Christmas Shopping Early for the Geek in Your Life

Thinking about Christmas early? Good idea. Avoiding the crazed shoppers during the shopping season is probably best for your health. Why bother stepping foot in the overcrowded malls anyway? Online shopping is in vogue, but while looking for the perfect gift for the geek in us all, some of the strangest things every can be found.

Oddities are expected, and commonly accepted from EBay, but looking around at some of the specialty sites online can truly make one sit and think, 'People pay money for that?' Yet there are some truly innovative and outright whacky ideas that can make the perfect gift, if you can get your mind around the concept (and realize that just because it's geeky to you, doesn't mean it's geeky to them).

And while many are still concerned with the safety of shopping online, look at it this way. The chances of you getting scammed are much much less than your chances of getting run down by some crazy last minute shopper in the parking lot So take your chances, suck it up, and start clicking.

Here are a few crazy ideas to spice up the Christmas for the computer enthusiast in your life:

Jinx.com has some of the best geek gear, appealing to the gamer, the modder, and every designation in between. The quality of the clothing is top notch and most of the slogans are absolutely hilarious. Their crazy logo will stick in your head as well.

Computergear.com boasts a wide range of products, from the practical to the practically insane. A few of the standouts from it's offerings:

The Swiss Army Knife with usb flash drive: While some would consider this a bit overboard in the all in one department, functionality and style combine in this knife, repleat with a 64 meg usb flash memory drive. What's one more thing added onto a swiss army knife anyway? It's not like you know what half the things do to begin with.

The Roll Up Keyboard: It's weird looking, it's squishy, and it rolls up and out of the way rather nicely. So why in the world would someone want this? Perfect for the laptop user needing a full sized keyboard, the lan gamer wanting something lightweight, or the accident prone office worker who constantly spills coffee on it (it's waterproof!).

The Gaming Lounger: Gaming in style..serious style. It looks similar to a floor mat, props you up in a comfortable position to play games, and adds on subwoofers. Yes, subwoofers. The vibrating controller idea was bad enough, but now you get to be in danger of being shaken off your seat if the game gets too intense.

Key Caps: These are little plastic toppers that go over your normal keyboard keys. Such novelties as the panic button and the any key make them cute gifts or amusing pranks - or, if you're tech support for your company, an end to the never ending "Which one is the any key?" calls.

Recycled Circuit Board Earrings: Who says the geek girl in your life likes computers more than jewelry? Now she can have both! Judging from some of the designs in style today, I would venture to say that these probably won't draw as many looks as you would think.

Thinkgeek.com is the third repository for weird and wacky gadgets. Some of the previously mentioned products are also listed here, but they also have quite a bit of their own fun toys.

Usb Mini Desktop Aquarium: You've had pet rocks, sea monkeys, and an ant farm. For the latest in low maintenance pets, look no further than the usb powered aquarium. Marvel at the plastic tropical fish and rest assured that, no matter how long you've neglected to feed them, they won't go belly up on you.

Usb Devil Duckie Drive: It's a usb flash drive - shaped like a devil duck. Nope, I don't get it either. At any rate, this guy can hold 256 megs of data, has eyes that flash when it's in use, and can probably scare the crap out of any nearby children. Just don't try and use it as a substitute for your bathtub duckie.

Usb cup warmer: I wonder what it is, exactly, about the usb interface that makes designers think up really strange devices to go with it. But if you find that your coffee just isn't staying hot enough, and really want a usb powered device to fix that - well I guess this would be perfect for you then.

Datasurfer PC Workstation: This is the perfect thing to get the dedicated coder, hacker, or gamer in your life...if you never want to see them again. This goes far beyond any computer desk that I've seen, with a load of features and an aim for comfort. It also looks to weigh more than any desk I've seen too - but no matter!

Activision 10 in 1 games: Sometimes you just have to wonder why anyone makes new games and systems. Gameboys are still selling at a phenomenal rate, arcade classics show up on compliation disks nearly every week, and then you have this little toy. 10 of the best games from your youth are packed into this joystick, letting you indulge in your nostalgic game playing urges.

So after fending off countless boxes of sweaters, underwear, and towels, giving someone one of these items is sure to bring a smile to their face. Well, that or an extremely puzzled look. But either way, it's better than the barely civil smile as their great aunt waits for them to try on the knitted sweater of doom, destruction, and an annoying bright embroidered dog pattern.