My Recommendations

Thin is in. Not only do thin gadgets look cool, they often use less power. Here's a collection of some of the thinnest gadgets in the world.

MP3 Player
If you thought the Apple iPod Nano was thin then check out this MP3 player that's as thin as a credit card. The Walletex Wallet MP3 player is about as thin as you can get and it’s waterproof to boot. It stores up to 4 GB and they claim you can get over 4 hours of play back on a single charge.

Thin TV Sets
This past January we saw the thinnest Plasma TV at CES, the 50" Pioneer Kuro “concept” Plasma TV. It was 9 mm thick and was displaying video (honest it was). We haven't heard any more about it since January although it might have something to do with the announcement that Pioneer is going to stop manufacturing their own Plasma TVs (they recently selected Panasonic to make the panels for them). Sony has started selling its 3 mm thick OLED TV that offers amazing image quality.

Announced at CES 2008 and due to ship any day are two super thin LCD TVs from JVC. The 42-inch LT-42SL89 and 46-inch LT-46SL89 HDTVs. Both are members of the Procision family. Depth runs from 39 mm (1.5”) to 74 mm (2.4” inches) at the center of the panel. Joining the 39 mm club, Hitachi has a series of super thin HDTV sets which are part of the Director Series and the UltraVision V series. The sets are also 39 mm thick and include some impressive features like 120Hz, de-judder smoothing circuitry, and fanless ventilation.

Thin Laptops: MacBook Air vs. Voodoo PC Envy (from HP)
First there was the Macbook Air, so thin it fits inside a standard-size manilla envelope. The MacBook Air is an impressive laptop but can be a little on the pricey side at well over $2,000 for a decently configured model. It also lacks some useful features like an ethernet adapter (you can’t be all WiFi all the time). HP is offering a Windows-based competitior to the Macbook Air with the Envy133 which comes from the Voodoo PC group and edges out the Air’s thinness by a fraction of an inch. The MacBook Air is 0.76” and weighs just under 3 lbs. while the Envy133 measures 0.70” but weighs a tad more than the Macbook at 3.4 lbs. Both laptops offer similar features like a 13.3” LCD display with LED backlight. The big difference is the Envy133 runs Windows out of the box.

Thin Cell Phones
There’s Motorola’s razor thin MotoRAZR V3 at 13.9 mm thick which started the thin cell phone movement and now there are other super thin cell phones starting to appear on the scene. Nokia has a very thin cell phone coming soon called the E71. It's 10 mm thick and has all the E series features like WiFi, HSDPA, A-GPS, a 3.2 megapixel camera and a front facing camera for video chat.

LG will be shipping a new addition to its Black Label Series which currently includes phones like the Chocolate and the Shine. The new phone called the Secret (model number LG-SU600, we think), is made of carbon fiber, weighs 116 grams (4 oz), is 11.8 mm (.46”) thick, has a 5 megapixel camera with face detection (who needs a camera now?), 120 fps video recording and includes a tempered glass, touchscreen display.

Thin Camera
BenQ's new 8 megapixel T850 camera is 14.9 mm thick (at thinnest part) and includes a "swipe" gesture interface, which BenQ claims is unique among touch screen cameras. It will come in black and red and include a 3x optical zoom, 3-inch display, image stabilization and face technology. The price hasn't been announced just yet, but you'll be able to get this one in black or red when it launches in the (presumably) not too distant future. Casio’s Exilim EX-S10 is another skinny camera measuring 13.8 mm at its thinnest part. It’s a 10.1 MP camera with a 2.7 inch display.

Summertime and the gadgets are easy. The barbecue season is in full swing and it’s the right time to check out some cool barbecue gadgets. Mouth-watering steaks and sausages are a great way to enjoy a lawn party.

Branding and Barbecues
Let’s not talk about brands like Weber or Big Green Egg. This is a home version of the cattle ranchers branding iron. If personalizing your steak with your own custom brand sounds appealing then check out the Monogrammed Barbecue Branding iron for around $60.

Tumbling Steaks
How about a high tech tumbler for marinating things before you put them on the grill. Reveo MariVac Food Tumbler Marinader goes round and round to make things taste better for $199. ($150 on amazon.)

Barbecue Light (not lite)
For barbecuing after dark you might want to spend $14.94 on the Outset magnetic light that has 3 bright LEDS and holds fast to your grill with a strong magnet.

High Tech Thermometers
A good thermometer should be part of every serious grill master’s tool kit. The Bonjour laser thermometer uses infrared light to measure the surface temperature of a pan or grill. It includes a probe thermometer for measuring meat temperatures. The Thermapen digital, instant-read thermometer costs around $90 and was Cook’s Illustrated top rated thermometer. It’s noted for its super fast response and small probe tip. You can buy a thermometer from Williams-Sonoma that has a voice alert to tell you when your meat is done.

Grill Recommendations
Here are few top picks for grills:
The Weber Genesis E-320 is a nice looking gas grill that is built to last with porcelain coated grates and a 10 year warranty on the 3 stainless steel burners. It comes with one side burner. If you don’t need a side burner, you can get the Weber Genesis E-310. The Weber Performer has a great feature; you start the charcoal with a propane gas burner and once the charcoal is lit you turn off the gas and start grilling. The Brinkmann 810 gets good reviews and a “Best Buy,” from Consumer Reports.

Portable Green Grill
Woodflame makes a very cool, or should we say hot, portable grill that burns a small hardwood cube in an enclosed space and uses forced air to produce a very high heat in minutes. The unit weighs about 15 lb is safe and efficient to use.

No, it’s not what you’re thinking. We’re talking about good old wholesome gadgets that newlyweds can use to make their honeymoons more memorable and fun.

Camcorders
Honeymooners, imagine the fun you can have video taping your favorite moments and sharing them with friends or other honeymooners. Make sure to bring along a tripod to take pictures of the two of you on the beach or in your room. Here are a few camcorder recommendations:
Sony calls their new TG1 “palmcorder” the world’s smallest 1080i camcorder. It’s very small, weighing 10 ounces and is a little larger than a pack of cigarettes. It takes 3 MP stills (not a lot by today’s 8-10 MP standards) using face technology to optimize images. The titanium body makes it more rugged and able to take some rough handling. Some reviewers prefer the Sanyo Xacti HD1000 to the Sony. The Xacti gets high marks for features like 1080i video and 4 MP stills and costs around $700.
The only drawback with these new flash-based camcorders is that you may have to buy extra memory cards which aren’t cheap (compared to tape or DVDs) and you ultimately have to transfer the video on the cards to a hard drive or burn DVDs. For a great all around HD camcorder that still uses good old tape, we recommend the Canon Vixia HV30. It consistently gets high marks from users and experts and it stores video on miniDV tapes which are cheap, easy to manage and easy to edit the video.
We’re starting to see more still cameras that take videos and more camcorders that take high resolution stills. The Kodak Easyshare V1233 has some impressive specs, a great price, but gets mixed reviews. Complaints about ergonomics and image quality are common although some users love it. The Easyshare V1233 takes 12.1 MP stills and 720p video which could fill up your memory card fast.

iPod Accessories
Altec Lansing InMotion iM7 costs about $150 and gets very good ratings. Reviewers like the sound quality and design features. The only drawback is, at 10 lbs, it’s a little on the heavy side and might not be better suited to a honeymoon that doesn’t involve air travel. For a more portable speaker system check out the Griffin Technology 1202 Journi. At 5 lbs, it’s lighter than the Altec Lansing system.
Possibly the best solution for honeymooners sharing music whether it’s on the plane or one the beach is a headphone splitter. The Griffin SmartShare Headphone Splitter costs about $12.00 and has individual volume controls which could be a key to marital bliss.

Two Kindles Are Better Than One
You can’t keep active 100% of the time, so when it’s time to relax, how about a good book or even better, how about 1,000 good books? The ultimate gadget for the well read honeymooners just might be the Kindle which now costs $359 from amazon.com. You can download individual books which will cost you $9.99 each and you can also subscribe to the major daily newspapers and magazines for additional fees. Everything is downloaded over a widely available, high speed, EVDO data network (included with the unit).

There are plenty of gadgets honeymooners can take along to help their marriage start out on the right foot and grow. At the same time, there are a few gadgets we think would be better left at home. Here’s that list:

iPod or Any Other MP3 Player
You’re supposed to be tuning into your new partner in life not tuning into the latest Radiohead album. Unless you’re going to bring a headphone splitter or set of external speakers we recommend you make your own music and leave the iPod at home.

Gameboy
Marriage is serious commitment and not a game. The only games you should be playing on your honeymoon should be on the beach or in the privacy of your room. A handheld game player could definitely send the wrong message. The only reason to bring one along is if your spouse is into them too and you bring one for him and one for her. In that case, our recommendation would be the Sony PSP 2000.

Laptop Computer
This is your honeymoon! No emailing, no slingboxing, no game playing, no sneaking in a little PowerPoint. Leave all that stuff at home and do some gazing into your soul mates eyes instead of the computer screen. Okay, if you can be real discrete and keep it to a minimum then consider taking along an Asus Eee PC. For about $400 you can get a 4G version or a very small full-function notebook computer with a 7 inch screen that will get you online and checking email in a snap.

Blackberry Phone
Better to buy a throw-away, burner phone and use it only to make reservations then be tempted to scroll through incoming messages. On the other hand, you might be able to get away with something like the Blackberry Pearl or Blackberry Curve that you can both watch video on together or use the headphone splitter to listen to music.

Bluetooth Headset
Unless you're going to be driving in one of the states that require hands-free cell phone use, we say those things aren't going to do anything for romance unless you both have very high geek quotients or met at a tech conference. If necessary, you might be able to get away with a stylish headset like the Plantronics Discovery 925 that you both can use.

The wedding month is upon us and whether or not you’re going to take a chance and fly there, max your credit card out on gas to drive there, or just stay home, you’re going to need to buy a wedding gift. There are some great gadget gifts in all price ranges that will make any newlywed’s life more fun and fulfilling.

Gadgets That Capture Memories
Camcorders and cameras make great wedding gifts. A new camcorder should last a newly married couple well into the child rearing years. The latest crop of camcorders include some reasonably priced handheld camcorders and some consumer-friendly high definition camcorders that can fill the wide screen of an HDTV set.

The Canon Vixia HF10 has a 12X optical zoom with image stabilization and records to a flash memory card in AVCHD format. The Sony HDR-SR1 records 7 hours of 1080i video on a built-in hard disk and gets good ratings. Flip Video’s $179 Ultra took the camcorder market by storm with their very user-friendly flash-based camcorder that holds 1 hour of very good quality video and fits in your pocket or pocket book.

There are so many compact digital cameras to choose from the task of selecting a good camera for newlyweds can be difficult. We recommend features like optical image stabilization and face technology that make it easier to take good pictures. The Sony DSC-W170, is a fun new camera that performs some very cool image editing right on the camera. The "Smile Shutter" works with the face technology to detect "smiling" faces. The Canon SD1100 fits easily in a pocket or pocket book, offers 8 MP resolution, image stabilization and new face technology.

Digital Picture Frames
Just remember, you’re not losing a daughter or son….on second thought, just in case you do end up seeing less of them, there are a couple of ways you can stay in the picture and one of those is to literally put you and the rest of the family on a digital picture frame. Digital photo frames look great on a mantle or bookcase and won’t break the bank either. The Kodak SV1011 is a 10 inch digital photo frame that has built-in WiFi that can be used to manage the photos. The Pandigital PAN80-2 is an 8 inch 800 x 600 pixel frame that can store 128MB worth of images. You upload images using the card reader or USB connector.

Personal Navigation Devices (GPS)
Helping the newlyweds find their way in life may be more than should be expected from you however, a GPS for their car or outdoor adventures might be just the thing to help point them in the right direction. The Garmin nuvi 260 has text-to-speech (TTS) and a large 3.5 inch display and sells for under $300. The TomTom Go 920 is a popular GPS that has Bluetooth built-in for hands-free phone calls.

HDTV
HDTV sets are not cheap but they can be a very sensible gift in times of high travel costs when taking a vacation at home becomes more common. Don’t forget how great the Summer Olympics are going to look in high definition. If you can’t swing an HDTV set by yourself, get a few other friends and relatives together and buy the newlyweds their first HDTV set. The Syntax Olevia 747I is a 47 inch LCD TV that does 1080p and gets very high ratings and very good reviews. The 42 inch Vizio VU42LF, does 1080p and can be purchased for well under $1000.

Roomba Vacuum Cleaner
Some people treat these little creatures like pets. The iRobot Roomba 4150 is the entry level Roomba vacuuming robot but for less than $200 it could go a long way toward matrimonial bliss.

Gadget Gift Card
Why not let the newlyweds have the pleasure of selecting a gadget for themselves. Just get a gift card from your favorite gadget seller like amazon.com, Best Buy or Circuit City and let them pick out their own gadget.


The wedding month is upon us and whether or not you’re going to take a chance and fly there, max your credit card out on gas to drive there, or just stay home, you’re going to need to buy a wedding gift. There are some great gadget gifts like, camcorders, digital cameras, GPS, HDTV etc will make any newlywed’s life more fun and fulfilling.