Christmas gifts for cyclists: affordable, high quality gadgets and tech for under £100

We love getting a gadget for Christmas... and luckily if you’re buying one for a cyclist, then we’ve got a great selection of ideas in the sub-£100 category. You can get some seriously nifty gadgets for bikes and we’d be more than happy to receive any of these ourselves.

Christmas afternoon rolls around. You’ve had a gargantuan lunch and your body is 90% pigs in blankets. The Christmas day post-lunch family walk is done and it's getting dark outside... but the best part of the day is just about to occur! As Grandad falls asleep in front of the Queen’s speech that he made you record, you settle down to set up the cycling gadget that you got from Santa.

> Christmas gifts for cyclists under £50 

Quite frankly, getting a gadget for someone is a great way to ensure that they’re quiet for the majority of Christmas day (that could be good or bad depending on who it is!) but a gadget isn’t just for Christmas. These gift ideas will be in use long after the big day...

Bryton Rider 15E Neo GPS cycle computer, £64.99

The Bryton Rider 15E Neo is a great option for someone who is in need of a compact, easy-to-use GPS computer. It's quick to set up and battery life of up to a claimed 16 hours is excellent; assuming you don't want mapping or directions, there really isn't anything to dislike for the money.

> 10 best cycling GPS units — get ride data and bike satnav from £50

There are five pages of data available and metrics include altitude, gradient and temperature. Thanks to the Bluetooth capability, it can pair with various sensors to display heart rate and cadence.

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Buy it here for £57.99

Read our review here

Aftershokz OpenMove Wireless Bone Conduction Headphones, £79.95

If your family member/friend likes to listen to music or podcasts while they ride, these make a great choice. The AfterShokz OpenMove bone conduction headphones are extremely light, very comfortable, can handle rain showers and don't block traffic noise, so you stay well aware of what is going on around you.

They have no problem wrapping around helmet straps and cycling glasses at the same time; they're well shaped to loop over specs and sit comfortably without touching them, and they don’t struggle to stay put either.

These bone conduction headphones still can't handle heavy bass or high winds perfectly, but given the significant price drop in recent years, the technology is seriously appealing.

Buy it here for £74

Read our review here

Tubolito Tubo-MTB-P-SENS smart inner tube, £41.99

This is pretty cool! A Near Field Communication (NFC) chip has been built into this inner tube. It communicates air pressure wirelessly to riders’ smartphones via the Tubolito app, that is available on both Android and iOS. You just need to open the app and bring the smartphone within 3cm of the chip, and the pressure will be displayed in both bar and PSI.

Size-wise it covers 700c and 650b wheels with 46mm to 64mm tyres, basically for those riding chunkier tyres on gravel bikes.

Buy it here

Read our review here

Topeak SmartGauge D2X, £39.99

This is an easy-to-use digital tyre pressure gauge that's compact and light enough to carry on longer rides in a jersey pocket. It provides a way of simply checking pressures without the faff of digging out and securing a pump, which is especially useful on the go.

It's well-built from a hardy, engineering-grade polymer which could easily take a few knocks in the line of duty. The 360 degree swivel head makes the bright LCD display easy to read from any angle, and as it reads to 260psi it can even handle suspension forks and shocks.

Buy it here for £38.99

Read our review here

Apple AirTag with Kapz under-the-seat mount, £44.90

Apple AirTags are a relatively cheap and effective way to track your bike, and subtly add an element of security. Simple to use and simple to track, they don't promise the kind of highly accurate GPS tracking of others; but the benefits of this comparatively low-tech system, and corresponding price tag, outweigh that.

How does it work? Well you can put the AirTag into 'Lost Mode', and then when it’s detected by another device in the Apple network, you’ll automatically get a notification and see it on a map. You’re counting on there being users in the area for an up-to-date location, though.

But the fact that you only need to change the battery once a year means you instantly remove one of the major challenges facing bike trackers, and this, together with their size, means your choice of mounting options is significantly increased. Kapz has a mount for discreetly securing the AirTag underneath the saddle, for example, and at the moment we're regularly spotting other smart ways to store AirTags on the bike. 

Buy the Apple AirTag only here for £29

Buy the Apple AirTag with Kapz bike mount here for £44.90

Read our review here

Ravemen CR800 USB Rechargeable front light, £64.99

This is a punchy little unit that manages to throw plenty of light up the road without dazzling those coming towards you thanks to its anti-glare lens, plus you get decent battery life and quick charge times too.

> The best 2021/22 front lights for cycling: Our big beam comparison engine plus bumper guide on how to choose

Some riders prefer a beam that is 'cut off' at the top, mimicking a car's dipped headlight beam, and that is similar to what the CR800 delivers. The lens is diffused in two different directions, which results in what Ravemen calls a T-shaped beam. It basically has a close-range floodlight to light up the road in front of your wheel, with a long-distance spotlight for illuminating further up the road, but with that cut-off line - it’s very effective.

Buy it here for £59.99

Read our review here

Lezyne Gravel Digital Drive Pro Floor Pump, now £89.99

Designed for tyres that are 32mm wide and larger, this pump has an integrated 3.5in digital gauge, an effective max pressure rating of 100psi and claims to have an accuracy level of +/- 0.5 psi.

> 12 best track pumps for 2021 — choose the easy way to pump your tyres up

With a flippable design, Lezyne’s Tubeless Chuck threads on to Presta valve cores, or with the valve core removed, directly onto the Presta valve shaft, to provide greater airflow for seating most tubeless tyres. The chuck also features an integrated valve-core tool for easy valve tightening and removal.

Buy it here for £89.99

Wahoo Tickr Heart Rate Monitor, £39.99

Wahoo's Tickr heart rate monitor (HRM) is a well-designed chest strap that you can connect to up to three Bluetooth devices at once, and is less prone to sweat damage that other HRMs.

> 15 best heart rate monitors for cycling — get useful fitness data

The dual-band connectivity is stable ,and the LED status lights are useful visual indicators to check everything is working as it should.

Buy it here for £39.99

Read our review here

ETC R65 65 Lumen USB Rear Light, £15.99

This is a well-made, effective and bright light that lasts well between charges. There are only six modes, cycled with a single press, so it's easy to choose - they're all useful, too. You get high and low solid beams, two speeds of flash, a mode that combines very fast flashes with bursts of solid beam, and a smoothly rising and falling pulse.

> 22 best rear bike lights for 2021 — boost your day & night visibility

None have excessively long unlit pauses, and the big lens makes them all very noticeable. The lens shape gives a fairly good range of side visibility, too, which is great around junctions and roundabouts.

Buy it here for £15.99

Read our review here

Livall C20 smart helmet, £69.99

This is a great helmet option for a commuter,as it features smart lighting that automatically turns on in dark conditions, helping to provide visibility to surrounding traffic. Also, when the built-in-gravity acceleration sensor detects a significant deceleration, the front and rear lights are enhanced for three seconds to draw attention.

> Best casual cycling commuter wear – check out our buyer’s guide

Another helpful touch that helps ensure maximum battery life is that the lights automatically turn off when the helmet is disconnected from the phone and has not been used for 15 minutes.

Buy it here for £69.99

Read our review of a different spec Livall helmet, the Evo21, over here

Hustle City, $19.99, that’s just under £15 right now

Now this gift is a load of fun, and it tricks you into packing a mighty workout in too. Using a smart trainer, players can power on the pedals to race round the virtual streets, and twisting your bars allows you to ace corners and cut through traffic.

Combining exercise, gameplay and storytelling, this is the world's first open-world video game made specifically for using with cycling smart trainers. Created and developed by real bike messengers in California’s Bay Area, Hustle City is a story-driven messenger game, and the first season consists of five episodes. 

Episode 1 for Season is currently free, you can buy episodes 2 to 5 here for $4.99 (~£3.66)

Find out more about the game here

Garmin Forerunner 35 watch, now £99

Ok, so the proper retail price of the Forerunner 35 is £130, but Amazon has it at a decent discount and it's too good not to include in this sub-£100 round-up.

The Forerunner 35 works like any bike computer; it just lives on your wrist, though you can easily mount it to the handlebar too. A smartwatch like this is good for more than just recording your ride. They're great for heading off on a run or into the gym, and the Forerunner 35 is waterproof up to 50 metres too. As it's a smartwatch, you'll also be able to see notifications pop up from your phone.

Buy it here for £99

Strava subscription for 1 year, £47.99 

Ah Strava, the popular KoM-hunting social network for athletes that sees adults weeping with joy when they set the fastest time on a crucial local segment! Or getting real sad when pals don't give them kudos... 

> How to use Strava to make you fitter

Strava made its segment leaderboards a paid-for feature not so long ago, so giving the gift of a Strava membership will keep the cyclist in your life quiet as they study elevation charts, check the wind forecasts and study exactly which gate it is where Sunday's KoM attempt will finish.

Gift a Strava membership for £47.99

Wahoo SYSTM Training and Workout App, $129.99 for the year currently equates to £94.50

Wahoo has just launched its new SYSTM training app, which has a diverse mix of immersive content categories including ‘On Location’, ‘ProRides’ and ‘Inspiration’ workouts. These consist of race simulations with real pro footage, to guided tours of the most iconic places to ride in the world. All of these can then be compiled into specific training plans for working towards targets, whatever they may be.

Designed by the elite coaches at Wahoo Sports Science and personalised to your 4DP profile, you get the most out of the time you have to train.The workout library also covers so much: cycling, running and swimming sessions, yoga, bodyweight-based strength training and mental training.

Buy it here

Read our first ride review over here

Not quite found what you're looking for, or looking for a gift that isn't so gadgety? Be sure to check out our other Christmas Gift Guides here.