FREE MUSIC Slim, easy, and sexy - Logitech's Wireless DJ scores a trifecta in modern gadget design. Plug the transmitter into your PC's USB port and the Bluetooth receiver into any music system on which you want to listen to your downloaded tunes, even if it's a few rooms away.
Anthem's AVM-series home theater audio preamp/processors are considered among the best - if not the best - for the money. An enthusiastic review in these pages back in November 2004 made much of the AVM 30's THX Ultra2 certification, multichannel analog input with full bass management, and extensive list of surround modes.
Video front projectors have always been the best way to watch movies at home, and now that new 1080p models capable of unveiling all the detail in high-def sources have arrived, there's even more reason to get keyed up about the category.
Noise-canceling headphones - once a luxury reserved for hard-core business travelers living on jets - have gone mainstream. Though fancy models still cost north of $200, today you'll find name-brand phones for as little as $50. That's clearly within reach of iPod-toting everyday Joes.
Have you ever thrown your iPod into the washing machine...on purpose? That's what the folks at ArsTechnica—a website worthy of daily visits—did with the new second-generation nano, following gushes of interest in similar tests inflicted upon the first-gen nano. And guess what? The nano continued to be playable. "Despite many requests to drop the nano into the toilet, boiling water, and cups of beer, I decided to quit with the washing machine," said tester Jacqui Cheng. Before that, it survived being sat upon. It also did well with scratch testing in a bag full of coins, keys, cellphone, camera, and other knickknacks, which left only minor blemishes on the new aluminum finish and none on the screen. Only with the sidewalk-drop test did the unit acquire a serious problem—one impact on concrete was all it took to render the screen useless. Note from our lawyers: Don't try any of these stunts, and if you do, we're not liable.
Here’s a nicely blurry side view of JVC’s thin RPTV. This is headed for our shores, though at the moment there’s no price or even a model number. It’s about 10-inches thick.
Hitachi has a line of products in Japan called WOOO. You read that right. The WOOO line of DVD Recorders with hard drives is about a stylish product I’ve seen. It looks like a BMW M1. The shot here is the version with a Blu-ray drive. I doubt we’ll see either here.
