The Best Tech Gifts for Mother's Day

Key points:

Tech is a great alternative for Mother’s Day shoppers who want to mix things up this year.
Top tech gifts for mum pertain to parenting, fitness, work, and travel.
JOURNEY’s top picks for mums include earbuds accessories, smart speakers, and wireless power banks.
Many mums love practical tech they use regularly, but might not buy for themselves.

Mums can be tricky to shop for. Find out more about the best tech gifts for Mother’s Day in JOURNEY’s shopping guide.

There’s nothing inherently wrong with flowers. Or chocolates. Or ‘Best Mum Ever’ mugs (unless you handpick one for granddad). At the same time, how many times can you shower mum with these before she resorts to faux surprise?

If you’d prefer to mix things up this Mother’s Day, a tech gift is a great alternative.

Not only will you be more likely to surprise mum (a good start!), you may just delight her too. In fact, hear this: Research from the Consumer Technology Association (CTA) previously found a fifth of mums were hoping to receive a tech device for Mother’s Day.

That’s not to suggest that any old gadget will cut it however.

To help you choose the best gifts for busy mums, here are JOURNEY’s top tips.

The TRIO ULTRA is a 3-in-1 Wireless Charging Station that also displays mum’s phone in landscape or portrait.

What We Know About Mums and Tech Gifting

There are a few general rules of thumb for Mother’s Day gifting that you can apply to tech gifting.

As CNET highlights in its 2023 survey, mums love gifts that they:

Can use regularly (i.e., not a ”tactical” pocket-knife).
Wouldn’t normally buy for themselves.
Find practical around the house.

Based on Edison Research findings into tech’s role in the lives of mums, expect mum to get a lot of mileage out of these gift ideas:

Wireless earbuds accessories such as earbuds cases (71% of mums own wireless headphones or earphones, Edison). You could be especially thoughtful, too, by curating some new playlists for your music-loving mum.
Commuter tech, including laptop bags and sleeves, and portable wireless chargers (70% work out of home, Edison).
WFH home desk setup tech, including a second display monitor, desk mat, or all-in-one charging station (21% work inside the home, Edison).
A smartphone case to prevent costly smartphone accidents (95% of mums own a smartphone, Edison).
A wall charger, wireless keyboard, or tablet case (75% of mums own a tablet, Edison).
A new smart speaker (50% of mums own a smart speaker, Edison).

More than one fifth of mums work from home (Edison Research). Does your mum have enough screens to do her best work?

A Typology of Tech Gifts for Busy Mothers

“Power banks are great travel gadgets when power sockets are scarce.” – JOURNEY.

Tech is a broad category for Mother’s Day gifting. To narrow down the best tech gifts for Mother’s Day, ask yourself: What sort of lifestyle does mum lead? How important does she consider fitness to be? What about work? How about travel? Does she frequently head out for social activities and entertainment?

At JOURNEY, we specialise in tech and lifestyle accessories that simplify life. Many of our customers are mums who love gadgets in a wide variety of categories. These include parenting tech, work tech, home life tech, health and fitness tech, and travel tech.

To learn a little more about a great gift idea in each of these categories, read on.

Without a tracker fob, it might take a lot longer to find those keys.

DID YOU KNOW?

Royal Automobile Club figures show almost half of the motorists it previously surveyed have regularly forgotten where their car keys are. Motorists spend a LOT of money replacing lost keys too. A fob could save mum a lot of headaches.

Tech to Make Parenting Life Easier

Do the mothers in your life misplace things? Are they often rushing to find their keys to get out the door on time? They could number these days with a tracking fob.

A tracking fob attaches to valuable essentials such as keys, and pairs with a smartphone. If mum loses a valuable item while an attached fob is in Bluetooth range, no problem. All she needs to do is tap her phone to sound the fob’s inbuilt speaker. This enables her to hear where her item is located.

Think about the logic-defying locales keys are notorious for vanishing into, and you can appreciate the fob’s benefit. And if an item is out of Bluetooth range (let’s say it’s a kid’s school bag), mum can find it on a map with Apple’s Find My app.

An item-tracking fob is great peace of mind for mums who can’t afford unnecessary time sucks. Same for mums who want to know where their kids are.

Tech to Help Mum Work Efficiently

Here’s something for mums who need an organised workspace for organised thought. A good desk mat will zone mum’s desk so she can zone into the work tasks that matter.

But a desk mat isn’t tech, is it? It can be. Some modern mats feature wireless device charging capabilities. Mum can keep her desk in order while she wirelessly fast-charges multiple mobile devices, right on the mat!

Researchers have shown that our physical environments, including desk spaces, impact our cognition, feelings, and behaviours. A working mum can enjoy better efficiency with a spill-resistant desk mat that holds her devices in place.

"If your mum loves to travel, but loathes the stress it can cause, she’ll love a power bank.” – JOURNEY.

Tech For Life at Home

Smart speaker sales are burgeoning today – and that’s expected to continue. In fact, Edison found that 63% of mums who own a smart speaker own more than one.

In households with busy schedules, a smart speaker can lighten the load.

In case you haven’t test-driven a smart speaker yet, it’s an internet-connected wireless device housing a built-in AI voice-assistant, such as Alexa or Siri. Mum can put hers to work in a single command. A smart speaker will stream live news while mum gets ready for work. It will update her on the weather before she heads out for a run. It will play music while she’s entertaining friends and family.

Edison found that 63% of mums who own a smart speaker own more than one.

Fitness Tech

Does mum love to hit new personal bests exercising? Then maybe it’s time to gift her a smartwatch.

In a quick tap or swipe on her wrist, mum will be able to track her distance and speed on a run or walk, count calories, and monitor her heart rate. She can also track wider health indicators including sleep duration and stress levels.

With a smart watch, mum can also tap to pay for a coffee if she exercises with friends.

A personal best awaits.

TOP TIP

Look for tracker tech items with ringtones that hit about 60db at 25 centimetres. This is loud enough to locate your valuables fast but not loud enough to hurt your ears.

JOURNEY’s LOC8 range of tracking gadgets could make a great Mother’s Day gift set for travel-loving mums.

Travel Gadgets

If your mum loves to travel, but loathes the stress, she’ll love a power bank.

We recommend a lightweight power bank for mum, so she can keep her travel carry to a minimum.

For mums averse to clutter, it’s also worth considering a wireless-charging power bank.

Power banks are great travel gadgets when power sockets are scarce. Mum will be thankful for one when she quickly needs to charge her phone to photograph landmarks, pay for drinks, or show her electronic travel documents.

Travel gadgets such as the AXIE [pictured at the airport, here] are portable chargers and power banks that can simultaenously power three mobile devices. A blessing when power sockets are unavailable.

Before You Shop the Best Tech Gifts for Mother's Day

Some final recommendations to find the best tech gifts for Mother’s Day. Find gifts for busy mothers that:

Make mobile device activity more efficient and productive.
Withstand the push and pull of busy everyday life.
Simplify the way mum stores, carries, and retrieves her everyday devices.
Complement mum’s fashion and style sensibilities.
Require minimal onboarding.

With all this in mind, you’re in a good position to thrill the mums in your life with genuinely awesome surprises.

JOURNEY’s sitewide Mother’s Day sale is now on. Find great gifts discounted here.