Gadget Birthday Gift Ideas For Sons/Brothers 2012

Gifts for teenage boysGifts for your dadGifts for your mumGifts hampers

The world seems have gone completely gadget crazy over the last couple of years. A wave of shiny,new devices have invaded our homes and are here to stay.

It’s also very likely that if you’ve got a son or a brother some of these new gadgets will be high up their 2012 birthday present list so to help you choose we’ve picked out some of the best.

Let’s start with some of the more expensive items:-

The Tablet PC

2011 was the the year of the tablet PC. After the huge success of Apple’s original iPad other manufacturers were slow to respond with devices of their own.

When they did eventually respond in 2011 the majority of the devices released simply weren’t good enough to challenge Apple’s new iPad 2. However, one Android powered tablet has emerged as a legitimate alternative to the iPad 2.

The tablet in question is the superb Asus Transformer. Reviews comparing the Asus to Apple’s device have been incredibly close and where one has been chosen over the other the difference has been minimal.

One big difference at the time of writing this post is the price. When the Asus was first released it’s pricing was very similar to the iPad 2 however we’ve noticed the price dropping in the run up to Xmas 2011 and the Transformer can currently be purchased on Amazon.co.uk for almost £100 less than the comparable iPad 2.

The Smart Phone

Second only to the tablet PC in this years hot list is the Smart Phone. It’s no longer good enough to have a phone that just makes calls and sends texts, nowadays a phone needs to do much much more to be desireable.

The list of things a modern smart phone can do is truly astonishing, high end phones like the Samsung Galaxy SII are arguably ultra portable computers and arguably shouldn’t be referred to as phones. Unsurprisingly, these high end devices come with a hefty price tag of £400+.

We feel that there is a price sweet spot in the phone market at the moment of around £170. If you know what you are looking for you can pick up a very good phone that’ll do 90% of the things the top models will do at half the price.

Our current pick is easily the Sony Xperia Mini. It’s a fantastic phone that isn’t underpowered like some of the other models in this price bracket and is currently available here for less than £170.

The Nintendo 3DS

March 2011 was a very big month for Nintendo as they released their follow up to the hugely successful DSi. The new device had to be special and had to offer something new to gamers if it was going to stand any chance of repeating the DSi’s success.

The new device, named the 3DS didn’t dissapoint and had a very impressive party piece up it’s sleeve. The Nintendo 3DS is the first handheld gaming device to offer glasses free 3D which adds a completely new dimension to video gaming.

If the son or brother you are buying for is interested in gaming you really can’t go wrong with the Nintendo 3DS.

The Camcorder

The camcorder is not exactly a new device but we do feel that it’s become somewhat neglected in recent years. The addition of video recording functionality to mobile phones has resulted in a digital world swamped with choppy, low quality videos that we’ll all look back on in a few years and wish we’d used a proper camcorder!

So, lets just clarrify one thing. The quality of the video you’re going to capture on even the very best of todays mobile phones is going to be inferior to even a low end dedicated camcorder. Modern phones are trying to do many, many things and do most of them reasonably well but if you want to immortalise your memories in true HD you still need a decent camcorder.

For this reason, the camcorder still makes a great gift. For the ultimate in gadget tech for 2012 take a look at Sony’s Bloggie 3d, a pocket camcorder that captures HD video in 3d.

Now let’s move onto some more affordable gadgets:-

FiiO E6 Headphone Amp

We absolutely love the FiiO E6 headphone amp. It’s one of those inexpensive gadgets that does it’s intended job very well.

The fact is MP3 players are getting increasingly smaller and frequently lack the power needed to run premium headphones. The FiiO E6 is a small, simple to use device that transforms the performance of todays small audio devices. A teenage son or brother will love this gadget which can be purchased here for around £20.

Logitech S715i Speaker System

In our opinion the Logitech S715 currently represents the best value/performance speaker docking system on the market at the time of writing this post.

Ignore all of the reviews out there comparing it to £200+ speaker systems, it can currently be purchased for less than £65 and you’ll struggle to find anything at this price that can handle the variety of music the S715i can cope with.

It’s the perfect birthday gift for teenage sons or brothers that attend festivals and would like to take their music with them.

The JVC HAFX1X In-ear Headphones

Even premium brand MP3 players seem to struggle in the headphone department. Typically, the standard headphones supplied with an MP3 player are a compromise between quality and price.

The JVC HAFX1X headphones will sound far better, produce real bass and look cool for a very reasonable price.

Combine them with the FiiO amp mentioned above and you’ll transform the sound of any small audio device.

Sony RF810RK Wireless Headphones

Once you’ve used wireless headphones you’ll wonder how you coped without the added freedom they provide. The Sony RF810RK wireless headphones produce fantastic sound quality are comfortable in use, last 13 hours between charges and currently cost less than £30.

Gifts for teenage boysGifts for your dadGifts for your mumGifts hampers