2006 Holiday Gift Guide: Nintendo Wii

Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Features, Home Entertainment, Video Games, Family, Women, Men, Kids, Techies, Teens,

With Wii, Nintendo seems to be poised to be the talk of the videogame town once again. Wii (pronounced “wee”) doesn’t match up to the PLAYSTATION 3 or Xbox 360 in terms of processing power, but makes up for it by boasting the best library of classic games on the planet, along with what many consider to be the most user-friendly controller ever to grace a home console. The Wii Remote (or Wiimote as it’s affectionately known) has a built-in accelerometer that works with a sensor bar that sits above or below your television. It senses movement and tilt in three dimensions, and even has a speaker for audible feedback directly out of the controller itself along with force feedback. Throw in built-in WiFi, and you have a console that is ready to download classic games from the 80s and 90s, as well as interacting with other Wii owners around the globe.

Price: $249.99 (Compare Prices)

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2006 Holiday Gift Guide: Samsung BD-P1000

Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: HDTV, Home Entertainment, Movies, Family, Techies,

Alright, so if you want Blu-Ray playback this holiday season without the hassle of trying to find a PS3, then you are gonna want to look at the Samsung BD-P1000. This player delivers on all the promises of the Blu-Ray format, including great shadow detail, vibrant colors, and deep blacks. The sound is uncompressed and goes up to 7.1, and is fantastic. The BD-P1000 will also upscale standard DVDs as well as digital images to a high definition progressive scan signal. The bad side? Load times when you first pop in a Blu-Ray movie are a bit slow, averaging about 30 seconds. Still, this one supports 1080p outpout and has both component and HDMI outs - and for $1,000, it’s probably cheaper than you will find the PLAYSTATION 3 selling for on eBay.

Price: $999 (Compare Prices)

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2006 Holiday Gift Guide: Motorola Q

Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Smartphones, Handhelds, Men, Techies,

If you are looking for a full-fledged smartphone that lacks bulk, look the way of the Motorola Q. The Q packs in Bluetooth, a 1.3-megapoxel camera, and a QWERTY keyboard into a freaking thin 4.3 x 2.5 x 0.5-inch handset. The Motorola Q weighs just 4.1 ounces, so carrying this phone around is very comfy. The Q also sports a scroll wheel on the side, reminding us of the BlackBerry mainstay, and it works nicely on the Windows Mobile 5 OS. The screen is a 2.4-inch 320x240 display, but we wish the font size could be bumped down a few notches to fit more text without having to scroll. The Q can also do multimedia, which can be access on Verizon’s EV-DO network, or locally by packing your content onto a miniSD card.

You can watch our full Motorola Q video review for more information.

Price: $300 with two-year contract

Read More | HelloMoto

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2006 Holiday Gift Guide: Canon EOS 30D

Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Cameras, Features, Women, Men, Techies,

The 30D is an evolutionary upgrade from the EOS 20D and shares many of the same components/features such as the 8.19-megapixel CMOS sensor, shutter speed (1/8000), and autofocus system.  New to the 30D is the 2.5” LCD with a greatly increased viewing angle as compared to the 1.8” LCD on the 20D.  A deeper burst depth allows you to take more pictures in rapid succession before the camera writes to memory and is a welcome improvement when shooting in RAW mode.  ISO speed is now adjustable while looking through the viewfinder and should make shooting with changing light conditions a much easier task.

Price: $1,399 (Compare Prices)

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2006 Holiday Gift Guide: Toshiba Gigabeat MES30VW

Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Features, Music, Portable Audio / Video, Techies, Teens,

If you are a videophile and want a neat device you can use to watch video on the go, without breaking the bank, you may want to consider the Toshiba Gigabeat MES30VX. This Gigabeat packs 30 GB of hard drive space into a package that is a bit smaller and lighter than the standard iPod. While the screen is only 320x240 resolution, the colors, tone, and lighting are spot on. The Gigabeat MES30VX screen is the man when it comes to accurate video representation. Of course, it does all the usual stuff as well, that being playing digital audio (it’s Urge compatible) and the like. Even better though, it’s compatible with TiVo To Go out of the box, as well as the Vongo video service, which means you have your video hook-up here as well - the total package.

Price: $220 (Compare Prices)

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2006 Holiday Gift Guide: Casio Exilim EX-Z700

Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Cameras, Features, Family, Techies,

If you are looking for a good pocket camera, the Casio Exilim EX-Z700 should be your hook-up. This 7.2 megapixel bad boy is packed with features that are usable and welcome by just about anyone. We are talking about features like fantastic battery life that allows for up for 460 shots on one charge, along with a whopping 37 scene mode presets. The design is sturdy, and the LCD display is a fantastic wide-screen 2.8-inches. The camera is available in three colors - blue, red, and silver.

Price: $280 (Compare Prices)

Read More | Exilim EX-Z700 Product Page

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2006 Holiday Gift Guide: BlackBerry Pearl 8100

Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Smartphones, Handhelds, Men, Techies, Teens,

BlackBerry has gone mainstream with the BlackBerry Pearl 8100. Much more than a business-level messaging device, the Pearl 8100 packs in a 1.3-megapixel camera, vibrant 320x240 display, and MP3 support. The abridged QWERTY keypad allows you to type messages quicker than you would using standard T9, and also keeps the phone as thin as any other cell phone out there, with dimensions of 4.2 x 2 x 0.6-inches. The BlackBerry Pearl 8100 throws away the scroll wheel, and instead uses the Pearl-esque scroll ball in the center of the device. Throw in EDGE support, and you have a winner.

Price: $199 with two-year contract

Read More | BlackBerry Pearl Product Page

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