If you are a plan-ahead, bought-your-gifts-in-November type, there’s no need to read further. But if your shopping season only heats up during the second half of December before it comes to a screeching halt shortly before midnight Dec. 24, then this gift guide is for you.
Lucky for you, many gifts for the tech-savvy, the online games-obsessed and the crypto enthusiast are not subject to supply-chain issues or even exist in the tangible world.
Forkast.News has holiday gift ideas for everyone, from the die-hard Bitcoin HODLer to the one who is obsessed with Dogecoin because the dog is so cute. Our suggestions include both physical and digital gifts, with options available for both crypto-savvy buyers and those who know nothing about the technology. And you don’t need crypto to buy them. So without further ado, here is the Forkast.News guide to the best last-minute blockchain and crypto gift ideas for this holiday season.
Intangible gifts
Their first cryptocurrency
Price range: US$1 – the sky’s the limit
Buying your loved ones their first cryptocurrency investment is a great way to onboard them in the lucrative world of crypto and DeFi. It also could be the gift that keeps on giving. The crypto world has exploded in the last few years, with over 11,000 coins now in circulation. Here are a few easy ways to make a choice.
If the person has little knowledge of the market, it’s best to stick with one of the more established coins from the 10 largest cryptocurrencies by market capitalization. For a long-term investment, consider Ethereum, the second-largest cryptocurrency; Solana, which bills itself as the world’s fastest blockchain by throughput; or Cardano, the first blockchain founded on peer-reviewed research. As with any investment, know going in that whatever price you pay may not appreciate over time.
An easy way to buy a loved one their first crypto investment is by purchasing a crypto voucher. Sites like Crypto Voucher enable you to buy a voucher for the coin of your choice using a credit card. All you have to do is select the voucher’s value, the type of cryptocurrency and pay using your preferred method.
Crypto gift cards
Price range: US$1 – the sky’s the limit
If you’re buying cryptocurrency for someone who’s already dabbling in the space then let the recipient choose the project that is closest to their heart.
Precisely for this reason, some websites offer gift cards for cryptocurrency. The Binance gift card enables you to create a custom gift card with the coin of your choice. For a present, it’s best to select the desired amount you want to spend and gift it as BNB — the Binance Smart Chain’s native coin — which can be exchanged by your loved ones to a token of their liking. Alternatively, you can easily gift crypto to your loved ones using the Coinbase gift card, which even allows you to select NFT-inspired packaging to wrap the gift card in.
Digital art NFTs
Price range: US$0.01 – the sky’s the limit
Digital art NFTs can be a great gift for art lovers who are also passionate about technology. After all, 2021 was a breakout year for non-fungible tokens, with many traditional art and auctions houses including Christie’s and Sotheby’s jumping in as well.
NFT marketplaces like OpenSea or Binance NFT are auctioning thousands of non-fungible tokens that you can buy as a present. Use the marketplaces’ filters and categories to find an artwork that speaks to the person you’re trying to surprise, and place a bid for it. Hint: the most captivating works of digital art will likely be the ones to appreciate in value.
Not certain how to choose a piece your intended is sure to love? Here, too, a gift card for Opensea or Binance NFT is a simple solution and the bonus is your recipient is sure to spend many happy hours poring through the catalogs, which stretch far beyond art to music, fashion, film, sports, cars and much more.
Virtual land
Price range: US$11,941 – the sky’s the limit
As the decentralized metaverse is becoming the new frontier of Web 3.0, crypto and gaming enthusiasts may also find joy in receiving a metaverse-related present, like a virtual plot of land.
Virtual real estate is emerging as the next alternative asset class for today’s younger generation. Games like Decentraland, The Sandbox, and Axie Infinity enable players to buy virtual property as an NFT. Players can use this decentralized real estate to build in-game assets or leverage it in fulfilling other game-related objectives. Since there is only a limited amount of virtual land in these games, the element of scarcity may drive prices higher, as the player base of these metaverses grows.
To buy a plot of virtual land, go to the Axie Infinity marketplace or Decentraland marketplace and use the search filters to find the “land” or “parcels and estates” categories. You must have a cryptocurrency wallet to bid or make a purchase.
Tangible gifts
Cold storage wallet
Price range: US$59 – US$129
Just like your fiat money needs a wallet, cryptocurrency needs safekeeping as well, in the form of a crypto wallet. And when it comes to hot vs. cold wallets, cold storage wallets are the safest solution to keeping your private keys secure, as they are permanently offline.
You can’t go wrong with a cold storage wallet when it comes to finding a present for a die-hard crypto holder. The Ledger Nano X is considered one of the most secure wallets on the market and it offers support to over 1,800 types of crypto assets. Crypto holders can use the USB-like device to securely transfer and store their existing cryptocurrency, execute transactions, and even stake their coins to earn passive income.
Just note that a cold wallet is a bearer asset, meaning whoever holds the wallet owns the value, and if the wallet is lost, the value is lost, too. This may not be a good gift choice for someone who misplaces their valuables or tends to lose things.
Plug-and-play crypto miner
Price range: US$175 – US$300
As cryptocurrency mining is becoming more popular, everybody seems to want a piece of the pie. For crypto beginners, plug-and-play crypto miners are a way to start in the space.
While large-scale crypto mining requires some robust hardware with significant hash power, USB miners can provide a cheap onboarding alternative for beginners. While you won’t retire on the profits of such a low hash power rig, they can be a good way to learn about crypto mining.
The ASICMiner Block Eruptor is an easy-to-use USB miner that can simply be plugged into a laptop to start mining Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies. But keep in mind that with the current difficulty level of Bitcoin mining, a USB miner will only produce a negligible amount of satoshis — and profits or losses will also depend a lot on energy costs.
Books about blockchain
Price range: US$5.99 – US$34.99
Choosing a book from the ever-growing plethora of blockchain education literature can be a useful present for your crypto-curious relatives. This may also be the easiest alternative if you’re not a tech-savvy crypto native yourself and don’t have the time to do the research in this unfamiliar emerging technology.
Out of the Ether by Bloomberg reporter Matthew Leising is a great pick for Ethereum enthusiasts, while Digital Gold by New York Times reporter Nathaniel Popper is a good alternative for any Bitcoin fanatic. If you’re unsure about the person’s favorite cryptocurrency, books like The Fiat Standard by Bitcoin educator and economist Saifedean Ammous and Blockchain Revolution by tech evangelists as well as father and son, Don and Alex Tapscott, offer an interesting read to anyone in the crypto space.
Crypto merchandise
Price range: US$12.80 – US$44.50
If the above options all seemed too complicated or inadequate for your loved ones then you can’t go wrong with buying crypto merchandise. From Bitcoin and Ethereum themed hats and mugs to lamps and laptop sleeves, there’s something for everyone in these online stores.
Webshops like Crypto Wardrobe and The Crypto Merch have various options for crypto lovers. More so, both allow buyers to filter their products by coins, meaning that you can easily browse through all the Ethereum, Cardano, or — for lovers of cute dogs — even Dogecoin-specific merchandise.
Hot tip: For a clash of the real world with the virtual world, consider plugging “crypto” into e-commerce site Etsy for crypto-themed home decor, apparel and accessories, some of them even handmade.