Father’s Day is rapidly approaching – 19th June for those of you that need to know. Here is my annual “Geek Dad” present list. I have done the hard work of virtually shopping for you to find those gifts that geek Dads are sure to like.
No affiliate links here – ideas, just for fun.
Dad Jokes
Having seen this technique being used in Breaking Bad and Cody’s Lab, I was always disappointed there was no element with the symbol “E” or “Ve”., there is carbon, lithium and vanadium but nothing for “E”.
A Dad Book
I read a lot, and although most of what I consume today is electronic (no tree was harmed in the consumption of this medium), I do have some paper books. Here is one that just had to make it onto a list of presents for Dad.
It includes such gems as Men’s gadgets (my sons will be pleased that the Swiss Army Knife is included on this list, as mine is always in my pocket), fashion tips for Dads (that entry pleased my granddaughter who is always commenting on my lack of colour co-ordination), Dad dance moves and of course Dad jokes.
This year’s James Bond gift
Hardly a gift blog goes by without a pen that includes a variety of useful gadgets – in true James Bond fashion, although as of yet all the gifts I have included have been non-lethal and will not magnetically open a zipper!
However speaking of magnets, this useful pick-up tool does include a magnet and a torch to reach down and find and pick-up those screws you dropped whilst working inside your computer, car or washing machine (see what I did then!). I am not sure of its effectiveness on zippers?
Telescopic Magnetic Pickup Tool with LED light
Cult TV travel mug
I really like the TV series Star Wars The Mandalorian, cool ships, good stories, Katee Sackhoff and even a little cute green kid. If your Dad is a fan, and you do not feel like you can buy him a cuddly Grogu, then this is the geek gift for him – not only can it keep his coffee hot but I was using my travel mug in the garden this week to keep my beer cool in the sun.
Star Wars The Mandalorian Travel Mug
However if you want something more old school to keep the beer cold and the coffee hot then there is always R2D2:
I ran this blog on Smart Thinking on May 4th – I can remember going to the Cinema to see Star Wars – that is all it was called, just Star Wars.
Happy Star Wars Day
Other cult TV series, movies and hot beverages are available!
Have you ever wondered where those superheroes live?
This is a serious question every geek has asked. I once spent time with a London client, on the BBC iPlayer, carefully moving the Dr Who video back and forth so we could get a screenshot of his office in the scene. Obviously most Superheroes live in New York and more specifically Manhattan, where you would be tripping over caped heroes, but this book looks further a field at the Marvel fantasy world in our real world.
It is a great present, I bought it for my nephew last Christmas, when it did not make the 2021 Geek Christmas Present list, and whilst writing this blog I have just gone over to Amazon and bought a copy for my son – which he will get before this blog is published!
An Atlas of Marvel: Key locations, epic maps and hero profiles
Sorry but sometimes the trees just need to die!
As I said above I have a lot of ebooks and audiobooks rather than paper and I use OneNote rather than paper when it comes to work. I do not print travel confirmations or other stuff to paper, again I print to OneNote. But however hard I try, there are times when I cannot avoid using paper and for those times I have a small notebook in my laptop or iPad case.
Star Trek Captain’s Log Mini Notebook
When your Dad uses the notebook here is a useful link to convert Gregorian dates to Stardates:
Stardate Converter (stevepugh.net)
Time to save the trees!
This is on my Amazon wish list – I did not get it for Christmas, and if I do not get it for Father’s Day I intend to buy it for myself, so making this a real Dad present.
Rocketbook Core A6 Smart Reusable Notebook
A combination of geeky cloud tech and traditional notepad and pen. Just write stuff down, then using an app (of course) transfer your notes to your favourite electronic notebook – the image below comes from the Rocketbook website and shows your cloud storage options. Once transferred or not needed any more, the pages can be cleaned and reused. The kit comes with the special pen and cleaning cloth. The A6 version does not have the special pages the A4 version has but it does fit in my iPad case.
Supported Cloud Destinations – Rocketbook Help Centre
Diana has the A4 version of this reusable notebook.
For those who have seen Avengers End Game
If you saw the film with your Dad, then you get the reference. If this is your style, then it must be a winner.
Let’s finish on something very practical
What geek does not need several chargers, cables and other bits of tech stuff on every trip? I am sure your Dad does, whether it is a two week holiday, when you are supposed to leave most of your tech at home, or a trip to the office, this pouch will keep that stuff together and protected.
One more for luck…
The above organiser bag says it is waterproof – but I do not think I would trust it. I do a lot of hill walking and camping, and do not really care about the weather whilst I am out and about as the worst weather often gives the best photographs – this one was really cold:
When I am travelling I like to keep my electronics, cables, power banks etc in an organiser and then in a very good quality dry bag, with a roll and clip opening – something like this dry sack from Sea-to-Summit:
Sea to Summit Waterproof Drysack 2l
I am sure any geek Dad would like a dry sack to keep their gear safe, whether heading to the hills, the beach or a hotel abroad.
So that’s it for Father’s Day 2022 – I hope you either buy your Dad something from this list, or my list has inspired you to find that one thing your dad will really like – even if it just going across and visiting him on Father’s Day.
Clive Catton MSc (Cyber Security) – by-line and other articles
