Mobile Computing: Gadget Gifts

By James A. Martin, PCWorld Dec 9, 2004 1:00 AM

Mobile Computing News, Reviews, & Tips

PDA Reviews: The Tungsten T5 and the Axim X50v

PalmOne's Tungsten T5 ($400) and Dell's Axim X50v ($499) are among the latest PDAs to hit the market. Each of them offers a little something extra, says PC World's PDA pundit, Yardena Arar.

The Tungsten T5's big selling point is its 256MB of memory--the most we've seen on a PDA so far. Best of all, the memory is nonvolatile: If the PDA loses its charge, you won't lose your data. The PDA can act as a USB drive, too.

The Axim X50v excels in multimedia. As one of the first mainstream PDAs with a dedicated graphics processor and Windows Media Player Mobile 10, Dell's new PDA is destined to hit the holiday wish lists of gamers and multimedia fans. The X50v delivers top performance, expansion, and connectivity in a sleek package, further bolstering Dell's growing reputation for offering the most PDA bang for the buck.

For more details, read "First Look: Axim X50v Versus Tungsten T5."

Gadget News: Apple's Photo IPod

Apple's latest IPod sports a 220-by-176-pixel color screen that displays photos in 65,536 colors. The IPod Photo is available in 40GB ($499) or 60GB ($599) storage capacities. You can view 25 color photo thumbnails at once and scroll through photos just as you do your playlists. If you use Windows, you can synchronize photo albums created in Adobe Photoshop Elements, Adobe Photoshop Album, or your "My Pictures" folder with the IPod Photo. An included AV cable connects the IPod Photo directly to a TV or video projector. The device formats the photos depending on whether your video monitor uses the conventional 4:3 aspect ratio or the 16:9 format of newer wide-screen displays.

Gadget News: Gateway's Photo/MP3 Player

Not to be outdone by Apple, Gateway has also announced an MP3 player that can display digital photos. The Gateway MP3 Photo Jukebox ($250) features a 1.6-inch color LCD that displays digital photos stored on a 4GB hard drive. Unlike the IPod Photo, Gateway's gadget has a USB 2.0 port that allows the MP3 player to store images transferred from digital cameras. The player supports Microsoft's Windows Media Player 10 secure music format, so you can download files from Napster, Musicmatch, MusicNow, and other services that use the Windows Media Player 10 format to distribute media files with digital rights management.

Gadget News: First Audio Player With 100GB of Storage

Digital Mind's Xclef 500 has a 40GB, 60GB, 80GB, or 100GB hard drive built in--the latter offering the most storage of any digital music player, the company claims. (Not even many notebooks have 100GB hard drives yet.) The Xclef 500 connects to your computer via USB 2.0 and accepts input from a built-in mic, line-in audio connector, and S/PDIF optical mini plug. The device also supports MP3 encoding, voice recording, FM radio, recording capability, and more, according to the company.

Accessory Review: Take Your IPod Underwater

Here's a gift idea that might surprise you: the LiliPod ($40), a hard-shell, waterproof case for IPods. Pop the top; drop in your IPod; connect some waterproof earplugs; clip the LiliPod to your bathing suit; and you're soon freestyling to your favorite tunes.

Despite my apprehension of testing the LiliPod with my own IPod, I found not one drop of water on my MP3 player after a lap-swimming session. Read "IPod Anywhere" for more about the LiliPod, and for reviews of other IPod accessories that I tested.

Hands On: Ogo to Go

And finally, one more gadget gift idea, this one from Cingular/AT&T Wireless.

The wireless carrier's Ogo, a dedicated e-mail/IM/SMS device, costs only $99. Unlimited e-mail is only $18 per month. You can check e-mail from AOL, MSN, Yahoo and other ISP's POP3 services. The Ogo's stylish clamshell case opens to reveal a small QWERTY keyboard, a navigation pad, and a low-end color screen, reports PC World's Steve "Plugged In" Fox.

Read Steve's latest buzzworthy product reports in "100GB Laptops and Other Tech Toys."