Helping You Fulfill That Christmas Wish List

Every year, there are a few things you can bank on happening around the holidays. You’ll hear the same 12 Christmas songs played over and over by 30 different artists, ugly sweaters are set free from their homes in the back of closets, homes, stores and even cars are decorated with hundreds of twinkling lights and the stress of finding that “perfect” gift for someone on your list will end up driving you crazy.

Gift guides have always been popular for children, giving them an opportunity to wish and hope that Santa will bring them exactly what they want. Even gift guides for adults have begun to catch on in recent years, catering to specific people in your life. Moms, dads, outdoorsmen, amateur chefs, geeks and everyone in between can find a gift guide that spells out exactly what this season’s hottest gifts are. So why would MyLIFE magazine want to give you yet another boring gift guide? We won’t.

We’ve broken down the most requested gifts into 10 categories, and then we have given you options that will help you make the best decisions based on budget, availability and wow factor.

I’m looking for …
1. Tablets/eReaders:

Amazon Kindle Fire. For $199, the Fire expands on the already popular Kindle series of eReaders and is built on Google’s Android operating system. The Kindle Fire is an inexpensive way to get many of the same features found in the iPad in a slightly smaller package. amazon.com/kindlefire.

Samsung Galaxy Tab. Ranging from $499 to $529, the Galaxy Tab gives you access to the Web, e-mail, photos, movies, books and apps as well, but it runs on the Android operating system from Google. Like the iPad, the Galaxy Tab can be purchased with or without wireless access from the major U.S. cell phone companies. samsung.com/galaxytab.

2. MP3 Players:

The Sony Walkman brand is making a comeback. Ranging from $59 to $219, the Sony Walkman series has a ton of choices. With features from touchscreens to being water resistant and wire free, Sony has a Walkman that fits just about anyone’s lifestyle. The W series manages to put 2 or 4 GB of storage right IN the headphones, meaning you have nothing to wear but the headphones themselves. store.sony.com.

The Apple iPod series has long been on the top of many wish lists, and this year is no different. The iPod Touch ($199-$399) gives you access to apps, movies, music, photos, e-mail, books and the Web. Think of it as an iPhone, without the phone. Apple also offers other iPods in various sizes and colors.

Smartphones. But wait! Smartphones have their own category below! Hear us out. Most cell phones these days are decent MP3 players in their own right. Check out our smartphone category below for some good ideas. Even if you don’t go with one we picked, you should be able to kill two birds with one stone on this one.

3. Video Games:

The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim. The latest edition in the Elder Scrolls series, it’s an open world fantasy game that gives players more room and options than ever. Available on PlayStation 3 and XBOX 360 for $60. elderscrolls.com.

Star Wars: The Old Republic. A Windows PC-only game, Star Wars: The Old Republic ($60) allows players to make decisions that will change the course of the game, then builds upon that by adding a Massive Multiplayer Online component. Think Choose Your Own Adventure meets World of Warcraft, and you’ve got an idea why this game is at the top of many gamers’ wish lists. swtor.com.

Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword. Available only for the Nintendo Wii, Skyward Sword ($49) carries the Zelda franchise into new territory with realistic sword fighting that makes the classic Zelda puzzles a balance of brain and brawn. zelda.com/skywardsword.

4. Home Theater:

TVs: When shopping for any HDTV, there are a few things to look for, such as resolution (either 720p or 1080p), screen size and refresh rate, represented by a number followed by Hz or Hertz. The more Hertz, the smoother the picture is. LED LCD TVs offer the best overall performance, in our opinion, and are usually incredibly thin and light. Deciding between 720p and 1080p (the number of horizontal lines of resolution) is sometimes difficult. Blu-ray discs play at 1080p, and so do Playstation 3 and XBOX 360 games, but satellite and cable HD channels are only 720p.

Blu-ray players: Blu-ray players have come way down in price recently, so if you haven’t moved to Blu-ray, now is a great time. The cost of the discs has dropped to just a bit more than the DVD version and all Blu-ray players will still play your existing DVDs, even “upscaling” them to mimic 1080p resolution. Players range from $60 to $200, depending on store sales. Look for a Blu-ray player with built-in WiFi. This will make any future software and feature upgrades simple and easy.

Movie rental boxes: There are a couple of WiFi-based movie rental boxes worth mentioning. The AppleTV ($99) connects to your iTunes account and allows you to rent HD movies directly on your TV for about $3 per movie. AppleTV is also Netflix-capable, allowing you to stream movies from the service if you are a Netflix subscriber. It also streams music, movies and photos from your Mac or PC, displays wonderful slideshows and lets you play music for a party. Roku also makes a similar device for $79 that gives you the same functionality as AppleTV without having to use the Apple/iTunes eco-system. apple.com/appletv. roku.com.

5. Household Appliances:

Keurig single-cup coffee maker. Why make a whole pot of coffee when you can make only the cup or two you need? The Keurig coffee system uses pre-measured “K-Cups” that allow you to quickly brew one or two cups of coffee directly into your mug or travel Thermos. K-Cups are available from most major retailers and in a wide variety of flavors, from companies like Folgers, Dunkin’ Donuts, Starbucks, Green Mountain and about two dozen others. The Keurig itself runs from $100 to $250, and K-Cups average 70 cents per unit. keurig.com.

KitchenAid mixer. Long has this gift been on the “most wanted list,” and this year is no exception. For approximately $300, the KitchenAid standing mixer is a great tool to have in the kitchen. Available in a dozen or so different colors, there’s one that will match your decor perfectly. From mixing up homemade dough for bread or cookies to whipping eggs, cutting homemade pasta or grinding meat and slicing vegetables, there’s not a whole lot this “mixer” can’t do. kitchenaid.com.

Soda Stream: A fantastic gadget that allows you to make carbonated beverages right at home, as well as helping you reduce waste. The included 2 liter bottle is reusable, saving you from having a mountain of cans or bottles in the trash, and the unit itself doesn’t use electricity. Soda Stream runs about $150 and comes with the reusable 2L bottle, sample soda flavorings and a CO2 cylinder that can carbonate roughly 60L of beverages. sodastreamusa.com.

6. Watches:

Phosphor Appear. We did a piece on this watch earlier in the year, and we are still in love with it. Ranging in price from $199 to $249, the Phosphor Appear uses Micro-Magnetic Mechanical Digital technology to activate miniature rotors adorned with Swarovski crystals to display numerical information. It’s subtle and flashy all at the same time. Trust us, it’s a conversation starter. phosphorwatches.com.

Remix. The $40 Remix is a unisex, interchangeable nylon band, analog watch that comes in 11 colors. The idea is to get as many colors as possible and mix the bands with different colored watch faces. Reminds us a lot of the old Swatch Watch craze … and we love it. remixwatches.com.

Reveal. Made by Yanko Design. the Reveal ($105-$130) is an analog watch that reads in the digital format. Discs rotate to fade time in and out, creating a unique timepiece that’s sure to turn some heads. Check out some of Yanko’s other amazing designs at store.yankodesign.com.

7. Miscellaneous:

Nike Free Run +2. Some of the most comfortable shoes we’ve ever worn are the Nike Free Run series. With more than 8 years of research and design to simulate barefoot running, the Free Run +2 is the second generation of the Free Run series. Available for men and women in half a dozen colors, the Free Run +2 is a comfortable and supportive shoe for casually walking around or serious training. The unique design fuses thin, lightweight materials with water-resistant mesh to provide comfort and breathability. The Free Run +2 is available at major shoe retailers for around $90. nikerunning.nike.com.

My Wellness Wake Up Call: Tired of waking up to the same annoying siren or horn sound? Try waking up to motivational or spiritual messages that gradually awaken you and prepare you for the day. My Wake Up Call with Jennifer Jimenez is a free app available on iPhone, iPod Touch and iPad that we’ve been using for a few months now, and boy, have we noticed a difference! Choose what kind of specially structured five-minute motivations you’d like to wake up to, and instead of being startled out of your sleep, you’re gradually awakened with a soothing and positive message to begin the day. A month’s worth of messages, which are yours to keep, cost $9.99, and new messages are available each month. mywakeupcalls.net.

Bowers & Wilkins P5 headphones: Retailing for $299, the B&W P5s give you amazingly clear and natural sound and noise-isolation, coupled with a luxuriously comfortable fit. They’re crafted from aluminum, stainless steel and genuine leather to give you a premium fit and finish that are so comfortable, you almost forget you’re wearing headphones. bowers-wilkins.com.

8. Smartphones:

Galaxy Nexus: Available for both AT&T and Verizon subscribers, the Galaxy Nexus is a marriage between Google’s successful Nexus series phones and Samsung’s Galaxy series phones. The Galaxy Nexus runs Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich, has a curved 4.65 inch Super AMOLED HD display and a dual core 1.2GHz processor. The Galaxy Nexus is available for $299 with a new two-year contract. google.com/nexus.

iPhone 4S: Apple’s latest iPhone offering didn’t change in appearance from last year’s iPhone 4, but it does pack improvements in software, such as Siri, a digital assistant that can make appointments, set reminders, check the weather and calculate your tip, plus much more, all using your voice. The iPhone 4S is now available from AT&T, Verizon and Sprint starting at $199 when you sign a new two-year contract. apple.com/iphone.

Samsung Stratosphere: For $99 and a new two-year contract with Verizon, the Stratosphere’s four-inch AMOLED touchscreen, 1GHz processor, 5MP camera, slide out qwerty keyboard and 4G LTE service make this phone tough to beat. samsung.com.

There are TONS of great smartphones out there, but we only have room for details about three of them. Some other notable mentions are RAZR, Rezound, DROID Bionic, Incredible 2, Atrix, Inspire, Galaxy SII, MyTouch and G2x.

9. Laptops:

Ultra thin and ultra light is the trend. Apple’s Macbook Air is only 0.68 inches thick when closed, weighs about 2.5 pounds and uses all flash (SSD) memory, meaning there are no internal moving parts to wear down, startup/shutdown is nearly instantaneous and battery life is outstanding. The Macbook Air comes in two sizes, 11 inch and 13 inch, and ranges from $999 to $1,599. apple.com/macbookair.

The HP EliteBook family of notebooks looks to capitalize on the burgeoning ultra thin and light category by offering 4.5 pound laptops with 12.5, 14 and 15.6 inch screens, ranging in price from $959 to $1,409 before user-selected options are added. hp.com/go/elite.

Sony VAIO Z series laptops range from $1,999 to $4,499, depending on options, and are razor thin. At 0.68 inches closed and weighing 2.5 pounds, the VAIO Z series also uses flash (SSD) memory to prevent internal component wear and tear and extend battery life. The VAIO Z is only available in one size (13 inches), but it comes in both black and gold. store.sony.com/zseries.

10. Automobiles:

The combination of pure sex appeal and technological wonder is evident in few cars these days, and only one car has gotten that mix just right: the Audi S5. Starting at $53,900, the S5 gives you a whiplash-inducing 354 hp, 4.2 liter V8 under the hood that can take you from 0-60 in a hair under five seconds. Technology includes Quattro all-wheel drive, a 12-way adjustable driver’s seat, keyless entry, Bluetooth, HomeLink, adaptive xenon headlights with LED daytime running lights and an available Audi Multimedia Interface with a Bang & Olufsen 505-watt, 12-speaker audio system. models.audiusa.com/s5-coupe.

We reviewed the Chevy Volt earlier this year. We loved it then, and we still love it now. The Volt’s 149 hp electric drive unit gives you roughly 80 miles of driving before it needs to be charged, and that’s sufficient for many people’s weekly commute. Backing up the electric drive unit is a 1.4L, 83 hp gasoline engine that is surprisingly quick. Technology inside features Bluetooth, HomeLink, remote vehicle start, MP3 playback, touch-sensitive controls and a DVD navigation system. Starting at $31,645. chevy.com/volt.

Imported from Detroit. When we first heard Chrysler’s new motto here at MyLIFE Magazine, we were a bit skeptical. The new Chrysler 300 has us eating our words, though. Starting at $27,170, the 2012 300 gives you design, technology and horsepower in a sedan you’d feel comfortable putting your kids in the back of. The base model’s 3.6L V6 punches out 292 hp, yet it feels smooth. Technology inside and out include daytime running LED lights around the headlights, an 8.4 inch touchscreen on the dash, Bluetooth, keyless entry and an optional Harmon Kardon 19-speaker sound system. chrysler.com/300.