Father’s Day Gift Ideas from a Dad

The Avaak Vue Personal Video Network is one of the simplest tech products I have ever setup.  Simply connect the base station to your home router, sync the cameras to the base with a single button, and setup your online account. I like being able to peak in on my house when away, and have tried  many different cameras over the years.  What makes this one unique is that the entire system is completely wireless – even the cameras.  The tiny cameras are battery powered, and use a unique magnetic base to mount where ever you want also making them easy to move.  They claim the batteries will last a year when viewing the cameras on average 5-minutes a day.  The system comes with 2 cameras but can be expanded to more.  You can view the cameras any time by logging into their website or by using their iPhone or iPod Touch app.  Pretty slick.

I admit I held out for a good while, but am a big fan of Apple’s iPod Touch.  Carrying a Blackberry for work, and my general loathing of AT&T, the iPhone has not been an option for me. For the few of you left who don’t have iPhones, the iPod Touch is a cool device.  Even slimmer than the iPhone, the iPod Touch makes a great web browser, mp3 player, video player, game player, etc, etc.  The App Store is definitely what makes the device with thousands and thousands of apps to download.  Even K has become a big fan after I downloaded some games and coloring apps for her.

Watch Winders. I like watches and certainly have more that I “need”. Jen got me my first one for our first anniversary and I have been enjoying it ever since. Watch winder boxes will keep automatic and self-winding watches running when not being worn.  Certainly beats having to wind and set the time and date after not wearing the watch for a while. If your husband wears an automatic or self-winding watch, these can make a great gift.  They come in a variety of shapes, sizes, colors, and capacities, so you’ll need to choose the one that suits best.

Part alarm clock, Internet radio player, widget viewer, etc, the Chumby (also available at a better price from Costco.com) is a hard item to describe.  If your husband likes gadgets, this is one of the cooler and certainly more unique items I have come across.  Since I cannot think of a better way to describe it, I’m just going to do some cut and pasting.

Blu-ray players are another item I held out on for a while.  After waiting out to see if Blu-ray or HD-DVD would win the format war, I finally took the plunge last December and have been very happy since.  There are a lot of different players on the market that all play Blu-rays (all are also backwards compatible with DVDs as well), but its the extra features that make the difference.  I’d recommend looking for one that has access to online content such as Netflix, and online Video on Demand services such as CinemaNow and Amazon VOD.  If you don’t have a network port behind your TV, you’ll want one with built-in WiFi as well.  The LG BD570 has all these features and a competitive price.  If you don’t need the built-in WiFi, you can also check out the LG BD550.

When in doubt, gift certificates are never a bad idea.  I’m a big fan of Amazon since they sell pretty much everything.  You can even print-out, email, or mail any of their gift certificates.  Great options when you need something last minute.