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30 tech gifts under $100 for everyone in your life
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The holiday shopping season is here, and while the season really is about spending time with the people you love and (hopefully) taking it a little easier, there's also going to be presents.
If you're stumped about what to get this year, don't worry, Insider Picks has you covered. Below, you'll find 30 great tech gifts under $100, covering everything from iPhone cases and charging cables to Bluetooth speakers and smart home accessories.
Whether the person you're buying for is a tech lover, or someone who needs a little help using the latest gadgets, you'll find what you're looking in this list.
Having trouble figuring out what to get someone for the holidays? Browse all of Insider Picks' 2017 holiday gift guides here.
Help your friend start the vinyl collection they've been talking about for the past few years, or let your parents rediscover theirs with this turntable. Audio-Technica has been making turntables for over half a century, and while this isn't its highest-end option, it's the best you'll find in this price range.
Audio Technica Fully Automatic Belt-Drive Stereo Turntable, $89, available at Amazon
If someone on your list loves to read, do them a favor and get them a Kindle. The famous e-reader has a screen that doesn't glare in the sun, lasts for days between charges, and holds hundreds of books. Nothing will replace a real book, but the convenience of having a shelf's worth of books ready at all times can't be overstated. For more info on the Kindle and all your e-reader options, check out our buying guide.
Kindle, $59.99, available at Amazon
If someone you love is into hearing every nuance of their favorite songs, do them a favor and get these headphones as a gift. Status Audio is a newer company, but it's made a statement with these headphones, which I wear for hours a day at my desk and included in our over-ear headphone buying guide.
The CB-1's sound excellent, feel comfortable, and look classy; the only hitch is the relatively long headphone cable, which shouldn't matter much for desk use, but may be annoying for on-the-go listening.
Status Audio CB1 Headphones, $55, available at Amazon or Status Audio
Besides the fun you can have by controlling smart light bulbs with your voice (a smart home hub, like the Amazon Echo, is required) or Philips' app, there's also a lot of utility to be gained from using them.
Setting your lights on a timer can discourage potential intruders from entering a house, or save an older relative from having to get up and flip on light switches over on the other side of a room.
Philips Hue White Ambiance Smart Bulb Starter Kit, $69.99, available at Amazon
Microsoft's design process for custom Xbox One controllers is simple and intuitive, and the amazing controllers you can create using it will help the avid gamer in your life stand out when playing with their friends. You can draw inspiration from controllers that have already been customized by the Xbox community, or base your design off the colors of their favorite sports team or video game character.
Design a custom Xbox One controller here, from $79.99
Everyone knows the anxiety of watching your phone's battery drain more quickly than you expected it to. Save your family member that frustration by buying them an external battery pack. Anker's is compact enough to fit in a small bag or pocket, and can fully recharge most phones once.
Anker PowerCore 10000, $25.99, available at Amazon
If you know someone who's planning on starting a smart home in 2018, buying them the Echo or Echo Dot is a great way to help start it. The Dot is small, but can control tons of smart home accessories and answer questions using Amazon's Alexa assistant. It can also connect to an external speaker. The new Echo includes a better speaker, comes in a smaller size, and can now connect to an external speaker through a cable as well.
Echo Dot, $29.99, available at Amazon
Echo, $79.99, available at Amazon
If the person you're buying for would prefer to have their questions answered and smart home accessories controlled by a Google accessory instead of an Amazon one, the Google Home Mini is the best choice.
Google Home Mini, $29.99, available at Best Buy
We're taking more pictures than ever, but the only place we really display them anymore is on social media. If you've got a less tech-savvy relative who wants to keep up with family events, this digital picture frame would be a great gift. Nix's frame can show photos and videos from an SD Card, so load it with new shots every time you visit to keep it updated.
NIX 8" Digital Photo Frame with Motion Sensor, $79.99, available at Amazon
The FitBit Flex can track your friend's daily activity, has a battery that lasts up to five days, and is totally waterproof. If you know someone who wants to be more active in 2018, this can help them track their progress and hit their goals.
FitBit Flex, $59.95, available at Amazon
There are thousands of Bluetooth earbuds to choose from, but iFrogz has the best budget pair I've tried: the Impulse Duo. If you know someone who wants a pair but is afraid of losing them, the Impulse Duo's clip-on design will make that a non-issue. It's one of the big reasons this pair made it into our best Bluetooth earbuds buying guide.
Audiophiles might not love how they sound, but for a pair under $50, I don't know how to do any better.
iFrogz Impulse Duo Bluetooth Earbuds, $44.95, available at Amazon
Mophie's charging case is still one of the most useful gadgets I've ever used. Most people forget to charge their Bluetooth earbuds, and only realize it when they're in an inconvenient spot. Not only will this case keep earbuds (or any other small gadget) charged, it'll keep them protected.
mophie Power Capsule External Battery Charger, $39.95, available at Amazon
There's no better budget VR experience than the one you can get with Google Cardboard. Google Cardboard is a headset made out of, well, cardboard. Instead of connecting to a high-powered computer, you slide your smartphone into the headset and you're in VR. Kind of. While it's not as immersive as a higher-end VR solution, Google Cardboard is seriously impressive.
Official Google Cardboard, $15, available at Amazon
Whether you buy a clip-on magnetic mount or one that attaches to your dash with a suction cup, this gift will keep its recipient safer on the road. Whether they listen to music or use their phone's GPS feature, there's no reason they should every be looking down at a phone in a cup holder.
AUKEY Air Vent Car Phone Mount, $7.99, available at Amazon
Mpow Car Phone Mount, $9.99, available at Amazon
Still the best upgrade I've made to my car, this Bluetooth receiver accepts audio wirelessly and outputs it through a standard Aux port. This means you can turn almost any car speaker system into a wireless one without having to replace anything.
AUKEY Bluetooth Audio Transmitter, $28.99, available at Amazon
Even if we don't use our gadgets in the car, they still need to be charged. Trust me. Anker's charger has two USB ports, so you and your friend can charge your devices without having to fight over who goes first.
Anker 24W Dual USB Car Charger, $9.99, available at Amazon
You'd think tech companies would include long charging cables with hot gadgets, but that isn't the case. If your roommate is currently rocking a single, frayed cable, do them a favor and buy a couple of these longer ones. Whether they use Lightning, Micro-USB, or USB-C devices, it never hurts to have an extra cable around.
They'll last a lot longer because they won't have as much tension put on the connectors, which is what tends to lead to damage.
AmazonBasics Lightning Cable (6ft), $7.99, available at Amazon
AmazonBasics Micro-USB cable (6ft), $5.29, available at Amazon
AmazonBasics USB-C cable (6ft), $7.66 available at Amazon
I tried BEZALEL's Qi wireless charging pad and iPhone 7 case and ultimately came away impressed. The charging pad is a standard Qi charger that will work with most phones that support wireless charging, including new iPhones and many Android models. The company also created a case that iPhone 7 owners can put on to make their phone capable of wireless charging.
BEZALEL Futura X Qi Wireless Charging Charger, $44.99, available at Amazon
BEZALEL Latitude iPhone 7 Universal Qi Wireless Charging Case, $39.90, available at Amazon
Nobody likes a broken phone, so give the gift of a little extra security with a Spigen case. The models below will keep today's most popular phones protected using air cushion technology, but won't add a lot of bulk or weight.
iPhone 7/8: Spigen Ultra Hybrid Case, $11.99, available at Amazon
iPhone 7 Plus/8 Plus: Spigen Ultra Hybrid Case, $5.20, available at Amazon
iPhone X: Spigen Rugged Armor Case, $11.99, available at Amazon
Google Pixel 2: Spigen Liquid Crystal Case, $11.99, available at Amazon
Google Pixel 2 XL: Spigen Thin Fit Case, $11.99, available at Amazon
Galaxy S8: Spigen Slim Armor Case, $29.99, available at Amazon
Galaxy S8 Plus: Spigen Slim Armor Plus Case, $34.99, available at Amazon
Data loss is one of the most frustrating problems people encounter in today's digital world. Help your friend or family member back up their computer by buying a giant external hard drive. It'll store all of their data locally, so they won't have to exclusively rely on the cloud.
Seagate Expansion 2TB Portable External Hard Drive, $69.99, available at Amazon
As someone who uses this tech accessory every day, I can attest to the utility of Anker's multi-port USB hub. It'll charge all of your friend's devices simultaneously, and its USB-C PD port may even let them leave their laptop charger at home.
USB Type-C, Anker Premium 5-Port 60W USB Wall Charger, $49.99, available at Amazon
JBL's Flip 4 impressed me by surviving underwater for 15 minutes. If you live in a warm climate, or know a beach or pool bum, this is a fun and practical gift.
JBL Flip 4 Waterproof Portable Bluetooth Speaker, $89.99, available at Amazon
There are bound to be a few times when you've thought, "It'd be great to bring a speaker, but it's too big." Anker's SoundCore Nano easily fits in a pocket, sounds good, and will almost certainly come in handy the next time your giftee wants to listen to some tunes with friends without bringing a bag.
Anker SoundCore Nano, $20.99, available at Amazon
Amazon's new Fire TV can do a lot for a media streamer that's less than $100, like output 4K HDR video and control smart home accessories using its Alexa-enabled remote.
All-New Fire TV, $54.99, available at Amazon
This bundle includes a Raspberry Pi and all the necessary accessories you need to start using it right of the box. There are infinite uses for the pocketable computer, from a media server to light gaming machine. Anyone who's interested in tech, especially kids interested in STEM pursuits, will love it.
CanaKit Raspberry Pi 3 Complete Starter Kit, $69.99, available at Amazon
Logitech's Bluetooth mouse is so good I bought two of them. Not only is connectivity rock solid, but you can customize its buttons to perform different actions to save time.
Logitech Bluetooth Mouse, $24.99, available at Amazon
A smart plug works with your existing appliances and gives you the ability to turn them on or off through an app. Save your mom, dad, or anyone else from sweating all day over whether or not they left the coffee maker on that morning.
TP-Link Smart Plug Mini, $26.99, available at Amazon
Everyone has that one person in their life who can't help but lose things every once in a while. The Tile Mate will help them locate their belongings through an app on their phone, complete with a map that has its last known location.
Tile Mate, $24.99, available at Amazon (currently unavailable)
WiFi dead-zones are annoying, and while a mesh network would be a better fix, it's also a more expensive one. This gadget will extend the reach of a current network to help fill the nooks and crannies of a house with the internet.
TP-Link Dual Band WiFi Range Extender, $29.99, available at Amazon
Not only will this let your favorite TV watcher watch the latest ABC, NBC, CBS, and Fox shows in real time, but if they cut cable from their lives, it'll save them money in 2018, too.
1byone 50 Miles Amplified HDTV Antenna, $21.99, available at Amazon
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