It’s that time of year again, when T3 points you towards the tech that’ll make you the most popular present-giver in town

Words: Alex Cox

Photography: Neil Godwin

HOBBIES

Fill in the gaps between work and sleep

1 RODE VLOGGER KIT

Today’s phones are more camera than phone. Well, duh. But while they incorporate some pretty fine sensors and software, they do tend to lack many of the niceties of proper cameras. If you want to transform someone’s ability to film, one of Rode’s three Vlogger Kits adds a camera light, tripod, and a Rode VideoMicro compact mic for superior results.

From £99, rode.com

2 MOOG SOUND STUDIO

If you’re really willing to splash out, Moog’s Sound Studios are a treat for fans of analog synthesis. Consisting of some combination of the Subharmonicon polyrhythmic 6-tone synth, the DFAM percussion machine, the classic dirty bass of the Mother 32 synth, or even all three, the Sound Studio is the perfect jumping-off point for newbies and awesome for synth-heads.

From £1,099, moogmusic.com

3 LEUCHTTURM1917 BULLET JOURNAL EDITION 2

It feels cruel to mention Moleskine in the same breath as Leuchtturm1917, not because Moleskine’s notebooks are bad, but because these are so much better. They’re super-high quality, and this revised and redesigned Bullet Journal opens up a whole realm of possibilities for personal organisation and mental exploration.

Around £22, leuchtturm1917.co.uk

4 DJI MINI 2

If you’re giving a drone as a gift, make it one that doesn’t demand a whole lot of paperwork to get airborne. DJI’s excellent Mini 2 scrapes in just below the 250g limit, meaning it’s essentially ready for anyone to fly – and given that it uses DJI’s latest wind resistance smarts and intelligent shooting modes, even a drone newcomer will have no problem capturing airborne 4K footage.

From £419, dji.com

5 ELGATO STREAMDECK

Don’t let Elgato’s branding fool you – especially now that Valve’s Steamdeck has made things super confusing – because the Streamdeck is not only a tool that makes game streaming a slicker experience. Its individual screen-backed buttons can be customised for any macro you like, perfect for streamlining whatever creative thing you’re doing and looking damn cool while doing it.

£140, elgato.com

6 TRUST GAMING GXT 255+ ONYX STREAMING MICROPHONE

Everything you need for audio recording. The cardiod-patterned Onyx packs a shock mount, pop filter and latency-free monitoring for the purest sound possible, along with a fully adjustable threejoint arm and a USB cable, which does away with the need for an external mixer. £175, trust.com

7 SONY ZV-E10

The further Sony extends its reach into the vlogging market, the better the results become. Its latest friendly mirrorless bests the ZV-1 before it with interchangable E-mount lenses in front of an enormous APS-C sensor, giving it superior low-light performance, dynamic range, and an ISO speed which reaches to 32,000 – or 102,400, for stills.

From £680, sony.co.uk

8 POLAROID NOW+

Polaroid upgrades its excellent Now with additional app controls, along with a new tripod mode for long exposures or light painting. There are filters in the box perfect for colour experiments or neat black-and-white effects, and AF speed and accuracy gets a boost to (hopefully) cut back on iffy i-Type results. £140, polaroid.com

9 iPAD MINI (2021)

Apple’s flat-edged, slimbezel redesign of the iPad mini has pivoted the smallest iPad squarely into the creative space. Add an Apple Pencil and there’s no better way to get your sketches down on virtual paper. And let’s not forget the fact that this is essentially an iPad, just crammed into an almost pocketable package.

From £479, apple.com

10 EONO TELESCOPES FOR ASTRONOMY STANDARD MODEL

Eono’s light, portable scope may miss many of the mod cons, meaning (beyond its starfinder eyepiece) you’ll need to work out where to point it on your own, but its 70mm parabolic mirror collects a whole lot of light, and you have your choice of 16x or 64x magnification. £90, amazon.co.uk

SOUND & VISION

Look and listen – but don’t skimp on style