Under $25

Happy Secret Santa, guy in the cubicle next to you who smells kind of bad but knows the secret to making great office coffee! Sure, you don’t need spend truckloads of money for everyone on your list this year, but come on: get them something nice. For only a few bucks you can make someone’s desk a little neater, their house a little smarter, their brain a little sharper. Not every cheap gift has to be a teddy bear you found at the pharmacy this afternoon. Do better — and hey, maybe you buy one for yourself too. You deserve it.

Photo of Manual iPhone app

Manual iPhone app

Of the many new features in iOS 8, one of the lesser-known ones is a big deal for photographers — third-party apps can now fine-tune camera settings for total control over exposure, ISO, and so on. Manual is one of the first apps released to take advantage, and it’s just plain fun.

Photo of AccuWeather Platinum

AccuWeather Platinum

You can’t stop Mother Nature, but you can at least know what she’s up to. Accuweather can predict when you might get rained on, right down to the minute, and for how long. Forget your raincoat (unless the app tells you not to), and bring this app out instead.

Photo of Muji notebooks

Muji notebooks

Muji builds great, simple notebooks. They make you want to scribble, jot, and draw, but they aren’t so expensive that you’ll be constantly worried about losing one. If you’re looking for a spot to brainstorm a novel or a comic book, do it here.

Photo of Bounden

Bounden

This might start a few new holiday traditions. Bounden is a two-player choreography game that lets you dance with a friend. Step under the mistletoe and you’ll soon have a reason to get close to your special someone.

Photo of Cordies

Cordies

No joke, this weird chunk of rubbery plastic will change everything. The nightmare of finding the phone charger can finally come to an end. You’re not giving gifts. You’re saving lives.

Photo of The Southern Reach Trilogy

The Southern Reach Trilogy

The movie rights to the Southern Reach adventure trilogy were bought up by Paramount Pictures before the first book was even published, so you’re rapidly running out of time if you want to be the cool kid who reads the books first and thought they were wayyy better.

Photo of WTF, Evolution?, by Mara Grunbaum

WTF, Evolution?, by Mara Grunbaum

Mara Grunbaum’s book highlights the amazing, truly strange side of evolution. Nature’s a funny thing.

Photo of Ratio: The Simple Codes Behind the Craft of Everyday Cooking, by Michael Ruhlman

Ratio: The Simple Codes Behind the Craft of Everyday Cooking, by Michael Ruhlman

If you follow the ratios, you won’t even need to follow the recipes. For anyone looking for a way into the culinary arts, this book will show how even complicated food can be turned into simple math. Friccasee THAT.

Photo of Ayoade on Ayoade: A Cinematic Odessy, by Richard Ayoade

Ayoade on Ayoade: A Cinematic Odessy, by Richard Ayoade

Actor Richard Ayoade, who you might know as Moss from the IT Crowd, does not like doing interviews. So he decided… to interview himself. 10 times. In book form. It gets wild.

Photo of Map of the Known Universe

Map of the Known Universe

The known universe is big. The map of the known universe, less so. Even so, it will point you to the most interesting parts of the solar system, galaxy, and — yes — universe. Unlike the universe, it is not constantly expanding. But the universe doesn’t come with a list of hazards and a “black hole starter kit.”

Photo of Maps glassware

Maps glassware

Nothing beats ending a long day like kicking back with your favorite drink. And now, you can service your wanderlust at the same time with these destination-glazed drinking glasses. Mmm, that’s good Cleveland.

Photo of Ghost in the Shell 25th Anniversary

Ghost in the Shell 25th Anniversary

Do you have a friend who hasn’t seen cyberpunk anime classic Ghost in the Shell? Get them a copy of the 25th anniversary edition. Do you have a friend who really loves cyberpunk anime classic Ghost in the Shell? Get them a copy of the 25th anniversary edition.

Photo of Station Eleven, by Emily St. John Mandel

Station Eleven, by Emily St. John Mandel

Surviving might be a top priority in a post-apocalyptic North America, but it’s not the end. Station Eleven explores the fragility of the communities and art that we build, even after the world as we know it has gone the way of the dodo.

Photo of 10:04, by Ben Lerner

10:04, by Ben Lerner

A severely meta, semi-autobiographical novel about a Brooklyn writer and poet struggling to write his second novel in the year between Hurricanes Irene and Sandy sounds pretentious, but Ben Lerer’s final product is anything but. Instead it is a searingly wry and deeply insightful tour through the constant anxiety of IRL.

Photo of The Book of Strange New Things, by Michel Faber

The Book of Strange New Things, by Michel Faber

Michael Faber’s dystopian new novel concerns a pastor who becomes an unlikely astronaut. With Earth falling apart, a shadowy corporation sends him into space, where he attempts to bring religion to an alien civilization. As you do.

Photo of Things Come Apart, by Todd McLellan

Things Come Apart, by Todd McLellan

Simple objects are often not so simple on the inside. Photographer Todd McLellan explores in this book, which lays out every single part that goes into things like the iPod, chainsaws, and typewriters with a sense of beauty and purpose.

Photo of Blue Bottle Coffee

Blue Bottle Coffee

Coffee nerds don’t drink Starbucks. If you or the person you love cares deeply about their brew (and you should), a subscription to some of Blue Bottle’s best blends could do the trick.

Photo of The Peripheral, by William Gibson

The Peripheral, by William Gibson

We know what we thought the future would be, but do you know what the future will think of the past? This novel, Gibson’s first in four years, could bend your mind a bit. Don’t get too comfortable.

Photo of The Bone Clocks, by David Mitchell

The Bone Clocks, by David Mitchell

From the author of Cloud Atlas, this novel is just as inventive and challenging, involving a young girl whose decisions echo across time and through the lives of the people she cares about. Don’t put this down until you’re done. Not that you’d be able to anyway.

Photo of Makeshift Magazine

Makeshift Magazine

For the print lover in your life, Makeshift’s job is to “uncover creative solutions from the economic fringe.” If you love great photography, creative print design, and finding unique ways to stretch your dollar while minimizing your impact on the environment, a subscription to Makeshift is what you need.

Photo of The Good Spy, by Kai Bird

The Good Spy, by Kai Bird

There’s nothing like a good spy story. This one follows a quiet CIA operative as he moves through the Arab world during the height of the cold war. By the time you’re done, you’ll know enough tradecraft to navigate any scene you might stumble into. But, you know, don’t.

Photo of The Secret History of Wonder Woman, by Jill Lepore

The Secret History of Wonder Woman, by Jill Lepore

Jill Lepore is a remarkable, prolific historian, and she’s turned her attention and critical eye to one of history’s most important figures: Wonder Woman. Spoiler alert: she’s a badass.

Photo of Miracle Man Vol 1, by Alan Moore

Miracle Man Vol 1, by Alan Moore

Miracleman probably isn’t a superhero you know, but it’s time you got acquainted. It’s a completely different kind of hero, but then what else do you expect from the author of Watchmen? It’s a bird, it’s a plane, it’s kind of dark but really fun.

Photo of Lazaretto Vinyl

Lazaretto Vinyl

There are few ways to appear cool to your music-loving friends. One is to own (and subsequently never stop talking about owning) lots of vinyl records. Another is to unwaveringly praise everything Jack White does. Luckily for you, you can kill two birds with one rolling stone if you get Jack White’s newest album — Lazaretto — on Ultra LP.

Photo of The Innovators, by Walter Isaacson

The Innovators, by Walter Isaacson

You may know Walter Isaacson for his biography of Steve Jobs, but his latest project is a lot bigger: it’s a sweeping history of computers and the internet, told through the lives of the people who helped create them — from Ada Lovelace to Larry Page.

Photo of Bluelounge Cable Tube

Bluelounge Cable Tube

Cables are an ugly, messy necessity around any desk, but Soba consolidates a bunch of them into a single tube that’s easily routed wherever you need it to go. No muss, no fuss.

Photo of Power Knife

Power Knife

It’s like a Swiss Army knife, only instead of housing a dozen different ways to cut yourself, the Power Knife has a Lightning connector and a Micro USB port to charge pretty much any modern mobile device. Be a tweeter, not a fighter.

Photo of Kindle Unlimited

Kindle Unlimited

Reading: good. Reading a lot: better. With Amazon’s new Kindle Unlimited monthly subscription service, voracious bookworms can gorge on as many titles as they want from Amazon’s catalog of over 700,000 titles. Binge away.

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