07/04/2008
Gadget Guide for Honeymooners
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).
01:20 Posted in Gadgets | Permalink | Comments (0) | Email this | Tags: honeymoons, Camcorders, iPod Accessories, Gadgets
06/29/2008
Want Gifts for Gadget Savvy Newlyweds?
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.
22:30 Posted in Gadgets | Permalink | Comments (0) | Email this | Tags: Gadget Savvy Newlyweds, Gadgets, wedding, gadget gifts, Camcorders, digital cameras, Digital Picture Frames

