It’s the holiday season or a special occasion and you don’t know what to buy for your geeky someone in your life. It could be problematic, considering that everyone likes different things and you may be way off base with just a regular gift. It has to be cool and unique – especially if it’s a birthday gift or some significant date in the geek’s life. Now, it doesn’t have to be that hard and there really are some universal geeky things that any smart person will love, just because they are simply awesome.
Picking the right gift can be a real chore and there are a lot of people who find choosing gifts incredibly stressful. The more important the person you want to surprise is, the pressure level is goes higher. It’s a conundrum. This is why we have created this really cool list of ideas for a geek gift which covers a lot of bases, and we included some universally cool geeky stuff that will be great for just about anyone. In fact, you may want to keep some of these items – but remember that these are not for you! Unless of course you are a geek and you want to reward yourself with a really cool gift. That is completely understandable.
Don’t be deceived that the geek in your life will love any techie thing you buy or any rare book you procure. In fact, that is an expected gift and if a lot of people know your special geeky person, you can bet that someone is going to come up with the idea to buy something generic like that. If you really want to get something techie, make it with a really original spin no one will anticipate. If your geek loves a certain series of movies or books, find something related, but don’t buy the book or the movie in question because they probably have it. Sometimes the best gifts are things which are both useful and cool, and this will ensure that your awesome geeky person will always think of you when they use it –and that is most likely exactly what you are going for!
We went through some trouble in order to pick out the things that are truly awesome gift ideas for geeks. We even went to the length of going through wish lists of some very geeky people we know. It was a lot of fun and we came up with the ultimate gifts for geek’s guide that is sure to have some neat ideas to make this gift hunt very simple and easy for you.
Table of Contents
Gifts for Geeks
Tetris Constructible Desk Lamp Light
Tetris is something most people have played in their lives, and if you have an older geek you want to surprise, you can bet that they are going to have tons of fun with this Tetris LED lamp. This is a fantastic idea for any geek if you are unsure of what they may like, and if you have one who likes only specific series, books and movies, and is generally a tough cookie, you are safe with this gift. Of course, unless you decide to keep this yourself because it is simply awesome.
You can literally move the Tetris blocks exactly the way you would in the game, which means that you can assemble this lamp any way you like.
This in turn means that you will probably spend less time working than shifting the Tetris lamp around, so you will be well advised to keep it away from the desk when you want things done. The way this lamp functions is actually quite cool – you have 7 interlocking Tetris blocks which will glow the neon colors when you put them all together. If you want to turn the lights off, all you need to do is to disassemble one of the pieces and voila!
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DCI Pop Quiz Clock
If you know someone who is a good mathematician and/or studies something related (basically anything brainy), then this is a simple but smart gift idea. The Pop Quiz Clock is the kind of thing that is sure to really catch the eye and will be a great addition to any office wall. The thing is, a clock like this will definitely draw really diverse and interesting reactions, and it would probably be worth the money just to see the faces of some people when they are asked about the time. Of course, the clock is a clock and it works just like any other, but this one is a genuinely symbolic gift for a math or physics student, or anyone who studies or works in an area that requires a bit of careful calculations. Also, because it looks like the good old fashioned chalk on board, it’s a really nostalgic throwback to the school times when you really had to worry about those pop quizzes, and your geeky buddy never seemed to be phased.
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Raspberry Pi
Raspberry Pi is the ultimate geek product, because it is THE one thing that geeks and computer freaks wanted for a long time, a small enough computer to fit in your pocket. We are not talking about PDAs, smartphones or similar devices; we are talking about an actual computer with a processor, graphics processing unit and read-only memory. The storage device for this mini-computer is a SD card which can be used for booting and storage.
The design is very small, but it has all of the connectors that your normal PC has, including an Ethernet connector, HDMI, two USB 2.0 slots, RCA video, SD card pocket and 3.5 millimeters audio out jack. The machine is powered by a microUSB socket. This mini computer is capable of almost everything your normal PC is, things like word processing, playing video games and even playing high-definition videos. The Raspberry Pi comes in a shape of a small motherboard, without casing, and has two mounting holes for easy installation. This is definitely a great gift for geeks as it represents a computer device that can fit in your pocket. You would not need to spend a lot of money to make your geek happy as this is a reasonably priced gadget.
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8″ Nebula Plasma Ball
This is a gadget that is based on the genius design of the eccentric electricity freak Nikola Tesla. What it is essentially is a glass ball full of gases which in combination with electricity provide an interesting light show. This plasma ball actually has a protective coating on the glass, as it is not a toy and the direct contact with gases powered with electricity can be harmful. Interestingly enough, if you place your fingers on the ball, the plasma will respond to your movements and you will feel a pleasantly-mild tickling sensation in your fingers. This gift is perfect for all of the geeks out there. It is a small object that can be plugged in the electric socket and left on the table for people to enjoy the intricate show of electricity and gases, and it does not cost a lot.
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USB Missile Launcher
Can you imagine a male who did not want a rocket launcher in his childhood? Well, here is a perfect gift, not only for geeks, but also for people who have retained their inner child. This missile launcher is made of plastic and it is powered by a simple USB cable. All you have to do is plug it in your USB PC port and you are good to go. The missile launcher can be controlled in such a way to move left, right, up or down and of course to shoot out three foam imitations of rocket missiles, and all of this whit a simple tap of a button on your PC. The product comes with a CD ROM whit a program, USB cable and paper targets. Perfect gift for your geeks that can be set up in the study room, or even in the office, so that some stem could be let off quickly.
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Levitron Ion
The Levitron Ion is a levitating and rotating globe that can be situated on your office desk or in your study room. It is also perfect for geeks and freaks. Developed by a team of international engineers, this device uses intricate combination of electric coils and magnets that create the effect of levitation. The modern design looks perfect and will amaze everyone. Just set this on the table and it will become a great conversational piece. The globe is “set on” a mirror-like base which is plugged in a power outlet. Levitron Ion is a perfect gift for your geeks, or even for your office workers and it is definitely worth the money you will pay for it.
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Flying Alarm Clock
Here is a piece of electronic equipment for those who have problems in waking up in the morning. The Westview PI-744 is a flying alarm clock that at the set moment of the alarm starts the propeller and goes off flying around the room. It will not stop flying until you get up, catch it and set it back to the base. Even though the snooze option is available, it is unlikely that anyone would use it. This alarm clock has a big blue back-lit display which enables you to read time properly and it is powered by four AA batteries. If you have a geek that has trouble getting up in the morning, this would be a perfect present for him/her. Or, maybe, you could purchase it for yourself if you are one of those people.
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Star Wars USB Flash Drives
If you have a Star Wars geek and want to buy a gift for that person, you better stray off the usual things. Star Wars freaks are well known about their almost fanatic and religious devotion towards the franchise, and that is why whatever you purchase the person might already have. That is where the USB flash drives come in, as they are a perfect gift, because of their functionality and their looks. These three USB flash drives are designed after the three popular characters in the franchise, Jedi Master Yoda, Sith Lord Darth Vader and the adorable little robot R2D2. They come in sizes of 8 GB, and the R2D2 one even comes with a preloaded themes and desktop wallpapers, plus it makes the R2D2 signature sign when plugged into the computer. What a better gift for your Star Wars freak (or yourself, if you are one of them) than these amazing USB flash drives that will help to back-up your data and will also look awesome on your keychain. Plus, the prices are really reasonable, so you will get a great bargain for these products.
Robo Vacuum
Geeks like robots, even when cleaning, they would definitely prefer to do it their way. The Robo Vacuum is a really smart way to clean up all the debris from the floor and will work best on smooth surfaces, but despite not being an all purpose cleaning bot, it’s still a really cool gift for your geek. Especially if the geek in question does not have a habit of paying attention to the mess they leave behind. There may be a long way to go to have those handy house cleaning robots the Jetsons have, but still – it’s a good start as any. In case your geek is into robotics and techie stuff, they are going to love it, especially because it has a dose of humor in it. Not to mention that in case they have a cat, in that case they will have even more fun with it because this may become a source of a lot of fun.
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LEGO The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey
What a better gift for a geek than a LEGO set piece, and if that geek adores Lord of the Rings, you are in luck. This buildable LEGO dice is actually a fun twist on memory game for two to four players. The point of the game is to find dwarves lost in the Hobbiton by using tips and hints by Gandalf the Grey and some other Hobbits. Once you build up this game board it is easy to store it and to take it out for another go at the game. It comes with building instructions and the rule book for the game. This is a perfect gift for geeky kids or friends that love Lord of the Rings franchise, and it is ha a very nice price that will not make you spend a lot of money to make your geek happy.
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Conclusion
Whether your geek likes some obscure franchises or some mainstream geeky stuff, picking out a perfect thing and still being original is really somewhat of an ordeal. You may feel overwhelmed and a bit pressured if that person is close and important, so you may feel like you need to find something they will simply adore. Some of the things we have described for you are really original and unique, and it is unlikely that someone else will think of the same things. It’s always important not to buy a generic, boring gift for anyone, much less for a geek who has some really demanding standards. These gifts are mostly budget gifts, so you won’t have to worry much about that part. The crucial thing is to pick out the one your geek will like the most!
