The 10 Best Gifts For Teen Boys

For a teen who wants music at the pool, in the garage or on the bus, the JBL Flip 7 is built to take a beating. JBL rates it waterproof and dustproof and says it survives a fall onto concrete from about waist height. A charge lasts around 14 hours. It ships with a wrist loop and a backpack clip, and it can link with other recent JBL speakers. The catch: there's no charging cable or wall plug included.

Nintendo's original handheld comes back brick by brick in the LEGO Game Boy, built at close to real size. The direction pad and buttons move, two game cartridges slide into the back, and swappable flip-image screens show scenes from Mario and Zelda. A stand turns it into a shelf piece for a gamer's room. Brickset's reviewer found the finished model a little flimsy, with a screen that can push inward, and nothing lights up or makes sound.

Phone photos tend to stay on the phone, but the Fujifilm Instax Mini 12 hands friends a print they can pin up or tuck in a wallet. Twisting the lens turns it on, and it picks the exposure and flash by itself, so there's nothing to adjust. A small mirror beside the lens helps frame selfies, and a close-up mode keeps near subjects centered. Film is sold separately in packs of 10 shots, and refills add up fast at parties.

A teen who wants to learn electric guitar gets the classic Fender look in the Squier Debut Stratocaster, with the familiar body shape, three pickups and a whammy bar. The neck is slim and rounded, which helps smaller hands with first chords. Squier adds a free trial of Fender's online lesson app. It's the guitar alone, though, so budget for an amp or headphone amp, a cable and a clip-on tuner before the big day.

Part skateboard and part snowboard, the Razor RipStik rides on two wheels and moves when the rider twists his hips instead of pushing off the ground. Once it clicks, it carves smooth curves on sidewalks and in empty parking lots. Razor rates it for riders 8 and up, and its manual calls for elbow and knee pads; a helmet is smart too. The first few sessions are wobbly, and it rolls poorly on gravel or wet pavement.

Teens who'd rather be outside with friends than on a screen can set up the Spikeball Original Set in a few minutes on grass, sand or a gym floor. Two teams of two bounce a ball off a small round net, a bit like volleyball pointed at the ground. Games are quick and easy to learn, and the whole kit packs into a drawstring bag. It takes four people for a real game, and a bumpy lawn makes bounces unpredictable.

For a gift he'll use daily, the Owala FreeSip goes to class, practice and the gym. One spout does two jobs: sip through a built-in straw while upright, or tip it back to gulp. A button pops the lid open, and the carry loop also locks the lid shut. Insulated steel keeps water cold through a long school day. The cup has to be washed by hand, and the lid has small parts to clean.

A dead phone after school is a common teen headache, and the Anker Nano Magnetic Power Bank snaps onto the back of a recent iPhone to charge it without a cable. It's thin enough for a jeans pocket, and its USB-C port charges earbuds or an Android phone by wire. Anker's warranty runs two years. It holds a bit less than one full phone charge, and the magnet needs an iPhone or a magnetic case.

Nobody needs lessons to get a tune out of the Newlam Kalimba, a wooden thumb piano with 17 metal keys. Each key is marked with its note, and the included songbook uses numbers instead of sheet music, so a first song can take minutes. It's quiet enough for a bedroom and small enough to toss in a backpack. The keys drift out of tune over time, so expect to tap them back with the included hammer.

Jonathan Catherman wrote The Manual to Manhood as 100 short, illustrated lessons in grown-up basics, from grilling a steak and changing a tire to managing a credit card and handling a job interview. Each skill fits on a few pages, so it works for dipping in rather than reading cover to cover. It suits a boy who likes knowing how things work but would never ask. Some of the dating and manners advice reads as old-fashioned.