The SPOT Satellite Messenger gives outdoor thrill seekers a little extra insurance: It lets the folks back home track their progress, and learn when they’re OK or when they’re in trouble. However, the device isn’t perfect.
A guide to terms and definitions used in some key technology categories. It will help you speak geek with the best of them, whether at CES or browsing products in your neighborhood electronics store.
Two no-frills cellphones called the Jitterbug and the Coupe do a good job of handling calls, but some of the Jitterbug’s nonconformist features can be confusing for people familiar with cellphones.
A Web site called jackcards.com is trying to improve the way people send greeting cards, sending email reminders a month before important dates and shipping pre-stamped, pre-addressed cards to users.
Most camera users don’t want to hassle with USB cords and slow upload speeds when transferring images onto a computer or photo-sharing site. The $100 Eye-Fi Card is a carefree solution to the aggravation.
The $150 Vtech LS5145 Expandable Cordless Phone System synchronizes with your cellphone and redirects incoming cell calls to ring wherever the VTech phones are placed in the house.
Myfamily.com serves as a place where members can upload photos, videos, news, recipes, family-tree entries and other data in a few steps. Its ace in the hole is its popular relative, Ancestry.com.
Palm’s Centro is geared toward younger people who traditionally only carry a cellphone. Palm hopes the $100 device, a miniature version of the more expensive Palm Treo, will give it a much needed shot in the arm.
Movie download service Vudu likes to think of itself as the instant-gratification alternative to running to the video store. But the device, which plugs into your TV and Internet connection, has a poor movie selection and slow downloads.
Edited by Walt and written by Katie Boehret, this is a guide to gadgets, web services and other consumer technologies.
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