lume Cube Video Conference Lighting Kit
Price: $59.99
Where To Buy: Amazon
If you’ve noticed that the techie in your life has been looking worse for wear on video calls, perhaps you should brighten their world this season with the Lume Cube Video Conference Lighting Kit.
The Cube has versatile mounting options and customizable brightness and color temperature settings.
The kit includes a 300-lumen LED panel mini, spring-loaded laptop clip mount, softening silicone diffuser and USB-C charging cable. Weighing 11.7 ounces, the kit is also aimed at techies on the go.
Chouky Large Cable Management Box
Price: $25.99
Where To Buy: Amazon
The decorative bamboo lid gives the Chouky Large Cable Management Box an aesthetic advantage over other products for helping the most wired of techies contain all their cables and plug-ins.
The package includes a larger box measuring 16 x 6.2 x 5.3 inches and a medium one measuring 12.6 x 5.4 x 5 inches. The larger box can fit a 10- to 12-outlet powerstrip. The smaller one can fit a six- to eight-outlet powerstrip.
Openings on each end of the boxes allow cords to pass through. Boxes can go under desks, and the packages come with 10 cable ties and two cable clips.
Hansker Productivity Vertical Mouse
Starting List Price: $115
Where To Buy: Hansker
If you know a techie afflicted from wrist strain by computer work, maybe it’s time for them to experiment with the more natural positioning offered by a vertical mouse.
The mouse measures 135.95 x 87.72 x 76.47 mm. It has USB-C, Bluetooth and 2.4GHz wireless connectivity and weighs about 4 ounces.
Ember Smart Mug 2
Price: $119.99
Where To Buy: Amazon
It may not seem like cups are ripe for digital disruption, but any slow-sippers you know who deal with coffee going cold might appreciate a heated mug they can control through their smartphone.
The Ember Temperature Control Smart Mug 2 holds 10 ounces and offers up to 80 minutes of heating off charger, reaching between 120 degrees Fahrenheit and 145 degrees. It can stay warm all day on the charging coaster and enters sleep mode when empty—waking up again when it senses movement or liquid.
Users don’t have to leverage the app, letting the mug default to 135 degrees. The mug also remembers the last heat setting.
Apple AirTag
Price: $29
Where To Buy: Apple
Forgetful techies fear not with Apple AirTags and the Find My application providing a better way for tracking keys, wallets, bags even cars.
Users can share AirTag information with up to five people. The tag has a built-in speaker for clueing searchers to a location through sound, or if they have an iPhone they can ask the Siri virtual assistant to find the item. iPhones will show the exact distance and direction to head in.
AirTags send out secure Bluetooth signals detected by the hundreds of millions of iPhone, iPad and Mac devices that make up the Find My network. The devices send the location of the AirTag to iCloud for searchers to then locate their tags on the Find My app map, with data anonymized and encrypted for privacy.
Nothing Ear (a) Wireless Earbuds
Price: $79.99
Where To Buy: Amazon
Earbuds getting lost or put through a wash makes them a common replacement item, and the Nothing Ear (a) buds offer an excellent stocking-stuffer option without breaking the bank.
The Ear (a) boasts of deeper bass performance and longer nonstop play time on a single charge compared to the Ear (2).
The Ear (a) has an 11mm driver and up to 45 decibels of smart active noise cancellation, even automatically checking for noise leakage between the earbud and ear canal. The buds can isolate voices for calls, offer a 10-minute fast charge and deliver 10 hours of music playback.
Perhaps a testament to the proliferation of AI, the buds are also integrated with ChatGPT, allowing users to talk to the chatbot and hear answers, according to the listing.
ESR Qi2 Wireless Car Charger
Price: $32.99
Where To Buy: Amazon
The ESR Qi2 Wireless Car Charger can hold iPhone 12 series and later, Samsung Galaxy S25 series with magnetic cases and Google Pixel 10 series phones in place on car air vents and dashboards with a ring of magnets while charging at 15 watts.
It has multiple mounting options, fast charging and a cooling component to prevent phones from overheating. The charger has Qi2-certified MagSafe charging.
Its 32-bit processor is powered by AI with efficient charging and real-time safety measures, according to the listing. The charger allows 360-degree phone rotation and measures 2.8 x 2.8 x 4.61 inches and 7.8 ounces.
RayNeo Air 3s Pro AR/XR Glasses
Price: $299
Where To Buy: Amazon
If your techie wants to be at the forefront of consumer technology, perhaps you should look into the RayNeo Air 3s Pro augmented reality and extended reality glasses.
The Air 3s Pro has 1,200 nits-to-eye brightness, supposedly the highest of any AR glasses. Its tandem Micro-OLED display and 98 percent DCI-P3 shape contributes to lifelike visuals, according to the listing. The glasses offer low blue light and flicker-free dual certification, 3,840Hz high-frequency pulse width modulation dimming, and 20-level brightness control.
The quad-speaker system’s spatial audio algorithms promise theater-grade surround sound that follows head movement and a whisper mode for private listening. The glasses weigh 2.68 ounces and measure 3.94 x 7.87 x 6.3 inches.
reMarkable 2 Paper Tablet
Price: $399
Where To Buy: reMarkable
This gift could resonate with techies who are also environmentally focused and want to cut down on paper usage or are prone to losing their paper notebooks and with them the precious notes inside.
The reMarkable 2, which has more than 1 million subscribers, enables organized storage of notes, ebooks, PDFs, to-do lists and more. Users can convert notes handwritten on the tablet into typed text, mark up digital documents and import files and web articles, according to the website. Users have undo, move, layers and other tools for editing.
This paper tablet has up to two weeks of battery life and integrates with Google Drive, Dropbox and Microsoft OneDrive. It measures 187 x 246 x 4.7 mm and weighs 403.5 grams. The tablet has a 1.2GHz dual core Arm processor, 8 GB of internal storage, Wi-Fi 2.4GHz and 5GHz USB-C connectivity.
Anker Portable Charger
Price: $25.99
Where To Buy: Amazon
Techies on the go who don’t want to fret over where the next wall outlet may be might appreciate a portable charger for the holidays.
As a plus, the Anker 10,000 milliampere-hour (mAh) portable charger is allowed on flights, according to Travel + Leisure, falling below the federal 100Wh (27,000mAh) limit.
The charger boasts charging speeds twice as fast as 5V/3A counterparts and has 30W output and 20W input for fast two-way charging. The charger works with iPhone 15 series and later, MacBooks, Samsung Galaxy phones, iPads, Nintendo Switch gaming systems and other devices.
Its 5.4-inch built-in USB-C cable can endure more than 10,000 bends, according to a listing. It measures 4.32 x 2.58 x 0.98 inches and weighs 7.7 ounces.
Therabody SmartGoggles
Price: $169
Where To Buy: Walmart
Switching from glasses for AR and XR, this eyewear instead aims to relieve strain from too much screen time.
The SmartGoggles offer gentle eye and temple massages with heat for relaxation, according to an online listing. They have a built-in biometric sensor for personalized treatments and work with Therabody’s TheraMind sound therapy content through the company’s mobile application.
The goggles weigh 1.04 pounds and measure 8.86 x 3.65 x 4.17 inches.
iPhone Pocket
Price: $149.95
Where To Buy: In Select Apple Stores
If you’re really trying to make an impression on the Apple superfan in your life, this satchel for iPhones has taken the internet by storm for its eye-popping price tag.
The Pocket is 3D-knitted with a ribbed open structure and fully encloses an iPhone, along with holding everyday items. Wearers can tie the Pocket to bags, wear it on their body or hold it.
The long strap Pocket comes in sapphire, cinnamon and black. The short strap has additional colors of mandarin, purple, pink and peacock.
Meater Pro Wireless Meat Thermometer
Price: $99.95
Where To Buy: Walmart
Techie chefs and techie grillmasters can take their skills from appetizer to main course with a gadget like the Meater Pro Wireless Meat Thermometer.
Users can leave the 1.18-inch probe in their meat over an open flame while cooking and searing and monitor the meat through the probe’s Bluetooth connectivity on the free Meater application for iOS and Android devices. The app provides real-time alerts, custom alerts, timers and guided cooking assistance.
The probe can handle a maximum temperature of 1,000 degrees. It is waterproof for sous vide cooking and dishwasher cleaning and has sensors accurate to .5 degrees Fahrenheit.
Fifteen minutes on the bamboo charging block gives the probe 12 hours of charge. Thirty minutes gives the probe more than 24 hours of charge.
Bluetooth Banana Phone
Price: $40
Where To Buy: Uncommon Goods
For the jokester techie looking for some levity at the end of the year, the banana phone connects to smartphones through Bluetooth and can receive calls and make them through voice assistants like Siri. The banana has “bunches” of compelling features such as volume control buttons, a Qualcomm chipset and a rechargeable lithium-ion battery that powers around 10 hours of talk time.
It measures 9.25 x 2.75 x 1.5 inches. And its acrylonitrile butadiene styrene plastic material should mean that, if left on the floor, the phone is less slippery than its organic counterpart.
Victorinox Cyber Tool L
Price: $140
Where To Buy: Victorinox
The 140-plus-year-old Swiss knifemaker calls this the “pocket knife for the digital age,” capable of opening, fixing and closing any IT gadget.
The Cyber Tool is a standout among IT professionals, with plenty of recommendations across the various technology and IT subreddits. It has 39 functions including 1.5mm, 2.5mm, 3mm and 6mm screwdrivers; Bit Phillipses 0, 1 and 2; a wire crimper; scissors; wire stripper and a pressurized ballpoint pen.
The tool measures 1.3 x 3.6 x 1.1 inches and weighs 6.6 ounces.
Lego Icons Retro Radio Building Set
Price: $99.99
Where To Buy: Target
A techie who likes to build and is nostalgic for the music of yesteryear has a perfect marriage in the Lego Icons Retro Radio Building Set, which offers sound effects and a smartphone holder to add practicality to playtime.
The 906-piece, 1970s-style portable radio replica has power and tuning dials for signal crackle, a fold-up carrying handle and antenna to complete the aesthetics. It runs on three LR44 silver oxide batteries.
Assembled radios measure in at a groovy 10.31 x 15.04 x 3.7 inches and weigh about 3 pounds.
DJI Mini 3 Drone
Price: $419
Where To Buy: Amazon
A good starter drone for techies who want to take to the skies is the DJI Mini 3.
Weighing 8.7 ounces, this drone doesn’t need federal registration and remote ID if flying recreationally. The drone can shoot vertical video of tall landmarks for posting to social media. It has about 24 mph (38 kilometers per hour) wind resistance.
It offers up to 32,800 feet of HD video transmission with anti-interference capabilities. Its brushless motors promise enhanced power with takeoff at up to 4,000 meters in altitude. The drone measures 14.25 x 9.88 x 2.83 inches.
Dragon Touch Digital Picture Frame
Price: $49.99
Where To Buy: Amazon
Take photo displays to the next level with a digital frame that can store around 80,000 photos.
The frame has built-in 16 GB of memory and supports Secure Digital (SD) card and USB drive connectivity.
The display features a 10.1-inch touch screen with 1,080p resolution and a 16:9 aspect ratio, according to a listing. Users can put the frame in portrait or landscape or mount it on a wall. They can customize the sleep mode and auto-rotate settings.
It weighs 1.87 pounds and measures 10.3 x 7.1 x .99 inches.
Simo Solis Lite 4G LTE Wi-Fi Mobile Hotspot
Price: $154.99
Where To Buy: Amazon
Unreliable and way-too-public internet is a nightmare for techies on the go, ones working from home and even those venturing into nature and wanting to post their best pictures.
The hotspot automatically connects to the best 4G LTE carrier in the area and allows for 10 connected devices.
The Solis Lite needs mobile service to function and includes 1 GB of high-speed data per month for the life of the unit. It offers 16 hours of battery life and can charge devices as a power bank.
Measuring 5.6 x 4.7 x 1.7 inches, the device weighs 9.9 ounces and is powered by 2 lithium-ion batteries, according to the listing.