Costco Connection

A what-to-get list for this time of year

FRANCE FREEMAN

BuyingSmart

Consumer reporter Pat Volchok gives a behind-the-scenes look at Costco products and services. Send your questions to: buyingsmart@costco.com.

ONE OF THE most daunting gift-giving times
of the year is upon us. Mother’s Day, Father’s
Day, graduations and weddings pepper our
calendars. The pressure is pal-
pable as we hunt for the per-
fect way to say thank you
or congratulations.
Fortunately, our wish
is Costco’s command.
Worried about my
two toughest categories—
dads and grads—I tracked
down Costco’s foot soldier
heroes, the buyers, and asked
for an early peek at their cache.
As the suggestions poured in, I

narrowed my scope to gifts of time, travel and technology.

(Tip: A lot of these items are available in both the warehouse and on costco.com. I put an asterick next to those.)

And even though I suggest these riches for fathers, grandpas and graduates, who’s to say moms, grandmas, brides and grooms wouldn’t love them too?

Gifts of time

Timepieces. Timex’s colorful Ironman iControl unisex watch functions as a wrist iPod manager and watch. And Invicta’s Watch Winder keeps automatic watches running when they’re not being worn. Many more watches are available on costco.com, including a DiskGO! stainless steel dress-style watch that’s also a 2 GB USB flash drive.

Timesavers. The iRobot Roomba Vacuum Cleaning Robot has a long battery life, routinely navigates on its own and even senses dirtier areas and spends more time cleaning them.*

The Cuisinart Griddler Express Contact Grill cooks two sides at once, making fast work of steaks, burgers and even panini sandwiches.

Time outs. From costco.com, give the luxury of the portable, seven-person Pilates XP1 Spa with 92 customizable jets, six removable massage balls, dual pop-up waterfalls and CD stereo with subwoofers … mmm.

For the ultimate time out, set your sights on cozy recliners. They hit warehouses the third week in May (look for Passport savings from June 9 to 15).

Play time. May 18 is the release date for Costco’s exclusive Disney/Pixar Ultimate Movie Collection on DVD, with all eight of Pixar’s full-length films, including Finding Nemo and Ratatouille. Available while supplies last. Tickets for Regal, AMC, Cinemark and other movie theater chains are also available.*

Video game consoles, accessories and games are game on. Choose between Nintendo’s dual-screen, handheld Wi-Fi DS Lite with puzzle and brain games such as Sudoku and Brain Age 2 and Sony’s PSP (PlayStation Portable) for great games, videos, music, photos and Internet networking options.