The best Christmas tech gifts for 2017

Apple Watch
Apple Watch 3

Christmas is a time for good cheer, gift-giving and indulgence. But for the techies out there, it is also a great time to get a wishlist together of goodies and gadgets they fancy from Santa (or as a personal Christmas treat) this year.

We have broken down some of the top products this year from across tech, so if you fancy treating yourself or are looking for a luxury gift for the tech-lover in your life, look no further.

Cameras

Sony Cybershot WX220

£158, John Lewis

Sony CyberShot
Sony CyberShot

This point and shoot camera offers a lot of punch for its price, with 10 times optical zoom (and up to 20 times digitally) and HD video capture. It can also connect via Wi-Fi or NFC, meaning you have a camera that is easily linked to your PC or tablet.

Nikon D3400 DSLR Camera

£449, John Lewis

Nikon
Nikon

This powerful 24MP Nikon camera would make a fantastic luxury gift to any photo-lover. Capture detailed shots with freedom with its manual mode and DSLR quality images. Even record full HD video at 60fps and use its guide mode to get step by step assistance for the perfect shot.

Canon Powershot G9 X Mark II

£399, John Lewis

Canon
Canon Powershot

A powerful digital 20MP camera with a large 1-inch sensor, Canon's Powershot leads the benchmark of mid-range digital cameras in the current line-up. It has a 3-inch touchscreen and a smart, slim body and comes in steel and tan colours. 

Panasonic Lumix ZS100

​£478, Jessops

Panasonic
Panasonic Lumix TS100

A high-end camera from Panasonic, this Lumix ZS100 camera has 10 times optical zoom with an additional 20 times intelligent zoom for sharp shots. It has an image stabiliser to even our handshaking and can shoot 4K video, ultra highest definition video for incredibly detailed shots.

Fujifilm Instax Mini 90

£119, Currys

Fujifilm Instax
Fujifilm Instax

A high-end instant camera that prints out your pictures straight away, it includes smart features such as multiple shutter and light settings for getting low light shots right. Comes with ten shots included so you can get a few snaps on Christmas morning.

Fujifilm X-T2

​£1399, Amazon

Fujifilm
Fujifilm X-T2

If you care to splash on something state of the art, this Fujifilm X-T2 would fit the ticket. With 4K video recording, incredible shutter speed and a 24MP camera make this something for serious hobbyists.

 

Headphones and speakers

Sonos Play:1

​£170, Amazon

Sonos
Sonos Play:1

Sonos are still the king of multiroom speaker systems, with high quality audio and the simple Sonos app. It can easily be controlled from your tablet or phone.

Amazon Echo

​£89, Amazon

Echo
Amazon's new Echo

Amazon's Echo smartspeaker started the trend for voice-activated assistants in the smart home of today. The Echo uses Amazon's Alexa app, which can be used to make calls, set alarms, read the news, and even order a pizza. The price of the product has dropped to below £100, and the Echo now comes in several colours and hues to brighten up the room.

Apple AirPods

£159, John Lewis

Airpods
Apple's AirPod headphones

For an iPhone or iPad user, Apple's AirPods have become the headphones of choice. They are not cheap, but as more phones move away from headphone jacks are becoming increasingly ubiquitous. If you don't fancy Apple's wireless headphones, check out our list of Apple alternatives. They charge in their case, and just 15 minutes should give you three hours of juice.

UE Roll 2

£54.97, Amazon

UE
The UE Roll 2

This mini Ultimate Ears speaker comes in a range of bright and bold colours, making it a perfect present for a teen son or daughter as a portable speaker. It is waterproof (and largely bash-proof), and it comes with a steady nine hours of battery power. They are easily one of our favourite Bluetooth speakers this year.

Beats Pill +

£149, Currys

Beats
Beats Pill+

This Beats speaker is stylish and powerful, with a wide dynamic range for sound. For £149 it's not the cheapest Bluetooth speaker out there, but it comes with a solid 12 hour battery life and multiple Pill speakers can be paired together to get surround sound.

Bowers & Wilkins PX

£329, Amazon

Bowers & Wilkins PX
Bowers & Wilkins PX

One of our favourite noise-cancelling headphones this year, the Bowers & Wilkins PX comes with stellar sound quality, while looking spectacular.

Mobile accessories

Polaroid Zip mobile printer

​£99, Argos

Polaroid
Polaroid Zip Printer

The Polaroid Zip is a standalone mobile printer for your mobile phone. You can use polaroid instant printing to create brilliant shots straight from your smartphone. It comes ready to print 25 sheets without needing an extra charge.

Ollo 4-in-1 clip on lens

£54, Amazon

Ollo
Ollo lens

This customisable lens will upgrade you iPhone 6 or 6s into an even more powerful camera, offering extra zoom capabilities with a wide angle lens and increased optical zoom.

Torro iPhone Dark Leather case

£26, Torro

Torro
Torro Dark leather case for iPhone X

These dark leather cases for the iPhone X come from Torro, which makes smart, executive style cases, wallets and passport holders. A perfect gift to smarten up your tech this Christmas.

Belkin Boost up wireless charge pad

£55, Amazon

Belkin
Belkin wireless charger

Buying a phone with wireless charging capabilities has been all the rage this year, with the launch of new Samsung and iPhone models which can charge using a pad alone. A wireless charging pad makes a great accessory for someone who always needs the latest tech.

Ottorbox Defender Rugged Phone Case

​£33, Amazon

Otterbox Defender iPhone X
Otterbox Defender iPhone X

Get a truly hardy, rugged case for your new smartphone with this Otterbox Defender case to really smash-proof your handset.

Anker Powercore 20100 Portable Fast-Charger

£28, Amazon

Anker
Anker Powercore

Get a serious boost in battery power with this charger which can hold enough juice to repower an iPhone 7 almost seven times over. A great extra prezzie for someone with too much tech on their hands.

Wearables

Apple Watch Series 3

£329, Apple

Apple
Apple Watch Series 3

The Apple Watch Series 3 is the culmination of Apple's recent advancements in smartwatch technology. It's also one of the top fitness gadgets out there, useful for running, swimming and health tracking. It can monitor a huge range of exercises with watchOS4, comes with a heart rate monitor, and will soon be able to plug in to a variety of gym equipment, logging your data as you go.

Fitbit Ionic

​£299, Currys

Fitbit
Fitbit Ionic

 

Fitbit has entered the smartwatch market in a big way this year, with its Fitbit Ionic watch. It's one of our favourite fitness trackers out this year, although if you want to make payments with it in the UK you will need to use Starling Bank for now. It can take calls and be used to track fitness activities from running to weights, cycling and even swimming.

 

Garmin Vivosmart HR+

£129, Amazon

Garmin
Garmin Vivosmart Hr+

Garmin's Vivosmart HR+ can track your heartrate day or night and provide calorie burn information. It displays steps, distance, exercise intensity and can monitor sleep. The fitness monitor syncs with the Garmin Connect app. A great piece of tech for the fitness lover for that New Year health kick.

Fitbit Zip

​£49, Fitbit

Fitbit
Fitbit Zip

This fun clip can record steps and running clipped onto a belt or bag. It has a six month battery life and tracks steps, calories and distance.

Snapchat Spectacles

£129, Snapchat

Snapchat
Snapchat Spectacles Credit: AFP

Snapchat's funky Spectacles haven't exactly been a smash hit, but could prove a bit of a left-field tech present. Take Snaps with your sunglasses, which are then uploaded to Snapchat using your smartphone.

Moov Now

​£56, Amazon

Moov
Moov Now

The Moov Now fitness tracker is a small but versatile piece of tech, able to track a wide range of exercises from swimming to boxing. Unlike other trackers it has no built-in watch, but maintains many more activities it can track than some other wearables.

TV and Audio devices

Samsung HW-MS650 Soundbar

£499, John Lewis

Samsung
Samsung soundbar

This Samsung soundbar from John Lewis provides all-in-one sound for your TV, meaning you shouldn't need to splash on an additional subwoofer if you want perfect audio from your television. It has HD audio and can fonnect via your TV or play music through Wi-Fi or Bluetooth connections. It's also our top pick for soundbars so far this year.

Apple 4K TV

£169, Apple

Apple
Apple TV 4K

For Apple fans, this is the one way to enjoy television in luxury. With access to 4K movies through the iTunes store, you can also playback TV from BBC iPlayer and Netflix. It can respond to voice commands with Siri, and you are also able to stream a wide range of 4K films from the iTunes store (but not download them), including movies like Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find ThemAlien Covenant and Logan.

Chromecast Audio

£30, Currys

Chromecast Audio
Chromecast Audio

Google's Chromecast audio is a great addition to a smarthome set up, allowing you to make your home speakers fully connected. Simply plug in the wire and cast music or podcasts from your smartphone or tablet.

Amazon Fire TV Stick

​£39, Amazon

Amazon
Amazon Fire TV

Amazon's Fire TV stick is the web giant's streaming device, featuring voice control from Alexa. It's simple to set up, requiring only an Amazon account, and you don't need a Prime Account to access content. It is limited to HD, so no 4K streaming from Netflix, however it costs just £40. A great Christmas gift to get even more out of your telly. 

Logitech Harmony Ultra remote

​£99, Amazon

Logitech
Logitech remote

A smart remote that can control games consoles with Bluetooth or smart home devices like smart-lights, it's a perfect home remote for those who prefer not to use a smartphone app at all times.

Samsung UE40MU6400U 4K TV

​£479, John Lewis

Samsung
Samsung 4K TV Credit: Samsung

A truly stunning 40-inch 4K TV from Samsung (perfect for connecting to that soundbar). The price of 4K TVs has now fallen to below £500 for many models, so you can get this next generation technology at a reasonable price.

Smart home

Hive thermostat

​£179, Hive

Hive
Hive Thermostat

Hive's thermostat lets you control your home heating from your smartphone, so you can set the home to warm up on your way back from that Boxing Day walk.

Nest security camera

£169, Amazon

Nest
Nest camera

Home security is the next big thing in upgrading your smarthome, so this Nest security camera will make a good addition to your peace of mind. Monitor your home through your smarthome and check for comings and goings.

Philips Hue smartbulbs

£169.99, Argos

Philips
Philips Hue

You can now control your lights through your smarthome too, just link them up to through your app. You can play with lighting tone and contrast to get the perfect ambiance for your room - maybe even something festive to match your decor. This new set from Philips comes with three lights, a dimmer switch and a bridge and allows you to set millions of different colours through your smartphone.

Sky Bell

£123, Amazon

Skybell
Sky Bell

A smart video door bell that lets your see, hear and speak to visitors remotely.

Wemo smartplug

£42, Amazon

Smartplug
Wemo Smartplug

Turn appliances on and off from anywhere using your smartphone.

Amazon Echo Dot

​£49, Amazon

Amazon
Amazon Echo Dot

Amazon's Alexa powered mini speaker, perfect for anyone just getting started on their smart home journey. It is just £49 from Amazon so would make a great gift for any budding tech-lover.

The Telegraph makes a small amount of money by adding affiliate links to products mentioned in this article, however all products are picked independently by our journalists.

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