Father's Day gadget gift ideas

Geeky presents to delight any Dad

Swiss Army

The top-of-the-line Swiss Army knife with features galore.

By Gary Krakow

Columnist

msnbc.com

updated 12:41 a.m. ET June 25, 2005

Gary Krakow
Columnist
• E-mail
If you’re the type of person who is planning on giving Dad a greeting card and a tie – or a set of golf balls - what’s below is not meant for you. If you think your dad deserves the best – I’ve come up with a list of gadgets that are worth consideration.

Some dads know exactly what they want. Some are clever enough to have given you a hint or two — whether in the form of a newspaper ad taped to the bathroom mirror — or even a upfront suggestion that a particular item might make a great Father’s Day surprise.

If Dad needs a new phone or PDA he’ll probably let you know, in advance, what premium model he wants. Palm’s LifeDrive is their top-of-the-line PDA — and sells for just under $500. If he’s into Pocket PCs, the H-P iPAQ hx4705 is tops at $599.99.

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A new premium smart phone is something dad might want. The Treo 650 sells for $399.99 — $449 depending on your carrier (Verizon, Cingular or Sprint.) And the iPAQh6315/6325 sells for $599.99 and is available via T-Mobile or Cingular.

Mototola 801 Bluetooth headset
Motorola
Mototola's 801 Bluetooth headset retails for $49.

If you’re looking out for his well being, then a Bluetooth cell-phone headset might be the ticket — or, in some locales where hands-free is the law, might keep him from getting a ticket. I’ve just seen a slew of cool-looking headsets from companies like Jabra, Motorola, Nokia and others. Prices run from about $50 to $200 or so — depending on features.

Digital Rebel XT
Canon
The Canon Digital Rebel XT has 8 megapixels of resolution.
Digital cameras are always a great gift. Go for the gold and get Dad a Cannon Digital Rebel XT. It’s an 8 megapixel digital SLR (single lens reflex) camera — and lets you change lenses on the fly. There might be some cameras with a spec or two that are better – but the new Rebel XT is one sweet package. If I were a dad it’s what I’d want for Father’s Day. The XT with a zoom lens retails for just under $1,000 — but I’ve seen it selling online for closer to $900.