Week 163 was posted by Charanjit Chana on 2020-12-07.
Last year, I kicked off December with my first ever gift guide, one of things I always ended up reading but never thought to create my own. Last year was an easier one to get into, there were either products I loved using or were no brainers. Go take a look as most of them are still relevant this year too.
Given how 2020 has panned out, good health is more important than anything money can buy but I wanted to share just a few things for anyone that's stuck with what they should buy loved ones.
iPhone 12 Mini
Kicking off with the most expensive item on a very short list, this was genuinely the iPhone I was most intrigued by this year. We ended up buying one for my wife and it's the perfect size for a phone. The screen is almost exactly the same height as the one on my iPhone 8 Plus. The cameras and all the computations applied make photos look fantastic. If it came with a telephoto lens (which I would miss a lot if I was upgrading), then it would be a 10/10 phone.
I'm not sold on the OLED screen myself. It is definitely crisper than previous LCDs but there's something about the colour that just always seems to be a bit... off. I can't put my finger on it, but I make this comment as someone who has used an Apple configured OLED for no more than 5 hours in total I would guess (since the iPhone X came out).
I don't have an Android equivalent to recommend this year, but it always makes sense to me to go to the source so if I was forced to pick (and without any research), my head says to go with the Google Pixel 5.
Whisky Made Me Do It cocktail recipe book
If you like whisky or are looking for a new cocktail book, this is a great one. I've enjoyed making a few of them over the past year.
Buy from Amazon.
Lego Crazy Contraptions book
We've absolutely loved playing with these Lego activity books by Klutz. Plenty of instructions and all the pieces you need to build some Lego machines. We bought the 4th in the series this month and will be playing with it soon, once we're through a few other sets we need to work on.
Having said that, the one called Chain Reactions which some of the activities require quite a bit of additional lego to build them out. Still plenty to do but worth being aware of. The others two we had have been fine as they are and the latest should be good to go too.
Buy from Amazon.
Cole & Mason self-watering herb keeper
A gift I bought my wife earlier this year as we tried to get a little better at growing things. I mean, what else were we supposed to do during lockdown?!
These planters look great and while we originally used pots as recommended, we've now filled it with soil. Early days, but looks like we might get a decent crop again.
They do a single and a triple version and the idea is that the plants soak up water when they need it. We just need to top up the reservoir once every fortnight and that's it.
We enjoyed weeks of fresh coriander and parsley the first time round. This time we have some basil already sprouting and I think chives too.
Buy from Amazon.
So the guide is very short this year, only one item is outlandish, the rest are very reasonable in price. They've all brought us joy in some shape or form this past year so I hope you or a loved one will enjoy them too.
Tags: apple, book, christmas, gift guide, lego, apple, book, christmas, gift guide, lego