Mother’s Day is the the time to show your mom how grateful you are that she’s put up with all your crap for so long, but it’s not easy to find a good Mother’s Day gift.
Everyone’s mom is different, and while some might be satisfied with a card and brunch, others will want more. After all, she carried you for nine whole months – the least you can do it spend a couple hundred bucks on a thoughtful gift.
And while some moms are tech-savvy, some may have no clue. But that doesn’t mean that you can’t make her day with the right gadget. You’ve just got to discover the perfect Mother’s Day tech for her.
No matter what tech your mom is already into, there’s bound to be a technologically advanced Mother’s Day gift here that she’ll appreciate. And even if she doesn’t, at least it’s the thought that counts with mothers.
1. Fitbit Flex wristband and Aria smart scale
Get it at: Fitbit.com (scale $129.99)
Taglines: “Outsmart your weight with Aria” / “Never stop moving with Fitbit Flex”
If your mom doesn’t already have a Nike FuelBand, you might want to clue her in to this fitness gift combo from Fitbit. The scale will track her weight, body fat, and BMI, all the while connecting to her computer via Wi-Fi and uploading her stats and progress.
Whether your mom’s obsessed with fitness or she’s been struggling to get into it, the Aria smart scale could be a great Mother Day tech gift.
And the Flex wristband, much like the popular Nike FuelBand, is much more than a pedometer that will count your mom’s footsteps. In addition to steps taken, it tracks calories burned, distance traveled, active minutes, and – get this – both hours slept and quality of sleep. It even acts as a silent alarm clock so she won’t wake up your dad when she gets up early to go running. And naturally the two gadgets will work together.
Unfortunately, the Flex isn’t out yet, though Fitbit is currently promising a Spring 2013 release date that should arrive any day.
2. BabyPing video baby monitor
Get it at: BabyPing ($199.99)
Tagline: “Whether home or away BabyPing keeps you connected to your baby”
New moms have always relied on baby monitors in this modern age, but the technology has come a long way. Static-filled walkie-talkies are a thing of the past, and now it’s all about the video.
There are plenty of different choices when it comes to video baby monitors, but the BabyPing is one of the best – and more importantly, it’s one of the easiest to set up, so even non-techy moms should be able to get into it.
It’s full of features, too, including night vision, audio filtering to keep background hiss down, two-way audio, built-in nursery rhymes, and Wi-Fi connectivity to PCs and iOS devices (no Android, unfortunately, though there are plenty of alternative baby monitors for non-iOS-using moms).
3. Kindle Paperwhite
Get it at: Amazon ($119)
Tagline: “The world’s most advanced e-reader”
Plenty of moms out there already have an e-reader, but there are plenty more who probably don’t yet know what they’ve been missing.
There are several reasons a Kindle Paperwhite will make a perfect Mother’s Day tech gift: it’s affordable and it’s easy on the eyes, and since it’s the newest Kindle model, your mom will be able to brag to all her friends about it.
The best part? You won’t have to look at all the trashy romance novels she has lying around anymore, since they’ll all be digital.
4. Moxie showerhead and bluetooth speaker
Get it at: Amazon ($149.25)
Tagline: “It takes Moxie to shower out loud”
Moms have it hard. Whether their kids are 2, 12 or 40, it seems their job never ends. The shower may be one of the only places your mom gets to relax. And with the Moxie showerhead and built-in bluetooth speaker, she can do it while listening to her favorite Celine Dion or Phil Collins songs.
The showerhead speaker connects to a smartphone or other bluetooth device at up to 32 feet, and one of the best parts is that the speaker isn’t limited to the shower – it detaches and can travel with your mom all over the house or wherever she wants to go, with seven hours of battery life.
An alternative for moms who appreciate some ambiance but don’t care as much about music is an LED showerhead that can simulate rainfall while projecting various soothing colors. Browse LightintheBox.com and take your pick.
5. Slingbox
Get it at: Slingbox.com ($179.99 – $299.99)
Tagline: “Watch your TV anywhere”
The Slingbox is a great Mother’s Day tech gift – whether your mom is down with all the memes or still thinks that her browser is called “Google,” she’ll appreciate the ability to take her episodes of soap operas and The View with her on the go.
The latest models are the Slingbox 350 and the Slingbox 500, and although the 500 comes with some extra features, let’s be honest – your mom probably isn’t going to use them anyway. You might as well go with the cheaper version (we won’t tell).
Plus, your dad will likely show some appreciation for this one as well.
6. Flower Power by Parrot
Get it at: Parrot.com (not yet available)
Tagline: “The most advanced plant sensor”
Parrot’s Flower Power is a device the likes of which we’ve never seen before, and it’s sure to tickle your mom’s green thumb – or better yet, lack thereof – on Mother’s Day.
It’s a plant sensor that sits in the soil of a planter or pot, monitoring sunlight, moisture, temperature, and fertilizer, then sending the data wirelessly via bluetooth to your mother’s gadgets. It will even remind her when to water them.
It was only introduced at CES this year, so unfortunately it’s not on the market yet, but a 2013 release is promised and you can sign up to be notified at parrot.com. Maybe it will make a good birthday present, or you can remember it for next year’s Mother’s Day.
7. LogMeIn
Get it at: LogMeIn.com ($69.95 per year)
Tagline: “Simply connect from anywhere”
This one’s for the working moms, though even the retirees and stay-at-homes out there could no doubt find some use for it. LogMeIn is a subscription service that will allow her to access her home PC from anywhere.
Moms at soccer practice or dance recitals won’t have to duck out to email their bosses that important file, and when she’s with her friends she’ll be able to pull up all those cute baby pictures and home videos without having to worry about what’s synced with her tablet or phone.
Trying to juggle files between multiple devices can be a hassle even for the tech-savvy, so your mom will definitely appreciate not having to do it.
Getting her a year’s subscription to LogMeIn Pro will ensure that she remembers what a good son or daughter you are all year long.
8. Canon PowerShot Elph 110 HS
Get it at: Amazon ($194.98)
If your mother is sick of being disappointed by blurry smartphone photos (or if she – gasp! – doesn’t use a smartphone at all) you might want to consider getting her an affordable point-and-shoot.
There are many to choose from, but Canon’s name carries some weight in the world of photography and the Elph line of point-and-shoots has always proved reliable in our experience.
The Canon PowerShot Elph 110 HS is the latest model, and it has plenty of features that will keep your mom entertained. In case she isn’t too tech-savvy, though, the adorable name (“Elph”) and the rainbow of colors that the 110 comes in should allay most of her fears.
And she might be amazed when you tell her that it takes full HD 1080p video, even though that’s become a standard feature for point-and-shoots. You don’t have to tell her that part.
9. Nook HD
Get it at: Barnes & Noble ($149)
Tagline: “The best in reading”
If the Kindle Paperwhite is too light on features for your media-hungry mother, the Nook HD may be the ideal alternative.
Barnes & Noble’s Kindle competitor has improved dramatically with the Nook HD, which, with the very recent addition of Google Play store access, has become a desirable little tablet in its own right. The standard Nook HD comes in a handy 7-inch size, while the upgraded Nook HD+ adds an extra two inches and an improved resolution.
The best part? Barnes & Noble has got your back with a Mother’s Day sale that’s knocked $50 off the price of the Nook HD and a full $90 off the price of the plus-sized version.
There are plenty of high-tech Mother’s Day gifts out there, and we’ll continue adding to this list as the holiday approaches. But no matter what kind of Mother’s Day gadgets you get her, don’t forget the flowers, too.
Posted in Cameras, Computing, Gadgets, Mobile Phones, Technology, Wireless
Posted on 09 May 2013. Tags: among-the-first, computing, gadgets, internal-memory, new-generation, rather-sizeable, sizeable, speculation, taiwanese, the-speculation, windows, year
HTC is reportedly preparing to launch its first Windows RT tablets once Microsoft launches the long-awaited Blue software update, and judging by today’s rumours, the machines look like a pair of beauties.
According to a PhoneArena tipster, the Taiwanese company is preparing two high-end tablets, the 7-inch R7 and the 12-inch R12 for launch later this year.
The R7, the source claimed, could bring a full HD, 1080p display and will be powered by a rather sizeable 2.3GHz quad-core Qualcomm Snapdragon 800 and 2GB of RAM.
The device may also tout a 13-megapixel camera, 16GB of internal memory plus a microSD card slot, along with a Bluetooth 4.0 and a 4G LTE radio.
Invasion of the 7-inchers
If the speculation proves to be genuine, the HTC R7 (with the R presumably named after Windows RT) would be among the first of a new generation of 7-inch Windows tablets.
The new Windows Blue update, which Microsoft plans for release later this year, is expected to relax specification requirements, allowing for smaller Windows RT tablets for the first time.
Beyond the R7, the HTC R12 is reported to be touting all of the same core specs along with a few more connectivity options, plus a super hi-res 2048 x 1536 display, which would match the iPad’s Retina display.
The report claimed both tablets have been slapped with a tentative launch date of Oct. 13, but we’ll be on the look out for firmer facts about these gadgets.
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