Buying Christmas gifts for teens - boys - is often enough to cause a huge parental headache. A difficult age to buy for and nearly always involves gadgets and money. Lots of money. Yours.

The latest must have gadget, laptop, sound system, games, I-Pod, mobile phone. It's enough to make parents sweat. And let's not get started on clothing ... In short, buying for a teenage boy at any time of year isn't an easy task.

Unfortunately Christmas gift buying is often fraught with yearly trends, fashion, or even what their friends may be expecting. Or they may simply dump the teenage version of a brick wall on you - the shoulder shrug. Now that's harsh!

Gadget Gifts For Teens

Nintendo Wii

The Nintendo Wii remains a strong contender for teens that don't yet have one. Nintendo continue to strengthen the game and accessory range and despite the fact that it's been on the market a while - it's not dropping off the gadget trends list just yet. The best thing is - it's now more reasonably priced and that leaves you some extra cash for games and/or Wii accessories. And you've just got to have Mario. Apparently. But that's from the mouth of my eldest son - not mine.

Xbox 366

The Xbox is another huge gadget favorite. To date, I've bought one Xbox and two Nintendo Wii. Plus associated accessories, over a 2/3 year time span. Not a cheap endeavour but ultimately worth every penny, from a parents perspective. My three kids will play on either, all agreeing that both have their plus points. I'm reliably informed that Halo3 and a driving game is an absolute must - otherwise why buy one? - The opinion of my elder two sons.

Apple iPod Touch - 32 GB

Owned by my second son. I didn't buy it - I'm not Midas. He saved up. I'm glad he's got one. He's glad he's got one. His boss prefers he leaves it at home. In my opinion, it's as good as it gets in terms of gifts for music loving, techno-geek teens. I can't begin to tell you about the onboard gadget-good stuff that this little black beauty possesses. All I can say is - from a mom's viewpoint - I would like one under my Christmas tree. Please.

Now - whilst your bottom lip is firmly quivering at the cost of buying teen gifts for Christmas, let's check out another high-tec gadget wish list ... and really send you clutching onto your wallets for dear life. Laptops and Netbooks. Come on - how many of your kids want/need/I swear I just gotta have one!?

ASUS Eee PC 1000HE 10.1-Inch Blue Netbook

The Asus Eee PC Netbook is the topselling netbook of the moment. If you're tech-challenge, the different between netbooks and laptops is ... the size, pretty much. A netbook has a smaller motherboard (the innards that run the show) but for an avid student or even a half-assed one, the Asus will deliver on all counts.

Acer Aspire AS1410-8804 11.6-Inch Black Laptop

The Acer Aspire AS Laptop does what it says on the box. It's a middle priced, standard laptop and will cover the average student's needs. As well as their typical surfing behaviours. It's a top selling example of moblie computing and whilst it may not be top of the range - it may well be the top of yours.

Netbook & Laptop Bags & Perpherals

To give you a little wallet-cool down, netbook and laptop bags and peripherals - the added extras - might make you feel better.

More so if your teen already has a mobile pc. Maybe he needs a new bag, memory stick or one (or several) of a whole host of other whip-the-money-from-your-wallet bits and pieces.

The bags are the top selling (this season) and the rest are bound to be the next thing on the list, once they've got their paws on a netbook or laptop.

And if they're not, they soon will be. Trust me, after two boys, there's always something else. The only reason you don't know yet is because they're waiting for a cool moment to casually insert their latest must-have into a general conversation.

Like when you're talking about how great they've been behaving lately ...

And below, some stocking fillers for teen boys. To give you a little more time to regain your financial equilibrium.

Stocking Fillers For Teens - Boys

Gaming Seat

How about a game seat for your teen? I confess to only ever buying one (the second of the two on the right) but it was wonderfully entertaining. Watching my lads fight for the throne.

I think they found it entertaining too - depending on which one won and got into first.

The first one is aimed specifically at the Xbox, whilst the second one is an all-rounder and compatible with any games console (PSP, Playstation, Wii, Xbox etc) as well as iPods, DVD players, TV's and so on.

Great value for money. And tough too. My boys never killed theirs, no matter how much they walloped each other over it, on it and - even with it on one occasion.

RC Models

What about RC models? Not all teens are pushing manhood and many still have enough of a kid in them not to want to hide it.

And even if they are ... when do boys ever become men?

I've lost count of the Christmas mornings whereby I've had to duck, dive and stumble according to various RC car/tank/airborne models Santa Claus dropped down the chimney.

One year we even had a hovercraft (my favorite) and another involved an indestructable plane. Which lasted three airborne voyages. I named it the Flytanic.

RC Robots

And finally, a bunch of RC robots. Most teen boys enjoy having something to order around (more so if they're the youngest!) and a robot is as good as it gets when it comes to having something in your life that does exactly as it's ordered.

My lads have had a robot or two in their youth. Now they've moved onto girlfriends. And happily (or not?!) they're discovering that women rarely do what you ask. Unless they're realy really nice.

Something I did try to impress upon them when I was still in charge!