Sunday | 23 November, 2008
Cool stuff: Your 2007 holiday gift guide
More than 50 amazing gifts for the technology lovers in your life
Computerworld Staff 06/12/2007 12:40:36
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USB Toaster box

No, you can't really make toast on your computer. But wouldn't it be great if you could? Don't you have a co-worker who eats breakfast at his desk who would think that was just the best idea ever? Well, put whatever your real gift is inside this USB Toaster box ($8) from The Onion and watch his excitement grow ... and then fade.

It's the thought that counts, right? Why not give a gift that's nothing but thought?

Price: US$7.99 Summary: A gag gift for those who love to eat breakfast at their desks. Jake Widman

Seven gifts under US$50

Not everyone's getting a plasma HDTV this year. Try these budget-conscious gifts instead.

USB Chocolate MP3 Player

Everyone's got an iPod. But how many people do you know with a Chocolate MP3 Player?

This tiny music player is more or less the size of an Apple iPod Shuffle. It's brown, with a white top that features four cryptic symbols for controlling music -- forward, back, volume up, volume down -- represented by two people, a dog and a rooster (hey, don't ask us -- we just report on these products, not design them).

The USB Chocolate MP3 Player (US$39) holds 2GB of music, and weighs just 12 grams. It plugs into your USB port for both music transfer and recharging.

The USB Chocolate MP3 Player is tiny and looks awesome. Just don't eat it.

Price: US$39
Summary: The tiny USB Chocolate MP3 Player plugs into your USB port for both playing music and recharging.
Mike Elgan

USB-Powered Mini Greenhouse

This US$20 kit from Geeks.com comes with soil, seeds, software and a USB-powered greenhouse pod. The software has a calendar, so you can track events in the life of your marigolds. The USB cable powers a grow light, which points down from a height-adjustable arm.

Of course, you can reuse the Mini Greenhouse, using your own soil and seeds to grow herbs, other kinds of flowers or just about anything. The light will stay on as long as the computer is powered up and the Mini Greenhouse is plugged in.

Price: US$20
Summary: Nurture a green thumb with the USB Powered Mini Greenhouse, a PC-powered environment for growing flowers on your desk.
--Mike Elgan

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Computerworld Buyer's Guide - Vendors Matched to this Article
TippingPoint , Unixpac , Sourcefire , Kensington , Citrix , Adaptec , HAL Data Services , Dimension Data , Trend Micro , SafeNet , Revelation Software , GFI , SonicWALL , nCircle , Red Hat , MessageLabs , CA , 3Com
More about SLI-Consulting, Pure Digital, Alienware, T-Mobile, TiVo, On Command, Motorola, Roku, Rock, IBM, Epson, EPSON, Olympus, Audible, Archos, eBay, Google, BlackBerry, Consumer Electronics, Speed, Plantronics, MSN, WowWee, Bill, Motion, Lexus, Roku, Canon, Bose, Apple, Exposure, AT&T, Macs, RCA, AT&T, PLUS, NASA, Dell, Napster, SEC, Linksys, VIA, Circuit City, D-Link, ADVENT, Panasonic, Messenger, Yahoo, American Power Conversion, Intel, Samsung, LP, Marsh, Garmin, Pixar, Linux, Playstation, BMW, APC, Casio, Sonos, Legend, Xbox, Sony, Nintendo, Pulsar, Nvidia, HIS Limited, Nikon, Logitech, Brother, Skype, Harmonix, Creative Technology, Creative
Area-51 m9750, courtesy of Alienware
Area-51 m9750, courtesy of Alienware
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  • 605 WiFi, courtesy of Archos.
  • Aurvana X-Fi, courtesy of Creative Technology.
  • Nüvi 200, courtesy of Garmin.
  • G'zOne Type-S, courtesy of Casio.
  • Lumix DMC-TZ3, courtesy of Panasonic.
  • Stylus 790W, courtesy of Olympus.
  • Exilim EX-Z77, courtesy of Casio.
  • Sonos Digital Music System, courtesy of Sonos.
  • Squeezebox, courtesy of Slim Devices/Logitech.
  • SoundBridgeRadio, courtesy of Roku.
  • iHome Clock Radio for iPod, courtesy of SDI Technologies.
  • Bravia KDL-46V3000, courtesy of Sony.
  • DAK LP to CD System, courtesy of DAK.
  • Area-51 m9750, courtesy of Alienware
  • WRT600N router, courtesy of Linksys.
  • SecureSpot, courtesy of D-Link.
  • Back-UPS ES 750, courtesy of APC.
  • The Wii, courtesy of Nintendo.
  • Rock Band, courtesy of Harmonix.
  • Alive Elvis, courtesy of WowWee.
  • Roboquad, courtesy of WowWee.
  • SensorfreshQ, courtesy of FQSI
  • i-SOBOT, courtesy of Tomy.
  • USB Chocolate MP3 Player, courtesy of Brando.
  • Yubz Talk Online, courtesy of Yubz.
  • Singing Alarm Clock, courtesy of Edmund Scientific.
  • USB Roll-Up Drum Kit, courtesy of Brando.
  • iPhone/iPod 8-in-1 FM Transmitter, courtesy of USB Fever.com.
  • USB Doomsday Device Hub, courtesy of ThinkGeek.
  • LX200R GPS-enabled telescope, courtesy of Meade.
  • BMW 5 Series sedan, courtesy of BMW.
  • The Blue Gene/P installation at Argonne National Lab outside of Chicago, courtesy of IBM.
Computerworld Buyer's Guide - Vendors Matched to this Article
TippingPoint , Unixpac , Sourcefire , Kensington , Citrix , Adaptec , HAL Data Services , Dimension Data , Trend Micro , SafeNet , Revelation Software , GFI , SonicWALL , nCircle , Red Hat , MessageLabs , CA , 3Com
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