Double Click
Treats for Techies
From digital cameras to drop proof laptops and trendy iPods, the electronics aisles present endless options for the technology-savvy individuals on your gift list.
FROM:
NOV-DEC 2004 ISSUE | BY
G. WYNNE POWELL
The wonderful world of digital technology offers some unusual choices for gifts this holiday season. While some items are simple to use, others can seem like
a challenge to one's intelligence. And there are those that are not for the
faint-hearted spender. Whichever choice you make, the products that follow are sure to be gratefully received.
Digital TVs
TV sets are changing rapidly, as the traditional tube TV is replaced by Liquid Crystal Display (LCD) and Plasma technologies which feature the ultimate image standard. When Plasma TVs were introduced years ago, their life-span was expected to be shorter than that of a traditional TV. Today, the life expectancy of Plasma TVs has reached
60,000-plus viewing hours, more than twice as long as a tube-based product. Plasma technology works best for screen sizes 37" and larger, and prefers a darker room. Plasma imaging is best for
long-term viewing uses such as movies.
Meanwhile, LCD technology is ideal for TV viewing, with the best viewing angle at less than
170 degrees from side to side. Contrast ratio is the feature that confirms the screen's ability to deliver sparkling whites to deep,
detail-rich blacks — the higher the ratio, the better the performance. LCD products work best in bright rooms and deliver, on average, a contrast ratio of 500 to 1, as compared to Plasma products that deliver 3,000 or 4,000 to 1.
A great choice in LCD TVs is the Toshiba 32" flat screen, available for approximately $4,000. Then again, any TV buff would be ecstatic to receive a Panasonic 42"
HDTV-ready Plasma TV for around $7,000. Super large 50" screens are also available...a real treat! At the budget-conscious end of the spectrum, consider a Bell ExpressVu High Definition satellite system that also includes
5.1 Dolby stunning sound quality — all for just $399.
Sony has released a "location free" 12" LCD TV screen that can be used around the world. At home, you plug a base station into your TV source, DVD or VCR player, video camera, or audio source. The base station then broadcasts images to the
five-pound screen using radio frequency technology. On the road, you simply plug the screen into any
high-speed Internet service to access images from the base station.
Just think, you could sell your boss on this as a business expense, since on the road you can hook up to all the corporate presentations; then after work you could surf the Internet or select a movie from your base station thousands of miles away. Exciting, different, and definitely a
five-star gift choice — expect to pay around $2,500 or $1,600 for a 7" model.
Funky Gifts for Travellers
The pocket-sized RCA Lyar RD2780 virtual VCR/Jukebox provides up to
80 hours of
pre-recorded TV shows, films, or home videos shown on an LCD screen. It will display all JPEG images. The price for this little gem is about $700.
The Apple iPod still reigns as the most popular electronic gift for the mobile music lover. At a cost of $440 to $560, this gift offers the experience of listening to an entire collection of music or more than 5,000 audio books. As accountants, we can probably rationalize this special gift as a
write-off, since the iPod will store up to 40 gigabytes of Word documents, PowerPoint presentations, Excel spreadsheets, digital photo files, client contact information, and more.
Another five-star gift is the new Toshiba notebook computer, Qosmio (pronounced
cos-mio), which combines traditional functionality with a built-in television tuner, TV quality display, DVD drive, Harmon Kardon speakers, and proprietary quick startup software. This superb gift will allow standard computer work to continue while recording TV shows, and will set you back around $3,000.
For that road warrior executive, a special gift would be the Toughbook notebook computer from Panasonic. A sleek magnesium alloy case cradles this robust and full function computer that can withstand up to a 30cm drop without operation failure. Cost is about $2,800.
Digital Cameras
The all-new Canon G6 digital camera at $899 features both VGA movies and image-popping 7.1 megabit files for great prints. The camera features a 2" LCD
built-in viewing monitor. In the same price range is Sony's new V3 with a superb Zeiss zoom lens combined with Sony's best imaging technology, including a
7.1 mega pixel large file size. A 2.5" LCD screen allows the user to see the images while shooting.
For the ultimate in digital photography, choose the Nikon D70 SLR camera. It allows you to use standard Nikon lenses, producing a 6.1 megabyte noise-reduced file for pictures that rival most film cameras. The D70 SLR body with a Nikon zoom lens will cost you about $1,900. Alternatively, an excellent budget-minded choice is the all weather Olympus Stylus Verve, which offers four mega pixel files and Quicktime movies for approximately $470.
A great gift idea for digital camera users is a colour monitor calibrator system from Pantone. At a cost of $159 to $379, the system helps users match the image on their computer monitor to the exact colour and density provided by their photo quality printer.
Digital Printers
As for printers, the Epson PictureMate is an easy-to-use 4" x 6" printer that costs just $279. A step up is the Epson Stylus Photo RX600, which at $499 provides a 2.5" LCD preview monitor for photo viewing and editing. Six colour inks provide up to 5760 x 1440 dots per inch image quality. This printer also doubles as a scanner and copier.
Deep blacks are a reality with the Epson 2200, which features seven individual ink cartridges and 2880 x 1440 dots per inch archival quality photo prints. Cost is about $1,000. But for stunning quality, purchase the printer gift of the decade — the
Epson 4000, which produces 17" wide photographic prints. Price is about $2,500.
For last minute stocking stuffers, consider memory cards. Starting under $100, the Sandisk Ultra series features blazing fast write speeds of up to
nine megabytes per second. So if you're ready to spend, stimulating gifts are available for all the technophiles on your gift list... or, you may even choose to treat yourself!
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G. Wynne Powell, D.Tech. (Hon), FCGA, is President and COO of London Drugs Limited, a chain of drug stores in B.C., Alberta, Saskatchewan, and Manitoba, and President of
TLD Computers Inc., which specializes in
high-end PC networks and custom programming services. He also chaired the
B.C. Institute of Technology from 1989 to 1995.
"Double Click" is co-ordinated by
John W. Yu, M.Sc., CDP, FCGA. Yu has been in the IT industry since 1970 in a broad range of roles in technology and in management. He is
vice-president, Information Technology, at
CGA-Canada.