“And there’s no way I can pay you back.
But my plan is to show you that I understand.
You are appreciated”.
Tupac Shakur probably isn’t the first name that comes to mind when you think about Mother’s Day, but the late great rapper really loved his mama. I think we all love our mothers and that’s partly why it can be so difficult to find the right Mother’s Day present. As ‘Pac said, there really is no way that you can ever pay her back, but what can you do to show her that she’s appreciated?
Seeing as how you’re already tech-inclined, it only makes sense for you to make use of that expertise when selecting the right Mother’s Day presents. Let me walk you through a few possible gift options.
Help Mom Stay Fit with the Nintendo Wii
One of the hottest items during the holiday shopping season a few months ago was Wii Fit for the Nintendo Wii. With its yoga exercises, strength training, and fun balance games, it was a great way to introduce the moms of the world to the joys of the Nintendo Wii. The Balance Board was also a pretty nifty innovation.
Chances are that your mom is growing a little tired of Wii Fit by now, so it’s time to upgrade her Wii library with another health-oriented title. My Fitness Coach from Ubisoft is even less of a “game” than Wii Fit, instead providing you with a virtual trainer named Maya who will help you work toward your fitness goal. There are almost 500 unique exercises in all.
What about when mom is away from the Wii? Ubisoft has a similar title for the Nintendo DS called My Weight Loss Coach. This comes bundled with a pedometer to track her daily activity, as well as 10 coaching sessions, 500 challenges, and four awareness-building trivia games.
My Fitness Coach for the Wii and My Weight Loss Coach for the DS retail for about thirty bucks each, though many online stores are now selling them for less. If you’re mom is more into blasting zombies into oblivion, a Wii blaster or zapper may be more appropriate.
Staying Connected with a BlackBerry Smartphone
I’ve said many times before that smartphones are no longer restricted to the realm of three-piece suits and corporate boardrooms. The added functionality and utility of a smartphone can be incredibly useful to just about anyone, and this includes all the soccer moms in the audience as well. They’ve got shopping lists to maintain, appointments to remember, and household expenses to track.
Choosing a smartphone can be a highly subjective experience, so don’t think so much about what phone you want. Think about what phone she would want. An inexpensive and simple option might be the Palm Centro, but a more recent phone that’s popular with the ladies is the BlackBerry Pearl Flip. Clamshells are quite the hit, but this flip phone is a full-fledged BlackBerry. The Pearl Flip can be had (close to) free with contract or about $300 unsubsidized. More info can be found on the Blackberry website.
If your mom already has a suitable smartphone to help her live her life, you can alternatively consider a range of cell phone accessories for Mother’s Day as well.
Blending Rakes and iPhones with Tom Dickson
Fruit smoothies are great for a hot summer day. A fresh butternut squash soup is fantastic during the winter months. Those are all well and good, but what’s the best way to produce them? With a super powerful blender, of course, and there is no blender more powerful than a Blendtec blender.
You may already be familiar with the Blendtec blenders thanks to the YouTube series of “Will It Blend?” videos featuring Blendtec’s own Tom Dickson. Whether dear old ma wants to make a protein shake or she just wants to crush some ice, the Blendtec blender will do the job. She can blend a few rakes and iPhones along the way too, though Tom Dickson tells us not to try this at home.
I had the opportunity to meet Tom Dickson during CES 2009, as well as see a live demonstration of the Blendtec blender in action. This thing is remarkably loud, but oh man is it strong. No gadget-worthy kitchen is complete without this monster of a blender. Your mom’ll love it.
The Blendtec Total Blender is priced at $399.95. More information can be found at BlendTec.
Keeping Nice and Clean with Roomba Robots
Jimmy! Why can’t you ever clean up after yourself? You’ve got more than dust bunnies; you’ve got giant dust buffalo!
Part of Mother’s Day has to do with making your mom’s life just that much easier for her. You could try to take on more of the household chores and volunteer to assist her with some random tasks throughout the year, but why not consider the gift that keeps on giving? Why volunteer to vacuum the house just once when the Roomba can do it for you all year long?
The Roomba line of robotic vacuum cleaners is probably one of the greatest inventions of all-time, cleaning both carpets and hardwood floors with the greatest of ease. I know this will sound like an infomercial, but you really can set it and forget it when it comes to the Roomba.
Did you know that Roombas also have a secondary purpose above and beyond vacuuming your home? In case you missed it, be sure to check out this YouTube video of a cat riding the Roomba. There’s also a video up on YouTube of someone controlling the Roomba with the Wii Balance Board. See how everything in this Mother’s Day gift guide ties together?
The iRobot family of Roomba vacuuming robots sells for about $200-$400 each.
Mixing Up the Tunes with Apple iPod Shuffle
While you could certainly consider something like a Samsung YP-S3 MP3 Player as a viable gift for your mother, she may not understand the “cool” factor that goes along with a gift like that. However, she will be instantly drawn to the “wow this thing is absolutely tiny” factor of the all-new Apple iPod shuffle.
The Cupertino-sourced music player can be clipped just about anywhere, maybe it a suitable companion for afternoon jogs, trips to the gym, or even strolls through the supermarket. It may not have a display or conventional controls, but it does have a nifty text-to-speech feature that’ll read out the song titles and artist names.
The iPod shuffle features 4GB of storage, giving you enough room for up to 1000 songs. You also get inline controls and your choice of silver or black. It sells for $79.
If you think Apple’s offering might be a little too daunting for your mom, you can consider a “transitional” MP3 player like the Sansa slotMusic from SanDisk. It uses preloaded microSD cards instead allowing you to send Mom an “I love you” mix if that floats your boat.
Displaying Priceless Memories with Digital Frames
It seems like all moms like photo albums, flipping through all those priceless memories from your childhood. Do you remember your first bike ride? Mom probably has a pic of that. Do you remember that vacation to Disneyland? That was documented too. Well, it’s time to take some family photos into the 21st century.
Jumping into nearly any electronics store will yield a good variety of digital picture frames. Since everyone is taking pictures using digital cameras these days, it doesn’t make as much sense to make physical prints anymore. A digital frame is just so much more convenient and immediate.
As you shop around for different photo frames, consider paying the little bit of extra money to get a Wi-Fi enabled unit. This way, pictures can be uploaded to the frame over the air, possibly integrated with your Flickr photostream. A good option is the wireless Internet photo frame from D-Link (about $220).
Even Mom Knows How to Stay Connected
If Marge Simpson can figure out how to Google herself, there’s still hope for your mom if she hasn’t already embraced the allure of technology. From broom-shredding blenders to remarkably small music players, there’s a gadget out there for every mom. Also be sure to check out our guide to budget-minded gifts if you’re looking to save a few bucks this time around.
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