Great Gifts for Gamers

If you have a gamer in your life, you know that they're always on a constant hunt for the latest and greatest goodies to enhance their gaming experience. That means you'll always know what they want, if only you understood their language. Think of this article as a gift-giving guide for the gamer in your life and think of me as your Gamer-to-English interpreter.

Any true gamer is always on the lookout for a better and faster video card for their PC. A good card lets you play graphic-intensive games with more speed and realism. A bad graphics card will make their game stutter and freeze up, ruining their game and probably the harmony of your home. I won't get too deep into the weeds on this one because I would need a lot more space. Here are the names of some of the best cards in the business today: Nvidia GeForce 8800GT, ATI Radeon HD 3870, XFX GeForce 7950 GX2, and the ATI X1900 XTX. Prices for these can range anywhere from $250-350 or more and not all cards will work with all computers. Unless you really know your gamer's computer, I suggest you take them with you when shopping for a card or you could wind up with an expensive and useless gift on your hands.

Sound cards are another item that gamers are usually eager to upgrade. Most of them have similar qualities but Creative Labs has held the crown for a long time now. Their Creative SB X-Fi XtremeGamer sound card is currently the king of the hill. With prices ranging from $75- $125, they're a lot less expensive than video cards and don't have near the amount of compatibility issues that a video card does. There are a lot of other really good sound cards out there for similar prices, but why bother when you can have the best for the same amount of money?

A lot of true gamers need a good headset, especially to play on-line, team-oriented games. This is why I suggest giving a good headset as a gift. I'm not talking about those big, clunky headsets from a few years ago. I'm talking about a good set of 5.1 surround sound headphones with a high-quality mike. Tops in the field are the Medusa 5.1 Surround Sound Headset from Speed-Link, the Turtle Beach Ear Force HPA2, and most any Razer Barracuda or Sennheiser headset. These all provide really great sound and voice capabilities while keeping the rest of the house nice and quiet. These headphones will set you back anywhere from $40 up to over $150. No matter which set you give as a gift, they'll love it.

To most people with a PC a mouse is a mouse. Talk to a gamer and they'll tell you there's a big difference in mice. If you want to get your special gamer a really great mouse, look no further than Logitech. Their gaming mice are consistently hailed as the best in the business. I recommend the MX518, G5 or G7. The best news is that they only cost between $40-$65, making them really attractive.

When it comes to buying for someone else, a keyboard is a little trickier than a mouse or headphones. Some folks prefer split boards, other prefer ergonomically designed boards while others will stick with their standard ones. As luck would have it, Logitech is again at the forefront in this area. When it comes to the king of keyboards, nothing can touch the G15 Gaming board. This keyboard can do a lot more than type a letter to Grandma, I can tell you that. You can find this board snuggled nicely between $50 and $75, which makes it a nice holiday option.

There are a lot of other gift options out there, like monitors, joysticks, steering wheels, foot pedals and speakers. Talk to the gamer in your life, if you can get him away from the screen, and find out what he or she likes. I'd bet my bottom dollar that they already know exactly what they'd like, how much it costs, and where to get it. The world of gaming accessories is a wild and ever-changing environment with new technologies coming out almost weekly. It might be a good idea to take your gamer with you and let them pick out their gift, using your budget as a guideline, especially if you find yourself in over your head.