A Little Light Music
Sony’s super-light headphones make it easy to carry
a tune. Weighing in at 2.4 ounces, the MDR-710LP
is lightweight in every way but performance. Thanks
to a 30mm bass driver and neodymium magnets, these
high-fidelity headphones offer superb sound quality
for the price. Better yet, they fold up and fit into
a hard plastic carrying case that’s only slightly
larger than a hockey puck.
The 710LP’s design is so unusual that Sony felt compelled
to provide instructions on how to fold and unfold
them. But with just a 4-foot cord and one standard
3.5mm headphone jack, it’s really designed for portable
media devices and computers, not home stereos. The
710LP is $60; for more, tune in to sony.com.
Let’s Get Small
Just how small can a portable media player get? iRiver’s
Clix may hold the answer. It’s barely 2.5
inches wide. Yet the $200 2GB device can hold roughly
500 MP3s, as well as photos, videos, Flash games,
and text. It’s also a voice recorder and an FM radio.
A unique design offers no scroll wheel and hardly
any buttons; to navigate the on-screen menus, you
press the top, bottom, and sides of the device’s front
panel.
But this gadget is definitely for the
technically inclined. For one thing, the Clix uses
Microsoft’s Windows Media Player 11 to sync your music
and video files, so you’ll need Windows XP with Service
Pack 1 or 2 installed. The Clix is also extremely
picky about the video formats it supports; you may
need to download a free file converter before you
can take your movies with you. On the other hand,
the Clix is sure to make you the envy of your geek
friends — and that alone is worth something. For the
scoop, click on iriveramerica.com.
Flex Time
Does that tiny notebook keyboard cramp your writing
style? Next time, take an Adesso Foldable
Keyboard along for the ride. Adesso’s travel-friendly
keyboards are made of rubbery semi-opaque silicon,
so you can literally roll them up and stick them in
your carry-on. At $30, the 12-ounce, 109-key desktop
model won’t add much to your budget or burden. There’s
even a 7-ounce, 85-key notebook-sized version at the
same price. Both are waterproof and washable.
Mastering the Adesso takes some practice. The keys
are spaced farther apart than on a standard keyboard,
and you’ve got to hit them dead center to register
a keystroke. And be sure to use the Adesso on a solid
surface — it’s too floppy to balance neatly on your
knees. Visit adesso.com
to learn more.
The Vids Are All Right
A Web cam is just a Web cam, right? Not Creative’s
Live! Ultra for Notebooks ($80).
For one thing, this matchbook-sized camera clips to
the top of your laptop screen, so you can take video
on the road. It also comes bundled with a hands-free
headset and SightSpeed software that can turn your
machine into a mobile video phone.
Once you install the cam and create a free SightSpeed
account (sightspeed.com), you can make video calls
to other SightSpeed users without the herky-jerky
effect you get from most video phones. You can also
send video emails, record video-blog entries, or get
a second cam for your home so you can see your family
while traveling. Other software turns the Ultra into
a remote security cam that wakes up when it detects
motion or emails you an alert if someone gets close
to your computer. Zoom in on creative.com
for the nitty gritty.
Look Ma, No Hands
Polycom Communicator gives you a
new way to enjoy Skype, the Internet¹s most popular
free phone service--without using your hands. This
highly portable speaker phone is a snap to set up
and use. Just plug it into a USB port, install the
software, and press the Skype button on the phone
to launch the phone service. Use the Skype software
on your PC to find someone to call, then press the
Polycom talk button; the device dials their number
and puts them on speaker. You can make free Skype-to-Skype
calls anywhere around the world with often-stunning
clarity. If you purchase SkypeOut minutes, you can
call anyone on a cell or landline as well, though
reception quality will vary. The 5.4-ounce Polycom
($129) is built for travel and comes with a carrying
case and a USB cable--no other parts required. To
find out more, dial up polycom.com/communicator.
Shades of Distinction
They’re not rose colored, but the NeuView
sunglasses will help you see things in a new light.
The $72 shades are supposed to reduce stress by balancing
your brain hemispheres. If you’re thinking about something
that upsets you, just put on the glasses and flip
up the left or right windows. By flooding one brain
hemisphere with light while filtering the other one,
you should begin to feel less discombobulated. Maybe
it was just the power of suggestion, but I felt instantly
calmer after putting them on.
Traffic jams? No sweat. Obnoxious telemarketers?
Bring ’em on. But the large, boxy, mirrored shades
won’t be confused with Ray-Bans or Revos. “They make
you look like a robot,” my 10-year-old son volunteered.
His remark didn’t bother me a bit. For more, see neuviewglasses.com.