Best Tech Gift Ideas for 2021!
Here at CDI, we’ve got some elite engineers with their fingers on the pulse of the best tech. So we decided to pick their brains and get their best gifts ideas for the Holiday season!
Check out these great gift ideas for that tech-obsessed person on your shopping list.
FOR THE REMOTE WORKER
Matt W. (Sr. MSP Engineer)
With remote work taking off, so has the need for video chatting. With these awesome, custom shortcut buttons, you can easily navigate the world of video chat with a mute/unmute button (perfect for that loud roommate of yours, you know who I’m talking about), an on/off video button to avoid an embarrassing moment, or a button to raise your hand and remind folks to read your last email!
Portable Green Screen Backdrop Kit ($70)
Matt W. (Sr. MSP Engineer)
Sometimes you want to pretend you’re somewhere other than your bedroom, sometimes you just don’t want your coworkers to see how you actually live… enter the greenscreen! Pair this with some free SnapCamera software and you can change your background to be anything you choose – the beach, the office, the moon. You decide.
USB C Laptop Docking Station ($120)
Kelly M. (Dir. Of Professional Services)
Compatible with any host laptop featuring a USB C Port, this 10-in-1 docking station will help eliminate the cluttered mess of wires on your desk. A convenient docking station makes it easy to plug in or get up and go. An essential for those that might be working from home and the road.
Bose Noise Cancelling Headphones 700 ($379)
Matthew N. (Project Manager)
Have some loud coworkers in the other room? When the walls just aren’t thick enough, you need some good noise cancelling headphones. Not only will these headphone keep out the noise, they also have excellent voice pickup (just yours) so everyone on the other side of the computer screen can get your notes for the big project.
Logitech MX Keys Wireless Keyboard and Anywhere 3 Mouse ($100 & $80)
Victoria B. (Technical Consultant, Automation & Orchestration) and Samuel L. (Help Desk Technician)
Logitech is known for offering some of the best tech for both work and play. The MX Keys is the key to mastering your next big project. It’s the first ever MX keyboard designed for creatives and engineered for coders. The Anywhere 3 Mouse features a reinvented scroll wheel so precise it can stop on a pixel and is fast enough to scroll 1,000 lines per second.
FOR GOOD HEALTH
Light Therapy Lamp for Seasonal Sunlight ($70)
Kelly M. (Dir. Of Professional Services)
Working from home has tons of benefits… but when the busy days hit, getting outside in the sun is not one of them. These mood light sun lamps will help regulate the cycles for your body and mood – and they actually look nice in your home!
Dyson Air Purifiers ($800)
Brian S. (Sr. MSP Engineer)
Did you know the air quality inside your home can be up to five times more polluted than the air outside? YUCK. Dyson is known for their reliable home products, and the same can be said for their air purifiers.
FOR THE HOME
Quest 2 ($300)
Jason M. (Dir., Data Center Solution Architect)
Enter the metaverse with hundreds of games, one-of-a-kind experiences, workouts… you name it. The tech in the Quest 2 will blow your mind as you hang with new friends from around the world.
Immersion TV LED Backlights ($87)
Kelly M. (Dir. Of Professional Services)
Kick movie night up a notch with this incredibly cool LED backlight fit for TVs ranging from 55”-65”! The built-in camera captures the color onscreen and automatically applies it to your backlights – so each corner of the TV is projecting the correct color at all times. And yes, of course this works with your smart home devices like Alexa and Google Assistant… because why not?
iRobot Roomba Self-Emptying Robot Vacuums ($700)
Brian S. (Sr. MSP Engineer)
For those of us that procrastinate on our regular vacuuming schedule, this is the perfect gift. iRobot’s self-cleaning vacuums make it so you can go months without vacuuming yourself!
3-in-1 Apple Charging Station ($33)
Kelly M. (Dir. Of Professional Services)
The perfect bedside charging station does exist and it won’t break the bank! Charge your iPhone, AirPods, and Apple Watch all in one convenient charging station.
FOR THE KIDS
Snap Circuits Extreme ($100)
Dean C. (Enterprise Solutions Architect)
The perfect STEM gift for budding minds! Build over 750 experiments with 80 different parts. Ranging from building sound activated switches, lie detectors, A.M. radios and more. This is the perfect gift to keep their wheels spinning.
Video Camera Rocket Starter Set ($60)
Dean C. (Enterprise Solutions Architect)
This awesome gift has everything you need to build a high-powered rocket capable of flying over 1,000 feet high! With a built in high-definition video camera and 16GB Micro SD Memory Card your kiddos can capture their entire mission to space. No glue or paint required. This gift is ready to go within 30 minutes of opening!
Blast Baseball Swing Analyzer ($125)
Melissa H. (Jr. Project Manager, Managed Services)
A perfect gift idea for the baseball obsessed kiddo. Blast Baseball captures swing information using a small swing analyzer that fits right onto your bat. Their mobile app then helps you perfect your swing with helpful videos, training drills, and tips from top instructors and MLB players.
FOR THE PET LOVER
The Link ($135)
Brian S. (Sr. MSP Engineer)
The ultimate gift for the pet lover in your life! This lightweight and waterproof collar attachment is both a fitness tracker and GPS for you four-legged friend. Now you will know for sure when your best friend has had enough exercise, and you’ll never lose sleep wondering where they’ve run off to this time.