Five last minute Apple gift ideas for your iPhone friends and family

With Christmas now just a week away, it’s about time to ‘wrap up’ the holiday shopping season. Everyone is in the midst of hurrying to get their last minute gifts sorted. If you haven’t found something for someone special quite yet, here’s some iPhone-centric accessories and Apple gift ideas.

My recommendations are the Mujjo iPhone 16 leather case, SwitchBot Wallet Finder card, Belkin portable phone charger, a Continuity Camera mount, and the Apple TV 4K. More details about these picks after the break …

The go-to iPhone gift idea is probably AirPods, and I expect AirPods 4 to fly off the shelves this holiday season. But AirPods are on the expensive side, and a lot of people already have them, so they are hard to suggest as gifts without qualifiers.

The below list of five are trying to pick things that your friends and family may not already have, but will enjoy and find value in. Frivolous and throwaway gifts make for fun stocking fillers, but when it comes to tech, I think you want to gift something that people will be inclined to use on the regular.

SwitchBot Wallet Finder card

If you know someone who is prone to misplacing their wallet, then the SwitchBot Wallet Finder is an inexpensive gift idea with a lot of utility.

The Wallet Finder integrates natively with the Apple Find My app, so you can track it from any iOS device and even ask Siri. The Wallet Finder form factor is a slim credit card shape, so it can be slipped into a pocket in your wallet without adding bulk.

Then, you can make your wallet beep on command or track its location on a map — and this is a gift with no strings attached as no ongoing subscription or additional purchase is required, as it all just works through the Apple Find My network. Nearby iPhones pick up the Bluetooth beacon from the Wallet Finder, securely and anonymously tracking its location on your behalf.

Other options:

• Apple AirTag: best for keeping tabs on your keys, but additional accessory holder required
• Chipolo ONE: like an AirTag, but features an integrated hole to attach directly onto a keychain

Mujjo iPhone 16 case

Do you know if a friend or relative has just got a shiny new iPhone 16? Maybe they’d like to protect it with stylish flair.

Apple has stopped making its own leather cases, but the third-party market fills the gap. I really like the Mujjo leather case options. They are very reminiscent of Apple’s case design and feature minimal branding. The Mujjo Monaco Blue color, in particular, adds a splash of color to any Pro model iPhone. Featuring full-grain leather and microfiber internal lining, the case feels great in the hand, and offers your phone some additional protection from daily bumps and dings.

Other options:

• Mujjo iPhone 16 case with Card Holder: same aesthetics, additional functionality with included pouch for credit cards
• Otterbox Cactus Leather Case for iPhone 16: alternative option with leather substitute material

Belkin Portable Charger, USB-C Power Bank

I like getting gifts that I know people will actually use. If the person in mind has an older iPhone, they are probably never too far from a plug. A portable charger helps reduce that anxiety and makes keeping an older iPhone running for longer much more enjoyable.

There’s a bevy of portable phone chargers on the market of course. I like this Belkin USB-C Power Bank, with a slim design that holds enough juice to charge my phone from zero three times over. It was an essential must-have when I went camping at Silverstone this year. It’s small enough to slip into purses or jacket pockets, and features both USB-C and USB-A ports, and you can even charge multiple devices at once at up to 15W speeds.

Other options:

• Belkin 10,000 mAH Power Bank: similar design but with slightly battery capacity
• Anker MagGo: portable charger that sticks directly onto the back of your iPhone with MagSafe

Belkin Continuity Camera mount

Everyone is doing FaceTime and Zoom calls these days, and your phone has a much better camera than your laptop. This Belkin Camera Mount lets you clip your phone over the top of your laptop’s screen, allowing you to use your iPhone’s camera as if it was your MacBook webcam. The capability is enabled using the Continuity Camera feature of Apple’s ecosystem, so make sure your friend has a MacBook as well as a MagSafe-compatible iPhone to take advantage of this little clip. 

You can also get a mount meant to position your phone underneath a television, perfect for enabling family FaceTime calls through Apple TV.

Other options:

• Belkin Continuity Camera mount for desktops and displays
• Belkin iPhone Mount for Apple TV 4K: designed for placing the phone on top of your living room TV
• Cooper Chat Stand: a vertical phone stand that can position your front-facing camera at any angle

Apple TV 4K

This is the more spendy gift idea of the bunch — probably more suited for close friends or family. A streaming set-top box is something people don’t know they need until they have one, and informed friends shouldn’t let their friends endure the suffering of smart TV operating systems. It also features full support for 4K HDR with Dolby Vision, making your TV shows and movies look breathtaking on modern OLED TVs.

The Apple TV 4K makes using all your streaming apps a breeze, with fast loading and smooth navigation using the trackpad on the Siri Remote. You’ll also love Apple ecosystem benefits like browsing your iCloud Photos library on a huge screen, using your phone as the remote control, a rich Apple Music experience with sing-along lyrics, run Fitness+ workouts, and maybe even play some family-friendly Apple Arcade party games this holiday season.

Other options:

• Google TV Streamer 4K: a nice streaming box alternative, with rich universal search
• Amazon Fire Stick 4K: cheaper streaming stick, albeit riddled with ads and a bit sluggish at times