This year’s Christmas Gadget Countdown is open for voting as we join other Sift Media sites in hunting down the most popular gadget this festive season.
Just like one of Santa’s elves, executive peripherals editor Nigel Harris has been sorting through the potential contenders and posting his suggestions in his GadgetZone blog.
Harris is an accountant and is entitled to his views, but what really interests us is what gadgets, executive toys, games or tech appeals most to you in the HR community. Our definition for the term ‘gadget’ is pretty wide. It doesn’t necessarily have to be a work-related tool and can be hardware, software or a consumer electronics device. Basically, what is the thing you would most like to find under your tree on Christmas morning?
HR Zone’s Gadget of the Year will be awarded on the basis of popular acclaim via votes here. As with previous years, similar polls will be running on other Sift Media communities including AccountingWEB.co.uk, BusinessZone, Finance Week, TrainingZone and UK Business Forums. Alongside each community winner, we will put forward a Sift Media Gadget of the Year.
The Christmas Gadget Countdown is a bit of seasonal fun designed to keep members in touch with the trendier end of the IT and electronics scene. May the best gadget win!
Here’s some ideas below – add your own favourites in the comments:
- The Beatles Rock Band
- Panasonic Lumix DMC-FZ18 digital camera
- iPhone
- Montague’s folding 24-gear Swissbike
- Kodak Zi8 mini digital video camera
- Amazon Kindle e-reader
- BlackBerry Storm
- Mini-notebook PC
- Something else – tell us what below
Some current contenders from Nigel’s blog
• Video games
In the absence of any new consoles this year, it all boils down to the software. The Beatles Rock Band is bound to be this year’s blockbuster, combining top music with great graphics. And it’s available for Wii, X-Box 360 and PS3. Super Mario Brothers is looking like this Christmas’s big hit for more traditional gamers, while Avatar: The Game will appeal to DS users for whom Dr Watchamacallit’s Brain Training isn’t exciting enough. Or buy yourself Wii Fit Plus and promise that you’ll play it every day in 2010 as your New Year’s resolution.
• Anything USB
Sadly, the USB mince pie turned out to be a hoax, but the tacky USB Christmas tree didn’t! You can get almost anything you can imagine with a USB connector attached, but the good old USB cup warmer still takes some beating.
• Mini digital video cameras
If you look around, more and more individuals and professional organisations are experimenting with YouTube videos. The Flip Mino HD Chrome gives you up to minutes of HD video on a mobile phone-size camera. Apple’s new iPod Nano is even smaller and can play music and FM radio too. But the Kodak Zi8 is more versatile than either, doubling as a competent 5 MP still camera too. It just doesn’t look as cool.
• Digital cameras
Are you still in the fixed-lens point and shoot camp, or itching to trade up to a digital SLR like the pros use? In the junior division the Canon PowerShot G10, Pentax X70 and Nikon Coolpix P90 all impress but are out punched by Fujifilm’s 12-megapixel monster, the Finepix F200EXR. For SLR’s Stuff managzine reckons the Panasonic Lumix DMC-FZ18 is the best ‘bridge’ camera, and Samsung’s MX series points towards growing overlaps with its smartphone range.
• Folding bicycles
For the eco-conscious commuter, a folding bike is the ultimate in practical, feel-good gadgetry. Brompton’s £630 S-type models are the most popular, but our executive peripherals editor has his eye on Montague’s Swissbike a 24-gear mountain bike substitute that folds in half.
• E-book readers
Amazon’s £177 Kindle and Sony’s Pocket and Touch Editions are the main contenders, but keep an eye out for up and coming rivals such as the Cool-er E-book Reader and iRex Iliad.
• Laptops and mini-notebooks
Dell’s new thinline "Z" models have impressed, but netbook pioneer Asus is still making headway as it expands its range with more capable laptops such as the Seashell 1005HA. Or maybe it’s worth holding out for just one more year to see if the ultimate smartphone-media player-computer hybrid shows up.
• Printers
Hardly the most glamourous of Christmas present options, but people get very attached to their printers. Canon’s Pixma MX850 multifunction inkjet was themost popular model (in terms of numbers) in our Printer Buyer’s Guide survey, while OKI’s 5650 and 9450CDN won plaudits from users (see Matthew’s comment below). There are a lot of options to choose from!
• Mobile phones
Almost too many options to make a straight decision here, based around different mobile operating systems: Android (HTC Hero), Apple (iPhone 3GS), BlackBerry (Storm), Symbian (Nokia E55, E71, Samsung i8510 etc) and that plucky also-ran, Windows (HTC HD2).
Leave your idea of your ideal gadget below or vote on our poll here.
