Consumers tighten belts, but good deals abound for tech gifts

By Omar L. Gallaga

Cox News Service

Santa Claus laid off 10 percent of his elfin staff this month. The jingle bell industry is seeking a government bailout. Fannie Mae can only afford to buy a pack of tube socks for Freddie Mac this year.

If the economic downturn has put a damper on holiday enthusiasm for ’08, think what this shopping season will be like for electronics retailers. Circuit City recently declared bankruptcy, and things aren’t looking much better for other sellers of gadgets and flat-screens as customers keep their belts tightened. Consumer Reports found in a recent survey that 76 percent of Americans plan to cut back on holiday spending this year.

But that doesn’t mean there aren’t good deals to be found this year on tech gifts. We combed through the list of offerings this year with an eye toward saving: nothing costs more than $300 (except for one laptop). Nothing too extravagant. All are good values for these tight times.

$50 and less

Heard of Neopets? Don’t worry. Your kids have. The toys, which tie into a vibrant virtual world, are kid-safe and super popular. The Neopets Faerieland Playset includes Neopet and Petpet figures as well as accessories, a virtual prize code and the playset itself, representing part of the online world of Neopia. $20, www.shop.nickjr.com

Confession: Some of us parents have become addicted to a certain animated show featuring an operetta-singing trio of animal rescuers. It’s called “Wonder Pets,” and let’s just say it burrows into your brain until there’s room for little else. One of the characters, a spirited duckling, is represented in a talking Ming-Ming plush doll that speaks, sings and dances. As Ming-Ming would say, “This is sewious!” $35, www.fisher-price.com

For those who switch computers a lot and don’t want to deal with multiple music libraries, Aluratek’s Internet Radio Jukebox is a simple way to get access to a lot of music on the go. It plugs into a Windows PC’s USB port and offers access to more than 13,000 radio stations in more than 30 countries with no monthly fee. No hassle, just lots of broadcasts. $39, www.aluratek.com

3M’s Mobile Privacy Film is a simple but clever idea: Stick it on your BlackBerry screen and anyone sitting next to you won’t be able to see what’s on your screen. The film also reduces glare and protects the screen. It’s available in one size that can be cut to fit nearly any cell phone or handheld device. It’s great for frequent travelers who don’t like wandering eyes spying their precious private data. $10, www.3M.com

Audio-Technica has made an effort this year to introduce electronics designed for women. Among them are the ATH-CK1W In-Ear Headphones. The stylish earbuds that are a step up from the cheapy sets that come with iPods and are available in alluring colors. They can be stored in the cute carrying case included with the headphones. $50, www.audio-technica.com

For those who are over the frequent stops at the post office the holidays sometimes bring, PictureItPostage will save a few trips. Upload a photo, logo or illustration, order the amount of postage you need and receive custom-made postage labels. Prices start at $19, including the postage price and shipping of the labels. Turnaround takes about seven to 10 days. $19 and up, www.pictureitpostage.com

There’s nothing sexy about surge protectors, but they’re a practical gift for anyone’s who’s made a significant investment in a home theater setup that could be endangered by a bad lightning storm. Ultralink’s UltraPower PS-103 is modestly priced and small enough to stash behind a wall-mounted flat-screen TV. $50, www.ultralinkcables.com

BodyGuardz Skins have one simple goal: to protect your iPhone (or other portable device) from scratches without all the bulk that some of those silly silicone cases add. They’re available for laptops, digital cameras, cell phones and music players at a variety of prices. Stick them on and rest easy. $25 for two iPhone BodyGuardz, front and back. www.bodyguardz.com

Hunting for a wall outlet to charge a dying phone or music player is no fun (especially if you’re out camping). The Medis 24/7 Power Pack is a disposable fuel cell that can provide emergency power for a variety of electronics. The Starter Kit includes a fuel cell, charging cable and several tips that allow it to connect to different devices. $34, www.savenna.com

Kids can take family digital photos with them wherever they go with Dora the Explorer and Go, Diego, Go! Digital Photo Viewers. The small toys each carry up to 100 photos and display them on a 1.1-inch color screen. The screen swings into a protective carrying case and can clip on to a backpack. Snappy! $20, www.shop.nickjr.com

Wanna cut the phone company cord? The magicJack is a tiny accessory that plugs into your PC or Mac’s USB port and provides unlimited long-distance calling for $20 a year. Sound too good to be true? The device doesn’t work on calls to foreign countries other than Canada and requires your computer to be turned on to receive calls. But it’s still cheap and easy to set up. $40 for the device and first year of service. www.magicjack.com

There are devices that combine a VCR with an interface to connect to a computer for backing up old tapes to new digital formats, but a much cheaper way to do the same thing is Pinnacle’s Dazzle DVD Recorder. The hardware can accept audio and video connections from a variety of camcorders and VCRs and can convert those old memories to DVDs or files you can watch on your computer, your iPod or on practically any other screen. $50, www.pinnaclesys.com

$60 to $120

Make the seemingly endless trip through airport security lines go a little faster with the Targus Zip-Thru Air Traveler case, a checkpoint-friendly laptop bag that eliminates the need to remove your computer from the carrier. The case isolates the laptop to one side, allowing for quick, clear X-ray scanning. $80, www.targus.com

PC cables ain’t pretty, especially when they’re strewn around a desk connecting USB docks, iPod cradles and other peripherals. You can eliminate some of the clutter with Griffin’s Simplifi, which combines an iPod/iPhone dock, a two-port USB hub and a memory card reader. Best of all, it doesn’t look like it came from the Planet Uglified. $79, www.griffintechnology.com

The Epson NX400 is an insatiable paper pet. It wants only to earn your affection by scanning, copying and printing (at up to 34 pages per minute) all of your documents. The all-in-one printer includes a 2.5-inch LCD screen so you can see pictures you want to print via its built-in memory slots. $100, www.epson.com

Toy worlds collide in the Nerf N-Strike, a package that includes a Switch Shot EX-3 foam-dart-blasting gun, which also doubles as a gun peripheral for the Nintendo Wii. The bundled Nerf-themed game takes up to four players through a variety of top-secret government locations, or something like that. Honestly, our brain stopped working when we heard “Nerf” and “Wii” in the same sentence. Wow! $60, www.hasbro.com

There’s nothing shameful about loving “High School Musical” or “Camp Rock” (at least not in the privacy of your home). Belt out the tunes in “Disney Sing It,” a karaoke game that includes a microphone. Use it to warble through 35 tunes from a variety of Disney stars and shows. $50-$60, available for the Nintendo Wii, PlayStation 2 and PlayStation 3, Xbox 360 and Windows PCs

If you’re gifting a hard-core Mac user, it’s safe to assume they value style and aesthetics over rock-bottom pricing, so why not splurge on a beautiful cordless keyboard, the Logitech diNovo, Mac Edition. The semi-translucent Plexiglass frame is lovely to behold and it has shortcut keys for popular Mac apps. $100, www.logitech.com

Hideous or hideously awesome? That is the question for the questionably tasteful Gene Simmons Axe guitar controller, a virtual shred machine (and, perhaps, vegetable slicer) that works with popular rhythm video games such as “Guitar Hero: World Tour” and “Rock Band 2.” Does it trigger your gag reflex? It’s safe to say Simmons would be proud. $80, www.hipstreetonline.com

Aerielle’s i2i Stream eliminates speaker cables by allowing you to wirelessly stream music from any audio source to another part of the domicile (within 30 feet) without any loss of audio quality. It plays nice with MP3 players, computer audio or home entertainment systems. $120, www.i2igear.com

 

$130 and up

In general, Bluetooth headsets are crimes against fashion. The Zivio Boom, on the other hand (or ear, rather), is sleek and sexy, offering 10 hours of talk time and an extendable microphone purported to increase sound quality. $130, www.myzivio.com

Worth it? The Zivio is priced much higher than bargain Bluetooth earpieces, but is priced comparably to other high-end sets such as the Aliph Jawbone. If fashion’s important, the Zivio is expensive, but justifiable.

$150 for a camera bag seems wasteful in these downsized times, but the Seattle Sling Bag is a camera pack for photographers who may find themselves in rough waters. The zipperless bag is completely waterproof and can even protect the camera bodies and lenses inside while completely submerged. $150, www.cameraarmor.com

Worth it? Only for the most adventurous of photographers, who will appreciate its high-tech protection.

Last year, digital picture frames were a hot holiday item, but many of them had grainy low-resolution screens and had frames that were not very pleasing to the eye. The Cagic 8 Picture Frame combines European styling with high-end features. Instead of sporting buttons on the back or a touch screen, the touch-sensitive matte frame itself controls the Cagic device. It also includes a 1-gigabyte SD memory card. $180, www.cagic.com

Worth it? The Cagic 8’s 8.4-inch screen is a little on the small side compared to comparably priced frames and we’re troubled that it lacks Wi-Fi connectivity, an increasingly common feature in other digital frames. Still, the Cagic is quite a looker and we love the touch controls.

Canon’s PowerShot A1000 IS continues the company’s streak of powerful point-and-shoot digital cameras that also shoot surprisingly good video, perfect for YouTube-ing. The A1000 IS features 10.0-megapixel resolution and has a 4x optical zoom. It also is available in four two-tone colors: gray, blue, brown and purple. $200, www.usa.canon.com

Worth it? There are cheaper digital point-and-shoots, but for those who want to capture video as well, the PowerShot is a great choice at $200. I use an older PowerShot camera to shoot videos for Statesman.com and Austin360.com.

Vinyl can speak to iPod with Sony’s USB Turntable PS-LX300USB. The turntable can convert 33 1/3 and 45 RPM albums to MP3 and can play music through your audio system without a Phono Input. It also includes a dust cover. $150, www.sonystyle.com

Worth it? Only if the gift recipient has a large enough vinyl collection to justify the price or plans to listen to lots of LPs with the player.

All those music files, videos and increasingly large family digital photos aren’t going to just back themselves up. Protect your data with Seagate’s FreeAgent XTreme Drive, a nice-looking desktop storage solution that can be scheduled to perform automatic backups. It has USB, Firewire 400 and eSATA connections, allowing it to expand storage on some DVRs. $160 to $300 in sizes ranging from 500 GB to 1.5 terabytes, http://freeagent.seagate.com

Worth it? Absolutely, for anyone who doesn’t regularly back up their files.

The Flip video camera became a sensation after Oprah Winfrey endorsed it on her show late last year. The latest incarnation of the easy-to-use, tiny shooter is the Flip MinoHD, which can capture footage at an HDTV-friendly 720p resolution. The camera’s exterior can also be customized, making it a colorful addition to the Flip lineup. $230, www.theflip.com

Worth it? There are other good HD mini-cameras out there at a similar price (like the Kodak zi6), but Flip customers such as Oprah swear by the camera line’s ease-of-use. They’ve flipped for it.

Slacker.com has made waves in the portable music world by going against the grain of a standard MP3 player. G2 Personal Radio Player stores your music files, sure, but it also downloads music from more than 100 of its music stations via a computer connection or Wi-Fi. The 2.4-inch color screens displays artist profiles, album reviews and cover art. It also comes with a custom carrying case, sporting a removable sport clip. $200-$250 for 4 GB or 8 GB versions, www.slacker.com

Worth it? Not everyone wants to purchase music online or convert their own CDs to a music player. For the music explorer, the G2 offers a new world of choices.

Even as flat-screen TVs drop in price this holiday season, the larger sets are still out of reach, financially, for many of us. Replicate the big-screen experience with the Olens Technology XPJ Projector. It displays video from DVD players, cable boxes or came consoles at 640 x 480 on a blank wall, keeping its clarity at up to 70 inches. It’s not HDTV, but it’s cheap and includes a spare lamp. $280, www.olenstechnology.com

Worth it? Only for those who are willing to create a dark home theater room or watch at night. For everyday TV viewing in well-lit rooms, projectors are a no-go.

Netbooks are small laptops that don’t feature high-end processors or boast big hard drives, but are perfectly fine for Web surfing and word processing. Dell’s Inspiron Mini 9 features an 8.9-inch screen, wireless connectivity and a 4 GB solid-state drive. It’s not spectacularly outfitted, but its minimalist features and tiny design will appeal to some. $350, www.dell.com/inspiron

Worth it? If Windows XP is a necessity, an extra $50 is in order (the $350 model comes with the Linux operating system). There’s also no optical drive, so forget about watching DVDs on it. Still, they don’t call it a “Netbook” for nothing.