Father’s Day 2026: Smartphones, headphones, air fryers and more gadgets to gift your father this year

The hardest part of buying tech for a father is avoiding the gift that gets used twice and then retired to a drawer.

The ones that last are not the flashiest but the ones that fit a routine he already has, a pair of Sony headphones for the dad who lives on calls, a Philips One Chef for the one who already cooks on weekends.

This guide spans a range of budgets, from a Samsung Galaxy S26 Ultra at the top end to an Instax that costs very little, and leans towards the practical picks that tend to outlast the showier ones.Sony WH-1000XM6Sony has held the top of the noise-cancelling category for years, and the XM6 keeps it there.

The new QN3 processor drives the cancellation, and the effect in daily use is that the drone of a flight, the hum of an air-conditioner, or the noise of a full house simply recedes.

It suits the dad who works from home and occasionally needs to shut the world out, or the frequent flyer worn down by cabin noise.

The Sandstone colourway is a welcome departure from the usual black and silver, though in practice he’ll wear them often enough that the finish is a secondary concern.Samsung Galaxy S26 UltraThe all-out flagship, for the dad who wants the best and isn’t squeamish about the cost.

The 6.9-inch QHD+ AMOLED is among the brightest, sharpest screens going, and the Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5 inside means nothing he does will trouble it.

The headline is the 200MP quad camera, which handles distant zoom and low light with the kind of range a keen photographer will actually notice.

Samsung’s new privacy display is the genuinely novel touch, narrowing the viewing angle so the passenger beside him on a flight or a Metro can’t read his screen.

A 5000mAh battery with 60W charging keeps it running.

This is the gift for the dad whose phone is his main camera, screen, and office in one.Sennheiser Profile Wireless SeriesFor the dad who has taken up recording in some form, a podcast, video, anything that deserves better than phone-mic audio, this kit raises the floor on sound quality.

It’s a self-contained wireless system: a 2.4GHz receiver, clip-on microphones, and a charging bar that doubles as a handheld interview mic, a genuinely useful piece of design.

The 32-bit float recording is the centrepiece, since it makes a take very difficult to ruin by recording too loud, while built-in backup recording guards against any drop in the wireless signal.

The single-channel set covers solo use and the two-channel handles a pair of speakers, and either connects to a camera, phone, or laptop without fuss.OnePlus Nord 5The phone for the dad who follows specs and resents paying flagship prices for them.

The Nord 5 is the first in the line to carry a Snapdragon 8-series chip, which is the part value-watchers will clock, and it backs that with a 6.83-inch 144Hz AMOLED that stays fluid whether he’s gaming or just working through the morning’s news.

The 50MP Sony main sensor with OIS holds up well in daylight, and the India-exclusive 6800mAh battery with 80W charging is the standout, comfortably a full day and then some.

For the dad who does his homework before buying anything, this is the one that survives the scrutiny.Noise Master Buds 2For the dad perpetually mid-call or mid-walk, a dependable pair of earbuds is worth more than a flashy one.

The Master Buds 2 are clear about their purpose: connect, play, take the call, carry on.

They make no attempt to out-specify the premium brands, which at this price reads as good judgement rather than compromise.

They handle workouts, commutes, and the occasional ten minutes of quiet that a busy day rarely allows otherwise.Fujifilm Instax Mini 13An instant print offers something a camera roll cannot.

Most photographs are buried the moment they’re taken, never printed and rarely revisited.

The Mini 13 counters that with the simplest of mechanisms: a physical photo, handed over on the spot, ready for the fridge door.

For the family archivist, the dad forever gathering everyone for a group shot, it’s a way to keep a moment rather than consign it to the thousands of unsorted images on a phone.

It is a modest gift that proves more engaging than expected once the prints accumulate.Redmi Note 15 5GThe value choice, for the dad who wants something dependable and sees no reason to spend flagship money.

It covers the everyday essentials well: a bright display, a camera equal to birthdays and holidays, and a battery with fast charging that lasts a full day of calls, news, and the family group chat without a midday recharge.

It doesn’t set out to impress, which is rather the appeal.

This is the phone bought when the only requirement is that it work, reliably, for several years.Philips One ChefKitchen gadgets are a gamble, given how many become counter ornaments by the third week.

The One Chef hedges against that by folding several cooking functions into a single machine and adding guided recipes and app connectivity, lowering the barrier for a dad drawn to the idea of cooking more than to the reality of following a recipe unaided.

The promise is weekday meals with little effort and weekend experiments with a safety net.

Whether it lasts beyond the novelty depends on the cook, but for the committed weekend chef it has a real chance of earning its place.Nuuk BRĪSK Air FryerThe air fryer is the appliance households reach for more than they anticipated, which makes it a safe choice for a dad who cooks now and then and would do so more readily with less effort involved.

The 6.5L basket is the figure that matters, since smaller models force cooking in batches.

Twelve presets remove the guesswork from the first few attempts, and the toxin-free ceramic coating will appeal to the health-conscious.

It performs from the first use, well suited to the man who has perfected one snack and is ready to attempt a second.Samsung Bespoke AI AirDresserThe indulgent pick, and the one most dads would never think to buy themselves.

The AirDresser is a cabinet that refreshes clothes using steam and air, sanitising and deodorising a worn suit or jacket so it’s ready to wear again without a trip to the dry cleaner.

For the dad who keeps a polished wardrobe, or wears the same few good outfits to the office and resents how often they need cleaning, it quietly takes that chore off his plate.

It’s a serious piece of kit rather than a stocking-filler, currently available through the Samsung store in BKC, Mumbai.DailyObjects Node Wireless Charging EcosystemFor the dad whose bedside table is a tangle of cables, Node is a tidying-up exercise in the guise of a gadget.

It’s a modular Qi2.2 charging system at 25W with interchangeable parts, a phone pad, an Apple Watch charger, a charging disk, and a small lamp, configured around the way he uses the space.

Everything charges in one place from a single wire, and the clutter disappears.

A thoughtful choice for the dad who notices such details and is quietly bothered by mess.That’s a spread for most kinds of father, from a phone that doubles as a camera to a microphone kit for the one who has started recording.

The trick is to match the device to the man rather than to the longest spec sheet.

Do that, and the gift will still be in use long after the wrapping paper has gone out with the recycling.Get the latest technology news and updates.

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