BitDepth#1384
MARK LYNDERSAY
GETTING A Christmas gift for a technology-obsessed loved one is a challenge. I know this, because the household management read the tea leaves and gave up decades ago.
Still, y'know what to do.
Some ideas follow, coloured by my perspective with a nod at objectivity.
Small but sweet.
Everybody with a serious computing interest needs a USB hub. The multi-port units that are commonplace since USB-C became commonplace on modern computers are handy for travellers, but a working desk is a nest of cables. Jacking everything into a hub means plugging in just one cable to a laptop.
What gets connected to a USB hub, or more properly a port splitter, can vary widely, but the cables are normally legacy USB-A, the commonplace slot-like plug. A four to seven port hub should meet most needs, but be sure to look for hubs rated for USB 3.1 transfers on any computer made since 2020.
USB-C cables, the rounded compact plugs that are now commonplace on mobile devices and computers, were a swamp of differing specifications, but the Thunderbolt 4 standard rolls everything that's gone before into a single cable.
The cables are around 30 per cent more expensive than a generic USB-C cable, but are infinitely more compatible across a range of uses, from high-speed data connections to high-powered charging. The best TB4 cables are manufactured with tangle-resistant braided nylon.
Consider a gift pack of one-foot, three-foot and six-foot cables for maximum impact.
The box of chargers is history. A new generation of gallium-nitride (GaN) chargers with intelligent charging circuitry allow you to charge a laptop, a tablet and a smartphone simultaneously with a single small adapter. Look for multiple-outlet units mixing USB-A and USB-C ports from Belkin, Anker and UGreen.
For just a bit more, you can pair that charger with an inductive charger for your smartphone and possibly a smartwatch.
Most inductive chargers are designed for devices to lay flat on them. I prefer units that hold the phone at a 45 degree angle on my desk, so I can see incoming calls and messages (I muted my phone ten years ago and haven't looked back).
The deep-pocketed giver.
Everyone I know needs better headphones and possibly more headphones. For the record, I detest earbuds. They never seem to fit my ear canal properly, and I constantly expect them to fall out and be crushed underfoot before I can pick them up.
In a post-Zoom era, the only real choice is between wired and wireless headphones. I prefer the responsiveness and secure connection of a wired headset with a positionable microphone on an important call, but for other applications, a comfortable pair of Bluetooth cans fits the bill.
While some headphones promise that you can pair multiple devices, I've never gotten that to work, so I shamelessly have a pair linked to every device I work with.
My favourite brand, MPow, has been booted off Amazon, so I've sampled headsets from JBL (too small), iJoy (audio leakage) and Behringer (excellent, bu
