The best tech gift ideas for creators | Holiday Gift Guides

The right gear makes all the difference for creators, photographers, and tech lovers. If you’re looking for the perfect gift to impress them this holiday season, here are some of my favourite things that they’re sure to love.

For more ideas take a look at some of my favourite creator gifts from last year.

DJI Mavic 3 Pro | $2,049 and up

The DJI Mavic 3 Pro is one of the most advanced drones for videographers, with a triple-camera system to let creators get exactly the shot they need. With a 43-minute max flight time, the Mavic 3 Pro can fly for longer, while capturing 5.1K/50fps and 4K/120fps video in 10-bit D-log manual mode for the ultimate cinematic footage. The three cameras include a 1/2″ Tele Camera (166mm equivalent), 4/3 Hasselblad Camera (24mm), and a 1/1.3″ Medium Tele Camera (70mm).

The Pro bundle includes the DJI RC remote, for control with up to 15km HD video transmission, while the Fly More Combo also includes a camera bag, three batteries, ND filters, and a charging hub.

This is an incredible drone system, with power, speed, and impressive quality for images and video. For beginner drone pilots, consider the new DJI Mini 4 Pro.

Insta360 X3 | $599

Creators can capture the world around them with the Insta360 X3, with 5.7K active HDR video, 72MP photos, and 8K timelapses that bring locations and action to life. It’s the ultimate action camera.

In 360 mode, the camera system captures video in all directions, and with the Invisible Selfie Stick, video and photos look like they’re being shot from mid-air. Switching to single camera mode, the Insta360 X3 captures 4K30fps or 2.7K video with ultra-wide MaxView using a 1/2″ 48MP Sensor. And the camera offers a large 2.29″ tempered glass touchscreen for control and the ultimate big screen view.

After shooting, creators can open up the Insta360 app to edit 360 video, reframing for any view, and adding unique edits and angles.

Zhiyun Fiveray M20 | $119

Lighting makes all the difference for photographers and videographers, and the Zhiyun Fiveray M20 is the perfect pocket-sized light for a wide range of situations. For travel, portraits, interviews, or food, the Fiveray M20 weighs just 200g, with colour temperature ranging from 2700K to 6500K, and 2010 lux peak illuminance.

The light is easily mountable, and offers up to 40 minutes of use at peak power, or up to 3 hours at 5W. For pros who need a little more control, the M20 is also available as a combo with four leaf barn doors to shape light, a diffuser, and a honeycomb grid.

For more creative tools, check out Zhiyun stabilizers, like the Crane 4, other creative lights like the Fiveray F100, phone stabilizers, or a wide range of accessories.

OnePlus Open | $2,299

The OnePlus Open delivers the best foldable phone experience for creators and professionals who need a larger screen, better cameras, and more power.

Available in Emerald Dusk or Voyager Black, the Open weighs just 239 grams, it’s made with aerospace-grade materials, it’s been tested to last 1,000,000 folds, and it works incredibly well for multitasking, photography, capturing 4k video, and-yes–even as a phone!

On the outside the 6.31″ display is the size of a regular phone, but fold it open and the 7.82″ inside display can run up to three apps at once, watch videos or edit photos, and so much more. The screens are bright, and they both offer 2k resolution, plus ProXDR HDR and multi-spatial speakers.

Beyond everything else, including an excellent battery, the Open has three main cameras for gorgeous photos and videos, speedy 67W fast charging, and 4K video, including on the front and main displays.

BeastGrip Pro | $204

For the creator who captures with their phone, the BeastGrip Pro rig fits nearly any smartphone to make filming easier, plus it offers a lot of other possibilities. Using the rig creators can attach a light or microphone, and the grip makes it easier to hold while filming.

BeastGrip also offers a range of accessories to go with the rig, including grips, handles, filters, and lenses.

Pair the grip with the Pro Series 1.55X Anamorphic Lens MK2 for cinematic results, or creators can use the DOF Adapter MK2 to attach regular camera lenses for even more options.

Google Pixel 8 | $949

The Google Pixel 8 is one of the best mid-range phones at a great price, with excellent performance and great cameras.

Google’s Tensor G3 chipset is fast, responsive, and it offers solid security. But the star of the show is the display, and the two cameras: a 50 MP wide camera, and a 12 MP ultrawide camera. Using AI and some of the best software available today, plus features like Magic Eraser to clean up messy shots, the Pixel 8 takes excellent photos and videos for sharing on social media, or blogging. And beyond that, the 10.5 MP front camera takes excellent selfies.

And for the vloggers, turning on speech enhancement makes it easy to hear what anyone says in videos without any extra work. I have used my phone frequently for selfie videos, without the need for an

SanDisk Memory Cards | $59 to $500

A camera is nothing without a great memory card, and SanDisk has three solid options to meet different budgets, and different speeds.

For the professionals, the SanDisk Professional Pro-Cinema CFexpress card guarantees write speeds of at least 400MB/s so videographers can captures perfect 4K and 8K video. Cameras like the Canon EOS R5 depend on this speed to work, and on top of that the Type B cards are rugged.

Photographers shooting photos or even 4K video can rely on the SanDisk Extreme PRO UHS-II SD Card, with either V60 speeds, or V90 speeds, in storage sizes ranging from 32 GB to 512 GB. These dependable cards can capture at speeds of up to 280 MB/s, they last a long time, and they’re affordable to buy a few at once.

Synology DiskStation DS224+ | $299

Backups are very important for creators, and having the right NAS solution can make all the difference, especially when there are problems. That’s where the Synology DiskStation DS224+ comes in.

This beginner-level NAS offers two disk bays for protection against one drive failure, and it’s packed with Synology’s impressive features, from importing data, backups to the cloud, sharing tools, and even remote access to files.

From a safety angle, the DS224+ is perfect for storing a second copy of photos, videos, and important files. But the NAS is so much more than that, when creators can access their files on-the-go, backup from their computer or phone, and unlock software for a range of business uses.

Samsung Odyssey OLED G9 | $2,299

This monitor is the ultimate display for editors who need the right screen for editing, with smart features, and a few bells and whistles that take PC gaming to the next level.

The Samsung Odyssey OLED G9 is so much more than your average screen. The monitor offers amazing contrast and colours, while the curved screen fills the field of view, and the Neo Quantum Processor Pro optimizes every moment for the best quality.

And when it’s time for some fun, the smart TV experience delivers all their favourite streaming services, or they can jump into their favourite games in Samsung’s Gaming Hub.

Visit The GATE’s 2023 Holiday Gift Guides for more giveaways & holiday features.

All photos by W. Andrew Powell/The GATE, except Zhiyun Fiveray M20 and Samsung Odyssey OLED G9.