Facing the pink slip? A way out could be starting your own small venture at home. Priyanka Joshi puts together a list of must-haves.
Vrijesh Lunawat (name changed) was eyeing his next promotion but his dream was shattered by the global financial crisis. His job, Lunawat says, is now under threat. “I am mentally prepared to be told by my boss that they are relieving me,” he says matter-of-factly. Planning his next step, Lunawat has scraped together Rs 12 lakh, borrowing from his family members and putting together his savings, to start a value-added services company that will focus on delivering financial insights and market updates through SMS or voice call.
To get started, he has bought himself a dandy Apple Macintosh computer, running on wireless Internet connection in one room of his two-room apartment in Navi Mumbai. “This may be my future office so basic investment on infrastructure is crucial,” he explains. Next on the shopping list is a clutch of online subscriptions for various management books and then the new Blackberry Bold, the latest in the line. “I am a salaried man and have never had the courage to see myself as an entrepreneur. Adding these devices gives me a sense of being in charge of things and also lends a professional feel to my yet-to-be-launched venture,” Lunawat says, justifying his shopping.
The BlackBerry Bold, which retails at Rs 34,990, is a distinguished smartphone that comes with rich multimedia capabilities, including a media player for music, videos and photos, and a two-megapixel camera with video recording.
If, like Lunawat, you too are looking for technology to come to your aid in this time of crisis, here are some options that you must invest in: With work going byte-sized, e-ink and e-paper are now emerging as must-haves across boardrooms. Amazon, the online e-commerce portal, has already sold 240,000 Kindles (a wireless reading device), and Esquire magazine (esquire.com) is celebrating its 75th anniversary by publishing this month’s issue with an electronic paper cover!
Checking e-mail every minute is critical for most executives. No wonder then that getting a wireless Internet connection for laptops has become a simple affair. Savvy executives swear by a wireless router. “The new generation of routers is the equivalent of strapping three normal routers together to make one that is far more powerful. Their basic function is to beam the Internet all over your home and out into the backyard if you have one.
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Their range is about twice that of older routers and their transmit speed is up to five times faster,” exults Vivek Pahwa, CEO, SecondShaadi.com who has installed one at home. These routers are available for Rs 4,500 and more and you may feel that it is a lot of money to spend when you are facing a crunch. But Pahwa justifies, “Many users will have at least two or more computers. At some stage, you will probably want to make them talk to each other — usually to transfer pictures, videos and general files. With a powerful enough wireless router, you can remotely connect computers together and transfer data in a jiffy.”
All work and no play? Try buying the new Onkyo wireless headphones, known as MHP-UW2, priced at Rs 10,000. These let you listen to your iPod with a portable and high-fidelity wireless stereo earphone system. They use the 2.4Ghz digital connection and promise to deliver high quality sound. The transmitter weighs just 35 g and is compatible with IPod classic, Touch, Nano and Mini and has audio inputs for other portable audio devices.
Even in a time of hardship, stylish equipment can lift your mood. Even the old shredder has undergone an evolution: The 5- sheet crosscut studio shredder from Black and Decker might actually look good in your home office and not immediately scream “shredder”. In fact, this looks good enough to pass off with your Dell, HP, Apple laptops as it comes in black and red colours. With a 4-inch, space-saving slim design, the shredder will set you back by Rs 3,500. The machine only shreds 5 sheets of paper at a time.
For people who have connected their laptops and PC to TV sets, the highly compact, stylish Logitech diNoVo Mini keyboard is an easy option to wield the controls from the comfort of your chair. According to a Logitech research, more than 60 per cent of people who have connected their PCs to the television use this setup to browse the web, view photos and videos from their personal libraries and watch downloaded shows on their TV. The diNoVo Mini keyboard, which costs Rs 9,495, serves as an innovative, dual-purpose clickpad that can be used to point, scroll and click. Or, it can be used as a media remote and directional pad to navigate menus and make selections.
Stylish and compact, HP’s LaserJet 1007 and the HP LaserJet 1008 are launched to complement the growing need for greater flexibility, productivity and cost-savings in small businesses. Printing a page in less than eight seconds, the printers promise to save ink and deliver considerable cost benefits to users. Rightly priced at Rs 6,699 for 1007 and Rs 8,299 for 1008, these are truly small little print genies.
We spend a big chunk of our lives working, so it’s no shame that we should pay so much attention to equipping our workspaces.
| SMART HANDHELDS |
VIDEO PHONES
Intellicon’s Maia XC connects with wireless Internet and delivers professional videoconferencing features with IP telephony, Internet browser, e-mail, instant messaging, and photo viewer. Price: Athera’s videophone costs Rs 77,500
MORE BYTES
SanDisk mobile high-performance cards are must-haves for those who never want to run out of space to store data. Available in 2GB, 4GB and 8GB, the cards are priced Rs 1,999 onwards.
ONE FOR ALL
Pre-programmed to operate nearly every brand of TV, VCR, DVD, audio and CD, the sleek Kameleon universal remote is a foolproof gadget. Price: Rs 4,995
HAVE A SAFE DRIVE
While driving, it’s better to concentrate on the road. Yet, there are times when you can’t avoid answering the phone: Sony Ericsson HCB-108 Bluetooth speakerphone, with the longest talk and standby time, will help you carry on chatting while driving. To be launched by this year-end.