When Shopping for Grads, Consider the Gift of Gadget

A fancy pen with refillable ink cartridges. A leather-bound dictionary. Luggage. Oh, yaaaaaaawwwwn.

Many students walking across graduation stages this year learned to type before they wrote cursive. They go online to look up definitions. Heck, they book their travel there, too.

For them, the Internet is as commonplace as running water or electricity.

If you want to get graduates something they'll really use, look to the digital world. Computers and cell phones are obvious first choices for young people going off to college or into the real world. We surveyed a few career-counseling types, gadget-heads and, of course, some students to get other ideas. Each brought a unique perspective to the task.

Paul Villella, chief executive of HireStrategy, a Reston recruiting firm.

A wireless device with both phone and e-mail, like a BlackBerry. "The more you can help kids consolidate all their tools, the more effective they can be. Instead of walking around with all those gadgets, maybe you can get them down to one."

Clifford L. Russell, systems analyst at the University of Maryland's Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering.

A wireless router. "Once you've had an opportunity to surf the Web while watching TV . . . once you're untethered, you'll never go back."

Cindy Morgan-Jaffe, director of the Career Studio, a Bethesda job coaching center.

A gift certificate for an online personality assessment test, such as Myers-Briggs. "It gives you a sense of your personality and directs you toward professions where you might be a good fit . . . and it's fun."

Rebecca Gertsmark, communications manager, Consumer Electronics Association.

A home theater in a box. "It's a surround-sound system that comes with speakers that go beside the TV and behind the couch, or wherever. It's a great introduction for people who have an interest in audio and want something a little more sophisticated. It's something that makes their time at home more enjoyable."

Katherine Stahl, executive director of American University Career Center.

Pay for a year of service for the student's Internet service or cell phone. "Students don't think through what it's going to be like to be working and paying for everything. Students think of it as, 'Oh, that,' but ask them to pay $50 a month and it becomes an issue. And a cell phone is absolutely critical for a job seeker, because they are going to be moving, they won't have a permanent address and their résumé needs a number where they are going to be available."

Paul Jackson, principal analyst at Forrester Research.

Digital camera. "Especially if the graduate concerned is going to go off traveling the world for a few months." He also suggested a mobile phone that uses the wireless standard GSM, commonly used overseas and by some carriers in the United States. Or, Jackson said, consider technology for the graduate's apartment, such as a wireless router, a portable DVD player or iPod speakers.