Have you been searching for gadgets for boys to give as a Christmas or birthday gift? Getting a boy some sort of gadget to occupy his time and interest is usually a pretty good gift idea. He might like tech kind of gadgets or he might like something a little on the goofy side. There are a variety of different types of gadgets that boys will find appealing no matter what his interests might be.

Shown above: the 4M Tin Can Robot

I have compiled a list below to help you with your shopping needs.

A Catapult Gadget He Can Build And Then Use

Pathfinders Medieval Catapult Wooden Kit

This little gadget just has boy written all over it. First he will construct the catapult from the pieces provided in the box. Instructions are included for an easy build. Then he can catapult just about anything he has a fancy to get airborne. I’m visualizing paper wads, erasers and maybe even a mini angry bird or two. It will be up to his imagination as to what he wants to send flying once he has built his authentic looking catapult gadget.

A Robot Gadget

4M Tin Can Robot

Another gadget that a kid can build. Using an empty soda can, he can build a robot. He will need to find his own can to make a part of the robot and he will also need two AAA batteries to have his robot work once it is constructed. A nice gadget for a boy who is interested in science and likes to builds things.

A Gadget Noisemaker for his Bicycle (no longer available)

Motorcycle Noise Maker Bicycle Horn

If the boy on your gift list is still using a bicycle as his main mode of transportation around town, he will really get a kick out of this gadget. It is a horn but not like your usual lame sounding horn. This gadget makes the sound of a motorcycle instead of a tooting sound that most bike horns make. Boys absolutely love it!

Currently available bicycle noise makers

Lightsaber Flashlight

Underground Toys Star Wars Anakin Lightsaber Flashlight

He can have the “Force” with him when he needs a flashlight or just pretend he has a lightsaber like the ones in Star Wars. It even makes the whooshing sound of the lightsaber in the movies. The flashlight requires 3 AAA batteries to operate and they are included in your purchase.

Contemporary Version Of The Slingshot

There was a time when boys all had slingshots that they would shoot rocks and pebbles with at all sorts of targets. This contemporary version of a slingshot shoots safe ammo made of a gummy substance. So, even if he shoots the ammo at his little brother or sister, it shouldn’t hurt them. What he will like about it is that if he is a good shot he can propel the gummy ammo 75 feet away. What boy wouldn’t think that was pretty cool? I can think of some big boys that would like this gadget, too.

What is a gadget, anyway?

A gadget is typically some sort of tool or toy that has a specific purpose. Often times they are electronic in nature but they do not have to be. The gadget or gizmo will act in some ways like a machine of some sort. Sometimes we think of a gadget as a novelty item.

Humans have been using the word gadget to describe these little oddities as gadgets since around the 1850s.