At last, plain language on a remote
You don’t need an engineering degree to operate Logitech’s Harmony 520 universal remote control. Designed for the nongeeks in your family, the remote contains clearly labeled buttons that do exactly what they promise. Want to tune into the stereo? Press “Listen to Music.” Rather watch a DVD? Push “Watch DVD” and the remote will turn on the television, DVD player and the audio/video receiver, and open the disc drawer so you can pop in the movie. Using a computer hook-up and a setup wizard, the remote can be programmed to do the work of 15 other remote controls. Available at Target, Wal-Mart and Sears, it costs $100.
www.logitech.com
Cordless phone system lets talker get cooking
Multitaskers, take note: RCA’s new cordless telephone system boasts a wireless headset that lets you talk on the phone sans hands, freeing you to type notes or start dinner while chatting on the phone. The RCA 25110RE3 model consists of a cordless handset, a wireless headset, a single charge-base for both, and a wall base with a range of 300 feet.
The headset has a movable boom microphone, volume controls and an on/off switch. Cost: $199.
www.rca.com
SmartGlobe keeps getting smarter
Would-be globe-trotters can explore the
world with an interactive globe that keeps
up with the times. With an electronic
pointer as your guide, you can hear Chinese
spoken, listen to Canada’s national anthem,
learn about Japan’s climate, play
fast-paced geography games and see how
long it takes to fly from the United States
to England.
Better yet, you can download updates
from the Internet via a USB connection to
a PC. Designed by Oregon Scientific, the
SmartGlobe also contains an interactive
pullout map of the United States. Cost:
$130.
www.oregonscientific.com
Software brings Web radio to iPod
You can beef up your Apple iPod play list with a new software
program that lets you record Internet radio offerings and automatically
download them to your iPod. The Windows-based
program from X-OOM provides access to 6,000 radio stations
on the Internet and can record up to 20 streams of music at
one time. Besides recording music for playback on an iPod, the
MP3 Radio Recorder for iPod program also can save music directly
to a USB memory stick. Cost: $30.
www.x-oom.com
