Tech Gifts for the New Year

Can you believe it is December already? Where has 2014 gone? As in past years, I have received several questions from readers asking about technology gifts for the holidays, so this month’s column is focused on giving you some ideas for gadget gift giving.

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Photo Book: Most of us use our phones for multiple purposes, including taking photos. I upload photos to Facebook, Instagram or other social media outlets, and I share some of the photos through text messages with friends, family or clients, but what about the rest?

How many hundreds or even thousands of photos do you have on your phone? If you are tech savvy or have the right app downloaded, your photos could be automatically uploaded to cloud storage so you never lose them. You could download them to your computer or other hard drive, or print some of them out.

What if I told you there is a service that can print up to 100 photos in a keepsake photo book and ship it to you? The company is called Groove Book, which has been featured on Shark Tank, but I have tried the product and I love it. They have created a free app that can upload your photos once a month and print the book for $2.99, including shipping and handling. What a nice gift to give someone that you know takes a lot of photos, but doesn’t know what to do next. Visit www.groovebook.com.

Luggage Tracker: Another great new product is called TrakDot. This is a small device that you can put into your luggage before you depart on a trip so it can be wirelessly tracked through the company’s website. When you arrive at your destination, it sends a message to you either by email or text that tells you that your bag has arrived. It requires two batteries and is very simple to set up and use. I found it for about $40 on their website and through Amazon. It makes a nice client gift, too. Visit www.trakdot.com.

Phone Alert: Yet another unique but useful gift is a Zomm. This is a small device (about the size of a poker chip) that attaches to your key ring and has three main functions. First, through Bluetooth activation you can push a button and take a call without ever touching your phone.

Second, if you leave your phone in a restaurant or just at home when you are walking to the car, the device will vibrate and then sound an alarm to let you know how far away you are from the phone so you can go back and retrieve it. Third, there is a panic button so if you are put in a situation in which you are ill, hurt or scared, you can hit the button and it not only sounds an alarm but places a call to 911. The device is priced at roughly $50. Visit www.zomm.com.

Selfie Taker: How many of you do the “selfie” thing or know someone who does? Those are always such great pictures, but if there is more than one person, a head is bound to be cut off because our arms are just not long enough. There are now several different products that can help avoid that, but I have one of the first ones out there called Shutter Ball. You download an app, then either pose and hold the phone while using the remote to snap the picture. You don’t need to hit the camera button on the actual phone with a finger like a contortionist.

You also can prop the phone up for an individual or group shot and use the remote. Just Google “remote selfie taker” and you will see several other options to choose from based on your budget and who you are buying this for. I know you have at least one person in your life that is a selfie taker!

So many people say it’s hard to buy me gifts, because I have so many gadgets. Well, here are two things that I have put on my list for this year:

GoPro Camera: No I don’t do extreme sports, but how much fun could one of these be while escorting a fam trip or taking a little travel adventure. You could narrate a hotel or ship inspection, or go zip-lining or white-water rafting (they are waterproof).

Drone: I see on the news that the paparazzi are using these small remote control flying devices with a camera to spy on people. I have no one that I would want to actually spy on, but these could be a lot of fun at one of our travel agent meetings, a conference, or just a family birthday or pool party.

If you would like additional information about any of these items, please email me at gotquestions@tasuccess.com.

As always, if you have questions about technology, including hardware, software programs, products or services that could help you in your business, please email me at gotquestions@tasuccess.com. I will reply to and publish as many questions as possible each month. If you do not wish for your questions to be published, please let me know in your email. 

Please note I am in no manner offering endorsements or recommendations of any products or services herein. Information stated herein reflects a familiarity with the overall technology offerings and needs in the workplace, and may be limited in scope, relative to new offerings, or products to which the writer has no knowledge.