Looking for the perfect graduation and/or Father’s Day present?  Who doesn’t like tech?  We’ve tested some pretty cool gadgets that add fun and functionality to one’s life.  Here are 5 great gift suggestions to get you started!

Grads & Dads & Do-Dads

Chromecast Audio Synced Stereo Sound

This little Chromecast Audio device is only $35, but it packs a lot of punch, Grads & dads will love it!  It can be used in a couple of different ways.  Its primary purpose is to allow a non-connected speaker, such as an old floor speaker, stereo speakers, or PC speakers to become connected and controlled by an app on your phone.  It really works and it is pretty cool.

Its second main purpose is to create controllable stereo sound in a room by adding the Chromecast Audio to several speakers in a room and control them as one.  With Chromecast, separate, disparate speakers become synced and you can play your music through your speakers harmoniously.  We’ve even tried a couple of Chromecast Audio devices on two different Bluetooth speakers and music sounded great in stereo sound.

The Chromecast Audio devices bring connection and music to disconnected and connected speakers alike.  Available for $35 through Best Buy with free shipping.

Nyne Rock Portable Speaker

One thing young people like is music…loud music.  Dads?  Some like loud music, but most dads love music outside and a powerful speaker that can deliver.  

The Nyne Rock Speaker is the perfect gift solution for both grads and dads.  With its 65 watts of power, 2 midrange speakers, 2 tweeters, and a subwoofer, this 21” x 9.75” x 6.75” 12-pound speaker really rocks!

Connect with the Rock via Bluetooth, NFC, or through an audio cable.  And it’s built-in power bank allows you to charge your phone or tablet.  With its rechargeable battery life of 12 hours, the Rock Speaker will last the whole day.

The Nyne Rock portable speaker is on sale right now at Best Buy for $199.99 with free shipping.

HyperJuice AC Battery Pack

The HyperJuice AC Battery Pack is the ultimate battery pack.  With its 26,0000mAh Li-Ion battery, you can charge up to 2 devices at once…and one of them can even be a MacBook or laptop!  Yes, that’s correct, you can now charge a MacBook or laptop with a portable battery pack…at least with this one you can!

And the USB ports are fast too.  You can charge any USB device like a smartphone or tablet fully within just 2-3 hours.  In fact, one of the USB ports is QC 3.0 compatible, which means it can quick charge an empty smartphone to full in under 15 minutes!

The HyperJuice AC’s built-in AC  outlet works with cameras, lights, speakers, blenders, and more, it’s very versatile.  Whether used for school or work, grads & dads will see the immense value and convenience the HyperJuice AC brings into their lives.

The HyperJuice AC Battery Pack is available from the Hyper website for $199.95.

Activ5 Strength Training Device

While at CES this year, I came across this little fitness device called the Activ5.  Don’t let its size fool you.  Think of the Activ5 Strengthening Device like a tiny gym in your pocket that you can take anywhere.  No need for large expensive equipment…and a room or garage to store it in!

Activ5 is a wireless-enabled, handheld isometric-based strength training device that coaches you through a full 5-minute full body workout while measuring strength, precision, and other statistics through the use of their connected Activ5 app.

Activ5 uses Isometric exercise, which is a type of low-impact strength training where the angle of the joints and muscle length do no change during contradiction.  Research has shown that this is one of the fastest and most efficient ways to build strength, accelerate fat burning and tone the body.

In fact, studies have show that five minutes of isometric exercise can equate to 25 minutes of gym machine exercises.  Activ5 first measures your maximum strength throughout your body’s muscles before you begin exercises. Active users can increase their strength by as much as 5% per week with just 5-minute workouts just a few times a day.

And the beauty of Activ5 is you can do it while watching TV, taking quick breaks while working at your desk, riding as a passenger in the car, even when traveling by airplane!  It is a totally portable gym that can join you throughout your day.

The app gives you plenty of options to choose how you want to exercise and it gamifies the experience so it doesn’t seem as tedious as with traditional strength training exercise.  

Grads & dads will love the handiness of this “gym in their pocket” that they can take anywhere with them and not take up space.

Activ5 is available online at www.Activ5.com for $119.90 with free shipping and a fitness towel and mobile stand.

Samsung Gear S3 Watch

The Samsung Gear S3 Watch is a beautiful smartwatch that is both useful and cleverly designed.  With its metal rotating bevel face, you can easily rotate between available apps (thousands available) on your watch.  I have used a Samsung Gear watch for 3 years now, they are very useful.

The Gear S3 watch uses a 1.3-inch Super AMOLED touch display made from Corning’s Gorilla Glass to protect against scratches.  It comes with up to 4GB of internal memory to store your music without needing your phone nearby.

What can the Samsung Gear S3 do for your Grad & Dad?  They can receive notifications from their phone showing texts, emails, and social media channels, measure their sleep quality, know where they are on Maps, make dinner reservations at Yelp and hail an Uber car to take them there.

Track steps and exercise, check the weather, time a run, use a voice memo to remind them to do something, use it as a flashlight, listen to music, check their heartbeat…even pay for their groceries using Samsung Pay.  The possibilities are endless.

Grads & Dads alike will love the flexibility and connectedness the Samsung Gear S3 brings to their lives.

The Samsung Gear S3 is available in two styles, the Gear S3 Classic for a more classic, sleek design or the more rugged Gear S3 Frontier.  The Gear S3 and the  Gear S3 Frontier are on sale right now from Samsung for $299.99 and available in both WiFi or LTE versions.

Looking for more Grad & Dad gift inspiration?  See our  2016 Grad & Dad Gift Guide for more ideas.  Any of these gifts will leave a lasting impression with your Grad or Dad and all of them offer them something they can really use on a daily basis.

*We were provided with samples to facilitate our recommendations for this Grads & Dads Guide.  All opinions are our own.