Select a gift for people who love electronics

If you have people on your Christmas list who love electronic gizmos and technology, here are some gift ideas, ranked by price. Those items that have been discussed in previous column have the date of the column in parentheses. You can view these past articles at www.sabbarpublications.com.

$300 and up: The ultimate technology gift is a new computer – either a laptop or desktop. (4/24, 7/24, 10/16, 10/23, 10/30). For people with desktop computers, a flat LCD panel monitor runs $300 to $750, depending on size.
A very hot item is the Apple iPod – the most popular MP3 player on the market, ranging in price from $200 for the iPod nano to $399 for the 60Gb version that plays videos and TV shows. (11/6) High on the list for teens is the Xbox 360 game console. While they were projected to come out in the $300 range, "shortages" carefully crafted by Microsoft are pushing package prices up to in excess of $500.
For grown-ups, some of the most desirable products include GPS systems for your car, video camcorders, and high-end digital cameras. (12/5/04) A PDA – personal digital assistant: a hand-held electronic device that includes a calendar, address book, etc – with wireless capability for web surfing and e-mail can cost $300 to $450.

$100 to $300: Get an all-in-one printer that scans, copies, faxes, and prints for about $200. For a unit that also does photo printing, expect to pay about $300. 4 or 5 megapixel digital cameras take excellent pictures and cost between $150 and $300. PDAs without wireless cost up to $200. An external USB or firewire hard drive is a good investment for backup purposes and costs around $150, depending on capacity.
For the younger set, cool gaming devices include the hand-held Sony PSP which plays games, movies, and MP3s for about $250 and the Sony PlayStation2 for about $150. Non-iPod MP3 players run from $150 to $300; be careful to check compatibility with the download service you use. (11/6) A portable DVD player may be a good investment for younger kids, especially if you do frequent car travel; price depends mostly on screen size.

Under $100: Try a wireless router for $50 to $100 (5/8), a web cam for $35 to $50 (11/20), a USB RAM drive for $20 to $100 (7/17) or a cordless mouse for about $30. For people who already have an iPod, try any of the cool accessories such as a car charger, FM transmitter, iTunes gift card, or an armband holder. For people with digital cameras, give the gift of a memory card (be careful to get the right format), a spare battery, a nicer carrying case, or printing media like photo paper or T-shirt transfers.
Software worth having includes titles like Photoshop Elements at $100, tax software for about $50 (2/6), scrapbook software, or road mapping software from Microsoft or Delorme. Aspiring music composers will appreciate software like Sony Acid Music Studio along with a supply of writable CDs.
If you're looking for something truly unique, go to amazon.com and search for "USB watch." You'll find wristwatches with a USB memory device built-in.

By Carol Sabbar from the Kenosha News on 12-4-05