Father’s Day is coming on Sunday, June 21, but if you’re still scratching your head about what to get for dad (don’t worry, we’ve all been there), then it’s not too late to score a gift. Let us help you out: Below, we’ve rounded up a basketful of some great deals on all sorts of stuff for techie dads. Better still, these last-minute Father’s Day gifts all offer next-day delivery, so they’ll still arrive in time if you order today.
Despite its compact design, the Amazon Echo Dot smart speaker puts out some impressive, room-filling sound that’s so good you might even forget about its built-in Alexa capabilities. This pint-sized device lets you ask questions, perform internet searches, shop on Amazon, and control music and media playback with your voice (meaning it’s simple enough that even tech-averse dads can use it), and at this price, you’re not going to find a better deal if you’re after a cheap last-minute Father’s Day gift: A $20 discount knocks the Echo Dot down to just $30 right now.
If you (or rather, your dad) owns a 4K TV, you need a streaming device to match. Enter the Chromecast Ultra 4K streaming player, which is arguably the cheapest way to turn your 4K Ultra HD TV into a 4K smart TV. It’s simple to set up and easy to use, offers great support for modern HDR content, and utilizes powerful dual-band Wi-Fi for a strong wireless connection. This Father’s Day deal knocks $10 off the price, letting you score the Chromecast Ultra for $60; as a nice bonus, you also get 30 free days of HBO Max.
There are plenty of advanced (and expensive) e-book readers today, but sometimes, you can’t beat an original. Amazon’s latest refresh of its classic Kindle has everything you need in an e-reader and nothing you don’t: It’s light, the E Ink display is gorgeous and easy on the eyes, offers great battery life, and now has a built-in front light for late-night reading sessions. It’s also affordable even at its normal price of $90, but a $25 discount lets you grab this last-minute Father’s Day gift for just $65 — the perfect present for any book-loving dad.
If dad’s an active guy but is not quite sold on the idea of a smartwatch, then a fitness tracker like the Fitbit Versa 2 might just change his mind. As one of Fitbit’s flagship smart wearables, the Versa 2 packs an impressive array of health- and fitness-centric functions including automatic exercise detection and tracking, sleep quality monitoring when worn at night, all-day activity tracking, and a built-in heart rate monitor. It works with Android and iOS devices and features a nice always-on AMOLED touch display, too. This last-minute Father’s Day gift can be dad’s for $150 ($50 off).
There are many great true wireless earbuds on the market in 2020, but the Apple AirPods are still the king — and the new AirPods Pro are even better. They deliver clear and crisp sound, isolate ambient noise to allow you to enjoy music and take calls without distractions, and are comfortable in the hear for hours at a time. They also come with a wireless charging case, which is an upgrade you have to pay for with the standard AirPods. They’re the priciest of the AirPods, but a nice $30 Father’s Day discount lets you grab a pair for dad for $220.
The Apple iPad 10.2 is still the best tablet for most people (even folks who don’t normally favor Apple gadgets like iPhones) and the latest refresh is a steal at this price. This updated 2019 model boasts a gorgeous 10.2-inch Retina display — a half-inch bigger compared to the previous version thanks to trimmed-down bezels — and offers great performance for web browsing, streaming, and mobile gaming. It’s a great value even at its normal price of $330, but this fantastic deal knocks it down to $250, making it the perfect last-minute Father’s Day gift for any tech-loving dad.
Apple iPad 10.2 (32GB, Wi-Fi) — $250, was $330:
Apple iPad 10.2 (128GB, Wi-Fi) — $330, was $430:
Even if you’re not an audiophile, you’re probably familiar with Bose, and the Bose 700 noise-canceling Bluetooth headphones are a shining example of that well-earned pedigree. They’re light and comfortable, they sound incredible, they offer industry-leading noise-canceling for distraction-free listening, and even feature a built-in mic for taking calls and for voice control. They’re wireless, too, making them ideal for travel with the included case. Just in time for Father’s Day, you can grab a pair of these for $$300 after a tidy $100 price cut.
The Apple Watch Series 5 is Apple’s best smartwatch yet — and given that the Apple Watch was already the best smartwatch on the market, the Series 5 is pretty much the best one you can buy, period. It’s sleek, intuitive, and comes loaded with a full suite of handy apps and features including fantastic fitness- and health-tracking functions. It’s also been on sale lately for the lowest price we’ve ever seen: If you’ve got a dad who’s a techie, then the 40mm Series 5 can be yours for just $299 ($100 off) ahead of Father’s Day.
Apple Watch Series 5 (40mm, GPS) — $299, was $399:
Apple Watch Series 5 (44mm, GPS) — $329, was $429:
A virtual private network (VPN) encrypts your internet traffic and routes it through a server run by the VPN provider. Websites see the VPN server’s IP address instead of yours, and you can get around geo-blocks, censorship, and ISP throttling. The best VPN services are paid, but there are still a handful of free options that do the job well.
Most free VPNs come with a hidden cost, because running servers isn’t cheap and a company that doesn’t charge you has to make its money somewhere else. Many do so by logging your browsing activity and selling it to advertisers, while others flood you with ads and track you across apps.
Choosing a note-taking app is not easy. What note-taking app you choose depends on your needs, the platform you use, and of course, the cost. The process becomes even more complicated as it seems that there’s a new shiny app released every other week.
That’s why I always suggest choosing a note-taking app that has all the features you need and can last you for a long time. Also, don’t chase new apps. The real power of a note-taking app comes when all your notes live in one place, making it easy to spot connections between them.
There's no shortage of messaging apps out there. The past decade has given us more options than we know what to do with, largely because smartphones demanded something better than plain old SMS.
Both the App Store and the Play Store are packed with apps that promise to revolutionize the way we communicate. Most of them didn't make it. The truth is, a messaging app is only as good as the number of people using it, and most apps never cross that threshold.