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Holiday Gifts for the Techie

Holiday Gifts for the Techie

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Desirable items for the adorable nerd or lady wirehead in your life. Even if that's you.

deliciousdiane

Mogax633

Gaming On the Go
The MOGA Mobile Gaming System brings console-quality gaming experience to Android phones and tablets with the first full-featured controller designed specifically for mobile devices. Pocket-size, portable, with tons of downloadable games, and connected via Bluetooth, the MOGA might just change how you play. $60, PowerA.com/MOGAIphonehandsetx200

Phone Home
Perfect for that late adopter (hello, Mom?) who still misses the land line, the iPhone Desktop Handset lets you plug in your smartphone and then talk on what the elders still call the "real phone." Bonus: It reduces radiation exposure by 96%. $59.95, Hammacher.com
Olympus2x200
Move Over Annie Leibovitz
There is nothing to dislike about the new PEN E-PL3 Olympus Camera. It offers the world's fastest auto focus (you can take up to five photos a second), takes 12.3-megapixel images, has face and eye detection to adjust focus (face detection can capture up to eight faces at once), six in-camera filters, and a hi-res three-inch articulating LCD screen that makes it easy to shoot from any angle. Even better: It creates 3D images as well, and with the PENPAL attachment, you can wirelessly email or post photos. $599.99, US.BuyOlympus.comHeadphones3x200

The Only Headphones You'll Need
There are thousands of headphones on the market, but the Soul by Ludacris SL150 Pro Hi-Definition On-Ear Headphones are perfect for the music snob on your list: top-notch noise cancellation, studio-quality sound, smartphone-ready, and sleek and easy-to-transport design (they fold up into a trendy little holder). $199.95, SoulElectronics.comLeapx300

The Future Is Now
Just like Tom Cruise moving digital files with the wave of a hand, the groundbreaking new 3D motion-control and motion-sensing device Leap lets you bring Minority Report technology to your Mac or PC. Leap is the only motion-control device to track all 10 fingers independently, to 1/100 of a millimeter, so you can flick a finger in the air to scroll through a website or pinch-to-zoom to view a map. $69.99, LeapMotion.comSonybloggielivehdcamerax150

Ready For Your Close-up?
Bloggers and sharers will adore the new Sony Bloggie Live HD Camera, which comes equipped with Qik Video from Skype, which allows you to stream live video to social networks or your personal blogs, record and upload video at a later time, and archive videos on your personal Qik channel. Your friends can follow the action as it happens on their smartphone, tablet, or PC and leave comments during the recording that you can read instantly as they appear on the Bloggie Live screen. $249.99, Store.Sony.comLogitech_remotex200

Control Issues
Logitech has cornered the market on useful and cool tech products (Got kids? There's a washable keyboard out this year!), but the new Logitech Harmony Touch has got to be the most universal. The Harmony Touch is a universal remote control with a 2.4-inch color touch screen that controls up to 15 devices (TV, Blu-ray/DVD players, Xbox/Wii, etc). You can organize up to 50 favorite channel icons right on the remote, it sits in a recharging station so you don't have to deal with that last-minute battery scramble during Real Housewives, and it's compatible with more than 225,000 devices. $249.99, Logitech.comSolar-kb-foliox200

A Case for Going Green
The Solar Keyboard Folio is a case, adjustable stand, and a built-in keyboard for your iPad. It has solar cells (which can be powered by indoor lamps, even) to charge the keyboard, which connects to the iPad through Bluetooth. Fully powered, you can type on it for two years -- even in complete darkness. $129.99, Logitech.comSkype-tv_2x200

TV Got Even Smarter
If the fam can't make it home for the holidays, Samsung's LED 7000 and 8000 Series Skype-enabled Smart TVs, which have an embedded camera and microphone, will make video-calling them as easy as changing a channel. This HD/2D/3D TV can be operated with gesture and voice control and facial recognition, and there's a microphone built into the set's remote control. There's also built-in Wi-Fi, so you can post to your Facebook page, watch Hulu, or browse Advocate.com. And with the Smart View Mobile App you can stream content from the TV to your smartphone or use the latter as a controller for games (from the Samsung app store). $2,599.99-$5,099.99, Samsung.com/usKiwix200

Mechanic in a Box
That "check engine" light becoming your archnemesis? Kiwi Bluetooth Android Phone Car Diagnostic Kit to the rescue. This plug-and-play wireless device connects to your car's OBDII port (below the steering wheel), works in any vehicle made after 1995, and with its car diagnostics apps it will tell you what's wrong. $99.99, ThinkGeek.com2x_matiphonebatteryx200

Power to the People
The new Duracell Powermat 24-Hour Power System means you'll never have to worry about your smartphone's dead battery. The system includes a wireless charging case for the iPhone (in pink, red, silver, and the usual colors), a backup battery that fits easily into a pocket and doubles your battery capacity, and a sleek Powermat that automatically senses how much energy your phone needs and stops sending power when your phone is fully charged. $99.99, DuracellPowermat.us

Iphonekeyboardx200Best. iPhone. Accessory. Ever.
Love your iPhone but hate typing on-screen? This Illuminated iPhone Slide Out Keyboard, which pairs with your phone via Bluetooth, is the answer. It's an iPhone case with a slide-out QWERTY keyboard and illuminated keys. A built-in battery only needs to be recharged after six hours of continuous typing, and it has a lifetime guarantee. $79.95, Hammacher.comSony-xperia-tablet-sx300

A Tablet for the Rest of Us
Apple's iPad might get all the attention, but this Sony Xperia Tablet S deserves some accolades of its own. It's a 9.4-inch splash-proof Android tablet with a slim line design, 16GB, and a 1280 x 800 IPS screen that seems to be brighter than others on the market. The tablet's built in Universal IR remote not only controls your Sony products, but other brands as well and the device's Watch Now app offers an interactive, visual program guide, fueled by your personal preferences and trending information from social media feeds (it's like your own personal TV Guide). All this plus access to Sony Entertainment and other movie apps at price point many can afford. $399, Store.Sony.comWireless_smart_phone_pringerx300

Sharing Photos Old School Pt. 1
Hammacher Schlemmer's new Wireless Smartphone Photo Printer connects wirelessly to any iPhone, iPad, iPod Touch, or Android-powered smartphone and prints great color photographs -- without an ink cartridge -- directly from the device. No cords, no computers, just great 4x6 inch pictures printed at 300 dpi on waterproof paper. It can also print pictures directly from PictBridge-enabled cameras. The perfect gift for anyone bridging the gap between smartphone pictures and old school photo albums. $219.95, Hammacher.com

Dvd_transferx300Perfect for Film Buffs
For anyone with a media library full of old VHS tapes, Hammacher's new VHS to DVD Converter is a godsend. It works as both a player and a converter, so you can watch movies on either format, or you can transfer all your favorite VHS flicks to DVD ensuring they're around much longer. $289.95, Hammacher.com

Polaroid1x300Sharing Photos Old School Pt. 2
Anyone who grew up with Polaroid cameras remembers the excitement of instant photos that they offered. Waiting the 60 seconds for the film to dry to reveal your image was excruciating. Well, Polaroid is back with an even better option: the new Z2300 Instant Digital Camera, which has an integrated ZINK printer that lets users instantly capture, edit, and -- in less than a minute -- print full color, 2X3 inch prints. The Z2300 has a 10-megapixel image sensor and a pretty big (3 inch) LCD display that help make it easy to review images and video. Best of all, that ZINK technology the printer uses is ink-free paper with embedded dye crystals; prints are created by heat activating them. $159.99, UrbanOutfitters.com

deliciousdiane
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Diane Anderson-Minshall

Diane Anderson-Minshall is the CEO of Pride Media, and editorial director of The Advocate, Out, and Plus magazine. She's the winner of numerous awards from GLAAD, the NLGJA, WPA, and was named to Folio's Top Women in Media list. She and her co-pilot of 30 years, transgender journalist Jacob Anderson-Minshall penned several books including Queerly Beloved: A Love Across Genders.
Diane Anderson-Minshall is the CEO of Pride Media, and editorial director of The Advocate, Out, and Plus magazine. She's the winner of numerous awards from GLAAD, the NLGJA, WPA, and was named to Folio's Top Women in Media list. She and her co-pilot of 30 years, transgender journalist Jacob Anderson-Minshall penned several books including Queerly Beloved: A Love Across Genders.