Geeklets and (geek)moms, looking for a gift for Dad for Father’s Day? Check out our humble list, painstakingly assembled by the various GeekDad contributors.
(For even more ideas, make sure to check out last year’s gift guide, part one and part two.)
The Caryatids
A convoluted tale of the brilliant clones of a Balkans war criminal, written by Wired.com’s very own Bruce Sterling. Will the clones save a world that doesn’t particularly want saving? Me and Cory Doctorow say this is the best book of 2009. Read our review or Buy it on Amazon.
V-Moda Vibe Earbud Headset
Uber-techy earbuds/microphone for the iPhone. Featuring stainless steel earbuds, fabric-wrapped cables and a gold-plated plug, these headphones will help Dad enjoy his tunes at work, and give him a safe way to answer calls in the car. Buy them on Amazon.
Extech EX470 Multimeter
Multimeters are a neccesity for DIYer Dads, and this is a great one. Packing robust measurement options including non-contact IR temperature measurement, this bad boy will help with many an electronics project. Read the review or buy it on Amazon.
Road Mice Wireless Mouse
I love my Road Mice mouse. It’s a wireless mouse in the shape of a yellow Ford GT and when I click on a link, its headlights flash. It’s got two mouse buttons and a click wheel, and… well, it’s a mouse, and it’s awesome! My only complaint is that it’s not a true Bluetooth mouse in that it’s not compatible with my computer’s built-in ‘tooth and needs a dongle. Mac and Windows compatible. Check out the Black Mustang, Red Corvette, and Black Camaro, plus several more Road Mice.
Stainless Steel Wallet
This sweet wallet sold by ThinkGeek is woven from metal fibers. How cool is that? Super cool. Plus the resulting cloth is wonderfully smooth and unique. Only down side, these things don’t hold a huge number of cards, like under 8. Also, not sure if it works as a Faraday Cage. ThinkGeek.com
LEGO Brickbeard’s Bounty
Ahoy! Armed with powerful canons and fierce pirates, builders can help Brickbeard’s Bounty set sail to look for treasure and adventure. The soldiers are right behind the boat, trying to rescue the admiral’s daughter who is about to be forced to walk the plank. Will the soldiers get there before she’s sent overboard? Buy in on Amazon. (Review forthcoming.)
The Geek Atlas: 128 Places Where Science and Technology Come Alive
This amazing book couples a description of important places in geek history — for instance, 1 Infinite Loop, headquarters of Apple. Then author John Graham-Cumming busts out one important fact to be learned that relates to the location. In the above example, he talks about what an infinite loop is in the field of computer science. Pre-order on Amazon. (Review forthcoming.)
Ties Suck Tie
Many geeks are tie-adverse. These nooses are the uniforms of the guys who gave us swirlies in high school. Still, everyone must occasionally dress up and some of you unfortunates have to wear a tie every day. If that’s the case, wear a one like this, that proclaims your hatred for ties in a way the square community will never understand — the tie’s pattern spells out “Ties Suck” in binary. Buy it from ThinkGeek.com
NXT One-Kit Wonders
Owners of the fabulous LEGO Mindstorms NXT set often run into problems with projects they find in books — they don’t have the LEGO bricks to build the models described. No Starch solved this by publishing a book featuring projects using only those core parts! Every one of the excellent models in this book uses only those bricks found in the core NXT set. Read the review or buy it on Amazon.
The Starman Omnibus
James Robinson’s masterpiece is perfect for Father’s Day: it’s all about the legacies that fathers leave to their children, and how those children
struggle to live up to their parent’s dreams. It begins with the old Starman, Ted Knight, passing on the heroic legacy to his eldest son. The legacy is cut short when the new Starman is murdered by the son of his father’s old enemy. This leaves the younger son, Jack Knight, to reluctantly step forward, avenge his brother and somehow come to terms with his father and the nature of being a hero.
Buy it on Barnes and Noble.
Family Tech Support Merit Badge
Nerd Merit Badges — because 13-year-old boys aren’t the only ones who deserve recognition for a job well done. This one acknowledges that very often, GeekDads are the ones summoned to fix whatever is busted. Don’t know how to fix it? You better learn. Get one of these bad boys for Dad to show your appreciation. Best of all, it’s dirt cheap — $5 with shipping. Buy it from nerdmeritbadges.com.
LEGO Darth Vader’s TIE Fighter
Collectors can celebrate 10 years of LEGO Star Wars with Darth Vader’s iconic custom TIE Fighter straight out of the final battle of Episode IV: A New Hope. New and improved from the original model in 1999, the TIE Fighter includes new style, silver color and flick-firing action. Buy it on Amazon.
Star Trek: The Original Motion Picture Collection on Blu-Ray
Get dad shiny editions of the six original Trek cast movies – which means, of course, he’ll get two fantastic flicks, two darn good ones, and two that he’ll watch maybe once each just to say, “Oh, yeah. That was this one.” There’s also a seventh disc exclusive to this set titled “The Captains’ Summit” with an hour-plus of interviews and recollections. As pretty much everybody knows, the even-numbered Treks – The Wrath of Khan, The Voyage Home and The Undiscovered Country are the best of this old-school collection, but I’m giving The Search for Spock a special Father’s Day benefit of the doubt because trust me: Even if this is weaker Trek, dads love seeing Reverend Jim/Doc Brown playing the Klingon Commander Kruge. Buy it on Amazon.
