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A few good gadgets |
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By: Balaji Narasimhan |
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Date:
2008-12-23 |
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Place: Bangalore |
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If you want to give tech gifts, Balaji Narasimhan lists some offbeat goodies
 Sing in the rain
But remember to carry this umbrella around. The Pileus umbrella connects to the Internet and makes walking on rainy days fun. It has a large screen on the top surface, a built-in camera, a motion sensor, GPS, and a digital compass. It provides you with two main functions, namely social photo-sharing and a 3D map navigation feature. The photo function is connected to Flickr and you can take a photo with a camera on the umbrella, and upload pictures to Flickr within minutes with context tags via a wireless Internet connection. (pileus.net)
 Manage memories
Christmas is all about memories, so why not give a gift for archiving memories of days gone by? This film scanner has a 4-element glass lens, a 5 mega pixel CMOS CCD and can scan and preview an image in just 5 seconds. Now, you can get those old slides out of the storage box and store them on your PC for convenient access. (x-tremegeek.com)
 Listen to music on the move
If you have a laptop then the music you hear on its in-built speakers may not be to your satisfaction. May we suggest this USB speaker? It works on both PCs and Macs and delivers an output of 1 watt per channel. It weighs just 2.8 ounces and you will hardly notice that it is there, unless you really need it. (jlabaudio.com)
 Save the world
Not all of us can do a Batman, but we can also do our bit. One way you can save the world is by saving electricity and this gadget comes in handy. The Eco Button will dispatch your computer into a deep sleep like a digital Rip Van Winkle, waking up again as soon as you press any key. You just plug it into the USB port, download the software, and at the press of a button, your PC goes to sleep and then comes back when you press the button again. When in sleep mode, your PC draws a mere 1.8 watts of power, which is far less than normal standby. (firebox.com)
 Do a Harry Potter
This battery powered wand features a mini Van de Graaff generator inside. Push a button on the handle and the static charge built up in the wand causes the included 3D mylar shapes to levitate at your command. You can also do some cool tricks causing the shapes to jump back and forth from your hand to the wand. The product comes with three mylar shapes. (thinkgeek.com) |
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