Gifts and Gadgets Archive

Hamilton Beach Single Serve Coffee Maker - READER REVIEW: 'I never meant to use K-Cups. I knew they were awful, but I got hooked on the convenience. Then along came my beloved Head Butler with the solution.

Head Sets for Cell Phones - When the head of a respected cancer research institute warns his faculty and staff to limit their time on cell phones, I take notice. Please note: I do not jump

iKlear: Apple’s cleaning solution for iPhones, iPads, iMacs - When I worked at AOL, the insider wisdom was: Don’t be an early adopter. We love them, but early adopters are guinea pigs. Stay one version behind. Not that

JL421 Badonkadonk Land Cruiser/Tank -

Kensington Bluetooth Keyboard and Case for the iPad - I asked the child: “What’s the best present you got for Christmas?” Just so you know: The kid had a rocking holiday. Got just enough of the stuff

Kill A Watt: Save Money on Electricity - With energy costs spiking higher than Lou Dobbs' blood pressure, it's shrewd to find ways to save money where you can. Start by using less electricity. It's not just a matter of

Kneipp Bath Oils - “Who takes a bath these days?” Molly Young asked recently in The New York Times Magazine. “Raise the subject with friends or family, and you’ll hear the standard objection: ‘Why

Kodak ESP 5250 Printer - Within hours of publishing this review, I received e-mail from two readers I know and trust. They are withering. My bad for recommending a product I don't own, but have

KOR ONE Water Bottle - Everybody knows about the massive floating island of plastic --- three times the size of France --- floating between California and Hawaii. Everybody knows 1.4 billion tons of mostly plastic

Laptop Computer Stands -

Laptop Stand and Wireless Keyboard - “When your wife buys a new Macbook Pro,” I joked, “it can only mean one of three things --- she has a new lover, she’s divorcing you or she has

Little Sun Solar Lantern - For a small country --- population: 5.3 million --- Denmark bristles with creativity. Borgen. Susanne Bier’s two best films, After the Wedding and In a Better World. Lukas Graham. Noma.

Louise Fili: Brilliantly designed Italian pencils, gift cards, and more - When most people think of “style,” they think of fashion designers. I think of Louise Fili. You’ve seen her designs everywhere and every day: Williams-Sonoma, Sarabeth’s, Tiffany & Co., Paperless

Louise Fili: Perfetto Pencils - Louise Fili, whose head seems happily trapped in pre-Mussolini Italy, doesn't just design pencils and their boxes. She also designs note cards --- Quattro Parole Italiane: 12 Note cards and

Mahogany Cigar Travel Humidifier - “Do you smoke?” the doctor asked. “Cigars,” I said, declining to mention the other thing. “How many?” “Not nearly enough.” This is true. I have boxes of fine cigars in airtight bags that I

Moleskine Notebooks - In a world of fads and scams, Moleskines are the real thing, a gold standard. The leather-like cover takes more wear than you’ll ever give it. The elastic band is

myCharge HubPlus Portable Charger External Battery Pack - SHOPPING ON AMAZON: The first business model of this site is Amazon. You start here, buy something there, Butler gets a commission. And not just on the item reviewed. Anything

Omni Massage Roller - The week began on a plane, with the child asleep on her mother’s lap for two hours. Then the kid made a 3 AM visit to our bed, further twisting

Palomino Blackwing Pencils - In "Heartburn," Nora Ephron's novel about a failing marriage, she describes one of her first husband's peculiar habits. He writes his appointments in pencil in a desk diary. Each night,

Panasonic Lumix DMC-FZ35 12.1MP Digital Camera with 18x POWER Optical  Image Stabilized Zoom and 2.7 inch LCD - A photography book by Henri Cartier-Bresson was a gift on my 16th birthday. His style of "street photography" or "real life reportage" style has influenced many photographers --- and was