TweetFollow Us on Twitter

Gift Guide for Geeks 2003: Share

Volume Number: 19 (2003)
Issue Number: 11
Column Tag: Review

Gift Guide for Geeks 2003: Share

by Ilene Hoffman

The gadgets to help you share those moments of life

How often do you take pictures at a gathering, and promise to send copies of the prized photos to the other folks? Do these copies ever make it to your friends and family? My guess is no.

So, my first gift recommendation is, of course, a nicely priced digital camera. Generally speaking, you can't go wrong if you buy a digital camera from any of the major companies, such as Canon, Olympus, Nikon, Fuji, Pentax, or even Sony. I own old Fuji and Olympus digital cameras, and I've been very happy with both of them. I also own Olympus, Nikon and Pentax film cameras, but won't buy another Olympus film camera. Three of the Olympus film cameras I've owned didn't make it past the second year of use without breaking. My basic Olympus Stylus, with a glass lens has performed well and I recommend it highly for a little travel camera (about $80).

Olympus digital cameras seem a bit more robust and with their zoom capabilities are more versatile. My Dad swears by his. Nikon's Coolpix digital cameras are highly praised by their owners (and I know quite a few). One of the recent Nikon CoolPix cameras, the 5400, is particularly nice. It is practically a professional grade camera, with a full range of functions, as well as add-ons and lenses. The 5400, however, doesn't quite fall into the nicely priced category. I've found the Fuji digital cameras to perform exceptionally well in poorly lit situations.

The bottom line is, you need to try the cameras out at a store prior to buying. I'm very picky about the eye piece and prefer Nikon's viewfinders. You should also look for a digital camera that is has at least a 3 mega-pixel resolution, so that you can produce good looking prints. Lower resolution cameras are ok for posting onto the Internet, but you can't really edit them to produce a decent 4 x 6 close up shot. A 3-megapixel camera can produce a good 8 x 10 photograph, if needed. Digital Camera HQ has a comparison page of many 3 mega-pixel cameras at:

www.digitalcamera-hq.com/3-megapixel-digital-cameras-ratings.html

Although, I'm usually not prone to recommending stores, I do want to make note that the Ritz Camera chain has an honorable 30-day money back guarantee, even on expensive cameras. Most retailers only have a 7 to 10 day return policy.


Figure 1: The File menu of RunRevVeez

If you have a digital camera, there's an easy solution to the "Where's that photo you promised me?" problem, which is my second gift recommendation. Hewlett Packard makes this little 2.9 pound printer that is a mere 9.1" x 4.4" x 4.9," so it can fit into computer bag easily. The HP Photosmart 245 compact photo printer has built-in slots for every type of digital media (CompactFlash, Microdrive, SmartMedia, Secure Digital, MultiMedia, Memory Stick, and xD-Picture Card). The built-in 1.8-inch LCD screen allows you to scroll through your pictures, do basic editing, and pick and choose your prints. A contact sheet with tiny thumbnails is also a print option. Basically, you just plug in the printer, pop in your media, hit print, and you're good to go. Can it get any easier than that?

The printer is fast, convenient, prints excellent quality pictures on Epson and HP 4" by 6" photo paper, and is one of the simplest printers to set up that I've ever used. It is a little pricey with a $199.99 MSRP, but if you want to forego the LCD display, you can get the Photosmart 145 for $149.99. The LCD screen makes the stand-alone unit more usable, though. Both models also connect to your computer with a USB cable that you supply.

Sharing those captured moments of life is always a great gift, and giving, or getting, the cool tools to do it is even better. Nearly any digital camera, and one of these printers, will turn you into a one person, photo producing machine in no time.


Ilene Hoffman

 

Community Search:
MacTech Search:

Software Updates via MacUpdate

Latest Forum Discussions

See All

Six fantastic ways to spend National Vid...
As if anyone needed an excuse to play games today, I am about to give you one: it is National Video Games Day. A day for us to play games, like we no doubt do every day. Let’s not look a gift horse in the mouth. Instead, feast your eyes on this... | Read more »
Old School RuneScape players turn out in...
The sheer leap in technological advancements in our lifetime has been mind-blowing. We went from Commodore 64s to VR glasses in what feels like a heartbeat, but more importantly, the internet. It can be a dark mess, but it also brought hundreds of... | Read more »
Today's Best Mobile Game Discounts...
Every day, we pick out a curated list of the best mobile discounts on the App Store and post them here. This list won't be comprehensive, but it every game on it is recommended. Feel free to check out the coverage we did on them in the links below... | Read more »
Nintendo and The Pokémon Company's...
Unless you have been living under a rock, you know that Nintendo has been locked in an epic battle with Pocketpair, creator of the obvious Pokémon rip-off Palworld. Nintendo often resorts to legal retaliation at the drop of a hat, but it seems this... | Read more »
Apple exclusive mobile games don’t make...
If you are a gamer on phones, no doubt you have been as distressed as I am on one huge sticking point: exclusivity. For years, Xbox and PlayStation have done battle, and before this was the Sega Genesis and the Nintendo NES. On console, it makes... | Read more »
Regionally exclusive events make no sens...
Last week, over on our sister site AppSpy, I babbled excitedly about the Pokémon GO Safari Days event. You can get nine Eevees with an explorer hat per day. Or, can you? Specifically, you, reader. Do you have the time or funds to possibly fly for... | Read more »
As Jon Bellamy defends his choice to can...
Back in March, Jagex announced the appointment of a new CEO, Jon Bellamy. Mr Bellamy then decided to almost immediately paint a huge target on his back by cancelling the Runescapes Pride event. This led to widespread condemnation about his perceived... | Read more »
Marvel Contest of Champions adds two mor...
When I saw the latest two Marvel Contest of Champions characters, I scoffed. Mr Knight and Silver Samurai, thought I, they are running out of good choices. Then I realised no, I was being far too cynical. This is one of the things that games do best... | Read more »
Grass is green, and water is wet: Pokémo...
It must be a day that ends in Y, because Pokémon Trading Card Game Pocket has kicked off its Zoroark Drop Event. Here you can get a promo version of another card, and look forward to the next Wonder Pick Event and the next Mass Outbreak that will be... | Read more »
Enter the Gungeon review
It took me a minute to get around to reviewing this game for a couple of very good reasons. The first is that Enter the Gungeon's style of roguelike bullet-hell action is teetering on the edge of being straight-up malicious, which made getting... | Read more »

Price Scanner via MacPrices.net

Take $150 off every Apple 11-inch M3 iPad Air
Amazon is offering a $150 discount on 11-inch M3 WiFi iPad Airs right now. Shipping is free: – 11″ 128GB M3 WiFi iPad Air: $449, $150 off – 11″ 256GB M3 WiFi iPad Air: $549, $150 off – 11″ 512GB M3... Read more
Apple iPad minis back on sale for $100 off MS...
Amazon is offering $100 discounts (up to 20% off) on Apple’s newest 2024 WiFi iPad minis, each with free shipping. These are the lowest prices available for new minis among the Apple retailers we... Read more
Apple’s 16-inch M4 Max MacBook Pros are on sa...
Amazon has 16-inch M4 Max MacBook Pros (Silver and Black colors) on sale for up to $410 off Apple’s MSRP right now. Shipping is free. Be sure to select Amazon as the seller, rather than a third-party... Read more
Red Pocket Mobile is offering a $150 rebate o...
Red Pocket Mobile has new Apple iPhone 17’s on sale for $150 off MSRP when you switch and open up a new line of service. Red Pocket Mobile is a nationwide MVNO using all the major wireless carrier... Read more
Switch to Verizon, and get any iPhone 16 for...
With yesterday’s introduction of the new iPhone 17 models, Verizon responded by running “on us” promos across much of the iPhone 16 lineup: iPhone 16 and 16 Plus show as $0/mo for 36 months with bill... Read more
Here is a summary of the new features in Appl...
Apple’s September 2025 event introduced major updates across its most popular product lines, focusing on health, performance, and design breakthroughs. The AirPods Pro 3 now feature best-in-class... Read more
Apple’s Smartphone Lineup Could Use A Touch o...
COMMENTARY – Whatever happened to the old adage, “less is more”? Apple’s smartphone lineup. — which is due for its annual refresh either this month or next (possibly at an Apple Event on September 9... Read more
Take $50 off every 11th-generation A16 WiFi i...
Amazon has Apple’s 11th-generation A16 WiFi iPads in stock on sale for $50 off MSRP right now. Shipping is free: – 11″ 11th-generation 128GB WiFi iPads: $299 $50 off MSRP – 11″ 11th-generation 256GB... Read more
Sunday Sale: 14-inch M4 MacBook Pros for up t...
Don’t pay full price! Amazon has Apple’s 14-inch M4 MacBook Pros (Silver and Black colors) on sale for up to $220 off MSRP right now. Shipping is free. Be sure to select Amazon as the seller, rather... Read more
Mac mini with M4 Pro CPU back on sale for $12...
B&H Photo has Apple’s Mac mini with the M4 Pro CPU back on sale for $1259, $140 off MSRP. B&H offers free 1-2 day shipping to most US addresses: – Mac mini M4 Pro CPU (24GB/512GB): $1259, $... Read more

Jobs Board

All contents are Copyright 1984-2011 by Xplain Corporation. All rights reserved. Theme designed by Icreon.