The Digital Holiday Shopping List

What I Want

These Room-Rattling Speakers Speak to Me

The 10-inch subwoofer on this outstanding audio system can shake a room like an earthquake during a thunderstorm; but even so, it's the little details of Logitech's $399 Z-5500 5.1 speaker set that really impress me. The speaker stands rotate for easy mounting on a wall or placement on a desk, and the sensibly designed digital control center enables me to connect a PC and three other devices simultaneously. In short, these babies look good, work better, and sound great. I want them--now.

Eric Dahl, Senior Associate Editor

An Oversize Flat Screen for Any Wall

I didn't want to spend a megafortune on one of those sexy 50-inch flat-screen TVs, so I waited. And at last my patience has been rewarded: All I'll have to do is remove the family pictures from my living room wall, and I'll be ready for Epson's $1299 PowerLite Home 10+ projector to serve as my big-screen alternative. The PowerLite projects a nearly 7-foot picture from 6 feet away. I can plug a DVD player, TV, video game system, or whatever into one of the ports on the back, sit back with the couch-potato pocket remote, and enjoy a huge, sharp image for a fraction of the price of a plasma TV. The only way Epson could have made this package better would be by including a universal remote. Now I just need to figure out where I can find a place to hang my pictures.

Michael Lasky, Senior Editor

An Antidote for Bad Airplane Movies

Toshiba's $540 SD-P2600 portable DVD player is like a miniature movie theater. The player is svelte, but its roomy 8.9-inch LCD produces rich, wide-screen, high-resolution images--bigger than you get on an airplane's puny screen. The wide viewing angle makes enjoying this player a family affair: At least three people can watch simultaneously. Even better, the SD-P2600's integrated stereo speakers pump out rousing 3D audio.

Melissa Perenson, Associate Editor