14 award-winning gifts for the tech lovers in your life
Finding the right gifts for the tech heads in your life can be difficult if you’re unsure about what’s popular or trusted by fellow gadget fanatics.
The following gifts for technology lovers are featured in the Mozo People’s Choice Awards for 2023. Read the methodology report here.
From laptops and antivirus software to headphones or TV soundbars, these tech brands were voted on by customers based on their satisfaction levels, performance, features, value for money, and more.
Laptops
After a laptop with great performance, outstanding customer satisfaction, or value for money? These brands were among the highest-rated in this year’s People’s Choice Awards.
Value for money laptops
The laptop brands that Australians nominated for the Value for Money category in this year’s Mozo People’s Choice Awards included Acer, HP, and LG.
Take the 15.6-inch HP Pavilion laptop, for example. It comes with similar (in some cases greater) tech specs to the MacBook Pro 13-inch laptop but for a lower price.
Prices for the HP Pavilion laptop on the HP website start from as low as $1,199 (was $1,599).
Laptops for creatives
Perhaps unsurprisingly, Apple laptops stood out from the competition in several categories, including Outstanding Customer Satisfaction, Great Performance, Excellent Customer Service, and more.
In fact, Apple was the brand of laptop Most Recommended by those surveyed.
The Apple MacBook Pro series serves as a staple for many creators, video editors, graphic designers, and music producers, making it a great gift idea for those looking to help foster someone’s creativity.
Prices on the official Australian Apple Store start at $1,999 for the latest 13-inch MacBook Pro (M2) but check out the latest deals on MacBook Pro laptops below.
Antivirus software
If the tech-lover in your life doesn’t need new hardware, they might appreciate antivirus software to help protect their gear from malicious files, trackers and computer hackers.
Bitdefender
Bitdefender won in five categories, including Outstanding Customer Satisfaction, Great Performance, Excellent Features and Value for Money.
They were also one of the Most Recommended antivirus software brands, alongside Malwarebytes and Nord VPN.
The Bitdefender range includes all-in-one plans (with device security and privacy protection), or plans that focus more on a single feature, like antivirus, VPN, or mobile security for smartphones.
Trend Micro
Trend Micro also featured heavily among the antivirus brand winners, taking home four awards, including an award for Excellent Customer Service.
Trend Micro antivirus plans start at $49.95 for 1 year, but they have more comprehensive plans, which include features like IT Helpdesk access and smart device protection, too.
Headphones
Headphones make a great gift for almost anyone. Whether they want great quality audio when listening to music or podcasts, exercising to their favourite workout playlist, or chatting with their teammates in a multiplayer game, there’s a set of headphones out there that might do the trick.
Wireless Bluetooth earbuds for audio nerds
For the music lovers out there, noise-cancelling Bluetooth earbuds offer a distraction and wire-free listening experience.
The Most Recommended headphone brand in 2023 was Bose. The company also won awards for outstanding customer satisfaction, great performance, and build quality.
The Bose QuietComfort Earbuds II ($429.95) are for true audio nerds. Not only can you adjust the EQ to your liking inside the Bose Music app, but the earphones also feature CustomTune technology that tailors sound performance and noise cancellation levels to the shape of your ear canal.
Gaming headphones with a mic
If you’re after a gift for a gamer, then a set of decent gaming headphones can go a long way to improving immersion and experience.
In the 2023 Mozo People’s Choice Awards, Sony headphones were nominated by Australians for three awards, in the Outstanding Customer Satisfaction, Great Performance, and Great to Use categories.
Starting at $99, the Sony INZONE H3 Wired Gaming Headset (pictured) comes with a microphone and 360 Spatial Sound. It’s a wired headset, with a cord length of about 1.2 metres that’ll connect to a PC or gaming console via a USB port.
For those who desire a wireless experience, Sony’s rechargeable INZONE H7 Wireless Gaming Headset has many similar features to the H3, but with an improved diaphragm that can reproduce extremely high-frequency sounds authentically. The H7 starts at $349 on the Sony website.
Wireless earbuds for running or exercise
Looking for a gift that could help keep your tech lover motivated on the run or in the gym? A set of wireless earbuds designed to stay in place while moving around could be the perfect gift.
Apple featured heavily throughout the 2023 Mozo People’s Choice Awards and won two awards in the headphones category – one for Outstanding Customer Satisfaction and another for Excellent Customer Service.
The Apple AirPods Pro (Gen 2) start at $399 on the AU Apple Store and come with four sets of silicone tips that not only keep the earbuds in place but seal out noise and distractions.
Speaking of noise cancellation, the AirPods Pro (Gen 2) actively uses computer algorithms to reduce and control outside noise and includes Personalised Spatial Audio – a customised sound profile, tailored to you.
Smartphones
If there’s one thing technology buffs love, it’s gotta be the latest smartphones.
Apple iPhone 15
In the Mozo People’s Choice Awards this year, Apple was the most highly decorated smartphone brand, winning awards in five categories: Outstanding Customer Satisfaction, Great Performance, Great to Use, Build Quality, and Most Recommended.
The latest smartphone offering from Apple is the iPhone 15 range. On the AU Apple Store, the iPhone 15 starts at $1,499 and the iPhone 15 Plus starts at $1,649.
If the up-front cost of a new iPhone 15 is a little steep, consider checking out some of the mobile phone plans available that include the new iPhone as part of the contract below:
Samsung Galaxy Z Flip5
In this year’s Awards, Samsung smartphones were also among the winners of the Most Recommended category.
Samsung’s Galaxy Z Flip5 is a compact, foldable smartphone that results in a product that at once looks futuristic and evokes nostalgia for clamshell-style flip phones in the same breath.
The Galaxy Z Flip5 is available from the Samsung website, with prices for this unique smartphone starting at $1,849.
Here are some mobile phone plans that include the ZFlip 5 as part of the contract:
Google Pixel 8
Google brand smartphones also received some recognition in this year’s People’s Choice Awards. Google was nominated for having Excellent Customer Service and being a Most Recommended smartphone brand.
While the play on words suggests the Google Pixel 8 mightn’t have the best specs for hi-def selfie lovers, the upgraded 50MB main and 12MP ultrawide camera lenses suggest otherwise.
The Google Pixel 8 starts at $699 on the official Google Store.
Smartwatches
If your gadget-geek fancies a smart way to check the time (along with answering calls, following maps, tracking their steps, and heaps more), they might appreciate some wearable tech, like a smartwatch.
Apple
Apple, alongside Garmin, swept up most of the awards for smartwatch brands. Apple brand smartwatches were nominated for Outstanding Customer Satisfaction, Great Performance, Great to Use, Build Quality, Excellent Customer Service, and Most Recommended categories.
The Apple Watch Series 9 (from $649) features new gesture controls that allow you to use your smartwatch without even having to touch the screen, features improved Siri capabilities, and gives you the option to customise the material and colour of the watch band.
Tablets
Tablets are perfect for those who like to have a powerful tool for work and play at their disposal, wherever they may be. From collaborating with co-workers to creating fantastic digital artwork, tablets are an excellent option for digital natives who like a bit of flexibility from their tech.
Value for money tablet for work and study
Lenovo brand tablets won an award for Value for Money in this year’s Mozo People’s Choice Awards.
The 10.6-inch Lenovo Tab M10 Plus Gen 3 starts at $399 through the Lenovo website. This Android OS tablet comes with 4GB of RAM, 128GB of internal storage, a MicroSD card and Nano SIM slot, and an AUX port.
Tablet for digital artists and creators
Apple brand tablets were nominated for six Mozo People’s Choice Awards this year, including one for Most Recommended tablet brand.
The 12.9-inch iPad Pro is a portable workstation for digital artists, musicians, and video editors, boasting internal storage options between 128GB to 2TB, a 12.9-inch Liquid Retina XDR display, a powerful Apple M2 chip with 8GB to 16GB of RAM, a 12MP camera, nano-SIM card slot, and more.
Prices for the base model 12.9-inch iPad Pro start at $1,899 on the AU Apple Store, but the price varies between models.
All-rounder tablet for work and play
Samsung brand tablets also featured heavily in the winners of the 2023 Mozo People’s Choice Awards, taking six wins, including one for Most Recommended tablet brand.
The Samsung Galaxy Tab S9 Ultra 5G is a higher-end tablet, coming in at $2,449, but it has the specs to match. It features 512GB of internal storage, 12GB of RAM, a MicroSD card slot, a 12MP front camera and a 13MP rear camera, all encased behind a 14.6-inch display.
The impressive tech specs on this Galaxy Tab make it a portable workstation to be reckoned with when it comes to working and creating.
Plus, the large, 2960 x 1848 px display makes mobile gaming look as good as the hardware behind it performs.
Find out more about the Galaxy Tab S9 Ultra 5G on the official Samsung website, or check out some similar deals for Samsung tablets below.
Televisions
From smart TVs to cinema-quality megaliths, tech heads with an eye for detail appreciate a decent screen.
Value for money smart TV
When it comes to finding a TV that presents good Value for Money, Australians decided Kogan was one of their top choices.
Kogan smart TVs come in a range of prices, sizes, and resolutions. The Kogan 50" QLED 4K Smart Google TV ($499) comes loaded with some of the top streaming service apps and makes casting to your TV from your phone, laptop, or tablet simple, with built-in Google Chromecast.
OLED TV with 4K ultra-high resolution
Sony brand TVs were a crowd favourite in the Mozo People’s Choice Awards this year, earning themselves six wins, including Most Recommended.
Sony’s 48-inch A90K Bravia XR Smart TV ($1,988) comes with Google Chromecast and Apple AirPlay capabilities and pairs well with gaming consoles, like the Sony Playstation 5, that support HDR gaming in 4K, at up to 120fps.
8K TV for ultra-high definition home-cinema setups
Samsung brand televisions also matched Sony’s six wins, making them one of the Most Recommended TV brands in Australia.
If the tech lover in your life also happens to be a film fanatic or gamer looking for one of the highest resolution, big-screen experiences at home, then Samsung’s 65-inch QN900C Neo QLED 8K Smart TV ($6,499) could be the move.
TV soundbars
Does the tech guy in your life already have a TV they’re proud of? Enhance their audiovisual experience with a quality TV soundbar that’ll deliver the dialogue in their favourite films and the soundscapes of their favourite games in a way that built-in TV speakers might not be able to match.
Sony TV soundbar with front-facing surround sound
Sony branded soundbars were among the winners of four Mozo People’s Choice Awards this year, including being one of the Most Recommended soundbar brands.
If you’re looking for a soundbar to complement your tech-lover’s TV setup, then consider the HT-S100F, which is currently selling for $188 on the official Sony store website.
This sleek and slender soundbar from Sony features S-Force Front Surround Sound, two-channel audio, Bluetooth connection capability and a punchy bass sound designed with TV shows and music in mind.
Bose TV soundbar with enhanced dialogue mode
Bose soundbars won four awards in this year’s Mozo People’s Choice Awards, including wins in the Great to Use and Outstanding Customer Satisfaction categories.
The Bose TV Speaker, coming in at $419.95 on the Bose online store, is a compact TV soundbar with Bluetooth capability, a bass-booster option, and a ‘Dialogue mode’ that can help elevate the vocals in whatever you’re watching at the press of a button.
The Bose TV Speaker is also a modular piece of tech, meaning you have the option to purchase a separate Bose Bass Module (the 500 or 700 models) for those who really want to kit out their home cinemas.
To see more of the brands that Australians loved this year, make sure to check out the main Mozo People’s Choice Awards page.
If you’re feeling overwhelmed by the impending shopping season, check out the online shopping section of the site for tips and tricks.