A shopping blog of cool gift ideas

As far as sports fantasies go, shagging fly balls in centerfield in Yankee Stadium, doing a loop at the Augusta National Golf course and playing a set center court at Wimbledon would all be equally mind-blowing for me. Part of the dream has virtually come true with EA Sports’ Grand Slam Tennis for the Wii. 

Grand Slam Tennis allows you to not only play realistic matches at Wimbledon, but the other three Grand Slam tournament venues as well. Another cool feature is you can play matches as any one of some of the game greats like McEnroe, Navratilova, Borg, Venus, Serena, Becker, or Federer to name a few. 

But for me, the coolest part of Grand Slam Tennis is the very responsive shot making capabilities made possible with the Wii. So if you make downward motion with your Wiimote, you will slice the ball. If you swing low to high you’ll execute a shot with topspin. Swing early and you’ll (if you’re righty) pull the ball to the left. Swing late,  and you’ll push the ball to the right. In short, Grand Slam tennis offers game play that mimics real tennis. 

But here’s the kicker, Grand Slam Tennis can be played using the Wii’s relatively new Wii Motionplus attachment (connects to the bottom of the Wiimote). What Motionplus allows for is even more accurate active play experience.  Its refined sensitivity makes your movements even more literally mimicked within the game. Aside from just being cool, it’s just a little snapshot of some of the capabilities of the Motionplus enhancement. I love EA’s Grand Slam Tennis for tennis fans, sports fans, Wii fanatics and for anyone who just wants to try something pretty cool.

EA Grand Slam Tennis for Wii starting at $39.99.

A very popular search on our site is retirement gifts. When my dad recently retired, it was all about him re-taking up the game of golf.  It has been a lot of fun watching him get into the game he hadn’t played in a long time. When it comes to getting a great gift for the golfer heading into retirement, we have some fun and unique ideas. 

I like the personalized Executive Golf Putting Gift Set as retirement gift. It’s a tasteful and classy memento that says to the golfer “Enjoy your retirement- you certainly deserve it!” Here are some more great retirement gifts for the golfer.

Personalized Executive Golf Putting Gift Set starting at $44.95. 

On Tuesday, I had the opportunity to discus travel and summertime gadgets with Leif Iverson of Digital Trends. You can hear our discussion on the Digital Trends podcast. Digital Trends is a great online resource helping tech and gadgets lovers find the latest news, reviews, sneak-peek previews and discussions of the trend-setting technology products.  If you’re living a tech-loving lifestyle, you’re gonna want to bookmark the Digital Trends site.

The podcast basically covered Gifts.com’s summer travel and gadget guide. These are our gift picks that will help get the most out of summer. Some highlights are the digital camera swim mask, the solar LED water bottle cap, and the remote control snack float!

The good thing about getting a great gift for dad is there are plenty of “last minute” gift ideas he will love. But time’s not really on your side, so here’s what to do. Consider an “Of-The Month” Club.  It’s an easy last minute gift you can tailor to dad’s tastes. 

First you have to pick a “club”. There are plenty of options. Wine of the Month, Beer of the Month, BBQ Sauce of the Month, Cheesecake of the Month Club…you get the idea.  Once you pick the club, choose the duration. You can select a full year, so dad will receive a bottle of BBQ sauce each month for a year.  Or you can do four months or six options. Again, there are plenty of of durations to choose from (and prices points). After those selections are made, during the payment process you can send the gift announcement by email and/or you can print that announcement from your computer.  So it’s basically an instant gift requiring no trip to the mall. In my opinion, this is a no-brainer. Dad loves it, you look good, and Gifts.com looks good for getting you out of a jam at the last minute. Here’s some great “Of the Month” gift options.

BBQ Sauce of the Month Club- 3 Months starting at $59.85. 

Okay- we’re in the home stretch of the Father’s Day gifting season. That means your days are numbered to come up with the perfect gift for dad. But don’t worry, I’ve got you covered.

When looking for gifts for dads, think about his interests. Tons of dads love to get behind the grill and work their magic. That’s why I like gifts that will help him enhance his flair in front of the flame. A grilling gift basket will really hit the mark. Loaded with sauces, rubs, marinades, and grilling accessories “The Flame Enthusiast” gift basket will help dad up his grilling game significantly. Another good thing about the gift basket is dad will most likely want to do a little show and tell and give you a sample of his newly found grilling skills. 

If the gift basket isn’t his style, you can still find gifts for dad the “Grill Master” right here.

The Flame Enthusiast Cooking Gift Basket starting at $79.99.

By now, you’re probably familiar with the “5 G’s” of Father’s Day gifting. Well, I have another “G” to add to the list. It’s “Green” gifts. Eco-gifts have been one of the hottest trending gift categories on our site for a while now. So here is a really cool green gift for dad. “WE ADD UP” is a simple idea with unique and fun execution.

A “WE ADD UP” t-shirt has two sides. On the back of the shirt, there is an environmental “action”- for example “Recycle”, “Compost”, “Buy Local” even “Shower Together”! There are around 30 different “actions” available to choose from in select styles and colors. Here’s the cool part. On the front of the shirt, are the words “WE ADD UP” as an addition equation with the sum being a unique number which represents “your place in the sequential global count of all the people who are taking steps to help stop climate change.” So each shirt is truly one of a kind. No one else will have your number.

Here’s the even cooler part. For each shirt sold, a donation is made that helps forward the “action” the tee shirt represent. For example, for sales of each “Recycle” tee, $1 is donated to The Green Project. WE ADD UP tees are 100% certified organic cotton manufactured in the US under strict fair labor practices. As I type 11,862 people have added up to make a difference. Father’s Day is a great opportunity to add some more dads to this list.

We Add Up Recycle Tee starting at $20.00. 

Today the “5 Gs” of Father’s Day gifting is getting an honorary 6th “G”. Gaming is as popular now with the Dad (and the family) as ever. In fact, my daughter and I are having a blast navigating/manipulating the wilderness world that is "Wii Sims Animals"- great game!

And speaking of Sims, “Sims 3”, the latest, (any many are saying the greatest) from the Sims “life simulation” game franchise has just been released. Granted, this one is more suited for adults (not the little ones) but this best-selling title has really outdone itself by using both a familiar Sims game experience and adding exciting, new enhanced game play features. “Sims 3” is right at the top of the “want” list for many gamers.

Yet sometimes for Father’s Day, a gift that the whole family can share or use is often the one that makes most sense. An appreciated pick-up for dad (and the family) would be a Wii remote charger. Putting your game on hold while you try and find a few AA batteries for the remotes is very annoying. With a Wii-mote charging station, that problem is gone. 

Want some ideas for the perfect gift for dad? Go to our Father’s Day page, to find gifts for Dad.

Nyko Charge Station for Nintendo Wii starting at $6.90.

A “Gift of Experience” in a lot of ways is the perfect gift for dad. So instead of the golf shirt, gadget, or the latest grill accessory (just some of the 5G gifts for dad for Father’s Day), an experiential gift allows dad to partake in an exciting and/or interesting activity. 

For example, a while back, I went to Pocono International Speedway and did the “Drive a Stock Car” experience. So you go to the track, and after some instruction (think “Stock Car Driving 101”) you get to go behind the wheel and drive faster than you ever have in your entire life (over 160 mph). Exciting?  You better believe it. A gift dad (or any guy) will love and remember forever? You bet.

But the stock car driving experience is just one of many types of experiences available. Gifts of experience come in many forms such as fishing, driving, Harley-riding, cooking, helicopter rides, even Ninja classes! Wanna see the full list? Click here to find experience gifts for dads that are available near where he lives and send him on his way to a day we won’t soon forget.

Drive a NASCAR starting at $229.00. 

Still need to find gifts for dad? An easy jumping off point is to remember the “5Gs” of Father’s Day gifting. The most popular “G” for Father’s Day gifts is Gadgets. Dads (and guys in general) love gadgets and dad’s big day is a great opportunity to give him a new electronic toy to play with. 

Many dads take on the unofficial role of “family historian”. Dad is often the one taking the pictures and/or filming the videos documenting family history. And while we all might agree that taking these pics and vids can be a minor annoyance at the time, we’re all really glad we’ll have these memories forever. Casio recently lent me one of their latest point-and-shoot cameras. After giving the Casio Exilim EX-S12 a test drive, I feel it’s a great fit for dads (and moms) who need any easy to use camera with lots of functionality. 

The EX-S12 has the classic slim Exilim camera body. The camera has a 3X optical zoom, 2.7 inch LCD display and 12.1 megapixel resolution. The images (and videos) I shot were exceptionally sharp and look great online and printed. 

But possibly the coolest function on the camera is called the “Dynamic Photo” mode. Thanks to a new high-speed image processor, Dynamic Photo allows you to paste videos and still images onto a another still image background to create fun and clever images and video clips. These effects can be created through menus on the camera without the need for a photo or video editing program. That’s pretty cool.

The form and function of this camera make it a perfect gift for dad. I especially like it for the all the brand new dads out there who will want to chronicle all the great moments of fatherhood to come.

Casio Exilim EX-S12 Digital Camera starting at $209.95.

Dad's like to grill. And like millions of other dads, over Memorial Day weekend I was in front of the grill trying to get into mid-season grilling form. In fact, Grilling is one of the five “G”s that must be remembered for finding great gifts for Father’s Day.

Here’s a great idea for anyone who will be manning a grill or working the room as a summer party host. It’s the leather “beverage” holster that holds one can or bottle of their preference. The holster is the perfect party tool to keep the grilling and the hosting at peak efficiency. Aside from being practical, it looks pretty sweet too. Just remember to tell them where you found it! Here are some more gifts for dad we’re sure he’ll love.

Beer Holster starting at $34.95.