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YOU'VE GOT techno-lust. You want to be the first to have the hottest technology, the kind that makes coworkers 'oooh' and 'aahhh.' To find the most desirable stuff, though, you […]

IF YOU'RE SMART, you'll consider insuring your brand-new smartphone. Yes, we bristle at the thought of insuring any consumer electronics--the result of too many sales clerks pitching us on extended [...]

Google With rapid, germane results to queries, Google (www.google.com) wins again as our favorite search engine. Whether you search for 'Nantucket salt grinder' to find a mate for your pepper […]

YOU NEED copies of an important report--now. You've sweated the content, but you don't have a cover or a snazzy binding to boost the look. No time to schlep to […]

LOOK FOR AN upgrade of Sun Microsystems' StarOffice this summer. The software suite, Sun's alternative to Microsoft Office, is free and supports Windows 9x and 2000, OS/2 Linux, and Sun's […]

TAKE TOTAL control of your TV with personal digital TV recorders, now equipped with improved show-selection features and more memory than earlier incarnations possessed. These so-called hard disk recorders--basically hard […]

YOUR BACK ROOM is bursting and your closets are crammed with last century's laptops, predigital camera equipment, or printers past their prime. In the back of your mind, you see […]

IF YOUR WORK area and living space are essentially the same (think efficiency apartment or workaholic office), then you're the perfect candidate for a new breed of monitors: LCD TVs. […]

Get more people to 'Like' your Facebook page, and you'll increase your influence as well as your ability to spread your message. Here are some tips for gaining followers. 1 [...]

It's easy to fix your Windows and monitor settings to make documents, spreadsheets, and photo-editing programs more readable. One simple way to make on-screen content larger in all versions of [...]

DO YOU KNOW who you're buying from when you are on one of the Internet's large shopping sites? Vast marketplace sites like Amazon.com, Buy.com, and Sears.com let you view millions [...]

WHEN I MOVED into my current house, I inherited a 15-foot-tall apple tree. Having free fruit was nice, but T needed a tart ladder to pick the crop. So I [...]

AS I WAS spring-cleaning my home office recently, I came across a cardboard box Labeled 'Celt Phones of the Last Decade.' As an experiment, I punched the model numbers of [...]

BACK IN 2006 I was fascinated (and a little jealous) when I read that shoppers in Japan could pay for a soda by waving their cell phone at a vending [...]

TECHNOLOGY GIVES US many ways to stay connected. Here are three interesting variations: free Internet video calls, a cell phone with keyboard, and better instant messaging. --Anne B. McDonald, Senior […]

YOUR DECEMBER ISSUE looked at the Windows XP Media Center 2005 operating system ['New Media Center as Plays Well,' News and Trends]. People who have Media Center 2004 may assume […]

YOU THINK YOUR new car is festooned with information-seeking sensors? Imagine this: sensor modules, each the size of a speck of dust, that are networked together wirelessly to relay information. […]

TEST Center TRICKED OUT with a gorgeous 23-inch high-definition LCD monitor, Hewlett-Packard's Media Center M1050y is a dream system. Unfortunately, the price is a bit of a nightmare: $4900. But […]

STORES SHOULD BE STOCKING the next photographic fancy by the time you read this: 7-megapixel digital cameras. In the midrange, for instance, Sony will ship its 1-inch-thick Cyber-shot DSC-P150, a […]

HEAVEN KNOWS, we'll all be grateful for any camera improvement that produces a higher-quality photograph of us with food between our teeth at family picnics. And here it is. Look […]

IN CREATING ITS stylish new 610XL Media Center PC, Gateway assembled an attractive all-in-one PC with a host of goodies, including a TV tuner and Microsoft's Windows XP Media Center […]

A HANDFUL OF SITES specialize in supplying Asia-only electronics and gadgets to customers around the world. Make sure that you fully understand a site's warranty, shipping, and return policies before […]

IF YOU EMPLOY a variety of electronic devices in a variety of places, Targus's $130 Universal AC/DC Notebook Power Adapter might help to streamline your travel. It's one of the […]

IF TINY CELL PHONES are the Corvettes of mobile communications, I've been cruising in a big, cushy Cadillac while using T-Mobile's Pocket PC Phone Edition handheld (manufactured by High Tech […]

It's hard to imagine cleaning up a messy desk by putting one more thing on it, but that could happen with Fujitsu's useful and innovative ScanSnap colour scanner. At the […]

IT'S HARD TO imagine cleaning up a messy desk by putting one more thing on it, but that could happen with Fujitsu's useful and innovative ScanSnap color scanner. At the […]

DO YOU EVER have the right USB device but the wrong USB connector? You can get around that with JDI Technologies' GoldX 5 in 1 Quick-Connect USB Cable package. A […]

THERE'S A HOT new contender in the push toward comfortable-size, all-in-one wireless PDAs that let you efficiently store contact and calendar information, make phone calls, and access Internet services. T-Mobile's […]

TIRED OF PECKING at your PDA with a little plastic stick? Find it hard to juggle a stylus and a pen at the same time? A.T. Cross is now shipping […]

WANT TO SPEND face time with friends, relatives, or business contacts but just can't do it in person? Look into Talkway Communications' nifty video e-mail service. You need the company's […]

TIRED OF USING multiple remotes to get your home theater system fired up? Check out Intrigue Technologies' new universal controller, the Harmony Internet Powered Universal Remote. It's programmable from a […]

DID YOU EVER wish that you could fold up a PC keyboard and tuck it into a laptop case? Are you prone to dribbling food and drink on your Ps […]

Focuses on the leadership of Japan when it comes to technological innovations. Examples of electronic gadgets from Japan such as the VAIO PCG-X505 notebook computer from Sony and the A5403CA mobile phone from Casio; Outlook of analyst Rob Enderle on the Asian technology market for 2004; Reasons that so many innovative products appear in Japan first.

This article evaluates several enhanced and speed-boosted 802.11g devices: AirStation 125 High-Speed Mode Wireless Cable/DSL Router with AOSS from Buffalo Technology; Linksys Wireless-G Router with Speed Booster from Cisco Systems; and AirPlus XtremeG DI-624 from D-Link Systems. The second generation of 802.11g promises speeds of 108 to 125 megabytes per second (mbps). The high-speed wireless mode is non-standard: in order to get the promised speed increases, the user have to utilize both cards and routers that have the same type of speed-boosting technology, currently selling in two competing variants: 108 and 125 mbps. Though all these devices are certified Wi-Fi G compatible that simply means they will perform in the standard 54-mbps 802.11g mode with G cards and routers from other vendors. Super G has been criticized in the past for using so much of the Wireless Fidelity band that other networks in the vicinity, which normally would seek out and use non-overlapping channels to avoid interference problems, could be affected. Users should probably not be buying these routers in the first place. When reliable and compatible Wireless Fidelity service for typical broadband connections are needed, an inexpensive 802.11g router will provide all the speed required.

This article evaluates three video Instant Messaging (IM) services: SightSpeed Video Messenger; Clique Video Messenger from NetGen Video; and VideoCall from Logitech. Using Logitech QuickCam Orbit Webcams, a computer running Windows 2000, and a notebook with XP Professional--all three fee-based services worked not only through a corporate firewall, but also with a home-networked user. The largest distraction involved in using video IM is the delay between voice and picture. The test participants freely interjected comments and were able to interrupt one another on this broadband-only service. Text messaging appears underneath the video window. SightSpeed Video Messenger has excellent voice sync and short turnaround time. SightSpeed also installed a technical support contact. When using dial-up, Clique Video Messenger is the only option among the three services. The company strongly recommends a broadband connection for its Video Chat feature. Upon testing Clique over broadband, it delivered decent video quality at different image sizes. Clique's standout feature is its recorded click-to-send Video Instant Messages. Logitech's VideoCall has a telephone-like ring tone that alerts the user of an incoming call, and the photograph address book on the interface's right side.

Evaluates two desktop computers. Mach V FX-53 from Falcon Northwest; Poly900NF3-FX53 from Polywell.

Evaluates the graphics chips developed by ATI and NVidia in the U.S. Features of the chips; Ability of the chips to handle very demanding games; Result of tests done on the chips.

Introduces three personal digital assistants (PDAs) from Palm Inc. Tungsten E; Tungsten T3; Zire 21; Features of the PDAs; Price; Description of the designs of the PDAs; Enhancements of the models from previous PDAs.

Evaluates several personal digital assistants. Pocket PC E755 from Toshiba; Tungsten C from Palm; Zire 71 from Palm.

Evaluates several digital cameras. Optio S from Pentax; PowerShot from S400 from Canon; Exilim EX-Z3 from Casio. INSETS: Untitled;Small Cameras Measure Up.

Features the Airpanel V110 Smart Display wireless monitor-type device. Price; Conveniences of the device; Value of the optional docking stations.

Evaluates three miniature digital cameras from various manufacturers. Canon PowerShot S230 Digital Elph; Fujifilm FinePix F402; Sony Cyber-shot DSC-U20; Shape and style; Key specifications and price; Ease of use; Quality of pictures.

Evaluates Internet browsers. Quality of the Mozilla 1 from Mozilla.org; Features of the Netscape 7 Preview Release 1 from Netscape; Price for the RapidBrowser XP from RapidMedia Networks.

Features products that integrate keyboard and cellular phone while boasting attractive color screens. Audiovox Thera Pocket PC; Treo 270; Prices; Contact information.

Evaluates two DVD recordable drives. Sony DRU-120A; Hewlett-Packard (HP) Dvd200i DVD+RW/+R; Features; Costs; Recommendations.

Reviews several personal digital assistants that make use of color screens. Sony Clié PEG-T615C; Palm M130; Palm M515; Features; Cost.

Reviews three so-called remote-control computer software programs. WinVNC 3.3.3r9 from AT&T; Timbuktu Pro for Windows 4.5 from Netopia; PCAnywhere 10.5 from Symantec; Features and prices.