My Dad’s Gadget Gifts 2025

A few years ago, I wrote an entire ode to the Draft Top Lift, which I discovered while perusing the drawer under my dad’s bar counter. It cuts and lifts the top off a can — think LaCroix or Diet Coke — essentially creating an open metal cup, which elevates the flavor profile of your favorite beverage. I love using it to garnish a seltzer with a lime or lemon. Last year, Draft Top re-engineered this gadget and launched the updated Lift Universal, which works on all can sizes, even large 24-ounce cans of iced tea.

These measuring spoons are made specifically for mixing drinks. Designed by the mixologist Jim Meehan, author of the Meehan’s Bartender Manual, these come with a handy .06-ounce bar spoon, which any home bartender will appreciate.

The Utah-based brand ThermoWorks is quite the gadget establishment for any home cook or grilling geek. After trying an earlier version of the brand’s thermometer, my dad upgraded to the improved Thermapen One, which provides temperature readings almost instantaneously. It’s waterproof with an IP67 rating and features a backlight display for grilling after dusk, plus it boasts a great foldable design that keeps the probe secure.

The latest product my dad bought from ThermoWorks is this wireless Bluetooth-enabled probe kit, which he uses for smoking ribs, pork shoulder, or brisket. It’s very convenient because all that data comes directly to your phone via the ThermoWorks app. “With the older version, when you were opening and closing your smoker, you would catch the wires, but not with this cord-free Bluetooth model,” he told me.

Another pick from ThermoWorks: This powerful barbecue fan helps maintain precise temperature control and is ideal for kamado-style models like the Big Green Egg, or charcoal grills, and particularly for long and slow cooking.

My dad’s Napoleon grill has a wavy cooking grid, so he prefers this cleaning brush. The coiled stainless-steel wire doesn’t shed like other barbecue grill brushes, and the curved handle helps give him more leverage.

My dad owns a Solo Stove pizza oven, and after reading about ways to quickly increase the temperature during preheating and maintain the heat between pizzas, he decided to buy this custom-made oven door. It’s sold by the Etsy shop APizzDE, which is based in Germany, and you can find a range of other baffle doors for all kinds of popular pizza ovens.

This travel charger from Mophie is highly packable and offers up to 15W charging. It folds neatly into a small square that can fit into your pocket.

Although my dad is always wearing gloves at work, he doesn’t like wearing gardening gloves when doing lawnwork because most are too bulky, he says. He’s fine with the odd splinter or thistle as long as he can remove them with his illuminated magnifying glass, which looks a lot like something you might find in an aesthetician’s office.

Since my parents live in Minnesota, their in-ground pool has a cover, which touches the water surface when it’s closed. My dad says he can’t use the Sutro monitor in the pool because it needs to float around to get a reading, so the WaterGuru is his pick for measuring pH and chlorine daily. Like the Sutro, it connects to an app that advises you how to adjust the chemicals based on the data it has collected.

Like many dads, mine is also a golf guy. He says it’s mainly because it takes him outdoors and he revels in the challenge. He’s constantly trying to improve his game by reading, watching YouTube videos, and trying new golf gadgets — like this one, which was invented by Fraser Mann, a Scottish professional golfer. Golf’s Essential Mover, a.k.a. the GEM, is one of my dad’s favorites because it attaches to the shaft of your club and helps you “groove your swing” without even hitting a golf ball. Essentially, you can use it to practice anywhere. (My dad even introduced the GEM to his golf pro, which I take as proof that it’s a relatively under-the-radar tool.)

The Stack System is an app-based gadget and training device for improving your golf game indoors or at a driving range. “Every golfer’s dream is to outdrive their 19-year-old son,” my dad tells me with a smirk. The brand’s radar monitor is used to measure swing speed and ball speed and to calculate an estimated carry distance. The app can also guide you through customized training programs.

The PooPail is excellent for cleaning up waste in a multi-dog household. My dad found it on Kickstarter after he realized how messy and laborious it was to rake Great Dane–size poop into flimsy garbage bags. The PooPail has wheels and an ergonomic handle, and the four-gallon capacity makes the backyard cleaning process a lot easier. Just note: This is the upgraded version of the original PooPail with wheels that my dad owns.