Gadgets as gifts: A holiday primer

By Dirk Averesch Nov 13, 2011, 3:06 GMT

Berlin - It's hard to do your Christmas shopping these days without grabbing some tech gadgets for friends and family. But what do you choose from the array of devices available?

Smartphones are popular gifts with ever-increasing functionality. Keep your eye too on tablets, since they are proving popular for surfing, emailing, reading and watching movies. More sophisticated cameras are also on many wish lists.

Touchscreen smartphones won't break the bank. A good Android device starts at 100 euros (138 dollars), though these models might make do with some cuts in speed or graphics resolution. But the Google operating system should be easy for beginners.

'There's a good reason Android has become the leading mobile operating system,' says Peter Knaak, technology expert at German consumer product testing group Stiftung Warenest. Some Google products outstrip the iPhone in quality.

Major electronics retailers are usually the first to drop smartphone prices. Some expensive smartphones have seen their prices halve after just a few weeks or months. 'If you want to give a smartphone as a gift, don't buy one with a fixed contract or a SIM lock,' says Knaak. 'There's no point in contracts.' Instead, the recipient can get by with a prepaid card, which costs a little extra.

Tablet computers will also be at the top of a bunch of wish lists this year. No sector in entertainment electronics is growing faster. People are expecting a continued 'dramatic' rise in sales figures, says Joachim Duenkelmann of the German Association for Technology and Small Business.

As with smartphones, most tablet computers run either the Apple iOS or Android operating system. Stiftung Warentest reports that Android falls behind in quality here, especially when it comes to ease of use.

'The gap with Apple is still relatively large,' says Knaak. But there are still a lot of Android devices that, thanks to the system's relatively open operating system and a variety of sizes in tablet computers, could be interesting. Android-based tablets also have one major advantage over iPads: They come with USB connections and can be expanded with memory cards.

Android tablets start at 100 euros, though the cheaper ones come with fewer extras and an operating version not designed specifically for a tablet. Consumers are advised to look for tablets that use an optimized operating system - Version 3 (Honeycomb) - though they can expect to pay at least 300 euros. Save a little money by doing without a mobile communications module, since most tablets come with wi-fi capacity.

Many hobby photographers are focused on system cameras these days. These supposedly combine the best of compact and single-lens reflex cameras, meaning good picture quality and a variety of lenses, but all in a compact package. 'You should always be sure what the recipient wants,' says Knaak. 'There are also good compact cameras with good picture quality.'

Most system camera bodies are sold with only one lens. When it comes to kits, shoppers often opt for the cheapest versions. But that's a mistake, says Knaak. Better to pick the kit with the higher quality lens. If that's too expensive, look into a bridge camera, a cross between a compact and a single-lens reflex camera, but with a single non-swappable lens.