Shopping for Valentine’s Day can be a super tough task, especially if you blew your gift-giving greatness over the Christmas holidays. Now what? Do you go for the mushy, romantic gifts or spring for something your partner actually needs? Flowers, dinner, chocolate, a DIY book of coupons?  Or maybe you’re buying a gift for someone you’re not romantic with, like a friend or child (or yourself!). The good news is that right now is a great time to get some of the best gadgets of the year. Here’s what we’re drooling over:

Netflix and Thrill

Top five best new gadgets of the year — The Freestyle — Samsung’s all-new, super hot, flexible projector. It creates cinema-quality entertainment experiences—anytime, anywhere. Point it at any surface — it automatically focuses, levels, and projects stunning visuals nearly anywhere from 2-and-a-half feet to eight-feet wide. Just a little over a pound and a half — it takes a party to new heights.

Then… Go from small to mighty by connecting it to Samsung’s water-resistant MX-T50 Sound Tower, and turn backyard movie night into an incredible snuggle-in theater. 

“Like new” 

I’ll let you in on a little secret. Most of us shop for the top gadget gifts using online tech tools like eBay Refurbished. You can get a whole lot more bang for your buck with its array of high-quality, like-new devices from all the bigs like Apple, Bose, iRobot, Dyson, and Samsung. There are some spectacular finds here right now too, such as more than 20% off a great pair of Bose Noise Canceling Headphones or the super snazzy DJI Mini 2 Drone that’s nearly 25-percent off. Also? Everything in the program has to meet rigorous standards, comes backed by an up to two-year warranty, and ships for free. Check the deals out here:

Pay Over Time

Here’s one I recommend at least three times every single day: It’s a tech tool called Affirm — a flexible and transparent alternative to credit cards that lets people pay over time. You can use it to buy gorgeous flowers like these from Urban Stem — or 100,000 other retailers in the U.S. including David Yurman, Williams Sonoma, StubHub, American Airlines, and so many more. What do I really appreciate about it? It lets you spread out purchases into biweekly or monthly payments with options as low as 0% APR. The total cost of your purchase is shown upfront Affirm never charges you a penny more than you agree to. 

No late or hidden fees — period. 

Savvy Shoppers

Another great tech too to dodge the heartbreak when it comes to your budget — start shopping by visiting Slickdeals. The site, apps, browser extension, and loyalty program have more than 12 million users — who vet and vote up the very best deals from all the top retailers like Amazon and Target, so you know if you’re actually getting a good price. It’s like having 12 million friends to help you share and understand the very best deals at any given time. You can also set a Deal Alert to get notified when a deal that matches your criteria gets posted to the site.

Modern Day Love Notes

Lovebox : connects to Wi-Fi to receive short messages, photos, or drawings sent through the free app available on iOS and Android. When the box receives the message, a red heart spins like a pinwheel and continues to do so until the lid is lifted to reveal a message on the display.  It is the perfect gift — personal, sentimental, and creative — for anyone you want to know that you’re thinking of them anytime, from anywhere in the world. $130

High Tech Photo Frames

A digital photo frame is another wonderful gift for friends, family, a special loved one. I love the Aura Frame — it automatically creates photo collections of the people you take pictures of most often, edits out blurry or bad photos, and has unlimited storage. You can even let your closest friends and family contribute their own photos to your frame, and vice-versa – and it’s all private. Anyone you allow in can share it via an app — so if you’re a family who lives all over the country — all the kids can upload to the Grandparents’ frame from afar. This is my go-to gift for weddings, baby showers, and hostess gifts: They start at $179 

Tension Tamer

If you were thinking about splurging on a fancy sports massage for him, consider this mega-popular vibration therapy device as a unique gift. It pulses 40 times per second to stimulate circulation, generate heat and relieve even the deepest kinds of tension, tightness, knots, and other variations of soreness. Famous Theragun fans range from Justin Timberlake to the Dancing with the Stars cast to pro athletes like Kyrie Irving (and ME 😂). Starts at $299 

Perfect Pet Portraits

For a loved one who loves their pet — check out: West & Willow’s gorgeous framed pet portraits! Just send in a few photos of any beloved pet — dog, cat, horse, parakeet — and in about two weeks, a gorgeous framed digital portrait arrives. The frame’s are high quality — and they’ll write whatever you want them to on it. Super sweet — and they’re having a Valentine special — you can get a free mug with your order. $65

Modern Mixtape

Take it back to the good ole’ days by burning a mixtape for your crush. Since cassettes and CDs are basically obsolete (sad, we know), make a Spotify or Apple Music playlist and upload it to this USB that’s shaped like those mixtapes of our past — so they can play it directly on their laptop or car stereo. What’s even cooler? You can share photos, videos, and memories, with a classic retro style. Choose from 4GB/8GB/16GB for you to present to your loved one as a thoughtful gift with a novel and fun design. They personalize the cover even…$28

Couples Who Cook Together…

Some say music is the food of love, which is very poetic, but you can’t eat a power ballad. So how about a super sexy dinner for two — that you cook together — and it includes fabled aphrodisiac ingredients? 

Just in time for Valentine’s Day, Chef Matt Finarelli has created a 90-minute experience in which you and your significant other learn the secrets to amorous cooking. Matt has chosen a drink, dinner, and dessert that will heat up your night and inspire you to experiment with other stimulating dishes. Find this at Uncommon Goods – another one of my go-to’s for gifts for everyone. There are other cooking classes here too – like DIY Delicious: Dumplings Two Ways

Secret Message Candles: 

Let a Secret Message Candle by Celsius54 reveal your true feelings for your valentine! As the wax melts, your secret message becomes visible. Allow 1-2 hours (or a nice dinner!)

Choose from sayings that include: You light my fire, You’re smoking hot, You light up every room, Will you marry me?!

Made with vegetable wax and a cotton wick in a porcelain cup that’s beautifully packaged and ready for gift-giving. $11.99. Available at: https://us.54celsius.com

Logitech Ultimate Ears Wonderboom 2

I love, love, love Logitech’s line of Ultimate Ears products, thanks to their great sound and ease of use. According to the brand, the Logitech Ultimate Ears Wonderboom 2 has a 13-hour battery life, is waterproof and dustproof, and floats —  and you can pair it with another Wonderboom for what is essentially surround sound.

########