As you all know, we've been devoting a lot of time recently to the notion of what to buy your Mac-loving friends and family this holiday season; we've repeatedly mentioned how the iPod makes a perfect stocking-stuffer, and just yesterday we told you how you can get an extra $100 off the purchase of an iBook just by drinking an inhuman quantity of any of a number of sugary carbonated beverages. Well, judging by the mail we've been receiving, it turns out that a few of you apparently lack the many thousands of dollars in disposable income necessary to buy iPods and iBooks for everyone on your list. It seems we're experiencing some sort of "economic downturn" or something. Go figure.

So for those of you hampered by a shocking lack of liquidity, today we're going to tell you about a Mac-friendly gift idea that will fit into most any budget and is sure to please: the Apple Gift Card. Yes, faithful viewer RenaissanceManUC kindly acquainted us with this wonderful option, which is a simple twist on an old concept: it's just like a gift certificate, only it's not a certificate-- it's a card. That alone makes all the difference.

You can purchase an Apple Gift Card at any of Apple's 22 retail stores, and the amount is up to you-- within certain limits. We called our local Apple store for details, and it appears that there's a $50 minimum, so if your budget only allows you to spend, say, $38.27, then you're going to have to give your friend or relative cash instead. Granted, it's not quite as neat or as attractive as a Gift Card, but a few minutes' work drawing the Apple logo on said cash with a blue highlighter can work wonders even on American money-- the least attractive currency on the planet. Go wild! (By the way, we checked to make sure, and yes, the Apple stores do accept cash in any amount-- even amounts less than $50.)

If you can swing spending at least fifty bucks on an honest-to-goodness Gift Card, however, we've also confirmed that you have total freedom in determining how much that card will be worth. In other words, if you want to give your brother an Apple Gift Card worth exactly $83.92, you can do that. This has the added bonus of allowing you to pretend that $83.92 has some special significance; you can then annoy your brother by refusing to tell him what said significance happens to be. Everybody wins!

So, Apple Gift Cards: the perfect present this holiday season. There's just one caveat, however: unfortunately, according to Apple's site, Gift Cards "cannot be used to purchase Gift Cards." No lie, people; it's right there in black and white. We know that's a deal-breaker for a lot of you, but for those of you who can live with that somewhat bizarre restriction, your holiday shopping may have just gotten a whole lot easier. No need to thank us; just send Gift Cards.