Our Favorite Hobby-Friendly Gifts for Science Geeks and Gamers

Dec 12, 2025 - 20:30

0 0

Our Favorite Hobby-Friendly Gifts for Science Geeks and Gamers

Everyone needs a hobby, and let’s be honest, we all love ourselves a good game. Whether you’re stargazing through a telescope, building virtual worlds, or mastering a dice roll, the best gifts spark curiosity, deliver fun, and offer a hint of discovery.

Science is the spice that keeps things nerdy. And nerdy, as our dedicated readers know, can be tons of fun. To help you out this holiday season, we here at the Gizmodo science desk rounded up our favorite hobby-friendly gifts for the science geeks and gamers in your life—even if that means you.

Birdbuddy Smart Bird Feeder

Smart bird feeders have exploded in popularity, allowing avian enthusiasts to watch, identify, and record birds visiting their yards in real-time through smartphone apps. There’s a variety of different brands on the market, but BirdBuddy is the OG. Known for its user-friendly app, BirdBuddy makes smart feeders that are super easy to get the hang of. The Pro model captures 2K video and 5MP photos of every feathered visitor, automatically identifying species and saving your sightings in a digital collection—perfect for both casual watchers and dedicated birders. — Ellyn Lapointe [Buy at Amazon]

Unistellar Equinox 2 Smart Telescope

This is, for its price point, probably the best smart telescope on the market today. Retailing at $2,799, it’s not cheap, but it’s packed with features and, crucially, is very easy to use. Know nothing about astronomy? No worries—this machine does most of the heavy lifting for you. Just choose your target from Unistellar’s extensive catalog, and the mechanized smart telescope will orient itself accordingly. Live in light-polluted conditions? Not a problem—its algorithms can pierce through the noise to produce clear, vibrant, and colorful images, especially of deep field objects. The Equinox 2 doesn’t feature an eyepiece, but your mobile phone or tablet substitutes quite nicely, allowing you to share your images with friends seamlessly and quickly. Unistellar’s citizen scientist program is also a huge bonus. Check out my full review here. — George Dvorsky [Buy at Amazon]

Zoochosis

Zoos are a great way to learn more about the natural world around us from a safe distance. But if you’re feeling too chilly for that this winter and in need of a good scare, try out Zoochosis.

Billed as a “bodycam horror sim,” your character is a zookeeper tasked with identifying and somehow saving infected mutated animals from themselves (and from killing you, of course). — Ed Cara [Buy at Steam]

Hemisferium Lunar Calendar & Tidal Abacus

Live the life of a Renaissance sailor with this lunar calendar and tidal abacus set from Hemisferium. Before GPS systems were a thing, sailors used instruments like this to predict the timing of tidal changes based on the moon’s rotation. The brass replica is fully functional and reflects careful research into astronomical compendiums, volvelles, and abacuses from the 16th and 17th centuries. Even if you live in a completely landlocked region, the beautiful details of the abacus make it the perfect addition to any room. This product earns bonus points for reminding us of the convenience of modern mapping systems. — Gayoung Lee [Buy at Zaytoun AlJundi]

Sainlogic Weather Station SA8

Sa8 7617ed02 D526 4508 A480 Eb6c3bad1cde

Do you have a backyard meteorologist in your life? Or someone who constantly complains about how inaccurate their weather app is? Boy, do I have the gift for them. With a Sainlogic home weather station, they can start gathering their own local weather data. The SA8 comes equipped with instruments that measure temperature, humidity, rainfall, wind speed, and atmospheric pressure and provides forecasts all in one streamlined, easy-to-install device. — Ellyn Lapointe [Buy at Amazon]

Mammal Brain Dissection Kit

Have you ever wanted to look at a sheep brain up close? Well, you’re in luck, thanks to Home Science Tools’ Mammal Brain Dissection Kit. Armed with a photographic guide and scalpel, you or a science-curious kid you know can now delve deep into the innards of a mammal brain. It’s a fun, relatively cheap way to pass the afternoon and to learn a little something about what makes mammals like us tick. — Ed Cara [Buy at Home Science Tools]

Kerbal Space Program

Kerbal Space Program is perfect for all you aspiring rocket company CEOs, basement tinkerers, and space nerds. The spaceflight simulation game combines the pure excitement of the rocket industry with serious physics. Players design and launch their own rockets and spaceplanes while undertaking interplanetary missions. And they need to do so using sound engineering principles and by following the basic rules of aerodynamics and orbital mechanics.

The missions are crewed by Kerbals: small, green, and enthusiastic astronauts who are more than willing to test your latest invention. Experimentation is key, leading to loads of fun, surprises, and the occasional setback. Indeed, the gameplay blends entertainment with education, but not at the expense of making seemingly complex aerospace concepts feel out of reach. — George Dvorsky [Buy Kerbal Space Program]

Lego NASA Artemis Space Launch System

This LEGO replica of the Space Launch System (SLS) for NASA’s Artemis mission will test your resolve with its 3,601 parts. The level of detail and technical accuracy in LEGO’s science sets is remarkable—we speak from experience, having built the LEGO Hubble Telescope and the Discovery shuttle at our office. As we eagerly await the departure of Artemis, this set lets you experience the precision, patience, and thrill of human spaceflight from home. — Gayoung Lee [Buy at Amazon or LEGO]

Wingspan Board Game

What would a birder like to do on a rainy day? Play Wingspan, of course! This game is made for hardcore bird enthusiasts.

With its stunning illustrations and scientifically accurate design, this card-based, engine-building board game will make any birder feel like they’re out in the field. Players compete to attract birds to their wildlife preserves, scoring points by using the birds’ abilities to gain food, lay eggs, and draw more bird cards. — Ellyn Lapointe [Buy at Amazon]

Last of Us Part I

The Last of Us might be one of the best video games inspired by a real-life doomsday scenario. Scientists are gravely worried about the rising threat of fungal germs that are adapting to warmer temperatures.

And while it’s very unlikely these germs will ever turn us into zombies, the game does present a realistic and emotionally harrowing tale of how people would fare in a world that’s lost itself to a severe natural disaster. It’s also just plain fun. There is a sequel you can play right after, though you might want to take a break from the emotional turmoil of the first. — Ed Cara [Buy at Steam]

DWARF 3 Smart Telescope

Not all smart telescopes have to cost a fortune or be bulky. The DWARF 3 from DwarfLabs is compact—about the size of a book—and weighs just 3 pounds (1.35 kg), yet still packs a punch for its size. It’s primarily designed for stargazing, but it can be used for just about anything, from nature shots to tracking wildlife. It’s currently retailing in the U.S. for around $549.

It features a dual-camera system that lets you switch between telephoto and wide-angle views, and it supports video (including timelapse). AI-powered tracking allows it to auto-locate and follow celestial or terrestrial targets, while a Sony IMX678 sensor ensures crisp images even in low light. You control the telescope and access its extensive catalog of celestial objects via a mobile app. The DWARF 3 is best suited for users familiar with standard camera settings and digital editing. — George Dvorsky [Buy at Amazon and DwarfLabs]

Cyberpunk Plasma Ball Spider

Here’s a 3D puzzle you don’t see every day. Mostarle’s cyberpunk plasma ball spider delivers on every part of its product name. It’s a DIY metal spider with a touch-activated plasma ball as its abdomen. Other than being generally cool, the puzzle brings an unusual mix of entomology and physics in its detailed reproduction of spider anatomy. That said, some parts—like the spider’s metal limbs and LED eyes—aren’t super accurate to the science, but we can live with that. It’s the perfect gift for the fearless, puzzle-loving person in your life. — Gayoung Lee [Buy at Mostarle]

Go To Source