Last minute Mother’s Day gifts for the tech savvy mom

If you’re desperately looking for a last minute Mother’s Day gift for your special tech savvy mother, you’re in luck.

Below are six relatively affordable gift ideas for your mom this upcoming Mother’s Day, all carefully curated by MobileSyrup’s editorial team.

Alta HR

Igor Bonifacic

Since reviewing the Alta HR late last month, I’ve gone back to using its bigger, more capable sibling, the Charge HR. In that time, I’ve come to appreciate the strengths of the Alta HR even more. Its combination of stylish good looks and comprehensive but not overwhelming feature set make it perfect for those just starting on their fitness journey.

In other words, it’s the perfect gift idea for anyone looking to help their mother become more active. The addition of Fitbit’s PurePulse heart rate sensor allows the Alta HR to keep tabs on its owner’s resting heart rate, which is one of the best indicators of overall health.

If you’ve got a mom who’s already shredding it in the gym daily, there’s always the more feature-rich Charge 2, which comes in at the same price as the Alta HR.

The Alta HR is typically priced at $199, but several retailers have reduced it to $169 for Mother’s Day.

Nest Cam

Patrick O’Rourke

If your mom is obsessed with security or keeping tabs on her many pets, the Nest Cam could be the Mother’s Day gift you’ve been looking for.

Priced at a $249 — which is expensive in comparison to some of the cheaper security camera’s on the market — the Nest Cam includes a free cloud recording trial, intelligent sensors and the ability to look through video history.

The camera features a 3-megapixel sensor with 8x digital zoom and the ability to record up to 1080p at 30fps with H.264 encoding. Most usefully, however, the camera’s field of view comes in at 130-degrees, giving it a wide range of sight.

The latest version of the Nest Cam is available for $249 in Nest’s digital store, but also at retailers like Best Buy.

Kobo Aura

Brad Shankar

The Kobo Aura 6-inch is great for both casual and avid readers. The e-reader has a touchscreen display with 1024 x 758 pixel resolution that mimics the look of the pages of a real book. You can also choose from 11 different fonts and over 40 font sizes for a satisfyingly personalized reading experience.

Thanks to 4GB of on-board memory, the e-reader can carry up to 3,000 eBooks. Via the Kobo’s built-in Wi-Fi, titles can be purchased from the eBookstore or even rented from public libraries.

For extra portability, the rechargeable lithium-ion battery lasts up to 2 months on a full charge, making it great for your mum to take around whereever she goes.

The Aura 6-inch is available at a new low price of $109.99 and can be purchased from Best Buy, Indigo, Kobo, The Source and Walmart.

Wherever you buy it from, there is also an offer currently for a $5 credit when you sign up for a new Kobo account.

Texture

Sameer Chhabra

Does your mom love magazines? Then the Texture app might just be the perfect fit for her tablet or smartphone.

For just $10-per-month, the Texture app gives access to a selection of over 200 magazines, including Vanity Fair, Vogue, People, Rolling Stone and Maclean’s.

The app is perfect for the mom on-the-go, or for the mom with tons of magazine subscriptions who’s looking for an easy way to catch up on the latest news, interviews and reviews — without breaking the bank.

Texture is also more than just magazines. The app features additional content, including videos and interactive photos that go beyond the page.

The Texture app is available to download for free on Android and iOS and a monthly subscription costs $9.99.

Withings Thermo

Zach Gilbert

Kids are kids. They’re always messing around, never standing still and seemingly always sick — or at least claiming to be when that next school assignment is due.

The Withings Thermo is a smart and, according to Withings, highly accurate thermometer. Making those late night or early morning, “Mom, I don’t feel well,” claims a little easier to validate.

The Withings Thermo features 16 infrared sensors that take over 4,000 measurements to find the hottest point in a person’s forehead. There is, however, no need to have the device actually come in contact with skin. Once a scan is complete, the Thermo displays the temperature on a LED display alongside a colour coded light depicting the severity of the fever. Thermo works alongside the Withings app on iOS and Android and has the ability to track up to 8 users.

The Withings Thermo can be purchased online at Withings.com for $99.95 USD or at Best Buy for $95.99 CAD until May 18th 2017.

Mother’s Day Cards and greeting apps

Dean Daley

Last minute gifts mean last minute Mother’s Day cards. If you’ve run out of time or forgotten to send your mother who lives far away her special card, this app is for you.

Mother’s Day Cards & Greetings allows users to pick from a multiple of mother’s day cards to send to their moms. It’s easy to use, and just about all of the cards will put a smile on any mother’s face.

Open the app, pick your card, press the share button at the top right and pick your method of sharing. Feel free to send a heartfelt message with the card or even make it your Facebook profile picture for bonus Mother’s Day points.

The app is available for free in the iOS App Store and the Google Play Store.