8 geeky gifts for Father's Day

This Father's Day, treat the dad in your life to a Lego-inspired mug, geek chic tie, or one of these other charmingly weird gift suggestions.

Whether your father wears his geekdom on his official Star Trek command replica tunic sleeve, is a thrills-and-grills kinda guy, or is a hybrid of those styles, technology with a little geek tweak can be his friend this Father’s Day.

Just for the sake of getting it out of the way, if it’s got to be a necktie given on Father’s Day, at least put dad’s business card on it via QRTie. These neckties include a unique QR code printed on the back. Choose your tie style, and, through the QRTie website, you can choose where the tie’s code directs people when scanned. Point the code to your father’s personal website or his virtual business card for a unique, personalized gift.

Another tie option is ThinkGeek's Tactical Necktie with Laser Pointer. The tie has a laser pointer embedded in the end for use during meetings or when he wants to drive the cat berserk. It also includes a military-style MOLLE attachment system, so dad can bring along a set of whiteboard markers, a first aid kit, or clip-on mug.

Are dad and desk synonymous at your house? Here are two unique geek options: the Build-On Brick mug that allows dad to sip and build at the same time. The mug has an exterior building surface compatible with LEGO, PixelBlocks, Mega Bloks, KRE-O, and K'NEX Bricks.

The second desktop solution is for dads who can never locate their cellphones. The Ceramic Hand Cell Phone Holder is literally a set of ceramic hands that will hold any size phone. The cost is $14.70 by Tech Tools. 

If you’re ready to innovate, you can help your father calm his worries about how much electricity your high-tech household is using by getting the automated Wemo Light Switch. It’s a Wi-Fi-enabled light switch that lets you turn lights on and off via your Android or iOS device from anywhere with Web access – be it the next room or the other side of the country. The switch replaces your standard light switch and works with the existing faceplate.

For a lower-budget geek fix, bake a batch of Dr. Who cookies with a Whovian cookie cutter, $19.99 from This Is Why I’m Broke.

If your father is a Bob-the-Builder type, he may enjoy a Form Beyond Function digital LED “halves and quarters” measuring tape. Warning: this device will not stop your father from giving a math lecture on how to make these measuring calculations, nor will it stop the words: “Measure twice. Cut once.”

In a perfect world where money is no object, you could put your bid in to buy the world’s largest video game collection, which has recently been put up for online auction. Bidding started at $1 on Wednesday at GameGavel.com, and the price has now topped $750,000.

In an e-mail, game collector Michael Thomasson says that it was becoming a father that lead him to sell his precious collection of more than 11,000 video games and more than 100 game consoles.

His daughter “Anna is 5, turning 6 in a few weeks,” Mr. Thomasson says. “I'm selling for several reasons, including getting Anna into Catholic school.”

Father’s Day honors dads who, like Thomasson, make sacrifices for the sake of their kids.

So when it comes time to celebrate them on Father’s Day, we might want to push the tech envelope to stretch beyond a talking Hallmark card with Superman on the cover.