It's all well and good for us to recommend products that would make great gifts this holiday season. But what are the products that Refinery29 staffers actually use themselves, day-in and day-out — and love to use? If you're looking for a gift idea for a friend or colleague, or just a little something to make your life more excellent, these are the gadgets we swear by. We've got everything from desk-friendly humidifiers for dry winter offices to fitness trackers that help you gauge how well-rested you are. R29ers also love their
Read on for the 29 gadgets that R29ers absolutely cannot live without.
Jawbone UP3
Price: $180
"I am obsessed with my Jawbone UP3. It's like a Fitbit on steroids. It's my personal life coach: It monitors your steps and your sleeping patterns (by gauging your heart rate), and it allows you to set daily goals for yourself. (I have mine vibrate on my wrist if I am idle for more than 15 minutes, so I'll remind myself to take a walk or stretch it out at work). It also sets reminders for me at night if I want to get a certain number of hours of sleep. I honestly love it so much, I feel like I'm in a committed relationship. I don't go anywhere without it."
—Emily
Polk Swimmer
Price: $60
"I got this waterproof bluetooth speaker, and it's amazing! The sound is really good, it is truly waterproof (so I can keep it in the shower), and the charge lasts a long time."
—Anna
Mohu Leaf Indoor HDTV Antenna
Price: $20
"My antenna! I just got a TV for the first time since moving to New York, and I knew I wanted to be able to watch Jeopardy, the news, and live events like award shows. But obviously I didn't want to pay for cable. This baby was a one-time $20, and I can get all that good stuff anytime I want — with perfect reception and clarity. To top it off, I got a Roku so that I can stream Netflix, Hulu, HBO Go, Amazon Prime, and more. I'm a very happy camper."
—Julie
Third-Generation Apple TV
Price: $70
"I wouldn't live without my Apple TV. I don't have cable, but I get every single TV program I could ever imagine through my Apple TV via Netflix, Hulu, etc. It's a lifesaver and a wallet-saver — totally worth the $100 bucks I spent on it five years ago!"
—Maia
Liroyal Sauna Boy Portable Humidifier
Price: $9
"The office heating is relentless, and one time it was so hot and dry, I got a bloody nose. So I got this desktop humidifier, which works wonders in my little corner of the office sauna."
—Amelia
Juul Electric Cigarette
Price: $50
"The Juul is simple, sleek, and minimalist. It is the first truly sexy e-cig that doesn’t make me feel like I’m holding a steel monstrosity. It’s easy to replace and no-mess. The branding is wonderful, the design is like a USB stick or a carpenter's pencil, and it fits into even the tightest pants. The vapor is proprietary but very good."
—Julian
Polaroid Zip Mobile Printer
Price: $130
"I am completely obsessed with the Polaroid Zip instant photo printer. It connects over Bluetooth to any device and prints adorable little photos on the spot. It's kind of become my party trick — if there's a particularly good picture moment with friends or family, I'll print copies for everyone (instead of saying I'll email it later and then forgetting). Unlike a traditional Polaroid, with the Zip, you can choose the image you want to print and edit it first. It's all very 21st-century! The paper is kind of expensive, but it's a laser printer, so it never needs ink. I even used it to make DIY place cards for my engagement party, and I have never DIY-ed anything in my life."
—Justine
Jawbone UP2
Price: $100
"I absolutely love my Jawbone UP2 tracker, but mostly I love it for the app. Unlike other tracker apps, Jawbone's will give me really helpful summaries of what I've done and how close I am to beating my goal — as well as hints for how to get those last few steps. My favorite thing is that it keeps track of my seven-day average, so I don't feel guilty if I choose Netflix and the couch over cardio every once in a while."
—Sarah
Amazon Kindle Paperwhite
Price: $120
"My Kindle Paperwhite! I don't like staring at an iPad or iPhone to read, but I also like reading in the dark sometimes (on planes, when I can't sleep but don't want to wake up my husband), so the light is really amazing. (Am I an Old?)"
—Anna
SoundBot SB510 Water-Resistant Bluetooth Speaker
Price: $23
"I love listening to music when I'm taking a shower, and before this little guy, I was putting my phone as loud as I could on top of my sink. It was a horrible idea. Now that I have this, it's like, my life is better — and if I wanted, I could take a call in the shower."
—Vanessa
J.Crew Cashmere-Lined Leather Smartphone Gloves
Price: $98
"I love J. Crew's smartphone gloves because they don't look like tech gloves."
—Chris
Fitbit Flex
Price: $100
"I have a sort of if-a-tree-falls-in-the-woods relationship with my Fitbit. If I go for a long run and don't wear it, I feel like I've been cheated out of the satisfaction of hitting that step goal. Plus, my entire extended family has them, and we all compete against each other. There is some serious use of the 'taunt' button that goes on!"
—Kaelyn
Asus Zenbook UX305
Price: $700
"I gave my mom the Asus Zenbook UX305 laptop for her birthday. It's really great! It's fan-less and silent, it has a long battery life, a great screen, and a really tiny form factor. She loves it."
—Gonzalo
Marpac Dohm Original Sound Conditioner
Price: $50
"I'm obsessed with this white-noise machine. I couldn't live in my noisy apartment without it."
—Cassidy
Zojirushi Micom 3-Cup Rice Cooker
Price: $140
"This is more of a kitchen gadget, but owning a rice cooker has changed my life. It's so easy for my boyfriend and I to make meals at home now. We can set it to start cooking when we get home in the evening, or before we go to the gym. Then, when we get back, we just sauté some meat and veggies, and voilà, a quick-and-easy, healthy meal."
—Christina
7-Inch Kindle Fire HD
Price: $150
"I tend to carry my 7-inch Kindle Tablet everywhere. It's small enough to fit in my jacket inner pocket, and it's great for reading books, downloading videos and watching them on the subway, and listening to music."
—Siddhant
Tivo Bolt
Price: $300
"It's easy to use and has easy expansion to other rooms with TiVo Mini. You can skip commercials on prime time TV recordings with a single press of a button, and there's good cross-service search (Netflix, Hulu, Amazon, Vudu, and your local cable on-demand). Also, the QuickMode feature lets you speed through a show 30% faster while also letting you hear what everyone is saying. No more four-hour Oscars extravaganzas!"
—Rafael
Ivation Bullet Bluetooth Speaker
Price: $30
"It's like any other Bluetooth speaker, but it has a stretchy silicone attachment that holds it to my bike frame. It's so dangerous to wear headphones while riding a bike, so this is an awesome alternative. And not only does it blast your music, but if you have map directions enabled on your phone, it will give you turn-by-turn directions through the speaker, too. I can't leave home for a bike ride without it anymore."
—Brittnee
iPhone 6
Price: $550
"My phone is my source of entertainment, connectivity, creativity, productivity, and other things that end with -ivity. My job requires me to be plugged in and available 24/7, so I don't go anywhere without it, and I always like to feel connected to my friends and loved ones, even when I'm busy and running around. I got this phone earlier this year, and the battery life is SO much better than my old one. I also sprung for the most storage space because I take tons of photos (I think I'm at around 4,000 at the moment — insane) and also love to have a variety of music with me at all times. Not to sound like a crazy millennial, but I truly don't know what I'd do without my phone. I love you, iPhone."
—Nikki
Amazon Echo
Price: $180
"I love my Echo — she lives in my kitchen and tells me everything and anything I want to know. Weather, sports stats, jokes. And she plays whatever music I'm in the mood for. I cannot imagine my life without Alexa! My kids love her, too."
—Wendy
Garmin Forerunner 920XT
Price: $450
"The Forerunner 920XT is an amazing multi-sport watch. I mostly use it to track my bike rides, but it's awesome for runs and wins as well. You can use it to track and display your speed, cadence, and power (for cycling). It can provide rest timers when you're doing intervals, plus smart notifications, so you can see if you've gotten an important text message without digging out your phone."
—Christina
Sonos Play
Price: $200 (two for $350)
"I absolutely am obsessed with my Sonos speakers. It's the electronic gadget that you didn't know you needed...until you had one. The sound system is amazing, and I honestly cannot properly wake up in the morning now without setting the tone of the day with the right playlist, which you can pull from 100-plus music sources!"
—Athena
Pencil Stylus By FiftyThree
Price: $50
"The best smart stylus if you haven’t an iPad Pro with Pencil. It has a freaking eraser."
—Julian
Jawbone UP
Price: $33
"I have a first-generation Jawbone UP, which is kind of like a FitBit. It tells me how little sleep I get (5.5 hours on average), and how little I walk."
—Siddhant
Honeywell HCM-350
Price: $60
"Well, it's not super-sexy, but in the dry winter months, this humidifier is a lifesaver. Cuts down on chapstick use."
—Hayley
Audio Technica ATH-M50X Headphones
Price: $159
"These are my headphones that I use every day. I love them because they're good intro-level audiophile headphones. They sound great no matter what you listen to, and they're comfy for long periods of time (a.k.a. long hours at a computer)."
—Sarah
Quirky Gray Cordies Desktop Cord Catch
Price: $3
"I really try to keep my room neat, and it always drove me to distraction to have a huge tangle of cords between my bedside table and bed — not to mention always having to dig through the mess to find the right charger for the right device. Then, this little $3 organizer saved me. It keeps my three most-used cords (Kindle, laptop, phone) organized, and the weighted base keeps them in place."
—Marshall
Larsson & Jennings CM Silver
Price: $380
"My Larsson & Jennings watch! It's really understated and vaguely unisex, but it elevates every outfit and can be dressed up or down. It's as much a wardrobe staple as my favorite dress."
—Julie
13-Inch Macbook Air
Price: $1,000
"I'm obsessed with my 13-inch MacBook air. At just three pounds, it's lightweight enough that I can carry it just about anywhere. And this year, it's accompanied me on trips to Texas, Massachusetts, D.C., and even Haiti. The battery seems to last forever, and it's small enough to fit in my work tote. For a workaholic who never likes to be far from her laptop, the Air is an essential. While my doctor would still fuss at me for lugging the computer everywhere, it's a huge difference from all those years I toted a MacBook Pro to and from work every day."
—Lindsey
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