Nov/Dec 2001

Tech the Halls

This year our editors made out your Christmas list.

Wondering what to give the guys on your Christmas list? Can't think of an answer to that perennial question, "whatta ya want?" Looking for something to clip and leave where the wife and kids will find it in the nick of time?

Fat wallet or slim, you're bound to find that perfect something in this roundup of the coolest guy gifts on the planet.

With the prices of digital cameras plummeting, this is the Christmas to say adios to film and developing costs. With that in mind, here are the high-resolution, two-megapixel cameras tech-heads are raving about--all under $300:

FujiFilm's FinePix 2300 ($279). Championed for its multiple white balance and flash setting, as well as USB compatibility and 4X playback zoom.

Hewlett-Packard's Photosmart 315 ($299). Get a little closer with the three-level digital zoom lens. Also features wireless, infrared printing; USB compatible.

Kodak's DX3500 ($299). One of the easiest cameras to use, bar none. Features include close-up mode, 3X digital zoom, and an optional ($80) docking station that serves as both a battery charger and computer port.

SiPix SC-2100 ($279). If you want to do more than point and shoot, this one features a manual override of automatic functions. Also has a 2X digital zoom, and continuous-shot mode (for those fashion shoots).

More good news: Experts predict that by the time you read this, the above cameras may be available for under $200, and some pricier, fancier cameras will have dipped below the $300 mark. They include: Canon's PowerShot A20 (currently $399), appreciated for its compactness and 3X optical zoom; Minolta's DiMAGE 2330 (about $400), with up to 7.5X zoom and a big on-camera preview screen; and Sony's DSC-P50 ($399), with 3X optical/6X digital zoom, high-speed auto focus, and half the battery consumption of other cameras in its class.

Used to be, digital photography needed PCs like pens need paper, but no more. Sony's DPP-SV88 photo-management system ($799; sony.com) pulls photos from digital cameras and then displays them on most televisions, archives them on CDs with its integrated CD burner, and makes 4-by-6 printouts of selected images. It even features file-management tools that enable you to arrange images in folders--important to the average digital photo user, who shoots more images than they would with regular film.

Calling the Magic-I Mini Data Bank ($30; gadgets.com) "the world's smallest PDA"--as its marketers do--is a bit of a stretch. (where's the word processor?) But it is fairly cool and, better yet, inexpensive. This key chain (really, it has a key ring) stores hundreds of names, phone numbers and birthdays, tells the time, date and language spoken in 100 world cities, has an alarm clock with a musical reminder, and the now-obligatory addictive game. And you can transfer data into it from your computer by going to a special Web page--and holding it up to the screen. Hey, kids: hint, hint.

Don't just listen to music, change it, make it yours. With the DM2, Digital Music Mixer ($120; mixman.com) you can blend, superimpose, fade and add beats or special effects to any CD or computer-based music, including the 600 audio tracks that come with it. Teens love this sort of thing, which is great because it stimulates creativity. But, hey, no reason adults can't jam with the best of them, so you may want to make this one a "family" present.

If you like mobile music, but hate the skipping and vulnerability of portable CD players, this little baby's for you. Sony's NWS4 Walkman Digital Music Player ($300; sony.com) is cigar-sized, water-resistant and capable of storing any 120 minutes of tunes you want (transferred from CDs via a PC). Load it up, strap it to your arm and off you go. With no moving parts, the music doesn't skip, and it's as rugged as a Swiss Army knife. Price alert: $199, after rebate, at 800.com--good through January 2002.

OK, the fail-safe gift for everybody on your list: the Commando Torchlight ($30; topixonline.com). Sounds like a flamethrower, but it's the best little flashlight you'll ever use. A cluster of white LEDs creates daylight-bright fluorescence visible for a mile--and practically never burns out. It's lightweight, waterproof and shockproof, so you can take it anywhere.

VHS and DVD movies are always sure bets. It's deciding which one that gets tricky, so here are some tried-and-true titles suggested by the American Film Institute: There's the faith route--The Ten Commandments, The Robe, The Greatest Story Ever Told, The Mission. And testosterone classics--The Guns of Navarone, The Magnificent Seven, Shane, Lawrence of Arabia. (All available at amazon.com and most video retailers.)

Forget hunting for a pen and juggling little scraps of paper. Run Siemens's Pocket Reader ($100; pocketreader.com) over any text, as you would a pen highlighter, and voila, it's ready to download into a PC (Windows or Mac). It'll store up to 20 pages, one line at a time. Phone numbers, URLs, table of contents, price tags--whatever you want to remember, this device remembers it better, because it captures it precisely and then transfers it into a word processor, notepad or e-mail program. Where was this when I was in college?

Bob Liparulo is a free-lance author and reviewer and a contributing editor to New Man magazine.