Gremlin-free
Gizmos
BY TREVOR
KEARNEY
CAN'T TOUCH THIS
Nothing ruins a holiday trip like luggage tampering,
so arm accordingly. Perfect for a rough-and-tumble traveler
who frequents countries where transportation security isn't
the most scrupulous, or for the college freshman stuck with
a rude roommate, the
Eagle Creek 3-in-1 Security Alarm
($35, Byrne's Luggage, 940 SW Morrison St., 241-0969) is
the best way to keep stuff safe. The three parts--a retractable
cable, combination lock and motion sensor--add up to strong-arm
insurance against unwitting thieves. If the lock is fiddled
with or cut, the whole airport will know about it.
STEP OUT OF THE CAR GRACEFULLY
Save the peanut
butter for lunchtime--now you can do more than mask your
whiskey breath, you can test it! By checking every breath
she takes with the Digital Breathalyzer ($99, Sharper
Image, 700 SW 5th Ave., 228-4110), your favorite flirting-with-disaster
friend will keep the cops from watching every move she
makes. Designed for cautious scammers who want to know
just how much they can get away with or for anal-retentive
part-time partyers who take the idea of personal responsibility
to a life-behind-the-iron-curtain level, the Breathalyzer
works much like the version carried by the men in blue.
Powered by a 9-volt battery, it takes 60 seconds to warm
up and a couple of puffs to determine how fit one is to
drive. The digital readout appears on a tiny LCD screen
and is accurate to the nearest .001 percent. Complete
with two reusable mouthpieces--so the passenger can get
in on the fun, too--this gift screams, "I love you, but
you've got a problem!"
BLAIRWITCHED
Don't let your favorite hiker--or
film student--go into the woods without some guiding light.
Colibri's Quantum CX-10 lighter ($100, Rich's Cigar
Store, 820 SW Alder St., 228-1700) is windproof and works
without flint or a battery, but even more important is
the compass embedded in its belly. The multitool, which
features a nearly invisible, butane flame that purrs like
a mini blow torch, also has a secure locking lid and a
leather carrying case. Did we mention the compass? This
baby is packed with playthings. Add some smokes and a
map and Wicca watchers will be all set.
TOOL TIME
Anyone who loves their TV remote control
almost as much as their tool shed should be treated to
the ROBOLaser level ($319, Woodcrafters, 212 NE
6th Ave., 231-0226). With a self-leveling laser that will
make any Tim Allen wannabe grunt with pleasure, this gray
and hard-hat-yellow pendulum employs gravity to constantly
level itself. It works on inclines up to 10 degrees and
has a visibility of 100 feet. Place the level on any surface
(it comes with a tripod), punch the remote control and
it spins into place, leaving a laser dot on the wall at
your desired height. Move the level down the way, repeat
and connect the dots to get a vertical line proven to
be accurate within one-eighth of an inch. Hey, the toolbox-shaped
container claims, "If there's gravity, ROBOLevel stays
true!" Who can argue with that?
HIGHWAY HIGH JINKS
Transform someone's commute
time into playtime with the Kenwood P907 In-Dash Monitor
($1,999.75, Car Toys, various locations). In the space
of a normal car radio, the P907 is an AM/FM stereo, a
CD player and a TV all in one. The retractable, 5.8-inch-wide
LCD screen features the touch-screen controls of the single-disc
player, radio and television while doing overtime as a
TV screen. The P907 comes with four antennas--one for
each corner of a car--to optimize tuning, and allows for
upgrades like a DVD player, a larger monitor or a video
game system. Grand just gets grander all the time, doesn't
it?
PANORAMA PANDEMONIUM
Amateur photographers zoom
into pros with the ParaShot one-shot 360-degree digital
camera attachment ($999.95, Pro Photo Supply, 1112
NW 19th Ave., 241-1112). The ParaShot, a special lens
attachment with a lanky extension, mounts on a digital
camera and records a 360-degree image that will appear
as a doughnut-shaped shot when uploaded. But once unwrapped
by the ParaPlayer viewer software, the photo turns into
a full-circle panoramic picture. Once available only by
stitching together several shots with additional processing,
a 360-degree shot--say, a full view of a room or the span
of the Grand Canyon in a single image--is a one-step process
with ParaShot. One drawback: The ParaShot works only with
the Kodak DC265 Zoom, Olympus C-2000 Zoom or Nikon Coolpix
950.
FUTURE PRESENTATION
Forget clunky albums and fragile
frames. If a gift isn't digital, it just isn't happening.
That's why Sony came up with the CyberFrame PHD-A55
($899.99, Comp USA, 1778 N Jantzen Beach Center, 240-4900),
a video photo frame that projects pictures on a 5.5-inch
active LCD-display matrix and takes old-fashioned picture
presentation to a new level. Photos stored on a memory
stick--smaller than a stick of gum--upgrade a slide show
from quaint to quantum when reeled on this desktop companion.
MPEG movies can also be played on the tiny screen. A slide-out
menu tray lets you program picture order and control the
musical accompaniment. While you can't put CyberFrame
on your mantle, this sign-of-the-times gadget does make
preserving Kodak moments much more streamlined.
SIZE DOES MATTER
For anyone not yet up to speed
on the DVD craze, time's running out to step into the
20th century. But why limit a player to one, five or even
10 discs when you can stash 200? The Sony DVP-CX850D
200-disc DVD player/storage unit ($799.99, Northwest
Sony Only, 1610 NW Glisan St., 224-9400) allows a user
to insert a disc and never touch it again. It has all
the features of other standard DVD players, such as component
video output, which produces a super-sharp picture, and
five sound channels designed to replicate the movie-theater
experience. This storage unit works as a jukebox for digital
and compact discs, keeping software in better condition.
Furthermore, with the goods only the touch of a button
away, home movie time becomes that much more convenient.
And that's what it's really all about, isn't it?
