Tech Graduation Gift Ideas For 2023: Wearables, Smart Home Devices, Apps
The Instant Pot Pro Plus 6.5, YNAB, the VTech DX2 Smartwatch, Microsoft Surface Laptop Go 2, Amazon Fire 7 Tablet and Apple AirPods Pro are among the listmakers.
A smart pressure cooker. An application for budgeting. And a smartwatch for kids.
The Instant Pot Pro Plus 6.5, a subscription to You Need A Budget and the VTech DX2 Smartwatch are just some possible gift ideas as graduation season gets rolling.
Whether the gift is for a college graduate entering the real world, a high school graduate entering university or the workforce or a younger graduate making the transition to elementary, middle or high school, CRN has put together a list of possible gifts to make the passage more pleasant.
[RELATED: 10 Cool Gadget Gift Ideas For Mother’s Day 2023: Wearables, Smart Home And More]
Graduation Season 2023 Gift Ideas
The list also includes:
*Microsoft Surface Laptop Go 2
*Amazon Fire 7 Tablet
*Apple AirPods Pro
Read on for more gift ideas for graduation season 2023.
Microsoft Surface Laptop Go 2
PC Magazine calls Microsoft’s Surface Laptop Go 2 the “best small laptop for college.”
The laptop’s screen comes in at 12.45 inches, and it weighs less than 3 pounds, according to an online listing. It has an average battery life of 13.5 hours, helping new college students last through their classes and late-night study sessions.
The laptop itself measures 8.96 inches by 11.86 inches by 2.15 inches.
The Go 2 has 128 gigabytes (GB) of hard disk space, contains an 11th generation Intel Core i5 processor and comes with the Windows 11 operating system.
A fingerprint power button with Windows Hello and one-touch sign-in promises more security for users, according to the listing.
How Much: $588
Where: Amazon
Amazon Fire 7 Tablet
For a younger graduate who’s ready for a tablet, Tom’s Guide deems the Amazon Fire 7 “the best budget-friendly tablet for kids.”
The tablet has a 7-inch touchscreen and up to 12 hours of battery life for reading, web browsing, video watching, music listening and more, according to an online listing.
And the Amazon Kids feature gives parents more control over what children access, with thousands of books, applications, games, videos, songs and audiobooks available.
The Fire 7 measures in at .38 inches by 4.63 inches by 7.11 inches. It weighs less than a pound and has built-in Bluetooth, front-facing camera, rear-facing camera and other features.
The tablet has 2 GB of random-access memory (RAM), according to the listing.
How Much: $60
Where: Target
VTech DX2 Smartwatch
For younger graduates, the VTech KidiZoom DX2 was deemed the best smartwatch for kids by VentureBeat.
Meant for kids ages 4 to 12, the DX2 takes videos, pictures and selfies with funny filters available, according to an online listing. A DX2 can help a new elementary or middle school student get to classes on time and serves as a conversation starter with new classmates.
A monster detecting augmented reality (AR) game lets kids capture monsters in real life. And the watch has motion sensors for play challenges, step counting and sound effects.
As a safety measure, parents can share photos and videos only by uploading them to a computer, according to the listing.
The watch weighs about 8 ounces and has more than 55 digital or analog watch faces available. Timer, alarm and calendar capabilities are available as well.
How Much: $48
Where: Amazon
Samsung Galaxy Watch 5
One of the best smartwatches on the market is the Samsung Galaxy Watch 5, according to CNN’s Underscored.
The watch measures 40 millimeters with Bluetooth and Wi-Fi connections, a watch charging dock and an “advanced sleep coaching” feature that can help your stress-out new graduate, according to an online listing.
The Watch 5 can report body fat readings and Body Mass Index (BMI) for interested wearers. An Exynos W920 5 nanometer (nm), Dualcore processor is in the watch, which contains about 1.5 GB of RAM.
How Much: $280
Where: Samsung.com
Apple AirPods Pro
One of the best noise-canceling wireless earbuds on the market, per CNET, is the Apple AirPods Pro 2.
Whether your recent graduate needs to tune out college parties to study or a rowdy office to get work done, the AirPods Pro earbuds promise more intelligent noise cancellation and immersive sound with its Apple-designed H2 chip, according to an online listing.
The Pro has four different sizes of silicone tips for ear comfort and dynamic head tracking to immerse users in audio media. Swiping the stem adjusts volume. Pressing it plays and pauses audio and answers and ends calls. Holding the stem prompts active noise cancellation and adaptive transparency modes.
The earbuds have up to six hours of listening time. The charging case can help give 30 hours of total listening time with the right settings.
The Pro has precision finding, a MagSafe charger and a Siri virtual assistant option. Audio sharing lets users share songs and shows between two sets of AirPods on iPhones, iPads, iPod Touches and Apple TV, according to the listing.
The AirPods each measure .94 inches by .86 inches by 1.22 inches.
How Much: $200
Where: Amazon
Baseus Power Bank
Polygon named the Baseus Power Bank one of the best portable chargers for laptops, but the portable charger also works on phones, watches, earbuds and other devices.
The power bank can help new graduates on the go, whether they are in the car on the job or hunting for an outlet in the office or classroom.
It has one 65 Watt (W) power delivery (PD) Universal Serial Bus Type C (USB-C) port and two 30W quick charge (QC) USB-A ports, according to an online listing. The power bank has a numerical LED charge indicator for monitoring battery levels. The bank recharges in about two hours.
The list of compatible chargeable devices with the power bank includes Apple MacBooks, Samsung Galaxy S series, Apple iPhones, Google Pixels, Dell Zenbooks, HP Envys, Apple Watches, Apple AirPods and Microsoft Surfaces.
How Much: $60
Where: Amazon
iRobot Roomba i4 Evo
When the time comes for graduates to move out of the home to go to college, get closer to work or experience freedom, the state of their future home could be a cause for concern.
Consider buying them peace of mind – and you peace of mind – with a smart vacuum. Wirecutter recommends among its best robot vacuums list the iRobot Roomba i4 Evo.
The Evo measures in at 13.34 inches by 13.26 inches by 3.63 inches and weighs about 10 pounds, according to an online listing. It has a three-stage cleaning system and works on set schedules or when the user needs it. The Evo also suggests extra cleanings based on pollen and shedding season.
The Evo cleans in straight lines back and forth and resumes where it left off after recharging. The battery lasts for 75 minutes. It uses dual multi-surface rubber brushes that adjust to different floor types.
Users can control the Evo through the application, Amazon Alexa and Apple Siri, according to an online listing.
How Much: $210
Where: Amazon
Instant Pot Pro Plus 6.5
Taking care of their new homes and their finances is one thing, but new graduates might need some help taking care of themselves as they navigate classes, a new job and a new social scene.
Deemed one of the best instant pots of 2023 by Better Homes & Gardens, the Instant Pot Pro Plus 6.5 quart multi-use electric pressure cooker allows for wireless operation through the Instant Brands Connect application.
Users can choose from more than 800 recipes and the app wirelessly programs the pot, according to an online listing. The pot can act as a slow cooker, rice cooker, steamer, yogurt maker, food warmer, pressure cooker, saute pan and more.
The pot has a one-touch steam release button and a three-ply stainless steel inner cooking aluminum core with the promise of faster, more even heating, according to the listing.
The inner pot is also safe for stove tops and ovens. The pot measures 13.37 inches by 15.42 inches by 15.5 inches and weighs about 23 pounds. It holds 6.5 quarts.
How Much: $200
Where: Wayfair
You Need A Budget
New graduates moving away from home and handling their own financial affairs for the first time might enjoy a gifted subscription to You Need A Budget (YNAB).
Deemed the “best app for serious budgeters” by CNBC, YNAB promises to save the average user $600 in two months and $6,000 the first year.
Users can connect the app with accounts and expenses, set savings targets and share budgets with others, according to YNAB’s website. The company behind the app promises not to sell or share data and to encrypt data at rest when stored on its servers. Its infrastructure is built on Heroku and Amazon Web Services.
Users can leverage the app for paying off college debt and car loans, aligning with others on a financial plan, organizing finances and more.
The app is free for 34 days, with an annual payment plan and monthly payment plan available, according to the website.
Upcoming features include customizing the viewable categories of a budget, a faster way to set up budgets and predictive category suggestions, according to YNAB.
How Much: $99 A Year
Where: YNAB.com
Headspace
Going from high school to college and college to the real world is only one of the transitions new graduates go through – plenty of mental and physical transitions come with this next phase in life, potentially adding stress and anxiety.
Mashable recommends Headspace as one of its best applications for mindfulness and meditation.
The app promises to help users learn to manage feelings and thoughts, have a more restful night’s sleep, exercise, improve focus and start out mornings better, according to Headspace’s website.
The app has more than 70 million members in 190 countries. It has options for an annual subscription with the first 14 days free and a monthly subscription with seven days free. A student plan can also save money.
How Much: $70 A Year
Where: Headspace