9 Best Gifts You Never Knew You Needed

It’s hard to find gifts that someone will truly appreciate, but it’s harder to cop a piece that a person never expected to be quite useful because of its thoughtfulness in design and innovation. 

The following list includes nine of the most useful things you never thought you needed in your everyday life. 

1| Braun Series 3 Shaver

Ever since I’ve used Braun’s Series 3 shaver, I’ve never gone back to using my razor blade for shaving my facial hair. What I love about the design is how it protects your upper skin layer while giving you a very smooth and close shave. 

Despite the many bumps on my face because of moles and pimples, I’ve never experienced irritation, itchiness, or bleeding with the Series 3. Its cutters are also intelligently engineered so they only cut the right kind of facial hair—not your sideburns, head hair, or even eyebrows (I’ve tried just out of curiosity)—almost like a smart shaver. It is also waterproof, so you can use it in the shower. No need for after-shave cream with the Braun Series 3. 

You can buy your Braun Series 3 here. 

2| Didi Espresso Machine

Didiesse has reinvented the espresso game with the Didi coffe machine. Didi machines can handle large workloads while maintaining low consumption. It is brought to the Philippines by Pocofino, which specializes in Italy’s storied coffee culture. The Didi delivers a compact cafe experience with every brew, thanks to its ESE pod that contain more coffee than your regular variant of coffee capsules in the market.

Unlike other coffee machines, the Didi is quite easy to use. It makes a perfect cup of espresso in just one minute and a single press of a button. Cleanup is also a breeze. The best thing about the pods is that they are eco-friendly as they are 100 percent biodegradable. You can even use the pods as compost material for your plants. They are also compatible with all espresso machines, a game-changer in the market for coffee pods. 

You can buy your Didi from Pocofino here. 

3| Wodd Sunglasses

Wodd is recognized as one of the leading sustainable brands in the Philippines. It was recognized as the best premier bamboo authentic eyewear shop for 2021 at the Q Asia Awards. Wodd sunglasses are very lightweight, but that’s only part of the things we liked about them. Unlike other sunglasses, Wood’s lenses are able to filter out 95 percent of glare without significantly darkening the vision, based on our experience with the sunglasses.

The polarized lenses do not only suppress glares, but they also manage reflections and enhance how your eyes perceive images distorted by sunlight. When driving, even if your windshield is dirty and distorts light, Wodd filters these out and provides natural and fluent vision. Wodd is not just winning on quality. It is also recognized as one of the leading sustainable brands in the Philippines. For every bamboo and wood sunglasses sold, Wodd plants a tree. 

Wodd bamboo sunglasses are available here. 

4| Belkin Magnetic Phone Mount with Face Tracking

Never hold your phone again when using it for online meetings and classes. The Belkin Magnetic Phone Mount will track your face and adjust its mount to follow you as you move during virtual conversations. 

You can buy the Belkin here. 

5| uKeg Go

Imagine taking a road trip for 12 hours and bringing a keg of ice-cold beer from home. The uKeg is ideal for those kinds of adventures. But it is also perfect for everyday use: as a water dispenser when you don’t want to use the dispenser at the office for sanitary and health reasons, and as a cold brew dispenser for your morning and afternoon fix. 

You can even keep your beverages fresh when you purchase a CO2 charger. The uKeg also keeps your beer carbonated with its streamlined regulator cap that allows you to choose high or low carbonation settings to match the beverage you're serving. 

You can buy the uKeg Go here. 

6| Ember

If you’re a slow coffee drinker like us, you’d appreciate the Ember, a smart mug that controls the temperature of your drink. You can keep your coffee or tea warm or hot for many minutes, ensuring you have a fresh cup every time you sip over work. 

You can buy the Ember here. 

7| Patag Desk Mat

Patag is a Filipino term that means pantay or flat and makinis or smooth. Both meanings also describe the extended mouse pads or desk mats Patag produces. Patag sells mouse pads and desk mats inspired by indigenous Filipino art. It seeks to bridge technology with traditional Filipino art to spread cultural awareness and promote Filipino heritage.

For a year now, I’ve been using my Manlalaro desk mat, which is one of the most popular designs by Patag. It has shown no signs of wear or tear despite regular use and washing. Its colors have not even faded even when I used bleach to disinfect it and wash it. Patag supports indigenous communities with every purchase of its desk mats. 

You can buy a Patag desk mat here. 

8| Cold Brew Bottle by Soma

This multifunction double-wall glass tumbler is the ultimate sippy cup for coffee and tea drinkers. It can function as your cold coffee brewer, your water bottle, and your tea dispenser. What sets it apart from other tumblers is the filter: It uses stainless steel (not copper or tin) filter so your drink’s flavors are unaffected by chemical reactions in the metal. 

The filtration is also impressive considering this is a stainless steel filter. Sediments are left inside the filter, and not in your drink. We also give the Brew Bottle some plus points for looking pretty because of its double-wall glass.

You can buy the Soma Brew Bottle here. 

9| Garmin Dash Cam Mini

This Garmin dashcam is so small, it won’t obscure your field of vision when driving. The compact Garmin Dash Cam Mini automatically records incidents in 1080p high-definition footage. It also has a Built-in Wi-Fi connectivity uploads saved footage to your compatible smartphone running The Garmin Drive app. 

The dashcam’s 140-degree wide-angle lens captures a wide view of the road and even incidents happening in your peripheral view when driving. Never worry about being apprehended for false traffic violations with this handy dashcam. 

You can buy the Garmin Dash Cam Mini here.