There are few sure things in life. But among the exceptions is this: You will be overwhelmed when you walk into a computer or electronics store this season and try to pick out the perfect gift.
Is it any wonder? Hundreds of new high-tech toys, computer games and gadgets cram the shelves each holiday season, vying for attention. Pick the wrong one and you can kiss your hard-earned cash goodbye.Fear not. Our staff has dedicated themselves to the onerous task of playing with -- er, evaluating -- new games and gadgets. Yeah, it's a tough job, but somebody has to do it.
Obviously, there's more good stuff than the items we've spotlighted here. But these are sure bets, the high-tech gifts that will keep you and your wired ones happy long after your New Year's resolutions have turned to well-intentioned memories:
LEGOS FOR GROWN-UPS: With help from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology Media Lab, Lego has revolutionized one of the best-selling toys of all time. MindStorms gives you Lego building blocks for real robots that move, act and think on their own.
The $200 kit includes more than 700 pieces, including a microprocessor (the same used in early PCs), motors and sensors. Once you've built your robot, program it on your PC and then beam the instructions with an infrared transmitter. Remember, your kids get a chance to use it too.
Information: (800) 453-4652 or www.legomindstorms.com.
LIGHTWEIGHT PROTECTION: Your laptop weighs enough already -- you don't need to double its weight with a heavy bag. The Kensington Sky Runner packs plenty of room and protection for your computer but weighs half as much as other three-compartment bags. A single zipper provides access to all your stuff. Available in nylon (about $55) and leather ($75).
Information: (800) 535-4242 or www.kensington.com.
CHESS EGO BUSTER: If you think you're another Garry Kasparov, match wits with Ivan the Terrible, a stand-alone chess computer with a 500-word vocabulary that can taunt you or coach you -- it's your choice.
With levels from beginner to expert, Ivan can play seriously or entertain you with sound effects such as galloping horses, blowing bugles and clanging swords. From Excalibur Electronics, $150.
Information: (305) 477-8080 or www.excaliburelectronics.com.
WIRED WINNIE: He may look like your standard stuffed Pooh, but this $99 interactive toy is definitely not as empty-headed as his namesake.
Hook Winnie up to your PC (Windows 95/98 required) and program him to remember your child's name and engage in dozens of games and activities -- in front of or away from the computer. Winnie's head and mouth move as he talks and sings.
Information: Mattel Media at (888) 628-8359 or www.mattelmedia.com/pooh.
MUSIC TO GO: About the size of a pager, the Diamond Multimedia Rio may change the face of the music industry. This gadget is a portable music player that stores up to 60 minutes of digital sound in the new MP3 format.
Just hook it up to your PC, download songs from your personal CDs or the Internet and carry them with you. It's a snap to set up and use, and it runs on a single AA battery.
The $199 Rio is so revolutionary that it sparked a legal challenge from the the recording industry. The Rio won, but you'd better snap one up before the judge changes her mind.
Information: (408) 325-7000 or www.diamondmm.com.
HAND-HELD CHAMP: Despite stiff competition from hand-held PCs running Windows CE, the Palm III ($369) is still the best of this breed.
It organizes your contacts and phone numbers (6,000 of them), keeps your calendar, tracks expenses and synchronizes everything with your PC. You'll find lots of add-ons, including the $129 snap-on modem, which gives you access to e-mail wherever there's a phone.
Information: (800) 881-7256 or www.palm.com.
STOP PHONE FUMBLING: If you're tired of punching tiny buttons to make your portable phone work, the Sprint PCS TouchPoint makes it easy to negotiate menus and functions with a large "mouse button" in the center of the control panel.
The $180 TouchPoint stores up to 300 numbers, displays short-message pages and has a built-in calendar that tracks appointments and synchronizes with your PC.
One caveat: The Sprint PCS network doesn't cover as large an area as standard cellular networks, so check conditions in your locale.
Information: (800) 480-4727 or www.sprintpcsnews.com/phones.
MOUSING AROUND: Want to keep your mouse clean? Cover it with another mouse -- or at least a cover that looks like the real thing. In fact, Bennie the mouse cover looks real enough to scare more than a few adults, which is why kids will love it. You won't find many computer accessories as cheap as this one -- $5 at Radio Shack.
OLDIE REVIVED: First released in 1979, Asteroids became an instant, quarter-sucking arcade classic. Now Activision has pulled off the impossible: new Asteroids with the intensity of the original but enough embellishments to please the 3-D generation.
The graphics in this $40, Windows 95/98 game are stunning -- you can almost feel the asteroids' craggy surfaces. The game play is even more challenging: The UFO from the original is back -- but now it's joined by black holes, solar flares and other menaces.
Information: www.activision.com.
TINIEST ORGANIZER: It's no bigger than a credit card and weighs only 1.4 ounces, but the Rex Pro ($230) is a full-fledged organizer that tracks your appointments and contacts and syncs up with your desktop PC.
The latest version eliminates the biggest drawback of its predecessor -- you can now enter information directly into the Rex instead of downloading everything from your computer.
Information: (609) 386-2500 or www.franklin.com/rex/.
KIDS' CAMERA: Your youngsters won't need a PC to use this clever little $49 digital camera -- it hooks right up to a Nintendo Game Boy and displays the pictures it takes on the Game Boy's screen.
Don't expect high-resolution -- this is strictly for fun, but it works. Of course, to make the setup complete and share photos with friends, you'll need a $59 Game Boy printer, too.
Info: www.nintendo.com.
MIX YOUR OWN CD: This may be the year of the minidisc, a tiny CD that can be recorded and played on gadgets that fit in the palm of your hand.
The $500 Sharp MS702 lets you make your own "mixes" from regular music CDs. It features a front-loading mechanism, wired remote control and lithium-ion battery that provides five hours of continuous playback.
Information: (800) BE-SHARP or www.sharp-usa.com.
DANCE WITH THE DEAD: Grim Fandango is the freshest adventure game in years. You're Manny Calavera, a travel agent in the Land of the Dead, and you're unintentionally caught in the middle of an embezzlement ring.
The $45 LucasArts creation combines vivid, 3-D, art-deco graphics, classic film noir techniques and Mexican folklore -- it's bizarre and unforgettable.
The razor-sharp, sarcastic dialogue -- more than 7,000 lines in all -- is almost as entertaining as the puzzles themselves. Destined to become a genre classic.
Information: (800) 782-7927 or www.lucasarts.com.
SILLIEST ACCESSORY OF THE YEAR: Tired of a plain PC? Try adorning it with a Monimal, a furry cover that turns your desktop machine into a friendly cow, mouse or rodent -- complete with a screen saver that completes the picture.
Priced from $20 to $26.
Information: (602) 998-3400 or www.monimalsusa.com.
SITTING PRETTY: There may be a more comfortable, ergonomically sound place to park your body than Herman Miller's $900 Aeron chair, but we haven't found it. Adjustments include lower-leg length, seat depth, hip breadth, back height, elbow height, lumbar height and lumbar depth.
The elastic, woven fabric distributes weight evenly and lets air pass through. Expensive, but a great place to sit.
Information: (616) 654-3000 or www.hermanmiller.com.
BARBIE REDUX: What's Christmas without a Barbie under the tree? Barbie Nail Designer is one of the most popular offerings from Mattel's new interactive division. In fact, digital Barbie titles are almost as hot as the real-life dolls.
This $20 package allows you -- well, maybe not you, but your 5-year-old daughter -- to design personal nail stickers she can really wear. Trust us, she'll love it.
Information: www.mattelmedia.com.
MIND YOUR MONEY: There comes a time when you have to stop playing games on your PC and get down to business. When that moment comes, it's time for Quicken Deluxe 99.
The $60 Quicken has been the most popular personal finance software for more than a decade. And for good reason: It's simple, easy to use, and powerful -- handling your checkbook, home or car loans, taxes and investments.
Information: (800) 446-8848 or www.intuit.com.
THE ULTIMATE ENCYCLOPEDIA: It may not have the multimedia flash of its competitors, but the Encyclopedia Britannica CD has one thing going for it: the Britannica's articles are unmatched for their breadth and depth.
With the $119 electronic version (which requires Windows 95/98), you have access to the entire contents of the 32-volume encyclopedia, plus thousands of photos, videos and Web links. You can even order up comparative charts and graphs. Possibly the most valuable CD-ROM you'll ever buy.
Information: (800) 747-8503 or www.eb.com.