The Holiday Gadget Guide

This column was originally published on RealMoney on Dec. 8 at 2:23 p.m. EST. It's being republished as a bonus for TheStreet.com readers. For more information about subscribing to RealMoney, please click here.

As the holiday season is now officially upon us, it's time to scout out the best gifts. To help you with that, I've compiled a list of the five best holiday gadget gifts, and I'll tell you about three products to avoid. So without further ado, here is my 2006 Gadget Gift Guide.

The Ones to Buy

The Nintendo Wii: $249

While the Wii was not expected to do much compared to Sony's (SNE Quote) PlayStation 3, Nintendo didn't face the same production problems as Sony did. As a result, Nintendo is now selling more than twice as many units this season.

The Wii introduces a wireless controller unlike any in the market; it senses a player's movements in 3-D, allowing games to respond to both buttons and the player's actual movements.

Another nice feature of the Wii is that it is backward-compatible with the Nintendo GameCube; in other words, it allows GameCube games to be played on the Wii. For those old-school gaming fans out there, the Wii also comes with the Virtual Console, a download service that allows users to download and play a selection of old Nintendo, SegaGenesis and TurboGFX 16 games. I might even come out of retirement to extend my 100 game-winning streak in Tecmo Super Bowl, a record I retired with when I traded my Nintendo for a guitar at a pawn shop back in 1992.

iPod Shuffle: $79

Though not offering anything groundbreaking, Apple's (AAPL Quote) latest iPod Shuffle does not disappoint. It's a barebones option for those looking for a compact, easy-to-use music player. The appeal of the newly designed iPod shuffle relies on the one thing Apple has consistently delivered over the past five years: its "cool" factor.

While there was nothing wrong with the original Shuffle, Apple got the new one right by completely redesigning its look and feel. The biggest addition is a simple clip that allows consumers to "wear" their music. While a 35-cent clip does not usually add much value to most products, Apple is leveraging it by focusing its entire TV ad campaign on the theme "Put Some Music On."