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The 10 best white elephant gifts worth fighting over for 2025

The 10 best white elephant gifts worth fighting over for 2025

If you have a white elephant gift exchange at work this year or with friends and family, there’s a good chance you’re scrambling right now to find a good gift — or decipher what even makes a good white elephant gift. The possible origins of the term “white elephant” provide one way of looking at it: According to legend, the King of Siam would give a white elephant to courtiers who had upset them. It was a far more devious punishment than simply having them executed. The recipient had no choice but to simply thank the king for such an opulent gift, knowing that they likely could not afford the upkeep for such an animal. It would inevitably lead them to financial ruin. Whether or not that story is true, it gives us one way of looking at a white elephant gift: something just useful or amusing enough that it won’t immediately get tossed into the trash, but is also somewhat of a burden. However, there are plenty of other ways of interpreting this strange yet delightful tradition. Some compete to get a gift that others will surely want to steal, while others scavenge for the most niche and targeted gag gifts. Almost all of them, though, typically have a price limit that keeps the burden of gift giving to a minimum — usually $50 or less. So with all of that in mind, here are some white elephant gift ideas that will get you a few chuckles without requiring you to spend too much (or think too hard about it). Best white elephant gift ideas White elephant FAQs What is white elephant? A white elephant gift exchange is a party game typically played around the holidays in which people exchange funny, impractical gifts. How does white elephant work? A group of people each bring one wrapped gift to the white elephant gift exchange, and each gift is typically of a similar value. All gifts are then placed together and the group decides the order in which they will each claim a gift. The first person picks a white elephant gift from the pile, unwraps it and their turn ends. The following players can either decide to unwrap another gift and claim it as their own, or steal a gift from someone who has already taken a turn. The rules can vary from there, including the guidelines around how often a single item can be stolen — some say twice, max. The game ends when every person has a white elephant gift. Why is it called white elephant? The term “white elephant” is said to come from the legend of the King of Siam gifting white elephants to courtiers who upset him. While it seems like a lavish gift on its face, the belief is that the courtiers would be ruined by the animal’s upkeep costs. Check out the rest of our gift ideas here. This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/the-10-best-white-elephant-gifts-worth-fighting-over-for-2025-150516281.html?src=rss

Lidar manufacturer Luminar files for Chapter 11 bankruptcy and says it reached a deal to sell its semiconductor subsidiary to Quantum Computing Inc. for $110M (Reshmi Basu/Bloomberg)

Lidar manufacturer Luminar files for Chapter 11 bankruptcy and says it reached a deal to sell its semiconductor subsidiary to Quantum Computing Inc. for $110M (Reshmi Basu/Bloomberg)

Reshmi Basu / Bloomberg : Lidar manufacturer Luminar files for Chapter 11 bankruptcy and says it reached a deal to sell its semiconductor subsidiary to Quantum Computing Inc. for $110M —  Luminar Technologies Inc, which manufactures laser-based sensors for cars, filed for bankruptcy shortly after it lost a contract with Swedish carmaker Volvo AB.

GM rolling out native Apple Music app with Spatial Audio support

GM rolling out native Apple Music app with Spatial Audio support

We’re nearing three years since GM started its transition away from CarPlay. The company started by ditching CarPlay in its EVs, but recently confirmed that it will “gradually” abandon the platform on more cars in the future. Needless to say, this hasn’t gone over well with the general public. Now, GM has one bit of good news for its owners: a new Apple Music app rolling out for select Cadillac starting today. more…

Annke WCD600 review: Big security cam coverage for a small price

Annke WCD600 review: Big security cam coverage for a small price

At a glance Expert's Rating Pros Dual lenses cover wide-angle and zoomed-in views Smooth pan-and-tilt movement Very affordable price Cons Conspicuous industrial design Dependent on a wired power supply Built-in power-surge protection Generic third-party app with pushy upsells Our Verdict The Annke WCD600 offers impressive coverage and durability, making it a smart choice for broad outdoor monitoring, provided you’re comfortable with its wired power requirement and a less-than-polished app experience. Price When Reviewed This value will show the geolocated pricing text for product undefined Best Pricing Today Best Prices Today: Annke WCD600 Retailer Price Annke $39.99 View Deal Check Price comparison from over 24,000 stores worldwide Product Price Price comparison from Backmarket The Annke WCD600 is a dual-lens outdoor security camera built for people who want to cover a lot of ground without cluttering their space. Each lens captures a three-megapixel view—one wide-angle, one telephoto—helping reduce blind spots across driveways, yards, and side lots. This camera connects to your 2.4GHz Wi-Fi network (i.e., it’s not a dual-band camera), is weatherproof, and costs far less than most cameras that offer similar coverage. The Annke WCD600’s dual-lens setup gives you two complementary perspectives rather than one stitched panorama. Design and features The WCD600 isn’t designed to blend into the background. With its two exposed antennas, bulbous lower housing, and rings of LED lights around each lens, it’s something intruders will notice immediately, and some people will consider that part of its appeal. The white-and-black shell feels solid, weather-sealed, and built to handle the elements. It carries an IP66 rating for protection from the elements, meaning it’s dustproof and can withstand powerful jets of water, such as from a pressure washer, from any direction. (Read our IP code guide to learn more about that topic.) An unusual feature that will be of interest to homeowners living in areas with frequent lightning storms is the camera’s built-in surge protection (up to 2kV). The WCD600’s dual-lens setup gives you two complementary perspectives rather than one stitched panorama. The top 3MP lens delivers a static wide-angle view of your overall scene, while the lower 3MP lens is mounted to a pan/tilt motor to follow movement. The lower camera pans 300 degrees horizontally and tilts 90 degrees vertically. Together they provide context and close-up detail simultaneously, so you see both the big picture and what triggered an alert. At night, the WCD600 switches to its dual-light system: a pair of infrared LEDs for discreet video capture in low light. It also has red-and-blue strobe lights and a built-in siren that trigger on motion. Those deterrents can be set to run automatically or manually from the app, giving you the option to scare off trespassers or just light up the driveway when you step outside. The WCD600’s two lenses capture wide and telephoto views for contextual coverage. Annke The camera can detect both general motion and human activity. When it identifies a person, the lower lens automatically pans and tilts to follow them, keeping the subject centered as they move. You’ll get an instant notification through the iCSee app, and tapping it opens a live view so you can see what’s happening in real time. Video can be saved locally to a microSD card up to 128GB, letting you store footage directly on the camera without a subscription. The camera also supports cloud backup via the iCSee app, with subscription plans that start with 7- or 30 days of storage at a cost of $3.99 or $6.99 a month respectively.  The camera also integrates with Alexa and Google Home, allowing you to pull up live video on a smart display or control basic functions with voice commands. Setup and performance Everything you need to get started is in the box, including a mounting bracket and screws and a power supply. Because the camera draws power from a 12-volt adapter, you’ll need an outlet nearby or a weatherproof extension cord. The WCD600 uses the iCSee mobile app for setup, live viewing, and storage management. iCSee isn’t exclusive to Annke—it’s a third-party platform used by several budget and midrange camera makers. Once you create and account and start the pairing process, the camera’s booming voice prompts guide you through the steps to connect the camera to your network. The app displays both camera views at once, stacked vertically in portrait mode or side by side when you turn your phone horizontally. The daytime image quality is very good, and the twin lenses capture a broad, balanced view without visible distortion. The camera automatically switches between day and night modes based on ambient light, or you can adjust it manually in the app. Night Mode activates the infrared LEDs for clear black-and-white video, while Day Mode disables light enhancement entirely. The third-party ICSee app makes it easy to control the camera and manage its settings, but it feels generic compared to Annke’s own software. Michael Ansaldo/Foundry Human detection worked well in my testing. The camera reliably distinguishes people from moving trees or passing cars, and motion tracking keeps subjects centered without excessive motor noise. You can configure the app to frame people with a yellow box for easier visibility on playback, and there are several options for taming notifications including interval settings and detection sensitivity. The iCSee app handles everything from pairing to live viewing, video playback, notifications, and the camera’s many settings. But it also doubles as a storefront for iCSee’s “value-add” services. Once you open it, you’ll see prominent prompts to activate “AI” functions and cloud storage, along with a countdown timer on any free trial. It’s functional and responsive, but the upselling can feel a bit aggressive—especially if you just want to use the camera’s local recording features. Should you buy the Annke WCD600? The Annke WCD600 normally lists for $79.99, but as of this writing Annke has discounted it to $39.99. That low price makes it an easy gamble. My main reservation is the third-party iCSee app. It’s functional and responsive, but it pushes add-on services too aggressively for my taste, and the interface lacks the polish of Annke’s own software. Still, this camera delivers strong performance and flexibility for the price, making it a smart, affordable option if you want broad outdoor coverage without overcomplicating your setup. This review is part of TechHive’s in-depth coverage of the best home security cameras .

Mexico-based fintech Plata raised up to $500M in a financing deal arranged by Nomura Securities International, as it moves toward becoming a full-fledged bank (Prakhar Srivastava/Reuters)

Mexico-based fintech Plata raised up to $500M in a financing deal arranged by Nomura Securities International, as it moves toward becoming a full-fledged bank (Prakhar Srivastava/Reuters)

Prakhar Srivastava / Reuters : Mexico-based fintech Plata raised up to $500M in a financing deal arranged by Nomura Securities International, as it moves toward becoming a full-fledged bank —  Mexican financial technology company Plata said on Monday it has raised up to $500 million in a financing deal arranged …