DadGeek’s Big Nerdy Christmas List
Here at DadGeek, we appreciate all things with a nerdy or geeky edge to them. I’m always seeing cool things online and in December I add these to my list to Santa in the hopes that he manages to cram one of them down my chimney at Christmas. Sadly, we don’t have a chimney and he has so far not taken up the challenge to get it into the house elsewise. I mean, even most delivery companies will still cram it into my recycling bin or hurl it over my fence but no. Perhaps his inflexible standards prevent him from doing so. Either that or he’s just short of time.
Nevertheless, the list grows and one day all of these delightfully nerdy items will be mine for the taking. For now, here’s my top picks just in case anyone wants to buy them for a loved one or, perhaps, this verbose internet stranger? You decide…
Plox Official Star Wars Levitating Death Star Speaker
I love three things; Star Wars, magic and science. This floating desktop planet-killer uses the magic of science to bring one of the most impressive parts of Star Wars to life so I love everything about it. At it’s core, this floating marvel is a bluetooth speaker but when you consider it’s a free-floating weapon of mass destruction as well, then that really blows the doors off my mind. I guarantee that no-one that owns one of these has been able to resist the urge to immediately blast The Imperial March through it as soon as it’s out of the box. It’s just not possible to pass up an opportunity like that.
If you’ve got a burgeoning Jedi or Sith in your house then you should consider bunging one of these under the tree for them. This technological wonder is available from Amazon here.
Bears vs Babies: A Card Game From the Creators of Exploding Kittens
Exploding Kittens was one of the most entertaining games we played this summer. We played it while camping until we had to rely on torchlight to see the words on the cards. We played the NSFW version until our sides split with the naughty deluge of fart and boob quips. So when I heard that the company was releasing another game my interest was immediately piqued. When I learned that the game pitted infants against wild animals I became fiercely engaged. When I learned that there was a version that came in a furry box I began rabidly banging my wallet against my monitor like a man possessed.
Bears vs Babies, like Exploding Kittens, is the partial brain-child of Matthew Inman, creator and steward of The Oatmeal series of webcomics and infographics. He has also published a crazy number of books and stuff. Bears vs Babies takes that unique brand of humour and crams it into a hilarious card game like a man cramming acres of ham into a pillowcase. The end result is the best possible way to combine fluffy wildlife with the pursuit of destroying evil babies and I for one am in on the ground floor. Which, I’m informed, is where the bears are.
Bears vs Babies can be purchased by clicking this carefully sculpted link.
De’Longhi Nescafe Dolce Gusto Eclipse Touch Coffee Machine
Coffee is already a big deal in my house. Without coffee I’d usually be waking up at around 11am, several hours after my body has already begun doing tasks like driving my kids to school and buying groceries. Coffee is the oil in the machine, the thing that keeps it all running smoothly until my body finally gives out at around 2am.
The idea that we can speed up the process of getting the coffee from the kitchen to my mouth even quicker was a revelation and is the exact reason why I currently own a Dolce Gusto machine already. I own the one that looks like a cute little bird, the novelty was too much for me to resist. I do not, however, own one that looks like a futuristic space doughnut. That is something so far unattainable to me as to get it I’d have to explain to my wife what is better about coffee served from a doughnut than served from a bird. That isn’t an argument I can win.
So, until my bird-shaped coffee maker meets with an unfortunate floor-based accident, I encourage others to pursue coffee served from the innards of a robot bagel. You can get one here.
littleBits Gizmos and Gadgets Kit 2nd Edition
I love building things but there comes a point when LEGO just isn’t fiddly enough and you want to get your hands really dirty in the fine workings of some sort of gizmo. That’s why this big box of doohickeys is so appealing to me. I love the idea of making something out of the huge library of components and this set comprises a huge range of projects to keep you or your smaller people amused for a good long time.
Given my own minions addiction to screen time, any excuse to get them back into a hands-on activity is a bonus and with the sheer quantity of re-usable bits in this package they’ll be pretty busy as long as I don’t hog it all the time trying to make a remote-control delorean or exploding volcano lair.
You can pick yourself up one of these boxes of marvels, here.
Star Wars Droid Inventor Kit
If, like me, you’ve found your recent trips to Tosche station rather lonely or you’ve become tired of constantly monitoring the state of your farm’s moisture vaporators, then this is exactly what you’ve been waiting for. This kit, along with the companion app, helps you build and control your very own R2D2 unit. The level of complexity is not particularly high but that means you’ll be able to get your offspring into the droid game early, with perhaps a view to them being able to build a pod-racer before they reach secondary school.
This kit is easily assembled and comes with a good few customisation options to help you trick out your little droid. I can’t confirm if it comes with storage for Death Star plans or short video clips of rebel princesses but you can probably jam it in there somewhere. Moderately compatible with C3PO units but these are not included.
Pick up one of these kits here or by flagging down a bunch of neighbourhood Jawas. Be warned though, Jawas do not offer free next-day delivery and have been known to steal hubcaps.
Disclaimer: This post is littered with secret easter eggs and by easter eggs I of course mean affiliate links. Please click them and buy all the things so that we can send all the children to space camp. Or just space. I don’t mind.
