Posted on: Sunday, June 6, 2004

Gift ideas for dad or grads get update

By Sam Diaz
Knight Ridder Newspapers

It used to be that a necktie for dad and cash for a grad was all you needed to get through June. But the expectations are higher now. If you're not sure what they might like, check these out:

MP3 players

A flash MP3 player like Creative's MuVo TX holds up to 512 megabytes of music, or about eight hours of MP3 files or 16 hours of WMA files.

The USB 2.0 device doubles as a portable memory drive for storing homework assignments and other files. The MuVo TX is priced at $149 for 256 MB or $229 for the 512 MB player. Lower-end MuVo units start at $50.

If the kid has an MP3 player, surf on over to one of the pay music sites, such as MusicMatch or iTunes, for a virtual gift certificate.

For an upgrade from an old flash memory MP3 player, consider high-capacity units like Apple Computer's iPod and Creative's line of Nomad Jukeboxes.

Camera phones

Samsung's VGA1000 Camera Phone goes for $250 and Video Phone VM-A680 for $310. They're greatly reduced in price with service activation rebates. The color screens offer crisp images and the flip phones are small and lightweight. Be careful — extra charges may apply for camera, video and text-messaging use.

Notebook computers

For the college student, be sure the notebook has some sort of WiFi capability for wireless surfing. Owners of Windows computers should be using the Windows XP Professional operating system for added security.

Cash cards

The gift that keeps on giving is a virtual Visa card. Epassporte (www.epassporte.com) offers a pre-paid Visa for online transactions that can be refilled.

DVD recorders

A basic TiVo recorder will set you back about $150 and $13 every month. A TiVo recorder with a built-in DVD player or DVD recorder will cost more but will make dad the envy of his buddies.