How can you make sure your tech gift is perfect for your loved one on Christmas Day? 

Christmas sees expensive tech products fly off the shelves ahead of the big day, as people ask Santa for high quality gifts to unwrap.

On Newstalk Breakfast, Irish Times Tech Correspondent Ciara O’Brien suggested always making sure your gift comes with a charger - and if not, buy one to go with it. 

 “The last thing you want is to open the fantastic new gift and not be able to use it straight away because it needs updates or there's the wrong charger or no charger at all in the box - as is the case these days with a lot of devices,” she suggested. 

“Because, we're all very conscious of e-waste and all of the devices now use a very similar charger.” 

A new smart phone. Picture by: Alamy.com. 

Ms O’Brien added that most people have USB-C chargers that “basically fit everything”. 

“However, some people may have the older style cables, which have either the wider kind of USB-A end at one end and the USB-C at the other,” she said. 

“And with the new devices, now have USB-C on both ends.”

Ms O’Brien continued that even when a gift is new, it can require time consuming software updates before they can be used. 

“Most of these devices, when they are either coming from the factory or from Santa's workshop, have a certain level of software on it,” she said. 

“And over time, things are updated. So, you know, there might be a little bit of a bug in it.

“And after it has left the production line, regardless of where it's coming from, the makers may decide we need to fix this. 

“So, before you can use it, there's usually an update that has to be put on the device. 

“So, what I would say is, you know, if it's a case that it's coming from Santa, maybe a little request that goes back with the elves to make sure that the software is completely updated before you crack it open on Christmas Day.”

Trees under the Christmas tree. Picture by: Alamy.com. 

Ms O’Brien suggested the gift giver do it themselves, as Christmas Day can see a huge rush to update software. 

“It can take quite a long time to get those updates up and running because there’s a massive queue of people who are all trying to do the same update at the same time,” she said. 

Finally, Ms O’Brien urged anyone buying someone a phone to get a matching case with it. 

“We all love our very thin, very shiny devices,” she said. 

“It makes me nervous when I see people with what I describe as naked iPhones because they have got much more durable.

“They take a bit of abuse these days, they can bounce a couple of times. 

“However, if they fall just at the wrong angle, at best, you might come out with a scuff and most people prefer to keep their technology pristine.

“So and at worst, you might end up with a cracked screen or a cracked back on the phone.”

Main image: A teenager under the Christmas tree. Picture by: Alamy.com.