Best gifts to buy for someone who already has a digital camera (part 1)
A digital photo frame is a great gift, because it’s one of those gadgets that everyone kind of wants, but can’t quite justify buying. I picked this one because, like most Kodak products, ease-of-use is a key characteristic. The 10-inch photo frame ($250) even has built-in wireless connectivity that allows you to download images from your PC or Kodak’s free online photo-sharing service, the Kodak EasyShare Gallery. Because you can update photos online, this would be a perfect gift for your Luddite mom or dad—you can change the photos for them remotely just by logging into the EasyShare Gallery online.
If you're buying for a scuba diver or just a beach bum, consider getting an underwater housing. The WP-DC21 is designed by Canon to house the PowerShot G9 and is sandproof and waterproof do a depth of 100 feet. The $250 housing includes a neck strap and silicone grease. (Note that the G9 is the highest-end camera that Canon makes underwater housings for.)
Your giftees will no longer have to rely on the kindness of strangers when they want to get that shot of themselves in front of the Eiffel Tower. With the Quik Pod, you don’t have to wait for someone who looks friendly enough (or competent enough) to take your picture for you. You just have to be willing to look a little dorky for a moment. Essentially a telescoping monopod with a handle on the end, the Quik Pod screws into your tripod mount and lets you take self-portraits from 18 inches further than your arm’s length (there’s even a built-in mirror to help you frame your shot). At just 3.5 ounces and 7 inches long retracted, it’s compact enough to pack along on any vacation and at $24.95 it won't bust your budget either. (I’m actually getting one for my dad!)
The annoying thing about getting a new set of rechargeable batteries is that you usually have to charge them up before using them. But with the Sanyo Eneloop system, your gift will be juiced up as soon as it’s unwrapped. Not only are they pre-charged and ready to use out of the box, but because they have a low self-discharge rate (retaining 85% capacity after one year of storage according to Sanyo), you don’t have to worry about recharging them right before you use them. Best yet, they’ll last longer in your digital camera than alkalines or traditional NiMH batteries, and a charger with four AA batteries will run you just $20 .
This wireless SD card turns any digital camera into a WiFi-enabled device. So what if nobody wanted to buy those WiFi cameras that came out a few years ago? Who wouldn’t want to snap pictures and be able to upload them to a photo sharing site without downloading to a computer first? With the Eye-Fi any camera that uses SD cards can do the trick. With the storage capacity of a regular 2GB SD card, the $100 Eye-Fi supports a slew of online photo-sharing services, including the Kodak EasyShare Gallery, Shutterfly, Wal-Mart, Snapfish, Facebook, Webshots, Picasa, Flickr, and more.