Gadgets top execs' holiday wish lists

Tablet PCs are popular this year.

“If I had something on my want list, it would be one of those,” said Doug Pitt, president of ServiceWorld Computer Center. “Being able to write in Microsoft Journal and capture the pages is very cool.”

Hewlett-Packard tablet PCs range in price from $1,700 to about $3,000.

“It works just like a notebook computer when you want it to, but when you don’t, you just take off the screen and go,” Pitt said.

For power on the go, Radio Shack offers the iGo line of adapters for electronic devices. It’s possible to use one iGo to power and charge everything instead of packing individual power cords and chargers for cell phone, personal digital assistant, MP3 player, laptop computer and digital camera.

“The advantage, particularly for a traveler or someone that wants to get rid of clutter, is that you have one power supply that powers all those devices,” said Charles Hodge, Radio Shack’s director of media relations. The iGo adapters range in price from about $15 to $120, and the individual tips required to connect each device retail for about $10.

To stuff the stockings of busy people who need to keep talking long after their wireless phone battery is zapped, Radio Shack offers Cell Boost, a small cartridge that plugs into most cell phone models.

“If you find yourself running out of juice and you don’t have the ability to recharge your phone where you’re at, you can plug this in and it will give you an additional hour of juice,” Hodge said. “You can use 10 minutes of it and save the rest for later. It’s not like once you activate it your hour is used.” Cell Boost retails for $6.99.

PDAs combined with cell phones are at the top of many wish lists. Darbi Welsh, account executive with Sprint PCS’ business channel, said these devices continue to grow in popularity, “especially for businesspeople because you have a lot of people that will carry their cell phone and a PDA,” she said. “This eliminates the two devices.”

ServiceWorld’s Pitt recommends the Samsung i500. “It allows you to surf the Web and send and receive email, as well as all of your normal Palm functions,” Pitt said. “I just got it and I’m still playing with all of the features.”

The Samsung i500 retails for about $600 from Sprint.

Tristan Davies, Drury University’s director of communications, said, “I’m a big fan of my Treo 600. … It’s a true convergence device – phone, PDA, wireless e-mail, camera. It gets lots of comments when people see me using it.”

Sprint will introduce the new 650 model later this month, which also has Bluetooth wireless technology. Welsh anticipates a retail price of around $600 to $650.

Jason Mortimer, retail sales manager for T-Mobile, predicts the new BlackBerry 7100t will be a hot seller.

“The traditional BlackBerry is much wider. The 7100t is going to give you a sleeker design – more of a phone than it is a PDA,” he said. Previous BlackBerry model keyboards had one letter per key, he said, but the 7100t has individual keys for each letter, making text messaging and e-mail faster. The BlackBerry 7100t retails for about $299.

The Bluetooth-enabled BlackBerry 7100t, and other Bluetooth-enabled devices on the market, allows users to take advantage of hands-free connectivity using a wireless headset. “It just fits around your ear and has a little small boom microphone that goes around your cheek, Mortimer said. Motorola headsets retail for about $80 to $100 at Radio Shack.

Bluetooth technology also can be added to vehicles, allowing the driver’s hands to remain on the wheel. “As you receive a call it’s going to go through your radio,” Mortimer said. “It’s going to mute your radio, (and) it’s going through the hands-free set-up in your car.”

Manager Andre Brunnert said that Car-Fi has installed Bluetooth technology in several cars recently. “It’s really nice. You don’t even have to put the phone in a traditional cradle where the cradle has a plug-in that actually connects, hardwired, to the phone. You could have the phone on your hip or in your purse, and talk to your dash,” he said.

Installation kits, available from wireless providers, are about $200. Installation runs about $90 at Car-Fi.

Brunnert predicts satellite radio will continue to be a hot seller. “At the moment, XM is a little more popular, but Sirius is really coming along,” he said. “The programming is very similar with the exception of a few different things – Sirius just added all NFL games on Sunday … . They also just picked up Howard Stern (for) in the future.”

“I have XM in my new car and I don’t know how I ever lived without it,” said Diana Botsford, marketing director of Greater Springfield Farmers Market and a member of the board of directors of Springfield Little Theatre.

Subscriptions for XM and Sirius are available through both companies’ Web sites or select retailers. Equipment at Car-Fi runs roughly $150, Brunnert said, plus installation of about $90.

Some gifts can be used as a reward for putting in a hard day’s work. The HoMedics Therapist Select Shiatsu Back Massager has dual massage heads that spin in circular motions and travel up and down the back.

“It feels like a real massage instead of just a lot of vibrating,” said Shannon Brogan, supervisor at the U.S. District Court Western Division.

The Shiatsu Back Massager retails for $99.