Monday, January 05, 2009

NINE MOST AWAITED GADGETS AND GIZMOS OF 2009

John Sarkar, January 4, 2009
The Economic Times

MacBook Pro: It’s a bit heavy. But Apple lovers wouldn’t mind. At around 2kg and Rs 1 lakh, Apple’s new MacBook Pro is a sturdy step up from its predecessors. The concept of many parts has been with just one.

That one part is called the unibody — a seamless enclosure carved from a single piece of aluminum. And then, the Pro boasts also of small details such as the multi-track touch pad that make computing not only look but feel good as well.
Price: Rs 1 lakh

PSP 3000: So, you are a big kid now. Well, we have the right toy for you and it doesn’t cost the earth. At around Rs 9500, Sony’s PSP 3000 is a steal for gaming fanatics.

The new version boasts of a web cam, Internet access and a microphone. And oh, you can play games on it too!
Price: Rs 9,500

Blackberry Storm: Remember Terminator 2? In the sci-fi blockbuster, a liquidmetal T-1000 was sent from the future to bash up the ‘real terminator’ played by Arnold Schwarzenegger.

Well, this time we have a new T-1000, the Storm, which is a new touch screen phone from Blackberry. It is all set to challenge the iPhone’s supremacy. The device offers extensive contact and scheduling applications, Wi-Fi access and the ability to add 16GB of storage with an SD card. Now, shall we call it — the Clash Of The Titans?
Price on request

IWC Pilot’s Watch: It’s probably the gadget that everyone needs. And, of course for some, it goes much beyond that. If you have been craving for a watch, which is classy, yet minimalist, the Rs 9 lakh IWC Schaffhausen’s Pilot Watch seamlessly fits the bill.

This mother of all IWC pilot’s watches has the dial of the original, a small seconds hand and a bi-directional adjustable rotating ring with the luminous triangle fitted from the inside. So, go ahead, spend some quality time.
Price: Rs 9 lakh

HTC-Dream: Here’s another mobile handset to look out for. One of the first phones to use Google’s Android platform, the HTC-Dream has a QWERTY keyboard, touch screen functionality, various Android market applications …blah, blah. And, it looks good too.
Price on request

Sony’s OLED TV: Okay. So you think you have seen it all. Or have you? 2009 might well turn out to be the year of the OLED (organic light emitting diode). OLED’s advantage over traditional LCDs is that it does not require a backlight to function. Hence, it draws far less power and can be much thinner than LCD panels.

And at only 11 inches, Sony’s XEL-1 is the only available OLED TV in the world. Sony says it will launch a 27-incher by May this year. Will it find it’s way here? Keep your eyes peeled.
Price on request

BeoSound 5: This one is for the thoroughbred audiophile. Bang & Olufsen, the Danish manufacturer of high-end audio and video products, will be launching BeoSound 5, a high-IQ digital media system.

At around Rs 3.5 lakh, it runs on MOTS (an algorithm meaning ‘more of the same’ ). So, whenever you start playing your music on BeoSound 5, MOTS automatically scans your library and finds similar tracks based on parameters such as rhythm, syncopation and key tonality and not just genre or mood tags. And you don’t pay extra for lossless music and a sensual design.
Price: Rs 3.5 lakh

Philips CinemaOne: It’s smaller than a basketball, but is big on convergence. It fits in an iPod dock, a five-channel amp, six speakers and a subwoofer into its 10.75-inches across and 6.75 high frame.

The Philips CinemaOne is one of the tiniest home theatre systems around. Its DVD player can cope with DivX, MPEG-4 and WMV, and upscales to 1080p over HDMI and the CD player can read MP3 discs, and it’s got an USB-in too.
Price on request

non EOS-1 Ds Mark III: Special moments come and go with the blink of an eye. But if you want to hold on to a few, here is what you have to do.

Gift a friend that delicate ultra slim digicam that you carry around. Soak in the surprise on his face. And then, go to the nearest Canon shop to pick up the latest EOS-1 Ds Mark III. Be prepared to shell out a small fortune (Rs 3.99 lakh) for this 21.1 mp digital SLR. This is Canon’s 7th EOS-ID series DSLR and can shoot up to 5 frames per second. Now, try and say cheese real fast!
Price: Rs 3.99 lakh

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