Tech gadgets aren’t just for guys. With Mother’s Day coming up quickly, think about an electronic gift for the special female in your life. To help in the selection process, Pioneer Press in Minnesota (http://www.twincities.com) came up with a list of things to avoid when shopping for a tech-related gift for Mother’s Day. Here are the basics of the article:

Skip the Pink. – Pink may look great on baby girls, but it’s not always the way to win a woman’s heart. Better to find out what her favorite color is and go with that.

Don’t get too girlie. – Hello Kitty may be one of her favorites, but it’s not cool to whip out a Hello Kitty cell phone at a business meeting.

Fill a need. – Does she really need –or even want – a music player that can hold 40,000 songs? Get something actually relevant to her life and lifestyle. Maybe a new PDA to help keep her life organized? Or a digital camera so she can email photos of the kids to grandma? Or maybe she really does want that music player so she can sweat to the oldies.

Upgrade if she already has one. – Maybe Mom already has a digital camera. That’s okay. Upgrade her to a new camera that not only takes high resolution photos but also high resolution video.

Don’t add stress. – Buy her something easy to use, doesn’t need a lot of maintenance and is durable. And don’t forget the batteries. Getting her a camcorder with batteries that keep running out midway through the Little League game is not going to be appreciated.
The full article can be viewed at: http://www.twincities.com/portlet/article/html/fragments/print_article.jsp?articleId=5838231&siteId=569

Forecast for Mother's Day

The National Retail Federation reports today that this Mother’s Day consumers will spend nearly $16 billion on jewelry, flowers, clothing and trips to the spa for the women in their lives. Men will outspend women, with $172.91 spent by male shoppers compared to $107.18 by women shoppers. Shoppers ages 25-34 will spent the most with a whopping $151.42 spent compared to the $138.14 spent by Boomers.

Sadly, the report shows that 15.5 percent of all participants in the NRF’s 2007 Mother’s Day Consumer Intentions and Actions survey don’t celebrate the holiday. However, of those who do celebrate, 38.2 percent of the purchases will be jewelry, 37.00 will be clothing, 29.3 percent will be books or CDs, and a whopping 72.4 percent will be flowers.

I got my Mother’s Day gift early: a wireless network adapter. According to the NRF survey, only 11.3 percent of Mother’s Day gifts will be *consumer electronics or computer related accessories*. That’s the lowest percentage on the list. But I really wanted it, so this mother is happy. And that, after all, is the desired outcome on Mother’s Day. I hope yours is a happy one too!

To read the full NRF report, go to: http://www.nrf.com/modules.php?name=Documents&op=alllist&&id=658