© MAKSTORM / STOCK.ADOBE.COM

The gift of gadgets

A gift guide to help you pick winners for loved ones this holiday season

by MARC SALTZMAN

Time to start shopping for family, friends and colleagues you care about. If you haven’t checked out the world of electronic devices in a while, you’ll be blown away by the capabilities of the shiny new smartwatches, the thinness and sheer power of the latest laptops, and the size and picture quality of today’s televisions.

Here’s a sleigh-full of ideas to suit varying budgets and tastes.

It’s all in the wrist

Smartwatches are one of those gadgets you don’t think you need until you start wearing one. Not only do they let you customize the watch face, but smartwatches accurately monitor health, activity and sleep. They can also guide you to a destination via GPS; show you texts, emails and social media comments; and be your digital wallet at store checkouts.

I recommend the Apple Watch Series 7 or 8, Samsung Galaxy Watch5 and Garmin Instinct 2.

Sound advice

Music lovers have no shortage of options. For private listening, the Bose QuietComfort SE Noise Cancelling Headphones bundle is a smart buy. It includes Bose QC45 headphones and a soft travel case. For in-ear headphones, the Beats Fit Pro True Wireless Earbuds are sure to please, regardless of the smartphone they’re paired with.

For filling a room with amazing audio, consider the Sonos Arc SL Sound Bar. If small, portable speakers make more sense for the recipient’s lifestyle, go with the Sony SRS-XB33 or JBL Charge 4 speakers.

Visions of loveliness

If it’s time to treat the family to a gorgeous new television for 2023, the 65-inch LG UQ8000 is a stunning 4K smart TV, with built-in ThinQ AI for voice control. Its arsenal of features can make it your digital genie (bottle not included).

For those in the market for an OLED TV, which offers unprecedented contrast ratios and a ridiculously thin design, Samsung’s S95B Series televisions are a sight to behold.

A beast of a laptop

Finally, the MSI GE76 is a gaming laptop with a 12th-generation Intel Core i9 H Series processor for blazingly fast performance. Nearly all of its under-the-hood specs will excite any gamer in your life.

---

Gifts for gamers

Gear makes a great gift, but so do digital content cards. They let loved ones redeem them for gaming content, and you pass along a real value.

You can buy $100 worth of content for online gaming platform Roblox, or for PlayStation, Nintendo or Xbox, at significant savings. You’ll find them in Costco warehouses near tech games or toys, or on the “Gift Cards & Tickets” page on Costco.com.—MS

---

Costco Connection: You will find a wide variety of home electronics in Costco warehouses and at Costco.com.

---