When you're a kid one of the most exciting parts of Christmas day is waking up to find a stocking stuffed with goodies. It's a Christmas tradition that's starting to fade out of fashion as the focus is on the 'big presents', but is a nice way of giving lots of small inexpensive Christmas gifts to your children or significant other, and the bonus for parents is the little ones will be kept busy with their stockings in the morning and won't be waking you up so early!



There's a massive choice of low-cost gifts out there though, and a great deal of it is cheap tat. Sifting through all the junk for the really good bargains takes time, but if you want some tip-top Christmas gift ideas have a read through our list of 2008's best stocking fillers...

1. Scorpion paperweight

This gruesomely fascinating gift is perfect for kids. It's a real scorpion encased in transparent acrylic glass so you can see these bizarre creatures from every angle. It's also a great one for adults who want an unusual addition to their office desk. If scorpions give you the creeps (and we don't blame you) there are plenty of alternatives including a stag beetle, giant wasp, giant frog, bat skeleton and tarantula.

2. Mini digital camera key chain

This innovative digicam is barely larger than a matchbox, yet capable of taking still images, video and acting as a webcam. Of course the quality is nowhere near the level of a full-size digital camera, but not only is it a fraction of the size of a normal camera the mini camera key chain is also a fraction of the price, and therefore ideal for kids.

3. Stylophone

The funk-tastic Stylophone is a bizarre invention from the 70s: a pocket-sized synthesizer. A huge craze in the decade of disco, the Stylophone produces crazy sounds by running the included stylus over its metal keyboard and has been used by artists like David Bowie, Kraftwerk and Erasure.

4. Cube World

This brilliant techno toy is like a smarter and more interesting version of the Tamagotchi craze. Inside each cube is a pixellated stick man who entertains himself by with various games and activities. Each one has a motion sensor so you can watch them fall about as you pick up the cube, but what's really clever is how the stick figures interact with other cubes.

Stack them up and watch as they play games together, dance or even fight!

5. Perpetual Torch

Who needs batteries? Certainly not you if you're armed with the cool perpetual torch. Using Faraday's law of induction the torch produces light when you shake it, causing a magnet to pass through a copper coil and generate electricity. Shake it for three minutes the first time, then you'll never need to do it for more than 45 seconds to get up to five minutes of light.

6. Natural Wood Bedlam Puzzle Cube

Inside the box is a cube of wood made from 13 pieces. All you have to do is put it back together and there are 19,186 solutions. Simple, right? It's not quite that easy, though, the Bedlam Cube is a mind-bending puzzle that could take you years to solve. Made from Rubberwood grown in environmentally friendly sustainable forests, so it's an eco-friendly gift, too.

7. Waterbomb Catapult

You may have to hold on until summer to make use of this, but it's worth the wait. The Waterbomb Catapult can launch water bombs up to 300 feet. Just get two friends to act as anchors then pull back the sling and watch 'em fly.

8. 300k Water Proof Digital Camera

If the kids are messing about near water with the catapult, you might want one of these too. It's a low-cost digital camera with a water-proof covering that can be dunked under water and still take pictures. It's useful for holidays also, particularly if you're going scuba diving.

9. Mobile SIM Saver

The most frustrating thing about misplacing a phone is losing all your contact details: the SIM Saver backs up 250 contacts and allows you to restore them in the event your lifeline to the world goes missing. Kids cannot be separated from their mobiles, so this stocking filler is going to be appreciated by anyone in your family who appears to have been surgically grafted to their phone.

10. Mood Beams

Mood Beams are cute colour changing critters that put on a lightshow for your entertainment. Place them near a speaker and they'll coordinate with the music. There are a number of endearing characters available, they cost less than a tenner and make a great gift for girls.