Holiday buyers get an early roadmap

Engadget has published its 2025 roundup of “best tech gifts,” giving consumers an early look at the gadgets most likely to trend during the year-end shopping rush. The guide, refreshed on November 10, pulls together staff-tested devices across phones, audio, gaming, smart home and wellness — but what stands out for 2025 is how AI has become a default feature, not a novelty. Editors highlight premium phones that can run on-device assistants, noise-cancelling earbuds that adapt in real time, and compact gaming handhelds tuned for cloud play. The list leans heavily on products the site reviewed positively over the past months, ensuring the recommendations are grounded in real-world testing rather than marketing copy. That makes the guide useful not just for shoppers but also for retailers looking to match inventory to demand. With global supply chains still sensitive to shipping slowdowns and tariffs, an early signal from a major tech publication can shape what ends up on shelves. The roundup also nods to sustainability by including repairable laptops and accessories made from recycled materials, aligning gadgets with climate-conscious buying trends.

AI, wellness and smart home push into the mainstream

Beyond the core devices, Engadget’s editors pick out smaller “can’t-miss” gifts that show how the tech industry is widening its consumer pitch. Smart rings and watches that track sleep, stress and cycle health are given equal weight to flagships, suggesting wellness tech is now considered giftable rather than niche. In the smart home segment, hubs and security cameras are increasingly designed to work locally, so owners are less exposed if a cloud service goes offline — a practical concern in a year marked by a prolonged U.S. government shutdown that disrupted some federal tech operations. Audio remains crowded, but the guide points to a few over-ear models with better voice isolation for remote work. All of this reflects 2025’s central tech story: buyers expect intelligence, privacy and longevity in every price band. For brands, landing on Engadget’s list ahead of Black Friday matters because it can tilt influencer roundups and TikTok gift videos in the same direction. For consumers, the piece functions like a curated floor of a gadget store — broad enough to cover everyone on a list, but specific enough to avoid duds.