T
he Holiday season
is upon us! There
are so many magi-
cal wonders that come with win-
ter. Snow cascades down from
above slowly covering trees,
sidewalks, and streets. Christ-
mas music streams through
festively decorated houses and
storefronts. Like clockwork, my
inbox fills with a never-ending
array of emails from parents
asking what the best tech gift
is this year. I spent some time
recently prepping for the inevi-
table. The list below was created
in hopes of guiding all those par-
ents looking for gift ideas.
especially on Black Friday, and
they are shaping up to be just as
popular this year. A home assis-
tant may seem like an odd gift
for a child, but kids love these
things. Google Home and the
Amazon Echo are two primary
choices for home assistants.
They are similar, yet different.
Google is backed by their pow-
erful search engine, so it is bet-
ter at answering your questions.
Echo excels at tasks such as con-
trolling your home and ordering
items from Amazon with ease.
I believe that the Amazon Echo
Dot ($30) is a simple, affordable
option for kids of all ages.
RAISING DIGITAL KIDS
— by Mike Daugherty
Tablets
Tablet computers are a phe-
nomenal gift for kids of any age
because it can be used for learn-
ing and entertainment. Children
can load age-appropriate games,
watch movies and videos, and
surf the web all from the same
device. Choosing the right tablet
can be difficult due to the num-
ber of options available. Some
are much better than others though.
Apple’s iPad stands atop the field with
its sleek design, ease of use, and ac-
cess to the App Store. The downside to
Apple’s unique device is the price. The
newest model iPad (9.7” edition, 32gb)
starts at $329 and goes up from there. If
you’re planning to purchase an iPad, my
recommendation would be to select the
128gb model for $429.
Outside of an iPad, Amazon makes
a fantastic line of devices that work well
and are more friendly on the budget.
The Amazon Fire HD tablets start at
$59.99. The Fire HD surfs the web
with ease. Families who have Am-
azon Prime can take advantage of
Prime Movies and Prime
Music for streaming
movies and music. The
Fire tablet line uses the
Amazon App Store for
games and apps. The
Amazon App Store
doesn’t have every app
Drones
Commercial drones first
became available several years
ago. YouTube and other popular
websites became flooded with
high definition videos of these
nifty machines flying over trees,
through construction sites, and
meandering around abandoned
amusement parks. Those early
models were exciting, but they
were also expensive and somewhat hard
to fly. In more recent years, the prices
have come down dramatically, and the
ease of use has gone up quite a bit as
well.
Drones make creative, fun gifts
for children who are interested in top-
ics such as photography, filmmaking,
sports, or aviation. For example, if your
youngster is building a YouTube chan-
nel on skateboarding, a drone could
be used to capture skaters executing
tricks from unique angles. The Tello
Quadcopter Drone from DJI is an
excellent choice for an afford-
able price ($130). The drone
includes a built-in high defi-
nition camera for capturing
video as well as a handheld
controller. There is also a model
available for $99 that uses a
smartphone or tablet as the con-
troller. The Mini Orion drones
from World Tech Toys Elite is
another fantastic option. These
Savvy Shopping:
A Guide to Tech Gifts
14 WNY Family December 2018
available on an iPad, but the selection is
quite expansive. The Amazon Fire HD
10 Kids Edition for $159.99 is an excel-
lent choice.
Home Assistants
A home assistant is a wireless, in-
ternet connected “smart” speaker you
control with your voice. You can ask
a home assistant to play music, create
timers, keep lists, look up information
and a whole host of other tasks. These
little gizmos were a hot item last year,