Gadgets need not be boring and serious. From the USB Mini Fridge that will keep your soda cans chilled by plugging into your PC to a cap with in-built speakers, Priyanka Joshi gives you the lowdown on a range of gizmos that will have you cooing, without pinching your pocket
Portable Toilet Speakers As ridiculous as the name might sound, these tiny speakers are bound to be an object of discussion no matter where you take them. Styled as miniature toilets, in cute colours (yellow, blue, pink and white) each of these speakers cranks out 2 watts of sound with a frequency range of 80Hz to 25kHz.
Price: Rs 700 a piece (shipping charges extra)
Where: www.chinagrabber.com
Little Bear Webcam
If you are looking for some cute add-ons for your laptop, then it can’t get any cuddlier than Little Bear webcam — a plug and play webcam. A tiny webcam sits inside the nose of this Little Bear, making it an adorable addition to your own desk or a special gift for your friends. Don’t fret about getting the settings for the webcam as you also get a CD with it that will load all the relevant video settings for PCs running on Windows 7, Vista and XP. The webcam gives a basic resolution of 640x480 pixels, which is just about enough for video chats.
Price: About Rs 1,000 (shipping charges Rs 150 odd)
Where: www.usb.brando.com
Split Stick
If you want to keep your work and personal files (data) separately, but on the same USB, look no further than the Split Stick. This USB drive consists of two 4GB retractable USB drives that are built into one slim 8 GB stick. A plastic tab allows you to easily extract and retract the two sides of the drive. Available in orange, black and pink, this drive will definitely put you a class above your peers.
Price: Costs about Rs 1,200 (shipping costs extra)
Where: www.quirky.com
High Contrast Keyboard
It can be a taxing exercise for many to squint and jab at tiny laptop keyboards and keys every day. So here’s an easy-to-read keyboard with high-contrast keys and enlarged print. The bright yellow keys are labelled in black, with a san serif type font that is similar to the high-visibility colour scheme used for highway warning signs.
The 103-key layout is the same as that on a standard keyboard, along with 12 function keys on the top row, plus nine buttons for common multimedia and browser commands. You can connect this keyboard through the USB port. The product comes with a boast of surviving over 10 million keystrokes, so you can enjoy years of trouble-free typing.
Price: Rs 2,400 (shipping charges extra)
Where: www.hammacher.com
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USB Mini Fridge
Drinking a warm can of juice or diet soda is no fun, especially when the office canteen is some distance away. That’s why some tech genius thought of a USB Mini Fridge that can help keep your beverage chilled (or even help restore a melted chocolate bar) simply by plugging in to your PC with a USB port. This 5V mini fridge needs no batteries, and temperature drops down to to 8.5 degrees after five minutes of turning it on. So, get your hands on one and get ready to dazzle your boss by working uninterrupted at your computer.
Price: Rs 1,500 (shipping charges extra)
Where: www.gadget.brando.com
iLogic Sound Hat
A pair of in-built speakers in this cap allow the user to wear (or position) the speakers over your ears. This can connect to your iPod, iPhone or MP3 player by a 3.5mm audio jack and a 98 cm wire ensures that you can extend it from the internal lining to your nearest gadget. These sound hats are available in three colours — black, white and pink.
Price: Rs 1,500 (shipping charges extra)
Where: www.ilogicsoundhat.com