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- MSRP: $1299.00
Cubify – Cube 3d Printer
This is the truncated review. Check back on the main page in a couple of days for a much bigger review, along with pics of my first 3D printed creations on the main page.
Wow. If there’s one piece of tech that geeks have been salivating over this year, it would be the 3D printer. It isn’t the only one on the market, but we loved the CUbify Cube printer for a couple of basic reasons. First, it is just super easy to use. Second, it is just a great looking piece of machinery. 3D printing is the future. We can now make our own toys, jewelry, heck, you can even rapid prototype parts on this machine. From a price point it is around half the cost of its competitors. As far as cubic volume, it isn’t quite as big as some of the others on the market, but it is very easy to print your models in modular sections. It was also insanely easy to set up. There is just one metal plate to attach and you are off and running. Whether you are shopping for an engineer, an artist, even just someone in your family who has an amazing creative streak, this is the gift that they won’t just be talking about in a week, but they’ll be using for a long time to come.
Get yours today at: Cubify
- MSRP: $329.00- $499.00
SousVide Supreme
It is rare that you can find a kitchen gift out there that will serve the expert chef just as well as it will your friend who can’t be trusted to scramble an egg. The SousVide Supreme is that cooking machine. We’ve seen SousVide gadgets on the market for a long time and we’ve always wanted to include one in the guide, but we’ve never really seen one that was easy to use and reasonably priced. I’m actually still shocked that you can get these for under $450 dollars.
On the off chance that you don’t know what cooking with a SousVide is, here’s the basics. You take the meat, fish, fruit, veggies, eggs or whatever that you want to cook. You season them, put them in the bag. Vacuum seal it, then place it in the SousVide where it cooks at an exact (low) temperature in a water bath. The water bath allows for perfect distribution of heat and the low temperature means that you can cook your meats to the exact doneness without having to worry about overcooking. Imagine a medium rare steak that is perfectly pink from tip to tip, not just in the center.
We really ran this machine through its paces cooking everything from poached pears (cooked in an hour), to salmon (perfect in 20 minutes), to notoriously tough beef cheeks (cooked for 72 hours). Cooking beef cheeks at a low, constant temp like that for that long created some of the most tender and delicious meat that we’ve ever experienced in our lives. You could legitimately say that it gave us our first meatgasm. Forget your friends, forget your family… If you pick one of these up, you are going to have to keep it for yourself!
Get yours today at: SousVide Supreme
- MSRP: $59.99
Electric Friends- Chew Chew The Dog Speaker Docking Station For iPhone or iPod
Normal, block style iPhone docks are so last year. If you have to have your phone or iPod (do people still use those?) plugged in somewhere, it might as well be in something cute, like the belly of a puppy (also, available in panda!). This docking station might not have a radio like some of its competitors, but what it lacks in bells and whistles, it more than makes up for in cute. Adding to the cuteness is the volume control, its ears. We loved this for kids and just anyone who has a sense of whimsy when it comes to their home decor.
Get yours today at: Amazon
- MSRP: $99.00
Apogee jam
I’ve had my guitars for years. One of them is an electric acoustic, but I don’t have an amp. Thanks to the Apogee Jam, I was able to take my old 12 string Yamaha and plug it into my iPad. I was extremely impressed with this, as will pretty much anyone on your gift list that plays guitar. It allows you to work with Garageband, ToneJAM and several other great apps. I’ve never used a product like this, but I found the interface really easy to use. At $99.00 it might be a bit expensive to be a stocking stuffer, but it still makes for an amazing gift.
Get yours today at: Apogee
- MSRP: $39.99
Powerskins – Battery Case For IPhone 4/4s
As a recent convert to the iPhone, I’ve noticed something that a lot of you have probably already noticed a long time ago. The phone might do all kinds of great things, but it eats battery life faster than most of you ate that second helping of Thanksgiving stuffing. Enter the powerskin (it is available for other phone models too). If you use the phone a lot and if you use it as more than just a phone, this is a very important little case. It charges up pretty quickly and I noticed that it more than doubled my battery life of the phone. If you’ve got anyone in your life who is addicted to their phone, but doesn’t have ready access to docking bays or outlets throughout the day, this gift will make you a hero. It is even affordable enough that it makes a great (high end) stocking stuffer.
Get yours today at: Powerskin
- MSRP: $89.99
InaDay’s – Inatrap Mosquito Trap
This is not a normal holiday gift item, but it could be a great gift for your friends who live in areas with lots of mosquitoes and who like to spend a lot of time outdoors. It is also handy for people who have indoor mosquito problems… though that is probably a symptom of a much larger situation. The inatrap is by far the most stylish mosquito trap that we’ve ever seen. It looks like an art deco mushroom and it uses carbon dioxide to attract mosquitoes, then kill them and keep them in a little bin until you want to throw them out or make a soup.
Get yours today at: Amazon
- MSRP: $79.99
Jellyfish 2 Color Lamp
We really liked the Jellyfish 2 lamp because it is a neat looking lamp that packs a lot of power. I wouldn’t read by it or anything, but as an accent piece or a gift for someone who loves to play with color, this is a gift for them. The lamp uses LEDS to play with an array of over 16 million colors. You can change how your room looks to suit your mood, or you can set it to change colors in your own trippy little personal light show.
Get yours today at: Thinkgeek
- MSRP: $19.99
8-bitty iCade Game Controller
Don’t you hate playing playing old school games on your phone or tablet with the crappy controls that they give you on the screen? This is the cure for what ails you. The 8-Bitty is an old school game controller that lets you play games like the Atari favorites app and even things like MAME. It works on both Apple and Android devices and it makes gaming on your tablet a lot more fun.
Get yours today at: Thinkgeek
- MSRP: $29.99
Underground Toys Star Wars Light Saber USB Lamp
When working late into the night and your eyes get annoyed and distorted by the usual overhead lighting of most offices there is a solution and it’s powered by THE FORCE! This soft glowing lightsaber lamp is powered by a USB port and truly is the answer to those late night work sessions. This light is soft and calming on your eyes while you type and click away working on whatever project you have. The lamp stands approximately 14 inches tall and is a great way to attract other Jedi’s in the area.
Get yours today at: The Internets
