The OneMinute Geek

Gifts for the Geek

The Problem:

'Tis the season to be jolly. 'Tis also the season to give and receive

gifts. But with all the new high tech tools and fun gadgets in the stores, how do you know what to get your favorite geek?

The Solution:

Without condoning excessive materialism (dreaming is half the fun anyway!), here are my recommendations for “must-haves” for the holidays:

Phone-PDA Combos: Palmone Treo 650

Phone, e-mail, messaging, web, camera and organizer all in one tidy unit that actually feels like a real phone: $450 www.palmone.com

Digital Camera: Sony Cyber-Shot DSC-L1

There are many cameras offering better performance, but few that are as tiny as this one. Portability is key to me. I'm happy to just point and shoot. With 4 megapixels and 3X zoom, this baby is a winner. $300 www.sonystyle.com

Photo Printers: HP Photosmart 8150

You'll need a decent color printer for that new digital camera and HP does a great job of getting images into print. This particular model has memory card slots built into the printer. You just take the chip out of your camera, insert it into the printer, view the images on the screen and press the print button. Beautiful! $190 www.hp.com

DVD Rentals: NetFlix

This one made last year's list, too. Skip the gridlock and get your DVDs by mail. No postage costs. No late fees. Just go to the website, choose from over 25,000 titles, and hang onto any three discs at a time. $20 per month. www.netflix.com

MP3 Players: Rio Carbon

Apple's iPod (or the iPod mini) is still the king of players. From $249 www.apple.com Notable mentions include the Rio Carbon, which is thinner and lighter than most players and offers 5 gigabytes of storage and 18 hours of battery life. $200 www.rioaudio.com

Ruggedized Laptops: Panasonic Toughbook Y2

OK. Think Hummer. This laptop has a shock-absorbing case (so you can drop it like a cell phone and not cry!) and soda-resistant keyboards. Offering a 14-inch screen and weighing in at a less than 4 lbs, Panasonic's is light, cool looking and perfect for the beach. $2500 www.panasonic.com

James Kerr is President/CEO of SuperGeeks, a Hawaii-based computer service and repair company (www.supergeeks.net). Please feel free to send your questions, comments and suggestions to Mr. Kerr. He can be reached at kerr@supergeeks.net and 942-0773.