November 24, 2007 -- By now, everyone you know probably has a computer, flat-screen TV, digital camera, cell phone, iPod. … What you need for this year's shopping trips are some new ideas, some gadgets that weren't around this time last year.
This year's gadget gift guide includes a flying insect, a talking rabbit, a pair of high-definition video players and a device that will clean up all the cable clutter that battery-powered gadgets tend to create. Prices range from $20 to almost $1,000. Many of the items can be found in local stores, and all can be found online.
Radio-controlled cars and planes are so 1990. How about a radio-controlled insect? The Flytech Dragonfly from Wowwee stays aloft by flapping its wings -- with the help of a tail rotor. It has 16-inch wingspan, a top speed of about 18 mph, and it can soar, flutter or execute dive-bombing maneuvers within about 50 feet of its controller. The bug can launch from your hand or from a flat surface. It has a carbon fiber body to tough out a hard landing, but it also comes with an extra set of wings and a spare propeller. About $50 at Radio Shack and other stores.
The Disney Flix Video Cam is a camcorder designed for kids and tweens to make their own high school musicals. It has a 1.5-inch color view screen and comes packaged with software that includes storyboards, sound effects, music and character voices. You can buy additional software for about $15 to make videos with Cinderella and Pirates of the Caribbean themes. About $100 at Best Buy, Target or Toys R Us.
Want to be sure you always have a camera close by for those Kodak moments? The MiniDig Mini Digital Camera is about the size of a business card and small enough to carry with your car keys. The camera comes in four colors and has enough internal memory to store more than 50 photos. The pictures can be transferred to a computer or viewed on the camera's 1.5-inch screen. About $20 at Target.
Here's a remote control for those times when you-know-who makes you watch something besides ESPN. The WiFi Remote from Acoustic Research (model ARRU449) uses your home network to call up and display sports scores. It will also deliver weather, news headlines and a program guide for your area. It will also run your video and audio systems. About $350 at amazon.com.
Two items no car should be without: a satellite navigation system and satellite radio. The Rock-n-Road (model NVXM1000) puts both in one device. It's a portable GPS with a slot to add XM Radio. The unit has a 4-inch touchscreen, complete maps of the U.S. and Canada and a built-in FM modulator to play the audio through your dashboard radio. And, it's portable, so you can take it with you on trips and use it in a rental car.
GPS unit, $799; XM tuner and antenna, about $30 each. (XM and some retailers will throw in the tuner and antenna for free until Dec. 29.)
Bang & Olufsen, which makes the sort of stereo equipment that you see in Architectural Digest, has a new, $990 audio system designed for computers. The BeoLab 4 consists of an amplifier and a pair of unique, pyramid-shaped speakers. The system can sit on a desk or be mounted on the wall, and it can also play music from an iPod or other digital player.
The closest B&O retailer is in Columbus, Ohio; the gear is also available through several online stores.
Ready for high-definition home video? Sharp's new $549 AQUOS Blu-ray DVD player can deliver the highest-quality video signal to any TV that supports 1080i resolution. It will also up-convert standard DVDs to a higher resolution.
Can't choose sides between Blu-ray and HD DVD formats? Samsung's Duo HD Player can read discs in either format while also playing standard DVDs and CDs. The BD-UP5000 is scheduled to be in stores by mid-December with a $999 price tag.
Do you hear cash register sounds whenever your teenagers open their cell phones? Kajeet offers a line of phones that have both parental control and the advanced features that kids like. Parents can set the times when the phones can be used, set a limit on spending for calls or text messages, and determine who can or can't call the phone. The pay-as-you-go rates include separate pricing for calls, text messages and picture messages.
The phones start at $50 for the LX150 flip phone from LG. It has a speakerphone, picture ID, Bluetooth support and that all-important ringer ID. More details at kajeet.com.
Both the iPod Touch and SanDisk's Sansa music player have 8GB of internal memory. Both play music, display photos and show video clips. The Sansa has a built-in FM radio tuner and a slot to add a memory card. But that's not the biggest difference. Best Buy will sell you the Sansa for $149 -- half the cost of the Touch.
If someone's addiction to Guitar Hero or Halo 3 is driving the rest of the household crazy, chip in and get them Pioneer's wireless headphones for gamers. The SE-DIR800C headphones can process Dolby Digital and DTS surround or Dolby Pro Logic II audio from today's high-end gaming consoles -- or from a CD or DVD player. And they can be set to simulate three different listening rooms.
List for $399, but several online stores sell them for $100 less.
Got cable overload on your kitchen counter? The Chargepod is an energy octopus for all those power-hungry gadgets. The device can simultaneously recharge up to six different devices, including cell phones, digital music players, cameras, PDAs, headsets and portable gaming devices, including those that charge from a USB connection.
The base pod costs $49 at callpod.com, and the company stocks about 35 different cables for individual devices. They cost about $10 each.
Remember Scully and Mulder? They were the two FBI agents on "The X-Files" TV series who investigated aliens and government conspiracies. The series ran for nine seasons and spawned a feature film in 1998. Now every minute of the story is available in a massive 61-disc set called "The X-Files: The Complete Collector's Edition." The package includes all 201 episodes, the movie and four "Mythology" featurettes.
Lists for $329 but can be found online for about $250.
This plastic rabbit earns his keep by delivering news, weather and stock market reports. The Nabaztag -- that's Armenian for "rabbit" -- pulls information from your home WiFi network and reads it to you (in 16 languages) through its built-in speaker. The Nabaztag can also stream music files and Web radio. It has a microphone in its navel, so it can respond to voice commands, and owners can also send secret messages between pairs of Nabaztags or to social networks.
For more details and purchasing info, go to nabaztag.com.
For about $200 you can turn the tiny image on the video iPod into one that looks like it's playing on a big-screen TV -- if you don't mind looking a little nerdy in the process. Myvu is the latest company to produce lightweight goggles that project a video image on two tiny lenses. You can see the outside world through the dark plastic frame -- but don't try wearing them when you cross Bardstown Road.
Myvu makes versions for older and newer iPods and one that works with the Zune, Archor and other portable video players. Get details at myvu.com.
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