10 Mother’s Day Gifts and Gadgets for Techie Moms

With Mother’s Day coming up, here are some great ideas for some useful and unusual gadgets and gifts for the mothers in your life.

Protective and decorative smartphone cases come in all sizes, colors and designs from a wide range of vendors, but if you want to create something a bit special, then check out the Case-Mate Naked Tough Custom Case. This case, which retails for $39.99, is a clear see-through soft case that comes with more than 250 stickers from emojis to metallic studs, rhinestones and even metallic letters that can be used to customize and decorate it to one’s own preferences. The cases are available for a wide range of mobile phones.

Leaving a smartphone charger behind when traveling is not only a hassle but can be costly if you have to buy yet another charger. That’s where the Charger Leash can help. This charger, which has various models that fit the charging ports on Apple, Android and Windows phones, tablets and even many wearables, includes a special built-in beeper alarm that goes off when you unplug the phone from the cord. That alarm is designed to remind you to then remove the charger cord from the wall outlet so you can take it with you. It also acts as a theft alarm if you plug your phone in for charging in a public place and someone tries to take the phone from the cord. The devices sell for about $19.99.

Moms who love music could appreciate a subscription with a streaming music service from Apple Music, Spotify, Rhapsody or other vendor. An Apple Music account can be given for $9.99 a month after a free 90-day trial (you can even give her an Apple Music gift card), while a Spotify Premium account is $9.99 a month after a 30-day free trial. A Rhapsody account is also $9.99 a month after a 30-day free trial. All of these services let users select music genres they enjoy and set up song lists, download tracks, listen from the cloud and more.

Moms on the go need all the help they can get, including the ability to keep their all-important smartphones charged when they are at work or on the road where charging may not be available. For that task, special smartphone cases that include integrated spare batteries, like the cases from Mophie and other vendors, can be lifesavers. The Mophie Juice cases come in a wide range of colors and styles to fit lots of phone models, including the latest iPhone and Samsung Galaxy models, and are priced from $59.95 to $149.95, depending on the phone being fitted. Mophie also sells its new Powerstation external batteries, which plug in to a wide range of mobile devices to provide from one to five recharges. The Powerstations are priced from $39.95 to $129.95.

For the music-loving mom, a good set of wireless headphones can make it easier to listen to the music she loves while relaxing, working in the yard or taking a run. A wide variety of models and price ranges are available from Beats, Bose, JBL and others. Amazon also offers the $35.99 Phaiser BHS-730 Bluetooth earbuds, which are sweat-proof for runners and include a carrying pouch.

New moms who want to easily share the latest photos and other sentimental memories about their infants can be presented with an online account at HelloBaby, a new Website that launches on Mother’s Day. The site allows users to post and then share their baby photos, videos and more with others who they can invite to participate. The accounts are free, but some paid options for more services will be offered in the future. Accompanying apps are available for Android and iOS users so moms can post updates to their accounts and share the latest memories.

Remember when you handwrote paper coupons and gave them to your mom on Mother’s Days, which she could redeem for chores? Well, now you can order a fancier version from sellers on Etsy, giving mom 11 printable coupons for a coffee date, a home-cooked meal, a spa day, a movie night and more. The coupon pack costs $7.43 and can be downloaded at home, printed and given some personalized decorating before presenting them to mom.

Another creative gift for mom is a printable family tree that can be ordered from vendors on Etsy and customized with the names and information of your relatives. One such offer starts at $40 and provides a download that can be filled out with the names of up to five generations of family members. Six generations costs $50, seven generations costs $60, and eight generations costs $70. Once filled in and returned to the seller, the data-filled PDF will be used to create a family tree that can be printed out and framed for display in your mom’s home or office. Mom can choose the colors used for the family tree as well as size options.

For those who wait until the last minute for Mother’s Day gift ideas, you are in luck. Online photo vendor Picaboo offers gift certificates that you can give to mom that she can redeem for personalized photo calendars or photo books you can help her create. The Picaboo gift certificates are available in $25, $50 and $100 values. You can help mom choose and upload the photos, design the calendar or photo book décor, and add text, captions and more for a very personal and touching gift.

For fashion-conscious moms who like high-tech gadgets, there’s always a smartwatch from vendors including Apple, Samsung and Huawei. Huawei just released its Elegant and Jewel (pictured) smartwatch models, which are priced at $499.99 and $599.99, respectively, before a $50 off promotion right now through Newegg, Amazon and Best Buy. Both models, which run on Android, include soft, thin leather bands and rose gold-plated stainless steel bodies. Plus, they are preloaded with more than 40 watch face designs that can be changed as desired. The Jewel watches feature 68 Swarovski Zirconia stones in their designs.