Nuraphone headphones
From £9/month, Nuraphone
I confess – the idea of buying headphones on a subscription plan is daunting. But one 60-minute session with these headphones and you’ll understand why people are raving about them. A fun ‘pairing’ session configures the headphones to your personal heading tastes (I can’t emphasise how cool this was) – before letting you flick between your ‘personal profile’ and neutral audio. Having tried these headphones out, it’s hard to go back to listening to music the normal way again. A must-buy for the music-lover in your life.
Larq self-cleaning water bottle
From £78 from Larq
The market for cool-looking, hip water bottles is fairly saturated right now (excuse the pun). So this water bottle sets itself apart by claiming to be entirely ‘self-purifying’. That means you can put dirty water in it, and it uses some UVC- LED light to eliminate 99.99999% of the bacteria in the water. Pretty nifty. We weren’t able to test this in wild rainforests where it’s presumably intended for use, but we can confirm that the water in our office tasted cold, fresh and clean! It’s a great gift for the luxe adventurer.
Nintendo Switch
£279.99 from John Lewis
I thoroughly enjoyed my trip down memory lane with this almost-pocket-sized companion for the daily commute. Equally enjoyable by adults and kids – this little bundle fun can entice even the most gaming-passive to get stuck into a round of Mario Kart or go hunting to catch Pokemon. The journey to work will never be the same again – making it the perfect gift for the distance commuter, to take their mind off emails and work calls to and from the office!
Nikon Z6
£1679.99 from Nikon, including FTZ adapter.
Nikon’s entry into the full-frame, mirrorless camera game was somewhat tainted by extraordinarily high prices that would have put off even the most enthusiastic photographer. However, a recent price cut on the fantastic Nikon Z6 makes this camera more affordable than ever – and given it’s arguably the best mirrorless camera out there at its price point, you can’t go wrong. For stunning, sharp, responsive photos, this is my absolute camera pick of the year. Available with a kit lens, or infinitely upgradeable. For backwards compatibility with any old Nikon lenses, be sure to pair this with the ‘FTZ adapter’, which is available to buy as a combo deal.
Caran d’Ache Sparkle Ballpoint Pen
£39.95 from Caran d’Ache.
Exclusively for Christmas 2019, Caran d’Ache has added a touch of festive spirit ts its iconic pen with a limited-edition ‘Give a Little Joy’ collection. Ideal for lovers of creativity of all ages, the sparkle and yuletide glitter is a charming addition to anyone’s pen collection.
Airpods Pro
£249 from Apple
Another audio entry for the gift list: Apple’s latest innovation with its popular AirPods are a hit. Smaller, lighter and now with built-in audio-cancelling, it seems a remarkable effort that these can deliver on so much at such a small size. Available with free personalisation.
